BBC news 2010-09-09 加文本

BBC news 2010-09-09

BBC News with David Legge.

Transocean, the company which owns the rig which exploded, causing the catastrophic oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico in April, has accused the oil company BP of having designed a “fatally flawed” well. Transocean was responding to BP’s first official account of what caused the spill which said that several companies, not just BP, were to blame. Our economics correspondent Andrew Walker reports.

In an angrily-worded statement, Transocean describes BP’s report into the Gulf of Mexico oil spill as “self-serving” and an attempt to conceal the critical factor. BP’s designed the oil well. Transocean says that BP made a series of cost-saving decisions that increased risk, in some cases, severely. BP’s report into the disaster which killed 11 people and polluted the Gulf of Mexico distributed the responsibility between BP itself and some of the other companies working with it, including Transocean.

The American pastor who’s planning to burn copies of the Koran on Saturday has reiterated he will not be deterred, and said it was a way to stand up to terrorism. Terry Jones said his tiny church in Florida wanted to stage the event to mark the 9th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. The American Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, said it was regrettable that the plan was receiving so much attention. Kevin Connolly reports from Washington.

The Reverend Terry Jones, luxuriant of moustache and uncompromising of demeanor, acknowledges that he’s been under considerable pressure to abandon his plans to burn copies of the Koran. The Vatican, the State Department, the Pentagon and the White House have all condemned the plans and are asking to reconsider them, but the Reverend Jones said the time wasn’t right for backing down. The possibility remains that he may yet change his mind, but for the moment, the Reverend Jones appears content to grapple with his self-created dilemma and the full glare of the national spotlight.

The Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan has appointed new military, intelligence and police chiefs after removing their predecessors from their posts. Here’s Caroline Duffield from Lagos.

It’s been read as a political move, ensuring that military and security leaders owe their loyalty to Goodluck Jonathan. President Jonathan has not yet declared whether he’ll stand in elections in January, but he is widely expected to and an announcement is anticipated soon. Political insiders suggest the timing is important. It means that the military and security apparatus will be in a state of transition and distracted during a sensitive period.

The World Bank is calling for tougher controls on large-scale purchases of agricultural land in poor countries. The bank says there’s a risk of vulnerable communities being deprived of their land as wealthier nations buy up farmland in an attempt to secure food supplies. The report says 45 million hectares changed hands in deals last year.

World News from the BBC.

The American Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has warned of the increasing threat from the activities of drugs cartels which she said were in some cases turning into insurgencies in Mexico and Central America. Danny Aeberhard has more.

Hillary Clinton said Mexico was now looking more and more like Colombia 20 years ago, with drug traffickers controlling parts of the country. She praised the Mexican President Felipe Calderon for what she called “his courage and commitment” in tackling the problem. More than 28,000 people have died in drug-related violence in Mexico since President Calderon deployed the army to fight the cartels in 2006. But Mrs Clinton reminded her audience that America shares some of the responsibility. American citizens consume trafficked drugs and the conflict is fueled by American guns being smuggled south of the border.

The Serbian government says it’s agreed to amend a draft United Nations resolution on Kosovo due to be put before the UN General Assembly on Thursday. Kosovo unilaterally declared independence from Serbia two years ago. Serbia’s original draft resolution had demanded new negotiations on Kosovo’s status and described its independence as “unacceptable”.

The British Foreign Secretary William Hague has said no decisions have been taken to end BBC World Service broadcasts in the Burmese language. Mr Hague told a parliamentary committee that the closing of individual services required ministerial approval, saying no such request had been made and none granted. Mr Hague’s comments follow newspaper reports that the Burmese service was among those identified by the government for closure.

The Ferrari Formula 1 motor racing team has been spared further punishment for ordering one of its drivers to allow his team-mate to win the German Grand Prix in July. Race officials had already fined Ferrari $100,000 just after the race where Felipe Massa who was leading was ordered to allow his fellow Ferrari driver Fernando Alonso to finish first.

BBC News.