tonight at ten: jacob zuma steps down as president of south africa, after persistent allegations of fraud and corruption. he addressed the nation a short while ago, saying he wanted above all to prevent any violent protests, and to maintain the unity of the ruling anc. i have therefore come to the decision to resign as president of the republic with immediate effect. he's been head of state for nine years, but he's been under mounting pressure in the past year, over allegations of wrongdoing. we'll have the latest from south africa, where a new president, cyril ramophosa, will be formally sworn in within 2a hours. also tonight... in florida, at least one person had died and dozens injured, in a gun attack at a high school. 20 months after the referendum, borisjohnson tries to reach out to those still opposed to brexit, and says it's cause for hope not fear.

it's not some great v—sign from the cliffs of dover, it is the expression of a legitimate and natural desire of self—government by the people, for the people and of the people. following the kidnap, rape and murder of a 20 year—old woman, her uncle is sent prison for at least a0 years. in northern ireland, the dup says there's no prospect of a return to devolved government, after the failure of the latest talks. and, at the winter olympics, team gb's use of technology in the skeleton competition, has finally been approved. and coming up on sportsday on bbc news: liverpool lay a marker in the champions league with an impressive start with immediate effect.

he made the announcement in a televised address a short while ago, bringing to an end his turbulent 9 years in power. mr zuma, who's faced persistent allegations of corruption, said he disagreed with the way the ruling party, the anc, had demanded his resignation. he'll be formally succeeded by cyril ramaphosa, the new leader of the anc, tomorrow. our africa editor fergal keane has the latest. a former prisoner on robben island with nelson mandela, jacob zuma was once head of anc intelligence. a backroom operator with a gift for manoeuvring party enemies. he could also present an affable and

a p pa re ntly also present an affable and apparently open face. i first interviewed him nearly two decades ago when, as deputy president, he was encouraging south africans to use condoms to prevent the spread of aids. do you use a condom? yes, i do. but questions about his character soon at surface to. he was accused of raping the hiv—positive daughter of a friend. he did not wear a condom. a populist, a crowd pleaser, he appealed to the anc grassroots, and with their backing, became party leader in 2009. even though he already faced serious corruption charges. i interviewed him againjust as he corruption charges. i interviewed him again just as he was about to become state president. a lot of people think you are a crock. become state president. a lot of people think you are a crockm that so? i want to see those people, they must tell me! are you a crook?

me? i don't know. i must learn what a crook is. it was his relationship with this family, the guptas, indian immigrants which forced the anc party to act. the guptas are accused of using the president to acquire state assets worth millions of pounds. so powerful, they are alleged, they could hire and fire cabinet ministers. today they also felt the pressure. this was a police raid on their compound in johannesburg. seemingly untouchable until now, criminal charges may be imminent. if ever you wanted proof of the changed political temperature, this was it. the police seem at last to have found their courage. this may be giving police the address of another gupta property. people are angry. but it is the fear of losing the support of the black majority which has prompted the anc to act. near

pretoria, this man is an unemployed driver who once thought jacob zuma was the answer for south africa's problems. no more. when jacob zuma came to power i thought we would get jobs and better conditions, but now, now we are in trouble. thank you. asi as i was saying, jacob zuma, former president now, made that announcement in that televised address to the south african nation in the past couple of hours. he spoke for about half an hour and it seemed for quite a long time he would not resign until the last section of the address itself and this is what he had to say. no life should be lost in my name. and also, the anc should never be

divided in my name. i have therefore come to the decision to resign as president of the republic with immediate effect. the statement there at the end of the address by jacob zuma. let's go to pretoria and talk to our africa editor fergal keane. let's talk about the end of this very turbulent presidency and what is now lying ahead for south africa? well, what a dramatic night. we were standing out here, looking at the sun going down over pretoria when we were summoned suddenly inside. i was sitting yards away from jacob zuma. for a long period he went through very defensive language we heard earlier in the day saying essentially, i am the victim. then suddenly that moment of resignation. i could see him closely. there was a certain sort of melancholy at the end. he stood and waved at us and said we will meet

