welcome to bbc news, broadcasting to viewers in north america and around the globe. my name is ben bland. our top stories: donald trump says he's considering a new travel ban after an appeal court refused to reinstate his suspended restrictions. police in brazil have reached a deal to end a week long strike that has led to a wave of violence in the espirito santo region. there are security concerns in poland after prime minister beata szydlo, was injured and taken to hospital after a car crash. and a race against time. the battle to save over 400 whales that beached themselves off the coast of new zealand. hello, donald trump has suggested he'll issue a new ruling to restrict immigration next week.

it's after an appeals court upheld a suspension of his ban on people entering the us from seven mainly muslim countries. it could mean that there may not be an appeal to the supreme court. his latest statement on the travel ban was made on board air force one. let's have a listen. reporters: hi. trump: everything good? yeah. press conference good 7 i think it was great. are you comfortable? can we talk about what you said in the press conference? sure. you talked about wanting to win this court battle against the immigration travel ban. you also talk about... the unfortunate part is it takes time statutorily. we'll win that battle. we also have a lot of other options, including just filing a brand—new order on monday. is that your plan? it may well be but i like to surprise you. we need speed for reasons of security, so it could very well be that we do. what are some of the changes... very little. in honour of the decision,

we will perhaps do that, we'll see but on monday, we'll see. you talked about new security measures, is that separate from potentially writing a new... we're going to have very, very strong vetting, i call it extreme vetting, and we're going to have very strong security in our country. we are going to have people coming into our country that want to be here for good reasons. 0ur washington correspondent david willis explains what choices president trump has. lawyers for the us justice department will be burning the midnight oil. they are probably at work just midnight oil. they are probably at workjust behind me he, working out what they can do. what the chances are of success. they basically have three options, they can take this to the supreme court which is currently locked at 4—4, with one position

vacant. that is be field britain filled by neil call such, provided he gets confirmation from the senate. 0r, he gets confirmation from the senate. or, he could get a legislative order to go around some of the concerns the court has expressed, particularly that this potentially amounts to a ban on a single religion. that is something thatis single religion. that is something that is contrary to the constitution —— neil gorsuch. they can also take it back to the appeals panel in san francisco and keep it around until such time as neil gorsuch is in position and there is a chance that donald trump may win the day. he did say on his aeroplane today that time is of the essence with this, and he does seem to be losing patience with the court system. i think that he would be very reluctant to have to embrace the prospect of a new executive order, for the simple reason that it would be a loss of

face. that is one of his hallmark promises from the campaign, to tighten up the us immigration system and clamp down on people from countries from that list, to basically make the country safer. he made various comments today that we re made various comments today that were along those lines. president trump is learning the hard way that running a business and running a country, especially one the size of the united states, they are com pletely the united states, they are completely different things. earlier, donald trump hosted japan's prime minister shinzo abe at the white house. from there, they travelled together to mr trump's estate mar—a—lago. president trump has said he is committed to the security of japan, and that their alliance is the cornerstone of peace and stability in the asia pacific region. mr abe said the two leaders would also discuss the trans—pacific trade deal. you can get more on all our stories by going to the bbc news website, where there's in—depth coverage of the political battle over

president trump's immigration ban. go to bbc.com/news. police in brazil have reached a deal to end a week long strike that has led to a wave of violence in the espirito santo region. officers had been demanding higher pay and their absence from the streets led to an increase in assaults, robberies and shootings. greg dawson reports. this has become a familiar scene in brazil's espirito santo region: a community in silence as another body is carried away. translation: i want to move away from here, because i do not like this place. it is very difficult. every day there are killings, shootings, every day i am scared. more than 100 people have died in the violence is the police strike began a week ago. officers have been demanding

higher salaries after four years of frozen wages. but their absence has created a lawless vacuum, with dozens of shops looted and many businesses closed because of eilers. outside the police medical centre in the region's capital, vitoria, this woman waits for the body of her husband, shot dead in a robbery. translation: nobody is protecting the city. it is horrible. every day there are people who die or get robbed. when you leave home, you do not know if you will come home again. the police force must come back to patrol. in the absence of police, soldiers have been patrolling the streets in tanks. before this new deal was agreed, officials have been threatening the officers with criminal charges of rebellion. translation: it will take time to recuperate the image of the police amongst the people, because this movement managed to throw the local society in the mud, and stabbed them in the back. with an agreement finally in place,

it is hoped that officers will be back patrolling the streets this weekend, but security concerns remain. brazil is enduring its worst recession in decades, and with a 20—year cap on public spending in place, fighting crime has become an even bigger challenge. in other news: at least 17 people died after a crush at a football stadium in angola. an official from the local hospital is quoted as saying that 76 people were also injured after a crowd of people stormed the gates at the january fourth stadium, where local teams were playing a match. people in india's most populous state, uttar pradesh, are going to the polls to elect a new assembly. with its population of 200 million, the vote is being seen as a referendum on the government of the prime minister, narendra modi. voting will be staggered over several weeks, with results released in march. a reward of $30,000 is being offered by peruvian

