welcome to newsday. i'm mariko oi in singapore. the headlines: a bridge collapses in the american city of miami, killing a number of people. a rescue operation is under way to help those who are still trapped. president trump joins the international chorus in blaming moscow for the poisoning of a russian spy in the uk. do so to the —— a sad situation. do so to the —— a sad situationm certainly looks like the russians are behind it, something that should never, ever happen. i'm kasia madera in london. also in the programme: fresh evidence from inside china of the impact of new regulations on religion, including the destruction of this christian mural. and dozens of young people will be gathering across the uk to call for war peace. we will be hearing from some of them. live from our studios in singapore and london, this is bbc world news. it's newsday. good morning.

it's 8am in singapore, midnight in london and 8pm in miami, florida, where police say that a number of people have died after a pedestrian bridge collapsed onto a highway. emergency services are at the scene, working to rescue people from the eight vehicles trapped under the bridge. the 950 ton bridge, at florida's international university, was only installed last saturday. bbc mundo's patricia solburon is at the scene. shejoins us live. she joins us live. firstly, tell us the latest. the latest news is that bit people were transported to hospitals. there are no official numbers yet of fatalities. we are waiting on a conference, for the press, that is going to happen now

that it has been ours now. the first reported this collapse was at 130 local time and rescue a to pull those cars, workers trying to pull those cars, approximately eight cars that have been completely crushed by this bridge. —— 1:30pm. been completely crushed by this bridge. -- 1:30pm. and been completely crushed by this bridge. --1:30pm. and how can it have happened because we talk about america's ageing infrastructure quite a lot, but this bridge was only installed last saturday? exactly, i was speaking actually to the mayor of this city, which is called sweetwater, and that is the question that i asked him. he told me we do not really know the reason why this happens, this is high—tech. for these bridges, they are supposed to be strong. we built the bridge with the international university of florida and he said for the city, it was going to be a pretty important thing for the city. so they get to say what the cause is of this bridge

collapsing. have we heard anything from the companies that were involved in the installation of this bridge? one of the companies tweeted a couple of hours ago that they were sending their prayers to the victims, to the injured and also their condolences, but they have not really said anything about what could have gone wrong with the bridge. what about president trump? he has been previously quite vocal about america's infrastructure. he has had previous administrations about it. has he commented about it? well, the mayor sweetwater, what he just told me a few minutes ago was that you'll nelson, a senator from washington, he spoke with president trump in order to have a federal investigation into what could have caused this tragic accident. patricia, at the scene, thank you so

much for the update. there is more, of course, on our website. let's take a look at some of the day's other news. the us has imposed sanctions on 19 russian individuals and five groups, accusing them of meddling in the 2016 presidential election and cyber attacks. now, washington says that its aim is to counter russia's "continuing destabilising activities". one of the individuals targeted is known as putin's chef, and has direct links to the president. chris buckler has the latest from washington. the individual you are just talking about, it is alleged, he is an oligarch and very close to vladimir putin and is one of the main individuals named in the sanctions and he has also been named, of course, in the robert mueller investigation into allegations of russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. there is a bit of crossover here between robert

mueller‘s investigation taking place into that, and also some wider cyber attacks. goes wider cyber attacks include alleged attacks on the infrastructure of the united states, at the electricity grid, something that they take very seriously indeed. sometimes, critics of president trump have said that this administration has not been strong in terms of language against russia. certainly, it is something which has come shortly after the attack in england, in which a former spy, of course, was attacked with this poison and this has been something com pletely poison and this has been something completely separate but it does follow also a strong statement about that from america. we are getting these very, very strong words but also strong action. i have to say from his point of view, he says he is not at all concerned, that this kind of thing has happened to him before and that he has us interests.

we will come back to that story a little later, but now lets just bring you up—to—date with what else is making news. more than 12,000 people have been fleeing syria's rebel—held area of eastern ghouta, as government forces advance. men, women and children were seen leaving the town of hamouria, near damascus. this is the first medical evacuation since a massive assault began nearly a month ago. a law has come into effect in indonesia making it illegal to criticise the country's parliament or the politicians who work there. the indonesian president, joko widodo, refused to sign the legislation, but was unable to veto it. hsbc says its female staff in the uk earned nearly 60% less last year than their male colleagues. the gender pay gap is the largest reported by a british bank. hsbc says that there's a high percentage of women in junior or part—time positions, while under a quarter of senior roles are filled by women. it's been raining gold in russia. this is a runway covered

in silver and gold bars. the precious metal fell out of an aircraft while it was taking off. around 200 gold and silver bars scattered across the runway of yakutsk airport, which is in siberia, and that happened when the plane's loading hatch broke off. bad news for treasure hunters, all of the cargo was recovered. australia is holding the association of southeast asian nations, the so—called asean summit in sydney, this weekend. prime minister malcolm turnbull will host regional leaders, including the controversial cambodian prime minister hun sen and myanmar‘s aung san suu kyi. rights groups are urging australia to raise issues of human rights abuses, notjust focus on trade and counter—terrorism. jawat kabir is from the burmese rohingya community in australia.

