Receptionist dead after blast hits Minneapolis school

A Minnesota school receptionist has been killed in an explosion that partially levelled the building and injured nine others, officials say.

Ruth Berg, 47, who was engaged to be married, was found by search crews in the rubble of Minnehaha Academy in the city of Minneapolis.

One other person, 82-year-old school janitor John Carlson, is still missing after Wednesday morning's blast.

Investigators suspect natural gas caused the explosion.

School officials said in a Facebook post that Ms Berg had worked there for 17 years.

"As our receptionist, she welcomed everyone with a smile and was always willing to go the extra mile to help our students, families, and staff," they wrote.

"She will be greatly missed. Please keep Ruth's family, and our school community, in your prayers."

Rescuers plucked three people from the roof after the explosion, which set part of the building ablaze.

Medics said three people were in a critical condition, four in a serious condition and two had "minor trauma".

Mr Carlson, the missing janitor, was a 1953 graduate of Minnehaha Academy who also sent his children there, reports the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

He began his caretaker job at the school in 2003 and was known for his generosity in handing out ice cream bars to staff and students.

Kenyan election official Chris Msando 'tortured to death'

The Kenyan election official whose body was found earlier this week had been severely tortured and strangled to death, an autopsy has found.

Chris Msando had deep scratches and cuts on his back and hands, the chief government pathologist said.

Mr Msando was in charge of Kenya's computerised voting system for next Tuesday's presidential elections.

His body was discovered next to the corpse of a woman in a forest on the outskirts of Nairobi at the weekend.

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"There was no doubt that he was tortured and murdered," Wafula Chebukati, chair of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), said on Wednesday.

An autopsy on the body of the woman found alongside Mr Msando, thought to be that of his companion Carol Ngumbu, will take place on Thursday.

The investigation is still ongoing, government spokesperson Eric Kiraithe confirmed, dismissing earlier reports that three suspects had been arrested.

In a joint statement, the United States and the United Kingdom said they were "gravely concerned" by the murder, calling for "free, fair, credible and peaceful elections" in Kenya.

The two countries also offered assistance in the investigation. Mr Msando's family urged the Kenyan government to accept the offer in order to "conclude the matter with urgency".

"We are deeply devastated at the tragic loss," the family said in a statement.

"Chris Msando was a loving family man, who cherished and adored his wife and children.

The family also asked social media users to be mindful of what they post, saying: "A lot of the information out there is false and meant to injure and paint the family in a bad light."

Migrant crisis: Italy approves Libya naval mission

Italy's parliament has approved a plan to send naval boats to Libya as part of efforts to stop migrants crossing the Mediterranean Sea.

Two vessels are being deployed initially, in what the government says is an operation to help the Libyan coastguard and target people smugglers.

Italy is the main recipient of migrants making the dangerous crossing from Libya.

Earlier Italy impounded a German rescue ship on the island of Lampedusa.

The crew on board the Iuventa, operated by German NGO Jugend Rettet, is being questioned on the orders of the Italian prosecutor.

While the NGO said the check was "standard procedure", police said there the ship was seized due to evidence of "facilitating illegal immigration".

Two Syrian migrants were taken ashore from the vessel, Italian media reported.

Lampedusa, a tiny Italian island near North Africa, has struggled to house boatloads of migrants in recent years.

Jugend Rettet is one of several search-and-rescue NGOs operating in the Mediterranean that has rejected an Italian code of conduct, which had just come in to play to deal with the issue.

The NGOs object to the requirement for armed police to board their ships and for rescuers to stop transferring migrants from one ship to another. They want to minimise their trips back to port, because those trips cost them precious time and money.

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Soon after the Italian parliament's vote, a patrol boat entered Libyan waters and headed for the capital Tripoli.

The Italian Defence Minister Roberta Pinotti stressed the mission would not be a "blockade" preventing migrant boats from leaving.

However, rights groups have warned that those sent back to Libya face abuse at the hands of traffickers.

Italy says its naval deployment is being negotiated with the UN-recognised Libyan government in Tripoli, led by Prime Minister Fayez Sarraj.

Mr Sarraj said his administration had agreed to receive only training and arms from Italy. "Libya's national sovereignty is a red line that nobody must cross," he said.

More than 94,000 migrants have crossed the Mediterranean to Italy so far this year, according to the UN - a record number. More than 2,370 have died trying to reach Italy.

Arrivals in July though were down dramatically on the same month last year - 11,193 compared with 23,552, according to the Interior Ministry.

