Eurozone unemployment rate hits 12%

2 April 2013 Last updated at 07:06 ET

The rate of unemployment in the eurozone hit a record high of 12% in February, official figures have shown.

The number of people unemployed in the 17 member states rose by 33,000 during the month, to hit 19.07 million, the statistics agency Eurostat said.

The highest rate was 26.4% in Greece, although the most recent figure for the country was from December.

Separately, figures confirmed a deterioration in the eurozone's manufacturing sector in March.

'Disappointing picture'

The jobless figures from Eurostat also showed that Spain's unemployment rate hit 26.3% in February, while the rate in Portugal remained stable at 17.5%.

The lowest rates were recorded in Austria (4.8%) and Germany (5.4%), both unchanged from January. The overall rate for the eurozone in January was revised up from 11.9% to 12%.

Across the 27 member states of the European Union, the unemployment rate rose to 10.9%, up from 10.8% the previous month.

There was further gloomy news from the eurozone's manufacturing sector, as a survey indicated that manufacturing activity fell to a three-month low last month.

The final Markit eurozone manufacturing purchasing managers' index (PMI) for March fell to 46.8, slightly higher than an initial estimate but below the 47.9 recorded in February. Any score below 50 indicates a contraction in the sector.

Germany and the Republic of Ireland both fell back below 50, while the rate of decline accelerated in all other eurozone countries apart from France.

The survey indicated that output and new orders fell across the eurozone, while job losses increased.

"The surveys paint a very disappointing picture across the region," said Markit's chief economist Chris Williamson.

"The manufacturing sector looks likely to have acted as a drag on the economy in the first quarter, with an acceleration in the rate of decline in March raising the risk that the downturn may also intensify in the second quarter."

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N Korea 'to restart nuclear reactor'

2 April 2013 Last updated at 07:14 ET

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Williamson: "Most people believe North Korea does not want all-out war"

North Korea says it will restart all facilities at its main Yongbyon nuclear complex, including a reactor mothballed in 2007.

In a statement, it said the move would bolster North Korea's nuclear forces "in quality and quantity".

The move is the latest in a series of measures by Pyongyang in the wake of its third nuclear test in February.

It has been angered by the resultant UN sanctions and joint US-South Korea annual military drills.

In recent weeks the communist state has issued a series of threats against both South Korean and US targets, to which the US has responded with high-profile movements of advanced aircraft and warships around the Korean peninsula.

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Analysis

North Korea's announcement effectively undoes international efforts to constrain its nuclear programme. But restarting the reactor at Yongbyon will take time. Cooling systems have to be re-installed, the reactor fuelled and so on. It could be six months to a year before the reactor is up and running. This will open up a new source of plutonium for North Korea's nuclear weapons programme.

Pyongyang's references to its highly-enriched uranium activities are puzzling experts and are less clear. This provides an alternative basis for a nuclear weapon. But nobody knows how many secret enrichment plants North Korea may have or the level to which they may already be enriching nuclear material.

So in many ways its back to square one in terms of nuclear diplomacy. But six years have passed since 2007 and in the intervening period North Korea's missile capabilities - the means by which it might eventually seek to deliver a nuclear warhead - have improved significantly.

A South Korean foreign ministry spokesman said that if true, the North Korean move would be "highly regrettable".

Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Hong Lei called for restraint from all sides to resolve the "complex and sensitive" situation.

'Adjust and alter'

The reactor at Yongbyon - which was the source for plutonium for North Korea's nuclear weapons programme - was closed in July 2007 as part of a disarmament-for-aid deal.

The cooling tower at the facility was later destroyed, but then the disarmament deal stalled.

Part of the reason the agreement fell apart was because the US did not believe Pyongyang was fully disclosing all of its nuclear facilities - a suspicion later bolstered when North Korea unveiled a uranium enrichment facility at Yongbyon to US scientist Siegfried Hecker in 2010.

While it appeared to be for electricity generation purposes, Mr Hecker said the facility could be readily converted to produce highly-enriched uranium for bombs.

The statement, carried by KCNA news agency, was attributed to a spokesman for the General Department of Atomic Energy.

