Bangladesh Factory Collapse: Engineer Arrested

An engineer who warned a building in Bangladesh was unsafe a day before it collapsed has been arrested on suspicion of negligence.

Details of Abdur Razzak Khan's arrest came as the number of people killed in the disaster passed 500, after dozens more bodies were pulled from the rubble.

The eight-storey Rana Plaza in Dhaka housed five clothing factories, including one which made garments for Primark.

A woman cries as she searches for her missing brother

Khan was a consultant for Mohammed Sohel Rana, the building's owner, when three floors were illegally added.

He was called to inspect the building when it developed cracks on April 23 and later appeared on television, saying he had told Rana to evacuate workers because the structure was not safe.

Police ordered an evacuation but witnesses say Rana told people gathered outside the building on the morning of the tragedy that it was safe to go inside.

A Bangladeshi soldier stands in front of the collapsed building

Hours later, the complex collapsed into 600 tons of rubble with around 3,000 people inside.

Lieutenant Mir Rabbi, of the Bangladeshi army control room, said the death toll now stands at 501.

More than 100 people are still missing.

Major General Chowdhury Hassan Suhwardy, an army commander who is supervising the rescue operation, said: "We are still proceeding cautiously so that we get the bodies intact."

Rana has also been arrested and is expected to be charged with negligence, illegal construction and forcing workers to join work.

The offences are punishable by a maximum of seven years in jail.

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US Officials: Israel Launches Airstrike Into Syria

US officials say Israel has launched an airstrike into Syria, apparently targeting a suspected weapons site.

They believe the strike hit a warehouse, but it does not appear that a chemical weapons site was targeted.

CNN said the strike took place overnight on Thursday into Friday, just as Israel was flying many warplanes over Lebanon.

But the US does not believe Israeli warplanes entered Syrian airspace to conduct the strikes, the TV news station added.

Israel has targeted weapons in the past that it believes are being delivered to the Lebanon-based militant group Hezbollah.

Earlier this month, Israel admitted carrying out a January airstrike on a weapons convoy in Syria thought to be en route to Hezbollah.

Israeli Embassy spokesman Aaron Sagui said he could not comment on the report, but said Israel is determined to prevent the transfer of chemical weapons by the Syrian regime to terrorists.

Mr Obama, on a trip to Costa Rica, rules out US 'boots' on Syrian ground

The reports came hours after Barack Obama refused to rule out options in dealing with the crisis in Syria but said he did not foresee sending in US ground troops.

Speaking during a visit to Costa Rica, the President said: "As a general rule, I don't rule things out as commander-in-chief because circumstances change and you want to make sure that I always have the full power of the United States at our disposal to meet American national security interests.

"Having said that, I do not foresee a scenario in which boots on the ground in Syria, American boots on the ground in Syria, would not only be good for America but also would be good for Syria."

Mr Obama said there was evidence that chemical weapons had been used in Syria, but that "we don't know when, where or how they were used".

But if "strong evidence" is found of such weapons being used by the regime of President Bashar al Assad, then "that is a game changer for us" because "there is a possibility that it lands in the hands of organisations like Hezbollah", Mr Obama said.

Mr Obama said if use of chemical weapons in Syria is confirmed, the US will present that evidence to the international community, because it concerns the entire world.

But he called for caution to avoid unintended consequences, saying: It's important for us to do it right."

There have been reports of a 'large-scale massacre' in Baida

Meanwhile, warnings of a new "large-scale massacre" in Syria have emerged following reports President Assad's troops bombarded Sunni areas near the city of Bania.

The opposition National Coalition accused the regime of "war crimes and genocide", citing witness reports of civilians being stabbed to death.

"The Coalition calls on the Arab League and the United Nations to act rapidly to save the civilians of Baida, Banias and other villages across Syria," it said in a statement.

"Several sources in the village say at least 50 people were killed in summary executions and shelling in Baida village,"Rami Abdel Rahman, of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, told AFP news agency.

Syria's official Sana news agency said troops killed "terrorists" and seized arms in an operation targeting rebels.

