>> this is "bbc world news." 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 financial strength to work for a wide range of companies, from small businesses to major

corporations. what can we do for you? >> and now, "bbc world news." >> colnel gadhafi appears in public for the first time since the start of international air strikes and told supporters that they will be victorious. hillary clinton says some of gadhafi's aiders may be looking for a way out of the crisis. >> we would encourage that. >> president obama says he is confident since handing over control of the military operation to an international coalition. these are the latest pictures of anti-aircraft fire over the libyan capital during a fourth night. welcome to bbc news broadcast to our viewers around the u.k. and around the world.

yemen's president warns any attempt to get rid of him would lead to civil war. and emergency teams in japan begin a search as radiation leaks continue. welcome. libyan leader colnel gadhafi made his first public appearance since the international coalition began on his military bases. he told his followers he won't be defeated and warns his enemies will be consigned to the dustbin of history. continued discussions about who is in charge of the international military operation.

>> this is the first time we have seen him since the authorized air attacks against his country in. an address live his message to his supporters was unrepennant. great libyan people you are living through glorious hours. all of the people are with us. i say to you i am not afraid. not afraid of the planes that caused such destruction. i am defiant. my home is here. i am here. i am here. >> even as he was speaking the words, on american tv came the suggestion that perhaps the gadhafi regime is exploring options internationalally. >> i am not aware he personally has reached out but i do know that people allegedly on his behalf have been reaching out. this is a very dynamic

situation. >> so far u.s. forces have taken a prominent role in the u.n. authorized operation. barack obama made it clear that soon increasingly fewer american planes will be involved. >> i would expect that over the next several days we will have clarity and a meeting of the minds with all those participating in the process. we are already seeing a significant reduction in the number of u.s. planes involved in operations over libya. >> and this is the result of those operations, a workshop on a military base where an officer told the bbc overnight bombing caused some destruction but nobody died. elsewhere the authorities allege allied air strikes killed many civilians. bbc asked for evidence but none has been provided.

>> in eastern libya two u.s. airmen were rescued after their fighter jet crashed because of apparent mechanical failure. there were reports six villagers were shot and hurt in the rescue effort. these are the first confirmed casualties of the conflict. >> it is the last thing the new coalition needs, an american fighter jet crash landing in libya, pilots forced to eject and it appears they may have opened fire on friendly help. ers that only came to we met this man injured by shrapnel, one of six wounded when u.s. helicopters came to pick up the pilots. his son is in intensive care. he is angry but does not want the coalition to stop.

he calls it a small price for a mission that is saving people's lives. but simply people want more of this. colnel gadhafi's army bombed by the coalition. the wreckage is a looter's paradise. any piece, however small is a treasured addition to the woeful armory. watching these scenes tells you how desperate that they are for arms. after weeks of fighting the strain is showing. rebels argue whether to put forward. others are criticized for standing by and not helping. over the last few days rebels

have been held at this point, in effect their frontline. this is a town about 25 kilometers away from where the fighting has been at its most intense. when they come up this road they are hit by colnel gadhafi's forces and we have seen a number of bodies coming back this way as the rebels retreat. >> the loss of life is mounting. a strategic town that holds the key to the east. >> the crossroads. so we want it to be in this city. >> and that mean its is important to you as well? >> it is fortunate us as well. >> government forces even hit the local power station to try to cut electricity to the east. this has become a struggle for resources and land and neither

side shows signs of relenting or winning. >> we have plenty coming up in about 10 minutes time we will speak to a former u.s. assistant secretary of defense under president reagan. do log on to our website where you will find pages of analysis about what is going on and of course a live page where you can keep right up-to-date and indeed follow me on twitter as well. all of the latest developments, visit that website. the embattled germany president has given his strongest indication yet that he is preparing to step down by the end of the year but warned that yemen was in danger of collapsing into civil war after the defection of several military commanders.

tanks have been on the streets. it has been reported that an air base in the west of the country switched their allegiance to the popular up rising. here is david lloyd. >> the turning point after weeks of protest was the slaughter last friday. dozens were killed and hundreds more injured. protest intensified and key backers, including tribal leaders, diplomats and most of the cabinet called for them to step down. he has been president for more than 30 years. first in the north and then of a united yemen since 1990. he said last month he would not seek re-election in an effort to stem the tide of protests.

