09/12/2015 World News Today

This is BBC World News Today with me, Philippa Thomas.

A major boost today for Syria's president Assad after years

Rebel fighters abandon the key city of Homs,

the cradle of the uprising against President Assad.

The outline of an international deal to limit climate change is published

at talks in France, but that doesn't mean agreement yet on the way ahead.

A 23-year-old from Strasbourg is identified as the third attacker

of the Bataclan concert hall in Paris, where 90 people

We're on the front line of the war against cocaine in Colombia.

A special report from our team there.

And two Ma sci-fi must have been charged after allegations that the

poisoned to famous lions in Kenya. It's a major victory

for President Assad's Rebel fighters have begun giving up

the last district they control in the highly significant city

of Homs, and they're Those departing are travelling under

security escort to the northern area of Idlib, withdrawing as part

of a local ceasefire. The city played a key role

at the start of the uprising against the government

of President Bashar al-Assad, earning itself the nickname

"the cradle of the revolution". It's Syria's third-largest city,

located about 160 kilometres A decade ago, there were around

650,000 people living there. Anti-government protests began

in Homs in early 2011, during what became known

as the Arab Spring. The Syrian Government

responded with force. Dozens died, and the protests turned

into a full uprising. Over the next five years,

thousands of people died The city became a stronghold

of the Free Syrian Army, although the Al-Qaeda-linked

Al-Nusra front was also active Syrian Government forces

maintained their siege. In the last few months,

they have been supported by Russian warplanes carrying out air

strikes on rebel positions. A ceasefire was finally brokered

by the United Nations, and so today, the last rebels

are withdrawing to other rebel-held Our chief international

correspondent Lyse Doucet is in the Al Waer neighbourhood

in Homs, standing by as several hundred fighters and their families

depart after years of unrest. The families of the fighters

were the first to leave, bringing whatever they could carry.

The UN was on hand to help. The fighters gathered

at the entrance to Al Waer, some still carrying

their personal weapons. These are the men with extremist

groups, some with Al-Qaeda links, On the other side,

the soldiers they fought About 100 families are being

bussed to northern Syria, The fighters will continue

waging war from there. It's hard for anyone to leave home,

especially when you don't Local aid workers try

to make it a bit easier. But there is also relief to leave

a besieged area where food Mohammed tells me it

was very difficult. "I have back problems

and there was no medication." It's very important, he says,

what's happening today. "But, one day, I hope

to return to my home." This neighbourhood,

when the crisis hit, about 300,000 people

were living here. We believe with the implementation

of this agreement, more people will opt to come

back to their homes. The government calls

this reconciliation. The critics say this is a surrender

forced by the government's siege of Al Waer, which cut off food

and water to the community. TRANSLATION: We don't

see it this way. What we see is that most

of the armed groups here in al-Wair And that will bring peace

and security to Homs. This is both a military ceasefire

as well as a humanitarian agreement. There are those who believe this

is the only real forward But this local ceasefire

took nearly two years Every deal will depend

on who's doing the fighting, Today's ceasefire means the fighting

across Homs is now over. That's a relief to many

who paid a terrible price. But the war in Syria

is far from over. After a week and a half

of negotiations at the UN climate change talks in Paris,

a new draft agreement Representatives of almost 200

countries are trying to hammer out than two Celsius above

pre-industrial levels - difficult and unsuccessful

negotiations to try to come up with a global

negotiations to try to come up with change. So what happened today

negotiations to try to come up with significant. The French, who were

posting this conference, came up with

the basic building blocks for what could be

the basic building blocks for what change. Lots of

the basic building blocks for what still to be settled, but many see it

as a promising start. Trying to tackle the world's

changing climate - Today in Paris, delegates

were given the latest draft of what could become

a landmark reading. 29 pages designed to head off

the dangers of rising temperatures. But developing nations said

there was not enough I am worried about the fact

there is no clear commitment yet from the international community,

particularly the main emitters, in terms of what they are going

to do in terms of support for the most vulnerable

and small island states. Negotiators have been poring over

this draft document, checking if it suits nearly 200

different governments. I got my copy and, like everyone,

I saw that while a lot of key points are agreed, many fundamental issues

are still to be sorted. It talks of a goal to limit global

warming, but to a rise of 1.5 It calls for deep cuts

in greenhouse gases, It says there will be reviews

of national climate plans, At the heart of this is a dispute

over who should reduce the emissions Today, the United States called

on the biggest developing countries Carbon pollution is carbon

pollution, and it does the same damage whether it is coming

from Baltimore or Beijing, We all have to be smarter

about the future. The talks have gone far more

smoothly than many expected, but long hours of

haggling lie ahead. Yes, those talks will carry on

possibly through the night. The French are determined to land that

deal by the end of the week. Anyone's guess of whether that will

be possible. Tell us more about who needs to be

won over. That is a very interesting and difficult question. The big

industrialised countries want to make sure that the emerging giants,

China and India in particular, are included in a deal and will agree to

a programme of every five years or so having their carbon reduction

plans scrutinised in some form. That is the real sticking point. For the

developing countries, the big thing is that question of finance. They

have looked at the science and think they will be hardest hit by global

warming. They also look at the costs of renewable technology, which at

the moment, are more expensive than say burning coal or gas. They want

financial help with that and they want it specified in this document.

