tv BBC News BBC News October 6, 2018 1:00am-1:31am BST
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this is bbc news, i'm ben bland. our top stories: i will vote to confirm judge kavanaugh. brett kavanaugh is a big step closer to being confirmed to the us supreme court after weeks of bitter debate and allegations of sexual assault. i think if our founders i think if ourfounders had seen, envisioned this process unfolding like it has, some of them might have stuck with king george. a white chicago police officer who shot dead a black teenagerfour years ago — is found guilty of intentionally killing him. desparate pleas for help in indonesia. a week after the earthquake and tsunami struck — the human cost of this tragedy continues to grow. cameroon heads to the polls this weekend to elect a president, with conflict and corruption top of the campaign agenda. hello and welcome to bbc news.
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it looks as though judge brett kavanaugh is moving closer to being confirmed as a us supreme courtjustice. the senate voted by the narrowest of margins to move to the next stage of the process, setting up a final vote on saturday. and earlier, republican susan collins — a key vote the white house needed — announced her support. the bbc‘s north america correspondent nick bryant reports. this uniquely american melodrama is reaching its conclusion. capitol hill now the scene of protests night and day. this is for those who love democracy! donald trump claims these were professional protesters, paid for by the liberal billionaire george soros, but they came to the nation's capital of their own will in a last—ditch attempt to block brett kavanaugh's nomination. there's still time
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to stop this, please! their pleas directed at his republican backers. so many of the fault lines in american politics converge on the supreme court — abortion, gun rights, gay marriage — which is why this debate is so very passionate. the vote in the senate was procedural, but it had the potential to kill off the nomination. so the republican majority leader made what sounded like a closing argument. the uncorroborated mud and the partisan noise and the physical intimidation of members here in the senate will not have the final say around here. the senate will have the final say. when the vote finally came, it passed, by the narrowest of margins. on this vote, the yeas are 51—19, the motion is agreed to. america has been transfixed by the allegations from christine blasey ford that brett kava naugh sexually assaulted her as a teenager, a claim he strenuously denied. i am innocent, i am
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innocent of this charge! the senator for maine... and tonight, a key wavering female republican senator announced she would back his nomination in the final vote tomorrow. i do not believe that these charges can fairly preventjudge kavanaugh from serving on the court. i will vote to confirm judge kavanaugh. applause. who would have thought back injuly, when donald trump first nominated him, that this suburban dad would be the focus of such a fight? but it has ended with a major victory for the white house, donald trump will get his man. the supreme court will soon have a more decisive conservative majority. this brutal and ugly confirmation fight has felt like a clash between two divergent americas. in a washington that is ever more tribal, in a country that is ever more polarised. a white police officer who killed
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a black teenagerfour years ago in chicago has been found guilty of second—degree murder. jason van dyke shot laquan mcdonald 16 times in a case that sparked outrage across the united states. he claimed he'd feared for his life, but video released by the court showed his victim walking away from officers at the scene. the bbc‘s nada tawfik has been following the trial from new york. there were really two competing narratives. prosecutors argued the shooting should never have happened and officer van dyke showed no regard for laquan mcdonald. laquan mcdonald himself took, apologies, jason van dyke himself took the stand and emotionally said he felt he was at threat, that laquan mcdonald was going to attack him with a knife, a pocket knife that he was holding but what was so key here
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throughout this 3—week trial was the video itself, a video released only after a court order and what that showed was that laquan mcdonald was walking away from officers when this shooting happened. and you can see in that video that he is lying motionless on the street as the officer continues to fire. and so this video was really key during this trial. what's been the political fallout from it all? well, you know, this has really rocked chicago. the police chief has been fired, three other officers have now been charged with lying and trying to cover up. this crime by officer van dyke, because they put out accounts that were inaccurate, this video showed that they had lied, and there have also been elected officials who have essentially been voted out of office.
