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>> and now "bbc world news america." >> welcome to newsday. >> these are the headlines. more than 358 inmates are killed. the country does the president calls it an unacceptable tragedy. iran delights in the latest advances to its nuclear program. the united states downplays the significance. in syria, the government forces keep up their attacks on opposition strongholds despite comments of reform. >> and, why twitter is proving irresistible in indonesia. it is 12:00 noon here in singapore. >> it is four o'clock a.m. on london. this is newsday.

hello again. the president of honduras has suspended the officials in charge of the national prison system after a fire in a jail killed more than 350 inmates. firefighters said many were burned alive. the president -- the jail was holding more than twice the number of inmates it was built for. >> for three hours it raged. one of the deadliest prison fires in recent history. prisoners who barely survived just managed to stagger out. hundreds remained trapped inside. there were reports that guards had not found the keys to many cells in time. this prisoner said he could hear

the screams of people burning. he said the only thing he and his fellow inmates were able to do to escape was to start breaking the roof apart. by the light of day, relatives clamored for information. they prayed. this woman said she did not know where her husband was, if he is dead, let god give her strength, she said. if he is alive, let us praise the lord too. some had tried to force their way into the prison. they were driven back by teargas. soon, the dead were brought out one by one. it may take months to find out the true numbers. the charred bodies will be hard to identify. there are reports that the fire was caused by an inmate setting his bed on fire. the president promises an inquiry. the government accept some responsibility.

>> there is no room for trying to avoid responsibility as a country. this is a lesson we have to learn. as the president says, we cannot accept this. we will not accept this. that is why we have to go very deep into details to determine exactly what happened, why it happened, to avoid it happening again. >> honduras has the highest per capita murder rate in the world. prisons are desperately overcrowded. violence on the streets is often mirrored by clashes behind bars. grieving families will now want to know whether the high death toll will spur authorities into action. bbc news. >> our correspondent gave us this update from outside the prison. >> there are still bodies being

produced from inside the prison. the burned out shell of part of the prison. part of it is still standing. it has not been completely razed to the ground. it is very badly damaged. they are bringing out bodies come out one after another. they have already taken 116 of those bodies to the morgue. they told waiting family members, if they want to find out if their friends and family are one of those, they will have to go to the morgue. it is making it difficult to know whether to leave or to stay for more information. >> is there an official line about how this fire started? >> as far as i have seen, we are getting mixed messages. i spoke to two ministers who were on the side. one said it was the result of an

inmate setting fire to his bed, as was suggested in the previous report. another minister suggested there was no way of knowing if there was some kind of an electrical fault. it is still under investigation. mixed messages from the authorities. confusion from the waiting families. quite a desperate situation here. >> will grant outside the prison. iran has announced two new developments in its nuclear program. iranian made nuclear fuel rods have been loaded into a reactor. the president claimed a new generation of centrifuges are in use. they are showing iran is producing nuclear fuel on its own. the united states is downplaying the development. we report. >> mock would have been done --

mahmoud ahmadinejad has a ph.d. in traffic management. he likes to play the part of a nuclear physicist. he inspected new fuel rods for a reactor. all made without any help from the rest. -- west. >> they restrict scientific achievement to themselves. they have used it to fight to humanity. science should be invested in people's well-being and to organize international relations based on friendship, respect, and justice. >> the most important of the announcements may be the installation of 3000 new centrifuges for uranium enrichment. in its self, this does not prove that iran is pursuing nuclear weapons. it puts the country in a position to do so if it chooses.

>> they are introducing 3000 more centrifuges, that is significant. it means the time line for them being able to produce a nuclear weapon is significantly shorter. >> exactly how much shorter is something that negotiators will try to work out. the last time the world powers and iran set down for nuclear talks, they achieved nothing. iran has told the west they are ready to have another go. this is what makes things all the more urgent. only this week, israel accused iran of carrying out the assassination attempts in india, georgia, and time land- thailand. -- and thailand. it adds to the scent that iran must be stopped. >> there have been some

political moves from the syrian president. >> that is right. the syrian city of hamas seems to be the latest place to feel the full force of the government doesn't crack down. reports suggest it is being shelled -- of the government's crackdown. reports suggest it is being shelled. it makes the search for a diplomatic solution all the more urgent. we have the latest. >> a visible symbol of a country deep in crisis. it is not the per se time a pipeline has been hit. this will be heart -- it is not the first time a pipeline has been hit. this will be hard to put out. both sides blame one another. the pipeline runs close to part of the town that has been bombarded for many days.

