>> "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 fndation. and union bank.

♪ >> union bank has put its global financial strength to work for a wide range of companies. what can we do for you? >> and now "bbc world news." >> i'm jonathan charles. suicide bombers killed of the 16 people in the afghan capital, including several foreigners. tension in thailand, the supreme court is deciding if the former prime minister should lose part of his fortune.

and president obama has to decide whether to try to put his health care reform through congress after failing to win bipartisan support. hello, another attack, another day exposes at a precarious state of security inside the afghan capital of kabul. a suicide bombing attack on a series of hotels and an exchange of gunfire. have least 16 people have been foreign national and an italian. >> once again, the early morning

quiet of ako2 kabul morning violently interrupted. armed police on the street battle in taliban gunmaen in one of the most secure areas of the most secure city in the country. it was 6:30 a.m. in kabul, followed by other explosions and a series of smaller explosions and arms fire. the gunfire continued for hours. the target this time, guesthouses it seems and a hotel, all of them inhabited by foreigners. the number of dead makes this the worst attack in kabul in many month and at a time when international and afghan forces are on the offensive against insurgents in southern afghanistan, the taliban seem to be bringing a message, that they can bring

their battle into the heart of the capital. i>> with the troubles facing barack obama in health care reform, and the rest of the day's headlines. puts a summit in washington hosted by president obama has failed to -- >> a summit in washington hosted by president obama has failed to narrow the differences. if necessary, he will press forward to extend insurance to more americans without support from republicans. >> we cannot have another year- long debate about this. the question i'm going to ask myself i ask of all of you, is there enough serious effort that in one month's time or a few weeks' time or six weeks' time we could actually resolve something? if we cannot, then i think we have to go and have and make decisions and that is what elections are for.

>> more soldiers are charged in turkey, bringing the number of former and serving soldiers to 31. the turkish prime minister has warned the army that no one is above the law. nearly two weeks of unrest on the ivory coast after a new electoral comssion triggered by the president's decision to resolve a coalition. a cruise ship has crashed into the egyptian resort of schoenholtz shaikh. it is thought that bad weather called -- caused the collision. at least one person has been killed and some 50 others injured in a fire at a factory

in bangladesh. it happened in the capital, dhaka. dozens of worke were trapped inside. the fire has spread and destroyed several other buildings. -- a fire has spread as a hotel to several other buildings in hampton. the pound fell in the u.k. to its lowest level against the dollar since may, 2009, and there is increasing concern over how the uk will not tackle the huge deficit. -- how the uk will tackle a huge deficit. >> and there are other factors weighing on the market in the last few days.

the downturn we have seen in the bank of england and the presumption that could lead to more printing of money in the uk. that as well as the value of the sterling has grown-. -- has grown negative. relegation of a high-profile society struggling nationally -- financially. >> authorities are worried there could be a violent reaction on the street in thailand. judges are moving on whether to confiscate $2.1 billion from the

former prime minister, thaksin shinawatra. 's second- biggest economy. >> the riot police arrived early, taking a position outside the supreme courtn bangkok. the government was clearly worried about the possibility of violence from shinawatra's supporters. the red shirts gathered to p @ thaksin, who appeared on a message from dubai. we read your to guarantee there will be no violence at this event -- we red-.l shirts guarae there'll be no violence at this event. we do not want to create chaos around the country. at the court, the judges were escorted inside as they prepared

their lengthy verdict. what was at stake was whether thaksin abused his power while serving from 2001-2006. the prosecution accused him of taking benefits from the telecommunications companies in which his family retains interests. mr. thaksin, has always maintainedis innocence from any wrongdoing. >> and we will be going live to our correspondent rachel harvey who has been following all of the the elements of with the supreme court in bangkok very shortly. there is worry that the -- there is word that the conflict in eastern congo could be nearing an end. david eloida is in the congo.

