A partial truce brokered by the US and Russia in Syria came into effect at sunset on Monday, the beginning of the Islamic festival of Eid al-Adha.

If successful, it will see President Bashar al-Assad's forces ending air strikes on territory controlled by mainstream rebels, and both sides allowing humanitarian access to besieged areas.
It will also lead to co-ordinated air strikes by the US and Russia against two UN-designated terrorist organisations - so-called Islamic State and the rival jihadist group Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, which was known as al-Nusra Front until it broke off formal ties with al-Qaeda in July and changed its name.
The Syrian government has given its backing, but a number of rebel groups have expressed strong reservations and have yet to say whether they will abide by it.
The US and Russia back opposing sides in Syria's five-year civil war, which has left more than 250,000 people dead and displaced more than 11 million others.
After 10 months of negotiations that the US said were marred by deep "mistrust", US Secretary of State John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov announced on Saturday that they had reached an agreement on a "sustainable" cessation of hostilities that would facilitate negotiations on a political settlement.
The deal, which begins with a 48-hour renewable truce, involves three phases:
Behind the scenes at the Syria talks
Life and death in Syria
Why is there a war in Syria?
Mr Lavrov said the Syrian government, which Russia has supported with hundreds of air strikes over the past 11 months, was "ready to fulfil" the arrangements.
But hours before the truce started, President Assad proclaimed his determination to "recover every area from the terrorists", a term he has used to describe all armed opponents.
The main umbrella group representing political and armed opposition factions, the High Negotiations Committee, meanwhile said it wanted "guarantees" on the implementation of the truce deal before endorsing it.
The Western-backed Free Syrian Army said rebel groups fighting under its banner would "co-operate positively" with the truce, but were concerned that it would benefit the government.
The hardline Islamist group Ahrar al-Sham condemned the agreement as an effort to drive rebel factions apart, but stopped short of explicitly rejecting it outright.
Jabhat Fateh al-Sham spokesman Mostafa Mahamed meanwhile stressed that the group's fighters shared the same goals as the rebels, and were "deeply embedded in society and cannot be singled out in any way".
"They don't govern an area on their own. They are not exclusive to any particular location. America and Russia know this very, very well," he told the BBC.
Grim prospect of 10 more years of war
Mr Kerry stressed that he and Mr Lavrov had worked very hard to ensure they were not repeating the mistakes of previous truces, which have collapsed within days or weeks with both sides accusing each other of repeated violations.
During the short-lived cessation of hostilities negotiated by Washington and Moscow in February, Syrian government forces had continued to indiscriminately bomb opposition-held areas, meaning rebel forces had felt compelled to return fire, Mr Kerry said.
The "marbleising" of mainstream rebels and Jabhat Fateh al-Sham fighters on the ground had also sown confusion, he added.
This time, in theory, Russia will ensure the Syrian air force stops bombing opposition territory altogether and the US will be able to "delineate and separate" rebels and jihadists.
White House press secretary Josh Earnest acknowledged that the success of the agreement "places a lot of pressure on Russia to deliver".
Many Syrians and foreign observers also doubted whether mainstream rebels would or could distance themselves from Jabhat Fateh al-Sham's fighters.
"They are an effective fighting force," Michael Stephens of the Royal United Services Institute told the BBC. "It makes no sense to peel away from them because what you are doing is weakening your own position by doing that."


The Edinburgh International Festival will mark its 70th anniversary with an expanded programme and events which relate back to the very first festival.

There will be a free open air event and nine operas including Verdi's Macbeth, which was performed at the first festival in 1947.
The Old Vic were also there, and they will return this year with the premiere of a new play by writer Alan Ayckbourn.
Tickets go on sale from Saturday 25 March at 10:00.
Contemporary music is a strong strand including performances from Jarvis Cocker and Chilly Gonzales and a tribute to Edinburgh's Incredible String Band.
When the festival began is was described as a "platform for the flowering of the human spirit".
Now it has grown into one of the world's biggest and best known festivals.
This year's festival begins once again with a free open air event, called Bloom, which continues the theme of flowering culture.
Fergus Linehan, Edinburgh International Festival director, said: ''Since 1947, the international festival has extended an invitation from the people of Scotland to people all over the world, to join us in celebrating the unparalleled creativity and talent that great artists bring to Edinburgh.
"In our 70th anniversary year, it feels more important than ever perhaps, that we celebrate the founding values of the international festival and that through a shared celebration of artistic excellence and cultural exchange, we 'provide a platform for the flowering of the human spirit' and to continue to welcome the world to our city."
Richard Lewis, Edinburgh's Festivals and events champion, said: "This summer, the world's greatest artists and ensembles will descend on our capital to celebrate the 70th anniversary of one of the biggest arts festival in the world - our Edinburgh International Festival.
"The council and the city has championed the festival since its inception in 1947.
"Seventy years later, the event continues to bring thousands of people together from all over Scotland and the world in a celebration of the arts and culture.
"From opera to the Old Vic, Joshua Bell to Jarvis Cocker, the 2017 programme will feature 2,020 artists in a diverse mix of music, dance and theatre. It could just be one of the most pioneering programmes yet.
"I am delighted we are this year providing additional financial support to mark the milestone year, which will also see a new generation of Festival fans showcase their very own performance venue."


Cuba has reinstated restrictions on doctors leaving the island to work in the United States and other countries.

Doctors will now have to apply for a special permit before going abroad.
Cuba's health services have been "seriously affected" by the large number of doctors who have moved abroad since controls were eased in 2013, the authorities said.
Cuba also criticised a US policy it said encouraged doctors and other health workers to leave their posts.
Under the 2006 Cuban Medical Professional Parole Program, Cuban medical personnel sent by Cuba's government to study or work in a third country are allowed to enter the US.
Cuba said the programme was an attempt by the US to drain it of medical professionals.
"It must be recalled that the United States government has historically used its migratory policy as a weapon against the Revolution, and has, for political reasons, encouraged emigration from Cuba," says a government statement published in the official newspaper, Granma.
The US and communist Cuba restored relations earlier this year after more than 50 years of hostilities, but the US trade embargo remains in place.
A huge number of qualified health professionals have left Cuba over the past two years.
Most of them try to reach the United States, which has a special immigration policy for Cuban citizens, known as "wet-foot, dry-foot".
It allows Cubans who reach the US by land to apply for residency while those who are intercepted at sea are turned back.
The policy has led to a rise in Cubans trying to make their way to the US through Latin America by land.
Some 3,000 Cubans migrants are currently stranded on the border between Costa Rica and Nicaragua, after the latter closed its border.
Nicaragua, which has close ties with the Cuban government, has refused to let the migrants travel north through its country,
Cuba said it was trying to find a solution to the problem by maintaining "contact with the countries involved in the search for a rapid, adequate solution".
Since Raul Castro took over from his brother, Fidel, in 2008, his main policy has been to ease strict economic and travel restrictions in place for decades.
In September, Havana announced it would welcome back doctors who deserted while working abroad on programmes sponsored by the island's communist government.
Doctors would be offered their jobs back and incur no punishment or loss of status.
The Cuban government says it has some 50,000 health workers engaged in health projects in 68 countries. Half of them are doctors.
Critics say the highly-trained professionals are underpaid, while the Cuban government charges other countries for the service and makes significant profits.


A Cumbrian school has cancelled lessons for the majority of pupils after being hit by industrial action for the second time this month.

Members of the NASUWT are staging a 24-hour stoppage after claiming their relationship with the trust running Whitehaven Academy has broken down.
Teachers who are members of the ATL and NUT are taking part in similar action on Friday.
The Bright Tribe Trust said it was working to tackle known issues.
The academy was hit by a strike by the NASUWT on 10 January.
The school, which caters for 620 pupils, was rated inadequate by Ofsted inspectors last October and placed in special measures after being told it must improve its leadership.
Unions said teachers had "serious concerns" about the way in which they were being managed and the working environment within the school.
Academy bosses said the industrial action was "disappointing" but added they were hopeful of further talks with unions.
The school said classes for Year 11 pupils would be held as normal over the two days of industrial action.


Formula 1 is too expensive, too complicated and the cars are too reliable, according to Jean Todt, president of governing body the FIA.

