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>> and now, "bbc world news." >> and e coli outbreak as the world health organization blames a highly toxic strain of the disease. sony under cyber attack again, have stolen more than 1 million passwords from the film website. there reject an offer of dialogue. welcome to our viewers on pbs in america. the american couple that kidnapped and 11-year-old girl and held her captive for 18 years. and at rummy is in the race. the former governor wants to be the -- mitt romney is in the race. he wants to be the next president of the united states.

welcome once again to bbc news. a highly toxic strain of e. coli is to blame for the sudden outbreak of food poisoning that has killed 18 people in europe and made 1600 others ill. global health officials are racing to contain the disease that has centered on germany. they don't know where the new strain comes from. >> this is the front line for the battle against the bacteria. some of the victims of a novel type of nikolai. -- e. coli. >> there was a fear among the staff, says this intensive care nurse. nobody knows where this is coming from or where it will lead. identifying the bacteria is the first task.

analysis has revealed the virulence, understanding it should help trace its source. >> this is an unprecedented outbreak. is not quite the biggest in terms of number of cases, but the number of cases of people with complications, it will be the biggest in terms of number of deaths. >> confirmed today is that the bacteria is a hybrid. that means other types of nikolai -- e.coli produce it. the more serious conditions can follow including kidney failure and damage to the nervous system. how can it be tackled?

antibiotics might not work. this strain is resistant to some. the incubation time is 8 days. the number of new cases should fall pretty soon. what are the risks of its spreading? seven people and britain are infected. >> all cases we have seen, they have all been associated with travel to germany. >> involved detective work, it will be a long process. >> health officials say three people and the united states are thought to have fallen ill after travelling to germany.

the inspector of the american public health association in washington. >> what is causing the contamination? is it a focal point contamination? placesget your food from -- we can have a range of people infected by this. >> some people say is safe to not eat any vegetables at all. >> it can really give people good advice as to what to avoid. they should avoid those suspect vegetables. there should be good hygiene in

terms of preparing foods. keep food away from other foods so that there is not cross contamination. >> how worried are people in the united states? >> this is a global world. many of us are traveling all around the world. food that may be infected could, theoretically, be imported into the united states. the authorities are working very quickly. >> a group of computer hackers is claiming they have access to over 1 million passwords from users of the popular website run by the japanese electronics giant sony. rt ofictures.com is pa

the ameriacan arm. the company has not commented on any security breach. >> we are still at the stage where this group of hackers have made this claim that they hacked into sonypictures.com. if you go to the website run by this self-styled hacking group. gottens like they've ahold of data from somewhere. sony has not yet confirmed the hiking of its website. -- hacking of its website. >> how stringent is legislation in the united states against this type of hacking? >> whether or not there is

legislation, they appear to be undeterred. sony, a few weeks ago, had an enormous data reached in the playstation network where tens of millions of users have their data compromise. it is unclear to what degree that will operate transnational may. -- transnationally. the u.s. congress is talking about new legislation that will tighten the commitments, but it is a ways off yet. parliaments and governments are struggling to keep up with the speed at which these things happen. the speed at which the cyber hiking and cyber warfare moves.

>> you can give us your opinions on this story. we are in belfast and the ability to protect customers is paramount. the reputation that sony has can quickly lead to its demise. another says, i think the government has to step up the investigation into the core of the group and serve justice rightfully. jenny says, this is getting ridiculous. the best advert for xbox microsoft ever has wished for. slade in oregon says, this is becoming ridiculous. they should get out of the online gaming business. in barcelona, a question the motives of the hacker group.

how easy is it to steal sensitive information twice? in singapore, i feel the hackers in a meaningful thing. companies should reinforce their internet security. syrian opposition groups meeting in turkey have called upon the president to resign and make way for a transition to democracy. 300 activists must be exiled. in syria, the security forces have continued their violent suppression of the uprising. will grant reports. >> in the distance, the unmistakable sound of gunfire can be heard. reports say more than 15 people were killed on thursday. a round 50 killed since the

military operation began last week. the fighting has provoked a response from the exiled syrian position. a range of ethnic and religious groups gathered in turkey with a clear message for president -- for the presidetn. nt. >> we are offering assets to resign emmi - -imme -- immediately. and the syrian people can prepare themselve for a demo cratic process. it will force him to leave syria. >> the meeting was the first of its kind since the anti- government riots began in march. hey say they're not a

government-in-exile. the u.s. state department has echoed the sentiment. >> if he cannot end the violence against his own people and take meaningful steps to start the process of reform, then he needs to get out of the way. every day that he stays in office and the violence continues, he is basically making that choice by default. >> despite the growing pressure from washington and elsewhere, the right syrian regime is showing few signs of settling -- stepping aside. protesters fear there will be more bloodshed before any kind of solution is reached. >> in the middle east, fighters have been gauged in have the clashes with government forces. thousands of residents have been

forced to flee. there are also reports of live bullets fired against protesters. nigerian police say they have rescued teenagers from what they described as a baby farm. more now on our top story. the ban on the vegetable imports is totally unacceptable. they consider the economic impact of the outbreak. today, they done to vegetables outside. german officials wrongly identified spanish cucumbers as the source of the outbreak. sales accosting nearly 200 million pounds a week could lead the 2000's of layoffs.

the problems for europe's vegetable growers deepened today when russia banned all imports from the european union. it is absolutely the right decision and said this shopper. and they call on russia to withdraw the van. >> it is disproportionate and scientifically unjustified. >> of the warehouses are full of vegetables that can't be sold. officials have warned people not tomatoes or cucumbers. there has been a dramatic design across europe. at the moment, the shoppers have lost confidence. >> has been going on for a week now. growers will go out of business.

