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>> and now, "bbc world news." >> hello and welcome to news day on the bbc. i am in singapore. >> i am in london. the headlines this hour. >> the united states of america says it is prepare todd ease sanctions against burma following easing of political reforms. standing trial, the men accused of masterminding 9/11 are to appear for a military tribunal. >> at least seven people are killed following an explosion at a theater in the somali capital, mogadishu. and $26 million for a bowl, another record at a hong kong auction. >> it is 11:00 in the morning here in singapore. >> and it is 4:00 in the morning here in london. broadcasting around the world, this is news day.

>> the u.s. secretary of state has announced that the obama administration is prepared to ease sanctions against burma. hillary clinton said some travel restrictions would be relaxed. this comes days after elections in which the party won support. >> there is a new dawn in burma. cavs after elections saw the opposition gain a large number of seats, the united states announced it would ease sanctions. >> we are prepared to take steps toward seeking a full ambassador in the coming days, followed by an announcement of our nominee. >> mrs. clinton praised this

man, the president, whose reforms are bearing fruit. >> the president and many of his colleagues helped launch their country on a historic new path. while there much to be done and significant tests lie ahead, we applaud the president and his colleagues for their leadership and courage. [cheers and applause] >> last sunday's bi-elections gave the democracy campaigner her first seat. and there were many more for her party, marking a turning point for a country that had grown used to military backed government. they had this warning. >> sanctions and prohibitions will remain in place on institutions that remain on the wrong side of these historic reform efforts. >> she also announced the lifting of restrictions on the exporting of u.s. financial services, something that could

see the introduction of credit cards to burma for the first time. the lifting of sanctions is a reward for the country's leaders and the pace of reform. the military-backed party still dominates the parliament. "bbc news." >> and coming up later in the program, we will have a special report from the northeast of burma, home of the ka thnch heon. where journalists are banned. >> the head of the somali olympic committee and others were killed in a bombing attack . a bombing struck the national theater. militants said they carried out the bombing. here are the details. >> just a few weeks ago, somalia's national theater reopened for the first time in

20 years. it was a moment of optimism. but today as military and dignitaries gathered, an explosion rocked the area. the president was addressed people when the bomb went off. >> i am safe, and the members of my cabinet are safe and secure. however, some were injured in the ceremony, and a number were wounded. >> there are conflicting accounts of what happened. the transitional government said a female bomber was responsible. the group said explosives were planted beforehand. among the casualties were two sports officials. the president of the somali olympic committee, and the head

of the futbol association. both of them died in the bombing. in london, where david cameron hosted an international conference on somalia in february, has can demmed the attack. he he said terrorists had no part in the future. he said they did not speak for the people of somalia. the fighters, who are often said to be inspired by al qaeda have been on the back foot in recent months, forced out of mogadishu and in the foothills. this serves as a reminder that this is still one of the most dangerous countries on early. "bbc news." >> at last the americans are going to try the man alleged to be behind the 9/11 attacks. >> that's right. khalid sheikh mohammed and four of his co-conspirators are

going to trial. they have been charged with terrorism, hijacking aircraft and murder. they will be tried by a special military tribunal and could face the death penalty. here is our correspondent. >> these five men are accused of planning and executing the worst terrorist attacks on america in living memory. the u.s. government holds them responsible for the deaths of almost 3,000 people in attacks on new york and washington. the process of bringing them to trial has been long and complicated. their charges were suspended under president obama as part of his plan to close daniel gaunt -- guam guam. >> the president's plan to put the suspects on trial in a civilian court proved so

unpopular that it was blocked in the government. >> today the white house acknowledged that closing guantanamo antawn mo bay has not and will not be easy. >> there have been obstacles in achieving that, but he remains committed to that. in the meantime we have to make sure that khalid sheikh mohammed and others accused of these heinous crimes are brought to justice, and this procedure is under way to ensure that happens. >> if found guilty, they could be executed. they will be in a court at guantanamo antawn bay to hear the charges. it has proved controversial at every turn. it will be much longer before the trial against them begins. "bbc news," washington. >> while khalid sheikh mohammed may be behind bars, the fight to capture the rest of those on america's most wanted terrorist

list is ondid go. the man at the top of the list is saeed, the man thought to be behind the mumbai attacks. he staged a youth conference from where our correspondent reports. >> on the trail of saeed. we found him opposite this complex, pakistan's army headquarters. he has always been considered close to the military. and just across the road, saeed was the star attraction among hard-line islamists. he says he runs a charity. the u.n. says it is a front for terrorism. now america has put a price on his head because of the mumbai attacks in 2008. washington and delhi believes he was the mastermind. he denied that and today he mocked the $10 million bowden

