07/06/2012 BBC News at Ten

Condemnation from around the world as Syrian activists claimed there

has been another massacre. Reports that 78 people, including children,

have been killed by government supporting militia. The ceasefire,

brokered by both sides. The UN peace envoy says armoured military

groups seem to have free rein. things do not change, the future is

likely to be one of brutal repression, massacres, sectarian

violence and even all-out civil war. With UN observers shot at, we will

be asking if diplomacy is dead. Also tonight: Euro crisis talks in

Berlin. The German leader once more political union. Where does that

leave Britain and the global economy?

China cut interest rates on fears of a slowdown. And a warning in

Washington on America's recovery. An England walkabout. But when they

start playing, ministers will not be there. A boycott over its human

rights. And remember all of those warnings

about a drought? The water companies may rethink their

hosepipe bans. Coming up in Sportsday: On the eve

of Euro 2012, we will have the latest from the England camp. Plus,

Bolt strikes late to power past Good evening. The UN Secretary

General has used his toughest language yet to condemn the Syrian

government. Ban Ki-Moon said that President Assad had lost his

legitimacy. It comes as details of another massacre have emerged.

Activists has a 78 people, including women and two children,

have been killed. UN observers trying to reach the scene were shot

at, leading to further questions about their ability to operate. The

latest attack happened in Qubair in Hama province. There are pictures

of some of those killed from the start of this report.

This video, post on the internet by the opposition activists shows some

of those killed near the village of Qubair, including young children.

There is no independent evidence yet, but local activists blame

shabbiha militia, a loyal to President Assad's regime. They

killed 78 civilians and the rest of the population were fleeing to

other villages. One of them described horrible seems to me.

Government account is quite different. Syrian state television

said a terrorist group committed a horrific crime. The Government

statement says that the inhabitants of the farm appealed to the

laboratories for protection and they responded by killing a

terrorist cell. The head of the UN mission in Syria said that a team

sent to verify reports of a massacre was stopped by the Syrian

army. The UN Secretary General says they will also shot at. Ban Ki-Moon

told a special session of all UN countries in New York that

President Assad's regime had lost all legitimacy. The UN special

envoy, Kofi Annan, admitted his peace plan was not being

implemented by government or opposition and gave this warning.

The abuses are continuing. The country is becoming more polarised

and more radicalised. If things do not change, the future is likely to

be one of brutal repression, massacres, sectarian violence and

even all-out civil war. Recent This is apparently a Syrian

armoured vehicle being totally destroyed. Together with separate

incidents, it suggests that the regime is under mounting pressure

from opposition fighters, with backing and weapons from Saudi

Arabia and Qatar. Kofi Annan's plan requires a ceasefire first. Instead,

violence on all sides seems to be increasing. One idea is to have

their new contract group of countries to Bridge International

divides and encourage real political change in Syria. It would

include both world and regional powers. Some, such as Russia, China

and Iran have influence on to Syrian government. Others, like the

UK, the United States and Saudi Arabia have influence on the

opposition. There is a big stumbling block. Britain and

America reject any participation by Iran. I think the inclusion of Iran

in any such group would probably render it unworkable. This is a

country that is supporting some of the unacceptable violence and

supporting the Syrian regime in what it is doing to the Syrian

people. The outside world remains deeply divided over what to do

about Syria's downward spiral. And the risk each new atrocity makes

reconciliation even harder to achieve.

Looking at that report, it looks like events on the ground are

overtaking the diplomatic process? I think that is very clear. The

starkest evidence to support that seems to come from leaks coming out

of a closed-door session tonight of the Security Council meeting in New

York. The 15 powers at the very centre of UN affairs, they are

being briefed both by Ban Ki-Moon and Kofi Annan. Kofi Annan has

apparently told them, according to diplomats, that the crisis will

soon spiral out of control. He has been calling for substantial

Prancer -- pressure on Damascus and what he called consequences for

undermining his peace plan. That usually means a sanction. It seems

to be saying quite soon you will have to move to additional

sanctions, if they can be agreed given the divisions in the

international community. Ban Ki- Moon has apparently been briefing,

according to some diplomats, that this apparent shooting on UN

monitors today was not the first time this has happened. He is

apparently suggesting that in the past the authorities have been

trying to hamper the efforts of his monitors. That raises questions

about the safety of their mission and their ability to operate. One

last thing, it is increasingly clear if this ever was a conflict

between two parties, it is becoming much, much more complicated with

many forces both within Syria and outside greatly complicating things.

