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Libyan air strikes may be imminent
We may be just hours away from air strikes on Colonel Gaddafi’s forces in Libya. Sources close to the emergency summit in Paris, which has brought together Britain, France, Canada, the USA, several European leaders, members of the Arab League and an African Union representative, say the air strikes could begin as early as 4pm this afternoon. Although German leader Angela Merkel has ruled out her country’s participation in military action she is at the summit, which has been called by French President Nicolas Sarkozy. In anticipation of air strikes Gaddafi appears to have gone back on his word to order a ceasefire on Friday, and has bombarded Benghazi, sending in ground forces. In the open desert, these are easy targets, but air power will be hard to apply if street fighting is taking place. Copyright © 2011 euronews

Deaths from New Zealand quake likely to rise
Rescue teams in New Zealand worked late into Wednesday night to search for survivors of the Christchurch earthquake. The number of confirmed dead remained at 75 but is expected to rise as more than 300 people are still missing. The operation was disrupted in some areas by fears that badly damaged buildings could collapse. Engineers have told police there is a significant risk that the city’s tallest building, a 26-storey hotel, could fall down, creating a disastrous domino effect. A national state of emergency has been declared after the disaster in New Zealand’s second largest city. Aftershocks are still being felt frequently. A curfew has been imposed in one area, with the army deployed to keep people away from danger. Rescue specialists from Japan are on their way to New Zealand, as are others from several countries including Britain and the US. The first Australian experts are already on the streets in Christchurch. Copyright © 2011 euronews

Lagarde: G20 imbalances deal would be ‘big step’
France’s economy minister Christine Lagarde, host of a two-day Group of 20 finance ministers meeting in Paris, has said she hopes indicators can be agreed on to address imbalances in the world economy. Lagarde said G20 countries will have made major progress this weekend if they reach a preliminary accord on what measures they will use to benchmark and address those mismatches. She also said she favoured a freer exchange rate for China’s currency, the yuan. Her remarks came amid concern that differences of opinion within the Group of 20 may prevent the finance ministers from reaching agreement at the meeting. They are looking at a five indicators on which to base judgements on whether countries should alter economic policy to redress imbalances. Lagarde told an Institute of International Finance conference that France, the G20 president this year, hoped a list of indicators could be agreed so that guidelines could be set to help make world growth more stable. “This is something which is highly debated at the moment and will be in the next couple of days, because some countries do not want to be identifiable as doing such and such a policy,” Lagarde said. The huge differences between rich and developing countries were also the focus of demonstrators near the G20 venue. They want ministers to put a tax on financial transactions to generate revenue for the poor. Copyright © 2011 euronews

Libya in chaos
The situation in Libya remains confused, chaotic and dangerous. The latest amateur video has shown just how intense the fighting was in some parts of the capital Tripoli on Monday. Tens of thousands of people are reportedly trying to flee the violence, foreigners are being evacuated and international oil companies have suspended operations in the country. The situation on the ground is hard to report because of the regime’s hostility towards the foreign media. Many of the most telling images have so far come from amateur video. Although the military has attacked demonstrators, some soldiers are defecting and supporting the people. The uprising goes beyond Tripoli, with reports that the opposition demonstrators are in control of Tobruk and Libya’s second largest city Benghazi in the north east of the country. The Libyan side of the border with Egypt is also reportedly in the hands of armed anti-Gadaffi rebels. Although impossible to verify at present, one Libyan student has told the news agency Reuters that he witnessed mercenaries from other parts of Africa opening fire on demonstrators. If you are in Libya, contact us and tell us what you see and witness. witness@euronews.net, twitter@euronews or facebook Copyright © 2011 euronews

New Zealand starts to bury earthquake dead
The New Zealand city of Christchurch on Monday started burying the victims of last week’s earthquake that killed at least 148 people. Hundreds of mourners gathered for the first funeral of the many dead: Baxtor Gowland was just five months old when he died in the tremor. Authorities say the chances of finding any more survivors are “highly unlikely.” There are still more than 50 people unaccounted for, meaning the death toll could rise to over 200. Prime Minister John Key has promised to rebuild the city so it can withstand major earthquakes. A two-minute silence will take place across New Zealand at 12.51pm local time on Tuesday, the exact time the earthquake struck. Copyright © 2011 euronews