>> "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." >> america remembers the victims of the 9/11 attacks. we examine how much of a threat al qaeda still poses. the missing prime minister and a mysterious shipment.

did benjamin netanyahu travel to moscow for secret talks? we take a look inside the sri lanka camps as the u.n. says it cannot continue to fund them. welcome to "bbc world news." coming up later, south africa rallies around caster semenya. testing seems to suggest that she has both male and female characteristics. there is an apology to a world war ii genius who was persecuted because he was gay. ♪ >> eight years after the 9/11 attacks on the united states, there have been ceremonies to remember the victims, almost 3000 of them. president obama used the anniversary to make a pledge that the u.s. will never falter

in its battle against al qaeda. how big a threat is al qaeda at eight years on? our correspondent has been investigating. >> in new york, they gathered in the morning rain at the place for the towers felt to remember those lost. the president chose to speak at the pentagon, the other side that al qaeda attack, and the place where much of the response from 9/11 has emanated. >> we renew our resolve against those who perpetrated this barbaric act and still plot against us. in defense of our nation, we will never waver in the pursuit of al qaeda and its extremist allies. >> it has been eight years since al qaeda carried out its most audacious attack, killing 3000. some believe its capacity for terror may have diminished.

>> one thing that has improved enormously is the capability of the people responsible for such things to monitor al qaeda activity and undermine it. >> osama bin laden may not have been caught, but the leadership of al qaeda has been put under pressure recently. cia strikes have killed many of the second tier of leaders and made it harder for those left to communicate and organize. there are also signs that the appeal of the al qaeda ideology may be diminishing, limiting the flow of recruits. moderate and some extremist muslims are disassociating themselves from its violence. >> the movement against al qaeda as a result of the bloody violence perpetrated by al qaeda, in particular against civilians. >> 9/11 was masterminded from the safe haven of afghanistan.

preventing its return is the justification for the british troops fighting there now. al qaeda was pushed out of afghanistan and went over the border into pakistan where it is now facing pressure. groups connected with al qaeda are showing signs of strengthening in places like somalia, yemen, and parts of north africa. they could become sanctuaries in the future, but they are not yet a safe haven that afghanistan once was. eight years on, there may be cautious optimism. just as no one predicted 9/11, no one can really be sure what will come next. >> they will seek a third trial for three men accused of being part of the plot to blow up transatlantic airliners. the jury was not able to reach a verdict in the trials of those

charged with conspiracy to murder. >> british police are investigating allegations that senior officers colluded in the torture and terrorism suspects. they say that the intelligence office referred the case itself to the police. >> vladimir putin has dropped a clear hint that he may run for the russian presidency in 2012. he served two consecutive terms, the maximum allowed by russian law. as prime minister, he still hugely influential over the day- to-day running of the country. >> where was the prime minister of israel when he dropped out of sight for most of the day this week? the strong suggestion is that he was on a secret trip to moscow, possibly connected to arms sales, iran, and a disappearing cargo ship. we have this report from jerusalem. >> it is the latest twist in a story worthy of a spy novel. it now concerns the israeli

prime minister. is russia smuggling arms to iran? the answers to these questions start with a much simpler question, where was the israeli prime minister on monday? earlier this week, netanyahu went missing. even officials in his own office for said not to know his whereabouts. the military adviser put out a statement saying that he was visiting a security installation. according to the israeli media, he slipped out of the country on a private plane heading for secret talks that the kremlin. the russians issued a classic non-denial denial. >> actually, i cannot tell you anything at the moment. i am really not in a position to discuss that. we are talking about ahead of the government. >> any talks may have been about the arctic sea.

israeli intelligence apparently believes that the vessel was smuggling russian anti-aircraft missiles into iran. the russians say there is no evidence of that. there are only two possible sources for the missiles. one is the factory in moscow, the other is from russian units in the field. the russian government would have to know about any sales. what concerns israel is that iran would use the missiles to protect its nuclear facilities. >> i can tell you that from the israeli standpoint, iran having a nuclear capability is unacceptable. they would prefer that iran's nuclear capability be prevented using either political or diplomatic means. if none of those were, i have no doubt that this government of israel would use military means to prevent denuclearization of iran. >> israeli jets are on exercise.

nothing about the arctic sea affair is known for certain. israeli government's determination to stop iran from getting a nuclear weapon is beyond doubt. if that means a military strike, at israel would be trying very hard now to make sure anti-aircraft weapons are not sent to iran. >> the supreme leader of iran has warned opponents of the government that they face harsh action if they resort to violence or spread lies and rumors. he was speaking at friday prayers in tehran. our bbc correspondent has this report. >> it was the first time he led friday prayers in tehran since june. that was just after the presidential elections. on that occasion, he said the defeated presidential contenders would be held accountable for the street protests going on at the time. today, there was another clear

warning to the opposition to toe the line. >> to confront the ruling system, to confront the principles of the islamic system, to stand up and take the sword against the system, they will face a harsh response. >> his sermon was the most part restrained. he said the authorities would be tolerant toward the opposition as long as they behaved lawfully, did not resort to violence, and did not spread lies and rumors. the background to this is the continuing crackdown on the opposition by government hard- liners and new of arrests of activists. the supreme leader did not single out opposition leaders by name to date. it appears this was of the liberal message in advance of the day of support for the palestinians next week when there could be opposition protests in iran.

