welcome to newsday. i'm mariko oi in singapore. the headlines: mark zuckerberg admits facebook made mistakes over how it handled data belonging to 50 million of its users. the suspect in the texas bombings blows himself up as police close in. now the question is, what motivated 23—year—old mark anthony conditt? i'm sharanjit leyl in london. also in the programme: taiwanese police make multiple arrests, as they target a suspected human—trafficking operation. it is magic until you understand it, and thereafter, it's mathematics. and we meet a teacher you can really count on. the youtube sensation who's making maths fun. 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 5pm in san francisco, where the founder of facebook, mark zuckerberg, has admitted making mistakes in mishandling data belonging to 50 million users. he's promised tougher steps to prevent what he called "bad actors" from getting access to people's private information. facebook, which is the world's biggest social media network, is facing growing pressure over allegations that a british firm, cambridge analytica, accessed users‘ information for political purposes. our business editor simonjack has the latest. facebook founder mark zuckerberg broke his silence tonight on a scandal that has engulfed the social media giant. in a facebook post, he said the company had a responsibility to protect your data and admitted the company had made mistakes. he described how a british academic had invented an app inviting facebook users to do

a personality test. 300,000 people downloaded it. it collected personal information on them and all of their facebook friends. that data was obtained by british consultancy cambridge analytica in 2013, a move mark zuckerberg described tonight as "a breach of trust", and it was later allegedly used in the trump election campaign. a campaign the company's executives took a lot of credit for when secretly filmed. an apparent shock to the designer. never in our wildest dreams did we think that anything that we did would be used in the trump campaign. this is 2014, well before anyone would think that mr trump would be a serious candidate. i did not know who their clients

would be, i did have a specific use case. i did know it was going to be used for political purposes, but beyond that, it was well above my pay grade. i should have asked. could this really have altered the course of us history? unlikely, says a man who worked on 0bam's 2008 election. data can be used to increase divisions and stoke fears, as they themselves have said, and that is what needs to be regulated more carefully, and ethical behaviour needs to be enforced, but elections are decided by a whole range of factors and i think that they over claimed their impact. perhaps the biggest change will be our awareness of what we are agreeing to when we hit "i agree". the conversation we should be having is what happens to our data, how much are we comfortable to share? and what do we think about how

that is done? this is a real lightbulb moment, people understanding that it is notjust clicking like on facebook, what you're doing is giving data away. facebook‘s value has fallen by more than $50 billion since monday, evidence perhaps of lasting damage on facebook‘s brand and its users‘ trust. our technology correspondent dave lee has been talking to asia business report about this story. that'll be on bbc world news in half an hour, so stay tuned for that. now, let's take a look at some of the day's other news. the war of words has increased between london and moscow over the spy poisoning case. at a parliamentary hearing on wednesday, the british foreign secretary was asked if the russian president would use the world cup in the same way that hitler used the 1936 0lympics. have a listen. will he use the world cup the way that adolf hitler used the 1936

olympics? the idea that he will use it as olympics? the idea that he will use itasa olympics? the idea that he will use it as a pr exercise, it fills me with horror. first of all, i think that your characterisation of what is going to happen in moscow, in the world cup, yes, i think the comparison with the 1936 olympics is certainly right. and i think it is a prospect frankly, to think of putin glorying in this sporting event. also making news today... more than 100 nigerian schoolgirls abducted by islamist militants last month in the town of dapchi have been freed. five girls are said to have died in captivity and another, the only christian in the group, has not been released. the government denies paying boko haram a ransom. local media is reporting the girls are exhausted and underfed. at least 31 people have been killed in a suicide bombing

in the afghan capital, kabul. the bomber was apparently heading towards a well—known shrine, where a large crowd had gathered to mark the start of the new year festival. the islamic state group said it carried out the attack. the president of peru, pedro pablo kuczynski, has resigned. he had offered to resign after being implicated in a vote—buying scandal. in an address to the nation, mr kuczynski denied wrongdoing, but said he did not want to be an "obstacle" in the country's development. the pilot of the jet that crashed at a british air show in 2015 is to be charged with the manslaughter by gross negligence of the 11 people who died on the ground. andrew hill is also accused of endangering an aircraft, and is due to appear before magistrates next month. a palestinian teenager who was filmed slapping an israeli soldier has accepted a plea deal, that will mean she serves eight months in prison.

