The government will not automatically roll out broadband to those areas of the UK that don't yet have services, it has been confirmed.

Instead, its Universal Service Obligation, announced last year, will require homes and businesses to request providers offer net connections.
Those "broadband have-nots" could face a four-year wait until they are legally entitled to request such a service.
How the process will work and who will pay for it remain unclear.
In a consultation document on the USO, the government said: "Given the high costs of providing broadband access to premises in remote areas it is right that this is done on request, rather than rolling it out and waiting to see if people in those areas want to be connected.
"We know from the various interventions that the government has made to date that it is unlikely that everyone will want to be connected, even if that option is made available to them, and so we do not believe that an additional broadband rollout programme at this time is proportionate or would represent value for money."
But it denied reports that this represents a U-turn, saying it had never claimed there would be further rollouts.
"It's absolute nonsense to suggest we're leaving rural areas behind in our rollout of broadband.
"Our current plans will reach at least 95% of the UK, but we want everyone to have fast broadband so we are introducing a Universal Service Obligation to help make sure no-one is left behind," a spokesman for DCMS told the BBC.
The government has said it hopes to have the USO in place "by the end of this Parliament" in 2020, adding it was working to make it happen "as soon as possible".
How it will be funded remains unclear but it is likely to be along similar lines to the way the legal obligation for telephone services operates  - the onus on funding is on BT, up to a threshold of Â£3,400. If costs go above that, the home owner is asked to contribute.
In November 2015, the prime minister announced the government's intention to implement the new broadband universal service obligation (USO) to provide broadband speeds of at least 10Mbps (megabits per second) to everyone, saying it wanted to put broadband on a more equal footing with essential services such as electricity and water.
Under current plans, the government hopes to deliver broadband to 95% of the UK by December 2017.
The DCMS estimates that up to 1 million UK premises will not be able to access speeds of 10Mbps or higher by that time.
Some agree that the government is right to offer broadband to the final 5% on a demand-only basis.
"If you think back to 2009 when the government floated the idea of imposing a 50p levy on all fixed lines to pay for rural broadband, a number of people in rural areas came out protesting that they wouldn't pay for it, as they didn't want broadband," said Matthew Howett, an analyst with research firm Ovum.
A study from comparison site uSwitch suggests that even in towns where fast broadband is readily available, take-up is not always as high as might be expected.
BT's own figures also seem to bear this out - its fibre services are now available to 24 million homes but only 22% (5.5 million) have connected to them.
Paul Evans, chief executive of Boosty - a service which boosts fixed broadband speeds with smartphone 3G and 4G - said the fact that there would be no automatic rollout to remote areas "will be met with bitter disappointment".
"Yet again those living in rural areas are deprioritised and denied access to what we now consider to be a commodity service."
Andrew Ferguson, co-founder of broadband news site ThinkBroadband, said universal broadband is already available to most households.
"Satellite connections with speeds well in excess of 10 Mbps are available to all if you can locate a satellite dish with a clear view of the southern sky on your property, but we hope and have urged that the USO only utilise satellite connectivity as a measure of last resort."
Further details of how the broadband USO will work, including how it will be funded, will be laid out in a second consultation, expected this summer.


Investment in UK financial technology (fintech) start-ups has dropped by a third since June's Brexit decision, a trade body says.

Innovate Finance, which represents 300 UK fintech companies, says venture capital investment fell from $1.2bn (Â£970m) in 2015, to $783m last year.
"Our members tell us Brexit has had a chilling effect on investment," Innovate Finance chief executive Lawrence Wintermeyer told the BBC.
But globally, investment rose 10.9%.
There were 1,436 fintech deals globally, attracting $17.4bn in investment, Innovate Finance says, with China outpacing the US for the first time.
China invested $7.7bn while the US invested $6.2bn.
Venture capitalists typically invest in higher-risk, early-stage companies, but in the UK uncertainty around the Brexit decision seems to have blunted their appetite for risk.
Around 35 Innovate Finance members have reported a withdrawal or reduction in capital funding since the referendum, says Mr Wintermeyer.
"Investors don't like uncertainty," he said.
While London could boast "one of the best fintech investment scenes in the world", thanks to government support and "enlightened regulators", the capital could be "challenged as a global financial centre" if tech talent was forced to move abroad, he said.
Over 30% of Innovate Finance's fintech bosses are non-British, with many firms employing European staff, says Mr Wintermeyer.
Tim Levene, managing partner at Augmentum Capital, a Â£40m fund investing in fintech start-ups such as Nutmeg, Zopa and Seedrs, said: "We tried to raise Â£100m for a new European fintech fund last year, but two major institutions pulled out two weeks after the Brexit vote - they don't like the uncertainty.
"Most fund managers want to know what the future holds."
Mr Levene warns that worse is yet to come, given than "much of the capital currently being invested was raised before Brexit".
"There's no question that the US funds who've traditionally invested in European start-ups are pulling in their horns," he told the BBC. "The next two or three years will be challenging."
The biggest fintech deal of 2016 involving a UK company was the $5.5bn merger of financial information provider Markit with US-based IHS.
But if venture capitalists are keeping their power dry, private equity firms, who prefer well-established, less risky businesses, seem to be benefiting from a "flight to safety".
Phil Adams, chief executive of investment bank GCA Altium, said: "When the Brexit vote struck in June many people predicted an immediate collapse in UK mergers and acquisitions.
"What they missed was the huge amount of money private equity funds had raised, and indeed have continued to raise, and which they need to deploy.
"While the availability of early-stage funding for fintech companies may have been impacted, we have seen demand for profitable, growing assets rise at a rate that has arguably never been greater."


A coastguard helicopter crew took film footage of a humpback whale off the Isle of Lewis following concerns that the animal was in distress.

The Stornoway-based crew was training in the area where the whale was spotted west of Lewis earlier this week.
It was thought the whale was entangled in rope, or another object.
Members of British Divers Marine Life Rescue were later able to reach the whale by boat and found it to be swimming strongly and healthy.


Last week, U2's management confirmed that Bono and his band will play two concerts in Belfast in November, their first gigs in the city in 17 years.

Some debated whether the ageing Irish rock stars were as hot a ticket as ever.
My memories turned back to U2's last appearance in Belfast in 1998.
It was no ordinary concert, but a rally in support of the Northern Ireland peace process, which I reported on at the time for that night's main BBC TV news bulletin.
As the band played a medley of their song One and John Lennon's Give Peace A Chance to an audience of invited school pupils, they were joined on stage by the main unionist and nationalist proponents of the Good Friday Agreement, David Trimble and John Hume.
With a referendum on the deal only days away, the intention was to energise the Yes vote in order to secure not just an overall majority, but one so big the Agreement could be fairly said to enjoy the support of both sides of the community.
Not everyone was enamoured with the 1998 deal, with unionists particularly doubtful about the release of IRA and loyalist prisoners.
However, among the Yes camp there was genuine optimism and excitement, something which U2's intervention helped spread to the wider public.
When he returns in November, Bono will find that goodwill has evaporated.
The graph of casualty figures shows the 1998 deal unquestionably saved hundreds of lives, but the system at Stormont is unloved.
Many voters increasingly view the politicians with disdain - people who can't be bothered following the minutiae of the latest talks certainly noticed when a Stormont committee recently voted to reinstate free tea and coffee for its meetings.
At times, it seems as if the clock has been turned back.
This week, unionists set out demands they want met before they will enter talks.
These kind of "preconditions" and "talks about talks" were a feature of some of the negotiations which took place long before the 1998 Agreement.
It's as if hurdles long since cleared away are now back in place.
The first power-sharing administration ushered in by the 1998 deal was hobbled by crises linked to IRA activity, its reluctance to disarm and Sinn Fein's difficulties in backing the police.
All those obstacles, we thought, had been removed as a result of an agreement reached at St Andrews in Scotland which enabled the Democratic Unionists and Sinn Fein to share power in 2007.
However, the police statement that IRA members may have been involved in the murder of former IRA man Kevin McGuigan has put this progress into question.
Irish republicans argue that, like a butterfly, the IRA has fluttered away.
Unionists don't buy the colourful metaphor - they think the IRA still exists and has retained  a more deadly sting than republicans admit.
The politicians have surmounted bigger challenges before.
Maybe the reinstatement of something like the old Independent Monitoring Commission, which monitored the paramilitary ceasefires between 2004 and 2011, will provide a way forward.
The government is giving it "serious consideration".
However, the power-sharing administration faces other challenges in providing efficient government during a time of austerity.
Giving every significant party a role in the Stormont coalition looked like a strength back in 1998, ensuring everyone bought into the peace deal.
Now it seems a cumbersome arrangement, prone to deadlock and stalemate.
Politicians with radically different views on the economy, society and whether Northern Ireland should be British or Irish find themselves shackled together in coalitions, trying to make unwieldy compromises after each election.
Diagnosing the problem is one thing, coming up with a workable alternative is quite another in a region where historic differences make a government elected on a straight majority no longer an option.
For months, the power-sharing executive at Stormont has been deadlocked over budgetary matters.
Underlying this disagreement was Sinn Fein's refusal to implement welfare reforms introduced elsewhere in the UK.
However, the political crisis deepened last month after the police said current IRA members may have been involved in last month's murder of Kevin McGuigan Sr.
He was a former member of the Provisional IRA and according to police, one of a number of suspects in the murder of Gerard Jock Davison, who was shot dead in May.
Unionists argued that if the IRA remains active, Sinn Fein should be excluded from ministerial office.
The story of Stormont's crisis
The latest political developments may be uninspiring for the public, but most would agree the clock must not be turned back when it comes to peace and that downward trend in the casualty graph.
The danger of allowing a vacuum to develop at Stormont is that others, be they dissident republicans or loyalist paramilitaries, may seek to fill it.
U2 are calling their European tour Innocence + Experience.
We've had a mixed experience of power sharing in Northern Ireland since I last saw U2 in Belfast.
Maybe the Stormont politicians need to rediscover some of the innocence and optimism of 1998 as they try to find not just a short-term fix, but a way to guarantee a more stable long-term future.


