>> 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, and union bank. >> at union bank, our relationship managers work hard to know your business, offering specialized solutions and capital to help you meet your growth objectives. we offer expertise and tailored solutions for small businesses and major corporations. what can we do for you?

>> and now "bbc world news." reports say at least eight people have died after recruit ship runs aground off the italian coast. the eurozone crisis worsens. taiwan goes to the polls to elect a new president. how well the effects -- how will the results affect the relations with china? welcome to "bbc world news," broadcast on pbs in america and around the globe. a british student is to be expediteextradited to the unite. and back to earth with a bang, a russian satellite due to crash land this weekend.

hello, welcome once again. eight people have died after recruit shipped ran aground off the italian coast. the cruise ship had saiet sail n friday. passengers were told there was an electrical problem. the ship began to lean dangerously, before heading for a small island. there, it appears to have run aground. a more pictures show 8 listing over the harbour wall. we got more details about what happened from one of the passengers. >> at about 9:00, we suddenly heard a roaring sound. then the ship tilted to the

laeft. we thought, ok, is under control, and then we started talking to the guests. then maybe about an hour, something like that, they announced a general emergency. from there, we took the passengers to the master station. then we stayed there, and then the ship tilted to the right again. we were waiting for the boat drill, then they updated at an announcement of abandon ship. suddenly, the officer came and

they told us to go to the other side, the right side, the tilted side. all of the passengers went there. it is still tilting to the right side now. then when we reached there, the lifeboats were ready, and then some passengers and crew were getting in the boats. suddenly, the ship started to change with the tide. so we jumped into the sea. then we just swam. luckily, we saw the island, 300, 400 meters.

>> sorry, are you saying that you jumped off the ship because it cannot get on a lifeboat? -- because it you cannot get on the lifeboat? >> we were waiting to board the lifeboat. know, we were just -- we were just embarking on the lifeboats. the shop was tilting on the side already. -- the ship was tilting on the side already. >> how far did you have to swim? >> maybe around 400 meters, 400, 500 meters. >> were you worried that the ship would sink? know, because this is a big ship.

we did not think that. at the time, when the lights went out, the lights were out at that time, and the water is coming, so we decided to jump. >> that was a passenger speaking to me earlier, having jumped off the ship. these pictures moved every 30 seconds or so, but this is a live shot from a web camera that showing the harbor. you get an idea of what a small place this is. tom, that place, the entire village is taking on this huge boat. how does a book like that run aground? how does it list, and how did things become so desperate that

people are jumping off? >> this is a huge ship, some 4000 people on board are now presumably taken to safety, most of them, although we understand that some have died. yes, it has run aground very close to this tiny island, which is now struggling to cope with the large numbers. what we hear, a lot of local people are taking part in the rescue operation as people jobs, as we were hearing, from the vessel into the water, the mediterranean, swimming ashore. we understand some local taxi boats are taking people out of the water, and hotels and local people are taking a number of the survivors and to their own homes to give them safety. -- into their own homes to give them safety. yes, a shock for those on board and also for this tiny island, and a moment of distress as the

ship tilted from one side to the other. we don't have the details as to why it went aground. how far the vessel moved after ran aground on the sand bar, it is still not clear. >> how could people have died? was it from the impact? presumably it was going slowly into the harbor. >> this was a ship that cruised around the mediterranean. whether the captain decided, having hit the sand bar, that he had to head towards the island, we don't know. it is still very early, because this happened at about 10:00 local time, at night. we understand, about an hour ago there were still a few hundred people on board the vessel. it must have tilted from left to right quite quickly for people to start panicking and then jump

into the water, because that was quick of them to do that rather than allow the lifeboats to be put into play. it is a rapidly evolving situation, and the distress signal was made and people were told to abandon ship. we are still missing some crucial details on why the captain decided to turn towards the island or whether that was something that just happened naturally. >> thank you very much for the update. standard and poor's has downgraded france's aaa credit rating, which could affect their borrowing rate, and it does deepen the eurozone crisis. eight other countries also had their ratings downgraded. our economics editor has this report from paris. >> the french evening news tonight, and the moment france learned that it had been stripped of its top credit rating.

facing an election, this had been president sarkozy's big fear. it was only the verdict of one ratings agency, but already his opponents say it represents a failure of his policies. it was left to the french finance minister to make the announcement. >> it is not good news. this is not a catastrophe. the ratings agencies do not control the politics of france, we do. >> at the palace tonight, president sarkozy gathered his top advisers. but the downgrade will mean is an increase in french borrowing costs. france's debt is set to reach 90% of its output this year. they have to raise 290 billion euros to pay off old debt. the french government already has to pay 3.1% to borrow. that figure could increase.

