>> this is "bbc world news." funding for this presentation is made possible by the freeman foundation of new york, stowe, vermont, and honolulu. newman's own foundation. the john d. and catherine t. macarthur foundation. and union bank. >> union bank has put its financial strength to work for a wide range of companies, from small businesses to major corporations. what can we do for you? >> and now, "bbc world news."

>> the nation asean government is in turmoil, and there have been more violent clashes on the streets of the violent capital -- the new tunisian government. 48 hours after he returned to haiti, the former dictator is charged with corruption and theft. welcome to "bbc world news," broadcasting our viewers on pbs in america, also run the globe. coming up later, nasrallah warns hezbollah -- warns against targeting hezbollah for the murder of the prime minister. chill out, kickback, listen to the music. why die-hard fans are starting their own clubs to celebrate classic albums.

hello to you. first of all, though, let's bring you this is just breaking as we go on air. a magnitude 7.4 earthquake has struck southwest pakistan. by most reckonings, that is a massive quake that struck 55 kilometers west of town and a shallow at a debt of just 6.3 miles. the pacific tsunami center says the onshore quake has not triggered a tsunami in the ocean. we do not have initial reports of damage, but a major quake of this magnitude is capable of causing widespread and heavy damage. people have reported feeling the quake as far away as the indian capital. a magnitude 6.6 quake in 2000 killed about 6000 and left

about 3 million homeless. more on that as soon as we have more. moving on for the moment, and tunisia's new government looks to be in tatters just a day after it was set up. several ministers have resigned and the streets of tunis have erupted again. protesters are angry at what they see as a survival of an old regime under a new guise. the interim president and prime minister have now said they are leaving the ruling party. will that be enough to ensure their survival? >> this is not the sound or the site of a city returning to peace and stability. instead, the center of tunis erupted in violence again today. the protesters here making a very clear they will not accept the new interim government announced on monday.

>> protest this morning seemed to be a lot more persistent and violent than they have been for the last couple of days. there are hundreds of young men at the end of the street here throwing stones at the police. police have been responding with teargas, and now, it is drifting back on themselves. >> overcome by their own gas, they are forced to retreat. the angry crowd immediately advances further. the ousted president is still the key figure here. but so are the police, who stirred anger further today by firing live rounds at citizens. at tunis airport, another crowd, but this one joyous. they have come to welcome home this man, the exiled human rights campaigner. >> the party of the dictatorship continues to lead the

transition. will you run for president yourself? >> of course. >> to these people, he is a returning hero. to the interim government, he could be a new threat. >> this is a moment that could change everything again in tunisia. the opposition here has been a collection of ordinary people without any real political leadership. now, they have a leader. >> and he is only the first. other prominent exiles are preparing to board flights from paris and london. all the signs are that if too easy as political upheaval is far from over -- are that uneasiness -- are that tunisia pose a political of he will is far from over. >> on our website, you will find all the information from the political exiles to the new faces, and bbc.com/news.

police and hospital officials in iraq are say at least 60 people have been killed, more than 100 injured by a suicide bomber in saddam hussein's old home town. they say the bomber join the crowd outside the police station where potential recruits were waiting for interviews and medical checks. >> it was the deadliest attack in iraq for over two months. the suicide bomber on foot and wearing a heavy best of explosives mingled with a large gathering of several hundred young men waiting outside a police recruiting center. then, he blew himself up, causing horrendous casualties among the densely packed crowd. risky services were overwhelmed by the magnitude of the carnage. while local mosque broadcast appeals for blood donations over their loudspeakers, hospitals in the area were inundated with the wounded. some had to be transported to other cities because local