For months, pro-Russian separatists have fought Ukrainian forces in two eastern regions of Ukraine but a fragile ceasefire has been agreed by both sides.

Here is a timeline of events in the most dangerous conflict to grip Europe since the wars in the former Yugoslavia.
12 November: Nato commander Gen Philip Breedlove says Russian military equipment and Russian combat troops have been seen entering Ukraine in columns over several days.
Will Ukraine return to war?
11 November: Dutch efforts to salvage wreckage from the Malaysia Airlines crash site stall over disagreements with local rebel groups.
MH17 Dutch memorial day: Air disaster that touched a nation
2-3 November: Separatists in eastern Ukraine elect new leaders in polls backed by Russia and denounced by the West. President Poroshenko accuses the rebels of jeopardising "the entire peace process" and says Ukrainian forces should prepare defences against separatist attack.
Summary justice in Ukraine's rebel east
31 October: Russia agrees to resume gas supplies to Ukraine over the winter in a deal brokered by the EU.
Russia's gas fight with Ukraine
26 October: Pro-Western parties win Ukraine's parliamentary elections.
Ukraine ready to trash politicians
21 October: Human Rights Watch says it has strong evidence Ukraine attacked populated areas of Donetsk with cluster bombs, banned by many other states.
12 October: President Putin orders thousands of troops stationed near the Ukrainian border to return to their bases.
24 September: Nato reports a "significant" withdrawal of Russian troops from eastern Ukraine.
9 September: Dutch experts find that Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 broke up in mid-air after being hit by "objects" that "pierced the plane at high velocity" in July.
5 September: Ukraine and pro-Russian rebels sign a truce in Minsk.
1 September: Ukraine says 700 of its men have been taken prisoner as pro-Russian rebels advance in the east.
27-28 August: Rebel leader Alexander Zakharchenko says there are 3-4,000 Russian civilians in rebel ranks as the separatists open up a front on the Sea of Azov and capture Novoazovsk.
26 August: Ukraine releases videos of captured Russian paratroopers. They are later exchanged for Ukrainian soldiers.
22 August: A huge Russian convoy delivers humanitarian aid to the government-besieged city of Luhansk without Ukrainian permission.
30 July: The EU and US announce new sanctions against Russia.
17 July: Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 from Amsterdam is shot down near the village of Grabove in rebel-held territory, with the loss of 298 lives.
5 July: Rebels abandon their command centre at Sloviansk in the face of a government offensive.
27 June: The EU signs a landmark association agreement with Ukraine.
25 June: Russia's parliament cancels a parliamentary resolution authorising the use of Russian forces in Ukraine.
14 June: Pro-Russia separatists shoot down a military plane in the east, killing 49 people.
25 May: Ukraine elects Petro Poroshenko as president in an election not held in much of the east.
11 May: Pro-Russian separatists in Donetsk and Luhansk declare independence after unrecognised referendums.
2 May:  Clashes in the Black Sea city of Odessa, leave 42 people dead, most of them pro-Russian activists. Most die when they are trapped in a burning building.
How did Odessa's fire happen?
22 April: Ukraine's acting president orders the relaunch of military operations against pro-Russian militants in the east.
17 April: Russia, Ukraine, the US and the EU say they have agreed at talks in Geneva on steps to "de-escalate" the crisis in eastern Ukraine. Three people are killed when Ukrainian security forces fend off a raid on a base in Mariupol - the first violent deaths in the east.
15 April: Ukraine's acting President, Olexander Turchynov, announces the start of an "anti-terrorist operation" against pro-Russian separatists. It quickly stalls.
7 April: Protesters occupy government buildings in the east Ukrainian cities of Donetsk, Luhansk and Kharkiv, calling for a referendum on independence. Ukrainian authorities regain control of Kharkiv government buildings the next day.
28 March: US President Barack Obama urges Moscow to "move back its troops" and lower tensions.
18 March: President Putin signs a bill to absorb Crimea into the Russian Federation.
17 March: The EU and US impose travel bans and asset freezes on several officials from Russia and Ukraine over the Crimea referendum.
16 March: Crimea's secession referendum on joining Russia is backed by 97% of voters, organisers say, but vote condemned by West as a sham.
Fear and unease in Novo-Ozyorne
1 March: Russia's parliament approves President Vladimir Putin's request to use force in Ukraine to protect Russian interests.
27-28 February: Pro-Russian gunmen seize key buildings in the Crimean capital, Simferopol. Unidentified gunmen in combat uniforms appear outside Crimea's main airports.
23-26 February:
22 February:
21 February: President Yanukovych signs compromise deal with opposition leaders.
20 February: Kiev sees its worst day of violence for almost 70 years. At least 88 people are killed in 48 hours. Video shows uniformed snipers firing at protesters holding makeshift shields.
Images of Independence Square, before and after the clashes
18 February: Clashes erupt, with reasons unclear: 18 dead.
14-16 February: All 234 protesters arrested since December are released. Kiev city hall, occupied since 1 December, is abandoned by demonstrators, along with other public buildings in regions.
28-29 January: Prime Minister Mykola Azarov resigns and parliament annuls the anti-protest law. Parliament passes amnesty bill but opposition rejects conditions.
16-23 January: Parliament passes restrictive anti-protest laws as clashes turn deadly. Protesters begin storming regional government offices in western Ukraine.
17 December: Vladimir Putin throws President Yanukovych an economic lifeline, agreeing to buy $15bn of Ukrainian debt and reduce the price of Russian gas supplies by about a third.
Early December:  Protesters occupy Kiev city hall and Independence Square in dramatic style. Some 800,000 people rally in Kiev.
Late November: Protests gather pace, as 100,000 people attend a demonstration in Kiev.
21 November: President Yanukovych's cabinet abandons an agreement on closer trade ties with EU, instead seeking closer co-operation with Russia. Small protests start.
February: Viktor Yanukovych is declared the winner in a presidential election judged free and fair by observers. His main rival, Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko, is arrested for abuse of powers and eventually jailed in October 2011.
December: Opposition candidate Viktor Yushchenko tops poll in election re-run. Rival candidate Viktor Yanukovych challenges result but resigns as prime minister.
November: Orange Revolution begins after reports of widespread vote-rigging in presidential election nominally won by pro-Russian candidate Viktor Yanukovych. Opposition candidate Viktor Yushchenko leads mass street protests and civil disobedience. Supreme Court annuls result of poll.
August: Ukrainian parliament declares independence from USSR following attempted coup in Moscow. In a nationwide referendum in December, 90% vote for independence.


Dozens of people will be whipping out their scythes and ripping off their shirts for a spot of "Poldarking" in Cambridgeshire this weekend.

The annual scything competition takes place on Sunday at the National Trust's Wimpole Hall, where aficionados compete to cut grass with the ancient tool.
Scything has enjoyed a "revival" since actor Aidan Turner tried it in TV series Poldark, a trust spokesman said.
The success of the show led to the phrase Poldarking being coined.
When Turner took his turn scything in the BBC drama, experts criticised his technique.
There was no need to sweat so profusely, and scything "doesn't have to be that hard", they said.
"Scything is very good for all the core muscle groups especially the stomach, and has had somewhat of a revival due to the Poldark influence, when experienced scythers commented on the TV show character not using the scythe correctly," the trust spokesman said.
Those who know how to wield a scythe will be turning up for Sunday's show-down at Wimpole Hall from 15:00 BST, while those who lack the know-how can try "have a go" sessions beforehand.
This year's competition will pit old against new with the scythe going head-to-head with a strimmer to determine the most effective mowing method.
One of the judges will be Wimpole forester Simon Damant, who earlier this month won the West Country championships in Somerset.
He uses a scythe at Wimpole to help manage the wildflower grassland, cutting small areas of grass usually inaccessible by larger machinery.
Source: Steve Tomlin, training co-ordinator for Scythe Association of Britain and Ireland


Pakistani forces have killed two Indian soldiers in firing along the de facto border that divides Kashmir between the two countries, India's army has said.

The incident happened in the Gurez area of Bandipora district on Monday evening, an army officer said.
India and Pakistan have often accused each other of unprovoked firing along the disputed border.
A ceasefire agreed in 2003 remains in place, but the neighbours often accuse each other of violating it.
Monday's incident happened days before Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's scheduled visit to Indian-administered Kashmir.
An Indian army officer said Pakistani troops fired machine guns and grenades.
Correspondents say there has been an escalation in hostilities between the neighbours since last year, with some of the worst violence in a decade being recorded during this period. Both sides have accused each other of starting hostilities.
Kashmir, claimed by both countries in its entirety, has been a flashpoint for more than 60 years and the South Asian rivals have fought two wars over the region.


A new "super-school" in a town with close links to Owain Glyndwr is to be named after a battle fought during his 15th Century rebellion.

Machynlleth primary and secondary schools in Powys are to merge in the summer under the new name of Ysgol Bro Hyddgen.
Hyddgen Mountain in the Pumlumon range is said to have been where Glyndwr had his first significant victory in 1401.
He later established his parliament in Machynlleth.
Powys council's cabinet voted to merge Machynlleth primary and secondary schools last year. The new four to 18-year-old school will officially open in September.
It was named from a shortlist of suggestions from the local community.
The name Hyddgen is already familiar locally and was chosen for Canolfan Hyddgen, the Dyfi Valley's post-16 education and training centre which opened in 2009.
Allan Wynne Jones, chairman of the new school's governing body, said: "I am extremely proud that the name of the new school includes the name Hyddgen, and that it acknowledges the link with Owain Glyndwr.
"It is a name that reminds us of our heritage and also encourages us to look forward confidently, creatively and progressively."
The governing body is also asking the community to help design a logo for the new school and has launched a competition with a Â£20 book token for the successful design.
The closing date for receiving designs is 2 May.


Neil Warnock has been appointed manager of Cardiff City following Paul Trollope's sacking.

