Israel Palestine Talks After Prisoner Deal

The US has announced peace negotiations between Israel and Palestine, which halted in 2010, will begin again on Monday.

It comes after Israel agreed to release 104 long-held Palestinian prisoners as part of a US-brokered deal to get both sides to the negotiating table after a three-year diplomatic standstill.

The list of the prisoners has been provided by the Palestinians, who have made their release a condition of participating in Washington-based discussions.

The US State Department announced on Sunday that the two sides had accepted invitations from Secretary of State John Kerry to come to Washington "to formally resume direct final status negotiations."

In a statement, department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said Mr Kerry had called both Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Sunday and said they agreed that the talks would "serve as an opportunity to develop a procedural work plan for how the parties can proceed with the negotiations in the coming months."

"Both leaders have demonstrated a willingness to make difficult decisions that have been instrumental in getting to this point," Mr Kerry said in the statement. "We are grateful for their leadership."

The prisoner release decision, which is highly contentious in Israel, will see the release of prisoners who have served between 19 and 30 years for taking part in deadly attacks on Israel in four stages over nine months.

The vote saw 13 ministers in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's 22-strong cabinet vote in favour of the wide-scale release. Seven voted against and two abstained, according to a government official.

A statement released by the prime minister's office following the vote said: "The government approved the opening of negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians ... and mandated a ministerial committee for the release of prisoners during the course of the talks."

As part of the deal, brokered by US Secretary of State John Kerry, they agreed to talks despite Israel's refusal to stop settlement building on land the Palestinians consider should be theirs.

The chief Palestinian negotiator, Saeb Erakat, hailed the vote and said: "We welcome the Israeli government's decision to release the prisoners.

"We consider this an important step and hope to be able to seize the opportunity provided by the American administration's efforts."

The talks between the two sides, the first since discussions stalled in September 2010, are due to begin on Tuesday.

The Palestinians want to establish a state which comprises the West Bank, Gaza and East Jerusalem, lands which the Israelis captured in the 1967 six-day war.

Late last year, the UN General Assembly recognised the State of Palestine within those 1967 borders.

In an attempt to secure talks as a precursor to the restarting of proper peace negotiations, Mr Netanyahu wrote an open letter to the Israeli public.

In it he said: "I agreed to release 104 Palestinians in measured stages, after the start of the negotiations and in accordance with their progress.

"This is an incredibly difficult decision. It's painful to the bereaved families, it pains the entire people of Israel, and it's very painful to me."

Qadura Fares, head of the Palestinian Prisoners' Club which tracks the well-being of Palestinians in Israeli jails, said there would be no talks unless all 104 prisoners returned to their homes.

"If they don't free all of them, there will be no negotiations," he told public radio.

In past deals, Israel has expelled some freed prisoners from the occupied West Bank or annexed east Jerusalem to the Gaza Strip or abroad, but Fares said that would not be acceptable this time.

"Expulsion is punishment," he said. "These people, who are now over 50 years old, all of them sick, need to be released to their homes."

Around 2,000 Palestinian prisoners are held in Israeli jails, according to the latest figures at the end of June. 

Spain Accused Over Gibraltar Border Delays

The Government has complained to Spanish counterparts after traffic was "deliberately" held up for up to six hours at the border with Gibraltar.

Images showed long queues at the border into the mainland from Gibraltar, which Spain claims as its own sovereign territory.

Authorities searched "practically every vehicle", triggering the tailbacks and affecting thousands of people who commute to and from Gibraltar for work.

A statement from the government of Gibraltar said: "It is disgraceful that EU nationals have been made to wait for nearly six hours to cross the border from Gibraltar to Spain.

"The Spanish Government has inflicted these unnecessary delays on the elderly, children and the infirm in up to 30 degrees of heat.

"This torture has resulted in an ambulance being deployed to treat people with medical conditions.

"The irony is that most of the victims are Spanish nationals in Spanish registered vehicles."

Foreign Secretary William Hague spoke to the Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Garcia-Margallo on Sunday to express "serious concerns".

Britain's Ambassador in Madrid also raised concerns with the Spanish Deputy Foreign Minister and a protest was registered with the Spanish Ambassador in London.

A spokesman from the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) said: "Our main concern is to restore people's basic right to freedom of movement and enable a return to normal operations at the border.

"A speedy solution is essential to address the very difficult situation there and consequent humanitarian issues."

Spain disputes UK sovereignty over Gibraltar, an outcrop on the southern tip of the Iberian peninsula which has been ruled by Britain since 1713.

