>> union bank has put its financial strength to work for a wide range of companies, from small businesses to major corporations. what can we do for you? >> and now "bbc world news." troops are poised to pull back from a border village with lebanon. honoring a hero. an american soldier awarded his countries top medal for bravery. the european finance commissioner, rehn, has said that preparations are being made for a rescue program to bail out the irish government if it asked for help. but ireland has insisted that it can handle its deficit on its own. finance minister left tuesday's meeting in brussels vowing his country will do what ever it takes to keep that euro zone stable. >> we will work with our european partners to secure that stability if ireland is the zone of attack. nobody likes to be at the front line, but we have been on the front line before. >> finance ministers say ireland will start talks with the european commission, the european central bank, and the international monetary fund. but the prime minister has resisted pressure to ask for a bailout, even though the nation's banking and budget crisis risked spreading to other weak economy is weak in the euor ro area. earlier on tuesday, in the irish parliament, the prime minister was keen to quask rumors a bailout is in the cards. >> this country has not applied for a bailout. >> the irish government has highlighted that its budget is fully funded until the middle of next year. >> ireland has put a series of measures in place which are extremely restrictive and more precise. three banks are in a difficult situation requiring intervention pared . >> work would intensify on a support program should double and request one. there will be another meeting involving all of europe's finance ministers on wednesday. >> britain's royal family has a wedding to look forward to next year. the second in line to the throne, prince william, is to marry kate middleton. her engagement ring has a special significance. it belonged to prince william's mother. he said it was a way to make sure that princess diana did not miss out. some flash photography from the start. >> first sight of prince william and kate middleton as a couple engaged. a flash for a man and woman who have known each other for nine years and it decided to move on to marriage. so how does kate feel? prospect. daunting i will take it in my stride. i believe -- [inaudible] flattery.ood at >> prince william has given her his mother's engagement ring. that gesture is a reminder of her death and of a marriage that failed. >> as you may have recognized, it is my mother's engagement ring. it is special to me. it is only right to put them together. it was my way of making sure that my mother did not miss out on today and the excitement of the fact that we will spend the rest of our lives together. >> later, in calmer ,, surroundings, they talked about the moment he proposed. >> in kenya, we were away together with friends, and i decided it was the right time. >> of their romantic. >> and he produced the rain? >> yes. what's in there and then? >> iowa been caring it around in my rucksack for three weeks -- i had been carrying it around in my rucksack three weeks before that. >> no doubting the prince of wales pleasure, even if there was a hint that he had been expecting his son's engagement long ago. >> may we ask your reaction to the wedding? >> obviously we are thrilled. >> it is the most brilliant news. i am so happy for both of them. they are so happy. it's brilliant. thank you very, very much. >> the prime minister gave his reaction. >> i was given the news and a cabinet meeting. i was passed a piece of that paper. a great cheer went up. >> the formal world announcement of this engagement is short on details about the wedding -- about the moral announcement. but it does make clear that prince william at saw a formal permission of kate middleton's father and that they will start with him continuing as his career as a search and rescue public in south wales. >> kate's parents were free to speak for the first time. >> we're absolutely delighted by today's announcement and thrilled that the prospect of a wedding sometime next year. katherine and prince william have been going out together for quite a number of years, which is great for us, because we got to know william really well. we all think he is wonderful and we are extremely fond of him. they make a lovely couple. they are great fun to be with, and we have had a lot of laughs together. we wish them every happiness for the future. thank you. >> the couple admits that at one point their future was not certain. they did split up. >> we split up, but we were both very young. it was at university. we were both finding ourselves. >> at the time, i was not very happy about it, but it made me a stronger person. you find out things about yourself that you had not realized, and i think you can get consumed by relationship when you are younger. >> she was asked about following in princess diana's footsteps. is that intimidating? >> i would have loved to have met her. inspirational woman to look up to. going forward and things. it is a wonderful family. very inspirational. yeah, i do. >> like, kate said, it is about carving your own future, and no one is trying to fill my mother's shoes. what she did is fantastic. it is about making your own future, and kate will do a very good job of that. >> this evening, the focus is on the newly engaged couple, a dumb man destined one day to be king and a young woman who is moving for -- a young man doesn't one day to be king and a young woman that is moving to a future as princess catherine with a unique combination of pressures and rewards that brings. >> a formal timetable for nato to hand over security to local forces in afghanistan will be finalized later this week. a summit in lisbon with president obama in attendance