Trollope was dismissed on Tuesday after less than five months in charge, with Cardiff second bottom of the table after two wins from 11 games.
Former Sheffield United boss Warnock, 67, helped Rotherham avoid relegation from the Championship last season, but turned down the chance to stay.
He now hopes to rekindle ambitions of an eighth promotion as a manager.
Warnock told the Bluebirds website: "I enjoyed it at Rotherham last year and I've got seven promotions and, I can't tell a lie, I thought I was trying to get that eighth promotion.
"I decided to wait - I had talks with three or four clubs from the summer onwards and it never materialised and, although I was disappointed, I'm a big believer in fate and when this cropped up, I had one phone call from Mehmet [Dalman, Cardiff chairman] and it was straight away.
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"I always want to feel wanted and he told me straight away I was his number one target, the club's number one target, and that goes a long way I think."
Kevin Blackwell will be assistant and Ronnie Jepson first-team coach.
Existing staff members James Rowberry, Martyn Margetson and Lee Southernwood will continue as part of Warnock's back-room team.
Cardiff is Warnock's 15th club as a manager and he says experiences on past visits and the challenge of trying to revive their fortunes will inspire his efforts.
"I've always liked it here. I've always liked getting off the bus," he said.
"Everywhere I go I get stick, but at Cardiff… I get on quite well with the Cardiff lads. I'm sure the same people are there by the bus with their autograph books.
"I've always had good banter with the Cardiff people. They are my kind of crowd, blood and guts and all that, which I like.
"If I can get it right for them I know they will get behind me and that's what keeps me going at the moment.
"There's some mouth-watering games coming up too.
"When I looked at the fixture list, it was not one of trepidation, it was one of looking forward to it really because that's the way I am."
The Englishman spent eight seasons in charge of Sheffield United, has twice managed Crystal Palace and QPR, and was also boss of Leeds United.
Former Cardiff defender Danny Gabbidon, who played under Warnock at QPR, said before Warnock's appointment that he "could be a nice fit" to "get the team up and running quickly".
He added: "He's a very good man-manager. He's good at working on a tight budget and getting the right players in. He's also proven in that division."
Trollope's assistant, Lennie Lawrence, and conditioning coach Ryland Morgan have also left the Welsh club.


A woman who had a sexual relationship with her coach when she was 16 has backed a campaign to criminalise sex between sports coaches and under 18s.

Lara Gorman, who is now 25, said her relationship with her coach John Dargie should have been considered illegal.
The NSPCC wants coaches to fall under the law, which prohibits teachers, social workers and doctors from having sex with under 18s in their care.
Mr Dargie backed a law change and said he had not intended to cause harm.
Ms Gorman, from Stirlingshire, said she suffered mental health problems after the relationship ended when she was 18. Her coach was 33 when the relationship began.
"I lost a coach and a relationship," she said.
"It was hard, plus he was in a position of trust and he abused that, and he'd been training me since I was 13 years old, which makes it worse.
"I'm fine now and that's why I've decided to step out and say something, because I'm in a better place now."
A statement from the former Glasgow Triathlon head coach said he had been suffering with diagnosed mental health problems at the time.
"What happened in the past will always be with me and at no time was my intention to cause any grief or harm to anyone," Mr Dargie said.
"I firmly believe that had I have been of sound mental health at the time our relationship would never have come about.
"I also know that had the law been different at the time, the possibility of starting our relationship would not have entered my mind, and certainly would not have occurred."
He added: "I welcome all systems and policies that exist to protect individuals and I welcome and support the NSPCC's proposed changes to the law."
Joanna Barrett, of the children's charity NSPCC, said Ms Gorman's case highlighted a "loophole in the law".
She said: "We want youth workers and sport coaches to be held to the same standard as social workers, teachers and doctors - so that a relationship with an under 18 in their care is considered an offence.
"We want anyone undertaking regulated work, where they are required to get a disclosure check, to be considered to be in a position of trust."
Ms Gorman's mother, Wendy, said: "It's too late for Lara, but it shouldn't happen again.
"Coaches should act with integrity.
"They are significant people in the life of the young people they coach - and perhaps more so than teachers and social workers."
Mr Dargie is a Triathlon Scotland registered triathlon coach and was subject to a disciplinary hearing in 2010.
The organisation said that when the allegation was raised, an independent disciplinary panel carried out an investigation, resulting in him receiving a two-year suspension.
A spokeswoman said: "Following the investigation and outcome, Triathlon Scotland carried out a review of the disciplinary policy, and the outcome of the review confirmed that the policy was robust.
"Triathlon Scotland takes child protection concerns extremely seriously and continues to review policies and procedures to protect children. If any club welfare officer, member or individual has any concerns whatsoever, they can report concerns to Triathlon Scotland, in confidence, at any time.
"Triathlon Scotland welcomes a review to the laws regarding child protection and will support any changes that help to protect children and vulnerable adults in sport."


One person has been taken to hospital after a fire at a house in Muir of Ord.

The emergency services were alerted to the blaze at 23:50 on Sunday.
Five appliances from the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service tackled the fire in Logan Way.
The house has been destroyed and the property next door badly damaged.


The UN's special envoy to Yemen, Jamal Benomar, has stepped down from his post amid criticism of his failure to broker an end to the conflict in the country.

The UN said it would name a successor "in due course" and "spare no efforts to relaunch the peace process".
The Moroccan diplomat is believed to have come under pressure to resign from Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states.
A Saudi-led coalition is conducting air strikes against Houthi rebels who forced the president to flee abroad.
The UN says more than 70 people have been killed in escalating violence since 26 March, but officials believe the actual death toll may be far higher.
The instability has been exploited by jihadist militants from al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), who on Thursday seized Riyan airport, near the south-eastern port city of Mukalla, officials said.
They briefly took over Mukalla, the provincial capital of Hadramawt province, earlier this month only to be driven back by local tribesmen.
In 2011, Mr Benomar brokered a Gulf Co-operation Council-backed political transition plan after a popular uprising forced long-time President Ali Abdullah Saleh to hand over power.
However, the transition gradually unravelled, and a dispute between Mr Saleh's successor, Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi, and the Houthis turned into a war.
After the Houthis swept into the capital Sanaa last September, toppling the widely unpopular transitional government, Mr Benomar negotiated a peace accord between the rebels and President Hadi that analysts say neither honoured.
In January, arguments over a draft constitution led to the Houthis taking full control of Sanaa and placing Mr Hadi and the prime minister under house arrest.
The president subsequently took refuge in Aden, but the rebels and allied army units loyal to Mr Saleh reached the southern port city at the end of March, prompting him to flee the country.
Western diplomats said Mr Benomar had faced mounting criticism from Saudi Arabia and other members of the GCC for his failure to persuade the warring parties to attend peace talks.
Both the Houthis and President Hadi had also grown impatient with him, Yemeni political sources told the Reuters news agency.
On Wednesday evening, a UN spokesman revealed that Mr Benomar had told Secretary General Ban Ki-moon that he was interested in "moving to another assignment".
"A successor shall be named in due course. Until that time and beyond, the United Nations will continue to spare no efforts to relaunch the peace process in order to get the political transition back on track," Stephane Dujarric said.


Kimi Raikkonen famously does not show a lot of emotion, but it emerged over the British Grand Prix weekend that he enjoys a bit of schadenfreude.

