hello. my name is tom donkin. welcome to bbc news, broadcasting at home and around the globe. here's our top stories: with tensions high in the korean peninsula, the north reportedly tries, and fails, to launch a test missile. a day after it paraded its newest military hardware. turkish politicians have made their final appeals ahead of sunday's referendum on whether the president should be given new powers. a suicide bomber targets a convoy of buses carrying syrian evacuees. more than 100 people are feared killed. and thousands of americans take to the streets, demanding that president trump release his tax returns. north korea has made a failed attempt to launch a missile, a day after it issued a warning

to the united states that it was ready to hit back with nuclear attacks amid escalating tension in the region. the pentagon confirmed the test, saying the ballistic missile blew up almost immediately. south korea condemned the test, saying it threatens the whole world. the launch was carried out around dawn from shinpo, a site on north korea's east coast where the country has a shipyard. let's get the latest now from our correspondent, steve evans, who's in seoul. steve, another test from north korea. but it should be said, "another unsuccessful test." that is right. think of all the images from pyongyang 2a hours ago of rows after rows of the most fearsome looking missiles, with pyongyang showing its strength. and then a day later, a damp squid, a

dud. north korea often tests missiles by the failure rate is very high. there is no doubt the tension is rising. the us naval military presence is being bolstered with a carrier group heading this way. the vice president, mike pence, is on his way here to discuss what to do about north korea. but the failure indicates that they have not yet got a reliable means of delivering any kind of warhead, let alone a nuclear one, with absolute effectiveness and certainty. and the fact that this test failed in the vice president of the us is due to land injust a few hours, and the fact that donald trump has taken a very tough danser north korea, does that gives some comfort to those in south korea? well, the thing about seoul is that

people go about their business. there is no sense of panic buying or people trying to get out of the city because south koreans have lived with this situation since 1953. the situation of absolutely fearsome rhetoric from the north about destroying the south, which never turns into out out war. it sometimes turns into out out war. it sometimes turns into out out war. it sometimes turns into military action, but not com plete turns into military action, but not complete war. this is different. they are clearly much more advanced in the potency of their new arsenal and have tested nuclear warheads five times. people still assume it will not happen. what we do not know is donald trump's policy. his words indicate he will not allow it. it will not happen. he does not want north korea to get the ability to

strike the us. but some briefings from the administration recently indicate that the policy may actually turn out to be pretty well what the obama policy was, which is squeeze, what the obama policy was, which is squeeze, and maybe negotiate, if there is an indication that north korea is leaving room for negotiation. will move on the nuclear issue? we do not know what donald trump will do, but it may play out as, basically, more of the same. it is good to talk to you, steve evans, live in seoul, giving us steve evans, live in seoul, giving us the latest in what has been a very active location in the last 2a hours. so, that missile launch came just a day after the north held a huge military parade, where what appeared to be new ballistic missiles were displayed. our correspondent, john sudworth, is part of a group of foreign journalists invited to pyongyang to witness the parade. his movements are being tightly monitored.

as the parade began, the ground shook, and a city at the centre of a mounting crisis echoed to the sound of marching feet. presiding over it all was kim jong—un, apparently untroubled by the international pressure over the now realistic prospect of this most totalitarian of states becoming a fully fledged nuclear power. and while president donald trump may be promising to stop it, north korea has other ideas. it's an extraordinary sight. this is state power expressed as mass unity, and it's meant to send two key messages — to the north korean people that their young leader's grip on power is unassailable,

and to the outside world that he commands massive military might. "we will respond to nuclear war with nuclear war," a senior official told the crowds — a statement given extra force by the rolling out of these weapons, which analysts say may be north korea's first intercontinental ballistic missiles. but while it may be isolated, it's resilient and often rational too — it wants nuclear weapons not to use them but as a security guarantee. what message does this send to the outside world? "it shows the great strength of korea," this woman tells me. "we are the most proud people in the world." the periodic crises have so far always blown over, but each time north korea emerges one step closer to its nuclear goal. after decades of trying, no—one has yet worked out how to stop its advance. john sudworth, bbc news, pyongyang. the trump administration

has signalled that it's considering all options as it tries to deal with what it sees as the north korean problem. from washington here's laura bicker. pyongyang is being warned. these naval warships are within striking distance of the north korean capital. the message? the us is ready to act, if provoked. north korea is a problem, the problem will be taken care of. north korea has got to change its behaviour. the time for action is now. key to us efforts will be china. these talks with president xi last week laid the groundwork. donald trump said he received assurances that they would help put an end to north korea's nuclear ambitions. and some believe that is why he has dispatched those warships. perhaps the dispatch of the carrier strike force to the peninsula is really aimed at motivating the chinese, to tell beijing

