BBC在线收听下载:国际足联敦促巴西体育馆加速修建

BBC news 2014-02-19

BBC News with Neil Nunes

Ukrainian police have begun trying to clear thousands of anti-government protesters from their camp in central Kiev, several tents have been set in fire as armed officers circle Independence Square. Demonstrators trying to hold their ground are throwing stones and petrol bombs and have set fire to piles of tyres. At least 13 people have been killed in the day of clashes. Oleg Rybachuk is a former leader of Ukrain's Orange Revolution.

It's uNPRecedented. I don't think what involved 21st century has seen something of this scale and violence and violence from heavily armed police. I emphasize again, they are armed with Kalashnikovs, there are armoured personnel carriers and there are three water guns. And they fired the whole Independence Square, and the people are surrounded, people have no place to run away, the underground is paralysed, so there is X the whole city by police not letting people even out so it looks like there are squeezing and squeezing Independece Suqare.

Foreign governments, including the US and Germany have appealed for restraint. Demonstrators have been demanding the resignation of President Viktor Yanukovych for months.

A Venezuelan opposition leader accused of inciting violence during recent protests has handed himself into the authorities. Leopoldo Lopez surrendered as supporters and opponents of the government held rival rallies in Caracas. Irene Caselli is there.

I beg you to remain cautious and avoid the confrontation.This is what Leopoldo Lopez told the crowd of supporters as he walked towards the national guard and handed himself over. He said he could have left the country or gone into the hiding, but he had nothing to hide, I'm innocent, he said. Authorities say Mr. Lepez was responsible for the deaths of three peoples during last week's protests. Thousands are still gathered in eastern Caracas wearing red in support of Mr. Lepez as a rival march takes place on the other side of the city.

The President of Colombia, Juan Manuel Santos has dismissed the head of the armed forces, General Leonardo Barrero following allegations of the massive corruption in military procurement contracts. Four other generals have also been sacked after the scandal was exposed by the media. Arturo Wallace has this report from Colombia.

The scandal broke on Sunday when local magazine Semana, published a series of secret recordings that suggest corrupt army officers may have been sipheoning off a huge of amounts of money from military contracts. And in one of the those recordings, General Barrero could be heard telling the main suspect, a lieutenant colonel who is also being investigated for alleged human rights abuses to organize like a mob against the public prosecutors.

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A judge in Spain has ordered two former executives of a failed bank to stand trial for fraud. The regional savings Bank CAM was bailed out with public money in 2011 and then sold to a bigger bank for the symbolic sum of one Euro as part of an effort to stabilise Spain's financial sector at the crisis of 2008.

Egypt's Prime Minister Hazem el-Beblawi has told state television that Islamist militants in the Sinai peninsula are becoming a threat to foreign tourists. The authorities say they are taking precautions to protect the visitors. Orla Guerin is in Cairo.

There is renewed concern about the risk to foreign tourists here since three South Koreans were killed on Sunday in a suicide attack in Sinai, that was carried out by Ansar Beit al-Maqdis, the most active Islamic militant group in Egypt. The al-Qaeda inspired militants have focused on security targets so far. But theory is they may be opening a new front. After Sunday's bombing, the militant said they would wage war on economic interest.

The governing body of World Football, FIFA has decided the Brazilian city of Curitiba will host matches during this year's World Cup despite delays in renovating its stadium. FIFA's Secretary General Jerome Valcke said he was satisfied with the progress of the work, but warned that it had to continue at the highest pace. He added the Arena da Baixada will host four games. The World Cup kicks off on the 12th of June.

One of the world's most distinguished authors, Mavis Gallant has died at the age of 91. She won international recognition as a short-story writer more than 100 Mavis stories were published in the New Yorker magazine. And she also wrote two novels, Green Water, Green Sky and A Fairly Good Time.

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