still inevitable. the us military launches a fresh strike against a houthi target in yemen, a day afterjoint us—british air strikes across the country and in the uk, the minister responsible for the post office has called for jail time for those responsible for an it scandal — in which hundreds of workers were falsely accused of theft. hello, i'm rajini vaidyanathan. let's start in taiwan, where william lai has won the elections and is set to become taiwan's president. lai is representing the governing dpp — and is set to succeed to the current president tsai ing—wen. lai has been labelled a troublemaker by china, as beijing warned people against voting for him. in his acceptance speech, he said he is "determined to safeguard taiwan from continuing threat and intimidation from china" and will maintain the cross—strait status quo. around 19 million voters were called

to elect a new president. my colleague steve lai is in taipei and joins me now. thank you very much. we have heard from william lai is acceptance speech saying those words about keeping china at arms lead. we have heard in the last few moments were from china and their response to the elections we've seen play out in taiwan. china has said reunification is still inevitable, taiwan is part of china in these elections can't change the basic framework and the direction of cross strait relations. it is a lengthy message but you get the idea of what they are saying was up the idea of what they are saying was up we have a more and our website on china's reaction. in the meantime, let's focus on the dpp who have won for the third successive year. an unprecedented term in office for the president from one party. just

around of the results coming through today, citing local media, the dpp is projected to win 51 seats, 52, and the tpp have eight, the last few seats going to independent candidates. no party with a majority in parliament. we will have to see what impact it has. i was joined earlier by our news correspondent shaima khalil, who was at the dpp rally earlier. william lai, the now president—elect, has thanked people for turning out, thanked the supporters for voting for the dpp and giving them that record third term in power, but he was also very robust on the stance with china. he said it's his responsibility to maintain safety across the taiwan strait — but, also, he vowed to maintain the status quo. he said that he will maintain and he will safeguard taiwan against any intimidation and aggression from china. and, of course, this is really at the heart of this election. remember, thejubilation from supporters that

their candidate finally won — and you can see it from the flags and the confetti flying around — is happening against a very tense geopolitical backdrop. beijing is watching this very carefully because china claims taiwan as its own. the united states is a very strong ally to taiwan and it sees it as a partner in countering taiwan's influence and assertiveness in the region. and with that, the dpp comes to powerfor a third time with william lai now as the leader, maintaining that policy, something that beijing is not going to be happy about. many of the voters that i've spoken to have said, "we have voted, they're now in power — they have to deliver." notjust on safeguarding and maintaining the peace and making sure that the defence capabilities are in place but also on domestic issues. at the heart of it is economy, the employment and the housing. so, for people here in taiwan,

they won a lot from their government when it comes to issues of their daily lives, but in the back of their minds, they're also thinking how beijing is going to react to this vote. china is looming large over these elections. it sees taiwan as a renegade province. they've labelled william lai as a troublemaker. earlier, i spoke to wang wen — former chief opinions writer in the global times — who is in bejing and has brought us reaction from china. actually, i think it's a local elections of china. so that's why i think the china mainland is very, very calm. and, in fact, ithink the taiwan policy in china mainland will not change — at least the three points. first, china must be reunified, and it is bound to be reunified. no situation can split china. second, we want to reunify peacefully but do not promise to give up force.

forces are to curb taiwan independence, not for the people of taiwan. it can be said to a certain extent that without taiwan independence, there can be no reunification by force. taiwan independence in the coming four years, so i think the process of using military to promote unification will be faster. no force can make taiwan independence. just to come back on you on that, we've seen democracy in action here in taiwan. free and fair elections, transparent election. does china have a claim over taiwan? i think you called a democracy, but in china, it is very typical local election.

for the result i think everything is expected. in fact, i would not be surprised by any revolt, because we all know the dpp continues to be in power, but the _ political structure on the island will not have a significant impact on stability across trade relations. maybe in the future, there may be a storm or cooperation, but as i said, they are just processes. the final result cannot be changed, that is a final unification. i think let me look in the future, if the dpp provokes on taiwan independence, there are many ways to fight back in china. if dpp dared to announce taiwan independence, i think the result can only be unified by force

and the dpp leaders... they will face legal trial. you called them local elections, but that is not how it is seen in taiwan. the taiwanese identity, as we've seen here, only seems to be growing. the more china friendly party seems to be doing worse. there seems to be a stronger rising sentiment in taiwan to be more independent, even if they are not pushing verbally for independence in the short—term. well, i think if you ask chinese ordinary people... i think most ordinary people in china mainland, we have low attention to taiwan elections because we really think it is local elections. if you ask those, i think many of the chinese in the mainland,

they want to use force. most of chinese people, they believe they are the central governments of a piece for unification. i think the problem is, you called a democracy, but it is difference of the ideology. i think in the future, we must take a long time, we need to prevent and ideological external factors from independence. for example, so—called democracy. all the states are in the balance. i think another thing we all know, china's relations have remained stable. they have repeatedly announced to oppose taiwan independence, the us.

