Thursday, July 26, 2007

Your daily e-mail from the BBC

Thursday, 26 July, 2007, 18:00 GMT 03:00 +09:00:Asia/Seoul



TOP STORIES
Two dead after flooding accident
The fire service issues a safety warning as two men die trying to pump out water from a flooded rugby club.
S Korean hostage pleads for help
A South Korean woman held hostage in Afghanistan pleads for her freedom, a day after a male captive is killed.
BBC exposes Bulgarian baby trade
Babies are being illegally offered for sale in Bulgaria with the promise of smuggling them abroad, the BBC learns.
UK soldier dies in Afghan clash
A British soldier in Afghanistan is killed in a clash with Taleban fighters, the Ministry of Defence says.
Crisis warning on Iraq refugees
The flood of refugees from Iraq to neighbouring countries is causing a humanitarian crisis, a summit hears.
WORLD
S Korean hostage pleads for help
A South Korean woman held hostage in Afghanistan pleads for her freedom, a day after a male captive is killed.
BBC exposes Bulgarian baby trade
Babies are being illegally offered for sale in Bulgaria with the promise of smuggling them abroad, the BBC learns.
Fidel absent as Cuba celebrates
Cuba's acting President Raul Castro leads revolution day, a year after his brother Fidel was last seen in public.
AFRICA
Nigeria's president names cabinet
Nigeria's President Umaru Yar'Adua announces his cabinet almost three months after the elections.
Libya protests at medic pardons
Libya lodges a complaint over Bulgaria's decision to pardon six medics released from life sentences in the Arab nation.
Jail term for Nigeria ex-governor
A former Nigerian governor who skipped bail in the UK dressed as a woman is sentenced to two years in prison.
AMERICAS
Fidel absent as Cuba celebrates
Cuba's acting President Raul Castro leads revolution day, a year after his brother Fidel was last seen in public.
Obesity 'contagious', experts say
Overweight people could be increasing their friends' risks of becoming obese too, US researchers say.
Colombia landmines blamed on Farc
A US-based rights group blames Colombian rebels for the country's more than 1,000 landmine-related deaths.
ASIA-PACIFIC
S Korean hostage pleads for help
A South Korean woman held hostage in Afghanistan pleads for her freedom, a day after a male captive is killed.
Top China boss removed from party
The former party leader of Shanghai is kicked out of the Communist Party, state media reports.
Huge Chinese piracy ring tackled
Pirated software worth $500m has been seized in raids against a Chinese software gang.
EUROPE
BBC exposes Bulgarian baby trade
Babies are being illegally offered for sale in Bulgaria with the promise of smuggling them abroad, the BBC learns.
Russia planes rush to Greek fires
Russia is sending aircraft to help Greece fight forest fires raging amid record high temperatures.
French army share scammer jailed
A French-Israeli man gets five years in jail for a scam robbing hundreds of French troops out of millions of dollars.
MIDDLE EAST
Baghdad market car bomb kills 20
A car bomb explodes in a busy shopping district in central Baghdad leaving at least 20 people dead.
Crisis warning on Iraq refugees
The flood of refugees from Iraq to neighbouring countries is causing a humanitarian crisis, a summit hears.
Deadly blast at Syrian arms depot
Fifteen Syrian soldiers are killed and dozens hurt after hot weather sets off a blast at an arms depot.
SOUTH ASIA
S Korean hostage pleads for help
A South Korean woman held hostage in Afghanistan pleads for her freedom, a day after a male captive is killed.
Taleban commander was 'shot dead'
Taleban commander Abdullah Mehsud was killed by Pakistani troops and did not commit suicide, reports say.
Miliband support for Musharraf
New UK Foreign Secretary David Miliband calls for co-operation in defeating terrorism, after talks with the Pakistan president.
UK
Two dead after flooding accident
The fire service issues a safety warning as two men die trying to pump out water from a flooded rugby club.
UK soldier dies in Afghan clash
A British soldier in Afghanistan is killed in a clash with Taleban fighters, the Ministry of Defence says.
Shot boxer pronounced brain dead
A former British heavyweight boxer who was shot when he asked customers at a club to stop smoking is brain dead, his solicitor says.
ENGLAND
Pump fumes kill two in flood town
Two men die after becoming overcome by fumes from a pump used to remove flood water in Tewkesbury.
Grandmother guilty of murder plot
A grandmother and her son are found guilty of plotting to have his wife murdered to "defend the family honour".
'Dog mess' CCTV squad nets human
Complaints about excrement left regularly on a road leads police not to a dog - but a two-legged culprit.
NORTHERN IRELAND
