this is bbc news. i'm david eades. our top stories. fours hours and counting. a second and final deadline approaches for catalonia's devolved government to state whether it really has declared independence from spain. britain's prime minister offers more reassurance to eu citizens living in the uk about their rights after brexit, but will that persuade eu leaders to start talking about a future trade deal with britain? "you'll be held accountable." the us warns myanmar‘s army as the rohingya refugee crisis in bangladesh worsens. and i'm sally bundock. the business stories. it's a $700 billion relationship, but trade looks like it's still off the agenda in brexit talks, as the deadlock over cash continues. plus, eyes on the prize! north american cities battle to host amazon's new $5 billion headquarters. we're in a tough newjersey neighbourhood that is daring to dream. hello, and welcome to bbc news.

a battle of words and of wills comes to a head in spain shortly. madrid has demanded catalonia's devolved government confirms whether or not it is declaring independence. the deadline kicks in four hours from now. the spanish government has insisted carles puigdemont, catalonia's leader, retract a unilateral declaration of independence he made last week, even though he also suspended that declaration to allow time for negotiations, which madrid flatly rejected. tim willcox is in the catalan capital, barcelona. shocking images of the spanish

police using violence to stop people voting in catalonia's referendum have travelled fast since the first of october and have brought the world's attention to this region of spain. the question was never recognised as legal by the central government, but did not stop the head of the region, carles puigdemont, declaring independence a week later. a declaration he suspended just a few seconds later to the disappointment of his hardline supporters. since then, a political chess game has ensued, with a five days deadline initially to a nswer yes with a five days deadline initially to answer yes or no, had he declared independence. carles puigdemont said he wanted to suspend that declaration for two months to allow dialogue. the spanish prime minister said this answer was not clear enough and now carles puigdemont has until ten o'clock local time this morning spanish time to clarify or revoke his motion. madrid is

threatening to take direct control using article 155, something that has never been done before. what would the reaction be of pro—independence leaders if he does this? and what about his supporters, who have shown they are prepared to ta ke to who have shown they are prepared to take to the streets. tim willcocks, bbc news. another spike in the tension, isn't it? for more on this story, go to the bbc news website. there's full background and analysis, plus video and audio content. go to bbc.com/news. the us says it holds myanmar‘s army responsible for the deepening crisis in bangladesh. hundreds of thousands of people have left their homes in myanmar, where they'd faced a military offensive after claims that militants were guilty of attacking police checkpoints. more than half a million rohingya muslims have now fled across the border.

15,000 of them have been stranded for three days with limited food and water. from the border, clive myrie sent this report. in the distance in myanmar, where rohingya villages have burned in recent weeks, and the people have been driven out, there is another fire. "it's ethnic cleansing," says the un. and the purged are fleeing for their lives into neighbouring bangladesh. translation: in my village, many were killed. but my son had just been born, so we have only now been able to escape. we haven't had time to name him. what is going on in myanmar, why have you had to flee? another man we came across spoke of violence and murder. as we drew closer to the border, nothing had prepared us for the full extent of the day's exodus. almost as far as the eye could see, left and right, a tide of humanity. between 10,000 and 15,000 people had crossed the border in one night.

young and old, hungry, exhausted, traumatised. and, for the weak, it is a painful journey into exile, with the searing heat stinging the skin infection of this child, beneath an unrelenting sun. they'd been hiding out for close to a week to avoid detection along the border. well, as you can see, they're carrying with them whatever they could salvage from their villages, their homes, that they say they were burnt out of by the myanmar military. look at that little baby there in a basket, and there is another one here, on the other side. so many young children we're seeing here today. this has to be one of the biggest single—day influxes of refugees from across the border, just over there, in the whole of this crisis. "i begged god to save us",

her husband, mohammed, tells me. "we hadn't eaten for two days, and she went into labour. i don't know what will happen to my baby now. he's so fragile." the new arrivals could end up in one of these — the giant, tented camps, built in a matter of days, on hillsides freshly stripped of trees. i've seen a lot of these crises around the world, and i really wasn't quite prepared for the degree of suffering and despair. and yet these people are very resilient. they have not lost hope. they still think they can make a life again in their home country. and it simply doubles our resolve to go back and find more resources for them until we can bring them home. for the bangladeshis, the mass influx of so many refugees

