Haitians protest against Port-au-Prince shanty eviction

More than 1,000 people have marched in the Haitian capital Port-au-Prince in protest at government plans to clear poor neighbourhoods.

Police fired tear gas to disperse the protesters, some of whom chanted threats to burn down affluent neighbourhoods.

The government says their homes, perched precariously on steep hillsides, are at risk from landslides.

The residents say they cannot afford to live anywhere else.

The eviction plans are part of a government flood-control project.

An official from the environment ministry, Pierre Andre Gedon, said the government would build channels and reforest the hillsides in Jalousie in an attempt to curb the flooding which affects the capital in the rainy season.

The government is still struggling to house tens of thousands of people displaced in the 2010 earthquake, which devastated much of Port-au-Prince.

One of the protesters said he felt the poor were being unfairly targeted.

"These decisions are always made against the poor; the rich have huge homes that aren't affected," he told the news agency.

Minister for Human Rights Rose-Anne Auguste said the government would offer new homes to those displaced by the project.

"We can't allow people to endanger their lives in slums that can collapse any moment," she said.

Bolivia police in new clashes over pay demands

Bolivian police officers, who are on strike over low pay, have clashed with supporters of President Evo Morales in Bolivia's main city, La Paz.

About 500 government supporters marched to the city's main square, where 1,000 police had rallied to demand a salary increase.

The officers used tear gas to drive back the government supporters.

Mr Morales has accused the police of setting the stage for a coup, saying that their motives are political.

The officers, most of them wearing ski masks and civilian clothes, forced the supporters of Mr Morales from Plaza Murillo.

The president's supporters, a mixed group including farmers, indigenous people and members of left-wing groups, said the police had overreacted.

"Our march was peaceful but we were dispersed with gases and sticks," leader of the Farmers Federation Roberto Coraite said.

"The rebel police aren't fighting for salaries, this is political," he said.

On Sunday, the officers rejected a deal their representatives struck with the government saying that it did not meet their demands.

They want their pay to be raised to equal that of soldiers of the same rank.

Rank-and-file officers in La Paz denounced their leaders for "caving in" and promised to continue their protest.

Police in the cities of Cochabamba, Oruro and Tarija also rejected the deal.

President Morales said his right-wing opponents had stirred up discontent in the police to drive him from office.

Communication Minister Amanda Davila said the president was determined "to achieve a solution through democratic means, avoiding any bloodshed".

Evo Morales was elected in 2005 as Bolivia's first indigenous leader.

He was re-elected five years later, but his support has recently declined following a number of protests over low salaries and the rising cost of living.

Mexico City airport shootout leaves three police dead

Three Mexican policemen have been killed in a shootout with two other officers at Mexico City's main airport.

Officials say those shot dead were attempting to arrest the two officers who are suspected of involvement in a cocaine trafficking ring.

Passengers dived for cover when the suspected traffickers opened fire, killing two officers immediately and injuring a third who later died.

The two suspects escaped and are being sought by the authorities.

Officials said they had spent 18 months investigating corrupt federal and local officials who they suspect are part of a drug trafficking ring operating at the airport.

The area was sealed off immediately after the incident but flights were reported to be operating normally in and out of the airport.

"When the alleged perpetrators were surrounded by the police, shots were fired against the federal agents," a security ministry statement said.

The two officers have been identified, authorities said.

Eyewitness Israel Lopez told the Associated Press news agency: "We were in the food court, and some policemen came in and started shooting at another policeman who was on the floor."

The BBC's Will Grant in Mexico City says shootings in public spaces in broad daylight remain rare in the capital, which has been largely insulated from the violence seen elsewhere in the country.

Though traffickers use the capital's main airport to move drugs, money and illegal migrants and 440lb (200kg) of cocaine has been seized there so far this year, violence related to drug trafficking seldom occurs in passenger areas.

Reuters reports that gang violence has been growing in Mexico City and its suburbs, with around 300 gang-related murders last year.

US Supreme Court cuts parts of Arizona migrant law

The US Supreme Court has backed checks on the immigration status of people stopped or arrested in Arizona, while striking down key parts of a tough law critics branded as racial profiling.

President Barack Obama said he was pleased three challenges were upheld.

But Arizona Governor Jan Brewer said the "heart" of the law would remain.

President Obama and his Republican rival Mitt Romney are each battling for Hispanic votes ahead of November's presidential election.

Mr Romney reacted quickly to the court's ruling, criticising Mr Obama for not passing a national immigration reform law.

In a statement, he said each US state has "the duty - and the right - to secure our borders and preserve the rule of law".

President Barack Obama later said he was "pleased" that some parts of the law had been thrown out by the court.

