this is bbc news. i'm ben bland. our top stories: unprecedented steps after catalonia's independence referendum — the spanish government prepares to impose direct rule on the region. brazilian police arrest more than 100 people in the biggest operation ever against paedophiles in latin america. suicide attacks on two mosques in afghanistan have killed nearly 60 worshippers. can the songbird be saved? how one country's love for the creatures is threatening their very existence. the spanish government in madrid is expected to announce plans to remove powers from catalonia's regional parliament and impose direct rule.

it's due to hold a special cabinet meeting in a few hours. the move comes after catalonia's leaders refused to withdraw their threat to break away from spain, following the disputed referendum at the start of the month. briohny williams has more. it could be a landmark moment for spain. the prime minister mariano rajoy is due to begin the process of the government stepping in and exerting control over what it sees asa exerting control over what it sees as a disobedient regional administration. catalonia has many strands of autonomy, including running its own education, healthcare, and running its own education, healthca re, and police running its own education, healthcare, and police force. and in time, all could be taken over. translation: we are caught up in a political hurricane. we are not politicians. we are policeman. but the controversial move could already

make many in the region nervous. look upon memories of violence caused by spanish national police disrupting catalonia disputed referendum. this is the new comforting her mother the following day, she is now horrified madrid may ta ke day, she is now horrified madrid may take control. i don't want violence, i don't want a war, that if i have to go to have a strike, i will do it. if i have to be days in a strike i will do it. i don't mind, it's my future, it is my parent ‘s future, it is my son ‘s future, you know? translation: -- but it is my son ‘s future, you know? translation: —— but outside the decision by the government has huge support, it is set catalonia is and will remain an essential part of the country. he added the catalan government was causing a rift and spain would solve the problem through democratic if the tuition is. many agree. translation: catalan

national do not have the power to decide on behalf of all spaniard that it decide on behalf of all spaniard thatitis decide on behalf of all spaniard that it is a foreign territory. i will never accept being a foreigner in catalonia. the spanish government has a strategy but it risks further fractures within catalan society and deep divisions not only within catalonia itself up between the region and the rest of spain. police in brazil say they've arrested more than 100 people in the biggest operation ever against paedophiles in latin america. suspects were arrested in 2a states and the capital, brasilia. investigators found more than 150,000 files containing disturbing images. katy watson reports from sao paulo. more than 1,000 agents took part in this massive operation. it was an investigation that took six months with the help of the us embassy in brazil, as well as us immigration officials. european officers were also involved. those who were arrested shared

pornographic images of children through their computers and mobile phones. they were also found to have produced images, too. more than 150,000 files were found. they were accessed through what is known as the dark web, a part of the internet not reached by most search engines. translation: paedophiles use this method. they store their illegal photos in the computer of someone in another part of the country, or the world, and often the person who is storing the content is unaware. federal police said this was one of the biggest operations in the world. more arrests could come. leonardo rocha, america's editor for bbc world service, gave us more details about the operation. it involved more than 1,000 police officers and they had been investigating it for about six months. when they went to investigate and started to see the images, and they actually interviewed some of the children involved

and the teenagers involved, some of them related to the people abusing them, they realised there was a whole ring producing material. many arrested were in charge of football clubs, like, youth clubs. there were civil servants, retired policemen. it's a huge scandal, and for the brazilian government, that might be the tip of the iceberg. now they are on a different stage of the investigation. they are trying to analyse these 150,000 images of children, very young children, very disturbing images, and to find if they were a network ring in brazil, or if they were a network operating with rings across the world, in europe and other parts of the world. the somali government says the number of dead from last saturday's huge truck bombing in the capital mogadishu has risen to 358. more than 50 people are still missing. the truck exploded at a busy junction, destroying hotels, government offices and restaurants.

0fficials blamed al—sha baab militants for the attack, but as yet the group have not claimed responsibility. nearly 60 people have been killed in suicide bombings at two mosques in afghanistan. the so—called islamic state group says it carried out one of the attacks in the capital, kabul. in the second blast in ghor province, the bomber targeted a sunni mosque. anbarasan ethirajan has the latest. the massive suicide attack triggered a medical emergency in kabul. it was a race against time to save those caught up in the blast. a routine friday evening prayer at this mosque ended in a nightmare. the worshippers included women and children. after slipping through tight security, one man managed to walk right in the middle of the prayer hall. translation: people were praying when the attacker entered the mosque and detonated his explosives.

