:00:07. > :00:14.This is BBC World News Today with me Philippa Thomas.
:00:15. > :00:21.The Russian flag flies over and other city in Ukraine. Pro-Russian
:00:22. > :00:26.activists storm buildings in the city of Luhansk.
:00:27. > :00:29.The worst he's ever seen - preparations for the 2016 Rio
:00:30. > :00:31.Olympics are hammered by the IOC's Vice President.
:00:32. > :00:34.Our Middle East Editor asks what remains of the peace initiative now
:00:35. > :00:42.the US deadline for talks between Israel and the Palestinians has
:00:43. > :00:45.passed without agreement. Perhaps the time has come to accept
:00:46. > :00:48.that the two state solution is not going to happen.
:00:49. > :01:04.Inside Tutankhamun's tomb or is it? A replica is revealed in Egypt and
:01:05. > :01:07.we'll tell you why. Hello and welcome. Another day,
:01:08. > :01:14.another opportunity for pro-Russian activists to flex their muscles in
:01:15. > :01:17.eastern Ukraine. Today they've stormed several official buildings
:01:18. > :01:19.in the city of Luhansk. They seized the regional government's
:01:20. > :01:30.headquarters and the prosecutor's office. Armed men later attacked the
:01:31. > :01:33.main police station. Ukraine's acting President has criticised
:01:34. > :01:40.local police for what he calls their inaction and criminal treachery. Our
:01:41. > :01:48.correspondent has just sent us this report.
:01:49. > :01:55.With each day the city of here that seems to lose more and more control
:01:56. > :02:01.in eastern Ukraine. This is Luhansk. Pro-Russian activists smashed their
:02:02. > :02:09.way into the regional administration building. The windows are broken and
:02:10. > :02:14.the crowd climbs in. They've made no secret of their political
:02:15. > :02:19.sympathies. These sub fought Moscow. They reject the Ukrainian government
:02:20. > :02:26.which they see as illegitimate. They are demanding a referendum on
:02:27. > :02:29.breaking away from the city of Kiev. It was not long before this office
:02:30. > :02:37.had a new receptionist. The intruders are determined to stay
:02:38. > :02:46.here. The police did nothing to stop this. They left the building without
:02:47. > :02:51.fighting back. Four days pro-Russian groups, some of them heavily armed,
:02:52. > :02:55.have been seizing government buildings and police stations across
:02:56. > :03:01.the region. The West has accused Russia of stoking separatists
:03:02. > :03:06.centred -- sentiment here. Today the EU announced new sanctions against
:03:07. > :03:11.Moscow. These are banned some asset freezes against 15 individuals. They
:03:12. > :03:17.include the Russian Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Kozak. It also
:03:18. > :03:22.includes the head of military intelligence and the chief of the
:03:23. > :03:28.General staff of the Russian armed forces. Tonight in Luhansk, the
:03:29. > :03:32.crowd moved on to police headquarters to try and take over
:03:33. > :03:36.here as well. They are seeking complete control over this town and
:03:37. > :03:46.for now, it seems that Kiev is powerless to stop them.
:03:47. > :03:51.The US Secretary of State John Kerry has spoken in the last few minutes
:03:52. > :03:54.about what is happening. He said events there were a wake-up call for
:03:55. > :04:05.NATO and Russia is playing by a different set of rules.
:04:06. > :04:12.Most importantly, it together we must make it clear to the Kremlin
:04:13. > :04:18.that NATO territory is not intended to be violated. We will defend every
:04:19. > :04:23.single bit of that. The NATO treaty must mean something. Our allies on
:04:24. > :04:26.the front line need and deserve no less.
:04:27. > :04:32.Let's get the latest on the situation in eastern Ukraine with
:04:33. > :04:36.Sarah Rainsford who is in Donetsk. We have just heard from our
:04:37. > :04:41.correspondent that the Ukrainian authorities appear to be powerless.
:04:42. > :04:47.They do not seem to have control. That is absolutely correct. We have
:04:48. > :04:56.seen the takeover of several key buildings and official holdings.
:04:57. > :05:02.First of all, the administrative headquarters were taken over without
:05:03. > :05:09.any resistance. Then the prosecutors office was overrun by a crowd of
:05:10. > :05:18.pro-Russian activists. Then the police headquarters was taken over
:05:19. > :05:28.by as well. A large crowd shouted at officials inside. Troops inside were
:05:29. > :05:34.ordered to come out. People inside -- in charge of the storming of the
:05:35. > :05:39.building had in trying to negotiate a handover of weapons. There is a
:05:40. > :05:46.large crowd outside and it has been reported that some shots were fired.
