Pope re-enacts Way of the Cross

26 July 2013 Last updated at 22:10 ET

Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.

The BBC's Julia Carneiro says huge crowds gathered to see Pope Francis

Pope Francis has joined crowds of Roman Catholic pilgrims in Rio de Janeiro for a re-enactment of Jesus carrying the cross to his crucifixion.

The Stations of the Cross march comes on the Pope's fifth day in Brazil for World Youth Day - a weeklong event for more than a million young Christians.

He spoke about the lack of faith in political institutions perceived as selfish and corrupt by young people.

A planned field vigil outside Rio was moved to the city because of rain.

Young Catholics played drums on Copacabana beach as they waited for the Pope. People from all over the world travelled to Brazil for the pontiff's visit.

"Jesus is united with so many young people who have lost faith in political institutions, because they see in them only selfishness and corruption,'' Pope Francis said.

Protests, sometimes violent, broke out in cities across Brazil last month against corruption, poor public services and the high cost of events like the 2014 World Cup.

The 76-year-old Pope also expressed understanding for Christians who had lost faith in the Church because of what he called the "incoherence of Christians and ministers of the gospel".

The Roman Catholic Church has been rocked by scandals over sexual abuse by priests.

One man from Argentina told the BBC he knew the Pope from his time as Archbishop of Buenos Aires. He said he was renowned for his strength and tenderness, but "now he's like a real father."

Another pilgrim described the Pope as "very clever" and "very humble" with "a lot" of personality. "It's what our religion... our church is needing right now," she said.

Shortly after the Pope finished speaking, police held a group of protesters who tried to invade the stage. They were demonstrating against the state governor of Rio, Sergio Cabral.

In Brazil's largest city, Sao Paulo, some 300 demonstrators attacked several bank branches and at least one police post in protest against the state governor there.

Police said at least eight bank branches were attacked, and for a time several of Sao Paulo's main avenues were blocked.

Tear gas was used to disperse the protesters.

Message for youth

Earlier, Latin America's first pontiff met a group of prisoners in a palace of the Rio archdiocese.

He then emerged on a balcony to address the crowd, urging them to cherish the elderly on Grandparents' Day.

Continue reading the main story

"How important grandparents are for family life, for passing on the human and religious heritage which is so essential for each and every society," he said.

The Pope then went to a park where he heard three Brazilians, a Venezuelan and an Italian confess their sins.

Brazil is the world's biggest Roman Catholic country, despite the growing popularity of Pentecostal Christianity in the country.

19.15 | 0 komentar | Read More

N Korea stages anniversary parade

26 July 2013 Last updated at 23:22 ET

Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.

The BBC's Lucy Williamson describes a show of military might in N Korea

North Korea has staged a huge parade to mark the 60th anniversary of the armistice that ended the Korean War.

State TV showed soldiers and military hardware parading through the capital Pyongyang in a carefully choreographed display.

Troops and spectators shouted their allegiance to North Korea's young ruler, Kim Jong-un.

The 1950-53 Korean War ended in a truce although the North and South remain technically at war.

Correspondents say the lavish parade of weapons and goose-stepping soldiers is reminiscent of marches held by the Soviet Union and China at the height of the Cold War.

The TV pictures showed Kim Jong-un walking up to the podium on a red carpet with a military band playing in the background. He oversaw the parade flanked by military and ruling party leaders.

Large banners hung from gas-filled balloons and the main square in Pyongyang was filled with North Korean flags.

Over the past week North Korea has staged mass rallies and fireworks displays to commemorate the anniversary.

It comes as North and South Korea try to restore ties following a period of high tension.

Earlier this month, they ended a third round of talks on the re-opening of a jointly-run industrial zone without reaching a deal.

Work at Kaesong has been suspended since mid-April when North Korea withdrew its workers.

The move came amid tense relations between the two Koreas after Pyongyang's nuclear test in February.

In South Korea, the anniversary was marked with a speech by President Park Geun-hye.

She vowed not to tolerate provocations from North Korea but also said Seoul would work on building trust with the North.

"I urge North Korea to give up the development of nuclear weapons if the country is to start on a path toward true change and progress," she said.

19.15 | 0 komentar | Read More

EU and China reach solar panel deal

27 July 2013 Last updated at 05:06 ET

The European Commission says it has reached "an amicable solution" with Beijing in a row over imports of Chinese solar panels.

Both sides have agreed a minimum price for the panels, EU Trade Commissioner Karel De Gucht said.

