>> for more than nine months iraq finally has a new government. snowbound travelers, the european commission threatens action against european airports after the deepfreeze deepens. >> we will -- we are told it will probably be december 30. >> the business secretary in hot water. boasting about his clashes with the media tycoon rupert murdoch. >> i am keeping my sights on mr. murdoch. >> a very warm welcome to "bbc world news," broadcast on pbs in america and around the globe. coming up later, russia's president meets the indian president with deals on nuclear energy in the the clutches -- and electric's stock topped the

-- nuclear arms top the agenda. more wedding bells for the royal family. the queen's great granddaughter announces her engagement. >> after more than nine months of political deadlock, iraq has a new government. nouri maliki's second term has been floated through parliament along with several key appointments. the major sectarian and ethnic groups. the lack of a political settlement has played a big part in the violin and stability. our colleague reports from baghdad. >> when the moment finally came

ca, it happened rather quickly. maliki read quickly names the the. people voted on each and every one with a brief reyes of the hand. >> i'd like to congratulate the minister for receiving their new posts, wishing them success and good luck. i would like to thank members of the former government who were loyal in their work and accomplished their mission in peace. >> this is only a partial cabinet. the number of key ministries have been left vacant. these include the three security ministries. these portfolios are especially sensitive. they are watching for signs that the security forces might promote sectarianism. it has taken a long time to get

here. elections in march left no candid it either able to pull enough seats together. iraq has broken the record for the longest time between holding an election and forming a government. on the streets of baghdad, news was met with optimism. cautious optimism tempered by experience with -- >> i hope that new ministers will serve the iraqi people as a whole. not only their sect or party. >> there are still some negotiations ahead but the big test will be whether these new members of the government has spent the past nine months fighting can start to pull together. >> just before christmas much of northern europe has been at a standstill. heavy snow has been causing huge disruptions.

airlines say the vast majority of flights have been operating. euro star has cleared its backlog. transport operators are under find -- under fire from the european transport commission. they have called this destruction unacceptable. >> at frankfurt airport they were having some -- having to manufacture the christmas cheer. the anger mounted. at first people were inclined to blame the weather. now they are questioning the way the system is run. >> nothing works here. no one knows where to go. you go to a counter and they send you to the next counter. >> as the plane scattered snow on the tarmac, airport authorities from numerous countries blame the weather. but the european commission says it may change the law and force

airports to maintain minimal service during sameer weather. >> airports must get serious about planning for this kind of severe weather conditions. we have been -- we have seen snow is not such an exceptional circumstance. >> many argue that should be extended to other parts of the transport system. at brussels, trains were getting through but quit some of the delays. this is the latest euro star a rival. it arrived over two hours late. either let's see if we can chat with a couple of people. how was your journey this morning? >> i wake up at 4:00 to stand here and either i had to wait for five hours. >> at the other end of the line it was far more chaoticeumorero star are telling passengers not

to return up until one hour before departure. >> this is how far we have got so far. we have another hour to go. >> while thousands remain stack, the situation is said to be improving slowly. temperatures are expected to stay close to freezing. there is more snow forecast. they travel nightmare is not coming to an end. >> the american reports investigating the scottish government's decision to release a man convicted of the lockerbie bomb are. he was freed abdelbaset ali al- megrahi for political reasons- -- for political reasons. abdelbaset ali al-megrahi was freed last year. the government excepted advice he had only three months to live. the nigerian government has offered to help end the crisis in ivory coast by guarding a

home in exile to the former president refusing to step down. he has given a public address suggesting the african union should look into the crisis. census results in the u.s. revealed the population growth is the lowest since the great depression. the population is 308.7 million this year. that is up 9.7% from 10 years ago. 600 people in belarus had been chilled in the wake of the president's reelection. -- 600 people have been jailed. some could face up to 15 years for their part in mass disturbances. this report from david stern. >> either they are asking questions but not everyone is getting answers.

