this is the briefing. i'm sally bundock. our top story: vladimir putin describes his re—election as russian president as a sign of the "confidence and hope" of his people. us police in austin, texas, investigating a series of parcel bombings respond to another explosion in which two men are injured. a medical breakthrough say scientists — after stem cell transplants are used to treat multiple sclerosis. in business briefing, how will president putin steer russia's economy through the troubled times and heavy burden of sanctions? also, facebook‘s boss faces a storm over claims it allowed data from millions of users to be exploited for political gain — we have a special report from silicon valley. a warm welcome to the programme —

briefing you on all you need to know in global news, business and sport. and you can be part of the conversation. today we are asking are you concerned about what facebook — and other tech giants — are doing with your data? tell us what you think — just use the hashtag #bbbthebriefing. the russian president, vladimir putin, has described his re—election as a sign of "confidence and hope" of his people. he secured another six—year term as russia's president following a landslide election win. monitors have reported a series of irregularities, and cctv footage from a number of polling stations appears to show officials stuffing boxes. with 99% of the vote now counted,

mr putin has won 76.7% — hugely ahead of his nearest rival. the election commission put the turnout at 67% — a little more than the previous presidential election in 2012. steve rosenberg sent this report from moscow. he has been centrestage in russia for the last 18 years. tonight, by the kremlin, vladimir putin thanked his people for re—electing him their president. "we are destined to succeed," he said. "russia, russia!" they chanted. but, in putin's fourth term, are russia and the west destined for a cold war? later, the president dismissed british accusations that he was behind the nerve agent attack in salisbury.

translation: it is rubbish, drivel, nonsense, to think that russia would do something like that ahead of a presidential election and the world cup. president putin's pitch to voters had been, "stick with me, and russia will be strong." and many russians believe that. "he's a genius", he says. "putin wants russia to prosper, and for russians to live in happiness." it's thanks to putin, she says, that russia still exists. but critics of the kremlin say the election was fixed — that only those candidates who stood no chance of unseating vladimir putin were allowed to run. the problem with russia is that there's no such thing as russian politics. politics has been eliminated in russia altogether. there's only one political institution in russia, and this is the physical

body of vladimir putin. which is why vladimir putin was always going to win this vote. this election was not about choosing a new president. it was about reappointing the old one. and, although many russians do support vladimir putin, crucially, it is the political system he has built in russia that guaranteed him a landslide win. these images are embarrassing, though. caught on cctv, a woman stuffs a ballot box near moscow. suddenly, there are two of them at it. and during a vote count in siberia, balloons are moved to cover the camera. election officials say they will investigate. but the results won't change. neither will the name of russia's president. well, we heard vladimir putin dismiss claims that russia was involved

in that chemical attack on a former double agent in england — but britain is unwavering in its position that moscow has a case to answer. foreign secretary borisjohnson is to meet eu colleagues and the nato secretary general later and is expected to seek support for the uk's stance in the stand—off. meanwhile, experts from the organisation for the prohibition of chemical weapons will travel to the uk to help ministry of defence officials investigating the nerve agent. tom burridge reports. the mod's top—secret scientific research centre at porton down. today, a group of international chemical weapons experts will travel there to work out how samples of the nerve agent used in the attack in salisbury could be transported abroad to be tested in an independent lab. the government says the only credible theory is that the nerve agent used to attack former russian military intelligence officer skripal and his daughter

came from russia, something that moscow denies. but as the police in salisbury continue their work over the weekend, the foreign secretary said the government has evidence that russia has, in the last decade, been stockpiling the type of nerve agent used in the attack. we still don't know where the skripals came in contact with the nerve agent. but his car, which was removed by the military late on friday, is of particular interest. they would like to hear from anyone who saw red in the hours before the couple fell violently ill. the focus for the business world is the future of russia's economy — the world's 12th biggest — hit by sanctions from the west and still too heavily reliant on oil. nina trentmann from the wall street jounal joins me now. she is a regular on the programme.

