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BBC news 2014-01-18

BBC News with Jerry Smit.

President Obama has announced a series of reforms to America's spy operations at home and abroad. In a speech in Washington, he called for an end to government control of phone data from hundreds of millions of Americans. Mr. Obama also said there would no more spying on friendly foreign leaders unless there was a compelling security case. Mark Mardell reports.

President Obama attempted to reassure people that the collection of immense amounts of telephone and internet data had not been abused. He said the US must continue collecting data in bulk.

Having said that. I believe critics are right to point out that without proper safeguards, this type of program could be used to yield more information about our private lives.

So he is ending the program as currently exists without spelling out what replace is it. And he has given the attorney general in the NSA 60 days to find a way to square the circle. Congress will also be involved.

President Obama's speech has been welcomed by Germany. Relations between Berlin and Washington were severely tested last year by revelations that America had monitored Chancellor Merkel's mobile phone.

The Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych has signed into law a bill designed to curb anti-government street protests. It was criticized by the European Union and the United States. (Ayan Skippers) reports.

The bill was rushed through parliament on Thursday by show of hands rather than the usual secret electronic voting. The bill which toughens penalties for activities such as setting up tents without permission in public spaces sparks uproar from the opposition. It came under fire abroad as well. The European Union expressed concern and The American Secretary of State John Kerry called the bill undemocratic. He said it had been rammed through parliament. But the Ukrainian foreign ministry said it regarded the criticism as meddling in the country's internal affairs.

Police in the Afghan capital Kabul say a suicide bomber has blown himself up near a restaurant frequented by foreigners and government officials, killing at least 14 people. The UN says 4 of its staff are missing. From Kabul, here is Philip Hammond.

A loud explosion was heard across the north of the city followed by sustained burst of gunfire. Police say a suicide bomber detonated his device at the entrance of the restaurant and two accomplices then opened fire on the diners inside. The emergency services responded quickly to the attack but rescue efforts were delayed whilst the police tried to ensure that the area was safe. A statement from the Taliban said they carried out the attack and were targeting what they termed "important foreign officials".

The United Nations has classified the situation in South Sudan as an internal armed conflict, meaning abuses committed there can be classed as war crimes. A senior UN human rights official who is in South Sudan said he had reports of abuses including mass killings, extrajudicial killings, sexual violence and the use of child soldiers.

World News from the BBC.

The US Secretary of State John Kerry has reiterated that President Bashar al-Assad has no place in Syria's future in an attempt to persuade the Syrian opposition to attend peace talks in Geneva next week. The umbrella opposition group, the Syrian National Coalition is meeting today in Turkey to decide whether to take part in the talks. Mr. Kerry said the United States and its allies could still bring more pressure to bear on Mr. Assad to persuade him to accept a transitional government.

They can bluster, they can protest, they can put out distortions. The bottom line is we are going to Geneva to implement Geneva I. And if Assad doesn't do that, he will invite greater response in various ways from various people over a period of time.

The Russian President Vladimir Putin has said gay people should feel welcome at the Winter Olympic Games next month in Sochi. Mr. Putin said Russia didn't ban homosexual relations, just gay propaganda to children. Steve Rosenberg reports from Moscow.

With 3 weeks to go before the Winter Olympics, today, Vladimir Putin assured the world that homosexuals would face no discrimination in Sochi. But the message was far from convincing. At a meeting with Olympic volunteers, President Putin said there was a ban in Russia on the spread of information about homosexuality and pedophilia. mentioning homosexuals and pedophiles in the same breathe is likely to infuriate the gay and lesbian community.

Steve Rosenberg.

Italian media reports say a nun has given birth to a baby boy in the city of Rieti, in the center of the country. The 32-year-old nun who's from El Salvador said she was no idea she was pregnant. She was rushed to hospital after she felt what she thought was stomach cramps. Reports say she's named the boy Francis.

And that's the BBC News.