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tv   BBC News  BBC News  February 17, 2024 3:30pm-4:01pm GMT

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it's russia's most significant military success since may. rishi sunak calls for conservative unity after this week's two big by—election defeats. to labour. many sub—postmasters who were wrongly accused of theft and fraud are still fighting for compensation — despite the scandal now being recognised as one of the biggest miscarriages ofjustice in uk history. the cases taking the longest to solve involve the victims who were forced to declare bankruptcy in order to pay back the losses they were accused of making. tony downey is finally heading back to his old home in the lake district. it has taken him 15 years to have the courage to return. tony bought the hawkshead
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post office in 2001. he said it was buzzing and a dream come true. it's a childcare centre now. what's it like to be back? overwhelming, to be honest. a lot of emotions after 15 years of not coming back here. now i live in spain in a rented apartment with no career, no money, no pension, no nothing. tony had £35,000 of shortfalls at his branch. he and his wife used their savings and credit cards to balance the books. when another £7,000 of losses appeared, they could not pay any more. tony resigned and sold up, advised to go bankrupt two months later. he is still nervous about who he might meet here, but not diane. she bought the post office from him and guess what? she had shortfalls too. it was tony who encouraged her to claim for compensation. i've been on antidepressants ever since all this started. we had several audits,
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each time they were demanding money. the last one we had said you either pay £1,200 now or you're going to be prosecuted. you think, crikey, we will be led out of here in handcuffs! this is awful! we had £3,000 and they literally made my wife go to the bank, and she went to our friends to borrow money and we had to pay it by half past four. i thought it was me, you thought it was you, and it wasn't — it was the computer system. same post office. same problems. here's the thing — the post office has accepted that horizon was to blame for tony's losses at his branch but they won't admit causing his bankruptcy. so far, he has ended up with just £10,000 worth of damages, far less than he is owed. the rest of the £1a0,000 worth of compensation has gone straight to the official receiver to pay off his bankruptcy debts. in a statement,
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the post office said... tony is doing that. his legal team are dealing with most of the bankruptcy cases. the enemy is time. the fear and worry we have is that people are left in a situation where they have to throw the towel in because time is running out and they want some sort of resolution or some sort of access to money. he believes tony has got a very strong case. just how long will it take to unravel? emma simpson, bbc news, hawkshead. will it take to unravel?
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let's return now to the munich security conference in munich for high—level debate on the world's most pressing security challenges. ursula von der leyen, european commission president and the chinese foreign minister will address saturday's session. ukraine president volodymyr zelensky also addressed the conference and called on europe to respond to the russian president, vladimir putin. labour leader sir keir starmer has also been at the conference and spoke to our security correspondent frank gardner and shed his reaction to the news of alexei navalny�*s death. it isa it is a tribute to himself, the most awful of circumstances. i was very moved by the words from his wife so soon after his death. she was a right to say russia has to be held to account. and i think the international community needs to be clear about that. 0bviously,
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international community needs to be clearabout that. obviously, it international community needs to be clear about that. obviously, it is a reminder that russia is an ever present threat. it's one of the reasons i'm here is the munich security conference to talk about an incoming labour government, if we are privileged enough to get that far, and how wejoin with our international partners in meeting that ever present threat from russia. it doesn't have to be held to account. russia. it doesn't have to be held to account-— to account. we've had a very impassioned _ to account. we've had a very impassioned plea _ to account. we've had a very impassioned plea from - to account. we've had a very - impassioned plea from president zelensky of ukraine for more help from europe. basically, he's trying to give a wake—up call to europe. if you become prime minister, what more can ukraine expect from the uk? i felt the very powerful words from president zelensky, as they always are. i had the opportunity and privilege to go to kyiv last year and meet president zelensky myself one—to—one. the purpose of that was to assure him that, should there be a change of government in the uk, we've obviously got big elections this year, and a labour government comes in, they will be no lessening
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of support for ukraine. we've obviously stood with the current government in the face of russian aggression. that will continue, double down in our support for ukraine. and in the face of russian aggression. i've given that assurance personally to president zelensky and that is the open position of the labour party. turning to the middle east, scottish labour party is supporting an immediate ceasefire, where do you stand on that in gaza?— immediate ceasefire, where do you stand on that in gaza? anybody, all of us, are shocked _ stand on that in gaza? anybody, all of us, are shocked and _ stand on that in gaza? anybody, all of us, are shocked and appalled - of us, are shocked and appalled around the ongoing violence in gaza. we have hostages that continue to be held and we have thousands upon thousands of civilians who have been killed. including a very high percentage of children. and nobody can stand in the face of that evidence and believe we don't need to take action. we do need to get to a ceasefire, we all want a ceasefire, the question is how do we get there? the fighting has to stop.
