welcome to bbc news, broadcasting to viewers in north america and around the globe. our top stories: california couple, david and louise turpin, plead not guilty to charges of imprisoning and torturing their 13 children. the house of representatives has passed a temporary measure to avert a government shutdown, although the bill is facing a difficult time getting through the senate. eight people have died as a storm causes widespread chaos across north—west europe. new zealand's prime minister, who became the world's youngest female leader last october, announces she's expecting herfirst child. iam not i am not the first woman to multitask. i am i am not the first woman to multitask. iam not i am not the first woman to multitask. i am not the first woman to work and have a baby. and love is in the air. pope francis stuns a couple of flight attendants by offering an impromptu marriage service aboard his papal flight. prosecutors have been detailing

allegations of abuse by the parents of 13 children rescued by police from their home in california. david and louise turpin have pleaded not guilty to torture, child abuse and false imprisonment. a district attorney said the children, aged between two and 29, were found severely malnourished with brain and nerve damage, some of them chained to their beds. they were rescued after one escaped through a window of the house, east of los angeles. james cook is in los angeles for us. it seems this escape was planned for quite some time. yes. according to the prosecutor who has been giving a

lot more harrowing detail about this case, the 17 you rolled girl who got out of the house and plotted with her siblings to escape for the last two years, and when she did get out, taking a deactivated mobile phone she made an emergency phone call. —— 17—year—old. she left with a sibling. the prosecutor did not say which one. they said it was a girl who got out with her sibling. her sister became frightened and went back into the house. the 17—year—old continued the plan and alerted police. they found a hellish scene. they suffered years of physical and emotional abuse that plunged the depths of depravity. it dates back as far as 2010, charges the parents

deny. is there any indication why the parents were allegedly doing this? no. and, of course, that is the question everyone is asking and the question everyone is asking and the question everyone is asking and the question no one can find a satisfactory answer to. perhaps no one ever will. they gave more details to the prosecutor about the conditions in which the children we re conditions in which the children were allegedly kept. if these allegations are borne out in court, they sound especially cruel. there we re they sound especially cruel. there were poisoned the house, but they we re were poisoned the house, but they were unopened, and they were not allowed to open and so the —— toys in the hosue. they could have been beaten, strangled, chained to beds, and hogtied on one occassion. it is also reported by the prosecutors the pa rents also reported by the prosecutors the parents brought food into the house,

a lot, including pies, and left it on the kitchen counter, but forbade them eating it. the level of depravity is quite sickening. they pleaded not guilty. more on this to come. thank you very much. the world in 2017 saw some of the warmest temperatures on record. and for the first time, scientists say they're confident that the impact of humans on the global climate is greater than that of any natural causes. researchers at nasa and other agencies say that burning fossil fuels is to other agencies say that burning fossilfuels is to blame. 0ur environment analyst, roger harrabin, reports. the recent wildfires in california, not caused by man—made climate change, but influenced by high temperatures drying out parched land. followed by the deadly

mudslides caused by an unsual combination of extreme rain and heat. scientists say the record shows c02 is causing this. look back to the worldwide temperature graphs of the 1990s from the met office. the warming el nino current caused this spike in 1998. temperatures dip after that, but then it is back with record highs in 2015—16. this is a clear sign greenhouse gases are the main driver of warming. this is really saying these influences of the human activity on the climate group greenhouse gases are dwarfing natural climate processes associated with el nino. flooding near the coast after hurricane harvey is the most certain outcome of climate change, as the seas rise and the

planet warms. the report today has been a wake—up call, showing it is happening, and showing we cannot keep burning coal, oil, and gas. politicians need to take real action. in scotland, travellers may be wondering why they had snow while the world is warming, but that is just short—term weather. heatwaves in australia look more like climate change. records are being broken all the time. all nations except the usa are committed to tackling climate change. they all accept the need to do more. roger harrabin, bbc news. a car has crashed and injured many people at copacabana beach. the injured were treated. the driver suffered an epileptic fit at the wheel. drugs to treat the condition

we re wheel. drugs to treat the condition were reportedly found by police in the vehicle. 0n the eve of the one—year mark for president trump's time in office, it's possible the us government could be forced to shut down on friday, as congress tries to come up with a bill to keep federal agencies funded. there's been some progress in what's become a regular game of political brinkmanship. the house of representatives has passed a short—term spending bill to keep government services open for another month. but it's looking unlikely the senate will approve it. president trump is blaming his opponents in the democratic party, even though republicans control both houses of congress and the white house. the measure funds federal agencies, and includes an extra provision to pay for children's health insurance. but republicans do not have enough votes and democrats want the bill to include protection for undocumented immigrants brought to the us as children. president trump has accused the democrats of wanting a government shutdown to divert attention from the country's economic upturn. the democrats want to see a shutdown