>> potentially in the future, french borrowing costs could rise, which is bad for france and the eurozone because france finances the rescue package. >> president sarkozy and chancellor merkel, it downgrades their firepower as the main bailout fund, which is linked to the credibility of the nations that back it. there was a protest tonight outside of the ratings agency's office in paris, calling the decision a declaration of war against france, but most people say the downgrade has the potential to damage president sarkozy. >> this is a very big blow to president sarkozy, his party, and 100 days from the elections, it is very bad news. >> italy, a key country, was also significantly downgraded tonight. spain also saw its crowding -- credit rating cut, and austria

lost its aaa rating. the downgrade discussed at the palace tonight and in other affected european capitals was not the only bad news for the eurozone today. he talks aimed at reducing greece's debt-burdened have now run into difficulties. protests against spending cuts have continued in athens. greece needs to agree to a new rescue package. a central element is that investors agree to take significant losses. those talks appear close to collapse, raising the prospect of a greek default. >> i think it is almost 99% that they will be in debt. when you look at the basic economy and the ratings contracting and a debt service is going update today. >> france found support from germany, saying the judgment of the ratings agencies cannot be overstated.

but tonight, the eurozone crisis is threatening again. this is "bbc world news." still ahead, behind the scene at the royal academy at a major exhibition. david cameron has used his first prime minister visit to south america -- south africa to assure them they are doing all they can to contain the threat from neighboring iran. our security correspondent's report contained some flash photography. >> david cameron's first visit as prime minister is not before the time they decided. they would have liked him center. today, talks about a deepening partnership and reflecting the shares the concern. like iran's recent military successes -- military exercises in the gulf.

>> we are looking at this whole issue of having an embargo on iranian oil. to get that regime to think that can take a different path and to stop destabilizing the region, stop the march towards a nuclear weapon. it is in the interests of the whole world the street is open, and if they close them, of the whole world would come together and make sure they stay open -- to make sure the straits stay open. >> the country it is a huge customer of british arms exports. saudi troops have gone into neighboring bahrain to put down large-scale protests by shiites. recent clashes with its own shiite minority have left several dead and raised at the questions over human rights. >> we are concerned that we may

see the sale of arms that could be used to put down protests against saudi arabia or other countries within the region. >> if bilateral trade is to continue growing and britain pushes for democratic reform, david cameron will have to navigate to dedicate the j have to navigate a delicate middle course. this is "bbc world news." at least eight people have died after recruit ship ran aground off the italian coast. -- after re cruiseship ran aground off the italian coast. standard and poor's has downgraded france's aaa credit rating. millions of voters in taiwan are headed to the pole saturday to elect a president. the race could change the with the ship between the democratic island and its longtime rival, china. the president is seeking

reelection, but he is facing a tough fight from the opposition party's leader. a third candidate is a former prominent member of the nationalist party. our correspondent is in the taiwanese capital taipei to talk about the chinese effect on the election. >> it is especially so this year because taiwan is at a crossroad. the president was running for reelection, taking relations with china to the best level that have been since the end of the civil war in 1949. now he wants four years more and office to improve relations further and possibly sign a peace treaty. but the same time, many voters are worried, and his main challenger says he is going too fast, moving to close to china out and that he is paving the way for unification with china which could hurt taiwan's sovereignty. >> the president is probably

glad that reported 300,000 taiwanese who live in china are coming back to vote in this election. will they back him? >> yes, many of these chinese- based time when these people have flown in on extra flights made available by the airlines. many of them are supporters of the president. there is millions of dollars invested in china and it on him reelected because they want him to further allowed opening of the chinese markets to their companies in taiwan. the same time, there are ordinary people in taiwan who believe his policies have mainly benefit big businesses and not ordinary people and the wealth gap has widened under his first term in office. >> what about the third candidate that we mentioned? could he possibly take away some votes from one of the other two? >> he created a breakaway party,

and he does enjoy some support from the voters. there are estimates he could take about 8% of the vote, so he actually helped the president win some more votes. a 23-year-old university student is facing extradition to the united states. he allegedly breached copyright through his website, which helped people watch american films and tv shows for free. he faces up to 10 years in jail if convicted in the united states. he says he will appeal the decision. this report contains flash photography. >> the sheffield student who founded his education with a website that netted him 150,000 pound. he is trying to stop his extradition to the u.s. >> right now, the judge decides

