Wednesday, 13 April 2011

Egypt detains Mubarak and sons

Top prosecutor says ex-leader and two sons will be held for 15 days pending a probe into abuse of authority and graft.
Last Modified: 13 Apr 2011 06:46

Hosni Mubarak, Egypt's former president, has been detained along with his two powerful sons pending investigations into accusations of corruption and abuse of authority, the prosecutor general has said.

Hours after the former leader was hospitalised as he was questioned, a statement from the prosecutor's office, posted on Facebook early on Wednesday, announced the detention of the three men.

"The prosecutor general orders the detention of former President Hosni Mubarak and his sons Gamal and Alaa for 15 days pending investigation after the prosecutor general presented them with the current state of its ongoing investigations," it read.

It said the ongoing investigation was into allegations of corruption, the wasting of public money, and the abuse of position for personal gain.

Mubarak's sons Gamal and Alaa were driven away in a police van with drawn curtains as an angry crowd of 2,000 people pelted the car with water bottles, stones and their flip-flops, a sign of disrespect in the Arab world.

"Brothers, whatever you wanted, you have got ... 15 days," said Major-General Mohammed el-Khatib, the head of provincial security in the South Sinai.

Gamal, Mubarak's younger son, was a senior official in the ruling party and was widely seen as being groomed to succeed his father before popular protests brought down the regime.

His increasing role in the government over the last decade and the belief that he might succeed his father helped galvanise Egypt's protest movement.

Al Jazeera's Zeina Khodr, reporting from Cairo, said that Mubarak's sons have already been questioned for two days at a courthouse near Sharm el-Sheikh. They arrived in Cairo on Wednesday morning and were taken to a prison where they are expected to be detained for the duration of the investigation.

At least 800 people are estimated to have been killed during the protests as police opened fire on the crowds. Authorities are now investigating government officials for their role in ordering the violence.

Gamal is also believed to be the architect of Egypt's privatisation programme and economic liberalisation, which has brought in billions in foreign investment but has also widened the gap between rich and poor.

Many of his close associates were billionaires and held senior positions in the ruling party and the government. There are allegations that they used their positions for personal gain.

Mubarak hospitalised

Earlier on Tuesday, Mubarak had been questioned in hospital by prosecutors at the Red Sea town of Sharm el-Sheikh, where he has been staying since he was ousted from power by a popular uprising on February 11.

Mubarak, 82, was taken to an intensive care unit after suffering heart problems when he was being questioned during an investigation, state television reported.

It did not give further details about his health or about the investigation.

Asked if Mubarak was in good health, Mohammed Fathallah, the hospital's director, replied: "Somewhat."

Our correspondent in Cairo said that doctors have now announced that Mubarak is reported to be unwell, but in stable condition.

Khodr said that many people believe that Mubarak's illness was a ruse to escape prosecution, with many implicating the military in the rumoured plot.

"A lot of Egyptians, particularly in Tahrir Square, said this is just ridiculous, this is a lie, it's a game ... they even accuse the army - the new rulers in this country in the interim phase - of actually orchestrating this to find some way out so Mubarak won't be prosecuted," said Khodr.

News of the investigations, she said, will "ease tensions", especially at a time when the army is being viewed with some suspicion by the public, who, as of late have been "questioning the motives and actions of the army, especially since the army has been detaining hundreds of activists".

Egyptian security officials told the AP news agency that Mubarak arrived under heavy police protection at the hospital, which was picketed on Tuesday by pro-democracy activists.

Al Jazeera's Jamal Elshayyal, reporting from Sharm el-Sheikh, said that state security personnel and riot police continued to surround the hospital, where a small number of protesters were gathering on Wednesday morning, although the situation remained calm.


Source:
Al Jazeera and agencies

Tuesday, 12 April 2011

Egypt blogger sentence slammed as 'serious setback'



HRW: Egypt blogger sentence 'severe', imposed by military tribunal after 'unfair trial'.


Middle East Online


'Do not seem to have evolved since Hosni Mubarak's fall'

CAIRO - Human Rights Watch on Tuesday condemned an Egyptian military court's sentencing of a blogger as "a serious setback to freedom of expression" in post-Mubarak Egypt.

