grim. the first weekend of campaigning in the general election, in the general election sees theresa may and jeremy corbyn clash on taxation. both leaders promise if they win onjune 8th, their policies will be fair. the conservative party, which always has been, is and will continue to be a party that believes in lower taxes, in keeping taxes than in keeping taxes down for ordinary working people. our tax burdens will not fall on those on low incomes. there, they will fall on those with the broadest shoulders who can bear the greatest burden. more than 140 soldiers are dead in afghanistan, after a taliban attack on a military base. why was britain's number one tennis player, johana konta, reduced to tears during a match in romania? driven... 0h, brilliant goal. and chelsea reach the final of the fa cup, after a thrilling win

over tottenham at wembley. good evening. on the first weekend of campaigning for the general election, both theresa may and jeremy corbyn have been canvassing support, with the focus on taxes. the prime minister, in the west midlands today, refused to be drawn on whether she would raise income tax, vat or national insurance, while the labour leader in manchester promised the tax burden will fall on those with the broadest shoulders if he wins onjune 8th. here's our political correspondent ben wright. get ready for the knock at your door. today, the prime minister took her campaign message to dudley and one voter may have spoken for many. i couldn't understand

why you called another election with three years to go, you know? well, i think we need... i want a stronger negotiating hand, the strongest possible negotiating hand in europe. but this general election is notjust about brexit and all the parties are rapidly writing manifestos full of pledges and promises. cheering the issue of tax will of course be prominent and theresa may was asked whether she would be keeping the tories‘ 2015 manifesto pledge not to raise any of the three main taxes. at this election, people are going to have a very clear choice. they will have a choice between a conservative party, which always has been, is and will continue to be a party that believes in lower taxes, in keeping taxes than for ordinary in keeping taxes down for ordinary working people, or the choice is a labour party whose natural instinct is always to raise taxes. two years ago, david cameron said there would be no vat, national insurance or income tax rises. theresa may's comments today suggest

that guarantee might not be in the new manifesto and it follows the chancellor, philip hammond, yesterday saying he wanted more flexibility in managing the economy. good morning, everybody. cheering today is flying start saturday in our general election campaign. already on his eighth campaign visit of the election, jeremy corbyn was in warrington. nice to meet you. good to see you too. what a lovely house. yes, it is quite nice. wooing voters, insisting the election was not a foregone conclusion and sketching out labour's own approach to taxes. we will produce our manifesto very soon and you will see all the details in that, but i will tell you this, our tax burdens will not fall on those on low incomes. our tax burdens will not fall there, they will fall on those with the broadest shoulders who can bear the greatest burden. the liberal democrats haven't set out their tax plans either but warn more money will be needed. one thing is absolutely clear,

that whoever is in government is going to have to increase taxation because the effect of brexit almost certainly to slow down the economy, to reduce government revenue, so more tax is going to have to be raised and the tories are going to have to raise taxes, it was very clear from the budget. the question is, how it done. the question is, how it's done. where i would start is not with those taxes but with corporation tax. at the last election, more than 50 snp mps were swept into westminster and, today, the party announced that all but two of them, who now sit as independents, have been reselected as candidates this time round in an election that will soon have competing policies to flesh out the slogans. you heard theresa may they're telling one voter that the reason she called the election was to strengthen her hand in negotiating brexit. tonight, there has been a response from brussels. yes, there has, an mep guy verhofstadt has

given his reaction to it. he has a role in brexit, not as an eu negotiator but he represents the eu parliament in the process and the parliament will have a vote at the end of it all and he says that the idea that a new conservative government with a bigger majority, if there is one, will make a difference to theresa may's negotiating hand is in his words nonsensical. he says it is an irrelevance to the talks to come and evenif irrelevance to the talks to come and even if there is a bigger tory majority, it will make no difference to the end deal between britain and the eu. number ten will shrug this off and not get into a tip for tag struggle with him. there are lots of reasons theresa may win this election. if she wins, to get her own mandate and free herself from the 2015 manifesto, to get various parts of brexit through parliament more easily and of course, she wouldn't have called it unless she thought she was going to win and win well. there are polls in the paper tomorrow, opinion polls, that suggest the tories have a thumping

lead at the moment over labour at this stage in the campaign. all the normal caveats, they'lljust polls and as theresa may said today, they we re and as theresa may said today, they were wrong about the 2015 election, they were wrong about the referendum last year, but we are going to hear a lot from the tories about how they will argue this is not in the bag for them despite what the polls are saying. many thanks. the afghan government has declared tomorrow a day of national mourning, after the deaths of more than 140 soldiers, killed in a taliban attack. it happened at a military base in the north of the country, with the militants apparently disguised as soldiers. 0ur south asia correspondent justin rowlatt reports. it was during afternoon prayers that two suicide bombers blasted open the entrance to this army base in the north of afghanistan. at least eight other fighters dressed in afghan army uniforms used heavy machine guns to attack the dining area of the base and the mosque. the taliban has claimed responsibility and issued this picture of the men it

