Cuts in forensic science spending risk serious mistakes being made in criminal cases, two North West MPs have warned.

Graham Stringer and Andrew Miller fear standards have slipped since the Forensic Science Service shut in 2012.
Much of the work is now done by in-house police laboratories, many of which have not been accredited to a recognised international standard.
The Home Office said: "We continue to ensure forces have access to the best possible forensic services."
Figures obtained through Freedom of Information requests by The Sunday Post show North West police forces have cut their forensic science budgets by nearly £10m over the past five years.
Greater Manchester Police has seen the biggest reduction, down from £18.7m in 2010-11 to £13.8m in 2013-14.
Budget projections from Greater Manchester's Police and Crime Commissioner Tony Lloyd reveal plans to cut a further £1.6m by 2017.
Lancashire Constabulary, meanwhile, has cut its forensic science budget from £3.3m in 2010-11 to about £990,000 in 2013-14.
Mr Stringer, Labour MP for Blackley and Broughton, claimed "murderers and rapists are likely to go free" because of the cuts.
He said it was "good news for criminals" and has made "a very bad situation worse".
Mr Stringer said the range of forensics services now available through police laboratories and the private sector were limited and it was a "really worryingly situation".
Ellesmere Port and Neston MP Mr Miller said: "There's a real fear that somebody is going to end up on the wrong side of the bars, either someone wrongly prosecuted or wrongly acquitted, because of this cost-cutting approach that has been adopted."
The Labour MP said there was a lack of transparency on how money was spent, and added: "There is a real risk that in-house police laboratories will undermine the integrity of the whole industry of forensic science."
Six of the forensic science services undertaken by GMP and seven of those performed by Cheshire Constabulary do not have accreditation from the International Standards Organisation.
In December, a National Audit Office report raised doubts about the effectiveness of Home Office oversight, pointing to what it described as a lack of data on forensics spending by police forces.
The Home Office said police reform was working and that "it is for police and crime commissioners and chief constables to decide how to spend their budgets".
December 2010: The government announces plans to close the Forensic Science Service (FSS), a government-owned company which employs 1,600 staff. The government says it is losing about £2m a month
July 2011: An MPs' inquiry concludes that the government did not consider the wider impacts of closing the FSS, and that financial reasons took precedence
October 2011: In its official response to the inquiry, the government argues that allowing the FSS to enter administration would have caused serious damage to the criminal justice system
March 2012: The FSS officially shuts its doors, with operations transferred to private companies and in-house police laboratories.
July 2013: A follow-up inquiry by the Commons' Science and Technology Committee concludes that major crimes could go unsolved unless the government does more to support forensic science
November 2013: The government launches a consultation over plans to boost the powers of the forensics regulator in England and Wales


A 10-year-old boy who worked in a spinning mill in Bangladesh has died after other workers inserted a high-pressure nozzle into his rectum and activated it, local media reports say.

Police in Narayanganj say it is unclear why Sagar Barman was assaulted.
Last year, a 13-year-old boy was killed in the same way in a vehicle workshop in another part of the country.
Two men were sentenced to death over the case, which sparked large protests.
Bangladesh boy killings: Six sentenced to death
Rakib Hawlader died in August last year after air was pumped into his body in retaliation for leaving his job.
His death followed the killing of another teenager, Samiul Alam Rajon, who was beaten to death by a mob after allegedly stealing a bicycle.
Four men were sentenced to death over that killing.
Child labour is common in Bangladesh, with many children working in unofficial garment factories, often in harsh conditions.


The patriarch of an international art-dealing dynasty has been cleared of concealing paintings and properties from the French tax authorities.

Guy Wildenstein and seven other defendants were accused of trying to hide millions of euros in assets.
The presiding judge of a Paris court said there had been a "clear attempt" at concealment.
But he acquitted them because of shortcomings in both the investigation and French tax fraud legislation.
Guy Wildenstein gave a rare interview three months ago in which he denied wrongdoing and said he hoped he would not be made into a "scapegoat".
The Wildenstein family estate includes famous paintings, Caribbean properties, racehorses, and a Kenyan ranch.
The level of secrecy around the family fortune was first uncovered in the late 1990s during messy divorce proceedings between Guy's brother Alec and his then-wife, Jocelyn.
Ten years later in 2008, after Alec's death, Guy Wildenstein declared an inheritance of $61m (Â£50m; â‚¬57m).
But repeated claims by other women who had married into the family led investigators to look again at the Wildenstein finances in 2010.


An audience braved temperatures of -5C to watch a special screening at an indoor real snow ski slope as part of the Glasgow Film Festival.

John Carpenter's 1982 sci-fi horror The Thing was shown on an inflatable big screen at Snow Factor at Braehad.
The event, on Thursday, was a sell-out, complete with huskies and an ice bar.
The 13th annual festival runs until Sunday. It closes with the world premiere of Mad To Be Normal, starring David Tennant.
The festival features more than 310 separate events, showcasing 180 films from 38 countries.
Screenings and events have been taking place at film theatres across the city as well as at another pop-up cinema at the Barras.


The mother of Manchester attack victim Martyn Hett says she feels she has "gained more sons" thanks to the support of his friends.

Figen Murray hailed the support at a vigil celebrating the 29 year old's life in Heaton Moor Park in Stockport, Greater Manchester, on Sunday.
Mr Hett was one of 22 people killed in the suicide bomb attack on 22 May.
Mrs Murray said his friends were "all very tearful and yet they said the most beautiful things about him".
A Coronation Street-themed cake was among the tributes at the vigil for Mr Hett, who had a tattoo of the soap's stalwart Deirdre Barlow.
Members of his family also wore personalised T-shirts with tributes from celebrities including singer Mariah Carey and BBC Radio 1's Nick Grimshaw.
Speaking in front of hundreds of people who attended the vigil, Mrs Murray said: "I know I've lost a son to this horrible event but they were his friends before and I've gained more sons now."
She also spoke about a hashtag #BeMoreMartyn which was being used to pay tribute to Mr Hett on social media.
"I don't know how that came about and who started it but I'm going to have it tattooed somewhere on my body. I think he's taught us all a lesson how to live life more fully," Mrs Murray said.
Mr Hett's partner Russell also paid an emotional tribute to the "Deirdre to my Ken" on stage at the vigil.
"I feel robbed of my future, but I feel so grateful of my past", he added.
Mr Hett died just days before he was due to fly to the USA for a two-month "trip of a lifetime" for which he had been saving for two years.


The leader of India's main opposition Congress party, Sonia Gandhi, is being treated in hospital for a fever.

Mrs Gandhi was admitted to Delhi's Ganga Ram Hospital on Tuesday morning, party spokesman Randeep Surjewala said in a statement.
She would spend two days in the hospital, the statement added.
Mrs Gandhi, 69, is the widow of former PM Rajiv Gandhi. She is the head of the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty, which has mostly ruled India since independence in 1947.
Her party lost the 2014 general elections to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Mrs Gandhi has been in and out of hospitals in recent years and her health has been subject of much speculation in the press.
In August, she underwent surgery to repair a shoulder injury.
In 2011 she went to the US to receive surgery for an undisclosed medical condition. In 2013, she was taken to a hospital for a few hours after she fell ill in parliament.
And in 2014, she was admitted to a Delhi hospital for treatment of an infection.


Fifa made a little-noted amendment to its statutes earlier this year but it was one that deserved considerably more attention.

Football's world governing body decided to lower the age limit for international transfers to include players aged 10 and above. That's right: 10.
Before the change was introduced in March, clubs only needed to go through the official process of applying for an International Transfer Certificate if their target was at least 12 years old.
"The executive committee decided to reduce the age limitâ€¦ due to the increased number of international transfers of players younger than 12," Fifa told the BBC in a statement.
But what happens when clubs simply start recruiting six, seven and nine-year-olds to bypass Fifa's new red tape?
Well, if that does happen, Fifa says the age limit "could be reconsidered" if it detects a trend of players even younger than 10 being transferred.
Nonetheless, the change of the rules highlights the growing problem of the illegal movement of minors.
The Paris-based non-governmental organisation, Foot Solidaire, helps send boys back to Africa after they have been tricked by unscrupulous agents and empty promises into leaving the continent.
It estimates that 15,000 teenage footballers are moved out of just 10 West African countries every year - many of them underage.
Jean-Claude Mbvounim, Foot Solidaire's founder, says that agents can pocket anywhere between $3,000 (Â£2,000) and $10,000 for each child they send to a fictitious trial at an imagined club - and says football needs help to combat the issue.
"Fifa has to do more with public authorities, governments and civil society because this issue is a social issue," says Mbvounim.
"Today we have criminal activists threatening world football and the young players, so it's important to work together. Fifa will have to be on top of this battle."
What makes the actions of Champasak United in Laos, who imported 23 underage players in February, interesting is that they are the actions of a club, albeit under the guise of an academy.
The normal story is that teenagers duped into leaving Africa end up on the streets of whatever country they have been sent to, since the 'agent' has disappeared and no club is aware of their presence.
According to the boys who went to Laos and have since returned to Liberia, thanks to the help of global players' union Fifpro, Champasak's academy lacks a proper coach, medical facilities and there is no provision for education.
The club's player-'African players manager' Alex Karmo admits Champasak brought in the players to sell them on at a profit afterwards.
The contracts they offered the youngsters enabled the club to pay them absolutely nothing should they want to, although Karmo says they were paid each month.
The signed deals also stated that players must pay back the cost of their flights from Africa, and all food and accommodation received, should they wish to break their contract - an unrealistic goal for players earning zero a month at worst and $140 at best.
The Liberians are not the first Africans to be disappointed, but their nation is one of the few in West Africa to have no football academy, even if the Liberian FA says it plans to open one later this year.
To put it into context, the youngsters were keen on Laos even though it has made next-to-no impact on the international stage and is ranked 16 places below 161st-rated Liberia in Fifa's national rankings.
"Liberia is over 165 years old and we are just completing the first football training centre," said the country's FA chairman Musa Bility.
"Maybe if that training centre was here, those kids would not be in Laos."
The plan is to have former Liberian football star George Weah as a title name for the academies, but can their presence stop the flow of young players abroad?
As another potential form of defence against this problem, Foot Solidaire is looking to open an observation centre in the Senegalese capital Dakar next year. It hopes to both inform youngsters and families of the perils of trafficking, as well as keep a close eye on the exodus of West Africa's youngsters.