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any assault on rougher must be repelled and we must not allow that to go ahead —— any assault on rafah. have you made that clear to the israeli government? we have you made that clear to the israeli government?— have you made that clear to the israeli government? we have been clear in our— israeli government? we have been clear in our communications - israeli government? we have been clear in our communications with l israeli government? we have beenl clear in our communications with all of our partners about this. but that needs to create the space for hostages to be released for desperately needed humanitarian aid to get in in much greater volume than at the moment. but equally if not more important, to use that stopping of the fighting to create the space for the political dialogue thatis the space for the political dialogue that is the only way out of this in the long run towards a two state solution. making and continuing to make a case for a secure israel, viable palestinian state, and being absolutely clear that recognition of palestine has to be part of that. finally, do you worry that a future trump presidency is going to make
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america more isolationist and leave europe possibly under defended? fine europe possibly under defended? one ofthe europe possibly under defended? (he: of the issues europe possibly under defended? i>iez of the issues that everybody here in the munich security conference is discussing is what the various elections across the globe will mean for security in the future. i think there is a feeling that the challenge will enhance as we go forward. and that europe needs to stand together and talk about defence notjust now but in the future. 0bviously, defence notjust now but in the future. obviously, as you would expect, if we are elected into government, we will deal with whoever the american people choose to be their president.— to be their president. including donald trump? _ to be their president. including donald trump? whoever - to be their president. including donald trump? whoever they i to be their president. including - donald trump? whoever they choose to be their president. _ donald trump? whoever they choose to be their president. but, _ donald trump? whoever they choose to be their president. but, of— donald trump? whoever they choose to be their president. but, of course, - be their president. but, of course, we redouble our commitment to nato, that's one of the reasons i'm here in munich, talking about the challenge is notjust of today but tomorrow and how the uk prepares for part —— plays its part in that.
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israel said it has taken dozens of people into custody at one of gaza's main hospitals saturday after troops raided the facility. according to the hamas—run health ministry, at least 120 patients and five medical teams are stuck without water, food and electricity in the nasser hospital in gaza's main southern city of khan yunis. the israeli military says it has "credible intelligence" that hostages seized in the october 7th attack were held at the hospital. the united nations and world health 0rganization have both critized the operation. last week, people in the north of gaza told the bbc that children were going without food for days and some residents have had to grind animal feed into flour to eat. the un has warned acute malnutrition among young children there has risen sharply, and is above the critical threshold of 15%. the un's humanitarian coordination agency, 0cha, says more than half the aid missions to the north of gaza were denied access last month,
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and there is increasing interference from israeli forces. it says 300,000 people estimated to be living in northern areas face a growing risk of famine. a spokesman for the israeli military said last month that there was "no starvation in gaza" and agency, cogat, repeatedly said it does not limit the amount of humanitarian aid sent to gaza. let's speak to nada mays, she's a palestinian nutritionist and registered dietician based in the us. welcome and thanks for being with us. what more do you know about the situation with regards to food and lack of access in doubles and what impact it might be having. hi. impact it might be having. hi, samantha. — impact it might be having. h , samantha, thank you so much for making time to discuss this very important issue. what is happening in gaza in regards to the weaponised starvation against the entire population is absolutely horrific. we have so many people in desperate need of increased nutrition, actually. we have different categories of high—risk populations. starting with pregnant women, lactating and nursing women, children. in nutrition, we like to talk about the first 1000 days, that
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is the time period of a child being conceived up to their second birthday. this time is absolutely crucial for nutrition and any change orany crucial for nutrition and any change or any deficit in nutrition for the child and for the mother is going to permanently impact that a child for life. we also have the elderly, which are at risk from malnutrition. we have so many injured civilians, injured people, who are, once again, and need for increased nutrition. if they were in a hospital in any other area, they would be getting extra protein, extra calories, extra nutrients to support the healing of those injuries. here we are, at an extreme deficit. and the men, they are spending their entire days digging out a loved ones from the rubble. this is extreme energy burning activity. they are, once
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again, facing malnutrition, starvation. how are they supposed to have the energy to save their loved ones when they don't have the energy to do anything or even survive? most people are eating less than one meal a day at this point. we are in the face of severe malnutrition, which is defined as reaching 25% or less then your recommended nutrition in intake. ~ . . then your recommended nutrition in intake. ~ ., ., ., intake. what are the long-term im act of intake. what are the long-term impact of this? _ intake. what are the long-term impact of this? when _ intake. what are the long-term impact of this? when we - intake. what are the long-term impact of this? when we talk. intake. what are the long-term - impact of this? when we talk about the ouna impact of this? when we talk about the young children, _ impact of this? when we talk about the young children, as _ impact of this? when we talk about the young children, as i _ impact of this? when we talk about the young children, as i said - impact of this? when we talk about the young children, as i said in - the young children, as i said in that first 1000 days, this is a period of time where every single organ in the body is developed. without proper nutrition to develop those organs and develop those biological systems, their development is impacted. we can see a range of different effects because of that. cognitive abilities are permanently impacted. with children,