there was speculation he was grooming his son as his successor. yemen's security forces have been trained by the u.s. in the poorest country of the world because it faces the horn of africa. britain too increased their aid substantially to stabilize the country. but western criticism of the violence carried out by the president's forces has been muted because he is an ally against al qaeda and yemen is the place where al qaeda has their strongest base. >> they are concern body presence of al qaeda inside yemen's borders and also concerned about protecting their relationship" president's son and nephew who were

carrying out counterterrorism operations in partnership with american military planners. >> the future of yemen hangs in the balance. these armored vehicles are manned by troops loyal to the president. he appealed for unity warning a coo attempt would lead to a civil war. the colnel in the rebel forces said he was opposing what he called a criminal regime. holding far while pressure is put on the president to step down. >> in a number of news agencies are reporting that four people, at least, have been killed in the syrian city after the syrian army stormed a mosque there in the town.

protesters were demanding reform. indeed it is reported that four people lost $lives while these protesters met in the area there. earlier today the governor of the region was dismissed in response to the demonstrators. the protests were taking place over the last few weeks in syria itself. we will try to bring you more on that as the news is coming into us. radiation is still leaking but scientists say they are unsure of exactly where it is coming from. at least 9,000 people are known to have died and 13,000 others are still missing.

this town lies 16 miles away from the nuclear plant. many of the residents have left and some may never return. >> a week ago the streets were busy with traffic. lights still change but no cars come. this is what it looks like inside the contamination zone. tens of thousands fled but many elderly can't or won't. in a farm house they find an old couple. the phone call is from their daughter who wants them to leave. we are fine he says. we have plenty of food. your mother is sleeping all of the time and we still have plenty of sake. further on along the tsunami-smashed coast teams continue to search for the dead. another scene from a hollywood

disaster movie, expect this one is real. in tokyo today i met one of the elite team of fireman sent into the plant to cool the reactors. one look at the reactor buildings and we new the damage was worse. we looked at the buildings and we were very scared. my wife told me after she dropped me at the station she cried all of the way home. i am sure it is the way for all of my men. these are some of the new ways of nuclear refugees, more than 100,000 are squating across the east of japan. this family lived less than six miles from the nuclear plant. you can't see radiation so we did not feel any immediate danger. we thought we would go home soon and packed up clothes,

left the dog tied up outside of the house and left. that was a week ago. these people survived the earthquake and the tsunami only to be driven from their homes by the nuclear disaster. while the people directly hit by the tsunami will be able to go back and rebuild soon, the people here have no idea when they will be able to go home. in the contam nation zone people ventured tout get food. this is the strange new way of life here and nobody knows how long it will go on. bbc news in tokyo. >> stay with us. still to come preparing for the big day the royal coach gets a spring clean ahead of the royal wedding.

>> fighting as intensified since he refused to give up the presidency. >> hundreds of thousands of people have been displaced by this conflict already but still they come. city folk who never thought their lives in the ivory coast, once one of the richest countries in africa, would come to this. this man saw three days of shooting and fighting. so, he is leaving the city and returning to his native village. the incumbent leader refuses to leave office. everyone but his close associates says he lost last november's elections. now his army and militia under pressure from armed opponents and sanctions from the international community are

lashing out. this woman paid for hereticet but says she was forced off of the bus by soldiers. according to her they said they did not want to know the population was fleeing. the election in ivory coast was closely monitored by the united nations. u.n. officials say they are sure he lost and should now resign. the people estimate that there are around 10 times more people arriving than in normal circumstances. some estimate up to 10,000 people are arriving here every day. but the buses when they go back are empty. >> decent people's lives are being turned upside down in ivory coast because the rules of democracy haven't yet taken root here.

