welcome to bbc news, broadcasting to viewers in north america and around the globe. my name is ben bland. our top stories: austria elects the world's youngest leader. but will 31—year—old sebastian kurz forge a coalition with the far—right? somalia's deadliest attack in a decade — saturday's massive bomb blast in the capital is known to have killed at least 230 people. warning of "potential danger to life" as hurricane ophelia barrels across the atlantic towards the british isles. and more claims of sexual assault against hollywood kingpin, harvey weinstein. police in britain investigate allegations by three women. the head of austria's conservative people's party is on course to become the world's youngest national leader,

at the age of 31. after his victory in sunday's general election, sebastian kurz, is still well short of a majority but he's in a strong position to form a new coalition government. asjenny hill reports from vienna, he may have to rely on the far—right freedom party, whose campaign was dominated by immigration concerns. the new face of austrian politics. sebastian kurz has rejuvenated his party and changed his country's political landscape. translation: voters have handed us a great responsibility. many people put big hopes in our movement. i promise i will do all in my power to fight for change and i invite you tojoin me. herr kurz, a word for the bbc? has austria moved to the right today? is it a victory for the right? no answer for us but mr kurz is shifting his party's politics. as foreign minister during the refugee crisis, he closed the country's borders.

now he's leaving the door open to the far right. even on the campaign trail, his potential new partner, the anti—migrant freedom party, sensed the victory of sorts. the anti—migrant freedom party, sensed a victory of sorts. at this rally, its leader warned that foreigners are replacing the native austrian population. mr kurz will have to form a coalition government, and this is his most likely choice. translation: we thank voters for their trust. many austrians used their democratic right today. democracy has won in austria today. so, perhaps, has image. austria's chancellor—elect talks not about his party but his bewegung, a macron—style movement. but vienna has seen it all before. nearly 20 years ago, mr kurz‘s party invited the far right into government. then there was shock, dismay, some european countries imposed diplomatic sanctions. today, in an eu bruised by the migrant crisis, few are surprised. translation: i think it's great that kurz is the leader.

they're all tricksters. i did vote for kurz. i'm shocked and outraged. i'm very disappointed that austria has voted like this. it's irrational. populist success, the mainstream chasing the right. europe's youngest leader and embodiment of shifting political ground. jenny hill, bbc news, vienna. and there's lots more on our website about the austrian election. where you'll find analysis of the main issues and a profile of conservative leader sebastian kurz. you can also download the bbc news app. president mohamed abdullahi mohamed has called three days of mourning to the victim is of saturday's attack

in mogadishu. anne soy reports. search and rescue efforts continue more than 2a hours after the blast. hopes of finding people alive are fading. those who recover the remains of their loved ones can be counted lucky. many bodies cannot be identified. it is one of the worst bomb blasts ever on somali soil. a truck laden with explosives struck at a busy intersection on saturday, reducing buildings to rubble and setting vehicles alight. the scale of casualties is unprecedented. president mohamed abdullahi farmajo visited some of the injured in hospital. he also donated blood. the president is in no doubt as to who is responsible for the attack. translation: indeed, it is a hard period. yesterday's truck bomb attack

is a national disaster that claimed many people's lives and it signifies that the terrorist group al—shabab are cruel and nasty people who kill anyone. a city with just a handful of hospitals has been tested to its limit. medics are overwhelmed. translation: what happened yesterday was incredible. i've never seen such a thing before and the death toll is uncountable. corpses were burned and no—one could recognise them. somalia has been battling insurgency for years. the un—backed government is supported by a regional african union force but al—shabab has shown it remains capable of staging high—profile attacks in the capital. and every so often they test the resilience of a country determined to emerge from the rubble. in a rare show of anger, residents protest on the streets of mogadishu. they want the government to avenge the deaths of their loved ones

and end a decade of attacks from the home—grown militants. anne soy, bbc news. joining me now is muhammad fraser rahim, an expert on violent extremism issues and a scholar on africa. he works for the counter—terrorism think tank, ouilliam international and is currently in djibouti. do you think these marks what we could regard as a resurgence, we strengthen our sha bab if could regard as a resurgence, we strengthen our shabab if it turns out to be them the height of this attack? it looks like it is probably al—shabaab. the organisation itself certainly has been on the rise, despite really aggressive actions by western partners as well as a growing national security apparatus

in somalia tried to push back. at the end of the day, al—shabaab is an organisation of concern to all of us and one which the government sees as and one which the government sees as a top priority. given the insurgency of al—shabaab began ten years ago, by now should the authorities, with the help of the african union mission in somalia, not have made much greater progress on tackling the militants and be able to stop attacks like this? this is not a perfect situation and i think we have to give credit for regional entities — the canyons have done quite a job entities — the canyons have done quiteajob in entities — the canyons have done quite a job in trying to prevent this issue —— the kenya — i think the somali government is doing their

