The number of reports of vulnerable adults being harmed in the Scottish Borders has risen sharply, according to a social work report.

Concerns include physical, psychological and financial abuse.
Scottish Borders Council's social work director Andrew Lowe admitted cases dealt with by the authority's adult protection unit had "rocketed".
However, he said changes to reporting methods and greater awareness of the issue had contributed to the increase.
The council report shows a sharp rise in significant incidents and concerns over the care of the elderly and those with difficulties.
Mr Lowe said he anticipated they would keep rising - but pointed out a different method of reporting which sees all medical issues reported as adult protection concerns.
He said he believed the systems now in place were more robust and that there was a greater awareness of protection issues for vulnerable adults.
"One of the heartening things to see is the source of referrals - we are getting many more now from independent agencies than we ever used to," he said.
"It used to be that the referrals came from either social workers or family or whatever.
"We now see a range of all the different agencies - health board, GP, private sector, self-referral - they are all putting referrals in and that, to me, is healthy.
"That's a sign of public awareness of this as an issue."
He added that there was always more that could be done.
"All we can hope to do is have a good and effective system, good policies, and to make sure that we are raising the profile and ensuring people are aware of the vulnerability of people in our community," he said.
He urged the public to contact the authorities if they saw something which caused concern.
"It doesn't matter if you are wrong," he said.
"If your hunch is wrong we can make a discrete inquiry and nothing will happen and there will be no threat to you.
"But if you see something and you think it is wrong, I think acting on that is very helpful."


The number of European students choosing to study at Welsh universities has hit an all-time high - despite Brexit fears.

As of Friday, 1,350 EU students had been accepted on to courses across Wales - up 11% on the previous year.
Cardiff and Aberystwyth universities both received a record number of applications from EU students for this term.
This was despite some applications being withdrawn after the referendum.
But Aberystwyth said the number was "measurably fewer" than predicted before the referendum.
A spokeswoman said: "Brexit has undoubtedly been a factor in discouraging conversion, persuading applicants to look further at what options are available in their own countries."
"Undoubtedly, this will have an impact on our finances," she added.
There had been fears the decision to leave the European Union could affect student numbers and finances.
EU students currently pay the same tuition fees as Welsh domiciled students and are entitled to apply for the same grants to cover course fees to study here.
Following the referendum, about 100 EU students withdrew their applications to study at Aberystwyth and 25 from Cardiff.
However, it remains unclear how decisive the referendum outcome was to these figures, given EU students received their exam results at about the same time as the June vote.
According to Ucas data, the number of EU students choosing to study in Wales continues to increase, following the trend seen across the whole of the UK in recent years.
The number of students from EU countries accepted to Welsh universities, not including those from the UK, increased by more than 50% since 2012.
As of 2 September, the number set to attend courses across the UK stood at 29,940 - 1,350 of which are enrolled in Wales.
Cardiff University said Brexit had led to "little impact" so far on its finances, with 2,319 applications made for this term - a 20% increase since 2014/2015.
Universities Wales said the rise in overseas students could be partly down to the student experience in Wales.
Overall student satisfaction hit a record high this year, with 86% of students saying they were happy with their course.
Universities Wales spokeswoman Olivia Jones said: "This commitment to delivering excellent learning and teaching will undoubtedly attract students from across the UK, the EU and beyond."
University of South Wales, Bangor and Glyndwr Universities all said they could not confirm how many EU students would be enrolled on courses when term starts this autumn.
Students are able to apply until 20 September for courses for this academic year, with acceptance numbers changing on a daily basis as clearing continues.
Bangor University said only time would tell if uncertainty surrounding the referendum would have an impact on the behaviour of students and prospective staff.
A spokesman said: "The majority of the recruitment activity for 2016 entry was carried out before the Brexit vote, and we expect the majority of our existing EU students will have completed their degree programmes with us by the time Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty is invoked and the subsequent negotiations with other member states is concluded."


Nigeria says it will close the main airport in the capital Abuja, in order to carry out a major upgrade.

The airport will be closed for six weeks, starting in February 2017.
The announcement comes after airlines threatened to stop flying to Abuja because of safety concerns over the state of the runway.
During the repairs, domestic and international flights to Abuja will be diverted to the city of Kaduna more than 160km (100 miles) away.
BBC Nigeria correspondent Martin Patience says passengers diverted to Kaduna will face a two-hour journey along a road that has recently been hit by a spate of kidnappings.
Africa Live: More on this and other stories
The hour-long flight from Nigeria's commercial centre Lagos to the capital is used as a shuttle by many businesses.
Critics are warning that the closure will prove hugely damaging to the country's economy, which is already reeling from its worst recession in decades.
But the government says that by carrying out the major work in one go, it will not have to make smaller repairs in the future.


Researchers have created what they say is the most comprehensive map yet to detail the massacres of indigenous Australians by European settlers.

More than 150 locations feature on the online map, which presently covers only the nation's east coast.
The total number of deaths following British settlement in 1788 has long been debated, but many historians estimate it numbered tens of thousands.
Researchers hope the map will help with education and creating monuments.
The project includes details about the number of people killed at each site, which weapons were used, and who was responsible.
The information was compiled over four years and corroborated through sources including settler diaries, newspaper reports, court records and letters.
"For many Australians, this kind of information will come as a shock," project author Prof Lyndall Ryan told the BBC.
"Our ancestors were out there engaging in some pretty violent forms of behaviour."
More than 150 massacres affecting almost every Aboriginal clan took place between 1788 and 1872, compared with six recorded massacres of colonists during the same period.
A massacre was defined as the indiscriminate killing of six or more undefended people, the study said.
Prof Ryan said several violent events claimed more than 60 lives, while about 150 people were killed in one incident in Victoria's Gippsland region.
Prof Ryan, a historian at Australia's University of Newcastle, said the team will document the country's west over the next two years.
She hopes it will help inspire memorials around Australia, similar to those acknowledging casualties in World War I.
"We are going to need monuments to realise that this was an ongoing war," she said.
"I hope it will lead to a clearer understanding of why the situation with Aboriginal people is still so desperate today."
Discussion about better recognising Australia's first peoples has intensified this year, with a historic summit in May calling for a new formal body in parliament.
Earlier this year, the Australian government rejected calls to change the date of Australia Day, which commemorates the arrival of Britain's First Fleet, despite many indigenous Australians referring to it as "invasion day".


Labour leadership challenger Owen Smith has suggested the so-called Islamic State could be involved in negotiations with the West in the future.

Mr Smith said all conflicts ended in "dialogue", during a two-hour debate with Jeremy Corbyn on the BBC's Victoria Derbyshire programme.
The Labour leader said he would not negotiate with so-called Islamic State.
The pair also clashed over allegations of abuse within the Labour Party, nuclear weapons and the EU referendum.
Commenting after the debate, Mr Corbyn's campaign team called Mr Smith's comments on IS "hasty and ill-considered".
But Mr Smith stressed he was not suggesting "we're going to be able to bring ISIS round the table right now."
Pressed on how soon it might happen, he told BBC News: "We don't know. We would all hope that it happens quickly, we would all hope they stop being a murderous terrorist organisation and try and bring about peace. But at the moment there's no evidence of that, is there?"
The audience of 100 Labour supporters in Nottingham repeatedly expressed concern about "abuse" between the two sides in the leadership contest.
Mr Smith said Labour had become divided, with Mr Corbyn's supporters feeling he was the "only socialist in the Labour Party".
"The truth is I'm not a red Tory, I'm not a Blairite, I'm a socialist same as you," Mr Smith said.
But when Victoria Derbyshire suggested to the Labour leader the atmosphere within the party had become "toxic", Mr Corbyn hit back, asking: "Well, how do you know?"
Mr Corbyn said he had attended Labour events all over the country with "people of all shades of opinion having an intelligent, respectful discussion and debate".
"That is how we should do things at all times," he said.
We knew that there were few major policy differences between the two men and that the real division was over who had the qualities to lead the Labour Party.
Jeremy Corbyn failing to recognise Ant and Dec is the sort of thing that might get talked about in the pub on Wednesday night, while the political establishment is wondering whether Owen Smith really does think there will come a time for talks with so-called Islamic State.
The main thing I will take away from the debate is just how upset, angry, confused and hurt ordinary Labour members are about the state of their party.
The two men also clashed over who was responsible for Labour's low opinion poll ratings, with Mr Smith repeating his assertion that Mr Corbyn could not lead the party to power and Mr Corbyn urging him to rejoin the shadow cabinet.
In a quick-fire question round, Mr Smith said being described as a "Tory" was worse than being described as a "smarmy nonentity" (a quote from Spectator columnist Rod Liddle).
And Mr Corbyn could not identify TV presenters Ant and Dec when shown a picture of them.
On foreign affairs, Mr Smith suggested the so-called Islamic State would eventually have to be brought into peace talks if there was to be a settlement to Syria's civil war.
Referring to his experience as an adviser to Labour's former Northern Ireland Secretary Paul Murphy, he said: "Ultimately all solutions to these sorts of international crises do come about through dialogue.
"So eventually, if we are to try and solve this, all of the actors do need to be involved.
"But at the moment, Isil are clearly not interested in negotiating."
He added: "At some point, for us to resolve this, we will need to get people round the table."
Asked the same question, Mr Corbyn said: "They are not going to be round the table. No."
Speaking after the debate, Mr Corbyn's leadership campaign described Mr Smith's on comments on IS as "hasty and ill-considered".
The spokesman said: "Jeremy has always argued that there must be a negotiated political solution to the war in Syria and the wider Middle East, and that maintaining lines of communication during conflicts is essential.
"But Isis cannot be part of those negotiations. Instead, its sources of funding and supplies must be cut off."
The comments were also seized on by the Conservative Party, with Tory MP and member of the Defence Select Committee Johnny Mercer saying it showed Mr Smith's "unfitness for leadership".
"It shows that whoever wins this increasingly bizarre leadership election, I'm afraid Labour just cannot be trusted with keeping us safe," added Mr Mercer.
But Mr Smith's campaign said he was "clear" there should be no negotiation with the so-called Islamic State, or Daesh as it is also known, "until they renounce violence, cease all acts of terror and commit themselves to a peaceful settlement".
"Owen's experience of helping to bring about peace in Northern Ireland is that eventually all parties who truly believe in delivering peace have to be around the table.
"In the Middle East at the moment that clearly doesn't include - and may never include - Daesh."


