:00:08. > :00:13.Millions of people defy threats of violence to go to the polls in an
:00:14. > :00:17.historic day for Afghanistan. President Hamid Karzai hails the
:00:18. > :00:26.election to choose his successor, a proud day for democracy. The turnout
:00:27. > :00:33.is huge, especially among women w, some forcing they're way into
:00:34. > :00:39.polling stations. David Cameron faces new calls to
:00:40. > :00:44.sack his Culture Secretary. The Chinese ship detects a signal
:00:45. > :00:51.that could be from the black box of the missing Malaysian airliner.
:00:52. > :00:55.Pineau De Re, the 11-year-old... Beating the favourite, the 25-1
:00:56. > :01:13.outsider romps home to win the Grand National.
:01:14. > :01:20.Hello, very good evening to you. The votes are being counted this evening
:01:21. > :01:25.in Afghanistan's presidential election, in the country's first
:01:26. > :01:29.democratic handover of power. Around seven million people voted, almost
:01:30. > :01:33.double that of the last elections. There were huge queues at the
:01:34. > :01:38.polling stations, which stayed open later than planned. A third of those
:01:39. > :01:43.who voted were women, many more than expected. There was some violence,
:01:44. > :01:47.20 people were killed in attacks across the country, but there wasn't
:01:48. > :01:52.the wide-scale disruption some had feared.
:01:53. > :01:56.Our correspondent, David Loyn, sent this report.
:01:57. > :01:59.Voters had been queueing across the country since the early morning,
:02:00. > :02:04.heavy rain that churned up the ground to mud would not keep them
:02:05. > :02:10.away. In a country, which has been at war for more than 30 years, many
:02:11. > :02:13.younger voters know of nothing but conflict and hope, beyond hope, that
:02:14. > :02:18.their votes would make a difference. There has never been a democratic
:02:19. > :02:21.handover in Afghanistan. To protect it, every car in the capital was
:02:22. > :02:25.stopped and every voter checked twice. But fraud is a far higher
:02:26. > :02:31.threat to a fair election than violence. We check by this light the
:02:32. > :02:36.fingers like this. I tried out measures to prevent people from
:02:37. > :02:40.voting twice, ink on one finger and a mark detectible under UV light on
:02:41. > :02:44.the other. This is too important for Afghanistan because we saw a lot of
:02:45. > :02:52.problem in Afghanistan, long time the war is going. That's why we need
:02:53. > :02:56.this. We need good person. Demand in some polling centres meant ballot
:02:57. > :03:01.papers ran low in many places. There were seven million voters, a huge
:03:02. > :03:05.rise on last time. One third of voters were women, encouraged by
:03:06. > :03:12.measures to protect them in this society, including voting
:03:13. > :03:18.separately. In one polling station, the pressure of women to get in to
:03:19. > :03:22.vote was so great they broke down a door. The largest military operation
:03:23. > :03:25.since the fall of the Taliban was effective in preventing the Taliban
:03:26. > :03:34.from disrupting the polls. The police say they foiled 140 potential
:03:35. > :03:37.attacks, protecting an unprecedented event.
:03:38. > :03:40.TRANSLATION: Despite rain, cold weather and possible terrorist
:03:41. > :03:44.attacks, our dear sisters and brothers across the country
:03:45. > :03:48.participated in elections and made our beloved country proud and
:03:49. > :03:53.successful. Is no doubting the enthusiasm of Afghans for this
:03:54. > :03:58.election. There are very high hopes and expectations being put on the
:03:59. > :04:01.shoulders of the man who succeeds President Karzai. The campaign was
:04:02. > :04:06.only the beginning. The real politics begins tonight, as the
:04:07. > :04:10.candidates talk up unofficial results. Tonight, the counting began
:04:11. > :04:15.once the polls closed. It could be weeks before the winner is declared
:04:16. > :04:18.in this first round. There'll be a run-off in May, unless there's a
:04:19. > :04:24.deal between the leading candidates first.
