18/02/2017 Reporters

Now on BBC News, it's time for Reporters.

I'm David Eades, and from here in the world's newsroom,

we send our correspondents to bring you the very best stories

In this week's programme: Sliding back towards anarchy -

Fergal Keane reports from the Central African

Republic where only the UN are keeping the peace.

Standing now on the bridge at Bambari, between the Christian

and Muslim districts, it's clear to me that

without a United Nations presence, there would be slaughter here.

21st-century fratricide - Rupert Wingfield Hayes investigates

the killing of the half-brother of the North Korean leader,

The Cold War at its very coldest - Jonathan Beale reports from Nato's

most northerly border, Norway's Arctic Circle,

as the alliance steps up its defences against Russia.

It is a pretty inhospitable place, but every day, all year

round, the Norwegian army is patrolling this border.

Also, tensions in the Straits of Taiwan as China flexes its muscle

against what it sees as its breakaway state.

Carrie Gracie reports on Beijing's attempts to stop

To let Taiwan float off towards independence -

well, that, to Beijing, would be unthinkable.

Amol Rajan reports from Germany, the first country to use the law

With elections coming up, there's a growing determination

And capturing the secrets of the galaxy - Pallaba Ghosh

reports on a project to link 12 telescopes around the world to take

The United Nations says it's willing to use further

force against militias in the Central African Republic

to prevent country from sliding into anarchy.

Thousands of UN peacekeepers have been deployed there

Rival Christian and Muslim militias began fighting in CAR more

Thousands of civilians have sought shelter at the fragile UN red line

Well, Fergal Keane has been there, and found only the UN keeping

Out in the countryside, the UN has already fired

the first shots to ward off an assault on Bambari.

But the town itself is divided between rival militias.

Muslims live in the centre of town, the Christians on the other bank.

Civilians protected by soldiers of the United Nations.

Every burned building here speaks of lives erased when the country

descended into sectarian massacre in 2013.

Civilians slaughtered, hundreds of thousands

Now, amid fears of renewed violence, there's no hope of going home.

TRANSLATION: Leave here? I don't think so, this man tells us.

Here, we're protected by the United Nations.

Civilians are facing renewed terror from warlords.

These are Christians, but it's not as simple as just

Numerous warlords fight for power and wealth.

Veronique's husband was murdered, leaving her to care

Madeleine lost her husband and three of her five children.

TRANSLATION: They were killing people.

They were going from killing to killing.

Some people even lost their children as they were running.

One name kept cropping up here, a Muslim warlord they blame

TRANSLATION: His name creates fear and terror.

When he sent his men to Bakara, all the people ran away.

He and his bodyguards live directly opposite the UN HQ.

You portray yourself as a protector of the people,

but there is another view of you, and that is that you

Everything that happens is reported by people.

If I was a ruthless killer, people could not live peacefully near me.

The UN escorted us back across town to meet Ali Darassa's enemy.

The leader of a Christian militia also accused of atrocities.

Meet General Gaetan, and his deputy, who calls himself General Tarzan.

The fighters hid their guns while we were there,

but General Gaetan was blunt about his own role.

TRANSLATION: Yes, I have thousands of men ready

The self-styled protectors thrive because the government is weak.

There are too few peacekeepers, and troops are of mixed quality.

It's a familiar story of peacekeeping in the modern age.

But tensions around Bambari are now so dangerous,

the UN mission's top officials are flying in.

Diane Corner is a veteran British diplomat now trying to ensure this

country doesn't slide into chaos again.

And then Gaetan, who waits in a room next door for his enemy to leave.

In this prefabricated office, the international community

Diane Corner tells them the UN is willing to fight.

I'm giving very clear message is that we are going to do

I'm giving very clear messages that we are going to do

everything to prevent a battle in Bambari, that we are

reinforcing our positions, that the UN is impartial.

We're not taking sides with either one group or the other.

And that we expect them to respect the civilian population.

In the protected zone, the old life of the lost villages

A father studies, planning for a future beyond all of this.

But the calm depends on the UN continuing to enforce its red

Over the years, I've seen the failings of human missions,

Over the years, I've seen the failings of UN missions,

And yet, standing now on the bridge at Bambari,

between the Christian and Muslim districts, it's clear to me that

without a United Nations presence, there would be slaughter here.

Now, in the 21st-century, fratricide is normally confined

to the history books, but this week's News

to the history books, but this week's news

of the killing of Kim Jong-nam, the half-brother of North Korea's

leader, is writing a new chapter in the strange history

He was apparently poisoned at Kuala Lumpur airport in Malaysia,

waiting for a flight, and there is widespread

speculation that North Korean agents were responsible.

Now, Kim Jong-nam had been critical of his half-brother's regime,

and he had left North Korea after being passed over

Rupert Wingfield Hayes, who was detained in North Korea

just last year, has been investigating his death.

