BBC news 2010-02-12 加文本

2010-02-12 BBC
BBC News with David Legge.

European Union leaders say that they will support Greece as it seeks to manage its budget deficit. There is concern that Athens won't be able to repay the interest on its huge debt, triggering a default, which would leave other European countries, such as Spain and Portugal, dangerously exposed. Jonny Dymond reports from Brussels.

The leaders of the eurozone have rallied behind Greece, but there is precious little detail beyond the statement made by Herman Van Rompuy, the president of the Council. He said that determined and coordinated action would be taken if needed to maintain financial stability in the eurozone. Behind the talk of solidarity, there are deep concerns amongst some, in particular Germany, about bailing out Greece. That's why there was so much emphasis on the need for Greece to drive down its deficit.

Yemen says that a ceasefire will start from midnight local time with the Shi'ite rebels it's been fighting in the north on and off since 2004. The conflict with the northern rebels is one of the three security challenges the Yemeni government has been facing. The other two come from al-Qaeda and southern separatists. Sebastian Usher has the details.

The Yemeni government launched its latest offensive against the rebels known as Houthis last August. The fightings killed many on both sides and displaced hundreds of thousands of people. Saudi Arabia has also been drawn into the conflict after the rebels infiltrated its side of the border. Truces have been suggested a number of times by both sides, but neither could accept the other's conditions. But now it seems a ceasefire has been agreed, but many will question how long it can last.

A judge in Haiti has ruled in favor of releasing ten American missionaries who were arrested last month on charges of trying to take 33 children out of the country. After interviewing the missionaries, he said they should be freed while the investigations continued. Most of the missionaries came from a Baptist group in Idaho. From Haiti, Nick Davis reports.

The five men and five women have been locked up ever since they were stopped at the border with the Dominican Republic with a busload of 33 children they said were orphans. Very investigation found that many of them had parents, and last week the missionaries were charged with child abduction and criminal association. The judge who's investigating says they should be provisionally released while he looks into the case. He made the decision after listening to evidence from some of the parents, who say they willingly gave up their children because they believe they'd have a better life with the missionaries.

The Mexican President Felipe Calderon is visiting the country's most violent city, Ciudad Juarez, on the United States border to launch an initiative against the recent big surge of drug-related killings. Mr Calderon is expected to announce an aid package to try to weaken the grip of the drug cartels, which thrive on the poverty in Ciudad Juarez. Four thousand people have been killed there in the past two years.

World News from the BBC.

The United States government has accused Iran of trying to impose what it called a "near-total information blockade" to try to silence anti-government protesters as the country marked the anniversary of the 1979 revolution. A State Department spokesman said he received information showing the telephone network was taken down, SMS text messages blocked and the Internet throttled. The Iranian opposition had called its supporters onto the streets to mark the anniversary of the Iranian Revolution. Clashes were reported in Tehran.

The editor of a Kurdish language newspaper in Turkey has received a 21-year prison sentence for publishing what the court termed "rebel propaganda". The semi-official Anatolia news agency said the court ruled that Ozan Kilinc, who edits the daily Azadiya, was guilty of spreading propaganda on behalf of the Kurdistan Workers' Party, the PKK.

The South African President Jacob Zuma has been delivering a special address to parliament in Cape Town as the country celebrates the 20th anniversary of Nelson Mandela's release from prison. President Zuma affectionately calls Mr Mandela "Madiba".

"We recall the words of Madiba on his release when he said and I quote: I stand before you, not as a prophet, but as a humble servant of you, the people. Your tireless and heroic sacrifices have made it possible for me to be here today."

Mr Mandela's release heralded the end of white minority rule in South Africa.

The British fashion designer, Alexander McQueen, has been found dead at his home in London. Police said the death of the 40-year-old designer was not being treated as suspicious. His company refused to comment on reports that he took his own life. Alexander McQueen's provocative style and manner gained him a reputation as the enfant terrible of British fashion.

BBC News.