>> bbc world news is presented by kcet, los angeles. funding for this presentation is made possible by the freeman foundation of new york, stowe, vermont, and honolulu. the newman's own foundation. the john d. and catherine t. macarthur foundation. and union bank.

>> union bank has put its financial strength to work for a wide range of companies, from small businesses to major corporations. what can we do for you? >> and now bbc world news. >> at least 95 are killed, hundreds injured in a series of bombs outside of government buildings in baghdad. on the eve of afghan elections, the threaten -- the threat of more violence from the taliban. swiss banks agrees to give u.s. authorities the names of thousands of customers. welcome to bbc world news. coming up later, the picnic that a blue one of the first holes in the iron curtain. a commemoration of the border between hungary and austria.

the city with the worst traffic in the world, could cruising at the nile be the answer? baghdad has seen its bloodiest days since american forces withdrew from iraq cities with 95 dead, hundreds injured. it is seriously undermines the government insistence that security is under control. the biggest blast was near the foreign ministry. so powerful that it damaged buildings. another truck bomb exploded close to the finance ministry. the foreign minister has blame sunni insurgents and has ordered a review. >> the blast was felt across baghdad. a meeting of tribal chiefs

disrupted by a massive explosion. the bomb went off just outside of the conference call next to the foreign ministry. it was designed to kill and injure on a massive scale. it did. >> the kitchen was showered with glass for the windows and doors were knocked down over our heads. >> with the dozens dead and hundreds injured, this was the worst attack that baghdad had seen in months. there were five other explosions. the government is a clear target. the bomb just outside of the minister of finance destroyed a major road. officials have blamed groups linked to al qaeda. the hospitals have been receiving casualty's all day. many of them are now full. this man came looking for his

brother. our security service cannot defend us, he told me. the situation is getting worse. the u.s. troops began patrolling the streets of baghdad and other cities across iraq. now many people say that to these attacks confirm their worst fears, the fear that without american help, their own security services are incapable of protection. >> this is baghdad six years ago, an explosion outside the headquarters of the united nations. it was the first large-scale attack. it has been followed by so many more. never before have so many people been wounded on one day. everyone here is reminded of how

different iraq has become. >> more violence in afghanistan on the eve of elections. security forces killed three insurgents who occupied a bank in the capital. the taliban has pledged to disrupt the vote. >> the police surround a bank in kabul. taliban fighters have occupied the building. this leaves the three fighters and one policeman dead. until recently, kabul was a safe haven from the violence. not anymore. a ring has been placed around the city. security forces have been deployed elsewhere in the country. what is difficult to quantify is the extent to which people will be put off from voting by the security measures and to the threat from the taliban. every car, every driver is under suspicion. the taliban has threatened the

police, the government, and even voters. they claim to have even more fighters ready to attack. now one of the most wanted insurgent leaders have spoken to the bbc he is a former anti- soviet commander and experts minister. we submitted written questions. the answers were given on camera weeks later warning that the fighting will continue until foreign troops pullout. >> my message is that if the foreign forces are ready to leave the country, if they want to end the war and look for an honorable exit, we can help them. if they insist on continuing, we have many more ways of fighting. >> thousands of civilians have been killed in this conflict. some from coalition bombs, most caught up in the insurgent attacks like these people. >> this is a baseless claim and

no truth to it. 95% of the civilians have been killed at the hands of the foreigners. they bombed villages, houses, villages, mosques. the mujahedin carry out attacks. they do these things far away from villages. >> the truth is that the violence here affects everyone. afghanistan is scarred by 30 years of war. it casts a bruising shadow over tomorrow's election. >> a bolivian man convicted of the -- a libyan man convicted of the lockerbie bombing will learn his fate later this week. he was serving a large sentence but he has terminal cancer and he might be allowed to leave early on compassionate grounds. the judge has made a decision and will announce it. police in zimbabwe have arrested