Bank is creating 149 jobs in city
Almost 150 jobs are being created in Belfast in a multi-million pound investment by Bank of Ireland.
Firefighter details posted on web
Private pager messages between fire officers and their headquarters were posted on the internet.
Unit struck by infection reopens
Belfast City Hospital reopens its intensive care unit closed after two patients were hit by infection.
SCOTLAND
Life term for grandmother killer
A man is jailed for life for murdering a Glasgow grandmother and hiding her body under floorboards.
Angelika killer has heart attack
The man convicted of killing Polish student Angelika Kluk last year is being treated for a heart condition.
Star Page witness in bootleg case
Rock legend Jimmy Page gives evidence in an alleged bootleg music case at Glasgow Sheriff Court.
WALES
Police moving Shambo protesters
Officers move protesters who are trying to stop a "sacred" bullock being moved from a temple for slaughter.
Reward wait after Roman coin find
A metal detector enthusiast who found Roman coins buried for 2,000 years waits to hear the size of his reward.
Tutor sent to jail over ID fraud
A university tutor who taught about identity theft is jailed for identity fraud and theft offences.
POLITICS
MPs warn over air security checks
Heightened security checks at airports could create a potential new target for terrorists, MPs warn.
Ex-minister demands EU referendum
Labour former minister Gisela Stuart criticises the government for not holding a referendum on the EU treaty.
Independence paper to be released
First Minister Alex Salmond is to publish a white paper proposing a Scottish independence referendum.
BUSINESS
Banks agree to charges test case
UK banks, including HSBC, Lloyds TSB and Nationwide, agree to go to court in an overdraft charge test case.
World stocks fall on rate concern
Stock markets fall worldwide amid concerns about the effect of higher global interest rates.
UK house prices 'stall' in July
House prices were almost unchanged in July, the Nationwide says, as higher interest rates begin to bite.
ENTERTAINMENT
Actor Langham 'abused as a child'
Chris Langham reveals during evidence at his child sex trial that he was abused at the age of eight.
Spaghetti westerns head to Venice
Quentin Tarantino will curate a retrospective of spaghetti westerns at the Venice Film Festival.
US TV's Heroes is hit for BBC Two
BBC Two's first airing of US fantasy drama series Heroes captures an audience of 4.3m viewers.
SCIENCE/NATURE
Request made for Mars rover price
European industry receives the formal request to cost the design and construction of a robotic rover to send to the Red Planet in 2013.
UK forecasts to zoom in on towns
Forecasters will soon be able to give accurate weather predictions down to areas the size of a town, UK meteorologists say.
US Army eyes truck-mounted laser
The US Army is developing a truck-mounted laser system to destroy rockets, artillery shells and mortars.
TECHNOLOGY
Huge Chinese piracy ring tackled
Pirated software worth $500m has been seized in raids against a Chinese software gang.
Crackdown wins innovation prize
Xbox 360 title Crackdown is among winners at an award ceremony for games developers.
Sony up despite Playstation woes
Sony quarterly profits more than double on demand for its cameras despite problems with its games console.
HEALTH
Flood water poses low health risk
Fears that filthy water from Britain's floods could trigger a health crisis are largely unfounded, experts reassure.
Children's surgery overhaul call
Children's surgery is being undermined by lack of training and funding, leading doctors warn.
Obesity 'contagious', experts say
Overweight people could be increasing their friends' risks of becoming obese too, US researchers say.
EDUCATION
Youth services use unclaimed cash
Money from unused bank accounts is to be used to provide youth clubs for teenagers.
Flood schools remain 'unusable'
The first wave of summer floods has left 24 schools "unusable", says the government.
One in five students 'drops out'
One in five students starting a full-time university course is unlikely to complete it, National Audit Office figures show.
ON THIS DAY NEWS FROM THE BBC ARCHIVES
1956: Egypt seizes Suez Canal
Egypt's president, Colonel Nasser, announces the nationalisation of the Suez Canal Company to provide funding for the construction of the Aswan High Dam.
1945: Churchill loses general election
Clement Attlee is Britain's new prime minister after Labour win a sweeping victory over the Conservatives.
1963: Thousands killed in Yugoslav earthquake
Thousands of people are feared dead as a massive earthquake rocks the Yugoslavian city of Skopje.
SPECIAL COVERAGE

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