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“Start Quote

It is not likely that Thursday's ruling will be quite so open to interpretation about who has won, although the aftershocks are much harder to predict”

Mark MardellNorth America editor

• Read more from Mark

But he added: "I remain concerned about the practical impact of the remaining provision of the Arizona law that requires local law enforcement officials to check the immigration status of anyone they even suspect to be here illegally.

"No American should ever live under a cloud of suspicion just because of what they look like."

In other developments at the court on Monday:

• A ruling on President Obama's landmark healthcare reform law was scheduled for Thursday
• The justices rejected mandatory sentencing of juveniles convicted of murder to life in prison without parole
• The court struck down a Montana campaign finance law that would limit corporate contributions to political campaigns.

'Held accountable'

The Supreme Court judgement came after the US government argued that the law infringed on federal rights to oversee immigration policy.

Alabama, Georgia, Indiana, South Carolina and Utah have all adopted variations of the Arizona law.

The headline provision, known as Section 2(B), that requires police to make a "reasonable attempt... to determine the immigration status" of anyone who is stopped for another violation, was upheld by the Supreme Court.

Jan Brewer: We "fully expect" challenges

The court ruled it was too early to tell whether the clause caused a conflict with federal laws, but added that the provision could be open to legal challenge again at a later date.

The Supreme Court also struck down three other parts of the Arizona immigration law.

One clause would have required immigrants to carry proof of their status with them, and another would have made it a crime for undocumented workers to apply for a job.

The court also struck down a provision that would have allowed police to stop people purely on the suspicion that they were in the country illegally.

Justice Anthony Kennedy, who wrote the opinion for the court, said the justices were unanimous in their decision to allow the "check your papers" provision to come into effect. The court was divided on other issues.

One justice, Antonin Scalia, who dissented from the case, said he would uphold all parts of the Arizona law, citing the sovereignty of individual states as defined in the US constitution.

Arizona's Republican Governor, Jan Brewer, called the court's ruling a victory, saying the "heart" of the bill could now come into effect.

In a statement, Ms Brewer said the ruling was a victory for "all Americans who believe in the inherent right and responsibility of states to defend their citizens.

But she added: "Law enforcement will be held accountable should this statute be misused in a fashion that violates an individual's civil rights."

Other reaction to the law was nuanced, and at least partly open to interpretation: some claimed victory for backers of the law, while others saw the ruling as a partial victory for the administration.

Immigration has become a key issue as the US edges closer to this year's presidential election.

Mr Obama recently outlined a plan to allow hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants who came to the US as children the option of legal status and work permits.

Mr Romney has opposed Mr Obama's plan, but has not said how he would address the issue of immigration.

Both men are courting Hispanic votes ahead of their showdown in November.

What does the Supreme Court ruling mean?

The National Journal called the Supreme Court's ruling a victory for the government. Although conservatives hoped for a full endorsement of the law, "instead, Arizona got permission to do what local police officers all over the country already do on an ad hoc basis", Fawn Johnson wrote.

But Politico's Josh Gerstein said the decision leaves open the possibility of further litigation. It cleared "the way for similar legislation to take effect in other states and potentially angering Latinos in a way that could give President Barack Obama an added boost from Hispanic voters in November", he wrote.

Writing for the Washington Post, Greg Sargent says the Supreme Court has upheld the most troubling clause in the law, warning that it "could become a permanent feature of the American legal landscape - with untold consequences when it comes to possible racial profiling and other potential abuses".

However, Jess Bravin and Miriam Jordan wrote in the Wall Street Journal that the court delivered "a ruling that gave both sides something to cheer in advance of November elections where immigration is a major issue".

West Bank barrier threatens villagers' way of life

Israel is being urged to reroute its controversial West Bank barrier away from the lands of an ancient Palestinian village with a unique agricultural system. The BBC's Wyre Davies visited Battir, whose inhabitants fear their traditional way of life will disappear.

In this part of the world, the supply and control of water is a major logistical and political issue. Yet the quaint village of Battir must be one of the luckiest and most blessed communities around - because Battir has water in abundance.

For more than 2,000 years, seven natural springs have given life to the village and its fields. Children still play, almost incongruously, in an old Roman bath built centuries ago at the spot, in the middle of the village, where one of the springs emerges.

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“Start Quote

The land is everything to us... Without our land we are nothing”

Akram BadirHead of Batir village council

The simple irrigation system used today is as it was in ancient times. Water is shared between Battir's eight main extended families. A simple system of manually diverting water via sluice gates means that fruit and vegetables from the small plots on the lower slopes are renowned for their freshness and quality.