He added that it was the responsibility of the FIA to make the rules, in the context of a desire by new commercial rights holders to make changes.
He said F1 would "never go back" to the inefficient but loud, naturally aspirated engines of 10 years ago.
He added it was "essential" there was less disparity in pace between teams.
Frenchman Todt, 71, was talking at a media briefing at the season-opening Australian Grand Prix, three days after the new commercial and sporting bosses of the F1 Group, Sean Bratches and Ross Brawn, had set out their own vision for the sport.
He discussed:
Brawn set out a vision similar to Todt's, of a desire to "be proactive to work with the teams and the FIA to make F1 as great as it can be - with close racing, healthy teams and a true meritocracy of drivers".
And he talked about his desire to be involved in resolving both short-term and long-term issues, while observing the correct governance procedures.
Todt emphasised that the FIA had "legislative and regulative" authority in F1.
He said he was "happy" the F1 Group had employed people as experienced as Brawn and Bratches, and that the FIA and the new owners - a US corporation formerly known as Liberty Media - were in a "honeymoon period".
But he said: "They will never be in a position to write the rules. They will always be written by the FIA.
"We are ready to make a collective effort to make F1 as good as possible".
F1 has introduced new rules this year to make the cars faster and more demanding, and Todt said he felt the early indications were they had been a success, adding the cars looked "great".
But he said that as the sport looked towards signing new contracts with the teams beyond 2020, he wanted to make changes.
He said he felt the cars were "too sophisticated, too expensive, too complicated and in a way too reliable".
He said the technical sophistication of the teams meant they were prepared for all eventualities far better than in the past, referring to the data transfer between teams at race track and factory over a grand prix weekend.
"F1 doesn't need that," Todt said. "It needs action and emotion. We lose a lot of emotion on the track and we need to address that, even if all the teams are reluctant when talking about it."
Todt recognised that the new rules might make overtaking more difficult but said: "Overtaking has always been a problem in motor racing. But maybe this was the price to pay to get more aerodynamic downforce."
However, he said that there was room for it to be addressed by "a compromise" in the next set of regulations.
This echoes remarks made by Brawn. He said: "We should work out how we can make the aerodynamics as benign as possible so cars can actually race each other. That's never truly been done.
"Can we come up with a set of regulations where we can still use the power of aerodynamics to give us the speed and spectacle of the cars, but in a more benign way so they can at least race each other more closely without it having an impact? That is my ambition, that is my objective.
"We want to work with the FIA and the teams to achieve that."
Todt was involved in the introduction of the complicated and expensive turbo-hybrid engines into F1 in 2014.
These have had a revolutionary effect on efficiency but have been criticised for having an unevocative noise and many fans would like to see a return to loud engines.
There is an ongoing discussion as to whether the engine formula should be changed after 2020, but Todt said F1 would not turn the clock back.
He said he saw a future for both electric and fuel-cell engine technology in motorsport but that F1 "would still be with a more conventional engine".
"But does it mean we are intending to go back to what we had 10 years ago? It will never happen," added Todt.
"Motorsport has a social responsibility and F1, as the pinnacle of motorsport, has even more social responsibility."
He added that the engines were still too expensive for customer teams and wanted to reduce the current bills of just under $20m (£16m) a year to $12-15m (£9.6m-£12m).
Todt said he was concerned about the potential effect on audiences of the switch to pay television.
But he said he had been "impressed" by Bratches and his record at ESPN in the US.
Bratches said on Thursday that he would try to offset the effect of the switch to Sky's exclusive deal in the UK in 2019 by exploiting various methods of digital media.
A number of teams are known to be pushing back against this philosophy, believing a major presence on free-to-air television to be essential.
Todt said: "If you have to pay, it is obvious you will have less audience. It is something that needs to be addressed.
"I know they are really considering that. There are a lot of other ways of communicating."
He added that access for the written media was "more than important - it's essential".
Todt said he was concerned by the fact that there was more than two seconds between the top 10 cars on the grid in Australia and he wanted to gap to be more like 0.7-0.8secs.
"There is too big a discrepancy between the smallest and the biggest budget."
Brawn said: "We have to flatten off the field and that means finding ways of limiting the potential of the regulations or limiting the resources that teams have available."


An area of the south coast of England could have special protection to preserve "important" wildlife.

Natural England is starting a public consultation on whether the Solent and parts of the Dorset coast should be a special protection area.
The area, stretching from Worbarrow Bary to Middleton-on-Sea in West Sussex, supports three types of terns.
Sandwich, common and little terns arrive in April and spend the summer feeding on fish, Natural England said.
The organisation said they were "important populations".
Natural England is collecting information about the likely economic, environmental and social impact of the proposed area from members of the public until 21 April.
The area was recommended for the status by the European Commission's birds directive and the government will decide whether the status would be granted.
In Special Protection Areas the government has an obligation to prevent the deterioration of the sites and to undertake assessments for any potentially harmful development.


The £50bn takeover of one of the world biggest brewers is expected to receive a vital green light from China this week - but remains under threat from the double threat of the Brexit vote and a UK court ruling.

AB InBev, the owner of Budweiser, agreed last year to buy SAB Miller, the FTSE 100 beermaker that counts Peroni and Grolsch among a stable of brands that spans the world. It agreed to pay investors with shares of the new combined company - and gave them a less valuable alternative of taking cash and shares.
The cash element was in sterling. Since the Brexit vote, the pound has fallen about 10% against other big currencies, leaving shareholders demanding more. On Tuesday AB InBev delivered, increasing its offer by £1 a share to £45 a share - an increase that will in aggregate cost it about £2bn more. It said that its offer was final, preventing it from making another increase.
That was still not enough for some. Aberdeen Asset Management, a top-10 shareholder in SABMiller, said the offer "remained unacceptable".
SAB directors now face a turbulent few days as they decide whether to recommend the final AB InBev offer. Later this week the final, and arguably most important, remaining regulatory clearance is expected when China's competition authority, Mofcom, rules on the takeover.
If the Chinese give the go-ahead, the SAB board is expected to meet this weekend. If they reject the offer, they face the unenviable task of placating all those shareholders who have already agreed to back it, including the two big investors - Altria, the American tobacco giant that owns Marlboro cigarettes, and Colombia's Santo Domingo family. Together the two own nearly 40% of SAB.
There is also the unenviable task of withdrawing from giant disposals that have been agreed to get the deal past other competition regulators. In Europe, for example, Asahi of Japan has agreed to buy Peroni and Grolsch.
If the SAB board accepts, they risk alienating institutional investors such as Aberdeen Asset Management ahead of possible shareholder votes to approve or reject the deal.
On top of that, there is still a risk that a British court could upset their plans.
SAB told the stock market last year that because there were two different offers - shares or cash and shares - it would have to ask a judge whether the structure of the deal had in effect created two different classes of shareholder.
If the judge decides it has, there would be two shareholder votes, increasing the chances that the deal could be blocked.


Aston Villa's Jack Grealish has returned to training and could be in line to start for the club after being dropped to the bench by boss Remi Garde, according to the Express and Star.

The midfielder, who had been relegated to the sidelines after a bout of tonsillitis and an ankle injury, could return to the team as Garde looks to make changes after Sunday's 6-0 home defeat by Liverpool.
The Daily Mirror is reporting that Joleon Lescott has responded to critics following his post-match tweet on Sunday. The defender has told a fan to come to the training ground to meet him as well as retaliating to comments from former Villa striker Stan Collymore.
And the Birmingham Mail has displayed a film made by YouTube stars Copa 90 showing what it is like to be an Aston Villa supporter at the moment. The documentary collates fans' opinions on the club's current situation.


Facebook has announced measures to tackle video piracy on its website.

The company said new video matching technology would alert selected content creators if their videos were reposted to Facebook without permission.
In August, YouTube star Hank Green wrote a blog criticising the company over its slow response to video piracy.
Brady Haran, who runs a collection of YouTube channels, told the BBC he still had questions over Facebook's new approach.
Facebook has been trying to grow its video business and in July it announced plans to share advertising revenue with content creators for the first time.
But the company has been criticised by prominent video creators such as Mr Green for failing to tackle video piracy.
In June, research by advertising agency Ogilvy found that 73% of the most popular videos on Facebook had been ripped from other websites.
Announcing its new approach, Facebook said: "Our matching tool will evaluate millions of video uploads quickly and accurately, and when matches are surfaced, publishers will be able to report them to us for removal."
The new tool will be available to a "small group of partners" while the company improves the technology.
As well as detecting freebooted videos, the BBC understands the tool will be able to detect when small portions of stolen content are used in another video without permission.
However, unlike YouTube's content ID system which can block infringing videos automatically, Facebook's system will notify copyright holders and ask them if they want to remove the freebooted video.
"It's a daily frustration to see wealthy companies exploit your work without permission," said Brady Haran, whose educational YouTube channels are followed by around two million people.
Mr Haran is credited with coining the term freebooting in the Hello Internet podcast he co-hosts.
He told the BBC: "The first few hours of a video upload is the golden window when it gets the most views. Any solution requiring notifications and human intervention risks 'closing the gate after horse has bolted'.
"Facebook must be aware of this and I'm curious about whether they plan to address it."
Facebook said it planned to develop a "comprehensive video management system" and was "committed" to tackling video piracy.


The search for missing Dominic Jackson is expected to resume on Wednesday, after his kayak was recovered from the sea off the Caithness coast.

The 35-year-old was reported overdue on Sunday night after going on a weekend trip from Portsoy in Aberdeenshire.
A kayak matching the description of his vessel was found on Monday evening near Lybster, about 50 miles away.
His sister Ellie told BBC Scotland she remained hopeful he had made it ashore to cliffs and would be found.
The search had resumed on Tuesday morning, with volunteers helping coastguards, and divers were also involved.
On Tuesday afternoon, volunteers found some kayak safety gear washed up on rocks on the Moray coast. It has not yet been confirmed it it is Mr Jackson's.
A paddle was also spotted in the water near to where the kayak was recovered off the Lybster coast.
Extensive searches are expected to continue for a third day on Wednesday.
His sister said from Australia: "I feel very strongly feel Dom is lying injured at the base of a cliff after attempting to climb out after becoming separated from his kayak and swimming to shore.
"He would be very familiar with sea cliffs like this. All his childhood holidays we climbed cliffs and rocks like this.
"I have a very strong feeling he will be found."
A Find Dom page has been set up on Facebook by friends.
Mr Jackson, who lives in Fettercairn in Aberdeenshire and is originally from Uckfield in East Sussex, is believed to have set off in his kayak from Portsoy harbour on Saturday morning.
The alarm was raised by his flatmate on Sunday night when he failed to return home as expected.
He is described as fit and active but relatively new to kayaking.
His father and brother joined a huge air, sea and land search on Monday involving several lifeboats, coastguard search teams and police.
A coastguard helicopter and a fixed wing aircraft have also been involved in the operation.
Insp Ewan Strachan said on Tuesday afternoon: "More than 30 volunteers have turned out to assist with coastal searches today despite the weather, and I cannot stress enough how much this has been appreciated.
"It also comes as no surprise given the community spirit in the area and the strength of feeling of wanting Dominic to be found.
"Moving forward, our search must focus at sea and immediate areas of the coastline - an operation which must be tackled by a highly specialist search team given the dangers and challenges of these terrains.
"These officers are trained in certain techniques and will be designated to specific areas as we enter our third day of this operation and continue to battle severe weather conditions.
"Our main priority is the public's safety and as such I would urge volunteers to consider other ways in which they can offer support to Dominic's family and friends at this terrible time.
"By no means does this mean we are scaling back our search - in fact our search now becomes more intensive - however we need the right people in the right places to give us the best possible chance."
Mr Jackson's green VW Transporter - which he was camping in for the weekend - was found in the Portsoy area.


