Friday, June 29, 2007

Your daily e-mail from the BBC

Friday, 29 June, 2007, 18:00 GMT 03:00 +09:00:Asia/Seoul



TOP STORIES
Police avert car bomb 'carnage'
A car bomb defused in central London was packed with petrol, gas and nails and would have caused "carnage".
Brown brings in more 'outsiders'
Gordon Brown drafts more non-Labour figures into his team, including former Met chief Lord Stevens.
Insurers face £1bn flood claims
Insurers says they are already looking at £1bn worth of claims arising from this week's floods.
US court admits Guantanamo cases
The top US Court will hear an appeal by Guantanamo inmates who want to challenge their confinement.
Motorists lose speed camera case
A European court rules against two British motorists who said speed camera rules breached their human rights.
WORLD
US court admits Guantanamo cases
The top US Court will hear an appeal by Guantanamo inmates who want to challenge their confinement.
Iraq Sunnis to boycott government
Iraq's main Sunni Arab bloc will boycott cabinet meetings because of legal action against one of its ministers.
Rockets fired at Ivorian PM plane
The Ivory Coast prime minister survives a rocket attack on a plane he was travelling in, his New Forces group says.
AFRICA
Rockets fired at Ivorian PM plane
The Ivory Coast prime minister survives a rocket attack on a plane he was travelling in, his New Forces group says.
Deserted cocaine boat in Senegal
An empty sailing boat with 1.2 tons of cocaine is found in Senegal - the latest seizure in West Africa.
Nigeria's new leader 'worth $5m'
Nigeria's new President Umaru Yar'Adua publicly declares his assets, in an effort to combat corruption.
AMERICAS
US court admits Guantanamo cases
The top US Court will hear an appeal by Guantanamo inmates who want to challenge their confinement.
Canada natives in day of protests
Aboriginal groups in Canada block roads as part of protests to raise awareness of poverty in their communities.
Police accused over Rio killings
Rio shanty town residents say innocent people were among the 19 killed by Brazilian police during a raid on drug gangs.
ASIA-PACIFIC
'Deal' on N Korea reactor closure
The UN says it has reached an understanding with N Korea on monitoring the closure of a nuclear reactor.
East Timor set for critical poll
East Timor is set to vote in a parliamentary poll dominated by promises to ease poverty and strengthen security.
Hu in Hong Kong for anniversary
Chinese President Hu Jintao is in Hong Kong to mark the 10th anniversary of its handover from Britain.
EUROPE
Police avert car bomb 'carnage'
A car bomb defused in central London was packed with petrol, gas and nails and would have caused "carnage".
French unemployed at 25-year low
New French President Nicolas Sarkozy gets a boost as the jobless total falls to 2.2 million - the lowest since June 1982.
Greek forest fire close to Athens
Firefighters battle to contain a major forest fire near the suburbs of the Greek capital, Athens.
MIDDLE EAST
Iraq Sunnis to boycott government
Iraq's main Sunni Arab bloc will boycott cabinet meetings because of legal action against one of its ministers.
Lebanon army 'kills protesters'
Witnesses say soldiers kill three Palestinian protesters in Lebanon, but an army spokesman denies the claim.
Militant killed in West Bank raid
Israeli troops shoot dead a Palestinian militant in the city of Nablus in the occupied West Bank.
SOUTH ASIA
Aid pleas after Pakistan cyclone
Hundreds of thousands in Pakistan are now stranded without help four days after a cyclone hit coastal areas.
Four killed in anti-Taleban raid
US-led coalition and Afghan troops raid houses in the east of the country, killing at least four people.
Tendulkar leads way in India win
Sachin Tendulkar passes 15,000 ODI runs as India beat South Africa by six wickets in Belfast.
UK
Police avert car bomb 'carnage'
A car bomb defused in central London was packed with petrol, gas and nails and would have caused "carnage".
Brown brings in more 'outsiders'
Gordon Brown drafts more non-Labour figures into his team, including former Met chief Lord Stevens.
Magistrate walks out in veil row
A magistrate who refused to deal with a defendant because she was wearing a full veil could face disciplinary action.
ENGLAND
Police avert car bomb 'carnage'
A car bomb defused in central London was packed with petrol, gas and nails and would have caused "carnage".
Flood centre set up for weekend
A national flood support centre is set up as weather forecasters predict a weekend of heavy rain.
Magistrate walks out in veil row
A magistrate who refused to deal with a defendant because she was wearing a full veil could face disciplinary action.
NORTHERN IRELAND
Troubles trauma could top £100m
A court ruling allows former police officers to claim for compensation for trauma during NI Troubles.
