Ebola Crisis: Alex Crawford's Special Report

In a week when the World Health Organisation declared deaths from ebola have reached over 4,000, Sky's Special Correspondent Alex Crawford gained exclusive access to a body recovery team in Liberia.

You can watch a special version of the highlights of the report, or watch the full documentary and read her full story.

Our Health Correspondent Thomas Moore looks in detail at this latest global health crisis in this Sky News special report.

:: Watch a special Sky News programme on the ebola crisis at 3.30pm today and 3.30pm on Sunday - available on skynews.com, Sky News for iPad and on Sky 501, Virgin Media 602, Freesat 202 and Freeview 132.

Video: Liberia Gripped By Ebola Virus Fear

Video: Africa Ebola Crisis: Special Report

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Ebola Exercise To Test Britain's Readiness

A national exercise is being held to test Britain's readiness for an ebola outbreak, with actors simulating symptoms of the deadly virus.

Government ministers will join dozens of medical professionals, some of whom will wear protective equipment, for the eight-hour drill in locations across the country.

Sky sources understand one of the locations that has been a part of the exercise is the Royal Victoria Infirmary in Newcastle, where a two-hour drill was conducted.

A simulated meeting of the Government's COBRA emergency committee will also be held, chaired by Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt.

Meanwhile, aid ship RFA Argus, which is to be sent to Sierra Leone next week to help fight the outbreak, has arrived in Falmouth, Cornwall, to be loaded with medical supplies before being deployed to West Africa.

It will carry three Merlin helicopters, aircrew and engineers to provide transport and support to medical teams and aid workers there.

Video: Hospital Staff Throw Gloves At PM

The exercise was ordered by David Cameron as part of the UK's contingency plan against ebola, which has killed more than 4,000 people in West Africa.

It comes after the Prime Minister was forced to defend the decision to introduce enhanced screening for the virus at major points of entry, saying it had been taken on "medical advice".

Questions have been raised about the checks, with a spokesman for Gatwick saying the airport had not been given any instructions about how the screening should be carried out.

The move was also criticised by health experts, with one describing it as a "complete waste of time", while Labour MP Keith Vaz said the lack of precise information was "shambolic".

Video: Ebola Screening Coming To The UK

Mr Cameron said: "What we do is listen to the medical advice and we act on that advice, and that's why we are introducing the screening processes at the appropriate ports and airports.

"What we are focusing on as a country is taking action right across the board to deal with this problem at source."

The Department of Health has said it will provide further details about ebola screenings at Heathrow and Gatwick airports and Eurostar terminals next week.

The department has not revealed the locations of the national exercise, although a spokeswoman said it has been planning its response to an ebola case in the UK "for many months now".

Video: Ebola Crisis: On The Front Line

"It is vital that we test these plans in as realistic a situation as possible - with real people," she said.

As well as ministers these will include hospital staff, the ambulance service and Public Health England.

The spokeswoman added: "It is important to remember that the overall risk to the public in the UK continues to be very low.

"The UK has some of the best public health protection systems in the world with well-developed and well-tested systems for managing infectious disease."

Video: How Doctors Should Deal With Ebola

:: Watch a special Sky News programme on the ebola crisis at 3.30pm today and 3.30pm on Sunday - available on skynews.com, Sky News for iPad and on Sky 501, Virgin Media 602, Freesat 202 and Freeview 132.

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Airline Boss: MH370 May Not Be In Indian Ocean

By Jonathan Samuels, Australia Correspondent

There have been plenty of conspiracy theories about what happened to missing jet MH370 but now the respected head of one of the world's leading airlines says he believes the plane was not on autopilot at the end and may not even be in the Indian Ocean.

Emirates Airlines boss Sir Tim Clark made the controversial comments in an interview with German magazine Der Spiegel.

"MH370 was, in my opinion, under control, probably until the very end," he said.

His theory goes against current thinking that the aircraft was on autopilot until it ran out of fuel and crashed into the southern Indian Ocean.

He added: "Our experience tells us that in water incidents, where the aircraft has gone down, there is always something.

