>> 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. >> 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."

>> syria's foreign minister says the government in damascus will stand firm despite its suspension from the arab league. >> i'm not hiding the fact that there is a crisis in syria, but there is conspiracies targeting syria. syria is paying the price for its strong position. >> as expected, the markets like a techno contract running the italian government. now mario monti asemples his new administration. and a russian spacecraft carrying three astronauts is successfully launched from kazakhstan. welcome to "bbc world news." i'm peter dobbie. also in this program -- unlocking the causes of parkinson's. researchers say they fond a link between the condition and a common industrial cleaning product.

>> an extremely dangerous set, that's what syria has called the arab league's decision to suspend it from the organization, speaking at a televised news conference in the past half-hour, the foreign minister warned that what he describes as the libya scenario would not be repeated. he called the arab league decision illegal and maintained that syria was committed to dialogue and reform. >> the arab league's decision is illegal. it has not been issued by unanimous votes. it doesn't rely on the legality . we said in the past, and i'll say it again, that syria has reforms and titles and for halting the cities. syria is aware of the magnitude

of the conspiracy that threatens the unity of its people of all walks of life. the syrian leadership sees that its reforms are debated for a dignified life, as syria has openness with any friendly effort to get dialogue. >> syrian foreign minister there. the bbc's reporter is in damascus on the line now. a robust statement from the arab league over the weekend, and a robust response today from damascus. >> yes, indeed. there was a huge criticism in the last couple of days in state media and in the streets of damascus, refusing this statement coming out from the arab league, and indeed, ministers say -- was criticizing this decision,

saying it was unfair and it was planned even before it was announced. and he was giving ed that it was against the rules of the arab league. yes, indeed, at the same time he was inspiring the members to come to syria and see for themselves a situation on the grounds, trying to find a middle ground between the two sides. >> thanks very much, live from cairo and our middle east correspondent, jon leyne. this doesn't leave relations between damascus and cairo, between damascus and the a reason league in a very good place. >> no, and that allows ministers in, which was supposed to be in the peace plan original peace 10 days ago, and that's late. there's been a response from syria, not just this news conference, but also the huge rallies, pro-government rallies for the government organized over the weekend, and, of course, the attacks on

embassies, saudi arabia, qatar, and turkey. if they are trying to make friends, it's not a great way to go about it. so, i don't think they're going to get much joy from it the arab league. i think we've come to the end of any dialogue between the league and syria. whether or not the arab league will agree to the meeting request by syria, i very much doubt. again, i think the belief in the arab league is that syria is just trying to place a time. and so, this really intensifies the confrontation both within syria and, of course, between syria and the other arab countries. >> as far as dialogue is concerned, dialogue is now dying a death. where does that place it? >> well, i think we can clearly see the situation is intensifying. i think nobody is very clear about where it's going to go precisely. we've got these calls for new action by the e.u., the strong possibility that they'll move to the united nations security council, although it's interesting that russia

condemned the arab league decision, which i think arab countries might say, well, who are you to tell us what we should be doing? but that would perhaps indicate that russia still would perhaps veto any action in the u.n. security council if they're going to get very, very isolated now. if they do that, a lot of sides are digging in, frankly, and we don't know where it's going to go, but it doesn't look like it's going to go to any kind of peaceful solution anytime soon. >> thanks, jon. meanwhile, e.u. government in brussels have reached a preliminary agreement to extend sanctions against syria to more individuals associated with the crackdown on dissent in syria. the british foreign secretary has been speaking in brussels today about ways in which e.u. countries can try to put more pressure on the assad government. >> we would offer a ban on imports of syrian crude oil into the european union. we've already adopted sanctions against 56 individuals and 19 other entities, 75 people and entities in total, including

the commercial bank of syria. so, we have taken very strong measures in the european union. as i say, i think we can add to those. but i don't see any other more specific proposition that we can react to. of course, we would like to discuss things further at the united nations security council. that is a way that we can help over the coming weeks. but as you know, when we moved a resolution there in october, it was vetoed by russia and china, something that was a very regrettable mistake. >> we hope to get more later on that story for you here on "bbc world news." do stay with us. you can track what's going on in syria through the website, bbc.com/news. let's get more on another of our headline stories. the newly chosen prime minister of italy, mario monti, says his country needs to become a source of strength rather than weakness in europe. mr. monti will begin forming a new cabinet today and faces his first test in italian government bonds are auctioned shortly. that process has just started.

