:00:20. > :00:25.British soldiers who fought in Iraq may be prosecuted for war crimes,
:00:26. > :00:27.that's according to the head of a team investigating
:00:28. > :00:31.More than 1,000 claims of ill treatment have been made.
:00:32. > :00:34.Mark Warwick said discussions were needed to see if any met
:00:35. > :00:40.the "war crimes threshold", as Chris Mason reports.
:00:41. > :00:44.It's almost 13 years since the Iraq war started and still,
:00:45. > :00:49.Mark Warwick, the head of the Iraq Historic
:00:50. > :01:13.Allegations team, has told the Independent...
:01:14. > :01:16.So, what do we know about this investigation team?
:01:17. > :01:22.It's examining over 1000 cases and it's not due to finish its work
:01:23. > :01:30.The British Army has an incredibly effective disciplinary
:01:31. > :01:33.system chain of command, which makes sure this kind of thing
:01:34. > :01:38.Occasionally it will happen, but our system prevents it
:01:39. > :01:40.from happening and that's why I say that thousands
:01:41. > :01:45.of cases just couldn't happen, it's fiction.
:01:46. > :01:49.Some inside government are frustrated claims
:01:50. > :01:51.against soldiers get in the way of them
:01:52. > :01:56.The Defence Secretary has criticised what he's called "ambulance chasing
:01:57. > :02:04.The Ministry of Defence said it took allegations of abuse or unlawful
:02:05. > :02:11.Saudi Arabia says it has executed 47 people for terrorism offences,
:02:12. > :02:16.including a Shia cleric who led protests against the Government
:02:17. > :02:23.Nimr al-Nimr was arrested in 2012 after criticising the monarchy
:02:24. > :02:27.The execution has been criticised by Shia clerics in Iran,
:02:28. > :02:34.With me now is Alan Johnston, the BBC World Service Middle East
:02:35. > :02:42.Why is this being seen as so significant?
:02:43. > :02:50.News of these nearly 50 simultaneous executions come today in a sombre
:02:51. > :02:54.announcement on Saudi television. But the long list of names included
:02:55. > :03:00.that of Nimr al-Nimr, the name that leapt out at you. Saudi Arabia is
:03:01. > :03:09.very much a country dominated by Sunni Muslims. But Nimr al-Nimr came
:03:10. > :03:13.from the Shia minority. He campaigned for better rights for
:03:14. > :03:19.that minority community, which felt itself to be marginalised. He was
:03:20. > :03:24.arrested and sentenced to death, although he always argued he never
:03:25. > :03:29.advocated violence. His execution has fed into serious, wider,
:03:30. > :03:36.regional tensions between Saudi and its rival, Shia dominated Iran. The
:03:37. > :03:49.Iranians follow the affairs closely of Shia minorities in the Arab
:03:50. > :03:53.world. The Arabs warned Nimr al-Nimr shouldn't be executed. Now that he
:03:54. > :03:55.has, it looks like they will have to pay some price. What that is, is
:03:56. > :03:59.unclear. Thank you. President Obama says he's willing
:04:00. > :04:01.to take unilateral action to tackle the problem of gun
:04:02. > :04:03.violence in America. The President has been repeatedly
:04:04. > :04:05.rebuffed when he's demanded But Mr Obama said he would use his
:04:06. > :04:20.executive powers which don't require Sandy Hook primary School, December
:04:21. > :04:25.20 12. 27 people killed in the shooting, 20 of them children. But
:04:26. > :04:31.it was this shooting in Oregon in October that prompted President
:04:32. > :04:35.Obama to consider taking unilateral action to tackle gun violence in The
:04:36. > :04:40.States. He is meeting the US Attorney General on Monday to
:04:41. > :04:43.discuss measures that don't need approval by Congress. It could mean
:04:44. > :04:50.executive powers on background checks could be carried out on
:04:51. > :04:53.potential buyers. He told Americans he had received too many letters
:04:54. > :04:58.from parents and teachers to sit around doing nothing. Each time we
:04:59. > :05:01.are told common-sense reforms like background checks might not have
:05:02. > :05:06.stopped the last massacre or the one before that, so we should not do
:05:07. > :05:11.anything. We know we cannot stop every act of violence, but what if
:05:12. > :05:16.we try to stop even one. What if Congress did something to stop our
:05:17. > :05:20.kids from gun violence. The President's kids more important than
:05:21. > :05:28.yours? This hasn't gone down well with some in the probe gun lobby. In
:05:29. > :05:33.Texas, a law allows some gun owners to where their guns on their hips in
:05:34. > :05:37.a holster. It is in that lone Star state police chief try to won the
:05:38. > :05:42.president are trying to disarm Americans might cause a revolution.
:05:43. > :05:48.But President Obama is determined not to stand yet again at a podium,
:05:49. > :05:52.trying to make sense of yet another shooting.
:05:53. > :05:54.Rail fares in England, Wales, and Scotland increase by an average
:05:55. > :05:57.It is the smallest rise in six years.
:05:58. > :06:02.Our correspondent, Phillip Norton, is at Paddington Station now.
:06:03. > :06:08.I suspect many travellers will be cheered by the news it is the
:06:09. > :06:14.smallest rise in six years? That is right. At Paddington Station, the
:06:15. > :06:17.festivities are over. Many people going home but also people coming
:06:18. > :06:22.here for the start of the working week. It is the first time they are
:06:23. > :06:27.paying these increased fares and it is the lowest increase since 2010.
:06:28. > :06:32.Campaigners say people will be amazed these prices have risen at
:06:33. > :06:39.all, due to the standard of service in some areas. The average rise for
:06:40. > :06:42.regulated fares, limited to no more than 1% on season tickets because
:06:43. > :06:48.they are linked to the rate of inflation. But some off-peak leisure
:06:49. > :06:51.ticket can increase by more. One season-ticket pass has risen to more
:06:52. > :06:58.than ?10,000. The price from Birmingham to London, ?10,012.
:06:59. > :07:00.Campaigners say it is too much. Thank you very much.
:07:01. > :07:03.You can see more on all of today's stories on the BBC News Channel.
:07:04. > :07:22.The next news on BBC One is at 5.40pm.
:07:23. > :07:23.Good afternoon. If you are looking for sunshine, look away now because