A man in his forties has died in Oxfordshire after being involved in a crash with a lorry.

The driver, from Banbury, was travelling in a Hyundai car on Thursday morning on the A41 between the Rodney House roundabout and Oxford Road in Bicester.
At 00:15 BST the man suffered serious injuries when he was in collision with a white DAF lorry.
He was taken to the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford but later died.
The two-way road was closed while crash scene investigators assessed the scene.
The driver of the lorry was uninjured and Thames Valley Police have appealed for witnesses to come forward.


England women won the season's penultimate World Rugby Sevens Series tournament in Canada.

A dominant second-half performance saw them defeat champions New Zealand 31-14, having trailed 14-7.
Australia, beaten by England in the semi-finals, had won all three of the season's previous tournaments.
"We really are building," said England captain Emily Scarratt. "We've gone away and worked really hard and that was the product of it."
She added: "We knew it would be a tough game but that if we played to our style we could win. We're tired but we are very happy."
Ireland finished 11th by beating Japan 12-5 but remain bottom of the 12-team standings.
New Zealand are second with 64 points, 12 behind Australia, but are unlikely to catch the leaders.
Should New Zealand win the next tournament, Australia would have to finish eighth or lower for them to top the rankings.
The final tournament of the season takes place in the French city of Clermont-Ferrand on 28-29 May.
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An electrical company in the US state of Vermont says it has found malware code allegedly used by Russian hackers on one of its company laptops.

The Burlington Electric Department said it had taken "immediate action to isolate" the computer, which was not connected to the electrical grid.
The government alerted them to the "Grizzly Steppe" code on Thursday.
The same day, the US expelled 35 Russian diplomats over alleged Russian interference in November's election.
Moscow has denied any involvement in the hacking of the Democratic party and Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign.
On Friday, US President-elect Donald Trump praised Russian President Vladimir Putin for not expelling American diplomats in a tit-for-tat response.
Diplomatic spat goes undiplomatic
Can the hack be traced to Russia?
The Burlington company said it was "working with federal officials to trace this malware and prevent any other attempts to infiltrate utility systems".
It has also briefed state officials and vowed to fully support the investigation.
The statement followed a Washington Post report, citing unnamed US officials, that Russian hackers had penetrated the electrical facility, underlining the vulnerability of America's national grid.
According to the news website, US authorities were unclear why Russian hackers might have targeted the grid.
"The incursion may have been designed to disrupt the utility's operations or as a test to see whether they could penetrate a portion of the grid," it added.
Politicians in Vermont, including the Democrat Governor, Peter Shumlin, are calling for a full investigation into the incident.
"Vermonters and all Americans should be both alarmed and outraged that one of the world's leading thugs, [Russian President] Vladimir Putin, has been attempting to hack our electric grid, which we rely upon to support our quality-of-life, economy, health, and safety," he said in a statement.
Democratic congressman Peter Welch said the discovery showed "how rampant Russian hacking is".
"It's systemic, relentless, predatory," he added.
US officials believe Russia was behind the hacking of Ukraine's electrical grid in December 2015, which plunged parts of the country into darkness and left about 225,000 people without power.
Experts said it was the first known power outage caused by a cyber attack.


Human rights groups and Green Party MEPs have sharply criticised Europe's top human rights watchdog, the Council of Europe, for its mild verdict on Azerbaijan's presidential election.

A delegation of European MPs observed the 9 October vote on behalf of the Council of Europe and declared it "free, fair and transparent".
But a separate report by international observers said the election was marred by abuses such as ballot-stuffing.
The Azeri president won by a landslide.
President Ilham Aliyev was re-elected for a third five-year term in the oil-rich former Soviet republic in the Caucasus.
He took over in 2003 on the death of his father Heydar, who in turn had ruled since 1993.
The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) sent a 45-strong observer team, who issued a joint statement with seven members of the European Parliament (MEPs) on 10 October. They said that "overall around election day we have observed a free, fair and transparent electoral process".
They called the electoral arrangements "professional and peaceful" and said they had found no evidence of intimidation of voters.
However, they also said "improvements are still desirable" and "freedom of expression remains a serious concern".
PACE is a grouping of parliamentarians from the Council of Europe's 47 member states. It says its mission is to uphold Europe's "shared values of human rights, democracy and the rule of law".
Azerbaijan will take over the rotating chairmanship of the Council of Europe in May 2014. It has been a member of the council since 2000.
Election monitors from a different international watchdog, the OSCE, reported "significant problems" in Azerbaijan's voting and counting procedures.
The OSCE said it found "clear indications of ballot box stuffing in 37 polling stations, and the counting was assessed negatively in an unprecedented 58 per cent of the stations observed".
The US government agreed with the OSCE's concerns and said the election "fell short of international standards". It noted "a repressive political environment" during the campaign, with "routine" official interference in the media and civil society.
The OSCE verdict angered Azeri officials - the country's central electoral commission called it "biased" and said Azerbaijan should "reassess future co-operation" with the OSCE.
There was no such Azeri threat over the PACE/European Parliament verdict.
Tural Ahmedzade, an Azerbaijan researcher at Amnesty International, told the BBC that PACE was "not really pushing the Azeri government enough to address human rights concerns which we have expressed quite often.
"PACE should be taking human rights issues more seriously and really put more pressure on Azerbaijan to comply with its Council of Europe obligations," he said.
Green Party MEPs called the PACE/European Parliament statement on the election "a sham".
The Green foreign affairs spokesperson Werner Schulz said "the shortcomings of EP's own election observation mission to Azerbaijan call into question the existence of such short-term missions in general.
"The European Parliament loses credibility with statements ignoring the reality of the situation in the country. A handful of MEPs are endangering the European Parliament's reputation in fighting for human rights, democracy and rule of law."
Next month Azerbaijan will be among several ex-Soviet states attending a summit with the EU in Lithuania, where agreements on closer co-operation will be signed.
A London-based pro-democracy group, Electoral Reform International Services (Eris), was also sharply critical of the PACE/European Parliament statement.
In a piece on the EU Observer website, Eris's Holly Ruthrauff said "the support of the EP and PACE for a clearly undemocratic election process is shameful, and is an affront to the stated values of those organisations.
"Voters should ask their elected representatives why they are spending public funds to be cheerleaders for sham elections. The EP and the PACE should ask whether it makes sense to continue sending such observation missions, which discredit their organisations."


The Liberal Democrats have said they would scrap employment tribunal fees in order to "strengthen enforcement of employment rights".

The claim: The Liberal Democrats say that tribunal fees "prevent many from pursuing good cases".
Reality Check says: There is evidence for this and charging fees for employment tribunals has led to a bigger fall in the number of claims than the government expected.
The fees were introduced when they were in government with the Conservatives in July 2013 - taking a case to an employment tribunal had previously been free.
At the time one of the reasons it gave was that fees could: "disincentivise unreasonable behaviour, like pursuing weak or vexatious claims".
Weak claims are presumably ones that are less likely to be successful, while strong ones would be more likely to be successful.
The Labour manifesto said the party would "reverse the unfair employment tribunal fees which literally price people out of justice".
There was no mention of employment tribunals in the Conservative or UKIP manifestos.
Employment tribunals are devolved - we'll start with the situation in England and Wales.
Individual claimants now have to pay a claim fee of £160 or £250 depending on the type of case and a further £230 or £950 if the case goes to a hearing.
There is means-tested help available with paying tribunal fees. If you win the case then your employer might be forced to pay your tribunal fees but that is not automatic.
After the fees were introduced the average number of total cases fell from about 5,000 a month to about 1,500 a month.
The government had a review earlier this year to look at the impact of charging fees.
It concluded that the introduction of fees had been successful in the sense that it had raised £8.5m to £9m a year and encouraged people to use free mediation services, but it also said that: "The fall in claims has been significantly greater than was estimated when fees were first introduced."
As a result, the government is consulting on whether changes are needed to the Help with Fees scheme to make it easier for people on lower incomes to get their fees paid.
Brian Doyle, president of employment tribunals in England & Wales said in his submission to the review: "We do not consider that there has been a reduction in weak or unmeritorious claims. Had that been the case we would have expected the percentage of successful claims to have risen, whereas in fact it has declined slightly."
Statistics presented as part of the review show that the proportion of successful claims fell from an average of 15.3% in the nine months before the introduction of charging (62.6% were withdrawn before a hearing) to an average of 12.6% since then (with 59.0% being withdrawn).
"Cases are being upheld in the same proportions as ever - there are just fewer winners and fewer losers," Gareth Brahams from Brahams Dutt Badrick French, who is chair of the Employment Lawyers Association told BBC News.
In Scotland, fees are also charged for employment tribunals. The Scottish National Party has promised to abolish them but has not yet done so. It gained the power to do so as part of last year's Scotland Act.
The SNP has also pledged to abolish the fees as part of its Westminster campaign, which means it wants to see them abolished in England and Wales as well.
It is also consulting on proposals to move some of its functions to the First-tier Tribunal for Scotland, which brings together a number of other legal functions, although there has been some opposition to this.
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World number 855 Alex Ward became the only British player to come through Wimbledon singles qualifying by securing a stunning win over Russia's Teymuraz Gabashvili.