Maikel Nabil was sentenced on Sunday to three years in prison on charges of insulting the military in a blog post.

"The sentence is not only severe, but it was imposed by a military tribunal after an unfair trial," said Joe Stork, deputy Middle East director at Human Rights Watch.

The Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) assumed power on February 11 after weeks of anti-regime protests forced president Hosni Mubarak to step down.

The verdict is likely to cause concern among Egypt's large network of bloggers who had hoped Mubarak's overthrow in a popular uprising would usher in a new era of freedom of expression.

Since SCAF took power, "the military has arrested at least 200 protesters and tried scores of them before military courts," HRW said.

"State institutions, including the military, should never consider themselves above criticism," Stork said.

"It is only through a public airing of abuses and full accountability measures that Egypt can hope to transition away from past human rights violations," he said.

On Monday, Reporters Without Borders condemned the ruling, saying Nabil had become "the new government's first prisoner of conscience."

"The methods used by the Egyptian military do not seem to have evolved since Hosni Mubarak's fall," the group's secretary general Jean-Francois Julliard said.

Israeli foreign minister talks live... from the toilet


Israel's Lieberman heard flushing toilet in middle of radio interview discussing Gaza tensions.

Middle East Online


Should he be 'relieved' from his diplomatic duties?

JERUSALEM - Israeli officials often conduct radio interviews at home, but listeners got an unexpected insight into just where their foreign minister was when he punctuated his comments with a toilet flush.

Israeli news site Ynet.com reported Tuesday that the unusual soundtrack to foreign minister Avigdor Lieberman's interview came as he was addressing the issue of a flare-up of violence with Palestinian Islamist group Hamas.

During the Monday interview, the controversial head of the ultra-nationalist Yisrael Beitenu made reference to the group, telling the public radio station: "We know who we're dealing with." And then apparently flushed the toilet.

Lieberman's Yisrael Beitenu is the third biggest party in the Israeli Knesset, with 15 seats in the 120-seat house. A recent poll showed the party could snap up two more seats if elections were held today.

The foreign minister has frequently found himself in the headlines for his sometimes undiplomatic language, and is also facing the prospect of being indicted for corruption.

Mubarak summoned for questioning over embezzlement, death of protesters

Egypt Interior Minister Mansour el-Essawy says Mubarak will give testimony on accusations directed against him at a court on the eastern outskirts of Cairo, according to state-run al-Ahram newspaper.

By Reuters

Egypt's former President Hosni Mubarak received a summons to appear before a Cairo court for questioning and special security is being arranged, state-run al-Ahram newspaper quoted the interior minister as saying.

The public prosecutor issued the summons on Sunday as part of probes into the killing of protesters and the embezzlement of public funds, but the ousted president said allegations of wrongdoing levelled against him were lies.

mubarak - Reuters - February 16 2011

Former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak rubs his eyes, March 5, 2004.

Photo by: Reuters

The minister, Mansour el-Essawy, said Mubarak would give testimony on accusations directed against him at a court on the eastern outskirts of Cairo, Al-Ahram reported, without saying when he would appear or what the accusations were.

Essawy said he did not know what Mubarak's reply to the summons had been, the newspaper said on Tuesday.

Mubarak's sons Alaa and Gamal have also been summoned for questioning.

Several countries froze assets of Mubarak's family and some of their associates after he was forced from office by a wave of public uprising and dissent at corruption among the political elite.

Mubarak has been staying at his residence in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh since he was toppled from power on Feb. 11, and he and his family have been banned from travelling while state prosecutors investigate complaints against them.

Justice Minister Mohamed al-Guindy said an Egyptian delegation would travel to a number of foreign countries within days seeking to make an inventory of Mubarak's assets abroad, al-Ahram said.

The minister said Mubarak had agreed to provide to investigators a power of attorney over his bank accounts and assets.

