Colin Ash-Smith has been jailed for life for murdering Kent schoolgirl Claire Tiltman in 1993.

Claire was stabbed repeatedly in an alleyway in Greenhithe while on the way to visit a friend.
Colin Ash-Smith, 46, was already serving three life sentences for previous attacks on two women.
Ash-Smith was told he would spend a minimum of 21 years behind bars by the judge at the Inner London Crown Court where he was found guilty on Thursday.
Judge Mr Justice Sweeney said: "I have no doubt that this was a premeditated murder that you carried out because of the feeling of power that it gave you.
"In so doing, you not only ended Claire's young life which was so full of promise, but you also caused unbearable grief and upset to her family and friends."
Ash-Smith was not in court for his sentencing.
About a dozen of Claire's school friends were in the gallery to hear the sentencing.
The judge praised Kent Police for bringing Claire's killer to trial.
"I would also like to commend the members of Claire's family and her friends who have attended this trial for the dignified way in which they have conducted themselves," the judge said.
"And I express my sorrow for the burden they have had to carry for many years at Claire's untimely loss."
Claire's parents, Linda and Cliff, died before her killer could be brought to justice, but they had been convinced Ash-Smith had murdered their daughter.
The Dartford Grammar School for Girls pupil was known as "Tilt" to her friends. She had just finished her mock GCSEs and wanted to go on to be a firefighter.
Ash-Smith was first questioned in 1995 as a suspect in Claire's murder but was only charged earlier this year, on the same day he was due to be considered for release by the parole board while serving his sentences for the two other attacks.
During the trial Brian Altman QC, prosecuting, said the former milkman got a "warped pleasure" from the "savage" attack on Claire.
"This was a killing for the sake of killing, carried out by a ruthless and predatory armed killer, who attacked his chosen victim rapidly and stealthily, allowing her no time for defence or escape," he said.
Kent Police detectives found "assault plans" in which Ash-Smith wrote details of his plans to attack women. He also told of his "psycho state of mind".
He described himself as an "animal", plagued by a hatred of women whom he said "humiliated" him.
Asked why he attacked, he said: "I wanted to feel empowered, that I had control over someone, that I wasn't a doormat."
During his trial, Ash-Smith admitted going on midnight walks, armed with knives while on the hunt for victims.
In 1988, he attempted to rape and murder a young mother in a quarry and in 1995 he stabbed 22-year-old Charlotte Barnard 14 times, just yards from where he killed Claire.
However, he denied attacking Claire, and even attended her funeral wearing the same beige jacket he wore the night of the murder.
Ash-Smith's mother, Diane, could face criminal charges for providing her son with a false alibi for the night Claire was killed.
Det Supt Rob Vinson from Kent Police said: "We haven't considered that yet. It will need to be looked at."
In 1997, Ash-Smith's father Aubrey was jailed for 12 months for perverting the course of justice after he destroyed a knife, owned by his son, shortly before the family home was due to be searched by police investigating Claire's murder.
At Maidstone Crown Court he had admitted he boiled, dismantled and threw away a knife to destroy evidence.
The judge in the case said the former councillor had raised questions about his son's involvement in Claire's murder.
"Those questions might have been answered if the knife had not been destroyed," he said.
Speaking outside the court in 1997, Diane Ash-Smith, a former mayor, said neither she, her husband, or son had had anything to do with Claire's killing.


Japan's Emperor Akihito has visited the Pacific island of Peleliu to commemorate those who died in fierce fighting during World War Two.

Some 10,000 Japanese troops and 1,600 US soldiers died during three months of intense fighting on the island, which is part of the nation of Palau.
In a statement, he said the "tragic history" should not be forgotten.
The visit by the 81-year-old, whose father was Emperor Hirohito, comes 70 years after the war ended.
Ten years ago, he also paid a similar visit to Saipan, another Pacific island - now part of the US - that saw fierce fighting towards the end of the war.
The battle on Peleliu took place between September and November 1944, as US troops sought to capture an airstrip on the island.
"Fierce battles between the United States and Japan took place in this region, including the present Republic of Palau, resulting in the loss of countless lives," Emperor Akihito said at a banquet on Wednesday.
"We are here in Palau to mourn and pay tribute to all those who lost their lives in World War Two and reflect on the hardships suffered by the bereaved families."
Emperor Akihito has said on multiple occasions that Japan must learn from its history and never forget what happened.
But his visit comes amid concerns among Japan's neighbours that its current government, led by nationalist Shinzo Abe, is unrepentant about wartime actions.
Earlier this week, China and South Korea protested over newly approved school textbooks which they said glossed over events such as the Nanjing massacre.
The BBC's Rupert Wingfield-Hayes, in Tokyo, says that while the current government might be keen for people to forget the horrors wrought by Japan, in his own subtle way Emperor Akihito is sending a different message.


The Venezuelan government has announced it will remove the country's highest-denomination banknote from circulation within 72 hours to combat contraband.

Central bank data suggests there are more than six billion 100-bolivar notes in circulation, making up almost half of all currency.
Venezuelans will have 10 days from Wednesday to exchange the notes for coins and new, higher-value bills.
President Nicolas Maduro said the move would stop gangs hoarding the notes.
But in India, a similar move to scrap high-value bank notes last month has caused major disruption.
In a surprise announcement, Mr Maduro said on Sunday that the 100-bolivar note, worth about 2 US cents (£0.015) on the black market, would be taken out of circulation on Wednesday.
The president said the aim was to tackle transnational gangs which hoard the Venezuelan notes abroad, a move he has in the past described as part of the "economic war" being waged against his government.
He said the gangs held more than 300bn bolivares worth of currency, most of it in 100-bolivar notes.
President Maduro said there were "entire warehouses full of 100-bolivar notes in the [Colombian cities of] Cucuta, Cartagena, Maicao and Buaramanga".
He said part of the plan was to block any of the 100-bolivar notes from being taken back into the country so the gangs would be unable to exchange their hoarded bills, making them worthless.
"I have given the orders to close all land, maritime and air possibilities so those bills taken out can't be returned and they're stuck with their fraud abroad," he said speaking on television.
Venezuela's currency has fallen dramatically amid skyrocketing inflation.
On the black market, its value dropped by 55% against the US dollar just in the past month, and the International Monetary Fund estimates that next year's prices will rise by more than 2,000%.
Gangs can therefore buy up Venezuelan banknotes cheaply on the black market in exchange for dollars or Colombian pesos.
They then use the Venezuelan currency to buy subsidised goods in Venezuela, which they in turn sell at a profit in neighbouring Colombia.
Many Venezuelans living near the border buy Colombian pesos to purchase goods in Colombia which they cannot get in Venezuela due to chronic shortages.
President Maduro blames both the shortages and Venezuela's record inflation on "imperialist forces" he says are trying to bring down his government.
He said the aim of these "forces" was "to destabilise out economy and our society, to leave the country without 100-bolivar notes".
Analysts say the move is likely to worsen the cash crunch in Venezuela, where people have already been limited in the amount of cash they can take out at automated teller machines.
Venezuelans have only been given 10 days to exchange their 100-bolivar notes for new coins and bills ranging from 500 to 20,000 bolivars due to be introduced from 15 December.
Critics of Mr Maduro have predicted chaos and doubt that the facilities will be in place for people to exchange all their 100-bolivar notes.
"When ineptitude governs! Who would possibly think of doing something like this in December amid all our problems?" opposition leader Henrique Capriles  wrote on Twitter (in Spanish).


Bomb disposal experts have dealt with two suspicious packages in Exeter which prompted the evacuation of a school, homes and businesses.

Both devices were non-explosive, said Devon and Cornwall Police.
A suitcase with protruding wires was found attached to St Sidwell's school railings at about 07:00 BST and another was found in a city centre car park.
Both devices were "made safe" by bomb disposal experts with a controlled explosion used on one package.
Police said they were not treating it as a terrorist incident.
Armed police, fire crews and sniffer dogs were called in and everyone within 100m of the packages was evacuated from the area.
A large section of the city centre was cordoned off and there has been significant disruption to public transport.
The first suitcase was found by St Sidwell's School caretaker, Brent Hibbs. A breakfast club was evacuated and the remainder of the 200 pupils and 42 nursery children arriving at the school were moved to safety.
Head teacher Kathryn Rowden said: "Our staff did an excellent job in evacuating the children quickly and efficiently.  I cannot comment on the motive for this.
"But I would point out that St Sidwell's is a Church of England school and we have children of all faiths, and some with no faith, who learn together and play together very harmoniously."
A second suspect suitcase was found at the King William Street Car Park at about 09:15 BST.
That led to further road closures in the area and the evacuation of homes in and around the city centre.
Exeter, Mid and East Devon Commander Superintendent Keith Perkin said: "Today's events have caused considerable impact to residents and business across the city.
"We don't underestimate how difficult road closures and evacuations can be for local people, but safety of all our communities remains paramount."


Americans Jordan Spieth and Ryan Palmer combined for a first-round six-under 66 to share the lead at the revamped New Orleans Classic team event.

Spieth birdied the final hole to lift the duo alongside Australian Ryan Ruffels and American Kyle Stanley.
The event changed to a team format this year with 80 pairs competing.
They play foursomes (alternate shots with the same ball) in the first and third rounds and fourballs (playing your own ball) in the other two rounds.
Stanley, whose lone PGA victory came at the 2012 Phoenix Open, and 18-year-old Ruffels reeled off four consecutive birdies to begin their round before also shooting 66.
England's Ian Poulter, who lost his PGA tour card last week, carded a three-under-par 69 with Australian Geoff Ogilvy, to sit in an eight-way-tie for 11th place.
Olympic champion Justin Rose, playing with the man he beat in Rio, Open winner Henrik Stenson of Sweden, carded an opening round of 72.
The Professional Golf Association (PGA) is trying to create renewed interest in the sport by introducing varied tournament formats.
The Classic of New Orleans is an official counting tournament for the rankings worth $7.1m (£5.5m) and has attracted six of the world's top 10 players to the TPC Louisiana course.
Find out how to get into golf with our special guide.


Football coaches from black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) backgrounds are still "at a disadvantage" when it comes to getting top coaching or managerial jobs, a report has found.