US markets were flat on Friday, after an earlier streak of gains that saw two of three major indexes reach new highs.

The tech-heavy Nasdaq index, which has fallen on just three days in May, again posted the strongest gains amid light trading ahead of a holiday weekend.
The Nasdaq rose 4.93 points to a record 6,210.19.
The wider S&P 500 climbed less than one point, or 0.03% to 2,415.82, while the Dow Jones fell 0.01%, dipping 2.67 points to 21,080.28.
All three indexes have recovered since May 17, when stocks dove as political tension in Washington spooked Wall Street.
A strong season for corporate earnings has propelled May to close on a high note.
About three quarters of companies listed on the S&P 500 index exceeded earnings expectations, according to the research firm FactSet.  Energy, metals and IT stocks have led the earnings gains.
Even some consumer stocks, which have lagged this season, have shown recent strength.
On Friday, companies such as cosmetics retailer Ulta and the Costco wholesale club placed among the top gainers after beating analyst expectations when they released earnings earlier in the week.
Earlier, figures from the Commerce Department showed that the US economy grew faster than initially estimated in the first quarter of the year.
US gross domestic product grew at an annual pace of 1.2% in the quarter, up from the first estimate of 0.7%.


A Mexican Navy helicopter came under fire in the violence-wracked northern state of Tamaulipas on Sunday.

The Navy said that "the attack was repelled, resulting in the deaths of six people among the group of assailants".
The incident comes two months after six soldiers and a policewoman were killed when their helicopter was shot down by suspected cartel members.
Tamaulipas is at the centre of a turf war between rival drugs cartels.
None of the Marines on board the Black Hawk helicopter was hurt when it was hit by seven bullets.
The helicopter was searching for members of a drug cartel when it was fired on by gunmen about 70km (45 miles) south of Nuevo Laredo.
Nuevo Laredo is on the border with the United States and a main transit point for drugs smuggled from Mexico to the US.
In the incident on 1 May, suspected members of the Jalisco New Generation cartel fired a rocket-propelled grenade at a Cougar helicopter and forced it to make an emergency landing.
Seven members of the security forces were killed in the attack in western Jalisco state.
While attacks on the security forces are frequent in Mexico, officials said that the downing of the Cougar represented an escalation in tactics by the cartels.


Police investigating a stalker who targeted Lily Allen made her feel like a "nuisance rather than a victim", the singer has revealed.

Allen told The Observer detectives destroyed evidence supporting her case and refused to let her see and keep a photograph of the man harassing her.
Alex Gray, 30, from Perth, was convicted of burglary and harassment at Harrow Crown Court earlier in April.
A Metropolitan Police spokesman said stalking was taken "very seriously".
Allen said the long campaign had left her "a changed person" and that she had not looked for "special attention... [only] reassurance and validation".
She said the abuse began in 2009 when Gray set up a Twitter account, @lilyallenRIP, and claimed to have written her number one hit, The Fear.
He went on to send letters containing abusive rants, accusations and suicide threats to her flat, her sister's home, her record company and her management, all of which were handed to police.
She said police gave her a panic alarm after a banner that read "I wrote The Fear" was held up at one of her concerts, but took it back a few months later.
She said she was then not given chance to see a picture of Gray, adding that when they eventually did show her an image of him, she was not allowed to keep it.
Gray went on to bang on Allen's back door and spend nights in her garden, before breaking into her home in 2015 and "steaming" into her bedroom, swearing at her. He was forced from the house by one of Allen's friends, taking a handbag with him.
After the handbag was found, Gray was arrested, but Allen said she "hit a brick wall" when she tried to raise the issue of stalking, adding that she was told - with "no apology" - that the 2009 letters had been "destroyed 'according to police protocol'".
She added that she was not angry with Gray, who is due to be sentenced next month.
"He has a mental illness," she said. "The system has failed him, but until he gets the right treatment and the right help he needs, then I'm not safe".
The Metropolitan Police spokesman said the force would not comment on Allen's case.


Sauber have pulled out of a second Formula 1 in-season test to save money.

The Swiss team will not take part in next week's post-British Grand Prix test at Silverstone, stating it was to "consider cost effectiveness".
They also missed the first in-season test in May as they had no test driver and a lack of car upgrades.
Sauber are last in the constructors' standings before Sunday's race at Silverstone, having failed to score a point so far this season.
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A woman whose son has a form of autism said he is not an "auction product" after waiting nearly a year for him to be placed in a school.

Mei-Ling Chan's nine-year-old son, Stanley, has Asperger's syndrome and has spent the past 10 months at home in Ponsanooth, Cornwall.
Cornwall Council said in a statement that "children with specific needs may require a specialist placement".
Miss Chan said her son had a "right" to go to school and has contacted her MP.
Miss Chan said Stanley was expelled from a school in November 2014 after reacting violently to a prolonged spell of bullying.
He attended a three-day familiarisation visit at another school in March but it ended prematurely because the staff were unable to cope with his behaviour.
In cases like Stanley's, the local authority asks schools to "express an interest in having a pupil placed with them" and once expressions of interest have been received all are considered before a final decision is made by the council's children's services authority.
The council said if no "expression of interest" was forthcoming, it would continue to search for appropriate provision by repeating the process and it could "potentially widen the geographical search".
"They've put my son out to be bid on by other schools," Miss Chan said.
"My son is a human, not an auction product - you can't auction your child off to schools."
"Yes my son has a disability, but he has the right to go to school and, if it was any other child, they get commissioned into a school within three weeks - my son's taken nearly a year and it's not right, it's absolutely not right."
The spokesperson from the office of Miss Chan's MP, George Eustice, said it had taken up the case with Cornwall Council on her behalf and will "continue to work with both parties to achieve a satisfactory outcome".


A fixed penalty for careless driving or speeding is issued every 10 minutes in Wales, according to the road safety charity Brake.

The charity said 111 people were killed and more than 1,000 seriously injured on Welsh roads last year.
It is launching its "look out for each other" campaign at the start of Road Safety Week.
It said: "Road crashes are not accidents; they are devastating and preventable events."


A suicide bomber has killed 45 soldiers and wounded 50 at an army base in southern Yemen, officials say.

The attack happened while soldiers had gathered to receive their salaries at a barracks in the city of Aden, which is controlled by pro-government forces.
Some estimates put the death toll at 50, with as many as 70 injured.
It is not yet clear who carried out the attack but so-called Islamic State (IS) claimed responsibility.
The city has previously been targeted by jihadist groups in the region. In August, a suicide attack claimed by IS killed at least 60 people in the city.
One soldier at the base, Waleed Rashed, told the Associated Press news agency that he had arrived shortly after the attack and had seen private cars take injured people to hospital, before ambulances arrived.
"I could hear the wounded soldiers screaming for help," he said.
Yemen has been in constant conflict since March 2015, as forces allied to the exiled President, Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi, battle the Houthi rebel movement.
Jihadist groups such as the so-called Islamic State and al-Qaeda have taken advantage of the conflict to carve out areas of control in the south of Yemen.
The scale of the humanitarian crisis is enormous - more than three million people have left their homes, and more than half the country's population does not have a secure source of food.
Pro-government forces, backed by a Saudi-led coalition, took control of Aden in the summer of 2015.
Since then, it has suffered a string of bombings which have killed up to several dozen at once.
The UN estimates that 7,270 people, mostly civilians, have been killed since the conflict began.


The boss of NHS Wales has praised staff for providing quality services in the face of challenges.

Chief executive Dr Andrew Goodall has launched his second annual quality statement for the health service.
Despite growing demands on emergency departments, frontline staff were "broadly able to meet these pressures".
He stressed a focus on the individual. "We need to change our question to 'what matters to the patient', rather than 'what is the matter?'"
Dr Goodall thanked staff for delivering in services with challenges in terms of demand and difficulties in recruitment in some areas, saying many "go that extra mile" to keep improving services.
84,000 staff
Â£18m a day budget
18m contacts in primary care a year
3m outpatient attendances
750,000 hospital admissions
78m prescriptions issued
He said the NHS could boast of many examples of world-beating services but where things could be better, staff were "working tirelessly" to make improvements.
Meanwhile, in a survey of nearly 8,000 patients, 98% felt that they were treated with dignity and respect and 95% felt they were given full information about their care.
The annual quality statement for NHS Wales is an overview of all the work going on to improve the quality of care.
Among the areas covered:
Good practice includes a pilot at Wrexham Maelor Hospital where patients are asked to give star ratings for how they were looked after in wards and departments, with weekly feedback to staff. The NHS is looking to extend it across Wales.
There is also praise for "virtual wards" in Powys, which allow elderly and frail people to be cared for in their own homes and has helped reduce emergency admissions to hospital by 12%.
A "one drink one click" app developed by Public Health Wales to help people monitor alcohol consumption has been taken up in England.
"Despite the challenges posed by increasing demand for our services, we remain fully committed to providing safe, compassionate care, focused on the individual and the core principles the NHS stands for," said Dr Goodall.
ON STAFF FROM EU COUNTRIES
Dr Goodall also promised the Welsh Government would do all it could to "look after" NHS staff from the EU working in Wales following the referendum result, saying they play an important part.
There are more than 500 doctors alone who were trained in EU countries.
"We have to wait and see the detail and the plans that emerge after such a significant decision," he said.
"We have very committed staff working in the NHS more generally who have joined us from both an European and international context.
"We've had very recent recruitment campaigns across Wales. I think it's important for us to just recognise the hard work they've put into making the NHS in Wales improve and the support they provide to Welsh communities."
ON RECRUITING DOCTORS FROM ENGLAND
Dr Goodall said the NHS in Wales would offer a "very warm welcome" to any staff who choose to work here after a bitter dispute in England about a new junior doctor's contract.
Ministers in England are paving the way to impose new work patterns on junior doctors in England after the profession rejected the deal that had been agreed between union negotiators and UK ministers.
The UK Government said the new contract will help the NHS in England become a truly seven day service, while critics claim it will lead to less safe services for patients.
The Welsh Government has said consistently it would not impose a new contract on junior doctors in Wales but would negotiate any future changes to work patterns in the spirit collaboration.
Asked about the impact on Wales of the dispute in England, Dr Goodall told BBC Wales: "Obviously we're going to have to take a serious look about what that means.
"But it's absolutely right to say the Welsh Government has not had any intention to impose a contract. I think we've worked in a very collaborative manner with our medical staff and doctors in Wales and the BMA as well."
Recent figures suggest a significant rise in junior doctors recruited by NHS Scotland but Dr Goodhall said the trend had not been replicated in Wales.
Vanessa Young, director of the Welsh NHS Confederation which represents health boards, said the achievements had been delivered while the NHS "continues to carry out a staggering level of activity each and every day".
"However we are not complacent. We know there are areas where improvements can be made and our members will continue to work hard to deliver great care to patients and meet the challenges ahead," she said.


