BBC news 2009-05-09 加文本

BBC 2009-05-09


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BBC News with Cathy Clarkson

The White House official who authorized a controversial photo opportunity which involved flying the Presidential jet Air Force One over New York has resigned. President Obama accepted Louis Caldera’s resignation after an inquiry into the incident which sparked panic in New York. Kevin Connolly reports.

When a Boeing jumbo jet appeared low over New York City last month flanked by a fighter plane, terrified citizens in the streets below feared there was a repeat of 911. When it turned out the large plane was Air Force One being photographed for a new publicity brochure, there was fury in the Oval Office. After a brief internal review, Louis Caldera has now resigned from the job he’d only just taken up as Director of the White House Military Office. It’s an indication of the Obama administration which prides itself on a surefooted public relations operation can be ruthless when mistakes are made.

The Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has sent troops to take over oil service companies as he tightens his grip on the economy. President Chavez nationalized the country’s oil reserve two years ago and is now moving against smaller support companies which are owed billions of dollars by the government. Speaking from a confiscated boat one of hundreds that were seized as troops moved in, Mr. Chavez outlined the economic benefits the takeover would bring to Venezuela.  

Almost 50% of the cost of the production of a barrel of oil was taken up by these activities. The majority of these profits was taken away by the capitalists. Now through doing this, we’ve reduced the costs of production, and more over, the profits will stay here with the workers.

The Sri Lankan military says it has demarcated a new safe zone in the conflict area in the northeast and has asked thousands of trapped civilians to move there for their protection. A Sri Lankan military official said the new safety zone would still be under the control of Tamil Tiger rebels. The announcement comes amid intense fighting between security forces and the rebels. Charles Haviland reports from Colombo.

The military says it’s redefined what it calls the safe zone for civilians although the United Nations already rejects the term. The army’s spokesman told the BBC it had informed the people that they should move into an area measuring just two kilometers by 1.5. Asked if the army would mount a full-fledged assault in the surrounding territory still held by the Tamil Tigers or LTTE, the spokesman said it would not be full-fledged but that troops will have to target the LTTE cadres, while trying, he added, to rescue civilians.

Pope Benedict is in Jordan at the start of a Middle East tour. It’s his first visit to an Arabian country since becoming head of the Roman Catholic Church. Pope Benedict spoke of his deep respect for Islam and praised the Jordanian Monarch King Abdullah for his efforts to promote religious understanding.

World News from the BBC

The White House has announced that President Barack Obama will give a long-awaited speech on US relations with the Muslim world in Egypt next month. After Egypt, the White House says President Obama will travel to Germany and later to France. From Washington, Jonathan Beale reports.  

Right from the start, Barack Obama has made clear he wants to rebuild relations with the Muslim and the Arab world. Symbolically, his first foreign interview in the White House was with an Arab TV station. At the time Mr. Obama said he wanted to communicate to the Muslim world that America was not its enemy. In that continuing effort to reach out, the US President will next month make a keynote speech in the Egyptian capital.  The White House says Cairo is the heart of the Arab world. Not everyone will be pleased with this choice. Human rights groups have long criticized Egypt’s record on free speech.(www.hxen.net)

The UN Security Council has condemned the offensive by Chadian armed groups who are battling with the Chadian government forces in the east of the country. In a non-binding statement, the Security Council called on the rebels to stop fighting immediately and said any attempt to destabilize Chad by force was unacceptable.

As troops in northwest Pakistan extend their offensive against Taliban fighters in the Swat Valley, the UN Refuge Agency has warned of a dramatic increase in the number of civilians being displaced. On Thursday, local officials said about 200, 000 people had escaped the area. But now a UNHCR spokesman says another 300, 000 are on the move. Roads away from the conflict zone are reported to be choked with refugees.

The German government says it will ban combat games, such as paintball and laser-tag in response to a shooting at a school in March in which 16 people were killed. The new measures being proposed to Parliament include tighter gun control rules and giving the authorities the right to conduct checks on gun owners.

BBC News.