>> 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. >> union bank has put its global expertise to work for a wide range of companies. what can we do for you? >> and now, "bbc world

news." >> protesters are still on the streets in egypt, where the ruling military has apologized to protesters in recent violent demonstrations. five people have died in yemen after gunmen opened fire on protesters. mario monti meets the french and german counterparts today for talks on the eurozone debt crisis. welcome to "bbc world news." i'm adam parsons. also in this program -- in london, the actress jenna miller prepares to take the stand at an inquiry into press standards. and the world's worst football team finally get a win after losing 30 in a row. >> hello. thank you for joining us.

egypt's ruling military has apologized for the deaths of protesters in clashes with police, as unrest in cairo and other cities end the sixth day. thousands of protesters are still in tahrir square in the center of the capital, cairo. these are the live pictures from tahrir square at the moment. they're demanding an immediate end to military rule. egypt's ruling council insists the parliamentary elections will go ahead as planned on monday. jon leyne reports from cairo. >> well, i'm not sure there's been much tear gas flying in the last few hours. there were reports of a cease-fire overnight. i haven't been down there to check whether there were still holding. so there were some attempts at conciliation. i think the military realizes that the address by field marshall tantawi dent help very much. he did promise earlier presidential elections, but apart from that, he was not very conciliatory at all, and it seems to have further angered the protesters.

last night, two of the slightly more junior generals came out and offered an apology and said very insistently that they were not the same as the regime of hosni mubarak, to which they're increasingly being compared. so they are trying to either conciliate the protesters or at least to undermine them in the rest of the country. they're not going away and could even be building up. >> yeah, we also have, of course, the elections planned for monday. what is your sense as to how that will plan out? military are absolutely determined to press ahead with elections if they possibly can, and many of the big opposition forces, particularly the muslim brotherhood, also want them in order to provide a mark of their power as well. so there's a lot of people that want them to go ahead. as of now, i would think they would go ahead f. they don't, it would be an enormous blow to the ruling military council

because they really have been seen as completely failed in their attempts to build a transition to democracy. so i know there are reports today of the interior minister may be pressing for a small delay to the elections, but i very much doubt that will be agreed to by the military and that they absolutely feel they have to. >> jon leyne reporting from cairo. at least five people have been killed in the yemeni capital of sanaa when gunmen opened fire on protesters. anti-government activists were protesting against president saleh and the immunity granted to him for agreeing to a deal to step down after more than 30 years in power. we'll have more on what this means for yemen a little bit later in this program. the new italian leader, mario monti, will today for the first time since taking over as prime minister hold talks with the heads of germany and france in the latest attempt to tackle the sovereign debt crisis. this follows the least successful german bond auction

since the launch of the euro, heightening fears that contagion is hitting europe's largest economy. our europe correspondent, chris morris, now reports from brussels. mario monti on a many european tour this week, speaking at e.u. leaders to set out his stall. it's part of an effort to calm the market, sent out a message that the eurozone's third largest economy is back in safer hands. >> there will be more attention paid to growth, of course, to sustainable growth through reforms in particular. >> everyone knows italy has significant financial problems, and the new prime minister's first task will be to tackle his country's high public debt and low economic growth. he'll be judged on his result. but mr. monti may also be called upon to immediate all the between these two, mrs. merkel and mr. sarkozy struggle

to reconcile their differences, hence today's trilateral meeting between the three eurozone countries, which are also members of the g-8. it comes at a difficult time, as disputes over the best way to try to resolve the crisis in the eurozone are becoming increasingly public again. france has been saying repeatedly that berlin should relax its opposition to the european central bank, guaranteeing the debts of any country which runs into trouble. germany has been saying equally vocally that that won't happen. something somewhere is going to have to give. chris morris, bbc news, brussels. >> a general strike is being held in protest at austerity measures that are being introduced there following the international bailout. public transport, schools, and hospitals among the areas expected to be affected during the 24-hour stoppage. more than 400 international flights will be cancelled,