Video: MH370: Plane Not In Search Area

"We have not seen a single thing that suggests categorically that this aircraft is where they say it is, apart from this so-called electronic satellite 'handshake', which I question as well."

The plane that disappeared was a Boeing 777 and Emirates operates 127 such aircraft, more than any other airline.

Sir Tim said he was suspicious of the fact that no-one seems to know where the plane ended up.

"There hasn't been one over-water incident in the history of civil aviation - apart from Amelia Earhart in 1939 - that has not been at least 5 or 10% trackable.

"But MH370 has simply disappeared. For me, that raises a degree of suspicion. I'm totally dissatisfied with what has been coming out of all of this," he told the magazine.

Sir Tim called for more transparency in the investigation.

Video: June: Families Pray 100 Days On

He said: "There is plenty of information out there, which we need to be far more forthright, transparent and candid about.

"Every single second of that flight needs to be examined up until it, theoretically, ended up in the Indian Ocean - for which they still haven't found a trace, not even a seat cushion."

Australian Danica Weeks lost her husband Paul on the flight.

In response to the comments from the respected airline chief she told Channel 9 news: "He's the man in the know so why aren't they talking to us? And what is all the silence about?"

Earlier this week the Australian Transportation Safety Bureau (ATSB) said latest analysis suggested the Malaysia Airlines flight went into a slow left turn and spiralled into the Indian Ocean when its fuel ran out.

An interim report pointed investigators towards the southern section the current search zone.

Video: June: 'Convinced Of A Cover-Up'

"MH370 remains one of the great aviation mysteries. Personally, I have the concern that we will treat it as such and move on," the airline chief told Der Spiegel.

"At the most, it might then make an appearance on National Geographic as one of aviation's great mysteries," he said.

"We mustn't allow this to happen. We must know what caused that airplane to disappear."

The next phase of the operation to locate the plane has now begun following an extensive mapping process of the ocean floor.

It is seven months since the aircraft went missing with 239 people on board.

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Thai Police: Beach Murder Confessions Stand

Thai police have said there is "concrete" evidence against two Burmese men accused of killing Hannah Witheridge and David Miller.

The British tourists were found bludgeoned to death on the island of Koh Tao last month.

Mr Miller, from Jersey, died from drowning and a blow to the head, while Miss Witheridge, from Great Yarmouth, died from head wounds.

David Miller and Hannah Witheridge

The two bar workers, named as Zaw Lin and Win Zaw Htun, have been charged with conspiracy to murder, conspiracy to rape and robbery over the attack.

Reports emerged earlier this week that a Burmese embassy official had formally retracted their confessions amid allegations the pair had been tortured.

Video: Charges Over Thailand Beach Murders

But a spokesman for the Royal Thai Police strongly denied claims of torture and suggestions the confessions had been withdrawn.

Deputy police chief spokesman Colonel Kissana Phathanacharoen said: "We had them checked by a doctor before and after the inquiry because we thought the accused may claim they were tortured. The accused persons can say anything want.

"They can withdraw their confessions if they like. We have concrete evidence including DNA evidence from Hannah's body which matched the two suspects."

Thai police have been under domestic political pressure to solve the case, amid criticism over the investigation.

Video: Thai Suspects At Beach Murder Scene

Amnesty International has called for an investigation into the torture allegations.

The charity cited a lawyer from the Burmese embassy legal team who said he had been told police had beaten the suspect and "threatened him with electrocution".

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office has said it is concerned about the reports and expects a fair investigation.

Miss Witheridge's funeral took place on Friday at St Mary The Virgin church in Hemsby, Norfolk.

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UKIP Near-Miss Will Send Biggest Shock Waves

By Jon Craig, Chief Political Correspondent

As I left the count with UKIP's deputy leader Paul Nuttall after a nail-biting night at Heywood and Middleton, he said to me: "I need a pint of Guinness!"

The Guinness and the foaming pints of bitter favoured by the UKIP leader Nigel Farage will taste especially good today after a storming by-election victory in Clacton, and a photo-finish in the safe Labour seat of Heywood and Middleton.