to see you again. an interesting scenario and what we all expected, of course, the president putin would get another turn. but is it another six years? it has been tough for the economy. it have. although russia recently emerged from recession. it grew last year but as you say, it has been quite a weak street for a few years and the question is also how president putin has been in office will turn that around and turn the country into the fifth largest economy. the issue as well for russia, to a great degree, like many other economies is that it is reliant on oil and with the price of oil so low a few ago, that he'd rush of white hard with international sanctions as well. the price has recovered significantly and that has helped russia to a degree but it must rethink its future with regards to reliance on oil. is an interesting one because it is a question that russia has had for a while. the discussion of what is the

future of our economic model typically relies heavily on agriculture and on minerals and on oil and so agriculture and on minerals and on oiland so farwe agriculture and on minerals and on oil and so far we have not really seen a oil and so far we have not really seen a strong shift away from that. filled all fluctuates and will continue to do so, even less than in 2015. this will be an issue. we have seen 2015. this will be an issue. we have seen living standards deteriorate outside of moscow and seen quite a dull economic sentiment for a number of months. i wonder if the fact that russia has managed to pull itself out of reception —— recession, i.e. the last 12 months has been better, if that has helped put in at the polls. does discontent a few years ago about how russia was doing and the impact on livelihood. that is one of the things that he needs to deliver on. he says he wants to cut poverty and improve living standards which is important for a country like russia as we have seen in other countries such as china and elsewhere which are also big in terms of geographic spread, and they also have their own issues about living standards that have risen

quite a lot. thank you so much. you we re quite a lot. thank you so much. you were back shortly will with our look at how the media is digesting the russian election result as well as the other stories out there. let's brief you on some of the other stories making the news. donald trump's white house lawyer says the president is not considering firing the special prosecutor robert mueller. earlier in the day trump criticised mueller‘s probe into russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election calling it a witch hunt. this prompted media speculation and unease among senior republicans. three people have been killed and at least 23 were injured after a fire broke out at a hotel in manila in the philippines. the blaze raged for over nine hours before it was brought under control. 300 guests were evacuated. the cause of the fire is not yet known. unusually heavy snow is causing disruption in the english counties of devon and cornwall in the south—west of england. a sixty—mile section of the a30 dual

carriageway from exeter to near bodmin has been closed. police are urging people to delay their journey until mid morning. dozens of schools in devon will be closed today. police in austin, texas, are responding to reports of an explosion in which two men have been injured. it follows a series of parcel bombings in the city which have killed two people this month and injured two others. police have announced a reward of $100,000 for information that leads to the arrest and conviction of the bomber. andrew plant reports. and neighbourhood in texas, sunday night into monday morning, residents here are being evacuated. police and fbi were called to a property and reports of an explosion. two people taken to hospital. we want to put out a message that we have been

putting out and that is that not only do not touch any packages or anything that looks like a package. do not even go near it at this time. given the darkness, we have not had an opportunity to look at this bus site to determine what has happened. this is already a city on high alert with two people killed and one seriously injured in a series of parcel bomb attacks this month. packages left on porches that explode when they are roped into. the first in the north of the city was on march two. two more further south ten days later. the first killed a 39—year—old african—american who picked up the parcel bomb outside his home. the second, a 17—year—old man, also an african—american. and the third, later the same day, seriously injured as sydney five—year—old hispanic woman. police have said it is not clear if she was the intended target. none of the packages were delivered by official services. all have been left during the night and

picked up morning. police say they are chasing hundreds of leads. they have set up a special hotline and are offering a reward of $115,000 for any information. stay with us on the briefing. also on the programme: the ones that got away. we meet the man who's rescued 500 whale sharks — the world's biggest fish. today, we have closed the book on apartheid and that chapter. more than 3,000 subway passengers were affected. nausea, bleeding, 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.

