25/09/2014 BBC World News

Hello. The top story... 12 refineries in Syria held by Islamic

State are attacked by the US-led coalition. A point by point

refutation of the Islamic State reputation is circulated by Islamic

scholars. A footballer denies rumours he is linked to the death of

his best friend. Not being John Malkovich. The actor features in a

series of iconic photos that have gone viral around the world.

Hello and welcome to the programme. The United States has carried out a

third night of the air strikes against Islamic State positions in

Syria. Well all refineries in three different parts of eastern Syria

were attacked in a bid to damage the group's financial assets. The

Department of defence thinks those refineries are worth around $2

million every day for Islamic State. It also confirmed warplanes from

Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates were involved in the latest

attacks. Reports suggest 14 fighters and five civilians were killed. The

air strikes have gained further international support at the United

Nations in New York. Our correspondent joins us from the

turkey Syrian border. He says people who fled from Syria are starting to

return home. This crowd of people behind me are Syrian Kurdish in

nationality and they are now trying to go back to their homes. You can

see this crowd here of men, women and children carrying what

belongings they can. They are trying to go back to their hometown. Some

of them are trying to fight the Islamic State jihadists. Some are

going back to see their family. The numbers are small in comparison to

the huge influx that has crossed from Syria into Turkey. The fact

that you are beginning to see traffic in the other direction is a

sign that people are beginning to feel a degree of safety in going

back. That may be down to the air strikes or perhaps they feel the

determination to go back is still unclear at this stage but clearly

this will be welcomed either Turkish authorities who feel overwhelmed by

that huge wave of people coming in. We have some fresh news from London.

The Metropolitan Police say officers have arrested nine men as part of

the investigation into Islamist related terrorism. The men are aged

between 22 and 51 and were detained during raids in London in the last

few hours. Anjem Chowdry, a radical preacher, is understood to be among

them and officers are searching premises across the capital and in

the North of England. Muslim scholars and leaders across the

world are being asked to put their names to an open letter denouncing

Islamic State bulletins. More than 100 have signed so far and it offers

a religious point by point argument against the group's ideology. They

say in military campaign would not be enough to defeat the group. With

me is I defence correspondent. It is a battle of minds that is gaining

traction? That is correct. We have seen young people on social media

saying not in my name, in the wake of headings of Western hostages.

This is an interesting document because it is a battle of ideas as

much as it is a military campaign against Islamic State. What these

scholars do and the document was released at a press Conference in

Washington, they said at point by point by the ideology of Islamic

State in their view is against the mainstream of Islamic banking and

thought. They say things like it is forbidden to kill emissaries and

ambassadors or diplomats and they extend that to include journalists

and aid workers. They say it is forbidden to declare a caliphate or

Islamic State and that is what Islamic State have done without

consensus from all Muslims. It is written in a very approachable way

and the English translation is simple and do something that would

be useful I think to Muslims in trying to extend the argument but

equally it would be important for non-Muslims who perhaps had early

little understanding of Islam. I suppose, to be realistic, any

argument coming from the West pointed at Islamic State will be

laughed at and you can understand that but I suppose this is much

closer to home. They are being criticised from within. It is

indeed. Was released in Washington and it has the name of many Islamic

scholars from around the world and many of them in the Middle East. It

is interesting that many of them are in Egypt and that country feels

threatened by Islamic State, for a few that I can see from the golf or

Saudi Arabia, but as you said, the idea now is that others should be

able to put their names to this. Does this have in any shape or form

Western backing? Is this an independent initiative? And what I

can see, this is independent amongst the scholars. In any other names

come from people who are by no means active in Western countries are

bolder or Muslim academics who have their names down there as well who

work in Western universities. Interesting. Thank you very much.