claims are behind it. 0ne one was captured, the rest are now dead. afghan troops have been pouring in to secure the area today. the afghan president, ashraf ghani, visited dozens of injured in a local hospital. the attack took the troops by surprise and the battle that followed lasted for five hours. translation: when i came out of the mosque after prayers, three people with army uniforms and an army vehicle started shooting at us. islamic tradition requires that burials take place as soon as possible and the bodies of many of the victims have already been placed in coffins. the assault on the army base is a shocking reminder ofjust how tough the ongoing battle in afghanistan is. last month, an afghan army helicopter landed special forces troops on the roof of the military hospital in kabul after it

was stormed by gunmen disguised as doctors. around 50 people died in that attack. two and a half years after the international combat mission in afghanistan ended and the taliban now controls more than a third of the country. and with casualties amongst the afghan forces running at almost 7,000 a year, there are questions about how long the afghan army can continue to defend the ground it still holds. justin rowlatt, bbc news. tens of thousands of people have taken part in marches in cities around the world in support of science. the rallies began in australia and new zealand, eventually reaching london and edinburgh, and there have been big demonstrations in america. protestors say they're angry at what they believe are mounting political attacks against scientific thought and factual arguments. there have been clashes in the german city of cologne,

as thousands of demonstrators marched on the venue where the anti—immigration alternative for deutschland party, was holding a conference. huge numbers of police were sent in, and two officers were injured. the people of france go to the polls tomorrow in the first round of one of the most important and unpredictable presidential elections of recent times. combating terrorism is a key issue, after the killing of a police officer in the capital on thursday and additional security forces will back up 50,000 police officers nationwide, for tomorrow's poll. lucy williamson is in paris for us tonight. from the first flickers of this campaign, from the party primaries to the nominations on all the scandals and debate, almost nothing has turned out as it was originally predicted. today, for a single day, there was a ban on all political

campaigning. a moment for reflection before the polls open tomorrow morning and the french election begins. in the lull before france's presidential vote, those out campaigning today weren't supporting politicians. this rally was for the police. black balloons for those killed in the line of duty, pink for the family they leave behind. their message — the police need protecting too. where he spoke to a bbc reporter. that is why we are in here, with my friend, to celebrate life and to say no to terrorism. the police union say their members need protecting from everyday risks too. exhaustion, overwork and stress. the state of emergency following a string of attacks here has taken its toll. boosting police numbers has been an issue for the presidential campaigns. but this election has gone beyond questions of security, the economy or immigration. it opened up a debate about the meaning of french values and how to define being french. this campaign has offered voters vastly different visions

for their future and the race between candidates has been tight, so why are so many people expected to abstain? when you ask them why they refuse to vote, they always will tell you the same thing. "they are all the same, they lie to us, "we have tried everything, nothing changes. " which are political arguments. it's not because they don't care, it's because they care a lot. across the country, buildings are being reborn as polling stations for tomorrow's vote. what happens here could shape the political future of europe. after all the rhetoric and all the surprises, it's time for france to decide. lucy williamson, bbc news, paris. with all the sport now, here's olly foster at the bbc sport centre. chelsea have reached the fa cup final. the premier league leaders beat their title rivals, tottenham, 11—2 in a thrilling semi—final.

they'll face arsenal or manchester city, who play each other tomorrow. patrick gearey reports from wembley. chelsea v tottenham, a rivalry that can split families. they've grown close of late, not in affection, but in competition, tussling for both league and cup and, amid it all, a reminderthat some things sit above football. inside, a moment of unity for ugo, the tottenham coach and former england defender who died yesterday. then wembley re—divided. four minutes in, up stepped willian who jilted spurs for chelsea, a fittingly polarising goal—scorer. as they have in the league, tottenham came back at chelsea, christian eriksen the maker, harry kane the taker, tottenham's own folk hero. in such a contest, easy to be rash. heung—min son started what he couldn't stop. penalty. cue the reappearing ghost of willian, haunting spurs again. in the frenzied fog, some can see things others can't. eriksen picked out dele alli. 2-2. for a time, spurs dominated.

