this is bbc news. i'm lewis vaughan jones. our top stories: the french president describes a police officer who swapped himself for a hostage during a supermarket siege as a ‘hero‘. british officials search the london headquarters of the firm at the centre of the privacy row involving facebook data. a classmate of the former russian spy poisoned in salisbury exclusively tells the bbc he'd asked president putin for a pardon and to visit russia. bump stocks — the devices that turn semi automatic rifles into machine guns — are to be banned in the us. prince harry and his fiancee meghan markle head for a pub lunch on a visit to northern ireland. hello.

a french police officer is fighting for his life after being shot during a hostage attack in southern france. lieutena nt—colonel arnaud beltrame was shot several times by gunman redouane lakdim, who said he was acting on behalf of the jihadist group islamic state. our correspondent lucy williamson reports from the scene. france's interior minister called it a knack of her wisdom but it seems to have also been key in ending the deadly siege in a supermarket. being exchanged for a hostage being held at gunpoint. the kernel secretly kept his mobile phone connected to colleague out site, allowing them to hear what was happening. the attacker had already killed two of his cap is and the police officer

was shot several times before security forces stormed the building, killing the gunmen and ending the siege. three people were killed in a series of attack and over one dozen injured. he claimed to be acting on behalf of the jihadist group islamic state and said he wanted to secure the release of abdeslam, a french detainee linked to the november 2015 paris attacks. officers of the british information commissioner have searched the london headquarters of cambridge analytica, the firm at the centre of a major privacy scandal. a judge issued a search warrant at the request of the commissioner, who is investigating claims the firm may have harvested personal data illegally from 50 million facebook users. lebo diseko reports and evening swoop on cambridge analytica. the embattled company

being searched. they were looking for documents, computers and anything else relating to information gained from the profiles of facebook users. this is where it all began. be used and app that invited facebook users to do a personality test. 300,000 downloaded it and collect information on them and their facebook friends, harvesting data on 50 million users. the consultancy cambridge analytica obtained that data in 2014. it says it deleted the information years ago but has claimed it was used by the firm ina but has claimed it was used by the firm in a works of the trump election campaign, at claimed the company denies. they say they in no way resembled a politically motivated and unethical company that some have sought portrait. facebook says it is bringing in changes to make sure that a data breach like

this cannot happen again. however britain's information commissioner wa nts a nswers. britain's information commissioner wants answers. among other things, she was asking if the data was collected an authorised way and whether there was sufficient concern to cherie. it is unclear how long officials will have two go through what the collected in the search. it aims more certain, however, that this is not over yet. let's take a look at some of the other stories making the news. president trump has signed a memorandum effectively banning most transgender people from serving in the us armed forces. but the document does give the military some leeway in implementing the policy. the 0bama administration allowed tra nsgender military personnel to serve openly back in 2016. officials from north korea have confirmed they will hold high—level talks next week with seoul, to discuss arrangements for an inter—korean summit. both koreas will each send a three—member delegation to the border truce village of panmunjom next thursday for talks aimed at paving the way for a summit in late april.

thousands of pro—independence supporters in catalonia have clashed with police as they protested against the decision of a supreme courtjudge to prosecute 25 catalan leaders for rebellion, embezzlement or disobeying the state. five of the leaders were detained, including the man nominated jordi turull. the director of britain's military research laboratory at porton down has dismissed russian suggestions that his facility was the source of the nerve agent that left a former russian spy and his daughter in a critical condition. scientists at the chemical defence unit have been analysing samples taken after the attack on sergei and yulia skripal in salisbury. 0ur security correspondent gordon corera was given special access to porton down. it is one of the most sensitive and secret sites in the country. porton down, home to the defence

science and technology lab and now the heart of the salisbury poisoning investigation. inside one of the labs, scientists demonstrated to us one of the many ways used to detect the presence of chemical agents. a call came here to porton down in the early hours of monday, march 5, and within hours, a specialist response team was deployed down the road to salisbury. they collected samples which were brought back to labs here at the site, and which identified a military—grade nerve agent. based on that as well as other information, the government has said it is highly likely that russia was responsible for poisoning sergei and yulia skripal. security at porton down is tight. russian diplomats have raised questions as to whether somehow nerve agent from here could have got out. that is something officials say is impossible. we have the highest levels of controls, of security around the work that we do here.

