this is bbc news, i'm chris rogers. our top stories: political turmoil in washington. the controversy over the sacking of fbi chiefjames comey goes on, as does the investigation into alleged republican contacts with russia. living with hiv. why those on the latest treatments can expect to live just as long as those without the condition. and another record in the pipeline for real. a second successive champions league victory is nowjust a game away. and i'm tanya beckett. snapjudgement. investors punish the firm behind snapchat. as the messaging app's results disappoint, its shares plunge 23%. plus: borderline anxiety. businesses in northern ireland fear for the future on britain's post—brexit frontier. hello.

the fallout from the sacking ofjames comey is continuing to cause reverberations around washington. for his part, the now—former fbi boss has said he has long believed the president can dismiss an fbi directorfor any reason, or no reason at all. meanwhile us senators investigating links between donald trump's presidential campaign and russia have issued a subpoena to the former national security adviser michael flynn. our washington correspondent laura bicker has the latest. he has become more famous than me. donald trump may have once embraced the fbi director, but the low was short lived. it is thought the president's frustration had been building for months. he had hoped allegations that russia had meddled in the us election to help him win

could be dismissed as fake news. but the towering figure of the fbi kept the towering figure of the fbi kept the story alive by confirming the investigation, and that is why democrats think mr trump fired him. he feels the dragnet tightening on the russian investigation. i believe thatis the russian investigation. i believe that is why he has let james comey go. and he has made it clear what he thinks should happen now. we need an independent special prosecutor. there has to be an independent special prosecutor. if we are going to get to the bottom of it we need an independent special prosecutor. but the chances are that are slim to none. mr comey was hired to restore faith in the fbi. the fbi director has no great ability. and the majority of republicans are standing with the president. democratic collea g u es with the president. democratic colleagues complaining about the removal of an fbi director who they themselves repeatedly and sharply criticised... themselves repeatedly and sharply criticised. . . the themselves repeatedly and sharply criticised... the russian leader offered his opinion, on his way to a hockey match in sochi. translation:

president trump is acting in accordance with his confidence, and in accordance with his law, with the constitution. in a farewell letter, james comey told his colleagues that... meanwhile, the investigation continues, and back at the centre of it is donald trump's former national security adviser, michael flynn. he was fired for lying about his contact with the russian ambassador. senators have now issued a formal demand, sabena, for any documents detailing his russian contacts or business dealings. the fbi director may be gone, but the enquiries surrounding donald trump's aids and their potential links to russia go on. “— their potential links to russia go on. —— aides. let's take a look at some

of the other stories making the news: the newly elected french president, emmanuel macron, will announce later the names of the 577 candidates he hopes his party will put up in forthcoming legislative elections. he currently has no representatives from his newly formed party in parliament, and has said half of his candidates will be from civil society. the british theme park where an 11—year—old schoolgirl was killed on a water ride will remain closed again on thursday, as investigations into her death continue. evha jannath died after falling into the water at drayton manor, in the midlands. her family say their world has been torn apart by her death. two more people have been killed in another day of anti—government protests across venezuela, bringing the number of dead close to a0 in over a month. young protestors in caracas threw bottles and bags of excrement at soldiers firing tear gas and water cannon. government supporters held their own demonstration. researchers from bristol university, in britain, say hiv patients can now

expect to live close to the same age as the general population. their findings represent a ten—year increase in life expectancy since drug treatment became widely available, two decades ago. here is our health correspondent jane dreaper. it isa it is a deadly disease, and there is no known cure. doom laden government adverts in the 1980s warned about the dangers of the virus behind aids, and urged us not to die of ignorance. jonathan learned he was hiv positive in 1982. he didn't expect to be alive all these years later. now 67, he is enjoying a healthy and happy retirement. later. now 67, he is enjoying a healthy and happy retirementlj never healthy and happy retirement.” never thought that i would hit 40, 50,60, never thought that i would hit 40, 50, 60, and to be a pensioner... is

amazing. i have been very, very fortu nate. amazing. i have been very, very fortunate. medicine which stops hiv reproducing has helped jonathan and millions of others. these antiretroviral drugs became widely available in the uk two decades ago. researchers from bristol say a 20—year—old man who started hiv treatment in recent years should now live until the age of 73, and a woman should now reach 76, close to the average. it is hoped the findings will encourage anyone at risk of hiv to get tested for the virus. the charity terrence higgins trust says this research is great news, although some people are still unaware they have hiv, and this means they are missing out on the treatment which will help them stay healthy into old age. tanya is here with all the business news. bad news for snap, then.

