i'm rico hizon in singapore. the headlines: rex tillerson, former boss of the oil giant exxonmobil, is sworn in as the next american secretary of state. on his first trip abroad, the new us defence secretary heads for korea and japan on a mission to reassure. i'm kasia madera in london. brexit overcomes its first legal hurdle with a massive vote in favour in britain's lower house. the indian state of punjab goes to the polls this week. we investigate the drug problem affecting around two thirds of its households. it's 9am in singapore, one in the morning in london and 8pm in the evening in washington where the us senate has confirmed rex tillerson, the former chief executive of exxon mobil, as the country's new secretary of state. the vote was largely along party lines, with every republican supporting mr tillerson and nearly every democrat opposing him. within the past half hour, mr tillerson was sworn in as secretary of state in the oval office at the white house. he said he was looking

forward to his new role. i have a few folks in the room that are with me that have helped me over the last month to get to this point in the confirmation and they represent a larger category of people who have worked enormously long hours tirelessly guiding me through the confirmation process and to them i will always be eternally grateful to the sacrifices they have made of their time these past week. i have also received over the last month so many messages and letters and phone calls of best wishes, encouragement and prayers from family, friends and colleagues who know me well. but i have also received an enormous outpouring of wonderful messages from people all over the country whom i do not know. it is their messages that are going

to stand instead fast reminder to me asi to stand instead fast reminder to me as i enter the responsibilities as secretary of state, that as i serve this president, i serve their interest and will always represent the interest of all the american people at all times. earlier our washington correspondent, david willis, explained the challenges mr tillerson faces over the next few the next few months. it went in the end 56— 43, every republican voting in favour of rex tillerson‘s appointment, virtually every democrat voting against him. and this was one of the most contentious appointment of a secretary of state in us history. members of the senate committee, members of the senate i should say, questioning rex tillerson on a range of issues, not least his worldview as a man formerly the ceo of exxon mobil. also whether he had the diplomatic

skills to do the job as us top diplomat. and his ties to vladimir putin, former business ties to the russian president. and there was concern as well about foreign policy under the trump administration. especially this ban on people travelling from seven predominantly muslim countries to the us. how will he cope with that? in the end he was confirmed as the 69th secretary of state. the first thing he will have to do when touching the ground is reassuring his staff, many of whom are wobbly, about the travel ban. also making news today. the secretary general of nato, jens stoltenberg, has urged russia to use its influence with rebels in eastern ukraine to end an upsurge of fighting there. he said the ceasefire in the area had been violated thousands of times in recent days, and the spike in violence was the most serious in a long time.

about 20,000 civilians in the town of avdiivka have been left without electricity or water. police in the romanian capital, bucharest, have used tear gas against protesters in what's said to be the biggest anti—government rally since the fall of communism in 1989. reports say up to a quarter of a million people are demonstrating against an emergency decree that decriminalises some corruption offences. one of china's richest men who mysteriously went missing from his hotel in hong kong over the lunar new year weekend is now reported to have crossed into mainland china. the billionaire, xiao jian—hua's company claims he'd not been kidnapped. he is said to be assisting an investigation into the chinese stock market crash in 2015. this is quite an amazing story. doctors have been able to read the thoughts of patients with "locked—in" syndrome using computer technology.

these patients have absolutely no control over their body because the brain has lost the ability to control muscles. but a small study has found a way to help them communicate, giving answers to basic yes or no questions. the new us defence secretary, james mattis, is starting a four day visit to south korea and japan. before being elected, mr trump angered politicians in both countries by suggesting that they weren't doing enough, or paying enough, to defend themselves against north korea. here's steve evans in seoul. (star-spangled banner play) donald trump has his fans in south korea, a small but fervent demonstration of loyalty outside the us embassy in seoul. we korean people love donald j trump, the president of the united states. and we love the united states of america. the united states of america and korea, we are blood brothers. both: blood brothers.

blood brothers on frequent joint military exercises. us and south korean troops as one is the message. but during the american election, mr trump said south korea only paid peanuts for the presence of 28,000 american troops here. i james norman mattis do solemnly swear... but the brand—new defence secretary comes to asia saying the korean alliance is a strong — demands for more money are being downplayed. in this part of the world, the american embassy and donald trump have two of the world's most dangerous problems — the military rise of china and the nuclear threat of kim jong—un. china is creating islands in the south china sea. some in the trump administration

