police in london confirm they're investigating potential fraud offences in relation to the wrongful prosecution of hundreds of sub—post masters by the post office. the us secretary of state, antony blinken, begins his latest trip to the middle east as gaza health officials say 18 palestinians were killed in an overnight israeli attack in khan younis. three arrests over a fire on a bangladesh train after at least four people, including a child, died. it comes ahead of this weekend's election. hello, i'm lauren taylor. we start with drama on an alaskan airlines flight in america which had to make an emergency landing, after a part of the fuselage fell off in mid air. despite the issues, no—one was hurt, and everyone was able to leave the plane safely. these pictures illustrate where the part of the fuselage went missing —

a panel next to a row of seats. it's not known if anyone was in the seat next to the panel when it failed. audio has emerged of the moment the on board crew informed flight control of what was happening — take a listen. we are declaring an emergency. we are descending down to 10,000. to recap what was said there — the crew was declaring an emergency, and carrying out an urgent descent. it's not yet known what caused the panel to detach from the plane — but here's what we do know about the incident so far. there were 177 passengers and crew on board. there are no reports of any physical injuries. the flight was heading from portland to california and the panel became detached not long after take off. the plane had reached an altitude of 16,000 feet — that'sjust under 5,000 metres — and the emergency breathing apparatus was deployed inside the cabin. the plane returned to the airport in portland around 35 minutes after taking off,

and landed safely. the aircraft is a boeing 737 max 9. alaska airlines operates 65 of the planes — and has temporarily grounded its fleet of them, for inspection. the plane's manufacturer, boeing, says it is aware of the incident and is "working to gather more information." and america's national transportation safety board says it is investigating the incident. let's hear now from a passenger who was on board the alaska airlines flight, evan smith, who spoke to reporters after landing back at the airport in portland. wide as a refrigerator and about as high as two thirds of a refrigerator in height. there was a very loud bang towards the left rear of the plane and a whoosh noise, and all the air masks dropped. just a situation i have no control over, and just wait and see what happens. they said there was a kid in that row whose shirt was sucked off him and out of the plane, and his mother was holding on to him to make sure he didn't go with it. it says something that those planes

can take that kind of hit and still go ahead and land safely. so what could this mean for the fleet of boeing 737 max aircraft worldwide — of which the company has delivered around 1,300? i put that question to aviation analyst, alex macheras. we're talking about an aircraft that was only delivered to alaska airlines less than three months ago. and some of your viewers might recognise the name, the boeing 737 max, because that airline jet became a household name when it suffered two fatal incidents, first in indonesia with lion air and then a few months later with ethiopian airlines. and that triggered the worldwide grounding and ban of this aircraft, which lasted almost two years, because investigations concluded that there was something fundamentally wrong with one of these systems on board the aircraft known as mcas. and so boeing were forced to reassess how they were going to recertify that aircraft and get it back into the skies.

the aircraft did return back into the skies. it is flying now globally. alaska airlines are one of the carriers that have around 65 of these aircraft. but to see something like a an entire sidewall panel of an aircraft become separated while airborne is not something that we see in commercial air travel, not least in recent history of commercial air travel. and this is why now investigators and the safety bureaus will be scrambling to work out how this happened, not least because, of course, it is a 737 max, and this is an aircraft that has been under, as i say, close scrutiny since those two accidents a few years ago. and as we know, the airline has now grounded the rest of the fleet, as you said. tell us a little bit about the incident itself. when that happens, what are the kind of mechanics of it and what would the pilots have had to do? and clearly in this incident, i mean, it's good news, isn't it?

