BBC news 2010-06-18 加文本

2010-06-18 BBC

BBC News with Fiona McDonald.

The chief executive of the oil company BP Tony Hayward has come under ferocious criticism before a US congressional hearing held to examine the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Mr Hayward called the situation a tragedy, but he defended his approach to safety. Paul Adams reports from Washington.

Before the hearing began, the committee's chairman said he expected Tony Hayward to be sliced and diced, and so he was. BP's chief executive said he was constrained by the fact that a number of investigations into the explosion on the Deepwater Horizon have yet to finish. Over and over, he refused to agree with the conclusions of a group of angry hostile congressmen and women who seemed in no doubt after their own lengthy inquiries that BP had shown a reckless lack of attention to safety. Infuriated by Mr Hayward's inability or unwillingness to answer their questions, committee members resorted to expressing their disgust, more than one saying he felt insulted.

The United States has welcomed Israel's decision to ease its three-year blockade of the Gaza Strip. The White House spokesman Robert Gibbs called this a step in the right direction. Earlier, international organizations greeted the Israeli move with scepticism. Amnesty International said Israel had yet to comply with international law by lifting the blockade immediately. The head of the UN relief agency in Gaza, John Ging, said it was too early to say how the Israeli words would translate into action.

Five Somalis have been convicted of piracy in a Dutch court and sentenced to five years in prison. It's the first ruling of its kind in a European court. They were found guilty of attacking a cargo ship off the coast of Somalia last year. From The Hague, Geraldine Coughlin.

The men had claimed they were the innocent victims of engine failure and had tried to approach the cargo ship for help when they were mistaken for pirates and attacked. They were arrested after their high-speed boat was intercepted by a Danish frigate, part of a European Union anti-piracy operation in the Gulf of Aden. The five men are convicted under the 17th century law of the sea, but their trial throws open the question of jurisdiction over crimes at sea in international waters.

A new UN report is warning that organized crime has become a global force and threatens international peace and national sovereignty. The study says criminals are using weapons, violence and bribes to buy elections, politicians and even the military. The UN called organized crime one of the foremost economic and armed powers in the world. The study was spearheaded by Antonio Maria Costa who called for urgent action.

"Today, fundamentally, we witness once again the mistrust across borders. I see inability to share intelligence about organized group and information about markets and shipments and so on and so far. We need to promote international cooperation against organized crime."

World News from the BBC.

Ultra-Orthodox Jews have staged one of the biggest protests against the state of Israel to press demands for their children to be educated separately from other Israelis. Around 100,000 Ashkenazi Jews took to the streets in Jerusalem and other cities in support of more than 40 parents who refused to let their girls share classrooms with Jewish pupils of Sephardic or Middle Eastern descent.

The European Union has agreed to impose new sanctions on Iran over its controversial nuclear programme. The measures, which go substantially beyond those approved by the United Nations earlier this month, are designed to pressure Tehran to halt its uranium enrichment activity and return to negotiations.

The new British government has announced it's going to cut or freeze projects worth a total of 17 billion dollars to tackle a budget deficit. Among the projects to be cut are a new hospital, a visitor centre of the World Heritage Site for Stonehenge and a programme to help people looking for jobs.

In the World Cup, Argentina beat South Korea four-one, making them strong contenders to win the tournament. The Argentine striker Gonzalo Higuain scored a hat-trick. But it was a bad day for Nigeria who lost to Greece. In the final game of the day, Mexico beat France two-nil. Here's Alex Capstick.

This was a woeful performance by France and joyous occasion for Mexico. Two second-half goals have given the Central American nation an accident chance of reaching the second round. As for France, an early exit from the tournament is now on the cards. Nor did result do South Africa any favours in their quest to get out of group A. It was a miserable evening in Polokwane for the French team and their coach Raymond Domenech. The man, who guided his country to the World Cup Final four years ago, has become deeply unpopular in France. He's standing down after the current campaign. It now looks like that's going to be sooner rather than later.

BBC News.