while some million commuters had to make their way to work without regular train services. portuguese parliament is due to vote next week on a program of spending cuts and taxes put forward by the government. staying on the theme of the international economy, aaron is here. it's not terrible news today, is it? >> who are you kidding? well, we haven't seen any positive news, let me put it that way, although the markets, the equities, let's have a look at those. this is in europe. look, let's not kid ourselves. our focus is really not so much on these particular markets, it's the money markets around the world. and also, these gains off the back of some pretty hefty falls over the last several trading sessions. look, i think we're seeing two very interesting things within the eurozone over the past couple of weeks. one is that the markets themselves, the financial markets themselves are starting to take seriously the idea that the eurozone could break up, an option.

and the second interesting fact that's happened is the politicians who would lose most from that happening are starting to dig in their heels. you go, what's going on? it's really scary. you talk to a lot of financial experts, ones who only a few weeks ago would have said, no, no, that's not inevitable, the eurozone will never break up, are start to come talk about. they go, either the eurozone breaks up or the e.c.b. steps in and steps in big time. you got to remember, world leaders back in september, world leaders gave europe six weeks to save the euro. >> and either way, germany ends up writing an enormous check. >> damned if you do, damned if you don't. germany will lose big time if the euro is broken up. but germany is still going to be the pay master and it's going to have to pay quite considerably. inflation is going to have to go higher. that will hurt german exports. look, it's a mess. we've got this meeting today, but let me tell you, the markets are not holding their breath whatsoever. >> so when i say it's not terrible --

>> it's terrible. i'll have more in 25 minutes. thanks. >> if the markets did want a cash injection, she could have asked police. they are trying to solve the mystery of a lot of cash that's been left in a pizza restaurant. it seems a man left a suitcase at a cafe in a suburb of sydney which had a million australian dollars stuffed inside it. officers have arrested a man. it's still not clear if he's a person that left the money behind. now, china is to conduct naval exercises in the western pacific within the next week. they've been involved in a number of territorial disputes with its neighbors, particularly around the south china sea. the defense ministry in beijing described the move as routine. arab league foreign ministers are due to meet in cairo in the next couple of hours to discuss their next steps in dealing with syria, which was suspended from the organization last week. they're expected to impose economic sanctions after syria refused to allow them into the

country following months of crisis. saudi arabia says two people have been shot dead in a gunfight with security forces in eastern province. the area is home to a shia minority and has seen a number of protests recently. the interior ministry says gunmen were working for a foreign country, in a reference to iran. mike bushell is here. we can do with some cheery news. >> i could cheer you up, especially if you're a fan of american samoa. on a night when big guns like arsenal won, valencia winning, now we can add american samoa. it's the first time they've tasted victory in i think it's 31 games, since they were recognized by fifa. there they are celebrating. 31 games, this is back in 1994. they played 30 before that t. well, goals against is 229 goals for 12.

they finally won a game against tonga. you have to remember, american samoa back in 2001 lost 31-0 to australia. at least they got victory. now their coaches are targetting another one on thursday. >> so it's talking of people who are serial winners. novak djokovic. >> you have to say, there's maybe something in this argument that the top players play too much. andy murray already dropping out of this tournament due to injury. novak djokovic is struggling with a back injury. they're already through. djokovic should still reach the final four if he can beat tipper is very much. certainly he was not at his best match here, worst match of the year for him, he said. >> they just sort of go in the final paces. >> it is. >> well, maybe not now.

