you're watching beyond one hundred days. the facts aren't all in, but the british foreign secretary is already warning moscow. if a former spy was poisoned by the kremlin, borisjohnson is promising a robust response. sergei skripal and his daughter are still in critical condition in a hospital in salisbury, and counter—terrorism police have ta ken over the investigation. the russian foreign ministry says accusations that moscow is behind this mysterious incident are "wild". donald trump welcomes news that north korea is ready to discuss giving up its nuclear weapons and says the world is watching. also on the programme: hurricane irma destroyed lives and homes. six months on, are rebuilding efforts on track? we report from the british virgin islands. the new star and her statuette. what's next for the profoundly deaf six—year—old and oscar winner from england who's the toast of hollywood? get in touch with us using the hashtag beyond one hundred days. hello, and welcome.

i'm katty kay in washington, and christian fraser is in london. sergei skripal used to spy for britain for the kremlin that made him a traitor. the question now, raised today in parliament, is, did moscow's henchmen follow skripal to exile in the uk and poison him? the foreign secretary, boris johnson, said today that britain would respond "robustly" if evidence of state involvement emerges. it hasn't been declared a terrorist incident, but counter—terrorism police are leading the investigation. from salisbury, tom symonds reports. a father and a daughter apparently struck down in public on a sunday afternoon in salisbury. the bbc revealed today that yulia skripal had been visiting her father, sergei, from russia, when it happened. they were left fighting for their lives. her eyes were just completely white, wide—open, butjust white, and frothing at the mouth.

and then the man went stiff, his arms stopped moving. but he was still looking dead straight. cctv images obtained by the bbc appear to show mr skripal and his daughter walking together at 15.47 on sunday afternoon. they were heading for a small park surrounded by shops in the centre of salisbury, called the maltings. the camera which captured these pictures is yards from where they were found. police were called at 4:15pm when people reported the pair were unconscious on a park bench. last night, an italian restaurant nearby, zizzi, was sealed by police, followed today by a local pub, bishop's mill. did someone slip something into theirfood or drink? for the police, this is a highly sensitive and potentially hazardous investigation, not least for the officers involved. the key question, of course, is what was the substance that left a father and his daughter in such a terrible condition on the park bench covered by the tent behind me?

there will be toxicology reports prepared, but we understand that several police officers were admitted to hospital. one has been kept in. symptoms include breathing difficulties and itchy eyes. experts at the research fertility porton down are now involved, testing for a wide range of substances. it's from things that are chemically toxic to things that are radiological, such as what was used against litvinenko. i think people will have an open mind, they'll be looking at what's in the environment, what's on the clothing, on the skin of the people, and also what's in blood and urine and any other samples. so far, the tiny wiltshire police force has led the investigation, but that changed today in a significant development. this afternoon, the metropolitan police have confirmed that, due to the unusual circumstances, the counterterrorism network will be leading this investigation as it has the specialist capability

and expertise to do so. after all, as the foreign secretary made clear in parliament this afternoon, this incident could have implications for britain's relationship with russia. should evidence emerge that implies state responsibility, then her majesty's government will respond appropriately and robustly. sergei skripal was arrested in 2004, accused of spying for mi6, convicted, and in 2010 handed over to britain as part of a spy swap. sergei skripal‘s wife, elder brother and son have died in recent years, the family believe in suspicious circumstances. he has been living quietly here for some years, but under his own name. he would not have been hard to find. tom symonds, bbc news, salisbury. we'll get reaction from russia in just a moment, but first, a look at what we know so far.

let's speak to mark urban, the diplomatic editor for bbc newsnight. where have we got to with the investigation? it is significant, as tom was reporting, that counter terrorism command has taken over. it is not terrorism but counterterrorism command contains specialist branch which deals with these incidents. it is also evident that the foreign secretary would not have gone this far unless the government was party to some kind of intelligence about what had gone on. we know, as in the case of litvinenko, there is a difference between intelligence and evidence. they want to show that they have an idea, but they do not want to obstruct or prejudice the police investigation, said the two things will go on in tandem. intelligence

and gathering of evidence. i was surprised to hear that mr skripal had been living under his own name. does that give us some indication of what kind of like he has been living for the last seven years in the uk? it is interesting. he came here after this exchange for the illegal network that was arrested in the united states in 2010. we know he had been doing things like lecturing at military colleges, intelligence consulting with other agencies that mi6 consulting with other agencies that m16 asked to get in touch with. the family arrangements, his daughter and son spent most of the time in russia but worth visiting occasionally. and he was there under his own name, his kids were travelling back and forth, and some people would argue that he felt there was a kind of modus vivendi there was a kind of modus vivendi there had been reached with the

russian authorities, he would not put his head above the parapet and they would leave him and his family alone. stay with us because we will look at the russian reaction, authority saying they will incorporate with the police investigation but insist they have no information at this moment to share. the russian embassy in london says the reporting of the incident has led to the demonisation of russia. from moscow, here's steve rosenberg. it sounds chillingly familiar. russia under suspicion of planning and executing an attack 2,000 miles away in britain. in 2006, the target was former russian agent alexander litvinenko, murdered in london. the man britain believes poisoned him is andrei lugovoy. today, he dismissed claims that moscow had attacked sergei skripal as propaganda. translation: why do they say he was poisoned? perhaps he poisoned himself or had a heart attack.