hejoins us live he joins us live now. thank you so much forjoining us this morning, you arejoining the much forjoining us this morning, you are joining the demonstrations later, tell us what you are hoping to achieve. thank you for having me. we are hoping it is going to be a very big events, we are hoping australia... we are hoping australia will negotiate disagreement with her actions, and disagreement does not mean disengagement. the action, silence, the ignorance, australia can act on this. how desperate in your view is the situation of the kingdom minority? do you still have friends and relatives trying to flee the violence? the members, the

community members, they are stuck. they are not peacefully living in matt ryan state. they are still desperate to cross the border because they do not feel safe, they do not feel they belong to there any more. i was talking with one of my community members who recently went to bangladesh and he was telling me about the situation in bangladesh, as well as in burma. what is your view on aung san suu kyi? because of course she once view on aung san suu kyi? because of course she once was a view on aung san suu kyi? because of course she once was a champion of human rights but now she has been heavily criticised by the international community for a lack of actions. as you know, our community, are licking their community, are licking their community has been suffering for decades. aung san suu kyi said she was the last hope for our community,

for our people, or hoping she was going to give us the same rights as other burmese people, other community, other ethnicity, parts it has turned out not to be totally the case. not only were him go in international community, she lose all hope, all the respect. thank you so all hope, all the respect. thank you so much forjoining us this morning. let's return to a story that we touched on a little bit earlier. president trump hasjoined france, germany and the united kingdom today in issuing a joint statement laying the blame for the nerve agent attack in the english city of salisbury firmly on russia. crucially, the statement said that the first offensive use of a nerve agent in europe since world war two was "an assault on british sovereignty" and there was "no plausible alternative expla nation" other than that russia was responsible. the british prime minister theresa

may went to salisbury. she spoke to the police officer who's still seriously ill in hospital after trying to help sergei and yulia skripal. russia continues to deny any involvement. james landale reports. this was theresa may's first visit to salisbury since the nerve agent attack. a chance to be briefed by the police and public health officials. but also a chance to meet members of the public, to chat, to reassure. she visited the scene of the attack on the former russian intelligence officer sergei skripal and his daughter 11 days ago. the restaurant where they ate. the park bench, under a tent, where they were found. the prime minister thanked some of the police officers who first responded to the call. well, thank you. because what you did is what the police do day in and day out. you go to a routine call, as you say, you don't know what you'll find, what's there.

and then, at the local hospital, she met and thanked detective sergeant nick bailey, who's still recovering from exposure to the nerve agent. russia, she said, was guilty of a brazen and despicable attack. she had expelled at 23 of its diplomats but was prepared to do more. —— 23. there are other measures that we will be looking at. and if we face further provocation from russia, then there are further measures that we can deploy. but what is important in the international arena, and we have taken this into nato, into the united nations, we will be taking it into the european union, is that allies are standing alongside us. that came in a joint statement from the leaders of britain, france, germany and the us, blaming russia for what they called an assault on uk sovereignty. i spoke with the prime minister and we are in deep discussions.

a very sad situation. it certainly looks like the russians were behind it. something that should never, ever happen. and we're taking it very seriously, as i think are many others. thejoint statement is significant because it shows that the foreign office and downing street are convincing britain's allies that the salisbury attack is different, that it represents an escalation of russia's hostile behaviour. and as such, those allies are now ready to crank up the pressure on moscow. that diplomacy continued today in brussels, where british officials briefed allies about what they called russia's reckless and unlawful behaviour. in moscow, president putin discussed

the case with his ministers, who denied that russia or the soviet union had ever run and novichok programme, and promised to respond soon to the expulsion of its diplomats. the porton down laboratory, which identified the nerve agent, is set to get more funding. it will also provide a sample to the chemical watchdog. it is not extending to russia. sample to the chemical watchdog. it is not extending to russiam sample to the chemical watchdog. it is not extending to russia. if you area is not extending to russia. if you are a nation and another nation has launched a chemical attack on your people, then you have every right to tell russia to shut up and go away. meanwhile, this afternoon near salisbury, the investigation continued, with the army recovering a carfrom a village near the home of bear spray we. —— ds bailey. you're watching newsday on the bbc.