Hot on the heels of announcing a UK tour for November, and with the second single from his number one album Blunderbuss due for release at the end of the month, Jack White returns to London this weekend to perform at the iTunes Festival.

It has been a summer of globetrotting for the former White Stripes frontman, which involved performances at several festivals, despite the fact that he views them as "a necessary evil in the business", likening them to playing at a party.
"I don't get excited about festivals - they're not my favourite place to play," he admits.
"A lot of people come to them and there's all these pros to them. You get exposure to people who would never come and see you and [the organisers] offer bands a lot of money so they can't say no, but they're not my first choice to perform music.
"Everyone's drinking and lazing in the sun and walking around and that's a fun thing for them but it's not interesting for me.
"I'm not trying to be negative, it's just never been too exciting for me."
White says he is heavily influenced by his surroundings and the people in them. "If you're playing live music, whatever you do influences the sound," he says.
On tour, he switched between all male and all female musicians each night "to shake things up".
"If we brought in six female musicians and you brought my mum in the room and sat her down, [or] if we had seven 80-year-old men sitting there and you brought in a beautiful 20-year-old girl and had her sit there, you're going to influence everyone's playing attitude.
"It's not gender based or age based, it's the idea that we are all human and we react to our environments," he adds.
Detroit-born White has also soaked up the abundance of talent in Nashville, where he moved four years ago and established a physical location for his label Third Man Records.
Being in Nashville has allowed him to make the most of the city's musical talent.
"The Nashville part is how many musicians were around me for the sessions - musicians who were living around Nashville that I could pull in for the recordings.
"Other places I've lived, I've never had that opportunity to pull these different people - fiddle players, pedal steel players - from nearby."
Blunderbuss has been likened to Bob Dylan's break-up album Blood on the Tracks because of the lyrics about heartache, anger and loneliness.
While White is happy to take the comparison as a compliment, similarities to Dylan - or any other musician - are not deliberate, he says.
"For me it's about pushing myself to do something I haven't done before. Some people might say 'that sounds like an old Rolling Stones song', and maybe it does, but it was something I never did before.
"It's easy to emulate, it means you don't have any idea what to do with yourself. That would be a scary place to be and I'm glad I've never felt that way."
So what is the songwriting process for someone who places such importance on originality?
"It's different every time," he replies.
"Sometimes it's lyrics first, sometimes it's music first. Sometimes it's a melody of two or three notes that speak to me, maybe they came out when I was checking an amplifier.
"A song [Sixteen Saltines] on this album actually happened when I was checking a reverb unit. That's one of your jobs, to be that attentive, to have the tuner in your brain. It's being able to pay attention when those accidents happen."
One of those so-called "accidents" resulted in the Grammy Award-winning song Seven Nation Army, from The White Stripes' 2004 album Elephant.
"I played the [now famous guitar] riff for the song for Ben Swank who works at Third Man. He said 'It's OK' and Meg didn't think anything of it either. I thought it was interesting.
"Even when we recorded it, nobody thought it was that good. Even when the album was done, our record label didn't want to release it as a single!
"But it shows you if you don't pay attention to those things, you'll miss a lot of them."
As a composer, White believes his duty is to be "reverential" to each song and make it "come to life".
But his lyrics are "arbitrary", written so people can relate to them rather than being a reflection of his own personal circumstances, he says.
"I think anyone who would sell their personal life out there, and have people listen to [them] whine about it is kind of ridiculous.
"When you're a songwriter it's your job to try to tap into these different struggles and put them out there for people to relate to, not for you to air your dirty laundry, especially in the tabloid culture that exists today. I have absolutely no interest in that."
I'm Shakin is due for release on 24 September.


A man has admitted sending a tweet in which he said he would "love to shoot" an MP in the head.

Kier Ashby tagged Harlow MP Robert Halfon in the tweet on 23 June - the night of the EU Referendum.
Ashby - who was told to take his hands out of his pockets - pleaded guilty at Chelmsford Magistrates Court to sending the tweet.
The 21-year-old from Harlow was given a four week prison sentence suspended for one year.
He was also ordered to carry out 120 hours of unpaid community work and pay Â£500 in compensation to Mr Halfon.
The court heard Ashby, who sent the tweet whilst watching a comedy programme, had wanted to become a teacher.
In a statement read to the court, Mr Halfon said he felt "threatened and freaked out" when he read the message.
Denise Holland, prosecuting, said the Conservative MP "checked his doors were locked" and "felt vulnerable".
The tweet came a week after Labour MP Jo Cox was fatally shot and stabbed in Birstall, West Yorkshire.


Cameroon captain Stephane Mbia has signed for Hebei China Fortune from Turkish club Trabzonspor.

The 29-year-old former Marseille centre-back will join Ivory Coast's Gervinho at the Chinese club, after he signed from AS Roma on Wednesday.
"Looking forward to 'absolute beast defender' Mbia fully showing his  strength," the club said on twitter.
Mbia wrote on his Twitter page: "Proud to join Hebei China Fortune, ready for this adventure. Let's go."


All forms of dredging will be banned in an area of seabed off the west Highlands coast from midnight, the Scottish government has said.

It said it was introducing an urgent marine conservation order to cover the Wester Ross Marine Protected Area.
It follows damage to coral-like seaweed called maerl by a scallop dredger.
Dredging in the MPA, which includes Loch Ewe and areas around the Summer Isles, was due to be prohibited from November.
Scottish Environment Secretary Richard Lochhead said the scale of the damage had left him with no choice but to bring forward the timing of the ban.
Evidence of the damage was gathered by people in the local community, the government said.
Mr Lochhead said: "It's very disappointing that a scallop dredger has breached the voluntary fishery management measures in this MPA which is considered vital to the recovery of maerl beds.
"The seabed shows signs of damage consistent with a pass of scallop dredging gear.
"Maerl beds can take centuries to grow back and further risk of damage to these precious habitats cannot be allowed."
The order will not affect other fishing activity in the Wester Ross MPA, including hand diving for scallops.
Pink-purple maerl beds offer protection to young cod, scallops and crabs.


Aberdeen manager Derek McInnes is "delighted" that Jonny Hayes has recovered from injury and is fit to face Partick Thistle on Tuesday.

Hayes has recovered ahead of schedule from a hamstring injury picked up in the defeat to Inverness Caledonian Thistle on 15 February.
"He's been training the last few days. He's trained brilliantly as well," McInnes said.
"He looks ready to go and I'm delighted to have him back."
The Dons can move within one point of Premiership leaders Celtic with victory at Firhill, and McInnes knows a win is crucial in order to keep the pressure on Ronny Deila's faltering side.
"We're not daft, we all know the importance of winning and that's all we're looking for.
"I don't buy into all this psychological stuff, outside pressures and all the rest of it.
"For me it's just the game and we put enough demand on the players to win each and every game anyway. We want the players to play the way they train and hopefully we can be good enough on the night to win the game."
McInnes feels the form some of his players have displayed this season deserves consideration from Scotland manager Gordon Strachan.
With international friendlies against the Czech Republic and Denmark at the end of the month, McInnes believes two Aberdeen players in particular should be in the running for a call-up to the Scotland squad.
"I think there are a couple of lads there who have got a real case with their recent form. I know Mark Reynolds has been involved before, Peter Pawlett, Ryan Jack, but I think coming into that now are Kenny McLean and Graeme Shinnie.
"I hear others getting mentioned and pushed and quoted to be in the squad and I think everybody's maybe got a case for that but I look at those two certainly (for selection).
"Shinnie and McLean have been outstanding for me. They're in a team at the top end of the league, performed well in Europe and the improvement in them is clear."


The wife of one of two men killed when a light aircraft crashed in a field has spoken about how much she misses her "captain".

Paul Gunnell died when the plane he was in crashed last Thursday in Brimslade, near Marlborough, Wiltshire.
The 57-year-old from Guernsey was a former RAF pilot who then spent 23 years with the airline Cathay Pacific.
Kirsty Boazman said his death had "ripped a hole in my heart and existence".
"In the early evening of Thursday 13 July, my precious and outrageously talented husband, Paul Gunnell (PG to most), died in a light aircraft accident just outside Marlborough," she said in a statement released by Wiltshire Police.
"This cruel and unexpected departure has ripped a hole in my heart and existence.
"He died while doing what he loved most but it was not time to leave this life. We had much planned.
"I dearly love and so terribly miss my 'captain'."
The identity of the second man killed in the crash has not yet been released. Formal identification of both men has not yet taken place.
Mr Gunnell joined the RAF in 1982 and flew Harrier jump jets before becoming deputy chief pilot of Cathay Pacific's Airbus fleet.
He had "squandered" a scholarship to Oxford University, according to friend Rick Offord, but graduated from Leicester and then gained another first class degree in law while with the airline.
"Clever and talented but, first and foremost, a gifted aviator and true friend," Mr Offord said.
"'Legend' is used too often in aviation but if anyone deserves that status it is PG."
The Air Accidents Investigation Branch has launched an investigation, but Ms Boazman said "whatever occurred happened quickly".
"Paul was not alone and our thoughts are equally with the other family who have also lost a loved one, who shared Paul's sheer joy of being in the air," she said.


