A federal court in California has ordered Samsung to pay $119.6 million to Apple for infringing two of its patents.
The jury delivered its verdict in a federal court in San Jose on Friday in the latest lawsuit involving Samsung and Apple.
Apple had sought $2 billion at the trial, accusing Samsung of violating patents on smartphone features.
Samsung has been ordered to pay $119.6 million to Apple for infringing two of its patents
The court also ruled that Apple infringed Samsung’s patents and awarded $158,000 in damages.
Apple had sought $2.2 billion after accusing Samsung of infringing five of its patents covering functions such as the “slide to unlock” from its devices.
Samsung denied any wrongdoing and sought $6 million after arguing Apple had infringed two of its smartphone patents related to camera use and video transmission.
This verdict marks the latest legal battle over intellectual property between the world’s top two smartphone makers.
Apple and Samsung have been fighting patent battles for years and across many countries.
Two years ago, a separate jury ordered Samsung to pay Apple $930 million after finding it had used Apple technology.
That verdict is still being challenged by Samsung.
According to the latest figures from the Labor Department, the US economy created 288,000 jobs in April, the strongest monthly job creation since January 2012.
The largest jobs gain came in professional and business services, which added 75,000 jobs during the month.
The unemployment rate fell to 6.3%, according to the Labor Department.
However, economists caution that figure was flattered by a sharp decline in the size of the labor force.
The US economy created 288,000 jobs in April, the strongest monthly job creation since January 2012
Nevertheless it is the lowest unemployment rate since September 2008.
There was also some disappointment over weak wage growth. Average hourly earnings in the private sector did not increase in April and over the past year wages are up a modest 1.9%.
The latest unemployment figures are another piece of evidence showing that the US economy is recovering from a harsh winter.
The weather was blamed for a sharp slowdown in US growth in the first quarter to an annual rate of 0.1%.
But economists say Friday’s strong job report underlines that the GDP figures released on Wednesday were an anomaly.
On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve continued to cut back its effort to boost the economy.
The Fed said it would trim its monthly bond purchases by an additional $10 billion to $45 billion.
The central bank has been buying bonds to keep long-term interest rates low and stimulate economic activity.
Michelle Knight’s son was likely 2-year-old when she disappeared in Cleveland 12 years ago.
Michelle Knight remembers the day her role as a mother possibly took an irreversible turn on Dr. Phil.
“My mother’s boyfriend came home one day high and drunk and just decided to take out his frustrations on my son. How did he do it?
Michelle Knight will release her memoir on May 6
“He twisted my son’s leg, and I heard it crack,” she said.
Michelle Knight’s son entered into foster care.
“And then they tried to say I didn’t protect him, but I did. I did all I could do,” she recalled.
Betsie Norris from Adoption Network Cleveland told US Today that, by law the county, is required to come up with a plan to reunite a mother and child, which takes about a year.
“They’ll work a reunification plan with the birth family hoping they can rectify whatever the circumstances were that brought the child into care, so that the child can go safely home,” she said.
Michelle Knight was likely going through that phase when Ariel Castro abducted her from a Family Dollar in Cleveland.
At that time, no one knew why Michelle Knight disappeared. It could have looked like she abandoned her son. In cases when the mother isn’t reachable for long periods of time, the county moves for permanent custody.
“The court weighs all the different factors, evidence, and, if they feel it’s warranted, then they move forward to terminate parental rights, which then means the child is available for adoption,” said Betsie Norris.
By law, Michelle Knight can be told whether her son is still in foster care or has been adopted. If he’s been adopted, all that information is sealed and after a year, a probate judge says it is extremely difficult to reverse.
A Los Angeles judge has ordered Chris Brown to remain in jail for at least another week.
Chris Brown will now spend his 25th birthday in jail as lawyers deal with two cases on both sides of the country.
The singer has been in prison since March 14 after violating a court order relating to his assault of his ex-girlfriend Rihanna in 2009.
Chris Brown had been sent to a rehabilitation centre and broke the terms of the court order when staff threw him out.
Chris Brown will remain in jail for at least another week
Lawyers for the star had been trying to agree a deal over the probation issues on Thursday and will try again when Chris Brown is back in court on May 9.
Chris Brown was led into the courtroom in Los Angeles in handcuffs on Thursday, having been transported from Washington DC for the short hearing with Superior Court Judge James R. Brandlin.
The singer could face a number of punishments, including more jail time, if a judge decides he did violate the terms of his probation by getting arrested after a man was punched in October outside a hotel in Washington DC.
Judge James R. Brandlin had ordered Chris Brown into rehab in December for anger management treatment, after revoking his probation.
Chris Brown’s lawyer Mark Geragos said if a deal could not be reached by Tuesday, he would ask for the release of the singer.
“I’m hopeful that we get it resolved, and we get it resolved quickly,” Mark Geragos said.
“He turns 25 next week. So I’d like to give him an early birthday present if I can.”
Chris Brown’s assault trial has been delayed for the next few months, while his bodyguard appeals an assault conviction for the same incident.
The singer did not speak during the hearing on Thursday but did smile at his mother.
Chris Brown’s upcoming album, X, has been delayed several times and a new release date has not been set.