now, this 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. you're watching the briefing from bbc news. 0ur headlines: vladimir putin describes his re—election as russian president as a sign of the "confidence and hope" of his people. us police in austin, texas, investigating a series of parcel bombings respond to another explosion in which two men are injured. more than 70 homes have been

destroyed in wildfires in the australian state of new south wales. hundreds of people have fled there which are thought to have been started by landing. —— new south wales. many cattle have also been killed in the fire. 0ur correspondent hywel griffith is in sydney now. the biggest fire was in southern new south wales in tarthra. at least 70 homes and buildings have been destroyed. when you look at some of the footage captured by helicopters, it is amazing bit mangled metal workfare, and it is amazing bit mangled metal workfa re, and the it is amazing bit mangled metal workfare, and the charred remains of what worked in properties looking out at a beautiful coastline. yesterday afternoon on sunday at the two bridges were very hot. about 38 degrees. the wind picked up, and that helped carry the bushfire.

hundreds of people managed to evacuate to the nearby town of bega. some went to the beach to huddle there, thinking that was the safest place to be. some eyewitnesses said the smoke got so thick coming towards them that they could only see about a metre in front of them. but they were safely evacuated. sopai, noel reports of major injury. some reports of smoke inhalation, and emergency workers suffering exhaustion. but the major loss of life. but if i is exhaustion. but the major loss of life. but ifi is now exhaustion. but the major loss of life. but if i is now under control? —— but no major loss of life. life. but if i is now under control? -- but no major loss of life. the winds picked up, so it is still being controlled. people cannot go home to see they have homes left. we understand some are actually looking at the aerial footage trying to map

the streets to see from the television footage whether their houseis television footage whether their house is still intact. it is strange how these fires spread. you get spot fires. fire is thrown through the airand fires. fire is thrown through the air and spread fires. fire is thrown through the airand spread in fires. fire is thrown through the air and spread in a non—linear pattern. some houses are completely burnt to the ground, and their neighbours' are left completely and track —— complete intact. these people will have priority with the big clear up ahead. thank you for joining us from sydney, hywel griffith. scientists have announced a significant breakthrough in the treatment of multiple sclerosis. results from an international trial have shown that a stem cell transplant can halt the disease and improve symptoms. the condition is triggered by a faulty immune system, which attacks the brain and spinal cord. so nice to finally get out.

it feels like my diagnosis wasjust a bad dream. before her transplant, louise willetts from rotherham had severe relapses, attacks of multiple sclerosis. at one point, she was in a wheelchair. it also affected her mind — she struggled to read and follow conversations. now, she's completely well and has a newborn daughter too. it does feel like a miracle. almost have to i pinch myself and think, is this real, is it really gone, is it ever going to come back? i don't live in fear anymore so i actually live every day the way that i want to live it, rather than around my ms. ms is caused by a faulty immune system, attacking the brain and spinal cord. symptoms include balance and muscle problems, fatigue and loss of vision. the bbc‘s panorama followed louise's treatment, originally developed for cancer patients. a high dose of chemotherapy was given to knock out her immune system. then these healthy stem cells, taken from louise's blood and bone marrow, were infused. unaffected by ms, the stem cells

rebuilt her immune system. now, more than two years on, she's back at sheffield's royal hallamshire hospital for a check—up. hi, hi, louise. hello. nice to see you. the mri shows there is no active disease in her brain. but i'm really delighted at these scans. so this is really good news. yes, it is. i'm delighted too. the results of this trial are, quite simply, stunning. it should mean that many more ms patients are offered a stem cell transplant with the hope of stopping their disease in its tracks. it can fundamentally alter the course of patients with ms who've got resistant and disabling disease. the stem cell transplant involves a one—off cost of £30,000, no more expensive than the yearly fee for some drugs. it's not suitable

for all ms patients, but the life—changing results with louise and others are plain to see. fergus walsh, bbc news. thousands of people in the brazilian city of rio have marched in honour of marielle franco, a human rights activists gunned down last week. franco, a black woman from one of rio's most violent favelas, campaigned against police brutality. russell trott reports. chanting: no, no, no! rio dejaneiro on sunday afternoon. this the latest of several demonstrations in brazil — a protest over a murder that many here believe was a targeted assassination. it made headlines across brazil and around the world. marielle franco was a popular local politician, killed

