tonight at 22:00: another security alert in the heart of westminster as a man carrying knives is arrested near parliament. the suspect in his 20s — who was being watched by the security services — was wrestled to the ground in front of crowds in whitehall. forensic teams searched through the contents of his backpack as the man was held on suspicion of planning a terror attack. it was like really a very scary situation really. and ijust realised this place is so busy all the time. it comes just over a month after the westminster attack which left five people, including a police officer, dead. we'll have the latest. also tonight: the foreign secretary's criticised after suggesting britain could help the us with military action against syria without mps‘ approval. teresa may accuses the eu of lining up to oppose britain, during brexit talks. the teenager who took his own life after online bullying — now new figures reveal the pressure young people are under.

and we talk to british sculptor richard long — whose work has been inspired by his walks around the world — about his latest exhibition. and coming up in sportsday on bbc news, who can claim bragging rights in the manchester derby? and — more importantly — improve their chances of a top four champions league place? good evening and welcome to the bbc news at ten. a man carrying knives near the houses of parliament has been arrested on suspicion of terrorism offences, just weeks after last month's deadly attack in westminster. the 27—year—old man had been under survellance by the security services. he was stopped on parliament street,

close to whitehall, this afternoon and was wrestled to the ground. there's been heightened security in the area around parliament since khaled massood killed five people — including pc keith palmer — last month. june kelly has the latest. under arrest in the shadow of government buildings in whitehall. this wasn't a random stop search and arrest. the man was under surveillance as part of surveillance by counter terrorism command. the suspect was quickly in handcuffs. police had wrestled him to the ground ona police had wrestled him to the ground on a traffic island. it is close to the foreign office and entrance to downing street. he was led away to an unmarked car and taken to a high security police station in south london. and this is what he left behind — his rucksack and his knives. one of them, it was kind of a long one really, it looked like —i kind of a long one really, it looked like — i don't know what kind of knife it was, but it was like a

proper strong knife. he didn't say anything. i wouldn't say panic but the firearms officers were running and they were all tense. the prime minister was away from london on an election visit to derbyshire i'm aware an individual has been arrested in whitehall today and that that individual has been arrested on the basis of a terrorism charge. obviously i can't say much more about it, because it is an ongoing police investigation but i think it shows that our police and our intelligence and security services are on the alert, as they always are, looking to keep us safe and secure. for the second time in just over a month, westminster was once again ona over a month, westminster was once again on a terror alert. security are concerned with the police and everything like that. but overall, i think people still feel safe and

tourism, people will continue to do what they do. scary to be honest, because it has happened the second time in one month. so, yes, it makes me really, really worried. we saw the helicopters circling. me really, really worried. we saw the helicopters circling! people got in touch to see if you were ok. friends and family up north were saying — make sure you are ok down there, not walking about. the suspect is said to have nol link to the killer khalid masood who launched his assault first with a carand thena launched his assault first with a car and then a night. he took the lives of five people, including pc keith palmer and injured many more. since then there's been a heightened sense of security here. the fact that he is in a location which has recently been subject to a terrorist attack that would tend to make any investigating officer to think — this is the time we need to step in before he causes some harm. the in fa ct before he causes some harm. the in fact that perhaps he was making his way towards parliament as well is a very key point that they woop want

to ta ke very key point that they woop want to take him out when he was least expecting it. what do we know about the man? he is 27 and lives in london. it is said while he is a british national he wasn't born in the uk. counterintelligence daicts and the security services mi5 will be trying to build a picture of his background aes they have been monitoring his movements. as he begins his first night in custody, police will be looking at his associates. with me is our security correspondent, gordon corera. it looks like police had been monitoring this individual for sometime? it is an intelligence-led operation. as i understand t mi5 and police had been investigating this person for months. investigations can takea person for months. investigations can take a long time and they can