to get off the subject, because the subject is not working properly. the tax cuts, the tax reform, has not worked well for the democrats. now, yesterday, you saw with apple, a $350 billion investment. now they are giving thousands of dollars to their employees, that is happening all over the country, and i am really happy. i am confident we will pass it because members understand why on earth would we want the government to shutdown, hurt the military, the sequester on the military, the sequester on the military starts ticking in soon, thatis military starts ticking in soon, that is not in the interest of anyone. why do we want to feed the idea we should use troops as bargaining chips? today, they are putting on the floor a continued resolution which, in itself, is not the way to go, just to have another continuation, and how many more to come? but the fact is of its substance, it is wrong. by having

nothing to do with protecting people, we will be opposing this continued resolution. because, while they put the chip programme in there, they do not put the accompanying provisions that make chip work. peter bowes is in los angeles for us. people will have seen this political brinkmanship on capitol hill before. it can have serious consequences. brinkmanship on capitol hill before. it can have serious consequencesm is complicated. in the last hour or so, the house of representatives passed a short—term measure to continue funding government agencies, but it only comes into effect if it is passed by the senate. that vote could happen in

the next few hours, or by friday. some democrats have to vote in favour. the signs at the moment either at the democrats will not support this because they want other measures in this bill, like potential for children brought to this country without documentation. if it does not get through by the 19th, friday, it will be the first time in the modern era a party that controls both houses of congress and the white house shuts down the government. yes. that is a significant thing. it will be the first time both houses and the white house, controlled by the republicans. it has happened a number of times in the past, but not as clear—cut in terms of the party in control. it will be significant. it seems politicians on all sides are saying they do not want it to happen as it would look bad on both sides. the president, as we heard, is suggesting the democrats would be

to blame for this. he said earlier the democrats want to divert attention away from the successful economy in the us. now, as i said, all sides want this to happen. it could potentially be dangerous for the democrats. power is in their hands at the moment with the senate because they need to vote in favour of this. if they do not and the government shuts down, people not being paid, well, perhaps some voters in the elections may blame the democrats for that. back to this story, of course. thank you very much. you can read more about this story on our website, with more analysis and commentary from our correspondents in washington and from business. that's all at bbc.com/news. let's ta ke let's take a look at some of the other stories making the news.

scientists in the us say they've made significant progress towards developing a universal blood test for cancer. researchers atjohns hopkins university said their tests showed a success rate of 70% for identifying eight types of cancer. experts said the development had massive potential, but more work was needed to verify its accuracy. the british prime minister theresa may and french president emmanuel macron have been holding talks in the uk. the two countries agreed a new border treaty, with britain paying 61 million dollars to increase border security in france. the money will go on cctv cameras, fencing and relocating migrants at calais and other ports. mrs may praised the "uniquely close" relationship between the two countries. russia has reacted angrily to a law passed ukraine's parliament which outlines on the planned reintegration of separatist regions in the east of the country. the legislation describes the temporarily—occupied regions of donetsk and luhansk. and it calls russia an aggressor state. a fierce storm that wreaked havoc across parts of western europe

on thursday has now crossed to poland. winds from storm friederike reached up to more than 200 kilometres an hour, causing severe disruptions to travel and plunging thousands into darkness. at least eight people are thought to have been killed. anna holligan reports. a storm so ferocious, so indiscriminate, it rips through homes and wrecks journeys. frederick was forecast, but few were expect these hurricane—strength gusts. more than 300 flights were cancelled at amsterdam schiphol airport. some pilots did try to land. but gave up.

0thers gave their passengers and memorable experience. the landing was rough, not the roughest i have ever had, but a lot of bummps. was rough, not the roughest i have ever had, but a lot of bummpsm was bumpy. many people were throwing up. iwas was bumpy. many people were throwing up. i was worried about my little daughter, that she was going to be sick. but we were 0k. daughter, that she was going to be sick. but we were ok. i flew into schiphol with my daughter. there are still significant delays. all of the trains across the netherlands have stopped running. the routes down to the platforms have been cordoned off. that is why you see this, a queue snaking outside the terminal building. across the border in germany, meteorologists were warning people to stay indoors. schools were

closed. the national rail operator suspended almost all long distance services. they are expecting significant disruption on the trains again today. insurers in the netherlands are estimating 50 million euros worth of damages. despite these unnerving images, the roads are expected to be back to normal just roads are expected to be back to normaljust in time for friday rush—hour. anna holligan, bbc news, amsterdam. stay with us on bbc news. still to come: cape town could be the first major city in the world to run out of water as months of drought takes its toll. day one of operation desert storm to force the iraqis out of kuwait has seen the most intense air attacks since the second world war. tobacco is america's oldest industry, and it's one of its biggest, but the industry is nervous of this report. this may tend to make people

want to stop smoking cigarettes. there is not a street that is unaffected. huge parts of kobe were simply demolished as buildings crashed into one another. this woman said she'd been given no help and no advice by the authorities. she stood outside the ruins of her business. tens of thousands of black children in south africa have taken advantage of laws, passed by the country's new multiracial government, and enrolled at formerly white schools. tonight sees the 9,610th performance of her long—running play, the mousetrap. when they heard of her death today, the management considered whether to cancel tonight's performance, but agatha christie would have been the last person to want such a thing. this is bbc news. the latest headlines: the parents of 13 children rescued by police from a house in california have pleaded not guilty to charges of torture, abuse and false imprisonment.