Eurozone countries need greater political and economic integration

if they are to solve the current crisis. That is the view of Angela

Merkel. It is one that David Cameron says he understands and

accepts. The two leaders have been holding talks in Berlin. But the

prospect of closer ties within the eurozone has, once again, raised

questions about Britain's position outside it.

At the German chancellery, they prepare for a visit from a leader

demanding immediate action over the eurozone crisis. The Chancellor,

waiting with her officials, knew that the British Prime Minister

would stress the need for urgency. But, outside the eurozone, his

influence is limited. The two leaders get on well. But the Prime

Minister has been calling for the eurozone to help troubled Spanish

banks. Spain's credit rating was hit by another downgrade today,

leaving it just above junk status. The expectation is that Spain's

banks, one way or another, will have to be rescued. David Cameron

accepted that the price of saving the euro is a much more closely

integrated Europe. I have no doubt that the single currency countries

will want to seek greater integration. That is clearly going

to happen over the coming months and years. Britain is not in the

single currency. We will not be joining the single currency, so we

will not take part in that integration. Angela Merkel said

Germany was ready to do whatever was necessary to keep the eurozone

stable, including using the bail out fund. Here at the German

Chancellor read a have watched as David Cameron has repeatedly urged

Europe to get its act together and fix the eurozone crisis. But just

hours before he arrived, Angela Merkel went on TV and set out her

plans for what would be a very different hero. Angela Merkel said

what was needed was more Europe. TRANSLATION: We need a political

union, first and foremost. This means we must see responsibilities

to Europe, step by step. Later, she and David Cameron debated with some

students. Angela Merkel said that Europe could not stand still

because of some country's objections. She accepts that this

could mean a two speedy Europe. Some believe that more Europe will

make the case for a British referendum. I think a referendum is

inevitable. I think it was always going to have to come after we were

cheated out of it over the Lisbon Treaty. I think it would be

sensible for it to come when it is clear what is the integration of

the eurozone. Angela Merkel reveal today her ambition for Europe. It

poses difficult political questions for Britain. What will be its

relationship with this very different union?

Let's go live now to Westminster and James Landale. All of this talk

of closer integration, where does it leave Britain? There is a

paradox here. David Cameron supports greater integration of the

eurozone. He thinks it is the best chance that the single currency has

of surviving. If it happens, it will present him with a huge

political headache. It will almost certainly change the relationship

with the European Union. So a lot more people will say, hang on, is

it not the time we had a referendum? It is a clear transfer

of power from Europe -- London to Brussels, the law says there will

be a referendum. If the change is more subtle, such as a new banking

union that has a negative impact on the City of London, what happens

then? David Cameron says he will fight to protect the single market.

There is the failed hint of a threat of using his veto. -- veiled.

Many people are saying that we need a referendum. But it is not an

option that is without uncertainty. When does he have the referendum?

Is it on leaving the EU, is it on repatriating powers? There will be

a lot of pressure on the Government, but I don't think it is a route

they want to go down yet. There are more signs today that the

eurozone crisis is hurting the global economy. China cut interest

rates for the first time in five years. In Washington, the Federal

Reserve warned of significant risks to financial markets. Damian

Grammaticas now reports from Beijing.

Unfinished tower blocks, as far as the eye can see. China's decade-

long building boom has been the biggest in history. But is it

heading for boost -- bust? Growth is running out of steam. Miss Liu

earns her living feeding the appetite of the construction teams.

Since last year, things have been going downhill. She says she is

earning less and less. From wood to steel and more, China's voracious

demand kept the global economy going through the downturn. But now

trade is drying up. China's domestic economy is slowing. We

earn 10 times less than we used to, says this man. Houses are not being

sold, business is bad. So, how to reignite growth is China's main

concern now. Its old reliance on exports no longer look sustainable,

especially when Europe, the biggest single buyer of China's products,

is in such trouble. That is why China's leaders have today cut

interest rates. They will hand over to a new generation of Communist

rulers this year and do not want to bequeathal them a stumbling economy.