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Yongbyon nuclear complex

• North Korea's main nuclear facility; thought to have produced the material for 2006 and 2009 nuclear tests
• Reactor shut down in July 2007 as part of a disarmament-for-aid deal; Cooling tower dismantled in 2008
• IAEA inspectors banned in April 2009 when North Korea pulled out of disarmament talks
• Experts believe that, if re-started, reactor could make one bomb's worth of plutonium per year
• A uranium enrichment facility was revealed in 2010. An American nuclear scientist said centrifuges appeared to be primarily for civilian nuclear power, but could be converted to produce highly enriched uranium bomb fuel
• Nuclear test based on uranium device would be harder to monitor than plutonium

The department had decided "to adjust and alter the uses of the existing nuclear facilities" including "readjusting and restarting all the nuclear facilities in Nyongbyon [Yongbyon] including uranium enrichment plant and 5MW graphite moderated reactor".

The work would be put into practice without delay, the statement said. It also attributed the move to the need to generate more electricity.

In a November 2010 report following his visit to Yongbyon, Siegfried Hecker said based on what he saw he believed North Korea could "resume all plutonium operations within approximately six months" at Yongbyon if so inclined.

The reactor can produce spent fuel rods that can be made into plutonium - which experts believe North Korea used for its nuclear tests in 2006 and 2009. It is not clear whether plutonium or uranium was used in the February test.

The reference to altering nuclear facilities could suggest that North Korea may begin openly enriching uranium to weapons-grade levels, which would give it a second, faster route to making nuclear weapons, reports the BBC's Lucy Williamson, who is in Seoul.

US warship deployed

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Timeline: Korean tensions

• 12 Dec: North Korea fires three-stage rocket, in move condemned by UN as banned test of long-range missile technology
• 12 Feb: North Korea conducts an underground nuclear test, its third after tests in 2006 and 2009
• 11 Mar: US-South Korea annual joint military drills begin
• 19 Mar: US flies B-52 nuclear-capable bombers over Korean peninsula, following several North Korean threats
• 27 Mar: North Korea cuts military hotline with South
• 28 Mar: US flies B-2 stealth bombers over Korean peninsula
• 30 Mar: North Korea says it is entering a "state of war" with South Korea
• 2 Apr: North Korea says it is restarting mothballed Yongbyon reactor

In the weeks since the nuclear test, North Korea's rhetoric has escalated - including multiple threats of attacks on US bases in South Korea and Japan, and on South Korean border islands.

But the US, which has in recent days flown B-52 bombers, B-2 stealth planes and F-22 stealth bombers over South Korea in a show of strength, says it is seeing no signs of increased military activity in North Korea.

"Despite the harsh rhetoric we're hearing from Pyongyang, we are not seeing changes to the North Korean military posture, such as large-scale mobilisations and positioning of forces," White House spokesman Jay Carney said.

But he said the US was "monitoring the Korean situation very diligently".

Defence officials told reporters that a US Aegis-class warship capable of defending against missile strikes had also been moved to the south-west coast off South Korea.

This would offer "greater missile defence options should [they] become necessary", an official told Reuters news agency.

Reports also suggest the US is moving a sea-based radar platform called SBX-1 into the western Pacific so that it can monitor North Korea.

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UN to vote on global arms treaty

2 April 2013 Last updated at 07:31 ET

The UN General Assembly is due to vote on what would be the first treaty to regulate the $70bn (£46bn) global trade in conventional arms.

The vote comes a week after Iran, North Korea and Syria blocked the treaty's adoption by consensus.

Supporters of the treaty say it is needed to keep weapons out of the hands of terrorists and organised crime.

The draft is expected to be passed by a majority of the 193-nation assembly.

The treaty would prohibit states from exporting conventional weapons in violation of arms embargoes, or weapons that would be used for acts of genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes or terrorism.

It would also require states to prevent conventional weapons reaching the black market.

Diplomats have worked for nearly a decade to agree on a set of principles to control the flow of such arms.

Attempts to agree the treaty last year broke down after the US, followed by Russia and China, said they needed more time to consider the issues.

