Oscar Pistorius Charged Over Girlfriend Murder

Paralympic and Olympic sprinter Oscar Pistorius has been charged with murder after allegedly shooting dead his girlfriend at his home in South Africa.

The body of Reeva Steenkamp, a top South African model, was discovered at the athlete's property in the Silver Woods gated community in eastern Pretoria.

Pistorius reached the 400m semi-finals at the London 2012 Olympics

She had been shot four times. A 9mm pistol was found at the scene.

Initial reports in South African media suggested Miss Steenkamp was apparently shot as she woke him, trying to surprise him on Valentine's Day, and was mistaken for an intruder.

But police later said the shooting was being treated as a murder and that they were "very surprised" by those reports, which they said did not come from them.

Brigadier Denise Beukes confirmed the couple were alone in the house at the time of the shooting and there was no sign of forced entry.

"I can't confirm that it's related to the person that's arrested but I can confirm there has previously been incidents at the home of Mr Oscar Pistorius," she said, saying that there were "allegations of a domestic nature".

Miss Steenkamp was due to speak at a Johannesburg school on Thursday

"There are witnesses and they have been interviewed this morning," she said. "We are talking about neighbours and people that heard things earlier in the evening and when the shooting took place."

Pistorius was arrested on Thursday morning and taken to hospital for a medical examination.

He emerged from a police station after questioning, flanked by plain-clothed officers and wearing a hooded jacket covering most of his face.

The athlete requested an immediate appearance at Pretoria Magistrate's Court, but prosecutors said this had been delayed until Friday morning to give forensic officers more time.

Police said they would be opposing bail when he appears in court.

The shooting took place at Pistorius' home at Silver Woods country estate

The 26-year-old is alleged to have shot his 30-year-old model girlfriend in the head and upper body. She died at the scene.

Paramedics were called to his home between 4am and 5am local time on Thursday. 

The couple are believed to have started dating in November.

Her uncle, Mike Steenkamp, told reporters her family was "devastated" that her life had been cut short.

Miss Steenkamp's publicist, Sarit Tomlinson, described her as "the sweetest human being" and "a talented and bright young girl", adding that the couple had a "healthy, fabulous relationship".

Miss Steenkamp has been described as a 'talented and bright young girl'

Miss Steenkamp, a law graduate from Port Elizabeth who had posed in men's magazine FHM, was active on Twitter the day before.

She tweeted: "What do you have up your sleeve for your love tomorrow??? #getexcited #ValentinesDay"

In response to someone else's plans, she said: "That sounds amazing! Wow that's what it's all about! It should be a day of love for everyone :) may it be blessed!"

She was due to give a talk at a school in Johannesburg just hours after her body was found, and to star in South African reality TV series Tropika Island of Treasure at the weekend, in which celebrities and ordinary people are tasked with daily challenges in remote, exotic locations.

Pistorius lives a short distance from the centre of Pretoria

Photos of the model appeared in newspapers at the weekend, when she described Pistorius as an impeccable man who always had her best interests at heart.

The Johannesburg-born athlete, known as the Blade Runner because of the carbon fibre blades he uses on the track, made history in 2012 when he became the first amputee to compete in the Olympics.

In the Paralympics, he won gold in the 400m and another in the 4x400m relay.

Both of his legs were amputated below the knee just before his first birthday because of a congenital condition.

Last year Time Magazine named him as one of the world's 100 most influential people.

A billboard advert featuring Pistorius is removed in South Africa

Pistorius, like many fellow South Africans, appeared to have serious concerns about his safety, and reportedly kept a revolver at his bedside and a machine gun by his window, as well as a cricket bat and baseball bat behind his bedroom door.

South Africa has some of the world's highest rates of violent crime with an average of nearly 50 people murdered each day. According to statistics, nearly 13 in every 100 people in the country own a gun.

Silver Woods is a high security complex with a three-metre-high wall, electric fence, a guarded entrance and regular patrols.

South Africa's M-Net cable TV channel said it was pulling an advertising campaign featuring Pistorius with immediate effect.

A Nike ad banner across the top of Pistorius' official website "I am the bullet in the chamber" has also been removed.

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Coronation Street Actor: Child Sex Charges

One of Coronation Street's longest-serving actors, Michael Le Vell, has been charged with a string of child sex offences.

Le Vell, who plays garage owner Kevin Webster in the ITV soap opera, is accused of 19 child sex offences, including child rape, and sexual activity with a child, Greater Manchester Police said.