According to Ukraine’s interior ministry, at least 31 people have been killed in a fire in Odessa Trade Unions building amid violence in the Black Sea city.
The deaths came as pro-Russian protesters clashed with Ukrainian government supporters in the city.
Officials said some people were overwhelmed by smoke and others died after they jumped from the building.
Earlier President Oleksandr Turchynov said many separatists had been killed in a government offensive in Sloviansk.
At least 31 people have been killed in Odessa Trade Unions building fire amid violence in the Black Sea city
Activists have seized scores of government buildings and detained observers in eastern Ukraine.
The fire broke out in Odessa’s Trade Unions House, the regional office of Ukraine’s interior ministry said. It did not give details of how the blaze started.
The exact sequence of events is still unclear, but reports suggest the separatists had barricaded themselves inside the building and both sides were throwing petrol bombs.
The interior ministry gave a toll of at least 31 dead, revising down an earlier tally of 38 killed.
Ukrainian Deputy Foreign Minister Danylo Lubkivsky said he regretted the loss of life but insisted Russia was behind the violence.
“The situation remains under control. But the security situation is threatened by Russian special agents,” he said.
“That’s why we are requesting and demanding Russian authorities to stop their efforts that can undermine regional security and stability.”
Meanwhile, Russia’s foreign ministry said Moscow was “outraged” by events in Odessa and denounced Kiev’s “irresponsibility”, AFP news agency reports.
Earlier, four people were killed in clashes between the pro-Russian and pro-Kiev protesters in the city – the first such eruption of violence in the south after weeks of mounting unrest in Ukraine’s east.
The death toll in Odessa is the highest since violence broke out between pro-EU protesters and police in the capital in February.
Meanwhile the latest reports from rebel-controlled Sloviansk in the east say intense gunfire has broken out in the centre of the city.
During the day government forces took over pro-Russian checkpoints outside the city.
Separatists shot down two Ukrainian army helicopters, killing a pilot and another serviceman.
According to the UN mission in Afghanistan, at least 350 people have been killed and more than 2,000 are missing after a landslide hit the north-east province of Badakhshan.
Hundreds of homes were buried under mud and rocks when a section of a mountain collapsed following torrential rain.
Rescuers have reached the area and are searching for survivors.
Much of north and east Afghanistan has been hit by heavy rain in recent days, and some 150 people have died in flooding.
At least 350 people have been killed and more than 2,000 are missing after a landslide hit the north-east province of Badakhshan (photo Reuters)
“The number of deceased has increased to 350 and significant displacement is expected,” the UN mission in Afghanistan said in a statement.
“The UN Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) is helping… local authorities to rescue those still trapped.”
Local officials say that more than 2,000 people are missing.
About 1,000 houses were affected – 300 of them buried immediately after the side of a mountain gave way.
As it was Friday morning, a day of rest in Afghanistan, people were at home and whole families were lost under tonnes of mud.
Badakhshan is in the most remote and mountainous part of the country, bordering Tajikistan, China and Pakistan.
Searching for survivors is a huge task, our correspondent adds.
The governor of Badakhshan province, Shah Waliullah Adeeb, told AP news agency that rescue crews did not have enough equipment and appealed for shovels.
“It’s physically impossible right now,” Shah Waliullah Adeeb said.
“We don’t have enough shovels; we need more machinery.”
Shah Waliullah Adeeb said that residents of nearby villages had been evacuated amid concerns about further landslides.
Another, smaller landslide was reported in Badakhshan on Thursday.
Michelle Knight, the woman held captive in Ariel Castro’s Cleveland house of horrors for over a decade, wants to be known as “Lily”, her favorite flower.
Michelle Knight’s memoir, Finding Me, is set to be published on May 6, the anniversary of her rescue.
It’s “my favorite flower,” she told People magazine, and it symbolizes renewal.
Michelle Knight, who was 21 when she was kidnapped in 2002, was the first of Ariel Castro’s victims and the one who suffered the most at the hands of the sadist.
“Everything in the house was unexplainable,” said Michelle Knight, who is now 33.
Michelle Knight’s memoir, Finding Me, is set to be published on May 6, the anniversary of her rescue (photo Dr Phil)
“It happened. I don’t know the reasons why.”
Michelle Knight said she has seen little of Amanda Berry and Gina DeJesus, the other two victims, since they were rescued on May 6.
She insists there is no bad blood and that after years of being yoked together by a madman they need to heal on their own.
“I love them and they love me,” she said.
“Hopefully we’ll all get back together again.”
Michelle Knight is living in her own apartment in Cleveland, taking cooking classes and relishing her freedom.
“I don’t take things for granted anymore,” she told People magazine.
“Not even the little things like looking out a window. I went through years of torture, and now I’m back. I’m free to fly.”
Amanda Berry and Gina DeJesus are also working on books.
Excerpts of Michelle Knight’s tome will be featured in next week’s issue of People magazine.
They are likely to include Michelle Knight’s horrific accounts of being chained to a pole in the basement, repeated rapes and how Ariel Castro impregnated her five times and beat her so she would miscarry each time.