you talk about propaganda, but what about alexander litvinenko? the enquiry in britain into his death found that you had poisoned him, probably on the orders of vladimir putin. translation: there was no official investigation into litvinenko's death. there was an attempt to accuse russia and a russian citizen, me, of poisoning him in britain with polonium. as for the kremlin, well, it's been saying very little today about sergei skripal. president putin's spokesman told me earlier, "we have no information "about what happened. "we cannot comment. " although he did add it was a tragic situation. but catching spies has become one of vladimir putin's priorities. yesterday, he congratulated russia's security service, the fsb. it uncovered 397 spies last year. spy—mania, and now a former double agent collapsing in britain.

moscow denies any connection, but it can only add to the chill in relations between the uk and russia. steve rosenberg, bbc news, moscow. the foreign secretary chose to threaten russia with retribution. looks like another anti—russian campaign has already been written. strong words from the russians. why would the pardon someone and then height in the uk? it is not make any sense. going back to that russian statement, clearly, the foreign secretary would have to have certain information. he must‘ve been briefed on the certain way about this

because it is an enormous hostage to fortune if the russian embassy is right and these denials from moscow right. the only thing one can say is a convincing alternative explanation would have the urge pretty quickly in the police investigation for them to be vindicated on this. on the assumption your question carries, that this was indeed the russians, this has always been seen as a way of sending a message. the choice of skripal might be a combination of who was available to all who was easily findable and a desire to send a message at a particular time, elections coming up in russia, who saw in that report the emphasis on catching foreign spies, retribution, it has always been a team of vladimir putin, and it may be it was politically convenient for him to have this at this time. that is all one can say, but clearly one expects further evidence to merge if indeed

the implicit point the foreign secretary made today is to be validated and proven that this was a russian operation. so, mark, say this ends up with that evidence pointing to moscow, what would russia actually respond to, in terms of retaliation? it is hard to believe boris johnson of retaliation? it is hard to believe borisjohnson saying, i will not turn up at the world cup will make much difference.” not turn up at the world cup will make much difference. i think,... not turn up at the world cup will make much difference. ithink,... i have been talking to people today, if this is proven, and some have said, this is like litvinenko only worse, and litvinenko has defined uk russian relations for more than decade now, so if proof emerges or significant evidence emerges that russian state operatives did this, it will be an enormous factor in relations. we can also see some interesting possible tensions

between the uk and its european allies. some of them have never been that keen on sanctions or measures against russia in the context of the ukraine. imagine now, as the uk is on its way out of the eu, asking for solidarity and back—up for some possible new measures against russia, it could be diplomatically very tough situation. thank you very much for coming in, interesting to hear your thoughts. i have heard people who have been intelligence in the us in the last day or two, talking about this case and saying, this is a very british situation that britain seems to be in at ground zero in this tussle between intelligence factions in moscow and london, why is that? part of that will be the money that is here in london. it is no secret that there are oligarchs here and there has been an investment in mayfair and belgravia, and been an investment in mayfair and belg ravia, and there been an investment in mayfair and belgravia, and there is a strong link between russia and the uk

through, in this case, mi6, soaked former operatives come kid. but that doesn't mean that other russians in europe do not feel concerned as well. we know litvinenko's brother in rome feels equally uncertain about his future more scared about what has happened here today. there isa what has happened here today. there is a reason i think white happens more here. so if money is part of the reason, do you think money might be part of the response? as mark was just saying, they will look at companies that are floated here through the city of london and the sort of money swilling around in the sort of money swilling around in the sort of money swilling around in the sort of people who come here. sanctions might be one of the issues. but if i threw this back at you, there are all sorts of people here saying, we need strong action, but would the americans think? they have an american president who will