many of the wounded tried to flee, fearing further attacks. in a matter of seconds, a number of families were torn apart. around the same time, there was another suicide attack, this time in the central ghor province. a pro—government official and several other worshippers were killed in the attack on a sunni mosque. the islamic state group and the taliban have previously targeted shia sites in afghanistan. it has been a terrible week for many afghans. more than 130 people, most of them soldiers, were killed in co—ordinated attacks by the taliban. many afghans hoped president trump's new afghan strategy would improve security. but, for now, they are desperately hoping for a respite from the spiralling violence. anbarasan ethirajan, bbc news. let's take a look at some

of the other stories making the news. at least 53 members of the egyptian security forces are reported to have been killed in a clash with islamist militants in the western desert. the interior ministry said the militants had fired on the troops as they raided their hideout in the bahariya 0asis. a number of suspected militants from a group called hasm were also killed. the us has called on the iraqi government to limit the deployment of troops in the north of the country to prevent unnecessary clashes with kurdish forces. on friday, iraqi troops engaged in a three—hour battle with kurdish peshmerga forces to take control of the last remaining district of the oil—rich kirkuk province. robert mugabe has been appointed as a goodwill ambassador by the world health organization. the president of zimbabwe's role will be to help tackle non—communicable diseases. critics say that during president mugabe's 37—year rule, health services have deteriorated with health professionals regularly unpaid. forensic experts investigating

the death of the left—wing chilean poet pablo neruda say he didn't die of prostate cancer as previously thought. they believe he could have been poisoned, and further tests will be carried out. the nobel laureate died less than two weeks after the military coup led by general augusto pinochet in 1973. the president of the european council, donald tusk, says talk over a deadlock in brexit negotiations has been exaggerated. leaders in brussels have agreed to discuss their ambitions for a trade arrangement with the uk internally before starting talks with britain in the coming months. 0ur political editor, laura kuenssberg has more. her report contains flashing images. final press conference. tick, tock, tick, tock. european leaders took 90 seconds today to decide that brexit talks haven't gone far enough to move on. time is pressing. they will start talks about talks.

yet, until the uk says it is prepared to pay, no bigger deal. i am ambitious and positive, for britain's future and for these negotiations, but i know we still have some way to go. both sides have approached these talks with professionalism and a constructive spirit, and we should recognise what has been achieved to date. do you deny that you've made clear to your eu counterparts that you are willing to pay many more billions than you've already indicated, to settle our accounts as we leave? what i've made clear to my eu counterparts, in relation to financial contribution, is what i set out in my florence speech, which is that i have said that nobody need be concerned for the current budget plan, that they would have to either pay in more or receive less as a result of the uk leaving, and that we will honour the commitments that we have made during our membership. now, there has to be detailed work on those commitments, as david davis has said.

we're going through them line by line, and we'll continue to go through them line by line, and the british taxpayer wouldn't expect its government to do anything else. among the schmoozing, there are whispers she has said privately she is prepared to stump up billions more. number ten says there hasn't yet been the final word on the cash. and, while things seem friendlier, eu leaders are clear theresa may has to spell out how much she is prepared to pay before moving on to the main talks on trade and transition. and that means there is no deal yet on citizens‘ rights or northern ireland. there is an expectation they could shake on phase one by christmas. but, until she budges, it is 27 against one. lonely arguments to make. the reports of the deadlock between the eu and the uk have been exaggerated. and, while progress is not sufficient, it doesn't mean there is no progress at all. "there's nothing to say

about brexit," says mrjuncker. cue a sigh of relief from the uk. but here is the man who has to try to make it work here. did he mean we would have to pay at least double the £20 billion? that is not yet clear. this was far from a brussels bust—up, though. number ten is encouraged the negotiations are at least moving. theresa may does not go home empty—handed. she can claim progress, of a sort. but this fraught process has gone a couple of inches, and it is a journey

of many, many miles. those 27 will decide their next moves without britain even in the room, while at home, the prime minister must calculate how much she can compromise to conclude the whole deal, against the clock, before we are out for good. laura kuenssberg, bbc news, brussels. stay with us on bbc news. still to come, cutting down their habitat — footage emerges of sloths being dragged from the rainforest so they can be used in tourists' holiday selfies. 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. i'm ben bland. our top stories: the spanish government is preparing to take the unprecedented step of imposing direct rule on the catalan region, following the recent independence referendum.

