From Our Own Correspondent - 26/06/2010

We hear from the correspondent who knows the American general, sacked for saying too much in Afghanistan, and the man who's replaced him. Divisions among South Koreans over how to handle their dangerous neighbour. Longing for rain in an African village as famine closes in. And a wild ride across the plains of Oklahoma, as we go chasing tornados. Afghanistan holds many dangers for an American military man. But it wasn't the enemy who did for the top US commander, General Stanley McChrystal. He's been brought down by the most unlikely bit of friendly fire. He was sacked after criticising civilian colleagues in a magazine article. President Obama said he'd shown "poor judgement". And the humiliated general was forced to agree... Lyse Doucet considers the commander's rise, and his extraordinary fall from grace.... Almost exactly sixty years ago, in these last days of June, South Koreans were enjoying a summer weekend. Many soldiers were on leave. The nation's guard had slipped a little. And at dawn on the Sunday, North Korea invaded.... What followed was one of the Cold War's most bloody conflicts. And since the fighting ended, there's been only the coldest kind of peace....John Sudworth reflects on the lingering aftermath of the Korean War... The famine in the African state of Niger has been called a "silent crisis".....silent because the world's heard so little about it. Even before the rains failed repeatedly, this was a desperately poor nation. Now aid workers say four-hundred-thousand children are in danger of starvation. Chris Stewart has been watching the struggle to survive as hunger and thirst tighten their hold. The Venezuelan capital, Caracas is considered one of the most violent cities in the Americas. And one of the toughest parts of Caracas is a vast shanty-town, called Petare. But it lies in a municipality that claims it's managed to cut the crime rate by twenty-five percent. It says the secret of its success has been better pay and equipment for it's policemen... Will Grant has just been out with the officers, on night patrol.... Right now, on the American prairies, it's the tornado season... The state of Oklahoma lies smack in the middle of what's sometimes called "Tornado Alley". A hugely dangerous and destructive twister might come blasting through at any moment. And when it does, most people...very wisely....run and hide. But Huw Cordey has been spending time with a rare few in Oklahoma who actually go out and chase the storms....thrill-seekers, drawn by a tornado's terrible power and beauty...