29/01/2013

:00:11. > :00:15.This is BBC World News. Our top stories:

:00:15. > :00:21.French-led troops fighting is almostists in Mali face no

:00:21. > :00:25.resistance as they recapture the historic town of Timbuktu. Egypt's

:00:25. > :00:29.army chief warns the state could collapse if the political crisis

:00:29. > :00:33.continues. A sobering tale from Afghanistan. We meet the six-year-

:00:33. > :00:38.old girl sold into marriage to pay her father's debts.

:00:38. > :00:48.And more on Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands. Who, after more than

:00:48. > :01:01.

:01:01. > :01:04.30 years on the throne, has decided Britain is to send around 40

:01:04. > :01:07.military advisers to the central African state of Mali. The British

:01:07. > :01:12.Defence Minister will give more details soon, when he briefs MPs in

:01:12. > :01:16.the House of Commons. Meanwhile, a force of mainly French

:01:16. > :01:20.troops is consolidating its hold on the remote desert town of Timbuktu.

:01:20. > :01:27.They took the town without firing a shot. They are now searching for

:01:27. > :01:37.Islamists hiding inside the city. For the people of the fabled city,

:01:37. > :01:40.it was relief, and joy, after months under the Islamists'

:01:40. > :01:44.suppressive rule, they were free. French soldiers, alongside a few

:01:44. > :01:48.Malian units moved into the town without firing a single shot. They

:01:48. > :01:53.face nod resistance as they recaptured the city. As they

:01:53. > :01:58.continued to sweep for mines and booby traps, the fear remains that

:01:58. > :02:02.some rebels are still hiding out there. Some have melted away into

:02:02. > :02:07.the surrounding desert and the troops know, tracking them down in

:02:07. > :02:11.that vast area, will be a huge task. France insist the pan-African force

:02:11. > :02:16.will take the lead soon but may well find itself on the frontline

:02:16. > :02:22.of this operation for a long time yet. African forces are being

:02:22. > :02:25.deployed to Mali, but slowly. Of the 7,000 troops promised, not even

:02:25. > :02:29.half are in the country. Although Downing Street says there's still

:02:29. > :02:34.no question of British forces taking on a combat role, there is

:02:34. > :02:38.an offer of more help. Most likely in logistics, surveillance and

:02:38. > :02:42.transport. A British contribution to an EU military training mission

:02:42. > :02:49.is already being discussed. Talks about the numbers for that

:02:49. > :02:52.operation will be held in Brussels today.

:02:53. > :02:55.Officials in Somalia say at least two people have been killed and

:02:55. > :02:59.dozens more wounded in a suicide bomb attack neither Prime

:02:59. > :03:02.Minister's office. The bomber blew himself up in the compound in

:03:02. > :03:06.Mogadishu, which houses the Presidential Palace. One of those

:03:06. > :03:10.who died was a bodyguard for the Prime Minister.

:03:10. > :03:13.Abdullahi Abdi is with the BBC's Somali Service and has been

:03:13. > :03:19.watching developments from Nairobi in neighbouring Kenya.

:03:19. > :03:28.Yes, the details we have is that the suicide bomber tried to reach

:03:28. > :03:32.the office of the Somali Prime Minister. But those guiding the

:03:32. > :03:37.premises stopped him and tried to check him. He blue himself up and

:03:37. > :03:41.in the process a soldier was killed and the suicide bomber was killed

:03:41. > :03:47.and several more wounded. This is a frtified area, the Presidential

:03:47. > :03:50.Palace -- a frtified area. It is where the key premises of the Prime

:03:50. > :03:54.Minister, the Speaker of the Parliament and key diplomatic

:03:54. > :03:57.officers are placed. The head of the Egyptian military

:03:57. > :04:01.has said that political conflict in the country could lead to the

:04:01. > :04:05.collapse of the state. His comments come after five days of violent

:04:05. > :04:10.were tests. Thousands of demonstrators defied a sur few on

:04:10. > :04:14.Monday night it stage more protests against President Morsi. -- a

:04:14. > :04:18.curfew. Our correspondent gave me this

:04:18. > :04:22.update. It had been extremely tense for a few days here in Suez. This

:04:23. > :04:28.is where the deadliest opposition protests to the President took

