Gaza Strip: Israel Declares Missing Soldier Hadar Goldin Dead

Israeli soldiers load shells on to a tank near the border of southern Gaza StripReuters

Missing Israeli soldier Hadar Goldin who was earlier suspected to have been abducted by Hamas fighters has been declared dead by the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF), saying the 23-year-old infantry lieutenant was killed in combat.

It is still unclear if his remains have been recovered but the IDF said the forces have scientific evidence of his death during an encounter with Hamas militants when two other Israeli military personnel were also killed.

"A special committee led by the Israeli Defence Forces Chief Rabbi, announced the death of the IDF infantry officer of the Givati Brigade, Lieutenant Hadar Goldin, who was killed in the battle in the Gaza Strip on Friday, 1 August, 2014," read an army statement.

Earlier, Hamas said they were not holding the soldier captive and denied knowledge of his whereabouts.

Meanwhile, both Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the military wing of Hamas have vowed to press ahead with the offensive against each other.

In a televised address, Netanyahu said: "After completing the anti-tunnel operation, the IDF will act and continue to act, in accordance with our security needs and only according to our defence needs, until we achieve our objective of restoring security to you, Israel's citizens."

Hadar Goldin(Facebook)

His comments followed remarks by an anonymous senior Israeli military official that the terror tunnels in Gaza are almost destroyed.

Even as a Palestinian delegation arrived in Cairo for peace talks facilitated by Egypt, Hamas said: "Netanyahu will pay for every minute he spends carrying out more aggression against our people."

While US Middle East envoy Frank Lowenstein is expected to take part in the talks, Israel is keeping away.

The three-week-long conflict has claimed at least 1,700 Palestinian lives, mostly civilians, including women and children while the death of Goldin has raised the death toll of Israeli soldiers to 66.

Rape Accusations 'Fashionable', Claims Shiv Sena Political Party

Anti-rape protester in Delhi in 2012.(Sajjad Hussain Getty/AFP)

Rape accusations have become "fashionable", politicians in India claim.

The hardline Hindu nationalist Shiv Sena party made the claims in in an article supporting a police officer who has been accused of rape.

The article alleges that rape accusations had become "good weapons to seek personal revenge".

It follows accusations that senior police officer Sunil Parasker raped and molested a model over a three-month period.

"After he has served for so many years in the police force, one model now charges DIG [deputy inspector general] Sunil Paraskar with rape and in one night he becomes a villain," the party wrote. "Such accusations have become good weapons to seek personal revenge.

"Cases of charging men with molestation and rape in [high society] to create hype is on a rise now. It has almost become a fashion," wrote Shiv Sena, which is a key ally of prime minister Narendra Modi's government.

The article added that the Indian judicial system needed to "open its eyes" and protect the innocent because "all the laws in the country favour women so anyone can slap any charge against anyone".

The alleged victim has been placed under police protection after receiving death threats.

"This matter is in court," she said. "No one should be commenting in sensitive matters like this without knowing all the facts," she said in response to the party's comments.

In the wake of the fatal gang rape of a student in Delhi in 2012, India has toughened sexual assault and rape laws.

However, attacks are still frequent and spark protests.

Ruling Bharatiya Janata ministers were accused of trivialising rape in June, when one said attacks happen accidentally, and another claimed that rapes were "sometimes right, sometimes wrong".

The party promised to take a zero tolerance policy towards the crime when it swept to power in May's elections.

UK Closes Libyan Embassy as Violence Escalates

Fighters from the Benghazi Shura Council, which includes former rebels and militants from al Qaeda-linked Ansar al-Sharia, gesture on top of a tank next to the camp of the special forces in Benghazi.(Stringer/Reuters)

The UK is closing its Libyan embassy amid escalating violence and fighting in the capital Tripoli.

Several UK embassy staff were evacuated earlier this week as fighting intensified near the British embassy compound, and now the Foreign and Commonwealth Office has announced that it will suspend activities at its consulate on Monday.

Ambassador Michael Aron said: "Reluctantly we've decided we have to leave and temporarily suspend embassy operations in Libya. We will be back as soon as security allows."

He added that embassy staff would continue to operate from neighbouring Tunisia.

Sporadic fighting between rival militias has spread northwards in Tripoli, with Islamist and nationalist factions trading artillery fire for three weeks. Several hundred people are believed to have been killed in fighting and Libya's government has effectively collapsed.