if it is legal in the u.k., he cannot extradite someone. >> his website got 300,000 hits per month. it was a gateway to other sites where people that watch programs and films for free. in its place as a single page from the u.s. government warning others not to try the same. his lawyers argued that his website i'm not too little more than a list of other web site links. as such, he had not broken the law. they also said because british authorities had not brought charges against him, there were no grounds to extradite him to the united states. but the judge disagreed. he said u.s. prosecutor spoke of direct consequences of criminal activity by him in the u.s.a. such a state of affairs does not mean that have to have a trial in the u.k. his mother condemned the decision and the extradition

treaty behind it. >> i'm disgusted. i had hoped better from the judge. i'm disappointed. this opens the floodgates to america at tusis british citizens -- this opens the floodgates to americans seizing british citizens. >> critics say the extradition rules favor the americans, but a review last year said they were fair. 130 american requests between 2004 and 2011, britain refused 7, but the u.s. authorities agree to all of britain's 54 requests. >> many are disappointed, and this would allow inappropriate cases for any drop to take place here. this would have been one case where there would have been compelling arguments for that to happen.

>> he is the first person to face extradition under copyright laws. he has two weeks to appeal. if convicted in the u.s., he faces 10 years in prison. it was supposed to be heading to march to take rock samples from the moon, but instead the russian space craft is expected to come crashing back to earth sometime this weekend because of a serious malfunction. nobody knows exactly what it will return. more importantly, they do not know where it will land. it's a minute reentry has focused attention on the increasing -- its reentry has focused attention on the increasing uncertainty of space exploration. >> 15,000 old rockets and other junk, orbiting rubbish, created after half a century of spaceflight. last november, a russian launch added another piece of debris.

the mission was meant to fly to mars. it got off the ground, but something went wrong, and now the russians believe their spacecraft will crash back into the indian ocean. but no one can be sure. >> it is almost impossible at this stage to predict exactly what it will come in. you can only do that if you control the spacecraft. we don't think they have control over it. >> what will happen to the spacecraft? it is orbiting every 90 minutes between 51 degrees north and 51 degrees south, so it could land anywhere in between, most likely in the ocean. but it also includes southern england. most of the spacecraft will burn up as it falls to earth, but some components matter more than others. the fuel tanks, filled with fuel for the long journey to mars, should burn off long before they reach the surface.

the moment a european spacecraft blew up while falling to earth. this was meant to happen, and generally there is little risk to anyone on the ground. the bigger danger is space junk damaging satellites that we depend on. >> anything as small as a charity calling 17.5000 miles per hour could be similar to the explosion of a hand grenade next to the satellite. small pieces cause problems. >> the russian spacecraft was designed to land on the moon of march, collect a sample, and bring it back. that would have been a scientific triumph. instead, the world is waiting for the crash. the royal academy in london is preparing for a major expedition -- exhibition, show that includes not enormous canvases, drawings, and films displayed on banks of video

screens, all inspired by the landscapes of york sure. -- all inspired by the landscapes of york shier. >> this picture is 10 meters wide, and the artist wants to step back and think about the bigger picture. the majority of the exhibition is recent work, almost all of which is of the same subject, the landscape. you have swapped the sunny climes of l.a. for east yo rkshire, why? >> it was not planned. i tell my friends in l.a., what are you coming back, i say i am location, as they say in hollywood. i began to realize there was a very, very good subject here. >> how much of the hollywood

hills are in these paintings? >> they cast a marvelous light. east yorkshire has a wonderful white. it is not as intense, but there is more variety. >> your about wind farms and planning? >> yes and no. there is beauty and everything, even a wind farm. for instance, sometimes they'd dump rubbish, old refrigerators, and sometimes i look at it and think, how could they dewitt? -- how could they do it? other times, there is a side of me who thinks that it is not that bad. >> you have this moniker of being britain's greatest living artist. >> it does not mean much to me,

actually. i live in a remote place. i intend to stay in it. i am not very social. l.a. is not too bad. new york is difficult. london i found difficult. i love the quiet. >> first, there was constable, then turner, now david is reinventing the way that we look at the british landscape. are you pleased with what you've got here? >> this is not bad. news agencies in italy say that eight people have died after a ship ran aground off the italian coast. within 4000 people were attacking what it from the ship, which was on a tour of the mediterranean -- 4000 people

work on the ship, which was on a tour of the mediterranean. >> make sense of international news at bbc.com/news. >> funding was made possible by -- the freeman foundation of new york, stowe, vermont, and honolulu, newman's own foundation, and union bank. >> at union bank, our relationship managers work hard to know your business, offering specialized solutions and capital to help you meet your growth objectives. we offer expertise and tailored solutions for small businesses and major corporations. what can we do for you?

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