this is news today on the bbc. i'm rico hizon in singapore, the headlines. smiles at the closing ceremony — but a reported offer of talks from north korea is pushed back by washington. it comes as the winter olympics — which mixed sport and politics right from the start — draws to a spectacular close. i'm sharanjit leyl in london. also in the programme: two murders as tensions rise at a rohingya camp in bangladesh. we have a special report. the complaints are growing in number. a fight between neighbours overfood number. a fight between neighbours over food and shelter, enter camp rivalries over a that's arriving almost daily. could he rule for life? china's xi jinping might continue as president indefinitely — under changes proposed by the communist party. live from our studios in singapore and london. this is bbc world news.

it is newsday. glad you could join us. it's 8am in singapore midnight in london and 7pm in washington, where the us has given a cool response to a reported offer of talks from north korea. the us state department says any talks would have to lead to the end of the regime's nuclear programme. south korea claimed pyongyang had signalled its willingness to hold talks with the us, after a meeting between a north korean general and south korea's president before the closing ceremony of the winter olympics. laura bicker now reports from pyeongyang on a games in which politics played as much of a role as the sporting action. this is the confidence side of south korea. but much of the drama was political.

entering this arena is the us president's daughter ivanka trump. but no warm reception for the north korean generals sitting behind her. there was no contact between the two, but it does seem that pyongyang is now ready to talk to the us. a victory for the south korean leader, president moon. but make the opening ceremony athletes from the two koreas blew their own country's colours. highlighting the division, despite the diplomacy. critics fear the north has been given too much of a platform at these games. the minister responsible for talks between the two koreas says pyongyang is being pushed on its nuclear weapons. we did convey the message to the north koreans multiple times. it's necessary that north korea and the us are to leave a talk to each other to solve this ina a talk to each other to solve this in a peaceful manner. but at the end of this olympic reverie there could

bea of this olympic reverie there could be a dose of reality. the show of harmony has given south korea some breathing space, but tensions still lurks in the background. unfortunately it's not going to last. north koreans are entirely separating. they have said it from the first meeting, that the nuclear issue has nothing to do with the cooperation between the two koreas and certainly the olympic games. these games are ending just as they began, with a major diplomatic breakthrough. north korea has said it's willing to talk to the united states. there is still the huge problem of its nuclear weapons programme, but this is the first progress made on this peninsula in yea rs. let's get progress made on this peninsula in years. let's get more now on washington's response to the reported offer of talks by north korea. i've been talking to our correspondent in washington david willis about the message coming from the white house about the prospect

of dialogue. in response to these reports that north korea is now a p pa re ntly reports that north korea is now apparently willing to talk, the white house has been playing hardball, you might say. it issued a statement basically saying that north korea's abandonment of its nuclear programme must be the result of any nuclear programme must be the result ofany us nuclear programme must be the result of any us dialogue with north korea. there are those who would argue that thatis there are those who would argue that that is not the united states closing the door completely to any notion of talks with north korea. it is basically making the point that denuclearization has to be a central issue going into those talks. it is pretty clear, i think, that talks may or may not happen, but as sanctions remain as far as the us is concerned, all the time until north korea goes ahead and scrap its nuclear weapons. something it has long vowed it is not going to do. that is right, david. also we know this comes after the

north koreans accused the us of an act of warforfresh north koreans accused the us of an act of war for fresh sanctions on friday, and of course many as see all of this as an attempt by north korea to drive a wedge between south korea to drive a wedge between south korea and the us. do you think that is what's happening? yes. lots of suggestions along those lines, and i think with all this the north koreans do seem to be acknowledging that in orderfor them koreans do seem to be acknowledging that in order for them to have significant progress with the south and in order for there significant progress with the south and in orderfor there to be peace on the korean peninsula, they need to engage with the united states. they have been on this charm offensive with the south for the duration of the winter olympics, sending cheerleaders, sending athletes to the games. the north korean leader's sister attended the opening ceremonies, of course. that has been in stark contrast to the

