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A plume of smoke were visible kilometres away, as Naomi Grimley reports

Air travellers across Africa are facing long delays after a huge fire ripped through the main airport in Kenya's capital, Nairobi, forcing its closure.

Hundreds of passengers have been left stranded outside Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA).

It has reopened for cargo and domestic services, though many flights have been diverted to other regional airports.

The Kenyan authorities say no casualties have been reported and that the blaze has been contained.

The cause of the fire is not yet known. Security officials say they are waiting to inspect the damage before drawing any conclusions.

James Ole Lenku: "We will make sure that we establish the true cause of the fire. As of now we don't know what's happened"

However, correspondents say the airport is old and overcrowded.

'Slow response'

The fire started in the airport's international arrivals and immigration area at around 05:00 (02:00 GMT) and spread quickly. Dark smoke was seen billowing into the sky above Nairobi as the blaze took hold.

Passengers arriving on international flights - some still in their seats - reported hearing explosions from the terminal building.

"When I arrived there were one or two fire engines parked outside the international arrivals. It spread very fast,'' British passenger, Martyn Collbeck, told the Associated Press. "I would have expected more fire engines to respond faster."

At the scene

Emmanuel IgunzaBBC News, Jomo Kenyatta International Airport

The plumes of smoke bellowing from the arrival area of the airport could be seen from as far as 4km (2.5 miles) away. Outside the arrival area I saw passengers sitting on the pavement with their luggage - stranded in the early morning cold.

Those who had witnessed the fire start described scenes of chaos as people ran in the wrong direction, before rushing back out to safety. Some said they heard small explosions as the fire intensified. Hundreds of airport staff were also evacuated from the arrival area.

It was all hands on deck as firefighters from Nairobi County, the army and private firms battled the fire. I saw dozens of army officers with buckets rushing to the scene.

Some passengers complained that they had been left stranded with no information regarding their connecting flights, and no food or water.

Fire engines battled through Nairobi's infamous traffic jams to reach the airport. Witnesses said some did not arrive until one or two hours after the fire began. Many engines also quickly ran out of water.

It took about four hours to bring the fire under control, by which time the arrivals hall had been gutted. There were no immediate reports of any deaths of serious injuries, although two people were treated for smoke inhalation.

International flights carrying business travellers and tourists were initially diverted to the southern coastal city of Mombasa.

Later, flights were also diverted to Eldoret in the north-west and Kisumu in the west, as well as Dar es Salaam in Tanzania, and Entebbe in Uganda. Passengers faced bus journeys of hundreds of miles to reach Nairobi.

Passengers outside the airport said they had been stranded with no information, reports the BBC's Emmanuel Igunza at the airport.

"This is too much. It was very nice here but this is just a mess," said Medr Gudru, a German tourist who had hoped to fly home on Wednesday.

People watch dense black smoke billowing from the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in Nairobi, Kenya, early on Wednesday

The fire is believed to have started in the immigration zone at about 05:00 (02:00 GMT)

"The airlines are working to assist stranded passengers and advise them on the measures being put in place to resume services at JKIA,'' said Stephen Gichuki, director of the Kenyan Airports Authority (KAA).

On Wednesday afternoon, almost 12 hours after the fire began, government officials said the airport had reopened for domestic and cargo flights.

Eyewitness: "I could see there was really no plan of action - people were just running from left to right"

Cabinet Secretary for Transport Michael Kamau told reporters that the authorities would begin preparing the small domestic terminal for handling international departures and arrivals.

"We started pitching tents on the airside for handling departing passengers," he added.

President Uhuru Kenyatta - whose father the airport is named after - has toured the remains of the international arrivals hall to see the damage. The building was gutted by the fire and the roof has partially collapsed. The floor is covered in debris and water.

'Disastrous'

The airport is a regional hub and a vital part of Kenya's tourism industry, reports BBC Africa correspondent Andrew Harding in Johannesburg.

Jomo Kenyatta Airport

Busiest airport in east and central Africa, and seventh busiest in Africa
Handles six million passengers a year
Hub for neighbouring countries as well as cities as far away as Lagos, Johannesburg and Cairo - as well as gateway to continent for Europe and Asia
Serves 49 destinations in 23 countries, across five continents
Key export point for Kenya's flower industry, one of the country's top foreign exchange earners - Kenyan flowers account for 35% of flowers imported into the EU

"President Kenyatta wishes to reassure the entire aviation industry, investors, local and international travellers that everything is being done to resume normal operations," presidential spokesman Manoah Esipisu said.

A third of Europe's flower imports, and many fresh vegetables, also come from Kenya.