The World Pooh Sticks Championships have been cancelled because of high river levels on the Thames.

The Rotary Club of Oxford Spires said it had abandoned plans for Sunday's charity event at Day's Lock, Little Wittenham with "great regret".
An Environment Agency flood alert is in place for the stretch of the river.
The club said the river is "still too high and fast to have our safety boats on the river", but would try to hold the event later in the year.
The annual event, based on the game played by AA Milne's characters, began in 1984 as a fundraiser for the RNLI.
It regularly attracts more than 1,000 people and was voted "Britain's Favourite Quirky Event" by the readers of Countryfile magazine in 2012.


Lib Dem MP David Ward has had the party whip withdrawn over comments he made about Israel.

He posted a tweet at the weekend calling the country an "apartheid state" and saying that "Zionists" were "losing the battle".
It comes after a long-running dispute with the party's leadership over his use of language and comments he made about "the Jews".
Mr Ward said he would not apologise for his tweet.
The Board of Deputies of British Jews said his suspension from the Lib Dem parliamentary party, which lasts until 13 September, was "too little, too late" and "an empty gesture".
Mr Ward, MP for Bradford East, wrote on his website in January that he was "saddened that the Jews, who suffered unbelievable levels of persecution during the Holocaust, could within a few years of liberation from the death camps, be inflicting atrocities on Palestinians in the new State of Israel and continue to do so on a daily basis in the West Bank and Gaza".
This led to a complaint to the Lib Dems from the Holocaust Educational Trust.
At the weekend, Mr Ward posted a tweet, asking: "Am I wrong or are am I right? At long last the #Zionists are losing the battle - how long can the #apartheid State of #Israel last?"
Following a meeting on Wednesday with Mr Clegg and chief whip Alistair Carmichael, the party whip was withdrawn until 13 September.
This means he has been expelled from the parliamentary party, although the Commons will rise later on Thursday for the MPs' summer break, which ends on 2 September.
In a letter to Mr Ward, Mr Carmichael wrote that he had felt "immense disappointment" at the latest comments.
He said: "We were in unanimous agreement that questioning the continued existence of the state of Israel fails the test of language that is 'proportionate and precise'.
"We want to be clear with you that in this process we are not concerned about your views and opinions on the policies of present or previous  Israeli governments, nor  the situation in the Israeli-occupied territories, nor the strength of feeling with which your views are held.
"As we have sought to impress upon you repeatedly, we are having to decide on whether language you chose to use in January and February, and now this month, is language which brings the party into disrepute or harms the interests of the party."
Mr Carmichael continued: "It is also immensely frustrating for us to find ourselves constantly responding to questions about disproportionate and imprecise language from you.
"These interventions cause considerable offence rather than addressing questions of political substance about the plight of the Palestinian people and the right of Israel's citizens to live a life free of violence."
But, questioned about his tweet at the weekend, Mr Ward said: "I will not apologise for describing Israel as an 'apartheid state'. I don't know how you can describe it as anything else.
"I am genuinely quite shocked at the reaction to the kind of thing many people say."
Mr Ward initially defended the comments he made in January, saying the party's response - reprimanding him - had been "regrettable", but later apologised for the "unintended offence" which his words had caused.
He also insisted that neither he nor his comments had been anti-Semitic.
Mr Ward, who visited the West Bank in December last year, denied in March that he had been ordered by the party leadership to attend "language classes".
Following the withdrawal of the whip, Jonathan Arkush, vice-president of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, said: "We note that the Liberal Democrats have at last taken some action to address the completely inappropriate and offensive comments that he has made.
"However, suspension of the whip for just two months when Parliament is not sitting is too little, too late. It is a token and frankly an empty gesture."
Karen Pollock, chief executive of the Holocaust Educational Trust, said: "David Ward has never fully apologised for his comments, which deliberately abused the memory of the Holocaust and caused deep pain and offence.
"It is about time the whip was withdrawn,                                                                                but the timing allows Mr Ward to repeat his unacceptable views when Parliament returns in the autumn."


A man has been arrested on suspicion of murder after a fatal stabbing in Manchester.

A 58-year-old man was found injured at a house in Jameson Close in the Cheetham Hill area at about 13:25 GMT on Sunday.
He was treated by paramedics for stab wounds but died shortly afterwards.
A 20-year-old man is being held in custody for questioning. Police are appealing for anyone with information to contact them.


Hull City strikers Abel Hernandez and Will Keane will be "out for some time" after picking up injuries in the Tigers' 2-1 victory over Southampton.

The duo were forced off inside the first 25 minutes at the KCOM Stadium on Sunday and manager Mike Phelan said "the signs aren't very good".
Keane limped off with a knee injury while Hernandez has a groin problem - both will be assessed on Monday.
"Keane is the worst of the two, it's a case of wait and see," said Phelan.
"They are crazy injuries. There is no reason why, it's just the wrong place at the wrong time."
The injuries took some of the shine off Hull's first Premier League win since 20 August, a result that also spared them the ignominy of losing seven straight league games for the first time in 36 years.
Second-half goals from Robert Snodgrass and Michael Dawson cancelled out Charlie Austin's early penalty for Southampton as Hull signed off before the international break with three much-needed points.
"There's a bit of everything - relief and happiness and concern at the injuries," added Phelan.
"It's a time to enjoy the moment over the next few days and we will kick on again next Monday when everyone comes back."
Media playback is not supported on this device
Hull began the season with just 13 fit senior squad members, but the return to fitness of several players allied to six new signings late in the transfer window eased their plight.
However, they recently lost Andrew Robertson to a calf injury while fellow full-back Moses Odubajo has suffered a setback in his recovery from a knee injury and will miss a further six months.
With goalkeeper Allan McGregor and defender Alex Bruce still recovering from long-term injuries, the loss of Keane and last season's top scorer Hernandez leaves Hull with just 18 fit recognised senior players - three of those goalkeepers.


Mayo aim to end a 65-year search for the All-Ireland Football title when they face holders and favourites Dublin in Sunday's decider at Croke Park.

The Connacht county have been beaten in eight All-Ireland finals since 1989.
Mayo lost finals against Donegal and Dublin in 2012 and 2013 and the current squad blew a great chance to beat the Dubs in last year's semi-final replay.
In that game, Mayo led by four with 15 minutes left only to be sunk by three late Dublin goals.
After that latest heartbreaking defeat, a players' putsch led to the departure of manager Pat Holmes and his backroom team and Stephen Rochford was then installed as boss.
A surprise defeat by Galway in the Connacht semi-finals put Rochford's reign under severe pressure but helped by former Armagh star Tony McEntee, the new manager successfully navigated Mayo through the back door to another final appearance.
Mayo have been unconvincing for much of the summer with their surprise 0-13 to 0-12 quarter-final win over Tyrone by far their most impressive performance.
A couple of weeks later, the men from the west were lacklustre for much of their semi-final against surprise packets Tipperary before eventually earning a 2-13 to 0-14 win.
Within a week, the Dubs were producing a stunning comeback to beat Kerry 0-22 to 2-14 in an epic semi-final.
On the basis of those two semi-finals and indeed of the respective form of both sides this year, there can only be one winner this weekend.
Yet there is that lingering suspicion that Mayo may be capable of ending the curse which has saw them failing to win the Sam Maguire Cup since their 1951 triumph over Meath.
For Mayo to win, Lee Keegan is probably going to have to play the game of his life during his expected dual with Dublin attacker Diarmuid Connolly, who is probably the best player in the current game.
Granted, Dublin are by no means a one-man attack with Bernard Brogan, Kevin McManamon and Paul Mannion among other potential match winners and Dean Rock's free-taking also almost guarantee to punishing Mayo defensive fouling.
Brogan had a poor game by his standards in the semi-final so could be ready to fire again on Sunday.
Mayo's 2-12 to 1-14 final by the Dubs in the 2013 decider summed up their frailties over the past decade as wrong options and missed chances saw Jim Gavin's side edge victory despite looking nervous themselves for much of the contest.
Given the scars in the squad, Sunday's occasion is surely a mental battle as much as anything else for the Mayo players.
While Dublin are capable of blitzing any team, Mayo travel to the game knowing that they are capable of competing with the Dubs, even though they have failed to beat them in several tight championship contests in recent years.
In terms of the team news, Rochford has made one change from the Tipperary game with Tom Parsons replacing Barry Moran at midfield in a side which has nine survivors from the 2013 final.
Jim Gavin has yet to name his side with wing-back James McCarthy understood to be a fitness doubt.
TEAM
Mayo: D Clarke; B Harrison, D Vaughan, K Higgins; L Keegan, C Boyle, P Durcan; S O'Shea, T Parsons; K McLoughlin, A O'Shea, D O'Connor; J Doherty, A Moran, C O'Connor.
Dublin: tba


European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker has announced plans that he says will offer a "swift, determined and comprehensive" response to Europe's migrant crisis.

