this was the response. the police and army opened fire, using tear gas and bullets. on the day they buried their dead, there was more bloodshed in the streets. dozens were wounded. some critically. the calls for restraint from britain and others have fallen on deaf ears. the violence in this small gulf state is far from over. alley has lost a son. he was buried today, one of six protesters to die this week. he was shot dead by the police, killed four a cause rooted in this country's deep division. across town, it was the supporters of the king who took

to the street. the corps here are overwhelmingly shia muslims. they are also the once overwhelmingly losing out. no surprise then that these are the people who make up the bulk of the protesters, raising fears of sectarian divisions. >> do not make a difference between sunni and shia. be equal in your life. >> what happens here has the potential to shape the rest of the region that is hugely important to britain and america, not just for its oil, but as a strategic military hub. this protest movement has a strong religious element to it, but it is all -- also about economics. today's demonstration is taking place in one of the poorest neighborhoods in bahrain, and almost exclusively reserved of

the shia community. they have been ruled by the same sunni royal family almost 200 years. >> and this is what their attention has led to -- chaos. they even had to appeal for extra blood tonight. >> this is immediately after surgery. >> more than 70 were admitted, some with bullet wounds. and we saw clear evidence that high velocity rounds were used against protesters. >> what is happening is wrong. really wrong. >> the crown princess and asked to talk to the opposition, but having been beaten and bloodied, their anger has only grown, as have their demands, and finding common ground will be hard.

>> in libya, there are reports so far, entirely on confirmed, i should say, that demonstrators seized the airport and authorities cut off electricity to the city. witnesses describe armored vehicles on the streets in the wake of more protests today. libyan medical officials estimate at least 20 people have been killed in the past few days. some reports put that figure closer to 50. our diplomatic correspondent reports. >> scenes of an unsanctioned protest early in libya second city today. circulating on the internet, bypassing the government's media clampdown. protesters are getting ready to topple a mockup of colonel gaddafi posing little green goods, the ones hallowed volume containing his thoughts and sayings. the crowd cheers as it tumbles.

sketchy images, but they paint a picture of a regime now immune from the violence sweeping across the region. how much pressure is the president now under? the arab world's longest serving leader since he seized power in a military coup over 40 years ago. can he still keep his iron grip on the country? you might think colonel gaddafi was more likely to survive than most leaders. he has powerful security forces he is not afraid to use. he has oil money to pour into easing social grievances, and he is adept at reinventing himself. once an international pariah, but more -- but now, more or less accepted by the west as a partner. so far in the capital tripoli, is mostly pro-government rallies that have filled the streets. gaddafi himself foisted on a car

by cheering crowds, but it is his hard-line image that may make him vulnerable like the now ousted president mubarak of egypt, once his fellow leader in the region. >> i think they are always significant. unlike in other countries, this really is in and of itself a challenge to the regime, and he cannot be seen to stand for that. >> already, there has been a stark warning to protesters to expect a violent and thunders response, and tonight, reports fifth at and mounting government crackdown. a sense possibly of history in the making for libya, one way or another. bamut egypt's ruling military council has declared on state tv that it will not tolerate the strikes that have been disrupting the country's economy and will confront them. seven days after president mubarak resigned, bass numbers

swamped tahrir square in cairo. they are celebrating his departure, but reminding those now in power that they expect promises to be of help. the united states has vetoed a draft united nations security council resolution condemning israeli settlements in the west bank. this is a resolution put forward by a palestinian leadership and by arab countries. the u.s. said the issue should be resolved in direct peace talks but in the two sides. there was a risk the resolution would harden attitudes. >> our opposition to the resolution before the council today should therefore not be misunderstood to me and we support settlement activity. on the contrary, we reject in the strongest terms the legitimacy of continued israeli settlement activity. for more than four decades, israeli settlement activity in

territories occupied in 1967 has undermined israel's security and corroded hopes for peace and stability in the region. >> american ambassadors did it -- susan rice there. barbour, this is standard american diplomatic posture, i guess, to shield israel, but it is really not going to go down well on the arab street, is it? >> no, the timing very bad. americans fought tooth and nail to try to get palestinians to drop the resolution. they offered alternatives to try to avoid this position that they found themselves in a way they felt obliged to veto the resolution here as you say, because traditionally, they protect israel from criticism in the security council, but also, it is a domestic issue. congress has a very strong pro- israel lobby. " republicans and democrats. what some of the assessment here was that the americans ultimately chose to enter the arab street rather than to anger

congress, but it is a very tricky thing to do because the americans are already -- their status has already been shaken in the region with these pro- democracy protests. >> it is the first veto by the obama administration, but to many people, it looked like american business as usual, really. >> you had the administration coming in and promising better relations with the muslim world. you also had president obama, his rhetoric -- very strongly, lately, behind the pro-democracy demonstrators, behind the rule of law in the arab world. that was his rhetoric that the arab protesters world, but the decisive action he has taken that b.c. is to defend israel in the security council on an issue like settlements, where, frankly, the united states was very isolated. there were 14 votes for the resolution. that is everybody else on the security council. the resolution was co-sponsored by some 130 countries. there's almost no other issue there is greater consensus, and americans stood out today as

being isolated in their veto of the resolution. >> many thanks for that. the bbc has obtained new information that questions whether mi5 could have done more to prevent the london bombings in 2005. the inquest will consider whether the attackers could have in stock. on monday, a senior officer will give evidence in front of victims' families. the u.s. has announced sanctions against the new money exchange house in kabull, which it says laundered money from drug traffickers. the chairman of the u.s. central bank, the federal reserve, told the g-20 meeting in paris the countries with large trade surfaces should let their currencies appreciate. his chinese counterpart said it would take at least a decade to shift the country's economy away from its export-based model.

