this is bbc world news today. i'm kasia madera. our top stories. theresa may spells out what she calls the hard facts of brexit. in a major policy speech, the british prime minister claims the uk and eu are now close to a deal on the transition. president trump insists the us can easily win any trade wars sparked by his decision to impose steep tariffs on steel and aluminium imports. italy prepares to go to the polls on sunday with the familiar face of silvio berlusconi back on the election trail. severe weather continues to bring chaos to large parts of europe. at least 59 people have died in sub—zero temperatures. hello and welcome. uk prime minister theresa may

has outlined her vision of britain's future relationship with the european union. she reiterated that the uk would not be part of the eu's single market or customs union. mrs may said both sides would have to accept ‘hard facts‘ and that no one would get everything they wanted. the prime minister also warned that the uk would have to pay money into some eu agencies to maintain access to them. what a challenge. to set up britain's future relationship with the eu amid the political divisions at home and profound scepticism abroad. acknowledging possible downsides to brexit for the first time, she said britain had to face up time, she said britain had to face up to hard facts. in certain ways oui’ access up to hard facts. in certain ways our access to up to hard facts. in certain ways oui’ access to each up to hard facts. in certain ways our access to each other‘s markets will be less than it is now. how could the eu structure of rights and obligations be sustained if the uk oi’ obligations be sustained if the uk orany obligations be sustained if the uk or any country were allowed to enjoy all the benefits without all of the obligations? mrs may is proposing a

profound separation from europe, the so—called hard brexit of leaving the customs union and single market. but she says that should not stop there being what she called a deep partnership in the future. we should not think of leaving the eu as marking an ending as much as a new beginning for the uk and our relationship with our european allies. change is not to be feared. so long as they face it with a clear—sighted determination to act for the common good. as to domestic reaction, her beech has prompted calls for more detail from business, which remains anxious about brexit. and has strong cautious praise from both the anti—and pro—european wings of governing conservative party. in europe, the eu chief negotiators said mrs may was at last facing reality but there would be trade—offs from brexit. the european parliament's brexit coordinator was

more harsh, mrs may, he tweeted, was still being vague. it has been at a modulus week in the long—running drama that is brexit. but the opposition labour party coming out in favour of closer ties with the eu. and two former prime minister —— prime minister ‘s morning of the dangers of leaving europe and pleading with politicians and voters alike to think again. the politician left with carrying out the result of a referendum that has divided britain like no other issue in decades said the country was facing a crucial moment. thank you. few would disagree. how was the speech received on the continent? here is katya adler. here in brussels it has been rather muted and wary. the eu's chief brexit negotiator, michel barnier, took to twitter to thank the prime minister for her clarity and say that confirmation that the uk would be leaving the single market and the customs union meant that it was heading for a free—trade agreement with the eu.

privately, eu diplomats have praised the prime minister's more realistic tone, they said, admitting that both sides can't have exactly what they want. but they said they couldn't find much new in her speech and they lamented the absence of a workable solution, they said, to the irish problem. manfred weber, he's very close to angela merkel and a leader here in the european parliament, he said that the uk was still burying its head in the sand. tonight we've got working groups from all the 27 eu member states who are poring over detail of the prime minister's speech. one diplomat said to me today he hoped that he would find coded messages to the eu in theresa may's speech that would then become much clearer once they sit down again at the negotiating table. he said something similar happened with her last brexit speech back in autumn. katya adler reporting. that has turned to the us. —— let us turn. international stock markets have fallen after president trump's announcement of planned tariffs

on imports of steel and aluminium. many of the united states' trading partners say they're considering retaliatory action. china's steel industry has called the move ‘stupid'. european commission president jean—claude juncker says the eu will will react in kind if trump goes ahead. meanwhile the world trade organization say the potential for escalation is real and a trade war is in no one's interests. our washington correspondent, nick bryant, has more. harley davidson, levi and bourbon, why are they significant? because harley davidson is made in wisconsin, where the republican house speaker paul ryan comes from and a lot of bourbon comes from kentucky, the home state of mitch mcconnell. it does seem to be very carefully targeted retaliatory strikes against republicans, who frankly are not supportive of this move to invoke tariffs. paul ryan is

