the fact that the king is expected here at windsor castle is being taken as a positive sign in terms of his cancer treatment. as you can see, people are queueing up to get inside the castle grounds to catch a glimpse. thousands of worshippers are gathered in st peter's square to hear pope francis lead easter sunday mass. at the vatican, the easter mass is just getting under way amid health concerns for the man presiding over it, pope francis. as the war in gaza rages on, ceasefire talks between israel and hamas are expected to resume in cairo. voting takes place in local elections across turkey, with president erdogan's party

hoping to regain control of cities it lost five years ago. and we'll bring you a special report on seagulls as conservationists warn of dwindling populations across the uk. hello and welcome to bbc news. we start with easter celebrations taking place across the christian world. tens of thousands of worshippers have gathered in st peter's square to hear pope francis lead easter sunday mass and give the traditional urbi et orbi blessing.

these are live pictures from vatican city, where pope speaks italian.

studio: that is the vatican city, where the easter celebrations are under way. we will continue to watch the mass coming to us from the vatican. first we will take you to windsor, where king charles is expected to make his first public appearance since being diagnosed with cancer. our colleague is at windsor. good morning to you from this rather lovely sunny easter sunday here in windsor. you can see a queue behind me i think stretching down the street. these are people who are queueing to get inside the grounds of windsor castle today. there are always members of the public queueing to do that because it is traditional members of the family will be walking to and from st george's chapel which is inside

the grounds of the castle, so people get a really close—up glimpse of the royal family. the king, whose cancer diagnosis was made public on the 5th of february, but the expectations are, and it is being taken as a very positive sign, that the king will be joining members of his family, not the wales is, the prince and princess of, course, the princess of made her cancer diagnosis publicjust last cancer diagnosis public just last week. they cancer diagnosis publicjust last week. they will not be here. but we are expecting the king to make that traditional walk to and from st george's chapel. it has been a very turbulent start to the year for the well family and particularly for the king. here is my royal colleague jonny dymond. to the family church — and that of many monarchs —

the king is expected to walk today in what will be his first public sighting since the announcement of his cancer diagnosis. it was after a procedure injanuary that cancer was found. since then, the king has continued with constitutional duties, but avoided all public engagements. messages and images, there have been aplenty — most recently an audio message on maundy thursday. may god bless you all this easter. what a change it will all be from a year ago — just before the coronation, a royalfamily made its way to church. king and queen. prince and princess. happy easter. kate spoke out over a week ago — revealing her preventative chemotherapy treatment for cancer. she is, she says, focusing on recovery, and she won't be seen in public for a while to come.

the priority this easter for the princess and prince — their family. all eyes, then, on the king this sunday — himself mid—treatment for an unknown cancer. his reign on hold as he, too, devotes his time to recovery. jonny dymond, bbc news. just to give you a little bit of the geography of where we are, of course, this is windsor castle, that is henry viii gate. if you were here as a member of the public outside you would not actually get to see members of the well family because st george's chapel, if you have not been here, is literallyjust on the other side of that gate. so, the walk to and from st george's chapel is very much kept within the confines of the castle itself. but it is a place where we saw the people queueing up, members of the public can get in there, they can take their pictures and get a sense of being up close and personal to maps of the well family. i want to

bring in pandora foreside, who is a royal commentator. good morning to you this easter sunday. goad you this easter sunday. good morning. _ you this easter sunday. good morning. happy _ you this easter sunday. good morning, happy easter. - you this easter sunday. good l morning, happy easter. happy you this easter sunday. good - morning, happy easter. happy easter to ou, morning, happy easter. happy easter to you. tom — morning, happy easter. happy easter to you. too. just _ morning, happy easter. happy easter to you, too. just give _ morning, happy easter. happy easter to you, too. just give us _ morning, happy easter. happy easter to you, too. just give us a _ morning, happy easter. happy easter to you, too. just give us a sense, - to you, too. just give us a sense, it has been a really turbulent start to 2024, in terms of the royal family, with first the king's cancer diagnosis, followed by the princess of wales. surely this must be seen as a positive sign, that the king, six weeks after his diagnosis was made public, we think is going to feel strong enough to walk to and from the chapel, this is a positive sign, isn't it? from the chapel, this is a positive sign. isn't it?— sign, isn't it? yeah, absolutely, it's extremely _ sign, isn't it? yeah, absolutely, it's extremely significant, - sign, isn't it? yeah, absolutely, it's extremely significant, and i it's extremely significant, and apparently, he's been a little bit frustrated behind the scenes, not being able to get out and about, but obviously understandable, given the circumstances and medical advice that he has had. and as you said, there are people there who want to see him, too, people want to see the monarch and the king out and about

doing his service, obviously he's been carrying on with his constitutional duties behind the scenes, but people want to see him at public engagements. so, this will be as much a joyful moment for him as it will be for people who have gathered in windsor today. absolutely. i have had a chance to chat to some of the people in the queue and they were from new york, from new zealand, from glasgow, from all over the world, and all really excited, a lot of them come to this every year, they are obviously royal fans but very keen to see the king and to feel that that recovery, the treatment, is going well.- treatment, is going well. yeah, absolutely- _ treatment, is going well. yeah, absolutely. and _ treatment, is going well. yeah, absolutely. and of _ treatment, is going well. yeah, absolutely. and of course - treatment, is going well. yeah, absolutely. and of course it - treatment, is going well. yeah, absolutely. and of course it will treatment, is going well. yeah, i absolutely. and of course it will be alongside members of his family, he might be a bit more distant than he would be usually, in other words, whether or not he will be very much going up to the public and shaking hands, i don't think that will be happening. but of course, he will be seenin happening. but of course, he will be seen in the chapel itself, him and

