i'm sharanjit leyl in singapore. the headlines: president trump's address to congress goes down well. the dowjones closes at a record high, after he promises a massive infrastructure investment programme. iraqi forces capture the last major road out of western mosul, to stop islamic state militants fleeing the city, but civilians are still trapped. indeed, some of the people i've spoken to here today say that other civilians have been forced by islamic state to go behind the frontlines and act as human shields. these people, in some ways, are the lucky ones. they've been able to escape the war. after the assassination of the half—brother of the north korean leader, we report on the ups and downs of being a member of the kim dynasty. and british scientists discover what they say could be the earliest evidence of life on earth.

good morning. it is 7:00am in singapore, 11:00pm in london and 8:00pm in the evening in washington, where the response to donald trump's first speech to the us congress since taking office has been largely positive. the president has himself tweeted to simply say thank you. and the financial markets seemed to approve, with the dowjones closing at a record high, an apparent endorsement of his calls for a massive infrastructure investment programme. the battle now for the president will be how much can he get through congress, and how it will be paid for. here is our north america editorjon sopel. they say that practice makes perfect.

and, when you're singing a new tune, probably best to give it the full rehearsal. the president of the united states! donald trump's tone couldn't have been more different — warm, inclusive, unifying, and optimistic. what we are witnessing today is the renewal of the american spirit. 0ur allies will find that america's once again ready to lead. applause. and, for anxious european nations, supportive words on nato. we strongly support nato, an alliance forged with the bombs of two world wars, that dethroned fascism, and a cold war, and defeated communism. not everything was from the new album. there were the greatest hits, too. tonight i am also calling on this congress to repeal and replace 0bamacare.

we will soon begin the construction of a great, great wall along our southern border. but on immigration there was also a suggestion there could be reform. and there were other measures that should have pleased democrats, like paid maternity leave, and a massive infrastructure programme. but mostly they sat stony—faced. the most moving part of the night came when he spoke to the widow of navy seal ryan 0wens, killed in yemen in the first combat operation ordered by the new commander—in—chief. ryan's legacy is etched into eternity. thank you. and then an appeal for america to seize the moment. believe in your future, and believe once more in america. thank you, god bless you, and god bless the united states. having taken a lot of flak for the

way they have done business since he took office, the white house is basking in the glow of last night's address. it was structured and delivered with discipline. you might almost say it was a conventional political speech from this most unconventional politician. a look at some of the day's other main stories: iraqi soldiers say they have taken control of the last major road out of western mosul, preventing militants from so—called islamic state from escaping. government forces already control the eastern side of the city. they are now engaged in a major offensive aimed at capturing its western half. they claim that more than 25,000 people have fled the fighting. the bbc‘s wyre davies reports from a newly established refugee camp, that is already filling up quickly. 0ne aid agency has described this

as the world's worst humanitarian crisis in the last decade. and, when you see these scenes, it doesn't seem to be an over exaggeration. this camp was only set up two days ago, yet the un and other agencies say it will be full within five days. that's 30,000 people in just five days, and still that is not enough. there are an estimated 750,000 civilians trapped inside western mosul. perhpas as many as 250,000—300,000 of those are expected to come to these camps as the fighting intensifies and their areas are cleared. here, people are queueing for food and for water. the psychological impact of the war is almost unbelievable. these children have not been to school for two or three years, after islamic state took over their cities. they've seen some terrible things. they've seen people executed for trying to leave the city. indeed, some of the people i've spoken to here today say that other civilians have been forced by islamic state to go behind

the frontlines and act as human shields. these people, in some ways, are the lucky ones. they've been able to escape the war, the brutality of the islamic state and the bombardment from government forces. but these camps, again, are going to fill up in the next few days. there is a humanitarian crisis. more help is needed as more people tried to escape from western mosul. also making news today: a un report has accused the syrian government and rebel forces of committing war crimes during last year's battle for aleppo. investigators interviewed almost 300 witnesses, examined satellite images and collected forensic evidence. they have concluded the syrian air force dropped chemical weapons on the rebel—held eastern half of aleppo. the report also says the evacuation of east aleppo amounted to forced displacement. rebel groups are accused of crimes including shelling western aleppo, withholding aid, and using civilians as human shields. the un says it has no evidence linking russia to specific war crimes involving illegal chemical weapons, despite it being closely involved with bombing campaigns. another key finding concerns this