is expected to set 2014 as the new target date. paul wood has been on patrol with soldiers with the royal irish regiment in helmand. >> illumination rounds. the taliban could be out there. the soldiers of the royal irish regiment want to see them coming. there has been a month-long offensive to drive the taliban back. only a week ago, this area was under taliban control. but the surge means that soldiers like these are going to places that nato had never been before. holding his ground could be far more difficult. for that, nato must rely on these men, the afghan soldiers. in the past, they had a terrible reputation for bribery and corruption. that made local people turned to the taliban. generations this new of police are different. their job is a dangerous. all these men were injured in firefights with the insurgents. just wearing a police uniform here is an act of courage. >> i am the commander. with isaf hapappy in the area? he says, we are so happy for security. >> in the area's main bazaar, afghans we spoke to were hostile to the international forces. >> we were better off before the foreign troops are arrive, he says. there was not shooting all the time. since they came, my beard has turned white. >> british soldiers have come under fire about a kilometer away. it's not too late. the police officer on duty is not keen to get involved, but he is persuaded. the british troops set off to look for the insurgents. it is thought they have taken shelter in nearby mosque. the troops expect to get fired upon at any moment. as so often the insurgents have slipped away. nato has the firepower, but the victory is a difficult to achieve when the enemy is so elusive. paul wood, bbc news, helmand. >> and stay with us. still ahead, pretty in pink. all were diamond that fetched a world record price -- a rare diamond. e've more now on the royal engagement. kate middleton has talked about the prospect of joining the royal family. june kelly considers the challenges she faces. >> their wedding will take place 30 years after their parents. it seems this will be a very different world marriage. williams' mother was born into the british aristocracy. his fiancee is from a middle- class family. like many modern couples, kate and william met at university and a graduated together. they were initially on the same course and they had a joint circle of friends. early on, this was kate at a fashion show, a model student with william in the front know. >> he took a shine to grow and spent a lot of time together and were very good friends -- he took a shine to her. i think then that blossomed into something more. it is not surprising because kate is a fantastic crop. she is very beautiful -- she is a fantastic girl. she has a lovely man are about her. that friendship turned into something else. >> william has followed a traditional path fort ord career in the military. -- for a career in the military. he and kate have lived together. kate middleton has endured the full force of the pepper added. william grew up watching his mother face the pressure -- kate middleton has endured the paparazzi. he is aware of the need to protect his new wife. the couple will move center stage, and kate middleton will become one of the most famous and photographed women in the world. >> bbc news headlines for you. emergency talks on the debt crisis. preparations are being made for a potential rescue program for ireland. prince william and kate middleton announced they are to marry next year. israeli officials vote on wednesday on whether or not to withdraw troops of the northern half of a village that straddles the border with lebanon. depending on whose version you believe, it could be in syria, lebanon, or israel. the blue line runs through the middle of the village. for several years, israel has occupied the whole of the territory. >> cracking nuts outside the home he has lived in it for most of his life, he was born as a syrian. after the annexation of the golan heights, he became an israeli citizen. he is about to become a lebanese, although he is not sure what is going on. >> i am a man, an arab citizen of the village. the committee will decide what will happen. i am part of the village. >> hassan and 2000 other people live in a hillside village on the front lines between israel and lebanon. when israel's military occupation ended in 2000, israelis remained, even though the northern part of the village is now in lebanon. defining the blue line, the unofficial border is a priority for the un. israel and lebanon are still technically at war. israeli and lebanese soldiers were killed in a gunfight a few miles from the border. it remains tense. >> israel must withdraw from the northern part. this is the decision of the security council, and this is not subject of negotiation. >> this is officially part of love and on. by withdrawing its forces across the blue line -- this is officially part of the lebanon. by withdrawing its forces, israel is fulfilling its obligation but it is creating another problem -- cutting the village and town o in half. the schools and pare in southern half. people are worried. >> people in the north have brothers and the south. it is like one big family. i cannot leave my children, my brothers, my parents and love and on. it is like cutting a person in not leave cananot my parents in lebanon. >> with an international frontier running through the middle of the village, israel could soon be facing its enemies from hezbollah and the lebanese army on the other side of main street. >> malaria is a disease that kills a child somewhere in the world every 30 seconds. the gates foundation alone has donated close to $1 billion to fight the disease, and now a new clinical trial is under way in america where volunteers are being exposed to the virus on purpose. >> army volunteers demonstrate the only way people can contract malaria -- through this gigabytes. it is also the only way to quickly test a new vaccine -- through mosquito bites. >> how are you this morning? >> a rough night. >> you have a temperature of 105. >> this is one of a small group of medical pioneers that are testing the world first vaccine for the most widespread strain of malaria. 