welcome to newsday on the bbc. i'm sharanjit leyl in singapore, the headlines one of the vatican's most seniorfigures, cardinal pell, arrives in court in australia to face multiple charges of sex abuse. he insists he's innocent. us lawmakers overwhelmingly back tough new sanctions against russia — as well as iran and north korea. i'm babita sharma in london. also in the programme. how long will he last? america's attorney general faces yet more public criticism, from his own boss. i told you before, i am very disappointed with the attorney general. but we will see what happens. time will tell. and charlie gard's parents ask britain's high court to let him die at home. but the hospital says his care‘s too complicated. good morning.

it's 8am in singapore, iam in london and 10am in melbourne, in australia, where one of the pope's most senior advisors will appear in court to face charges of sexual assault. cardinal george pell has returned from rome saying that he is innocent, and will clear his name. our correspondent phil mercer, is outside the court in melbourne. you saw him arrive a little while ago, what has happened so far? yes, cardinal george pell had to fight his way through a huge media contingent to reach the entrance of the melbourne magistrates court. i can't remember any occasion when there has been such a huge media contingent outside any australian

court. —— magistrate's. it is safe to say george pell is inside the courthouse behind me, and his hearing is scheduled to start in a few minutes. it is a procedural hearing, that is known as a filing ‘s hearing. it does mark the start of legal proceedings against the roman catholic church, the most prominent figure here in australia. he has been saying he is innocent, what else has he said in the lead up to this hearing? not much. he arrived in australia a couple of weeks ago after those charges were levelled against him. he has arrived in the australian state of victoria and has been keeping a low profile up and has been keeping a low profile up until about and has been keeping a low profile up untilaboutan and has been keeping a low profile up until about an hour ago when he made his way into the media scrum

behind me. he has previously vowed to strenuously deny allegations of sexual assault. he is in court to begin the process of defending himself. he has vigorously denied any allegation of wrong doing. it was previously said that he has been the victim of a relentless character assassination. george pell is in court behind me and we await the outcome of what we expect to be a fairly brief hearing today. a brief hearing but a lengthy legal process. talk us through what comes next? the police in victoria said the charges relate to historical allegations. they say there are multiple complainants. it is a filing ‘s hearing. this is a hearing to discuss procedural issues. it could well be the start of a very long legal process. george pell is in his

mid— 70s, a former archbishop of melbourne and sydney. one of pope francis' most trusted advisers. he was brought on board by the pope to reva m p was brought on board by the pope to revamp the vatican's finances. he faces in court today what we understand to be a very serious sexual assault —— to be very serious sexual assault —— to be very serious sexual assault —— to be very serious sexual assault allegations. thank you. the us has voted overwhelmingly in favour of sanctions against russia, iran and north korea. iraq and north korea are being targeted for their nuclear and lipstick missile programmes. we cross now to our

correspondent karen allen in seoul. we thought this would get support from the house of representatives in terms of imposing sanctions against north korea, what are we hearing from where you are? certainly, overwhelming support in the house of representatives. this was the slightly less controversial part of the proposal. we are expecting tougher sanctions on north korea, particularly targeting the shipping industry and forced —— labour overseas. we are also looking at the possibility of the administration putting north korea back on the list of states that sponsor terrorism. there is a separate un security council resolution that is being re— drafted, it looks like it is probably going to have the support of china, a key player. we have not

got any reaction yet out of north korea. i think there will be relief in seoul. the new president is pursuing a new policy, extending the arm to open military negotiations with pyongyang, which have not been responded to officially. but he has made it clear that the door is open. at the same time, they are pursuing a policy of sanctions. so, the news out of washington overnight will be very welcome here in seoul. also on capitol hill, the us senate has voted narrowly to proceed with a debate on repealing president obama's flagship health policy — the affordable care act.

with senators deadlocked fifty—fifty, the vice—president, mike pence, cast a tie—breaking vote. president trump has said he is disappointed with the us attorney general, jeff sessions, and warned that time will tell about his future. during a white house news conference, mr trump described mr sessions' decision, to distance himself from the inquiry into whether russia influenced last year's us election campaign, iam i am disappointed in the attorney general. he should have reduced himself almost immediately after he took office. and if he was not going took office. and if he was not going to recuse himself he should have told me before he took office, and a quite simply would have picked someone else. and i think that is a bad thing, not to the president but to the presidency, and i think it is unfairto to the presidency, and i think it is unfair to the presidency. and that is the way i feel. thank you. tonight president trump is in ohio for a rally — that's a state where he has a lot of support. nada tawfik is at the rally.

