BBC news 2011-05-09 加文本

BBC news 2011-05-09

BBC News with Fiona MacDonald

President Obama has called on the Pakistani government to investigate the support network that sustained Osama Bin Laden in the secret compound where he was killed by US commandos last week. In a television interview, Mr Obama said he had no evidence that people inside the Pakistani government had helped the al-Qaeda leader, but he said he must have had support(supported口误) and [it] needed to be investigated. US officials have also asked for access to Osama Bin Laden's three widows, who are in Pakistani custody. From Washington, here's Natalia Antelava.

President Obama's message was even-handed and diplomatic. He was careful not to accuse Pakistan of harbouring Osama Bin Laden, but he certainly acknowledged that it's important to ask questions about whether he had any support from the Pakistani government. The Obama administration, while acknowledging that there is a problem, has left it up to congressmen and the media to raise public questions and criticisms of the Pakistani government.

The military authorities in Egypt have said they will take strong action to protect national security after deadly clashes between Muslims and Christians in Cairo, which have left 12 people dead and more than 200 injured. Ministers promised what they called an "iron fist" to restore order. Jonathan Head reports from Cairo.

The authorities are now threatening severe penalties, including capital punishment, for those involved in attacking places of worship. They're hoping this will deter further sectarian violence. Two churches were badly damaged by a fire and around 200 people injured or killed after a protest by conservative Muslims escalated into an armed brawl. The Muslim group had surrounded a church, in which they believed a convert to Islam was being held against her will. However, eyewitnesses say that other men stirred up the violence by throwing petrol bombs at the church, provoking an exchange of gunfire.

The king of Bahrain has ordered the current state of emergency to be lifted from 1 June. It was imposed in March to try to stop anti-government protests. At least 30 people have died since the protests began in February. Richard Galpin reports.

The order, which was announced on state media in Bahrain, comes after a brutal crackdown by the security forces, which has stopped the protest movement by members of the majority Shia community. Hundreds of activists have been rounded up since the state of emergency was imposed in mid-March. Several are alleged to have been killed while in police custody. Military courts have already sentenced four men to death. And on Sunday, 21 others, including opposition leaders, were charged with trying to overthrow the monarchy.

The head of the Nato military alliance, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, has said he's optimistic that time is running out for the Libyan leader Colonel Gaddafi. Mr Fogh Rasmussen said that Colonel Gaddafi had been stopped in his tracks, but he said the conflict in Libya required a political rather than a military solution.

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Dissidents in Cuba say a government opponent has died several days after he was arrested and allegedly beaten by police. There's been no word from the Cuban authorities. Michael Voss reports from Havana.

Forty-six-year-old Juan Wilfredo Soto was detained by the police last Thursday during a protest in the central city of Santa Clara. According to fellow dissident Guillermo Farinas, Mr Soto was beaten after yelling anti-government slogans and later hospitalised. He died early Sunday morning. Juan Soto, a former political prisoner, is believed to have had a number of pre-existing health issues, including diabetes, heart problems and gout. But the head of the illegal though tolerated Cuban Human Rights Commission, Elizardo Sanchez, suspects that Mr Soto's death was linked to his detention.

Thousands of Mexicans have joined the final stages of a silent march in protest at the killing of tens of thousands of people in drug-related violence and the government's response to it. The four-day march is reaching its climax in the main square of Mexico City.

A senior United Nations official in Ivory Coast says that new mass graves have been found there containing the remains of more than 50 male victims. The acting UN human rights chief in Ivory Coast, Guillaume Ngeffa, told the BBC that two mass graves have been found in a suburb of the commercial capital Abidjan. He said local people alleged that many of the victims were killed by supporters of the former President Laurent Gbagbo on the day after he was captured by forces loyal to his main opponent President Alassane Ouattara.

In football, Manchester United have won a crucial game against their main rivals Chelsea, which may be decisive in the race for the English Premiership title. United won by two goals to one after making a sensational start by scoring in the first minute.

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