>> you are watching "bbc world news." still to come -- a day after he walks unheard from the spectacular crash, the pilot of this helicopter says he's going back in the air. on an australian has been accused of start being a fire at a care home for the elderly last week. he's being charged with eight counts of murder two. residents died during the fire itself. a further seven have since died. the fire is now considered one of australia's worst in recent years. duncan kennedy reports from sydney. >> it was a service that brought a shaken community together in a collective act of remembrance. time for reflection for the lives lost.

the people of this west sydney suburb still can't absorbed the shock, the horror of the passing of so many elderly lives in what should have been their peaceful passage into old age. >> homes should be safe. homes should be a place where you feel secure and loved. that's been stolen from us. our staffs just want the residents home. our residents want to come home. i can't bring you home right now. i'm sorry. we'll visit you, we'll care for your needs, we want to get you. i can't bring everyone home, i know that, but one day we'll bring home those who we can. >> the nursing home blaze needed nearly 100 firefighters to control. smoke and flames creating chaos

and tragedy. many victims suffering from dementia. police have now charged this man, roger deeds, one of the home's nurses with multiple counts of murder. he's been in court, having been arrested soon after the fires started. he chose not to enter the courtroom. he was charged with eight counts of murder. the magistrate remanded him in custody until next year and told the police that they had three months to carry out their investigation. later, one officer speaking outside the court said that inquiry was proving to be onerous. with the death toll mounting almost daily, it is turning into one of australia's worst institutional fires in recent times. this may not be the last service of remembrance that takes place. duncan kennedy, bbc news, in sydney. >> it's thanksgiving day in the united states, and the president and first lady have been handing out food to the

homeless at a washington food bank. there you are. it's not often you see the most powerful man in the world standing behind the bar, but that is what he was doing today, obviously one for the cameras. but also, the entire obama family was there. there's the first lady, also his daughters were both there. a little earlier on today, he also richly presented a turkey in front of the white house, which he had decided to pardon. >> this is "bbc world news." i'm adam par sans sons. the headlines -- there are death of protest during six days of clashes. thousands are still gathered in tahrir square. five people have died in the yemeni capital of sanaa after gunmen opened fire on anti-government protesters. more now on that story. yemen's president saleh is on his way to new york for medical treatment after agreeing on a

deal to give up power to his vice president. saleh's power still has power over many institutions. joining me on the phone is a yemeni blogger who opposes the deal. thank you for your time today. first of all, the fact that the president is handing over power makes any difference at all? >> not necessarily. the deal that has been going around in the political circles , we have opposed that since the beginning, and the deal does not mention or deal with the basic demands in going on the streets, and the way to implement it still very shaky when it comes to central issues

like the situation. sons and nephews who control the republican guard and the central security along with the national security. >> but do you think this is the first step in a road to more profound changes? a few that is to be the case, then we would be happily reacting to that reality. but knowing the regime, knowing the fact that so many of us were formed, i myself lost a couple of people i knew during the process. people lost their families. people got shot. people got shattered. it's those simple demands that we went after the street for, but were not met, then i don't

see why this is any sort of relevant to us. >> the agreement doesn't include a provision that elections should be organized within the next 90 days. are you in any way confident that will happen? >> again, elections is not usually the magical one that's going to change everything and to talk to legitimacy. we have almost seven million people around the line of poverty. any elections with that is not relevant to me. and any elections in which official criminals are still in power is not relevant to me. and to many people in the country, so they're going to hold this form of elections

which nobody is going to run and they're going to deal with the vice president as a primary , the next person, and then he's going to become the president. this is not funny. this is the kind of thing that you would hear in a comedy show, but wouldn't even matter. this is not a solution for the country's problem. but if he ended up solving the country's problems, in which i highly doubt, it's why this happened. >> hamza, thank you very much indeed for joining us. appreciate your time. thank you. top-level talks have been begun at a cairo hotel with khaled

meshaal and mahmoud abbas. the first meeting since may when they signed a surprise reconciliation deal that was aimed at ending years of bitter rivalry which has cost dozens of lives. the bbc's jon donnison can join us now from ramallah. first of all, just how significant do you think this meeting is? oh, unfortunately for -- >> for six months now, and i think, you know, the fact is that many palestinians will not be holding their breath. more than five years and palestinians are pretty skeptical. most feel this division is really a distraction from their main grievance, which is, of course, israel's continuing occupation. so i don't think there's a great deal of anticipation. that said, the first time the