To stimulate it and shift away from relying on exports and construction,

the Government has just begun giving subsidies to anyone who buys

a refrigerator, television or small car. The lure of China's billion-

plus consumers is what brought this room full of British businessmen to

Beijing last week. But China may not now be the sort of growth that

many in the West are hoping for. China is going to its own process

of adjustment. The Chinese authorities are very well aware of

the way they need to rebalance the economy and set out their plan. I

think a lot of good progress has been made in that direction. At the

last count, China was still growing officially at 8% per year. Leaders

are clearly worried and they are The this is New York's Greek town.

The ties that bind America and Europe are tight. Here it is more

than worried in watching the old country in crisis. Everybody at

work is telling me I am making their prices go up and down, of

course it is embarrassing. Brush Wall Street is really embarrassed,

usually eager to take any setback as an opportunity, but this is

different. The chairman of the Federal Reserve warns of

significant risk to the US economy because of Europe, and traders are

already warning. It is dangerous because people do not know the

interconnected nature, so the danger is that until it happens, we

will not really know what it means, it is unknown. Times Square is a

billboard for the world and it is those iconic American countries

that are exposed in Europe, as well as small exporters, feeling the

heat from the crisis. The boss of Estee Lauder tell me they have seen

sales fall in southern Europe. Should we be making capital

investments in euro dominated countries? Investments in people,

capital structures, plants? Should we be moving production in eurozone

countries to non euro countries? the markets fluctuate, politicians

are increasingly frustrated, watching European leaders pecking

away at the problem. President Obama's former top economic adviser

told me they are not a facing up to what is happening. I think there

has been a deep and profound and continuing failure of realism, and

that if that persists to this day, I think the international community

has probably been more timid than it should have been in pointing out

the unreality of a variety of things that were being said. There

is no doubt that people here are braced for further shockwaves

coming from across the Atlantic. That very fear of the future in

itself has damaged an already fragile recovery, not what

President Obama needs in an election year.

Coming up on tonight's programme: With up to 8,000 British women and

girls forced into marriage every year, a new law could see parents

sent to jail. I was 14 when I came home from school and my mother

presented me with the photographs of a man that I was promised to

when I was eight years old. Government ministers won't be

attending England's group stage matches at Euro 2012 in Ukraine.

The Foreign Secretary said that he hoped the sporting occasion was a

success but ministers didn't want to give political support to things

they didn't agree with. France and Germany are also expected to

boycott games. The tournament, which is being co-hosted by Poland,

begins tomorrow. Daniel Sandford reports.

With just four days to go till their first game, the England team

in Krakow today, the Polish city they have made their home. But

political events over the border in Ukraine, where England play their

first three games, have led the British Government to say that no

ministers will attend any of the group stage matches. I hope some

our team, it is a great sporting event, but we don't want people to

understand that as giving political support to some things that have

been happening in Ukraine that we do not agree with. The most obvious

concern is the face of Yulia Timoshenko, one of the leaders of

the Orange Revolution, serving seven years in prison where she

claims she was assaulted, after what has been widely seen as a

political prosecution. Co-hosting the tournament is proving tougher

Ukraine. As well as the political boycott there will be a shortage of

fans. This is Donetsk. But it is an industrial coal-mining city with an

acute shortage of cheap hotel accommodation, so many fans are

staying at home. Others are opting at this basic campsite at a

junction on the edge of town. Policing in Ukraine can be rough

and ready. Earlier this year, an electric shock device was used on

and on corporate Ifan in Donetsk. It doesn't happen every day, but

this is not a Western European force. There are all the

ingredients for something to go wrong: A police force that is very

corrupt, lots of alcohol, and high passions. In the build up there has

also been acute concern about a small number of far right and

violent Ukrainian fans. The Donetsk police say there police officers

are well trained and experienced and have worked hard to study

British policing tactics. TRANSLATION: My adversaries will

show maximum tolerance. We know they are here to have fun but is

serious crimes are committed, we will use force within the law.

their stunning stadium, the Donetsk authorities are desperate to put

the controversy behind them and to get on with the football. England's

first game is against France on Monday night. We now know there

will not be any British ministers at the match and there will not be

many England fans either. The Labour leader Ed Miliband says

the whole of the United Kingdom should be involved in the debate on

Scottish independence. In a speech on national identity at London's

Royal Festival Hall, Mr Miliband also called for people in England

to be more confident in expressing their culture, saying that Labour

had been too reluctant in the past to talk about English identity.

