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BBC news 2013-03-31

BBC News with Sue Montgomery.

Uhuru Kenyatta who has been confirmed as the winner of Kenya’s presidential election has promised to work with all his countrymen without discrimination. Earlier the Supreme Court upheld the election result and dismissed the challenge by his main rival Raila Odinga. Mr. Odinga told the BBC that while he didn't agree with all of the court’s findings, he respected the decision and wanted to avoid bloodshed. Two people have been killed in unrest in the western city of Kisumu, following the Supreme Court ruling. Our Africa editor Richard Hamilton reports.

By accepting the court’s decision so quickly, Raila Odinga seems to have prevented a dissent into bloodshed that so many had feared. The prime minister said Kenyan should not let elections divide them and predicted that the future was bright. For his part, Mr. Kenyatta called his former rival his brother and urged him to work together with the new government. However no one is under any illusion that the new president will enjoy a honeymoon in period. He is due to go on trial at the ICC in the Hague in relation to the violence that followed the 2007 election.

Large savers at the Bank of Cyprus, the country’s biggest commercial lender, could see as much as 60% of their deposits wiped out as the result of the European bailout deal. The Central Bank has confirmed the figure which is higher than previously thought. People with more than 100,000 Euros will have 37.5% of their savings converted into near worthless shares. Another 22.5% of their funds will be frozen without interest.

Italy’s President Giorgio Napolitano has crushed speculation that he might resign, saying he will remain in office until his mandate ends in May. Mr. Napolitano also announced this establishment of two working groups which will examine ways to form a government. He's been trying to broker a compromise between the major parties following last month’s inconclusive general election. Alan Johnston reports.

All through Friday President Napolitano held talks with the major political factions but no progress was made. And overnight there was intense speculation that the president might step down but he's ruled that out. These also thoughts that calm the situation. He's pointed out that Italy does have a government. The outgoing administration of Prime Minister Mario Monti is still running the country. All the same, the president went on to stress the urgency of installing a new government in the aftermath of last month’s election.

At least twenty people are now known to have been killed in Tanzania when a building collapsed in the city of Dar es Salaam on Friday. A rescue worker told the BBC that at least three children were among the dead. He said rescuers were continuing the search but had given up hope of finding survivors. Dozens of people are still missing.

World News from the BBC.

Egypt’s public prosecutor has ordered the arrest of a popular satirist Bassem Youssef for allegedly insulting Islam and President Mohammed Morsi. Mr. Youssef’s TV program has sparked more controversy than any other show in the country. Activists say this case and other complaints against journalists endanger free speech in Egypt.

King Abdullah of Jordan has sworn in the new government led by a reformist Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour. His appointment came after the king took the uNPRecedented step of consulting parliament. Previously it had no role in forming governments. The new cabinet will face a task of implementing measures to try to reduce Jordan’s three-billion-dollar deficit. Here is Dale Gavlak.

Reform-minded Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour has merged several portfolios to cut spending in the cash-strapped kingdom which is facing a three-billion-dollar deficit. Jordan hopes to cut its budget deficit by about a third this year to curb the impact of soaring fuel import cost and high social spending designed to deter the kind of uprising scene in neighboring Arab states. Late last year, Prime Minister Ensour ended fuel subsidies, triggering nationwide protest, some demanding that the king stepped down.

French police have foiled the thief to the elephant tusks from the Natural History Museum in Paris. A 20-year-old man broke into the museum overnight and used the chainsaw to remove one of the tusks from an elephant that once belong to the French King Louis XIV. The man fled when the museum’s alarms went off. He was caught by police in a nearby street. Museum’s staff say they are confident the tusk can be restored.

An Indian restaurant in Britain has created an Easter egg which it says  is up to ten times hotter than a vindaloo curry or the equivalent of 400 bottles of Tabasco sauce. Diners wishing to sample a chocolate have to be over 18, sign a disclaimer and must on protective gloves.

BBC News.