>> this is bbc world news. funding for this presentation is made possible by the freeman foundation of new york, stowe, vermont, and honolulu. newman's own foundation. and union bank. >> at union bank, our relationship managers work hard to understand the industry you operate in, working to nurture new ventures, and help provide capital for key strategic?x @ we offer expertise and tailored solutions in a wide range of industries. what can we do for you?

>> and now "bbc world news." >> the violence in syria spreads to the country's second city. two explosions rock the city of aleppo. syrian stain television says 25 people have been killed. it blames the attack on terrorist gangs. >> welcome to "g.m.t.." also in the program -- a bbc investigation revealed serious short comings in the recruitment process for the afghan army. clashes in greece as workers take to the streets in protest against austerity on top of austerity. two explosions have shaken the syrian city of aleppo.

the first such violence in the northern city since demonstrations against president assad's regime began nearly a year ago. the state television quoted a statement from the health ministry, saying that 25 people have died and 175 have been injured in the blast. it's blamed the attacks on what it called armed terrorist gangs, adding that the targets were a military intelligence complex and a security base where oppositionç activists ha blamed president assad's blamed president assad's regime. jim muir reports from beirut in laboring lebanon.ç >> aleppo had been largely untouched by the uprising, and now this. two huge bomb blasts in quick succession. state television swiftly began broadcasting gruesome live footage of bodiesç and human remains. the bombs went off near security buildings, but civilians seemed to have made up the bulk of the casualties. the government blamedñr terrorists, activists that the regime did it to discredit the

uprising. further south towards damascus, the battle goes on for parts of homs, the third city. activists reported more shelling and deaths. they're expecting an all-out ground assault, but it hasn't happened yet. >> why isn't the world helping us? where's the humanity in the where's the u.n.? why isn't anyone doing anything about this? these animals, these are civilian houses over there. are these -- >> conditions are said to be getting increasingly desperate after days of bombardment with quick queues for bread and other medical supplies running out. president obama has said what's happening at homs is outrageous. turkey to the north is also feeling that outrage. its foreign minister is in washington trying to coordinate a response and step up backing for the syrian opposition. >> there is a consensus that people -- i would prefer to say

regional awakening or arab awakening. it is a process which we all shall support. because without such a change in our region, that cannot be attained. >> but as the violence intensifies, so did the recriminations. russia is now accusing the west of being accomplices in the bloodshed for encouraging the opposition. and the west is blaming russia and china for not pressing president assad to2halt the carnage and step down. there's no clear way out. jim muir, bbcç news, beirut. >> reports from lebanon say that the army has reinforced its presence in the north of the country alongç the border shares with syria. states in the region have been watching the syrian uprising closely. concerns about an influx of refugee ands, of course, the impact of a possible regime change in damascus. our correspondent, rupert

wingfield-hayes, has been finding out what israelis make of events in syria. >> israel is no friend of bashar al-assad or his regime. this country has been pretty much in a perpetual state of conflict with syria since its foundation more than six decades ago. syria has been a long-time base for islamic jihad and hamas, and israel continues to occupy syria's golan heights. it's ironic, therefore, that this country, more than any other in this region, is extremely nervous about the demise of the assad regime. for the last 10 years, the border between israel and syria has been extremely quiet. and president assad has shown no inclination at all to want to restart a hot war with this country. and as israel has found on its other border in the last 12 months with egypt, the demise of a hard-line dictatorship to be replaced by more democratic regime can lead to a government that is even more hostile to

this country. >> i think they know how to deal with syria, that we have known until now, but because everything there is changing, i think that it could be kind of a complicated deal for us in the future. >> they can be even good for israel, because we have a tie ran that needs picking up out of power, whoever comes back is going to be worse, always can be better, and the things that israel should support all the democratic movement, because two democracies never fight each other. >> i think to get involved militarily, i think maybe on the humanitarian ground, i was thinking that we should do something and possibly provide humanitarian assistance to refugees. >> all week long the bbc's paul wood has been filing extraordinary reports from homs inside syria.ç paul is now inç beirut.

