05/05/2014

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:00:09. > :00:12.The BBC understands there is insufficient evidence to charge Sinn

:00:13. > :00:15.Fein president Gerry Adams with any offence. It comes as Gerry Adams is

:00:16. > :00:19.warned of a credible death threat after being questioned over the

:00:20. > :00:21.murder of Jean McConville. A terror group admits kidnapping

:00:22. > :00:27.hundreds of schoolgirls in Nigeria, now they're threatening to sell

:00:28. > :00:30.them. Police hunt a dangerous convicted

:00:31. > :00:35.robber on the run from an open prison despite being given 13 life

:00:36. > :00:38.sentences. The Oscar Pistorius trial hears how

:00:39. > :00:43.he cried and prayed over his girlfriend's body after he shot her.

:00:44. > :00:45.And tributes to the former British number-one tennis player Elena

:00:46. > :01:09.Baltacha, who's died from cancer at the

:01:10. > :01:14.Hello, good evening to you. After his release from police custody, the

:01:15. > :01:17.BBC understands that there is insufficient evidence to charge

:01:18. > :01:20.Gerry Adams with any offence unless significant new evidence comes to

:01:21. > :01:22.light. The Sinn Fein president was questioned for four days in

:01:23. > :01:26.connection with the murder of Jean McConville and membership of the

:01:27. > :01:29.IRA. He continues to strongly deny all those allegations. This

:01:30. > :01:32.afternoon, it emerged that Mr Adams has been the subject of death

:01:33. > :01:37.threats since being released from questioning. A file will be sent to

:01:38. > :01:39.the Public Prosecution Service in Northern Ireland later this week.

:01:40. > :01:44.Our Ireland correspondent Chris Bucker reports.

:01:45. > :01:48.Many times there have been attempts to make a clean start in Northern

:01:49. > :01:54.Ireland with countless strides forward in the peace process. But

:01:55. > :01:57.the past is a running problem. This morning's Belfast Marathon went

:01:58. > :02:00.through the west of the city and past a new mural painted in honour

:02:01. > :02:10.of Gerry Adams while he was in custody. It is just streets away

:02:11. > :02:14.from where Jean McConville was abducted in 1972 before being

:02:15. > :02:18.murdered and buried in secret. Her family spent over 30 years

:02:19. > :02:23.campaigning for the return of her remains, and now, they say, they're

:02:24. > :02:28.prepared to take civil action over claims that Mr Adams was involved in

:02:29. > :02:34.the killing. Well, at the minute, we are looking into it, but it looks

:02:35. > :02:40.like we have a strong case. We have had people approach is that willing

:02:41. > :02:43.to back us, it is looking good. Gerry Adams has always denied

:02:44. > :02:48.playing any part in the murder, and last night, after four days of

:02:49. > :02:52.questioning, he was released from custody without any charge. His

:02:53. > :02:57.anger at the police was clear. It is the old guard using the old

:02:58. > :03:01.methods, when a better way of getting to the same result would

:03:02. > :03:04.probably have assisted their investigation but would not have

:03:05. > :03:10.sent the type of signal except to people who really want a hope in the

:03:11. > :03:13.future. The police knew that arresting a high-profile politician

:03:14. > :03:18.would also put the spotlight on them, and after many hours of

:03:19. > :03:22.interrogation, the release of Gerry Adams has led to questions for

:03:23. > :03:27.detectives about their decisions. A file is being sent to the Public

:03:28. > :03:30.Prosecution Service, but it is understood that unless significant

:03:31. > :03:35.new evidence is discovered, a charge is extremely unlikely. What has

:03:36. > :03:39.really outraged members of Sinn Fein is that their leader was arrested

:03:40. > :03:44.during an election campaign and just a few weeks and boats being held

:03:45. > :03:49.across the island of Ireland. I don't

:03:50. > :03:49.across the island of Ireland. I policing in Northern Ireland. What

:03:50. > :03:52.across the island of Ireland. I see as Justice Minister is

:03:53. > :03:53.politicians from both sides trying to interfere in the justice

:03:54. > :03:57.politicians from both sides trying in different ways at different

:03:58. > :04:00.times. Prosecutors still have been formally examine the evidence

:04:01. > :04:05.gathered by police against Mr Adams, a man who stood alongside

:04:06. > :04:09.world leaders but whose past remains under scrutiny.

