Catalonia election: Spain PM Rajoy rejects Puigdemont talks call

Spain's Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy has rebuffed calls by Catalonia's ousted leader, Carles Puigdemont, to meet for new talks outside the country.

Mr Rajoy said he would negotiate with whoever became the new head of the Catalan government but they would have to take up their post in Catalonia.

Mr Puigdemont earlier called for talks to take place in Brussels, where he is living in self-imposed exile.

Separatist parties won a majority in a Thursday's snap regional election.

Mr Rajoy avoided naming Mr Puigdemont during a press conference on Friday but said he was prepared to hold talks with whoever took control of the Catalan regional government "in a realistic way and inside the law".

"I offer Catalonia this because I care about the people," he said.

• As divided as ever
• The crisis in 300 words
• Will independence happen?

Mr Rajoy said the winner of Thursday's election was Inés Arrimadas, the leader of the Citizens party, which wants Catalonia to remain a semi-autonomous part of Spain.

The Citizens party is now the region's biggest party, although pro-independence parties are best placed to form a government.

"It is evident that something is broken, and it will take time to repair it," Mr Rajoy added.

Speaking in Belgium earlier on Friday, Mr Puigdemont said Catalonia wanted to be an independent state.

"This is the wish of the Catalan people," he said, adding: "I think the plan of [Spanish Prime Minister] Mariano Rajoy is not working, so we have to find new ways to tackle this crisis."

Mr Rajoy's conservative Popular Party (PP) recorded its worst ever result in Thursday's vote.

The Spanish government imposed direct rule on Catalonia and called the election after declaring an October independence referendum illegal.

What were the results?

With nearly all votes counted, the pro-independence parties Mr Puigdemont's Together for Catalonia (JxCat), the Republican Left of Catalonia (ERC) and Popular Unity (CUP) were on course to win a total of 70 seats in total, giving them a majority in the new parliament.

Citizens (Cs) had 25.3% of the vote, winning 37 seats in the 135-seat chamber.

Its leader told the BBC her party had been "victorious". Ms Inés Arrimadas said forming a coalition would be "difficult - but we will try".

Analysis: What the papers say

By BBC Monitoring

Leading Spanish newspapers say the result has strengthened the government's position.

"Nationalism can no longer claim that it exclusively represents Catalonia," says Madrid-based La Razón. ABC newspaper thinks Madrid should now settle the Catalan crisis. "If Spain wants to win this fight in the long term and prevent Catalonia from leaving one day, it should draft a serious plan for strengthening the state."

The result seems to have split Catalan papers between those who want the independence project to continue, and those who accept the realpolitik of the election result.

"The independence movement has humiliated the Spanish prime minister," El Nacional says. "The decisions that affect Catalonia are not made in Madrid."

But Barcelona's El Periódico says the result means a "divided Catalonia". "The election that Mariano Rajoy called has shown that Catalonia is firmly divided in two blocs and there is hardly any space for intermediaries."

La Vanguardia writes: "Major forces supporting independence should look back, confess to mistakes and avoid making them again,"

Why did the election take place?

Separatists who dominated the previous Catalan parliament declared independence on 27 October after a referendum that was declared illegal by Spain.

In an attempt to stop that referendum, Spanish police stormed some polling stations. However many voters defied the Spanish courts and riot police to cast their ballots.

The move led to violent clashes with hundreds of people reported injured.

• The man who wants to break up Spain

• Could Catalonia make a success of independence?

According to referendum organisers, 90% of voters were in favour of independence, but fewer than half the region's electorate took part.

What has been the reaction?

The European Commission said that its stance towards Catalonia remained the same, despite Thursday's election result.

The executive arm of the EU has previously stated that events in Catalonia were an internal issue for Spain.

"Our position on the question of Catalonia is well known and has been regularly restated, at all levels. It will not change," commission spokesman Alexander Winterstein told AFP news agency.

• Muslim woman seeks seat in Catalonia
• Catalonia region profile

"In relation to a regional election, we have no comment to make," he added.

