hello and welcome to bbc news, i'm chris rogers. our top stories: president trump's son—in—law jared kushner faces another day of questioning about his links to russia. he's already insisted he has "nothing to hide". preparing to let go. the parents of terminally—ill baby, charlie gard, are set to spend the final few days with him, after ending their legal battle. italy's prolonged drought forces the vatican to turn off around hundred fountains. hit by the eu — profits fall at google‘s parent company alphabet, after a huge fine levvied by the european union and bitcoin — what are they for? well now you can use the cryptocurrency to pay for art for example. all will be explained. thanks forjoining us.

president trump's son—in—law, jared kushner, is set to appear before another congressional committee later. this time, it's the house intelligence committee that wants answers and the hearing will be conducted in secret. yesterday, mr kushner was grilled on capitol hill about his contacts with russia — he denied there was any collusion with moscow in last year's election. after giving evidence, he told a press briefing that he'd been completely transparent, but took no further questions. our north america editor, jon sopel, reports from washington. jared kushner, the husband of ivanka, the son—in—law of the president, and the closest confidante of donald trump to find himself in the crosshairs of the sprawling russia investigation. reporter: mr kushner! a man who is normally found studiously avoiding the limelight today found himself uncomfortably the centre of attention. after giving evidence

to the senate intelligence committee behind closed doors, he returned to the white house to insist he had done nothing wrong. i did not collude with russia, nor do i know of anyone else in the campaign who did so. i had no improper contacts. i have not relied on russian funds for my businesses. and i have been fully transparent in providing all requested information. so what were the contacts? in april 2016, kushner meets the russian ambassador, sergey kislyak. apparently no more than a handshake and passing small talk. kushner denies two further phone calls took place after this. on 9june 2016, kushnerjoins donald trumer and the campaign manager to hearfrom a russian attorney who has alleged links to the intel services in moscow. natalia veselnitskaya.

subject matter — "getting dirt on hillary clinton." after the election, he meets the russian ambassador again on i december. and two weeks later he meets a russian banker, sergei gorkov, said to have direct links to vladimir putin. but of one thing he was insistent. these meetings made zero difference to the outcome of the election. donald trump had a better message and ran a smarter campaign, and that is why he won. suggesting otherwise ridicules those who voted for him. but today, as donald trump was framed by over 100 white house interns, he was doing some ridiculing of his own, as reporters sought to ask disobliging questions... mr president, should jeff sessions resign? ..first by saying nothing... ..and then by letting rip. she's breaking the code. he has found it similarly difficult to keep his opinions

to himself over russia. jon sopel, bbc news, washington. now, another another person within the trump administration facing a lot of scrutiny is the attorney general. jeff sessions has already recused himself from the russia investigation. but the white house communication director has told the bbc that talk of replacing him is premature. anthony scaramucci was responding to a story in the washington post by its national security reporter matt zapotosky. we understand that these conversations about ferrari jeff sessions a very preliminary right 110w. “— sessions a very preliminary right now. —— replacing. some people see this as a first step in an effort to get in the way of special counsel. and the us house of representatives

is expected to vote today on legislation that would punish russia for its alleged interference in the us election. the bill also includes further sanctions against iran and north korea, for conducting continued ballistic missile tests. but it's the russian measures that set up a tough choice for president donald trump: he wants to improve ties with moscow but vetoing the legislation would only draw more attention to his administration's dealings with moscow. let's take a look at some of the other stories making the news: the us special representative for ukraine says washington is actively considering whether to arm the government in its struggle against russian—backed rebels in the east of the country. kurt volker said arming ukrainian government forces could change moscow's political calculation about how much the rebels could achieve through military means. the polish prime minister has criticised the country's president for vetoing controversial reforms to the judiciary. in a televised address, beata szydlo said her party would not yield to pressure on the issue from the european

commission and from street protesters in poland. earlier, president andrzej duda vetoed the legislation after consulting legal experts and judges. israel says it will remove metal detectors from the disputed holy site injerusalem. the un's middle east envoy has warned of catastrophic costs if the recent tensions didn't ease in time for friday's muslim prayers. the detectors were installed after two policemen were killed, sparking days of deadly clashes. a court in the us state of texas has charged a truck driver with illegally transporting immigrants after the vehicle was found crammed with people in sweltering heat, with many of the occupants dead. thirty people were treated for acute dehydration. the parents of charlie gard are spending their last moments with terminally—ill baby, after ending their legal battle to keep him alive. his parents had wanted to take their son to the us for experimental treatment. but an american doctor has said he was no longer willing to offer the therapy.

