Egypt Clashes Turn Deadly As Troops Open Fire

By Dominic Waghorn, Sky News Correspondent, in Cairo

At least 36 people in Egypt have died and over 1,000 were hurt in fierce clashes between supporters and opponents of deposed president Mohamed Morsi.

Supporters of the former leader marched to the Cairo barracks of the Republican Guard chanting "down with military rule" after a Muslim Brotherhood rally at the city's Rabea al Adaweya mosque.

Shots were fired as protesters hung pictures of Mr Morsi on a barbed wire barrier around the military complex. At least three demonstrators were shot by the military.

Downtown Cairo witnessed the same street battles played out two-and-a-half years ago, this time with Morsi supporters fighting their enemies with rocks, clubs and fireworks. One person was killed in their clashes.

Following the violence, the country's interim president Adli Mansour held talks with General Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi - the army chief who is also defence minister - and interior minister Mohammed Ibrahim who is in charge of the police.

It was the first time Mr Mansour has worked from the president's main offices since he was sworn-in on Thursday, after the military overthrew Mr Morsi - the country's first democratically elected president.

An anti-Morsi protester with evidence of gun cartridges

A pro-Morsi crowd crossed the Sixth Of October bridge heading towards Tahrir Square, provoking a fierce confrontation.

The Egyptian army said troops were responding only with blank rounds and tear gas.

However, anti-Morsi youths showed Sky News what their enemies had done to them, brandishing used shotgun cartridges and pellet wounds.

"They are terrorists and we should get rid of them," they said. "They're using automatic weapons and shotguns."

Egyptian elite soldiers guard a military building in Cairo

The atmosphere was febrile. Changing in a second. Turning from triumphant to panicked, as the crowd scattered thinking their attackers had returned.

"The Muslim Brotherhood is coming here beating us shooting us," said one man. "We're here, we're alone and we need someone to  help us."

As if to answer him, military armoured personnel carriers appeared from the gloom.

But this isn't a conflict against foreign invaders, it's between Egyptians.

The anti-Morsi crowd screamed curses against the ousted president venting their fury, and relief then turned against us, the Sky News crew, mistaking us for Americans.

A hurried explanation gave us time to escape.

More than 200 people have been wounded nationwide, according to officials

There are now two armies of protesters on the streets of Cairo - enraged and out for vengeance, determined to prevail.

Violence also erupted in cities of southern Egypt, along the Suez Canal and in the Nile Delta, with officials reporting more than 200 people injured. Four were killed in the northern Sinai city of el Arish, where Islamists stormed a government building.

Egypt's ambulance authority said 36 people had died nationwide, including 12 people in clashes in Alexandria. Most of the fatalities were from gunshot wounds.

It came after the Muslim Brotherhood and its allies called for protesters to take to the streets on the Muslim day of prayer for what it described as a "Friday of Rage".

The leader of the Brotherhood called for followers to remain peaceful but he vowed to restore power to Mr Morsi, who was ousted in a military coup earlier this week, a year after being elected to office.

Meanwhile, lawyers for ex-president Hosni Mubarak entered a not guilty plea as his retrial for alleged complicity in the killings of protesters in 2011 resumed.

The 85-year-old former leader appeared in the dock behind bars, wearing dark sunglasses and a white prison uniform.

During the televised hearing, Cairo's criminal court heard submissions by the defence before proceedings were adjourned  until August 17.

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Islamic Militants Kill 30 In Nigeria School Attack

Armed Islamic militants have killed 29 students and an English teacher in an attack on a boarding school in northeastern Nigeria.

Survivors being treated for burns and gunshot wounds said some students were burned alive in the attack on Saturday which has been blamed on a radical terror group.

Gunmen, believed to be from Islamist sect Boko Haram, stormed the premises of Government Secondary School in the town of Mamudo in Yobe state at around 3am, setting fire to parts of the complex.

Dozens of children from the 1,200-student school escaped into the bush and have not been seen since.

Parents rushed to the school and screamed in anguish as they tried to identify the charred and dead bodies of the victims.

Mohammed Musa, who taught English at the school, died after he was shot in the chest.

One 15-year-old, who survived the attack, told of how he awoke to find one of the attackers pointing a gun at him.

Speaking at Potsikum General Hospital, Musa Hassan said: "We were sleeping when we heard gunshots. When I woke up, someone was pointing a gun at me."

