31/10/2013 BBC World News

Welcome. International inspectors say all of Syria's known equipment

needed to produce chemical weapons has been destroyed ahead of an

international deadline. The Organisation for the Prohibition of

Chemical Weapons has had teams of inspectors in Syria since the

beginning of this month. They've been implementing the deal, brokered

by Russia and the US after a chemical weapons attack on civilians

on the outskirts of Damascus earlier this year. The OPCW says Syria can

no longer make chemical weapons. We are there to verify that capability.

As that as that capability that has been declared, we are assured that

that has been destroyed. Syria's Deputy Foreign Minister has been

speaking to our chief international correspondent, Lyse Doucet. We are

co-operating with the OPCW. We are co-operating with the international

community. We are happy that at least this is our contribution to a

free Middle East from all weapons of mass destruction. Some say it has

transformed you from a pariah to a partner? I hope those who have

always thought of us negatively will change their mind and understand

that Syria was, is and will be always a constructive partner in

international affairs. The BBC's Jim Muir has been telling me what should

happen next. The next stage in the process is getting rid of all the

raw materials, the more than 1,000 tonnes of chemical precursors. That

is a long and dangerous job that will take months and months, at

least until the middle of next year is the target date. I think they are

talking about targets, not deadlines for that, especially because if

there are delays it may be for technical reasons rather than the

Syrian government dragging its feet. All the signs seem to be that the

OPCW is satisfied. They have had a lot of co-operation on the ground so

far. The diplomatic efforts are continuing to try and bring an end

to the whole civil war. Where are we now on that? Well, that is a really

messy business. They had been touting the date of 23rd November

for a meeting in Geneva, the Geneva II meeting. A lot of pressure has

gone into that. It looks like the date will have to slide because,

basically, the Syrian opposition is not at all in shape and it is very

hard to see how they can produce a credible delegation that could

deliver. Apart from anything else, all the bulk of the fighting forces

on the ground are against negotiating with the regime unless

there is a prior assurance that it will bring the end of Bashar

al-Assad's regime which Damascus is not willing to give. There are

doubts about whether the Russians would support that. So, a lot of

preparation still needed. Meetings next week between the Russians and

Americans and between the Syrian opposition within the Syrian

opposition. But the outcome is far from clear. Jim Muir.

All this month we've been looking at the problem of migration. Many

coming from Syria across the Europe. Scenes like this one have become all

too frequent in recent weeks. This is just the most recent of an almost

daily occurrence - a boat of migrants being rescued by the

Italian coastguard as they try to reach the island of Lampedusa. This

year, tens of thousands of people have tried to illegally cross the

Mediterranean to Europe. But not all of them are heading for Italy. Many

of the refugees who are trying to escape the Syrian civil war head

north to Turkey. Many stay in camps just across the border, but some

move on. Those who have enough money, and are healthy enough,

continue their journey through the country to Istanbul. And from there

they try to reach Europe, making the often dangerous journey by boat to

the Greek island of Lesvos. Mark Lowen is on that island now. It

looks stunning where you are. But the people of that island and those

coming across have both faced huge difficulties? Massive challenges

here for the people in Lesvos, for the Greek coastguard and for the

migrants who make that perilous crossing across the Turkish

mainland. This is the harbour here. It is a beautiful sight to wake up

to. You can see that cargo ferry across the harbour. That is

preparing to leave for Athens. It is a nine-hour trip. As we move across,

you can see some of the other gorgeous waterfront properties here.

It looks like a Greek riviera. There are cafes, hotels, that

opulent-looking pleasure boat, a speedboat over there. This is an

island which is known for plenty of things. It is known for being the

home of that favoured Greek tipple. It is known for its stunning natural

beauty. It's also becoming known for another reason, for being one of the

key frontiers for the European Union's migration challenge.