that "time had run out" for the baby. charlie's father spoke outside the court. we will have to live with what is for the rest of our lives. despite that our beautiful son has been spoken about sometime, as if he was not worthy of a chance of life, our son was an absolute warrior and we could not be more proud of him and we will miss him terribly. his heart and sol may soon be gone but his spirit will live on for e turner t and he will make a difference to people ‘s lives the years to come and we will make sure of that. —— levon for eternity rachel is here with all the business news. three of the world's most valuable internet firms release their latest numbers this week.

the biggest by far is google‘s parent alphabet — which has just reported a 21 percent jump in revenues. that was better than expected. but there was less cheer on the when it came to earnings. net profit fell 27.7 percent to $3.5 billion. hitting the bottom line was a $2.7bn fine by the european commission, which ruled the firm abused its power by promoting its own shopping comparison service in it's search results. google says it may appeal. nevertheless, alphabet‘s shareprice fell 3% in after hours trading. but take a look at this — over the past nine years the firm's share price has rocketed as it has dominated the internet advertising market. from $140 a share — to just under $1,000 a share. it's now worth more than two—thirds of a trillion dollars. a key area of growth is mobile advertising — where google is battling its rival facebook. in the three months to march paid clicks grew by 44%.

but does that mean they are too reliant on one revenue stream? we will be finding out in 20 minutes time. the art world — you may be surprised to hear — is getting excited about digital currencies. in a first for the tradition—bound art world, one gallery is now allowing its clients to pay using bitcoin, the digital cryptocurrency underpinned by blockchain technology. we'll investigate further in world business report, coming up in 20 minutes. don't forget you can get in touch with me and some of the team the vatican has said it is shutting off all its fountains, including those in st peter's square, because of italy's severe drought. the country has experienced one of its driest springs for 60 years. suffocating summer heat has followed two years of lower than average rainfall in rome, forcing the italian capital to now consider the prospect of water rationing. sarah corker reports. holiday snaps of the famous fountains in vatican city will look

a little different this summer. the 17th—century masterpieces in st peter's square are among 100 fountains being switched off. large swathes of italy are suffering from a prolonged drought. as far as we know, at least in our memory, this is the first time we have had to shut the fountains down. as you know, in rome, rome has been blessed with lots of water, and so this is an exception. as far as we know, this is the first time in the vatican this has happened. the move comes after authorities called a halt on pumping water from this lake near rome, a decision that could force officials to impose water rationing in the italian capital. some areas have seen rainfall levels 80% below normal. the island of sardinia is among the worst—affected regions. 4,000 farms depend on this now—near—empty dam for water. translation: water only one day a week.

we can't stop it, therefore we can't give water to the animals. animals cannot drink only once a week. it's a big disaster. across italy, 60% of farmland is under threat. farmers say it is costing the nation's agriculture an estimated 2 billion euros. ten regions are now seeking natural disaster status. in florence, water levels are at a record low, while further north, some rivers are already bone—dry. in central italy, olive production has been badly affected, and with no let—up in the high temperatures, authorities are warning of the risk of an environmental disaster. one of the pope's most senior advisors is due to appear in an australian court on wednesday, to face charges of sexual assault. cardinal george pell has

returned from rome saying that he is innocent, and will clear his name. as our sydney correspondent hywel griffith explains, the case is the latest controversy to hit the catholic church in australia. in george pell‘s hometown, people have become used to confronting the past, and dealing with the spectre of abuse. ribbons mark the places in ballarat where members of the christian brothers 0rder sexually assaulted children in the 1970s. dozens ended their lives prematurely. phil nagle was abused as an 8—year—old, and it took more than 20 years for his abuser to be brought tojustice. decades on, he still feels the catholic church has not defended the suffering of the victims. they make it as hard as they possibly can. they are backing the criminal man. they don't back the victims at all.

cardinal pell was brought up in ballarat and became famous as an archbishop. it was his responsibility to deal with the allegations of abuse against ballarat‘s bretheren. now, he is the one accused of sexual assault, allegations he has strongly refuted. as they wait for the legal process to unfold, there is a feeling here in ballarat that people need answers. the charges against cardinal pell won't be made public until his first court hearing. a moment which is likely to put the spotlight back on this town. those who work with abuse survivors say every headline has an impact. coverage over the last few years has already caused more people to seek help. it was really difficult, because it was exhausting. it became relentless. you couldn't get away from it. it would be in the local papers, it would be on the local news

