英国新闻听力 52（在线收听）

BBC News with Nick Kelly.

The American ambassador to Zimbabwe, James McGee, has warned that the country is rapidly turning into a failed state, describing the situation there is truly grim. Speaking in Washington, Mr. McGee blamed the current outbreak of cholera on Zimbabwe's political crisis and the failed economic policies of the country's government. Kim Ghattas reports from Washington.

The US ambassador to Harare, James McGee, painted a dire picture of the situation in Zimbabwe during a briefing in Washington. He said hospitals in Harare remained closed; there was no garbage collection and people were having to drink from sewers. He said the calls for Mr. Mugabe to step down were starting to echo across Africa. A senior US official also said that one way to bring pressure on Zimbabwe was for its neighbors to close their borders with the landlocked country. But South Africa, the key to any such effort, has so far refrained from putting pressure on Zimbabwe.

One of the world's leading financial institutions, the Bank of America, says it plans to cut up to 35,000 jobs over the next three years after it completes its purchase of the investment bank Merrill Lynch. Bank of America said the expected cuts reflected the pending merger as well as the weak economic environment. From New York, Greg Wood reports.

The job cuts represent about 10% of the total workforce, and they will be made over the next three years. Bank of America says that the reductions are coming from both companies and will affect all lines of business. The credit crunch is cutting a swathe through the US financial sector. Citigroup recently announced more than 50,000 layoffs. Unemployment in the United States jumped by more than half a million last month mainly because of job cuts in service industries like banking.

The American President-elect Barack Obama says he is absolutely certain that his team had no part in the scandal surrounding the Governor of Illinois Rod Blagojevich. He was arrested this week on charges of trying to sell Mr. Obama's vacant seat in the US Senate. Mr. Obama said any such deal making would have been a violation of everything his election campaign had stood for.

"I have never spoken to the governor on the subject. I am confident that no representatives of mine would have any part of any deals related to the seat. I think the materials released by the US attorney reflect that fact. I've asked my team to gather the facts of any contacts with the governor's office about this vacancy, so that we can share them with you over the next few days."

Meanwhile, Mr. Obama has chosen the former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle to lead his drive to reform the US healthcare system. As / Health Secretary, Mr. Daschle will be charged with expanding healthcare coverage to tens of millions of Americans who do not have medical insurance. Better health provision was one of the key promises in Mr. Obama's election campaign, but previous attempts to reform the US system have ended in failure.

You are listening to the World News from the BBC.

The authorities in Pakistan have put the leader of the Jamaat-ud-Dawa charity, Hafiz Saeed, to under house arrest for three months. Police are under order to seal the charity's offices if necessary. The organization is accused of having ties with the Lashkar-e-Taiba, a military group, which India has blamed for the attacks in Mumbai last month. From Lahore, Barbara Plett reports.

Hafiz Saeed criticized the UN for making its decision without giving him a chance to defend himself or his organization. He said this was against international principles of justice and reflected a hatred for Islam. The cleric told the BBC the Pakistani government hadn't contacted him since the UN announcement, but he said if it tried to ban his charity, he would pursue the matter through Pakistan's High Court which had previously declared his organization legal. He also vigorously denied allegations that he had connections to the Mumbai attackers.

Iraqi police say 55 people have been killed and many others injured in a suicide bombing near the city of Kirkuk. Reports said the attacker walked into a restaurant during the busy lunch hour and detonated a belt packed with explosives. Some of the victims were Iraqi families who'd been enjoying a meal out on the last day of a public holiday.

Mexico has announced plans to cut its greenhouse gas emissions by 50% before 2050 in what correspondent says one of the most ambitious targets to have been set by an emerging economy. The details were announced at the UN Climate Summit. The Mexican environment minister told the summit he hoped the plan would inspire other developing countries to take strong actions against emissions.

An Australian actor Heath Ledger who died earlier this year has been posthumously nominated for a Golden Globe Award in the United States. He was selected for his performance in the Batman film "The Dark Night". Film staring Brad Pitt, Meryl Streep and Kate Winslet lead to the nominations for this year's Golden Globes, Hollywood's traditional curtain raiser to the Oscars.

And that's the latest BBC News.

note:

cut a swath /swathe

To create a great stir, impression, or display: 出风头：造成极大的轰动、留下深刻印象或炫耀：

“He cut a bold and even sacrificial swath across American politics”(Gail Sheehy)

“他以大胆勇猛甚至牺牲精神而在美国政界出尽风头”(盖尔·希伊)