19/05/2014 World News Today

Catastrophic floods across the Balkans begin to recede,

but officials say dangers remain. Thousands of homes have been

destroyed and about 1 million people lack drinking water in the worst

floods for 100 years. The Kremlin orders troops near Ukraine's border

to return home but NATO claims there's no sign yet of a withdrawl.

The US charges five Chinese army officers with hacking into American

companies to gain trade and economic secrets. Beijing demands Washington

withdraw the allegations saying they could damage relations.

And is this the man to turn around Manchester United's fortunes? Fans

across the world will be hoping so. Dutchman Louis van Gaal is made

international aid operation is going on in Bosnia and Serbia, after the

worst flooding there since records began. The River Sava which you can

see here flows from Croatia, through Bosnia Herzegovina and into Serbia.

It burst its banks after the equivalent of three months rain fell

in just three days. Helicopters sent by the EU, the United States and

Russia have been evacuating the area. 35 people have been killed and

tens of thousands have been forced to leave their homes. Waters are now

beginning to recede but the dangers remain. Officials say there is a

threat of landslides as well as difficulties caused by unexploded

Our Balkans correspondent Guy Delauney has more.

The Western Balkans under water. These are the region has seen in

living memory. It has forced tens of thousands of people from their

homes. Three months of rain fell in just three days last week, and this

is the result. International aid is coming in for people without power

and freshwater. My house has been flooded up to the roof. We will

really need help. In Serbia, at least the floodwater has been

receding, as fears of a reserve -- are per search ease. Many people are

still cut off, and food and water supplies are scarce. Just like the

rest of the town, this hotel is underwater. A boat is really the

only sensible way to get around this town now. There are some people who

still remained. These rescue workers are bringing and emergency supplies

for them and for the hundreds upon hundreds of people who are trying to

help the situation here. Agriculture has been hit badly. Officials say it

might take five years to recover. Livestock have been left to fend for

themselves, and for the many uninsured farmers, it is a disaster.

The aid effort flies a multitude of flags. There are rescue helicopters

from the United States and Russia as well as the European Union. The

sandbags remain in place, with concerns that river levels might

rise later in the week. At least the rain has stopped, but there will be

fresh challenges once the water recedes.

The latest on the floods. President Putin has said he's

ordered troops currently stationed near Russia's border with eastern

Ukraine to withdraw to Earlier this year Russia seized

control of Crimea in southern Ukraine which emboldened

pro-Russian separatists movement

on Russia's border with Ukraine. So far, we have not been any

withdrawal. At all. I strongly regret that, because a with drawl of

Russian troops would be in importance contribution to the

escalating the crisis. There is no reason whatsoever why the Russians

should have massive military forces at that scale along Ukrainian

borders. That was the NATO Secretary General.

Joining me from Moscow is Dimitry Babich, political analyst

If this withdrawal fact or fiction? Very few people in Moscow, at least

not amongst those I interviewed, they believe these trips can be

used. The operation on the Ukrainian side of the border continues, and I

would like to note that the statement was made in the context of

him saying that he was happy about the context between the authorities

in Kiev and the separatists in the east of Ukraine, so I'd think both

of these statements are sort of peaceful movements by Putin. He

wants a settlement, not an escalation of the conflict. So,

these round table talks that have been held with all of the various

groups in the Ukraine, a product from the separatists to the

government they have got blood from the separatists to the

government they have got on their hands, are you now saying that

Moscow's understanding is that Kiev is now speaking to the pro-Russian

separatists who wants to join Moscow? I do not think Putin was

referring to the round table, because not a single representative

of these self proclaimed republics at this round table... I think that

Putin would not like a war next to his border. Right now, hostilities

are claiming dozens of lives every day, and everyone understands that

every shot fired makes a future United Ukraine a more and more

distant reality. I have my own experience in Chechnya, where people

who had been little oil Soviets -- pro-Loyalist of its citizens when it

started alienated themselves from Russia. We are talking about years

of side of months. In a number of months, people can be alienated from

Kiev. You are talking about those regions in eastern Ukraine that held

those referendums to break away from Kiev. Tell us then, briefly, in your

view, this announcement by Putin, whether he has with drawn are not,

is this a clear sign that Russia is moving to the escalate the tensions,

to defuse the crisis in Ukraine? Putin several times that that he

moved the troops away, that he was not going to use the troops in the

east of Ukraine. I think we can believe him on that, because he

understands that the consequences this time are going to be serious.

The main problem is that the process has got out of control. Neither

Russia nor it Kiev, unless Kiev starts negotiations with the

separatists in the East, can stop the violence. Thank you very much

for joining us. A new source of tensions has

emerged between the US and China. Washington has filed criminal

charges against five Chinese military officials whom it accuses

of hacking into the computers Beijing has reacted angrily

and asked the US to withdraw the allegations, but the US Attorney

General Eric Holder has said the This administration will not

tolerate actions by any nation that seeks to illegally sabotaged

American companies and undermine the integrity of competition in the

operation of the free market. This case should serve as a wake-up call

to the seriousness of the ongoing cyber threats. These criminal

charges represent a step forward in addressing that threat.