Sir Tom Jones has said getting dropped from The Voice shows its contestants that even established stars have to cope with rejection.

Speaking at a press launch of the sixth series of the show, Sir Tom added he was pleased ratings went down when he was not featured as a coach.
"Whoever was responsible made a mistake," said the Welsh singer.
He was invited back after ITV bought the rights to broadcast The Voice, previously shown on BBC One.
Sir Tom said it was not the BBC that was behind the decision to no longer have him on the show, but "the people on The Voice, whoever, the powers that be".
"I did a show on the BBC right after that - Children in Need, with Rob Brydon," he noted. "I wasn't really upset with the BBC. But whoever was responsible made a mistake."
Sir Tom spoke of the importance of artists believing in themselves because "you're bound to get knockbacks".
"There's a knockback right there, at my time of life - to prove to these young singers coming on the show that even I got a knockback, after all that time.
"Then you've got to think - it's their loss. I knew what the public felt because of the feedback I had.
He recalled a time he entered talent competitions himself, in south Wales - much to the amusement of his fellow coaches.
"I lost out to a ventriloquist once - and she was terrible," he mused. "I had to walk away from that."
Will.i.am, the only coach to have featured on every series of the talent contest, said the lack of chart success for its previous winners has been "down to song choice".
The debut single by Kevin Simm, the former Liberty X singer who won the last series, peaked at 24 in the charts.
Black Eyed Peas rapper Will.i.am said the new prize of a record deal with Polydor would change things.
"It comes down to song choice. I think that's one of the reasons we've not seen a real star from the show.  The songs they've been singing [have been] likeâ€¦ whatever."
And talking about the show going up against BBC singing competition Let It Shine, fronted by Gary Barlow, he said: "We have people coming up against us, thinking they can slide right around our time slot - so what.
"We're the headliners - watch The Voice, see the drama, see the amazingness, boom."
Barlow has since tweeted a response, saying: "Good luck to everyone on @thevoiceuk good honest competition makes us all better."
The Voice has a new twist that means the judges no longer speak to the contestants if none of them has chosen to turn their chair around - indicating they want them in their team.
New coach Gavin Rossdale, lead singer of Bush, said it was difficult seeing the disappointment on the faces of those who had been unsuccessful.
"I'm having so much fun - I wasn't expecting to have that much fun all the time," he explained. "The only thing that's been a bit hard is seeing some of the contestants that didn't make it, and we see their story - I could feel myself sinking lower and lower. I was feeling bad."
He said one of the reasons he wanted to be a coach was because of "how emotionally invested you get in the contestants".
"You can't help yourself. You're caught up in the dreams they've had for years."
Rossdale, the father of model and Strictly Come Dancing contestant Daisy Lowe, said: "We can help one person. We're just preparing them.
"We're real coaches - it's the FA Cup final, they go out there and play it, it's up to them. But it's good if they win!"
Oscar-winning actress and singer Jennifer Hudson - a former contestant on singing contest American Idol, who came seventh on the show in 2004 - said of being a coach: "It's so good. I'm really enjoying this experience and working with these guys, and being on the other side.
"I can't believe I'm here because it's still so fresh in my mind, when I was a contestant and trying to get here. But I feel empowered because I feel like I can help them get there."
She said she was a "firm believer in taking the opportunity you're given" - adding that failing to win a show did not mean you could not be a success.
"No-one is going to live your dream for you - no one is going to chase your dream for you," said Hudson. "It's something everyone should keep in mind. You have to go out there.
"This is the type of thing you cannot do unless you're passionate about it. Other than that, you just go home."
The sixth series of The Voice starts on 7 January on ITV at 20:00 GMT.
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Part of a rocket has successfully landed on a drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean for the first time.

9 April 2016 Last updated at 09:20 BST
The rocket that was launched by US company SpaceX touched down after helping to deliver supplies to the International Space Station.
It's not the first time that SpaceX has tried to land the rocket at sea - they have had four failed attempts already.
But this new success is a big step forward, because it means that they will be able to re-use rocket parts in the future, instead of them getting wasted.


Turkey says it has "concrete evidence" the nerve agent Sarin was used in a suspected attack by Syrian government forces a week ago, state media report.

Health Minister Recep Akdag was quoted by the Anadolu news agency as saying traces of one of the decomposition products of Sarin had been detected in the blood and urine of several victims.
At least 89 people were killed in the incident in rebel-held Khan Sheikhoun.
Syria's government has repeatedly denied using any chemical weapons.
The US has rejected the assertion, however, and on Friday it carried out a missile strike on the Shayrat airbase, where it said a Syrian Air Force jet that attacked Khan Sheikhoun with chemical weapons took off.
President Bashar al-Assad's ally Russia, which says the Syrian jet had in fact hit a rebel depot full of chemical munitions, denounced the "illegal action" by the US.
A number of casualties were treated at hospitals in Turkey, which opposes Mr Assad, following last Tuesday's incident in neighbouring Idlib province.
The World Health Organization said their apparent lack of external injuries and similar symptoms, including acute respiratory distress, suggested they had been exposed to organophosphorus chemicals, a category that includes nerve agents.
On Tuesday, Mr Akdag announced that a chemical known as isopropyl methyphosphonic acid (IMPA) had been "identified in the blood and urine tests conducted on samples taken from the victims".
Once exposed to air and water, Sarin breaks down into IMPA and methylphosphonic acid (MPA).
The UN concluded that rockets filled with sarin were fired at several rebel-held suburbs of Damascus in August 2013 after finding traces of IMPA in samples taken from the scene of the attack, which the US blamed on Syria's government.
Earlier on Thursday, Russia's president urged the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) to open a full investigation into last week's incident.
Vladimir Putin also claimed rebels were planning "acts of provocation" using chemical weapons to encourage further US strikes on government forces.
A Russian military spokesman said that the Syrian government was prepared to allow OPCW experts to visit the Shayrat airbase to search for chemical weapons.


Japan's government has acknowledged that a worker involved in clean-up work at the Fukushima nuclear plant may have developed cancer as a result.

Officials say the man will be entitled to compensation for work-related illness, in the first cancer case linked to the Fukushima plant meltdown.
The man, in his 40s, is suffering from leukaemia.
The nuclear plant was badly damaged in the earthquake and subsequent tsunami that hit Japan on 11 March 2011.
The man worked at the damaged plant for more than a year, and was exposed to a total of 19.8 millisieverts of radiation during that period.
That is nearly four times the annual dose allowed for nuclear workers in Japan but is less than half the amount US nuclear workers can be exposed to in a single year.
The man will receive compensation to cover medical costs and lost income, government officials said.
"While the causal link between his exposure to radiation and his illness is unclear, we certified him from the standpoint of worker compensation," a health ministry official said in quotes carried by Kyodo news agency.
Three other Fukushima workers are waiting to have their cancer cases assessed.
Former plant manager Masao Yoshida died of oesophagael cancer in 2013 - but plant operator Tokyo Electric Power Company (Tepco) denied his death was related to the 2011 accident, saying the cancer would have taken several more years to develop.
More than 45,000 people have worked on the clean up at the Fukushima plant.
The 2011 tsunami swamped the cooling systems of the Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Plant and led to the worst nuclear accident since the Chernobyl disaster in 1986.
Since the disaster, the public mood has turned against nuclear energy, prompting the shutdown of all Japan's nuclear power reactors. Only two have restarted since - one in August, and one of them last week.
Despite opposition, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has been pushing to restart the country's nuclear plants and reduce Japan's newfound dependence on expensive, imported fossil fuel.


A project to record the history of East Anglian airfields used by the United States during World War II has been given £575,000.

New Heritage Solutions wants its Eighth In The East project to collect the stories of Americans who served and local people who lived near the bases 1942-45.
The project has been awarded the grant by the Heritage Lottery Fund.
It aims to work with local museums, record memories and collect photos.
The project will look at the 67 airfields in the East which provided bases for USAF bombing raids over Germany.
About 200,000 US personnel served in East Anglia in what became known as the 'friendly invasion'.
Nick Patrick, project leader, said: "The actual airfields themselves are decaying and the people who've kept alive this history are sadly passing away, as the air crew are too.
"There are some tremendous voluntary museums that keep this heritage alive, such as Horham and Parham in Suffolk, but they need young people to come in and take up this history.
"We hope by the end of the three year project there will be things like cycling and walking tours, museum offers and people coming to East Anglia will know about this history."
The airfields had up to 4,000 people living on them and the project covers Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Norfolk, Northamptonshire and Suffolk.
The Eastern Angles Theatre Company is also involved in the project.
Its artistic director Ivan Cutting is also the creative director for the Eighth In The East project.
He said: "The ambition is to deliver new skills through project activities and encourage the next generation of archaeologists, museum curators, photographers, film-makers and creative writers."


A pilgrimage to an isolated Cornish chapel has been revived after it was stopped five years ago.

