Five Who Died At Camber Sands Were Trapped By Rising Sea

Five men who died at Camber Sands were caught by a rapidly rising tide and were then unable to swim to shore because of the current, the brother of one has said.

 Ajirthan Ravi, whose brother Nitharsan was one of a group of friends who drowned during a trip to the beach on Wednesday, told Sky News they were taken by surprise.

He said they had gone to the water's edge at the popular East Sussex beach some way out but the tide suddenly turned.

Although all were good swimmers and tried to swim to the shore, they became trapped by a strong current and became exhausted.

Mr Ravi said: "They walked up to the ocean but a few minutes later the ocean came all the way back (in) so at that... point they were feeling they were going to get drowned.

Inthushan Sri

"From that point they tried to save themselves by swimming... back - they are good swimmers - but the problem is the tide was strong so that they couldn't swim back. They didn't have enough energy to come back in.

"They were stuck in the water. They were driven backwards because of water currents. Because of waves.

"They often went to the beach, especially when the weather was like this. They went to Bournemouth maybe, on a hot day. They didn't expect it would be like this.

"My family cannot not believe this has happened. They are speechless. I feel like they are still with me. My heart's so sorry about this. For all of them."

Three of the other four who died have been named as Kenigan and Kobi Nathan, aged 19 and 22, and Inthushan Sri.

Camber is said to have several sand bars which can be cut off by the tide

Camber Sands is known for its wide, flat beach and is understood to have a number of sand bars which can become cut off when the tide comes in.

Mr Ravi said the police were able to work out who had died because his brother's car was the only one left in the car park at the end of the day. 

Emergency services were called to the beach at 2.10pm to reports of a person in difficulty in the sea.

Another victim was spotted while they were at the scene, and a third man was pulled from the water 15 minutes later.

The bodies of a further two men were found in the water between 8.15pm and 8.45pm.

Witness Hannah Chatfield described how she helped drag one of the men out of the water after the alarm was raised.

Nitharsan Ravi and Kenigan Nathan

She said: "The first man was pulled out of the sea unconscious. Maybe 20 minutes later, a woman came over shouting, and saying there's more in there.

"Me and my boyfriend went to get him because the (emergency services) were with the first guy. We were on the beach for about 45 minutes trying to resuscitate him but it didn't work."

Mr Ravi said what happened showed the importance of placing lifeguards at popular beaches such as Camber Sands who have an understanding of the dangers that can occur.

He said: "Only a few minutes delay meant the death toll was five. We strongly recommend to have a... strong, reliable lifeguard system so that they can measure the wind and the wave currents and then predict what can happen."

:: Push For Lifeguards At Camber Sands After Deaths

A spokesman for Rother District Council, which includes Camber Sands, said that while there were no lifeguards, regular assessments were carried out at the beach.

He said: "We are in regular discussion with emergency services and other colleagues to ensure that the measures currently in place are sufficient and identify any additional measures that may need to be taken, either in terms of arrangements at the beach or doing more to educate people of the dangers of the sea.

"Our thoughts remain with the family and friends of those who have lost their lives."

Donald Trump shouts: ‘Hillary Clinton is a bigot!’

JACKSON, Miss. — As Donald Trump listed the ways that he would make life better for African Americans living in poverty, he suddenly shouted, "Hillary Clinton is a bigot!"

The line was included in prepared remarks distributed to reporters, and it seemed to catch many in the crowd by surprise, triggering a delayed and somewhat brief round of cheers and applause. A woman standing behind Trump grimaced at the comment, her eyes widening as she seemed unsure whether she should clap. Another woman seated in the upper tier of the arena approvingly shouted, "Yeah! Yeah!"

As the overwhelmingly white crowd tried to figure out how to respond to the loaded accusations, Trump kept talking.

" ... who sees people of color only as votes, not as human-beings worthy of a better future," Trump said. "She's going to do nothing for African Americans. She's going to do nothing for the Hispanics. She's only going to take care of herself, her husband, her consultants, her donors — these are the people she cares about. She doesn't care what her policies have done to your communities. She doesn't care."

More than a week ago, Trump launched an aggressive campaign to win over black voters — or at least weaken their wide and strong support for Clinton. He has accused Democrats of presiding over dangerous inner cities and not doing enough to pull African Americans out of poverty. At his rallies, Trump often speaks in broad generalities, suggesting that all blacks are underemployed or unemployed and living in dangerous neighborhoods that he has described as being more dangerous than war zones.

" ... who sees people of color only as votes, not as human-beings worthy of a better future," Trump said. "She's going to do nothing for African Americans. She's going to do nothing for the Hispanics. She's only going to take care of herself, her husband, her consultants, her donors — these are the people she cares about. She doesn't care what her policies have done to your communities. She doesn't care."

More than a week ago, Trump launched an aggressive campaign to win over black voters — or at least weaken their wide and strong support for Clinton. He has accused Democrats of presiding over dangerous inner cities and not doing enough to pull African Americans out of poverty. At his rallies, Trump often speaks in broad generalities, suggesting that all blacks are underemployed or unemployed and living in dangerous neighborhoods that he has described as being more dangerous than war zones.

Trump has accused Clinton of bigotry before and said at a rally in Ohio on Monday: "We are also going to reject the bigotry of Hillary Clinton, who sees people of color only as votes and not as human beings worthy of a better future." But those comments did not land with the same impact as his comment did on Wednesday night in Mississippi.

After the rally, several of Trump's supporters continued to applaud the line.

"I agree," said Cathy Lott, who traveled about 60 miles to see Trump speak and said she cannot understand why African Americans continue to support Democrats. "They haven't done anything for them."

Parker Dykes, 72, of Bay Springs, Miss., said Trump was striking an inclusive tone.