Ward, 27, won 6-7 (3-7) 6-4 7-6 (8-6) 6-1 in the third and final round of qualifying in Roehampton.
He was given a wildcard to play in qualifying and had lost his previous seven matches before this week.
Fellow Britons Marcus Willis and Jay Clarke went out in the final round.
Ward will be one of 12 British players, led by defending champion Andy Murray and world number seven Johanna Konta, in the main singles draws at Wimbledon.
Ward, from Northampton, will take his place in the main draw at Wimbledon for only the second time, having received a wildcard 12 months ago.
Willis, 26, became the early story of last year's Wimbledon by coming through six matches in pre-qualifying and qualifying, and then the first-round proper, before losing to Roger Federer on Centre Court.
"What a story that was, let's see what happens this year," said Ward.
"We're the same age, we used to train here together and he's always been a great player and a fantastic character, always fun to be around."
Find out how to get into tennis in our special guide.
Ward has taken an even more unlikely route than Willis having lost in the final round of pre-qualifying, only to be handed a wildcard into the Wimbledon qualifying event.
He had lost all four previous matches in Wimbledon qualifying.
"It just feels amazing, I'm still struggling to get my head around it," said Ward, who slipped down the rankings from 242 last year after having six months off with a wrist injury.
"It will mean everything [to return to Wimbledon], especially having qualified. I feel like I really deserve my place there."
Ward said he had played the best tennis of his life this week in beating Belarusian Egor Gerasimov, ranked 166th, Japan's Go Soeda, ranked 111th, and Gabashvili, ranked 176th.
Reaching the first-round proper guarantees him at least £35,000 in prize money.
"That's a big sum of money," said Ward.
"I haven't got a coach at the moment, so I can invest in a coach and have better preparation for matches."
He now hopes to go one better than last year, when he lost to Belgian David Goffin in the first round at Wimbledon.
"We'll see what happens in the draw on Friday," he said.


Peace activists in Kenya are calling for the reopening of the college where 148 people were killed by gunmen from the Somalia-based al-Shabab group.

The April attack led to the closure of Garissa University College, which has had an impact on the local economy, the activists say.
Some students are also complaining that they are missing out on their education since the college was shut.
Al-Shabab has pledged a "long, gruesome war" against Kenya.
The activists have organised a four-day arts and culture festival in the north-eastern town of Garissa to challenge the perception that the place is no longer safe.
"We believe that you cannot fight terrorism with the gun, that will never succeed," the man behind the festival Lolani Kalu told BBC News.
He said that 200 people had attended the opening of the event and sang the national anthem in several Kenyan languages in a sign of unity.
There was a candle lighting ceremony to remember the victims and also the start of a project to plant 148 trees.
In an effort to show that things can get back to normal, 60 of the people at the festival are sleeping in the college dormitories where students were murdered, Mr Kalu said.
The government has not yet said when the college will reopen with the next academic year beginning in just over a month's time.


Surrey batsman Dom Sibley will join Warwickshire at the end of the season after rejecting a three-year contract.

Sibley, who came through Surrey's academy, was offered a new deal at the start of the season but has chosen to move to Edgbaston.
The 21-year-old has featured regularly in all three formats this season.
"He told me the reason he's leaving is that he feels his opportunities at Warwickshire would be greater," said director of cricket Alec Stewart.
Warwickshire sport director Ashley Giles added: "Dominic is an outstanding cricketer with England potential.
"He has a big role to play for the club across all forms of the game and we're delighted that he has chosen to take this great opportunity to be part of this exciting young squad that we are building."
Sibley, who has scored four fifties in seven County Championship games this season, follows Adam Hose and Will Rhodes in choosing to join Warwickshire this summer.
The former England Under-19 batsman has scored 1,533 runs in 30 first-class games at an average of 34, with two hundreds.
"We've had numerous conversations with Dom and his advisors over the past 11 months and I'm comfortable in knowing that we could not have done any more in showing how much we wanted him to be a big part of this club," Stewart continued.
"We believe we were moving Dom in the right direction and are bitterly disappointed he has chosen to leave us at this stage of his career."


Hope Powell has said that in terms of technical ability, England's women could beat the men's national side.

The England football coach was speaking to Newsround ahead of the 2013 Women's Euros competition in Sweden.
Asked whether the women's team could beat the men, she answered: "Absolutely, why not?
"I think physically the guys are obviously a lot stronger than the women, but if we took it on technical ability we're as good as the men."
She continued: "We'd give it a good go."
The former international player added: "Women's football is sometimes considered secondary.
"But the growth of the game means more people are interested in the game, and it's flourishing."
Check out MOTD Kickabout's Women's Euro special every Saturday during the tournament at 7:40am, exclusively on the CBBC Channel.


Manchester City midfielder Yaya Toure and his agent will donate £100,000 to help the victims of the Manchester Arena attack.

Twenty-two people were killed and 64 injured when Salman Abedi blew himself up at the venue on Monday.
Toure's representative Dimitri Seluk told BBC Sport: "We want to help the victims - the families of the dead or those who are now in hospital.
"I spoke to Yaya on Tuesday and he was very shocked by the terrible news."
Seluk added: "We have arranged with the Manchester Evening News to help us get the money to the people who really need it.
"We don't want to send it somewhere and nobody knows where it will end up - we want to make sure it goes to people for whom every penny helps.
"I think it will take a few days to organise it, but Yaya is in England and can come and present the cheque whenever it is needed.
"Yaya loves Manchester and has a big affinity with the city and its people.
"This fund is a chance for us to get the money to the right people, which is very important."


Gaelic singer Julie Fowlis will open this year's Findhorn Bay Festival.

She will be joined by Moray-based musician Calum Stewart and Nairn Gaelic Choir for a concert in St Laurence Church in Forres.
Fowlis, who grew up on North Uist, is known for songs on the soundtrack of Disney-Pixar film Brave.
Earlier this month, she sang An Eala Bh??n at the Battle of the Somme Centenary Commemoration service at the Thiepval Memorial in France.
The song, which translates as The White Swan, was composed by North Uist Gaelic poet D??mhnall Ruadh Chor??na while he was fighting at the Somme in World War One.
Findhorn Bay Festival will run from 21-26 September at venues in and around Findhorn.
As well as music there will be events celebrating science and architecture, comedy and street performers.
Cameron Taylor, co-author of the book On the trail of the real Macbeth, will lead a tour of battle sites connected to the Scottish figure who inspired Shakespeare's 'Scottish Play'.
The festival will close with Scottish Opera's new production of The Elixir of Love.


Benfica coach Rui Vitoria has not ruled out Sweden defender Victor Lindelof joining Manchester United next month.

United manager Jose Mourinho is keen on the 22-year-old, who can play at centre-half or right-back.
A group from Benfica is reported to have travelled to England on Monday to discuss a potential transfer with the Premier League club.
United have not commented but Vitoria said: "If there are exits we will find solutions."
Reports suggest he would become the club's most expensive defender of all time, costing between £38m and £42m. Their record is England international Rio Ferdinand's £29.1m move to Old Trafford from Leeds in 2002.
Lindelof, who has 11 caps for Sweden, played in Benfica's Portuguese league game against Rio Ave on Wednesday, their last game for two weeks.
His agent Hasan Cetinkaya told Swedish media there was "a bid on Benfica's table" and that he would be meeting with the club, but refused to comment when asked specifically about an offer from Manchester United.
Mourinho, who spent more than £150m on players in the summer, is keen to make changes to his squad during the January transfer window.
Although the Portuguese has said he will not force anyone out, midfielders Morgan Schneiderlin and Bastian Schweinsteiger are the most likely to depart, along with Memphis Depay.
France international Schneiderlin, 27, has attracted interest from Everton, as has Netherlands winger Depay, although Italian side Roma are another club keeping an eye on the 22-year-old.
Former Germany captain Schweinsteiger spoke to MLS outfit Chicago Fire, with other US clubs also keen on taking the World Cup winner, who has returned to first-team training after being frozen out by Mourinho at the start of the season.


Sky has renewed Fortitude for a second 10-part series.

The show, filmed in Reyoarfjorour, Iceland, is the most expensive British drama ever made at Â£30m.
It has featured Michael Gambon, Christopher Ecclestone and The Hunger Games actor Stanley Tucci, who plays DCI Eugene Morton from Scotland Yard.
In the UK the first episode was watched by more than 2.5m people and is Sky Atlantic's most successful original commission.
The show follows a small town and its inhabitants in the Arctic who have to deal with a series of violent crimes seemingly caused by a strange illness.
Zai Bennett, channel director of Sky Atlantic, said: "Simon Donald created a unique and unsettling story which, week after week, has captivated our customers.
"I am absolutely delighted that we will be bringing Fortitude back next year with a story that promises to engage, challenge and enthral us all over again."
Fortitude launched in the US through Participant Media's television network, Pivot, which is confirmed to return to co-produce the second series.
It is shown by more than 100 broadcasters around the world including ABC Australia, Superchannel Canada, OTE Greece and Canal+ France.
The first series concludes on Sky Atlantic on Thursday night.
Follow @BBCNewsbeat on Twitter, BBCNewsbeat on Instagram and Radio1Newsbeat on YouTube


Lenders are expecting more jostling for buy-to-let mortgages in the coming weeks after a leap in demand in late 2015.

A survey by the Bank of England said 30% more lenders expected demand to grow over the first three months of the year than those predicting a fall.
Various figures have shown an increase in buy-to-let mortgage lending in recent months.
Buy-to-let investors face a 3% surcharge on stamp duty from April.
Housing experts predict that prospective landlords will move as quickly as possible to complete purchases before the extra stamp duty on second home purchases kicks in.
Demand for buy-to-let lending increased significantly in the three months to Christmas, the Bank said.
Some 22% more lenders reported increases rather than decreases in the demand for loans.
On Thursday, the Council of Mortgage Lenders said the number of buy-to-let home loans advanced in November leapt by 35% compared to the same month a year earlier.
A number of reports have also suggested an increased reliance on credit among consumers towards the end of last year.
The Bank's survey revealed that demand for personal loans and overdrafts picked up in the last three months of 2015. A significant chunk of this was finance for buying cars.
This demand is expected to remain strong in the first quarter of this year, the Bank said.


Poland is marking the anniversary of the 2010 plane crash that killed its president Lech Kaczynski and 95 others.

