good afternoon and welcome to bbc news. two british men held captive in syria, accused of being members of an islamic state gang that murdered dozens of hostages, have said they "regret" the killings. they've complained that they won't get a fair trial. alexanda kotey and el shafee elsheikh, who were captured by kurdish fighters injanuary, say they've been stripped of their uk citizenship. jessica parker reports. they became the most infamous gang of foreign fighters in the self—styled islamic state. jihadi john, his real name mohammed emwazi, now dead, and alexanda kotey and el shafee elsheikh. captured injanuary by syrian kurdish fighters who are now holding them in northern syria while their fate is decided. now holding them in northern syria while theirfate is decided. among many others, the gang is accused of beheading alan henning, a driver and aid workerfrom beheading alan henning, a driver and aid worker from eccles, beheading alan henning, a driver and aid workerfrom eccles, and david haynes, an aid worker from

aid workerfrom eccles, and david haynes, an aid workerfrom perth. now, speaking for the first time since their capture, alexanda kotey described the murder of is hostages as regrettable. the pair complained that they will not get a fair trial. they say the uk as illegally withdrawn their citizenship, putting them at risk of rendition and torture. us officials believe the gang beheaded at least 27 hostages, among them the american journalist james foley, who went missing in syria in 2012. his mother says the men must be held to account. syria in 2012. his mother says the men must be held to accountlj really men must be held to account.” really a m men must be held to account.” really am not that interested in their opinion on anything. i am interested in them being held accountable for their horrific crimes. right now, they looked like they are on vacation. that is the pa rt they are on vacation. that is the part that is very concerning tumi and upsetting. diane foley has said she fears that while the two men remain in northern syria, they could still evade justice. remain in northern syria, they could still evadejustice. britain remain in northern syria, they could still evade justice. britain and the united states have been holding

talks on the fate of the pair and where and how they might face trial. jessica parker, bbc news. and with me is our political correspondent, jonathan blake. has the british government addressed this question of citizenship, and what is their view on the men facing justice? in this case as in any other, the government is not confirming or denying that these two men have had their citizenship removed. but if it has been taken away, that makes it less likely for them to face trial in the uk. the home secretary amber rudd said last month that she was certain that these two men would face justice. the defence secretary gavin williamson has said that they should not return to the uk because they have turned their back on british values. so the question is where and how. the foreign office in a statement today have said that they will continue to work extremely closely with the us government on this issue, sharing our views, which suggests that there may be an element of persuasion needed. but what these two men have done is highlight the limbo around their

legal status and their citizenship, which raises the possibility of them, if they were to escape ca ptu re, them, if they were to escape capture, maybe escaping justice altogether, which is something the government here would be keen to avoid. jonathan blake, thank you very much. russia has told britain it must cut a further 27 staff working in the country in a further worsening of relations following the salisbury nerve agent attack. it's not clear whether they are diplomatic or technical staff. more than 100 russian diplomats have been expelled by more than two dozen countries in response to the attack. meanwhile, russia has told britain it wants its consular officials to visit yulia skripal, one of the two victims of the attack, in hospital. she is now understood to be stable, conscious and talking. her father remains critically ill. flights have resumed from stansted airport after a fire at the airport yesterday. a passenger shuttle bus caught fire, causing all departures to be cancelled. no—one was hurt, but many said it led to confusion at the airport, leaving thousands of travellers stranded and frustrated. we were two hours on the plane and then they told us

there was a fire, and so we finally got off the plane and we were waiting in the lounge with everyone and they still hadn't said it was cancelled. we had to go back through security. nobody would tell us anything, nobody knew what was happening, we were literally standing in queues, asking each other "is this the right thing? what's happening 7 " we were just waiting where the bags are for, like, three hours. trying to find our bags. because literally everyone just dumps them off, so there was just piles and piles of bags and you had to rummage through to find your bags as there was no order. our news correspondent anisa kadri is at stansted for us now. if sta nsted if stansted back if sta nsted back to if stansted back to normal? stansted says things are getting back to normal, but those two young women you just heard from where hoping they would be in barcelona by now. instead, we met them bleary eyed on the floor of the terminal beside me.

