Six In The Morning Monday August 11

11 August 2014 Last updated at 09:01

Iraqi court 'backs PM Nouri Maliki' in row with president

A top Iraqi court has ruled that PM Nouri Maliki's bloc is the largest in parliament, state TV says, in a boost to his bid to stay on for a third term.

The decision means that President Fuad Masum, who Mr Maliki criticised for not intervening after parliament failed to appoint him, will now have to invite him to form a government.

It comes as pro-Maliki security forces took to the streets of Baghdad.

Mr Maliki faces calls to step down amid a jihadist insurgency in the north.

Critics say Mr Maliki, a Shia, has precipitated the current crisis through sectarian policies. Sunnis, Kurds and even fellow Shia have urged him to go.

US Secretary of State John Kerry called on the Iraqi PM not to increase tensions, and warned against use of force by political factions.

'Flawed US military justice fails to recognise war crimes, says Amnesty International

Amnesty claims civilian deaths in Afghanistan have not been properly investigated

CAHAL MILMO 

 

CHIEF REPORTER

 

Monday 11 August 2014

Dozens of potential war crimes committed by American forces in Afghanistan have gone uninvestigated by Washington because of a “deeply flawed” military justice system, Amnesty International alleges today.

The human rights group says thousands of Afghans have been killed or injured by US forces, who are due to pull out of the country at the end of this year, but have little chance of forcing the Pentagon to hold those responsible to account where deaths were unlawful.

In an 84-page report published today, Amnesty calls on the US to end what it says is a culture of secrecy surrounding military discipline and consider replacing its “commander-driven” investigations, which rely on soldiers’ own accounts of their actions, with civilian-managed courts martial.

Prisoners break out of jail in aftermath of eastern Ukraine shelling

More than 100 inmates at a high security prison in eastern Ukraine escaped after the jail was hit by shelling. Ukrainian forces say they are preparing for a final push to take the city from pro-Russia separatists.

The shelling which hit the top-security prison in the separatist stronghold of Donetsk killed one inmate and injured several more, local authorities said Monday. The blasts hit living areas, offices and an electrical substation at the facility in the city's west on Sunday evening.

"A riot started in the facility and 106 people escaped their place of detention," a statement from Donetsk's city council said, adding that several of the would-be fugitives had been returned to the jail by Monday morning.

City council spokesman Maxim Rovensky, quoted by the AP news agency, said the prisoners on the run had been jailed for offenses including murder, rape and robbery.

Ebola outbreak: Nigeria confirms nine cases and two deaths

August 11, 2014 - 8:36AM

Sabrina Tavernise

Ebola, one of the world's most fatal diseases, has surfaced in Africa's most populous country.

Nigerian health officials have announced nine confirmed cases and two deaths in the country from the Ebola outbreak that is sweeping West Africa - including a nurse and a man from Liberia whom the nurse had been caring for.

The man, Patrick Sawyer, a naturalised US citizen, had flown to Nigeria in late July and died soon after. He had infected at least seven other people, including the nurse, who died on August 5, officials said.

Without legendary director Hayao Miyazaki, Studio Ghibli faces uncertain future

By Wilfred Chan, CNN

August 11, 2014 -- Updated 0023 GMT (0823 HKT)

(CNN) -- Watch a movie from acclaimed Japanese animators Studio Ghibli, and you might see a boy turn into a flying dragon, a deer morph into a monstrous god, or a fish transform into a young girl.

But with the retirement last year of Hayao Miyazaki, the studio's legendary co-founder, signs suggest the venerable and inimitable company is headed for a transformation of its own.

In a Japanese TV interview last Friday, Ghibli co-founder Toshio Suzuki said the firm needed to "think about its future," and would be "changing the way we make (animation)."

He also speculated that Miyazaki might "make something again," though it might be a no more than a short film for the Studio Ghibli museum.

India PM Modi Demands Hindi, Not English For Social Media

BY MANDAKINI GAHLOT, GLOBALPOST

NEW DELHI, India — A day after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi took office in late May, the Ministry of Home Affairs issued a curious memo to officials making the use of Hindi compulsory on government social media accounts.

“It is ordered that government employees and officials of all ministries, departments, corporations or banks, who have made official accounts on Twitter, Facebook, Google, YouTube or blogs, should use Hindi, or both Hindi and English, but give priority to Hindi,” the memo read.

A few days later, another circular announced that two civil servants who conduct most of their work in Hindi would receive awards of 2,000 rupees, or around $33, apiece.