the queen, his wife camilla, will be sacked slightly separately from the rest of the royal family, we think as well. so, he will be there and he will be very pleased to be there as well. so, it will be nice to see him up well. so, it will be nice to see him up and about, but of course this is great news in terms of getting a bit of a timeline as to how his medical treatment is going, if he has been allowed the green light to do today, then that is definitely positive. andorra, really good to talk to you, thank you forjoining us here on bbc news. in the next couple of hours, that queue will be allowed into the grounds shortly and the service is due in a couple of hours or so, and asi due in a couple of hours or so, and as i say, we will see these pictures of the king and memos of the royal family. —— pandora. not the prince of wales and the princess of wales, as i was saying earlier, but in the light of her cancer diagnosis they are very much spending time alone together, coping with her recovery. but we will see the king and we will

see the queen and we will see other members of the royal family a little later on this morning. and as we have been saying, significant because it is the first real outing out and about allowing the public to have a really good look at the king after his cancer diagnosis which came on the 5th of february. sarah, thank you very much. let's get more now on the pope's easter message and blessing from st peter's square. we can cross live to our religion editor, aleem maqbool, in vatican city. hello to you. the crowds, the worshippers, gathered around you. talk us through the atmosphere so far today? talk us through the atmosphere so far toda ? , , ., talk us through the atmosphere so fartoda ? , , ., ., , talk us through the atmosphere so fartoda ? , ., far today? yes, tens of thousands of eo - le far today? yes, tens of thousands of peeple have — far today? yes, tens of thousands of people have descended _ far today? yes, tens of thousands of people have descended on _ far today? yes, tens of thousands of people have descended on rome - far today? yes, tens of thousands of| people have descended on rome this easter. and a lot of the talk ahead of mass which is now under way behind me in st peter's square, what about the health of the pope, given that over the last week, he had pulled out of various events,

unusually, he hadn't delivered his homily at the palm sunday mass, a week ago he pulled out of one of the events on good friday, but dare i say it, he has looked far sounded very well. the idea of pulling out of some of those events, we were told by the vatican, was that he wanted to conserve his energy for the celebrations towards the end of easter and particularly at mass today, and it appears to have worked. as i say, he looks well. we have been told that he has been suffering from flu, sometimes we've been told he has been suffering from bronchitis, but as i say, yes, he did arrive in a wheelchair, but we have been used to that over the past 18 months or so. but he did stand, and sounded good.— 18 months or so. but he did stand, and sounded good. yeah, he skipped good friday. — and sounded good. yeah, he skipped good friday, and _ and sounded good. yeah, he skipped good friday, and the _ and sounded good. yeah, he skipped good friday, and the procession - and sounded good. yeah, he skipped good friday, and the procession at i good friday, and the procession at the coliseum, but quite a lengthy vigil last night, again, coming from

peters basilica.— peters basilica. yes, that was the easter vigil _ peters basilica. yes, that was the easter vigil mass _ peters basilica. yes, that was the easter vigil mass and _ peters basilica. yes, that was the easter vigil mass and he - peters basilica. yes, that was the easter vigil mass and he did - peters basilica. yes, that was the i easter vigil mass and he did preside over that, and it is, at around two hours, a very long service, and there were times when he sounded a little out of breath, a little weak, but he was still smiling, waving to those who came here, and we are expecting that later today after mass he is likely, if last year was anything to go by, and previous years before that, to have a little drive around in the pope mobile, to wave at some of the crowds who have gathered here, and then as you say, from the balcony behind me, deliver his blessing and message to the city and the world, urbi et 0rbi, where

he is likely to talk about events and conflicts even around the world, in great detail. it is a busy schedule for today, but so far, in regards to the speculation about the health of the pope, he seems to be doing fine. just health of the pope, he seems to be doinu fine. , , , ., ., doing fine. just before we leave ou, how doing fine. just before we leave you. how has — doing fine. just before we leave you, how has the _ doing fine. just before we leave you, how has the last _ doing fine. just before we leave you, how has the last 12 - doing fine. just before we leave | you, how has the last 12 months doing fine. just before we leave - you, how has the last 12 months been for pope francis and the church? well, it has been an eventful 12 months or so, they had a sin order here which is part of pope francis's vision for moving the church forward, where the people, catholics on the ground, in a sense, get more of a say in the way the church is oriented. so, that was a big moment. he's focused again a lot on talking about the environment, one of his passions, although he had to pull out of an appearance at the cop meeting in december. and the last 12 months has been peppered with lots of cancelled engagements because of health, because of respiratory

issues or mobility problems or abdominal issues, those are the main things that have plagued him through his papacy. but we have also had confirmation from the pope that he doesn't intend to step down any time soon, unless there is a big change in his health, and he does intend to continue his duties as long as he can. �* a, ,., ., continue his duties as long as he can. �* ., ~ continue his duties as long as he can. aleem maqbool, thank you very much indeed. _ can. aleem maqbool, thank you very much indeed, live _ can. aleem maqbool, thank you very much indeed, live from _ can. aleem maqbool, thank you very much indeed, live from vatican - can. aleem maqbool, thank you very much indeed, live from vatican city. | to the middle east now, where talks on a possible new gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal are expected to resume in cairo. that's according to egyptian media. israel is sending a delegation of security and intelligence officials to the indirect talks. it comes as the families of israeli hostages held by hamas in gaza step up the pressure on the prime minister benjamin netanyahu to secure their release.

