04/03/2012 BBC Weekend News

Exit polls suggest a big victory for Vladimir Putin as the polls

close in Russia's presidential election. Thousands of supporters

are already celebrating on the streets of Moscow. His return to

the Kremlin looks assured, but opponents accuse his party of

intimidation and election fraud. The leader of the Catholic Church

in Scotland says plans to permit gay marriage are "grotesque." No

more excuses, Chelsea's manager is sacked after just nine months in

the job. And thousands saw it, but what was

that great ball of fire in the Good evening. Vladimir Putin looks

set to return to the Kremlin as Russia's new President. Exit polls

and early results following a weekend of voting suggest he's on

course to win around 60 percent of the vote. Thousands of his

supporters are already celebrating in Moscow's Red Square. However

opposition groups have accused Mr Putin's party of widespread

intimidation and election violations. Our Moscow

Correspondent Daniel Sandford reports.

As soon as the polls closed the party began. Thousands of

supporters of Vladimir Putin took to the streets outside the Kremlin

walls as he proved once more his total dominance of a Russian

politics. For 12 years he has wielded almost absolute power and

when Vladimir Putin voted today, he knew he would be president again,

long before the results were announced. He has muscled all

credible opposition figures out of mainstream politics. He is rarely

seen wife was brought back into the Spotlight today. His critics said

he was a misunderstood liberal. This is the problem with Western

politicians, bear to O'Gara minded to understand he is a liberal.

campaign has been dominated by protest and even his visit to the

polling station ended with three women being led away shouting,

Teuton is a thief. Much of central Moscow looked as if it was on a war

footing as the security forces prepared for what could be a week

of angry protest. By the end of the day that Raman was surrounded by

trucks full of Interior Ministry troops and riot police. No one is

quite sure what trouble the next few days will bring. The protests

first started after widespread concerns about cheating in the

parliamentary poll in December. This time tens of thousands of

ordinary people volunteered to be election observers in an attempt to

make it more honest. What we want to do is at least to make voting

date Fareham, to control how people vote and here the observers may

bring change. But they have already been thousands of allegations of

fraud including this footage apparently showing a man feeding

ballot paper after a ballot paper into an automatic voting machine.

It was recorded on the Web cam in the polling station. These have not

been fair elections, said Mikhail Gorbachev, but we must not relent.

People should not be forced to go out out onto the streets. Vladimir

Putin's third inauguration as president will be made but he and

his supporters know that if he retains his grip on the country and

wins another election, he could still be president in the year 2024.

And we can speak now to our World Affairs Editor, John Simpson, who's

been following events in Moscow. How far to these allegations of

fraud taint his victory? Well they have and they have not, to be

honest. The fact is that the official version will show that he

has somewhere around 60% or perhaps the High 50s, depending on how the

figures were out. If this election is anything like the parliamentary

elections of last December, then you can say that something like 10%

of the boat will have been ripped in some way or another. Now that

would have given Vladimir Putin a victory anyway, he only had to get

50% or slightly more. But the fact is he wanted a lot more. There is

growing opposition to him here and I think he wanted a really big

result. But the fact is that a lot of people are saying that they may

not like him but the other candidates were so pathetic,

frankly, but there was no alternative to him. When I saw him

today he looked pretty confident anyway so I do not think there's

any doubt he will get the kind of figure that he wants.

The government's plans to change the law to allow gay marriages have

been strongly criticised by the leader of the Catholic Church in

Scotland. Cardinal Keith O'Brien said the proposals were "grotesque"

and would shame the UK in the eyes of the world. Supporters of gay

marriage said his remarks risked increasing prejudice. Our Religious

Affairs correspondent Robert Pigott reports.

Cardinal O'Brien has set himself on a collision course with the

government. His Sunday Telegraph article reveals anger and alarm. He

said of the government, their attempt to redefine reality is

given a polite hearing, their madness is indulged. Their proposal

represents a grotesque some version of a universally accepted human

right. But Christians are divided about the issue. Progress of

Anglicans say it is time to rethink the fundamental purpose of marriage.

Marriage is a strong institution and has been around for thousands

of years and has changed many times. Marriage is not really about gender

but it is about love between two people. The government says that

full marriage should be open to loving and committed couples

whatever their sexuality. David Cameron has given the policy

explicit backing. I do not support gay marriage in spite of being a

Conservative, I support it because I am a Conservative. The government

will launch a consultation on the issue later this month and says it

is committed to introducing gay marriage. It is about allowing

civil marriage to take place for same-sex couples, not to try to in

some way changed the religious terminology of marriage.

Cardinal O'Brien has determined allies amongst MPs. It is just

really the definition, I am in favour of civil partnerships and

equality, but you cannot redefined marriage on a whim. Cardinal

O'Brien has shown himself before to be ready to mobilise Catholics in

what amounts to a political battle but the stakes are high enough. His

latest remarks show that he regards traditional marriage as critical

amongst a diminishing number of Christian principles that underpin

it everyday life in Britain. It could be one that he is prepared to

take to the government in an outright fight to preserve for.

