tv BBC World News PBS July 8, 2011 6:00pm-6:30pm PDT
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>> and now, "bbc world news." >> a nation is born. south sudan emerges from decades of war and instability become an independent state. the phone hacking scandal deepens. the press ministers director of to indication is released on bail after being questioned for hours. -- the prime minister's director of communication is released on bail. welcome to bbc world news on pbs in america. the end of an era for the u.s. space program. after 30 years and 135 missions, the world watches the space shuttle's final flight. from canada to california, the duke and duchess of cambridge
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are rife in california for a weekend visit. the south sudan has become the world's newest nation. after decades of conflict with the north. a huge independence celebration started as the clock struck midnight local time. it will also be one of the poorest. there are also many sources of potential conflict in the republic of sudan. >> the people have flooded out on to the streets. the party has begun. there is an air of jubilation here in juba. people are banging on homemade drums. the independence of south sudan.
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people are driving up and down this road. everyone is here. we have even seen a fire engine spraying water on the people in a celebratory mood. people have been waiting seven years for this moment. the southern sudanese are waving goodbye to the north. the new nation is born. >> we will have more from south sudan later in the program. the british prime minister former head of communications, andy coulson, has been released on bail after being arrested on allegations of phone hacking. in the latest development, and an unnamed man became the third man to be arrested in the past 24 hours as part of the investigation. scotland yard says he was questioned on suspicion of
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corruption. our political editor reports. >> can you tell us what happened? >> what happened, the cops nikced cameron's man. >> are you the fall guy for this scandal? >> he was arrested and questioned for nine hours at the police station today on suspicion of conspiring to intercept the indications and corruption's. his former boss had thought that the stand would disappear. instead, it exploded in his face. the prime minister decided to plead guilty for failing to take seriously the epidemic of phone hacking. >> we turned a blind eye to the need to sort this issue and to get on top of the bad practices, to change the way our newspapers are regulated. we have not gripped this issue.
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>> there was mitigating circumstances. they wanted the papers to help him win. >> their relationship became too close. we were all in this world and wanted the support of newspapering groups. did we ask questions about how these organizations are regulated and malpractice and the rest of it. no, we did not. his close aide was warned before the election that his colleague had once hired a man facing a series, charges. but today, the prime minister insisted that he had always accepted andy coulson's assurances. >> andy coulson said he did not know was going on at "the news of the world," and he resigned because of it. i decided to give him a second chance. >> uncovering the web of deceit at "the news of the world," will
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be the source of two increase. there will be won by the phone hacking spread and why the police failed to uncovered. the other will be the ethics of the media. it will not be up to the promised to stop rupert murdoch from purchasing all of sky tv. >> -- it will not be up to the prime minister. >> i do not believe that he can lead the change we need. he could not even bring himself to apologize for hiring andy coulson. >> david cameron must be wondering how he ended up being the man to clean up british press and dealing with the cozy relationship between media barons and politicians. his critics say that this is only the beginning of the price he has to pay for hiring andy coulson.
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the man who returned home tonight, knowing he is destined to make headlines but never to write them. >> reports from syria say that seven people have been killed in the latest anti-government demonstrations. protesters took to the streets to cities across the country. security forces killed several and the capital of damascus. authorities say policemen was killed in home. they visited the flash point where people danced in the city square. the libyan rebels trying to oust one of gaddafi's from power saying they have made significant advances towards the capital of tripoli. we have been talking to rebels on the front line near the city of misrata. >> a quite extraordinary change has taken place here this village.
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just a few days ago when we were here, there was scores of men firing their guns, firing of rockets, and behind this sandbank over in that direction. you can see the amount of spent cartridges littered about the place as evidence of how fighting the -- how intense the fighting was. this is almost completely empty. down that road is where they have gone. the rebel fighters have dug in. this is the first time that the front line here has moved in six weeks. it might be a small distance but it represents a small breakthrough for the deadlock. some of the fighters we have spoken to say that there was very intensive fighting they have seen in the past few days and many casualties. they say that nato has done absolutely nothing. they have heard and seen their planes circling in the sky but they have not helped out.