:04:28. > :04:32.place last Friday. The nine people at least were killed then. Most of

:04:32. > :04:35.them protesters, but also a security guard as well. And when

:04:35. > :04:40.people said here - and we were with them yesterday - opposition people

:04:40. > :04:43.said they were going to defy the first full night of curfew, there

:04:43. > :04:47.really were worries of violence because the troops, the Egyptian

:04:47. > :04:52.troops have been deployed here. We can see them all over Suez. But

:04:52. > :04:56.when it happened and when we were out on the streets, as the curfew

:04:56. > :05:04.passed, there were thousands of people but for the most part the

:05:04. > :05:11.soldiers stood to the side and allowed them to protest. They were

:05:11. > :05:16.chanting against the President. We are see similar protests in Port

:05:16. > :05:19.Said and Ismailia. But we are hearing that while thousands defied

:05:19. > :05:23.the curfew, it was peaceful. Brazilian authorities have now

:05:23. > :05:29.arrested four people in connection with a nit club fire in which more

:05:29. > :05:35.than 230 people died. -- nightclub fire. Two of the clubs owners have

:05:35. > :05:39.been detained with two members of the band which was playing at a

:05:39. > :05:46.mainly student venue. Now health of safety executives are investigating

:05:46. > :05:51.safety rules in a country which is preparing to host the Olympics.

:05:51. > :05:55.Another day of unfathomable grief. Families and friends of those who

:05:55. > :05:59.died in Sunday's tragic nightclub fire gathered together to mourn.

:05:59. > :06:06.The funeral here for a 36-year-old woman. A cash year who worked in

:06:06. > :06:09.the club, and a mother of two. -- cashier. Her life cut short by a

:06:09. > :06:14.preventable disaster. More than 60 victims of the fire were buried in

:06:14. > :06:18.this cemetery alone on Monday. These people dressed in white are

:06:18. > :06:22.volunteers. Doctors, nurses, psychologists, who came to offer

:06:22. > :06:26.them support and help the families cope with the tragedy.

:06:26. > :06:30.An investigation is under way to find out how the tragedy in the

:06:30. > :06:35.Kiss nightclub happened and why so many people died while trying to

:06:35. > :06:41.escape. I was dancing with my friends when

:06:41. > :06:44.the music stopped My friend grabbed and pushed me and started shouting

:06:44. > :06:46."run, run." That's when the confusion started, people running

:06:46. > :06:51.and stepping on each other. question of who is to blame for

:06:51. > :06:54.this damage is becoming more insistent, as is the call for

:06:54. > :07:00.improvements to Brazil's safety regulations. Meanwhile, the

:07:00. > :07:04.nightclub has become a grim pilgrimage site. Residents visit it

:07:04. > :07:10.throughout the day, wanting to see the damage with their own eyes,

:07:10. > :07:15.trying to grasp that this really happened.

:07:15. > :07:18.A British man who lives in Bali has been sentenced to six years in

:07:18. > :07:22.prison for possessing cocaine. Julian Ponder, seen here arriving

:07:22. > :07:26.at court, was arrested in May. He was cleared of drugs smuggling

:07:26. > :07:31.charges, but now faces six years behind bars for the lesser charge

:07:31. > :07:35.of possession. His case is linked to that of another British citizen,

:07:35. > :07:39.grandmother Lindsay Sandiford who was sentenced to death for drug

:07:39. > :07:46.smuggling just last week. Our correspondent was there. He says Mr

:07:46. > :07:49.Pond her feared a tougher sentence. As the judges delivered their final

:07:49. > :07:52.verdict Julian Ponder looked visibly relieved. Throughout the

:07:52. > :07:55.course of the hearing and it took 45 minutes for the judges to go

:07:55. > :08:00.through the various twists and turns of his case, you could see

:08:00. > :08:05.the tension on his face. He was clenching his fists, gritting his

:08:05. > :08:09.teeth and running his fingers through his hair, listening

:08:09. > :08:13.intently to what his translator was telling him about what the judges

:08:13. > :08:17.were reading out. But finally, after they delivered their verdict,

:08:17. > :08:21.it became apparent that Julian Ponder was going to get six years

:08:21. > :08:27.in prison for the possession of drugs. Now, remember, the

:08:27. > :08:31.prosecution had actually asked for a seven-year sentence and $100,000.

