21/09/2013 BBC Weekend News

Militants linked to Al-Qaeda say they're behind an attack on a

shopping centre in Kenya. Dozens of people have been killed. Hundreds

ran for their lives, as the police and army surrounded the upmarket

mall in Nairobi. Kenya's president has lost members of his own family

in the attack. They have killed at least 39 innocent people and injured

more than 150 others. Security forces are searching the large

complex, where it's thought the gunmen are holding hostages.

Here the Government has said that Britons have been caught up in the

violence. We'll have the latest from Nairobi.

Also on the programme: Ahead of his party's conference, Ed Miliband sets

out plans to tackle what he calls the UK's cost of living crisis.

And on the eve of the German elections, Chancellor Angela Merkel

makes her final appeal for a third term.

A very good evening to you. An armed stand-off is continuing tonight in

Nairobi. A group of masked gunmen stormed an up-market shopping centre

at lunch time opening fire and throwing grenades. The country's

president says 39 people have been killed and soo wounded. A Somali

militant group, linked to Al-Qaeda, has claimed responsibility. The

Foreign Secretary, William Hague, says Britons have been caught up in

the attack. The luxury mall, in western Nairobi, is popular with

wealthy Kenyans and foreigners and was packed with shoppers when the

attack began. Our correspondent, Anne Soy, has sent this report from

Nairobi. Hundreds of people ran for their

lives. The gunfire is coming from one of Nairobi's most exclusive

malls, the place wealthy Kenyans and foreigners shop. People said men

dressed in black, wearing masks and carrying AK-47s, moved into the

mall, threw grenades and started firing. Initially there was an

explosion and then maybe 15, 16 shots. The first reaction was to

jump on the floor. Everyone in the restaurant did the same thing. We

were just sitting there and suddenly, all of a sudden, maybe

around 12 o'clock, we started hearing gunshots on the first,

second, maybe on the ground floor and first floor. People started

running. You could hear people screaming. People were crying around

me. Desperate people fled, some managed

to escape, but many were killed. They were shooting on the ground

floor. Slowly they're going up and up. I went up to the top and they

came to there. Some police are there. Situation as very bad inside.

We have seen many casualties. We've been asked to lie down. We don't

know what's going on. Police and security forces moved in.

It was initially described as a robbery. Soon, it became clear it

was a terrorist attack. Al-Shabaab claimed responsibility. One witness

said the attacker separated Muslims from non-Muslims. We are here to

rescue only the Muslims. If you're a mum, stand up and then go. We have

seen ambulances leaving carrying casualties. We have also seen trucks

carrying bodies. They have killed at least 39 innocent people and injured

more than 150 others. I ask God to give you comfort as you confront

this tragedy. I know what you feel having also personal personally lost

very close family members in this attack. Tonight, the gunmen are

still inside. Officials say one of the attackers was arrested and has

since died of his injuries. Anne Soy joins me now live from

Nairobi. What's the latest you can tell us? I just spoke to one man

here, a few minutes ago, he says he has been in touch with his daughter

who is still in that building. They have been communicating through the

who is still in that building. They phone. It is clear that there are

people who may still be trapped inside the building. The security

forces here in Kenya say that they have taken control of the situation

now. They say that one gunman was killed and they have managed to pin

down the others. There's still a lot of activity going on behind me. This

area has been cordoned off. Still a very tense situation here. There are

still relatives still waiting to know the fate of their loved ones.

There's a contact centre set up to help trace some of the people who

may have been involved in this incident. Anne Soy, thanks.

