i'm rico hizon in singapore, the headlines: north korea issues a new threat to guam, promising to decide within the next few days whether to launch four missiles towards the tiny pacific island. the us defence secretary warns north korea to avoid actions that could result in the destruction of its people. i'm babita sharma in london. also in the programme: australia's bitter political battle over legalising gay marriage comes to a head as the government pushes on with a postal vote. and the rise of mixed martial arts in asia. rolando dy talks to us about his quest to reach the top. i'm a filipino fighter, you don't underestimate a filipino fighter. i wa nt to underestimate a filipino fighter. i want to fight for the belt, i want to fight the best. and the rise of mixed martial arts in asia. rolando dy talks to us about his quest to reach the top. live from our studios

in singapore and london. this is bbc world news. it's newsday. it's 8am in singapore, iam in london and 8:30am in the morning in pyongyang, where north korean state media says the military is developing a plan to fire four missiles at the us island of guam. the details will be presented to the north korean leader, kim jong—un, for a decision. it comes after the us defence secretary issued a warning to north korea saying they should stop any actions that would lead to the end of its regime and the destruction of its people. our north america correspondent, nick bryant, reports. a far—off american outpost in the tropical waters of the western pacific now finds itself at the centre of a dangerous stand—off. this is guam, the site this summer

of us military exercises, american territory that north korea says could now be in the firing line. from north korean state tv came this chilling headline, that guam could be targeted by medium to long—range rockets. and it came just hours after president trump threatened pyongyang with some of the most incendiary rhetoric used by a us president in decades. the words, improvised. the tone, agreed upon beforehand with aides. north korea best not make anymore threats to the united states. they will be met with fire and fury like the world has never seen. and more tough talk on twitter this morning. on a refuelling stop—over in guam, the us secretary of state,

rex tillerson, used more soothing language. "the island faced no imminent threat," he said, "and americans shouldn't lose any sleep." what the president is doing is sending a strong message to north korea in language that kim jong—un would understand, because he doesn't seem to understand diplomatic language. this small island is more than 2,000 miles away from pyongyang, but well within range of its missiles. with two military bases, it's a strategic military hub for america in the pacific, and the home to 160,000 people. i guess the first thing that comes to mind is, immediately, first, where is my family? to come up with a plan if anything happens. i think the response that president trump has presented is pretty much spot on. past administrations have just let it slide and kicked the can down the road, so now north korea feels like they can get away with anything.

donald trump has vowed that he will be the president who deals decisively with the north korean problem. with the rhetoric already at such a perilous pitch, there's the danger that both sides become captive to their own tough words, that they talk themselves into a more serious confrontation. nick bryant, bbc news, washington. guam's governor said the island was prepared for any eventuality. 0ur correspondent rupert wingfield—hayes is there, he's been gauging the mood. there is clearly deep concern in guam. the threat against guam made by north korea was very specific and very detailed. that has never happened before. there's also the sense it is a rhetorical threat, that if north korea ever really did fire missiles at this island it would be suicidalfor the north korean regime. so why do it? well, firstly, as nick said in his report there, this is a veryjuicy target for the north koreans. strategically very important

for the united states, there are two huge military bases here, a huge airbase behind me and a big naval base here as well. after president trump made those rhetorical comments about fire and fury, north korea has decided to do the same thing. they are saying you must take us seriously and we will not be intimidated. and so, because of that, i think across this region, particularly in south korea and japan, there is a feeling the way president trump talks about north korea in these off—the—cuff remarks, is really not the way to deal with pyongyang. inafew in a few moments we will hear from you get a loan by in seoul and later oui’ you get a loan by in seoul and later our diplomatic correspondent james robbins looks at the issues at large. also making this hour: kenya's electoral commission has dismissed opposition accusations

that its computer system had been hacked. raila 0dinga, the main opposition candidate in tuesday's presidential poll, rejected the provisional results which indicated a strong lead for president uhuru kenyatta. the former american secretary of state, john kerry, part of the foreign election observers, appealed for calm. there is an ability here which is critical to be able to provide an appropriate, transparent, accountable counting of the ballots. and people need to be patient. people need to let this process work through and notjump to conclusions at this point in time. french police have shot and wounded a suspect, that was after a car was deliberately driven at a group of soldiers as they left their barracks in a paris suburb. six soldiers were injured in the attack. the suspect, an algerian man, is in hospital after being shot five times after a motorway chase ended 260 kilometres north of the french capital. it's emerged that fbi agents seized documents and other material from the home of president trump's

former campaign manager, paul manafort, two weeks ago. the raid, authorised by a search warrant, was carried out the day after mr manafort met members of the senate intelligence committee, as part of the investigation into alleged russian interference in last year's presidential election. the captain of mexico's national football team has been sanctioned by the us for allegedly being a front person for a major drug—trafficking cartel. rafa marquez was one of 21 people and over a0 organisations named by the us treasury department. he is accused of having financial ties with alleged drug trafficker, raul flores hernandez. and there's good news for the botswana sprinter, isaac makwala. he was allowed to run alone against the clock at the world athletic championships here in london after earlier being controversially barred during an outbreak of the norovirus.