relationship between north korea and the us. there was a planned meeting between the us vice president mike pence the day after the opening ceremony of those games and that was scrapped at the last minute, and of course last friday president trump announced new sanctions against north korea said by him to be the heaviest ever. david willey is speaking to me earlier from washington. also making the news today, china's ruling communist party have announced plans for a rule change, which would allow the president to extend his time in office. perhaps indefinitely. president xi is due to step down in 2023 but the change would allow him to serve longer than the ten years — or two five year terms — permitted by the current rules. we'll have more on that story later in the programme. italy's former prime minister silvio berlusconi has been out on the campaign trail, a week ahead of a general election in which his right—wing coalition is expected to win the most votes. mr berlusconi himself is banned from public office because of criminal convictions for tax fraud.

addressing a rally of his "forza italia" or "go italy" party in milan, the 81—year—old put immigration at the forefront of his coalition's campaign: we have this problem of the 600,000 immigrants present in italy and the insecurity they produce. to solve this problem completely, there is no other way, as our current law says, than to repatriate these people, starting with those who have committed crimes. nigeria says 110 girls remain unaccounted for, following an attack on a school in the northeastern nigerian state of yobe. islamist militants stormed the school in the town of dapchi on monday. the yobe state governor is blaming the abductions on the recent withdrawal of the military from the area. nigerian troops in the airports have been brought in to help search for the girls. —— in the air force. ——

and the air force. two people are in a critical condition in hospital in england after an explosion and fire which destroyed a shop in the city of leicester. video from the scene showed flames and smoke billowing into the night sky. police declared a major incident following the blast but said there is no indication of terrorism. a silver medal for the south korean women's curling team has sparked a countrywide fever for the sport. the so—called "garlic girls" were beaten by sweden in the final. amateur clubs have seen a surge in interest with thousands of new members signing up. and a curling board game is proving a hit in the country's top shops, with sales up ten—fold in the past few days. fighting is continuing in the damascus suburb of eastern ghouta, a day after the un security council passed a resolution calling for a ceasefire to be implemented. there are reports of a chemical

attack on the district, which the syrian government is trying to retake from rebels, some of who are linked to extremist groups. our middle east editorjeremy bowen has this report — you may find some of it distressing. this was inside eastern ghouta. in almost seven years of war in syria, real cease—fires have been rare, ineffective and short. the un could not agree on a start time for the cease—fire. the best they could do was to say without delay. that is elastic enough to wreck this cease—fire's chances. today is the first day of the cease—fire resolution. still, there is warplanes in the atmosphere. still shelling.

the level is less than before. they have let us down before. civilians are still being killed. civil defence workers dug a badly injured baby out of this bomb site. already the russians say the main armed group in the enclave has broken the cease—fire. it says it is forced to fight back. when the regime is not abiding by the un resolution, i cannot stand still and watch and not defend myself and our families in ghouta. this boy and the men with him are, we are told, victims of a chlorine attack. when it's weaponised, chlorine is banned under international law. the russians claim this is fake, part of a plan to discredit the syrian army. whether you believe these pictures or the russians,

it is another bad sign for the cease—fire. the syrian army is dug in around eastern ghouta, reported to be pushing forward. cease—fire or not, it can sense victory. jeremy bowen reporting there. six months after the military crackdown in myanmar which triggered a massive exodus of refugees, rohingya muslims are still pouring across the border into bangladesh. they're arriving at already overcrowded camps, where — with repatriation on hold — tensions are simmering. two rohingya elders have been murdered in the camps in the past few weeks. bbc hindi's nitin srivastava has travelled to cox's bazaar to investigate why they were killed: mohammed and his father used to pray at this makeshift mosque. his father