gather evidence for a prosecution but something moved them today to move ina but something moved them today to move in a hurry in the middle of the day. it could have been a tip—off or their surveillance revealed that this was an individual to acquired and was carrying weapons and moved toa and was carrying weapons and moved to a sensitive location such as westminster that. would have been enough to trigger them to decide to move against someone they had been investigating in the past. all of this tells us two things — one is the threat remains, the police say there is no imjant ongoing threat they know of. —— no imminent. but over all the threat is severe and it is the kind of attack that was carried out by khalid masood is what worries them. but they have done what you would expect them to do, they've identified threat, put them under surveillance and when they think there might be a threat to life, act against them. the prime minister has refused to be drawn tonight on whether britain could offer military support to the united states in the event of further american air strikes

against president assad's regime, describing the suggestion as ‘hypothetical‘. it comes after the foreign secretary, borisjohnson, said it would be hard for britain to turn down a request to support president trump. and he suggested military action could be taken without the consent of mps. our political editor, laura kuenssberg, reports. anybody got a cup of coffee? coffee fuels campaigns. so do big personalities, and they do start early. borisjohnson burst out this morning. it seems incredible when you have a threat... with both barrels, claiming jeremy corbyn is weak on defence and cannot be trusted. good morning, john. and suggesting the uk could join in, if america again bombed syria. if they come to us and ask for our support, whether it is with submarine—based missiles in the med, or whatever it happens to be, as was the case in 2013, john, in my view, and i know it is also the view of the prime minister, it would be very difficult

for us to say no. you would have to go to the commons. that needs to be tested. you are not sure? i think it would be very difficult for us to say no. he said similar before, but it matters now because the tories believejeremy corbyn is soft on defence, whether regarding syria or the rest of the world. i think there is a risk that people will say, he isjust an islingtonian herbivore, a muddle—headed mugwump, or whatever. only the labour party's putting forward any ideas so far. it seems all the tory party will do is be rude aboutjeremy corbyn. the world is more unstable and more uncertain than perhaps we thought it was going to be 20 years ago, and that is why theresa may's leadership now is so important and why it is so important for me, i'm afraid, to draw the contrast between her approach and what i think would be the chaotic approach underjeremy corbyn. jeremy corbyn is in their sights. you could call him the underdog.

in a park today in the marginal seat of harlow. but labour mps fear their leader has to be reminded notjust to talk to his true believers, but to the whole country. the tories think that makes him a real outsider. we take a message out to the country. politics is of course always personal, but so far, this campaign has been much more about tory attacks on jeremy corbyn than a big battle of ideas. what do you think about what the tories have been doing? it is getting very personal. that is their nature, david cameron was a bully and now they are proving to be bullies. it seems like a witchhunt. it does seem like a bit of a hunt. why doesn't boris johnson talk about tory policies for the general election and not have a go at the labour leader? this is an awkward moment for labour. are you worried it is turning into a personality contest?

clearly what the tories are trying to do is make it very much about you. i don't do personal abuse, i don't do name—calling, i don't believe in that kind of politics. i think we are sent to parliament to represent people and put forward a serious debate and that is what we will do. if you were prime minister and the president of america asked the uk to support them in a strike on syria, what would you do? call the general secretary of the united nations. we need a multi—lateral approach to syria, we need an enhanced pressure to get a political settlement in syria. raising potential military action against syria is controversial in any campaign. the other parties were not impressed. a unilateral, illegal intervention would be counter—productive and it seems to me borisjohnson is following tony blair in that respect. if the government wants to have parliamentary authority they should ask for it, not speculate wildly and jump to whatever president trump does. that speculation followed the prime minister to leeds

tonight on the trail. asked again and again, she would not repeat borisjohnson‘s admission. this is a hypothetical question because there are no proposals on the table for a further strike against syria. yet the tories believe wholeheartedlyjeremy corbyn is vulnerable. thank you very much. and they plan to make it hurt. laura kuenssberg, bbc news, westminster. the prime minister has accused the eu of "lining up" to oppose the uk in brexit negotiations. she was responding to comments by the german chancellor, angela merkel, who said the uk had "illusions" about how tough the talks would be. the eu says it has agreed its negotiating guidelines for the brexit talks and the 27 other countries are united on their strategy, which will be adopted by eu leaders on saturday. from brussels, our europe editor katya editor reports. for the first time in a long time,