Ceremonies took place at Powazki military cemetery in Warsaw, and at the crash site near a military airfield in Smolensk, western Russia.
However the late president's twin, Jaroslaw Kaczynski, boycotted the state ceremonies for the second year running and attended separate events.
He claims that the crash was an assassination.
All 96 passengers and crew were killed in the crash in 2010, when the plane attempted to land in foggy weather.
Several Polish politicians and officials, including the first lady, Maria, had been on board. They had been travelling to Russia to mark the 70th anniversary of the Katyn massacre of more than 20,000 Polish officers on Stalin's orders by Soviet secret police during World War II.
Prime Minister Donald Tusk took part in Tuesday's ceremony with some of the victims' relatives in Powazki military cemetery, where many of the crash victims are buried.
President Bronislaw Komorowski attended a Mass in Warsaw, and laid flowers at a plaque commemorating the dead.
Polish Culture Minister Bogdan Zdrojewski and Russia's Parliament Speaker Sergei Naryshkin also laid wreaths in a ceremony at the crash site in Smolensk.
Jaroslaw Kaczynski, who leads Poland's opposition Law and Justice party, attended an alternative ceremony outside the presidential palace.
He said recently that he believed his brother was assassinated, and an unofficial investigation by his party concluded that there were two explosions before the plane crashed in heavy fog near the runway.
While many in Poland find the assertions ridiculous, there is widespread disapproval of the Russians absolving themselves of any blame for the crash, the BBC's Warsaw correspondent Adam Easton says.
Both the official Russian and Polish investigations have said that pilot error was the main cause of the crash.
However, the Polish investigation also said that the actions of the Russian air traffic controllers contributed to the disaster.
Lech Kaczynski's daughter, Marta Kaczynska, told Polish media that the sadness she felt when she first learned of her parents' death returned to her every day.
"I would like to express my gratitude to all those who remember my parents and have the courage to show it," she said.


National League side Maidenhead United have re-signed midfielder Adrian Clifton, while Remy Clerima and Sean McCormack have agreed new contracts.

Clifton, 28, won one cap for Montserrat in 2015 and had a two-year spell at York Road between 2013 and 2015.
French defender Clerima, 27, joined Alan Devonshire's side last summer and also played under him at Braintree.
Midfielder McCormack, 18, was part of Reading's academy and was offered a new Maidenhead deal in May.
Find all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page.


Less than two weeks before elections in Georgia, a bitter political battle is being fought not just in the country itself, but in Western corridors of power.

The West is being bombarded by two very different stories about Georgia, with top international PR and lobby firms hired to push the message.
The war of words is costing both sides huge amounts of money - in a country with high levels of poverty.
The version pushed by the Georgian government rests on a common perception of the country: a small, plucky state, keen to shake off its Soviet past and join Nato, bullied by Russia, and invaded in 2008.
It is an easy story to follow for any American or European parliamentarian looking for a good cause.
And Georgia's charismatic US-educated President, Mikheil Saakashvili, has pushed it relentlessly. He says the upcoming parliamentary elections will be the freest and fairest ever held in the country.
But now politicians and journalists in the West are suddenly being told another story entirely: President Saakashvili is accused of being authoritarian, of crushing political dissent and of being responsible for Georgia's war with Russia.
By this account, the elections on 1 October will be rigged.
It is a well-funded message being spread by top international lobbyists and PR firms hired by Georgia's opposition leader, the tycoon Bidzina Ivanishvili, whose $6.4bn (Â£3.9bn; 4.9bn-euro) fortune is worth around half of Georgia's GDP.
The govenrment denies the claims, and says it fears that such a negative portrayal of the country will undermine the credibility of Georgia's democratic reforms - jeopardising the flow of Western aid and the country's drive to join the EU and Nato.
In the US, Georgia's government hires three major firms to promote the country's image and give advice on political strategy, spending around $1.83m a year.
There are allegations the money is being used to promote the ruling party.
But this year Mr Ivanishvili has gone on his own PR drive.
It has been claimed that the opposition is currently spending around $1m a month on 18 firms and consultants across Europe and the US. Mr Ivanishvili's office said much less was being spent, but was unable to provide full details.
"Ivanishvili has an army of lobbyists who essentially do black PR and spread misinformation about the elections," says Zoe Reyners, a Paris-based political consultant employed by the Georgian government.
Typically a Western parliamentarian or journalist will receive an email detailing how the government is unfairly targeting the opposition.
And information about alleged human rights abuses is spread by organisations - which at first glance appear to be impartial NGOs - such as Citizens for Democracy in Georgia, which is financed by Mr Ivanishvili.
One recent poll, funded by Mr Ivanishvili - although that was not immediately apparent from the press release - put the opposition ahead.
That contradicted every other reputable survey so far conducted.
A slick video, with the music and American voice-over more common to a Hollywood action movie, has also been produced. It portrays Mr Ivanishvili as a saintly figure with the work ethic of Bill Gates and the moral fibre of Gandhi.
The tactics may appear blunt but the message appears to be working
Mr Ivanishvili argues that President Saakashvili has lobbied heavily in the West for years, and he is entitled to fight back.
It may seem strange for Georgia to be willing to spend so much money winning over people outside the country who have no vote. But the West has taken on the role of referee in a fight which is becoming increasingly dirty.
"Georgian people don't trust the government or the election authorities," says Maia Panjikidze, spokesperson for Mr Ivanishvili's opposition coalition Georgian Dream.
"In the last 20 years there have been so many cases of stolen elections. So you need somebody from outside to judge whether the elections are okay. It's a sign of the weakness of our democracy."
As with all effective PR, there is some truth in the arguments coming from both sides.
The difficulty for Western observers is that the situation in Georgia is indeed complicated. Certainly far too complex to boil down into one easily digested press release.


Jack Dunn's hat-trick helped Morecambe past Rotherham after extra time in an EFL Cup first-round thriller.

Cole Stockton's curled finish put League Two side ahead.
Greg Halford's penalty equalised, only for Dunn to restore Morecambe's lead before the Championship side struck twice in two minutes through Jerry Yates and Anthony Forde to make it 3-2.
Dunn's second forced the tie to extra time, when he scored again and Kevin Ellison netted before Yates' reply.
Forward Dunn, on loan from Liverpool, scored from the penalty spot two minutes into injury time after he was fouled by Richard Wood in the box, giving Morecambe renewed hope of completing an upset.
Former Rotherham winger Ellison fired the Shrimps ahead for only the second time in the game in the 113th minute before then setting Dunn up for his treble with two minutes to go to make it 5-3.
There was still time for Rotherham to score again, with Yates giving Jim Bentley's Morecambe reason to be nervous when he struck in the final minute of extra time.
Rotherham manager Alan Stubbs: "First of all it was obviously disappointing and secondly the manner of the goals is not good enough.
"They were goals that at this level we shouldn't be conceding. It is an area that we are looking to make stronger. You look at tonight and people will say you can see why.
"As a team we need to do better than what we did, that was the same on Saturday. We should be doing better."
Morecambe manager Jim Bentley: "It was excellent, credit where credit is due, I thought the players were absolutely magnificent against a strong team away from home.
"I am emotionally drained, it was a long night, but the players were fantastic and they deserve every pat on the back that they get tonight. I am very proud of them, we deserved it."
Match ends, Rotherham United 4, Morecambe 5.
Second Half Extra Time ends, Rotherham United 4, Morecambe 5.
Attempt blocked. Danny Ward (Rotherham United) left footed shot from outside the box is blocked.
Greg Halford (Rotherham United) wins a free kick on the right wing.
Foul by Kevin Ellison (Morecambe).
Goal!  Rotherham United 4, Morecambe 5. Jerry Yates (Rotherham United) right footed shot from the centre of the box to the bottom right corner. Assisted by Anthony Forde.
Goal!  Rotherham United 3, Morecambe 5. Jack Dunn (Morecambe) left footed shot from outside the box to the bottom left corner. Assisted by Kevin Ellison.
Attempt missed. Jack Dunn (Morecambe) left footed shot from the centre of the box is too high.
Goal!  Rotherham United 3, Morecambe 4. Kevin Ellison (Morecambe) right footed shot from the centre of the box to the centre of the goal.
Foul by Richard Wood (Rotherham United).
Kevin Ellison (Morecambe) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Attempt missed. Jerry Yates (Rotherham United) left footed shot from the centre of the box is close, but misses to the left.
Attempt missed. Lee Molyneux (Morecambe) left footed shot from outside the box misses to the left.
Attempt missed. Kevin Ellison (Morecambe) left footed shot from outside the box misses to the right.
Foul by Mason Warren (Rotherham United).
Tom Barkhuizen (Morecambe) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Anthony Forde (Rotherham United) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Michael Rose (Morecambe).
Second Half Extra Time begins Rotherham United 3, Morecambe 3.
First Half Extra Time ends, Rotherham United 3, Morecambe 3.
Attempt missed. Andrew Fleming (Morecambe) right footed shot from outside the box is too high.
Attempt blocked. Anthony Forde (Rotherham United) right footed shot from the right side of the box is blocked.
Attempt blocked. Jon Taylor (Rotherham United) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked.
Attempt missed. Jerry Yates (Rotherham United) right footed shot from the centre of the box is too high.
Hand ball by Kevin Ellison (Morecambe).
Attempt missed. Richard Wood (Rotherham United) header from the centre of the box is close, but misses to the left following a corner.
Corner,  Rotherham United. Conceded by Ryan Edwards.
Attempt blocked. Anthony Forde (Rotherham United) right footed shot from outside the box is blocked.
Attempt missed. Danny Ward (Rotherham United) left footed shot from outside the box is too high.
First Half Extra Time begins Rotherham United 3, Morecambe 3.
Second Half ends, Rotherham United 3, Morecambe 3.
Attempt missed. Jack Dunn (Morecambe) left footed shot from outside the box is close, but misses to the left.
Will Vaulks (Rotherham United) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
Foul by Andrew Fleming (Morecambe).
Attempt blocked. Jack Dunn (Morecambe) left footed shot from outside the box is blocked.
Richard Smallwood (Rotherham United) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
Foul by Michael Rose (Morecambe).
Goal!  Rotherham United 3, Morecambe 3. Jack Dunn (Morecambe) converts the penalty with a left footed shot to the centre of the goal.
Penalty conceded by Richard Wood (Rotherham United) after a foul in the penalty area.
Penalty Morecambe. Jack Dunn draws a foul in the penalty area.