want the us to block access, so risking head—to—head military confrontation. kim jong—un is striving to get long—range nuclear weapons but mr trump said, pre—election, he would like to talk, and that would be a radical change from obama. there is a deal to make with north korea, it is not a great deal for the united states, you don't get to go in there and walk out with their nuclear arsenal but you can get a freeze that stops them from the tests, that stops them from improving the capabilities. south korean and american soldiers practice winter warfare. mr trump wants to keep the alliance but south korea has its own election coming up and a much more anti—american government may well gain power. stephen evans, bbc news, south korea. british mps have voted

overwhelmingly to give the government an historic mandate to start the brexit process, that will lead to the uk leaving the european union. the ayes to the right, 498, the noes, ii4. cheering the next more detailed legislative stage in the house of commons begins begins next week. our political editor, laura kuennsberg, has more on the days events at westminster. there could be plenty of rocks in the road. things could be very bumpy for the government in the months and yea rs for the government in the months and years to come. this is a small step ata years to come. this is a small step at a very significant step nonetheless. mps for the first time approving the initial legal steps

that will make real the biggest decision that the british voting public has made for decades. we are if you like now in the departure lounge on a out of the european union. there is so much we can say ina union. there is so much we can say in a debate that wasn't full of poetry or epic rhetoric but is a really critical moment that people will look back on as being a real red letter day for this parliament for good orfor ill. and for me there are three things briefly that just stand out. first of all, for some time ministers have been saying to their critics, "we are beyond the point of no return, we have passed it, the people decided" and now after this very first vote that feels absolutely the case. that is the sense in parliament even though there are plenty more obstacles, not least the house of lords down the corridor behind me, that could make things for the difficult —— rather difficult for the government. second of all, after yea rs difficult for the government. second of all, after years and years of tory blood on the carpet in house of

commons it is labour that is the party painfully divided over this issue tonight. jeremy tilse and has had frontbenchers quitting over it. there are people on the front bench still do not who voted to defy his authority and it is not quite clear what he is going to do about that. and thirdly, really fascinating, after the referendum, today, we have seen mps voting for something, some of them, that they don't believe in. that is because they felt at pains to put their constituents‘ views first, they felt under pressure to do so and that is a real contrast to what normally happens here. we have had the binary black and white referendum sort of mashing up with the much more nuanced way that our parliamentary representation sometimes it works. that‘s been very, very uncomfortable for many mps, i have to say, and i think that is going to be a feature now of how people divide. they feel that urgency, they feel that pressure to represent their constituents not necessarily in the best interest that they believe but in how they voted, romain gall leave. and that

was political editor laura kuenssberg —— romaine or leave. the north indian state of punjab votes on saturday for a new government. but the biggest issue confronting voters is notjobs or corruption, but a massive drugs problem. nearly two thirds of households in the state are said to have at least one user of hard drugs such as heroin. the bbc‘s sanjoy majumder reports on a state that has become india‘s drugs capital. and a warning, this story contains pictures of drug use. punjab‘s dark and deadly underbelly. the rampaging drugs crisis. an epidemic that is consuming the youths in one of india‘s most prosperous states. mukhtiar singh‘s son died manjeet last year of a heroin overdose. he was 28. the shock of losing him, has turned mukhtiar into a one—man crusader against drug abuse. translation: i want to save punjab's young generation, its children.

i‘m a parent. i have carried my son‘s body on my shoulder. i do not want any other parent to go through this. that is my mission. punjab has nearly one million drug users, that‘s three times the national average. one reason for the alarming numbers is the easy availability of heroin and synthetic drugs. i‘m in the grounds of a local hospital and what‘s astonishing is that even in as public a place as this, drugs are being openly bought and sold. we cannot show it to you on film but in the last few minutes, i have seen a number of transactions take place. addicts are approached by peddlers, money swiftly exchanges hands and then they walk away with their stash, disappear behind that wall over there. this is where they come, mostly to inject themselves with heroin. take a look at you can see here in the rubbish,

a huge pile of used syringes. you have done yourjob... over the past few years, scores of drug rehab centres have sprung up. each day, hundreds of addicts turn up, seeking treatment. the basic problem was i was into addiction of heroin, before that it was smack and before that it was alcohol and the hard drinks. condition was so bad that i couldn‘t have any proper meal. i used to have it and i used to puke. i was in such a bad condition. i was an addict because of what i do. i asked for money from people t osustain my addiction. the scale of the problem is extensive. it leads to fears that a whole generation may now be lost to heroin.