:04:10. > :04:12.Chris, as you can see, joins us now. You mentioned the election

:04:13. > :04:18.campaign, what impact will this have on the political process now? Well,

:04:19. > :04:23.two questions there, I am not sure it will have much impact on the

:04:24. > :04:28.elections. Politics, that is a different matter. Gerry Adams is a

:04:29. > :04:31.big, a significant figure in Northern Ireland but also a

:04:32. > :04:37.polarising one. In reality, the last three days will not change that. In

:04:38. > :04:42.Republican areas, he is a hero. We have learned that the police visited

:04:43. > :04:46.his home to warn him of more death threats against him, so that gives

:04:47. > :04:51.you an idea of how polarising a figure he is. However, you are

:04:52. > :04:54.right, the issue of politics here is always difficult, particularly when

:04:55. > :04:57.it comes to policing, and the very strong words that have come from

:04:58. > :05:02.Sinn Fein over the last few days talking about a cabal within

:05:03. > :05:05.policing, of dark forces, that has angered unionist and estranged

:05:06. > :05:07.relationships here. The Islamist group Boko Haram has

:05:08. > :05:12.admitted kidnapping more than 200 girls from a school in northeastern

:05:13. > :05:15.Nigeria three weeks ago. In a recorded message, the leader of the

:05:16. > :05:19.group said he now intended to sell the girls. There's been an

:05:20. > :05:21.international outcry about the abductions and the failure of the

:05:22. > :05:33.Nigerian government to trace the girls. Tommy Oladipo reports from

:05:34. > :05:36.the Nigerian capital, Abuja. The first confirmation of the fate

:05:37. > :05:41.of the schoolgirls abducted in Nigeria. In a video released today,

:05:42. > :05:45.the leader of the Islamist extremist group Boko Haram, standing in front

:05:46. > :05:53.of an armoured car, says, I abducted your girls. He adds, I will sell the

:05:54. > :06:01.women in the market, there is a market for selling humans, Allah

:06:02. > :06:05.commands me to sell, I will sell women. They greet and heartbreak

:06:06. > :06:08.have moved the world, it has been three tormenting weeks since the

:06:09. > :06:12.girls were reported missing, but since then the authorities have been

:06:13. > :06:15.unable to find them. The BBC has secured the first TV interviews with

:06:16. > :06:20.the mothers who are in agony, not knowing the fate of their abducted

:06:21. > :06:23.daughters. TRANSLATION: Many people come to our house June the day to

:06:24. > :06:28.sympathise with us, but at night our family stays awake all night,

:06:29. > :06:31.thinking of our daughter and all the other girls and what they are going

:06:32. > :06:36.through and where they are being held. The girls were seized from

:06:37. > :06:42.this remote school in north-eastern Nigeria by Boko Haram. Nigeria's

:06:43. > :06:45.president has been accused of not doing enough to rescue the girls.

:06:46. > :06:52.Last night he spoke about the issue for the first time on television.

:06:53. > :07:01.Tell me where those bills are, we will surely get them out. -- girls.

:07:02. > :07:04.For a long time, many Nigerians have felt that the government response to

:07:05. > :07:08.the Boko Haram threat has been far from perfect. The President's latest

:07:09. > :07:15.comments will do little to inspire hope, and the fate of 200 girls

:07:16. > :07:20.remains unclear. Groups like this are having daily protests to express

:07:21. > :07:24.their outrage. My daughter is not with me, my parents are helpless, we

:07:25. > :07:28.crying at home. They should bring the girls back, it is then I will

:07:29. > :07:33.support the government in anything they do. More than 1500 people have

:07:34. > :07:37.been killed in north-eastern Nigeria so far this year, and it is ever so

:07:38. > :07:42.clear for the government that the violence cannot be ignored.