A little over 24 hours after it was announced that Ferrari had re-signed him for 2017, the monotone, mumbling Finn held his usual post-qualifying news conference.
"I wouldn't be here if I didn't think I can drive well," he said on the subject of his new contract. "I am very happy about it. It gives me pleasure to see disappointed people."
It was a pointed riposte to the many pundits - including BBC F1's own Allan McNish - who had suggested that Ferrari ought to look to the future when it was considering a partner for Sebastian Vettel, and not re-appoint a soon-to-be 37-year-old whose best days, they felt, were behind him.
To Raikkonen's fans - and he has perhaps more than any other F1 driver - such thoughts are anathema. To them, the Finn is the fastest man on four wheels, and he just needs a car that suits him to prove it.
For anyone holding that opinion, the stats make awkward reading.
Raikkonen has not exactly made a convincing case for still being an absolutely top-level grand prix driver since he rejoined Ferrari in 2014.
In that first season, his team-mate was Spaniard Fernando Alonso, who beat him in qualifying 16 times in 19 races, was an average of 0.529 seconds a lap quicker and scored nearly three times as many points.
If you take only the races in which a comparison in qualifying was fair (ie, eliminating any at which either had a problem), it was 12-1 to Alonso at an average of 0.548secs.
Last year, Sebastian Vettel joined the team. There were 12 races at which a direct comparison was fair and the German was quicker 10 times, at an average of 0.348secs. Overall, the gap was 0.463secs.
This year though, in a car more to his liking, Raikkonen has made a better case for himself. In 10 races so far, Vettel has been quicker seven times, at an average of 0.122secs.
And in the championship, Raikkonen is actually ahead by eight points - although that picture is skewed heavily by the large number of reliability problems suffered by Vettel.
Raikkonen's image - at least the on-track one - was forged in the early 2000s, when he established a swashbuckling reputation as an electrically fast charger at McLaren.
It was based on races such as the 2005 Japanese Grand Prix, which he won from 17th on the grid, taking the lead with a superlative move around the outside of Giancarlo Fisichella's Renault at the fast Turn One on the last lap.
And then there were incidents such as qualifying at Spa in 2002, when a car had suffered an engine failure at the top of the 180mph Eau Rouge swerves, and Raikkonen was the next man along.
Television pictures showed him blasting over the top of Raidillon (the left-hander over a crest at the top of Eau Rouge) into a cloud of smoke totally unsighted, but with his foot hard in it.
There is perhaps a debate to be had about just how good those McLarens were, and whether they flattered him. But in terms of Raikkonen's driving, back then, there was not a lot not to like.
Many argue that Raikkonen has lost his edge since he joined Ferrari in 2007.
Yes, he won the team's last driver's title that year after making up 17 points on Lewis Hamilton in the final two races. But that came thanks to a spectacular implosion at McLaren, as well as being handed victory in the final race of the season by Ferrari deliberately delaying Brazilian team-mate Felipe Massa in the pits.
The fact is that more than two-and-a-half seasons as Massa's team-mate, Raikkonen was shaded by the the Brazilian, who out-qualified him 24-21 and out-scored him 213 points to 203.
Raikkonen was then dropped to make way for Alonso, who annihilated Massa over four seasons, prompting Ferrari to re-sign Raikkonen. And we already know what happened next.
His fans argue that for Raikkonen to be at his best, he needs a car that behaves exactly the way he wants - with a positive, responsive front end and a predictable rear.
But an F1 driver has to make the best of the car he's given. If he drives less effectively if he does not like it, that has to be seen as a failing.
So how to account for Raikkonen's enduring appeal, other than as a historical throwback? His personality has a lot to do with it.
For journalists, he is, frankly, often a bit of a nightmare.
He can, it has to be said, sometimes give long, informative answers, even a hint of a smile. This is "chatty Kimi", although the mumbling never goes away and it is often really quite hard to catch what he's saying.
But, usually, his general disdain for anything other than driving shines through, and there is a succession of non-committal answers and cliches.
Frustration with this has, for many, turned into a kind of resigned amusement. One journalist has even invented a game he calls "Raikkonen bingo".
He goes into news conferences with a list of Raikkonen's most-used phrases and ticks them off as they come up: "It is what it is." "I don't know." "It's the same for everyone." "We do our own thing." And everyone's favourite: "Bwoah" - with which Raikkonen starts every answer to a potentially difficult question.
The contrast with Alonso - a driver who has been around just as long and has every reason to be bored of news conferences, struggling as he is with a down-on-power mid-grid car - is striking. The Spaniard is never not interesting, treats every question with respect, and provides a good, quotable answer.
But it is this refusal to conform that appeals to people about Raikkonen. Never mind that answering questions is part of his job, that giving rubbish answers short-changes his fans as well as the media. People like that he is different, and seems not to care.
And his brusque team radio utterances - most famously "Leave me alone, I know what I'm doing" as he was on his way to victory with Lotus in Abu Dhabi in 2012 - only burnish his reputation.
The fact that many who have worked with him say the "Iceman" image is an inaccurate construct is irrelevant. An image - and a successful one - it is.
While a cool image might be good for Ferrari's sponsors - among them the tobacco giant Philip Morris, which has made billions by leveraging the image of the quiet non-conformist - it does not win races.
There is no doubt that the team looked around elsewhere. They have, for some time, been seriously interested in both Red Bull drivers Daniel Ricciardo and Max Verstappen.
But there were problems with both for 2017.
For a start, they are under contract to their current team - Australian Ricciardo until the end of 2018 and Dutchman Verstappen for a year longer. So even if getting one of them was possible - and there does not seem a good reason for leaving an ascendant Red Bull for a struggling Ferrari right now - it would be expensive.
Ferrari were concerned, though, that signing either would destabilise the team dynamic, particularly with Vettel, who was beaten by Ricciardo when they were team-mates in 2014.
And destabilising the team is the last thing Ferrari needs as it becomes painfully clear that they are still as far away from winning championships as ever.
As the decision over what to do for next year approached, a number of other drivers were in the frame.
Sources close to the team say Force India's Sergio Perez was being pushed by fellow Mexican Carlos Slim, the billionaire who is on the board of Philip Morris. Other names under consideration included Finnish Williams driver Valtteri Bottas and Toro Rosso's Spanish driver Carlos Sainz.
All had the same problems: they were under contract, to one degree or another, to their existing teams for 2017; and there was the question of whether they were really any better than Raikkonen.
Vettel, meanwhile, was pushing for Raikkonen to stay. They get on, there are no intra-team politics, and they like similar things from a car. And, cynics would say, Vettel knows he has Raikkonen handled.
What did Vettel make of the decision to keep Raikkonen?
"I think it was the right call," he says. "We know our primary target is to catch up so we need to be all aligned and pushing in the same direction."
He describes Raikkonen as "the least complicated" team-mate he has had in F1.
"In general I got along with all the team-mates I had," the German says. "Here and there we had some difficulties but with Kimi there are no politics. That is good. It keeps everything quiet.
"We put our own egos aside. They are not so big. I would say Kimi and I have the least ego problems of the whole paddock, which is good for the team. We race hard but outside the car there is no problem."
And his driving skills?
"He is a world champion for a reason," Vettel says. "He could have been a multiple world champion if the early years of McLaren gave him a better car. He is one of the best drivers we have on the grid, no doubt."
Whether you subscribe to that final point rather depends on how big your sample is.
It would be hard to make a convincing case, for example, that Raikkonen is as good as Britain's Lewis Hamilton, Alonso, Ricciardo, Verstappen, Vettel, Germany's Nico Rosberg or Briton Jenson Button. And that's nearly a third of the grid before you even start to debate anybody else.
But the bottom line is that, right now, Raikkonen is perfect for Ferrari - he is no trouble and he is quick enough to keep Vettel honest, but not so quick as to be a threat. The perfect number two.
At a time when Ferrari's average qualifying gap to Mercedes is nearly a second, there are other far more important things to worry about. As they say themselves: "Drivers are not our problem at the moment."
On that basis, keeping Raikkonen was, ultimately, a no-brainer.


A DUP MLA has come under fire for a social media post in which he said Sinn Féin was not welcome in Rathfriland, a "unionist" County Down town.

Jim Wells published the comment on Twitter on Monday morning, but has since deleted it.
It said: "Many complaints about Sinn Fein canvassing in Rathfriland yesterday.
"They are not welcome in this Unionist town - particularly on a Sunday."
Sinn Féin's Westminster candidate Chris Hazzard said the party "will not be deterred by Jim Wells or anyone else" from canvassing across South Down.
"Our message of equality, rights and Irish unity was well received during our canvas yesterday in Rathfriland."
A spokesperson for the DUP said that "all parties have a right to canvass for votes".
"We recognise, however, that many people value the special nature of Sunday and do not wish to have this intruded upon by political canvassers from any party."
Andrew McMurray, the Alliance's Party South Down candidate, described the tweet as coming from an "outdated mindset".
"While we have many political differences with Sinn Féin and it is understandable, some parties may not wish to canvass on Sunday, no election workers should be subject to this vitriol.
"The outdated mindset which labels an entire area as having one particularly political viewpoint is disappointing, particularly from an elected representative.
"While I welcome Mr Wells deleting this tweet, I also encourage him to distance himself from it and challenge his political opponents the same way everybody else does - through the democratic process."
SDLP MLA Colin McGrath said: "There are no 'unionist' or 'nationalist' no-go areas.
"Jim's comments are deeply divisive at a time when we should be uniting our communities."
The UUP has been contacted for a comment.
According to the 2011 census, 38.54% of those living in Rathfriland are from a Catholic background and 56.82% are Protestant.
A full list of candidates standing in South Down can be found here.


Jordan Nobbs is out of England's Euro 2017 qualifier against Serbia on Tuesday because of a hamstring injury.

The 23-year-old Arsenal player also missed the 7-0 win against the Serbians at Adams Park on Saturday.
England are a point behind Group Seven leaders Belgium with a game in hand.
Victory in Stara Pazova on Tuesday would move Mark Sampson's side above Belgium at the top of the table and secure a runners-up spot at least for next year's finals in the Netherlands.
The eight group winners and the six best runners-up will join the hosts in an expanded 16-team event.
The other two runners-up will play off in October 2016 for the remaining spot.
England and Belgium meet in the final round of group games on 20 September.


Inventor Sir James Dyson is to open his own institute to train engineers, who he says are badly needed if UK companies are to remain competitive.

The Dyson Institute of Technology, opening in autumn 2017, will create home-grown talent, says Sir James.
He says he has been complaining to ministers for many years about skills shortages in engineering.
And Universities Minister Jo Johnson had challenged him to set up his own institution to train students.
Sir James says the UK needs another one million engineers with skills in software, hardware and electronics by 2020.
The Â£15m institute will be based at Dyson's campus in Malmesbury in Wiltshire and will offer a four-year engineering degree in partnership with the University of Warwick.
The technology institute will "tackle head-on the dearth of skilled engineers in the UK".
"We are taking matters into our own hands," said Sir James, who added that he wants the project to develop into a fully fledged Dyson University, with its own degree-awarding powers.
Students will be paid a salary while studying and will not have to pay tuition fees - and Sir James says a key benefit will be that students will be working on "live projects" alongside mentors and research staff.
Sir James says students, beginning with an intake of 25 in autumn 2017, will be able to "see these projects being put into production and going into the shops".
"The new degree course offers academic theory, a real-world job and salary and access to experts in their field," says Sir James.
He says that there has been a lack of understanding of the scale of the demand for skilled staff and the intensity of the international competition.
His own engineers are drawn from 34 countries, he says, and UK manufacturing firms face tough challenges from countries such as China, South Korea and India.
Sir James says that a major area of development will be in robotics - whether in terms of autonomous devices or systems that can adapt intelligently to their environment.
Advancing battery technology is another area of research, he said.
Lord Bhattacharyya, chairman of the Warwick Manufacturing Group at the University of Warwick, said he wanted to help "develop a pool of talent" with the Dyson partnership.
"It is vital that in order for UK companies to be competitive they must have the right people with the right skills," he said.
Universities Minister Jo Johnson said "few organisations embody the spirit of great British invention quite like Dyson".
"The Dyson Institute of Technology will not only offer students the chance to study on cutting edge degree level programmes, it will also play a vital role in educating the next generation of much needed engineers."


A German court has thrown out a legal claim that sought to extract 1.57bn euros (£1.3bn) in damages from Apple.

The case was filed by German company IPCom which claimed Apple used its technology without permission.
IPCom said Apple was using a system for which it owned a patent to let phones make emergency calls when mobile networks were overloaded.
The same court has also dismissed a similar case brought by IPCom against phone-maker HTC.
Patent lawyer Florian Mueller said the decision by the court in Mannheim, Germany was "without a doubt, a setback for IPCom's enforcement efforts".
IPCom is a patent licensing firm that has acquired the rights to about 1,200 patents that are linked with mobile phones and networks. It has sought to get payments for its patents from many tech firms but so far only Deutsche Telekom is believed to have licensed some of its technologies.
Most other firms have preferred to contest IPCom's claims in court or by asking the European Patent Office to review the technologies detailed in IPCom's patents.
IPCom has yet to comment on the ruling but it is expected to appeal against the dismissal.