i think also china first proposed united states a supporting piece for unification. at present, they stand on china's mainland. most chinese people believe in the future, it will be unified. we trust it. there is still a significant difference in how china sees taiwan and how taiwan sees itself. what that means in the days and weeks ahead is something we will be keeping an ion, but for now and today, it is back to you. thank you very much, steve, in taipei. we've had some initial reactions to the elections from china. for the very

latest we can cross now to beijing. 0h, latest we can cross now to beijing. oh, sorry, laura in singapore to listen to the reactions. sorry, there's confusion for you are i know. on my screen it says you are in singapore. give us the latest on what you're hearing from the chinese government. i what you're hearing from the chinese government-— government. i can confirm i am in bei'inu. government. i can confirm i am in beijing- we _ government. i can confirm i am in beijing- we had — government. i can confirm i am in beijing. we had a _ government. i can confirm i am in beijing. we had a from _ government. i can confirm i am in beijing. we had a from the - government. i can confirm i am in| beijing. we had a from the taiwan affairs office which says the results of these elections of the taiwan region show the democratic progressive party can't represent the mainstream public opinion on the island, a nod to the results that william lai, the new president of taiwan, president—elect got 40% of the vote. you cannot represent the mainstream public opinion on the island, taiwan is part of china, reiterating their belief on that. these elections cannot change the basic framework and direction of

cross strait relations. the statement is what we would expect from beijing at this time. they reiterate the point that taiwan is part of china, that these results are local elections, and reunification will happen. there is no mention of force in this statement. it says the taiwan issue in achieving national reunification remains consistent and unwavering. their position on that. they firmly oppose separatist activities. they say the winner of taiwan's election as a separatist, basie him pushing for independence. that is something they won't tolerate. i have been to they won't tolerate. i have been to the province that is closest to taiwan here on mainland china. we spoke to a number of people, and they say they feel taiwan is part of their family, they say they feel taiwan is part of theirfamily, they they say they feel taiwan is part of their family, they feel part of one family. that is something, a message

china propagates, that beijing is continually pushing this message of familial ties, that they are one family and one day they will be unified. i think the message the world has heard increasingly over the last few years is certainly beijing's intent that a piece for unification cannot be achieved, it will do so by forceful some having seen china's, certainly they be building up the military, they've seen militaryjets and warships heading to the straight, increasing their presence in taiwan, that has involved us coming to the aid of taiwan and saying it will defend it if necessary. when it comes to china's actions towards taiwan, what the world has seen is an increase in aggression. i think what we are seeing in recent weeks is an increase in outreach. certainly the

chinese diplomat, they have been to the us in the past week and their tone there has been very much about peaceful unification, and as long as the one china policy is adhered to, china will continue to push for peaceful unification with taiwan. thank you very much for bringing us up thank you very much for bringing us up to date with the latest reaction. we are getting reports presidentjoe biden has said the us has delivered a private message to iran about the attacks, and he said they are confident we are well prepared. it comes as the us has carried out a freshman at trieste right in yemen over night against a radar site it saysis over night against a radar site it says is being used as the houthi movement. it comes a day after dozens of similar strikes against targets in yemen. the actions in response to houthi attacking

vessels, causing shipping delays, as our correspondence reports. before and after. these satellite images show the impact of the american and british attacks on houthi targets in yemen. the us says airfields and weapons storage depots were destroyed. overnight, the us carried out more strikes, targeting a radarfacility in the capital sanaa. british forces were not involved. american officials say the strikes are designed to reduce the ability of the houthis to attack ships in the red sea and called them "legitimate and proportionate". the houthis, who captured a ship in december, say they are acting to support palestinians in gaza and to hit israel's allies. iran gives them weapons and training and the houthis say the attacks will continue unless there is a ceasefire in gaza. the attacks have disrupted the key

red sea trade route — commercial vessels are now travelling around africa. it means delays and extra costs. the houthis accuse the us and its allies of an escalation on israel's behalf. they say the attacks have had no significant impact on its forces and threaten with what they describe as a very harsh and painful response. so far, their reaction has been muted. they fired a missile yesterday which didn't hit its target. also yesterday, a huge protest against the strikes was held in sanaa. the americans say they don't want a major confrontation but are warning the houthis they are ready to respond. hugo bachega, bbc news, beirut. for more on this story, i'm joined now by a doctor

and humanatarian worker in yemen, ahmed al—mayadeen. thank you very much forjoining us on bbc news. first of all, what was your reaction to the events of the last couple of days question thank you for meeting me, and i think my reaction, my personal reaction is the same as many people living in the same as many people living in the north. we the same as many people living in the north. ~ . , ., , ~ the north. we are use of this kind of strikes since _ the north. we are use of this kind of strikes since 2015. _ the north. we are use of this kind of strikes since 2015. eight - the north. we are use of this kind of strikes since 2015. eight years | of strikes since 2015. eight years now, yemen people, we have mentality and strength, so the strikes... in the last couple of days, though strikes, as mentioned in the report, at the airport and districts, so it is not the same as before. people actually living in the straight as normally, especially yesterday. they are doing the attack, but in the

