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e world today on bbc news. e sir jeffrey donaldson resigns after being charged with rape and other historical sexual offenses. ukraine's president zelenskyy warns that a new russian military offensive may come in the next few months. an uneasy calm in jerusalem over easternd ramadan while conditions remain desperate in gaza. in the past hour, president biden has announced he will travel to baltimore as the bridge collapsed recovery effort continues. also coming up. the world of mammals. the latest david attenborough series looks at how many species are adapting to climate change. as the oscar-winning oppenheimer

is finally screened in jan, the only country to suffer an atomic bombing in war. welcome to the world today. we start in northern ireland. politics has been thrown into turmoil with news the leader of the democratic unionist party, sir jeffrey donaldson, has resigned after being charged with rape and other historical sexual offenses. he was arrested yesterday along with a 57-year-old woman charged with aiding and abetting in connection with the alleged offenses. they will appear in court next month. sir jeffrey, northern ireland's longest-serving mp at westnster, says he will strenuously contest the charges. jennifer o'leary reports. >> sir jeffrey donaldson, the leader who just weeks ago returned his party to power

sharing. today, his political career appears to be over. in a statement, his party announced his resignation, confirming his been charged with allegations of a historical nature. bbc news understands he's been charged with rape and multiple other sexual offenses as part of a police investigation spanning months after two women came forward. in a letter to his party, he said he will be strenuously contesting the charges. >> there's been a devastating revelation that has caused shock not just for myself personally and my colleagues, but the community right across northern ireland, i came as a great shock. we are a party of individuals that believe in justice. we have faith in our criminal justice system. >> sir jeffrey donaldson is long known for his unyielding defense of the union.

>> you throw it out of the forum -- >> his reputation was forged in opposition to the good friday agreement. >> i've got the framework document here. that is what we think of the framework document. >> today is not his first political exit. >> with regret, i have resigned -- >>'s defection to a rival party eventually led him to leadership of the dup, which he sends a part of the party he steered back into power sharing. in a statement, the first minister said her priority is to continue to provide the leadership the public expect and deserve. northern ireland has when it comes to political earthquakes. but today leaves a fissure in unionism at a time when some see it under increasing threat from those who want a united ireland. ♪

for now, sir jeffrey donaldson's party political days look firmly in the past. >> we heard in jennifer's report a little bit of an interview with gavin robinson, the mp who has been named as interim leader for the dup. in the last hour, he's been speaking to the media about the shock being felt in the party and across the community in northern ireland. >> there has been a devastatin revelation that has caused tremendous shock. not just for myself personally, colleagues in the dup, but the community right across northern ireland, it came as a great shock. we are a party of individuals that believe in justice. we have faith in our criminal justice system. in the coming days and months, we think it is important none of us say anything or act in any

way that would seek to prejudice what is an ongoing investigation. >> wended the party become aware of the allegations and what has been the response of the party to them? >> last night, the party became aware. whenever it was revealed publicly that there had been an individual and another charged, it became clear where the individual was. in the early hours of this morning, we took steps to make sure we can bring colleagues together to discuss what we had learned and take the appropriate steps we could. jeffrey $has stepped down as party leader. he has indated that through us. through our disciplinary process, we have to take the steps to suspend him from party membership until the conclusion of a criminal investigation.

in discussing that with colleagues, it was -- there was unanimity across colleagues that i should step forward and act at this time as the interim leader of our party. it is a huge responsibility. not just because of the shocking use we have had, but that will take its course and run its course. but for us, recognizing the significant steps forward in northern ireland the last couple of weeks focusing on the importance of making northern ireland work and instilling a sense of positivity and making sure devolution works for our people. that is the important task at hand. the important task our colleagues share and we will focus on in the months and years to come. >> that was the interim leader of the dup, gavin speaking earlier.

i asked our ireland correspondent the sense of shock felt today. >> nobody at all saw this coming until we had a statement from the police service of northern ireland this morning saying a 61-year-old man had been arrested and charged with those offenses. confirmation later this afternoon that sir jeffrey donaldson would be stepping down as leader of the dup with immediate effect. although he is an mp and interim leader of the dup, gavin robinson is also an mp, and they sit at westminster. a lot of concern about what would happen here at northern ireland's devolved power-sharing government. these institutions can be notoriously fragile. just to fill you in on what is going on, only just a few months back up and running because it was under sir jeffrey dahmer's leadership of the dup that the

party peeled out of power-sharing. collapsing those institutions and leaving northern ireland without a devolved government for two years. that was in protest of post-brexit trading arrangemts. jeffrey dahmer's and led his party at the time back, although not everyone within the dup was ppy about that at the time. it has been a very tumultuous time for the dup. >> our correspondent there. let's speak to dr. claire rice, a politics researcher at the university of liberal specializing in northern ireland politics. how much disarray do you believe is leaves the dup in? >> that is certainly a shocks was alluded to in the package. several years of difficulty for the democratic unionist party, change in leadership, very public displays of animosity and discontent from within the party.