:07:43. > :07:44.Ministers have ordered a review into a decision to release an armed

:07:45. > :07:48.robber on temporary leave from prison, who then absconded. Police

:07:49. > :07:51.are still searching for Michael Wheatley, who is nicknamed the Skull

:07:52. > :07:55.Cracker for hitting victims with a gun during armed robberies, after he

:07:56. > :08:02.failed to return to Standford Hill open jail in Kent. The 55-year-old

:08:03. > :08:07.had been given 13 life sentences. Our political correspondent Alex

:08:08. > :08:13.Forsyth is in Westminster for us. Alex.

:08:14. > :08:16.Yes, Kent police have warned the public not to approach Michael

:08:17. > :08:22.Wheatley, which gives you an idea of how dangerous they think he is. He

:08:23. > :08:26.committed a string of raids on banks and building societies, 13 in ten

:08:27. > :08:30.months, and his crime spree started just three weeks after he was

:08:31. > :08:33.released on parole from a 27 year sentence for other robberies. When

:08:34. > :08:37.he was called for the second time, he was given 13 life sentences but

:08:38. > :08:42.told he would serve a minimum of just eight years. He has done that

:08:43. > :08:45.and more, and at some point, we are not sure when, he was transferred to

:08:46. > :08:49.an open prison on the Isle of Sheppey and then allowed out on

:08:50. > :08:53.temporary licence. That is standard for someone nearing the end of their

:08:54. > :08:56.sentence to prepare them for life in the community. The question is

:08:57. > :09:00.whether it is appropriate for such a violent and prolific offender, and

:09:01. > :09:03.one who has now gone on the run, and it is pretty unfortunate timing for

:09:04. > :09:07.the Justice Secretary, Chris Grayling, because only in March he

:09:08. > :09:11.announced new, tougher rules for those released on temporary

:09:12. > :09:14.licence. From autumn, they will all have to wait electronic tags.

:09:15. > :09:18.Ministers have admitted the system has been too lax and say that is why

:09:19. > :09:22.they are changing it, but of course it is too late for this case. There

:09:23. > :09:25.will now be a review of how this happened, and in the meantime police

:09:26. > :09:33.will focus on trying to catch this man.

:09:34. > :09:36.A man has admitted posting abusive messages on Twitter about the murder

:09:37. > :09:40.of the schoolteacher Ann Maguire. Robert Riley, who is 42 and from

:09:41. > :09:44.Port Albert in South Wales, appeared before magistrates in Leeds. The

:09:45. > :09:48.court heard he had posted a number of offensive tweets, some of which

:09:49. > :09:53.related to the death of Ann Maguire, who was killed at a school in Leeds

:09:54. > :09:57.last week. He will be sentenced at a later date. A three-day strike by

:09:58. > :10:01.Tube workers scheduled to start tonight has been suspended.

:10:02. > :10:03.A rail union leaders held talks with London Underground managers this

:10:04. > :10:08.morning over a long-running dispute over staff cuts and ticket office

:10:09. > :10:11.closures. The American London, Boris Johnson, called it a victory for

:10:12. > :10:14.common sense. In Ukraine, there has been heavy

:10:15. > :10:18.fighting in the eastern city of Sloviansk, where government troops

:10:19. > :10:23.are trying again to take control from pro-Russian militants. Big

:10:24. > :10:27.government says four soldiers have been killed and 30 injured, and a

:10:28. > :10:31.helicopter has been shot down. There have also been casualties among the

:10:32. > :10:36.pro-Russian gunmen. Sloviansk is one of the most important strongholds of

