welcome to bbc news, broadcasting to viewers in north america and around the globe. i'm duncan golestani. our top stories: us vice president mike pence walks out of an american football game after some players refuse to stand for the national anthem. many children are feared drowned after a boat carrying rohingyas refugees fleeing violence in myanmar capsizes. oscar—winning film producer — harvey weinstein — is sacked following new information about alleged misconduct. and — a breakthrough for treating breast cancer — the gene test that could reduce the need for surgery. the row between the white house and american football players who've been kneeling during the national anthem in protest at racial

injustice has resurfaced. the us vice president, mike pence has walked out of a game in indiana because some of the players knelt. president trump tweeted tonight to say he's proud of him. andrew plant has the latest. it is called "taking a knee" — sports stars refusing to stand during the national anthem. among the fans at this nfl game, vice president mike pence, who walked out of the stadium straight to the airport, and on board a plane home. the vice president tweeted he left the game because he "would not dignify an event," he said, "that disrespects our soldiers, our flag or our national anthem". president trump also tweeted that he had asked his vice president to leave the game if any players kneeled. it is a protest against racial injustice, started weeks ago in the nfl, but taken up by athletes elsewhere.

last month a basketball team missed out on a white house dinner after players criticised president trump. commentator: lightning forward, jt brown, with a fist in the air. gestures of protest becoming commonplace across major sporting fixtures. in september, president trump had this to say... wouldn't you love to see some of these nfl owners, when somebody disrespects our flag, to say, "get that son a a bleep off the fiels right now. out, he's fired. tonight i'm taking a knee for america. president trump's disapproval only seems to galvanize support for the protest, with public figures, such as stevie wonder, joining in. meanwhile, questions are being asked about whether the walkout was planned in advance, and the cost of using air force two to fly to and from the game, which some estimate could have cost up to $200,000. andrew plant, bbc news. richard lapchick is director

of the institute for diversity and ethics in sport at the university of central florida. hejoins us now from reno nevada. thank you forjoining us will is first of all, what are you think about vice president mike pence walking out of that game? inaudible. apologies, it seems like we have a difficult connection. we will try to get him back as soon as possible. let's take a look at some of the other stories making the news. turkey says it will stop issuing all non—immigrant visas to us citizens.

the announcement came after the us embassy in turkey imposed a similar measure. last week a worker at the us consulate in istanbul was detained on suspicion of links to people involved in last year's failed coup. storm nate has weakened to a tropical depression after bringing strong winds, heavy rain and some flooding to the south—eastern united states. it made landfall as a hurricane twice, in louisiana and mississippi. the storm system killed at least 25 people in nicaragua, costa rica and honduras. germany's chancellor, angela merkel, is reported to have agreed tighter controls on migration as she tries to form a new coalition government. a compromise is said to have been reached after ten hours of talks between her cdu party and its bavarian sister party, the csu. immigration emerged as a key issue in last month's election, in which a far—right group made significant gains. argentine airlines has suspended flights to the venezuelan capital,

caracas. the company said it had concerns over security in venezuela because of increasing criminal violence and political uncertainty. four other airlines have taken similar action as the country experiences a severe economic and political crisis. a rescue operation is under way near the bangladeshi coast where a boat, carrying rohingya muslim refugees fleeing myanmar, has capsized. at least 12 people are thought to be dead and many others are missing. coastguard officials said the boat was overloaded with about 100 people, mostly children. local media say the vessel sank due to high waves and rough weather. joining us from cox's bazar is vivan tan who works for the un refugee agency can you give us an update? we first

heard about this report early in the morning. 0vernight apparently this boat had come and overloaded. 0ur tea m boat had come and overloaded. 0ur team is heading there to find out more information. based on media reports, a lot of people are missing. sadly this doesn't come as a shock given the types of crossing the refugees are making. in fact, i was there with my team yesterday talking to the locals and they said in general the number of arrivals by boat had decreased because of the bad weather. it really shows how desperate these people are to cram into such a small boat in rough seas, trying to reach safety in bangladesh. this calls for more people to respond. when the refugees

reach bangladesh, what kind of conditions are waiting for them? it isa conditions are waiting for them? it is a remote part of the country, isn't it? this is the extreme south and it is just across from myanmar. we are told that thousands of people are waiting to cross by boat but they are stuck because they can't afford the boat journey. they are stuck because they can't afford the boatjourney. those that have crossed the river are considered the lucky ones and we we re very considered the lucky ones and we were very sad to hear about this —— these —— this tragic incident. when they reached bangladesh, they are given the basic suppliers and we can given the basic suppliers and we can give them sheets. then they move into more established areas where sites are being prepared. the conditions are barrow challenging

given the large numbers. we are trying our best to provide shelter and working with our partners to provide food and healthcare. there have been suggestions in the past 2a hours that the eu and us are continued —— considering targeted sanctions against myanmar and their government. everyone agrees the solution is in myanmar. we need to make sure the violence stops immediately and that humanitarian access to those in northern rakhine state is possible so we can help those affected. in the long run, we need to address the root cause of this which is poverty, sedition ship issues. —— citizenship issues. this which is poverty, sedition ship issues. -- citizenship issues. thank you forjoining us. we can go back now. richard lapchick is director of the institute for diversity and ethics in sport at the university of central florida.