this was the scene in tel aviv on saturday night, as relatives of the hostages joined with anti—government protesters, bringing tens of thousands of people onto the streets. let's speak to our middle east correspondent yolande knell. hello to you, yolande. so, increasing pressure on benjamin netanyahu, but first up, let's start with those indirect talks which are set to take place in cairo? yes. with those indirect talks which are set to take place in cairo? yes, so, we don't know— set to take place in cairo? yes, so, we don't know when _ set to take place in cairo? yes, so, we don't know when exactly - set to take place in cairo? yes, so, we don't know when exactly those l we don't know when exactly those talks are due to start. israeli media saying that the israeli delegation is flying over there. this comes of course after last week, a previous round of indirect talks, broke down in qatar without any agreement on this plan for a 40 day ceasefire, which would have led to some 40 hostages still held by hamas in gaza being released in exchange for palestinian prisoners in israeli jails and a big increase in israeli jails and a big increase in aid going into gaza as well.

there was some talk about whether displaced people should be allowed to go back to their homes in the north, that was a demand that was made by hamas, finally, hamas came back a few days ago and said that it was sticking to its original negotiating position, it was not prepared to talk about a truce, it wanted israeli troops to fully pull out of the gaza strip. we had liam israeli prime minister then coming back saying its demands were delusional, but quite quickly, a new round of talks has got going, with the egyptians also acting as mediators here, along with the qataris and with some us involvement, saying that these talks with egyptian intelligence are due to begin later in the day. we understand hamas are not going to be there at this stage, we have had a palestinian official who is close to the talks telling us that they are waiting to see what egyptian mediators come up with after their meetings with the israelis.- meetings with the israelis. added his a race against _ meetings with the israelis. added his a race against the _ meetings with the israelis. added his a race against the clock- meetings with the israelis. added his a race against the clock now, | his a race against the clock now, isn't it? pictures of children badly malnourished, continuing pressure on

israel to open up land corridors with the gaza strip, and reports also of palestinians being killed during an aid drop at kuwaiti roundabout, what more can you tell us about that? 50. roundabout, what more can you tell us about that?— us about that? so, these issues continue with _ us about that? so, these issues continue with aid _ us about that? so, these issues continue with aid distribution, l us about that? so, these issues i continue with aid distribution, with the un warning about a man—made famine looming in gaza, particularly for those in the north, where there are still about 300,000 people living. that is why actually at the moment, one of the positive signs we have had in the past couple of days is news that for the second time this maritime route is going to be used, bringing in more than 300 tons of food by sue. two ships set off from the port of larnaca in cyprus yesterday. they food on board from the world central kitchen, the spanish charity open arms also involved, and they will be taking heavy lifting equipment because it has been a real problem that in gaza

you do not have a functioning port at the moment so this is needed to offload that aid. still this is just a fraction of the amount getting in which is desperately needed and the un has been saying that this new sea witch is very good but what is needed is for more crossings to be opened into gaza and form or reloads to be going on, and that is a call for israel, israel has said that it does not limit aid going into gaza. —— sea route. a car bombing at a busy market in northern syria has killed at least seven people and injured many others. the blast took place in the town of azaz in aleppo province. pro—turkish forces and their proxies control large areas of syria near the border with turkey, including a number of major towns. now to turkey, where millions of people are voting in municipal elections which could see

president erdogan's party retaking control of key cities it lost in the last polls five years ago. most eagerly watched is the outcome in istanbul, which is home to nearly a fifth of the population. the current mayor there, ekrem imamoglu, is seen as mr erdogan's biggest challenger in decades. if he wins today, it would boost his standing as a potential rival to president erdogan in 2028. the elections are taking place against a backdrop of severe economic problems, including inflation of nearly 70%. we can cross live to istanbul and freelance journalist victoria craig. hello to you, victoria. 0f hello to you, victoria. of course, mr erdogan shouldn't be standing in 2028. just talk us through first off, why istanbul is key to these elections in the direction of the country? elections in the direction of the count ? ., ., , ., country? hello, that is a right, what you _ country? hello, that is a right, what you said _ country? hello, that is a right, what you said in _ country? hello, that is a right, what you said in your- country? hello, that is a right, what you said in your intro - country? hello, that is a right, what you said in your intro is i what you said in your intro is precisely the reason why, istanbul

is the biggest city in the country, home to a fifth of the population, nearly 16 million people, and with a large population and a significant city like this, the commercial capital, comes a big budget, which is one of the other reasons why this city is so important to win. its municipal budget is about $16 billion which means it can employ tens of thousands of employees in the municipal services, so you can see from those figures, with a big budget, it means that you can carry out the objectives of whatever party you are in, whatever party wins this election it will be able to carry out its campaign promises across the city. that is one of the reasons that istanbul is so important to both sides, both the ruling party and the opposition party chp. in 2019 the opposition candidate, who is now mayor, ekrem imamoglu, he got

