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a second earthquake brings more death and destruction to sumatra. rescue workers still struggling with the aftermath of tuesday's devastating tremors, now face new challenges. in the pacific, survivors from a tsunami speak about confronting the horror of a tidal wave. >> if it is my time to come home, take me home. >> accusations and counter accusations give way to talks. and iran and its critics find any common ground? china's 60th birthday party perfectly organized, but the public are told to enjoy at home. it is 7:00 a.m. in washington comment midday in london -- an evening and sumatra.

rescue workers still battling the aftermath of tuesday's tremors are now stretched to the limit. more than 500 are confirmed dead as a result of that earthquake. worst hit is the city of padang where hundreds of buildings collapsed. rescue and recovery work is being hampered by roads made impassible and the loss of power and communication links. >> scenes of devastation in the sumatran capital of padang, a day after a deadly earthquake struck off the coast of the island. scores of homes and buildings have completely collapsed, burying hundreds of people beneath them. in desperation, some have tried to pull their loved ones out manually, attempting to clear them from the rubble. but it is a race against time. this city is one of the worst affected by the powerful tremors. relatives fearing the worst

arrived from all over indonesia's to try to find some trace of their families and friends. the rescue operation is an extremely challenging one. all lines and electricity cables have been damaged as a result of the earthquake. rescue teams have been working around the clock to try to save people. but the worry is in that time is running out and the death toll is still rising. bbc news, padang. >> on the line is the worker from the international federation of the red cross in indonesia's's capital, jakarta. thank you for being with us. what is the latest inflation you have? -- latest situation do you have? >> the latest situation is absolutely shocking. all the remote areas, remote

valleys and mountainous areas -- the very experienced helicopter operators said it is the worst he has seen in 50 years. one village was absolutely destroyed, every building flat and, bodies lying there, people walking around them. very drastic situation. i have been saying since earlier today, as the government has been, that it is such a huge area and with any bridges knocked out, roads impassable, we still don't know the full extent. but my friend said today it looked like somebody dropped an atomic bomb in the mountains behind the affected area. not looking good. but the positive thing is the red cross has about 450 people on the ground. 415 red cross doctors this morning.

good rescue teams in place, medical people. tense with food and water. but it is those remote areas that is the real priority and frankly it will take days to be able to really make a big impact. >> you patent -- painted an incredibly graphic image of the destruction. and what we are dealing with in this country now, not one of creag but two -- not one earthquake, but two. how difficult does it make the recovery? >> it seems most of the damage was done with the air earthquake that occurred yesterday evening. the one today has done some damage but not too much, we think. a huge challenge. the government of indonesia as well organized, they are on the ground with police, army, fire

service. so fairly good resources on the ground. but is it going to be an up in the remote areas? nobody knows. i think we will probably need international support in those remote areas. >> from what you are saying, it seems almost certain the death toll is going to go up, isn't it? >> the death toll is bound to go up. 475 earlier this afternoon -- my colleagues from the aerial surveys -- young children walking around, just no medical treatment. no fault of anti-government but it is just a remote area with no medical facilities. >> bob, thank you for being with us at this difficult time.

let us turn now to samoa where rescue efforts also severely hampered by damaged infrastructure following tuesday's tsunami that left 140 dead and thousands homeless. hospital officials are calling for nurses, doctors, surgeons, and blood to help treat the increasing number of casualties. just one victim whose family has been destroyed -- >> my dad was found yesterday. my mom today. >> others more fortunate spoke of their own survival as the wave struck. >> if this is my time to come home, take me home, i am ready. i took a big gulp of water -- and i don't know, i just called out. >> that was one survivor. we will join our correspondent

in samoa, phil mercer. we know you have just gotten there. what are your first impressions? >> an overwhelming sense of disbelief and sadness. this is a country deeply rooted in tradition is in the church, where family is paramount and community is sacred. and the community is pulling all of the deeply held values together, and they suddenly need them. this is the most of the cult time in this country's history, not only here, of course, but over the water and american samoa, people also died in tonga. this is a regional crisis in many ways that is getting worse because of this shortage of medical equipment and personnel. losing all of those lives is awful and drag it -- tragic but attention is shifting to those who survive. >> you talked about this being a

regional crisis. i suppose new zealand and australia will have to play a pivotal role in the rescue and recovery. >> we saw it at the international airport -- australian search and rescue professionals loading up their equipment, too. so certainly international help will -- is on the way, but will be led by the regional superpowers. new zealand is only a three and half-hour flight away. it is a very remote part of the world and really more international help is needed. president barack obama promised federal aid to american samoa, a u.s. territory in the pacific. but much more is needed. you really get the sense that this is a country struggling under the weight of this calamity and the problem said over the water to american samoa as well. >> we will leave it there. thank you very much. as if southeast asia needed more of a blow, the destruction and