:10:37. > :10:39.the rebels, who have occupied government buildings in about a

:10:40. > :10:42.dozen cities and towns across the region. Sarah Rainsford sent this

:10:43. > :10:45.report. A brief lull in what has been a day

:10:46. > :10:49.of heavy fighting here. These are pro-Russian militia, well armed and

:10:50. > :10:54.with vehicles seized from Ukraine's military. The two sides clashed on

:10:55. > :10:59.the edge of Sloviansk Thomas Ware Ukrainian troops now say they have

:11:00. > :11:02.the rebels surrounded. There were casualties on both sides. The medics

:11:03. > :11:08.say this man was shot in the stomach. We helped him as much as we

:11:09. > :11:12.could, a very young looking rebel fighter explains. Now we are praying

:11:13. > :11:17.he survives. Images released by the defence ministry suggest that its

:11:18. > :11:22.troops have taken some ground and some prisoners, but this is no easy

:11:23. > :11:27.fight. Helicopters are just part of what Kiev deployed against a force

:11:28. > :11:31.they say was 800 men strong. And for a third time, those are Russian

:11:32. > :11:39.fighters managed to shoot a helicopter down. TRANSLATION: We are

:11:40. > :11:43.facing a very well-organised enemy. They have grenade launchers,

:11:44. > :11:47.mortars, machine-gun. They are very well trained. And from their

:11:48. > :11:53.appearance, they are far from being local people. Just say it straight,

:11:54. > :11:59.the Interior Ministry cuts in. There are Chechens here. For Ukraine's

:12:00. > :12:03.military, the ultimate goal is clearly to take back control of

:12:04. > :12:07.Sloviansk, the city that has become the rebel stronghold. They are here

:12:08. > :12:10.in Donetsk, at the city administration building and that key

:12:11. > :12:14.buildings across the region. Pro-Russian groups are still in

:12:15. > :12:20.control. And this is what the government is so anxious to avoid. A

:12:21. > :12:24.young nurse that locals say was an innocent casualty of this conflict.

:12:25. > :12:29.More civilians were killed today . That is already adding to the anger

:12:30. > :12:34.here with Kiev. This is the Russian speaking heartland of Ukraine, and

:12:35. > :12:38.many here do support the rebels. There is already talk that after

:12:39. > :12:43.this, a united country is no longer possible. Sarah Rainsford, BBC News,

:12:44. > :12:47.Donetsk. Distraught, crying and praying over

:12:48. > :12:50.her body - witnesses who were first on the scene after Oscar Pistorius

:12:51. > :12:55.shot his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp, but told his trial he

:12:56. > :12:58.appeared a spur to try and save her life. His neighbours gave their

:12:59. > :13:02.evidence as his trial in South Africa resumed after a break for

:13:03. > :13:03.Easter. This report contains flash photography.

:13:04. > :13:06.A two-week break, and Oscar Pistorius is back in court in South

:13:07. > :13:12.Africa, charged with murdering his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp. Inside,

:13:13. > :13:15.her mother, June, still keeping her vigil, staring across the courtroom

:13:16. > :13:21.at the man who admits he killed her daughter. On the stand, but not

:13:22. > :13:24.shown on television, neighbour Johan Stander, who arrived first on the

:13:25. > :13:31.scene with his daughter to find Pistorius on these stairs, carrying

:13:32. > :13:35.his girlfriend's body. There was a young man walking down the stairs

:13:36. > :13:43.with a lady, a young woman in his arms. My daughter asked him to put

:13:44. > :13:53.Reeva down on the floor. He did. Mr Pistorius was broken. He was

:13:54. > :13:58.screaming. He was crying. He was praying. The expression on his face,

:13:59. > :14:06.the expression of sorrow, the expression of pain, I saw the truth

:14:07. > :14:09.that morning. I saw it. He implication being that the athlete

:14:10. > :14:13.was telling the truth about shooting his girlfriend by accident.