Well, here, the Government said tonight that British citizens are

thought to have been caught up in the attack. There are undoubtedly

British nationals caught up in this and so we should be ready for that

and aware of that. Again, we don't have any sufficiently precise

details to give any further details of that, at the moment. This is a

fast-moving situation. It is still going on at the time that we are

speaking. Our Security Correspondent, Frank Gardner, is

with me now. What do we know about any Briton that's may have been

caught up in all this? Well, the Foreign Office has dispatched

counter-terrorism police officials to the scene. They've held what's

called a COBRA brief briefing ip side Whitehall. They are frantically

going around the hospitals trying to find out if any Britons have been

identified. We know the French have said two French citizens have been

killed. The Americans have said that a number of Americans have been

injured. William Hague there was essentially bracing people for bad

news on Britons. The style of this attack was similar to the Mumbai

attack of 2008. This was a well planned, well executed terrorist

attack by people with lots of ammunition. They didn't just shoot

at random. I've been speaking to security officials in Nairobi who

said that somebody they knew hid under a car and they came, looked

under the car, the militants, found him, shot him twice. Amazingly, he

survived. There's a woman amongst the militants. Certain it is

Al-Shabaab behind all this? They've been tweeting, putting out stuff

onto their handle, as it were, claiming that this is retribution

for Kenya's invasion of their country. Kenya has about 4,000

troops inside Somalia trying to secure the border and stop attacks.

What I'm hearing from people in Nairobi is that this will double the

resolve of the Kenyan government not to give in to Al-Shabaab. Thanks

very much indeed for joining us. Now the Labour leader, Ed Miliband,

has set out plans to tackle what he calls the UK's cost of living crisis

ahead of his party's conference in Brighton. He said Labour will

strengthen the minimum wage and improve access to child care, if it

wins the next election. He would also require large companies to

train an apprentice every time they bring in a skilled worker from

outside the EU. Our political correspondent, Ross Hawkins, has

more from Brighton. Among the Saturday shoppers and

Labour supporters this morning, a party leader, out to persuade his

audience that he can make some of them a bit better off. When we think

about one of the big banks, do we really think they can't afford to

pay their cleaners a bit more? Do we think they can't afford to pay their

cleaners a bit more? No. I agree with you. Not everyone in Labour has

been cheering him on, though. Worried about the polls, they have

been demanding hard policies. Now, some ideas. Like much bigger fines

for companies that don't pay the minimum wage and a review asking

whether firms in some sectors, like finance, should pay their staff

more. Labour wants to guarantee English primary schools will offer

child care from 8am till 6pm, but there's no extra money. And this

evening, they said they'd make large companies train an apprentice for

each skilled staff member they hire from outside the EU. The Labour

pitch went down well enough on the streets. Ed Miliband's team think

he's good at this sort of thing, but they know he'll have to reach a

bigger audience than this by the end of this conference. So, plenty of

messages, people who earned £50,000 to £60,000 shouldn't expect tax

rises say Labour and distractions too, like a seaside row with the

unions. Ed Miliband is -- trying to change their relationship with the

party. One has already docked £1 million a year from the money it

gives to Labour. Our members are struggling. Quite a lot of them are

sceptical about the Labour Party at the moment. Ed needs to deliver this

week. He needs to have common sense policies that are really based in

people's realities. Reminders of old struggles too, as Gordon Brown's

former spin doctor publishes tales of battling Tony Blair's team. Aware

this party conference means people are watching, Ed Miliband was trying

to show Labour's tender side today. Things will get much tougher than

this before conference is done. Now political leaders in Germany

have been holding their final campaign rallies ahead of

Parliamentary elections tomorrow. Chancellor, Angela Merkel, told her

Christian Democrats the race would be a close one and she appealed to

voters for a new four-year term. Our Europe editor, Gavin Hewitt, is

in Berlin now. Is Angela Merkel on course for victory? Well, certainly

the expectation here is that she will secure a third term, but as

you've just said, she was telling her supporters today to expect a

close result. Now, undoubtedly her party will get the largest number of

votes, but to form a government here, you need to build a coalition.

votes, but to form a government That's where it gets complicated.

Her current coalition partner, the liberal Free Democrats may not even

get enough votes to have seats in Parliament. That could mean that

Angela Merkel is forced to form a grand coalition with the opposition.

Why does this matter? Because Germany is the economic powerhouse

of Europe and it is very much the country that has devised the

strategy to deal with the eurozone crisis, which hasn't gone away.

