BBC news 2007-12-18 加文本

[日期：2008-01-01]

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BBC 2007-12-18

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BBC news with David Legg

International donors have promised to give more than 7 billion dollars to support the Palestinian authority and encourage the peace process with Israel. Meeting in Paris, they backed a three-year plan to rescue the Palestinian economy. The Palestinian Prime Minister, Salam Fayyad, said the donations were bigger than expected and a vote of confidence. The Middle East special envoy, Tony Blair, who'd helped organize the meeting, said he shared the general mood of optimism but added words of caution.

"This is a beginning with a different strategy. It is the chance to get to over the coming months what I would call a minimum threshold of credibility in this process. If in the end, the people, Israeli or Palestinian, don't believe there is a chance to succeed, then the politicians would never have the power to make this deal. "

Israeli aircraft have carried out two attacks on suspected Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip. At least four militants are said to have been killed including a local commander of Islamic Jihad.

President Bush has said he supports Russia's decision to begin shipments of nuclear fuel to Iran for civilian purposes. Mr. Bush said it was another reason for Iran to suspend its uranium enrichment program. Russia, which is building a power plant at Bushehr in Iran, made its first delivery on Monday. Washington had been urging Moscow not to send the fuel because of concern that Iran could use it in a secret arms program. But a recent US Intelligence assessment said Iran abandoned its nuclear weapons project in 2003.

The fractious conference of South Africa's governing party, the ANC, has nominated two bitter rivals, President Thabo Mbeki and his former deputy, Jacob Zuma, as the sole candidates for the party leadership. A vote is expected on Tuesday. The conference proceedings have been rowdy and at times unusually confrontational despite appeals for unity from the former President, Nelson Mandela. Peter Bowes reports.

"Mr. Mbeki and Mr. Zuma were close friends during the years of the ANC liberation struggle. But since their return from exile, they've become political rivals. Mr. Zuma was sacked from the government two years ago over alleged links to corruption. Growing unpopularity with President Mbeki's style of leadership has made Jacob Zuma the favorite in this party contest. And if he wins, that would put him in a strong position to become South Africa's next president. But he could also face corruption charges in the new year. "

New World Bank figures show that the value of the Chinese economy is forty percent less than previously thought. The new statistics are based on a measure known as Purchasing Power Parity which accounts for differences in prices in different countries. The latest figures also mean estimates of the number of people living below the poverty line in China will need to be revised upwards.

World news from the BBC

There's been a warning that the soaring cost of food is threatening millions of people in developing countries. The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization says the price rises are unprecedented. The FAO says thirty-seven nations worldwide are facing food crises because of conflict and disaster. Christian Fraser reports.

"Food prices are now growing at the fastest rates since the 1980's, pushing inflation globally. In the poorest countries, farmers have been hit hard by the droughts and floods linked to climate change, a rising oil price and a growing demand for bio-fuels. The FAO is calling for urgent action to provide small farmers in these countries with the means to help themselves. They need improved access to seeds, fertilizer, and other inputs to increase local crop production. "

The British government has admitted that the records of more than three million learner drivers have been mislaid by a private contractor in the United States. The Transport Secretary, Ruth Kelly, said the US contractor told the government in May that a computer hard drive containing the data had disappeared from a processing facility in Iowa. It comes only weeks after the government revealed that it had lost computer disks containing the names and bank accounts of some 25 million people in Britain.

The Brazilian footballer, Kaka, has been named Player of the Year by FIFA. Kaka plays / the Italian club, AC Milan. Alex Capstick reports.

"The World Player of the Year Award rounds off a memorable 2007 for Kaka in which he has produced a string of exceptional performances. Unlike many Brazilian footballers, who seek fame and fortune in Europe, Kaka is from a middle class background with an education to match. He was fifteen before deciding to make a career out of football. It was a swift rise to the top. Kaka made his name as a goal-scoring midfielder at Sao Paulo. By the time he moved to Italy in 2003, he had already won a World Cup with Brazil in the previous year. "

BBC news.

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