BBC news 2011-02-06 加文本

BBC news 2011-02-06

BBC News with David Austin

In the last few minutes, the American State Department has issued a statement, distancing itself from comments made by its special envoy to Egypt about President Hosni Mubarak. The envoy, Frank Wisner, told an international security conference in Germany that Mr Mubarak was needed to oversee a transition to democracy.

"The president must stay in office in order to steer those changes through. I therefore believe that President Mubarak's continued leadership is critical. It's his opportunity to write his own legacy. He's given 60 years of his life to the service of his country. This is an ideal moment for him to show the way forward."

But the State Department spokesman PJ Crowley said Mr Wisner's views were his own and had not been coordinated with the US government. Earlier, the top leaders of Egypt's governing National Democratic Party resigned, an apparent response to the ongoing anti-government protests. Among those who've stepped down is the president's son. The news comes as crowds of demonstrators have spent their 12th day in central Cairo demanding Mr Mubarak's immediate removal from power. Jon Leyne reports.

Faced with continuing pressure from the demonstrators, President Mubarak met with his new cabinet for the first time. Shortly afterwards, a series of major changes in the ruling party, the NDP, were announced. They included the departure of the president's son Gamal from his key role in the party, for years, a power base somewhat was thought to be his attempt to succeed his father as president. Along with Gamal Mubarak, the entire leadership of the party resigned, though some were re-appointed. A leading liberal in the party becomes general secretary. The aim appears to be to put a softer face on the Egyptian government.

Police in Tunisia have shot dead two people who were among a crowd which attacked a police station in the northern town of Kef. The interior ministry said they'd been demonstrating against a local police commander, accusing him of an abuse of power. In another development, the nationwide night-time curfew imposed during anti-government protests last month has been shortened by two hours.

A nuclear arms reduction treaty that's been a cornerstone of President Obama's attempts to rebuild US relations with Russia has come into effect. The US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and the Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov exchanged papers ratifying the Start treaty during the international security conference in the German city of Munich. Sam Wilson reports.

Hillary Clinton and Sergei Lavrov grinned broadly as they exchanged the ratification documents signed by the presidents of Russia and the United States. The agreement limits the number of strategic warheads each side can possess to just over 1,500, down from 2,200. It also updates a verification mechanism, but its greatest significance may be in cementing the improvement in relations between the United States and Russia.

World News from the BBC

Three Pakistani cricketers at the centre of a corruption scandal have been banned from playing by the International Cricket Council. The former Pakistani captain Salman Butt was banned for 10 years with five years suspended. The bowler Mohammad Asif was banned for seven years with two suspended while Mohammad Amir was banned for five years. On Friday, British prosecutors said the three would face criminal charges over allegations they conspired to fix elements of a match against England last August. All three have protested their innocence.

Anti-government protesters in Serbia have held their biggest rally in years. Tens of thousands gathered in front of the Serbian parliament in the capital Belgrade, demanding higher wages and early elections. The organisers, the nationalist opposition Serbian Progressive Party, have said they'll step up protests if elections are not called within two months.

The Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki says he will not seek a third term in office when his current term ends in 2014. Mr al-Maliki began his second term in December when he formed a new government after nine months of political stalemate. From Baghdad, Jonathan Head.

The new government here is not immune to the revolutionary winds blowing from Egypt. The Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki offered to halve his salary just weeks into his second term. He's been accused of trying to grab more power and of tolerating routine abuses by the security forces. His greatest challenge, though, is making his cabinet of 42 ministers effective enough to meet the needs of a population exhausted by years of political violence.

Thousands of supporters of Laurent Gbagbo, who refuses to step down as president of Ivory Coast, have staged a rally in the main city Abidjan. They are protesting against the leader of Burkina Faso, Blaise Compaore, who's trying to mediate in the crisis. Mr Gbagbo's opponent Alassane Ouattara is internationally recognised as the winner of November's election.

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