afternoon everyone inside, and other cities, and they are trying to deal with the situation. we are trying to say, we are trying to make it more easy for live, so used to the strikes before. this is not new for us, good news, but we are used to it. now because as mentioned, this is the cause of gaza is the bigger case. untilthis is the cause of gaza is the bigger case. until this moment there's no casualties reported, so thank god. hopefully there is some kind of compromise. hopefully there is some kind of compromise-— hopefully there is some kind of compromise. hopefully there is some kind of comromise. , . , ., compromise. this latest event of the last cou - le compromise. this latest event of the last coume days. _ compromise. this latest event of the last couple days, the _ compromise. this latest event of the last couple days, the strikes - compromise. this latest event of the last couple days, the strikes have - last couple days, the strikes have drawn attention to what is going on in your country. a civil war that has been going on for years and years now. a deepening humanitarian

crisis. as a doctor, what your first—hand of that? crisis. as a doctor, what your first-hand of that?— crisis. as a doctor, what your first-hand of that? almost eight ears first-hand of that? almost eight years dealing — first-hand of that? almost eight years dealing with _ first-hand of that? almost eight years dealing with this - first-hand of that? almost eight years dealing with this situation | years dealing with this situation from the fields and to be officers. the situation unfortunately is not getting better. we started in 2015, according to a un report 50 million people in need. now the number escalated to 21 million people in needin escalated to 21 million people in need in yemen. the situation has never been escalated. for the recent event and how the yemen people have gathered around, it is a bigger case, it is the whole case that united many people. this is like the thing we know, but the situation in yemen, day after day the needs are increasing. yemen, day after day the needs are increasinu. ., . , yemen, day after day the needs are increasinu. ., ., , ., , increasing. unfortunately it has decreased- _ increasing. unfortunately it has decreased. what _ increasing. unfortunately it has decreased. what is _ increasing. unfortunately it has decreased. what is your - increasing. unfortunately it has l decreased. what is your message increasing. unfortunately it has - decreased. what is your message to

people watching this about the ongoing stubble war? what message do you want people to take away from that? ~ ., ~ , ., you want people to take away from that? ~ ., �* , ., .., that? -- civilwar. as a medical doctor, that? -- civilwar. as a medical doctor. all— that? -- civilwar. as a medical doctor, all life _ that? -- civilwar. as a medical doctor, all life is _ that? -- civilwar. as a medical doctor, all life is sacred. - that? -- civilwar. as a medical doctor, all life is sacred. in - doctor, all life is sacred. in medical terms, this is humanitarian terms, all life is sacred. we need to stand together and to resolve our differences, to move on to recovery and development for the better of humans. . ~ and development for the better of humans. ., ~ , ., and development for the better of humans. . ~' , ., , and development for the better of humans. ., ~ y., , . and development for the better of humans. . ~ ,. , . ., humans. thank you very much for shafinu humans. thank you very much for sharing your _ humans. thank you very much for sharing your thoughts. _ now it's time for a look at today's sport. cole palmer got the only goal as chelsea beat west london rivals fulham at stamford bridge in the early kick off in the english premier league, as the blues bounced back from their league cup defeat at middlesbrough. palmer converted a penalty late in the first half to help erase memories of their shock 1—0 loss against second—tier middlesbrough in the league cup semifinal

first leg on tuesday. we deserve the victory, we were the better side. very pleased with the performance, and with the team. hgppy performance, and with the team. happy for the three points, we needed them. i think our victory here, third in a row at stamford bridge, in the premier league is important. later, manchester city will still be without striker erling haaland for their trip to newcastle united. city haven't lost while haaland has been out but their boss, pep guardiola, says they didn't expect him to miss so many games. it was a little bit more than we expect in the beginning. in his bone. and the bone needs time. so every injury, you can do whatever you want, it is a question of time. and at the end of this month, maybe he will be ready to come back.

staying with football, and two major international tournaments to tell you about. the start of the africa cup of nations, when hosts ivory coast face guinea—bissau, later. in the asian cup, australia beat india 2—0 india in group b. goals from jackson irvine and jordan bos. later, uzbekistan play syria in the other game in group b, but up next, china take on tajikistan in group a. it was 0—0 short while ago. it's the eve of the australian open, tennis' first grand slam of the year, which gets underway on sunday, instead of the traditional monday start, to welcome more fans. and they have flocked to the event, in their thousands already. organisers say that almost 90,000 fans came during qualifying. novak djokovic is the top seed and defending champion and has his sights on this tournament as the first step in his goals for the year. it's no secret that i verbalise my goals and i say clearly that i want to win every slam that i participate and play in. it is no different this year.

i'm just hoping that i can start the season in a way that i have been starting my season, most of my seasons, throughout my career. with a win here in australia in melbourne. england's tommy fleetwood leads, at the dubai invitational — he goes into the final round of a 72 dp world tour event in the lead for the first time since 2014. fleetwood leads rory mcilroy by one shot after firing an eight—under—par 63 in the third round earlier. the world number 15 carded eight birdies in a bogey—free round to move top of the leaderboard on 15 under. over at the snooker table, ronnie o'sullivan and shaun murphy are battling it out for a spot in the final of the snooker masters. seven—time masters champion o'sullivan is currently leading 3—2 at the ally pally. he raced to a 2—0 lead before fellow englishman murphy pulled a frame back.

