with fans and customers... or an email newsletter to kick off a big sale... you'll get all the online tools and free marketing advice you need to meet your goals... no matter how much things change. help your small business do more business. try our toolkit-free-at constantcontact.com. hello, you're watching "gmt" on "bbc world news." i'm david eads. it's time to get much more aggressive. president obama talks tougher on efforts to treat ebola at home. but apologies and recriminations emerge over the treatment and handling of ebola victims. the pistorius hearing goes on, but when will he actually learn of his sentence? >> reporter: i'm karin giannone outside the court in pretoria, where it seems the decision on his sentence could still be weeks away.

and they're singing the blues from pretty early in mississippi. we're taking a look at some of the big questions there for the u.s. midterm elections. also in the program, more turmoil, alice, for the global markets. >> absolutely right, david. something of a roller coaster. europe shares have dropped on the lowest inflation figures that we've seen in five years. asia also closes down 2% and the u.s. is bracing itself for further downward spiraling. but is this a stock market shock or a much-needed re-adjustment? it's midday here in london, 6:00 a.m. in dallas where a

senior hell official has now apologized for mistakes made in the handling of thomas duncan, the liberian man who died of ebola in the city. his treatment drew criticism from nursing staff, as has the permission to fly given to a nurse who has since been diagnosed with ebola. the world health organization does say it's confident that a major outbreak is unlikely in north america or western europe because the health systems there are pretty strong. but the disease has killed around 4,500 people so far, most of those in west africa. president obama has ordered a more aggressive response to ebola in the united states. from dallas, alistair leithead has this report. >> reporter: america's latest ebola patient being taken from dallas to a specialized unit in atlanta. amber vinson, like the other nurse who was infected with the virus, had been caring for thomas eric duncan, the liberian who developed symptoms after arriving in texas. protective measures were apparently not properly taken.

she was infected and developed symptoms of the virus. president obama cancelled a trip to deal with the increasing concern over the way the texas health presbyterian hospital has been dealing with the virus. >> if we do these protocols properly, if we follow the steps, if we get the information out, then the likelihood of widespread ebola outbreaks in this country are very, very low. >> reporter: this is not a hospital that specializes in contagious diseases like ebola. but so far, its record on the outbreak has not been good. first, a misdiagnosis left mr. duncan contagious and in the community for four days. then a breach in protocol led to two nurses being infected, dozens more now under observation. and what's more, a nurse who is under quarantine was able to travel on a commercial flight. it doesn't inspire confidence in the promise that everything will be done to prevent the spread of

ebola. the nurse was in self-monitoring quarantine, but flew to ohio to visit family. she flew back the day before degree diagnosed with ebola, and doctors are trying to trace 132 passengers on her flight for monitoring. the risk of transmission is said to be low. >> we spoke to her family members, and we're looking at getting information. now, the thing is that we're looking at being able to construct a good time line of where the health care worker was when she was here and where she traveled and who she was with. and that takes a little bit of time. >> reporter: she arrived in atlanta and was taken to the emery hospital, one of four in america which is a specialized unit to deal with highly infectious diseases. a fast response team has now been set up for future ebola cases. to ensure the procedures are followed to the letter, to prevent medical workers from being infected and to restore confidence in america's ability to control what began as one single ebola case.

>> that's alistair leithead there. with me now is our health reporter james gallagher. let's just draw on a case of a nurse getting on a flight, a nurse who had been treating an ebola patient, seems a bit extraordinary to some of us anyway. but how could she pass on ebola now that they're looking at all the other passengers onboard? what should they be worried about? we know about sneezing. we got that. but is that it? >> what we have to remember is when it comes to transmitting ebola, about three major ways of transmission. that's through blood, through vomit, and through feces. those are your major, major sources. if she was displaying fever the day after the flight, she's unlikely to have had any problem with any of those sources of infection, so the risk to the other passengers is beginning to be incredibly small. >> but, she could have used the toilet, for example, and there would be a potential given that we know she had a temperature then, there may be some risk of