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we can see delayed milestones, so they may not sit, crawl, talk, in they may not sit, crawl, talk, in the timeframe we usually look for. for women who are nursing, they cannot nurse, they don't have enough nutrition to breast—feed their children. breast—feeding alone can be impacted by high stress or depression. how do you think these women are being impacted while they are seeing their entire community decimated? of course they are stressed, because they are depressed-— stressed, because they are depressed. {l3h sorry, go ahead. i depressed. 0k. sorry, go ahead. i was going to say we are out of time, nada mays, thank you forjoining us. hundreds of people have taken to the streets of south wales to protest at the proposed loss of thousands of steel jobs. demonstrations took place in the towns of port talbot and newport over the decision by tata steel to shut down existing and heavily polluting — blast furnaces with greener electric arc furnaces.
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the company says more than 2,400 jobs are at risk. the bbc�*s george zielinski was at the protests. well, the message here from port talbot is loud and clear, you can maybe actually see it on the sign behind me, that is to "save our steel". now, hundreds of tata workers have gathered in the town here today in support of an industry that's forged communities as much as it has the steel that it's famous for. now, this all comes after tata announced plans to reduce emissions at the port talbot site, putting nearly 2,000 jobs at risk. now, tata say the current business is simply unsustainable with the existing iron and steel making operation here contributing to losses of around £1.7 million a day in the last quarter alone. but with so manyjob losses also being proposed, the people here and certainly the ones i've been speaking to say that is a price they're simply unwilling to pay. now, yesterday, the steelworkers' union, community, and unite said they're to ballot members on strike action in response to those job losses that i mentioned, community reached a formal mandate to let members vote on strike while unite will hold a ballot on the 1st of march.
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that's in a couple of weeks time, of course. now, prior to the rally here in port talbot, another march happened in the city of newport. that's just a few miles west down the ma, where the site of llanwern, the tata site of llanwern exists. and around 300 jobs there are also earmarked to go, as well. and i think that march there and this protest here is just a sign of the anger, frustration, and anxiety that exists among steel workers in south wales. the government is considering plans to allow dentists from abroad to work in england without taking an exam to check their education and skills. the proposal, which is subject to a three—month consultation, aims to address the severe shortage of nhs dentists. it is hoped a quicker process would attract more dentists. but the british dental association has accused the government of avoiding the issues "forcing" dentists to quit.
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we spoke to eddie crouch, who is the chairman of the british dental association. well, we know a significant number of people who sit the current overseas registration examination are unsuccessful. so, there is a cohort of people that are taking the current exams that the gdc deem unfit to actuallyjoin the register. but the significant problem here is that the government are trying to fix a problem by filling up a bucket, a leaky bucket of people who are leaving the profession. and there is absolutely no guarantee that these overseas graduates, when they come to the uk to work, will enjoy the system in the nhs any more than home—grown dentists, and they too will end up perhaps leaving the nhs. the gdc themselves say that there is no guarantee by importing more dentists that it will solve the problem of nhs dentistry and that needs to be fixed first.
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a huge step forward in the treatment of parkinson's disease could transform the lives of nearly 1,000 people. nhs england is to roll out produodopa, a new system that uses a pump to steadily release medicine into the bloodstream around the clock. many patients currently need to take more than 20 pills a day to control their symptoms. james palmer is nhs england's medical director for specialised services, he explains more about the new treatment. it's a great step forward for a whole host of patients with parkinson's disease. it's. .. levodopa is actually quite an old drug, it came out in the 1960s. and the difference now is that drug companies managed to make that drug very soluble so it can be given into the skin, so it can be infused as a continuous infusion. why that's such a leap forward is that when patients with advanced parkinson's disease take their tablets, they have periods of time where they're getting
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an overdose of drug or a period an under—dose of drug and it can wreck their day. so, they can have moments where they can hardly move and other moments where they're moving far too much. and this infusion by a special pump that goes under the skin allows that drug to be just continuously delivered at a steady rate and make such a major difference to a patient�*s day. it's not for everybody. there are oral drugs for parkinson's disease, in the early parts of parkinson's, that work just as well. it's the fact that when you get through into the more advanced stages of parkinson's disease, you have to have more and more drugs. because the body becomes more tolerant to the drugs, you need more dosing, which makes the issue of overdosing and under—dosing. there are other treatments available for parkinson's disease on the nhs, such as deep—brain stimulation and other drug treatments. so it fits within a tool box of other treatments that are available. so it's not for everybody.