The study was compiled by the Sports People's Think Tank with help from Loughborough University and anti-racism group the Fare Network.
It found only one in 25 managers, assistant managers or senior coaches was from the BAME community, and that there had been minimal progress over the past two years.
"It remains disappointing to note that since the first report in 2014 the figures have changed very little," said the report.
Although at least a quarter of all professional footballers in England are black, the report found that only 17 of the 92 top clubs had a BAME coach in a senior role.
Since the report was compiled, one of the three BAME managers in the top four divisions, QPR's Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink, has been sacked, leaving only Chris Hughton at Brighton and Keith Curle at Carlisle.
The report also:
"The data continues to show that if you are from a BAME background and aspire to be a manager or coach, you are at a disadvantage," added the authors.
"Some people might still question why this issue is relevant when ethnic minorities, and the black community in particular, are so successful as players it is surely a matter of time and progression.
"Our findings simply do not back this up. If effective action is not taken we face the same situation in the decades to come."


A mystery person who has been tending a boy's grave in Gloucestershire is being sought by his sister.

Karl Smith was just 12 when he drowned on a scouting trip in 1947. He was buried at St Mary's Church in Prestbury near Cheltenham.
For the last 20 years flowers and poems have been appearing on his grave, according to his sister Ann Kear.
She said: "They're never signed, so someone wishes to remain incognito but I would love to speak to them."
Ms Kear's brother was on a scouting trip to Oxwich Bay near Swansea in August 1947, when the troop stopped at a village and were instructed not to go in the water.
"Boys being boys, they apparently saw the sea, wanted to get in and so they were in," she said.
"But when they got them back out, there was one missing and that was Karl. They searched and he was face down in the water."
Ms Kear said she visits Prestbury cemetery each Christmas but has been finding "someone else has put something on the grave".
"It's either a sprig of holly, sometimes it's been a little sheaf of corn nicely wrapped and also some words of tribute - quotations from poems," she said.
"This time the grave has been tended and some flowers have been planted."
Ms Kear, who was just seven when her brother died, said she left a laminated message at the grave for the person seven years ago but has "not heard anything".
"They're never signed but it's very neat writing and sort of an elderly hand," she said.
"But I would love to speak to them, remembering Karl would be wonderful - absolutely wonderful."


Stars of the acting world have paid tribute to Kevin Spacey at a gala event at the Old Vic as he steps down as artistic director.

Many spoke of Spacey's "incredible" work in revitalising the London venue during his 11 years in charge.
Guests at Sunday's event included Downton stars Hugh Bonneville and Elizabeth McGovern, Jeremy Irons, Eddie Izzard and singer Beverley Knight.
There were also musical tributes from Sting and Annie Lennox.
Sting performed two songs including Every Breath You Take, while Lennox's set featured No More I Love Yous and Here Comes the Rain Again.
In his closing speech, Spacey referred to the Old Vic's lack of government subsidy wondered why the theatre was not treated as "a national treasure".
He also said the "best thing about the Old Vic is its future".
There were recorded tributes from James Bond director Sam Mendes, former US president Bill Clinton and singer Elton John.
During his time at the Old Vic, Spacey has directed two productions and starred in nine - including an acclaimed version of Richard III.
The Hollywood star has also continued with screen projects such as Netflix's remake of House of Cards, which won him an acting Golden Globe this year.
Mark Gatiss, who starred in All About My Mother at the Old Vic in 2008, said Spacey had been "amazingly supportive" during the run.
"He's done an incredible job, he's totally revitalised this place and it's the end of an era."
McGovern, who was at drama school with Spacey, recalled: "He was the brilliant person he is today. We always knew that he had it."
A week ago Spacey was honoured at the Olivier Awards for his contribution to British theatre.
Sunday's gala show at the Old Vic included a cast reunion of some of the cast of Spacey's inaugural production at the theatre in 2004.
Bonneville and Drop the Dead Donkey stars Neil Pearson and Stephen Tompkinson had appeared in Cloaca by Dutch playwright Maria Goos.
The Downton actor recalled how the play - the title is the Latin for sewer - had garnered poor reviews.
"It didn't get the best critical reaction, but we had an absolute blast," he told the BBC on the red carpet before hosting the show.
He recalled that not everyone had been keen about Spacey taking over at the theatre, with some thinking he would "scurry back the Hollywood".
"There was snide undercurrent from the British asking who's this Yank who thinks he can come over here and run our hallowed Old Vic? But he's proved them wrong.
"There were troubled times, programming a theatre like this is a delicate thing and you make mistakes sometimes. But think of the fantastic hits he's had over the years.
"This place is in good nick now, and is a fantastic platform for [incoming artistic director] Matthew Warchus to build on."
Warchus, who directed the hit musical Matilda and the film Pride, is set to reveal his opening season at the Old Vic this week.


Ross County striker Alex Schalk believes his side may benefit from the pressure on Celtic following their Scottish Cup defeat by Rangers.

County go to Parkhead on Sunday for a third time in the Premiership this season, having lost 2-0 in both games.
But after beating Ronny Deila's side 3-1 in their League Cup semi-final in January, Schalk believes they could be vulnerable after their latest cup exit.
"They will be under a lot of pressure," Schalk told BBC Scotland.
"They expect to win the title now as they've lost two cup runs. Fans will be putting them really under pressure.
"They will be really sharp and I think they'll want to get a couple of goals in the first half-hour to get a big win against us but I don't think they are that good to out-play us on Sunday.
"I think we can take advantage of their mistakes. Maybe they're a bit nervous because of the pressure and [we can] get a result."
Schalk scored the decisive third goal in that 3-1 semi-final win over Celtic and the winner against Hibernian in the final as County won their first piece of major silverware, before clinching a top-six Premiership place.
Talks with Schalk to extend his contract beyond the end of this season are "ongoing" with manager Jim McIntyre keen to avoid over-confidence in his squad despite Celtic's recent troubles.
"We certainly won't go into it over-confident," McIntyre said. "We know Celtic, on their day, are capable of scoring a right few goals."
Celtic's Scottish Cup exit means there is no European place for finishing fourth.
But McIntyre insists achieving that is still important to the club, who are one point behind Motherwell who currently occupy fourth, with St Johnstone ahead of County on goal difference in fifth.
"The placing money is worth a few quid to the club and that can be getting an extra player in, or a couple of players. The three clubs will be desperate to secure fourth as it will make a difference to next season.
"That [a European place] would have been the icing on the cake but for me it's just all about finishing fourth now."


Some 20 people, including senior officials, have been killed in an attack on a hotel in the Somali capital, witnesses have told the BBC.

The Central Hotel, often frequented by politicians, was hit by a car bomb and a suicide attack. Gunmen then stormed the hotel mosque and opened fire during Friday prayers.
An MP and Mogadishu's deputy mayor were among the dead, the government says.
Islamist militant group al-Shabab has said it was behind the attack.
The al-Qaeda linked group has been driven out of the country's major towns but still controls many rural areas in the south.
The BBC's Mohamed Moalimu in the city says the area around the hotel has been cordoned off.
"First the car bomb exploded at the gate of the hotel, then a suicide bomber blew himself up in the hotel compound," police Major Nur Mohamed told Reuters.
Information Minister Mohamed Abdi Hayir Mareeye told the BBC that Somalia's deputy prime minister and other ministers had been at the hotel at the time but had survived the attack.
An al-Shabab spokesman told BBC Somali analyst Mary Harper it had killed the officials while they were praying because they were "apostates".
It has previously said it would target members of the government.
Earlier this month, al-Shabab shot dead an MP in a drive-by shooting in Mogadishu.


The Co-operative Bank has said a number of "credible" potential buyers have expressed interest since it put itself up for sale last month.

It added, however, that there could be "no certainty that an offer for the bank will be made".
The bank, in which the Co-operative Group still has a small stake, was rescued from the brink of collapse by a group of hedge funds in 2013.
Earlier this month, it reported its fifth annual loss in a row.
The loss for 2016 was £477m, which represented an improvement on the £610m loss recorded in 2015.
The bank was forced to offer itself for sale after it was unable to reach a strong enough footing to satisfy the Bank of England's regulatory requirements.
It blamed low interest rates and the higher-than-expected cost of its turnaround plan for its failure to meet the Bank's Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) rules.
In a statement issued on Friday, the bank said: "A number of credible strategic and financial parties have expressed interest in the sale process and are currently evaluating information on the bank.
"The bank has requested that preliminary expressions of interest should be submitted in the first half of April."
The Co-op Bank has four million customers and is well known for its ethical standpoint, which its board said made it "a strong franchise with significant potential" to prospective buyers.
On Thursday, it emerged that the Bank of England had placed the Co-op Bank under "intensive supervision" as survival options for the ethically-based lender dwindle.
The BBC understands contingency plans to ensure the "orderly failure" of the 150-year-old bank are well advanced.


A left-wing political party has accused Labour of a "witch hunt" against people signing up to back Jeremy Corbyn in its leadership contest.

