welcome to bbc news, broadcasting to viewers in north america and around the globe. our top stories: the afghan government blames a taliban—linked group, said to be backed by pakistan, for a suicide attack in kabul that's left more than 90 people dead. paris remains on high alert as water levels continue to rise. the river seine is expected to reach six metres above its usual level. gunmen attack a nightclub in north—east brazil, killing at least 1a people. local media says rival drugs gangs were involved. and coming up: it's child's play. a portrait of the danish family that's inspired generations of builders. hello.

the afghan government has accused pakistan of providing support for militants who killed at least ninety—five people in a suicide bombing in kabul. it says the attack on saturday was carried out by the taliban—linked haqqani network. islamabad has always denied supporting afghan militants. president trump has called for "decisive action." it is one of the deadliest attacks on kabul in recent months, and the second to target the capital in a week. an ambulance packed with explosives was blown up in a busy part of the city. zia shahreyar reports. an ambulance packed with explosives, driven into crowds on their way to work. the force of the blast shook the windows of buildings at least a mile away.

some low—rise structures collapsed. a plume of smoke was visible across the city. the attacker had driven his vehicle past a police checkpoint, claiming to have a patient inside. when guards at a second checkpoint became suspicious, he detonated the bomb. translation: i was in an armour—plated vehicle, when suddenly there was an explosion. i was in the back seat. my driver was blown out onto the ground and injured. the area of the attack is home to foreign embassies and the city's police headquarters. the road had been closed to public transport. the taliban claimed responsibility. this is their second deadly assault on the city in the space of a week. 20 people were killed in an attack on the intercontinental hotel last week. this evening, work was continuing to clear the scene of the latest bombing. this is a very secure area, and security is very tight here usually, and the question will be how they got through this far.

the afghan military, backed by us air power, has intensified its campaign to drive out the taliban from its rural strongholds. but, as today's strike proves, they are still able to mount deadly attacks against civilian targets in the heart of the country's major cities. zia shahreyar, bbc news, kabul. let's take a look at some of the other stories making the news. the french capital paris is on high alert, with water levels continuing to rise along the river seine. the country has seen some of the heaviest rain for a century, and the river's expected to reach six metres higher than usual. sections of the louvre museum have closed, some basements have flooded and tourist boats are no longer operating. luxmy gopal reports. the swollen seine, still rising. more than four metres above its usual level, it is expected to peak at six metres by the end of the weekend. on the outskirts of paris, some residents have had to resort to travelling by boat through waterlogged streets, while in the city centre, the tourist boats are no longer operating, with only emergency

services allowed along the seine. the past month has been the third—wettest here since records began in 1900. the impact of recent heavy rains is visible in the water levels lapping this statue of a crimean war soldier, known as the zouave, paris's traditional way of measuring the height of the river. the french authorities have been on high alert, and at a flood crisis meeting the mayor of paris tried to reassure residents, saying the current situation isn't as bad as that of 18 months ago. translation: the flood is less significant, in terms of the volume of rising water, compared to that ofjune 2016, even if it remains substantial, because currently we are at 5.7 metres, and we should peak between 5.8 and six metres, maximum.

the flooding has already left hundreds of people without electricity, and evacuated from their homes. forecasters predict drier weather for the week ahead, but with much of the ground in northern france waterlogged, the return to normal will be a slow process. luckily my neighbours are here. they bring me food and drink. this morning i had a big blanket on me because it was cold. let's take a look at some of the other stories making the news. the american casino mogul steve wynn has resigned as finance chair of the republican national committee amid sexual harassment allegations. a wall streetjournal report on friday alleged that the 76—year—old billionaire harassed massage therapists and forced one staff member to have sex with him. he's dismissed the accusations as preposterous.