brazilian police arrest more than ioo brazilian police arrest more than 100 people in the biggest operation of against paedophiles and latin america. —— operation ever. 0pinion polls in australia suggest the country is leaning towards a "yes" vote on introducing same—sex marriage. rallies are being held in sydney and across the country in one last push to urge people to post their yes votes. the postal survey is voluntary and non—binding. but prime minister malcolm turnbull has promised that if a majority of australians support gay marriage, parliament will debate it. voting for australians living overseas has now closed, while those at home have until november the 7. helping lead the yes vote is tiernan brady, the director of australians for equality. he joined me a short time ago. the world of politics has managed to give us this process. parliament could pass this straightaway, but obviously, the world of politics has not seen a clear way through. the proposed way through is

a non—binding postal vote. no other country has done it this way, but we have to find our runway. the reaction, though, in terms of turnout, has been incredible. in the first few weeks, we are already up at 75% for the turnout, and that's a huge response from the people. australians understand how important this issue is. they understand this is their moment to tell politicians to get on with thejob. tiernan, there were concerns when there was talk of a compulsory vote being discussed, that it might bring out some rather aggressive, nasty campaigning. have you seen that in this particular type of vote, or not? yeah, i think there has been a little bit of that. i think any campaign's going to throw up some of that. and it's especially hard on an issue like this,

because this is a vote on real people. and they have to go through this journey, listening to the radio, turning the television, engaging with social media. people feel they can say just about anything, in the context of a debate like this. i think the vast majority of what has happened has been incredibly positive, incredibly dignified and respectful. this is a campaign about conversations at kitchen tables and in workplaces, and in towns across the country. but there is no doubt, at the edge, you have people who say deeply hurtful things. and sometimes, because it is a campaign, that gets amplified. so it has been hard, but i think the dignity of people in general has shone through in this campaign. and i think that is hopefully going to be reflected in a strong yes vote in two weeks' time. president trump has drawn fierce criticism by linking a recorded increase in crimes in england and wales to islamist terrorism. critics said his post on twitter had misinterpreted the statistics, which were released on thursday. 0ur north america editor, jon sopel, reports from washington. it was just before dawn,

when most of america was still sleeping that the president suddenly tweeted about britain's crime figures. giving the impression that this was from an official report, the president used quotation marks. the figures he referred to were, in fact, just for england and wales, and nowhere in the crime survey is the phrase used "radical islamic terror". nevertheless, his tweet will have a resonance for many people in the united states. because the president's ban on people travelling from several muslim countries has failed again. it will have to come here to the supreme court to be resolved, after it was blocked by lower courts earlier this week.

but in the last 2a hours, two former presidents, without mentioning donald trump's name, took aim and fired an unmistakable broadside. bigotry seems emboldened. 0ur politics seems more vulnerable to conspiracy theories and outright fabrication. we've got folks who are deliberately trying to make folks angry. to demonise people who have different ideas. to get the base all riled up, because it provides a short—term tactical advantage. and there was friendly fire, too. this is the republican speaker of the house, paul ryan, at a charity dinner. i know last year that donald trump offended some people. i know his comments, according to critics, went too far. some said it was unbecoming for a public figure, and they said that his comments were offensive. well, thank god he's learned his lesson! the president wasn't there.

it would have been interesting to see if he'd have laughed. jon sopel, bbc news, washington. an animal welfare charity has released footage of illegal loggers cutting down a tree with a sloth clinging to its branches. it's to try to stop people posting animal selfies. campaigners believe the growing trend of tourists taking pictures alongside wildlife means more and more animals are being snatched from their natural habitat. briohny williams reports. terrified and clinging onto the top of a 100—foot tree, as illegal loggers cut it down. this undercover footage was captured in the amazon, in peru, and highlights the horrible method used to steal wild animals from their home. the sloth is forced into a bag and dragged of and sold to the market, just so tourists can

take photos with it. the social media photo—sharing programme, instagram, has seen nearly a 300% increase in wildlife selfies since 2014 from around the world and says it wants the craze to stop. world animal protection says many animals are kept in filthy, cramped conditions and treated extremely badly, all for tourist entertainment. to tackle the issue, the charity is asking for those who want a photo with an animal to make it cruelty free by keeping a safe distance from the creature, making sure it is free to roam in its natural habitat. to stop this... ..from happening. surfing will make its debut at the tokyo olympics in 2020,

and the build up has already begun, at least here in the uk. britain's top wave riders will be competing inland, in the uk surf tour, on the longest man made waves in the world. the bbc‘s mike bushelljoined them this week in training at an artificial lagoon in north wales. in the foothills of snowdonia, a valley in north wales, and a surfing revolution. well, if you can't get surfers to the sea, bring the sea to them. on the site of an old aluminium factory, the world's longest artificial wave, the uk's only inland lagoon. there is no watching the weather all waiting for a wave here. one is artificially generated every 90 seconds, using

that snowplough type machine in the middle. it can create waves of up to two metres, testing aaron picton. they begin theirjourney towards the sport's debut in tokyo pretty 20 in pa rt sport's debut in tokyo pretty 20 in part of the crowds here this weekend. it is great training, england doesn't have most consistent of waves. here, because the waves are so of waves. here, because the waves are so consistent and so similar every time, you can dial in your skills. it puts us ahead of the game, i guess. they surf on water pipes down from the mountain reservoirs. as the wave develops, down the lagoon, it picks up the intermediate and then the novice surfers. and then the moment when you are told to paddle and you can feel the roar of the giant artificial wave behind you. pushing forward with surprising speed. then it isa forward with surprising speed. then it is a case of trying to jump to your feet. there we are. that's just