Left Unity said Labour should be "thrilled" so many people want to join rather than focusing on "people who it thinks are too left wing".
It comes after The Times reported "infiltration" of the contest to replace Ed Miliband by the "hard left".
Labour says it has a "robust system" to prevent "malicious applications".
Ballot papers have not yet been sent out in the leadership contest, which pits Mr Corbyn against Yvette Cooper, Liz Kendall and Andy Burnham.
Labour says the verification process is ongoing, and has refuted claims the leadership contest is being infiltrated by those who do not support the party.
Acting leader Harriet Harman emailed MPs this week with a list of new members from their constituencies, asking them to check for any suspicious names.
As well as regular members, people can sign up as registered supporters for Â£3 and take part in the vote. They are asked to confirm they "support the aims and values of the Labour Party".
The Times reported 18 members of Left Unity, a left-wing party founded by film director Ken Loach which fielded 10 candidates at the general election, had registered.
At-a-glance profiles of the four contenders
Left Unity principal speaker Salman Shaheen said: "Left Unity is a party with many disaffected former Labour members. It's no wonder that some people genuinely wanted to have a say in the Labour leadership contest.
"They fully agree with the aims and values of the Labour Party - it's the Labour leadership who abandoned those values."
Mr Shaheen said it was "ludicrous" to refer to its supports as "entryists", a term used when members of a political group infiltrate another in order to subvert its policies.
"The surge for Corbyn is a genuine popular movement that the Blairites can't stop," Mr Shaheen added.
"It's not about us - they found just 18 Left Unity members out of the tens of thousands who have signed up to support Jeremy Corbyn's anti-austerity, true Labour politics."
Labour said: "All applications to join the Labour Party as a member, affiliate or supporter are verified and those who are identified by our verification team as being candidates, members or supporters of another political party will be denied a vote."
The apparent success of Mr Corbyn's campaign has prompted a row within the party, with other candidates saying a Labour Party led by him could not win an election.
But Conservative London mayor Boris Johnson said his party should "pay attention" to some of the things said by the Islington North MP, suggesting some of his analysis was "not wholly wrong".
"Yes, there is a problem of inequality. Yes, there is a problem of low pay," he said during an event in central London.
He added: "I happen to think his solutions are completely wrong and he would take the Labour Party in radically the wrong direction.
"But it would be very complacent and wrong to ignore the truth of some of the observations he is making about ways in which society could be better. We should be humble about that."


The first of Airbus's A350 airliner has been handed over to its new owner, Qatar Airways, at a ceremony at the planemaker's HQ in Toulouse.

The A350-900 plane has the largest wings in civil aviation using new lightweight composite materials - made at Broughton in north Wales.
The aircraft is the firm's rival to the Boeing's Dreamliner 787.
Airbus has 778 of the planes on order from airlines, 80 of them from Qatar Airways, the largest order.


As schools return from the summer break, some still have vacancies to fill.

There is not a crisis in overall teacher recruitment across Scotland - and there will always be vacancies to fill - but there are some very real, specific problems.
While stories about scenic island schools struggling to find a teacher can attract the headlines, schools in less isolated rural areas can face big challenges too.
Often applicants have to be tempted to move to the area or return home after years away.
There are also concerns that high house prices in the north east may make teacher recruitment there harder.
Problems in specific subjects - notably science, maths and technology - have also been highlighted.
There have been reports that some 500 teaching posts across Scotland may currently be unfilled.
While teacher numbers across Scotland fell for many years, the number is now stable - a problem filling a vacancy is not the same thing as a cut.
Councils get most of their money from the Scottish government and they are now, essentially, expected to maintain teacher numbers.
They cannot cut teachers' jobs to save cash.
Various possible solutions to the problem of filling vacancies have been suggested. They include offering help with housing, marketing a specific area to potential applicants, making it easier for locals to become teachers in the first place and ensuring that teaching itself is an attractive career option.
However, the debate becomes heated when more radical measures are proposed, such as changing the training or registering criteria for new teachers in Scotland.
To teach at a state school a teacher has to be registered with the General Teaching Council for Scotland (GTCS) - a self-regulating body which controls entry into the profession.
The usual way into secondary teaching is to study for a postgraduate diploma in education.
The GTCS  has to approve any teacher training courses in Scotland and someone studying for their postgraduate diploma would not normally be allowed to take a class, although they would work alongside a regular teacher and help them out.
A pilot scheme will see science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) teaching graduates combine post-graduate education with their probationary year in teaching.
The idea is to cut the length of time it would take STEM graduates to become teachers, although, for now, most will still enter the profession by traditional means.
The EIS, which is the largest teachers union in Scotland, has warned against "short cuts", which it fears could undermine standards for the profession.
A particular union concern is "graduate trainee" schemes for teachers, such as Teach First, which can allow trainees to teach relatively quickly.
Some teachers who learned "on the job" south of the border would not be eligible for registration in Scotland, although the vast majority of teachers from England and Wales should have no difficulty meeting the requirements of the GTCS.
A pilot scheme in Moray allows teachers from England who live locally and do not meet the normal GTCS requirements to be provisionally registered while they undergo top-up training.
But any move to allow widespread changes to teacher training in Scotland - especially if they involved "learning on the job" or "putting unqualified teachers in the class" would almost certainly lead to a massive row between the Scottish government, the GTCS and the teachers' unions.
In the meantime, schools which have vacancies will have to continue to find interim solutions - supply teachers or, potentially, even changing the timetable.


South Africa's Deputy Education Minister Mduduzi Manana has been accused of hitting a woman during a row at a nightclub.

Mr Manana has apologised for the "shameful incident" saying that even though he was provoked, he "should have exercised restraint".
Women's minister Susan Shabangu said she heard the news of the alleged assault "with great shock".
There are concerns about the level of violence against women in the country.
Africa Live: Updates on this and other African news stories
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A police spokesman confirmed to Agence France-Presse that they were investigating the alleged incident, which took place in the early hours of Sunday morning.
In a tape recording leaked to the press, purportedly of a conversation between the victim's brother and the minister, the person alleged to be the minister admits to slapping the victim when she called him gay.
But he implies that other people who were with him were responsible for the worst of the violence.
Lumko Jimlongo, a journalist from the national broadcaster SABC, witnessed the alleged assault at the Cubana nightclub near Johannesburg.
He told SABC news that the victim was trying to walk towards the exit when she was struck, "she fell on the floor... then he proceeded to trample [her]... and his foot was on her head".
Mr Manana made his apology "to the victim, her family... and all South Africans" and said that he hoped to speak to her personally to "address the harm that has occurred".
Local media report that the row started over who should succeed President Jacob Zuma when he steps down as leader of the governing ANC in December.


Declan Donnelly, one half of Newcastle's famous duo, Ant and Dec, has married his agent, Ali Astall.

Crowds gathered outside St Michael's Roman Catholic Church in Elswick, to catch a glimpse of celebrities arriving at the star-studded Geordie wedding.
The TV presenter's brother, Father Dermott Donnelly, conducted the ceremony, and Dec's TV partner Ant McPartlin was the best man.
Wearing matching blue suits, the pair posed for fans outside the church.
In a tweet to fans earlier, the groom joked: "Morning! I know I've got somewhere to be today but I can't for the life of me remember where....D".
Guests at the 39-year-old's Saturday Night Takeaway presenter's big day included some of the Geordie glitterati, among them ex-Newcastle United footballers Peter Beardsley and Alan Shearer.
Presenters Tess Daly, Fearne Cotton and comedian Keith Lemon were also guests at the wedding.
Donnelly and Astall got engaged in November on an island off the coast of Australia, before travelling to the set of I'm A Celebrity ... Get Me Out Of Here! for the latest series.
In an interview on The Jonathan Ross Show earlier this year, Donnelly said he proposed as the sun set.
He admitted it was "a little strange" when the couple first got together because they had been colleagues for so long, but added: "It's going good. Everything's hunky-dory."
Donnelly was best man at his on-screen partner's 2006 wedding to make-up artist Lisa Armstrong and McPartlin said he was looking forward to returning the favour.
The celebrity pair first first found fame in teenage BBC drama Byker Grove.


South African side SuperSport United play two crucial matches in the space of five days in the last week of Stuart Baxter's time as coach.

Former South Africa captain Eric Tinkler takes over from Baxter on 1 July.
Baxter, who is now the South Africa coach, is concentrating on Saturday's South African Cup final against Orlando Pirates.
As once again Zimbabwean Kaitano Tembo looks after the team for the Confederation Cup as they face TP Mazembe on Tuesday/
Tembo also took charge for the away tie between the two sides earlier this month.
"It is taxing to play Mazembe and Pirates within five days," admitted Jeremy Brockie, who is the top-scorer in the Confederation Cup so far with seven goals.
"But facing a strong team like Mazembe before the cup final is good for  us."
SuperSport without many of their first choice regulars came from two goals behind to hold Mazembe 2-2 in Lubumbashi this month.
"We made sure the most influential Mazembe players were not allowed time on  the ball and that affected their teamwork," added the 29-year-old former New Zealand striker Brockie.
SuperSport, Mazembe and Horoya of Guinea have five points and Mounana of Gabon none halfway through Group D with the clubs finishing first and second  advancing to the quarter-finals.
All six matches in the group have been won by the home team, leaving FUS Rabat of Morocco and KCCA on six points and Club Africain of Tunisia and Rivers on three.
Record three-time Confederation Cup winners CS Sfaxien of Tunisia visit Group B strugglers Platinum Stars of South Africa having won 3-0 at home this month.


Commonwealth Games rider Elliot Baxter took the overall title at Isle of Man Cyclefest for the second year running.

Baxter won the mountain bike race, finished joint second in the 82-mile (130 km) road race and seventh in the 1.5 mile (2.4 km) hill climb.
He said he was "delighted" to retain his title after three tough events.
Mark Christian won Sunday's Grand Fondo in a time of 3 hrs 52 mins and 6 secs, 5 mins 50 secs clear of Baxter and Rob Sorby, who crossed the line together.
Carolyn Brown won the women's event in 4 hrs 44:29 minutes to take home the overall women's title.
Brown had already won Saturday's hill climb and finished third in the women's mountain bike race, won by Emma Atkinson.
Hundreds of people watched the events which were based at the Milntown estate in Ramsey in the north of the island.
Organiser Paul Phillips said he was happy with how the festival, now in its second year, had gone.
"It is a massive logistical challenge to combine the cycling, music and food. It is a celebration of all three," he added.
"I think Cyclefest is the best cycling festival in the British Isles that no-one has heard of. We've got an event that can go from strength to strength."
Nigel Beattie won Sunday's 39-mile (63km) Medio Fondo in 2 hrs 0:27, with 15-year-old Daniel Sowerby winning the Piccolo Fondo in 1:09.05.
Cyclefest also included mass participation ride outs for all ages and abilities designed to celebrate cycling.


Twitter has suspended 235,000 accounts for violating its policies on the promotion of terrorism, the social network has said in a blog.

