Erstellt am: 12. 9. 2011 - 15:11 Uhr

Warming up the chill in the Moscow air

Reality Check: David Cameron in Moscow, latest from Libya, Israeli social protests, UK slavery case, 6 months since Fukoshima

It was 2006, but the story had the feel of the 1960s at the height of the Cold War. Alexander Litvinenko, a former KGB officer turned writer and journalist, was now a British citizen. While living in London, he had written two books accusing the Russian secret services of acts of terrorism, and accusing Vladimir Putin of ordering the murder of the outspoken journalist, Anna Politkovskaya. Litvinenko's accusations were wide ranging, and some more plausible than others. He accused the FSB (the Russian secret service) of connections to a wide range of terrorist organizations, and even said they orchestrated the Danish Muhammad cartoon controversy to punish Denmark for its refusal to extradite Chechen separatists.

Whether he was a brave whistleblower or an imaginative conspiracy theorist, Alexander Litvinenko came to a bizarre and sticky end. On November 1st, 2006, he mysteriously fell ill and was hospitalized. He died 3 weeks later from what was eventually found to be poisoning with a rare and extremely dangerous substance: highly radioactive polonium 210.

Following a lengthy and convoluted investigation, the British government requested the extradition of Andrei Lugovoy, a former KGB commander turned businessman and politician, who was suspected of the poisoning. A trail of polonium 210 had followed him across London and across countries. While that doesn't prove he was the murderer, polonium 210 is hardly the sort of thing the average businessman carries in his briefcase. Russia refused the extradition request, and the diplomatic temperature between London and Moscow cooled rapidly, and the atmosphere has been chilly ever since.

So, does today's visit to Moscow by British Prime Minister, David Cameron, mean things are finally warming up, and what are the chances of Russia relenting and handing over Lugovoy for questionning? Steve Crilley asked our Moscow correspondent, Karen Percy, for her take on the meeting.

Libya's long road to reform

There's still no sign of Col. Gaddafi, but one of his sons has shown up in Niger. Not Saif, the one that is perhaps his father's most ardent supporter, but Saadi, the one who used to be a football player. Members of the family have been leaving the country for some time - Gaddafi's wife and daughter have been in Algeria for a couple of weeks, and convoys of supporters have been heading over the border into Niger over recent days. But the battle for Libya continues. The loyalists are proving more numerous and more tenacious than the rebels may have expected, as Paul Rogers explained to Steve Crilley.

Arrests in UK slavery case

Britain has been shocked by the arrest of 5 people on suspicion of slavery. Police found 24 men in "filthy and cramped" conditions during a raid at a caravan site inhabited mostly by Roma. It's thought some of them could have been there for as much as 15 years after being recruited from soup kitchens and benefits offices with the promise of a good wage and living accommodation.

Our London correspondent, Olly Barratt, told Joanna Bostock, about the police raid and what they found.

Social protests in Israel

The protest movement that started several weeks ago in response to housing shortages and the high cost of living spiraled to product Israel's largest ever social protest. Over a quarter of a million people took to the streets, over half of them in Tel Aviv, where the Habima Square is being called Prime Minister Netanyahu's Tahrir Square. Joanna Bostock spoke to feminist scholar and peace activist, Dr Hannah Safran, about the protests and their significance.

Fukushima 6 months on

It's 6 months since the devastating earthquake and Tsunami hit Japan. Around 20.000 people died or are still missing and over 115.000 buildings were destroyed, but the headline grabber was the crippled Fukushima nuclear plant.

Fukushima will be on the agenda at the global nuclear safety conference at the IAEA this week, but that is little consolation for the people still suffering on the ground. Riem Higazi reports on the current situation for ordinary Japanese people.

FM4 Reality Check

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