Nigerian soldiers on patrol in a village

He put up his hands in defence and was shot in his right hand, the one he uses to write with, and lost four fingers.

The child said the gunmen came armed with jerry cans of fuel that they used to torch the school's administrative block and one of the hostels.

"They burned the children alive," he added.

Farmer Malam Abdullahi found the bodies of two of his sons, a 10-year-old shot in the back as he apparently tried to run away, and a 12-year-old shot in the chest.

He said he planned to withdraw his three remaining sons from another school nearby.

"That's it, I'm taking my other boys out of school," he said.

He complained there was no protection for students despite the deployment of thousands of troops since the government declared a state of emergency mid-May in three northeastern states.

"It's not safe," he said. "The gunmen are attacking schools and there is no protection for students despite all the soldiers," he added.

A poster offers a reward for the capture of Boko Haram head Abubakar Shekau

It is the deadliest of three attacks on schools since the military launched its offensive to try to crush Boko Haram. The group's nickname translates as "Western education is sinful" in the northern Hausa language.

Suspected Islamist militants opened fire on a school in Nigeria's northeastern city of Maiduguri last month, killing nine students, and a similar attack on a school in the city of Damaturu killed seven just days earlier.

Dozens of schools have been torched and unknown scores of students killed among more than 1,600 victims slain by extremists since 2010.

Militants have increasingly targeted civilians, including health workers on vaccination campaigns, teachers and government workers, while farmers have been driven from their land.

President Goodluck Jonathan declared a state of emergency on May 14, and deployed thousands of troops to halt the insurgency, acknowledging that militants had taken control of some towns and villages.

Nigerian forces say they have wrest back control of the remote northeast from Boko Haram, destroying key bases and arresting scores of suspects.

However, the military crackdown has pushed many militants into hiding.

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9/11: Remains Of Firefighter Identified

New York officials have identified the remains of a firefighter who was killed in New York in the September 11, 2001 attacks.

Jeffrey Walz has now become the 1,637th victim to be identified among the thousands of remains found in and near the rubble of the World Trade Center.

Nearly a dozen years after the terror attacks, authorities are painstakingly testing and retesting the material as technology becomes more refined.

Nearly 350 firefighters were killed at the World Trade Center

Mr Walz's family recalled how he had called his wife and parents on the morning of the attacks to tell them he had been called into action.

His relatives would never see him again, and now that his remains have been found they have expressed relief.

"We're just very relieved, in some respects, to be finally bringing him home to where he grew up and to put him to rest there," said his brother, Raymond Walz.

"That's some peace.

"We kind of knew this day would come. I guess when it does come, though, it kind of sucks the wind out of your sails," he told the AP news agency.

"You have to absorb something new, and old feelings resurface."

Mr Walz, who had joined the Fire Department of New York in 1992, died in the World Trade Center's north tower. He was 37.

His remains were collected during the initial recovery effort in 2001 and 2002, but they were retested and identified just recently, the medical examiner's office spokeswoman said.

Mr Walz died at the north tower

Altogether, 2,753 people perished in the attacks at the World Trade Center, with 343 firefighters among the victims.

New identifications are made periodically but are not always made public.

It was Mr Walz's family's decision to let his name be revealed.

"Maybe it'll give other families hope," his mother Jennie Walz said.

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Cuba Bus Crash: Two UK Tourists Among Injured

Sixteen passengers, including two Britons, have been injured in Cuba after a bus left the road and flipped over.

State-run newspaper Cinco de Septiembre said the crash occurred in the province of Cienfuegos on the route between Trinidad and Varadero, two popular tourist destinations.

The injured were listed as two Britons, two Czechs, four Dutch, one Filipino, one Irish and six Russians.

One of the injured passengers is taken to hospital

Cinco de Septiembre said three of the tourists were thought to be in a serious condition.

Two have reportedly undergone surgery and are in intensive care.

Carlos Mendoza, a doctor who attended the injured passengers, confirmed that three people were in hospital.

But he added that "at this time there are no life-threatening injuries".

Emergency services attending the scene

Other wounds included broken collarbones and minor lesions.

The UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office said in a statement: "We are aware of a bus crash involving British nationals between Trinidad and Varadero in Cuba on the evening of July 4.