control from the akp in a battleground election, which went to a second run—off vote after it was contested in the first round, he won ijy contested in the first round, he won by a larger margin in the second vote. so, people are keeping that in mind as they head to the ballot boxes today come and people watching around the world what happens here in istanbul. . ., ., ., ,., around the world what happens here in istanbul. . ., ., ., ., in istanbul. victoria, what sort of a- etite in istanbul. victoria, what sort of appetite and _ in istanbul. victoria, what sort of appetite and engagement - in istanbul. victoria, what sort of appetite and engagement is - in istanbul. victoria, what sort of| appetite and engagement is there from the turkish people, is there a sentiment of disengagement? because there has been talks, whilst mr erdogan has said this is his last election, many people saying that he is probablyjust testing the waters to see what kind of reaction he is going to get from the turkish people. and in fact, talk of a constitutional change may well be on the cards to allow him to stay in power for longer?— the cards to allow him to stay in power for longer? certainly, i have been out and _ power for longer? certainly, i have been out and about _ power for longer? certainly, i have been out and about in _ power for longer? certainly, i have been out and about in this - power for longer? certainly, i have been out and about in this city - been out and about in this city today, the polling location, people go to the polls at primary schools and various education facilities across the country, the one near me is fairly quiet, or it was about an

hour or so ago when i was last there, there were people of all ages coming in and out, notjust older people younger people as well, there are about 1.3 million first—time voters in this election across the country today. but that is one thing that we are seeing vary across the city and various social media posts at various polling locations, it seems to be varied not only by city to city but district to district as well. as we know from previous elections, the turkish people take great pride and responsibility in voting, and voter turnout is traditionally very high in this country. so we will see what the election results say about voter turnout. . ., ., ., ~ , turnout. victoria, thank you very much for that, _ turnout. victoria, thank you very much for that, and _ turnout. victoria, thank you very much for that, and expecting - much for that, and expecting preliminary results later, early evening time. the actor chance perdomo, best known for tv series like chilling adventures of sabrina and jen vee, has died in a motorcycle accident.

he was 27 years old. he was nominated for best actor at the 2019 bafta tv awards for his role in bbc three drama killed by my debt. in a statement his publicist said... "his insatiable appetite for life was felt by all who knew him. his warmth will carry on in those who he loved dearest." production on the second series of gen v has been delayed indefinitely following his death. everyone likes to take home a souvenir when they travel but it seems thatjournalists invited onto the us president's plane might have gone a bit too far. after a recent trip on air force one, an e—mail was sent to the entire press pool warning them that taking souvenirs from the plane is forbidden. items that have gone missing are said to include branded glasses, an embroidered pillow case and even gold—rimmed dinner plates.

misha komadovsky is a white house correspondent for voice of america who travels regularly on air force one. he told us his collection consists of an air force one paper cup and a pack of m&ms withjoe biden's signature on it. he says it's time for the pilfering to stop. well, it's surprising how many fellow journalists are snatching bigger items from air force one, despite its supertight security. you can't even take pictures on board, again, for security reasons, and it's still a mystery how those reporters did what they did, and literally, the way our correspondents association president recently had to remind us, the members, not to swipe anything that would not be a good look for the press crew. but people just can't resist, like, grabbing souvenirs like fancy glasses to show off, they've flown on this big bird with the presidential seal on it, and after some bigger items went missing, there was a quiet effort

to get those back, like, when a reporter returned a fancy pillowcase. and it's not about calling out reporters, but rather sending a message, guys, just stop stealing stuff. let's return now to st peter's square, where the pope is celebrating easter mass. this is part of the easter sunday mass, and the traditional blessing urbiet mass, and the traditional blessing urbi et 0rbi will also be given laterfrom the urbi et 0rbi will also be given later from the balcony. urbi et 0rbi will also be given laterfrom the balcony. you're watching bbc news. it was a beautiful start to easter sunday for many of you but we have seen a few changes compared with yesterday. the

low pressure that has been towards the west of us has slipped further south and in doing so, we are dragging in more of an easterly breeze, bringing in more cloud to central and eastern parts of england with rain coming in from east anglia towards yorkshire. to the south of it we will have a bit more sunshine developing but there could be some heavy, thundery showers in the channel islands and the south—west. further to the north and west, we will continue with some long spells of sunshine. certainly a better after noon in northern ireland then we began. western parts of scotland seeing the best of the blue skies. we will have more low cloud creeping up we will have more low cloud creeping up eastern coasts this afternoon which will have an impact on temperatures, just around 8—9 in the east of scotland compared to 16 degrees in the west, the highest of the temperatures today. tonight, outbreaks of rain will develop more widely across northern england, some heavy, potentially thundery showers working their way up across southern counties of england and wales. much of scotland and northern ireland will stay dry with clear props in parts of scotland, outside chance of a touch of frost for some of you.

bank of the day monday, the low pressure is more broadly spread across the uk which means more cloud and more rain particularly for northern england. we will start with downpours across the midlands, east anglia and wales. they will be moving away northwards, the skies will brighten and then it will be sunshine and showers this afternoon, some in the south will stay dry. rain across northern england, quite extensive, getting into parts of northern ireland and southern scotland, further to the north and west in scotland, still sunshine but more of a breeze tomorrow, which will be bringing some cold air in across eastern scotland and north—east england. temperatures in general down on today's values. more sunshine in the south—east. compared with today. on tuesday, cloud and rain pushing into eastern scotland, still drier in the west of scotland. brighter for still drier in the west of scotland. brighterfor england and still drier in the west of scotland. brighter for england and wales and with a bit of brightness in northern ireland but showers developing there

longer spells of heavy, thundery rain across the south later in the day. that sets us up for a week in which we will all see some rain at times, not a complete washout, but it will also be turning a bit milder.

this is bbc news. the headlines: king charles willjoin the queen and other members of the royal family at an easter sunday service at st george's chapel at windsor castle.