alongside her driver last wednesday, shot four times in the head. translation: whoever tried to silence marielle sent a message for democracy. as a poor, black woman, she wasn't supposed to get involved in politics. we need to know who the coward was who did this. translation: they killed her like she was an insect, just to get her out of the way. but they don't realise that, when they killed her, it made thousands more resolute. thousands will nowjoin in the fight to continue what she started. a campaigner for the country's poorest, she spoke out against perceived police brutality in brazil's impoverished favela districts, and the government's recent decision to use the army to try to stem a rise in violence. news of her killing spread around the world on social media,

her name tweeted millions of times, her death mourned everywhere from new york to paris. many here believe she was targeted because of her outspoken criticism of brazil's police and security forces. officials say her death is still being investigated. meanwhile, campaigners say more marches are planned across the country. russell trott, bbc news. here's our briefing on some of the key events happening later. beginning in washington, in a few hours time, saudi prince mohammed bin salman makes his first visit to the us since becoming heir to the throne, he is scheduled to meet president trump on tuesday. later, in brussels, british brexit minister david davis and eu chief negotiator michel barnier meet to hammer out key details ahead of an eu summit this week. finally, in australia at 2200,

myanmar leader aung san suu kyi will deliver a highly anticipated speech following her involvement in the asean summit at the weekend. whale sharks are the world's largest fish. they're endangered, and used to be severely hunted off the coast of west india. the practice is now banned, and fishermen are even encouraged to rescue and release whale sharks that get tangled up in their nets. interesting. let's look at what you have been talking to us about the story we have been talking about, facebook, and the use of our data. we will discuss the allegations later. we have the question, are you concerned by the way that kate jones use your data? jerome says people need to treat social media, e—mails, and things online like a stranger in and things online like a stranger in an alley. it is a choice how you

wa nt to an alley. it is a choice how you want to take care of your data. and paul says you can't forget the basic lessons to do with stranger danger. andi in the netherlands said facebook has got out of hands. it has to be regulated. —— andy. we will discuss this in more detail with other stories in a few minutes. hello there. the cold snap is easing, but we will see some disruption during the day on monday. this was the scene in devon early on sunday. we still have an amber warning from the met office which expires at 3am on monday morning. but even after we could see disruption — snow of up to 20 centimetres in places. sunday, we had this cold easterly wind. we keep the chilly winds on monday,

but high—pressure staying in charge. the wind won't come from such a cold direction. monday morning, we are likely to start with sub—0 temperatures right across the board. could be as low as —8 degrees in more rural spots of scotland, particularly in places with lying snow. still a few snow showers early monday morning in the far south, parts of devon coolmore, the channel islands, and perhaps one or two for kent at sussex. head your way further northwards and it is a cold start, but most places are looking dry. a really sharp frost first thing though. during the day, lots of us staying dry and reasonably bright with sunshine. cloud filtering in for easter scotland, north—east england, and perhaps snow flurries down to the channel isles. elsewhere, things are looking largely dry. temperatures are still low, 4—7 degrees. not as cold as the weekend. during the rest of the week, temperatures will warm up a touch. things turning milder. some rain arriving later in the week, but starting it, high—pressure in weather. heading into tuesday, high—pressure stays with us, bringing a mostly dry day. there will be a weak front

on tuesday, bringing a bit more cloud, and the few outbreaks of rain to lincolnshire, east anglia, down towards the south—east too. but elsewhere a lot of dry and bright weather. temperatures will start to dry up. 6—9 degrees by tuesday. we will have lost that chilly biting easterly wind. moving to the middle of the week, the yellow colours approach from the atlantic. the change in air mass on the way through the middle of the week. during wednesday, the change in air mass will bring rain to parts of scotland, northern ireland — fairly patchy at this stage. in the south—east, a largely dry day. although the cloud will build, some bright spells in the south and east and we're back into double figures. goodbye. this is business briefing.

i'm sally bundock. re—election for vladimir putin: but how will he steer the economy through troubled times, the heavy burden of sanctions and volatile oil prices? facebook‘s boss faces a storm over claims it allowed data from millions of users to be exploited for political gain — we have a special report from silicon valley. and a brand new trading week is under way in asia — shares apple suppliers are sliding on reports it's to make its own screens for the first time.