Under the proposals, 120,000 additional asylum seekers will be distributed among EU nations, with binding quotas.
It comes after a surge of thousands of mainly Syrian migrants pushed north through Europe in recent days.
Mr Juncker told the European Parliament it was "not a time to take fright".
Germany, the main destination for many migrants, supports quotas, but some EU countries oppose a compulsory system.
Mr Juncker's plans were set out in a "state of the union" annual address in which he outlined the priorities of the European Commission.
He opened his speech by admitting the European Union was "not in a good situation. There is a lack of Europe in this union, and a lack of union in this union".
He said tackling the crisis was "a matter of humanity and human dignity. It is true that Europe cannot house all the misery in the world. But we have to put it into perspective.
"This still represents just 0.11% of the EU population. In Lebanon refugees represent 25% of the population."
The mass migration has seen those seeking an end to persecution, conflict and hardship travel from Turkey across the sea to Greece, through Macedonia and Serbia, and then to Hungary from where they aim to reach Austria, Germany and Sweden.
On Wednesday, Denmark suspended all rail links with Germany and shut a section of motorway after migrants crossed the border and began walking north, apparently trying to reach Sweden.
In southern Hungary, migrants on the border with Serbia broke through police lines at the Roszke camp, forcing the closure of the M5 highway.
Among Mr Juncker's proposals:
"It's 160,000 refugees in total that Europeans have to take into their arms and I really hope that this time everyone will be on board - no rhetoric, action is what is needed," he told MEPs.
The new plans would relocate 60% of those now in Italy, Greece and Hungary to Germany, France and Spain.
The numbers allocated to each country would depend on GDP, population, unemployment rate and asylum applications already processed.
Countries refusing to take in migrants could face financial penalties.
14 Sept: Special meeting of EU interior ministers on refugee crisis, with Juncker proposals on agenda
15-16 Oct: EU leaders' summit, with refugee crisis high on agenda. European Parliament then to decide on any new asylum measures with EU governments
Early 2016: EU proposals for better management of legal migration to EU due
What next for Germany's asylum seekers?
Peston: Why Germany needs migrants more than UK
What can the EU do to solve the crisis?
Nine key moments in crisis
The other exodus to Germany - people from the Balkans
Migrant crisis in pictures
Are you affected by the crisis?
Spain on Wednesday said it would accept a quota of almost 15,000 extra migrants migrants set by EU.
However Mr Juncker's proposals was criticised by both the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
Czech Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka said compulsory quotas were "not a good solution", while his Slovak counterpart called them "irrational".
Poland and Romania have also opposed the idea, although Poland has agreed to take in more migrants.
France welcomed the first of 1,000 migrants it has pledged to take from Germany, having committed to receive 24,000 migrants over two years.
In a separate development Australia has announced plans to take in 12,000 Syrian refugees.
Germany has welcomed Syrian migrants, waiving EU rules and saying it expects to deal with 800,000 asylum seekers this year alone - though not all will qualify as refugees and some will be sent back.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Wednesday that Germany needed to learn from its mistakes in labelling incomers in the post-war period as "Gastarbeiter" or "guest workers" - with the implication that they were not permanent residents.
Many of the refugees it expects in future "will become new citizens of our country", she said.
A note on terminology: The BBC uses the term migrant to refer to all people on the move who have yet to complete the legal process of claiming asylum. This group includes people fleeing war-torn countries such as Syria, who are likely to be granted refugee status, as well as people who are seeking jobs and better lives, who governments are likely to rule are economic migrants.


One in three new build properties outside London were bought through a flagship scheme for first-time buyers, but just one in 10 in the capital, analysis by BBC News shows.

The Help to Buy Equity Loan was introduced to boost the housing market.
A property expert said the scheme has had "little success" in London, where in some cases, loans of up to £190,000 have been taken up.
The government said it has helped buy more than 100,000 homes across England.
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Use our search to find out how the scheme has fared in your local authority
BBC England's data unit analysed official figures from the Department for Communities and Local Government.  It found:
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How the taxpayer is helping people buy their homes
£4.6 billion
worth of equity loans
100,284
loans taken
£17.7bn total value of properties sold
£46,301 average equity loan
£229,608 average purchase price
81% were first time buyers
Just 10 equity loans had been taken in the London borough of Hammersmith and Fulham by October 2016 since their introduction in 2013, receiving £1.9m between them, or an average of £190,000 each.
Six of Hammersmith's 10 buyers were helped between June and September 2016 alone, suggesting the rise in the upper limit made a difference.
In Kensington and Chelsea, the most expensive place to buy a home, the only two loans taken were worth a combined £360,000.
The highest number of loans taken per head of population was in Bedford, where the 1,268 loans was equivalent to two in every 100 households.
Between them, the loans came to £62.9 million, or £49,416.68 each.
The average loan for England, including London was £46,301.03.
The rate of take-up has been significantly less in London compared with the rest of England.
Property agent and housing market commentator Henry Pryor warned there could be a "severe hangover" once the subsidies of Help to Buy are removed.
He said: "The (HTB) initiatives have been more helpful away from the South East, where prices are lower. Clearly, there is less practical opportunity in London which is one reason why the numbers here are so small. Even the capital's own version (with a higher upper loan limit of 40%) has had little success.
He said the schemes had "clearly helped politically and practically" but added: "The question is whether the government can wean lenders and developers off the financial drug that it has become addicted to.
"Watching commercial businesses [house builders and developers] get fat on taxpayer subsidies is not something that can or perhaps should last for ever.
"At some stage, we will need to 'remove the punchbowl' and when that happens, the hangover may be severe."
Roger Harding, Shelter's director of communications, policy and campaigns, said: "While a Help To Buy equity loan might help some first-time buyers on to the ladder, in the short-term there is a risk it will push up house prices making it even tougher for others to buy a home in the future.
"If the government really wants to tackle our housing shortage, its best bet is to start with building homes that are genuinely affordable for people on low to average incomes to buy and rent long-term."
House builders say the equity loan scheme has helped first-time buyers who would not otherwise have been able to afford a home.
Gavin Stewart, sales director at Barratt London, said it had proved an "effective way for many Londoners to get on the property ladder".
Luke Smith and Barbara Antkowiak, who bought a Barratt London property in Hendon with a Help to Buy loan, say it means they spend less than they would on rent.
Mr Smith said: "We're hoping that by the time we come to pay it off the house will have gained enough in equity."
A DCLG spokeswoman said: "Help to Buy: Equity Loan has helped more than 100,000 households get on the housing ladder since it was launched in 2013.
"It is one of a number of housing schemes provided by the government, so people have a choice of what is right for them."
There was little evidence the scheme was increasing house prices, she added.
The department said London Help to Buy was "performing strongly" and has seen take up in the capital double since its launch in February 2016.


Grace, 16, has been bullied for the past nine years, has moved schools twice, struggled with suicidal thoughts and taken medication for anxiety and depression.

At one point, she says, "there was no-one to turn to in the school and I felt so low I didn't want to go on".
According to research for BBC School Report, half of teenagers with mental wellbeing issues try to cope alone.
And a third said they were not confident enough to speak to a teacher.
At her lowest point, Grace made a "suicide video", which she posted on YouTube.
"I'd get beaten up every week," she says.
"Teachers wouldn't do anything. I even heard the teachers talking about me behind my back."
According to her mother, Sarah, Grace got some help through external music therapy and counselling but little support directly from her first two schools.
Support is better at her third school, where she helps as an anti-bullying ambassador.
She is also a member of the National Anti-Bullying Youthboard.
ComRes researchers questioned a representative sample of more than 1,000 UK-based 11- to 16-year-olds for BBC School Report:
They said the most important thing schools could do to support pupils' mental wellbeing was to provide someone trustworthy to talk to confidentially, but:
Separate research on just over 700 teachers found:
In January, Prime Minister Theresa May announced plans to transform attitudes to mental health, with a focus on children and young people.
The plans include better links between schools and NHS specialist staff and mental health first aid training for every secondary school.
Reacting to the School Report research, Edward Timpson, Minister for Vulnerable Children and Families, said the government would "transform mental health services in schools" and was commissioning research to help schools identify which approaches worked best.
"Growing up in today's world can be a challenge for children and young people, so it's vital that they get the help and support they need," said Mr Timpson.
Last year, research for the children's commissioner for England suggested more than a quarter of children referred for mental health support received no treatment.
And on Thursday, commissioner Anne Longfield said the School Report study highlighted "many desperately sad stories" of children with serious conditions being denied support.
She called for urgent action from schools, the NHS and government.
The Family Links and Nurturing Schools Network said schools needed better staff training and enough resources to support and improve pupils' emotional and mental health.
"We must go further to invest in preventative approaches in schools and at home," said the network's chief executive, Nick Haisman-Smith.


A dilapidated Grade-II listed theatre, which has stood empty for over 20 years, is to be sold at auction.

Burnley Empire Theatre defaulted to the care of the Duchy of Lancaster as an "owner of last resort" after the ownership could not be established.
Last used as a bingo hall in 1995, the Cow Lane venue was recently named the fifth most at risk theatre in the UK.
Campaigners who want to restore the building to its former glory said the decision was a blow to their plans.
Sophie Gibson from the Burnley Empire Theatre Trust (BETT), said: "This news came as something of a surprise and a disappointment.
"The viability study, which the council contributed to as well, is currently taking place and the results are due very shortly.
"If, as we hope, the verdict is a positive one we can then move on to stage two, the architectural planning phase for the project, when we also begin applying for funding.
"All of this could have been for nothing if it is auctioned off before we are able to get that far."
The Duchy of Lancaster, said it had been left with "no alternative" but to put it to bidders after offering it free of charge to both Burnley Council and the Theatre Trust - an offer that "remains open".
A spokesman added: "The Duchy remains hopeful that the building will remain in local ownership."
BETT said it could not yet afford the legal costs that would be incurred to take on the building.
The four-storey building, designed by  G. B. Rawcliffe, opened in 1894 as a music hall, before being converted to a cinema in 1938.
It is to be auctioned in Manchester on 16 October.