how is it going? he is addressing a crowd, they are still on their feet. he has repeated many of the campaign promises he made before he became president, reaffirming his fans on general motors that brought the white house. the crowd is loving it. he has taught about his appointments in the supreme court, pulling out of the paris climate agreement, listing his accomplishments. the healthcare victory, in his eyes today, he said that was won without a single democrat support. he said it is time for the democrats to stop resisting his administration. he has said that congress has only had our deals in terms of healthcare. we have really seen the crowd here supporting president trump, even amidst the

criticism for some of the other... the fact that it is six months into his administration and he has not seen a legislative wing. president trump really working the crowd. live from the rally where president trump is currently speaking. and head to our website for the latest developments from president trump's white house as the us house of representatives considers imposing fresh sanctions on russia. also this hour, the two main rival leaders in libya have reached a joint agreement to try to bring stability to their country. after talks brokered by the french president emmanuel macron, the head of the un—backed government and the leader of the so—called libyan national army in eastern libya committed themselves to a conditional ceasefire. huge forest fires in the south—east of france are being fanned by unusually hot, dry and windy weather. the island of corsica, and areas near nice and saint—tropez are badly affected. dozens of homes have been evacuated, some roads and railways

temporarily closed. the parents of terminally ill baby charlie gard will learn on wednesday if they will be able to take him home to die. having abandoned their fight to keep charlie alive , his mother returned to court to ask that her son be allowed to leave the hospital where he's being cared for. charlie's parents are now pleading for a specialist doctor to come forward and help them. our medical correspondent fergus walsh reports. the legal battle over this desperately sick boy now centres on where and how soon he dies. charlie needs a mechanical ventilator to breathe. he is tube—fed and cannot move. yesterday, his parents gave up theirfight to take him to the united states, and agreed no more treatment could help him. but charlie's mum, connie, was back at court this afternoon, to make it clear she did not want him to die in the intensive

care unit, where he's been since october. the parents' lawyer said it was their last wish that charlie dies at home, for a few days of tranquillity outside the hospital setting. the hospital said it won't stand in the parents' way, and yet is putting up obstacles. lawyers for the parents said they would pay private nurses to take over his care, and seek to recover the costs from the nhs. but the court heard there were practical issues to be resolved — for example, whether charlie's ventilator would fit through their front door. in a statement, great ormond street hospital said it wanted to honour the parents' wishes, but the care plan must be safe, it must spare charlie all pain and it must protect his dignity. charlie is a child who requires highly specialised treatment. his care cannot be simplified. it must be provided in a specialist setting by specialists. the dispute over where and how

soon charlie should die typifies the utter breakdown in the relationship between the parents and the hospital. the judge, mrjustice francis, said this was a matter crying out for mediation. great ormond street said it offered that, but the parents have refused. the judge said the parents were entitled to decide where they spent the next few days, but it should not extend into weeks. that would be unacceptable, as it would simply extend the grieving process. charmian evans lost her son, guy, when he was five. he was profoundly disabled and tube—fed. she, too, had searched for a cure for his condidtion. they've got to learn to let him go at all sorts of levels. they've got to know that stuff happens and they mustn't be bitter, because it will only eat them.

there's no point in that. what they've got to do is look at all the positive things. the hospital has offered a compromise: charlie can be transferred to a hospice, where doctors from great ormond street would supervise his palliative care and death after a period of some hours. his parents said they want days, not hours, and a hospice is a second—best option. fergus wallace, bbc news at the high court. you're watching newsday on the bbc. still to come on the programme: tales from the dark heart of the caliphate. we hear from the wives of islamic state fighters who've fled their former stronghold, raqqa. also on the programme: how britain's gay culture left the shadows and became mainstream. we look back on the 50—year battle for equality. mission control: you can see them coming down the ladder now.