days after police arrested hundreds, these people came to the detention center searching for news. some have determined their loved ones are inside these walls. they brought food and warm clothes. others are told to look elsewhere. >> nobody knows where he is and what happened to him. there is no information. they are sending me from one prison to another. >> the authorities say those are guilty of violent protests. demonstrators clashed with police after presidential elections. so far more than 600 have been detained. the country's opposition say the government is trying to crush them. this is the wife of a presidential candidate. on sunday night police beat and

later arrested him at a hospital. >> they held me. i was screaming. they realized my husband could not walk so they dragged him to the hospital. >> the president is unapologetic. he triumphed in the election with 80% of the vote. he said what the opposition was practicing was not democracy. in the run-up to the presidential elections there was hope belarus might be entering a time of reform. but the post-election landscape is much different. five of the candidates have been arrested and the parties may be outlawed. >> the less controversial immediate takeover in years is already causing political upset.

the government minister who was in charge of that and that takeover has been recorded saying he declared war on the owner of news corp., rupert murdoch. this report from our business editor. >> vince cable early this morning a bit glum and some of unguarded remarks he made. this prompted this from the deputy prime minister. then at 3:00, it became more than embarrassing. >> what i can't disclose is although "the telegraph" put out what they said was a full transcript of the conversation, actually they omitted some fascinating parts of the conversation with these reporters.

the whistle-blower has passed me the full transcript. >> i will keep my sights on mr. murdoch. [inaudible] >> right. >> [inaudible] i cannot politicize said. for people who know what happened -- is happening -- >> what does the former tv boss makes of it all? >> i have never heard anything like it. for a secretary of state to say anything while a review is underway. i don't think undercover reporters have ever recorded his or her vince cable words. vince the the has the same -- vince cable has the say on deciding whether the takeover will happened.

in saying he declared war on mr. murdoch appeared to be taken side. it was like a judge in a court case saying he was going to war against the defendants. it is not a surprise that these marks are unacceptable and the prime minister has prevented vince cable from all future role in media decisions. this is what news corp. said tonight print either we are shocked and dismayed by reports. they've raised serious questions about fairness in due process. here is the minister who denies he has given mr. cable media powers. it is down to him at this media empire should be allowed to expand. >> it seems russia and the u.s. are on the verge of a new era of arms control.

mr. obama looks to have the support to ratify the start i nuclear arms treaty. he agreed with the russian president. several senators came out in favor. britain and russia have engaged in spy expulsion is. britain demanded russia and removed an official for breaking the rules on intelligence activities. russia demanded a british diplomat believes moscow. south korea warned north korea not to attack a giant christmas tree. it is lit up between the two countries. it is seen as some by it a provocation to the north. stay with us on "bbc world news." $1 million sculptures sold for scrap by the thieves. the american politician acting

as an unofficial envoy to north korea says they have agreed to allow international nuclear inspectors back inbbackill richard -- back in. bill richardson is currently in beijing. >> arriving in beijing with a message from a p'yongyang. governor bill richardson says he has a new offer from the north koreans. the north will allow a u.n. nuclear inspectors expelled last year back into the country. p'yongyang may also sell nuclear fuel, getting rid of some of the material that could be used to build bombs. and consider his proposal for a joint military commission to work with the u.s. to try to reduce tension along the border. >> my meetings with the north koreans, they are always very

strong in their position. they were very strong on their message. they are sometimes -- but i notice a pragmatic attitude on their part. >> inspectors have for years tried to get an accurate picture of the north's nuclear facilities. china welcomed the suggestion. they may be allowed back in. in seoul, lawmakers were briefed by the defense minister on the military drills close to the disputed border. officials have so far given a cool response to the offer from the north, hinting it still has not been officially confirmed by the government of p'yongyang.