not even introduce sanctions passed by congress. we have talked about that a lot, this president's attitude to russia. this story has not got a huge amount of attention here in america and that is interesting. let's see if it makes any material difference in terms of the white house's response to moscow. us intelligence officials are clearly wary of north korea's offer to talk about denuclearising, saying they'd have to know a lot more before they can assess whether kim jong—un is serious. the north said it was open to talking with the united states if the safety of the regime was secured. president trump naturally took to twitter. it may all be false hope, he said, but the us is ready to go hard in either direction! meanwhile, trump's director of national intelligence said the us would have to know far more before assessing whether north korea was serious about getting rid of its nuclear weapons programme. we saw the news this morning relative to north korea. hope springs eternal, but we need to learn a lot more relative to these talks, and we will. and the ic will continue to do every possible collection and assessment we can relative to the situation

that exists in north korea. let's get some reaction to this with the former us defense secretary, william cohen, whojoins me. i wanted to get your reaction to this offer from i wanted to get your reaction to this offerfrom north korea, how seriously do you take it? we have been here before. this is the same language they have used before, we are prepared to talk about nuclear issues provided our security is ensured. that means that we cease and desist from having training exercises that we carry on each year, said that would be the first demand they make. they will be postponed due to the winter olympics, and now the schedule will be started again, and be postponed that will have a negative impact. we have been there before. the north

koreans have cheated before on agreements. we have to remember they have been supplying allegedly chemical weapons to syria, selling weapons to egypt, in violation of all the sanctions. so we are prepared to hear what they have to say. but watch what president trump does not what he says and the same thing applies to the north koreans. but this could potentially be a diplomatic success story for president trump if it turns out that all this tough rhetoric, the military preparing nurse, everyone is talking about here in washington, if that is pushed to the north koreans to say, we do need to talk seriously. if it does, it will be a good thing. we will have to wait and see, so watch what they do not what they say. i want to talk about ta riffs they say. i want to talk about tariffs for president is dancing on aluminium and steel. we have talked about in the context of trade war but what about security? by the

sitting in on these particular meetings? this is almost tantamount to firing a warning shot to the temple. the united states is looking to hit china, but if we impose this trade barrier or tariff, it will hit the europeans, the mexicans, the canadians are far more than the chinese. this is something that most of those in national security say is not a policy of development, it will mean there will be retaliation against boeing and other major industries, agriculture. when the president says, trade wars are easy, they are not. for every complex problem, there is an answer that is simple, in terms of dealing with it. trade sanctions at this time, the secretary of defence understands

that this is a bad thing for the united states and we will have to wait to see whether the president follows through. he changes his mind from day—to—day, maybe he will change between now and next week. from day—to—day, maybe he will change between now and next weeklj must talk to you about the suspected poisoning of the former russian spy here in britain. a member of the foreign affairs committee said we are entering a new era, second cold war when the russians have a new and sophisticated toolkit to interfere in the west. do you worry your own president is not taking this as seriously as he showed?” president is not taking this as seriously as he showed? i do. the president has done nothing in response to the allegations and universal conclusion that the russians interfered in elections. congress has passed more sanctions. but the person has refused to implement them. it is very curious

as to why the president is such a pacifist in the face of what is clearly a n pacifist in the face of what is clearly an assault on the american integrity and sovereignty. it is something we will have to wait on, but there is something wrong, why is this dog not barking? when you see so much evidence, not only new tricks, but old tricks. the poisoned thing was what the russians perfected and sometimes you need to trace the footprints of guilt with the searchlight trace the footprints of guilt with the sea rchlight probability, trace the footprints of guilt with the searchlight probability, and here the footprints will lead right to russian spy agencies, the president putin himself. they are certainly watching this on both sides of the atlantic. six months ago, hurricane irma crossed the caribbean. it killed dozens of people and left many more without homes. one of the worst hit was tortola in the british virgin islands. more than 80% of the buildings were either damaged or completely destroyed. and so, six months on, aleem maqbool has been back to find out how the community is recovering.

it is shocking that, so long after the storm, there are still those living in shelters. they are among the thousands whose homes were torn apart by irma. we've been here, like, five, six months and nothing. it seems to me that everybody just gave up on us. we're just here. irma was the most devastating hurricane ever to be recorded in this region, barely a building on this island was left untouched, boats were lifted clean into the air and dumped on the land. tortola now still has the signs everywhere you look that a massive storm came this way. well, even though it is desperately needed, tourism here has suffered immensely over the last six months and they've suffered a huge blow just in recent weeks, with two of the biggest cruise companies serving this area saying, for this season, they won't be bringing their ships

to the british virgin islands. peak season a couple of years ago, sometimes it looks like there's more boats than water. you can't see the water for the yachts. it's not a good feeling, you know, back then to compare it now. it's not a good feeling. the window went in. the window went in and went out. but light has been hard to come by in the last six months here, just ask rita, whose home was badly damaged by irma and who says, in this uk territory, that she saw little aid from the uk. me have no aid, apart from the six bottles of water i get. that was it. i don't have no aid. it was a common perception we heard here, that apart from the work done by british troops immediately after the storm, more could have been done. when we did need them to show that we are truly a child of the united kingdom, i think they disappointed us. so it changed our view, in terms of the relationship. the governor of these islands says