the vexed eu is feeling bullish. reflected today in its most powerful nation, by its most powerful leader. speaking in the bundestag this morning about brexit, angela merkel painted the uk as confused, the eu as resolute. translation: to us it may seem obvious the form negotiations will take but there are some in britain who still live under quite some illusions. that is wasted time. in full election mode today, the prime minister seized on these comments, as much to target political opponents at home as to fire back at the german chancellor. we've heard her comments today, we've seen that actually there will be times when these negotiations are going to get tough. yet, our opponents are already trying to disrupt it, at the same time as 27 other european countries are lining

up to oppose us. the 27 eu leaders are in brussels on saturday to finalise their negotiating guidelines. they want the uk to honour financial commitments made to the eu before brexit. and to give permanent residency to eu nationals living in britain for five years or more. they also insist that the uk will not be able to enjoy the same single market benefits outside as inside the eu. and how come brussels is suddenly so confident? well, there were fears here after the brexit vote that could spell an end to the eu but so far no other country has walked out the door. and while britain holds an election and is divided over its brexit approach, the eu, so famous for infighting, seems calm and united. still, britain keeps hoping its allies amongst eu countries will help behind—the—scenes. portugal is an old, old friend.

prime minister costas told me of the uk's importance to portugal in tourism and in trade. hundreds of thousands of portuguese nationals live in britain too. but he said there would be no special favours. translation: i think it would be an enormous illusion to define a negotiating strategy like that. the uk isn't going to have 27 separations. britain is negotiating with the eu as a whole. how difficult, though, prime minister, realistically speaking, will it be to maintain this united front? because, we know the eu, the eu is fractious, it's a fractious union. translation: no, the eu will negotiate in a united fashion and that is not negative for the uk. the single market only exists as a whole so the eu has a single voice. but for how long? in portugal and across the eu leaders are now keen for negotiations to start.

there are other issues to deal with, like migration, and they know their very public show of unity over brexit will soon come under strain. katya adler, bbc news, brussels. our political editor, laura kuenssberg, is in westminsterfor us. so, the eu is feeling bullish. how is that going to play into the election here? it sounds like it should be bad news for the prime minister that they are sounding so upbeat. in the medium term, it may well make things more difficult for whoever ends up in number 10. her rivals say this will be a painful reality check for the prime minister about how difficult the brexit process may prove to be. sometimes in politics you have to try to turn things on their head. in the context of this election campaign, i think we are already seeing theresa may trying to use these comments to her advantage. remember, part of her justification for having this election in the first place, and she

was under no obligation to actually go to the country. but part of her argument was to point out how complicated hand how difficult the process of leaving the european union might prove to be. central to her argument for votes is therefore that every single member of the public that signs up to agree with her will give her additional political muscle as she goes into these complicated and difficult talks. of course, in the medium term, it may well prove to be that europe's intransigence, or their confidence, depending on how you look at it, proves to be a real problem for whoever is in charge in the uk. but in the weeks of this election campaign, which is really getting going now, theresa may, i think, will use this stance to her advantage. violent crime, including knife and gun crime, in england and wales increased significantly last year according to figures from the office for national statistics. overall, police recorded almost 5 million offences last year —

a rise of 9% on the year before. much of that down to changes in the way police record offences. but there was a genuine increase in violent crime, as our home affairs correspondent, daniel sandford, reports. this is my new song, called promise you make should not be broken. he was a character. so fun, so loving. always there, up for a laugh with anyone. just a great brother. zac za c eva ns zac evans went to the pub in gloucester two yea rs zac evans went to the pub in gloucester two years ago and never came back. he was 19 years old. he was killed with a machete in an argument he didn't start. as a family, it's destroyed us. we have lost the youngest person, but also feels like the biggest person. when you are so strong feels like the biggest person. when you are so strong as feels like the biggest person. when you are so strong as a feels like the biggest person. when you are so strong as a family, you don't realise what you've got until it is gone. we miss him massively.