In February, Twitter announced that 125,000 accounts since mid-2015 had been banned for the same reasons.
"Daily suspensions are up over 80% since last year, with spikes in suspensions immediately following terrorist attacks," said the firm.
It added that it continued to work with authorities on the issue of extremism.
In the past, Twitter has faced criticism over the level of extremist content that has been detected on its network.
Besides increased human efforts, Twitter said it had benefited from the use of spam-fighting tools that can help automatically detect problem accounts.
One third of the recent batch of suspensions were identified via such methods, the firm added.
"We have expanded the teams that review reports around the clock, along with their tools and language capabilities," said Twitter in its blog.
"We also collaborate with other social platforms, sharing information and best practices for identifying terrorist content."
However, the move was described as a "short term solution" by Nikita Malik, a senior researcher at the Quilliam Foundation, an anti-extremist group.
"What we're trying to do as an organisation when we work with social media companies like Google and Twitter is to help them have a more pro-active role," she said.
She added that it would potentially be more beneficial to focus on promoting counter narratives that challenged the message of extremist propaganda.


A nuisance caller who rang 999 hundreds of times over a five-month period was using it as a "free sex-line", ambulance bosses have said.

John Wainwright, of Arnold, Nottingham, admitted regularly calling the emergency line at Nottingham Magistrates' Court earlier.
On one day in August, he called the emergency number every 10 minutes, the East Midlands Ambulance Service said.
The 43-year-old will be sentenced on 19 December following psychiatric reports.
The court heard Wainwright, of Oxengate, Arnold, called the emergency number 875 times over five months but that was "just the tip of a very significant iceberg".
A spokeswoman for EMAS said he would sometimes call just to say "I love you" while on other occasions he became abusive.
But he often used 999 as a free sex-line or would say he was possessed by the devil, she added.
Magistrates were told he had alcohol problems and bipolar disorder and sentencing was adjourned for psychiatric reports to be prepared.
Wainwright admitted two counts of improper use of public electronic communications.


Young men and women who have battled anorexia have criticised Labour peer Joan Bakewell over her comments that the illness is a sign of "narcissism".

She told the Sunday Times "no-one has anorexia in societies where there is not enough food".
People diagnosed with the condition have told the BBC that her comments showed a misunderstanding of eating disorders in society.
The broadcaster, 82, later apologised for her comments.
Saskia Simm from Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, was diagnosed with anorexia two years ago, at the age of 15.
She says her mental illness was not the result of a narcissistic culture, but "may have been exacerbated by it".
"Rather, it sprung from a longing for perfectionism, control and release from depression and hopelessness that cannot be blamed on vanity."
She says she agrees with Baroness Bakewell that western society is becoming increasingly narcissistic.
"Young people in particular are often preoccupied with their appearance as they experience bodily changes, volatile emotions and social insecurity.
"However, I wholly contest the claim that anorexia is a product of narcissism."
She says weight loss is only a symptom of the underlying mental illness.
"Anorexia stems from a desperate need for control in a culture of surface-level freedom. It is a brutal, deadly and manipulative mental illness.
"Restricting one's food intake to the point of starvation in an attempt to experience this control may well be a 'coping strategy' chosen by the victim of a narcissistic, weight-obsessed culture, but the underlying mental illness is not."
Saskia says she is "well into recovery" now.
Susan Morris (not her real name) says she was first diagnosed with anorexia after a traumatic family event when she was 19 years old.
"I struggled to find a way of coping. I found comfort in the physical pain the hunger gave me as it took away from my mental pain.
"Following that, I then found being distracted by the obsession of calories, exercise and body weight useful. I needed that to take away the thoughts of what had happened."
At the age of 21, Susan was admitted to a unit for six months.
She says she is still struggling with the illness years later.
"At the age of 33, married with two children, I still really struggle and try to hide my bones as I feel embarrassed by it.
Susan says Baroness Bakewell's initial comments show that many people do not understand the condition properly.
"I think saying quite hurtful things about something people don't understand will not help the existing stigma with this, nor will it help people who are struggling as life is hard enough."
She says that what people affected by eating disorder really need is empathic support, understanding and more funding for research.
Rob Sayce from Sussex says Baroness Bakewell's comments underline "the ignorance and misinformation" surrounding the discussion about eating disorders.
"These comments simply perpetuate stereotypes about eating disorders and ignore the increasing wealth of research around the causes of these illnesses, such as trauma, genetics and societal factors.
"These are serious mental illnesses that can affect anyone, regardless of age, gender or social status, but often afflict people who have experienced trauma, bullying and abuse."
Rob, 22, was diagnosed with anorexia when he was a teenager.
He now considers himself recovered.
"As someone who has suffered from anorexia myself, I find it deeply worrying that intelligent people who should know better are content to perpetuate myths, without doing the basic research."
He says the suggestion that eating disorders only exist in western countries is wrong.
"The idea that eating disorders didn't exist in the past is also demonstrably bogus. The issues just weren't discussed to the same degree.
"These illnesses kill and destroy lives - anorexia nearly destroyed mine. They shouldn't be trivialised, and neither should the experiences of people who are affected by these conditions."
Click here for more information and support on dealing with eating disorders from BBC Advice.
Compiled by Michael Ertl


Egyptian club Al Masry have trained at their home stadium for the first time since a riot lead to the death of more than 70 Al Ahly fans in February 2012.

However Al Masry are still not allowed to host competitive matches.
On Wednesday several thousand Masry fans watched their team train for their upcoming Confederation Cup play-off.
That game against Uganda's KCCA will be played 85 km away in Ismailia where the Port Said-based team has been playing and training.
Wednesday's training started with a moment of silence for the fans who died and as doves of peace were also released.


The US army's commander in Europe has accused Russia of using its military campaign in Syria as a "live-fire training opportunity".

Lt Gen Ben Hodges said Russia's "disregard for civilian casualties... is not the conduct of a nation that wants to be treated like a superpower".
Russia's defence minister said on Thursday that its air force had killed 35,000 fighters in Syria.
But Russia has been accused of using heavy weapons in civilian areas.
It has consistently denied targeting civilians.
Russia's aerial intervention in the Syrian conflict last year has helped the Syrian army capture eastern Aleppo. But it has further heightened tensions with the West, after it annexed the Crimean peninsula from Ukraine in March 2014.
Aleppo evacuation nears its end
Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said 162 types of modern armaments had been tested during the campaign in Syria, which included 18,800 aerial sorties.
"What we see in Syria of course is a demonstration of capabilities and using weapons that are not necessary," Gen Hodges told the BBC.
President-elect Donald Trump is known to want better relations with Moscow, but Gen Hodges said the US military was pushing ahead with plans to bolster its presence in Europe.
"All the indications show we are going to continue our commitment," he said.
President Vladimir Putin gave a bullish account on Thursday of Russia's military strength at the defence ministry's final meeting of 2016, describing it as "currently stronger than any potential aggressor".
But he said Russia had to "strengthen the military potential of strategic nuclear forces, especially with missile complexes that can reliably penetrate any existing and prospective missile defence systems".
Mr Shoigu accused Nato of doubling the intensity of its military exercises, mainly with the focus on Russia.
He singled out the UK, accusing British armed forces of using Russian tanks and army uniforms to identify the enemy during exercises on Salisbury Plain in southern England.
"The last time this way of training troops was used was by Nazi Germany," he added.


Hillary Clinton's lead over Donald Trump in the popular count of the US presidential election has increased to two million votes.

Republican President-elect Mr Trump won the election by winning a majority of the electoral college votes, and he will be inaugurated in January.
But with votes still being counted, two weeks on, the Cook Political Report has his tally at 62.2m and hers at 64.2m.
It is the fifth time the winner of the popular vote has lost the election.
In 2000, Democrat Al Gore's final lead over George W Bush, who won the election after a prolonged legal challenge, was nearly 544,000.
The Supreme Court ultimately decided that election by awarding Mr Bush a win in the contested state of Florida.
This year, Mrs Clinton scored large tallies in states like California but Mr Trump won most of the so-called swing states, which ultimately decide the outcome of elections.
The electoral college system favours candidates who win by a small margin in lots of states over ones that win by a landslide in just a few.
How did Hillary Clinton get more votes and lose?
Why some states matter more than others
A group of academics, lawyers and data experts is also trying to persuade the Clinton team to join their effort to investigate the results in three states to check there was no foreign computer hacking that manipulated the outcome.
They are curious why Ms Clinton performed worse in counties that relied on electronic voting machines compared to paper ballots and optical scanners.
But her campaign has not indicated any interest in joining a fight for a recount.
The Green party candidate, Jill Stein, is raising funds to request a recount in the same states - Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, all won by Mr Trump.
Meanwhile, Donald Trump has issued a Thanksgiving message in which he urged the country to join his effort to "rebuild the country" and heal after a bruising and bitter election campaign.
"Emotions are raw and tensions just don't heal overnight," he said.
"It doesn't go quickly, unfortunately, but we have before us the chance now to make history together to bring real change to Washington, real safety to our cities, and real prosperity to our communities, including our inner cities."
On Wednesday, Mr Trump made two more appointments to his new government - Nikki Haley as ambassador to the UN and Betsy DeVos as education secretary.
He was interviewed by the New York Times on Tuesday, and said his sprawling global business empire would provide no conflict of interest when he assumes power.
Can Nikki Haley master foreign policy?
Can Donald Trump get what he wants?
The people around Donald Trump
Trump presidency: Your questions answered


Magician Paul Daniels decided to return home to see out his final days after being diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumour, his son has said.

Martin Daniels told the Sunday Mirror doctors had not said how much time the 77-year-old might have and there was "no treatment which can help him".
He said his father "knows things are not in his hands now and we are living in the knowledge every day is a bonus".
The entertainer was diagnosed with the tumour two weeks ago.
Martin said his father had initially been taken to hospital after a fall at his home, where it was suspected he had suffered a stroke. However, after a scan the brain tumour was discovered.
"It was devastating for all of us," he said. "The doctors said the tumour was growing rapidly and could not be cured."
He added that Paul was offered radiotherapy but turned it down when he was told there was no chance it would extend his life.
'Unbearably difficult'
"Dad's not going to get any better. Doctors haven't said how many weeks or months he might have - and we haven't asked," Martin said.
"It is unbearably difficult. He has said before 'When it's your time it's your time' and that's how he is trying to face up to things."
Martin, who is also a magician, said following the diagnosis his father made the decision to return to his home in Berkshire, where his wife, Debbie, has been by his side.
"He's happy there - some days he is tired and spends most of his time in bed dozing. But even then he is happy," he said, adding Paul was "lucid" and the family were moved by the support from fans.
"We are very grateful and all of us are genuinely touched. It is giving us tremendous strength at what is a very difficult time."
Paul Daniels' TV career began with an appearance on talent series Opportunity Knocks in 1970.
He went on to front the BBC's Paul Daniels Magic Show, which ran for 15 years, and became one of the biggest stars on British TV.