The Home Office has announced that Tom Winsor is the preferred

candidate for the post of her Majesty's Chief Inspector of

Constabulary for England and Wales. He will appear before the Commons

home Select Affairs Committee. After, the appointment will go to

David Cameron and the Queen for approval.

Every year in Britain, thousands of girls and young women are forced

into marriage by their parents and relatives. It has been going on for

decades, but under new proposals to be announced tomorrow it will

become a criminal offence in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

But as Ed Thomas reports, there are fears that making forced marriage a

criminal offence might deter This is the story of Sara, a young

British girl forced to marry a man she has never met before in

Pakistan. It is an animation for children but it confronts a real

issue that thousands of people facing every year. I was 14 when I

came home from school and my mother sat me down and showed me

photographs of a man that I was promised to when I was eight. I

said no. My family took me out of school when I was 15 and I was held

prisoner in my own home and was not released until I agreed to the

marriage, which in the end I did, but I ran away from home at 16.

This story is familiar. Every year, 8,000 women are forced into

marriage. In 2008, the Labour government brought in prevention

orders but it still wasn't a crime. Tomorrow the coalition will

announce plans to make it a criminal offence. These men in

Blackburn say there is also the question of culture. They say they

are part of a new generation who are clear that forced marriage is

wrong. Is it a big problem? Yes, it is.

Forced marriage is not good. It is not acceptable. Some people do like

cultural things, they want to marry their own families, they do not

want to marry in the outside of the family or their religion. The new

laws on forced marriage will be brought in next year, along with

training for the police and local councils. But there is a worry that

this new law could stop victims from coming out and telling the

police what is going on because they would be too worried that if

they do prosecute, their own mother and father could end up in jail.

Some believe education is more important than the law. If a young

child feels that she, by speaking up against her parents, will be

causing family honour to be tarnished, she may not speak up, he

may not speak up. That is the fear, but the hope is that this new law

will make stories like Sara's a thing of the past.

Human rights campaigners in Pakistan say they have made contact

with two of the five women feared murdered for singing at a wedding

and celebrating with men present. The team did not meet the other

three women seen in the video, but said they had been given assurances

that they were also alive. Earlier reports said a tribal court

sentenced all five to death. Greece's crucial election campaign

turned violent today, live on national television. After trading

insults, the spokesman of the extreme-right Golden Dawn party

attacked two women from left-wing The channel quickly cut to a

commercial break. Weather warnings have been issued

this evening, with winds of 70 miles an hour and heavy rainfall

expected over parts of Britain. After record rainfall in April,

water companies have lifted drought orders in parts of England and are

rethinking hosepipe bans in some areas. But while the immediate

water shortage might be easing, experts have warned that the long

term problems with Britain's water supplies have reached a critical

point. Emma Simpson reports. Summer it ain't. This was that

Royal Cornwall Show today, but it was so wet and windy that sheep

were deemed safer outside as the 10ths were in danger of collapsing.

The half-term break is fast becoming a washout. It started June

the weekend Jubilee pageant. Land of codes and umbrellas, more like.

It is hard to believe that there is a hosepipe ban in much of the

country but all of this wet weather is starting to have an impact.

There has been a big turnaround. The April wet weather has given new

reservoirs and opportunity to fill and that has made a big difference

for businesses and farmers, because it means the risk of further

restrictions are greatly reduced. Here is how the picture has been

changing. In March, drought orders are already in place but they

spread further over the following weeks, thanks to some unseasonably

hot weather, but then after the heavy rain, the drought status was

lifted for many areas, like the far south-west, the Midlands and

Yorkshire. Despite the rain, a hosepipe ban was put in place for

much of East Anglia and the south- east, but for how much longer?

Today Thames Water, the UK's biggest water company, said that

unless the weather took an unexpected lead Saharan twist, the

ban will be lifted sooner than expected. There is plenty of water

in this reservoir but there is a warning today that the hosepipe ban

should be a wake-up call. That we need to do much more to preserve

our future supplies. The water situation in the UK is becoming

critical. We do need to think about it now. The situation is going to

get worse because of the impact of climate change, with less rainfall,

less water availability. You would not think so today. This was Devon

and there is not much respite in sight for this driving rain,