tonight at 10: police say there's no evidence to link the westminster attacker with so—called islamic state. but they say khalid masood, who was described by is as one of their soldiers, had clearly been interested injihad. masood drove his car at over 70 miles an hour across westminster bridge, hitting dozens of people in his path. i would more describe him as somebody who's been exploited, and a man who is clearly a lone actor, who has come up from the basement, so to speak, to commit a murderous and cowardly attack. the family of one of the victims — the american tourist kurt cochran — say they bear no ill will following the atrocity. he was an amazing individual who loved everyone, and tried to make the world a better place. and during the day, the attacker‘s mother has spoken for the first time about the atrocity, expressing her shock and sadness. also tonight... nicola sturgeon and theresa may hold their first face—to—face talks since the demand

for a new independence referendum, and two days before the brexit process is triggered. in iraq, as the battle for mosul intensifies, we report on the plight of thousands of civilians. explosion. that is an inaccurate weapon. it might be good for the tempo of the military operation, but it isn't necessarily good for preserving civilian lives. in northern ireland, the political parties get extra time to try to reach a deal on forming a new power—sharing executive. and — is this the kind of show that could transform the world of county cricket in england and wales? and coming up in sportsday on bbc news: england under—21s continue their preparations for the european championship this summer, with a comfortable 4—0 victory over denmark. good evening.

the metropolitan police says there's no evidence of any link between khalid masood, the man responsible for the westminster attack last week, and the islamic state group or al-qaeda. officers said that masood "clearly had an interest injihad", and they were still investigating the circumstances that led to the attack, which claimed four lives, and injured dozens of people. masood's mother has broken her silence today, speaking of her "shock and sadness". our home affairs correspondent daniel sandford has the latest. ploughing across westminster bridge at speeds of up to 76 miles an hour, khalid masood, using his hired 4x4 as a weapon.

going back through cctv, detectives have discovered that he drove around westminster sometime before his attack too, possibly on a reconnaissance mission. today, masood's elderly mother, janet ajao, said: detectives have established that the westminster attacker had a clear interest injihad, but have so farfound no evidence that khalid masood discussed his attack with others or had contact with al-qaeda or so—called islamic state, who had described him as a soldier of the caliphate. he's not a soldier. i would more describe him as somebody who has been exploited, and

a man who was clearly a actor who has come up from the basement, so to speak, to commit a murderous and cowardly attack. in the last three minutes before the carnage, masood's phone used to be encrypted messaging service whatsapp. as the mountain of flowers and wreaths grow, detectives made it clear today that the communications that khalid masood had in the immediate build—up to the attack were a main line of inquiry for them. they are asking anybody who heard from him that day to come forward to help them to establish what his state of mind was. there is little doubt that khalid masood had a violent past. danny smith got into an argument with him in 2003, when masood was still called adrian elms. and he just pulled a knife out, and he sort of flinched to see what my reaction would be. i didn't flinch. i just stood there.

i thought, surely he ain't going to stab me for this. and then hejust... full—on punched me, stabbed me straight in the face. on wednesday, one week on from the attack, the westminster coroner will formally begin the inquests into the four people killed before adjourning them for further investigation. on thursday, she will do the same for the man who murdered them, khalid masood. detectives trying to work out when khalid masood was radicalised have ruled out for now his time in prison and they can't find any link with the extremist group during his time when he was living in luton. in fa ct, when he was living in luton. in fact, while he was clearly a very violent young man, he seems to have calmed down at around the time he converted to islam and it was only much more recently that he descended into a world ofjihad on terror. thank you very much. daniel sandford at new scotland yard. during the day, the family of an american tourist who was killed in the westminster attack said they bore no ill will.

kurt and melissa cochran, from utah, were on the final day of a trip to london to celebrate their 25th wedding anniversary when they were hit by the car on westminster bridge, killing mr cochran. the family said they wanted to focus on mr cochran‘s legacy of generosity. 0ur correspondent daniela relph reports. it had been their first visit out of the usa — a tour of europe to celebrate their 25th wedding anniversary. but on the final day of their trip, kurt cochran was killed on westminster bridge. his wife, melissa cochran—payne, seriously injured. today, 13 members of theirfamily spoke publicly for the first time. from utah, they are a mormon family, who have found strength in their faith. i think it's hard for most of us to imagine here what it must be like to lose somebody in this way. can you give us some sense of the impact on the family? i think it's brought us really close together. 0ur family's been always

close together, and we've always had some wonderful, wonderful times together. we just love and support each other so much, and i think it's made us even that much stronger. kurt cochran ran a music studio back home, an enthusiasm supporter of local bands. their song was featured and they're about to get going right here... there have been tribute concerts in his honour. his family overwhelmed by the thousands of messages they've received. what the cochran and payne families have shown today is what happens when you are suddenly affected by an event of this magnitude. it has brought with it trauma, grief and, for them, forgiveness. none of us harbour any ill will or harsh feelings towards this. we love our brother, we love what he brought to the world. that lack of resentment or bitterness — a feeling shared by others injured in the attack. we should sort of try and unify

