BBC news 2009-05-31 加文本

BBC 2009-05-31


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BBC news with John Jason.

The Pakistani army says it's regained control of the largest town in the Swat Valley from Taliban Militants. An army spokesman General Athar Abbas said Mingora was now under military control. But soldiers were still meeting pockets of resistance on the outskirts of the town. He said the next step would be for the civilian administration to restore local services, so residents could start returning. Humphrey Hawksley reports.

Pakistani troops have been keeping watch on the almost deserted city centre of Mingora, and have been carrying out street-by-street patrol securing neighborhoods and checking houses for booby traps. Some fighting continued in the suburbs and the army spokesman Athar Abbas emphasized that the capturing of the city from the Taliban should be seen as part of a long process of rebuilding. Some two and a half million people have fled their homes since the military operations began in the Swat valley more than a month ago.

The German Chancellor Angela Merkel has told the new owners of the carmaker Opel they have tough decisions ahead. Their government brokered a deal to rescue the bulk of the European operations of the troubled American carmaker General Motors, which trades in Europe as Opel in Germany and Vauxhall in Britain. The companies were bought by the Canadian firm Magna backed by Russia's Sberbank. The deal protects the four Opel factories in Germany, but two and a half thousand jobs will go there, and there is doubt about the future of jobs and plants across Europe. Mrs. Merkel said President Obama had helped with the negotiations.

Because of their complex nature, the negotiations were a real test for the transatlantic relationship. Yesterday, I had a phone conversation with the American president, in which we exchanged views and we agreed that we would do everything in our power to complete this complex task successfully.

Jewelry worth more than eight million dollars has been stolen from an up-market shop in central Paris. Police said the robbery took place in the middle of the afternoon in the exclusive Chopard store in Place Vendrome near the Ritz Hotel. Alasdair Sandford reports.

It's not known how the robbery took place, but there are reports on French radio of a lone armed man having carried it out. The store is now closed and there are no signs of a breaking from outside. Chopard has branches worldwide and makes watches and jewels for celebrities in particular for the Oscars and the Cannes Film Festival. In December thieves carried out the biggest ever jewelry theft in France near the Champs Elysees, making off with 120 million dollars worth of stock.

The leader of the main British opposition party David Cameron of the Conservative says the police should consider prosecuting members of Parliament, involving the worst cases of abusing the system of expenses. Details of British MPs’ expensive claims have been released over the last few weeks, dominating headlines and leading to calls for the system to be redesigned. Thirteen MPs have promised to stand down at the next election as a result of the disclosures.

World News from the BBC

The Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi succeeded in banning the publication of potentially embarrassing photos from one of his New Year's Eve parties. The pictures allegedly contain images of semi-naked women. One of the girls is said to be Noemi Letizia, an 18-year-old woman at the center of speculation about Mr. Berlusconi, who's 72.

The last game of the English football season, the FA Cup final has been won by Chelsea. They beat Everton by two goals to one at Wembly stadium. Everton opened the scoring with a goal within the first 30 seconds. Nicholas Walton reports.

The FA Cup final is the traditional climax of the English football season, a grand day out for fans of the two teams, and a global sporting event with an audience of millions. But football has changed and the FA Cup is no longer what it used to be. Far more glory and money now goes to the winners of the English Premier League. In comparison, the FA Cup seems a parochial affair, and something of anti-climax, even to the winners.

Two Indian child stars of the Oscar winning film Slum Dog Millionaire have been offered new homes to replace those demolished earlier this month. As part of a slam clearance program by the city authorities in Mumbai, the offer has been approved by the chief minister of the local state government, which is run by the Congress Party. A Congress official said it was a reward for the way Azharuddin Ismail and Rubina Ali had done the country proud by their film roles. The cost of the house is being met by the Mumbai Congress Party.

Seven married priests who were expelled from the Catholic Church for failing to obey the law of celibacy have been ordained in the Kenyan city of Kisumu. The Ecumenical Catholic Church which ordained the men had been at loggerheads with the Vatican over the issue of married priests. A BBC correspondent in Kenya says the move is evidence that many Catholics in Africa are willing to embrace less traditional practices.

BBC News.