BBC news 2009-05-24 加文本

BBC 2009-05-24


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BBC news with Nick Kelly

Intense street fighting is reported in the main town of Pakistan's Swat Valley, Mingora, as the Pakistani military embarks on the critical phase in its efforts to retake control of the northwest of the country from spreading Taliban insurgency. An army spokesman Major General Athar Abbas said troops had entered Mingora earlier in the day, killing 17 militants and clearing parts of the town. But he said he expected the operation to be slow because there were up to 20,000 civilians still trapped in the town. Thousands of people have fled to neighboring districts. This man described his journey.

"Our homes were destroyed. We left behind our cattle and our properties. We walked all the way and had to walk for two days over the mountains. We had to wait for 24 hours and checked out as there was a curfew and we have nothing to eat."

The Taliban has contested the military's casualty figures.

The US military in Afghanistan says American and Afghan forces have made one of the biggest drug seizures since foreign troops arrived in the country eight years ago. The drugs included opium, poppy seeds, morphine, heroin and hashish and large quantities of chemicals used for processing the drugs. Sarah Rainsford reports from Kabul.

There had been reports of heavy fighting in Majar in southern Afghanistan for several days. Now a statement from the US military says 60 insurgents have been killed there and Afghan-US coalition troops have seized more than 90,000 kilograms of narcotics, that's described as a record haul. The vast majority of the world's opium is produced in southern Afghanistan and the trade in drugs is a crucial source of funding for the Taliban.

The UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has visited the military-run camp in Sri Lanka, holding about 170,000 people displaced by the army's final assault on the Tamil Tiger rebels. Mr. Ban said he was saddened and humbled by what he saw there and urged the Sri Lankan authorities to let the aid agencies in. Our BBC correspondent accompanying him says that in one area 74,000 people were crammed onto land meant to hold half that number.

Some hospitals in North America are reporting shortages of nuclear materials used to diagnose patients after the Canadian authorities closed a reactor because of a leak of heavy water. The reactor is one of only four in the world that produce medical radioactive isotopes. Canada has asked South Africa and Australia for help. Lee Carter reports.

The Canadian nuclear reactor at Chalk River, Ontario is the largest single supplier of isotopes in the world. It was shut down a few days ago because of a water leak. Now authorities are predicting that it will be at least a month before the reactor will be back in service. The Canadian nuclear facility is more than 50 years old and a similar shutdown over safety concerns in 2007 led to a global shortage of isotopes. Already some North American hospitals are reporting shortages of the radioactive material.

World news from the BBC

The Eritrean Information Minister Ali Abdu has dismissed the African Union as inept and toothless after it called on the UN Security Council to impose sanctions on Eritrea. The AU says Eritrea has supplied weapons to militias in Somalia opposed to the transitional government. The Eritrean government denies this. Minister Abdu told the BBC his country has now suspended its membership of the AU.

In Britain a row over MP's exploiting their expenses is continuing. The spiritual head of the Anglican Church Archbishop Rowan Williams has warned what he called the systematic humiliation of British politicians could damage democracy. His comments came as more MPs were forced to explain their expenses claims.

Nearly 500 soldiers have been confined to barracks at a military academy in Spain after several cadets contracted swine flu. Spain's Ministry of Health said there were 11 confirmed cases of the virus at the site and further 50 suspected cases. From Madrid, Steve Kingston reports.

The Spanish government is seeking to downplay fears about swine flu at the Hoyo de Manzanares Military Academy on the outskirts of Madrid. It says the cadets diagnosed with the virus have shown only mild symptoms and responded well to treatment and that nearly 460 other cadets without symptoms have been confined to barracks for a week, purely as a precaution. But there remains a big question mark over what caused this outbreak. It seems none of those undergoing treatment had traveled to Mexico, prompting concerns that the virus may have been contracted and then passed on within Spain.

And a woodworker whose simple practical handmade wooden furniture sits in some of the most prestigious museums in the United States and in the White House has died at the age of 93. Sam Maloof, the son of Lebanese immigrants became famous for his chairs, cradles and other practical furniture which stressed usefulness before artistry.

And that's the latest BBC news.