A new technique for detecting bowel cancer is to be trialled in parts of Scotland.

About 20,000 patients in Tayside, Fife, Grampian and Glasgow health board areas will be offered "scope screening", an examination using a tiny camera.
The 15-minute procedure can detect polyps that could eventually become cancerous.
Bowel cancer is the third most common form the disease in Scotland with 4,000 cases diagnosed each year.
Men and women aged about 60 will be invited to take part in the pilot which, if successful, will be rolled out across Scotland.
The technique allows medics to see the lower part of the large bowel.
Samples are taken if they identify any abnormal areas.
Scope screening has had similar trials in other parts of the UK.
It will run alongside the existing screening programme which involves home testing kits
One man who was given the all-clear after an early detection of bowel cancer is encouraging others to get checked.
John Withers, 65, was diagnosed with cancer three years ago after taking part in the current screening programme.
He said:  "I would not have known that I had bowel cancer until it was very advanced if it hadn't been for the screening programme."
Retired engineer Mr Withers underwent successful surgery at Dumfries and Galloway Infirmary less than a week after his diagnosis.
He added:  "There is no doubt that the bowel screening programme saved my life.
"I am glad to see that bowel scope screening is now being offered to people in Scotland and would advise anyone asked to take part in this programme to do so - it could save your life.
"Cancer is not as scary as it once was and it can be very treatable so don't put off taking the test."
Health Secretary Alex Neil said the level of participation in the pilots would be analysed before deciding whether to extend the programme.
He said: "We know that nine out of 10 people will survive bowel cancer if it is detected early.
"What's more, bowel cancer is one of the most preventable cancers, especially when it's caught early, and screening helps us to do exactly that."


Solihull Moors have secured promotion to the National League - and they did it with three games still left to play.

Marcus Bignot's side celebrated without having to play a game as third-placed rivals North Ferriby United lost 2-0 on Tuesday at Stalybridge Celtic.
That secured the National League North title, ensuring their rise to English football's fifth division for the first time - nine years after forming.
"You can't underestimate just how big an achievement this is," said Bignot.
"It's a great feeling. It's a bit strange to do it without kicking a ball, but it just shows how good we've been this season that we've won the title with three games to spare," the former Birmingham City youth player told BBC WM's Adrian Goldberg.
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"It's a special place and we've achieved something special. It has given us a platform to visit a lot of former Football League grounds, but we now want to become an established National League side.
"We have good people here. Not just the players, but throughout the whole infrastructure of the club, people who put in endless hours free of charge who go above and beyond, like our chairman Trevor Stevens.
"He has given his life not only to this club but also to non-league football over the last decade. What he's achieved is remarkable. And there are others who have been key to this success. Geoff Hood, our club president, who died earlier this year, wasn't here to see it, but I know he was looking down."
The club was formed by Solihull Borough's 2007 merger with Moor Green. If, as expected, the Moors swap places with Kidderminster Harriers - who must win their last three National League matches to stand any chance of staying up - it would now make Bignot's side the highest-ranked non-league club in the Midlands.


Google has placed a virtual assistant at the heart of two new smartphones it has designed in-house.

4 October 2016 Last updated at 17:42 BST
The two Pixel handsets are the first mobiles to trigger Google Assistant by holding down their home buttons, somewhat like Apple's Siri.
The BBC's Rory Cellan-Jones asked the Pixel project manager James Nugent why people would want to talk to their devices.


Hunger for a festive feast led to a "bumper" Christmas  and strong finish to 2016 for retailers, a report says.

Like-for-like sales increased by 1% in December compared with the previous year, said the British Retail Consortium (BRC)-KPMG research.
Food sales were the major contributor to the growth, with non-food sales sluggish, the BRC said.
Morrisons releases its Christmas trading update on Tuesday, with Tesco and Sainsbury's later this week.
"Despite the slow start to the Christmas trading period, the week itself was a bumper one and exceeded expectations," said Helen Dickinson, chief executive of the BRC.
"It delivered the majority of sales growth for the month, proving even bigger than the Black Friday period- which is the reverse of what we saw the year before."
Shoppers held out until the last moment for their festive needs, with sales for Christmas week up 40% compared with other weeks of the month, she added.
Sales grew by 1.2% overall in 2016, but Ms Dickinson warned that 2017 would be a challenge with inflation set to pick up, "and persisting economic and political uncertainty".
Paul Martin, UK head of retail at KPMG, who help to produce the report, suggested that consumers had "splashed out on treating themselves" ahead of predicted price rises next year.
A raft of retailers are due to report their Christmas trading statements this week.
Later on Tuesday, Morrisons is expected to report sales growth of 1.1% for the nine weeks to 1 January, according to an average of analysts' forecasts, a fifth consecutive quarter of growth.
Sainsbury's publishes its update on Wednesday, while Marks and Spencer and Tesco report on Thursday.


Prosecutors have received a file of evidence regarding the singer Sir Cliff Richard and allegations of historical sexual assault, the BBC has learned.

The Crown Prosecution Service said it will now make a decision as to whether to bring charges or not.
Sir Cliff, 75, was interviewed in 2014 and 2015 by South Yorkshire Police investigating a claim of a sex crime involving a young boy in the 1980s.
The singer has never been arrested, and has always denied the claims.
His spokesman said: "It would be inappropriate to comment while the matter is under review."
A CPS spokesman said: "We have received a full file of evidence from South Yorkshire Police.
"We will now carefully consider its contents in line with the Code for Crown Prosecutors, in order to establish whether there is sufficient evidence to provide a realistic prospect of conviction, and whether it is in the public interest to do so."
A South Yorkshire Police spokeswoman said: "Investigation files relating to allegations of non-recent sexual abuse involving a 75-year-old man have been handed over to the CPS.
"The CPS will now consider the matter and South Yorkshire Police awaits their decision."
Sir Cliff has been interviewed twice in connection with the allegations and has met officers voluntarily each time. He has never been arrested.
The first interview in August 2014 followed a high-profile police search of his home in Sunningdale, Berkshire. He was then reinterviewed in November 2015.


Leinster back Fergus McFadden has been given a three-week ban following a stamping incident in his side's Pro12 win over Connacht on New Year's Day.

McFadden, 29, accepted the offence and an initial five-week ban was reduced to three after his past disciplinary record was taken into account.
The suspension rules McFadden out of this Friday's Pro12 game at Ospreys.
The Ireland player will also miss the Champions Cup game with Bath at the RDS and the following week's trip to Wasps.
McFadden appeared before a disciplinary committee in Edinburgh on Wednesday after being cited for stamping or trampling on Connacht's Nathan White during a ruck.
A Pro12 statement said: "Mr McFadden accepted that he had committed an act of foul play and that it would have warranted a red card."


Traffic management around the site of the 2016 Glastonbury Festival "fell short of acceptable standards", a council report has found.

The event in June saw the area's roads gridlocked with many people stuck in their vehicles for up to 12 hours.
A report by Mendip District Council said the "overwhelming issue" was there was nowhere to park campervans when site access became problematic.
Organisers blamed heavy rain prior to the event for the disruption.
Festival boss Michael Eavis admitted it had been "chaotic" but said 4in (10cm) of rain in three days before the event was "an impossible situation for a greenfield site".
He said: "Next year I've secured the use of the Bath and West [showground] for any emergencies - and we can do park-and-ride from there.
"It is tough when all the roads are blocked, it's hard work for people and I really regret that happening, I really do.
"But it's only once in 10 years that we get that problem."
The report noted although the event was "well planned and managed", rain in the lead up to the event caused a "serious deterioration" to ground conditions on site.
It said the festival delayed opening access to the camping fields by six hours to allow the site to further dry out.
But this affected the access of caravans and campervans on to the site which then resulted in substantial traffic jams.
The traffic built up on the Tuesday evening and was not fully resolved until late Wednesday and caused "significant disruption" to residents, businesses and others passing through the area.


A man has been mauled to death by a tiger after he entered its enclosure at a zoo in eastern China.

The tiger was then shot dead by a special forces unit from the local police, in the Sunday incident at the Youngor Zoo in the city of Ningbo.
The man was rushed to the nearest hospital where he was pronounced dead.
He had climbed over the zoo's walls to avoid paying for a ticket, and landed in the tiger enclosure, local tourism authorities said in a statement.
The zoo was closed to visitors after the attack. State broadcaster CCTV said it remained closed on Monday.
The mauling took place at about 14:00 in full view of park visitors, some of whom posted video clips and pictures of the attack online.
The man, wearing a blue parka and black trousers, can be seen lying on the ground. A tiger appears to have its jaws around his neck and head while two other tigers circle around him.
Screams can be heard in the background as a crowd of onlookers gather in front of the enclosure, separated by a moat.
A series of loud explosive bangs can then be heard and the two tigers run off, while the first tiger continues to bite the man.
Zoo authorities said they used firecrackers to scare off the tigers in the enclosure, according to local reports.
They did not identify the man, but said he was middle-aged and that his wife and children were also at the park.
But a statement late on Sunday from the Dongqian Lake Tourist Resort Administrative Committee said the man was surnamed Zhang and from Hubei province.
It said that Mr Zhang, along with his wife and two children, were visiting the park on Sunday with his colleague, surnamed Li, and his wife.
The women and children had bought tickets and entered the park, but the two men decided to scale the zoo's 3m-tall (10ft) outer wall, said Mr Li who gave a statement to the tourism authority.
They then climbed another 3m-tall wall that was the boundary of the tiger enclosure. Mr Zhang dropped down into the enclosure and was attacked by a tiger, said Mr Li, who did not follow.
The tourism authority said there were prominent warning signs posted around the point the two men had entered the park, and iron fencing on top of the walls.
The case has attracted widespread attention on Chinese social media, with many condemning the man and mourning for the tiger.
"This visitor's death by mauling really does not deserve any sympathy. Tigers are the carnivorous kings of the jungle and hunting for food is their instinct, who can you blame if you jump in and get attacked? Rest in peace, tiger," wrote one user on the microblogging network Weibo.
In July last year, tigers mauled a woman and her mother when they stepped out of their car at a Beijing drive-through wildlife park.
The woman, surnamed Zhao, survived but her mother died of her injuries. Ms Zhao has since sued the park for her mother's death.


