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>> and now, "bbc world news." >> thousands of syrians flee across the border into turkey as the deadly government crackdown continues. >> trouble in syria means trouble in the region. president assaad is using force and spreading fear. while people continue to demonstrate, he is not winning. >> in libya moron 20 people are reported dead as troops loyal to colonel gaddafi launch an assault on misrata. >> sarah palin, tens of thousands of e-mails released when she was governor of alaska. >> coming up later for you. a call for more money to help immunize the world's poorest children. we have a special report.

>> hello and welcome. the military crackdown in syria is intensifying with government forces reported to have killed at least 28 people on friday. tanks have swept into a town where the government claims 120 soldiers were killed earlier this week. the town is close to syria's border with turkey, and thousands of refugees have already crossed the border. our middle east editor reports. >> an apprehensive groove of syrians, some waving olive branches approached the border with turkey. they fear this could be the start of a much bigger exodus. here at the edge of syria you get ripples from the storms further in. the city where these people

come from is less than a half hour away. some of the wounded are being taken to this hospital in the local town and kept away from journalists. the bbc managed to get in to see men worried about reprisals a at home but happy to talk. two said they were shot in peaceful demonstrations. another said they opened fire on a funeral. >> the bullets were coming like rain, he said. >> this is phone video of syrian soldiers moving up to restore order at the request of local people according to the regime. it was another bloody friday. interpret videos show demonstrators marching across syria. the attempt to crush the protests by force isn't working, but they are still trying. this man had to beg for his life. and this, the soldier says, is

for freedom, and this is for wanting to change the regime. it isn't clear when these pictures were taken, but the men in uniform are syrians local to president assaad. another refugee who arrived in turkey last night denied the version that they are fighting armed insurgents. >> the regime says the security men who were killed there were killed by armed groups, fanatics, radical islamists, insurgents. is that true? >> no, he said. the dead were security forces who didn't obey orders to attack the people. they were shot by the secret police. >> two camps set up for the refugees are full, and the turks are building a third. this man said his arm had a bullet wound. >> we had to shout.

the turkish prime minister switched from soft pedaling on syria to calling what is happening there savagery. but they stopped telling journalists about it. the turks are very nervous about what is happening here because trouble in syria means trouble in the region. the president is using force and spreading fear. but while people continue to dimon desperate, he is not winning. and they ushered us away. a rumor around said a feared military commander resigned. it hasn't been confirmed, but pressure on the assaads is increasing. >> hospital doctors in libya say the port city of misrata has come under a renewed artillery barrage by troops local to gaddafi. many people have been killed and wounded. here is our report.

>> the besieged port of misrata is again under sustained attack just weeks after the rebels had push back loyalist gaddafi troops from the city. reports emerged of renewed artillery shelling and bombardment of the area by loyalist troops. soon, scores of casualties began to arrive at the city's hospitals. moron 20 were killed. dozens more were injured. doctors in misrata have been running low of supplies and manpower for some time, and this latest attack will put those limited resources under even greater pressure. recent nato air stricks have focused on tripoli, including colonel gaddafi's presidential compound. but in the main rebel stronghold in western libya, the army is largely operating on its own. as the fighting continues, the government troops are trying to

strengthen their position, too. the city is surrounded on three sides by pro gaddafi forces although the port still remains open, allowing the a movement of supplies and people. the mississippi datic overturns continue. the turkish leader is the latest to try to broker a cease-fire. he has he has offered guarantees if he leaves but has not yet received an answer from the leader. as they bury their dead, their impatience with nato is growing. many team that despite their sacrifices, there is still no evidence of nato attack helicopters nor war planes above misrata. >> this is a hospital doctor in misrata. he told us more about the conditions there. >> since early morning, gaddafi troops started attacking intensely the west part of

misrata. it lasted for many hours, until evening. we had a lot of injuries today, around 160 injured and 35 deaths. it was a very hard day for us and for the city. gaddafi is still trying to attack misrata from the west. but now the situation is quiet for the time being. >> this must come as a dreadful set back for the rebels in misrata because they have so far been successfully fighting back the government forces. in your opinion how long do you think the fighters can withhold this attack from cornled gaddafi's forces? >> i don't know, but i think colonel gaddafi will continue as much as he can. as well, we will continue to defend our city as much as we can. our depending our family, our kids and our city, are

depending. so until the last man and last woman, we have to defend our city. >> now, the u.s. defense secretary today criticized some nato members for not doing enough. have you seen any nato support? >> for today, i think the support arrived a little late. gaddafi's attack started in the early morning, but we hear the aircraft in the late evening. >> he is a doctor in misrata with the latest on the renewed attacks. in yemen, the protests continues with tens of thousands in the streets. the president is in the hospital. supporters continue to press their demands with rallies. here is our report. >> drums with traditional