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• United States
• Russia
• China
• Ukraine
• Germany

Source: Stockholm International Peace Research Institute

Then, last week, a UN treaty-drafting conference failed to reach consensus after objections from Iran, North Korea and Syria.

Iran said the treaty was full of flaws and loopholes and North Korea said it was unbalanced.

The BBC's Paul Adams, in Washington, says the Syrian government, which depends on arms imports from Russia and Iran, is clearly worried about its ability to continue fighting its civil war.

The draft was then sent to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon who was asked on behalf of nations backing the treaty to put it to a vote in the General Assembly on Tuesday.

Our correspondent says several other countries still have concerns about the treaty, including Russia, China, India and Pakistan.

However, its backers believe it will easily achieve the simple majority of votes needed to pass the General Assembly, he adds.

After that it will need to be ratified by at least 50 members in order to come into force.

In the US, the biggest pro-gun lobby group, the National Rifle Association, has vowed to fight against ratification by the Senate, although the UN says the treaty does nothing to interfere with domestic firearms legislation.

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Deadly raid on Pakistan power plant

2 April 2013 Last updated at 07:32 ET

At least seven people have been killed in an attack by dozens of militants on an electricity plant on the outskirts of the Pakistani city of Peshawar.

A policeman and a plant employee were killed on the spot and nine people were taken hostage, police said.

Five bodies were later recovered from a nearby field but the whereabouts of the four remaining hostages are unknown.

No group has said it carried out the raid, but the Taliban frequently launch attacks in the region.

The attack temporarily disrupted power to parts of the city - the supply has now been restored.

The assault by militants armed with mortars and rocket-propelled grenades took place in the early hours of Tuesday in the southern Badh Bher suburb of Peshawar, an area frequently targeted by militants, correspondents say.

"They attacked the power station at around 02:30 (21:30 GMT Monday). They killed two officials on the spot," Javed Khan, a senior police official in the area, told Agence France-Presse news agency.

The dead include police officers and employees of the power plant.

"They entered the grid station and started setting ablaze each and every thing. They kidnapped nine people and killed five of them later and threw their bodies in the fields," Police official Mohammad Ishaq told Reuters news agency.

The BBC's Orla Guerin in Islamabad says that there had been fears militants would step up attacks in advance of elections to be held in May.

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S Korea pledge over North threats

1 April 2013 Last updated at 05:31 ET

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Lucy Williamson reports from the heavily-guarded inter-Korean border

South Korea has promised a "strong response" to North Korean aggression, amid high tensions on the peninsula.

Speaking to defence officials on Monday, President Park Geun-hye said that she took the series of threats from Pyongyang "very seriously".

North Korea said on Saturday that it was entering a "state of war" with South Korea.

On Sunday, the US sent stealth fighters to South Korea, as North Korea pledged to build up its nuclear arsenal.

"If there is any provocation against South Korea and its people, there should be a strong response in initial combat without any political considerations," Ms Park said.

In recent days North Korea has issued multiple warnings of attacks on US and South Korean targets - to which the US has responded with an apparent show of military hardware.

The communist state has been angered both by UN sanctions imposed after its nuclear test in February and the joint US-South Korea annual military drills.

South Korean Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se is expected to meet US Secretary of State John Kerry this week in Washington to discuss North Korea, Yonhap news agency reports.

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• 12 Dec: North Korea fires three-stage rocket, in move condemned by UN as banned test of long-range missile technology
• 12 Feb: North Korea conducts an underground nuclear test, its third after tests in 2006 and 2009
• 7 Mar: UN approves fresh sanctions on Pyongyang; North Korea says it has the right to a "pre-emptive nuclear strike" on the US
• 11 Mar: US-South Korea annual joint military drills begin; North Korea says it has scrapped the Korean War armistice (the UN says the pact cannot be unilaterally scrapped)
• 19 Mar: US flies B-2 nuclear-capable bombers over Korean peninsula, following several North Korean threats to attack US and South Korean targets
• 20 Mar: Broadcasters and banks in South Korea hit by cyber attack, the origin of which remains unknown, days after North Korea says some of its sites were hacked
• 27 Mar: North Korea cuts military hotline with South, the last official direct link between the two
• 28 Mar: US flies stealth bombers over Korean peninsula; showcasing ability for precision strike "at will"
• 30 Mar: North Korea says it is entering a "state of war" with South Korea

'Nation's life'

The US flew F-22 planes from Japan to South Korea's Osan Air base on Sunday, as part of ongoing joint military exercises with South Korea, officials said.