The Labour Party has suspended Ken Livingstone from holding office for another year over comments he made about Adolf Hitler and Zionism.

A disciplinary panel upheld three charges of breaching party rules.
The ex-London mayor has been suspended since April 2016 when he claimed Hitler had supported Zionism in the 1930s.
Some Labour MPs and Jewish groups have criticised the decision not to expel Mr Livingstone, but he said he had been "suspended for stating the truth".
The row first erupted when Mr Livingstone, who was defending MP Naz Shah over claims she had made anti-Semitic social media posts, said: "When Hitler won his election in 1932, his policy then was that Jews should be moved to Israel. He was supporting Zionism before he went mad and ended up killing six million Jews."
He has repeatedly defended his version of events, saying there had been "real collaboration" between Nazis and Zionists before World War Two.
Following the disciplinary hearing, Labour said Mr Livingstone had breached its rule 2.1.8, which says that "no member of the party shall engage in conduct which in the opinion of the NEC is prejudicial, or in any act which in the opinion of the NEC is grossly detrimental to the party".
He has been suspended from standing for office or representing the party at any level for two years, although he remains a party member.
The suspension will expire in April 2018 taking into account the suspension he has already served. The party said it would make no further comment.
Speaking outside the hearing, Mr Livingstone said he was not planning on running for office so the suspension "doesn't make a great deal of change", and said the hearing had been "like sitting through a court in North Korea".
A statement released by his office said he would be launching a campaign to overturn the suspension, adding that the hearing "was not in accord with natural justice" because it was held in private.
Wes Streeting was among those Labour MPs who criticised the decision not to expel Mr Livingstone, describing it as a "terrible betrayal of Jewish Labour supporters and our values".
Another, Michael Dugher, said he should be "kicked out for good", and Luciana Berger said the "appalling decision" marked a "new low" for the party.
What's the difference between anti-Semitism and anti-Zionism?
The president of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, Jonathan Arkush, said: "Relations between the Labour Party and the Jewish community have reached a new all-time low.
"After 12 months of indecision, despite finding him guilty of all three charges, the Labour Party has decided to suspend him from holding office for just one year despite his shameless, disgraceful and tendentious attempts to link Zionism to Nazism."
Holocaust Educational Trust chief executive Karen Pollock said it was a "slap on the wrist for a serial offender", and Simon Johnson, chief executive of the Jewish Leadership Council, said he should have been expelled for his "inaccurate and antagonistic comments".
The Jewish Labour Movement has promised to raise the matter at Labour's annual conference in September if Mr Livingstone is allowed to stay in the party.
Labour's shadow attorney general, Baroness Chakrabarti, who carried out an inquiry into allegations of anti-Semitism in the party before being made a peer by Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, said: "I hope people might now revisit my report and remind themselves of better ways to argue about difficult issues without compromising our values of solidarity, tolerance and respect."


PSV Eindhoven will be without suspended captain and top-scorer Luuk de Jong for the home leg of their last-16 Champions League tie against Atletico Madrid.

The ex-Newcastle loanee was booked before scoring one of the goals in a 2-1 win over CSKA Moscow that took the Dutch league leaders into the knockout stage for the first time since 2007.
However, key midfielder Andres Guardado is set to return for PSV.
Atletico will have midfielder Augusto Fernandez back after a knee injury.
The Spaniards, beaten finalists in 2014, have not won in four knockout games against Dutch opposition in the Champions League.
Diego Simeone's side has also struggled for goals this season, with their total of 35 the lowest in the top seven of La Liga.
Antoine Griezmann is their top scorer with 19 goals and midfielder Koke is backing the France international to end a quiet spell of just one goal in his last seven appearances.
Koke said: "We have to be more aggressive in attack and when we achieve that we'll attain our objective.
"Griezmann is a truly great player and his goals will come. They will come when you least expect them."
PSV have won their last eight matches and are unbeaten in 18 games but have had trouble scoring penalties.
They had missed eight out of their last 12 attempts before Gaston Pereiro scored from the spot in a 2-0 win against Heracles Almelo last Saturday and the midfielder is set keep the job.
Coach Phillip Cocu said: "Gaston immediately said he felt good and wanted to take it. If he takes it like that, then he can take the next one, too."


An advert for a new chief constable of Humberside has urged candidates not to let "preconceived ideas" about the region "get in the way".

The video advert asks applicants to "look properly at the area" and ignore its "recent past of declining fishing ports and related industries".
Former chief Justine Curran stood down after inspectors criticised the force.
Police and Crime Commissioner Keith Hunter said he hoped to attract an "exceptional individual".
More stories from across East Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire
The force was told by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary (HMIC) in November that it "requires improvement".
In October 2015 the force was the only one rated inadequate in a review of police efficiency across England and Wales.
After he was elected in May 2016, Mr Hunter gave Ms Curran six months to convince him "that there is a plan".
Ms Curran, had been due to retire in September 2018, but announced her departure last month, saying the "time is right" to leave.
In the advert Mr Hunter said the area was a "region with ambition" that was starting to "realise its untapped potential".
He highlighted Hull's status as UK City of Culture 2017, the city's Premier League football team and top flight rugby league offering, as well as "housing prices so low they astound newcomers".
The job is advertised with an annual salary of up to Â£159,244.


Britain's Leanda Cave pulled away in the last three miles of the run to win the Ironman World Championship in Hawaii.

The 34-year-old finished the gruelling 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike ride and 26.2-mile run in nine hours, 15 minutes and 54 seconds.
She was just over a minute clear of Switzerland's Caroline Steffen.
It was Cave's second world title of the year after victory in the Half Ironman World Championship last month.
"I'm kind of speechless," said Cave, who finished third behind fellow Briton Chrissie Wellington and Australian Mirinda Carfrae in 2011.
"I just hope they don't come out with another distance. I'm getting too old for this."
Britain's Rachel Joyce finished 11th in 9:40:16, while double Olympic medallist Rebecca Romero, who took up Ironman after retiring from cycling, came home in 11:39:08.
Cave was always in contention at the front of the field, exiting the swim in fourth and the bike in third, then pulling clear of Australian rival Carfrae on the run before overhauling Steffen.
Australia's Pete Jacobs won the men's event, beating Germany's Andreas Raelert by more than four minutes.


Eighteen-time Olympic champion Michael Phelps says he wants to compete at Rio 2016, after serving a six-month ban.

The 29-year-old was suspended by USA Swimming after a conviction for drink driving in September.
He entered a short-lived retirement after London 2012, but will now bid to reach a fifth Olympic Games.
"You guys heard it here first," he told reporters at Arizona's Skyline Aquatic Centre, where he will be competing for the first time since his suspension.
"I am looking forward to next year. I don't think it's too hard to really realise why I came back."
Phelps, the most decorated Olympian of all time, will not swim at August's World Championships in Russia, as part of an agreement with USA Swimming alongside his ban.
He will instead race at the US national championships in San Antonio, Texas, taking place at the same time as the Worlds.
"The last couple of months have probably been the hardest I've ever had to go through in my entire life,'' he added.
"I take full responsibility for all of my actions. I've hurt a lot of people and it's been terrible."


Scottish Labour has renewed its call for exam appeal charges to be scrapped after new figures showed private schools were much more likely to appeal results than local authority schools.

Data from the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) showed independent schools appealed 6% of results in 2015.
That compared with 2.1% for council-run secondaries.
The Scottish government said "no young person is at a disadvantage through the results service in Scotland".
Labour said appeal fees should be scrapped in order to "level the playing field for every pupil".
It is concerned that fees of up to Â£39.75 for appeals could deter some local authority schools from applying.
The new appeal rate figures were revealed in evidence from the SQA to MSPs on Holyrood's Education Committee,
Fees were introduced by the SQA in 2014 to help deter schools from putting in purely speculative appeals.
In 2013 local authority schools submitted 62,486 appeals, but the following year the total dropped to 7,056 before rising again in 2015 to 9,584.
Labour education spokesman Iain Gray said it seemed SNP ministers "could not care less about this unfairness in the system".
He said: "They talk the talk on equity, so they should back a fair education system by committing to scrap these unfair fees, and level the playing field for every pupil."
With the 2016 exam results published last week week, Mr Gray said: "Pupils across Scotland will be considering this weekend whether to appeal grades they received on Tuesday.
"An exam appeal decision can be the deciding factor between a pupil getting to college or university, with all the opportunities that may bring. Money shouldn't come into it.
"The figures clearly show that the SNP's introduction of exam appeal fees has put pupils from state schools at a disadvantage compared to those educated privately.
"That is just not fair."
A Scottish government spokeswoman said: "No young person is at a disadvantage through the results service in Scotland. Only schools and colleges can make requests to SQA's results services.
"Whether the pupil is from a local authority or independent school, a review can only be requested if the school has a legitimate query about a candidate's results.
"As with all SQA charges, local authorities meet the costs of requests by public sector schools to use this service.
"National guidance from education directors makes clear that no young person should be denied access to this service on the grounds of cost."
This year's results showed students passed a total of 152,701 Highers in 2016, with an attainment rate of 77.2% - down on the 156,000 passes in 2015 but still the second highest number on record.


From lost cues to broken tips, questionable food to even more questionable venues - life for a touring snooker player can be a testing one.