Built on the side of a steep hill just to the south of Jerusalem in the occupied West Bank, Battir also boasts land arranged as traditional terrace agriculture. But this is a system and a landscape that is under threat from Israel's controversial barrier.

The exact route of this section of the barrier has yet to be finalised. But if, as thought, it is built along the valley floor below the village it will cut off Battir and its terraces from much of its ancestral lands. And, because of the unique irrigation system, villagers say those lands will be lost forever.

Green Line

Akram Badir is head of the village council. He is a successful businessman in his own right, but has spent much of his time in recent months mounting a legal challenge in the Israeli courts to the planned routing of the barrier.

Water is manually diverted via a system of aqueduct and sluice gates

Even though he knows his chances of success are slim, Badir says he cannot give up.

Continue reading the main story

West Bank barrier

• Total length is 708 km (440 miles), more than twice the length of the 1949 Armistice Line (Green Line) between Israel and West Bank
• About 61.8% of the barrier is complete; a further 8.2% is under construction and 30% is planned but not yet constructed
• When completed, only about 15% of the barrier will be constructed on the Green Line or in Israel, isolating 9.4% of the West Bank

Source: UN 2011

"The land is everything to us," he says. "Without our land we are nothing. It's been this way for centuries and our lives will disappear if the wall is built here."

At least 30% of Battir's lands lie on the Israeli side of the so-called Green Line, the generally recognised pre-1967 boundary between Israel and the West Bank.

The Arab villagers of Battir were allowed to keep their lands after the 1948 Arab-Israeli war in return for preventing damage to a railway which runs through the valley floor.

But Israel's controversial barrier is getting close. Just up the hill from Battir, huge concrete slabs are going up - on occupied Palestinian territory - around the village of Walaja. It leaves swathes of village lands cut off on the other side of the wall.

Despite their long-standing agreement, villagers and campaigners fear the Israeli authorities plan to build the barrier along their valley floor, separating the villagers of Battir from their lands.

Gates

Giovanni Sontana, an anthropologist with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (Unesco) says that to build the barrier here would destroy a traditional way of life.

Israel's defence ministry said villagers would still be able to access their lands

"There are few, if any, places left in the immediate region where such a traditional method of agriculture remains, not only intact, but as a functioning part of the village," he said as we walked through olive groves that have not changed for as long as anyone can remember.

Keeping the village of Battir and its lands intact would require Israel to do something it has not done thus far - to build part of the barrier on its own territory.

Declining requests for an interview, the Israeli defence ministry said in a statement that the routing of the barrier is based purely on security considerations and that potential damage to the area would be minimised.

Villagers, the statement said, would have access to their lands through special gates (operated by Israeli security personnel) in the wall or fence.

The residents of Battir certainly do not feel lucky or blessed, as the future of the village hangs in the balance. Many fear that a way of life that has prevailed here pretty much without change for hundreds of years is about to be swept away.

West Bank Jewish settlers leave Ulpana outpost

Israeli authorities have begun to evacuate Jewish settlers from an unauthorised West Bank outpost after a court ordered it to be dismantled.

Officials arrived on Tuesday morning to help the first of 30 families relocate from Ulpana to temporary housing in adjoining settlement of Beit El.

There had been fears the settlers would resist and have to be forcibly removed.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has ordered the construction of 300 new homes in Beit El.

The move was seen as an effort to placate the settler movement and right-wing critics in Mr Netanyahu's own Likud party

All settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem are considered illegal under international law, though Israel disputes this.

The settler outposts are also illegal under Israeli law and the government agreed to remove them under the 2003 Road Map peace plan.

The fate of Ulpana, which was built on private Palestinian land, has been a source of tension between settlers and the government.

Ulpana is part of the bigger settlement of Beit El, north of Jerusalem, which is built on land captured by Israel in the 1967 Middle East war. Palestinians say it should be part of their future state.

The decision to build the new homes in Beit El was criticised by the Palestinians and the US, which said it undermined peace efforts.

Japan's lower house passes sales tax bill

Japan's lower house of parliament has approved Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda's controversial plan to double sales tax, but the vote laid bare a deep rift in the ruling party.

Japanese broadcaster NHK reported that 57 ruling party lawmakers failed to back the bill.

These included party founder Ichiro Ozawa, who has indicated he could form a new political party.

If others were to follow him, Mr Noda could be forced to call an election.

Mr Noda says doubling the tax from 5% to 10% by 2015 is key to cutting Japan's high public debt and funding rising welfare costs.

The two main opposition parties supported the bill. It must pass in the upper house to become law but is expected to do so because of the deal with the opposition.

