>> 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 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." >> the barclays chief, bob diamond, quits in the wake of the interest rate rigging scandal. he faced mounting pressure from british politicians, press, and the public. there are still questions about london's reputation with the banking sector. >> once again, we have been confronted with the reckless trading and market manipulation. it is time that these practices stop once and for all. >> hello and welcome to gmt. i am george alagiah, with a world of news and opinion. also in the program -- the syrian regime condemns the systematic use of torture. these pictures are based on the

victims.ts of the f officials in china have backed off of building a copper factory after thousands said it would lead to pollution. >> in london, the barclays chief executive has announced his resignation in the wake of the interest rate-rigging scandal involving some of his traders. his departure has done nothing to mute calls for an inquiry into not just barclays, but banking culture in london. regulation in britain is under the spotlight. >> bob diamond had hoped to ride out the storm. the embattled $30 million per year and chief executive of

barclays had promised to push through a review of the bank's ethics. now he has decided to go after 16 years at the bank. in his resignation letter, he said, "no decision over that period was as hard as the one i make now, to stand down as chief executive. the external pressure placed on barclays has reached a level that it could damage the franchise. i cannot let that happen. i am deeply disappointed that the impression created last week could not be further from the truth." barclays was fined over $450 million for submitting false reports and trying to manipulate bank borrowing rates. the fraud office is considering serious charges. the government announced a banking inquiry to investigate what went wrong and it welcomed the resignation of bob diamond. >> bob diamond has made the

right decision for barclays and also the right decision for the country. we need our banks. i hope this can be the first step toward a new culture of responsibility in british banking. >> more than a dozen other banks are being investigated by authorities in north america and europe. more scandal does nothing to help the eu and gripped by economic woes. >> once again, we have been confronted with a reckless trading and market manipulation. it is time that this practice is stopped once and for all. >> as for barclays with bob diamond now leaving his post, the chairman, who himself offered to resign, is back for now to oversee the appointment of the new chief executive. agius may have more revelations

to make at an influential parliamentary committee on wednesday. >> let's stay with barclays. heslehurst isaron here. we know that other banks were probably involved in some of this interest rate rigging. does bob diamond's department said a president -- bob diamond's departure set a precedent. >> yesterday, we have marcus agius, the chairman, resigning. today, it is not agius. it is bob diamond. many tell us he will eventually

go. as you said, other banks are under investigation. at this moment, we do not know the findings. you got to say the implications will be -- if they are as serious as what went on at barclays, the pressure on the bank's boss will be absolutely immense. there are some differences, so the experts tell me. having listened to this. >> i think, to be fair, barclays is one of the only british banks that has the same management team in place that took them through the credit crunch. many of the other banks, those that took government support, have already seen new management. in the case, for example, of rbs, it may be easier to claim that the management sueshould survive. there will be a lot more stories and e-mails and text messages revealed. this will run and run for

months. >> run and run. >> london, we talk about it as the world's financial heart. it must have taken quite a battering, its reputation. >> that is certainly the major worry for the country's leaders and key politicians. that's why they've all come out in support of this decision of bob diamond resigning. we cannot underestimate how important the financial sector is. it is there largest employer for the private sector -- it is the largest employer for the private sector. it is also the reason we have seen some of these comments from the leaders. in particular, the british finance minister, george osborn "hopes this is the first step to creating a new culture of financial responsibility." other financial sectors around the world are watching like

hawks at the moment. here is a question i put to some of the experts i put -- is the question i put to some of the experts today. >> we should not underestimate how much rent additional damage it has done and we had the big financial scandal -- how much damage it has done. we had the big financial scandal a few years ago. this has not been as drastic, but it plays into the hands of people who want to think financial markets are all great. there's no help whatsoever for the banks' reputations. >> we have the select committee tomorrow. bob diamond is going to be drilled. he is going to be grilled as a man who no longer works for barclays. many people believe he will be a lot more open. there will be questions about a phone call that happened during the crisis between bob diamond and the deputy governor general of the bank of england. there are some reports out there

circulating that the bank of england may have given a thumbs up, a going ahead, to this. no doubt, we will talk about that tomorrow. >> thank you. now to some of the other stories making headlines around the world today. syria's president has told a turkish newspaper it that he wished syrian forces had not shot down a turkish military jet last month. mr. assad said he would not allow the tensions between the two countries to turn into open combat. he is quoted as saying, "we learned it belonged to turkey after shooting it down." meanwhile, a human rights watch says the syrian government is using systematic torture to try to crush the rebellion against president bashar al-assad. a report published gives the

