he's been leader of the dup since 2021 and is northern ireland's longest—serving westminster mp. also tonight... an uneasy calm injerusalem over easter and ramadan while conditions remain desperate in gaza. the great bank holiday getaway — and it's been slow progress for many by road, rail and ferry. and the world of mammals — the latest david attenborough series looks at how many species are adapting. good evening. politics in northern ireland have been thrown into turmoil with the news that the leader of the democratic unionist party, sirjeffrey donaldson, has resigned after being charged with rape and other historical sexual offences.

he was arrested yesterday along with a 57—year—old woman who has been charged with aiding and abetting in connection with the alleged offences. they will appear in court next month. sirjeffrey, who is northern ireland's longest serving mp at westminster, says he will strenously says he will strenuously contest the charges. jennifer o'leary reports. sirjeffrey donaldson, a leader whojust weeks ago returned his party to power—sharing at stormont. today, his political career appears to be over. in a statement, his party announced his resignation, confirming that he's been charged with allegations of an historical nature. bbc news understands he's been charged with rape and multiple other sexual offences as part of a police investigation spanning months after two women came forward. in a letter to his party, sirjeffrey donaldson said he will be strenuously contesting the charges. the dup�*s new interim leader

is mp gavin robinson. it's been a devastating revelation, and has caused tremendous shock notjust myself personally or my colleagues within the dup, but for the community right across northern ireland. it came as a great shock, but we are a party and individuals that believe in justice. we have faith in our criminal justice system. sirjeffrey donaldson is long known for his unyielding defence of the union. and what do you do in return for that, you throw me out of the forum to which i was elected by the people! his reputation was forged in opposition to the good friday agreement. i've got the framework document here. that's what we think of the framework document! jeffrey, how are you, lad? today is not his first political exit. with regret, i have resigned from the ulster unionist party.

his defection to a rival party eventually led him to the leadership of the dup, but he now stands apart from the party he steered back into power—sharing. in a statement, first minister michelle o'neill said her priority is to continue to provide the leadership the public expect and deserve. northern ireland has form when it comes to political earthquakes, but today's development leaves a fissure in unionism at a time when some see it under increasing threat from those who want a united ireland. # happy and glorious...# for now, sirjeffrey donaldson�*s party political days look firmly in the past. jennifer o'leary, belfast. ina moment in a moment we will speak to damian grammaticus, who is in westminster for us _ our ireland correspondent sara girvin is at stormont tonight. and this is a shock

for everyone there? the new dup leader expressing everybody�*s shock at this news? everybody's shock at this news? yes, it has been a — everybody's shock at this news? yes, it has been a massive _ everybody's shock at this news? 133 it has been a massive shock, reeta. northern ireland is no stranger to political twists and is, we know that, but what has happened today has been a political earthquake, and the shockwaves of that are being felt across this place. it is only a matter of months since the devolved government returned to stormont here in belfast, and that was because under sirjeffrey donaldson�*s leadership of the dup, the party went out of power sharing, collapsing those institutions for two years in protest at post—brexit trading arrangements, and it was under his leadership again that they came back to power—sharing, although not everyone in his party was happy about that at the time. it has been about that at the time. it has been a tumultuous few years for the dup, there is no doubt about that, and this evening it is a party in disarray. there will be a focus after the easter break on making sure that the after—shocks of what