they carried the threat but chelsea had the hazard. off the bench, into the net from eden, the belgian blue. tottenham's collective endeavour was eclipsed by chelsea's individual brilliance. nemanja matic hadn't scored this season. big players, big occasions. this was the semifinal that really had it all but, as so often this season, chelsea found a way. when they return here in about a months time, they could well be going for the double. patrick gearey, bbc news, at wembley. it's a cup weekend in scotland too. aberdeen are through to their first scottish cup final in 17 years after beating the holders hibernian 3—2. their first goal was scored after just 13 seconds at hampden park. the match was heading for extra time at 2—2, but a deflected effort inside the last five minutes , that went down as an own goal, saw the dons through to the final. there was a dramatic opening to great britain's fed cup tie. the romania captain, ilie nastase,

was ejected from the venue after swearing at the british team members, leaving one of them, johanna konta, in tears. nastase has been suspended for the rest of the tie that is balanced at 1—1. alex gulrajani reports. we are used to outpourings of a motion on a tennis court, just not like this. chohan konta was on top against sister, but she wasn't her only challenge. both konta and her captain felt the home crowd had overstepped the mark. romanian captain ilie nastase then got involved. already facing an investigation for comments he made about serena williams yesterday, nastase swore at the british pair and the officials before being escorted away. play resumed but only briefly, with konta, the world number seven, visibly distressed. she left the court soon after as another romanian player, simona halep, pleaded with the crowd. after

nearly half an hour, konta returned and wasted no time in finishing the match. she will return tomorrow, unlike nastase, taken from the complex, his accreditation removed and banned from the rest of the time. bleep you're stupid. alex gulrajani, bbc news. great britain's gymnasts are also in romania, at the european championships. ellie downey has added a silver and bronze to her gold yesterday and courtney tulloch made history on the rings. his silver is the first major international medal for a british competitor on the apparatus. he finished second to current olympic champion. saracens are through to rugby union's european champions cup final. they are the defending champions and the only british team left in the competition. they beat beat munster 26—10 in dublin and will face clermont auvergne or leinster in next month's final in edinburgh. and that's all your sport this evening.

many thanks. that's it. you can see more on all of today's stories on the bbc news channel. but from me and the rest of the team, have a very good night. this is a test. this is the deadliest taliban attack on afghan security forces of the entire war. it comes 16 years after the war started. that is very significant and i think the whole nation is in shock that this could happen, notjust nation is in shock that this could happen, not just the nation is in shock that this could happen, notjust the numbers but also the method of hello. this is bbc news. more now on a deadly taliban attack in northern afghanistan. the afghan government has declared tomorrow a day of national mourning, after the deaths of more than 140 soldiers in a taliban attack. it happened at a military base in the north of the country, with the militants apparently disguised as soldiers. earlier, i spoke to the guardian's correspondent in afghanistan, sune engel rasmussen. he said the deadly attack happened because of an intelligence failure. this is the deadliest taliban attack on afghan security forces of the entire war. it comes 16 years after the war started. that is very significant and i think the whole nation is in shock

that this could happen, notjust the numbers but also the method of the attack. you have ten taliban fighters dressing up in army uniforms, in army vehicles, posing as injured soldiers and then managing to get all the way into facilities and a mosque in one of the most secure bases in the country. i think the government will be looking very hard at this incident to see what went wrong, if there was insider help for the taliban, but it's also a stark reminder of how bad the war is still in afghanistan. i was just going to say. it does seem as if, it is that significant, it would be a game changer in how the government tackle the taliban. i think with the other attack that you mentioned, it definitely gives the government a reason to pause and consider its intelligence, whether its intelligence

is sufficient enough, whether it needs to vet its personnel bettter than it does and one thing is fitting in the provinces, they have done it for a very long time and with or without international forces, but these attacks, in the heart of urban centres, which is a new thing, at least for attacks of this size and i think afghan security forces will need to rethink their strategy and pool security on their bases and theirfacilities. we recently saw the bomb that was dropped by the us. that obviously was targeting is. just how strong have the taliban become? we are hearing more of islamic state than we are hearing about the taliban. that has more to do with the fascination of isis in the west than it does

with what is actually going on in afghanistan. the taliban have been growing in strength steadily over the past two and a half years, actually since 2010, 2011, particularly since 2014 when the foreign troopes started to withdraw from the battlefield. isis is a relatively small threat to the survival of the state. they are brutal in their methods, cruel to the civilians that live under their rule, but in terms of a threat to the state, it is definitely the taliban that are the bigger enemy here and i think we need to put that into perspective when we think about the attack last week. one question that was asked last week is why was it necessary for the americans to use a bomb that size against a militant group

that was relatively small compared to the taliban and that question definitely resurfaced again yesterday. does this affect recruitment to the security forces, the training of these soldiers and just how involved are the us still on the ground in afghanistan? the afghan security forces definitely have problems with recruitment and big problems with attrition and desertion. it's difficult to say how much of that is because soldiers think it's too dangerous to be in the security forces or whether there is corruption, lack of pay or things like this. maybe it will have an effect, we will have to wait and see. the americans are still very much involved in afghanistan. it is mainly what they call tran, advice, assist. they are not active on the battlefield. they are to a certain extent, but mostly in the south and east. there is also an american counterterrorism division. that is mainly focused on groups like isis in the east that are considered terrorist groups. i don't know if donald trump will make any steps to become more involved.