The dispute erupted after the Commission - the EU's executive arm - imposed temporary anti-dumping levies on the imports.

It argued that Chinese firms were undercutting rivals.

China is the world's largest producer of solar panels. Its exports to Europe totalled 21bn euros ($27bn; £18bn) in 2011.

"After weeks of intensive talks, I can announce that I am satisfied with the offer of a price undertaking submitted by China's solar panel exporters," Mr De Gucht said on Saturday.

"This is the amicable solution that both the EU and China were looking for."

He added that the agreement would "lead to a new market equilibrium at sustainable prices".

The anti-dumping case was the biggest ever undertaken by the Commission.

In June, the EU accused China of "dumping" solar panels in Europe - selling them at below cost to steal market share - and then said it would impose import tariffs of up to 47.6% on them.

China said EU farm subsidies had resulted in European countries "dumping" wine on China, and warned it may respond in kind.

19.15 | 0 komentar | Read More

Man 'too fat' to live in New Zealand

27 July 2013 Last updated at 05:09 ET

Authorities in New Zealand have told a South African chef he is too fat to be allowed to live in the country.

Immigration officials said Albert Buitenhuis, who weighs 130kg (286 pounds), did not have "an acceptable standard of health".

He now faces expulsion despite shedding 30kg since he moved to the city of Christchurch six years ago

New Zealand has one of the highest obesity rates in the developed world, with nearly 30% of people overweight.

Mr Buitenhuis and his wife, Marthie, moved from South Africa to Christchurch in 2007. At the time, the chef weighed 160kg.

Until now, their annual work visas had been renewed with "very little problem", his wife said.

"We applied year after year and there were no issues," she said.

"They never mentioned Albert's weight or his health once and he was a lot heavier then."

But in early May, the couple was told their work visas had been declined because of Mr Buitenhuis's weight.

"The irony is that at the moment he weighs less than when we first arrived in New Zealand and also less than in his first medical, which was accepted by [immigration authorities]," his wife said.

The couple has appealed to New Zealand's immigration minister, citing the chef's recent weight loss.

An immigration spokesman said Mr Buitenhuis's application had been rejected because his obesity put him at "significant risk" of complications including diabetes, hypertension and heart disease.

"It is important that all migrants have an acceptable standard of health to minimise costs and demands on New Zealand's health services," he said.

19.15 | 0 komentar | Read More

China toddler dies after parking row

27 July 2013 Last updated at 06:40 ET

A Chinese toddler has died in a Beijing hospital after being wounded during a row between her mother and a man over a parking space, state media report.

They say the two-year-old girl suffered critical injuries on Tuesday when the man pulled her out of her pram and threw her to the ground.

He also reportedly beat the mother who had refused to make way for his car, while she was attending her daughter.

The driver was arrested. He could face execution if he is tried for murder.

Police also detained a second man in the case, who was allegedly a passenger in the car and helped beat up the woman.

The toddler died on Thursday night after being kept alive on a respirator, Chinese state media said on Saturday.

The assault happened when a man, identified only by his surname Han, wanted to park his car by a bus stop in Beijing.

But the toddler's mother was standing in the parking spot and refused to move her pram.

The driver got out of his car and hit the woman before removing her daughter from the pram and throwing her forcefully to the ground, an eyewitness is quoted as saying.

"The baby made no noises after being dropped, not even a cry of pain," the Beijing Times quoted him as saying.

19.15 | 0 komentar | Read More

Tunisia state funeral for murdered MP

27 July 2013 Last updated at 06:49 ET

A state funeral is being held for Tunisian opposition leader Mohamed Brahmi who was killed on Thursday by gunmen in the capital, Tunis.

His death has sparked widespread unrest. One protester died in overnight clashes in the southern town of Gafsa.

The interior minister said Mr Brahmi, 58, was killed with the same gun as a fellow left-wing politician, Chokri Belaid, who was shot dead in February.

A Salafist is one of the main suspects involved the murder, officials said.

Gunmen on a motorbike shot Mr Brahmi, who led the nationalist Movement of the People party, in his car on Thursday.

On Saturday thousands of people lined the streets of Tunis as the coffin wrapped in the national flag passed by under military escort.

Continue reading the main story

• 58-years-old
• MP for Sidi Bouzid, birthplace of Arab Spring
• Leader of a small left-wing party, the Popular Movement
• Promoted pan-Arabism and socialism
• Far lower profile then Chokri Belaid, who was assassinated in February
• Practising Muslim, unlike Mr Belaid
• Critic of government, but also had many friends in the main Islamist party, Ennahda
• His wife blames Ennahda for his killing; others disagree.