uganda's have been going to the polls. counting is under way. overall, voting was largely untroubled. a former doctor standing against him for the third time, and he has one of protests if he does not win. >> across the country, voters made their choice. 30 years of the president, or time for a change. international and local observers are following the process closely. the boat itself went fairly smoothly. during weeks of campaigning, the president drew large crowds. his popularity partly stems from the fact that he led the country to stability after years of turmoil. he often tells ugandan as if they want the peace to stay, stick with him.

the greatest challenge comes from a former ally. he says after so long in power, the president has turned into a dictator. he also has a large support base. he has threatened to call for street protests if he feels cheated in this election. in response, the president with the army and police on the side, said he would lock up any who did demonstrate. this has been by far away the most expensive election that uganda has ever held. all the parties spent a lot of money on the campaign trail, and some of that will have ended up in the pockets of boaters. the great controversy over this election is how much state funding has been used to ensure that the president stays in power. >> there are those who believe the president will simply not be willing to go, even if he were to face an election defeat. >> he has himself not really

told us that he is ready for that day. in a moment of weakness, he has said, i think, once or twice that of defeated, he will go, but he is not the kind of person to go if defeated. and that if he wins, all eyes will be on the opposition politicians. their response will help determine whether this remains a peaceful election. >> very good to have you with us on "bbc world news." stay with us if you can. still to come, guantanamo, one of the world knows -- most notorious prisons, still open, but have conditions improved? first, there is a leading egyptian opposition figure speaking to the bbc. he says no one really knows who is running egypt. >> the purpose of the demonstration is fairly obvious -- that we have not seen any of the demands of the peaceful

revolution that took place a couple weeks ago. all that we see is military bulletin's every few days saying, "this is what is going to happen next week. this is what is going to happen the week after." but what is the road map? how are we going through the transition, which is crucial to the future? nobody knows. >> have they come to talk to you about how they are going to do it? >> absolutely not, and that is also one thing that makes everybody upset. they have not talked to anybody. again, they continue to say this is a youth revolution, which is absolutely not correct. the demands basically go to the heart of every egyptian. we need a radical shift from

authoritarianism to democracy and social justice. i do not think they have bought into that. i do not think they understand the dimension of this. >> you talk about "de." who actually is running the country? >> again, this is a black box for us. head of the army council is the minister of defense. he has not been once on television telling us good morning, here is what we have in store for you. we do not know. it is, i think, 10 or 12 people. for us, they are faceless because we do not know them, and that is not good. they need to show transparency to establish credibility. >> latest headlines this hour on "bbc world news" -- there have been protests outside the hospital in bahrain were dozens of people have been treated after clashes with security forces. street violence goes on in

libya. authorities have promised to crush any public show of dissent. the camp commander at guantanamo bay in cuba has told the bbc conditions for detainees have significantly improved in the two years since the obama administration took office. he says most of the more than 170 prisoners are now in cells and assaults on staff have reduced. it is still unclear when president obama will close the base. promise to do so by the end of january last year. >> marking a new day of the world's most notorious prison. in nine years, america's commitment to the war on terror has turned a small naval base in cuba into what now resembles a typical american town. but a few kilometers across the bay, there is a very different world. 172 prisoners are being held

across seven different compounds. which one depends on their behavior and how much of a threat they are perceived to be. at this camp, we glimpse their protest signs. >> i can tell you that from can x-ray, which was only open for 92 days, to with the detainees are now, in february 2011, their standard of living has increased. >> we are told that they complain detainees are held here at camp 6. they have access to computers, tv, even books, and the conditions appeared to have improved since the days of camp x-ray nine years ago, but because of the reporting, we cannot see all of the camps. one of those is katz 7. its location is secret, and holds those alleged to be behind the 911 attacks, though according to the commander, conditions of every prison compound have significantly improved since the obama administration came into office, by taking more detainees out of

solitary confinement. >> about 1/3 of those were living in a communal environment, roughly, so fast forward two years to now, two years later, we have upwards of about 87 -- high 80's -- living in a communal environment. it is also positive for the guard force. we have seen the assaults go down significantly over the last year. >> this week, a sixth detainee was convicted by terrorist offenses by a special military trial. he is only one prisoner so far who has been convicted by a criminal court. the slow process ultimate -- has been criticized by civil rights groups. >> ultimately, when you have a prisoner for seven, eight, nine years, they ought to be given a fair trial if there are serious allegations to be presented against them, or they should be released. >> the original deadline is now long overdue, but there's still little sign the president will close the place he once