Pharrell Williams’ emotional speech at the inaugural iHeartRadio Music Awards came two weeks after a clip of him crying on Oprah Winfrey’s talk show became a viral hit.
Pharrell Williams crying on Oprah Winfrey’s show (photo OWN)
During the interview, Oprah Winfrey showed Pharrell Williams a montage of fans from Africa, the Philippines, Iceland and many more, all singing Happy, the singer’s Oscar-nominated, gospel-tinged, feel-good anthem.
Brushing away tears, Pharrell Williams said the response to the song had been “overwhelming”.
Oprah Winfrey was among the stars praising Pharrell Williams’ contributions to music at Thursday’s ceremony, alongside Lady Gaga, Usher and Shakira.
A criminal inquiry has been launched by British police after it emerged that heroin was likely to have played a part in the death of Peaches Geldof.
Kent police said there was an “ongoing investigation into the supply of drugs” in connection with her death.
Peaches Geldof, 25, was found dead on April 7 by her husband, Thomas Cohen, in a spare bedroom in their home.
Toxicology tests showed Peaches Geldof had heroin in her system, an inquest heard on Thursday.
Detective Chief Inspector Paul Fotheringham, told the hearing: “Recent use of heroin and the levels identified were likely to have played a role in her death.”
A police spokesman said: “Kent Police can confirm an ongoing investigation into the supply of drugs in connection with the death of Peaches Geldof.
“There have been no arrests at this stage.”
Peaches Geldof’s mother, TV presenter and writer Paula Yates, died from a heroin overdose at her London home, aged 41, in 2000.
Peaches Geldof had spoken openly about her struggle to deal with her mother’s death and of experimenting with drugs in her teenage years (photo Twitter)
At the inquest, Paul Fotheringham described how Peaches Geldof’s husband had tried to make contact with his wife before he found her body.
Thomas Cohen, a musician, had been away for the weekend with the elder of their two sons, Astala, leaving Peaches Geldof at home with their 11-month old son, Phaedra.
This was their normal weekend arrangement, Paul Fotheringham explained, allowing Peaches Geldof to concentrate on her work as a columnist.
“It is believed that Peaches spent Saturday afternoon, into the evening, and Sunday morning at her home address alone,” Paul Fotheringham told the inquest.
“Throughout this period she maintained telephone contact with family and friends, including contact with Thomas’s mother to arrange a family activity, but this was cancelled.
“All of the friends and family who had contact with Peaches during this period described how she seemed her normal self and was making plans for the future, including a family outing for her sons for the following weekend,” he continued.
“There was no cause for concern.”
However, on Monday morning, 7 April, Peaches Geldof’s husband tried to contact her without success. He then travelled to the family home in Wrotham, Kent with his mother, Sue, and son Astala arriving at around 13:30 BST.
“Thomas entered the property and located Peaches in the spare bedroom,” Paul Fotheringham said.
Peaches Geldof was slumped across the bed “with one leg hanging down to the floor and the other leg tucked underneath her,” he added. It was apparent she was dead.
Police and paramedics were called and Peaches Geldof was pronounced dead at the scene.
An initial post-mortem did not establish a cause of death and further toxicology tests were ordered. Those tests confirmed the recent use of heroin, it was disclosed on Thursday.
None of the Geldof family attended the hearing, which opened and adjourned within 10 minutes. Coroner Roger Hatch adjourned the inquest for a full hearing to take place on July 23, 2014.
Peaches Geldof had spoken openly about her struggle to deal with her mother’s death – and of experimenting with drugs in her teenage years – but had cited motherhood as a central part of her “healing” process.
Following Astala’s birth in 2012, “everything started to heal”, Peaches Geldof told Elle magazine.
“Even if it’s an archaic idea, I want Astala to have a mummy and daddy together forever,” Peaches Geldof said at the time.
Pharrell Williams was teary-eyed as he accepted the Innovator award at the inaugural iHeartRadio awards in Los Angeles.
Pharrell Williams, whose single Happy has become an international sensation, was lost for words for over a minute as Gwen Stefani presented him with the trophy.
“I never dreamt in a million, million, million years… that I would be standing here,” he eventually said.
Rihanna also took home four prizes, including artist and song of the year.
Pharrell Williams was teary-eyed as he accepted the Innovator award at the inaugural iHeartRadio awards in Los Angeles (photo Facebook)
Rihanna, who got stuck in traffic en route to the show, also won an award for having the most loyal fans.
She dedicated the award to her followers, and thanked them for embracing her, flaws and all.
“It’s not easy, what we do. It’s very difficult at times,” she said.
“I never felt comfortable being anything other than myself.”
Performers at the show included Ed Sheeran, Arcade Fire, Bastille, 30 Seconds to Mars and Shakira.
Usher also took to the stage, leading a dance routine set to a never-before-heard Michael Jackson track, Love Never Felt So Good.
Owned by media company Clear Channel, iHeartRadio is one of the dominant internet radio brands in the US.
Thursday’s awards show was broadcast by over 150 iHeart radio stations across the US, and 60 million votes were cast by listeners in the run-up to the ceremony.