indonesia is after -- as people coping with the aftermath of the typhoon. more than 100 dead in vietnam and 350,000 homes damaged or submerged. now authorities and the philippines are preparing for a storm that may be even stronger. here is alisyn -- the l -- >> is with of destruction around southeast asia. it was stronger than ever when the storm hit here in the province in central vietnam, bringing the now familiar scenes of looting and destruction. the vietnamese authorities saw it coming and acted fast. evacuated out of the path of the storm. it is still not known how badly affected many areas are in

central vietnam, but the government said at least 300,000 homes have been flooded or damaged and 6000 destroyed. the number of dead and missing is going up all the time. weekend but still strong, the typhoon next to cambodia where homes were again swept away and the number of deaths were also steadily rising. a again, the authorities have been struggling to find out -- to get help to those most in need. it has been almost four d -- four days since the typhoon hit the northern philippines but parts of manila are still under water. sections of the presidential palace had been opened up to help give shelter. there are tens of thousands of people still living rock in these makeshift evacuation centers. international agencies and the government struggled to cope with the overwhelming scale of the flooding. so many people have lost

everything, and a storm that brought some of the heaviest rainfall these countries have seen in decades. now ketsana has weekend to a tropical depression but the cleanup is only now getting under way. bbc news, central vietnam. >> it could be an important moment in the growing international crisis over iran pause in a clear ambitions. the five permanent members of the u.n. security council, plus germany, will intensify demands on a freeze on iran's activity today as they meet diplomats in geneva. last week tensions were raised after iran revealed a second nuclear facility. from geneva, our correspondent. >> iran's chief negotiator -- has brought new proposals to geneva or will iran continue to insist the nuclear program is not up to negotiation? as a set off for the talks, he

suggested it was for the west to change policies. it is a message that has been underlined by iran's test earlier of long-range missiles and tehran's the finance following the revelation of a previously undisclosed nuclear plant. already the united states, britain, and france are beginning quietly to discuss the details with possible new sanctions of the talks don't succeed. ideas include tightening of sanctions on iranian banks, more restrictions on investments in the oil and gas industry, and measures against iran air cargo and the islamic republic shipping line. >> i think what is critical is persuading the iranians or leading them to the conclusion that their security will be diminished by trying to get nuclear weapons. and their economic problems are difficult enough that i think that severe sanctions would have the potential of bringing them to change their policies.

>> in the background, always the threat of israeli military action against the country is reveilles could threaten its very existence if it acquires nuclear weapons. iran' says it is time for the ws a change its policies. does not seem promising for this new round of talks. >> a quick round up of other stories. the iraqi prime minister nouri al-maliki formed a new political bloc to contest the elections in january. the alliance will be called state of law and will comprise 40 political parties have been groups, including shi'ites, sunni, and minority groups. in southern somalia fighting broke out in the port city. eyewitnesses say the shooting involving members of the shabeb -- began at dawn.

the u.n. rejected claims that the special envoy to afghanistan played down allegations of electoral fraud and sided with president john a. karzai. he has now been dismissed from his job. now if -- we will have a full business report in 25 minutes. let us chat about some of the issues. the big one is the possibility bae, the british defense firm, could face a corruption trial. >> it is all and hands of the british attorney general. off the back but serious fraud office -- an ongoing investigation ongoing for years. but they handed it over to the attorney general. it is the largest british manufacturing country, defense contractor. allegations of all possible corruption or bribery.

in the sense of trying to win contracts in countries like tanzania, south africa, czech republic, by paying millions of dollars to win those contracts. that surrounds this particular story. it could have a cute -- a huge impact on the country. it has conscious -- contracts and 100 different countries. we are now just waiting to hear the latest steps from the attorney general in britain. >> this is "world news today." coming up, major world powers begin crucial talks in geneva. how best should a deal with iran posset clear plans? >> finding a job these days is hard. how about winning one? in italy you could buy a lottery ticket when you visit the supermarket and possibly walk off with 10 jobs on offer. the idea is proving a winner

with tickets flying off the shelves. here is duncan kennedy. >> of this supermarket, northern air the way, the place where you go to pick up corn flakes, bananas, and now, it seems, a job. to celebrate its 30 years in business the chain is running a special lottery to help its unemployed clientele get back to work. anyone who spends the equivalent of about $40 on their shopping receives a lot -- in which enters them into the competition to win one of 10 jobs on offer with the supermarket. >> and this crisis, they wanted to launch this kind of competition, but let us say if a person who wins already has a job, they can nominate a person for one year. >> shoppers have this correct the cards to operate them and fill in the name and address to enter the lottery. the supermarkets as tens of