he's proud of the uk's contribution. we've got the electricity back on. we've got businesses back open. we've got all children getting educated. so we won't under estimate the scale of the challenge still ahead of us, but we've made good progress after the last six months. it's been a massive effort by people here just to get this far, but they're worried again, the next hurricane season is less than 100 days away. aleem maqbool, bbc news, on tortola, in the british virgin islands. she swapped the town of swindon in england for los angeles and became one of the stars of the oscars. six—year—old maisie sly, who's deaf, played the lead role in the silent girl that won the award for best live action short film. picking up the award, writer and co—star rachel shenton delivered her speech in sign language as maisie watched on. now they're planning to make a full—length film, as colin patterson reports.

a star is born. six years old and profoundly deaf, maisie sly has now played the main role in an oscar—winning film, and seems to be pretty unfazed by all the attention. just tell me about your day at the oscars? i feel happy, i felt really happy. i want her to speak... the silent child is about a deaf girl struggling to communicate as her family don't want her to learn sign language. it was made by two former stars of the show hollyoaks. the silent child, chris overton and rachel shenton. it won best live action short. maisie was up on the balcony at the oscars with her mum, while her dad watched nearby with family and friends, and this was their reaction. the silent child... screaming. after midnight, the winner made her entrance. and as for what's next —

well, maisie could return to the role, there are plans to adapt the silent child into a full length feature. absolutely extending the film's what we would like to do next. we asked maisie what she wants to do next and she said she wants to do some colouring. which i think is a much better answer. yeah. gold, gold colouring? probably. she'll be drawing a lot of pictures of oscars, i think. i bet she will. colin patterson, bbc news, los angeles. now, take a look at this. michelle obama dancing with two—year—old parker curry. who is she? well, she was the little girl photographed staring up in awe at the former first lady's new portrait in the national portrait gallery here in washington dc in this famous photo which was captured by a tourist at the gallery. at the time, the toddler was refusing to turn

round and have her photo taken by her mother because she seemed so starstruck by the portrait. it was tweeted and then retweeted so many times it went viral quickly, and now this video has done the same. that was taylor swift, if you didn't know. you think i'm really that old? this is beyond 100 days from the bbc. coming up for viewers on the bbc news channel and bbc world news: we've more on the apparent poisoning of a former russian spy and his daughter. and what the italian election result tells us about the country's feelings on the eu. should brussels be worried? that's still to come. we have had contrasting conditions

across the country today. if you we re across the country today. if you were lucky enough to see the cloud breaking and sunshine coming through, it felt springlike at times, but that was not the case for all. further north called story and still further snow. the snow fairly frequent across central and northern scotland, rain along the coast, but still not particularly pleasant and feeling quite roll out there as well. we still have a combination of snow and rain gradually drifting its way northwards through the end of the day. elsewhere, overnight, we will continue to see sky is clear, patchy mist and fog forming, the exception and the south—east where we could see a scattering of showers. overnight lows, just below freezing in a few places. pockets of frost here and there, we start of tomorrow on a quieter note. a

combination of rain and sleet moving its way through the northern isles potentially, scattered showers across western scotland and northern ireland. some of these heavy at times and a few scattered showers across south—west and south—east england, but generally speaking the further inland to come, decent spells of sunshine and temperatures getting into double digits in some places. as we move out of wednesday towards thursday, we will start to see this area of low pressure threatening the south—west under the influence of pressure in the north which means showers never too far away and cold here. showers will be of rain, sleet and snow with any elevation. elsewhere, quite quiet story on thursday, dry with sunshine, a bit of rain moving its way through the channel isles. as we move out of the channel isles. as we move out of the channel isles. as we move out of thursday into friday, we will start to notice a change. that area of low pressure is likely to squeeze up from the south—west and bring a spell of wet weather. it will stay with us as we head into

the weekend, but marked down to the south, and it looks as though that mild there will follow that low, gradually pushing into the cold air. however, weather fronts it's gradually pushing into the cold air. however, weatherfronts it's means could see a spell of more snow as we move into the weekend, but it is likely to only be for the north and, for a likely to only be for the north and, fora time, likely to only be for the north and, for a time, turning likely to only be for the north and, fora time, turning milderand hopefully sunny spells. this is beyond one hundred days, with me katty kay in washington — christian fraser's in london. our top stories. counter terrorist police are now leading the investigation into the suspected poisoning of a former russian spy and his daughter. the us president welcomes news that north korea is ready to discuss denuclearisation — but says it could be a false hope. coming up in the next half hour. did the eurocrats see this coming? italy's populists send a message to the eu — will brussels take note?