sanjoy majumder, bbc news, punjab you‘re watching newsday on the bbc. still to come on the programme: cases of malaria in southeast asia have fallen by half in recent years but new drug—resistant strains are threatening to undo all the good work. also on the programme: pop superstar beyonce announces that she and jay z are expecting twins. this is the moment that millions in iran had been waiting for. after his long years in exile, the first hesitant steps of ayatollah khomeini on iranian soil. south africa‘s white government has offered its black opponents concessions unparalleled in the history of apartheid. the ban on the african national congress is lifted immediately, and the anc leader, nelson mandela, after 27 years injail, is to be set free unconditionally. the aircraft was returning

from belgrade, where manchester united had entered the semi—final of the european cup. two americans are the first humans to walk in space without any lifeline to their spaceship. one of them called it a piece of cake. thousands of people have given yachstwoman ellen macarthur the spectacular homecoming after she smashed the world record for sailing solo around the world non—stop. this is newsday on the bbc. i‘m rico hizon in singapore. i‘m kasia madera in london. our top stories: rex tillerson, the former chief executive of the oil giant exxon mobil, has been sworn in as president trump‘s new secretary of state. the new american defence secretary,

james mattis, is heading to south korea and japan — on a mission to reassure the us‘s two most important allies in asia. let‘s take a look at some front pages from around the world. let‘s start with the japan times which leads with president trump‘s accusation that tokyo has been devaluing its currency to gain trade advantage over the us. the newspaper quotes top government officials, who were quick to defended their country‘s loose monetary policy, saying it‘s mainly aimed at busting deflation. le figaro reports on the corruption allegations facing the main centre—right candidate for the french presidency, francois fillon. it says there is a growing anxiety inside his camp as as he faces mounting pressure to quit the presidential race. the front page of the philippine star has the story of amnesty international report, which accuses the police of paying officers to kill drug suspects. the rights group said officers were acting on instructions from the very top of government and that the killings may constitute crimes against humanity.

a new study published in the medical journal the lancet shows that a strain of malaria has become resistant to two of the most widely—used antimalarial drugs, artemisinin and piperaquine, and is now spreading widely. the strain has established itself in northeastern thailand, southern laos and western cambodia. there are fears that this superbug strain, could go over to india and africa, potentially killing millions. arian dondorp, a professor of tropical medicine in oxford university, explained how they come to realise this strain of the virus has become resistant to main drugs. yeah, we see this scenario now evolving over the last few years. first of all, we will say that malaria has gone down dramatically

in southeast asia. less than 50% compared to the beginning of the millennium. and that is mainly because we have very good drugs to treat malaria at the moment. artemisinin in combination with therapy. and we also noticed the parasite is coming less sensitive to the artemisinin part of this combination therapy. now it also picks up resistance against other drugs. it is becoming very difficult to treat. that is the danger, because we can lose all the gains that we made. how did you lose all the gains that you made? how did this happen? yeah. the parasite is very clever. it adapts its genetic material. so, the current study, which is led by my university, shows there is one strain that has become very successful. it is more fit than its peers,

and that strain is now spreading. it started in western cambodia and now we find it in north—eastern thailand and laos. so the fear is indeed that this superbug, as you can call it, can spread west and cause problems there. professor, are you disappointed this has happened? you have been in southeast asia now for 16 years. what can be done now? yeah. it is, of course, very worrying that actually these gains, as we face these important resistance problems, what has to be done is that malaria has to be eradicated from the region as quickly as possible before it becomes highly untreatable. the plans are there. there is a lot of donor money available still. so we have to make a big strike over

the next two years to get rid of this kind of malaria, the kind that can kill you. pop superstar beyonce has announced that she and her husband, rap star and entrepreneurjay z are expecting twins. "we would like to share our love and happiness" beyonce, 35, posted on her instagram page. "we have been blessed two times over. we are incredibly grateful that our family will be growing by two, and we thank you for your well wishes." jasmine dotiwala has worked for mtv news and has met beyonce many times. she‘s been giving me her impressions about this announcement. it knew that stunned the world, made everybody really happy and beyonce never does things by halves. if you remember the first time she was pregnant with blue ivy, in the

middle of an awards show when she finished performing, she whipped open her taxi to jacket and rubbed her belly excitedly, looking really happy. her belly excitedly, looking really happy- i her belly excitedly, looking really happy. i think that is what makes you love her. —— tuxedo. there is a beautiful photo which looks at she is in the middle of the garden of eden, wearing a veil. peoplejust needed some good news. i know it sounds silly when you say it but i feel at the world has had so much negative and bad energy recently that the beyonce news has made everybody really happy at a know it sounds silly but babies make our hearts warm. we can see it has made people happy because it has broken the internet! you have met beyonce and jay z many times. you are going to share some photos with us off you quys to share some photos with us off you guys together. there is no secret, beyonce has spoken about the fact she wants a bigger family and how she wants a bigger family and how she herself loves being a bigger sister. beyonce is arguably one of the biggest solo all—round