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since the creation of the nhs in 19118, people from all over the world have travelled to britain to work for the service — but their vital roles often been overlook or ignored. now, an exhibition is telling their personal stories through photography, film and interactive storytelling. cathy killick has the story. hello! hi, gloria! it's 30 years since jan and gloria have seen each other but they share a bond no woman forgets. back in 1994, jan gave birth to her son and gloria was her midwife. we were a team. as soon as you become pregnant and you came to see me, i'm part of the pregnancy. gloria made an unforgettable impact onjan's life, providing care and support at a momentous time. and over her 30—plus years as a midwife, she helped thousands of expectant mothers. she came to the uk from st kitts in 1968, aged just 18, and fought hard to be trained as a state registered nurse. oh, i look back at it very fondly.
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i have enjoyed my training — and i was trained very well in the nhs — and i've enjoyed working in the nhs. gloria's contribution is celebrated in a pop—up exhibition in trinity leeds called migration and the making of the nhs. it tells the stories of the immigrants who gave their working lives to the health service. the nhs wouldn't really exist from its beginning, but also still now, without migration. a lot of what we learn is in textbooks and history books but these are reallyjust stories of everyday people. archive: the nigerian nurse was working - when the pictures were taken. while the nhs depended on these workers, for many, life was tough. they faced prejudice and discrimination trying to find homes and despite being fully trained, some patients were openly racist. it's a really emotional exhibition. i mean, lots of people have swelled up and cried. some of the stories,
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itjust brings disappointment that these things have happened and, for me, it makes me want to be part of ensuring that this doesn't continue. i found that quite shocking and it really upset me. - to read that gloria had some - negative experiences from people who, quite frankly, i are just so ignorant. i couldn't have chosen anybody better to be my midwife. - gloria is rightly proud of her career and has kept her delivery kit. she's part of a living history at last getting the recognition it has long deserved. it's a long time coming because we've given so much but it should be there as a legacy to see how we've helped to build the nhs. cathy killick, bbc news. now, would you like to live on mars? well, nasa is looking for its next four volunteers to spend a year living and working inside a base that simulates the martian surface
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as it prepares for future missions to the red planet. 0ur reporter, nicky schiller, is in the newsroom with more. this is a realfootage this is a real footage of the surface of mars. it has been taken by nasa's rover that's been on the planet since february 2021 collecting rock samples. now, this is the sand at thejohnson space centre in houston, texas. it is meant to mimic the surface of mars. the reason? well, the space agency wants martians, well, volunteers who are willing to spend a year inside an artificial complex. the 3d printed habitat is 518 square metres. it simulates the challenges of a mission on mars. the space includes four bedrooms, living area, medical room, and a verticalfarm includes four bedrooms, living area, medical room, and a vertical farm to grow things. whilst blocked inside, the crew will be given a series of
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challenges that will mirror those of a true mars mission. they will have to overcome isolation, equipment failure, communication delays, and conduct experiments to measure the impact of life on mars for possible future missions to the red planet. 0fficials future missions to the red planet. officials hope the data gathered will help them plan for everything from the mental impact to more mundane things like furniture layout. so, if you fancy a life on mars, you're going to need to be healthy, motivated, between the ages of 30 and 55, a nonsmoker, speak english and be a us citizen and you're going to have to get used to eating space food for a year. there is already a crew of four inside the complex. they are due out later this year and have already been conducting experiments. nasa itself says it hopes to launch astronauts up says it hopes to launch astronauts up to mars in the late 2030s or early 20a0s and thatjourney itself will take seven months. it does sound interesting, doesn't
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it? this weekend, the biggest names in fashion are making their way on the catwalk, as london fashion week gets under way. among them, will be the daisy chain charity — whose creations have been made from thousands of bags of old clothes and fabrics to showcase the problem of fashion waste. gerry jackson reports. just a couple of the 2,000 bags of clothing and accessories that arrive at the daisy chain warehouses every week. some can be sold on but what can't might still be useful. we know that we're kind of the last stop for these textiles before they might end up in landfill so we decided to do something with the textiles that would give them a bit more longevity and a bit more life in the fashion world. neuthreads is this charity's answer to our global throwaway culture, using every kind of fabric, textile, even handbags and luggage straps — new clothing can be created that's not only unique but good enough to catch the eye of the fashion industry's trendsetters. this dress is made from a duvet cover. some of you might recognise this.