Regular forces were supported by pro-regime "shabiha" militiamen, said the Observatory, which relies on a network of sources on the ground for its information.

The Banias region is predominantly Alawite, an offshoot of Shi'ite Islam and the sect of President Assad, while the insurgents battling to topple his regime are mainly Sunni Muslims.

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'Massacre By Syrian Forces Kills At Least 50'

Forces loyal to Syria's leader have stormed a village in a "massacre" that has left at least 50 people dead, reports say.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said President Bashar al Assad's troops and militias raided the coastal village of Baida, killing many with gunfire or knives.

Women and children were among the victims and some bodies were found burned, the group said.

The British-based Observatory said the final toll was expected to exceed 100 dead. It earlier reported fighting around Baida that killed at least six government troops.

The village has previously witnessed mass arrests of men after residents joined protests challenging Mr Assad's regime, according to human rights activists.

The reports emerged as the US confirmed it was taking a fresh look at whether to provide weapons to Syria's rebels, having rejected doing so in the past.

A protest against the Assad regime in Baida in 2011

Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel said "Yes" when asked at a Pentagon news conference with his British counterpart Philip Hammond whether the US government was rethinking its opposition to the idea.

Mr Hammond said Britain had not yet provided arms, but would not rule it out.

He told Sky News: "We've never removed from the table the possibility of providing lethal support to the opposition forces.

"We haven't done so yet - we've drawn a very clear line - but we've made it clear to the Assad regime that every option remains on the table if they consider to massacre their population.

"The reports coming in of another massacre, if they turn out to be true, will turn out to be yet another shocking chapter in this regime's book."

Asked why the West was not doing more to assist the rebels, Mr Hammond said Britain was "strongly supportive" of the opposition.

He said the disjoined nature of the opposition forces and their extremist elements were "complicated factors", and an international consensus was needed.

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Bhutto Case Prosecutor Shot Dead

A Pakistani prosecutor working on the murder case of ex-prime minister Benazir Bhutto dies after his car is sprayed with bullets.

An unidentified gunmen intercepted the car of state prosecutor Chaudhry Zulfiqar in a busy street in Islamabad and sprayed it with bullets, local police said.

Mr Zulfiqar died in hospital.

More follows...

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North Korea Reactor 'Could Produce Plutonium'

New satellite images of North Korea suggest it is nearing completion of a reactor designed for generating electricity - but which will have the capability to produce plutonium.

US academics who visited the site at the Yongbyon nuclear complex in 2010 concluded the reactor was being built for electricity.

Kim Jong-Un shut down a reactor in 2007 during aid negotiations

But analysts say that once complete the reactor will have a residual capability to produce weapons-grade plutonium.

The pictures have been published on 38 North - the website of the US-Korea Institute at Johns Hopkins' School of Advanced International Studies.

The images - the most recent taken last month - show what appear to be external finishing touches made to the complex.

North Korea revealed an industrial-scale uranium enrichment facility in 2010 designed to provide fuel for the light-water reactor.

This development caused international alarm because of the potential for the centrifuges to be reconfigured to produce highly-enriched uranium - another means of creating fissile material for weapons.

If North Korea has produced enough low-enriched uranium to run the new reactor, it could commence the lengthy process of starting it up in the coming weeks, and be fully operational during the first half of 2014.

Containing the nuclear fuel and keeping the reactor cool pose major challenges - as would unforeseen events like natural disasters that caused a meltdown in Japan's Fukushima reactor in 2011, the analysis says.

"Pyongyang is probably planning to build additional power reactors to end its electricity shortage and help solve its economic problems," said Joel Wit, a former State Department official and editor of 38 North.

The latest image taken in March 2013 shows what could a water channel

"It may have some residual ability to produce plutonium for nuclear weapons, but the biggest concern about these reactors is whether they are safe or not," he added.

North Korea announced in April that it was restarting an older reactor at Yongbyon from which it is estimated to have derived enough plutonium for six bombs.

The reactor was closed in 2007 during aid-for-disarmament negotiations.

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Boston Bombing: Three New Suspects Charged

Three college friends of Boston Marathon bombing suspect Dzhokhar Tsarnaev have been charged by police investigating the attacks.

