UK To Give Nigeria £40m To Fight Boko Haram

The Foreign Secretary has pledged to give Nigeria £40m to help the fight against Boko Haram - and praised the president's "strong leadership" just days after David Cameron called the country "fantastically corrupt".

Philip Hammond also announced the UK would train almost 1,000 Nigerian military personnel for deployment in counter-insurgency operations.

His promises came as he arrived in Abuja, Nigeria for the Regional Security Summit.

"President Buhari has shown strong leadership in the fight against Boko Haram, a brutal organisation that has raped, murdered and kidnapped innocent civilians and forced over two million people to flee their homes," said Mr Hammond.

"Their allegiance to, and potential coordination with Daesh (IS), is a reminder of the threat they present to the region and to British interests."

Boko Haram has killed some 20,000 people during a seven-year insurgency.

The UK's money to fight the Islamic extremists will be distributed over four years.

Mr Hammond's flattering words follow days after Mr Cameron was heard making undiplomatic comments to the Queen ahead of an anti-corruption summit.

"We've got some leaders of some fantastically corrupt countries coming to Britain," Mr Cameron told the Queen.

"Nigeria and Afghanistan - possibly the two most corrupt countries in the world."

James McAvoy Splits From Anne-Marie Duff

Hollywood star James McAvoy and his actress wife Anne-Marie Duff are to divorce after 10 years of marriage, the couple have announced.

The couple released a statement which said they would continue to have "friendship, love and respect for one another" despite the separation.

They have a five-year-old son.

The statement read: "It is with tremendous sadness that we have come to the decision to divorce.

"We enter this next phase with continued friendship, love and respect for one another and the shared focus of caring for our son.

"We ask that you respect our and, most importantly, our child's privacy during this time."

The couple began their relationship when they starred as couple Steve and Fiona in the Channel 4 comedy-drama Shameless, which was later remade in the US.

McAvoy, 37, stars in X-Men: Apocalypse, opening later this month. 

Duff, 45, recently starred alongside Carey Mulligan and Helena Bonham Carter in period drama Suffragette. 

Do You Know Saddleworth Moor Mystery Man?

Police have released an artist's impression of a mystery man who died from poisoning on a remote hillside in the Peak District National Park in December last year.

Dubbed Neil Dovestone, after the reservoir on Saddleworth Moor close to where his body was found, the man remains unidentified despite extensive investigations.

CCTV pictures were released last year showing the man walking through Manchester Piccadilly railway station on 11 December wearing a heavy jacket, blue jumper, blue cord trousers and slip-on shoes.

An image from the CCTV taken at Manchester Piccadilly Station

At 2pm that afternoon he went to the Clarence pub in Greenfield, Saddleworth, asking for directions to the top of a nearby rock outcrop known as Indian's Head.

The man was warned about poor weather conditions, but was last seen climbing the hill in the dark at about 4.30pm.

His body was found by a cyclist the following morning and post-mortem results showed he died from strychnine poisoning.

Detectives say they are not treating his death as suspicious.

Pfizer Blocks Its Drugs For Lethal Injections

Pharmaceutical company Pfizer has imposed controls on the distribution of its products to ensure that none are used in lethal injections to execute death row inmates.

The move reportedly closes off the last remaining open-market source of drugs used in executions, following similar actions by more than 20 US and European drug manufacturers.

Pfizer said on its website: "We are enforcing a distribution restriction for specific products that have been part of, or considered by some states for, their lethal injection protocols.

"Pfizer strongly objects to the use of its products as lethal injections for capital punishment."

The New York-based drugmaker said it offers the products because they save or improve lives, and markets them solely for use as indicated in the product labelling.

Reprieve, a human rights organisation opposed to the death penalty, said: "This is a critical turning point in the history of capital punishment in America.

"From today, all FDA-approved manufacturers of all potential execution drugs - a diverse group of 25 global companies - have blocked their sale for use in executions."

Maya Foa, director of Reprieve's death penalty team, told Sky News: "Pfizer cements the industry position.

Peru Drugs Mule Melissa Reid Can Return To UK

Convicted British drugs smuggler Melissa Reid will be released from prison in Peru and allowed to return to the UK, it has been confirmed.

The 22-year-old, from Lenzie, East Dunbartonshire, was jailed in 2013 along with Michaella McCollum, from Dungannon, Co Tyrone, after they admitted trying to smuggle cocaine worth £1.5m from Peru to Spain.

Reid had been seeking to serve the remainder of her sentence closer to home in Scotland following her conviction.