Mr Brahmi's supporters have turned their grief and anger on governing Islamist party Ennahda, with relatives accusing it of complicity in the killing.

The government has rejected the allegations, instead naming a Salafist radical, Boubaker Hakim, as the main suspect.

Hours before the funeral, a policeman was injured when a bomb on a car exploded outside a police station in the capital's La Goulette district.

On Friday thousands of people took part in a protests after the the biggest trade union, UGTT, called a general strike to denounce general "terrorism, violence and murders".

In Gafsa, one demonstrator was killed in clashes with police. The circumstances of his death remain unclear.

Earlier, demonstrators attacked Ennahda's headquarters in Sidi Bouzid, Mr Brahmi's hometown and the birthplace of the Arab Spring revolutions which have swept the Middle East.

In February, the murder of prominent secular figure Chokri Belaid sparked mass protests and forced then-Prime Minister Hamadi Jebali to resign.

Six opposition parties have now withdrawn from the national assembly and called for the Islamist-led government to be replaced by a national unity administration.

Mr Brahmi was a socialist and practising Muslim with a pan-Arab ideology, correspondents say.

He was less prominent than Chokri Belaid and not as critical of Ennahda, which came to power in elections following the January 2011 uprising.

The party has faced growing popular unrest over a faltering economy and a rising radical Islamist movement.

Correspondents say many Tunisians, particularly the young, complain that their quest for secular democracy has been hijacked by intolerant Islamists, including the Muslim Brotherhood which forms part of the current government.

19.15 | 0 komentar | Read More

'Scores killed' at Egypt protest

27 July 2013 Last updated at 08:06 ET

Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.

The BBC's Jim Muir: "The casualties are mounting"

More than 100 people have been killed at a protest by supporters of ousted Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi in the capital, Cairo, doctors say.

They said more than 1,500 were also hurt. The state health ministry says 38 people had died - 180 injured.

The army ousted Mr Morsi on 3 July. He has been formally accused of murder relating to a 2011 jail outbreak and of links to militant group Hamas.

Pro- and anti-Morsi supporters staged huge protests overnight in the capital.

'Legal manner'

Many thousands occupied Cairo's Tahrir Square in support of the army, after its chief, Gen Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, had urged people to demonstrate to provide a mandate for its intervention.

Continue reading the main story

There were pools of blood all over the field hospital. Many of the injured were in bad shape. Some had parts of their head missing - taken out by bullets.

The battle raged last night and all morning. We heard automatic gunfire. Protesters formed a human shield around us as shotguns and CS gas were fired towards us. There was the sound of outgoing shots too. The air was thick with tear gas and people were vomiting.

There was a child, maybe 12, covered in blood. He was deathly white. They closed the doors at the hospital as they could not accept more wounded, but the ambulances were still arriving.

As we left, a child was dragged from a car by the Morsi supporters outside the mosque. He was given a very serious beating.

Meanwhile, tens of thousands of Morsi supporters continued their sit-in protest at the mosque in the Nasr City area.

On Saturday, Interior Minister Mohammed Ibrahim vowed to end the sit-in, saying local residents had complained about the encampment.

He said the protest would be "brought to an end soon and in a legal manner" with an order from the prosecutor, although this has yet to happen.

The BBC's Jim Muir in Cairo says the latest violence is the most serious since the army's intervention to remove President Morsi, but this does not appear to have been a planned campaign to clear the area around the mosque.

It appears the violence began after some of the Morsi supporters tried to block a main road in the area overnight and security forces responded.

The health ministry issued a lower death toll of 38, with 180 people wounded.

State news agency Mena quoted a security official as saying that live fire had not been used, only tear gas.

The official said security forces had been trying to stop fighting between rival sides and that eight security personnel had been injured.

But Muslim Brotherhood spokesman Gehad el-Haddad told Reuters news agency: "They are not shooting to wound, they are shooting to kill."

Our correspondent says medics at the hospital believed about 70% of the casualties were caused by live fire - with many of the victims hit in the chest or head by snipers firing from rooftops.

A senior Brotherhood politician, Saad el-Hosseini, told the agency that this was an attempt by security forces to clear the mosque area.

"I have been trying to make the youth withdraw for five hours. I can't. They are saying they have paid with their blood and they do not want to retreat," he said.

