this is bbc news. the headlines: the australian prime minister has said his country has foiled a plot to bring down an aeroplane. malcolm turnbull said four people have been arrested in what he called a majorjoint counter—terrorism operation. additional security has been put in place at all australian domestic and international airports. a key vote takes place in venezuela on sunday to elect an assembly which would have broad powers to rewrite the country's constitution. critics of the country's president nicolas maduro say it's nothing more than a power grab. they are also urging their supporters to boycott the vote. there's been a majorfire at a music festival in spain. thousands of people were evacuated from the tomorrowland dance music event in barcelona, when flames engulfed part of the main stage. it's not clear at this point whether anyone has been injured in the fire — or how the fire started. i want to give you a look ahead to the sunday papers.

we start with the observer. the paper leads with president trump's decision to sack his chief of staff, causing nervousness among republicans. the telegraph headlines an ally of borisjohnson attacking philip hammond's approach to brexit. the sunday times has a report on the lives of teenage british girls who run away to join so—called islamic state. the mail says that princess diana's brother has called on channel 4 not to broadcast her video diaries, which are due to air next week. the express also focuses on princess diana, claiming the princess asked the queen for help about her marriage. now on bbc news, in venezuela, daily protests against president maduro‘s government have resulted in scores of deaths. inflation, malnutrition and even starvation are on the rise. for our world, vladimir hernandez reports from caracas. his film includes images and descriptions of violence. welcome to venezuela.

once the richestjewel in latin america, it is now a country drowning in political and economic chaos. a state with the largest oil reserves in the world is now so impoverished that it cannot feed its own people. translation: even if i die, it's worth it. how long is this going to go on for? we are a hungry country. as his people rage, president nicolas maduro‘s grip on power has grown increasingly desperate. all opposition is being systematically crushed. it is feared a new constitution will extinguish democracy and establish a dictatorship. as the battle for venezuelan democracy reaches boiling point,

the bbc has heard disturbing allegations of state torture against demonstrators. several officers there are told us, "we are going to give you the shock treatment." for venezuela ns, long accustomed to economic hardship, the assault on their democracy is proving the final straw. i have been to caracas, to meet the resistance of the maduro regime and find out what future lies in store for this troubled country. if you want to find out who is behind a demonstration,

head to a university. this is uceve, the largest university in venezuela. i was a student here myself. in my day, we were protesting against a rise in the bus fare. today, it is a rather more desperate story. in a quiet room on the campus, i meet four young protesters. they have disguised their identities and we have changed their voices to protect them. the way i see it, the resistance is everybody who is against a regime. many people see it as a dictatorship. at the moment, they are even trying to change our constitution. i think the resistance is those people who come out to protest and are willing to take the lead to confront the police or the national guard. it's not like there is this little group of resistance over here, and a group of normal people over there.

no. we are all the resistance, and we are all against what is happening. some have labelled us as terrorists, but i think that all of us youth who make up the resistance are brave fighters. we are defending our people from the government's brutal repression. the students are known as escuderos, or ‘shield bearers'. young men and women like them see their role in the resistance as protecting the ordinary people who demonstrate every day from the national guard. we are going to meet a resistance group at las mercedes, and then we moved to the place where it normally kicks off. every protest march is accompanied by the escuderos and when the police move into stop the march, the escuderos will move forward and confront them. they never allow us to make it as far as where the march is meant to end — they use the excuse that we will destroy the whole city. our role is also to secure ground.

because just as the police and the national guard are trying to push us back, we also have to try and seize our chances to advance. myjob is to pick up any falling helmets or gloves, to retrieve them and give them back to the boys, or to be looking out for them, or collecting the stones, or whatever. it is notjust a matter of marching forward and that's it. it's really about everyone's duty. there is a naivete about some of their actions, but it is clear they are brave. most of the dozens who have died in this wave of protest are those at the front. but there is a little resentment that they have been allotted this role in venezuela's struggle for democracy at such a young age. it shouldn't be just up to us to get out there representing fortysomethings or thirtysomethings. i mean, they have to come out as well. i think we suffer the worst of the government's decisions

and that's why we haven't any choice if we want to gain our independence to move forward and make a life for ourselves. what i've noticed in most of the marchers, most of those at the front are just really, really young kids. to be honest. i don't think they should be there. you are supposed to fight for your children's future. you should not get your children to fight for your future, right? it wasn't meant to be like this. by the time maduro came to power in 2013, venezuela's bolivian revolution, begun by his charismatic predecessor, hugo chavez, was spluttering badly. price controls and the state seizure of industry had apparently failed. when the oil price fell, venezuela's extravagant spending didn't stop. the country found itself borrowing heavily and increasingly reliant on imports of food and medicine. in the last four years,