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they believe that they could finish this tomorrow but they don't want to. >> we can hear the rockets still falling in the distance. that is the direction that the rebels want to go. they believe that this is a key town and they believe the road to tripoli is open. as you can hear from the shelling, it will be a hard fight. >> thousands of libyans have turned out in the main square of tripoli to show their support for colonel gaddafi. we were there. >> 25,000 people gathered here increase for friday prayers and there are hundreds still coming in as i speak. this is another big display of support for, gadhafi. this is still small to many of the protests that have taken place in other capitals this year, particularly in egypt. this is designed to be a mirror
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image of what has taken place in other capitals from tunisia to egypt, syria, to bahrain. there, friday afternoon has become a day of protest against the government. in tripoli, this friday afternoon has become the day when people come out to show their support for gaddafi and his regime. a message is very clear for the outside world. despite the fact that rebels controlled part of this country, here come support for gaddafi remains strong. colonel gaddafi and his regime are going nowhere. hundreds of thousands of egyptians have demonstrated across the country to press for faster political reform. people were calling for change, freedom, and social justice.
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protesters demanded that those responsible for killing demonstrators during the popular uprising that toppled the former president. a group of british agencies have launched a joint fund-raising appeal to help more than 10 million people affected by the severe drought in the horn of africa. about 1300 people are trekking across somalia to a refugee camp in eastern canada. >> the aid workers here are pretty overstretched. this is a very overcrowded camp. there are new arrivals coming in every single day. the total number of people, 380,000. that is expected to rise to 400,000, maybe half a million. this is already the size of a city. at the moment, that aid agencies are struggling to cope.
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some of the people arriving are so weak and malnourished, they have walked maybe four days, maybe four weeks from somalia. they are fleeing the civil war, there is also intensifying drought. what tends to happen is that the men folk stood behind in somalia and sent on their women and children and maybe the elderly. some of the people are arriving here are the very weakest. the real tragedy is that when children sometimes arrive at this camp, they are almost at their weakest and they can die within a day or so of writing. what the workers are doing is to sort out the weakest cases they measure the children, they weigh them. they take the weakest and they take them to an intensive center where they can look after them and rebuild their strength because some of their children
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are absolutely in a seated. some really harrowing scenes in the camp. they need all the help they can get from the international community. >> concern is growing and the aid workers are a struggling to provide water. we go to the southern border with kenya. >> their 2000 somali's are arriving every day. -- there are 2000 somalis arriving every day. it has a this grueling 60 walk behind them. dentist child of three left behind for fear he would slow down the others. there are many people coming this way.
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this child had the circumference of his arm checked. the rate of severe malnutrition is alarming. the biggest problem is simply keeping pace with the numbers pouring in from across the border just down the track. in particular, screen them and making sure that those who are most at risk of survive the ordeal with the help they need most urgently. >> the u.n. high commissioner for refugees came here to see what needed to be done to stay alive. it was obvious from the desperation that not enough was being done. as well as the long-running drought, there has been the conflict which has made it so difficult to get aid to them in somalia.
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that must have higher priorities. >> this is solving the conflict problem and bring in humanitarian aid to somalia that we can mitigate in the numbers. >> for now, the refugee camp is filling as fast as they are being opened. shelter and water supplies are growing pressure points by the day and no one knows how many will cross the border. >> now some breaking news for you. some very sad news. the former u.s. first lady betty ford has died at the age of 93. she was the wife of president gerald ford. she was a leading voice in the woman's movement of the 70's.
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she supported equal rights legislation and also an activist for the legalization of abortion. nancy reagan said in a statement that she was an inspiration especially for her children -- for her treatment center for substance abuse. her husband said that he was indebted to no man, only his wife. the former first u.s. lady betty ford has died at the age of 93. you are watching "bbc news," still ahead. fresh from their crowd-pleasing tore of canada, the duke and duchess of cambridge are right in los angeles for a weekend trip. security forces of pakistan's largest city has been authorized to shoot on sight anyone who is
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believed to be involved in violence. five people have been killed since tuesday. the current unrest is blamed on armed gangs from rival political groups. friday was a day of mourning. the offices were closed. armed troops stand on guard on the streets of the business and commercial capital. three days of violence have been the worst karachi has seen this year. target killings and drive-by shootings are blamed on the gangs thanks to rival political parties. >> we're worried that the killings and violence have increased so much, no one is safe. this is the heart of the main shopping district. the streets here are normally bustling with shoppers. today, there are deserters. most people did not go to work. they are afraid of more violence.