This is Kim Jong-nam, whose body is thought to be the one

Officials there said he died after being sprayed in the face

with something at Kuala Lumpur Airport.

South Korean media immediately claimed North Korean agents had

assassinated Kim on the orders of his own younger

North Korea's young dictator has been tightening his grip

on power, ruthlessly purging potential opponents.

Last year, I saw for myself how strange North Korea can be.

I was detained and expelled for insulting the Kim leadership.

Much more telling is what he did to his own uncle,

Jang Sung-taek was hauled away from a party meeting,

Has he now also eliminated his brother?

Kim Jong-nam was once his father's favourite, being groomed

to one day take over as North Korea's supreme leader.

But his downfall began here in Tokyo, when he was caught sneaking

These pictures of his humiliating deportation from Japan are said

to have deeply angered his father, North Korea's late

His place at his father's side was taken instead

by his younger brother, Kim Jong-un.

Kim Jong-nam then went into exile in Macau.

In interviews, he repeatedly said he had no interest in power.

Kim Jong-nam, although he had been quiet and lying low for a while -

not low enough, it seems - had gone off-message badly before

he had said some stuff about not believing in hereditary succession.

And maybe, in this kind of a system - think medieval Europe -

any other possible claimant to the kingship could

In the 21st-century, fratricide is normally

Yet again, North Korea is showing it is not a normal country.

Rupert Wingfield Hayes, BBC News, in Tokyo.

Right, we're going to take you now to the most northerly

border in Nato's defences, to Norway in the Arctic Circle.

Russia is building up its forces in the region.

That's causing concern for the US, which has

Hundreds of American Marines had been deployed there

Washington's also sending thousands of troops to Poland and the Baltics

Jonathan Beale reports from the Arctic on a new Cold War tension.

Winter in the Arctic Circle, and the days are at

The Norwegian border guard have to go out in all kinds of weather,

keeping an eye on their neighbour, Russia.

This is the Nato alliance's most northerly border, and at times,

But every day, all year round, the Norwegian army

I don't think we can say that there is a lot

They have had a high activity here in the North all along.

So they are training well and preparing themselves,

Russia's flexing its military muscle in the high North,

staking its claim on a region that's thought to have more oil

But the new US Defence Secretary has called Russia's moves

It's not reached the levels of the old Cold War,

Further south, US Marines are now being trained by the British,

learning how to survive and fight in the Arctic.

For many, it's their first time on skis.

What I'm going to go through now is another method of moving,

But this training is serious and has now become a regular rotation,

a persistent presence of US forces in Norway, a key Nato ally.

It's always important to have a military presence

and a cooperative agreement with our Nato allies.

And then, when Russia says this is unhelpful,

this is causing tension, what do you say?

I say that we continue to support the Nato strategic alliance,

and we allow the politicians to work through what they have

Tensions and competition between East and West are nothing

new for the people of Norway, but like the rest of Europe,

they're getting mixed messages from the new US administration -

the Defence Secretary, James Mattis, who is talking tough on Russia,

but a president who appears to want closer ties.

I'm more afraid of Donald Trump than Putin.

REPORTER: When you look at Vladimir Putin and Donald

Trump, which of those two worries you more?

How could you possibly pick just one?

I'm actually more worried about Trump than Putin,

because Putin is like a control maniac, but Trump is

For Norway's border guards, it's still business as usual,

but these are also increasingly uncertain times, when no one knows

Jonathan Beale, BBC News, in the Arctic Circle.

Now, from new tensions between America and Russia to US

"One China, one government" is now President Trump's official position.

He had previously threatened to re-examine that policy but then

agreed to honour it in a phone call to his Chinese counterpart,

One China relates to the status of the island of Taiwan,

which does have its own government but which Beijing sees

Carrie Gracie has been to the Taiwanese capital, Taipei,

to see whether people still have an appetite

People in Taiwan have more freedom of expression than people in China.

After 70 years of governing itself, this noisy democracy

In this animation studio, they are not just mocking

their own president, but Mr Xi and Mr Trump as well.

I mean, we have 1,800 missiles pointed our way,

but at the same time, you know, in Taiwan,

we have absolute freedom to do anything we want,

so you know, I think satire is definitely one of the good things

that we need to push, because it helps Taiwan

It's threatened to retake Taiwan by force.

And it sailed its aircraft carrier past the island last month to show

For Beijing, this, the island of Taiwan,

It's the piece they say will finally reunite a nation broken up

and humiliated by colonial powers two centuries ago.

To let Taiwan float off towards independence, or even worse,

to let it become part of an American-led alliance

against China in these waters, well that, to Beijing,

The Taiwanese navy is no match for China's.

It's the American fleet which protects Taiwan.

Back in December, it looked as if Donald Trump would go further.

He took a call from the Taiwanese president and hinted

Now, President Trump has backed down.

In his phone call with President Xi Jin Ping,

he returned to the so-called One-China policy that Beijing

insists on, and many Taiwanese reluctantly accept the status quo.