10 members of parliament. the former opposition party of the prime minister. circumstances are unclear but the rest are seen as an attempt to weaken the condition of some of the political parties. south korea hopes to join north korea as one of the few countries to launch a satellite from its own territory. the launch has been postponed. ubs has agreed to turn over details to u.s. tax authorities of about four and a half thousand of its american account holders. the swiss government has considered other requests for information. all of this is likely to blow a hole in the swiss reputation for keeping secrets close. >> it was a clash of

jurisdictions. the u.s. wanted the names of 52,000 citizens believed to have committed to tax evasion by hiding their money in swiss bank accounts. to the suisse said that would violate their own laws and client confidentiality. after weeks of intense negotiation, a deal has been struck. they are just giving 4th thousand 500 names. a costly cour-- they are givingt 4500 names. >> general conditions will stabilize and we were able to solve any threats to ubs. >> the swiss government is hailing this agreement as a success. after all, ubs will have to hand over less than 10% of bank account details. the idea of a swiss bank handing

over any information at all would have been unthinkable a year ago. where does this leave for the swiss banking legacy? the secrecy has been steadily eroding for months. last montlast march, they agreeo cooperate with investigations. other countries can operate safely and they can look for tax revenue and the swiss will provide information. this is a big change but one that many swiss actually welcome. >> this is a decision that paved the way for the berlin wall. opposition groups in hungary would have a picnic on the border with austria. this allowed hundreds of east germans to leave communist eastern europe.

>> it looks like an unlikely place to start a revolution but this is what happened in these peaceful meadows 20 years ago. hungary had already appears to the iron curtain. ordinary people, young east germans, found a new hole in the curtain. the commander of the border guard had not been given new orders, he should have tried to stop them that he decided not to. 10,000 people came here to press their unification of europe. the east germans took advantage to reach austria and then west germany. >> i am here in the central part of the european revolution of freedom, of democracy, of coming together and that continues to

shape our part of the world and that inspires many other parts of the globe. >> after the picnic, it only took congress three more weeks to officially open the border with austria. -- it only took hungary three more weeks. today, the symbol watchtower and a few strands of barbed wire remain, reminders of the more difficult times. >> stay with us if you can. still to come, a giant dangerous blot of green, how algae is

blotting some of the coastline. the taiwanese french minister joined other, ministers in -- the taiwanese defense minister joined others in offering to resign. many citizens are upset about the recovery effort after the mudslides. we have a report from taiwan. >> the grim task of recovering bodies began. soldiers get ready to dig out remains. are around 400 villagers are believed to have been very by a massive mudslide. under intense public pressure, the slow response to the typhoon, the president is that the village. he listened to the relatives of victims whose relatives'

bodies are yet to be recovered. it is dangerously located and is mountains are in the valley. the defense minister is the latest to take the blame. he did not send out soldiers. the third day of the thai finan. -- of the typhoon. the government should focus on rescuing people. in some places, there's nothing for them to go back to. some villages are entirely buried in mud. damage road, bridges, homes, this will cost 3 billion u.s. dollars to fix and take as long as three years. cash donations and relief supplies are pouring in including from china. for many survivors and victims' families, traumatized and in

decrees, it would take much more than money and 8 to put their lives back together. -- traumatized and in grief, it would take much more than money and aid to put their lives back together. >> the latest headlines for you, at least 95 people have been killed, hundreds wounded in a series of bomb blasts in central baghdad targeting high-

profile targets. heavy security in afghanistan on the eve of the presidential election as the taliban friend more violence to disrupt the poll. -- threaten more violence to disrupt the poll. u.s. and other forces are trying to push the militants back. one of the battle groups is the second marine expeditionary brigade. we joined them on mission. >> on july 2nd, 4000 men from the second marine expeditionary brigade and landed it in the operation kampen. -- and landed in the operation camp. they are given the mission to win the trust of the local population and to push the taliban back. for president barack obama, this is the biggest foreign policy gamble so far.

i joined at a company after they landed. -- echo company after they landed. the taliban did not leave and they're watching everyone's moves. >> the taliban knows when you are on patrol. >> it wasn't long before they launch an attack. >> we have two people with ak- 47s and the tree lines. >> at least two men were firing at us. >> their right to there, gentlemen. we are about 100 meters for them. >> after an initial burst of gunfire, a rocket-propelled grenade flew over our heads. a lance corporal spotted the enemy. >> i got him. >> after heavy gunfire and some grenades, the attackers went

quiet. several marines claimed to have hit the targets. the attackers had retreated. long hard days and temperatures that topped 50 degrees against an enemy that they rarely see are taking their toll. it is hard to get the local people on their side, especially when there's fighting going on. the commander is confident that his men can succeed. >> we can take 80 polled in the areas that we are in and by the wintertime, the taliban will be on their heels and they will be wondering what to do next. >> this company is here for another five months. what happens in that time could have a defining affect on the war in afghanistan and the presidency of barack obama.

