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>> and now bbc world news. >> welcome to bbc world news. >> the headlines. the exodus from homs continue as syrian refugees continue to protest atrocities, including the murder of children. >> i managed to save one of my brothers but they took the other and killed him. >> president obama urges caution after united states and israel undergo talks. >> dozens of arrests continue after the re-election of vladimir putin as the russian president. prince harry jumps ship. why a visit to the caribbean was not smooth sailing.

>> broadcasting to viewers on pbs and america, and all across the world. welcome. >> people who have escaped from homs after a month-long seige have given accounts of atrocities committed by the security forces, including the slaughter of men and young boys and the killing of prisoners. this has not been independently confirmed. thousands have left their homes at the site of the violence. we have this exclusive report from the outskirts of homs.

>> on a road out of homs, just part of the exodus from baba amr. they endured weeks under bombardment, then fled, panicked, before troops arrived. he we are homeless, se shoulds, "why, because we asked f or freedom." this group walked for three days to avoid the soldiers. whoever is taken at a checkpoint will be killed, he says. "they took our husbands,' she " she cries, "at the

checkpoint." everyone has the same fear, that their husbands are not coming back. for now, they are on their own, with nothing. >> it is freezing here. they have a night in a house with no heat or electricity. they wonder what on earth has happened to theri father. >> this family says they witnessed a massacre. they took men and boys from this district, killing them all. she shows us how her son's throat was cut. he was 12. >> the soldiers held people down, killing them like this. thier hands were tied.

you could hear their screams. >> i begged my father not to open the door. he said, "why, i haven't done anything." i saw them push him to the ground and kill him. four men were taken from her house, she said. can such horror sotritories be true? these men defected from an elite army unit this week. they say civilians were targeted, prisoners killed. we wrere told to shoot anything that moves, civilian or military, you shoot. >> this soldier saw an old man

arrested. an officer put a gun to his head, and said, "this is for freedom." he shot him and he hadn't done anything. they say they are victims of a crime and the outside world will want proof. briefly, they denied the regime. now they are scattered, the uprising, crush. -- crushed. there is no agreement to how to bring this to an end. >> we have a member of the general commission joining us. you heard paul wood's report. do you hear the same kind of reports? >> we are hearing similar

reports but it is hard to athenticate anything and it is hard to hear eyewitness testimony. we have video recordings. those who flee the town tell about field executions, were entire families are being shot at, killed in front of anybody. the stories of rape that are taking place in homs. several stories are told of females being raped in front of their husbands as they are begging to maintain their children's lives. they kill the husband and child and take turns raping her. the female's name is selma.

>> what happens now? what do you call for? what is the next stage? >> i don't know what the next stage is. the united nations, the european council. i don't know what could happen in homes. they uare -- homs. they are out of water and food. >> what do you advocate? what are you asking the international community to do? >> we advocate an international intervention. we would like a no fly zone. the syrian people are capable of fighting their own battles if they are equipped with the right military equipment. they have nothing to fight with.

>> what would you say to the argument that the opposition are not well-coordinated enough to be given some kind of military support, and that they are not unified? and that there may be pockets of resistance in these combat zones, as opposed to a coordinated response? >> with respect to the rumors you hear, the opposition groups are on target. they may have different political views but they all have one mission, to stop the killing of the innocent people. any kind of support that can be offered with any opposition group, this will be one unified mission, to stop the killing of innocent people in syria. >> we are grateful for your time and thank you for joining us. a member of the syrian

revolution agenda. eurostar has apologized to customers stuck on trains for up to 11 hours. power cables fell on the lines, forcing trains to be diverted. some services have been canceled. now there remain two outstanding trains which have not arrived into london. the trains were heavily delayed during departruure times. they were sent between 11 :00pm local time. delays and cancelations reported. we can speak to debbie collier. thank you for joining us. what happened?

>> we arrived in paris to be told we should get a slightly early train. we got on the train and did not move, with no announcements, then were told there would be a delay on leaving. we left an hour later, and finally arrived after six hours after we left paris, and were held there for 45 minutes. we arrived back just under an hour ago. we made our way to a taxie. >> you are traveling with your husband, who is in a wheelchair? >> the staff was fantastic, with the limited resources. they are there to cater to

people and look after us for four times as long. it is not the ending we planned to our wedding anniversery. >> thank you for sharing your experience. thank you for talking to us. thank you. that 11-hour journey, the 8-hour delay. now an important meeting at the white house. >> the israeli prime minister has told obama israel must remain a master of its own fate. barack obama was holding a meeting with benjamin netanyahu in washington. they have had differing views over how to respond to iran in the past.