"[North Korea] will achieve nothing by threats or provocations, which will only further isolate North Korea and undermine international efforts to ensure peace and stability in Northeast Asia," the US military command in South Korea said in a statement reported by Reuters news agency.

In March, the US deployed both B-2 and B-52 planes, which have nuclear capabilities, over South Korea. It said this demonstrated its "capability... to provide extended deterrence to [its] allies in the Asia-Pacific region".

It is not the first time F-22s have been used drills with South Korea, but the move came as North Korea's Central Committee held a rare high-level meeting on Sunday.

The committee described nuclear weapons as "the nation's life" and vowed to further develop its nuclear programme, state-run news agency KCNA said.

"Only when the nuclear shield for self-defence is held fast, will it be possible to shatter the US imperialists' ambition for annexing the Korean Peninsula by force," the report added.

North Korea's Supreme People's Assembly - the rubber-stamp parliament - is also due to convene on Monday for a day-long annual session.

While the group normally focuses on making economic decisions, this meeting will be keenly watched given the current high tension.

Few think the North - which last week cut a military hotline which was the last official direct link with Seoul - would risk full-blown conflict.

But in recent years there have been deadly incidents such as the sinking of a South Korea warship (in which Pyongyang denies any role) and the shelling of a South Korean island.

However the jointly-run Kaesong industrial park, which is located within North Korea's borders, remains in operation.

Workers from South Korea were crossing into the park - which is a key money-maker for North Korea - as normal on Monday, reports said.

The complex is seen as a barometer of North-South tensions, observers say, and a move to close it would be seen as an escalation of current tensions.

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Melt 'causes Antarctic sea ice rise'

1 April 2013 Last updated at 06:12 ET

Climate change is expanding Antarctica's sea ice, according to a scientific study in the journal Nature Geoscience.

The paradoxical phenomenon is thought to be caused by relatively cold plumes of fresh water derived from melting beneath the Antarctic ice shelves.

This melt water has a relatively low density, so it accumulates in the top layer of the ocean.

The cool surface waters then re-freeze more easily during Autumn and Winter.

This explains the observed peak in sea ice during these seasons, a team from the Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute (KNMI) in De Bilt says in its peer-reviewed paper.

Climate scientists have been intrigued by observations that Antarctic sea ice shows a small but statistically significant expansion of about 1.9% per decade since 1985, while sea ice in the Arctic has been shrinking over past decades.

The researchers from the KNMI suggest the "negative feedback" effect outlined in their study is expected to continue into the future.

They tried to reproduce the observed changes in a computer-based climate model.

The sea ice expanded during Southern Hemisphere autumn and winter in response to the development of this fresh, cool surface layer, which floated on the denser, warmer salty sea water below.

This fresh water is ultimately derived from enhanced melting at the base of the Antarctic ice shelves.

"Sea ice around Antarctica is increasing despite the warming global climate," said the study's lead author Richard Bintanja, from the KNMI.

"This is caused by melting of the ice sheets from below," he told the Reuters news agency.

But there are other plausible explanations for Antarctic sea-ice expansion.

Paul Holland of the British Antarctic Survey (BAS) stuck to his findings last year that a shift in winds linked to climate change was blowing ice away from the coast, allowing exposed water in some areas to freeze and make yet more ice.

"The possibility remains that the real increase is the sum of wind-driven and melt water-driven effects, of course. That would be my best guess, with the melt water effect being the smaller of the two," he told the London Science Media Centre.

The study in Nature Geoscience also asserts that the cool melt water layer may limit the amount of water sucked from the oceans that falls as snow on Antarctica. Cold air can hold less moisture than warm air.

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Tanker bomb attack at Iraq police HQ

1 April 2013 Last updated at 06:49 ET

A suicide attacker has blown up a tanker lorry at the police HQ in the Iraqi city of Tikrit, killing at least seven people, officials say.