it is his most significant public appearance since being diagnosed with cancer. millions of workers in the uk will see their pay increase on monday, as more people become eligible for the national living wage. the age to qualify has been reduced from 23 to 21 years old. as conservationists warn of dwindling gull populations across the uk, we'll bring you a special report. donald trump has been criticised byjoe biden's campaign team for sharing a video on social media featuring a truck bearing the image of the us president with his hands and feet tied together. a spokesman for mr trump said it was just a picture on the vehicle's tailgate, filmed as it travelled down the highway, but a biden election campaign official accused mr trump of inciting political violence. 0ur washington reporter

will vernon has the story. well, this is a video that donald trump posted on his truth social media yesterday. it's about a 20—second clip, says that it's filmed in long island. and what it shows is two pick—up trucks travelling along the road, both absolutely plastered with pro—trump images and flags. but one of them, on the tailgate of the pick—up truck, has a picture — a mocked—up image ofjoe biden with his hands and feet tied. so it kind of looks as though the president has been kidnapped and put in the truck. now, this image has caused some controversy, as you say. that statement from the biden campaign saying that trump is regularly inciting political violence, and said that it's time that people took that seriously. but the trump campaign's hit back against these allegations — they said, as you said, you know, this was just a truck travelling down the highway, and they said it's democrats that have called for despicable violence against president

trump and his family. now, trump supporters regularly use pretty radical — extreme, you might say — imagery during their rallies. famously, during the january 6th attack on the capitol, a gallows was erected outside congress, and the supporters there were chanting, "hang mike pence." and president trump himself — former president trump — has been accused of using extreme language during his speeches — he said that immigrants were poisoning the blood of the country. so this kind of thing, you know, is a regular occurrence amongst former president trump and his supporters. but i think what this shows is how increasingly divisive, and even aggressive in tone american politics is becoming.

when i speak to americans here — especially young people — and ask them about the upcoming election campaign, it's this kind of thing that they mention that is making people increasingly disillusioned with the political system, and, you know, making the political atmosphere here increasingly polarised. millions of workers in the uk will see their pay increase on monday as more people become eligible for the national living wage. previously you had to be 23 years old to qualify, but that's been reduced to 21. it has been just over £10 an hour — just over $12. it's going up to just over £11 an hour. our business correspondent marc ashdown has the details. barista sam loves hisjob, but after paying his essential bills he's often left with just a few hundred pounds a month to live on. pay rises just help him stay afloat. i think they balance, because obviously everything else goes up in price so it sort of evens out every single year.

maybe for, like, a month you'll be like, "0oh, i've got money this month!" and then it'lljust be, like — the next month will be a bit of a rough one. workers across the uk in some of the lowest—paid jobs are about to get a boost in their pay. from tomorrow, the national living wage is going up from £10.42 an hour to £11.44 an hour. that's an increase of 9.8%. the age at which a worker qualifies has also been reduced from 23 to 21 years old. the treasury says a full—time worker should be paid about £1,800 extra over one year. this is the largest increase in a minimum wage in cash terms and the first time it's gone up by more than a pound in one go, and it reflects, really, the strength in pay growth across the economy — which looks set to continue. minimum wage levels for workers aged between 16 and 21 will also rise. the lobby group uk hospitality says taken across all the pay scales, businesses could be having to find an increase of 17%. got significant cost headwinds

they're facing into, notjust wages, but energy, food price inflation, and the cost of living pressures. so there's a perfect storm going on here, and on top of this, a 17% increase in their wage bill. charities want to see more businesses sign up to the so—called real living wage, which sets minimum pay at a higher rate. but tomorrow's increase will give a pay boost to millions of workers. mark ashdown, bbc news. carnauba wax is a product you may not have heard of, but you have almost certainly consumed it. it's added to sweets to stop them melting, to pills to make them easier to swallow and as a thickener in lipstick and mascara. harvesting the wax from palm trees in brazil is an industry in which, according to brazilian authorities, companies are failing to improve working conditions. last year, more than 3,000 workers across all industries were rescued

from situations including forced labour and degrading work conditions. that's a 14—year high. the bbc was given exclusive access to a raid with the federal police on a carnauba wax plantation. katy watson has this report from north—eastern brazil. we're heading to a farm where authorities suspect workers are being exploited. nobody knows we're coming. they want to catch the culprits red—handed. we find the workers sheltering from the midday sun. "who's in charge here?", the lead investigator asks. one by one, the men are interviewed. the boss is nowhere to be seen. it's so hot. we stop for a bit because otherwise the sun would kill us. we can only cope with so much. lunch is chicken feet and rice. people here are famished. so this is one of the water canisters that's being used. it says "for prescription only", so clearly had some kind of medicine in here before.

but this is what's used as a drinking canister now. pierre—louis is the biggest producer of carnauba wax. its harvesting provides a livelihood to hundreds of thousands of people in one of brazil's poorest states. it's difficult work. the trees are thorny, the heat exhausting, and the risks of being injured are high. the inspector shows me more breaches of labor laws at the accommodation block. the low ceilings. broken electricity sockets. bare rooms. the boss shows up and has been slapped with a fine of $30,000. this is the third time he's been caught breaking the rules. he's not apologetic. with the money the government needs to give small producers like me more of a chance. i have been fighting to survive for some time now. the cost of producing this work are more than what i receive. edmilson wouldn't go on the record about who he sells to. this is very common, says dulaney. the level of informality in the industry is problematic and makes it impossible to trace