:08:31. > :08:34.This sentence, this lighter sentence comes on the back of

:08:34. > :08:40.Lindsay Sandiford's death sentence last week where prosecutors had

:08:40. > :08:45.asked for a 15-year prison term for Lindsay Sandiford. Many thought

:08:45. > :08:52.perhaps there would be a precedent set and that Julian Pond weir get a

:08:52. > :08:57.harsher sentence as well. -- Julian Ponder would get.

:08:57. > :09:04.The Greek minister has told the BBC that this would be the last year of

:09:04. > :09:10.recession in his country. Stuenstuenstuen has told the become

:09:10. > :09:13.-- Yannis Stournaras has told the BBC's Athens' correspondent that

:09:13. > :09:18.they are two-thirds to the way of reaching their target and the

:09:18. > :09:23.chances of them being thrown out of the euro are very low. 2013

:09:23. > :09:27.involves wage cuts, pensions cuts in the public sector, and certain

:09:27. > :09:31.tax rises, so it is a difficult year. But from the point of view of

:09:31. > :09:34.the markets, there is much more optimism. We have covered two-

:09:34. > :09:37.thirds of the distance to the final target, which is a great

:09:37. > :09:45.achievement, in the midst of a recession. So we have only one-

:09:45. > :09:49.third left. Has the fear of default, an exit from the euro faded,

:09:49. > :09:55.disappeared? The probablability of this happening now is very, very

:09:55. > :10:02.small. We have managed to turn the economy around, yes. So, I'm very

:10:02. > :10:07.optimistic that we have avoided the risk of Grexit. Do you want - are

:10:07. > :10:12.you pushing for European countries to forgive, to write-off a portion

:10:12. > :10:18.of Greek debt? I would welcome a reduction of the level of debt. But

:10:18. > :10:24.I do not want to inflict to our peer countries damages, so this

:10:25. > :10:30.should happen in a which that minimises the loss of the counter-

:10:30. > :10:33.parties. We started 2012 talking about Grexit. We are starting 2013

:10:33. > :10:37.talking about Brexit, Britain's potential exit from the European

:10:38. > :10:42.Union. How would you feel if Britain were to leave the EU?

:10:42. > :10:47.Britain belongs to Europe, politically, financially and from a

:10:47. > :10:51.cultural point of view. I think, all in all, that it would be a

:10:51. > :10:55.grave mistake if Britain decides to get out of Europe. Would Greece

:10:55. > :10:58.accept Britain trying to renegotiate some terms of

:10:58. > :11:02.membership to get a looser relationship with the European

:11:02. > :11:06.Union? No, that would open Pandora's Box. Everybody would like

:11:06. > :11:09.to do the same. That would spell the end of it. The end of the

:11:09. > :11:13.European Union. The Greek Finance Minister talking to our

:11:13. > :11:17.correspondent Mark lowen. Now what would drive a family to

:11:17. > :11:20.sell a six-year-old girl into marriage? Every year hundreds of

:11:20. > :11:24.young girls in Afghanistan become child brides. The practice is

:11:24. > :11:28.illegal and something that generally happens in rural areas.

:11:28. > :11:32.But, it does happen, even in the of a begun capital, Kabul. Thousands

:11:32. > :11:36.of people have moved to makeshift camps there to try to escape the

:11:36. > :11:42.fighting else where. Our reporter first visited the camps a month ago.

:11:42. > :11:52.Now he's returned to meet a family who've decided to sell their six-

:11:52. > :11:52.

:11:52. > :11:56.year-old daughter as a child bride. For the 10,000 people living in

:11:56. > :12:00.Camp Kumbar winter is a time of misery. Last year 26 children died

:12:00. > :12:05.here. This year four people have become the latest victims of the

:12:05. > :12:15.cold. I visited the camp a month ago to

:12:15. > :12:20.

:12:20. > :12:24.talk to a man who has been living here for the last five years.

:12:24. > :12:29.Taj Mohammed fled to escape the fighting. Earlier this month his

:12:29. > :12:33.four-year-old son diefpltd now life is even worse for the family. --

:12:33. > :12:39.died. Poverty has forced him into a painful decision. TRANSLATION:

:12:39. > :12:48.story is I owed people $2,500, so I sold them my daughter. They wanted

:12:48. > :12:55.to take her more me now. She's only a child.