Welshman Chaz Davies earned his sixth win of this year's World Superbike Championship as series leader Jonathan Rea took fourth at Magny-Cours.

Davies, 29, opted for intermediate tyres and it paid off as Rea and Tom Sykes were among those forced to change tyres on a drying track.
Dutchman Michael van der Mark was just under 10 seconds behind Davies with Sykes completing the podium positions.
Englishman Sykes' third place trimmed Rea's championship lead to 44 points.
Davies, who was in 13th spot early in the race, remains in third spot in the championship but is still 86 points adrift of defending champion Rea.
After gaining his first pole position of this year's championship in qualifying, Northern Irishman Rea, 29, led early on but was passed by his Kawasaki team-mate Sykes before the end of the first lap.
With the tyres choice having a huge impact on the race, Leon Camier moved into the lead by lap seven and it was at that point that both Rea and Sykes, 31, opted to make their tyre changes.
Lorenzo Savadori led for a time before Davies moved to the head of affairs and the Welshman pushed on to win by 9.8 seconds.
Rea, after dropping to ninth spot following his tyre change, produced a late charge to move up to fourth with Savadori fifth, Frenchman Mattieu Lagrive next and Camier eventually ending up seventh as his intermediate tyres began to lose grip.
The riders will be back in action on Sunday for the second race at Magny-Cours and, after this weekend, the two remaining rounds of the championship will be in Spain and Qatar.


Taunton Deane's MP has asked for government funding to help restore the Wellington Monument, ahead of the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Waterloo.

Conservative MP Rebecca Pow asked Commons Leader Chris Grayling for a "little pot of money", during business questions.
The tower was built to mark the battle, but since 2005 it has been fenced off because of falling stone debris.
Mr Grayling said there would be a chance to lobby colleagues for cash.
The 175ft (53m) high tower was built in 1817 to mark the Battle of Waterloo which took place on 18 June 1815.
Celebrations to mark the 200th anniversary of the battle are due to take place in Wellington.
Ms Pow called for a debate to be held to "celebrate and discuss this wonderful anniversary".
"Perhaps he [Chris Grayling] might find a little pot of money to restore the wonderful Wellington Monument which is in so need of an upgrade," she said.
In response Mr Grayling said he did not have the budget to pay for the work but "there will be many opportunities to lobby those of my colleagues who do have such a budget".


Thousands of Argentines took to the streets in protest on Monday following the death of prosecutor Alberto Nisman.

Mr Nisman was found shot dead in his apartment in Buenos Aires on Sunday.
He had been investigating the 1994 bombing of a Jewish centre in Buenos Aires in which 85 people died.
Officials said there was no evidence that anyone else was involved in his death, but demonstrators shouted "No more lies!" and demanded a thorough investigation.
Mr Nisman's body was discovered just hours before he was due to give evidence to a congressional committee outlining his accusations against Argentina's President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner.
He had accused the president and Foreign Minister Hector Timerman of involvement in a plot to cover up Iran's alleged role in the 1994 attack on the seven-storey Amia community centre.
The government has dismissed the allegations as ridiculous.
Investigating prosecutor Viviana Fein said that a preliminary autopsy suggested there was "no intervention" by others in Mr Nisman's death.
Mr Nisman's body was found by his mother and one of his bodyguards in the bathroom of his apartment in Buenos Aires.
The apartment had been locked from the inside and the key was still inside the lock.
Forensic tests suggest he died of a single gunshot to his temple at close range, officials said.
The bullet retrieved from his head was fired from the gun which was lying next to his body, ballistic tests suggest.
But Ms Fein said she was investigating whether Mr Nisman may have killed himself after receiving threats.
"We could talk of a suicide, the body was neither beaten nor mistreated, but I don't rule out instigation," she said.
"We are calling his death 'suspicious'," she added.
Thousands of people demonstrated at different locations in Buenos Aires, including outside the presidential palace, and in number of other Argentine cities.
Protesters banged pots and held up placards reading "Enough!" and "We're not afraid!".
Twenty-eight-year-old Guillermina Sutter-Schneider told newspaper La Nacion that she believed Mr Nisman had "been driven to suicide".
"The government should have protected him," she added.
A government spokesman said Mr Nisman had 10 bodyguards assigned to him, but that they were usually stationed outside his apartment building.
They only entered the apartment after he failed to answer their phone calls.
Forensic experts said Mr Nisman had died between 15:00 (18:00GMT) and 16:00 local time on Sunday.
Four days earlier, he had published a 300-page report alleging that the president and other officials had opened a secret back-channel to Iranians suspected of involvement in the Amia bombing.
Mr Nisman alleged that the scheme was intended to clear the Iranian suspects in order to facilitate a trade deal between Iran and Argentina.
He was asked by opposition lawmaker Patricia Bullrich to give more details of the allegations in a hearing on Monday.
Ms Bullrich said she was shocked by his death, which she called "a grave affront to the country's institutions".
She said that she had spoken to Mr Nisman on the phone on Saturday on three occasions and that he told her he had received several threats.


Jamie Murphy scored twice to help Brighton & Hove Albion beat League Two side Colchester United in the first round of the EFL Cup.

After a goalless first half, Sam Baldock opened the scoring with a fierce shot into the roof of the net.
Murphy then added a second with a cool finish, before Elvis Manu's strike made the game safe for the Seagulls.
Murphy's steered fourth sent Brighton, who drew with Derby in the Championship on Saturday, into round two.
Match ends, Brighton and Hove Albion 4, Colchester United 0.
Second Half ends, Brighton and Hove Albion 4, Colchester United 0.
Attempt saved. Sam Baldock (Brighton and Hove Albion) right footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the centre of the goal.
Corner,  Colchester United. Conceded by Rob Hunt.
Goal!  Brighton and Hove Albion 4, Colchester United 0. Jamie Murphy (Brighton and Hove Albion) left footed shot from the centre of the box to the bottom right corner.
Foul by Oliver Norwood (Brighton and Hove Albion).
Macauley Bonne (Colchester United) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Attempt saved. Oliver Norwood (Brighton and Hove Albion) right footed shot from the centre of the box is saved in the centre of the goal.
Attempt saved. Kazenga Lua Lua (Brighton and Hove Albion) right footed shot from the left side of the box is saved in the bottom right corner.
Attempt missed. Louis Dunne (Colchester United) left footed shot from outside the box is close, but misses to the left.
Attempt missed. Kazenga Lua Lua (Brighton and Hove Albion) right footed shot from the centre of the box is close, but misses to the right.
Attempt blocked. Sam Baldock (Brighton and Hove Albion) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked.
Attempt saved. Frankie Kent (Colchester United) header from the centre of the box is saved in the top centre of the goal.
Corner,  Colchester United. Conceded by Sam Adekugbe.
Substitution, Colchester United. Louis Dunne replaces Tom Lapslie.
Substitution, Colchester United. Craig Slater replaces Kurtis Guthrie.
Goal!  Brighton and Hove Albion 3, Colchester United 0. Elvis Manu (Brighton and Hove Albion) right footed shot from the centre of the box to the bottom right corner. Assisted by Sam Baldock.
Substitution, Colchester United. Macauley Bonne replaces Sammie Szmodics.
Goal!  Brighton and Hove Albion 2, Colchester United 0. Jamie Murphy (Brighton and Hove Albion) right footed shot from very close range to the centre of the goal. Assisted by Kazenga Lua Lua.
Goal!  Brighton and Hove Albion 1, Colchester United 0. Sam Baldock (Brighton and Hove Albion) right footed shot from the centre of the box to the top right corner. Assisted by Kazenga Lua Lua.
Attempt blocked. Jamie Murphy (Brighton and Hove Albion) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked.
Sam Adekugbe (Brighton and Hove Albion) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Foul by Kurtis Guthrie (Colchester United).
Doug Loft (Colchester United) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Kazenga Lua Lua (Brighton and Hove Albion) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Doug Loft (Colchester United).
Attempt missed. Doug Loft (Colchester United) left footed shot from outside the box is high and wide to the left from a direct free kick.
Oliver Norwood (Brighton and Hove Albion) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Foul by Oliver Norwood (Brighton and Hove Albion).
Sammie Szmodics (Colchester United) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Corner,  Colchester United. Conceded by Jamie Murphy.
Attempt missed. Kazenga Lua Lua (Brighton and Hove Albion) right footed shot from outside the box misses to the right.
Attempt blocked. Sam Baldock (Brighton and Hove Albion) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked.
Foul by Elvis Manu (Brighton and Hove Albion).
Frankie Kent (Colchester United) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Attempt missed. Sam Baldock (Brighton and Hove Albion) right footed shot from the centre of the box is high and wide to the right.
Corner,  Brighton and Hove Albion. Conceded by Doug Loft.
Attempt blocked. Danny Holla (Brighton and Hove Albion) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked.
Sam Baldock (Brighton and Hove Albion) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Kane Vincent-Young (Colchester United).


Maria Sharapova suffered a first defeat since returning from a 15-month doping ban as Kristina Mladenovic beat her in the semi-finals of the Stuttgart Open.

