King Salman of Saudi Arabia has ordered a fullreview of the country's plans for the annual Hajj pilgrimage after 700 people died in a crush outside the Muslim holy city of Mecca. Here is Frank Gardner. Saudi Arabia is in shock. It's reeling from the worst tragedy to hit the annual Hajj pilgrimage in 25 years. All day the death toll has been rising with hundreds killed and injured when pilgrims stampeded through a tented city, trampling on one another in their panic. The Saudi authorities say some pilgrims disobeyed instructions and took a wrong turning. But with up to 2 million pilgrims from dozens of nationalities, the Hajj can be a disoriented experience.
President Barack Obama's spokesman has said that when Mr.Obama and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin meet in New York next Monday, the top item on the agenda should be Ukraine. Josh Earnest says it's the first time the two leaders would meet face to face in nearly a year. When the president sits down with president Putin, the top item on his agenda will be Ukraine and president Obama will once again use this occasion to reinforce president Putin the importance of Russia keeping the commitments they have made in the context of the Minsk Agreements. But Mr. Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov says the Russian president wants the emphasis to be placed on Syria. The conflict there will be the key theme in Mr. Putin's speech to the UN General Assembly. Russia has recently stepped up its military presence in Syria. And Mr.Putin has urged the US to rethink its opposition to the Assad regime. He said their common enemy was now the Islamic State group. And the possibility of having the Syrian president involved in discussions to end the war in Syria is likely to be considered at a meeting of British, French and German foreign ministers currently under way in Paris. Jeremy Bowen reports. So far, President Bashar al-Assad has survived every prediction of defeat. The durability of his regime is one reason why some Western governments are softening their rhetoric about president Assad. The German chancellor Angle Merkel has said his side should be involved in any talks to end the war. There is also a sense that Syria without the Assads might be even more dangerous and unstable. The jihadists of Islamic State could seize more land. And without question, hundreds of thousands, perhaps millions more refugees would leave Syria. Jeremy Bowen.
The Cuban president Raul Castro has arrived in New York ahead of the UN General Assembly next week. It's the first time a Cuban leader has visited the US in 15 years. Cuba's official agency Prensa Latina say Mr. Castro would listen to the UN speech of Pope Francis on Friday who helped broker the recent foreign relations between Cuba and the US. News from the BBC.
Pope Francis has become the first head of the Roman Catholic Church to addressa joint session of the United States congress. Caroline Wyatt sent this report from Washington. It was the first time that America’s lawmakers had invited a pope to speak. As a son of migrants, he called on the US and the rest of the world to treat immigrants and refugees in a just and humane way in a country that's home to 11 million illegal immigrants. There was something for everyone, Democratic and Republican alike, as he urged America to treat all life as sacred and was cheered by the anti-abortion right before he called on congress to put an end to the death penalty, a course for the left.
Swiss prosecutors have confirmed that world football’s governing body FIFA has agreed to unseal email accounts belonging to Jerome Valcke, the organization's secretary general. He was suspended last week following allegations that he was involved in a scheme to sell world cup tickets at inflated prices. Mr. Valcke's lawyer has dismissed the allegations as fabricated and outrageous.
The Russian president Vladimir Putin has phoned the pop star Elton John and proposed a meeting. The call came a week after a pair of Russian comedians tricked the singer into thinking he was talking to the president. The singer had said he wanted to discuss Russia's attitude to gay rights. Bridget Kendallhas more details. So the idea of face to face meeting between President Putin and Sir Elton John is back on again. After last week's hoax call, this time it was the real deal. A Kremlin spokesman said a formal approach to Sir Elton was first made by the Russian ambassador in London to convince the singer this was not another trick. Then apparently Mr. Putin spoke to him directly saying that since Elton John was such a popular performer, he would be ready to meet him face to face if they could make their schedules work to discuss anything he wanted. That was Bridget Kendall. And that's the BBC news.