Putin: Ukraine Should Surrender In Debaltseve

Russian President Vladimir Putin has urged the Ukrainian government to allow its soldiers to surrender to pro-Moscow rebels who are laying siege to the key transport hub of Debaltseve.

Intense fighting has continued in Debaltseve despite a ceasefire deal brokered in Minsk during four-party talks last week.

Pro-Russian rebels have taken Ukrainian troops as prisoners in the town and encircled thousands of others.

Mr Putin said Kiev should allow its soldiers to surrender, and warned the government not to "hinder soldiers in the Ukrainian army from putting down their weapons".

Debaltseve is a strategically important town in eastern Ukraine

"If they aren't capable of taking that decision themselves and giving that order, then (I hope) that they won't prosecute people who want to save their lives and the lives of others," he said.

Mr Putin added that he hopes the rebels will allow Ukrainians to return to their families after they surrender.

Video: Mortar Fire Explodes Gas Pipeline

Artillery rounds have reportedly been rocking the town of Debaltseve every five seconds and black smoke has been seen rising into the skies.

The rebels claim last week's ceasefire agreement does not apply in Debaltseve, a railway hub in a pocket between the two main rebel-held areas.

Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko has called the rebel operation in Debaltseve a "cynical attack on the Minsk agreement".

During a phone conversation with German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Tuesday, Mr Poroshenko called for the European Union and the international community to take a "tough reaction against the treacherous actions of the rebels and Russia".

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1. Gallery: Debaltseve Has Become Centre Of Ukraine Conflict

   Ukrainian armed forces take up positions near the eastern town of Debaltseve.

A ceasefire came into effect on Sunday, but fighting has continued in Debaltseve, where pro-Russian rebels claim to have surrounded thousands of Ukrainian fighters.

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Energy: Big Six Profit From Switching Failure

A competition inquiry into the energy market has found suppliers routinely charging loyal customers up to £234 more per year.

The Competition and Markets Authority's (CMA) update on its continuing probe into the sector also contained criticism of the energy regulator's powers - as reported by Sky News on Tuesday evening - saying excessive regulation at Ofgem may be creating barriers to new market entrants.

The key finding in the CMA's updated Issues Statement for consumers concerned the power of switching supplier, with the regulator declaring that long-term customers - many of them vulnerable - were paying a higher price for failing to move between energy companies.

It said 95% of dual fuel customers of the so-called big six suppliers could have saved an average of between £158 and £234 a year by switching.

It found that the big six, British Gas, SSE, Scottish Power, E.ON, npower and EDF, earned 12% more from a customer on a standard - instead of fixed - dual fuel tariff.

Video: Should You Trust Comparison Sites?

The report stated: "The evidence that we have seen to date also suggests that the gross margins that the six large energy firms earn are higher for customers on the SVT (Standard Variable Tariff) than for those on non-standard tariffs over the last three years." 

While the Issues Statement does not contain any formal conclusions by the CMA, the ongoing designation of industry regulation as a key focus will embarrass Ofgem at a time when its leadership is under intense political pressure.

Labour has vowed to freeze prices for 20 months if it wins the General Election in May, a pledge which sparked fury among big six suppliers.

They recently cut standard gas tariffs by up to 5.1% in response to a 30% dip in wholesale prices but argue raw energy makes up less than 50% of a bill and they have to pay up to three years up front for their supplies.

They point to the growing cost of green levies and network costs.

Crucially for the big six suppliers, the CMA found that their average profit margin across gas and electricity was 3.3%, with gas being the more profitable of the two.

But the report questions whether the market is working for consumers as almost half of households have been with the same supplier for more than 10 years.

This week, the Government launched a campaign with the slogan "Power To Switch", which is designed to encourage consumers to shop around to find cheaper energy deals.

Provisional findings of the CMA's inquiry will be published in May.

It is expected to stop short of recommending that the big six firms split their generation and supply arms - as some critics have demanded - to give greater clarity on profits.

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Rail Passengers Frustrated By Poor Service

By Katie Spencer, Sky News Reporter

Rail travellers on busy commuter routes say they are frustrated by delays and bad service, with less than half of passengers on some lines saying they are satisfied with their journeys.

A survey carried out by the consumer group Which? found services from England's South East into London are the most likely to be delayed.

Travellers on the Southern train company reported experiencing the most delays, while those least satisfied with their service were customers with the Thameslink and Great Northern / First Capital Connect routes.

Only 44% of customers with Southeastern said they were satisfied with their journeys, and Southern and Abellio Greater Anglia scored only 46%.

The results were based on responses from 7,309 travellers who were asked about journeys they had taken in the 12 months ending in November 2014.

Areas covered included availability of seating, cleanliness of toilets and carriages, as well as punctuality and value for money.

Travellers were also asked if they had experienced a delay on the last journey they had taken with their train company.

It comes as official figures show rail passengers are paying more for services, while Government funding is falling.

