08/04/2016 World News Today

The headlines: Reports that a key suspect in

the Paris terror attacks - and possibly the Brussels

Mohamed Abrini is thought to be one of a number of people

who've been seized in a Belgian police operation.

The pragmatic Pope - Francis tells the world's billion

Catholics it's time to adapt to the realities

We speak to the Dalai Lamai about the state of the world,

the Tibetan cause and hear his understanding about the Uk's

When Great Britain is facing some economic difficulties,

so then the new friend who has a lot of money...

It's very important. It's understandable.

Can a Hollywood drama featuring drones tracking your every

If you live in Yemen, and if you live in Pakistan,

and if you live in Somalia, then that is the reality.

It hasn't yet happened in Kenya, but who knows?

The key remaining suspect in November's Paris terror attacks,

Belgian media is also suggesting that Abrini is possibly the "man

in the hat" seen on CCTV before the blasts in the Brussels airport

He's one of a number of people who've been seized in a Belgian

In a moment we'll be live for the latest from Brussels

but first this report from Damian Grammaticas.

He's been hunted since last November - Mohamed Abrini.

Belgian police say he is dangerous and believe he was linked

Mohamed Abrini, seen at a service station two days before

The car he was driving, a black Renault Clio,

was one of the vehicles he used to attack Paris.

The man he was with at the time was Salah Abdeslam, another

of the team that planned and carried out the carnage in Paris.

Salah Abdeslam, Europe's most wanted man, was finally detained three

weeks ago in the Molenbeek district of Brussels after also

Today's arrest is thought to have taken place in nearby Anderlecht.

Just yesterday, Belgian investigators released

this new footage of the Brussels airport bombing.

It showed the third attacker, the so-called Man in the Hat,

who left a suitcase bomb and escape from the terminal, then

travelled six miles on foot into Brussels before he vanished.

It's been reported the new footage and the appeal for help to identify

the Man in the Hat lead to new tip-off from the public

which came just before today's new arrests.

Let's go live to Brussels now, to our correspondent Gavin Lee.

Gavin, a big development, F ended this man is also the man in the hat.

Yes, what we have officially from the Belgian prosecutor as there have

been several arrests today in relation to these two attacks at the

airport and the metro station, two weeks ago. In the last hour or so,

state television and French police are quoted as telling news agencies

that this is indeed Mohamed Abrini. What do we know about him? He was

seen as a bit part player in the Paris attacks. He was seen two days

before the attacks. His car was used. He was seen with Salah

Abdeslam am heading for Paris. We were given details about his past

history. He had been to Syria. His brother was a former IS fighter in

Syria. He was wanted by Belgian police as well. He has not been seen

since. He has a connection to this missing man as well, this man still

not yet identified, known simply as the man in the hat. We believe there

is a relevance here to the images released yesterday by the federal

prosecutor of CCTV images which ensure a more complete image of the

man leaving the airport, with passengers trying to escape the

scene. We see him go through the car park and then Watford ten colour

matters for two hours and then we lose all trace of him. Local media

say this is the man connected to Paris and Brussels as well. We are

currently waiting on a press conference and will know the

significance of that very soon. There were a number of arrests. What

more do we know about the other people detained? The only details we

have and this is coming from a French and Belgian media, including

the state television, saying that other notable figures are somebody

from Maelbeek Metro station, is suspected suicide bomber who has not

been seen since. It is thought this is the man who may have bought some

of the bags for the bombers to use. You might be able to see some

footage which has emerged today of one of the raids. We are not sure

who this is but this is amateur footage, close to Molenbeek. This is

an undercover operation, police officers taking their man and

bundling him into the back of a car. As always, thank you very much. Keep

us up-to-date as and when we get more developments. Thank you.

Pope Francis has called for the Catholic Church to recognise

He says bishops and priests should be free to interpret doctrine

in ways that suit their own cultures in their own countries -

particularly in relation to marriage and divorce.