dances. those men are celebrating for their president's return to health in saudi arabia, where he is being treated. loyalists have come across the city in thousands to show their support for the man who has ruled yemen for 33 years. they are coming together and standing for their leader and their country. they are even saluting the saudi king, who for them has supported [inaudible] >> but in this square, the scene is different. thousands are still determined. they want him out. and if he ever comes back, he should not be in power. but it remains unclear when this political turmoil will be over. president saleh will be back in

the country, but it is difficult to know which way it will go. they are suffering underlying problems. >> the challenges are huge. they existed before this crisis. there was a humanitarian crisis even whatever the political unrest. now it has been accentuated. >> for days people would line up for hours in hope to get fuel. and the price of drinking water has gone up in a country that is suffering water shortages. and with more rec black outs in the country, it's future remains uncertain. "bbc news", sanaa. >> german health officials have confirmed that locally green bean sprouts are the source of the e. coli outbreak that has killed 30 people and made thousands ill. they say people who ate the surprise were nine times more likely to have fallen sick than those who haven't.

the advice not to eat tomatoes, cucumbers and greens has been lifted. >> the teenage girl who carried out an attack was a niece. the girl had visited the home several times in recent days. the guards didn't carry out the security check. >> as the unrest across the arab world, the u.s. defense secretary, robert gates, has strongly criticized some nato alleys. he said operations in libya and afghanistan have exposed some shortcomings in the capabilities and will of some. he says the u.s.'s capacity to shoulder the burden is limited. >> if current capabilities are not halted and reversed, future u.s. political leaders, those for whom the cold war was not

the formative experience it was for me may not consider america's return on investment in nato worth the cost. >> still ahead, bone dry. farmers hold urgent talks with the government as drought is declared in parts of southern and eastern england. >> toyota is warning of a short fall in its annual profits. the world's largest car maker says profits will drop by a third to $3.5 billion. the company is struggling to return to full production after the earthquake and tsunami in japan in march. >> toyota was supposed to issue this forecast in may, but it waited to see how badly it would be affected by march's earthquake and tsunami. it says the aftershocks will be felt for a long time. the crisis at the fukushima nuclear plant means getting supplies and power have been major problems. the company had to slow output

and temporarily shut some plants. production isn't expected to get back to normal until november, and japanese car makers have been asked to cut their electricity use by 15% over the summer. but toyota was having problems before this, including japan's strong currency, trading around 80 yen to the dollar. >> the company has had issues with the strong yen. a lot of these factors are based overseas, and cars are sold overseas. when they try to repatriate the profits, it has been suffering because of that as well. >> they said they are committed to protecting jobs and production in japan, but they are getting to the stage where it is impossible for manufacturers to do business there. it still says these problems won't stop at making planned investments. >> despite the disaster, we will make no changes to our midterm strategy. investments for the next

generation eco-friendly vehicles and emerging markets will be made actively and strategically. >> so for now, toyota is the world's biggest car maker, but that is not expected to last for long. it could slip behind general motors and even volkswagen this year. it says that is not important. it wants to make good cars and make people happy. >> katherine burns, "bbc news." >> this is "bbc news." our main headlines now. the military crackdown in syria is sfwensfige with government forces reported to have killed at least 28 people on friday. and at least 22 people are reported dead as troops loyal to courage gaddafi shell the libyan city of misrata. >> officials in alaska have released tens of thousands of

pages of e-mails from sarah palin during her years as governor. ms. pelini may now be considering running for the presidential nomination. we have been following events from washington. >> 24,000 sheets of e-mails in several boxes taken out from an office in alaska today, and the journalists were all waiting there, american journalists who made this request back in 2008 when sarah palin was a relative unknown. she was selected to be john mccain's running mate in 2008. when you look at the intrigue and the fascination which was epitomized by these boxes of e-mails, quickly scanned. it is talked about on twitter and appearing on websites, and

it shows the fascination with sarah palin. she really is flirting with the u.s. media about the prospect of her running in the 2012 campaign. >> journalists are pouring over the e-mails, but has anything embarrassing come out yet? >> not really. i don't think anything of real note, anything that will really cause sarah palin problems at all. there was one e-mail where she praised a speech by barack obama when he was a presidential candidate, but most of the content of the e-mails i have seen -- obviously there are 25,000 pages of the stuff. i have seen mundane things about being govenor of alaska, e-mails praising sarah palin a fair amount. nothing of real intrigue and nothing her political opponents can use against her in the

future. >> now let's get more on the crackdown in syria and the impact the unrest is having beyond its borders. we look at what the international community can do about events unfolding there. >> it is not easy for the west to know what to do with sib ya. dealing with libya was hard enough, but syria is a major player of the middle east, and an ally of iran. if it implodes, ripples could surge through the whole region. two months ago, criticism of the regime were muted. this week the language from the west has hardened. >> the slaughter of insent lives in syria should be a problem and a concern for everybody. and whether assaad still has the legitimacy to govern in his own country after this kind of a slaughter i think is a question that everybody needs to consider.

