this is bbc world news. our top stories: us shares take a dive after president trump threatens new tariffs on china. brazil's former president lula defies a court order to hand himself in, and start a prison sentence for corruption. the former russian spy at the centre of the poisoning scandal is getting better, according to doctors. he is responding well to treatment and improving rapidly, and is no longer in a critical condition. days before mark zuckerberg appears before congress, facebook announces new measures to counter fake news. hello and welcome to bbc world news. as fears of a trade war between the us and china escalate, stocks on wall street have ta ken another dive. the dowjones has closed down

575 points — or 2.3%. president trump has threatened to slap an additional $100 billion of tariffs on chinese goods, and his spokesman pointed the finger at beijing. the united states is responding to chinese actions that have gone on the decades, the chinese have engaged in unfair and illegal trade practices for many years, and this is simplya practices for many years, and this is simply a response to that. sarah sanders. we can speak now to chris buckler who is covering this story in washington. chris, you would think that they are both playing to domestic audiences, that talks are continuing privately, but markets are definitely getting nervous. they don't like it, and there's talk of tariffs which may have once been look upon as threats

may now be starting to result in real actions. we had some suggestions that the chinese tariffs will be going into effect on monday, and when you look at the range of things that are suggested here, it covers planes and pork to transport committee technology, from bourbon to beat. the reality is that we have both america and china touring up a list and what is becoming a real danger of a tit—for—tat trade battle, and there is already talk of this being a trade war. and talking tough in all of this is president trump, he is the one who keeps making these threats, though there are others in the administration who are others in the administration who are trying to play this differently. we have had his economic adviser and treasury secretary both out today saying that listen, there is still the potential to talk here, we want to talk to the chinese, we want to try and perhaps contain this a little bit. these are things that have been suggested, potentially

could there be a deal here, that any deal could become placated and certainly has spooked the markets. supposedly the important meeting between president trump and kim jong and takes place next month, and china is a major player in all that. -- kim china is a major player in all that. —— kimjong—un. china is a major player in all that. -- kim jong-un. there is diplomacy and economy. on the issue of economy thatis and economy. on the issue of economy that is where president trump wants to be seen to be tough, and what you said, part of that is a domestic audience, you are right, it he does wa nt to audience, you are right, it he does want to be seen as tough on these issues, standing up america, you heard that america first rhetoric in the election campaign, and he has not walked away from that. but he also seems to recognise that china is an important partner internationally and he has talked of a past about his relationship with president xijinping. you have a past about his relationship with president xi jinping. you have these two very different approaches going on as faras two very different approaches going on as far as president trump is concerned, but also, it is worth

mentioning that although this may play well with some voters, there are business leaders who are concerned about all this, wall street as we have mentioned is concerned about all of this. and although they have been playing down talk of a trade war, they really don't like the idea of mentioning a trade war, it has to be said that today whatever the treasury statement was asked about that, he said, there is the potential of a trade war. that means both america and china have some thinking to do, but at the moment america seems to be talking more about tariffs, and in response you have china making very clear that they are quite prepared to take retaliatory action yet again. thank you for the update. former brazilian president luis inacio lula da silva has so far defied a court order to surrender to police to begin a twelve—year sentence for corruption. lula had a last—ditch plea to remain free rejected by the country's top appeals court less than an hour before a deadline

to hand himself in. the bbc‘s katy watson is outside the building where he is holed—up, and sent us this report. the deadline has been and gone, he has not handed himself in to the police. you can see people here are celebrating, they said it as a good thing, what happens now is very unknown. this is uncharted territory in brazil. brazil is a country known for its political drama. this is perhaps one of the most dramatic cha pters perhaps one of the most dramatic chapters in the soap opera. lula, lula! lula is still supposedly holed up lula! lula is still supposedly holed up in the building behind me, he has been there since thursday night when the arrest warrant was issued. he is not actually come out and spoken, he has poked his head out from time to time, but he is still very much in there. and that is the issue, what

happens now, will police come and arrest him, will his supporters to those police from coming? detention here in brazil this evening is high. —— the tension. russia has threatened a "tough response" to new us sanctions imposed on russian officials and companies. seven oligarchs in president putin's inner circle, their companies and 17 other senior officials have been targeted for what the us claims are the president's efforts to undermine the west. so let's take a look at some of those people on that list. here we have oleg deripaska, an aluminium magnate close to president putin, who also had links to donald trump's former campaign manager, paul manafort. another sanctioned was kirill shamalov, he's russia's youngest billionaire and married president putin's daughter in 2013. alexei miller, the deputy chairman of the board of directors for the energy company gazprom, is another of those hit. he's said that he's proud of being included on the list.