passengers to have to think about whether they were in contact with any of those areas. >> well, this is the thing. if she had -- if she was vomiting and she did have diarrhea, then those bodily fluids could be contaminated and then she could contaminate other surfaces. however, it doesn't appear as if she did have those symptoms, so there shouldn't actually be a risk to passengers. so that's the theory anyway. >> you're right, there's no suggestion she was that ill. nonetheless, she had a temperature. and she pointed it out. that counts as a symptom, doesn't it? and it opens up this whole question of almost where symptoms start and why is it that if you're not showing a symptom two hours earlier, you're deemed not to be capable of passing it on, and then suddenly, presto, you can pass it on. it's very gray area, isn't it? >> exactly. the u.s. centers for disease control says one of the first symptoms is fever, it has a very specific temperature threshold, about 38.6 degrees celsius,

that's 105.5 fahrenheit. that's the threshold in which they say you have fever. but what if you're half a degree below that and on a transition up to it? there is going to be a fuzzy area and different people will be in a slightly different position. however, the big, broad thing to remember is that it's the big three. vomiting, diarrhea, and direct contact with blood. those are the big sources of transmission. if you have those symptoms, you're going to be able to transmit the disease. if you don't, then it's even more unlikely, even if you are just a few hours before you officially hit an official symptom. >> james, thanks very much indeed for the clarification. the race to find an effective vaccine goes on. joining me now is professor mike lavigne with the center of vaccine development at the university of maryland school of medicine. thanks very much indeed for joining us. i know you're involved with the trials now taking place. do you get a sense that this

whole effort is going on at an extraordinary pace? >> without question. we have been moving at warp speed to bring the vaccine that we're working with, which is a vaccine created at the vaccine research center of the national institute of infectious diseases in bethesda, to bring that from the point where it was in august, having only been tested in monkeys, to where it could be administered to health care workers in mali participated in phase one trial. to do that in 60 days is simply extraordinary, and is the consequence of many different partners in a consortium led by the world health organization with every partner pitching in, doing everything possible to get

things done in the quickest possible manner. >> it's been some 40 years that we've known about ebola. i know you've been working on vaccines for a good 40 years now. does it surprise you that it's, a, taken this long to get here. and b, that now suddenly there is a drive, it can be done? >> well, i think you make two different points in your comments. first is that prior to the west africa outbreak, ebola was a relatively rare and exotic disease that had a very high case of fatality, but almost always took place in mini outbreaks in very rural areas in central or in east central africa. and collectively was just a few -- some hundreds of cases in total over four decades. what's happening in west africa

with ebola is writing a new chapter. it's just totally, totally new to us and we're seeing a worst case -- previously i think largely unimagined picture. >> right. so is the reality also then that for the likes of glaxo-smith cline involved in these trials that it simply wasn't a profitable proposition to try and work out a vaccine? >> yes. before this outbreak, the target population in the market, if you will, was extremely, extremely limited. it was largely what we call in the u.s. a biodefense vaccine. for a highly lethal disease that was a problem in theory if nefarious individuals would deliberately cause a release of

this. this is something we very much worried about in the decade after the events of september 11th, 2001, and the anthrax episodes that followed thereafter. scientists who work in the laboratory with ebola were one target population. small numbers of health care workers who would be a s.w.a.t. team, the type of individuals who previously brought the -- and world health organization individuals who brought the previous mini epidemics under control, they were another target population. but mass immunization and large number of individuals, that was not really on the docket. if there are very few numbers in the target population, that means a small market, other than a government stockpiling vaccine in the theoretical event of a

nefarious deliberate release. >> it seems clear we're in a very different scenario now. we're going to have to stop there, but thanks very much indeed for bringing your expertise to bear here on "gmt." well, if you want more on the situation in ebola, as we're seeing day by day it's changing, make sure you catch "bbc world news" at 18030 gmt. in fact, every day this week, we're bringing you a special program at 1830 gmt with the very latest on the outbreak and it's all here on "bbc world news." let's catch up on some other stories for you now. a commander of the kurdish militia defending the syrian town of kobane says that islamic state fighters have been driven out of all the areas of the town, except for two pockets of resistance on the eastern fringes. the commander of kurdish forces in the east of a kurdish town told the bbc i.s. fighters were