spain's constitutional court has told the catalan separatist leader, carles puigdemont, that he can only be sworn in as the region's president if he returns from self—imposed exile.the court ruled that mr puigdemont must appear before the catalan parliament in person, and cannot be formally appointed while he is in belgium. elderly survivors have marked holocaust memorial day in auschwitz in poland. six millionjews and millions of others were murdered in concentration camps by the nazis during the second world war. evening prayers have been said at the former auschwitz—birkenau concentration camp, and tributes paid at the monument to the victims at the site. at least 1a people have been killed in a shooting at a nightclub in brazil. police say that gunmen, possibly involved in a drug trafficking gang, attacked the club in fortaleza in the early hours

of saturday morning. richard forrest has more. chaos and confusion outside the forro do gago nightclub in fortaleza, police and ambulance crews arriving shortly after the shooting. eyewitnesses said the violence started after a group of armed, masked men arrived in three vehicles. some said shots were fired for at least 30 minutes. 0ne police officer described the scene at the club as a massacre. amongst those killed were two teenagers, and one of the injured, a 12—year—old boy. as news of the shooting spread, people arrived outside the club to see if family or friends had been caught up in the horror. local media say the shooting was a clash between members of two rival drug trafficking gangs. police haven't confirmed this. earlier this month, four people died

in a drug—related shooting in the suburbs of fortaleza. in the us, michigan's attorney general has promised a full investigation into how the sports doctor, larry nassar, was able to abuse young women for decades while working at the state's university. nassar was sentenced to up to 100 and 75 years in prison for sexually assaulting young athletes. the attorney general, bill schutte, said no—one at michigan university would escape investigation. it is abundantly clear that a full and complete investigation of what happened in michigan state university, from the office of the president's office down, is required. now, this investigation is and will continue to be independent, it will be thorough, it will be transparent, and it will be prompt. my department and this investigation will find out who knew what, and when, who took action, who failed to take action,

what did or did not happen, and what should have happened. milos zeman will be the president of the czech republic once again — after a tightly contested election run—off. mr zeman fiercely opposes immigration and objects to eu sanctions against russia. he beat his opponent by a narrow margin. rob cameron reports from prague. cheering and applause. a narrow victory for milos zeman, the 73—year—old president of the czech republic. all chant. "relatively narrow," as he put it — 150,000 votes separated him from his challenger. "this is my last victory," he said, and promised to be more humble, less arrogant in his second term than his first,

though he didn't seem to have buried his hatchet with the media. translation: i'm convinced that not only the intelligence of journalists, but also of some politicians, is significantly lower than that of normal citizens. this message, that only he had the political experience to shield his country from the perils facing it, first and foremost immigration, appears to have paid off. cheering and applause. but, across town, the mood in his challenger‘s headquarters was upbeat. translation: the candidacy was a huge experience, a life experience and a political one. i can't quite imagine myself not using it in some way. the result was a blow to liberal pro—european voters, who believedjiri dahos could bring about a change to reaffirm the czech place in the heart of europe, looking not east but west.

they will have to wait for the next election if that dream is to be fulfilled. but how long will that be? there are concerns about president zeman‘s health. he suffers from type 2 diabetes, and has difficulty walking. he seemed exhausted in recent months. his doctors say he is perfectly healthy, but how long can this political veteran continue to dominate czech politics? rob cameron, bbc news, prague. milos zeman is one of a number of populist politicians, who have seen increased success in europe in recent years. poland, hungary, bosnia, and herzegovina, serbia, and bulgaria, are all currently led by governments that are widely considered right—wing and populist. meanwhile, austria, latvia, greece, switzerland, and norway are among the countries where right—wing populist parties form part of coalition governments. parties with similar outlooks have also been winning an increasingly large share of the vote at elections in many other european countries in recent years. one of the world's richest men,

prince alwaleed bin talal, has become the latest high—profile figure to be released after a major anti—corru ption drive in saudi arabia. an official said the prince was released after a settlement was approved by the state prosecutor. but the prince said no charges were brought against him, and no deals had been done. 0ur arab affairs editor, sebastian usher, reports. just hours before his release, prince al—waleed bin talal gave his first interview from the gilded cage of the ritz—carlton hotel. in hard cash terms, he has been the biggest catch of all in the saudi purge. the idea of a man worth some $17 billion being at one point reduced to sleeping on a mattress while bargaining for his freedom has been a powerful one, and it is an image he was keen to dispel as he gave a tour of the suite where he was held in recent weeks.