you can catch up with that on the bbc website. we are back with more later on. the israeli bombardment of gaza has continued overnight, with the crowded southern cities of khan younis and rafah bearing the brunt. rockets were also fired from gaza into southern israel. the israeli military says overnight, its forces killed three palestinians armed with knives, a rifle and axes, who were trying to break into a settlement in the occupied west bank. official palestinian media say two were aged 16, and one 19. meanwhile, the hamas—run health ministry in gaza says a total of 23,8113 palestinians have been killed and over 60,000 have been wounded in israeli strikes on gaza since october 7th.

20 people were injured and it is feared many more may be buried under the merge which engulfed several cars on the road. the rate of deforestation in the amazon has halved in 2023, falling to the lowest level. it is home to around 3 million species, plants and animals and are said to be crucial in the fight against climate change. brazil's president has pledged to end deforestation by 2030. new zealand's former prime ministerjacinda ardern has married her longterm partner clarke gayford in a small private ceremony in the country's north island. the wedding was originaly scheduled for early 2022 but was postponed due to the strict restrictions she's imposed during the covid pandemic. the couple has been dating for a decade and have a five—year—old daughter.

that is it for that half—an—hour. there's plenty more, including the latest from taiwan, on the bbc news website. i will be back at short break, so do stay with us here on bbc news. hello there. things are set to turn even colder as we move towards the second part this weekend and into the start of next week as we open the floodgates to arctic northerly. and that will drive plenty of snow showers into northern scotland starting on sunday. and the blue colours, the dark blue colours will be reaching pretty much all areas by the time we reach sunday night into the first part of monday. for the rest of today, though, it's not looking too bad across the northern half of the country, bright with some sunshine, some rain showers across northern areas, some snow to the hills. variable cloud, though, for large

parts of england and wales. the odd spots of light rain here too. but there will be a bit of sunshine around. but those temperatures again range from around 5 to 8 degrees. so not quite as cold as what we're expecting by the second half of the weekend. through tonight, under clear skies, it will turn cold and frosty where we hold on to the cloud. and temperatures holding just above freezing, but it will be turning colder and windy across the far north of scotland. increasing snow showers here and a risk of ice. sunday, then, we see those snow showers become heavy and frequent across northern areas. risk of ice here, the winds picking up elsewhere. plenty of sunshine around, just one or two showers dotted around, particularly wales, south west england, mainly of rain as temperatures here 6 to 8 celsius, but turning colder across the north. then we're all into that very cold arctic air on monday. frequent snow showers affecting coastal areas in particular across northern scotland into the northern hours with an ice risk accumulations gathering some snow showers down north sea coast, a few down on the irish sea coast in towards pembrokeshire, perhaps even as far south as south

west england, over the higher ground. but for most, it's going to be a sunny day, a very cold day. when you factor in the northerly wind, it's going to feel more like these values suggest, perhaps down to —6 to —8 celsius for northern scotland. so bitterly cold tuesday, some further snow showers across northern scotland. then we could see this area of cloud rain which could turn wintry with some snow for northern ireland, the rest of scotland, northern england, perhaps north wales as we move through the day. but staying dry with some sunshine across southern areas again, it's going to be another very cold one. that feature runs across the country into the north. further snow showers across the north. i don't think we'll see any problems across southern britain with that low pressure system to bring some snow there. so it looks like it's going to stay dry, but for this upcoming week stays cold. the risk of snow in the north and severe overnight frost.

this is bbc news. the headlines... in taiwan, william lai from the ruling party wins the presidential election after the main opposition party conceded defeat. a total of 113 legislative seats are also being contested today. the us military says they have carried out a fresh new strike on a houthi target in yemen, a day after dozens of similar us—british air strikes across the country. in what the us calls a "follow—up action" to thursday night's attacks,

a us ship fired missiles at a radar site. houthis say the us strikes had no significant impact on their ability to continue attacks on vessels in the red sea. and in the uk, the minister responsible for the post office has called forjail time for those responsible for an it scandal — in which hundreds of workers the newly elected president of taiwan, william lai, has said he is "determined to safeguard" the island from — as he put it — "continuing threat and intimidation from china." he was speaking after two other candidates admitted defeat in the vote held earlier today. china lays claim to taiwan and had urged people not to vote for mr lai. his victory marks an unprecedented third consecutive term for the dpp, which advocates more independence for taiwan. let's here some of what the president elect said during his

victory speech. translation: thank you to - the taiwanese people for writing a new chapter in our democracy. we have shown the world how much we cherish our democracy. this is our unwavering commitment. as one of the first and most highly anticipated elections of 2024, taiwan has achieved a victory for the community of democracies. china has reacted by saying that unification of taiwan with china is inevitable. chen binhua, spokesperson for the taiwan affairs office of the state council has released a statement saying that:

there is more on those elections on the bbc news website here in the uk, there's fresh anger over the post office scandal after it was revealed executives might have been overpaid thousands of pounds in bonuses. it comes as the tax office is investigating whether the company underpaid as much as £100m in corporation tax by deducting compensation payments to victims of the horizon it scandal from its profits. our business correspondent marc ashdown has more.