Google Doodle marks anniversary of Yuri Gagarin's space flight

Yuri Gagarin: 50th anniversary of the first Human Spaceflight


Heavens above: The Yuri Gagarin Google Doodle

Yuri Gagarin

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Yuri Gagarin
Юрий Гагарин
Gagarin Signature.svg
Soviet Union cosmonaut
The first human in space
Nationality Russian Soviet Union
Born 9 March 1934(1934-03-09)
Klushino, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union
Died 27 March 1968(1968-03-27) (aged 34)
Novosyolovo, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union
Other occupation Pilot
Rank Colonel (Polkovnik), Soviet Air Forces
Time in space 1 hour, 48 minutes
Selection Air Force Group 1
Missions Vostok 1
Mission insignia Vostok-1 patch.svg

Yuri Alekseyevich Gagarin (Russian: Ю́рий Алексе́евич Гага́рин,[1] Russian pronunciation: [ˈjurʲɪj ɐlʲɪˈksʲeɪvʲɪtɕ ɡɐˈɡarʲɪn]; 9 March 1934 – 27 March 1968) was a Soviet pilot and cosmonaut. He was the first human to journey into outer space when his Vostok spacecraft completed an orbit of the Earth on April 12, 1961.

Gagarin became an international celebrity, and was awarded many medals and honours, including Hero of the Soviet Union. Vostok 1 marked his only spaceflight, but he served as backup to the Soyuz 1 mission (which ended in a fatal crash). Gagarin later became deputy training director of the Cosmonaut Training Centre outside Moscow, which was later named after him. Gagarin died in 1968 when a Mig 15 training jet he was piloting crashed.

Early life

Gagarin was born in the village of Klushino near Gzhatsk (now in Smolensk Oblast, Russia), on 9 March 1934.[2] The adjacent town of Gzhatsk was renamed Gagarin in 1968 in his honour. His parents, Alexey Ivanovich Gagarin and Anna Timofeyevna Gagarina, worked on a collective farm.[3] While manual labourers are described in official reports as "peasants", this may be an oversimplification if applied to his parents — his mother was reportedly a voracious reader, and his father a skilled carpenter. Yuri was the third of four children, and his elder sister helped raise him while his parents worked. Like millions of people in the Soviet Union, the Gagarin family suffered during Nazi occupation in World War II. After a German officer took over their house, the family constructed a small mud hut where they spent a year and nine months until the end of the occupation.[4] His two older siblings were deported to Nazi Germany for slave labour in 1943, and did not return until after the war. In 1946, the family moved to Gzahtsk.[4]

Career in the Soviet Air Force

While a youth, Yuri became interested in space and planets.[5] After studying for one year at a vocational technical school in Lyubertsy, Gagarin was selected for further training at a technical high school in Saratov. While there, he joined the "AeroClub", and learned to fly a light aircraft, a hobby that would take up an increasing portion of his time.

In 1955, after completing his technical schooling, he entered military flight training at the Orenburg Pilot's School. While there he met Valentina Goryacheva, whom he married in 1957, after gaining his pilot's wings in a MiG-15. Post-graduation, he was assigned to Luostari airbase in Murmansk Oblast, close to the Norwegian border, where terrible weather made flying risky. He became a Lieutenant in the Soviet Air Force on 5 November 1957 and on 6 November 1959 he received the rank of Senior Lieutenant.[6]

Career in the Soviet space program

Selection and training

In 1960, after the search and selection process, Yuri Gagarin was chosen with 19 other pilots for the Soviet space program. Gagarin was further selected for an elite training group known as the Sochi Six from which the first cosmonauts of the Vostok programme would be chosen. Gagarin and other prospective cosmonauts were subjected to experiments designed to test physical and psychological endurance; he also underwent training for the upcoming flight. Out of the twenty selected, the eventual choices for the first launch were Gagarin and Gherman Titov because of their performance in training, as well as their physical characteristics — space was at a premium in the small Vostok cockpit and both men were rather short. Gagarin was 1.57 metres (5 ft 2 in) tall, which was an advantage in the small Vostok cockpit.[3]

In August 1960, when Gagarin was one of 20 possible candidates, an Air Force doctor evaluated his personality as follows:

Modest; embarrasses when his humor gets a little too racy; high degree of intellectual development evident in Yuriy; fantastic memory; distinguishes himself from his colleagues by his sharp and far-ranging sense of attention to his surroundings; a well-developed imagination; quick reactions; persevering, prepares himself painstakingly for his activities and training exercises, handles celestial mechanics and mathematical formulae with ease as well as excels in higher mathematics; does not feel constrained when he has to defend his point of view if he considers himself right; appears that he understands life better than a lot of his friends.
—Soviet Air Force doctor, [7]

