Nato reinforces northern Kosovo

28 July 2011 Last updated at 20:43 GMT US troops and other peacekeepers from Nato's Kosovo force have been deployed near the border Nato has deployed peacekeepers in the north of Kosovo after a border post with Serbia was burnt down and a Kosovo policeman killed.

Serbian nationalists in Kosovo attacked the post on Wednesday after Kosovo's government sent police to enforce a ban on imports from Serbia.

Border posts in the area, which rejects Kosovan independence from Serbia, had been staffed by ethnic Serb police.

Kosovo's government suspected them of turning a blind eye to banned imports.

Nato officials said only small vehicles were being allowed through two border posts at the centre of the dispute, and that they were being checked for weapons.

Serbia has also reinforced police on its side of the border, to prevent "extremists from Serbia going to Kosovo", Serbian police chief Milorad Veljovic told Reuters news agency.

Wednesday's violence was the worst in several months, according to the BBC's Mark Lowen in Belgrade, Serbia.

It began when a group of about 200 Serbian nationalists approached the Jarinje crossing, throwing firebombs.

They forced the Kosovan police and customs officers, and the EU police assisting them, to flee across the border into Serbia.

Serbs set fire to the the border crossing at Jarinje in northern Kosovo

The post was burnt down and bulldozed.

One of the Kosovan police officers was killed and several others wounded when they were shot at.

The move by Kosovo's Prime Minister Hashim Thaci to reassert Pristina's control over the region has been criticised by the EU and the US as provocative.

The region has not accepted the mandate of the Pristina government since Kosovo's ethnic Albanian majority declared independence from Serbia in 2008.

Serbia itself has also refused to recognise its former territory's independence.

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Harrington upbeat for Irish Open

Padraig Harrington won the Irish Open at Adare Manor in 2007 Padraig Harrington is optimistic that recent work with golf guru Bob Rotella will help him return to form at this week's Irish Open.

Former world number three Harrington has now slipped to 64th in the rankings after missing the cut at the Open.

But the Irishman believes a recent session with Rotella could cure putting woes which have dogged him this season.

"We talked about it again, did some work and I believe that we hit the nail on the head," said Harrington.

"I have been struggling with my putting for the last few weeks and just couldn't put my finger on the problem.

"We worked on it before the tournament (Open Championship) started and I thought we had figured it out, but it still wasn't working.

"Ultimately it came down to the fact that I hadn't fully committed to my preparation and so I was still trying to figure out what I was doing over the ball.

"I wasn't trusting my reads and so when I stood over the ball I was still trying to figure out where I was going to hit it.

"It was very disappointing to miss the cut, but I feel that the work I got done over the weekend will pay big dividends in the coming weeks," added the 2007 Irish Open winner.

Darren Clarke pinpointed Rotella's input as crucial to his recent Open Championship triumph at Sandwich.

With the prize fund for the Irish Open being halved to ?1.32m following the loss of previous main sponsor 3, Clarke, Rory McIlroy and Graeme McDowell are the only members of the world's top 50 in action at Killarney this week.

Clarke and McIlroy have been named honorary life members of the European Tour after their major triumphs this summer.

The pair were presented with their lifetime badges in Killarney on Wednesday morning by Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny.

Ross Fisher pipped Harrington to win last year at Killarney and the Englishman, who has slipped to 63rd in the world rankings, is back to defend his title.

The field also includes Simon Dyson, David Horsey, Gregory Bourdy and 2008 winner Richard Finch.

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Prosecutors defend Knox evidence

30 July 2011 Last updated at 18:22 GMT Knox is serving a 26-year sentence for Miss Kercher's murder Italian prosecutors have rejected claims that evidence used to convict Amanda Knox of the murder of UK student Meredith Kercher was unreliable.

Knox, 24, and her Italian ex-boyfriend Rafaelle Sollecito, 26, are appealing against their convictions for killing the Surrey student in Perugia in 2007.

