>> bbc world news is presented by kcet los angeles. funding for this presentation was made possible by the eeman 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. >> italy's supreme court rus that berlusconi can face prosecution on bribery and corruption charges. a desperate plea to go home. this placed tamils tell bbc why thousands -- displaced tamils

tel bbc why thousands should go home from the camps. >> staying here is killing us. >> somali pirates pick a fight with the ship they should have avoided at all costs. bbc world news, brought us to our viewers on pbs in america and around the world. one of britain's richest and one of europe's's most wanted. a notorious drug baron is behind bars. it does not mean a thing if it ain't got that ring. astronomers make an amazing discovery. hello to you. berlusconi is saying bet he will not resign as italy's prime

minister even though the highest court overturned a law that would give him immunity from prosecution. he could face three different trials for bribery and corruption. if this does contain some flash photography. >> it was a defiant, even flamboyant berlusconi that came out to face the press. he would not leave office. when -- we are in the hands of the left and we know what they want to do with the country. i will have to leave the public service for a pulp -- few hours and prove that they are all liars. long live italy. all live berlusconi. italy's highest court earlier ruled that he was not above the law. they said that the prosecution

was unconstitutional and should be struck down. opposition leaders say that the prime minister should no longer be in office. he is facing a series of court cases. the prime minister's opponents are weak and divided. it is his allies who are much more important. he has come out to praise the prime minister. the chances of the rug being pulled on their coalition are fading. they will face trial with this man. he was at the root of the immunity issue. berlusconi was accused of bribing him. he stood down from the case once the law was in place. this and other cases may reopen for the italian leader. this is uncharted territory to

you affordability. the -- even for italy. what if he is found guilty? what then? it is one of the contents are questions in this dramatic legal story develops. the next few days will be vital for the prime minister. there will be a series of meetings by all political parties to see where they stand. it is his political defense that will be critical to his survival. >> the united nations officials in afghanistan are denying that confidential information published by "the washington post" confirmed widespread fraud during the afghanistan election. the say in some provinces and the official vote count far exceeded the number of voters. he is suggesting that the government smeared his rep

beautician -- reputation because they disagreed with his opinion about the sending more troops to afghanistan. he says that he will consider taking a been ministerial job. talks are underway in honduras between the ousted government. regional foreign ministers and officials from the organization of american states. in burma the iconic opposition figure has met with the minister from the military government. we understand the meeting only lasted about half an hour. it is the second in less than a week. they wanted to help negotiate an easing of sanctions. the plight of a quarter million tamils returned by the sri lankan government is looking increasingly like a crisis. since the civil war reached its bloody end nearly five months

ago, they have been prevented from returning home. the government insists that they must pay in camps until they are screened. they told the bbc of their increasing desperation. two new problems loom, desperation and disease. he said this. >> built-in declared john boll, they have a quarter of a million of war refugees is a city of tents. people not freely allowed to leave, even though the war is over. it is still run by the security forces. diplomatic visitors say that conditions have improved. there are still queues for water. it is strictly rationed. volunteer monitors say that people fight for it. >> the government has resettled about 10,000 refugees. it said that it has been moving quite quickly by world standards

to let the refugees go back home. united nations disagrees saying that these are happening far too slowly. >> children under 10 are allowed to leave. in practice, few do as their parents and older siblings cannot go. women clamored to tell us of their complaints. >> we are all getting sick staying in these tents. we have a lot of diseases. staying here is telling us. >> we have no vegetables to eat or water to drink. we are going to die here. >> the tense look suspicious when empty. they can -- tents looked specious when empty. they have to accommodate a large number of people. she had taken him from hospital to hospital, but heas still ill. there was no room for everybody in the tent. government officials told us

that the visiting british minister said that people prefer to be in e camps as their homes were still in ruins. they say that land mines are still a threat to those returning to their villages. these must be cleared. >> " we are doing at the moment is this. this has this area at the moment. >> people are bracing themselves for the monsoon. the government says that thanks to new--new drainage systems, there will not be flooding. some refugees feel that their flimsy shelters are at risk. there are just a few ways for people to earn money like this store where an elderly couple sells soft drinks. with the works, it is difficult to pass the time.