The vast Agean. We are on patrol with the Greek coastguard off Lesvos

island, combing the south-east border for illegal immigrants. It is

a key gateway and a perilous journey, but numbers are rising. I

hope and I will ask for more support from the EU member states but that

doesn't mean that we are going to stop if this assistance doesn't

come. We have to protect our country. We have to protect it from

the criminal networks. It is a familiar scene - overcrowded boats

docking here. They are the lucky ones who made it. Plenty don't. And

Greece says Europe must do more. This year alone, almost 4,500

migrants have tried to cross these waters into Lesvos. Since police

increased controls on the land border with Turkey, it's now the

island bearing the brunt. And Greece is struggling to cope with the

influx. We weren't allowed inside the centre where the arrested are

taken. Syrians are held briefly and then given six months stay in

Greece. Others are detained for longer and must leave the country

within a month. I feel desperate. I feel the same when they talk to us

about the problems they have and they face in my country. I feel very

angry because I believe we can change something and we don't. Most

of them are like us. They are going away from a difficult situation and

they just need to be supported. At an NGO camp, we met this Afghan

mother and her children in their cramped room. She talks of hopes

dashed, her husband arrested, a treacherous crossing as her youngest

fell overboard. It wasn't worth it, she says. Europe wasn't worth it.

Many drown on the way ending up here, only a few are identified.

Before leaving for Europe, they had names and lives. Now, they are

reduced to this. At the ferry to Athens, we met some young Syrians.

They paid 1,300 euros each to get to Europe. My family doesn't want his

son to die. So my family say go out, go out, go out from Syria. All they

have is one bag and their dreams. How many more will follow in their

wake before the tide of immigration is stemmed?

Mark, very harrowing there to see that one woman who has lost her

youngest child saying, of course, this journey wasn't worth it. What

did she say about what she would have done differently and whether

that message is ever going to get back to those who try to make the

crossing? It is not in the interests of European governments to make this

more humane, this process, is it? It is very interesting. I asked her

that specific question. I said if you could go back to Afghanistan now

and say to your friends and family who want to make the crossing over

to the European Union, if you had a message, what would it be? She said

it is not worth it. It is not worth the risk. There is a perception

among people in these troubled hotspots of the world, in

Afghanistan, in Syria, in other parts of the Middle East, that the

European Union is a place of safety, it is a place where they will find

opportunity and jobs. So often it is not. Of course, so often on the

journey here that ends in tragedy. The Greek government is asking for

more help for the national patrols, the national patrols here around the

coast, but also for the EU's Border Agency which plays such a vital role

in controlling and patrolling the European Union's external borders.

As one official put it to me, when you are in a rich Northern European

country like Germany, Finland or Austria, it is difficult to know

what it is like when bodies are washing up on the shores of the

European south. Thank you. Within the last few

moments, the Governor of Niger has confirmed the bodies of 92 people

have been recovered from the desert. Most of the victims were women and

children. They are thought to have died from thirst after the trucks

they were travelling in broke down. It is believed they were on their

way to an Islamic school. With me is Elhadji Coulibaly from

BBC Afrique. What's happened? These people were part of a group of 113

people who set off from the northern town on 26th September and they were

heading towards Algeria. One of the vehicles broke down, you know, about

160 kilometres from the town they left. The migrants got off the

vehicle and tried to go back for spares. On the way, the second

vehicle as well broke down. So these people - basically, they were

trapped in the desert. In the heat of the desert? Yes. They started

looking - they ran out of water and they started looking for a well, you

know. They split into groups and tried to go different directions to

get a well. But, unfortunately, they couldn't manage to get a well and

they died of thirst. It's been very difficult because people have found

the decomposed bodies of children, many, many children. It is thought

now that they were on their way to a school up to Algeria to join their

families, possibly? I have spoken to one of the local Cowen counsellors

who was part of the rescue -- local counsellors who was part of the

rescue team. On the bodies they found copies of the Koran and some

tablets where the children write on... Writing? Yes, so it looks like

they are not economic migrants. They were heading towards Algeria to

learn the Koran. Very, very sad. We will have to leave it there. Thank

you very much for joining us. Stay with us.