On Monday, experts told the court the DNA evidence which helped convict the American could have been contaminated.

But the scientific police director has defended the original forensic work.

In a letter read out to the court, Piero Angeloni described the technology used as being world-class and said the officers were highly experienced.

"Never before" has there been such criticism of his agency, he said.

Patrizia Stefanoni, the police forensic scientist who originally found the DNA on the knife and Miss Kercher's torn bra clasp, has said she will fight the appeal trial experts' accusation that basic errors were made.

'Not reliable'

During proceedings in Perugia, prosecutor Manuela Comodi sought to undermine the independent experts' conclusions and show that the forensic evidence used to convict Knox could stand.

The experts - appointed by the court to review the evidence and procedures used to obtain it - maintain that the original investigation was marked by some glaring errors, the Associated Press reports.

Much of the debate centred on a kitchen knife the prosecutors believe to be the murder weapon.

In the first trial, prosecutors maintained that Knox's DNA was found on the knife's handle and Miss Kercher's DNA was found on the blade. They also said Sollecito's DNA was found on the clasp of Miss Kercher's bra.

But the appeals court heard that the collection of evidence fell below international standards.

Carla Vecchiotti, a forensic specialist from La Sapienza university, Rome, said it was impossible to say whether the British student's DNA was found on the knife.

"There is a complete genetic profile, but it's not reliable," she said.

"We don't know if Meredith's DNA was on it or not."

Ms Comodi insisted that the genetic profile found on the blade should not be thrown out.

Miss Kercher, a Leeds University student, was living in Italy as part of a year of study abroad when she died.

Knox is serving a 26-year sentence for Miss Kercher's murder while Sollecito, an Italian, was sentenced to 25 years.

Both deny any wrongdoing.

Rudy Guede, 21, was also convicted of Miss Kercher's murder in a separate trial and is serving a 16-year term.

The hearing was adjourned until September.

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Poland blames Russia over crash

29 July 2011 Last updated at 16:44 GMT The crash near Smolensk killed all those on board A Polish report has found that Russia was partly to blame for the air crash last year which killed then-President Lech Kaczynski.

It said that pilot error was the main reason for the crash, but that air controllers and poor lighting at Smolensk were also at fault.

Poland's Defence Minister Bogdan Klich resigned in the wake of the report.

The crash killed 96 people and has been a source of tension between the two countries.

A Russian report released in January laid full blame on Poland.

But Poland, while accepting some of the findings, said that Moscow's report was "incomplete".

All those on board the TU-154 Tupolev, who included officials spanning the country's military and political elite, were killed when their airliner crashed while trying to land in heavy fog.

They had been on their way to a memorial for the victims of Katyn, where 20,000 Polish officers were massacred by Soviet forces in 1940.

'Erroneous information'

The report by Warsaw said the pilot had lacked experience in landing aircraft in adverse weather conditions, and the crew was not adequately equipped.

Russia was commended for its sensitivity after the crash, but relations later deteriorated

It also found that airport lighting was "defective and incomplete", while a landing zone official had given "erroneous information" to the crew as they prepared to land in poor weather at the Russian city of Smolensk.

Air traffic controllers misinformed the crew about their true altitude during the approach and gave a crucial warning too late, it said.

In its report earlier this year, Russia had said the crash was due to pilot error and said the crew had taken unjustified risks under pressure from their superiors.

However, the Polish report said there was no evidence that Lech Kaczynski or anyone else on board had put pressure on the pilots to act against their wishes.

An official with the Russian committee which investigates air disasters said "the fundamental part" of the conclusions in the Polish report agreed with his own committee's findings.

But the official, Alexei Morozov, said they could not understand the Polish finding that the flight's crew was not influenced by senior officials in the cockpit.

Russia's handling of the disaster had originally been widely commended, but the issue later became a source of contention between the two nations.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said he had accepted the resignation of Mr Klich in the wake of the report's criticism of the crew.