various methods of torture in use. it is now calling for those implicated to be prosecuted by the international criminal court. bbc's james reynolds has this report from the turkish-syria border. >> in damascus, security forces demonstrate their power. here, a man standing by the wall is punched. the new human rights watch report outlines what happens to these people if they get taken away. they are teachers from northern syria. they have taken refuge here in southern turkey. at the end of last year, syrian security forces detained them for demonstrated. he was beaten so badly that he offered to pay guards to kill him and his pain. he was made to lie on the ground while a soldier kicked him. >> [speaking foreign language] >> so we could not escape, they tied our hands behind our backs

and the covered our eyes. we were bleeding from injuries. they kicked us in the head. they did us to make us say that assad is god. i refused, so the soldier broke my nose. >> [speaking foreign language] >> the soldier comes into the room, makes you lie down, and starts to kick you. if you deny their accusations again and again, the torture gets worse. they torture you would electric shock. they torture your wife and your children. >> opposition activists say these pictures show police and plainclothes attacking demonstrators. we cannot independently verify the claims. they are accused of running 27 detention centers and carrying out a state policy of torture. >> [speaking foreign language] >> the orders came from the heads of the security forces.

they were in direct contact with the president and his entourage. all the security forces were monitoring each other. if a soldier refused an order, his sentence would be death. >> human rights watch once those responsible for the crimes to be tried at the international criminal court. that is a move that can be blocked by syria's ally, russia. for now, at least, international justice stops at this border. syria is just meters away, but the families taking refuge at the camp on the turkish side do not dare to go back home. the report on torture help to explain why. james reynolds, bbc news on the turkish-syria border. >> we will have more on this later on on the gmt. i will be speaking to the director of human rights watch. that is still to come.

reports from iraq say at least 29 people have been killed and many injured by a series of bomb attacks. officials say 25 people died when a car bomb was detonated in the city of diwaniya, south of baghdad. earlier, at least four people died in similar attacks near karbala as pilgrims prepared to celebrate eight shia festival -- celebrate a shia festival. a state press agency reports long-range missiles -- coinciding with the beginning of an eu oil embargo aimed at putting pressure on iraq over its nuclear program. australia and indonesia have agreed to work together on combating people smuggling. the australian prime minister met with the indonesian president in darwin. in the past two weeks, around 100 people drowned when two

boats carrying suspected asylum seekers sunk. chinese authorities have agreed to halt the construction of a copper plant following protests over its environmental impact. photographs on the internet appear to show tens of thousands of people demonstrating against the plant in sichuan province. media reports in hong kong say it turned violent after protesters clashed with anti- riot police. joining me from beijing is the bbc's martin patien. nce. social networking seemed to play a key part in this protests. >> is certainly played a key part in the fact that we know about it. we've seen hundreds of these types of incidents across the country. i think what is significant about this protest was the scale

of it. hong kong media is reporting that tens of thousands of people attended this protest. the reason they were protesting was against the construction of a plant. they were against the pollution. this is not the first time we've seen protests with regard to an environmental concern. >> it is not clear to me, martin, whether this plan will be shelved for good, or whether it is just a delay. what is the actual truth? >> more local officials are saying that the halting of the construction -- they are going to set up a work group which will consult with locals. there's a lot of bad blood. we were speaking with one woman who said riot police were beating the protesters. according to authorities, at

least 13 demonstrators were injured. authorities say they're going to take on board the concerns. it remains to be seen whether or not they will push ahead and open this plant in the face of very strong anger in that part of the country. >> martin, thank you very much. thank you. still to come on gmt -- live at a london school with the olympics on its doorstep. they are getting ready for the games, too. radical islamists in northern mali says they have nearly completed the destruction of shrines to muslim saints. the group says the monuments are unislamic. >> this is the aftermath of the attack. mosques damaged and mausoleums destroy. the group behind the attack says

under sharia law, they should be no higher than 15 centimeters. they have attacked three large mosques, 16 cemeteries and mausoleums, and concern for 700,000 manuscripts that are in libraries. the condemnation has been universal. >> we are extremely concerned about the construction. it is a world heritage site. >> the united states strongly condemns the destruction of the world heritage sites by islamic militants. we call on all parties to

protect the cultural heritage. >> leaders were to hold a summit this weekend to solve the crisis. these events made it even more pressing. timbuktu has long been a center of learning, with its rich heritage dating back to the 1400's. this week's destruction has been likened to the taliban blowing up in 2001. >> this is gmt from "bbc world news." i am george alagiah. the headlines -- barclays chief executive, bob diamond, has quit over the interest rate rigging bank scandal. evidence emerges of syria's involvement of widespread torture and crimes against humanity.

