19/08/2011 World News Today

This is BBC World News Today with me, Zeinab Badawi.

An audacious attack on the British Council compound in Kabul leaves 12

people dead. It's believed that at least six suicide attackers made it

inside the compound after detonating a car bomb, which took

out one of the walls at the British Council behind me.

Killed during Friday prayers - more than 40 die in a bomb attack on a

mosque in the Khyber region of Pakistan.

Has the controversial leader of the ANC's youth wing Julius Malema gone

a step too far this time? He's charged with bringing the party

into disrepute. And we report from the Edinburgh

Fringe Festival on what happens when social media meets modern

Hello and welcome. The British Council, the institution that for

decades has served as Britain's cultural organisation abroad, found

itself the specific target of a co- ordinated and audacious attack in

the Afghan capital Kabul. First, a suicide bomb destroyed the wall of

the British Council compound, allowing gunmen to storm the

12 people were killed in the attack, mostly Afghan police. All of the

attackers themselves were killed in an eight-hour gun battle. In a

moment we will hear from the head of the British Council. First,

Quentin Sommerville reports from Kabul.

Moments after morning prayers, the attack began with a huge explosion

that rattled windows across Kabul. The Taliban blue and massive hole

in the wall around the British Council. At least half-a-dozen at

suicide bombers then went inside. TRANSLATION: I bought outside the

house and I saw smashed windows. I saw the second bomber. He blew

himself up. The fighting continued around the morning. As the injured

were led away, three Afghan guards and a number of police were killed.

We heard more than three -- we heard three explosions. We believe

the suicide bombers blew themselves up. One survived and we think he is

in hiding. You can hear gunfire and heavy explosions at from the

British Council compound. You can see the British quick reaction

force who are on the scene. It is believed that six suicide attackers

made it inside the compound before detonating a car bomb that took out

one of the walls. The siege of the British Council lasted eight hours.

As soon as the attack began, staff inside, including two female

teachers, headed to an underground safe and room. After fierce

fighting, a New Zealand special forces and Afghan commandos came to

their rescue. But British Council stop in the compound who

essentially were in the safer route for most of the day and we were in

contact with them, had been extracted safely. There are now in

the embassy, obviously shaken, but well and an injured. As the clear-

up at the site began, it emerged that the war Atmel attackers had

disguise themselves in material -- in burkas. It is a vicious attack,

but an attack that has not succeeded. Today, as Afghanistan

and celebrated the success in it moving away from British rule was

the reason why the Taliban said they are attacked. As our combat

soldiers leave, the soldiers will be left to face the Taliban alone.

Martin Davidson is Chief Executive of the British Council. He gave us

his response to how the attack had affected his organisation. I think

the biggest shock for us is that an organisation which is there to

build close links between people internationally has been targeted

in this way. A lot of the work that the British Council does in

countries like Afghanistan is to get that face-to-face engagement,

isn't it? And absolutely. Are you worried those activities will be

restricted? It is early days. We have got to look at what happened

today. We are going to have to analyse what went wrong, but the

one thing we do want to do is to stay in Afghanistan, stay working

with the young Afghans because they tell us that they want the sort of

things that we do. They want the international connections, they

want to be part of the wider world, they want the skills and be able to

engage with their peers along -- around the world. Tell us a bit

about the activities you carry out in Afghanistan? You say you have

strong links with the young people. We are really focusing on two

things at the moment. One is working with the Afghan authorities

on the development and changes to the education system, both at the

basic education level as well as the higher education level. So we

are working with 22 key schools across the country, looking at how

the schools are run, how you train the teachers, what are the skills

you need. So you have a visible presence? You yes. It is about

working with Afghans who want to change their own society. But in a

country like Afghanistan, your efforts are compromise because

Britain is engaged in combat. need to build trust between young

people in Afghanistan and people in this country. To do that, you have

to get people to know and understand each other. You do not

have to agree, but there needs to be a dialogue and that is what we

are involved in. We know that the people we are talking there, the

young people, they want to be part of the wider world. They don't want

to be part of a closed society that resort to violence to get their

point across. It is a young population in Afghanistan. They

want to be like everyone else in the world and that is what I would

job is. If we get it right and do it well, it giving of those young

people an opportunity will build trust.

