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>> and now "bbc world news." >> a day of protest in europe. workers across the continent strike and demonstrate against government austerity cuts. the winner of this year's tour de france is suspended after testing positive for a very small amount of a banned substance. u.s. lawmakers put pressure on china to raise the value of the wan -- yuan. welcome to "bbc world news." still to come this hour, a boost for berlusconi as his government wins the vote of confidence. the survival of his coalition remains on a knife edge. delhi is almost ready for the start of the commonwealth games, but years later. -- but fears linger.

workers have taken to the streets across europe in a day of protest against the austerity measures being imposed by national governments. there have been demonstrations in greece, ireland, and latvia. tens of thousands travel to brussels to march on european union headquarters. in spain, there is a general strike. >> large crowds were on the streets in madrid this evening supporting spain's first general strike in eight years. the message repeated here and elsewhere in europe today was no to austerity. before dawn, strikers were at madrid transport depot trying to prevent buses leaving. spanish unions wanted to shut down the capital and demonstrate that the people were against spending cuts.

later, columns of strikers marched around the city center. when they found stores that were defying calls for a general strike, they pushed inside, insisting the owners closed for the day. the police often intervened, but still the shutters came down. strikers argued that working people were seeing their benefits cut to pay off debts caused by the banks. >> we spent 100 years earning the rights we have as workers in this country. i do not think the first thing we need to do is lose them. the banks should be the ones who pay for this crisis. >> one bank needed to be opened with a metal cutter. strikers had glued shut the doors. this man said protesters had the right to strike, but not to prevent him working. these women taunted the strikers, saying they wanted to work. the impact of the strike was limited. a government minister told me that if necessary they would reduce spending further. >> cutting deficit is the first

priority, so if something more is needed we will do it. but for the moment we do not see the necessity. >> in brussels, thousands of protesters from all over europe joined a march against austerity. even while they were marching, the european commission was announcing tough proposals to punish countries that ran up large debts. >> all of us have learned the hard way the lesson. now i see the members have a great deal of awareness of the need to take bold measures to avoid excessive deficits, to avoid the huge debt levels. >> in spain today, there was anger over cuts, but we found many others resigned to an era of austerity. >> europe's day of protest is unlikely to lead to a change of policy either here in spain or across europe. europe's leaders are committed to reducing the deficit, mainly through spending cuts.

gavin hewitt, bbc news, madrid. >> this year's winner of the prestigious cycling race the tour de france has tested positive for a very small amount of a banned substance. the press officer for the spanish writer said the test was done during a rest on the tour and said he was the victim of food contamination. after the announcement, world cycling cheeps provisionally suspended him from all correspondent. simon robertson has more details. >> the three-time tour de france winner has tested positive for a substance. it happened on the 21st of july, the second rest day in this year's race, the day after he had seemingly survived the greatest challenge in the pyrenees. the news of this field test has come from contador himself. he claims food contamination is the only possible explanation of what happened.

it is a have the blow for a sport buffeted by drug stories in recent years. >> what happens next? >> the spaniard, who is not competing in this year's world championships in australia, will hold a press conference at midday central european time in central spain. we should know more than. cycling's governing body have not commented as yet. he can request a second test. but if a positive test is confirmed he would face a two- year ban from the sport as it is a first offense. >> lawmakers in the united states have approved legislation aimed at putting pressure on china for underbelly its currency. the bill was passed by a big majority in the house of representatives, where members are concerned that china's policy creates an unfair trade a vintage and damages u.s. jobs. it still is to be considered by the senate. i spoke to our washington

correspondent, gene o'brien, about what congress acted now. >> i think his mood -- i think this move reflects the anger americans feel over the week economy and high unemployment rate. nancy pelosi said that 1 million american jobs could be created if the chinese government took its thumb off of the scales, as she put it, instead of giving chinese imports an unfair advantage over american goods. i think this is a demonstration of how far lawmakers want to be seen to be prepared to go to avoid a trouncing in november. they want to be seen to be doing their best to protect american interests. >> is this likely to have any effect on the currency exchange rate between the dollar and the oyuan? >> there is no sureties the president will assign this into law.

the white house is keen to avoid a punitive trade war with china, particularly while the global economy is fragile. there is no guarantee it will have an effect on china even if it goes into law. president obama met with the chinese prime minister in new york last week at which this issue was at the top of the agenda. after that, there was no sign chinese policy was going to change. there is no guarantee it will have any impact on china if this measure goes ahead. >> any impact on diplomatic relations? >> relations have been tense over a number of issues. there have been territorial disputes between japan and china in which america has seemed to take the side of japan. there have been disagreements in sanctions over iran and north korea. nancy pelosi, while criticizing chinese military policy, is keen to stress that the chinese-u.s. relationship is extremely important. while congress wants china to "play by the rules," it also

does not want to see any backlash from this legislation. >> trance state media is reporting that three japanese nationals held in china have been released. the fourth is still being investigated. this became part of a diplomatic viewed along with a chinese fishing captain released by japan last week. the countries are in dispute over islands in the east china sea. south korea says it has begun its first high-level military talks with north korea in two years. they are meeting in a truce village in the demilitarized zone that divides the peninsula. the last held talks in october 2008. british scientists say they have found the first direct evidence to show that attention deficit