with violent crime in england and wales rising again after years of decline, she's pleading that young people should be taught more about the dangers of knife crime and that police funding should be protected. senior officers are warning that more people appear to be carrying knives. in some cities, more guns are being fired again. in recent weeks, there has been a spate of deaths. this was the scene of one of the most recent knife murders, the suburban street where 19—year—old jordan wright was stabbed to death last week. last year, police recorded a 9% increase in crimes, though much of that can be explained by changes in police record keeping. however, violent crime was up i9%. firearms offences we re crime was up i9%. firearms offences were up 13% and knife crime was up 1496. the service takes these very,

very seriously. we see operations taking place across the country and there are planned activities, particularly in relation to knife crime, that will happen across the summer crime, that will happen across the summerand crime, that will happen across the summer and the rest of the year. government statisticians say that the figures may also suggest a genuine rise in burglaries and vehicle crime. these are offences that had been falling for decades. another measure, the crime survey of england and wales, suggests that crime is stable. although we are heading into an election, crime is not on the list of the public‘s greatest concerns at the moment. that is according to recent polls. daniel sandford, bbc news. the high court has ruled that the government cannot delay publishing its plans to tackle illegal levels of air pollution until after the general election. ministers had argued that making the announcement would break strict pre—election rules. but the judge said the government's plans to deal with illegal levels of nitrogen dioxide must now be made public in less than a fortnight. here's our science editor david shukman. heavy traffic outside the high court as the government once again faced

questions about air pollution — this time because of another delay in releasing its plans. an environmental group, client earth, was there to argue that ministers should speed up. the government case is that an election rule, called purdah, prevents them doing that. in hisjudgment, mrjustice garnham said that purdah was not a reason for delay. it is not a trump card to be deployed at will, he said. he described the dangers of nitrogen dioxide, a key pollutant — "the threat is real and persisting". the government told the court that it was ready to publish its clean—air plan, but couldn't because of the convention known as purdah, restricting the release of major new policies during an election campaign. but the judge didn't accept that. he said the government's own figures showed as many as 64 people were dying prematurely every day because of dirty air. so, what's the next step in this battle over air pollution? well, the judgment orders the government to publish

its new plan right after the local elections next month. it's a sensitive time. well, i think it's very important for everyone to understand that this isn't a political decision and that cleaning up the air isn't a matter of politics. what thejudge said, very, very clearly is when you have a legal obligation, and a court order, to do something as important as protect the public health by cleaning up the air, politics does not come into it. the government is considering whether to appeal. whatever it does, the court's ruling will eventually have an impact on millions of drivers, as new measures to tackle pollution come a little closer. david shukman, bbc news, the high court. tomorrow, pope francis will visit egypt — a country whose christian minority is increasingly under threat. coptic christians represent 10% of egypt's population, but they've been subjected to a number of attacks from islamist extemists recently, including two over the weekend in which almost 50 people were killed. our egypt correspondent orla guerin reports from alexandria.

entombed — egyptian christians killed for their faith, not in roman times but earlier this month. priests at the ancient monastery of st mina say the dead were modern—day martyrs. the so—called islamic state has said worshippers of the cross are its favourite prey. at this small tailor‘s shop, a much—loved son is gone. ibrahim bakoum worked alongside his father. "he should have buried me", he says, "not the other way around." translation: he was gasping for breath. after that, they got a sheet and they covered him. and sent him to the morgue. i saw it with my own eyes.

outside one of the bombed churches, christians vented their fury on a senior police official — enraged that is could strike their community again. the extremists killed about 30 mass—goers in cairo last december. the latest attacks robbed the nasim family of three loved ones, including this 18—year—old. they told us he went to church often recently and wanted to die as a martyr. his sister, marianne, says coptic christians are victims of discrimination as well as is. translation: if things stay like this and we don't get our rights.

we definitely have no future. we would be better off dead because we don't have any place anywhere in the country, in schools or in government departments. we don't have any value. security has been stepped up near st mark's cathedral, where a bomber got right to the gates. well, troops are now in position on approach roads leading to the church and access is being tightly controlled. the army has been deployed at sensitive locations around the country as part of a three—month state of emergency, but many are asking why all of this didn't happen sooner, why security wasn't tightened before the latest bloodshed. as they pray for their new dead, copts are seeking consolation in their ancient beliefs. but when pope francis arrives here, he will find new fears for the future in one of the oldest christian communities in the middle east.

