hello, this is breakfast with naga munchetty and jon kay. britain, the us and france have bombed multiple government targets against president assad in syria. three alleged chemical sites were targeted in an overnight operation — the biggest show of force against the man donald trump described as a "monster". a short time ago, i ordered the united states armed forces to launch precision strikes on targets associated with the chemical weapons capabilities of syrian dictator bashar al—assad. four british tornado jets were involved in the operation — theresa may said there was "no practicable alternative to the use of force". we cannot allow the use of chemical weapons to become normalised — within syria, on the streets of the uk or anywhere else in our world. syrian state television says government forces have shot down more than a dozen

of the missiles — russia has warned there will be "consequences". good morning, it's saturday the 14th of april. also this morning. in sport, here on the gold coast, it's sprinting gold for england... in the last half—hour, they've won the axioom relay, on the penultimate day of these commonwealth games. and nick has the weather. good morning. we are coming out of the grey today. something brighter and warmer for the start of the weekend. most dry today, though there will be some rain around tomorrow, and then, yes, we are still on for a proper warm=up next week. all your weather coming up. good morning.

first, our main story. in the early hours of this morning, britain launched a joint air strike with the united states and france against syria in response to the suspected chemical weapons attack in eastern ghouta a week ago. theresa may said she had not taken the decision to commit british armed forces in combat lightly, but had judged it to be in the national interest. in a television broadcast from the white house, president trump described the alleged attack last saturday as the crime of a monster, not the actions of a man. russia has warned there will be consequences for the air strikes. the syrian government has described them as a flagrant violation of international law. our first report is from ben ando. rockets fly into the sky over damascus, as syrian air defences are launched against missiles and aircraft from the united states, britain and france. several explosions were reported across the city at scientific

research facilities that, it's claimed, are being used by the assad regime to develop, to make or to store chemical weapons. this is not about intervening in a civil war. it is not about regime change. it is about a limited and targeted strike that does not further escalate tensions in the region and that does everything possible to prevent civilian casualties. the targets are said to be chemical weapons research centres on the outskirts of the syrian capital damascus and storage depots in the command post located about 15 miles west of homs. the attack on the depot near homs was carried out by four raf tornadoes with storm shadow cruise missiles, while the french government released pictures of theirjets taking off taking off on the raid. as the attack got under way, president trump went on tv with a message to syria's allies,

iran and russia. what kind of a nation wants to be associated with the mass murder of innocent men, women and children? the nations of the world can be judged by the friends they keep. no nation can succeed in the long run by promoting rogue states, brutal tyrants and murderous dictators. in response, russia's us ambassador tweeted. .. and defiance on the streets of damascus this morning, though the prime minister says the aim of these strikes was to get rid of bashar al—assad's chemical weapons, not his regime. ben ando, bbc news. the nato secretary general, jen stoltenberg, has tweeted in support of the strikes saying:

"nato considers the use of chemical weapons unacceptable. those responsible must be held accountable. " the foregin secretary borisjohnson has tweeted this morning to say: "welcome the news of uk military strikes against major chemical weapons facilities in syria alongside our us and french allies. the world is united in its disgust for any use of chemical weapons, but especially against civilians." our correspondent chris buckler joins us from washington. many comments coming through, but first, we should start with what exactly happened in the early hours this morning in terms of reaction from donald trump. i think everyone expected, after days of discussions, that military action was coming. it

came swiftly. it was pretty swift itself. the question was also about how severe the house sustained the attack would be. donald trump went on television and then within a hour and there was a briefing from the pentagon making it clear the attack was over but the nat tara and giving us was over but the nat tara and giving us details of exactly what had happened. the president was very clear in setting this out. he was not using the bombastic words we had seenin not using the bombastic words we had seen in previous days. he had spoken about smart, shiny missiles. it was about smart, shiny missiles. it was a different tone today. it was about sending a message to president assad, his regime and a syria's allies, russia and iran. he was seeing chemical weapons would not be accepted. that is why we have seen such a conscious effort from britain, america and france to specifically target facilities were chemical weapons are being produced, i've been developed and being

stored. this was a very targeted series of attacks. it certainly was. martin in beirut said he had had news that homs, which is near one of the targeted sites, there are reports of six casualties at the moment. what is the feeling in terms of american reaction to this act? is ita sign of american reaction to this act? is it a sign of strength or is it a sign that donald trump has promised action and ben has done so. one of the big debates inside the administration has been just the big debates inside the administration has beenjust exactly how sustained these attacks should be. it has been felt that president trump wanted to be more aggressive than perhaps this limited strike would suggest. his defence secretary had really been talking about trying to be more contained. i suspect we have seen a more limited military

action than perhaps the president himself would have liked. there are also some responses coming in from his rivals in congress. the democratic party making it very clear that, as bad as they are concerned, if there was to be worried military action, then it would have to go before congress. but they're also sitting out that there is also a question about the wider strategy. whenever you see both russia and iran saying there will be consequences, when you take a look at what has been happening in syria, between the last time we had a strike, which was a year ago, and now, there have been continuing to issues with president assad's regime and problems that need to be addressed in syria. it's a problem for the us, britain and france about whether or not they have a strategy to deal with that. i am looking at the front page of the garden, the

