27/07/2011 World News Today

This is BBC World News Today, with me, David Eades. Out with the old,

in with the new, as Britain expels Libya's remaining diplomats and say

that the rebel councillors the sole governmental authority.

We are inviting the National Transitional Council to appoint a

new diplomatic envoy to take over the embassy.

Learning the lessons while the pain persists - Norway's government

announces a commission to discover how the killings could have

happened. London makes a splash as it begins

the countdown to the 2012 Olympics. Uniting the world and sound - the

BBC Proms celebrates the universal appeal of music. -- uniting the

world in sound. Hello and welcome. The

international drive to remove Muammar Gaddafi from power has been

reinforced today. Britain has declared that the National

Transitional Council is the legitimate government authority. It

is expelling the remaining diplomats in London and a new

ambassador has been named. It is preparing to unfreeze millions of

pounds of Libyan assets. The rebels have turned the screw on Gaddafi.

They say they are no longer prepared to allow him to stay in

the country if he does stand down. The green flag of Colonel Gaddafi's

Libya. Today's moved to treat the rebels as the government is a

significant boost for them, Britain following the US and France in

intensifying the pressure on the regime.

We no longer read -- recognise them as the representatives of the

Libyan government and we invite the National Transitional Council to

appoint a new Libyan diplomatic envoy to take over the embassy in

London. Libya's Embassy in London is in

Knightsbridge. The ambassador was expelled in. Now the charge

d'affaires has three days to leave. Other diplomats must go as well and

Britain will unlock �91 million of assets from the Libyan oil

companies -- oil company. This is an important symbolic moment,

especially for the small group of rebel supporters who have come here

hoping to replace the flag of Colonel Gaddafi's regime with their

own. The question is what difference it will make underground.

Joining the demonstrators, a former financial adviser at the embassy,

who was sacked when he showed his support for the rebels.

Translation mack this is very positive. It is a psychological

boost. We will be able to use the fund to help the Libyan people and

hopefully this is just the beginning.

Colonel Gaddafi still commands support in Libya, particularly in

Tripoli, the capital. It is difficult to gauge how much in a

regime like his but increasingly the Benghazi based National

Transitional Council is being recognised internationally and the

political battle against the regime is heating up amid a military

stalemate. There are several front lines. Close to Brega, to the west

of Misrata, and to the West of Tripoli. But there has been no

decisive shift to give the rebels the momentum they need. They might

have been four months of Nato bombing, much longer than Britain

hoped Gaddafi would last. So instead it is turning up the

diplomatic pressure. The Government, under pressure itself under the

lead -- over the Libyan campaign. Let's get some more on this. We can

cross to our Oxford studio and speak to Oliver Miles, the former

British ambassador to Libya. Why do you think it has taken this long

for the government to follow suit after the Americans and the French

and others? I think William Hague partly explained that. I think

there are a number of reasons. The circumstances of each country are

different. One important Ewan was that the large number of Libyan

students in Britain who are dependent on money coming through

the embassy. It would have been wrong, I think, to have rushed to a

solution which would have left them without support. I have done

nothing wrong, they don't support - - don't deserve to lose their

support. William Hague said that he was pretty confident that the way

this has been handled means they will not suffer. You're looking

more at the practicalities of the decision rather than a strategic

move? Yes, the two are not really to be separated. It has its

symbolic importance of course and it is all part of a movement to

increase the pressure on Gaddafi. There were to decisions taken by

the British government today. -- two. If you can sift out two points

from the quite long presentation that William Hague gave, one was

the decision to recognise the National Transitional Council as

the only legitimate authority in Libya, which is new. Previously

they were recognised as legitimate but not the only legitimate

authority. Secondly, the decision to dismiss from Britain the

remaining diplomats in the Libyan embassy. Neither of those are

tremendously important in themselves but taken together with

other actions we have been taking and our allies have been taking

they are increasing the pressure. We are talking about four months

after the bombing campaign began. Are you surprised by what some

people would say is how little has been achieved? No. I think that

anybody who thought this matter could be settled by air power was

deceiving himself. There are very strong reasons for thinking it

would be difficult and it would take time. Nobody could tell how

long it would take. What was interested to see that William

Hague was emphasising not only that we can't predict how long it will

take but also that we will go on as long as it takes, and I think that

is an important political point as well as being true, I imagine. But

it increases the pressure -- the idea that the military pressure is

not going to go away. Transparency, openness, and a

commission to investigate how Norway's nightmare happened. If

that is the message the Prime Mr Jens Stoltenberg delivered today.