everyone is safely down. yeah. so what we had seen in this incident is that the aircraft had departed as normal and was climbing to its cruising altitude. and just as it reached around 16,000 feet, we know that a sidewall panel. so to explain this simply, if you are sitting in an aircraft cabin, you're on the seat, the sidewall panels are on the left and right, it's basically the kind of this shape, a sidewall, through the tube shape of the aircraft. that panel on the left side that houses a deactivated emergency exit door. so to the passengers, it looks like a normal sidewall panel. but for us in aviation, we know that if alaska airlines were to put more seats into that cabin — for example, as many seats as ryanair manage to squeeze in — there would be forced by regulators to activate another emergency exit to comply with regulations. so it's a sidewall panel that houses an emergency exit that alaska airlines does not use because it doesn't have a high density cabin. so from the outside, it looks like a door, but from the inside,

it's just a normal sidewall panel. it's that panel that at 16,000 feet ultimately triggered, or was part of, a decompression where it had blown out. and that separation of the panel leaving the aircraft, of course, triggers a decompression scenario that crew have to jump into place and into action to ensure that not only are passengers seated with their seatbelts fastened, but they are able to withstand the vacuum that then occurs. because we have had scenarios decades ago in aviation where this has happened and passengers have quite literally been sucked out of the aircraft cabin, removed from the cabin because of that pressure. so it's incredibly dangerous. it's not something that investigators will be downplaying. and it's a testament to the crew, of course, and the flight crew that they were able to return safely. and, of course, they were quite lucky that nobody was sat in that initial window seat right next to the panel, where it becomes separated

from the aircraft. and i would just add that typically in air travel, that seat is quite sought after because it has extra legroom because typically it would house an emergency exit. so it's pretty unprecedented stuff. it is quite extraordinary. just, you talked earlier about what the previous problems were with this model that boeing has had. how damaging is this going to be for boeing generally, this latest incident? well, boeing will be incredibly worried right now, not least because they want to find a conclusion asap in terms of what has happened on this flight. but it's because of the reputation damage that boeing has suffered over recent years that is directly tied to the 737 max. the 737 max has had a troubled history in commercial aviation, and that has been incredibly costly for boeing. we're talking tens of millions per investigation in terms of the scrutiny that boeing has been under with the faa, the lack of oversight, and all of these damning reports that show that there were problems with the production of the 737 max. and investors, of course, do not like that. it's been responsible for some

pretty hefty financial losses at boeing. and so i can imagine that when the markets open on monday, we're going to see some movements in direct correlation to what has happened. we'll also be seeing over the coming hours and days if there are any consequences to this. the rest of the world that operate the 737 max will be keen to find out as much info as they can to know if their respective civil aviation authorities need to take any action. and i'lljust quickly take you back to when the 737 max was grounded worldwide a few years ago. it was actually grounded abroad first before it was grounded by the us president donald trump at the time, who had ordered the grounding. so we might be seeing some developments over the coming days abroad because there is always concern when something happens in air travel, but not least with a 737 max. in the uk, the metropolitan police has confirmed it's investigating potential fraud offences, in relation to the wrongful prosecution of hundreds of sub—postmasters

by the post office. around 700 people were blamed for accounting mistakes caused by faulty it software — which made it look like money was missing. some were wrongfully imprisoned, in a scandal which was recently dramatised on itv. our business correspondent, marc ashdown, reports. we will look into each individual case and fight our corner. it started as a lone voice but became a chorus and eventually expose a national scandal. more than 700 post of this branch managers has spent two decades fighting to clear their names as this week's itv drama showed, some were wrongly sent to prison. noel thomas was one of them. it's been 18 years for me and it's been hell for a lot of people. this all centres _ been hell for a lot of people. this all centres and _ been hell for a lot of people. this all centres and horizon it system which the post office started using

in 1999. it led to accusations of theft and false accounting. it eventually emerged the system is faulty but not before hundreds of people were prosecuted. the metro police have been investigated possible cases, relating to some of the cases, a solicitor acting for some of them involved said the ongoing public inquiry into the scandal has suggested wider questions. scandal has suggested wider questione— scandal has suggested wider cuestions. ~ ., questions. the metropolitan police have confirmed _ questions. the metropolitan police have confirmed that _ questions. the metropolitan police have confirmed that the _ have confirmed that the investigation is very much more broader than perjury and there is evidence of potential allegations of fraud. ., ., , ' :: fraud. the government has £150 million has _ fraud. the government has £150 million has a _ fraud. the government has £150 million has a ready _ fraud. the government has £150 million has a ready been - fraud. the government has £150 million has a ready been paid i fraud. the government has £150| million has a ready been paid out fraud. the government has £150 . million has a ready been paid out in compensation to more than 3000 people. compensation to more than 3000 eo - le. . compensation to more than 3000 --eole. ., ., , people. the law operates independently _ people. the law operates independently to - people. the law operates l independently to politicians people. the law operates - independently to politicians but we have decided that we will not wait until the _ have decided that we will not wait until the inquiry concludes to pay out compensation. we want to do everything — out compensation. we want to do everything we can to get

