this is newsday on the bbc. i'm rico hizon in singapore. the top stories... polls close in the alabama senate race. could the democrats take a republican stronghold 7 a change of tune on north korea. the united states says it's ready to open talks without preconditions. let's just meet, and we can talk about the weather if you want. we can talk about whether it's going to be a square table or a round table, if that's what you're excited about. i'm babita sharma in london. also in the programme: "the world is losing its fight against global warming" — france's president macron gives other world leaders a blunt warning. and on a red carpet not so far, far away. the latest star wars film feels the royal force at its european premiere. live from our studios in singapore and london, this is bbc world news.

it is newsday. glad you could join us. it's 9am in the morning in singapore, 1am in london and 7pm in alabama — where polls have just closed in the us senate election that's captured the world's attention. let's now take a look at live campaign pictures from leura mall‘s campaign pictures from leura mall‘s campaign headquarters in alabama, he isa campaign headquarters in alabama, he is a former supreme courtjudge who has been accused of sexual misconduct and abusing underage girls. he is up against the democrat candidate, doug jones, who has his campaign office in birmingham, alabama, and he is a former lawyer who is pro—choice and once

prosecuted former members of the ku klux klan. we are also expecting exit polls very shortly. the boat in the southern state of alabama is being seen as a test of party allegiances, kennett republicans hold on traditionally safe seat despite the candidate facing sexual harassment allegations? or can a liberal, pro—choice democrat turned the traditionally red state blue and reduce donald trump's senate majority to just one seat in the process ? majority to just one seat in the process? we are currently seeing live pictures of roy moore's campaign headquarters in montgomery, alabama. our north america correspondent david willis is in washington. everyone is indeed awaiting the result of this senate seat in the alabama elections. no one knows for

sure if it will be rome or doug jones. nour, and the polls, as you mentioned there, closed a short while ago and according to the cable news networks here, it is too close to call at this particular point. we we re to call at this particular point. we were expecting some sort of exit polling that they are being cautious because clearly, it seems turnout has been slightly higher than anticipated in alabama. and nobody wa nts to anticipated in alabama. and nobody wants to venture at the moment anyway, as to whether roy moore, this very controversial candidate, conservative christian, facing sexual abuse allegations, or his democratic rival doug jones has triumphed down there in the deep south state of alabama. for senior republicans, this has been a terrible dilemma. they have not known whether to throw their support behind roy more in interest of

safeguarding their razorthin majority in the senate, or to shun him because of the sexual allegations that have been levelled against him. president donald trump, of course, has come out in support of course, has come out in support of roy moore and were roy moore to triumph tonight, some might say that it will strengthen the president's hand as far as his leveraged over congress is concerned, but it is early days. the polls having just close down there in alabama and still, it seems much to play for and potentially, quite a long evening in—store. potentially, quite a long evening in-store. indeed, a long evening for both candidates and we are continuing to see live pictures from roy moore's campaign headquarters in montgomery, alabama. someone is speaking at the podium currently, at

alabama has been traditionally a stronghold for the republicans, but with this issue of roy moore over claims of sexual misconduct with teenage girls, this whole electoral process is now a very tight race? teenage girls, this whole electoral process is now a very tight race7m really is, and you know what, it is astonishing that this is the case. in the deep south, in a traditionally red state, don't forget that a democrat has not won a senate seat in alabama in the quarter of a century, so were doug jones to triumph tonight, it would bea jones to triumph tonight, it would be a major upset, there is no question about that. if roy moore we re question about that. if roy moore were to win, it would not of course be the end of the story as far as he is concerned, and particularly as far as those allegations of sexual misconduct are concerned as well,

because senior republican leaders have said that they think roy moore should be subjected to an ethics committee investigation, and that ultimately, of course, could lead to him being suspended, were he to win that senate seat. all right, david, the polls have closed. everyone is awaiting the exit polls and the results of this very key election in alabama. a north america correspondent david willis joining us correspondent david willis joining us from washington, and we continue to see live pictures from judge roy moore's campaign headquarters in montgomery, alabama. we're also going to take you possibly the birmingham as well, to see the latest on it doug jones's. stay with this without. the us secretary of state rex tillerson says washington is ready to enter into talks with north korea — without conditions.