The Foreign Office says the desecration of British war graves

in an attack on cemeteries in the Libyan city of Benghazi, is

appalling. The War Graves Commission says it's deeply

saddened by what's happened, and will do everything it can to repair

around 200 headstones. The Libyan authorities have

apologised and pledged to catch those responsible. From Tripoli,

Gabriel Gatehouse reports. The attackers film themselves as

they set to work. More than 200 headstones were damaged, smashed to

the ground by a group of several dozen armed men. Break the cross of

the dogs, one is heard to say on the video. There's Hebrew writing

on this one, says another, as he up breeds a headstone. Later the men

take a hammer and chisel to the cross of remembrance. Aside from

the religious references, the motive for the attack is not clear.

The Foreign Office today said it did not believe British gay --

British graves were being singled out. This is one of two sides in

Benghazi that were attacked over the weekend. A spokesman for the

Commonwealth War Graves Commission said there were deeply saddened by

the attacks and the cemeteries would be restored to a standard

befitting the sacrifice of those commemorated in Benghazi. The

Libyan foreign ministry condemned the attacks and says it will step

up protection around the cemeteries. But these incidents highlight a

wider problem of lawlessness here in post revolutionary Libya. Large

parts of the country are in effect controlled by armed militia groups

will operate outside government control.

A series of massive explosions at an arms dump in The Republic of

Congo have killed at least 200 people and injured many more.

Numerous buildings in densely populated parts of the capital

Brazzaville were destroyed and thousands of people fled their

homes. The authorities say a fire at a military depot caused the

explosions. The Independent Police Complaints

Commission is investigating the fatal shooting of a man by officers

in Cheshire last night. Residents in Culcheth have described how they

heard gunfire and ran for cover, after police stopped a car in the

village. From Culcheth, Danny Savage reports.

The car park in the centre of culture village where the man was

shot dead remains sealed off. The vehicles involved still exactly

where they were when police opened fire. A red Audi was left with a

bullet hole in the windscreen after being blocked in by unmarked police

cars. At least one shot was fired at about 7:20pm yesterday evening.

15 year-old Jessica Brown was near by at the time and says it was a

frighten ink and chaotic scene. heard a gunshot being fired at. It

did not seem real at all. It sounded like something from a film.

I sort lots of police cars driving past and then I saw three men

manning passed. They had gas masks on and guns. Officers from Greater

Manchester police were involved in what they describe as a pre-planned

operation. Now the Independent Police Complaints Commission is

overseeing the inquiry, investigating why an officer had to

open fire. Now with all the sports news here's

Karthi Gnanasegaram. Who would be a Chelsea manager? The

club's owner Roman Abramovich has decided enough is enough after just

nine months and he's ended Andre Villas-Boas' reign. He's the 7th

manager of the Russian's tenure. Joe Wilson has been following

developments. UN Drake Villas-Boas was more than just another manager,

he was a project. Recruited at vast expense to create a new era. And so

quickly it came to this. Chelsea beaten at West Brom yesterday, 5th

in the Premier League and the fire in the eyes of Villas-Boas

extinguished. Since Roman Ibrahimovic bought Chelsea he has

kept revolving the door for managers. Jose Mourinho left after

three years and is still missed. Guus Hiddink was a successful

caretaker. And then the Youth Project, and Villas-Boas. Through

this a core of senior players has grown at Chelsea. The likes of John

Cherry and Frank Lampard. Some wonder if they hounded Villas-Boas.

He has been naive but I think the senior players have dictated what

happens. Chelsea have to realise that maybe now they are not good

enough. Villas-Boas cost �13 million to recruit. His departure

will so -- presumably cost even more.

Let's go live to Stamford Bridge and our sports news correspondent

James Pearce. James, what's next for Chelsea? I think it is

significant that Roberto di Matteo has been appointed as the caretaker

manager. He will not be available until the end of the season. Jose

Mourinho has been spotted house- hunting in London. He has been

sacked once by a moment a Ibrahimovic, can the men really

work together again? It is a possibility.

Manchester United reminded league leaders Manchester City that they

are still very much in the race for the Premier League title. United

now just two points behind City after a 3-1 victory over Spurs at

White Hart Lane. Wayne Rooney scored United's first goal on the

stroke of half time. Ashley Young volleyed in their second before

adding a stunning third goal. Ireland and France drew 17-all in

their rearranged Six Nations Match in Paris today. A great start from

the Irish saw them take a half time lead through two tries from Tommy

Bowe but the French staged a comeback after the break, Wesley

Fofana with the try and Morgan Parra kicking 12 points for a draw.

And that's the sport. Police switchboards lit up across

Scotland and northern England last night, as worried callers reported

seeing bright lights and an orange glow in the sky. Philippa Thomas

reports. There it goes and there it goes

again. A fire ball streaking across the evening sky. Amazing observers

from the Scottish Highlands to the south-west coast. The sighting had

some rushing to call the police. Others racing to get their images

online. That is crazy. Is it a shooting star? This was filmed by

an unmanned cameras over of Whitley Bay, set up last night on the off-

chance of something special coming by. What you can hear is the streak

of light as the object burns up in the atmosphere. An astronomer or

for the Royal Observatory in Greenwich explained how such

firework effects can happen. When you get a fireball like these you

can get some spectacular colours. Different chemical elements in the

rock as they burn off give out different colours which produces