Le Vell, 48, a father-of-two whose real name is Michael Turner, will appear in court charged with the offences on February 27.

The actor was initially arrested in connection with the offences in September 2011.

The investigation was dropped three months later when authorities said there would be no further action taken against him as there was not enough evidence against him.

However, following a review of the case by lawyers at the Crown Prosecution Service the decision has been taken that it is in the "public interest" to charge the actor.

Speaking after the investigation against him was dropped in 2011, Le Vell said he was "delighted" to have been "completely exonerated", thanked police for their "thorough" investigation and Coronation Street staff and the public for their support.

Le Vell vowed to put the allegations behind him and returned to the show after a short break and is now currently involved in some of the soap's main storylines.

Michael Le Vell was first questioned over the child sex allegations in 2011

Alison Levitt, QC, principal legal adviser to the Director of Public Prosecutions, reviewed a file of evidence in relation to allegations of sexual offences and looked again at a decision previously made not to prosecute.

Ms Levitt said: "I have very carefully reviewed the evidence in this case and I have concluded that there is sufficient evidence and it is in the public interest to charge Michael Robert Turner with a number of sexual offences.

"I have authorised Greater Manchester Police to charge Mr Turner with 19 offences, including rape of a child."

Le Vell, who split from his wife Janette Beverley last year,  is one of television's most famous faces after playing car mechanic Kevin Webster for the past 30 years in the TV show.

Originally from Manchester, he began his acting career in the Oldham Theatre Workshop after taking an interest in amateur dramatics while at school.

He first joined the soap in 1983 and quickly endeared himself to fans who have followed the trials and tribulations of Kevin, from Brian Tilsley's apprentice mechanic through to his stormy marriage to Sally, played by Sally Dynevor, and fathering two teenage girls as well as a love child from his affair with Molly Dobbs.

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Meat Scandal: Call For EU Tests On Beef

One in five people have changed the way they shop as a result of the widening meat scandal, according to a poll carried out by YouGov for Sky News.

Of those who are buying differently, 58% said they had completely abandoned processed meats.

A third of the nearly 2,000 people surveyed said they had stopped buying cheap ranges and now favour more expensive processed meat.

As for who they blamed most, nearly half - 49% - said meat processors were most at fault, while one in five said food manufacturers carried responsibility.

But supermarkets seem to be largely off the hook, with only 10% of people saying they are to blame and even fewer pointing the finger at the Food Standards Agency (FSA) or the Government.

One shopper told Sky's Tom Parmenter she now refuses to buy processed ready meals for her two children.

Sharon Cummins, from Slough, said: "It is affecting everybody because it is all just lies.

"The thought of eating something like a horse - it is there, that picture is in your head: What am I eating?

"You just don't know, it could be school dinners next."

Police and FSA officials raided the Farmbox Meats site in northwest Wales

EU nations have now been urged to begin widespread DNA testing to check processed beef products for contamination with horsemeat.

There should also be tests for the presence of the veterinary painkiller known as "bute", which causes cancer in humans and is banned from the food chain, European health commissioner Tonio Borg said.

The problem was being treated as a fraud issue rather than one of food safety, he said.

Earlier British Environment Secretary Owen Paterson, who attended a summit in Brussels on the scandal, warned those guilty of passing off horsemeat than more expensive beef would face the "full force of the law".

Two British firms have been shut down following raids by the FSA and police. They swooped on Peter Boddy slaughterhouse in Todmorden, West Yorkshire, and meat processing plant Farmbox Meats in Llandre near Aberystwyth, West Wales as part of an audit.

The companies had records seized and have been temporarily closed. The firms' owners deny any wrongdoing.

At Farmbox, Sky News saw large crates of meat - some covered by tarpaulin and others open - left in outdoor areas during Tuesday night, before they were removed.

Until now, meat linked to the scandal had been thought to have come from suppliers in continental Europe, but for the first time it appears the contamination may also come from British premises.

David Cameron described the situation as "appalling" and "completely unacceptable".

Meanwhile, Waitrose announced it has withdrawn its beef Essential British Frozen Meatballs after pork was found in two batches. The supermarket said they were made at the ABP Foods-owned Freshlink factory in Glasgow last summer.

Tesco has become the latest retailer to drop a major supplier after discovering a range of spaghetti bolognese ready meals contained more than 60% horsemeat.