fatal attack on an aid convoy last september. after reviewing evidence, including witness testimony and satellite images, investigators have concluded the syrian government was responsible. 14 people died. here is the chair of the un investigation team, paulo pinheiro. what happened in aleppo shows how much the warring parties, all the warring parties, disregard international law, and how little they fear accountability. we hope that our report not only documents the events in aleppo but also that it helps to ensure that those responsible for this renewed situation one day are brought to justice. human rights observers say the syrian army and its allies have entered palmyra, which is currently occupied by so—called islamic state. these pictures show pro—government forces on the outskirts of the city

two days ago. the development comes after fierce battles against is. it is understood the army has taken control of a western neighbourhood in the city. the french presidential candidate francois fillon has suffered another blow after the small centrist party udi said it was suspending its support for his campaign. mr fillon is refusing to quit the race, despite now facing a formal investigation over alleged fraud. he denies any wrongdoing. the zimbabwean president, robert mugabe, has travelled to singapore for a medical check—up, days after celebrating his 93rd birthday. his spokesman said the check—up was routine, and the 93—year old president was expected back in zimbabwe next week. but it is somewhat unusual for his medical trips to be made public. the upper house of the british parliament, the house of lords, has voted to require the government to protect the right of more than three million europeans living

in britain to stay in the country when the uk leaves the european union. it is the first defeat for the government in the passage of a bill to start the leaving process. the vote will delay but not block the bill. the company which owns the messaging service snapchat has been valued at $24 billion. that is after it successfully sold 200 million of its shares to big investors in new york. those investment funds and banks will be able to start trading snap incorporated shares on thursday. it is the biggest wall street debut of a tech company since facebook in 2012. deadly storms like this one in illinois, in the us, have killed three people, after pounding through several states in the midwest. packed with hailstones the size of baseballs, winds above 100 mph, and torrential rain, they have destroyed homes, leaving thousands without power. and one item of sports news: barcelona football club have confirmed that their manager, luis enrique, will be leaving at the end of this season.

he has led the team to two la liga titles, the copa del rey twice, and the champions league, since taking over in 2015. no reason has been given, but barcelona say it is mr enrique‘s decision, and that he has proven himself to be a great coach, who brought great success. and there will be more on that in sport today, in half an hour's time. as we know, two women have been charged with the murder of kimjong—nam, the half—brother of the north korean leader. malaysian police believe they wiped the deadly nerve agent vx on his face at kuala lumpur airport, just over a fortnight ago. the women claim they thought they were taking part in a prank. but behind all the speculation and extraordinary twists is another story, that of the kim dynasty itself. rupert wingfield—hayes has been looking at the family, and why kimjong—nam was never going to escape the dangerous attention of his brother. why would the young dictator of north korea want to kill

his own brother? well, to understand north korea, you really have to think of it as being an absolute monarchy — the kim dynasty. the dynasty was founded by kim il—sung, after the second world war. when the old man died, in 1984, his son kim jong—il ascended the throne. he died five years ago, and his son kim jong—un then became the new young king. but kim jong—un is very young, very inexperienced, and very insecure, and since he came to power, he has been killing lots of people. the people that kim jong—un appears to feels most threatened

by are his own family, and there are several key figures in this story. the most important and most powerful was kim jong—un‘s uncle, jang song—thaek. at the time he came to power, jang was the most powerful man in north korea, with a network of allies across the country and throughout the region. one of them was his own nephew, jang yong—chol, who was the ambassador here in malaysia. and, through jang yong—chol, he was able to keep in touch with his other nephew, kim jong—nam. but, in 2013, kimjong—un began the biggest purge in more than 50 years, and it began with his uncle, jang song—thaek, who was arrested and executed by firing squad. over the next month, his whole family was rounded up, including his nephew,

the ambassador. he too was recalled to pyongyang and executed. that left kim jong—nam isolated and alone, and without any support. as a boy, kimjong—nam was his father's favourite son and heir, but this family photo tells a chilling story. his cousin shot in the head. his aunt and her daughter in exile and hiding. and now kimjong—nam killed with a banned nerve agent. in north korea, membership of the royal family is no guarantee of a long or happy life. life on earth began hundreds of millions of years earlier than previously thought, that is according to researchers

who have discovered fossils of one of the earliest living organisms. the creature, half the width of a human hair, lived more than four billion years ago, not long after the formation of the earth. 0ur science correspondent pallab ghosh has more. how did life begin? it is one of humanity's biggest questions. the discovery of some of the first lifeforms to have ever existed on earth may begin to provide some answers. they were discovered in these rocks, which were found in canada. and here it is — one of the planet's first inhabitants. it was less than the width ofa human hair, and very simple. but it ate and consumed oxygen, like we do. and, to the shock of the scientist who discovered it, the lifeforms existed hundreds of millions of years

before anyone expected. we've got it. we've got the oldest fossils on the planet. this is exciting. it relates us to our origin. this is one of the reasons for intelligent life to evolve. so where does the lifeform fit in, in the story of life on earth? the earth formed just over 11.5 billion years ago, a molten mass of rock that began to cool. not long after that came the first oceans, which spread all across the planet. it was right at the bottom of those primordial oceans that some of the first lifeforms emerged, 4.8 billion years ago. cracks began to form on the surface, springing forth warm water and minerals. 1 billion years ago, life got started.