best, based on the limited ability they have as well. what we have to do is try our best to try to harness the areas lacking in conjunction with those that are good and those that need improvement, provide military and in diligent support as well. if they are doing the right thing in trying to tackle al—shabaab, what thing in trying to tackle al—sha baab, what has thing in trying to tackle al—shabaab, what has given this militant group the oxygen that keeps it going? this is really a global issue and it would probably be the same questions about al-qaeda or daesh itself. look at the statistics. there are over 60% of somali population who are under 35. you are right, some of those msr entities of their —— entities they

are radicalising individuals who see these foreign entity being there is a concern. the government and civil society and religious communities have to find creative efforts that really get ahead of the curve. what can we do to deal with the actual events taking place so we can get ahead of the curve and use preventative efforts. that will preventative efforts. that will prevent some of the root causes in which we can all collectively be in support of. thank you very much, indeed. thank you. let's take a look at some of the other stories making the news: iraqi forces are advancing towards kurdish—held sites in kirkuk province, as tensions rise between the two sides over the future of iraqi kurdistan. kurdish security officials say the iraqi forces intend to take control of oil fields and an airbase, near the city of kirkuk — seen here.

tensions between baghdad and iraqi kurdistan have been high since the kurds held a referendum on independence last month. us—backed militias have launched what they describe as a "final assault" on the remaining militants from so—called islamic state in the syrian city of raqqa. some is fighters have withdrawn under a local deal, freeing three thousand civilians they'd held as human shields. typhoon khanun has made landfall in southern china with destructive winds and heavy rains. flights and ferries were suspended after eight cities issued alerts for the typhoon. the weather system is expected to move back over open waters in the next day. it's the 20th typhoon this year. staying with the extreme weather theme. britain and ireland are bracing themselves for the arrival of hurricane ophelia. it's the most powerful storm ever to have formed so far east in the atlantic. the met office has warned of "potential danger to life" with strong winds, heavy rain and storm surges expected. there's a severe weather warning in place, although it's hoped ophelia may weaken to a tropical storm by the time it makes landfall. sarah corker reports. seeking shelter. southern and

western coasts will be the hardest hit as ophelia moves in from the atlantic. forecasters warn the stomp will be potentially life—threatening. it could cause disruption and power outages. we are expecting significant outages. all of our crews will be deployed to deal with forlan wires and we expect a significant number of trees to fall. this is the 15th named stomp in what has been a particularly active atlantic storm season. we've never seen a storm active atlantic storm season. we've never seen a storm that strong so close to europe, and ireland in history and it has whittled a little bit, no longer hurricane and that it

will still pack a punch. wet weather warnings in place. 90 miles per hour gusts working northwards. western parts of wales, south—west scotland, and northern ireland having warnings in place. some ferries, flights and bus services have been cancelled stop all schools, colleges and courts are closed. we hope all our stu d e nts courts are closed. we hope all our students and staff hid our advice and stays safe and in doors. and please go and we see everybody back at school. it hit the south of england... it will breach the uk 30 yea rs england... it will breach the uk 30 years after the great storm of 1987, famously catching the forecasters out. earlier today, a warm and had there was a hurricane harvey the way but if you're watching, don't worry, there isn't. this is the view from

ophelia from space. it is predicted to be the country ‘s worst storm in more than half a century.. stay with us on bbc news, still to come: censorship and social media — china steps up efforts to control the narrative ahead of the communist party's annual congress. you can't say this, you can't say that, how are you supposed to interact in china? parts of san francisco least affected by the earthquake are returning to life. but in the marina area, where most of the damage was done, they're more conscious than ever of how much has been destroyed. in the 19 years since he was last here, he's gone from being a little—known revolutionary to an experienced and successful diplomatic operator. it was a 20 pound bomb that exploded on the fifth floor of the grand hotel, ripping a hole in the front of the building. this government will not weaken. democracy will prevail.

