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hello and welcome. i am george alagiah. a world of news and opinion. a top north korean military official official is sidelined due to illness, but there are speculations he is flexing his muscles. the chaos continues as thousands of families return to damaged homes after floods in japan. 7:00 in the morning in washington, after 4:00 in the afternoon in delhi, midday in london, where thousands of athletes and officials have begun arriving for him a big games. seven years of planning and months of rehearsals and now it's time to see if it will work in practice. the last week has seen controversy over security and worries over transport, but organizers say it is all a case of the pregame jitters.

>> it is taken seven years to plan and it has cost hundreds of millions of pounds. today london 2012 is starting to take shape as an actual event. the athletes are arriving in the u.k.. members of the usa sailing team among them this morning. >> looking at what london has put together, the accreditation process, all the support staff, to be a great event. >> the biggest effect will be felt and heathrow airport. thousands of extra passengers to shutting down today, more than any other time in the airport's history. the deployment of extra immigration staff will help avoid any repeat of the recent delays that plagued the airport. final preparations have been overshadowed by the controversy over security. the need for more than 3000 extra troops to plug the gap left by the failure of a private contractor to supply enough staff being a major

embarrassment. >> there's been an issue for many months about the exact numbers we were going to need. a key thing for me is that if you talk to the people running it who have their hands on relievers making sure that the venues are safe, they are very impressed with what the armed services is doing and they are working well wit hg4 to make this -- with g4 to make this a very safe olympics. >> today there are special gains lanes opening. by the middle of next week, this one, along with the rest of the 30-mile network of dedicated lanes, will also be operational. bbc news reporting. >> we are at heathrow airport in london.

now the latest. i was just saying a moment ago than this is it for the heathrow airport. >> they have been planning seven years and has spent 20 million pounds at heathrow airport. i spoke to officials earlier today. they feel they are ready. they are expecting record numbers of passengers today. they think there'll be more passengers today than on any day in the airport's history. if we look at the figures on an average day, there are hundred 90,000 arrivals and departures. today they expect just under 237th thousand. we will wait to see if that prediction is correct. we don't yet know. that is just a forecast. it's getting very busy. it's not just passengers they are dealing with. they are having to handle huge

volumes of luggage. you can imagine the sort of athletes after before the games. pole vaults, canoes, and 1000 guns coming through with all the necessary ammunition for the shooting events. we heard in the report a couple minutes ago from the american sailing team, who arrived here earlier today, they have arrived with all the specialized wet weather clothing that they will need for 26 days of practicing and competing in the south of england. 16 sailors as well as their coaches will be needing what weather gear because the weather is dreadful. one of those sailors apparently

told my colleague in the terminal building, "have we arrived at the winter olympics?" 2012 draws near. they are getting very busy. the peak time for at leaped arrivals is expected to be july 24, next tuesday, when over 1000 athletes are expected on that day alone. >> thanks very much. let's take a look at some other stories making headlines around the world. there's fighting between opposition groups and government forces for a second day on the outskirts of damascus. it is the worst they have seen in the 17-month conflict. kofi annan travels to russia to discuss moscow's opposition to international military action. john muir is watching developments from beirut. >> getting ever closer into the

central damascus and the people of the regime -- seat of the regime's power. people throughout the city could hear explosions and the shooting. it does not mean damascus is about to fall. but many feel the noose is tightening. families have been sent scurrying for safety. the name of the town means solidarity in arabic. in nearby neighborhoods the activists set up barricades and burning tires to block a main road. there were solidarity demonstrations in many areas with that down. u.n. observers were trying to get to the bottom of what has happened near the town of hama where scores of forces were killed last week. the security council has to agree on the future of the

mission and what to do about syria. kofi annan is spending two days in moscow talking to the russians. underussia is under strong western pressure, but there's no sign of them budging. >> there are elements of black male. they say if you don't agree to resolution chapter 7 of the un charter, they will not extend the observer mission. i believe this is a dangerous approach. using a monitor is asked a pawn is not acceptable. they are there to provide an objective assessment of what is happening on the ground. >> as diplomacy goes in circles, cities are being reduced to rubble. despite draconian action by regimes forces, defiance continues in many areas like in the suburbs of damascus. popular support for the revolt

is still there. rebel fighters are becoming more effective. however hard the regime tries, this crisis is not going away. bbc news, beirut. >> police in pakistan have exchanged gunfire with gunman who attacked an office of the security forces intelligence agency. the attackers took several hostages and killed at least one officer. the pakistani taliban have said they are responsible for the attacks that took place near the militant stronghold of north waziristan. u.s. secretary of state clinton has been briefing the israeli president and other top officials on her talks with the newly elected president of egypt. egyptian leaders have assured mrs. clinton they will abide by a peace deal with israel. save the children has issued a new warning about the growing crisis in sudan.