that flight had been cancelled yesterday because of this fire that broke out on a shuttle bus, and they we re broke out on a shuttle bus, and they were hoping that that flight would ta ke were hoping that that flight would take off today after having to wait in long queues and rebook and all that sort of thing. they are not the only ones complaining about a lack of information or a lack of organisation. you just have to go on social media and you will see plenty of people having their say on what they felt was a disorganised, chaotic and confused state here at sta nsted. chaotic and confused state here at stansted. but chaotic and confused state here at sta nsted. but sta nsted chaotic and confused state here at stansted. but stansted says one of the problems it faced was the fact that people who had been through security and people who hadn't got mixed up. it took the decision to cancel flights yesterday after the bus caught fire because of an electrical fault. now it says things will get back to normal and the advice is to check online for any updates. thanks very much. the united nations is calling for an independent inquiry following the shooting dead of 16 palestinians by israeli security forces. hundreds of people were wounded in the shootings yesterday as palestinians demonstrated

on the border between gaza and israel. yolande knell reports from jerusalem. israeli drones dropped tear gas as huge palestinian crowds massed on the israel gaza border after friday's prayers. 0rganisers had called for a peaceful march, but israel's military says demonstrators threw stones and tried to bridge the perimeter fence entering israeli territory. that was when it's soldiers opened fire. and the result was deadly. at least 15 killed and hundreds wounded. last night, emergency talks took place at the un security council. israel must uphold its responsibilities under international human rights and humanitarian law. lethal force should only be used as a last resort. palestinians here are

demanding the right to return to land they lost 70 years ago, when the state of israel was created. israel says gaza's hamas leaders just want to stir up unrest on the border. over the last few weeks, you have had numerous attempts by her master cross into israel through the border with squads of terrorists to kill our people. we can't allow our border to be porous. we can't allow the hamas activists to tear down the fence and into israel. we would be putting our people in danger. but now palestinians plan to stay in these camps near the israel border for the next six weeks, and the fear is that with further protests, there will be further unrest. yolande knell, bbc news, jerusalem. with all the sport, here'sjohn watson at the bbc sport centre. the australian cricketer david warner has spoken publicly for the first time about his role in the ball tampering scandal, saying he

ta kes full ball tampering scandal, saying he takes full responsibility for his actions. in another tearful news conference, the former vice captain said he would regret his involvement for as long as he lived and that he was resigned to the fact that he may never play for australia again. in the back of my mind, i suppose there isa the back of my mind, i suppose there is a tiny ray of hope... that i may one day be given the privilege of playing for my country again. but i am resigned to the fact that that may never happen. after an excellent start, england's bowlers were left frustrated by new zealand's batsmen on day two of the second test in question. jonny ba i rstow second test in question. jonny bairstow reached second test in question. jonny ba i rstow reached test second test in question. jonny bairstow reached test century, making 101. england bowled out for 307. but their bowlers made a flying start, reducing england's top order to 36-5. start, reducing england's top order to 36—5. there were not able to capitalise on that start as the

hosts finished the day on 192—6. the premier league is back this weekend after the international break. the day's lunchtime kick—off is already under way. crystal palace have taken an early lead against liverpool. wilfried zaha an early lead against liverpool. wilfried za ha collided an early lead against liverpool. wilfried zaha collided with the liverpool goalkeeper. and anthonyjoshua takes on the new zealanderjoseph parker in tonight's world unification title fight in cardiff. 17 stone, four lbs, two ounces. . . cardiff. 17 stone, four lbs, two ounces... champion versus champion, the best against the best, one of the best against the best, one of the rarest sights in heavyweight boxing. anthonyjoshua, the rarest sights in heavyweight boxing. anthony joshua, the the rarest sights in heavyweight boxing. anthonyjoshua, the london 2012 olympic gold medallist, the face of british boxing and holder of two will title belts, against the unheralded joseph mcdonnell, the wbo champion from new zealand, looking to cause an upset. we are loving the whole journey. eight weeks,