Now worm bites can be added to the list.
That's right. London-born Norwegian Kurt Maflin was left stunned by an unusual problem during the World Open ranking event in China.
World Open scores and results
"I woke up on Monday and had this bite on my right thumb, it was a bit swollen," he told World Snooker. "I thought it must have been a mosquito.
"I played that day and managed to win. On Monday night the thumb was bigger but I thought it was nothing major. I popped it and some of the stuff came out. After that it was weeping all night. By Tuesday morning my thumb was huge, twice the size of the other one."
The 32-year-old went to see a doctor who told him he had been bitten by a worm. It was explained to Maflin that he was not in danger and after taking medication the world number 50 booked his place in the last 16 with a 5-0 win over Xiao Guodong.
"Sometimes that happens, when you have a small injury or a cold you concentrate better," he added. "But I've never heard of someone getting bitten by a worm before."
World champion Mark Selby was knocked out of the second round of the tournament by Thai player Thepchaiya Un-Nooh.
The 31-year-old from Leicester missed a straightforward yellow when he was 4-3 down which allowed Un-Nooh to secure a memorable win.
There was also a shock exit for Crucible runner-up Ding Junhui on home soil as he lost 5-1 to England's Ben Woollaston.
Pre-tournament favourite Judd Trump was defeated 5-2 by China's Zhang Anda in yet another surprise.
John Higgins, Ali Carter, Shaun Murphy, Neil Robertson, Mark Williams, Ryan Day and Alan McManus, who won five frames in a row to beat China's Liang Wenbo, all reached the last 16.
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Crusaders manager Stephen Baxter has emphasised that he will be taking nothing for granted ahead of his side's league game against Carrick Rangers.

The Premiership champions began the defence of their title with a thumping 6-0 demolition of Ballymena United and travel to Taylor's Avenue on Wednesday.
"We lost at Carrick the last time we were there near the end of last season so we have to be careful," said Baxter.
"After that it's Linfield at home so it's a big week to open the season."
Watch action and analysis from the opening day of the season on The Irish League Show
The Crues will again be without skipper Colin Coates, who serves the last of his two-game suspension, while Matthew Snoddy and Andy Mitchell are both recovering from injury.
"It was a pleasing opening day and our performance levels were high but we have to keep them high. It's still early days and we must continue in the vein we have started.
"We looked good pre-season and I enjoyed what I was seeing. We've worked hard in all the training sessions but it's about taking that onto the pitch on a consistent basis," added the Crues boss.
Last season's runners-up Linfield began their campaign with a 2-1 success over Ballinamallard and now entertain Oran Kearney's Coleraine, whose scheduled opening game against Portadown on Saturday was called off.
The south Belfast side won all four league encounters against the Bannisders last season.
Glenavon are another club with title aspirations and they will aim to build on their victory over Carrick when they face Ballymena at the Showgrounds.
"We are putting together a brand new side and it will take time. Wednesday's game offers a good opportunity for the players to respond to the defeat at Seaview," argued Ballymena boss David Jeffrey.
The Lurgan Blues are unbeaten in their last seven meetings with the Braidmen.
Belfast sides Cliftonville and Glentoran will hope to continue their winning starts to the season when they meet at Solitude, while Dungannon Swifts entertain newly-promoted Ards.
Portadown get their campaign underway by hosting Ballinamallard, whose manager Gavin Dykes was impressed by his side's display in the 2-1 reverse at the hands of the Blues at the weekend.
"I was disappointed with the result but thrilled with the performance against Linfield. We are undergoing a rebuilding process and hope to add another forward player to our squad before the end of the week.
The players are working hard and I'm pleased with their application and attitude," said Dykes.
There will be live coverage of Wednesday night's full programme of games on BBC Radio Ulster medium wave and the BBC Sport website from 19:30 BST.


Every year more than one million people descend on the streets of west London to enjoy two days of festivities at the Notting Hill Carnival.

Disagreement over when the event was first held means the carnival's 50th anniversary will be marked again this year, as it was in 2014 and 2015.
The first parades in the 1960s had many similarities to those held now.
BBC News looks at how the event has developed into what organisers claim is the largest street party in Europe.
In 1959 a Caribbean style cabaret was held at St Pancras Town Hall to showcase the styles of carnival.
Other Caribbean events were held in London during the 1960s before a parade was organised in Notting Hill by a team led by social worker Rhuanne Laslett.
The organisers said the aim of the festival was to bring cultures together through arts and Caribbean steel bands.
By the 1970s the festival was attracting increasing numbers of performers each year to west London.
But racial tension simmered at some events with a riot following the carnival in 1976.
Static sound systems, like this one seen in 1981, have become a major part of the event. There are now 38 separate sound systems as well as the World Music Stage at Powis Square.
Relations between police and the organisers have improved over the years.
The carnival has always attracted a diverse crowd, like this punk in 1984.
Masquerade bands, sound systems, steel bands, calypso and soca music are all carnival mainstays.
The costume troupes who parade each year are known as Mas or Masquerade bands.
International stars have made appearances at the carnival, like Wyclef Jean in 2003.
Jouvert marks the start of the carnival on Sunday morning, where performers cover each other in paint and chocolate.
Veteran DJ Norman Jay, seen here in 2006, has become a mainstay at the carnival with his Good Times sound system.
As well the costumes, music and dancing, the carnival is well known for its street food...
...as well as the enormous queues for the carnival toilets.
Samba band Batala have made numerous appearances and will be returning again in 2016.
The Sunday parade is more child-friendly and proves popular with families.
Revellers will be hoping for an improvement in the weather compared to 2015.
This year's parades begin at 10:00 BST on Sunday and Monday.


A former pub landlord from West Yorkshire has become the first person in the UK to have a hand transplant.

Mark Cahill, who is 51, had been unable to use his right hand after it was affected by gout.
Doctors say he is making good progress after an eight-hour operation at Leeds General Infirmary.
It is still very early to assess how much control of the hand will be gained - so far he can wiggle his fingers, but has no sense of touch.
It is early days to assess what level of function Mr Cahill will achieve with his new hand.
Surgeons hope that within 18 months it will be a huge improvement on what he had before.
Prof Simon Kay said: "I would hope that he has a quite a strong grasp, good sensibility in the hand, good ability to feel and a precision pinch."
Both doctors and patient are pleased so far.
Hand transplants raise more ethical questions than other transplants, such as the heart, as they improve the quality of life rather than saving a life.
Yet Mr Cahill will need a lifetime of drugs to suppress his immune system in order to stop his body rejecting the donor hand. This can leave him vulnerable to infection.
Mark Cahill, from Greetland near Halifax, said: "When I look at it and move it, it just feels like my hand.
"Right now it feels really good, it's not a lot of pain, it looks good, it looks a great match and I'm looking forward to getting it working now."
Mr Cahill's new hand is still bandaged up, but he can already move his fingers.  It is hoped that with time he will gain much greater levels of movement and sensation.
He developed gout in his toes and feet 20 years ago. Five years ago it spread to his right hand leaving him unable to open his fingers or use his hand for anything.
One option would have been a bionic hand, but he volunteered for the pioneering surgery.
As well as being a first for the UK, it was also the first time a recipient's hand has been amputated during an operation to attach a donor hand.
The fresh cut, made where you would wear a watch, allowed surgeons to connect nerves in Mr Cahill's arm with those in the donor hand with great precision - along with the bone, blood vessels and tendons.
The operation took place on 27 December when a donor hand became available.
Prof Simon Kay, a consultant plastic surgeon at the hospital, said: "The team was on standby from the end of November awaiting a suitable donor limb, and the call came just after Christmas.
"It was extremely challenging to be the first team in the UK to carry out such a procedure.
"It is still early days but indications are good and the patient is making good progress."
He also paid tribute to the donor and their family.
Leeds General Infirmary already has a reputation for reattaching hands which have been accidentally cut off.
This operation has been planned for more than two years and the hospital was in touch with plastic surgeons across the country looking for people who might be suitable.
Potential patients had to be assessed - both physically and psychologically - to ensure they were suitable for the procedure.
The surgical team also liaised with surgeons in France who performed the first hand transplant in 1998.
The first recipient was Clint Hallam, from New Zealand, who had lost a hand in an accident with a circular saw more than a decade earlier.
He later had the hand removed, complaining it was like a dead man's hand with no feeling in it.
He said he felt "mentally detached" from the transplant, which was wider and longer than his own. The skin was also a different colour.
Surgeons do try to find hand transplants which are a close physical match to a patient, however, they are very visible, unlike a transplanted internal organ such as a kidney.
Ensuring a patient is prepared for the mental challenge of living with a hand which is not their own is considered as important as the surgical element of the transplant.
More than 60 hand transplants have been carried out around the world.
Prof Norman Williams, the president of the Royal College of Surgeons, said: "This is yet another example of life-changing surgical advancements that are now possible."
"As with all procedures that improve the quality of life rather than save it, there is an ethical balance to be struck - especially as the lifelong anti-rejection medication that the patient would need to take carries its own risks.
"Care always needs to be taken in choosing suitable patients who understand the risks and benefits."


Aston Villa have fined Jack Grealish following a club investigation into the winger's part in an all-night party.

Grealish, 21, was also suspended by the Championship club for Saturday's draw with Newcastle but will be available for Tuesday's trip to Barnsley.
Police were called to a Birmingham hotel last Sunday morning as guests complained of a rowdy party, which Grealish is reported to have attended.
No arrests were made and Grealish was not among the people thrown out.
"We've fined the boy and he was suspended for today," said Villa boss Roberto di Matteo.
"It's not the first time but he needs to learn from the past and the only one who can do that is himself. He needs to make the right decisions.
"He's 21 now and needs to understand what kind of career he has ahead of him. As long as he does what he's supposed to do we will treat him like everyone else."
Villa's 1-1 draw with Newcastle extended the club's winless run to six games and left them 17th in the early Championship table, with nine points from their opening nine league games.
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An argument over a Koran that erupted at a shelter in central Germany has led to violence in which 11 refugees and six police were injured.