from producer to buyer. in 2016, the state concerned with the number of workers they were rescuing in difficult conditions, asked the top five biggest wax processing companies to sign an agreement committing themselves to improving the supply chain and ending this informality. the bbc was shown the client list of the region's biggest wax processor. they include big companies like l'0real. according to prosecutors, producers found to have employed workers in conditions analogous to slave labour say they sold wax to brazil series even after the company said they'd improve the supply chain. but it's hard to prove because there isn't a paper trail. brazil cyrus told the bbc that it only works with suppliers that can prove they comply with labour laws. l'0real says it, too, is committed to ethical sourcing and has implemented an audit programme with its suppliers to ensure due diligence. the investigator, though, says despite those promises, nothing changes in the 11 years she's

been rescuing workers in this industry. the supply chain has consistently been impossible to trace. the precariousness comes from the top down. there is what we call deliberate blindness. it's comfortable for the industry not to see the problems because they don't need to act. they don't need to invest. they don't need to pay. it's an unequal power balance between producers on the ground and the financially powerful businesses further afield and in the carnauba wax industry, many benefit from that divide. katie watson, bbc news. supporters of india's main opposition alliance are holding a major rally in the capital ahead of next month's general election. it's the first meeting since the arrest of the chief minister of delhi, arvind kejriwal, on corruption charges ten days ago. 0pposition parties accuse the governing bjp of using investigative agencies to detain their leaders and prevent them from campaigning. the government denies this. 0ur south asia editor

anbarasan ethirajan has more. 0pposition supporters have gathered here and they are coming from delhi and other neighbouring states near the capital city. now they are calling for the release of the delhi chief minister, he was taken into custody ten days ago on corruption charges, which he denies. major leaders are addressing this rally, saying that india's democracy and constitution should be saved, and thatis constitution should be saved, and that is the motive of this major rally. the party says its bank accounts have been frozen and they have been asked to pay more than $200 million in fines for allegedly violating tax rules, but the government denies any political motive behind this action, saying the law tickets on course. india's elections are due to start on the 19th april and will be held in

several places. the campaign is going across the country for this mammoth exercise, but what the opposition is saying is that there is no level playing field. for example, they accuse the election commission of being biased towards the governing bjp and they said that investigating agencies are being used to cripple them, to stifle dissent, to prevent them from campaigning. however, the governing bjp denies these charges and the mammoth exercise of india's general election, in which mahendra modi is seeking a third straight term, is starting on the 19th of april. when it comes to the best of british wildlife, it's fair to say seagulls aren't at the top of most people's lists. they're seen by many as food—stealing pests, but scientists say they are actually very intelligent. conservation experts are warning that gull populations across the uk are dwindling and attitudes need to change. helen briggs reports.

seagulls showing off their flying skills on a winter's day. they may be a common sight near the coast, but hit by bird flu and the loss of wild spaces, some populations are in trouble. i don't think people realise our numbers, especially of our breeding gulls have been declining. perhaps they don't take so much notice of them and realise that the numbers have been dropping off because they're quite a visual species, aren't they? they're in our towns and parks and urban areas and we've become quite familiar with them. three common gulls and 26 black—headed gulls there. in january, hundreds of volunteers took part in the first national survey of winter gulls in 20 years to get a better picture of the six main species that spend the winter here.

we're looking sort at the tide dropping at the tide dropping and the gulls are together. so we've got a lot of black headed gulls here, a few common gulls and some herring gulls. and the idea of today's exercise is to count them into a census. look at population change. but not everyone's a fan of seagulls. some species such as the herring gull, a notorious for raiding bins and stealing food. and here in brtighton, people have mixed views. people are very unkind and cruel to seagulls. they throw stones at them. hate them. why do you hate them? the other day i ate a doughnut and theyjust folded right out of my hand. i know you can't walk around with food in your hand. - that's the only problem with the seagulls. - but other than that you are cushty. i had my sandwich here while i was, i don't know, taking something from my bag. and then she just took my sandwich away from me. so i need to buy food now. but this scientist says seagulls aren't the problem.

it's us. when we see their behaviour in terms of stealing or theft, what we should actually perceive is the intelligence of the animals. so we need to think differently about them. i would say so, yeah. to think of an animal as a pest is a negative mindset. if we think of them as intelligent creatures thriving in an environment that we've forced upon them, then that should give us a more respectful outlook on herring gull behaviour. the experts say it's likely more seagulls will settle in our cities and evolve ever more cunning behaviour. and when they visit the urban environment, sometimes they get a bad press. seagulls are misunderstood ? yes, absolutely. i think so. i think they're very charismatic creatures and definitely get a bad rap for sometimes aggressive behaviour in the breeding season. but they are a part of our natural world and they're just taking advantage of the hand that's been dealt them. the data from the survey will be used to draw up new conservation plans for seagulls, with the hope we can learn to live better alongside each other. helen briggs, bbc news on the south coast.

let's speak to emma caulfield, who worked on this survey for the british trust for 0rnithology. hello and welcome to the programme. first off, they are not released to go such, they are more city gulls now, aren't they?— go such, they are more city gulls now, aren't they? yes, this movement inland that we — now, aren't they? yes, this movement inland that we are _ now, aren't they? yes, this movement inland that we are seeing _ now, aren't they? yes, this movement inland that we are seeing from - now, aren't they? yes, this movement inland that we are seeing from a - now, aren't they? yes, this movement inland that we are seeing from a lot. inland that we are seeing from a lot of seabirds, gulls especially, it is a new aspect of their behaviour and ecology, breeding ecology, kind of born of the disturbance that we are staying at those natural nesting sites along the coast.— staying at those natural nesting sites along the coast. what are you ho - in: sites along the coast. what are you hoinu to sites along the coast. what are you heping to get _ sites along the coast. what are you heping to get out — sites along the coast. what are you hoping to get out of— sites along the coast. what are you hoping to get out of the _ sites along the coast. what are you hoping to get out of the survey, - sites along the coast. what are you | hoping to get out of the survey, and any surprises, possibly? we hoping to get out of the survey, and any surprises, possibly?— any surprises, possibly? we have a aood any surprises, possibly? we have a good handle _ any surprises, possibly? we have a good handle on _ any surprises, possibly? we have a good handle on what _ any surprises, possibly? we have a good handle on what is _ any surprises, possibly? we have a good handle on what is going - any surprises, possibly? we have a good handle on what is going on i any surprises, possibly? we have aj good handle on what is going on on