to cause an upset. we are loving the wholejourney. eight weeks, it is lovely being here and meeting people and getting our training done. it is all part of the journey. but i am try to treat it as just another fight with just another fighter. it happens to be in front of a thousand people, i'm excited to be fighting in front of them. i spoke to my coach and that i really want to improve for myself and to prove that lam improve for myself and to prove that i am better improve for myself and to prove that lam betterthan improve for myself and to prove that i am better than my last few title shots. i'm not scared at all, you know. let's say we put everything on mute and we strip away everything people say about my opponents and my current opponent. when i look at the person in general, i have no fear. this is where it all goes down later tonight, a full house expected at the prince party stadium here in cardiff to witness a piece of british boxing history, the first time two reigning heavyweight world champions have met on these shores. we have a realfight here, a massive

heavyweight unification fight between two young, hungry, dangerous, fearless world heavyweight champions. it's a historic event. you've got a group of new zealanders and a group of brits. both guys love to win and sets of teams love to win, and countries love to win. so it's more about the competition and the desperation to win. we are all desperate to win on saturday night. two huge heavyweights of the sport, eyeing upa two huge heavyweights of the sport, eyeing up a place in history. and thatis eyeing up a place in history. and that is all the sport. the next news on bbc one is at 6.30. bye for now. there is a great rise in stabbings, particularly within a short period of time due to lack of funding, that was made a hello.

you're watching the bbc news channel with shaun ley. it's 12 minutes past one. britain's most senior police officer, the metropolitan commissioner cressida dick, has suggested that social media is partly to blame for some violent crime, including a rising number of knife attacks. in an interview with the times, ms dick said the websites were being used by gangs to glamorise violence and allowed trivial disputes to escalate quickly. the commissioner says she sees a connection between incredibly abusive language used in social media meaning that it makes it "more likely, faster, and harder for people to cool down." she goes on to say that social media allows people to show off and she is "sure it does rev people up." in the article the commissioner also announced a new task force of about 100 officers to tackle violent crime in london. jermaine lawlor is a former gang memberfrom east london who now works with young people helping to get them out of gangs and away from violence. he says it's wrong to claim that social media is solely to blame. there's a great rise in stabbings, particularly within a short period of time, due to lack of funding, that was made a few years ago,

and we are seeing the ripple effect of that now. within our society we are seeing families, communities, fed up, powerless and feeling hopeless, and as a result are indulging into crime. two parallel worlds are running side by side. a society that me and you function in is a very different society to those that are on the streets and caught up in this vicious cycle. what can be done to help? it would be funding, re—education, looking at education packages in our schools, how we can turn it into the curriculum. looking at street awareness courses, how to be safe on the street, things that are not taught in your schools that can help on a day—to—day basis whether you are an urban child or not. this has been happening before. before instagram, twitter, before facebook. we have had issues with gangs, violence on the streets of london way before instagram was set up. jermaine lawlor there. the uk's largest teaching union has said that creative

subjects such as art and drama are being cut by schools to save money. the national education union, which was formed by the merger of the nut and atl, is holding its annual conference in brighton. 0ur correspondent marc ashdown is there. marc? yes, thanks, shaun. the big news today is all about teacher pay. delegates this afternoon will be asked to vote on a motion whether or not to back strike action or a strike ballot because they are asking for 5% hike in pay is pretty much immediately from september to address what they call years of underfunding and living cuts to teachers. i am joined underfunding and living cuts to teachers. iam joined by underfunding and living cuts to teachers. i am joined by thejoint general secretary of the union, kevin courtney, thanks forjoining us. kevin courtney, thanks forjoining us. can you tell us the squeeze has happened in the past few years? we are in this position where the government is missing teacher recruitment targets year after year, five years where they haven't managed to keep them and it is harder to keep teachers in the job. the number of teachers leaving every year is going up so there is a huge

