20/12/2013 BBC World News

Reports of more clashes in South Sudan as President Obama warned the

country is on the precipice of civil war. Free after ten years in prison.

A pardon from President Putin. In the Apollo Theatre, the ceiling

collapses and injures more than 70. Resign or face the sack, Malky

Mackay is ordered out by the team 's owner who e-mailed him a list of

complaints at Cardiff city. Hello. President Obama has added his

voice to the United Nations Security Council warning that South Sudan is

at the precipice of Civil War. He has urged political leaders to

restore calm and work urgently for reconciliation. Hundreds have died

in the last few days alone and that is after the president accused his

former deputy of trying to stage a coup. To UN peacekeepers are said to

have died and another is in hospital. South Sudan is a country

that appears to be falling apart. Now, President Obama has a grave

warning for this fledgling nation, Civil War is dangerously close. In a

statement, he said inflammatory rhetoric and targeted violence must

cease. All sides must listen to the wise counsel of their neighbours.

The latest violence included an attack on a UN compound where three

Indian peacekeepers were killed. The most urgent thing is to move quickly

to a political discussion and bring the violence under control and make

all efforts to again seek peaceful resolution of a fundamentally

political crisis. The country declared its independence in July

2011. This year, the president suspended his entire cabinet,

included his -- including his vice president. He said he defeated a

coup which seem to be the spur for recent islands. Hundreds have been

killed in the last few days. Where there is violence, there are

innocent bystanders. Refugees at a camp. For these people, the

bloodshed cannot end soon enough. So, what is the current US

assessment in South Sudan? I was joined by the US ambassador in the

capital. Things are very tense right now. I will say the capital is quite

calm and people are starting to go about their normal lives. A lot of

people have returned to work. There is a lot of tension because people

are still in fear and there are, I think, everyone is worried about, if

there is regrouping, and if the troops that are here leave and head

towards the city, there will be more casualties. What about the situation

of the United Nations. At least two armed peacekeepers who have been

killed not in Juba what is your assessment of the UN predicament as

they tried to maintain some kind of stability or not. The UN is

stretched. Everyone here had been planning for the normal humanitarian

actions which need to be taken with the situation, especially with the

refugees from Sudan. The ones that have come from blue Nile and from

the two states in the Sudan which have fled into South Sudan. No one

was expecting such an incident would occur here and spread to the state

in the way it has. They are stretched. They have more than

40,000 people in the camps. They have over 10,001 of the camps here.

And, several thousand at the other camps. They are stretched with just

trying to find a way to feed and get food and water to the camps, plus

trying to go about their patrols. What is your analysis of why this is

happening in the world 's newest nation? Is it a split in the army?

Are there different loyalties which are competing but within the new

system of governance? I believe this has taken on an ethnic nature. South

Sudan has always been fragmented with ethnic lines with loyalties to

individual commanders, as opposed to people loyal to the Commander in

Chief, the president. In some ways, it is not surprising. South Sudan

has had a long history of people defecting from one camp to a

different camp, rejoining, defecting again and we joining a different

camp. It is not surprising the same thing is happening. The tensions

have been running high for many, many months with how it has been

run. It is just the split that we had hoped would have been prevented.