Pharrell Williams, 41, performed a 10-minute medley of his songs at the show, including Happy, Come Get It Bae and his bestselling-collaboration with Daft Punk, Get Lucky.
The artist, who began his career producing songs for the likes of Justin Timberlake, Jay Z and Kelis, said he had never expected to become an artist in his own right.
“All I did was write the songs and you guys did all the heavy lifting, all the hard work,” he told the audience at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles.
Pharrell Williams’ emotional speech came shortly after a clip of him crying on Oprah Winfrey’s talk show became a viral hit.
During the interview, Oprah Winfrey showed Pharrell Williams a montage of fans from Africa, the Philippines, Iceland and many more, all singing Happy, his Oscar-nominated, gospel-tinged, feel-good anthem.
Windows XP users can still get a Microsoft security update after it has fixed a flaw in the Internet Explorer browser.
Microsoft issued the update on Thursday to fix a bug that let hackers gain access and user rights to computers.
The tech giant ended support for Windows XP earlier this month, ceasing to issue bug fixes or security updates for it.
Microsoft said it decided to make an exception as the flaw was discovered just days after the support ended.
Microsoft has said users of its Windows XP operating system will also get the security update it has issued to fix a flaw in the Internet Explorer browser
“Even though Windows XP is no longer supported by Microsoft and is past the time we normally provide security updates, we’ve decided to provide an update for all versions of Windows XP,” Adrienne Hall, general manager of Trustworthy Computing at Microsoft, said in a blog post.
“We made this exception based on the proximity to the end of support for Windows XP.”
The flaw was reported earlier this week and there had been uncertainty over whether XP users would get the update when it was released.
The flaw affected Internet Explorer (IE) versions 6 to 11 and Microsoft said it was aware of “limited, targeted attacks” to exploit it.
According to NetMarket Share, the IE versions account for more than 50% of the global web browser market.
Microsoft said that hackers could exploit the flaw by hosting a “specially crafted website” designed to exploit the vulnerability.
If users visited the website, hackers could use it to gain access to their computer and get the same rights as the machine’s user.
However, hackers would have needed to convince users to view and interact with the website, and would have had “no way to force users” to view the content otherwise.
On Thursday, Microsoft said its security update fixed the flaw.
“This update is fully tested and ready for release for all affected versions of the browser,” the firm said.
“The majority of customers have automatic updates enabled and will not need to take any action because protections will be downloaded and installed automatically.”
A full search of the suspected crash area of Malaysia airliner MH370 could take up to a year, officials said.
Speaking in Malaysia, Australia’s ACM Angus Houston said he was confident an “effective search” would find the plane.
Officials from Australia, China and Malaysia will meet in Canberra next week to discuss the ongoing search.
On Thursday a report revealed a four-hour gap between MH370’s disappearance and the start of a search operation.
The preliminary report, from Malaysia’s transport ministry, also revealed that air traffic controllers did not realize the plane was missing until 17 minutes after it disappeared off radar.
The plane, carrying 239 people, disappeared over the South China Sea as it flew from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing.
A full search of the suspected crash area of Malaysia airliner MH370 could take up to a year (photo Reuters)
Officials believe it ended its journey in seas west of the Australian city of Perth, thousands of kilometers off course, but do not yet know why. An intensive multinational search has so far turned up no sign of the plane.
Earlier this week, Australia announced that the operation was entering a new phase, after an initial search of the area where acoustic signals thought to be from “black box” flight recorders were heard found nothing.
Next week’s meeting in Australia will help determine what happens next.
“That’s a very important meeting because it will formalize the way ahead to ensure that this search continues with urgency and doesn’t stop at any stage,” said Angus Houston.
The aerial search for floating wreckage has been called off. The search of the sea floor will be expanded in the area where officials believe – based on satellite data – that the plane crashed.
“The search will take probably in the order of eight months, maybe eight to 12 months if we have bad weather or other issues,” Angus Huston said.
“But we’re totally committed to find MH370 and I’m confident that with an effective search we will eventually find the aircraft.”
Late on Thursday, Malaysian officials released their preliminary report on the missing airliner.
According to the draft, Vietnamese air traffic controllers contacted their counterparts in Kuala Lumpur at 01:38 to say MH370 was missing, 17 minutes after it disappeared off radar.
The official search-and-rescue operation was launched four hours later, at 05:30.
The report also recommended the introduction of real-time tracking of commercial air transport, saying there had now been two recent occasions when large planes had gone missing with their last position unclear – MH370 and Air France Flight 447 in 2009.
“This uncertainty resulted in significant difficulty in locating the aircraft in a timely manner,” the report noted.
There is no requirement from the International Civil Aviation Authority (ICAO), the UN body that oversees global aviation, for real-time tracking.
Malaysia Airlines, meanwhile, has asked relatives of passengers to leave the hotel accommodation it has been providing and go home.
The airline said it was “deeply sympathetic to the continuing unimaginable anguish, distress and hardship suffered by those with loved ones on board the flight”.
It warned that the continuing search would be a “prolonged process” and said relatives should wait for updates “within the comfort of their own homes”.
Pharmaceutical company AstraZeneca has rejected the new takeover offer from Pfizer.