"This is disastrous," Jane Ngige, chief executive officer of the exporters association, Kenya Flower Council, told the Reuters news agency.

Shares in Kenya Airways, which uses the airport as its main hub, fell 2% after the fire.

Foreign airlines which use the terminal include British Airways, Emirates, Qatar Airways, KLM, Turkish Airways, South African Airways and Ethiopian Airways.

Kenya Airways said flights from London and Bangkok would land as scheduled in Nairobi on Thursday morning, according to the Reuters news agency.

British Airways said it was in contact with the authorities to provide customers due to travel with as much information and notice as possible.

There have been more than 130 cases of bird flu in
eastern China

Researchers have reported the first case of human-to-human transmission of the new strain of bird flu that has emerged in China.

The British Medical Journal said a 32-year-old woman was infected after caring for her father. Both later died.

Until now there had been no evidence of anyone catching the H7N9 virus other than after direct contact with birds.

But experts stressed it does not mean the virus has developed the ability to spread easily between humans.

By 30 June there had been 133 cases of H7N9 bird flu reported in eastern China and 43 deaths.

Most people had visited live poultry markets or had close contact with live poultry in the week or two before they became ill.

Intensive care

Yet researchers found that the 32-year-old woman had become infected in March after caring for her 60-year-old father in hospital.

Unlike her father - who had visited a poultry market in the week before falling ill - she had no known exposure to live poultry but fell ill six days after her last contact with him.

Both died in intensive care of multiple organ failure.

Tests on the virus taken from both patients showed the strains were almost genetically identical, which supports the theory that the daughter was infected directly from her father rather than another source.

Public health officials tested 43 close contacts of the patients but all tested negative for H7N9, suggesting the ability of the virus to spread was limited.

The researchers said that while there was no evidence to suggest the virus had gained the ability to spread from person to person efficiently, this was the first case of a "probable transmission" from human to human.

'Strong warning sign'

"Our findings reinforce that the novel virus possesses the potential for pandemic spread," they concluded.

Dr James Rudge, of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, said that limited transmission between humans is not surprising and has been seen before in other bird flu viruses, such as H5N1.

He added: "It would be a worry if we start to see longer chains of transmission between people, when one person infects someone else, who in turn infects more people, and so on.

"And particularly if each infected case goes on to infect, on average, more than one other person, this would be a strong warning sign that we might be in the early stages of an epidemic."

An accompanying editorial in the BMJ, co-authored by Dr Rudge, concluded that while this study might not suggest that H7N9 is any closer to delivering the next pandemic, "it does provide a timely reminder of the need to remain extremely vigilant".

Hundreds of South Korean representatives from Kaesong-based companies hold a rally at Imjingak peace park in Paju near the border with North Korea on 7 August 2013

Hundreds of South Korean protestors have demanded the reopening of the park

North and South Korea have agreed to resume talks on reopening the Kaesong industrial zone, days after Seoul demanded "final talks" on the matter.

In a statement on Wednesday, Pyongyang offered talks on 14 August, saying its workers would return to the joint complex and the safety of South Korean staff would be guaranteed.

Both sides would prevent another suspension of operations, it added.

South Korea has accepted the proposal, describing it as "forward-looking".

Several previous rounds of talks have ended in deadlock. South Korea is demanding Pyongyang provide guarantees it will not unilaterally close the zone again.

It was not immediately clear whether North Korea's offer fulfilled Seoul's criteria for such a guarantee.

The North Korean offer came shortly after Seoul announced insurance payments to companies affected by the stoppage - a move seen as paving the way for a formal closure of the site.

'New phase'

The zone, which lies just inside North Korea, has been closed since Pyongyang withdrew its workers in April, angered by UN sanctions following its 12 February nuclear test and a US-South Korea military drill.

Kaesong Industrial Zone

Launched in 2003, largely financed by the South to increase co-operation
More than 120 factories employ North Koreans in manufacturing industries, with goods exported to the South
Complex as a whole produced $470m worth of goods in 2012 - the biggest contributor to inter-Korean trade
South Korean companies pay more than $80m a year in wages to North Korean workers

Q&A: Kaesong Industrial Complex

The zone is home to 123 South Korean factories employing more than 50,000 North Korean workers, and is a key source of revenue for the North.

Several rounds of talks on resuming operations ended in deadlock in July.

Wednesday's statement, attributed to North Korea's Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of Korea, said: "The North side will lift the step for temporarily suspending operations... [and] allow the entry of South Korean businesses."

"The North and the South will prevent the recurrence of the suspension of operation in the KIZ [Kaesong Industrial Zone] and ensure normal operation in the KIZ without being affected by any situation in any case," it said, without giving further details.