>> the has been a first exchange of fire across the israel- lebanon border. two rockets were fired from lebanon into northern israel. minutes later, israel responded by firing shells into lebanon. no casualties are reported in either incident. >> at least three people have been killed in a second day of rioting in the capital of yangon. -- of the gonuganda. >> nigeria has started a big operation to dredge the river of niger. the project costs $233 million and will remove hundreds of miles of silt from the longest river in africa. >> the government of sri lanka is under pressure as never before to release civilians it

has been holding in camps since the civil war ended in may. around 2000 were released today. human-rights groups estimate up to 250,000 are still prevented from going home. the u.s. has warned it will stop funding the main camp unless those insider given freedom of movement. the bbc has not been all around -- allowed to the camps sinc ife

remains closed as it does. when that point is, i think it is hard to say. we have to work on the agreement to come to an agreement. the best solution is to let as many people leave as soon as possible. >> we have allowed youngsters and people over 60 to go. many do not go because the families want to stay together. we have allowed 12,000 older people to leave. only 5000 went. today, the national peace council of sri lanka has said not to make people go unless they're willing to go. we will stand by that. considering the conditions under which they live, i think they

are very happy. >> it has been announced that 10,000 are allowed to go free. some attended the ceremony to mark the occasion held by the government to show reconciliation after 25 years of war. the troops have a fine balancing act between screening out those who supported the now defeated tamil tiger insurgency and civilians simply caught up in the war. >> my son and son-in-law both died in a shell attack. when the war ended, we came to the camp. i'm going back to my home after 18 months. i am sad that i lost my family members, but i am happy to go back home. >> the handling of criticism about the camps has been internationally condemned and prompted threats of sanctions. the camps have become a symbolic and a stark reminder that sri lanka may have won a military victory, but it still has much

to do to forge a lasting peace so that it can look forward and become a modern asian democracy. >> stay with us, if you can. coming up, she lived to be 115. we will look back at the life of the world's oldest person. >> the former president of taiwan has been sentenced to life in jail for corruption. he was charged with forgery, monday -- money laundering, and bribery it worth millions of dollars. his wife was also convicted and got the same sentence. >> from the time the former leader was first arrested, this case has grabbed the attention of the 23 million people in taiwan. the arrest and trial of the former leader was unprecedented in the short history of the island as a democracy.

the first president elected from the opposition party, he had vowed to root out decades of corruption but was later accused of corruption himself. nearly one year after his arrest, the court handed him the heaviest penalty. >> chen was found guilty on six charges. he was sentenced to life imprisonment. he was fined 200 million taiwanese dollars by the court. [screaming] >> dozens of his supporters protested angrily outside the courthouse, demanding his release. they said the case amounts to political persecution and that he has been unfairly singled out. his critics see the case as a sign of progress that in such a young democracy, even former presidents can be held to account. mr. chen says he is innocent and that the case against him is a

witch hunt by the current government aimed at pleasing beijing. his wife was also sentenced to life in prison. another 12 defendants, including his children and former staff, were convicted and sentenced to life terms. in an act of defiance, he boycotted the hearing. he is expected to appeal the ruling. >> see the news unfold. go to bbc.com/news it is easy to watch the one- minute world news video summary. you can read the latest headlines, but at the top stories from around the globe, and played the video reports. discover more about the subjects that interest you. find out what issues the world is talking about right now. for bbc news online, go to

bbc.com/news and watched the news unfold. >> it is good to have you with us on "bbc world news." here are the latest headlines. on the eighth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, silence marked the moment the first plane hit the world trade center. speculation is mounting in israel about the arctic sea container ship and how it was stopped from delivering missiles to iran. the sports minister of south africa says he is disgusted by media reports claiming that caster semenya has both male and female sexual organs. bbc and understands that the women's world champion may have what is known as an inter- gender condition. >> caster semenya is a south african sensation. this was her homecoming just a

