this is bbc news. officials in the united states have recovered the data recorder from the ship that destroyed a bridge in baltimore. amidst angerfrom israel, a un rights expert accuses the country of acts of genocide in gaza. my report finds that there are reasonable grounds to believe that the threshold indicating that israel is committing the crime of genocide against the palestinians as a group in gaza has been met. check your passport — the message to millions of britons planning a trip to europe — to avoid being caught out by a 10—year rule. and thailand has become the first south—east asian country to pass a marriage equality bill — paving the way for same—sex marriage. welcome to bbc news now, three hours of fast—moving news,

interviews and reaction. we start this hour in the us city of baltimore where crews have now found the data recorder of the ship which crashed into a major bridge yesterday causing it to collapse. officials are looking into whether dirty fuel may have caused the vessel to lose power. six missing construction workers who were on the francis scott key bridge at the time are now presumed dead and rescue efforts have turned into a recovery operation. these are live pictures from the scene — where it is 10am local time. as well as the recovery operation, the other focus is the investigation into what went wrong. the vessel, the dali, is registered in singapore and the port authority there says it passed two inspections last year. the container vessel lost power after departing from baltimore's port,

causing it to crash into the bridge. we arejust we are just hearing that one of those missing, presumed dead construction workers is a honduran citizen. it is thought that the six men were all migrants. the governor of maryland has been speaking in the last hour and says it's imperative that the bridge is rebuilt to support the us economy — but his current focus is the recovery efforts. the top priority for me right now is recovery, we have to bring these families closure. i promised to these families that i would instruct every single asset that we have to focus on that search and rescue, air, land, and see assets to focus on search and rescue. now that we have transitioned to the recovery phase, i promise to them is this: i will devote every single resource to making sure that you receive closure.

that was the governor of maryland. let's have a look at those life pictures again. a pretty misty scene there this morning local time. that huge container ship, the dali, 300 metres long, coming into contact with one of the main supports of that bridge with catastrophic results. 0bviously, that bridge with catastrophic results. obviously, as the governor was indicating, the majorfocus is on recovering the bodies of the construction workers who were on the bridge at the time. another focus is trying to figure out how they are going to help people cope with this loss of logistics, the loss of this bridge. the impact on portrayed an impact on movement around the area. some 140,000 jobs are connected to the operation of that port. we hope

to speak to a guest about this story very soon, but first we will look at a story from germany. to germany, where at least five people have been killed and around a dozen injured in an accident involving a bus on a motorway near the eastern city of leipzig, 53 passengers and two drivers were on board as the coach veered off the road and overturned on a motorway. the cause of the accident is still unclear. police said rescue helicopters and a large number of ambulances were immediately called to the scene. turning to gaza now and in the last half hour, francesca albanese, the un special rapporteur on human rights in the occupied palestinian territories has been speaking about the situation there. take a listen. israel has committed three acts of genocide with the requisite intent — killing members of the group, causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group, and deliberately

inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part. the flagrant and systematic slaughter of palestinian civilians, the deployment of unlawful weaponry, the utter obliteration of vital civilian infrastructure, including the deliberate targeting of all gaza's hospitals and the man—made starvation of the palestinian people, transcend the realm of war crimes and crimes against humanities that had been seen in the occupied palestinian territory before. the monstrosity unfolding is accompanied by a pervasive anti—palestinian narrative and dehumanisation emanating from the uppermost layers of israeli society, including high—ranking officials with command authority, and frequently reflected in soldiers�* actions on the ground. this reflects the intent

of �*dolus specialis�* — to destroy in whole or in part, which is what distinguishes genocide from other atrocity crimes. in the case of gaza, there exists a chilling clarity of this purpose — the systematic eradication of an entire people, or at least a significant part thereof. one of the key findings is that israel's executive and military leadership and soldiers have intentionally distorted �*jus in bello�* principles, subverted their protection functions in an attempt to legitimise genocidal violence against the palestinian people. the only reasonable inference that can be drawn from the unveiling of this policy is an israeli state policy of genocidal violence toward the palestinian people in gaza.