Pfizer had earlier raised the price it was offering for AstraZeneca to $80 a share, valuing the firm at $100 billion.
However, the UK company said the new terms offered were, “inadequate, substantially undervalue AstraZeneca and are not a basis on which to engage with Pfizer”.
If the deal were to go through it would be the biggest takeover of AstraZeneca by a foreign firm.
AstraZeneca employs more than 51,000 staff worldwide, with 6,700 in the UK. Pfizer – whose drugs include Viagra – has a global workforce of more than 70,000, with 2,500 in the UK.
AstraZeneca has rejected the new takeover offer from Pfizer
Announcing Pfizer’s new offer, Pfizer chairman and chief executive Ian Read said the company believed “that there is a highly compelling strategic, business and financial rationale for combining our businesses, with significant benefits for shareholders and stakeholders of both companies”.
“We believe our proposal is responsive to the views of AstraZeneca shareholders and provides a sound basis upon which to arrive at recommendable terms for the combination of our two companies.”
Pfizer also sent a letter to UK’s PM David Cameron to try to address concerns over the bid.
On Wednesday, four scientific bodies raised concerns about possible UK lab closures following a Pfizer deal, and a committee of lawmakers is considering an inquiry into the issue.
Pfizer told PM David Cameron it would go ahead with AstraZeneca’s planned research and development (R&D) base in Cambridge, and retain its Macclesfield manufacturing facilities.
The US company also pledged that if the deal went ahead, 20% of the combined company’s R&D workforce would be based in the UK.
Pfizer said its commitments would be valid for five years, unless circumstances changed significantly.
The latest offer from Pfizer is a mixture of cash and shares equivalent to $80 per AstraZeneca share. If the deal goes through, Pfizer also wants to establish its corporate and tax residence in the UK, as well as its European headquarters.
AstraZeneca’s board said the offer was too low, and that it believed a major driver for Pfizer’s takeover was the move to establish a tax residence in the UK by changing its company structure.
“The large proportion of the consideration payable in Pfizer shares and the tax-driven inversion structure remain unchanged. Accordingly, the board has rejected the proposal,” AstraZeneca said.
Leif Johansson, chairman of AstraZeneca, added that the company’s product “pipeline” of new drugs was “rapidly progressing”.
“Pfizer’s proposal would dramatically dilute AstraZeneca shareholders’ exposure to our unique pipeline and would create risks around its delivery,” Leif Johansson said.
Two suicide attacks in the Syrian province of Hama killed at least 18 people, including 11 children, state media has reported.
It said the “terrorist explosions” took place in Jibrin – north-east of Hama city – and al-Humeiri.
The villages are under the control of the government.
The attack comes days after scores of people were killed and injured in explosions in government-controlled parts of the central city of Homs.
There has so far been no claim of responsibility for the bombings, correspondents say, but al-Qaeda affiliated rebels of Al-Nusra Front have carried out several car bombings in recent weeks.
Human rights groups say that both the government of President Bashar al-Assad and rebels fighting to depose him are killing civilians.
Human rights groups say that both the government of President Bashar al-Assad and rebels fighting to depose him are killing civilians (photo Reuters)
Hama saw some of the largest demonstrations against Bashar al-Assad in the first months of the Syrian uprising after March 2011.
In late summer 2011, security forces stormed the city and have maintained control ever since.
Hama’s main city occupies a significant place in the history of modern Syria.
In 1982, then-President Hafez al-Assad, father of Bashar, sent in troops to quell an uprising by the Sunni opposition Muslim Brotherhood. Tens of thousands were killed and the city flattened.
The violence in Hama province comes as the government subjects rebel-held areas in the northern city of Aleppo to fierce aerial bombardment as its forces try to end a long-standing stalemate in the city.
On Thursday at least 33 people were killed in an air strike on a market in the northern Halak district of the city.
The strike outraged The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) which described it as the “latest wave of indiscriminate attacks perpetrated against schools and other civilian targets” across Syria.
Sloviansk separatists have shot down two of Ukraine’s army helicopters during an “anti-terror” operation in the eastern city, Kiev says.
Ukraine’s military said a pilot and serviceman were killed and nine rebel checkpoints seized.
Russia says Kiev’s actions “killed the last hope” for a deal agreed last month in Geneva aimed at defusing the crisis.
President Vladimir Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov also described Ukraine’s operation as “punitive”.
Dmitry Peskov said that contact had been lost with Russian envoy Vladimir Lukin sent to the south-eastern Ukraine.
Russia’s foreign ministry earlier warned that any assaults by Ukraine’s troops in the region would have “catastrophic consequences”, triggering fears of an invasion by Moscow.
Separately, reports are coming that several foreign journalists have been detained in Sloviansk.
Sloviansk separatists have shot down two of Ukraine’s army helicopters during an anti-terror operation (photo Reuters)
Sloviansk is a stronghold for pro-Russian separatists who are exerting increasing control in the region.
In a statement on Friday, Ukrainian Interior Minister Arsen Avakov said the “active phase” of the operation began at 04:30 local time.
He said interior troops and the National Guard were involved in the operation in the Sloviansk-Kramatorsk region.