we start with snap, the company behind the messaging app snapchat. in case you aren't familiar with it, it lets you send photo messages which disappear after a few seconds, and it seems the confidence of investors has gone missing almost as fast. snap's shares have plunged in after—hours trading, on its first set of financial results since that huge flotation back in march. let's show you the details. this is how much they lost in the first three months of the year — $2.21 billion. that is a massive jump on the losses this time last year. it is mostly because of huge stock option payouts to staff in the ipo. but here is the number investors are really looking at. by the end of march, 166 million people were using snapchat every day. that is up over 36% on the same time last year, but it was a few million less than investors had been hoping, and a big slowdown from growth seen in previous quarters.

it also pales in comparison when you look at this. facebook has around 1.3 billion daily users, and almost two billion who use it at least once a month. even its version of snapchat, instagram stories, has 200 million daily users. investors were quick to pile into shares when snap went public back in march. the share price rose by as much as 50% in the first couple of days of trading. but look how that enthusiasm has waned on concerns about competition from facebook, and its shares are likely to plunge when they open on thursday. they were down around 25% in after—market trading, towards $17. that would take the shares pretty much back to their flotation price. also, as the eu's chief brexit negotiator, michel barnier,

prepares to address the irish parliament, we are on the border between the republic of ireland and northern ireland, where brexit talks will be closely followed. that is because of course it will represent britain's land frontier with the eu once it leaves, and businesses there are worried about what that border will be like. we will have a special report from the bbc‘s dominic 0'connell. more from tanya later. we will look at what else is making news around the world, and how it is being reported on, as well. leaders of the eight nations with territory in the arctic are meeting in alaska amid confusion about the us government's policy on climate change. the arctic council summit, which is held every two years, will also discuss shipping, fisheries and tourism, but the main focus is on rising temperatures in the high north. 0ur north america correspondent james cook reports from the meeting in fairbanks. the frozen north is melting. it is

springtime in alaska, and the winter ice is beginning to break up. the villagers here on the bering sea say the floors are coming earlier. some are longer, and the ice is thinner. here, climate change is not a theory —— thaws are coming earlier. here, climate change is not a theory -- thaws are coming earlier. it is thicker, when i was younger it was up thicker, when i was younger it was up to eight feet thick. since the day he was born, austin has been gazing out at the ocean. now he works with 20 local tribes, trying to maintain old traditions in a new world. we are witnessing the disappearance of the cryo sphere, ice. we are witnessing its disappearance. in many parts where it occurred, in all its forms. permafrost, river ice, ocean ice.

the process appears to be exhilarating. the more ice melts, the less sunlight is reflected, the quicker the world warms. and, halfway across alaska, at a meeting of the arctic council, climate is the big issue. as delegates from around the arctic gather here in the pristine wilderness of alaska for this summit, their conversations have been dominated one topic. what does president trump think about climate change? what is america's policy? there is particular concern that the us might be about to withdraw from the landmark paris agreement to reduce carbon emissions. if the us does withdraw, it is going to set the us policy backed by a decade or two, in terms of responding to climate change. the warming we have seen in the last 50 to 100 years is greater than the warming we have seen at any time in the last 2000 years. is human activity causing that climate change? yes, it is. it is a prime

contributor, i will put it in those terms. and so the clear air here is filled with unease about the changing climate. because, while sceptics are on the fringes of science, they are now at the heart of the us government. stay with us on bbc news. still to come: a beautiful voice that she can't even hear. how this deaf musician overcame her disability and returned to the stage. the pope was shot and the pope will live. that was the essence of the appalling news from rome this afternoon. that, as an italian television commentator put it, terrorism has come to the vatican. the man they called the butcher of lyon, klaus barbie, went on trial today in the french town where he was the gestapo chief

in the second world war. winnie mandela never looked like a woman just sentenced to six years injail. the judge told mrs mandela there was no indication she felt even the slightest remorse. the chinese government has called for an all—out effort to help the victims of a powerful earthquake, the worst to hit the country for 30 years. the computer deep blue has tonight triumphed over the world chess champion, gary kasparov. it is the first time a machine has defeated a reigning world champion in a classical chess match. america's first legal same—sex marriages have been taking place in massachusetts. god bless america! this is bbc news. the headlines: james comey, the fbi chief fired by donald trump, has responded to his sacking in a letter, saying he will not spend time on the decision or the way it was executed. us senators have issued a subpoena

demanding the former national security adviser, michael flynn, hand over documents about his contacts and business dealings with russia. to syria, and us—backed forces have made significant gains as they prepare an assault on so—called islamic state's last major stronghold, raqqa. they've just recaptured the city of tabqa from is and retaken a nearby dam, after weeks of fighting. but as the extremists lose ground, large numbers of foreign fighters are trying to get back to europe. dozens a re currently being held in northern syria. the bbc has gained exclusive access to some of them, including one british fighter. from northern aleppo, our middle east correspondent quentin sommerville, and cameraman fred scott, sent this report. the free syrian army are driving out is. here in northern syria, the so—called islamic state is collapsing.

