2010-04-23 BBC
BBC News with Zoe Diamond
With two weeks to go before the British general election, the leaders of the three main political parties have held their second live televised election debate. It dealt mainly with foreign policy and was between the Prime Minister Gordon Brown for Labour, David Cameron for the main opposition Conservatives and Nick Clegg, the Liberal Democrat leader. The biggest difference between the leaders was over Britain's nuclear weapon system, with Mr Clegg being the only leader to call for it to be scrapped. Naomi Grimley reports.
This debate began with Gordon Brown acknowledging that if it was a TV popularity contest, he wouldn't win. But he said he was the man to make the right decisions for Britain and he played his experience card during the questions on foreign affairs. David Cameron, the main opposition Conservative leader, seemed more relaxed than he'd been in the first debate. He argued that his party was the only one which could deliver real change. Both Mr Brown and Mr Cameron used this debate to turn their fire on the Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg. He's been enjoying a dramatic bounce in popularity of the last week's encounter. But Mr Clegg delivered another strong performance, so all eyes are now on the polls to see if his ratings continue to push upwards.
The Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has again rejected calls from the United States to stop settlement construction in the occupied East Jerusalem. Mr Netanyahu restated his position as the US Middle East envoy George Mitchell arrived in the region. Wyre Davies reports from Jerusalem.
In a television interview shortly after Mr Mitchell touched down, Israel's prime minister said there would be no freeze in the construction of new Jewish homes in East Jerusalem, an area annexed by Israel since 1967 and regarded as occupied territory under international law. But Washington has made it clear that it's hoping for significant confidence-building measures from the Netanyahu government to try and help kick-start peace negotiations.
The government in Pakistan has announced a new energy-saving policy to combat acute power shortages which the Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani said were now a matter of national security. The measures include a five-day working week, the closing of shops at dusk, shorter wedding ceremonies and no decorative lights on billboards. The BBC correspondent says the energy crisis has contributed to political instability. It has severely disrupted industrial productivity while persistent power cuts of up to 16 hours have resulted in rioting.
At least five grenade explosions have ripped through central Bangkok, killing three people and injuring dozens. The blasts happened close to where armed troops are pitted against anti-government red-shirt protesters. The Thai government says the grenades were fired from the red-shirts' encampment, but the protesters have denied any involvement. A group of rival demonstrators has also rallied in the area, creating what correspondents say is a volatile mix.
World News from the BBC
President Obama has urged Wall Street bankers in New York to support his proposals for tighter regulation of the country's financial markets which he said was the only way to avert economic turmoil in the future. Mr Obama said that he was a firm believer in the free market and a strong financial sector. However, he said stricter rules were needed to protect taxpayers from having to fund multi-billion-dollar bail-outs of the major banks.
"Our system only works, our markets are only free when there are basic safeguards that prevent abuse, that check excesses, that ensure that it is more profitable to play by the rules than to game the system. That is what the reforms we’ve been proposing are designed to achieve."
The Olympic and world men's 400m champion LaShawn Merritt says that he has accepted a provisional suspension after failing a doping test. His lawyer Howard Jacobs said the positive test had been caused by Mr Merritt's use of an over-the-counter male enhancement drug which contained the banned steroid DHEA. Mr Merritt has apologized to his family and sponsors for having acted in a foolish, immature and egotistical manner.
Rwanda's main opposition leader Victoire Ingabire Umuhoza has been released on bail after being arrested on charges of associating with a terrorist group and denying the 1994 genocide in her country. The court in the capital Kigali imposed strict bail conditions. Ms Ingabire, who was to have stood against President Paul Kagame in August's election, says that she has faced political harassment since returning to Rwanda from exile in January.
Moscow has banned one of the world's biggest food manufacturers Nestle from selling baby food products to Russia. A spokesman for Russia's consumer watchdog confirmed the ban but offered no explanation for the decision.
That's the latest World News from the BBC.