The Indian teenagers who were expelled from school for hugging

A hug between two teenagers in southern India has snowballed into a national controversy after their school expelled them for a "public display of affection". The BBC's Ashraf Padanna spoke to them.

After she had sung on stage in a competition at St Thomas Central School in Kerala, the 15-year-old asked her friend, a boy of 16, how she had done. He hugged her, congratulating her on the performance.

"It [the hug] lasted only for a second or two," the girl, who did not want to be photographed for this article, told the BBC.

"There were a lot of students and teachers around, and I didn't feel [I had done] anything wrong."

But one of the teachers reportedly complained to the principal and, in the girl's words, "all hell broke loose".

The following day, on 22 July, the pair were suspended indefinitely. Then, four months later, on 22 November, the boy was expelled. Neither has been named in the media.

"Schooling is also about the reformation of the child," principal Sebastian T Joseph told the BBC. "We have given him a chance to apologise, but he and his parents had absolutely no remorse."

But the boy said he had apologised "immediately".

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The girl never rejoined school because according to the school's records, she was not even enrolled yet.

She had recently moved from Dubai, where her father had been working, and joined St Thomas school in June. The paperwork related to her admission was still incomplete when the hug sparked a furore.

Both students were however asked to appear before a disciplinary committee that the school formed to investigate the "charges".

The BBC has a copy of the so-called charge sheet drafted by the school - it accused the two students of engaging in an "indecent, immoral and undisciplined public display of affection" in front of other students and teachers.

It also alleges that their personal blogs and Instagram accounts included "conversations and photographs" that were "intimate, explicit, vulgar, obscene and objectionable".

"My Instagram account is private and only my followers can see my stories," the boy told the BBC. "There's nothing vulgar or obscene as mentioned in the charge sheet."

He said that he had responded to the allegations by explaining that the hug was meant to be congratulatory and there was no other motive behind it.

The girl alleges that committee members had copies of photos they had posted on Instagram and called them abusive names.

"An official on the panel called me a bitch in heat," she said.

By the time the committee found them "guilty", they had already missed more than four months of school.

During that time, the boy's parents had appealed to the Kerala child rights commission, which ordered the school to revoke the suspension.

But the school petitioned the Kerala high court, which upheld the order expelling the boy on the grounds that the school had the right to protects its "standard and reputation".

His parents are now waiting for the court to reopen after the annual Christmas vacation so they can appeal.

"We are pinning our hopes on the judiciary," said the boy's father, who has not been working since his son was suspended so he could be home to sort out the problem and support his son.

He said school officials were not among his son's or the girl's followers on Instagram - yet, he alleged, they somehow saw their photos, made copies of them and even submitted them in court.

"Were they snooping on them?" he asked, adding that they would raise the issue of privacy in court.

His wife and he are also concerned that their son will miss the exam at the end of the year, which would affect his chances at gaining admission into college since this is his final year of schooling.

School authorities told the BBC that they had allowed the boy to transfer to another school and that it's up to the central education board - which is an independent body - to decide if he can appear for the exam.

Meanwhile, the school has drawn criticism for what is being seen by many as a peculiar and harsh response.

And, on Thursday, the boy's received a letter from the principal inviting them to a meeting on 3 January so they can re-examine the "issue".

But the girl's situation is still unclear. Her parents are not sure if they will also approach the court.

Although she doesn't want to continue studying at St Thomas school, she said she hopes they will allow her to appear for the annual exam so that she doesn't lose a whole year.

"I want to study on a better campus in a safer environment, where they won't treat you in a demeaning manner," she added.

She said she has already applied to another school but was denied admission because of the "incident".

"They [St Thomas school] have violated my right to education and my right to privacy," she said.

Rohingya crisis: Myanmar general hit by US sanctions

The US has sanctioned a Myanmar general accused of leading an ethnic cleansing campaign against the Rohingya people.