About 35 people have walked from Rame's Church of St Germanus to the Rame Head Chapel in south east Cornwall.
The pilgrimage used to be an annual event for at least 20 years until 2007 when numbers dwindled, said church treasurer Ken Ryles.
Parishioners hope the pilgrimage to the chapel will once again become an annual event.
Mr Ryles said: "Sometimes you don't realise what you've got until it's gone.
"We always enjoyed taking part in the pilgrimage and we hope more people and young people will join us in the future."
The distance is just under one mile along a road and coastal path, he added.
Once they arrived a service was held at the chapel.


Cardiff City boss Neil Warnock says the emergence of young striker Kenneth Zohore is set to save him a fortune in the January transfer window.

Warnock is pursuing a number of new players, but now he might not be in the market for a striker.
Zohore, who was signed in the summer from Belgian club Kortrijk, is the man for the job according to his manager.
"He's probably saved me £1.5m I would imagine. I can't see myself buying anyone better than that," said Warnock.
Copenhagen-born Zohore was signed by Kortrijk, a club also owned by Cardiff owner Vincent Tan, a year ago from Danish outfit OB Odense and was immediately loaned to the Bluebirds for the second half of the 2015-16 season.
He initially found starts hard to come by under then Cardiff-manager Russell Slade, scoring twice in 12 appearances.
Since the arrival of Warnock in October, 2016, Zohore has been given a more prominent role but has just one goal in nine games.
Warnock is ready to put his faith in the 22-year-old and believes the goals will come.
"I think he is only going to get better. He's the find of my time at the club," said Warnock.
"The goals will come. He's created chances every game. He's been thwarted by good goalkeepers at times, but that will come.
"He's learning all the time. I don't even think Ken thought he could work as hard as that. He's showing his commitment to the team and I think the lads appreciate it."


The past few months have seen a number of market watchers express concern about the corporate bond market.

This is a $10tn market in which companies sell debt to investors for set terms averaging about eight years.
The market has doubled in size in the past decade, swelled by cheap money after years of low interest rates.
At the same time, banks - the market-makers for these assets, or traditional shop front - have cut their holdings.
The Bank of England estimates there has been a 75% reduction in the bond inventories of dealers in the marketplace since 2008.
This means that buying or selling bonds could become harder, which could in turn lead to larger pricing swings.
Why does this matter?
As the market has grown, credit mutual funds have tripled in size since the 2008 financial crisis. And as savers have searched for better returns, many have put their money into these funds rather than accept the fractions of percent of interest available from traditional bank accounts.
Looming on the horizon is a potential interest rate increase in the UK - one in the US is likely to be sooner - and this normally spells bad news for bond prices.
So why is liquidity the big issue?
Regulations and capital requirements mean it is now "very expensive to carry inventories" for corporate debt, says Soren Willemann, head of European credit strategy at Barclays. Inventories have been in a slow decline since 2009, he adds.
What makes corporate bonds a different market from shares is while a company may have one share-denoting ownership, it could issue dozens of types of bond, meaning keeping an inventory of bonds is harder.
Jim Leaviss, head of retail fixed interest at M&G Investments, overseeing about £50bn of investments, says the drop in inventory is due to stricter bank regulations.
"For US investment banks in particular, regulation has meant that more capital is needed to own an inventory of bonds. The regulation is to make investment banks smaller," he says. There are similar effects on banks globally as part of an effort by policymakers to make banks safer.
For Citi's credit strategist Matt King, all this is part of a broader picture.
"There are several complicated and interlocking issues," he says. Low interest rates have "herded investors" into making investment that they may not have made otherwise, Mr King says, because investors are searching for high returns - and there are few to find.
More companies have issued bonds, accommodating that new cash. But rather than spend it on new jobs and growth, a lot of the companies' money has funded share buybacks.
If investors leave this market with their money - for instance as central banks raise interest rates - Mr King says "no-one knows precisely how this will work".
"There is concern about bank regulation putting dealers under pressure. Most of the evidence shows dealers have become more efficient.
"There's always this nagging doubt" that the money may leave as quickly as it arrived, say as savers who shunned cash ISAs pile money into bond funds and then leave when rates rise.
He advises mutual funds to keep cash available should savers want to withdraw money.
With mutual funds now holding such a large amount of corporate borrowing, "it begs the question: who is the dealer of last resort?" if funds are left holding long-dated bonds and should their clients withdraw money, Mr King asks.
It's a big question. On Monday, Aberdeen Asset Management chief executive Martin Gilbert called for central banks to consider stepping in should the corporate bond market collapse, thus performing a similar role to its lender of last resort for banks.
The funds aren't at risk of default because they aren't themselves borrowing, so they can hold long-dated bonds if their clients leave, but they may have to sell to pay them off, Mr King says. And selling in an illiquid market can lead to parting with bonds cheaply and depressing prices.
"Different central banks take different views" on whether to step in, Mr King says.
"Nobody knows how this would work",  he adds, because of the difficulty in pricing bonds objectively in a crisis.
When central banks back a bank, they can use economic assumptions to work out the value of their mortgage book, for example. With corporate bonds - issued by companies which can default - the maths becomes harder.
Chris Higham, lead manager of Aviva's £2.7bn Corporate and Strategic Bond Funds, says that to an extent, central banks have already stepped into the corporate market, with the European Central Bank adding a limited amount of corporate bonds in the summer to its own QE bond-buying programme.
More could be added, which would help hold up valuations.
Fund managers, for their part, are fighting back.
Corporate bond fund managers have to decide if they buy a bond they may now have to keep hold of it until maturity, says M&G's Mr Leaviss. Keeping more cash, government bonds and using derivatives is helping, he says.
"Sudden regressive rate rises around the world" could be a worry "but the first mitigant against that is the Fed and others have spent the last two years warning people in advance, this will happen slowly," he says.
If the worst comes to the worst, fund managers are permitted to suspend dealing, rather than sell their holdings for a pittance to the detriment of their clients, Mr Leaviss adds.
Michael Matthews, who helps manage the £5bn Invesco Perpetual Corporate Bond Fund, said his firm is holding more cash, government bonds and bonds that are just about to mature.
Doing this "could prove to be as much an opportunity as a risk. In other words, those investors with cash, at a time when others are being forced to sell bonds, may be able to drive attractive bargains", he says.
Mr Matthews points to two crises - the financial crisis of 2008 and the euro crisis of 2011 - where "in both of those examples investors did not radically alter the pattern of their behaviour.  In other words, we did not see large-scale redemptions".
Mr King says this logic should be turned on its head to best understand the problem at hand. Some of these bouts of volatility are concerning, but they are not the problem in and of themselves.
"We've had all these wobbles without any real reasons for anybody to rush for the exit, so the potential for volatility if there is a real reason to rush for the exit is much, much greater," he says.


The official inquiry into the 2003 Iraq War may not publish its long-awaited report this year, BBC Newsnight has learned.

It had been hoped that the Chilcot Report would be published soon after the general election.
A source close to the inquiry has told Newsnight's Defence and Diplomatic Editor Mark Urban that "nobody thinks it will come out this year".
A spokesperson for the inquiry declined to comment on speculation.
The inquiry began its work in 2009 and held its last public hearing in 2011.
It was commissioned by the previous government to investigate the background to UK involvement in the Iraq War, which began in 2003 when Tony Blair was prime minister.
British forces lost 179 personnel during the conflict, of which 136 were killed in action.
By 31 August 2010, when the last US combat troops left, 4,421 US personnel been killed, of which 3,492 were killed in action. Almost 32,000 had been wounded in action.
Tens of thousands of Iraqi civilians also died as a result of sectarian killings and a violent insurgency.
In January, MPs reacted angrily to the news that the inquiry would not be published before the general election.
Having missed the pre-election deadline, another source involved in the inquiry told BBC Newsnight that "they [the inquiry] gave up trying to speed things up".
In February, inquiry chairman Sir John Chilcot told MPs he had "under-estimated" the time it would take to study up to 150,000 documents.
According to the BBC's Mark Urban, Sir John originally intended to give those due to be censured a deadline by which they would have to make representations in their defence - but it was abandoned as the process became more complex.
The inquiry has also suffered from the death of one of its five panel members, historian Sir Martin Gilbert, as well as staff losses.
Rejecting calls to set a timetable for publication in January, Sir John said he did not want to "arouse false hopes".
Prime Minister David Cameron called the delay "extremely frustrating", while Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg said it was "incomprehensible".
Some observers have claimed that the decision not to publish before polling day was due to concerns that criticisms of Mr Blair's government might be seen as harmful to the Labour Party.
Mr Blair has rejected suggestions he was behind the delay, saying it would be "far better" for him if it were published.
In a statement, Mr Blair said he had "repeatedly" made clear that he was not responsible for hold-ups to the inquiry and suggestions to the contrary were "incorrect and politically motivated".


Monmouth MP David Davies has attacked the Labour Welsh government's running of the NHS in Wales.

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21 October 2014 Last updated at 13:35 BST
His comments came during questions to UK Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt in the House of Commons on Tuesday.
The Conservatives have joined the Daily Mail in criticising Labour's record on health in Wales.
The Welsh government has denied claims that thousands of patients in Wales were "desperately" seeking treatment in England.
Mr Davies asked Mr Hunt if any English patients had asked him for treatment in Wales.


At least 1,959 members of the Iraqi security forces were killed across the country in November, the UN says.