The French government has confirmed militants linked to Islamic State

have murdered a tourist overholding in Algeria. The group released a

video showing one being beheaded. At the United Nations, the French

President said it was a barbaric act and said France would not give in to

terrorism. Earlier I spoke to an Algerian journalist and he told me

more about the group that killed Herve Goudel. This group, soldiers

of the caliphate, our new dissidents. They have been operating

in the mountains. These groups are dissidents and they joined Islamic

State recently. They operated and this is the first time they appeared

in this operation. This group is led by a young man, aged 37. He was in

prison in the late 90s and was released during the process of

natural reconciliation and he is now operating in the mountains. There is

a huge manhunt under way for him led by the forces in Algeria. Over 2000

soldiers with full military equipment are engaged in a huge

operation in order to search for the group and destroy it. Breaking news

from France. The country announces it is to introduce plain cigarette

packaging and ban electronic cigarettes in certain public places.

It's all to try and reduce high smoking rates among the under 16 age

group. The health Minister says cigarette packets would be the same

shape, size, colour and type set to make smoking less attractive to

young people. Stay with us and we will bring you more on that as it

comes in. Brazilian researchers in Rio de

Janeiro have released thousands of mosquitoes to help tackle fever.

They are a special breed infected with the bacteria that suppresses

the fever. It is part of a programme taking place in Australia, Vietnam

and Indonesia. This is a big moment. These mosquitoes are being released

out into the open. You think people would run away but this media

circus, all of the attention that it generates is because these are

special musky dose. They are the same kind that transmit this special

fever. -- mosquitoes. They will be tested as a way to avoid the fever

spreading and it is a big problem in Brazil. This is the first place in

Brazil and on the American continent to receive the special mosquitoes.

This woman has a daughter who is aged 21 and she had the fever three

times in the last few years. I you happy about this project? She says

she is very happy. They believe this will help to end the problem. She

has opened up her house for researchers to set up a trap to

collect the mosquitoes so they can keep track of the population. I am

here with the head of the research. He has a little pot full of

mosquitoes! Why does the time frame for this project matter and how long

will it take for residents to feel any effect? It will be the end of

the year and next season we will probably see a reduction in the

number of fever cases. Last year, Brazil had 1.5 million cases of

fever in the country and the back here in these mosquitoes is actually

common. It is present in 60% of insects in nature but it cannot

infect humans. They now represent a new hope to eradicate the fever in

this community and perhaps in the country. Stay with us. Still to

come... The peril for consumers of pesticide users. International

agencies move to tackle residue in food and we take a look at India for

the danger is not widely recognised. New research has found that women

who consistently gain weight and go up a skirt size every decade are

increasing their risk of developing breast cancer. Weight gain has long

been associated with an increased risk of cancer but this new study of

more than 90,000 women over the age of 50 indicates that putting on

weight around the waist is harmful. Putting on a bit of weight as we get

orders seems inevitable. I think ladies my age think it is my age and

you spread out. You have had your family. You are retired. It all adds

up. I was probably just over seven stone and I am nine stone now. My

waist has widened. I look after myself, I exercise, but I did not

know that increasing your dress size could contribute. It seems that a

growing waist measured by an increasing skirt size could also

increase the risk of breast cancer. Researchers studied 93,000 older

women aged over 50 and compared her skirt size in their 20s to now.

Those who consistently went up a size every decade increased the risk

of breast cancer by 33%. Abdominal fat is associated with an increased

risk of cancer and one of the cancer is postmenopausal breast cancer. It

seems to work through boosting oestrogen levels. There is a link

between oestrogen. There are also other factors. Some experts

questioned the reliability of women remembering what size they were 30

years ago, not to mention dress sizes have changed over the years.