headline, printed before news of these strikes came out, called war is back with a vengeance, quoting the united nations. it is the united states' relationship with russia that comes under intense scrutiny now. what next? you have to put this into the context of the last few weeks we have had. we had that poisoning in salisbury, that is something that the us did take action against. it basically expeued action against. it basically expelled some russian diplomats, who they called spies. there have also been sanctions ta ken they called spies. there have also been sanctions taken against russia in the us and that was because of concerns about spying. but also the international power and influence that russia has been using over recent months and years. and syria is one of those concerns. you have expulsions, sanctions and no strikes

against syria. russia continues to say that this is a fabricated story, that this chemical weapons attack simply did not happen. we're talking about consequences after a week in which the united nations have had security meetings, threats of being thrown across the table, russia have talked in extremely hard lines about what they will do if america does get involved in this kind of action. well, america has got involved in this type of action and russia are threatening consequences. thanks. people speak later. our political correspondent matt cole's at downing street for us this morning. theresa may expected to give a statement in a couple of hours. she already made a statement overnight, shortly after these attacks. tell us what she said. that's right, a

pre—recorded statement from theresa may, looking very sombre, speaking in measured tones. she said she had hoped there would be an alternative to taking this action, but she said there was not. she said that diplomatic channels had been taken, but that jack had been sorted, not least by russia at the un security council, which had blocked efforts we re council, which had blocked efforts were an independent investigation into what went on in douma. she has taken this action without consulting parliament. that is something the labour party and the lib dems and others had spoken of the need for. they say that without a majority in the house of commons, they believe theresa may doesn't have the authority to take this decision. it is only convention that says has to bea is only convention that says has to be a vote in parliament, but i think when theresa may returns the parliament after recess on monday,

she will face tough questions. she is due to speak in an hour or two. i am sure some of those questions will be put by us and others then. she is insisting there was no alternative to this. she said it is in britain's national interests, that the use of chemical weapons does not become normalised on the streets of the uk oi’ normalised on the streets of the uk or anywhere else in the world. jeremy corbyn has been saying there is an alternative, that there should be more talking, concentration on a peace process and diplomacy rather than military action. she will face that accusation when she gets back to parliament and in the media over the next few hours and days. absolutely. these are the questions that have been bubbling all week. only yesterday, jeremy corbyn was discussing the need perhaps to try and get russia and america to stop vetoing each other when it comes to these issues, to talk more, to get people round the table, insisting

that bombing syria was not the way forward. others point out, how can you get a diplomatic solution when russia has been vetoing some of those efforts on numerous occasions, when it comes to matters in syria? theresa may saying this is the first time she has put british troops into combat. she says she has not taken the decision lightly, but for all the measured terms in which she has presented her statement about this, it's not going to lessen those who are very critical of the decision to send those for tornadoes into action. thanks very much. continued reaction right across the political spectrum. scotland's first minister nicola sturgeon tweeted to say: "my first thoughts this morning are with service personnel called to action. syria's use of chemical weapons is sickening — but the question that the pm has not answered is how this action, taken without parliamentary approval, will halt their use or bring long term peace."

injusta injust a reaction in just a reaction from nicola sturgeon, and that will add pressure on theresa may to explain the thinking and strategy behind the attacks. a statement from the prime minister at nine o'clock, which we will bring to you. russia has warned there will be consequences for the air strikes. our correspondentjonah fisher joins us from moscow. we should go through what response has come from russia so far. that comment you mentioned came from the russian ambassador to the united states. he said this is a predesigned scenario implemented, we are being threatened, we warned such

actions will not be without consequences. there was no further clarity as to what those consequences might be, there have also been angry words from the foreign ministry spokesperson here in moscow, who said those behind this claim moral leadership in the world and declare they are exceptional. you really need to be exceptional. you really need to be exceptional to shell syria at the moment when it has gained a chance ofa moment when it has gained a chance of a peaceful future, moment when it has gained a chance of a peacefulfuture, so moment when it has gained a chance of a peaceful future, so strong words but the most significant statement from russia is from the ministry of defence, who confirmed no russian assets weren't damaged, there is russian military presence in syria and a russian naval base, and no russian and thigh missile defences were used overnight against these missiles that were coming in and hitting those targets, and what

many observers will say this morning is that this is a cultivated display of indignation but the limited nature of the strikes, the fact that there appear to have been no russian and we have heard limited reports of syrian casualties, that may contain this diplomatically, because there hasn't been this contact between russian and american military forces, that was the big fear, so that has taken the prospect of escalation into a more serious conflict, that prospect has diminished. thank you, jonah fisher in moscow. we will keep you up—to—date through the morning. let's break for a moment