A Peruvian court on Thursday said Reid has shown remorse for the crime, and authorities agreed to release her.

Peru's National Office for Migration and the British Embassy in Peru are being informed of the decision so arrangements can be made for Reid to be returned to the UK.

McCollum, 23, was freed in March under new legislation on early prison release introduced in Peru last year.

Michaella McCollum was freed last month

She had served two years and three months.

However, it is anticipated she will have to remain in Peru for a considerable period as part of her parole conditions.

Reid and McCollum were caught with the haul at Lima airport in August 2013 while attempting to fly to Spain.

The pair were caught trying to board a flight with 24lb (11kg) of cocaine in food packets hidden inside their luggage.

They claimed they were forced into carrying the drugs but pleaded guilty to charges later that year.

McCollum and Reid faced the prospect of a maximum 15-year prison term but struck a behind-closed-doors plea bargain to secure a shorter sentence.

Reid's father Billy has previously said the impact of his daughter's crime on his family had been "horrendous" and spoke in a video warning of the consequences of drug offences abroad.

He said: "It's horrendous to see your daughter in handcuffs and the living conditions that she has to put up with. Melissa has spent her own 20th and 21st birthdays in prison in Peru.

"She missed the significant event of her only brother's wedding. Events such as Christmas are non-existent for us.

"There'll be no celebrations in our house, there'll be no Christmas tree until we get her back home."

Criminals Planting Keyloggers On Smartphones

Smartphones will become the number one target for cyber criminals within five years, according to police and security experts.

Sky News has been shown how hackers are developing viruses to by-pass a phone's security, including the latest biometric systems.  

The malware 'Trojan horse' gives cyber-criminals undetected access to a phone's internal systems, where they can see every key stroke entered by a user.

Police say they are monitoring an increase in smartphone fraud complaints

This has serious implications for those who use their phones to access bank accounts and apps that hold sensitive, personal information.

Roughly a quarter of the world's population own smartphones and the United Kingdom is top of the list with six out of 10 people owning a device.

Keiron Shepherd, senior security engineer at the world leading cyber security company F5 Networks, has been monitoring the targeting of mobile devices by hackers.

He told Sky News: "If you just consider the amount of smartphones and the number of people, it's a great surface area for attackers to go for.

"Windows was the predominate system, it was the path of least resistance for the malware writers. Devices and operating systems which were considered not an issue to be worried about in the past have now become a target for the malware writers."

One virus monitored by F5 Networks imbeds in an innocent-looking advert on a website. When clicked, the virus infiltrates their device and monitors every key stroke, even when the user accesses their bank accounts.

Keiron Shepherd said: "The way this virus can insert itself between the applications you're using before it accesses the internet gives it a chance to extract critical data such as credit card numbers, bank accounts; anything that's of high value.

"It really is a numbers game. They'll throw enough malware out there and hope it returns a good investment." 

Police are monitoring an increase in complaints of fraud committed against smartphone users.

City of London Police Commander Chris Greany, the national police lead for cyber protection, said: "People who carry a mobile phone are actually carrying a mobile computer. 

"It's not a phone with a computer attached. It's a computer with a phone attached and it is as risky using this as it is using the desktop at home."

Hayden Panettiere Reflects Before Seeking Help for Postpartum Depression

Hayden Panettiere knows “it’s okay to ask for help” and that taking the first step towards health is nothing to be ashamed of.

After welcoming daughter Kaya Evdokia in December 2014 with fiancé Wladimir Klitschko, the Nashville actress entered rehab last October for postpartum depression, a struggle she has been very open about.

And on Thursday, Panettiere, 26, shared that she has made the decision to continue getting the help she needs.

“The postpartum depression I have been experiencing has impacted every aspect of my life,” she tweeted. “Rather than stay stuck due to unhealthy coping mechanisms I have chosen to take time to reflect holistically on my health and life. Wish me luck!”

The mother of one previously told PEOPLE she’s used her own personal journey to address the stigma surrounding PPD. “The biggest message that I’ve been trying to promote for women is that it’s okay to ask for help,” Panettiere explained in March. “You feel mommy guilt — it’s for real.”

And in January at the Critics’ Choice Awards, the star opened up about how relieved she felt after telling her truth. “I’m 26 years old. I’m a mom. I don’t need to be afraid of what people are going to think. I saw how much people rallied behind mewhen I was honest, and I didn’t know that honesty could be such a gift.”

Coincidentally on Thursday, ABC announced that Panettiere’s show Nashville was canceled after four seasons on the network.