through love and compassion, rather than through our hatred and anger about what happened. today, tobias ellwood was in parliament square to pay his respects and see the tributes. the foreign office minister had tried so hard to save the life of pc keith palmer last week. this, a chance for him to remember all of those killed. daniela relph, bbc news, westminster. theresa may has held talks with nicola sturgeon, for the first time since the scottish government demanded a new independence referendum. the first minister wants a referendum within two years. she says that brexit has transformed the situation since voters voted against independence in 2014. but the prime minister has restated her view that now is not the time for a second referendum. 0ur scotland editor sarah smith reports. theresa may knows this could be awkward. she's here to talk about her article 50 letter. she's here to press her demand

for a referendum on independence. so no handshakes, no press conference, just a couple of souvenir photographs that neither woman looks like they're enjoying. by stark contrast, their first meeting just eight months ago. then they said they had a good working relationship, not now, as mrs may says she will reject any request for a vote on scottish independence. my position isn't going to change, which is now is not the time to be talking about a second independence referendum, because it wouldn't be fair on the scottish people to ask them to make that decision when the facts aren't clear. also because now is the time when we need to pull together, to make sure we get the best possible dealfor the uk — including the people of scotland. the meeting, which took place on the 15th floor of this hotel, was, i'm told, businesslike and cordial. probably the longest meeting between nicola sturgeon and theresa may yet, but very little was agreed. the scottish government had

been expecting to hear about new powers to be devolved to the scottish parliament after brexit, but there was no detail on that, and when the first minister told the prime minister how she intends to formally request another scottish referendum she was told simply, "you know my position on that". the first minister says mrs may agreed — the shape of the brexit deal should be clear in 18—24 months‘ time, which is when the scottish government want to hold that referendum. i've said that i want people in scotland to have an informed choice when the terms of brexit are clear. she has confirmed to me today that that will be in a period from autumn next year to the spring of 2019. we both agree, now is not the time to ask people to make that choice, but since we both appear to be in agreement as to when that term, the terms of brexit will become clear on her timetable, then that would underline my view that that is the right time. visiting police scotland, theresa may announced a major counterterrorism exercise. the message — the importance of

coordinating security across the uk. when this great union of nations, england, scotland, wales and northern ireland, sets its mind on something, and works together with determination, we are an unstoppable force. in a speech to staff at the department for international development in east kilbride, she said she wants to build a more united nation. but it is scottish independence on the agenda at the holyrood parliament tomorrow, when they'll almost certainly vote to call for a second referendum. sarah smith, bbc news, glasgow. live to westminster and our political editor laura kuenssberg. with just two days until the start of the brexit process, was any realistic prospect of meaningful progress today? i think these two leaders are at a stand—off. it might not be personally bad—tempered but i think it has become politically bad tempered. there has even been spat tonight over what was or wasn't

agreed between the two behind closed doors at their meeting. number ten has disputed the snp and scottish government's suggestion that somehow the prime minister accepted their version of what would be reasonable timetable. i think what we're seeing, just a few weeks since nicola sturgeon put forward her demand to press ahead with a second referendum, it seems abundantly clear that in the first ages at least of this whole process, this complicated path of taking us out of the european union, that the tensions between the scottish government and westminster government are going to be a co nsta nt government are going to be a constant feature of that as it unfolds. this potentially that adds an extra layer to every decision taken in this particular process, how will that decision go down in scotland? how will that decision go down in scotland ? also a how will that decision go down in scotland? also a reminder of how much this is notjust a conversation between us and the rest of the continent, it's conversation as well between the shape of our country, how will decisions be seen in

cardiff, in—store mont, how will decisions be taken in the south—west 01’ decisions be taken in the south—west or right around the country? i think this whole issue between nicola sturgeon and theresa may is a very timely reminder of that. if they had beenin timely reminder of that. if they had been in any doubt, for downing street the consequences of the decisions they take, the path they navigate, which starts formally, finally you might think, on wednesday, will have consequences in every corner of oui’ wednesday, will have consequences in every corner of our country, not just around the eu. laura, thank you very much. laura kuenssberg at westminster. the pentagon says it places the "highest priority" on investigating claims that coalition air strikes, led by the us, killed large numbers of civilians in the iraqi city of mosul ten days ago. in western mosul today, iraqi forces have been intensifying their assault against so called islamic state. but thousands of people are fleeing the city, and they're warning that many civilians are still at risk. with the city still divided between is and the iraqi army, our middle east editorjeremy bowen

reports from the front line in western mosul. this is the iraqi solution to an offensive that's stalled over the last week or so — attack again. it feels as if the air war over mosul is intensifying. the gunship pilots fly low. they seem confident they won't get shot down. and every day, a few thousand more people come walking out of the areas of mosul still held by the jihadists who call themselves islamic state. many said is used them as human shields, shooting out from the cover of their homes and streets, but the response — more air strikes — horrified them. translation: they destroyed our homes, our cars, everything.