Five-time Grand Slam winner Sharapova, 30, was up a set and a break but squandered it to lose 3-6 7-5 6-4.
Mladenovic, 23, faces German Laura Siegemund in Sunday's final.
Having been given a wildcard entry, Russian Sharapova needed to reach the final in Germany to be eligible for qualifying for the French Open.
Her defeat means she will be outside the top 200 when the rankings are released on Monday, so she will need a wildcard to compete in qualifying or the main draw in the event in Paris, which starts on 28 May.
She will learn on 16 May whether she will be given a wildcard for either stage at Roland Garros.
Sharapova, who has also received wildcards for forthcoming tournaments in Madrid and Rome, took complete control at the start of the contest as a second double fault gave her a 4-1 lead before sealing the first set in just 38 minutes.
She broke Mladenovic again at the start of the second set and looked to be cruising to victory, but despite conceding 11 double faults, the Frenchwoman improved her baseline game and fought her way back into the contest.
The world number 19 broke back and then held her composure to survive three break points to go 6-5 ahead before converting her first set point on Sharapova's next service game.
The pair traded blows early in the third before Mladenovic grabbed a break to go 4-2 up and fought back from 0-40 to hold her serve.
Sharapova rallied to pull it back to 5-4, but Mladenovic was not to be denied her first win over the Russian and converted her first match point.
BBC tennis correspondent Russell Fuller:
The pressure told on Sharapova as the match got tighter - as you would expect it to after 15 months away. Mladenovic's second serve was very vulnerable, but she showed huge heart to save 13 of 16 break points.
This has still been a very encouraging week for the former world number one: she will be just outside the top 250 when her name returns to the rankings on Monday and could yet make the cut for Wimbledon's main draw. That will depend on how well she plays in Madrid and Rome and another semi-final appearance in either of those events might just do the trick.


People's use of Welsh should be better reflected on English language programmes made by BBC Wales, says its director.

Rhodri Talfan Davies says the fall in the number of people speaking Welsh has also led to challenges in broadcasting.
His comments were made in a speech at the Celtic Media Festival in Swansea.
Meanwhile, radio listeners across Wales have been invited to take part in a nationwide "conversation" about BBC Radio Cymru.
Mr Davies said Wales would be seeking the views of both organisations and individual Welsh language listeners, including those who don't currently listen to the station.
He said the research would ensure the station remained "successful and vibrant" in the future.
During his speech at the festival he referred to the 2011 Census results released in December.
They showed the number of Welsh speakers overall has fallen from 582,000 in 2001 to 562,000 in 2011, representing a two percentage point drop - from 21% to 19% - in the proportion of Welsh speakers.
Mr Davies said it suggested the "language is in the midst of a fundamental shift" and, therefore, broadcasters like BBC Wales which produces English and Welsh language content across TV, radio and online faced challenges to appeal to a broad audience.
He said it was once a language learned at home by those using it all the time whereas now it more often taught in the classroom.
"The so-called homogenous Welsh language audience is becoming more diverse than ever before," he said.
"At a functional level, their ability to use the language level varies more than ever before.
"And at a more emotional level their confidence in using the language is also becoming more varied.
"But perhaps most profound of all, the cultural and social reference points of Welsh speakers - both those fluent and those less so - are more varied than ever before.
"For an increasing number of Welsh speakers, Welsh language culture is only one part of a patchwork of influences that straddle, Welsh, British and international cultures."
In his speech, Mr Davies said he wanted BBC One Wales "to think creatively about how we allow Welsh language voices and experiences to be heard and experienced a little more."
In an interview afterwards, Mr Davies said: "Is it right that we scarcely hear Welsh spoken on BBC One Wales?"
"To be very clear what we are not talking about here in any sense is introducing Welsh language programmes onto BBC One.
"The question I'm asking and posing is that Welsh is spoken in Wales, it is part of our culture, it's part of the fabric of society.
"So from time to time, where it's appropriate, should perhaps an interviewee be allowed to contribute in Welsh?"
Mr Davies said Welsh language station BBC Radio Cymru has been looking at how to address changes in the use of the language - but added that it would not become a bilingual service.
"If Radio Cymru is to thrive it must reach out to serve the broadest possible Welsh language audience - including those less confident with the language - to fully embrace their lives and passions," he said.
"To be crystal clear, we don't think the answer is for Radio Cymru to mutate into a bilingual station.
"But we do need to work harder to reach those who are less confident in the language or are still learning it."
He highlighted the new relationship between BBC Wales and Welsh channel S4C, describing it as "strong new partnership ...that may have surprised some".
As a result of that he said TV detective series Hinterland - currently being filmed in Aberystwyth - was being made in Welsh and English to be screened on both S4C and BBC.
"And when the prestigious BBC Cardiff Singer of the World launches in June, both S4C and BBC will jointly celebrate this major cultural event," Mr Davies told delegates.
The festival celebrates film, radio and digital media from Scotland, Ireland, Wales, Cornwall, Brittany and the Isle of Man.
Among other speakers at the festival is Ron Jones, founder of independent television company Tinopolis which is making Hinterland.
The three-day celebration promotes the languages and cultures of the Celtic nations and regions.


An inquest has heard that information about serious injuries caused by rubber baton rounds fired by the Army was not made public in the early 1970s.

Alan Hepper, an MOD engineer, was giving evidence at the inquest into the death of 11-year-old Francis Rowntree.
He said there was limited testing on rubber baton rounds before their introduction in July 1970.
Francis, known as Frank by his family, was shot by a soldier with a rubber bullet in west Belfast in April 1972.
He died in hospital two days later.
That same year, accident and emergency doctors at Belfast's Royal Victoria Hospital had wanted to publish their findings in the British Journal of Surgery, but were told by a scientific adviser to the Ministry of Defence that it would not be in the public interest.
The information pointed out that 80% of inpatients hit by the rounds had injuries to their head and neck.  It also suggested that Frank Rowntree had been hit from two to three yards.
'Tumbled in the air'
It suggested that soldiers must be made aware of the consequences of using  the weapon, that it could kill, blind, or seriously injure some organs.
The tests on potential wounding by the baton rounds had been carried out at the Defence, Science and Technological Laboratory, Porton Down, Wiltshire, by firing them in controlled circumstances at sheep.
The court heard also that tests showed that the batons tumbled in the air and often hit their targets side-on, although they could also hit end on, causing rather more injury or damage.
Mr Hepper, who works at Porton Down, agreed with a barrister for the Rowntree family that the chances of a target being struck end-on increased if a round was fired within 5-6 metres.
It is thought that Frank Rowntree was struck from close range.
Mr Hepper told the inquest that the effect and accuracy of the rubber baton round was tested more after its initial introduction.
'Far too dangerous'
He also said that the amount of gunpowder used was increased twice in a bid to make it more accurate.
A wooden baton round had been tested but quickly deemed to be far "too dangerous" and was never used operationally here.
The rubber baton round was then developed at the request of Army HQ in Northern Ireland to provide an option between small-arms fire and the use of CS gas.
The kind most commonly used by the Army in April 1972 was 15cm long, and fired with 55 grains of gunpowder at a speed of about 160mph.
Mr Hepper showed the court some of the weapons that might have been used to fire such a round during a riot.
The court heard it was most likely that a weapon called a "federal riot gun" would have been used by the Royal Anglian Regiment in April 1972.
At one stage, the weapon was brought to the front of the courtroom for the coroner to see, and then closely examined and handled by barristers and members of the Rowntree family, including Jim Rowntree, the brother of Frank.
It later emerged during cross-examination that in 1971 there were 16,752 baton rounds fired, and in 1972 there were 23,363.
The rounds were designed to simulate a hard blow with a fist or a rigorous blow by a baton, but able to be caused by a soldier from a distance.
It was recognised in the scientific papers at the time that the targets in Northern Ireland would most likely be teenagers and young adults.
By December 1972, Army documents acknowledged that very serious injuries could be caused when rubber baton rounds struck the head or face.
It emerged that an independent report compiled in 1982 observed that some rounds had been tampered with by soldiers in the past, with batteries or coins added to the case with part of the rubber round removed.
There have been allegations that Frank Rowntree was struck with a battery.
Mr Hepper agreed that whilst the testing of the baton rounds followed scientific principles, it was limited, hurried and piecemeal before the initial deployment of the weapon in July 1970.


Two 14-year-old girls who were reported missing from Easter Ross have been traced to Aberdeen and are safe and well, police said.

Orla Begg and Zoe Walton were reported missing after last being seen at Inverness Railway Station on Tuesday.
Police in the Highlands and Aberdeenshire had been trying to trace the girls.


Jamie Murray believes he and doubles partner John Peers are a match for any team after winning their opening match at the ATP World Tour Finals.

Murray and Australian Peers won a dramatic match against the Italian duo of Simone Bolelli and Fabio Fognini 7-6 (7-5) 3-6 11-9.
"I guess we're one of the best teams in the world, that's why we're here," Murray told BBC Scotland.
"Every time we step on court we feel we've got a chance to win our match."
Murray confessed to some pre-match nerves ahead of his World Tour Finals debut, but was thrilled to make a winning start to the round-robin stage.
"I was a bit nervous going out there, which I guess means it meant a lot to us," Murray said.
"We did great to win, it was a real high level match. Everyone on the court was playing a lot of good tennis with exciting rallies. Really happy to come through at the end.
"It's obviously nice to get off to winning start, get a bit of momentum going early in the tournament."
With Great Britain's Davis Cup final tie against Belgium looming at the end of the month, Murray, 29, has plenty to think about over the next few weeks, but he's adamant that his only focus right now is the Tour Finals.
Despite enjoying great success with partner Peers this season - they won titles in Brisbane and Hamburg, were runners-up at Wimbledon and the US Open and could end the year as the world's number one pairing - they will go their separate ways after this tournament.
"It's been a great year for us," Murray continued. "We've done three years together now and I think we both kind of felt it was time to move on.  A fresh start, try something different."
"I'm going to play with Bruno Soares next year. I'm really looking forward to that and hoping to be even more successful than I was this year."
"Any decision comes with risk, especially after the year we've had. We both know we can do great things together, but we both felt it was time to move on, do something different and that's why we're going our separate ways after this tournament."


Jersey's child care inquiry has completed the first phase of evidence.

