Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Monday 7 Mar 2011

Our popular news catch-up service is posted Monday to Friday at 8.00 am. You can rely on it to keep you up to date through the working day with the main news talking points. HAGUE AUTHORISED BOTCHED SAS LIBYA MISSIONForeign secretary William Hague has told the House of Commons that the capture of an SAS team in Libya was the result of a "serious misunderstanding". His statement came after the government confirmed that Hague had personally authorised the botched mission into Libya, which ended in humiliation when the men were captured. They were subsequently released and flown to HMS Cumberland off the Libyan coast. What they are saying about the failed mission PRINCE ANDREW has Cameron's full confidenceA spokesman has said prime minister David Cameron has full confidence in Prince Andrew and his role as Britain's trade envoy will not be reviewed. The comment contradicts earlier claims that the Duke of York faced a downgrade in his duties because of his links with the paedophile billionaire Jeffrey Epstein. The Daily Telegraph today claims Epstein paid off debts owed by Prince Andrew's former wife Sarah, the Duchess of York. MANNING STRIPPED NAKED, CLAIMS LAWYERBradley Manning, the soldier currently imprisoned on suspicion of passing US state secrets to WikiLeaks, is being ritually humiliated by being forced to strip naked in his cell every night and forced to attend morning roll call naked, according to his lawyer. He is allegedly being punished for a flippant remark about his ability to commit suicide using elastic from his underwear. Matthew Carr: Persecuting Bradley Manning is a futile gesture BARCLAYS BOSS DIAMOND GETS £6.5m bonusBarclays chief executive Bob Diamond got a bonus of £6.5m in 2010, on top of his £250,000 salary. The sum was awarded for his performance as head of Barclays' investment banking and wealth management operations, the bank said in its remuneration report. The report also revealed that 231 of the bank's top earners were paid £554m last year. Diamond scoops £6.5m bonus BLACK AFRICANS 'FORCED TO FIGHT' FOR GADDAFIFighting between troops loyal to Muammar Gaddafi and the opposition is continuing in Libya. The coastal town of Bin Jawad fell to pro-Gaddafi forces on Monday, and air strikes were reported in the oil refinery town of Ras Lanuf, 60 miles east. Meanwhile Reuters has reported that black African migrants are being forced to fight for Gaddafi, according to refugees who have made it to Tunisia. KATE MIDDLETON CHOOSES MCQUEEN PROTEGESarah Burton, creative director of Alexander McQueen, is widely reported to have been chosen to design Kate Middleton's wedding dress. Burton, 36, was a long-time protege of the designer, and took over the label following McQueen's suicide last year. She was selected by Middleton, who is keen to have an active role in the design. GERMAN MINISTER IN ISLAM ROWGermany's new interior minister has said that Islam "does not belong" in Germany - a country with a resident population of four million Muslims. Within a week of his appointment by Angela Merkel, Hans-Peter Friedrich has reignited the simmering debate over immigration. He insisted that immigrants ought to be aware of their host country's "Western Christian origins" and learn German "first and foremost". US ASKS SAUDIS TO HELP BENGHAZI REBELSAmerica has asked Saudi Arabia if it can supply weapons to the Libyan rebels in Benghazi, according to the Independent. The Saudi Kingdom has so far failed to respond to Washington's highly classified request, although King Abdullah personally loathes the Libyan leader, who tried to assassinate him just over a year ago. PROTECT CHRISTIANS, ARCHBISHOP WARNSThe Archbishop of Canterbury has accused the Pakistan government of failing to protect Shahbaz Bhatti, the country's only Christian minister, who was murdered last week. Writing in the Times, Rowan Williams demands that the Pakistani authorities do more to shield Christians from persecution by Islamist extremists. JACQUES CHIRAC FACES TRIALAfter decades of dodging sleaze allegations, Jacques Chirac is due to appear in the dock this week, the first former French president since Marshal Petain to face criminal charges. A Paris court will examine the case of the "bogus jobs", a party-funding corruption scandal dating back to Chirac's time as mayor of Paris in the 1990s.

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