facilities just could not cope. tikrit is a largely sunni area. security forces have been singled out for numerous attacks by suny insurgents, who see them as traitors -- by sunni insurgents. the lack of jobs means there is no shortage of would-be recruits. >> some of the other main news for your around the globe -- the head of the uk's so service has blocked the iraq war inquiry in london from publishing extracts of notes sent by tony blair to the former u.s. president george w. bush in the run-up to the conflict. the inquiry chairman said disclosure would have offered insights into mr. blair's think again critical points. he says in korean members are disappointed by the decision. they were told the publication would harm britain's international relations. a police investigation into the

plane crash in london last year that killed the polish president and 95 others has accused russian air traffic control of failing to warn pilots the aircraft was of course. the official russian inquiry has accused polish officials in the cockpit of putting the pilots under psychological pressure to land despite bad weather. police in los angeles have apprehended a teenager in connection with an accidental shooting at gardena high school. the 16-year-old student, so far unnamed, took a gun to school, it is reported, but it went off when he dropped his backpack. two people were injured. one is said to be critical. the former haitian leader is to face corruption charges. this two days after his surprise return to haiti after 25 years in exile. authorities say he will be charged with the number of offenses including theft and misappropriation of funds. human rights groups have also called for him to be put on trial for the torture and

murder of thousands during his 15-year rule. a spokesman for the u.s. state department aide -- urged leaders to focus on what is best for the people of haiti. >> i think we are in a time of some uncertainty in haiti. current or former political actors and their supporters should be focused on not what is best for them but what is best for the people of haiti, and that goes for anybody, either as i said in power, or formerly in power. >> the chinese president is arriving in washington for the start of a four-day visit. he will meet president obama on wednesday. this at a time of growing tension between the u.s. and china, the world's biggest economies, over trade and

monetary strategic issues. this is obviously important. it could also be difficult, could it not? >> certainly, it has been a difficult year for the united states and china, a rather fractious 12 months. a lot of things have gone wrong in the relationship, things the obama administration were hoping they could manage well have not been managed well. tension in the eastern chinese seas. the military chafing at each other. tensions over chinese currency. americans still demanding the chinese do something about letting their currencies appreciate so that the difficult trade unbilled that the americans get so annoyed about can be addressed. other types of economic tension surfacing as well over the last 12 months, and i think the next couple of days, what the americans are hoping for is that the atmosphere can be lightened up a little bit. some of the fractiousness can be drawn out of the relationship.

presidents can have some conversation. chinese can go home having been stated and celebrated in washington, just to reassure everybody that the relationship has some balance to it. >> the president's plane at andrews air force base just outside washington. the country's need each other. they have to find a way to get on. >> it is absolutely imperative that they do, but early in paris for the entire planet. it is not too much of an overstatement to say that if the chinese and american economic relationship unravels, then their economies unravel as well, and the global economy will unravel with that. it is absolutely imperative for the chinese that the u.s. economy continues to be strong, to grow, to come out of recession. it is imperative for america that the chinese economy continues to be strong, to support the waves of american debt that it now supports.

the strategic relationship has to remain balanced and reasonably calm. if you were to see these countries become serious strategic rivals, that would be hugely destabilizing for east asia and the rest of the planet, too. these countries are now deeply intertwined. their economies are deeply interlocked. together, the u.s. and china account for about 1/3 of the entire global economy. this really is -- we are talking about the center of power in the 21st century. it is crucial that they get it right. in -- some of like this are designed to be part of a broader process, managing this relationship and building of the structures and planks on which it rests. >> when mr. obama went to beijing, he was pretty much now, was it not? that was not a happy visit. any bad feeling lingering after that?