calling for a rethink, he once the president to consider the unintended consequences but in the face of criticism is at home and abroad, turmoil in the global market, donald trump has said, bring it on. trade wa i’s trump has said, bring it on. trade wars are good thing and they can easily be one. he is being very vocal on twitter, his favourite form of communication and china is also calling this a stupid idea. there really has been a mirage of international criticism for this. from countries like china and close neighbours like canada, justin trudeau very critical, saying this would be unacceptable. even allies who are pretty slavish in their support, like austria. they have been critical as well. and there has been critical as well. and there has been criticism within america from manufacturing organisations, the automobile group saying this would raise the cost of cars. nick bryant

in washington. the turkish authorities have now confirmed that 41 of their soldiers have been killed so far in fighting, in the north syrian region of afrin. it's been one of the bloodiest days in this offensive which is targeting kurdish fighters, known as the ypg. turkey considers the us—backed kurdish militia that controls much of north—eastern syria a terrorist group. the bbc has managed to film from the kurdish side of the conflict — as richard galpin now reports. night—time in afrin province in north—eastern syria. and turkish jets are pounding the target, at a checkpoint. bewildered survivors emerge out of the dark. and are picked up by ambulances. they have been part of a large convoy of vehicles bringing food and fuel for the people of afrin city. there were

casualties, including teenagers. but most people had managed to run to safety just most people had managed to run to safetyjust in time. we came here as a peaceful convoy for our brothers in afrin, we had no weapons, but the forces rained shells on us. we don't wa nt forces rained shells on us. we don't want them here or anywhere in syria. this, the remnants of the convoy. since turkey began its offensive against kurdish fighters in the area injanuary, human against kurdish fighters in the area in january, human rights against kurdish fighters in the area injanuary, human rights groups say more than 90 civilians have been killed and hundreds injured, including children. they described this as indiscriminate attacks. the kurdish areas, marked in yellow, light along much of the border with turkey. the afrin pocket in the far north—west of syria is a current focus of the turkish offensive. but there may also be a move on the key city of graham beech to enter

kurdish fighters are driven well away from the turkish border. the turkish government says it is targeting a kurdish group known as the ypg because it poses a strategic threat as it is linked to insurgents, also kurdish, based inside turkey. already the fighting has forced an estimated 15,000 people to leave their homes in search of safety. many here traumatised by what they have witnessed. translation: everyone had fled from his village. the elderly being carried. it was terrifying. i fear the village has been destroyed. no one knows how long they could be stuck here. turkey says the offensive will continue until it is com pletely offensive will continue until it is completely uprooted the ypg fighters from the border regions. let's take a look at some of the other stories making the news.

in the us, more than 2000 people have been paying their respects to the world—famous evangelist billy graham. he died last week at the age of 99. both president donald trump and his deputy, mike pence, attended the funeral in charlotte, north carolina. protests have been taking place across slovakia over the killing of an investigative journalist and his fiancee. jan kuciak‘s work alleged links between the italian mafia and figures close to the prime minister. tens of thousands of people took to the streets of the capital bratislava alone. britain's prince harry and meghan markle will invite more than 2,500 members of the public to the grounds of windsor castle for their wedding. they'll be able to watch the couple arrive and depart. charity workers and school children will be among those invited to attend. stay with us on bbc world news, still to come... the secret life of penguins — we'll tell you about the thriving colony of birds enjoying life off the antarctic peninsula.

first, the plates slipped off the restau ra nt ta bles first, the plates slipped off the restaurant tables and the tables, chairs and people crashed sideways and downwards. it wasjust chairs and people crashed sideways and downwards. it was just a chairs and people crashed sideways and downwards. it wasjust a matter of seconds as the ferry lurched onto the side. the hydrogen bomb, on a remote pacific atoll, the americans successfully tested a weapon whose explosive force dwarfed that of the bomb dropped on hiroshima. had they heard the news earlier, my heart we nt heard the news earlier, my heart went bang, bang. the constitutional rights of these marchers they are the rights of the citizens of the us and they should be protected, even in the right to test them so they don't get sent to hospital.