In neighbouring Pakistan, a suspected suicide attack inside a

mosque in the north-west Khyber region has killed more than 40

people. Hundreds were offering Friday prayers when the attack took

place. At least 85 people have been wounded, many of them with severe

burns and shrapnel injuries. The attack came without warning

inside a mosque packed with more than 1,000 worshippers who had come

for Friday prayers. It was the first major actor Piet -- violence

in Pakistan during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. The scenes of

hundreds of injured people been ferried to hospital are as

depressing reminder. The final number of those killed is expected

to be high. This man, who survived the explosion, said the attack

followed a cry of alarm who Akbar. The attack came in at an important

region - the Khyber Pass. It was not an attack on NATO. It was

another form of dangerous Islamist extremism. These people believe

that violence against their own people will further their cause.

Activists in Syria say security forces have killed at least 12

people as thousands of protesters took to the streets again after

Friday prayers. This week President Assad had assured the UN Secretary

General Ban Ki Moon that security operations against civilians had

stopped. The BBC is not allowed to freely report from inside Syria, so

Jim Muir sent this report from neighbouring Lebanon.

Nothing much seems to have changed since President Assad statements

bat or police and military operations have stop. Activist

videos on the internet cannot be verified independently, but many of

them appear to show government forces attacking protesters. In the

third biggest city, troops appeared to be on rooftops and in the

streets. Several civilians were killed here. There was trouble in

the suburbs of the capital Damascus as well. Civilian deaths were

reported. At the United Nations and elsewhere, patience is running

short. But as well as telling the secretary general military

operations had stopped, President Assad allowed to a humanitarian

mission to visit the troubled areas. We want to concentrate on the areas

where there had been reports of fighting so we can see exactly for

ourselves what has been going on. But pressures on Assad is

increasing. There are more international sanctions, but he

said Syria would stand firm, whatever the pressures. He blames

armed terrorist gangs fog all the problems. Syrian television has

shown footage of people with rifles and guns and knives who are

attacking the police, or security, who are throwing them into the

river. Unfortunately, for some reason, the West will only see with

one eye and listen with one ear. President Assad will take heart

from the fact that the Turks, who have been pressuring him, have not

supported the call for him to go now. They and the Russians say he

needs more time to implement the changes he has promised. And so the

struggle continues. The uprising is not going away, nor is the regime.

Five months on, nobody knows how this will end and how much longer

it will take. Now a look at some of the days

other news. The International Organisation for

Migration says it is planning to evacuate thousands of foreigners

from the Libyan capital Tripoli as fighting gets closer to the city.

It comes as rebels say they have launched a new assault on the town

of Zlitan, east of Tripoli, after capturing the last functioning oil

refinery in Zawiya and the town of Sabratha. The IOM says many migrant

workers are trapped by the clashes and are asking to leave as rebel

forces advance. Relatives of Norwegians killed in

last month's gun attack on the island of Utoeya have visited the

scene for the first time. Meanwhile, a court in Oslo has ruled that

Anders Behring Breivik, who admitted the attack, will remain in

solitary confinement for another month.

The Turkish prime minister Recep Tayip Erdogan says his country will

open an embassy in Somalia to help distribute aid to the country. Mr

Erdogan made the announcement during a visit to the Somali

capital Mogadishu. He said Turkey would also help build

infrastructure and schools. The start of the Spanish football

season this weekend will be delayed after negotiations to prevent a

strike by players failed. Many players, mostly in the second

division, have not been paid for months. Clubs are facing severe

financial difficulties. Staying with Spain, the government

has announced more austerity measures, including an effort to

cut hospital spending with a shift to generic drugs. It is also

bringing forward the date big businesses must pay their taxes,

But new homebuyers will enjoy lower taxes.