has happened or not felt too keenly here. there will be a plea for the dup to look outside the party and focus on the bigger picture and on the stability of power—sharing. and this evening, the new interim leader of the dup, gavin robinson, says thatis of the dup, gavin robinson, says that is the case, and that is his focus. �* . that is the case, and that is his focus. ~ ., . , , focus. and damian in westminster, what is the — focus. and damian in westminster, what is the immediate _ focus. and damian in westminster, what is the immediate fallout - focus. and damian in westminster, what is the immediate fallout there i what is the immediate fallout there from what has happened? i can what is the immediate fallout there from what has happened?— from what has happened? i can tell ou reeta from what has happened? i can tell you reeta this _ from what has happened? i can tell you reeta this was _ from what has happened? i can tell you reeta this was as _ from what has happened? i can tell you reeta this was as much - from what has happened? i can tell you reeta this was as much a - from what has happened? i can tell you reeta this was as much a bolt. you reeta this was as much a bolt out of— you reeta this was as much a bolt out of the — you reeta this was as much a bolt out of the blue here in westminster as it was _ out of the blue here in westminster as it was in — out of the blue here in westminster as it was in northern ireland. i understand that downing street had no advance notice that mrjohnson was going — no advance notice that mrjohnson was going to resign, no advance notice _ was going to resign, no advance notice even that there was any sort of investigation happening. today, downing _ of investigation happening. today, downing street would only say that it would _ downing street would only say that it would not comment on what is a live investigation. but that power—sharing arrangement in northern— power—sharing arrangement in northern ireland is key for the government here, because of its central— government here, because of its central role in stability in northern ireland, the setup there since _ northern ireland, the setup there since the — northern ireland, the setup there since the good friday peace agreement. rishi sunak, when he

became _ agreement. rishi sunak, when he became prime minister, made it a priority— became prime minister, made it a priority to — became prime minister, made it a priority to restore power—sharing, and usually, the government here acts as _ and usually, the government here acts as a — and usually, the government here acts as a sort of neutral broker between — acts as a sort of neutral broker between the parties in northern ireland. unusually in this case, mr sunak— ireland. unusually in this case, mr sunak dealt pretty much in that time with the _ sunak dealt pretty much in that time with the concerns of one party, the dup, and _ with the concerns of one party, the dup, and particularly one person, sirjeffrey— dup, and particularly one person, sirjeffrey donaldson. so, he made seven— sirjeffrey donaldson. so, he made seven trips— sirjeffrey donaldson. so, he made seven trips to northern ireland to -et seven trips to northern ireland to get that— seven trips to northern ireland to get that back up and running. the key thing — get that back up and running. the key thing for downing street now is what happens going forward. and the fact that _ what happens going forward. and the fact that they want the dup leadership to stay committed to that _ leadership to stay committed to that the — leadership to stay committed to that. the concern here is that any turbulence — that. the concern here is that any turbulence in northern ireland is a concern _ turbulence in northern ireland is a concern for— turbulence in northern ireland is a concern for london.— turbulence in northern ireland is a concern for london. damian and sara, thank ou concern for london. damian and sara, thank you both _ concern for london. damian and sara, thank you both very _ concern for london. damian and sara, thank you both very much. _ the metropolitan police says it is continuing its investigation into potential offences linked to the post office over the horizon it scandal after the bbc revealed the company was told about flaws in its accounting system in 2017. more than 900 sub—postmasters were wrongly prosecuted. some politicians and former

sub—postmasters want scotland yard to widen its investigation to take the new evidence into account. the force said it has interviewed two people under caution. our business correspondent marc ashdown reports. the police have been investigating the horizon scandal for four years, butjust two people have been questioned under caution. as the public inquiry continues to unfold, one mp who sits on the compensation advisory board thinks detectives should widen their net. people can't hide behind the public inquiry. i think the police now need to start looking and scoping this investigation, look at the individuals that have been named, and some that haven't, to see what they knew and why they took this course of action. around 900 sub—postmasters were wrongly prosecuted up to 2015, accused of theft and false accounting. the bbc has uncovered a secret report commissioned by the post office two years later in 2017. compiled by deloitte, it found that fujitsu employees had

the ability to amend or delete transactions entered by branch staff. there would be no flag to postmasters and it could lead to shortfalls in branch accounts. the post office then spent £100 million of public money defending itself in court against sub—postmasters who said they had been wrongly prosecuted. david enright has represented many of them. we're about to take the unprecedented step of quashing the convictions of 800 people. and despite this, not a single person has been charged, let alone prosecuted. the metropolitan police have been conducting an investigation for the last four years. where's the action? cheering. a group of more than 500 sub—postmasters and mistresses won their first court case against the post 0ffice back in 2019. janet skinner was one of them. she was jailed in 2007. the 555 of us that went to that court case, they could have prevented that and they could have saved a lot of time, money and tears.