gave the morning call to prayer, but was stabbed to death on his way there one morning. we fled after my cousins were killed. my father, a 60—year—old god—fearing and religious man, had no image —— no enemies. he always wanted to go back to our homeland. after his murder my mother hasn't been speaking at all and we all fear for our lives. nobody knows why he was killed. aid workers and local people told me that traditional rohingya hierarchies are breaking down in the refugee camps in bangladesh, which is leading to violence. he also wa nted is leading to violence. he also wanted to become a community leader. his death shook the camp as only a few days before hand of another rohingya leader was killed at his home by masked men. they arrived on

bikes and started firing at my pa rents. bikes and started firing at my parents. they were speaking rohingya language and shot my mother also who got hit on the wrist. being a camp leader, my father was only compiling a list of all of the refugees who wa nted a list of all of the refugees who wanted to register for the repatriation process. why did they kill him? as a camp leader you control access to aid, which is a powerful position, especially when so many have so little. the complaints are growing in number. fights between neighbours overfood and shelter, it entered camp rivalries over eight which is arriving almost daily. the biggest reason perhaps it appears to be the hundreds of thousands of people living out here in these camps without any work at all. the camps have grown bigger and so have the needs and priorities of people. the

authorities say they are tightening security and have set up five police stations within the camp. both men who died were in favour of returning home to myanmar. it is unclear whether this was a factor in their dad. —— in their deaths. there are countries indeed between bangladesh and myanmar has stalled but has led to disputes among rohingya. —— the repatriation deal. still took him on the programme we speak to the author ofa the programme we speak to the author of a book on china that proved so controversial paris publisher walked away before it finally made it in the book shops today in australia. and also on the programme. a blast of cold weather is gripping much of europe — but it's not putting off these swimmers. prince charles has chosen his bride.

the current proposed to lady diana spencer through weeks ago and she accepted saying without hesitation. as revolutions go this had its fair share of bullets. a climax in the night outside the gates of the sanctuary. the name is spelled symbolising one of the cruelest regimes of modern day. the world's first clone has been produced of an aduu first clone has been produced of an adult mammal. scientists in scotland have produced a sheep called dolly using a cell from another sheep. citizens are trying to come to grips with their new freedom. though there isjoy and with their new freedom. though there is joy and relief today, the stars are everywhere. not for 20 years have locus been seen in such numbers in this part of africa. some of the swarms have been ten miles long. this is the last time the public will see this pope. very soon for the sake of the credibility and authority of the next pope benedict the 16th will in his own words being

of the world. for the rest of his life. —— be hid from the world for the rest of his life. welcome back, everyone. this is newsday on the bbc. i'm rico hizon in singapore. thank you for staying with us. i'm sharanjit leyl in london. our top stories... smiles at the closing ceremony — but a reported offer of talks from north korea is pushed back by washington. there have been two murders in the past few weeks as tensions rise at a rohingya camp in bangladesh. and japanese police are questioning an american man after the discovery of a woman's severed head at his rented holiday apartment in osaka. the head —found inside a suitcase — is believed to belong to a missing 27—year—old japanese woman. the american has denied any involvement. that story is popular on bbc.com across asia. let's ta ke let's take a look at some of the front pages from around the world and they are all olympic costic

today because let's take a look at the japan times first. it says japan has enjoyed its best olympics since 1998. they want about 13 medals in total including old gold and it features this photo of the women's rowing squad who beat great britain to win the nation's bronze medal in the sport. take a look of the china daily now and it looks ahead to the beijing olympics which are taking place in 2022, saying that along with their nine medals rob young chang —— pyeongchang, china are bringing home piles of notes, video footage, extensive know—how about the winter games operation, ready to facilitate their own delivery of the games in four yea rs' their own delivery of the games in four years' time. let's take a look at the straits times because it features this photo of the us president's daughter ivanka trump. a big smile there. she is standing near the north korean general at the pyeongchang closing ceremony on