Our correspondent says Morsi supporters are furious about the role the military is taking, and in particular Gen Sisi, who they say is killing Egyptians.

Continue reading the main story

Egypt's pro-Muslim Brotherhood TV station, Ahrar 25, quoted the coalition that supports Mr Morsi - the National Coalition for Supporting Legitimacy - as saying it held Gen Sisi responsible for the deaths at the mosque protest.

There has also been violence in Egypt's second city of Alexandria, where at least 10 people have been killed in clashes between rival factions.

European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said she "deeply deplored" the latest deaths in Egypt.

Please turn on JavaScript. Media requires JavaScript to play.

Dr Hisham Ibrahim described scenes at the hospital as like "hell"

A spokeswoman said Baroness Ashton called "on all actors to refrain from violence and to respect the principles of peaceful protest".

UK Foreign Secretary William Hague said: "Now is the time for dialogue, not confrontation. It is the responsibility of leaders on all sides to take steps to reduce tensions."

Morsi accused

Mr Morsi, the country's first democratically elected president, has now been formally accused of the "premeditated murder of some prisoners, officers and soldiers" when he and several Muslim Brotherhood leaders were freed during a breakout at a Cairo prison in January 2011.

He is alleged to have plotted attacks on jails in the uprising that overthrew President Hosni Mubarak.

Mr Morsi is also accused of conspiring with the Palestinian militant group Hamas, which governs the Gaza Strip and has strong links with the Muslim Brotherhood.

Mr Morsi has been formally remanded in custody at an undisclosed location for an initial 15-day period, a judicial order said.

The order issued on Friday was the first official statement on Mr Morsi's legal status since he was overthrown.

Two human rights activists visited Mr Morsi's undisclosed place of detention on Friday, although he reportedly refused to meet them, instead sending his chief of presidential staff Refaa el-Tahtawy - who is also held at the location.

Mr Tahtawy told the visitors they were being treated well but complained that they were unable to meet relatives.

On Saturday, the interior minister Ibrahim said that Mr Morsi would be transferred to Torah Prison, where Mubarak is being held.

Send your pictures and videos to yourpics@bbc.co.uk or text them to 61124 (UK) or +44 7624 800 100 (International). If you have a large file you can upload here.

Read the terms and conditions

19.15 | 0 komentar | Read More

Spain driver held 'for manslaughter'

27 July 2013 Last updated at 08:09 ET

The driver of a train that derailed in Spain killing 78 people has been accused of "reckless manslaughter", the interior minister has said.

Jorge Fernandez Diaz said Francisco Jose Garzon Amo, who was slightly hurt in Wednesday's accident, had been taken to a police station.

Mr Garzon is suspected of driving too fast on a bend. Reports say the train was travelling at more than double the speed limit at the time of the crash.

He has refused to answer questions.

At least 130 people were taken to hospital after the accident near the north-western city of Santiago de Compostela.

People from several nationalities are among the wounded, including five Americans and one Briton. One American was among the dead.

Experienced driver

State rail operator Renfe said the train came off the tracks about 3 or 4km (2-2.5 miles) from Santiago de Compostela station at 20:41 local time (18:41 GMT) on Wednesday.

It was on the express route between the capital, Madrid, and the port city of Ferrol on the Galician coast, with 218 passengers on board and four crew.

The train's data recording "black box" is with the judge in charge of the investigation.

It is unclear whether anyone else is subject to investigation.

Renfe president Julio Gomez Pomar was quoted by El Mundo newspaper as saying the 52-year-old driver had 30 years of experience with the company and had been operating trains on the line for more than a year.

Mr Pomar said the train had no technical problems.

The derailment happened on the eve of Santiago de Compostela's main annual festival where thousands of Christian pilgrims were expected to flock to the city in honour of St James.

19.15 | 0 komentar | Read More

Australia asylum shift 'troubling'

26 July 2013 Last updated at 00:38 ET

Australia's new asylum policy lacks "adequate protection standards for asylum seekers", the UN says.

Under the new policy, boatpeople headed to Australia will have their claims processed by Papua New Guinea (PNG), and be resettled there if successful.

However, the UN High Commission for Refugees said there were "significant shortcomings" in PNG's legal system for processing asylum seekers.

Thousands of asylum-seekers try to reach Australia by boat every year.

"Australia's Regional Resettlement Arrangement (RRA) with the Government of PNG raises serious, and so far unanswered, protection questions," the UNHCR said in its first review of Australia's new policy.