Tomasz Siemoniak, a deputy interior minister, has replaced Mr Klich, Mr Tusk told reporters.

Jaroslaw Kaczynski, the twin brother of the late president and opposition politician, has previously accused Mr Tusk's government of a cover-up with Moscow. Mr Tusk strongly denies the claims.

Poland's first couple - along with other leading political and military figures - had been on their way to a memorial ceremony for the World War II Katyn massacre when the crash took place on 10 April. There were no survivors.

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Moody's warns over Spanish rating

29 July 2011 Last updated at 14:48 GMT Spain is continuing to see a number of protests about spending cuts and high unemployment Moody's has warned it may downgrade the credit rating of Spanish government bonds, saying last week's second rescue package for Greece had done little to ease debt concerns in the eurozone.

The rating agency said it was reviewing Spain's current Aa2 grade, adding that if it was downgraded, it would probably be by just one level, to Aa3.

Moody's added that the Spanish economy remained "subdued".

The Spanish government has now called an early general election.

The announcement was made just hours after Moody's made its credit rating warning, and will see Spain go to the polls on 20 November.

Explaining the decision, Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero said he wished to "project political and economic certainty" over the months ahead.

However, it could be benefit the opposition conservative Popular Party, as it is ahead of the ruling Socialist Party in the polls.

The government could have waited until March of next year to hold the general election.

'Bond precedent'

In explaining why it was reviewing Spain's credit rating, Moody's highlighted the fact that as part of the second bail-out deal for Greece, private bondholders were being invited to participate.

Continue reading the main story Sarah Rainsford BBC News, Madrid

This is another blow to Spain - anxious to convince investors it won't need a Greek-style bailout. But Moody's still has concerns, so it has put Spain on review, for what's likely to be a one-notch downgrade of its government debt.

The ratings agency points to the slow pace of economic growth here, and the high levels of debt in Spain's autonomous regions. They account for almost half of state spending and several warn they'll overshoot the budget deficit target set by Madrid.

The Prime Minister, Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, has insisted that won't affect his target of cutting Spain's overall deficit to 6% by the end of the year. But investor doubts, coupled with concern over the details of the latest bailout for Greece, has already pushed Spain's borrowing costs higher and higher.

The Prime Minister has now announced an early general election for November; the main opposition party has long insisted a change of government is the only way to recover confidence in this economy.

The private bondholders, such as banks, are being asked to exchange their current Greek bonds for ones which pay a lower rate of interest over a longer term.

Moody's said this set a "precedent", adding that it had "signalled a clear shift in risk for bondholders of countries with high debt burdens or large budget deficits".

However, if Spain is downgraded to Aa3, this remains a healthy investment grade.

Moody's also said five Spanish banks could have their credit ratings downgraded because of the same concerns.

These include the largest two lenders, Banco Santander and Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (BBVA).

'Fiscal slippage'

Despite the forthcoming general election campaign, Spain's central government is continuing to enforce cost-cutting efforts to reduce its public deficit.

However, Madrid is hampered by the fact that Spain is a heavily devolved country, and its regional governments, such as those in Catalonia and the Basque region, are not moving as fast or as deep in trimming their spending.

Moody's highlighted this problem, warning of "fiscal slippage" at the regional and local government level.

Spain is also struggling with the eurozone's highest unemployment rate, which now stands at 20.9%.

Spain's main share index was down 0.7% in afternoon trading, after falling as much as 2.4% immediately following Moody's announcement.

The yield on the Spanish government's 10-year bonds rose 10 percentage points to 6.10%.

The euro declined, falling 0.3% against the dollar to $1.4287.

"The trigger is that the [Greek] deal last week has not really rebuilt confidence across the eurozone, so Spain is still on their radar screens with costs rising," said Giada Giani, analyst at Citigroup.

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Mongolian spy chief loses appeal

29 July 2011 Last updated at 12:34 GMT A Mongolian spy chief - who claims he was tricked into coming to the UK so he could be arrested - can be extradited, the High Court has said.