the us house of representatives has passed a short—term spending bill, but any chance of avoiding a government shut—down now lies with the senate, which considers the bill next. i don't think we have a story at the moment. i will bring it to you as soon as we can. sorry, we will move onto another story. we will come back to the one we are going to give you. new zealand's prime minister jacinda ardern has announced she is pregnant. she and her partner are expecting their child in june, pregnant. she and her partner are expecting their child injune, after which she plays to take a six—week break. new zealand's youngest prime minister broke the news on social media that she was about to be upstaged. just hours later she found her home besieged by well—wishers,

amongst them the world's media. clarke and i a really excited to share that in june clarke and i a really excited to share that injune we are expecting our first share that injune we are expecting ourfirst child. we have share that injune we are expecting our first child. we have to get used to saying that out loud. 0f our first child. we have to get used to saying that out loud. of course, we have been keeping it to ourselves for quite a long time. you will have seen from the press statement we have put out, aside from the usual excitement that we share over this news, and the fact that it was a surprise for us. that we have put in place plans to deal with our impending arrival. they said they found that there are expecting a child in october, just six days before she took office. let us do this! labour party forming a coalition with new zealand first after a closely fought election. since then she has been struggling to keep the news secret. since then she has been struggling to keep the news secretlj since then she has been struggling to keep the news secret. i had to announce eventually. there is only

so long you can say you're eating too many christmas buyers. so long you can say you're eating too many christmas buyersm so long you can say you're eating too many christmas buyers. it was shelling from about two weeks —— pies. it was as good a time as any. while clarke plans to be a stay at home dad, new zealand's first lady has faced questions about how she willjuggle her demanding has faced questions about how she will juggle her demanding day job with the role of being a mum.|j will juggle her demanding day job with the role of being a mum. i am not the first woman to multitask. i am not the first woman to work and have a baby. i know these are special circumstances, but there will be many women who will have done is well before i have. i acknowledge those women. i am about to sympathise with them a lot, as i sympathise with all women who suffered morning sickness. but i am excited. we are excited. and we note together that we are going to make this work and new zealand is going to help us raise our first child —— window together. jacinda ardern will nowjoin a small band of heads of government to give birth while still

in office. the first to do so, benazir bhutto in 1990. first, a home to prepare and the nation to govern. the mayor of cape town has heavily criticised residents were failing to co nse rve criticised residents were failing to conserve water hanne has introduced strict new rationing. the methods the coastal city has reached a point of no return. it is the worst drought there in a century. sarah corker reports. cape town's water supply rely on six dams. this is the reality of three yea rs of dams. this is the reality of three years of very little rain. water levels are dangerously low, less than 30%. for months, the city's for many people have been urged to ration water orface 30 many people have been urged to ration water or face 30 — that is the moment the reservoirs run dry and the taps are turned off. now the city's mayor has accused residents of not caring and of being

dangerously selfish. at this point we must assume that they will not change their behaviour and that the chances of reaching addae zero on the 21st of april is now very likely. we can no longer ask people to stop wasting water. we now have to stop wasting water. we now have to force them. from lexmark their water allowa nce to force them. from lexmark their water allowance is being slashed. it is currently 87 metres per day, per person —— from next month. that is about the same as an average bar. there will be a new 50 litre limit, backed up by heavy fines. dam levels are currently at 28%. date zero ta kes are currently at 28%. date zero takes effect when levels fall to 13.5%. if cape town does become the first major city in the world to run out of water, residents will have to queue at designated water points for 25 litres per day. the government says there will be armed guards to

make sure nobody takes more than they are allowed. from what i could see, there was nothing happening in the last 20 years for the preservation of water. now we are in this predicament. it could have been done already. but it is now hindsight. this is the third year of droughts. some blame climate change, others a growing population. the authorities warn that these emergency measures may simply not now be enough to stop reservoirs running dry. prince harry and his fiancee meghan markle were an hour late for their first official visit to wales this afternoon because their train was delayed. that didn't stop hundreds of people braving the cold to greet them with cheers outside cardiff castle. the couple, who are due to marry in may, are on a tour of uk cities to introduce meghan to her new home. the pope has officiated at an improvised wedding service during a flight over chile. the couple, both employees of the airline, approached the pope with their request during the flight.