forced to retreat. russian president vladimir putin has described president obama's attitude to russia as hostile. in an interview with a serbian newspaper, mr. putin accused the u.s. of trying to blackmail moscow with sanctions over ukraine. seven police officers alleged to have beaten up a pro-democracy protester in hong kong have been suspended. the incident was caught on film. it caused widespread outrage. hong kong's chief executive c.y. leung says the government is ready now for new talks with the demonstrators. also hopes those discussions can take place next week. here is a report from hong kong. >> reporter: last week, the government called off scheduled talks with the students, saying that they couldn't take place while large numbers of people remained on the street. since then, though, this protest site has grown in size. the protesters have brought down a large number of tents, which they've now pitched across this eight-lane highway and the government seems interested in talking again.

what do the protesters make of the offer? let's speak to one of the protesters. you've been here every day? >> yes. >> reporter: what do you think. good idea to talk to the government? >> i think it is a good idea and good chance for us to enter this campaign, because we can't stay here forever. >> reporter: but the government says that one of the preconditions for the talks will be an acceptance that it cannot change the election rules set by beijing. it seems that it's putting pretty harsh constraints on the dialogue. you still think it's worth talking, though? >> i think besides talking with the government, we can't do anything. every decision is by the government. we have a chance to give our opinion. we have to hold this opportunity. >> reporter: you have to at least try? >> yes. >> reporter: one student there

who thinks talking is a good idea. the one thing the government didn't say today in the press conference is whether or not it intends to continue clearing some of the barricades while they wait for those talks to start. all this week, our north america correspondent has been on a bit of a journey, down the so-called blues highway, having a look at some of the big concerns ahd of the u.s. midterm elections. and on day four of his journey, it's a bit of a musical one, he's reached mississippi, birthplace of the blues. it's also the poorest state in america with some startling issues of child poverty. >> one, two, three. >> reporter: it's day four of our road trip and we've made it

to clarksdale, which is the town known as the birthplace of the blues. if that wasn't exciting enough, we're hear to meet a brilliant blues musician, 10-year-old aaron wilkins. ♪ >> when i was around the house when i was little, my granddad just kept playing and then it just kind of caught on. and then it was in my blood. >> reporter: we were traveling through mississippi, and it was along this route that in the 1930s and '40s there was a mass migration of african-americans out of this area. they went to try and search for what were there scarce opportunities, and of course, they took with them the music into which they poured all of their burdens, all of their troubles, the blues. >> pass the biscuits. biscuit time. >> reporter: this is where the longest-running blues show in the world has been hosted since 1941, and for over 60 years, the man who's been hosting it is right here, sunshine sunny payne. ♪

>> years ago, your african-american people couldn't communicate with white people, so they'd sing about it. >> reporter: and what about artists coming through? >> you've got some great artists today. these kids learned their lesson well from the old-timers. ♪ everybody knows me >> reporter: people in mississippi today know all about the blues. theirs is the poorest state. child poverty has reached shocking levels. ♪ i'm going to detroit, michigan ♪ >> reporter: and there are other problems here. 10-year-old aaron lives in one of the roughest neighborhoods in clarksdale with guns and drugs and gangs. >> the biggest issue to me is the stuff that happens in the streets. i want to stay away from that. you'll never see me in the streets no matter what. because blues is what i play, and it's what i'm gonna do for

the rest of my life. >> whoo! >> real blues there in mississippi. do stay with us here on "bbc world news." coming up in "gmt," we meet some of the volunteers with a very tough challenge, finding the bodies of soldiers killed during the fighting in eastern ukraine. and now telcos using hp big data solutions are feeling the love, too. by offering things like on-the-spot data upgrades -- an idea that reduced overcharge complaints by 98%. no matter how fast your business needs to adapt, if hp big data solutions can keep wireless customers smiling, imagine what they can do for yours. make it matter.

oscar pistorius has been back in court for a fourth day to hear the arguments about what sort of sentence he should be given for the killing of his girlfriend reeva steenkamp. the south african athlete could be jailed for up to 15 years. he could stay out of jail altogether and be given a sentence in the community. karin giannone is in pretoria for us now. i suppose the question is when we're going to learn, and if we're ever going to see you back here in london.