:12:55. > :13:01.The six-year-old has been sold as a bride. She's now engaidged and will

:13:01. > :13:06.be taken in a year unless her family can find the money to delay

:13:06. > :13:10.the marriage until she is 14. Transrapbz When we arranged the

:13:10. > :13:15.marriage, the children told her - your father has sold you. She

:13:15. > :13:19.started crying. She didn't say yes or no. She doesn't understand. She

:13:19. > :13:24.started crying and left the room. She was just a baby when she came

:13:24. > :13:31.to this camp. She told me she likes going to school, playing and

:13:31. > :13:35.spending time with friends. This is the man who bought her, to

:13:35. > :13:42.marry his 16-year-old son. The deal is illegal but has been approved by

:13:42. > :13:45.tribal elders. TRANSLATION: It is illegal. The

:13:45. > :13:52.Government doesn't allow it but I consulted the tribal elders and

:13:52. > :13:57.this is their decision. Like her grandmother before her,

:13:57. > :14:03.she will be a child bride. Across the generations, their Afghanistan

:14:03. > :14:13.is unchanged. A young girl's fate is sealed. Her

:14:13. > :14:16.future traded away. A distressing story there from

:14:16. > :14:23.Afghanistan. More on the website and the rest of the news today.

:14:23. > :14:28.Stay with us on BBC World News. Coming up: we take a road trip with

:14:29. > :14:33.some very dedicated Ghanaian if the ball fans.

:14:33. > :14:39.Caterpillar. Stkpwhroo do you know what, I've had something to eat

:14:39. > :14:44.today already, thank you very much. And find out if our correspondent

:14:45. > :14:49.manages to resist those fried cat pit ass?

:14:49. > :14:53.First a heatwave now torrential rain has brought severe flooding to

:14:53. > :14:57.parts of the Australia. In the worst-affected town, helicopter and

:14:57. > :15:03.boat crews were called in to rescue more than 100 people stranded on

:15:04. > :15:11.rooftops. The flooding has been caused by a tropical cyclone. This

:15:11. > :15:21.a beach in New South Wales where beach-goers are enjoying the

:15:21. > :15:25.

:15:25. > :15:31.This time the muddy waters are even higher than two years ago. We are

:15:31. > :15:35.expecting a minimum of 9.5 metres coming through the river.

:15:35. > :15:42.waters are fast-moving and fast- rising. These are the most

:15:42. > :15:47.treacherous of conditions. Over 2000 properties have now been

:15:47. > :15:50.flooded. 750 people have been forceded -- 7,500 people have been

:15:51. > :15:55.forced to leave homes. Helicopter crews had to rescue almost 100

:15:55. > :15:58.people stranded on roof-tops who had no other means of escape.

:15:58. > :16:03.Transport Transport planes from the Australian defence force have been

:16:03. > :16:06.brought in to airlift out patients at the city's hospital. At least

:16:06. > :16:11.the state capital, Brisbane, looks to have been spared the worst of

:16:11. > :16:15.the floods, with a river peaking at a lower level than anticipated.

:16:15. > :16:19.Still, it was here that a fourth person lost their life as a result

:16:19. > :16:23.of the wild weather. A three-year- old boy who suffered head injuries

:16:23. > :16:29.after being struck by a falling tree.

:16:29. > :16:33.The weather system has now moved south affecting northern New South

:16:34. > :16:41.Wales, a state which has been battling massive bushfires. This

:16:41. > :16:45.town is worst hit, where levees are struggling to contain the Clarence

:16:45. > :16:53.River. Residents have been ordered to evacuate in low lying areas. Two

:16:53. > :16:58.kwraoebgs ago much -- weeks ago much of the state was sweltering.

:16:58. > :17:08.Now it's been hit by some of the heaviest rain. It's been estimated

:17:08. > :17:11.

:17:11. > :17:17.thousands have been isolated by the flood waters. Australia's extreme -

:17:17. > :17:22.- climates are being experienced to the full.

:17:22. > :17:25.This is BBC World News. The headlines: French-led troops

:17:25. > :17:28.fighting Islamists in Mali have retaken the historic city of

:17:28. > :17:31.Timbuktu without a single shot being fired.