>> the israeli prime minister having to the white house, and some people think that he is headed for warfare as well. they both noted the international economic watchdog -- atomic watchdog has serious concerns about a military intervention. the two men came out smiling in a deliberate expression of agreement. obama said that there was a window of opportunity for the negotiations. >> and when i say that all options are on the table, i mean this. we prefer to resolve this diplomatically. we understand the costs of any military actions, and i want to ensure the american people and the israeli people that we are in close consultation. >> benjamin netanyahu listened closely. his focus was on the acceptance that israel had the right to

act. >> we must have the ability to defend ourselves, against any threat. and when it comes to security, israel has the sovereign right to make their own decisions. >> the atmosphere of the last meeting was worse. of course and embarrassing when benjamin netanyahu lectured barack obama. but there is a major difference with iran. the big difference is about the red line of what they will not tolerate. barack obama says they may not have a nuclear weapon. israel is worried that once they have enriched uranium they will be unstoppable, which may happen later this year. >> israel is somewhat isolated in this position.

the last few weeks have been more about restraining israel and iran. >> american troops are practicing for action somewhere similar to the straits of hormuz. they are against another war in a volatile region, not wanting another iraq or afghanistan. >> barack obama hopes that his warning will have hit home, because the last thing he needs is a messy conflict in a difficult region in an election year. >> russian police have arrested hundreds of people who were taking part in protests in moscow, in st. petersburg against the election of vladimir putin for president. he had 64% of the votes but people observing say that this was unfair. others say this was an open contest. we have this report from moscow.

>> the government promised there would be no crack down tonight. but when some people refused to leave pushkin square, the police moved in in force. in the scrum is alexey navalny, the emerging leader of the protests. otherwise, it had passed off peacefully. moscow was the only place that did not give putin 50% or more of the vote. these people are flexing their political muscle. >> this is just the beginning. this year is going to be very hot. before his arrest, i asked alexey navalny if people would

get tired of demonstrating. >> this is not just passion. people are fighting for rights. >> the choice of pushkin square was deliberate. >> i would come here to see a very small numbers of dissidents. they were protesting against the communist government. now there are tens of thousands of people in the square. >> this is the kind of thing that has infuriated the crowd. he is accused of organizing buses yesterday, from one polling station to another to vote again and again. the man that they presumably voted for was celebrating today with stars backing his campaign. he has said it was open and honest. i put it to a strong ally that

this was phony. >> this was -- same time. very simple thing. even demonstrators know vladimir putin, most popular figure. >> 250 were arrested. alexey navalny has been released. it will be a long battle here. >> you are watching newsday live from singapore and london. a growing call for change causes a great turnout in the indian elections. >> the u.n. sets to preserve one of the natural wonders of the world. >> let's look at the stories

making headlines. we start with obama reassuring netanyahu. he is trying to east tensions between iran and israel, but that they will prevent iran from making nuclear weapons. spain may be on a collision course with the financial -- as they fail to meet budget deficit targets. the "south china morning post" jiabao has led to an eight year low that will help them lower price pressures. clashes broke out in moscow after the presidential elections.

>> this is "newsday" on the bbc. >> the headlines for you. people who fled the syrian city of homs have reported widespread atrocities. >> barack obama has met benjamin netanyahu at the white house to discuss concerns about iran. >> the cultural agency of the united nations has arrived in northeast australia to see damage to the great barrier reef, from coal exports and oil and gas exploration. it may be jeopardized by shipping and mining. doctor from to gilley

-- how much damage has been done to the rief? eef? >> this signals alarm bells when we heard about the approval of liquefied natural gas processes within the great barrier reef area. this is the tip of the iceberg for a whole series of developments that we can see slated in the government development plans. unfortunately, the great barrier reef, in a 2009 report, the risk management authority put this together -- they signaled that the reef was in a crossroads. the position they take in the next few years will be critical. last year we had major

flooding, and a cyclone across the reef. we have seen the impact on marine life, with more than 1000 turtles washing up dead. there is a lot of stress on the reef. we need to put the pause numbers on the developments that will put pressure on the reef. >> doctor, what is your view of how to protect the reef by lobbying businesses and goverm ents. >> we want them to have a please explain mission, sending a strong signal that the world is watching. the great barrier reef is a natural wonder of the world. we have to put this ahead of the

push for mining, and oil and gas development. let's get those areas critical to the habitats of turtles and dugongs, and make sure they are off limits. >> sorry to interrupt -- we have to leave it there. the conservation director at wwf sidney australia. votes are held in sydney, with 112 million voters. this is a bellweather for 2014. we have more from the capital of wha-- >> as people await the outcome of one of india's most critical

elections. region parties hold the key. this man is a former wrestler and socialist politician is the favorite. a record 60% of voters turned out. a sign people want change. >> they have produced so many prime ministers and it has gone morass. a we are trying to explain. >> as india surged ahead, they have been left behind. some worse off than sub-sa haran african. but with more people than brazil, it is the most influent al state in india. one reason a member of the

ghandi dynasty has staked his reputation on these polls. >> the population has grown four times, as have the expectations. they wait for the outcome of the elections, a referendum on how the country is governed. >> all eyes are on the voters. >> brinprince harry hit choppy waters in the bahamas. >> a small mishap that brought cavalryman prince harry to an unscheduled stop. down, hebohmian the boat broke had to jump ship and join the

media that had been following. closer to the press corps may have left him nervous. then he sped off to the next engagement. >> this is tiny harbor island, where he was a big hit. the wellwishers were happy to welcome the queen's grandson. picturethird in line saw a of his grandmutheranother and sd he'd seen her before. he talked about the hard work. >> i've shown off to my brother and sister-in-law. >> his first time representing the queen has been a success and will continue at his next stop,

jamaica. >> you have been watching bbc world news. stay with us. headlines are next. >> 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 use their expertise in global finance to guide you through the business strategies and opportunities of international commerce. we put our extended global network to work for a wide range of companies, from small businesses to major corporations. what can we do for you?

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