and the wider news. across australia, nearly 2000 figures from the catholic church have been accused of abuse. a four—year royal commission enquiry has helped to break the silence. it has also made the head of ballarat‘s catholic college speak out, giving a formal apology to the victims and striking the names of convicted abusers from its walls. there's no question that as a church we have an enormous amount of work to do within the wider community and the catholic community. the only way to do that is to come to the table and say that we acknowledge this openly, we are so very sorry. that can only happen when people here feel they have found the truth. they hope that is what the courts can deliver. hywel griffith, bbc news, ballarat. stay with us on bbc news, still to come: art against apartheid —

the forgotten story of stravinksy‘s south african concert. mission control: you can see them coming down the ladder now. armstrong: it's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind. a catastrophic engine fire is being blamed tonight for the first crash in the 30—year history of concorde, the world's only supersonic airliner. it was one of the most vivid symbols of the violence and hatred that tore apart the state of yugoslavia. but now, a decade later, it's been painstakingly rebuilt and opens again today. there's been a 50% decrease in sperm quantity and an increase in malfunction of sperm unable to swim properly. thousands of households

across the country are suspiciously quiet this lunchtime as children bury their noses in the final instalment of harry potter. this is bbc news. the latest headlines: president trump's son—in—law, jared kushner, faces another day of questioning about his links to russia. he has already insisted he has nothing to hide. the parents of terminally ill baby charlie gard are preparing to spend the final few days with him, after ending their legal battle. 55 years ago, igor stravinsky, one of the world's most famous composers, was invited to apartheid—era south africa. the country's racist authorities granted him a major concession and allowed him to perform a concert for the black population.

the story of the concert had largely been forgotten, until now, as sophie ribstein reports. this is a recording of a historic concert conducted by igor stravinsky in 1962 apartheid south africa. his visit was the talk of the town. the racist regime believed that classical music was for white people only, but the famous composer insisted on performing his music for a black audience. the concert was held just outside ofjohannesburg. as those hands went up, the audience

went berserk. there was yuli elating, there was whistling, there was raucous. as elating, there was whistling, there was raucous. as soon as elating, there was whistling, there was raucous. as soon as the music started, you could hear a pin drop. were you inspired by stravinsky?- his age, he was still continuing with his art —— ululating. it meant that we too had a long way to go. now in his 80s, he continues to conduct quires. —— choirs. and he is still driven by the passion and emotion felt as he watched stravinsky perform, 55 years ago. at

the end of his trip, igor stravinsky wrote this piece of music to say thank you to south africa. today, his music still resonates here, even with young musicians. this woman is a composer, and she loves the fact that stravinsky‘s works are always surprising. he usually writes the melodies either behind or ahead of the natural bit of the music, and that inspires me to be more creative rhythmically, as well as harmonically, because he uses

beautiful, complex harmonies in his music. igor stravinsky's music was revolutionary, and so was his visit to south africa in 1962. it opened a new musical chapter, and today is —— his unusual and majestic sound still captivate generations of musicians. —— captivates. in sport, and manchester city have now completed the signing of full—back benjamin mendy from monaco for around $68 million. that is the highest price ever paid, ever, for a defender. the 23—year—old france international has signed a five—year deal. after the signings of kyle walker and danilo, city have spent around $160 million on fullbacks this summer. let's hear from city's newest addition. the netherlands reached the last

eight of women's euro 2017 with victory over belgium, and denmarkjoined them by beating 2013 finalists norway. two of sweden, holders germany and russia will progress from group b, which concludes on tuesday. following england's victory in the women's cricket world cup, where they saw off india in an enthralling final, captain heather knight says she would be in favour of a new women's league in india, perhaps to mirror the men's ipl. knight also wants more international fixtures, be they test cricket or one—day games. i guess it's getting more girls involved in the game, and having that bigger talent pool

in — notjust in this country, but in all the other countries. if that means an ipl, then potentially that will help growth in india. but as i said earlier, i would like to play more international cricket, and have more competitive series, and that is how we develop and grow as players, and obviously keep women's cricket in the spotlight. but as they get more people playing the game, and improve the grassroots and get more money into the game, which is important to bring people through the system. six years after partially severing his arm in a rally crash, robert kubica's hopes of returning to formula 1 will move a step closer next week when he tests a current renault car in hungary. the 32—year—old pole has already done two tests in a 2012 car, and claims his physical limitations don't affect his driving. the official two—day f1 test at the hungaroring, following this weekend's grand prix, will allow renault to compare his performance against other teams and drivers. traditional british pubs throughout