Former Blue Peter presenter John Noakes, who hosted the show in the 1960s and 1970s, has died aged 83.

Noakes was the BBC children's show's longest-serving presenter, appearing for more than 12 years, and was often seen with his dog Shep by his side.
He was also known for his daredevil stunts like climbing Nelson's Column and jumping out of planes - and for his famous encounter with a baby elephant.
A family statement said he had "endured and suffered from" Alzheimer's disease.
"Whilst he will be greatly missed by his wife, family and many friends his release from continuing ill health must be counted as a blessing," it said.
"His many escapades with his faithful companion Shep, during his time with Blue Peter, will live on in many peoples memories. That is how his family would like him remembered."
Noakes joined the show at the end of 1965 after training as an engine fitter for the RAF, and stayed until 1978.
He became a favourite as the show's action man, and continued to play on that image with several series of Go With Noakes, where he travelled around the UK with Shep alongside him.
That led to his catchphrase "Get down Shep!" - which even became the title of a song by comedy group The Barron Knights.
Noakes appeared on Blue Peter with co-presenters including Christopher Trace, Valerie Singleton, Lesley Judd and Peter Purves.
Purves told BBC News that Noakes's death was "very sad" but added that the Alzheimer's had become "extremely serious" in recent years.
Remembering his friend, he said: "He was unique. He had qualities that no-one else had and he'll be remembered very fondly by a lot of people, and none more so than me."
He was "very, very brave" in doing his many stunts and adventures, Purves added.
"We had so much fun together over the years. There were hundreds and hundreds of happy memories. I'll never forget him."
THAT elephant: Noakes revelled in the merry chaos that erupted when a frightened baby elephant called Lulu misbehaved in the studio. He cried "ooh, get off me foot!" as he tried to get hold of Lulu - and the rest is British TV history.
Bobsleigh bruises: When he shot down the Cresta Run in Switzerland, the camera travelling with him, viewers saw him crash out at high speed. They also saw him lower his trousers to show the bruises on his thigh afterwards.
Flying high: With the help of the RAF, Noakes jumped out of a plane in 1973 to became the first civilian in Europe to freefall from a height of five miles.
Nelson's Column: In a task that would never pass a modern risk assessment, Noakes scaled a series of ladders to reach the top of Nelson's Column in 1977 (pictured), telling viewers he was "literally hanging from ladder with nothing at all beneath me".
Shep's death: Nine years after he left Blue Peter, an emotional Noakes returned to the BBC on a programme called Fax, presented by Bill Oddie, to break some "very bad news". Fighting back tears, he informed the nation that Shep had died.
Other previous Blue Peter hosts added their tributes.
Janet Ellis, a presenter from the 1980s, wrote: "The best, bravest, funniest BP presenter. If we didn't walk in John Noakes' shadow it's because he shone the light for us. RIP".
Konnie Huq, who appeared in the 1990s and 2000s, wrote on Twitter that he was "a legend", adding: "John Noakes. Best Blue Peter presenter ever. RIP. So sad."
Sarah Greene added: "Deepest condolences to the family of John Noakes. He made us feel we could all get out there & whizz down the Cresta Run, he broke the bounds."
Zoe Salmon, who fronted the show between 2004 and 2008, tweeted: "I am deeply saddened to hear about John Noakes, a Blue Peter legend who will live on in our hearts. Privileged to have met him."
Katy Hill wrote: "SADDEST news about the legendary John Noakes who inspired me to want to present Blue Peter & do EVERYTHING he did. THE BEST!"
BBC director general Tony Hall described Noakes as "one of the BBC's most loved children's presenters".
In a statement, he said: "He was a warm and engaging presenter who appealed to all ages and provided children's TV with some of its most memorable moments. He will be missed by his many friends and family."
Follow us on Facebook, on Twitter @BBCNewsEnts, or on Instagram at bbcnewsents. If you have a story suggestion email entertainment.news@bbc.co.uk.


Like most business owners, Ahmed Jaber relies on his customers.

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They are the ones who flock to his warehouse sales, snapping up the cut-price designer label fashion he has sourced from across Europe and beyond,
But now Mr Jaber is hoping those same customers might put more of their money into the firm, this time as investors.
His business, The Outlet, is one of the first to appear on Eureeca. It's a crowdinvesting online platform that has just launched in the Middle East, focusing on businesses in the United Arab Emirates, Jordan and Lebanon.
It is similar to popular crowdfunding websites such as Kickstarter, typically used to raise funds for artistic projects from music and films to festivals and fashion.
But instead of making what is essentially a donation, and getting rewards or gifts in return, crowd investors put money into a business and get a small stake in the firm.
And, all being well, they might just get their money back and more besides.
Mr Jaber is offering 15% of The Outlet in exchange for $600,000, money he wants to spend on advertsing, hiring staff and trying to get into online retail - an industry still fairly undeveloped in the Middle East.
He has 90 days to raise the cash, but after two weeks, barely $10,000 has been committed. Slightly worrying given this is his best chance of sourcing the money.
If he fails to raise the full amount, the funds go back to the investors and The Outlet gets nothing.
"Banks won't lend to us because we're too young a firm to take on debt locally," Mr Jaber says, touching on an issue familiar to start-ups and new firms across the Middle East and beyond.
But even with options limited, he admits that agreeing to sell a stake in his business to perhaps hundreds or thousands of small investors was a "difficult decision" - not least because it involved making his business plan public and opening the books.
"When you work hard to build a business, it's like your baby," he says. "And you want to reap the rewards yourself.
"In the Middle East there is also a culture of keeping everything a secret in terms of running a private company - you don't want other people knowing how it's going.
"But we want to grow our business and this means we have to be transparent about it".
Globally, the bulk of small businesses and start-ups fail. One estimate suggests about 95% of firms do not last five years and even if that figure is exaggerated, investments can clearly go wrong.
Investment contracts are with the individual business rather than the platform, and crowdinvesting is not regulated as an industry. But Eureeca's bosses argue that the transparency they demand, combined with thorough background checks, mean would-be investors should not be put off.
According to co-founder Chris Thomas, relying on "the crowd" adds greater investor protection than if the money had come from a more formal source such as a bank.
"The core ethos of crowdfunding is that you access your existing community," he says.
"That's your friends, your followers, people who subscribe to your mailing list, people that are the part of your trust circle. These are the guys that you want to keep on the right side."
But while that might be good for the companies, is there not a danger that investors are blindly investing because they like a product or an individual?
After all, putting your money into a firm can be done in minutes with a Facebook login, a couple of clicks of your computer mouse and a credit card.
"Many investments made online or offline are a combination of heart and your head - and we make decisions in part because we like the business, have an affinity with it," argues Mr Thomas.
"But what we do is let you make a cold-hearted business decision. I genuinely believe this is going to become the de facto way of raising money for SMEs - we're going to look back in 10 years and wonder how we did without it."
Not everyone is quite so convinced. Dubai-based investment consultant Feroz Sanaulla thinks crowdinvesting has a role in supporting businesses but that it will only ever be a bit-part player alongside other forms of funding.
And he anticipates the model won't be without issues.
"Raising equity through crowdfunding is problematic because there could be different kinds of investors in any company," says Mr Sanaulla.
"When you have a small investor with $1,000, someone with $10,000 and someone with $100,000 invested, each has different expectations because they're taking different risks in the process. So how do you make sure there is a template that fits all three investors? That's the real difficulty."
But before you face that dilemma you have to raise the money - something Kris Barber is all too aware of.
His company, DGrade, recycles plastic bottles to make clothes, from school uniforms to branded hoodies for firms keen to show their environmental credentials.
It is quite a different world from designer labels, but Mr Barber is another entrepreneur trying to tap crowd investors. He wants to help centralise the business in the UAE where plastic bottle use is high and recycling levels low.
The initial move will cost about $300,000, for which Mr Barber is prepared to surrender 10% of the business
But he sees some of his backers as more than a source of investment.
"There's the serious investor who invests in other businesses too, someone looking for a return on investment. They'll put in larger sums and they're obviously important," says Mr Barber.
"Then there's the other type of investor who... has no experience of investing in other businesses but actually has an interest in the product and in the process - someone who will talk about the business and tell their friends."
And that, argues Eureeca's Mr Thomas, is perhaps the biggest benefit of crowdinvesting.
"It opens new avenues that weren't there before in terms of building your ambassadors," he says.
"Businesses spend many, many marketing dollars trying to get to that end client, to get to the customer buying our products, getting to the guy who is going to refer us to his friends.
"If you successfully crowdinvest you are going to have many dozens of investors, maybe hundreds of members of your community who believe in your product.
"The power of the crowd is so important, and when you can figure out how to unlock that, the world's your oyster."


At the start of the season, I wrote a column about how the poor scheduling of the Women's Super League was confusing for fans, so I'm pleased the Football Association has addressed this by switching to a winter competition.