Maung Maung Soe is among a host of world figures blacklisted by the US over human rights and corruption allegations.

The crisis in Myanmar has seen more than 650,000 Rohingya flee for neighbouring Bangladesh since August.

Myanmar's military says it is fighting Rohingya militants and denies targeting civilians.

• Why has Myanmar arrested two journalists covering Rakhine?
• Rohingya crisis: What you need to know
• Could Aung San Suu Kyi face Rohingya genocide charges?

The exodus began earlier this year when Myanmar's army launched a counter-insurgency operation in northern Rakhine state after militants attacked police posts and killed members of the security forces.

Many who reached Bangladesh - some with bullet or other wounds - said Burmese troops backed by local Buddhist mobs had burned their villages and attacked and killed civilians.

The UN has described the military offensive in Rakhine as a "textbook example of ethnic cleansing".

In its statement, the US Treasury said Maung Maung Soe "oversaw the military operation in Burma's Rakhine State responsible for widespread human rights abuse against Rohingya civilians".

Last month he was transferred from his post, but Myanmar's Ministry of Defence gave no reason for the move.

This week, the UN's investigator into human rights in Myanmar was barred from entering the country.

The government said they barred Yanghee Lee because she was "not impartial and objective", but Ms Lee said the decision suggested "something terribly awful" was happening in Rakhine.

The Rohingya people are predominantly Muslim. The Myanmar government considers them to be immigrants from Bangladesh and does not recognise them as citizens, despite their generations-long presence in the country.

Who else is the US targeting?

The Trump administration said it was sanctioning 52 individuals and entities. They include:

• Pakistani surgeon Mukhtar Hamid Shah, who is accused of kidnapping and removing the organs of impoverished labourers
• Former Gambian President Yahya Jammeh, who stepped down in January after 22 years in power
• Gulnara Karimova, the daughter of the late Uzbek strongman president, who the US said "headed a powerful organised crime syndicate". She is currently in detention.
• Israeli billionaire Dan Gertler, who the US accused of amassing a fortune through "opaque and corrupt mining and oil deals in the Democratic Republic of the Congo".

The sanctions freezes any of the individuals and entities' assets and bans US citizens from doing business with them.

• The full statement from the US treasury

US Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin said it sent the message that there was "a steep price to pay for their misdeeds".

Amtrak Washington train crash: Deaths as carriages fall on US motorway

At least three people have been confirmed killed after a US passenger train derailed onto a motorway in Washington state during rush hour on Monday morning.

About 100 people were transferred to hospitals after most of the Amtrak train's carriages left the track.

A number of those injured are reported to be in a critical condition.

Authorities said all carriages had now been searched, but would not rule a rise in the number of dead.

Seven vehicles, two of them lorries, were hit on the I-5 highway below. It was not clear if anyone was hurt on the road itself.

It was Amtrak's first passenger service to run on a new, shorter route.

Train 501 had left Seattle, heading south for Portland, at 06:00 local time (14:00 GMT). The derailment happened on a section of track, south of Tacoma, previously only used for freight trains.

Authorities quoted by Associated Press earlier spoke of at least six people killed.

One passenger carriage could be seen dangling from the bridge, while others were strewn across the road and the wooded area next to the track.

A photograph released by Washington State Patrol showed one carriage upside down on the road, with wreckage all around it.

An Amtrak spokeswoman said the train had derailed at 07:33 local time (15:33 GMT).

There were 77 passengers and seven Amtrak crew members on board, she said.

A recording of the train's emergency call to railway dispatchers was released to US media.

"Emergency! We are on the ground!" a man, possibly the conductor, radios in.

In a second radio call, another crew member reports that only the rear unit remains on the rails.

"All other cars appear to be on the ground in quite a mess," he says.

The train's engineer has a head injury, he tells dispatchers.

President Donald Trump's first reaction to the derailment was to tweet that it showed the need for his forthcoming infrastructure plan.

He later added that his thoughts and prayers were with those involved.

The section of track where the crash happened has been recently rebuilt and upgraded using federal funds.