a thousand children are arriving every day in crowded refugee camps in south sudan, currently flooded due to heavy seasonal rains. relatives of 25 palestinian prisoners from gaza will be allowed to visit them in israeli jails today for the first time in five years. israel agreed to the move in may as part of a deal to end the mass thunderstrike by palestinian detainees. our correspondent is in jerusalem. for some families, this will be years since they have been able to see each other, literally. >> all the families involved today, it will be at least five years, if not longer. they are pretty excited people in the early hours of morning as the buses set out from gaza city taking people to see their husbands, their sons, their brothers, of people they not

seen for a long time. around 550 palestinian prisoner israeli jails. 50 relatives have crossed into israel today and are visiting the prisoners now in a jail in southern israel. >> a huge relief for the families concerned. are we need to see any broader significance in this? >> i don't think so, to be honest. this came about as part of our border deal. there was the mass hunger strike by palestinian prisoners earlier in the year, protesting against conditions in israeli jails. as part of a deal to end the hunger strike, one of the things that was agreed was more family visits from their relatives from gaza. it's difficult to get to gaza for many palestinians.

not allowed to get to israel without permission. human-rights groups have been urging israel to do this. israel regards these prisoners as terrorists. in the past israel has been concerned family visits could be used by some prisoners to continue what israel regards as terrorist activity. so i don't think you can see this as any sort of peace between israel and gaza. it was simply part of a deal israel felt needed to be done. >> thanks very much. with the's army chief has been relieved of his post apparently due to illness. ri yong-ho was regarded as one of the key figures who helped support the new leader after the death of his father. our correspondent lucy williamson has more. >> this was one of north korea pose the most careful men until today. a chief of the million-strong army, ri yong-ho was not only a

military commander but a key power broker, a guardian of the country opposing recent succession to kim jong un. this support of the young heir was seen as crucial. he was pictured walking with the young leader alongside his father's a hearse. now he has been abruptly removed from power because of illness. that's what north korea says. this could be an attempt of kim jong un to consolidate power. the army has grown in power over the past decades and ri yong-ho was regularly pictured with kim jong un on military visits. being seen as commander-in-chief was all the more important for a leader as young and untested as

this one. kim jong un has a leadership style that is publicly more relaxed and more jovial than his father. last week he showcased a new female companion smartly dressed in western-style clothing. that was enough to spark favors speculation over the direction of his personal life. now there are questions over where north korea is headed politically. bbc news reporting. >> still ahead, the excitement is building. we will be on the path of the olympic torch as it edges closer to the capital. police in a pall say nine people died after a bus swerved off the road and into a river. rescue workers are still searching for survivors. many more passengers are still missing. most of the dead in the crash in the southwest of the country were hindu pilgrims from india traveling to or religious festival.

>> just how did this bus come to rest in this canal? it was carrying dozens of hindus to pilgrimage site it in nepal. more than two dozen people are known to of survived. there are reports the vehicle was desperately overcrowded, with more than 100 passengers, some even clinging to the roof. the bus was traveling of predesh and ended up in a canal. some of the survivors have been taken to hospital and there have been conflicting accounts of the accident cause. there are reports the driver was drunk and fled the scene and other reports that he encountere difficult driving

conditions. authorities are trying to account for all those on board the bus. the indian embassy has dispatched special teams including doctors to try to help the rescue and recovery. but it is unlikely they will find any more survivors. bbc news reporting. canadian police say the body of a person in a landslide has been found. they're still looking for three remaining bodies. if a second-line slide in their rural region has been caught on camera. conditions in the region are still very unstable. hillah optical experts are keeping a close eye on the weather as crews continue their search for the missing people. -- geological experts. this is gmt. i am george alagiah. thousands of athletes and officials are starting to arrive in london for the olympic games.