Much more to come. The US National Security Agency denies hacking

internet giants Google and Yahoo. Plus after the monsoon, it is the

wedding season in India as couples want that special day to also be

auspicious. Wine lovers are facing the threat of

global shortages. New research suggests that production last year

dropped to its lowest level since the 1970s with demand outstripping

supply by about three billion bottles.

Could it be time for wine lovers to rethink their drink of choice? The

US financial services firm Morgan Stanley has warned of a global wine

shortage. They say it's the greatest shortfall since records began 40

years ago. The problem is that production is falling and demand is

rising. Global production reached its peak in 2004, supply outweighed

demand by 600 million cases. Production has been steadily

declining since then and last year, it dropped to its lowest levels in

four decades. Demand exceeded supply by 300 million cases. That is

roughly the same amount of wine as the whole of the UK drinks in two

years. The fall can be loaned on poor

weather in Europe, which produces 60% of the world's one. -- be

blamed. Output from Newark producers had already peaked. But global

demand is rising. The US and drive -- China are the large drivers of

growth. Consumption in China has doubled in the past five years,

twice. It is likely to become the world's biggest consumer by 2016.

For now, France and the West consume the most. Italy and China followed.

Then Germany, Russia and the UK. More people are drinking wine and

asking the question, will prices rise? My guess is they will only go

up marginally. The industry will respond. The weather is a factor. In

the succeeding season, it is possible to prune, to irrigate, to

fertilise and boost production. The report's authors predict that in the

short term, consumption will be mostly supplied by previous

vintages. But as consumption turns to the 2012 vintage, the shortfall

could lead to higher prices. Reassurance of a sword for wine

lovers, then. Prices will go up. But the industry is likely to do all it

can to revenge shelves from going there. -- prevent shelves.

This is BBC World News. The latest headlines: International inspectors

say all of Syria's declared equipment to make chemical weapons

has been destroyed. Another African migrant tragedy,

this time in the Sahara Desert where 87 people died after their vehicles

broke down. The US' National Security Agency has

denied claims that it secretly broke into the links which connect Google

and Yahoo data centres around the world. The claims, based on data

from the fugitive intelligence contractor Edward Snowden, come in a

report in the Washington Post. The agency says it is not authorised to

go into a US company's servers and take data. It also told the United

Nations that it doesn't spy on its communications and won't do so in

the future. Tim Allman has more. Who America spies on and how

continues to be a source of controversy. The latest accusations,

published in the Washington Post, come from documents released by the

NSA whistle-blower Edward Snowden. This time, the alleged targets were

internet giants Google and Yahoo. It is claimed the NSA secretly hacked

into communication links, the fibre-optic cables connecting data

centres, picking up millions of records, including text, audio and

video. This information was then sifted in a programme called

Muscular, run in conjunction with GCHQ. Crucially, the paper claims,

the data was picked up outside the US, when restrictions on oversight

are weaker. I can tell you factually we don't have access to Google

servers, Yahoo servers we go to a court order. We issue the court

order through the FBI. It is not millions, it is thousands of those

that are done. It is almost all against terrorism and things like

that. It has nothing to do with US persons. This follows claims the NSA

intercepted phone calls by Angela Merkel and at least 35 otherworldly

does. But at least one international body seems happy to accept that it

is not being spied on. I can tell you that we were in touch with the

US authorities. I understand that the US authorities had given

assurances that the Ewing medications are not and will not be

monitored. -- the UN communications. But the US insists it has to protect

itself, striking the balance between privacy and liberty.

Google has now released a statement. It said:

Pakistan says far fewer civilians have been killed in US drone strikes

than previously thought. Its Ministry of Defence has told an

inquiry that civilians account for just 3% of those killed over the

past five years. It said that since 2008, 67 civilians had died in US

drone strikes. That's far less than other estimates suggest. And in the

same period 2,160 militants were killed. They also said no civilian

had died in a drone strike since the beginning of last year.