0ur religion editor martin bashir has the story. they'd walked up the aisle on many occasions, but never in church. flight attendants paula ruiz and carlos elorriga married in a civil ceremony because their church in santiago had been destroyed by an earthquake eight years ago. and so they asked the pope if he would bless their union. but pope francis, who wrote about love in the family two years ago, made them an even better offer. would they like him to marry them? an astounded groom describes what happens next. translation: we had a short and small ceremony. he took our hands and he asked if there was love in our marriage, and if we want to keep on being together all lifelong. i'm getting emotional as i say it. it's not easy. we said yes. translation: it was a huge emotion. we are very, very happy.

the handwritten marriage document was signed by the bride and groom, with the pope adding his own name in spanish — francisco. he concluded the ceremony in the sky by saying, "i hope this motivates couples to marry." but as far as catholic weddings go... it's pretty hard to beat being married by the pope on an aeroplane. martin bashir, bbc news. and the pope has now arrived in the peruvian capital lima on the last leg of his latin american tour. crowds lined the streets to catch a glimpse of the pontiff who is set for meetings with amazon leaders and the president pedro pablo kuczynski. and for more on the pope including a look at an incident in chile when he tended to a policewoman thrown from her horse — just go to our website. that's bbc.com/news. and incredible pictures to share with you from australia's east coast, where two teenage boys have become the first to be rescued

from the ocean by a drone. after using its camera to locate the boys, lifeguards were able to drop an inflatable rescue pod which swept the pair back to shore. lifeguards had been training to familiarise themselves with the drone equipment, when they noticed the boys needed help. that mean news again, prosecutors have been detailing allegations of abuse by the parents of 13 children rescued by police from their home in california. david annalie seven have pleaded not guilty to torture, child abuse, and false imprisonment. —— david and luis durban. it is possible the us government could be forced to shut down on friday, congress is trying to come up with a bill to keep federal agencies funded. that is it for now. antifa watching. —— thank you for watching.

following hot on the heels of the stormy weather yesterday that brought wind gusts of 83 miles an hour to eastern england, the focus today is on the snow. the satellite pictures shows snow showers to the north—west and here is a little trough, a cold front that enhances the amount of snow, the frequency and heaviness of snow showers. where it is going? western scotland, arriving in time for the morning rush—hour. you could see further disruption here with significant accumulations of snow. it could be one of those mornings. certainly worth checking the condition of the roads before heading out on a journey in this part of the world. even northern ireland will see snow showers, causing problems out and about and if is it is not snow then there is the risk of ice. further south, a number of showers across southern wales and south—west england, many will have rain and wintriness perhaps over the hills. for many across england it should be a sunny start to the day but it will feel cold. temperatures hovering about freezing and brisk wind to factor in.

so, the risk of disruption as we go into friday morning, the focus across the western side of scotland. check before travelling and allow extra time for your journey. for the rest of the day the majority of snow showers will be across the north and west of country. fewer showers elsewhere with the best of the sunshine across southern and central england. there could be an occasional wintry shower blowing in on those brisk winds. the wind will make you feel chilly. temperatures not reaching much above freezing in the north of the uk, but even in the south when you factor in the wind it will be a cold feeling day. there will be changes in the weather coming up through friday night. the weather front will try to move in and bring a spell of rain to the south of the uk. a bit of uncertainty about how far north the band will get but it could start to bump into the cold air and possibly bring a spell of snow to high parts of wales, the brecon beacons and perhaps some hills in southern england.

that is uncertain. further north there is a sure—fire certainty of snow showers and risk of ice into saturday morning because here it will be cold through saturday morning the risk of rain and hill snow fades away from southern england and a decent day will be left. cold, sunshine, fewer showers for northern ireland and scotland and more sunshine. for the second half of the weekend, a band of heavy rain will spread in and there could be a spell of heavy snow on the leading edge for a time before the milder air returns. this weekend is not looking too bad on saturday but heavy rain and a chance, for some of us, of snow on sunday. this is bbc news. the headlines: the parents accused of shackling their 13 children at their home in california have appeared in court. david and louise turpin pleaded not guilty to charges of torture, abuse and false imprisonment. they were arrested on sunday after one of their daughters managed to escape through a window and raise the alarm.

the us house of representatives has passed a bill to temporarily fund government operations for a month and avoid a shutdown of federal agencies when their existing funding expires this weekend. but the bill must still be approved by the senate, where it faces an uncertain future. a huge storm has caused havoc across north—western europe, with reports of at least eight people dead. many of those killed, in the netherlands and in germany, were hit by falling trees and debris. one died in a collision when his van was blown on to the other side of the road. the storm has now crossed to poland. now on bbc news: thursday in parliament.