Gagarin was also a favoured candidate by his peers. When the 20 candidates were asked to anonymously vote for which other candidate they would like to see as the first to fly, all but three chose Gagarin.[8] One of these candidates, Yevgeny Khrunov, believed that Gagarin was very focused, and was demanding of himself and others when necessary.[9]

Gagarin kept physically fit throughout his life, and was a keen sportsman. Cosmonaut Valery Bykovsky wrote:

Service in the Air Force made us strong, both physically and morally. All of us cosmonauts took up sports and PT seriously when we served in the Air Force. I know that Yuri Gagarin was fond of ice hockey. He liked to play goal keeper... I don't think I am wrong when I say that sports became a fixture in the life of the cosmonauts.[10]

In addition to being a keen ice hockey player, Gagarin was also a basketball fan, and coached the Saratov Industrial Technical School team, as well as being an umpire/referee.[11]

Space flight


Vostok I capsule used by Yuri Gagarin, now on display at the RKK Energiya Museum outside of Moscow.

On 12 April 1961, aboard the Vostok 3KA-3 (Vostok 1), Gagarin became both the first human to travel into space, and the first to orbit the earth. His call sign was Kedr (Siberian Pine, Russian: Кедр).[12]

In his post-flight report, Gagarin recalled his experience of spaceflight, having been the first human in space:

The feeling of weightlessness was somewhat unfamiliar compared with Earth conditions. Here, you feel as if you were hanging in a horizontal position in straps. You feel as if you are suspended.[13]

Following the flight, Gagarin told the Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev that during reentry he had whistled the tune "The Motherland Hears, The Motherland Knows" (Russian: "Родина слышит, Родина знает").[14][15] The first two lines of the song are: "The Motherland hears, the Motherland knows/Where her son flies in the sky".[16] This patriotic song was written by Dmitri Shostakovich in 1951 (opus 86), with words by Yevgeniy Dolmatovsky.

After the flight, some sources claimed that Gagarin, during his space flight, had made the comment, "I don't see any God up here." However, no such words appear in the verbatim record of Gagarin's conversations with Earth-based stations during the spaceflight.[17] In a 2006 interview a close friend of Gagarin, Colonel Valentin Petrov, stated that Gagarin never said such words, and that the phrase originated from Nikita Khrushchev's speech at the plenum of the Central Committee of the CPSU, where the anti-religious propaganda was discussed. In a certain context Khrushchev said, "Gagarin flew into space, but didn't see any god there".[18] Colonel Petrov also said that Gagarin had been baptised into the Orthodox Church as a child. It is also known that Gagarin has said the following words: "Someone who never met God on Earth, would never meet Him in space"[citation needed]. In 2011, Foma magazine quoted the rector of the Orthodox church in Zvyozdny Gorodok (Star City) saying, “Gagarin baptized his elder daughter Yelena shortly before his space flight; and his family used to celebrate Christmas and Easter and keep icons in the house." [19]

Rise to fame


A postcard with an image of Yuri Gagarin

After the flight, Gagarin became a worldwide celebrity, touring widely abroad. He visited Italy, Germany, Canada, Brazil, Japan and Finland to promote the Soviet Union of being the first country to put a human in space. He also visited the United Kingdom three months after the Vostok 1 success, during which he visited the cities of London and Manchester, the latter of which has been fondly remembered.[20][21]

Life after Vostok 1

In 1962, he began serving as a deputy to the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union. He later returned to Star City, the cosmonaut facility, where he spent seven years working on designs for a reusable spacecraft. He became Lieutenant Colonel (or Podpolkovnik) of the Soviet Air Force on 12 June 1962 and on 6 November 1963 he received the rank of Colonel (Polkovnik) of the Soviet Air Force.[6] Soviet officials tried to keep him away from any flights, being worried of losing their hero in an accident. Gagarin was backup pilot for Vladimir Komarov in the Soyuz 1 flight. As Komarov's flight ended in a fatal crash, Gagarin was ultimately banned from training for and participating in further spaceflights.

