A bomb has gone off near an upmarket shopping centre in the Nigerian capital Abuja, according to reports.
"I heard a loud blast, it shattered the windows of the shop.We ran out. A lot of people ran too, some with blood stains," a witness told Reuters.
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Hundreds of Taliban fighters have reportedly swept into Afghanistan's Sangin district, just weeks after the last US troops left their post there.
More than 800 insurgents are believed to have been locked in a five-day battle with soldiers in the region, with 2,000 families forced to flee their homes.
Siddiq Siddiqi, a spokesman for Afghanistan's interior ministry, told the AFP news agency: "There was a major attack by the Taliban and their supporters.
"We're reinforcing Afghan national security forces and have suffered no major loss of territory.
"About 100 Taliban have been killed so far."
The number of dead was corroborated by the Iranian news agency Fars, which said 35 civilians had also been killed.
Omar Zwak, a spokesman for the Helmand provincial government, told AFP extra soldiers and police had been sent to restore security in Sangin, which has been a hotbed of violence throughout the 13-year battle in Afghanistan.
British forces suffered some of their heaviest losses of the entire war during a four-year mission in the region, with at least 100 soldiers killed during operations there.
An economic and transport hub, Sangin is strategically important for both the Taliban and the Afghan government.
It is home to vital power lines and some of Afghanistan's most fertile farmland.
The Nato-led International Security Assistance Force, known as Isaf, has fewer than 50,000 troops left in Afghanistan, including 32,800 from the US and 5,200 from the UK.
The last remaining British troops will leave within months, with Afghan authorities due to assume full responsibility for security by the end of the year.
Britain's biggest payday lender, Wonga, has been ordered to pay £2.6m in compensation to customers threatened with bogus legal letters.
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said 45,000 customers were hit by unfair and misleading debt collection practices, which included people in arrears being sent letters by non-existent law firms threatening legal action.
In some instances, Wonga also added charges to customers' accounts to cover the administration fees associated with sending the letters, the FCA said.
The watchdog said the failings, which took place between October 2008 and November 2010, saw Wonga, and other companies within its group, pile pressure on customers to make loan repayments that many could not afford.
Amid questions over why the company was not heavily fined, FCA chief executive Martin Wheatley told Sky News the punishment would likely have been harsher had the offences taken place after it assumed regulatory responsibility for the payday market.
Wonga apologised for its behaviour, insisting it was in the past and confirmed to Sky News that it had not been contacted by the police.
Those affected will get at least £50 in compensation each The FCA said it uncovered communications to customers in arrears under the names "Chainey, D'Amato and Shannon" and "Barker and Lowe Legal Recoveries", leading customers to believe their outstanding debt had been passed to a law firm or other third party.
Neither Chainey D'Amato and Shannon nor Barker and Lowe actually existed.
Wonga, which made nearly four million loans to over one million customers, has been ordered to pay compensation to each person affected by the failures.
The FCA said the compensation could result in some borrowers' outstanding debts being cut rather than a cash payment being made.
All 45,000 customers who were sent letters will be offered a flat rate of £50 for their distress and inconvenience.
On top of this, those who were charged fees, thought to total £400,000, for the fake legal letters will be refunded.
The FCA will ensure Wonga contacts every victim The scandal is a huge PR blow to Wonga, a company that had consistently distanced itself from criticism of an industry repeatedly under fire over loan totals, advertising, repayment fees and poor treatment of customers.
Tim Weller, who was made interim CEO of Wonga following the departure of its founder Errol Damelin earlier this year, said: "We would like to apologise unreservedly to anyone affected by the historical debt collection activity and for any distress caused as a result.
"The practice was unacceptable and we voluntarily ceased it nearly four years ago."
Wonga added that it had identified "certain system errors" which had resulted in the miscalculation of some customers' balances, which meant some had overpaid, although a greater number underpaid.
The lender said existing customers who had overpaid would receive the money back with interest while the others would not be asked to pay the shortfall.
Martin Lewis, founder of the MoneySavingExpert.com website, said of the bogus legal letters: "This just shows that while Wonga hires expensive marketing, PR and public affairs consultants to try to position itself as 'the good guys in a bad industry', it's all a sham.
"I'm glad to see the FCA taking action. I hope this is just the first move against a dirty, dangerous industry."
On the question of whether Wonga could be taken to court by victims, Dean Nicholls, consultant at Gordon Dadds Solicitors told Sky News: "The hallmark of fraud is dishonesty. This was clearly dishonest, causing financial loss and distress to those affected.
"Although the affected individuals could seek redress through the court, in view of the seriousness of the misconduct the regulator has stepped in, to make sure those affected receive fair compensation."
