>> "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." >> most of the rescued miners have left the hospital. they are back with their families. after 14 years of drilling under the alps the world's longest tunnel is complete. tension runs high as workers tried to block fuel supply. welcome to "bbc world news, broadcast" on pbs and around the globe. coming up, an afghan battalion where have they soldiers have deserted to fight the taliban. liverpool swaps american owners, but will it satisfy the fans?

>> the international news is still dominated by the good news story of the week as 33 rescued miners leave the hospital for home. we heard from the hospital that teo left today. the first three came home to a crowd of journalists outside their homes. when the others were discharged the others -- the media was not informed. >> in the next few hours they will be admitted [unintelligible] their diagnoses are vertigo. they don't need the kind of

[unintelligible] >> that is the latest from the medics. our correspondent was able to visit the home of one of the first miners to be discharged. >> after the global spectacle of their rescue neighborhoods prepared for their return. this is the house of the 18th minor to be saved. >> i asked his daughter what would be the first thing they do together. >> have some chicken soup. he already asked my mom for that. >> when i asked his wife she had other ideas. >> go to bed, make up for lost time. >> they have longer-term plans. while he was still trapped he said if he gets back to this house he and his wife will start planning the wedding she already

dreamed of. some have already been allowed home. this was the reception for the fourth man rescued. he had to push his way to privacy. nearby, at the same scene at the home of the 12th man out. >> those miners think people for their prayers and good wishes. there are also more tangible dips under way. the 33 miners have been offered a free holiday in greece. they had been invited to a home game. they are getting 6,000 pounds and an ipod from apple. some of their families started legal action against the mining company. today, this man made clear the miners want more than freebies.

>> this should never have happened in my country nor any other country. people say it is safe, but that is not true. >> this is a time for joy. families are being reunited here. >> history has been made in southern switzerland with the final breakthrough in the world's largest tunnel. it is expected to revolutionize freight transport in europe. >> annoys, dust -- noise and cheers. it stretches 57 kilometers beneath the alps. when the swiss first embarked on

this project geologists' told them to forget, the rock was too dangerous. today and of iraq has been excavated to build five egyptian pyramids. no wonder the swiss are celebrating. >> we are not a very emotional people but we have the longest tunnel in the world that is very emotional. >> this has been an expensive project. today 14 years later the swiss are convicts -- convinced this new tunnel is worth it. the reason is the tunnel is designed to protect the beautiful alpine environment. at the moment 3000 trucks rumbled through this valley is every day, carrying an italian wine to holland. the swiss are fed up. the new tunnel should mean

freight can be transferred from road to rail. the journey will take just 2.5 hours. that is faster than flying. the first train will not roll fruit until 2017, but with the completion of the tunnel northern and southern europe have moved closer together. >> a top american commander in afghanistan acknowledged there has been contact between taliban leaders and members of the afghan government. david petraeus confirmed nato forces have allowed a taliban commander to travel kabul. >> we do facilitate that. given that it would not be the easiest of tasks or a senior

taliban commander to enter afghanistan and make his way to kabul. therefore, allows it to take place. >> handing over security to the afghan national army is a key part of the plan to withdraw troops from afghanistan. is it working? troops had serious worries about drug taking among afghan soldiers and high rates of desertion. our correspondent said this from outside canada are -- kahandahar. >> afghan and u.s. troops patrolled side by side. their mission is to take down taliban flags. it is dangerous work. the american sleet the operation

but they are careful to wait for an afghan officer to remove the flag. all this is a carefully staged opportunity designed to show the afghan army are in charge and not the talha band. the strategy is the same in iraq, and over to the local forces. the time to achieve that is starting to look very short period -- very short. nato admits one-fifth of the afghan infantry are absent without leave. that figure may be much higher for those in combat. this battalion should be 796 strong. 217 men disappeared rather than go south to fight. later, 148 did not return from leave.

almost half the men supposed to be here are missing. u.s. soldiers say many of the afghan troops who remain smoke marijuana or opium on duty. there are complaints of po r -- poor discipline. these afghan soldiers -- >> i want to fight for my country. i want to help my people, but they have no leads in eight months. they could not get money home. that is why many have deserted. >> it is a sovereign country. it is their own armed force. they will have to take over security for their country. with this battalion we have a long way to go.

>> this was once taliban territory. now an afghan colonel reed said the discussions. afghans speaking to afghans in a way foreign troops cannot. this is the afghan army possible come up because which side people like these eventually back will decide the outcome of this war. >> leaders of the communist party are meeting to underlie the social future. the government once the people to buy more chinese-made goods so they could rely less on exports. dmitry medvedev has nominated --

survey is expected to replace the -- sergei is expected to replace. prosecutors have -- he has been charged with inciting hatred against muslims. he criticized islam as an ideology and not muslims as a group. hundreds of people affected by the sludge disaster have been returning to their homes. nine people were killed when a storage reservoir burst open 12 days ago. thousands of toxic sludge leak into the countryside. >> going home at last. the people returned to their village on friday six days after their evaluation. the immediate danger is past,

but the place they are returning to is barely recognizable. several dozen houses have been badly damaged by the disaster. at least nine had to be bulldozed to make way for a new and bank meant designed to protect them from future spills. they have been told to wear face masks at all times. >> i saved it belongs i could. i used to work as a mechanic. it is really bad. >> the tidal wave hit the area in the early afternoon. nine died. people feel lucky. if the sludge struck at night the death toll could have been higher.

after 10 days of closure the factory responsible was finally allowed to restart production. thousands of local jobs depend on the firm. investigations continue into what caused one of europe's worst ever industrial disasters. >> stay with us. still to come, the art work that has fallen afoul at the safety fear. china is being urged to reduce safety at its mines. more than 2.5000 died last year. authorities can learn much from chile. >> in 2005 a gas explosion caused a massive rescue

operation but 200 died. 74 miners were killed at this coal mine,. over the past few years the death toll from accidents has risen to 3000 each year. that is less than half the number in 2002 when 7000 were killed. beijing can still learn from chile and how it responded. >> the information has to be open and transparent. the situation was broadcast to the world. in the past when a disaster happened information was blocked. >> the rush to fuel the economy has been blamed for its poor safety record.