problem with having enough teachers in front of our children. the teachers left are being asked to teachers left are being asked to teach subjects they are not qualified in and that is a problem for the education of our children and we think the government has to work on this urgently, both of the workload which is crazy and is unnecessary, much of it, producing evidence for bureaucrats, not preparing exciting lessons for children, and they also have to work on pay. teacher pay has fallen behind, it doesn't compete with other graduate professions, so young people thinking about coming into the teaching profession will look at the teaching profession will look at the fact that their salary is falling behind others. he is part of the picture and the government has to address it. but a 596 immediate hike. the nhs is 6% over three yea rs. hike. the nhs is 6% over three years. it sounds a bit impossible.” don't think it is anywhere near impossible. i think the government should be giving more to the nhs, but you have to think inflation is 396, but you have to think inflation is 3%, teacher pay is falling behind other graduate professions and we are not recruiting enough teachers

and we are not keeping them in the classroom. pay is really a big part of whether we are going to have the right teachers in front of children. the government says we have 15,000 extra teachers now from 2010 so they say there is not a problem. extra teachers now from 2010 so they say there is not a problemm extra teachers now from 2010 so they say there is not a problem. if they are telling you that they are deliberately trying to mislead you. there are more teachers but that ignores the fact far more children. we have been through a population sports, so the fact there are some more teachers does not mean there are enough to go around. the government is missing its own targets to recruit teachers and is losing more and more every year. they have to address this. they are trying to pretend the problem isn't there, and if you do that, if you ignore a real problem for long enough, it. being a crisis and it will be a catastrophe. last year the independent school teacher review body said that the teacher recruitment and retention problem was now at the place where it caused a significant risk to the efficient running ofan a significant risk to the efficient running of an education service, and i tell you when an independent body

says something like that, you don't get those sorts of statements. that isa very get those sorts of statements. that is a very real crisis, not just the unions saying that. it is anybody else who is looking at this picture, with independent eyes, they see there is a real crisis. heads have been saying for years they are struggling to balance the books so this money would have to be new money, theoretically. yes, i think the government should agree a 5% pay rise for september and give the schools the money for it. both those things have to happen. 0ne schools the money for it. both those things have to happen. one of those things have to happen. one of those things we are seeing, because they are cutting back on schools, teaching assistants are being cut, and that is terrible for the children, that the teaching assistants they were working with previously gone, but it also means more work going to the teachers. going down that route there will be even more teachers leaving. so it has to be both. it has to be paid and it has to be funded, and it has to be on workload as well. kevin courtney, joint secretary of the national education union, thank you. teachers will be voting on this this

afternoon and the other teachers union up in birmingham are also this afternoon, shaun, voting on whether the ballot for strike action for teacher pay. marc in brighton, thanks very much. it is 18 minutes past one. the headlines on bbc news: two british men believed to have been members of the islamic state cell known as "the beatles" complain they can't get a fair trial after losing their citizenship. the head of the un calls for an investigation into the deaths of at least 16 palestinians during clashes with the israeli army on the gaza border. moscow more than doubles the number of british diplomats it plans to expel in the continuing row over the salisbury poisoning. from tomorrow some specially trained paramedics will be able to prescribe medicines to patients who don't need to go to hospital. the change in the law aims to improve care and allow treatment to start more quickly. 0ur health correspondent, catherine burns reports. gemma walsh is already an advanced paramedic but she wants this

extra responsibility. first though, duty calls. fiftértré'fi mama-rill. he. . . ,, it will also reduce the number of patients we hope that we need

to convey to hospitaljust to get a prescription. patients groups say this could save lives and the new law has been widely welcomed. just one proviso, some medics point out that although this will help, it will not deal with all the funding and staffing problems the nhs is dealing with. catherine burns, bbc news. malala yousafzai has returned to her hometown in the swat valley for the first time since she was shot there by islamist militants. a helicopter carrying ms yousafzai landed not far from herfamily home in mingora on saturday, amid a tight security operation. the nobel peace prize winner was attacked by the taliban in 2012, for campaigning on behalf of girls' education. the funeral of professor stephen hawking will take place in cambridge this afternoon. family, friends and colleagues will gather to pay their respects to the physicist who died earlier this month at the age of 76. professor hawking's ashes