He said the country would not be intimidated by Friday's killings.

Police continue fit -- to search for people reported missing after

the shooting on the motorway or Ireland. -- b Utoeya Island.

Norway's bomb squad. Abandoned suitcase has been spotted and the

bus is empty. It was harmless but Norwegians are haunted by what

happened five days ago. This was the moment last Friday when a

massive car-bomb launched a massacre. Anders Breivik went on to

shoot scores of young people on the island of Utoeya. They were

supporters of the governing Labour Camp -- Labour Party. More

survivors told their stories today. Was there a time when you thought

you would not have -- survive? Are you through the worst? I think

the worst of it will be to know all of the names of people who are dead.

It will be hard to go to the funerals, to meet the families, and

I think it will be hard to one day wake up and realise that we have to

get back to light, back to work and try to function as normal.

This woman was lucky. She left the island two hours before the

shootings. She wants to stress her pride in Norway's multiculturalism

and the tolerance that Breivik wanted to destroy.

My story tells a lot about the opportunities that Norway gives to

all youngsters. Including Muslims? Yes. In how many other countries

can you be the daughter of immigrants and become a

parliamentary servant at the age of 28. In Oslo, the buildings scarred

by the bombing started to be patched up but Norway's collective

sense of shock is still profound. The physical damage will take

months to prepare. The government is warning that some buildings will

have to be demolished but of course it is the psychological damage that

is of far greater concern. But most Norwegians seem certain that it is

their strong shared values that will get them through the difficult

days and weeks to come. We can go to Oslo live now and

speak to Mohammad Usman Rana, a Muslim commentator. We heard that

Norway is the land of opportunity for all sorts of backgrounds. Has

this change to Norway for you? -- changed. No. Norway will not change

with its multiculturalism and unique openness. Norwegians are

very certain that we can't change our openness, we can't change our

liberal state and we will try to preserve that. When you first heard

of this appalling event, did you have a sense of anxiety that people

would start, at least symbolically, pointing the finger at you and

other Muslims in the country? think the terrorist attack is

serious and devastating for Norwegians independent of whether

it was a Muslim extremist or her right wing extremists, but of

course, since this was an attack committed by a Norwegian extremist,

this emphasises that terrorists do not have religion and that

Norwegians have to unify. Actually, be positive outcome of this

terrorist attack is that we Norwegians stand even more united.

I just wondered if you feel in any way that Norway has perhaps

perversely paid the price here for being... You have described it as a

well-functioning multicultural society. Perhaps it is that ability

to bring everybody else into the community that in this case has

cost it dear. Yes, I mean, Norway compared to other European

countries is a very well- functioning multicultural society.

We do not have get the widest neighbour heard lights you have in

London and Bradford. - Matt Giteau neighbourhoods. -- ghetto

neighbourhoods. What is important now is to analyse what radicalised

this not -- young Norwegian to become a terrorist, exactly like

Muslims have to examine how some Muslim terrorists misuse Islam to

commit terrorism we also have to examine why some right-wing

extremists, where they get their ideology from and what made them

radicalised. I am sure there will be a long period of analysis. Thank

you very much. Let's take a look at some of the

day's other news. Reports from Syria say that security forces have

launched an attack on a town near Damascus. Troops reinforced by

tanks killed at least 11 civilians in Kay, activists say. -- in

Kanaker. A suicide bomber has killed the

mayor of the southern Afghan city of Kandahar. Ghulam Haidar Hameedi

was meeting tribal elders when he died. A spokesman for the Taliban

said that they carried out the attack.

Police in China say they have rescued 89 kidnapped babies during

operations to break up child smuggling gangs. The police told

state media that they had arrested more than 100 people in southern

provinces on suspicion of trafficking baby girls. The report

said some of the babies had been brought into China from Vietnam.

Torrential rain described as the worst in a century has triggered

landslides in South Korea, killing at least 28 people. Worst hit was

the northern city of Chuncheon. Buildings were hit by a torrent of

mud and debris. Parts of the capital were also flooded.