that the united states is serious and wants to see china put a lot more pressure on pyongyang. china is already applying pressure at its border and placed a ban on imports of north korean coal. if president trump is weighing his options, his best hope is in beijing. the us could also push for more un sanctions but critics believe that punishes the people of north korea, not its leaders. the pentagon has denied any suggestion of a pre—emptive military strike. but donald trump's actions in syria prove he is a president prepared to take action quickly and without warning. us troops in afghanistan are advancing after the dropping of a massive bunker—busting bomb known as the mother of all bombs. a display of firepower from the world's strongest military that might just make kim jong—un think twice about launching any attack. meanwhile, the vice president,

mike pence, is on his way to seoul to reassure asian allies and offer them an iron—clad commitment to come to their defence. his message is that the us will do whatever is necessary to keep the world safe. turkish politicians have made their final appeals to voters ahead of sunday's referendum on the most sweeping programme of constitutional change since the country became a republic. the turkish president, recep tayyip erdogan, who stands to gain significant new powers, told supporters the changes would make turkey stronger. approval could see him stay in office until 2029. mr erdogan's opponents say it would lead to an increasingly totalitarian rule. a divisive campaign has ended, and turkey now faces the biggest political choice in its modern history. both sides made a frantic push to the end. voter turnout will be decisive in the outcome. the yes

side believes a stronger presidency will make the government more efficient. if they win, the president will be given enhanced powers to appoint ministers, choose the newjudges, powers to appoint ministers, choose the new judges, and powers to appoint ministers, choose the newjudges, and the ability to dissolve parliament. a human chain. they say the reforms would remove parliamentary checks and balances, and they have already destroyed turkish democracy. it has been a dramatic 12 months in turkey, with an attempted coup and 500 dead to the rat act. the president says a stronger leader could save them. critics say he has already failed to keep them safe. a geopolitical crossroads. turkey is deciding its future. the outcome will be felt far

beyond its borders. michael 0la, bbc news. —— mark lowen. earlier, i spoke to berza simsek from the bbc‘s turkish service. she had more details about how the referendum will take place. there are 55 million voters in turkey, and there will be 167,000 ballot boxes all around the country. so, at 4am gmt, the eastern part of the country will start voting, and at 5am gmt the rest of the state will vote. and just give us a bit more detail about what is being proposed, what people are voting for. what will the political system in turkey look like if it is pushed through. the proposed new constitution limits the power of parliament and gives more power to the president. for example, the president would be able to appoint key public officials including ministers and the president will be able to appoint, for example, vice presidents. the president would be able to abolish the parliament if he or she wanted and call for a new election, for example. the new constitution also decreases the age to be elected as a member of parliament to 18.

in the current system, it is 25. it has been quite a tumultuous political period for turkey with the failed coup a little while ago and the purge. give us a sense of the political mood in turkey at the moment. well, the mood is really tense because turkey has been facing a lot of trouble for more than a year. there have been attacks by pkk or by islamic state militants. also, there was a failed coup in july and after that, a state of emergency was declared so the sentiment is quite tense in the country. to syria, where a huge car bomb has hit a convoy of buses carrying

evacuees from two government—held towns. the passengers had been waiting at a transit point, travelling from fuua and kafraya, to the west of aleppo. the delay was caused by rebel groups raising concerns about the status of people leaving rebel held territory near the capital damascus in a reciprocal evacuation. the syria white helmets, say they have recovered more than 100 bodies. richard galpin reports. in the immediate aftermath, a man runs towards the site of the huge explosion, filming the horrifying scenes around him. it is believed a suicide bomber carried out this attack, reportedly driving a van carrying aid supplies. translation: i can't describe it, i am speechless. there are dead people everywhere. you can see dozens of burnt—out cars, bodies everywhere. emergency staff and opposition factions are evacuating the wounded and the dead. the target was this convoy of buses carrying hundreds of men, women and children finally able to leave their villages which had

been under siege for years in syria's continuing civil war. since last night, the convoy had been held up on the road near aleppo because of a hitch in the deal agreed between government forces and the rebels for the evacuation. that left everyone here very exposed to an attack. with so many killed and injured in this bombing, there are fears of revenge attacks and an end to further agreements to get people out of other besieged towns and villages. for those who survived this attack, the aim now is to get them to safe areas as quickly as possible. some are already reported to be getting back on buses, leaving the horror of this day behind them. richard galpin, bbc news. stay with us on bbc world news.