they destroyed us. entire families are gone, they are under the rubble. translation: a lot of people died, children, women and men. houses collapsed on them. i lost both my sons. some very sophisticated modern weapons are in this fight, and so are these — locally made rockets over a short range — a blunt instrument. explosions that is an inaccurate weapon. it might be good for the tempo of the military operation, but it isn't necessarily good for preserving civilian lives. but they want to win this battle, and they're using everything they've got.

this family's saved some of their favourite things now that the jihadists have been forced out of their area. is banned television and made them stay through the worst of the fighting as human shields. hassan abdelfatah showed how their flat, still near the front line, was virtually destroyed with them in it. he said that men from is stopped his neighbour taking six daughters to safety, threatening to hang him from his own front door. the people of mosul have been left with impossible choices — risk death by staying in their own homes, or risk death taking their children across a front line. the iraqi authorities advised them to stay put. yassir mohamed ahmed

brought his family onto their front doorstep to watch the battle a couple of hundred metres from the front line. euphoria at liberation from is had stripped away his sense of danger. most of the people arriving in government—held territory are bussed out to camps. many said is fighters forced themselves into their homes. but hamoud suleiman said "don't bomb them with us there". nine of this woman's family were killed in the big raid on the 17th. she said she wasn't escaping the jihadists, but air strikes that use tonnes of bombs on a single sniper. translation: they destroy the houses

when there are one or two or three so—called islamic state men inside them. they turn houses into cemeteries. they bring the dead out burned. we can't recognise them. my children, nine of my family killed. they call them smart bombs, but this is stupid. my grandchildren, two are gone. using more firepower may well speed up victory over thejihadists in mosul, but it is bad. killing civilians is bad for the future of iraq. these people are sunni muslims and they already feel like victims of shia politicians in baghdad. if iraqis are to have any chance of better lives, then all of them need to feel as if their lives matter, as if their survival matters. iraq has been shattered by the years of wars and sectarian conflict

that followed the us and british invasion. even when this war against is is over, it might be too late to put this country back together. jeremy bowen, bbc news, mosul. in northern ireland, the political parties have been given more time to try to form a power—sharing government afterfailing to meet today's deadline. after three weeks of talks, there's still no sign of agreement between the democratic unionist party and sinn fein. the northern ireland secretary james brokenshire said he believes there is no appetite for yet another election, as our ireland correspondent chris buckler reports. there's been a lot of talk in northern ireland about restoring power—sharing, but at times it's felt like sinn fein and the dup have been speaking a very different language. much of the funding for this class for migrant workers in dungannon comes through stormont, but with no government, there's no budget.

and that means this community group can't be sure how much money they'll have once the new financial year begins, and that's just next week. if there's no funding, it would mean imminent closure within two months and alljobs lost. that's how serious it is. those concerns about budgets stretch across all departments including health and education. but at four o'clock, the deadline for an agreement, the politicians weren't electing a first and deputy first minister. the assembly chamber was empty. i think there are a short few weeks in order to resolve matters. the reason i say that is because of this issue, the stark issue in relation to public services here in northern ireland, and the lack of a budget having been set. the northern ireland secretary has a limited number of options. he can call another election, but he's indicated that there is no appetite for that.

however, because he only has to call a vote within a reasonable time period, that does allow more time for further talks. the other option is what's known as direct rule, where the westminster government would take control of the running of northern ireland, at least for a time. last week at martin mcguinness's funeral, the leaders of the dup and sinn fein did reach out to each other. but any signs of friendship were missing at stormont today when arlene foster and michelle 0'neill spoke separately. there's a gulf between the parties on a whole range of issues, from sinn fein‘s demands for legislation to give official status to the irish language to that thorny old problem of how to recognise and deal with northern ireland's troubled past. that all leaves major worries about the future of power—sharing, and in places like this dungannon community group, another generation affected by northern ireland's old divides. chris buckler, bbc news, stormont. hundreds of syrian rebels and their families have

left their last stronghold in the city of homs. they left the district of al—waer under an evacuation deal backed by the russians. rebel fighters boarded buses out of the city, bound for another rebel—held area in the north, to continue fighting there. 0ur chief international correspondent lyse doucet is in homs and sent this report. they held out as long as they could, fighters now leaving their last district in this city. their families go with them, taking whatever they can carry. syrian aid workers on hand to help. forced to leave behind the only homes they've ever known, it's hard. and the rebels have to leave behind their biggest weapons. rifles, pistols are allowed. so are grenades. russia's military police also keep a close eye today. this agreement was negotiated

with moscow's help. in the weeks to come, thousands more will board these buses and head to an opposition area in the north. despite the deal, a government cleric suddenly shows up... pleading with a muslim leader from the other side. stay, sheikh issam begs him. if you go, you'll end up like a refugee in a tent. sheikh atullah listens... and then heads straight for the bus. the governor insists this is a good dealfor homs. translation: the rebels had such a terrible impact on the life of the city. once the armed men have gone, the city will be stable. restoring safety here will make all of homs safe again. time and again over the course of syria's war, this is how battles have been ending, in these local deals.