and finally this is suleyman kerimov, a politician and oligarch, also close to mr putin, also on the list. russia is also in dispute with western countries over the nerve agent attack in the uk. doctors treating its target, the former spy sergei skripal, now say he is recovering and is no longer in a critical condition. leila nathoo reports. they were targeted with a chemical weapon. sergei skripal and his daughter yulia, seen here in newly released family photos taken in russia. they were hospitalised more than a month ago, after being exposed to a nerve agent, a toxic chemical designed to shut down the human body. but they have been fighting its effects, and today the hospital gave this update. as yulia herself says, her strength is growing daily, and she can look forward to the day when she is well enough to leave hospital. i also want to update

you on the condition of her father, sergei skripal. he is responding well to treatment and improving rapidly, and is no longer in a critical condition. it was on 4 march that the two were found incapacitated in the centre of salisbury. they were critically ill. a police officer, who was one of the first to respond to the incident, was also admitted to hospital. he was discharged a fortnight later. the skripals had been heavily sedated, and were unable to communicate. but last week, yulia regained consciousness. now herfather, too, appears to be making progress. it's fantastic news. somewhat unexpected. we were concerned they were in a very serious state but we heard earlier this week that yulia is getting better. to hear that sergei skripal is also recovering, that's excellent news and i hope to hear more encouraging news in the weeks ahead. in a statement, a foreign office spokesperson said: yulia skripal is communicating.

yesterday she put out a statement through the police, saying she was getting stronger daily. but it's not yet clear whether sergei skripal is recovering to the same extent. but how is it that either of them have been able to withstand the impact of such a deadly substance? there are so many variables that a poisoning from novichok might take. so you have the environmental conditions in which the poison might have been left and how they picked it up. the quantities that got into him. we hear it's through the skin, which is a lot more of a protective barrier than if it was inhaled. so overall it's a pleasant surprise, good news for him and good news for the investigation. yulia, and perhaps herfather too, will now become crucial witnesses in the investigation, described by counterterror police

as one of the largest and most complex they have ever carried out. at least seven palestinians have been killed and more than 250 injured in a second friday of protests along the gaza border with israel. palestinians say they're protesting for their right to go back to their ancestral lands that are now in israel. israel's army says it thwarted multiple efforts to breach the borderfence and opened fire in some cases. from gaza, yolande knell reports. billowing black smoke. young palestinians burn huge piles of tyres as a smokescreen, as they hurl stones at israeli soldiers. they fired back with tear gas and bullets. this was another bloody friday on the gaza border. but ahmed, his son and grandsons came to peacefully protest and pray.

as a toddler 70 years ago, ahmed lost nearly all his family and his village when the state of israel was created. i was one day expelled and deported from my original country of palestine, i want to return back again. i am here to tell them, i am, in a peaceful way, want to return back to my homeland. israel rejects the claims of palestinian refugees. its military says it has been acting here to stop mass infiltrations into israeli territory. it blames gaza's hamas leaders for stirring up violence. i've just come from the gaza border and to my right are israeli homes, israeli communities, mothers and fathers trying to protect their children. and just a few football fields away were crowds gathering, who have made it clear their intent is to wipe israel off the map. the plan is to continue the border demonstration into the middle

of next month. despite the obvious dangers, palestinians here say they will keep up their protests. they will keep pressing their demands and confronting israel. on the other side of the border, israel sees all of this as a huge provocation, and is threatening a harsh response. stay with us on bbc world news, still to come: south africa's former president jacob zuma appears in court, facing corruption charges linked to a 1990s arms deal. 55 years of hatred and rage have

come toppling down with the statues. this funeral became a massive demonstration of black power, power to influence. today is about the promise of a bright future, the day when we heard the line can be drawn under the bloody past. i think that picasso works are beautiful, they were intelligent, and it's a sad loss to everybody who loves art. this is bbc news. the latest headlines: china has promised to fight back, after us president trump threatened beijing with new trade tariffs.

brazil's former president lula has defied a court order to hand himself in and start a prison sentence for corruption. mark zuckerberg, the boss of facebook, says the social media giant is tightening up its procedures for people wanting to place issue based advertisements on the site. more comprehensive id will now be required as well as a physical mailing address. it comes as zuckerberg prepares to address congress next week. our correspondent dave lee has this update from san francisco. one of these measures is to monitor the funding of advertising, to see where adverts that have been paid for by a campaign to be on facebook, to make sure that is completely clear. they want to make sure that anyone who is placing an advertiser and on facebook around political interests is being verified, and