again and moved on. but he will not be meeting the press again, unless it is on the steps of the courthouse. he is facing multiple corruption charges. today, the big work begins for cyril ramaphosa, the man who will take over this country. he said he will tackle the corruption which was endemic underjacob zuma. corruption has caused so much poverty and instability. he knows he has to act quickly here. many thanks. fergal keane with the latest in pretoria after the resignation of jacob keane with the latest in pretoria after the resignation ofjacob zuma. well, another story developing tonight which is a shooting. reports from florida in the last half hour says the shooting at a high school has left a number of people dead and dozens injured. our north america editorjon sopel is in washington. he is monitoring events for us. what is the latest you have? let me start with a statistic. this is the 19th

school shooting so far in 2018, we are in the middle of february. the president is monitoring by far the worst shooting and yet again the terrified pictures of children running for their lives as an active shooter is on school premises, and running as fast as they can to try to get to safety. we understand the shooter himself is in custody. he is believed to be an 18—year—old former student of this school. he is now under arrest. the authorities are saying a number of fatalities and a number of people have been injured. donald trump has treated in the last hour or so: donald trump has treated in the last hourorso: mike donald trump has treated in the last hour or so: mike prez and condolences of the victims of the terrible florida shooting. no child, pa rent terrible florida shooting. no child, parent or teacher should feel unsafe ina parent or teacher should feel unsafe in a school. __ my in a school. —— my prayers and condolences to the

family of the victims. is he going to change security? it is hard to see how he will and it is ha rd to is hard to see how he will and it is hard to see that the president will come out and say he supports greater gun control. thank you for that update, jon sopel at the white house. borisjohnson has urged his fellow brexiters not to "gloat" about the uk's departure from the eu, and he's appealed for people to unite behind the vision of an "outward—looking, confident" uk outside the european union. mrjohnson also insisted the referendum result could not be reversed, and he questioned the economic benefits of staying in the single market and customs union, which the government is committed to leave. his speech was the first of a series of speeches by ministers, ahead of key talks with eu negotiators next month, as our political correspondent vicki young reports. we're on the road to brexit. but cabinet ministers are still arguing about which route to take. do we stay close to the european union and all its rules, or take off in a completely different direction?

many are anxious about the journey ahead. including liberal democrats, who laid on this less—than—friendly welcome for the foreign secretary. he is trying to reach out to soothe concerns and convince them that brexit is grounds for much more hope than fear. it is not good enough for us now to say to remainers, "you lost, get over it." because we must accept the vast majority are actuated by entirely noble sentiments. brexit is not about shutting britain off, he said, it is about going global. i absolutely refuse to accept the suggestion that it is some un—british spasm of bad manners. it is not some great v sign from the cliffs of dover. it is the expression of a legitimate and natural desire for self—government of the people, by the people, for the people. at times, this speech felt like a return to the heat of the referendum debate. and mrjohnson certainly has not changed his mind about the need to diverge from eu rules.

the british people should not have new eu laws affecting their everyday lives imposed from abroad when they have no power to elect or remove those who make those laws. that would be intolerable, it would be undemocratic, and it would make it all but impossible for us to do serious free trade deals. he did say he was happy for britain to remain subject to eu law during a transmission or implementation period. that could start after march 2019 and last around two years. as the face of the leave campaign, some question whether borisjohnson is the right person to try to heal the divisions of brexit. but he acknowledges today that that positive case for leaving the eu still needs to be made and says that he has to try to make it. but what about the obstacles that could lie ahead? conservative mps still disagree. boris is really good at the broad brush strokes. but i think what is really needed now are the details. you know, we'rejust over 1a months away from the uk leaving the european union.

and details on things like customs and borders, how the really difficult of the irish border is going to be delivered, how eu citizens will be able to stay here, the position that they will be in — all that is needed now. we now have accept the fact we have had the referendum, we not having a second one, we are not being part of the single market or the customs union, we are taking back control, and that's what this speech was all about. more flesh on the bones is what critics want. downing street insists they will get that in the coming days when the spotlight turns to theresa may and what is billed as a significant speech on security. vicki young, bbc news, westminster. boris johnson's doubts about the economic benefits of staying in the single market were being expressed, as figures showed the economy of the eurozone enjoyed its strongest period of growth since 2007, expanding by 2.5% last year. the uk's economy is estimated to have grown by 1.8% over the same period. 0ur economics editor kamal ahmed is here to look at how the uk economy compares to that of the wider eu.