Moving to a summer league back in 2011 was a good decision in order to grow a fan base, and welcoming regular crowds of more than 1,000 people, it feels like we have done that.
But we have already seen huge gaps in the fixtures this season, and irregular scheduling could spoil all the good work done in growing the game to this stage.
Now we will hopefully see more consistency, and I actually think it opens up some exciting marketing opportunities to boost women's football even further.
Clubs could begin to merge their men's and women's operations to a greater degree by hosting games on the same weekend or even the same day.
Why not play a women's WSL game at Stamford Bridge or Emirates Stadium before the men kick off their Premier League match? Or create ticket price incentives for fans that involve going to a men's and women's game for a reduced price than a normal ticket? That could lead to some really big attendances and would be fantastic for the players too.
I also think the move will be good for the competitiveness of WSL teams and, in turn, England.
The Women's Champions League is still run on a winter schedule so when we played Wolfsburg in the competition last November, not only had we completed a full season, but we hadn't played for a month.
We were out of season, and if English teams wanted to succeed in Europe, we had to do something to align us with our competitors, who also play their domestic leagues in winter.
Performing well in the Champions League will have a knock-on effect with the England team. The best international players from Europe all have years of experience in the continent's elite club competition and we need to bridge that gap if we want to win major tournaments.
From a European perspective, Chelsea have been encouraging a winter move, but overall it makes sense and I applaud the FA for taking the criticism and recommendations about this season on board.
We are already seeing a greater collaboration between men's and women's football, and the media seems to be adopting this with increasing frequency.
In September 2014, I became the first female pundit to appear on Match of Day, and recently worked as a TV pundit during Euro 2016, so it shows you I'm not alone in thinking women are more than qualified to talk about men's football.
During the Euros, I wasn't sure what to expect from working on an exclusively male panel for a major tournament, but I had some great feedback from my fellow pundits and fans.
Initially, I think there were a few of my colleagues who were surprised I was there, and didn't really know who I was.
Former Arsenal and France midfielder Emmanuel Petit admitted he didn't know much about women's football, but after we had spoken about his time at Chelsea and he heard some my opinions about the game, he recognised I knew what I was talking about.
I also spoke a lot to West Ham boss Slaven Bilic, who, like me, studied law when he was younger.
It doesn't matter if you're talking law or football; all you want is for people to judge you on your professional opinion first, rather than as a woman.
I'm not the only one, of course. Doncaster's Sue Smith, Arsenal's Alex Scott and Casey Stoney plus former Everton goalkeeper Rachel Brown-Finnis have all appeared on TV talking about men's football, but we have all played the game at major tournaments for England, so our sex is irrelevant.
Hopefully by breaking new ground, it won't seem like such a big deal for other players to be hired in the same way, and it won't be too long before women appear on football shows on a weekly basis.
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Various pundits have said the European Championship lacked quality but I thought it was a great tournament in terms of parity of results, upsets, and the likes of Wales reaching the semi-finals unexpectedly.
Some have said increasing the tournament to 24 teams diluted the standard, but I don't think that was the case. Many games were decided in the last 10 minutes which suggests they were close.
Admittedly, no team was outstanding. France and Germany looked good from the start but still had weaknesses and I think that added to the excitement; there was no way of predicting what would happen. Antonio Conte's Italy looked the most exciting team for me but Germany, as England have often experienced, unfortunately knocked them out on penalties.
The only issue I had was that most of the strong teams appeared on one side of the draw.
It seemed strange that Italy, Spain, Germany and France were all on one side and the likes of Portugal and Wales were on the other. That made it easier for them to get to the final, so it felt like Portugal, who won only one game in 90 minutes, had an easier ride.
Lots of people also complained that allowing a third-placed team to reach the second round was wrong, but Portugal won it from that position and look at what we got from the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland: arguably two of the best sets of fans in the tournament.
Elsewhere, Iceland beat England and provided one of the stories of the championship. And where would we be without the thunderclap?
After such a good tournament, I think the final was a huge anti-climax. The French players looked exhausted in the second half, with the advantage of Portugal having one more day of rest proving the difference.  Surely for a final both teams should've had equal days' rest? It would have been great for France to win, for lots of reasons, but they didn't have enough when it mattered the most which I am sure they will regret for many years to come.
Still, at least we got to witness Cristiano Ronaldo as an injured assistant coach. That was hilarious. It couldn't have been any more about him!
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England and Chelsea forward Eniola Aluko was speaking to BBC Sport's Alistair Magowan


Stargazers are getting ready to enjoy the spectacular Perseid Meteor Shower.

Hundreds of meteors will streak across the sky in the beautiful natural firework show, visible around the world.
The shower peaks in mid August but a full moon on August 7th means that this weekend may be the best time to see the natural wonder.
And it's not just the Perseid, two other meteor showers will be visible this weekend also.
The Alpha Capricornids Shower will peak tonight and then hang around a few more nights, and the Southern Delta Aquariids showers will peak Saturday and Sunday.
The Perseids are actually tiny pieces of the Swift-Tuttle comet that can be seen every year when the Earth passes through a cloud of the comet's debris.
They're bits of ice and dust, which can be as small as a grain of sand or as big as a pea.
The fragments were left behind whenever Swift-Tuttle passed close to Earth - the last time was in 1992.
The meteors appear to come from a point in the constellation of Perseus, hence the name Perseid.
They hit the Earth's atmosphere at a whopping speed of 134,000 mph, but don't pose any danger to us on Earth.
The celestial show is expected to hit its peak overnight between 11-12 August but you can see it any night until then starting tonight.
Unlike some other cosmic events, spectators don't need special technology to watch the Perseids unfold.
It's best to find a wide open space away from tall buildings or trees, and with as little light as possible.
The more of the sky you can see, the better.
This year's shower could see 200 meteors an hour become visible in the night's sky, in an event known as an "outburst".


Labour leadership contender Andy Burnham has said he will support an immediate review of the ban on the Labour Party standing candidates in Northern Ireland.

Writing in the Belfast Telegraph, Mr Burnham said he would "seek the views of the Irish Labour Party and others".
He added he wanted the "people of Northern Ireland to make their voices heard".
Boyd Black, the Labour party NI secretary, welcomed Mr Burnham's call.
Mr Black said the party has about 850 members plus many additional registered voters.
He has openly backed Mr Burnham in the campaign and said he believes his promises of a review are genuine "as he has always been consistent".
"I welcome his support for our campaign to run candidates here. His promotion of us standing has definitely improved our membership numbers," he said.
My Burnham tells the newspaper: "I am proud of my family roots in the north of Ireland and, growing up in Liverpool, the strong connection between the city and Ireland was ever present."
"I want the people of Northern Ireland to make their voices heard in the Labour Party and if I am elected leader, I'll ensure that the party is listening."
Jeremy Corbyn, the bookmakers' favourite in the leadership race, told the West Belfast Festival he would not support the party organising in Northern Ireland.
Mr Burnham is standing along with Yvette Cooper, Jeremy Corbyn and Liz Kendall.
Ballot papers were sent out on 14 August, with the result being announced on 12 September.


Olympic bronze medallist Alan Campbell recorded his ninth win in 12 years at the GB Rowing trials at Caversham.

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The 32-year-old Northern Irishman held off Graeme Thomas and Angus Groom in the single scull to move within one of the record held by Katherine Grainger.
There was also a fourth consecutive win for Moe Sbihi, while Heather Stanning, Helen Glover, Alex Gregory and Vicky Thornley enjoyed their third victories.
The results will help decide the crews for May's European Championships.
The event in Germany will also help determine which rower is in which boat for the Olympic Games, which take place in Rio in August.
"We still have some questions as we move towards our crew formation but we got good information from these trials," said performance director Sir David Tanner.


A-levels should be replaced by a baccalaureate-style qualification that requires teenagers to study maths and science to 18, scientists say.

A Royal Society report says too few 16-year-olds take maths and sciences to maintain a competitive economy.
The UK's national academy of science warns that UK education risks not being fit for purpose in 20 years' time.
Its report - Vision for Mathematics and Science - also calls for teachers' professional status to be boosted.
"Too many people in the UK are mathematically and scientifically illiterate," said Prof Sir Martin Taylor, chairman of the report committee.
"Science and mathematics are at the absolute heart of modern life.
"Our vision aims to raise the general level of mathematical and scientific knowledge and confidence in the population."
The authors say science and maths form the foundations of the UK's future economic prosperity and cite research from the Royal Academy of Engineering from 2012 which estimated that more than a million new science, engineering and technology professionals would be needed by 2020.
The report finds excellent practice in science and maths in primary schools across the UK and "offers a way to build on these foundations" as students progress through school.
It suggests:
Teaching should be "a highly regarded career with a high professional status", say the authors, and all teachers should have a teaching qualification or be working towards one.
Ultimately teachers would be trained, trusted and respected to assess public qualifications, rather than relying on external exams.
In England and Wales, new independent expert bodies should decide curriculum and assessment standards, with more support for bodies in Northern Ireland and Scotland which already do this.
This would "bring to an end the turmoil that teachers currently suffer as a result of constant changes" and allow them to be more innovative.
The report calls for learned bodies such as the Institute of Mathematics, the Institute of Physics, the Royal Society of Chemistry and the Society of Biology to support and shape what is taught and how it is assessed, and to provide professional recognition and development for specialist teachers.
All primary schools should have access to at least one subject teacher in both science and mathematics. At secondary level, maths and sciences should be taught by teachers with relevant degrees.
The report calls for better careers guidance in schools on jobs in science and technology.
Report co-author Dame Alison Peacock, head of the Wroxham School in Hertfordshire, said: "Teaching is a chronically undervalued profession in the UK.
"Our country's future prosperity rests in teachers' ability to inspire and guide our young people, yet we don't currently adequately recognise or reward them."
A spokesman for the Department for Education said the number of young people studying physics and maths had already risen at both GCSE and A-level and reforms to the qualifications system would lead to thousands more young people studying courses in maths, sciences and vocational education.
"Young people will achieve our new TechBacc if they get a set of high-quality post-16 qualifications made up of a Tech Level, a gold-standard vocational qualification endorsed by employers, an advanced maths course and the extended project," said the spokesman.
"University academics and subject experts are making A-levels in sciences and maths far more demanding so young people are prepared for rigorous degree courses."
The government has raised the level of bursaries and scholarships available to the "brightest maths and science graduates", he added.
Shaun Reason, chief executive of the Association for Science Education, said his organisation was committed to playing its part in raising the level of scientific and mathematical skills and knowledge of the UK population.
"As the professional association for all those involved in science education from pre-school to higher education, we are particularly interested in the professional journey of teachers," he said.
"We agree that the focus on raising the professional status of our current teaching force is critical, so that science teaching is seen as a highly regarded and rewarding career."
Malcolm Trobe, deputy general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, said: "The UK is a world leader in science and engineering and we need to have an education system that ensures we stay at the leading edge of developments in these areas.
"It is exciting to have such an august and respected body engaging in the education debate and setting out a long-term vision.
"Teachers will fully support the view that curricula and their assessment should be stabilised and support excellent teaching and learning. There are major changes occurring over the next five years and a period of stability will be important to ensure the changes are successfully embedded."
Russell Hobby, general secretary of the National Association of Head Teachers, said: "As educators we welcome any suggestions to improve the teaching of maths, technology and science, and we find much that is sensible in this report, not least the long-term vision for change.
"We agree that you have to teach and assess the whole of the subject, not just those bits which are easy to measure in a written exam. Because the government does not trust teachers, it risks narrowing the curriculum and diminishing the practice and craft of these subjects.
"The report rightly recognises the importance of highly skilled and motivated teachers. It is only by training and by raising morale that we can equip people to teach these subjects in depth and with a pleasure that brings difficult topics alive. A stable teaching environment will be a key part in restoring the confidence of the profession.
"It is also becoming increasingly clear that we do need to think more about the role of subject specialisms at primary school - and how this can be combined with the huge pastoral role that primary teachers play.
"We agree that we need to help children see the connections between what they learn at school and what they may be doing with the rest of their lives - particularly at work. By the age of 14, students and their families are making choices which open and close doors. Careers guidance - in a light-touch format - should begin early.
"Encouragingly, this is a good example of civil society lifting education policy out of the hands of politicians and showing that we are all responsible for education. We see this more and more, and it may just break the destructive cycle of short-term fashions and adversarial relations that holds our schools back."