The Liverpool striker is no stranger to controversy - with one incident leading him to be dubbed "the cannibal of Ajax".
Here are just a few of his misdemeanours:
Suarez described the handball as 'save of the tournament' FEBRUARY 2007: He is sent off late on in his debut for Uruguay against Colombia after picking up a second yellow card for dissent.
Suarez dubbed the 'cannibal of Ajax' JULY 2010: Suarez stopped a certain goal by Ghana in the World Cup quarter-final. He was sent off but Asamoah Gyan's penalty was saved and the Ghana lost the penalty shootout. After the match the striker said: "I made the save of the tournament."
NOVEMBER 2010: He was dubbed the "cannibal of Ajax" after he bit PSV Einhoven's Otman Bakkal's shoulder in a Dutch league game. He was banned for seven matches.
Suarez refused to shake Evra's hand OCTOBER 2011: Alleged to have racially abused Manchester United's Patrice Evra during a Premier League match. He was later found guilty, banned for eight matches and fined £40,000.
FEBRUARY 2012: The Liverpool striker stirred up tensions after refusing to shake Evra's hand before their Premier League game at Old Trafford.
Liverpool striker munches on Ivanovic's arm OCTOBER 2012: Celebrates a goal against Everton by diving in front of then manager David Moyes, who had earlier claimed that "divers" such as Suarez were putting fans off the game.
APRIL 2013: Suarez bit Chelsea's Branislav Ivanovic's arm in a Premier League clash. He was banned for 10 games.
A 26-year-old bride-to-be has died in a car crash just minutes after snapping a selfie in the vehicle as she headed to her bachelorette party.
Colette Moreno leaves behind a five-year-old son and a devastated family.
"She was so excited. We were planning," said a tearful fiance, 28-year-old Jesse Arcobasso.
The Missouri woman was in the passenger's seat when a car being driven by her friend collided with an oncoming vehicle.
The driver, Ashley Theobald, was trying to pass a truck on the way to the Lake of the Ozarks, where they had planned a weekend of partying.
Ms Theobald said Ms Moreno suffered from asthma and had been coughing because of the fumes that the truck was discharging.
"We both thought it was clear and there was a hill that neither one of us saw," she recalled.
"There was a truck coming and I swerved and he swerved with me."
Ms Theobald suffered minor injuries.
"I've never had a friend like her. I won't ever have a friend like her," she said.
The family has set up a fund in her memory.
Ms Moreno had been planned to marry Mr Arcobasso next month in Jamaica, reports said.
Police investigating the murders of a Saudi student and a vulnerable man in Essex say they have recovered 38 knives during their search.
The update on the investigation came as Crimestoppers announced a reward of £10,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of Nahid Almanea's killer.
The 31-year-old was stabbed 16 times as she walked along the Salary Brook Trail footpath in Colchester on June 17.
Police are looking into a possible link between Ms Almanea's murder and that of Jim Attfield, who was stabbed 102 times on his arms, hands, back, neck and head in what police described as a "frenzied" attack two months earlier.
Police look for clues in the hunt for Ms Almanea's killer A £5,000 reward that was previously offered for information about his death has been doubled to £10,000.
Detective Chief Superintendent Steve Worron, of Essex Police, said the 38 knives recovered so far were being examined to see whether any of them were used in either attack.
Hundreds of officers from several different forces have spoken to more than 100 witnesses and carried out door-to-door inquiries at 325 houses, he added.
On Tuesday, police said they were trying to trace a man who may have followed Ms Almanea four days before she was killed.
Ms Almanea was seen on CCTV the day before she was attacked Witnesses said the man walked behind two women as they came out of a house in Stanley Wooster Way at around 8.45am on June 13.
He is described as white, in his 30s, around 5ft 10in tall and with short, dark hair. He was dressed casually and was wearing dark jeans.
Police have said they do not have evidence that the murders of Ms Almanea and Mr Attfield are linked or that a serial killer is involved.
However, "parallel" investigations are being carried out and they have admitted there are obvious similarities.
Witnesses are asked to contact the incident room at Essex Police on 01245 282103. Alternatively, call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 55111.
Jurors who failed to reach verdicts on four final charges in the phone-hacking trial have been discharged by a judge who criticised the Prime Minister for comments that could have caused the case to collapse.
Andy Coulson, the former Number 10 spin doctor, and the ex-News Of The World (NOTW) royal editor Clive Goodman had been accused of conspiring to commit misconduct in public office by paying police officers for two royal phone directories.
But after sitting through eight months of evidence at the Old Bailey, the jury could not reach even a majority verdict and were discharged.
Ex-newspaper editor Andy Coulson has been convicted of phone hacking It means stinging criticism of David Cameron can now be reported for the first time.
