[captioned by the national captioning institute --www.ncicap.org--] >> this is "bbc world news america." >> funding for this presentation is made possible by -- the freeman foundation of new york, stowe, vermont, and honolulu, newman's own foundation, shell, and union bank. >> at union bank, our relationship managers work hard to know your business, offering specialized solutions and capital to help you meet your growth objectives. we offer expertise and tailored solutions for small businesses and major corporations. what can we do for you?

>> and now "bbc world news america." >> disintegration moves a step closer as taureg rebels declare the rest of the country is there. a country in chaos. will anyone rec chinese this latest bid for control? -- recognize this elite eight bid for control? coming up on the program, the u.s. convicts the russians condemn. as the arms victor has 25-year jail sentence for conspiracy to kill american nationals. and is this the greatest risk for the fight against malaria? scientists race to beat a drug resistance strain in malaysia.

it's midday in london. 7:00 a.m. in new york, and 11:00 in the morning in malawi as taureg rebels in the north declare independence. the nmla say they're in charge of their own state and they've ended the fighting which forced tens of thousands of people to three their homes. the group has capitalized on the two launched in t capital last month. neighboring countries have refused to recognize the two leaders and france's defense ministers say their declaration itself is worthless if nobody recognizes it. >> the ethnic traug, lighter skin an the -- taureg lighter skin than the tauregs moved in smaller groups. they move in with great speed. a rebel spokesman was at pain to stress that he had no arguments

with neighboring countries. >> the borders remain the same. the borders in algeria will remain as they are. we don't intend to go further. >> but this flag is unlikely to be recognized by the outside world. today's declaration of independence formalizes the position recognizing international border says the tauregs respect the united nations and calls for peace. but the attitude of the outside world has been firm. president sarkozy of france spoke before the taureg's independent claim. >> the reality he said is that yes, you have the tauregs and the state but you also have with the tauregs the north african branch of al qaeda which wants to set up a terrorist state in the region.

african leaders are worried by developments in mali too. diplomats have been talking with the soldier who mounted a military cue last month. it was the confusion cause tpwhid kuchar that's -- coup that has allowed the insurgents to move so fast. the one step in this drama must be for them to to hand back power to civilians. >> let's take a listen at some of the other stories making headlines around the world today. russia has criticized an american court for sentencing a russian arms dealer to 25 years in prison. viktor bout was jailed for conspiring to sell missiles to rebels from colombia. prosecutors call him a threat to the united states. they say the weapons could have been used to kill americans. daniel has more on the reaction

from russia. >> the russian reaction has been very strong in a statement posted on the russian foreign ministry website. the ministry described this is an unfounded verdict and a bias verdict. it's of the court's decision have been political. one russian foreign ministry said this is an outrageous verdict. the russian foreign ministry said the press have conducted a witch hunt against viktor bout in order to influence the jury and they said they are doing everything they can to get viktor bout home. that's likely to mean that they will be trying to negotiate with american officials to see if he can serve his sentence here in russia. interestingly, the react didn't acknowledge the fact that the judge had given him the minimum sentence that she could. she said this is a sting operation and viktor bout never would have sold weapons in reality. this was only because he was

being offered the opportunity to sell weapons to colombian rebel which is might have been used to shoot down americans but she had given him the minimum sentence but viktor bout's wife did acknowledge that the judge had given him the lower sentence possible and she said it was obviously a recognition that the prosecutor's arguments were inconsistent. and one note of warning for americans over the next few months. the russian foreign minister said this would be high on their agenda for the russian-american relations for months and years ahead. >> thousands of refugees continue to cross the border as the crisis is escalating. more than 2,000 arrived on thursday. that's the highest number in one day so far. the u.n. called for the government to agree a cease-fire. the malawi president bingu wa

mutharika has died. he suffered a heart attack. sources confirmed his death following conflicting reports about his can. his body has now been taken to south africa. the man once referred to as china's most wanted has again on trial. he is accused of bribing officials and smuggling goods in one of china's biggest political scandals. he was repapuated last year after 12 years on the run in canada. doctors say they are in a race against time to stop the spread of potentially untreatable malaria. a new strain of the disease has emerged on the border of thigh land and burma which is resistant to the most effective treatments. experts fear the drug run it malaria could spread to india and africa. >> malaria kills hundreds of thousands of people every year. it's caused by a parasite that is spread by mosquitos and those in the world's poorest countries are most at risk.