that means at their real tax bill is a lot higher. that means at their real tax bill is a lot higher-— a lot higher. that means that bonuses paid _ a lot higher. that means that bonuses paid to _ a lot higher. that means that bonuses paid to executives . a lot higher. that means that l bonuses paid to executives for running supposedly profitable businesses should be looked at again. it businesses should be looked at aaain. . , businesses should be looked at a.ain_ , , businesses should be looked at aaain. , , ., ., again. it has stoked yet more anger and there is — again. it has stoked yet more anger and there is cause _ again. it has stoked yet more anger and there is cause now— again. it has stoked yet more anger and there is cause now for- again. it has stoked yet more anger and there is cause now for some . again. it has stoked yet more anger and there is cause now for some of| and there is cause now for some of that money to be paid back. i and there is cause now for some of that money to be paid back.- that money to be paid back. i think our big concern _ that money to be paid back. i think our big concern is _ that money to be paid back. i think our big concern is that _ that money to be paid back. i think our big concern is that the - that money to be paid back. i think our big concern is that the public . our big concern is that the public is basically— our big concern is that the public is basically been double—crossed. it looks_ is basically been double—crossed. it looks as _ is basically been double—crossed. it looks as though the post office has been undertaking its taxes and overpaying its buses, and frankly that is_ overpaying its buses, and frankly that is what we have got to get to the bottom of this week. the post office said its _ the bottom of this week. the post office said its financial _ office said its financial information was appropriate and accurate, but its latest accounts say it is engaged in discussion with the tax office regarding potential tax liabilities and an adverse outcome could be material. that could mean the post office is liable to up to £100 million in unpaid tax.

if enforced, that could render the business technically insolvent. although the government is the ultimate owner and could step in. for theirs like janet, who have had their lives ruined, it is yet another insult. d0 their lives ruined, it is yet another insult.— their lives ruined, it is yet another insult. ~ ., ., another insult. do you know what, it doesnt another insult. do you know what, it doesn't surprise _ another insult. do you know what, it doesn't surprise me _ another insult. do you know what, it doesn't surprise me in _ another insult. do you know what, it doesn't surprise me in the _ doesn't surprise me in the slightest. undercutting the tax to pay bonuses. i think it is absolutely disgraceful. it should never _ absolutely disgraceful. it should never have been allowed to pay themselves bonuses because of everything that is going on. as more and more details _ everything that is going on. as more and more details of _ everything that is going on. as more and more details of the _ everything that is going on. as more and more details of the horizon - everything that is going on. as more and more details of the horizon it i and more details of the horizon it scandal are laid bare in the ongoing public inquiry, fresh questions and fresh anger over how the post office has been run. mark ashdown, bbc news. thousands have gathered in london in protest against the war in gaza. live now to nicky schiller, our correspondent who's at the march. yes, iam yes, i am in yes, iam in parliament yes, i am in parliament square now,

which is the end of the march. tens of thousands of people have taken part in the march through central london today. the first big pro—palestinian event of the year. you will remember there were a number towards the end of last year. this is the seventh national march. thousands as i say will march through the centre of central london, including for the first time a 3.5 metre puppet. that was of little amal, who was a syrian refugee, originally that puppet was walk through to manchester in 2021. the reason itjoined the march today was to highlight palestinian refugees and a number of palestinian children marched with that puppet. the marchers ended up here in parliament square, and speaker after speaker have called for a ceasefire now. this event is part of a number going on in a number of cities around the world. the organisers say

in more than 30 countries we know there has been a big demonstration in dublin today. all calling for a ceasefire. one of the biggest cheers since we have been here has been for the former labour leaderjeremy corbyn, one of a number of people to address the event, as well as calling for a ceasefire now, he had a number of others, including the palestinian ambassador to the united kingdom, also praised south africa for taking its case to the international court ofjustice. accusing israel of genocide earlier in the week, something israel denies. but praise for south africa taking that case to the icj. there is a large police presence as you would imagine. around 1700 officers have been on duty today. some of those brought in from outside london. i saw a police van from lancashire here to make sure that everything went off peacefully. the met police say at the moment two

arrests have been made. they say that was in relation to offensive placards. and that in the beginning of the day they did warn that they wouldn't hesitate to act if they saw any placards that went against any of the laws. and they were handing out leaflets to people, not to display any offensive banners. two arrests have been made. today's protest, pro—palestinian. tomorrow, there will be a pro—israeli demonstration. that will be in trafalgar square. but here in parliament square, the speeches behind me continue. and you can see a lot of people who have taken part in the march have stayed here to listen to the speakers, all calling for a ceasefire now in gaza. thank ou. life for a ceasefire now in gaza. thank yom life in _ for a ceasefire now in gaza. thank you. life in central— for a ceasefire now in gaza. thank you. life in central london. - for a ceasefire now in gaza. thank you. life in central london. thankj you. life in central london. thank you. life in central london. thank you very much for the moment. donald trump has appeared in court twice this week — but this does not appear to be doing him much harm in the polls.