borisjohnson spoke of a britain no longer lashed to the eu, our biggest trading partner. it is a partner that has suffered economically. if we go back to before the financial crisis, eu growth was pretty good, peaking at over 3%. then the financial crisis hit the world economy, and eu growth plunged, like much of the rest of the world, into recession. then the eu was hit by a second crisis — the eurozone crisis — and a second recession. but — last year, a significant change. economic reform and global growth led to this rapid pick up, growth that was epitomised by this man, emmanuel macron, the president of france and poster child of an economically confident eu. these figures are really good, overall, and if we have a look

in particular at the french figures, here we have, well, very good news. we have a sign of improvement, both on the domestic side and on the external side. first, on the external side, for sure french growth is benefiting from the firming in world growth, and, in particular, it is strongly benefiting from the improvement, the strengthening, of eurozone growth. now, over the last ten years, the picture for britain has been different. we suffered the same drop in fortunes during the financial crisis, but from 2012 onwards, we were top of the economic league, as the rest of the eu struggled. now, with brexit uncertainty, growth has slowed, just as it is speeding up across the channel. had it not been for the strength in european and global growth, the economy would have performed much worse than this.

i mean, in our view, the growth would have been probably around 0.5 percentage points less without the strength in european and global growth. nearly 50% of our exports go to the eu, so a strong rest of europe matters to the uk. as the government plans the uk's exit from the eu, the economic relationship between britain and the rest of europe will be a vital part of those brexit negotiations. in northern ireland, the democractic unionist party says there's no prospect of a deal to restore northern ireland's devolved government, despite the intensive negotiations of recent days. the dup leader arlene foster said that one of the main stumbling blocks was sinn fein‘s desire for an irish language act. 0ur ireland correspondent chris page has the latest from stormont. a breakthrough seemed likely when

theresa may visited northern ireland on monday. she and the irish prime minister said they were hopeful of a deal between the parties at stormont. now, the prospect. renewed power—sharing is disappearing. unionists accused republicans of asking for too much. we have, as i've said before, run out of road in respect of this process. we're not going to be able to get executive up and running because there is not a fair and balanced package available. sinn fein say the dup are to blame for the collapse of the talks. there was a lot of expectation over the course of the last number of days were people were either briefed or were discussing the fact that there potentially was a deal on the table. i'm saying confidently that we had an accommodation with the dup and the dup leadership have failed to close on that accommodation. the most difficult disagreement to resolve has been over the irish language. nationalists want a new law to protect and promote it. unionists want a wider piece of

legislation including cultural elements which are more important to them. valentine's day brought a demonstration at stormont about another sticking point in the talks, sinn fein want to legalise same—sex marriage in northern ireland. the dup don't. there have been no ministers in place here for more than a year now. that means civil servants have been running northern ireland, but they don't have the power to make any major decisions. the westminster government acknowledges the uncertainty is affecting public services and can can't continue. we need to consider practical steps. in the continued absence of an executive other challenging decisions will have to be taken by the uk government. the dup have said ministers should be appointed in london to take on stormont‘s powers. a fix for the broken politics of this part of the uk feels a lot further away tonight. chris page, bbc news, belfast. a man has beenjailed for life,

with a minimum term of a0 years, after being found guilty at the old bailey of kidnapping, raping and murdering his niece and the attempted murder of a second woman. the court had heard that mujahid arshid of kingston, in south—west london, had developed an obsession with this 20 year—old niece celine dookhran and the surviving victim, who cannot be identified. our home affairs correspondent, june kelly, reports. celine dookhran was 20 years old, she worked in a bank and had a boyfriend. she also had a jealous uncle, who was a savage sexual predator, he kidnapped celine and then raped and murdered her. mujahid arshid also raped and tried to kill another young woman. as a rape survivor, his second victim can't be identified. celine dookhran‘s mother and stepfather were in court to see a man who'd married into their family found guilty. a police officer read a statement on their behalf. we are pleased with the verdict and the sentence, but we would like our final words to be about our wonderful celine.