still to come: the world loses the last living link to the 19th century. we look back at the life of emma morano, who's died at 117. pol pot, one of the century's greatest mass murderers is reported to have died of natural causes. he and the khmer rouge movement he led were responsible for the deaths of an estimated 1.7 million cambodians. there have been violent protests in indonesia where playboy has gone on sale for the first time. traditionalist muslim leaders have expressed disgust. the magazine's offices have been attacked and its editorial staff have gone into hiding. it was clear that paula's only contest was with the clock and as for a sporting legacy, paula radcliffe's competitors will be chasing her new world best time for years to come. quite quietly, but quicker and quicker, she seemed just

to slide away under the surface and disappear. this is bbc news. i'm tom donkin. the latest headlines. with tensions high in the korean peninsula, the north has apparently tried and failed to launch a test missile a day after it paraded its newest military hardware. well, more on that story and earlier we spoke to michael duitsman, research associate at the james martin centre for non—proliferation studies. and i asked him what more we know about this failed missile launch. pacific command said it exploded almost at launch, so we are unlikely to find out what sort of missile it was any time soon. it was launched from near the sinpo area,

which — so we don't really know — it could be any missile in their arsenal, but we do know that there is a large naval base in the town of sinpo, that is associated with their submarine launch ballistic missile programme. it might be one of the missiles associated with that programme. this port of sinpo is the site of a quite recent failed launch, as well, isn't it? yes. actually, less than two weeks ago, they tried to launch another missile, and it reached a high altitude, but did not go very far down range. it followed a very strange trajectory and appears to have spun out of control before destroying itself. are you seeing this as a more frequent occurrence, these tests? albeit they fail, but iss it a sign that they might be advancing their capabilities? actually, compared to previous years, last year, they conducted six tests.

but the year before that, they had already conducted 12. so the cadence is not actually that different from previous years. although they are probably testing new capabilities. right. and i'm sure you were watching the military parade in pyongyang. did we learn anything new from that? well, we learned quite a bit. they showed us more new technology than they had in any previous parade. in terms of what? so they shows us, especially at the end, the very large missiles, the canisters, which indicate that they intend to pursue long, probably intercontinental range solid fuel missiles. so, in your mind, that is a deliberate display of what they are capable of, in terms of other military parades, has that showed that their up—to—date, their newest hardware? yes.

definitely. just showing us what they are working on, what they intend to develop, even if it isn't currently ready. tens of thousands of people across the united states have marched in more than 100 cities to demand that president trump releases his tax returns, something he has refused to do. some protesters carried huge inflatable chickens, suggesting the president was scared to release the data. president trump's predecessors over the last a0 years have all released their tax returns. greg dawson has more. fanfare. with little chance of the president himself discussing his taxes... all right, cut it out. fanfare abruptly ends. protesters in the nation's capital opted for the next next thing. this was a situation where imitation was not meant to flatter. what's the big deal about my taxes? 0k, since you guys are my supporters... releasing the taxes! piles of shredded mock tax returns were thrown into the crowd. 0rganisers claim the protests have

been taking place in over 150 places in the us. chicken dance song plays. in chicago, crowds took part in a chicken dance, suggesting donald trump is too scared to release his returns. singing: # enjoy the resistance! the president broke a long—held tradition by not releasing his paperwork during his campaign, and these protests were timed to coincide with the mid—april deadline for americans to file their tax returns. if taxation without representation is tyranny, then representation without taxation is authoritarianism. we deserve democracy. cheering. in manhattan, several thousand lined sixth avenue, marching towards one of donald trump's hotels. these people say without his tax returns, it is difficult to know who the billionaire president has had dealings with as a businessman and if there are any conflicts of interest. donald trump says he cannot supply his returns because they're

being audited, something the federal tax authorities say is no bar. we're living in a time where honesty has no currency. and i think because of that, it's kind of all we have. and the only way to really penetrate this administration is to take to the streets. the president's supporters point to a recently leaked 2005 return showing donald trump paying $38—million to the taxman, and many say the issue simply does not matter to them. in berkeley california, rival, pro— and anti—trump rallies descended into a brawl with more than a dozen arrested as fistfights broke out. another reminder of how donald trump continues to be a president that polarises his country. greg dawson, bbc news. the world's oldest woman has died at the age of 117. emma morena died at her home in northern italy. she's the last person known to have

been born in the 19th century. helena lee reports. here she is celebrating her 117th birthday in november last year surrounded by family and friends at her home in northern italy. asked how she felt on reaching 117, she said she felt well. born in 1899, emma morano's life spanned three centuries. the eldest of three children, she outlived all of her younger siblings. she survived an abusive marriage, the loss of her only son, two world wars, and more than 90 italian governments. and she worked in a factory until she was 65. so, what was her secret? emma morano thought it was probably her diet. translation: i eat two eggs a day, and that's it. i ate cookies.

