BBC news 2010-06-20 加文本

2010-06-20 BBC

BBC News with Gaenor Howells.

President Obama has welcomed the announcement by the Chinese central bank that it's to gradually allow the exchange rate of its currency, the yuan, to become more flexible. Mr Obama called it a constructive step. But the Chinese central bank has ruled out any single large-scale revaluation of the yuan, and one leading Democrat described the move as vague and limited. More now from our correspondent David Willis in Washington.

China pegged the yuan to the US dollar nearly two years ago in order to make Chinese goods more affordable and help its manufacturers compete in the global market. But the move has been a source of friction between China and many of its trading partners, in particular the United States who contended limiting the value of the yuan was giving Chinese exporters an unfair advantage and costing millions of American jobs. China's decision to allow its currency to rise in value comes just before President Hu Jintao leaves for the G20 summit in Toronto and is clearly aimed at diminishing criticism of China's currency policies at the gathering.

The former chief of staff of the Rwandan army is in a critical condition in a South African hospital after being shot in the stomach by a gunman. General Kayumba Nyamwasa, a critic of President Paul Kagame, had been living in Johannesburg since fleeing Rwanda in February. Karen Allen reports from South Africa.

His wife believes it was an assassination attempt. Her husband has been an outspoken critic of President Paul Kagame's dictatorial style.

He claimed the judiciary were now compromised, and he told the BBC in a recent interview that the judges were now, in his words, President Paul Kagame's property. Concern has been raised by other human rights organizations. France and Spain have issued arrest warrants against Mr Nyamwasa for his alleged role in the lead-up to the 1994 genocide in Rwanda.

A new study says tens of millions of people in Bangladesh are being exposed to toxic levels of arsenic in drinking water resulting in many deaths. The study assessed nearly 12,000 people over 10 years. More than 20% of deaths were caused by arsenic contamination.

The US Assistant Secretary of State Robert Blake has called for an international inquiry into the clashes between the Kyrgyz and Uzbek communities in Kyrgyzstan earlier this month. Up to 2,000 people lost their lives, and hundreds of thousands have been displaced. Mr Blake, who is visiting Kyrgyzstan, said the inquiry should complement an investigation promised by the interim government there.

"Such investigations would help all of us understand how such violence can be prevented in the future, so that secure conditions can be established for the safe and voluntary return of the 110,000 refugees from Uzbekistan and the estimated 300,000 internally displaced persons here in Kyrgyzstan."

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Security officials in Yemen say 11 people, most of them security guards, have been killed in an attack on a police intelligence headquarters in the southern port city of Aden. An official statement said the militants used grenades and gunfire to storm the building in what appeared to be an al-Qaeda operation.

The President of Colombia Alvaro Uribe has told the families of more than 50 coal miners trapped deep underground three days after an explosion at that pit that he feels helpless over the slow pace of the rescue. The men are trapped at a depth of almost two kilometres after the blast at the mine in the northwest of the country.

The French striker Nicolas Anelka has been sent home from the football World Cup in South Africa after reportedly launching a tirade of abuse at the French coach Raymond Domenech. The player's outburst was said to have come at half time in France's defeat by Mexico, a result that left the French facing possible elimination. From Johannesburg, here is Alex Capstick.

The French Football Federation took the decision to send Nicolas Anelka home, because he refused to apologise for his outburst at half time in their Group A clash against Mexico. He was substituted, and Mexico went on to win the game two-nil. It was the second poor performance from France who now face an early exit from the tournament. Nicolas Anelka is an enigmatic figure in French football, who divides opinion. He is recognized as a supremely gifted player, but also one liable to get involved in controversy.

In Saturday's matches, the Netherlands beat Japan one-nil, Ghana and Australia drew one-all, and Denmark beat Cameroon two-one.

Tens of thousands of people have lined the streets of Stockholm to follow the first royal wedding in Sweden in more than 30 years. Crown Princess Victoria and Daniel Westling were married in a colourful ceremony in Stockholm Cathedral. The couple met eight years ago when the princess started training at a gym where her future husband worked as an instructor.

BBC News.