BBC news 2009-05-11 加文本

BBC 2009-05-11


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BBC News with David Legg.

The Afghan President Hamid Karzai says American air strikes which kill civilians, are damaging the fight against terrorism. He told an American television, the issue was his country's biggest concern.

The Afghan people are allies of the United States. Afghan people want this effort together to succeed. But Afghan people also want to have their children safe. Afghan people say we are fighting together, with shoulder to shoulder against terrorism, that we are part of the struggle that our homes or villages are not places for terrorism and that they should be safe.

Earlier, hundreds of Afghan students protested in Kabul against civilian deaths of the US air strikes. President Obama's national security adviser said the Americans could not fight with one hand tied behind their backs.

A British newspaper which has over several days leaked details of expenses claimed by members of Parliament from the governing Labor Party has turned its attention to the opposition Conservatives. The Daily Telegraph says the senior MP Allen Duncan, who oversees the party's expenses, was paid thousands of dollars for gardening services over a three-year period. Mr. Duncan who is a multi-millionaire also claimed almost 200,000 dollars for a second home. The Conservative leader David Cameron admitted the revelations about his party were likely to be embarrassing.

“We have to acknowledge just how bad this is, the public are really angry, and we have to stop by saying: Look, this system that we had, that we used, that we operated, that we took part in, it was wrong, and we are sorry about that, we need to be clear about that."

The South African President Jacob Zuma has announced his first Cabinet, giving a new post to the man who’s been the country's Finance Minister for the past 13 years. Trevor Manuel will lead a newly created national planning commission, working in the presidency. He's been replaced of the Finance Ministry by Pravin Gordhan, who was head of South Africa’s tax authority

Months after the global financial crisis took the economy of Iceland to the brink of collapse, its new government is asking Parliament to decide if it should seek membership of the European Union. The move would mark a major change for the traditionally Euro-skeptic island. It’s a compromise between the two coalition partners, who agreed to disagree on the issue, which Iceland voters will eventually decide in the referendum. Seal Fanning reports.

For the hitherto reluctant Icelanders, one of the main attractions of joining is the stability offered by eventual membership of the Euro. The Icelandic Krona bombed after the banks went bust, leaving the economy on its knees and thousands without jobs. If the people do decide in favor, adapting to the EU should not be too much of a problem. Iceland is already part of the European Economic Area, giving it access to the EU's internal market and requiring it to adopt a big chunk of Brussels’ legislations.

World News from the BBC.

The Colombia authorities say seven soldiers have been killed in an ambush by FARC guerrillas in the southwestern part of the country. President Alvaro Uribe condemned it as a cowardly attack. Jeremy McDermott reports from Medellin.

Despite suffering some heavy blows last year, including the death of the FARC founder and legendary leader Manuel Marulanda, the rebels  appeared to be regrouping and retaking the initiatives after six years during which they’ve been very much on the back foot. Part of the change may be ascribed to the new leader Alfonso Cano, who acted since the 1990s as the group’s ideologue. He’s giving the FARC a new vision, away from the movement purely peasant routes, and directed the FARC towards the urban centers, and launching more ambushes in rural areas.

The Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili has agreed to opposition demands for direct talks. Opposition leaders will meet him on Monday after weeks of political tension and protests calling for his resignation. The opposition accuses him of bungling the conflict with Russia in August and restricting democratic rights.

The campaign group in Israel Ir Amin says the government is extending its control over east Jerusalem by developing parks and tourist sites in coordination with Jewish settlers. It said the plan was being carried out in secret, and would dramatically alter the existing balance in east Jerusalem, where Palestinians hope to base the capital of their future state. An Israeli government official said the development would benefit all of Jerusalem’s residents.

Fighting among villagers after a wrestling match in Dagestan has left one person dead, and several injured. Police in the Russian Republic in the Caucasus, said up to 1,500 people were involved in the violence. The clashes broke out when residents of two villages disagreed about the wrestling match result. Officials said residents used fire alarms against police unites sent to quell the violence.

 BBC News.