Migrants picked up in Libyan coastal waters - and not international waters - can be legally returned to Libya, but aid workers say conditions in migrant reception camps there are dire.

Since 2015 as many as a dozen NGO aid ships have been patrolling off Libya to pick up migrants in distress. So far this year they have handled 35% of the rescues, Italy's coastguard says.

A note on terminology: The BBC uses the term migrant to refer to all people on the move who have yet to complete the legal process of claiming asylum. This group includes people fleeing war-torn countries such as Syria, who are likely to be granted refugee status, as well as people who are seeking jobs and better lives, who governments are likely to rule are economic migrants.

Venezuela vote: Authorities reject inflation claim

Venezuela's electoral authorities have dismissed a claim that turnout in Sunday's controversial vote for a new constituent assembly was inflated.

The firm behind the voting system said turnout was at least one million fewer than the government figure.

But the head of the election council hit back, calling it an "irresponsible claim, with unfounded estimations".

President Nicolás Maduro has said that the new assembly will be inaugurated on Friday.

The opposition see the assembly as an attempt by Mr Maduro to cling on to power.

They boycotted the election and also held an unofficial referendum in which they said more than seven million Venezuelans voted against the constituent assembly.

Turnout in Sunday's poll is seen as a key indicator of the level of support the government enjoys.

The government said more than eight million people, or 41.5% of the electorate, had voted.

What are the allegations?

"It is with the deepest regret that we have to report that the turnout numbers on Sunday 30th July for the Constituent Assembly in Venezuela were tampered with," the boss of Smartmatic, Antonio Mugica, told journalists in London.

He said a full audit was needed to establish the exact number of voters but he said the firm estimated there was a difference of at least one million.

But Tibisay Lucena of the election council accused Mr Mugica of trying to "raise doubt over the result of the election".

Mr Maduro said the vote was free and fair and that it would not be tainted by "a company with its headquarters in London and its bank accounts in the United States".

The opposition-controlled National Assembly has approved a request to open a criminal investigation into Smartmatic's claims.

Separately, the Reuters news agency reported it had seen an internal memo from Venezuela's electoral authorities saying fewer than four million votes had been cast just two hours before polls closed.

Venezuela's controversial vote explained

So where next?

Despite intense pressure at home and abroad, Mr Maduro is ploughing on with the constituent assembly.

The first deputies for the new body have received their credentials, among them Mr Maduro's wife and son. Swearing in has already begun and the assembly's first sitting is due on Thursday.

Mr Maduro says the constituent assembly, which has the power to rewrite the constitution and bypasses the National Assembly, is needed to restore order after months of crisis.

The opposition is calling for fresh demonstrations with a march planned to coincide with the expected installation of the assembly.

Venezuela remains in political and economic turmoil. Tumbling oil prices have hit social programmes hard and scores of people have died protesting against the government.

But despite the unrest the government retains the crucial support of the armed forces.

Brazil's President Temer survives corruption vote

The Brazilian Congress has voted not to send President Michel Temer to face trial for corruption.

Opposition lawmakers in the lower house of Congress failed to obtain the two-thirds majority needed to send the case to the Supreme Court.

Mr Temer has been accused of receiving $12m (£9m) in bribes from the boss of a giant meatpacking firm, JBS. He has denied the allegation.

The Congress session was marred by scenes of chaos and angry exchanges.

Lawmakers shouted abuse, pushed each other and threw fake bank notes at their opponents.

Voting is continuing, but more than one-third of lawmakers have either voted against a trial for President Temer, or abstained, meaning that the opposition cannot reach the two-thirds target required to send him to the Supreme Court.

The opposition needed to get 342 out of 513 votes.

Left-wing Congressman Ivan Valente, of the Socialism and Liberty Party, demanded the ousting of Mr Temer and the holding of new elections.

"The Brazilian people do not want Temer, the Brazilian people want direct elections. We do not want to change six for half-a-dozen. Out with Temer! Direct (elections) now!" he said.

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The lengthy session descended into chaos earlier, when both sides traded accusations of corruption.

Pro-government lawmakers displayed inflatable dolls depicting former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva as a prisoner.

He was sentenced last month to nine years and six months in jail and is facing other charges of corruption.

Lula says all the accusations against him are politically-motivated.

Mr Temer's supporter say his dismissal would cause instability and damage Brazil's ailing economy.

"I am in favour of all investigations, but the moment we are living in is very delicate and we need to recover the economy," said Luiz Claudio from the centre-right Republic Party.