"Our embassy in Havana is in close contact with local authorities. Consular officials are on their way to the area to provide assistance if needed."

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Paula Deen: Arrest Over 'Extortion Plot'

A man has been arrested for allegedly trying to extort $250,000 (nearly £170,000) from celebrity chef Paula Deen.

Authorities say the suspect, Thomas George Paculis, had threatened to go to the news media with "true and damning statements" he said Deen had made.

The  62-year-old has been charged with extortion.

Deen has become engulfed in a racism row.

The controversy erupted last month when a deposition was made public in which she was asked if she had used the "N word", and responded, "Yes, of course".

The questioning was part of a civil lawsuit, brought by former employee Lisa Jackson, which accuses Deen of using the slur when planning her brother's 2007 wedding.

It is claimed she wanted black waiters in white coats, shorts and bow ties for a "Southern plantation-style wedding".

Deen has denied being a racist.

Paula Deen on the Today show (Pic: NBC)

During an appearance on the Today programme, a tearful Deen said: "The day I used that word, it was a world ago. It was 30 years ago."

Asked if she is a racist, she replied: "No, I am not."

Paculis was a resident in Savannah, in Deen's home state of Georgia.

A criminal complaint filed in federal court in Savannah says Paculis was threatening to go to the media with statements made by Deen unless the star gave him a quarter of a million dollars.

According to the AP news agency, the complaint cites the text of an email Paculis wrote to Deen's lawyer, Greg Hodges, on June 24, days after Deen's controversy broke out. 

The text does not specify what the "damning" statements would be, but Paculis reportedly wrote that "there is a price for such information".

Mr Hodges then reported the case to the FBI.

Paculis has been ordered to appear in federal court in Savannah on July 16.

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LA Car Chase Driver Charges At Cops Behind Him

A car chase in Los Angeles came to an unusual ending when the suspect got out of his vehicle and attacked the police officers who were chasing him.

Aerial footage shows the suspect's green Jeep coming to a halt shortly after suffering a flat tyre.

US broadcaster NBC reported the suspect had driven over a spike strip laid out by law enforcement.

The suspect got out of his car and charged at the officers behind him

The footage then shows the suspect getting out and charging towards the police cars behind him.

Several officers rushed to the scene to subdue the suspect, and can be seen in the video bringing him under control.

NBC said the initial cause of the pursuit was unknown.

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Teeth Brushing Record Smashed By Children

More than 300,000 children from over 300 Nigerian schools have set a new world record for the most people brushing their teeth at the same time.

The largest gathering was at the Teslim Balogun Stadium in Lagos, with smaller events organised simultaneously at hundreds of other locations across the capital.

Nigerian Dental Association's president, Dr Olurotimi Olojede, said the event aimed to teach pupils how to brush and to help them understand the importance of good oral hygiene.

He said: "Bringing our children, school children, letting them know the importance of brushing and having good oral hygiene. I think it is a good thing at this point in time for our country."

The participants enjoyed the experience with some already planning to tell their future children about it.

One boy said: "At the beginning, I was having second thoughts about it.

"But by the end, I'm quite happy I was part of this experience. And I think this is history I'm going to pass down, definitely, to my children."

One girl added: "It was fun. I learned a lot of things and I had an experience that I don't think I'll ever forget."

They smashed the previous record set in India in 2007 where 177,003 people brushed their teeth at the same time.

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Snowden Offered Asylum In Three Countries

US intelligence leaker Edward Snowden has been told he could be welcomed in Bolivia, Nicaragua and Venezuela after applying to another six countries for asylum.

Declaring that Bolivia has "no fear" of the United States and its European allies, the country's President Evo Morales said he would be willing "to give asylum to the American, if he asks."

Speaking at a public event, Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega said his government was also willing to grant political asylum to the former NSA contractor "if circumstances permit it".

He added: "We are open, respectful of the right to asylum, and it is clear that if circumstances permit it, we would receive Snowden with pleasure and give him asylum here in Nicaragua.

"We have the sovereign right to help a person who felt remorse after finding out how the United States was using technology to spy on the whole world, and especially its European allies."

Mr Ortega said his government had received an asylum application at its embassy in Moscow.

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro made the same promise during a speech marking the anniversary of Venezuela's independence.

He said: "As head of state, the government of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela decided to offer humanitarian asylum to the young American Edward Snowden so that he can live (without) ... persecution from the empire."