But keeping a healthy weight, staying physically active and

cutting down on alcohol are still the best ways to reduce the risk of

breast cancer. Some work breaking news. -- some

more. Coming into us from Paris. The French government says it has led

further air strikes against Islamic State militants in Iraq. We have

heard about the US air strikes for the third day running in Syria but

the French say they have led strikes in Iraq. The United Nations is

expected to make new recommendations to deal with pesticide residues in

food. The continued use of highly hazardous pesticide remains a

problem in some developing countries. The UN thinks the biggest

challenge is in India and a lot of banned products are still widely

used. The United Nations is pressing many developing countries to ban the

use of old and harmful pesticides in fields like these. They have an

effect on human health and the environment. While many countries

such as China and Vietnam have complied, some have not. Here in

India, old pesticides are still widely used. Some farmers say they

have suffered the consequences. TRANSLATION: The air, water and

food, everything has been poisoned and that has effect did our health.

My sister and wife both died of cancer. Pesticides have played a

major role in all of this. These fields in Punjab were transformed in

the 1960s by the green revolution. They are all attempting to become

self-sufficient through the application of modern agricultural

techniques. The green revolution. That is what the state is known for.

It is the breadbasket of India. It has played a leading role in food

security. Now there are fears that Punjab may play -- K a high price

because of the revolution. Best designs and is on considered

extremely dangerous and still available in shops in Punjab. --

pesticides such as these are considered. The government claims

that India's needs are different from other countries. I think that

the Indian government does not necessarily look at these things in

the same way because India has a different agricultural system. It is

not only about food security, needing to feed India's massive 1.2

billion population, but also about business. India is a

multibillion-dollar exporter of pesticides. And industry presenters

deny that there is a problem. I would like to clarify that not a

single pesticide is used in India today. These are bogus stories

created by outside interests. But here, we met farmers using these

both internationally banned pesticides, as well as those

outlawed in India. Despite their obvious effects, the farmers say

that this on the do not have a choice. It seems as though a

21st-century green revolution were pesticides are replaced by safer

alternatives is, for India at least, a long way off.

The canton of Ghana's football team, Asamoah Joanne, says that claims

that he killed his friend as part of a ritual sacrifice our wild and

absurd. -- Asamoah Gyan. Allegations in Ghana's media suggested that the

disappearance of Castro was suspicious. First, let's get the

detail from on the ground. Our correspondent joins us now. This is

just the most extraordinary story. Give us some more background.

Indeed. It is a trending story in Ghana. What happened was that in

July, Castro and Asamoah Jan, both musicians, who have collaborated in

the past, they decided to go on a holiday at a particular beach here

and then they went on a jet ski. Castro is suspected to have drowned.

Since July, the police had been searching for him and he has not

been found. The rumour went wild. People say that Asamoah Gyan had

people around him, including his mother, that have died, even before

or after a tour in. And they have suggested that he could have been

using these people for rituals. This is a wild allegation but believe it

or not people here will hold on to it. And Asamoah Gyan, through these

times, people had been expecting him to talk about it. A journalist with

a national newspaper as imposed this daring question to him, before he

played in the cup of Nations qualifier. -- has posed. And then

his brother, also a player, has authorised his friends to be his

journalist up, because he was enraged. This is why Asamoah Gyan

had his lawyer speak about this matter at a press conference and the

lawyer has said that Asamoah Gyan has had no role in the disappearance

of his music partner, Castro. I'm going to cut you shot there. The

most extraordinary and convoluted story. Obviously, a full

investigation taking place but that is what it is about. No wonder it is

going bonkers on social media. Yes. Football and footballers are huge in

Ghana. Asamoah Gyan is extremely well-known with nearly 300,000

followers on Twitter. He is known to tweet links to his website about

matches that he has played in and details about his life. Ever since

this rapper and his partner went missing, the rumours have started to

circulate on social media. They have built up in previous weeks and they

have gathered pace. The -- to the point that he has had to take the

unusual step of addressing these claims. He went on to Twitter to

announce news of the press conference, and I think we can see

that on our screens. He tweeted, time to speak up on salient issues.

Event we did yesterday, after the press conference had been heard, in

which he tweeted, it has been long in coming but better late than

never, I hope this helps. He was also playing, back on the pitch last

night. He scored a goal and assisted in setting up two others. He put out

another tweet, alluding to what had happened earlier that day, in which

he said another goal and two assists on such a day, thank you God. Just

extraordinary that he can focus on the football at all. I'm sure we

will be hearing more about that story.