:17:31. > :17:41.The head of the Egyptian military has said political conflict in the

:17:41. > :17:45.country could lead to the collapse of the state.

:17:45. > :17:54.Within a day of Queen Beatrix announcing plans to and by indicate,

:17:54. > :18:00.all eyes have turned to the future King's glamorous wife, Maxima. Who

:18:00. > :18:05.is she? Meet Maxima, a Royal expected to rival the UK's Kate in

:18:06. > :18:11.the glamour stakes with some websites already comparing her to

:18:11. > :18:16.popstar Britney Spears and others celebrating her style. The future

:18:16. > :18:19.Queen has a controversial past. Her father was a member of the

:18:19. > :18:26.Argentinian cabinet during the country's dirty war. Though he has

:18:26. > :18:32.never been charged, at the Royal wedding in 2002 he was not on the

:18:32. > :18:36.guest list. Back in Argentina today, though, Maxima is making headlines.

:18:37. > :18:43.One of our representatives in the world at this level in the

:18:43. > :18:46.hierarchy, I love it. Truthfully, I don't feel it's very relevant here.

:18:46. > :18:51.It doesn't influence anything, absolutely nothing. If it helps

:18:51. > :18:56.foreign relations, well that's good. But I feel it's totally irrelevant.

:18:56. > :19:01.Maxima is one of the few Royals to openly support gay rights. She used

:19:01. > :19:06.to work as a banker in New York and is fluent in Dutch, English and

:19:06. > :19:12.Spanish. She met her husband at a Spanish Festival, apparently she

:19:13. > :19:22.had no idea he was a Prince. The couple have three girls. Their

:19:23. > :19:23.

:19:23. > :19:27.eldest will become heir apparent. In her and by and -- and by

:19:27. > :19:31.indication speech the Queen said he was ready to become King. The

:19:31. > :19:35.surprise announcement came a few days before her 75th birthday.

:19:35. > :19:39.Already it's generating talk of a Royal domino effect with other

:19:39. > :19:49.Europeans asking how long before their monarchs give way to future

:19:49. > :19:55.

:19:55. > :20:05.generations? A celebration of the first King to

:20:05. > :20:06.

:20:06. > :20:09.rule the kingdom of the Netherlands in more than a century.

:20:09. > :20:12.The Trevi Fountain in Rome is to be given a multi-million-dollar

:20:12. > :20:14.facelift and the luxury fashion house Fendi is footing the bill.

:20:14. > :20:16.It's not the first time big business has rescued Italy's

:20:16. > :20:23.artistic treasures. Our Rome correspondent, Alan Johnston has

:20:23. > :20:25.the story. The Fendi fashion house has its

:20:25. > :20:32.roots in Rome and it seems delighted to be involved in the

:20:32. > :20:36.effort to restore the huge fountain which has a cast of marble figures

:20:36. > :20:40.and horses crashing through sparkling waters. Fendi's creative

:20:40. > :20:49.director, the designer Karl Lagerfeld said the Trevi was as

:20:49. > :20:53.much a symbol of Rome as the Colosseum. It's a symbol of Rome

:20:53. > :20:58.like Colosseum or St St Peters and I am happy we can all help to do, I

:20:58. > :21:04.am happy to photograph the fountain to make a book about that called

:21:04. > :21:08.The Glory of Water. In fact, they are there to glorify water.

:21:08. > :21:13.There's been growing concern about the state of the fountain. In

:21:13. > :21:18.recent months, chunks of stone have fallen away. The city council says

:21:18. > :21:21.that support from the private sector for restoration work is

:21:21. > :21:27.essential, that without it there wouldn't be the money to save

:21:27. > :21:33.Italy's rich cultural heritage. A jeans company is already funding

:21:33. > :21:38.renovation of a bridge in Venice. A luxury shoe-maker plans to pour

:21:38. > :21:41.tens of millions of dollars into the restoration of the Colosseum.