our breeding population of gulls through our other schemes, so there are national efforts every summer to go out and survey breeding populations, but these wintering populations, but these wintering populations we know a lot less about, so the gulls that we see during the winter are not necessarily the same ones that are hanging about during the summer, so this survey is bespoke and that we are looking at this wintering population that spends their time in the uk. we are still in herfirst year of serving, so the following january will you pull going out again and targeting areas we haven't covered this january, so we can't say a whole lot about what is happening with the wintering population yet, but through the work of our fantastic volunteers all across the uk we are hoping to really get a handle on what is happening with the population. um? happening with the population. why are they coming so far inland, is that telling us something about their natural nesting habitats and

feeding areas? what exactly is going on? ., ., , , ., , feeding areas? what exactly is going on? ., ., , , ., ., on? yeah, absolutely. there are a lot of changes _ on? yeah, absolutely. there are a lot of changes in _ on? yeah, absolutely. there are a lot of changes in land-use - on? yeah, absolutely. there are a lot of changes in land-use around | lot of changes in land—use around our coast and mostly human disturbance. are very opportunistic species, very clever group of animals, and they see our towns and cities and when they look at the lovely flat roof top, what they see is a cliff face that they can nest upon. so really the disturbance in natural areas for our gulls is leading to this movement inland to our towns and cities. the importance of these goals _ our towns and cities. the importance of these goals in _ our towns and cities. the importance of these goals in the _ our towns and cities. the importance of these goals in the food _ our towns and cities. the importance of these goals in the food chain, - our towns and cities. the importance of these goals in the food chain, so l of these goals in the food chain, so to speak, i mean, who are their predators?— to speak, i mean, who are their predators? to speak, i mean, who are their redators? , , ., , , , predators? gulls are pretty high up there in terms _ predators? gulls are pretty high up there in terms of— predators? gulls are pretty high up there in terms of the _ predators? gulls are pretty high up there in terms of the food - predators? gulls are pretty high up there in terms of the food chain. i there in terms of the food chain. they are a scavenger species, so they take advantage of a lot of different food sources in their

natural feeling habitats. different food sources in their naturalfeeling habitats. they will target mostly in vertebrates, so crabs along the coast in their natural areas, crabs along the coast in their naturalareas, but crabs along the coast in their natural areas, but of course with the massive production of food waste that we have in our towns and cities, as an opportunistic species, say see this as a quick bite and easy mealfor them and say see this as a quick bite and easy meal for them and providing for checks in those urban areas, so they are very opportunistic and take advantage of a lot of different food sources. ., ., ~ , ., advantage of a lot of different food sources. . ., ~ , ., y . one in four people experience a mental health problem each year in england. now after a successful trial a new treatment is being rolled out in one nhs trust — a headset which delivers low—level electrical pulses. it should only be used under the guidance of a doctor and is being prescribed to patients who don't respond to medication. 0ur reporter nikki fox

explains how it works. you open up the app and it works on bluetooth so it tells you to attach the pads. like a lot of men his age, ashley riley suffers from depression. the app tells you how to line it up, which is there. then you press start stimulating and you're away. but since wearing this device, his symptoms have improved. and that's it for 30 minutes. and you get a slight tingling and i'll sit and do emails or work on my laptop and you do that every day. the place i was in was a pretty bad place. i'd had some really bad depression and anxiety, so i tried lots of medication, i tried lots of different things. i couldn't work, couldn't interact with my family on a day to day basis. and so, yeah, i was pretty ill, i was pretty poorly. i've become much calmer. i take a day at a time and i feel

much more settled and there's much more hope in my life. he wears the device five times a week. it uses electrical pulses. they target a part of the front of the brain called the prefrontal cortex. it controls things like how we express emotions and can influence depression. the weak pulses aim to restore activity in that part of the brain. the nhs in northamptonshire is helping to trial the device. about 30 to 40% of patients with depression do not respond to antidepressants. some people do, and for them antidepressants are appropriate. we can'tjust keep giving antidepressants hoping something is going to be different because we need a different approach. it's one of the first nhs trusts to give patients the headset because it can be used at home. it's cheaper than other therapies. what would you say to people who are skeptical of this kind of alternative treatment? what i would say is research shows and we've known for many years, that the brain runs on electricity. that's the mother tongue.