:14:14. > :14:18.Listening, June Steenkamp struggled with her emotions. You will remember

:14:19. > :14:20.the aggressive prosecutor, Gerrie Nel, and his withering

:14:21. > :14:26.cross-examination of Oscar Pistorius and other defence witnesses. Today,

:14:27. > :14:31.he was a lot gentler and struggled to make any real impact. This is the

:14:32. > :14:36.route Mr Stander, with his daughter, took to Pistorius's house. She

:14:37. > :14:42.described the athlete begging his girlfriend to stay alive. He was

:14:43. > :14:47.praying to God the whole time to just save her life. He was begging

:14:48. > :14:51.Reeva and he kept begging Reeva to just stay with him and not to leave

:14:52. > :14:56.him. At one point, she feared that the distraught athlete might commit

:14:57. > :14:59.suicide. When I was standing there, I heard him say to the paramedics,

:15:00. > :15:05."The gun is upstairs in the bathroom". I thought he was going to

:15:06. > :15:14.go and possibly shoot himself. bathroom". I thought he was going to

:15:15. > :15:23.and to finish by the end of next week. Andrew Harding, BBC News,

:15:24. > :15:26.Pretoria. The former British number one tennis

:15:27. > :15:32.player Elena Baltacha has died at the age of 30. She revealed that she

:15:33. > :15:35.had liver cancer in March, just months after retiring. Her diagnosis

:15:36. > :15:41.came a few weeks after she married her long-time coach and partner,

:15:42. > :15:44.Nino Severino. And the Swiss looks back at her life.

:15:45. > :15:53.She was one of Britain's brightest and bravest talents. Elena Baltacha

:15:54. > :15:56.burst onto the scene as a teenager, reaching the third round of

:15:57. > :16:00.Wimbledon, and over the next decade tackled illness and opponents with

:16:01. > :16:07.the same dog did defiance. So news of her death just six months after

:16:08. > :16:10.retiring has left the sport united in sorrow. There was a minute's

:16:11. > :16:17.silence at one of her former clubs in Glasgow, as tennis mourns one of

:16:18. > :16:22.its most popular players. Just devastated. Terrible that someone

:16:23. > :16:26.who was only 30 years old who who has had one part of her life is not

:16:27. > :16:31.around for the other part of her life that she worked so hard for. It

:16:32. > :16:36.is so sad. I was so shocked when I heard about it. Born in Ukraine, she

:16:37. > :16:40.moved to Scotland when she was a child. Her father was a professional

:16:41. > :16:44.footballer, but Baltacha's skills lay with a different sport and a

:16:45. > :16:50.steely determination. The number one thing was work. Her work ethic, and

:16:51. > :16:54.giving 100%. Nobody could say she came off the court and had not given

:16:55. > :16:59.everything. Her talents soon blossomed, but at 19, she was

:17:00. > :17:04.diagnosed with a chronic liver condition. It would have ended many

:17:05. > :17:09.careers, but not hers. I think it helped me realise how much a part of

:17:10. > :17:15.my life but tennis was, and how serious I want to make it now. Every

:17:16. > :17:17.day, waking up and putting in the sacrifices and commitments. She duly

:17:18. > :17:22.defied her health sacrifices and commitments. She duly

:17:23. > :17:24.the world top 50 and become a figurehead for British women's

:17:25. > :17:31.tennis, whether representing her country in the Fed cup or the 2012

:17:32. > :17:35.six. Brushed Mac Olympics. It was her lifetime ambition, but as

:17:36. > :17:40.injuries took that coal, Baltacha was forced to retire at the end of

:17:41. > :17:45.last year, just four months before she was diagnosed with liver cancer.

:17:46. > :17:49.Both on and off the court, a player who defined commitment and courage.

:17:50. > :17:54.Elena Baltacha, who has died at the age of 30.

:17:55. > :17:57.There is more throughout the evening on the BBC News Channel. We are back

:17:58. > :17:58.with the latest News at ten.