three days out from the opening primary in iowa and he is still 30 points ahead. meanwhile, president biden is casting this year's likely rematch for the white house as a battle to save us democracy. ros atkins has been taking a look. the us election is in november and president biden has this warning... donald trump's campaign is obsessed with the past, not the future. he's willing to sacrifice our democracy, put himself in power. donald trump is favourite to be the republican presidential nominee and he's firing joe biden's accusation back at him. now we have a president who's a great danger to democracy. he really is. he is a danger to democracy at a level like few people have seen. trump's not provided convincing evidence to support this claim, but his own actions raise questions about his impact on us democracy, not least his false claim that the 2020 presidential election was stolen from him, a claim we heard

the day after voting finished. this is a case where they're trying to steal an election, they're trying to rig an election, and we can't let that happen. the election wasn't rigged. but again and again, donald trump falsely claimed us democracy had failed to function. shouting weeks later, onjanuary 6th, just as lawmakers prepared to certinyoe biden's victory, trump held a rally in washington dc and again said the election was rigged. shouting less than two hours later, his supporters stormed congress. three years on, donald trump faces criminal charges that allege a wide—ranging conspiracy to overturn the results of the election. but despite this, despite his election claims being rejected byjudges and election officials, still trump continues his attack on the credibility of america's democratic institutions. but if you go to his campaign website, you'll find this pitch to voters. here's my plan to dismantle the deep state and reclaim our democracy from washington

corruption once and for all. to trump, the deep state is a network of government bureaucrats working to obstruct him and his policies. and trump's plan to deal with this involves trump having more power. the new york times has reported that the former president and his backers aim to strengthen the power of the white house and limit the independence of federal agencies. this comes in various forms. here's one. first, i will immediately reissue my 2020 executive order restoring the president's authority to remove rogue bureaucrats. and i will wield that power very aggressively. this would allow the president to remove thousands of career civil servants and replace them with loyalists. donald trump and his people i want to be much more effective in enacting policies _ than they were the last time around. they don't want their policies to be undermined by non—political- or non—appointed government workers. a process to find potential replacements is already under way. it's part of what's

called project 2025. dozens of conservative organisations have produced a plan for a new republican presidency. what we're doing is systematically preparing to march into office and bring a new army of aligned, trained, and, essentially, weaponised conservatives ready to do battle against the deep state. the idea is that this marching, weaponising and battling will be done at huge scale. axios reports project 2025 aims to install a pre—vetted pro—trump army of up to 5a,000 loyalists across government. that figure's not been confirmed, but it's worth putting it in context. in the united states, we already have 4,000 political appointees, and if you compare that to any other democracy in the world, it's a large, large, large number. in other words, to go from 4,000 to potentially tens of thousands of political appointees would take the us well beyond other western democracies. it would not be merit that

would define employment, but rather your loyalty to the winner of the presidency. that would not only threaten our democracy but truly undermine the ability of our government to meet the pressing needs that it has to deal with very real problems. in response to media reports about project 2025, the trump campaign team released a statement saying, that may be, but having the ability to replace civil servants is what trump wants, as is his ambition to expand presidential powers elsewhere. take federal departments and agencies — already the president appoints the heads of many of these, but some government agencies are independent, and trump wants to change that. i will bring the independent regulatory agencies, such as the fcc and the fdc, back under presidential authority as the constitution demands. such a move would be unusual. these are agencies normally

apart from politics, but this push for more presidential power isn't a surprise because trump has a long—held belief that the us constitution gives the president full power over all parts of government. he talked about this while in office. then i have an article 2 where i have the right to do whatever i want as president, but i don't even talk about that. this interpretation of the constitution is strongly contested, as is another claim made in 2022 — after again saying the last election was stolen, donald trump posted... the termination of all articles of the constitution justified by a false claim of a stolen election. that feels relevant as we assess trump's impact on us democracy. so does his desire to use the presidency to settle scores. i will appoint a real special

prosecutor to go after the most corrupt president in the history of the united states of america, joe biden, and the entire biden crime family. this description's not based on evidence and this pattern of trump threatening opponents with the law has become familiar, but that doesn't make it normal in american democracy. donald trump has come forward and said that he wants to use his ownjustice department to prosecute his political enemies in the way that he feels he has been prosecuted politically byjoe biden and joe biden's justice department. but that would be a significant break from american democratic traditions and judicial traditions going back more than a century. this week, trump was asked about retribution. he said he won't have time for it if he's re—elected. trump's also been sharing his view of american law and justice when referencing january 6th. he's called the violent attack on the seat of the us democracy "a beautiful day." he's called the hundreds who've been

