14/04/2017 World News Today

Our top stories, America defends its decision to drop a huge bomb on

Islamic State militants in Afghanistan.

The man in charge of the operation says it was the right weapon for the

target. The enemy had created bongos,

tunnels and extensive minefields. His weapon was used on those

obstacles. Is the North Korean leader preparing

for another nuclear missile test? China warns tensions are so high

that conflicts could break out at any moment.

This is the scene live at the Coliseum in Rome as Pope Francis

leads the Good Friday procession. And in sport, Jenson Button is back

in the driving seat for a guest appearance at next month's Monaco

Grand Prix. Hello and welcome. It was the right

weapon for the target, America's most senior military commander in

Afghanistan has defended the decision to drop a huge bomb on

Islamic State militants in a remote area in the east of the country.

This is the first time the US has deployed in combat the massive

ordinance air blast bomb, referred to as the mother of all bombs. The

Afghan doc-mac says 36 militants were killed and no civilians

although Islamic State denies that. -- the Afghan Government. Frank

Gardner reports. dropped an an Isis tunnel complex

in Afghanistan. The weapon used is called MOAB,

or massive ordnance air burst, also known as

the mother of all bombs. This was its first

time used in combat. This was the right weapon

against the right target. We will continue to work

shoulder to shoulder To eliminate this threat

to the Afghan people, especially the people of this

region, and indeed Local villagers confirmed that Isis

fighters had set up bases in the mountains behind them,

and said the bomb But the strike was condemned by both

so-called Islamic State How could the United States use

Afghanistan as a ground for experiments, for testing weapons

of mass destruction? President Trump's targets now

include three major problem areas for the US - Afghanistan,

Syria and North Korea. The massive weapon that the Pentagon

has used in Afghanistan is intended to send a message to its enemies,

that you're not safe underground. In Syria, the Trump administration

will be hoping that last week's cruise missile strike would deter

Presdent Assad from any But North Korea is

the biggest gamble. Mr Trump is hoping that

sending his powerful naval armada offshore will deter any

further nuclear tests. The question now, though, is,

can he manage three global It's very possible that if these

three scenarios come together, Syria, Afghanistan and North Korea,

it would overwhelm the policy-making capabilities

of Mr Trump's administration. It would overwhelm the strategic

planning capabilities of the Pentagon, and it

would overwhelm the resource But President Trump

and his entourage now feel they are on a roll,

tackling head-on the foreign policy challenges that

the previous administration There is now the risk that ramping

up the rhetoric could lead America into more conflict,

or that in the absence of any swift resolutions,

Mr Trump may simply turn his back on foreign adventures and focus

instead on domestic issues. We can speak no to someone from

George Washington University. I asked whether it was the right

weapon for the dollar. It is pretty accurate. You would not be using a

$50 million apiece weapon frivolously, or just to send some

message of Telegraph something to the North Koreans or the Russians. I

think there was not significant intelligence about the identity of

the people who work in this complex, and that they were high-level

operatives of Isis, and of course, there is the logistics, what kind of

weapon would be used in a decisive air strike and would lead to the

outcome desired? How significant was this target Iraq? We are talking

about at 300 metre long network of caves and tunnels, a significant was

hitting this location? That decision was taken to use this particular

weapon, it means that there was a significant complex that could not

be taken out by any other weapon, at least not in a decisive way, and of

course, the people inside were not some low-level operatives, they had

to be senior officials who were actually involved in the day-to-day

planning and operations of Isis attacks in the country. A lot is

being said about Donald Trump's strategy or the lack of it. What do

you think he is going to do going forward? Is there a strategy or are

these one-off strikes? So, when we talk about strategy, we have to keep

in mind that a change in government in terms of a new political party

taking office or a new head of state coming in, it does not mean that

were there will be a new strategy as such. There will be new ideas that

will be brought to the table from the new staff of the President,

trying to deal with the same problems their predecessors were

struggling with. So that is something to bear in mind when we

talk about strategy. At this point, there is no good strategy. There are

a set of options that not all of them, most of them are on a scale, a

sliding scale of bad to worst. This is a difficult situation and does

not matter whether Trump is an office or if somebody else had been

knighted. If Hillary Clinton, she would have faced the same problem.

So you have to make the best of the situation, you take it one day at a

time, hence one-off strikes, and you do it not in a coherent fashion but

in a fashion that sort of makes sense for the reality on the ground

as it unfolds. Let's turn to North Korea.

North Korea has vowed to mount a "merciless" response to any US

provocation following comments from President Donald Trump

that the isolated regime's nuclear weapons programme

Meanwhile, Pyongyang is thought to be preparing for a massive

military parade tomorrow at which its latest missile

Our reporter John Sudworth is with a group of foreign

journalists invited to witness the event - his movements are being

In North Korea, the spectre of war looms large over daily life.

These girls are singing about being soldiers...

while, not far away, real ones crowd into a shrine

to the country's founding President, General Kim Il-Sung.