With me in the studio is Shafi Naqi Jamie, who is from the BBC Urdu

Service. This comes after the Washington Post revealed documents

showing Pakistani government complicit in US drone strikes. Even

Nawaz Sharif has gone to the US to say, please, stop. The secrecy

behind it is creating more questions than satisfying people giving the

answer. It does not make sense that those drone attacks can take place

without some kind of tacit agreement some of understanding from the

hierarchy of officials. Could be an intelligence agency, could be

somewhere. The clarity is not there. Hence it is creating more confusion.

What has been the reaction to these numbers coming out? The government

is saying, look, the nub of civilians killed is less than

previously said. -- the number. There are two numbers being crushed.

There are deaths from drone attacks and the bomb blasts, suicide

attacks. One must not confuse those numbers, actually. People are asking

more and more questions. The figures you are telling now, are these ones

correct or the ones you told us before? Things are getting heated in

Parliament. And the opposition is not satisfied. The party in power is

asking questions. Nobody seems to be getting a clear answer. Clearly,

Pakistan is trying to, some people say, justify that involvement. That

is one way to look at it. Again, it acts the question, why not... The

generals are not telling the truth, they say. There is something which

is not coming out. Unless they sit down and talk, the matter will still

be there. The Foreign Office is making a statement protesting.

Government is making a statement protesting. Apart from the protests,

is there anyone who can suggest a suggestion -- solution?

As the conduct of some of his leading newspaper executives comes

under the spotlight here in the UK, the media tycoon Rupert Murdoch has

been giving a speech in Australia. He studiously avoided any mention of

the criminal trial which has just begun here in London, which has seen

two of his most senior editors accused of phone hacking. Instead,

he used the annual Lowy Lecture in Sydney to sound a warning about a

new, globally competitive middle class.

The world around Australian business today is completely changed. Today

it is the non-democracies who are the outliers. Australians no longer

have to worry about people producing cheaper moccasins because of cheaper

wages. They have to worry about people in Beijing and Bangalore

beating us with breakthrough drugs. The end of the monsoon season has

marked the beginning of the most anticipated part of the year in

India - the great wedding season. On some days, which are considered

particularly auspicious in the Hindu calendar, there could be more than

20,000 wedding ceremonies taking place in one day in Delhi alone. So

couples need all the help that they can get, and many of them are

turning to the internet. From Delhi, Shilpa Kannan reports.

No one does weddings like Indians. Rich or poor, families usually save

all their lives for their children's wedding day. If there's

one industry that is recession proof, it is this, the Indian

wedding industry. It is estimated to be worth nearly and is growing at

25% annually. With over 10 million weddings or more happening in India,

it is a sector that has not really seen a slowdown. Getting ready for

her big day, this lady has travelled all the way from Florida to Delhi to

get married. Without access to the vast array of aunts and other

relatives who helped with shopping and planning an event of this Dell,

more and more young Indians are having to rely on the internet, she

says. The key part of my wedding, might -- like my make up and

photographer, I got it online. I spend a lot of time looking up the

latest trends. Getting bridal-wear online takes -- this man is marrying

the old and the new. His company is an online wedding planner. They can

suggest where to shop and what to buy for the big day. Indians have

always had big fat weddings. What has changed now? These days, a lot

of couples are getting involved in wedding planning. I need to make the

right decisions. -- they need. They look for the information online. We

talk to them about the trends that are in season, helped them to assess

their planning. So, while the celebrations had not change,

technology and weddings seem to breed ringing -- to be training some

sophistication to the industry. Hollywood stars may vow never to

work with children or animals. But it seems the same misgivings do not

trouble the Pope. A small boy made an unexpected appearance on stage

with Pope Francis over the weekend, during a celebration of family day

at the Vatican in St Peter's Square. He even tried out the papal chair.

But Pope Francis didn't seem remotely ruffled by the small boy

who threatened to steal the show. He carried on delivering his homily

about the importance of grandparents. Thanks for being with

us.