BBC news 2011-12-03 加文本

BBC news 2011-12-03

BBC News with David Austin

The United Nations top human rights body has passed a resolution strongly criticising Syria over its violent suppression of anti-government protests. Here's Imogen Foulkes in Geneva.

Diplomats say this is the toughest resolution the UN Human Rights Council has ever passed. Thirty-seven states voted in favour, a council record, and only four - Russia, China, Cuba and Ecuador - voted against. Although the council has no power to impose sanctions on Syria, the resolution has a long list of demands: an immediate end to the violence, the suspension of all members of the security forces suspected of committing violations and the release of political prisoners. What's more, the council has decided to appoint a permanent special investigator to monitor and report on Syria's compliance.

The man chosen by Yemen's opposition parties to lead the transitional government has warned that the power transfer deal signed by President Saleh could collapse if clashes between forces for and against Mr Saleh continue. Mohammed Basindwa was speaking as at least four more people were killed in the city of Taizz. Despite an announcement by the new authorities that presidential elections would be held in February, tens of thousands of Yemenis again took to the streets, demanding that Mr Saleh and his closest aides be put on trial.

The British ambassador to Iran says the authorities in Tehran were behind the storming of British diplomatic compounds in the city earlier this week. The attacks prompted Britain to close its embassy in Iran. Diplomats at Iran's embassy in London have now left the country after the British government ordered their expulsion. James Reynolds reports.

For Iran's diplomats in London, it was moving day. Staff and their families were driven to Heathrow Airport for their flight to Tehran. Inside the terminal, one man prayed, others pushed trolleys stacked with suitcases and boxes. It's not yet clear when Britain and Iran will reopen their embassies. For now, the two countries will have to find another way of communicating.

The German Chancellor Angela Merkel has warned it'll take years to resolve the eurozone's debt crisis. She said that work had begun to create a fiscal union which would provide greater stability among countries using the euro. On Thursday, the French President Nicolas Sarkozy said France and Germany would seek a new European Union treaty to ensure greater economic integration. Hugh Schofield has this report from Paris.

Over the last 24 hours, Angela Merkel and Nicolas Sarkozy have both separately spoken of the need for changes to the EU treaties in order to force governments in the eurozone to follow budget orthodoxy. It's not clear that the two leaders have exactly the same vision in mind when they talk of enforcement, but it does seem certain that at next week's European summit, the issue of treaty change will be very much on the agenda.

Hugh Schofield

World News from the BBC

The international court trying the former Bosnian Serb commander Ratko Mladic has agreed to cut the number of crimes he's facing in order to speed up proceedings. Ratko Mladic will still be tried on all existing 11 charges against him, which include two of genocide, but the number of specific crimes being considered has been reduced by almost half. Prosecutors in The Hague requested the move following reports that Mr Mladic's health may be deteriorating.

The Egyptian authorities have announced some of the results from the first round of Egypt's parliamentary elections. The Muslim Brotherhood are thought to be ahead in the vote, but few details are known. From Cairo, here's Jon Leyne.

The most important figure to emerge so far from the Egyptian elections is the turnout - at over 62%. The head of the electoral commission described it proudly as the highest since the time of the pharaohs. So far, there are only four clear individual winners. The rest will go into a run-off next week. Overall it's thought the Islamists from the Muslim Brotherhood are leading, but no official figures have been given yet. The presenter on state TV said that the Muslim Brotherhood coalition had won over 40% of the vote. However, just to complicate matters, they are in alliance with two secular parties.

The Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is hosting a summit of a new regional bloc in Caracas. The declared aim of the community of Latin American and Caribbean states is to foster regional ties. Mr Chavez described the body, which does not include the United States or Canada, as a counterweight to the Organisation of American States, which he said was dominated by the US.

The draw has taken place in the Ukrainian capital Kiev for one of football's biggest international tournaments, Euro 2012. The event is being co-hosted by Ukraine and Poland. Among the fixtures to emerge, the current champions Spain will face Ireland, Croatia and Italy. England are grouped with Ukraine, Sweden and France.

And that's the BBC News.