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the mayor, rahm emanuel himself, out of concern about about how this affected his standing, said he would not seek re—election as mayor. so really, it's interesting to see that even the department ofjustice investigated and said the police department had a pattern of excessive use against african—americans. and outside in the court, the community, what has the mood been like after this verdict? you know, the community has been really pleased with this verdict. you're seeing so people outside the court, at city hall, chanting, "justice for laquan." in one process, they were counting out the number of shots, the 16 times he was shot, and saying his name, saying, "remember his name." but the city had, had the jury acquitted officer van dyke, and could be mass demonstrations so city hall had a iso—page plan in place, businesses were going to shut down if needed, even the schools were going to close early. really, this was a city on edge to see what could possibly happen. but so far, there have been orderly,
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peaceful protests, some saying this would be a model for other places where they can seek successfully a conviction against officers. let's get some of the day's other news. the washington post newspaper has left a column blank in protest at the disappearance of one of its contributors. it says it's concerned about the welfare of the saudi arabian journalist jamal khashoggi. the newspaper says he went into the saudi arabian consulate in istanbul on tuesday and has not been heard from since. cristiano ronaldo is to play for juventus in italy's serie a match at udinese on saturday. this is despite a us court re—opening an investigation into rape allegations against him,
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which he firmly denies. shares injuventus have fallen by almost io%, but the club has tweeted that the claims dating back to 2009 have not diminished their appreciation for the star player. but two sponsors, nike and ea sports have expressed concern about the allegations. france has paid homage to the late singer, charles aznavour, at a national ceremony in paris. the french president, emmanuel macron, and the armenian prime minister, nikol pashinyan, led tributes to one of the masters of french song. mr macron called him a poet who sang like his life depended on it. mr pashinyan said aznavour — who was born in paris to armenian parents — had carried the country's name to the world. the united nations says it's urgently trying to raise $50million "for immediate relief" to help victims of the earthquake and tsunami in indonesia. at least 1,000 500 people have died — and there fears there could be more. rescuers are still trying to reach remote, cut—off areas on the island of sulawesi. our south—east asia correspondent
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jonathan head has been speaking to people in a village in one of the worst hit areas. if you want help in palu, you have to turn up and demand it. and even that doesn't always work. these men have come from a village submerged under a sea of mud. i met them yesterday after their request for government aid had been turned down. but today, when we went to see how they were living, camped in the local mosque, our arrival coincided with that of a police truck carrying some much appreciated rice and noodles, albeit enough only for a couple of days. "they showed up out of the blue", said this man, one of the men i had met in palu just as the supplies were running out. "we're really happy. " it was a welcome opportunity, too, for some community outreach by a police force accused by some locals here of insensitivity to their plight. these officers wanted to correct that impression. "this is actually our own
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food", said the colonel. "but we heard about these people and we felt sorry for them." so many of palu's inhabitants are still living like this. day—to—day challenges are hard enough. but their biggest concern is over when and how they can get back to their homes. i was taken to see where the torrent of mud had swept across the village. so they are telling me there were four houses here that have just completely disappeared. yes, totally buried under the mud. there is nothing left of them at all. without heavy machinery, which they don't have, there is no hope of clearing out this much mud. and there is another worry. the bodies of those caught by the mudslide. well, we have reached a point in the village where there is a really strong smell because of a body that is buried in some of this debris. they cannot get it out. it is really distressing the people who live here and it gives you an idea, with all this mud, just what an immense job
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it is going to be to get these villages back to some kind of normal life again. that worry was brought home to them later when a search and rescue team brought a corpse to the mosque. a reminder these people really don't need of the immense human cost of this disaster. jonathan head, bbc news, palu, indonesia. this year's nobel peace prize has been awarded to two people who have campaigned against sexual violence in war. one is a yazidi human rights activist nadia murard — the other is a congolese gynaecologist. the nobel committee said it wanted to send a message of awareness , that women are being used as weapons of war and the perpetrators should be held to account. our chief international correspondent lyse doucet reports. a peace prize to fight one of the worst weapons of war — sexual violence. 25—year—old nadia murad
