>> "bbc world news" is presented by kcet, los angeles. funding for this presentation is made possible by the freeman foundation of new york, stowe, vermont, and honolulu. the newman's own foundation. the john d. and catherine t. macarthur foundation. 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." >> de mystery of the arctic sea -- the missing russian cargo vessel turns out of the west african coast. last attempt to woo voters in afghanistan. but will they feel safe enough to cast ballots? an explosion in a russian dam kills 10 workers.

dozens more are missing. a very warm welcome to "bbc world news,"broadcast on pbs in america. coming up later for you -- a hidden community speaks out. gay iraq keyman teller retail of torture and murder. are we seeing more in ufo sightings or just watching more of a certain tv show? hello to you. ok -- the headline is missing at ship down. the inevitable next question is just what were you doing in the 18 days the world was looking for you? if the cargo vessel, arctic sea, thought to be seized by pirates has turned up of the west coast of africa. russia's defense minister says

the crew is alive and well. we have this report. >> this tail was shrouded in confusion from the start. now the mystery has partially been solved. the crew is alive and well. it is not under any one's guard, apparently. the full story is yet to emerge. >> confirmation that the ship had been found came with a report to the russian president from his defense minister. >> the ship was found 300 miles off the cape verde islands. the crew has been transferred to one of our warships were they are being questioned to did -- to determine what exactly happened. >> so how did of 4000-pound vessel carrying heavy timber disappear from the year? this began nearly a month ago in finland on july 23. the next day, it was reportedly

boarded and searched by armed men. on july 28, it contacted the coast guard, going through the english channel. it was sighted off the french coast two days later. it never meant it -- made it to its destination of algeria. instead, it turned out on the cape verde islands off the west african coast. adding to the mystery, the ship's operator in helsinki apparently received a ransom demand. british police were not clear if it was genuine. there have been various theories about what was really going on. hijack and piracy was only one suspicion. drug smuggling was another. some wondered if it was really a commercial dispute. >> the most likely explanation is that it is some sort of dispute between a russian interests -- even though there are reports, i cannot see why a

gang of professional criminals would tie up large amounts of manpower for less money than you can get from an average operation. >> the key allies with the crew. if they were being held against their will, what was the ship hiding? the russian government says it will make the full story public. >> the final day of campaigning in afghanistan's presidential election is coming to a close. for the first time, afghans are organizing the elections themselves. this is seen as a test of credibility for the country. there are doubts about whether voters will feel secure enough to come out. john simpson reports from koppel -- kabul. >> this is the bizarre in the center of -- bazaar in the

center of kabul. there is no running water here. no sanitation. just stinking piles of rubbish. i have come back to find someone in that a couple years ago. he makes his living the best he can, selling vegetables. since i saw him last, half a dozen of the world's richest nations have poured out huge amounts of cash and hundreds of soldiers lives in afghanistan. he has a huge family -- 12 children. they all live together in this one room. the others are out, either at school or the market. has anything improved in his family's life? nothing at all, he says. "our lives are just as hard as ever."

the poverty here is as difficult as anywhere on earth, yet the cost of keeping a single soldier in afghanistan would completely change the lives of everyone here. but you know it is not going to happen because the system is too corrupt. it simply would not get through. it is dangerous for afghans to point out these home truths. we are going to a secret location where a woman is in hiding after speaking out about corruption and women's rock -- women's rights. >> the situation it is like "help." >> she is campaigning against a new law that permits men to rape or starve their wives for denying sex. >> we are far from the society, joblessness.

>> the money simply is not getting through. the west is fighting extremism in afghanistan, but there has not been adequate lead war on poverty and ignorance here. >> john told us just now -- how old people felt about having their say. >> there is an interest in the process itself. this is a great rarity to be able for people to think that their vote could change or concern at the political government of the country. there is a lot of interest in that. there is also a lot of cynicism about the candidates. they know that when in power, politicians tend to be rapacious and corrupt. what people tend to do, therefore, is to look for the people that will help them in their particular interest group.

northerners, people who speak that language will support the front line challenger. lots of people in the south will tend to support the president. at least, that is what we assume. on the other hand, a lot of people are sick of president karzai. they may say -- they may stay away in large numbers. he has done a lot of deals with the warlords and bosses and so forth. that must jay -- that must -- that may just get him through. >> john since then there. all this week we will have live coverage of the afghan presidential election. you can see that here on "bbc world news." authorities in the united states are calling it the biggest case of identity theft in the

country. he is charged with stealing 130 million credit and debit card numbers. he is accused of hacking into a number of supermarkets. a group of senior american congressmen have urged the scottish government not to release the man jailed for bombings. seven senators, including at john kerry, say he should remain in a scottish jail to serve his sentence. there was speculation he will be freed in a daze on compassionate grounds. the leader of a eight banned sunni group was killed, shot dead as he drove into a a province northeast of karachi. at least 10 workers have been killed. 72 are still unaccounted for.