performance in the world. she started off in destiny‘s child as the pop princess and a collection has always been more comfortable in that group atmosphere. she has a lwa ys that group atmosphere. she has always taught, even in early interviews before she was famous, she used to talk about wanting to have a family and do the all—american golfing of being successful and having it all. she is hard. —— all—american girl thing. —— she is a hard worker. she is going to be performing in eight weeks at coli cello, one of america‘s biggest music festival. —— coachella. people are wondering how she will do it and iam saying, are wondering how she will do it and i am saying, guys! even if she has to sit on a stall and —— stool and sing ona to sit on a stall and —— stool and sing on a piano, she will do it. the egyptian village of garrah is celebrated for being one place where the craft of glassblowing

is being preserved. in fact, it‘s so important that no—one in garrah is said to be unemployed, and everyone works in the business. bbc arabic‘s ali gamal reports. when you hear the sound of clinking glass and a scorching furnaces, you know you are in garrah, a village located 110 kilometres are way from cairo. the village specialises in glass blowing. it has almost disappeared in each app. has ledger i have been operating since 1986 —— translation: -- it is i have been operating since 1986 —— translation: —— it is aircraft. —— at they specialise in blowing glass.

translation: the workshop receives the glass and spend a use gold paint and low into the famous glass. the glass and spend a use gold paint and low into the famous glassm has a small % of its 7000 visitors that it attracts power from nearby finishes. there are three big factories and close to 300 workshops that produced the glass which is then sold across it shipped and exported a broad —— nearby villages. they not only want to preserve the craft but develop the business so it becomes a big exporterfor the country. you have been watching newsday. stay with us. we‘ll have more on facebook‘s mixed fortunes. shares jump after ad revenues surged but now it faces a huge damages bill.

and we‘ll leave you with pictures from hawaii of a fire—hose of lava, flowing from the kilauea volcano into the pacific ocean. the authorities are warning visitors, who‘re trying to get a closer look, at stay out of the off—limits area. the us geological survey has estimated, that one to two million gallons of lava, flows into the ocean each hour. they‘re not sure how long the lava stream will last. that‘s all for now — stay with bbc world news. good morning. the weather over the next few days will come in off the atlantic. looking at satellite imagery from the last 24 hours or so. cloud coming our way. areas of low pressure. windy weather across the uk. rain at times as well. you will have to deal with it first thing this morning. overnight rain clearing away from parts of cornwall and pembrokeshire quickly in the morning. a damp start in wales and south—west england. spreading to the south—east and south—west midlands. here is where we get the best chance of starting the day dry. gusty around western areas in particular.

temperatures will be up first thing. a mild start. the brightest weather will be in the north of scotland. in the wind we will see severe gales around the coast in the west and south. blustery for all of you. rain initially across wales and the south—west spreading across eastern england and parts of the north—west of scotland later on. fairly erratic. brighter weather into the west during the afternoon before showers get going to end the day and going to the evening. temperatures in double figures. winds will be strong initially but is back. we will see temperatures drop back into single figures. the breeze will pick up again. on friday, even windier. not at a later in the day. this area of low pressure has caused us problems. it will impact to a certain degree

the south and south—east of england. the westerly winds will be across the english channel into france. fairly benign. dry and sunny in many areas. a few showers in scotland and northern ireland. many areas in the uk remaining dry. wet and windy weather going into wales and much of southern england. strong to gale force winds developing as well. the strongest will be around the english channel. france will get it but so will the channel islands. 70— 80 mile an hour winds. that will spread into the south—east of england. 40—50 miles an hour. that could cause some disruption. details could change. keep tuned in. wind going into northern england and parts of southern scotland. outbreaks of rain here to start the weekend. a quiet story in the south with sunshine at times. goodbye for now. i‘m kasia madera with bbc world news. our top story: the united states‘ new foreign minister.

rex tillerson is sworn in as american secretary of state. former boss of oil giant exxonmobil rex tillerson has been sworn in as president donald trump‘s main envoy to the world. and the united states‘ new defence secretaryjim mattis is making his first trip abroad, heading to south korea and japan with concerns over north korea‘s nuclear weapons high on his agenda. and this story is trending on bbc.com: never ones to do things by halves, beyonce and jay z announce they‘re expecting twins, and the news goes viral instantly. she told fans she wanted to share her love and happiness and has been blessed two times over. that‘s all from me now. stay with bbc world news. and the top story here in the uk: three women and a man who sold hundreds of dogs kept in cages on a puppy farm in essex have been