Now to Russia. President Putin has signed a decree pardoning

Khodorkovsky. He was jailed ten years ago on charges of tax evasion

and embezzlement. His lawyers say he has left his prison camp in the

north-west of Russia. Khodorkovsky became an oligarch at high speed by

acquiring former state assets at knock-down prices. That is when the

Soviet Union crumbled. When Vladimir Putin became president, he took on

the oligarchs to curb the influence. He showed political ambitions and

funded anti-Putin political groups. He was arrested in 2003 on

allegations of tax evasion, fraud and embezzlement. He faced further

charges but today he has been pardoned by the president, who said

it was on humanitarian grounds due to his mother 's ailing health. What

are the risks? I asked that question because of the kind of things that

amazingly Mr Khodorkovsky has been getting published internationally

with his criticisms of the Russian system under Mr Putin. Mr Putin

would not have let him out if Mr Khodorkovsky posed a risk to the

Government. Judging from previous decisions, many decisions taken by

him on emotional grounds, he is a very personal man that he is very

practical at the same time. There is little risk, as he sees it. Use a

little risk. There he is as he appeared in court. -- you say little

risk. When someone like Khodorkovsky inside two months ago said, there is

an irremovable out of control central power, losing the ability to

adapt to an ever more changing world, a frozen stiff society,

offering no hope for the young, that is Putin 's Russia. I do not think

that is the position now. The thing is, if he appealed for clemency and

pardon, that makes him a political liability for a position, not for Mr

Putin. It is his standing as an opposition figure that would be at

risk if he agrees to take on the guilty charge, because that would be

the premise for the pardoning. At the same time, the lawyers of

Khodorkovsky say he did not appeal for the pardon and the decision

comes from Mr Putin himself. What about whether any conditions are

attached to this pardon. In another case, there was an apparent deal,

even though it was never said to be such, where there would be certain

conditions it. As that happened to Khodorkovsky? We do not know for

sure. It is about what he will do next. He will have to attend to his

mother, who is ill. He might need time to think about the next

political steps and maybe go abroad. What about his wealth? It

was said to be $15 billion. Is he still very wealthy? Does he still

had his companies? He does not. He is still probably a wealthy man and

we will see how he behaves in what he does, what he buys and sells. His

son is abroad in the state and he might go to the United States and

stay there. We do not know how much money he has. He probably has enough

for eight decent living. Thank you for joining us. Investigators are

trying to establish what caused a ceiling to collapse at a packed

London Theatre, injuring nearly 80 people. Investigators said that only

plastered fell off. Eyewitnesses said they heard a crackling noise

before a large section of ornate plaster came down. Some people say

water began dripping through cracks in the ceiling after a massive

thunderstorm in London. Our correspondent happened to be with

one of the ambulance crews that was then ordered to the scene. For one

London ambulance crew, the first word of a major incident. By

coincidence, we were filming with paramedics when news of an emergency

at the London Apollo theatre came through. Nearby theatres were soon

turned into triage centres to treat the injured. Meanwhile, emergency

services tried to establish what exactly had happened during the

performance of this award-winning play. There has been a collapse of

heavy plaster from what appears to be the roof of the auditorium in the

theatre. That has fallen down to the upper circle, the dress circle and

stalls. Consequently, we have a large number of casualties, many of

whom are walking wounded, who have been rescued by firefighters,

paramedics and police officers and have been treated and taken to

hospitals in the area. The roof collapsed above us. I heard a sharp

bang on my head. The next thing I know, I was in the foyer. Some

people thought it was part of the show. It was a noise and then all of

this rubble and plaster. I thought, it cannot be, I am hurt. You just

could not see anything. This has now been declared a major incident.

Three hospitals have been put on stand-by. This bus has been

commandeered by Ambulance Services and injured from the theatre are

being taken to Saint Thomas 's Hospital. We are performing triage

on the scene. We need to make sure they do not deteriorate. For these

theatre-goers, what should have been a night of entertainment,

accommodated instead with admission to hospital. No fatalities

thankfully but major questions as to why collapse happened.

