BBC 2007-05-13 加文本

BBC 2007-05-13


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BBC World News with John Jason.

Pakistan has seen its worst day of political violence in years when a rally for the country's most senior judge sparks street battles between his supporters and those of President Pervez Musharraf. At least 34 people were killed during the fighting in the city of Karachi. The chief justice, Iftikhar Mohummad Chaudhry, who's been suspended by General Musharraf for alleged wrong doing, abandoned his plan to address the rally and returned to the capital Islamabad. General Musharraf blamed Mr. Chaudhry for the violence. But the former Pakistani prime minister Nawaz Sharif blamed the president:
"This was the worst form of state terrorism that we have witnessed in Karachi today at the behest of President Musharraf, and this terrorism in Karachi was a pre-planned event and the real face of dictatorship has been exposed today."

The American vice president Dick Cheney has met King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia on the latest stage of his week-long tour of the Middle East. The two men were expected to discuss possible Saudi help in bringing stability to Iraq. Mr. Cheney is the most senior US official to visit the country since King Abdullah denounced what he called the illegal foreign occupation of Iraq.

The United States military in Iraq has organized an air and ground search south of Baghdad for a number of soldiers who were missing after a lethal attack on their convoy. Seven American soldiers and an Iraqi interpreter were attacked early Saturday in an area said to be a stronghold of Sunni insurgents, five of them were killed. Jame Shore reports:
"According to the US military the first information about the incident came from an unmanned spy plane which spotted two burning vehicles 20 kilometers west of Mamuhdiyah just before five this morning local time. Within an hour, troops arrived at the scene and found the bodies of five soldiers. A huge operation is now going on to locate the other three men. Checkpoints have been set up on roads leading from the area and west into Anbar to prevent the soldiers being taken to an insurgents' base.

Hundreds of thousands of people have demonstrated on the streets of Rome against the plan by the Italian government to grant homosexual couples legal status. "The day of the family", organized by the Roman Catholic church, drew people from all over Italy, who came to hear speakers in favor of traditional families. A smaller counter-demonstration on a prayer vigil by gay Christians have also been held. The protest took place three months after a proposal by the Italian government to permit civil unions for gay couples.

Chinese officials say they have arrested a man who they believe try to set fire to a giant portrait of Chairman Mao, which hangs in Tiananmen Square in Beijing. The Chinese news agency said the unemployed man from the northwest region of Xinjiang had been detained. News agency photo showed scorch marks at the bottom of the picture.

World News from the BBC.

The emergency relief coordinator of the United Nations has visited Somalia where he asked President Abdullahi Yusuf to do more to help get aid to people in need. John Homes, who is the highest ranking UN official to visit Mogadishu for ten years, said it was unlikely that more peacekeepers would be sent to Somalia until the government improved security:
"I hope very much the peace and stability can be restored fully. What that actually need is proper political reconciliation between the transitional government and other forces in the country, that's what we international community has been urging on the transitional government, it's what I repeated to them this day. I hope very much our strengthening wish will now go."

The International Press Institute, the world's oldest media organization devoted to freedom of expression, has again appealed for the release of BBC Gaza correspondent Alan Johnstan. It's exactly two months since he was abducted. Meanwhile, the Arabic Television Station Algezaria has broadcast a new appeal by the Anglican bishop of York John Sentamu:
"He has lived in Gaza for 3 years, and got to understand local people, and really in a very dangerous position as well as reported the news as it is on the ground. And without him being there, without our journalist of his quality, some of the news isn't getting out."

Russia's ambassador to the United Nations has said his country would not hold any further talks on the draft Security Council resolution concerning independence for Kosovo, until after next week's visit to Moscow by the US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. The ambassador said the draft submitted on Friday by the United States and EU was unacceptable.

Voting has been taking place in the 52nd Euro vision song contest in the Finish capital Helsinki, the biggest non-sporting television event in the world, at least a hundred million people being watching. Euro vision is watched equally for its often kitchen musical stars and voting is sometimes appears to be influenced by regional decisions. Serbia was the winner.