>> the latest headlines, for more than nine months of wrangling iraq finally has most of a new government. that is cold comfort for snowbound travelers. the european commission is threatening action against the airports. the leaders of russia and india signed a contract for the development of a new aircraft. during a visit by the dmitry medvedev that they agreed to double bilateral trade within five years to $20 billion. >> in a changing world, old friendships can be the best. russia and india have been allies since the cold war. now they have agreed to jointly develop a new fighter aircraft. it is a deal worth more than $30 billion to moscow. in return, diplomatic support

for india's ambitions. >> russia considers india the strong and deserving candidate for a seat in the un security council. we also talked about the overhaul of the international financial institutions. >> the foreign ministry -- in many parts of the world india is building. it is not only russia who wants a piece of the action. all permanent members of the un security council have visited dehli. there are great opportunities for everyone but some think india should be more reserved. >> these visits by world leaders are instructive as to how this can help the private sector at home secure contracts in the same way these foreign

governments are securing contracts through the leaders. >> india is only going in one direction. its growth seems assured. there is a feeling that the rest of the world can no longer afford to ignore it. india is opening its gates to the world and can expect even more businesses seeking ties of mutual benefit. >> it was the worst natural disaster in pakistan's history. the monsoon rains that caused record floods caused havoc for 20 million people. hundreds of thousands turned to a lifeline established by the erdu languished the the -- language services. our colleague has returned to find one of those callers. >> [speaking foreign language]

>> a call for help from a village in sindh province. we decided to try to find this caller. our journey takes as deep into the interior of sindh intop one of the poorest places. >> [speaking foreign language] [speaking foreign language]

>> our own journey to find this man comes to an unexpected end. he eventually finds us. with a guy-hand from one of his relatives. because during our journey we discovered he is blind. his father soon joins us to escort us to their village. it lies in ruins. >> [speaking foeign language] >> his family including his two children only return here a few

weeks ago. before that, this milledge was under water. he is still -- this village was under water. he is still waiting for a tent, but we are told food was delivered to his village. this flood water will not be going anywhere for many months. and this crisis will test pakistan for a long time to come. >> we mentioned this to you 24 hours ago, but here is more of a fascinating story. spanish police discovered stolen art thought to be worked $6.5 million because it is alleged thieves tried to sell it to a scrap yard. >> in the back of this van is

millions of dollars worth of art. including pieces by pablo picasso, a celebrated school during and colombian artist. -- a celebrated the sculptor. it was recovered after a tip off to police that the fetus tried to sell one of the pieces to a scrap yard -- tip of to police that the thieves tried to sell one of the pieces to a scrap yard. they tried to sell it for $40. investigators track down the them to a locker close to where it was stolen. luckily, all the pieces appear to be intact. >> on the initial assessment, all of the art were recovered is in perfect condition. >> when the highest happened to the artwork had just been brought back from an exhibition in germany and was being stored

in a warehouse either in a suburb of madrid. it was time bridget was not the robbery was an inside job. >> in the beginning we thought it was stolen by professional thieves. they open a warehouse and escaped with a truck full of art work within three minutes. >> given the discovery of a few kilometers away, investigators now say it is likely to have been a more amateur job. >> waiting ages for a british royal wedding and two come along at once. queen elizabeth's grant, -- granddaughter is set to marry her boyfriend. zahra phillips winning the sports personality in 2006. the husband to be is a rugby

plaint york sherman -- rugby playing yorksireman. she has been able to live her life with a considerable amount of freedom. there has been a rebellious speak -- rebellious streak. but the the he has been a steady and influence on zahra. in 2005 she equaled her mother's achievements and won a gold medal. one year later she became the sports world champion. as time passed they became more comfortable in public as a couple. there is a glimpse of them in the audience. >> there was a big rumor going around that you were going to be in this year. was it true or was it false? >> we did get asked.

it was a bad part of the year for us unfortunately. >> she was interviewed earlier this year about the 60th birthday of her mother. >> i think if i was going to be a mother that is what i would want to be like. i would like to be as good a mother as she has been to us. >> the queen is said to be delayed it occurred daughters marriage. it is likely to be a very private event as the attention focuses on the marriage of her cousin, prince william. >> it was an extraordinary sight that graced the early morning sky. the first lunar eclipse in almost 400 years to happen on the shortest day of the year. we have much more on bbc.com. thanks very much for watching.

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