It is three months since a terror attack on a shopping mall in

Nairobi. At least 67 people were killed. There are allegations the

Kenyan police are dishing out summary justice to people they

suspect may be connected with Islamic extremism. The police are

trained and funded by Britain and the United States. From Mombasa, our

correspondent says this special report. -- scent. Kenyan 's second

city, a thriving port and trading hub. A melting pot for cultures

either side of the Indian Ocean. It is a place where police and security

officials are concerned about Islamist extremists recruiting

young, unemployed men to jihad. In October, less than two weeks after

the attack on the Westgate shopping mall in Nairobi, a man was shot dead

in his car as he travelled from the outskirts of the city. This man

appears on UN sanctions lists accused of being a recruiter of

young Kenyan Muslims. He believes the murder was by the security

services. They are pre-empting attacks by killing anybody who has

the potential to carry out an attack or who they think has the potential

to instigate an attack. Are they picking the right people? Maybe yes

but mostly know. The anti-terror police unit receives funding,

training and equipment from Britain and the United States. The human

rights group has compiled a report containing dozens of cases of extra

judicial killings, torture and rendition, allegedly carried out by

the unit. I was following this. We have interviewed these guys and they

are confirming this. That is the reality. They want to impress the

British. They want to impress the Americans. They want to impress the

world because they are getting funding from the Americans and

getting training from the British. The international community should

go back to the training board. The anti-terror police unit did not

respond to our requests for an interview. Save the legal system in

Kennett is hampering efforts. If police are involved in this, it is

out of our authorisation. -- in Kenyan.

The British foreign office said the Government was working with Kenyan

authorities to tackle threats to UK interests and that it took

allegations of human rights abuse very seriously. In Mombasa, you do

not have to look very hard to find young, Muslim men who resent what

they say is victimisation by the police. It is the anti-terror police

unit that is killing us. They are killing our brothers. I do not have

citizenship in this country. As Muslims, we are being squeezed.

Estimates would use unemployment in Kenyan are as high as 80%. Many feel

the state has little to offer them. Stay with us on BBC World News,

still to come: The elderly Shanghai couple who're taking the Chinese

authorities to court in an extremely rare case, over the demolition of

their home. In Peru, an overcrowded bus has

fallen into a ravine in the Andes, killing 15 people, and injuring at

least 58. The bus, seen here, flipped over the mountain highway in

Ancash in the north of the country. Among the dead was a one-year-old

baby. The high-altitude roads of the Peruvian Andes are notorious for bus

plunges. Last year, more than 4,000 people were killed in such

accidents. The retired basketball star Dennis

Rodman is back in North Korea for his third visit this year. He's

understood to be arranging a basketball match in Pyongyang. It's

thought he'll also meet with the North Korean leader Kim Jong Un who

Rodman says he's very proud to have as a friend. Nichola Carroll has the

story. Arriving in a snowy peon Yang,

Dennis Rodman the self-styled basketball diplomat. Greeted by a

delegation from the Olympics committee, Rodman is arranging what

is described as a French ship game between the North Korean basketball

side and an American team of former NBA players, to take place early

next year. In two previous visits, he struck up a friendship with the

young ruler Kim Jong Un. He came to power following his father's death

in 2011. Rodman says he is there to play basketball, not politics. I

can't control what they do as a government, how they do things here.

I am just trying to come here as a sports figure, and open the door for

a lot of people in the country. The visit comes weeks after the

execution of the leader's uncle who was arrested and accused of

treason. Previously one of the most powerful men in the country, never

far from his nephew's side, his demise is a reminder of the speed

with which power can shift within the secretive regime. Despite

political tensions, Rodman said he would not discuss the matter but Kim

Jong Un. The US State Department has issued a statement distancing the US

administration the visit. There have been dramatic scenes in

the Mexican city of Oaxaca, as parents clashed with teachers - who

were on strike - at a primary school. According to local media,

the teachers tried to forcibly enter the school, even though they were

holding industrial action and not working. Parents at the scene

accused the teachers of provoking violence. Police then launched tear

gas to calm the situation. In September, Mexico's Congress

approved a bill to overhaul the country's education system and tame

a powerful teachers' union many blame for hurting poor schooling.

This is BBC World News. I'm Nik Gowing. The latest headlines: At

least two UN peacekeepers have died in an attack on a United Nations

compound in South Sudan. President Obama has warned that the

country is on the "precipice" of civil war.

Kremlin critic and former business tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky receives

a pardon from President Putin, ten years after he was jailed.