Now in a few hours, a court in China will deliver a verdict in the chai

of a prominent politician, accused of corruption and trying to cover up

the murder of a British businessman. Bo Xilai was charged in connection

with the death of Neil Heywood almost two years ago. Mr Bo's wife

has already been convicted. Murky and polluted, full of

dangerous undercurrents, the river flows through the heart of the city,

a city once riddled with Mafia gangs, now becoming one of China's

economic engines, it's where Neil gangs, now becoming one of China's

Heywood was murdered. Bo Xilai, the man transforming this area, faces

years in jail for covering up the killing. One of the Communist

Party's rising stars, Bo was so powerful, he was almost untouchable.

So why would the Communist Party want to get rid of one of its own

successful figures? Well, it says this case shows it's serious about

tackling corruption. No favour is shown to anyone, not even its own

elite. Many here believe this is really about eliminating Bo Xilai as

a political force. Bo was building a power base among the 30 million

people here. The city is famous -- city's famous porters liked the way

he was tackling crime and corruption. He appealed to those

disillusioned by the country's huge in inequalities, Chinese who feel

most Communist officials don't care for the poor.

TRANSLATION: He must have done something wrong to have been

arrested. He was a talented politician. He was cleaning up

crime. TRANSLATION: He was good at his job.

We need more officials like him. He made this city safer. I hope he

comes back. But power cupts. Bo's wife poisoned

Neil Heywood when their deal soured. Bo's political rivals then moved in.

Most Chinese leaders are very bland. Not Mr Bo. I'm sure there are others

who felt was a potential threat to their careers. So it's welcome to

some members of the elite, but it's their careers. So it's welcome to

also a deep loss for people who their careers. So it's welcome to

supported him. Were it not for the murder of Neil Heywood, Bo Xilai

might today be one of the half dozen men at the pinnacle of power.

Instead what's been exposed as the darkness behind this country's

growing wealth, the way its elite are so divorced from ordinary

people, the stains that run through the very vains of modern China.

-- veins. Now all the sport with Lizzie at the

BBC Sport Centre. Good evening, a busy day of sport

and I'll have the Premier League scores in a minute. Let's start with

England's women, who kicked off their World Cup qualifying campaign

today in style with a 6-0 thrashing of Belarus. Ties new era for the

team, playing in their first match since Hope Powell was sacked.

This is a team under temporary management. Brent Hills has two

games in his attempt to prove he can do the job permanently. He got the

best possible start. England stalwart Karen Kearney scored within

three minutes. Within half an hour, England were 2-0 up and Kearney got

her second making it 3-0. Belarus never looked comfortable. By half

halftime Kearney had a hat-trick. The rout was completed by A will you

ko -- Aluko. They had renewed determination and confidence. This

will do us good and confidence wise. Different goal scorers, getting the

new girls on the score sheet as well. This was sclactly the start

that England needed -- exactly the start that England needed, for a

team that looked stronger and more motivated than in recent months.

World Cup qualification is exactly what the women's game in England

needs. Match the day follows this

programme. If you don't want to know the day's scores, this is your

chance to leave the room. Liverpool have lost their lead at

the top of the table, beaten for the first time this season, a 1-0 home

defeat to Southampton. Dejan Lovren was the scorer.

Chelsea now lead the Premier League on goal difference, after winning

the west London derby 2-0. Hull came from behind to beat

Newcastle. Sunderland are still bottom losing to West Brom.

In the Scottish Premiership, Inverness only lead on goal

difference after losing to Aberdeen. Celtic are second with a game in

hand. Mark Cavendish won a second stage of

this year's tour of Britain. The Manx xman won the sprint finish.

Bradley Wiggins is still favourite to win overall. He leads by 26

seconds heading into the final stage in London.

Notinghamshire have won their first one-day knock-out trophy, beating

Glamorgan in the YB 40 today. Chris Read was the pick of the batsmen

with a half century. Samit Patel took three wickets in nine ball, as

they won by 87 runs. The result meant England's 2005 Ashes hero

Simon Jones missed out on a trophy in the last one-day game of his

career. Sebastien Vettel will start

tomorrow's Singapore Grand Prix on pole position. Lewis Hamilton is

fifth. That's the sport. The main news tonight: An Al-Qaeda

linked group is said it's behind an attack on a shopping mall in Kenya's

capital. At least 39 people have been killed. You can follow

developments in Nairobi on the BBC News channel. That's all from us

tonight. Have a very good night.