Our religious affairs correspondent Caroline Wyatt reprts from Rome.

The Catholic Church has often closed its doors on those living

Today in Rome, Pope Francis sought to open it a little,

issuing his guidance on how the Vatican should treat

At a press conference here this morning, two of the Pope's leading

cardinals revealed the contents of this keenly awaited document.

It came after much debate and some very public

Within the Pope's document on the family, the biggest change

Pope Francis suggests priests seek solutions that are best suited

He also wants more openness and a greater understanding

of what the Church terms "irregular situations",

But there is no change to the church's doctrine,

nor its views on homosexuality or ban on contraception.

So does this mean that those who are divorced and civilly

remarried will now be welcomed back to take Communion?

Those who want to be included in the life of the church,

the life of faith in the church, they are welcome.

The Pope often said let the doors of the church be

And he says the same to everybody who is in a difficult situation.

This document, over 250 pages long, is one of the most

significant to emerge from the Vatican in many years.

The title, On Love And The Family, is written in the distinctive voice

of Pope Francis and will set the course for the way

the Catholic Church deals with family life for many

We first spoke to this family in 2014.

They had high hopes this Pope would change the church's

My first reaction reading it was that, you know,

it was a little bit frustrating because there isn't a real change.

In the end, though, this popular Pope has shown himself

There is no radical reform here, as some had hoped, more a gentle

signal that all families, however fractured,

are welcome in his church and the doors are now open.

Now a look at some of the day's other news.

An American who was being held in Syria has been released

by President Bashar al-Assad's Government.

A US citizen had been released, according to the US

State Department, but no further details were given.

The Washington Post newspaper identifies the man

as Kevin Patrick Dawes, a freelance photographer

who travelled to Syria from Turkey in September 2012.

Chinese police have arrested a man in connection with a video that

appears to show a woman being assaulted in a Beijing hotel.

It's had more than two billion views online.

Police say they caught the 24-year-old in Henan province.

The hotel's parent company has apologised for the incident.

A former Scotland Yard police officer has been arrested in Lebanon

on suspicion of attempting to seize two children at the centre

Adam Whittington tried to take the children who were living

with their father in Beirut to bring them back to their mother,

It was all filmed by an Australian documentary film crew -

all involved have been arrested by Lebanese police.

Our Middle East correspondent Quentin Somerville reports.

Two children, just five and three years old,

on their way to school when they're grabbed by strangers

Their 70-year-old grandmother is knocked to the ground.

Today, Noah and his sister are back home, and they are safe.

Their Australian mum and Lebanese- American dad have been fighting

Wednesday's abduction was part of a plan by their mother Sally

to get them back to Australia. She is now in a Lebanese jail.

Their father says the children are traumatised.

Their first thing is why are Mummy's friends so mean to Grandma?

That's the first thing they asked me.

I'm just hoping it all pans out smooth and easy for Sal.

I can't say so much about all the other people involved in this,

And the rest of them, it's like, why are you poking

I mean, the law could have sorted this out.

Who are you guys? Are you guys law enforcers?

I need you to do something to help bring my babies home.

They are very loved and they are very missed.

This was their mother last year, asking the Australian Government

When that went unheard, she hired a self-styled child

Getting the children out of Lebanon without the father's permission

wouldn't have been easy, so the next part of the plan

appeared to be to bring them here, to this Beirut marina,

where a yacht was waiting to take them out of Lebanese jurisdiction

Eventually, the children would be taken back to Australia.

The yacht has been seized by the authorities and two British

men are being held by police, accused of being

An Australian news crew led by veteran journalist Tara Brown

They are also being detained and are this evening spending

The children have been pulled from parent to parent

Their mother and father's marriage has unravelled, which would have

been hard enough, but this personal disaster has now taken

Quentin Somerville, BBC News, Beirut.