we would not be allowed to operate if we had lack of control that could result in anything leaving the four walls of our facility here. so we have got complete confidence that there is nothing that could have come from here out into the wider world, as it were. and is it frustrating when you hear that kind of accusation? it's a coincidence that it's down the road that this has happened, it is frustrating to hear that because everyone here knows that is just not true. they emphasise that their work here is purely defensive. chemical agents are pumped into this chamber to test how well the chemical suits given to soldiers stand up. there have been allegations in russia that a new chemical weapons factory is being built, but officials showed us the local planning application saying what is being built here is actually going to be a facility for the analysis of explosives. what about the accusations that there is a secret local warfare facility being built here?

that is just nonsense, this is a defensive organisation and we know that the russians have been suggesting certain buildings are for making chemical warfare, and that's just complete rubbish. this afternoon, the park bench in salisbury where sergei and yulia skripal were found was taken away. international inspectors from the 0pcw are now taking samples from the scene. they are also working inside porton down itself to independently confirm its analysis, including the conclusions that point to russian involvement. gordon carera, bbc news, porton down. a school friend of sergei skripal, has told the bbc that mr skripal wanted to return to russia. in an exclusive interview, vladimir timoshkov says that mr skripal didn't see himself as a traitor because he swore an oath to be loyal to the soviet union moscow denies responsibility for the attack in salisbury. some breaking news from paris now. a police officer who swapped

himself for a hostage, being held at a supermarket in south—west france yesterday has died. within the past few minutes, a french minister announced that the officer arnaud beltrame had died. the gunman, who said he'd been acting on behalf of the islamic state group, killed three people in separate attacks before he was shot dead. of course we heard earlier on but that police officer had been praised by the french president who described him as a hero. he was taken to hospital and in the last few minutes we have heard that he has since passed away. we will give you more on that as we receive it. the us attorney generaljeff sessions has announced that bump stocks — the devices that turn semi automatic rifles into machine guns — will be banned. it comes a month after the school shooting in florida that resulted in the deaths of at least 17 people and last year's massacre in las vegas when a gunman used bump stocks to open fire on a crowd

of concert goers. 0ur north america correspondent peter bowes reports. for a nation that seemed so relu cta nt to for a nation that seemed so reluctant to tackle gun control, the florida school shooting was a day of reckoning. stu d e nts shooting was a day of reckoning. students took to streets around america and are now converging on washington to demand tougher laws. the banning of dump stocks is the first step. the attorney general confirmed that the devices that allow semiautomatics to mimic the actions of a fully automatic weapon will be banned. they came under intense security —— scrutiny after the last leg shooting after it was emerged that the gunmen had used them. 58 people died and hundreds of others were injured when he opened fire ona others were injured when he opened fire on a crowd of people at a concert. they were not used during the florida school shooting but amidst the national outrage that

followed, president trump pledged to ta ke followed, president trump pledged to take action. now he says he is making good on his promise to get rid of them. he tweeted that they will ban all devices that are legal weapons into illegal machine—guns. after the warrant a shooting, the national rifle association said it did not support a ban on docks. the organisation seems to be losing public support. the ban will not come into effect immediately. there will be a 90 day public comment period before the regulation can become final. for many of these young protesters war on guns is only just starting. stay with us on bbc news. still to come: meeting the dapchi girls freed from captivity, nigeria's president pledges the return of all those still held by boko haram. let there be no more wars or bloodshed between

arabs and israelis. i'm so proud of you both. with great regret, the committee have decided that south africa should be excluded from the 1970 competition. streaking across the sky, the white—hot wreckage from mir drew gasps from onlookers on fiji. woman: wow! this is bbc news.

the latest headlines: a police officer hailed as a hero for swapping himself for a hostage in a terror attack in france has died in hospital. officers from the uk information watchdog have been searching the headquarters of the firm at the centre of the privacy row involving facebook data. european union leaders, meeting in brussels, said they're preparing co—ordinated measures against russia over the attack on the former russian spy and his daughter. in separate talks, they agreed guidelines for the next phase of the brexit negotiations, which will focus on trade and security. with more on that, here's our political editor, laura kuenssberg. they don't always look so pleased to see each other. the eu's chief negotiator grasping the prime minister's hand. today, the day when formally, finally, the stage right after brexit, the

transition, was agreed. i welcome the fact that the eu council this morning has agreed the details of the implementation period. this gives certainty to people and businesses. it gives them the clarity to plan for their future. i believe we are approaching this with a spirit of cooperation, a spirit of opportunity for the future as well. not much will change for nearly two years after we leave, but how closely will the uk hug the continent after? that is the next fight on the table, the next details to work out. "time is of the essence", the eu's most powerful voice said. "if the uk wants to leave the customs union and the single market, that means a free trade agreement," germany's angela merkel said. agreeing a buffer zone between leaving the eu and cutting off all ties was never in doubt today. but theresa may's argument also swayed eu leaders to turn up the pressure on russia,

