>> and now, "bbc world news." >> atomic alert as the damaged power plant -- this situation is very serious. growing international concern about the plant. americans told to go no closer than 80 kilometers. officials say the earthquake and tsunami killed 4.5 -- 4000. welcome to "bbc world news." coming up later, in bahrain anti-government protesters are routed from the capital. gaddafi's men fight their way closer and take control of the entire country.

>> engineers have spent another day battling to avert nuclear disaster at the nuclear plant. they are talking about a serious situation. workers who were pulled back from the site earlier today at and sent back in to try to bring click levers -- bring coolant levels under control. officials in tokyo are saying it is not a threat to health. >> to an outsider the scale of tokyo can be hard to take in. an unbroken forest of glass and concrete. 35 million people live here.

as the wind blew from the north the streets emptied. more people are wearing masks whenever they go out. the latest pictures from the nuclear plant are not likely to make anyone feel more confident. the shattered reactor buildings seem to contradict all the government claims the situation is under control. the army used helicopters to try to drop cooling water from above. but the winds and radiation levels forced it to be abandoned. he appeared on television to try to reassure his people. people are not reassured. we found families dashing to board trains south. what are you most worried about?

>> i am most worried about the nuclear plants because i have small children. i want to stay far away from tokyo. >> many people live and work in tokyo come from other parts of japan. families are leaving tokyo for other parts of japan because of the fear of radiation. leaving is not an option for many. there are not enough places to go. if there is a major leak of radiation there does not seem to be a plan either. the family has not been told about it. they are watching developments further north with consternation. they have a baby and don't trust what the government is telling them. >> the government says we are

safe but i don't think so. i don't trust them. >> one that? >> because [unintelligible] >> what is this? this is new? >> instead they are making their own plans. a car standing by to head south at a moment's notice. >> as they struggle goes on to prevent a major nuclear disaster many foreign governments are advising nationals to leave tokyo. the u.s. is not allowing any of its military within 80 kilometers of the plant. the japanese government has only told people within 20 kilometers to leave.

we have obtained footage from a local tv crew wants to tell the story of those trapped. >> a japanese team makes its way cautiously into the place. this is 12 miles from the stricken nuclear plant. people have been warned to stay indoors. visitors make a local hospital nervous. the door is locked. they check them thoroughly for radiation before they will let them in. inside a staff who has chosen to stay with their patients rather than flee. >> we are not supposed to stay here. this is our job. i resent the nuclear plant. >> at city hall they say no one

will help them. they had been forgotten or abandoned by the powers that be. >> we were not told when the first reactor exploded. the government does that tell us anything. they are leading us to dye it. >> they say they have no means to get out. fuel is scarce and relief teams are reluctant to rescue them. >> the u.s. energy secretary said the crisis seems to have been more serious than america's worst nuclear accident in 1979. this is down to a small rotating team of workers. what are their options for bringing the crisis under control. a neat row of reactors, have the

power station used to look. compare it to the picture today. in the middle of the picture a cloud of steam from one unit. today came the first official assessment from outside japan of how bad things really are. worse than america's most serious nuclear reactor sent -- nuclear accident. >> as they are unfolding rapidly and conflicting reports, so we don't know in detail what is happening. >> we have a state of emergency declared. some radioactivity was released but it involved just one reactor and not four.

the range of options for attacking the crisis is shrinking. they are pumping in water to cool the reactors. the aim is to keep water flowing through to reduce temperatures but this creates steam and too much could trigger an explosion. another option is to deploy it more workers but that is hazardous. reactor three is getting off so much radiation. the problem is a tank holding nuclear fuel is losing water. what can they do? one plan is to drop water by helicopter. that just leaves fire engines to pump the water and but they would also be at risk of exposure to radiation. the workers were pulled out last

night. now some are back in. they are working in shifts to minimize their radiation exposure. there is little protection for them as they face multiple risks. >> they have been working on this for five days. you can imagine a difficult environment they are working in. >> what no one seems to know is the exact fate of the reactor. the next few days are critical. >> at least 9000 people have been missing since the earthquake struck six days ago. almost 4000 are known to have died. emergency teams are still looking for survivors but aftershocks and snowfall is hampering their work. >> every hour a day at more,

coffin after coffin. brought to a bowling alley that functions as a makeshift mortuary. the terrible reckoning of this disaster the living scan with dread. this man is searching for his wife. of >> i have come to see if she is one of them. >> what he knows is she was at home and left in the car to escape with the couple's children. >> this is as far as she got. she jumped out of that car here and could see the tsunami coming in. she ran across here to another cousin's house.

she had her children in her arms and got as high as the steps and handed them to relatives. the children are safe but she was swept away down the road. >> the house the children found refuge in is one of the few things left stand it. he is convinced his wife survived somewhere. >> her name was not on the list of the dead so he is trying the lists of the lifting, estimated to the shelters. she is not here either. >> i have been coming here every day since the earthquake. i have no information about my wife. >> this scan the idea of the true toll. how many thousands were swept

away? today snow started falling making the job of finding them even harder. >> her children are now safe in a car repair shop. it is their temporary home. >> the kids keep smiling every day. they say let's go find mommy today. it is what gives me strength to keep on living. >> as he keeps searching they sit and wait for money to come home. >> stay with us on "bbc world news." can libya's rebels withstand

gaddafi? >> police say they have smashed and online pedophile network with 75,000 members worldwide. suspects -- 7 under 50,000 suspects have been identified. >> they were schoolteachers and even karate drivers. this web site put pedophiles in touch with each other so they could share in illegal images of children being abused. this is a large network with people with an interest in child abuse. we had to work internationally as well. the headquarters of the protection agency in london, for three years they pursued the biggest global network of pedophiles to date. the u.k. played a pivotal role in breaking up this network.