It is almost three times the figure for October, when the government launched a major offensive to retake the city of Mosul from so-called Islamic State.
The number of civilians killed in November was 926, while 930 others were injured.
The UN special representative for Iraq, Jan Kubis, said the casualty figures were "staggering".
"In its desperate attempt to cling on to territory it controls in Mosul and Nineveh areas, [IS] has been employing the most vicious tactics, using civilians' homes as firing positions as well as abducting and forcibly moving civilians, effectively using them as human shields," he added.
Mr Kubis noted that the Iraqi security forces had declared that they were making utmost efforts during the six-week-old Mosul offensive to avoid putting civilians in harm's way, often taking additional casualties as a result.
Baghdad province, where IS militants carried out a series of bombings last month, was the worst affected for civilian casualties, with 152 killed and 581 injured. In Nineveh province, where Mosul is located, 332 were killed and 114 injured.
No regional breakdown was provided for casualties among security forces personnel, who include members of the army, police officers engaged in combat, Kurdish Peshmerga fighters, interior ministry troops, and militiamen.
The International Committee for the Red Cross (ICRC) meanwhile warned that the offensive to retake Mosul could take months, prompting more and more of the up to 1.5 million civilians believed to be living there to try to flee their homes.
Some 77,000 people have been displaced so far, with many staying in their homes as the government suggested.
On Wednesday, the UN warned that as many as half a million people in Mosul - including almost half of all the children in the city - had reportedly been cut off from access to clean water after a major water pipeline was damaged in the fighting.
The break in the pipeline is located in an area still held by IS, making it impossible to repair quickly.
The Iraqi authorities are currently bringing water into recaptured eastern districts by lorry, but the supply is not enough to meet the needs of residents.
Unless running water is restored in the next few days, the UN says, civilians will be forced to resort to unsafe water sources, exposing children to the risk of waterborne diseases such as severe diarrhoea and the threat of malnutrition.


A police investigation is underway after a County Donegal man was found dead in Manchester city centre.

Dylan Crawford, aged 20, from Dromore in Killygordon, was found at Spear Street in the city's northern quarter, shortly before 01:40 BST on Wednesday.
Detectives have arrested two men on suspicion of theft and supplying drugs.
A post-mortem examination has proved inconclusive.  In a statement, Mr Crawford's family said they are "devastated" by their loss.
"Our Dylan was a loving, kind and a very trustworthy individual. He saw the good in everyone and that was his downfall," the statement said.
"He loved to travel and would give the world to anyone. He was the heart of our family and words can't describe how devastated we are."
Greater Manchester Police said they are trying to determine the circumstances surrounding Mr Crawford's death.
They also are trying to trace another man in connection with the investigation.
"Our investigation into Dylan's death continues and we have now released an image of a man we want to speak to. If you recognise him or the clothes he is wearing, please get in touch," said Det Insp Rebecca Boyce said.
"We are also looking for anyone who was around the Spear Street, Back Piccadilly Street and Oldham Street area between 11.30pm on Tuesday and 12.30am on Wednesday to come forward.
"Even at this time of night, the area would be fairly busy so it is possible that somebody may have seen something. No piece of information is too small," she added.


A woman who wore a body suit and used a fake penis to trick a mother into thinking she was having sex with a man has been given a suspended jail term.

Lincoln Crown Court was told Fiona Manson, 25, now called Kyran Lee, had pretended to be a "muscular young man".
In a statement to the court, the 24-year-old victim, who cannot be named, said: "Finding out that Kyran Lee was a female shocked me to my core."
Lee admitted assault by penetration carried out in 2012.
She had called herself Joey G-Star Crislow on the internet and backed-up her claims by sending photographs to the victim.
Lee, 25, of Gainsborough, Lincolnshire, started seeing the victim after a relationship developed online.
The pair ended up in bed together and had sex, with the defendant remaining fully clothed and using a sex toy, the court heard.
Prosecuting, Sarah Knight said Lee - who is awaiting gender reassignment surgery - told the victim "all the things she wanted to hear" including "how much he loved her".
Lee's true identity was only revealed when she was found to be working at a fast food restaurant, under her birth name Fiona Manson.
The victim then complained to police and Lee was charged.
For the defence, David Stanton said the victim had wanted to consummate the relationship and had given Lee an ultimatum.
He said: "The option was no relationship or obtain a prosthetic. The act of sexual intimacy was not motivated by an attempt to gain pleasure but to avoid rejection and relationship breakdown."
He added Lee had been "tormented within herself for many years" about gender and has always had a "tomboyish streak in her".
Sentencing Lee to two years in jail, suspended for two years, Judge Michael Heath said: "The defendant sent pictures of a good-looking, muscular, young man, he sent toys to her children, said he loved her and understandably she wanted to meet him.
"She only had that intimacy with him because she thought that he was a man."
The victim had suffered "immeasurable emotional harm" from the "sustained deceit", he added.
However, he said: "I accept the whole motivation - however selfish and though it was dreadful and deceitful - was to have a relationship. Not a physical one, but a relationship with a woman as a man."


When several dozen Georgian Orthodox priests led tens of thousands of people on a violent attack against a small group of gay rights activists in Tbilisi earlier this year, much of the rest of the country was horrified, writes journalist Paul Rimple, who has been based in the country for 10 years.

Georgians pride themselves on their reputation for being hospitable and tolerant, and most consider themselves Christian.
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While the notion of homosexuality is not widely understood or accepted in this deeply traditional Caucasus nation, most Georgians were appalled by the scenes that unfolded in Tbilisi on 17 May.
And yet, what happened clearly illustrates the importance of the Church in Georgia.
Georgia was an early adopter of Christianity making it a state religion in 337AD. Georgians maintained their faith over the centuries despite the waves of invading hordes, including the armies of Ghengis Khan and Tamerlane.
Although the Soviets permitted religion to be practised, its reach was severely limited. In 1917, there were 2,455 working churches in Georgia, but by the mid-1980s there were only 80, along with a few monasteries and a seminary.
"During communism, the church was outdated, something for old ladies," says political analyst Ghia Nodia.
That attitude quickly changed after independence in 1991, when the elected president, Zviad Gamsakhurdia, espoused a philosophy of ethnic nationalism, which the Church embraced.
"During the (Gamsakhurdia) national movement, the concept that real Georgians are Orthodox Christians spread really fast," Mr Nodia says.
Over 80% of Georgia's 4.5 million people say they belong to the Georgian Orthodox Church, however, experts claim only about 15% - 25% actively participate in rituals.
Nevertheless, the Orthodox Church remains the most trusted institution in Georgia. In a February survey carried out by the Caucasus Resource Research Center (CRRC), 95% of respondents had a favourable opinion of its work.
Beka Mindiashvili, a former theologian who is now head of the Tolerance Center at the public defender's office, attributes such high confidence in the Church to the 80-year-old Patriarch, Ilia II.
"He possesses all the right attributes. He is charismatic, he speaks slowly and each word is regarded saintly, holy," Mr Mindiashvili says.
"He is a person for everybody. To a simple person, he speaks simply; to a politician, he speaks politically; to an intellectual, he speaks of Umberto Eco and of classical music. And he acquired absolute power in the Church all by himself."
There were only about 50 priests when Ilia II became patriarch in 1977. Today there are approximately 1,700.
His first major test in power was in 1997, when a number of anti-ecumenical abbots threatened to break communion with him for being too liberal. He avoided a schism by breaking off ecumenical activities and pursuing what philosopher Zaza Piralishvili calls an "imitation of medieval rhetoric".
Examples of the Church's ultra-conservative interventions included warnings that yoga was full of false "charms" that lured people away from God as well as a recent mass mobilisation against ID cards after some Georgian Orthodox leaders claimed the cards bore the mark of the anti-Christ.
The Church is recognised for maintaining a neutral political stance and Ilia II is renowned for playing a significant role as mediator in political confrontations, which in Georgia can easily turn violent.
Professor Iago Kachkachishvili, head of the sociology department at Tbilisi State University, says the Church's political neutrality is a myth.
"The Church's influence comes from public opinion," he says. "It uses the trust of the people as a source of strength. And every government and politician uses the Georgian Orthodox Church as a source of legitimacy."
While the constitution stipulates a separation between church and state, a 2002 concordat defined this relationship by granting the Church official recognition in Georgia and a special consultative role in the government, particularly in education.
In 2009, Mikheil Saakashvili's government awarded the Church a $15m (Â£10m) grant - three times the amount of the previous year - and presented luxury sports utility vehicles to each of the 10 archbishops.
Despite the lavish gifts, many conservative elements within the Church, who are pro-Russian, openly voiced their displeasure with the president. They saw his pro-Western orientation as a threat to Georgian traditions and the Church's influence on the people.
The clash of ideologies came to head in July 2011, when parliament passed a law allowing religious minority groups in Georgia to be registered as legal entities in public law giving them legal protection previously only enjoyed by the Orthodox Church.
The move was applauded in the West, but the Georgian Orthodox Church saw this as an infringement on its special status.
Although Ilia II requested the clergy to maintain neutrality in the 2012 parliamentary elections, many priests broke ranks and openly supported the coalition of billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili, who had provided the funds to build Tbilisi's Sameba Cathedral, the largest church in Georgia.
But on 13 May, Bidzina Ivanishvili who by now was prime minister, took an independent stance and became the first Georgian politician to declare openly that sexual minorities were equal citizens of this country.
Three days later, Ilia II called on the authorities to ban the 17 May demonstration. This marked the first open confrontation between church and state and culminated in expletive-shouting priests chasing gay activists down the main streets of the capital.
Protesters broke through barricades and police were forced to bus the small number of activists out of the area for their protection.
The day after the attacks, Tbilisi artist Magda Guruli joined some 100 people who rallied in the city centre to call for justice.
She believes the response to the protest was a manifestation of the patriarch's power over the state.
"I'm here to say give me back my religion," she said. "Orthodoxy is part of our culture, but who are these people who try to influence society and try to influence their thoughts and try to cultivate blind faith?"


