>> and now, "bbc world news." >> colonel gaddafi's forces hit back at rebel positions in eastern and western libya, using air power, artillery, and dozens of tanks. >> the bombs are falling again. the bomb landed just the other side of me, on the other side of the road. >> i -- in ivory coast, the government hits back at protests for earlier killings. welcome to "bbc world news," broadcast to our viewers on pbs in america, also around the globe. my name is mike embley. coming up later for you -- of former iranian president loses his influential public position. and why is this is one of the best places and in the world to be a woman? as special reports from a small

african nation -- a special report from a small african nation. hello. colonel gaddafi's forces have intensified their campaign to crush the revolt in libya and seemed to be gathering momentum in the east and west. the latest reports speak of a city reduced to ashes and in tripoli. casualty's looked to be -- casualty's looked to be significant. our world affairs editor and correspondent are there. >> this is the heart of ras lanuf defense says. a group of anti-aircraft guns grouped together. just after one bomb

had lasted -- landed close beside the road this is something that could soon because problems for the defenders over the next few days. this is a battlefield that could decide the way the entire war is going. there is the crossroads, and further on in that direction, colonel gaddafi's troops. but today, much of the action was from the air. four times a pro-gaddafi planes bombed the crossroads. the explosions were uncomfortably close.

the planes coming around and bombing again -- it is bombing at the side of the road, and now it is coming around again that time the man was not the ground. he was not hurt. yet planes to not like flowing -- flying low because they're more vulnerable to ground fire. this volunteer explains there are no senior officers here. there are plenty of individuals and giving orders. but for better or worse, most volunteers are full of fight, and so far, they are still holding their ground. john since then, bbc news, ras lanuf. >> nato officials say that

patrolling of libya has been stepped up. in nato, the white house, and the u.n., the no-fly zone is still a matter for debate, not action. u.s. secretary of state has insisted that this be a u.n., not american initiative. protesters are keeping a low profile in at the capitol. but the protesters still seem determined to fight. >> only 30 miles away from the wyatt, the military success makes it even more dangerous -- from zawiya, the military success makes it even more dangerous for protesters. they believe in former is are everywhere. yet another protester joined us. they have never been on facebook before, which is now blocked. they do not have weapons, unlike

the rebels in zawiya. but many have died, too, killed by the regime. >> jeremy. >> do you think because of the force that he has used -- >> no, and he is not finished. i will never speak any words with -- i am not arab. >> what is your gut feeling, like your feeling inside about how this is killing two and? >> we do not want this to go on. >> so, how do you beat him? >> how we will be? with faith. that is the only way. we don't have guns or modules or anything. but we have faith. we have the faith to be free

people. >> how do you sustain this? how, in the end, do you win it? >> it does not matter if you live or die. if i am asked after this interview, i reached out my voice to the whole world. >> so how do you push the regime to go? what help do you need? do you need help from outside? >> we want to sort this out for ourselves because we started it. i am not saying this because of the bloodshed that is going on. >> how long will it take to get rid of gaddafi? >> not much longer. it has already been definitely decided. nobody stays forever. >> so, it will take more blood? >> much more blood, yes. >> but it is the regime at

shedding blood and spreading fear. state tv showed these men saying they were rebels and pro-al- qaeda sympathizers. they look like men contemplating their own deaths. >> yes, we have been stupid -- been to bin jawad. we have been to ras lanuf. tomorrow, we will be everywhere in libya. >> there may be one simple lesson from colonel gaddafi. when you're in trouble, force it works. the u.n. is -- there may be limits as to how far they can advance to the east, but they are stressing how tough this new war will be for the rebels. of course, foreign intervention, if that happens,

which change be situation. >> our middle east editor there. saudi arabia is saying the world oil supplies are not enough to meet demand, despite the production crisis. the saudi oil minister says it is speculation is sending oil prices up, rather than any fundamental shortfall in supply. united nations refugee agency is saying hundreds of thousands have been for forced to flee the fighting in ivory coast. the conflict is between two men who are both claiming to be president. were the 100,000 have left their homes in abidjan. alassane ouattara is internationally recognized as the winner of the election. but laurent gbagbo refuses to leave office. hundreds of taking to the streets, protesting at last week's killing of seven women at