The inquiry, which is investigating claims of child abuse in Jersey's care system back to 1945, has heard evidence from 203 witnesses.
The next phase, in May, will hear from those who worked in children's services and those accused of abuse.
Chairman Frances Oldham thanked all those who had come forward and contributed to the work of the inquiry which started in 2014.
The now closed Haut de la Garenne children's home is among the island institutions at which accounts of abuse have been heard by the Independent Jersey Care Inquiry.
Ms Oldham said: "Whilst there have been some positive accounts, most of what we have heard has related to painful and damaging experiences.
"The first phase of the inquiry has been slow and painstaking, not least because of the difficulty many of the victims have had to wrestle with emotionally in terms of firstly giving a statement and then deciding whether to give evidence in public.
"We must establish the truth about how mistreatment of children remained hidden for so long and what was done when concerns were raised."
Chief Minister Ian Mr Gorst has set a deadline of December 2016 for the inquiry to conclude its investigations.


Jonathan Rea extended his lead at the top of the World Superbike standings to 54 points by finishing second behind Chaz Davies in race one at Laguna Seca.

Ducati rider Davies took his fourth win of the season at the California circuit despite still suffering the effects of a crash at Misano three weeks ago.
The Welshman has been recovering from a spinal injury and a thumb fracture.
Davies finished 1.2 seconds ahead of Rea, with pole setter Tom Sykes third and Italy's Marco Melandri fourth.
The three British riders were involved in a three-way battle at the front, although Yorkshireman Sykes fell off the pace in the latter stages of the 25-lap race.
Northern Irishman Rea maintains his record of having achieved a podium finish on each of his visits to Laguna Seca since 2014, the double world champion having shared a win apiece with Kawasaki team-mate Sykes last year.
Milwaukee Aprilia rider Eugene Laverty crashed with 15 laps remaining of the first race of the eighth round of the championship, with England's Alex Lowes also coming off.
"It was important to bounce back with a win, although my priority today was just to finish the race and maybe get a podium. Once I hit the front I didn't want to overstep the mark with the front end," said Davies after the 24th victory of his career in the series and his third at the American track.
Rea, winner of eight races this season, added that Davies "deserved a lot of credit for coming back from our crash at Misano".
"In the first part of the race I was sitting comfortably and thought that I had enough pace to pull away but then I couldn't get grip off the rear and couldn't pull out of the corners the way I wanted to."
After Sunday's race at the same venue, the championship takes a five-week break until the next round in Germany.


Police invoked special stop and search powers after three people were stabbed within 10 minutes in a town centre.

Essex Police said two teenage boys and a man were taken to hospital after being stabbed in Colchester between 18:22 and 18:31 GMT on Saturday.
As a result, the force's temporary deputy chief constable approved use of additional powers to search people.
The "robust policing tactic" was used for three hours to "ensure order had been fully restored", the force said.
A 17-year-old boy and an 18-year-old man from London were arrested, along with a 21-year-old man from Barking.
Ch Insp Simon Anslow said none of those who were stabbed suffered life-threatening injuries.
"This is a rare situation in any town and we are using the full range of legal tools at our disposal to keep the overwhelming majority of people safe, while making sure those intent on causing trouble will be swiftly picked up and dealt with," he said.
"We will be pursuing a vigorous investigation to put all those we can find who are responsible for this detestable behaviour before the courts."
The use of section 60 of the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994 gives officers the power to search people for dangerous objects and weapons without the need to have a reasonable suspicion.
The powers were in force in Colchester town centre from 18:40 until 21:50 GMT on Saturday.
Read more on this and other stories on the BBC Essex Live page
Colchester MP Will Quince said he supported the force's use of the powers in this instance.
"Their swift action in getting the section 60 order, which is a rarely used piece of legislation, means they can stop anybody without reasonable cause to check if they have a weapon within a certain time frame - I applaud the police for doing that," he said.


John Akinde's 17th goal of the season secured a win for Barnet at struggling Cheltenham Town.

Barnet took the lead in the eighth minute when Luke Gambin crashed a left-footed effort against the bar and Curtis Weston was quickest to react, rolling a shot into the net from eight yards.
Cheltenham had a penalty appeal for handball turned down four minutes later when Jack Barthram's cross from the right was charged down.
Danny Wright hit the left post in the 37th minute with Jamie Stephens beaten and almost immediately Barnet broke and hit the post themselves through Akinde, who powered past Dan Parslow.
But Cheltenham levelled in the 44th minute when Wright reached Jack Munns' free-kick and headed into the top right corner for his sixth goal of the season.
Barnet regained the lead seven minutes into the second half when Akinde finished off a swift break, latching onto Gambin's pass.
Griffiths saved Alex Nicholls' free-kick low to his left and Akinde hit the post again with a header in the 68th minute.
Report supplied by the Press Association
Match ends, Cheltenham Town 1, Barnet 2.
Second Half ends, Cheltenham Town 1, Barnet 2.
Kyle Storer (Cheltenham Town) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Jack Taylor (Barnet).
Corner,  Cheltenham Town. Conceded by Curtis Weston.
Dan Holman (Cheltenham Town) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by John Akinde (Barnet).
Harry Pell (Cheltenham Town) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Jamal Campbell-Ryce (Barnet) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Foul by Harry Pell (Cheltenham Town).
Jamal Campbell-Ryce (Barnet) is shown the yellow card.
Foul by Kyle Storer (Cheltenham Town).
Mauro Vilhete (Barnet) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Jack Barthram (Cheltenham Town) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by John Akinde (Barnet).
Substitution, Barnet. Alie Sesay replaces Luke Gambin.
Aaron Downes (Cheltenham Town) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by John Akinde (Barnet).
Corner,  Cheltenham Town. Conceded by Elliot Johnson.
Harry Pell (Cheltenham Town) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Curtis Weston (Barnet).
Foul by Harry Pell (Cheltenham Town).
Bira Dembélé (Barnet) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Attempt missed. Sam Muggleton (Barnet) right footed shot from outside the box is close, but misses to the left.
Substitution, Barnet. Sam Muggleton replaces Jean-Louis Akpa-Akpro.
Billy Waters (Cheltenham Town) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Foul by Billy Waters (Cheltenham Town).
Jack Taylor (Barnet) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Substitution, Cheltenham Town. Amari Morgan-Smith replaces Daniel Wright.
Substitution, Barnet. Jamal Campbell-Ryce replaces Alex Nicholls.
Foul by Kyle Storer (Cheltenham Town).
Alex Nicholls (Barnet) wins a free kick on the right wing.
John Akinde (Barnet) hits the right post with a header from the centre of the box.
Jordan Cranston (Cheltenham Town) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
Foul by Jordan Cranston (Cheltenham Town).
Luke Gambin (Barnet) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Dan Holman (Cheltenham Town) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Jean-Louis Akpa-Akpro (Barnet).
Attempt missed. Billy Waters (Cheltenham Town) right footed shot from the left side of the box is close, but misses to the right.
Daniel Wright (Cheltenham Town) wins a free kick in the defensive half.


Funding of £500,000 will go to summer holiday school lunch and fun clubs, the Welsh education secretary has said.

The money will be offered to councils in the most deprived parts of Wales to help provide play schemes and meals over the long break.
Kirsty Williams said there would be elements of education in the clubs and Welsh universities would be involved.
"These clubs will offer a positive environment for all our children during the summer holidays," she said.
The Welsh Liberal Democrat AM added: "The reality is for some of our young people the school summer holidays can be a difficult time.
"Children who benefit from free school breakfasts and lunches often miss meals and go hungry once their school closes for the holidays, while the lack of free play schemes and sports activities can have an impact on those from the most disadvantaged backgrounds."
Five local authorities in Wales already run similar schemes and the Welsh Government said councils would be able to access funding for new ventures in the 2017-18 financial year.
The cash will be distributed in conjunction with the Welsh Local Government Association, with further details announced later in the year.
Katie Palmer, Sustainable Food Cities co-ordinator for Food Cardiff, described it as "an important step in tackling health inequalities".
"We are thrilled with this news. Last summer, Food Cardiff worked with the Welsh Local Government Association to develop the Food and Fun model across Wales, in partnership with local councils and health boards," she said.
"The model, based on our pilot in Cardiff during summer 2015, delivered free school meals, food education and fun physical activities to children during the school break."
Fiona Kinghorn, interim director of Public Health for Cardiff and Vale University Health Board, one of Food Cardiff's partners, also welcomed the announcement.
"Some children experience inadequate nutrition during the school holidays and there is also the potential for loss of learning and social isolation," she said.
"We have long recognised that addressing these issues requires a collaborative, coordinated response at local level, underpinned by national policy.
"Therefore we welcome this news from Welsh Government, which sees a commitment to deliver support where it is most needed."


The next phase of a £22m project to ease congestion in Taunton town centre is due to start.

Drivers can expect up to two weeks of disruption while work on the Northern Inner Distributor Road (NIDR) occurs.
The work, starting on Wednesday, will see the closure of the northbound carriageway of Staplegrove Road beyond Richmond Road for drainage work.
The one-mile (1.6 km) NIDR will see Staplegrove Road, in the west, linked to Priory Avenue in the east.
The project, which will also see a bridge built over the River Tone and the Bridgwater and Taunton Canal close to Priory Fields Business Park, is expected to be completed by the autumn.
Somerset County Council said the road would also help with the regeneration of the Firepool area.
Councillor Harvey Siggs, cabinet member for highways, said: "There will be some disruption, we are still asking everyone to be patient about it, to understand it's the end goal that's really worth having.
"Where we can we are running single lane traffic, but at times we will need to close roads completely."


Germany has signed an agreement for the return of a Matisse painting, looted by the Nazis, to the family of its original Jewish owner.

Femme Assise [Seated Woman] was confiscated from the Munich apartment of Cornelius Gurlitt, the son of Adolf Hitler's art dealer.
Experts say the painting, worth an estimated $20m (£13.4m; €18.3m), was stolen from art dealer Paul Rosenberg.
A government task force ruled last year it rightfully belonged to his heirs.
Germany's Culture Minister Monika Gruetters has signed an agreement paving the way for the masterpiece to be handed back.
The deal must now be approved by a court dealing with Gurlitt's estate.
The Bavarian authorities seized some 1,280 artworks from Gurlitt's Munich flat as part of a tax evasion probe in February 2012.
The find triggered legal disputes surrounding works seized by the Nazis in the 1930s and 40s.
Gurlitt died in May last year aged 81, having named the Bern museum in Switzerland as his "sole heir". He had agreed to help authorities discover which works had been stolen.
The Swiss museum agreed in November to take hundreds of artworks from the collection until their rightful owners could be identified.
But German officials said three artworks - including Femme Assise by Henri Matisse - would be returned immediately.
A similar agreement was signed last week for the return of a painting by Max Liebermann, Zwei Reiter am Strand [Two Riders on the Beach].
Gurlitt's father, Hildebrand Gurlitt, was ordered by Adolf Hitler to deal in works that had been seized from Jewish families, or which the Nazis considered "degenerate" and had been removed from German museums in the 1930s and 1940s.
Matisse's Femme Assise, painted in 1921, was taken from Jewish art dealer Paul Rosenberg in Paris in 1941.
His family had been searching for it until it turned up in Gurlitt's flat.