the union even pulling back its own ambassador here to brussels. perhaps, after months of difficulties, britain's stock here is on the up. it's notjust the eu ambassador leaving moscow. other european countries say they will send russian diplomats back there in coordinated moves next week. but leaders here have been willing to walk the walk alongside britain, matching theresa may's stance in contrast to an awkward pause yesterday. the european union agrees with the uk government assessment that it is highly likely that the russian federation is responsible for this attack and that there is no other plausible explanation. despite the tough brexit negotiations, the european union has demonstrated unanimous and unequivocal unity with the uk in the face of this attack.

we decided to call back our european ambassador in moscow. this is an extraordinary measure — we never took it before. still stands together. the next 12 months could fray those alliances. then she will make this departure for the final time. laura kuenssberg, bbc news, brussels. at least 15 people are reported to have been killed, and many more injured, in a suicide attack in the afghan province of helmand. the explosion took place at a sports event in the town of laskar gah. harvey biggs reports. the aftermath of a deadly car bomb attack in afghanistan's helmand province. a vehicle packed with explosives blew up outside a sports stadium in lashkar gah as spectators were leaving a wrestling match. local authorities say the suicide

bomber attempted to go inside the stadium but was stopped by police and detonated his explosives. the blast was very intense. the children were also killed. and, uh, several were children. the bomber, er, the bombing of this bomb has not yet claimed responsibility, up to the taliban or also to isis. the wrestling match was part of celebrations for nowruz, the persian new year holiday considered by some fundamentalist muslims as unislamic. the attack caps a bloody week in afghanistan. on wednesday, 33 people were killed and 65 wounded in a suicide bombing in kabul — the fifth bomb attack in the capital in recent weeks. the group calling itself islamic state has claimed responsibility. there are fears the situation will only get worse as both is and the taliban ramp up attacks ahead of the official start of what has become known as the spring fighting season. afghanistan's president, meanwhile, has condemned this latest attack against innocent people.

once again, it is they who are paying the heaviest price for the country's unrest. harvey biggs, bbc news. the nigerian president, muhammadu buhari, has told schoolgirls released by the islamist group boko haram that they should pursue their dreams without fear. most of the girls were abducted from their school in dapchi last month. mayenijones reports. fed and cleaned up ahead of their meeting with president buhari, these girls have come a long way in a few short days. the scene is reminiscent of the release of 82 chibok girls almost a year ago. that release, in may 2017, also caused controversy as commentators speculated on how the government was able to secure their liberation. mr buhari, clearly aware of the parallels, had a message

for the families of chibok. i want to appeal to the chibok community never to lose hope or to despair. we are determined, as never before, to bring back our remaining chibok daughters, and this we must accomplish. but there are still girls missing. there is no confirmation of the death of five of the girls and a sixth girl, believed to be the only christian in the group, is still in custody after refusing to renounce her faith. back in dapchi, her relatives are anxious for her return. among the kids that was abducted in dapchi, she was the only christian lady and, to my surprise, she is the only one they've left behind. so i'm urging people and the federal government, please, to do something better, to return this girl back to her parents. but they are also defiant, refusing to be cowered by those who abducted their daughter. i have a message for her —

that she needs to keep on being a faithful christian. she should never, never denounce christianity, no matter what the suffering is. president buhari has said he is as committed to freeing the girl who remains in captivity as he was to her peers. he has also asked security forces to ensure no future abductions take place but after two major mass kidnappings, it is unclear how they will avoid another one from happening. a rescue operation to try and save a large group of whales, who became stranded on a beach in western australia, has come to an end. all but 6 of the 150 short—finned pilot whales have died, despite the efforts of conservation officers at hamelin bay. it came nine years — to the day — after the last mass stranding at the same spot. europe's most active volcano, mount etna, is sliding towards the sea at a rate of 14 millimetres a year. a british—led research team that studied the sicilian mountain says

there's no immediate danger, but there's a risk of a major collapse of etna's leading flank at some point in the future. prince harry and his fiancee meghan markle have spent the day in northern ireland. they were shown a peace—building initiative county antrim and enjoyed a pub lunch in belfast. as our royal correspondent sarah campbell reports, the trip is one of a string of public engagements ahead of their wedding in may. the audience could not quite believe who was walking in. prince harry and meghan markle surprised thousands of youngsters gathered at the site of the former maze prison, all there to help promote peace between their communities, part of an initiative launched by harry on a visit here last september. and then to lunch in one of belfast‘s best—known pubs. are you closed or not? we are open for you today! on the menu, irish stew, washed down with a little liquid refreshment, of course.