A majority of the casualties and injured are thought to have been police officers, AFP news agency reports.

The city, which lies 160km (100 miles) north of the capital Baghdad, was the hometown of ex-leader Saddam Hussein.

Violence has decreased in Iraq since the peak of the insurgency in 2006 and 2007, but bombings are still common.

Sunni Islamist militants linked to al-Qaeda have vowed to step up attacks on Shia and official targets this year, in an attempt to weaken the Shia-led government.

Last week, at least 19 people died and more than 100 were wounded in a spate of car bomb attacks in the northern city of Kilkurk.

The violence comes ahead of provincial elections scheduled to take place on 20 April.

The country is experiencing a deep political crisis, with Prime Minister Nouri Maliki sharply at odds with a range of political forces, including the Kurds, most of the Sunni groups, and many factions within his own Shia community.

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India rejects Novartis patent plea

1 April 2013 Last updated at 07:40 ET

India's Supreme Court has rejected a plea by Novartis to patent an updated version of its cancer drug, Glivec.

The Swiss drugmaker had been denied a patent by Indian authorities on the grounds that the new version was only slightly different from the old.

The decision means generic drugmakers can continue to sell copies of the drug at a lower price in India, one of the fastest growing pharmaceutical markets.

Novartis said the decision "discourages future innovation in India".

"This ruling is a setback for patients that will hinder medical progress for diseases without effective treatment options," said Ranjit Shahani, vice-chairman and managing director of Novartis India.

Glivec, which is used to treat chronic myeloid leukaemia and other cancers, costs about $2,600 (£1,710) a month.

The generic equivalent is currently available in India for just $175.

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"Start Quote

Patents will be given only for genuine inventions, and repetitive patents will not be given for minor tweaks to an existing drug"

End Quote Pratibha Singh Lawyer for Cipla

There were concerns that, if granted, a patent could threaten access to cheap generic versions of life-saving drugs in poorer countries.

"This will go a long way in providing affordable medicine for the poor," said Anand Grover, a lawyer representing Cancer Patients Aid Association, adding that he was "ecstatic with the ruling".

Long battle

Novartis applied for a patent in 2006 for its new version of the drug, arguing that it was easier to absorb and therefore qualified for a fresh patent.

However, the Indian patent authority rejected the application based on a law aimed at preventing companies from getting fresh patents by making only minor changes to existing drugs, a practice known as "evergreening".

Officials also turned down a subsequent appeal by the company three years later.

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Analysis

There were celebrations outside the Supreme Court as the landmark decision was read out. One charity, Doctors Without Borders, called it a victory for poor patients not just in India but across the world.

The bone of contention was Section 3D of India's patent laws and the court argued that Novartis had to demonstrate that Glivec represented more than just a small improvement to an existing substance. In its ruling, the court said it wanted to discourage "repetitive patenting".

The decision is seen as a major boost for generic drugmakers in India who supply cheap medicines to poor people across the developing world.

India exports generic drugs worth $11bn (£7.23bn), including crucial anti-retrovirals supplied to Africa.

Experts say Monday's court order will set a precedent for the so-called "patent cliff" - a phrase used to describe the expiry of pharmaceutical patents across a range of blockbuster drugs.

It is estimated that drugs with combined annual sales of $150bn will go off-patent by 2015 and that could help companies here earn millions of dollars in profits.

On Monday, India's Supreme court rejected the firm's appeal to get patent protection for the drug.

The AFP news agency quoted the court as saying that the updated drug "did not satisfy the test of novelty or inventiveness" as required by the law.

Setting a precedent?

Patents usually protect the companies for 20 years of exclusive sales. After that, it is open to other firms who can make cheaper copies of the original drug.

Once the protection expires, the first company to challenge the patent gets an exclusive right to sell the copy for 180 days.

After 180 days, more companies can sell the generic versions, potentially resulting in a further price drop.

It is estimated that drugs with combined annual sales of $150bn will go off-patent by 2015.

India's generic drug makers are among the biggest in the world and many expect them to benefit from these patents expiring in the coming years.

