05/06/2013 BBC News at Ten

in Syria ends as Government forces roll in. Troops punch the air in

victory as they regain control of Qusair after a three-week fight. The

BBC's Lyse Ducet is the first western journalist there. Every

house is marked by gunfire. Every street lies in ruin. We've seen only

a handful of people who still remain here. In neighbouring Lebanon,

celebrations from supporters of Hezbollah who helped drive the

Syrian rebels out of Qusair. It's the first time Hezbollah

fighters have played such a significant role in the two-year

conflict. We'll be asking if there could be repercussions.

Also tonight: Doctors, managers and patients tell the NHS in England to

be brave and face the fact that some hospital services should be closed.

An Islamic centre in North London is burnt down in what may have been a

racially motivated attack. And 55 million years old - the

fossil of a tiny tree-dwelling creature in China, the oldest

Good evening. The Syrian Army is warning rebel forces to surrender or

face death after recapturing the strategically important town of

Qusair. 30,000 people lived in the town. Now the streets are deserted

after three weeks of intense fighting as Government forces, with

the help of Hezbollah fighters from Lebanon, tried and finally succeeded

to drive the rebels out. It's a major defeat for the Free Syrian

Army. Our correspondent Lyse Doucet and cameraman Phil Goodwin are the

first western journalists to make it to the town. They've just sent this

report. Qusair is now a ghost town. We drive in under Syrian Army

escort, just hours after it fell to the Government. Even on the edges of

this city not a building escaped three weeks of intense fighting. The

battles raged from shop to shop, from house-to-house, street to

street. Most people fled. Or are dead. In the heart of Qusair there

is little life in the main square. Aside from the troops. The icon

iconic clock tower is still standing but only just. A new flag was raised

briefly there morning. For nearly a year Qusair was under rebel control.

Today Government troops are marking their victory loudly. This is what

victory sounds like in Qusair, the guns being fired in celebration, the

cars blaring their horns as they clog the central square. The Syrian

Army is declaring victory, but at what price? Qusair is now destroyed.

The streets of Qusair are flooded with fighters and tanks and trucks.

They tell us they don't want to speak. And then in the distance we

spot this column on the move. And notice something different. Ribbons

tied to uniforms in the colours of Lebanon's Hezbollah movement. They

speak with Lebanese accents. Off camera they confirm that. Qusair

lies on vital supply lines less than ten miles from Lebanon's boreder. It

was too important for these allies to lose. But so many civilians lost

everything in this battle. We saw very few on the streets today. This

man thanks God and the Syrian Army that his family is now safe. But

look at your city, it's gone, it's destroyed. He blames the rebels for

his plight. They killed my brother, he tells me, they killed children,

because we support the Government. But still they are in a rush to

leave. Who can say when the thousands who once called Qusair

home will be back? Their city became a prize in this war. This battle may

not be the last here. Many of the rebels have fled to

villages north of Qusair, blaming Hezbollah fighters for hastening

their defeat. In an interview with the BBC, the Free Syrian Army's top

General has warned there could be repercussions inside Lebanon. This

report from our Middle East correspondent, Paul Wood. Syrian

Army fire power overwhelmed Qusair. But they had help on the ground from

the Lebanese militia, Hezbollah. Those who fled this devastated town

are bitter about that. TRANSLATION: Hezbollah was attacking

so we fled the shelling. Lebanon is getting drawn further and further

into this conflict. Syria's civil war could become Lebanon's. The Free

Syrian Army top general had this warning about the consequences of

Hezbollah's involvement. Hezbollah fighters are envieding Syrian

territory and when they continue to do that and the Lebanese authority

don't take any action to stop them coming to Syria, I think we are

allowed to fight against Hezbollah fighters inside Lebanon territory.

In Shi'ite areas of Lebanon which supply Hezbollah's fighters they

were celebrating Qusair's haul. 22-year-old Musan was killed a week

ago in the battle for Qusair. His family said he died protecting their

beliefs. TRANSLATION: We will not allow

Syrian allies to fall, because we would be next in line. The war may

be escalating in other ways. Government helicopters drop gas

canisters in the town of Saraqe be, an attack reported earlier on the

BBC. Britain and France now say tests show that sarin gas may have

been deployed there. Whether these injuries in Saraqep are from

chemical weapons are unproven but a British doctor just back from there

believes the Government was behind such an attack. He said he treated

the victims. She was sweat sweaty, very hot, red, swollen eyes, tongue,

with a bit of froth from her mouth and very constrict constricting eye

pupils. So, is this a red line? The French Government has been talking

about possible future air strikes to target the regime's chemical

weapons. That possibility remains a long way off, and in the absence of

western intervention the war certainly seems to be going

President Assad's way. Neither side though seems particularly interested

in the UN's attempt to start peace talks, and meanwhile the risk grows

that Syria's civil war will spread beyond its borders.