A report by the Office of Rail Regulation shows commuters are contributing an increasing amount to the cost of running the railways.

Official figures show the amount passengers are contributing to the funding of the railways stood at £8.6bn in 2013/14 - an increase of more than 6% on the previous year.

In the same period, the level of Government funding was just £3.8 billion, a fall of 8%.

Funding per passenger journey works out to be far less in England than it is in Scotland and Wales.

In England it works out to be £1.88 per passenger journey, whereas in Scotland it's £7.77, and £9.18 in Wales.

Alex Neill, director of campaigns for Which?, told Sky News: "We found commuters are really unhappy with the service they're getting.

"Seven of the 21 providers that we looked at scored less than 50%, which is a pretty poor result.

"People are fed up with overcrowded trains that are dirty, generally late and that are not good value for money."

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Egypt Bombs Islamic State Targets In Libya

Egypt's military says it has bombed Islamic State (IS) targets in Libya, a day after the group released a video purporting to show the beheading of 21 Egyptians.

The attack focused on camps, training sites and weapons storage areas across Egypt's border with Libya.

A spokesman for the Armed Forces General Command said it was "to avenge the bloodshed and to seek retribution from the killers".

"Let those far and near know that Egyptians have a shield that protects them," the statement added.

State television broadcast footage of fighter jets it said were taking off to conduct the airstrikes.

Video: How IS Control Could Increase

The strikes come after video emerged showing 21 handcuffed hostages dressed in orange jumpsuits being murdered by militants identified as being from the Tripoli Province of IS.

Britain's Prime Minister David Cameron described the killings as "a cruel and barbaric act", adding: "We will not waver in our fight against terrorists and extremism."

White House spokesman Josh Earnest described the act as "despicable and cowardly".

In the aftermath, Egypt's president, Abdel Fattah al Sisi, threatened to carry out a "suitable" punishment.

As well as the Egyptian airstrikes, Libya's air force also said it had launched airstrikes in the eastern city of Darna, which was taken over by an IS affiliate last year.

Saqer al Joroushi said the strikes by war planes loyal to the official government had been coordinated with Egypt and more would follow on Monday and Tuesday.

In January, the IS branch in Libya claimed it had abducted 21 Egyptian Christians.

The country's foreign ministry confirmed at the time that 20 Egyptians had been kidnapped in two separate incidents in Libya.

Relatives of those kidnapped have gathered in Cairo in recent days to call for the hostages to be released.

Egypt's Copts are the largest Christian community in the Middle East and are estimated to account for around 10% of the country's population.

Thousands of Egyptians have headed to Libya to work since the Egyptian uprising in 2011, despite government advice that they should stay away from the country.

The killings raise the possibility that the militants have established a direct affiliate less than 500 miles (800km) from the southern tip of Italy.

One of the fighters in the video makes a direct reference to this, saying the group now plans to "conquer Rome".

IS already controls around a third of Iraq and Syria in a self-declared caliphate.

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Tensions In Ukraine As Truce Deadline Passes

A ceasefire deadline has passed in Ukraine - but both sides are accusing each other of violating the deal.

Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko ordered government forces to stop firing at 10pm UK time on Saturday, under a plan agreed in Belarus this week.

"I give now the order to the armed forces of Ukraine... to cease fire at 00:00 hours on February 15," he said, while sitting alongside armed forces chief of staff Viktor Muzhenko.

"I very much hope that the last chance to begin the long and difficult peaceful process for a political settlement will not be wasted."

Intense fighting continued around Debaltseve on Saturday

The military said Ukrainian armed forces immediately fulfilled Mr Poroshenko's order and guns fell silent in Donetsk and some other parts of the country's east.

Under the peace agreement, both Ukrainian forces and Russian-backed separatist rebels were to hold their fire, before pulling back their heavy weaponry to form a wide buffer zone.

Video: Can Ukraine Peace Deal Succeed?

There were reports of continued fighting and movement of military vehicles right up to the deadline, and after it had passed government forces and rebels said there were violations in the first few hours.

A Ukraine military spokesman has said rebels shelled its positions 10 times after the truce began, but that the ceasefire is being observed "in general".

Mr Poroshenko admitted there was "alarm" over the situation around the key transport hub of Debaltseve, where government forces have been hard pressed by Russian-backed separatists.

During the day on Saturday, intense fighting continued around the strategic government-held area.

Video: Ceasefire Deal In Ukraine Conflict

Earlier in the week, Russian President Vladimir Putin said 8,000 Ukrainian soldiers were besieged by separatists around the town and would have to lay down their weapons before the ceasefire started.

Rebels told the Associated Press news agency they will not consider any battles for the town to be a violation of the ceasefire.

The intensity of the fighting around Debaltseve and elsewhere raises doubts about whether the ceasefire will hold.

The White House said President Barack Obama spoke to Mr Poroshenko and German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Saturday and expressed concern about the violence.