we love you, we miss you and we thank you for being an amazing, brilliant, funny, intelligent and caring daughter, sister and cousin and friend. arshid's blue pick—up truck was caught on cctv, he was transporting a freezer, which was part of his plot. two—days later he was back in his truck and the kidnapping was under way. he had bundled his two victims, bound and gagged, into the open boot and covered them with a tarpaulin. he checked it before he set off. arshid was a builder and he brought his captives to a then empty house he was working on in kingston, in south—west london. once inside, one after another, he forced the women upstairs and raped them. he killed his neice celine by cutting her throat with a knife and stuffing her mouth with a sock. he then locked her body in the freezer he'd installed two—days earlier.

when it came to the second victim, he slashed her throat and wrists and told her, "you've got ten minutes to live." astonishingly, she survived. then, desperate to try to find a way out, she convinced arshid that from here they could run away together. arshid later went on the run and headed for the port of folkestone. he checked into a hotel, and this is where he was arrested. it's emerged that down the years opportunities were missed to stop mujahid arshid's sexual offending. it was in 2008 that he first abused his surviving victim, this went on for a year. in 2011, she finally told some of her family, but her story wasn't accepted. in 2013, arshid was caught in an online sting inviting an undercover police officer to drug and rape her. the following year he was interviewed by detectives, prosecutors decided they couldn't bring a case because the police hadn't found key evidence. arshid's controlling

behaviour culminating in the killing of celine dookhran. today her mother said her daughter had fallen victim to "pure evil." june kelly, bbc news. 0xfam's director in asia has told the bbc she is aware of past cases of misconduct, involving some of the charity's workers in the philippines, bangladesh and nepal. during the day, senior 0xfam officials met the charity commission, which is investigating the organisation's handling of abuse claims against former staff in haiti, back in 2011. 0ur correspondent, angus crawford, has the latest. a scandal made in the poverty of haiti's shanty towns, where a small number of aid workers became exploiters. it continues to send shockwaves through the entire sector. and today, new revelations from 0xfam about other under reported cases involving its workers. there were cases in the philippines. there were also cases in bangladesh. there were whistleblowers coming

forward in bangladesh, as far as i know. there was also a case i think in nepal. abusers exploit the chaos and confusion of natural disasters, like here in 2013, during typhoon haiyan, in the philippines. lan mercado says even if they are caught and disciplined, charities aren't warning each other about unsuitable staff. not yet, but that's a practice that we need to start because... you know, the funny thing about cases like this is we always see them as reputational risks, no. but the way to manage reputational risks is not to keep silent. but in disaster zones, speed is key. charities scale up their efforts within hours, employing thousands of new staff, operating in what can be a lawless vacuum.

when the first crisis passes, sometimes within days or weeks, many move on to a new emergency, and possibly a new employer. so a problem for the whole sector, but one the international development secretary wants tackling now. unless you create a culture that prioritizes the safety of vulnerable people and ensures victims and whistleblowers can come forward without fear, we will not work with you. and unless you report every serious incident and allegation, no matter how damaging to your reputation, we cannot be your partners. she's looking at the possibility of setting up a worldwide register of aid workers and tomorrow meets officers from the national crime agency, which says it's closely monitoring events. this british charity today dismissed a member of staff accused of sexual misconduct while at 0xfam in haiti

in 2011, something he failed to tell them when he applied for the job. and tonight, 0xfam has revealed that last year it sacked its country director in haiti for mismanagement and inappropriate behaviour. angus crawford, bbc news. there is a "pervasive lack of trust" among people with disabilities about the way that their welfare claims are assessed, according to a parliamentary committee. a new report says assessment work by private contractors is often riddled with errors and that claimants don't trust assessors to record evidence of their health accurately. the government says the system works well for the majority of claimants. 0ur disability correspondent, nikki fox, reports. anastasia is having a good day, but most of the time she's in constant pain and struggles to leave the house. the 24—year—old has multiple sclerosis and used to work full—time.