These are scenes akin to a religious pilgrimage, but of course,

in honour of a still ruling family dynasty

who have at their disposal all of the myth that would rival any

And as the country prepares to display its devotion

at the anniversary of Kim Il-Sung's birth this weekend,

there's an awareness of the rising tension with America.

TRANSLATION: We should have the nuclear weapons.

If we do not have nuclear weapons, the nuclear weapon of another

TRANSLATION: It doesn't matter whether the Americans make

the situation on the Korean peninsula tense.

We feel safe because we have the great leader, Kim Jong-Un.

This week, the current ruler, Kim Jong-Un, held this meeting

where his late grandfather was honoured.

He is also thought to be planning a massive military parade

as a powerful tribute, and a message of defiance.

This is a country where art and armaments are blended

in singular purpose, to demonstrate to the watching world

that its nuclear ambitions will not be stopped.

The historic centres of injured places like Aleppo and Homs, once

the scene of fierce fighting like empty Andamans. In some places the

first tentative signs of rebuilding are underweight. Lyse Doucet reports

from Homs, the site of the first major reconstruction.

From the ruins of war, some life begins to return. And a bit of

rebuilding. This is the first restoration project in the ancient

quarter of Homs. Some of the worst battles took place here. This is the

leading architect who has designed the roof of the souk. TRANSLATION:

The importance of rebuilding is not just about stones, it is about

trade, a social hub where people from all religions can meet and

spent time with each other. We saw how such wonderful places were

destroyed and we are rebuilding the social Fabric.

The workers you see around you from Homs, they understand the city,

understand its pain. Walking through this ancient market

is a walk through the story of Syria going back thousands of years.

TRANSLATION: This public bath dates back to the Ottoman Empire. He

explains how the ceiling was built in the way to best thing in the

light. -- bring in. Down to the depths of the old city,

with another architect. This is the main hall. It was covered by hashes.

It has been cleared now. Would have been fighting in here? Yes, there

was a main battlefield here. It is not easy to rise from the ruins. We

have to contemplate over this, and we have to realise how important it

is, to listen and to come up with something good out of it.

She has just written a book about how architecture matters, it has to

be part of rebuilding Syria. All of the oranges are growing! This

is what I am talking about in the book, about how generous the old

cities were. They were generous even with the planting. Making green

space. This is what we had in Syria, we had something very beautiful and

ancient, and very harmonious interwoven in our lives and our

daily lives. We vandalised a lot of it, and we miss treated a lot of it,

so maybe we have the chance to start over now. They worry that this

chance will be missed. How to build on a painful past, this roof

punctured by shrapnel inspired a new design was done now they say Syria's

cities have to be rebuilt to bring communities together, not tear them

apart. Lyse Doucet, BBC News, in the old city of Homs.

Let's take a look at some of the other news.

A young British woman who was stabbed to death on a tram

in Jerusalem has been named as Hannah Bladon.

Two other people were injured in the attack in the Old City.

A 57-year-old Palestinian man has been arrested.

Police say the suspect had recently been released

Police in Italy have arrested a Mafia boss who absconded from

prison. He has been serving a life sentence for murder, illegal

disposal of bodies and drug trafficking. He was recaptured after

police followed his wife and spotted him preparing a barbecue outside a

flat in Tuscany. Christians are mocking Good Friday

today. Pope Francis is marking Good Friday

with the traditional Via Crucis or "Way of the Cross" procession

around the Colosseum. This is an annual tradition that

goes back to the 18th-century. It was since revived by Pope Paul VI in

1964. It commemorates the passion and death through Jesus through the

readings of prayers along a path of 14 stations, mocking the actual path

that Jesus walked. These are live images.

-- marking the actual path. Lots more to come, including...

This is the trailer that is about to break the internet! The latest Star

Wars film. As for a sporting legacy, Pol

Richert's competitors will be chasing her new world best time for

years to come. -- Paula Radcliffe's competitors.

She seemed just a slide away under the surface and disappear. -- just

to slide away. Our main stories on BBC News. Let's

take you to Pakistan, where the funeral prayers have been held for a

university student who was killed by a mob after being accused of sharing

blasphemous content on social media. Blasphemy is legally punishable by

death in Pakistan but the incident has shocked many.

A quiet and dignified funeral begins for a young student whose life was

so brutally brought to an end. His father helps bury his son's badly

disfigured body, offering prayers for the latest victim to be accused

of blasphemy and killed in Pakistan. TRANSLATION: In this country there

is no freedom of expression. They cut people's tongues. They have

killed my son and laid the blame on him. I am his father. He used to sit

at home and talked lovingly about the message of the Prophet Muhammad.

He had been studying communication at a university in a northern city.