compensation out quickly to the families— compensation out quickly to the families who have been terribly wrong — families who have been terribly wrong i— families who have been terribly wronu. . ., ., families who have been terribly wron u , ., ., ., ., , families who have been terribly wronu. ., ., . ., , that wrong. i have got that money. that this kee -s wrong. i have got that money. that this keeps going- — wrong. i have got that money. that this keeps going. more _ wrong. i have got that money. that this keeps going. more than - wrong. i have got that money. that this keeps going. more than 50 - wrong. i have got that money. that| this keeps going. more than 50 new potential victims of come and then —— in the past week. indie potential victims of come and then -- in the past week.— potential victims of come and then -- in the past week. we are fighting a war. -- in the past week. we are fighting a war- alan — -- in the past week. we are fighting a war. alan bates _ -- in the past week. we are fighting a war. alan bates was _ -- in the past week. we are fighting a war. alan bates was the _ -- in the past week. we are fighting a war. alan bates was the first - -- in the past week. we are fighting a war. alan bates was the first to i a war. alan bates was the first to a- ear. a war. alan bates was the first to appear- today. — a war. alan bates was the first to appear- today. he _ a war. alan bates was the first to appear. today, he says _ a war. alan bates was the first to appear. today, he says he - a war. alan bates was the first to appear. today, he says he hopes| a war. alan bates was the first to - appear. today, he says he hopes the public outcry would light a fire to finally bring justice to those who have suffered for so long. a clean—up operation for communities is underway across parts of england this morning after days of heavy rainfall led to more than 1,000 homes and businesses being flooded. more than 200 flood warnings remain in place, mostly in the midlands, east anglia and the south. a teenage boy has been charged with the murder of the 16—year—old harry pitman, who was stabbed to death in primrose hill in north

london on new year's eve. the teenager, who's 15, has also been charged with the possession of an offensive weapon. let's go to bangladesh now — where prime minister sheikh hasina seems almost certain to win a fourth successive term in office in sunday's election. her government rejected calls for in interim caretaker administration to oversee the ballot — and one of the main opposition parties, led by former prime minister khaleda zia, has pulled out of the election in protest — and called on its supporters to boycott the vote. live now to the bangladeshi capital dhaka — and our correspondent samira hussain. given the way the election is being held, is there a conclusion what the result is? it held, is there a conclusion what the result is? , , . ., ,, ., , ., result is? it pretty much appears to be the case — result is? it pretty much appears to be the case given _ result is? it pretty much appears to be the case given that _ result is? it pretty much appears to be the case given that the - result is? it pretty much appears to be the case given that the main - be the case given that the main opposition party, the bangladesh nationalist party, is not contesting the elections. not only have they said that they are boycotting the elections but they also called for a two—day strike, which is already under way. two—day strike, which is already underway. i two—day strike, which is already under way. i realise that it looks

quite busy behind me but if you can imaginejust 24—hour to quite busy behind me but if you can imagine just 24—hour to go, quite busy behind me but if you can imaginejust 24—hour to go, this quite busy behind me but if you can imagine just 24—hour to go, this was just wall—to—wall traffic. it's actually usually a lot more busy. even when we were walking through the streets, we saw that there are quite a few shops that were close. some of course abiding by this call for a strike, with others just taking the opportunity to go back to their home districts since they are going to be voting. and then of course, there is that sense of worry in case something does happen ahead of his elections. bud in case something does happen ahead of his elections.— of his elections. and there have been some _ of his elections. and there have been some demonstrations. - of his elections. and there have | been some demonstrations. tell of his elections. and there have - been some demonstrations. tell us a bit about the mood. if people feel that there isn't much choice, are they going to bother to vote? that's they going to bother to vote? that's the big question. _ they going to bother to vote? that's the big question. i— they going to bother to vote? that's the big question. i think— they going to bother to vote? that's the big question. i think some - they going to bother to vote? that's the big question. i think some of. the big question. i think some of the big question. i think some of the voters i have spoken to over the last few days being in dhaka, there was a great sense of apathy from voters saying that with no opposition party, what is the point