we know that the american commander here has asked for a couple of thousand more troops to boost the training of the afghan security forces and a lot of the people around the new american president are old afghan hands so maybe we will see an increase in american troops but it's a little too early to say that right now. the american vice president has confirmed that the us will honour a promise by former president obama to accept more than 1,200 refugees from australian detention camps. after meeting the australian prime minister, malcolm turnbull, he also spoke about north korea's nuclear ambitions. mr pence said the uss carl vinson carrier group would be in the sea of japan "before the end of this month". from sydney, the bbc‘s hywel griffith reports. in australia, they call it the mateship, a special relationship which has seen it fight side—by—side with the us for nearly a century. and with tension rising on the korean peninsula, america wants to reaffirm those old alliances.

after false claims and confusion of the whereabouts of its aircraft carrier, the vice president today said the uss carl vinson was now on the way to the sea of japan, building up its capabilities in the region. the one thing that nations, most especially the regime in north korea, should make no mistake about, is that the united states has the resources, the personnel and the presence in this region of the world to see to our interests and to see to the security of those interests and our allies. military might was backed up with some diplomatic pressure, a joint call on china to impose economic sanctions. it is self—evident that china has the opportunity and we say the responsibility to bring pressure to bear on north korea, to stop this reckless and dangerous trajectory upon which they are embarked.

the fate of hundreds of refugees was also on the agenda. the agreement for america to resettle those at australia's offshore detention centres has been questioned by president trump. a "dumb deal", in his words, but one which he will honour. let me make it clear, the united states intends to honour the agreement. subject to the results of the vetting processes that now apply to all refugees considered for admission to the united states of america. the vice president will leave australia knowing he is likely to retain its support whatever the next few months may bring. the mateship unlikely to waver. hywel griffith, bbc news, sydney. the authorities in venezuela say at least 11 people died in violence and looting on thursday, making it the bloodiest day in three weeks of anti—government protests. over that period, tens of thousands of people have taken to the streets demanding new presidential elections.

sarah corker reports. another day of deadly unrest on the streets of caracas, riot police fought running battles with protesters on thursday. the worst incident took place here, ten people killed were trying to loot a bakery, some reportedly electrocuted. residents were left to clean up after the chaos. translation: we lost everything. if only it were just the food, everything is gone and all feel unsafe here at the edge of the slum. this latest wave of protests was triggered by a supreme court decision last month to take over powers from the opposition controlled national assembly. the decision was later reversed but it was too late to contain the demonstrations. the president has accused opponents

of trying to topple him by force. now he has called for talks. translation: i hope they have the courage to step forward so we can sit at the negotiating table and tell each other the truth and search for pathways to peace in venezuela. this is a call for dialogue and peace. but venezuela is facing a serious economic crisis. shortages mean people having to do all day for food and medicine. —— shortages mean people have to queue all day for food and medicine. opposition leaders repeated the demand for new elections. translation: the government can't avoid its responsibilities. the violence sown by the government. what is the solution to this violence? the vote. over the last three weeks 20 venezuela ns have died during the unrest, and there are plans for new protests for saturday and two erected roadblocks on monday to grind

—— for saturday and to erect roadblocks on monday to grind the country to a halt. and now the weather. the largely driving to the weather is set to continue through the weekend. things will turn colder into the working week. this is the scene in bristol, claudius sunshine in fear. through the rest of this evening and overnight, temperatures will step down quickly. most places try with the chance of passing showers. it would remain shower tonight and pc. temperatures, five 01’ tonight and pc. temperatures, five or six celsius in the towns and cities, particularly in the north but colder than that in the country.

the start of the london marathon looks predominantly dry with the chance of a passing shower. temperatures in the afternoon of the 16 celsius. most places apart from northern scotland will stay dry. turning colder on monday and tuesday sees a return to showers and maintained frosts. hello. this is bbc news. theresa may says the conservatives are a low—tax party as she addresses labour claims that she's planning a tax bombshell. tight security across france as the country prepares for the first round of the presidential election. more than 100 afghan soldiers are killed or wounded in one of the worst attacks by the taliban on an army base. spurs are out of the fa cup, after a thrilling 4—2 win

for chelsea at wembley takes them into the cup final. britain's first coal—free day since the victorian era — the national grid says 24 hours—worth of electricity has been generated without using coal for the first time since 1882.