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 newsday, on the bbc.

i'm sharanjit leyl in singapore. i'm babita sharma in london. our top stories: one of the vatican's most senior figures cardinal pell is to appear in an australian court on sex abuse charges involving multiple complainants. he insists he is innocent. us lawmakers have overwhelmingly backed tough new sanctions against russia as well as iran and north korea. let's take a look at some front pages from around the world. the japan times again leads on the questioning of prime minister, shinzo abe, over favouritism allegations linked to a friend's application to open a veterinary school. the paper says that after being reminded of some of his previous comments mr abe was prompted to apologise and correct his own words. the straits times has sobering news

for singaporeans reluctant to start their national service. new guidelines mean that a national service defaulter could face up to three years in jail and that performing well, once in uniform, will no longer mean your punishment might be reduced. and, finally, the china daily leads with a picture of russian and chinese sailors taking part in a joint training exercise in kaliningrad, in russia. the paper notes that it's the first time the chinese navy has participated in drills in europe. that brings you up to date. in syria, us backed kurdish forces are thought to have gained control of half the city of raqqa, the last remaining stronghold of so—called islamic state. the offensive has led to thousands of people fleeing the

city, including the militants' families. the bbc‘s shaimaa khalil has spoken to is wives held on the outskirts of the city. they came from different parts of the world with one aim — to join the self—proclaimed caliphate. now they've escaped and are being held by the kurdish forces in northern syria. iman and her husband left tunisia for raqqa, the so—called islamic state stronghold. he wanted to be a fighter. she says she wanted to live a proper islamic life. i had many questions and i managed to send them to her. i'm just wondering if you saw other videos, videos of beheadings, of them burning people alive? were you not put off by that? how did you think

that was proper islam? but she says when they arrived it wasn't what they expected. iman‘s husband is now in a kurdish—run prison outside raqqa. it's hard to determine whether the women who escaped are all victims. at some point they were all part of the so—called islamic state. iman‘s son was born in raqqa. now she's hoping he'll grow up

as far away from the islamic state as she can take him. do you think they'll take you back easily and how do you expect them to believe you or forgive you when you've been part of the so—called islamic state? these children know nothing but life under the islamic state. for now they and their mothers are stuck between a caliphate they fled and homelands that may not want them back. shaimaa khalil bbc news. the hong kong government has unveiled a controversial proposal to allow mainland chinese officials to be stationed at a major train terminus as part of plans to connect

the city to the national rail network. our correspondent juliana liu in hong kong has more details on why people are up in arms about this. hong kong is an incredibly divided city politically at the moment between those who support the effo rts between those who support the efforts of the hong kong and beijing governments and those who want greater democracy. so there are real fears that for the first time mainland chinese law will prevail in parts of hong kong, specifically in the so—called mainland port area where people will be going through immigration and also on the trains and the track itself. now, what isn't controversial is the speed and potential efficiency of the service, so once it rolls out next year to the cost of around $11 billion or so, a trip that currently takes about an hour from so, a trip that currently takes about an hourfrom hong kong to shenzhen will be shaved down to just 14 shenzhen will be shaved down to just 1a minutes. let me just share with

you how this story is being covered in the local press, this is the south china morning post, the main english language broadsheet newspaper, a large photo of the construction site in west kowloon, that's the terminus and where the railway will begin or end depending on your journey. the railway will begin or end depending on yourjourney. the big headline, joint checkpoint given go—ahead despite fears. below another photo of the press conference where government officials made the proposal yesterday. the secretary of justice is in the centre. let me show you a prestige chinese language broadsheet, a similar photo at the top of the press conference. the headline rather different, saying central government uses article 20 of basic law to justify this code location agreement. a summary of the obvious benefits of this express railway line as well as the fears

some people have about it. it's 50 years this week since the laws on homosexuality were amended in england and wales. our special correspondent allan little has been looking at what the changes to the sexual offences act meant in 1967 and how they affected people in the years that followed. in 1967 a change in the law did not bring a change in attitudes. this is the bbc‘s man alive programme. voiceover: for many of us this is revolting. men dancing with men. homosexuals in this country today break the law. these two have lived together for 26 years. they might almost be a married couple but they are still queer, in the minority. thousands of men went to prison. few dared speak publically. i couldn't believe just because i wanted somebody to love me and to have friendship i had to suffer all this. they put me in a cell and i was in a cell from saturday