meghan had a half a guinness and a half of the mourne mountain gold ale to sample with her lunch. where are you from? i'm from here. i can tell. from belfast. fed and watered, the couple brought their now familiar hands—on approach to their royal walkabout. these visits have partly been about introducing ms markle to the people, but also about giving her a greater understanding of the uk — the place she has chosen to call home. cardiff injanuary and mini harry and meghan gave their namesakes welsh love spoons. in london, they took part in a broadcast on a community radio station. and in edinburgh, a close encounter with a shetland pony. rain today in belfast, the final uk capital city left for meghan to visit, in her continuing journey from california girl to wife of a british prince. sarah campbell, bbc news, belfast. a reminder of that

breaking story this hour: a police officer hailed as a hero for swapping himself for a hostage in a terror attack in france has died in hospital. within the past few minutes a french minister announced that lieutenant colonel arnaud beltrame had died of his injuries. he had swapped himself for a hostage held by redouane lakdim, who claimed to be carrying out the attack in the town of trebes on behalf of islamic state. la kdim was killed by security forces. you are watching bbc news. hello there. this weekend is looking better than last weekend. certainly much warmer and on sunday, we should see good spells of sunshine. a bit cloudy on saturday, and the reason for the cloud

through saturday is because of this feature — this deep area of low pressure running into the south of the uk. further north, though, it should be clearer and as a result, it's going to be a colder start to saturday. the cloud will be thick enough, outbreaks of rain across england and wales. the odd heavier bursts across wales, central southern parts of england with quite a breeze blowing there for cornwall and devon. so where we have the cloud to start saturday morning, it should be milder — 5—7 degrees, but cold. scotland, northern ireland with clear skies and a touch of frost. so for the weekend, then, we should see some good spells of sunshine, especially on sunday. there will be some showers around and temperatures will be around the seasonal average. so this is the picture then through saturday morning. a grey start for england and wales as that area of low pressure continues to move south—eastwards. for scotland and northern ireland, though, you will have the best of the sunshine. a few showers pushing into the north—west of scotland. these will be wintry over the high ground and the cloud will be thick enough crossing wales for the odd spot of light rain or drizzle,

and some mist and murk, too. temperature—wise, 9—11 celsius across the south. during saturday night as that area of low pressure starts to pull away, it will take the cloud with it, too. it'll become confined to the south—east corner of england. so here where we have the cloud, by the end of the night, it should still be fairly mild — temperatures above freezing, certainly. elsewhere, it's going to be a chilly night with a touch of frost around. we start sunday, then, on a really chilly note for many. a touch of frost around but bright, crisp sunshine across many central and northern areas. eventually, the cloud will clear away from east anglia and the south—east, so the sunshine will make an appearance here later in the morning and into the afternoon. so a better—looking day across the board. again, a few showers for the north and the west of scotland, these will be wintry over the hills. but with more sunshine around, and light winds, too, temperatures a bit higher there — 12 or 13 celsius. now, a ridge of high pressure which brings the fine weather on sunday moves away eastwards, and then we look at this feature running in off the atlantic into western areas. it will bring stronger winds, too, as the day wears on.

monday starts off again cold but bright. plenty of sunshine. central and eastern areas stay dry all day but then the cloud begins to increase and outbreaks of rain pushing to northern ireland and into western parts of britain, along with the strengthening breeze as well. some rain could be quite heavy. temperature—wise, again, nine to 11 or 12 degrees celsius. again, fairly mild where we have some sunshine. things are set to change as we move deep on into the week. colder air moves down from the north and the run—up to easter looks like we could see a little bit of sleet and snow. this is bbc news, the headlines. a police officer hailed as a hero by president macron for swapping himself for a hostage in a terror attack in france has died of his injuries. lieutenant colonel arnaud beltrame swapped himself during the incident in the town of trebes. three other people were killed in three separate attacks. officers working for the uk information commissioner are searching the headquarters of cambridge analytica in london. the company is at the centre of a data privacy row concerning 50 million facebook users.

the united states attorney general, jeff sessions, has announced plans to amend gun laws and effectively ban bump stocks. these devices can make a semi—automatic rifle fire like a machine gun. they were used in last october's shooting in las vegas, in which 58 people were killed. coming up at 6 o'clock breakfast with naga munchetty and charlie stayt. but first on bbc news, the travel show.