“The terrorists opened fire with heavy weapons against Ukrainian special units.
“A real battle with professional mercenaries is going on,” Arsen Avakov said, adding that the separatists were using the tactics of hiding behind civilians in residential buildings.
Russia’s state-run Rossiya 24 TV channel said the city was being “stormed”.
It quoted Sloviansk’s rebel leader Igor Strelkov as saying that the city was completely sealed off.
The fighting appears to be concentrating on the periphery of the city.
However, there were no reports of Ukrainian government troops entering the city itself.
Local residents were later quoted as saying that the situation in the city calmed down but remained tense.
Earlier, Ukraine’s acting President Oleksandr Turchynov reinstated military conscription.
Eastern Ukraine has a large Russian-speaking population and was a stronghold for President Viktor Yanukovych before he was overthrown by pro-Western protesters in February.
The crisis has plunged East-West relations to their lowest point since the Cold War ended in the early 1990s.
On Thursday, German Chancellor Angela Merkel asked Russia in a phone call to President Vladimir Putin to help free foreign military monitors seized by rebels in Slovianks last week.
For his part, Vladimir Putin reiterated his call for Kiev to withdraw troops from the south-east to open the way for a national dialogue.
Angela Merkel is due to meet President Barack Obama in Washington on Friday to discuss the crisis in Ukraine.
At least 170 people have been injured after two subway trains collided in the South Korean capital Seoul.
A number of people were taken to hospital for treatment, but no-one suffered serious injuries, officials said.
The accident happened after one train ran into the back of another that had stopped at the Sangwangsimni Station in east Seoul.
The accident happened after one train ran into the back of another that had stopped at the Sangwangsimni Station in east Seoul (photo Yonhap)
It comes as the nation continues to mourn the deaths of about 300 people in last month’s ferry disaster.
The Sewol ferry sank with 476 people aboard – most of them high school students and teachers – off South Korea on 16 April.
Friday’s crash happened at around 15:30 local time at the Sangwangsimni Station on one of Seoul’s major subway lines, the South Korean news agency Yonhap reports.
Yonhap said the stationary train had stopped because of mechanical problems when the second train ran into the back of it.
A witness said many passengers ignored an onboard announcement telling them to stay inside and forced the doors open, escaping on to the tracks.
One official said 170 people had complained of feeling pain after the accident, and 32 were taken to a nearby hospital, but no-one was seriously hurt, the Associated Press reports.
President of the Los Angeles chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) Leon Jenkins resigned Thursday amid the backlash over its since-rescinded plans to give a lifetime achievement award to Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling.
“The legacy, history and reputation of the NAACP is more important to me than the presidency,” Leon Jenkins said in a brief statement late Thursday.
Leon Jenkins’ resignation comes as a committee of NBC owners met to figure out a way to force Donald Sterling to sell the Clippers
Leon Jenkins said he made his decision to “separate the Los Angeles NAACP and the NAACP from the negative exposure I have caused the NAACP”.
He and his chapter of the national civil rights organization have been under fierce scrutiny since it emerged that it was to have given its highest honor to Donald Sterling, whom the National Basketball Association (NBA) banned for life after he was taped making racially offensive comments.
The NAACP canceled the honor Monday.
Leon Jenkins’ resignation comes as a committee of NBC owners met Thursday to figure out a way to force Donald Sterling to sell the Clippers.
The committee of NBA owners voted to proceed with efforts to force the sale of the Los Angeles Clippers following Donald Sterling’s racist row.
Clippers owner Donald Sterling was banned from the sport for life this week after he was recorded making racist remarks.
The 10-member NBA advisory committee met on Thursday and unanimously agreed to move forward in the process of terminating Donald Sterling’s ownership.
A number of celebrities have expressed interest in purchasing the sports team.
“The committee unanimously agreed to move forward as expeditiously as possible and will reconvene next week,” said NBA executive vice president Mike Bass.
Clippers owner Donald Sterling was banned from the sport for life this week after he was recorded making racist remarks (photo Getty Images)
A forced sale of the LA Clippers would require the approval of three-quarters of the 30 team owners in the NBA.
However, Donald Sterling could oppose the sale in the courts, according to sports lawyers.
Oprah Winfrey, media executive David Geffen and boxing legend Floyd Mayweather have been among those touted as prospective buyers.
Another casualty of the row emerged on Thursday evening, when the president of the Los Angeles chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) resigned.
Leon Jenkins had intended to present Donald Sterling with a “lifetime achievement award” later this month, a move he withdrew after the recording emerged in which the Clippers owner made racist comments.
In his resignation letter, Leon Jenkins said: “In order to separate the Los Angeles NAACP and the NAACP from the negative exposure I have caused the NAACP, I respectfully resign my position.”
In the 10-minute audio recording, Donald Sterling can be heard criticizing his girlfriend V. Stiviano for posting online photographs of herself with black friends at Clippers games.
“It bothers me a lot that you want to broadcast that you are associating with black people. Do you have to?” the man says.
On Tuesday, NBA commissioner Adam Silver said Donald Sterling had acknowledged it was his voice on the recording. It was not clear how or when the conversation was recorded.
