和谐英语

您现在的位置是:首页 > 英语听力 > BBC world news

正文

BBC news 2008-01-08 加文本

2008-01-08来源:和谐英语
BBC 2008-01-08


Download Audio

BBC News, I'm Michael Poles.

The American Secretary of State, Condoleezza Rice, has warned Iran that its recent actions in the Gulf have been provocative and dangerous. In an interview with the BBC, Dr. Rice urged Iran to remember the United States had strong interests in the Gulf and would defend those interests. The Pentagon says Iranian speedboats drew up closed to three American warships in the Strait of Hormuz over the weekend, and briefly threatened to blow them up. The Americans said their ships were about to open fire when the Iranians withdrew. From Washington, Jenner Bryon reports.

"US officials say the incident was the most serious provocation of its kind. The Iranian government has described the incident as normal, a statement that brought sharp reaction from the US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. "There's nothing normal about what the Iranians did, because it was provocative and that kind of provocation is dangerous. " The reason for this latest skirmish is perplexing US officials, but it comes just days before President Bush embarks on a six-day tour of the Middle East where he will emphasize his belief that Iran remains a threat to international security. "

Reports from Australia say the Indian Cricket Board wants the dispute over allegations of racism settled within 24 hours if not otherwise it threatens to abandon the current tour. The Indians are appealing against a three-match ban imposed on their bowler, Harbhajan Singh, for making a racist remark about an Australian player. Harbhajan denies making the remark. The Indian board also wants one of the umpires at the last test match Steve Bucknor removed from the next one, they say his umpiring was substandard and cost India the match. Angry cricket fans in India have burnt effigies of the umpires.

The President of Kenya, Mwai Kibaki, has invited the opposition leader Raila Odinga for talks on Friday to discuss how to end the crisis following last month's disputed presidential election. Mr. Odinga has canceled rallies called for Tuesday to protest against alleged vote rigging in the election. Nick Miles reports.

"It now seems likely the talks will go ahead towards the end of the week. President Kibaki has invited Mr. Odinga and five of his colleagues for talks on Friday. A spokesman for the president said the meeting would be about stopping the violence, national reconciliation and sustainable peace. The Chairman of the African Union, John Kufuor, is likely to mediate the talks. But some members of the Kenyan government don't like the idea of outside intervention. A diplomatic route out of the crisis is now possible but it will be a tortuous process. "

On the last day of campaigning for the New Hampshire primary, the Democratic hopeful, Hillary Clinton, was overcome with emotion and fought back tears as she told a group of voters that the elections were not a game for her but something very personal. She was speaking as the latest opinion polls showed her main rival, Barack Obama, leading by more than ten percent. On the Republican side, polls showed John McCain several points ahead.

You're listening to the World News from the BBC.

The prosecution in the trial of the former President of Liberia, Charles Taylor, has opened his case at a special court in The Hague. Mr. Taylor is charged with supporting Sierra Leonean rebels who committed widespread atrocities in a war between 1991 and 2002. The case centers on allegations that the proceeds of diamonds illegally mined in Sierra Leone were used to buy weapons. Mr. Taylor has pleaded not guilty to all charges.

A British citizen who spent twenty years on death row in the United States has been released from jail after pleading no contests to three charges relating to the death in a fire of a two-year-old girl. Kenny Richey, who once came within an hour of being executed was freed by a court in Ohio when a judge sentenced him to the time he already served. In August, an appeals court overturned the murder conviction saying the fire might have been an accident. From Ohio, Andrew Gallagher reports.

"During a tense court hearing, relatives of Cynthia Collins, the two-year-old that was killed in 1986, made emotional statements. The girl's aunt, Valerie Binkley, told Mr. Richey, "You are fooling nobody" She then said "You will burn in hell". Under the terms of his deal, Kenny Richey has to leave the US within 24 hours. It is expected he'll arrive in Scotland sometime tomorrow. "

The Italian government says it will soon announce a speedy and radical solution to the waste disposal crisis that's been choking the southern city of Naples of more than two weeks. A spokesman for the Italian Prime Minister, Romano Prodi, said that a solution will be proposed within 24 hours. All the city's landfill sites are full and a new incinerator still hasn't opened. Correspondents say the local Mafia makes billions of dollars a year freighting waste from all over Italy to illegal dumps around Naples.

The authorities in Mexico said a ten-year-old boy glued his hand to his bed to avoid going back to school after the Christmas holidays. The boy used an industrial strength glue and it took paramedics more than two hours to free the boy with a solvent spray.

BBC News.