>> but, don't expect another international intervention even if some of these protestors do want it. there is no arab sport for it and no appetite in nato either. an alliance described today as a dwindling military power, overburden erned by afghanistan and libya. it is the entrenched system, including his brothers, who are seen as the real master minds of the crackdown. the biggest worry is if syria unralph else, chaos could spread across the region already riddled with tension. to the south, israel is in dispute with gaza. and to the east, iraq could also get sucked into any turmoil. >> it's a no-win situation for western countries. they haven't been asked to

intervene. they wouldn't want to. they wouldn't know what to do, when to do it and with whom. >> while families stream into turkey to escape what they say is mutiny and mayhem in syria, the government in damascus is denying any crisis. this woman had a surreal explaining. >> a lot of them find it easy to move across. it is like having a problem in the house, and you go across the street and visit your mom for a bit. >> a busy art explanation, but damascus may not care too much about world opinion. the u.n. is split with russia and china blocking any action even if the west did have the stomach for it >> cuss toms official in thailand have interpreted an illegal shipment of hundreds of tortoises at bangkok airport.

it is the second shipment of turtles in a week. a passenger had checked the luckage at the airport but failed to collect the luckage when it landed. >> there may have been the worst spring drought in germany since records began. the government may have to provide farmers with $1.5 billion in aid to help them. jare cook now reports. >> it is official. huge parts of "evening edition" land are in drought, farmers battling to water their crops. it may be hard to believe if you have been exposed to all that rain in scotland. but here, months of dry weather have triggered today's announcement. >> we are monitoring the

situation carefully. we are being particularly vigilant in terms of environmental impact. we are working with farmers who pump water over the next few weeks. >> what is the impact? for farmers, the drought decoration gives authorities the power to restrict the water they take from streams or crops. cutting water back or stopping it all together could make it very difficult. >> the demand for crops like this is great in july and june when they start ramping up. that is what we fear, that we will be completely banned then. so we will be totally reliant on nature. >> they have been reassured that water supplies are not running out. but at the same time we are all being urged to use less water and to change our habits. >> we need to think of other ways of capturing and storing

ground water. trapping water in big winter storage reservoirs. >> this drought is not just affecting britain, but across northwest europe there are similar problems. >> next week there will be an international push to secure billions more dollars to accelerate the introduction of new vaccines and the take up of exists ones. millions more children could be saved by 2015. here is our medical report on the impact of immunization on child health. >> this is a beautiful country with an ugly record on child survival. until a few years ago, one in four children never made it to the age of 5. now, nearly a decade after the brutal civil war, child health is finally taking center stage.

you can see it at any health clinic where mothers wait patiently. >> child mortality is among the highest in the world, but things are improving. immunization is one of the key reasons why these children have a better chance of leading a healthy and productive life. >> in january, a vaccine was introduced her against new money, -- new money ya, one of the biggest killers in the developing world. go to any village, and you can see potential it has to save lives. this one has lost two children to the disease. i am worried about my surviving children, she says. i don't want to lose another one. no wonder then that baby emma is getting all of her vaccines.

for the under 5's who do get ill, there is now free health care. while there is novack seen against poverty or malnutrition, many are here simply because they missed out on basic vaccines against diseases which are preventable. >> this is simple economics. immunization is cheaper than treating the disease. we will see a lot less patients coming to the hospital, and it will see a lot less need for staff. it will see a lot less need for hospital beds. it will see a lot less need for drugs. >> diarrhea is another major killer. there is a new vaccine against this, too, but it is not available here or most other poor countries. it means the u.n. millennium development goal of cutting child mortality by 2/3 is in

jeopardy. >> one in five children die from preventable diseases. we need to roll out immunization in unity developed countries. we are unlikely to achieve that goal. >> getting vaccine to every child on the planet requires effort, imagination and political will. in times of austerity, governments have to think hard before they pledge more money. but aid agencies say it would save and transform the lives of millions of children. "bbc news." >> let's get a reminder of our main news now. the military crackdown in syria is sfwensfige with government forces reported to have killed at least 28 people on friday. at least 22 people are reported dead as troops loyal to colonel gaddafi shelled the port city of misrata. much more on our website, and

you can follow me on twitter. are >> hello and welcome. see the news unfold. get the top stories from around the gold, 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 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? >> "bbc world news" was