:00:00. > :00:00.This is BBC World News Today with me, Kasia Madera.
:00:07. > :00:10.International concern over Christians in Iraq forced to flee
:00:11. > :00:15.their homes by advancing militants from the Islamic State group.
:00:16. > :00:17.An emergency meeting is called at the United Nations,
:00:18. > :00:24.The US is reportedly considering emergency air relief,
:00:25. > :00:29.In the trial of Oscar Pistorius, the prosecution says there can be no
:00:30. > :00:37.verdict other than murder, as both sides present closing statements.
:00:38. > :00:40.The accused was more concerned with fending for his life than
:00:41. > :00:47.entrusting the court with a truthful account that fateful morning.
:00:48. > :00:51.Russia imposes a ban on food from Europe and the US in reaction
:00:52. > :00:55.to sanctions it's received over its policy on Ukraine.
:00:56. > :00:59.And do we really spend more time on our digital devices than we
:01:00. > :01:22.Reports from the United States say President Obama is
:01:23. > :01:25.considering airstrikes in northern Iraq and airdrops of food and
:01:26. > :01:30.medicine, as thousands of members of religious minorities try to escape
:01:31. > :01:37.It's understood tens of thousands of Christians have been forced to
:01:38. > :01:42.flee their homes as militants from the Islamic State - formerly known
:01:43. > :01:48.The militants captured Mosul in June.
:01:49. > :01:53.But they have now taken over Iraq's largest Christian town of Qaraqosh,
:01:54. > :01:57.as well as surrounding towns of Tall Kayf, Bartella and Karamlish.
:01:58. > :02:02.All those are on the way to Irbil, the Kurdish region's capital.
:02:03. > :02:04.There's been no official confirmation of airstrikes
:02:05. > :02:08.from the White House, but it is emphasising that any military action
:02:09. > :02:14.For more on this, let's speak to the BBC's Tom
:02:15. > :02:31.To the White House is suggesting. At the moment, there is a difference
:02:32. > :02:35.between what officials are saying publicly and what they appear to be
:02:36. > :02:39.saying privately. I figure could collusion we can draw is that
:02:40. > :02:45.President Obama is perhaps mulling over the options available. -- I
:02:46. > :02:52.think the conclusion. There was a press briefing from Josh earnest in
:02:53. > :02:57.the last few minutes. The White House believes that the persecution
:02:58. > :03:04.of ethnic minorities in the part of ironic you talked about is barbaric.
:03:05. > :03:08.-- Graca. When it comes to the discussion of intervention and the
:03:09. > :03:13.decision made on those grounds, it is on a case-by-case basis. He also
:03:14. > :03:22.repeated a number of times during the briefing that there are no
:03:23. > :03:25.American military solutions to the problem in Iraq. Here is more of
:03:26. > :03:30.what the spokesman had to say. Witham the stakes are very high. We
:03:31. > :03:37.are seeing innocent populations being persecuted because of their
:03:38. > :03:41.ethnic or religious identity. The situation is disturbing, and we are
:03:42. > :03:43.following it closely. It is important for everyone to
:03:44. > :03:47.understand, and the president has made it clear, there are no American
:03:48. > :03:52.military solutions to the problems in Iraq. We cannot solve these
:03:53. > :03:57.problems for them. They can only be solved with Iraqi political
:03:58. > :04:03.solutions. You heard there that the key thing which the White House
:04:04. > :04:08.spokesmen were stressing was that if there is going to be any action
:04:09. > :04:13.taken on the part of the United States, it would have to be tied to
:04:14. > :04:17.Iraqi political reform, a process which is obviously ongoing. Thank
:04:18. > :04:20.you very much. Meanwhile, fears remain
:04:21. > :04:22.for thousands of people from Iraq's Yazidi minority who have fled into
:04:23. > :04:25.the mountains of northern Iraq. With me now is Dr Marzio Babille,
:04:26. > :04:45.the official UNICEF representative Tell us what is the situation? I
:04:46. > :04:53.believe some of them have been rescued from that mountain range. We