quite unusual for a party that keeps things behind closed doors. it has already been a difficult few years. looking towardthe general election as well sets the scene to become more difficult. looking as purely as one can at the situation from a political angle, it does not make things easier for the party going forward. >> i want to put something to you that we heard earlier from julian smith, the former secretary of state for northern ireland. he said he's not concerned this will change the momentum to power-sharing bause the appointment of gavin robinson brings continuity. do you agree? >> i believe there is something in that. that message from governor robinson and others across northern ireland's political spectrum. it has been continuing the efforts behind power-sharing and ensuring the devolution continues to operate as effectively as possible and is not only impacted by what is happening, what is effectively

an internal matter within one of the political parties within the power-sharing structures. there is a lot to take. at least at this stage, politicians are not willing to be swayed in any potential way by what is happening. as with everything, proof in the pudding is -- i think looking at the broader dynamics of politics, the bigger shock will be what comes from the general election going forward as opposed to the internal machinations of single political parties. i would be surprised if this is not at least stepping point before the political relationships going forward. it is how the parties navigate that going ahead and that will determine how -- the high-impact, it might be on how power-sharing is operating. but a massive shock to how devolution is operating. >> great to get your thoughts, dr. claire rice.

i just want to bring you some breaking news that has just come in. russia's federal security service says it has arrested three citizens of one of the central asian states in the territory on suspicion of plotting to commit a terrorist attack by means of an explosion in a crowded place. this has just come through in the past few minutes. it doesn't go into much more detail about what that is. the authorities would have been on high alert following the attack on the city hall music venue in moscow. what the report goes on to say, what the statement says is during investigative actions, the defendants in the case -- components of an improvised explosive device, chemical substances, and destructive

elements were discovered and seized. that was quoted in the russian news agency from russia's fsb federal security service. we will bring you more as we get it. let's turn to ukraine. president zelenskyy is warning a new russian military offensive can happen in the next few months. he said his country's not ready to face it. the ukrainian leader made the comments during an interview with cbs news saying he believes it cou happen between may and june. he stressed the need for more military aid. >> you are expecting a counteroffensive in may/june from the russians? >> i think so. >> what weapons do you need to stop that attack? >> number one, anti-air defense and artillery shells. that is what we need. >> is warning comes after russia launched another wave of missile

and drone attacks overnight. officials say 99 projectiles were launched, with more than 80 being destroyed. the interior minister says civilian infrastructure was targeted. three power stations being hit. several people were wounded. no reports of any deaths. our correspondent sent us this update. >> the commander-in-chief added his voice to calls from ukrainian officials saying they need more air defenses and missiles. that is a call we have heard before. but as these attacks on energy infrastructure become more frequent, that is the focus of ukraine's calls at the moment. there was a very long air raid overnight. but this city wasn't targeted in the latest attack. the mood here is fairly nervous. people worried, there's a lot of rumors about a possible military offensive against kharkiv and the north of ukraine. a lot of rumors, no real facts. the commander-in-chief also commented on that in an

interview with ukrainian media. he said you can't ignore those plans that ukrainian is increasing its fortification. >> the update from our correspondent in ukraine. the former u.s. ambassador to nato told the bbc russia will attempt to take more territory from ukraine. >> it is essential we accelerated the delivery of western military aid to ukraine. the u.s. congress is due to reconvene after the end of april. i certainly hope they move on this expeditiously. i saw in volodymyr zelenskyy's book not long ago. i hope they have an understanding in the house -- not that there is a difference in view over this, but better understanding about the urgency of the need. >> a former u.s. ambassador to nato, kurt volker. let's get to events in the u.k.

metropolitan police continuing its investigation into potential offenses linked to the post office over the horizon i.t. scandal. after the bbc revealed the company was told about flaws in its accounting system in 2017. more than 900 sub postmasters some politicians and former sub postmasters want scotland yard to widen its investigation to take the new evidence into account. they said it's interviewed two people under caution. our business correspondent reports. >> the police have been investigating the horizon scandal for four years. but just two people have been questioned under caution. as the public inquiry continues to unfold, one mp who sits on the compensation advisory board, says detectives should widen their net. >> i think the police need to start scoping this investigation, look at the individuals named to see what they knew and why they took this

course of action. >> around 900 sub postmasters were prosecuted wrongly in 2015. the bbc has uncovered a secret report commissioned by the post office two years later in 2017. compiled it found employees had the ability to amend or delete transactions by branch staff. there would be no flag to postmasters, and it could lead to shortfalls and accounts. the post office spent 100 million pounds of public money defending itself in court against sub postmasters who had been wrongly prosecuted. he has represented many of them. >> we are about to take an unprecedented step. despite this, not a single person has been charged, let alone prosecuted. metropolitan police have conducted an investigation the last four years. where is the action? >> a group of more than 500 sub