orla guerin, bbc news, alexandria. a brief look at some of the day's other other news stories... the royal marine alexander blackman, who had his murder sentence for killing a wounded taliban fighter in afghanistan quashed, is expected to be released from prison tomorrow. sergeant blackman — known as marine a during the case — had his conviction reduced to manslaughter on appeal last month. an inquestjury has concluded that gross failures in the care given to a mother suffering from a rare post—natal mental condition in a london hospital contributed to her death. alice gibson—watt, a jewellery expert who'd appeared on the bbc‘s antiques road show, suffered a severe psychotic episode after giving birth in 2012. she was admitted to a mental health unit, where she suffered a cardiac arrest and later died. police have written to politicians in scotland giving them advice on how to handle suspicious packages. parcels containing white powder were sent to an elected official

the headquarters of a political party and a council building. officials say all three packages were associated in some way with june's general election. children and teenagers in the uk feel that social media companies are not doing enough to protect them from poronography and bullying. in research by the charity the nspcc, four out of five young people said sites like facebook needed to do more to stop them seeing inappropriate and harmful images. our media editor amol rajan has been talking to a mother whose teenage son took his own life a year ago after suffering constant abuse online. when social media kicked in, around the age of 13 or 14, it became something he couldn't escape from. shall ijust lob it? it became people he didn't even know, would be messaging him, telling him he was hated, he wasn't welcome. 17—year—old felix alexander seemed a teenager like any other, with plenty of friends and a love of sport. but there was a much

darker side to his life. years of abuse online destroyed his self—confidence. a year ago today, he took his own life by stepping in front of a train. his mother says that, with modern social media, there is no respite from bullies. everything is very instantaneous, everything has to have a reaction immediately. they look for that the whole time. so, it becomes all encompassing. it becomes completely overwhelming. even if i took felix's phone away, he would come down in the middle of the night to try and find it, just to see what people are saying. it becomes just this thing that takes over your entire life. you can't see further than that. lucy alexander is now working with schools across her home city of worcester to warn pupils about bullying on social media. online abuse is invading and destroying lives across the country. but tackling it goes to the heart of the debate about the role and responsibilities of internet companies. is it up to big technology firms

to clamp down on abuse? or do we need new and smarter regulation? many high profile celebrities have become advocates of reform, having endured abuse themselves. they include former footballer gary lineker. in many ways, whether it be facebook, whether it be twitter, whether it be the other things that are around these days, i think it should be their responsibility. i think they need to make greater efforts to stop the kind of abuse, to stop the kind of bullying that can have... yes, i can deal with it, but a lot of people can't. for their part, tech companies argue they have taken decisive action already. twitter say they are providing users with new tools to block or mute abuse, safer search results and they are stopping the creation of abusive new accounts. what was the age gap between felix and his next sibling? four years. as lucy alexander marks a first anniversary few parents can imagine,

the question of who will take response ability for cleaning up social media remains open. amol rajan, bbc news. the pentagon says it's investigating payments to donald trump's former national security advisor michael flynn — including one to attend a gala dinner in russia where he sat on a table with president putin. flynn is alleged to have received $33,000 without getting approval for the payment. the former soldier was sacked from trump's administration just weeks after the president was sworn in because of meetings he'd had with the russian ambassador to the us in the run up to the presidential election. travelling at 70,000 miles an hour, the cassini space probe has been exploring the planet saturn and its famous rings for years. now it's just completed its first perilous dive between those rings and the planet itself. at mission control in california, celebrations as scientists find out that the manouevre had worked.

and these are the new images the spacecraft has sent back from nearly three quarters of a billion miles away. this shows a huge storm raging on saturn, along with drifting clouds in its atmosphere. cassini will make further plunges over the next few months before burning up in saturn's atmosphere. the world to find inspiration for his abstract sculptures. his love of landscapes has inspired his works — many of which are held in some of the world's most important museums. this weekend, his latest exhibition will open at a georgian stately home in norfolk. our arts editor, will gompertz, went there to meet him there. houghton hall, in norfolk.