(L-R) UN Secretary General Ban ki-Moon with Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov

Russia has sent sophisticated anti-ship missiles to Syria, US media report. The New York Times quotes unnamed US officials as saying the missiles could be used to counter any potential future foreign military intervention in Syria. Without confirming details, Russia’s foreign minister said Russian supplies did not break any international rules. It comes amid growing alarm that chemical weapons may be being used in Syria, something US President Barack Obama has said would be “a red line”.

Meanwhile efforts continue to arrange an international conference on Syria. The United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon met Mr Lavrov in Sochi on Friday to discuss the plans for the conference, which would aim to bring together the Syrian opposition and members of President Bashar al-Assad’s government. At a news briefing, Mr Ban said it was important to “not lose momentum” on the drive towards holding a peace conference and dates for it were being “actively discussed”.

Mr Lavrov said a resolution could only be found through “an inclusive all-Syrian dialogue with participation of all Syrian forces, without any external intervention, as soon as possible”. Also on Friday, the UN’s refugee agency said more than 1.5m Syrians were now registered as refugees, with the true figure likely to be much higher. “Refugees tell us the increased fighting and changing of control of towns and villages, in particular in conflict areas, results in more and more civilians deciding to leave,” UNHCR said in a statement.

Russia is one of Syria’s few remaining allies and its major arms suppliers. Over the years, in contracts worth billions of dollars, it has sold thousands of tanks, artillery units, aircraft, helicopters and defence systems to Damascus. According to the New York Times report, a recent Russian shipment to Syria included an advanced form of the Yakhont, a 6.7m-long (22ft) missile with a range of 290km (180 miles) and carrying either a high-explosive or armour-piercing warhead.

British Prime Minister David Cameron (right) during his meeting yesterday with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

British Prime Minister David Cameron has said the international community must do more to “help shape” a transitional government in Syria after holding talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin. At a press conference in Sochi, Mr Cameron admitted the two men differed over how to deal with the conflict. But he said they agreed on the need to end the violence, prevent the growth of extremism and stop Syria “fragmenting”.

Mr Putin said the two had a “common interest” in stabilising the country. The talks, at Mr Putin’s summer residence in the Black Sea resort of Sochi. were dominated by the two-year conflict in Syria, in which 80,000 people have been killed. The UK has recognised the coalition of forces opposed to the Syrian government and said President Bashar al-Assad must step down as part of a transition to a more representative government.

Britain has stepped up support to the opposition, providing armoured vehicles and body armour as well as communications supplies, and said the EU arms embargo may need to be lifted to help opposition forces. In contrast, Russia has opposed further action against Damascus and expressed concerns about the prospect of a political vacuum in the event of the government’s collapse and the rise of Islamist extremist groups.

Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov (left) and Secretary of State John Kerry announced it would follow on from an Action Group for Syria meeting in Geneva last June

Russia and the US have agreed to work towards convening an international conference to find a political solution to the conflict in Syria. Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Secretary of State John Kerry announced it would follow on from an Action Group for Syria meeting in Geneva last June. Mr Kerry said they would try to “bring both sides to the table”.

Relations between Moscow and Washington have been strained in the last two years by differences over Syria. Mr Kerry held lengthy talks with President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday during his first visit to Moscow since becoming secretary of state. He told Mr Putin that their two countries shared “some very significant common interests with respect to Syria”, including “stability in the region” and “not letting extremists create problems”. “It is my hope that today we will be able to dig into that a little bit, and see if we can find common ground,” he added.

He then held further discussions with Mr Lavrov, after which they jointly announced that they would try to organise an international conference on ending the conflict in Syria, if possible before the end of May. It will try to convince both the Syrian government and opposition to accept a solution based on the core elements of the final communique issued on 30 June 2012, after the UN-backed Action Group for Syria meeting.

A first group of fighters had started to move toward the border with northern Iraq.

Kurdish rebel fighters have begun leaving south-eastern Turkey for their safe havens in Iraq under a ceasefire, Kurdish sources say. “We know that they have started moving,” Selahattin Demirtas, a pro-Kurdish politician involved in the peace process, told AFP news agency. The Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) announced last month a phased withdrawal to start early in May.

More than 40,000 people have died in their 30-year fight against Turkey. There was no immediate official confirmation of the move from Turkey but an unnamed security source told Reuters news agency: “We have observed movement among [PKK] group members, but have not been able to establish whether this is regrouping or preparation for a withdrawal.”

The PKK is believed to have up to 2,000 fighters inside Turkey and their full withdrawal may take up to four months. They are expected to cross the border on foot, heading for their bases in the Qandil Mountains of Iraq. Abdullah Ocalan, the veteran PKK leader in prison in Turkey, ordered the withdrawal in March as part of peace negotiations with Ankara.