they will do that by making sure they will do that by making sure they are using a us government issued id, they will send an access code to a physical address in the us to prove that a person is based here, and only once they put that access to it —— code into facebook will they allowed to do any advertising. when it comes to large pages, they have many millions of followers, facebook will make some effo rts followers, facebook will make some efforts to verify who is looking after those pages, to make sure they are who they say they are, because that was one thing russian interests did during the election campaign, they pretended to be americans running pages about american politics, when in reality they were russian trolls, as has become known, operating out of st petersburg. two things facebook is hoping to do in order to make sure that this week used by russia perhaps cannot be used by russia perhaps cannot be used again. more than 7 million companies, people use facebook advertising every single month, and

so advertising every single month, and so the idea that the company can go through east of those individually will be incredibly difficult. all of this comes ahead of some hearings next week in washington, mark zuckerberg himself is going to be in congress to answer questions on two separate days. i think many of these changes announced on friday hearing california are going to be designed to make sure that mr zuckerberg can be in front of those sentenced —— senators and representatives saying that they are doing things, here are the measures they have put in place. whether those changes will be enough to keep politicians happy will remain to be seen, there is a lot of ground that facebook has to make up for it can say they has the situation under control. but it does seem like things are going in the right direction. dave lee in san francisco. the former south african president, jacob zuma, has appeared in court on corruption charges. he was forced out of office in february, accused of fraud, racketeering and money laundering, but denies any wrongdoing. our southern africa correspondent andrew harding was in court. roads sealed off and a show

of force here in durban, for a moment south africa has been contemplating for decades — jacob zuma in court. mr zuma, andrew harding, bbc, can i ask you how you're feeling? south africa's former president has been fighting off corruption allegations for years. but he was pushed out of office in february, and, this morning, yesterday's man took his seat in the dock. my lord, the accused comes to this court today by way of summons. beside him, a representative of a french arms company, accused of paying zuma huge bribes in the 1990s. this case won't go fast. zuma's lawyers are already challenging its legitimacy, but it is a heavy blow to a man who once seemed untouchable. outside court today, a small but raucous crowd. zuma and his populist economic

rhetoric still enjoy some support here. a defiant zuma emerged to tell them, "i'm the victim of a political conspiracy." innocent until proven otherwise. but that argument, like his famous dance moves, is unlikely to help him at trial. this is a hugely important symbolic moment for south africa. on a continent where so many powerful men enjoy impunity, this country is showing that no—one, not even a former president, is above the law. south korea's first female president, park geun—hye, has been sentenced to 2a years in prison after being found guilty of abuse of power, bribery and coercion. thejudge said ms park had conspired with a long—term friend to force

some of south korea's biggest companies to hand over millions of dollars. ms park, who was not at the hearing, has denied wrongdoing. laura bicker reports. defiant supporters of the former president screen her name. the protest grows louder as the verdict ofa protest grows louder as the verdict of a nearby courtroom is declared. 24 of a nearby courtroom is declared. 2a years in prison, and a near $17 million fine. abe to blow for a right—wing leader who fashioned herself as the daughter of the nation. —— a bitter blow. herself as the daughter of the nation. -- a bitter blow. we don't accept it, the charges are crazy. translation: this is an act that violates human rights. we cannot accept the results at all. there is

no justice accept the results at all. there is nojustice in accept the results at all. there is no justice in south accept the results at all. there is nojustice in south korea. despite these protests in support of resident park, the majority of south koreans hope that today's verdict marks a turning point, the severing of ties between presidential power and the biggest companies in south korea, and also a clean breakfrom authoritarian rule. park geun—hye was the daughter of a man who seized power in a coup in 1961. he ruled for 18 years, until he was gunned down in 1979. she entered the political arena just after the globalfinancial political arena just after the global financial crisis in 2008. political arena just after the globalfinancial crisis in 2008. a worried older generation saw her as a saviour. she won the presidency by a saviour. she won the presidency by a slim margin, 51%. her close childhood friend and adviser chase and still was the first to be caught up and still was the first to be caught up in and still was the first to be caught upina and still was the first to be caught up in a web of corruption charges.

—— choi soon—sil. together, they pressured huge corporations for millions of dollars in donations. week after week, the streets of seoul were bathing candlelight as the list of allegations grew. protesters gathered in their millions to overthrow a leader they saw as corrupt. today they are watched as the verdict was aired on live television. —— they watched. translation: i think the verdict was generous. i think she should be sentenced to life. park geun-hye will appeal. but it will be watched closely by those who have long hoped and fought for justice. let's take a look at some of the other stories making the news. syrian activists say that heavy airstrikes on the last rebel—held town in eastern ghouta have killed at least 32 civilians. the syrian observatory for human rights said dozens of airstrikes had hit the town of douma. six activists have been jailed

in vietnam for attempting to overthrow the state. their sentences are between 7 and 15 years, the harshest in years as the communist country tightens its grip on critics. those jailed include lawyers accused of holding human rights training and pushing for a multi—party democracy in vietnam. one of america's most influential jazz piano players, cecil taylor, has died at the age of 89. born in new york and classically—trained, cecil taylor developed his own style to become a leading exponent of avant garde free jazz. the mixed martial arts fighter conor mcgregor has been charged with assault and criminal mischief by police in new york. the former ufc champion is accused of vandalising a bus containing rivalfighters. richard conway reports.

even in a sport where the hype comes as standard, conor mcgregor may have overplayed his hand. as the ultimate fighting championship, or ufc as it's known, held a media day in new york, mcgregor and his entourage stormed the backstage area, attacking a coach containing rivalfighters. video appears to show mcgregor throwing a metal trolley, while others rain objects towards the vehicle. with his privatejet grounded, the irishman turned himself into police. and, after a night in the cells, was led to court today. a star of ufc, mcgregor‘s future in the sport now appears to be injeopardy. it's disgusting. and i don't think anybody is going to be, you know, a huge conor mcgregor fan after this. ufc is hugely popular

around the world. the company which organises and promotes the sport was sold two years ago for more than £3 billion. competitors use a combination of fists, knees, elbows and feet, in a mix of martial arts. chanting: we want conor! conor, the bbc, how are you? and within that world, there is no bigger attraction than mcgregor. supported by ufc, he turned to boxing last summer, taking on, but eventually losing to, floyd mayweatherjunior, in one of the most lucrative pay—per—view bouts in history. as a master showman, he revels in creating a circus, courting controversy, and being outspoken. all publicity is said to be good publicity, especially for a man who has forged a career as a flamboyant outsider. but any criminal conviction could yet see conor mcgregor lose his right to work in america.

richard conway, bbc news. some breaking news. us president donald trump has signed a memorandum on ordering the end of a policy known as catch and release. that is when illegal immigrants are released from detention while awaiting a court hearing on their status. their defence department is investigating weather military facilities can be used to detain those illegal immigrants. —— the defence department. don't forget, you can get in touch with me and some of the tea m get in touch with me and some of the team on twitter. and our top story, wall street shares are down because of escalating tensions between the united states and china. hello once again. i will update you

on our latest thoughts about the weekend weather prospects in a second, but i think we need to mark friday as being the warmest day of the fuss far here in the heart of london. not far behind we had the south of wales, beautifully captured. it wasn't like that everywhere. northern ireland, for a time, and certainly parts of scotland, it was pretty miserable. the weekend at times will look similar, cloudy, damp and mild. there will be some driver and also some sunshine. the weekend begins on a mild note given the amount of cloud across the british isles. rain in the north—west of scotland, rain towards the south—western corner of the british isles. where is it coming from? this low pressure system is dominating the scene, and a weather front will wiggle its way across the uk for a good part of the weekend. if you are anywhere near that feature, mild air certainly on it and to its eastern flank, slightly cooler perhaps across the northern and western parts of the

british isles. it is going to be mild but it will be dampened it will rain at times. that rain there right from the word go across the south—west, gradually creeping further north. coming about lunchtime or in the afternoon it will push into the north of england. after that it might peel away closer to northern ireland and take some time to get out of northern wales. southern counties, a bit of brightness. in the south—east, accommodation of sunny spells, easing sunshine, sharp showers as well. possibly a high of 16 or 17. here we are moving from saturday to sunday. the same weather front coming across the british isles. at this range it is most likely that the thickest of the cloud will be in east anglia and the south—east. that is where we will see the bulk of the showers, one or two peppering the north of scotland and maybe another one 01’ north of scotland and maybe another one or two sharper ones getting in to northern ireland. not quite as warm a day, but temperatures widely across the uk getting into double

figures. a quick look at the start of next week. just when you thought this weather front was going to come in and dominate the scene, it is low pressure over france, churning away with lots of cloud spilling up across the channel, and eventually rain as well. the best of the dry weather and perhaps the warmest of the weather up across scotland and parts of northern ireland to. —— too. this is bbc news, the headlines: stocks on wall street have ta ken another dive, after president trump threatened an additional 100 billion dollars of tariffs on chinese goods. the dow closed down 575 points. brazil's former president lula has defied a court order to hand himself in and start a prison sentence for corruption. the country's top court has rejected his request to remain free while he appeals against the conviction. doctors in britain treating the poisoned former russian spy, sergei skripal, say he is improving rapidly and is no longer in a critical condition. facebook says it's tightening up its procedures for people wanting

to place issue—based advertisements. more comprehensive id will now be required as well as a physical mailing address. now on bbc news, reinventing the 9—to—5.