BBC news 2009-01-03 加文本

BBC News with John Jason.

The United Nations says the Israeli military has stepped up its offensive against the leadership of the Hamas organization in Gaza, targeting the homes of about 25 Hamas officials in its latest air strikes. The UN says most of those in the firing line were warned that they were about to be hit. In response, Palestinian militants fired more than 60 rockets into southern Israel. Matthew Price reports from UN headquarters in New York.

The UN says the week-long bombardment of Gaza has worsened the humanitarian crisis there. In all, it says, up to 421 people may have been killed and more than 2,000 injured, though, it says, it cannot confirm those figures. For 18 months, the crowded coastal strip has been largely sealed off from the world. Israel has tightly controlled movement to and from Gaza ever since Hamas, the elected leaders, seized military control of the territory.

In his first public address since the start of the Israeli bombardment, the exiled leader of Hamas Khaled Meshaal has warned against any Israeli ground offensive. Mr. Meshaal, who is based in Damascus, said a black destiny awaited Israeli forces if they invaded the Gaza Strip. “Gaza will throw you into the sea of defeat, failure and bankruptcy. As for you, the soldiers of the enemy, whose commanders are preparing you to into Gaza in a land invasion, you must know that a black destiny is waiting for you and you will either be killed, injured or imprisoned.

Iraqi police say a suicide bomber has blew himself up at a meeting of Sunni Arab tribal leaders south of Baghdad, killing up to 30 people. About 100 others were injured. A security spokesman said the attacker was a relative of the host and had been able to enter the house through the back door.

The first commercial flight between Europe and Iraq in at least 17 years has landed at Baghdad airport. The Swedish-based company that operates the plane says it expects to fly to the Iraqi capital once a week. The Iraqi national carrier, Iraqi Airways, has said it hopes to start flying routes to Europe within months.

European countries are beginning to feel the effects of Russia’s decision to cut gas supplies to Ukraine, despite earlier Russian assurances that it wouldn’t affect them. The Czech presidency of the European Union has demanded the gas supplies to resume immediately to EU member states following pressure drops in Romania, Poland and Hungary. Ferran Tarradellas, the spokesman for the EU Energy Commissioner, said they were in close consultation with Russia and Ukraine to find out why gas supplies had been reduced. “First, we have to identify which are the real causes of this production of pressure because they could be caused by different reasons and we are in close contact with Ukrainians and Russians to know exactly what the reasons are. I have to say at this point we don't have a clear picture of that, but our consultations continue.

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Votes are being counted in the last constituency to go to the polls in Ghana’s presidential run-off election. The governing party boycotted Friday’s ballots, saying conditions were not free and fair. The BBC correspondent in Accra says the government’s candidate Nana Akufo-Addo now has no realistic chance of winning the over-all election having begun the day behind the opposition leader John Atta-Mills. President John Kufuor has urged both leaders to respect the outcome.

A Portuguese woman thought to be the oldest person in the world has died at the age of 115. Maria de Jesus was born in a deprived region of central Portugal in 1893. Rob Norris reports.

Maria de Jesus worked in the field from the age of 12 and never went to school. She remained unable to read or write for her entire life although she tried to start learning when she reached the age of 100. Her 84-year-old daughter who lived with her said she never took any medication and remained active until recently. She avoided meats and preferred to eat fish and vegetables. She enjoyed sun bathing on her porch and refused to go into an old people’s home. She outlived her husband by 57 years and had six children and 11 grandchildren.

The Sri Lankan government says its troops have captured the town of Kilinochchi from Tamil Tigers rebels who had been held for 10 years as the rebels’ administrative headquarters. President Mahinda Rajapaksa called it an unparalleled victory, shortly afterwards a suicide bomber attacked the air force headquarters in the capital Colombo.(www.hxen.net)

The Roman Catholic Church in Cuba says mass has been celebrated in prisons for the first time since the Cuban Revolution 50 years ago. Five bishops held mid-night Christmas mass for inmates in jails across the country. It’s not known whether political prisoners were allowed to attend the services. Correspondents say inmates were allowed to receive pastor visits but priests have not previously been allowed to say mass.

BBC News.