fortnight ago after winning the gold in berlin. the mystique about her gender will not go away. early reports revealed internal male sex organs and no womb. ministers here are shocked. >> this is disgusting and unethical. we strongly believe that our government and all well-meaning citizens should protest. protect her rights and interests. >> it was this stunning victory at the berlin championship that put her in the international spotlight. her masculine build led to revelations of the sport's governing body and called for gender testing normally kept confidential. her coach resigned earlier this week and said that they let her down. >> we should have anticipated

because of her wonderful performance before the world championships that questions would be asked. there were already rumors floating around. we should have acted in a much better way. >> it was a very different caster semenya that adorned the south african magazine earlier this week. it was clearly designed to make a point. the front pages now show this. even though newspaper reports that she is a hermaphrodite have not been confirmed, they're bound to bring up issues of racism. she has withdrawn from a major competition tomorrow. this is more than just the future of the young athlete. the credibility of athletics are at stake. there is a major offensive to prevent it from sliding further into controversy. the athletic body says it is unlikely she will be stripped of her gold medal. south africa mines steadfastly behind her.

-- remains steadfastly behind her. they said any attempts to keep from competing could trigger a third world war. >> the daughter of the antilles prime minister has come to his defense. she said that her father has been lynched by the media. yesterday, mr. berlusconi denied ever paying for sex and denied reports that he could resign. we have this report from rome. >> he is showing the spanish prime minister around sardinia in his usually playfully combative mood. he says that some of the journalists are good and some are bad. it is all said with a smile. the italian leader has been forced to defend himself against more lurid allegations. the latest is leaked from an ongoing corruption inquiry. it suggests that women at parties hosted by him were paid.

prosecutors say the prime minister will not face criminal charges because he did not know that a number of the women were prostitutes. that is something he has been claiming all along. opinion polls hint that his support ebbing away, including that from catholics. around half of italians still have faith in him. many say that even a private life must have limits, especially for a head of government. he is suing some of the newspapers and playing down the rift with the vatican. where does this leave him and italy? opponents say that the reputations of both are in tatters because of the stories. yet his public support continues to hold out. why? simply because there is no credible political alternative and also because enough's italians still cling to the belief that he will improve their lives.

he is one of them. that is hard to beat when you are in high political office. >> alan turing was famous for his work on breaking the enigma code and revealing the secrets of nazi germany. he had a secret of his own. he was homosexual at the time it was a criminal offense. he was prosecuted and committed suicide two years later. the prime minister of britain has apologized for the appalling way that he was treated. robert hall has this report. >> his brilliance make him a wartime hero. recognition came later for alan turing. like the pledge the park was far from the glamour depicted by hollywood. the codebreakers lived and worked in high secrecy away from the view of the public. even then, alan turing was recognized as a key player in

the operation to crack the german codes. this is the enigma machine now displayed. it is capable of creating millions of code combinations. alan turing led the team that built the distant ancestor of computers. by 1940, they had begun to break the codes and turn the fortunes of war. alan turing may be publicly recognized as the man that beat the and in my machine. those who worked with him recalled an eccentric. he was undoubtedly a genius, recognized now as one of the great minds behind the first computers. >> anyone who turns on a computer these days even side is an alan turing machine. he had a profound affect on our everyday lives. >> he had his own secret.

he was homosexual. in 1952, he was convicted of an act of gross indecency. he was in effect tried for being gay. he was forced to undergo a form of chemical castration. he committed suicide at his home in manchester two years later. the prime minister has now admitted that he was treated inhumanely. he adds that the treatment was utterly unfair and i am pleased to have the chance to say how deeply sorry we all are for what happened to him. >> we felt that he was treated really badly it towards the end of his life. he was hounded. we're very grateful for this apology. i just wish that my uncle could be alive today to be aware of it. >> his work here and in the development of computers after the war was simply extraordinary. at last, his country has given him the gratitude and the apology that he deserved.

>> she put her longevity down to abstinence and religion. the world's oldest person died today in california. gertrude baines was 115. we have this report on her remarkable life. >> television had not been invented when she was born. she turned 115 in april. she credited clean living, religion, and the occasional bit of crispy bacon. >> i am going to the oldest person >> she was born in 1894. your father -- her father was the son of slaves. >> i voted for him. that man up there. >> arthritis at 100 forced her to live in this nursing home. she became an inspiration to others. >> it makes me feel good. i pray that i will be able to be

a part of it. >> gertrude baines has been a witness to history. now, and wondered 14-year-old in japan has the title of the world's oldest living person. -- now 8 114-yearold in japan has the title of the world's oldest living person. >> president obama has pledged that the united states will never falter in the battle against al qaeda. in ceremonies across the united states to remember the victims of the attacks, almost 3000 of them. one was overshadowed by mistaken report of the shooting on the potomac river. thank you for being with us on "bbc world news." >> 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.

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