religious controversy. does it worry you that this will boil up? it worries me, yes. everything will be all right in the end. welcome back. the british prime minister, theresa may, has denied that she wants to cherry—pick the best bits of eu membership, in a major speech setting out her vision for a post—brexit partnership with the bloc. president trump has tweeted that trade wars can be good, because his country is losing billions of dollars in existing deals. mr trump announced tariffs on imports of steel and aluminium to the us yesterday. immigration, independence referendums, populist politics and every day people questioning their place in the eu. we could be talking about any number of european countries but right now, the focus is on italy with voters going to the polls this sunday. numerous parties are running —

but there are three main groupings. there are also some very familiarfaces. on the centre—right forza italia is headed by a very familiar face, former prime minister silvio berlusconi. he can't become pm until 2019 because of a tax fraud conviction. but, depending on the results, he could very much be a kingmaker if it came down to forming a coalition. but his euro—sceptic coalition ally, matteo salvini leader of league has his own ambitions for the role. the 5 star movement, led by 31—year old luigi di maio, is one of europe's biggest populist movements. and then on the centre—left, there's the governing democratic party led by the former prime minister, matteo renzi. our rome correspondent, james reynolds, explains why predictions are difficult in italy's elections. it is made all the more difficult by the fact that italian laws says that for the two weeks before the election you cannot have an opinion

polls so we can talk about the opinion polls but they may be out of date. those last opinion polls taken two weeks ago suggested the centre—right coalition organised by silvio berlusconi might be the ones closest to the finishing line but they might fall short of that. those polls also suggested that the five star movement might be the biggest single political movement after the election but they have struggled to form alliances, essentially there are two things going on. italians themselves vote on sunday. then the italian politicians who have been elected will almost discuss among themselves who should take power. and when those discussions take place, there is no one better, with more experience, and silvio berlusconi? and it was fascinating to watch him at one of his final events in rome. organising and convening his coalition partners as if he had been doing this for years, as if he was the one pulling the strings. he cannot be king, the law

says anyone with a major conviction cannot take part in public office. but he can be the kingmaker. that will depend on the numbers that come out of sunday. if the centre—right coalition does well, it might be that he looks to build the government without coalition, it may be at forza italia tries to break away to form a grand coalition with the centre—left and maybe five star gets close. so many may bes because this is how politics you usually works. in terms of the issues, what is the main theme going through? immigration must be one of those?|j will immigration must be one of those?” will pick the other... unemployment. going with yours, immigration has become the key issue of this campaign, in recent years more than 600,000 migrants have landed on these shores from the mediterranean, not all of them have stayed but the fa ct not all of them have stayed but the fact they have landed has changed the way this country's debate happens. the centre—right says

anyone who has come here illegally should be deported. it appears they have one strength in that. the other issueis have one strength in that. the other issue is unemployment. youth unemployment in italy is routinely around 40% and there is a vast pool of people who feel that italy is not listening to them. those younger people. it may be laid aside the five star movement, and antiestablishment movement, is their natural home. james reynolds reporting from rome. and bbc news will be watching this race as it unfolds, culminating with a special programme right here on bbc world news and the bbc news channel as well. that is sunday at ten o'clock in the evening. there's no immediate end in sight to the deep freeze sweeping across europe. heavy snowfall and deadly blizzards will continue well into the weekend. in parts of eastern croatia, temperatures have plummeted to minus 23 degrees. the coastal adriatic towns of pula and split are covered in snow. though thursday marked the first day of the meteorological spring,

this morning was actually the coldest this winter. italy remains stuck in sub—zero temperatures, with snow blanketing the cities of bologna, venice and florence. the ice has left a number of major roads blocked and caused disruption to train and air travel. forecasters have warned that conditions there aren't likely to improve immediately. this is the view overlooking westminster in london as the houses of parliament and the london eye, visible on a very cloudy night in the capital. in the uk, storm emma has collided with the siberian cold snap, resulting in disruption across much of the country. amid the misery for many, stuck in cars, on trains, struggling into work, there've also been stories of great heroism and of those who've gone out of their way to come to the aid of others. sarah campbell reports. an out of control car ends up on the wrong side of this edinburgh road. a collision seems inevitable.

no, no, no, no! that it didn't happen is thanks to the quick reactions of the bus driver. to me, it looks worse on the video then i felt at the time. i did get a fright, but i managed to avoid it, luckily, and then i got on with myjob after that. i totally forgot all about it and my husband asked me if he had seen this video when i got home. he didn't know it was me at the time. born in balgedie in fife, midwives made it to help with a delivery and villages cleared roads to get the baby safely to hospital. across the uk people have refused to let the weather get in their way. this paramedic is part of a cycle response team for the london ambulance service. and stranded drivers on the a1 in northumberland were treated to cream cakes and muffins, by a fellow motorist happen to be a delivery driver for greggs.