>> reporter: david, yes, the question about what the sentencing will be has been superseded about when we'll actually get that sentence. the length of time taken over cross-examination of some of the witnesses that has run up against the end of the week, and can spill over, but we don't know exactly when until, though. we're still waiting the find out from judge masipa, and also from watching the proceedings to come in the hours left today and also tomorrow. with me, a man who knows the south african legal system all too well is mannie witz, a lawyer here. why does it seem that the court hasn't been able to get this sentencing done in a week? >> i think the evidence was a bit longer and the cross-examination was longer, especially in view of what the social worker brought up. saying he's a suitable candidate for supervision. she went one step further, a

very, very major step, and said that you can't put somebody with a disability in a prison system. so i think it caught them a little bit by surprise and i think it's up to them to not only rebut, but to try and neutralize that evidence with an effort for the social worker. and to call a witness and say look, our witness can provide for disabled people. the other evidence wasn't that long, because you can't really cross-examination that much in regards to a question of sentence. but their own probation officer, because it's a state official, you have to use it. i think what your viewers need to know -- if you want to impose an alternative punishment, you can't do it in terms of our law without calling a probation officer and a social worker, or preferably both. it's the usual procedure. the judge isn't bound by that, but it's giving her the option. that's why it's taken longer

than before. obviously the state weren't happy when the probation officer suggested three years house arrest, noncustodial. so he had to try and neutralize and deal with that as well. >> so the whole issue of whether prison is an appropriate place. we're still waiting to find out when we think the sentencing will actually happen. >> karin, thank you very much indeed. the latest there from pretoria. now, hundreds of ukrainian soldiers have gone missing in action over the course of the fighting in eastern ukraine, and the work of finding and identifying bodies on the battlefields is now being done by volunteers. here is a report from donetsk. >> reporter: as fierce battles in ukraine, the remains are left behind. this team of ukrainian volunteers has managed to negotiate their way into rebel held territory to help retrieve the bodies of soldiers lost in the conflict. recently, this was a place of intense fighting between rebels

and ukrainian forces. now it's relatively quiet, and a team of ukrainian volunteer diggers came here in a bid to bring to the ukrainian territory some of the parties pants of those fights. they just found four bodies. in a month's time, they've found 150 bodies but only 30 of them have been fully identified. personal i.d. tags aren't used by the ukrainian army and many of the soldiers don't carry any documentation. this man and some of his friends used to search for the remains of the soldiers who were missing in action during the world war ii. now they often risk their lives for help. >> translator: there are a lot of trip wires and mines. >> reporter: this challenging work is funded entire libido nations. but the money collected barely covers the cost of fuel.

volunteers often pay for their own protective clothing, special bags, and more. people rotate every seven days. they say it's barely possible to stay here any longer. both physically and psychologically. >> translator: we try not to take this story too personally. but that's impossible. soldiers had parents and may have had children who are waiting for them. of course it is very hard, but we have to bring our boys home. >> reporter: the bodies are buried. temporarily missing in action defender of ukraine, this graveyard says. with every seventh person killed still unidentified, it's impossible to know how long it will take to bring a name to these signs. "bbc world news," eastern ukraine. coming up in the next half-hour here on "gmt," we'll have the latest from nepal, where a search and rescue operation is under way. they're still looking for around 70 missing trekkers in the

himalayas. at least 12 have been killed. this is after blizzards and avalanches there. one of the deadliest spells of bad weather the region has in fact ever seen. more than 100 hikers have already been air lifted from the area, so we'll bring you the very latest on the situation there. do stay with us here on "gmt." gunderman group is growing. getting in a groove. growth is gratifying. goal is to grow. gotta get greater growth. i just talked to ups. they got expert advise, special discounts, new technologies. like smart pick ups. they'll only show up when you print a label and it's automatic. we save time and money. time? money? time and money. awesome. awesome! awesome! awesome! awesome! (all) awesome! i love logistics.