israel has accused ms albanese of going against its right of our existence. i talk to the save the children global media manager in rafah. , ., ., rafah. children everywhere in rafah, home to 275,000 — rafah. children everywhere in rafah, home to 275,000 people _ rafah. children everywhere in rafah, home to 275,000 people before - rafah. children everywhere in rafah, home to 275,000 people before the | home to 275,000 people before the war and now home to 275,000 people before the warand now1.5 million home to 275,000 people before the war and now 1.5 million people are crammed in here. children with no shoes, children who are visibly malnourished. everyone in gaza is skipping meals right now. we know the entire population is on the brink of famine. there is no aid getting through and very, very limited amounts of food and we have already seen children and people dying as a result of malnutrition and dehydration. in the south, there is nowhere near enough

aid, food, water, medical supplies for the amount of people here. how much aid is getting through? a sporadic amount. truthfully, nowhere near enough. at the border crossing in rafah where i came in, hundreds of trucks are lined up and we know that is the only border open, the only way forfood, water and medicine to come in at a time when needs are so great. it's nowhere near enough in the aid that does get through it is extremely critical. many explosions in rafah last night, drones overhead and the only way to keep children safe right now in gaza is a lasting ceasefire. what's it like for you personally operating in conditions? it's extremely challenging. the images will stay

with me of children everywhere, children who are visibly shaking because they have been so impacted by six months of war, one mother told us her nine—year—old daughter was in a tent that was set on fire. other children were shot on the way into the sea trying to get their shoes, any shoes they saw washed up. the reality here is heartbreaking. i think whatever disputes are going on, the reality is that children are being killed in gaza. 13,000, over 13,700 children killed, family is wiped off the killed, familys wiped off the register. we all need to say enough is enough, the suffering needs to stop and we can all make the choice now to give aid and safely to have a lasting ceasefire and to ensure children in gaza have peace. around the world and across the uk

this is bbc news.

in the uk scores of people are reportedly being turned away at airports because their passports don't meet post—brexit entry criteria. as many as 32 million uk passport holders are being warned to check the issue and expiry date details on their passports or potentially face being refused entry to cities and holiday destinations across the european union. let's break it down for you, eu countries will not accept uk passports issued more than ten years ago. you'll also need to renew your passport if it has less than three months left at any time while you're travelling. this is because the uk passport office previously added another nine months from an old passport on to a new one. meaning a passport issued between march 2014 and september 2018, could be valid for up to 10 years

and nine months. but post—brexit, if your passport is more than ten—years—old or has less than three months before it expires, you will not be able to travel within the eu. an exception to this is the republic of ireland, where you may travel with a valid passport up to and including the expiry date. and for more advice if you're travelling from the uk to other parts of the world, check the foreign office website. earlier i asked jo rhodes — a travel expert with the consumer site which? about the holidaymakers who are finding they can't travel. unfortunately, i mean, you can imagine, can't you, the absolute horror if you are turned away at the gate or you check your passport on the way to the airport. i think we're all quite used to checking out expiry dates, but it's a different thing entirely to look at the date that it was issued. count ten years ahead and also allow for that additional three months as well.

so it does need a little bit of pre—thought and, really, people should be looking as soon as they book their holidays, and if they've got something booked now, check your passport, check the passports of everyone you're travelling with and just make sure you're within those new rules. yeah, and i think it's worth you taking us through the rules again as well. we've just been setting out what they are, but it's quite complex, isn't it? so let's get your take on how the rules operate. yeah, that's the thing. so, ratherthanjust looking at the expiry date, look at when it was issued. so my passport is actually one of those affected because it was issued before 2018. i have an extra nine months which is now not valid. so while my expiry date is next september, it will actually it will expire in december this year. and i also need to allow

for that three months. so that's three months from the date you leave the eu. so the final date of your holiday, you need that additional three months. get those passports out and check if you have travel plans. how quickly can you see your doctor if you are ill? have you had to wait for an operation? are you happy with your health service? well, here in the uk, public satisfaction with the national health service has hit the lowest level on record according to a long—running survey. let's take a look at a few of the stats. fewer than one in four — 24% — people were satisfied with the health service last year, down five percentage points on the previous year. satisfaction was at 70% as recently as 2010. the main reasons for dissatisfaction are waiting times for gp and hospital appointments followed by staff shortages and the government not spending enough money on the nhs.