she protested against president trump — we meet the candidate who hopes to become the first muslim american woman in the us congress. let us know your thoughts by using the hashtag ‘beyond—one—hundred—days‘. whatever substance was used to poison the russian spy, sergei skripal, the police response tells us it was highly toxic. so toxic, first responders were themselves admitted to hospital suffering the effects. at a meeting of the national security council. our correspondent olga ivshina is at the scene in salisbury. we have areas still sealed off today and that substance has been sent off to nearby porton down, the chemical

laboratory. there are still areas cordoned off by police and we can still seeing some locals quite worried and asking questions both to journalists and police trying to find out what is going on and whether their account is safe. the police have reassured them the town is safe for the people are still worried because of what happened here, definitely was something off the scale for the locals. and both of the victims remain in critical condition in hospital and fighting for their lives. thank you for that. well in russia yesterday president putin praised the fsb for their diligence in tracking down almost 400 spies. sergei skripal served as an officer in russian military intelligence in the 90s, and the early 2000s, where he helped run personnel operations in moscow. he was a high value mi6 asset. russia did pardon him in 2010, but was he the kind of double agent they could never really forgive? here's our security

correspondent gordon correra. does the long arm of the kremlin reach all the way from moscow to salisbury in wiltshire? and if the attack on sergei skripal did come from russia, why? after being released from jail, skripal had spent the last eight years living quietly in salisbury, but he still had enemies. sergei skripal had been imprisoned in russia for selling secrets to british intelligence here at mi6. it was claimed he provided the identity of hundreds of russians operating undercover in europe. even though he had been pardoned as part of a spy swap his former colleagues would still have regarded him as a traitor. the fact that he blew a whole range of russian agents, there may be personal animosity there. the fact that he was a british spy, a former member of the russian military, in most russians‘ minds, it will categorise him as a traitor

so there will be people who are delighted to see him dead. nobody is yet confirming moscow was involved, but there have been other incidents involving russians in the uk. as we have heard, most famously alexander litvinenko, another former russian spy poisoned in london's mayfair. and other figures have aroused suspicions. one died suddenlyjogging in surrey. one study revealed traces of a rare toxin in his stomach and a businessman campaigning over his death said not enough has been done to deter russia. based on the reaction of the british government to the murder in mayfair using nuclear material of alexander litvinenko, which was nothing, it basically gave the green light to vladimir putin that he can do whatever he wants here and he has been doing whatever he wants

for quite a while. it's still too early to be sure where this investigation will go, but if the trail does connect salisbury to moscow, then the pressure will be on the british government to respond. gordon corera, bbc news. bob seely is a member of the foreign affairs select committee. he has said before he believes poisonous becoming the weapon of choice for moscow. we asked him why. they've used these weapons before the united kingdom and used them elsewhere and they used them often enough to become a significant part of their armoury for what used to be known as wet jobs, of their armoury for what used to be known as wetjobs, assassinations. so radiation poisoning but also done elsewhere as well, several cases in russia dioxins, ukrainian

presidential candidate back in 2004 but others have also died from dioxin poisoning. i've been talking to people this afternoon about this case and some speculate if poisoner was used then we could be looking at italian, heavy metal which is difficult to detect and highly poisonous. it has been reporting today about the number of these hits in london, i think a huge investigation carried out by both lead and they said 14. do you think...? lead and they said 14. do you think. . . ? i'm lead and they said 14. do you think...? i'm not sure every lead and they said 14. do you think. . . ? i'm not sure every single one of those 14 is a strong case. i think there are between nine and a dozen probably that should've investigated and why not. that is an extraordinary number of top we do not hear a lot about it. do you think that the british government is

covering up assassinations for political reasons? i think covering up political reasons? i think covering up is too strong a word. i think it is difficult to accept what is happening even after crimea, even after the events in eastern ukraine. there is a reluctance to accept that russia is embarked on a new cold war with the west and probably has been doing so since 2007 and maybe before. they want to undermine our values, reliance and institutions. and confronting that is difficult because it means getting your head around these new forms of war. a lot of these tools in fact have been used against us and they are old active measures warfare, espionage, for the gander, assassination. this was the tool and trade of the kgb backin was the tool and trade of the kgb back in the 1970s and 1980s. they had almost invented a new strategic pa rt had almost invented a new strategic part of undermining countries that

