07/08/2011 Reporters

Reporters. Andrew Harding reports from the front line of salmon in

Mogadishu were hundreds of thousands go hungry as the fighting

continues. Lyse Doucet close to Afghanistan with America's top

military man. Stephen Evans joins opera-lovers in Bavaria to here a

90-minute version of Wagner's Ring cycle. Welcome to Reporters. The US

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has urged Al-Shebab Islamic

militants to stop blocking aid to famine hit areas of Somalia. The UN

has described the situation as the most civvy humanitarian crisis in

the world today. The area's most stricken by drought are held by the

militants trying to overthrow Somalia's government. Andrew

Harding has reported frequently from Somalia over the years. He was

one of the few television reporters to venture into Mogadishu

independently and his report on the salmon contains distressing images.

Visiting Mogadishu? At his best to be prepared. We're heading into a

city that has forgotten the meaning of safety. It is our gunmen against

the rest. Neither front lines we file the latest fugitives. Of the

famine. Tens of thousands of come seeking food and taking for

security. They are in bad shape. The familiar images are as shocking

as ever. Twins, both fighting for life. All the mothers have fled

from territory controlled by the Islamist group Al-Shebab. This

woman says the militants killed her son. They tied him up, then shot

him, she says, because he was carrying a bag of food aid which

they said came from the infidels. The world is getting more supplies

into Mogadishu now. Soup kitchens in every district. It is not here

that Somalia's famine must be defeated. This is an almost

impossibly difficult, dangerous place for foreigners to operate.

You see how much security we need just to move around the centre of

Mogadishu. The battle is to find how to move across the front lines

and get the aid it to where it is needed most. Here is one way. UN

Food blocked by Al-Shebab is handed over to trusted local charities

that do have access throughout Somalia. We can deliver food to

anywhere in the country. There is could be the solution to end the

salmon. Yes, in a way. One of these solutions. He needs are

overwhelming. But the politics are Messi. Somalia is not an easy place

to help. BBC News, Mogadishu. America's top military officer

Admiral Mike Mullen completed a farewell visit to troops on

America's battlefields in Afghanistan and Iraq. The outgoing

Chief of Staff tells soldiers in Afghanistan that America is winning

the war but it is time to hand over the fighting to the Afghans. Our

correspondent Lyse Doucet knows the challenge is better than most. She

has been reporting from Afghanistan for 20 years and was given rare

access to the at role from this report. Admiral Mike Mullen knows

the drill. He has been here many times. But every detail is

organised in his world, even where he stands when he takes questions.

I tried to go during the summer because it is prettily hot.

engine's are already revving. It is a tense time, a worrying time for

Afghans and their supporters. What are you thoughts? Baguette that it

is tense and worrying but this has been intense engagement and a

worrying campaign for years. It is going to be a long flight. We are

flying cargo. There are not many direct flights between Washington

and Kandahar that it this is how you have to do it, with US military.

There are not many luxuries although they do have these flatbed

seats so you can sleep on the way. We touch ground in Kandahar and at

immediately on the road. First stop the 64-year-old and rubble likes to

share his experience with the troops will start you see that a

way to make a difference in someone's live. And more

importantly to hear from them. He is said to love this: Meeting the

soldiers and taking their questions. Morale is high among these troops

but some are still not clear why they are here. What is the official

answer for why we are still here? The Afghans say: You have that Bin

Laden, you where you find him. There is a lot more to it than Bin

Laden. If we left the Taliban would choose to kill as many Americans as

a quid. Back to the tarmac. Admiral Mullen has some help to chew up the

troops. Everyone wants their picture taken with a basketball

giant and the magician and comedian John Stewart. None of the stars

have been to Afghanistan before. As the next stop is Helmand province.

All this is a novelty for them but it is their way of showing

appreciation for what the troops to every day. A main reason we came

was to let them know that we are thinking about them. It is a long

war, a tough for and they have borne the burden of this

overwhelmingly. Just let them know people are thinking about them.

What we tell the world backing your TV studio? This is for me. This is

between myself and then. Taliban are still able to carry out

major attacks and assassinations. The US sent in terms of thousands

of extra troops last year to try to turn the tide but this war has gone

on for a decade now. This is also about putting the Afghan security

forces in charge of their own destiny. Over the next few months

some of the US soldiers could be going home as part of President

Obama's exec plan. By 2014 the accounts are meant to be fully in

charge. The question is: Will they be ready? These at and say that

they will be. We are soldiers, they proudly seen, we defend our the

country like lions. There is concern they will not be enough

well-trained troops and police to take on a determined enemy like the

Taliban. This Colonel hence the troops. He says: We are Afghan two.

We can defend our country from any threat. The US and other NATO

armies also had dreams that they would now be living in peace. There

is not much time left. Soon these American soldiers will be going

home, hoping they did some good in Afghanistan. Not only for America,

mostly for the civilians of Afghanistan. To better the place.

So you think this is a war worth fighting? Yes ma'am, I do think it

is. Admiral Mullen knows this is likely to be the last time he is he

with his troops. He knows he leaves behind a country beset by major

problems, bad government, corruption. He feels he fought the

good fight, even if he knows he is not over. Lyse Doucet, BBC News,

The country's Ullman passed a new law to restrict internet use, there

have been a variety of solutions proposed. -- parliament. If you're

going head-to-head with the most exciting online games, you would

want more than an microphone, especially if your audience were

some of the most sophisticated game has. He is not shooting monsters or

scoring points. He is making a scarf with his father. This is a

new weapon in the battle against internet addiction. And a tent at

prevention rather than a cure. -- an attempt. This is the family life

that parents understand. Walks in the countryside. They did not grow

up with computers in the way that their children has. South Korea's

obsession with the internet is very recent. Many parents say they have

no clue how to deal with it. The children are not clinical addicts.