The judge, Mr Justice Saunders, said he was "very concerned" about comments the Prime Minister made while the jury was still deliberating.
"What has happened is unsatisfactory so far as justice and the rule of law are concerned," he said.
The News Of The World was shut down in the wake of the scandal The move to discharge the jury comes after Coulson was found guilty of plotting to hack phones between 2000 and 2006 while working at the NOTW.
The scandal, which cost the 46-year-old his job as the Prime Minister's communications director and led to the closure of his former newspaper, involved a list of high-profile targets, including Kate Middleton and Prince William, actor Daniel Craig and murdered schoolgirl Milly Dowler.
The incriminating email in which Coulson said "do his phone" His former colleague Rebekah Brooks and her husband Charlie Brooks were cleared of the charges they faced.
Shortly after those verdicts were delivered, Mr Cameron led the way in what the judge called "open season" by apologising for hiring Coulson in 2007.
Sky's Home Affairs Correspondent Mark White, at the Old Bailey, said: "Those comments were very prejudicial, suggesting Coulson had been dishonest.
An emotional Rebekah Brooks was cleared of all charges "There was a move by the legal counsel for Coulson and Goodman to have those remaining counts thrown out ... because they felt the jury wouldn't be able to reach fair conclusions.
"However, in essence, that argument is a moot point for the moment because the jury hasn't been able to reach verdicts."
At a heated Prime Minister's Questions, Labour leader Ed Miliband accused Mr Cameron of "wilful negligence" by "bringing a criminal into Downing Street".
David Cameron and Ed Miliband clashed at Prime Minister's Questions His opposite number replied with regular references to the Leveson Inquiry into press ethics, saying the report "made no criticism of my conduct".
The judge praised jurors for their "enormous patience and tolerance" and said they shown "exceptional" dedication.
A decision on whether to hold a retrial will be made next week, with sentencing possible on Friday.
Coulson faces up to two years in prison.
Assistant Commissioner Cressida Dick, of the Metropolitan Police, which launched Operation Weeting to investigate phone hacking at the NOTW, said: "Throughout the investigation, we've done our best to follow the evidence without fear or favour.
"We were conscious of the sensitivities and legal complexities of investigating a national newspaper containing confidential journalistic material.
"This investigation has never been about an attack on press freedom but to establish whether any criminal offences had been committed."
A former doctor who gave lethal injections to seven terminally ill patients to help them die has been cleared over poisoning charges at a French court.
Nicolas Bonnemaison had faced life in prison over the allegations. His lawyer said the acquittal was "enormous" and would add weight to the debate raging in France over the legality of assisted suicide.
Relatives of Bonnemaison's patients testified on his behalf during the trial as calls to legalise assisted suicide gather pace. Euthanasia is illegal in Britain and France but lawful in Luxembourg, Belgium and the Netherlands.
Paul Lamb and Jane Nicklinson also argued for euthanasia to be legalised Mr Bonnemaison's acquittal comes as Britain's Supreme Court declared a ban on assisted suicide, set out in the 1961 Suicide Act, to be incompatible with the European Convention on Human Rights.
Despite the ruling, the Supreme Court dismissed an appeal from two disabled men who had argued doctors should have a legal right to kill them if they so wished.
Jane Nicklinson, the widow of "locked-in syndrome" sufferer Tony Nicklinson, brought the case along with paralysed former builder Paul Lamb and another disabled man, known only as Martin, who want to make it legal for doctors to help end their patients' lives.
The court justices ruled against Ms Nicklinson and Mr Lamb by a seven-to-two majority; although five of them said they had the power to declare that a ban on assisted suicide breaches the right to private and family life.
Ms Nicklinson's with her former husband Tony who died in September 2012 The ruling suggests Britain should bring its law in line with the Human Rights Act.
The Supreme Court ruling and the acquittal of Dr Bonnemaison come as another court in France ruled doctors could withhold food and water from Vincent Lambert, who has been in a vegetative state for six years following a motorcycle accident.
It was argued Mr Lambert had communicated his wish to die in such circumstances before the accident that left him tetraplegic.
But just hours later on Tuesday night, that decision was over-ruled by the European Court of Human Rights, which ordered France to continue to treat Mr Lambert until it had time to properly examine the case.
"He is not sick, he is not at the end of his life, he is not suffering," Jean Paillot, a lawyer for Mr Lambert's parents, told BFM television.
"From our perspective, there is no reason to stop feeding or hydrating him."
Luis Suarez "must face a severe sanction" if he is found to have bitten an Italian player during a World Cup match, a senior Fifa official has told Sky News.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, a senior official from international football's governing body said the Liverpool star "must face a severe sanction. If we allow this where will it stop?"