Gultan Kisinak, who co-chairs the Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) along with Mr Demirtas, told the Associated Press news agency that a first group of fighters had started to move toward the border with northern Iraq. A PKK spokesman, Bakhtiyar Dogan, told the Kurdish newspaper Hawlati that between 200 and 500 fighters would withdraw on Wednesday. They would, he said, leave from the Semdinli and Sirnak areas of Turkey “on three fronts”.

According to AFP, PKK fighters complained on the eve of the withdrawal that the Turkish state had increased its forces in the border area and was carrying out surveillance flights. Such actions, they said, were “delaying the peace process” and paving the way for “provocations and clashes”.The Turkish army did not confirm any extra measures but said their “fight against any terrorism” continued.

Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Bulent Arinc was quoted as saying by AP: “We are following the issue. It’s the results that are important for us. We feel that we are close to getting results.” The PKK’s acting leader, Murat Karayilan, warned in April that the fighters would strike back and the withdrawal would halt “immediately” if they were attacked.”We have no doubt about the state but fear provocation from dark forces,” Mr Demirtas said.

During a 1999 withdrawal, the Turkish military attacked the rebels, killing some 500. Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has repeatedly pledged the army will not attack any PKK fighters who withdrew. On Tuesday, he said that “laying down weapons” should be the group’s top priority in order for the peace process to succeed.

BBC

Francoise Hollande the French President whose popularity is spiralling fast.

Tens of thousands of protesters have rallied in Paris to express their dissatisfaction with French President Francois Hollande ahead of the first anniversary of his election. The left-wing demonstrators accuse the president of abandoning socialism with his austerity policies. Recent opinion polls show Mr Hollande’s approval rating among the public has fallen to about 25%.

This is the biggest slump for any French president in the past 50 years. Many people are angered by the weak economy and soaring unemployment. And correspondents say Mr Hollande’s vision of a fairer society does not sit well with the recent scandal involving his former budget minister Jerome Cahuzac, who admitted lying about a savings account in Switzerland.

Separately, opponents of gay marriage held protests in several major cities calling for the president not to sign a law passed by parliament last month allowing same-sex couples to wed and adopt children. Organisers of the anti-austerity demonstration estimated that about 180,000 people took part, but police put the figure at just 30,000. Left-wing former presidential candidate Jean-Luc Melenchon, who organised the protest, accused Mr Hollande of betraying his supporters. “We don’t want the financial world taking the power, we don’t accept austerity measures which doom our people, like all people in Europe, to never-ending pain,” he said.

In response, Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said: “There is no austerity, that’s a propaganda invention,” adding that reforms would “bear fruit little by little”.

BBC

Justice Minister Ivo Opstelten is also keen to put an end to so-called DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service) web-attacks

The Dutch government has announced plans to give police far greater powers to fight cybercrime. Under a new bill, investigators would be able to hack into computers, install spyware, read emails and destroy files. They could also break into servers located abroad, if they were being used to block services.

Critics say the proposed measures are unnecessary and could set a dangerous precedent for people living under oppressive governments. Use of the powers would be subject to the approval of a judge, the government stresses. The bill would also make it a crime for a suspect to refuse to decipher encrypted files during a police investigation.

It is expected the draft legislation will be put to parliament by the end of the year. The bill singles out child pornography and terrorism as two areas of special concern. The publication of stolen data would also become punishable. Justice Minister Ivo Opstelten is also keen to put an end to so-called DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service) web-attacks, that flood intended targets such as banks with large amounts of traffic, making them unreachable. .

Simone Halink of digital rights group Bits of Freedom said the law would set a bad precedent and had been “rushed”. “What you see is that the police have especially a shortage of knowledge and manpower – not of powers,” she said. A Dutch citizen was arrested last month on suspicion of mounting one of the biggest ever web attacks. Websites of anti-junk mail outfit Spamhaus were bombarded with huge amounts of data in an attempt to knock them offline.

BBC

Former Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko detention ‘arbitrary and unlawful.

Ukraine’s pre-trial detention of ex-Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko in 2011 was “arbitrary and unlawful” and her right to a legal review was violated, European judges have ruled. Tymoshenko, who is still in jail, also alleged physical mistreatment, but that complaint was not upheld by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR). She was jailed for seven years for abuse of office over a gas deal.

Tuesday’s verdict does not overturn her prison sentence. The ECHR will examine that verdict later, in a separate case. According to the Associated Press, a Ukrainian government official stormed out of the courtroom after Tuesday’s ruling. The judgment is not final as the parties involved have three months to lodge any appeal. Tymoshenko and her supporters accuse her long-time political opponent, President Viktor Yanukovych, of orchestrating the trial as an act of political revenge. Tymoshenko was a key figure in Ukraine’s 2004 Orange Revolution and went on to become prime minister twice.