Douglas Carswell's comfortable victory by 12,404 votes in Clacton was predictable, but is still an ominous warning to David Cameron and the Conservatives of the damage UKIP can potentially inflict on the Tories in next year's General Election.

But Labour's near-defeat in Heywood and Middleton, clinging on by just 617 votes after a recount demanded by UKIP, has already sent shock waves through the Labour high command and will reignite the criticism of Ed Miliband's leadership inside his party.

Bad tactics, bad strategy, bad leadership, his accusers will claim.

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1. Gallery: The UKIP History In Pictures

   1993: UKIP is founded by Alan Sked in response to the Maastricht Treaty, which set out the modern day EU and paved the way for the Euro. He left the party in 1997 saying it had become a "racist party for the far-right". He is now the leader of New Deal, which has been called UKIP of the Left.

2. 1999: The party takes its first three seats in the European Parliament, under the leadership of the millionaire businessman Michael Holmes. Nigel Farage is one of those MEPs.

3. 2000: Michael Holmes resigns and Jeffrey Titford takes over as leader of UKIP. He leads the party to field 420 candidates at the 2001 General Election and secure 1.5% of the vote.

4. 2002: Former Conservative Roger Knapman takes over at the helm.

5. 2004: The party wins 12 seats at the European Elections, among the UKIP MEPs is the chat show host Robert Kilroy Silk.

6. 2005: Growing speculation Robert Kilroy Silk will take on the leadership comes to nothing and he announces he is leaving the party, calling it a "joke", setting up his own party, Veritas.

7. 2006: In a radio interview David Cameron calls UKIP members "fruitcakes, loonies and closet racists, mostly". It's the same year Nigel Farage is elected leader with 45% of the votes. Mr Farage drives an armoured vehicle to the Conservative Party Conference demanding an apology.

8. 2009: UKIP wins 13 seats at the European Elections but Mr Farage steps down as leader so he can concentrate on preparing for the General Election.

9. 2010: Nigel Farage decides to oppose House of Commons Speaker John Bercow in Buckingham - not the done thing. He fails to win the seat and goes on to reject the party's manifesto as "486 pages of drivel".

10. 2011: Ed Miliband hits the campaign trail at the Barnsley by-election (pictured) but UKIP candidate comes second to Labour, indicating the party presents a challenge to both Left and Right.

11. February 2013: Diane James wins UKIP's highest by-election showing with 27.8% of the vote at Eastleigh. The Liberal Democrats hold the seat.

12. September 2013: MEP Godfrey Bloom quits the party after provoking a row when he called women party activists, who didn't clean behind their fridges, "sluts". It came shortly after he made a reference to "bongo-bongo land".

13. May 2014: UKIP becomes the first party other than Labour or the Conservatives in more than a century to win the majority share of the vote in a UK election at the local and European elections. Mr Farage claims he delivered the "earthquake" he promised.

14. August 2014: Conservative MP Douglas Carswell announces he is defecting to UKIP triggering a by-election in Clacton.

15. September 2014: Conservative MP Mark Reckless follows Mr Carswell and defects to UKIP on the eve of the Tory party conference, triggering a by-election in Rochester and Strood.

16. October 2014: Nigel Farage announces he has parked his tanks on Labour's lawns as he joins the campaign trail in Heywood and Middleton, where a by-election is triggered by the death of the Labour MP Jim Dobbin, on the same day as the Clacton vote.

Until now, Labour has complacently assumed that UKIP could unseat Conservative MPs but merely eat into Labour majorities in its safe seats in the north of England. That assumption has now been shattered by the Heywood and Middleton result.

Make no mistake, Labour got a horrendous fright in this former northern stronghold. At the beginning of the night, senior Labour figures were confident of victory and expected to win with a comfortable majority, with UKIP in second place.

But after it was revealed that the turnout was just 36% and not in the mid-40s, as they expected, I watched as the colour drained from the faces of the Labour campaign team.