:04:54. > :04:57.have two conditions on the ground. The first indicates that more than
:04:58. > :05:13.10,000 UCDs have been rescued from the mountain range. They are on the
:05:14. > :05:21.move to be safe in the northern province. -- Yazidi. They will join
:05:22. > :05:27.180,000 Yazidi community members who are already safe and actually
:05:28. > :05:34.protected in locations being assisted by United Nations
:05:35. > :05:39.agencies, including Unicef and the local government. Unfortunately, we
:05:40. > :05:45.have more than 25,000 children stuck in the mountain range together with
:05:46. > :05:58.their families. We are deeply disturbed, concerned and outraged by
:05:59. > :06:05.the fact there is no third or access to water in these mountains, and
:06:06. > :06:09.they are being chased by the Islamic State, who were persecuting them
:06:10. > :06:16.after the fall of the city. A desperate plight. Talk to us about
:06:17. > :06:23.the situation for the Christians in Qaraqosh, so I know Unicef has been
:06:24. > :06:34.working with them as well. Qaraqosh and the other cities are on claims
:06:35. > :06:39.for Christians in this country. They have been clashes between the forces
:06:40. > :06:47.protecting them any Islamic State military push. These generate waves
:06:48. > :06:53.of displacement in different directions. Unicef and other
:06:54. > :07:01.agencies are currently rescuing more than 7000 individuals in the
:07:02. > :07:07.Christian quarter, providing water, food and shelter. The Christians are
:07:08. > :07:18.moving and are on the move since the last month. Unfortunately, the
:07:19. > :07:25.sudden changes of the situation on the ground have pushed dramatically
:07:26. > :07:32.boost numbers. In particular, we have to consider the region nine
:07:33. > :07:43.colleges from Rose all Unicef visited providing water and hygiene
:07:44. > :07:47.kits. -- Rose all. -- Mosul. Your work is endless and tireless, but
:07:48. > :07:49.for the time being, we wish you the best of luck because we are out of
:07:50. > :08:02.time. There is lots more on our website
:08:03. > :08:07.about the conditions in northern Iraq.
:08:08. > :08:09.Oscar Pistorius has been called a "deceitful witness" who'd fallen
:08:10. > :08:11.into telling a ''snowball of lies'' during the prosecution's closing
:08:12. > :08:15.Pistorius is accused of murdering his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp,
:08:16. > :08:18.He maintains he mistook her for an intruder.
:08:19. > :08:20.From Pretoria, our Africa correspondent,
:08:21. > :08:27.Brisk and focused, Oscar Pistorius striding back
:08:28. > :08:30.into court this morning to hear the prosecution sum up the case
:08:31. > :08:35.For the first time, Barry Steenkamp, father of Reeva Steenkamp, was also
:08:36. > :08:43.Ill-health has kept him away from this murder trial until today.
:08:44. > :08:46.In court, prosecutor Gerrie Nel went on the attack, dismissing the
:08:47. > :08:55.My lady, it is so improbable it can never be reasonably possibly be true
:08:56. > :09:00.and is a clear indication of his deceitfulness.
:09:01. > :09:04.The focus today unsurprisingly was the shooting itself,
:09:05. > :09:07.the four bullets Pistorius fired through the toilet door,
:09:08. > :09:11.Nel said the athlete had given conflicting
:09:12. > :09:16.But the prosecution's main point was this -
:09:17. > :09:20.that Pistorius must have known he would kill someone.
:09:21. > :09:24.If you fire four shots into a small cubicle with a high-powered firearm,
:09:25. > :09:28.with that ammunition, you foresee the possibility you will kill
:09:29. > :09:31.somebody, and you continued doing it.
:09:32. > :09:36.From the prosecutor here today, two key claims.
:09:37. > :09:39.One, that Pistorius has repeatedly proved himself to be
:09:40. > :09:45.The other that even if the judge finds that he's telling the truth,
:09:46. > :09:49.the fact that he went to that toilet door and fired four times
:09:50. > :09:55.Pistorius's defence will argue that the prosecution are
:09:56. > :10:02.Their presentation will begin in earnest tomorrow.