after making the qualifying time, a few hours later he finished second in his semi—final to make the 200m final on thursday. let's return to our top story now, and the rising tension between the us and north korea. yogita limaye has the latest from south korea's capital, seoul. well, what north korea has done is now given the details of this attack that it now given the details of this attack thatitis now given the details of this attack that it is planning on guam. yesterday it said it was carefully examining this plan and said it would present it to kim jong—un. todayit would present it to kim jong—un. today it said this plan involves firing for rockets, which will fly overjapan, and land in the seas near guam overjapan, and land in the seas nearguam and overjapan, and land in the seas near guam and they plan to present this plan to kim jong—un near guam and they plan to present this plan to kimjong—un by mid august and then it will depend on when he gives the go—ahead for them

to execute the plan. you know, also in this statement what they say about president trump, that he is a man arrest of reason and only absolute force can work with him. yesterday there was a mass rally in north korea which the government says was to support the leadership. so this is more tough talk coming from north korea ever since those un sanctions were passed against north korea. international pressure was growing on the country to halt its missile test and to come to the negotiating table. clearly what we've seen from the response that we've seen from the response that we've been seeing from pyongyang over the past few days, there is no indicator that that is likely to happen. the australia government is to go ahead with a voluntary postal vote on legalising same sex marriage after plans for a compulsory vote were defeated in parliament. the former conservative prime minister, tony abbott, made a plea to australian's to vote against same—sex marriage. he told reporters if you don't like same—sex, vote no. well, none—other than his sister,

who's openly gay, hit back. christine forster tweeted after the press conference: well, earlier in the programme i spoke to lauren foy from the new south wales gay lesbian rights lobby. she told me she's not surprised that the postal vote is going ahead. the plebiscite bill was never going to be a constructive way forward. it was always going to be a divisive discussion, and we welcome the fact that the senate has rejected the push of push the plebiscite through. let's call the postal plebiscite idea exactly what it is. it is a survey. what we are seeing here in australia is a real interesting shift in australian democracy. we hold grave concerns, not only for the mental health of our young people, but also about the efficacy of what a postal survey might look like for all australians.

i think we also need to stop and consider that we refer to this issue as a minority issue, however, in the recent abs survey, there were more same—sex couples than there were university students in australia, and we don't go referring to health or education subgroups as a minority issue. the government really needs to make a decision on how we move forward. there is a bill prepared which protects freedom of speech and provides the rest of us with equality, and that's the direction that we really need to go in. what does this mean for you personally? i suppose it's a kind of limbo situation where you don't really know what's going to happen, or have a voice heard? look, every day we get up, and the sun rises, it means we're one step closer to equality. the lgbti community in australia are a resilient community. we always have been and we always will be, and this is just another roadblock that we are breaking down to make sure that we're equal under the law.

we need to also remember that this is about human dignity, and respect for one another. australian values are about a fair go. and we do genuinely believe, after ten years of positive polling, that australia supports this change. it's about time that the government came to the table and progressed with the rest of the population. given that, then, do you think a compulsory vote is likely? no, i know it wasn't likely because the will of the australian people is for the government to do itsjob. we elect these representatives to make decisions on our behalf. that is that democratic place within our institutional systems. and this is really a new low in terms of democracy, and it will devalue what democracy and decision making and the parliament means going forward. what we don't want to see is that when every time a social issue comes up, or an issue that is difficult comes up, is that the public are demanding a postal vote or a plebiscite on those issues.

that's what the democratic process of electing at elections is for. we need to trust in our government to be able to make decisions in the best interests of australia, and we know that equality under the law is in the best interests of all australians. lauren foy from the nsw lotteries billion gay—rights law be speaking to the beta. —— new south wales lesbian —— babita. you're watching newsday on the bbc. still to come on the programme: trying to find a cure for type one diabetes, new hope after first trials of a pioneering therapy that could eventually slow the advance of the disease. also on the programme: no cinderellas. why some indian women are posting selfies while out after midnight. the big crowds became bigger as the time of the funeral approaches. as the lines of fans became longer, the police prepared for a hugejob of crowd control.

idi amin, uganda's brutalformer dictator, has died at the age of 80. he's been buried in saudi arabia, where he lived in exile since being overthrown in 1979. two billion people around the world have seen the last total eclipse of the sun to take place in this millennium. it began itsjourney off the coast of canada, ending three hours later when the sun set over the bay of bengal. this is newsday on the bbc. i'm rico hizon in singapore. i'm babita sharma in london.

