BBC news 2011-01-16 加文本

BBC news 2011-01-16

BBC News with David Austin

A night curfew is back in force in Tunisia after a day of unrest and confusion following the removal from power and flight into exile of President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali. More than 40 people lost their lives after riots and then a fire swept through a prison in the resort of Monastir. Other jails freed their prisoners after disturbances broke out. Fires have also been burning out of control in the capital Tunis, from where Wyre Davies sent this report.

As darkness fell and a curfew again came into force, reports came from the city centre that at least two people had been shot by troops in the main square. The Tunisian military, which had for so long supported the previous regime, will play a key role in determining the country's immediate future. Tanks were deployed on major roads and on street corners near key government buildings. And it's not yet clear how much power the army itself is willing to relinquish.

The speaker of parliament in Tunisia, Fouad Mebazaa, was earlier sworn in as interim president just a day after the prime minister had declared himself acting president. Mr Mebazaa has called for a national unity government, and a presidential election has been promised within 60 days. The exiled head of Tunisia's Islamist party, Rachid Ghannouchi, has said he'll return to the country within weeks and would be prepared to take part in any unity government.

"There is a crisis today in Tunisia. The Tunisians have succeeded in bringing down the dictator, but they have a long way to go before they can bring down his legacy to dismantle a dictatorial edifice, to dismantle the system of one-party state which ruled over the country for 50 years."

The former US President Jimmy Carter says the week-long referendum on the separation of southern Sudan from the north has been a success. Mr Carter, who's leading an observer mission during the vote which ended today, said it had been very orderly. Peter Martell reports from the southern capital Juba.

Reports from international observers have been almost universally optimistic, saying that so far the vote has been credible. That has come as a huge relief to the south, for whom this vote means so much. Turnout has been high with over 83% of registered voters in the south heading to the polls. Counting begins tonight, but final official results are not expected until early next month.

Riot police in Greece have used tear gas to break up clashes in Athens between anti-immigrant demonstrators and a rival group of anti-racist activists and immigrants. Several hundred people had gathered in one of the city squares to protest against plans announced by the Greek government earlier this month to build a fence along part of its border with Turkey to keep out illegal immigrants. Violence broke out when an opposing group, including many right-wing activists waving the Greek flag, tried to break through police lines.

World News from the BBC

Almost 600 people are now known to have died in the devastating floods and mudslides in southeastern Brazil. Soldiers have been sent to the worst-affected areas to help with the rescue efforts. In Nova Friburgo, where more than 250 people were killed, officials say they are having to bury bodies without being able to identify them first because there's not enough room in the mortuary. Some remote mountainous areas still haven't been reached.

The United Nations is appealing for millions of dollars in emergency aid for Sri Lanka to compensate those who've been affected by the floods and to help them replant their crops. More than 300,000 people in eastern and central Sri Lanka have been displaced. A UN official said clean drinking water was a major problem as tens of thousands of wells have been contaminated.

The French health ministry is promising major changes to regulations for licensing drugs after a report said up to 2,000 people died from a diabetes drug that should have been withdrawn from the market 10 years earlier. From Paris, David Chazan reports.

A government report said the drug known as Mediator should have been banned as early as 1999 when it began to emerge that it could cause heart disease. Several other European countries and the United States then withdrew it, but it remained on sale in France for another 10 years. The Health Minister Xavier Bertrand said it was now his duty to rebuild the regulatory system to protect the public. His statement is being seen as an admission that one of the biggest medical scandals in France in recent years may not be an isolated case.

David Chazan

The parliament in the Democratic Republic of Congo has approved voting reforms that include reducing the presidential election to a single round of voting. The change will mean that the next president could be elected without an absolute majority. Correspondents say the reforms are expected to boost President Joseph Kabila's chances of re-election in November.

And those are the latest stories from BBC News.