Azamat Tazhayakov and Dias Kadyrbayev are charged with conspiring to obstruct justice. A third man, Robel Phillipos, is charged with making false statements to federal investigators.

The suspects are accused of removing a backpack containing fireworks emptied of gunpowder from Tsarnaev's dorm room three days after the bombings.

In court papers, the FBI said Tazhayakov and Kadyrbayev agreed to throw the backpack in the garbage after concluding from news reports that Dzhokhar Tsarnaev was one of the bombers.

Law enforcement officers later found the backpack in a landfill.

Police have been investigating if suspects the Tsarnaev brothers had help

Tazhayakov and Kadyrbayev, who came to the US from Kazakhstan, have been held in jail for more than a week on allegations they violated their student visas while attending college.

There is also information that Tazhayakov was allowed to re-enter the US in January from Kazakhstan despite not having a valid student visa.

The Kazakhs waived bail during an initial court appearance on Wednesday. They are scheduled to appear in court again on May 14.

Phillipos, a US citizen, is being held pending a detention and probable cause hearing scheduled for Monday.

The suspects are seen being led from a police van

Attorneys for Kadyrbayev and Tazhayakov told reporters on Wednesday their clients did not know the items they removed from Tsarnaev's room were linked to the attacks.

Tazhayakov's attorney, Harlan Protass, said: "My client feels horrible and was shocked to hear that someone he knew was involved in the bombings."

Kadyrbayev's lawyer, Robert Stahl, said his client "absolutely denies the charges".

Police recovered these fireworks from a Boston-area landfill

Both men face a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine, the US Justice Department said.

Phillipos faces up to eight years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

All three men, aged 19, began attending the University of Massachusetts at Dartmouth with Tsarnaev at the same time in 2011, according to the FBI.

The university said in a statement that Tazhayakov has been suspended "pending the outcome of the case". The school said Phillipos and Kadyrbayev are not currently enrolled.

The trio were not accused of any involvement in the bombing itself. But in a footnote in the court papers, the FBI said that about a month before the bombing, Tsarnaev told Tazhayakov and Kadyrbayev that he knew how to make a bomb.

Three people were killed and more than 260 injured on April 15 when two bombs exploded near the finish line.

Flowers placed on the pavement at the site of the first blast

Suspect Tamerlan Tsarnaev died after a gunfight with police several days later. His brother Dzhokhar was captured and lies in a hospital prison.

The surviving brother, 19, faces federal charges of using a weapon of mass destruction and malicious destruction of property resulting in death over the double bombing.

Authorities say the brothers also killed an MIT police officer as they tried to escape, although no charges have been filed yet over his death.

The White House and investigators have previously suggested that the Tsarnaevs could have acted alone, without ties to any foreign government or terrorist organisation.

But law enforcement authorities have kept a close watch on some of the brothers' contacts as they try to establish whether they had any help.

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Indian Rape Girl, 5, Dies After Long Coma

A five-year-old girl who was abducted and raped in India has died almost two weeks after the attack.

The girl suffered a cardiac arrest and died late on Monday at a hospital in Nagpur city, where she was being treated for injuries following the assault on April 18.

According to Bharat Yadav, the official collector for Seoni district in the central state of Madhya Pradesh where the rape occurred, two men have been arrested.

One allegedly lured her to a farm where the other - who was a friend of her parents - raped her, Mr Bharat said.

The parents, poor construction workers, were at work when the attack occurred, he added.

The girl was raped in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh

Ravi Manadiar, an administrator at the hospital, said the girl suffered a brain injury when the men tried to smother her cries and had been in a coma since April 20.

India has recently seen a sharp rise in the numbers of rapes and sexual crimes against women and children.

Officials have said the spike has resulted from more people reporting the crimes.

Earlier this month, another five-year-old girl was kidnapped, raped and tortured by two men who then abandoned her in a locked room in New Delhi.

She is still recovering at a hospital in the city.

Police allegedly refused to register a case when the girl's parents reported that their daughter was missing.