In February, District Judge Quentin Purdy, at City of Westminster Magistrates' Court, ruled Bat Khurts should be sent to Germany.

Mr Bat, 41, is wanted for kidnapping a Mongolian national suspected of murdering a government official.

His appeal was rejected by the High Court on Friday.

The Mongolian government said it was "very disappointed" with the judgment.

It declined to appeal to the Supreme Court but said it would be "taking this matter to the International Court of Justice".

At the earlier hearing Mr Bat's lawyer claimed he was lured to the UK by the Foreign Office, on the pretence of attending high-level government talks on intelligence co-operation, so he could be arrested and extradited to Germany.

Lord Justice Moses and Mr Justice Foskett dismissed his appeal but his lawyers said the case may now be taken to the European Court of Human Rights.

'No evidence of luring'

Lord Justice Moses said Mr Bat "has not established that he was lured into this country".

He said: "Far from being lured, at every stage when the government of Mongolia, particularly through its ambassador, attempted to arrange meetings, they were rebuffed."

Lord Justice Moses said they rejected the allegation that Mr Bat was tricked into coming to Britain and said there was "no question of any official in the United Kingdom luring the appellant to this country in the belief that he was going to meet United Kingdom officials to discuss security matters".

Mr Bat was allegedly involved in the 2003 kidnap of Enkhbat Damiran, who was taken from France to Berlin, drugged and flown to the Mongolian capital, Ulan Bator.

Mr Enkhbat was wanted in connection with the murder of Mongolia's Infrastructure Minister Zorig Sanjasuuren in 1998.

At the hearing earlier this year his lawyer, Alun Jones QC, claimed Mr Bat, head of the executive office of Mongolia's National Security Council, should not have been detained at Heathrow Airport in September because he was covered by diplomatic immunity.

He said Mr Bat had been granted a business visa for a visit during which he was supposed to meet Britain's National Security Adviser, Sir Peter Ricketts, and strategy and counter-terrorism director, William Nye.

Judge Purdy said he believed Mr Bat was invited for genuine security talks but the Serious Organised Crime Agency (Soca) had heard about it and were aware of the outstanding warrant from Germany.

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Le culture vulture

29 July 2011 Last updated at 23:52 GMT By Hugh Schofield BBC News, Paris French President Nicolas Sarkozy has apparently been flaunting a love of culture - but how genuine is it?

In his excellent recent biography of Sarkozy, the journalist Franz-Oliver Giesbert recounts how the president's cultural life has been transformed by Carla Bruni.

The old Sarkozy was a boor. He gleefully displayed his contempt for France's arts establishment and his preference for the crass.

He appeared only to have ever read two books - Louis-Ferdinand Celine's Journey to the End of the Night and Albert Cohen's Belle du Seigneur. Of modern literature he knew not a thing.

"You would have said that his culture - if you could call it that - was purely televisual," writes Mr Giesbert.

Comedian Jean-Marie Bigard, a friend of Sarkozy, has mass appeal

The stories about President Sarkozy's supposed cultural ignorance have long done the rounds.

How the headline act at his inauguration concert was the naffest of crooners Gilbert Montagne.

How on once leaving the French state theatre La Comedie-Francaise, he made a hand gesture to indicate the extent of his boredom.

How he took the coarse comedian Jean-Marie Bigard to an audience with the Pope, and how he complained that civil service exams included questions on 17th century literature.

This was a Sarkozy who knew he was despised by the Paris cultural elite, and decided to give back as good as he got.

Then along came Carla.

For Franz-Oliver Giesbert - who edits Le Point news magazine and is one of the most distinguished observers of the French political scene - the Italian singer-cum-model is the best thing that ever happened to the president.

