BBC news 2009-06-20 加文本

BBC 2009-06-20


Download Audio

BBC News with Roy Lamar

After Iran’s Supreme Leader declared that further post-election protests must stop, President Obama said the government in Tehran should recognize that the world is watching its actions. Ayatollah Khamenei who endorsed the re-election of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has said those who continue to protest would be responsible for the consequences. Jonathan Beale reports.

President Obama continues to tread a fine line in commenting on Iran, anxious not to be seen as interfering or to fuel anti-American sentiment. In an interview with CBS, the President said the world was watching the government of Iran, perhaps his strongest warning so far, but many Republicans still believe that the President's been far too cautious. The US House of Representatives has passed a resolution, strongly condemning the ongoing violence and the Iranian government’s attempts to limit cell phone and internet use. 

In his speech, Ayatollah Khamenei criticized Western governments over their reaction to the election. He hit out what he called the arrogant powers, media leaders in the United States and some European countries, who he said had shown their true faces. He described the British government as the most evil. The British government called in Iran’s ambassador to London to explain the Ayatollah’s comments.

Police in Britain have launched a criminal investigation into the alleged misuse of expenses by a number of members of Parliament. The ongoing issue has tainted the reputation of Parliament and led to a series of resignations. Nick Childs reports.

After an assessment by senior detectives and prosecutors, it’s been decided that full police inquiries are necessary into the alleged misuse of expenses by a small number of MPs, and members of the House of Lords. Over recent weeks, a flood of leaks has produced a torrent of allegations, some clearly more serious than others. A significant number of MPs have already said they will step down, and a number of ministerial careers have also in fact been ruined.  But this is a significant new twist in the saga.

The US Defense Department has said at least 26 Afghan civilians were killed in a series of controversial airstrikes in May but acknowledged that the figure could be higher. However the Pentagon said in a report the airstrikes were justified. Here is James Coomarasamy.

Released late on a Friday afternoon, the Pentagon report into the incident finds that the civilian deaths were probably the result of three night-time raids by a B-1 bomber. It says that the strikes on the Farah Province in Western Afghanistan on May 4th were justified but that they didn’t follow the US military strict guidelines. Afghan officials have claimed that 140 people died in the incident which has heightened tensions between the US and Afghan governments. The Pentagon says that at least 26 civilians were killed but adds that the true figure could well be much higher and may probably never be known.

BBC World news

The American financier Allen Stanford has been indicted on charges of fraud and obstruction of justice. Documents by the US Department of Justice alleged that he and four others were involved in a seven-billion-dollar scheme to defraud investors. A court in Virginia ordered Mr. Stanford to be held for a detention hearing which will take place in Texas, his home state. His lawyer said Mr. Stanford was confident that he would be found not guilty if he got a fair trial.

The UN says cultivation of coca leaves and production of cocaine in Columbia have dropped sharply over the past year. But production rose in Peru and Bolivia. The UN said the decline in Columbia was caused mainly by the authorities’ destruction of plants by hand rather than by aerial spray. The UN anti-drugs agency said it was a remarkable achievement but more development aid was needed in the Andean countries to give coca farmers alternative sources of income.

The world number one tennis player Rafael Nadal has pulled out of next week’s Wimbledon Championships due to a recurring knee injury. The Spaniard is the first reigning Wimbledon Men’s Champion to not defend the title in seven years. There had been doubts about Nadal’s fitness ever since his shock defeat three weeks ago in the French Open which he’d been the firm favorite to win. James Peel has more.

Rafael Nadal played a practice match this afternoon. I watched him and it was clear that even though his injury was improving, he still wasn’t a 100% fit. For a man who is world No.1 and strives for perfection, that simply wasn’t good enough. Two hours later, he announced that he would not defend his Wimbledon title.

Sri Lanka’s cricketers have reached the final of the World Twenty 20 competition. They beat the West Indies by 57 runs at The Oval in London, thanks largely to an innings of 96 not out by Dilshan. They will take on Pakistan in the final on Sunday.

1.tread/walk/toe a fine line （in sth):  小心翼翼地做，进退两难

2.saga：长篇故事