Protesters in Ahmedabad complaining about the recent rapes last week

Hundreds of people protested outside police headquarters in New Delhi for three days, angry over allegations of police inaction and indifference to the parents' complaints.

The attacks on the young girls come four months after the fatal gang rape of a woman on a New Delhi bus sparked outrage across India about the treatment of women in the country.

The December attack spurred the government to pass tough laws for crimes against women, including the death penalty for repeat offenders or for rape attacks that lead to the victim's death.

India has struggled to eradicate the problem, amid a long history of groups of men pestering females in a behaviour known as "Eve baiting".

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Willem-Alexander Takes Netherlands Throne

By Robert Nisbet, Europe Correspondent in Amsterdam

Dutch Crown Prince Willem-Alexander has become Europe's youngest monarch after his mother, Queen Beatrix, abdicated the throne.

Beatrix signed the official act of abdication in Amsterdam on Tuesday, making her eldest son the first Dutch king in more than 100 years.

The Queen ended her 33-year reign as thousands of revellers dressed in orange cheered outside the Royal Palace in the Dutch capital and millions more watched on television.

With her abdication, she becomes Princess Beatrix and her son ascends the throne as King Willem-Alexander.

Queen Beatrix signs the instrument of abdication next to her son

He is the first Dutch king since Willem III died in 1890.

The 46-year-old's popular Argentinian-born wife becomes Queen Maxima and their eldest daughter, Catharina-Amalia, becomes Princess of Orange and heir to the throne.

Willem-Alexander gripped his visibly emotional mother's hand after they both signed the abdication document.

The two then appeared together on a balcony of the Royal Palace on the city's famous Dam Square and briefly addressed the crowd.

The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall attended the ceremony

"I take office in a period when many in the kingdom feel vulnerable or uncertain. Vulnerable in their job or in their health, uncertain about their income or their immediate environment," Willem-Alexander said.

"We can no longer take it for granted that children will be better off than their parents ... Our strength is therefore not in isolation but by cooperating."

They were then joined by the new queen and their three daughters.

The investiture was held before 2,000 guests in Amsterdam's Nieuwe Kerk, which also serves as a joint session of the two houses of the States General - the Dutch parliament.

Beatrix signs over the throne to her son after 33 years

The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall were among those in the audience as the new king swore to be faithful to the constitution and faithfully discharge the duties of his office.

President Obama sent a message of support: "On behalf of the American people, Michelle and I congratulate His Majesty Willem-Alexander on the occasion of his investiture as King of the Netherlands, and we wish the very best to him and Queen Maxima as they assume their new roles."

Beatrix, 75, announced her decision to relinquish the crown in January to make way for a new generation.

On Monday night Queen Beatrix thanked the Dutch people in a televised address, where she urged them to support her son.

King Willem-Alexander enjoys high levels of public support

Beatrix said: "Now that my oldest son is to take over this fine and responsible job, it is my deep wish that the new royal couple will feel themselves supported by your loving trust.

"I am convinced that Willem-Alexander will apply himself with true devotion for everything a good king is obliged to do."

She also praised her late husband, Prince Claus, who died in 2002, for teaching their children to be in tune with changes in society.

"Prince Claus brought our House (Of Orange) closer to this time," she said.

Anti-monarchy protesters prepare banners

"Possibly history will show that the choice of this husband was my best decision."

The new king has become the youngest monarch in Europe, in a country where public support for the royal family consistently runs at over 80%.

However, the Dutch government has allowed six protests to be staged around the city by anti-monarchist groups, and those who believe such an expensive ceremony is unjustifiable when the country's economy is in recession.

The king receives a stipend of 850,000 euros (£718,000) a year, and an online petition to see that reduced has now reached over 20,000 signatures, half the number required to trigger a parliamentary debate.

Organiser Anjo Clement told Sky News: "The monarchy is not democratic. It costs a lot of money. They pay no taxes and have free housing and enormous staff. And they have a hidden political power."

Supporters argue Queen Beatrix has presided over a decline in the monarchy's influence over the day-to-day running of the country, but her son has courted controversy for living an openly privileged life.