TRANSLATION: Ideally, I'd choose independence,

but in the real world, independence is impossible.

Messages of peace for the year ahead that Taipei's Lantern Festival,

but their future is fragile, caught between an unpredictable

Their hopes and fears are low priority to both.

Now, how much of what we read online do we really believe?

Well, the rise of so-called fake news has made us question social

media more than ever, and Germany could be the first

country in the European Union to use the law to try to stop the rise

There's a growing demand for legislation to fine Facebook

if it refuses to take down a false story.

And Facebook, in turn, has appointed its own

Well, our media editor, Amol Rajan, has been to Germany,

and reports on the fight against so-called fake news.

Saint Reinold's Church in the German city of Dortmund has been standing

After raucous celebrations in the square outside

the church on New Year's Eve, the American website Breitbart

suggested it had been attacked by a 1,000-strong mob.

The website claimed Islamists chanted Allahu Akbar -

God is great - and waving Al-Qaeda flags.

And the vicar mentioned in the Breitbart article,

which is still online, fears the consequences.

I was astonished because it was a lie.

The Reinoldi church was not burn down.

There was no Allahu Akbar cryings, and no flags from Islamic State.

This woman works with refugees in a community centre

She believes fake news makes her job harder.

I think it is not easy to work for refugees at the moment,

because we have elections in Germany, they try to find

everything about bad news, in order to use this

for their opinion, and in order to change the political

Saint Reinoldi in Dortmund has become a powerful symbol

of the international reach of fake news.

The false story about this church has helped to harden

And with elections coming up, there's a growing determination

Here in Berlin, one party in the ruling coalition wants

We want to force Facebook to build a permanent contact agency

where the law enforcement can reach them 24 hours, for the whole week.

Second point is, we will define periods, and in that

period they have to react against fake news.

And the third thing is that they have to pay a high fine

if they do not react against fake news.

These are independent fact checkers now used by Facebook,

Refugees get the driving licence for zero, for no money.

If they discover fake news, they mark them as false and send

a signal to German-speaking users of the social media platform.

A lot of this fake news is only focused to bring

hate to our communities, and when this hate comes

to an election point, and people made up their mind

on election day on the basis of hate and lies, then it's a big

Anas Mohd Amani knows what that feels like.

He fled Syria and came to Germany in 2015 as a refugee.

When the German Chancellor visited the hostel he was

Together with the claim that he was a terrorist.

TRANSLATION: It made me feel very bad.

I've found work, I go to school here.

Then I found out people were seeing me as a terrorist.

Many Germans fear that false stories online could stoke the rise

Fake news seems unlikely to disappear any time soon,

and what's happening here could help determine the future

Now, how do you capture an image of a black hole?

They can be as tiny as an atom or heavier than 1 million suns.

And they are normally millions of light years away, anyway.

They are also invisible, a place in space where gravity pulls

so much that even light can't get out.

Well, despite all that, researchers in the US have managed

to link 12 of the world's radio telescopes to try to take

pictures of the black hole at the centre of our galaxy.

Pallab Ghosh has been to see what they've found.

This is our galaxy, the Milky Way, a swirl of stars and planets,

At its centre, it has a heart of darkness,

It's an object with immense gravity that pulls in everything around it.

It's so strong that it even sucks in light.

In a few weeks' time, researchers here will try

So, there's a tonne of excitement around getting this picture.

We are all really looking forward to getting the data in April

and making that first picture, and not only because it's just

going to be super cool to take the first picture of a black hole

and see what it looks like, the immediate environment

around a black hole, for the first time, but also,

we can use it to verify that these theories of general

So, how are scientists down here on Earth going to see the black

No single telescope is powerful enough, so 12 of them,

all around the world, will be linked together,

and the images they collect will be fed into a computer in Boston.

Now, our galaxy is a vast spiral, with the Earth

And the black hole is right at the centre,

It's four and a half million times the mass of our sun.

No one has ever seen it, but scientists think it looks

And very soon, they'll find out if they're right.

It's a mind-boggling amount of data, stored on dozens of hard drives,

flown in from telescopes all across the world.

It will take the team here months to go through all the information.

It's a massive quantity of data, and we have to record onto many

So, this is a module that contains very large hard drives,

and this module holds about as much data as 100 laptops,

and we have to record on multiple of these modules just

And we have numerous telescopes in the array that

are all recording simultaneously, so in total we collect enough data

The project is the brainchild of Professor Shep Doleman.

He's waited 20 years for this moment.

Black holes have been mysteries forever.

It's been almost the Holy Grail for astronomers to be able to image

and probe the area right around the point of no return,

What we're going to learn is how black holes feed and swallow some

The scientists here may have their first image by Christmas.

And it'll help them discover how galaxies are created,

and what the centre of our own Milky Way is really like.

And, on that dark matter, that's it from Reporters for this week.

Hello there. Well, for some of us today it felt almost spring-like out