The proposal was "prompted by [North Korea's] desire to bring about a new phase of reconciliation, co-operation, peace, reunification and prosperity by normalising operation in the Kaesong zone", the statement added.

South Korean Unification Ministry spokesman Kim Hyung-suk said Seoul had agreed to the 14 August talks.

Aid pledge

Hours earlier, as around 500 South Korean factory owners and workers protested in Paju over the closure, Seoul said it had authorised insurance payments worth 280bn won ($251m; £163m) to companies affected by the suspension.

File photo: Visitors look at products made at Kaesong industrial complex in North Korea, 6 June 2013

The complex is a key source of revenue for the North

Under insurance rules, companies can receive up to 90% of their investment losses in compensation, and ownership of the companies' assets will go to the government, South Korean news agency Yonhap reported.

The move was seen as a step towards closing down the zone permanently.

The proposed movement on Kaesong also came a day after Seoul said it was providing $6m (£4m) in aid to North Korea.

South Korean officials said it was the first time in two years that government aid had been sent to North Korea.

The North, which suffered severe floods in the last two years, relies on aid to feed its people.

But the flow of aid from Seoul has been halted in recent years amid deadlock over North Korea's nuclear ambitions.

The aid will be sent through the UN children's charity Unicef, and will provide vaccines, medical care and food for children.

Scene of attack at jail in north-west Pakistan's Dera Ismail Khan, 30 July 2013

More than 200 prisoners were freed in the latest incident in Pakistan

Interpol has issued a global security alert linked to suspected al-Qaeda involvement in recent prison breakouts.

Interpol cited prison escapes in Iraq, Libya and Pakistan, and asked its members to examine if they were connected.

The police agency is also asking member countries to "swiftly process any information linked to these events".

In the most recent escape, 248 prisoners were sprung from a jail in north-west Pakistan.

Taliban militants used automatic weapons and bombs to break down the walls of the jail in Dera Ismail Khan on 30 July. At least 13 people were killed, including six police.

The authorities said 30 of those who fled were "hardened militants" jailed for involvement in suicide bombings and other serious attacks.

Hundreds of inmates escaped from two jails in Iraq - Abu Ghraib to the west of Baghdad and Taji to the north - on 22 July.

Bombs and mortar fire were used to break into the prisons. Al-Qaeda members were among those housed in the facilities.

'Terrorist attack'

There were several hours of fighting after the jails first came under attack and at least 20 members of the security forces were killed.

Five days later, some 1,200 inmates broke out of a jail in the restive Libyan city of Benghazi.

The US alert said the risk was particularly great in the Middle East and North Africa

"With suspected al-Qaeda involvement in several of the breakouts which led to the escape of hundreds of terrorists and other criminals, the Interpol alert requests the organisation's 190 member countries' assistance in order to determine whether any of these recent events are coordinated or linked," the French-based agency says.

It also calls for Interpol to be informed "if any escaped terrorist is located or intelligence developed which could help prevent another terrorist attack".

Calling for increased vigilance, Interpol says it is prioritising information and intelligence related to the breakouts.

Interpol's alert comes after the US state department issued a global travel alert because of fears of an unspecified al-Qaeda attack.

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Current information suggests that al-Qaeda and affiliated organisations continue to plan terrorist attacks”

US state department

The department said on Friday that the potential for an attack was particularly strong in the Middle East and North Africa.

The US global travel alert was based on information from intercepts of electronic communications between senior al-Qaeda figures, according toofficials quoted by the New York Times.

In its report, the New York Times says high-level intercepts were collected and analysed this week and that the CIA, state department and White House immediately recognised their significance.

The US state department said the alert expires on 31 August 2013 and it recommended US citizens travelling abroad be vigilant.

"Current information suggests that al-Qaeda and affiliated organisations continue to plan terrorist attacks both in the region and beyond, and that they may focus efforts to conduct attacks in the period between now and the end of August," the statement said.

The alert warned of "the potential for terrorists to attack public transportation systems and other tourist infrastructure".

Earlier, the US announced it was shutting nearly two dozen embassies and consulates in the Muslim world on Sunday.

Britain is closing its embassy in Yemen on Sunday and Monday as "a precautionary measure".

The boss of Twitter UK has said sorry to women who have experienced abuse on the social networking site.

Tony Wang said the threats were "simply not acceptable" and pledged to do more to tackle abusive behaviour.

The apology came as Twitter updated its rules and confirmed it would introduce an in-tweet "report abuse" button on all platforms, including desktops.

Police are investigating eight allegations of abuse including bomb and rape threats made against women.

Two people have been arrested in relation to rape threats against Labour MP Stella Creasy and feminist campaigner Caroline Criado-Perez, who received the threats after a campaign to have Jane Austen on the new £10 note.