authorities for information leading to the capture of the former president, alehandro toledo, who faces corruption allegations. mr toledo is one of three former presidents being investigated for allegedly taking millions of dollars in bribes from a brazilian company. mr toledo denies the accusations. a controversial investigation costing millions of pounds into claims that british troops abused iraqi civilians, is to be shut down within months. it's after a scathing report by mps described the iraq historic allegations team as an unmitigated failure. they said soldiers under investigation had suffered u na cce pta ble stress. our diplomatic correspondent caroline hawley has the story. it's almost 14 years since british troops invaded iraq and the legacy of the war is still causing controversy. in the aftermath of the occupation, thousands of allegations of abuse were made against british soldiers. and a special team called ihat was set up to investigate them.

the human rights lawyer phil shiner brought most of the claims but last week he was struck off after he'd been found to be dishonest and to have paid agents to drum up business. now the ministry of defence is wrapping up the investigation early. this will be a huge relief to hundreds of british troops who've had these quite unfair allegations hanging over them. they're now being freed of that and we will put in place new measures now to ensure this never happens again, that there are proper safeguards to prevent completely malicious and unfounded allegations being made against our brave servicemen and women. the most serious allegations to be made were of murder and mutilation after this battle in 2004. the claims were false. a soldier who was there, decorated for his bravery, told us of the pain he'd been put through. you're under so much pressure on operations as it is. and when you hold your values and standards at the highest regard, to then come back and have that questioned for your actions you did on the ground, which you thought were right under extreme pressure, in extreme circumstances,

to come home, it's damaging for individuals and also for the regiment and the british army as a whole. there's no doubt that some abuses did happen in iraq, these were detainees being beaten in basra in 2003. and over the past few years the ministry of defence has paid out millions in compensation. but the iraq historic allegations team has been criticised for getting out of hand. it was set up seven years ago and it has had to examine more than 3,000 claims. it's cost over £34 million. but no soldiers have been prosecuted as a result. ihat and its work has always been controversial in the military but the downfall of phil shiner and mounting concern over the toll it was taking on former soldiers and their families has led the mod to act. i think this is something really important, it will make a big

statement to the army and most importantly of all it shows that the government is foursquare behind supporting the army and providing it with the appropriate framework in which our soldiers can deal with those very difficult operational decisions that they have to deal with. of all the allegations made over the course of britain's long involvement in iraq, the ministry of defence now says that by the summer only about 20 will be left to be investigated. french police have arrested four people in the southern city of montpellier on suspicion of planning a terrorist attack. they had apparently bought chemicals that can be used to make bombs, and a makeshift laboratory was found during a search. police said they were detained after they bought chemicals that can be used to make bombs. naomi grimley has more about what substances have been found. this latest plot saw four people arrested, three men and a 16—year—old woman. and in their possession was found acetone. now, that's significant because it's

a highly flammable liquid that can be used to make the explosive tatp and the tatp was exactly the kind of explosive that was used in the november 2015 paris attacks and the brussels attacks last year. that might explain why the authorities are particularly worried about this plot and they do say that an attack, a series of bombs, were in preparation and an attack was imminent. it comes at a time when france and indeed paris in particular is under high alert, a state of high alert. emergency laws are in place, they have been ever since the november attacks in 2015 and they have been extended on a rolling basis. there's also a particular worry because security is high up the agenda as we move towards the presidential elections, the first round of which is at the end of april. so you can see guards on the street and indeed yesterday the eiffel tower announced that it was going to put a reinforced glass screen around the base of it, and that's just an example of how some of these security measures are becoming more permanent. the polish prime minister,

beata szydlo, has been injured and taken to hospital after her official car hit a tree in the southern polish town of oswiecim. police say it was an accident but, as bill hayton reports, it's raised concerns about security. on the right, a tree, on the left, a car, and in the middle, the official limousine of the polish prime minister. she was travelling through her home town in of oswiecim in southern poland on friday evening with a police escort. translation: the car suddenly turned

left while being overtaken with the car with the prime minister on board. the prime minister as well as the driver and security guard were injured due to the crash. the prime minister was wearing a seatbelt and suffered only minor injuries. she was treated in a local hospital, but was flown to warsaw for further checks. police said the driver of the other car was a local young man who was sober. the crash has raised concerns about government security. just two weeks ago, the polish defence minister was involved in an eight car pileup, and last march the president's car moved off a motorway when its tyre burst at high speed. neither man was injured. the latest crash has prompted the interior minister to call an emergency meeting with the government protection service. state prosecutors have opened an investigation into what happened. stay with us on bbc news, still to come: how the art and the history of the tattoo artist is being celebrated in new york. there is nelson mandela.