>> this is the front line of spending, broadcast to rebels to give themselves up is transmitted several hours a day. from the watch fly here to pakistan, -- from the watchman, here, there are calls to give themselves up. it may not look like much, but it could be the key to ending one of africa's worst guerrilla wars. there have been abuses on all sides in this war, poorly paid and train to government troops prey upon the rebels just as the hutus to.

a local administrator denies it. >> it is not a single case where our forces have captured rebels and killed them in the field. >> we were told that 20 rebels sent a message here two days ago wanting to give up, but they were killed instead. >> we have to first make that decision to go out at night, put barriers away from the camps. it is clearly very difficult. we should remember that they also have dependence, as many as five or six children. -- dependents, as many as five or six children there is hope at last that it soon could be over -- dependents, as many as five or six children. >> there is will that it soon

could be over. the end may now be in sight. i]>> let's get more on one of or main stories because we were just talking a few minutes ago about the issuing that is a minute from the supreme court in thailand on whether some $2 billion will be confiscated from the former prime minister thaksin shinawatra, accused of corruption. rachel harvey is outside the supreme court in bangkok. is not looking good for mr. thaksin, is it? >> it is not looking good. the judges have been going at it for some five and half hours. they have already made several things clear, first, they say mr. thaksin did unlawfully conceal the influence he held in the family firm. they also say that while he was

prime minister, he refused policies that benefit give that company and the family. it is not looking good for mr. thaksin. what we have not heard is how much of the money that was frozen will be confiscated by the state. >> there are an awful lot of security forces on the street. >> there are a lot of security forces on the street. the atmosphere of the court here, despite hundreds of riot police, has been very relaxed. there could be violent and fears that a chasm could open up in thailand once more. there is no doubt that it has thrown the spotlight on the divisions in society. but they said that they did not expect any major demonstration for today.

and the red shirts said they will continue, regardless of what happened today. you cannot separate anything from the political in thailand. even though the government and some experts have been saying that this is a very open process, that mr. thaksin's relatives were able to come here and defend themselves. the problem is, he was removed by a military coup and the investigation that ensued was by a special committee set up after the military coup. those who have been against the coup and in favor of mr. thaksin nntwill say it is politically motivated from the start. 'c>> and mr. thaksin is no lonr in thailand, is he? >> no, he is not. he is in exile in dubai. he has been sending twitter messages saying that all of this from his brave, hard work,

and not corruption. he still has quite a bit of support. whatever happens here today, that remains the case. >> thank you very much, indeed. you can get much more on the story at the website bbc.com including the top story, the deadly suicide bombing in kabul. coming up in the war of words, we have heard from london envoy cazares, but what do people living on the island -- from london and when a star isoo but what do people living on alan make of the drilling for oil there? britain is calling for tighter restrictions on the media to stop children from being

bombarded with the success of material. ministers are considering a series of recommendations. june kelly now reports. >> from music videos to magazines, today's report paints a picture of an upcoming generation bombarded with sexual messages. this is the celebrity culture generation and the pressure is on, according to the report. when it comes to images, these 16-year oldss n know all about r pressure. >> i see this and it makes me feel that i do not look good in any way. people are into black hair and extensions and makeup and surgery just to look closer to what these are.

>> the report recommendations include a system of rating symbols for photographs to show the extent to which they have been airbrushed. sold with parental locks already switched on to filter out adult content. the internet, just one of thed influence on the behavior of those girls and boys. >> what we are seeing is a very simplistic idea to live up to, usually being skinny and sexy for girls and four boys, aggressive and controlling. >> ministers are considering the report's recommendation. john kelly, bbc news. -- june kelly, bbc news. >> this is gmc from bbc robbins.