The leaders of Greece, France and Germany have agreed to intensify negotiations with Athens' creditors, but there was little sign of progress.

After late night talks in Brussels, Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said all the sides would work to "bridge" remaining differences.
EU Commissioner Pierre Moscovici said a deal was close but it was now necessary to move to a "happy ending".
Greece faces default at the end of June if it fails to repay €1.5bn to the IMF.
The EU and IMF want further economic reforms before they release €7.2bn (£5.3bn) of bailout funds to Athens.
Earlier this week, Athens submitted a revised reform plan to the EU and IMF, after Mr Tsipras rejected a set of reforms put forward by EU Commission President Jean Claude Juncker.
It is believed Athens has conceded ground on VAT reforms, pensions and the country's primary surplus target.
Mr Tsipras is expected to hold further talks with Mr Juncker later on Thursday.
"We decided to intensify efforts to resolve the differences that remain and to move towards a solution," the Greek prime minister told reporters after his meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande.
"The European leaders realised that we must offer a viable solution and the chance for Greece to return to growth," Mr Tsipras added.
Ms Merkel and Mr Hollande left the talks without making public comments, however a German government statement said the three leaders had agreed that the negotiations "must be intensified".
The statement also said the meeting in Brussels was constructive.
EU Economic Affairs Commissioner Pierre Moscovici told French radio on Thursday that the talks with Greece had progressed in recent weeks to the extent that "we're now ready for landing".
"I really like Greek tragedy, but I think now we really have to move on to the happy ending."
In his comments, Mr Tsipras indicated he had stuck to his demand for some debt relief for Greece, the BBC's Damian Grammaticas in Brussels reports.
But European leaders will not countenance writing off debts before Greece commits to reforms. So there appears to have been little achieved and only a few more days for all sides to find a solution, our correspondent adds.
Last week, Greece "bundled up" a €300m payment to the IMF, delaying the payment until the end of June when a total of €1.5bn is due to be paid.
Mr Tsipras has warned earlier that a failure to reach a deal on Greece's bailout by the end of June would be the beginning of the end for the eurozone.


Israel and Turkey have announced an agreement to end an acrimonious, six-year diplomatic rift.

The two countries were close allies, but relations broke down after the killing by Israeli commandos of 10 Turkish activists on board a ship that was part of an aid flotilla attempting to breach the blockade of Gaza on 31 May 2010.
The six ships in the flotilla were boarded in international waters, about 130km (80 miles) from the Israeli coast. Commandos landed on the largest ship, the Turkish-owned Mavi Marmara, by descending on ropes from helicopters. Clashes broke out immediately and the Israeli commandos opened fire.
This is disputed. The activists say the commandos started shooting as soon as they hit the deck. Israeli officials say the commandos opened fire only after being attacked with clubs, knives and a gun which was taken from them. Video released by the Israeli military stops just before the shooting begins. A UN inquiry was apparently unable to determine at exactly which point the commandos used live fire.
They were all Turkish, although one had dual Turkish-US nationality. All were travelling on the Mavi Marmara.
It wanted to deliver aid to Gaza, breaking an Israeli and Egyptian blockade on the territory.  The ships were carrying 10,000 tonnes of goods, including school supplies, building materials and two large electricity generators. The activists also said they wanted to make the point that, in their view, the blockade was illegal under international law.
Gaza Movement, an umbrella organisation for activists from numerous countries, and a Turkish group called the Foundation for Human Rights and Freedoms and Humanitarian Aid (IHH).
The Israeli government says the IHH is closely linked to the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas, which it views as a terrorist group, and is a member of another organisation, the Union of the Good, which supports suicide bombings. However, the Turkish government regards the IHH as a legitimate charity, and had urged Israel to let the flotilla through.
Israel prevents a large range of goods from reaching Gaza in order to put pressure on Hamas, which dominates the territory.
Israel also wanted to check that the ships did not contain deliveries of weapons or cash. It offered to allow the flotilla to land in an Israeli port, and to deliver by road any goods that passed its checks.
Some flotillas have been allowed to reach Gaza in the past; others have been sent back.
There was widespread condemnation of the violence. The UN Security Council issued a statement calling for a "prompt, impartial, credible and transparent" inquiry.
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon urged Israel to lift the Gaza blockade.
In September 2010, a UN Human Rights Council report said Israel's military broke international laws, that the action by commandos, which left nine dead, was "disproportionate" and "betrayed an unacceptable level of brutality".  Israel rejected the report as "biased" and "one-sided".
Israel and Turkey held their own inquiries, submitting the findings to an international panel set up by the UN, chaired by a former New Zealand Prime Minister, Sir Geoffrey Palmer, and including an Israeli member and Turkish member.
Turkey's report, drawn up by government officials, accused Israeli commandos of "excessive, brutal and pre-meditated" conduct.  It concluded their action boarding the Mavi Marmara was "unlawful" and breached human rights. Results of post-mortem examinations had earlier suggested a total of 30 bullets were found in the bodies of the dead activists, including one who had been shot four times in the head. The Turkish panel also deemed the Gaza blockade "unlawful".
The Israeli inquiry, headed by Judge Jacob Turkel, and including five Israeli members and two international observers, found the actions of the navy and Israel's blockade of Gaza were legal under international law. However, it offered some criticism of the planning of the military operation. It also referred to "the regrettable consequences of the loss of human life and physical injuries".
In September 2011, the UN panel concluded in a repeatedly-delayed report that the loss of life and injuries resulting from the use of force by Israeli troops was "unacceptable".
"Israel's decision to board the vessels with such substantial force at a great distance from the blockade zone and with no final warning immediately prior to the boarding was excessive and unreasonable," it said.
However, the commandos did face "significant, organised and violent resistance", requiring them to "use force for their own protection", the panel found.
Nevertheless, no satisfactory explanation was provided by Israel for any of the deaths, and the "forensic evidence showing that most of the deceased were shot multiple times, including in the back, or at close range" was not accounted for, the report said.
There was also "significant mistreatment" of passengers by Israeli authorities after the takeover of the vessels, including physical mistreatment, harassment and intimidation, unjustified confiscation of belongings and the denial of timely consular assistance, it added.
At the same time, the panel said that the Israeli naval blockade on Gaza was imposed as a "legitimate security measure" to prevent weapons from entering Gaza by sea and its implementation complied with the requirements of international law. The flotilla acted "recklessly" in attempting to breach the naval blockade of Gaza, and more could have been done to warn flotilla participants of the potential risks involved and to dissuade them from their actions, according to the report.
In November 2014, a preliminary examination by the International Criminal Court's Chief Prosecutor concluded that it should not take further action despite a "reasonable basis to believe that war crimesâ€¦ were committed", because it had to prioritise war crimes on a larger scale.
The flotilla incident caused a deep rift between the former allies.
In the immediate aftermath of the flotilla raid, Turkey withdrew its ambassador from Tel Aviv and then Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan called for Israel to be punished for its "bloody massacre".  Joint military exercises were also cancelled.
Following the publication of the Palmer report, which was delayed several times as diplomats tried to repair relations, Turkey expelled the Israeli ambassador in Ankara.
"The time has come for Israel to pay for its stance that sees it as above international laws and disregards human conscience," Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said. "The first and foremost result is that Israel is going to be devoid of Turkey's friendship."
The Turkish government had insisted on receiving an Israeli apology by the time the report was released.
Israeli officials noted that the UN report did not demand a full apology, establishing only that Israel should issue an "appropriate statement of regret" and "offer payment for the benefit of the deceased and injured victims and their families".
"Israel, like any other country, has a legitimate right to protect its citizens and soldiers," an Israeli government official told the BBC.
In November 2012, a court in Istanbul began trying in absentia four retired Israeli commanders over the raid. Among the charges was "inciting murder through cruelty or torture".
The accused were named as Israel's former military chief of staff, Gen Gabi Ashkenazi, former naval chief Vice-Admiral Eliezer Marom, former head of military intelligence Maj Gen Amos Yadlin, and former head of the air force Brig Gen Avishai Lev.
The Israeli embassy in Ankara called the trial a "unilateral political act with no judicial credibility".
In March 2013, Israel and Turkey's prime ministers unexpectedly agreed to restore normalise diplomatic relations and end the legal action against former Israeli commanders.
The breakthrough came after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke to Mr Erdogan in a telephone conversation brokered by US President Barack Obama during a visit to Israel.
A statement from Mr Netanyahu's office said he had "made it clear that the tragic results regarding the Mavi Marmara were unintentional and that Israel expresses regret over injuries and loss of life".
"In light of the Israeli investigation into the incident, which pointed out several operational errors, Prime Minister Netanyahu apologized to the Turkish people for any errors that could have led to loss of life and agreed to complete the agreement on compensation," it added.
Mr Erdogan, who became Turkey's president the following year, said they had also "agreed on making arrangements for compensation" to the victims' families, adding that he had "accepted the apology in the name of the Turkish people".
In June 2016, Turkey and Israel agreed to normalise their relations.
Officials said the reconciliation deal would see Israel pay $20m in compensation to the families of those killed on the Mavi Marmara; Turkey allowed to deliver aid to Gaza via an Israeli port; and Turkish infrastructure projects aimed at improving the humanitarian situation in the Palestinian territory.
In return, Turkey agreed to pass legislation protecting Israeli troops from legal claims, and to prevent any military action or fundraising by Hamas operatives based there.


Being Santa is not just reserved for jolly men in red suits with pronounced bellies - now, a "Fashion Santa" is bringing sartorial cheer to Christmas.