still to come on the programme: cultural vandalism or clamping down on extremism? how china's new rules on religion are restricting freedom of worship. today we have closed the book on apartheid and that chapter. more than 3,000 subway passengers were affected. nausea, fainting, headaches and the dimming of vision, all of this caused by an apparently organised attack. the trophy itself was on the pedestal in the middle of the cabinet here. it was an international trophy and we understand now that the search for it has become an international search. above all, this was a triumph for the christian

democrats of the west, offering reunification as quickly as possible, and that's what the voters wanted. welcome back. this is newsday on the bbc. i'm mariko 0i in singapore. i'm kasia madera in london. our top stories: a pedestrian bridge has collapsed onto a busy motorway in the american city of miami, killing a number of people. emergency crews are working to reach those still trapped under the rubble. president trump hasjoined france, germany and the united kingdom in issuing a joint statement laying the blame for the nerve agent attack in the english city of salisbury firmly on russia. an elderly woman who has chosen a life of backpacking in her retirement has won millions of fans on chinese social media. that story is popular on bbc.com let's take a look at some front

pages from around the world. the arab news takes a look at the woman donald trump wants to see take over the cia. gina haspel has been nominated for thejob, but the article talks about the controversy surrounding her involvement in a secret thai prison during the administration of president george w bush. 0n the front of the south china morning post is an idea on how to tackle the shortage of housing in hong kong. authorities are looking at imposing a tax on property developers who are hanging on to empty flats. and bad news for drivers in singapore. the gulf news reporting not only is it the most expensive place to live, but if you want to buy a no—frills basic car, you'll need to spend more than $70,000. earlier this week thousands of us students staged school walkouts

to protest against gun violence. in the uk this weekend, 6,000 young people will gathering in three cities to show their shared commitment to peace. the event, called generation hope is organised by sgi—uk, who describe themselves as a "socially engaged buddhist movement for peace." as part of it, they'll be screening a documentary called ‘global network for peace' which looks at war and how young people can use dialogue to work for peace. with me are sanya rajpal — who is in the documentary — and josie parkhouse who has spoken at the un on nuclear disarmament. first of all, to actually mobilise so first of all, to actually mobilise so many young people to get active, to get to a location, to give up their weakened that is, how did you go around doing that? this event is being created and supported by the sgi, which is an organisation which is actively working to engage young

people in society. i think it really comes down to having dialogue and really inspiring young people particularly, that they can get up and change society in the way that they need to and to create a society that they deserve. and you have been very active in that path, you have spoken at the un. tell us a bit about that. i spoke at the un, representing a youth organisation and my central message was that used are hopeful about the future and we wa nt are hopeful about the future and we want change and we don't want a future with nuclear weapons and war, we want a peaceful future, a great, peaceful future. and global network for peace is a documentary specially commissioned for this occasion, you feature in it. tell us little bit about what the message is of the documentary? the documentary is a collection of young people sharing their personal experiences about how they have really gone out of their

way to transform whatever is stopping them and through that, going out into society and having a real impact. personally, from somebody who didn't feel like they had a voice or couldn't really see how they could communicate effectively with others was able to kind of, communicate and work with thousands of young people and speak in parliament about how young people ‘s education can be created in a way that will really make them the centre of society. and the documentary, to explain, had elements of japan and post— hiroshima, that is something you are looking forward to, denuclearisation. the documentary talks about the impact of war and how to achieve peace, it is such a big ask. it is such a big ask but at the end of the day as a buddhist movement, we focus on the individual. we are not always talking at the united nations, we are talking one—on—one, spreading this message of hope and peace. it

seems like a big ask, but when you look at it, small, daily, day by day, talking withjust look at it, small, daily, day by day, talking with just your friends and family about peace then it seems and family about peace then it seems a bit more manageable. use a little things, but when you are talking about 6000 young people gathering in the three locations across the uk, thatis the three locations across the uk, that is not a little things. what can you expect during those gatherings? i think it will be a number of personal experiences of young people overcoming anxiety, depression, illness, bullying, there is going to be some wonderful cultural performances, dance, music, spoken word and djs. it is focused at young people, speaking their language to mobilise them into creating this incredible society together. how important is the religious aspect of it?|j together. how important is the religious aspect of it? i think the religious aspect of it? i think the religious aspect of it? i think the religious aspect is quite central. as augusts we respect the dignity of