is difficult to control. after a delay, these rohingya muslims should begin moving to an established refugee camp in the coming days. the border remains open, but for those still wanting to escape myanmar, the fear is that soon the gates could shut. tens of thousands are already massing on the frontier, ready to make their dash for survival. clive myrie, bbc news, in bangladesh. let's ta ke let's take a look at some of the other stories making the news. president trump is at the centre of a continuing controversy involving his treatment of the widow of a fallen soldier. the mother of sergeant la david johnson has backed a democratic congresswoman's claim that mr trump displayed "insensitivity" towards his pregnant wife when he phoned to offer his condolences. the president has flatly denied the claim and says he has proof that he did not make the remarks. the russian celebrity, ksenia sobchak, says she will stand in next year's presidential election. there's intense speculation that the kremlin wants her to run

in order to provide a semblance of competition, but the putin administration says it wasn't consulted over her decision. ksenia sobchak is a daughter of the late st petersburg mayor, and mentor of mr putin, anatoly sobchak. a brazilian congressional committee has voted to reject criminal charges brought against the president, michel temer. the charges stem from a corruption case involving the world's largest meat—packing firm, jbs. under brazil's constitution, mr temer can only face trial with the approval of two thirds of the lower house of congress. theresa may will address european union leaders today at a summit in brussels, at which they're expected to confirm they are not yet ready to open talks with britain, about a post—brexit trade deal. before the gathering, mrs may wrote an open letter to eu citizens living in the uk, promising to make it as easy as possible for them to obtain settled status in the future. adam fleming has more from brussels. during dinner, sandwiched between a

discussion about iran and a chat about trade, that is when the prime minister will give her verdict on the brexit negotiations so far. but it looks like the leaders of the 27 remaining eu countries do not think enough progress has been made on the first set of wreck the talks on divorce issues to move onto the second about trade and a possible transition deals to be brexit. a d raft transition deals to be brexit. a draft says there is. they will welcome the offer to fulfil financial obligations but it must be more detailed. both sides will work on progress to guarantee those who wa nt to on progress to guarantee those who want to stay in the uk. and uk officials should begin internal discussions for talk on the future trade deal. in other words, get ready. the prime minister has

already been in brussels once this week. on this second trip, she is likely to say things are going in her direction, just perhaps not as fast as some would have expected. ian fleming, bbc news, brussels. talking about brexit is in less. it is as much about trade as politics. —— endless. sally bundock is here with all the business news, and more on those brexit negotiations. it is all about trade today! we start in brussels, where eu leaders are beginning a two—day summit. they are due to decide whether brexit talks with the uk have made enough progress to move on to the next phase, in particular, discussing their all important trading relationship once britain leaves. the answer's almost certain to be "no," and it's all about money. let's explain.

back in march, european commission president, jean—claude juncker, suggested britain will need to pay around $70 billion to settle its commitments before leaving, the so—called divorce bill. so far, it's agreed to just a fraction of that. last month, prime minister theresa may said the uk would keep paying into the eu budget until 2020 as part of a transition period after it leaves. and that roughly comes in at $23.5 billion. the problem is the vast sums the eu has committed to in its long—term budget, but hasn't spent yet. $281 billion worth. some estimates put the uk's share of that at over $35 billion. all those figures look tiny when compared with this one. $727 billion of trade done between the uk and eu last year. the future of that will remain uncertain until talks move

to the next stage. that is all about trade. lots more in 20 minutes' time. we are also talking about the e—commerce giant, amazon. it's set a deadline of today for cities to put in their bids to host its new headquarters. amazon says it will employ around 50,000 people on an average salary of $100,000. not surprisingly, dozens of cities have put themselves up so far. but alongside the likes of new york and toronto, there are some more surprising bids. the images behind you are one part of the us which will surprise you. we have gone there. the cameras are moving. if i move

across here, you can see me. we will have them sorted by world business report. stay with us on bbc news. still to come. the dark arts. under the spotlight at a museum in milan. we will take a look at that strange feature. a historic moment that many of his victims have waited for for decades. the former dictator in the dock, older, slimmer and, as he sat down, obedient enough. dawn, and as the sun breaks through the piercing chill of night on the plain outside korem, it lights up a biblicalfamine, now, in the 20th century. the depressing conclusion — in argentina today, it is actually cheaper to paper your walls with money. we've had controversies in the past with great britain but as good friends, we have always found a good and lasting solution. concorde bows out in style after