:10:03. > :10:14.Now to Russia, where President Putin has imposed an almost total ban
:10:15. > :10:17.on food imports from countries that have introduced sanctions on Moscow
:10:18. > :10:24.All food imported from the United States into Russia will be banned.
:10:25. > :10:28.There'll also be a ban on imports of meat, fish, fruit and vegetables,
:10:29. > :10:33.and dairy products from the European Union, Australia, Canada and Norway.
:10:34. > :10:36.These measures will hit Russians the hardest because they rely on cheap
:10:37. > :10:41.imports, and on farmers in the West for whom Russia is a big market.
:10:42. > :10:45.Moscow is by far the biggest buyer of European fruit and vegetables.
:10:46. > :10:50.It is also the second-biggest importer of US poultry.
:10:51. > :10:52.The Russian prime minister, Dmitry Medvedev, also said Russia is
:10:53. > :10:57.considering banning Western airlines from flying over its airspace
:10:58. > :11:02.Our Moscow correspondent, Steve Rosenberg,
:11:03. > :11:08.looks what impact the food bans will have on supermarket shelves.
:11:09. > :11:10.In recent years, Russian consumers have gotten used
:11:11. > :11:14.to their supermarket shelves being full of imported products.
:11:15. > :11:18.In fact, in big cities like Moscow, it is estimated that more than 60%
:11:19. > :11:26.So, for example, in this supermarket, they've got baked beans
:11:27. > :11:37.nectarines from Greece, tomatoes from Holland, and bacon from Spain.
:11:38. > :11:42.because today, the Russian government imposed a ban
:11:43. > :11:47.on future imports of beef, pork and poultry, fruit and vegetables,
:11:48. > :11:50.cheese, dairy products, and fish from those countries which have
:11:51. > :11:57.That means from the European Union, the United States, Canada,
:11:58. > :12:04.So very soon, all of this will disappear.
:12:05. > :12:06.But the Russian authorities are confident that the supermarket
:12:07. > :12:10.They are already searching for alternative supplies
:12:11. > :12:13.from other parts of the world, like South America,
:12:14. > :12:18.and they are encouraging domestic manufacturers to boost production.
:12:19. > :12:21.They say that these measures will hurt exporters much more than
:12:22. > :12:26.But what do the shoppers think about that?
:12:27. > :12:29.TRANSLATION: If we don't get fish from Norway,
:12:30. > :12:33.we will produce our own in the Far East.
:12:34. > :12:36.TRANSLATION: Russia is doing everything right.
:12:37. > :12:41.It needs to develop its own agricultural industry.
:12:42. > :12:44.But for Russia, there could be a price to pay.
:12:45. > :12:47.The European Union has already denounced this embargo
:12:48. > :12:50.as politically motivated, and said it was prepared to take
:12:51. > :12:58.further action against Moscow if necessary.
:12:59. > :13:07.economist talks and trade policy expert. She was a financial
:13:08. > :13:15.advisor to of the US president George W Bush He in his first term.
:13:16. > :13:27.Dear noted today touring to be impacted much on this then? It was
:13:28. > :13:33.about $1.3 billion versus 15 billion for Europe, so a big difference. So
:13:34. > :13:37.Europe will be hit hardest. Talk is through the figures. It is a divide
:13:38. > :13:41.and rule strategy. The Russians understand they may get a better
:13:42. > :13:45.outcome if they hit America's partners instead of the US directly.