In Myanmar, the new Government says that plans to release all political

prisoners are to be delayed until after the end

of the Burmese New Year holiday in ten days' time.

On Friday, 69 student activists had charges against them dropped

and almost all of them were set free.

Many of them had been in prison since March last year when protests

against education reform ended in violent clashes.

Yeah, this is the first real success story, if you like,

They've been in office just over a week.

Yesterday, we heard from them that they are going to

prioritise the releasing of political prisoners.

Today, they have managed to get the most high-profile group

of political prisoners in this country, these student activists

Some pretty extraordinary scenes they are today.

People singing and dancing in the courthouse itself.

Many of them have been imprisoned for a year,

with legal proceedings really taking a very long time to take place.

Miss Suu Kyi will be pleased herself that she is starting to see

some reward, some result from her new position

Laura Haigh is Amnesty International's Myanmar researcher.

We heard there that Ms Su Chi will be pleased. You please? Of course we

are. We are really welcoming of this release. The students have been in

detention for over a year. The fact they have been released today, one

week into a new Government, says a lot about their commitment to ending

the cycle of political arrest and imprisonment. Unfortunately, some

people are still behind buyers and it is time to turn our attention to

them. Of course, but the relief for those students was overwhelming.

Let's just have a look at that moment. So this is them listening to

the judge, and it's obvious that after a year in detention, as you

were saying, the relief is palpable, as we will see in a second. Yes, you

touched upon this. You hoped to see more. That's right. In the last

hour, we have heard that some of those who were not released today

have actually been released, which is wonderful news. What we need to

see now is those who have already been convicted to be released. There

are many dozens behind buyers still and this is where our focus must be.

We must really dismantle this repressive legal framework that has

allowed these individuals to be arrested and a detained behind

buyers for so long. You have got this repressive legal framework, how

do you dismantle something so historic? We have an excellent

opportunity. In terms of being actually able to reform laws, we can

see progress because of the Government majority. They have laws

which restrict free speech and which would prevent people from peacefully

protest in. It will take time, but we have seen positive moves already

that they want to prioritise this issue and we will see that a legal

reform process initiated in the coming weeks. What about the

military role? I think we have to be realistic. The military still plays

a very powerful role in the country, in addition to their role in

Parliament, the actually have oversight of some of the key

ministries. Particularly the Ministry of home affairs, which

oversees the police. There is going to have to be some kind of

relationship uttering the Government and the military. I hope there are

no spoilers here, it is early days. The new State Councillor's

relationship with the military, how crucial is that? Absolutely crucial.

They retain power over these key ministries. They have a veto over

constitutional changes and have a significant bloc in parliament as

well. We have seen the military react very strongly to any criticism

of the military institution by peaceful activists, and that is not

something... It is something we have to keep our eyes on. But for the

time being, those students finally going home. Thank you very much for

joining us. The Tibetan spiritual leader

the Dalai Lama has said the only way for the world to confront terror

attacks is through greater contact He was speaking to the BBC

in the wake of the Brussels attack. He also spoke about the challenges

faced by the Tibetan movement especially

with increasing Chinese pressure. The Dalai Lama was talking

to the BBC's Sanjoy Majumder. I think the violence in any

religion, we should make more closer contact with people

with different faiths. One of my commitments is to

try to promote genuine harmony. For that, genuine harmony

is the basis of mutual respect. The Chinese government has put a lot

of pressure on governments around the world to go slow

on the Tibetan issue. Do you think Britain is now

placing its business interests ahead of what you believe should

be its moral obligation? Great Britain is facing some

economy difficulties. New friends who have a lot

of money very important, Sometimes our world,

political power, including military power and economy power,

sometimes seem more That is the reality. In recent

months and years, you have spoken a lot about reincarnation. A lot of

people have reacted. Have you changed your views on reincarnation?

The whole system... That's gone. Democracy is the system. I myself am

fully committed to democracy. Therefore, this certain sort of

system, including religious institution, feudal system, is a

long time past. We must act according to the new reality.