the country are calling time permanently at an alarming rate, but for a few determined communities, there is still hope. there are dozens of community pubs, run and owned by local shareholders, where they not only pull the pints but also call the shots. john maguire has been to derbyshire, in the north of england. the beer and the banter is in full flow once again at the spotted cow, in this derbyshire village. the pub was closed down two years ago and earmarked to be demolished and replaced with housing, until a group of locals clubbed together to save it. this was a hub of the community. in this village, this was where people met. it was a good restau ra nt, people met. it was a good restaurant, it was a good pub, and when it closed, then a lot of people actually stopped going out. the first time we actually bought the property, we all sort of thought, when we came and looked at it, what

are we letting ourselves in for? because it was awful, it really was. but so many people have turned up and held on weekends, during the week, and so on. a lot of man—hours have actually gone into making this happen. and what we have actually got now is better than any of us could have imagined. as the project gathered pace, builders, structural engineers and carpenters from the village all weighed in to help. there are now 51 community pubs across the uk, although the first one open for than 20 years ago. the start—up cost for a pub is around £350,000, and the average investment individual shareholders is around £1000. much of the rest of the money is raised through mortgages and loa ns. is raised through mortgages and loans. for the locals here in holbrook, the pub's survival may be desirable, but is it viable? with 250 people investing, all those people have got a vested interest in its succeeding. there are still some

finishing touches to do, but there is now a cafe here as well, or ca lfe, is now a cafe here as well, or calfe, as they call it. it is packed with local produce and the bovine theme is everywhere. when compared with the 20 to 30 pub is believed to close in the uk each year, the number of these remains very small. but no community pub closed down last year. proof, then, that they can survive with enough support, and no need to call time on the village local. we just want to show you some remarkable footage from cctv of a thunderstorm. it struck a city in south—east china. but as you can see, the rain fell very heavily, but only in one very small area. this footage from a security camera shows the clouds rolling together, even though the storm is raging just a few hundred metres away, the cameras remain dry. hello there.

ina very in a very mixed week of weather, tuesdayis in a very mixed week of weather, tuesday is looking like one of the most reliably dry, bright days of the week. we are between weather systems. 0ne the week. we are between weather systems. one area of low pressure, as well as cloud veering away to the east, another beginning to gather out west. but for the time being, a lot of dry weather to come through the day ahead. there will be some sunshine as well. always more cloud, though, across eastern scotland and eastern england but that cloud should break up through the day to reveal some spells of sunshine. further west, across parts of south wales, the west country, sunshine could have temperatures to 2a or 25 degrees. just a small chance of a shower. most places will be dry. certainly more sunshine than we had on monday across the south—eastern east anglia and as a consequence of slightly higher temperatures. find the northern england, northern ireland clouding over later in the

day. some sunshine and showers in scotland. chilly on the east coast, 14 scotland. chilly on the east coast, 1a degrees in aberdeen. fine for the most pa rt 1a degrees in aberdeen. fine for the most part on tuesday evening, but then things began to change from the west. we see quite a band of rain working its way in through northern ireland, south—west scotland, wales and the south—west at dawn on wednesday morning. and through the day on wednesday that wet weather is going to work its way eastwards. we have quite a deep area of low pressure drifting up to the north—west of the british isles, and these weather fronts will bring those outbreaks of rain across the country, especially across northern england. scotland, here you will see some very soggy england. scotland, here you will see some very soggy weather indeed on wednesday. not as wet down towards the south and the south—east, not as much rain making it across here, and then things will brighten up from then things will brighten up from the west later in the day. blustery winds and a cool, fresh feel. 18 to 22 degrees. now, the weather fronts responsible for the rain on wednesday will clear away to the east, but low pressure still pretty close by on thursday. that means mastery winds across the country, especially up towards the north—west. that is also where we will see most of the showers. some

of the showers could be on the heavy side. not too many showers in the south—east, 22 in london. a similar story on friday. although the wind is perhaps a little lighter by the stage. a mixture of sunshine and showers, highs of 17 to 22 degrees. so as we head towards the end of the week things will feel cool and fresh. yes, there will be some sunshine, but there will also be some blustery showers. president trump's son—in—law and close adviser, jared kushner, has told congressional investigators that he didn't collude with russia during last year's election. he faces another day of questioning but insists he has "nothing to hide". the parents of terminally—ill baby, charlie gard, are preparing to spend the final few days with him, after ending their legal battle. they say he won't reach his first birthday next week. the vatican has said it is shutting off all its fountains, including those in st peter's square, because of italy's severe drought. the country has experienced one of its driest springs for 60 years. one of the pope's most senior

advisors is due to appear in an australian court on wednesday, to face charges of sexual assault. cardinal george pell has returned from rome, saying that he is innocent, and will clear his name.