Continue reading the main story

Analysis

Mariko OiBBC News, Tokyo

The passage of the bill should be a victory for Yoshihiko Noda, who has been negotiating with opposition parties for months to reach an agreement.

But his expression wasn't that of joy. Despite his repeated calls for party unity, a sizeable faction of the ruling party voted against the bill and the big question is what they will do next.

Ichiro Ozawa has said he may form a new political party, and if more than 54 lawmakers follow him it could potentially lead to an election.

The prime minister has staked his career on the sales tax hike, but it could mean he becomes the latest victim of Japan's revolving door.

Some political analysts, however, have said that not all the members who voted against the bill would want to leave the party and Mr Ozawa might not be wiling to make his next move that quickly.

Ahead of the vote, Mr Noda appealed for support. "This reform is not just for our generation, but for our future," he said in a final pitch to parliament.

Aging population

The controversial tax hike, which passed by 363 votes to 96, has seen bitter disagreement and gridlock amongst Japan's lawmakers.

The cabinet approved an outline of the bill in February but has been mired in negotiations since.

Mr Noda says raising sales tax - called consumption tax in Japan - is key to addressing Japan's financial woes and funding the needs of its aging population.

Japan estimates that 40% of its population will be of retirement age by 2060 - meaning the taxes of far fewer workers supporting far more retirees.

Several Japanese prime ministers have mooted the idea of raising sales tax in the past, but the move has proved deeply unpopular with voters.

Mr Ozawa, who has been leading the charge against Mr Noda over the tax hike, is a veteran politician leading the biggest fraction within the DPJ.

He was cleared of charges in a long-running political funding scandal in April.

If 54 or more lawmakers were to follow Mr Ozawa out of the DPJ, Mr Noda would lose his majority in the lower house and could be forced to call early polls.

Uganda abandons landslide rescue bid for buried

Rescue workers in Uganda have abandoned efforts to find an estimated 70 people believed to be buried in a landslide.

Eighteen people have been confirmed dead after three villages were swept away on the slopes of Mount Elgon.

Uganda's Red Cross told the BBC efforts were now concentrating on looking after the injured and displaced.

In March 2010, thousands were forced to flee after after a landslide killed more than 350 people in Uganda's eastern Bududa district.

'Many cracks'

Ken Kiggundu, director of disaster management for Uganda's Red Cross, told the BBC that 72 people were still missing.

He added that 480 had been displaced and were now living with relatives and friends following Monday's landslide, which occurred after a number of days of heavy rain.

"At 2pm, the ground trembled, followed by heavy rumbling of soil and stones which covered our home," Rachael Namwono, a villager in Bududa district, told Uganda's private Monitor newspaper.

Red Cross officer Michael Nataka told the Reuters news agency that there was a need to force people to move from the mountain sides as they tended not to heed the advice that the area was dangerous.

"The Mount Elgon area has had so many places with cracks, so each time there is rainfall for a while, this water just seeps into these cracks and then eventually the landslide happens," Mr Nataka said.

"There is need for some level of enforcement."

Steven Malinga, Uganda's minister for disaster relief, said moving people to safer areas was a priority, but many people refused to move as the villages near Mount Elgon had fertile ground and fewer instances of malaria.

"Eventually we have to pass a law to move people from the top and the sides of the mountain, and find alternative communities where we can relocate them," the minister told the BBC's Network Africa programme.

He urged people to move to camps lower down the mountain, where they would be given food, containers for water and utensils.

Last August, at least 24 people were killed when mud washed away homes in the Bulambuli district of eastern Uganda.

Israel Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial attack: Three held

Three ultra-Orthodox Jewish men have been arrested in Israel, suspected of defacing the national Holocaust memorial with anti-Zionist graffiti.

One of the slogans daubed in paint on the walls of the memorial read: "If Hitler had not existed, the Zionists would have invented him."

The suspects have admitted vandalising the site, a police spokesman said.

Suspicion for the attack had fallen on radical ultra-Orthodox Jews who oppose the creation of the state of Israel.

One of the slogans, all in Hebrew, was signed "world ultra-Orthodox Jewry".

Another read: "Thanks Hitler for the wonderful Holocaust you organised for us. Only thanks to you we got a state from the UN."

A third went: "Honourable government of Poland, stop allowing the Zionists to hold manipulative 'memorial' ceremonies in Auschwitz."

Some ultra-Orthodox Jews believe a Jewish state can be established only after the coming of the Messiah, and that the state of Israel is therefore illegitimate.

A small number of extremists believe the myth that Israel's founders conspired with Hitler to bring about the Jewish state.

In a statement, Yad Vashem Chairman Avner Shalev said: "I believe that it was important to know the identities of those who spray-painted the graffiti. The suspects are extremist ultra-Orthodox Jews, anti-Zionists, who are on the fringes of society, and do not represent the majority who respect the memory of the Holocaust."

Yad Vashem was established in 1953 and commemorates the six million Jews murdered by the Nazis during World War II.

The three suspects are to appear before a Jerusalem court later on Tuesday.

News Corp shares rise on reports of asset split

Shares in News Corporation have risen 2.4% in Australia following reports that the company may be split in two.

The Wall Street Journal, which is owned by News Corp, said that the TV and entertainment businesses would be separated from publishing.

The Murdoch family, which has 40% of the voting shares, would retain control of both.

The split would put the 39% stake in BSkyB in a separate company from its scandal-hit UK newspapers.

News Corp declined to comment on the reports.

"This will be widely seen as a non-denial confirmation, since News Corp has in the past shot down other reports of its plans to quarantine the hacking debacle," said BBC business editor Robert Peston.

The reported split would put film and television businesses including 20th Century Fox and the Fox broadcasting network in one company.

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One potentially significant benefit is that BSkyB would be distanced from the British newspapers where the alleged lawbreaking took place - and so the risk of Ofcom stripping BSkyB of its broadcasting licence would presumably be diminished”

Robert PestonBusiness editor

• Read more from Robert
• Will BSkyB be protected by News Corp break-up?

The other company would contain publishing businesses such as the Wall Street Journal and the Times newspaper, as well as the HarperCollins publishing house.

The publishing business would be the smaller of the two, representing around 25% of current News Corp revenues and 10% of profits, Robert Peston said.

Media consultant Theresa Wise said preventing a "reputational bleed" from the newspapers involved in the hacking scandal to the other parts of the business was not the only reason the split would make sense.

"The media side of the business is a much faster growth business... the publishing side of the business, the books and the newspapers, are very slow or no-growth businesses," she told BBC News.

"The whole company of News Corp is less highly valued because investors can't split out the slow growth from the faster growth."

Turkey says its military rules of engagement have changed after Syria shot down a Turkish plane that strayed into its territory. PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan told parliament that if Syrian troops approached Turkey's borders, they would be seen as a military threat. Meanwhile Nato has expressed its condemnation of Syria's attack as well as strong support for Turkey. Syria insists the F-4 Phantom jet was shot down inside Syrian airspace. The plane crashed into the eastern Mediterranean and its two pilots are missing. Activists from the Local Co-ordination Committees said 30 people were killed across Syria on Tuesday, including 15 in the capital's suburbs. Syrian state media said dozens of "terrorists" had been killed in the Damascus suburb of al-Hama. Continue reading the main story Turkish account Friday 22 June, early morning: F-4 leaves Erhac Nato airbase Flies over Hatay province (Turkey) 11:42 GMT: mistakenly enters Syrian airspace near Latakia at 200ft (61m) at 300 knots 11:47: leaves after Turkish radar operator warning - no Syrian warning 11:56: radio contact lost: hit 13 nautical miles from Syrian coast at 7,400ft by heat-seeking guided laser missile 11:58 crashes into the sea Mr Erdogan spoke of Turkey's "rage" at the decision to shoot down the F-4 Phantom on 22 June and described Syria as a "clear and present threat". "A short-term border violation can never be a pretext for an attack," he said. The Turkish jet was on a training flight, testing Turkey's radars in the eastern Mediterranean, he said. He made it clear that Turkey was adopting a "common sense" attitude, although that "shouldn't be perceived as a weakness". "Every military element approaching Turkey from the Syrian border and representing a security risk and danger will be assessed as a military threat and will be treated as a military target," he said. Turkey requested a meeting of the alliance's ambassadors in Brussels after invoking Article 4 of Nato's founding treaty, which entitles any member state to ask for consultations if it believes its security is threatened. In a statement, the alliance's 28 members said the shooting down of the plane was "unacceptable" and they stood together with Turkey "in the spirit of strong solidarity". Continue reading the main story Syrian account 11:40 GMT Friday: F-4 flew at 100m (330 ft) altitude, 1-2km (0.6m-1.2m) from Syrian coast Surprise meant no time to give warning Anti-aircraft gun shot it down in Syrian waters with fire of maximum range of 2.5km Radar-guided missile not deployed Tail wreckage shows it was hit by anti-aircraft fire Nato Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said: "It is another example of the Syrian authorities' disregard for international norms. Nato allies will remain seized of developments." Earlier, in a letter to the UN Security Council, Turkey described the shooting down of its reconnaissance plane as a "hostile act" and "a serious threat to peace and security in the region". Ankara says the jet mistakenly strayed into Syrian airspace but was quickly warned to change course by Turkish authorities and was 1.6km inside international airspace when it was shot down. Syria said it was unaware that the plane belonged to Turkey and had been protecting its airspace. Turkey has also accused its neighbour of firing on a search and rescue plane looking for the F-4 Phantom jet, although it was not brought down. Relations between the two countries were already highly strained before the F-4 was shot down. Mr Erdogan has been outspoken in his condemnation of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, whose government he accuses of brutally putting down opposition protests. In Syria itself, opposition activists on Tuesday reported fierce fighting near Republican Guard positions in suburbs of Damascus. Anders Fogh Rasmussen said Nato considered the attack "unacceptable" There were clashes in Qadsaya and al-Hama, around 8km (5 miles) from the centre of the city, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights told AFP news agency. The UK-based organisation also said security forces had entered the Barzeh area of Damascus. Syrian state TV said that as well as the "terrorists" killed in al-Hama, many others had been taken prisoner including some non-Syrian Arab nationals. The Observatory and the Free Syrian Army also said there had been reports of a military helicopter being shot down in Idlib, but gave no details. International media cannot report freely in Syria and it is impossible to verify the reports. Fighting was also reported in the old city of Homs where the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) last week tried unsuccessfully to arrange the evacuation of civilians trapped by the fighting. The ICRC said on Tuesday it was returning to the city for a fresh attempt. Alleged flightpath of downed Turkish F-4 Phantom 1. F-4 Phantom takes off from Erhac airbase, Turkey, at approximately 10:28 local time (07:28 GMT), on 22 June 2. Syria says the jet enters its airspace at 11:40 (08:40 GMT) 3. Turkish military loses contact with the plane at 11:58 (08:58 GMT), while it is over Hatay province 4. Syria says its air defences engaged aircraft about 1km (0.5 nautical miles) from the coast and that it crashed into the sea 10km (5 nautical miles) west of Om al-Tuyour. Turkey says the plane was 24km (13 nautical miles) from Syria, which under international law is considered international airspace