Twenty people tried to lynch an Afghan man of 25 after he tore pages from the Koran and threw them in a toilet, according to reports in the town of Suhl.
When police tried to intervene they also came under attack.
Germany says it is expecting 800,000 people to claim asylum this year.
More than half the numbers of migrants arriving on Europe's borders are heading there, and Germany is also facing a large influx of people from Balkan states such as Albania and Kosovo.
Wednesday night's violence took place at an overcrowded refugee shelter in which some 1,800 people were being housed. The house was meant to hold only 1,200 - an indication of the difficulties faced by Germany's authorities.
Police were pelted with stones and concrete blocks as they tried to calm the situation.
The migration minister in the central state of Thuringia, Dieter Lauinger, told reporters that the violence had nothing to do with overcrowding at the shelter.
State prime minister Bodo Ramelow, from leftist party Die Linke, suggested that part of the problem was housing different nationalities together.
He said he understood that emotions ran high when different groups came into contact with each other, but there was no excuse at all for "anyone tearing up a Koran and throwing it in the toilet".
The Afghan man at the centre of the riot was reportedly being protected at a police station. His religion was not disclosed.
Tensions over the influx of asylum seekers in Germany have led to some attacks on hostels in recent months.
Earlier this week, supporters of a right-wing movement called Thuegida marched through Suhl as part of a campaign against "Islamisation".


A man who blew himself up in Stockholm was carrying three explosive devices and intended to kill as many people as possible, prosecutors say.

Chief prosecutor Tomas Lindstrand said police were "98% sure" that the man was Iraq-born Taimour Abdulwahab al-Abdaly.
Abdaly, 28, is believed to have died minutes after setting off a car bomb on Saturday. Two other people were hurt.
Seven US FBI bomb experts are heading to Stockholm to help the investigation, Sweden's intelligence agency said.
Although Abdaly was a Swedish citizen, he had been living in the UK.
British police have been searching a house in Luton, north of London, where Abdaly lived.
Mr Lindstrand said Swedish police were now trying to work out what the bomber's target had been before he blew himself up prematurely.
"He had a bomb belt on him, he had a backpack with a bomb and he was carrying an object that has been compared to a pressure cooker. If it had all blown up at the same time, it would have been very powerful," he said.
A car containing gas canisters blew up first in a busy shopping street in the area of Drottninggatan at 1700 local time (1600 GMT) followed minutes later by a explosion in a street about 300m (985ft) away that killed the bomber.
Abdaly was named as the registered owner of the car.
Mr Lindstrand said they believed the bomber had intended to kill "as many people as possible".
"Where he was headed... we don't know," he said.
"It is likely that something happened, that he made some kind of mistake [and] part of the bombs he was carrying went off and caused his death.
"This was during Christmas shopping in central Stockholm and he was extremely well-equipped when it came to bomb material. It is not much of a stretch to say he was going to a place with as many people as possible."
Mr Lindstrand said possible targets included the city's central train station or to Aahlens, a popular department store.
In a profile on the Muslim dating website Muslima, Abdaly said he was born in Baghdad and moved to Sweden in 1992, before arriving in the UK in 2001 to study.
He said he had got married in 2004 and had two young daughters.
"I want to get married again, and would like to have a big family. My wife agreed to this," he wrote.
Mr Lindstrand said Abdaly was completely unknown to Swedish security services before the blasts.
However, he pointed out: "He didn't live in Sweden; he lived in the UK. He left Sweden maybe 10 years ago."
Meanwhile, British police have been searching Abdaly's house in Luton. His wife and children are reported to live in the UK, although their exact whereabouts are not known.
It has emerged that Abdaly had attended the Luton Islamic Centre but left after other members accused him of having a "distorted view" of Islam.
A Swedish news agency has released an audio recording apparently made by Abdaly, in which he says oppression against Muslims in Europe will not be tolerated.
He refers to drawings of the Prophet Muhammad and to the presence of foreign soldiers - including Swedes - in Afghanistan.
If confirmed as a suicide bombing, the attack would be the first of its kind in Sweden.
In pictures: Stockholm blasts
Sweden's Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt has said the attacks are unacceptable in Sweden's "open society", which he said was a democracy that respected different cultures.
The blast appears to have been of the same relatively unsophisticated nature as recent attempted attacks in New York, Glasgow and London, says BBC security correspondent Nick Childs.
Such attacks, carried out by individuals, are especially hard for the security agencies to trace and are an increasing cause for concern, he adds.


Conor McGregor says he is back on the card for UFC 200, but event organisers claim no new talks have taken place.

The 27-year-old had been set for a rematch with Nate Diaz, who beat him in their welterweight fight in March, at the Las Vegas event in July.
After a dispute over promotional duties, UFC president Dana White said organisers were looking for a replacement for the Irishman.
But McGregor said on Sunday: "Happy to announce that I am back on UFC 200."
Writing on social media, he added: "Shout out to Dana White and Lorenzo Fertitta on getting this one done for the fans. Respect."
But US media, including the Los Angeles Times, quoted White as saying: "We haven't talked to Conor or his manager since the press conference. I don't know why he would tweet that."
And McGregor's manager John Kavanagh later added: "I'm 51% optimistic and 49% pessimistic, if you want to know my feelings on it."
McGregor started speculation he was quitting last week when he tweeted: "I have decided to retire young. Thanks for the cheese."
But in a statement two days later, he said: "I am not retired."
White claimed McGregor was withdrawn from the card for refusing to fly to Las Vegas for a news conference and promotional photographs.
In his statement, the fighter claimed he was being asked to do too much promotional work by the UFC and was not able to concentrate on his training.


A group of drugs being tested for cancer could also be used to treat spinal cord injuries, a study in mice suggests.

Mice treated with cancer drugs called nutlins recovered much more movement than those left untreated.
The Imperial College London researchers said the drugs should now be tested in rats and could be tested in human patients within 10 years.
There are currently no proven effective treatments for spinal cord injuries.
Such injuries can affect patients' ability to feel or move parts of their body below the injury.
The damage is often permanent because it is very difficult to make spinal cord nerves regrow.
The study, published in the journal Brain, used drugs which have been found to be safe in early cancer trials.
In the research on adult mice, the drugs stopped a particular series of proteins from interacting to restrict nerve growth.
Normally used to suppress tumours, in the mice with partially severed spinal cords they were able to make nerves regrow in the affected area.
This meant that 75% of the mice went from being paralysed to being able to walk on a ladder.
Mice which were not treated with the cancer drugs only made a slight recovery in their movement.
Prof Simone di Giovanni, from the department of medicine at Imperial College London, who led the study, said: "Unlike in the limbs, nerves in the spinal cord don't regenerate after an injury.
"We're only just beginning to understand the fundamental reasons for this striking difference.
"We have identified a mechanism that controls nerve regeneration, and there are already experimental drugs that target this pathway, suggesting an opportunity to translate these findings into the clinic."
He went on to say that although the results in mice were "very encouraging", they now had to be replicated in studies in rats, whose spinal cords more closely resemble those of humans.


Swansea City's win against Liverpool at Anfield was one of the greatest victories in their history, according to former manager John Toshack.

Roberto Firmino's brace had cancelled out Fernando Llorente's double but Gylfi Sigurdsson sealed a valuable three points with a 74th-minute strike.
Swansea had never won before at Anfield where Toshack played for eight years.
"Liverpool probably thought it was going to be a lot easier than it turned out," Toshack told BBC Radio Wales.
"The way Swansea won it was great. Football is full of these surprises.
"It's one of the results of all time in the history of the football club. It's got to give them a terrific boost."
Toshack had said Swansea would be relegated from the Premier League prior to their game against Liverpool and questioned Paul Clement's appointment.
Media playback is not supported on this device
The former Liverpool striker said the Swans deserved their victory, however, and claimed it was not only down to a poor Liverpool performance.
"In the first half, Swansea were very well focussed and organised. Liverpool probably thought the game was going to be a lot easier than it turned out to be.
"Swansea, to go away from home and score three goals at Anfield or anywhere in the Premier League is a terrific achievement.
"As disappointing as Liverpool were, you have to look at how focussed Swansea were particularly in that first 45 minutes."


People with a severe alcohol-related liver disease will be eligible for liver transplants for the first time in the UK under a pilot scheme.

NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) said only those under 40 who had not previously been treated for a drink problem would be eligible.
Severe alcohol-associated hepatitis patients would account for 1% of all liver transplants each year.
One in five liver transplants currently performed in the UK is alcohol-related.
Transplanting livers in heavy drinkers has always been a controversial issue.
In the past, debate has focused on the fact that alcohol-related liver disease is self-inflicted, and concerns that patients would not look after their new liver post-transplantation.
This has led the public and the medical profession to be wary of supporting transplantation in patients with alcoholism.
People with severe alcohol-associated hepatitis (SAAH) had not previously been considered for transplants because the severity of their illness meant they were often very ill when first seen by a clinician and were unlikely to survive a period of abstinence before transplantation.
However, a French study published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 2011 suggested that early transplantation in some patients with SAAH could produce positive outcomes and increase survival rates.
As part of the pilot scheme run by NHSBT, 20 people with severe alcohol-associated hepatitis will be identified and put on waiting list for a liver transplant, provided they meet the strict criteria.
This process could take up to two years, NHSBT said.
An NHSBT spokesperson said: "We are looking at a small group of people in the UK who are eligible for the scheme and we want to see if the results we get are similar to those of the French study."
Around one in five liver transplants currently performed in the UK is alcohol-related.
Approximately 900 liver transplants are carried out every year.
The government's chief medical officer said recently that growing numbers of people in England were dying from liver disease caused by heavy drinking and unhealthy eating.
Andrew Langford, chief executive of the British Liver Trust, said he welcomed the inclusion of SAAH patients in the pilot scheme.
He said: "Some liver diseases are caused by genetics but the vast majority are due to lifestyle choices, such as heavy drinking and obesity. But we must base the assessment on the healthcare needs at the time to see who would most benefit from a liver transplant.
"It is definitely worth doing the pilot to see if it could be of benefit in the UK."
He said that, with the right support, it was possible for people with severe alcohol-associated hepatitis (SAAH) to change their lifestyle and habits.
"It's one thing to get a new liver, but these people also need psychological support.
"With the right amount of support they can turn their lives around, as the French study shows."