i don't eat much because i have no teeth. always eating the same things, always at the same time of day. her doctor of 27 years thought there were other reasons too for her long life. translation: the first factor is genetics. it is her own condition, a natural phenomenon, as it happens around the world. her personality would be fundamental as well. the mayor of the small city in northern italy where she lived said she had an extraordinary life, and she will always be remembered for her strength to move forward. helena lee, bbc news. football is incredibly popular around the world — and there are few places that are more fanatical about the so—called beautiful game than latin america. but there is an earlier type of ballgame in that region that predates soccer by

thousands of years. and in mexico — the national championship has been taking place. the bbc‘s tim allman has more. in the shadow of this ancient city, a match of the day that has been 3,500 years in the making. spectators came from far and wide to the teotihuacan pyramids for the mesoamerican ballgame. sometimes known as "ulama," the rules can very. but here, two teams face each other using their hips to keep the ball moving. fail to do that and your opponent gets a point. both men and women can take part in something that is much more than just a sport. translation: what i want is for us mexicans to realise that we have a rich culture. we ought to be proud because we are the first country in the world to have a game like this. the motion of the ball is supposed

to symbolise the rotation of the sun for the aztec, 0lmec and mayan people. this isn't just a pastime, it's history. translation: it is something i was truly proud of, being able to be part of this, and ensure that mayan roots do not die off, and that we are the generation that revives this remnant from the mayans. this is a game that predates columbus and the birth of christ. ulama, a sport where hips don't lie. tim allman, bbc news. and you can get in touch with me and the team on twitter. good morning.

cloud's been increasing from the west through the night. but where the cloud is clear in the south and east, a chilly start to easter sunday. temperatures close to freezing in one or two spots. but, a bit of morning brightness. the difference, though, really, today, is there will be more cloud. that comes from this feature which will move north of this position. a wet start in northern ireland and potentially in parts of scotland, which could last into the afternoon. turning wetter with occasional rain in the central belt. lunchtime, the northern half of scotland, compared with what we saw on saturday, it will be a day of lighter winds. one or two showers around. warm once the sunshine is on you. brightening up in northern ireland in the afternoon. staying cloudy, damp, and cold in south—east scotland and northern england. the same in east anglia. rain is slow to reach wales and south england could be dry. a bit of sunshine out and winds not coming the north so it

could feel pleasant. breezy. as we finish the day, the rain pushes down across england, east anglia, the midlands, and clips the south—east. introducing a northerly airflow. we've got high pressure to the west, low pressure to the east, opening northerly winds. bringing late—season snow to the alps. it will bring a chilly day for us all as we go into easter monday. a bit of a bite to the winds. the showers will push through. northern and eastern scotland are particularly prone. if you avoid the showers elsewhere, a fair few or of you will, the strength of the sun will still make it feel reasonably pleasant, a bit like saturday. but if anything, temperatures down a degree or so. now, to take us through the night, the winds will ease and the showers fade. these are the city—centre temperatures. gardeners, take note. this is what it will be like in the countryside. widespread frost expected.

not the only one we will see in the coming week. a few frosty nights around. by day, quite a bit of dry and reasonably sunny weather. this is the scene for tuesday. most places having a dry day. the majority, lighter winds. one or two showers in the east and south—east. west and north, after the frosty start, it should be a nice and fresh day. high pressure building through tuesday and wednesday, especially in the northern half of the country. frost in the south. still, a lot of dry weather across the board.

the latest headlines from bbc news. i'm tom donkin. north korea has tried, and failed, to launch a missile. it follows a military parade in the capital, pyongyang, where what appeared to be new ballistic missiles were displayed. with tensions high in the region, there were fears that it might make its sixth nuclear test. turkish politicians have been making their final appeals to voters a suicide car bomb in syria has it a convoy of buses near aleppo. people were waiting to be taken to safety from rebel—held areas. up to 100 evacuees have reportedly died. it's not clear who carried out the attack, though a group linked to al-qaeda has been blamed. turkish politicians have been making their final appeals to voters ahead of sunday's important constitutional referendum. president erdogan told supporters the changes would make turkey stronger. his opponents say it would lead to an increasingly authoritarian rule. let's have a quick look

at some of the front pages. easter is being