Libraries in Northamptonshire have been given a reprieve ahead of a cabinet meeting to look at ways the county council can save £69m in the next year.

Eight branches were due to close, but the Conservative-run council's cabinet said all will remain open while it carries out a review of the service.
Labour deputy leader Mark Bullock said he did not think the numbers add up.
"This is just a tactic. They are saying they will not close libraries but maybe some of them will not be open."
A final version of the proposed budget was published ahead of the cabinet meeting to finalise details that will go to the full Conservative controlled county council later this month.
Cuts include turning off street lights, ending lollipop patrols and social service budget reductions.
A Northamptonshire organisation which represents care homes said a proposal to cut funding for residential care was "unlawful".
Norarch said it would call for a judicial review if the authority goes ahead with the plans.
In 2008, councillors agreed on a four year plan to provide £1m a year to help pay for care home places but after paying only half of the money councillors now want to stop the rest.
Glenn Hurd, from Norarch, said the authority had a duty to carry out its agreement.
"The service has been under-funded for years and in law the council is obliged to provide proper budgets and we are considering challenging this."
The council also plans to axe bus subsidies but will set £1m aside for replacement transport schemes.
Advice services, which were due to lose £150,000, will receive £250,000 under the latest plans.
The council said it received a reduction in funding from the government and will need to make £137m in savings over the next four years.
Council leader Jim Harker said: "These final budget proposals are the culmination of weeks of consultation with residents and scrutiny committees.
"The comments we received about our library proposals demonstrated the strength of feeling people have about their local libraries.
"We have also heard people's feedback about our proposed saving for advice and information services and are therefore looking to invest in this area instead.
"Some difficult choices have still had to be made, and our final budget proposals balance the need to save money whilst also ensuring a council tax freeze."
Liberal democrat leader on the council Chris Stanbra said the cuts that worried him the most concerned social services.
The proposals will go to a full council meeting on 24 February.


At least 19 people have died in a fire that ripped through a hotel in Irbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan, officials say.

Provincial governor Nawzad Hadi said 14 were from the Philippines, three were Iraqis and one was a Palestinian. One victim has not yet been identified.
Dozens of other people were injured in the blaze, at the Capitol Hotel.
An electrical fault in the hotel was the suspected cause of the fire, Mr Hadi added.
A hotel spokesman confirmed to Kurdish broadcaster Rudaw TV that some of those killed were from the Philippines, but said the fire had started in a business next door.
Images posted on social media showed smoke pouring from windows on the top floor of the hotel.
The Kurdistan Region is an autonomous area in the north of Iraq. It has been at the forefront of the campaign against the Islamic State (IS) group, which controls parts of Iraq and neighbouring Syria.
The region experienced an oil-fuelled economic boom in 2003, attracting many foreign workers.


The Decision Review System (DRS) could be introduced in Twenty20 internationals under new proposals from the International Cricket Council.

Currently two unsuccessful reviews every 80 overs are allowed in Tests and one per innings in one-day games, but DRS did not previously feature in T20s.
The ICC proposed no loss of a review if a decision is "umpire's call" and the creation of a Test world championship.
If approved, the changes would begin on 1 October.
The ICC's 15-strong cricket committee, chaired by outgoing India coach Anil Kumble, includes a number of other leading ex-players including Andrew Strauss, director of England Cricket, Mahela Jayawardene and Rahul Dravid, plus Australia coach Darren Lehmann and director of England Women's Cricket Clare Connor.
They met in London this week and Kumble said: "We have had a wonderful couple of days discussing cricket issues and there are a number of highlights."
Find out how to get into cricket with our inclusive guide.
Should the ICC chief executives' committee approve the changes, the two new reviews after 80 overs ruling, which is currently employed in Test cricket, would be removed.
It also proposed to emulate the MCC's red card policy and give umpires the power to send players from the field in the most serious incidents of player misconduct.
All other offences would continue to be dealt with under the ICC Code of Conduct.
The committee also suggested introducing restrictions on bat dimensions - thickness of edges and depth of bat - plus a batsman will have made their ground "when a bat bounces after being grounded behind the crease by a running or diving batsman".


The EU's Sentinel-3a satellite has given a sneak peek at what will be one of its most fundamental products - a map of sea surface height anomalies.

Launched in February, the spacecraft carries an altimeter to sense the oceans' "hills" and "valleys".
It is basic information that is needed to track currents and eddies, inform ocean forecasts and track variability in climate-driven sea-level rise.
This first Sentinel-3a global map contains just one month's data.
The acquisition was made between 3 March and 2 April 2016.
Red shows (positive) areas where the sea surface is higher than the reference sea level, and blue (negative) areas reveal where it is lower.
Positive anomalies are normally associated with warmer waters and a deeper thermocline, with negative anomalies associated with cooler waters and a shallower thermocline.
The thermocline is the transition layer between warmer mixed water at the ocean's surface and cooler deep water below.
The "reference" against which Sentinel-3a is looking is the historical dataset gathered by satellite altimeters since the early 1990s.
Some of the big features immediately recognisable in the map are the Gulf Stream moving up the US East Coast and across the North Atlantic, the Brazil-Falklands Confluence Zone in the southeast Atlantic, the Benguela and Agulhas currents that hug the southern tip of Africa, and the Kuroshio current that sweeps east of Japan into the central Pacific.
Sentinel-3a joins five other space altimeters already in orbit that are contributing this kind of data. This number of instruments is unprecedented.
"The main reason you want so many space altimeters is to provide good sampling of mesoscale details," explained Dr Craig Donlon, the European Space Agency's (Esa) mission scientist on Sentinel-3a.
"Given the very narrow field of view which is at nadir (straight down), you only get to see a few km in width, depending on the sea state.
"With a series of altimeters flying in a constellation, you can improve the sampling of the global ocean. But you have to make sure that at least one of those altimeters is working as a reference. This one must be an accurate, well-monitored system, and a consistent system throughout the historical altimeter constellation as well.
"That's been the Topex/Jason series, soon to become Sentinel-6/Jason-CS in a few years' time. The reference altimeter orbit is a 66 degree (relative to the equator) orbit, that was chosen very deliberately because you minimise tidal aliasing, because as you can imagine, if you have tides in your signal it's very confusing."
But being in a 66-degree orbit means behaviour at the poles is lost. That is where S-3a comes in. It goes to much higher latitudes, enabling it for example to have a look at what is happening in the Arctic Ocean.
It is hard to overstate the importance of sea surface elevation to the study of the oceans. Just as surface air pressure reveals what the atmosphere is doing above, so ocean height will betray details about the behaviour of water down below.
The data gives clues to temperature and salinity, and when combined with gravity information, it is possible to gauge not just current direction but speed as well.
The oceans store vast amounts of heat from the Sun, and how they move that energy around the globe and interact with the atmosphere are what drive our weather and climate systems.
The sea surface anomalies map, processed by the French space Agency CNES, was released here in Prague at Esa's Living Planet Symposium - a conference dedicated to Earth observation.
Many of the talks are centred on data coming from the EU's new Sentinel satellites - the biggest EO project in the world.
Four spacecraft have now been launched, with many more to follow.
Esa's Earth observation director Prof Volker Liebig showed a recent image from the colour camera on Sentinel-2a. This featured a giant algal bloom off the coast of Chile.
The bloom was powered by the warm waters brought to the eastern Pacific last year by the El Nino phenomenon.
"Twenty-four million salmon in fish farms died as a consequence of this event," he said.
"The El Nino led to warm water there; normally it is cold water. The industry was unprepared. Eight-hundred-million US dollars have been lost.
"We hope governments and industry will become more aware of these (Sentinel satellite) tools and use them in the future to be better prepared."
A multitude of services based on Sentinel and other satellite data is already available under the EU's Copernicus programme.
The European-funded Sentinel series
What is the Copernicus programme?
Jonathan.Amos-INTERNET@bbc.co.uk and follow me on Twitter: @BBCAmos


England's era-defining 2005 Ashes triumph is littered with "I remember where I was" moments.