and hyperactivity disorder could be caused by a distant -- by a genetic disorder. up to 5% of children worldwide are thought to have the condition, which causes restless or aggressive behavior. the united states has placed eight iranian officials on the financial blacklist for their role in alleged human-rights violations following the disputed election last year. among the eight are the commander of iran's revolutionary guard and the interior minister. >> on these officials' watch or under their command, iranian citizens have been arbitrarily arrested, beaten, tortured, raped, black males, and killed, yet the iranian government has ignored repeated calls from the international community to end these abuses, to hold to account those responsible and reflect the rights and fundamental

freedoms of its citizens. >> the court in india will ruled thursday whether hindus or muslims on a disputed religious site in the north of the country. many fear the judgment could trigger an outbreak of rioting. hundreds of thousands of police in riot gear will be placed in sensitive zones across india. security forces patrolled many empty streets. many shops, businesses, and schools remain closed. public gatherings have been forbidden in the town. after months of acrimony with in that his center-right coalition, silvio berlusconi has won a vote of confidence in his government in italy. this could allow him to stay in office until 2013. there is still uncertainty whether his alliance with a key former ally will survive. >> of the 17th century palace that once stood here, all that remains is the facade.

while italy's parliament building still looks as imposing as ever, inside the ruling coalition has been through some shaky times. critics say its unity, like the passat, is just for show -- like the facade, is just for show. >> it is absolutely in the interest of our country to avoid in this crisis moment which is not yet over -- to avoid risking a period of instability. we need to make an effort to prevent this. >> but it was a debate which frequently provoked more heat than light. >> mr. berlusconi, you are not the prime minister. you are a rapist of democracy. >> in the end, the prime minister's victory was comfortable, thanks to the last- minute support of a breakaway faction within his governing coalition. cue triumph for his supporters.

the bullish mr. berlusconi could not help reveling in the moment. some opponents were already drafting the coalition's political obituary. >> he won today, but with such a lack of trust it is just a matter of months. >> few politicians are as polarizing as mr. berlusconi, but as the insults flew from some of his more vocal critics, many political analysts predicted the prime minister will not just live to fight another day but will also see at the end of his term in 2013. jack izzard, bbc news. >> still to come, the use warning to france over its treatment of the roma. respect freedom of movement or face prosecution. it has been nearly five months since the attack was thwarted in

times square. new video has been released of the man who admitted planting it. on the tapes, he not only boasts about his plan to kill at least 40 people, but said he wanted to detonate a second bomb two weeks later. >> this is what could have happened in the middle of manhattan. the times square car bomb retreaded by investigators from the joint terrorism task force. in reality, the device failed to explode. faisal shahzad already admitted to trying to kill u.s. citizens. a video filmed in pakistan has in talking about his hatred of the west. >> i have wanted to join my brothers in jihad since 9/11. i am planning to wage an attack against america. why shouldn't we fight to free our lands from your aggression, your humiliation? >> the plot was foiled by his

own on bomb making incompetence. he used the wrong chemicals and his smoking the haeckel was spotted by street vendors, who raised the alarm -- and his smoking vehicle was spotted by street vendors to raise the alarm. he was arrested as he boarded a plane. he enjoyed the west, including a family home in connecticut. he turned his back on that. >> i had everything in the world. i have a nice car, a house, an excellent job. they were paying the good money. deep inside, i had this thought that there is probably more than this to life. >> rather than becoming a hero to his cause, he now sits in an american jail cell, to be sentenced next week. he could face life in prison. ian mackenzie, bbc news, washington. >> you are watching bbc news.

there have been angry scenes across europe as workers held strikes and staged demonstrations against their governments' austerity cuts. the winner of this year's tour de france has been suspended after testing positive for a very small amount of a banned substance. the european commission has decided to take action over france is deportation of hundreds of roma migrants. it said the country fail to respect european rules on freedom of movement. it has given france two weeks to change its policies or risk being referred to the european court of justice. >> president sarkozy opened up -- order the clearance of roma camps back in july. he said they had become hotbeds of crime. more than 1000 roma were deported from france, most to bulgaria or romania.

the european union's just as commissioner has announced a further investigation of french actions and the country's insistence there were not discriminatory. it could lead to full legal action. >> the commission has found that france has not properly applied in its french law the procedural guarantees which are foreseen for all e.u. citizens in the european directive. that is why this needs to be corrected. that is why we have acted >> the main complaint from brussels is that france is not guaranteeing the freedom of movement of eu citizens and does not incorporate those rights in french law. france argues it can deport people who are judged a public security risk. the roma are you the european commission is doing too little to protect them. -- argue the european commission is doing too little