:04:25. > :04:28.Let's put the day's events in some context with our chief international
:04:29. > :04:35.correspondent, Lyse Doucet, also in the Afghan capital. A positive
:04:36. > :04:39.outcome so far, but there remain big challenges ahead. Yes, it was a good
:04:40. > :04:44.day for Afghanistan, for a country which has had more than its share of
:04:45. > :04:48.very bad days. That's because Afghans didn't just see this as an
:04:49. > :04:52.historic election. For many, it was a referendum about the Taliban. They
:04:53. > :04:57.feel great pride that they were able fight back with their ballots. On
:04:58. > :05:03.social media tonight, a finger dipped in the indelible ink is a
:05:04. > :05:06.symbol of defiance. The Taliban haven't gone away. They're certain
:05:07. > :05:09.to strike again. The election isn't over. There's still the counting,
:05:10. > :05:15.with the probability of accusations of rig Iing and recrimination that
:05:16. > :05:19.-- rigging and the recrimination that marred the last election in
:05:20. > :05:23.2009. Whoever wins has the same problems - an economy in crisis,
:05:24. > :05:27.security concerns linked to the withdrawal of all foreign combat
:05:28. > :05:30.troops, including British troops, at the end of this year. Therefore,
:05:31. > :05:34.it's going to be still, for whoever takes over from Hamid Karzai, one of
:05:35. > :05:40.the toughest jobs in the world. Indeed. Thank you very much.
:05:41. > :05:44.David Cameron is facing new calls to sack his Culture Secretary, Maria
:05:45. > :05:48.Miller, over her expenses claims. She apologised to MPs earlier this
:05:49. > :05:52.week and has repaid thousands of pounds. E-mails have been published
:05:53. > :05:55.that Mrs Miller sent to the Parliamentary watchdog investigating
:05:56. > :05:57.her claims. They were released as the Prime Minister prepared to
:05:58. > :06:04.address the Conservative Spring Conference in London.
:06:05. > :06:10.The Prime Minister went shopping first thing, small business like
:06:11. > :06:13.this butchers could benefit from tax changes on the way next week. But
:06:14. > :06:19.the cloud of expenses has returned, and this time, it's his Culture
:06:20. > :06:23.Secretary. Should Maria Miller lose her job? He's accepted Maria
:06:24. > :06:27.Miller's apology. She'll give back ?6,000 that she overclaimed. The
:06:28. > :06:31.Prime Minister wanted to talk about money back of another sort, tax
:06:32. > :06:37.cuts. Let's tell them why we're cutting taxes too. It's not because
:06:38. > :06:43.we are ideologically committed to a smaller state, but it's because we
:06:44. > :06:48.get this simple fact: It's your money. This lot are gearing up for
:06:49. > :06:52.elections, as is he, next month and the big one next May. They're trying
:06:53. > :06:56.to look forward. The problem is an issue of the past has reared its
:06:57. > :07:00.head again. The questions keep coming for Maria Miller. There are
:07:01. > :07:03.renewed accusations, fiercely disputed by the Government that one
:07:04. > :07:08.of her senior advisors had threatened a reporter about future
:07:09. > :07:12.press regulation. And letters the Culture Secretary exchanged with the
:07:13. > :07:15.investigators have been released, suggesting she was reluctant to
:07:16. > :07:18.fully cooperate. In December last year she said it would not be
:07:19. > :07:23.appropriate for the commission to broaden its inquiry. Then she
:07:24. > :07:26.suggested she would go over its head. "I think it is for me to write
:07:27. > :07:31.to the Standards Committee, setting out my concerns." Labour is
:07:32. > :07:36.continuing with the pressure. How dare she abuse and intimidate the
:07:37. > :07:42.Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards that Parliament appointed
:07:43. > :07:45.in this way? She's not just an MP, but the member of the Government and
:07:46. > :07:49.Cabinet responsible for press freedom in this country. But a
:07:50. > :07:56.fellow Cabinet minister says it's time to let it go. Maria Miller has
:07:57. > :07:58.entirely accepted what their recommendations, come to Parliament
:07:59. > :08:02.and done that. The Prime Minister has accepted that. It doesn't seem
:08:03. > :08:06.to me there's much other place for it to to go. Her seat of
:08:07. > :08:10.Basingstoke, there is some concern. I personally think that she should
:08:11. > :08:13.be sacked. She should just leave. If it had been an ordinary person
:08:14. > :08:17.having done something like, that they would have been reprimanded
:08:18. > :08:21.more. She said it was a genuine mistake, I imagine if that's what
:08:22. > :08:25.she said it was, it must be. The Prime Minister has stuck by his
:08:26. > :08:31.Culture Secretary, who is notably only one of a handful of women at
:08:32. > :08:36.the top of the Government. There's been a potential development
:08:37. > :08:40.in the hunt for the missing Malaysian flight MH370. Australian
:08:41. > :08:44.authorities have confirmed that a signal, detected by a Chinese ship,
:08:45. > :08:49.is consistent with an aircraft black box. The frequency of the pulse is
:08:50. > :08:56.the same as that transmitted by flight recorders.