The Green Bay Packers scored a 51-yard field goal with three seconds left to beat the Dallas Cowboys 34-31 and move to within one game of the Super Bowl.

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The Cowboys had rallied from 21-3 down at half-time in Dallas to level the scores before Mason Crosby drilled a retaken effort through the posts.
Green Bay now face the Atlanta Falcons next weekend, with the Pittsburgh Steelers playing New England.
The Steelers beat the Kansas City Chiefs 18-16 in Sunday's late game.
The Cowboys were top seeds in the NFC, having won 13 of their 16 games in the regular season, but a touchdown from Richard Rodgers and two for Ty Montgomery put the Packers in control at half-time.
Dallas fought their way back into the game but Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers found Jared Cook with a 36-yard pass with three seconds left and Crosby did the rest - despite having to retake his kick after Dallas called for a timeout during his first effort.
The Packers have now won eight matches in a row.
Packers coach Mike McCarthy said Rodgers, who led Green Bay to victory in the 2011 Super Bowl, is "an incredible talent".
He said: "To do it when it's on the line like that, that's what great players do.
"That was one heck of a football game to be a part of. I just can't say enough about my team's resilience."
Pittsburgh failed to score a touchdown in Kansas but reached their 16th AFC Championship game thanks to six field goals from Chris Boswell.
The Steelers - who have won six Super Bowls, more than any other side - will now face Tom Brady's New England Patriots for a place in Super Bowl LI in Houston on Sunday, 5 February.
Brady beat the Steelers at the same stage of the play-offs on both previous meetings in 2001 and 2004.


Almost 500,000 people are demanding a life ban on animal abusers in the wake of the plight of Chunky, the Chihuahua who was tortured and left for dead.

A petition with nearly half a million signatures demanding tougher penalties has been delivered to Westminster.
It calls for a register of people convicted of seriously ill-treating animals and a ban on keeping pets.
Four teenagers received five-year bans for breaking Chunky's leg and neck and setting him on fire in Margate.
More than 498,000 people have signed the petition, which calls for a US-style animal-cruelty register to be established in the UK, denying abusers the opportunity of ever owning an animal in the future.
It was delivered to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs by Chunky's owners and Maxine Berry, who launched the petition.
The four boys, aged 15 and 16, who cannot be named, were disqualified from keeping a pet for five years last year after Chunky - a Chihuahua cross - was found with life-threatening injuries.
He has since recovered.


Two men have been jailed for grooming and sex attacks on underage girls in Essex.

Colin Trotman, 45, of Wetherell Road, Hackney, and Reynold Dyett, 56, from Elderfield Road, Clapton, drove regularly to Southend to prey on girls.
Police described the pair as "hideous, perverse and dangerous", Basildon Crown Court heard.
Trotman was jailed for 14 years for crimes including rape and Dyett for six years for sexual activity with a child.
Both were also found guilty of conspiracy to meet a child following sexual grooming.
Judge John Lodge said the men had ensnared the girls and paid no regard to their ages.
Trotman was convicted of five offences and Dyett of four all relating to underage girls.
They bought the youngsters alcohol before getting them to perform sexual acts, the court heard.
Nick Alston, Essex Police and Crime Commissioner, said: "The lengthy sentences for both defendants is reflective of not just the gravity of the crime but the seriousness with which the criminal justice system treats the sexual exploitation of young children.
"I must applaud the bravery of the three teenage victims who had the great courage to come forward to police and see the perpetrators face justice.
"Judge Lodge rightly commended the hard work of Det Sgt Shirley Cole and it is thanks to the tenacity of her and her team that these two extremely predatory and dangerous individuals have been brought to justice."


Lord Coe is ready to ban Kenya's track and field team from the Olympics if the country's athletics federation is declared non-compliant with the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) code.

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Kenya missed a deadline last week to prove to Wada it was tackling cheating.
It comes after a spate of positive drugs tests among some of the country's athletes and allegations of corruption.
"We have to be much more proactive," said Coe, president of the sport's world governing body the IAAF.
Coe said he would impose serious sanctions on any nation guilty of attempting to cover up drug-taking.
Kenya is to be placed on a 'watch-list' of nations at risk of breaching Wada's code and could be banned from international competition if non-compliant, as happened with Russia's athletes.
"We know that a disproportionate amount of reputational damage is caused by a relatively few countries," he told BT Sport's The Clare Balding Show.
"If it means pulling them out of World Championships or Olympic Games then we will have to do that.
"I know the World Anti-Doping Agency has looked very closely at the Kenyan National Anti-Doping Agency. We, of course, monitor that through the IAAF, so that work is ongoing."
On Tuesday, the chief executive of Athletics Kenya said he wanted to step down temporarily amid allegations he asked athletes for bribes to reduce doping bans.
Isaac Mwangi denies wrongdoing but wants to leave his post for 21 days while the claims are investigated by the IAAF.
For several months, Wada has been trying to persuade Kenya to set up an effective national agency so more drug tests can be conducted, but progress has been slow.
The East African country, whose athletes are dominant in distance running, topped the medal table at the 2015 World Championships in Beijing with seven gold medals.
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But since 2011, more than 40 of its athletes have failed drugs tests.
David Howman, Wada's director general, said "a fully functional" anti-doping agency is "a vital step for a country of Kenya's sporting stature" if it is to "effectively protect clean athletes".
He added that it must be established "at the earliest opportunity".
Meanwhile, former marathon world record holder Wilson Kipsang has urged Kenya's government to strengthen their fight against doping.
Kipsang, 33, is president of the Professional Athletes Association of Kenya and was among 80 athletes who met in Eldoret on Wednesday to formulate an appeal to Kenya's government to fast-track legislation criminalising doping.
He told the Daily Nation newspaper: "We must all step up the fight against doping because if we are banned, Kenya will never be the same again. This is a country which has made its name as an athletics giant."


Truro City must take the form they showed in the FA Trophy into the league, says boss Lee Hodges.

The White Tigers lost to National League high-flyers Forest Green late in extra time in their first-round replay.
"The way they performed over the two games was phenomenal and they've set those dizzy heights now," Hodges said.
"It's no good putting all that hard work into trying to win games and then going to underperform and get beaten at a whimper," he told BBC Radio Cornwall.
"Now they've set those standards they have to go and fight like they have done in those games."
City drew 1-1 with Forest Green at the new Lawn before losing 1-0 at Treyew Road on Tuesday and are 14th in the National League South table.


Sheffield United have signed forward Che Adams from non-league Ilkeston for an undisclosed fee on a two-year deal.

The 18-year-old has scored eight goals for the Evo-Stik Northern Premier League club this season.
Robins boss Kevin Wilson said: "It's a relief that it has finally been sorted because there's no doubt that all the activity and speculation has been a disruptive influence around the place.
"But I'm absolutely delighted and we all wish him well in his future."


League One side MK Dons have signed striker Kieran Agard from Bristol City for a club-record transfer fee.

The 26-year-old has won promotion out of the third tier with both Rotherham and the Robins, scoring 35 goals over the course of his previous two seasons in the division.
However, he only started seven matches for City in the Championship last term and signs a three-year Dons contract.
"The ambition and direction of MK Dons suits me perfectly," he said.
Find all the latest football transfers on our dedicated page.


BP has lost a second attempt to suspend compensation payments over the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil rig disaster.

The UK oil giant has said that fraud and false compensation payments are behind the escalating costs it faces.
But Judge Carl Barbier ruled that there was no "credible evidence of fraud" or that the compensation process was tainted by conflicts of interest.
BP said it continued to believe that the compensation system was being abused.
Former FBI director Louis Freeh is investigating allegations of misconduct in the claims program.
The oil company insists that the payouts should be suspended while Mr Freeh carries out his probe.
In an emailed statement to Bloomberg on Wednesday, BP said: "As we await the completion of this broad investigation [by Mr Freeh], we continue to believe a temporary pause in payments is warranted.
"BP is reviewing its options with respect to the district court's decision today."
The Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion killed 11 workers and released an estimated four million barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico.
BP set up a compensation fund, initially estimating the cost of the settlement at $7.8bn (£5.03bn). The company has since raised the estimate to $9.6bn.