the metropolitan police first started looking into the post office and fujitsu back injanuary 2020. an investigation into potential offences of perjury and perverting the course ofjustice is ongoing. and the met told us today it continues to monitor the evidence being heard by the public inquiry. both the post office and fujitsu said they were deeply sorry for the impact the scandal has had on the victims and their families. marc ashdown, bbc news. israel's prime minister, benjamin netanyahu, has agreed to send officials to egypt and qatar in the coming days for a new round of talks on a ceasefire in gaza. it comes a day after the un's top court, the international court ofjustice, ordered israel to allow the unimpeded flow of food aid into gaza, where sections of the palestinian population are said to be facing imminent starvation. injerusalem, there is an uneasy calm as palestinians mark easter and ramadan. from there, our international editor

jeremy bowen now reports. injerusalem, where tension — and worse — are normal, there is always the consolation of religion. this ramadan, many of those ending a day of prayer at the aqsa mosque were palestinian israelis, around a fifth of israel's population. israel, citing security, restricts access to jerusalem for palestinians from the occupied west bank. just down the road, palestinian christians were deep in their celebration of easter, walking to the old city from the garden of gethsemane, where they believejesus prayed on the night before he was crucified. but in this city, sacred for christians, jews and muslims, religion and politics always mix. all the palestinian people are suffering today. they are suffering from occupation, they are suffering from apartheid, they are suffering from genocide. and today, what we are praying

is to stop this disaster situation here in the land of peace and the land of palestine. and we pray that, asjesus went to the golgotha, to the calvary, walking with a cross, but after that, there was the resurrection, so we are praying to have our own resurrection today, and the resurrection of our land. religion and conflict pervadejerusalem, and six months of war in gaza have deepened every division. this is the essence ofjerusalem — religion, faith and the passion it can generate. but in this city, religion has been linked inextricably with power and with identity for centuries, for millennia. and in more recent times, with the long conflict between palestinians and israelis. since october, reinforced and highly visible israeli security has imposed an uneasy quiet on the occupied eastern side ofjerusalem.

the good friday procession along via dolorosa, where christians believejesus carried his cross, was smaller than usual without foreign pilgrims who cancelled their trips because of the war. the people ofjerusalem of all faiths are locked in a crisis as bad as any since israel's independence war in 1948. religion offers certainty and answers, but in this holy city, prayers and peace plans have not put a dent in this immutable conflict. jeremy bowen, bbc news, jerusalem. ferries at dover have been delayed due to rough weather on the first day of the easter getaway. traffic on some motorway routes has been described as horrendous and network rail has urged train passengers to check theirjourney details because of engineering work. 0ur correspondent helena wilkinson is at st pancras station in central london.

pretty ha rd pretty hard conditions for a lot of people, helena? pretty hard conditions for a lot of peeple. helena?— pretty hard conditions for a lot of people, helena? yes, reeta, it was alwa s people, helena? yes, reeta, it was always going _ people, helena? yes, reeta, it was always going to _ people, helena? yes, reeta, it was always going to be _ people, helena? yes, reeta, it was always going to be a _ people, helena? yes, reeta, it was always going to be a difficult - always going to be a difficult weekend, giving the bank holiday and what is the start of the easter break for many schoolchildren. here at st pancras station, we have been inside, it is really busy, lots of passengers travelling to europe by eurostar for the easter break, passengers travelling to europe by eurostarfor the easter break, and on top of that you have got passengers who would normally be using euston station, that is one of the uk's busiest stations, using replacement services here, that is because that station is largely closed through until easter monday. in dover, the port is busy, too, it is taking around two hours to process vehicles and get them onto ferries, some people on social media saying it is taking much longer. and on the roads as well, problems, too, especially for drivers coming to cornwall and devon, the rac has described conditions for them as pretty horrendous.—

