BBC news 2010-06-25 加文本

2010-06-25 BBC

BBC news with Kathy Clugston.

President Obama and the Russian leader Dmitry Medvedev have held wide-ranging talks in Washington during Mr Medvedev’s first visit to the United States. Mr Obama described the Russian president as "a solid and reliable partner" and said their discussions had been excellent. From Washington, Kim Ghattas.

The two presidents went for a burger lunch in Virginia. They shared fries as they talked through their translators before riding back in the car together to the White House. It’s a sign of how much the relationship between the two countries has improved during the Obama administration. President Barack Obama said the kind of discussions he had with President Dmitry Medvedev would have been unlikely just 17 months ago. Disagreements remain, but the Obama administration is keen to showcase the warmer ties with Russia as one of its main foreign policy successes.

A senior public official has been killed by a bomb explosion in the Greek capital Athens. The minister responsible for police and counter-terrorism, Michalis Chryssohoidis, said the person who died was one of his close aides. Malcolm Brabant reports from Athens.

The bombers could not have got closer to Michalis Chryssohoidis, Greece’s tough law and order chief. Somehow, they managed to penetrate security in a building that houses the National Intelligence Service and smuggled the device to within a few feet of the minister’s desk. The package was opened by one of Mr Chryssohoidis’s closest aides. The explosion was so powerful that some in the building thought it had been struck by an earthquake.

Police in Belgium have carried out a series of raids as part of an investigation into pedophilia in the Roman Catholic Church. The Church headquarters, the palace of the archbishop of Mechelen-Brussels, were sealed off while legal officers looked for material relating to allegations of child abuse. Investigators also seized material from the officers of a long-running inquiry into pedophilia in the church and the home of a recently retired archbishop of Belgium Cardinal Godfried Danneels. In April the bishop of Bruges, Roger Vangheluwe, resigned after admitting he had sexually abused a boy more than 20 years ago.

The longest tennis match in the history of the professional game has ended at Wimbledon in London. The American John Isner and Nicolas Mahut of France spent three days on court. John Bennett reports.

Finally, there was a winner. The most epic match in tennis history ended up for a total of 11 hours and 5 minutes. Big serving American John Isner eventually took the victory for the backhand passing short that finally managed to break in Nicolas Mahut’s serve, following a remarkable 138 final set games. Afterwards in front of the packed crowd, both players fought back tears as they accepted a gift to mark the occasion from the All England Club. Mahut looked devastated as he sat in his chair with his head in his hand but held his opponent as a champion.

World news from the BBC.

President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva of Brazil has been flying over areas devastated by floods in the northeast of the country to see for himself the extent of the damage. Entire towns and villages were swept away as rivers burst their banks after heavy rains in the states of Alagoas and Pernambuco. At least 44 people are confirmed dead.

An alleged Jamaican drugs lord, Christopher “Dudus” Coke, has been extradited to the Untied States to face drugs and weapons smuggling charges. Mr Coke was flown out of Jamaica after he waived his right to challenge the extradition, saying he was willing to stand trial in the US. More than 70 people died in the Jamaican capital last month in violence triggered by an attempt to arrest him. Our Kingston correspondent Nick Davis was at the airport to see his plane leave.

I’m looking out over the airfield in Norman Manley Airport. A JDF, Jamaica Defence Force, helicopter has just landed. There’s a group of probably about 7 or 8 police officers walking towards a small private jet. In that group, it’s believed that Christopher “Dudus” Coke is going to be boarding the flight, taking him to the United States where he's gonna to stand trial on drugs and gun-running charges.

Canadian police have seized what they described as dangerous materials including pickax handles and cans of petrol from a car near the site of this weekend’s G20 Summit in Toronto. A homemade crossbow and chainsaw were also seen near the car after it was stopped.

The Football World Cup holders Italy had made a shock exit from this year’s finals in South Africa after losing to Slovakia in a thrilling game. Slovakia beat the current champions 3-2 to go through to the knockout stage along with Paraguay who drew nil-all with New Zealand. Elsewhere, Japan beat Denmark 3-1 to progress to the last 16, and the Netherlands who had already qualified maintained their hundred percent record with a 2-1 win against Cameroon.

BBC news.