is casting my ballot? 0f opposition party, what is the point is casting my ballot? of those who say, it's that the opposition isn't going to present in the election, there is much of a competition, it just seems that prime minister sheikh hasina will get that fourth consecutive term in office.- consecutive term in office. thank ou ve consecutive term in office. thank you very much — consecutive term in office. thank you very much indeed _ consecutive term in office. thank you very much indeed for - consecutive term in office. thank you very much indeed for that . consecutive term in office. thank| you very much indeed for that live update from dhaka. the powerful iranian—backed lebanese group, hezbollah, says it's launched a barrage of rockets at northern israel, in response to an explosion in beirut that killed a top hamas official earlier this week. a statement said they hit an air traffic control base in meron in meron with 62 rockets. the israeli military said it had identified about a0 launches from lebanon, and that it had responded, without giving details. meanwhile, the diplomatic efforts to bring an end to the war in gaza continue — and the us secretary of state, antony blinken, is beginning a fresh round of talks on the conflict with regional leaders. he's been meeting turkey's president erdogan in istanbul. washington's priorities are to prevent the war from becoming a wider regional conflict

and to secure an increase in humanitarian aid to palestinian civilians. live now to our correspondent shaimaa khalil injerusalem. there is not just there is notjust blinken on the move, we have also had from josep borrell this morning. there is lot of effort to stop this becoming a regional conflict? b, of effort to stop this becoming a regional conflict?— regional conflict? a lot of international _ regional conflict? a lot of international concern - regional conflict? a lot of| international concern that regional conflict? a lot of- international concern that this could spill over to the west bank, here in the palestinian territories and i have been to the west bank. it is quite tense there but also across the region, we have heard from josep borrell saying that a two state solution is the way out, is the way to peace but also spoke about the dire humanitarian situation in gaza. he said the gaza people are starving and i think this is the complicated and i think this is the complicated and difficult picture that antony blinken faces in his diplomatic efforts. he has got israel's northern border active, hostile with

the israeli army and hezbollah. hezbollah claiming response ability for the barrage, saying this is their initial response. again, the relentless bombardment of central and southern gaza. 122 people killed overnight, according to the hamas run health ministry. 22,700 people killed overall, according to the ministry, to the hamas run health ministry in gaza. so he has to find a way to press israel to de—escalate, to use a more targeted approach but also he has to spoke to approach but also he has to spoke to a rather sceptical palestinian side, because they are quite angry that the us still sells armed them at arms to israel. also, he has to galvanise viewpoints, opposing viewpoints of how gaza will be run after the war. we have got israel

taking control the security in gaza after the role, —— of the war, as a suggestion. this is not agreed upon with the right wing part. we have two ministers, saying that people in gaza should be encouraged to lead and so if you are antony blinken sitting down with those, it is going to be a difficult conversation about bringing in a unified vision of what gaza will look like after the war. but also in the immediate term, how do you get there direly needed aid into gaza with the bombardment going on, safe delivery to people who needed the most? and also to stop from spilling over into the west bank and to the rest of the region. just to go back to the rockets that were fired by hezbollah this

morning, what are the risks for israel if it does decide escalate? it has been a cat that it conflict since october seven, they have been exchanging fire across that blue line, but if it goes any further, what are the results for israel but also for lebanon if it gets to a bigger conflict?— also for lebanon if it gets to a bigger conflict? also for lebanon if it gets to a bi aer conflict? , ., , ., bigger conflict? huge. the shape of the conflict will _ bigger conflict? huge. the shape of the conflict will change _ bigger conflict? huge. the shape of the conflict will change entirely. - the conflict will change entirely. if you talk of an escalation to the point that it is an all—out that takes you back to devastating memories of 2006, nobody wants to see that happen. everyone who has seen the devastation and destruction that happened in more than 30 day war back in 2006 does not want to see that happen and that is why there is so much nervousness in lebanon, seeing hassan nasrallah giving two speeches in two days. so far, the rhetoric has been quite high on both israel and the hezbollah side. hassan nasrallah said we are not afraid of the war,