-- without work, it is difficult to pass the time. >> in his first detailed comments in the international talks on iraq's nuclear program, ahmadinejad says that he hopes they will lead to constructive operation. he said that iran was interested in talking with anybody in providing the enriched uranium for a research reactor. kenyans were killed in election violence. an investigation has found communities buying weapons illegally ahead of the election. kofi annan and finishing a three-day visit with calls for urgent reforms. the opposition coalition is calling for the arrest of those responsible for firing on democracy campaigners. at least 150 dd. it also insists that will not join talks to resolve the political crisis unless the

military leaders stepped down. as maritime mystics go, it was quite a big one. five somali pirates have been captured when they attacked a french naval vessel. the pirates tried to storm the refueling tanker late at night from small boats about 500 miles off of the somali coast. >> this shows the moments when the pirates were finally caught after a long chase on the high seas. if they were no longer armed. it was thought that they dumped their weapons over board. this was the ship that the pirates were thought to have confused with a harmless cargo boat. it would have realized that this is no ordinary commercial vessel. it is the french navy's main supply ship in the indian ocean. in paris, the defense ministry

described how the pirates approached in two small boats and open fire. >> they realize that they were not behaving as a commercial ship. she was not trying to run away. on the contrary, but she was heading towards the pirates. at that time, the pirates turned away and try to escape. >> it is not the first time the pirates have targeted the french military. france played a key role in the mission patrolling the waters near somalia. this shows the navy fighting back after a frigate was attacked in may. several were captured. more than 20 suspects were handed over to kenya. green them to trial is a legal mine field. for these pirates, the future is uncertain. for now, her mission in the

indian ocean continues as normal. >> the heavy floods in southern india have damaged hundreds of millions of dollars worth of crops. that could mean severe food shortages. and these 250 people have been killed and millions displaced. these were the worst floods in decades. >> living in desperation on the edge of what was once their home. this community is one of an estimated 2.5 million people who are now homeless. and forced to find shelter just about anywhere. drinking water and food is in short supply. aid agencies have joined the government in providing relief. it is not reaching everyone. now there is a french concern. the floods of damage millions of dollars worth of farm land.

>> 80 hectares of crops are damaged. the total loss so far is about 1250. >> for most of the summer, india was hit by drought, the worst in nearly four decades. many are warning that the country could experience major food shortages. the focus is getting relief as quickly as possible to the victims. eventually, the government will have to find a way of helping them rebuild their life. >> the united nations has appealed for $74 million to help about a million people affected by flooding from two major storms in the philippines. food, sanitation facilities and health care are desperately needed. a werful typhoon is heading

towards japan. the typhoon will hit on thursday. authorities have issued several weather warnings. sandbags have been offered to people try to protect our homes are against flooding. it is good to have you with us. state if you can. the land with the water. we report the impact of the middle east's worst drought in decades. and needs approval from all 27 member states of the european union. of long last, it seems that might happen. he fully expects his country to ratify it by the end of this year. the leaders are impatient to move on. >> if the vote was a big relief for the voters, they were not

quite out of the woods yet. in prague, klaus has refused to sign the lisbon treaty. eu leaders sounded confident that it would be completed. >> of course, we respectfully the constitutional order in the czech republic as we respect the order and other member states. we have to wait for the process to be completed. once this is done, we see no reason why further delay should happen. >> the prime minister cannot make today's meeting. engine troubles stranded his plane in prague. he told the leaders that he was confident that ratification of the treaty would be completed by the end of the year. the message for the president was clear, once the

constitutional court case is resolved, he can no longer justify refusing to sign the treaty. >> perhaps some anxiety over the looming british general election. if they win, they will hold a referendum on the treaty. very few people would put money on lisbon surviving that intact. >> the latest headlines. a law protecting italy's prime minister from prosecution violates the constitution thanks to the supreme court. several trials on bribery and corruption charges could follow. this place tamils have been telling the bbc that they want to go home. they say that conditions are intolerable. he was a drug bill -- a drug dealer so wealthy that he once

appeared on a newspaper list of britain's most famous people. he became interpol's most wanted man. he is accused of trying to flood an island with cannabis. >> roads closed, every available armored officer deployed on this holiday island, an unprecedented security operation to deliver one man to court. curtis warren, once enter poll's most wanted. -- interpol's most wanted. he believe that jersey offered new opportunities to increase his wealth. this was a scheme to make over 120 million pounds by smuggling cocaine through rotterdam. the authorities were one step ahead. he spent 12 years in a dutch