marchers. andrew harding has been appalling events in abidjan. >> women are gathering, calling for help. yet we are in an area largely loyal to al -- to alice and i would start, the man internationally recognized as a winning the election. seven women were killed last week in a demonstration not on like this. that caused soldiers supporting laurent gbagbo, the man who lost the election, to open fire. >> andrew harding force in abidjan. the pakastani taliban are saying

they carried out a car bomb attack that has killed 20 and wounded 120. the bomb exploded at a natural gas filling station. the international criminal court has issued summons for six suspects in post-election violence in kenya in 2008. they include six suspended ministers and of former police chief. the corruption trial of the former french president jacques chirac has been suspended because of a challenge from his defense team. he is accused of misusing funds. he denies all charges. dozens of people were rounded up in a major police operation against one of italy's largest organized crime groups. it is judged to be more powerful than the sicilian mafia. yet police claimed this is a

significant blow to the senate did, thought to be one of the world's biggest cocaine traffickers. duncan kennedy has this report. >> enough manpower to overwhelm any resistance. these officers spread out to raid several addresses in southern italy and near rome. this was a hunt not only for senior-level gang members, but also any member with illicit merchandise. every premises were searched with a new request for evidence. and in this house, police found a secret hiding place behind a bookshelf. big enough to conceal a man. yet this is where one boss hoped to evade capture. add more than 30 mobsters were picked up. more than six italian men were

detained in germany, a sign of the extent of foreign interests. >> it is a unitarian and strongly folkies it organization. it is different than other typical organizations like cosa nostra. its reach me not be wide, but certainly spans across several continents. >> is origen goes back to beat 1990's -- its origin does back to the 1990's, in the italian unification. cocaine is thought to be the biggest source of revenue. the italian magistrate estimated be annual income at more than 35 billion euros. that is richer than the fiat

company. this is why the italian government is marshalling so many forces against it. ed these men arrested are the backbone of the secretive world. it there is so much money at stake, it is already a ready supply of volunteers. but the state felt pressure is growing. but they can no longer thrive without consequences. duncan kennedy, bbc news. >> stay with us, if you can, on "bbc world news." the trial of the billionaire head fund manager could shake up the way business is done on wall street. first though, and in bangladesh, the high court has upheld the sacking of a nobel laureate as

the head of our micro finance bank. he is also an outspoken critic of the government. we have this report. >> it was a high-profile case, the public from inside and outside bangladesh, known as the banker of the board, and he was present for much of the court proceedings. and union, the high court ruled that the government was rights in sacking him from his position at a bank he founded more than three decades ago. it is seen as a setback for a man who won the nobel peace prize in 2006 for pioneering micro banking in bangladesh, which has since been copied in many parts of the world to help lift people out of poverty. and bangladesh today, this bank has more than 8000 borrowers.

the majority of our workers are women. but authorities say three years ago, and he fell out with the prime minister when he tried to set up his own political party, something he maintains was at the root of his dismissal. the government denies there's any political motive to his sacking. he says he will appeal against the verdict and the supreme court. the bank serves millions of people, many of them women. bbc news. >> just briefly, police have clashed at the world cup. india fans were desperately trying to get tickets for saturday's match with south africa. police used sticks to control the crowds when barriers broke down the latest headlines for you on "bbc world news."

colonel gaddafi's forces are hitting back. reported -- one town is reported almost destroyed. violent protests in ivory coast. there are clashes that left four dead. a former iranian president, rafsanjani, one of the architects of the islamic republic has lost his position as the head of one of the most influential bodies. he was removed from the assembly of experts, a body which chooses iran's supreme leader. we have this from london. >> rafsanjani is one of the great survivors of iranian politics. but even survivors have their bad debts. mr. rafsanjani gave up his job as head of the assembly of experts, the body which 6

iran's supreme leader. he was gathered not reliably conservative enough. >> i will definitely not be a candidate for the president of the assembly. so as to avoid harming the sacred body. >> this is the man who takes over. he is 79 years old. it is hard to count him as a fresh face at the top. his election is seen as a victory for hard-liners in the establishment. rafsanjani has made his way through almost every important position in iran since the revolution and in 1979, including eight years as president. while he has never been hugely popular, he has made plenty of money and most iranians have not. he now has to decide what to do next. he has two choices. he can stay in the establishment, take a minor