this businessman paid for 12 hotel rooms he offered to homeless people. you can't expect people to be out in that, it's life—threatening conditions, i thought, for the sake of £22 it get‘s peple off the streets. lewis hine, a patient at great ormond street hospital tweeted his heartfelt thanks to the staff who made him his very own snowman. and stuck in skegness without an event to go to, the bbc‘s concert orchestra offered their services as a wedding gift to fellow hotel guests on their big day. when they started, it took your breath away. oh, yeah, totally unexpected. amid freezing temperatures, the warmth of human kindness has resonated. what a great end to the package.

that is turn away from the weather and get the sports news. lizzy is here. great britain's katarina johnson—thompson has won herfirst world title, taking gold in the pentathlon in front of the home crowd at the world indoor championships in birmingham. feeling by 33 points going into the final event, the 800 metres, she had two seconds in hand over her nearest rival. she did not need that, co mforta bly rival. she did not need that, comfortably finishing first.” cannot believe it. to come here and do this in my hometown is something i dreamt of doing. all my family are here today. i went through a hard year last year towards the end of the year and i wanted my family to see me actually achieve something so iamso see me actually achieve something so i am so happy they were here to witness it. every event. it isjust something that i still cannot believe, really. meanwhile, in the

men's long jump, cuba believe, really. meanwhile, in the men's longjump, cuba had believe, really. meanwhile, in the men's long jump, cuba had the longestjump men's long jump, cuba had the longest jump to take men's long jump, cuba had the longestjump to take gold, the best jump longestjump to take gold, the best jump of the 19—year—old ‘s career so far added eight metres 46 it was one of the best indoor long jumps in history. kristin wilde has claimed gold after a dramatic day in the women's omnium. elinor barker was one of several riders caught up in this crash during the elimination pa rt this crash during the elimination part of the event, she got back on her bike and was in bronze position heading into the final event. but she could not manage to hold on, finishing in sixth place overall, nine points from the middle. wild claims referred for the netherlands. the first medal of the day was won by cameron meyer from australia, defending his title in the points race, winning by some distance to ta ke race, winning by some distance to take his ninth world title. the home rider took silver with britain's mark stewart completing the podium. real madrid's luka modric has been

charged with perjury in his native country, croatia. it relates to the midfielder making statements that the tax fraud trial of his former manager. , did say he made a full statement in june last manager. , did say he made a full statement injune last year over details of his transfer from dynamo kyiv to spurs in 2008, and found guilty he could face up five years in prison. boxing's wbc heavyweight champion says he could beat anybody at any champion says he could beat anybody atany time champion says he could beat anybody at any time ahead of his title defence on saturday. wilder is much lighter than his opponent, as we reported from new york. all the talking is done, both fighters made way to the next time when they see each other, to settle their differences at the berkeley centre. deontay wilder looked more muscular and athletic but luis ortiz has never been athletic but he is very gifted, he is a southpaw and unbeaten professionally. it is

called the biggest test of wilder's career. he said onstage that he is coming in lighter but the wait will mean nothing, he would rather be the pa rt mean nothing, he would rather be the part and look the part and there is a lot riding on this for wilder, victory could secure a unification fight against anthonyjoshua, the biggest name at the moment. england was byjonny biggest name at the moment. england was by jonny bairstow biggest name at the moment. england was byjonny bairstow says he has no plans to follow his one—day team—mates into playing solely limited overs cricket. england face new zealand in the third match of their one—day series in just under four hours and bairstow says he wa nts to four hours and bairstow says he wants to stay in the test side as well. it is very much a personal opinion, a personal decision. iwill not be playing solely white ball cricket. for a long time. as i say, it is an individual thing that people have got to weigh up within themselves. and that is all the sport for now. thank you. now to those who are definitely more at home in the snow — a colony of more than 1.5 million

penguins has been discovered off the antarctic peninsula. with little human activity on the danger islands, a so—called super—colony of adelie penguins is thriving. our science correspondent victoria gill has more. a bird's eye view of a seabird super colony. 1.5 million adelie penguins are nesting here on the aptly named danger islands, just east of the antarctic peninsula. satellite images captured almost four years ago had indicated that a large colony might be here. but it was only when a team of british and us scientists mounted an expedition to the remote, rocky islands that they were able to carry out at detailed penguin census. painstaking headcounts, along with aerial photography, revealed the scale of this wildlife haven. ijoined the same researchers in antarctica in 2016 and captured just a snapshot of their decade of wildlife monitoring in this frozen landscape. work like this on the ground in the antarctic has revealed that adelie penguins on the west of the peninsular are in decline,

