>> 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, shell, and union bank. >> at union bank, our relationship managers use their expertise in global finance to guide you through the business strategies and opportunities of international commerce. we put our extended global network to work for a wide range of companies, from small

businesses to major corporations. what can we do for you? >> at shell, we believe the world needs a broader mix of energies. that's why we're supplying cleaner-burning natural gas to generate electricity. and it's also why, with our partner in brazil, shell is producing ethanol, a biofuel made from renewable sugar cane. >> a minute, mom! >> let's broaden the world's energy mix. let's go. >> a wave of bombings across iraq. more than 80 people killed. six provinces hit by explosions. many of the victims were shia pilgrims, raising fears of a renewed campaign of sectarian violence.

>> hello and welcome to gmt. i am george alagiah, with a world of news and opinion. also in the program -- football bosses in china jailed for corruption. why are the authorities acting now when it has been going on for years? wild fires in colorado. half of america's firefighting planes involved in a battle to control the blaze. it is midday in london, 7:00 a.m. in washington, and 2:00 in the afternoon in iraq, where more than 80 people have been killed following a wave of bombings and shootings in six provinces, including the capital of baghdad. many of the victims were shia muslims, commemorating a special day in their religious calendar. violence in iraq has fallen since the peak a few years ago. the latest attacks are a reminder that militants remain a threat and the sectarian

violence is by no means a thing of the past. latest sectarian violence -- in the capital of baghdad, four car bombs were timed to hit shia pilgrims as they gathered to commemorate one of their saints. >> the people were killed right here. this car belonged to a man who worked for a living. another one -- they could not find his body. >> shi'ites were victims of attacks, too. sunni groups feeling sidelined by a shia president. to the south, in the city of hilla, it was the police who were the targets. two car bombs exploded outside

restaurants. as the wounded were treated in hospital, observers say this is turning into one of the bloodiest days in a country that has known years of religious and ethnic strife. in the north, explosions hit the headquarters of the kurdish democratic party, causing the death and destruction. >> [speaking foreign language] >> i want to ask the government why they put their party headquarters in residential areas and among civilians. bombs are still going off, killing innocent people. >> political tensions in sectarian attacks have been growing since the last american troops left iraq. the government is deeply split between party lines and appears unable to bestop the violence.

the these explosions, as wed earlier, across six different provinces. it must take quite a lot of coordination. that must be worrying for the authorities. >> george, these explosions have spread through eight provinces. 18 provinces. these coordinated efforts, as you described it, was successful in raising fears across the iraqi communities. no coincidence that after each time -- something like this

happens, or in one of the major religious gatherings, also, something like this happens. today, both of these factors. one of the biggest religious occasions. also, iraq is also trying to get out of this political crisis. >> this political impasse, as you called it, raises questions about whether any sort of government is going to have the capacity to deal with what looks like a very organized campaign. >> the average iraqi in the streets would be -- this endangers the very core of the iraqis together. however, it certainly succeeded in raising concerns about the

capability of the government and the spreading security and safety across the country. on the other hand, the opposition thinks that the government, as long as it implements the agreement, it will always be open for criticism. also, the maliki government -'ve maliki government saying this is exactly the reaction to the so- called failure of the confidence vote -- failing to reach the expected numbers. >> thank you very much. thank you. >> the head of peacekeeping at says the conflict

in syria can now be considered a civil war. meanwhile, washington is expressing more concern about russian arms supplies from syria. from neighboring beirut, jim muir reports. >> this is what happened when the u.n. observers tried to get to haffa. people were chanting slogans in support of president bashar al- assad. syrian state tv had a different version of events. it said the observers refused to stop. it said three of the villages had been run over by the u.s. vehicles. men -- hehe rebel gun

blamed the u.n. observers. many other parts of the country, like homs -- state forces struggled to disarm armed rebels. the u.n. observers confirmed the government is making increasing use of helicopters. activists say the helicopters are firing and new kinds of missiles the had never seen before to supplement the shells on the ground. there's increasing talk of outside intervention, but the head of nato's says there's no plan at this stage. >> the regime in syria is responsible for violations of international law. i strongly urge the syrian leadership to accommodate the legitimate aspirations of the syrian people and introduce freedom and democracy. as the violence intensifies, the head of un peacekeeping has said

yes, this is now a civil war. the regime says no. it says it is confronting terrorism, to restore security and law and order. the opposition also says this is not a civil war, but an uprising against a brutal, tyrannical regime in which civilians, including children, have been killed daily by the dozens. despite the increasing militarization, the opposition insists this is still a mass popular movement that is trying to defend itself against violence. jim muir, "bbc world news." >> now to some of the other stories making headlines around the world today. a military court in tunisia is reported to upset its former president to 20 years in jail. the president, who was forced from power in 2011 was found guilty of various the charges

