ever samples gathered from the unexplored far side of the moon. hello, it's 7am here in sinagpore and 9am in the northern mariana isalands where we begin this hour, because the founder of wikileaks, julian assange, has arrived in the remote us territory to plead guilty to a charge of espionage, where he'll go through legal procedures that should result in him being set free. he flew to the islands as part of a deal struck with prosecutors, after spending five years in belmarsh prison, in the uk, fighting extradition to the united states. mr assange uploaded classified military files to his website nearly 15 years ago. joining me now from the northern mariana islands is our correspondent shaimaa

khalil. we know that julian we know thatjulian assange change of the courtjust over an hour ago, change of the courtjust over an hourago, can change of the courtjust over an hour ago, can you get us up to speed with the latest? that's right. julian sanchez is in the courthouse behind me, where the final steps of the legal proceedings for his guilty plea are under way one felony illegally obtaining an national security because as the deal agreed by the us justice department, he will get credit for time served in the uk. he is here because crucially this is continental usa, he refused to go to mainland us because he deeply distrusts the us government. he in the past had accused them of

plotting to kill him, something that washington has denied. this picturesque island way remote in the pacific, us territory is going to be the place for that last chapter is playing out. if you look at the some of the courthouse itself is overlooking a beautiful beach. we are surrounded by lush greenery. i must tell you, it is so hot and humid, but it feels like such a contrast to the scene where assange was released from, a prison cell in a jail in belle marsh in london. he then hopped on a plane to get to bangkok and then he came here and now he is in this courthouse. this has been an unexpected location, bazaar location, if you will to end a dramatic case and a dramatic turn of events. this legal saga has spanned almost a decade and a half. it has

spanned five countries, it has involved relentless diplomacy and advocacy and it has raged a lot of question specifically about freedom of speech, especially when it comes to reporting on national security. many have said that while he is going to walk away free, that doesn't mean that it's automatically good news for freedom of speech because he has pleaded guilty for that one felony. but here in this remote us pacific island for the first time in a very long time, after the legal proceedings are finalised, julian assange will be able to go back to australia a free man. be able to go back to australia a free man-— a free man. thank you very much for that. a free man. thank you very much for that a _ a free man. thank you very much for that. a rather _ a free man. thank you very much for that. a rather unique - for that. a rather unique location. great to have you there on site for us to give us there on site for us to give us the latest updates. here with the story of how we reached this stage is our diplomatic correspondent caroline hawley. julian assange, a polarising figure, was already airborne

when the world learned of the deal that secured his release. it's a whirlwind of emotions. i mean, i'mjust elated, frankly. it's just incredible. i don't know... it kinda feels like it's not real. light them allup... it was this footage released by wikileaks in 2010 that brought julian assange international attention. it shows an american helicopter gunship shooting unarmed iraqi civilians. it was part of a flood of classified material, military files and diplomatic cables, spilt by wikileaks that year. months later, an international arrest warrant was issued. sweden wanted to his question him about allegations of sexual assault made by two women. to avoid extradition, he sought refuge in ecuador�*s london embassy. he spent seven years there, but in 2019, a dramatic moment, as he's dragged out after the ecuadorian government withdrew his political asylum. he's jailed for skipping bail, and soon it was the americans asking for his extradition.

backed by his supporters, he fought against it in the courts and lost. his extradition was approved in 2022. butjulian assange kept appealing until finally this deal allowed him to fly out of the uk. we don't know the full details of the negotiations to secure his release, but australia, his home country, had been pushing hard for it. the charges were first brought under donald trump. his former vice president, mike pence, said julian assange had endangered the lives and should've been prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. here on a little—known pacific island that's us territory, there's one last legal procedure. away from the holiday—makers, a judge approving his guilty plea before he can reunite with his family. a bizarre final twist in this long—running saga. caroline hawley, bbc news. some lawmakers in assange's