the government calls them reconciliations which they say will move syria closer to peace. but for the rebels, this amounts to surrender and a forced displacement, many of them leaving their homes. thousands of people will remain here. these pictures were filmed for us inside the rebel enclave. it's still encircled by troops, so we can't go in. what was once a vibrant community of 75,000 has been hollowed out by nearly four years of bombardment and siege. food and medicine are scarce, but life goes on. abdul hafiz tells stories to young schoolchildren. "will you be the mouse or the fox", he asks, "or the tiger?" he has been teaching in al wa'r since 1964.

he says he'll never leave. translation: forced evacuation is a war crime. people have been forced to surrender because of the siege, which has lasted for months. even baby milk couldn't get through. the rebels could have stayed, but they don't trust the government's offer of an amnesty, fearing that they would end up in detention or serving the army they'd been fighting. they leave behind the city they once called the capital of the revolution. syria is moving away from war, but it's no closer to peace. lyse doucet, bbc news, homs. a brief look at some of the day's other news stories. the qatari government is investing £5 billion in the british economy, mainly in property and infrastructure. it says the vote to leave the eu doesn't affect its optimistic assessment of britain's future. thames valley police are to install new security barriers around windsor castle ahead

of the next changing of the guard ceremony on wednesday. officers said the measures weren't in response to specific intelligence, but followed a review in light of the attack in westminster. a leading surgeon has denied carrying out unnecessary breast surgery operations in order to make money. ian paterson is said to have exaggerated the risks of cancer and faces 20 counts of wounding with intent against nine women and a man. he's on trial at nottingham crown court. russia's opposition leader alexei navalny has been sentenced to 15 days in prison for organising the biggest anti—government protests in the country for several years. tens of thousands of people attended the anti—corru ption rallies in cities across russia. the kremlin said the demonstrations were illegal, describing them as "a provocation and a lie". our correspondent steve rosenberg reports from moscow. it wasn't difficult to guess what this verdict was going to be.

the police bus, ready and waiting to take russia's main opposition leader to jail. inside the courtroom, alexei navalny was upbeat. he had called russians onto the streets yesterday. there'd been tens of thousands of protesters, he told me, but there were millions of russians who backed the fight against corruption. when the verdict came, he was guilty. the crime — disobeying police orders. the punishment— 15 days injail. as mr navalny emerged, his supporters held up good luck messages, hoping he'd see them through the window. the police saw them and took them away. yesterday's anti—corru ption protests were the largest in russia for five years. in moscow, riot police moved in to clear the crowds. more than 1,000

people were detained. but why had they come out in the first place? one reason is this film, posted online. in it, alexei navalny accuses russia's prime minister of massive corruption. he alleges that dmitry medvedev had used charities to conceal vast assets, mansions, yachts, even a vineyard. propagandist attacks, says the prime minister's office, but the film has gone viral, with 13 million views. mr navalny called the protests to demand an official investigation. today, the kremlin complained that many of yesterday's protests had been unsanctioned and were therefore illegal, but the fact that one man, one kremlin critic, had been able to bring so many protesters onto the streets, shows that alexei navalny is now a force to be reckoned with.

he's certainly drawing crowds. mr navalny has been opening campaign offices across russia. he wants to run for president. he's under pressure, though, from the authorities, and he's come under attack, here sprayed with green ink. but he remains determined, he says, to clean up russia. he may be spending tonight injail, but these protests have reinforced alexei navalny‘s reputation as vladimir putin's most serious rival. steve rosenberg, bbc news, moscow. more details have emerged about a new 2020 competition to be introduced into domestic cricket in england and wales. it's hoped the tournament would rival the popularity of t20 competitions in australia and india and feature fewer teams based in cities. but critics fear it could spell the end of 130 years of county cricket. our sports editor dan roan reports. and he's done it! for more than a century,

english cricket's been built on the foundation of the counties, but a brand—new tournament that does not involve them is getting closer. with its glitz and glamour, the soaring success of the indian premier league and australia's big bash have shown just how popular the shortened twenty20 format of the game can be, and today the man who's masterminding english cricket's equivalent told me why there now needs to be a revolution. the evidence that we have suggests that cricket exists in a bubble and we've got to get outside this bubble