role, except he is defeated, possibly retire and keep quiet, or he could become more vocal and go to the opposition. >> and that opposition is fighting to be heard. and in february, demonstrators held their biggest protest for more than a year. they want fundamental change in iran. james reynolds, bbc news. >> it was one of the biggest investigations to hit wall street. it is now the biggest insider trading trial in u.s. history. a hedge fund manager is accused of making $45 million by trading on a legal to boss. rejected box. -- tipoffs. >> roger russian platinum -- the

founder of the hedge fund was accused of making money by trading with privileged information about companies, charges he denies. jurors were asked if they had read, seen, or heard anything about this case. he was well known in financial circles, but little known outside. >> this is a major insider- trading case which will set the bar for the private sector and the government of what is legal and what is illegal. >> jacob zamansky believes the odds are against the hedge fund. >> he could go to jail for decades if convicted. everyone is going to turn state's evidence and testify against it.

he is a very difficult case. >> and the government has another big name on its witness list. lloyd played fine -- blankfein, the head of goldman sachs. street analyst, turn journalist expressed surprise that so many members of wall street believe are caught up in the scandal. >> i am shocked by the fact that a goldman board member is accused of doing what he is accused of doing. which is picking up the fund seconds after a board called and calling in -- calling a hedge fund. even a trainee would understand how horrifying that is. and this is someone who has been in business for 40 years. >> these jurors will hear how the hedge fund manager with

about his business. they will ultimately decide if he is again a poster board -- poster boy for wall street's misdeeds. bbc news, new york. >> direct talks to try to end one of your's most intractable disputes on the way in brussels. ed this is between the serbian and the kosovan governments. serbia still refuses to recognize kosovo broke away from serbia three years ago. bullets and tear gas fired at students. doctors say 10 people were wounded, five it seriously. columbia's defense ministry -- colombia's defense ministry says soldiers mounted a rescue

operation using information from an escaped hostage after years of making hollywood movies, pinewood will invest in the u.k. film industry. the studio has concentrated on hollywood blockbusters like pirates of the caribbean and batman. it is a small, landlocked kingdom surrounded entirely by south africa, but it looms large in terms of putting women on the map. yet it is leagues ahead of britain and the u.s.. on international women's day, our correspondent is in one of the best places in the world to be female. >> rush-hour in the capitol. look closely. most of the women -- most of the

workers are women. this is a textile company that employs 40,000 of them. the women living here -- many men. this tiny country is a place where women are faring better than most. they are eclipsing richer countries like britain and the u.s. and inclosing the gender gap. this is the health minister. she is part of a government where one in five ministers is a woman and politics in general has been distinctly feminine feel to it. >> we have the ability to deliver and deliver on time. >> on women's health issues, the country's still struggles. but this is the prime minister. and youngsters are encouraged to

be ambitious. they need be setting the pace for closing the gap between the sexes, but it has not won the equality game. meets the coach for women's football. most of her team are from deprived backgrounds. football is steering away from a life of drugs and crime. it also gives them the confidence to offer the boys' competition. >> island to be a female engineer. allegis seek more women in the construction industry. -- i want to seek more female engineers. i want to see more women in the construction industry. yes, there is equality, but for now -- no. >> and nowhere is that felt more strongly than here in the mountains, home to half of the

population. looking after her grandchild, his mother died of aids, part of an army of women who are africa's unsung heroes. she says her dream is to send her granddaughter to school. she cannot afford it, and you need unman's support to survive. education is proving to be this country's secret weapon. it helps to magnify its gains. it is considered a textbook example of -- four females worldwide -- for the millsboro wide, but there is the work to be done. bbc news. >> just briefly, forces it to the libyan leader colonel gaddafi, have increased their assault. they are using tanks, artillery, and air power.

50 tanks attacked and destroyed near the capital of tripoli. much more on line. >> 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 global

financial strength to work for a wide range of companies. what can we do for you? >> "bbc world news" was presented by kcet los angeles.