>> tens of thousands stranded in australia as the queensland town of rockhampton is cut off by floods. laurent gbagbo warned that the regional burn. china has the technology to reprocess spent fuel. welcome to 'bb"bbc world news." is the full face veil a threat to syria? students respond. the man steven spielberg called the best actor in the world has died aged 64.

hello. floods have turned the state of queensland into a lake. 20,000 cities are inundated. 200,000 people affected. rumors are -- rivers are rising. the town of rockhampton is looking like an island. from nearby, our correspondent says this report. >> queenslander is supposed to be the sunshine state. its proposed that it is beautiful one day and perfect the next. that must sound like a sick joke now to the people of the towns and cities. the most widespread flawed in its history. 75,000 affected. floods cut the main highway leading to the skit -- state

capital of brisbane. with the city cut off, rockhampton is looking like an island, surrounded by an inland sea. the flood waters have not peaked yet. that will happen over the next 36 hours. the australian military has swung into action. defense force planes delivering vital supplies. >> contingency plans are being made to move food either by barge or by helicopter into rockhampton. >> streets have been turned into lagoons. with the locals able to get about using metal boats. >> the streets of emerald, in remains. these damages were sent in by an english teacher as he returned to what is left of his emerald

home. >> this has ruined. >> three people have been killed since the new year began. 10 have lost their lives since the rain started in november. this has been a slow building crisis. now, it has reached its peak. >> police in israel have arrested two palestinians working for the consulate in connection with an alleged terrorist plot. they are accused of trying to buy weapons to attack a sports stadium in jerusalem. >> a spokeswoman for the british foreign office has confirmed in the last few hours there are two employees who worked at the british consular. they work maintenance workers and did not have high security clearance. they have been arrested. in recent weeks, the arrest was

subject to a gag order. those arrests were a concern of an alleged plot to organize some sort of rocket or missile attack on a football stadium. it is the home of the jerusalem football club. another of sporting activities go on there. police say there are a number of people in the last few weeks who were arrested. even though this plot never get past the planning stage, two of those people arrested will -- were employees of the british consulate in east jerusalem. >> laurent gbagbo must quit his post as soon as possible. signs are that laurent gbagbo

is holding out. his spokesman has said that the region will burn if troops are sent in. >> ivory coast has been a country with extravagant protocol. visiting leaders have a message. the protocol was still laid on thick. it almost became political theater. the visiting presidents became just earnest and were greeted with a characteristic laurent gbagbo embrace. here at the hotel, the women and men hold cabinet meetings as if they were running the country.

this is theater. laurent gbagbo may have been condemned by the international community but he holds the reins of power. this is a test of the commitment to the outside world, especially africa. african leaders have taken on a high risk strategy by calling on laurent gbagbo to leave and threatening military action if he does not. it looks like laurent gbagbo is in the presidential palace with no intention of resigning. what do the letters do next? if african army's follow through on their threat to use force in ivory coast, civilians could suffer. one quarter of the ivory coast population are ex patrick african workers and sellers from neighboring countries. african governments to contribute military force could cause a backlash against their own citizens. >> china has taken a step

forward in its nuclear fuel program. state tv says the country has developed technology to reprocess spent nuclear fuel. it is embarking on a program to rebuild several nuclear power stations. it could provide fuel for those plants for years to come. >> chinese scientists have been working on this technology for 24 years. state tv says they have perfected a procedure that will allow them to reprocess spent nuclear fuel. it is a complex and costly procedure. the material can be used to gain -- refuel nuclear power stations. it is not the first country to develop its own facilities. france and britain have done this. this breakthrough will have major implications in china. the country is building a number of new nuclear power plants in an effort to diversify its

energy sources. it mostly relies on. this latest development could help the nuclear program. -- the country mostly relies on coal. the new process could mean that supply will last. >> iran has invited russia, china, the eu and others to tour its nuclear sites. just weeks before the six powers follow-up on recent talks. they will meet again. the second round of talks are a leader in tokyo later this month. pakistan's prime minister is bidding to head off a possible no-confidence vote. the government faces losing its majority.

a ugandan judge has ruled in favor of a petition to stop a media company outing homosexuals. it exposes the people to possible attack. -- gay people to possible attack. he managed to run to a runoff. the battle is on to succeed him. the name of one candidate has a familiar ring. >> he led one of the most successful and feared movements. he ruineone through to the next

round. at the age of 82, the father of the party is ready to step aside. he is backing his daughter to succeed him. >> politics swallow me up and i decided to carry on my dad's 52 carry on for the french people and france. if we do not do it, i do not think anyone can do it. >> brain is not the first choice of the ultra-catholics. she wears jeans and is a twice divorced mother of three and is pro-abortion. they agree she is personable and difficult to dislike. there is someone who stands in her way. right hand of the old guard. he and marine are the same on immigration. >> we also are in favor of -- it is normal that the french be preferred to aliens. as for housing and jobs and

employment. >> some of the party traditionalists prefer the the opponent. the nightmare scenario is that one of these candidates will progress to the [unintelligible] faced with a similar circumstance, marine le pen does not think of the wood. >> to win the election is the

goal of any political party. >> a recent poll suggested marine would come third. five points better than her father was pulling in the elections in 2002. >> the state of california is warninsoaring in jerry brown. he is not new to the job. 36 years ago, he was the youngest governor california had had. he was one of the oldest to take the oath of office. californians have a history of electing colorful leaders. and jerry brown is warning of an austere times and a different leadership style than his predecessor. good to have you with us.

stay with us if you can. the car from a surprising source. a new card joins the performance car club. that is suffering one of the worst economic crises in europe. investors can receive the e.u. residency rights. opulent architecture is not the only thing. foreign property buyers can also get the residency rights, enabling free travel. the owner of this building tells me russians have reacted. to delete enthusiastically. -- reacted enthusiastically. this will help latvia cope with the austerity measures.