Gagarin had become deputy training director of the Star City cosmonaut training base. At the same time, he began to re-qualify as a fighter pilot.

Death


Monument of Yuri Gagarin on Cosmonauts Alley in Moscow

On 27 March 1968, while on a routine training flight from Chkalovsky Air Base, he and flight instructor Vladimir Seryogin died in a MiG-15UTI crash near the town of Kirzhach. The bodies of Gagarin and Seryogin were cremated and the ashes were buried in the walls of the Kremlin on Red Square.

Cause of jet crash

The cause of the crash that killed Gagarin is not entirely certain, and has been subject to speculation and conspiracy theories over the ensuing decades.

Russian documents declassified in March 2003 showed that the KGB had conducted their own investigation of the accident, in addition to one government and two military investigations. The KGB's report dismissed various conspiracy theories, instead indicating that the actions of air base personnel contributed to the crash. The report states that an air traffic controller provided Gagarin with outdated weather information, and that by the time of his flight, conditions had deteriorated significantly. Ground crew also left external fuel tanks attached to the aircraft. Gagarin's planned flight activities needed clear weather and no outboard tanks. The investigation concluded that Gagarin's aircraft entered a spin, either due to a bird strike or because of a sudden move to avoid another aircraft. Because of the out-of-date weather report, the crew believed their altitude to be higher than it actually was, and could not properly react to bring the MiG-15 out of its spin.[22]

In his 2004 book Two Sides of the Moon, Alexey Leonov recounts that he was flying a helicopter in the same area that day when he heard "two loud booms in the distance." Corroborating other theories, his conclusion is that a Sukhoi jet (which he identifies as a Su-15 'Flagon') was flying below its minimum allowed altitude, and "without realizing it because of the terrible weather conditions, he passed within 10 or 20 meters of Yuri and Seregin's plane while breaking the sound barrier." The resulting turbulence would have sent the MiG into an uncontrolled spin. Leonov believes the first boom he heard was that of the jet breaking the sound barrier, and the second was Gagarin's plane crashing.[23]

Another theory, advanced by the original crash investigator in 2005, hypothesizes that a cabin air vent was accidentally left open by the crew or the previous pilot, leading to oxygen deprivation and leaving the crew incapable of controlling the aircraft.[24] A similar theory, published in Air & Space magazine, is that the crew detected the open vent and followed procedure by executing a rapid dive to a lower altitude. This dive caused them to lose consciousness and crash.[25]

On 12 April 2007, the Kremlin vetoed a new investigation into the death of Gagarin. Government officials said that they saw no reason to begin a new investigation.[26]

In April 2011, documents from a 1968 commission setup by the Central Committee of the Communist Party to investigate the accident were declassified. Those documents revealed that the commission's original conclusion was that either Gagarin or Seryogin had maneuvered sharply, likely to avoid a weather balloon, leading the jet into a "super-critical flight regime and to its stalling in complex meteorological conditions". The report also suggested the jet may have been maneuvering sharply to avoid "entry into the upper limit of the first layer of cloud cover".[27]

Legacy and tributes

Legacy

Aside from his short stature at 5 ft 2 inches, one of Gagarin's most notable traits was his smile.[28] Many commented on how Gagarin's smile gained the attention of many in the crowd on the frequent tours Gagarin did in the months after the Vostok 1 mission success, particularly when he visited Manchester in the United Kingdom.[29] Sergei Korolev, one of the masterminds behind the early years of the Soviet space program later said that Gagarin possessed a smile "that lit up the Cold War".[30]

Tributes


Russian Rouble commemorating Gagarin in 2001

There were two commemorative coins issued in the Soviet Union to commemorate 20th and 30th anniversaries of his flight: 1 ruble coin (1981, copper-nickel) and 3 ruble coin (1991, silver). In 2001, to commemorate the 40th anniversary of Gagarin's flight, a series of four coins bearing his likeness was issued in Russia: 2 ruble coin (copper-nickel), 3 ruble coin (silver), 10 ruble coin (brass-copper, nickel), and 100 ruble coin (silver).[31]

