15/08/2014 BBC News at Six

Pushing back the fighters of Islamic State - Britain says it's prepared

to send weapons to the Kurds. They say there's

an urgent need now for weapons and aid to avert disaster.

The humanitarian crisis continues, as thousands flee

for their lives into Syria as well as other parts of Iraq.

Tonight, we're in the skies over Iraq with the RAF, tracking Islamic

State fighters and the refugees. And we'll be assessing the impact

of sending more weapons. Also tonight:

Two officers who had relationships with women while working

undercover are named by the Met. Police say more people have come

forward with information after a search of Sir Cliff Richard's home.

The Ebola outbreak in west Africa has been vastly underestimated,

according to the World Health Organisation.

And England's bowlers are rampant against India in the final Test.

On BBC London: Three years after the riots,

millions of pounds of regeneration cash hasn't been spent.

And the parts of the capital with the poorest cancer survival rates

are revealed. Good evening and welcome to the

BBC News at Six. Ministers from across Europe have

been in emergency talks today, trying to work out a coordinated

response to the crisis in Iraq. Here the Government said it would

"consider favourably" any request from the Kurds for arms to push back

Islamic State fighters who've driven thousands from their homes.

The Foreign Secretary, Philip Hammond, described them as

"a threat to civilisation". Britain is now set to join France

and the United States in supplying arms to the Kurds,

who are also struggling with a massive influx of refugees.

It's thought 200,000 people are now in refugee camps

in Kurdish-controlled Iraq, and in parts of Syria.

Paul Wood travelled to the Syrian town of Nowruz

and has just sent this report. Camp Nowruz in Syria,

the first place of sanctuary for thousands of Yazidi refugees.

People walked 40 miles in 50-degree heat to get here,

across mountains and desert. Two weeks ago,

the camp had just 20 families. Now it has swollen to 15,000 people.

Patriotic music drifts across the camp.

"We have heard our women screaming", says the song, "don't be afraid,

we will defend this land and defend our honour".

The song is part of an effort by a Syrian-Kurdish militia here to

recruit among the Yazidi refugees. "I know how to fight because I grew

up in the mountains", he says. "I will go to my village and

wherever I find the Islamic State, I will kill them".

"They have captured our women, and they are selling them", he says.

"I will go to free my people. I will go to protect my land".

The Kurdish forces will certainly find a lot of volunteers

in teeming refugee camps like this, but any new recruits will be going

up against battle hardened veterans from the Islamic State, and the

jihadis too are very well equipped. They have weapons and ammunition

captured from Iraqi forces. So even with Western air support,

the Kurdish forces will have a long and difficult task to

recapture the towns and villages that all these people came from.

The Kurdish militia here have begun a training programme.

They hope it will give them an army capable of defeating the jihadis.

"We did not choose this war", he says, "

but we have no choice but to fight. The Yazidis are our people, too.

If we had not confronted the Islamic State,

there would have been a genocide". Just over the border into Iraq,

a brand-new camp is being built for displaced Yazidis.

The camp is better, certainly, than what greeted them when they first

fled into Syria, but it is another depressing sign that there will be

no quick end to this crisis. Paul Wood, BBC News,

on Syria's border with Iraq. Well, as the humanitarian crisis

unfolds, RAF Tornadoes with aerial reconnaissance equipment have been

flying over Iraq, tracking the movements of refugees

and Islamic State fighters. They've been taking off

from Akrotiri in Cyprus, where our correspondent Jeremy Cooke

joined the mission. RAF Akrotiri, Cyprus.

We are joining the air crew on a mission.

Under cover of darkness, it's full throttle.

And at this speed, it is a short flight to the dark skies over Iraq.

The crew is piloting what is effectively a flying petrol station,

and pretty soon they are in business.

We will need a left hand orbit. Tornado jets emerge from the gloom.

They are potent combat aircraft but this is a different role.

Tonight's task is to fly high and fast over the killing fields below.