It's been another shaky day at the end of a shaky week for the world's

financial markets. In Europe there were further losses for the main

stock markets, with banking shares under pressure again. Lloyds here

in Britain has lost almost a fifth of its value this week, while banks

in France and Germany have also taken a battering. In New York the

markets haven't closed yet, but it's been a volatile day in the US,

too. Joining us is Daniel from the stern Business University. What is

feeding the fears this time? have a paralysis, and it is similar

to what we saw in the US in 2001. There is so much uncertainty about

the euro zone that if you are a corporate manager, you are not

ready to make the strong decision to hire or invest. If you are an

investor, you are probably keeping your money on the sideline. Whilst

this uncertainty remains, the paralysis does as well. What about

the United States? What is the situation there? There were some

poor indicators that suggested the economic outlook for the US was not

great. Everybody here has come to terms with the fact that this is

going to be a long and slow recovery. What we need Tapper now

is some good long-term planning, not just for the fiscal situation

of the country, but in the corporate boardrooms as well. Right

now the politicians and other leaders have bought themselves some

time to come to a compromise and makes some of those plans. In the

fiscal situation, it has to be a plan for more cuts. It when people

look at the market, could there be another recession on the way? --

where people. The stock market does tend to be a leading indicator of

the economy, but it is not completely reliable. It is hard to

judge a recession whilst you are experiencing it, which is why the

National Bureau typically calls a One of the most controversial

politicians in South Africa has been charged with bringing the

ruling ANC in to distribute -- disrepute. Julius Malema angered

party leaders by calling for regime change in neighbouring plots one,

which she called a puppet of the US. He has previously been told to take

anger management classes for his controversial statements.

Julius Malema is the firebrand ANC Youth League presence -- President,

re-elected unopposed in April of this year. He says he joined the

ANC when he was only nine years old. His mother, who raised him as a

single parent. Here he is throwing a journalist out of a press

conference last year. A few months ago he appeared in front of an

equality court in Johannesburg. He was called to explain why he still

scald and of -- still sings an old anti-apartheid liberation song.

Today the ANC has charged him for sowing divisions within party ranks.

He is also off -- faced with a charge of bringing the party into

disrepute. The trigger for today's charges is because he said in a

press conference a fortnight ago that he supports regime change in

neighbouring box one. This was the reaction from the streets of

Johannesburg. Do you charge him in person or do

you charge the Youth League? Is he responsible or the Youth League as

a whole? Julius Malema is speaking from his experience and what he

understands as a person and he is representing the ANC Youth League

opinion. I don't think he has brought it the ANC into disrepute.

TRANSLATION: He has no problem. The problem is people like Jacob Zuma,

because after we voted for them we have no jobs.

Meanwhile, South Africa's public protect it is investigating a

company linked to Mr Malema on suspicion of possible corruption in

awarding government contracts. Joining us now is Deputy Vice

Chancellor at the University of Johannesburg and African politics

specialist Adam Habib. In the eyes of the ANC leadership, has Julius

Malema gone a bit too far this time? I think so, but remember that

the leadership of the ANC has a dilemma left foot -- has I don't --

has ID -- has a dilemma. They are building up for the centenary

celebrations. But if they wait too long, Julius Malema has

increasingly been embarrassing be President, he has been antagonising

foreign investors and he has created destabilisation around

foreign investment questions. It seems that the leadership is saying

it is too far and that we need to act immediately to neutralise him.

In what way does he represent that fight for the heart and soul of the

ANC? Clearly this is an organisation divided between

broadly the nationalists and the left. The left are going for some

level of intervention, the nationalists are arguing for the

modus operandi under theorbo and Becky, a much more free market

party. -- under Toll Bar Mbeki. Either side are articulating

positions that you would not normally see them articulating,

like the Communist Party arguing against nationalisation. The

Communists are proposing it on the grounds that this is a bail-out for

mining companies rather than a real empowerment of poor people.