questions from bbc viewers about what he saw in syria. you can post your questions at facebook facebook.com/world. you can watch the program live at 1500 g.m.t. let's take a look at some of other stories today -- attacks when afghan soldiers have turned their weapons on their colleagues or coalition troops and areç becoming more common. the most recent incident saw an afghan recruit killing four french troops while on a joint operation hunting down a taliban commander. the bbc has been looking into his background. in the process, our correspondent has discovered serious shortcomings in the recruitment process for the afghan army. he joins me now. it's interesting, this history of this soldier's recruitment. let's just start with that before we discover from you what the shortcomings are. >> well, he was mentally

unstable. he did not qualify to join the afghan national army. he had been hospitalized in one of the mental hospital, and he had a recruitment file by bribing a localç official in kabul, saying it's the first place he should have not been in the army.ç >> what's thought to have trirged his actions on these troops?ç >> it's still not clear if he had any taliban links at all. that's the subject of an investigation by the after began defense, but we do know that he was not mentally stable. he even threatened to burn, kill his partner, and kill his stepmother. by investigating this series of events, you've uncovered some short comings in the actual application process. explain this.

>> well, there are hundreds ofñ files. these are the ones that were discovered by the afghan national army. at least 500 people were turned down because of having links with the taliban. they're suspected of being with the enemy, as well as the fact that quite a number of people have been -- it was only introduced 10 months ago, so we don't know how many people may be posing a danger, according to senior defense minister officials. but this said, they are worried about a number of short comings, including corruption inside the minister of defense, and at least 12 afghan officials working for the minister of defense have now been jailed. >> of course, this must spark much concern amongst nato members, and how much say they have in the recruitment process.

>> well, they have said it's a matter for the afghan t+fi+ officials, but no doubt it is a cause for serious worry and concern, because the afghan national army is seen asç a ke solution after the foreign forces withdraw and they hand over security control to the afghan forces. it's also worth mentioning that the afghan national army is a force that has been plagued by high desertion rates, drug addictions. there's not only taliban infiltration, it has many other problems as well. >> ok, some very interesting revelations that have come through. thank you very much for joining us. pakistan's supreme court has rejected an appeal by theç pri minister, yousuf raza gilani, against its decision to charge him with contempt of court for failing to reopen an old corruption case against presidentç asif zardari. if convicted, mr. gilani could be jailed for six months and

disqualified from holding public office. thousands of brazilian police and firefighters have voted in favor of strike action at a massive rally in rio de janeiro. the strike could affect next week's carnival, one of brazil's best-known celebrations. former maldives president, mohammed nasheed, to hand over power to the speaker of the parliament and call for new elections. he also voiced disappointment that the u.s. decision to recognize his successor. there's been clashes in greece between riot police and protesters venting their fury at government austerity measures. petro bombs were thrown at the security forces as workers took to the streets at the start of a 48-hour strike. the clashes come hours after europe's finance ministersç demanded even deeper cuts after conditions for a second bailout. with time running out for greece to avoid a messy debt default. the german chancellor is reported to have warned earlier that a greece default could unleash uncontrollable consequences.

the bbc's athens correspondent, mark lowen, says popular resistance to yet more austerity on top of already draconian cuts, is high. >> i think it's going to be very difficult to persuade an angry greek public that this is the way to go, because the austerity package goes quite far. 22% cut in the minimum wage, 15,000 civil servants are to be laid off as a cut in social security contributions by employers. and yet still the rhetoric says it goes further. you can seeç behind me the crowds are gathering outside parliament. there's been a few thousand people out on the streets today despiteç the pretty awful weather, angry at the program of yet nor austerity and cuts to come, given the fact that greece is in its worst recession since the second world war, and many here feel that the package of reforms and cuts is simply exacerbating the situation and driving up unemployment, which is now soared over 20%. >> mark lowen there. researchers have some encouraging news for women who

find themselves in a rather frightening situation, being diagnosed with cancer while pregnant. studies suggest that these women can be treated almost the same as other cancer patients are with minimal risk for their unborn baby. well, ian curry from the world college oft( obstetricians and gynecologists joins me now from ourç central london studio. thank you very much for speaking to me today. this appears to be encouraging news. just tell me how many pregnant women this is likely to affect. >> approximately 5,000 women a year in the u.k. are diagnosed with breast cancer in reproductive age. about 15% are diagnosed under the age of -- total breast cancer numbers are diagnosed under the age of 45. so it's clearly a big problem in terms of the overall concern of management in pregnancy with women and breast cancer.ñrç i think this study gives a good overview as to how clinicians