there's an accent at russia's largest hydroelectric power station. a transformer exploded during repair work. from moscow, our correspondent reports. >> the accident happened as workers or carrying out repairs to one of the plant's transformers. the space flooded with water. it is unclear what caused the roof to collapse. some suggest an explosion in the turbine in itself or a sudden surge in pressure. rescue workers have the situation under control, but they are searching for more than 60 people who are missing. >> water has been pumped from the machine room. the supply of water has been cut off. we are on high alert. >> the soviet-era sayano- shushenskaya power station is the largest of its kind in russia. at 245 meters high, it is

located in southern siberia. >> is no danger to people living downstream from the power plant. there is no danger of the dam being destroyed. >> the explosion caused an oil spill which is flowing downstream and adding an environmental dimension to the disaster. authorities say it could take years, rather than months, for the sayano-shushenskaya plan to return to productivity. much of russia agrees infrastructure is in desperate need of modernization. russia has not significantly invested in the upkeep of the power station. bbc news, in moscow. >> dmitry medvedev hazmat sacked the of presidents of in the shifted -- the attack on a

police station could have been averted, according to him. a deadly fire at a kuwait wedding is reportedly started by the ex-wife of the groom. the woman has confessed to igniting the blaze which engulfed 43 women and children. after an entire year to year of economic data as bad as anything since the second world war, japan has announced it is out of recession. the world's second-largest economy grew by nine%. still, it was a bit of a disappointment. our correspondent reports from tokyo. >> japan's economy is climbing of the worst recession since the end of the second world war. gross domestic product is rising, albeit modestly, after record-breaking falls. consumers are spending more

after being encouraged from cash handouts from the government and subsidies. the world is recovering something of its appetite for japanese goods, too. demands for cars is being boosted by government programs to replace old ones. production is up, although the economy is running far below capacity. japan's prime minister says this is welcome news. with the general election before the end of the month, he is trailing badly in opinion polls. >> i have been putting all my efforts into the economic recovery. as a result, we are seeing light in the future of the economy. the gdp figures show an increase. we have not reached a point where the people of japan can feel the recovery. >> the stock market showed unease, and a sustainable recovery main be some way off

though. the signs of strength were not as good as some had hoped. there are continued worries about the strength of the japanese yen, which undermined competitiveness abroad. >> good to have you with us on "bbc world news." stay with us if you can. the new afghan blue lake. first, north korea wants to reach out to south korea, raising hopes that the tension between the two countries is easing. it is unclear whether the south will allow the tours to resume. >> tightly controlled and managed, this is tourism and north korean-style. until they came to a stop last year, these fledgling trips across one of the world's most heavily fortified borders were both popular with curious south korean visitors and a valuable

source of foreign currency for the isolated communist state. the news that north korea is ready to reopen the border came after a visit to pyongyang from a prominent south korean business woman. her company has invested heavily in trade and tourism. last year, south korea brought home the body of one of its citizens from the north korean special tourism zone. the 52-year-old had been shot dead by guards. the south has long argued that the tourist trips will remain suspended until it gets a satisfactory explanation for her death. north korea says it also wants to resume the reunions of divided families which have also stopped amid the worsening relations with its southern neighbor. it may be a sign that the north is softening its stance, or it may be more calculated.

this garrison state has been seeking to mend fences with washington, and to that end, closer ties with south korea could help. in a reminder of tensions, the north military as warning of "and annihilating strike" if south korean military drills and french on its sovereignty. -- infringe on its sovereignty. >> go to bbc.com/news to experience bbc news online. it is all here. see the one-minute video world news summary. you can read the latest headlines, get the top stories from around the globe. discover more about the subjects that really interest you and find out which issues the world is talking about right now. for "bbc world news" online go

to bbc.com/news. >> the latest headlines for you on "bbc world news." the russians have found the cargo ship which disappeared in mysterious circumstances nearly three weeks ago. presidential candidates in afghanistan are making their final campaign push for thursday's election. some parts of the afghanistan are still relatively peaceful. the central highlands, for instance. the world's biggest donors are being encouraged to focus on these provinces. >> this is the jewel in the crown, the sparkling blue lake. safire and emerald pulls. -- pools. it just became afghanistan's a

first national park. never mind there is no proper road to get here. afghans are coming in large numbers. the united nations special representative also came to make a point. he has been urging donors not to overlook provinces where there is potential and peace. >> we have to see where the most potential is, and the impact of money spent here is tremendous. it is different than the provinces that suffer from conflict. >> and a warning that most foreign aid money follows troops. >> we have gone much too far, much too far. the response has been that we ignore provinces that are stable. we see already that we are paying a price for it because