The stylish Santa is 51-year-old Toronto model Paul Mason, who is appearing at the city's Yorkdale Mall throughout the holiday season.
Every "selfie" taken with Mr Mason will raise funds for the Hospital for Sick Children, a Canadian charity.
He wears festive designer clothing in a photo shoot with the mall.
The Yorkdale Mall says he has played this role before.
"His crisp white beard, perfectly polished outfits and undeniable charm make him one of our favourite things about the season," the mall writes of "Fashion Santa" on its website. "While you can't add him to your Christmas list this season, he is always up for a selfie!"
For each picture with the hashtag YorkdaleFashionSanta, the mall will donate $1 to the foundation, up to $10,000 (Â£4,800) total.
According to the hashtag on Twitter, people are enjoying taking photos with "Fashion Santa", calling him "hot" and a "silver fox".


A man who tried to get home on a 2.5 tonne road roller after a night out drinking in Dumfries has received a 15-month driving ban.

John Johnston, 27, admitted taking the vehicle without consent and driving while over the legal alcohol limit.
He was spotted by a CCTV operator committing the offence and stopped by police in Buccleuch Street.
At Dumfries Sheriff Court he was ordered to carry out 100 hours of unpaid work and given the driving ban.
Johnston, who had moved from Belfast to Dumfries, committed the offence in September this year.
He had been staying in homeless accommodation in the town and took the roller from Brooms Road.
He then drove it across town in a bid to get home from a night out drinking with a friend.
"I was just trying to find my way home," he told the court at an earlier appearance.


More than 50 vulnerable children were at risk of being sexually abused in Dorset over the past year, a report has revealed.

Potential victims as young as 12 were uncovered by the county council-commissioned investigation into child sexual exploitation (CSE).
Of the 51 children identified, 14 were considered at "significant" risk.
There have been several CSE arrests in the county, and some abuse has been "disrupted", the report said.
The potential victims were all female, with the exception of two cases.
The majority identified in the report were aged 14 or 15, but the youngest was 12.
Dorset County Council said it would discuss the report's findings with a view to taking earlier intervention in future.
Source: Dorset County Council
Det Insp Neil Phillips, of Dorset Police, said the force wanted to "educate and safeguard" those at risk.
A number of children in local authority care go missing and are at risk of CSE, he said, but there are also abused children who live at home with parents and carers.
"It's down to children being inquisitive, pushing boundaries and exploring," he said.
"Some children will experiment with alcohol and drugs and come into contact with adult males that are slightly older than them that are willing to try and exploit them sexually."
Duncan Stanway, from Barnardos, described the report as "really worrying and shocking" but said he was encouraged the council had recognised the problem.
"For too long lots of local authorities have brushed child sexual exploitation under the carpet," he said.
Children from a wide range of social backgrounds were exploited, he said, but more vulnerable groups, such as those in care or young people who have run away from home, were most at risk.


White House officials will not say whether pop star Prince performed at a weekend party at the executive residence despite guests posting about it on social media.

Spokesman Josh Earnest confirmed a private party was held on Saturday but said little else.
The guest list of 500 was said to include lobbyists, CEOs and celebrities.
The Rev Al Sharpton tweeted about a performance by Prince and Steve Wonder.
The civil rights activist and TV host wrote it was "awesome" to see them both on the keyboards.
Mr Earnest did say the Obamas' paid for the party on "their own dime", but would not say how much the party cost.
The New York Post reported that film director Tyler Perry, actresses Angela Bassett and fashion designer Naeem Khan were among the celebrity guests.


Swimmers are being warned to avoid some of Melbourne's most popular beaches, after torrential storms washed faeces into the water.

The Environment Protection Authority (EPA) in Victoria is forecasting poor water quality at 21 of the 36 beaches it checks in Port Phillip Bay.
Contaminated water can cause gastroenteritis - a stomach bug - especially in children and the elderly.
A "poor" quality forecast equates to an illness risk of between 5% and 10%.
Australia's public broadcaster ABC said the risky beaches run from Werribee South in Melbourne's south-west to Frankston, about 40 kilometres south of the city's Central Business District.
Dr Anthony Boxshall, the EPA's manager of applied sciences, told ABC News 24: "We have indicators we look for (in water tests), which is an indicator of faecal contamination, which is a really nice way of saying poo."
"It's bird poo, it's horse poo, it's cow poo and it's people poo.
"It is everything that washes in from the streets, and everything that comes out through the storm water system."
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Dr Boxshall said the water should be back to normal within around 24 to 48 hours, unless there is more rain - which forecasts suggest is possible.
EPA Victoria publishes alerts on its website to help beachgoers around Port Phillip Bay avoid hazards like sewage spills and jellyfish.
It plans to conduct more tests this week and post the results online.


When Leanne Wood first walked through the gates of her old school, a career in politics was not part of the plan.

She left after her GCSEs to work in a factory but the money was poor, as were the conditions. So when she got better exam results than she expected she went back to do her A-levels.
In those days she dreamed of being a television newsreader. Moira Stuart was a big role model, she said.
Now she is back at Tonypandy Community College - or "Pandy Comp" - this time to speak to sixth formers.
And she has a new career aspiration in mind - winning May's assembly election.
Year 12's Georgia Harrison wants to know why someone from the traditional Labour stronghold of the Rhondda opted for Plaid Cymru?
Ms Wood said being a traditional Labour stronghold has held the area back. Voters are not listened to, she said, and it is time to "shake up the political system".
The message to this group of teenagers in the Rhondda - most of whom are too young to vote - is the same message Plaid will take across Wales in the election campaign.
But are voters listening?
There is not a huge amount of polling data yet, but what polls there are suggest Labour is still out in front, with Plaid battling for second place.
"The polls are not where I would like them to be at the moment," Ms Wood told me.
"I would obviously like to see some improvement, but I think that will be achieved by making sure that we communicate with people on the ground.
"We know that there's a limit to how much of our message we can get across through the media so it is all dependent on the grassroots conversations."
Plaid's media profile was boosted last year when Ms Wood took part in the general election leaders' debates alongside David Cameron, Ed Miliband, Nicola Sturgeon, Nigel Farage, Nick Clegg and Natalie Bennett.
But the added publicity failed to translate into winning more seats in Parliament, in contrast to the near clean sweep of seats achieved by the Scottish Nationalists.
The goal for Plaid now is to capitalise on that enhanced profile and to demonstrate that they are talking voters' language on the issues that matter most.
Nine key policies - three each on health, education and the economy - will form the core of the party's assembly election campaign.
It's "absolutely clear" that those three issues are voters' top priorities, Ms Wood said.
"And so they are our top priorities as well, and all of our focus has gone into providing solutions in those areas."
But does she encounter people who pigeonhole the party, who think Plaid prioritises the Welsh language and the constitution above everything else?
"There are still misconceptions about Plaid Cymru," she says.
"I was in a meeting last night in Mountain Ash in the Cynon Valley talking about just exactly these things.
"It is up to our party workers to make sure that we scotch those misconceptions."
Ms Wood is the first Plaid leader not to come from a Welsh-speaking background. She is also the party's first female leader.
Now she hopes to achieve another first - to become Plaid's first First Minister.


Volkswagen has "no plans" to compensate customers in Europe whose diesel cars were rigged to cheat emissions tests.

VW has set aside £4.8bn to cover recall costs, but had not until now said there would be no compensation.
VW has been compensating drivers in the US, arguing that the market circumstances were different.
VW drivers in the UK say the emissions scandal has hit the re-sale value of their cars, with one telling the BBC's You & Yours programme he is "dismayed".
It was discovered in the US that the German carmaker's diesel cars had so-called "defeat devices" that could cheat laboratory emissions tests.
Since then, VW has announced that millions of cars are being recalled, and regulators across the world have begun investigations.
In a statement to Radio 4's You & Yours, VW said it was  committed to putting right any cars affected, but that the company was "not planning any further financial payouts".
This is despite VW customers in the US being promised $500 (£330) and a further $500 in credit vouchers.
More than one million UK cars are thought to be fitted with the computer "cheat chips", which reduced levels of NOx emissions during testing.
The chair of the UK's Transport Select Committee, Louise Ellman, told You & Yours that VW should carefully consider its next step.
"I think that VW are compounding their misdemeanours. I think they think they can get away with it, but that simply will not happen," she said.
VW is recalling about 11 million cars worldwide, with 8.5 million of them in Europe. In the US, 482,000 diesel cars are thought to have been fitted with the "cheat" technology.
In its statement, VW said: "We are putting together an individual package of measures for each market designed to achieve high customer satisfaction in what is currently an unsatisfactory situation for customers."
But UK customers of the German manufacturer hoping for a payout will be left frustrated.
Chris Hoyland, the owner of a VW Tiguan 2L diesel, said the value of his car had dropped from £20,600 to £17,500 since the emissions scandal broke.
"I had only driven 1,000 miles during that period so I'm dismayed my vehicle had depreciated so much. I think to treat European and UK drivers differently from those in America is just totally unfair."
VW has suggested to the BBC that it is offering US customers compensation because the US is seen as a key market that they would like to develop.
The thinking is that US consumers bought a VW car specifically advertised as a "clean diesel". They were investing in a niche technology where diesel fuel costs more than petrol, and so financial compensation would be appropriate.
But Ms Ellman is not convinced.  "The secretary of state has the power impose unlimited penalties," she said. "I think they should take a realistic view and not try and discriminate on how they treat customers in the States and how they do here."


A protest against the proposed closure of an East Yorkshire town's minor injuries unit (MIU) has taken place.