Washington's governor has declared a state of emergency in two counties.

Passenger Chris Karnes, on board the train, said his carriage had careered down an embankment then come to a stop: "We could hear and feel the cars crumpling and breaking apart, and water came out from the ceiling."

"In order to get out... we had to kick out the emergency window," he added.

Governor Jay Inslee said he was praying for the many injured.

Officials set up a family reunification centre at DuPont city hall and asked people not to come to the scene of the crash.

A local news reporter who was on the train, but got off at a stop just before the crash, said many of those on board were railway enthusiasts, keen to experience the first high-speed train on the new route.

Every passenger was given a commemorative lanyard and badge to mark their journey, he said.

The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating. An Amtrak spokeswoman would not comment on how fast the train was going as it approached the bend, or on speculation that there might have been something on the tracks.

The train involved was operated by Amtrak and Monday's service was the first 0600 departure under the new timetable and on the new Point Defiance Bypass route

The train consisted of 14 cars, two of which were locomotives

It was being led by a Siemens Charger locomotive and was trailing a P52 unit which was not under power, Amtrak said

There were 12 Talgo carriages, each of which could take up to 36 passengers, but only 77 customers were on board

Austrian far-right joins coalition led by PM Sebastian Kurz

Austria's president has approved a coalition government between the conservative People's Party and the far-right Freedom Party.

The deal will make Austria the only Western European state with a governing far-right party, which is opposed to migration and the European Union.

The parties previously governed the country together between 2000 and 2005.

But at just 31, the People's Party's Sebastian Kurz is set to become the world's youngest head of government.

No details have been given about the government's programme, but several important ministerial roles are expected to be handed to the smaller Freedom Party as part of the deal.

• What propels young leaders to power?

President Alexander Van der Bellen gave the green light to the deal on Saturday morning.

He said the new government had assured him of both a pro-EU stance and a continued commitment to the European convention on human rights.

The election on 15 October failed to yield a conclusive result.

The campaign was dominated by Europe's migration crisis, something the anti-immigration Freedom Party has long campaigned about.

Mr Kurz appealed to conservative and right-wing voters with pledges to shut down migrant routes to Europe, cap benefit payments to refugees, and bar immigrants from receiving benefits until they have lived in Austria for five years.

But he has promised to form a pro-EU government, despite his coalition partner's traditional Euroscepticism.

Analysis: A rare far-right success

Bethany Bell, Vienna

Unlike most of Europe's populist parties, the Freedom Party has managed to translate its success at the ballot box into real political power.

It has been a major player in Austrian politics for decades. In recent years, the party has toned down some of its more extreme rhetoric.

But many analysts believe that, in or out of government, it has helped set a right-wing agenda, not just in Austria - but in other countries across Europe as well.

Its stance against immigration is becoming more mainstream, along with its populist tone.

The Freedom Party accused Mr Kurz of stealing their policies. Their candidate, Heinz-Christian Strache, branded him an "imposter".

When the far-right Freedom Party last entered a coalition in Austria in 2000, its fellow EU member states froze bilateral diplomatic relations in response.

Those diplomatic sanctions were lifted months later, after the move failed to force the Freedom Party out of government and amid fears that continued sanctions could further increase nationalist tensions.

That is unlikely to happen again, as resurgent right-wing populist groups have been promoting anti-immigration and Eurosceptic agendas across much of the EU.

But unlike the Freedom Party, they have struggled to convert electoral success into real power.

Earlier this year, Marine Le Pen's far-right National Front party lost the French presidential election comprehensively. Ms Le Pen was defeated by Emmanuel Macron, a liberal centrist and strong supporter of the European Union.

Elsewhere, the Dutch anti-immigration Freedom Party of Geert Wilders was defeated by liberal leader Mark Rutte.

In Germany, the nationalist and populist right of Alternative for Germany (AfD) gained seats in the national parliament, where it is now third biggest party, but it is not in the frame for coalition talks.