but what happens to its believers and converts, those that abandoned europe to live under the caliphate? these camps are for civilians, the most desperate. but lurking here is a threat, is fighters living among them. the camps here in northern syria are being overwhelmed. people are fleeing fighting on a number of fronts, and this is before the big attack on the is de facto capital, raqqa. is fighters and their families are trying to get out. some are trying to defect. many of them are being captured here, before they even make it to the border with turkey. we were given exclusive access to one jail holding european is fighters. they are a threat, and distrusted, so are heavily guarded by the al shamir front.

these are the personal belongings of is prisoners and defectors. hundreds have been captured, including whole families heading back to europe. mohammad atalla and his wife left nimes in france, to join the islamic state. they had a baby while in raqqa. he says he doesn't hate france, and wants to return. translation: a friend came and told me i should leave and join the islamic state. i let him brainwash me. i was weak, and ifollowed him. life under the islamic state in syria is difficult. there is a lot of bombing. it's not a life we wish on anyone. translation: i had a normal life in france. i was well, i was happy. i had hobbies. i was in school. it had nothing to do with here. we live in fear. europe doesn't want them back,

and the fighters who control here don't want them to stay. translation: they are a burden on us. there is a huge number of defectors here in northern countryside, and we don't have the ability to look after them. if we got more help from their countries in europe, then many more is members would defect and give themselves up. and the bbc spoke to a british man inside syria, stefan aristidou, who left for raqqa two years ago. despite joining is willingly, he now appealed for rescue. he said... he has since escaped to turkey, where he is being held injail.

a people smuggler we met was helping stefan aristidou escape. he says is has set traps for those fleeing. translation: the number defecting is increasing a lot, but their main problem is is sleeper cells pretending to be smugglers. they make contact with members trying to leave, and hand them over to is security officials. is prisons are full of people who tried to defect. the scale of the problem is enormous. we visited three different prisons, all holding is fighters from across the globe. they are battle—hardened. this man came from palestine. translation: there was a kind of compulsion for foreign fighters to go to the front line. "where? we asked.

"it's not your business," we were told. so we fought, and we didn't ask questions. the caliphate is in ruins and its converts are lost. the free syrian army can't hold them much longer, so the dangerous and the unwanted from is increasingly have nowhere to go, except to come home. quentin sommerville, bbc news, northern aleppo. real madrid are on the verge of more european history after reaching another champions league final. —— european. a defeat to their city rivals atletico in wednesday's second leg failed to prevent them going through 4—2 on aggregate. victory in next month's final would mean a record—extending 12th european cup triumph for the spanish side. they will also become the first team to retain the title since the champions league format was introduced we knew we were going to suffer but

we also knew that by remaining calm and patient, we would create chances and patient, we would create chances and after 25 minutes, everything changed. we found our game and we found them making just the right moves. he wasjust found them making just the right moves. he was just terrific. when you have one like him moving around, with his quality, you can really hurt the opposition. reaching two champions league finals in a row is a result of everybody‘s hard work. it's been so, so impressive but it's not over yet. we still have three very important league games ahead of us very important league games ahead of us and after that, we will have time to think about the final so we are happy. to think about the final so we are happy- happy to think about the final so we are happy. happy and proud of every player. he looks really happy, doesn't it? arsenal are still hopeful of grabbing a top four spot in the english premier league after beating southampton 2—0 on wednesday.