jail. on the summer day in 2007, at two weeks after his release in prison, he arrived in jersey. this man turned out to be one of his co-conspirators. they were already being watched. alarm bells began to ring. >> an elaborate undercover operation was put in place. more new faces joined the group. they were tracked across jersey and into europe. in one conversation, a gang member discussed drug prices with his dutch supplier. >> 60 pounds, 1 ounce. 1 kilo is 36 ounces. i would just invisible. at 3,000 lbs for 1 kilo. >> stephen baker claimed that

they acted outside of the law. they listened in across three countries without authority. the jurors were convinced, he had masterminded another criminal enterprise. >> people engage in serious organized crime. no matter where they go in the world, they engage in crime. they are a target for us and we will deal with them. >> they will be sentenced in december. >> syria needs help to tackle the effects of the worst drought that they have seen in decades. at least 1 million people are feeling the impact and syria alone. parts of turkey and jordan are also affected. >> for three years, they had been waiting for the rain to come. for three years, not a drop has

fallen from the sky. this province used to be the bread basket of syria. there once fertile land has now turned to dust. much of her family budget now goes to this. >> where can we go? my neighbors have left. who would have me with all of my children and how what i find a job? >> the -- their dinner has been the same in has been for months. bread and lentils. her children have not had any meat or food for at least a year. it is because of that that they believe her hair has been falling out. the un says that malnutrition, poverty and disease have been spreading. millions of dollars are needed to help people here. drought is the main cause of her suffering.

there is lack of regional cooperation. it was making the situation worse. even in the midst of heat and drought, you can see the patch is here. they are actually illegal. in order to irrigate them, people are pumping water from wells. these are underground resources tech could never be refilled. they are using this to grow crops. rivers, which they used for irrigation, are now dry. this is the main source of water for the province. it has now shrunk to 4% of its original size. the governor told me it is not just because of the drought, but also damns that turkey built across the border. >> there is a river which comes from turkey.

it would really help in solving our problem. >> is a disaster. it is too big for syria to handle on its own. an estimated 300,000 people have already fled the expanding desert. in places where water still flows, roads are lined with makeshift camps. every day brings more water refugees. back in the village they are waiting for aid. all that she can now do is pray. pray for help come up for the children come and pray for rain. >> egypt has declared -- they want stolen ancient artifacts from the louvre. they have accused them from buying agent commemoratives tons

even some -- even though some of the curators knew that there were stolen. donna donehue says that he will resign over -- john o'donahue says he will resign over expense claims. it has been confirmed that mel gibson's conviction for drunk driving in 2006 has been expunged from his record. she says it took for 20 years to decide to write it. a british author now probably feels it is worth the wait. it is about the life and times of cromwell. it just won a prize for fiction and $80,000, too. three scientists from the united states and israel have won the nobel chemistry prize for their work on the cells of living organisms. they said that the worked had

important implications to the development of antibiotics. still in the world of science, but further afield, astronomers have made a discovery that is going to redraw the map some of these lawyers system. they found that saturn has another ring. it is 8 million miles away from the planet. david has the details. >> is the most spectacular and most mysterious light and space. the system of rings around saturn. for spotted four centuries ago. until now, and nobody saw the strangest feature of all. of all the planets orbiting in the solar system, it is saturn that is the most exotic. that is because of its ranks. this is the view that most of us are familiar with. the giant planets circle by

lor. they have detected another, far bigger ring 8 million miles from saturn tilted at a different angle and so huge that the ring is about 3 million miles wide. it is invisible to the naked eye. it is made up of vast clouds of dust. besides the moon, saturn appears just as a tiny dots. it is so big, that it would look twice as large as the moon. announced -- astonishing discovery. how come nobody noticed? the experts are stunned. >> this is absolutely vast. you cannot see it unless you're looking at a particular wavelength. it is very diffuse. you cannot see it with the naked eye. if you need special instruments to see it. >> it was one of sadr's moons that was a dead giveaway. -- saturn's moons that was a

dead giveaway. admired for its beauty for 400 years, saturn can still surprise us. what else do we not know about it? >> just coming in from reuters, and 8.1 magnitude earthquake has struck off of the north coast of -- it is 370 kilometers north, nw. no immediate reports of injuries or damage. no tsunami warning. also is 6.9 magnitude earthquake in the philippines. >> funding was made possible by the freeman foundation of new york. still 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 am julia. >> i am kim. >> public broadcasting as my source for an intelligent news about the world. >> the conversations beyond the sound bites. >> a commitment to journalism. >> deciding who to vote -- a vote for. >> public broadcasting is my source for intelligence connections to my community. >> bbc world news