all sorts of new types of organisms exploded on the scene over the next few billion years. the first humans evolved around 2.5 million years ago, and modern humans arrived very recently, by comparison, just over 200,000 years ago. the claim that living organisms emerged on earth so early is controversial, but if confirmed, indicates that life is an unstoppable force, and suggests that the universe is teeming with it. you are watching newsday on the bbc. still to come on the programme: does this look like a familiar sight? so which city has the worst traffic jams in asia? we took to the streets to find out. first the plates slipped gently off the restaurant tables. then suddenly the tables, the chairs and people crashed sideways and downwards and it was a matter of seconds before the ferry lurched onto her side. the hydrogen bomb on a remote pacific atoll. the americans had successfully tested a weapon whose explosive force dwarfed that of the bomb dropped on hiroshima. i had heard the news earlier

and so my heart went bang and bang. the constitutional rights of these marchers have their rights as citizens of the united states and they should be protected even in the right to test them out so they don't get their heads broken and are sent to hospital. this religious controversy, i know you don't want to say too much about it, but does it worry you it's going to boil up when you get to the stage? well, it worries me, yeah. but everything will be all right in the end as they say. this is newsday on the bbc. i'm sharanjit leyl in singapore. i'm karin gianone in london. our top stories: president trump's speech to congress sees a record surge in the us stocks as investors respond to his promise of a massive infrastructure investment programme. iraqi forces are reported to have captured the last major road out of western mosul preventing islamic state militants fleeing

but hundreds of thousands of civilians are still trapped in the city. let's take a look at some front pages from around the world. we'll start with the front page of the japan times. it reports on donald trump's speech and says that although he had a domestic agenda, he used the speech to remind security allies, including japan, that they must pay their fair share of the alliances‘ costs. the front page of the straits times gave further reaction. reporting that the dow hit new highs and that the markets seemed to embrace the softer tone that mr trump struck in his first address to congress. and the china daily has a picture of the vietnamese citizen doan thi huong leaving a courtroom in malaysia after she and an indonesian woman were charged with the murder of kim jong—nam.

so that's the papers. what's causing a buzz online, karin? well, here's something that's trending right now. the two accountants responsible for the best picture award mix—up at this year's 0scars have been banished from the red carpet. the president of the american film academy has said they will never work on the awards again. the error happened because one of the two accountants employed to organise the envelopes had been distracted before the announcement by a tweet. pricewaterhousecoopers, which counts the votes and organises the envelopes, has apologised for the mix—up. it has been described as the biggest mistake in the 89 years of academy awards history. on his first day as president, donald trump signed a ban on us government money going to international groups that perform or even provide information on abortions. many global charities are worried

this order will hit healthcare for women, particularly in poor and developing countries. to try to counter this, a special fundraising conference is taking place in belgium called she decides. the bbc‘s yogita limaye has been to nepal, a nation that depends heavily on international aid. she's come here to get an abortion. it's not illegal in nepal, but there is extreme social stigma around it. and so she doesn't want to show her face. for women like her, a proper medicalfacility like this one, run by a global charity, is a refuge. many end up going to illegal clinics. this man lost a loved one to an unsafe abortion. miles away from his village, he agrees to talk to me. his wife's sister died after taking pills she was given to end her pregnancy.

she wasjust 19. translation: the clinic she went to did not even have a sign, nobody that looked like a nurse, let alone medicines. they said she would be fine in another couple of days. we tried to rush her to a proper hospital, but she bled to death on the way. nearly half of all pregnancies in nepal are unintended, which means that safe abortion services are crucial. this country heavily depends on charities to provide them. but now, those organisations will no longer be able to get any money from america, if they continue to perform abortions. the us government doesn't directly fund abortion services in any country. here in nepal, a lot of theirfunds go towards family planning activities, provided by ngos. but typically, large charities offer both. and now they stand to lose us aid

money which could leave a big hole in theirfinances. president trump's order goes one step further than previous republican governments. 0rganisations won't even be allowed to tell women that abortion is an option. mari stopes, who runs the centre, says they cannot agree to those terms. and so the family planning services they provide with us money could be severely impacted. if we lose that funding, then there is one in four women who want family—planning and cannot access it. the reality is those women who cannot get access that funding will need abortion services at some point in their life. we estimate that 80,000 women will try to access this, and half of these, through no fault of their own, will go to an unsafe provider. it's a move that's meant to be anti—abortion.