Know some breaking news and some information on the leaked Panama

documents. Panama's presidents have agreed to stage a meeting in the

next few days with Finance ministers in Paris over these leaks. That is

one line coming from the Panama Government. And also, Panama is

saying it will take necessary steps to guarantee effective protection of

tax information between countries. That is all coming from the Panama

Government. Movement there to work out following that huge leakage of a

huge amount of documents from a company that was helping clients

with tax evasion. So we will keep you updated as and when we get some

more from that. Saudi Arabia's king has announced

that a bridge linking his country to Egypt will be built over

the Red Sea, connecting The King made the announcement

during his current visit to Cairo. He said the bridge would boost

commerce between the two allies. TRANSLATION: I have agreed

with the President of Egypt to build a bridge that connects

the two countries. This historic move,

which links the two African and Asian continents,

is considered to be a quantum leap which will increase trade

movement between them A new Hollywood movie,

Eye In The Sky, tells the dramatic story of intelligence officers

considering whether to target a village to prevent

a possible terrorist attack. It's filmed in South Africa,

but set in the Nairobi suburb of Eastleigh, which is nicknamed

"Little Mogadishu". And it seems not everyone

there is happy at the international attention, as Ferdinand

Omondi reports. Imagine going about your daily

business with an eye in the sky These people don't have to imagine

it, because Hollywood has made a film about drones hovering

over their neighbourhood. This mall in Nairobi's Eastleigh

is home to Eastleigh Wood, a production house making

films for a Somali audience. These Somali film-makers

are watching a preview of Eye In The Sky, a

Hollywood movie set in Eastleigh. In the film, American drone pilots

plan a strike on terrorists plotting a suicide attack

in the neighbourhood. Some of the film makers

wish the movie was made here in Eastleigh,

rather than South Africa. If we want to tell a story

about Somalis or Eastleigh, In terms of equality,

there are many are interested This is the Eye In The Sky view

of the real Eastleigh here in Kenya. It has a reputation of having very

enterprising people. It also has a reputation

of harbouring terrorists - something these residents

would like to change. Eastleigh Wood is trying

to tell Somali stories This is a trailer of

their latest release, Mistaken, We tell our stories because people

tell the negative side. In this film, we try

to tell the positive side. But Eastleigh's reputation

is not entirely false. Over the past few years there have

been several grenade attacks in the neighbourhood and police

worry about local links Security experts say Eye In The Sky

reflects a dangerous reality. It may look fantastical

or something far-fetched, I think if you live in Yemen,

if you live in Pakistan and if you live in Somalia,

that is a reality. It hasn't yet happened

in Kenya, but who knows? For now, though,

Eye In The Sky is fiction, and the people here hope

it remains that way. It was meant to be a romantic

marriage proposal, but in turned It all happened when a young

man in California, seen dangling from the end of this

rope, climbed onto a rocky ledge 27 metres from the ground

in order to pop the question Unfortunately, the man became

stranded and had to be Well, the girlfriend did apparently

say "yes" to the proposal, He was detained on suspicion

of being under the influence Local police said it

was a serious matter. Firefighters in Florida have rescued

a bear cub from a forest fire. The firefighters decided

to call the little bear Smokey Junior, after an iconic

American wildfire prevention icon. They say his paws were burned

and the hair on his head singed. They were fighting a 300 acre

brushfire in Lake County when they found the cub

and pulled him to safety. The rest of the fire was contained,

luckily. There is more as always on our website, where you can get in

touch with me and the team. For now, as always, thank you very much for

watching World News Today. Bye-bye. Good evening. The weekend's weather

brings us a Mitch of sunshine and scattered showers. Turning quite

windy on Sunday as well. Fairly cool in the breeze full stop some

sunshine on offer. Right now, this front is crossing west to east

across the country. Rain for many areas