Six In The Morning Monday January 27

27 January 2014 Last updated at 08:19 GMT

Ukraine justice minister in state of emergency warning

Ukraine's justice minister has warned anti-government protesters occupying her ministry she will call for a state of emergency if they do not leave.

Olena Lukash told local media she would ask the National Security and Defence Council to introduce the measures.

Protesters seized the building in Kiev late on Sunday and set up barricades outside with bags of snow.

Unrest is spreading across Ukraine, with activists taking over municipal buildings in up to 10 cities.

Buildings have come under attack even in eastern areas which have traditionally had closer ties with Russia and where President Viktor Yanukovych has enjoyed strong support.

Sochi Winter Olympics: UK warns terrorist attacks are 'very likely' to occur

HEATHER SAUL 

 Monday 27 January 2014

UK officials are warning more terrorist attacks are “very likely to occur” in Russia either before or during the Winter Olympics in Sochi, which are due to begin next week.

A threat assessment has named a Caucasus group, Imarat Kavkaz (IK) as causing the main danger, according to the BBC.

The assessment highlights the IK’s leader Emir Doku Umarov, who called on his followers to try their hardest to disrupt the Games in July 2013.

However, the document also questions whether the group are capable of targeting the event within such a narrow time frame, the BBC reports, as the Winter Olympics run from 7-23 February.

Kim Jong-un executes uncle's relatives: report

January 27, 2014 - 11:54AM

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has reportedly put to death a number of surviving relatives of his executed uncle Jang Song-thaek, including children.

Quoting "multiple sources", a report from South Korean news agency Yonhap says the relatives include North Korea's ambassadors to Cuba and Malaysia, who were both related to Mr Kim's uncle by marriage.

Mr Jang, once a powerful mentor to Mr Kim, was dragged out of a party meeting, tried and executed last month on charges of attempting to overthrow the communist regime.

The report says all direct relatives of Mr Jang have been executed.

Advertisement

"Extensive executions have been carried out for relatives of Jang Song-thaek," one source told the agency.

"All relatives of Jang have been put to death, including even children."

27 January 2014 Last updated at 01:17 GMT

Tunisia assembly passes new constitution

Tunisia's parliament has adopted a new constitution - the first since the ousting of President Zine el-Abidine Ben Ali three years ago.

The National Constituent Assembly passed the text by 200 votes from 216.

Analysts say politicians hope it will send out a message of stability after months of deadlock between Islamist and secular forces.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister-designate Mehdi Jomaa says he has formed a new caretaker government.

The cabinet consists mainly of independents and technocrats, and is expected to run the country until new elections. No date has been set for the polls.

US forces launch missile strike against Shebab leader in Somalia

Washington (AFP) - The US military launched a missile strike in Somalia on Sunday targeting a suspected Shebab militant leader, defense officials said.

One of the officials said an unmanned drone launched the missile in the late evening hours, but declined to confirm the suspect's identity or whether the strike was successful.

The US government has "been tracking this guy for years," the official told AFP on condition of anonymity.

A second US official said the strike in the southeastern port town of Barawe "was against a senior Shebab commander."

"The US is assessing the results of the operation" to determine if the suspect was killed, the official added.

Another voice lost, Korean 'comfort woman' dies

By Ashley Fantz and Paul Armstrong, CNN

January 27, 2014 -- Updated 0323 GMT 

Another voice that could have told about the horrors of being a "comfort woman" -- a sex slave used by Japanese soldiers during World War II -- has fallen silent, according to South Korean authorities.

Hwang Keum-ja, 89, died of lung and respiratory disease at a hospital in Seoul Sunday.

Cho Yoon-sun, South Korea's Minister of Gender and Equality and Family, said she had been attempting to meet each of her country's surviving comfort women individually, but had not yet visited Hwang.

"My heart is aching as she died before I was able to meet her," she said in a statement, praising Hwang for her efforts to support others despite the hardships she faced, and vowing that her government would deliver greater support to other comfort women.