almost three decades in service. an aircraft that has enthralled its many admirers for so long taxis home one last time. this is bbc news. the latest headlines: a second and final deadline approaches for catalonia's devolved government to state whether it really has declared independence from spain. the uk's prime minister, theresa may, will address european leaders later and offer reassurance to eu citizens living in the uk about their rights, but trade talks look unlikely. there are fears of food shortages in zimbabwe after it banned fruit and vegetable imports

to help preserve its dwindling money reserves. the new orderfollows one injune that banned maize imports. most of the supply of groceries in the capital harare come from neighbouring south africa. andrew plant reports. fresh fruit and vegetables on sale in zimbabwe. much of this food is imported, and now, there are fears the shelves here could soon run short. landlocked in southern africa, zimbabwe relies heavily on imports, mainly from south africa. traders here say cutting them out will only damage demand. "this ban will kill our business," he says, "even though we produce apples, our customers prefer imported ones, which we sell because they're better quality." the zimbabwean dollar was abandoned in 2009 when hyperinflation meant money earned one day was worthless the next. at one time, a $100 trillion note couldn't even buy an apple. now people here use us dollars

or government bonds. president robert mugabe's ban on foreign imports is designed to help domestic farmers sell more and save precious foreign cash from leaving the country. but many fear the move to boost the economy will have the opposite effect. people are now hoarding theirforeign currency, distrustful of government bonds, and trading heavily on the black market, fearful that zimbabwe's hyperinflation could one day return. andrew plant, bbc news. after recent cases of harassment shocked turkey, self—defence classes and women—only buses have been introduced. the first programme started recently in the city of malatya in the east of the country. but are these measures working? the bbc‘s selin girit investigates for 100 women. the virunga national park in eastern democratic republic of congo is home to the nyiragongo volcano.

it is one of the most active on earth and it towers over one of the most volatile regions in the world. but it hasn't erupted since 2002 and violence in the area has eased, so an increasing number of tourists have started climbing to the top again. the bbc‘s charlotte attwood joined them. shrouded in mystery. it towers above eastern congo. the nyiragongo volcano is one of the most at it and feared in the world. smoke and clouds mingle at its peak, hiding the threat within. we finally reached the summit of the volcano andi reached the summit of the volcano and i am standing on the edge of a vast crater, 600 metres below me is one of the world ‘s largest lava la kes. one of the world ‘s largest lava lakes. first discovered by vulcanologists in 2002 after the last eruption. at nearly 3500 metres

above sea level, this volcano is difficult to act this and predict. from the city below, a group of scientists keep a close watch, looking for signs of danger. the volcano is like a sick person. you have to monitor every time, every time, every second. their warnings we re time, every second. their warnings were ignored in 2002 when an eruption destroyed parts of the city. 90,000 people lost their homes and dozens of residents died. but today, some of the houses are built around a solidified lava and the local population is much more aware of the risks. translation: we saw the smoke but we didn't know what an eruption was. some people even moved closer to see what was happening. that is how so many people died. they were ignorant. we didn't even know that lava burned everything it touched.

for now, there are no warning signs and it's not just for now, there are no warning signs and it's notjust scientists summit in the volcano. tourists are joining them. but never far from armed guards. this is one of the most u nsta ble guards. this is one of the most unstable regions in the world. it ta kes seve n unstable regions in the world. it takes seven hours of hard trekking to reach the top, but it's well worth the effort. it's like a soup just kind of brewing and stewing and isjust, just kind of brewing and stewing and is just, you could just kind of brewing and stewing and isjust, you could spend all night out here if it wasn't so cold just checking out the lava flows. it's incredible. set in the unesco world heritage site at virunga national park, the nyiragongo and its magnificent lava lake are attracting visitors from across the world. and with that, the biggest natural threat is giving back to the community living below. charlotte atwood, bbc news,. well, the 19th national congress of the communist party of china is now well underway.