the economy has shrunk by a third. the imf estimates that inflation is running at over 700%, the highest in the world. the people began to go hungry. three out of four venezuelans lost an average of 18lb in weight last year. corruption, say critics, helps the regime to stay in power. by controlling foreign exchange, the government decides who prospers. the army are kept onside by being given charge of the most critical imports. the media is muzzled. in march, maduro's supreme court declared the opposition—led national assembly to be illegitimate. days of daily demonstrations and violent clashes with the security forces followed. over 100 have died, and thousands more have been arrested. then, in may, president maduro declared that a new constitution would be drawn up.

the government wanted to rewrite the rules of the game, and no—one was asked if this was wanted. it's hard to get the government to talk to the media but the minister in charge of food distribution — a keyjob in today's venezuela — did agree to talk to me. in the chavista worldview, there is a familiar bogeyman. but no—one would argue against former presidential candidate maria corina machado. disbarred from politics by ruling party legislators, she remains a political force and is keen to be seen with protesters. but maria corina machado thinks there is far more to the resistance than violent protests. there is a word going around calling the opposition ‘the resistance‘. what is the resistance for you?

you don't have to look far to find who she is talking about. street kids like these appear at every demonstration. their enthusiasm to take on the security forces, whilst brave, places them in real danger. their motivation often stems from a profound sense of injustice. translation: three days ago, they nicked me, they tortured me, they asked me who was paying me. it's a lie. nobody gives us money — we come out because we want a better future, we want a better future for venezuela. they split my head, they hit me in the body,

they grabbed me, they told me they were going to rape me, they said they were going to kill me. fuelled by their grievances, some of these young protesters take considerable risks. this is one of the most controversial aspects of the so—called resistance — small pockets of demonstrators at the end of the protest come to places like this, a military base, and try to attack it. in there, they're already scuffles, with some people telling them, "don't do it, you're valuable, you're a young life, don't lose it." because over there, the national guard is already waiting for them. one person trying to cool the hot heads of the protests is a senior citizen now known as senora de la tanqueta, or ‘tank lady‘. she rose to fame in april by refusing to move out of the way of a small tank. she was taken to prison and

interrogated before being released. the experience has not put her off going to the demonstrations. the stakes are certainly high for both sides, and the regime is defiant. this residential block in caracas

is called los verdes, the greens. it has been a focal point of vociferous anti—government protest since april. neighbours here set up barricades on a regular basis and clashes with the police and national guard are frequent. one evening, the government said, enough was enough. margarita, her husband and her cousin who lives

in the apartment, were petrified. although her husband and her cousin were released, the intrusion into their home has badly affected the family. but not all members of the tower block were so fortunate. when she heard the police begin their assault, camila and some friends went to hide in a neighbour‘s apartment. translation: when he opened the door of the wardrobe, the man who grabbed me, he did it by the hair, he lifted me and threw me onto the bed,

and then they beat the boys in the head. they really beat up the boys horribly. even though she told police she was pregnant, they took no notice. translation: we were lying facedown on the floor, then they told us to take out their shoelaces. then they kicked me about ten times. in the burn, in the legs... they also beat the rest of the girls. they kept on beating us, even when they took us out of the apartment. they told someone, come on, i‘m going to kill you, right here, right now. why did they take me? because this is a dictatorship and they nicked whoever they want to, whether you are doing anything or not. camila taken to some of the worst prisons in caracas, before eventually being released. simon was not so lucky, he was arrested at a demonstration,

accused of being a member of an opposition political party. translation: they grabbed me from behind, 18, 20 cops that came down on me, while they were kicking and hitting me, they put me on a bike and took me to the headquarters of the intelligence agency. originally designed as the futuristic shopping centre, today, the helicoide is a place whose name makes even the hardened shudder. held in an overcrowded cell for over two months, simon witnessed prisoners returning from interrogation, with tell—tale signs of having been tortured. translation: one got back, you could tell he was frightened, he couldn‘t stand up straight and you could see the burn marks on his ears. and the other guy, you could see his black eye, it was all bruised, so you could see

they have given him shocks. later on, several offices there told us, we are going to give you the shock treatment, and we‘re going to grab those two and soak them, keep them soaked all night long. simon was beaten but not tortured, he could not get out of the helicoide. even though he received a release orderfrom a judge, intelligence agency officials ignored it and he was only released over one month later. today, he is still trying to get back on his feet. translation: at night i'm very anxious, any little sound makes me jumpy, ifeel like i don‘t know what is going to happen. i‘m still worried that any time, they will come and knock on my door and take me back there. farfrom being intimidated, the opposition are growing in strength. whilst we were filming, with maria corina machado, and its ordinary defection from a chavista loyalist. this is the attorney general

of venezuela, now playing a key role in the crisis. the maduro regime was not impressed. despite the government‘s denials, the attorney general has claimed that the security forces are using unauthorised firearms. what is clear is that many protesters have been killed and severely injured by the reckless use of riot control munitions.