>> there may be some places where the government -- neglects their duty. some officials turn a blind eye to illegal operations. >> china is the world's largest consumer of coal, but it's mines remain the most dangerous. it is time the industry pays attention to the minors to risk their lives going to work each day. >> the latest headlines on "bbc world news." all but two of the rescued miners have been discharged from the hospital. the media were not informed. back below ground, a breakthrough under the alps after 14 years of drilling the

longest tunnel and the world is complete. in france, attention is running high on the fourth day of the strike. police have started and blocking oil depots. most french oil refineries are still closed. there have been -- we had this report. >> the police moved in early to break blockades in southern france. new pickets were appearing at other distribution centers around the country. all but one of the oil refineries is closed. there is plenty of reserves but they have to be able to move it. there are signs unions are digging in. >> this is not the end of it.

the government will have to sit around the table. if they push us out and must be because we have been a problem for them. >> ships bringing in crude-oil are stranded. dockers continue their strikes. at all the airports around 200 workers blockaded the roads, or seen flight delights' -- forcing flight delays. the main airport could run out of fuel as early as next week without new supplies. the government urges people not to panic. around 10% of the stations are closed. supply problems might escalate if france's trucking union joins the strike on tuesday. perhaps this is the government's biggest concern, the student

protests. thousands of young people have taken to the streets. in the southern city riot police used tear gas to deal with the crowds. in paris, there were angry scuffle's after a teenager was badly injured by riot police. the government supporters are urging the french president to seize this moment. just as the broadest -- they want nicolas sarkozy to get tough with the french unions. you may be left with little option. he will be acutely aware of the unpredictable consequences. >> the owners of the boston red sox have won their legal battle for control of one of england cost successful football clubs.

the deal is thought to be worth $500 million. it seems the courtroom wrangling may not be over. there is some flash photography in this report. >> even the writers of "dallas" might have thought this soap opera was far-fetched. there was high finance, a courtroom drama and a colorful class list. they had been fighting for the club as martin tried to drive through a sale for this man, john henry. the liver board -- liverpool board got what they wanted, a deal worth 300 million pounds. >> we have a lot of work to do.

i cannot tell you how happy i am we finally got this. >> [inaudible] i think you solve that. >> with so much attention paid to events in london in america it was easy to forget there was a football club. >> they are willing to put some money into it. they have a proven record in america. as long as they are gone then hopefully the new owners -- this is not a new era for the club. >> in the high-stakes game it has been a bewildering week. this man was the first to show

his hand come of winning an injunction to let him sell the club. a dallas court blocked the sale. the next day it was back to the high court where they were ordered to drop the action. despite trying to do a last- minute deal, they finally gave in. there rain is finally over, but the deal done here only transfers the club from one set of the american owners to another. forces will be hoping john henry is a different kind of owner. his record with the red sox suggest he could pay -- he could be. he wants to get liverpool back to the top. >> that is part of football. there is no doubt that a cloud

has been lifted from the football club. >> there is no question liverpool's image has been tarnished. while this and will raise hopes for the glory days, perry the damage will not be easy. -- repairing the damage. >> ticket prices for the london olympics in 2012 have been announced. you can pick one up for around $32, but the best seats will set you back $3,000. there is still time to start saving. tickets go on sale next march. it was made to be walked over but days after latest exhibit was unveiled they have had to coordine it off.

hook there may be a health risk. -- there may be a health risk. >> it was meant to be a work of art you could walk on. visitors are being asked to interact, but today that invitation to participate was withdrawn. you can still look but you cannot tread. they say they were imposing the ban because the dust created constituted a health risk. it is not what the artist intended. >> it is good for the public's to walk on ait. to step on this piece of art. >> at the beginning of this week they invited everybody to experience the feeling of walking on 100 million sunflower seeds. three days later they are saying

you cannot. you can look at them in a small bowl. visitors are not happy. >> i am cross. i was told i could experience them. >> you would have to be on their a long time in order to cause damage. i would definitely take the risk. >> lots of people have talked about the possibility of walking on it. i understood that was what we were going to be able to do. >> they settled a number of claims by businesses. they are keen to any risks posed by the current art work. >> the visitor is meant to go across it to let seeds trickle through their palms. all they are left with is an

aerial vista. >> this is an art work the artist hoped would be packed with people having a good time. it has been turned into a desolate landscape. >> you all have seen a few police chases on tv but this one will count as one of the most dramatic. a fugitive tried to escape from police in a stolen car. it found his way blocked, so what did he do? the driver first, knocking over a several police on motorcycles. -- the driver reversed. a reminder of the main story, all the two of the miners rescued have been discharged from hospitals. most of then slipped out of a side entrance to avoid camera

crews. the miners are in good physically condition for being trapped for two months. thanks for watching. >> 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.