it fills me with humility and gratitude to know that i have been chosen as the recipient of this foremost of earthly honours. this catholic nation held its breath for the men they call the 33. and then... bells toll bells tolled nationwide to announce the first rescue and chile let out an almighty roar. this is bbc news. the latest headlines: austria has elected 31—year—old sebastian kurz — of the conservative people's party — to be its next leader. somalia's president has declared three days of national mourning after saturday's massive bomb blast, that killed at least 230 people

in the capital, mogadishu. police in london are investigating allegations of sexual assault made by three women against the hollywood film producer, harvey weinstein. one of them, actress lysette anthony, says she was raped by weinstein at her flat in the late 1980s. another woman has made allegations of an attack in 1992, while a third says she was assaulted on three separate occasions since 2010. daniel sandford reports. being battered by a storm of sexual abuse allegations in america, the clouds are gathering over harvey weinstein in the uk too. this was british actress lysette anthony in 1982, 19 years old and at the start of her career, filming the science—fiction fantasy krull. that was when she met harvey weinstein. and in today's sunday times, she claims that a few years later, he raped her at her london home. she told the paper...

harvey weinstein, who has been lauded as a hollywood a—lister for decades, has now conceded he made mistakes and needs help, but has categorically denied all allegations of nonconsensual sex. the metropolitan police started investigating the allegations by lysette anthony last week. the force now says two more women have come forward. one claims harvey weinstein assaulted her in 1992, the other that he assaulted her three times, in 2010, 2011 and 2015. but if detectives decide they do want to charge harvey weinstein, bringing him here would not necessarily happen quickly. the courts in america would want to deal with all the cases there before extraditing him to britain. actress alice evans says she managed to avoid weinstein's advances in cannes in 2002 when he asked to feel her breasts, but she thinks it damaged her career. it was very odd.

the overtures were nothing to do with, "wow, you're really pretty." or, you know, "i'm really enjoying your..." it was nothing to do with me. it was, i want to touch your... they say your blood runs cold, but it's not really your blood, it's almost like your stomach turns. last night, the academy of motion pictures, which hands out oscars, expelled harvey weinstein and today, the french president, emmanuel macron, said the film producer would lose his legion d'honneur, one of france's highest decorations. but he now faces the real possibility of a criminal prosecution either in america or in britain. daniel sandford, bbc news, at new scotland yard. votes are being counted in venezuela, after sunday's elections to appoint governors of all twenty—three states. the election is seen as a test of strength in the battle between the opposition and the governing socialist party, which currently controls most of the states. we can speak to the bbc‘s

katy watson, who's in caracas. this is to elect the regional governors but of course, it will be seen as a governors but of course, it will be seen as a test of president maduro's authority, and test of the opposition. any idea of the results so opposition. any idea of the results so far? the results are being counted at the moment and a short time ago, the opposition said they had doubts and suspicions about the results that had come out before the voting started. on sunday, there we re voting started. on sunday, there were expectations from polls that the opposition would win well over half of the governor roles in venezuela. at the moment, they have three. they were looking at winning more than half. at the moment, that now looks like that isn't going to happen and the results are not what the opposition expected. just an

hour or so ago, we had both sides coming out onto television, the government talking about the fact that it government talking about the fact thatitis government talking about the fact that it is a sign of democracy, they we re that it is a sign of democracy, they were voting in elections and they seemed happy about things. he opposition said they were being positive but the mood seems to have changed somewhat. are regular viewers to bbc world news will be to build our —— familiar of the fraught scenes on the streets of venezuela over the past weeks and months. did the election passed off peacefully? the election did pass off peacefully. there was confusion about some last—minute changes to voting and some voting centres were moved from their original places. the government cited security concerns. it would make it more difficult for people to vote. there was criticism of unfair ballots. in terms of the violence, it passed off peacefully. 0k, many thanks.

the leader of the spanish region of catalonia, carles puigdemont, now has under six hours left to tell the central government in madrid whether or not he has actually declared independence. it follows the independence referendum declared illegal by spain's courts. if mr puigdemont replies that he has declared independence, the central government says that it will begin the process of suspending self—rule in the catalan region. our europe correspondent james reynolds reports from barcelona. carles puigdemont already has some of the trappings of a head of state. now spain wants him to spell it out. has he declared independence for his region or not? at this memorial on sunday, mr puigdemont remembered a previous catalan leader executed in 19110 by the military regime of spain. an event that fuelled the current campaign for independence. carles puigdemont is under

pressure from all sides. pro—independence groups here want him to say that he has declared independence. the government in madrid wants him to say that he has not. on this, in his last major appearance on the eve of madrid's deadline, the catalan leader refused to pick a side. translation: i want to reiterate that the government i lead will make its decision based on commitment to peace, fortitude and democracy. even on the way out he made sure to give nothing away. president puigdemont, your answer to madrid? spanish citizens in madrid are among many who want him to explain his position. they recently celebrated spain's national day. most of the people in spain

want to be together. this part of spain cannot create this sort of issue that we are seeing today. here in catalonia, opinion is divided. many still displayed their desire for independence. and all wait to hear their leader's reply. officials in portugal and spain say at least eight people have been killed by wildfires. thousands of soldiers have been deployed to tackle more than 100 blazes in central and northern portugal and across the border in the spanish region. officials have blamed arsonists for starting many of those fires. this week the chinese communist party holds its five yearly congress at the great hall of the people in beijing.