>> italy's prime minister in waiting, arriving at the presidential palace. his nomination had been a badly kept secret, and it was no surprise he reassured italians and the world he was the man to lead his country through an economic crisis. >> we are going to solve the financial situation and to resume a path to growth. it is a time to build the future of dignity and hope for our children. >> earlier, the man he'll replace, no one expected silvio berlusconi to go without adding his voice to the drama. he said for the hundreds who booed him when he resigned on saturday night, there was thousands who voted him in as prime minister on three occasions. >> i did it without ever having had a vote of no confidence by

parliament against me. >> do you feel optimistic about the future for italy? >> now, though, the focus is on the new man, mario monti. a former european commissioner known in italy as a skillful economist. some here call him super mario. the reason a former e.c. commissioner, a man not even elected to the italian parliament, can become prime minister is because he has, with a few exceptions, crossed party support. we don't know how long mario monti will remain in charge here. the challenges he faces are considerable. and inevitably, there is skepticism about what he can achieve. away from the political noise, many here seem oblivious to the country's change at the top. famed for its style, but now

also its ballooning debt, the new government here faces the daunting task of restoring italy's financial reputation. >> now, an international study has found a link between an industrial solvent and parkinson's disease. researchers have found people exposed to a chemical called t.c.e. increased their risk of developing parkinson's by a factor of six. the research team found there could be a lag time up to hoe years from being exposed to the chemical and the onset of parkinson's. our health correspondent joins us now. does it mean if we've been spraying stuff around the kitchen to clean our counter tops we should be worried? >> no, not at all, but this is an industrial solvent, and it's used around the world. it's been banned in many areas, banned in farm suit dallas, has been used in paint, glue. it's still used as a degreaser for some metal parts right around the world. according to one u.s. study, up

to 30% of u.s. drinking water reserves might actually be contaminated with t.c.e. it is a problem, but not in the household. >> ok, what causes it? what's the causal link between this stuff and parkinson's? >> they don't know, just as they don't know what causes parkinson's. what they've done is crunched the data, looked at 99 sets of twins in this study, one with parkinson's, one without in order to screen for genetic and other factors. they found that this link, this association between t.c.e. and parkinson's, basically people who've been exposed to t.c.e., usually in the workplace, there's a higher rate of parkinson's among that group. >> sounds like it's going to be a field day for the lawyers, not maybe because there's a 40-year lag, but because if your employer has used this stuff as a degreaser and then a relative gets parkinson's, that's a difficult minefield to penetrate. >> we've got a long way to go

with this research. it's not been used illegally around the world, and there's still more research to be done. parkinson's in the u.k., the charity here in britain, are calling for more research, wider ranging research to prove this link, which is quite a small study. it's not the definitive proof that there is a link. >> we'll leave it there. many thanks. in norway, the man who confessed to killing 77 people last july is appearing in a court in oslo. we just got these pictures of him arriving at the courthouse. he was the gunman behind those massacres in july. he will be allowed to appear in court in person instead of via a video link. this is for a custody extension hearing. he's a 32-year-old. he's that right-wing extremist. he has been held in a high-security prison close to the norwegian capital. he'll appear before a judge today for that hearing. the lower court recently ruled that the hearing would be open to the public, then the court also granted the police request

that brave i can confessed to the attacks. the appeal against that ruling was first rejected by the appeals court, but on friday, norway found in his favor, as has been the case with the drip of information to do with the after math of that attack. he pretty much driving the tempo of events following on from his arrest after the events in the summertime. you're watching "bbc world news." still to come -- a successful launch for a russian spacecraft carrying three astronauts. >> austerity, the buzzword in europe right now. so why is the german chancellor planning to introduce a statutory minimum wage? the proposal is being discussed at the christian democratic union party's annual congress. germany's unions welcomed the

plan, long overdue, pointing out workers from eastern europe are forced out. we have more from berlin. >> germany doesn't have a national minimum wage for low-paid workers. many hairdressers work long hours for little pay. this salon in berlin is an exception. the hairdressers earn a decent wage and welcome the fact that chancellor merkel wants to introduce a minimum wage after opposing it for so many years. >> i think germany needs a minimum wage, because i know of qualified hairdressers who work 38 hours a week, and they just earn 650 euro, so they need social support from the government. they can't even afford to rent a flat, and it's just not fair for the work they do. >> under fire for bailing out greece, chancellor merkel is looking for the issue of a minimum wage as a vote winner, and most germans are in favor of this, according to a recent survey, but she'll still have to win over her critics.

