2010-04-20 BBC
BBC News with Marian Marshall
European Union transport ministers have agreed to ease some other the restrictions on air travel which were imposed across Europe last week following the spread of volcanic ash from Iceland. After discussions by video conference, the EU Transport Commissioner Siim Kallas announced the decision to reporters in Brussels.
"New air control measures can come into effect from eight o'clock Tuesday morning. From tomorrow morning on, we should see progressively more planes start to fly and this is good news for Europe's stranded passengers, good news for airline industry and other sectors of this economy hard hit by this crisis."
In an effort to ensure safety, the EU wants to create three designated fly zones. One will remain entirely off limits because of the threat of volcanic dust; another will be open to all aircraft, while a third zone will be available for a limited service. In Germany, the two main airlines, Lufthansa and Air Berlin, were granted exemptions from the existing fly ban to allow them to bring home stranded passengers. A Lufthansa spokesman said they were expected to carry a total of about 15,000 people from the Far East, Africa and the Americas. Britain has announced that it's sending warships to help bring home British travelers.
The American military in Iraq has confirmed that the two most wanted al-Qaeda leaders in the country have been killed. The Iraqi government named them as Abu Ayyub al-Masri and Abu Omar al-Baghdadi. The Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki said their identities had been confirmed by medical tests on the bodies. The two men were reportedly tracked down by an intelligence team west of Baghdad and their hideout destroyed by missiles. The US Vice President Joe Biden said the deaths showed that Iraq was now better able to look after its own security.
"Their deaths are potentially devastating blows to al-Qaeda Iraq, but equally important, in my view, is this action demonstrates the improved security strength and capacity of Iraqi security forces. In short, the Iraqis have taken the lead in securing Iraq and its citizens by taking out both of these individuals."
Officials in Pakistan say at least 23 people were killed when a suicide bomb exploded in a crowded market in Peshawar. Aleem Maqbool reports from Islamabad.
The explosion happened close to a police station, in what's called the Storytellers' Bazaar, an historic market place in the central Peshawar that was packed with shoppers and also a large crowd protesting against the frequent power cuts in the city. One of Peshawar's senior most police officers was among those killed. It is Taliban militants who'd be suspected of carrying out the attack. They’ve recently come under increasing pressure across Northwest Pakistan, for Pakistani military carries out operations against them.
World News from the BBC
The Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak has said Israel must recognize that the world will not accept Israeli rule over Palestinians for decades to come. He also warned of growing alienation between Israel and its long-standing ally, the United States. Mr Barak's warning comes at the time of growing criticism of the right-wing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Pope Benedict has invited the world's 400,000 Catholic priests to Rome in June to show their support for him over what, the Vatican says, are unjust attacks on his policies concerning pedophilia crimes. The invitation was contained in a letter from Cardinal Claudio Hummes. In the letter, the cardinal says the presence of so many priests in St Peter's Square will be a good way to show that they haven't been intimidated, as he put it, by the crimes committed by a few of their fellow clergy.
A team of Sherpas in Nepal have announced that they will go on a clean-up expedition on Mount Everest. It's the first time that Mount Everest is to be cleaned above the altitude of 8,000 metres, an area which is called the "death zone" because of the low level of oxygen and treacherous conditions. Joanna Jolly reports.
The team of 20 Sherpa mountaineers will set off on May 1 to establish camp at the point known as Everest's South Col. From here, they plan to start their cleaning operation, including removing at least two bodies from a narrow trail between the South Col and the summit. The Sherpas, many of whom have climbed Everest several times, say they also plan to remove 3,000 kilogrammes of empty oxygen bottles, old food wrappings, tents and ropes.
A folk singing Cuban scientist has won a prestigious environmental prize in the United States for challenging the role of state bureaucrats in Cuban agriculture. Humberto Rios has promoted traditional techniques of cultivation and the right of farmers to choose which seeds to plant, in a country where 80% of farms are controlled by the state.
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