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was brutalised by islamic state fighters. it all came back when she returned to her village in northern iraq last year — horrific memories of being raped every day for months, her mother and six brothers killed when islamic state stormed into the yazidi heartland, including their village of kojo. we visited kojo just weeks ago — a monument to a massacre, almost everyone killed or captured, women sold as sex slaves. nadia spoke of it when i met her in new york with her lawyer, amal clooney. translation: i went to visit my family home a few months ago. it was completely destroyed. isis had left nothing behind. it's going to be hard to forget, but at least we are working now to bring those criminals tojustice. at least that is something,
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a tiny victory. and today, in eastern congo, sweet celebration in a place known for its pain. the clinic where gynaecologist denis mukwege treats victims of sexual violence. translation: the prize has a big meaning that although it took time for the world to recognise us, the world has started listening to women, and notjust listening but getting to know the problems that you face. cheering understanding our problems is not enough. they must realise that when you commit a crime against anyone, it's not right. they call him "the miracle doctor". in congo's war, sexual violence so severe many require surgery. they've used the world's podiums to fight for justice. now they are armed with a powerful prize — to try to end one of the worst crimes of war. lyse doucet, bbc news. stay with us on bbc news, still to come:
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we will be sampling the delights of every young musician's dream, the world's biggest drum machine and one that will not fit into their bedrooms. this was a celebration by people who were relishing their freedom. they believe everything's going to be different from now on. they think their country will be respected in the world once more, as it used to be before slobodan milosevic took power. the dalai lama, the exiled spiritual leader of tibet, has won this year's nobel peace prize. as the parade was reaching its climax, two grenades exploded, and a group of soldiersjumped from a military truck taking part in the parade and ran towards the president, firing from kalashnikov automatic rifles. after 437 years, the skeletal ribs of henry viii's
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tragic warship emerged. but, even as divers work to buoy her up, the mary rose went through another heart—stopping drama. i want to be the people's governor. i want to represent everybody. i believe in the people of california. this is bbc news, the latest headlines: key republican senators say they will vote for judge brett kavanaugh's nomination to the supreme court. a final senate vote is expected on saturday. the united nations says it's urgently trying to raise $50 million for immediate relief to help victims of the earthquake and tsunami in indonesia. un climate change scientists have been meeting all this week in south korea to decide what can be done to limit global warming, with a report due on monday.
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until now many countries have agreed to take steps to limit the rise in average temperatures to 2 degrees. but scientists are concerned that even that is too high. our science editor david shukman reports from vietnam, one of the world's most vulnerable countries. i'm in the incredibly hot mekong delta in the south of vietnam. this region is described as one of the most vulnerable anywhere in the world to the effects of climate change. i'm on board with a team of scientists, so let's find out what they're investigating. one of the scientists on board is professor dan parsons from the university of hull. just to interrupt for a second, what are you trying to find out here? we're using this acoustic sonar technology to map the flows of water, of sand, silts across this large delta plain. how much is this region changing? it's changing rapidly and changing very significantly. you found out the amount of silt carried by the river has reduced dramatically.
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the silt is what actually builds the land up here. how serious is the situation? absolutely right, the silt and the sands that are delivered from the basin upstream are the only thing that is offsetting sea level rise across the entire delta, which is home to 18 million people. i mentioned this is a hotspot for climate change. what makes it so vulnerable? it's low—lying, it's a large delta plain and it's sinking. the sea level is coming up. it's essentially drowning. serious stuff. many, many thanks indeed. let's go see what else is happening. one of the really big concerns is food supplies, because the mekong delta is one of the world's greatest regions for producing rice. professor steve darby, university of southampton, you're looking into this. what are the risks to rice production? well, there are a number. the first and most important is with rising sea level we are seeing a flow of that salt water onto the agricultural soils in the delta. the sea water's getting
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into the fields? that's right. during the flooding periods and during the dry season that salt water can flow over onto the rice growing areas and seep into the soils. it can contaminate them for productive rice agriculture. presumably rice can't grow when the water is too salty? that's right. some species or some crop varietals are very intolerant to that salt content. long—term, what are the implications? if you've got the land sinking, sea rising, sea water getting into the fields, what happens? unless there's a switch to some more tolerant varieties that can withstand that kind of salt pollution, then the current system of agriculture will have to change dramatically in order to be able to continue. to try to end on a positive note, what can be done? all of us need to do what we can to limit climate change, but also we need to find ways to learn how to live with the worst impacts. many thanks for that.