-- bounty. >> i want to say to the state department why do you want to give the money to somebody else. give it to me. i can tell you where i am every day. >> while one of america's most wanted is on the platform, seed is center stage, and he has been sending a message of defiance. so far the authorities in pakistan have been turning a blind eye. they have said little or nothing about the american bounty on his head, and many believe they will take no serious action against him. the only impediments he faced today, a crush of cameras and plenty of questions. >> if you are an innocent man, why is there a bounty on your head? >> thank god the pakistani courts have proved our organization is absolutely not

a terrorist organization. they are interfering in our internal affairs. >> the embassy is 40 minutes away. are you willing to go and speak to them if you have nothing to hide? >> why should i go there? did they contact me before making their announcement? they have taken a,way my rights. >> rather than standing in the dark, washington can expect to secede seed at more anti-american rallies like this one. he is already planning his next appearance. pakistan said tonight it needs hard evidence to move against him. "bbc news." >> in the united states, a former nursing student has been charged with murder and attempted murder after allegedly shooting seven people and injurying three more in oakland. one goh is accused of opening fire on students monday after beal expelled for behavioral

problems. judges at the criminal court at the hague have put pressure for the release of gaddafi's son. >> you are watching news day on the bbc. still to come, we have a special report from eastern burma on one community that may not be feeling the benefits of the country's political reforms. >> and a greek olympic tragedy. why austerity cuts my jeopardize their participation in the london games. now let's take a look at what is making the front pages of the newspapers. let's start off with the guardian's front page report on the tax man's investigation into the online retailer amazon. the paper says despite sales of more than $4 million in

britain, amazon has paid no corporation tax there. the daily telegraph report that american spy agencies have been reluctant to share intelligence with their british counterparts. the promise by the socialist candidate for the french presidency, calls to enact strong fiscal reforms and to race 50 billion users. good news for motorists, and it sees the first signs of cooling of the oil mark after the biggest rise in u.s. crude stock in 10 years. >> this is news day on the bbc. i am in singapore. >> and i am in london. our main headlines, the u.s. secretary of state has

announced that the bahamas is prepared to ease sanctions against burma. >> the man alleged to have masterminded the september 11 attacks, khalid sheikh mohammed, and four of his alleged co-conspirators have been formally sent to trial. inspite of moves toward democracy in burma, there are aldepations of serious abuses against some of the people. one of the groups lives on the eastern border. the human rights groups urged them not to become complacent about the area. our reporter had to enter the area illegally. >> the promise of freedom and democracy in burma are a long way from the parade ground where recruits to the

independence army have had their training cut from three to two months to get them to the front line in a hurry. >> burmese army soldiers came into our villegas. they were firing their guns and shooting at old people who couldn't run. they raped our women, raped our women. i am old, 42, but that is why i joined up. >> the burmese army advance has left dozens of burned-out villages, and they left many behind. >> everyone was running, but my mother didn't, and they shot her. i went back and found her body. it was in a deep hole that had been dug as a cess-pit. it took 10 of us to get the

body out, and then i buried her. >> the survivors, tens of thousands of them, are now crowded into makeshift camps, where there aren't enough basics like food and water and no shelter for the rainy season. we have grown accustomed to hearing reports of brutality about the military dictatorship that has ruled burma in the last 50 years. but this has taken place in the last few months even though the allegedly reforming government held elections over a year ago and promised change. both sides blame the other for starting the fighting in june of last year, with the burmese army using mortars and large

armor. the two front lines are just a few hundred meters apart. we can see the burmese position on the next hill. no one knows when they will attack next. delegates returning from the latest round of peace talks held in china say they failed because the burmese army refuses to with draw and consider the demands. >> what they want is equal rights. if they were to offer genuine democratic union, then this conflict could be solved. >> until the conflict is solved, the situation here in the camps get worse. in this of 5,000, the ration is down to one cup of rice per day for a child and two per day for an adult. international aid has been pledged, but the government is restricting it.