hejoins us now from reno nevada. apologies for our problems earlier. i was just apologies for our problems earlier. i wasjust asking, apologies for our problems earlier. i was just asking, what is your reaction to mike pence leaving? everybody following it and knowing that the 49ers were playing, they knew that it was going to be a protest. he went into the stadium knowing that and from my point of view, it was an administration decision because they probably thought the dust was dying down in terms of trumps intervention. —— trump's. they went in and knowing they were going to leave very shortly knowing the protest was

inevitable. to you think the players' cause has been outmanoeuvred by president trump? this is has become about respect for country and flag. the players are very clear they are talking about unity and racial injustice. you see not only the players that are kneeling at also the players standing behind with their hands on their shoulders, with a show of unity, we see it across the league. this is the largest amount of player activism in the united states or the most important act of player activism since muhammad ali decided he would not go to vietnam in the 19605. he would not go to vietnam in the 1960s. the active kneeling is getting attention but what about the issues behind it, racial inequality and alleged police brutality? do you think that is being discussed?” think that is being discussed?” think it depends on who is doing the

writing and who is doing is speaking. we have news channels in the united states that have different political slant and all sorts of sports networks that have an interest in the politics so the sports networks in particular cover the racial injustice issue. some of the racial injustice issue. some of the more progressive news outlets cover it as well. conservative news outlets that in many ways are supporters of the trump administration of caustic trump point of view. this is an issue of free speech in america so for the president of the united states and his vice president to say that this group of all players don't have the right to free speech or they shouldn't be allowed to take this knee as an exception of their feelings, to me is unconstitutional. can you see their point of view?” can understand there are people in

the police force, first responders, people in the military and better wrens, who wish there was another way they were doing this. they feel it is an affront to them. the players have made very clear from the beginning and in fact a better end was the first person to embrace colin kaepernick, not this year but last year when he first did it, and had an open discussion where they shed their point of view as they both left embracing each other even though they came into the meeting feeling they were antagonists. that's what we really need in this country. more open forearms that involve leaders and players, leaders of all different communities in the country, to talk about, with honesty, there are issues with the police, there are issues with race in this country but they are not as stereotypically sweeping as some would lead us to believe. 0bviously every police officer in the united states is not going to pull a gun and shoot somebody if they see a black man fleeing from the scene,

thatis black man fleeing from the scene, that is a small percentage of the police in the same sense that every african american person that looks like they are in a situation that police do not understand, is not criminal subject. thank you for joining us. the hollywood mogul, harvey weinstein, has been sacked from the business he founded with immediate effect. the weinstein company said the decision was taken in light of new information about misconduct. the 0scar—winning producer has been behind some of the biggest films of the last three decades. 0ur correspondent in los angeles is peter bowes. these allegations were first made public by the new york times last thursday. a very detailed account describing, as they saw it, a thorough investigation and talking to past employees, current employees, looking at e—mails and other legal documents. a long history of inappropriate behaviour towards women and he had reached settlements with about eight of those women.

this prompted very quickly an apology and statement by mr weinstein, saying he acknowledged that he had done harm to those people he had worked with over the years and that he was taking a leave of absence to essentially get to grips with the demons that he was battling with. there was an acknowledgement in part of what he had done. however, at the same time, on the same day, he also said through his lawyer that there were mistakes in the new york times article and he was planning to sue them. this is rather awkward for hollywood, isn't it? and the liberal circles that harvey weinstein has dominated for many years. it is the only thing people here have been talking about for the past three days. some people are clearly shocked by the detail of the allegations. others are almost shrugging their shoulders and saying they are just surprised it has taken

so long for allegations like this to be made public. people talking especially about his notorious bad temper and the way that he deals with issues with colleagues, female colleagues are specially. —— especially. i had a phone call from somebody who was clearly working with him closely at the time, describing somebody who was extremely ill tempered, rude and extremely bombastic, let's put it that way. and very difficult to deal with. people are saying it is only a matter of time that these allegations would come out. what has happened over the past few days is people are approaching the weinstein company and saying, look, we can't perhaps continue to do business with an organisation that continues to employ this man. i think that is what has prompted this, including his brother, bob, releasing a statement today that he no longer has a job.