:13:46. > :13:50.It is easier to hit the partners. That is why this a line then maybe
:13:51. > :13:55.important, because that will be most costly to the Europeans, not
:13:56. > :13:58.Americans. The Ukrainian airlines have already been banned from
:13:59. > :14:04.flying, but it is the other international airlines that is of
:14:05. > :14:08.great concern. Exactly. If they banned major European airlines, US
:14:09. > :14:11.airlines, obviously the Europeans get hit harder. The key issue to
:14:12. > :14:16.understand that this food then is it is part of something happening
:14:17. > :14:21.against a greater context. So for example, the Pentagon is reporting
:14:22. > :14:25.there have been 14 incursions by Russian military aircraft into US
:14:26. > :14:31.airspace in the last month or so. They feel those are not training
:14:32. > :14:35.runs, they are designed to heighten the level of deployment on the US
:14:36. > :14:38.side, which is costly. The US is accusing Russia of having violated
:14:39. > :14:44.one of the nuclear test ban treaties, which the deny. There are
:14:45. > :14:49.many aspects of this argument. Fittest is one aspect. At the
:14:50. > :14:54.moment, it seems this is something the Russians can actually use and
:14:55. > :15:01.the way they are protecting themselves. Again, the question is,
:15:02. > :15:05.will work in interest? They may not need the food from abroad, although
:15:06. > :15:08.I have my doubts about that, and I don't keep their will be able to
:15:09. > :15:13.replace the fruit from Asia so easily, but all of the productivity
:15:14. > :15:18.of the farmland in Russia is basically coming from Western money
:15:19. > :15:23.being invested in the development of agriculture, so if they cut off food
:15:24. > :15:34.exports, they also cut off the capital that wants to invest.
:15:35. > :15:38.French cheeses? Indeed. There's a question of how much does it hurt
:15:39. > :15:43.the Russian public, and it may hurt them more than anybody in West. OK,
:15:44. > :15:46.for the time being, thank you very much for speaking to us.
:15:47. > :15:49.In further news about Russia, NATO's Secretary General has had
:15:50. > :15:51.talks in Ukraine and has promised Kiev the support
:15:52. > :15:54.of the alliance in the face of what he called Russian aggression.
:15:55. > :15:55.He called on Moscow to stop supporting
:15:56. > :15:59.separatists, pull back its 20,000 troops from Ukraine's border and as
:16:00. > :16:10.Instead of de-escalating the conflict, Russia continues to
:16:11. > :16:21.Russia's support to the separatists continues.
:16:22. > :16:31.It has intensified in scale and sophistication.
:16:32. > :16:35.The downing of MH17 shows the tragic consequences
:16:36. > :16:46.Well, let's keep the focus on Russia because the fugitive former US
:16:47. > :16:50.intelligence contractor Edward Snowden has been granted
:16:51. > :16:52.a three-year residence permit in Russia.
:16:53. > :16:54.He's been living there for the past year and his temporary
:16:55. > :17:00.The whistle-blower faces espionage charges in the United States.
:17:01. > :17:04.But Moscow says it will not extradite him.
:17:05. > :17:06.Two top Khmer Rouge leaders have been jailed for life
:17:07. > :17:11.after being convicted of war crimes by a UN backed court in Cambodia.
:17:12. > :17:14.Nooun Chee-uh and Kew Sampawn both denied charges
:17:15. > :17:20.relating to the deaths of 1.7 million people in the 1970s.
:17:21. > :17:25.They will now undergo a second trial on genocide charges.
:17:26. > :17:28.One of China's most famous dissidents, the human rights lawyer,
:17:29. > :17:31.Gow Juh-Shung, has been released after a lengthy jail sentence.
:17:32. > :17:36.He's been in and out of prison since 2005.
:17:37. > :17:38.He was jailed for inciting state subversion,
:17:39. > :17:49.that's a charge often levied against critics of China's government.
:17:50. > :17:51.Egyptian mediators are continuing their efforts to extend
:17:52. > :17:53.a truce between Israel and the Palestinians in Gaza, on the
:17:54. > :17:57.Indirect talks are taking place in Cairo.
:17:58. > :17:59.Israel has said it is prepared to continue the truce.
:18:00. > :18:03.The Palestinians are pressing for an end to the blockade of Gaza.