The Arab Spring protests in Yemen have left the country in political

you -- political limbo. President Ali Abdullah Saleh was badly burned

in a bomb attack last month and is recuperating in Saudi Arabia.

Political opponents say that the President refuses to enter into

negotiations for political change. Now, look at the country's

political impasse. Army tanks are regular sight on the

streets in Yemen. These elite forces in Taiz have been battling

with opposition protesters. The President, President Ali Abdullah

Saleh, has not been in the country for weeks. His palace became a

battle zone in June and he was airlifted to Saudi Arabia for

medical treatment for serious burns. This picture of him was broadcast

on Yemen -- Yemeni television three weeks ago. The country has been in

political stalemate since he left. Before his departure, Western

governments had been pressurising the President to sign a plan to

hand over power but he backed out of signing three times.

TRANSLATION: there is political will with a large number of leaders

and they are what -- are aware that the situation has worsened so much

that the people can't tolerate these conditions.

A militants associated with Crewe have been ramping up their efforts

in the south. -- with Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. Opponents

see it as a ploy to convince foreign governments that only the

government can deal with the militants. Both its -- it seems

that the calls of the opponents to change are being ignored, with

I'm now joined here in the studio by the Yemeni foreign minister, Dr

Abu Bakr Al-Qirbi. How close are you to dialogue with the opposition

now? The we have already started the dialogue, by the Vice President

and some leaders of the opposition, some representatives of the joint

meeting parties. Or two about the transitional council? We are

looking at this situation where there is a pre- requisite here that

the president accepts he can no longer hold office, and that still

will not happen. I'd been the President has already declared that

he is not going to run for election for a second time, that his son

will also not run. That clearly is not enough, though, is it. This is

the response of the President. It cannot go every day and changing

demands. I think people now have Bisset and agree on a road map for

a transition that will lead to the transfer of power. The but it is

fair to say, isn't it, that what built up to the President being

bred in his own presidential palace, albeit whether we call it tribal

rivalries or whatever, was a real conflagration of violence in the

capital, and the President was at the heart of it. He has moved out

and things have calmed down. think they have calmed down because

the President's first instructions after the attack on his life, and

also the lives of many leaders of the government, this was really a

terrorist attack, I think. You cannot look at it as part of the

political situation in Yemen. This is a terrorist attack. And one has

to wait for the results of the investigation and see who is

responsible for it. Let me ask you this. You have acknowledged that

the President says he will not stand again. How important is the

President now for the future of the country? He is important to see

that there is a proper and safe transition of power in Yemen.

yet that will not happen as long as he is there, according to many of

the opposition. This is one part of the story. On the other side, I

think the ruling party says his presence will allow for a use for

transfer of power, because he is not running. He has already acted,

I think, with the greatest responsibility after that attempt

on his life. He has ordered that there should be no revenge, that

they should be no actions that will lead to a civil war. I think he has

also had eight operations, so he is clearly not a man in great shape.

The UN Secretary General's envoy has said this is a country close to

collapse. Would you go along with that? I think the country faces a

very serious political crisis, yes. I think the collapse will depend on

how the opposition and the Government take full responsibility

in addressing the challenges of getting in and out of this crisis.

Thank you very much. It's not true of every Olympic

Games that the venues are put on display a year ahead of schedule.

But London is putting on a show already - such is the confidence

here that everything is running to plan. Babita Sharma is at the

Aquatic Centre in the Olympic Park for us.

Thank you. The show is faring much under way here. Welcome to east

London. I'm inside the Aquatics Centre, which has been the

centrepiece of what has been happening here today, marking a

year to go to the false start of the opening ceremony of the London

2012 Olympics. It is a very impressive building. It is one of

pride -- five permanent venues that have actually been completed today.

One man who got a taste for the pool was the British medal hope for

diver Tom Daley, who within the last 10 minutes also took to the

top of the diving board to acknowledge the crowd surrounding

him as he took that dive. A very iconic moment, he described it for

himself and an historic moment for the young 17-year-old. This houses

some 17,005 unexpected as who will come here to the capital to watch

the events. It is interesting. Many people have been talking about the

legacy of the London 2012 Olympics. We don't know what I will be

perhaps and in many years to come and will we know the true extent of

how these games will be remembered. But our correspondent has been

looking at the legacy of the Beijing Olympics in 2008.

