>> "bbc world news" is presented by kcet, los angeles. 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 global expertise to work for a wide range of companies.

what can we do for you? >> and now "bbc world news." >> the u.s. and u.k. promised a full investigation on the british aid worker killed. high hopes in chile as a trial run goes through without a hitch. and plans for a third and final strike [unintelligible] welcome to bbc news. coming up later on, palestinian officials refuse to recognize israel as a jewish state. the world's first human embryonic stem cell research trial begins. ♪

president obama and the british prime minister will cooperate closely to establish how a kidnapped british aid worker died during a false rescued by american special forces. u.s. officials were briefing over the weekend saying she was killed by her own afghan captives. a fragmentation grenade may have been the cause of death. here is this report. >> initial claims that she was killed by her afghan captives may not be wrong. today david cameron took an awkward phone call from a neighbor in afghanistan and broke the news to the public. >> a review has revealed

evidence to indicate that linda may not have died at the hands of her captives as originally believed. subsequent interviews with the personnel involved suggest that linda could have died as a result of a grenade detonated by the task force during the assault. >> they said they had no choice but to rescue her. the operation failure was weighing on the prime minister. >> 100 times, i have gone over in my mind it was the right decision. but we look at all of the advice and information we knew about her situation. >> on friday, an elite special forces team looked at the afghan hideout where she was expected to have been. she was allegedly held in one of

the most rugged provinces of afghanistan. the decision to go ahead was taken by the british embassy in kabul signed off by david cameron. what led up to this failed rescue attempt to? an aid worker was taken hostage with her afghan colleagues on september 26 while driving. british and u.s. intelligence tracked her down to a valley to a province. they feared she may have moved over to the border in pakistan, a rescue mission was approved to go in october 8. it was announced that her death in the mission was later announced. the end festination looks at the aerial surveillance footage. all this must be tough to take

for her family in the western isles of scotland. they do not know for certain how she died, which is harder still. bbc news. >> a sense of excitement is mounting in chile as they count down the average to the final rescue of the miners there. it will begin 24 hours from now. they will have a still captusul. >> the stage here is nearly said. helicopters poised to rescue the minors. the narrow tunnel itself is ready. it seems we are waiting for a concrete base at the top of the rescue shaft. going down, a trial run for that

which will ferry them to the surface. within 12 meters of the trapped miners. >> this has been very successful in its tests. we will watch how they behave during the process of the movement of the cage. there was no stones during this process. we think they will behave properly. >> this is how the operation should unfold. the first man chosen to be rescued will be trapped inside the capsule. they will wear a belt around his chest to monitor his vital

signs. he will be in constant communication with the surface. he will have a waterproof suits and a sunglasses and oxygen to breathe. if it gets stuck, the bottom can be separated and the minor could go back down. this is the design of the rescue tunnel. it is very claustrophobic. on the way up, the tunnel turns three times. the risks ahead are substantial. confidence is soaring here. the first of 33 family reunions could begin in the early hours of wednesday morning. abc news, san jose mine.

>> telephone calls in the minutes following are being played for the first time in the terror attacks. no one seems to be aware of the severity of the attacks. a suicide bomber targeted an underground train. police in hungary have arrested some rest possible for the chemical spill last week. eight people died. the bbc is expected to announce that his deputy director- general will be on medical leave next march. [unintelligible] a corporation faces criticism over the level of executive pay.

the french union has said some opposition to the government's pension reform. it looks at the age at which people can retire. >> it is the moment of truth for the government of nicolas sarkozy. they have one last chance on this controversial bill. throughout the day, huge disruption to public services of local and national will services which will be affected. the union is helping to mobilize 2 million workers. this time, public transport union -- that could spell days if not weeks of misery.

>> from the moment to have workers going on strike, you get the sense that and people are getting into this movement. there were plans for a huge contract in 2006. >> already, doctors are heading into a site that is playing important oil refinement. the prospective crippling shortages is a more radical elements with pressure. it has approved the most controversial part. the minimal state retirement age is the main one. >> there is a big difference between the last round of demonstrations and this one. now the law has been passed by parliament.

it is hard for the government to compromise on sometimes the fundamental aspect of the terms. now it is the law of the republic. it can be negotiated in back room deals. >> they are painful reforms that are unpopular oiand when his approval rating is at an all- time low. this could be the most pivotal point of his presidency. 59% of the french people say they back these strikes. with the bulk of this bill already approved, the biggest battle is already behind him. bbc news, paris. >> pellets and is -- palestinian officials have been debating on the jewish settlement activity looking at israel as a jewish

state. palestinians are ready recognize the state of israel. here is the report from jerusalem. >> for several weeks, these talks between israel and the palestinians have been suspended over the issue of building a jewish settlement on palestinian land. the prime minister benjamin netanyahu has rejected international demand to extend the building increase in the settlements. negotiators have said is building continues, they would walk away from the talks. now in a speech, he has tried to get back the initiative as saying the government would extend the moratorium if the palestinians recognize israel as a jewish state. >> if the palestinian leadership recognizes israel as

the national homeland of the jewish people, i would be willing to convene my government. >> the palestinian response was swift dismissing certain demands. they said they all go recognize the state of israel. the real issue is the real jewish settlement on palestinian land. the demand that israel should be recognized explicitly as the jewish state has long been rejected by the palestinians whose sake they discriminate against 20% of the israeli population which is not jewish. 41 5 million palestinian refugees and led up to the war of 1948, one of the most intensive points of these peace talks could be affected by such a move. bbc news, jerusalem. >> still ahead, not guilty of child abuse.