sunday. the paper said they did not appear to interact. now rico, in trending you're looking at reaction to the sudden death of a particularly loved bollywood movie—star? that is right. the international shock and sorrow at the death of bollywood superstar sridevi kapoor at the age of 5a continue... ..with fans gathered outside her home in mumbai. those paying tribute online include the indian prime minister, narendra modi, who said he was saddened by her untimely death and the london mayor sadiq khan, who met the actress on a recent trip to india. gone too soon. indeed. let's turn to that story i told you about a little earlier. an expected move by china's ruling communist party to abandon a rule limiting the time a president can serve in office. that would see the current leader xijinping staying on indefinitely. the bbc‘s china correspondent robin brant reports. this was xijinping

this was xi jinping a few months ago with china communist party pump and gas pump at its finest. as he was confirmed for a second term as party chief and president. behind him were his two immediate predecessors, both of whom served ten years and stepped aside. now, there's a fresh sign that he wants to equip them. the ruling communist party wants to ditch the rule that the president should serve no more than two consecutive terms. in just those eight words lies the biggest change to china's leadership in 30 years. so, why now? the overall consensus in china by most people is that president xijinping has really in china by most people is that president xi jinping has really done a very good job and has become a truly outstanding leader by the chinese standard. his fight against corruption, his bold and audacious

initiative to promote the one felt one road initiative for example —— one road initiative for example —— one belt. to some here it looks like the current leader wants to become more like this one. communist china's revolutionary founding father. she is not referred to as the core, both men have had their thought added to the country's constitution and critics see a growing cult around president xi jinping as well. except this manna, shown here holding hands with his mother in a photo released last week is in charge of what is now the world's second—biggest economy. china under xijinping world's second—biggest economy. china under xi jinping has world's second—biggest economy. china under xijinping has looked to increase its influence in this part of the world. particularly in the south china sea, way beyond its coastline. it expanded its trade relationship to the west towards europe as well. there's no doubt more xijinping will europe as well. there's no doubt more xi jinping will mean a europe as well. there's no doubt more xijinping will mean a china that wants more of a presence on the world stage and more of an influence. i want to thank you for

the very warm welcome. my feeling toward you is an incredibly warm one. president trump has described his chinese counterpart as a friend but xijinping has plans his chinese counterpart as a friend but xi jinping has plans to challenge the us with an expanding navyin challenge the us with an expanding navy in the pacific and beyond, and with ambitions as well to conquer new tank like ai and electric vehicles. the longer he stays in power, the stronger that challenge could be. a controversial book that details allegations of chinese interference in australian society has finally been released today after finding a new publisher. australian author prof clive hamilton said three publishers had declined to take on his book, called silent invasion, because of fears of legal "retaliation" from beijing. hejoined the earlier he joined the earlier and before discussing his book i asked for his thoughts on the news that china's president could be extending his presidency. i think it's another

important and worrying step towards china becoming a totalitarian state. it seems that the president is entrenching his power and that will embolden him to prosecute more vigorously, aggressively one might say, his international campaign to assert chinese influence around the world. in your book, what makes the content so controversial?” world. in your book, what makes the content so controversial? i detail china's influence operations, is interference, it's espionage in australia, and i named those agents of influence among the australian population that are effectively acting as agents or proxies for beijing. and of course to expose these activities is something that these activities is something that the chinese communist party is a very worried about. professor, what proof do you have that these are agents or they are exerting

influence on australian society? in a way, what i'm doing is using publicly available information, but also dozens and dozens of interviews and great literature including tiny —— chinese language literature to confirm what the intelligence agencies have been telling australian governments in secret for the last few years. so, in a way, what my book does is expose the full court press, the whole range of influence activities in australia, across all of the major institutions. can you name your sources? are these credible sources? absolutely. totally credible. and the book is written in an extremely scholarly way. a packed full of notes and references. unfortunately, some of my sources i cannot name it because they would be persecuted if i used their names. they are sources both in australia, gingerly among the chinese asked billy matt bosher lea n the chinese asked billy matt bosher lean community and those that spoke