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i'm david eads. in this half-hour, what hope for another 70 trekkers caught in blizzards in nepal. we assess the risk to the thousands of visitors drawn to this seemingly safe hiker's destination. libya's government is being run out of a hotel hundreds of kilometers from the capital. is the country falling apart? we have a special report from libya, plus an interview with the u.s. ambassador to the country. also in the program, alice

is taking a look at the nervous markets, but also some not very sweet news. >> absolutely right. the world's biggest food group has announced weaker sales for the first nine months of the year. poor economic growth in europe and asia are to blame, as we asked the company's ceo when the market will start biting once again. trekking in nepal is quite a routine trip for some. good business, too. but this year, it's turning into a deadly holiday for a considerable number. blizzards and avalanches have hit popular trekking circuits in the himalayas, killing at least 12 hikers already. it's one of the most dangerous spells of bad weather the region's ever seen. the authorities have already rescued more than 100 trekkers stranded in snowfall. laura westbrook has this report.

>> reporter: these mountains attract more than 100,000 visitors to nepal from all over the world. but in the high himalayas, unpredictable weather can be deadly. a rescue operation is now under way after blizzards and several avalanches struck the region. the nepalese army has rescued dozens, but rough terrain and snow is hampering efforts, and many trekkers are still missing. the mountains that dominate central nepal are the annapurna and manaslu. hundreds of hikers were trekking on these mountains when all were hit by the severe weather. it's the most popular time of year to visit the area, and weather is usually fine, but freak snowstorms caught many off guard. a facebook page has been set up by the brother of a missing hiker. it's quickly filled with concerned posts from all around the world, as people search for news on their friends and relatives. it comes just months after an avalanche on mount everest killed 16 sherpas and resulted

in a big drop in the number of expeditions to the world's highest peak. trekking and mountaineering are vital to the country's economy. many fear this latest tragedy will badly hurt those that rely on these mountains for their livelihood. laura westbrook, bbc news. >> we can now speak to ben airs. a charity working with remote himalayan communities. thanks very much indeed for joining us. i just wonder first of all, what hope do you think there is for the 70-odd trekkers who we still haven't found? >> well, thanks for having me on. i still think there's quite a bit of hope. the nepali government is putting all its resources available into the rescue efforts. there's something like seven commercial helicopters and two

government helicopters involved in the rescue efforts. and already 117 trekkers have been brought down to safety. the weather has just turned bad up there, from what i understand. but i think there's hope that over the course of the next few days, those who did survive the avalanche will be brought home safely. >> right. and let's hope that is the case, obviously. i do wonder how this happened in a sense. because we all have forecasts. we can read forecasts. we can follow them. was there a level of irresponsibility in them being able to take this on? >> it's a difficult question. i think irresponsibility sort of infers a certain sense of impropriety, i suppose. what i mean to say by that is what's difficult about the mountains in nepal is that they're made so accessible, and the annapurna region where this accident happened sees about 60% of nepal's tourists and trekkers. and so you have a huge amount of

people traveling into a dangerous mountain area. and oftentimes, you know, those are groups going -- experienced guides are going independentlying and they don't always know when to stay back and they're not necessarily experienced mountaineers. so whether or not it was irresponsible, it's hard to say, but it's certainly a factor of the way the tourism industry in nepal has developed without a very rigorous safety infrastructure. >> i mean, i suppose you make the point this is critically important as an industry, isn't it. economically as well, of course, as the safety of those involved. is it, would you say, ben, sufficiently regulated? >> i think that the regulation is not sufficient, no. and i don't think there are many here who would argue that. nepal sees great challenges when it comes to government regulation or government management of its natural resources. you see it all across the country. the capital city currently is suffering from five or six hours