mr nelson mandela, a free man, taking his first steps into a new south africa. iran's spiritual leader ayatollah khomeini has said he's passed a death sentence on salman rushdie, the british author of a book which many muslims say is blasphemous. the people of haiti have flocked to church to give thanks for the ousting of their former president, 'ba by doc' duvalier. because of his considerable value as a stallion, shergar was kept in a special secure box in the stud farm's central block. shergar was driven away in a horse box the thieves had brought with them. there stepped down from the plane figure in mourning. elizabeth ii, queen of this realm and of all her other realms and territories. head of the commonwealth, defender of the faith. this is bbc news.

i'm ben bland. the latest headlines: dinner with japan's prime minister in florida as president trump contemplates a new ruling to restrict immigration. police in brazil have reached a deal to end a week—long strike that has led to a wave of violence in the espirito santo region. let's talk a little bit more now about president trump. he and his chinese counterpart, xijinping, have held their first telephone conversation. during the call, described as "cordial," mr trump agreed to honour the so—called one china policy, which he'd previously threatened to re—examine. it relates to the status of the island of taiwan, which has its own government but which beijing sees as a breakaway province. the one china policy acknowledges there is only one chinese government and that diplomatic relations must be with china, not taiwan. our china editor, carrie gracie,

reports from the taiwanese capital taipei. people in taiwan have more freedom of expression than people in china. after 70 years of governing itself, this noisy democracy has a mind of its own. taiwan even has political satire. in this animation studio, they are notjust mocking their own president but mr xi and mr trump as well. we have 1800 missiles pointed our way but at the same time in taiwan we have absolute freedom to do anything we want, so satire is one of the good things we need to push because it helps taiwan to get its name out there. beijing doesn't do satire. it's threatened to retake taiwan by force, and it sailed its aircraft carrier past the island last month to show that it means business. for beijing this, the island of taiwan,

is the last piece in a jigsaw. it's the piece they say will finally reunite a nation broken up and humiliated by colonial powers two centuries ago. to let taiwan float off towards independence, or even worse, to let it become part of an american—led alliance against china in these waters, well, that, to beijing, would be unthinkable. the taiwanese navy is no match for china's. it's the american fleet which protects taiwan. back in december, it looked as if donald trump would go further. he took a call from the taiwanese president and hinted at recognition for taiwan. now, president trump has backed down. in his phone call with president xi, he returned to the so—called

one china policy that beijing insists on. and many taiwanese reluctantly accept the status quo. translation: ideally, i would choose independence but in the real world independence is impossible. it would mean war with china. messages of peace for the year ahead at taipei's lantern festival. but their future is fragile — caught between an unpredictable america and an implacable china. their hopes and fears are low priority to both. romania's political system is still in deadlock as protesters continue their demonstrations, demanding further changes in government.

it comes after the country's justice minister resigned on thursday after he was forced to abandon a decree which would have seen large swathes of corruption amongst officials decriminalised. sophia tran—thomson has this report. triumphant, over the resignation of romania's justice triumphant, over the resignation of romania'sjustice minister. triumphant, over the resignation of romania's justice minister. but these demonstrators are not taking to the streets entirely in celebration. for almost a fortnight, hundreds of thousands of romanians have been protesting across the country, fighting against a decree that would have effectively shielded government authorities of corruption if the amount of money involved was less tha n if the amount of money involved was less than $47,000. it could have seen dozens of officials released from prison, and hundreds of lloyd trial. the protesters were heard, and last sunday the government rescinded the degree. many are still not satisfied. they are liars, all liars. politicians that are lying to us every liars. politicians that are lying to us every single day. we will continue, until they will resign. us every single day. we will continue, until they will resignm is absolutely mind—boggling. but i

don't know what to make of it. it is like a different day mentioned, different reality. but i am here, i will be here tomorrow and the day after tomorrow, and we can only hope. although the government does have some support. the party advocates shouted for romania to wa ke advocates shouted for romania to wake up on friday, and accused the anticorruption wake up on friday, and accused the anticorru ption protesters of wake up on friday, and accused the anticorruption protesters of being paid for by the president, who denounced the bill. with protests both for and against the government continuing, the country remains firmly divided. the foreign minister says the european union will be consulted, and a large—scale public debate will be held. it is not the end. they are doing some stuff to distract us, but the fight is not over. we need better results. until