they are opposed to. it is a very significant development and i do not think we have got our heads around that and frankly have not wanted to put up the longer we hold our heads in the sand the west it will get.= worse. you heard rossjohnson in parliament today saying if this was proved to be russian meddling there could be some form of retaliation perhaps scaling back uk representation at the world cup. that does not sound so serious as the counterattack. what could the uk realistically do? i wrote last week to the select committee chairman who are doing investigations into the malign russian influence and said we need a common framework and common definition and to understand these spectrum of tools that the russians are using. from that we can have a better idea of what do. i do not think pulling out a few representatives from going to the world cup will make a blind bit of difference. i do a think sticking another 500 troops in the baltic

republics will make a difference. we need to work out how to counter malign russian activity. much of that could be in terms of anti—corruption that could be in terms of anti—corru ption measures that could be in terms of anti—corruption measures in the uk, pressuring russian money in the uk, using some new powers under corruption laws. soft power tools that could be effective. but we need to think through a strategy and have not been doing that and neither has the west. the us was cost — was caught off—guard badly two years ago. we should not be waving fingers, we need to understand and to think through the options and, with some serious deterrence. saudi arabia's crown prince will be here in the uk tomorrow. mohammed bin salman will meet prime minister theresa may and the royal family during his three—day visit. at home he's pushing through social and economic reforms — but abroad he's been criticised over

the kingdom's role in the war in yemen. the bbc‘s chief international correspondent lyse doucet sat down with saudi's foreign minister adel al—jubeir about the crown prince's trip. and started by asking him about his country's military campaign in yemen. the war in yemen was a war that was imposed on us. it was not a war that we chose. it was a war to support a legitimate government and it was a war that was fought in accord with un principles and un security council resolutions. we did not ask for this war, it was a war to stop a radical militia, allied with iran and hezbollah, composed of 50,000 people from taking over a strategically important country of 28 million. what would you say to prime minister theresa may when she says you have to find a way to end this war and to stop the civilian casualties? we have been looking for a way to end this war from day one. we have always said the solution is a political solution. we have supported the un special envoy. the military campaign is continuing including aerial bombardment. because the coup continues. because the houthi lay siege to towns and villages and starve people. because the houthi recruit child soldiers, nine, ten, 11—year—old boys, and put them in battle.

because the houthi launch ballistic missiles at civilians in yemen as well as in saudi arabia. will there be any new announcements while you are here, any talks between the crown prince and the prime minister about finding a way to end the war? you talk about it, but it never happens. because there were more than 17 understandings made and every single one of them, the houthi reneged on. the un appointed a new special envoy after the resignation of the man who did a greatjob and mr griffiths is coming to the region to talk to us. the british have put pressure on you so you must be expecting the prime minster to put pressure on i don't know that i would call it pressure. britain is our ally, we deal with britain and we deal with united states and the emirates and what is called the quartet. and we are partners and allies and we look for ways to come up with solutions that would bring peace and stability back to yemen and prevent iran from having a foothold in yemen. and prevent the houthi from taking over the country. britain was trying to send a message

that it is becoming global as it proceeds to leave the european union. is saudi arabia going to come with offers of investment? britain is a global power. and britain is an advanced industrial country. britain in the eu we believe very strongly in, britain outside the eu we believe very strongly in. what you do with brexit is really your decision and we support whatever decision you make. it will not impact our relationship with you. interesting though is mixed reviews with bin salman. clearly what he's doing at home in three months‘ with bin salman. clearly what he‘s doing at home in three months‘ time, saudi women will be able to drive for the first time in the kingdom.

there are remarkable social and cultural changes and even economic changes. trying to diversify the saudi economy. it is a crucially important partner for the uk. president trump and jared kushner spent a lot of time in saudi arabia and invested in them relationship. it is an important relationships this way as well so they will invest time and it especially given that they‘re looking to the post wrexham future and given the fact that saudi arabia is moving away from oil. there is focus now on services and the new economy in saudi arabia and the new economy in saudi arabia and the uk will want of that. so aside from what they want to talk about with yemen, the economy will also be important for the british side. he is certainly getting a red carpet welcome. six months ago the european commission president

jean claude junker was breathing a huge sigh of relief. in holland and in france the far right had been defeated. angela merkel was back in power, albeit with a reduced majority. "the wind is back in europe‘s sails," he said. but is it? in italy the success this weekend of the anti—establishment five star movement and the eurosceptic lega, poses yet another challenge to the european project. since september there‘s been far right success in austria. and in germany the far right afd is now the official opposition in the bundestag. so how will germany, how will the eu now respond? i‘ve been speaking to the german chair of the european parliament‘s foreign affairs select committee, david mcallister. i was thinking back to the state of the union byjean claudejuncker is that the wind is back europe‘s sales. now we have the five star movement in italy. so are you listening or is the solution more of the same? we are listening to the

