BBC news 2010-11-03 加文本

BBC news 2010-11-03

BBC News with Marion Marshall

A wave of bomb explosions across Baghdad have killed at least 63 people and injured up to 300 others. The blasts took place on Tuesday evening, hours after Christians held a funeral service for more than 50 people killed in Sunday's church hostage siege in the city. From Baghdad, Jim Muir reports.

Many of the victims from the Sunday outrage had just been laid to rest after a big funeral in central Baghdad when the bombs started going off in what appeared to be a coordinated campaign. Most of them were car bombs, but there was at least one roadside bomb and later a salvo of four mortars hit an area in southwest Baghdad. Police cars toured some parts of the city, announcing that a curfew had been imposed. Security officials said most of the bombs went off in areas with no particular target, but they were all in busy districts, near shops, markets or cafes.

The prime minister of Lebanon says the Middle East is heading for disaster as it's been impossible to negotiate a comprehensive peace agreement between the Arabs and Israel. In an interview with the BBC, Saad Hariri said the situation was deteriorating despite attempts at peace.

"Everybody wants to talk about Iran and their nuclear programme, but at the same time what is the international community doing for the peace process? We have been faced every day with a bulldozer on TV, and hundreds of millions of Arabs and Muslims are seeing that, bulldozing a house where a family of Palestinians living in that historical house for the..."

"You're saying Israeli actions are inflaming the region."

"I'm saying Israeli actions are not only inflaming the region, but affecting the whole world."

Americans are voting in mid-term elections that could alter the balance of power in the United States Congress. Opinion polls suggest President Obama's Democrats will lose control of the House of Representatives, and the race for the Senate is also expected to be close. From Washington, Bethany Bell reports.

The Republican Party needs to gain 39 seats to win control of the House and 10 to take over the Senate. The Republicans and the populist Tea Party movement are hoping to benefit from the deep discontent about the weak economy and high unemployment. If they succeed, they'll have a significant impact on President Obama's ability to pass legislation. But while this election is being seen as a referendum on his government, it's not necessarily a ringing endorsement of the Republicans either.

The German interior minister says a parcel bomb sent to Chancellor Angela Merkel had come from Greece and was similar to a number of small bombs found in foreign embassies in Athens over the past few days. The bomb was safely defused at Mrs Merkel's office in Berlin, and no one was hurt. It's not known who sent them, but suspicion has fallen on Greek far left-wing groups. Two other parcel bombs exploded earlier in the day in the Russian and Swiss embassies in Athens.

World News from the BBC

After weeks of political turmoil, Kosovo's government has lost a parliamentary vote of confidence. It triggers early elections next month, the first since Kosovo self-declared independence from Serbia in 2008. Correspondents say the Prime Minister Hashim Thaci would hope to strengthen his position by blaming the crisis on the government's former allies, who withdrew from the Kosovo cabinet in September. Here is Mark Lowen.

Less than three years since Kosovo declared independence from Serbia, its government has collapsed, and this tiny fragile corner of Europe now faces yet more instability. The no-confidence motion was brought by the opposition and was passed with 66 votes out of 120-strong parliament. All of this comes at a crucial moment for Kosovo. Serbia, which rejects the unilateral secession by its southern province, has recently agreed to the first face-to-face talks with the Kosovan government to resolve one of Europe's most intractable conflicts.

Results from a referendum in Niger show more than 90% of voters have backed a new constitution designed to return the country to civilian rule. It was put forward by the country's military leaders, who came to power in a coup in February. It provides for elections next January and a handover of power in April.

The New York-based campaign group Human Rights Watch has called for the release of a number of Sudanese activists in Darfur who, it says, have been arrested over the past few days. It said at least eight human rights activists had been detained without charge. There has been no word from the Sudanese authorities.

The Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has been accused by gay rights groups of fuelling homophobia. The allegations came after Mr Berlusconi said it was better to like beautiful girls than to be gay. He was referring to allegations that he pressured the police into dropping an investigation into an 18-year-old belly dancer. Mr Berlusconi rejected calls for his resignation.

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