They stared at the bundles on the tables in the centre of the room and saw that they were virtually identical in size.

Video: Speech: Douglas Carswell MP

As UKIP successfully called for a recount, Mr Nuttall declared that the margin between the two parties was 620 votes. He turned out to be almost spot on.

Last week, I went to Clacton on the day Prime Minister David Cameron paid a brief visit and inspected the sea defences being built to protect the coastline against storm damage.

But in a seaside constituency with an elderly electorate, the UKIP storm was always going to blow the Tories away.

Interviewed by Anna Botting on Sky News after his victory, Mr Carswell was gracious enough to admit that Heywood and Middleton was the more significant result.

Video: Interview: Labour MP

After Clacton, though, the second UKIP defector, Mark Reckless, looks well placed to hold his Rochester and Strood seat in his by-election.

But Mr Cameron's Tory conference gag: "Go to bed with Nigel Farage and wake up with Ed Miliband", looks mistaken now.

That's because these two by-elections, held on the Prime Minister's birthday, have shown that UKIP is capable of damaging Labour as well as the Conservatives.

The lesson for Labour is that just talking about the NHS, as its Heywood and Middleton candidate Liz McInnes did, isn't enough. Voters want to hear about the economy and immigration too.

Video: Interview: Nigel Farage MEP

The lesson for the Conservatives is that trying to out-UKIP UKIP doesn't do any good. Why vote for a party copying UKIP policies when you can vote for the real thing?

The beer and Guinness enjoyed by Mr Farage and Mr Nuttall will certainly taste better than ever now.

But Mr Cameron and Mr Miliband will need a stiff drink after these two results. And their by-election hangover will last seven months, all the way to the General Election in May 2015.

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'We're After You': UKIP Claims First Elected MP

UKIP leader Nigel Farage has warned David Cameron and Ed Miliband "we're after you" after the party claimed its first elected MP by winning 12,404 votes in the Clacton by-election.

Elsewhere, the party slashed Labour's majority in Heywood and Middleton to just 617 votes, which Mr Farage hailed an "absolutely astonishing" result.

Former Conservative MP Douglas Carswell won a landslide victory in Clacton, Essex, by securing 21,113 of the 35,386 votes cast.

UKIP also forced a recount in Heywood and Middleton, where Labour's Liz McInnes narrowly defeated UKIP's John Bickley.

Mr Farage said the results showed UKIP was now "a truly national party - indeed we are the only party that can challenge in solid Tory and Labour areas".

Video: No Complacency From Labour

He went on: "I've no doubt we'll hear, 'it's just a protest vote'. It's nothing of the kind. People from across the spectrum are saying. 'we've had enough of career politics'. They want to have a proper voice in Westminster.

"From today with Douglas Carswell they have got one, and in a few weeks time I believe they will have another in the shape of Mark Reckless, with another by-election coming up in Rochester and Strood.

"What we saw last night was the biggest and best night in UKIP's history

Video: 'UKIP Vote Risks Labour Government'

"We will now take the people's army of UKIP to the Rochester and Strood, and we will give that absolutely everything we have got."

Mr Farage earlier told Sky's Faisal Islam the strong UKIP result showed the Eurosceptic party was "ripping lumps out of the old Labour vote in the north of England".

Asked if he had a message for both Mr Cameron, who turned 48 yesterday, and Mr Miliband, he replied, "we're after you", adding: "Happy Birthday to David Cameron, and Ed Miliband, you have underestimated us."

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1. Gallery: UKIP Surge In By-Election Results

   UKIP has its first elected MP after Douglas Carswell took almost 60% of the vote in the Clacton by-election.

2. Mr Carswell won the seat with a majority of 12,404 over the Tory candidate Giles Watling.

3. Liz McInnes won the seat for Labour in the Heywood and Middleton contest, but its majority of almost 6,000 in 2010 was slashed to just 617 votes.

4. On a turnout of just 36%, Ms McInnes won with 11,633 votes, defeating UKIP's John Bickley on 11,016.

5. Ed Miliband's party's majority had been almost 6,000 in 2010, but a UKIP surge saw a 17.65% swing to Nigel Farage's party.