Of course, the richest nations are not totally sure of how much they

want to pay up or how much they want on their hands tied over that

question of finance. The richer states need to help with the polar

nation states as well. Lots to haggle, much of it very fundamental.

French police have identified the third suicide bomber

who attacked the Bataclan last month.

90 of the 130 people killed in the Paris attacks died

23-year-old French-born Foued Mohamed Aggad is said to have

travelled to fight in Syria in 2013, along with his brother.

The couple responsible for carrying out the San Bernadino shooting

were radicalised at least two years prior to carrying out the attack.

FBI Director James B Comey said that investigators believe that

Syed Rizwan Farook and his wife, Tashfeen Malik, were radicalised

before they began their online relationship in 2013.

I have been getting more about that from Washington. Philippa, this is

the latest on an investigation that is in its early stages. What we

getting now is a gradual build-up of the picture of who these two people

wear. The most important question for investigators called on what was

their motivation? Lawmakers were updated today and this is what he

said. San Bernardino involved two killers who were radicalised for

quite a long time before their attack. In fact, our investigation

today, which I can only say so much about, indicates they were

radicalised before they started dating each other online. That was

as early as the end of 2013. They were talking about a jihad and

martyr, before they became engaged and then married in the United

States. One of the big questions is whether their relationship was set

up somehow by a terrorist group, or whether they came together

naturally, as at where. That is a huge question. One of the focuses of

the investigation. What is interesting is that these comments

tend to imply that they contradict earlier suggestions that it was

Tashfeen Malik who radicalised her husband. There had been a lot of

speculation that perhaps she had entered the US. We know she came via

Pakistan and lived for some time in Saudi Arabia and had encountered

extremist views in those countries, and perhaps brought those into the

US and then radicalised her husband. What they are saying now is that

they were radicalised independently before they met, which is quite

different. That is something they are continuing to look at. As you

say, whether or not they were actually brought together by some

kind of terrorist organisations, if not Islamic State itself. Briefly,

has this tragedy, this shooting, changed the debate on gun control or

not? I think they are being seen as two separate issues. I think the

terrorism investigation has eclipsed to a certain extent of the debate on

gun control, although great questions are being asked about how

it was that these two people that were able to fly under the radar,

undetected, and still able to get together this enormous stockpile of

weapons, including guns that they were able to modify and make even

more dangerous. And of course pipe bombs. Was there anything, any

control, that could have been put in place or indeed existed that could

have prevented this? The row over Donald Trump's remarks

has been venerated across the world. In the UK, a petition has been set

up calling for Mr Trump to be banned from the country. It has gained tens

of thousands of supporters. 270,000 plus signatures at the moment. In

fact, I think it is going up to around 280 9000. In just a moment,

we will talk to Suzanne Kelly, who set up that campaign.

But first, Donald Trump's remarks were came up in the UK Parliament.

Hear how the Chancellor George Osborne dealt with a question

about the Republican presidential candidate.