a resolution is found it seems romanians will not let this issue be forgotten, and the protests will continue. more than 400 whales have beached on the coast of new zealand, one of the worst whale strandings ever seen there. around 300 have already died and time is running out for the rest. fiona bruce has more. stranded, distressed and barely alive. volunteers have come from far and wide to save the whales beached in new zealand overnight. most of them were already dead. this is the third—largest mass stranding that we've recorded in our history and so it's a very large one, logistically it's a massive undertaking. the whales started stranding last night, round about ten o'clock last night. we were notified of that, and then this morning when they went out and checked on them, most of the whales were already dead. i've never experienced death like this before. you know, it's... for such a majestic animal it's really strange

to see them doing this. there's a lot of death here, eh, which is a sad, sad thing, but, hey, if we can get some of them out it's got to be a good thing. scientists don't know exactly why whales beach themselves. it can be due to sickness or injury. anybody that doesn't have a sheet over the whale, make sure those sheets are really nice and wet, not covering the blowhole... rescuers tried to re—float some of the whales at high tide, but some just turned straight back to shore. whale strandings in new zealand are common. just two years earlier 200 whales beached here. but this is one of the country's worst mass strandings. a new exhibition in new york is celebrating the city's rich history when it comes to modern tattooing. from native american body art to sailors who had their arms inked, there's great meaning behind each tattoo. so we visited the new york historical society to have a look. jack london once said, show me a man with a tattoo and i'll show you a man with a story.

behind every tattoo, there is meaning. this exhibition explores 300 years of history of tattooing in new york. native americans use them for ritualistic purposes. or to celebrate victories in battle. sailors used them for protection in the british navy and against drowning. women found tattoos as symbols of symbols of expression. but it's here in new york city where the first tattoo shop opened in the 1800s. and it's here where the electric tattoo machine was made first. we like to take pride in that. tattoos stand as indelible marks of empowerment. in the past three decades, we have seen a promotion of this incredible art form. some of the most powerful examples i could find are the tattoos that breast cancer survivors

get after surgeries. i think tattoos can play an important part when it comes to dealing with trauma or memories. parts of the north—eastern united states are braced for more blizzards over the weekend. forecast is predict the new england region will be blanketed with up to 18 inches of snow. it comes after a storm on thursday left many areas without power. sun meichen highways were closed and thousands of flights were cancelled. —— some major highways. and you can get in touch with me and most of the team on twitter. i'm @benmbland. plenty more news for you on the website as well. thanks for watching. hi there.

we have seen a few snow showers over the last few hours, but it has been pretty dull and cloudy. one place that saw some sunshine, some snow on the ground at aberdeen and some sun poking through the clouds. that's coming in from the north sea, showers working westwards. that will continue overnight. could be covering some places, icy temperatures dipping below freezing. and lows as low as —10 in the highlands of scotland. a freezing cold start but will be greeted with some sunny skies across the highlands and western isles. cloudy elsewhere in scotland with some showers still working in. also working across eastern towns of england, some significant snow across the tops of the pennines is possible. could get anywhere across north—east england. some places will miss out on heavy snow showers. further south, quite a bit of cloud. some flurries, now and then, perhaps some brightness towards the south—west england. and around western wales, probably hanging onto a of sunshine. some snow flurries in the forecast.

northern ireland starting on a cold note. a fairly widespread frost, should see some sunshine to start the day. now, through the morning, there will be a tendency for snow to transition back to rain at low levels. continuing to fall over the pennines. here over the next 24 hours, we could see as much as ten centimetres or more building up over the higher parts, above 300 metres elevation or so. to the north, a transition of snow turning back to rain on saturday. for the six nations rugby union, wales take on england. the cloud will be cold, and the chance of an odd shower. perhaps a bit wintry, but not causing any issues. now, going through saturday nighttime, again, snow showers continuing to feed in across the pennines. we may see some snow getting down to the lower levels as well through the night. temperatures in the towns and cities hovering close to freezing.

where we have those clearer skies, we will see a frost and could be quite sharp in northern scotland. another day of cold winds on sunday. again, plenty of showers coming in from the north sea. again, for most, dull and cloudy. quite a tendency for the snow showers to turn back to rain at lower elevations. the air getting slightly less cold, but still chilly under these grey skies. looking at the forecast for the next few days, temperatures rising. slowly, turning milder, but that will take a long time and it will be awhile before we see an end the cold easterly winds. the latest headlines from bbc news. donald trump is hosting japan's prime minister in florida as he contemplates a new ruling to restrict immigration. both leaders travelled on air force one where mr trump told reporters that a "brand new order" banning people entering the us from seven mainly muslim countries

could be issued as soon as monday. a controversial investigation costing tens of millions of pounds, into claims that british troops abused iraqi civilians, is to be shut down. it follows a report by mps into the iraq historic allegations team which it described as an unmitigated failure, investigating thousands of claims unsupported by "credible evidence". police in brazil have reached a deal to end a week long strike that has led to a wave of violence in the espirito santo region. officers had been demanding higher pay and their absence from the streets led to an increase in assaults, robberies and shootings.