"UNHCR is troubled by the current absence of adequate protection standards and safeguards for asylum seekers and refugees in Papua New Guinea," it said.

PNG was currently not prepared for processing asylum seekers, due to "a lack of national capacity and expertise in processing, and poor physical conditions within open-ended, mandatory and arbitrary detention settings," it said.

'Legal challenges'

The UNHCR statement added that Australia's new policy faced "significant policy, legal and operational challenges".

Continue reading the main story

• 2010: 134 boats carrying 6,535 passengers
• 2011: 69 boats, carrying 4,565 passengers
• 2012: 278 boats carrying 17,202 passengers
• 2013 (figures up to 16 July): 218 boats carrying 15,182 passengers

Figures from Australia's Department of Immigration; passenger numbers exclude crew

UNHCR representation Richard Towle told Australian broadcaster ABC that "the act of transfer physically does not divest... Australia of the responsibility for ongoing protection".

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd announced the new asylum policy last week, ahead of polls expected to be announced soon.

He said the arrangement would send "a very clear message to people-smugglers to stop sending people by boat to Australia".

However, critics have accused Australia of avoiding responsibility and passing on its problem to a developing nation.

Australia has experienced a sharp increase in the number of asylum seekers arriving by boat this year.

Several boats have sunk in recent months, killing passengers.

Meanwhile, Immigration Minister Tony Burke has visited Manus Island in PNG following allegations that abuses were taking place at the off-shore processing centre on the island.

A former security manager, Rod St George, said that some detainees had been raped and assaulted with the knowledge of the centre's employees.

19.16 | 0 komentar | Read More

Japan 'needs marines and drones'

26 July 2013 Last updated at 03:25 ET

Japan should bolster its marine force and introduce surveillance drones, a defence review paper says, highlighting concerns over China and North Korea.

The paper also called for better defences against missile attacks and the potential to attack enemy bases.

Japan's military is constitutionally limited to a self-defence role.

But PM Shinzo Abe is looking to expand the scope of its activities - potentially a highly controversial move that would anger its neighbours.

Japan is embroiled in a bitter row over islands with China and is deeply concerned by North Korea's nuclear ambitions.

The interim report is part of a defence review ordered by Mr Abe, with final proposals due by December.

On Sunday, Mr Abe won back control of Japan's Upper House, meaning he now controls parliament and would be in a stronger position to reshape Japan's current defence strategy.

'Deter and respond'

Under Article 9 of its post-war constitution, Japan is blocked from the use of force to resolve conflicts except in the case of self-defence.

But Mr Abe has indicated he wants to re-examine the role of Japan's military to meet the changing security environment in the Asia-Pacific region.

Continue reading the main story

The Japanese people forever renounce war as a sovereign right of the nation and the threat or use of force as means of settling international disputes... land, sea, and air forces, as well as other war potential, will never be maintained"

End Quote Article 9 , Japanese constitution

"This will guide the focus of the direction that the Self Defence Forces should be heading going forward," Japanese Defence Minister Itsunori Onodera said of the report.

Amphibious units that could be dispatched quickly to remote islands were needed, the report said, and surveillance equipment to detect "at an early stage signs of changes in the security situation".

The report also called for a strengthened ability to "to deter and respond to ballistic missiles".

"Japan needs to enhance its ability to respond to ballistic missile attacks in a comprehensive manner," Kyodo news agency quoted the report as saying.

But officials have been keen to emphasise that this does not mean Japan is eyeing pre-emptive strikes on enemy targets.

"It is necessary to consider whether we should have the option to strike an enemy's missile launch facilities," an unidentified defence ministry official told Reuters news agency.

"But we are not at all thinking about initiating attacks on enemy bases when we are not under attack."

The move comes amid a raft of tensions and potentially challenging security issues.

North Korea conducted what was widely seen as a long-range missile test in December 2012 and followed up with its third test of a nuclear device in February 2013.

China, meanwhile, is locked in a dispute with Japan over East China Sea islands known as Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China.

Japan controls the islands but Chinese ships have been sailing in and out of what Japan says are its territorial waters since late last year, as tensions increased.

On Wednesday Japan scrambled fighter jets after a Chinese government plane flew in international air space near the islands.

China said it was on a routine training mission; Mr Abe said it was "an unusual action that we have never seen before".

Japan has also voiced concern over increases in China's military spending, accusing Beijing of a lack of transparency.

19.16 | 0 komentar | Read More