At university, Willem-Alexander was nicknamed Prince Pils for his party antics and caused consternation when he married the daughter of an Argentinian politician who had a leading role in the military junta of Jorge Rafael Videla.

The prince tried to defend Maxima by issuing a letter proving her father had only played a minor role in the regime, which later proved to be written by Videla himself.

Maxima later apologised for her husband's actions telling reporters, in fluent Dutch, that he had been "a little bit dumb".

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Bangladesh Factory Collapse: Fire Breaks Out

A fire has broken out at the scene of a building collapse in Bangladesh, forcing rescuers to halt their search for survivors.

The blaze started because of sparks generated as rescuers tried to cut through a steel rod to reach a trapped woman, officials said. The AFP news agency reported the woman died.

The country's fire chief Ahmed Ali told AFP she was the last known survivor in the building and that rescuers had tried to reach her for more than 10 hours on Sunday.

At least three people were injured in the blaze.

The fire started within hours of the owner of the eight-storey factory complex, which toppled killing at least 377 people, being arrested along the country's border with India.

Mohammed Sohel Rana was brought back to the capital Dhaka by helicopter and now faces charges over the disaster.

An announcement was also made by loudspeaker at the site of the building, where people cheered and clapped.

Food is passed down to trapped workers through a hole

Mr Rana's wife had already been detained - but he had not been seen since the building toppled to the ground on Wednesday.

He reportedly had the approval to construct five floors but added three more illegally.

Hundreds of relatives of missing workers have been gathering at the site in the hope of finding their loved ones.

A further nine survivors were found on Sunday - in addition to the 29 rescued alive on Saturday.

However, hopes of finding more people trapped under the mound of broken concrete and metal are fading, with hundreds still missing.

"The chances of finding people alive are dimming, so we have to step up our rescue operation to save any valuable life we can," said Major General Chowdhury Hassan Sohrawardi, co-ordinator of the operation.

Rescuers at the scene of the disaster

It is the deadliest tragedy to hit Bangladesh's clothing industry, which is worth $20bn (£13bn) a year.

On Saturday, police arrested three factory bosses as well as two engineers involved in approving the design of the Rana Plaza building in the Dhaka suburb of Savar.

It housed five clothing factories, employing a total of 3,122 staff.

It is not known how many workers were inside the structure when it collapsed. Some 2,500 survivors have been accounted for.

The three factory bosses arrested included Bazlus Samad, managing director of New Wave Apparels, Mahmudur Rahman Tapash, the company chairman, and Aminul Islam, chairman of Phantom Apparels.

Wednesday's tragedy has sparked protests about the poor working conditions of workers who toil for as little as £25 a month to produce clothing for top international brands.

High street giant Primark - and Spain's Mango - have confirmed their products were made in the block.

Protesters held a demonstration outside Primark's flagship store in central London on Saturday to demand compensation for the workers who were killed.

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Libya Facing 'Perilous' Security Situation

Some 200 gunmen have surrounded Libya's Foreign Ministry in Tripoli and demanded the government hire former fighters who helped overthrow the regime of former leader Colonel Gaddafi.

Armed men also stormed the Interior Ministry and a state-owned television station causing employees and security personnel to flee the building.

The men allege the ministry has not paid their salaries and that many supporters of the old regime are still holding senior positions in the Libyan government.

PM Ali Zidan warned that Libya is facing a perilous security situation

Libya's Prime Minister, Ali Zidan, has warned the country is facing a perilous security situation two years after the civil war that left many thousands dead.

Gunmen who stormed the al Wataniya TV channel, forcing employees out and live shows to be taken off air, demanded the removal of what they claimed were Gaddafi-era officials from the station.

The station was temporarily shut down recently when employees protested against armed militias providing security for the building instead of regular forces.

Mr Zidan told reporters in Tripoli that the situation could weaken Libya's standing in the international community.

"If the situation persists, it will give Libya a bad reputation and lead to foreign companies pulling out and embassies closing down," he warned.

Mr Zidan was himself besieged in his office last month by militiamen over remarks he made threatening to summon outside help to confront the armed groups.

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