Labour has accused the Government of complacency over longer waiting

times at Accident and Emergency departments. The Prime Minister

admitted there've been delays, but said they were getting to grips with

the problem. It comes as NHS doctors, managers and patients have

come together for the first time to call for some hospitals in England

to have their budgets cut so the NHS can deliver better-quality care. Our

health correspondent Branwen Jeffreys reports. It was calm today,

in a major emergency Salford Royal's A&E department swings into action.

It is a specialist trauma centre, with teams trained to deal with the

worst injuries. One example of how some hospitals have become more

specialised. The pressures on all emergency departments are now a

running political debate. We are now meeting our targets for A&E. There

was a problem in the first quarter of this year. That is why Bruce

Keogh, the medical director of the NHS, will be holding an

investigation. The Patients Association says we are reaching

crisis point. And that we've got a Prime Minister who says crisis? What

crisis? It is not good enough. from politics charities, doctors and

NHS managers say more money needs to be spent keeping people out of

hospitals, and paying for that could mean some hospital care being

concentrated in fewer places. A&E pressures that we've seen

recently are a sign that the NHS just isn't working in the right way.

What we are saying is that because we've only got the same amount of

money that the -- but the demand has increased we need to have better

ways of spending that money. some patients are angry at plans to

downgrade services at their local hospitals, Dell demonstrations in

Trafford and other communities. you can establish good services

outside hospitals you could spend less inside hospitals but until

you've got those services up and running people won't trust them,

people won't use them and you can't make the savings until those

services are in place. Tomorrow the man who has run the English health

service for years will wade into the debate. David Nicholson, chief

executive of NHS England, has given his first interview since announcing

he will leave next year. He warns that if money is taken from the NHS

to pay for better social care of the elderly white have to mean radical

change in the funding and running of hospitals. David Nicholson's speech

tomorrow is likely to be bold. Adding to the debate about the

future of our hospitals but calling for the NHS to have an independent

and radical vision for its own future. The NHS is getting on with

doing its job. Caring for millions of people each and every day. But

the financial pressure on it is intense, and the political debate

around it evermore heated. Counter-terrorism police have been

drafted in to investigate a fire which destroyed a Somali cultural

centre in North London. The building in Muswell Hill was burnt to the

ground overnight. There are fears it may have been targeted in

retaliation for the murder of Drummer Lee Rigby in Woolwich last

month. Sarah Campbell reports from the scene. A Community Centre

reduced to ruin. Run by a Somali Muslim group but open to all as a

venue for after-school clubs, sports activities, even local weddings. On

an outside wall of the burnt-out building the police say the letters

EDL were discovered. Exactly when and where that graffiti was placed

is the focal point of the inquiry. We'll pursue all leads until we know

where it came from. If it is connected with the fire we'll pursue

the offend offenders until they are brought to justice. Staff say there

was no graffiti last night. There are fears over community tensions.