tillerson made the comments in a speech in washington dc. he added that pyongyang must be willing to change its course in its nuclear and missile programmes. and if it doesn't, he warned the us has its full range of military options ready. we've said, from the diplomatic side, we are ready to talking anytime north korea would like to talk, and we are ready to have the first meeting without preconditions. —— to talk. let's just meet, and we can talk about the weather if you want. we can talk about whether it's going to be a square table or a round table, if that's what you are excited about. but can we at least sit down and see each other face to face? and then we can begin to lay out a map, a roadmap of what we might be willing to work towards. north korea consequently issued from

their state media reported comments from kim jong—un, vowing their state media reported comments from kimjong—un, vowing that their state media reported comments from kim jong—un, vowing that they we re from kim jong—un, vowing that they were planning to make his country the world's strongest nuclear power. interesting to see that they were perhaps not planning to change the course in response to rex tillerson. let's get more from stephen mcdonell in the south korean capital, seoul. first of all, it was very interesting what he said. what do you make of the comments that he said? well, this does seem to be a genuine softening of the us position on north korea. this first round of talks without preconditions seems to bea talks without preconditions seems to be a significant softening, as a no matter what, as long as in the interim there are not more nuclear and missile test, the us says it will have a first round of talks with north korea. beyond doubt, for the process to continue, there has to be some sort of movement. rex tillerson speaking at a think tank in washington has said we will speak about anything, you name it, just to

somehow break the ice. bat the problems still would be, they can say there are no preconditions but beyond that, for further talks to continue, north korea has to say it will be moving towards giving up its nuclear weapons programme. as you mentioned, there is no indication whatsoever that pyongyang would be wanting to go down that road, so it is hard to see where this will go. but this is something, people are watching this doing and fro—ing from washington and pyongyang, they have seen no washington and pyongyang, they have seen no change at all in recent times and that list this offer of a first round of talks does seem to be an olive branch. 0k, thank you very much for the update. steve mcdonald live there in seoul. also this hour — bangladesh has launched a major programme to vaccinate rohingya

children against diphtheria— a highly contagious respiratory disease. a suspected outbreak has killed nine refugees and infected more than 700. over 640,000 rohingya muslims have sought refuge in bangladesh after fleeing violence in neighbouring myanmar. firefighters in los angeles say a wildfire which swept through bel—air, one of the city's most exclusive neighbourhoods, started in a homeless encampment. the fire is one of several that has destroyed hundreds of homes and forced more than 100,000 people to evacuate. indonesian police are on a manhunt for an american convicted on drug charges after he escaped bali's kerobokan prison. the man identified as cristian beasley sawed a hole in the roof of his cell to escape. the prison is notoriously overcrowded, with just eight guards watching over 1300 male prisoners. now depending on what sex you are, you'll probably have a different opinion on this story. researchers in canada say that man flu might not be a myth, as many of us believe. they say there is evidence that men suffer more than women

from the symptoms of the common cold — and are not simply exaggerating. the french president, emmanuel macron, has warned the world that it is losing the battle against climate change. he told world leaders and heads of companies at the one planet summit in paris that action against global warming was not being taken fast enough. the world bank announced at the summit that it would stop financing oil and gas exploration and extraction from 2019. from paris, lucy williamson reports. the french president has a way of sending messages. this one involved a river cruise. his guests — kings, prime ministers and business leaders — may have different visions and values, it seemed to say, but when it comes to the future of the planet, we are all in the same boat. and two years after the paris agreement, mr macron said

it was heading for a fall. translation: we're losing this battle. those who came before us had an advantage, they could say they didn't know and it was true but for the last 20 years or so, we have known and we are finding out more every day. the world bank has said it will stop funding oil and gas exploration from 2019 and there are new commitments from business on renewable energy. but how much will these commitments mean without the world's only superpower? us president donald trump has said his country is pulling out of the paris agreement, and mr macron's show of solidarity is partly aimed at him. just along the river from the summit venue is a reminder of france's long relationship with america — its shared history, shared values. emmanuel macron has been positioning himself as a global leader on human rights and democracy and now on climate change,

but this time, at least, donald trump isn't here. before the meeting, the british prime minister, theresa may, met mr macron at the elysee palace, another bilateral relationship undergoing change. but few of the agreement‘s most powerful leaders were here in paris. this meeting was less about policies and more about a political message — that with or without the united states, this agreement will survive. lucy williamson, bbc news, paris. you're watching newsday on the bbc. life in singapore and london. still to come on the programme: 80 years on, china prepares to mark the massacre of nanjing — but is it commemoration or propaganda? also on the programme: the latest star wars offering. britain's royals have opened the film in which they have small screen roles. john lennon was shot at the entrance

to the dakota building, in the centre of new york. there's been a crowd here standing in more or less silent vigil. and the flowers have been piling up. the 14th ceasefire of this war ended at the walls of the old city of dubrovnik. this morning, witnesses said shells were landing every 20 seconds. people are celebrating the passing of a man they hold responsible for hundreds of deaths and oppression. elsewhere, people have been gathering to mourn his passing. imelda marcos, the widow of the former president of the philippines, has gone on trial in manila. she's facing seven charges of tax evasion. she pleaded not guilty. the prince and princess of wales are to separate. a statement from buckingham palace said the decision had been reached amicably. welcome back.