"He wants unity between all of our different races," Dykes said.

Kim Jong-Un Hails North Korea Missile Launch 'The Greatest Success'

North Korean leader Kim Jong-Un has been pictured watching the apparent firing of a submarine-launched ballistic missile.

State-run broadcaster KRT aired video and photographs showing the purported launch from underwater, with Kim looking on.


The submarine crew applauding Kim Jong-Un

According to the country's official news agency KCNA, Kim supervised the test-firing of a submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM).

One image shows him watching with binoculars, while others capture him smiling as officials applaud.

He also posed for a group photo with crew in front of the submarine.

Kim reportedly declared the launch "the greatest success," putting the country in the "front rank" of nuclear military powers.

Neither KRT nor KCNA gave the date of the launch.


Kim Jong-Un congratulates the crew


The North Korean leader was pictured laughing with officials

However, the footage comes after reports a missile was launched off the North's eastern coast shortly before 6am local time on Wednesday (about 10pm BST on Tuesday), travelling about 300 miles toward Japan.

Japan said the missile reached its air defence identification zone - a first for a North Korean missile.

The South Korean government and experts have said the launch shows technical progress in the North's SLBM programme.

An unnamed US official said it detected and tracked what it believed to be a KN-11 ballistic missile.

Italy earthquake: Before and after images show destruction

A strong earthquake has devastated a string of mountain towns and villages in central Italy, killing more than 240 people and leaving many unaccounted for.

The 6.2 magnitude quake, which was followed by several aftershocks, struck at 03:36 (01:36 GMT) on Wednesday, 100km (65 miles) north-east of Rome.

Worst affected were the towns of Accumoli and Amatrice and the village of Pescara del Tronto.

UN Report: Syria and IS Used Chemical Weapons In 2014 And 2015

The Syrian government and Islamic State used chemical weapons during attacks in Syria in 2014 and 2015, a UN report has concluded.

An international team blamed the government of Bashar al Assad for using chlorine gas in two attacks.

Islamic State used mustard gas during another attack, the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons-United Nations Joint Investigative Mechanism (JIM) found.

Three other attacks appeared to have been carried out by the government but it could not be certain, the team said in its report.

JIM was given a mandate by the UN Security Council to identify those responsible for chemical weapons attacks in Syria.

The US ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Power called the use of chemical weapons "a barbaric tool, repugnant to the conscience of mankind".

She urged the Security Council to take "strong and swift action" against those who had carried out the attacks.

The experts' findings mirror "numerous other confirmed cases of chemical weapons use across Syria, and countless other allegations of such use, including as recently as several weeks ago," the ambassador added.

France's ambassador to the UN Alexis Lamek also called for the Security Council to take action.

He said: "When it comes to proliferation, use of chemical weapons, such weapons of mass destruction, we cannot afford being weak and the council will have to act."

The Security Council is due to discuss the JIM report on 30 August but analysts say it is not clear whether any action is likely to be agreed.

Russia, although it supported the establishment of the JIM, is a close ally of Syria and has previously blocked sanctions and other council action against President Assad's government.

One of the Chlorine attacks took place in Talmenes, in the Idlib governorate, on 21 April, 2014 and the other in Sarmin, in the same province, on 16 March, 2015, JIM found.

The mustard gas attack occurred in Marea, Aleppo governorate, on 21 August, 2015, when Islamic State fighters were attacking rebels.

The report said that between December 2015 and August 2016 JIM received more than 130 new allegations that chemical weapons or toxic chemicals, including sarin, VX nerve gas and other, were used as weapons in Syria.

It follows an earlier report by UN weapons inspectors that found "clear and convincing evidence" that chemical weapons were used in Syria.

It had been hoped that President Bashar al Assad's regime had destroyed its stockpile of weapons after the government agreed to an international plan following a global outcry over deadly chemical attacks in a Damascus suburb.

US Criticises EC Over Tax Crackdown On Firms

The US has attacked Europe's tax avoidance crackdown on Apple and other global firms.

It said the probe by the European Commission (EC) undermines the international tax system.

The EC is investigating alleged special tax treatment that certain EU countries gave Apple, Amazon and Fiat Chrysler.

The companies say their arrangements are legal.

But the US Treasury said the investigations are disproportionately targeting American companies.

If Europe recovers billions in taxes from them it could mean less revenues collected by Washington.

Robert Stack, the US Treasury's deputy assistant secretary for international tax affairs, said: "US taxpayers could wind up eventually footing the bill."

The US acknowledged the problem of alleged state aid being given by countries such as Ireland, Belgium and Luxembourg in the form of lucrative tax breaks.

But it criticised the EC's approach in planning to apply new rules to companies retroactively, and also accused it of overstepping its powers.

The EC denied it was targeting US companies and said it was a "standard feature" of European rules that companies would have to pay any benefits from tax breaks found to be illegal.

Tesco To Offer Same Day Click And Collect In 300 Stores

Britain’s biggest supermarket Tesco is planning to offer a new same day "click and collect" service on grocery orders at nearly 300 stores nationwide.

The service will cost customers £2 per slot between Monday and Thursday and £3 for Friday and Saturday.

Shoppers have to order their groceries before 1pm to pick them up after 4pm.

The same day service is being launched to give customers more choice on how and when they shop.

It will be available in 90% of Tesco stores which already offer the "click and collect option".

Grocers are under pressure to provide more services for increasingly time-poor shoppers as convenience becomes more important to maintaining customer loyalty.

Supermarkets are now competing to offer the fastest delivery service as well as the cheapest food prices.

Last month Sainsbury's revealed plans to roll-out a same-day delivery service at 30 of its stores by the end of the year.

In June, internet giant Amazon launched its same day fresh food delivery service, AmazonFresh, to Amazon Prime members in London.