-- from bbc world news. taliban thmilitant attack the capital of afghanistan, kabul, killing at least 16. and judges are deciding whether to confiscate more than 10 -- $2 billion from former prime minister of thailand and thaksin shinawatra. a dispute is growing because british drilling for oil in the south american islands. many people are starting to wonder what impact any oil finds will have on their lives. >> there is heavy lifting going on in port stanley. 0lin the dark, tons of equipmet

is loaded on supply ships and headed for drilling offshore. this hardware firm has more than 1 billion pounds writing on the project. -- 1 million pounds writing on the projec-- riding on the pro. >> one never knows wh is around the corner. we're looking at a bright future. >> this small community is gearing up for change. many of the locals have sensed it. this man certainly has, he is a member of the island government. he says the recession hit here, too. and what they need is financial stability. >> it is very important to remember that. it will allow us to develop and

improve our infrastructure, housing,é@ education, health, l of the things that in modern society takes for granted. >> he says traditional industries like fishing should be booted because of concern over fish stocks. and here is another money spinner. the rugged beauty of the islands and engaging in wild life draw thousands of tourists each year, but now many of presidents are starting to wonder if that and petroleum can coexist. they worry about the potential pollution and the infrastructure that the oil industry would bring. >> yes, economically if would be marvelous, but i would be very sad to see the marvelous quality of life that we have here on the

island trend in any way. >> -- threaten to in any way. >-- threatened in any way. >> it may not necessarily be a good thing. >> here they never forget previous threats to their way of life, but while few say again, there need to be opportunities for the future development. >> it is apparently absolutely massive, covering an area of 2000 square kilometers and could have an impact on the weather in the future. a giant iceberg is breaking up. scientists fear that as a result we could be seen colder winters in the north atlantic in the coming future. >> this huge chunk of ice is the size of luxembourg, and is

estimated to old enough fresh water to supply every person on the planet for a year. it is so big that scientists have worded it has the potential to disrupt the world's ocean currents -- have worried it has the potential to disrupt the world's ocean currents. it adzf+ááq" to the bottom of the sea and affects how heat is tnsferred from region to region. the upshot of this could be more severe winters in the north of atlantic in years to come. researchers in the city of of our state is rare for an iceberg to be dislodged from that part of the antarctic continent. >> this is at least 50 years, and somewhere between 5100 years -- between 50,çoi and 100 years since this happened.

it is2íñ a 100 your ent. >> the iceberg is currently drifting south of australia. it is on a collision course with another monstrous slab of ice. scientists do not think the environment is to blame. it could, however, affect the!u wildlife in the area. >> tajikistan is due to have parliamentary elections on sunday. the rise of islam is worrying the current government. cor>> this is a group of follows of an ultra-conservative islamist movement. it was]. outlawed last year and

its members are now being prosecuted. -- its members are now being prosecuted. but there are legal is> this new program, a new approach [unintelligible] >> on the one hand, the government appears to be tolerant towards islam and allows the party to exist legally. on the other hand, it bans young women from wearing head scarves to school and teenage boys from

attending mosques. the government is concerned with the spread of islamic extremism. this man is a member of the banned religious organization that calls for the creation of a global islamic state. tortured. tajikistan is support and there is fear that it may encourage young men to seek membership in radical islamic groups. but others say that it does not mean that society is becoming more radical. >> [unintelligible]

what they do and how they're going to ship their relationship with the past. >> a tendency towards religious lifestyle in tajikistan is evident. the majority just want to have the freedom to observe. but in order to keep it away from political islam, the government has to find a way to address its social issues. >> and now, a 71-year-old comic book featuring the first avengers of the super hero batman was auctioned off in the united states for just over $1 million. the book has now broken a record for sales earlier this week when a 1958 superman comic was sold. it blew away all of the expectations.

you can get all of the details on bbc.com/news. and a reminder, afghan -- in afghanistan, at least 16 people up in killed in an explosion in the heart of the capital of kabul, close to, well known shopping districts. u!-- close to a wellner shoppig district. that is all for this edition. >> 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. a5♪

n zv >> union bank has put its global financial strength to work for a wide range of companies. 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. lp>> "bbc world news" was presented by kcet, los angeles. presented by kcet, los angeles.