those who contact malaria are treated with a drug but a few years ago, scientists in cambodia noticed a worrying change. malaria victims were taking longer to recover. the medicine was not working. that drug run it strain of the disease has now been discovered on the border between thigh land and burma. experts say they can't tell whether it's a new outbreak or if it's it originated in cambodia but the u.n. special envoy from malaria told the bbc there's no reason to panic. >> just because there is resistance emerging doesn't mean the drugs are not completely useless. what researchers feel or understand is that the parasite clearance, meaning how long the parasite stays in your bloodstream takes longer to clear not that the drugs are completely useless, that's not true. so we don't want people to

panic. we don't want people to feel as though there's no other option. what we do want the world to understand is that we need to start and scale up some fairly aggressive plans to monitor and to the resistance where it is. >> in 2010, 655,000 people died from malaria. unless something is done to contain this new strain and fast, it could spread to india and africa and that would be disastrous. >> a disaster scenario then. with me in the studio, dr. sylvia meek, an organization dedicated to the control of malaria. let's start first of all to the reasons as to why this strain has now become so impotent, really. >> well, it starts off with a random mutation in the parasite but in certain environments, that can spread if this is

resistance to the drugs. and the circumstances for allowing it to increase have been very prevalent in the southeast asian region that was founded. >> and what are those conditions? is it the way in which the drug itself is administered perhaps by the people using it themselves? >> yeah. that's a big problem there. you have to really take a full course of the right drugs and in that area, not everyone has access to the right drugs and a lot of people are taking either partial courses of the drugs or taking other drugs. and the way our combination therapy works is two drugs each of which protects the other and a big problem there is that one of the drugs, not protected by the other and that really does stimulate a big increase. >> right. and in this case, is it simply too late? you can't now mic their everyone uses the drugs and -- strengthen

the drugs, i suppose. >> i wouldn't say it's too late. the work that's been going on to the border of thigh plan and cambodia where it's first found, although it's there, it's been efforts to try and eliminate that species of malaria totally. and then you would actually be ok. the problem at the moment is finding -- the transmission and the challenges of limitation there are much greater. but it's not too late to try. >> right. but i fully understand. your greatest concern must be that it does get transferred on to india and dare i say africa. how likely is that, do you think? >> well, that's the greatest fear because in africa, there's much, much more malaria and much more mortality from malaria. in terms of likelihood, it's very difficult to know. there are some suggestions that when resistance developing too

early, it did spread from asia on to africa. but we don't know yet with this one, whether it's going to be spread of the same run it parasite or if it's going to be spontaneous emergence. >> if it did, that would be a disaster, wouldn't it? >> oh, it would be a huge disaster because there really -- tear really making huge strides in malaria controls at the moment and one of the main thing is -- therapy and we don't have any other drugs or anything liability as effective. we would lose a lot of the gains that have been made in recent years. >> sylvia, thank you very much for spending time with us. thank you. christian pilgrims have marked good friday in jerusalem. walking on the road of the road of suffering. it is believed jesus walked this very way carrying to a cross outside to the city where he was crucified.

thousands gathered to remember. it wouldn't be easter without some hatchlings. some very special ones indeed. 18 extremely rare ducklings have been produced in captivity, an event hailed by conservationists from saving the species from extinction. >> 18 ducklings doing well and representing about a third of the world's entire population. these youngsters were born in madagascar. the first generation to be born from hatched birds. this is what they will be growing into the a striking cinnamon bird with a diamond-like eye. in 2009, about 28 were collected from the one lake where the pod survived. they hatched successfully and now a second generation has come along. >> i can see the beak on the surface. see the baby inside moving?