An FCO spokesman said: "The protection of our staff is paramount and we assess that the current environment in Tripoli does not allow us to operate safely. We have therefore decided temporarily to relocate UK-based staff from the country."

Several diplomatic evacuations have also been organised this week by the governments of France, Germany, the US, Japan and the Netherlands.

On Saturday, the Greek defence ministry transported embassy staff and almost 200 people from Libya on a navy frigate to a port near Athens following the deteriorating level of security in Tripoli.

Mustafa Avocat, a Greek-Libyan accountant, told the Associated Press: "We were hearing explosions all the time, but the fighting was on the outskirts of Tripoli.

"Things are getting worse. The power is cut five to seven hours every day. There are water cuts too and the shops are closed. It's not somewhere you can raise a family."

Poland's foreign ministry said it has evacuated all of its diplomats along with two dozen Poles and citizens of two other countries.

On Friday, Tunisia closed its main border crossing with Libya after thousands of stranded Egyptians and foreign nationals fleeing intense fighting tried to break through the passage from Libya, the Tunisian news agency reported.

The current violence is the worst Libya has seen since the downfall of Muammar Gaddafi in the country's 2011 civil war. The country's health ministry said 214 people have been killed in the fighting and a further 980 wounded.

Earlier this week, Islamic militants targeted army bases in Libya's second largest city Benghazi, claiming control of the city.

Oscar Pistorius' Brother in Critical Condition After Head-On Collision

Oscar Pistorius’ brother Carl was critically injured in a car crash in South Africa.(Reuters)

Oscar Pistorius' brother has been critically injured in a head-on collision in South Africa.

Carl Pistorius, who has been a regular fixture in court during the brother's murder trial, is in a critical condition after a crash on the N1 motorway near Modimolle in Limpopo.

Carl is reported to have suffered multiple fractures after a car swerved out in front of him and collided with his vehicle.

He is believed to have been returning from a business trip from Polokwane and travelling in a convoy with a business partner on the N1 to Pretoria.

Family spokesperson Anneleise Burgess said Carl is "out of danger" but remains in intensive care after being transported to Pretoria hospital late last night, Sky News reported.

Burgess said traffic had backed up on the opposite side of the road when a car pulled out in front of Carl without warning.

The Pistorius family issued the following statement: "Carl was returning from a business trip to Polokwane. A colleague was following in a separate vehicle and witnessed the collision. He was able to tell us what happened."

In 2013, Carl was acquitted of culpable homicide and negligent driving after he was involved in a 2008 collision with motorcyclist Maria Barnard, who died six days after the incident.

The magistrate ruled that Barnard was driving her motorcycle excessively fast when she crashed into the back of Carl's vehicle.

Carl's case was brought to court shortly after his brother Oscar shot dead his model girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp on Valentine's Day. Oscar claims that she shot Steenkamp accidentally after mistaking her for a burglar.

The double amputee Olympian went on trial for murder in March and has pleaded not guilty to the charges, which could carry a life prison sentence.

China Factory Blast Kills 64 and Injures 150 [GRAPHIC IMAGES]

A powerful blast ripped through a factory which produces automotive parts in eastern China killing 65 people and injuring at least 150.

The explosion took place at about 07:30 local time in Kunshan city of Jiangsu province.

Online pictures show thick smoke billowing from the factory, which is owned by Kunshan Zhongrong Metal Products which also supplies to General Motors.

Pollution inside the plant could have caused the explosion, suggest initial reports as authorities launched an investigation. Rescue measures are also under way.

Two managers of the plant, which is roughly the size of a football field, are being grilled by the police.

The plant employs about 450 workers and almost half of them were present inside when the blast occurred.

Family members of the workers have been quoted by local media as saying the factory was always dirty and no proper training was given to the employees.

Medical authorities say most of the victims are being treated for burns while nearby hospitals are swelling with those injured in the explosion.

Rescuers help an injured man get off a bus, near a hospital, after an explosion at a factory in Kunshan, Jiangsu provinceReuters

Residents walk around a damaged building of a factory after an explosion in Kunshan, Jiangsu provinceReuters

Rescuers help the victims of an explosion at the gate of a factory in Kunshan, Jiangsu provinceReuters

Rescuers help a victim get to a hospital after an explosion at a factory in Kunshan, Jiangsu provinceReuters

An injured man lies inside a bus as he is transported to a hospital after an explosion at a factory in Kunshan, Jiangsu provinceReuters

Medical personnel transport a victim (C) at a hospital after an explosion at a factory in Kunshan, Jiangsu provinceReuters

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