I am being angry when I am on the internet. I do not know why. I am

trying to fix it but it is very hard. This is a different case. He

gets angry as well, aggressive, he plays games all night. He is having

dozens of electrodes attached to his skull to watch his brainwaves.

Part of a government scheme to treat addiction. The brains of

internet addicts look the same to other addicts. They are given anti-

depressants as well as therapy. There are two types of internet

addicts. The shy ones, the others who like the power and the violence.

This patient is probably the latter. How much the games themselves are

to gain his hotly-contested. new law stopping those under 16

playing games past midnight is due to come into effect later this year.

Game makers say people will switch to gains made overseas. They are

not covered by the law. That could mean more patient spending their

summer holidays in things like this one. Contaminated milk and

exploding melons, safety food scandals have hit China recently.

In a country with more than 1 billion mouths to feed, there is

growing concern about what is safe to eat. It has affected the

people's trust in the authorities. We travelled to farmland outside

the capital to investigate. It is back to the soil for some of

China's city slickers. During the week they are teachers, PR

consultants, computer programmers, at the weekend they get their hands

dirty. When we do not grow things by ourselves, we worry about the

safety. People are increasingly worried about what they feed their

children. At this farm, children are free to pick and choose. The

last food scandal is fresh in parents' minds. He was a victim.

His parents fed him a baby formula they thought was safe. It turns out

to contain the chemical melamine. Six children died in the scandal

and 250,000 fell ill. He continues to worry about his son's health. He

was just us. -- justice. government needs to bear

responsibility. The court case keeps getting delayed. The latest

scandal to hit China was the case of the exploding melons. He was one

of thousands of farmers affected by the problem. It was caused by the

over use of a group accelerant. -- growth. He says 25% of his crop

exploded. When I was walking in the field I could hear them explode.

With over 1 billion mouths to feed in China there is a fundamental

issue at stake. It is one of trust. When people start worrying whether

their food is safe or not, implicitly it starts raising

questions about the authorities' ability to protect them. Back home

the city slickers cook a meal with the produce of the farm. They are

the lucky few with the time and the money to ensure their food is safe.

For many others, there is little choice in what they eat. What do

you do with gardens already immortalised in pains by one of the

Impressionist greats?: they lived in Paris for nearly 40 years. --

Monet. The gardens attract millions of visitors every year. There is a

new head gardener who is British. We see what his impressions were of

the new jobs. It is not a French garden. It is

not an English garden. It is of course, a painter's garden. The

artist spent 50 trivia is in his home immortalising the gardens he

created. -- 50 years. The head gardener has to bring the

Impressionist masterpieces back to life. Everyone knows the pictures.

They want to see what they saw in the pictures. There is something

romantic about this garden. Anyone with a bit of sensitivity and

poetry in them can find beauty in this garden. The artist did not

like organised gardens. He let flowers grow freely. Before long he

diverted a river to create is on which he painted repeatedly. He was

obsessed with this image, he sent gardeners out to collect the hour

he. -- algae. The scooping continues to this day. He dedicated

himself less to the flowers but more to the light and reflection of

the ponce. It receives 500,000 visitors every year he tried to do

the same. Never before had a painter shake his landscape like

the artist had done. Looking at his paintings... You must put down the

drought and try and see it with a brush. -- towel. Wagner's ring

cycle is 15 hours long. He was adamant only the full version

should be performed. It has been shortened to 90 minutes to get

children interested. We go to see the condensed version. This is a

shrine. In 1872 Richard Wagoner built his own Opera House. In it he

played his great operas, exactly the way he wanted them played. This

is not the ring as he wrote it. Normally 17 hours over four nights,

the opera has been turned into a fraction by this lady. An accordion

has replaced some of the instruments. The plot has been

shortened. Do you feel that Richard Wagner is sitting on your shoulder?

Yes, he is there and very strict. As he sits on your shoulder, does

he approve? He might approve. We try and be very respectful. Richard

Wagner took these things very seriously indeed. He wanted the

four operas played in succession, all together. The question now is,

is he turning in his grave at the very thought of his work being

compressed into 90 short minutes? Who better to ask than his great-

granddaughter? Now in charge of this festival. Would the great man

be turning in his grave? I do not think so. Why not? He was always

very innovative. If he had known that his audience was children...

He cared very much about his music. Even adapted, the music remains

absolutely gorgeous. That's all from Reporters for this

That's all from Reporters for this week. Goodbye for now. One week ago

we were suffering with uncomfortably warm night, at the

moment it is much fresher. Today it is going to be a cool day.

Temperatures disappointing for August. It is feeling fresher

because of the strength of the wind. Parts of north-east England and the

Midlands will have some sunshine. It will be fresh early on but it

will be blue skies for East Anglia and the south-east. Heavy downpours

from overnight are lingering. Sunny spells for much of the south of

England. Showers are not far away from the south-west. Much of the

south-east of Wales and the West Midlands start off with some

sunshine. It is cloudy at a North Wales. There is a brisk breeze and

that means the showers will be moving through. It will feel

particularly miserable on the Moray coastline. Temperatures struggling

through the day. Some sunny spells in south-west Scotland. The

sunshine disappears across the southern areas. Some places will

stay dry. Nowhere is going to be particularly warm. Temperatures

that their very best will be 20 Celsius. The rain does Peter out

later in the afternoon. Most of us look like having a dry night. It

will be a chilly night. A fresh start to Tuesday, Tuesday does look

like being a dry day. High pressure is cheating there is fine and