ahed tamimi agreed to plead guilty to four of the 12 charges she faced, including assault. the 17—year—old was detained after confronting two armed soldiers outside her home in december. french legal officials say the former president, nicolas sarkozy, has been placed under formal investigation for allegedly accepting illegal funds for his election campaign from the late libyan leader, colonel gaddafi. he's been released from custody after two days of questioning. mr sarkozy denies claims that libyan officials delivered cash to his team during his 2007 presidential campaign. let's take a look at these pictures of a new rift in kenya's rift valley, where geologists are warning that this huge crack is showing signs that the continent is splitting. the earth movements began last week and were exacerbated by heavy rains — tearing apart large sections of the suswa area in south—western kenya.

while the continental split could take millions of years, the immediate concern is the safety of road users and people living there. the suspect who's linked to a series of deadly package bombs in austin, texas has died. the man has been identified as 23—year—old mark anthony conditt, and he has detonated an explosive as police closed in on him. experts have removed explosive device components from his home, but they are warning that he may have planted or mailed other bombs. gary 0'donoghue is following the story. police closed in on the suspected bomber in the early hours, tracking him down to a hotel north of austin. while they waited for extra backup, he drove off and then pulled into a ditch at the side of the road. as the police approached his car, he set off another bomb. as members of the austin police department swat team

approached the vehicle, the suspect detonated a bomb inside the vehicle. knocking one of our swat officers back, and one of our swat officers fired at the suspect as well. the suspect is deceased, and has significant injuries from a blast that occurred from detonating a bomb inside his vehicle. cctv in the past couple of days appears to show the man believed to be the suspect dropping off a package at a fedex office in southwest austin. a key pice of evidence. he has not been named officially, but thought to be a 23—year—old man called mark anthony conditt. he lived in pflugerville, just outside the city. schoolfriend of the suspect that i

spoke to did not want to be identified, but she said he seemed like a normal boy. i am shocked, i would have been even if it was not someone would have been even if it was not someone that i knew. ijust think regardless of his personal reasoning, it was not excusable. since the beginning of the month, there have been six separate bombs, five of which have exploded. two men have died, and half a dozen people have suffered serious injuries. a number are still in hospital. during the day, the police with dogs searched a number of properties associated with the suspects, evacuating areas and cordoning off areas. police still do not know the motive for this bombing spree that has terrified austin, texas for the last three weeks. they are also telling the public that they don't know where the suspect has been for the last 2a hours, so there could still

be devices out there. gary 0'donoghue, bbc news, austin, texas. taiwanese authorities have detained nine taiwanese and 29 foreigners, almost all vietnamese nationals, in a suspected human—trafficking operation. on monday, two vietnamese migrants died when their rubber dinghy capsized in high waves off the coast of taitung. upon further search, coast guards found several others hiding on shore, as well as a larger boat off the beach with more vietnamese migrants waiting to be taken ashore. let's get more on this story from our correspondent cindy sui from taipei. taiwan is not the first place one thinks of when it comes to human trafficking, so what is the latest behind this tragic episode? what we're hearing from the authorities is that are questioning people for suspected involvement in organising this human trafficking operation. we don't usually see cases where people

are being struggled in boats to taiwan but people trafficking does exist in taiwan, and as you know taiwan is an island, so there is a lot of coastline. this case may be unusual in the sense that it was detected, they may be other cases that undetected. the authorities say that undetected. the authorities say that they have a good system in place, radar detection system, and thatis place, radar detection system, and that is how they found the boat offshore on monday, speedboat was trying to arrive off the eastern of taiwan. we know there are official channels for many migrants to enter taiwan, so why would vietnamese nationals, in particular, try to enter taiwan in this way? well, it is believed that many migrants, especially from vietnam's, try to avoid paying the high seas that brokers in vietnam's in taiwan try to charge them. so many people, especially from vietnam's, whether these could be as high as 10,000 us

dollars, try to avoid these by here legally. some of them come here legally. some of them come here legally and then escape from their jobs and work in the black market illegally, but this is an unusual case where we see 30 something people being brought here in boats, potentially to work here legally, working on very low wages and putting themselves at risk of being exploited. now, as you say, it is not terribly common that this happens in taiwan, it is also unusual the number of people involved in this one but is it a sign perhaps that this sort of thing is becoming more frequent? yes, it is becoming more frequent? yes, it is in is becoming more frequent? yes, it isina is becoming more frequent? yes, it is in a way because one of the reasons why people come here is because they already have people in the villages here, or relatives here. there are already quite a number of migrants here, half a million. there are also a number of immigrants in southeast asia who have settled here and married taiwanese people. we have seen cases