stay with us on bbc news, still to come: lighting up the city of brotherly love — the art exhibition that combines illumination and pedal power. this was a celebration by people who were relishing their freedom. they believe everything's going to be different from now on. they think their country will be respected in the world once more, as it used to be before slobodan milosevic took power. the dalai lama, the exiled spiritual leader of tibet, has won this year's nobel peace prize. as the parade was reaching its climax, two grenades exploded and a group of soldiersjumped from a military truck taking part in the parade and ran towards the president, firing from kalashnikov automatic rifles. after 437 years, the skeletal ribs of henry viii's tragic warship emerged. but even as divers work to buoy herup,

the mary rose went through another heart—stopping drama. i want to be the people's governor. i want to represent everybody. i believe in the people of california. this is bbc news. the latest headlines: the us vice president, mike pence, has walked out of an american football match after some players knelt during the national anthem. 0n the eve of a statement to the catalan parliament by the region's leader, carles puigdemont, there's continuing uncertainty about whether he'll declare independence from spain. earlier thousands of people marched in a huge show of support for the unity of spain. 0ur europe editor katya adler reports from barcelona. viva catalonia! viva espana! catalans who oppose independence from spain call themselves the silent majority.

chant: y viva espana! today they made a lot of noise. we want to stay together. we don't want to break this country. i am catalan. i am spanish. and today i'm here because i'm very proud. and i don't want that catalonia go out of spain. everyone we spoke to here was catalan but people came from all over spain in the name of spanish unity. this crowd is emotional, excitable and passionate because this is all about identity, their identity. whether catalonia remains in or outside spain but the power of emotions aside, today is also all about politics. the question here for the spanish prime minister, will he wait for the catalan government to declare independence or act first? his answer in a rare

televised interview today... translation: be absolutely reassured, the government will prevent any declaration of catalan independence from turning into something real. spain will continue to be spain. it is what the majority of spaniards want. maybe but catalans remain split over independence, between families and friends with tensions mounting ahead of this week. i'm worried that independence can happen in 48 or 72 hours and i don't think i've heard a clear explanation of how things are going to work. i don't know if i'm going to be in europe, i don't know if i'm going to be using the euro. i have two countries, spain and catalonia. my heart is divided. i'm excited with the idea of creating a new country but i'm worried too. my parents are very, very worried. but ardent pro—independence catalans aren't concerned,

they're elated. they view the spanish government as oppressive and identify with the catalan language and culture, not spanish. the number of catalans that want independence has been growing, forfour orfive years. we are waiting for that a long time so i'm excited. last week, catalans held an independence referendum not recognised under spanish law. so now will the catalan government now fulfil their promise, declare independence in parliament here, risking a strong response from madrid? talking to a catalan mp, from the governing party here, that seems increasingly unlikely, a kind of "yes, but". we are absolutely sure and we have understood that the majority of the catalans want this country to be an independent state. we are ready to talk, to negotiate, to mediate with the catalan, with the spanish government, in order to make this effectively. that does not sound like a unilateral declaration

of independence. this is the point. but by now the point for many catala ns, whatever their political persuasion, is to avoid deepening divisions, between fathers and sons, colleagues and cousins. after days of colourful flag waving, a heartfelt plea for dialogue. katya adler, bbc news, barcelona. scientists who've developed a new gene test for breast cancer say that it could cut the number of women having surgery by a third. the test has been developed in manchester here in the uk. our health correspondentjenny walrond's report contains flash photography. they have a friendship forged through a fight against cancer. charley and annie were tested for the brca gene mutation after losing family members to breast and ovarian cancer. charley was a carrier and given up to an 87% risk of breast cancer. annie wasn't but was told she had up to 50% chance. as a result, both had mastectomies.

87% is pretty high so to me, ijust wanted to get rid of them as soon as i could. had the risk been a bit lower, i would have maybe thought twice about it, and been a bit calmer about the situation and perhaps gone for regular screening as opposed to such drastic surgery. i always thought that they would kill me so i wanted them off. so it was all to do with mindset, really. but, no, it is a big operation and it is, um, something that is life changing. the women's chances of developing breast cancer could have been much lower but it was not possible to tell. charley has the same brca gene mutation as the hollywood actress, angelina jolie, who had her breast tissue and ovaries removed after also being told she had up to 87% risk of breast cancer. within six months, women with a family history of breast cancer, who come for brca testing