pretty horrendous. helena, thank ou. the former wales rugby star louis rees—zammit has signed for the super bowl champions, the kansas city chiefs. the 23—year—old stunned the world of rugby injanuary when he quit the sport on the eve of this year's six nations tournament to pursue a career in american football. 0ur sports correspondent adam wild reports. for louis rees—zammit, this was about taking a chance on a new sport. now that sport is taking a chance on him. a giant leap into the unknown, kansas city chiefs — the reigning super bowl champions — is where he's landed. today, another big step closer to the nfl dream. kansas city chiefs is really kind of the ideal team for him to bejoining, and i suppose if he impresses there, then there's every reason to believe that he could actually play in games during the regular season as well. louis rees—zammit for the try! not so long ago, rees—zammit was one of rugby union's brightest stars — young, quick and crucially unpredictable, all the skills that brought the welsh superstar to the attention of american football.

we're learning a lot withinl ten weeks, and, you know, that's the most important thing cos we're playing catch—up - on kids who've played - since they were eight years old. i've been a massive i fan since i was a kid. my dad brought me up to love the games. - when i've been watching it as a fan, like, obviously i know the rules, - i know a lot about the game, . but when you dive deep into it, i think that's the interesting bit. and, you know, i'm excited to keep learning football. l he's impresses sufficiently at recent trials to now earn his place in the chiefs' training camp. there is, though, a distance still to run. they're a 90—man squad, and then he'll go obviously to our 0tas, which is kind of like your educational piece and you get to meet everybody in the team and it's like a classroom all the time. this is an opportunity for him to learn, and then you go away, you come back in training camp in latejuly. that is going to be the hardest thing that he's going to have to go through because the hours, the time, the stress on your body, there's a lot that's coming for this young man. but if he has the mindset that it sounds like he does have and that will to learn to be curious,

then he will be all right. rees—zammit sprints in the footsteps of the likes of christian wade. and look at wade go! he swapped international rugby for american football back in 2018, an impressive start but failed to make a regular—season appearance, whilst british olympic discus thrower lawrence 0koye spent time with a number of franchises, but also never appeared in the nfl. rees—zammit will be joining the very best there is — the chiefs are back—to—back super bowl champions — but there is just a short time to learn the skills that others have spent a lifetime perfecting. almost 50% of those selected for this next stage won't ultimately make the playing squad, but for rees—zammit, halfway around the world, it seems he is at least halfway there. adam wild, bbc news. this sunday, david attenborough returns to our screens with his latest series, mammals. five years in the making, it explores how the world's mammals

are coping with rapidly changing habitats and warming climates. esme stallard reports. there are more than 6,000 species of mammals on earth. and as our world changes, so must they. this latest attenborough series captures new mammal behaviours on film for the first time as they adapt to a world dominated by the most successful mammal of all — us. humans have changed three quarters of the earth's surface. we're changing the world in so many different ways and animals are having to adapt in real time. it's essentially evolution in action. we see otters navigating the busy streets of singapore, polar bears filmed for the first time hunting reindeers inland as the sea ice rapidly melts, and howler monkeys mistaking live electrical wires for tree branches. there are some sad realities in this series, but also some successes.

he picks them off one by one. pig—tailed macaques in malaysia have found a way to survive in a new habitat. they've started coming into palm oil plantations, which were apparently devoid of life. but these palm oil plantations have been completely overrun by rats, and these pig—tailed macaques were predominantly vegetarian — now they're adapting to coming into these plantations and starting to eat rats, they're becoming carnivorous. it shows you what sort of pressure these animals are under, that they're having to do such extreme behavioural changes. recent advances in camera technology means new night—time sequences could be captured. in one episode, we see the nocturnal life of a fennec fox filmed entirely by moonlight. those enormous ears are so sensitive, they could even hear the movements of prey hiding underground. the series is a celebration of mammals, how remarkably they are, how adaptable they are.