John Malkovich has featured in a series recreating more than 40

iconic photos taken with incredible detail and care by the

photographer, Sandra Miller. He started this project to fight back

against what he sees as social media's negative effects on his

artform. We have been speaking to him. This is Malkovich, not

Whitehall. But the project is truly about me paying homage to these 30

plus photographs that, over my 40 year career, has completely changed

the way I look and think about photography. My mind began to think,

what if two what if Irene grated those images with John Malkovich?

John is willing to experiment and has no fear. And he would get in

front of the camera and I would see him, with the fullest confidence,

transforming himself into Marilyn Monroe. Betty Davis. My

grandmother. Salvador. Picasso. -- the migrant mother. Every element

was recreated. Our make-up artist researched that here. We brought in

here from all over the country. We took every shot we needed to dissect

it, and figure out where the photographer was at that time. What

kind of light was he using, and my goal was to stay as true to what a

photographer could use. Most of the time, getting ready for these shots

took two hours in here and make up. And John would study his

photographs, and they could see him go there. He would go to that time,

to that place, and become that person. I think the one that really

amazes me is the Diane Arbus twins shot. Just to see the difference in

the mind of both of those twins. One accepting the photographer and

actually may be enjoying the moment a little bit, while the other shows

fear, and hesitation. John nailed both of those expressions.

Beautifully. In the day's world, with the internet, we are absolutely

bombarded with imagery. Everyone has become a photographer. It's the gram

has gone absolutely crazy. It is tough. It is hard to see all of this

work, it, most of it with no thought behind it. -- instead gram. I was

hoping that I might be able to create a little bit of awareness of

classic, iconic imagery, not just putting images out, but putting an

image out. Let's think about it, let's think about what we're

capturing, let's have an idea. Sandro Miller, a bit of a Magnus

Opus. The office of the British Prime

Minister has announced the David Cameron is to offer an apology in

person to the Queen actually was caught on camera giving details of a

private conversation they have had. The audio is not great, hence the

subtitles but you can see what he is saying.

Saying that the Queen was purring then the line when he phoned her to

tell her about the results of the referendum. I think perhaps David

Cameron was a little naive to think that is conversation would not be

hooked -- picked up. But it is also slightly boastful, saying that the

Queen was so relieved, slightly boasting, which is quite

unnecessary. I think he feels genuinely ashamed. Ashamed that he

made this gaffe. And gas are made from time to time. What sort of

reception will he get, do you think, from the Queen? Politically, no

Prime Minister has ever -- is ever meant to disclose anything about his

conversations with the Queen. And that is because the Queen is above

politics. We have no written constitution so she is above

politics, she is the head of state but no politics. So from that

constitutional point of view, it is a big gaffe. But knowing the Queen,

and her sense of humour, she is an 88-year-old lady. He is her 12th

Prime Minister and have been mistakes before. I'm really think

she will not rang him like a schoolteacher. It would be a shock

if she was anything other than believed and purring down the line

wouldn't it? Keeping the United Kingdom together, it is part of her

heritage. She is the Queen of the United Kingdom, yes. Although she

really wanted the best for the Scots people because she loves them, she

could not, you knew that she wanted to keep the kingdom together. Give

us an idea, if you can. I know that from the depths of the past, how

sensitive you have to be about protocol? You have to be extremely

sensitive if you are the Prime Minister. The Queen, as she has

aged, she needs a few amusing instances to keep life interesting.

She likes a gaffe, but with the Prime Minister, it is

I'm a friend of the Archbishop of Canterbury.

What exactly does it entail, this job?

There aren't many mums who'd let their sons run off to join

the circus. Welcome to Keele University.

You can't just get things by asking. I can. Is Tony Benn in today?

How do you fancy coming to work for me? Kit man.