our top stories. north korea issues a new threat to guam, promising to decide within the next few days whether to launch four missiles towards the tiny pacific island. the us defence secretary warns north korea to avoid actions that could result in the destruction of its people. and the american it expert who suggested that people use complex passwords and change them regularly now says he was wrong. bill burr‘s advice was adopted throughout the world, but he now says it drives people bananas and actually makes security worse. that story is popular on bbc.com. let's ta ke let's take a look at some front pages from around the world. france's le figaro leads with six soldiers injured after being ran over by a suspected terrorist in paris. the newspaper says they were part of the high—visibility patrols deployed in response to the country's heightened terror alert. british schooling is set to boom in beijing, according to the china daily.

uk trade officials say their respected education system could tap into a market that'll be worth nearly $500 billion in china by 2020. the israeli prime minister's woes feature on the front page of the new york times. the main story imagines israel without neta nyahu, saying corruption cases are making the leader's position vulnerable. babita, what's trending this hour on—line? this has been trending in india, and is featured on our website, the hashtag "aint no cinderella." women in india are posting photographs of themselves out in public after midnight after a politician said a woman who was chased by two men late at night shouldn't have been out at that hour. hundreds of women have taken part accusing the politician of victim shaming. it is honestly very disrespectful

that our political leaders, instead of being the forefront, holding those responsible for these assaults, holding them responsible, punishing them, we are being blamed. victims are being said to be the reason. many women are being asked not to go out past midnight and not to dress in a certain way, instead of asking the man to respect women and for them to be respectful. back to our top story. tensions have been rising since north korea carried out two nuclear bomb tests last year and two intercontinental ballistic missile tests last month. so, with america and north korea locked in an extraordinary standoff, what are the options for resolving the crisis? 0ur diplomatic correspondent, james robbins, reports. behind the fiery rhetoric from the two leaders, has the threat from north korea increased ?

broadly, yes. recent tests suggest the country is much closer to being able to launch a long—range missile carrying a nuclear warhead, as far as the united states. the north korean regime and kim jong—un wants nuclear weapons because it believes they are the ultimate guarantee of regime survival. no—one is going to risk attacking you once you can respond with nuclear force. but already north korea has massive non—nuclear firepower. its artillery placed seoul, south korea's capital, within easy range. we're not looking at an immediate nuclear war situation right now. but we should also be aware of the opportunities for miscalculation and escalation that could lead to nuclear use. so, what should be the international response to the threat? well, years of talks failed to persuade north korea to give up its nuclear ambitions, and now it's refusing dialogue. past "carrots," including support for a weak economy, also failed. and the "stick" of limited

sanctions, well, that hasn't worked either. the new response is more severe economic pressure. it is now backed by the united nations, including the us, russia and china, although china has yet to show how far it really will go, which leaves the grimmest option of all, american military action. president trump's comments this week only increase north korea's paranoia about the threat from the united states, and it's not going to change north korea's current course of action. we need to get on the road towards dialogue with the north, as difficult as that is, to decrease tensions and find a way out of this crisis. so, how should world leaders try to balance all the risks? is it an acceptable risks to allow the regime to get its nuclear weapons, and then rely on them being rational, like other nuclear weapon states, and to not use them? the answer to that depends on getting inside the head of kim jong—un. but he is harder to read than, say,

the old soviet union. with the soviet union, we had some reasonable visibility into the system. we don't have that with north korea. and so, although we can hope and assume that kim jong—un is rational enough and sensible enough to understand that any misadventure would attract a lot of retaliation, very few people from the outside have actually met him. that includes chinese leaders. it is because the really tough questions are so hard to answer with any certainty, that the crisis with north korea is very serious. james robbins, bbc news. scientists in london say they've had encouraging results from the first trial of a new therapy for people suffering from type 0ne diabetes. the researchers are trying to slow down the advance of the condition by retraining the immune system. they say the treatment has been shown to be safe. the hope is the therapy could one day free people

from daily insulin injections. here's our health correspondent, dominic hughes. two years ago, alex rowlandson's life took an unexpected turn. she was diagnosed with type i diabetes, one of hundreds of thousands of people who develop the condition in the uk. but then she was offered the chance to take part in a pioneering new therapy. the results of which now show real promise. more optimistic knowing that the study is going well and that they can use that to find further treatments. even if it doesn't help me myself and it might help other people in the future, it's just good to know that i've made a difference. last year, alex was one of 27 volunteers who, over a six—month period, underwent a course of immunotherapy injections. the aim, to stop her diabetes by tapping into the immune system's natural checks and balances. type i diabetes is caused when the immune system mistakenly attacks specialist beta cells in the pancreas which produce