6. A triumphant Mr Carswell said "there is nothing that we cannot achieve" after winning Clacton.

7. UKIP's first elected MP to Parliament forced the election after defecting from the Tories.

8. Mr Carswell was the favourite to win, but there were still nerves on the night.

9. Mr Carswell took almost 60% of the vote.

10. Mr Farage said: "Congratulations Douglas Carswell, a brave and honourable man who has a just reward."

11. Ms McInnes won with 11,633 votes in Heywood and Middleton, defeating Mr Bickley on 11,016.

12. Despite UKIP's loss in the Lancashire constituency, Mr Bickley told Sky News "the Labour vote had collapsed".

13. Mr Farage went on to tell Sky News: "We are ripping lumps out of the old Labour vote in the north of England. The truth of what has happened in the North today is that if you are anywhere north of Birmingham, if you vote Conservative you get Labour."

14. He added: "And the reason we haven't won up there, despite a fantastic campaign, is that too many people have stuck with the Conservatives, not recognising that UKIP is now the challenger to Labour in every urban seat in the north of England."

15. Turnout in Clacton was 51.2%, while in Heywood and Middleton it was just 36%.

Mr Cameron said UKIP's success in Clacton and better-than-expected showing in Heywood and Middleton both spoke to a "wider truth" that a vote for UKIP risked a Labour government.

"If you vote UKIP you are in danger of getting a Labour government with Ed Miliband as prime minister, Ed Balls as chancellor, and you'll get no action on immigration, no European referendum, and most importantly you won't get a continuation of the plan that's delivering success for our economy and security for our people," the Prime Minister said.

"That is the wider lesson of last night and we have several months to demonstrate that only a Conservative government can give people the stability and security that we all want to see."

Video: UKIP Finally Makes The Breakthrough

Mr Miliband, who would not be drawn on the nail-biting recount at Heywood and Middleton, said: "There won't be a shred of complacency from us as we reach out to all of those voters who didn't vote Labour and those who didn't vote at all."

He said the 2015 election was a "fight against disillusionment and despair about politics" which he was determined to win.

Mr Carswell, who triggered the Clacton by-election when he defected from the Tories, said UKIP's success revealed a "profound change in British politics".

Video: By-Election Highlights

Ms McInnes, who gained 11,633 votes in Heywood and Middleton where voter turnout fell to just 36%, said the by-election result was a win for the NHS.

Analysts said Labour's vote was damaged by the low turnout. Voter turnout was higher in Clacton, where 51.2% of voters cast their ballot.

Sky's Jon Craig said the dramatic decline of Labour's majority in Heywood would trigger further debate about Ed Miliband's leadership.

Video: Inside The UKIP Party's Party

Concerns over the result have been raised by some Labour MPs, with one branding the vote "awful" and "terrible" and a member of the shadow cabinet describing it as "very worrying".

Sky's Joey Jones said one senior MP had warned Monday's gathering of the Parliamentary Labour Party "could be an absolute bloodbath". 

Voters in Heywood cast their ballot for a new MP following the death of Labour's Jim Dobbin last month, who held the seat from 1997 and was returned in 2010 with a significant majority.

Video: Interview: Labour MP

UKIP's next target is Rochester and Strood, where defector Mr Reckless is hoping to return to Parliament following his defection.

The by-election there is expected to take place early next month.

:: Watch full coverage and reaction throughout the day on Sky News - available on skynews.com, Sky News for iPad and on Sky 501, Virgin Media 602, Freesat 202 and Freeview 132.

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Alice's Body Wrapped In Bag And Weighted Down

The inquest into murdered Alice Gross has heard the teenager's body was wrapped in a bag and weighted down in a river by logs.

Alice's mother Rosalind Hodgkiss attended the formal opening of the inquest, which also heard the 14-year-old was identified by dental records.

The inquiry at the West London Coroner's Court heard the cause of Alice's death remained unknown and further tests were ongoing.