jailed for what happened "hostages." none of this has affected trump's viability as a potential republican presidential nominee, nor has the torrent of falsehoods that he continues to pour into america's political discourse. and so, as republican candidates gather in iowa and the formal process of selecting the nominee begins, trump remains the man to beat. and at one recent event, there was a question for the crowd. and you've been seeing what's going on. in the past few weeks, the radical left democrats and their fake news allies have unveiled their newest hoax, that donald] trump and the republican party are a threat to democracy. would you believe that? "would you believe that?" donald trump asks, as his supporters laugh. for some who've watched trump in recent years, the answer is yes, they would believe that. and they're not laughing. going to be an interesting election year. let's turn to the war in ukraine, as regions across the country have been

targeted in another overnight barrage by russian missiles and drones. ukraine's air force counted 40 attacks and said it had shot down eight missiles. the full impact of the attack is not clear, but buildings have been damaged in both the sumy and chernihiv regions in the north. russia's defence ministry said the assault focused on ukraine's military—industrial complex, adding — without providing evidence — that all targets had been hit. a bear, rescued by ukrainian soldiers after being injured by russian shelling, has arrived at his new home in scotland. yampil, the asiatic black bear, is named after the town in eastern ukraine where he was discovered in an abandoned zoo, settling into life in his new home. yampil the bear�*s journey to five sisters zoo hasn't been an easy one. he's named after the town where he was rescued by ukrainian soldiers after months of russian occupation. discovered in an abandoned zoo, he was one of only a few animals to have survived.

he has been through a lot. he's been in the middle of a war zone and he's experienced some really horrible things. and so you never really know when you're working with rescue animals until you meet them and you start working with them just how they're going to react to their new environment, to the people that are working with them, so time will tell. transporting a 30 stone bear requires care and attention. the last few metres of yampil�*s journey from a belgian animal sanctuary were particularly tense. emerging from his crate, a few sniffs before thoughts quickly turned to his stomach. and then, as the neighbours look on, yampil begins to explore his new surroundings. you're always thinking about him — he's our priority this morning, just making sure that the move went well and everything was comfortable for him. and, yeah, as you can see, he's arrived and he's settled in well and he seems happy. yampil�*s arrived earlier than the keepers were expecting

so this is a temporary enclosure for him while a permanent one is built elsewhere in the zoo. asiatic black bears typically hibernate in the colder months. once yampil settles in, the hope is for a restful start to his new life in scotland. there's been a huge rise in the amount of money stolen by scammers advertising fake jobs here in the uk. according to action fraud, con artists send out text and whatsapp messages to people, offering them roles with a high wage — and then trick them into handing over banking and card details. dan whitworth has more. like many frauds, this is a numbers game. millions of scam messages get sent out and most are ignored. but itjust takes one to hit the right person at the right time — someone looking for a job or wanting to earn more money — for criminals to seize their opportunity. bella was caught out after she lost herjob and had posted her cv online, and after dozens of follow—up

messages and phone calls over several days, she had £3,000 stolen. i didn't know if i could stop them, if there was a way of sorting it out. i had no idea how they'd left my account, really. i just couldn't draw two and two together. it was, yeah, three months' worth of work, two and a half months — the whole summer, 50—55 hour weeks — so i was pretty distraught and upset. last year, 126 people contacted action fraud to report being caught by this scam. nearly £1 million was stolen — 50 times as much as the year before. city of london police, the national lead for fraud, says these numbers are likely to be the tip of the iceberg as most victims don't report fraud because of feelings of embarrassment and shame. people on the outside that aren't looking forjobs, that aren't motivated to respond, sometimes they don't understand how people become victim

of this type of crime, but, really, when we think about it, if you are concerned about a message or you think that there are alarm bells going off, that fraud is not going to get you. the fraud that gets you is the one that makes sense, and that's what these criminals do so well. if you get one of these messages, the advice is to ignore it, report it — you can forward scam texts to 7726 — and then delete it. dan whitworth, bbc news. a musical set on an iconic housing estate in sheffield is set to take london's west end by storm. standing on the sky's edge takes place over six decades, charting the political upheaval and unrest in britain from the 1960s to the present day. our arts correspondent david sillito has been taking a look. it's concrete, it's brutalist and it's hard line. parkhill, sheffield. in the �*60s, coach trips would come

to marvel at the streets in the sky. # after the rains have gone, - something inside me, i know...# it's like being in heaven up here. three mornings, decades apart. and now, 60 years on, its story of hope, long decline and now rebirth, is about to open on london's west end. # over roof slates...# and it's why the cast of standing at the sky's edge went to meet the people of parkhill. next to the greeny, bluey door, that was our kitchen. mickjones moved here in the �*60s. he's already seen the show three times. and today, a chance to meet one of its stars, rachael wooding. and i tell you, when we moved in here, it was amazing. it was like you'd won the lottery. and i know what that means to have your story told and be heard and be seen.

i was in tears cos it was so beautiful. this isn't a normal musical, is it? no, it isn't, and i've i done a lot of musicals! it's because of the people, it's because of the building and what it means. it's not every day you get a musical cast going on a fact—finding mission. but this isn't a normal musical. we really are standing at the sky's edge here, aren't we? yeah, pretty much. and here, the man behind it all — richard hawley. i mean, some of the families that lived here originally that they have repeatedly bought tickets to go and see it, it's a really emotional experience. standing at the sky's edge. cheering what started as a little project in sheffield has already won an olivier. but this wasn't about trying to create a west end hit. what would you want people to take away from it? learn from history and don't repeat the story again, you know, because there were awful things that happened here — awful.