however, support for the founding principles of the nhs remains high, with 91% believing the nhs should be free of charge when people need to use it, 82% agreeing it should be primarily funded through taxes. 0ur health correspondent nick triggle told me this year's survey is being more closely examined than usual. this is the gold standard survey to measure public satisfaction in the nhs. it is measured every year, but this year, in the lead up to a general election, clearly, it is being poured over. 24% of the public were satisfied with the nhs last year, 20 5% down from what it was in 2020, and a long way down from 70% recorded in 2010. the survey goes back to the early 1980s, so it gives us that historical tracking of what the public has been thinking about the health service. since 2010, that high, we have obviously seen waiting times

in all parts of britain, england, wales, and scotland, getting worse, whether that is waiting for routine operations such as knee or hip replacements, or waiting for accident and emergency departments. and clearly, that is making the public to satisfied. in fact, waiting times was the single biggest reason for dissatisfaction. that is followed by lack of staff, and funding, and then waste in the nhs. i think this poses all sorts of questions about how much funding the nhs gets, but also, how it is set up. does it need reforming? i think that those are all questions we will hear in the build—up to a general election. the un is warning that illegal weapons from abroad are fuelling gun violence in haiti.

the island nation remains in political limbo, with details of a transitional council still to be revealed, more than two weeks after haiti's prime minister resigned after a wave of violence in the capital port au prince. the un says arms trafficking has helped the gangs who have caused chaos in the country, as nomia iqbal reports from the port city of cap haitien. gunshots. parts of this volatile nation are now a war zone, flooded with guns and gangs. haiti is a country that doesn't manufacture weapons, yet its people are living in a state of terror perpetuated by hundreds of armed gangs. juliette points to where she was shot. gangs ambushed an event she was working at in port—au—prince. translation: | said i to everyone, "run, run, run" because they are shooting and then i was shot twice. ten people were killed, including her business partner.

she struggles to talk about what happened. juliette fled to cap—haitien, carrying her belongings and bullet scars. this shared space is all she has. gangs have taken over the home she owns in port—au—prince. translation: at the beginning, our political leaders didn't do - anything to stop these gangs. they let them grow and grow and grow. and now it's too complicated to stop them. the gangs are everywhere. more than 30,000 people have fled the capital, paying high prices to take the bus to cap—haitien. there's a moment of relief as this father sees his 14—year—old son has made it safely. translation: the “ourney was very long. _ more than six hours. i was praying the whole way. there were a lot of gunshots in one area. our busjust missed them. another passenger has

a message for america. translation: all the guns here are from the us. - if the us want to stop this, i they could do it in one month. there is no exact number for how many trafficked firearms are currently in haiti. a un report said some estimates put it at half a billion legal and illegal weapons here as of 2020. weapons are being smuggled into haiti by air, land, and sea. there have been seizures in the country's main ports, including here in cap—haitien, where guns and ammunition are hidden in shipping containers. they then end up in the hands of violent gangs, who are becoming haiti's de facto rulers. the chief prosecutor here says he's never seen it so bad in haiti. for me, it'sjust like a nightmare. with guns being so prolific, is there a fear the violence could spread beyond the capital? are they scared of coming here? of course, yes. because we're not playing with them. anything can happen.

because if this is a gangster, that come, he's not coming to play. so we're not playing with them either. the us state department announced a plan last year to work with haitian police to tackle gun trafficking. but with no head of state and effectively no government, gun violence is yet another vicious circle haiti is trapped in with no clear way out. nomia iqbal, bbc news, haiti. to thailand now, which has become the first south—east asian country to pass a marriage equality bill, paving the way for legalisation of same—sex unions. the lower house of parliament approved a new draft law giving equal marriage rights to all couples, regardless of gender. under the law same—sex couples can have their marriages legally recognised, and will get the same parental rights as anyone else. the law is now almost certain to be enacted before the end of this year. the law is now almost certain to be

enacted before the end of the year. it is the first time in this region that any government has come so close to passing a law giving equal rights in marriage. it is something that lgbt groups have been campaigning forfor a long time, it has been years of campaigning, thailand has a open and accepting climate or attitude towards same—sex marriage. but the law has always been the hardest thing to get over. we believe the law has now passed, 399 votes to ten, that leaves only the upper house to approve it which we believe is a formality. then the king's approval and the law is likely to be enacted before the end of the year. for people living in same—sex relationships, it is enormously important. it is notjust having formal recognition of their

partnerships but has legal implications for inheritance of property, for power of attorney when your partner may be incapacitated, for tax benefits and four children. it gives them the right to be parents as legally and recognised as anybody else. there are still some details to be hammered out on the issue of adoption and there are also issues involving things like surrogacy which are issues related to same—sex marriages. broadly, the law has no past, same gender partnerships will now be viewed as essentially the same as any other partnerships. i think a lot of other countries and people living in those countries and people living in those countries will look to thailand, hoping it inspires changes in their own country, same—sex intimacy is criminalised in many southeast asian countries and thailand hopes to