people and i would remind you more than 85% of the votes in the general election went to pro—european political parties. of course the italian election result is not easy and a lot will now depend on the italian president. he is a key figure. but i remain optimistic that it will also, we will also be able to form a stable government in italy but it may take a few months as we have seen in germany. but i'm sure you‘ve seen many common pieces today in the european press about the european project is under strain again. do you think that there was commentary pieces are fair? of course the election result in italy was not what we hope for or expected. i think it is a matter of concern that such a high percentage of members of the italian parliament are openly anti—european or at least sceptic. on the other hand we must understand in the 21st—century and

ina understand in the 21st—century and in a globalised world that we as europeans are stronger and better off together. we have to explain to our citizens why is it so important that we keep the european union and strengthen it. this is the only possibility to find eyelevel with other global powers like the united states, china or russia. the european parliament chief exit negotiator has been in london today and talking about an association agreement for people who do not understand it, what would it mean? we‘re all in brussels deeply regret that the uk is turning to leave the eu. but we have to move on after i do hope that preparations will be successful in the next week so we can start the second phase of the british withdrawal negotiations at the european council on the 22nd 23rd march. we all listen carefully

to the speech made by the prime minister last friday, she is obviously going for a tailor—made agreement. a new kind of relationship between the eu one hand and the united kingdom on the other. it isa and the united kingdom on the other. it is a very ambitious plan but we all agree that we want to have good and close neighbourly relations with the uk because this country will remain an important trade partner for us and also important data ally. given illustrations in europe about the way the eu is run and the directions is taking, do you think it was a smart political move to put your fellow german into a top civil servicejob your fellow german into a top civil service job without full transparency of how he was appointed to thatjob? transparency of how he was appointed to that job? i have read the reports in the newspapers but this is an internal matter of the european commission. it has not been dealt with yet in the european parliament. one political group has asked for a

debate on the european parliament and we will have an exchange of views. but at the moment i would not comment because it is an internal matter of the european commission. thank you very much for your time. this is beyond one hundred days. still to come. taking her protests against the president all the way to capitol hill — we speak to the woman who could become the first muslim american woman in congress. here in the uk, thousands of people are without water for a third day after frozen pipes burst in the recent thaw from cold weather. homes and businesses in london, kent, sussex and wales are affected — as emma simpson explains. a sussex country pub with lots of beer, but no running water. not today. i'm really sorry. that‘s all right. they‘ve been saying sorry to customers since saturday, 200 lost bookings and counting. how much is this all going to cost you?

probably £6,000, £7,000 so far. it‘s devastation. we can‘t open and we‘ve lost food. we‘ve lost our revenue, you know. down the road, yet more emergency supplies for households in need. oh, we‘re managing. you know, we‘re british, aren‘t we! they were helping themselves in west wales, and there are still thousands without water in london. here‘s the problem, just one of many burst pipes still being repaired. no quick—fix, but progress is being made. the big freeze has put an enormous strain on the water network, but critics say the water companies should be investing much more in improving ageing infrastructure and making the system more resilient. south east water will invest £450 million into its infrastructure from 2015 to 2020.

we‘re dealing with an unprecedented event here due to the weather, where we‘ve seen a 25% increase in burst and water demand over a couple of days. back at the pub, the chef‘s cleaning, not cooking. they just want to know when they can re—open. this ale won‘t keep if it‘s not soon, yet more money being poured away. emma simpson, bbc news, wadhurst. you‘re watching beyond one hundred days. a record number of american women are running for congress this year — one of them could become the first muslim american woman ever to be a us lawmaker. her name is rashida tlaib — she‘s of palestinian origin. in 2016 she was thrown out of a speech by then candidate donald trump because she was protesting against him. now rashida is running to represent a district

in detroit, michigan in the house of representatives. i spoke to herjust a short time ago. rashida, it‘s pretty clear from the fact that you got thrown out of one of donald trump‘s rallies when he was campaigning, that you don‘t like the president very much. now, i was wondering to what extent does the fact that donald trump is president of the united states mean that you are running for congress? well, you know, i‘m a mother, i started mums against trump in detroit. and it‘s notjust me being an american muslim arab american woman that is running for congress, but also me being seen as a bully out there, how my children feel about themselves growing up in america. i tell a lot of people, a lot of the families across my district, that this is about electing a jury that will impeach this president and i make one heck of a juror especially as someone with a stake, with two young boys at home.