many in the opposition believe that behind the bluster, the end game is being played out. a recent unofficial plebiscite showed 7 million voters were against president maduro — as many as had elected him in 2013. do you think we are in the final days of chavismo as a proposition in politics? the president sees a very

different future for the opposition in venezuela. whilst the politicians fight it out, the students of uceve continue their own perilous resistance. translation: i don't mind giving up my life out there in the streets if it is for a good cause. i believe i would prefer to die than live in this way. i will never be able to achieve my potentional

as a person here, because the government isn‘t letting me. translation: i'm scared of dying, i'm scared of seeing someone getting killed, to be near them when it happens. after all, we are supposed to be fighting for the safe of living in a better venezuela. translation: when you're standing behind a shield and they fire at you, the impact deafens you. it leaves your ears ringing. there‘s always the risk that by trying to see what is going on ahead of you, that a pellet can get through the shields and hit you in your eye. that‘s your eye gone. or it could kill you. translation: i always think that maybe one day, my luck will run out. and i think about those boys who didn‘t make it back home. every time i get home from the protests, i tell myself that it a gift.

because many of my mates didn‘t make it back. they may be dead, or under arrest. this is a country that has seen many of its youngest people killed, injured, or arrested. people like these are commemorating the lives lost in this wave of political unrest. this is very much an open wound, and the consequences are far from known, regardless of who is going to run this nation. the government now plans to convene a new assembly, to rewrite venezuela‘s constitution. it‘s a future that many in the country are dreading. hello there.

with rain across the north and south for saturday, there was still some room for fine weather. for a while we had sunshine yesterday in lincolnshire but the rain did arrive and it was wet for much of the day in eastbourne in east sussex. some strong wind here as well continuing at the moment. the thickest of the cloud here has been spilling in across much of england and wales to provide outbreaks of rain but by the morning the wettest conditions are heading eastwards and out into the north sea. things are beginning to dry off but only briefly — as we head towards the north—west we still have showers continuing into the morning across northern ireland, western fringes of scotland. the rest of scotland, a dry start but it will not stay that way. it should be drier across much of northern england, lincolnshire and east anglia, rain from overnight should be gone by nine a.m. most of england and wales, bright and sunny but the showers rattle in from the bristol channel.

through the day as we head into the afternoon, possibly into the evening session for the cricket at the oval there is a chance of passing shower, it should be a much better day than it was on saturday. there will be lots of showers around on sunday, particularly towards the west. with the strong gusty winds will force showers eastwards and anywhere will catch a shower. heavy downpours with potentially hail and thunder. gusty wind as well. the south—east corner, possibly london, essex, kent, sussex missing most of the showers and seeing the best of temperature in the sunshine. still a few showers into the evening on sunday before they fade away from eastern areas and the breeze drops. the showers continue out to the west, particularly across northern ireland and western scotland. temperatures 12, 13 degrees — where they have been the last few nights. this map looks familiar as well. low pressure to the north—west of the uk for a good few days, still there for the start of the new week. nearer that low pressure

there will be showers and with the wind lighter in scotland and northern ireland, the showers could be heavy and slow moving. stronger wind for england and wales, so passing showers again for many southern and eastern areas, it may well be dry. that trend continues with few and light showers, a bit more sunshine on tuesday. it should feel warmer. again, southern and eastern areas may well be dry. as we lose the showers from one area of low pressure we get another one coming in from the atlantic, keeping the unsettled weather going with wind and rain on the way in the middle of the week. welcome to bbc news,

broadcasting to viewers in north america and around the globe. our top stories: the australian prime minister says counter—terrorism police have foiled an attempt to blow up a plane — four people have been arrested. the threat of terrorism is very real. the disruption operation, the efforts overnight, have been very effective. but there is more work to do. tensions in venezuela ahead of a vote that could lead to a new constitution — a power grab, says the opposition. thousands of people are evacuated from a music festival in barcelona, after a fire engulfed part of the main stage. a legacy of the first world war: how unexploded shells are still being recovered in belgium a century after the conflict.