Alice's mum attended the brief hearing

Coroner's officer John Chadwick told the court: "On September 30, as a result of a search of the River Brent, the body of Alice Gross was found by London Fire Brigade divers.

"The deceased was found submerged, wrapped in a bag and had been weighted down. Alice was pronounced life extinct at 22.45pm."

Video: 'You Have To Be Incredibly Careful'

The coroner signed forms to allow Alice's body to be released to her family.

The hearing lasted only a few minutes and was adjourned until 29 January.

Alice went missing from her home in Hanwell, west London, on 28 August.

Video: Alice: Body Found In Suspect Hunt

Just over a month later, her body was found hidden on the bed of the River Brent.

The Metropolitan Police's Deputy Commissioner, Craig Mackey, has defended the amount of time it took to find her body, saying it was a "colossal" investigation.

The body of the prime suspect, Arnis Zalkalns, was found in Boston Manor Park - a mile from where Alice's body was recovered - on October 4.

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1. Gallery: Parents 'Devastated' At Alice Death

   A post-mortem into the death of Alice Gross has proved inconclusive

2. The schoolgirl's body was found in a river in west London on October 1

3. A cordon had been put in place after the discovery of human remains in the River Brent

4. Forensic officers at the scene

5. Alice's father has changed his Facebook profile picture from a campaign poster to a field of wild flowers

6. Alice's family had made a heartfelt plea for the safe return of the missing teenager

7. Scotland Yard released new images of Alice as police staged a reconstruction of her last-known movements

8. The teenager disappeared on 28 August

9. Police received more than 1,000 calls from the public in response to appeals

10. Alice pictured with sister Nina

11. The 14-year-old had been missing for five weeks

12. Police had carried out a fingertip search around Alice's home in Hanwell, west London. This image shows officers searching the area on September 22

13. The hunt for the 14-year-old had been the biggest search operation since the 7/7 bombings in 2005

14. A dinghy was brought in to help in the search

15. Here, on September 18, forensics officers are seen in the garden of builder Arnis Zalkalns

16. Zalkalns, a Latvian national, was named as the main suspect by police after he, too, went missing from his home in Boston Manor Road, which runs between Hanwell and Brentford

17. September 8: a police diver enters the Grand Union Canal to search for the missing schoolgirl

18. September 7: Police search the River Brent, near Hanwell

19. A missing persons flyer is attached to a lamppost in central London

22. Alice was seen on CCTV at Brentford Lock

23. Arnis Zalkalns was seen on CCTV in the same area

The Latvian vanished from his flat in Ealing a week after Alice is thought to have been abducted and murdered while walking home along a canal towpath.

Zalkalns was filmed cycling along the same route behind Alice on the day she went missing.

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Angelina Jolie Receives Damehood From The Queen

The Queen has presented Angelina Jolie with an honorary damehood during a private audience at Buckingham Palace.

The Oscar-winning actress was recognised in the Diplomatic Service and Overseas Birthday 2014 Honours list and received the honorary damehood (DCMG) for services to UK foreign policy and the campaign to end war-zone sexual violence.

After the presentation, her husband Brad Pitt and their six children were presented to the Queen.

The award was first announced in June as Jolie co-chaired the End Sexual Violence in Conflict (ESVC) global summit in London with then foreign secretary William Hague.

At the time she said of the honour: "To receive an honour related to foreign policy means a great deal to me, as it is what I wish to dedicate my working life to.

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1. Gallery: Hollywood's Golden Couple - Pitt And Jolie

   Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt got married at a chateau in the south of France

2. Special UN envoy Jolie and Pitt attend the Global Summit to End Sexual Violence in Conflict in London on June 13, 2014

3. Jolie and Pitt attend the Bafta Awards at The Royal Opera House on February 16, 2014

4. The couple, accompanied by their children, arrive at Haneda International Airport in Tokyo in July 2013

5. Jolie poses with Pitt at the world premiere of his film World War Z in London in June 2013

6. Attending the Cinema For Peace Gala ceremony at the Konzerthaus Am Gendarmenmarkt at the 62nd Berlin International Film Festival in February 2012