>> the first pictures have emerged from northern china where at least 600 children are killed from lead poisoning. authorities have confessed it came from a local smelting plant. >> once again, a chinese hospital is full of six children and worried relatives. this time, lead poisoning. this woman's granddaughter is one of hundreds being treated here. she is being tested for lead. >> 100-199 is considered a high level. 200-249 is considered life threatening. 250-449 is serious. >> many are furious. >> all of them. >> in china, corruption is rife

and often the children suffer. in a story like this, the police asked journalists to leave and the government tries to make things quiet. this smelting plant is under protection. earlier in the week, villagers attacked it. local people say it has been pumping sold into the air for years. the government promises to relocate people went largely unfulfilled. -- local people say it has been pumping silt into the air. >> the water and air is contaminated. how will we stay alive? how are we going to survive?

>> it is often when villagers take action that anything gets done. this is part of a pattern, less than a year tens of thousands of children were contaminated by tainted baby milk. then people were brought out because of corruption. people are worried about the long-term health risks caused by government negligence. >> this baby is 7 months old and he already has led in his blood. >> there is no word on who will be held responsible. officials are often reluctant to prosecute businesses that generate large tax revenues. >> its rugged coastline makes it

a favorite location but there are tons of green algae that have swamped several areas. people are being told to stay away. a man who inhaled the noxious fumes was sickened and his horse died. >> a loan tractor in a sea of green. this mechanical beast represents the only fight against toxic seaweed in places like this but this is a losing battle because no sooner than the greenery is removed, more gross. -- more grows. he explains how when he crossed

that is formed to breaks, innoxious gases can escape and they are deadly to humans and animals. a horse died when it fell into a pile of algae. the incident with the horse has highlighted the problem of toxic seaweed. this is not a new issue, the look from -- to local mayor has been battling against it for years. some say that this has been caused by nitrates running off of farmland into the sea. the local mayor says he is powerless to do anything about that. while many beaches aren't fine, residents and local authorities believe the problems are getting worse. -- while many beaches are fine. they want more action.

>> cairo is one of the most congested cities in the world but authorities think they have the answer, more river taxis on the nile. they encourage carbon polluters to take to the water. >> for generations, these elegancelegant saloons have card passengers and cargo from one side to the other. today, it is river taxis that serve the commuter. for some 50 years after their introduction, many of these boats have fallen into disrepair. there are now just 15 operation. cairo was billed for four million people, today has a population of around 80 million. by early morning, many of the streets suddenly turned into six lane carriageways that all makes

for a death defying drive into work. most commuters still-to the office in these small microprocessors which dart through the traffic with dexterity. the authorities' belief given the option, commuters will steer will clear of the congested roads. >> we are away from the crowd and the noise. it is almost like being at sea. i would like my son to be able to experience that. >> i take the river bus because of the traffic. if i take a taxi or any other kind of public transport, it takes a 35-45 minutes. with the river taxi, it takes about 15. >> the government hopes to have more stops by 2012. this is a modest ambition but

certainly a start. >> the transport authority wants to reduce the number of bus passengers. >> there was a time when the waters of the nile were thought to heal the sick and comfort the afflicted. maybe that will happen to those who do the daily commute. >> let's give you a reminder of our top story, the iraqi prime minister has ordered a review of security after 95 people were killed in a series of bomb attacks in baghdad. this is the deadliest in more than a year. of these five huge bombs exploded in a government building. this is in an area that germany considered pretty safe. security forces killed three insurgencies formed a bank in the capital of afghanistan. the taliban has pledged to

disrupt the vote. we will have much more coverage on all of the international news and particularly the elections in afghanistan. you can also get it from the website anytime that you wanted, bbc.com. thank you for being with us. >> funding was made possible by the freeman foundation of new york, stowe, vermont, andthe newman's own foundation. the john d. and catherine t. macarthur foundation. and union bank. >> union bank has put its financial strength to work for a wide range of companies from small businesses to major corporations. what can we do for you? >> i'm julia stiles.

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