No bombs or bullets. Instead, the combat fighters

carry state-of-the-art infrared surveillance equipment.

They are the eyes and ears of the wider operation.

This is critical to relieve the humanitarian issues

on the ground in Iraq. There is a connection.

You know that what you are doing is vital work.

Very much so. This is the first time

in quite a while that we have had that feeling very deep down.

We're very happy to be here, and we see it as a critical part

of helping the Iraqi people to alleviate themselves from the issues

that they have currently. All of this is about gathering

intelligence, getting the most accurate picture possible of exactly

what's happening down on the ground. All of it could be vital

in planning whatever comes next. For now, the operation to deliver

aid is on pause, but it could resume at any time.

And so it is still crucial to plot the ongoing advance of the

Islamic State, and those fleeing the fighting.

Jeremy Cooke, BBC News, with the RAF in the skies over Iraq.

Bridget Kendall joins me now. Bridget, how significant is the

announcement by the government about arming the curves? This idea about

the West directly harming the Kurds is an important step, because up

until now they have been reluctant to give weapons to the Kurds. This

is a part of Iraq and not an independent state. The West was

worried it would send a signal that they should become a sovereign

nation, which could further weaken Iraq, which already looks as though

it is about a fragment in the current crisis. But now there is a

more immediate crisis, which is this hardline Sunni advance, calling

themselves the Islamic State, making their way, pushing into Kurdistan,

and the danger as they could sweep it all away and a bloodbath would

insular and they would be nearer their aim to take over Iraq. The

Kurds need weapons, as we heard, so the West is now going to help them

get them. But there is another important change this week. In

Baghdad, the central Iraqi government looks as though it is

going to get a new prime minister. The old Primus to, Nouri al-Maliki,

was seen as part of the problem. The alienating the Kurds and cause

rebellion among the Sunnis. He has agreed to go and there will be a new

prime minister. He has a tall order to unify the country but if they can

do that they might be able to take on the militants.

Bridget Kendall joins me now. And we'll have more

on the conflict in Iraq and how British men are going to

join it later in the programme. For the first time, the Metropolitan

Police has confirmed the identity of two undercover officers both accused

of deceiving women by having relationships with them, without

disclosing their true identities. The Met, which is being sued

by the women, denies authorising the relationships, and claims they

were based on genuine feelings. Matt Prodger reports.

Jim Boyling. On the outside, a climate campaigner of the 1990s. On

the inside, a police intelligence officer. And Bob Lambert -- Bob

Lambert. Animal rights activist friends, but to Scotland Yard, a

trusted spy master. Between them they are alleged to have deceived

seven women into sexual relationships and fathered three

children as a result. It was abusive to people, damaging. Decades later,

activists exposed Bob Lambert as a member of the undercover Special

Demonstration Squad. Here, they challenged the now retired officer

in the street. He had infiltrated a group called London Greenpeace and

helped to write a leaflet denouncing the McDonald's fast food chain. It

became the heart of a notorious court case. The Met has now been

forced to formally identify Bob Lambert and Jim Boyling. Of the

claim that they cynically abused the trust of the women, the force says

the relationships occurred because of mutual attraction and genuine

personal feelings, and it has denied that intimate and sexual

relationships were started as a deliberate tactic. There was nothing

genuine about it. The entire relationship was based on a web of

lies. They had all the power. That is not love, it is abuse. Helen

Steel is one of ten women suing the police over the activities of

undercover agents. She says the officer in this picture folder into

a two-year relationship that left her scarred. Eventually I found out

he had used the identity of a child who had died when they were eight.

My world fell apart. This is part of a wider controversy into how the

police have used undercover officers, and for what purposes. Bit

by bit, through a series of enquiries, investigations and court

cases, the truth is beginning to emerge. Matt Prodger, BBC News,

Scotland Yard. Matt Prodger reports.