>> cucumbers are not being picked. what they want most is for the new strain of bacteria to be -- >> the deadly food poisoning outbreak in germany is being caused by a highly toxic strain of e. coli that has never been detected before. syrian troops in turkey have called for the president to resign. it has announced plans to send unaccompanied children seeking

asylum to detention centers in malaysia. they explain some of the background. >> parents put unaccompanied children on the boats had a charge them very heavily. the hope that the children will be able to start a new life. in the past, that places like iraq, afghanistan, where people tend to of july on them. in all cases, they are intercepted. what the rest trillion government has said, these unaccompanied children could be part of the deal that is part of

the australian government's attempts to bolster its border protection. it has been slammed by human rights groups here. >> what have they said that children will be well cared for? >> that is what they have seized upon. there is a very high-level of sexual harassment. there are nine unaccompanied children at the moment at the detention center in the indian ocean. among them, girls. imagine what would happen if an unaccompanied choral is in the kind of environment. they will fall prey to gangs and officials.

the australian government says that they need to send out a very strong message here. they need to deter parents from putting the company children on votes. -- on boats. >> more than 30 teenagers have been rescued from what is being described as a baby farm. a hospital owner has denied the accusations. >> the police say they have discovered what is known locally as a baby farm. officers raided the southeastern city.

>> the owner of the hospital could face up to 14 years in prison. he has denied all the charges and says he was, in fact, running a foundation. the united nations children's agency unicef says that violence, poverty, and corruption are all changing factors. >> a couple that held a girl kidnapped for 18 years, she was inducted by philip and her life. >> life sentences for the kidnap, rape, and 18 years of abuse.

jaycee dugard was 11 when she was inducted outside of her home and wasn't seen for 18 years. a chance encounter led the police to her home. they searched the house and grounds. they found her living in a tent. while in prison, she had been re and board to show than by her captors. her family released this video shortly after they were reunited. she is on the right. she has never spoken publicly about what happened. the mother read a statement on her behalf. they stole my life from me. i hated every second of every day for those seeking years. i chose not to be here because i don't want to waste another second in your presence, she

said to them. nancy showed similar motion, but her husband, nothing. suspicions lead to her being found. >> how was she really want to face this devil of a man? again and again? she should heal. she should move on. that is what she is doing. >> sentencing them to life in prison, their treatment had been evil and reprehensible. nancy was given 36 years, philip the maximum sentence. he will die in prison. the final court appearance brings to an end a story where people used a violent crime that shocked america for its hospitality. >> there is nearly a year-and-a- half ago until the next u.s. presidential election, but the

candidates are already -- already limbering up for the fight. he took a swipe at president obama. how the one republican everyone really wants to know about is the one that is keeping everyone guessing. >> i believe that america, and i am running for president. >> the man with immaculate hair and a matter of wealth is heading out to try for the presidency of the united states. he has the right credentials and tough economic times. >> when barack obama came to office, we wish him well and held for the best. in the third year of his four year term, we have more than slogans and promises to judge him by. barack obama has failed america. mitt ro -- >> mitt romney looks

the part, but why does he not sound like it? he is a little dull. more damaging is his stance on health care. the plan he introduced in massachusetts is almost identical to the 1 barack obama introduced to america, a plan headed by republicans. he has tried to run from his past policy, but the habit of changing positions led to flip- floping in the 2008 campaign. met ronnie -- mitt romney was the front runner, but this woman was due in the same staet. -- state. dull, not at all. if she decides to run, all bets are off. >> he mitt romney - -h- he says

mitt romney is not the only republican presidential candidate that are scared of sarah palin's intentions. >> she is out there, not campaigning or with any official business and she is sucking up all of the political oxygen. it is cause to worry with other candidates, including a romney. -- governor romney. >> what about in 2008 when the candidacy went to a john mccain? the rights, abortion, etc.? he says he will work to repeal president obama's health care reform, but when governor, he had a very similar reform. is he going back on his side deals to gain this nomination?

-- on his ideals to gain this nomination? >> he is making this calculated risk that he got over that hurdle in 2008, whether the issue was gay-rights, abortion, those kinds of issues. he is trying to emphasize economic ones. the unemployment rate is a startlingly high and that is something that the president has not addressed. the health-care issue could be a big obstacle for him. this is an issue that a lot of republican primary voters have a philosophical contention with. the government mandating health insurance for all americans and all residents of massachusetts. that is a big hurdle for him to overcome. >> of this phrase was made famous in an earlier presidential election, it's the economy, stupid? >> americans to vote on economic matters with a few notable exceptions.

unemployment is hovering around 9%, we are about to get a new report that does not look like it will be very good. ha last presidential win with unemployment close to that was ronald reagan in 1984 and it was 7.2%. that is something the obama team is well aware of. >> italy has 150 years of unification with the day of celebration in rome. the heads of state in government watched a military parade and also a display by the italian air force. national republican day, it was on that day in 1946 that italians voted to become a republic following the collapse of fascism. the world health organization says the food poisoning outbreak in germany is being caused by a highly toxic strain of e. coli

that has never been detected before. >> 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 financial strength to work for a wide range of companies, from small businesses to major

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