>> headlines this hour, colnel gadhafi appears in public for the first time since the start of international air strikes and tells supporters that they would be victorious. u.s. secretary of state hillary clinton says some of gadhafi's aids may be looking for a wade out of the crisis. the russian president has raised concern with the u.s. defense secretary about the use of air power during the implementation of the no fly zone in libya expressing his views during a meeting in moscow. >> before the libyan crisis robert gates trip to russia was scheduled to have discussions about european missile defense and a new star treaty. instead much of the talks have been about libya.

during his visit the russian leadership repeatedly expressed concern about civilian casualties. this was the defense secretary's repost. >> it is perfectly evident that the vast majority, if not all of the civilian casualties have been inflicted by gadhafi. virtually all of our targets are isolated, none-populated areas. it is though as if some people here are taking at face value gadhafi's claims about the number of civilian casualties, which is far as i am concerned are outright lies. >> among those are the russian president and robert gates russian counterpart. >> unfortunately the military action is leading to the death

of citizens that should not be tolerated. we have explained our position to our american colleagues. >> the russians absfained during the security council vote along with china meaning the resolution was passed. but it has allowed russia to question whether the international military action is claiming civilian lives. >> let's get more on the situation in libya. joining me is a former u.s. assistant secretary of defense who is now a senior at the american center for progress. thank you very much for joining us. >> nice to be with you. >> looking at america's role that it is playing at the moment in the conflict in libya, do you think that they were right to intervene as they have done to date given the

fact that there is no clear end game and no clear delivery strategy for example? >> well i think there should have been an end game and delivery strategy before they did but given the fact that the u.k. and france were urging us to do that, the fact that the arab league joined in legitimate myselfing the operation and the u.n. mandate said you can use all necessary means to protect civilians gave us a good start. i hope we go on to do the other things about where does it end. >> looking at it today would suggest the obama administration move away from their lead in this

>> we are trying to show the united states will not solve all of the world's problems by itself and the others showing people in the arab and muslim world it is not just the united states that is trying to be concerned about them but it is the international community. >> what will happen if for example gadhafi manages to survive and stay in power? does that not only become america's problem but the international community's problem? >> i think it becomes the world's problem to deal with him. but by in large as long as we keep the pressure on him, the chances that all of the people supporting him now will continue to support him, i think diminish because a lot of people who support him do so because they thought he was go to win. whatever else may happen there is no way he will prevail over a united libya. >> do you see americans being drawn into a offensive on the

ground in libya given the fact we heard from many speaking to us on bbc news about the casualties that are being suffered on the ground? >> no. i don't think the united states will be drawn into a ground conflict. the u.n. resolution talked about the fact that you can't have occupying forces and president balm made it clear that the united states won't send in ground forces. >> they may have to change their point of view given the fact that as president obama made it very clear that his primary motive was to help the humanitarian situation, help the libyan people. if the air strikes do not do that, surely that delivers the question that they may need to be on the ground. >> no. i don't think so. i think the air and missile strikes from the ships slowed the momentumor stopped the momentum of gadhafi, the rebels now are going to be in control.

do we intervene if they are defending themselves? >> really grateful for your time. thank you very much. just under six weeks to go to the wedding of kate middleton and prince william. now the choice of transport to receive a lot of attention because of the unpredictable british weather and because of the recent history behind one of the recent vehicles. daniel has the story. >> a glimpse behind the scenes, polished and preened to perfection. especially this, 1902 state

land law, the carriage that will take prince william and kate middleton as husband and wife to buckingham palace. it is no stranger to royal occasions. the queen has used it for decades. here in 1945 with her sister and parents and more recently william's mother and father traveled in it after their wedding past a huge crown who lined the streets to celebrate. >> there is something very special about this sort of occasion. it only happens once in somebody's lifetime. so, it is very important that we get it right. >> also getting a much needed cleaning, the state rolls-royce that will take kate middleton on her last journey as a single woman to the abbey. >> it was slightly damaged during the student protests but

they decided that they would take the opportunity to give a 60-minute makeover. so she is getting all spruced up for the day. >> perhaps the most unpredictable of participants, daniel is an old hand and likely to be entrusted with leading the queen's carriage. but the noise and the crowds could cause problems for even the most experienced animals. prince william and kate middleton said from the start they don't want their wedding to appear too exaff gant but it is a grand, royal andokes that means much pomp and pageantry. >> just a reminder of our main news this hour. colnel gadhafi delivered a defying address in his last public appearance on saturday. telling the crowd of his supporters that they would be

victorious. stay with us. >> 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.