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>> many of those shot dead in the recent killings were ordinary people going about their daily lives. some of them were killed. the most powerful political party represents iraqi's majority. the national party is supported by the working class. both are part of the coalition government. after nine years in power, they decided to quit the government giving rise to fears that increased violence and instability could bring the city to a standstill. the government says that those behind the violence will be dealt with forcefully. extra troops have been deployed. many in the people -- many remain unconvinced. >> you are watching "bbc news,"
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the republic of south sudan has become the newest nation. to the people voted overwhelmingly for independence from the north and a referendum in january. the british prime minister's formica vacation director -- a former communications director has been bailed out. after decades of cost the -- of conflict and the death of 1.5 million people, huge challenges lie ahead. the violence continues along the border. >> the final march to independence. i will never leave my land until i die. they have their lands. south sudan is born.
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with a little help from a mobile, people rehearse the national anthem. the way of life has not changed much for centuries. because of the war, the south sudan will start out as one of the poorest nations on the planet. >> when we were ruled by the north, we had opportunities, this chief tells me. our children could not go to school but now things will change. we will see developments here. for now, this is where the money is going. the police are still on shaky ground. in the south, three times as much money was spent on the military compared to education and health combined. these are the soldiers of the army that fought for so many years against the khartoum
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government. -- the khartoum government. can all of the people with guns stayed united or will different rebel groups pop-up? like this group, last week declared war in the south. clashes between tribes are common. the border area is rich in oil. just inside the north, the president's warplanes dropped bombs to crush a rebellion. the fear is that instead of sharing the oil, the countries would keep fighting for more. >> people have suffered for too long. this is in the interest of the north for the south to be in peace. for the survival of the two states, it is essential that we maintain this.
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>> the struggle for southern independence is over. the struggle for peace is beginning. >> atlantis has blown off on the last mission of the shuttle program. four astronauts are on board along with supplies for the international space station. our science correspondent watched the final lift off of cape canaveral. >> cheers for a moment of history. four astronauts about to fly on the final space station. the launch pad is fueled and ready with a three hours to glow. the crew climbed inside. -- three hours to go. >> good luck to you on this final flight of a true american icon. >> the shuttles have flown for
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30 years. now the last countdown. >> the final lift off. >> even from 3 miles away, it is bright as the shuttle accelerated toward a 17,000 miles an hour. an incredible sight. any second now, a great wave of sound. you can actually feel it inside of you. huge crowds were watching. >> i wanted to see a shuttle launch more than anything. this makes it even better. >> we came all the way from virginia. the mission to deliver supplies to the international space station and will do the job after the shuttle. well, for several years at least, the russian rockets will be the only way americans will
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reach . >> stimulating for the nation that put men on the moon. nasa would like private companies to step been. this commercial system could ferry astronauts in three year'' time. where does this lead? this video talks of missions to asteroids and mars. the former boss of the agency says that the manned space flight is in disarray. >> what an incredible state is to retire this without a replacement. despite all of the political puffery and flimflam talking about commercial space operations, we don't have those yet. >> tonight, atlantis is in orbit. it will return in 12 days where america will face questions about his future in space. >> prince william and the duchess of cambridge have arrived in los angeles. they have a whirlwind schedule ahead of them which will take them from the glitz and glamour
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of hollywood to the poverty of skid row. the visit is on the back of a tour of canada. we have this report. this contains flash photography. >> the final stop in canada on their first overseas tour together. this is culminated in calgary, all of the cowboys, william and kate launched the wild west rodeo. it has been a nine day visit, which according to william, has far surpassed their expectations. canada has shown that where royals are concerned, no country is capable of a more devoted welcome. earlier, william and kate had seen something of those essential stampede activities. the writing of the angry poles, something frowned on by rights
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groups. it has been a visit for which the couple's style has been seated. -- of the riding of angry bulls. the reason for coming here was that so many canadians are enthusiastic about the royal family. it has been a spectacular success and this is down to the couple themselves. they have done an and stuffy site to royalty. others have been capable of it. they have demonstrated what a potent impact two young royals are capable of handling. tonight, they said farewell to canada having promised to return and headed on to california. >> just to remind you of the headlines, betty ford has died at the age of 93.
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