and the women get clear advice as to a way forward, as to how to manage them in pregnancy. >> speaking of theç latest, to hear the chemotherapy, which is effectively a foreign poison being put into theç body, can you explain how this doesn't harm aç fetus? >> there has been concerns in the past in terms of giving these chemicals toç women in pregnancy. and we've always known that giving it in the first few weeks of pregnancy, the first trimester, up to about 14 weeks, is associated with and causing abnormalities, and we've tended to avoid that area. the dilemma has been in the past,ç as the baby hasç forme the vast majorityç of its organs, do these toxic chemicals cause any concern of neurodevelopmental delay or concerns about a newborn baby, and are those issues continued

on throughout -- into childhood? and this study has looked at 70 children given chemotherapy during pregnancy, and looked at in total they received over 230 cycles of chemotherapy agents whilst their moms have been pregnant. >> i understand the placenta does work as some barrier to these drugs. does this mean women will not be encouraged to terminate pregnancies because they're diagnosed with cancer? >> i think the issue to terminate is a very difficult one in terms of -- and what has to beç discussed with the woma and up object strigsç -- obstetrician, along with an oncologist. i think a team approach has to be approached and the decision based on its merits. this takes a look at specifically chemotherapy given laterç on in pregnancy, and traditionally in the past, when

we've been dealing with patients w@o!have either deteriorated because of their cancer, should we deliver that patient earlier and expose the baby to the risks of prematurity, and thereby start chemotherapy? and those are the issues that have been addressed in this paper. although there is a cautionary tale about the need for longer term followup and probably greater numbers to give greater clarity in terms of the development problems that might be seen in children. >> indeed. ok, ian currie of the world college of obstetricians and gynecologists, thank you very much for your time. still to come on "g.m.t." -- as temperatures plummet in ukraine, we see how those down on their luck are keeping the freeze at bay. let's take a look at some of the stories that are making the front pages of newspapers around the world. let's start with this figure.

it shows the european union flags flying over the acropolis in athens. the paper looks at the use materiality deal that's -- the austerity deal that's finally been agreed upon by leaders. the dubai news reports on possible move by the arab league to recognize the syrian national council as the legitimate representative of the country's people. tax breaks for hiring help, "the times" of london says the british prime minister, david cameron, wants to copy a swedish plan to cut costs as a way of encouraging the economy and stamping out the cash in hand black market for hired help. as the mercury levels continue to drop across europe, the international herald tribune shows a barge on a canal in paris clattering its way through the ice. the paper reports on how the deep freeze has killed homeless people across the continent and spiked demand for power.

you're watching "g.m.t. from "bbc world news." here are the headlines this hour. syrian state television says 25 people have been killed after two explosions in the country's second city. it blames the attack in aleppo on terrorist gangs.ç a bbc investigation into the afghanç army recruitment proce has revealed that hundreds of cases of soldiers who are admitted into the ranks was based on fake documents. time to take a look at what's happening in the world of business with juliette. we've had a big bank in the u.k. reporting results. how have they come across? >> this is barclays, the fourth quarter results. it's the last three months of 2011. interesting, it's $9.4 billion. you think that would satisfy, but it doesn't satisfy analysts, because they say it's a drop of 3%, below their expectations. and really, if you want to trace the fault line, you could actually go to the investment banking division, barclays capital. they took a 19% drop.

it's not surprisingç if you lo at the actual backdrop against which they were trading. you have the fallout from the yours crisis. but the interesting thing, of course, is mr. dimon's money. we don't know how much he has been awarded. there's lots of speculation about what that figure is. earlier, we spoke to ralph silver, a banking analyst, and he said, look, we've got to bonuses. if we do that, there's a real danger we could see many of these talented individuals leaving the country and going elsewhere. of course, they're the ones who are benefiting in other countries. >> there's always risks involved here. it's the nature of the business. it's a risky business. so, we have to pay these guys to keep them, butç we have to pay them only the amount that we need to pay them to keep them so they don't move on. bob diamond is a realñvç flight risk, because, a, he's american, and b, barclays makes most of its money in america. >> but this is a footnote to that. bob diamond did a conference call with various analysts,ç a somebody had the courage to qa21:urpá'sç happen with this bonus? and he said, this is about

results today, and apparently it was a very crisp reply and they moved on.  bonuses, but ralph makes a fair point as well. there's an india-e.u. summit, and many question how much progress, if any, is being made. >> it's interesting, because what they're trying to do is to generate a free trade agreement between both sides. they said they make progress, but boy have, they taken a long time to make progress. they've been talking since 2008.ç >> that's a very long conversation. >> it's an extremely long conversation. but i mean, the president has said an agreement could be signed by the autumn, the single biggest tradeç agreemen in the world, so, yes, there are issuesç which have to be resolved. for example, duties on cars, spirits, etc. but we spoke to a lady who's an indian analyst, and she said, yes, there are quite a few as well.