A man has been rescued from a fifth-floor balcony after a fire broke out at a block of flats in Swansea.

Emergency services were called to Brynfield Court, Langland, just before 01:00 BST on Thursday.
A man was rescued by firefighters and taken to hospital by ambulance.
Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service said it sent six appliances and the fire was contained to the flat.


Veteran war photographer Don McCullin has been awarded a knighthood in the New Year Honours list.

Sir Don has documented conflicts in the Congo, Afghanistan and Iran, in a career spanning 60 years.
Last month, he travelled to Iraq to photograph the Battle of Mosul and took pictures of people fleeing the city.
The 81-year-old said he felt "warmed" to be recognised for services to photography and it would bring "a lot of honour" to his family.
"I've made this huge journey from the beginning of my life where it was very poor and impoverished.
"I've managed to get away from that and I've managed to educate myself by travelling with great journalists.
"So in a way, I've been duly rewarded before I even got this knighthood."
Sir Don, who received a CBE in 1993, said he hoped the Queen would knight him as he has "massive respect" for her work.
"My only hope is that the Queen will be the person who tips my shoulders with the end of that sword.
"She would be the one person who would make the whole thing marvellous for me."
Sir Don has lived in Somerset for 34 years, having first visited the region as a young evacuee.
He said the Mosul trip would be his last covering conflicts, but vowed to continue with his work until he "can't press that button any more".
Future projects include a potential exhibition at the Tate in London in two years' time.


Olympic champions Jack Laugher and Chris Mears marked their return to action with synchronised 3m springboard gold at the British National Cup.

Laugher - who alongside Mears earned Britain's first Olympic diving title in Rio - also claimed individual 1m gold on the opening day in Plymouth.
"I felt more nervous today than during the Olympics," Laugher told BBC Sport.
Tom Daley and Grace Reid, who claimed European gold in London last year, won the mixed 3m springboard event.
Daley then teamed up with Tonia Couch for the mixed 10m platform competition, where they were surprisingly beaten by City of Leeds Diving duo Lois Toulson and Matty Lee.
Toulson also claimed gold in the women's synchronised 10m platform event alongside her Olympic partner Couch.
"It's amazing because we haven't spent more than a few hours training together for that event," Touslon told BBC Sport.
"We talked about food up there at the top and that really takes the pressure off," added Lee.
Katherine Torrance won the women's 1m springboard competition and will return for her favoured individual 3m event on Sunday.
Find out how to get into diving with our special guide.


Egypt's appeals court has overturned a ruling that listed the Palestinian militant group Hamas as a terrorist organisation, court officials say.

One of them told AFP news agency the ruling in February was quashed because the lower court was not "competent" to make such verdicts.
Hamas, which controls the Gaza Strip, welcomed Saturday's ruling.
Hamas is an offshoot of Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood - itself designated as a terrorist organisation in 2013.
Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood President Mohammed Morsi was ousted in 2013.
Hamas said the appeals ruling was "correcting a previous mistake".
Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri told Reuters news agency: "The decision today represents a commitment by Cairo to its strong role towards the Palestinian cause.
"There is no doubt that [it] will have positive results and impacts on the relation between Hamas and Cairo."
In February, a lower court designated Hamas a a terrorist organisation, accusing it of supporting an insurgency in Egypt's northern Sinai.
The verdict came after two complaints were reportedly filed against the militant group implicating it in attacks against the police and army in the peninsula.
Militants have killed scores of policemen and soldiers since President Morsi's removal, vowing revenge for government moves against his supporters that have resulted in more than 1,400 people being killed.
Egypt has traditionally played a key role in mediating between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, and is seen as a key player in any peace or security talks.
Hamas dominates Gaza and fought a 50-day war with Israel last year. Under its charter, the movement is committed to Israel's destruction.
Israel, the United States and several other nations have designated Hamas a terrorist organisation over its long record of attacks and refusal to renounce violence.
Hamas, which was founded in 1987, won Palestinian parliamentary elections in 2006 and reinforced its power in Gaza the following year after ousting its Fatah rivals.


Schools were closed and thousands of homes suffered power cuts as Storm Barbara battered northern areas of the UK yesterday.

The Met Office, which monitors the weather for the UK, has warned that this Christmas's bad weather isn't over, with a second storm is on its way.
Storm Conor is expected to hit northern areas of Scotland on Boxing Day, with winds of up to 90 miles per hour.
On Friday, gusts of wind from Storm Barbara reaching almost 120 miles per hour were recorded on the summit of Cairn Gorm in Scotland - one of the highest points in the UK.
Elsewhere, high winds created disruptions and cancelations to trains and ferries, and a lightning strike caused power cuts for thousands of homes in Scotland.
More snow and ice are expected, and the Met Office has issued weather warnings telling people to be careful, and stay safe.


Lewis Hamilton has brushed off claims that his Mercedes team are in a league of their own going into the new season.

Hamilton, on slower tyres, was second fastest on day two of the second pre-season test, behind Valtteri Bottas.
Asked if Mercedes were without rivals, Hamilton said: "I don't think so. Ferrari and Williams look competitive."
But he admitted: "That's what I've been told. I've not looked at a single lap time anyone else has done so I'd be guessing."
Despite his pace, Hamilton said he was not comfortable with his car on his fastest lap at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya on Wednesday.
The world champion said: "I'm not feeling great. Those tyres are not particularly good. I've been pounding around doing multiple laps on long runs, which is not the most exciting.
"To get to light fuel is always an exciting feeling, but it's always new when you get back to pushing for a single lap.
"The car is in a different ballpark, not the right one at the moment, and that's what we need to work on."
And he reiterated comments he made during the first test last week that he did not like the new design of Pirelli tyres for this year.
"Generally I wish we had last year's tyres because these ones aren't as good," Hamilton said. "It was a good experience to get into the softer tyres but I have some work to do."
Hamilton achieved his childhood ambition of winning a third world title last year but said his determination to win was a strong as ever.
"You don't need to find new motivation," he said. "You use the same motivation you've used all your life."
And he said he was impatient for the season to start.
"Testing is starting to get a bit dull because it is never the most exciting part," Hamilton said. "I am ready to go racing.
"But it feels great to be back in the car. The strength in the team has grown even further and that is super-motivating for the season."
Renault's Kevin Magnussen was third fastest on the super-soft tyre, with Ferrari's Sebastian Vettel fourth on the medium.
And there was further encouragement for McLaren-Honda, who struggled badly last season. After Fernando Alonso set the third fastest time on Tuesday, team-mate Jenson Button was fifth quickest on Wednesday, with a time 0.069secs faster than the Spaniard managed.
It is hard to make exact predictions about form based on pre-season testing because the teams do not reveal the specification in which their cars are running.
However, there is some evidence from Wednesday's running that Ferrari might be close enough to give Mercedes a run for their money this year.
Ignoring the unknown of how much fuel the cars had on board, Hamilton's lap was comfortably quicker than Bottas's - the Briton was only 0.361 seconds slower than the Finn despite the super-soft being about 0.7secs faster.
As for Vettel, he was a second slower than Hamilton on a tyre reckoned to be about 0.8secs slower - a margin of only 0.2secs.
Vettel said: "We are on our plan. We had some days where we would like to run a bit more but in the end this is what the test is for and I think we are pretty happy where we are."
The German said he was "not concerned" about the fact Ferrari were showing worse reliability than Mercedes at this stage.
"Obviously these things you don't want to happen," he said. "But if they happen here it is not a problem; if they happen in a couple of weeks it is a bit worse."
The first race of the season is in Australia on 18-20 March.
Fastest times
1 Valtteri Bottas (Fin) Williams 1:23.261
2 Lewis Hamilton (GB) Mercedes 1:23.622
3 Kevin Magnussen (Den) Renault 1:23.933
4 Sebastian Vettel (Ger) Ferrari 1:24.611
5 Jenson Button (GB) McLaren 1:25.183
6 Daniel Ricciardo (Aus) Red Bull 1:25.235
7 Carlos Sainz (Spa) Toro Rosso 1:25.300
8 Sergio Perez (Mex) Force India 1:25.593
9 Pascal Wehrlein (Ger) Manor 1:27.064
10 Marcus Ericsson (Swe) Sauber 1:27.862
11  Nico Rosberg (Ger) Mercedes 1:28.298
12 Esteban Gutierrez (Mex) Haas No time
Bottas and Magnussen set best times on super-soft tyres; Hamilton, Button, Perez and Wehrlein on soft tyre; all others on medium.


Cardiff City have signed Feyenoord's attacking midfielder Lex Immers on loan until the end of the season.

Dutchman Immers has scored 31 goals in 100 league appearances since joining Feyenoord from Den Haag in 2012.
But the 29-year-old has been restricted to just two league starts this season.
Although Cardiff are under a Football League transfer embargo, they are able to sign players on loan during the January window.
"I'm very excited to be coming from one of the biggest teams in the Netherlands to the biggest team in Wales," said Immers.
"It's always been an ambition of mine to play in the UK and I'm looking forward to getting the opportunity to do that, here at Cardiff City.
"Back in the Netherlands, supporters like the fact that I work hard, go from box to box, press and keep running. That's what I'm going to bring to Cardiff City."
Immers, who will wear the number 27 shirt, will be at Cardiff City Stadium until 30 June 2016.
Cardiff chief executive Ken Choo has told BBC Wales Sport the Bluebirds are looking to make three loan signings in January.
Find all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page.