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For one unforgettable summer, the nation was captivated by every twist and turn of a sporting drama which jolted from one extreme to the other before delivering the climax that every English cricket fan had been craving for nearly two decades.
But how did England react when Glenn McGrath tripped on a ball? What made Steve Harmison decide to dust off his rarely seen slower ball? Where was England captain Michael Vaughan when Shane Warne dropped Kevin Pietersen - and quite possibly the Ashes?
To whet your appetite for Flintoff and Vaughan's 2005 Ashes Roadshow - as well as next month's first Test in Cardiff - here are the untold stories behind five key moments in the greatest Ashes contest of them all.
One essential step on the road to ending 18 years of Ashes hurt was taken more than a month before the first Test on a June afternoon in a one-day international in Bristol.
Pietersen had already shown his match-winning potential with three one-day centuries against South Africa, but it was his decimation of Australia's Ashes attack in a thrilling 50-over run chase that really forced the England Test selectors' hands.
Combining brutal power with what Wisden called "wristwork worthy of a squash player", Pietersen bludgeoned an unbeaten 91 off 65 balls to see England home with 15 balls to spare and all but secure his Ashes place at Graham Thorpe's expense.
"I was in the dressing room getting my pads off and the lad with blue hair - Kevin Pietersen - was smashing them to all parts," recalls Vaughan.
"Generally the players would never come up to the captain and mention selection at all, but on this occasion five of the players who were going to be a part of the Ashes said: 'You've got to pick him, you've got to get him in.'
"I remember then going to the coach and saying that we've got to find a way to pick him, we've got to get him into that middle order to take on McGrath and Warne."
Despite the positivity garnered from the drawn one-day series and the 100-run Twenty20 thrashing of Australia in Southampton, the first Test at Lord's followed an all-too-familiar plotline.
McGrath, so often England's nemesis, took nine wickets to inspire a 239-run Australia win.
And so, when McGrath suffered a freak injury treading on a stray cricket ball during a game of touch rugby just minutes before the start of the second Test at Edgbaston, England could barely contain their excitement.
"Any professional sportsman will say they don't want to see a fellow professional get injured. I'm sorry but we were doing back flips when that happened," recalls Harmison.
"After what he did to us at Lord's, I thought all he had to do was turn up on the teamsheet and our batsmen would be quivering."
"We didn't want him hospitalised but we didn't want it to be something trivial either," jokes Flintoff. "Personally it gave me a massive lift to think I'm not going to have to bat against him."
Galvanised by their good fortune, and Australia captain Ricky Ponting's bizarre decision to bowl first even in the absence of McGrath, England cracked 407 runs in a day to lay the platform for a healthy first-innings lead in the second Test.
But when Warne struck back with six wickets in England's second innings, Australia were left with a highly plausible 282 to win.
Flintoff ripped through their top order with a brilliant spell of 90mph fast bowling. But it was a delivery at about half that speed that provided one of the most memorable moments of the series.
In the final act of a riveting third day, Harmison bowled Michael Clarke with a looping slower ball to put England within sight of the winning post.
"Because I stand at slip and I watch Harmy all the time, I know which ball he's going to bowl," says Flintoff. "When I saw he was going to bowl that slower ball I thought 'Harmy, what are you doing?'
Harmison picks up: "There was desperation in that last over to get him out because we knew if Michael Clarke was there the next day, we were behind.
"I had tried everything to get him out and he'd been hit in the shoulder and hit in the ribs. The slower ball was just a gut instinct."
Harmison only took two wickets in the Edgbaston Test, but the second carried even greater significance as Michael Kasprowicz famously gloved behind to give England an incredible two-run victory.
The hosts maintained their ascendancy throughout another thrilling match at Old Trafford only for a final-day century by Ponting to help keep the series level.
In the fourth Test at Trent Bridge, a dominant England enforced the follow-on, but with Ponting once again looking impenetrable at the crease, they were in need of inspiration.
Step forward Gary Pratt, a substitute fielder whose pick-up and throw from cover to run out Ponting made him the most unlikely of Ashes heroes.
Vaughan says England got "a bit superstitious" over their choice of 12th man.
He says: "That was the only science of the summer. We always wanted Gary out there. Obviously he was a good fielder, but he'd been around the group and travelled with us, so we all just felt as one."
As he left the field, an irate Ponting fired an angry tirade at England coach Duncan Fletcher on the team balcony.
"All the way through the series there was this issue of what the England bowlers were doing when they kept walking off and it was clearly really infuriating Ricky Ponting," says BBC cricket correspondent Jonathan Agnew.
"When he unleashed that volley at Duncan Fletcher sitting smugly on the balcony, you just knew he had gone."
England survived a nail-shredding finish to secure the win at Trent Bridge that left them needing just a draw at The Oval to capture the urn.
That scenario appeared a distant dream, however, when on the final morning of the match Australia tore through England's top order.
Once again, England needed a saviour, and this time it was Pietersen who delivered, albeit thanks to a huge stroke of luck.
Having batted frenetically to reach 15, Pietersen edged to first slip, where his then Hampshire team-mate Warne inexplicably put down the chance.
"There was a lovely irony to Warne's drop," says Agnew. "We had heard so much about their friendship so for him to drop the catch was delicious."
As for England's captain, he wasn't even watching.
"I was out the back with the lady who does all the travel for the winter," he recalls. "She was asking me about hotels and whether I was happy. I was like 'whatever' and then another wicket would fall and I just couldn't watch.
"At lunch, Kevin had been dropped and hit on the shoulder. He had a bit of a flap on. I remember him asking me - 'what do you reckon?' and I thought, 'well I'm not too sure what to say here.' After a minute or two, I said: 'Do you know what? Just smash it. If you bat for an hour and a half I reckon we'll be all right.'"
Pietersen took Vaughan's instructions to the letter in a swashbuckling innings of 158 that has gone down in cricketing folklore.
By the time he was out, deep into the evening session, one of English cricket's greatest parties was already in full swing.


Stuart Carrington said joining an elite group to score three consecutive centuries at the World Championship was one of many positives from his first-round defeat against Liang Wenbo.

He followed John Higgins, Mark Selby, Ronnie O'Sullivan and Neil Robertson into the triple-ton record books with breaks of 124, 101 and 107.
"To be in that bracket is amazing," the 26-year-old Grimsby potter said.
But the world number 48 described the 10-7 loss as a missed opportunity.
Carrington trailed 2-0 before a magnificent response on his second appearance at snooker's showpiece event saw him score two 50s and three centuries to take control at 5-2.
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China's Liang hit back to go in 5-4 down at the end of the first session and his matchplay began to grind down his less experienced opponent in an increasingly scratchy second session.
"It was pretty good up until the last few frames, when I went so flat," Carrington added."I wasn't nervous but I played so many careless shots.
"He didn't play exceptional to win it. At the end I sort of gifted it to him and I don't know why.
"I came into tonight full of confidence from the first session, but the match didn't really flow; we both missed a few and ran out of position. I hit so many safety shots all wrong and I was just leaving him free shots.
"But it's all good experience. There are a lot of positives.
"Overall, it's been a great season."
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An Amsterdam court has ruled that ancient treasures on loan to a Dutch museum should be handed to Ukraine and not the Crimea museums they came from.

Russia annexed Crimea in March 2014, while the collection was on display at the Allard Pierson museum in Amsterdam.
Four museums in Crimea asked for the collection to be returned, but Ukraine argued that it was state property.
The court decided that under Unesco rules the treasures should be handed back to the sovereign state.
As Crimea was not a sovereign state, the court ruled that it was for Ukraine to decide where the collection should go.
The judges said it would be up to the courts in Ukraine to decide who was the rightful owner of the collection. They ordered the government in Kiev to pay the museum â‚¬110,000 (Â£93,000) for looking after the treasures over the past two years.
The Dutch exhibition "Crimea - Gold and secrets of the Black Sea" ran from February to May 2014, and featured gold pieces dating back to when the ancient Greeks colonised the peninsula. While four of the Ukrainian museums that loaned items to Amsterdam were in Crimea, a fifth was in Kiev.
Part of the collection was a Scythian ceremonial helmet from the 4th Century BC.
Ukrainians were jubilant at the court's decision. "Ukraine has won on every count," said vice culture minister Svitlana Fomenko. President Petro Poroshenko said the court's decision meant not merely that "the Scythian gold belongs to Ukraine, but Crimea too".
However, Crimea archaeologist Valentina Mordvintseva, who was involved in the exhibition itself, had earlier appealed for the case to be above politics. "It's like tearing a page out of a special book. These artefacts come from our soil, so they must go back to Crimea," she told Dutch media.
Russia's culture ministry denounced the Dutch ruling, complaining it "grossly violates the principles of international exchanges between museums and the right of the people of Crimea to have access to their own cultural heritage".
The collection will not be sent back to Kiev immediately. The Crimean museums have three months to appeal against the decision.


A museum in Hong Kong dedicated to the Tiananmen Square protests will close by September because of a legal dispute.

The other tenants of the building it occupies have long wanted it shut down because of safety concerns.
The chairman of the group behind the museum, Albert Ho, told the BBC that protracted litigation was proving too expensive
China bans all reference to the military crackdown on pro-democracy protesters on 4 June, 1989.
It comes as there is growing concern among some in Hong Kong that the freedoms given to the territory when it was handed back to China in 1997 by the British are being eroded.
The museum, which opened in 2014, is run by the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements in China, which also organises the Tiananmen anniversary vigil every year.
It features a statue of the Goddess of Democracy, similar to the one on display at Tiananmen Square during the protest, as well as photos and video clips from the time.
Tenants in the commercial building say the museum violates a regulation that the premise should only be used for offices, in legal documents seen by AFP news agency.
Mr Ho alleges that the complaints are politically motivated. He said the building management records the identities of all visitors which has made some from the mainland reluctant to come.
About half of its 20,000 visitors since it opened have come from mainland China.
"The decision has been made to look for a new location," Mr Ho said. "The other side is very well funded."


A childbirth charity has apologised to 15,000 new and expectant parents after their registration details were accessed in a "data breach".

The National Childbirth Trust (NCT) sent a message saying their email addresses, usernames and passwords had been "compromised".
The incident has been reported to police and the UK's data watchdog.
The NCT stressed no other information had been accessed.
A spokesman confirmed 15,085 users were affected and said: "NCT has suffered a data breach which, regrettably, has caused some users of our website to have their registration details compromised.
'Change passwords'
"These details are limited to their email address, username and an encrypted version of the password that they created to register on the site.
"We stress that no financial or personal details are held as part of this data so no financial or personal details have been accessed.
"We discovered the breach (on Wednesday), upon which we contacted everyone affected advising them of the breach and suggesting that they change their username and passwords."
The charity, based in London's Euston Square, supports hundreds of thousands of new and expectant parents.
In the email to parents chief executive Nick Wilkie  said: "While your password is encrypted, as a precaution, I would advise you to change any password as soon as possible for other accounts or registrations that use these details.
"We discovered the breach today, are reporting the matter to the police and Information Commissioner and contacting all who are affected immediately."


Two Pembrokeshire beauty spots have been named among the 10 best places to go in Europe for a family holiday.