trump has ignited a fire within me that i just cant stand by silently or stand outside the ring, i need to be in the ring fighting back on his un—american policies and rhetoric. you spoke there about your two sons. what tangible impact has donald trump becoming president had on your two sons? as muslims in america? you know my eldest, who is 12 years old, knowing that i‘m so worried about his safety, worried aboutjust the increase in the number of violent acts towards people, african—americans, latinos, muslim americans. and you know, i remember him coming into my bedroom one time when i was expressing concern to his father and he said you know, don‘t worry, if anyone ever asks if i am muslim i‘ll lie and tell them i‘m not. and that alone, this is probably the first time i haven‘t cried when i told that story. but that alone, of everything i‘ve worked as as an attorney, as someone that works for civil

rights, for equality, that was the most heartbreaking moment for me as a mother. i don‘t ever want my child to feel he is less than or that he has to hide who he is. and right now adam understands why i‘m doing this, hejokingly says mum is going to congress to give donald trump a time—out. and that is exactly what i‘m trying to do. europeans have always admired the fact that muslims in america see themselves as americans first and muslims in conjunction with that. but i wanted to ask you why do you think it is that there has never been a muslim american woman in the united states congress? i think there are american muslim woman that are running for office at local level more than ever. i don‘t know the answer. just like i don‘t know why it took i don‘t know how many years to get an african—american man elected to the white house. but this seems to be the time. i was talking to other not only muslim mums but latino mums, grandmothers, every one of us

when we look at this issue of having someone like him in the white house, it means so much more to us than just democrat versus republican. for us it is about humanity, about how our children are feeling right now having someone that attacks them every single day. thanks so much forjoining me. thank you for having me. in these midterms i get the impression that women will play quite a significant role, candidates and voters. women have decided that they vote more than men in this country and have a disproportionate influence on the results of elections. there are more women running ina elections. there are more women running in a selection than ever before in an american election cycle, twice as many as during the last election cycle so hard to think

that some of those women will not be elected to congress. there still disproportionately outnumbered in both houses. we will see if she makes it. hard being a woman and a muslim woman in this country to make your voice heard and get a leg it into government, i suspect. a woman from western australia has found the world‘s oldest known message in a bottle, almost 132 years after it was thrown into the sea. tonya illman picked up the bottle while going for a walk around sand dunes on a remote beach. experts have confirmed it is an authentic message from a german ship. the note in the bottle, which was dated 12june 1886, was thrown from the german ship paula, as part of an experiment into ocean and shipping routes by the german naval observatory. and she found out it had come from there because she converted to handwriting samples the captain had

put any major logical blog. it was a 69 year experiment so german ships we re 69 year experiment so german ships were selling around the world touring bottles of the and marking their notes with the name of the ship and coordinate. amazingly efficient exec. i get a lot of m essa 9 es efficient exec. i get a lot of messages from you. see you tomorrow. we have had contrasting conditions across the country today. if you were lucky enough to see the cloud breaking and sunshine coming through, it felt springlike at times, but that was not the case for all. further north a cold story and still further snow. the snow fairly frequent across central and northern scotland, rain along the coast, but still not particularly pleasant and feeling quite raw

out there as well. we still have a combination of snow and rain gradually drifting its way northwards through the end of the day. elsewhere, overnight, we will continue to see skies clear, patchy mist and fog forming, the exception the south—east where we could see a scattering of showers. overnight lows, just below freezing in a few places. pockets of frost here and there, we start off tomorrow on a quieter note. a combination of rain and sleet moving its way through the northern isles potentially, scattered showers across western scotland and northern ireland. some of these heavy at times and a few scattered showers across south—west and south—east england, but generally speaking the further inland you come, decent spells of sunshine and temperatures getting into double digits in some places. as we move out of wednesday towards thursday, we will start to see this area of low pressure threatening the south—west under the influence of pressure in the north

which means showers never too far away and cold here. showers will be of rain, sleet and snow with any elevation. elsewhere, quite a quiet story on thursday, dry with sunshine, a bit of rain moving its way through the channel isles. as we move out of thursday into friday, we will start to notice a change. that area of low pressure is likely to squeeze up from the south—west and bring a spell of wet weather. it will stay with us as we head into the weekend, but milder down to the south, and it looks as though that mild there will follow that low, gradually pushing into the cold air. however, weather fronts mean we could see a spell of more snow as we move into the weekend, but it is likely to only be for the north and, fora time, turning milderand hopefully sunny spells. this is bbc news. the headlines at 8pm... counter—terror officers are now

leading the investigation, into the suspected poisoning of a former russian spy and his daughter in salisbury. both are critically ill in hospital. the kremlin is denied any involvement. the foreign secretary said britain would respond britain would respond robustly if moscow were found to be responsible. scientists at the uk‘s weapons research facility in wiltshire are studying the substance thought to have made mr skripal and his daughter ill. donald trump gives a cautious welcome to news that kim jong—un says he is willing to sit down and talk. a murder investigation‘s been launched after a woman was found dead at in twickenham in west london. her husband and two children were found dead earlier in east sussex. also coming up, britain needs to count calories and cut portion sizes.