People in Gibraltar have rejected Spanish sovereignty in two referendums - in 1967 and 2002 - and for the last seven years have governed most of their own affairs apart from defence and foreign relations.

It comes after Spanish police fired plastic or rubber bullets at a British jetskier off Gibraltar last month.

Dale Villa, 32, said he was left "shaken" after a Spanish police patrol boat fired shots at his jetski and chased him through Gibraltar's territorial waters.

Earlier this week, Guardia Civil vessels entered Gibraltar territorial waters as contractors attempted to create an artificial reef in the sea.

Ohio Kidnap Victim Makes Surprise Appearance

One of three women held captive in a Cleveland home for a decade appeared at a public event for the first time since her rescue.

Amanda Berry made a surprise appearance at the RoverFest concert in Cleveland on Saturday night, a day after her abductor pleaded guilty in the case.

She walked on stage with her family and waved at the cheering crowd.

Wearing sunglasses and dressed in jeans and a black T-shirt, Ms Berry smiled broadly while acknowledging the applause, but she didn't address the crowd.

The rapper Nelly called her back to the stage after his music set.

Ariel Castro, a former school bus driver, pleaded guilty to 937 counts in a deal that will send him to prison for life without parole, plus 1,000 years.

Ms Berry, now 27, Gina DeJesus and Michelle Knight disappeared between 2002 and 2004 when they were 14, 16 and 20 years old.

They escaped in May when Ms Berry kicked out part of a door and called to neighbours for help.

She told a police dispatcher in a dramatic 911 call: "Help me. I'm Amanda Berry. I've been kidnapped, and I've been missing for 10 years, and I'm, I'm here, I'm free now."

Castro, 53, who was arrested and jailed shortly afterward, was accused of raping and beating the three repeatedly.

The women did not attend the court proceeding but said in a statement that they were relieved by the conviction and looking forward to the end of the legal case.

The three recently appeared in an online video thanking the public for their support. They otherwise have tried to stay mostly out of sight and have appealed for privacy.

Thirty Dead In Italian Bus Plunge

Thirty people have been killed after a coach came off a flyover and plunged down a 98ft slope, according to the ANSA news agency.

Children were said to be among the passengers on the bus that crashed at Avellino in southern Italy.

The 40 passengers were said to have been returning to Naples following a pilgrimage.

A police spokesman said: "I cannot yet confirm the number of victims, we are still pulling people from the vehicle. Our priority now is to free the wounded."

A spokesman for the fire service said rescue operations were continuing and that four young children had been pulled alive from the stricken coach.

"The situation is dramatic," he said, adding that several other vehicles had also been involved in the accident.

Rescue workers at the scene said the bus had hit several cars before coming off the road and added that some of the passengers could have been flung from the vehicle as it fell.

Witnesses claimed it appeared the coach may have had braking problems, although officials had yet to confirm any cause of the accident. The driver is said to be among the dead

The Naples-Bari highway has been closed to traffic.

Hamilton Wins First Race For Mercedes

Lewis Hamilton converted pole position into a first race victory for Mercedes as he dominated the Hungarian Grand Prix.

Despite having claimed his fourth pole for his new employers on Saturday, the Brit had suggested it would be a "miracle" if he triumphed around the Hungaroring.

However, despite the hot weather, Hamilton's car showed no obvious signs of tyre degradation and he controlled the race from the front to beat Lotus' Kimi Raikkonen by 10.9 seconds.

The Red Bulls of Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber claimed third and fourth respectively, with Fernando Alonso fifth and Romain Grosjean sixth.

McLaren's Jenson Button was seventh, with fellow Briton Max Chilton last of the finishers in 17th.

Hamilton's team mate Nico Rosberg was a late retirement but it meant Williams finally got their 2013 points account up and running as Pastor Maldonado took advantage to snatch tenth.

"This is surely one of the most important wins of my career. To move to a new team and win for Mercedes-Benz is a real privilege. I couldn't be happier," a beaming Hamilton told Sky Sports F1.

"We have to work hard, but if we can come here and make our tyres work then we ought to be able to do it anywhere."

Hamilton heads into the four-week summer break 48 points down on Sebastian Vettel but could launch a late assault on the title.

Spain Train Crash: Driver Due In Court

A judge is preparing to question the driver of a train that hurtled off the tracks killing 78 people in Spain.

