BBC news 2009-11-30 加文本

BBC 2009-11-30

BBC News with Mary Small.

The Iranian government has announced a huge expansion of its controversial nuclear program, setting out plans to build ten new uranium enrichment plants. The aim is to produce as much as 300 tons of nuclear fuel every year. The BBC’s Jon Leyne says this is a massive act of defiance by President Ahmadinejad’s government.
Two days ago, the UN nuclear watchdog called on Iran to stop work on the newly revealed uranium enrichment plant near Qom. Iran has refused. Instead, it’s announced plans to build ten more industrial-scale enrichment plants, with work starting almost immediately. The West will fear this move will speed up Iran’s ability to make a nuclear bomb. But President Ahmadinejad’s immediate purpose may be to up the stakes in the diplomatic standoff with the West and also to use the issue to try to consolidate his position at home.
The White House said Tehran’s plans to build new enrichment plants were a serious violation of its international obligations and further evidence that the Iranian government was choosing to isolate itself. The British government said building more enrichment facilities would be a deliberate breach of five United Nations Security Council resolutions and Britain would consider its response in partnership with the IAEA and other countries. Germany said it was worried by the latest Iranian announcement.

People in Switzerland have voted in a referendum to ban the construction of minarets. More than 57% voted in favor. The proposal was also supported in a majority of provinces or cantons and will therefore become law. Imogen Foulkes reports from Berne.
This result is a big surprise and very bad news for the Swiss government which had urged the voters to reject the ban on minarets, claiming it would violate Switzerland’s obligations to religious freedom and damage relations with Muslim countries. But voters, worried about rising immigration and with it the rise of Islam, didn’t take the government’s advice. Clearly the argument made by the Swiss People’s Party that minarets are symbols of Islamic politics and Islamic law found favor.

Four uniformed police officers in the American state of Washington have been shot dead at a cafe in what was described as a targeted attack. The four officers were working on their laptop computers at the cafe in the city of Tacoma when one gunman came in, fired multiple shots at them and left. Ed Troyer is a spokesman for the Pierce County Sheriff’s Department.
“None of the briefs said the coffee employees or any of the people that were inside the store were targeted, or hit, or wounded. So we believe this is a cold, calculated killing.”
The four policemen were pronounced dead at the coffee shop, which is next to the McChord Air Force Base. The scene of the attack was cordoned off, and roads in the area have been blocked. The suspect is described as a black male who was dressed in a dark scruffy coat.

World News from the BBC.

Russia has published proposals for a new overarching transatlantic security system that President Medvedev has said is needed to replace outmoded institutions dating from the Cold War era. The proposals will place restrictions on the use of unilateral force by signatures, but affirms the role of United Nations where Russia has a veto as the final arbiter of disputes.

The main opposition candidate in Equatorial Guinea’s presidential election, Placido Mico Abogo, says he won’t accept the outcome of the contest. He said the polls had not been free and fair. But the incumbent, President Teodor Obiang Nguema, said the day had gone well. Caspar Leighton reports.
The leader of the beleaguered opposition is not alone in judging the election to be flawed. Most observers see a landslide victory for President Teodor Obiang Nguema as a foregone conclusion. He’s been in power since 1979 and won 97% of the vote in the last election. He’s told supporters he expects to do better this time. Opposition parties have complained the government’s agents voted in place of the public in some districts and close polling stations early.

The central bank of the United Arab Emirates has offered support to other banks facing losses after a government-owned investment company in Dubai said it was struggling to repay its debts. The UAE central bank in the federal capital Abu Dhabi said it stood behind the local and foreign banks operating in the UAE and was making available a special liquidity facility.

The American golfer, Tiger Woods, has published a statement on his website dismissing what he described as unfounded and malicious rumors circulating since he crashed his car outside his home in the early hours of Friday morning. Tiger Woods said that his wife had acted courageously when she saw him hurt and that he was the only person responsible for the accident. Police in Florida have refused to comment on speculation that Tiger Woods and his wife had an argument before the crash.

BBC News.