In 2008, the Kontinental Hockey League named their championship trophy the Gagarin Cup.[32]

In a 2010 Space Foundation survey, Gagarin was ranked as the #6 most popular space hero, tied with Star Trek's fictional Capt. James T. Kirk.[33]

In January 2011, Armenian airline Armavia named their first Sukhoi Superjet 100 in Gagarin's honour.[34]

From 14 July 2010 to 14 July 2011, a copy of the statue of Gagarin from outside his former school in Lyubertsy has been installed at the Admiralty Arch end of The Mall in London, opposite the permanent sculpture of James Cook.[35]

50th anniversary tributes

A series of tributes around the world coincided with 12 April 2011, the 50th anniversary of Gagarin's journey into outer space.

A film entitled First Orbit was created to mark the 50th anniversary. Footage was shot from the International Space Station, with engineers calculating that every six weeks the ISS crew would get good opportunity to film over the same ground at the same time of day as Gagarin did. The film would be made more authentic by combining the original flight audio to the footage filmed.[36]

On 12 April 2011, Google celebrated Gagarin's feat with a Google Doodle on its global homepage.[37]

Expedition 27 crew aboard the International Space Station sent a special video message to the world to wish them a Happy Yuri's Night on the occasion of the 50th anniversary. The crew, including Commander Dmitry Kondratyev, Flight Engineers Andrey Borisenko, Catherine 'Cady' Coleman, Alexander Samokutyaev, Paolo Nespoli and Ron Garan recorded their greetings in Russian, English and Italian while wearing black Gagarin T-shirts

source : Wikipedia

Space heroes: Yuri Gagarin first man in outer space 1st photo

yuri-gagarin



Gagarin's Soviet Vostok-1 spaceship blasts off in Kazakhstan in 1961 (Picture: AFP/Getty) Gagarin's Soviet Vostok-1 spaceship blasts off in Kazakhstan in 1961 (Picture: AFP/Getty)

Having a blast-off: Russian cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin inside the Vostok 1 command capsule (Picture: AFP/Getty)

Japan: Nuclear crisis raised to Chernobyl level

Hidehiko Nishiyama, spokesman for Japan's Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency: 'This doesn't mean people's safety is in danger'

Japanese authorities have raised the severity rating of their nuclear crisis to the highest level, seven.

The decision reflects the total release of radiation at the damaged Fukushima Daiichi power plant, which is ongoing, rather than a sudden deterioration.

Level seven previously only applied to the 1986 Chernobyl disaster, where 10 times as much radiation was emitted.

There have been no fatalities resulting from the leaks at Fukushima, and risks to human health are thought to be low.

Meanwhile a 6.0-magnitude earthquake on Tuesday prompted the plant's operator to evacuate its staff.

The operator of the Fukushima plant, Tokyo Electric Power Co (Tepco), said it was checking the status of the plant after the quake, the second to hit in as many days, but said there had been no reports of problems with external power.

The aftershocks come a month after a huge quake and tsunami hit north-east Japan, leaving 13,219 people dead and 14,274 missing. More than 150,000 people have been made homeless.

Impact of leaks

An official from the Nuclear Safety Commission of Japan announced that the crisis level at the Fukushima Daiichi plant was being raised in a televised statement, adding that it was a preliminary assessment that was subject to confirmation by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

The level seven signifies a "major accident" with "wider consequences" than the previous level, officials say.

Analysis

On the face of it this reclassification from a level five incident to a level seven is an alarming jump.

But the change has not been made because things have suddenly got worse at the Fukushima plant. Rather, a full assessment of the available data now suggests that a higher rating is justified.

Although the Japanese incident now equates to Chernobyl on the international scale, the two accidents are different in a number of important ways. In Chernobyl it was the reactor core itself that exploded, releasing a huge amount of radioactive material in a very short space of time. Fukushima experienced a less critical hydrogen explosion.

The initial radiation leak amounted to about a 10th of that which escaped from Chernobyl. The major concern in Japan is that the nuclear plant has not yet been brought under control, and some radioactive material is still seeping out.