now she relies on disability benefits, but applying for those benefits has taken its toll. i don't know how other people can cope with it. why do i feel so crushed and not believed? when she was assessed at home by a healthcare professional from a private company, anastasia told her assessor she could only walk 20 meters. but when the report came back, it said she could walk further. as a result, she lost part of her benefits. she didn't give me a physical assessment, i was sat down the entire time. i was very, very cross about that. the committee heard evidence to suggest that anastasia's experience is farfrom a one—off. one of the assessors wrote down things which didn't even happen. the lady who was assessing me was very unprofessional. i looked at it and i just cried, basically. they received an unprecedented number of responses detailing failings in the system. their report says, "the government's low bar for what is considered

acceptable leaves room for assessments to be riddled with obvious errors and omissions." it also says assessors risk being viewed as "at best, lacking in competence and, at worst, actively deceitful." some parents were asked when exactly their children had caught down's syndrome. another claimant said, "apparently, i walk my dog daily, which is baffling, because i can barely walk and i don't have a dog." since 2013, more than 200,000 people have appealed the outcome of their assessment. the committee hopes that its recommendations will reduce the need for so many to have to appeal. we've asked the government to record all these key assessments, so there can't be a dispute of — i said that. no, you didn't. yes, you did. there's a record there. the government says it's exploring options to promote greater transparency and the majority of claimants are happy with their overall experience. but with current contracts up for review and targets

being consistently missed ,it‘s uncertain who will carry out these will carry out these assessments in the future. nikki fox, bbc news. morgan tsvangirai, zimbabwe's main opposition leader, has died. the 65—year—old, a former mine worker, had been suffering from cancer. mr tsvangirai's career was marked by a long political struggle against the former president, robert mugabe, and he was beaten and imprisonned many times. the movement for democratic change — that he set up in 2000 — said tonight that they had lost an ‘icon and fighter for democracy‘. liverpool are one step closer to the champions league quarter—finals after beating porto 5—0 in portugal in their last 16 match.

sadio mane scored a hat—trick and that meansjurgen klopp's side will take a comfortable lead back to anfield for the second leg. in tonight's other tie, current holders real madrid beat paris st germain 3—1. at the winter olympics in south korea, team gb‘s use of technology has been approved, averting a dispute about the legality of the kit used in the skeleton competition. some opponents have complained that the technology used in team gb‘s skinsuits gives them an unfair advantage. 0ur sports correspondent, andy swiss, reports now from pyeongchang. sliding into controversy. the skeleton is britain's winter sports speciality. commentator: lizzie yarnold is the olympic champion! but now the team's speed is under scrutiny. after being no more than solid this season, here in pyeongchang they're suddenly looking spectacular. setting the pace in final training, so why the improvement? well, they're wearing brand—new skinsuits specially designed for the games. and in the sport of the finest margins, they've found an edge. well of course we push the boundaries, it's the winter olympic games.

no one sleeps, every nation will be getting the best kit that they can, and we're exactly the same. but the skinsuit, developed by scientists in northampton and which has special drag—resistant ridges, has raised eyebrows. the rules stipulate no aerodynamic elements can be attached to kit, and some are questioning its legality. i was notified this morning about the speedsuits. so, yeah, that's interesting. i'm just curious to know if that is legal. do you think there's a question there? ido, yeah. a frosty reception, then, but tonight the controversial skinsuit was cleared by the authorities. well, when britain's sliders hurtle round this track over the next few days, they'll be hoping their new kit could make that vital difference. and british sport knows all about making the most of cutting—edge clothing. skinsuit technology has been a key to british track cycling success over the last decade, and skeleton has also led the way. commentator: oh, yes!

amy williams is the queen of speed! in 2010 there were questions about amy williams' helmet before she won gold. for me, in vancouver, we sent them off to the jury months beforehand. they got checked and okayed by the jury. so we knew 100% they were legal. so i have no worries whatsoever. i would just say, people just don't want you winning, do they? and winning is what britain's done now two games running. a hat—trick here, it seems, would be a triumph of technology as well as talent. andy swiss, bbc news, pyeongchang. newsnight is coming up on bbc two. here's evan. tonight, we'll ask the dup what next for northern ireland after those power—sharing talks collapse. and, new trouble for 0xfam as another big name ambassador