you're watching newsday on the bbc. i'm rico hizon in singapore. thanks forjoining us. i'm babita sharma in london. our top stories this hour: voting has closed in the american state of alabama in an election which could affect republican control of the us senate, and where the party's candidate, roy moore, is accused of preying on teenage girls. the american secretary of state, rex tillerson, has said the us government is willing to talk to north korea without preconditions. it appears to be a change from previous demands that the north must first disarm. let's take a look at some front pages from around the world: we start with britain's financial times, which looks at the mega deal between disney and fox, that could reshape the media landscape.

the company is reported to be closing in on rupert murdoch's 21st century fox in a deal that could be worth around $60 billion. we're looking at that closely for you. the south china morning post says the global race to get self—driving vehicles on the road and they are saying that it could be speeding up. the paper says the southern city of shenzhen is giving their self—driving buses a public test drive. we will see how that goes. and finally, would you ever feel guilty about taking a paid vacation? well, according to the japan times, japanese workers ranked the world's lowest in using paid vacation days. and they also felt most guilty about taking time off from the office. that's how the papers look this morning. chinese president xijinping is expected to attend a commemoration event marking 80 years since the nanjing massacre. in december 1937, japanese troops invaded the city, killing tens of thousands of people. my colleague mariko oi has been to nanjing for a bbc documentary and spoke to survivors.

and, marikoi, it has been 80 years. it is still a controversial topic between the two country. it indeed is, rico. i became interested in the topic as a high school student. i read several lines in the history textbook which said tens of thousands were killed. i remember thinking to myself, what exactly happened? i visited the city as a tourist as part of the bbc documentary and spoke with survivors. as you say it is a complicated issue. but most historians in japan agree complicated issue. but most historians injapan agree something horrible did happen. but when china says 300,000 people were killed, thatis says 300,000 people were killed, that is when the question — that is when people start to question the number because the population of the city at the time was even fewer. so it becomes contentious between the countries. and china continues to seek an apology. indeed. i actually

met some people who said the japanese emperor or prime minister has to visit the city and bow and apologise, which is probably unlikely. if you look back in history, japan did apologise and offer some financial compensation. in fact, chairman mao, when the then japanese prime minister pollard dies, he said don't worry about it, he got —— apologised, he said don't worry about it. but when things started to get difficult at home, especially after ten and square, china started to focus on the nanjing massacre and use it to unite the country in a waite —— tianamen sqaure. after the nanjing massacre of 1937, forfour years sqaure. after the nanjing massacre of 1937, for four years from 19110 until 19114 the japanese occupied the philippines and a lot of filipinos we re philippines and a lot of filipinos were killed in the death march. but since then filipinos have forgiven the japanese and have moved on. so are the chinese basically using this

asa are the chinese basically using this as a propaganda tool? one can argue that. of course, as you mentioned, the philippines, spoke with one of my really good friends, who is filipino, as part of the documentary, whose great uncle was killed by the japanese, and she said she moved on. here in singapore a lot of chinese singaporeans were killed. i met the victims' relatives who said they so gave the japanese and moved on. in a way china is almost using this as a political tool to unite the country and i guess use japan as tool to unite the country and i guess usejapan as a tool to unite the country and i guess use japan as a common enemy. all right, thank you so much for enlightening us, my colleague from the bbc, mariko oi. from walking on a rainy street to standing outside a convenience store, what does it feel like to be alone? a series of images known as gifs depicting solitude injapan has recently struck a chord with many online. their creator, who goes by the pseudonym motocross saito, spoke to the bbc about why he made them and their appeal. at least one person has been killed

and 18 injured after a huge explosion rocked a natural gas hub in austria. the blast took place at a major hub for import of gas. russian gas just east of the capital vienna. news of the explosion sent gas prices soaring. italy has declared a state of emergency over its energy supplies. bethany dell has the details. austria's mean gas pipeline hub in flames. an explosion at the plant set off majorfire. flames. an explosion at the plant set off major fire. the blaze could be seen for miles. firefighters rushed to the scene. one person was killed. the injured were taken to nearby hospitals. production at the plant was suspended. translation: we switched to a security mode as we a lwa ys switched to a security mode as we always do when something like this occurs. the gas flow was stopped in order not to make the situation any

worse. all people working on the site were then evacuated. the blaze was eventually brought under control. it appears to have been caused by a technical fault. the plant in eastern austria is a key hub for import of russian gas which is sent on to a number of european countries. the company says supplies to austria were secured but deliveries to the south and south—east have been affected. translation: the gas supply towards italy in the south is now limited. the market gas providers in the neighbouring market and gas traders we re neighbouring market and gas traders were of course informed. we are in regular contact. we can't say at this time when distribution will return to normal. italy, the largest recipient of gas from baumgarten, has declared a state of emergency. gas prices soared, an investigation is under way, it is not yet clear when the plant will go back online. bethany dell, bbc news, v&a.