an. he is living in exile in saudi arabia. russian authorities are questioning leading opposition leaders after their party offices were raided by police on monday. it comes after thousands of protesters took part in a major anti-government rally in moscow on tuesday, the first since mr. putin returned to the kremlin as president. the final round of negotiations begin in rio today to produce a draft agreement ahead of next week's rio plu 20 summit. the summit will discuss issues such as water and food security, a fossil fuel subsidies, but many world leaders are expected to stay away while they tend to economic crises at home. hundreds of firefighters are tackling a wildfire in the u.s. state of colorado, which has

left at least one person dead. the blaze near fort collins has spread to an area nearly 110 square kilometers. half of america's firefighting airplanes are fighting to control the fire. >> it is one of the biggest wildfires colorado has ever seen, and it is still burning out of control. the warm weather and high winds have spread it quickly across dry hillside. flames have been dropping flame retardant to try to stop the fire from spreading. some big water tanker aircraft have been grounded from the winds. many homes have already been destroyed. hundreds of extra firefighters have been drafted in, trying to contain the blaze. >> we have not turned a corner yet on this. however, we have made progress. before long, they will have a line around this fire. we do not know when that will

be. >> people's livelihoods are dependent on the wind direction. many have been evacuated from their homes. >> below the water tower where all the trees are, that's where our house is. >> 1 2-year-old woman died as her mountain cabin -- one 62- year-old woman died as her mountain cabin burned. the >> some people have refused to evacuate. >> several agencies have been stretched by another fire in the mexico. again, hundreds of people were moved from affected areas. >> total devastation. a lifetime of work. at our age, it's going to be hard. >> it is hard to believe it was

standing three hours before and it is gone. >> the colorado fire is believed to be started by lightning. vast areas have been affected by drought. there are 19 big fires currently being fought across nine western states. >> four senior former football officials in china have been given heavy jail sentences and hefty fines for bribery and corruption. former national team players have also been sentenced. two of those given prison terms of 10 and a half years each are former heads of china's football association, making them the most senior football officials to be charged with taking bribes. we can get the latest from john, who is with us from shanghai. judging from the number of cases, corruption appears to run very deep in the game. >> that is right.

these latest convictions bring the total number of people sent to jail, referees, the jurors, managers, and players to 56. does seem to be confirming beyond doubt that corruption has gone to the heart of the game here. fans would tell you it's what they knew already. there were stories of games where defenders have taken on their own goalkeepers in its attempt to fix the score -- in an attempt to fix the score. teams walking off in disgust because players refused to play because they have been paid not to. >> why do you think the

authorities have been moving against this? is there a wider political motive going on here? >> it could be. there's no doubt about it. we've seen a number of things. not just the crackdown on corruption, but a lot of money pouring into the game at the moment. china is snapping up some very expensive, high-profile players. the suggestion is it might be part of a wider strategy. there are even suggestions that the man to become china's next president is himself a football fan and has made securing the world cup one of his goals. we do not know how tongue in cheek that is. there's a sense there's political head wouldnwinds behid

this. >> thank you very much. still to come on gmt -- we're following the olympic torch as it makes its way to the scottish capital. the vatican has declared the roman catholic nuns in the united states must safely promote its teachings. the conference which represents thousands of american nuns. >> a prayer and at first sight, one woman pretty much looks like another. america's nuns, different. they now choose for themselves where they feel they can do the most good. a vatican report said day ignored -- said they ignored church teachings. some are losing touch with tradition and discipline, it said. and so to the meeting in rome,

with the nuns rejecting accusations day undermined catholic teaching by adopting teachings such as homosexuality and all men priesthood. >> we had open dialogue. >> [speaking foreign language] >> the vatican said the meeting was conducted in an atmosphere of openness and cordiality. it stressed the nuns must promote church unity, and that means catholic teachings. at a time when the u.s. church has lost credibility over sexual abuse scandals involving priests. this long-running and often w may have a way to

go. >> the wife of george zimmerman has been charged with perjury. she is accused of knowingly making false statements about the couple's finances during april bail hearing. >> this is gmt from "bbc world news." i am george alagiah. the headlines -- six iraqi provinces are hit by explosions. many of the victims were shia pilgrims, raising fears of a new securing campaign. four senior football officials in china have been giving heavy jail sentences and heavy fines for bribery and corruption. let's catch up with the business news now with aaron heslehurst. boss, jamie dimon, is going to the american the senate, apparently to apologize for the $2 billion loss.