Video: Poroshenko Wary Of Truce Agreement

The French presidency said Mr Putin reaffirmed in a phone call with his French and German counterparts on Saturday that the ceasefire must be respected.

Mrs Merkel, French President Francois Hollande and Mr Putin all confirmed "the need for the ceasefire scheduled for midnight to be effective", the Elysee Palace said.

"Putin said the rebels were ready for the ceasefire," it added.

The statement also said the three leaders will speak by phone with Mr Poroshenko on Sunday to take stock of the ceasefire.

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Suspect In Two Deadly Danish Attacks Is Killed

Police believe the man they shot dead near a Copenhagen train station had carried out two fatal attacks hours earlier in the city.

Danish officers said they had killed the man after he opened fire on them close to Norrebro Station.

They said CCTV indicated he was responsible for an attack at a cafe on Saturday afternoon and another at a synagogue just hours later that happened just two miles apart.

There is nothing to suggest there were other gunmen involving in the shootings that left two people dead and five police officers wounded, according to investigator Joergen Skov.

A wounded policeman in front of the synagogue (Pic: @rtridder)

The attack at the city's main synagogue in Krystalgade just after midnight UK time saw one man die after being shot in the head and two policemen also shot, one in the arm and the other in the leg.

A major manhunt had already underway after an earlier attack, in which one man was killed and three police officers injured when a gunman opened fire at a cafe where a meeting on free speech was taking place.

Video: Location Of Copenhagen Shootings

Danish Prime Minister Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt described the assault on the seminar as "a terrorist attack", while the United States called it "deplorable".

The Copenhagen attacks had echoes of last month's Paris shootings, where Islamist gunmen targeted the offices of the Charlie Hebdo satirical magazine and a kosher supermarket.

The chairman of the Nordic Jewish Security Council, Michael Gelvan, told AFP news agency that the man shot dead at the synagogue was Jewish.

He described the victim as a "young man", who he said had been responsible for "access control" at the place of worship.

Police had earlier said the gunman responsible for the synagogue attack fled on foot, and urged people in the centre of the city to remain indoors.

Video: Three Shot At Denmark Synagogue

Sky News cameraman Pete Milnes, who was in a hotel next to the synagogue when the shootings took place, said: "There was a succession of about six or seven gunshots.

"Within a minute or so, armed police were on the scene, a helicopter was hovering overhead. I witnessed police apprehend an individual who was handcuffed and later released.

"There was 20 to 30 armed police officers with semi-automatic rifles shouting at locals to stay indoors and close windows."

He said the scene was now calmer.

"There's probably a dozen or so armed officers and a few detectives with sniffer dogs who seem to be combing the area ... and lifting drain covers," he said.

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1. Gallery: Two Killed In Shootings At Cafe And Synagogue

   Two people have been killed and five officers were injured in two shootings in the Danish capital Copenhagen

Police believe the same man was responsible for the attacks at a cafe and synagogue. He was later shot dead by officers near one of the city's train station after reportedly opening fire on them

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Obese Could Lose Benefits Unless They Diet

By Jon Craig, Chief Political Correspondent

Obese people could lose benefits if they refuse to diet, under a £500m crackdown on disability handouts ordered by David Cameron.

Drug addicts and alcoholics could also lose benefits if they refuse treatment that would help them get a job, in a move aimed at stopping people claiming as a "lifestyle" choice.

"Too many people are stuck on sickness benefits because of issues that could be addressed but instead are not," said the Prime Minister.

"Some have drug or alcohol problems, but refuse treatment.

"In other cases people have problems with their weight that could be addressed, but instead a life on benefits rather than work becomes the choice.

"It is not fair to ask hardworking taxpayers to fund the benefits of people who refuse to accept the support and treatment that could help them get back to a life of work.

"The next Conservative government is determined to make sure that the hardest to help get the support they need to get them back to a fulfilling life."

Ministers estimate there are almost 100,000 people claiming sickness benefits on the grounds of treatable conditions such as drug or alcohol addiction, or obesity.

At present, there is no requirement for such people to undertake treatment, meaning it is possible to claim without making efforts at recovery.

Of the 2.5 million claiming sickness benefits, about 1.5 million have been claiming for more than five years.

Mr Cameron says he has asked Professor Dame Carol Black to undertake a rapid review in to how best to help those suffering from long-term yet treatable conditions back in to work.

"In particular, I have asked her to consider whether people should face the threat of a reduction in benefits if they refuse to engage with a recommended treatment plan," he said.

"It is vital that people who would benefit from treatment get the medical help they need."

Professor Black, a leading Government adviser on health, work and welfare, said: "I am deeply interested in trying to overcome the challenges these types of benefit claimants pose. 

"These people, in addition to their long-term conditions and lifestyle issues, suffer the great disadvantage of not being engaged in the world of work, such an important feature of society."

Explaining the reasons for the threat to axe benefits from the obese, drug addicts and alcoholics, a Government source said: "As well as the unwarranted expense, this represents an unproductive waste of human potential."

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