i have been always, all the time here at this hotel, and everything's been fine. you know, i exercise, i stretch, i swim, i walk. i have my old iphone, so it's like home. and i call my family every day, my office here. i'm in touch with my office every day, so my private office, my kingdom office, my political entities, so everything is functioning. the saudi attorney general has said that 90 detainees have been released after charges were dropped against them, while others have reached financial settlements to win theirfreedom. around 90 are believed to still be in detention. some will go to prison and face trial. the man behind the anti—corruption drive and all the recent startling shifts in saudi arabia is the crown prince, mohammad bin salman. it is part of his ambitious plan to transform the country, economically and socially, finally weaning it from its twin dependence on oil and religious austerity, as well as granting women basic new rights such

as the permission to drive. his vision 2030 project needs massive funding, and the authorities say the purge should deliver at least $100 billion to state coffers. those who co—operate may be somewhat lighter in cash, but they should be able to continue with their businesses and their lives. but it is still a risky move, which could consolidate the crown prince's power, or build up resentment against his dominance. sebastian usher, bbc news. stay with us on bbc news. still to come: the latest work by the graffiti artist, banksy, turns up in the uk city of hull, but not everyone agrees it's art. the shuttle challenger exploded soon after lift—off.

there were seven astronauts on board, one of them a woman school teacher. all of them are believed to have been killed. by the evening, tahrir square, the heart of official cairo, was in the hands of the demonstrators. they were using the word "revolution". the earthquake singled out buildings and brought them down in seconds. tonight, the search for any survivors has an increasing desperation about it as the hours pass. the new government is firmly in control of the entire republic of uganda. moscow got its first taste of western fast food as mcdonald's opened their biggest restaurant in pushkin square. but the hundreds of muscovites queued up today will not find it cheap, with a big mac costing half a day's wages for the average russian. this is bbc news.

the latest headlines: the afghan government is blaming a taliban—linked group, said to be backed by pakistan, for a suicide attack in kabul that has left more than 90 people dead. the irish prime minister, leo varadkar, has said he will campaign for ireland's abortion law to be liberalised in a referendum on the issue. a vote is expected this summer on whether to repeal an amendment of the irish constitution which in effect bans terminations. mr varadkar was at the world economic forum this week, where he took a break from trade talks to set out his plans to the bbc‘s mishal husain. as i've said on many occasions, i believe ireland's abortion laws are too restrictive and need to be liberalised. we do however, unlike other countries, have a constitutional ban on abortion, in our constitution. and the only way we can change our constitution is by referendum.

so we'll have that referendum hopefully this summer, and we shall be in a position to make a decision on that in government next week. so, when you say they are too tight, are you saying you will be campaigning for the abortion laws to be relaxed? i will be campaigning for them to be changed and to be liberalised, yes. ok, because you said in 2014 that you were pro—life. so your view has changed since then? i suppose, in that period, it's fair to say that my own views on this matter have evolved. but i think sometimes that term, pro—life and pro—choice, can be misunderstood, you know, i think even people who are in favour of abortion in some circumstances are pro—life. you know, i still believe in life, but i understand that there are circumstances under which pregnancies can't continue, and i don't think it's the role of the state to essentially criminalise people.

so does that mean you can't — you're not prepared to say that you are pro—choice? but again, you know, i — what do those words even mean? like, every single person i know who says they're pro—choice believes in some sort of restriction. they don't believe in late—term abortions, for example, up to 38 weeks, you know. so these terms, pro—life and pro—choice, don't really comprehend the complexity of this issue, which is a very private and personal one, and one i think that contains a lot of grey areas. and is it your intention to hold a referendum before the pope visits? the intention is to hold the referendum as soon as we possibly can. it's not particularly affected by the pope's visit, and i intend to have the referendum this summer. but as you may know, or your viewers may not know, i don't have a majority in my parliament. i'm heading a minority government, so it's possible that it could get delayed in parliament, but i hope now.