of people who are already here who wa nt to of people who are already here who want to bring their relatives here to working farms or in their restau ra nts, to working farms or in their restaurants, illegally, so that they could benefit from the low wages and also help their countrymen. so we are seeing an increasing number of people immigrate to taiwan, and the authorities say they do not really have a good grasp of the situation because the number of people working here illegally has been growing for the last two years and they do not know where they are. for the latest on that story, thank you. you're watching newsday on the bbc. still to come on the programme: it's the world's most critical resource, but for many people around the globe clean water is falling through the cracks. also on the programme: do you know the maths secret behind this flower? we'll meet the youtube sensation bringing numbers to life. let there be no more bloodshed

between arabs and israelis. with great regret, the committee has decided south africa should be excluded from the 1970 competition. streaking across the sky, the white hot wreckage drew gasps from

onlookers in fiji. this is newsday on the bbc. i'm marika 0i in singapore. i'm sharanjit leyl in london. our top stories. facebook has admitted making mistakes and breaching trust with its users over a data—harvesting scandal. the suspect in a series of deadly parcel bombs blows himself up as texas police close in on his vehicle. let's ta ke let's take a look at some front pages from around the world. singapore's straits times reports on the story of one brave patient who underwent brain surgery while still awake. zhi long gave a thumbs up, even while going under the knife. surgeons managed to remove a cancerous growth from his brain. the new york times wonders if the film director steven spielberg can still deliver a blockbuster? the question comes as his new science—fiction epic hits cinemas. in the last few years, his serious films that have

triumphed at the box office. the front page of the japan times shows pedestrians in tokyo struggling with the snow. the country is marking the spring equinox, but the winter weather shows no sign off slacking off. increasing low pressure is to blame. and pedestrians in tokyo have struggled with the snow in that picture. now what stories are sparking discussions on line? yes, let's looks at what is trending right now. a smoke—filled parliament in kosovo has trended. lawmakers had to be evacuated after opposition through tear gas to prevent a vote on the controversial border bill. they were about to vote on demarcation when

three teargas canisters were thrown. believe it or not, it is not the first time tear gas has been used in parliament to stop the boat. —— vote. 0ther parliament to stop the boat. —— vote. other occasions have led to street clashes with police. it's incredibly easy to take clean water for granted when all you have to do is turn on the tap. but on the 25th world water day, the australian group wateraid is drawing attention to what they are calling "the water gap." they say 60% of the world's population is now living in water—stressed areas. this year's report also includes new data on the gap between rich and poor when it comes to access to water. it estimates that 8“; million people have no clean water near their homes. earlier, i spoke to rosie wheen, chief executive of wateraid australia. she began by outlining her concerns for access to water. every single day, 800 children die

from diarrhoea. and we know that is preve nta ble from diarrhoea. and we know that is preventable with access to clean water, decent toilets, and good hygiene practices. so we do need to look around the region and see that there are countries that really are falling behind in terms of achieving universal access for everyone. the three worst countries we can see globally are eritrea, papua new guinea, and uganda. we need to focus on those falling behind. we do have some cases in asia where countries have managed to improve the situation quite a lot. what exactly can the government do? you are right. we are seeing some really good progress. for example, india, where many people still have no access to safe water, but in the 15 yea rs access to safe water, but in the 15 years prior, hundreds of millions of people have got access. we can solve

this crisis, and there are things governments have to do. there needs to be political leadership, financing, a focus on the capacity and skills needed. we need to really look at how we manage the most precious resource in the world, water, and make sure there is water for agriculture industry and also for agriculture industry and also for domestic and basic need. and of course, we must not forget to focus on the poorest, and make sure that no one is left behind, and make sure eve ryo ne no one is left behind, and make sure everyone gets no one is left behind, and make sure eve ryo ne gets a ccess no one is left behind, and make sure everyone gets access to clean water. we also have, of course, countries like singapore which have turned things around very quickly. but tell us things around very quickly. but tell us about this water gap. do you feel this gap between rich and poor still exists in many countries? as you said, great knowledge to take from countries like singapore. that is what we are championing. we need to highlight, as you said, the gap

between the rich and the poor. there are countries, for example, pakistan, where we look at a national level and it is about 88% of people have access to water that is safe, but if we drill into the numbers, we look at the poorest people, only 79% have access to water, whereas the wealthy people, it is 98% of people who have access. when i talk to people, especially especially women, in papua new guinea, they understand the impact it has on their lives, not having water, the time that is wasted, the heavy burdens they have to carry, it is really holding the progress of individuals, families, and countries back, by not making sure everyone has access to clean water. speaking earlier to mariko. australian teacher, eddie woo, has won fans worldwide with his high—energy maths lessons posted on line. mr woo recently won

australia's local hero award and was a finalist for the global teacher prize. he's been explaining his formula for infectious lessons to the bbc in sydney. my my name is eddie woo, i'm the head teacher of maths at the cherrybrook school in australia. i am going to put on, to finish my definition, i am going to put on two more words. when i started making these videos, i only did it with one student in mind. he was very sick so he was missing a lot of class. for this to have gotte n missing a lot of class. for this to have gotten around the country, all around the world, for me, it is just endlessly. i get comments every now and again saying who is this asian quy and again saying who is this asian guy and what is that accent coming out of his mouth, they cannot pick the accent. congratulations.