obviously strikes a chord among a lot of people. Can be a n c afford

to lose him if it comes to that? -- can be ANC. I think they can. Their

popularity goes belonged Julius Malema but his popularity lies in

the fact that this is a divided country. -- goes beyond. The poor

are angry and they gravitate towards a populist figure like

Malema. The more you deal with the divides and the inequality, the

more you cut the ground from someone like Julius Malema.

terms of the charges he is seeing because of his comments about

Botswana, how much diplomatic fall- out was there with but one about

that? -- with. One or -- with bots won. We have lost sound there I am

afraid. The world's largest arts festival,

the Edinburgh Fringe, is in full swing, with people descending on

Scotland. Social media and technology pay a big part -- play a

big part in the promotion of events. Twitter and Facebook are being used

in some of the performances and Danny Robins has been to Edinburgh

to find out more. The Edinburgh Fringe, the largest

arts festival in the world. This year's festival is the biggest yet,

with more than 2500 show is. To pull in an audience you have to

stand out. New media is the latest weapon in the battle to get noticed,

Twitter, Facebook and even a host of applications. But the use of

technology is not limited to promoting shows. With digital media

such a big part of our lives, it comes as no surprise that many

fought -- many performers are using it as a way to interact with their

audience. Buy a ticket for this show and the

main character will be friends you on Facebook, inviting you to a

party at their house. -- befriend. Half the characters are here, the

other half Orin Austin Texas. The internet links this it -- the two

sides and the comic story is played out via Skype. There is also a

third audience, online. You can watch the show screened live and

even interact with the actors on Twitter.

I feel that there are moves in theatre with shows there are really

incorporating technology and the way that we use it.

It drives the play forward and when people ask questions on Skype it

progresses the play and they find out more about the characters.

Yes, I am at the Edinburgh Festival. Send me an e-mail. The fact that a

lot of us had smart phones which mean that we can access the

Internet we if we are means that if you do not have time to catch a

whole show at the Theatre, why not just download one?

Ghost city is part of our new trend amongst the Fringe shows for shows

that you can download. Each recording is Trevor -- based around

a particular Edinburgh location. One person who is no stranger to

integrating these media into his show is Alex Horne.

What opportunities to feel it opens up? -- do you feel. You can use it

in your show or use it to popularise your gig, or possibly

there is another way which is better than Beausale but -- but of

those things! It is pretty certain that her --

over the next few years performers and audiences will be interacting

in ways we do not even know about yet.

Finally, it was meant to be an example of how sport in -- and

strengthen diplomatic ties, but nobody counted on a brawl breaking

out in a basketball game between a Chinese team and visiting American

players. Yesterday's game between Georgetown University and to the

Chinese team degenerated into a mass brawl in the 4th quarter, with

players throwing punches and chairs, forcing after-match to end early.

The Georgetown team is in shine on a ten-day goodwill trip, timed

along with the Joe Biden's trip. The two teams are due to play again

in Shanghai over the weekend but you may not be surprised to hear

that it is not known if that game will go ahead. Who knows what might

happen this time? Whatever happened to sportsmanship?

Militants in Afghanistan have killed 12 people in attack on a

British cultural office in Kabul. Most of the dead were Afghan police.

There was a lengthy gun battle with Afghan commandos and special forces

from New Zealand. The Taliban say they ordered the assault to mark

the anniversary of Afghan independence from Britain in 1919.

That is all from the programme. Next, the weather. Goodbye and

For many of us it was a beautiful day, lots of sunshine around.

Tomorrow, a lot more cloud in the forecast and a fair bit of rain.

Tonight this weather front pushes across the north-west of the UK,

turning breezy. Through the night it sinks southwards. For Saturday,

a cloudy a start the southern England and Wales. Through the day

these will push into the Midlands and East Anglia. It looks as though,

for parts of the Midlands, East Anglia, turning increasingly wet,

and into the home counties. For London and the south-east it will

turn drier and brighter through the afternoon. Across south-west

England, again some brightness where the sun comes out. I think

staying cloudy for much of the day in Wales. Outbreaks of rain in the

West. Disappointingly called here. In Northern Ireland, the cloud will

come in from the South. The north- west of Scotland is dominated by