Continue reading the main story

Carla definitely pushed him at the start, but then she took the stabilisers off the bike, and now I think Sarkozy is quite happy pedalling by himself”

End Quote Jerome Garcin Arts presenter Not only has she "taught him good manners" and generally "calmed him down", she has also opened his eyes to culture.

Nowadays, the presidential couple apparently spend their evenings watching films and reading.

Where the old Sarkozy once boasted that his favourite film was Saving Private Ryan, today he can discourse at length on the Danish classic film director Carl Theodor Dreyer or the German Ernst Lubitsch.

Last month, according to Liberation newspaper, Mr Sarkozy hosted a dinner at the Elysee for four actors who had each played the part of a French president on stage or screen (including Denis Podalydes as Sarkozy).

We learn that there followed a conversation about theatre, film and literature, which left the actor Michel Vuillermoz (de Gaulle) "seduced".

"I found (Sarkozy) courteous, elegant and curious," he was quoted as saying.

For Franz-Oliver Giesbert, "Today (the president) no longer looks like a lost child… when the conversation turns to the arts."

A number of questions spring to mind when contemplating this transformation. First of all, how deep does it go?

The Comedie-Francaise might not be everybody's cup of tea

It is well-known that Sarkozy has an extraordinarily retentive mind as well as a capacity for obsession.

Could it be that he has simply swotted his way to sophistication in a bid to please his wife?

That is certainly the view of Jerome Garcin, presenter of the arts programme Le Masque et la Plume (The Mask and the Quill) on France-Inter radio.

"I am very doubtful," he said. "When it comes to culture, I do not believe in that kind of metamorphosis. You can't suddenly switch from Spielberg to Dreyer and be sincere about it."

The writer Yann Moix is marginally more indulgent. "Carla definitely pushed him at the start, but then she took the stabilisers off the bike, and now I think Sarkozy is quite happy pedalling by himself."

Another question concerns the politics of it all.

Continue reading the main story

If he'd just crammed a few books in the preceding days, I would have seen through him”

End Quote Franz-Oliver Giesbert Sarkozy biographer If Mr Sarkozy is rebranding himself as an aesthete ahead of next year's presidential election, is that necessarily a wise move? After all, the president's whole career has been built around rejection of the Paris elite, and as a policy it has served him pretty well.

Most voters would share his apparent boredom in the Comedie-Francaise, and they will not have even heard of Carl Theodor Dreyer. As for the crude comic and Papal buddy Jean-Marie Bigard, he is well-liked by the masses and actually quite funny.

Perhaps by aping the language of the Left Bank salons, Mr Sarkozy risks both the derision of those he aspires to and the contempt of those he leaves behind.

But there is a deeper, psychological aspect to this story, which Mr Giesbert - no fan of the president - grasps at in his biography.

In the last chapter of Monsieur le President, Giesbert describes a lunch at the Elysee in February this year.

The journalist finds himself utterly bewildered by the extent of Sarkozy's learning. The conversation starts with literature, as the president sings the praises of the late anthropologist Claude Levi-Strauss.

They move through the French classics before coming to modern American books - a speciality of Mr Giesbert, who is surprised when President Sarkozy corrects his memory of Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath.

They discuss Albert Camus, and the president tells how on a recent trip to Algeria he made a detour to the town of Tipasa because it was the scene of Camus' 1938 book Nuptials.

"When the journalists asked me why, I said 'If you don't understand that's your problem'," Mr Sarkozy said.

Mr Giesbert feels utterly nonplussed.

"I have known Nicolas Sarkozy for 25 years, and never once have I had a glimpse of this side of his personal universe. If he'd just crammed a few books in the preceding days, I would have seen through him.

"If his knowledge is recent, which I cannot help but suspect, then he has already read an awful lot.

"But I owe it to the truth to say that contrary to the legend that I myself have fostered, the president is anything but uncultured."

Mr Sarkozy, Franz-Oliver Giesbert concludes, has indeed changed.

"He is no longer exactly the same man. Perhaps finally he has started to discover who he really is."

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