and there's lots on the agenda. but one thing delegates aren't keen to discuss is the country's relations with north korea. the bbc‘s steve mcdonell has been doing his best to find out what china's political elite think of kim jong—un. china and north korea used to be the best of friends, but recent events have put quite a strain on the relationship. here at the communist party congress, let's try and find out what china's political elites now think of the north korean leader. it's bad enough to try and talk to these delegates at the best of times, but when we are asking about the delicate question of falling out with an old ally, then it's even harder. we are not having much luck out

here. perhaps on the tea break, someone will talk to us. let's get inside. well, you can't say we didn't try. and it seems when it comes to china's ever collapsing relationship with north korea and its eccentric leader, these delegates don't really wa nt to leader, these delegates don't really want to talk about it. let's head to italy now, and the northern city of milan. the famous brera art gallery has been offering visitors a slightly unusual experience. you get to see all the museum's great works, except you do it at night with the lights switched off. the bbc‘s tim allman explains. at milan's brera art gallery, interesting things can happen after dark. a small select group of visitors are given the chance to experience something a little out of the ordinary. provided with torches,

they move through the museum at night, viewing the paintings from a completely new perspective. translation: in the dark, it seems we are blind, but that's not true. we see better, especially with the help of the flashlight. we see the pictures much better than when the room is lit because we can choose the details and look for what we want to see in the picture. in the dark, our eyes are wide open. this gallery contains some of the great works of renaissance art — paintings of raphael, bellini and caravaggio. seeing this all at night, the theory goes, will allow people to interact with the exhibit, picking out specific parts of each portrait. translation: i think this exhibit should be organised much more often because it gives a unique emotion

you cannot have during the day. translation: it's surprising, the atmosphere, the environment, and especially following the paths of every painting through the flashlight — it's amazing. this was a short—term experiment only lasting three days, but it has been so successful, there are already plans for more nights at the museum. tim allman, bbc news. that looks quite a good idea, actually. don't forget — you can get in touch with me and some of the team on twitter. i'm @bbcdavideades stay with us. we have the world business report and a news reviews still to come. the weather outlook for the next few

days at a pretty lively one. it is not looking quite so meaty at the moment. it is set to explosively develop into a big area of low pressure during stir me whether the weekend. —— stormy weather. quite a lot of cloud around. it will make for a misty, murky dull start to thursday and a mild enough one with 12 or 13 degrees. some rain to go along with the cloud. to the east, some brightness that could turn out to bea some brightness that could turn out to be a reasonably warm afternoon. to the west, some sunshine as well, but the rain piling into the south—west of england and wales as the afternoon wears on. a pretty wet story for northern ireland. through the evening, this weather system is going to start to mean business. very wet weather for a time. wind is probably the best problem. gusting

up probably the best problem. gusting up to 60 miles an hour. strong wind inland as well. the wet and windy weather will mean a mild night, but a pretty, not pleasant looking start for friday. lots of cloud around, outbreaks of rain. definitely points for decent improvement as the day goes on. we are still stuck with quite a bit of cloud, but it is definitely an improving picture. highs or 16. temporary improvement however because remember how low in the atlantic? that will shape up nicely to come rolling in on saturday. hopefully the worst of the strong wind over before it comes in from the atlantic. it will start to wea ken from the atlantic. it will start to weaken just from the atlantic. it will start to weakenjust a from the atlantic. it will start to weaken just a little bit either time it gets here on saturday. plenty of isobars on that charge, plenty of strong wind with a risk of bail laws gusts. even inland on saturday, especially to the west and south of the british isles, more rain for northern ireland, but we have seen

plenty already for the wales and south—east of england as well. rain just about anywhere at some stage on sunday. some pretty strong wind as well as some rather disappointing temperatures, just 13 or 1a degrees. this is bbc world news. the headlines: madrid has demanded catalonia's devolved government confirms whether or not it is declaring independence. the spanish government has insisted catalonia's leader retract a unilateral declaration of independence made last week, even though it was also suspended. ahead of britain's prime minister addressing european leaders, theresa may is offering more reassurance to eu citizens living in the uk about their rights after brexit. but trade looks like it's still off the agenda as the deadlock over cash continues. the us has said it holds myanmar‘s army accountable for the deepening rohingya refugee

crisis in bangladesh. hundreds of thousands of people have fled myanmar,