However, there have been concerns that if firms are granted patents for updated versions of their drugs, it may not only deny access to cheaper medicines to poor people, but also hurt the makers of generic drugs.

Pratibha Singh, a lawyer for the Indian generic drug manufacturer Cipla, said the ruling had set a precedent that would prevent international pharmaceutical companies from obtaining fresh patents in India on updated versions of existing drugs.

"Patents will be given only for genuine inventions, and repetitive patents will not be given for minor tweaks to an existing drug,'' she said.

Shares of Novartis India fell almost 5% on the Bombay Stock Exchange, while stocks of generic drugmakers such as Cipla and Natco rose after the judgement.

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Prayers for ailing Nelson Mandela

31 March 2013 Last updated at 04:25 ET

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People in South Africa are following Mandela's recovery closely

Churches across South Africa are to hold prayers for Nelson Mandela, who has been in hospital for four days being treated for pneumonia.

Several hundred people are expected to gather at the Regina Mundi church in Soweto - once a focal point of the struggle against apartheid.

On Saturday, South Africa's presidency said Mr Mandela, 94, was breathing without difficulty.

It said excess fluid had been drained from the lungs to ease his breathing.

There are no details yet on how long he will remain in hospital.

After Mr Mandela was admitted to hospital late on Wednesday, President Jacob Zuma said people "must not panic".

The former president first contracted tuberculosis in the 1980s while detained on windswept Robben Island.

His lungs are said to have been damaged while working in a prison quarry. This latest spell in hospital is his fourth in just over two years.

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Nelson Mandela: Key dates

• 1918 Born in the Eastern Cape
• 1943 Joins African National Congress
• 1956 Charged with high treason, but charges dropped
• 1962 Arrested, convicted of sabotage, sentenced to five years in prison
• 1964 Charged again, sentenced to life
• 1990 Freed from prison
• 1993 Wins Nobel Peace Prize
• 1994 Elected first black president
• 1999 Steps down as leader
• 2004 Retires from public life
• 2005 Announces his son has died of an HIV/Aids-related illness

Mr Mandela served as South Africa's first black president from 1994 to 1999 and is regarded by many as the father of the nation for leading the struggle against apartheid.

Pleural effusion

The statement read by presidential spokesman, Mac Maharaj, on Saturday said that Mr Mandela had been admitted to hospital "due to a recurrence of pneumonia".

It said: "Doctors advised that due to the lung infection, former President Mandela had developed a pleural effusion which was tapped. This has resulted in him now being able to breathe without difficulty.

"He continues to respond to treatment and is comfortable."

The statement said the presidency "would like to acknowledge and thank all who have been praying for, and sending messages of support for, Madiba and his family."

Madiba is Mandela's clan name and is widely used to refer to him.

The hospital Mr Mandela is attending has not been disclosed.

Last December Mr Mandela was treated for a lung infection and gallstones - his longest period in hospital since leaving prison in 1990.

In February, he was treated for a stomach condition.

When asked whether people should prepare for the inevitable, Mr Zuma told BBC News: "In Zulu, when someone passes away who is very old, people say he or she has gone home. I think those are some of the things we should be thinking about."

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Pneumonia

• Causes inflammation of one or both lungs in the chest, usually due to infection
• Disrupts process whereby oxygen is taken into the body and carbon dioxide removed
• Interruption of oxygen to the tissues can be fatal, but modern antibiotics are good treatment
• Can lead to pleural effusion - excess fluid accumulating between the two pleural layers, the space that surrounds the lungs

But he stressed that Mr Mandela had been able to handle the situation "very well" so far.

BBC Africa correspondent Andrew Harding says South Africans have been praying for the recovery of Mr Mandela, who remains a moral beacon in the country despite withdrawing from public life almost a decade ago.

Despite his long imprisonment, Mr Mandela forgave his former enemies and as president urged South Africans of all races to work together and seek reconciliation.

In 1993 he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

His main home is in Qunu, a small rural village in Eastern Cape province, where he says he spent the happiest days of his childhood.

However, doctors said in December he should remain at his home in the Johannesburg neighbourhood of Houghton to be close to medical facilities.

