Zimbabwe's Joice Mujuru forms ZPF to oppose Mugabe

A powerful former ally of Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe has launched a party to challenge his 35-year rule. 

Joice Mujuru said the Zimbabwe People First (ZPF) party had been formed because "Zimbabwe is a broken country". 

Ms Mujuru was Mr Mugabe's second-in-command until he sacked her in 2014 after accusing her of plotting to oust and kill him. 

"I'm neither a witch nor an assassin," Ms Mujuru said, at the party's launch in the capital, Harare. 

She is the most senior former Zanu-PF leader to form an opposition party, and is tipped to be its presidential candidate in the 2018 election. 

Her supporters ululated as she entered the hall to announce ZPF's launch, reports the BBC's Nomsa Maseko from the scene.

Was married to Solomon Mujuru, who was seen as Zanu-PF kingmaker

He died in suspicious fire in 2011

She was known as "Spill Blood" during the independence war

She claims to have shot down a Rhodesian helicopter with the machine-gun of a dying comrade and was later promoted to commander

After spending her youth fighting the war, she obtained secondary school qualifications and a degree while in government

First woman to become Zimbabwe's vice-president in 2004

Sacked from that position in 2014 and expelled from Zanu-PF in 2015

Forms Zimbabwe People First party in 2016 

Family has vast business interests.                                                                                          Ms Mujuru, 60, was flanked by other former Zanu-PF heavyweights, including Didymus Mutasa and Rugare Gumbo. 

She hailed the formation of ZPF as historic, and said it would fight the "scourge of corruption" in Zimbabwe. 

"Some revolutionaries are busy pulling Zimbabwe down," Ms Mujuru said. 

Our correspondent says she was a Zanu-PF member for more than 30 years, and will it find difficult to convince voters that she represents a new era.

But, encouragingly for Ms Mujuru, her supporters turned up at the launch to give their backing, she adds.                                                                                                         Zanu-PF has nominated Mr Mugabe, who turned 92 last month, for re-election in 2018. 

However, because of his advancing age, a battle to succeed him is raging in Zanu-PF between Mr Mugabe's wife, Grace, and Vice-President Emmerson Mnangagwa, who was appointed to the post following Ms Mujuru's expulsion, correspondents say.

Mrs Mugabe led the campaign to oust Ms Mujuru, who was seen to harbour ambitions to succeed Mr Mugabe as Zanu-PF leader and president.

Chemical Terror Warning As IS Uses Toxic Agents

Islamic State has used chemical weapons in Syria and Iraq, says Russia

Chemical terrorism is "a grave reality of our time", Russia has said as it highlighted evidence of the repeated use of deadly toxic agents by Islamic State and other militants in Syria and Iraq.

Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov issued the warning as he called for a global pact to combat the threat.

Sergei Lavrov has warned the threat is 'getting extremely urgent'

Making the appeal to a UN disarmament conference in Geneva, he said there was a "growing danger" of chemical weapons being used by extremists in Libya and Yemen.

:: Islamic State Executes Eight Dutch Jihadists

Mr Lavrov said: "Nowadays this threat is getting extremely urgent in the light of newly revealed facts of repeated use of not only industrial toxic chemicals but also of full-fledged chemical warfare agents by ISIL (another name for IS) and other terrorist groups in Syria and Iraq."

He added: "There is a growing danger of similar crimes being committed on the territory of Libya and Yemen as well."

While in Geneva, Mr Lavrov also met UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon, where they agreed on the need for the warring parties to return to the negotiating table amid the fragile ceasefire.

Mr Lavrov is also quoted as saying that Russia wants the Turkish-Syrian border closed because it is being used to supply weapons to terrorists, some of which are hidden in humanitarian aid.

Syrian President Bashar al Assad has described the truce, which has been in force since Saturday, as a "glimmer of hope".

In an interview with German TV, he said: "We will play our part to make the whole thing work."

He also said people living in Syria were suffering from a "humanitarian disaster".

Man Attempts To Kidnap Teenager In Underpass

Police are appealing for anyone who saw the incident to come forward

An attempt by a man to drag a teenager away from an underpass is being treated as kidnap, police have said.

The man approached the young woman – in her late teens – as she walked through an underpass in Burnham, Buckinghamshire, at 9.30am on Monday.

"Initially the offender tried to engage her in conversation and walked alongside her," a Thames Valley Police spokesman said.

"Then he grabbed her by the waist and started dragging her away."

The spokesman added: "She managed to grab on to some railings and call the police on her mobile phone.

"At this point the offender ran off. 

"The victim sustained cuts to her hand and elbow."

The man is described as being Asian, with some facial stubble, and 5ft 7in tall. 

He was dressed in a grey jumper or sweatshirt with a red top underneath, a dark-coloured jacket and tan-coloured trousers.

Detective Constable Stuart Malham said: "We want to speak to anyone in the area at the time of the incident, in particular several people who passed the victim as she was being held by the man.

"They may have assumed there was a domestic argument going on.

"This was not the case and any information they may have could be vital to the investigation."

A 34-year-old man, from Slough, Berkshire, has been arrested on suspicion of kidnap.

Luke Skywalker Has a Bigger Role in Star Wars: Episode VIII Says Daisy Ridley

Star Wars fans who were disappointed by the dearth of screen time for Luke Skywalker in The Force Awakens can take heart: According to costar Daisy Ridley, Mark Hamill’s sage Jedi will be back in a big way in the Star Wars: Episode VIII.

“It’s two hours of me and Mark Hamill staring at each other,” Ridley deadpanned to MTV News on the Oscars red carpet Sunday.