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professor steve darby there of the university of southampton. we're waiting for a report from the un climate panel looking into the implications of trying to limit global warming in the way vietnam and other countries want. we'll see if that is going to be possible. three decades after the nuclear disaster at chernobyl in ukraine, a solar plant has been unvieled at the site. it's built just across from where the power station, now encased in a giant sarcophagus, caused the world's worst nuclear disaster. the solar plant is in a contaminated area, which is still unsuitable for people to live in and where visitors are accompanied by guides carrying radiation meters. nearly 4,000 panels produce energy to power 2,000 apartments. cameroon heads to the polls on sunday to elect a president. the central african nation faces immense challenges — unemployment, corruption, the fight against boko haram in its far north region. but it is the conflict
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in the anglophone regions that has emerged as the defining issue. the bbc‘s killian chimtom ngala reports from yaounde. there is excitement in the air. turnout at opposition rallies is reminiscent of 1992 election, cameroon‘s first after it legalised multiparty politics. president paul biya is seeking his seventh term in office. he has hit the campaign trailjust once, visiting maroua in the far north region. biya has been in power since 1982, before many of these youth were even born. the president faces eight opponents, several of them in their first bids for the top office, like ex—government minister maurice kamto. talk of the anglophone
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crisis is never far away. i'll go there to wipe up their tears. i'll go there to ask them to come out from the bush. i'll send a delegation to nigeria to bring back those who are in the refugees camp there. cheering. i'll go there! conflict has engulfed the two english—speaking regions since 2016. separatist rebels are battling government forces. this has been the result: shattered homes, shattered lives. hundreds killed. more than 200,000 displaced. authoritiess have already announced that most polling regions in the north—west and south—west regions were not open sunday due to threats from the rebels. the anglophone crisis may go beyond this year's electoral regions. the anglophone crisis may go beyond
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this year's electoral outcome. the two regions, the south—west and north—west, represent 20% of cameroon‘s population. if they are not able to vote, they don't see how they are able to influence the decisions of the eventual victor, and this may reinforce the sense of marginalisation. biya has drawn a hard line on the rebellion. translation: obviously, we need to restore the peace in our north—west and south—west regions, wounded by the actions of the secessionists, by giving both regions all the satisfaction they are entitled to expect by protecting them from the so—called liberators. on the campaign trail, his opponents have proposed various reforms to resolve the crisis. the most radical proposal
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is perhaps that of osthosua, running for the first time at the head of the main opposition party. he has called for a return to federalism. despite the new faces and unprecedented challenges, few expect 85—year—old paul biya to be rattled in the face of a splintered opposition. in many ways, the drum machine is an unsung hero for music lovers across the globe. along with the synthesiser it helped make electronic music possible. now a group of engineers in germany have built the world's largest drum machine — and they're letting pretty much anyone have a go with it. the bbc‘s tim allman explains. this is dense music do it yourself style. —— dance music. outside a
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nightclub in dalian, the world's biggest drum machine, a sequence, is unveiled to the public. ten metres long and weighing more than half a ton, it was long and weighing more than half a ton, it was built long and weighing more than half a ton, it was built as long and weighing more than half a ton, it was built as a long and weighing more than half a ton, it was built as a tribute long and weighing more than half a ton, it was built as a tribute to dance culture. —— a nightclub in berlin. it was built so beginners can step up and create music on the flyer, or where musicians can use it asa flyer, or where musicians can use it as a proper instrument. and where better than germany, essentially the birthplace of electronic music. it was here that bands like kraftwerk pioneered a new sound using new technology. these designers and engineers employed the same principles, albeit on a much be a scale. the sequence apple is a