The Guardian's Hadley Freeman, the Independent's Grace Dent and Time magazine's Catherine Mayer all said they had received identical bomb threats on Wednesday.

The revelations sparked a backlash online, with a petition calling for Twitter to add a "report abuse" button to tweets attracting more than 124,000 signatures so far.

'Protect users'

In a series of tweets, Twitter UK general manager Mr Wang said: "I personally apologize to the women who have experienced abuse on Twitter and for what they have gone through.

"The abuse they've received is simply not acceptable. It's not acceptable in the real world, and it's not acceptable on Twitter.

Tony Wang said Twitter would do more to tackle abusive behaviour

"There is more we can and will be doing to protect our users against abuse. That is our commitment."

Minister for Women and Equalities Jo Swinson told the BBC that unchecked Twitter abuse had been a problem for a long time and she was "delighted" the company was apologising and taking action.

Ms Mayer, Europe editor of Time magazine, said she had yet to receive a personal apology from Twitter, despite contacting the website.

"I'm deeply amused by the phrase I've received a personal apology from Twitter," she told the BBC News Channel.

"If he [Mr Wang] would like to make an apology to me, he can direct message me if he doesn't want to do it publicly."

She went on: "We're not being targeted because we're activists, we're being targeted because we're female."

Screen-grab of Grace Dent's Twitter page, showing a retweet of the threat

Journalist and broadcaster Grace Dent received a bomb threat on Twitter

In an earlier message posted on the Twitter UK blog, the company's senior director for trust and safety, Del Harvey, and Mr Wang, said the company had clarified its anti-harassment policy in light of feedback from customers.

They said: "It comes down to this: people deserve to feel safe on Twitter."

The company has clarified its guidance on abuse and spam - reiterating that users "may not engage in targeted abuse or harassment".

The "report abuse" button already available on the iOS Twitter app and mobile site will also be rolled out to the main website and Android app from September, Twitter said.

They said in the blog that additional staff were being added to the teams that handle reports of abuse and the company was working with the UK Safer Internet Centre, which promotes the safe and responsible use of technology.

"We are committed to making Twitter a safe place for our users," they said, adding: "We're here, and we're listening to you."

'Sustained attack'

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The current process [to report abuse] is lengthy, complicated and impossible to use if you're under sustained attack like I have been”

Caroline Criado-Perez

Ms Criado-Perez, 29, welcomed Twitter's response but said the process for reporting abuse should be further simplified to take the onus off the victim.

She said: "While I'm pleased they're listening, it's taken Twitter a week to come up with this.

"Twitter's 'report abuse' button on the iPhone application goes through to the old reporting form. What we're looking for is an overhaul of the system which sits behind the button.

"The current process is lengthy, complicated and impossible to use if you're under sustained attack like I have been.

"Right now, all the emphasis is on the victim, often under intense pressure, to report rather than for Twitter to track down the perpetrator and stop them."

Protesters hold placards at an anti-military rally in front of Taiwan's presidential office in Taipei

Protesters say they are not convinced the investigation is sincere

Tens of thousands of people have rallied in Taiwan's capital, Taipei, to protest against the treatment of a young army conscript who died after being punished for misconduct.

Some 18 army officers, including a major-general, have already been charged in connection with the case.

The defence minister has also resigned.

Hung Chung-chiu, 24, was only three days away from completing his military service when he died of organ failure brought on by heatstroke.

Corporal Hung had been held in solitary confinement for bringing a mobile phone with built-in camera onto his military base - and was then subjected to arduous punishment exercises in the hot sun.

His death has generated outrage across Taiwan and damaged the standing of the army, which is already struggling to find enough volunteers as it tries to phase out conscription, says the BBC's Charles Scanlon.

President Ma Ying-Jeou has publicly apologised and promised justice for the family.

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I am mourning for Hung Chung-chiu and I want the truth - I hope there won't be any more abuse and death like his in the military”

Jenny TanProtester

But protesters in the streets of Taipei, many dressed in white to symbolise truth, said they were not convinced by the sincerity of the investigation in the case.

Other families have also come forward to demand justice for their sons who died during military service.

"I am mourning for Hung Chung-chiu and I want the truth. I hope there won't be any more abuse and death like his in the military," protester Jenny Tan told the AFP news agency.

It is a crisis of confidence for Taiwan's army of more than 200,000, as it tries to maintain the credibility of its defensive stance against the threat from China, our analyst says.

All Taiwanese men aged between 18 and 36 are required to complete one year's military service, although there are plans to move to an all-volunteer force.

Cpl Hung's funeral is due to be held on Sunday.

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