benefit. it will now become an attractive destination for lgbt people and same—sex couples to holiday or settle down. it's one of the most coveted awards in songwriting — the fellowship of the ivors academy. only 26 people have ever received the fellowship, including sir eltonjohn, sir paul mccartney and kate bush. the award recognises writing that has enriched the cultural fabric of the uk. and now, there's a new name on the list — bruce springsteen, whose albums have sold millions of copies around the world — he is the first american musician to make the cut. our music correspondent mark savage explains. he just has this catalogue of incredible songs, you know, era—defining songs. he was one of the big stars of the mtv generation. you know, he was slightly older than madonna and prince and michaeljackson, but he earned his place there with tracks like born in the usa and dancing in the dark,

hungry heart. and his 1984 album, born in the usa, is one of the biggest selling albums of all time, more than 30 million copies worldwide. but i think more than that, it's about the breadth of the music that he has made. you know, he has really soundtracked blue—collar american life for half a century, everything from the kind of working class tales and the aspirations of the characters in his songs and his early work to his later more contemplative albums, which deal with things like the terrorist attacks on the us and the political divisiveness that is spreading across the world right now. so this is a reward for that entire body of work, hundreds and hundreds of songs and the poetic lyricism behind them all, as well as, i suspect, those incredible three— or four—hour concerts that he's still playing in his 70s. dachshunds, also known as sausage dogs, could be banned in germany under a new law which would prohibit breeding practices inflicting long term suffering on the animals.

dachshunds are prone to spinal problems linked to their short legs and long backs. but the german kennel club says the law would leave too much room for interpretation in determining what constitutes a genetic defect. however, the agriculture ministry denied the reform aimed at stopping what it called torture breeding. let's just bring you a brief glimpse of the scene in baltimore where we have heard from the governor of maryland that the investigation into what caused this container ship to crash into a major bridge with the loss of the six lives is now involving everyone from federal and state authorities trying to uncover what happened, what led up to it and everything about the aftermath. you are watching bbc news.

we see mixed weather today, essentially it will stay unsettled into the easter weekend, because low pressure will be dominating and around that we have weather fronts which are focusing these spells of rain. in between there will be some sunshine. these are the top temperatures this afternoon, maybe making 13 across eastern england. a lot of showers coming in from the south—west, but we still have wet weather in scotland. that should tend to move away. that will drift northward and then we will see further wet weather coming into england and wales over night. they could be sleet and snow over the tops of exmoor, the cotswolds and over the welsh hills. quite chilly air we have overnight, especially in northern ireland and scotland, where we have clear skies. there will be a slight frost into tomorrow. let's focus on the weather in the far south of england on thursday, because it will get windy, and it is around these coastal areas that we will likely have some large waves, gales, and that could mean travel disruption.

the winds will strengthen around this swirl of showers and spells of rain, which are moving up from the southwest. overnight rain moves into scotland and northern ireland, although it shouldn't be as wet in scotland as it has been today. temperatures in the central belt are likely to reach 10 degrees, which is an improvement on today. top temperature again will be around 12 degrees when we see some sunshine and fewer showers towards the south—east. low pressure still in charge as we head into good friday, there are some weather fronts bringing rain into spain and france, not far away from the south east of england. it looks like we will stay in showery air. there will be some sunshine at times, but as it warms upjust a little bit, we will see showers breaking out, they could turn heavy infantry, particularly for western areas. top temperature 13 or 14 on good friday. if you are travelling elsewhere, further afield into europe, the warmer air is going to be across the eastern side of europe on a southerly breeze and in the eastern side

of the mediterranean. there could reach the mid—20s. for western europe, it is cooler weather, it is wetter, particularly across spain and portugal. but we still have that area of low pressure over the easter weekend. it will not be a wash—out, when the sun comes out it will feel quite warm, the trouble is that showers are not too far away, particularly in the west.

mission to beijing: us company bosses meet the chinese leader. can he get the investment his country so desperately needs? counting the cost of the baltimore bridge collapse, we'll hear from the us boss of nissan as he launches new models at the new york car show. hello and welcome to the programme. keep investing in china. that's the message from chinese president xi jinpeng to visitng us business leaders as he tries to breathe fresh life into the world's second biggest economy. that's despite the continuing tensions between the us and china. on tuesday china complained to the world trade organization on tuesday, china complained

to the world trade organization about what it says are unfair subsidies the us is giving