You mag the best way to confront the views of someone like Donald Trump

is to engage any robust democratic right and with him about why he is

profoundly wrong about the contribution of American Muslims and

indeed British Muslims, and that is Suzanne, it is fair to say you have

the best way to deal with Suzanne, it is fair to say you have

spent a long time campaigning against Donald Trump. Why has this

particular petition taken off? I think that his latest remarks have

been proving too much for just about anybody. I cannot think of a

nationality, a religion or a sex that this man has not insulted. To

have him be president with this sort of

have him be president with this sort Thankfully, there are UK laws that

will allow us to discuss banning him, which is marvellous. Tell us

more about those laws, because they more about those laws, because they

have been applied against quite a few people's we have banned

have been applied against quite a people for hate speech. I am not

against free speech. These are very different things. The remarks of

Donald Trump and the kind of remarks you would find in somebody maybe who

has got sympathies of steering trouble up rather than solving

problems. We ban people for far less. What about the possibility

that you are playing into his hands? He loves people to react. It is more

publicity? Well, perhaps he loves publicity, but at the moment, he has

been banned from Robert Gordon University. They have revoked

been banned from Robert Gordon honorary degree. Things are turning

against him. What happens now with the

against him. What happens now with Westminster? And the obliged

against him. What happens now with debate the possibility of a ban? Now

that 100,000 people have signed the petition, they have to to discuss

it. I do think that Mr Osborne might disagree, but I think it is a

definite plan that we might be able to see this hate speech President

banned. Thank you very much for joining us from our studio in

Aberdeen. British anti-narcotics officers have

spoken openly for the first time Speaking exclusively to the BBC,

the National Crime Agency, often dubbed Britain's FBI,

has revealed it is involved in intelligence and logistics

operations with Colombian forces and making a difference,

despite a recent rise This report was filed

by our international correspondent, Ian Pannell and cameraman

Darren Conway. It is one of the most violent

cities in South America. Buenaventura is notorious

for its chop houses where gangs It is also where much of the cocaine

that reaches America A trade that shatters this community

and forces its children into a world The government says things

are improving here. When she dared to stand up

to the drug gangs her 15-year-old TRANSLATION: I do not know

if they did it to punish me because I have always tried to help

the youngsters here. They taught me a lesson

because they did not just kill The choices are often stark

for the sons and daughters Children become recruits

or victims of the gangs. When day passes to night,

it is the sicarios that An assassin who kills

people for his boss. Can you explain what is

the life of a sicario? The boss calls me and tells me,

we have to kill this guy. For the inside story on the cocaine

trade we met a British drug For security reasons,

we cannot show his identity. Cocaine is just such a popular

fashionable drug and the money is so big that nine out of ten

people would say yes to that That makes the risk that people

like yourself take worth taking? Well, if you're talking

about an average yearly salary being able to be earned

in 24 hours, yes. I do not think cocaine production

in South America will ever stop and I do not think the consumption

of cocaine will ever stop. High in the hills on the border

with Venezuela, police move in. They have a tip there is a cocaine

lab here hidden deep in the woods. Officers were deployed shortly

after midnight and have moved They have managed

to make one arrest. This is the key part

of the laboratory. The cocaine paste is brought up

the hill and processed and this Britain's National Crime Agency took

part in this operation, We spoke to one of their officers

involved in the raid It is important to Britain

and important to the NCA because all of the labs that we blow

up, all the cocaine that is seized here, is cocaine that is not

going to the UK, coming to Europe, Explosives rigged and the British

officers and Colombian police pull-back, knowing tomorrow

this fight starts again. In a war against cocaine,

it may well be impossible to win. Two Masai farmers have been charged

after allegations that they poisoned Eight lions from the Marsh Pride

in the Masai Mara national Reserve Two others have been found dead,

including a 17-year-old female called Bibi who was filmed

for the BBC series Big Cat Diaries. It's thought that the lions had

killed three of the farmers' cows. Our correspondent Alastair Leithead

gave us this update from Kenya. This is a vast space, but there are

competing demands for the land. Between those who are trying to

protect the wildlife in the national park and the Masai herdsman. We are

going into a Masai cultural village to meet the chief and try to get a

sense of what those conflicts, what those problems can be. Thanks very

much for inviting us in today. One of the issues here is competition

for grass, for land, for your cattle, isn't it? I tell you,

because we live in density, we do not have enough grass here. That is

why we take our cattle at night to go where the wild animal lives. How

many animals are killed by Lions? How much of a problem is it for you?

The lion is the animal, and hyenas... They are eaten almost

every night. We get that problem. We get that problem several places

around here. Sadly, the story has ended with another lion having died.

In the back of that truck behind me, they have just loaded up a young

male. He was poisoned originally. He was treated and they thought he was

doing OK, but then overnight, he was attacked by Buffalo and he was found

here in a really bad way. They have stepped in to put him down. That is

another lion that has essentially died. There will be an investigation

into exactly why it happened, what the process of events where.

Now a musical story - North Korean leader Kim Jong Un

is sending his all-female Moranbong band to perform in Beijing to help

soothe relations with China - its only ally.

To underline the diplomatic nature of the tour, they were waved off

at Pyongyang railway station by some of the country's senior leaders.

This will be their first international tour, with the line-up

reported to have been handpicked by the leader himself.

In morally conservative North Korea, the women often wear risque outfits

and combine traditional music with Western pop culture.

Syrian rebel fighters are abandoning the last district of the key city

of Homs under their control - leaving it fully in government hands

The withdrawal is part of a local ceasefire deal,

and means the first convoys of food aid in nearly a year have been able

The outline of an international deal to limit climate change has been

published at talks in France - but several issues still

He told delegates he expected them to work through the night.

Well, that's all from the programme. Next, the weather.

But for now, from me and the rest of the team,

Hello. Gilles will be in place to make across the top north-west

corner of the country. Sinking