afternoon until monday morning. i never slept. i just sat and cried. this is a celebration to mark the anniversary of the act, hosted by an lgbt group for the over 50s called opening doors. some here were sexually active when it was still a criminal offence. well, it's like living in an alien society, it's like being a spy. very clandestine. i had to just make out a false lifestyle really. it's like being non—existent, you know, like you just weren't there, so it was confidence—sapping. the act did not apply to scotland or northern ireland and even in england and wales it did not end prosecution. right into the 1990s, police used the gross indecency laws to continue to criminalise gay

behaviour and social activity. voiceover: it is a deadly disease and there is no known cure. in the ‘80s, hiv and aids brought a new atmosphere of moral panic. by the end of the decade, the number of gross indecency prosecutions against gay men was as high as it had been in the 19505. many, many lead completely double lives. the writer maureen duffy who campaigned for the 1967 act says it was not a moment of sudden liberation. it was the beginning of a process. but never assume that what you have achieved you have got for good and it cannot be reversed because at any time, anything can be completely changed. and there are sometimes still some very nasty rumblings and utterances, partially stoked by the use of social media, that could turn very nasty indeed if we're not vigilant. injuly1967, the home secretary roy

jenkins told parliament that homosexuality was a disability that brought lifelong shame. it has taken generations of vigilance to get from there to this. alan little, bbc news. you've been watching newsday live from singapore and london. thanks for joining from singapore and london. thanks forjoining us, we will see you again same time, same place tomorrow. take care, goodbye. good morning. there's rain in the forecast for the next few days, but i think the important message is it's not going to be raining all the time.

that's certainly the story for today. some wet and windy weather for a time, but not all the time. we have low pressure pushing this band of cloud in from the atlantic and that will bring some outbreaks rain eastwards through the day. with that wet weather some fairly strong and gusty winds. we start the morning in northern ireland and western scotland, wales and the south—west with this rain. we then move across the midlands, north—east england, east scotland, eventually rain to the south—east, but by this stage the wet weather is light and patchy. behind the rain that things might not. there will be showers across northern ireland and scotland into the afternoon. some of them will be heavy and the wind is still fairly blustery. the rain holding on across the far north and east of scotland right through the afternoon. a fairly cool and fresh feel to the weather. 19 in cardiff. similar in plymouth, with patchy cloud and sunny spells for the afternoon across the south—west of england. further east in hampshire, berkshire, into london, kent and east anglia there will be a fair amount of cloud

through the afternoon. some rain, extending through the coast of england. further west some bright weather developing. in the evening the cloud and patchy rain will be chased away to the east. a lot of dry weather through the night, however, some hefty showers developing across northern ireland and western scotland. there could be the odd rumble of thunder here. temperatures about 11—15 degrees. into thursday and low pressure still the dominant feature. this isn't what we expect to see on the weather charts at this point injuly. some tightly squeezed isobars, meaning there will be strong winds and some heavy showers. most frequent up to the north—west, but even south and east we could catch the odd heavy shower. some sunny spells in between. but those temperatures about 16 in aberdeen,

18 in cardiff, 20 in london. another day of showers on friday. some sunny spells between the showers. then later in the day more persistent rain pushing in across the south—west and wales. but that should move its way through on friday night and into the early hours of saturday. so the weekend is certainly not a complete washout. there will be some spells of sunshine and some heavy showers as well. some rain in forecast, but not all the time. i'm babita sharma with bbc world news. our top story. one of the pope's most senior advisors has appeared in a court in australia to face charges of sexual assault. cardinal george pell insists that he is innocent, and will clear his name. police say there are multiple complainants. president trump has again criticised his attorney generaljeff sessions, fuelling speculation he might be on his way out. mr trump said time would tell about the attorney—general‘s future. and this video is trending on bbc.com. scientists are warning of a shocking fall in the sperm count

of western men. new research indicates that in less than a0 years, sperm counts have fallen by more than half, and say it could pose a threat to fertility in industrialised countries. that's all from me for now. stay with bbc news.