but i suppose the message behind it is, is that we are mammals ourselves. so let's find a way to share this planet with all the mammals. and like all attenborough series, it provides us with some inspiration of how we can protect these species. esme stallard, bbc news. time for a look at the weather. here's louise lear. in case you have forgotten, british summer time begins this weekend, but the weather is not giving us any help hinting towards it. we have seen hail and snow, gale force wind and very heavy rain. but we all lose one hour of sleep on sunday but i can offer you something a bit more optimistic for this weekend. we are going to see more in the way of centring, fewer showers and as a result, it will feel warmer. but there is a chance of mooring to come for some of us on easter monday. the reason why, below are starting to pull away and the isobars are opening up to the winds will fall

lighter. not a bad start for many on saturday. in fact much of england and wales will stay dry throughout the day. a few sharper showers are scattered across northern ireland and scotland. with those lighter winds, more sunshine, temperatures will respond, we could see highs of 15, but those clear skies by day will lead to clear skies through the night which will allow the temperature is too far away. in scotland and north—east england, we could see a touch of frost, is going to be a chilly start to easter sunday, now single figures. some patchy fog around, areas like the vale of york and bedfordshire could see some dense fog in places. that will left quite readily on easter sunday and on the whole, again, not a bad day, could be dry with some sunshine. just need to keep an eye on this cloud and rain down towards the channel islands and down to the isles of scilly and cornwall. but on the whole, again, temperatures generally between 10 and 1a. at the

story is set to change from easter monday. not for all of us. across england and wales we see the loud ringing more in the way of wet weather. further north amount will be drier and sunnier, some rain to come on easter monday and then unsettled for much of next week. thanks, louise. and that's bbc news at six. now it's time to join our colleagues for the news where you are. goodbye. you are watching bbc news. more now on that stunning development in northern ireland — news that sirjeffrey donaldson, the leader of the democratic unionist party, has been charged with rape and other historical sexual offences and has quit as leader. the dup says mr donaldson, who has been in politics for almost a0 years, has had his membership suspended pending the outcome of a judicial process. the party released a statement earlier. it says...

police issued a statement on friday morning not disclosing the identity of those charged. it read a 61—year—old man had been charged with "non—recent sexual offences", adding that a 57—year—old woman was also arrested and charged with "aiding and abetting additional offences". the statement confirmed two people will appear in court on april the 24th. gavin robinson mp has been named as the interim leaderfor the dup. in the past hour, he's been speaking to the media and spoke of a feeling of shock both in the party and across the community in northern ireland. i think it's been a devastating revelation and has caused tremendous shock, notjust for myself personally or my colleagues within the dup, but for the community right across northern ireland.

it came as a great shock, but we are a party and individuals that believe in justice. we have faith in our criminal justice system. and so in the coming days and months, i think it is important that none of us say anything or act in any way that would seek to prejudice what is now an ongoing criminal investigation. when did the party become aware of the allegations, and what has been the response of the party to them? very late last night, the party became aware. whenever it was revealed publicly that there had been an individual and another charged, and it became clear to us who that individual was. in the early hours of this morning, we took steps to make sure we could bring colleagues together to discuss what it was we had learned and take the appropriate steps that we could. as you know, jeffrey donaldson has

stepped down as party leader, and he has indicated that to us. but through our disciplinary process, we similarly had to take the steps to suspend him from party membership until the conclusion of what is now a criminal investigation. and in discussing that with colleagues, it was put to me that there was unanimity across colleagues that i should step forward and act at this time as the interim leader of our party. it's a huge responsibility, notjust because of the shocking news we have had, but that will take its course and run its course, but for us, recognising the significant steps forward in northern ireland over the last number of weeks, focusing on the importance of making northern ireland work, instilling a sense of positivity in devolution and making sure that devolution works for our people. that is the important task at hand.