each individual and i think the aim of this event is that every individual that is attending to feel that respect. —— buddhist. and to really transformed their lives in whichever way it suits them. thank you so much to sharing that, your enthusiasm is contagious. good luck with this this weekend. thanks to talking to us. —— thanks for talking to us. "it feels like another cultural revolution." the words of members of china's churches about the renewed clampdown on their activities that began six weeks ago. on february 1st, new regulations for religious affairs approved by the party congress began to be applied. they ban religious organisations from using religion to harm national security or disrupt social order. as david campanale now reports, the authorities are demolishing some churches and removing crosses from many others. this is what happens to churches

that are seen as a threat to china's ruling communist party. the golden lamb stine church was blown up white dynamite in january and then finished off by bulldozers. an eyewitness told the bbc that numerous police prevented some of the 50,000 congregation from approaching. state media quoted an unidentified official as saying the evangelical church has been secretly constructed without proper permits. exclusive pictures tend, consent to the bbc show questioned your all is being destroyed in the clampdown. —— centre. crossers have also been removed from church buildings are. china watchers blame regulations limiting freedom of worship, approved at last year's party congress of. it shows a kind of new

cultural revolution is happening under the emperor and really, the religious persecution has never been seen, such worse than the end of a cultural religion. christians meet in unregistered locations risk heavy fines. in some provinces, notices have been issues, can issue, banning children from attending church services of into sunday saw —— or going to sunday school. are more questions than communist party members, up to 100 million believers are expected at services to celebrate easter in a few time. —— inafew celebrate easter in a few time. —— in a few weeks time. you have been watching newsday. don't go away, i will be back with business news. we will be looking at

future ways to commit to work. how would you like to do it, would you jet pack to work? not a chance, walking and public transport is the only way to me —— for me. an update ofa only way to me —— for me. an update of a top story, the update on the miami bridge collapsed. we have had a press release and have been told that four people have died after this pedestrian bridge collapsed onto a highway. that is newsjust this pedestrian bridge collapsed onto a highway. that is news just in the. emergency services are at the scene, trying to rescue people from the eight vehicles trapped under the bridge and according to local media the night hundreds you keep on bridge at florida's international university was only installed last saturday. four people confirmed kill. -- saturday. four people confirmed kill. —— killed. hello. some of us will escape to a fine friday, a mild in some places

but other places is much colder. you won't a fine friday close to this weather front, north—east england into eastern scotland, cloudy, wet, outbreaks of rain and some snow in the scottish hills and that's no level lowering greater in the day. this is your cloudy wet zone throughout the day. also this area of cloud nudging northwards from the midlands, wales into parts of north—west england and in the into northern ireland. to the south of that we see some sunshine coming through, but you may catch a shower, heavy and possibly thundery. it is here you have temperatures in double figures but it is a turning colder day through eastern scotland and north—east england, going into the evening and night, that's no level is lowering and maybe into lower levels you can see a light covering into places going into saturday morning with a few of these wintry showers drifting westwards overnight and developing and getting stronger. a much colder start on saturday morning and temperatures are not going up very far on saturday.

throughout the weekend we have got high pressure in scandinavia, pumping bitterly cold air at our weight and a strong wind too, so wind chill will be a factor and on that flow of air, some snow around too. some smoke scattered about eastern part of the uk through saturday and some accumulations in places. many north and west areas could avoid them and stay dry, some with sunny spells. it is all about the feel of the weather. significantly colder compared with friday and i have mentioned the strength of the wind, making it feel like it is well below freezing for many of us on saturday to sunday. it is going to be a bit of a shock to the system from what we have in —— have had in recent days of. from sunday night, a longer spell of snow into sunday morning and again at risk of disrupting, with a frosty start on sunday. that gradually edges away westwards, you see a risk

of further snow showers coming into eastern parts, not everybody will see those and still that brisk and very cold easterly wind making for a significant wind chill as well. winter is a roaring back this weekend. gradually turning milder and again next week. for the weekend, much colder, that it wind with a significant wind chill and yes, some of us will see some snow and there will be some disruption in places because of it. i'm kasia madera with bbc world news. our top story. a pedestrian bridge has collapsed in the american city of miami, killing four people. a rescue operation is ongoing. the bridge was installed last saturday. president trump hasjoined france, germany and the united kingdom in issuing a joint statement laying the blame for the nerve agent attack

in the english city of salisbury firmly on russia. and trending on bbc.com is a story about the happiest place on earth. this year finland has taken the title — toppling norway from the top spot. the annual world happiness report measures how happy people feel they are, and why. it looks at factors like economic strength, life expectancy, and perceived corruption. that's all from me. stay with us here on bbc world news.