It was not immediately clear if there were any conditions to Venezuela's offer.         

Snowden is believed to be holed up at a Moscow airport looking for a country that will give him safe haven as the US wants to extradite him to face espionage charges.

The 30-year-old initially asked 21 countries for asylum but most said he must be on their soil for his application to be accepted.

WikiLeaks revealed he has since applied to more countries.

A tweet from the anti-secrecy website said: "Edward Snowden has applied to another six countries for asylum.

"They will not be named at this time due to attempted US interference."

The message appeared to be an allusion to the drama surrounding the flight of Bolivian President Evo Morales, whose plane was recently abruptly rerouted to Austria over suspicions Snowden was aboard.

Washington has revoked the passport of Snowden, who is seeking to evade US justice for leaking details about a vast US electronic surveillance programme to collect phone and Internet data.

He also revealed evidence of the spying activities of British eavesdropping agency GCHQ - including its scanning of vast amounts of emails and other internet traffic by tapping cable networks.

A bid by Snowden for Icelandic citizenship failed when the country's parliament voted not to debate it before the summer recess.

Russia has shown signs of growing impatience over his stay in the country.

Its deputy foreign minister said on Thursday Snowden had not sought asylum there and needed to choose a place to go.

Moscow has made clear that the longer he stays, the greater the risk of lasting damage to relations with Washington.

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Wimbledon: Bartoli Wins Women's Singles Final

Marion Bartoli has defeated Sabine Lisicki 6-1, 6-4 in the women's singles final at Wimbledon.

Six years after losing to Venus Williams in the Wimbledon final, Bartoli returned to Centre Court and ended her long wait for a major crown.

By finally winning her maiden major title in the 47th Grand Slam appearance of her career, Bartoli surpassed the previous record set by Jana Novotna, who won Wimbledon in 1998 after 45 appearances at the majors.

The Frenchwoman took the first set comfortably against an out of sorts Lisicki on the sun-drenched Centre Court.

Lisicki, the 23rd seed, broke Bartoli's serve in the opening game of the match.

But Bartoli broke straight back and took advantage of unforced errors by the German to secure the set in 31 minutes.

Bartoli (l) holds her trophy alongside Lisicki after the Wimbledon final

Lisicki's booming serve never functioned smoothly and Bartoli, seeded 15th, kept the ball away from her dangerous forehand throughout the match.

Throughout the match, Lisicki was a shadow of the bold stroke-maker who stunned defending champion Serena Williams in the fourth round.

Bartoli took the second set 6-4 to win the title.

The 28-year-old is the fifth oldest women to become a first-time Grand Slam winner in the Open era.

Bartoli will climb to seventh when the latest world rankings are released on Monday.

She did not drop a single set in her seven matches to win the title.

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Canada Explosion: Oil Train Derails In Quebec

By Tom Parmenter, Sky News Correspondent

A fireball has engulfed a Canadian town after a train carrying crude oil derailed and damaged dozens of buildings.

The crash happened as the freight train travelled through the Quebec town of Lac-Megantic, a lakeside town with a population of 6,000, on Saturday morning.

Massive flames and thick smoke could be seen, locals have reported that many buildings have been destroyed.

More than 1,000 residents were told to leave the area but officials have not yet said if there are any fatalities.

"I can say absolutely nothing about victims," police spokesman Michel Brunet said.

"We've been told about people who are not answering their phones, but you have to understand that there are people who are out of town and on holiday."

Mayor Colette Roy-LaRoche was nearly in tears as she addressed the media, according to the Montreal Gazette. 

"When you see the downtown of your city almost destroyed you think, how are we going to get through this? But I can assure everyone here that all the authorities and ministries have been very supportive," she said.

"We've deployed all the resources possible."

Four tanker cars blew up after the train, which had 73 cars in all, came off the rails shortly after 1am local time.

Fire officials said they feared more of the tanker cars were at risk of exploding.

Environmental experts have also arrived in the town to assess how much oil may have spilled into local waterways.

Environment Quebec spokesman Christian Blanchette said: "Right now, there is big smoke in the air, so we have a mobile laboratory here to monitor the quality of the air.

"We also have a spill on the lake and the river that is concerning us.

"We have advised the local municipalities downstream to be careful if they take their water from the Chaudiere River."

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