BBC news 2011-12-08 加文本

BBC news 2011-12-08

BBC News with Sue Montgomery

President Bashar al-Assad of Syria has denied ordering his military to kill or be brutal towards anti-government protesters, saying only a crazy person would kill his own people. Mr Assad told the American network ABC News that he didn't own the country or the army but admitted mistakes in handling the uprising. Paul Wood reports from Beirut.

A UN report accuses the Syrian government of mass arrests, torture, using sexual violence against protesters and of killing some 300 children. In his interview, President Assad did seem to accept there had been excessive force by his police and troops, but he said these were individual acts, not policy. That would be met with scorn by the demonstrators while the international community is concerned that Syria is moving from crackdown into something more and more resembling a civil war.

The leaders of France and Germany have been setting out in more detail some of their controversial proposals to strengthen the eurozone ahead of Friday's crucial EU summit. Nicolas Sarkozy and Angela Merkel have also repeated their call for a tax on financial transactions. From Brussels, here's Chris Morris.

On the eve of this summit, positions seem to be hardening. A senior German official said he was more pessimistic than he had been a week ago. Some countries, he said, still don't understand just how serious the situation is. He dismissed as a trick talk of introducing a new fiscal agreement for the eurozone within existing treaties. A letter sent to the president of the European Council by Angela Merkel and Nicolas Sarkozy said the current structure of monetary union has failed. It sets out an ambitious agenda for tougher rules and automatic penalties for those who break them.

Airport authorities in Bahrain say they've intercepted a suspect device sent from Britain. They say an investigation involving British counter-terrorism officers has been launched to find out if the device is a bomb.

Thousands of people have been protesting in the Libyan capital Tripoli against former rebels who helped liberate the city from the forces of Colonel Gaddafi. The demonstrators want the militias disarmed. From Tripoli, Caroline Hawley reports.

The militiamen who fought their way into Tripoli in August and ousted Muammar Gaddafi are no longer welcome after clashes between rival groups. In a city with no proper police force, awash with weapons, there's anger at increasing lawlessness. This woman says the other night there was so much fighting she thought Gaddafi's forces had returned.

"We are suffering now. Before, everything was OK, but now everything is upside down."

Reining in the militiamen is a major challenge for the new Libyan government.

World News from the BBC

The former anti-drug czar in Honduras Alfredo Landaverde has been shot dead in the capital Tegucigalpa. Mr Landaverde, who was travelling in a car with his wife, was shot by unidentified gunmen on a motorbike. He'd been an outspoken critic of police corruption. In October, he accused 25 senior police officers of being in the pay of drug cartels.

A court in America has sentenced the former governor of Illinois, Rod Blagojevich, to 14 years in prison for corruption, including trying to sell President Obama's old Senate seat. Prosecutors said Mr Blagojevich misused the power of his office from the moment he became governor in 2002 and engaged in extensive criminal conduct. He was arrested three years ago and initially denied any wrongdoing.

Results from the first election in Egypt since the fall of Hosni Mubarak confirm that the Muslim Brotherhood are on course to become the single largest party in parliament. With Egypt's more hard-line Islamists in second place, they are likely to control at least half of the seats. But the BBC Middle East correspondent says it's not clear the two Islamist groups will work as a single bloc.

Commemorations to mark the 70th anniversary of the surprise Japanese attack on the US Pacific Fleet at Pearl Harbor are being held across the United States. At Pearl Harbor, veterans of the raid observed a minute's silence. The acting governor of Hawaii, Lieutenant Governor Brian Schatz paid tribute to those who lost their lives.

"Across the country, this day is being remembered. A nation pauses to honour those who have sacrificed so much for the peace, security and betterment of those who followed. And at the same time, we look forward steadfastly and re-dedicate ourselves to the mission of peace in the world. We're uniquely privileged to observe this day and all it stands for here at Pearl Harbor."

The attack led to the entry of the United States into the Second World War.

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