It is a rare legal case. A 75-year-old Shanghai man is suing

the Chinese authorities. This is after his home was forcibly

demolished. Few such cases ever reach the courts. That is despite

the many thousands of forceful evictions that take place in China

every year. But Liu Guangjia has been given a hearing. He wants the

equivalent of $48 million US in compensation. From Shanghai, the

BBC's John Sudworth. In a video filmed by the Chinese

authorities themselves and shown to the court, government agents are

sizing up the property prior to its demolition. One of them can be asked

-- can be heard asking if he can take some of the items. Another

laughs. The owners, 75-year-old Liu Guangjia and his wife were not there

to see the demolition of their home, because the thugs took them away and

locked them up. They twisted my arm behind my back, he tells me. I heard

a crack from a shoulder. Then they threw me in the back of the van and

covered my head. This was their home. A 5000 square metre plot on

which they had built a free museum showing off their huge collection of

bonsai trees and other historical items. When the couple were released

from their captivity by the authorities, they returned to find

their home and everything in it had been flattened. All that remains

today are these fragments of the large stones that stood at the

entrance. And by the museum itself once was, today, there are now two

brand-new apartment blocks. It is nothing new. Violent land grabs by

local governments are often the way development is done in China. What

is unusual is for a victim to be given their day in court. The case

is very significant, his lawyer tells me, because it is very

difficult for civilians to sue the government. If we can win, he says,

it can show the courts can be a beloved political control. -- be

above. Liu Guangjia is seeking $48 billion in compensation. The

authorities argue the demolition was legal. For once, the claim is being

tested. Arguments between football club

owners and managers usually end one way - in the manager being replaced.

That seems the inevitable fate for the boss of English Premier League

side Cardiff City manager. Malky Mackay been told by the club's owner

Vincent Tan to resign or face being sacked. In a letter emailed to the

manager, it's understood Tan listed in depth his grievances in areas

like signings, transfer budgets, results on the pitch and style of

play. With me is the BBC's sports reporter

David Ornstein who broke the story for us. What has been going on in

Cardiff? This goes right back to the time

when Vincent Tan tried to change the shirt collar that Cardiff playing,

from their traditional blue, to read. Then, he had complaints about

Malky Mackay's transfer dealings, spending too much on players over

summer. The tension between the two has been simmering, to the point

where their relationship is now irreparably damaged. It has come to

ahead with e-mail. It was quite explosive. Vincent Tan listing

criticisms of Malky Mackay one by one, and in-depth list, very

insulting actually. It finished by saying, as you say, resigned or you

will be sacked. Now he needs to make a decision, Malky Mackay, should he

resist and let them push him, or should he walk away.

Vincent Tan is a controversial Malaysia and businessmen,

controversial in Cardiff as well. What about the idea anything like

this is communicated by e-mail to the manager? Is that the way to run

a football club? It is not. Unfortunately, this is more commonly

the way of the world in football these days, with foreign and ship --

ownership in the Premiership. This is the way things are happening. An

unceremonious sacking. This is how it is going to end. The owners are

ruthless. As you said, there is only going to be one winner in this.

Malky Mackay was questioned about this. He said, without being boring,

it has been a normal week for me. Actually, that is what he said at

the start of the week. He also said, I won't be walking away. But

at two-day's press conference, he put his assistant. He did not speak

about this specific story. He knows this needs to be sorted one way or

the other. They play Liverpool tomorrow, Cardiff, we don't even

know if Malky Mackay will be on the touchline. Will he be sacked before

or after? He won't be Cardiff manager for long because Vincent

Tan, this ruthless Malaysia and businessmen, will get his own way.

It raises the question, if the relationship between manager and

players will be by e-mail? Do they take to social media rather than

communicating verbally? It is an inhuman way to do it. UC -- this is

staggering. More than 300 kilometres above the

earth's surface the world's first robot astronaut has been having his

first conversation in space. The Japanese robot, known as Kirobo, was

launched in August. Now he's aboard the International Space Station, and

has been talking to its commander. When asked about how he felt being

in zero gravity, he replied, I am used to it, no problem at all.

Apparently, the conversation became more fluid over time.

We end with images from South Sudan