Skomer Island and Marloes Sands are included in travel guide Lonely Planet's Best in Europe 2015 list.
Kent was ranked top, followed by County Kerry in Ireland, with destinations in Germany and Hungary also making the top five.
The guide said Skomer's marine nature reserve and 500,000-strong bird population were among its draws.
It also recommended visiting Marloes Sands - "a mile-long sweep of beach that does a vanishing act at high tide".
Europe's 10 Best Places for Family Holidays, by Lonely Planet


Jeremy Corbyn says he is convinced his party can climb an "electoral mountain" to general election success.

Closing his party's conference in Liverpool, the Labour leader said it could build support by focusing on the "needs and aspirations of middle and lower income voters".
He also promised no "false promises" on immigration numbers, focusing instead on a new fund for high-migration areas.
And he urged colleagues to "end the trench warfare" and take on the Tories.
In his second conference speech as party leader, Mr Corbyn - who was re-elected on Saturday by an increased margin - urged supporters to prepare for an early general election.
"Let's do it, and be ready for the challenge whenever it comes," he said.
Recent months had been a "testing time" for his party, including the death of Jo Cox, the European referendum and divisions over the leadership contest "spilling over", he said.
Mr Corbyn ended his hour-long speech by promising to "build a fairer Britain in a peaceful world".
He also:
Supporters chanted "Jez we can" as the leader took to the stage with a joke about his recent trouble finding a seat on board a Virgin train.
To cheers from the conference floor, Mr Corbyn paid tribute to MPs who he promoted to the shadow cabinet after mass front-bench resignations in the aftermath of the EU referendum.
"They stepped up when their party and in fact their country needed them to serve," he said.
He said his party had a responsibility to act like a government-in-waiting, especially given what he said was the growing prospect of Prime Minister Theresa May calling a snap election next year.
"It's true there's an electoral mountain to climb," he said.
"But if we focus everything on the needs and aspirations of middle and lower income voters, of ordinary families, if we demonstrate we've got a viable alternative to the government's failed economic policies, I'm convinced we can build the electoral support that can beat the Tories."
Some Labour MPs have called for the party to back reforms to curb immigration, following the vote to leave the European Union.
And earlier on Wednesday, shadow home secretary Andy Burnham criticised an "out of touch elite" for not listening to voters' concerns about "unlimited, unfunded, unskilled migration".
But Mr Corbyn said Labour would not "sow division" with "false promises" in relation to Brexit, but "instead tackle the real issues of immigration and make the real changes that are needed".
He said he was committed, if he becomes prime minister, to measures to help relieve some of the pressures on "hard-pressed public services" such as health, housing and education exacerbated by migrant inflows.
After five days of talking to delegates in Liverpool, it is astonishing how different their impressions of their leader are.
Backers of Jeremy Corbyn look at his huge success with the party membership, and see his second victory as another major step towards building a movement that can get to Number 10 - a win that allows him a chance to reassert his authority over Labour and for supporters to be given more power.
This afternoon, they looked at him on the platform as a leader who has changed the Labour Party, and now is on his way to changing the country.
But his critics - still the majority of MPs and also many long-standing members of the party - look at Mr Corbyn, some in anger, some in sorrow. They see a man on the platform whose long standing principles are alien to most voters in the middle, where elections have been traditionally won.
Read more from Laura
In 2010, the coalition government scrapped the Migrant Impact Fund set up a year earlier by its Labour predecessor.
Mr Corbyn said Labour would reinstate the fund, with levels of funding to be linked to local authorities' needs, to be paid for in part from money raised from visa applications to enter the UK and a new levy on citizenship application fees.
"We will act to end the exploitation of migrant labour to undercut workers pay and conditions," he added.
"And we will ease the pressure on hard-pressed public services - services that are struggling to absorb Tory austerity cuts, in communities absorbing new populations."
In a message to businesses, Mr Corbyn promised to "rebuild Britain's infrastructure".
"But investment in capital must include investment in human capital, the skilled workers needed to make our economy a success," he said.
"So this is the deal Labour will offer to business.
"To help pay for a National Education Service, we will ask you pay a little more in tax."
He also promised "good businesses" Labour would clamp down on those that "dodge their taxes".
The British Chambers of Commerce said many companies would be concerned the Labour leader was "reaching for the tax lever by asking businesses to pay for his education plans".
Mr Corbyn's plea for unity in the Labour Party was echoed earlier by Mr Burnham, who also confirmed he was leaving the shadow cabinet in order to contest the Greater Manchester mayoral election.
A Labour government of any kind, he said, is "a million time times better" for his constituency than the Conservatives - "and that is more likely to happen if Labour is united".
"So let us unite - let's have an end to divisive talk about deselections but, in return, let's have more respect for the democratic will of you, our members," he said.
Responding to Mr Corbyn's comments on immigration, Home Secretary Amber Rudd said: "All this shows is that Jeremy Corbyn wants unlimited immigration - and presides over a Labour Party that is too divided, incompetent and distracted to lead our country."
UKIP said Labour offered nothing for "millions of decent patriotic Labour supporters who voted Leave and want to see levels of migration brought down", while Lib Dem leader Tim Farron said Mr Corbyn had "barely mentioned Brexit".


Every other day, a woman dies in Brazil after having a clandestine abortion.

Two tragic cases in Rio have shed light on a dark reality most Brazilians would prefer to ignore - and which has largely stayed off the agenda in the current presidential campaign.
One of them is that of Jandira dos Santos Cruz, a 27-year-old divorced mother of two.
She disappeared after her ex-husband had dropped her off at a bus station in the west of Rio de Janeiro.
Her ex-husband said a woman in a white car had taken Jandira and two other women to a clinic at an undisclosed location. He waited for her, but she never came back.
She had paid $2,000 (Â£1,250) for a clandestine abortion.
Her last text message to him read: "They told me to hang up my phone. I am in a panic!"
Last week, DNA tests revealed that a charred body found in the boot of a car, its limbs and dental arch removed, was that of Ms Cruz.
Police believe she died while having the abortion and her body was mutilated to avoid identification.
Five suspects have been arrested.
Elizangela Barbosa, 32, also died after a botched abortion, her womb and intestine punctured.
She, too, had sought help at an illegal abortion clinic.
When it went wrong, unidentified persons dragged her out into the street, forced a car to stop and ordered its driver to take Ms Barbosa to hospital, but she was dead on arrival.
The shocking deaths have drawn attention to the huge risks hundreds of thousands of Brazilian women take in order to get an abortion.
Abortion can only be legally performed in Brazil if the pregnancy puts the life of the woman in danger, if the pregnancy is the result of a rape or when the foetus's brain cannot develop.
But according to Jefferson Drezett, director of the Legal Abortion Centre at Sao Paulo's Perola Byington State Hospital, the law has not deterred between 800,000 and 1.2 million women every year from seeking clandestine abortions.
"The law does not prevent abortion, it does not protect the foetus - its only result is making abortions unsafe," he says.
"It's an effective way of killing women."
A 2010 nationwide survey suggests as many as one in five women has had an abortion before the age of 40.
Human rights groups and medical associations have called for abortions to be legalised in more cases than the ones the law currently allows.
They argue it is a matter of public health and warn that the current rules pose a risk to women determined to get an abortion.
They point out that botched abortions are the fifth most common cause of death among mothers in Brazil.
And yet a recent poll suggests 79% of Brazilians do not want to see the country's abortion laws change.
Analysts say many Brazilians espouse, at least publically, traditional Catholic values.
And the country boasts a growing evangelical movement, also opposed to a change in the abortion laws.
The death of Jandira dos Santos Cruz reflects the divided views on the topic.
Activists demanding the decriminalisation of abortion last week carried banners through downtown Rio reading "We are all Jandira".
Yet at her funeral, an evangelical pastor assured her family, also evangelical, that she would be forgiven for the "sin" she had committed.
Her sister Joyce demanded that those responsible for her death be brought to justice, but insisted Jandira's case should not be used to push for the decriminalisation of abortion.
"Many people have been criticising her and saying she deserved to die," she told the BBC.
"I'm against abortion too, but she paid the price. Now those who did this to her have to pay too."
The recent public debate about Brazil's abortion laws has not been reflected in the campaign for the presidential election on 5 October.
All three main presidential candidates have avoided the subject.
When questioned, they all said they opposed a change in the law.
Political scientist Ricardo Ismael argues that the topic is too sensitive and candidates steer clear of it in order to avoid alienating religious groups.
"It's taboo for the Catholic Church, it's taboo for the evangelical churches. So candidates don't dare face the issue," the professor at Rio's Pontifical Catholic University explains.
"The standard response is to keep the law as it is."
Women's rights activists are dismayed by the lack of political debate.
Sonia Correa, co-chair of the global forum Sexuality Policy Watch, says politicians who give in to pressure from religious groups are doing a disservice to Brazil.
"Secular state actors shouldn't be allowing religion to influence policy decisions," she argues.
"They are held hostage by religious values, now that evangelical leaders can mobilise so many voters."
Advocates of the decriminalisation of abortion say the gruesome fate of Ms Cruz and Ms Barbosa makes it impossible to ignore the issue.
Their tragic stories may serve to open a national debate on abortion but for now, the country's top politicians seem in no hurry to be the ones to kickstart that discussion.


Raith Rovers' Ray McKinnon has been named Scottish Championship manager of the month for March.

McKinnon, 45, led the Kirkcaldy club to five victories last month, including notable wins over promotion rivals Hibernian and Greenock Morton.
Rovers, who drew 3-3 with league leaders Rangers on Saturday, are fourth in the Championship and have all but secured a place in the play-offs.
Ex-Brechin City manager McKinnon took charge at Stark's Park last year.


Defeating smallpox has been labelled as one of science's greatest success stories.