:08:57. > :09:01.Could this Chinese ship finally have provided the breakthrough the search
:09:02. > :09:05.for MH370 has been waiting for? The reports need to be treated with
:09:06. > :09:09.caution and have not been confirmed by officials. But Chinese media says
:09:10. > :09:13.the ship picked up possible signals from the plane's missing black box
:09:14. > :09:18.flight recorder first on Friday, and then again on Saturday. The Indian
:09:19. > :09:23.Ocean search initially began here, before moving to this area further
:09:24. > :09:27.north. The pings were reportedly detected here, in between the two
:09:28. > :09:36.search zones. The signals were apparently at a frequency of 37. 5
:09:37. > :09:39.kilo hertz the same as those emitted by the black box. It's a race
:09:40. > :09:44.against time as the flight recorder's battery lasts around 30
:09:45. > :09:47.days. For signals heard may have nothing to do with the missing
:09:48. > :09:55.plane. There are a number of objects it could be. There are many pieces
:09:56. > :09:58.of kit in the oceans. Some of those transmit at the sort of frequency.
:09:59. > :10:03.Until we know whether it's a clear signal at 37. 5, there's a
:10:04. > :10:06.possibility that it could be other background noise from ships or even
:10:07. > :10:11.from marine animals. Even if the signals are coming from
:10:12. > :10:14.the black box, recovering it will be very challenging. This flight
:10:15. > :10:20.recorder is from the Air France jet that crashed into the Atlantic in
:10:21. > :10:25.2009. But that was in much shallower waters and in nowhere near as remote
:10:26. > :10:30.a location. It still took two years to raise it from the ocean floor.
:10:31. > :10:34.The search by air and by sea has now been going on for almost a month.
:10:35. > :10:42.This could be a significant development, but it could be another
:10:43. > :10:46.false lead. Sinn Fein has announced that Martin
:10:47. > :10:50.McGuinness is to attend events during next week's state visit to
:10:51. > :10:54.Britain by the Irish president, Michael D Higgins. Mr McGuinness is
:10:55. > :10:58.expected to be a guest at a state banquet hosted by the Queen in
:10:59. > :11:02.Windsor Castle. The party president, Gerry Adams, said it must be viewed
:11:03. > :11:07.against the back drop of huge political change in recent years.
:11:08. > :11:11.A convicted member of the Mafia, who avoided extradition from the UK last
:11:12. > :11:15.month, has appeared in court again. Domenico Rancadore, who's 69, was
:11:16. > :11:21.re-arrested in London last night after a fresh arrest warrant was
:11:22. > :11:26.received from Italy. He was remanded in custody until his next hearing.
:11:27. > :11:32.OK time for the sport now with news of the Grand National an the rest of
:11:33. > :11:34.the sport. Let's go to the sports centre.
:11:35. > :11:37.Good evening, yes, the world's greatest steeplechase lived up to
:11:38. > :11:41.its billing as the Grand National provided plenty of excitement, while
:11:42. > :11:46.none of the horses or jockeys were seriously injured. The winner was
:11:47. > :11:52.the 25-1 outsider, Pineau De Re, named after a wine and trained by a
:11:53. > :11:58.retired GP. Andy Swiss was watching at Aintree.
:11:59. > :12:04.Even on the greyest Grand National day, Aintree was a feast of colour,
:12:05. > :12:08.as 70,000 flocked for a race, which proved as unpredictable as ever.
:12:09. > :12:11.First a false start, before they eventually got under way.