Turning slightly more serious, Ridley said she and Hamill “have been rehearsing a lot, and it’s really amazing.” She also seemed to confirm rumors that Episode VIII will pick up right where The Force Awakens left off, with Rey (Ridley) and Luke coming face to face on the remote planet of Ahch-To (a.k.a. Ireland’s Skellig Michael).

“When we went back to Skellig to do the opening of VIII, it was so crazy doing the same scene with a different crew of people,” Ridley said. “[Hamill is] amazing to rehearse with, and I’m very excited to be doing the rest of the stuff. It’s such a good story, seriously.”

She added, “Luke is so cool in this one. Really!”

Star Wars: Episode VIII is scheduled to open Dec. 15, 2017. Head over to MTV News to read the full interview.

Lena Dunham Calls out Magazine for Photoshopping Her

Don’t mess with Lena Dunham. 

The Girls creator and star took to Instagram to call out Spanish magazine Tentaciones for Photoshopping her image on their March cover. 

“Oh hello Spanish magazine Tentaciones! I am genuinely honored to be on your cover and so happy you used a pic by @ruvenafanador – he always makes me feel gorgeous,” Dunham, 29, told her 2.4 million followers. 

“But this is not what my body has ever looked like or will ever look like – mad photoshop has been done to this iteration,” she continued. “So if you’re into what I do, why not be honest with your readers? Much love, Lena.” 

Dunham recently opened up about being confident with her body image. 

“All the characters I play always dress like they’re a size 0 when they’re actually a size 10,” the actress explained to Papermagazine. “Some might call it ‘delusional’ and I like to think about it as this sort of rocket confidence that’s a little unearned but better than the opposite.” 

“I think that it was important to me also to announce that ‘this is what I look like. I don’t have an interest in changing unless it’s on my own terms’ – I won’t say I’ll never lose weight in my life, but it’d have to be for reasons that made sense to me and weren’t to try to meet some industry standard.”

Greggs To Shut Bakeries And Axe 355 Jobs

Greggs is shifting focus to take advantage of the "food to go" market

Greggs is cutting up to 355 jobs as it shuts three of its bakery sites under a £100m restructuring plan.

The Newcastle-based chain, which has around 1,700 outlets in the UK, wants to expand to more than 2,000 but said to support this it needed to change its supply chain.

Greggs operates 12 bakery sites but said that "unfortunately not all are suitable for long-term investment due to their location and size".

It plans to close sites in Edinburgh, Twickenham and Sleaford in Lincolnshire - and to use the proceeds to expand capacity at its nine remaining sites.

Chief executive Roger Whiteside said: "These are difficult changes that we believe are needed to support the long-term growth of the business."

Mr Whiteside is two years into a five-year plan to transform the firm to take advantage of Britain's £6bn a year "food to go" market.

Shares rose 14% following the announcement which came as Greggs reported a 25% rise in profits before exceptional items to £73m for the year to 2 January. Total sales climbed 5% to £835.7m.

Greggs highlighted particularly strong sales growth in sandwiches, new healthier ranges such as salads and no added sugar drinks. Soups and coffee also sold well.

Like-for-like sales increased 4.2% in the first eight weeks of its new financial year, recovering from a fourth-quarter dip, and the firm forecast another year of underlying growth.

Mandelson Warns Over Brexit Risk To UK Exports

Leaving the EU will lead to big tariffs on UK exports like cars, whisky and textiles - and higher prices in the shops because of import tariffs, Peter Mandelson is claiming.

In his first intervention in the referendum campaign, the former Labour trade minister and EU trade commissioner will accuse campaigners of "trying to sell people a fantasy".

He will also claim leaving the EU would be damaging for British business, and the alternative trade arrangements proposed by Brexit campaigners would be dangerous for Britain.

"Losing the EU’s preferential trading benefits in foreign markets could mean new tariffs of 10, 20%, or sometimes even more, on key UK exports such as cars, machine goods, whisky and textiles," Lord Mandelson will say.

"The UK would also potentially have to raise its own tariffs on imports from these markets as they would no longer be covered by WTO-compliant agreements."

:: If UK Quits EU: Answers To The Key Questions

Lord Mandelson will argue that trade is central to the referendum choice because Britain trades nearly half its exports into the EU and through the EU’s global trade deals we gain access to export markets round the world. 

He will say the EU conducts all trade policy as a single powerful bloc on behalf of its members, including Britain, and leaving the EU would mean losing domestic and international trading opportunities unless or until they were replaced with new ones - which would take time.

"Brexiters cannot argue that we are weakened in the EU as it is, but would suddenly be strong enough to dictate terms if we left," he will say.

"For every politician who saw the pragmatic case for dealing with the UK, there would be another who had little doubt that the UK must not be given a quick or easy ride.”

And endorsing the warning made in a Government dossier this week on what withdrawal from the EU would mean, Lord Mandelson will say: "The negotiation would mean years of uncertainty and in the worst case scenario a return to paying EU tariffs while a final deal on an FTA was struck."

While Lord Mandelson becomes the first senior Labour figure to take the fight to the Leave campaign, Tory eurosceptics will continue their fight for the lifting of a ban on Cabinet ministers campaigning to leave the EU being given Government documents by civil servants.

The Cabinet Secretary, Sir Jeremy Heywood, will appear before the Public Administration Committee of MPs, chaired by leading eurosceptic Tory MP Bernard Jenkin, and be forced to explain his reasons for the ban.

And at the weekly Cabinet meeting in 10 Downing Street, Cabinet "outers" such as hardliner Iain Duncan Smith - who has pledged to defy the Prime Minister and order his civil servants to hand over key papers - may challenge David Cameron to lift the ban