so this discoveryjust 100 miles away provides a vital clue about a site that could be a refuge for the birds. and it might need more protection from human activities like fishing. one key to this island's vast stable colony, researchers say, is its sea ice. as well as being a vital breeding ground for the crustaceans, or krill, that penguins rely on it makes access to the island difficult for fisheries and shipping. there's already proposal to make the weddell sea around the danger islands a marine protected area. views like this showjust what that could preserve. victoria gill, bbc news. a positive note to end the programme on. we are on social media and there is lots more online. goodbye. after another day after disruption,

the big question is, what does the weekend have in store? slowly, things are going to turn less cold. still some wintry showers around, a mixture of rain, sleet and snow. for tonight, a band of snow will become increasingly light and patchy drifting across the midlands and northern england and wales and northern ireland so mostly rain showers for the south west model that could give icy conditions and snow showers towards the north—east. into saturday, we continue to bring this band of cloud and patchy snow northwards and northern england, northern ireland and southern scotla nd northern ireland and southern scotland seeing some of that and still snow showers in the north—east, mostly rain showers were the south—west because here we are looking at 7 degrees. feeling cold elsewhere. sunday will see bands of rain, sleet and hill snow drifting northwards and spells of sunshine in between. just about all of us seeing a recovery in the temperatures,

2-9d. it is a recovery in the temperatures, 2—9d. it is time for inside out... welcome from malton. in the next 30 minutes, but your mobile phone away. that is a call from a cumbrian living with the consequences of drivers who use their phone at the wheel. you cannot risk it. because it is not just wheel. you cannot risk it. because it is notjust the wheel. you cannot risk it. because it is not just the fact that you are heavily fined will go to prison, it is alive that get ruined. can a north yorkshire jockey help change dangerous practice when it comes to the all—important weigh—in? if you go out and have six, seven, eight gin and tonics and do not eat you will be lighter in the morning so you think, that's great, i will make the weight up the next day but then obviously it's not good for your head. and newcastle's great survivor, one man's vision of the picture

palace that has survived the test of time. dixon scott really was a remarkable person. he could have built a box, a shed, almost, with a screen in it and some rudimentary seats but obviously the tyneside is not like that, it is beautiful. i am chris jackson and this is inside out. it was a heartbreaking disaster on the m6 in cumbria, and all because of one of these. in a split second one man died and another had his life altered forever. one year on from a change in the law, we ask why do people still use mobile phones behind the wheel. now, when you are in your car... ..you have really got to keep your eyes peeled. anything could happen. a kid could dash out in front of you, another car could make a sudden manoeuvre, and you certainly should not be doing any of this. i'm just going to let my mate know. hang on. it's not easy looking at this. i can't really keep one eye on the road and this.

well, you maybejust think you will get away with it. after all, you could just be going down a nice quiet road. could even be stuck ina trafficjam. or maybe it's somewhere you know really well. of course it does not really matter. because i am not really driving. but if i had been caught with this in my hand that would mean a £200 fine and six points on my licence. but if i had caused an accident i could end up in prison. those penalties doubled a year ago. but is anyone taking it more seriously? in carlisle, it's rush—hour. he is on his phone. that will do for me. pc dan beige is on the lookout for drivers breaking the law. ok, two cars ahead of us we have got this black mercedes. black phone, silver edge to it and he had it texting in his right hand. pull into there.

hello, mate, justjump out for us. grab your phone as well, please. that black one with the silver around the edges. good man. do you know why i have stopped you? yeah, you have probably seen me put the phone on the charger. so you know using a mobile phone while you are behind the wheel of a car is illegal, yes? yeah. 0k. that was a young male driver on his way home, he was texting with his right hand, could clearly see it from our position. can i get a vehicle check, please, london road, for an offence? you could see his attention was drawn to his phone, he was not looking where he was going. as soon as he got out of his car he realised why he had been stopped. but using a hand—held phone at the wheel does notjust lead to points and fines, it can devastate lives. as paul, from kirby stephen, knows all too well. the bestjob i've ever had, fantastic, helping people, being out there.