:18:04. > :18:05.Israel wants Hamas and other militant groups to give up
:18:06. > :18:09.Palestinians in Gaza have been stocking up on food, uncertain
:18:10. > :18:21.Reclaiming their own streets, government security forces in Gaza.
:18:22. > :18:24.Before the ceasefire, they were in hiding.
:18:25. > :18:27.Even now, they aren't venturing too far.
:18:28. > :18:29.Like everyone here, they are waiting to see
:18:30. > :18:37.Even if it is, for many, like seven-year-old Maha,
:18:38. > :18:54.An Israeli shell claimed seven relatives including her mother.
:18:55. > :18:58.For two weeks, doctors here has been trying to send
:18:59. > :19:03.Her aunt says she's a great student who loves to sing
:19:04. > :19:11.She's always been very active, she tells us.
:19:12. > :19:20.A short distance away, the green flags of Hamas were back on view.
:19:21. > :19:23.Front and centre on stage, four-year-old Ahmed.
:19:24. > :19:35.This was its first public event since fighting began.
:19:36. > :19:38.This local businessman gave an impassioned endorsement
:19:39. > :19:48.She gave up her position for the sake of our children, he said.
:19:49. > :19:54.Supporters are continuing to arrive for this rally.
:19:55. > :19:58.In recent weeks, in the eyes of people here,
:19:59. > :20:04.Its fighters have inflicted heavy losses on the Israeli Ministry
:20:05. > :20:08.but if Hamas can't achieve political concessions,
:20:09. > :20:14.Hamas negotiators in Cairo want Israel to lift
:20:15. > :20:21.Israel wants an end to attacks by Hamas.
:20:22. > :20:33.Many here expect the talks to end and fighting to resume.
:20:34. > :20:38.We spend more time on our smartphones, tablets and other
:20:39. > :20:44.That's according to research from the broadcast watchdog, OFCOM.
:20:45. > :20:47.And unsurprisingly, it's the younger generation who are leading the way,
:20:48. > :20:49.with six-year-olds apparently showing the same understanding
:20:50. > :20:56.As our technology correspondent Rory Cellan-Jones explains,
:20:57. > :21:04.digital devices are now dominating our lives as never before.
:21:05. > :21:08.These teenagers are on a summer school course
:21:09. > :21:13.But today's report says in general it's 14 and 15-year-olds who are the
:21:14. > :21:20.They are growing up with smart phones and tablets and teaching
:21:21. > :21:26.My mum, I have to help her with a lot of stuff because she can't
:21:27. > :21:35.Honestly, I think I spend most time on Instagram on my phone or tablets.
:21:36. > :21:39.I'm spending less time watching TV nowadays.
:21:40. > :21:42.This research shows we are all spending more time than ever
:21:43. > :21:48.That's longer than we spend sleeping.
:21:49. > :21:56.OFCOM says because we often multitasking,
:21:57. > :21:59.we are, in fact, communicating for more than 11 hours a day.
:22:00. > :22:01.Behind this is the spread of mobile devices.
:22:02. > :22:04.Smartphones are now owned by 61% of the UK population, though they
:22:05. > :22:09.And as for tablets, they are in 44% of homes and that figure has
:22:10. > :22:14.Well, TV still retains its attraction, viewing has slipped
:22:15. > :22:18.below four hours a day for the first time in quite a while.
:22:19. > :22:20.It seems in a mobile world people are finding
:22:21. > :22:26.Older people may sometimes struggle to keep up but many, like this
:22:27. > :22:31.Silver Surfers group in Manchester, getting to grips with technology.
:22:32. > :22:37.The figures show one in five people over 65 now owns a tablet computer.
:22:38. > :22:38.I bought the tablet with the intention
:22:39. > :22:43.of getting to know what's happening in the world, as you might say.
:22:44. > :22:46.The grandkids are coming in and telling you this is what you
:22:47. > :22:52.do, that's what you do, so I want to do it myself, you know.
:22:53. > :22:54.But it's these youngsters who are the trendsetters, watching less TV,
:22:55. > :22:58.listening to less radios, spending more time with their phones.