:05:47. > :05:50.We understand that some stun grenades were thrown as well but as
:05:51. > :05:57.far as we know no one has been reported as hurt. The key buildings
:05:58. > :06:05.have fallen to pro-Russian separatist groups. These are
:06:06. > :06:10.dramatic moments. Is it possible to say how much support these groups
:06:11. > :06:17.have in the city? Are they getting hundreds and thousands of people
:06:18. > :06:24.watching them? Not in those numbers, but there is a sizeable crowd here
:06:25. > :06:28.nonetheless. There have been big crowds at a number of events.
:06:29. > :06:37.Certainly, there is a lot of support and anger in Kiev. We had spoken to
:06:38. > :06:41.a number of people today. They say they do not feel represented by Kiev
:06:42. > :06:47.but they do not necessarily support the armed takeover of holdings. A
:06:48. > :06:51.lot of people are extremely unhappy with the situation here but they are
:06:52. > :06:55.not supporting armed action and they are extremely worried about it. That
:06:56. > :07:01.is the main concern from some people we have spoken to. They do not want
:07:02. > :07:12.to see significant balance. That is the last thing that they want. --
:07:13. > :07:17.significant violence. Some people even support becoming a part of
:07:18. > :07:22.Russia but there is no great support in this Russia -- this region for
:07:23. > :07:31.the violence that has been exhibited. We can go to Libya now.
:07:32. > :07:44.There have been reports that gun had stormed the parliament in Surrey --
:07:45. > :07:49.the parliament in Tripoli. Our correspondent joins us. What can you
:07:50. > :07:59.tell us? We know that gunman forced their way into the parliament in
:08:00. > :08:05.Tripoli. -- several gunman. Pictures have just come into worse. Witnesses
:08:06. > :08:11.have told us that a lot of shots were fired but these were fired in
:08:12. > :08:15.the air. When the shots were fired, most of those inside left the
:08:16. > :08:21.building. We understand that there is no one inside the building at the
:08:22. > :08:32.moment. It is not entirely clear whether the gunman have still left.
:08:33. > :08:35.This episode the back of a special session to date which was intended
:08:36. > :08:41.to put in a new Prime Minister for the country. They were in the middle
:08:42. > :08:49.of voting and it is understood the voting was in deadlock. A number of
:08:50. > :08:53.matters are being discussed on how to move forward and actually select
:08:54. > :09:18.a Prime Minister between the top two candidates that were it to date. --
:09:19. > :09:20.that were picked today. Thank you. ?NEWLINE The International Olympic
:09:21. > :09:23.Committee Vice President says that preparations for the 2016 Rio
:09:24. > :09:26.Olympics are the "worst" he's ever seen. John Coates described the
:09:27. > :09:32.situation as "critical", and warned that there is no plan B to find
:09:33. > :09:41.another host city. 18 of the federations said they were not
:09:42. > :09:45.ready. This is in the case of some of the Olympic Parks. Construction
:09:46. > :09:51.has not even commenced in some areas. Water quality is a
:09:52. > :10:01.significant concern for the watersports events. There is little
:10:02. > :10:05.progress in those areas. The Olympic village seems to be on track. A lot
:10:06. > :10:24.of the connect ding is significantly delayed. -- connecting areas.
:10:25. > :10:31.Let's go now to the BBC's Katy Watson who is in Sao Paulo. The
:10:32. > :10:36.organisers have responded and said the time has now has to win the
:10:37. > :10:40.general discussion about progress contributes to the progress of the
:10:41. > :10:46.games. They also go on to say that the Olympic Games will be delivered
:10:47. > :10:54.within the agreed time frame. That is a defiant statement. But it is
:10:55. > :11:01.having to accept outside help now. The IOC are sending in experts to
:11:02. > :11:07.help them. That is correct. It is an unprecedented step. The more
:11:08. > :11:11.pressing issue, and it is a battle on several fronts, is the issue of
:11:12. > :11:17.the World Cup which is just under a month away. Brazil is really
:11:18. > :11:24.suffering from seeing protests in Rio. There are headlines coming out
:11:25. > :11:31.every day about infrastructure projects. That is the most pressing
:11:32. > :11:37.battle. Perhaps when the World Cup has finished, then the issue of the
:11:38. > :11:46.Olympics will come to the forefront. For now, the World Cup is more
:11:47. > :11:49.pressing. Thank you. A US deadline on peace talks between
:11:50. > :11:52.Israel and the Palestinians has passed without any agreement being
:11:53. > :11:54.reached. Israel's Prime Minister Netanyahu suspended the talks last
:11:55. > :11:58.week, after his Palestinian talks partner Fatah agreed a unity deal
:11:59. > :12:01.with the more militant Hamas. Talks have been happening, on and off, for
:12:02. > :12:06.more than 20 years. The negotiations have failed, time and again. Our
:12:07. > :12:09.Middle East Editor Jeremy Bowen is in Jerusalem, wondering if the two
:12:10. > :12:22.state solution just isn't going to happen. Jerusalem has been fought
:12:23. > :12:26.over since people settled here more than 6000 years ago.