you know, the people of ireland deserve to have their say on this issue. when the constitutional ban was put in — when the ban was put into our constitution, i was four years old, and nobody under 52 has had a say on this. and i think people should be allowed to have their say, and that is why i'm asking my government and i will be asking our parliament to allow people to have a referendum on this. a mural by the world's famous graffiti artist, banksy, has appeared in the uk city of hull. hundreds of people have been turning up to see it, on a disused bridge. matthew bone has the story. the bankside area of hull is no stranger to graffiti, but this latest addition is a little different. the artwork certainly looks like a banksy, and the artist seemed to confirm its identity when they posted a picture of it on social media. and it has caused a lot of interest. this is a quiet, old industrial part of hull, but ever since rumours of the banksy appeared last night, there has been a steady stream of people who have come here today to check it out for themselves.

it's really good. fantastic. i also like the way that the writing in it is like writing that's on a chalkboard or in a school, like when you see that sort of thing. i like his shoes. i think he has got a nice pair of shoes on. you've got to wear a nice pair of shoes, haven't you, rosie? of the hundreds of people who have come along to see it, gavin is more excited than most. a lifelong banksy fan, he works just around the corner. for me, personally, the culture i grew up in, it's a dream, really — a dream come true. so what does the mural mean? it depends who you ask. the bridge is raised. it is the drawbridge. for me, hundreds of years ago, we never let the king into hull. a sort of defiance, a sort of challenge. it could have been to do with us voting out, for brexit. and it's all about pulling up the drawbridge again. but not everyone is happy to see the graffiti appear, and one conservative opposition councillor has an idea of what to do. record, by whatever means we can, banksy‘s contribution to that piece of work, then clean it off,

because it's graffiti, and all graffiti is damage. if banksy wants to create real art, and i'm sure he does, then perhaps it might be a good idea to buy some canvas. the graffiti has already been graffitied, with some green spray just nicking the toe of the mural. and this afternoon, new fencing was put up to prevent people from getting up close. 60 years ago, godtfred kirk christiansen, the second—generation owner of lego, patented the lego brick, which took the world by storm. godtfred's then—ten—year—old son kjeld regularly helped his father test out the new toys in the family workshop founded by his grandfather. he has been speaking to the bbc‘s witness about the family's business. the billund village carpenter invented them after turning his hand to toy making when there wasn't enough work for him. now, that spare—time toy making has developed into a huge danish export. my grandfather,

old kirk christiansen, was a very happy person. he made a lot of different kinds of wooden toys. for him, it was really making quality toys that were good for children — that is also why he came up with the name lego. lego means "play well" in danish. like god is every reason to play well. after the second world war, where so many houses had been torn down and so on, and there was this urge again for people to build up. so i think the idea of the basic bricks was really to build houses. my grandfather, and my father also, they were both quite fascinated with the opportunities of making something out of plastic. it was more considered as a novel material, with which you've suddenly got possibilities to make many other things that you couldn't do with wood.

in 1958, i was ten years old, and that was the year where my father patented the lego brick with the tubes. the original bricks were just hollow, and they could stay together if you put them on top of each other, but they couldn't position in many odd ways, so to say. by having the tubes, now you could put them together like this. he was so proud of having created this system. when i came home from school, i often went to our model shop, where we had a few designers already from the early ‘60s. i think i, in a positive way, probably criticised quite a lot of what they did, and tried to suggest other things for them to build. i never practised lessons for the school, basically, so i probably spent three,