Fifa has opened disciplinary proceedings against Luis Suarez after he was accused of biting Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini.
The striker and the Uruguayan FA have until 9pm UK time to "provide their position and any documentary evidence they deem relevant".
Uruguay trained in Natal on Wednesday morning, but Suarez and his teammates who played against Italy were given a day off to rest.
Suarez has already commented on the incident, declaring: "These things happen on the pitch."
The Uruguay striker has previous after biting Chelsea's Branislav Ivanovic The striker clashed with Chiellini in the 79th minute of his country's Group D match, a game they won 1-0 to advance to the last 16.
Television replays show Suarez moving his head towards Chiellini and apparently sinking his teeth into his shoulder, with Chiellini responding by swinging his arm.
Defending the alleged attack, Suarez said: "We were both just inside the area, he struck me in the chest with his shoulder and he hit me in the eye as well.
"These are things that happen on the pitch and you shouldn't attach so much importance to them.
"I'm very happy to have qualified. We are taking each game as it comes, we know that we're in a difficult situation, we're at our limits now."
Speaking to Rai TV after the game, Chiellini said: "It was ridiculous not to send Suarez off.
Suarez was sent off for a notorious handball in South Africa in 2010 "It is clear, clear-cut and then there was the obvious dive afterwards because he knew very well that he did something that he shouldn't have done."
Article 77 of Fifa's disciplinary code allows it to hit players with retrospective bans of up to two years if it decides there is a case to answer.
Daily Mirror football writer Darren Lewis told Sky News' Sunrise programme he believes Suarez faces a lengthy international ban, but is likely to escape punishment that would prevent him from playing for Liverpool.
Both Adidas and betting firm 888poker - two of Suarez's key sponsors - have announced they are reviewing their relationship with the player following the alleged bite.
Suarez served a 10-match ban last year for biting Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic.
Before his move to Liverpool in 2011, Suarez was suspended for seven matches by the Netherlands football federation after biting PSV Eindhoven's Otman Bakkal when he played for Ajax.
He also received a eight-match ban in 2011 after the Football Association found he had racially abused Patrice Evra seven times during a game against Manchester United. He has never apologised to Evra.
Professor Cary Cooper from Lancaster University told Sky News that if the forward is found guilty in this latest incident, he should get professional help.
He said: "For anyone in a job who's behaved in an anti-social way, they should be helped - you go to a clinical psychologist, a counselling psychologist and they would try to unwrap why you do that, and then channel that in a more positive way."
He said any ban should also include an order or encouragement for Suarez to get help for his behaviour.
Police in Rochdale have launched an investigation after a 90-year-old woman was attacked in the street and raped.
The woman was attacked as she walked to a butchers in Spotland Road around 6.45am on Tuesday to buy a bacon butty.
She had a £1 coin in one hand and a walking stick in the other.
A hand was placed over her mouth from behind and she was dragged backwards before she lost consciousness.
When she came round she found she had been pulled to the ground and raped.
She managed to pick herself up and walked to the butchers to raise the alarm and the staff called the police.
Superintendent Alistair Mallen said the victim was "really upset, distressed and traumatised".
Looking straight at the camera, he told Sky News: "What I'd say to that individual - and if he's watching me now - get yourself to a police station and explain your actions.
"If you don't, I'll tell you know, we will be knocking at your door in the next 24 hours."
Police want to speak to witnesses who potentially saw the offender He said earlier: "I am sure the entire community will share our revulsion at this.
"The victim has been through an horrific ordeal and we are all hoping she can make a full recovery.
"She is now being supported by experienced officers and we are doing everything possible to reassure her that we will catch the man responsible.
"This kind of attack is thankfully so rare that it will naturally cause a huge amount of concern in the community.
"I now want people, including the criminal fraternity, to imagine if that had been your mum or grandma. I want to harness these feelings and use them to help the police do their job - catch this man and put him before the courts.
"It may not have struck you as significant at the time, but please, if you saw anything or anyone that you think could be relevant then please call the police."
Police want to hear from people who saw the victim - and potentially her attacker - on Tuesday morning.
The victim is white and was wearing a white summer dress with a flower print and a cardigan.
The attacker is described as a white male but no other details were available.
Rochdale MP Simon Danczuk said there was "a real sense of shock and horror" in the community over the attack, and urged anyone with information to "search their conscience" and help police "catch this sick individual".
"Local people are struggling to comprehend how anyone can do this. Our heart goes out to this poor woman. She must have gone through hell," he said.
"Anyone with even a glimmer of suspicion should contact the police immediately."
:: Anyone with information is asked to call police in Rochdale on 0161 856 8470/8420 or Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
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