it is not only the central city, the government admitted five soldiers were killed in the north. many similar incidents are reported from all parts of the country, including damascus, where security forces raided a quarter, storming houses and detaining suspected activists. against that background, president assad has ordered a referendum on the new draft constitution. it ends the monopoly of the ruling party and would allow any president to be reelected only once. russia, which backs the reform process, welcomes the changes made in the constitution. >> we believe that the new constitution is a step forward. we believe that it is reducing the pluralistic basis for the new political system in syria. it is a welcome idea.

>> the cicilline opposition -- vc we in opposition are unlikely to be convinced -- the syrian opposition are unlikely to be convinced. they want to see a resolution that calls on mr. assad to go. with conditions worsening, the french are trying to get an agreement at the un. noe said countries are ready to step in to protect corridors. -- note outside countries are ready to step in to protect corridors. >> a humanitarian corridor needs to be pursued by the u.n. security council. >> as fate would have it, the western powers will be holding a friends of syria meeting just two days before the referendum takes place in syria itself. it is hard to see how such a big operation could be organized and

carried out on the grounds in such condition. bbc news, beirut. >> the chinese vice president xi jinping has called for greater strategic understanding between the two powers. in the only formal address of his trip, he repeated his position that china welcomed america's constructive role in asia. he said the country should respect each other's core interests. there is optimism that a decision on a second group bailout will be taken in day. the head of the group -- on a second greek bailout will be taken in day. the head of the group said he is confident a decision will be made on monday. the greek president says that the persistent doubts are an insult to his country. we report. >> above the streets of athens,

a gesture of desperation. from a woman threatening to jump. she cannot repay her debt. she cannot afford to care for her child. they pulled her back from the edge. greece is on the brink. next, a gesture of empathy from a man who can afford it. the president give up his salary. even he is feeling the pressure, lashing out at germany's finance minister who has accused greece of becoming a bottomless pit. >> we all have an obligation to say we can overcome the crisis. i cannot accept him insulting my nation. i cannot accept this as a greek. who is he that he can insult greece? >> on the street, the germans are figures of hate. in berlin, many feel supporting athens may no longer be the best course of action. merkel does not say that.

>> greece would still be heavy in debt. they would have a debt ratio of more than 120% in the year 2020. this is not sustainable. brussels, not a row finance minister in sight. >> their meeting to discuss the crisis was downgraded to a teleconference. the finance ministers should have been here this evening finalizing the terms of greece's second bailout. instead, they said they hope to do that next week. this is now a question of trust, and many of europe's countries do not believe that athens can influence the needed reform. >> the growing sense is of european disunion. italy's prime minister warns that the debt crisis is dividing europe.

it is certainly shattering greece. 150,000 public sector workers will lose their jobs. the minimum wage is being slashed. there is endless austerity. so now, europe's leaders will pay the bills. only for as long as having greece in the euro is less painful than putting it out. abc news, brussels. >> -- bbc news, brussels. >> still to come, why indonesia is being described as the social media capital of the world. >> finding a civilian use for drone aircraft. why they are causing a stir at this year's singapore air show. time to look at some of the stories that are making the headlines around the world. the front page, it warns that iran could cut off all exports

to europe if sanctions are passed. women in britain are losing their jobs at a faster rate than men. that is according to a report in the independent. female unemployment is at 1.1 million. the moscow times investigates what will happen after certain hiv prevention programs are phased out in russia. the government says it will step in. local ngos are worried successful prevention methods may be discontinued if officials disapprove of them. the queen rides to the rescue of the church. in her first public engagement, the quinn described the church of england as being misunderstood and underappreciated. >> this is newsday. >> these are the headlines.

the president of honduras as ben's the officials in charge of the national prison system after a huge fire kills three and 50 inmates. >> the united states downplays the significance of what iran says of a two major advances in its nuclear program. drones are widely known for their use in remote and dangerous military operations in pakistan and afghanistan. there is a thriving business in the development of the aircraft known as unmanned aerial vehicles or uav's. the u.s., israel, and china had invested heavily in the market. we went to take a look at some of those on sale this year at asia's largest air show in singapore. >> could this be the future of surveillance and intelligence gathering systems?