what i am really aiming for, i guess, is to help people think about mathematics as not a scary subject, not something that is really challenging, only for special people, but i want people to see it is accessible, understandable. i wa nt to is accessible, understandable. i want to get at that sense of sense of wonder of students, that human beings have, that when they see something and think how does this happen? there is a famous saying it is magic until you understand it. and there after, it is mathematics. how many cards did you get that matched on both sides? i have heard people got eight and eight at four and four, six and a six, seven and a seven. it opens up a way to see

things ina seven. it opens up a way to see things in a new way you never could have imagined before. just go outside and pick up a flower, look at the pattern of seeds, the spiral, the shape. there is an unmistakable pattern which can be explained mathematically. mathematics is everywhere if we have eyes to see it. i encourage everyone to look around them and see the patterns around them and see the patterns around them and wonder what is out there. ask why. go and look up a reason. then you yourself can become a mathematician. eddie woo, an inspiration to students worldwide. i wish my math teacher had been as engaging when i was in school. i would have paid attention more. i can categorically say maths was not a favourite subject of mine. mariko, what about you? definitely was not mine either. i think history was my favourite. i remember when i first moved to australia and said i want remember when i first moved to australia and said i want to remember when i first moved to australia and said i want to do history, my teacher said your

english is not good enough, do maths, you are asian, you must be good at it. i wish i had a teacher like that. do not go away. i will be back with business news, and the new us federal reserve chairman has announced his first interest rate hike. we will talk about how that affects people. and before we go, we will look at these pictures. as the pope enjoyed a hearty chuckle during a windy day at the vatican. a cheeky wind took off with the pontiff's zucchetto. he'd previously been battling with the breeze to keep the cap on, but gave up as he spoke to the vatican crowd, joking that it was now behind him. that's all for now. stay with bbc world news. hello. temperatures have been slowly recovering over the last couple of

days after that mini beast from the east brought us that disrupted snowy. thursday, a more mild start. good spells of sunshine. the atla ntic good spells of sunshine. the atlantic has come back to life, feeding in cloud and mild air. you can see the air mass, the orange, moving in on thursday. more fresh for friday. my old air never far away. sunshine on the weekend and feeling pleasant. —— mild. early thursday. damp weather down the east of the country affecting east anglia and the south—east. elsewhere, largely dry. variable cloud. more of a breeze further west. feeling more mild on thursday. most places, 4—7.

0ne mild on thursday. most places, 4—7. one or two pockets of frost in sheltered rural locations, south—west england and northern scotland. looking good on thursday. a change in northern ireland and western scotland. increasing wind. 45 miles per hour. 0utbreaks western scotland. increasing wind. 45 miles per hour. outbreaks of rain. elsewhere, a lovely day in store. 0n rain. elsewhere, a lovely day in store. on thursday night, that rain band will spread across the country, eventually clearing east for the country. a fairly good—looking they. showers in the north—west. wintry on the hills. more call than thursday. —— cool. early spring for the weekend. sunshine and showers. variable cloud. generally quite mild, especially with sunshine. this is saturday morning. a rather tardy note in central and southern and eastern parts of the country. ——

cloudy. skies will brighten up further north and west. showers in scotla nd further north and west. showers in scotland and northern ireland, especially on the hills. temperatures around 11. sunday looks like the bed a day of the weekend. more widespread sunny spells. —— better. the best of the sunshine will be in the east. more mild. temperatures around 13 celsius. i'm sharanjit leyl with bbc world news. our top story. the founder of facebook has admitted the giant social network "made mista kes" over the cambridge analytica data scandal. it follows allegations that millions of users' private information was misused by the political consultancy firm. mark zuckerberg also pledged a series of changes, making it harder for apps to harvest user information. police in texas have named the suspect they say carried out a spate of deadly parcel bombs as mark anthony conditt. he was killed after detonating

an explosive device as officers pursued him. and this is trending on bbc.com. lawmakers in kosovo had to be evacuated from parliament after 0pposition politicians threw tear gas. it's not even the first time they've used tear gas in parliament to stop a vote. that's certainly got lots of people talking. now on bbc news, it's time for hardtalk.