European authorities have unveiled their vision for the future, which gives them much greater powers.

It includes the creation of a European treasury, which would have powers over national budgets.

European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said it was "a defining moment for European integration".

The document, released ahead of Thursday's EU summit, said greater fiscal union could lead to common debt being issued by eurozone countries.

There would also be banking union, with a single European banking regulator and a unified deposit guarantee scheme.

The document was released by European Council President Herman Van Rompuy and was drawn up with the presidents of the European Commission, the Eurogroup and the European Central Bank.

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“Start Quote

It has generally been true that the European project has been driven forward when France and Germany are in step. They are not at the moment. There is a deep philosophical and political divide between them ”

Gavin HewittEurope editor

• Read more from Gavin

Mr Van Rompuy said it was "not meant to be a final blueprint", but that he expected "to reach a common understanding amongst us on the way forward" at Thursday and Friday's summit.

Mr Barroso said the guiding principle was that "greater solidarity and greater responsibility must go hand in hand".

Proposals in the report included:

• Limits on the amount of debt individual countries can take on
• Annual national budgets can be vetoed if they are likely to mean a country exceeding its debt limits
• The eurozone borrowing money collectively "could be explored"
• A European treasury office to be set up to control a central budget and keep an eye on national ones
• A single European banking regulator and a common scheme guaranteeing bank deposits
• Common policies on employment regulations and levels of taxation
• Joint decision-making with national parliaments to give it "democratic legitimacy".

Earlier, German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble also called for there to be a European finance minister, with the power to veto national budgets as well as an elected president of Europe.

French, German, Spanish and Italian finance ministers are meeting on Tuesday to discuss closer union.

French Finance Minister Pierre Moscovici has said Thursday's EU summit should, "lay the groundwork for the second phase of the euro".

Joint borrowingContinue reading the main story

Crisis jargon buster

Use the dropdown for easy-to-understand explanations of key financial terms:

Eurobond

Eurobond

A term increasingly used for the idea of a common, jointly-guaranteed bond of the eurozone governments. It has been mooted as a solution to the eurozone debt crisis, as it would prevent markets from differentiating between the creditworthiness of different government borrowers.
Confusingly and quite seperately, "Eurobond" also refers to a bond issued in any currency in the international markets.

Glossary in full

Many governments outside the eurozone have called on it to issue eurobonds, which would be a way to allow countries that are currently unable to borrow money commercially to borrow at low interest rates.

But some countries, especially Germany, have resisted this step unless there is much closer fiscal union.