Mr Temer became president last year following the impeachment of his predecessor, Dilma Rousseff.

She was found guilty of tampering with the government accounts in order to hide a growing deficit ahead of her re-election in 2014.

Trump approves new 'flawed' Russia sanctions

President Donald Trump has signed into a law a bill which imposes new sanctions on Russia for their alleged meddling in the 2016 election.

The bill, which was signed in private at the White House, also imposes sanctions on Iran and North Korea.

Mr Trump accused Congress of overreach on the legislation, which "handcuffs" him from easing Russia penalties.

Moscow said the sanctions "put paid to hopes that our relations with the new American administration" would improve.

Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev also said this move meant the US had declared a "full-scale trade war" on Russia.

Iran said the new sanctions violated the nuclear deal and it would respond in an "appropriate and proportional" manner, reports the semi-official Isna news agency.

The Kremlin has denied interfering in the US election, and Mr Trump has rejected any allegations that his campaign staff colluded with Russia to help him win.

Hours after the US president signed the bill, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: "This isn't news.

"The thing is, the bill was approved and was going to automatically become law with or without the president's signature."

Moscow had already retaliated last week to Congress passing the bill, by expelling 755 people from its US embassy and consulates.

Several European nations, including Germany, are fearful of the economic consequences and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker has warned of "unintended unilateral effects that impact the EU's energy security interests".

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In signing the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act, Mr Trump attached a statement calling the measure "deeply flawed".

He accused Congress, which last week overwhelmingly passed the bill and sent it to the White House, of overstepping its constitutional authority.

"As president, I can make far better deals with foreign countries than Congress," he said.

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Trump takes on Congress

Anthony Zurcher, BBC News, Washington

Donald Trump has signed the bill but he's clearly not happy about it. Hardly surprising, as any president would probably object to congressional efforts to curtail executive power included in this legislation.

As is becoming routine, however, this administration didn't draw its battle lines in the expected way.

There were several "signing statements". The first reads like a standard legalistic description of a presidential action with a bevy of "yes, but..." reservations.

Another statement is decidedly more Trumpian, complete with a shot at Congress for not passing healthcare reform and a closing boast about his business empire and negotiating prowess.

Releasing multiple signing statements with somewhat divergent tones is unusual, to say the least, and could be an indication that, despite the efforts of new chief of staff John Kelly, the administration is still not speaking with a unified voice.

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The sanctions, which are also in response to Russia's annexation of Crimea, come months after President Barack Obama expelled 35 Russian diplomats.

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• Republican Lindsey Graham praised the bill after it passed, pointing out that Mr Trump's options were limited since there were enough votes to overcome a presidential veto.
  "President Putin did something that nobody in America could do. He united the Congress," the South Carolina senator told CNN.
  Senior Russian parliamentarian Konstantin Kosachev said that Mr Trump was "capitulating" by not standing up to Congress.
  Mr Trump and Mr Putin met for the first time at the highly-scrutinised G20 summit last month in Germany.
  Allegations by the US intelligence community that Russia interfered in the US election to aid Mr Trump are currently being investigated by Congress and a special investigator.
• 
  
  

HMP Hewell: Security teams called to prison 'incident'

Specially-trained prison security teams were called to an "incident" at HMP Hewell.

Tornado squads, which are equipped to deal with riots, arrived at the prison near Redditch in Worcestershire late on Saturday night.

It is understood a handful of prisoners were attempting to cause damage to a wing.

The Prison Service said a "small number" of inmates at the category B jail were involved in the disturbance.

Men shouting and swearing, as well as banging and dogs barking, could be heard coming from the prison.

Tornado squads arrived at the site in unmarked vans using blue lights and sirens at about 19:30 BST.

'Serious concern'

HMP Hewell, which opened in its current form in 2008, is made up of six wings.

The main site is surrounded by farmland and houses about 1,000 inmates - including some category A remand prisoners.

In an inspection report published in January, Hewell was described as "a prison with many challenges and areas of serious concern".

Peter Clarke, chief inspector of prisons, said the "main concerns at the closed site were regarding issues of safety and respect".

He said levels of violence were "far too high", communal areas were "dirty" and many cells were over-crowded, with some described as "filthy".

A Prison Service spokesman said: "We are absolutely clear that offenders who behave in this way will be punished and face spending extra time behind bars."

It is understood the incident ended shortly after several loud bangs were heard at about midnight and prison authorities are now back in full control of the affected wing.