BBC News with Marian Marshall.

The former Colombian presidential candidate Ingrid Betancourt has been reunited with her family a day after she was rescued from six years of captivity at the hands of FARC rebels. Ms. Betancourt and fourteen fellow captives were freed by Colombian forces close to the Venezuelan border. The Colombian government says it's the beginning of the end of the FARC. James Ingham reports from Bogota.

Colombia's President Alvaro Uribe says he wants the hostages' rescue to be a path towards peace. But he remains committed to fighting the guerrillas with force. President Chavez meanwhile says he too yearns for a peaceful solution. But he wants the Marxist guerrillas to be listened to and to play a role in the political future of the country. Ingrid Betancourt herself has thanked President Charvez and Ecuador's President Rafael Correa for their mediation. But she's told them they must respect Colombian diplomacy, Colombians elected Alvaro Uribe and not the FARC, she said.

From Colombia, Ingrid Betancourt is expected to fly to France where she grew up, studied and raised her two children. With the French media covering... organization. Firstly in the sense, they were infiltrated. Secondly, there was a breakdown in communication with leaders, a lack of coordination in their operations, a lack of logistics. In short, it is an organization that is finished.

From Colombia, Ingrid Betancourt is expected to fly to France where she grew up, studied and raised her two children. With the French media covering her release virtually nonstop, Ingrid Betancourt is expected to receive a lavish welcome.

Regular direct charter flights between mainland China and Taiwan are starting today, the first of such service in more than 50 years. The flights will connect Beijing and four other major Chinese cities with Taiwan which has been preparing for a major influx of tourists that could stimulate its economy. Caroline Gluck reports from Taiwan.

The nonstop direct flights have been seen as another historic step in relations between the two sides. A total of 36 flights will be launched this weekend, connecting five major cities in China to six airports in Taiwan. More than 600 Chinese tourists will be traveling to Taiwan on weeklong package trips. Now be given the red carpet treatment, their numbers are expected to rapidly increase since Beijing has said it will allow up to 3,000 tourists a day to visit Taiwan from July 18th.

After a hearing lasting more than six hours, Turkey's Highest Court has said it will rule as soon as possible in a case aimed at closing down the country's governing party. The BBC correspondent in Ankara says the verdict is not expected before August on whether the AK Party which has its roots in political Islam should be disbanded and dozens of its members banned from politics. The prosecutors said that AK leaders wanted to impose Islamic law on Turkey, but AK officials denied this.

World News from the BBC.

Ethiopia says its troops have killed at least 71 Islamist insurgents in fighting in central Somalia this week. In a written statement on its military operation in Somalia, the Ethiopian Ministry of Defense said among the dead were several leaders of the Union of Islamic Courts and the Shabab militia. It did not mention how many Ethiopians were killed.

Zambia has denied reports that President Levy Mwanawasa has died in hospital in France where he was taken for treatment after a stroke. The Vice President, Rupiah Banda, said Mr. Mwanawasa's condition was stable. Earlier, a South African radio station reported Mr. Mwanawasa as dead, quoting Zambian officials. President Mwanawasa was rushed to hospital on Monday after being taken ill at the African Union summit in Egypt and was later flown to Paris.

A judge in the United States has ordered the Internet search company Google to hand over the details of every video that every user has watched on its subsidiary YouTube. The order was part of a copyright case brought by American media giant Viacom. Rory Cellan-Jones reports.

Viacom accuses YouTube of infringing its copyright by allowing users to post material from its programs. Now a judge in the United States has ordered Google to hand over all of its records. That includes details of every video that has been watched by any of YouTube's millions of users around the world, plus their logging details for the site. Privacy campaigners have attacked the ruling, arguing that it threatens to expose deeply private information about the viewing habits of YouTube users.

At least five people were drowned in Slovenia after their kayaks broke up and they were sucked under water into a hydroelectric dam. Eight other people are still missing. Rescue workers think the boats sank after hitting the partially built dam on the Sava river. A member of parliament at a major city nearby is reported amongst the missing.

BBC News.