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buttons. it is 427, plus 78 lights, is built out of aerospace ship materials. and wood. and would and glue. and cables, 2.5 kilometres. there are plenty of popstars who started out in their bedroom with a synthesiser or drum machine. although with this one you might need a bigger bedroom. the mystery of more than 1000 us dollars that disappeared from a utah family was solved when they discovered the money in pieces in the home's shredder and found the culprit was their two—year—old son. ben and jackie had been saving the money to pay back ben's parents for football season tickets. that cheeky grin says it all. you can reach me on twitter — i'm @benmbland. some of us will have good weather on
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saturday, for others it is not going to be quite so pretty, in fact cloud and rain and cold weather on the way. the reason for that is a weather front slicing the uk and half right now. there is a battle between cold in the north and warm the milder weather in the south—east and below freezing, and in between we have a weather front. this will bring stormy weather to parts of the midlands, and the south—west in the morning and then come lunchtime that weather front will sweep into east anglia and south—east london is in this and rain. in scotland, northern ireland, northern england on saturday is looking absolutely fine, it is fresh but at least it is sunny. cloud across the midlands, it will feel cold with winds blowing out of the north, and then that rain
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from central southern england to london all the way to norwich. this rain could be really heavy indeed, really soggy out there. that also means temp riches will struggle on saturday. we had 23 in london on friday, saturday is looking like 1a. in the north of the country there will be sunshine with temperatures around 12— 13. the weather forecast for sunday, the wet weather from the south—east clears away and actually a bit ofa south—east clears away and actually a bit of a reversal in fortunes. in the morning it is going to be clear and cold, this is the temperature on sunday morning, 2— three degrees, a touch of frost in rural areas. and then sunday morning itself, a lot of sunshine across england and wales, and in the north—west of the country, there is a jetstream that is blowing in a weather front, country, there is a jetstream that is blowing in a weatherfront, cloud and rain, gusty winds, gale force around the western isles. very u nsettled around the western isles. very unsettled in the north—west of the country on sunday. sunday in england and wales is looking absolutely fine, the temperature is will recover a little bit as well, 15— 16 celsius. not too bad across england
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and wales on sunday at all. sunday night into monday, weather fronts keep pushing in an pushing through the north—west of the country, it looks like northern ireland, parts of scotla nd looks like northern ireland, parts of scotland are into some rain. it is monday now, look at the north of scotland, it get some sunshine on monday. then england and wales on monday. then england and wales on monday are also looking fairly sunny, partly cloudy skies, but crucially the winds are starting to blow out of the south—west, so that means the temperatures will be picking up, we are back up to 16 in belfast in newcastle, and to some of us belfast in newcastle, and to some of us next weekend, a week ahead, it is looking like there is a bit of an indian summer on the way with temperatures well into the 20s. this is bbc news. the headlines: judge brett kavanaugh now looks likely to be voted on to the us supreme court, despite accusations of sexual assault against him. two key republican senators say they will support him in the final vote on saturday. a white police officer who killed a black teenager
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in chicago four years ago has been found guilty of second—degree murder. jason van dyke shot laquan mcdonald 16 times. it caused outrage and mass protests. the united nations says it's urgently trying to raise $50 million "for immediate relief" to help victims of the earthquake and tsunami in indonesia. at least 1,500 people are confirmed to have died. the nobel peace prize has been awarded to two campaigners against sexual violence. denis mukwege has a clinic in the democratic republic of congo, and nadia murad campaigns for the yazidi people in northern iraq. a man who tried to push two people onto the tracks on the london underground has been found guilty of attempted murder.
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