the win means they are three points behind fourth place manchester city, with just three games to go. the draw for the 2019 rugby world cup was made on tuesday — more than two years before the tournament gets under way injapan. it'll be the first time the tournament has been hosted by an asian country and 20 teams will take part — 12 of them are already confirmed with eight others vying for the last qualification spots the host nationjapan have been drawn in the same group as ireland and scotland. while pool b will see a clash between two former winners in south africa and the holders, new zealand. the six nations champions england are in a tough—looking pool three with france and argentina. australia and wales have been drawn together as they were in 2015. they should go through from a group that includes georgia and two qualifiers. there was an embarrassing moment at the giro d'italia for slovenian cyclist lu ka pibernik. he was leading the fifth stage as it entered messina

on the island of sicily. unfortunately for him, he had either forgotten they were meant to do two laps through the town or didn't hear the bell indicating the final lap and celebrated his uncontested victory, only to realise moments later why the rest of the field hadn't chased him. the overall leader is still bob jungels of luxembourg. mandy harvey is an american singer and song—writer who always knew she wanted to be a musician. but as an 18—year old university student, tragedy struck. she lost her hearing, due to a connective tissue disorder, and with it — potentially — her career. now, a decade later, she has three albums under her belt, and tours with a band. how does she do it? the bbc went to find out. # come, walk, my friend, with me # to a place we always dream... music is an expression of the soul.

it is like a painting. it is all the memories and stories, and the emotions that you felt at that time, or something you long to feel. i went to college for a vocal music education. i wanted to teach vocaljazz, and in that first year i lost my residual hearing, and was struck from the programme. and to describe it really as anything other than watching myself die, i — i don't feel has enough weight to it. i died, i died that day. but i picked up music again, and now i have been performing professionally for about eight years. i'm not the same person i was.

my dreams are not the same, and i have come to peace with that. i feel a lot of music, so when i'm playing with a band, i play with my shoes off, and i can feel the rhythm through the floor. and you can feel, like, a lot. when it gets really loud, you can feel a tingle on your skin. and everything is visual communication. so, if this person's going to play a solo, i look at them, they look at me, they acknowledge they're taking it, and they go. and then when they're done, they look right up back at me. i look at them, i acknowledge it as mine again, and i start singing. # can't explain the mess that we made # 0h, release me not being able to hear other music, it allows me the ability to not be necessarily pushed into sounding like somebody else.

i sound like myself, and i will consistently sound like myself. i seem to encourage other people. that's what makes me happy. i've made it through a really horribly difficult time in my life. so my passion, the whole reason why i sing, is so that i can say, hey, this is what i've done. i really hope that i can encourage you to do the same. what an inspirational woman and what a really good singer as well. if you'd like to share your stories, you'd like to share your stories, you can do on twitter. i'm @chrisrogersbbc.

hello there. after the dry weather that we have been experiencing for days and weeks now, there is finally a change on the way, courtesy of these lumps of cloud, vicious thunderstorms across spain and portugal, now on the march northwards. so many of us will see some showery rain and perhaps some thunderstorms over the next couple of days, and with that, a feed of warm, humid air moving in our direction for the end of the week from the south. quite a muggy feel to the weather, with the risk of some downpours, and the rain could be welcome. so, down towards the south coast, one or two showers to start the day. temperatures one or two showers to start the day. on the mild si 12 temperatures on the mild side, 11 or 12 degrees. certainly the midlands,

north wales, some sunshine. a sunny start in northern england and southern and western scotland but for eastern and northern scotland, a lot of cloud and the odd splash of rain. seven degrees to start the day in lerwick. there will be a lot of dry weather again with some sunshine atan dry weather again with some sunshine at an increasingly humid feel. then, potentially into the afternoon, some hit and miss heavy thundery downpours which could deliver a lot of rain in a short space of time. 22 or 23 as possible in the south of feeling much cooler across the of scotland. thursday night into friday, that humid air continues to waft u p friday, that humid air continues to waft up from the south and with it, some showery rain on and off. the odd flash of lightning and temperatures much, much higher than they have been in recent nights. fide looks like a bit of a mishmash meet —— mishmash. some heavy showers occasionally. hard to predict

whether showers will be at this stage. you could catch onejust about anywhere. still feeling pretty humid. anotherfairly about anywhere. still feeling pretty humid. another fairly humid about anywhere. still feeling pretty humid. anotherfairly humid day on saturday. a mixture of sunshine and showers. this weather front, saturday. a mixture of sunshine and showers. this weatherfront, a cold front, will push its way through and we will see some fresh air from the west. a fresh appeal with a mix of sunshine and showers. —— are fresher feel. this is bbc world news. the headlines: james comey, the fbi chief fired by president trump on tuesday, has responded to his sacking in a letter. he says he has long believed that the president can dismiss an fbi directorfor any reason, or no reason at all. us senators have issued a subpoena demanding the former national security adviser michael flynn hand over documents about his contacts with russia. mr flynn was forced to resign

in february after lying about phone calls with the russian ambassador. researchers in britain say hiv patients can now expect to live close to the same age as the general population. their findings represent a ten—year increase in life expectancy since drug treatment became widely available, two decades ago.