home country of australia have been working for years to try and secure his release — one of them is former deputy prime minister barnabyjoyce who was part of a cross—party delegation that went to the united states last year to lobby us officials. and we can cross live to canberra now and join barnabyjoyce. you must be delighted with this outcome thatjulian assange has finally been released from prison in the uk.— finally been released from prison in the uk. yes. i'm very ha - prison in the uk. yes. i'm very happy that _ prison in the uk. yes. i'm very happy that this _ prison in the uk. yes. i'm very happy that this is _ prison in the uk. yes. i'm very happy that this is coming - prison in the uk. yes. i'm very happy that this is coming to i prison in the uk. yes. i'm very happy that this is coming to a l happy that this is coming to a conclusion today, that it is not over yet. we've got to remember that for the first time, mr assange is now in the jurisdiction of the united states of america and he is going before a judge, there is a separation of powers. we know the deals he has in his pocket that he is offering. we presume that he is offering. we presume that everything is concluded, but it's not, and it's not until such time that he gets in a plane and starts heading to australia. so there should be

no triumphalism. i'm sure... you don't start waving at the crowd of moo metres. you get to the end. that's been a lot of work. a lot of work done by so many people and recognising people such as tony of the labour party, peter which wilson and from the greens, alexander from the right wing of the liberal party, myself, george christiansen in the past have been working in a bipartisan manner over a long period of time, of course come in the united states of america, such people as their republican congressmen, seen as a very solid long term congressman from a family that has had a long history within the democrats and from the far right congresswoman marjorie taylor green and from the far left congresswoman omar have all said this is enough and they've also decided to join to communicate to the president of

the united states saying that we should bring this thing to an end and i think that, with the legal team with the work of julian's brother, his family, so many obvious department of foreign affairs that this has now come to a conclusion if we look at it in retrospect later, whatever way you look at it, people may ask the question, in belle marsh prison, really? who did this person a soldier tried to murder? five years, 23 hours a day in solitary confinement. one hour a day in an exercise yard, what on earth happened to there? what was the charge that? there will be other questions later on. it's a mess. and if you think of it, for my parts from i don't moralise about what he did, steve, i'm a former serving member of the defence force. i don't believe that what he did was right. i'm not here to give a warning to his character, what i do say is what he did in

australia, there is no law that he broke in australia. he's not a citizen of the united states nor was he ever in the united states. so we have sent a person to a third country, and extra territoriality is a very dangerous precedent commended someone from the united kingdom, never offended a lot and united kingdom, was deemed to offend a lot in the united states, but they are not a united states citizen, and we said we are going to send a citizen of the united kingdom over to america for 175 years injail? i believe i would be getting a few phone calls. and because it's a very, very bad precedent, that is the premise with which i came to this court. ., ~ with which i came to this court. . ~ ,, with which i came to this court. . ~ . ., court. thank you so much for our court. thank you so much for your time _ court. thank you so much for your time today _ court. thank you so much for your time today and - court. thank you so much for your time today and sharing | your time today and sharing with us your perspective on how the advents have unfolded. doctors in kenya say police have shot dead at least five people in the capital, nairobi, during huge protests against planned tax increases. dozens more have been injured.

demonstrators broke through police cordons and entered parliament, setting part of the building on fire. kenya's president has described the protests which have spread across the country as "treasonous". from nairobi, barbara plett usher sent this report. they called for a total shutdown, and in towns across kenya today, tens of thousands took to the streets. in nairobi by lunchtime, there were running battles as police tried to hold back the tide of fury. but then this... ..hundreds of demonstrators pushed through the gates of parliament, overwhelming officers lined up outside. the response was quick and brutal — live shots fired. reports of five killed in the street and dozens more wounded. others made it inside, challenging the government's authority in the building where mps had been voting on the contentious finance bill. this is as close as we feel safe to get to parliament because police are firing live rounds there. the government had warned