those among the mainly christian people who have been here since june are praying to leave here, but they pray the food doesn't run out. bbc news on the burma-china border. >> in other news, a judge in the united states has handed lengthy prison sentences to four former police officers for shooting six unarmed residents in the aftermath of hurricane katrina in new orleans in 2005. the former officers were jailed for terms ranging from 38 to 65 years. a colleague who helped them hide evidence was also jailed. the right wing norwegian extremist has blosted his

psychiatric report as elias. he said being diagnosed as criminally insane is worse than death. his trial is due to begin on april 16. >> britain has promised that extra staff will be ducis:ed at airport this easter. virgin atlantic has said there is a risk of gridlock. it is one of 11 airlines who have written to the home secretary. here is our report. >> after a long haul flight it is hugs and friendly faces we expect, not an underless cue in passport control. but airlines say there is a risk of cues like this bringing airports to a hulett because there aren't enough staff to check passports. it is the middle of the afternoon, a quiet period here at terminal four. passengers have been telling me that some from outside europe have waited about 15 minutes to

get through airport control. the airport is he is it can take up to three hours, which many believe is unacceptable. >> we have cut our cues as much as we can. it should take you five minutes or left to get through security. immigration is a different matter. >> last year it came to light staff levels had been cut and fewer additional passport checks were being done. the home secretary suspended the border force here on the right and demanded full checks were restored. but they require more staff. in a memo, virgin said if cues get too long, the airport operation will be at risk. airlines will be forced to keep passengers on board the aircraft. virgin said at peak periods like easter there is a real chance of gridlock at u.k. airports. the concern shared pie other airlines and the immigration services union is about all busy period, not just easter.

>> we have the queen's diamond jubilee coming up and the olympics. it need to be suit bolli resourced. they need to be trained and in place, not temporary staff who have been trained two days. proper fully trained border officers. >> the home office says extra staff are being brought in. the new border chief says warnings of serious disruption are simply speculation. >> my absolute focus must be on making sure that our borders are safe and that people coming into the country are safe and not -- and to keep the safety of our communities. >> it is now clear that the airlines are closely watching the performance of britain's border force. >> china has reportedly allowed five north korean defectors to

travel to south korea. they normally send defectors back to north korea. it is unclear whether this represents a change in policy. our correspondent is in the south korean capital of seoul, and she said the chinese government hasn't given any fish rope for the change. >> the chinese president was here in seoul for a summit last week, and it is reported that he spoke to the south korean president at that time and said that his country would consider south korea's criticism of the china policy that didn't allow defectors to come to the south, and that he would respect south korea's position in resolving that. so that appears to have been some kind of trigger in a movement that has been building for a few months now, south korea criticizing that policy. but china hasn't given any official indication of why it has done this now.

>> any reaction from the south koreans or from the north koreans regarding this initiative by beijing? >> not as yet. we are not getting any official confirmation here from south korean officials. but unofficially they are confirming it, saying the five defectors who were holed up in the south korean consulate in beijing have now made it to the south. one them is the daughter of a south korean soldier reportedly who was captured during the korean war 60 years ago. she is among them with her two children. one report this morning says it believes there are another five defectors who have always been allowed to be make their way here from another south korean embassy in china. the really question is whether this is a one-off by china, a gesture of friendship to south korea, or a gesture of warning towards north korea if it

indeed is a policy change. it a gesture, or does it mark a change in policy on china's behalf? if it does mark a change in policy, that would be a big deal for the relations between china and north korea. >> lucy in seoul. eight years ago greece was at the center of sporting excellent. that seems a long time ago now. >> it does because the greek athletic federation has suspended all domestic sporting activities saying there is is no money to pay coaching or staff. there are fears that unless budget cuts are reversed, participation in the lyndon olympics could be at risk. here is our report from athens. >> sports facilities worn and in disrepair. training grounds without heating. this is yet another face of greece's financial crisis. as recession and austerity bite ever deeper here, sportsmen are feeling the effect.

now the athletics federation has hit back. a unanimous decision from its board that all domestic sporting activities will be halted until its budget crisis is resolved. >> everything is falling apart. unfortunately, i have lived through the best moments of greek athletics, and now i'm living through the worst. it is logical that our psychology is low because when you live here, you don't really feel like your are a competitive athlete. >> other sports are struggling, too, water polo suffering from budget cuss. players are unable to travel to some international competitions. >> we need intervention because this thing is ready to fall apart. we have tried for so many years. and it is a pity to do that. this is the most successful team in grease. >> but the spotlight is now on threat i can't. a source told the bbc that if

the government does not resolve the funding crisis, the last resort would be to with draw from the summer olympics, eight years after they hosted the olympics. >> this is where it all began, and then the first modern olympic games in 1896. if greek athletes were to with draw from the games of 2012, it would be a humiliation, a sign of how far this country has fallen. bbc news, athens. >> you have been watching news day. i am in singapore. >> and i am in london. before we say gib, we would be to go back -- goodbye to indonesia. we are being told that three australian victims are expected to testifies. those are live pictures from

indonesia. bye-bye. >> 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, union bank, and shell. >> this is kim. about to feel one of his favorite sensations. at shell we are developing more efficient fuels in countries like malaysia that can help us get the most from our energy

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