:12:27. > :12:28.For more than 20 years off and on Palestinians and Israelis have
:12:29. > :12:32.negotiated peace. Hope has given way to despair and then cynicism. Now it
:12:33. > :12:34.is hard to find Palestinians or Israelis who care much about the
:12:35. > :12:38.latest negotiating failure. There have been too many of them. The last
:12:39. > :12:41.round of peace talks collapsed with Palestinians and Israelis blaming
:12:42. > :12:46.each other and President Obama blaming both of them. Since the
:12:47. > :12:49.peace process started more than 20 years ago it has been about trying
:12:50. > :12:57.to create a Palestinian state alongside Israel so they divide the
:12:58. > :13:03.land that they fought over. More than two decades on peace seems as
:13:04. > :13:06.far away as ever. Perhaps the time has come to accept that the two
:13:07. > :13:15.state solution is not going to happen. Israel has occupied the West
:13:16. > :13:20.bank including East Jerusalem since the 1967 war. After Jerusalem, the
:13:21. > :13:26.most contested city is Hebron, the burial city of the Prophet Abraham.
:13:27. > :13:35.Behind heavy security a small number of Jewish settlers live right next
:13:36. > :13:38.to more than 150,000 Palestinians. This man's father led the first
:13:39. > :13:45.Jewish settlers back to Hebron in 1967. He believes God wants Jews to
:13:46. > :13:55.live in Hebron and is raising seven children here.
:13:56. > :13:59.Talks are at best an irritant. I do not think talks will go anywhere.
:14:00. > :14:07.For close to 20 years the state of Israel has been giving and giving. I
:14:08. > :14:11.do not believe in it. I think the reality for Jews in Hebron is like
:14:12. > :14:19.the reality for Israel in the Middle East. The Arabs would be more
:14:20. > :14:23.comfortable if we did not exist. Palestinians and Israelis say they
:14:24. > :14:26.want peace but when you cross the line from one side to another you
:14:27. > :14:31.realise that their views of what peace should look like very
:14:32. > :14:35.different. And in the absence of peace mutual hatred is never far
:14:36. > :14:48.below the surface and is boiling up again. This house in Jerusalem was
:14:49. > :14:53.bulldozed last summer after the Israeli authorities said it was
:14:54. > :14:59.built illegally. For a while its Palestinian owner lived with his
:15:00. > :15:07.family in this cave. He stayed on to protest. Now he has been served
:15:08. > :15:15.papers saying that the lean-to he built must be demolished.
:15:16. > :15:18.TRANSLATION: The negotiations are a big illusion. They didn't achieve
:15:19. > :15:21.anything and they won't because the Israelis are using the negotiations
:15:22. > :15:26.as a cover to establish more settlements and to confiscate more
:15:27. > :15:30.land from Palestinians. The negotiations are a waste of time.
:15:31. > :15:36.They don't want any Arabs or Muslims here. Peace talks started because
:15:37. > :15:42.two peoples went to war over the same piece of land. They have helped
:15:43. > :15:45.manage the conflict but not stop it. Tension is rising. Another perfect
:15:46. > :15:58.sunset over the holy city cannot disguise a stormy future.