>> snub is too strong a word. it was not the greatest of visits. it did not come out with the glow and happiness that everybody was hoping for. other countries in the region were not particularly happy with the way it went. this time around, they will certainly be hoping that we get a little bit more excitement, more of a sense of crackle and a sense of rendering this relationship special rule all the power and symbolism of a state visit. very important for president hu that he gets to go home with all the right pictures and all the ratios of american and chinese might behind him. -- all the right shows of american and chinese might. >> the president is about to come down the steps. i'm not sure whether we have

time to sit with it. >> as the camera and go down the steps, they will be first to capture the chinese leader coming down the stairs. the vice-president is waiting at the bottom of the steps to greet him. tonight, i a few hours' time, there is going to be a private dinner between the chinese president and barack obama at the white house with their wives, we are told, all behind closed doors. very quiet. clearly some of that work on the atmospherics' between the two presidents will take place. that is in sharp contrast to the dazzling state dinner which will take place on wednesday night in washington, which is, of course, the hottest ticket in the city at the moment. the place where anybody who is anybody in washington's power circles wants to be, sitting at that amazing black-tie dinner on wednesday night in the white house.

>> we will leave that there for now. we will take it as word that the president is here, even if we have not actually seen him to send the red carpet. many thanks. the state of victoria is the latest region of australia to be hit by large-scale flooding. more than 50 counts are now threatened by the waters. phil mercer has this report. >> it is hard to believe that this part of southern australia was only recently in the grip of its worst drought in history. in a land of violent extremists, the city is the latest victim of the relentless threats after a river burst its banks. streets have become lagoons in what has been described as a 1- 8200-year event. the waters continue to rise in the state of victoria, and so does the human cost. the body of a young boy has been found by police divers.

the seven year-old was playing when he fell into a swollen lake. earlier, his brother pleaded for others to steer clear of the floods. >> we urge you to stay away from the water. stay away from the water. >> for the north, the big cleanup continues. no one knows how long it will take or how much it will cost. the prime minister is the former business task force -- has deployed the business task force to boost the reconstruction efforts. >> i've decided to bring together a team of australian leading business people to form a business roundtable to assist with corporate support as queensland recovers and rebuilds from these devastating floods. >> while the damage bill can only be guessed at, the government released the floods in queensland could be australia's most expensive natural disaster ever. in parts of victoria, the coming

days promise to be an ordeal for many residents. fresh flood alerts have been issued, and already more than 50 communities have been affected by these unstoppable waters. >> latest headlines for you on "bbc world news" -- the tunisian government seems to be in turmoil, and there have been more violent clashes on the streets of tunis. the chinese president is in washington. he will be talking trade and economics with president obama at a time of tension. russia's president has been on a rare visit to the israeli- occupied west bank, travelling via jordan, and he reaffirmed in a news conference that russia still recognizes an independent palestinian state. that has been russian policy since 1988. he says it has not changed. a visit to israel was canceled

when foreign ministry staff went on strike over pay. our correspondent is in jericho. he sent this. >> a huge russian delegation here in jericho, many of them just leaving as we speak. what president medvedev did today was he reiterated russia's recognition and support of a palestinian state with east jerusalem as its capital. the soviet union was one of the first to come out and do that back in the late 1980's, so he was, as i say, just reiterating that position, but i think his words will be reassuring to the man who was standing alongside him, president abbas. the palestinian media has been lobbying hard to try to get more countries to come out and offer such official recognition. his view is that he could take his case to the united nations later in the year and try to get

the resolution passed that would recognize the state of palestine based on the 1967 borders. that is to say, gossip, the west bank, east jerusalem, all under israel, captured in the 19676- day war. such a move would not end israel's occupation, but it would increase the pressure. israel, for its part, says a true peace can only be achieved with no negotiation and a peace deal between the two sides. actually, though, president of video was not able to hear the israeli point of view today. >> international mediators are stepping up a tense to diffuse a deepening crisis in lebanon. the government has collapsed in the midst of a fierce round about assassinated the former

prime minister in 2005. some lebanese fear a new civil war has brought, and the chief prosecutor of the special tribunal for lebanon has defended an indictment he has just issued for murder. it is believed that names members of hezbollah, the most powerful military force in lebanon. >> the leader of hezbollah, the most powerful man in lebanon, rarely seen in public, in case israel killed him, but always somehow present. his latest enemy, the indictment the lead to charges men with the assassination of the former prime minister. his message -- if you think you can target their resistance, you are making very bad calculations. the accusations that hezbollah might have killed a sunni muslim