In 2009, she signed a 10-year contract for the supply of Russian gas to Ukraine. At her trial two years later, prosecutors argued that she had not obtained the approval of her cabinet to sign the deal, and that it had proved ruinous for the Ukrainian economy. The Strasbourg-based ECHR found that Tymoshenko’s detention ahead of her trial had violated her right to liberty and security because it had been ordered for an indefinite period of time.

“No risk of absconding was discernible,” it said, noting that the former prime minister had not breached her obligation not to leave town or failed to attend a court hearing. The Ukrainian trial judge, Rodion Kireyev, had ordered her to spend the trial in custody for contempt of court. However, the ECHR judges ruled that this “reason was not included among those which would justify deprivation of liberty”.

A French soldier patrols at the Mali air force base near Bamako as troops await their deployment.

A French soldier has been killed in Mali, according to the French president’s office. A statement said the soldier – a commando from a parachute regiment – died in the far north of the West African nation. Six French soldiers have been killed since France launched an operation in Mali in January to drive Islamist rebels from the northern desert region.

France began withdrawing some of its 4,000 troops earlier this month. But 1,000 will remain for now to pursue al-Qaeda linked militants while other international forces concentrate on securing the main cities and roads. Some towns and cities have been recaptured by French soldiers but a number of Islamist fighters are believed to remain in their desert hideouts in the north.

The UN recently agreed to create a 12,000-strong peacekeeping force for Mali. It will incorporate 6,000 West African soldiers already in the country. In the French government statement, President Francois Hollande extended his condolences to the relatives of the soldier killed and praised the determination and courage of French forces in Mali.

BBC

(L-R) Irfan Naseer, Irfan Khalid and Ashik Ali, part of the six Birmingham terror group who have received long prison sentences.

Three members of a Birmingham terror cell have been jailed for planning an attack to rival the 7 July and 9/11 atrocities. The group’s leaders were Irfan Naseer, Irfan Khalid and Ashik Ali. Naseer, 31, was sentenced to life with a minimum of 18 years, Khalid, 28, was given 18 years and Ali 15 years. The judge said Naseer wanted part of Birmingham to be a “little war zone”. Eight other members of the same terror cell were also sent to prison.

Rahin Ahmed was sentenced to 12 years, with a further five on licence. Ashik Ali’s older brother, Bahader, was given six years. Mohammed Rizwan and Mujahid Hussain were each given four years. Four of the group who travelled to Pakistan for terror training but had second thoughts – Ishaaq Hussain, Shahid Khan, Naweed Ali and Khobaib Hussain – were each sentenced to 40 months.

Irfan Naseer, Irfan Khalid and Ashik Ali had planned to set off up to eight bombs in rucksacks, using timers to detonate the charges. Detectives believe the terror plot is the most significant to be uncovered since the 2006 conspiracy to blow up transatlantic airliners using bombs disguised as soft drinks. Mr Justice Henriques told Naseer during sentencing: “Your plot had the blessing of al-Qaeda and you intended to further the aims of al-Qaeda.”

In February, Naseer, Khalid and Ashik Ali were found guilty of 12 counts of preparing for acts of terrorism. They had been under police surveillance and were arrested in September 2011, amid fears an attack was imminent. Khalid was sentenced to 18 years. He had boasted that the attack would be “another 9/11″. When sentencing him, the judge said he took into account that Khalid had been found to be in the bottom 2% to 5% in terms of cognitive ability.

British Prime Minister David Cameron doesn’t envisage British troops on the ground in Syria.

There is “limited but growing evidence” that chemical weapons have been used in Syria’s civil war, David Cameron has said. Agreeing with US President Barack Obama that the issue was a “red line”, the British Prime Minister said it was unlikely that it would lead to British troops on the ground in Syria.

Cameron’s comments came as footage claiming to show the aftermath of a chemical weapon attack was posted on YouTube. Speaking on BBC Breakfast on Friday morning, Cameron said: “It is very disturbing what we are seeing. It’s limited evidence but there’s growing evidence that we have seen too of the use of chemical weapons, probably by the regime. It is extremely serious, this is a war crime, and we should take it very seriously.”

After the experience of Iraq, Britain and the United States are determined not to be drawn into action on the basis of intelligence which could turn out to be faulty. Both London and Washington have called on Bashar al-Assad to allow United Nations inspectors to carry out a full investigation to establish what had happened. On Thursday night the White House said the US intelligence community had assessed with “varying degrees of confidence” that chemical weapons had been used by the regime on a “small scale”.