described as a sad chapter in american history. >> american scientists are asking whether forecasters to help them with what you might think is an impossible task. they want to track individual birds, bats, and butterflies to find out what impact humans and the environment have on migration and feeding patterns. they hope weather center technology could provide some answers. >> that swarm out of their cave, but how do they navigate their way through these guys? do they use the moon or the earth's magnetic field? scientists do not really know, so they have asked the weatherman to help. here, they use radar to track wind and rain. the green and red area shows the thunder storm passing over baltimore, but the radar can also pick up flying creatures. hear, a flock of birds shown in blue burst outward in a circle. in the past, weathermen have regarded radar blips from bats

and birds as mildly annoying, but biologists have persuaded them that they are actually a treasure trove of information. >> we are starting to think about the air as being much like the ocean in that it is this big, fluid, then emmett habitat, and we need to understand bats and birds and other organisms then use the air. we have to use the radar to see them. >> the weather radar enables scientists to follow this swarm of gnats over vast distances, and it can even fall the flights of insects. so why track swarms of these creatures in such incredible detail? researchers believe that by closely observing the behavior of bats, butterflies, and birds, they will be able to monitor the general environmental health of the countryside, and in particular, the impact of climate change on local species. >> scientists have asked rapid response radar units to help. >> storm chasers are out chasing storms, but we are also now

chasing birds. we are chasing bats. we are chasing butterflies, chasing in sex, and we are finding out they're wonderful potential for using these radars. >> biologist and weathermen say that it is only by watching these guys that we will really know how the natural world is changing. >> there is a rumor she has replaced lady gaga as the top online search for fashion. kate middleton. london fashion week is about to start, so in the jones took the chance with all the right people around to find out if royalty really has put british fashion back on the front row. this report does contain flash photography right from the start. >> this is the moment she bursts forth, not just as a teacher or

princes, but a well-dressed one. her wedding dress is a subject of frenzy. every single outfit is coming under scrutiny. over first forays into fashion were not so successful, her emerging star is being eyed as an asset to an industry worth 20 billion pounds to the u.k. economy. designer caroline charles' show starts at london fashion week. she has been part of british could to since the 1960's. >> do you think that the royal wedding will help raise london's stock as a fashion capital? >> definitely. i mean, are we lucky? yes. wonderful. the girl is so fabulous and so photogenic, and i remember from times gone by. it was the best thing for london, london fashion. >> decayed effect has already been felt. her outfits for her engagement voters have sold out. the london label responsible work -- for a 385 pound a

engagement dress sold out of that within 24 hours. all of this due to celebrity clients that helped presales rise by 45%. >> it was amazing for my brand because i did not have any advertising. it helps a lot. became a lot more popular. a lot more people became aware of its existence. >> if you cannot afford 400 pounds for the original engagement dress, the high street is already on the case, and what she wears is already filtering down. you are fashion editor for the "sun." >> the dress is a great imitation, and it is only 14 pounds. dresses, even jewelry having a big impact. sales are up about 30%, and they've got imitation rings, and we all want a piece of that princess style. >> those who benefit most from more loquitur, though, are the bright young things.

london's best new designers on display as part of fashion week. -- those who benefit most from royal couture. >> i think we have always struggled. we have always been known in britain for doing the quirky, the different. we have some great designers who are groundbreaking. but i think what she does is she shows that british style actually can be just as beautiful and glamorous and she --chic as one would expect in a lawn or new york or paris. >> it could be fashioned is beginning to reveal the serious, as well as serious style. >> just before we leave you, bad news from the united nations. the united states has vetoed an arab resolution condemning israeli settlement building in the occupied palestinian territories as an obstacle to peace. this is the first veto by the

obama administration, which had been promising better relations with the arab world, especially, of course, at this most delicate of times. much more on this and all the international news any time on line, but bbc.com. you can get in touch with me and most of the team now on twitter. and you will see what's coming up on facebook. thanks very much indeed for watching. come again. >> 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.

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captioning sponsored by macneil/lehrer productions >> lehrer: good evening. i'm jim lehrer. democratic legislators remained on the run today, preventing a vote against bargaining rights for state employees in wisconsin. >> woodruff: and i'm judy woodruff. on the newshour tonight, we debate the push in wisconsin, and potentially other states, to

cut public worker benefits in the face of looming budget deficits. >> lehrer: we get the latest on the violent crackdown on protesters in bahrain, and the growing unrest in other arab and north african nations. >> woodruff: then, spencer michels looks at how west coast business leaders view the president's push for investment in technology. >> remember the game here in silicon valley is innovation. and that's what brought president obama to these parts. >> lehrer: and kwame holman details the tug-of-war in congress today over spending cuts. >> woodruff: plus, mark shields and david brooks provide their weekly analysis. >> lehrer: that's all ahead on tonight's newshour. major funding for the pbs newshour has been provided by: >> okay, listen. somebody has got to get serious. >> i think... >> we need renewable energy. >> ...renewable energy is vital to our planet. >> you hear about alternatives, right? wind, solar, algae.