most past -- postmasters won their case in 2015. janet skinner was one of them. she was jailed in 20,007. -- 2007. >> they could have saved a lot of time. >> metropolitan police started looking into the post office back in january 2020. an investigation into potential offenses of perjury and perverting the course of justice is ongoing. they continue to monitor the evidence being heard by the public inquiry. the post office and fujitsu said they were sorry for the impact the scandal has had on the victims and their families. >> one of the conservative party's biggest donors has been awarded in knighthood after the prime minister announced a surprise easter honors list. the decision to give an honor to the billionaire showed the prime

minister did not expect to be in office for much longer. the liberal democrats said the government was out of touch. the conservative mp and film director christopher nolan also received honors. still to come on the world today. we hear from relatives of the wall street journal reporter evan gershkovich, marking the first anniversary of his detention in russia. the oscar-winning movie oppenheimer finally gets a cinema release in japan. we hear reaction from a hiroshima survivor who has watched it. around the world and across the u.k., this is the world today. ♪ ♪

♪ ♪ >> y are watching the world today. let's look at events in the middle east. israel is reported to have carried out airstrikes in syria. observers say the strikes happened in aleppo and may have targeted a depot storing rockets run by hezbollah.

at least 42 people were killed, including six members of hezbollah and 36 members of the syrian army. there have been sporadic clashes between the israeli military and hezbollah on israel's northern borders since the outbreak of the war in gaza. israel has not confirmed the strike but its defense minister said it was expanding operations against the group. >> we are actually turning from defending to pursuing hezbollah. in any place, hezbollah is operating, we will reach them. this is from beirut, bow back, across the area, and it is also true for far more places like damascus and what is going on. in any place, we would need to operate and we will act. >> let's get more on this from our correspondent. >> syria is blaming israel for deadly airstrikes in aleppo that took place overnight, killing more than 40 people.

mostly syrian soldiers. also reportedly several members of the powerful lebanese armed group has below the israeli military is not commenting on that. but this has really raised fears that fighting could spread further across this region. >> 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 cease-fire in gaza. it comes after the u.n.'s top court, the international court of justice, allowed the unimpeded flow of food aid into gaza or sections of the palestinian operation are set to begin facing imminent starvation. in jerusalem, there is an uneasy calm as palestinians mark easter and ramadan. from there, our international editor reports. >> in jerusalem, where tension is normal, there is the consolation of religion.

this ramadan, many of those ending a day of prayer with palestinian israelis, around 1/5 of israel's population. israel citing security restricts action 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 where they believe jesus prayed on the night before he was crucified. but in this city sacred for christians, jews, and muslims, religion and politics always mix. >> people are suffering today, they are suffering from genocide, and today what we are praying is to stop these disastersituations in the land of peace and palestine. and we pray as jesus went to the

calvary, walked with the cross, after that there was a resurrection. we are praying to have our own resurrection today and the resurrection of our land. >> religion and conflict purvey jerusalem. six months of war in gaza have deepened every division. this is the essence of jerusalem, religion, faith, and the passion you can generate. in this city, religion has been linked inextricably with power and identity for centuries, for millennia. in more recent times, with a long conflict between palestinians and israelis. since october reinforced a highly visible israeli security has imposed an easy quiet on the occupied eastern side of jerusalem. the good friday procession where christians believe jesus carried his cross was smaller than usual without foreign pilgrims who

canceled their trips because of the war. the people of jerusalem of all faiths are locked into a crisis as bad as any since israel's independence war in 1948. religion offers certainty and answers. prayers and peace plans have not put a dent in this immutable conflict. >> i just want to take you live to the scene in baltimore where the huge cleanup operation is underway after the awful collapse of the francis scott key bridge there. the biggest crane on the eastern u.s. seaboard has been heading there as part of this huge cleanup effort. you may have heard if you're watching earlier we had a press conference take place listening into live.

a huge amount of resources being put in for the cleanup operation. floating cranes, tugboats, coast guard, vessels. one of the things mentioned in the press conference was how key the cleanup operation is. not just to maryland's economy, but the whole nation's economy as it was very important to keep vessel traffic. we will bring your developments on that. joe biden is heading there next ek. we understand around $16 million, 48 million pounds in federal emergency funds, will go towards recovery efforts. thank you for being with us on the world today, plenty more to come. do stay with us on bbc news.

announcer: funding for presentation of this program is provided by... financial services firm, raymond james. bdo. accountants and advisors. cunard is a proud supporter of public television. announcer: funding was also provided by, the freeman foundation. and by judy and peter blum kovler foundation, pursuing solutions for america's neglected needs. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ announcer: funding for presentation of this program is provided by... woman: a law partner rediscovers her grandmother's artistry and creates a trust to keep the craft alive. a raymond james financial advisor gets to know you, your passions and the way you enrich your community.