two men have set down together in six months is very significant. >> what do you think might come out today? >> well, you're right. back in may, the two sides said they had done a unity deal and they were going to set about having some sort of interim government made up of independents that would work toward elections sometime next year. the fact is they soon started squabbling and couldn't agree on the name of who should be in that government. it's going to be interesting to see today whether they have any suggestions as to who might form an administration. one of the main sticking points has been the prime minister here on the west bank. he's been wanting to sustain that position. they see him as too close to the west, too close to the

united states, the european union. if we get an agreement on some names, then maybe, maybe there would be some progress. >> jon donnison joining us from ramallah, thank you. the harry potter, j.k. rowling, the actress ciena miller are -- sienna miller are among those giving testimony. witnesses say they have been subjected to press intrusion. first, the inquiry is hearing from an anonymous witness whose phone was allegedly hacked after beginning a relationship with a well-known figure. we can speak now to ross hawkins, who's following the proceedings in central london. ross, intriguing to have this first witness who's been granted anonymity. >> one of the great innovations of this inquiry, live pictures

for the first time from inside a courtroom. this building behind me, during an inquire inquiry, for now the cameras have been turned off to protect the anonymity of that witness who claims to have their phone hacked and also, as we understand it, said that they were in a relationship, an embryonic relationship with a very prominent person, it was a matter of great sensitivity, and the identity has been protect. what i can tell you, what we have seen is other witnesses arriving. max mosley, the former motorsport boss who has led a legal campaign against the papers ever since a piece was published in the news of the world, saying he'd been involved in an orgy with hookers, and his case wasn't simply won of an actress, although he claimed he was an actor, but an intrusion into his privacy. it's gone through court case after court case to try to change the rules on that. we'll also hear from well known

actress sienna miller. she's already won a civil case against news of the world in which she won 100,000 pound damages, because they had hacked into several of her phones. and indeed, it was argued had got into her emails as well. she will be giving evidence as well. for now, the cameras are turned off. there is nothing to see, although we will get a transcript of this anonymous witness' evidence later in the day. >> and ross, just briefly, the british media is getting an absolute slating from this. how are they reacting? >> day after day, they don't have a very ready means to respond within the courtroom, and indeed, when they did try to respond, the "daily mail," the allegations made by the film star hugh grant talking about phone hacking, which he alleged they carried out to get a story in 2007. the paper in turn suggested he be lying, that came up within

the inquiry, and the suggestion that was they should be very, very careful about what they said. pretty accurate word for the treatment the press has got here. some of those who normally feel they are victims and who feel they do not have a voice have, in front of the cameras of the inquiry, are making the most of it. >> ross hawkins, thank you very much indeed. now, the new zealand pilot who survived a dramatic helicopter crash on wednesday has vowed he is going to go back into the air as soon as possible. greg gribble was helping to install a christmas tree on the waterfront when the blades of his helicopter hit cables attached to scaffolding, and they snapped. gribble was tossed about as the helicopter smashed to the ground. luckily for him, he escaped unharmed. he shared what he was going through his head as the crash happened. >> because it happened so quick, it was like a dream

really. it was just like bang, and the next thing, i had a couple of guys undoing my belt, which is atasmed to the floor of the aircraft. and that's basically -- i mi just slid around inside it, drag me back in, and go over backwards. you know, if i wasn't wearing that, it would have been all over. >> got to like somebody who's so pragmatic after something like that. the pop star george michael is in hospital suffering from pneumonia. the singer was due to appear in austria as part of a tour on monday, but he cancelled two hours before the concert was due to start. he's also postponed two shows in britain this weekend. wish him very best of luck in getting well soon. you can get all the news on our website. that is bbc.com/news. more there, of course, on our top story, egypt's military apologizing for the death of

protesters in tahrir square and elsewhere. >> make 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. >> union bank has put its global strength to work for a wide range of financial

companies. what can we do for you? >> bbc world news was presented by kcet los angeles.