thousands of people have been taking part. >> this woman says she thinks it is a great opportunity to find a job, what this woman says if she wins, she will give the job to daughter-in-law. she filled out quite a few forms, she says. italy's unemployment rate is about 8% and rising. the winner will be a lot -- announced later this month. the tent shows and guaranteed full-time work for at least 12 months. while some will not be needing employment for a few years yet, others are now trying to enter the job market, courtesy of their supermarket. bbc news, rome. >> this is a "world news today" from the bbc. the main headline to -- more than 500 people have so far been confirmed dead after an

earthquake and the indonesian island of sumatra. negotiators from major world hires are meeting -- major what cars are meeting with an iranian delegation over uranium enrichment activities. 60 years on from its embrace of communism, china has been staging mass celebrations. huge ranks of troops have been watching wild nuclear capable missiles have been on display. all designed to show how far china has come in six decades since the communist party took over. security was tight and the capital. a report now from beijing. >> at 162 steps in minutes, the people liberation army goose step into tiananmen square. at the gate of heavenly peace,

president who jintao stood on the spot where chairman mao announced the establishment of the people's republic back in 1949 and the world's largest army puts on a show. china is telling the world with its new economic prosperity, now has the wherewithal to design and build a cutting edge military hardware. a new modern china was standing up and facing the world, president hu said, but the ceremony had a vintage feel to it. mr. hu, wearing a mao-style senate. ordinary we're told to stay at home. this celebration was invitation only. but that did not spoil the enjoyment for him -- >> my heart is burning with

pride and i am very moved and excited. our country has developed very quickly and hence our international standing as risen tremendously. i am very proud to be chinese. >> the might of this army -- nothing and no one can challenge it. mao's portrait lines the parade -- his leadership cost the lives of millions but there was no apology from the party. they are happy to look back but insist the nation only remembers the good times from 60 years of communist rule. bbc news, beijing them more now on the talks in geneva -- geneva between the five -- >> more now on the talks in geneva over iran. our guest joins me now. thank you for joining me. what you think is the best case results from his long-awaited

meeting? >> i think the best case result is the fact that they are meeting, they are talking, that diplomacy has been given a chance to do its bit as opposed to threats and talk of military action, and so on. but the question is, will diplomacy succeed. this is an avenue for us to see how much mileage in this avenue has got. >> you are going to be satisfied, if you like, if no real agreement or no deal comes out. just the fact that these two groups of people are sitting in the same room is for you a result. >> it is a result that in essence, after months of waiting, we reached a stage where by diplomacy is given an opportunity to see if it will work or not. i don't believe that in this particular occasion or today in that we will be able to get the results we want, but it is better than threats and talk of war. >> it is interesting you talk about threats because of course

there is always the threat of sanctions. how much leverage the think those security council members, germany, how to leverage the you think they have over iran? >> right now they have no leverage. no leverage at all. that is why these talks today will not succeed, will not produce the kind of result that the 5 plus one once. but if there is the potential that the say sanctions coming into effect, give a little time for the sanctions to make some form of the impact, then the venues such as what we have today would be able to avert a, you might say, potentially more dangerous scenarios. >> there are some people say what is the point. it there been talks before, carrots and sticks, and iran has continued to expand its programs. >> carrots and sticks have not

worked because the carrots have not been carats and mistakes have little potential of being affected. and all boils down to the word leverage. the west has no leverage under ran under existing circumstances. it may be able to increase that through the threat of potentially strong sanctions. if they do that, then there will be well on the part of the iranians to compromise. otherwise they will be content, keeping talking for a long time, just as they have in the past five years. >> thank you very much for being with us. time for the sports with mike. >> hi, george. untested phillies, once again. they beat the houston astros 10- 3 and pennsylvania -- fantastic phillies. third straight national crown and secure the playoffs. they made it and 823 game in the

seventh inning, two-run home run. the phillies are the reigning world series holders and the first camp -- could be the first campus to defend since the new york yankees back in 2000. while the detroit tigers have moved a step closer to winning their first division title since 1987, after increasing their lead over the minnesota twins for three games. if they went thursday they will crack and the american league central title. on friday we will know which city will host the 2016 olympic games. chicago, madrid, real de janeiro and tokyo awaiting this vision -- this decision that the former ioc vice president has his own theories on what may prove to be the deciding factor. then i am looking where is the least risk. -- >> i am looking where is the least risk?

there are always risks. but where is the least? economic, security, reputation of -- trying to say which is the best? what is the least bad? there is a marketing elements and all of these things. in obama you have a new and transformational leader, a country that is very important in the world and olympic movement. he comes here to say my country is really behind this bid. that is better than having a senior public servant signing my country is behind this bid. i think it could only help. >> we will know on friday. >> thank you very much. a summary of the top story, at least 529 people are known to have died in a powerful earthquake that struck the indonesian island of sumatra wednesday. >> funding for this presentation is made possible by the freeman foundation of new york, stowe, vermont, and honolulu, the newman's own foundation,

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