BBC news 2010-06-05 加文本

2010-06-05 BBC

BBC News with Iain Purdon.

The oil company BP has spoken optimistically about its latest attempt to stop oil gushing into the Gulf of Mexico, but it's admitted that the process involved risks and success cannot be assured. BP's comments came as President Obama was beginning another visit to the affected region. Madeleine Morris reports from Louisiana.

Barack Obama is here to receive update from officials on the extent of the damage caused by the six-week-old oil spill as well as the latest efforts to contain it. Later, the president will visit the stricken fishing community of Grand Isle for his first meeting with community members most affected by the gusher. On Thursday, BP successfully lowered a containment device over the top of the broken wellhead and began funneling oil to a ship on the ocean surface. At the moment, the company says it's siphoning off just a fraction of the estimated 19,000 barrels a day currently spilling into the ocean.

South Korea has asked for action by the United Nations Security Council over the sinking of a South Korean warship in March when 46 sailors died. North Korea has denied any responsibility. Barbara Plett reports from the United Nations. South Korea's UN ambassador handed a letter to the president of the Security Council, complaining about North Korea's alleged sinking of the ship. He gave no details about what his government wanted the council to do or when, saying only that it had requested action commensurate with the gravity of the situation. Western diplomats have said there is still no decision about what form the UN response will take. They say there is not much scope for tightening already comprehensive sanctions. Some kind of statement condemning the action is more likely. That'll also need to win the support of China, North Korea's powerful ally on the Security Council.

The French Interior Minister Brice Hortefeux has been fined by a court for making racist remarks about Arabs. Mr Hortefeux, who's a close friend of President Nicolas Sarkozy, was caught on camera making the remarks while chatting to supporters at his party's summer conference. He was heard to say:"When there's one, that's alright; it's when there are a lot of them that there are problems." Christian Fraser reports from Paris.

Brice Hortefeux dismissed the row as a vain and ridiculous attempt to create a controversy, but a French movement against racism disagreed. The fine will cause great embarrassment to the government and to the president. Mr Hortefeux and Mr Sarkozy are longtime friends. The punishment is certain to be taken in les banlieus as further evidence of prejudice towards immigrant communities.

The senior United States military commander in Iraq has said that most of the leaders of the al-Qaeda organization there have been captured or killed over the past three months. General Ray Odierno told a news conference at the Pentagon that of the 42 top leaders, only eight remained free, but General Odierno warned that al-Qaeda was trying to reconstitute itself and would remain a problem for years.

World News from the BBC.

Tribal leaders in Afghanistan have endorsed President Hamid Karzai's proposals to seek peace with the Taliban. An assembly of elders or jirga ended with support for the Afghan government's plans for an amnesty and job incentives to induce Taliban fighters to lay down their weapons. The three-day meeting disagreed, however, over the details of what the Taliban should be offered.

Health officials in Nigeria say that more than 100 children have died of lead poisoning. The deaths have been linked with illegal mining in several remote northern villages in Nigeria. Roger Walker reports.

Nigeria's Health Ministry said that since March, many victims had died in Zamfara state after coming into contact with tools, soil and water contaminated with large concentrations of lead. People suffered abdominal pains and vomiting, and some went into convulsions. The ministry said it had asked for help from international agencies, including the World Health Organization. Illegal mining in Zamfara has been halted, and the number of cases is now said to be falling. The state is one of Nigeria's poorest but is believed to be rich in minerals, including gold and copper.

A privately-owned rocket has taken off from Cape Canaveral in Florida on its first test flight. The Falcon 9 is carrying a mock-up of a spacecraft which could one day carry astronauts and cargo into space. The launch follows President Obama's shelving of the US space shuttle programme. The president said he wanted private firms to take astronauts to the International Space Station. Analyst believes the company behind Falcon 9 could win that business.

One of the world's best football players Didier Drogba has fractured his arm, and he is expected to miss the World Cup which kicks off in South Africa in one week's time. Drogba, the captain of Ivory Coast and the current Africa Footballer of the Year, incurred the injury during a warm-up match against Japan.

BBC News.