it's that kind of systemic neglect, we need to avoid that and it's notjust sheffield, it's everywhere. does it make a difference coming to see the place? i cannot tell you... yes. you can feel it, i've got goose pimples, and it's not cold, i have thermals on! # after the rains have gone, something inside me i know # is dying for you # after the pain has gone, i finally open my eyes # not crying any more...# tens of thousands have passed along these concrete walkways. this, an attempt to tell something of the truth of those many lives. david sillito, bbc news, parkhill, sheffield. thousands of fans are expected to attend uk drag con this weekend — including more than 190 former contestants — from all 15 series of the tv hit show rupaul�*s drag race.

josh parry reports. applause and cheering start your engines, drag race—mania has descended on london. the hit tv show sees drag queens from around the world compete to be crowned the winner, and it's become a global phenomenon. for the uninitiated, think of drag race as the olympics of drag, and dragcon here at the excel is the chance for the show�*s biggest fans to meet up, shop till they drop and have a meet—and—greet with their favourite queens from across the globe. they spread so much love and they have so much love towards us that if i can give a fraction of that back to you and just show my gratitude for you coming here today and having a great time with everyone, let me do that. and it's not alljust about the wigs and dresses — drag has become big business. tens of thousands of fans are expected at london's excel this weekend, and similar events in the us have seen merchandise sales top more than £9 million in previous years. because it's so inclusive — anyone can watch it,

anyone can be a part of it and it's all about love. i became an ally through rupaul. it's colourful, it's camp, it's chaotic, and from the reception the queens got here today, it's clear to see rupaul won't be sashaying away for some time yet. josh parry, bbc news, london. that's it for this hour. i will be back after a short break. hello, there. things are set to turn even colder as we move towards the second part this weekend and into the start of next week as we open the floodgates to arctic northerlies. and that will drive plenty of snow showers into northern scotland, starting on sunday. and the blue colours, the dark blue colours will be reaching pretty much all areas by the time we reach sunday night into the first part of monday. for the rest of today, though, it's not looking too bad across the northern half of the country — bright with some sunshine, some rain showers

across northern areas, some snow to the hills. variable cloud, though, for large parts of england and wales. the odd spots of light rain here, too. but there will be a bit of sunshine around. but those temperatures again range from around 5 to 8 degrees. so not quite as cold as what we're expecting by the second half of the weekend. through tonight, under clear skies, it will turn cold and frosty where we hold on to the cloud. and temperatures holding just above freezing, but it will be turning colder and windier across the far north of scotland. increasing snow showers here and a risk of ice. sunday, then, we see those snow showers become heavy and frequent across northern areas. risk of ice here, the winds picking up elsewhere. plenty of sunshine around, just one or two showers dotted around, particularly wales, south west england, mainly of rain as temperatures here 6 to 8 celsius, but turning colder across the north. then we're all into that very cold arctic air on monday. frequent snow showers affecting coastal areas but in particular across northern scotland into the northern hours with an ice risk.

accumulations gathering some snow showers down north sea coast, a few down on the irish sea coast in towards pembrokeshire, perhaps even as far south as south west england, over the higher ground. but for most, it's going to be a sunny day, a very cold day. when you factor in the northerly wind, it's going to feel more like these values suggest, perhaps down to —6 to —8 celsius for northern scotland. so bitterly cold. tuesday, some further snow showers across northern scotland. then we could see this area of cloud and rain which could turn wintry with some snow for northern ireland, the rest of scotland, northern england, perhaps north wales as we move through the day. but tending to stay dry with some sunshine across southern areas again, it's going to be another very cold one. that feature runs across the country into the north. further snow showers across the north. i don't think we'll see any problems across southern britain with that low pressure system to bring some snow there. so it looks like it's going to stay dry, but for this upcoming week stays cold with the risk of snow in the north and severe overnight frost.

live from london, this is bbc news. in taiwan, william lai from the ruling party wins the presidential election after the main opposition party conceded defeat. but china said "reunification" with taiwan was still "inevitable" after the election on the self—ruled island that beijing claims as its own. the us military launches a fresh strike against a houthi target in yemen, a day afterjoint us—british air strikes across the country in response, the houthis say the us strikes had no significant impact

on their ability to continue attacks on vessels in the red sea. welcome to the programme. let's start in taiwan, where william lai has won the elections and is set to become taiwan's president. lai is representing the governing dpp — and is set to succeed to the current president tsai ing—wen. lai has been labelled a troublemaker by china, as beijing warned people against voting for him. in his acceptance speech, he said he is "determined to safeguard taiwan from continuing threat and intimidation from china" and will maintain the cross—strait status quo. on their end, china says reunification with taiwan still inevitable despite the vote, and opposes separatist activities. my colleague steve lai has followed the days procedings in taipei.