on the nhs, in manchester, could be given a much more accurate assessment of their risk, thanks to a new test looking at 18 genetic variants, which influence the chances of having breast cancer, alongside other risk factors, including breast density in the age of puberty. scientists believe it could cut the number of preventative mastectomies by a third. if you can get the risk below 50— 50, women are much more likely to take their chances, have screening, other preventative measures, rather than go for risk—reducing mastectomy. scientists hope to go further and believe, within the next two years, they will be able to give a breakdown of any women's lifetime chances of developing breast cancer using up to 300 genetic variants. i think this new gene test could be a game changer in trying to prevent breast cancer by giving women early warning that they carry a genetic risk. perhaps, even if it has never been

in their family before. scientists are also investigating whether this research could also be used to understand the way our genes affect our chances of developing prostate, ovarian, lun and colon rectal cancers. of developing prostate, ovarian, lung and colon rectal cancers. jenny waldron, bbc news, manchester. let's head to philadelphia now and what's being described as the largest public art project in the us for a decade. one the city's major thoroughfares is celebrating its centenary. tim allman explains. the city of brotherly love lit up like never before. one of the main streets of philadelphia celebrating its centennial. so a special exhibit. dozens of pedal—powered cabs strung up with 1000 chinese lanterns. but this art is notjust for looking, it is for riding as well. it is phenomenal to see it outlined. it is phenomenal to see it at night.

it is all childhood magic. talking to people, they ask if it's art, it is. it is a very special time. all of this is the work of cai guo-qiang who based the designs on lanterns he played with as a child. every one of them was handmade in his hometown and carefully shipped across the pacific. some of them are more traditional shapes. some of them are aliens and panda bears and stars, sushi. cai guo-qiang says the lanterns were an extension of his dreams. a chance for people to meet and exchange feelings. a night sky illuminated like fireflies. you're watching bbc news. stay with us. hello, once again the weekend has

been marked by relatively benign conditions for most areas. and at its best we saw decent spells of sunshine boosting the temperatures to around about 17 or 18 degrees. but there's no escaping the fact that in some spots, there was quite a bit of cloud around as well. and for some the odd bit and piece of rain. that's pretty much how we start the new day on monday. not a shock to the system as you step out — temperatures for the most part in double figures. a lot of cloud around. probably at its thickest perhaps across parts of scotland. weak weather fronts here, just dragging cloud and rain, from west to east to many areas. northern ireland perhaps a little bit drier, just a fraction brighter. certainly as we come south of the border, the greater part of england and wales is dry. bright at best, probably, maybe the odd hint of sunshine. that won't be the case across parts of the far south of wales and south—west england. the air is moister here, the cloud sitting very low in the atmosphere, and there could be some drizzly rain on breeze as well. i'm hopeful that that

situation will improve as the day really gets going. i think brighter skies too, eventually, getting into parts of wales, the north of england and certainly for scotland, after that rather dismal start. northern ireland, i have not forgotten you, it's just that you started off quite bright and then the cloud fills in, with rain into many areas by around about teatime and early evening and that is exactly the moment at which wales and the republic of ireland will clash horns in a crucial world cup qualifying match, in wales. 0vernight, there will be quite a bit of rain across the northern half of britain. that same weather front though, as it moves into the southern half of britain, is not much more than a band of cloud, with the odd spot of rain, perhaps. brighter skies follow on behind, though no too many isobars there. so that turns out to be a decent afternoon for many spots, save for this north—western quarter, where we are seeing the first signs of a wet night and a pretty wet and windy day too, as these weather fronts pile in from the atlantic. some heavy rain on the western hills of scotland, across the cumbrian fells, top end of the pennines,

eventually down into the welsh mountains. ahead of it, the cloud just fills in but you stay dry for the greater part of the day. behind it, things begin to improve. certainly dries out and that is the shape of things to come, for many of us through thursday. still a little bit breezy perhaps but a lot of dry weather around and some brightness as well. that all comes to us thanks to this albeit transient ridge of high pressure. because it's elbowed aside by the next set of weather fronts coming in from the atlantic. notice again, we have a number of isobars there so we finish the week, perhaps for many, with a combination of wet and windy weather. this is bbc news, the headlines: the us vice president has walked out of an american football match after some players knelt during the national anthem. mike pence said he left the game in indiana between the colts and the san francisco 49ers because he would not dignify any event which showed such disrespect. many children are feared drowned after a boat carrying rohingyas refugees fleeing violence

in myanmar capsized. at least 12 people are thought to be dead and many others are missing. bangladeshi coastguard officials said the boat was overloaded with about 100 people on board. hundreds of thousands of people have been on the streets of barcelona in a huge show of support for the unity of spain and against plans for the independence of catalonia. spain's worst political crisis for decades was sparked by a referendum on independence for the wealthy north—eastern region. now on bbc news, hardtalk.