Morrisons chief executive Dalton Philips has told Sky's Jeff Randall the chain could not be 100% sure about the content of all of its beef products, but he said its checks are rigorous and it has "extremely high" confidence.

While supermarkets rush to reassure shoppers, independent butchers have been reporting a significant surge in business.

The Butchers Q Guild has reported a 30% spike in sales of products such as burgers and sausages.

The meat scandal erupted last month after tests in Ireland showed products labelled as beef contained up to 100% horsemeat.

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Israel Admits 'Prisoner X' Secret Jailing

Israel has admitted for the first time that it secretly jailed a foreigner who later killed himself while in a high-security prison.

The confirmation came as Australia said it had known that one of its citizens - who came to be known as "Prisoner X" - was being held while he was still alive.

Prisoner X has widely been reported to be Ben Zygier, 34, a national of both Israel and Australia who worked for Israel's intelligence agency Mossad and was arrested in Israel in 2010 on serious but unspecified charges.

Israel's justice ministry broke its silence after an Australian Broadcasting Corporation report on the case sparked an outcry over media gagging orders.

"For security reasons the man was held under a false identity although his family was immediately informed of his arrest," a statement said.

The man was found dead in his cell in 2010 and a judicial inquiry ruled he took his own life, the ministry added in a statement, although it did not reveal his identity or the charges against him.

"Following an extensive investigation it was ruled six weeks ago that it was suicide," said the ministry. "The prisoner was held in jail under a warrant issued by a court."

But other details of the case remained under a gag order, leaving local media obliged to quote foreign reports.

Australian Foreign Minister Bob Carr initially said he only became aware of the man's incarceration after his death, but he has now admitted the government knew of his detention at the time.

He told a parliamentary committee the information was gathered through intelligence channels.

"They provided the name of the citizen, in relation to serious offences under Israeli national security legislation," he said, adding that Canberra sought assurances that he was not being mistreated.

He said at no stage did the government receive any request for consular support, adding that he would determine Canberra's next step after receiving a full report from his department into the case.

"With the benefit of that full report, I'll determine what representations to the government of Israel are most useful," he said.

The story first emerged in June 2010 when Israel's Ynet news website briefly ran a report about a prisoner being held in top secret conditions whose identity and alleged crime were not even known to his jailers.

The story was quickly taken offline and a complete media blackout imposed, but it resurfaced on Tuesday through Australia's public broadcaster.

Israeli media did report that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had Tuesday called an urgent meeting with top editors to ask them to withhold "publication of information pertaining to an incident that is very embarrassing to a certain government agency," Haaretz newspaper said, in a clear allusion to Mossad.

Shortly afterwards, three MPs raised questions over the issue in parliament, effectively sidestepping the censor in a move that forced a slight easing of the reporting restrictions.

While Israel has not revealed the charges, The Australian newspaper suggested he was detained for treason.

It cited Israeli Army Radio as saying: "Why was he interned? The suspicion is because of treason against Israel."

The Sydney Morning Herald reported that Zygier was being investigated by Australia's overseas espionage agency ASIS, which suspected him of using his Australian passport to spy for Israel.

The Herald said he was one of at least three dual Australian-Israeli citizens who emigrated to Israel in the past decade whose cases were probed.

It said that in each case the men used the passports to travel to Iran, Syria and Lebanon -- countries that do not allow Israelis to enter.

When the newspaper confronted Zygier in early 2010, he angrily denied he worked for Mossad.

"I have never been to any of those countries that you say I have been to," he said at the time.

"I am not involved in any kind of spying."

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LA Manhunt: Dorner Shootout Ends In Cabin Fire

A gun battle between murder suspect Christopher Dorner and police has ended after fire ripped through the remote cabin where the murder suspect was thought to be hiding.

TV footage showed flames rising from the property in California's Big Bear Lake area which also had thick black smoke billowing from it.

However, police stressed that no body had been found and that the wreckage was still to hot to be searched.

A law enforcement official said a gun shot was heard before the fire broke out and that the suspect did not come out of the cabin as it was engulfed in flames.

Police had urged the fugitive to turn himself in as authorities surrounded the cabin where he was reportedly holed up with an arsenal of weapons.

Earlier Dorner exchanged gunfire with federal authorities and San Bernardino County Sheriff John McMahon told a news conference that a sheriff's deputy had died of wounds he suffered during the shootout. Another deputy was also injured in the exchange.

Authorities have focused their hunt for Dorner in the mountainous area since they said he launched a campaign to exact revenge against the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) for his firing.