That was Eric holder there. We have heard claims before but this

is a bit different. The US has been talking about

economic cyber espionage for a few years, saying there were lots of

secrets. They started to point the finger at China, but we have never

had erect indictment of named individuals. And the FBI website

there is a section called cyber most wanted, and you can find five

Chinese people on that list. You can see why this is an escalation by the

US in terms of something it has been talking about for a long time, its

concern about cyber economic espionage. And Beijing have reacted

angrily. They have suspended cooperation in certain areas. They

say they are the victims of packing and not the perpetrator is in

certain areas. They say they are the victims of packing and not the

perpetrators and victims and of the perpetrators. No courtesy of Edward

Snowden. We know that America itself is not above going above this

espionage. The US was trying to build pressure on China last year

and then came along Edward Snowden, who revealed that the US was

entering into Chinese companies, and that really threw the American

campaign. The Americans claim that what they do is different. They say

China carries out commercial espionage and gives the secrets to

Chinese companies to help them economically. America claims it does

not do that, but it might not hack into other companies, but that

might... Some people might dispute that.

But we found that her wet hacking going on by the Americans. Do people

accept that claim from the US? A lot of people want except that. That is

the American claim that they have made consistently, and that is why

they say what China does is different, and now, after a year on

the back foot, they are trying to once again present this case with

China Tuesday, we may do traditional espionage, but we don't want you

doing this commercial espionage. How do you think this will unravel? The

Chinese are not likely to submit these officials for trial. There is

no chance of these people being suddenly put on a plane and sent to

America. It is a symbolic step but it raises the temperature. How will

China respond? What America wants is for China Tuesday, we do not want

this pressure, we will stand back from some of this more aggressive

commercial espionage, the Americans as they are happening and scare them

off, but will be Chinese retaliate in some other way? It is possible.

There are risks to this strategy. Thank you. More fighting has been

reported in the city between rival militia. Troops at an Air Force base

in the eastern city are reported to have joined forces with a rogue

general who the government accuses of trying to mount a coup. Partial

results from last month's elections in Iraq show the coalition of the

Prime Minister is the biggest winner. Although he is unlikely to

win an outright majority, he is likely to remain as Prime Minister

for a third term. The defence in the trial of the former Bosnian Serb

army chief on charges of genocide and crimes against humanity has a

bend in The Hague. He faces a total of 11 charges, the most serious of

which is his alleged involvement in a massacre of more than 7000 Muslim

men and boys in 1995. His defence argues that he was simply a soldier

following orders. For many of the survivors, his face is synonymous

with their severing. The prosecution used this but age of the general on

the battlefield during their case. Here he is, just before the

slaughter started. His defence will argue that paramilitary groups were

responsible for the massacre, that he had no idea that these atrocities

among the worst since the Second World War, were being committed, and

that all commands even by this self-proclaimed patriot for purely

designed to defend his people. The first defence witness was an

assisting commander in Mladic's Army. He served in Sarajevo during

the three year siege, in which approximately 12,000 people were

killed, most of them Muslim. General Mladic's forces are confused --

accused of shelling and sniping, designed to kill and spread terror

amongst civilians. The first witnesses evidence relates to the

use of snipers. He denied they had access to site -- rifles with

optical sight. He also told the court they were under orders only to

open fire in the event of an enemy attack. According to the

prosecution, Mladic was part of a targeted campaign designed to

ethnically cleanse parts of Bosnia and turn them into an ethnically

your republic. The defence has been given the same amount of time as the

prosecution to present their side of the case, and that is 207 hours,

which means, in theory, this high-profile trial could go on for

at least another two years. For those whose relatives lie here,

justice can only be served if Mladic stays alive for long enough to faith

his final legal judgment. Across Syria,

it's difficult to imagine that despite the horrors of the war,

normal human activity carries on. For instance students have begun

sitting their public exams. Thousands

of schools have been destroyed and millions of children displaced

during the bloody conflict. So it is extremely tough for some

children to even get to school. Our Chief International

Correspondent Lyse Doucet got rare access to the besieged Palestinian

camp of Yarmouk, on the edge of Damascus, and reports

on the students' hazardous journey Yarmouk -

the refugee camp for Palestinians that is now a symbol for suffering.