protesters to stay away from parliament, and this has been the response. but the fact that the protesters were able to breach the building and that there have been casualties could galvanise them further. it may also increase the pressure for a government crackdown. this is uncharted territory for president ruto. at the end of the day, he addressed the nation. i have directed all the organs of our national security to deploy measures to thwart any attempts by dangerous criminals to undermine the security and stability of our country. those on the streets earlier were united in anger. i want to demand that our leaders give us accountability. there has been too many years of the system going round and round. we never get accountability from these leaders, such that it has come to a point when we as the people can tell them no and they still go ahead

and do what they want to do. this evening, the wounded were being treated in hospital as the streets began to calm. the days ahead will show if protesters heed the president's warning. kenya's powerful are facing an unprecedented challenge from the people. barbara plett usher, bbc news, nairobi. in the uk - a fifth conservative figure is now being investigated by the gambling commission over alleged bets on the timing of the general election. the conservative party has withdrawn its support for two candidates craig williams and laura saunders. now russell george — a conservative member of the welsh parliament is being looked into as well. labour has suspended one of its candidates — kevin craig — who admitted he had bet against himself losing in a suffolk constituency. and a cabinet minister said he was joking when he told the bbc he'd won more than 2,000 pounds on the timing of the election. here's our political

editor chris mason. this is craig williams, a friend and parliamentary aide to the prime minister, he turned down my request for an interview but said this on social media this afternoon. i remain on the ballot paper on the 11th ofjuly and i hope to secure your support after years of delivering. i committed an error ofjudgment, not an offence, and i want to reiterate my apology directly to you. that video followed this statement from the conservative party this morning. as a result of an ongoing internal inquiry, we have concluded that we can no longer support craig williams or laura saunders as part of parliamentary candidates at the forthcoming general election. and so, on the radio at lunch time, one key question. why has this decision been taken now not a week or more ago? well, look, i'm as disappointed and angry as the prime minister is and various other conservative spokesmen who have commented on this in recent days. these bets should not have been placed, and it is right that we've had this internal process

and those inquiries have led to the decision today to suspend these candidates. here is where craig williams was the mp and is hoping to be reelected. i think craig williams has been incredibly stupid for such a small amount of money, for any amount of money, but for a few hundred pounds, i mean, he is an idiot. well, ijust think it's all blown out of proportion. far more terrible things have been done in the house of commons than this. enter another politician from montgomeryshire, this is conservative russell george who sits in the welsh parliament. he is not a candidate in the general election. he bet on a july election over a week before it was called. i understand he didn't know about mr williams�* bet nor mr williams, his. in a statement, mr george said he would cooperate fully

with the gambling commission, adding... "i have stepped back from the shadow cabinet while the investigation is ongoing. i have done this as i do not wish to be an unnecessary distraction to their work." and this is laura saunders, the conservative candidate in bristol northwest who is now no longer supported by the conservatives. i asked her for comment today. she hasn't replied. it's taken rishi sunak the best part of two weeks to act on this. that is just weak leadership. but hang on a minute, labour are disowning this guy tonight, a candidate and a donor. i'm kevin craig, and it is the honour and privilege of my life to be labour's parliamentary candidate here in central suffolk and north ipswich. he is also being investigated by the gambling commission, a labour spokeswoman said. in a statement, mr craig said...

it has been quite the day. amid all the political shenanigans, the emperor ofjapan is in london on a state visit. a yen for his thoughts on all of this stuff. chris mason, bbc news. around the world and across the uk. this is bbc news.