About 100 protestors gathered outside Hornsea Cottage Hospital.
Hornsea, Withernsea and Driffield MIUs could close with patients going to either two or three urgent care centres in Beverley, Bridlington or Goole.
The East Riding Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) previously said it had a "limited budget" and the move was aimed at improving services.
June Barton, a demonstration organiser, said: "I have not come across one person who is in favour of these ludicrous options.
"They are not desirable to anybody in Holderness."
The MIUs should be retained, she added.
The CCG said about 13,500 patients a year - which it described as "small numbers" - attended the three units earmarked for closure.
The other three minor injuries units at Beverley, Bridlington and Goole received about 48,000 attendances annually, it added.
The proposed urgent care units would be open 16 hours a day, 365 days a year, and there are no plans to close any hospitals, it added.
MIUs deal with patients who do not need to go to A&E and the proposed changes are part of the CCG's larger review of services.
A consultation on the plans started in October and a decision is expected in March 2017.


The UK is to send 3,500 first aid kits to the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Defence Secretary Michael Fallon has said.

The supplies were requested by Ukraine, which has been in conflict with pro-Russian separatists since Russia annexed Crimea in March 2014.
Mr Fallon said the kits, worth nearly Â£500,000, would be gifted in April in time for Britain to begin the next year of its training for Ukrainian troops.
Ukraine's armed forces "face a chronic shortage of basic equipment", he said.
In a written ministerial statement, Mr Fallon said: "This gift meets a specific Ukrainian request for assistance in alleviating medical casualties, often severely wounded.
"The UAF urgently need individual first aid kits and have continued to request them from allies."
British military personnel have already been training members of the Ukrainian army and have been sent to the Baltic region, with the aim of deterring Russian aggression beyond Ukraine.
Mr Fallon said the UK had previously gifted first aid kits on several occasions in 2015.
The UK has also previously sent the Ukrainian army tents and winter clothing.
The first aid kits will be transported by military aircraft.


Tour of Britain organisers hope 2013 winner Sir Bradley Wiggins will compete in the race for a possible final time as an Olympic champion.

Wiggins, 35, wants to ride on the track at the Olympics in Brazil in August ahead of a potential British finale.
Tour of Britain director Mick Bennett said: "The Wiggins team have verbally committed to me, and hopefully that can be a lap of honour for them with gold medals around their necks."
The tour runs from 4-11 September.
Wiggins, who won the Tour de France in 2012 and is a four-time Olympic gold medalist, is riding at the Track World Championships in London in March.
"Bradley is such an icon, such a rock star, and it would be great for him to tour the country before closing down an amazing career," added Bennett.
"I don't know if this will be the toughest edition of the race yet but I think it should be the most exciting, and it's certainly the most spectator-friendly.
"Spectators will be able to see far more of the race than ever before."
The eight-stage Tour - which will coincide with the Vuelta a Espana in Spain - will begin in Glasgow before taking the riders through the Lake District, Cheshire, Denbighshire and south Wales.
It will feature a return to the popular summit finish at Haytor on Dartmoor, a split-stage in Bristol, which includes a time-trial and a five-lap road race, ahead of the circuit finish in London.
Last year's race was won by Edvald Boasson Hagen, racing for the MTN-Qhubeka team, which is now known as Team Dimension Data and includes British sprinter Mark Cavendish.


A murder inquiry has started after a man died close to a community hospital.

Wiltshire Police said the death happened after a fight in which two men were attacked in the early hours of Sunday near the Trowbridge Community Hospital.
The force said officers were still dealing with the situation.
Detectives said they were called by the ambulance service at about 01:45 GMT and the victim was in his 20s and local to the town.


Shared economic interests must be a priority in the Brexit negotiations, UK and German trade bodies have urged.

The British Chambers of Commerce  (BCC) and the Association of German Chambers of Commerce (DIHK) said uncertainty over "business critical" issues such as workers' rights, tax and customs arrangements needed to be tackled.
DIHK said the uncertainty was affecting German firms which traded with the UK.
Most BCC members say they want "at least" a three-year transition period.
The groups called for political leaders to "build an atmosphere of mutual trust and constructive dialogue", to deliver clarity and certainty for businesses.
With the third round of Brexit negotiations getting under way on Monday, a number of critical issues were still unresolved, while there are "hundreds" of practical and technical issues which also needed to be negotiated, they said.
"There is real business appetite from both sides for a focus on practical, day-to-day business concerns, and a desire for clarity on future trading arrangements," said BCC director general Dr Adam Marshall.
"The UK and the EU must begin work on transitional arrangements, particularly on customs, so that firms on both sides of the Channel have the confidence to make investment decisions."
The UK is the third largest market for the export of German goods, while Germany is the UK's second biggest market for exports of goods and services.
German firms employ an estimated 400,000 workers in the UK, while British firms employ around 220,000 workers in Germany.
DIHK chief executive Martin Wansleben said German companies were concerned that Brexit would have "a major negative impact", with more trade barriers such as extra bureaucracy, and stricter border controls, leading to higher costs.
"The terms of exit are still completely unclear.
"Many of our members are reporting that they are already shifting investments away from the UK in anticipation of these barriers," he added.


Cardiff City beat St Pauli 2-1 to secure back-to-back wins in the Osnabruck Tournament in Germany.

Following a 3-0 win over hosts VFL Osnabruck earlier in the afternoon, Lex Immers gave Cardiff the lead against St Pauli.
Maurice Litka equalised for but Lasse Sobiech's own goal before the break sealed victory for Cardiff.
Frederic Gounongbe, Declan John and Anthony Pilkington scored in the win over Osnabruck.
Summer signing Gounongbe headed Cardiff in front from Fabio's cross during the first half of a game played over two periods of 30 minutes.
Second half goals from Wales international John and  Pilkington sealed victory.


A protest against ship-to-ship oil transfers in the Moray Firth has taken place in Nairn.

Cromarty Firth Port Authority wants permission to transfer millions of tonnes of crude oil at sea.
Campaigners around the Moray Firth said the risk of an oil spill would be catastrophic to the marine environment.
But the port authority has insisted procedures are in place to prevent the accidental discharge of oil and said the risk of a spill was minimal.
The Moray Firth is home to bottlenose dolphins, harbour porpoises, minke whales and other marine and bird life.
The port already has a licence to transfer oil between vessels tied to the quayside at the Nigg oil terminal.
However, the authority now wants a licence from the Westminster government to conduct ship-to-ship oil transfers further out in the Cromarty Firth.
The application has prompted objections from local people and politicians all around the Moray Firth.
The protesters gathered on Nairn beach from about 14:00 on Sunday to highlight the dangers to the marine environment and demonstrate the scale of opposition to the plans all around the firth.


Jersey captain Peter Gough has stepped down from the role after more than six years at the helm of the side.

The 31-year-old led Jersey to promotion into World Cricket League Division Four this year, but the side were relegated after finishing fifth in the tournament in Los Angeles this month.
The Jersey Cricket Board is hopeful he will continue to play for the side.
"He's announced to the team that he's done his piece and he's looking to step down," JCB chairman Ward Jenner said.
"He's earned legendary status," Jenner added to BBC Sport.
"The young team that he's looked after have looked up to him. He's been superb with them and played a very clever game in that he's been able to keep the senior members of the side onside as well."
Gough led the side to promotion twice from World Cricket League Five and once from Division Six, as well as guiding the team into the global qualifying tournament for last year's World Twenty20.
"He's taken the job incredibly seriously, he thinks about it 24 hours a day and I get messages from him at four in the morning when he has ideas," added Jenner.
"He'll be a huge miss as captain, but we are hoping to maybe try and use him for another five or six years, as he's a very fit batsman and it would be great having him back in the ranks."
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Canada has vowed to double its intake of Syrian refugees next year.

The minister of immigration and citizenship, John McCallum, said the country's resettlement programme would be expanded in 2016 to take 50,000.
Mr McCallum made the announcement from the Jordanian capital of Amman, where he met Syrians heading to Canada.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau welcomed some of the first arrivals earlier this month and said Canada was "showing the world how to open our hearts".
His new Liberal government had promised to resettle 25,000 Syrian refugees by the end of February.
But Mr McCallum said Canada now hopes to settle as many as 50,000 Syrian refugees by the end of 2016.
The UN refugee agency, the Jordanian government and the International Organization for Migration will be helping to speed up the vetting process, he said.
The minister spoke to Syrian families as they prepared to board flights to Canada.
He told one family: "Everyone in Canada is waiting to meet you."
Mr McCallum also toured development projects and refugee facilities during his two-day visit.
Source: Government of Canada


James Forrest has signed a new deal with Celtic, tying him to the club until the summer of 2019.

The Scotland winger, 25, was due to be out of contract midway through the season.
He scored Celtic's opener in Sunday's 2-1 Scottish Premiership win over Hearts - the champions' first league match of the season.
"I've been here since I was nine," he told Celtic's website. "I'm just delighted to sign here again."
Forrest made his first-team debut in 2010 and has made more than 180 appearances for the club, scoring 31 goals.
The first of his 13 Scotland caps came in 2011.
He follows Australian midfielder Tom Rogic in committing himself to Celtic until 2019.


Coastguards believe they have located the wreck of a missing fishing boat.

A search was launched for the scalloper JMT after the father of one of its two crewmen raised the alarm when it failed to return to Plymouth on Thursday.
A sunken vessel, which coastguards believe to be the 11m (36ft) JMT, has been found 53m underwater, five miles north of the Eddystone Lighthouse.
The incident has been referred to the Marine Accident Investigation Branch to investigate.
On Friday, the body of one of the fishermen was recovered and the search for the second crew member was called off.