The reason for that is that eurobonds would have much the same effect as the original introduction of the euro, which is that they would allow many governments access to cheaper loans.

There is therefore concern that without European control over budgets, some countries would again take on unsustainable levels of debt.

One of the big changes under the new proposals is that while in the past eurozone members had to keep their budget deficits below a certain level, a European treasury will now be able to force them to make changes to their budgets to keep their deficits down.

Turkey PM Erdogan issues Syria border warning

Turkey says its military rules of engagement have changed after Syria shot down a Turkish plane that strayed into its territory.

PM Recep Tayyip Erdogan told parliament that if Syrian troops approached Turkey's borders, they would be seen as a military threat.

Meanwhile Nato has expressed its condemnation of Syria's attack as well as strong support for Turkey.

Syria insists the F-4 Phantom jet was shot down inside Syrian airspace.

The plane crashed into the eastern Mediterranean and its two pilots are missing.

Activists from the Local Co-ordination Committees said 30 people were killed across Syria on Tuesday, including 15 in the capital's suburbs.

Syrian state media said dozens of "terrorists" had been killed in the Damascus suburb of al-Hama.

Continue reading the main story
Turkish account

Friday 22 June, early morning: F-4 leaves Erhac Nato airbase
Flies over Hatay province (Turkey)
11:42 GMT: mistakenly enters Syrian airspace near Latakia at 200ft (61m) at 300 knots
11:47: leaves after Turkish radar operator warning - no Syrian warning
11:56: radio contact lost: hit 13 nautical miles from Syrian coast at 7,400ft by heat-seeking guided laser missile
11:58 crashes into the sea
Mr Erdogan spoke of Turkey's "rage" at the decision to shoot down the F-4 Phantom on 22 June and described Syria as a "clear and present threat".

"A short-term border violation can never be a pretext for an attack," he said. The Turkish jet was on a training flight, testing Turkey's radars in the eastern Mediterranean, he said.

He made it clear that Turkey was adopting a "common sense" attitude, although that "shouldn't be perceived as a weakness".

"Every military element approaching Turkey from the Syrian border and representing a security risk and danger will be assessed as a military threat and will be treated as a military target," he said.

Turkey requested a meeting of the alliance's ambassadors in Brussels after invoking Article 4 of Nato's founding treaty, which entitles any member state to ask for consultations if it believes its security is threatened.

In a statement, the alliance's 28 members said the shooting down of the plane was "unacceptable" and they stood together with Turkey "in the spirit of strong solidarity".

Continue reading the main story
Syrian account

11:40 GMT Friday: F-4 flew at 100m (330 ft) altitude, 1-2km (0.6m-1.2m) from Syrian coast
Surprise meant no time to give warning
Anti-aircraft gun shot it down in Syrian waters with fire of maximum range of 2.5km
Radar-guided missile not deployed
Tail wreckage shows it was hit by anti-aircraft fire
Nato Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said: "It is another example of the Syrian authorities' disregard for international norms. Nato allies will remain seized of developments."

Earlier, in a letter to the UN Security Council, Turkey described the shooting down of its reconnaissance plane as a "hostile act" and "a serious threat to peace and security in the region".

Ankara says the jet mistakenly strayed into Syrian airspace but was quickly warned to change course by Turkish authorities and was 1.6km inside international airspace when it was shot down.

Syria said it was unaware that the plane belonged to Turkey and had been protecting its airspace.

Turkey has also accused its neighbour of firing on a search and rescue plane looking for the F-4 Phantom jet, although it was not brought down.

Relations between the two countries were already highly strained before the F-4 was shot down.

Mr Erdogan has been outspoken in his condemnation of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, whose government he accuses of brutally putting down opposition protests.

In Syria itself, opposition activists on Tuesday reported fierce fighting near Republican Guard positions in suburbs of Damascus.


Anders Fogh Rasmussen said Nato considered the attack "unacceptable"
There were clashes in Qadsaya and al-Hama, around 8km (5 miles) from the centre of the city, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights told AFP news agency. The UK-based organisation also said security forces had entered the Barzeh area of Damascus.

Syrian state TV said that as well as the "terrorists" killed in al-Hama, many others had been taken prisoner including some non-Syrian Arab nationals.

The Observatory and the Free Syrian Army also said there had been reports of a military helicopter being shot down in Idlib, but gave no details.

International media cannot report freely in Syria and it is impossible to verify the reports.

Fighting was also reported in the old city of Homs where the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) last week tried unsuccessfully to arrange the evacuation of civilians trapped by the fighting. The ICRC said on Tuesday it was returning to the city for a fresh attempt.