Yesterday a mob of hundreds of young men rampaged through the campus,

accusing him of splitting blasphemy online. This was his run, when he

tried to hide from the mob. Amidst the debris, you can still see on the

war is the philosophical quotes he had written up. From his window, he

would have seen the mob as they came down the path, breaking into the

hostel looking for him. Eventually, they found him here. They kicked him

and beat him. They hit him with sticks and shot him. They dragged

him downstairs and continue to beat him. All filmed on videos too

horrific to fully show. Even long after he was dead, they continued to

attack his body. The police took action, and everybody was

protective. The University has been closed indefinitely and a number of

arrests have been made. Close to 70 people have been murdered in

Pakistan after being accused of blasphemy the last 30 years. This

incident has shocked many but there has not been the level of a bridge

from officials that one might expect. -- outrage. TRANSLATION: I

want justice for my country, and wanted so that nothing like this

happens to any other child. They did not just attack my son. By doing it

in the University, they challenged the status of the state should

ensure justice. The student described himself on Facebook as a

humanist. Many have been sharing his ratings online and some know seem

particularly poignant. -- his writings. Now, the sports

news. Sebastian Vettel looks like the man

to beat at this weekend's He was the fastest in both practice

sessions, three tenths quicker than Lewis Hamilton,

despite his Ferrari breaking Meanwhile, it was confirmed the 2009

World Champion, Jenson Button, will be making a brief

comeback next month. Button has agreed to replace

Fernando Alonso for McLaren The Briton's still contracted

as a reserve driver for McLaren and will step in while Alonso takes

part in the Indy 500. Arsene Wenger insists discussions

about his future will not distract him from his job. He is speaking

about the PFA -- PFA Player of the Year, Alexis Sanchez, whose contract

ends next summer. There have been reports Sanchez has been offered as

much as ?300,000 per week to stay. First, I cannot confirm that we have

offered that. Secondly, we will do, as always, we have to consider our

financial potential to sustain the wages for the whole squad. What is

for sure is that what he is paid this year, will it still below? I

was tempted to say no. Great Britain's cyclists have

finally won a gold at this year's Track world Championships it's

in the women's omnium The omnium is a multi event decided

by points over four different races. Archibald who's the Olympic

champion, was second going into the final event,

the points race, but she did enough It's the second world

title of her career, I feel in pain! But yes, really

privileged to pull it off in the end. It was an unbelievably gripping

race, I thought I had lost it in the middle, just chase and be attack,

Chase and be attacked. Got back on in the end, and pulled it out of the

bag. The President of the IAAF is

disappointed by the lack of progress made by Russia and its anti-doping

reforms. The country is calmly banned from competing in

international athletics after a report claimed that over 1000

athletes benefited from a state-sponsored doping programme.

Lord Coe believes there is still a lack of cooperation and

transparency. I am frustrated on behalf of the athletes, more

progress should have been made. It has been harvesting always to get

athletes back into contention actual competition. But separated from the

tainted system. -- it has always been our ambition. I am frustrated

more progress is not been made. Five-time champions Ronnie

O'Sullivan is in action against fellow enrichment Gary Wilson in the

afternoon snooker session. It will be the 40th year the Crucible has

played host to the tournament. O'Sullivan would love to lift the

famous trophy once more. Sheffield is a great event, it is good

tournament I look forward to going every year. It should be great.

Whether it is the 40th with a 21st with a 140th, it is still the

Crucible. -- or the 140th. Great tournament. If you get to lift the

trophy, it is an amazing thing. That's all the sport for now.

You may be used to seeing guide dogs around the office but more and more

companies are encouraging employees to bring their family pets to work.

Around one in ten employers in the UK has a dog-friendly policy. Just

what other pitfalls? It may be possible in big tech but just how

well would you cope with a pet under your desk?

Suzannah has been finding out. Brooke, Reggie, Max and Peggy are

office bodies. The company Kokrak pets at work scheme has proved so

popular that by the end of the year, around 100 dogs that passed an

assessment got the road staff pass. -- the company's pets at work

scheme. The reality is that the dogs probably have between a total of 20

to 25 dogs and lovers of others in the bar and it is even hear a dog

barking in the office. But the office. But they are there if you

want to go and find one to pet. The dogs do not just relieve stress but

also seemed to help build office camaraderie. It has made me make

friends. People come and talk to me, I don't think they know my name but

they know my dog and it starts to open those doors. What about that

time when she go to the toilet? She starts to get up and pace a little

bit and looks up at me. We have had the odd accident in the past. Doggie

daycare costs around 30 to ?40 a day, and I have three of them. So

for me, it is a big saving. Have there ever been any follow-ups with

other dogs? Not that I have ever seen. They love chasing each other

around the park. You hear the odd bark but that is about it.

I'm not sure I could cope with that! No dogs under this desk, I can

promise you that. Now to the movie trailer that has

sent Star Wars fans into a frenzy. I only know one truth.

It's time for the Jedi to end. It looks good! This is a first look

at the latest Star Wars film, the last Jedi. It follows on from The

Force Awakens and it will feature the late Carrie Fisher. The trailer

was unveiled at a Star Wars celebration in Florida, and you will

not believe this, it amassed thousands of views online in just a

few minutes. This one could just break the internet. If you want to

watch it in full armour go to the BBC News beta site.

I am looking forward to that one. -- News beta. You can get in touch with

me and some of the team via social media, we are on Facebook and

Twitter. Looking forward to hearing your thoughts. Lots more on our

website but for the time being, thank you very much for watching and

I wish you all a very nice Easter weekend.