Adam Silver subsequently announced Donald Sterling’s expulsion from the NBA along with a $2.5 million, the maximum allowed.
Donald Sterling’s remarks caused an immediate uproar in Los Angeles and among basketball fans across the country.
The Clippers are competing in the first round of the NBA playoffs, drawing extra scrutiny to the incident.
Team coach Doc Rivers later said the lifetime ban and fine for Donald Sterling was the “start of a healing process”.
Ukraine has reinstated military conscription to deal with deteriorating security in the east of the country, acting President Oleksandr Turchynov.
The move, announced in a decree, came as pro-Russia militants seized the regional prosecutor’s office in the eastern city of Donetsk.
Ukraine blames Russia for organizing the seizures of a number of offices in the east, a claim Moscow denies.
Some 40,000 Russian troops are stationed near the Ukrainian border.
Oleksandr Turchynov admitted on Wednesday that his forces were “helpless” to quell the unrest in some parts of the east, saying the goal was now to prevent it from spreading.
He also said Ukraine was on “full combat alert”, amid fears that Russian troops could invade.
Ukraine has reinstated military conscription to deal with deteriorating security in the east of the country (photo EPA)
On Thursday, his office said in a statement that conscription was being introduced “given the deteriorating situation in the east and the south… the rising force of armed pro-Russian units and the taking of public administration buildings… which threaten territorial integrity”.
Kiev’s decision is, in the short-term at least, a symbolic step as the Ukrainian military has been starved of cash for years and is no match for what Russia has on its borders.
The real battle for control of Ukrainian territory is already under way and Kiev is losing ground.
Analysts say Ukraine has 130,000 personnel in its armed forces that could be boosted to about one million with reservists.
Kiev scrapped compulsory military service for young men in late 2013 under a law introduced by then President Viktor Yanukovych.
At the time, Viktor Yanukovych said Ukraine would introduce military reforms to create “a professional army”.
In Donetsk on Thursday, pro-Russian militants attacked the prosecutor’s office, accusing those inside of siding with the government in Kiev.
The crowd later forced its way into the building, stripping weapons and shields from police officers and raising the flag of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic.
Donetsk, an industrial hub of more than one million people, has seen a number of government offices seized in recent weeks.
Eastern Ukraine has a large Russian-speaking population and was a stronghold for Viktor Yanukovych before he was overthrown by protesters in February.
Russia then annexed the Crimean peninsula – part of Ukraine but with a Russian-speaking majority – in a move that provoked international outrage.
The crisis has plunged East-West relations to their lowest point since the Cold War.
On Thursday, German Chancellor Angela Merkel asked Russia in a phone call to President Vladimir Putin to help free foreign monitors held in eastern Ukraine.
The military observers were seized by pro-Russia separatists at a checkpoint in the flashpoint town of Sloviansk last Friday.
For his part, Vladimir Putin reiterated his call for Kiev to withdraw troops from the south-east to open the way for a national dialogue.
Stephanie Wilson has revealed to US media how she found a plea for help from a man imprisoned in China in a bag from the Saks Fifth Avenue store in New York.
In the note, the man said he was forced to work 13-hour days at a Chinese prison factory to make the bags.
The discovery by Stephanie Wilson in September 2012 prompted a search for the man’s whereabouts, reports say.
News website DNAinfo says it managed to track down the man – a Cameroonian who had already been released.
Saks Fifth Avenue said it had launched an investigation into the discovery but could not determine the specific origins of the bag, the report adds.
Stephanie Wilson found a plea for help from Tohnain Emmanuel Njong imprisoned in China in a Saks shopping bag
Stephanie Wilson, 28, made the discovery after pulling out a receipt from a paper shopping bag from the Fifth Avenue store.
The note, signed by Tohnain Emmanuel Njong, said: “We are ill-treated and work like slaves for 13 hours every day producing these bags in bulk in the prison factory.”
He ended his letter by saying “thanks and sorry to bother you” and left an email address, which was discovered at the time to be defunct.
A passport-sized photo of a man in an orange jacket was also enclosed.
“I read the letter and I just shook,” Stephanie Wilson told DNAinfo.
Stephanie Wilson, an Australian currently working in New York, passed the note on to the human rights Laogai Research Foundation.
The organization was unable to track Tohnain Emmanuel Njong down but raised awareness of the letter with the Department of Homeland Security and the Saks Fifth Avenue store.
With the help of social media accounts, DNAinfo said it recently made contact with someone who identified himself as the man behind the letter.
“Unprompted, Njong described obscure details in the letter, like its mention of Samuel Eto’o, a professional soccer player on English Premier league team Chelsea, who like Njong is from Cameroon in West Africa,” the website said.
According to DNAinfo, Tohnain Emmanuel Njong was detained in the eastern Chinese city of Qingdao after being arrested for fraud in May 2011 – charges he denies.
Tohnain Emmanuel Njong, 34, told the news website that he had worked long hours in the factory to produce paper bags, electronic goods and garments, from 06:00 until 22:00.
He said he wrote a total of five letters in both French and English calling for help.
“Maybe this bag could go somewhere and they find this letter and they can let my family know or anybody [know] that I am in prison,” he added.