:15:59. > :16:01.In Washington is Aaron David Miller. He's advised both Republican and
:16:02. > :16:07.Democratic Secretaries of State and is now with the Middle East
:16:08. > :16:17.Programme at the Wilson Centre. Do you think these talks can be
:16:18. > :16:26.revived? Maybe. But revival is one thing. Continuation of the peace
:16:27. > :16:29.process is one thing. Reaching a conflict ending agreement which
:16:30. > :16:35.addresses the underlying concerns and requirements of both sides is
:16:36. > :16:47.another. The process is failing, not for any magical reason, but because
:16:48. > :16:59.neither Netanyahu or managed a bass -- mannered a bass -- the
:17:00. > :17:06.Palestinian president are willing to talk. If neither side truly owns it
:17:07. > :17:14.then the process cannot have traction. There is really
:17:15. > :17:20.Palestinian peace process suffers from many things. When you strip it
:17:21. > :17:27.all away, it suffers from one fundamental problem. Neither side,
:17:28. > :17:33.and I include the Americans, are prepared to pay the price of what it
:17:34. > :17:42.will cost to produce a conflict ending agreement. John Kerry has
:17:43. > :17:47.tried to get the Israelis and Palestinians to take ownership. He
:17:48. > :17:54.has made it his mission and it has failed. What does he do now? I
:17:55. > :18:02.worked for some secretaries of State, some of whom succeeded and
:18:03. > :18:05.some didn't. John Kerry is to be given great credit for his
:18:06. > :18:11.relentlessness and pursuit of this process but it is not the John Kerry
:18:12. > :18:14.Administration. This is the president Obama administration. It
:18:15. > :18:20.seems that the President has come to a different conclusion. He is more
:18:21. > :18:28.focused on his legacy with the middle class than the Middle East.
:18:29. > :18:38.On this point, I think he is right. F Netanyahu and Abbas aren't
:18:39. > :18:44.prepared to make these decisions, why would any president wants to
:18:45. > :18:49.risk what remains of a second term to spend the political capital and
:18:50. > :18:54.time required when in fact there is insufficient ownership? I am not one
:18:55. > :19:00.of those who argue that somehow we can create that ownership. We
:19:01. > :19:07.cannot. Every breakthrough in this region since the early 70s was
:19:08. > :19:14.driven by pain and gain which appeared in a localised form. Once
:19:15. > :19:21.it did appear, the US, whether it was Henry Kissinger, Jimmy Carter,
:19:22. > :19:27.George Bush, were able to take advantage of those openings.
:19:28. > :19:31.Ownership is local and unless we are similarly to that fact we will
:19:32. > :19:46.continue to pursue a process that is in essence a key to an empty room.
:19:47. > :19:48.As divers continue to recover bodies from the sunken South Korean ferry,
:19:49. > :19:52.President Park Geun-Hye has apologised for failing to prevent
:19:53. > :19:55.the disaster that has left more than 300 people dead or missing. At a
:19:56. > :19:58.memorial for the 250 schoolchildren who were on board, she apologised
:19:59. > :20:00.for the slow response to the tragedy. The BBC's Emily Buchanan
:20:01. > :20:06.has more. The vast new memorial brings home
:20:07. > :20:11.the sheer scale of the disaster. Hundreds of young faces stare out
:20:12. > :20:19.from it. For their families, their grief was overwhelming. TRANSLATION:
:20:20. > :20:22.I was crying so much I couldn't even look at the faces of the children.
:20:23. > :20:28.It hurt so much. South Korea's president came to pay her respects.
:20:29. > :20:31.Her government is under enormous pressure over the slow response and
:20:32. > :20:36.lax regulation of the shipping industry. She has promised a new
:20:37. > :20:41.department to deal with major catastrophes. TRANSLATION: I should
:20:42. > :20:44.apologise for being unable to prevent the accident and for the
:20:45. > :20:50.insufficiency in taking initial action. I wonder if this apology
:20:51. > :20:58.will be able to comfort those hurt and ease their pain, as it breaks my
:20:59. > :21:01.heart. What made the ferry capsize is still not clear but gaping
:21:02. > :21:08.failures in the rescue operation have provoked outrage. Many of the
:21:09. > :21:15.teenagers on board were told to stay seated while members of the crew
:21:16. > :21:19.scrambled to safety. There are still dozens of bodies missing and the
:21:20. > :21:25.grim search for them goes on. Divers have been hampered by strong
:21:26. > :21:30.currents. Most of the dead and missing are children from one high
:21:31. > :21:33.school. A whole community has been devastated. The emotional and
:21:34. > :22:01.political fallout has only just begun.