It has been besieged by government forces for nearly and torn by the

fight against rebels. On this day and there's a moment of

calm and an agreement to let students out. The skills across

Syria face final tests. We heard gunfire just before their journey

started. Students trying to fit that smacks it there is 's may seem

simple thing but here in Yarmouk, it took days of negotiations for a

cease-fire. In the last visit to Yarmouk, we saw how desperate

conditions are. Thousands of families trapped inside, depending

on food aid, but only getting a quarter of what they need to

survive, because the situation is so volatile. No wonder there is such

relief when the students finally emerge. This man has not seen his

daughter for ten months. He tells me, my happiness is so big. I can

spread it around the world. You seem very happy. Thank you. Bosses

organised by the UN agency for Palestinian refugees take students

away. They call the parents they left behind, and try to remember the

streets that they have not seen for months. -- buses. When they arrive

at the schools, that now serve as shelters, there are more tearful

reunions. It is not to get the permission or not to have the

permission, to have a small movement of people in and out, so that we

feel that we have the choice to move. Exams are not the only thing

on the minds of students who have escaped from a living hell. We have

to eat food that no one can eat, grass, spices. Life is difficult

inside. You cannot understand it until you live here. I was outside

the house when I came home. I found that a rocket landed and my mother

and two sisters were killed, my other two sisters injured. Every day

we went to school. We put all hands on our hearts, because so many

people had died, but we insisted we had to go to school. Of course we

were scared but we had to continue. If we lose our future, no one can

help us. It is straight to revision for their exams. They know how much

they matter. But when they are over, it is back to Yarmouk, well their

lives, and their future, is not in their hands. The challenges for

children in Syria. Louis van Gaal has been named

as manager of Manchester United. The Dutchman has signed a three-year

contract to succeed David Moyes, who left the club last month after

a difficult ten months in the job. The footballer Ryan Giggs has been

announced as his assistant, thereby ending his long playing

career with the club. But all eyes will be

on Louis van Gaal, to see if he can turn around the club after

their worst season in many years. Let's get more on this

from our Sports team. Louis van Gaal says this will be a

fantastic challenge. He will have to put in a good performance. He said

he was offered the job back in 2002 when Sir Alex Ferguson was going to

stand down from the position. He went on for another 11 years after

that. Better late than never, many would say, but he takes over as the

Manchester United manager. He has managed iPAQs and Barcelona and

Bayern Munich in the past. We must put this in perspective. 62 years of

age. He has Ryan Giggs in place as his assistant. Is this a long-term

plan? Will he be there for three years and then hand his place over?

He has been in charge at the Netherlands when they have failed to

qualify for the World Cup finals. They were beaten in Brazil. And he

was sacked by Barcelona in his second spell at the club after

leaving them in mid-season only three points above the relegation

zone. He is known for nurturing young players and bringing them

through, as he did at IMAX when he won the Champions League and league

title double back in 1995, it is going to be a tough test for him,

but it is one that he will look forward to. He has a very tough,

strict style of management. His nickname is the iron tulip. That

gives away what he wants to do with his players. He is strong and is

open. He expects the same from his players. It will be interesting to

see if Manchester United can return to Europe because the are in Europe

next season, for the first time in 25 years.

Earlier we brought you the latest on the crisis in Ukraine. Well,

one Ukrainian singer and composer, Marianna Sadovska,

has been bringing her musical reflection on the situation to

She has brought her Chernobyl Harvest to the

Barbican Centre, in a concert with the American Kronos Quartet.

Alexander Kan, the BBC Russian Service's Cultural Editor,

went along to hear the music and to speak to her.

Chernobyl harvest is a haunting requiem for the Soviet nuclear

disaster in Ukraine, in 1986 from Marianni Sadovska. The composition

uses traditional songs. The area is full of polluted by the disaster.

The invention of Marianni Sadovska was not only to remind people of

Chernobyl but also of Ukraine's national and cultural identity. We

are not Russian, our language is not a Russian dialect. We have a

generation who grew up with does not know what Chernobyl was. This is to

be the voice of that generation. Today, Ukraine is going through a

different national crisis. With the country being literally torn apart,

and standing on the brink of civil war, Marianni Sadovska believes that

music can become a weapon in this struggle. My culture in this moment

is at war, and under occupation. It is not easy, I must say, because I

have a voice, all my friends and family know that we have to sing, we

have to be heard, throughout Europe. By commissioning the piece

long before the current crisis, David Harrington, a musician, not

politician, was first and foremost enchanted by the voice of Marianni

Sadovska and of the Ukrainian ethnic songs. I do not think that Chernobyl

harvest is going to solve all the problems that exist right now in

Ukraine and Russia. I am not sure of that, but it is definitely moving

things in a positive direction. Marianni Sadovska's Chernobyl

harvest was given its premiere last July in a different year. But

today, the piece has acquired a much more powerful set of political

connotations. Officials and volunteers are working

feverishly to contain the floods across the Balkans,

with emergency teams being called Serbia and Bosnia are struggling

with the worst flooding in At least 35 people have died

in five days of flooding caused Entire towns and villages are under

water, thousands of hills have

crumpled into landslides and tens of thousands have been

forced to flee their homes. That's it from me and the team.

Again, the, night offers a mixture of weather across the British Isles,

mild in all areas but some thunderstorm activity. Tomorrow,

some of us seeing quite a bit of warm sunshine. Others, some heavy

downpours. It