a day of roving blackouts. in a country that has some of the best hydropower reserves in the world. so in the trekking route, this lack of regulation, unfortunately, threatens the entire tourism economy here. >> ben ayers, thanks very much indeed. getting the latest directly from katmandu. alice is here with all the business. not looking good on the markets. it's not a good day in many ways, is it? >> it hasn't been a good fortnight really, david. it's been really tumultuous. we'll be talking about them a little bit later because they have plunged again here in europe. having initially started the day on the up. but all this turmoil, of course, taking its toll and being felt outside of the world stock exchanges as well. nestle has reported that its sales growth slowed slightly in the first nine months of the year. and that's as a result of stalling asian economies as well as price drops here in europe.

just a short time ago, i asked the company's ceo about tackling world crises like the global economic slowdown as well as the growing ebola epidemic. >> you have to put things in perspective, too. europe is indeed -- it's actually deflationary. you mentioned just before our interview there. and still nestle has shown growth in europe, real growth. now, they are paying emerging markets that are showing some softer growth, are still showing growth. it's a very accelerated growth level. but it's softer. doesn't help. but again, how are we seeing the opportunities, how are we innovating and bringing to consumers. we are still going for growth everywhere in the world. on your specific question about cocoa prices, it is a condition

that when it would move into countries like ivory coast and ghana that it's going to have an impact on the prices. starting to reflect some of that already. also the first thing we have to think about is people, and we have quite a lot of people there, so we have already people on standby there. but then the price of cocoa is going to be affected. normally we have a bridge of months, but it's clear that when that is going to affect, now we're going to see we have shown that we can react when it is needed. >> the ceo of nestle talking to me a little bit earlier there. the turmoil that we were talking about continues on global financial markets, and it looks set to deepen, because figures just out in the last few hours indicated that in september, inflation here in the eurozone slipped to its lowest level in five years, and that sent european stocks plunging, having

initially bucked the trend. here you can see where we stand. the ftse 100 down. the cac has rebounded sligtly. it was down over 3%. let's cross live to singapore and talk to linda yeuh. it's been a tumultuous couple of weeks for the markets. suddenly we're back in the red. >> yeah, very much so, alice. it's a reminder that there are deflationary pressures in europe as well as worldwide. if you look across the united states, for instance, inflation is also very low. it's one of the reasons why globally there's the sense that if the u.s. is inflation, the eurozone looks close to deflation where prices are falling, china, japan, india are all experiencing very weak price rises and that, of course, goes with slow growth. that combination of slow growth

reminiscent of five years ago when that was during the global recession after the global crisis is a reminder to investors and markets that if we had the same problems that we had five years ago, central banks today have interest rates which are nearly zero in major economies, which means that there's less scope for central banks to boost markets, to boost the economy, and that's one of the reasons why there's a bit of selloff of stocks and you do see that across the world, not just in europe, but also in the u.s., the s&p 500 benchmark index has erased all of its gains for the year, and in asia, most of the major markets were lower, led by japan. >> and that's what we were talking about, the ceo of nestle. things like the ebola epidemic. but i also want to ask you about ten-year government bond yields. they rose above 8% for the first time since february. >> when you have out of stock

markets, what you end up with, money moving into government bonds. so what you see across, again, major economies is that ten-year bond yields, inversely related to the price. when you have more money piling in, you're seeing very low yields in u.s. treasuries and uk guilds as well as in european bonds. but, of course, a division with the periphery in europe where peripheral bonds like greek bonds, that's considered to be more risky. so the fight is to safety, not necessarily just to government bonds in general. but i think the overall picture i would say is remember the end of quantitative easing in the united states is the era of cheap money. that's what we associate with the fed having pumped in literally hundreds of billions of cash into the u.s. economy that's also gone globally. that program actually ends this month and there's always going to be concern at this point as to what happens to markets.

