this is bbc news. the headlines at 11pm: i took off my helmet and i was screaming for help because it was getting dry and as much as it was getting dry and as much as it was getting drive that's how it was burning. charlie gard will be examined by an american doctor who says he can improve his condition. a modern musical welcome in paris from one president to another. now it seems they're the firmest of friends. and on newsnight, we bring you the details of an intriguing murder case, and the conviction of a chinese man for the killing in a trial much of which was held in secret. was it a miscarriage ofjustice? good evening and

welcome to bbc news. two teenagers have been arrested after a string of acid attacks last night in london. five people in separate incidents had acid thrown in their faces, causing in the case of one man life—changing injuries. the attacks happened amid rising concern about the number of assaults in the capital involving corrosive fluids. the attacks were carried out at five separate locations in east london, within the space of less than 90 minutes. this report, from our home affairs correspondent daniel sandford, contains some disturbing images from the start. in the aftermath of an acid attack last night... where does it hurt? in your eyes? we need to try to get water in your eyes. keep your eyes open. police officers desperately trying to reduce the burning and to save the victim's sight. rushing extra water to the scene.

i just jumped away from my bike and ijust ran. tonight, the victim of that attack, javed hussain, told me that the first help he received was from a passer—by. she asked me what happened. isaid, look, someone put acid on my face. she was shocked, she was trying to call an ambulance. i said, i need water asap. if you call an ambulance, it's going to be long, i need water now on my face because it's hurting, it's burning. she ran to the co—operative and she got one of the bottles of water. the attack here turned out to be the first of five over the next hour and a quarter, all in a small area of east london and all involving acid being thrown at the victims. at every crime scene the target had been driving mopeds. two of them were stolen. a 24—year—old man here in clapton was left with life changing injuries because of the acid used.

the prime minister said the attacks were horrific. police have arrested a 15—year—old and a 16—year—old. national statistics on acid attacks are not collated by the home office but in london they have risen from 129 two years ago to 224 last year, and by april this year there have already been another 66. one of the most high profile recent attacks was last month when 21—year—old resham khan and her cousin, jameel muhktar, were targeted whilst sitting in their car at a traffic light. we are concerned because the numbers appear to be going up. we will arrest people, we will enforce the law as we can and we are working very closely with the home office to see if there are any changes in law required. stephen timms is one of the mps in east london where the problem is most acute. he has been campaigning for a change in the law and will lead a debate on acid attacks next week. i'd like the minister to confirm

on monday that the possession of acid will be an offence in the future in exactly the same way that possession of a knife is an offence today. i would like the law to be changed so that sulphuric acid will only be sold to people who hold a licence. it seems likely that some criminals are using the laxer rules on acid to avoid the tough laws on carrying a knife. the home office today said it was working with police and retailers to tackle what it called these sickening crimes. but any change in the law would take time. president trump has described america's relationship with france as "stronger than ever", as he attended the bastille day military parade in paris. the parade marked 100 years since the americans entered the first world war, but events have also been held to remember the 86 people killed in the nice attack, one year ago. our paris correspondent lucy williamson reports. france today celebrated its long us

alliance with a series of increasingly forceful handshakes between their two heads of state. this event, though, was not about the ties between men but between nations. joining the armed forces from both america and france, beginning with a fly past of visiting fighter jets. their soldiers too led the parade together in a tribute to their role in world war i. the us is an ally of theirs, i know sometimes we don't think so, but france was there for us and we are the for them. i didn't vote for president from but he is our president and we are proud to have him here. speaking to the crowds in central paris, mr macron thanked the us for the choice it had made a century ago and said that france and america would never be divided. the france of today was honoured too

with a military band playing music by daft punk. enjoyed by some in the audience, perhaps more than others. france's changing culture mirrored in this parade, accompanied by changing security threats too. the image of france's security forces has changed in the past few years, repeated terrorist attacks have refocused attention on security at home and the values that france has chosen to protect. the ceremony ended with the city anthem of nice, the scene of the country's last major terrorist attack a year ago today. in nice, the tributes honoured those who died in the attack, killed by a truck driven into bastille day crowds. their names, 86 of them, pinned by survivors into the shape of a heart.

