BBC news 2008-07-08 加文本

BBC News with Mary Small

A court in the West African state of Equatorial Guinea has sentenced former British army officer Simon Mann to 34 years in prison for his involvement in a plot to overthrow the government. Mr. Mann had admitted guilt but argued he was not the main conspirator. During his trial, he implied that the plot received tacit approval from South Africa and Spain, the former colonial power. Will Ross reports.

Simon Mann showed little emotion as the judge gave his ruling. Although he can appeal for a shorter sentence, the former British soldier's best hope is for a pardon from the very person he tried to overthrow, the President of Equatorial Guinea, Teodoro Obiang Nguema. It was somewhat surprising that the sentence was even longer than the prosecution had called for, at 34 years and four months. Simon Mann had hoped for leniency after helping the prosecutor do his job by providing documents relating to the bungled coup.

The former hostage held by Colombian rebels for six years, Ingrid Betancourt, says she won't rule out standing for president again. But Ms. Betancourt, who was kidnapped by the FARC while campaigning for the presidency, told the BBC she may find other ways to serve her country. Earlier, she urged Colombians including President Alvaro Uribe to tone down, what she called, the rhetoric against the rebels who kidnapped her.

"I think we have reached a point where we must change this radical, extremist vocabulary of hate of very strong words that intimately wound the human being."

A new report on the use of biofuel says their introduction should be slowed because of the possible impact on food prices and the environment. The report says that without proper controls, biofuel production should contribute to higher food prices. The British Transport Secretary, Ruth Kelly, said the production could also have a negative impact on the environment.

"There is a risk that the uncontrolled expansion and use of biofuels could lead to unsustainable changes in land use, such as the destruction of the rainforest to make way for the production of crops. This might, in turn, actually increase greenhouse gas emissions as well as contributing to higher food prices and shortages.

The head of the World Bank, Robert Zoellick, told G8 leaders meeting in Japan that governments should cut subsidies for biofuels that resulted in less food being grown.

The UN Security Council has strongly condemned the suicide car bombing outside the Indian embassy in the Afghan capital Kabul, which killed 41 people and wounded nearly 150. The Interior Ministry in Kabul said the attack had been coordinated with, what it called, an active intelligence service in the region, a reference, correspondent say, to Pakistan. India's military attache, another senior diplomat and two other Indian nationals were among those killed in the morning rush hour explosion.

You are listening to World News from the BBC. (Www.hxen.net)

A series of explosions has injured more than 20 people in the streets of the southern Pakistani city of Karachi. Police say at least five small blasts went off within about an hour of each other. The security forces have been on high alert following a suicide bombing in Islamabad a day earlier that had killed 18 people. But a police chief said that the primary aim of the low-intensity Karachi blasts had appeared to be, to sow fear.

A senior British security official has told the BBC that there are very strong indications that the poisoning in London two years ago, the former Russianintelligence officer, Alexander Litvinenko, was a state action. A fierce critic of Vladimir Putin, Mr. Litvinenko died after exposure to radioactive polonium. Britain has accused another former KGB agent Andrei Lugovoi of carrying out the poisoning.

The Srbian Parliament has approved a coalition government that has made joining the European Union a priority. The Prime Minister Mirko Cvetkovic said he wanted Serbia to join the EU by the end of the government's mandate. He said becoming a member of the bloc would enable Serbia become a fully-fledged member of the international community.

Police in Iraq say they foiled an attempt to smuggle out of the country vintage and classic cars formerly belonging to one of Saddam Hussein's sons. The five cars including two Rolls Royces were once the property of Uday Hussein and are said to have been looted from his residence after the American-led invasion five years ago. Andrew Bolton reports.

Police say the cars were discovered concealed in an orchard in the Dora neighborhood of Baghdad. They had apparently been hidden there for years. The police say they were told of the plot to smuggle the cars out of the country in a tip-off and three people were arrested. Uday Hussein and his brother Qusay were killed in the gun battle with American troops in 2003. Both men were known for their brutality. Uday in particular was infamous in addition for his playboy life style.

BBC News.