:12:12. > :12:18.More than half the field, though, didn't finish, including joint
:12:19. > :12:23.favourite Teaforthree. There were some crashing falls. For the second
:12:24. > :12:28.year run, thankfully no injuries. Across the Bay led for much of the
:12:29. > :12:32.race. The parge was clear for -- path was clear for Pineau De Re,
:12:33. > :12:39.pursued by Balthazar King and Double Seven, ridden by Tony McCoy, but all
:12:40. > :12:43.to no avail. Victory for jockey Leighton Aspell, who briefly retired
:12:44. > :12:47.from racing a few years ago and for the trainer, Dr Richard Newland,
:12:48. > :12:52.until recently, also a GP. Pineau De Re was his first ever runner at the
:12:53. > :12:56.National, just what the doctor ordered. He jumped the last well and
:12:57. > :13:02.got away from the last well. You don't know what's behind you. I
:13:03. > :13:09.caught the commentary, saying I was six lengths clear, which is a lovely
:13:10. > :13:14.cushion. A jockey on a comeback and a partime trainer, another victory
:13:15. > :13:18.for National folklore. And so, despite the soggy conditions,
:13:19. > :13:25.another dramatic Grand National and one that's earned Pineau De Re a
:13:26. > :13:28.place in racing history. All the goals from today's seven
:13:29. > :13:31.Premier League games will be on Match of the Day after the news. If
:13:32. > :13:35.you want to hear the results now, here they come: With leaders
:13:36. > :13:41.Liverpool playing tomorrow, Chelsea are now top after beating Stoke 3-0.
:13:42. > :13:46.Frank Lampard, one of the scorers with his 250th career goal. But
:13:47. > :13:49.Manchester City are still favourites to be crowned champions. They beat
:13:50. > :13:53.Southampton 4-1 today and will win the league if they win their
:13:54. > :13:57.remaining games. Elsewhere, victory for Fulham, who moved off the bottom
:13:58. > :14:01.of the table, Crystal Palace, Hull City, Manchester United and West
:14:02. > :14:04.Brom and Leicester City were promoted to the Premier League
:14:05. > :14:07.today. Hearts have been relegated from the
:14:08. > :14:13.Scottish Premiership despite their biggest win of the season today.
:14:14. > :14:18.They beat Partick Thistle 4-2. Elsewhere wins for St Johnstone, St
:14:19. > :14:23.Mirren and Celtic, who beat Dundee United 2-0. Anthony Stokes with
:14:24. > :14:27.their second goal. United's defeat puts their dent in their chances of
:14:28. > :14:32.a European place. England and Wales women continue
:14:33. > :14:36.their perfect World Cup qualifying, England and Wales Scotland rather.
:14:37. > :14:40.England thrashed Montenegro 9-0. Toni Duggan scoring a hat-trick.
:14:41. > :14:44.Scotland beat Poland, 2-0. Northern Ireland were beaten 4-0 by Sweden.
:14:45. > :14:49.Great Britain's Davis Cup tennis team are just one win away from
:14:50. > :14:53.reaching their first semifinal for 33 years. Andy Murray won his
:14:54. > :14:58.opening singles rubber in Naples this morning to level the tie
:14:59. > :15:02.against Italy 1-16789 then went on -- 1-1. Then went on to partner
:15:03. > :15:07.Colin Fleming to victory in the doubles. Murray will play Fabio
:15:08. > :15:10.Fognini in his singles match tomorrow.
:15:11. > :15:14.It's the quarter final weekend of the Heineken Cup. Saracens are now
:15:15. > :15:19.the only British side left in it, after Leicest were knocked out. The
:15:20. > :15:24.Premiership leaders came from behind to beat Ulster 17-15. England wing
:15:25. > :15:29.Chris Ashton scoring their second try. They'll play the French side
:15:30. > :15:36.Clermont Auvergne in the semifinals. Lewis Hamilton starts the Bahrain
:15:37. > :15:41.Grand Prix second on the grid behind his team-mate, Nico Rosberg on pole.
:15:42. > :15:44.That's the pole. The main news tonight: Millions of people have
:15:45. > :15:47.gone to the polls in Afghanistan in the country's most important
:15:48. > :15:53.election for many years. Can you hear the latest on that and all of
:15:54. > :15:57.today's stories on the BBC News channels. That's all from me and the
:15:58. > :16:06.team. Very good night to you. Bye-bye.
:16:07. > :16:12.Good evening. A strengthening south-west wind may continue to
:16:13. > :16:15.bring in a lot of mild air our way. An additional feature is
:16:16. > :16:19.extensionive cloud and some rain, at times, for many. Both of those maybe
:16:20. > :16:23.not quite as welcome for those of you with a Sunday off. It's not
:16:24. > :16:27.completely wet. There will be some drier weather around, as there is
:16:28. > :16:28.tonight across eastern areas. Heavy