nokesville's top military chief has been removed from his job seven months after kim jong un came to power. -- north korea's top military chief has been removed. we're getting to know the top brass at barclays bank rather well. this week it is the chief operating officer. >> the former coo, the man who resigned the same day as bob diamond. a confession in front of british members of parliament. jerry is the man that is accused of telling the bank posted traders to lie about the bank's borrowing costs. we. libor.

it is the amount of money that banks pay to keep money circulating in the system. did he misinterpret the conversation that e-mails between the former bank boss and the second in charge bob diamond and the second loss of the central bank in britain? the boss of the financial services authority will also appear. he has accused barkley of being too aggressive, but he will face tough questions as regulator. this is going to go well beyond just being a barclays bank story. listen to this. >> this is definitely global. the bank has already paid the price as it has been dropped for dropped by a number of rate- setting entities.

the litigation is probably limited with respect to any new banks buthat subsequently receive fines from the regulator. >> we don't know how many questions will be answered from this today. one question is why is this taking so long? this issue was raised four years ago. >> what about india? the inflation rates was published today. it is easing. >> not as high as was predicted, but it is a huge problem. we're talking consumer prices. inflation went up 7.25% in the month of june. that is high. india had the highest inflation rates amongst thhe bric economies. food prices are big problems for indian people. 11%.s aup

the indian economy in the first three months of this year slowed to a nine-year low. typically when you have high inflation, you raise interest rates. but when you have a weak economy, that's what hurts even more. >> its not the only problem in india. >> a big worry for the economy is agriculture. there's the monsoon season off to a fairly weak start. we have seen deficient rainfall almost across the country. crop harvest heavily depends on the rainfall. we could see problems potentially for agriculture. even though we saw some encouraging signs last week with the industrial output increasing, it will be a tightrope walk for the bank of india when it reviews monetary policy of the end of the month. >> it's a big juggling act. there you go. >> thanks very much. clinton's efforts underway in

japan's southern island after a year's worth of rain fell on the weekend. -- cleanup efforts. landslides and floods of left 30 people dead or missing. now this report from tokyo. >> cleanup efforts are underway in a southern island of japan after a whole year's worth of rain fell on some of the cities over the weekend. half of the islands of more than 10 centimeters of rain per hour. it has caused landslides and floods, leaving more than 30 people dead or missing. many of the victims were in their 70's and 80's and were not able to leave when their homes were hit by mudslides. some farmers died when they went to detect their fields -- to check their fields during a temporary lull in the flooding.

rescue teams have been searching for those missing and others have dropped supplies. the worst is over. but even a small amount of rainfall could trigger further landslides. bbc news reporting. >> the olympic torch is in the final stages of its journey and will be passing through the southern english county of sussex on route to its final destination in london. lucy hawkins is at suffolk county cricket grounds and can tell us more. >> george, there's plenty of work that can be done on things like traffic lanes and security in london. people arriving at heathrow airport as well. there's nothing that can be done about the weather. it is a completely appalling day. the rain has been falling, the wind blowing, the waters choppy.

it has not stopped people's enthusiasm for the arrival of the olympic torch, which will happen later today. people pride themselves on being just a little special and different from the rest of the country. here's a taste of the city. >> ♪ >> 480,000 people clearly like to be -- even if the notorious weather means it's not always sunny and there's no sand on the beach. but there's much more to this place than a stroll on the pier. it's vibrant and has loads of students and it has a real party feel. the only green member of parliament is from this down. -- town. loves sports.es spor

brighton rocks. simon colorado was born here -- music mogul and simon col well. winston churchill went to school here. there's a real sense of a countdown. 11 days until the opening ceremonies. 17 kilometers away from london. there's a big event taking place here tonight at the county cricket club, 10,000 people expected. in brighton about 250,000 people will come to see the olympic torch. number ofce the people who live here.

>> there will be an event later today. what can people look forward to? >> children's choirs. the big event is when the torch actually arrives. i don't know if you can see the cold and on the stage. it will be lit in the celebrations tonight. and school children are gathering and celebrated throughout the afternoon at a nearby park as well. if we will be counting down the olympic torch arriving. you can also follow me on twitter. i will be posting updates throughout the day. i will keep an eye on the weather as well. it is just stop training. let's hope it stays that way. >> thanks very much. a reminder of our top stories. thousands of athletes and officials have begun arriving in london for the olympic games. last week there was controversy over security and worries o

transport. organizers say it's a case of pregame jitters. that's all for the moment. stay with us on bbc world news. this plenty more to come.