israel's supreme court has ruled that ultra—orthodox jewish religious students can no longer be exempt from military service. with the gaza war leading to a shortage of military recruits, the issue has become increasingly divisive within israel. far—right religious parties in benjamin netanyahu's coalition

government have strongly opposed a change in the law. our middle east reporter sebastian usher has been telling us what the reaction has been from the ultra—orthodox community. it's threatened that there will be big protests. there is, of course, hanging oveer netanyahu himself with his coalition. the possibility that two of the ultra—orthodox parties that make up part of it are threatened fora number of reasons to pull out. but this has been the absolute essential one could do so and could bring down his coalition and that would lead to the elections. but it's been quite certain that mr netanyahu very much wants to avoid. so this could have very big political implications. there is a protest that's planned from thursday, from the next couple of days. but as far as we know at the moment, it isn't going to be a really big one. this may build, i think, if and

when ultra—orthodox religious students are being actually brought into the army against their will, that's when you could see this schism within israeli society really come out onto the streets. i think until then, this might be something that will cause ructions, will cause problems, but won't necessarily be something that really is another issue that begins to tier the country apart. let's take a look at some other stories in the headlines. the trial has begun in ecuador of five people accused of assassinating a presidential candidate nearly a year ago. fernando villa—vicen—cio, who campaigned against corruption and organised crime, was shot at the end of a rally. twelve other people were injured in the attack. rahul gandhi has become india's first official leader of the opposition in parliament since 2014. his congress party said he would ensure that the government was held to account.

mr gandhi's great—grandfather was the first prime minister of independent india. his grandmother and father were also sentience prime ministers. a letter signed by albert einstein is going up for auction — in which he warns that nazi germany might develop nuclear weapons, and urges the us to take action. it's expected to fetch as much as six million us dollars. the letter is being sold as part of a collection that belonged to the microsoft co—founder paul allen, who died in 2018. let's get more detail on the emperor and empress of japan being welcomed by king charles and camilla at the start of a three—day state visit to the uk. a short time ago — a banquet was held at buckingham palace our senior royal correspondent daniela relph reports. the centrepiece of any state visit, the grandeur and glitter of the state banquet. senior members of the royal

family led the guest list, as the king tried out his japanese. welcome back to britain. earlier, there was a seven with ceremonial welcome for princess empress masako. that is unusual, and changes have had to be made to ensure political neutrality. this state visit was planned well before the election was called, having already been delayed due to the covid lockdown. there was no appetite for a further postponement. instead, all the big political moments have been stripped away, so no trip to downing street and no formal meeting with the prime minister. the carriage journey included a masked empress. she has a chronic allergy to horsehair. the japanese royal couple are anglophiles. they both studied at oxford and maintain links to the uk. arriving at buckingham palace,

the royal welcome has not included princess anne. she remains in hospital in bristol after suffering concussion. in an accident at her estate in gloucestershire on sunday night. today, her daughter, zara tindall, went to see her mother, as did the princess's husband sir tim lawrence. how's she doing, sir? doing fine. slow, but sure. kanpai. but this is a state visit that unites two royal households and celebrates their shared experiences and friendship. not all the family can be present, but this is a visit that unites two royal households, and will celebrate their shared experiences and friendship. daniela relph, bbc news. a chinese spacecraft which has gathered the first ever soil and rock samples from the far side of the moon has returned to earth, after a nearly two—month long mission. scientists believe the samples could answer the biggest questions about how the moon was formed and its impact on life developing on earth. our china correspondent laura bicker has more. broadcast live to the nation as it bobbed down—to—earth. the chang'e—6 finally touched down with its treasure, says the state media anchor. she means prices soil samples that could unlock the mysteries of the far side of the moon.

it's a world first, and a clear source of chinese pride. this is the first time that we've got samples exactly from the bit of the moon we can't see in the sky. so from a technical point of view it's obviously quite complicated, so it represents a good technical accomplishment. but from a scientific point of view, the samples brought back will be quite unique. the chang'e—6 blasted off in early may in what was a technically demanding journey. a special satellite was needed to relay messages to the craft as it would not be visible from earth. then came the tricky part. landing on the moon's south pole. the surface here is different, more craters, a thicker crust. a mechanical arm and drill spent two days gathering samples.