Earlier LAPD Commander Andrew Smith urged Dorner to surrender, telling him: "Enough is enough."

It is believed the 33-year-old - who is suspected of three murders - may have held a couple hostage in a holiday home before police tracked him down.

Cmdr Smith said: "It's time for you to turn yourself in. It's time to end the bloodshed."

Another police officer told the Associated Press that Dorner robbed the cabin and tied up the holidaymakers, but one was able to get away and make a phone call.

Dorner reportedly fled in a stolen white Dodge pickup truck and a California Fish and Game ranger fired on the vehicle.

He then abandoned the truck and ran into the forest.

The noise of the gun battle was broadcast by KCAL-TV, whose reporter suddenly found himself near the shooting. Someone could be heard yelling at the reporter to get out of the area.

The manhunt has centred on the San Bernardino mountains since Dorner's pickup truck was found in the area last Thursday.

Sheriff's spokeswoman Jodi Miller said a stolen vehicle report from a residence was received at 12.20pm on Tuesday and the owners of the car described the suspect as looking similar to Dorner.

Police had been following up hundreds of new leads prompted by a $1m reward for information.

Dorner went on the run on February 6 after the murder of a former police captain's daughter and her fiance were linked by police to an angry Facebook rant he posted.

Threats against the LAPD led officials to assign officers to protect officers and their families.

Within hours of the release of photos of Dorner, described as armed and "extremely dangerous," the suspect then ambushed police in Riverside County, shooting three and killing one police officer.

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State Of The Union: 'Brave Troops Coming Home'

Barack Obama opens his State of the Union address by saying that after a decade of war America's troops are coming home.

The President vowed that the war in Afghanistan would end by late 2014 and that another 34,000 American troops would be returning over the next year.

"This drawdown will continue. And by the end of next year, our war in Afghanistan will be over," Mr Obama said in his annual address.

He said that al Qaeda was a "shadow of its former self" and no longer posed the kind of threat that needed tens of thousands of US troops to fight abroad.

However, he said that al Qaeda affiliates had appeared elsewhere in the world including Yemen and Somalia and said that in future the US would help those countries to provide their own security to fight terrorism.

Mr Obama also said he would take "firm action" against the "provocations" of North Korea, after the state carried out its third nuclear test.

Mr Obama prepares for his State of the Union address

He said: "The regime in North Korea must know that they will only achieve security and prosperity by meeting their international obligations.

"Provocations of the sort we saw last night will only isolate them further, as we stand by our allies, strengthen our own missile defence and lead the world in taking firm action in response to these threats."

Mr Obama promised to spark economic growth and create jobs.

He told Congress: "A growing economy that creates good, middle-class jobs -- that must be the North Star that guides our efforts.

"It is our generation's task, then, to reignite the true engine of America's economic growth -- a rising, thriving middle class."

The President greets workers dealing with the aftermath of superstorm Sandy

He warned against dramatic budget cuts saying that they would cost jobs and threaten the military.

He said: "That's why Democrats, Republicans, business leaders, and economists have already said that these cuts, known here in Washington as 'the sequester', are a really bad idea."

The President said that the United States and Europe would launch talks on what would be the world's largest free trade zone.

He said: "Tonight, I am announcing that we will launch talks on a comprehensive Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership with the European Union -- because trade that is free and fair across the Atlantic supports millions of good-paying American jobs."

The move answered mounting calls from Europe to pursue a grand trade pact to spur growth on both sides of the Atlantic.

Michelle Obama arrives to hear her husband give his address

Mr Obama also warned Congress that if they didn't act on climate change, that he would.

He tackled climate sceptics in the rival Republican Party by noting that 12 of the world's hottest years on record took place in the past 15 years.

Mr Obama told them: "We can choose to believe that superstorm Sandy, and the most severe drought in decades, and the worst wildfires some states have ever seen were all just a freak coincidence.

"Or we can choose to believe in the overwhelming judgement of science -- and act before it's too late."

Mr Obama also reinforced his commitment to tightening the country's gun laws saying that police chiefs wanted Congress to ban "weapons of war" and magazines carrying large amounts of ammunition so officers would not be outgunned.

"I know this is not the first time this country has debated how to reduce gun violence. But this time is different," Mr Obama said. "Each of these proposals deserves a vote in Congress."

Hadiya Pendleton: teenager shot dead after performing at the inauguration

The president made his plea to a chamber watched by gun violence victims and relatives, including the parents of Chicago shooting victim Hadiya Pendleton, who performed at Obama's inaugural parade just days before she was gunned down.

"Just three weeks ago, she was here, in Washington, with her classmates, performing for her country at my inauguration," Mr Obama said in paying tribute to the 15-year-old. "And a week later, she was shot and killed in a Chicago park after school, just a mile away from my house."

Mr Obama also refered to the shooting at the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut in December that claimed the lives of 20 young schoolchildren and six adults.

Also in the crowd was Gabrielle Giffords, who was shot in the head at a mass shooting two years ago in her Arizona district.

More follows...

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North Korea 'Quake' Is Suspected Nuclear Test

North Korea may have carried out a threatened nuclear test as monitoring agencies report an "unusual seismic event".

An earthquake measuring 4.9 on the Richter scale was detected just north of a site where Pyongyang conducted nuclear tests in 2009.

The South Korean Defence Ministry, which raised its military alert level after the quake, said the suspected test had an explosive yield of between six and seven kilotonnes.

Spokesman Kim Min Seok said it had "enormous destructive power".

A UN nuclear test monitoring organisation detected what it called an "unusual seismic event" in North Korea.

Tibor Toth, executive secretary of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty Organisation (CTBTO), said the event's location was "roughly congruent with" nuclear tests carried out by North Korea in 2006 and 2009.

"If confirmed as a nuclear test, this act would constitute a clear threat to international peace and security, and challenge efforts made to strengthen global nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation, in particular by ending nuclear testing," he added.

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Pope Resigns: Frontrunners Emerge For Role

The Pope: What Happens Next?

Updated: 3:13pm UK, Monday 11 February 2013

Whenever a pope dies or abdicates, their successor is drawn from the cardinals - the senior Roman Catholic bishops who normally assist the Pope in the Vatican or head up the various dioceses around the world.

He is chosen by a group of cardinals called the Cardinal Electors, who are all the cardinals under the age of 80.

Normally, between 15 and 20 days after the death of a pope, the Cardinal Electors must meet and start to decide who takes over.

The election process always takes place in secret in the Sistine Chapel, in the Vatican, in a meeting called a conclave.

In 1970 Pope Paul VI determined that the college of cardinals was to be limited to 120. He also ordered measures to prevent bugging of the proceedings.

In the period between when a pope dies or resigns and a new pope is chosen, the temporary head of the Roman Catholic Church is the Cardinal Camerlengo, the chief administrator of the church's property and wealth.

The cardinals must take an oath of secrecy when they enter the conclave. The penalty for breaking the oath is automatic excommunication.

In order to prevent a deadlock, which happened in the 13th century, the cardinals are traditionally locked up and given only bread and water as a means of inducing them to draw the proceedings to a close. They are only given a doctor and a cook to assist them.

Ballot papers are distributed and each of the Cardinal Electors writes the name of the cardinal he would like to become the Pope, and in the process pledges he is voting for "the one under God" he thinks "ought to be elected".

The ballot papers are then folded and placed on a plate, on top of a chalice, that has been placed on an altar.

The plate is used to prevent a cardinal attempting to put two or more ballot papers in without those supervising being able to see.

When a vote has been checked to make sure it is correct, it is allowed to fall into the chalice.

Before they are unfolded, the ballot papers are counted to make sure they add up to the number of Cardinal Electors. If the number is different, all the ballot papers are burnt and the process is repeated.

If the number of ballot papers is correct, each vote is read aloud and is pierced with a needle and  threaded on to a string.

Four ballots are held each day, two in the morning and two in the evening. The process is repeated until one cardinal emerges with a majority of two thirds.

Every time a vote takes place, the ballots are burned and smoke appears out of the chimney of the Sistine Chapel, telling the world a vote has been held.

If the vote has been unsuccessful, a black dye is put in with the ballot papers so black smoke emerges, informing the world a decision has not been made.

When a new pope is finally successfully elected, the ballot papers are burned without the dye so white smoke emerges, confirming the decision.

When Pope Benedict XVI was chosen, church bells were also rung to signal a new pope had been elected.

Before 1978, within a couple of days of the Pope's election, a Papal Coronation would have been held with a huge procession leading from the Vatican. The coronations have not taken place since Pope John Paul II was elected.

The vast majority of popes have been Italian and until the election of Pope John Paul II, who had previously been Polish Cardinal Karol Wojtyla, the last non-Italian pope had been Pope Adrian VI from the Netherlands who was elected in 1522.

There have been previous resignations of popes but the last one was in 1415 when Pope Gregory XII resigned in order to end a schism in the Roman Catholic Church.

Before resigning, he formally convened an official church council and authorised it to elect his successor.

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$1m Reward Offered To Catch US 'Cop Killer'

Police in America have offered a $1m (£632,000) reward for information leading to the capture of ex-LAPD cop Christopher Dorner.

Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa announced the reward as Dorner - suspected of three murders - remained at large for a fourth day.

"We will not tolerate anyone undermining the security, the tranquility of our neighbourhoods and our communities," Mr Villaraigosa said at a news conference announcing the reward.

"We will not tolerate this reign of terror that has robbed us of the peace of mind that residents of southern California deserve. We will not tolerate this murderer remaining at large."

The mayor said local leaders, businesses, unions, law enforcement and community groups had pooled resources to raise the reward money.

Police have been hunting the snow-blanketed California mountains for Dorner, 33, a disgruntled former officer.

He threatened to murder police in a chilling online manifesto.

More than 100 police have searched for Dorner after his car was found in a nearby area, reportedly with weapons and a broken axle.

The search has focused on cabins above the ski resort of Big Bear, two hours east of Los Angeles, where Dorner's burnt-out pickup truck was found in nearby woods.

Dorner, a naval reservist, is suspected of killing a couple on February 3 and then ambushing two policemen early on Thursday, killing one. He is also suspected of injuring another officer in a separate incident.

In his internet manifesto threatening police and their families, Dorner pledged to "bring unconventional and asymmetrical warfare to those in LAPD uniform whether on or off duty".

The LAPD, backed by agencies including the Federal Bureau of Investigation, is protecting over 40 possible targets, some of them identified in Dorner's rambling manifesto.

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Minister's Fear Of Horsemeat Scandal Scale

How Horsemeat Scandal Unfolded

Updated: 9:29pm UK, Friday 08 February 2013

The horsemeat scandal has been unfolding for weeks and products have been flying off the shelves, although not in a good way. Where did it all begin?

January 16

The Food Safety Authority of Ireland says beefburgers with traces of equine DNA, including one product classed as 29% horse, are being supplied to supermarkets by Silvercrest Foods in Ireland and Dalepak Hambleton in Yorkshire, subsidiaries of the ABP Food Group.

Ten million suspect burgers are taken off the shelves, including by retailers Tesco, Lidl, Aldi, Iceland and Dunnes Stores.

A third company, Liffey meats, based in Co Cavan, Ireland, was also found to be supplying products to supermarkets with traces of horse DNA.

January 17

The ABP Food Group suspends work at its Silvercrest Foods plant in Co Monaghan, Ireland, until further notice.

Sainsbury's, Asda and the Co-op later withdrew some frozen products as a precaution but had not been found to be selling contaminated food.

January 23

Burger King, which is supplied burgers by ABP Food Group, switches to another supplier as a precautionary measure.

January 25

Waitrose removes a range of frozen burgers made by Dalepak but says its burgers have been tested and are 100% beef.

The Food Standards Agency said tests at a Dalepak plant in North Yorkshire had found no traces of meat contaminated with horse or pork DNA.

However, Aldi found traces of pig and horsemeat in samples taken from three lines of Dalepak burgers.

It withdrew Specially Selected Aberdeen Angus Quarter Pounder, Oakhurst Beef Quarter Pounders and Frozen Oakhurst Beefburgers from sale.

February 4

Production at a second meat supplier, Rangeland Foods in Co Monaghan, is suspended after 75% equine DNA is found in raw ingredients, The Department of Agriculture confirm.

February 5

Frozen meat at Freeza Meats company in Newry, Northern Ireland, is found to contain 80% horse meat, The Food Standards Agency Northern Ireland said. It is potentially linked to the Silvercrest factory in the Republic of Ireland.

Asda withdraws products supplied by Freeza Meats.

February 6

Tesco and Aldi take down frozen spaghetti and lasagne meals produced by French food supplier Comigel following concerns about its Findus beef lasagne.

The FSA reveals a second case of "gross contamination" after some Findus UK beef lasagnes were found to contain up to 100% horse meat. The products were made by French food supplier Comigel.

February 8

Aldi withdraws its Today's Special Frozen Beef Lasagne and Today's Special Frozen Spaghetti Bolognese after tests showed the products contained between 30% and 100% horsemeat.

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