"We have upgraded the severity level to seven as the impact of radiation leaks has been widespread from the air, vegetables, tap water and the ocean," said Minoru Oogoda of Japan's Nuclear and Industrial Safety Agency (Nisa), the government's nuclear watchdog.

One official from Tepco said that radiation leaks had not stopped completely and could eventually exceed those at Chernobyl, Reuters news agency reported.

However, a nuclear safety agency spokesman told reporters the leaks were still small compared to those at the plant in Ukraine, then part of the Soviet Union.

"In terms of volume of radioactive materials released, our estimate shows it is about 10% of what was released by Chernobyl," he said.

The decision to raise the threat level was made after radiation of up to 630,000 terabequerels per hour had been estimated at the stricken plant for several hours.

That would classify the crisis at level seven on the International Nuclear and Radiological Event Scale (Ines).

It was not clear when that level had been reached. The level has subsequently dropped to less than one terabequerel an hour, reports said.

In comparison the Japanese government said the release from Chernobyl was 5.2 million terabecquerels.

Evacuations extended

The severity level of Japan's nuclear crisis had previously been set at five, the same as that of the accident at Three Mile Island in the US in 1979.

World's worst nuclear incidents
  • Level 7: Chernobyl, Ukraine, 1986 - explosion and fire in operational reactor, fallout over thousands of square kilometres, possible 4,000 cancer cases
  • Level 7: Fukushima, 2011 - tsunami and possibly earthquake damage from seismic activity beyond plant design. Long-term effects unknown
  • Level 6: Kyshtym, Russia, 1957 - explosion in waste tank leading to hundreds of cancer cases, contamination over hundreds of square kilometres
  • Level 5: Windscale, UK, 1957 - fire in operating reactor, release of contamination in local area, possible 240 cancer cases
  • Level 5: Three Mile Island, US, 1979 - instrument fault leading to large-scale meltdown, severe damage to reactor core

Japan has also said it is extending the evacuation zone around the crippled nuclear plant because of radiation concerns.

The zone will be widened to encompass five communities beyond the existing 20-km (12-mile) radius, following new data about accumulated radiation levels, officials said.

Japan's nuclear commission said that according to preliminary results, the cumulative level of external radiation exceeded the yearly limit of 1 millisievert in areas extending more than 60km (36 miles) to the north-west of the plant and about 40km to the south-southwest.

On Monday, a 7.1-magnitude quake hit north-east Japan, leaving three people dead. It also triggered a brief tsunami warning, and forced workers to evacuate the Fukushima Daiichi plant.

Tuesday's quake rocked buildings in the capital, Tokyo.

There were no immediate reports of fresh damage, though Japan's Narita international airport temporarily closed its runways, and metro and train services were interrupted.

The cooling systems at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant were damaged in last month's disaster and workers have been struggling to prevent several reactors from overheating.

Officials have warned it will be several months before the situation at the nuclear facility is brought fully under control.

Tepco said on Tuesday that a fire had broken out briefly at Reactor 4, before being extinguished.

BBC map

Libya: Alain Juppe says Nato is 'not doing enough'

Libyan tank burns after being hit in a Nato airstrike (10 April 2011) Despite sustaining losses, Gaddafi forces are still a threat

Nato is not doing enough to destroy heavy weaponry used by Muammar Gaddafi's forces in Libya, France's foreign minister has said.

Libyan civilians remain at risk, Alain Juppe said, despite an ongoing bombing campaign now led by Nato.

"Nato must play its role fully. It wanted to take the lead in operations," Mr Juppe said, saying efforts so far were "not enough".

Libyan rebels opposing Col Gaddafi have been pushed back despite the air raids.

The US and other Western allies began air strikes on 19 March after UN Security Council Resolution 1973 authorised "all necessary measures" to protect civilians from Col Gaddafi's forces.

After initial sorties were flown under US command, Nato has since taken over responsibility for the campaign from Washington.

Despite this, heavy weapons are still being used to bombard the rebel-held western Libyan city of Misrata, reports say.

There are grave concerns for the humanitarian situation in Misrata and for the safety of civilians still inside the city.

"It [Nato] must play its role today which means preventing Gaddafi from using heavy weapons to shell [civilian] populations," Alain Juppe said on Tuesday.