china has harboured lunar emissions for hundreds of years. many of these built on the 17th century. but it's only in recent years they are making real gains and entering a space race with the united states. but this is notjust about putting a man oi’ woman on the moon. it is about staking a claim and controlling resources. this craft�*s mission, named after a moon goddess, marks a new era in space exploration. one that for now china clearly dominates. laura bicker, bbc news, beijing. celebrations have erupted across afghanistan after the country's cricket team won a place in the semi—finals of the twenty20 world cup for the first time. thousands of people turned out in the cities of jalalabad and khost to cheer on the team after their dramatic eight—run victory over bangladesh. next, they face south africa on wednesday.

cricket is a rare bright spot for many afghans. it has also been embraced by the taliban government — though women are not allowed to play. getting down to the serious part of the t20. we know that south africa will play afghanistan in the india will play england in the other semifinal. thanks forjoining semifinal. thanks for joining us semifinal. thanks forjoining us here this evening. good night. hello there. tuesday was a hot day for england and wales. it was the hottest day of the year so far in wales, but temperatures were even higher in england, in the south east, in the strong sunshine, 29 degrees in east sussex and 30 celsius in surrey. scotland, northern ireland were cooler on tuesday, thanks to more cloud and some rain in scotland really pegging the temperatures back here. not much rain as we head into wednesday morning. sunny skies for england and wales. some cloud will bubble up, bringing the threat of one or two showers over the welsh hills and the pennines, but it's in scotland that will see some showers developing as it brightens

up here and there — some of the showers could be heavy and thundery. and in the afternoon, a bit of rain coming in from the west across northern ireland. some sunshine ahead of that should lift the temperatures a bit higher. the high temperatures, though, are going to be across england and wales. another hot day and, again, 30 degrees likely in the south east of england. things are going to change a bit, though, on thursday. this area of low pressure is coming in from the atlantic, pushing ahead of it, this weather front. as that moves its way eastwards, it'll be followed by atlantic air, cooler and fresher air that will push away all that heat and humidity into the near continent. now, let me show you that weather front, because this is it. it really is just a narrow band of cloud, little or no rain on it. ahead of it, some sunshine following it, some sunshine,

but close to the low, some stronger winds bringing showers or longer spells of rain into scotland, northern ireland, one or two showers crossing the irish sea. it is going to be cooler everywhere on thursday. plenty of sunshine, i think, for england and wales, and for a good part of the day, still very warm across eastern parts of england. but with that weather front out of the way as we head into friday, we still have the low pressure running to the north of scotland and still some quite brisk winds for the time of year in scotland — some outbreaks of rain probably in the north of the country. a few showers elsewhere, the odd shower maybe for northern ireland, moving into the north west of england. further south, it's likely to be dry, and we'll see some sunshine coming through from time—to—time. temperatures are still going to be around 17 degrees in scotland and northern ireland and back down to 23 celsius at best in the south east of england. now, heading into the weekend, we're still in that slightly cooler, fresher air. many places will be dry with some sunshine, the best of it probably across southern parts of england. and this is where we'll see the highest of the temperatures.

china's premier warns political and business leaders against decoupling from the world's second largest economy. we'll look at what lies ahead. plus... one of the largest wholesale clubs in the united states says its seeing demand from a surprising group of customers. hello and welcome to business today. i'm steve lai. let's begin in china, where the world economic forum's summer meeting is under way. in a speech, chinese premier li qiang urged countries to oppose the "vicous cycle" decoupling from the world's

number two economy. he also rebutted allegations that beijing was unfairly subsidising chinese companies making green technologies. eshwar prasad is a professor of trade policy at cornell university. he told me decoupling is a real risk to china's technological ambitions. there are two important things in the space, one you pointed out was about rebutting the notion that china has been protectionist or favoring industries that western economies like europe and it us are counted on for their own manufacturing revivals, electric chips and green energy and so forth, but there is a lot in the space about the chinese economy itself, about how it is trying to move towards a more technology sophisticated economy, trying to do with the root problems as you described it, besetting the chinese economy, and did two things seem to be linked in the speech, how technology upgraded

could and if it cooperation with other countries