BBC在线收听下载:塞浦路斯或将寻求经济援助

BBC news 2012-06-06

BBC News with Jerry Smit

The United States says an American drone attack in Pakistan has killed al-Qaeda's second-in-command Abu Yahya al-Libi. It stressed that this was the second time in a year the US had taken out such a senior figure. Senior officials described Abu Yahya al-Libi as one of the group's most experienced and versatile leaders, and said there was no one who came close in terms of replacing him. The White House spokesman Jay Carney said al-Libi's death had dealt a heavy blow to the organisation.

"His death is part of the degradation that has been taking place to core al-Qaeda during the past several years, and that degradation has depleted the ranks to such an extent that there is now no clear successor to take on the breadth of his responsibilities. And that puts additional pressure on al-Qaeda's post-bin Laden leader, Zawahiri, to try to manage the group in an effective way."

The lower house of the Russian parliament has passed a controversial law which would impose new restrictions on public protests. The ruling party United Russia wants to restrict where demonstrations take place and what form they take. The new legislation would also sharply increase fines for unauthorised protests. The bill will be debated by the upper house on Wednesday, but a BBC correspondent says there's little doubt it'll be adopted.

Queen Elizabeth has described the events marking her Diamond Jubilee as a "humbling experience". In a televised message, she said she'd been touched deeply by seeing so many people celebrating together.

"I hope that memories of all this year's happy events will brighten our lives for many years to come. I will continue to treasure and draw inspiration from the countless kindnesses shown to me in this country and throughout the Commonwealth."

Earlier, hundreds of thousands cheered the monarch as she appeared on the balcony of Buckingham Palace, and a flypast by the Royal Air Force roared overhead. Jane Peel watched the events.

It was the climax of four days of celebrations: the appearance of the Queen on the Buckingham Palace balcony and an RAF flypast, which included World War II aircraft, and the Red Arrows trailing red, white and blue smoke. Tens of thousands of well-wishers stood in the rain, waving Union flags. Earlier, the Queen attended a thanksgiving service at St Paul's, at which the archbishop of Canterbury paid tribute to her 60 years of service and offered prayers for Prince Philip. With her consort being treated in hospital, the Queen was accompanied by her eldest son and his wife for the open-topped carriage procession back to her London home.

The Queen's youngest son, Prince Edward, has visited Prince Philip in hospital. He said his father was recovering from an infection and in good spirits.

World News from the BBC

The United Nations says the Syrian government has agreed to allow aid agencies to set up field operations in four provinces that have seen the most intense violence. A UN aid official said the government agreed in writing to allow convoys with supplies to go into Homs, Idlib, Deraa and Deir al-Zour. He said that implementation would be a test of the good faith of the Syrian authorities.

Thousands of Egyptians are in Tahrir Square in Cairo to protest against what they see as lenient sentences for the ousted President Mubarak and several of his closest aides. The protesters are urging a renewal of the revolution that toppled Mr Mubarak, who on Saturday received a life sentence but not the death penalty many Egyptians demanded. Two of the unsuccessful contenders in the first round of presidential elections have joined the protest.

The government of Cyprus, which is a member of the eurozone, says it might need a bailout from the European Union to save its banking system. Cyprus has been struggling with high unemployment and austerity measures. Karen Hoggan reports.

The European Financial Stability Facility is a fund set up to bailout eurozone economies which run into trouble. The admission by a Cypriot government spokesman that Cyprus may have to tap into it adds to the speculation which has been gathering pace over the past few days that the country could have to seek aid. The economy of Cyprus has been particularly affected by the worsening situation in Greece. Cypriot banks are exposed to Greek bonds to the tune of nearly $30bn. That's more than the entire economic output of Cyprus.

Voters in the American state of Wisconsin are voting today to decide if the Republican state governor Scott Walker should be thrown out of office. Mr Walker provoked anger with reforms to public sector pay and trade union rights. Today's extraordinary election is only the third so-called recall vote for a state governor in US history.

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