and effectively, when you look at brains of people who are depressed, there's less activity in the region associated with mood and memory. and what we're doing is targeting that region with electrical impulses to push it back to sort of a healthy state. i'm able to be a full time dad, which i love. i go running with with my son, i'm out with my daughter. i'm able to be a proper husband to my wife. my family means everything to me. and so to be able to to be a full part of that, how i should be, is really, really important to me. it's also being trialled in america as part of a wider study where more than half of patients showed improvements. ashley did have counselling as well, but feels the brain stimulation has played a major part in helping him get his life back. 30 years after it first hit our screens here in the uk, gladiators is still proving to be

a hit with tv audiences. an average of eight million viewers tuned in to the reboot of the 1990s show. our culture reporter, noor nanji, has been looking into its success. gladiators theme music. the moment of victory. after weeks of gruelling challenges, finlay anderson and marie—louise nicholson finally got their hands on the prestigious trophy. contender, ready! gladiators, ready! the final showdown saw the contenders take on the tried and tested challenges against the gladiators. commentator: and here he goes! at the end, finlay and marie—louise went head—to—head with their rivals, running up the iconic travelator to the finish line. analysts say keeping the original format from the �*90s has been key to the show�*s success. what it's done, it's created a lot of nostalgia for those who might be in their 30s or 40s and remember watching it the first time around, so they watch it, alongside

their kids, who are watching it for the very first time. it will cause tv commissioners to come back to the drawing board and think of maybe more shows that will bring everyone around together. and this is not the end, with a second series of gladiators now confirmed. noor nanji, bbc news. they might be just a normal part of your morning commute, but for one british man, railway departure boards have become big business. russell pirie was so fascinated with them as a child he decided to make his own at home and now they're so popular he's quit his job and enlisted his family to help him produce them. 0ur reporterjonathan holmes has the story. they're a familiar sight in stations up and down the country, the glowing panels telling you where you need to go and perhaps how late your train might be. russell used to commute to reading daily, and he spent a lot of time staring at these boards. i was fascinated with the departure boards. i really liked everything about them. so i decided i'd try and build my own one just for fun.

he puts a video of his homemade board on youtube and was flooded with offers to buy it. now he's quit his old job just to build them. it's so niche and it's just something you'd never think would even exist or people wouldn't even want. ijust basically built it for fun myself and it just appears that other people seem to want them and enjoy them as well. platform two for the 11:41 great western railway service to bristol temple meads. the boards run off real time data that's been provided by the railway companies. they're so popular that russell's wife and father have been roped in to help make them. he used to even sell overseas at one stage, which i could never really understand. why would someone in america want to know about uk trains? but these are ex—pats who wanted to see what was going on at their local station. they've also found an unlikely following with people who aren't regular commuters.

quite a lot of them go to either people who autistic themself or autistic children, they they find them absolutely fascinating sort of like i did. so yeah, we get a lot of feedback from autistic children, parents saying they love them. russell's now working with pop mogul and railway fan pete waterman to make the boards work with model railways across the country. not bad for a light bulb moment that came from staring at just another piece of railway furniture. let's return now to st peter's square, where the pope is celebrating easter mass. it has been a busy week for the catholic church.

hello. it was a beautiful start to easter sunday for many of you, but we have seen a few changes compared with yesterday. the area of low pressure that's been towards the west of us has slipped further south. and in doing so, we're dragging in more of an easterly breeze that's brought in more cloud through central eastern parts of england. outbreaks of rain into the afternoon from the east anglia, pushing then towards parts of yorkshire. to the south of it we'll see a bit more sunshine develop once again, but there could be a few heavy thundery showers, channel islands and the south west. but further northwards and westwards you come will continue with some long spells of sunshine and certainly a better afternoon in northern ireland than we began. cumbria into western parts of scotland, seeing the best of the blue skies. but we will see more low cloud creep up eastern coasts this afternoon and that will have an impact on temperatures. just around eight or nine degrees for some in the east of scotland, compared to 16 degrees in the west where we see the highest of the temperatures through today to tonight. outbreaks of rain will develop more widely across northern england. some heavy potentially thundery showers working their way up across some southern counties of england and wales. but for much of scotland,

northern ireland, it will stay dry and with some clear skies in parts of scotland, a chance of a touch of frost for some of you. now into monday, bank holiday monday, of course, our area of low pressure is more broadly spread across the uk and that means more cloud, more rain, particularly so for northern england. we'll also start with some downpours across the midlands, east anglia and wales. they will edge away northwards with skies or brighten and then it's an afternoon of sunshine and some slow moving showers. some those will stay dry in the south. outbreaks of rain across northern england quite extensively, edging into parts of northern ireland, southern scotland at times, but further northwards and westwards in scotland, still with a sunshine out, but more of a breeze here tomorrow. and that's going to feed some cold air in across parts of east of scotland, northeast england, just around eight or nine degrees at best here through the day, whereas western scotland maybe up ten, 14 degrees, down on today's values, a bit warmer to east anglia in the southeast with more sunshine compared with today. now into tuesday, we'll see the cloud and outbreaks of rain push into eastern scotland.

still drier in the west of scotland, bright today for england, wales and with a bit of brightness in northern ireland. but showers will develop and some longer spells of heavy thundery rain across the south later in the day. and it sets us up for a week in which we'll all see some rain at times, not a complete wash—out, but even though it'll be wet at times, it'll also turn a bit milder. take care.

live from london. this is bbc news .king charles willjoin members of the royal family at an easter sunday service at windsor castle, his most significant public appearance since being diagnosed with cancer.

the fact that the king is due to be out and about today is being seen as a very positive signal about his health. thousands of worshippers are gathered in st peter's square to hear pope francis lead easter sunday mass. 0ver over the past hour there was crowds have been watching pope francis lead the mass and amid concern for his health, so far, things have gone without a hitch. as the war in gaza continues, ceasefire talks between israel and hamas are expected to resume in cairo. voting takes place in local elections across turkey, with president erdogan's party hoping to regain control of cities it lost five years ago. and we'll bring you a special report on seagulls as conservationists warn of dwindling populations

across the uk.