Police say they are working to reassure the Islamic and Somali

communities. Well-wishers have been arriving throughout the day for

messages of support for a centre very much seen as part of the

neighbourhood. This is the quietest area in North London and I know

these things can happen but it is shocking to everyone. Not only the

Somali communities but all the communities who live around this

area. An English Defence League spokesman said this evening they

didn't believe their members were involved. One Muslim organisation is

calling for greater protection. A court has been told that the man who

drove his van pedestrians in Cardiff, killing a mother of three

and injuring 17 others, had a history of mental problems. Matthew

Tvrdon, who is 22, drove his farm in what was described as a journey of

mayhem for eight miles over 30 minutes in October last year. He has

admitted manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility and

will be sentenced tomorrow. The Prime Minister has accused Ed

Miliband of a U-turn, after it emerged Labour would not reverse

cuts to child benefit. Labour had criticised the decision to axe

benefits for higher rate taxpayers, but the BBC learned today that a

future Labour government would keep the changes. Labour says it hit

would win the general election, it would have to make tough economic

choices. This is the weak Labour 's leaders promised to show us the

colour of their money, to tell us not just about the cuts they

oppose, but also about the cuts they might have to make if they were in

power. Ed Balls announced that winter fuel allowance should be cut

for wealthy pensioners. What he didn't say is that he and Ed

Miliband have also looked again at the coalition's decision to cut

child benefit. News which David Cameron lepton at Prime Minister 's

questions today. I know I've been the one on holiday in Ibiza, but

they are the ones taking policy altering substances. Totally

condemning an attack -- attacking in the strongest possible terms were

now turns out to be Labour policy. What complete confusion and weakness

from the leader of the opposition. Neither of them spoke about child

benefit today but they are agreed, they won't promised to reverse any

cuts unless they can show where the money will come from. Two years ago

the tone from Ed Miliband was very different. On child benefit, isn't

it time the Prime Minister had the grown-up sense to admit this. He's

got it wrong. He's made the wrong decision. He should tell middle

income families up and down Britain he will think again. It is Labour

and not the coalition who'd been thinking again about what they might

be able to afford to do if they get into government in two years time.

They are reluctant to spell out in public what they are really thinking

about in private. The party line is to confirm nothing until closer to

an election. But no one disputes that child benefit cuts are here to

stay. Let's be clear, Labour will not reverse the cuts to child

benefit. We will make all our judgment about all these things when

we know the economic circumstances. We will make our decisions in 2015.

Is there any chance they will reverse? We have to look at the

entire picture. You can ask me as many times as you like the same

question and the same answer will be, we don't know yet. What the

state of the Treasury revenues will be. The cuts to child benefit began

this year for families in which anyone earns more than �50,000 a

year. Some voters see the terms in Labour 's approach is letting them

down, others as grown-up and responsible. I think it's good news

about Labour. I think child benefit is for people who are unemployed and

on low incomes, people who need the money. I think it looks bad that

he's changed his mind. If you are in charge of a party, you should have

your policies and stick with them. Tomorrow, Ed Miliband will make a

speech designed to show we will cut spending on welfare. He will claim

that Labour is the party of work, which would cut the mounting cost of

unemployment. In Turkey, anti-government demonstrators have

demanded that senior police chiefs be sacked for organising the violent

crackdown on street protests. The Turkish government has told the BBC

that investigations are under way into the of pepper spray. There is a

photograph showing a riot officer spraying a protester, it has been

shown as evidence of brutality. Clashes continue across Turkey,

including in the capital, Ankara, and in is mere, where dozens of

Twitter users were today arrested for posting messages in support of

the protests. The heart of the demonstrations remains in Gezi Park

and Taksim Square. From there, Jeremy Bowen has sent this report.

Taksim Square in Istanbul is still in the hands of the protesters. It

is as if Trafalgar Square in London or Times Square in New York were

occupied, with the police choosing to keep the peace by staying away.

Gezi Park close by, where the trouble started, is a political

carnival. Dozens of groups joining in. Feminists condemning what they

say is the government attack on women's rights. Around the corner, a

pro- Kurdish MP making a speech. Solving this crisis, getting all of

these people to go home is going to take some delicate political

footwork. The Prime Minister is an accomplished politician, but in

recent years he's been used to having things his own way. He won't

want to do anything that leaves him looking weak. Opposition slogans are

ready for his return from a foreign trip on Thursday. Shut up, tie up,

this one says. He's writing, resign, resign. Even absent and

unseen, the Prime Minister is at the centre of this crisis. A government

minister says some protests were being exploited by terrorists and

bundles, others were legitimate. challenges are something we welcome.

We will have elections in nine months time and will listen to the

voice of the electorate. If the people think that this government

ought to step out, they should address this question. What about

the accusation that the Prime Minister acts in an autocratic

manner, that he believes he knows what's best for the country and

doesn't listen to the one half of the possum dashed by population that

didn't vote? He has listened to them. That's not what they said to

me. He has said more than 50 times in the last ten years that he is the

Prime Minister of all of Turkey. Deputy Prime Minister met

representatives of the protesters, which demanded of sacking of police

chiefs in Istanbul, Ankara and other cities. In Taksim Square tonight the

crowds are bigger than ever. The country waits for the return of the

Prime Minister. Where this crisis goes next depends on his response to

the protesters and their takeover of the centre of Turkey's biggest city.

The Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg, says government plans to

allow nurseries and childminders in England to look after more children

are being dropped. Mr Clegg expressed misgivings about the

proposals last month, after concerns that child would suffer. Where does

this leave childcare plans? Nick Clegg is said to have used the word

dead in the water, when he briefed leaders in the childcare sector

about this today. He's been pretty clear that his lack of support for

these plans does mean that they are effectively being scrapped. The

original policy was to allow carers in nurseries and childminders to

look after more children than they do now, for example, six,

twoyear-macros holds, so long as the staff are better qualified. It was

said that this would drive up the quality of the workforce and reduce

costs for parents. But when the plans were put out for consultation,

they met with a lot of criticism. That seems to have underpinned the

decision today. He's worried that the costs won't go down for

parents, the quality of care might be undermined and that providers and

parents didn't seem to want it. It looks as if a high profile and

controversial policy will not go ahead. For decades, Burma was one of

the most isolated nations on earth, and the opposition leader became an

international symbol of its seclusion. But recent moves towards

political openness have brought with them a host of economic

opportunities. This week, a major business Forum is taking place in

Burma and, as our chief business correspondent reports, many

international firms now see the country as one of the world 's

largest untapped markets. Rangoon after dark. You wouldn't have seen

this two years ago. And these young people are taking advantage of all

the changes. He's a millionaire now, I'm serious! He's 28 and a

millionaire. And they know international businesses want in on

the action. There's only one country left in the south of Asia. They will

go to it. Burma has the same population as Britain. It is rich in

resources, people and potential. That is very attractive to

investors. But it's the poorest country in Southeast Asia. Tin Tin

has no running water or electricity. The average child here

only goes to school for four years. She has only just started sending

her 13year-macro son. I dream of having a better life. Right now I'm

struggling to make a living and want to escape this poverty. Still,

because it is so polar, Burma actually has huge room for growth.

To catch up it will need to grow fast. For that to happen it needs

more of this. Manufacturing and multinational spring that. Like

Coca-Cola opening their first Plantier in 60 years. When they come

in, so does cash and training. With the companies, a promise of a big

reward. Do you have any concerns about doing business in a still

rather developing country, a frontier market with only recent

political change? I think the and Mark has embarked upon its journey

to essentially bring itself back into the world community. We are

very excited with the future potential of this 60 plus million

market. Not every company is ready to come in. It is, after all, a

frontier market, which means it has huge opportunities but also a lot of

risk. In the 1950s, this country was a shining example of economic growth

in Asia. And it could be again. But international businesses will want

to see reforms continue and an end to social unrest before they return

to calling Burma the golden land. It is 55 million years old, it's the

size of a mouse and it is thought to be the oldest fossil of a monkeylike

creature ever discovered. It was found in China and researchers

writing in the science journal, Nature, believe it is the first

primate to have emerged after the extinction of dinosaurs. Been given

exclusive access to their pictures. Meet Archicebus achilles, an agent

tweak -- read well. It was the size of a mouse, but it was a creature

like this that eventually evolved into monkeys, apes and then humans.

We know what it looks like from this fossil, a 55 million -year-old

skeleton. It is beautifully preserved and you can see each

bone, and how these feet were able to grasp onto branches. The fossil

is helping scientists piece together how early primates evolved into

humans. TRANSLATION: This is a very

important discovery. Now we've got a nearly complete skeleton, and it

happens to be very close to the ancestor of the human species. We

could say that the ancestors of humans started to evolve at this

point. So where does it fit into our own evolutionary past? More than 65

million years ago, a tiny, spiral like creature evolved into the first

primate. 10 million years later, some went down this road to become

these large tree creatures known as tarsiers, which still exist today.

While the rest went on to become monkeys and apes, which includes us

humans. Achilles fits in just here, very close to the fork in the road.

55 million years ago, the Earth was a tropical jungle. Dinosaurs were

extinct and so it was the perfect environment for us to evolve. The

question is, could the new discovery be an ancestor of humanity? Fossils

are never preserved with their birth certificate or a notice that says,

here is your ancestor of all humans. When you find a fossil it

could be the ancestor of all humans, but you would never know this. So

most we can say is it looks close to what we would expect our ancestor to

look like. Scientists will continue to study this ancient find using