insulin, the hormone which regulates blood sugar levels. the injections contain protein fragments designed to retrain the immune system, so that rather than attacking pancreatic cells, it protects them. the early results from this latest trial demonstrated the therapy was safe and showed signs of slowing the disease. i think it's exciting that we have been able to change the immune system in patients using this approach, but it's very early days and we need to know how that translates into benefit for patients in the future. this is the first time this particular technique of trying to train the immune system to slow the advance of type i diabetes has been used in humans. it's a very small step in what will be a very long process. but the fact that it's safe and seems to have helped the immune

system, well that is a big step forward. there's currently no cure for a condition that, if not carefully managed, can have life—changing consequences. for reasons that aren't entirely clear, the number of people who, like alex, are having their lives turned upside down after developing type i diabetes, is on the rise. immunotherapy has begun to transform the treatment of other diseases, such as cancer. the question now, is diabetes next? dominic hughes, bbc news. the world's biggest mixed martial arts league, the ultimate fighting championship, is looking to expand its reach in asia, with an inaugural event planned in china later this year. the sport is growing in popularity throughout the region, with competitors like rolando dy, a filipino fighter and self—confessed underdog, aiming to one day take out the world title. iama i am a martial artist. i train every day. i am a fighter since day one.

iam i am ready. iam ready. filipinos i am ready. filipinos will be going down in the history books. rolando the incredible dy! you don't know what to look out for! 0h! the incredible dy! you don't know what to look out for! oh! what is going on, mate? the winner by tko, alex! i am a filipino fighter. don't

underestimate a filipino fighter. i wa nt to underestimate a filipino fighter. i want to fight for the world. i want to do the best. be the best. i want to do the best. be the best. i want to be the best in the world. i want to be the best in the world. i want to prove it. good luck, rolando, in your quest for the title. you have been watching newsday. stay with us. how silicon valley companies are leading the way with maternity leave in america. and a giant inflatable chicken is dominating parkland around the white house. the trump chicken which has a striking resemblance to donald trump first appeared during the campaign in a bid to get him to release his tax returns and he is back doing the same thing all over again. thank you. goodbye. hello there.

much of the country was fine and dry, with some good, sunny spells on wednesday. but it was atrocious across the south—east, cold and wet, like this weather watcher behind me depicts of central london. the rain has been slowly petering out, and as we start thursday morning with largely clear skies and light winds, it's going to be a chilly one. temperatures out of town in single figures, widely, across the uk. maybe a little bit of mist and fog in places, as well. that's because we've got a ridge of high pressure which will keep things largely fine and settled for thursday, this weather front which brought all the rain across the south—east on wednesday slowly clearing away. we've also got another weather system slowly approaching the far north—west of the uk. so that will introduce a little bit of thicker cloud, and also a few spots of light rain across the far north and north—west of scotland. but, away from here, for much of scotland it is going to be a dry and fine morning with some sunshine. same too for northern ireland. some sunshine there in across kent, and quite a strong northerly breeze, too, which will gradually ease

down through the day. apart from a few heavy showers for kent, in the very far south—east for england and wales, most places fine dry. lots of sunshine around. the south—east, a little bit of cloud. just one or two showers there in across kent, and quite a strong northerly breeze, too, which will gradually ease down through the day. apart from a few heavy showers for kent, most places will be dry for the afternoon, as scotland. so a good—looking day for the world championships athletics in london stadium. it is going to be dry with some sunshine, temperatures around 21 or 22 degrees. now, a fine end to the day as well for thursday, as well for wales, it is going to be another largely clear night, with light winds, so here not quite as cool.

but, for scotland and northern ireland, we will have an approaching weather system, so here turning wet and windy through the night. here, not quite as cool. so for friday, then, we have got this weather system across northern and western areas. a nice, fine start, though, for central, southern and eastern parts of england. but even here, conditions will go downhill during the course of the day. so the rain will be heavy across western scotland and north—west england. northern and western wales, it will slowly move its way eastwards, eventually reaching the south—east later on. top temperature 16 to 22 celsius again across the south—east. looks like friday night could be quite a wet and blustery one, as those weather systems clear away. as we head on towards the weekend, a big ridge of high pressure builds in. so it does mean for both saturday and sunday we are looking at fine a little bit of cloud here and there, but some good sunny spells. fairly cool, though, at night. i'm babita sharma with bbc world news. our top story. north korea says it's working on a detailed plan to launch four missiles towards the island of guam. state media in north korea say the plan will be presented to kimjong—un by mid

august and he will decide whether to proceed. several thousand us troops are stationed on the island. the new threat comes despite a warning from the us defence secretary that north korea's cannot win an arms race with the us. he also warned that pyonyang's actions could result in the end of its regime and the destruction of its people. and this video is trending on bbc.com. nine magellanic penguins have just been released back into the sea after being rescued and rehabilitated by a team of specialists in argentina. they've been nursed back to health after suffering from malnutrition. and the top story here in the uk: