this is bbc world news today. our top stories: sorrow and anger on the streets of gaza, as palestinians mourn the 16 protesters killed in clashes with israeli troops. russia reaches out to yulia skripal, demanding access to the daughter of the poisoned former double agent, who's recovering in hospital. two men accused of carrying out beheadings for the so—called islamic state complain they won't get a fair trial after losing their uk citizenship. and social media under scrutiny, the us considers asking visa applicants to hand over their online accounts. hello, and welcome to world news today. thousands of palestinians have been attending funerals in gaza after 16 people were shot dead by israeli troops on friday, and hundreds more were injured.

here, you can see some of the funeral services from the last hour or so. the outbreaks of violence followed the gathering of tens of thousands of protestors along the border fence between gaza and israel, the start of a planned six—week long demonstration against israeli occupation. the israeli military currently oversees a no—go zone along the gaza border, citing security concerns. palestinians have pitched five camps near the border, seen here in yellow. hamas, which controls gaza, along with other palestinian groups, is calling for families to stay in the camps until mid—may. israel's prime minister benjamin netanyahu, meanwhile, has issued a statement, publicly congratulating his soldiers, adding that "israel acts vigorously and with determination to protect its sovereignty and the security of its citizens." the bbc‘s yolande knell is injerusalem. gunfire this was a day of mourning.

thousands turning out for funerals in gaza. distraught relatives and defiant militants. yesterday, palestinians said they planned a peaceful march on the israel—gaza border, but israel's military says demonstrators threw stones and tried to breach the perimeterfence. that's when its soldiers opened fire. and the result was deadly. at least 15 killed and hundreds wounded. officials blamed gaza's leaders for stirring up unrest. of course they're allowed to protest, but this wasn't a protest. this was an attempt of potentially thousands of people to cross over into israel. any state in the world would have taken measures to stop people from infiltrating into its territory. palestinians here are demanding the right to return to land they lost 70 years ago

when the state of israel was created. they say they won't give up, although israel has long rejected the claim. translation: they are hoping that the old will die and the young will forget, but the young children sitting here now, saying they want to go back to their family's lands, the lands of fathers and grandfathers. for the next six weeks, palestinians say they'll stay in these camps near the israeli border. yolande knell, bbc news, jerusalem. the british foreign office says it is considering a request to allow russian consular access here to the daughter of double agent sergei skripal. yulia skripal is recovering after she and her father became victims of a nerve—agent attack in the english city of salisbury. the bbc‘s simonjones has more. given that the british authorities were so quick to point the finger at russia in the wake of the attack here for being responsible, it might seem extraordinary

that the british government is now considering a request from russia to be granted access to yulia skripal in hospital. the key thing here is going to be what yulia skripal herself wants. the big question, is she going to want any contact with the russian authorities, and even if she did, is she likely to be well enough anytime soon for that to happen? the russian authorities say it is their right to have contact with her, and they have also listed 27 questions that they would like to ask the british government about the attack here and also about the treatment that she is receiving in hospital alongside herfather. they want to know why the treatment she is getting seems to be having a greater effect than on her father, who remains in a critical condition. they have also asked to see photos of them both in hospital to prove

they are indeed here in salisbury and that they are indeed alive. there hasn't been a response to that from the foreign office, but what they say is they will consider russia's request under international law, but they are stressing yulia skripal‘s rights will be the number—one priority. we have heard further details about expulsions of british diplomats from moscow. we already knew 23 had been kicked out of the country. yesterday, we were told there were going to be even more who would have to leave. now we have learned it's likely to be extra 27 diplomats or possibly administrative workers who are going to have to leave moscow once again. what we're not sure of is whether the british government will take any direct action following that. they say they are aware of what is happening, they are monitoring the situation, but they say it is regrettable that it was to be expected. let's take a look at some of the other stories making the news.

syrian media is reporting that the enclave of eastern ghouta is almost empty of rebel fighters. a state news agency has said that buses carrying fighters and civilians have left the area. the syrian army has promised to "finish off" rebels in the final holdout. president trump has continued to criticise the online retailer amazon following comments earlier this week. on twitter, he said the company does not pay enough tax and is ripping off the us postal service by billions of dollars. mr trump also accused the washington post, which is owned by amazon head jeff bezos, of acting as a lobbyist. malala yousafzai has returned to her hometown in pakistan for the first time since the taliban tried to kill her on a school bus. the nobel winner, who now lives in the uk, was only 15 when she was shot in the head for campaigning forfemale education. herfamily‘s home region of swat was once a militant stronghold. and car maker tesla has confirmed

that one of its vehicles, involved ina that one of its vehicles, involved in a fatal crash, was switched to its autopilot system. last week, a model x crashed into a roadside barrier and the driver was killed in the collision, which involved two other cars. a diplomatic row has broken out between italy and france after armed french customs officials crossed the italian border and entered a migrant centre. five officers forced an individual to undergo a urine test at the facility in bardonecchia, about a kilometre inside the italian border, on friday evening. the italian foreign ministry summoned the french ambassador on saturday for an explanation. i spoke to the bbc‘s europe regional editor, mike sanders, about what happened. well, there are two versions here, what is happening from the italian side, there is a refugee group

called rainbow for africa, who run a centre at a border crossing call bardonecchia, which is an italian ski resort. and they say that around about 7:30pm on friday evening five french customs agents burst into their centre with a refugee, a nigerian refugee that they wanted to ta ke nigerian refugee that they wanted to take a sample from, and a intimate of staff and worried people and were abusing this refugee‘s human rights. that is how the italians are telling it. the french are saying, through a minister, that what actually happened was that the customs agents we re happened was that the customs agents were doing checks on the paris to milan tgv, the high—speed train, and they saw this nigerian passenger and thought he was probably smuggling drugs inside his body. so what they wa nted drugs inside his body. so what they wanted to do was take a urine sample from him, which they got consent for, so they got off attempt to and use the refugee centre to get this

sample, because they said it was better for his dignity than forcing him into the train toilets or something. and they say that it was all done properly and above board, and they are copyright to do this and they are copyright to do this and ajoint and they are copyright to do this and a joint agreement signed in 1990 between the two border patrols. and for people not familiar with this area, this is a route for migrants who are trying to make their way through europe. it has become a route, yes. the preferred route before was the coastal route, but that has been really clamped down on now, so people are making their way north up into the mountains, places like bardonecchia, to try to get across the mountains in the snow in the winter, and that is why the refugee people are there, to help them, because they don't want people freezing to death in the mountains overwinter. so they have teams of doctors, paralegals are there to try to read them their rights and that kind of thing, explain how best to get into france. 02 different

versions of what happened, but it is causing anger politically in italy. the italian foreign ministry called in the french ambassador for an explanation and, you know, italian right—wing politicians have been making hay with this, because it plays into their narrative that italy is being left to carry the burden of the migrant crisis and this is just another example of other european countries kind of dumping on them, if you like, portraying it as a violation of italian sovereignty, and there is even one right—wing mp who accused the french of using italy as a toilet for refugees. there's a warning that two british men detained in syria, accused of being members of an islamic state gang that murdered dozens of hostages, could escape justice. alexanda kotey and el shafee elsheikh, who were captured by kurdish fighters injanuary, say they've been stripped of their british citizenship. relatives of some of their victims have said britain and america must quickly reach agreement on bringing the men tojustice. duncan kennedy reports.

the two men were picked up by kurdish forces in northern syria injanuary and have been part of a sadistic gang of british is fighters that tortured and beheaded dozens of hostages. four of them stood out for their brutality. mohammed emwazi, known asjihadi jack, now dead, aine davis, now injail, and the newly captured pair, alexanda kotey and el shafee elsheikh. they're accused of the beheadings of alan henning, an aid driver from eccles, and david haines, a former raf engineer from perth who also delivered aid. now, in comments which have outraged their victims' families, kotey and elsheikh have called the murders of their hostages regrettable. they also say the uk has illegally

withdrawn their citizenship. one of their victims was james foley, an american tv journalist, in the helmet, who was beheaded. his mother says she is worried any delay in deciding their future could risk them escaping. if somebody doesn't take the leadership and take them to trial, i fear they'll get away or something else. i'm concerned that the international community and our government, the us government and uk, need to work together to hold them accountable. tonight, the home office wouldn't say whether alexanda kotey and el shafee elsheikh had been stripped of their british citizenship but said the uk was working with its allies to ensure justice was carried out, which for some could mean an international court ofjustice. one option might be that they could be put on trial in front of an international criminal court, and that isn't impossible,

and indeed, i think there may be some arguments that the international community should be working together to see if individuals who have committed these crimes can be brought tojustice. the british is fighters are believed to have beheaded at least 27 hostages amid appalling brutality, which is why some legal experts we have a duty, i think, to try them fairly, as we will, and to punish them heavily, and to show the world just how british justice works. they stand accused of the most barbaric crimes. where and when they answer for them is now the subject of intense international debate. duncan kennedy, bbc news. stay with us on bbc world news, still to come, we'll bring you up to date with the premier league results, and what's turning into a good weekend for manchester. the accident that happened was a a

type that could produce a meltdown, they worked but did not prevent the safety fears about the stations from resurfacing. the republic of ireland has become the first country in the world to ban smoking in the workplace. anyone lighting up in offices and businesses will face a heavy fine. the president was on his way out of the washington hilton hotel, where he had been addressing a trade union conference. the crowd outside included his assailant. it has become a symbol of paris, 100 years

ago many parisians wished it had never been built. therefore tower's birthday is marked by a re—enactment of the first ascent. this is bbc world news today. the latest headlines: palestinians observe a day of national mourning for at least 16 people killed in clashes with israeli soldiers at the gaza border. a request by the russian embassy to visit yulia skripal in hospital is being considered by the uk government. let's take a look at the sport now withjames pearce. manchester city can seal the premier league title with a win against local rivals manchester united next saturday after cruising past everton this evening. pep guardiola's side scored twice in the opening 12 minutes and ended up 3—1winners. pep guardiola has now recorded a

victory against every current premier league side since he came to manage in england. we are so happy. after three weeks without a game, you never know how they will react, and we started the first half so good. the second half as well, but we controlled more and, ok, the goal and five minutes more, but after we controlled the game. anthonyjoshua faces joseph parker in their world heavyweight unification bout at the principality stadium in just a couple of hours from now. the winner will become the unified heavyweight champion, holding three of the four belts available. david ornstein is in the welsh capital. welcome to cardiff, where the atmosphere is building very nicely indeed head of one of the most eagerly anticipated boxing matches in many years. anthonyjoshua againstjoseph parker, the first

time two reigning heavyweight world champions have ever met on british soil. i am delighted to bejoined by boxing correspondent, mike lakusta low, some of the sense of occasion tonight, how big a contest is this? —— might costello. tonight, how big a contest is this? -- might costello. there is little anywhere in the world of sport that matches a significant heavyweight occasion, and you said it was the first time that two unbeaten heavyweight champions have met in this country, and it is the first time in more than 30 years that they have met anywhere. they are expected to total 80,000 here this evening, and that means a quarter of a million people will have watched anthonyjoshua live million people will have watched anthony joshua live recently. million people will have watched anthonyjoshua live recently. when mike tyson and george foreman, the great champions of the past, talk about anthony joshua being responsible for the resurgent of the glamour of the heavyweight division, we are seeing it tonight for real. tell us the prospect facing josh wood, could joseph parker cause an upset tonight? i don't think he

will, because they hit so hard, but it is the division where the most u psets it is the division where the most upsets have happened. if you look at them at the way in, in terms of size, but the wayjosh wood towers over him, i think he will be too big and too powerful for over him, i think he will be too big and too powerfulfor him. ——joshua. there will be a winner, what are you expecting for the future, whoever does come out on top? in the era stretching back three decades with four recognised world title belts, three at state denied, two held by joshua, the winner will walk away with three of the four recognised versions of the world heavyweight title, the other held by deontay wilder, that will be next for the winner. no man in history has held all four versions, and that is the stated ambition of anthonyjoshua, and he can go one step closer

tonight. south australia saw their makeshift top order collapse, openers matthew renshaw and joe burns, just 12 runs between them. earlier, south africa were all out for 488, looking good for a first home series win over the aussies since 1970, they lead by 378, and they lead the four match series 2—1. the second test between new zealand and england is nicely poised heading into the third day. play gets under way in just over three hours with new zealand set to resume on 192—6 in reply to the tourists 307 all out. new zealand remember are 1—0 up in the two—test series, are you prepared to hand over all your social media identities in exchange for a us visa?

a new state department proposal may require just that. if approved, the proposal would require most visa applicants to give details of their email addresses and social media accounts, such as twitter, facebook or instagram. reports say the net would also cover china's weibo and russia's vk social network. the administration says this could help create tougher national security vetting. critics say it's an invasion of privacy. corey brettschneider is professor of politics at brown university and also teaches law. hejoins me now from new york. first of all, where do you stand on this? what is your reaction?|j first of all, where do you stand on this? what is your reaction? i think it is very worrying. the trump administration talks about heavy betting, and this is part of a process of restrictions, in one case, the travel ban had questions about religious freedom, and now

this policy has very serious questions, notjust this policy has very serious questions, not just about this policy has very serious questions, notjust about privacy but also about our first amendment right to free speech, and it sounds like there is a serious risk that is being infringed. i suppose the white house would say, though, that online, twitter, instagram and facebook, people reveal their true selves, and often it is a good indicator of their intentions, and that this might be the way to make your country safer, so isn't it an argument for carrying this out?“ it was just about national security issues, there wouldn't be as much of a worry, but i am concerned that this administration has talked about punishing political opponents and certainly singling out people's speech, whether american citizens all those in conversation with people in the united states, targeting them based on political opinions is a clear violation of our first amendment. there is also talk of more invasive policies, they want to ask for passwords at one point, and that goes well beyond just national security concerns, it looks like they may be digging around and

looking for viewpoints that they oppose, namely viewpoints that may be opposed to this administration. it is one thing if the question is the security of the united states, but the president does not have the ability and our constitution to punish political opponents or to just exclude them because he feels like they are critics of his policies. my worry is that this is pa rt policies. my worry is that this is part of a wider policy where this administration is doing precisely that. i spoke to the bbc a few months ago about the team to case where they were collecting data on american citizens attending protests. this is antithetical to oui’ protests. this is antithetical to our free speech. with your legal hat on, do you think this will end up being fiercely contested, as the so—called muslim ban was through the courts? i think it should be, and i will help take part in that as i did

with the muslim ban. there is a case on their side, about a marxist professor that the court said could be excluded from the united states, but it was a very closely battled decision that was facing rigorous dissent, and this goes well beyond the exclusion of one marxist professor who was a public figure, it is looking individual media chance, possibly passwords, possibly targeting people not for a broad ideology, which is of course controversial, but what you can't do under our constitution, what is not a legitimate bona fide reason... i'm afraid we're up against the clock, but we do appreciate your analysis, thank you very much for your time. sierra leone's opposition leader has complained that voters in the presidential election are being put off by a heavy security presence inside polling stations. julius maada bio said the turn—out for the run—off in some parts of the country had been lower than expected. the bbc‘s umaru ffana has more from the capital freetown. the long queues witnessed during the

first round were generally absence today. mostly in dribs and drabs, people came out to vote. after casting his, the outgoing president said he was pleased with the conduct. the process is smooth, and i think it is simple for everybody to understand and vote. my only concern at the run—off is the voter turnout that does seem to be a bit lower than what we experienced. the main opposition flagbearer, julius maada bio, who narrowly led the first ballot, voted in eight freetown suburb. they are

interfering with the freedom of people, this is supposed to be a dim aquatic election, it should be free and fair. the governing party candidate voted in his hometown, some four hours outside the capital. it has been a generally peaceful atmosphere throughout the country, but in the last few moments, at is polling centre in the west end of freetown, there has been an incident involving two sets of supporters. police and soldiers have had to take the situation under control. even with the presence of the security forces, tension kept mounting before things calmed down. the results will not be known until next week. the winner must be sworn in within 2a hours of the declaration. it will be the first time that sierra leone will witness a back—to—back transfer of power through democratic elections. and that is the weight is looking this hour, you have been watching bbc world news today, thank you your company. hello there, conditions have been

improving through the day. it has been turning drier for many. the rain reserved for the east. still wintry over the higher ground. many places have seen scenes like this, a lot of cloud around, quite cool as well. but there have been some holes in the cloud. some of the best of the sunshine was across the north—west of scotland. we have this high pressure toppling in from the west, pushing this front across the eastern side of the country into the irish sea. but it will take a while, as we head through the night, it will stay damp in central and eastern parts of scotland and england. further sleet and snow on the hills. further west, drier under clear skies, it will turn cold with a frost. a hard frost in scotland. a ridge of high pressure building in for easter day, and most places should be dry. a cold start for many with some frost around. a lot of sunshine,

particularly in scotland and northern ireland. through the day the cloud will build up, and a greyer afternoon. it will remain cool. a few showers in eastern coastal counties. wet and windy later in the day in devon and cornwall. all courtesy of this next area of low pressure. it has mild air behind it, but ahead of it, this rain will push into cold air, and we will see a mixture of rain, sleet and snow. snow even down to lower levels for central and northern wales, central and northern england and central and southern scotland and northern ireland and this could cause some problems in the afternoon. further south sunshine and showers, and it will be turning mild, temperatures in double figures. scotland will stay dry in the north. easter monday, if you have travel plans, bear this snow in mind. it will cause some disruption. as we head into tuesday, a very different feel, with much milder southerly winds and a typical

mixture of sunshine and showers across england and wales. some heavy downpours in northern ireland. but notice temperatures from nine to 1a or 15 celsius. this is bbc world news, the headlines: palestinians are observing a day of national mourning for at least 16 people killed in clashes with israeli soldiers at the gaza border on friday. the un secretary—general has called for an independent inquiry into the deaths. a russian request to visit yulia skripal in hospital is being considered by the uk government. the uk holds moscow responsible for the nerve agent poisoning of ms skripal and her father, the former spy, sergei skripal. two men — believed to have been members of the islamic state cell known as "the beatles" — complain they can't have a fair trial because the government has stripped them of their british citizenship. the funeral of world renowned

scientist stephen hawking has taken place in cambridge. the theoretical physicist, who had motor neurone disease, died on 14th march, aged 76. up to 500 family and friends attended the service.