the climax will be the revealing of the new leadership team behind president xijinping. at a time like this the authorities believe they must do everything in their power to stamp out anything potentially embarrassing for the government. so the censors are in full swing, as our beijing correspondent stephen mcdonell has been finding out. in order to land the 2008 beijing olympics, china made some promises in terms of opening up and freedom of expression. at the time, it seemed like things were getting better and better in that regard. but as we get further and further from the games, the censors have been cracking down hard. phone apps are powerful tools for control. pretty much everyone in china uses wechat. at sensitive times, like during the party congress, keywords and phrases are blocked. using them can mean being reported to the authorities.

and now, if you set up a discussion group on wechat, as administrator, you are responsible for what is said on wechat. the restriction of chat apps not from the chinese government has also been tested. whatsapp has been blocked, for example. if you cannot talk, how do you interact? this is what the communist party wanted to talk about. this has been opened to mark the achievements of the chinese government with president xi jinping as the leader. the fastest trains, the deepest submarines, and ever more powerful military, and hundreds of images of the man credited with all of this, xijinping. xijinping....

xijinping. doctors have successfully separated conjoined twins born in a remote village in the democratic republic of congo. they had to provide a 15 hour journey of congo. they had to provide a 15 hourjourney on of congo. they had to provide a 15 hour journey on the of congo. they had to provide a 15 hourjourney on the back of a motorbike before being flown to a hospital in the nation's capital. it is hoped that the babies will be ready to return to their village in around three weeks time. a brief reminder of the main news this hour. the head of austria's conservative people's party — sebastian kurz — is on course to become the youngest national leader in the world, after his victory in sunday's general election. and you can get in touch with me and most of the team on twitter, — i'm @benmbland back with the headlines shortly. hello there.

fairly quiet conditions out there at the moment. on monday, things turn more stormy to the west of the uk, especially in northern ireland. the met office has already issued an amber be prepared warning for strong winds from monday afternoon. damaging and disruptive gusts are expected. the worst will be in southern ireland. ophelia, an ex—hurricane, moves towards the shores. the met service in ireland has issued a red warning. danger to life and property across the entire country. the wind will steadily strengthen in the west. scotland will have rain come and go. dry conditions in england and wales. the winds start to pick up through the irish sea in particular as we go into the afternoon. western parts of wales, the isle of man, northern ireland, parts of south—west scotland in particular. we can see winds in excess of 80 miles per hour in a few spots. that will cause loose debris to fly around and travel disruption. only part of the story, of course. on monday, rain across the board in ireland. cool conditions in scotland with outbreaks of rain. england and wales, away from western coasts, blustery day but quite a warm and sunny one,

23 degrees. evening rush—hour, midlands, northern england, gusty winds. the strongest of the wind in the north. the low pressure system will transfer to northern scotland. these areas could see 60—70 miles per hour winds. they could cause disruption. temperatures holding up into tuesday morning. through monday and tuesday, just a reminder, some problems around, not just with transport, power supply problems as well. check for warnings on the website and on the bbc weather app. the strongest winds will go down on tuesday. outbreaks of rain continue in scotland and northern ireland. a cold day there. england and wales, a lot of dry weather. light winds, hazy sunshine. feeling pleasant, even without the tropical layer of monday. later in the day, rain spreads in through the english channel. this system willjust go north

through tuesday night into wednesday. the warmest air confined to east anglia and the south—east. wet weather in southern counties of england. on wednesday, the midlands into northern england, southeasterly winds, the heaviest of the rain in the east of the pennines. part of eastern scotland as well. western areas, dry and bright. still feeling cool away from southern counties where it will be pleasant. overall this week, a stormy start to the week. things turn quieter but stronger winds as well. news. my name is ben bland. these are the headlines: the head of austria's conservative people's party is on course to become the world's youngest national leader, at the age of 31. sebastian kurz is in a strong position to form a new coalition government — but may have to rely on the far—right freedom party. police in somalia say the massive bomb blast in the capital mogadishu has killed at least 230 people and wounded hundreds more. it's the deadliest attack since al—shabab militants began their insurgency a decade ago. britain and ireland are bracing themselves for the arrival

of hurricane ophelia, the most powerful storm ever to have formed so far east in the atlantic. the met office has warned of "potential danger to life" with strong winds, heavy rain and storm surges expected. it's hoped ophelia may weaken to a tropical storm by the time it makes landfall. the time is 3:30am.