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Pope's Easter speech pleas for peace

31 March 2013 Last updated at 07:41 ET

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Pope Francis: "We ask the risen Jesus... to change hatred into love"

Pope Francis has delivered a passionate plea for peace in his first Easter Sunday message since being elected.

Francis used his "Urbi et Orbi" address to call for peace in Africa, Asia, the Middle East and across the globe.

He singled out "dear Syria", saying: "How much blood has been shed! And how much suffering must there still be before a political solution is found?"

Easter is the most important festival in the Christian calendar and pilgrims have attended church across the world.

• In Iraq, Catholics flocked to churches amid tight security. Some 200 worshippers celebrated Mass at St Joseph Chaldean Church in Baghdad
• There were special security arrangements, too, in Pakistan, as worshippers attended churches
• In a message for Easter, UK Prime Minister David Cameron praised the "incredible role" played by Christian churches and organisations in Britain and around the globe

'Divided by greed'

Pope Francis, formerly Buenos Aires Archbishop Jorge Mario Bergoglio, was elected on 13 March, becoming the first non-European pope for almost 1,300 years.

He replaced Benedict XVI, who held the office for eight years and became the first pontiff in more than 700 years to resign, saying he no longer had the physical strength to continue.

In his Urbi et Orbi (To the city and the world) speech, Pope Francis began with a simple "Happy Easter!"

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• Born Jorge Mario Bergoglio on 17 December 1936 (age 76) in Buenos Aires, of Italian descent
• Ordained as a Jesuit in 1969
• Studied in Argentina, Chile and Germany
• Became Cardinal of Buenos Aires in 1998
• Seen as orthodox on sexual matters but strong on social justice
• First Latin American and first Jesuit to become pope, the 266th to lead the Church

The Pope, who has begun his tenure by emphasising humility, went on: "Christ has risen! What a joy it is for me to announce this message... I would like it to go out to every house and every family, especially where the suffering is greatest, in hospitals, in prisons."

Later in his speech, Pope Francis said: "We ask the risen Jesus, who turns death into life, to change hatred into love, vengeance into forgiveness, war into peace."

The Pope then mentioned troubled regions of the world in turn.

"Peace for the Middle East, and particularly between Israelis and Palestinians, who struggle to find the road of agreement, that they may willingly and courageously resume negotiations to end a conflict that has lasted all too long.

"Peace in Iraq, that every act of violence may end, and above all for dear Syria, for its people torn by conflict and for the many refugees who await help and comfort."

For Africa, the Pope referred to Mali, Nigeria - "where attacks sadly continue" - the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Central African Republic.

He added: "Peace in Asia, above all on the Korean peninsula: may disagreements be overcome and a renewed spirit of reconciliation grow."

Pope Francis concluded by saying: "Peace in the whole world, still divided by greed looking for easy gain, wounded by the selfishness which threatens human life and the family, selfishness that continues in human trafficking, the most extensive form of slavery in this 21st Century."

The BBC's David Willey reports from Rome that the 76-year-old Pope Francis has already set a new style at the Vatican, reaching out easily to ordinary people and expressing his thoughts in a conversational way that is easy to understand.

He has surprised many of the clerics who work at the Vatican, eating in a communal dining room with other priests and clearly finding much traditional Vatican ceremonial tedious, our correspondent says.

Rather than moving into grand papal apartments, Pope Francis has remained in a Vatican guesthouse, where he has been inviting ordinary people to morning Mass.

One pilgrim in Rome on Sunday, Briton Tina Hughes, said that Francis represented a "new beginning".

"I think he brings something special. He connects with people. I feel good about him," she told Reuters.

In the days before Easter, the Pope had reached out to women and Muslims.

During a Holy Thursday Mass at a youth detention centre he washed and kissed the feet of 12 people, including two girls and two Muslims, and in a Good Friday procession referred to the "friendship of our Muslim brothers and sisters" in the Middle East.

After Easter, the Pope will have to begin tackling the key issues facing the Catholic Church, such as the Vatican bureaucracy, the future of the Vatican bank and the clerical sexual abuse scandal.

Vatican watchers will be keeping a keen eye on new appointments to key positions.

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