The Prime Minister says he's gravely concerned about reports of armoured

personnel carriers crossing the border from Russia into Ukraine.

A separate convoy, which Moscow claims is purely

humanitarian, is still waiting to enter eastern Ukraine,

even though a deal was reached to allow the contents to be inspected.

Police in South Yorkshire say more people have come forward with

information, following their search of Sir Cliff Richard's

flat yesterday in connection with an investigation into

an allegation of sexual assault. The veteran singer strongly

denies the claim. Let's speak to our correspondent

Dan Johnson who's outside police headquarters now.

What more can you tell us? Well, officers have emphasised that this

investigation is still in the early stages. After that five-hour search

of Cliff Richards property in Berkshire, it is understood a number

of items were recovered and they are being examined by detectives. South

Yorkshire Police have also said a number of people have come forward

to provide information since the search yesterday, although it is not

clear who those people are and whether the information relates to

the allegation which sparked this investigation or not. But officers

will now contact those people and speak to them. There has been

nothing more said by Cliff Richard himself today. We understand he is

still in Portugal. There has been some activity today at the property

he owns in the Algarve. Lots of people coming and going, but no sign

of Sir Cliff himself. There was a blue car seen going in, which it is

understood he uses, but no sign of him and we do not know if he is

still staying there. He did issue a strong denial of these allegations

yesterday. We seem to have lost Dan Johnson.

headquarters now. Shrien Dewani, the British man

accused of murdering his wife while on honeymoon, has been found

fit to stand trial in South Africa by a panel of psychiatric experts.

The 34-year-old Bristol businessman is accused of ordering the murder

of his 28-year-old wife Anni, who was shot in Cape Town in 2010.

Mr Dewani, who denies murder, was extradited from Britain in April.

The UK's economy performed better than that of any other major economy

in the year to the end of June. The Office of National Statistics

revised up its growth figures for the second quarter

of last year to 3.2%. The figures confirmed Britain has

finally climbed out of its longest downturn since the war,

with GDP, the value of everything produced in the economy, higher than

its pre-recession peak of 2008. The World Health Organisation says

the scale of the Ebola outbreak in west Africa could be vastly

underestimated. It says extraordinary measures are

needed to tackle the epidemic. Branwen Jeffreys is here with

more details for us now. The Ebola outbreak is spreading fear

and death across west Africa. More than 1900 cases have been confirmed.

And the incurable viral infection And the incurable viral infection

has led to more than 1000 deaths. The governments of Guinea, Sierra

Leone, Liberia and Nigeria can't manage on their own. In many areas

desperate measures are being taken To contain the disease.

Tearing down makeshift shanty homes on the edge of Guinea's capital.

Security forces ripped shelters apart, believing this slum could

harbour the virus. So little time to salvage what they can. This man says

he would rather risk Ebola than be moved. And as the fear has

increased, so to the numbers seeking help at medical centres, increasing

international concern that there may be many more at risk. We have seen,

with the opening of new treatment centres, many more Ebola patients

coming forward. And so this has given rise to the belief that there

are probably a lot of patience out there that we haven't traced or

contacted yet. Behind these checkpoints in Liberia, almost 1

million people are in quarantine. Aid workers who have visited

affected areas say getting health messages out is more important than

Draconian measures. I really have the feeling that it is like a

wartime, in terms of fear, general fear, all over where you are. Nobody

understanding what is going on. Some supplies of an experimental medicine

have arrived in Liberia. But there is very little and no one thinks

they can limit the outbreak. Officials think it could take six

months to contain the virus. Efforts to trace and test all of those at

risk are increased. Our top story this evening:

Britain says it's prepared to send weapons to the Kurds to help

the battle against Islamic State in Iraq.

Still to come: Tony Pulis becomes the first Premier

League managerial casualty of the season before a ball is kicked.

