vermont, and honolulu. newman's own foundation. shell. 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." >> welcomed the news they on the bbc. >> said these are the headlines. >> thailand's worst floods for decades.

the relief effort in one of the hardest-hit areas of the country. a special report from the frontlines of mexico's drug war. >> violence on the streets of athens, the parliament presses on with austerity measures. thousands turned out to welcome indigenous protestors. >> it is 11:00 in the morning in singapore. adoption is 4:00 a.m. in london. this is newsday. >> authorities are struggling to deal with the devastating effects of the worst flooding in decades. the army and volunteers are working to shore up flood defenses in bangkok. more than 300 people have lost their lives and 1/3 of the

provinces are under water. one of the worst hit areas is the provinces around the capital. our correspondent has traveled to witness the large jet facing residents and the struggle to deliver aid. >> this is the main at st. of the city. the ancient capital. now swamped. beyond this point, cars are no use at all. we transfer to a navy patrol boat heading upriver into the flood drenched province. the sailors bought something, a red flags marking the house were a family is stuck. a family with a 2-month-old infant. a lady hands over some milk before moving on. there are more people to reach an aide to be delivered. only smaller but to negotiate the terrain.

we make our way along what used to be a side street. helping hands appear over the concrete barrier. it is hard to believe, but out there is actually a main highway. it has completely disappeared underwater. this is the only bit of dry high ground. if we can move in this direction, here are the piles of supplies that the navy has just delivered. unbelievably, there are people that have been living on this bridge for three weeks. they could leave by boat, but they don't want to, preferring to stay close to homes and neighbors. >> it is taken before we get to it. there are still people living over there, i need to find a way to get some of this food to them.

>> communities cut off by rising waters. people living on the upper floors of the partially submerged homes. others need a better alternative than this. the british charity is providing tense, but finding places to put them has been tricky. >> just water everywhere, and incredibly difficult to find a piece of land or you can put it. the water table is just coming out and the situation is changing all the time. the first family settled into the unfamiliar and welcome new surroundings. they're likely to be here for several weeks, perhaps months. >> to mexico where it is estimated 45,000 people have been killed since the president launched his war on drugs five years ago.

the violence is spreading from the border area deeper into the country. our north america correspondent since this report. >> the war in mexico is becoming increasingly dangerous and bloody. with the and injurious drug cartels on the other side. the people of mexico were caught in the middle of a conflict that no one seems able to stop. one that is no longer confined to the bad lands or the border. 40,000 people have been killed since the president picked a fight with the drug cartel. drugs have been seized in the military has been deployed. the violence has only gotten worse and the deaths more gruesome. they used to boast that it was the safest city. the almost empty beaches telling

different story. in the last month, more than 100 people have been killed here. 35 bodies left in streets in broad daylight. and empty homes have been boarded up after they were used to hide the corpses. more than 30 bodies were found dumped in the house is just a few days ago. it is part of an increasingly vicious battle, and the marines have now been deployed on the streets of the city that up until recently was perfectly safe. >> many are victims between drug gangs, but not all. dirty tricks and political power this means an innocent man are wrongly accused. speaking out is a rare and a dangerous thing to do in mexico, but she is prepared to take the risk just to clear her father's name. he was a mechanic caught in the

crossfire of a gun battle. she says the state fabricated evidence that he was a criminal. >> this used to be a very safe city. i never imagined this something like this could happen to me. i'm scared the government might do something in revenge, we have even received threats. i have to speak out to prove these statistics aren't real. >> the blame falls squarely on the drug cartels. she speaks for the governor. she doesn't deny many people have been killed, but she insists that the strategy is not to blame. the war on drugs has left a deep scar across the region. every time they come under real pressure, the problem starts to move. the one constant is the demand for drugs in america, britain,

and elsewhere. unless that changes, deficit will certainly continue. >> a colleague spoke to the former mexican president who has been a vocal critic of the current fight against the drug gangs. >> you have called for an end to the war on drugs. because the war is over or because the tactics are not working? >> i am trying to bring my idea and trying to solve this mammoth problem with crime. it is really eroding the future of mexico. we need new ideas to finish and come back to growth and development. >> you have attacked the current president's policies and you have said that they have failed. >> violence against violence,

that will never solve the problem. the army on the streets has brought in violations of human rights, violations of due process. we must come with ideas like withdrawing the army out of the battle. legalizing the production, distribution, and consumption for all drugs. >> you have been critical of u.s. policy, that america's effectively tipping mexico with $500 million, and mexico is paying in blood and dead bodies. >> it is 50 to 25 years old. >> and you hold america responsible. >> of course.