we can face israel if that is what we can face israel if that is what we want. but you have also got you have galland and sunni and —— netanyahu, saying what they have done gaza, they can do to beirut. i don't think anybody wants to see that translated onto the ground. but what that tells you is that even though those intensifying exchanges of fire are still calibrated within this trip of the blue line or the israeli lebanese border, the real concern is what happens if there is a miscalculation, as they happened by mistake and a longer range missile is used and someone has to respond. that's really the real fear of the spill—over of this conflict. there is a report on reuters, lebanon's hardline group says it has fired two volleys of rockets into northern israel. what is the significance of this group joining in as well? significance of this group “oining in as well? ., ., ., �*

in as well? you are right, i haven't seen that yet- _ in as well? you are right, i haven't seen that yet. it _ in as well? you are right, i haven't seen that yet. it talks _ in as well? you are right, i haven't seen that yet. it talks to _ in as well? you are right, i haven't seen that yet. it talks to a - in as well? you are right, i haven't seen that yet. it talks to a similarl seen that yet. it talks to a similar fear, that if more groupsjoin, if more missiles are fired, that means there is an escalation on that side of the border and israel has to retaliate. it also means that intensifying and israel's northern border while it is fighting that he its fight in gaza, one of the things hassan nasrallah said in his second speech was that the intensifying of these missiles, whether it's drones or short—range missiles at israel, he said it was to help the hamas resistance, it was said to pull israeli resources into the northern border. israel says that it is ready for any scenario but the report that he had just said means that this intensity of the fire rockets is increasing as other parties are joining in. increasing as other parties are joining in-_ increasing as other parties are “oininu in. ., ~ , . joining in. thank you very much indeed. shaimaa _ joining in. thank you very much indeed. shaimaa khalil- joining in. thank you very much indeed. shaimaa khalilthere i indeed. shaimaa khalil there reporting from jerusalem.

now it's time for a look at today's sport with hugh ferris. the fa third round week peaks on saturday with 19 ties involving a host of former winners and a couple of teams from non—league football among those trying to provide one of the competition's famous upsets. maidstone united are one of them, the lowest ranked team remaining are taking on stevenage in one of the early games. so they are1— so they are 1— zero up against stevenage. sunderland—newcastle is the first wear tyne derby in nearly eight years. these are the games that kick off at 3pm uk time. in the first 17 minutes, four goals with coventry city leading 0xford with coventry city leading oxford united. these are the games that kick off at 3pm uk time. among them, eastleigh are the non—league team. brighton, bournemouth and sheffield united are the premier league sides

trying to avoid a shock. five of the eight teams in the late games have won the fa cup before. two of them meet at hillsborough. that's sheffield wednesday and cardiff. and also at stamford bridge, where chelsea might hope for the beginning of a cup run against preston to provide some respite from a poor league season so far. it isa it is a really important competition for us because we are not involved in the european competition and we are in a position that we need to grow and to improve a lot if we want to play in the competition next season. through the fa cup, we can achieve to play in next season in europe. brazilian football legend mario zagallo, who won four world cups as a player and coach, has died at the age of 92. he was the last surviving member of the side that lifted the trophy in 1958, which was his country's first title, and zagallo won it again four years later, before then going on to manage what is widely regarded as the greatest international team of all time —

the pele—inspired side that won the world cup in 1970. zagallo's final triumph came as assistant coach in 1994. david warner signed off his test career with a win, helping australia to a series clean sweep against pakistan with a typically combative innings. man of the series pat cummins helped his team bowl pakistan out forjust 115 in their second innings in sydney, leaving the home side needing 130 to win. 57 of those runs were provided by opener warner, although he was outjust before australia reached their target to win by 8 wickets. he retires as his country's fifth most prolific test run scorer after 112 matches, and says he wants to be remembered as an entertainer. we have the line—ups for the finals of the warm—up events ahead of the australian open. the top two seeds will meet for the brisbane international men's title, with holger rune up