four hours a day, at least. and i was used very much as a model for the boxes. the local photographer came and took pictures of me and my sisters for the boxes. the little plastic world is finished and open to the public. they call it legoland. my father thought that there would probably, if he was optimistic, be about 250,000 guests a year. we are having about 1.9 million guests to the legoland park every year. then the idea was to create a smaller figure that could fit into cars and houses and so on. the first mini—figure was just a static figure, with no arms and no legs, and i pushed for that it has to be a figure that is more lively also, and always with a yellow happy face. yellow was also very sensible in that it did not conflict with any

colours of races and so on. we have made this lego house. it is what we call the home of the brick. the concept of the lego brick is timeless. physical play is always something that will be there, and i think especially play where it stimulates the child's imagination. children have this natural urge to learn and to try out new things. if something works, it's fine. if it doesn't work, they try again. those are some skills that we actually think should be carried on into lifelong. i mean, we are growing older all the time, but we don't need to grow up. we could still be childish inside, and decide when to be serious and when to have fun. you are watching bbc news. hello again, good morning.

yesterday, we had some rain for a time, then we saw the cloud thinning. but we're going to see the cloud thickening up again, and more rain returning across northern parts of the uk on that weather front. that area of low pressure to the north, though, for a while has been bringing some very windy weather across northern scotland, the winds easing by the morning, and we'll have mild air all the way from southern parts of the mid—atlantic heading our way. this is tropical, maritime air, and it means a lot of cloud. across scotland, some rain. it won't be as windy by the morning across northern scotland. there'll be some showers here, but rain across central southern scotland, and quite a soggy start probably across northern ireland. and some rain and drizzle over the hills of northern england, where it will be quite gusty in the wind. generally dry elsewhere across england and wales, mild and cloudy, but still very misty and murky over the hills of wales, and perhaps in the south—west, just for a while. for most of us, it will be a cloudy day, that rain

still there for central southern scotland, improving conditions, though, for northern ireland. still a bit dreary over the hills of england and wales. 0n the whole, it will be cloudy and breezy, some gusty winds around. widely, temperatures about 12 degrees, even in the cloud. get some sunshine to the east of high ground, those temperatures could be even higher. a bit chillier across the far north of scotland north of that weather front there, which is bringing the rain, actually, across scotland. and the weather front takes the rain southwards overnight, and starts to arrive into england and wales on monday. and behind it, we start draw down some colder air, the really mild air getting squeezed away into the near continent. so some changes on the way. by monday, the rain could be heavier at times, moving southwards across england and wales. in the afternoon, it is more across southern england, and that's where we'll have the highest temperatures. eventually, we'll get some sunshine in wales and the midlands. sunnier skies further north, in that slightly colder air. the showers in scotland could be wintry over the higher ground, but there's colder air to come

later on in the week. chilly start, though, for tuesday, and maybe some frost around here and there. but some sunshine early, before things tend to cloud over, and it's going downhill right at the end of the day, as we start to see some rain coming into the south—west, at the same time, some rain heading and so temperatures are little lower, 6—8 degrees fairly typically. those two weather systems bringing the rain sweep through overnight, then we draw our air all the way from the north and north—west, and that means it will be turning colder. it is also turning very showery, i think, on wednesday. there'll be some strong winds around, as well, and particularly for the northern half of the uk, those showers will be of a wintry flavour. it feels colder with the stronger winds. goodbye. this is bbc news. the headlines: afghanistan has accused neighbouring pakistan of providing support for militants who killed at least 95 people in a suicide attack in kabul.

it says the bombing was carried out by a taliban—linked network. islamabad has previously denied supporting afghan militants. water levels are continuing to rise along the river seine in paris following some of the heaviest rain for a century. the river's expected to peak around six metres higher than usual over the weekend. walkways are submerged and some basements have been flooded. at least 1a people have been killed by gunmen at a nightclub in north—east brazil. the attackers arrived at the club in fortaleza in three cars during the early hours of saturday. local media said they were part of a gang involved in drug trafficking. now on bbc news, it's time for click.