7. Jolie and Pitt with the actor's parents, Bill and Jane Pitt, at the after party for the premiere of In The Land Of Blood And Honey in December 2011 in New York

8. The look of love - at the world premiere of The Tourist at the Ziegfeld Theatre in December 2010 in New York

9. The couple visit refugees in the village of Medjedja, near the eastern Bosnian town of Visegrad, 70km (43 miles) east of Sarajevo in April 2010

10. At a screening of the Quentin Tarantino film Inglourious Basterds in May 2009

11. The stars at the Critics' Choice Awards in January 2009

12. Signing autographs at The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button premiere in Berlin in January 2009

13. Jolie and Pitt arrive at the screening of Kung Fu Panda in Cannes in May 2008

14. At the Screen Actors Guild awards in January 2008

15. Attending the premiere of God Grew Tired Of Us in January 2007 in Los Angeles

16. Pitt and Jolie arrive at the Golden Globe Awards at the Beverly Hilton in January 2007

17. Jolie holds daughter Zahara as Pitt carries son Maddox during a stroll on the seafront promenade at the historic Gateway of India outside their hotel in Mumbai in November 2006

18. The stars ride on a scooter on a busy street in central Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam in November 2006

19. Jolie and Pitt leave Hotel Belvedere in Davos in January 2006 while attending the World Economic Forum

"Working on the Preventing Sexual Violence Initiative and with survivors of rape is an honour in itself."

The Tomb Raider and Maleficent star's work as a committed humanitarian runs parallel to her career as a leading actress who has been a huge box office draw for more than a decade.

US Secretary of State John Kerry praised her humanitarian efforts after news of the award in June, describing her as as a "fierce and fearless advocate'' and he said her dedication to campaigning could overtake her successful film career as her lasting legacy.

Video: June: Jolie Hosts War Rape Summit

Jolie is also special envoy of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees.

The leading lady joins the ranks of many acting greats who have received damehoods, including Judi Dench, Julie Andrews, Angela Lansbury, Helen Mirren and Maggie Smith.

The 39-year-old star has previously won an Academy Award, two Screen Actors Guild Awards, and three Golden Globe Awards, and was named Hollywood's highest-paid actress by Forbes in 2009, 2011, and 2013.

Video: May 2014: Jolie On World 'Horrors'

The actress will not be able to call herself a Dame as she is an American citizen but can use the initials of the award after her name.

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Nick Clegg's Speech As It Happened

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Terror Arrests May Have Foiled Major Plot

Four men have been arrested on suspicion of terrorism offences in a series of raids, during which one suspect was Tasered.

The men - all aged 20 or 21 - were detained by officers from the Metropolitan Police's Counter Terrorism Command at addresses across London as part of an investigation into Islamist terror activities.

Officers believe the raids disrupted what could have been a "significant plot", according to a Whitehall source quoted by the Press Association.

The 21-year-old who was Tasered during his arrest did not require medical treatment, Scotland Yard said. 

"SO15 officers were assisted in the execution of warrants at one of the addresses by officers from the Specialist Firearms Command (SCO19). No shots were fired," police said in a statement.

"A number of residential addresses and vehicles are being searched by specialist officers in west and central London as part of the investigation. The searches are ongoing.

"These arrests and searches are part of an ongoing investigation into Islamist-related terrorism."

All four suspects have been taken to police stations in central London and remain in custody.

Sky News correspondent Mark White explained: "The information that we're getting from sources suggests that this was an early disruption of what might have been a significant plot had it been allowed to come to fruition.

"There has been a change in recent months in the way that the authorities will approach these plots... the authorities no longer have the luxury of following a terror group that might be buying the ingredients for an explosive device and conspiring among themselves for many months.

"These plots can spring up so quickly that the police have to intervene at a very early stage and that might mean that, at the end of the day, they don't get enough evidence that they can put before the court.

"But that's the trade off - disrupting plots and safeguarding the public at the expense, perhaps, of a trial further down the line."

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