the british pharmaceutical giant, glaxosmithkline, has agreed to pay $3 billion for what u.s. officials call the biggest health-care fraud in history. the consistently broke u.s. law s in marketing certain products. >> glaxosmithkline has broken a record it wishes it had not. the u.s. justice department said the british drug maker of pled guilty to criminal charges and agreed to pay $3 billion. american officials described the punishment as the biggest ever. >> today's settlement is unprecedented in both scope and size. it underscores this administration's firm commitment to protecting the american people and holding accountable those who commit health care fraud. >> what did glaxosmithkline do wrong? it tried to sell the anti- depressant for adults to

children and promoted another drug for treatment it had not been approved for. it also failed to report health risks associated with the diabetes drug. glaxo said it had learned from its mistakes. in the achievement, the chief said, "they cannot and will not be ignored." for some pharmaceutical companies, aggressively promoting a drug can make the difference between a mediocre sale and a blockbuster. this disgrace mr. as a warning that overenthusiastic marketing comes -- this disgrace may serve as a warning. >> the candidate who came second refused to concede. andres manuel lopez obrador is six points behind the presumed president-elect, enrique pena nieto.

from mexico city, our correspondent, will grant, reports. >> down but not out. even with almost all the votes counted and behind by almost 6%, andres manuel lopez obrador is not prepared to concede the election just yet. the electoral process was unequal and dirty, he told reporters, and he refused to rule out the eventual challenge to the entire boat. >> [speaking foreign language] >> i cannot accept any results until i have complete certainty that the citizens' vote was respected and the elections were not falsified. >> meanwhile, the man who considers himself to be the president-elect, enrique pena nieto, has taken the first opportunity. he has already been congratulated by several world leaders. >> [speaking foreign language] >> i have the opportunity to speak to the president of the united states, barack obama,

earlier today. he told me he recognize the democratic process of this country and of its institutions. >> boaters' waking up the following morning had their concerns that a pena nieto government -- voters waking up this morning had their concerns. >> i hope things change so we can reclaim the mexican republic angain. >> i think change is possible. >> some people believe it will have to be more pragmatic. >> they did not get a majority in congress. that's a big difference. we were thinking --

>> he may now be the president- elect, but pena nieto faces a daunting task, facing the brutal drug cartels, and try to bring an end to the violence. he will now have to move on from a fractious election campaign and into the business of government. will grant, bbc news, mexico city. >> if you would like to delve deeper, had to hire -- deeper, head to our website. just go to bbc.com/news. >> the london olympics is not about gold medals and laurie. it is to inspire a generation. we have been finding out how it has changed the lives of

children at a primary school in london, literally on the doorsteps of the games. our school of 2012. >> the fate of britain's future. these were people at a school -- a school closest to the olympic park. this is the place where it needs to begin to inspire a generation. an easy question for these kids. i have met them. >> i am going the wrong way. >> michael johnson hitting down with the kids and helping them. >> usa, usa. >> i had some tips for their

next round of wrestling. today, the ball is passed to the british basketball player, sarah mckay. >> coming into school with young kids is a clean slate. simple things stay with you forever. being able to see their olympics in the backyard -- to see that dreams are achievable. >> it really brings home the olympics. to get a sense of how much the community has changed, we really have to -- you get a window into the transformation of east london. what do kids think of their new neighborhood? >> it is a once-in-a-lifetime experience. >> stupendous.

>> happy. >> excited. >> if you are still dubious about the ability of the olympics to motivate and inspire, look at the impression the world's fastest man has made. >> a reminder of our top story on gmt. the chief executive of barclays bank has resigned with immediate effect. one of the biggest british banks has faced criticism since it was accused of trying to rig a key lending rate. political pressure mounts to make banks more accountable. robert peston has learned the resignation was encouraged by the governor of the bank of england and the chairman of the financial services authority. an unambiguous message.

that is it from gmt at the moment. goodbye. >> makes sense of international news at bbc.com/news. >> funding was made possible by the freeman foundation of new york, stowe, vermont, and honolulu, newman's own foundation, and union bank. >> at union bank, we work hard to understand the industry you operate in, working to nurture new ventures and provide capital for key strategic decisions.

we offer expertise and tailored solutions in a wide range of industries. what can we do for you? >> "bbc world news" was brought