he will face the music. >> is not often we hear somebody bigger in banking facing the music. he will explain how the company lost at least $2 billion in these very risky trades that went horribly wrong. we know what he will say. they have already released his testimony. he's going to apologize. he's going to say, "we let a lot of people the wrong." he will stay the trader did not fully understand the risks. >> deja vu. >> exactly. >> the committee is interested in -- can banking executives actually spot these risks before they get to the point where they damage the whole bank or the whole banking system? we also know j.p. morgan will say they've worked very hard to fix this problem and it will not happen again.

that raises the question that i ask the experts. will this happen again? >> it will happen again. that is one sure thing. it is inevitable. the bankers' short memories are notorious. it is like clockwork every two to three years, a multibillion- dollar loss member. is our very short on wall street. it is almost inevitable. this will happen again. >> another boss, the head of the biggest ad agency. he wants a pay increase. >> this is the latest battle in the whole shareholder spring, if you will. wpp, the largest advertising group in the world. the boss has been credited for

building it from nothing. he is expected to receive a 60% increase in his pay package, which will take it to around $20 million. here is the interesting twist, george. last year, the company's board offered him very big rewards if he had very high targets. they thought back then that given the global economy that he would never hit the target. the price they were offering almost became academic. at the end of the day, he hit the target. the company made record profits. some big shareholders in the group think it's too excessive. the question i have, are the shareholders pointing the finger at the wrong person? >> the committee makes these decisions. if he manages to persuade them that he deserves more, perhaps the criticism should be directed at the committee. i think there's a need to make sure the committee, comprised

of big investors and board nominees -- that is probably part of the problem. >> that probably is part of the problem. >> thank you. >> day 26 of the olympic torch relay across the united kingdom. today, the torch set out from st. andrews, where prince william wendt, and is currently on its way to the capital in edinburg. visit karen.we can >> george, thank you very much. it's a lovely day in edinburg. that's were those wonderful fireworks come from every new year's eve. another special event taking place at edinburgh castle. that will be host to a very special concert in a few hours, where the olympic torch will enter the stadium and go to the stage just over there.

ight.s where it will l there's a lot of excitement about the olympics in scotland. there was always a thought that it would not be involved. now that it has made its way, there are so many more people involved in what has been going on. the torch has been making its way to the scottish capital, where it will write about five hours. one of the torchbearers is with me. she is a commonwealth silver fencer. lisa, how exciting is this for you? >> it is a great honor. it is very exciting. it is the first time the torch has been in scotland. >> as an athlete, what does it mean that the games themselves will be in great britain? >> every olympic games is a phenomenal event. every athlete looks forward to

it. to have it on their home turf, it is special. i think everyone will get involved. it is normally exciting. it is great experience. >> you are a fencer. it is an unusual sport in some circles. tell us a little bit about how you became a fencer at the top of your game. >> my father was a fencer. he was at the barcelona olympics. when i was very young, he took me training monday. i was in a lot of sports. i found i loved dancing as much as him. i continue to do it. >> how involved do your fellow olympics feel in the london olympics? you are competing. you're looking forward to the commonwealth games in 2014. >> it is still exciting. it is phenomenal.

it is something to look forward. i trained with the team a lot. i look forward to seeing them. every athlete is excited and looking forward to this year. it is something to look forward to. >> i am sure you're looking forward to carrying the torch. >> very much. could she will be taking the mantle of the torch tomorrow morning and running through edinburg tomorrow. thank you. back to you in london, george. >> thank you very much. thank you. we are getting news that syrian state tv says authorities are in control of haffa after eight days of clashes. reuters is reporting syrian forces have "cleansed terrorist groups from the town of haffa

and restored security." the u.n. has been describing was going on in syria as something very near a civil war. america raising concerns that what happens around haffa was nearing a massacre. that is it for this edition of gmt. please do stay with us here on "bbc world news." there is plenty more to come. >> funding was made possible by the freeman foundation of new york, stowe, vermont, and honolulu, newman's own foundation, union bank, and shell. >> at shell, we believe the world needs a broader mix of

energies. that's why we're supplying cleaner-burning natural gas to generate electricity. and it's also why, with our partner in brazil, shell is producing ethanol, a biofuel made from renewable sugar cane. >> a minute, mom! >> let's broaden the world's energy mix. let's go. >> "bbc world news" was presented by kcet, los angeles.