:22:59. > :23:05.If you want to know what the future looks like ask a teenager.
:23:06. > :23:07.With me now is Dr Ellen Helsper, Associate Professor at the
:23:08. > :23:10.London School of Economics who specialises in digital technologies
:23:11. > :23:22.When we look at the figures, the eight hours and 41 minutes we are
:23:23. > :23:28.knocking around online, on computer screens, on tablets, it includes
:23:29. > :23:32.work as well, so it's not that bad? No, when we are awake, we are
:23:33. > :23:39.connected to television, digital devices. We are living in a digital
:23:40. > :23:45.world and it's been so for a while, but now we are living in a digital
:23:46. > :23:52.world and it's been so for a while, but now shopping, to friends and
:23:53. > :23:58.family, trying to find information. It's not surprising we are spending
:23:59. > :24:02.eight hours more, almost nine hours a day, connected to some kind of
:24:03. > :24:05.device. Some people are spending more than that because they are
:24:06. > :24:11.doing two things at the same time. How does that work? The age of
:24:12. > :24:15.multitasking. Even at work you may be answering your mobile phone,
:24:16. > :24:18.while you're looking at your computer screen. At home, you could
:24:19. > :24:22.be friends and also watching television. It is not a new
:24:23. > :24:27.phenomenon. We always used to do other things when we were watching
:24:28. > :24:29.television, writing a letter were watching television, writing a
:24:30. > :24:34.letter was listening to the radio, things like that, multitasking. We
:24:35. > :24:41.are quite good at it, but it's difficult. It seems teenagers are
:24:42. > :24:45.the best at it? Yes, this is the interesting thing in this report.
:24:46. > :24:48.They asked a lot of young people, old people, how confident they were
:24:49. > :24:51.and how much they thought they knew about different technologies and
:24:52. > :24:57.this is where the young people said, I feel very confident, and
:24:58. > :25:00.comfortable. The research we have been doing shows all so that the
:25:01. > :25:03.counter side to that, actually, there's a lot of difference between
:25:04. > :25:07.young people and that's something we need to keep in mind, there's a lot
:25:08. > :25:15.of young people who do need help, who are not as savvy, who don't feel
:25:16. > :25:20.comfortable maybe and the idea all the young people know might go
:25:21. > :25:26.against us as adults being there for them when they do need help. When
:25:27. > :25:30.communication between parents and teachers and young people, we don't
:25:31. > :25:34.want to disempower them to feel like they can't talk to each other. A lot
:25:35. > :25:40.of young people do need help because it is a complex world. Our whole
:25:41. > :25:43.lives are online. There is the bullying aspect of it as well and
:25:44. > :25:47.the fact people are not getting out and getting physical. This could
:25:48. > :25:52.become an addiction like sugar or alcohol. Yes, there are differences
:25:53. > :25:58.in June young people, the other thing the report showed, in all age
:25:59. > :26:03.groups, men and boys are more confident about their skills than
:26:04. > :26:07.women. Even if they might not actually know that much more. I have
:26:08. > :26:11.more confidence and we see a lot of differences for example between
:26:12. > :26:16.people with higher educational levels and people who might not have
:26:17. > :26:18.that much experience with formal education. There's a lot of
:26:19. > :26:22.differences between people and we need to keep that in mind, to keep
:26:23. > :26:27.the conversation going, so everybody can benefit from technology and not
:26:28. > :26:33.just the few who are really integrated and love it and talk to
:26:34. > :26:37.other people about it. And who financially have the money. Thank
:26:38. > :26:41.you so much for talking to us. Six-year-olds have the same and the
:26:42. > :26:47.standings is 45 euros, certainly in my household.
:26:48. > :26:56.But for now from me and the rest of the team goodbye.
:26:57. > :27:02.Hello there. There are some serious weather on its way for the weekend.
:27:03. > :27:05.Through tomorrow, some nasty conditions. Heavy rain developing up
:27:06. > :27:06.and