Tohnain Emmanuel Njong said he was released on a reduced sentence for good behavior in December 2013 and was later reunited with his family in Cameroon, the website added.
According to new reports, Fox is developing a TV series about the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing.
The as-yet-untitled show will be based on the book Long Mile Home by Boston Globe reporters Scott Helman and Jenna Russell, Deadline reported.
The TV project follows the true stories of five people whose lives were changed forever in the tragedy and the week that followed.
Fox is developing a TV series about the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing
The series will be written and directed by The Contender director Rod Lurie.
Visiting Boston ahead of this year’s marathon, Rod Lurie said it was “a big beautiful city… with a bounce-back population that takes care, not just of its own, but others as well”.
Rod Lurie told Deadline he had already begun writing the script.
“It’s hard to imagine a story in which an entire community caught a couple of criminals like Boston did. In this case, the accurate story is a phenomenal story,” he said.
Bombing suspect Dzokhar Tsarnaev is due to stand trial in November for allegedly setting off two pressure cooker bombs with his older brother Tamerlan, who later died in a police shootout.
Three people were killed and more than 260 injured in last year’s Boston Marathon bombings.
The IMF has approved a $17.1 billion bailout for Ukraine to help the country’s beleaguered economy.
The loan comes amid heightened military and political tension between Ukraine and neighboring Russia.
The loan is dependent on strict economic reforms, including raising taxes and energy prices.
The money will be released over two years, with the first installment of $3.2 billion available immediately.
The head of the International Monetary Fund, Christine Lagarde, said the fund would check regularly to ensure the Ukrainian government followed through on its commitments.
The IMF has approved a $17.1 billion bailout for Ukraine to help the country’s beleaguered economy
In March Ukraine put up gas prices by 50% in an effort to secure the bailout.
The government has also agreed to freeze the minimum wage.
The bailout had to be approved by the IMF’s 24-member board, which includes a Russian representative.
The IMF loan will also unlock further funds worth $15 billionn from other donors, including the World Bank, EU, Canada and Japan.
In December last year, Ukraine agreed a $15 billion bailout from Russia, but this was cancelled after protests forced out pro-Russian President Viktor Yanukovych.
On Wednesday, the IMF warned that Russia was “experiencing recession” because of damage caused by the Ukraine crisis.
The fund said $100 billion would leave Russia this year, partly caused by the US and EU sanctions.
The sanctions were imposed after Russia annexed the Crimea region from Ukraine last month.
The IMF bailout will also make available $1 billion in loan guarantees from the US, which was recently approved by Congress.
Earlier on Wednesday, an international conference in London ended with a commitment to help Ukraine recover tens of billions of dollars worth of assets which were allegedly stolen by the ousted President Viktor Yanukovych and his allies.
Miley Cyrus has been forced to cancel this weekend’s Amsterdam concert after suffering a “health setback”, E! Online reported.
Miley Cyrus was admitted to a medical center in Kansas City after suffering a bad reaction to medication she had been taking for a sinus infection
Miley Cyrus, 21, was admitted to a medical center in Kansas City, Missouri on April 15 after suffering a bad reaction to medication she had been taking for a sinus infection. She was discharged last week and planned on getting back on the road after having to postpone the remaining portion of her North American Bangerz tour.
The singer was due to take the stage in Amsterdam on Friday, but the show will now be rescheduled, the report says.
A source told the publication: “(She) had a health setback and her allergic reaction issues have returned. Miley is very bummed about it.”
Miley Cyrus is also expected to postpone her show at the Sportpaleis in Antwerp, Belgium, on Sunday.
Last week, Selena Gomez reportedly stopped following the Jenner sisters on Instagram, a move that came shortly after they all hung out together at the Coachella Music Festival.
Selena Gomez, 21, apparently believed Kendall, 18, and Kylie, 16, were a negative influence. On the other hand, Kendall and Kylie Jenner’s camp sniped that the singer is the toxic one.
It appears Selena Gomez’s dysfunctional on-off romance with Justin Bieber, 20, may have been at the heart of the rift.
Selena Gomez and Jenner sisters hung out together at the Coachella Music Festival (photo Instagram)
A source told Us Weekly: “Selena felt Kylie was flirting with Justin.”
Another source added: “It got messy. Selena said the Jenner girls were flirting with Justin and his crew. She was pissed and overreacted.”
An insider echoes the flirting factor to E! News, claiming Selena Gomez got “a bit jealous”. Radar Online reported that some “shocking texts” were also involved.
On Monday, Kendall Jenner met up with Justin Bieber at a New York studio, and soon after they hit Nobu for sushi, tagging along Kendall’s pal, Hailey Baldwin, daughter of Stephen.
A day later, Justin Bieber posted on Instagram a sultry photo of model Ashley Moore, whom he was linked to last year.
Probably not coincidentally, these actions came just days after Selena Gomez was snapped with Orlando Bloom at Chelsea Handler’s stand-up show in Los Angeles, sparking talk of an age-mismatched hookup.
However, a source told E! News that Selena Gomez and Orlando Bloom are “not dating” and were at the show with “a bunch of people”.