excellent. >> it was an exciting moment for conservationists when the birds hatched. it hopes they will be released in the wild next year. the one where they currently struggling to survive is believed to be home to a sizable and hungry crocodile. andy moore, "bbc news." >> and still to come on g.m.t., 20 years since the start of the civil war in bosnia. the people who lived through that reflect on europe's bloodiest conflicts since the second world war. it's been described as the tsunami ghost ship and a japanese boat that's been drifting across the pacific ocean since the disaster that struck japan last march. it's now been sunk by the u.s. coast guard. there were concerns it might pose a risk to other shipping. >> the ship went down in the gulf of alaska in a hail of cannon fire administered by the u.s. coast guard.

it did not go without a fight. it took five hours to finally sink. >> the coast guard utilized a high-powered cannon on board one of our patrol boats to puncture holes to literally shoot holes into the fishing vessel and cause it to take on water and sink. >> it was last march when the tsunami ripped the vessel from its moorings on the japanese island. it then drifted for 7,000 kilometers across the pacific. its final resting place, some 300 kilometers from the alaskan town. the united states coast guard say they have no choice but to sink it. it had no light or communication system and there were fears it had diesel on board. >> the ship sank at 6:15 alaska time. it sank in over 9,000 feet of water. there's been a little bit of fuel sheeting but it should quickly dissipate in the sandotion any debris we will

collect and take ashore. >> it may not be the last piece of tsunami wreckage to end up in alaska's waters. millions of tons of debris were washed out to sea and much of it is expected to head to the north american coast. >> a town build built the smallest the united states has sold at auction for $900,000. it was bought by two unidentified vam tease men. they will get a cool house, three bedroom house and a view of the nearby interstate. you're watching g.m.t. from bbc world news. the headline. taureg rebels declared independence in an area of northern mali where they seized control. they made the announcement on their website and calls for international recognition. moscow's criticized the sentencing of the russian armed dealer dealer and the united

states said it was unfounded and biased. all right. time for business news. aaron is here. will apple get all the headlines, don't they? >> they do. >> not fair. >> absolutely. because we're talking about samsung and i have to say, samsung has a remarkable story to tell. we're talking about a company that has reputation of being a fast follower rather than a design leader. we're talking about a company that got into the smart phone late. they always lag behind but how things change today. it is the number one in terms of selling smartphones. in the first three months, samsung is expected to record a record of over $5 billion. it's an astonishing number. all to the sale of its smartphones and tablet. in the first three months, samsung shipped 44 million smartphones. something else doing very well for the andeavent it's called the galaxy note. it was launched in october. and it's kind of being described

as a fablet. what is it? let's have a listen. >> many were questioning whether what was it? a smart phone or a tablet and many people said it wouldn't do well. they just announced that they've shipped over 5 million units of the galaxy notes in october. it's got a large range which explains why they had such a profitable year. >> so you've got that, right? a fablet. a phone and a tab plenty >> it's a good size. also, good size, the american government would feel is the number of jobs being created. >> absolutely. the jobs numbers, we can't stress how important this is and u.s. unemployment is a critical issue for the u.s. economy and it was an area that got hit very hard during the crisis. more than 8 million americans have lost their jobs in 2008 financial crisis but things things have been looking better. so today, we're expected the

announcement that 210,000 jobs were created in the month of march. that will mean it will be the fourth straight month in a row where job creation has been above 200,000. we haven't seen that since early 2000 so 12 years ago in terms of things looking bert, unemployment rate is low. business are spending more. factories are making more. americans are digging deeper into their pocket. they're buying the bigger stuff, durables, cars, washing machines. and on the job creation, it seems it's across the board. let's have a listen to this. >> we're seeing jobs gaining across the economy. all the major sectors adding jobs. manufacturing is doing quite well. the construction sector has been adding jobs. and the service sector where the bulk of the job gains are typically occur is also adding jobs. >> so all good news. it's very important with the presidential election this year as well.

and the campaigns from both sides will be dominated by the economy. >> stupid economy. the. there you go. >> aaron. let me write that down. thank you very much indeed. [laughter] >> now, it was the worst conflict in europe since world war ii. tens of thousands of people were killed in the civil war that followed the breakup of yugoslavia. many more driven away from their home. 20 years since the war, more than 300,000 are still cast as refugees or displaced. we'll be speaking to the foreign minister but this word from peter viles. the bridge of sarajevo. this week, people have been remembering the events of april 1992, and the tragedy that then unfolded in the heart of southern europe. the victims were killed for nothing, says this woman. that's my opinion, she says, on

all sides, everything happened for nothing. the conflict began in sarajevo when then bostjan serbs rejected independence. the serbs wanted to remain what was left of the yugoslav federation. the two other communities in bosnia did not. ♪ the bostjan serbs quickly assumed control of more than half the rebel. the commander and the political leader laid siege to sarajevo. with backing from belgrade, the bostjan serbs set up their own enclave. the sound they dread the most, enemy snipers in action. >> the siege lasted for three years and eight months. a new term entered the european

vocabulary. ethnic cleansing. people were driven from their home in what has become a three-way conflict. it off defied explanation. the worst singular atrocity came in the summer of 1995 when bostjan certain forces and the commander overran what was supposed to be a united nations safe haven. 8,000 muslim men and boys were separated from their families and massacred, despite the presence of dutch u.n. troops. peace was eventually imposed in bosnia but only after the death of tense of thousands of people. what remained a bitter memory and yet an unfulfilled demand for justice. >> we're going to speak the bostjan foreign minister.

these the seats people have to fill, those red chairs, laid out in remembrance of the 1 ,541 people of sarajevo who lost their lives in the course to the siege of the city. a very poignant reminder to just how many people were affected in the bitter conflict between serbs, croots and bosnian muslims. a conflict which still resonates inevitably across the country and across the former yugoslavia to differing degrees. that is the scene at the moment. obviously, different impacts to different countries too. we can look at croatia, for example, preparing to join the european union in a couple of month's time. serbian navigating its way towards membership. and bosnian, still in their

economic state. the ratings agencies, pegging them further and further down the list as they battle away with the very awkward and difficult administration by the three ethnic groupings. we can go over now to soiree owe because joining me by video link is the country's foreign minister. thank you very much for joining us. we've just been looking at the pictures of 11,541 empty chairs, commemorating 20 years since the start of the siege of sarajevo. under these circumstances, it's difficult to believe that feelings about the war are still not -- very raw, are they? >> oh, yeah, they are. as a matter of fact, when we have eventually this when something like this makes us think about our past and of course, it brings up mixed feelings. but 11,541 chairs, everyone?

sarajevo has sat on those chairs, mother, brother, friends, relative. but this isn't about 20 years ago what happened. this is for most of us, what we want to do. how to avoid that something like that ever happened to us and no one else and that's why we have a feeling that we have to answer responsibility for our future and for future of civilized world. the besiege of sarajevo that ended in 20th century. when the woman was visiting us, the 20th century started in soiree owe and ended in sarajevo. and i hope in two years from now, of whatever kind in which flag or native will be here, 100 meters from here, from these chairs because bosnia is becoming an independent country.

>> most of us, you said, want to do this one act commemoration, but is it possible yet for representatives of all bosnian, coa t's and for muslims tuille come together. is that inpossible? >> it is possible. sarajevo was especially in the beginning of the siege, that there's were a lot of people in religious groups who were killed, shot, by grenade, by sniper, by whatever means. and this is, if i can put it this way, this is not mono

ethnic or mono religious set of chairs. >> thank you, foreign minister. and thanks to you all for watching. stay with us here on bbc. >> funding was made possible by -- the freeman foundation of new york, stowe, vermont, and honolulu, newman's own foundation, union bank, and shell. >> this is kim, about to feel one of his favorite sensations. at shell, we're developing more efficient fuels in countries

like malaysia that can help us get the most from our energy resources. let's use energy more efficiently. let's go. >> "bbc world news america" was presented by kcet los angeles.