there's strong opposition from employers in the business wing of merkel's conservative party, meeting in line significant for the annual conference. they play this will stifle economic growth and destroy jobs. but chancellor merkel says it's about securing dignity in work and is also under pressure from voters. >> it's yet another merkel government, the party is becoming more social democratic in its program and measures, and the chancellor is already very much looking forward to the next general election, and there's been a climate that is becoming more critical of capitalism in germany. >> with the german economy still powering ahead, experts say a legal minimum wage won't hamper growth, even though another u-turn in policy may cause chancellor merkel some credibility.

>> an explosion in a restaurant has killed at least seven people in a city in the northwest of china. another 31 were injured in the explosion, which happened at the start of the morning rush hour in xian. local news agencies say the blast was probably caused by a natural gas leak. the explosion knocked windows out as far away as two kilometers. many victims, including children, were walking by the front of the restaurant, according to local media. a doctor said many were injured with wounds to the face and head. you can get more on all our stories. do check out the website, bbc.com/news. you can also click on the icon and drop us an email whenever you want here at "bbc world news." "bbc world news" with me, peter dobbie. top stories this hour -- syrian foreign ministers looking defiant following international condemnation of the suppression of anti-government protests. and italy's incoming prime minister, mario monti, is beginning to assemble his

government. european stock markets have responded calmly to news of his appointment. let's take you back now to the events coming to us out of damascus, the syrian foreign minister with a very strong, robust suspension from the arab league across the weekend. there are also plans for more sanctions on the part of the european union countries. live now to brussels and our correspondent there, matthew price. we've got sanctions already. what else can they do? >> well, i think what some of the foreign ministers are hoping, the french foreign minister, peter from germany, they are hoping that, along with the pressure they're now seeing from the arab league increase over the weekend that she they're going to add to the sanctions, so more individuals being brought in to the frame of sanctions and also trying to curtail the financial flows to the syrian regime, for instance, making sure that funding from the european

investment bank is not making its way to damascus any longer. and then there is a third hope from those foreign ministers i just mentioned and others, of course, that they can try and beef up the language of condemnation at the security council. russia is looking, as jon leyne said earlier in the program, russia is looking a little bit more isolated now in the security council in terms of its continued reluctance to condemn outright what's been happening to syria. so i think there is a hope from the european union perspective that the security council will prove to be a bit of a door that they can push out in the coming weeks. >> they're also focusing on iran. what do they think they can come up with there? >> yeah, a real commitment now to try and push for more sanctions on iran. you know, i think a sense in brussels, to a six extent, there is very limited room for maneuver. certainly in the case of syria

and nobody is talking about some sort of libya action with iran, we know that the military option has been discussed, has been resumed to have been discussed by the u.s., in the u.k., and the israelis, of course, over the last few weeks. now, at the moment, what they're going to be focusing on in brussels, although the british say there's nothing on the table, is more sanctions on iran. they're looking ahead to december 1 when they expect to try to put together a new raft of sanctions at their next meeting, december 1. but this isn't just about nonproliferation of nuclear weapons. it is also about iran's human rights record. and its volment in terrorism. -- and its involvement in terrorism. but in syria, it looks as though they've got more of a momentum toward pressure being ratcheted up. with iran, one diplomat put it to me last week that they are under no illusions that if and

when they do increase sanctions on iran that that's actually going to change iranian foreign policy at all. >> many thanks. ok, one of the key components over the weekend as far as the italian government was concerned, they had to try to get it together, and they seemed to by 9:00 a.m. local time this morning for the markets. aaron is following that. the markets liked t. >> they did. i had a look a few seconds ago, the markets have turned a little sour. i mean, the optimism was very cautious anyway with mario monti in place. yes, they like the fact that a technocrat and all the credibility that he does bring, but let's not kid ourselves, the weight is on his shoulders, and he still has a monumental task to turn italy around, restore credibility, get rid of the very poor regulation, the vested business interest. he's dealing with an aging population. on top of that, they're sitting on two trillion euros. these are still the fundamentals in place, and, of course, the bond market. we're waiting -- i looked