to me in china. some of your critics are saying this is all a pr stunt to get publicity and your book published. i'm an academic. i write books. this is another book on an extremely important topic. it will stand orfall on extremely important topic. it will stand or fall on the scholarly nature and the defensibility of the claims that are made in it. that was the author clive hamilton speaking to ricoh a little earlier. just to recap. the united states has said any direct talk with north korea must let billy beckley to it the end of its nuclear weapons programme. they said the north korean delegation expressed a willingness for dialogue with washington. the white house added that a brighter path existed for north korea if it chose to do uniquely rise, and i remain a condition for dialogue. you have been watching newsday. stay with us. we will be looking at the possible impact the latest changes will have on the north america free trade agreement and it's

definitely food for thought. and before we go, just as a blast of icy siberian weather engulfs much of europe. take a look at this. russians in the baltic sea enclave of kali—nin—grad have been showing just how to embrace it. dozens of ice swimmers — aged from 11 to 70 — have been competing in an outdoor pool in temperatures of around —10 degrees celsius. very cold, indeed. ice swimming is widely regarded in russia as a way of improving your health. the siberian cold snap — or the "beast from the east" as the british media is calling it — is expected to bring chilling winds from russia over the next week. we have got some very cold wintry

weather on the cards to see out the end of february and into the start of march. in fact, this week the weather will be particularly disruptive. really heavy snowfall combined with bitter easterly wind. a lot of frost and ice around, some wintry sunshine also but the temperatures will be very low and that's because we have our air coming in right from siberia from the easterly airflow pushing across the easterly airflow pushing across the uk. there are this week, temperatures well below where we would expect them to be for this time of year. we start off monday morning with a few snow showers, particularly toward the east but it's a cold and frosty start to the working week. cloud across eastern england and scotland will bring a few scattered snow showers, could be a couple of them —— the metres accumulating. crowd and a few showers pushing their way further west through the day, a bit of snow through the midlands, and although temperatures are above freezing just about by a few degrees it will feel colder than that when you add on the effect of the wind—chill with those cold, easterly wind and some of us it will not feel much warmer than

about minus five celsius, bitterly cold and as we head through monday evening over night into tuesday some more persistent and heavy snow showers work in from the north sea across eastern scotland and eastern england also. temperatures well below freezing to start your day tuesday, it will not warm up in a hurry because we have those cold easterly winds, heavy snowfall and the met office have issued an amber warning of potentially very disruptive snow on tuesday, particularly for eastern england, southeast also. we could see disruption to travel, perhaps school closures, power cuts as not believe leave and heavy snow showers continue to work in on that brisk easterly wind. some of the snow showers reaching well down to the sublease —— southwest of england but eastern areas will see the heaviest and the most persistent of the snow showers. a bit of sunshine in between a fair amount of dry weather but northern ireland and was in scotland. board wednesday a similar picture. easterly wind once again with that mix of sunshine and heavy

snow showers drifting from east to west across many parts of the country. temperatures will be below freezing i think all day for many of us through the course of wednesday. it will feel cold, snow will accumulate fairly quickly. we could see around 10—20 cm of snow for many areas particularly toward the east and perhaps even more over higher ground. probably not as much in terms of the snow mounds further west but it looks like we could see this area of low pressure bringing heavy and widespread snow from the south across much of the country by thursday. bye for now. this is bbc world news. our top story. the us has said it won't enter talks with north korea unless it gives up its nuclear programme. with north korea unless it gives south korea claimed pyongyang had signalled its willingness to hold talks with the us at a meeting before the winter olympics closing ceremony.

there's been a suspected chemical attack in syria. activists say these pictures are from a hospital in eastern ghouta, an area under intense attack for a week. this video is training on bbc .com right now. this video is trending on bbc.com right now. the winter olympics, which saw such a mix of politics and sport, has ended with a spectacular ceremony watched by athletes and sports fans. norway finished top of the medal table, overtaking germany in the final event. that's all from me now. stay with bbc world news. now on bbc news, it's time for hardtalk.