We have a special report on women refugees fleeing East Africa and

hoping to arrive in the capital. A hospital apologies after

a patient is given a wrong diagnosis for cancer and Alzheimer?s based

on her dead husband's records. Now, as we've been reporting, the

threat from Islamic State fighters is clear to see in the ongoing

crisis in both Iraq and Syria. Despite reports

of atrocities that include beheadings and mass killings,

which have prompted worldwide revulsion, the government says that

more than 400 men and women from Britain have gone to join them.

So far this year there have been 69 Syria-related arrests

in this country, and there are worries that there could be more

if British fighters start returning in numbers from the region.

The BBC has spoken to one British Muslim who says he is willing to

join Islamic State fighters. He believes it's his religious duty,

as Ed Thomas reports. Inside Iraq and Syria there has

been a call for British Muslims to leave their homes and fight jihad.

The government says hundreds have. Many more are listening.

This is a man we are calling Ahmed. We do not know his real identity.

He only agreed to speak with his face covered and

if we changed his voice. God has commanded for

the Muslims to go and fight jihad. It is worth dying for?

Yes. This is the biggest thing

for a Muslim. To die as a martyr is the promise

of paradise. The highest paradise.

It is an extreme belief that offends many.

In Iraq and Syria Islamic State fighters are accused

of appalling brutality and terror. Millions have been forced

from their homes and the group is illegal in this country.

You have a choice. You do not need to go.

I have a choice but Islamically this is an obligation.

What motivates people like Ahmed? Many believe answers are found

on the internet. This man describes himself

as a student of Sheikh Omar Bakri, a radical Islamist preacher banned

from the UK. He openly supports Islamic State

in Iraq and Syria and its extreme messages.

If Muslims in Britain go there they will be part of a sectarian war

and the chances are they will die. For them it is a case of either

martyrdom or victory. Can you see how this

disturbs people? It is disturbing if you're not

from that camp. Muslims here in Birmingham are

totally against that view and make their own beliefs clear.

Our message is for all young people that there is no jihad.

This imam is one of hundreds to speak out against jihad.

Listening to his words, two young British Muslims.

Is he right to go to Iraq or Syria to fight?

No. They believe

their views represent the majority. It hurts my feelings as a Muslim to

see these people doing that and thinking it is justifiable.

I do not think any religion would be proud if there was radical people

like that hijacking the name of their religion.

Hundreds of imams told young British Muslims not to go.

Did you listen to them? No, because these imams are not

showing the Islamic viewpoint. They are just saying what

the government wants them to say. Do you have any intention

of coming back from Syria or Iraq? No.

Not at all. People in this country perceive

jihad as people coming back here and bombing train stations and airports

and killing innocent people. When I go, I will never come

back to this country of again. We do not know when or if our Ahmed

will leave but we do know security services are watching to make sure

British jihadis do not bring their fight home.

The drugs watchdog for the NHS in England is being criticised

for rejecting a treatment for men with prostate cancer.

Abiraterone is available after chemotherapy, but

the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence says it's too

expensive to be prescribed earlier. Our health correspondent

Dominic Hughes reports. For Mike, a prostate cancer

diagnosis six years ago was a terrible shock but the drug

Abiraterone has kept him healthy, delayed chemotherapy and kept him

well enough to continue working. Life has not gone dramatically down.

I have been able to keep things stable and enjoy family life and

working life, to carry on to a major degree to what I have done before.

This drug is already prescribed to some men as an end of life treatment

when they are dying from prostate cancer, but around 3000 men a year

have access to Abiraterone before chemotherapy treatment through the

Cancer Drugs Fund, an option only available in England.

As it did last week with the breast cancer drug Kadcyla, the NHS

watchdog NICE says this treatment, too, fails to offer value for money.

The price the company is asking for simply doesn't match the

additional benefit that it brings. This is a general problem for NICE

at the moment with new cancer treatments but the drugs industry

has the given ability to fix it. Every year laboratories like this

one diagnose around 40,000 cases of prostate cancer across the UK.