Minister suspended at probe start
A minister convicted of having indecent child images was already removed from duties, a bishop says.
Racists target family's city home
A south Belfast woman, orginally from Asia, claims that racist thugs have forced her from her home.
SCOTLAND
Murder victim 'knew his killers'
A 49-year-old man shot dead in a pub car park in East Dunbartonshire may have known his killers, police say.
Piracy police raid Honeywell site
Police and industry investigators raid a factory after allegations of a large music filesharing network.
Ex-Clyde boss wins dismissal case
Former football boss Graham Roberts is awarded £32,000 after being sacked over claims he made racist comments.
WALES
Narrow backing for police horses
Controversial plans are agreed to spend 200,000 on a '"profligate" mounted unit for North Wales Police.
Benefit fraudster caught on CCTV
A benefits cheat who claimed she was disabled and hardly able to walk is caught out on CCTV.
Valley tributes to Iraq soldier
Friends of a corporal killed by a roadside bomb, remember a "character" who loved his Army career.
POLITICS
Brown brings in more 'outsiders'
Gordon Brown drafts more non-Labour figures into his team, including former Met chief Lord Stevens.
Smith warns of 'sustained' threat
Home Secretary Jacqui Smith says a bomb alert shows Britain faces a "sustained" international terror threat.
Cameron offers security support
Conservative leader David Cameron pledges to 'work as closely as I can' with the government to combat terror.
BUSINESS
Fopp closes down its 105 stores
Music retailer Fopp closes its chain of 105 shops, becoming the latest victim of the slump in sales of CDs.
Union hails postal strike support
Unions say support for Royal Mail strike is "overwhelming", but the company says many staff are working.
Insurers face £1bn flood claims
Insurers says they are already looking at £1bn worth of claims arising from this week's floods.
ENTERTAINMENT
Stones 'saddened' by crew deaths
The Rolling Stones offer their "profound sympathies" after two workers are killed following a concert in Madrid.
Pop star Lily quizzed by police
Singer Lily Allen is questioned by police over an alleged assault on a photographer outside a nightclub.
Hurt Stewart misses music awards
Singer Rod Stewart misses the Silver Clef music awards in London after injuring his leg on stage.
SCIENCE/NATURE
Charity attacks rush for biofuels
A furious attack on the rush for biofuels is launched by a charity that supports poor farmers.
DNA traces origin of domestic cat
The humble domestic cat has its origins in the Middle East, according to a genetic study in Science journal.
Team claims synthetic life feat
A leading human genome scientist says he has taken a major step towards creating life from scratch in the lab.
TECHNOLOGY
Apple's iPhone makes it to stores
Apple's much-hyped iPhone handset is due to go on sale in the US this evening, with large queues expected.
Piracy police raid Honeywell site
Police and industry investigators raid a factory after allegations of a large music filesharing network.
Whiteboard projector safety fears
Documents reveal potential risks to eyesight from the projectors used in schools' interactive whiteboards.
HEALTH
Surgeon appointed as minister
Gordon Brown appoints practising surgeon Professor Sir Ara Darzi as a minister, charged with improving patient care.
Superfood 'ban' comes into effect
Products claiming to be superfoods will be banned under new EU rules coming into effect on July 1st unless the claim can be proved.
Pill to make dieters 'feel full'
Italian scientists have developed a pill that expands in the stomach to make dieters feel full.
EDUCATION
Funding 'curbs joined-up courses'
Uncertainty over funding and schools' attitudes are limiting vocational courses for teenagers, Ofsted says.
Doctors qualify on access degree
The first batch of medical students on a course for disadvantaged students qualify as doctors.
Brown shakes up education arena
Gordon Brown carves up the Department for Education and appoints Ed Balls and John Denham to the top jobs.
ON THIS DAY NEWS FROM THE BBC ARCHIVES
1995: US shuttle docks with Russian space station
American and Russian spacecrafts successfully dock in orbit for the first time in 20 years.
1960: BBC unveils TV 'factory'
The BBC's new Television Centre will be the "Hollywood" of the small screen, the corporation's director of TV announces.
1974: First female president for Argentina
Isabel Peron is sworn in as interim leader of the Argentine Republic after her husband falls ill.
DON'T MISS
Hong Kong Night - 10th Anniversay
Britain's last Governor, Chris Patten hosts an evening of programmes looking back at the handover to China
BBC Parliament, Sunday, 6pm - Midnight
SPECIAL COVERAGE