will be interred next to the grave of sir isaac newton at westminster abbey in june. 0ur correspondentjo black is in cambridge for us now. jo, jo, i should jo, ishould imagine jo, i should imagine it is expected to be quite turn out there. yes, absolutely. if you look around the streets of cambridge in the city it is very busy today. hundreds of people have turned up to see this historic moment, and of course this service which is due to start in just over half an hour at two o'clock, around 500 people will attend that. we are standing outside the church, the university of cambridge church, saint mary's church, and this is where the service will take place, as i say, around half an hour or so. we have seen some around half an hour or so. we have seen some celebrities arrive, eddie redmayne, who of course played professor hawking in the theory of

everything. doctor elon musk is due to attend, and the astronomer royal will also be delivering a reading at the service. i have spoken to the public today. they said they wanted to come out, pay their respects to stephen hawking and celebrate his magnificent mind. they said it is a historical moment. i spoke to two girls, two children, who said they we re girls, two children, who said they were really intrigued and inspired by him, and are now studying science asa by him, and are now studying science as a result. lots of comments coming in aboutjust how wonderful he was, his lectures, his teachings, his discoveries and cds, and also the fa ct discoveries and cds, and also the fact —— his discoveries and theories, and the fact he triumphed over adversity by suffering motor neurone disease. there was a comment on the radio this morning which i think captured him rather well. stephen hawking, he said, was an imprisoned mind roaming the cosmos which grabbed the public imagination

thinking about the largest things, while completely trapped. jo black, thatis while completely trapped. jo black, that is a powerful image, and hopefully we'll be able to be evoked again during the course of the funeral service. thank you, jo black in cambridge. mining students from around the world are being put through their paces in cornwall this weekend, in a challenge designed to test their strength and technique in some of the oldest skills in mining. competition is fierce at the international mining games, which are an opportunity for students to learn traditional methods whilst also sharing new skills. dan johnson has been for a look around. go, go, go. it is the toughest test in a difficult, dirty business. the mining games is all about teamwork, skill, and strength. come on! getting stuck in, definitely. hard graft, you have to be willing to get dirty, get involved, make sure you do all the hard work before you can climb the ladder. there are seven different

events — everything from laying tracks, panning for gold, digging and hammering. it is about keeping traditional mining skills alive. drill a hole fill of explosives to blast the rock out. before you had mechanical air drills. you had to do it by hand. there are 110 teams here from mining schools around the globe. competition certainly is fierce. these montana mining students have been training for months. the important skills are communication, a an abiliity not to get in each other‘s way. stay in good spirits. inevitably, the time has come for me to have a go. 25 metres then back. tip it, fill it as fast as you can, then run it again full. they call this mucking and they are not mucking about. the support from the crowd is helpful, i think. that is hard work.

he's not doing badly, to be honest. # can you understand me now? # can you understand me now? # i'll get through somehow... #. # can you dig it? #.

he's not doing badly, to be honest. keep that weight on! it is competitive. it is. absolutely. i think with the girls, we're just trying to support each other. more encouraging. this is tough. and it is technical. if there was ever any doubt, mining is a toughjob. it has to be time for a cornish pasty. food,it food, it has tc lass. t: be

-- the will move on. around —6, minus cloud will move on. around —6, minus seven degrees or so. cloud will move on. around —6, minus seven degrees or so. none too warm elsewhere. a clear start to ease today, not bad, but i am more worried about easter monday. the northern half of the british isles, certainly a risk of possibly disruptive snow. fifigiézgéig , , — * fgz; f 2; m; — : fg: f :: m: new — : fg: f :: m: % -,,,,, w--- ,, — : fg: f :: m: new ee’ “we'uszf‘ see 7 ~ ~ with us or new bbc local radio. see you this is bbc news — our latest headlines: two british men, believed to have been members of the notorious islamic state cell

known as "the beatles", complain they can't have a fair trial because the government has stripped them of their citizenship. moscow more than doubles the number of british diplomats it plans to expel in the continuing row over the salisbury poisoning. clashes in gaza, the head of the un calls for an investigation after 16 palestinians are killed by israeli forces on the gaza border. britain's most senior police officer blames social media for normalising violence and leading more children to commit stabbings and murders. thank you for your company. now on bbc news, weather world. the team discover how meteorology has helped to shape the royal air force, which is celebrating 100 years