It is the most common form of the disease in men.

As testing has improved the disease is being spotted quicker

so survival rates have soared in recent decades but still patient

groups say men deserve to get access to the best possible treatments.

This decision is an absolute fiasco. We have NICE and the drug company

Janssen blaming each other for why it hasn't been supported

and given positive approval. They are all saying

they are disappointed. Disappointed is not good enough.

These are difficult judgements. Balancing the gift of precious time

with families for the terminally ill against an NHS drugs bill that could

soar out of control. The last commercial shipbuilder

on the River Clyde has gone into administration with a loss

of 70 jobs. Ferguson's shipyard in Port Glasgow

was founded in 1902, but has recently struggled to

secure investment. The Scottish Government is to work

with the administrators to investigate

new opportunities for the shipyard. The new Premier League season hasn't

even started yet and already there's been a managerial casualty.

Tony Pulis left Crystal Palace last night in an apparent row

over transfer spending. And it's unlikely that he'll be

the only manager not to make it to the final day of the season.

Feisty, straight talking and adored by the fans, the Palace faithful

have been left reeling after Tony Pulis run for the exit before a ball

was kicked. It is fair to say the manager he was supposed to face

tomorrow did not see this coming. It was a complete surprise to me. He

has done a remarkable job last season. He made a miracle. That

managerial medical was taking Palace from second bottom in the league and

a safe bet for relegation in November two and 11 place finish in

May. Voted manager of the season, it is easy to see why fans are upset. I

got a sick feeling in the bottom of my stomach. Everyone had written us

off. Surely a guy like that deserves financial backing. While the timing

came as a shock, the fact he left his job did not. Most Premier League

managers at some point see the clouds begin to gather. For the last

eight season at least ten managers have left their jobs. The high end

the last decade came in the 2007-2008 season when 40 managers

were sacked or left their clubs. Last season came close with 13

departures. The man left to pick up the pieces believes it is still a

dream job. It is the best league in the world with some of the best

players. It is a challenge that a lot of people would love to do.

Football has lost one of its biggest characters but with the managerial

merry-go-round just getting started Tony Pulis' spell off the carousel

is likely only to be temporary. the final day of the season.

Cricket, and England got off to a great start in the fifth

Test against India at the Oval. At one stage the visitors were

reduced to 90-9 and were eventually bowled out for 148.

August 15 is a day of Indian pride. Friday morning they resisted. This

is the fourth ball of the day. A delivery he wanted to leave. He

looked at his bat as if they had only just met. From the other end,

Stuart Broad. He looked as if he had just gone 12 round. This is a

technical knockout. Chris Jordan. LBW? Yes, said the umpire. Jordan

got a catch, gratefully accepted. Chris Woakes. Joel Root caught that.

36-5. England do not drop catches any more. Not often. Chris Woakes

got rid of Ashwin. While England mist a chance to get rid of Sharma,

the total went past 100. A captain's innings for India.

We have a decent amount of dry and great weather. A few heavy showers

across central and eastern England which will gradually fade. A few

showers into Northern Ireland later but for many of us clear spells. The

temperatures start to drop. We are looking at single digits. A lot more

cloud across Scotland and Northern Ireland. A spell of rain pushing

southward into the far north-west of England. Cloud will increase into

the afternoon. Most will stay dry. Looking good for the Test at the

Oval. Some good sunny spells in amongst the cloudy moments. Out of

the breeze it should not feel too bad. Into north-west England, much

more cloud later. Rain across southern Scotland and Northern

Ireland. Brightening up towards the far north that we could see

temperatures of 18 or 19 in Aberdeenshire. The rain will pick up

across northern England as this weather front pushes southwards. A

few splashes of rain here and there and clearing to a bright afternoon.

Sunshine elsewhere but is gathering of heavy showers and a blustery wind

developing and that will last into next week. Expect the temperatures

to be lower than average. Make sure you pack your jumpers if you are

going away.