shows you how steady those waves are. the first time standing up, all the way to shore. i've never had that in the ocean before. ijoined some of the 60 youngsters from the local surf club, who are now given weekly sessions. most had never been near a proper wave before. weekly sessions. most had never been near a proper wave beforelj weekly sessions. most had never been near a proper wave before. i was scared of it, it has made me more confident with it. confident with other stuff as well. it is an amazing experience because when you catch it you feel like you are on cloud nine or something. it's really good. while the tokyo olympics event will be on the ocean, after that, many see artificial lagoons as the long—term future, because they take away the lottery of competing in the sea. sometimes you get the best surfers going down because there is no actual ways to do your thing on. it makes it an even playing field. everybody gets a wave, and the opportunity to show what they can do on the wave. it takes some getting used to and obviously you have

defence right the way down the middle, and it is weird with the noise going on, the whirring. once you get used to it, it is sweet. noise going on, the whirring. once you get used to it, it is sweetm is surprisingly physical, and my early promise gave way under wobbly legs. but what is cleansed by light, and it is clear. as the waves keep coming, confidence can be restored. remember not to try to run before you can walk, especially on a slippery shore. that was mike bushell, apparently working. just before we go, a letter written on the titanic the day before it struck an iceberg and sank is expected to fetch up to $100,000 when it goes up for auction on saturday. it was written by an american passenger to his mother as he headed home with his mother as he headed home with his wife. his letter is one of a number of items being auctioned. don't forget you can get in touch with me and some of the team on twitter. i'm @benmbland. hi there.

today's weather is brought to you courtesy of storm brian. let's take a look at brian then. over the last 2a hours it has rapidly developed as low pressure moves across the atlantic. the strongest winds have been out to sea and as the storm crosses the british isles it will gradually weakened. a slow process and the winds will remain pretty strong and gusty throughout saturday. we have a band of rain for the early risers. still lingering across north—east scotland. there or thereabouts towards the eastern coast of england. following that, plenty of showers out west and it is in this showery air mass that we will have fairly strong gusts of wind working in. given it's a blowy start the day, it will be mild. 10—13 degrees for early rises. some of the strongest winds through saturday morning will be targeting the coast of south—west england and wales. gusts of 50—60 mph, maybe a few isolated gusts of up to 70 mph. one concern is that those strong winds bringing large waves could coincide with high tides, so we could see some localised

surface water flooding impacts. inland gusts more typically up to 50 mph. that will blow lots of leaves off the trees. maybe one or two smaller tree branches coming down. the winds picking up later in the afternoon and towards the evening time across north wales and north—west england as we see a lengthier spell of rain here. again the winds could reach up to 60 mph. perhaps a touch stronger in some of the most exposed areas. but for the most part on saturday, brian will bring fairly typical windy weather for an autumn day. heading through the night time, the low pressure works out into the north sea and we'll see showers or even lengthy spells of rain working particularly into north—west england overnight. still quite a blowy night. 9—10 degrees, something like that. for sunday, as brian works out into the north sea, over the coming days it will die. so that's the life of brian and looking on the bright side of life on sunday there will be fewer showers. the winds turning lighter. but coming in from a north—westerly direction, so it's a cooler direction. temperature wise, between 10—14 degrees.

but with fewer showers, you have a better chance of dodging the downpours and having drier spells of weather. the north—westerly winds are shortly. by monday, most winds back to the south—west, with the exception of the far north of scotland. south—westerly winds dragging in mild air. temperatures up to 16—17 degrees. that mild theme stays with us for the week ahead. the best of any sunny spells in north—eastern areas initially. that's your weather. this is bbc news. the headlines: the spanish cabinet is preparing to remove powers from devolved institutions in catalonia after people in the region voted in a disputed referendum for a split from spain. the prime minister, mariano rajoy, says the measures, aimed at restoring the rule of law, had been agreed with spain's opposition parties. police in brazil say they've detained more than 100 people

in the biggest operation ever against paedophiles in latin america. the justice department say the suspects were arrested in 2a states and the capital, brasilia, after being accessed through the dark web. afghan officials say nearly 60 people have been killed in two separate suicide attacks on mosques. in the first, the bomber entered a shia mosque in kabul and set off explosives. in the second, a suicide bomber targeted a mosque in ghor province. so—called islamic state has claimed responsibility. let's have a look at the front pages of this morning's newspapers. the i leads with the brexit summit in brussels.