Francisco Jose Garzon Amo is being held on suspicion of "negligent homicide" and is due to appear before Judge Luis Alaez, who is heading the judicial investigation into the crash.

Judge Alaez will decide whether to press formal charges at the hearing, which must happen by 6.40pm BST on Sunday.

Garzon, 52, is suspected of driving too fast on a dangerous section of the line near the city of Santiago de Compostela.

Reports suggest the train was travelling at around 190km per hour (120mph), more than twice the 80km per hour (50mph) speed limit when it entered the bend.

Garzon, who was pictured staggering from the wreckage with blood pouring from a head wound, has refused to make a statement or answer questions about the crash.

His court appearance will be closed but the judge will decide whether to remand the driver as an official suspect, free him on bail or release him without charge.

The hearing comes as authorities said forensic experts have identified the last three bodies of the 78 people killed when the intercity train derailed and smashed into a concrete wall.

They did not reveal the victims' names but said their families had been informed.

A resident of the town where the train crashed has claimed Garzon admitted going fast and said he "wanted to die" in the aftermath of the crash.

In a television interview broadcast on Spain's Antena 3, Evaristo Iglesias said he and another person accompanied Garzon to a stretch of flat ground where other injured people were being laid out, waiting for emergency services to arrive.

Mr Iglesias said: "He told us that he wanted to die."

He added that Garzon said he "had been going fast" and "he said he had needed to brake but couldn't".

An American passenger, Stephen Ward, said he was watching the train's speed on a screen in the carriage, which indicated it was going at 194km per hour (121mph) moments before derailing.

Officials have so far not said how fast the train was going when it derailed and it is not clear whether the brakes failed or were never used.

The "black box" that records journey data is with the investigating judge.

All eight carriages of the train, packed with 218 passengers, careered off the track on the express route between Madrid and Ferrol on the Galician coast.

The train cut through electricity lines and leaking diesel fuel burst into flames in some carriages.

At least 130 people were taken to hospital after the crash, with dozens remaining in a critical condition.

Five US citizens and one Briton were among the injured and one American was among the dead.

Two separate investigations are being carried out into the catastrophe - one to look into possible failings by the driver and the other to examine the train's in-built speed regulation systems and see if it was a technical malfunction that meant the driver was not warned of the reduced speed limit around the bend.

The train crash is the worst Spain has experienced since a three-train accident in a tunnel in the northern Leon province in 1944.

Due to heavy censorship at the time, the exact death toll for the Torre del Bierzo disaster has never been established.

The official figure was given as 78 dead, but it is thought that as many as 250 could have been killed.

One Thousand Inmates Escape From Libya Prison

Inmates have staged a major jailbreak at a prison in the east Libyan city of Benghazi as the facility was also attacked from the outside.

Security official Mohammed Hejazi said the prisoners staged a riot inside Koyfiya prison as an attack took place outside the facility.

Gunmen fired into the air outside the prison as inmates began setting fires inside, suggesting the escape was pre-planned.

Special forces later arrested 18 of those who escaped, while other returned on their own, according to security officials.

It was unclear if the jailbreak was part of protests taking place at the offices of Islamist-allied parties in Libya's main cities.

Those who escaped either face or had been convicted of serious charges.

Protesters have massed across the country angry over the killing of an activist critical of the country's Muslim Brotherhood group.

Hundreds gathered in the capital Tripoli to denounce the shooting of Abdul Salam al Musmari, setting fire to tyres and demanding the dissolution of Islamist parties.

Al Musmari, who publicly criticised the Brotherhood, was killed by unknown attackers in a drive-by shooting in Benghazi.

Benghazi's security situation is among the most precarious in post-revolution Libya.

Last year, the US ambassador and three other Americans were killed in an attack there.

Libyan prime minister Ali Zeidan said he would reshuffle the cabinet and reorganise the government to cope with the "urgent" situation.

He added: "What is happening is an attempt to obstruct the state's progression."

The country's government is struggling to assert its authority over armed groups that helped topple Colonel Gaddafi in 2011 during the Arab Spring uprisings.

It comes after Iraq's prime minister Nouri al Maliki ordered the detention of several senior security officials in connection with a major jailbreak that saw hundreds of inmates escape from the notorious Abu Ghraib prison outside Baghdad.

A statement from his office said those detained included the chief of staff of the federal police's fourth division.

Al Qaeda's Iraq branch claimed responsibility for the attack and a simultaneous raid on Taji prison. Members of the terror organisation were among the prisoners thought to have escaped.