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and then we got the cuffs from a child's jacket and we used it as the sleeves. we also used the zips from handbags and we used the zips from other things that we put onto these to create the whole design, so every one is unique in its own way. unique and sustainable and the ambition doesn't end there. all profits are being ploughed back into causes supporting northeast people with autism and other neurodivergent conditions. as far as i'm aware, nobody does what we do. certainly no—one does this in the northeast of england — for design and environmental design but also ethical where we are ploughing the money back, straight back, into social enterprise which affects people's lives in the northeast of england, to enable them to live a better life if you're neurodiverse. there's lots more where this came from, but sadly, what they're actually taking to london fashion week is a fairly closely—guarded secret. national lottery money
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has helped get them this far but it's hoped their own catwalk at fashion week could really make success materialise. it's just beyond our wildest dreams. we just never thought this something like this would happen, with hundreds of people coming to see our designs in the biggest stage in the uk for fashion so we don't know where this could go. it could only go up, we hope, so it's just going to get bigger and bigger. gerry jackson, bbc news. now it's time for a look at the weather. hello, there. good afternoon. it's still meteorological winter, but it's felt rather spring like at times over the last a few days. the mild air set to persist as we head through the rest of the weekend. we have seen some brightness around today, notably towards the north east of england, eastern scotland. but for most of us, this has been the story — low cloud, mist, murk, outbreaks of drizzle, the wind picking up towards the west. and that's because this weather front is approaching for the rest
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of the day. you can see that nicely pictured on the satellite picture. there will be a lot of rain, particularly out towards the west as we head towards the end of the afternoon. some heavy downpours at times. further east, it should stay mostly dry, 11! or 15 degrees celsius in the south. so, very mild for the time of year. the wind picking up towards irish sea coasts. a lot of this ground already saturated. so, there could possibly be quite a lot of surface water flooding around. the rain turning more showery across northern ireland, western scotland later on. and it's sweeping eastwards overnight tonight. so, we will see some clear skies develop, some showers towards the west. the rain lingering on across the south east of england and east anglia. temperatures in double figures still for many. so, a very mild start to the day on sunday. now, there's still a lot of debate on the timing of the clearance of this rain from east anglia and from southeast england as we head through sunday morning. so, if you have got plans, thenjust bear that in mind that this rain could linger on for some potentially into the first part of the afternoon. it will turn more showery, though. there will be some brightness, some sunshine developing for most.
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showers particularly out towards the north and the west. temperatures, again, very mild, 12 or 13 degrees celsius for the majority. as we head through sunday night. there's another weather front approaching from the northwest that's likely to bring some more outbreaks of rain and that sinks southwards and eastwards as we head through monday morning. again, there will be some showers on this and brighter spells behind and a bit of sunshine, more of a northwesterly wind and a slight dip in temperature, too. so, it won't feel quite so mild on monday. but, still, temperaturesjust a little above the seasonal average, generally 9 to 13 degrees celsius. a colder night on monday into tuesday. and the air will be turning chillier as we head through the rest of the week, too. but it stays very unsettled. it will be rather windy at times, especially in the west. especially in the west.
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live from london, this is bbc news. the family of the late russian opposition figure alexei navalny say they've been unable to collect his body. his spokesperson tells the bbc the authorities are hiding it. we know that the law has been applied to alexei, and so we have no doubt that they will try to hide his body —— we know that the law has been never applied to alexei, and so we have no doubt that they will try to hide his body as long as possible. human rights activists say police arrest more than 100 people at navalny memorials across russia. the ukrainian president says his forces had
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to abandon the town of avdiivka because they'd been outgunned. it's russia's most significant military success since may. and keeping up the fight for compensation — hundreds of sub—postmasters forced into bankruptcy are still demanding redress. hello, i'm samantha simmonds. we start with the latest on the death of alexei navalny, one of president putin's most prominent critics. his family says mr navalny�*s mother has tried and failed to collect her son's body from a morgue in the arctic circle. a spokesperson claimed it is purposely being withheld by russian authorities so they can "cover traces". demonstrations and vigils have taken place near russian embassies in many countries to express outrage at his death in prison. more than 100 protesters are reported to have been detained for attending memorials in russia. our first report this hour is from our eastern europe correspondent sarah rainsford. this was a walk towards the news
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that navalny�*s mother didn't want to hear.

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