prime minister could lead to something much worse. no wonder international mediators are flying in. >> lebanon has implications for other countries, and what happens here creates ripples in the region and beyond. does that complicate matters? it sure does. >> top of the news is the acting prime minister, america's allies, son of the assassinated prime minister. so far, he is resisting pressure to cut lebanons links with the tribunal. this tv station in beirut obtained audio tapes of the testimony to tribunal investigators after his father was killed. >> if you ask me how it happened -- >> on the crackly tape in 2007, he alleges that the brother and brother-in-law of syria's president were behind the

assassination. the bomb was heard across beirut. hezbollah accuses israel and says anyone blaming its men or its syrian and iranian allies is and is released huge. -- is an israeli stooge. this is about much more than an investigation into the killings that happened on this street in 2005. it is even about much more than who controls lebanon. the fallout from the death of this man is now the latest round in the big confrontation in the middle east between america and its allies and iran, syria, and theirs. the lebanese are good in a crisis -- they are used to them -- but there is no easy way out of this one. nobody knows what is next, and that vacuum is being filled with some dire memories of the violent past. >> let's change the tone of it.

when it comes to listening to music, do you change between artists or patiently listened to every track of an album? in this age of ballots, you may not even possess an entire album. some people feel so passionately about this that they form classic album clubs to listen to the most popular records from beginning to end. >> ♪ pushing through the market square so many mothers sighing ♪ >> when was the last time you sat and listened to an album all the way through? >> i thank you all for coming. classic albums sunday, people come in, hang out, try to create a living room feel, and they can chitchat before the album goes on, but once it does, phones are

put on his island. you are not allowed to use the bathroom because it is too noisy. get your drink, bring it up, and then absolute silence. >> why? it is a reaction to today's trend -- downloading single tracks, creating our own compilations. the view is by chopping, shuffling, selecting tracks, we are not just ruining albums, we are ruining works of art. rifling through neil mccormick's vinyl is a trick through a sacred landscapes. >> these are works of art at their greatest level, and you would not -- you cannot pick up a dickens book and read a little but of it for pleasure. you will not get the same pleasure you would get picking

up a dickens book and reading it from beginning to end. >> with neil, you do not chopped up, say, the beatles' "abbey road." chop, change, rearrange. the editor of "pop justice" feels nothing is lost by decent editing. >> the idea is that the bad songs are pretty bad. let's just get rid of them. let's keep the goods that. there's so much music around that it is so easy to find and so easy to listen to whatever you want. just get to the good stuff. >> meanwhile, back at classic album club [inaudible] somewhere on site two -- side two. >> listening to a whole album like this really brings up something for me.

>> were you move tonight? >> yes, i get moved every time i come. >> it is over. a ballet classic from beginning to perfect, hi fi, stereo, vinyl ending. >> let's just update you on some more breaking news. ireland's prime minister has retained control of the ruling party. he won a motion of confidence in his leadership. that just in theory we saw a challenge from his foreign affairs minister, and he will head the party in the upcoming general election. although voters in ireland are not happy with him as a moment. there is expected to be an election in late march, and the news we had at the top of the program, an update on that. there has been a massive earthquake in pakistan, magnitude 7.4. seems to have struck the southwest of the country, and if a shallow, which could be bad.

a debt of just 6.3 miles. >> hello and welcome. >> see the news unfold, get the top stories from around the globe and click-to-play video reports. go to bbc.com/news to experience the in-depth, expert reporting of "bbc world news" online. >> funding was made possible by the freeman foundation of new york, stowe, vermont, and honolulu. newman's own foundation. the john d. and catherine t. macarthur foundation. and union bank. >> union bank has put its financial strength to work for a

range of companies, from small businesses to major corporations. what can we do for you? >> "bbc world news