that is the important task that i and my colleagues share, and that's the important task that we will focus on in the months and years to come. you talk about devolution. this is a nightmare for the dup, but there are also potential implications for northern ireland. it's a big test for the new power—sharing government, isn't it? well, i think the power—sharing government not only has been recognised positively in the last number of weeks since its restoration, i think you can see and hear over the last number of days and weeks the importance that the people of northern ireland place upon it, the importance that we place upon it and the importance that there will be in showing tangible delivery and the positive benefits that our people collectively across northern ireland benefit from devolution. that doesn't change. in no way will i dilute it, and the importance, and the

import of the news that has been revealed to us over the last 18 hours, that needs to go through the processes that we'll now be engaged within it for us politically. it's about ensuring that people in northern ireland know that there is a purpose to devolution, that our place within the united kingdom is secure and politically, across the community, that we put our shoulder to the wheel to ensure that they benefit most from having devolved government where people locally are elected to their benefit. just one other question. some people are suggesting that a by—election in lagan valley is now inevitable. is that your understanding? well, we have taken steps today, as you know, to suspend jeffrey donaldson from membership of the party. what comes in the days and months in that regard are outside our control, and that's just a matter of fact. but from our perspective, we will focus on the job and task that we have at hand. that is our focus. i recognise that in the immediate aftermath of such shocking news,

there will be some, and there have already been some, who have sought to score cheap political points, who have sought to engage in conspiracy theories, who somehow enjoy or will manipulate such devastating news for those involved. and that's not our position. 0ur position is recognising that what has happened is difficult. we have taken the right and appropriate steps today as a party, but we have come together in a unified and a purposeful way to not only galvanise our people, to show the importance of making northern ireland work and making sure our place within the united kingdom is as secure as it can be. that work continues, and that's our focus in the days ahead. and you can read the latest on this story and analysis from the bbc�*s team in northern ireland right now on the bbc news website and app. let's look at ukraine now. president volodymyr zelensky is warning that a new russian military offensive could happen in the next few months, and he says his country

is not ready to face it. he made the comments during an interview with our us media partner cbs news, confirming he believes it could happen between may and june, and he insists ukraine needs more military aid. take a listen. so you're expecting a counteroffensive in may, june from the russians. i think so. what sort of weapons do you need to stop that counteroffensive? translation: number one is anti-air defence and artillery shells. _ that's what we need. meanwhile, ukraine says russia has launched another wave of missile and drone attacks overnight. officials in kyiv say russia launched 99 projectiles, with more than 80 being destroyed. the interior ministry says that civilian infrastructure was targeted, with three power stations hit. the attacks wounded several people, but there are no reports of any deaths. our correspondent in ukraine, sarah rainsford, sent us this update from kharkiv.

this is another major attack on ukraine overnight. russia launched 99 drones and missiles, we're told by officials here, targeting ten regions of ukraine. and this increasingly seems to be a strategy by russia. it's the second massive missile attack in a week, and kharkiv city, where we are in northern ukraine, was attacked like that a week ago. so a massive power outage here. now a week on, life seems very much back to the usual. there are outages. there are power problems in some parts of the city, but by and large they're coping. there were generators at the beginning. now power is gradually being restored. as you can see, lots of people out and about. we understand that in these latest attacks, whatever russia was targeting, some ten houses were destroyed and six civilians were injured. the power company here, the national power company, has said that three power plants in ukraine have been seriously damaged. now the commander—in—chief has added his voice to calls for ukrainian officials saying ukraine needs more air defences

and it needs more missiles for those air defences. that's a call we've heard before, but certainly i think as these attacks specifically on energy infrastructure become more frequent, that is the focus of ukraine's calls at the moment. here in kharkiv, there was a very long air raid overnight, but this city wasn't targeted in the latest attack. but certainly the mood here is fairly nervous. people are also worried, there's lots of rumours about a possible offensive, another military offensive against kharkiv here in the north of ukraine. lots of rumours, no real facts, but to the commander—in—chief also commented on that in an interview with ukrainian media. he said you can't ignore those plans, that ukraine is increasing its fortification and that's right along the front—line. but he also warned that if russia tries it, he said then that will be a fatal battle for them, a fatal step here in kharkiv. but certainly, as i say, the mood is fairly nervous because nobody quite knows what the russians might be planning next.

sport is next with ali foster.