this afternoon president macron flew from paris to join the commemorations. the fight against terrorism was a battle for our civilisation, he said. the events here today were still haunted by debates over how best to guarantee security as the country once again paid tribute to its values, its history, to the idea of france. lucy williamson, bbc news, paris. a high courtjudge has heard that the american doctor who has offered to treat the terminally—ill baby charlie gard is to come to the uk next week to examine him. charlie's parents want him to receive experimental therapy. they have been involved in a lengthy legal battle with doctors at great ormond street hospital, who believe life support should be stopped. douglas innes, the boss of a sailing company, has been found guilty of failing to ensure the safety of a yacht which capsized in the atlantic. the ao—foot cheeki rafiki lost its keel 700 miles off nova scotia three years ago,

killing all four of its crew. a former producer on the tv drama the bill has been sentenced to 17 years in prison for trying to hire a series of hitmen to kill his long—term partner. david harris, who's 68, offered three men £200,000 to murder his partner hazel allison. he wanted to inherit her fortune, and start a new life with a woman he'd met in a brothel. duncan kennedy reports. david harris was with his partner, hazel, for 30 years, but unknown to her, he also had a girlfriend, ugne cekaviciute, who he had met in a brothel. to keep her and get rid of hazel, harris went looking to hire not one, not two, but three hit men, all of whom were completely innocent of his real intentions. harris first approached christopher may, a private detective, who secretly recorded harris, suggesting hazel should be

killed after a visit to the hospital. harris then made this chilling comment. when christopher may backed out, harris turned to duke dean. the pair were seen here meeting in london. mr dean told me harris offered him £175,000 to kill hazel. did you get the impression he was serious about getting rid of hazel?

he was quite stone serious, yes. that is what he wanted? that's what he wanted. duke dean tipped off police, who then used an undercover officer to pose as hit man number three. when harris was arrested he told police that all he was doing was researching a book on hit men. the judge rejected that today, saying his real intention was to kill hazel and get his hands on her money. david harris and hazel allinson did have happy times, but his obsession with another woman, a0 years younger, led him to push three men to kill, to satisfy his lust, greed and distorted fantasies. now it's time for newsnight. why did it take so long for the

london fire brigade to deploy a tall ladder of the grenfell tower fire? are more awkward question for the brigade tonight as most of fire services tell us they would have sent a tall ladder out automatically. vital minutes were lost before the lada arrived, but its delay appears to be a sign of a haphazard patchwork of inconsistent policies and plans among the fire services of the country. the same fire in the same tower block elicits wildly different responses. also tonight, the killing of an elderly and reclusive man in 2006. the conviction of a chinese man for the murder in 2009. but was it a miscarriage of justice? murder in 2009. but was it a miscarriage ofjustice?|j murder in 2009. but was it a miscarriage ofjustice? i am the first journalist to miscarriage ofjustice? i am the firstjournalist to interview him. over the past year i've spent 25 hours speaking with him by telephone. fellow? —— hello? and we do our bit to kick off the

proms. hello. last week, we reported on the often heroic response of the fire fighters to the grenfell tower blaze, and the failings in the equipment they had. the biggest surprise was that no tall ladder was dispatched to grenfell until half an hour after the initial call. this, it turned out, was london fire brigade policy, to wait and see before sending

an aerial platform. well, we've been doing some follow—up work with the other fire services of the uk, and it turns out that the bulk of them have the opposite policy. london was in a minority in not sending a tall ladder automatically to a fire in a high—rise. london has adapted its policy since grenfell as an interim measure, but there are still nine other services that don't deploy. and we've found other differences in plans of different fire services. in other words, this is yet another area where, post—grenfell, you examine national policy closely and find it wanting. james clayton reports. a month after the horrifying events of the 14th of june, and a clearer picture of how the london fire brigade responded to the grenfell tower fire has begun to emerge. last week, newsnight reported that the first high ladder, or aerial, arrived 31 minutes

after the first fire engine. london has now changed its predetermined attendance, what it would automatically send to a high—rise fire, to include a high ladder as an interim measure. but how would other fire services have reacted to a similar fire in a high—rise building? we contacted every fire service in the country to ask what their predetermined attendance was to a fire in a tower block. we found that 70% of fire services would have sent an aerial ladder. this is before grenfell, remember, to any high—rise fire. however, nine fire services, including tyne & wear, leicestershire, kent, lancashire and cambridgeshire will not send aerial ladder in the first instance. the crux of the problem is this — the same fire in the same tower block elicits wildly different

responses from fire services across the country. now, take this building behind me. it's a high—rise building in essex. and if there's a fire here, the first response of the local fire service won't be to send a high ladder. whereas in neighbouring suffolk, they will. lauren irish is a community nurse who cares for a resident inside a tower block. at the end of the day, it's a tower block. you hear that it is on fire, why wouldn't you send the highest ladder you've got to get them out quicker, rather than just sending a little one? what's that going to do? you know, who is going to reach the top floor? it's not fair. that's my opinion on it. it's not. i wouldn't like to be on the top floor. essex fire service say that they have inspected