the drone was developed by northrop grumman. it is used by the u.s. military. it is being deployed to hot spots and disaster zones. this photograph was taken in 2003 after the fall of saddam hussein. it was shot from 60,000 feet. it shows looters outside the presidential palace. this one shows the devastation at the presidential palace in haiti. images like this help the u.s. emergency crews decide where to deploy aircraft and vehicles in their search and rescue efforts. just one reason why sales are surging. >> you can stay a little bit further away from the target. a lot of systems fly at lower altitudes, get closer to threat range. you can stay for so long, 30 plus hours.

let's northrop grumman is trying to develop a system that allows uav's to work alongside manned aircraft. this shows what someone inside a manned aircraft would see today. in a concept still being developed, an operator can look at real-time video from the uav scene over here and analyze and view what is happening on the ground. asian companies, such as beijing -- are trying to cut out a slice of the market. the firm is the biggest manufacturer of uav's. sales have tripled in the past few years. thanks to chinese buyers using them for border control, search and rescue, and agriculture. >> we are confident that we can

enter the international market. >> whether it is the civilian or military use, the development, manufacture, and sale of a manned aircraft is going fast. as a valence technology improves, uav's are becoming the latest battleground in aviation. >> indonesia has the highest percentage of twitter users in the world. we have been finding out why it is popular. how powerful one social media site can be. >> a tale that reflects indonesias love affair with twitter. these days, the people's voice is with his voice. -- is twitter's voice. it is a romantic comedy about two young people who find each other through social media.

this is one of the most twitter and facebook bed of the nations on earth. that is why angry birds -- facebook friendly nations on earth. that is why angry birds launched in indonesia. they are the social media capital of the world. >> there is a lot to do, people of very of going. they have that built-in storytelling which you can find from a rich heritage. >> social media has become one of the most affected ways to reach out to indonesians'. a tv talk-show host has more than 100,000 followers. she has released a book of her tweets. she says this becomes -- this has become a natural way to communicate. >> because of a democratic environment -- indonesia has

been for over a decade, people of very critical of everything, of the government, the society. everybody has an opinion on everything. i think that is what creates this. >> that noise is beginning to have an impact offline. this protest was a result of organizes efforts on line. most of the people who attended heard about it through facebook or twitter. social media is becoming an increasingly popular and powerful tool. as popular as this movement seemed online, not as many people who were expected to come actually showed up. this demonstration calls for more government action against violent muslim groups. it as unlikely it will lead to

any results. using social media to affect social change is a growing trend. indonesian's have a whole new tool. it is at their fingertips. ta. news, jakarat >> there is an exhibition in london that is putting a new spin on hoarding. >> it carries a timely message. when many of us are being urged to live on less. the exhibition is here on month -- at london, it is called "waste not." the artist has collected thousands of objects from his old home when nothing was thrown away. we went along to ask him about him about his work. >> it has its own story. >> memory and a loss, here are

10,000 items that some of the life of this man and his mother. life of this manf and his mother. everyday objects. >> when i did this product, i learned again from my mother, from that generation, i know deeply about them. >> this is a meditation on the legacy of the revolution, a time when the lessons were learned to make the most of what little you had. the population was urged to destroy anything related to old customs, old ideas, and old habits. holding on to the past would lead to severe consequences. this is an emotional exhibition for me. it raises memories of old times

and hard times. i can see so many different objects from my own childhood home. for the artist, this is about continuation. his mother died three years ago. this is a way to keep her memory alive and learn more about her and what she lived for. >> each time, each installation, it is like the family product, the whole family works together, live together. art is life. i think this is my favorite object in the show. >> a reflection on a generation, one that the aid of fidelity -- that valued frugality, and may be a lesson for today. bbc news in london.

>> the french president has declared that he will be standing for reelection in the presidential polls in april. he is currently behind his main rival, that is the socialist, in the opinion polls. a disapproval rating of 60%. he faces an uphill struggle. the president of the world bank is going to step down. he will be leaving at the end of his five-year term. a successor is traditionally dominated by the united states. -- nominated by the united states. larry summers is a possibility. you have been watching newsday. a brief reminder of our main news. the president of honduras has suspended the officials in charge of the national prison system after a fire kills more

than 350 inmates. >> make sense of international news. 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 understand the industry you operate in, working to nurture new ventures and help provide capital for key, strategic decisions. we offer expertise and tailored solutions in a wide range of industries. what can we do for you?

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