Alleged flightpath of downed Turkish F-4 Phantom


1. F-4 Phantom takes off from Erhac airbase, Turkey, at approximately 10:28 local time (07:28 GMT), on 22 June

2. Syria says the jet enters its airspace at 11:40 (08:40 GMT)

3. Turkish military loses contact with the plane at 11:58 (08:58 GMT), while it is over Hatay province

4. Syria says its air defences engaged aircraft about 1km (0.5 nautical miles) from the coast and that it crashed into the sea 10km (5 nautical miles) west of Om al-Tuyour. Turkey says the plane was 24km (13 nautical miles) from Syria, which under international law is considered international airspace

Tuah jenahak rangkul juara

LUMUT – Peserta Kategori Laut Dalam dari Negeri Sembilan, Sharizam Abdul Hamid, 36, dinobatkan juara pusingan kedua Karnival Memancing GP Joran 2012 di Teluk Senangin dekat sini, semalam, selepas menaikkan seekor jenahak seberat 5.96 kilogram (kg).

Kemenangan itu membolehkannya membawa pulang wang tunai RM20,000 dan hadiah iringan daripada penaja.

Pembuat kabinet dapur itu berjaya mengalahkan kira-kira 400 peserta dalam kategori sama yang memancing kira-kira 12 jam sekitar Pulau Sembilan.

Naib johan dan tempat ketiga dimenangi peserta dari Perak, Nazrul Hisyam Hassan, 29, dan Shaharudin Othman, 45, masing-masing menaikkan jenahak seberat 5.28kg dan 4.88kg.

Nazrul dan Shaharudin, masing-masing membawa pulang wang tunai RM10,000 dan RM4,000.

Bagi Kategori Pantai, pari seberat 4.28kg yang dipancing kira-kira jam 10.35 pagi membantu Mohd Nasri Abdullah, 33, dari Batu Burok, Terengganu membawa pulang wang tunai RM20,000.

Naib johan dimenangi Mohd Yusri Mohamed Yunus, 34, dari Perak dan tempat ketiga dimenangi Ibrahim Che Ros (Pulau Pinang).

Mereka berjaya menaikkan ikan bawal pinang seberat 1.32kg dan 0.91kg yang turut membawa pulang wang tunai RM10,000 dan RM4,000.

Hadiah kepada semua pemenang utama kedua-dua kategori disampaikan Menteri Besar, Datuk Seri Dr Zambry Abdul Kadir.

Hadir sama, Pengerusi Jawatankuasa Industri, Pelaburan, Pembangunan Usahawan, Pelancongan, Hal Ehwal Wanita dan Kebajikan Negeri, Datuk Hamidah Osman; Pengarah Eksekutif Operasi Berita dan Editorial Media Prima Berhad, Datuk Ahmad A Talib; Pengarang Kumpulan Berita Harian, Datuk Mior Kamarul Shahid dan Yang Dipertua Majlis Perbandaran Manjung, Datuk Zamri Man.

Sementara itu, Sharizam tidak menyangka umpan sotong menggabang berjaya memikat jenahak kira-kira jam 8 pagi semalam.

“Cadangan tekong supaya saya menggunakan umpan sotong menggabang ternyata berkesan apabila umpan yang dilabuhkan tidak sampai 15 minit terus disentap.

“Berdebar-debar saya ketika menaikkan ikan berkenaan dan lebih kurang 10 minit akhirnya ikan paling berharga dari spesies jenahak berjaya dinaikkan di atas bot,” katanya.

Dalam pada itu, Zambry dalam sidang medianya berkata, GP Joran bakal dijadikan acara tahunan negeri ini pada masa akan datang.

“Selepas sembilan tahun GP Joran tidak diadakan di daerah Manjung, kali ini acara itu dianjurkan Berita Harian dan akan berlangsung setiap tahun dan bakal dijadikan acara tahunan negeri ini,” katanya.

GP Joran 2012 pusingan kedua yang berlangsung di Teluk Senangin, semalam, melabuhkan tirai dengan jayanya apabila 1,100 peserta dari seluruh negara mengambil bahagian.

Pusingan seterusnya akan menemui peserta di Kuala Pahang, Pekan Pahang, September depan.

Antara penaja pertandingan pembuka tirai ini ialah TCE Tackles Sdn Bhd, Universal Fitness & Leisure (UFL-Coleman), Nestle Product Sdn Bhd (Nestle/Maggi), Syarikat Zulkifli Bhamadhaj (Petani), Ions Adventure, Adabi Consumer Sdn Bhd, Gardenia (KL) Bakeries Sdn Bhd, Perfect Food Sdn Bhd (Julie’s).

Sila baca Joran Jumaat ini.

Dari: Berita Harian