—— bethany bell, bbc news, vienna it's a0 years since the first star wars movie and the latest instalment — the lastjedi — received royal approval in london on tuesday. this report from lizo mzimba contains some flash photography. the stars of star wars, cinema royalty, on the red carpet with actual royalty. princes william and harry, such fans of the saga, during filming, they secretly played cameos as stormtroopers, much to the excitement of the cast. it was great, fantastic. fantastic. phenomenal. and they've done an official visit as well. they got in an x—wing and all that kind of stuff. it was fun. alljust one more indication of the impact the series has made since its return. one key factor in the recent success

of star wars has been the expansion of its own universe, with respect to on—screen representation of both race and gender. i think movies start a conversation. it's a wonderful place for a reflection of societial changes, hopefully and progress. action. shot here in the uk at pinewood studios, the films are amongst some of the most expensive ever made, ensuring they connect with 21st century audiences is crucial. it's five years since some questioned the wisdom of disney paying around $4 billion for lucasfilm and the right to keep making star wars films. the first new movie made $2 billion at the global box office. now the deal is looking like one of the better hollywood bargains. telling a wonderful story, creating characters that people care about — we pay attention to all those things inside these movies and hopefully, then shareholders and business and everything that goes along with it are happy. we always start with that. we are going to leave you with the

pictures of alaba mark, all eyes on whether or not they choose the key senate representative, the republican roy moore. stay here to find out. well, the weather story is getting a bit messy now during the middle of the week and though we will see cold air through the middle of the country, there is the risk over the next few days of some snow and also further ice and we are starting wednesday morning off with the risk of ice across scotland and england due to overnight rain moving through, falling on freezing surfaces, then skies will clear for a time during wednesday morning before the next bout of rain moves in, so this is where we will see the ice risk ahead of this next rain band and it will be quite showery pushing into much of scotland and north—west england and northern ireland, a lot of standing water around with the snow melt as those temperatures will be a little less cold than we have had over the last few mornings.

snow will be falling over the mountains of scotland and maybe a little bit of sleetiness over the higher ground of wales. but generally speaking, it is going to be of mostly rain here, combined with the snow melt elsewhere. a lot of snow in the last few days. there there is going to be a lot of standing water around. dry across the east, but we have that ice risk. but then the rain across western areas will be spreading to the east during the course of the day. some heavy bursts on this as it continues to spread south—east though the skies brighten. some sunshine for england and wales. but slightly colder air moves into scotland and northern ireland, so showers here increasingly wintry. across the south, 9—11 celsius. so, slightly milder than of late. then, as we head through wednesday night, the next rash of showers and rain moving through. some of these producing a bit of snow on the higher ground maybe down to lower levels in the heaviest bursts. by thursday morning,

the risk of a bit of light snow and, again, ice as temperatures fall away. so there could be a little bit of travel disruption. then, as we head on into thursday day, quite a messy picture. quite windy once again, plenty of showers moving into northern and western areas. these wintry over the higher ground of the north. and we could even see some substantial snow across central parts of scotland through the day, so this could cause some disruption and those temperatures are a bit lower than wednesday. as that area of low pressure moves away on friday, we open the floodgates again to the arctic north, so it looks like it will be very cold to end the week — the blue colours extending right across the british isles, ever as far south as france and northern spain. so it does mean that friday is going to be cold. ice to watch out for it in places. a few wintry showers across coastal areas but, that said, plenty of sunshine too. you will need to wrap up, it's going to be cold. i'm babita sharma with bbc news. our top story... polls have closed in alabama,

where voters are choosing a representative for the us senate. the campaign has been dominated by allegations of sexual misconduct against the republican candidate, roy moore. he's denied the claims. if his rival, doug jones, wins, he'd be the first democrat in 25 years to take the seat. us secretary of state rex tillerson has said he's ready to talk to north korea without preconditions. his offer appears to be a change from previous demands that north korea must first disarm. and this story is trending on bbc.com. it's a0 years since the first star wars movie and now the latest instalment, the lastjedi, received royal approval in london at its european premiere. stay with us, more to come here and also the result of alabama. greater manchester police have made a sixth arrest in connection