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BBC news 2010-07-08 加文本
2010-07-08 BBC
BBC News with Julie Candler.
Officials in Iraq say a series of attacks targeting Shia pilgrims have killed 33 people and wounded more than 100. The pilgrims were on their way to the shrine of Imam Moussa al-Kadhim in Baghdad for a religious festival. These attacks come at a time when the United States is speeding up its withdrawal of combat troops. Gabriel Gatehouse reports from Baghdad.
The first blast came from a suicide bomber who detonated his explosive vest as he walked amongst the worshipers towards the shrine. Two other bombs planted by the roadside in different areas of the capital also seemed designed to target pilgrims. Hundreds of thousands of Shias from across Iraq and beyond have been making their way to the shrine over the past two days. Security has been tight with thousands of extra police and military officers drafted onto the street. But while the overall level of violence is much lower than it was only a few years ago, and sectarian tensions have eased, attacks of this kind are still all too frequent.
The Cuban government has agreed to free 52 political prisoners. This amounts to the biggest mass liberation of Cuban prisoners in decades. From Havana, here is Michael Voss.
News of the move came in a statement issued by the head of the Roman Catholic Church in Cuba, Cardinal Jaime Ortega. The cardinal said that he had attended a meeting earlier in the day with President Raul Castro as well as Spain's Foreign Minister Miguel Angel Moratinos who's currently visiting Cuba. They were then informed about the releases. The names of the prisoners have yet to be revealed. Five are due to be set free later today, the remainder over the next few months.
American prosecutors have indicted 11 people accused of spying for Russia in the United States. The 10 in custody are being taken to New York to face the charges in a single federal court. The 11th went missing after he was granted bail in Cyprus. James Reynolds in Washington reports.
The judicial process clearly moves forward. It's important to stress there has been no official comment here on reports coming from Russia that the United States may be preparing to release the defendants as part of a swap or exchange, but the two governments have been in contact. On Wednesday morning, the US Under Secretary of State William Burns held a regularly scheduled meeting with the Russian ambassador, Sergei Kislyak, at the Russian embassy here in Washington. A State Department spokesman told reporters that it's likely that the two men discussed the espionage case, but he did not comment on reports of a possible swap.
The Department of Justice in the United States has charged five men with being involved in alleged al-Qaeda plots to attack targets in New York and the United Kingdom. Some of the charges relate to an alleged plot revealed last year to set off bombs on New York's subway system. The Justice Department says that was directed by senior al-Qaeda leaders in Pakistan.
World News from the BBC.
The European Parliament has voted to ban the import of illegally-logged timber. The European Union is one of the world's biggest importers of timber, but up to a fifth of the amount may have been felled illegally. The new rules passed by an overwhelming majority would come into effect in 2012.
The British Prime Minister David Cameron has said he doesn't believe British combat troops should be in Afghanistan in five years' time. He was speaking just before it was announced that Britain is handing over responsibility for Sangin, one of the most dangerous areas of Helmand province, to American forces. Rob Watson reports.
David Cameron had said before that he can't see British troops remaining in Afghanistan beyond 2015, but this was his most unambiguous statement yet. He told MPs he wanted to be clear that he didn't think British troops should be there either in a combat role or in significant numbers in five years' time. That he should choose to make such a statement in parliament underlies his apparent conviction that there needs to be a timetable for Britain's involvement, even if the government doesn't like to talk in terms of deadlines.
British scientists accused of manipulating data to exaggerate the extent to which human activities causing climate change have been cleared of dishonesty. The University of East Anglia commissioned an inquiry into its climatic research unit after critics said hacked emails showed the scientists had colluded to mislead. The review's chairman said the scientists' honesty was not in doubt, but did criticize them for the way they had presented some findings and for not being sufficiently transparent with their data.
Spain has beaten Germany one-nil in the second semi-final of the football World Cup in South Africa. The Spanish defender, Carles Puyol, scored with a powerful header deep into the second-half to ensure a place in Sunday's final where they will play the Netherlands. Neither team has ever won the competition before.
BBC News