>> now that the real estate taxes will be three times higher, who will pay the taxes? >> developers say the new law has had a big impact, giving it a boost. almost half of the flat sold in this building mostly to russian buyers. these nationalists said there is an influx of russian investment which will increase russia's influence. some worry that free travel in the rest of europe could be abused by criminals. >> we're giving opportunities to reside here. >> of the property buyers are

vetted, the law remains controversial. money from abroad is starting to help them shine again. >> the latest headlines here. australian military aircraft are flying in aid to areas affected by an unprecedented flooding in queensland. african leaders have been meeting laurent gbagbo but he seems far from agreeing to step down peacefully. cup to christians in the u.s. and europe are on high alert. saturday's suicide bombing killed 21 christians. the latest in a series of attacks. anti-terrorism police are investigating threats. there were clashes overnight

with police and new checkpoints have been set up. >> even the slightest movement is agony. she was burned over much of her body. the nurses have to move her. it is not an easy sight to watch. in the next door bed, her mother it is suffering his -- her mother is suffering her own agony. >> whoever did this, they're not human beings. they're animals treate. >> the doctor shows me the bits of shrapnel. the bomb was packed with old nuts and bolts. this was the moment a little after midnight when the bombers struck. inside the church, the explosion near the blows in the doors. outside in the street was

carnage. 21 allied dead. 90 others were injured. the church is sealed off behind a wall of hundreds of riot police. too little too late, according to the local christians. there has been sporadic violence between egypt's moslems and christians for years. never before has there been an attack on the scale of the one that took place here on saturday morning. whoever planted the bomb outside the church behind me appears to have wanted to deliberately inflame tensions and hatred between egypt's 8 million christians and more than 70 million muslims. on egyptian television, elders made a very public display of unity. like the egyptian government, they are blaming the bombing on foreigners. but on the streets of cairo, the crowds of protesters were in no mood to hold hands. they're angry and they want

revenge. with the coptic christmas a few days away, the feriafear is that may be preparing to strike again. quex like so many governments around the world, syria is taking action against the growing influence of islamic conservatives. they have been excluding hardline roverdeau -- religious figures from teaching. the government is worried about threats to a secular identity. >> it is the end of the school day. it is time for her homework. she is writing about children rights. this is new in syrian textbooks. they used to start with verses from the koran.

the government wants to promote more secular education. it may be a one-party state with a secular government but most are muslims. with little political freedom, more young people are turning to religious leaders for answers. at damascus university, students from different backgrounds mix freely. muslim women are increasingly choosing to cover their heads. it is the full face veil that is of concern. it is growing in popularity and has led the government to ban it in the classroom. the ban has divided opinions. >> muslims and christians coexist here. this position should not have been taken. at first it was really upset.

it is a personal choice. i am not harming anyone. since it is a public issue, i will not oppose the ban. >> almost everyone confirms this is a personal freedom. it is a personal choice. some people here think that by this decision, many women do where it will be prevented from continuing their higher education. >> the education -- the of government saithe government say have a secular identity. >> we live in a country which you may find people descended from 30 civilizations. >> secular young people are

enjoying this season. this has become a popular place to meet. >> should you have a few $100,000 to spare, there is a new car and country to consider. the first russian luxury sports car. >> now the ideas are changing. striking in appearance and size

from other well-known russian cars. this is the first luxury sports car. buyers are lining up. with $132,000 price tag, this car is cheaper than many other high end sports cars. >> until recently, the phrase russian super card seems absurd. we have a beautiful car and it is heartwarming that the russians are capable of producing something that nice. >> aerodynamic and fast. they left out door handles and exterior mirros on one of the models. there is extras. cameras that transmit to

screens inside. the engine is supplied by the u.k. sports cars are in-business -- a niche business. this could become a household name. >> pete postlethwaite died at 64. he was oscar-nominated and described by steven spielberg as the best actor in the world. his response was typical. >> pete postlethwaite was a bandleader in "brassed off."

he was born in 1946 and got his taste for performing when serving as an altar boy or in a packed church. he trained at bristol old vic and t. instantly recognizable, he stood out as a character actor. his presence elevating the role he played. he said -- you simply could not miss him. he was always in demand on stage and screen, nominated for an oscar in this movie. he went on to star in a string of films that were critical and commercial successes.

steven spielberg described him as the best actor in the world. pete postlethwaite laughed off, saying, it sounds like an advertisement for lager and it is only one man's opinion. he said "my mother thought it was a phase but when she saw me with the queen, i was accepted that i was serious about a." >> dead at 64. wildlife experts in arkansas are trying to solve the mystery of what killed thousands of birds over the town of beebe on new year's eve. the bodies are being tested to find out. much more on the international news on." -- bbc.com.

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