that's also a cause of some of this turmoil as well as unpredictable events like ebola as well as, let's not forget, commodity prices coming down globally, continuing tensions in the middle east. all of those things are going to make investors think, do i want to be in equities or do i want to go somewhere safe, and typically speaking, government bonds, not the peripheral european ones, which are still viewed as risky, but government bonds do end up getting more of that crash and that's why you're also seeing movement across different sectors of global markets. >>. >> always good to get your thoughts. that's all the business for this hour. back to you, david. >> alice, thanks very much for that. coming up on "gmt," two governments, two parliaments. who's in control of libya? we've got a special report. also an interview with the u.s. ambassador to libya. >>no. not exactly. to attain success, one must project success. that's why we use fedex one rate®. >>their flat rate shipping. exactly.

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thanks for being with us. i'm david eads. the top stories this hour. the world health organization says a major outbreak of ebola is unlikely in north america and western europe, as senior u.s. health official apologizes for mistakes in handling their first ebola case there. indications from the oscar pistorius hearing that it may be several more weeks before the judge sentences the athlete. we're going to turn our attention to libya now, where there are growing concerns the country is on the verge of becoming a failed state. three years after the revolution that toppled colonel gadhafi from power, bitter fighting between different factions over control of libya is rife. fears arising that the conflict could drag the country on into civil war. we're going to be speaking in a moment to the american ambassador to libya. first, though, let's just have a look at where things stand at

the moment. the capital tripoli is in the hands of an armed group called the national salvation government. they've appointed omar al hassi as prime minister and they're running a government and parliament from there. libya's official parliament, which was forced to flee tripoli, is now based in a hotel in the eastern port of tobruk, from where it's doing its best to run the country. we're going to be speaking to the u.s. ambassador in a moment. first, though, this report from the bbc's tim hyul, one of the few foreign journalists who's been able to reach tobruk. >> reporter: libya, a country the world helped free from dictatorship, has now descended into chaos. just a few hours sailing time from europe, this navy patrol vessel daren't venture far for fear of meeting militants. >> translator: they're outlaws, extremists, and militias. >> reporter: this stretch of coastline is one of few bits of libya its newly elected parliament still controls.

three years after the overthrow of colonel gadhafi, much of the country is in the hands of rebel militias. some of them linked to al qaeda. libya's elected parliament has fled to this remote port, tobruk, a thousand kilometers from the capital tripoli. it's been forced to stay in a huge 1970s hotel. many here say they had to be smuggled out of the capital tripoli after they and their families were attacked by islamists militias. the militias seized the capital in august after islamists lost the elections and set up a rival government. it says it's defending the revolution to stop gadhafi-era figures regaining power, but it admits that it's allies to an extremely group and shari'a, which partly controls the second city benghazi and was involved in an attack on the u.s.

consulate there two years ago. >> translator: there are two forces in benghazi and they are working together now. some are alshari'a and revolutionaries from 2011. they are fighting together now. >> reporter: in tobruk, they hope the revolution will bring freedom and opportunities. now they're terrified by the growing power of the jihadis. >> to be honest, i am talking with you, i am afraid for myself. because i was talking about jihadism. and if they watch, maybe they're going to catch me. >> reporter: he's depending on the politicians now trapped in their hotel to save the country. but they in turn are depending on the outside world to come to their aid. >> let's look at the worst case scenario.

yes, the islamic militants take over libya one day. what will happen? if somebody has the means to deliver the rockets or whatever, the means to deliver destruction to europe, they can do frit this side if they have control. >> reporter: in tobruk, they say the threat of extremism in libya is as great as that posed by islamic state militants in syria and iraq. but the world, busy now with those places, is looking the other way. bbc news, tobruk. >> and tim will have more from tobruk in this weekend's edition of "our world" right here on "bbc world news." do catch that if you can. ambassador deborah jones is the u.s. ambassador to libya. she's currently based in malta, though not in the country at the moment. ambassador, thanks very much indeed for joining us. we've got rebel militias, links to al qaeda, dominating the country which seems to be falling apart. it's the worst possible outcome from your perspective, isn't it, three years after the fall of