:22:02. > :22:07.We have breaking news. The NBA has banned Donald Sterling for life. He
:22:08. > :22:11.has been fined $2.5 million and banned from games and associating
:22:12. > :22:19.with players because he is alleged to have made racist comments. That
:22:20. > :22:31.is breaking news out of the United States of America. The NBA has
:22:32. > :22:33.banned Donald Sterling for life. There's been another spike in
:22:34. > :22:37.violence in Syria, where mortar attacks in the capital Damascus have
:22:38. > :22:40.killed at least 14 people and wounded more than 80. Most of the
:22:41. > :22:46.casualties are students of a college hit by two of the shells. These
:22:47. > :22:49.pictures show the aftermath of that attack, which Syria's government is
:22:50. > :22:52.blaming on rebel fighters. In a separate incident, officials say a
:22:53. > :22:58.car bomb in the city of Homs has killed at least 37 and wounded more
:22:59. > :23:02.than 80. A replica of one of the world's most
:23:03. > :23:05.famous antiquities - the tomb of Tutankhamun - is to be unveiled near
:23:06. > :23:09.the site of the original in Egypt. It's been commissioned to save the
:23:10. > :23:12.real tomb from the wear and tear that tourists inflict. But will they
:23:13. > :23:15.be happy with a copy? Rajan Datar reports.
:23:16. > :23:18.The Valley of the Kings in Luxor contains some of the most famous and
:23:19. > :23:21.most visited ancient burial chambers in the world. But the most
:23:22. > :23:24.celebrated is the tomb of the boy king Tutankhamun, discovered by a
:23:25. > :23:30.team led by the British archaeologist Howard Carter in 1922.
:23:31. > :23:36.For more than 3000 years, this tomb survived intact in almost pristine
:23:37. > :23:39.condition. But after only nine decades of tourism, with up to 1000
:23:40. > :23:49.visitors every day, the conditions deteriorated rapidly. And the main
:23:50. > :23:55.reason for that was this. Human breath. Since the tomb was opened
:23:56. > :23:57.up, the constant changes of humidity, moisture levels and
:23:58. > :24:05.airborne pollutants which come in with people have an effect on it.
:24:06. > :24:09.Previous restoration attempts have added to the problem so it was
:24:10. > :24:12.agreed a replica would be created with the long-term aim of severely
:24:13. > :24:21.restricting public access to the original. Laser scanners and 3-D
:24:22. > :24:24.printing were used to make the copy. The backdrop to all this has been
:24:25. > :24:28.the continuing political crisis in Egypt over the past three years.
:24:29. > :24:31.Tourism in many areas of the country has collapsed. Luxor town centre is
:24:32. > :24:37.deserted and local traders are desperate. As you see yourself,
:24:38. > :24:44.temples empty, market empty, most of the place empty, every part is
:24:45. > :24:48.empty. We need tourism more than anything else. Replacing Luxor's
:24:49. > :24:52.star attraction Tutankhamun's tomb with a facsimile may well be seen as
:24:53. > :24:57.commercial suicide for a town already on its knees. Initial
:24:58. > :25:02.reaction was rather sceptical from a guide there. It will be negative for
:25:03. > :25:06.tourism because I'm sure that every country could have replicas of other
:25:07. > :25:11.tombs back home. One in Japan, one in America. There is no need to come
:25:12. > :25:15.anymore to see the tomb. The public will be given, for a period of time
:25:16. > :25:19.at least, a chance to see both the original and the facsimile and judge
:25:20. > :25:24.for themselves. The Travel Show was allowed a sneak preview and we took
:25:25. > :25:32.an Egyptologist as well. Well, I'm sorry but I have to say it's
:25:33. > :25:35.marvellous. This is just the start of a reappraisal of many of the
:25:36. > :25:46.world's ailing antiquities. It looks like tourists may now have to get
:25:47. > :25:54.used to visiting replicas instead. Let me just remind you of our
:25:55. > :26:02.breaking news. The NBA has banned Donald Sterling for life. He is the
:26:03. > :26:09.owner of the LA Clippers. He is alleged to have made racist remarks.
:26:10. > :26:16.He was fined $2.5 million and banned for life and even from associating
:26:17. > :26:29.with players. Pro-Russian protesters have stormed
:26:30. > :26:42.various buildings in Luhansk. John Kerry has blamed Russia.
:26:43. > :26:43.The IOC has said the preparations for the Olympics are the worst it
:26:44. > :27:06.has ever seen. Good evening. It looks as though
:27:07. > :27:07.Wednesday. Tough with grey skies. There will be dense fog