The disease once killed 30% of those infected, but after a global vaccination campaign it was declared eradicated in 1980.
However the variola virus, which causes the infection, is not gone. It exists in two laboratories, one in the US and the other in Russia. The question is about to be asked, once again: should they kill their stocks?
The World Health Organization (WHO) will come to a decision at the 64th World Health Assembly this week.
It is not the first time the issue has arisen, it was first discussed at the Assembly in 1986 and has been the source of debate ever since.
Destroying the remaining stocks is seen in parts as the final chapter in eradicating the disease, otherwise there is always the risk of accidental release.
Others including the US and Russia argue for more research in case smallpox returns, possibly as a biological weapon.
They fear vials of the virus could exist outside of their labs. The genomes of around 50 strains of the variola virus have also been fully sequenced, and research has already shown that a virus can be built from scratch with such a blueprint.
Professor Geoffrey Smith, from Imperial College London, has been following the latest research on smallpox. He says studies have been focused on three areas - tests to diagnose the infection quickly and accurately, antiviral drugs to treat it and safer vaccines to prevent it.
He led a review of the state of scientific research on behalf of the WHO, which was published at the end of 2010, and concluded there had been "remarkable advances" in tests for smallpox.
But the same could not be said with certainty for smallpox drugs and vaccines. While new candidates have been developed, they cannot be clinically proven as there are no human smallpox patients to test them on. Without trials to prove a medicine works, the endpoint for research becomes harder to define.
Professor Smith said: "It is fair to say the committee had mixed views on whether the research was there or nearly there but not quite."
The US secretary of health Kathleen Sebelius says it would be premature to destroy remaining stores of the virus now.
She restated in a column for the New York Times her country's commitment to eventually destroy stocks, but not yet.
She wrote: "We have more work to do before these safe and highly effective vaccines and antiviral treatments are fully developed and approved for use.
"Destroying the virus now is merely a symbolic act that would slow our progress and could even stop it completely, leaving the world vulnerable."
But the man who led the WHO's smallpox eradication programme from 1966 until the last case in 1977 disagrees.
Dr DA Henderson told the BBC: "I think it's a very good idea to destroy. At this point the reasons for keeping it are very obscure. Group after group has looked at this and basically said there is no need to retain it.
In 1796, Edward Jenner extracted pus from a cowpox pustule on a milkmaiden and inserted it into a cut in the arm of an eight-year-old boy, James Phipps.
He was working from rural folklore which said milkmaids who suffered cowpox never went onto develop smallpox.
Jenner then proved that having been inoculated with cowpox Phipps was immune to smallpox.
In 1959 the World Health Assembly passed a resolution to eradicate smallpox.
The last natural case of smallpox was in Somalia in October 1977.
In September 1978 Janet Parker, a medical photographer at the University of Birmingham died after being accidentally infected with smallpox.
BBC History: Smallpox, Eradicating the Scourge
"We have done all of the productive research that we can do. It has been discussed fully and thoroughly by people around the world. Now is the time to destroy the virus as a further deterrent to anybody ever again producing it or using it."
Professor John Oxford, a virologist at Queen Mary University of London, believes the bioterrorism threat is "a load of old tosh" but still argues in favour of keeping the virus.
He said the decision was "tricky" but added: "I don't think there's a strong argument to destroy stocks, just an instinctive feeling to do it, which is misplaced.
"It's eradicating a whole species and you never know what the future might hold."
The argument holds no weight with Professor Gareth Williams, whose book - Angel of Death - charts the history of smallpox.
"There is no point in keeping it really. It has been sequenced completely so it can be recreated in a test tube and if it comes back you've got as much virus as you could want.
"It's just a vague sense of political unease keeping stocks, it has nothing to do with the scientific argument."
No one knows what will happen when health ministers from the WHO's 193 member nations discuss the issue.
Professor David Heymann, a former assistant director general for health security and environment at the World Health Organization, said there had historically been a split between the industrialised and developing countries.
He said developing countries have felt it is more important to deal with "known risks" than unknown risks like smallpox, while industrialised nations have different priorities.
Resolutions from the World Health Assembly are not legally binding, so the US and Russia cannot be forced to destroy stocks even if the majority of nations wanted it to happen.
The Assembly could reach a consensus agreement, such as postponing the decision, rather than forcing a vote because, as Professor Heymann puts it, "nobody wants to see the World Health Organization lose power" if its rulings are ignored.


The Syrian government and the main opposition umbrella group say they accept the terms of a deal to cease hostilities from Saturday.

The government said it would halt "combat operations" in line with the plan announced by the US and Russia.
But the opposition said its acceptance depended on government forces ending sieges and air strikes of civilians.
The deal will not apply to the two main jihadist groups in Syria, Islamic State (IS) and the rival al-Nusra Front.
Al-Nusra is an affiliate of al-Qaeda and forms part of a major rebel alliance that controls large parts of the country's north-west.
What's a 'cessation of hostilities'? How it differs from a truce or a ceasefire
Who's in and who's out? Which armed groups will not be abiding by the accord
More than 250,000 people have died in almost five years of war in Syria.
Eleven million others have fled their homes as forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad and those opposed to his rule battle each other, as well as IS militants.
Under the terms of the agreement announced by the US and Russia on Monday, the Syrian government and opposition were required to indicate by noon on Friday (10:00 GMT) whether they would comply with the cessation of hostilities.
The High Negotiation Committee (HNC) issued a statement after a meeting in Saudi Arabia saying it was "committed to the success of the international efforts dedicated to ending Syrian bloodshed".
But it warned that "acceptance of the truce is conditional'' on the implementation of UN Security Council resolution 2254, which calls on all parties to lift sieges, allow aid deliveries, halt aerial and artillery attacks on civilians, and release detainees.
The Syrian government later declared "its acceptance of a halt to combat operations on the basis of continuing military efforts to combat terrorism".
It added that it would work with Russia, which has conducted air strikes against Mr Assad's opponents since September, to identify areas and armed groups that were covered and reserved the right to "respond to any breach by these groups ".
Moscow's military intervention in Syria has been a game changer.
Not only has it forced the West to sit down at the negotiating table and deal with Russia and its president, but also to recognise Russia as a major world power. And, of course, it has given a huge boost to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
The reason Washington no longer demands the Syrian leader's resignation as a pre-condition to peace is because it knows that is no longer realistic: Russian firepower has made Mr Assad more secure, his armed opponents weaker.
The Russians sense that both the United States and Europe want a swift end to this conflict, and they know that the Syrian refugee crisis is putting a huge strain on the EU.
So, Russia sees its chance to change the way it is viewed: it wants to be seen by the West not as the problem, but the solution.
The Syrian government also stressed the importance of sealing Syria's borders, halting foreign support for armed groups, and "preventing these organisations from strengthening their capabilities or changing their positions".
The Kurdish-dominated Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) alliance told the Associated Press that it would not abide by the deal because it was fighting only IS in northern Syria.
The UN special envoy to Syria, Staffan de Mistura, has described the plan for the cessation of hostilities as encouraging, but acknowledged that enforcing it on the ground will be challenging.
Mr de Mistura will convene a taskforce to monitor the deal as soon as it takes effect, due at midnight on Saturday (22:00 GMT on Friday).
The US, which supports the opposition to Mr Assad, will also share information with Russia, including data that delineates territory where armed groups are active.
Rebel commanders expressed doubts about the accord, saying it would provide cover for government forces and Russian aircraft to continue their attacks.
"Russia and the regime will target the areas of the revolutionaries on the pretext of al-Nusra Front's presence," Bashar al-Zoubi of the Yarmouk Army told the Reuters news agency. "If this happens, the truce will collapse."
US Secretary of State John Kerry told a Senate committee that it would be clear very soon whether Russia was serious about ending the conflict.
"The proof will be in the actions that come in the next days," he said.
He added that Mr Assad was going to "going to have to make some real decisions" about the formation of a transitional administration, as part of a UN Security Council-endorsed peace process, or the US would consider "Plan B options".
Fighting continued on Tuesday despite the plan for a cessation of hostilities.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based monitoring group, reported that air strikes, believed to have been carried out by Russian jets, had targeted one of the last roads into opposition-held eastern areas of the city of Aleppo.
South of Aleppo, IS militants captured the town of Khanaser, cutting a road used to supply government-controlled areas of the city, the Syrian Observatory said.
Meanwhile, state TV reported that an aid convoy had entered the eastern Damascus suburb of Kafr Batna, which is under siege by government forces.


A police operation that evacuated the Sydney Opera House was sparked by "information on social media".

Police ran operations at the Opera House and in the beachside suburb of Manly on Thursday, but did not provide details on the nature of the threat.
Helicopter shots showed the usually crowded hub completely deserted and afternoon concerts were cancelled.
Police issued a release at 15:30 AEST (04:30GMT) saying that both operations had concluded.
The operation resulted in the cancellation of one ferry service between Manly and Circular Quay.


Food giant Kraft Heinz is closing seven factories and cutting 2,600 jobs in North America in an effort to reduce costs.

The cuts are in addition to the 2,500 workers in the region the company announced it would let go in August.
Wednesday's cuts will account for almost 6% of its workforce and will take place over the next two years.
The two firms merged in a $46bn (Â£30bn) deal in July to create North America's third biggest food company.
The cutbacks are part of the new company's plan to save about $1.5bn in operating costs by the end of 2017.
Manufacturing plants in the US states of California, Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin will be closed, along with one in the Canadian province of Ontario.
They account for nearly one-fifth of the company's 41 plants in the continent.
The maker of well-known brands such as Macaroni and Cheese Dinner and Heinz Ketchup also said it would close a nearly 100-year-old Oscar Mayer meat plant in Wisconsin and move the operations to Chicago.
The company is controlled by the Brazilian investment firm 3G Capital, which is known for trimming costs.


Plans for artificial snowsports areas that would be open all year in the Cairngorms are being finalised.

CairnGorm Mountain Ltd proposes to create a beginners' area and also a 90m-long (295ft) intermediate slope.
The artificial areas would be constructed close to the base station of the CairnGorm Mountain snowsports centre, near Aviemore.
The site's operator said the new areas would leave the main slopes open to more advanced snowsports fans.
Earlier this year, CairnGorm Mountain Ltd described the most recent ski season as "challenging" and "poor".
A lack of snow and mild weather affected January and February - two key trading months for Scotland's snowsports industry.