disappointment at the acquittal of someone in south africa. microsoft has made its first response to the apple iphone and has unveiled a range of handsets, which it says has been rebuilt to be more user- friendly. >> more than 90% of desktop computers have windows logo. now all the action and innovation has moved into mobile phones. it is a different story. microsoft dominates the desktop there it is a host of rivals to the iphone [unintelligible] 5% of the market. >> we wanted the windows phone --

>> here is the latest attempt for windows to stake its claim in the global world. the executive unveiled windows phone 7 promising that it was designed to delight users. it is simpler and more attractive. it rivals apple and google, which is so far ahead, microsoft has to prove they have something special. an actor previously a huge apple fan turned out to praise the phone. >> my first feeling was that it was fun to play with. i know that is childish. but just like a car, is it fun to drive. >> they want to get manufacturers to build these phones for their systems.

its rivals will not stand still. the youth wars are about to get more intense. bbc news. -- these phone wars are about to get more intense. bbc news. >> the u.s. and u.k. are looking into the investigation of the death of a kidnapped worker killed by her american rescuers. a day before the attempted rescue of 33 chilean miners, but tests have gone ahead without a hitch. more now on our main news. we go to afghanistan. a former u.s. special forces officer is at a u.s. naval post. i asked him how difficult it has been for general petraeus to discuss this rescue mission. >> this would have been a difficult situation for him.

yes is sophisticated understanding of the media. he very much knows about any attempt to hide information or spend that information and it would reflect badly on him. >> based on your special knowledge, what do you think could have gone wrong? >> this is the worst possible kind of challenge that a rescue units, special units can face. from previous news releases, it talks about having a planned mission that had to be delayed into bad weather. it is at a high altitude and they have to conduct this operation at night. they were trying to rescue a hostage.

this would have been a very difficult mission in and of itself. >> what we are failing to understand is in a situation like this where there is a hostage involved, why would they use a weapon like a grenade in a situation like that? why not use the situation much more simple? >> there are different kinds of grenades. normally in these kinds of attacks, they would use a stun grenades or flash bangs. they are made of paper, in light cardboard, said they would not injured someone. even a flash bangs have metal components to them. the other piece of this is the investigation that is under way. in a situation like this, in the chaos of a close quarter battle like this, the decision about which weapon to use has to fall

on the soldier on the scene. simply in cases like this, mistakes could be made. until an investigation is done, of no thoughts on how that choice was made. >> research has been restricted of embryonic stem cell research. there may be the first fully regulated and public trial. it could mean resolution treatment for spinal injuries. >> it is one of the most wildly -- widely anticipated messin trials in decades. these are stem cells derived from a single embryo. it has grown into nerve cells.

for the first time, they have been injected into a spinal cord patient. >> these are the most potent stem cells. if it is successful, we could get a manufacturer in 10 years. >> in most spine injuries, the court is not severed, but to the protective coating is damaged, causing them to short circuit. in a parent nearly. -- a patient nearly paralyzed from the neckline is injected with these embryonic stem cells hoping that it would start to read code those cells. -- re-coat those cells. i've visited the labs last year in california where the cells were created. they are very upbeat about the long-term potential between

this. >> what stem cells promise for a heart attack or spinal cord injury is you go to the hospital, see the cells come and go home better. >> no one should get carried away. the first six patients will receive tiny amounts of embryonic stem cells. no one can be sure the therapy will work. the patient group and scientists are eagerly awaiting results. >> a talk show host has been disappointed at the acquittal of a woman accused of using [unintelligible] in south africa. they could not prove for case beyond a reasonable doubt. here is the report.

>> it began with such high hopes. an american tv star determined to help underprivileged girls in south africa. oprah winfrey hand-picked the people for promise and potential. soon, it was plunged into scandal. one of the matrons of the school was accused of sexually assaulting several girls. >> this has been one of the most devastating if not the most devastating experience of my life. like all such experiences, there is much to be gained at a lot to be learned. >> this, was accused of 14 counts of assault. on monday, a couple of years after the trial began, the court found her not guilty of the charges. this is the end of a long legal process. >> they said they failed to

prove beyond doubt that she was responsible for this. >> in a statement, she said she was disappointed at the outcome of the trial. she says she will forever be proud of the nine girls the testified. the school was designed to be a beacon of hope and has suffered lasting damage to its reputation. bbc news. >> one of the finest opera singers has died at her home. she was 83. we look back at the life of the singer. ♪ >> the radiant pure sounds of

her soprano voice. [vocalizing] once described as in the voice of the century. she is born in sydney in 1926 to a mother was a mezzo-soprano. by the age of three, she had learned to imitate scales and vocal exercises. >> they were always full of music. i was not trained by my mother. she was a great singer herself. i listened to her from i cannot remember. >> it was when she met and married an australian pianist, she really found her voice. he persuaded her to sing in a different register and use her enormous range.

♪ 1959, she took the lead in an opera. her career is made. >> i will not ever forget it. [unintelligible] >> traveling the world, she took on one great role after another. the critics said she was an inspiration to several generations of singers, including myself. her technique, her work was unsurpassed by anyone anywhere in the world. >> in 1979, she was on an honors list, an act -- an accolade that it did not change her down-

to-earth personality. she was among the finest soprano's that had a personal repertoires with over 15 -- 50 leading roles. she was a remarkable human being. >> the newest art installation in london, one engine million fake sunflowerseed, handmade in porcelain. 1600 people have been working two and a half years to make this. and a final update, president obama and british prime minister agreed to a closely establish the botched rescue

attempt of a british aid worker. >> 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.