against grigor dimitrov. meanwhile, in the women's event in brisbane, world number one aryna sabalenka will face elena rybakina in a repeat of last year's australian open final, which sabalenka won. us open champion coco gauff is still on course to retain her auckland classic title — she'll face elina svitolina in the final. they all, of course, have their eyes on a bigger prize, in melbourne. and for the first time the opening grand slam of the season will start on a sunday. the first round is played over three days, not two days, you take away the intense pressure that you have even matches finishing late or whether challenging it. so now people that work have an opportunity to come and start an event on a sunday rather than a monday, to have a massive opening on a sunday night will be something special. golden state warriors guard chris paul broke his left hand in their 113—109 victory over the detroit pistons in the nba. the team said he'd need surgery after suffering the injury

going for a loose ball in the third quarter. meanwhile, paolo banchero recorded the first triple—double of his career as orlando magic rallied for a 122—120 win over the denver nuggets. banchero levelled things from the free throw line, bringing the magic back from a deficit that had been 18 points in the third quarter, and then hit two more after this foul with just 9.7 seconds remaining, finishing with 32 points, 10 rebounds and 11 assists, and completing a turnaround the nuggets couldn't respond to as time expired. and that's all the sport for now. you can catch up with all the sport on our website. do stay with us here on our website. do stay with us here on bbc news. hello there. for many of us, it's been a dry and a fairly quiet start to the weekend. good news, of course,

after the recent heavy rainfall and the storms that we've had, the flooding now should start to subside, but we've had lots of blue skies this morning. this was the scene in south lanarkshire. but you can see from the satellite image here, for many parts of the uk we've had clear skies and that's been extending its way out into the atlantic as well. the reason for that is high pressure, which is building in now across the united kingdom. and what that does is it stops the atlantic weather systems coming in, those rain bearing weather systems moving in. so things are certainly looking more settled for the weekend and into next week. for the rest of today, we've still got quite a bit of cloud across eastern areas. one or two showers here, showers easing across parts of wales, just limited towards western coastal areas, one or two towards cornwall as well. maximum temperatures get into about six to eight degrees celsius. for most of us, it's a lovely afternoon with some dry weather and some sunshine. through this evening and tonight, the cloud across eastern areas may just drift a bit further westward, but there'll be some clear

skies across most areas and it's going to be quite cold, actually. there's going to be some frost, particularly towards the north and the west, temperatures here —1, —2 degrees celsius where you keep some cloud, perhaps frost—free, temperatures staying just above freezing. but as we go through sunday, there could be a few showers coming into northeastern areas of england. the cloud may start off with or tend to lift and break. there'll be some sunny spells across most parts of the uk on sunday afternoon and temperatures about four to six degrees celsius, but a chilly two degrees there in glasgow. as we go into next week, this area of high pressure remains. it doesn't look like it's going to move very far at all really for the next five days, so the outlook is drier. but beneath that area of high pressure, we've got an east or north—easterly wind drawing in that colder air from scandinavia. so the temperatures will be at or below the average for the time of year. on monday morning, some patches of mist and fog they should lift and clear away, some frost around as well. but plenty of dry weather with some sunny spells. temperatures in the face of it, about three to five degrees celsius.

but we have that rather brisk east or northeasterly wind, it's going to feel more like this. so perhaps feeling like freezing across central areas. and then for the rest of the week, it remains largely dry and settled. bye—bye. it remains largely dry and settled.

this is bbc news. the headlines. alaska airlines grounds

boeing 737 max 9 planes after a section of fuselage including a window fell off mid—air, forcing an emergency landing. police in london confirm they're investigating potential fraud offences in relation to the wrongful prosecution of hundreds of sub—post masters by the post office. the us secretary of state, antony blinken, begins his latest trip to the middle east as gaza health officials say 18 palestinians were killed in an overnight israeli attack in khan younis. three arrests over a fire on a bangladesh train after at least four people, including a child, died. it comes ahead of this weekend's election. it's an epic work that will span 18 metres. a new national war memorial will be installed in washington

dc later this year — and one foundry in gloucestershire