We are here at the Bird's Nest Stadium, which is a symbol of what

would -- what was a hugely successful Olympic Games. Beijing

spent $14 billion according to some estimates. That is far more than

London is spending. We're just going to go inside not speak to a

top Chinese official about the preparations which the City took in

order to host what is a massive event. A year ahead of the Olympics

here in Beijing, where were you at? TRANSLATION: At that time, we held

the one year can dance ceremony in Tiananmen Square. It is a crucial

time. The Kop, of course, is ticking. The key issue is making

sure that every deadline is met. -- the key issue. Do you have any tips

or advice for London? Make sure that the Olympics complement the

city's development. When we built the new infrastructure for the

Olympics, it improved everybody's standard of living.

Just ahead of the Olympics, Beijing went on a building binge. But it

wasn't a sports venues. It was subway lines and airport terminal,

roads and railways. It was all designed to keep a city on the move

and an Olympic Games running like clockwork. But three years after

the event was held, what is the legacy? When with one of China's

best-known sports commentators, Yan Qiang. What did the game has been

to China? It was a door opening event out that time, the first

real-time that modern China had opened its doors to the world and

show what we were about. How is the legacy a different one -- from what

is expected to be the legacy in London? I would say Beijing 2008

might be the last mega Olympics in history. In London, it is according

to have the ability of the city. In Beijing, it was about national

confidence. Ever since the end of the Olympics, the Water Cube has

proved a huge success story. But with water flying and life banneds,

it was always going to be a draw. The Olympics in London are going to

be very different from the ones here. But people here hope that one

thing remains the same, that is that at the end of the Olympics,

China has won the most gold medals. The IOC president Jacques Rogge has

formally welcomed the world's athletes to the London 2012 Olympic

Games and celebrations will continue in Trafalgar Square and

here at the Aquatics Centre in east London. Back to you.

Exciting stuff. Thank you. The setting could not have been

more English - the Proms at London's Royal Albert Hall. But the

music at The Human Planet Prom was very international. The concert,

aimed at celebrating the universal appeal of music, included

performers from Mongolia, Greenland and Zambia. David Hannah was at the

rehearsals. Music, universal language for the

globe. That was the idea behind a unique Prom concert at the Royal

Albert Hall. The inspiration came from a BBC Tullett -- a television

programme, The Human Planet, with music composed by Nitin Sawhney. It

underlined the fusion of music around the globe and YouTube.

can see music from anywhere on line. You can look at music for more to

them parts of the world on YouTube. I think there is more of a free

exchange that is not really about Musicians were invited from around

the world. Some had never left their own countries, but they have

much in common despite differing musical cultures. I compose my own

music out of my tradition. If I see an event, I can compose a song

about what I see. Anything I see around. If Lacey people fighting,

ask them why they are fighting and I compose a song. If I close my

eyes and hear music from Mongolia, I'm feeling at home because I am

feeling something in my heart. These musicians from Mongolia are

already big on the World Music Mongolian throat singing but with

African drumming. Music has put created its way

around the world from the dawn of time, mixing different ideas. That

is what Mesic is added to never disappoints. Today we have certain

blends of music. Within a decade, there will be a whole new one.

group from papier -- Papua New Guinea with a traditional dance

brought to the heart of London. Hello. Yet again, today some of us

have warm sunshine, but for others it was a little bit cloudy.

Tomorrow, it is really the cloud which will dominate first thing in

the morning. We have also got a weather front to contend with

tomorrow with a bit of rain around. You will start to see the weather

system moving in to the north and west overnight. Ahead of that, it

is good to stay dry, and with all the cloud not a particularly cold

start to Thursday morning. There would be some bricks across parts

of England and Wales ahead of the front. After a bright start across

northern England, think we will see a bit patchy rain arriving in

Newcastle. Parts of the East Midlands staying dry and bright and

a much warmer day in London. A cloudy a day in store for south-

west England. Temperatures as a result perhaps a few degrees down.

But there will be some sunny spells at times. Across Wales, does much

more overcast. We may even see a bit of patchy light rain or drizzle

especially across the higher ground. For Northern Ireland, after a bit

of a damp start, we will start to see some sunny spells through the

afternoon towards the north and west. But through Belfast, it will

be cooler and cloudier. A much cooler day for Glasgow and towards

Edinburgh. But I think up towards the Highlands, we will see some