BBC news 2009-11-07 加文本

BBC 2009-11-07


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BBC News with Zoe Diamond.

President Obama has urged Americans not to jump to conclusions about the motives of an army major who went on a shooting spree at a military base in Texas on Thursday. Major Nidal Malik Hasan, who is a Muslim of Palestinian descent, killed 12 soldiers and one civilian when he opened fire in a medical centre at the Fort Hood base. The army psychiatrist was then shot and wounded by a police woman. Former colleagues say Major Hasan, who was due to be posted to Afghanistan shortly, was unhappy about alleged racial abuse. Speaking to reporters, President Obama urged Americans to wait for the results of investigations.

"We don't know all the answers yet, and I would caution against jumping to conclusions until we have all the facts. What we do know is that there are families, friends and an entire nation grieving right now for the valiant men and women who came under attack yesterday, in one of the worst mass shootings ever to take place on an American military base."

There has been a serious shooting incident at an office block in Orlando in Florida. One person was killed and five injured by a lone gunman who was later arrested. Andy Gallagher sent this report from Miami.

That gunman was arrested at his mother's home in Orlando after a frantic search. It's thought that suspect Jason Rodriguez is a former employee of an engineering firm where the shootings took place. A high-rise building in downtown Orlando was evacuated, but for a time it was thought that the gunman was still inside. The police say that the 40-year-old Jason Rodriguez was arrested without incident. And the authorities here have now confirmed that one person was killed and 5 were injured.

And the British Prime Minister Gordon Brown has been heavily criticized by a number of former Defense chiefs who have said he's not providing adequate leadership and support for British troops in Afghanistan. The criticisms came just hours after Mr. Brown defended Britain’s military involvement in Afghanistan. Norman Smith has more.

The very public criticism by the former chiefs of the Defense staff is so wounding because it is so personal. Today they sought not to challenge the reasons for the war or the strategy behind it but rather what they clearly regard as a failure of political leadership. Lord Boyce protested that the government doesn’t seem to realize we’re at war while Lord Guthrie accused Mr. Brown of "dithering" over the deployment of extra troops. But most damning of all, he suggested that soldiers in Afghanistan were beginning to doubt the government’s support for the war.

More than 25 NATO and Afghan troops have been wounded during a search for two American soldiers who went missing in the west of the country on Wednesday. The Chief of Police in Badghis province said the two missing soldiers had drowned in a river while trying to recover aid packages. There are conflicting reports as to how the 25 troops looking for the Americans were injured. NATO forces are still looking for the bodies.

This is the latest World News from the BBC in London.

President Barack Obama says the latest unemployment figures for the United States are "a sobering reminder of the economic challenges that still lie ahead". Unemployment rose to 10.2% last month, the highest figure since 1983. Mr. Obama announced that he had signed a bill extending unemployment benefits to more people and for more weeks and could come forward with more measures.

The medical charity MSF has accused the Congolese army of opening fire on crowds of civilians gathered at a number of measles vaccination sites in rebel-controlled areas of the east of the country. The Operation’s Director of MSF, Meini Nicolai, said the charity was used as bait to attract crowds to the sites where children were receiving vaccinations last month.

"We had received a security clearance to go ahead with the vaccination and the attacks from the seven sites were opened by the Congolese army. And we feel that we've been used as a bait to get groups surrounded."

The United States says it's disappointed with both sides in Honduras following the collapse of a deal to resolve the country's political confrontation. A State Department spokesman urged both sides to form a unity government immediately as agreed in talks mediated by the United States. The ousted President Manuel Zelayer who was expelled from the country in a coup in June said the pact was dead and called for a boycott of elections to be held later this month. He had insisted that the Congress vote on reinstating him to office before the formation of a new government.

A South Korean woman has finally passed her driving test after hundreds of failed attempts. The woman, Cha Sa-soon, who had become somewhat of a celebrity in South Korea, is reported to have passed the written portion of her driving test on the 950th go. But the 68-year-old grandmother won’t be buying a car just yet. She still needs to pass a practical driving test before she can get her license.

BBC News.