but they won't end it in countries like this one, they could become more unsafe. and for many of you living in this region. which city has the busiest roads? bangkok was voted the city with the worst traffic jams of 2016, but i'm not sure whether that's accurate. aren't there worse cities across asia? we took to the streets to find out. i think manila traffic is worse than bangkok, because the drivers have

no discipline at all. so they don't follow rules or laws on traffic, so they just do whatever they want. i've never been to bangkok. but the traffic in jakarta is very bad. i always assume that traffic here is the worst in the world. the traffic in mumbai is totally crazy. it takes me like an hour to cover the shortest distances, and you get super aggravated because people drive half an inch away from you. i don't know about you but my money is really onjakarta for the worst traffic but you might not agree! you have been watching newsday. stay with us. coming up: everyone enjoys being pampered but now it seems that it's notjust adults.

babies in indonesia are also getting in on the spa action and it's going swimmingly. they look very happy! never too young for a spa treatment! and before we go, let's take a look at these pictures from rio in brazil, where the world—famous carnival has now come to an end. and to wrap it up, it was the turn of the children to have a go at showing us their best samba moves. it's not just for fun, this junior carnival is a serious competition, all the children taking part are members of samba schools in rio. that's all for now. stay with bbc world news. thanks very much for watching newsday. well, a very blustery night out there for some of us, particularly across southern parts

of the uk, especially the south—west, around the bristol channel. breezy inland too. and really, the weather is going to be very unsettled over the next few days. lots of clouds, lots of weather fronts out there in the atlantic, ready to come our way. this is what we've got through the early hours. here are the winds, quite strong in the south. some rain and hill snow across more central parts of the uk. and then we've got temperatures near freezing across the north, with some showers as well. now, the good news is that the winds will ease, eventually, through the course of the morning. it will still stay relatively breezy, and you can see there's a bit of cloud and rain again across parts of the midlands wales and the north—west in the morning. but i think by lunchtime, most of the uk should be enjoying fine weather. so this is a snapshot of thursday at 3pm in the afternoon. predominantly sunny, really a very pleasant day, quite breezy, though, still, especially across that south—eastern portion of the uk.

some nice weather through yorkshire, not so bad in the north—west. but then, eventually, into northern ireland and scotland, we run into here, and there's quite a few showers around, and it feels on the chilly side, as well. and there is a rain on the way for northern ireland. that won't arrive until thursday evening. clearfor a time in the evening across the rest of the country, before more rain. so these are low pressures here spiralling our way. this is the start of a very unsettled period through friday. and that's going to take us right into sunday, as well. so rain around on friday, at least for some of us, not necessarily there in scotland. could be even sunny there in the afternoon. and then by the time we get to saturday, that weather front‘s still with us, or at least that area of low pressure is with us, with the cloud and rain spiralling around it. it will be quite breezy, as well. wherever they rain occurs, it is going to feel on the chilly side, probably no higher than about six degrees, six or seven degrees, across some of these more northern areas, and barely touching double figures in the south. plymouth, i suspect, around 9. that takes us across saturday into europe then.

and what's it looking like across the rest of the continent? actually, quite a bit slow to come across the alps, there, unsettled for spain. very unsettled, as we have established, across the uk, and also into france, as well. so a large chunk of western europe experiencing that very changeable weather on saturday. and into sunday, the same thing continues. you can see lots of fronts coming here. low pressure across the uk. brolly to hand. but clearly there will be breaks in the weather. it is not pouring all the time. here is the weather for the weekend if you happen to be thinking about it already. so, wet at times, and the winds will be quite strong, and it will feel on the chilly side. i'm karin giannone with bbc world news. our top story: president trump's optimistic speech to congress hits its mark with many, as the financial markets soar to a record high. but top democrats say the speech is detached from reality, accusing donald trump of preaching a message of unity but failing to back that up with action. iraqi forces are reported to have captured the last major road out

of western mosul, preventing islamic state militants fleeing. but hundreds of thousands of civilians are trapped in the city. and this story is trending on bbc.com: scientists have discovered that life on earth began hundreds of millions of years earlier than previously thought. that is because they found this fossil of a creature that lived more than four billion years ago. that's all from me now. stay with bbc world news. the story in the uk: the government has suffered its