gadhafi? >> well, thank you for having me, first of all. but i'd like to amend a little bit of what i heard. first, the international community has not turned its back on libya. obviously, there are big issues in the region that we're dealing with now. but in fact, i've just come from talks with secretary kerry and the libyan foreign minister in paris where we also met with the french and again, earlier this month, last month in new york at the united nations, we were able to negotiate a communique of support from 13 different nations, including libya's neighbors for the negotiation process being led by the secretary-general special representative, which is designed to, in fact, strengthen the core, reconstitute the elected house of representatives so that it can be empowered for us to provide greater support for libya. >> but how do you do that when you have rebel militias running the place from tripoli? i mean, this bunch are stuck out in tobruk.

>> well, they may be in tobruk, but they also travel around just as i do. and the point is that what's important is we have been able to reach out to a broad group of those who have been elected to the h.o.r. as well, who are prepared to engage in these reconciliation talks, and we do need to strengthen the core of the government and there are plenty of people within the international community prepared to support libya. i don't think there's an alternative to that is my point, that you have to begin somewhere. >> there's clearly not an easy answer ever, is there, but if we look at the intervention as it was, the intervention from three years ago, president obama's leading from behind strategy, ultimately it's a strategy which means that once you've looked at the issue, once you've started -- that you need leadership before an intervention, leadership during, and then leadership afterwards. and the bottom line is there's been no leadership to help libya

afterwards. >> i'm not sure i would accept that characterization. i think it's probably -- >> well, the others haven't really provided it. >> well, i think there's been support. but it matches the situation on the ground there. and i think people have to remember, initially libya felt that they could manage things on their own. very wary of their sovereignty and foreign intervention. and i think we all recognize now that lots more hand holding was probably necessary. and so in that sense you're right, and president obama has acknowledged that. but in terms of how it's done and how we neutralize and reintegrate the militias as part of an overall political solution is going to be critical because this is indeed one of the major failings within libya following the revolution is how do we reintegrate the militias into

libyan civil society and life so that we build a state. >> and very briefly -- i'm sorry so bankrupt you again, but very briefly, the nature of skype, i suppose. a self-proclaimed islamic caliphate now. that's what you're up against. >> certainly they have groups inside that have declared an affiliation with isil. we've made no secret of the fact that there are groups with the united states, declared it a terrorist organization nearly a year ago. we have discussed this again. there are extremist elements that we are going to have to deal with in libya, and in order for this reconciliation to work, the vast majority of libyans are going to have to eschew these extremist groups. >> ambassador jones, thanks very much indeed. deborah jones joining us there on "gmt." now, the freeze art fair in

london is hosting art's movers and shakers. among them, two japanese artists known as the united brothers. their performance piece is called "does this soup taste am b -- ambivalent." that's the scene of a nuclear disaster back in march 2011. one of the brothers tells us his story. >> i am one of the artists from united brothers. my mother actually arrived to uk for the first time to cook this soup. and we use radish and mushroom,

and even though we scientifically check the radiation exposure, people are afraid of eating this soup. when it happened, i was in tokyo, but my mother and brother were actually in fukushima. so i remember i evacuated immediately. fukushima issues -- i asked my brother who is not really an artist, to collaborate with me. we wanted to create a project that leads directly to fukushima, especially for people outside of japan can discuss about issues.

>> interesting stuff there. let me just remind you of our top story here on "gmt." a senior health official in dallas has apologized for mistakes made in the handling of thomas duncan, the liberian man who died of ebola in the city. that's the news here on "gmt." thanks for watching "bbc world news." and now telcos using hp big data solutions are feeling the love, too. by offering things like on-the-spot data upgrades -- an idea that reduced overcharge complaints by 98%. no matter how fast your business needs to adapt, if hp big data solutions can keep wireless customers smiling, imagine what they can do for yours. make it matter.

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