the public policies to attending a health program like this nation, hundreds of years ago in chicago. then the solution came. -- witht you being respect -- -- >> this nation is about to change. there is a gallup poll that came out to days ago. 50% of u.s. citizens accept legalization of drugs. the one who is branded -- the government is saying no, no, no. and now in the whole of the united states, it is for legalizing. >> former mexican president vi

cente fox. >> the latest clashes came as the greek parliament voted in favor of even more spending cuts. protesters threw petrol bombs. one of the largest protests the country has ever seen, one that has brought most of greece to a standstill. there is this report from the capital. >> outside the greek parliament, it rained down on riot police. as the country went to a general strike. the police responded, but the more significant part of the day was the sheer number of demonstrators taking to the streets to protest austerity. resistance is spreading. this is inside the finance

ministry. it is now occupied, magistrates are operating. he is an unemployed sports writer, salary cuts and the public sector have changed their way of life. >> i lost my job, and the taxes have been going. the prices of yogurt, fruit, milk, everything. >> stores are closing in record numbers. are many stores closing down here? >> almost 20% of the 440 stores are closed down. >> many are worried that greece

is trapped and cannot possibly fulfil its promises. >> it is deepening. the more medicine is being applied to the patient, the foreign minister insists that the policy of reducing a deficit is working. >> they are in the streets today and understand that these measures, as difficult as they are, are necessary. they guarantee a better future for themselves and their families. these will rattle europe's leaders. the policy of cuts and the exchange for bailout funds will enable greece to escape its debt crisis or whether the country is heading for the fall. >> implementing them in the face of such a determined opposition is a very different matter.

it underlines the fact that the greek problem remains unresolved. >> a british police have clashed with angry protesters determined to fight their eviction. they lost a legal battle last week. the police are clearing it by force. authorities were able to take control of the prophecy. the french president has given birth to a baby girl and the private clinic in paris. he returned from frankfurt just hours after the birth. we have been having talks with the german chancellor on the debt crisis. congratulations, you're watching bbc. still to come, as gaddafi loyalists make a last stand, we

meet some of the embattled residents. >> queen elizabeth begins her trip to australia. turkish troops and planes have gone to northern iraq, attacking northern installations and killed at least 24 soldiers. now the turkish president has promised revenge. >> a loss this great has provoked an inevitable response from the turkish military. the forces are scouring the hills along the border in pursuit of the insurgents that carried out the attack. a larger land operation has now been talked about. this is a conscript army, and public the motions will be fired up by the death of some many

young soldiers. >> our pain from yesterday and today is great. i would like, first of all, to ask the soldiers and policemen and civilians who lost lives. my condolences go to their families. and to the nation. nobody should forget that those that have inflicted this pain on us will suffer sharp, severe pain as a consequence. >> the strong showing by parties in the general election raised hopes of a more political approach to the war that has blanketed southeastern turkey. hundreds of politicians have since been jailed. they are inflicting a steady toll that must push things out of reach.

the have failed this many times before against the movement without success. it looks set to try again. >> the headlines. >> authorities are struggling to deal with the devastating effects of the country's worst flooding in decades. they have approved a new austerity package despite violent protests and a general strike. demonstrators have reached the bolivia after the end of march, the protests of the building of a road through the amazon. thousands of people off for support as they arrived. they won't return home until the

project is scrapped. >> protesters have finally arrived. being paraded like heroes to the streets, people of all ages. >> we are arriving, and soon, we will be at the seat of the government. >> no one is happy that we had to come here. in order for that year respect our right to life -- for them to respect our right to life. >> and received a festive reception in bolivia. the indigenous march is much more serious-intentioned. they are here to save the way of life from the government impose a controversial project. -- the government's controversial project.