there is hope for optimism. >>ç this fear that there will dumping of goods from you and also that we cannot open up the retail trade right away, and we cannot allowç banking services immediately. those are theç negatives.ç otherwise i think there areç n many problems which will be problematic in the future. so i think these are the negatives, india being still a developing country, just cannot, you know, manage to come to the team. that is the main problem i think. >> i think one of the issues which this sovereign debt crisis has highlighted is the importance of these emerging markets, because india, if tze e.u. is india's biggest trading partner accounting for around 14% of india'sç trade, and giv that the eurozone is a key market to itself, given what is happening, for thoseç companie which actually rely on them, they need this deal. it's very important.

>> keep the conversation going. >> absolutely. >> thaék you vdby much. >> thank you. >> other news now -- ukraine is one of the countries worstç hi by the cold spell that continues to hold parts of europe in its icy grip. days, the highest number in europe. this as temperatures approach minus 30 degrees celsius at night. they're suffering most --ç tho suffering most are the country's homeless. >> this morning, it is a frigid minus 17 degrees. but that does not stop sergei. every day he stands outside kiev's main trainç station, on of the main gathering pointsç for those looking for work. sergei left his home in eastern ukraine three weeks ago. he saysç that the job market there is terrible. but in kiev, it's not much better.

right now because it'sç so col i'm hoping that once it finally gets warmer, there will be more employers and more work in general. >> sergei stands outsideç the train station until he can't bear the cold any longer. then he returns to his home for the moment, a heating shelter set up by the ukrainian government. there's some 3,000 of these tents across the country. 10 in kiev alone. here, the homeless can get a hot meal and a warm place to sleep. for sergei, the shelter is a god send. before it opened, he slept in the train station. kiev's homeless population, however, numbers more than 10,000. there may not be enough places in the shelters for everyone. well over half of those who have perished during this cold spell have died on the streets. some experts blame the ukrainian government for the highç death toll among theç

homeless. but others say that the country is suffering from a weak economy and abnormally sub-zero weather. this is one of kie+os pedestrian underpasses, located underneath the main square. at night, the temperaturesç he can reach minus 10. but as you can see, some people are also forced to make this their home.ç ukraine isç used to cold winte weather, but still, the degree and the duration of this cold spell has taken many here by surprise. on the marginsçç of society, spring 9ñ david stern, bbc news, kiev. >> the mexican army says it has seized 15 tons of methamphetamines in a western state. soldiers found the synthetic drug at a ranch after a tipoff. it's thought to be the largest amount ever seized in mexico. the authorities also seized equipment.ç

>> mexicanç soldiers stand gua overç one of the largest drug hauls in the country's history. inside this ordinary-looking house, mexican officials found a drug laboratory with barrel after barrel of white and yellow powder. all this, part of a drug stockpile with a street value of around $4 billion. >> we found the lab thanks to an anonymous tipoff, for which we thank the population. and also, through our own patrols. >> so far, there'sç no information on the final destination of these drugs or even who might be behind them. some officials think it could be the mostç powerful drug gan in mexico. mexican cartels long known for dealing in cocaine, are increasingly influential players in the methamphetamine

trade, a new challenge for the authorities. in mexico's longçç and bloody drug war. danielç griffiths, bbc news. >> just before we go, let's bring you a a reminder of our mainç stories. at least two bombs have explodedç in the syrian city o aleppo, causing deaths and injury. state television said at least 25 people were killed and 175 wounded. it broadcast footage showing corporations and mangled body parts, blaming the attack on gangs. opposition activists accuse the syrian government as being responsible. let's also show you what's going on in the center of athens at the moment. a general strike is underway. thousands of people have taken to the streets. this is as unions have launched a two-day general strike, all of this against planned austerity measures, a day,ing of course, after greece's bailout was putç in limbo by i partners in the 17-nation eurozone.çç

that's all for the moment. i'll see you later.ç ç >> make sense of international news at bbc.com/news.ç >> funding was made possible by the freeman foundation of new york, stowe, vermont, and honolulu.ç newman's own foundation. and union bank. >> at union bank, ourç relationship managers work hard to understand the industry you operate in, working to nurture new ventures, and help provide capital for key strategic ddsisions. we offer expertise and tailored solutions in a wide range of industries.

what can we do for you? >> bbc world news was presented by kcet los angeles.