to protect them. >> they are extremely weak in the process of decision taking. politicians from brussels have to understand they have no right to take compromises. any compromise regarding anybody, even sarkozy, means abandoning principles that have no right to die. >> this issue has certainly poisoned relations between france and the european commission. a few weeks ago, commissioner reding compared french actions to mass deportations by the nazis during the second world war. >> this is a situation i had thought europe would not have to witness again. not after the second world war. >> the french president was infuriated. >> everyone here is deeply shocked, especially given our wartime history. these words are deeply wounding and insulting of my fellow countrymen. >> the european commission has

stopped short of immediate legal action over the treatment of roma migrants, but brussels is threatening legal sanctions against france if the country does not fall into line within the next two weeks. >> britain's former foreign secretary, david miller band, has quit front-line politics -- david miliband, has quit front-line politics. this report features flash photography. >> going, going, gone. he looked relaxed and positively relieved. >> we have a new leader of the labor party, my brother ed, who has a big responsibility. i want to support him in the best way possible -- the party and the country -- and the big task he has. i can best do that from the back benches. i can give him the freedom and the space to drive the party

forward in the way he sees fit without any distraction that could come from having your older brother sitting next to you. >> distractions like this yesterday, during his brother's first conference speech as labor leader. >> i do believe we were wrong to to britain to war and we need to be honest about that. >> the former foreign secretary looked furious with his brother and with gary harmon -- hariett harmon, who voted for the war but applauded the combination of it. >> he raised an eyebrow. it shows the dangers that can come when people read too much into things. i think it is really important that no one is able to use anything -- the nearest sneeze or body language or comment -- to divert from the really important task the party has, that ed has. i want to support him in doing it. >> you looked pretty angry.

>> as ed said yesterday, it is time to come out of iraq. >> in manchester, at the party formerly known as new labor, and responded.nd >> i spoke to my brother david earlier today. it would be fantastic to have been serving in my shadow cabinet. i think he has made a thoughtful and gracious decision. thoughtful for his family and the time he can have with them. gracious in terms of the future of our party. he is my brother. and i am very clear that as leader of this party my door is always open for him to serve in the future, either in opposition or back in government. >> for all the talk of love and loyalty, the miliband brothers

do not agree about the war, tuition fees, and the new labor. eds says it is dead. >> i think discretion might be better. >> how long will that discretion last? >> i did not think i was saying goodbye them. >> not so much goodbye as farewell for now. bbc news, north london. >> the former american president bill clinton has been visiting northern ireland to voice his continued support for the peace process and to try to promote economic growth. >> and bill clinton is so popular in northern ireland they treat him like an old friend. they even bring along old family photos. >> she looks good there. what is your name? >> this was not just a social

occasion. he came to give a lecture about peace. >> i ask you to be upstanding for our great friend, william jefferson clinton. >> he said the ability of northern ireland if former political enemies to work together was setting an example for the rest of the world. >> whenever people say we cannot do it in the middle east, we cannot do it somewhere else, we just throw up northern ireland. working on the irish peace process was one of the two or three great owners of my life, and i think all of you for proving that peace is possible. [applause] >> when he was president, he visited northern ireland in the early days of the peace process. he then came back again. and then again. today's visit was relatively low

key. the crowd is much smaller than when bill clinton first came here 15 years ago, but it is clear that for some the 64-year- old ex-president is still a hero. but why is he still so popular? >> i have never met him before. i just wanted to see a glimpse of him. >> americans always have the greatest presidents. to have one of the best come here mean something. >> i think it is his charisma. and i like the gray hair. [laughter] >> in many ways, this felt like a farewell tour to northern ireland, but it may not be the end of his trip to the u.k. at the weekend, he is expected to attend golf's ryder cup. "british foreign office has issued a new warning about the

commonwealth games in delhi. it is days until the opening ceremony. the rush to organize the games may threaten the safety of those attending. >> after the humiliation of last week, the hope. hundreds of young dancers hoping to show a different india to the world. but even as they were practicing, workers were still rushing to finish the job. delhi has left it very light. but optimism is growing here that everything will come together. these commonwealth games have been written off before they have even started. try telling that to these children rehearsing for sunday's opening ceremony. delhi is determined to prove the world wrong and show that these games still matter. at one stage, organizers might have wondered if there would even be an opening ceremony. >> we had many decisions which

got delayed. but we got there. it was frustrating to see the whole world saying we are not ready when we were all working hard to make it happen. >> tonight, there were fresh fears of a security. the foreign office issued new warnings related to the games. with unprecedented numbers of police on duty, british officials say athletes feel safe. >> it is reassuring going so -- going through and seeing so many. it is probably going to take a little bit longer than it used to. >> delhi has already come under attack for chaotic organization. india's main concern now is not protecting its image, but protecting these games. david bond, bbc news, delhi. >> there have been angry scenes across europe as workers held strikes and staged

demonstrations against their governments' austerity cuts. >> 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? >> there is one stage that is the met and carnegie hall. >> o, that this too, too solid flesh -- >> it is the kennedy center. >> check, one, two. >> and a club in austin. >> it is closer than any seat in the house, no matter where you call home. >> the top of the world, and i'm there, i'm home. >> pbs -- the great american stage that fits in every living room. your support of pbs brings the arts home. >> "bbc world news" was presented by kcet, los angeles. presented by kcet, los angeles.