those provinces are becoming unstable. if we continue like that, there will simply be -- where we need troops. we do not have this. >> bodyguards are needed now, but there is some as promised here. it is mineral-rich and a tourist gold mine. >> you have to take this. this is for our future generations. >> now, afghans are still fighting. >> you came from kabul? >> from this side. >> just an afghan family coming for a day out? >> yes, a day out. >> the afghan women all in black traveled from iran. she is here to marvel at the beauty. she will come back for good,

when it is more peaceful. maybe in a year or two. for now, men with guns are not an easy fit for swan lake. but there is the very real promise of a better day. >> and now a rivalry between neighbors on the annual eurovision song contra that rejects song contest. there have been serious consequences for a song from azerbaijan from neighboring armenia. the number identified voting for armenia are now being questioned by authorities. they are being accused of being unpatriotic and a potential security a threat. officials from azerbaijan say that people have only been asked to explain why they voted for

armenia. gay men are being tortured in the rock with the complicity of military forces. that is according to human rights watch in new york. names have been changed in the to report to protect the identity of those interviewed. >> three of these young iraqi men are now dead. earlier this year, an iraqi police station broadcast this video of a gay party, saying behavior was shameful. soon after, these posters appeared in the streets. they call on people to watch out for gay men, for allegedly homosexuals. the witch hunts have already resulted in the deaths of some 90 days men since january.

>> we are being beaten. we are being tortured. we are being killed. every time i go out, i expect to be killed. >> this man showed me a photograph of his partner of eight years. he was killed eight months ago by a militia -- shot in the street. the human rights watch says the shi'a militia are perturbed traders predict are perpetrators of the killings. there are dozens of accounts of tortures, rapes, mutilated bodies found in dustbins. most of the killings found in -- happen in court conservative areas of baghdad. the latest was in this relatively safe, relatively healthy -- wealthy neighborhood. officials have not responded to

an inquiry, but in the past, they have said they condemn the killings. he does not believe them. >> first of all, i blame the government because they listen to a shi'a cleric, so they do not protect us. >> this was him last year. he was arrested, even though homosexuality is not illegal here. his friend may have been passed on to the militia. he is now missing, feared dead, along with all the others in the country where the length of unmans hair determines whether he lives or dies. -- a man's hair determines whether he lives or dies. >> finally, if you have seen strange eyes in the sky, you may have wondered if your eyes are playing tricks. the british government will be releasing 15 years of files.

we have a report. >> it was a time of strange lights in the sky, events that defied explanation. ufo sightings have been going on for years. in the mid-1990's, the number of reports suddenly shot up. for instance, in belgium, fighters were sent to intercept hot lights. the radar locked onto something, but no one knows what. so does the release of the case files give us answers? david clark has been sifting through, and there are some conclusions. such as these sightings across southern england in 1993. it transpires it was probably a russian rocket. >> what had actually been seen was part of a rocket launched by the russians to put a spy satellite in orbit.

the movements of this thing, re- entering the earth's atmosphere, has been retracted -- recreated by nasa scientist. >> take the most famous british ufo mystery -- american military personnel saw bright lights, a radioactive readings. but the official report in 1995, well -- >> the defense minister in the mid 1990's, and frankly the briefing he received was the ministry of defense did not think there was a threat to u.k. securities into because the americans waited two weeks to report. >> indeed, most of the sightings were never investigated. so can we explain the spike in the number of them? david clark has an idea. he says there was a popular program at the time. >> "the x-files" was to blame

for this. i think it played a role. i think that certainly contributed to more reports being received. >> so releasing the ufo files is meant to and claims that the state was covering up result of its ufo investigations. but what it has really revealed is that most of the time, it had better things to do. >> a much more on that, of course, all over the internet, particularly bbc.com. that is the day wait. just click through there. thank you for being with us. >> funding was made possible by the freeman foundation of new york, stowe, vermont, and honolulu. the newman's own foundation. the john d. and catherine t. macarthur foundation. 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? >> i'm julia stiles. >> i'm kevin bacon. >> i'm kim cattrall. >> hi, i'm ken burns. >> i'm lili taylor. >> i'm henry louis gates, jr., and public broadcasting is my source for news about the world. >> for intelligent conversation. >> for election coverage you can count on. >> for conversations beyond the sound bites. >> a commitment to journalism. >> for deciding who to vote for. >> i'm kerry washington, and public broadcasting is my source for intelligent connections to my community. >> "bbc world news" was presented by kcet, los angeles. presented by kcet, los angeles.