steve kingston has all of the details. >> americas cheer for a man who gained a daughter five days ago. they braved the rain to welcome him to georgetown university. these are the first official engagements by the prince of wales since a royal wedding which captivated millions of americans and the tone of the visit, unlike the weather, has been one of warmth and good will. >> inside the keynote speech begin with a quip. >> it certainly makes a change from making embarrassing speeches about my eldest son during wedding receptions and things like that. >> and then the serious stuff. the prince spoke about food production making the case for sustainable farming and denouncing what he sees as the evils of pesticides and chemicals. >> we need to face up to asking whether how we produce our food is actually fit for purpose in the very challenging circumstances of the 21st century. we simply cannot ignore that question any longer. [applause] >> a typically passionate speech which brought the audience to its feet. food has been the running theme of this visit. there is an urban farm in washing

steve kingston reports from washington. >> she appeared alone, no guests, no real fanfare, just an adoring public and a moment of intimacy watched by millions. >> something in me connected with each of you in a way that allowed me to see myself in you and you in me. this last hour is really about me saying thank you. it is my love letter to you. >> the stars had come out 24 hours earlier to salute the queen of chat and lament the vacating of her throne. >> i know you don't have children of your own, but you have mothered millions. >> however they spend week-day afternoons, oprah's departure leaves a large hole in the lives of millions of americans. >> she is a big part of american culture. i do believe in a lot of the topics that she had on her show as being very inspirational. >> she has shown people that in the united states if you really work hard, you can accomplish anything. >> this is the little girl born into the biting poverty of the deep south who would become a billionaire mega star. destiny called in 1986, this was the first nationally televised show. and here oprah appeared alo

steve kingston, our correspondent from washington, d.c., joins me now. steve, we just saw some pictures from inside that mansion that bin laden was living in. what is the very latest information you're hearing? >> those pictures came from american television. they appear to show blood, u.s. media reports say that is a room in which osama bin laden was killed. they also appear to show computer hard drives that have been ripped apart. possibly by the americans. and what is being reported here by the bbc's partner, it abc news, is that the navy seals who apparently staged this operation apparently came face to face with bin laden in the compound, abc reports. a small team of american navy seals carrying out what is described as a surgical raid by senior administration officials , apparently did not know where in the three-story compound they were likely to find their target. they walked into a room and reportedly came face to face with osama bin laden, recognized him, ordered him to surrender, it is said. when he didn't surrender, they are said to have fired

our reporter steve kingston has been in washington for us and said the worst of the floods is possiblyver for memphis but the waters are threatening else where. >> the waters reached an almost historic high and inches shy of the record set in 1937 and low-lying neighborhoods have seen homes completely swamped. but the historic center of memphis, the downtown area, we are told, withstood the floods because of the system of levees that was put in place after the 1930's floods. and the worst is possibly past there. but this is going to be an issue that we hear a lot about over the coming days and weeks. roughly 600 kilometers separate memphis from new orleans where the mississippi will eventually discharge into the gulf of mexico. and it will take almost two weeks for the surge of water to flow from memphis down to new orleans. so communities all the way down the route of the river and alongside tributaries flowing into it are very much on alert and wondering how badly they will be hit. >> 1,300 people have been evacuated during this situation, steve. is there a sense they might be likely

steve kingston, "bbc news," washington. >> the wallle street journal reporting that the united states launched a drone attack on al laki. the missile missed its target. they cite yemeni and u.s. officials, however the pentagon has not commented. they represent the gravest threats to the u.s. thousands of syrians are taking part in a day of defiance against their president. at least 21 people were killed in the city of homs and hama when security forces opened fire on protestors. the president has warned that the united states will take additional steps if they continue to oppress. >> just outside dara, women and children join the latest marches. they were prepared to take the risk of being shot. it's a sign of fear evaporating. that's bad news for the assad regime. once again, demonstrations followed the noon press. "bbc" is relying on amateur pictures coming out of syria. like other news organizations we have not been allowed to send teams in the country. demonstrators were shocked in central syria. the official news agency reported that 10 soldiers and policemen were killed by what

steve kingston in washington says the authorities do not expect the water to breach flood defenses. >he officials and the city say they do not quite expected to exceed the record depth reached in 1937. nor date expected to reach the height of the levies that were put in place -- nor do they expected to reach the height of the levies that were put in place in the wake of those great floods of the 1920's and 1930's. it is a scary time for people there. some 1300 households have been, the occupants of those homes have been told to leave by the emergency authorities. we've got hundreds of people this evening in emergency shelters. their homes potentially have become a death trap so there were not able to get into them. and there is great concern that further down river, as this great swell of water makes its way south towards new orleans eventually. there is concern about the further damage it could do. we have seen pictures today of what is known as a spillway north of new orleans being opened at its allow some of the water to flow into the lake to ease the pressure on the levees further