>> they are right behind me, the presidential palace. they will not leave until they scrap the production project. >> of the protesters have endured a fatigue and cold weather. and last month, hundreds of police officers violently tried to halt the march towards la paz. the president insists the highway is needed to integrate the poor indigenous communities with the rest of the country. protesters are determined to stay until he changes his mind. >> a united nations backed cambodia can decide whether a founding member -- they knew that tens of thousands of people were dying from starvation and

did nothing to stop the disaster. the foreign ministry in paris says the french woman kidnapped in kenya and taken by somalia earlier this month has died. she was captured by gunmen on the resort island. they say he probably died because the kidnappers refused to give the medication that the french had provided. the capital of tripoli fell nearly two months ago. >> loyalists fighters are still holding out. despite the concentration known as district no. 2, they have inflicted heavy losses on anti- gaddafi forces. the rest are favored and prosperous, turned into a ghost town. most residents have fled for

safety, but not all of them. >> this has been going on for weeks now with little progress. anti-gaddafi forces have loyalists around it. the battle is not in doubt, but the colonel's home town is putting up one hell of a fight. the only people left here now really are the fighters, standing around on street corners. patrolling their streets. the people that once lived in these proper regent as -- prosperous areas, some are still holding out. >> he is a fireman. a rebel rocket came crashing into his home. he panicked and like most people, fled to safety.

unlike most, has now come back. >> i am worried about my home. if i leave, they might burn my house down. they have already stolen my computer, my mobile phone, my blankets and passports. >> his relatives that as president told us how she and her children got caught in the crossfire. these people face an impossibly difficult choice. tuesday and face the fighting or leave and is using -- and risk losing everything. when the fighting reached the hospital, the local nurses fled town. the only ones left are the foreigners that have nowhere else to go. they are tending to a captured mercenary from chad. >> the patients here, you don't see them, they are in the

basement, lobby, they're all there. corwed -- crowded. they needed so much help. >> many of those that lead will come back and rebuild their shattered city. for those that stayed behind, they are realizing that life in colonel gaddafi's favorite town will never be the same again. bbc news. >> queen elizabeth has begun an 11 day official visit to australia with her husband, the sides of spending time in the capital, they will m travelelbour -- will travel to melbourne and brisbane. she also took a trip to see the annual flower festival. duncan kennedy is there.

and i said, relaxing day? >> you are absolutely right. first up was the meeting with the first female government general. a lawyer and a businesswoman. she went on to a flower show. very much a slow, gradual move into her duties here. she is here for 10 days. she keeps reminding us she is 85 years old and unlike her first trip here, which is getting a lot of coverage, when the queen was here for 57 days, made 100 speeches. it is something like 75%, three- quarters of all australians. there is still an awful lot of interest in this visit, the queen remains a popular person

here. >> what about the overall concept of a british monarch to being the head of state of australia? what do austrians make of that? >> it sounds like an anachronism and twenty first century, and some say it should not continue. we're a confident, upstanding country on our own and we don't need a head of state to the lives 12,000 miles away. -- the head of state that lives 12,000 miles away. those favoring a republic down to 34%. the lowest figure for republicans in 23 years. a long way from the high water mark in 1999 when there was a referendum. they came within shouting distance of winning the day. those days have gone into retreat. they say that much of the popularity of the market is down to the queen herself and what

will happen when the rain is over. -- reign is over. how they view a queens camilla? the popularity of the monarchy would take a dip. the queen is not just popular, it is the incident -- the institution. william has already visited australia and prove to be a very popular person. the monarchies about the institution itself and it remains very popular. >> thanks very much. you have been watching news day. >> thank you for your company. >> funding was made possible by the freeman foundation of new york, stowe, vermont, and honolulu. newman's own foundation. union bank. and shell.

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>> "bbc world news" was presented by kcet los angeles. 

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