12 days after being deliberately bitten by an infected mosquito she has all the systems. >> i felt a fever, on rapidly. -- come on rapidly. within two hours, my temperature had gone up. it was a little bit over 102 degrees when i came in here. >> doctors say it is too early to tell whether the vaccine has failed. other testers are showing no symptoms. >> any joint pain, nausea, diarrhea? >> negative. no, no. >> this method of infection has never been used to test the vaccine. scientists with the walter reed army institute of research perfected the process in the summer, placing containers of infected insects into the arms of volunteers and allowing their bodies to transmit the malaria parasite. >> this is the most important element in early development of a vaccine -- to assess quickly whether the individuals it is protected against malaria or not. typically, it will take 15-20 years to develop a new drug or a vaccine that goes to market. the world does not have 15 or 20 years to wait for another malaria vaccine. >> the 33 volunteers are being monitored at a hotel or round- the-clock, where rooms have been converted into a clinic. this single mother said she took part mainly to earn the $2,000 compensation feet, but also to help medical science. >> some people probably are scared. if you think of every medicine out there, over the counter or prescribed, somebody had beat -- had to be willing to try it. we would not have the medicines we have today. >> if she or the volunteers test positive for malaria, they are treated immediately, preventing a future recurrence of the disease. it will be another week or so before scientists know the clinical trial has worked. even if he has not, the knowledge gained here will still take them one step closer to that holy grail, finding a way to prevent malaria. >> the dominican republic has reported its first case of cholera. the news came hours after was announced that the death toll in haiti where refugees is still living on sanitary conditions exceeded 1000. 16,000 haitians have been treated for the disease. fighting in guinea after the election that has left four people dead. the winner of the election, alan -- his opponente, says he will challenge the outcome. the faithful cast pebbles at three stone walls in a symbolic fight against satan. the festival of sacrifice will take place tomorrow. a u.s. soldier who led his colleagues in afghanistan has been awarded america's highest medal. he is the first to receive it since the vietnam war. president obama praised his heroism. >> he came to be honored as a soldier, but his personally made an impact on the president. >> i am going to go off script for a second and just say, i really like this guy. >> down! squad, seen at's day before the attack in 2007, was ambushed while patrolling afghanistan's valley, trying to save two wounded colleagues and he charged the fighters. >> he repeatedly and without hesitation charged forward through extreme enemy fire, and bodying the ethos that says, i will never leave a fallen comrade. >> even as he received his countries highest military honor, his thoughts are with his colleagues that did not make it home. >> to this day, i lost two dear friends of mine. and althought this is so positive, i would give this back in a second to have my friends with me righ t now. >> he now joins a small group of america's most distinguished servicemen, a real-life hero who claims he only visited his army recruiting center to get a free t-shirt. >> a rare pink diamond has fetched a world record price in geneva. the 24 carat stone said to be one of the rest in the world was sold to a diamond dealer for a final price of $46 million, higher than expected. >> rosy pinkn, 24 carats, and one of the rarest gemstones in the world. bidding was fierce. >> 40 million francs. already a record. [applause] 500. >> the call financial gloom does not extend to the sparkling world of jewelry. >> $40,500,000 francs, the highest price ever bid for a jewel at auction. 40,500,000 francs, the world record price for a jewel at auction. sold! [applause] >> within a few minutes, the pink diamond was going, going, gone. sold for a world record price -- $46 million appear. a million more than even the most optimistic experts had predicted. the buyer is a british diamond dealer, a well-known supplier of rare jewels to the wealthy. no one knows yet who the lucky wearer will be. it has already gone down in history as the most expensive piece of jewelry ever sold. bbc news, geneva. >> and that's where we round up this bulletin of world news. thanks for being with us once again. >> hello and welcome. >> see the news unfold, get the top stories from around the globe and click to play video reports. go to bbc.com/news to experience the in-depth, expert reporting of "bbc world news" online. >> funding was made possible by the freeman foundation of new york, stowe, vermont, and honolulu. newman's own foundation. the john d. and catherine t. macarthur foundation. and union bank. ♪ >> union bank offers unique insight and expertise in a range of industries. what can we do for you? ♪ >> there is one stage that is the met and carnegie hall. >> o, that this too, too solid flesh -- >> it is the kennedy center. >> check, one, two. >> and a club in austin. >> it is closer than any seat in the house, no matter where you call home. >> the top of the world, and i'm there, i'm home. >> pbs -- the great american stage that fits in every living room. your support of pbs brings the arts home. >> "bbc world news" was presented by kcet, los angeles.