it was investigated -- investigators to identify the owner of the site. at its peak it had 77,000 members. in the u.k., 240 offenders have been targeted with 121 arrested. near a police team linked to the investigation raided an unidentified address. >> if you think you can abuse children and use the internet to abuse children you are wrong. he will be caught as this operation shows. our crime watch filled -- filner these arrests in the early stages of the investigation. police say more offenders will

be brought to justice. >> let's bring you up-to-date on the headlines. japanese engineers are considering their next step to avoid nuclear disaster. high radiation spoiled an attempt to dump water from the air. congress has been told the crisis is worse than the meltdown of three mile island in 1979. they say the situation is very serious. in bahrain, the crackdown continues. the military used tear gas to clear demonstrators from their camp. at least six people died and hundreds were wounded. our correspondent has this report. >> the assault began shortly

after dawn after a state of emergency was declared. the military moved in pushing out protesters today the riot police took control of all roads leading to the roundabout with extensive use of tear gas. authorities say some protestors used petrol bombs and two policemen were killed. but the protesters were no match for the military. state-run television showed these pictures of the protesters being forced to leave. for weeks people have been living here demanding political reforms. but the government was no longer prepared to tolerate its challenge to its ruler. the center of this city has become a ghost town. the authorities for trade their

operation as a success. state-run television has thought a roundabout is cleansed. this is the roundabout now. the health minister has also resigned. we don't know the exact circumstances of how he was shot. there was gunfire in various parts of bahrain today. and and many struggle to treat the injured. the military took over the main hospital. this morning not even ambulance workers were allowed in or out. >> we are practically held inside as hostages. that is why we are calling out for help. our future is very unclear at

the moment. >> protesters say they will not be deterred. one man said they killed us and want us to go home. do they think that will happen now? >> forces loyal to colonel gaddafi advanced further to the east of the commission. -- east of the country. john has this report from inside the country. >> the libyan opposition are under intense pressure. still with a feeling of slightly crazy exhilaration. this is the front line. around 80 miles from the main stronghold. there were plenty of opposition fighters here but the weapons

are very crude. >> we are fighting for human rights and our place here. we believe we are sure we will win. it just takes time because we don't have heavy weapons. >> these pictures seem to show some opposition forces fleeing. we have heard the town is still an opposition control. in tripoli, colonel gaddafi attack britain's role in the crisis and said the libyan opposition were traitors. >> if it was a conspiracy we are determined to defeat it. if it was an internal conspiracy, we are determined to defeat it. we are determined to crush the enemy is. >> while gaddafi denounces the west, they have been pleading

for international support. >> we feel we are simple people and we are asking for our life. please help us in and support us. >> there is an almost sameer -- some real air of normality. this is the city of 1 million people. many of them armed indeed opposed to the rule of gaddafi. with ancient weapons like this the main advantage is this strength in numbers. you can sense the atmosphere is a lot more edgy and serious. much less about random shooting in the air. >> israel's prime minister has

been inspecting weapons the military seized from a cargo ship. benjamin netanyahu says the weapons were intended for palestinian militants in the gaza shrimp -- in the gaza strip. >> the israeli military says these weapons were found on board a german owned cargo ship on the way from turkey to egypt. the navy intercepted the ship on tuesday. its forces met with no resistance when they boarded. the ships crew did nine of the weapons were there. it believes the weapons which were found in three containers were brought onto the ship and syria. the israeli army says the weapons were hidden under these that were brought on board.

the weapons were intended for palestinian militants. israel's prime minister examining the weapons. he says attempts to on the palestinian militants must be stopped. >> they were on route to the terror organizations of gaza. their ultimate target was israel's civilian population. we have already sustained thousands of rockets and mortar shells. >> a senior iranian official says to a news agency they rejected the israeli charges and it was not commenting on the incident. >> a court in pakistan has freed an american cia contractor who

shot dead two men. the families of the victims agreed to pardon him in exchange for $2 million. the case has strained relations between washington and islamabad. many accused raymond davis of being a spy. >> this was raymond davis just after his arrest. president obama called him our it diplomat. many in pakistan branded him a spy. now he is a free man thanks to a payment of blood money. the cia contractor admitted opening fire from inside his car at a busy round about. he says they pulled a gun on him in an attempted robbery. police accused him of cold- blooded murder. >> as recently as three days ago the widow of one of his victims told me she wanted prevents --

wanted revenge and not compensation. she said her husband never got to see these wedding pictures. they arrived after his death. >> my future is gone. my world is empty. i have been left with nothing. what will i do with money? it will not bring back my happiness. >> but in spite of those statements from her and other relatives, a deal was done behind these walls in the jail where davis was held. relative's apartment davis in exchange for money. lawyers claimed they were coerced. u.s. officials left the jail without a comment but said it davis will face a criminal investigation back home. the former green beret seen here

has already left the country. questions remain about exactly what he was doing here. u.s. sources deny he was involved in covert operations. this will be a huge relief not just for the white house but also the government in pakistan. his case has put strain on the relationship between these two allies. there were even threats u.s. aid would be cut. but the deal will not be popular on the streets here. many have been calling for the cia contractor to hang. >> the main story for you, japanese engineers are considering their next that to avoid nuclear disaster. high radiation has foiled an attempt to dump water from the air. the congress has been told this crisis is worse than the meltdown at three mile island in 1979.

the situation is very serious. much more on bbc.com. >> 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 expertise to work for a wide

range of companies. what can we do for you? >> "bbc world news" was presented by kcet los angeles.