:21:41. > :21:45.But some conservationists are uneasy about turning to big

:21:45. > :21:49.business like this. They fear that buildings that are symbols of

:21:49. > :21:56.national pride might be degraded by advertisements for the firms that

:21:56. > :22:01.have come to their aid. In the case of Fendi's Trevi Fountain project,

:22:02. > :22:05.for four years after its finished a small plaque at the site will

:22:05. > :22:11.express the city of Rome's gratitude for the work done by the

:22:11. > :22:18.fashion house. Some news coming in to us from

:22:18. > :22:23.Syria. The Syria Observatory for Human Rights says the bodies of

:22:23. > :22:31.dozens of young men all executed have been found in a river in a

:22:31. > :22:37.rebel zone of Syria's Aleppo city. A rebel Free Syrian aoerpl Captain

:22:37. > :22:40.-- arm Captain says -- army Captain says bodies are being dragged from

:22:40. > :22:49.the water. Opposition members saying a number of young men all

:22:49. > :22:52.seem to have been killed there. We've seen pictures from Mali of

:22:52. > :22:55.people cheering troops as they re- take Timbuktu. But they have also

:22:55. > :22:58.been cheering in Mali because their football team are through to the

:22:58. > :23:01.quarter-finals of the Africa Cup of Nations in South Africa. Ghana has

:23:01. > :23:05.also qualified for the quarter- finals, after their final Group B

:23:05. > :23:09.games this Monday. Mali came second in the group, after a 1-1 draw with

:23:09. > :23:15.Democratic Republic of Congo. Damian Johnson was at the match in

:23:15. > :23:19.Durban. Here in Durban Mali are through to

:23:19. > :23:25.the quarter-finals, finishing second in their group after a draw.

:23:25. > :23:29.They fell behind to a penalty but equalised. 1-1 was enough to take

:23:29. > :23:34.them through to a game against the hosts South Africa here in Durban

:23:34. > :23:44.at the weekend. The other game in this group, Ghana comfortably went

:23:44. > :23:49.through and they face Cape Verde. Plenty of football on Tuesday.

:23:49. > :23:57.Slowly but surely the line-up for the quarter-finals of the 29th

:23:57. > :24:00.African Cup of Nations starting to take shape.

:24:00. > :24:03.Ahead of Zambia's final group stage game against Burkina Faso, Peter

:24:03. > :24:06.Okwoche has met up with a group of travelling fans of the defending

:24:06. > :24:11.champions. He's been finding just how far some people have to travel

:24:11. > :24:16.to follow their teams. The distances fans have to travel

:24:16. > :24:20.at this Cup of Nations is mind- boggling. I have come from Port

:24:20. > :24:24.Elizabeth to here, around 1,000 kilometres. To give you an idea of

:24:24. > :24:28.what it's like to be a travelling fan I have hitched a ride with

:24:28. > :24:38.these guys, supporters of Zambia. They're going to take us to the

:24:38. > :24:39.

:24:39. > :24:45.stadium for the next group game. Hello guys. Nice to meet you. How

:24:45. > :24:48.far have you travelled to get here? We travelled kilometres and

:24:48. > :24:54.kilometres from Zambia, coming over here, it's taken us two days and

:24:54. > :25:04.two nights. Two days?! That's amazing. What have have you been

:25:04. > :25:10.eating on the way? Traditional Saddam byian Tradition -- Zambian

:25:10. > :25:13.food. Maybe you can take a test. This is caterpillar. You know what,

:25:13. > :25:19.I have had some today already, thank you very much! It's nice,

:25:19. > :25:24.take something. Don't worry about it. Two days, how did you entertain

:25:24. > :25:30.yourself? Music, like you can see there's music there playing on the

:25:30. > :25:40.bus. And we have been singing. Maybe we show you how we sing. Go

:25:40. > :25:58.

:25:58. > :26:02.We have arrived at the stadium. I have spoken to the head of the fans.

:26:02. > :26:12.Let me speak to the guys themselves. How do you think your guys have

:26:12. > :26:14.

:26:14. > :26:19.been performing? Like champions so far. We are going straight to the

:26:19. > :26:27.quarter-finals. I have asked this question of the fans. I am going to

:26:27. > :26:37.ask you, do you think they can retain the trophy? All the way. We

:26:37. > :26:39.

:26:39. > :26:45.are in the quarter-finals. Our top story: In the last few

:26:45. > :26:49.minutes a conference of African leaders has pledged more than $450

:26:49. > :26:52.million towards a operation in Mali. They had been wanting around double