before i came on air, but we're waiting for results. italy went back to the money markets to try to borrow more money. it is expected that they will borrow all that they required for this particular auction and probably be paying around 6.4%, 6.5%, which is a percent less than what it was seen as last week. so that is certainly a good sign, but it is still in levels that are very unsustainable. i'll talk to an expert and have a lot more on the world business report in about 20 minutes' time. >> we'll see you then. >> and the japan economy, i'll be talking about that as well. >> looking forward to it. the russian soyuz spacecraft has taken off from kazakhstan. it follows an unprecedented string of failures and is seen as crucial in rebuilding faith in russia's space program. a similar unmanned cargo rocket crashed in august. the crew were on their way to the international space station. daniel sandford is in moscow. >> five, four, three, two, one.

>> the awe-inspiring sight of the soyuz rocket rocketing off from the cosmodrome. for all the reassurance from america's nasa and russia, this was a nervous moment. on board when nasa's dan burbank. they were the first men to head into space since the space shuttle was retired last july. now the 1960's-signed soyuz is the only route for manned missions beyond atmosphere. the launch was delayed by two months, because on august 24, a similar rocket carrying cargo to the space station crashed. all manned missions were put on hold until the cause is identified. that led to concerns that the international space station might have to be abandoned because there was no safe way of getting there to replace the current crew. but the soyuz has now been declared safe by the russian space agency after they

identified the fall in what is called the gas generator in the third stage of the rocket. daniel sandford, bbc news, moscow. >> the mexican navy says a local commander of a drug cartel has been captured by marines after a tipoff. it said the man was arrested at a ranch in the northern state of nuevo leon. since the 2010, they've been fighting the gulf cartel for control of the state. the french government says three french aid workers who were kidnapped in yemen earlier this year have now been set free. the three were seized by suspected al qaeda militants about 60 kilometers east of the yemeni capital, sanaa. the australian authorities have seized cocaine worth an estimated $80 million u.s. dollars. let's get you the latest pictures.

what we're talking about here is drugs being built into the hull of the yacht that sailed to queensland. the yacht was named friday freedom. it was carrying 300 kilograms of the stuff. the yacht arrived from the port in early october, according to the police. it was crewed by a 35-year-old man and a 37-year-old woman, both being arrested when they docked. according to media, spaniards were charged with importing commercial narcotics. the cocaine will be destroyed following forensic examination. apparently millions of us are aengineer lick to where we live. -- are allergic to where we live. be afraid. this is want a pretty story. -- this is not a pretty story. >> are you allergic to your own home? 15-year-old gabriel has been suffering for years. >> i have difficulty breathing. i start to wheeze. my eyes get really red, runny

nose. and yeah, not very pleasant. >> and you can't see them coming. attack of the dust mites! >> now a warning. the next 30 seconds or so are hideous. this is the cause of some of gabriel's problems, the house dust mite. just a third of a millimeter across, they feed on dead human skin. there can be a million of them living in your mattress. what causes the allergic reaction is, frankly, disgusting. it happens when we breathe in the waste, the poo, of the house dust mite. >> if you've got a runny nose, sore eyes, you might think it's a normal cold. but if your symptoms don't go away, it's certainly worth seeking advice as it may be that you're reacting to an aler jan within the environment.

>> in gabriel's house, they've removed most of the carpet. he has an air purifier in his room. he uses a special allergenic cover for his pillow and mattress. even the vacuum cleaner has an anti-allergy filter. all attempts to make his home dust mite-proof. >> don't forget, get your headlines with our one-minute news summary. check out the website, bbc.com/news. you can also get more on our top story, the very robust reaction from the syrian foreign minister to what's been going on over the past weekend. what you're looking at now is a mixture of pro and anti-government protests taking place pretty much across the middle east. these are pro-government protests following on from the syrian suspension from the arab league. that decision taken by the arab league on saturday in cairo. >> 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, were developing more efficient fuels in countries like malaysia that can help us get the most from our energy resources. lets use energy more efficiently. lets go.

>> 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? >> bbc world news was presented by kcet los angeles.