up—to—date through the morning. let's breakfor a moment because nick has the weekend weather forecast. it's getting a bit better today that we take a step back tomorrow, today we will see more sunshine that will warm things up, the breeze picks up through the weekend, especially in western parts, then tomorrow we expect some rain, whereas today looks like the slight chance of a shower but mainly dry. there will be some sunshine from the word go, but the cloud will build and where you have flowed first thing, a few bright or sunny spells, so it will often be cloudy but brighter than it has been, temperatures in upper teens in a few spots but the big difference is along the north sea coast that have been so chilly, temperatures heading into double figures but for the grand national, a bit brighter than

recent days here at still a good deal of cloud, it will be dry and temperatures up to 15 celsius. a slight chance of a shower today, especially this evening across south—east england into east anglia, maybe into wales, a few showers overnight will drift north. patchy mist and fog possible in east anglia and south—east england, a bit chilly in north—east scotland and then rain to south england and wales, as this weather front comes in on sunday with strengthening wind, especially in the west of the uk. tomorrow while many will start dry, we have rain in wales and northern ireland, that will move north, still dry with sunny spells in north—east scotland, brightening up later and

temperatures are bit down on today but next week still widespread spring warmth on its way. thank you, nick. this morning's air strikes come at a crucial time with chemical weapons inspectors due in douma today — where just last week dozens of people were killed in a suspected chemical attack. the last time the inspectors were in the country was in 2013. when they were there, jerry smith was part of the mission. hejoins us from our southampton newsroom. thank you for talking to us. just your reaction to the air strikes, we understand three bases were targeted. i suppose in some ways the us and allies had to decide whether to attack before the inspectors get stuck in or afterwards, so for the inspectors themselves, they are

there to investigate that specific event and here they are caught up in that significant international situation and the spotlight is on them. from having been on the ground, how would these sites have been established in terms of importance and as a strategic target? i will not comment on the site speakers confidentiality wise i cannot do that but site selection for the targeting, i suspect was used from a military selection as well as a political selection to ensure they don't interfere with russian forces, ensuring they can break down and stop and eliminate the chemical threats that they believe exists. so what will the tea m believe exists. so what will the team be looking out on the ground? for the inspections, they will be

looking at an number of elements from the first is to try to get samples at the locations and it will bea samples at the locations and it will be a challenge for them to get to those locations. the second thing is to get statements from witnesses and victims and also to try to take biomedical samples from victims, and bringing that all together to understand what was used in those locations. it's difficult to imagine what environment that teams will be in in terms of air strikes have happened, civilians will have mixed emotions on this team will have to get on with its work there, what preparation are they given? the teams will have gone through a lot of preparation, opcw inspectors have been on the ground since 2013, so i

imagine they are prepared for this but they have their inspection element that has been their focus but surrounding that is the political machinations, the strategic elements so the pressures of the politics and the logistics for them to do their role will be high as well. essentially these are scientists in what will feel like a war zone. yes, we have seen that these inspectors have been doing their work for the last five years so they will be well practised but in an ideal world there would be none of these other distractions that an investigation could proceed with haste and accuracy and precision without interference, i don't mean necessarily active interference but when you work in an environment where the raw power cuts

and you might not be able to go where you want to, the sites may not be secure and you have security around you, all those make their work even harder. in terms of results, how soon will we know what they have found and how soon they can't deduce what type of chemicals they have found ? can't deduce what type of chemicals they have found? that question is difficult to answer at this stage. we don't even know what the agents are, we suspect the chlorine —based or phosphates, but those in themselves pose questions of whether they can get good samples, how they can get hold of victims and witnesses to understand their viewpoint from the event, then they have to take that data back and do correlation and analysis and come up with conclusions and that could be a

long period or a short period of time. as we have seen with the sergei skripal case, samples go to opcw laboratories and that could be a week or two on top of the situation in which they find themselves. gerry smith, thank you for talking to us. the ministry of defence he says for raf jets were the ministry of defence he says for rafjets were used in the air strikes overnight. looking at this latest statement in london, the language is interesting, they stress carefully coordinated strikes and scientific analysis, highly targeted, reducing further risk, they are at pains to say this was very limited and specific. this is a

demonstration of key ability rather than trying to take out specific elements of the assad regime, and both the americans and ourselves have been keen to prove this is not intervening designed to give you a punch on the on to say this is what we can do and if you don't behave, they will follow it up with something bigger. it is about 100 missiles fired from naval units and aircraft, 20 more than were fired last year, it has stepped up a little but let's not overestimate the weight of the attack, it is not really something that will give the regimea really something that will give the regime a body blow. described as a little punch with 100 missiles, we can see the weaponry involved, this was baker award knitted attack between three major countries and that isn't done lightly, especially

running up to a situation where the un says that cold war is back between the us and russia. these are heightened times. i think it will clear the air. a lot of high blown rhetoric is not matched by what is going on on the ground, there is a lot of huffing and puffing around the un security council chamber. i think it will settle down and the intention of the allies was to say we can take action if you misbehave. what i would now be asking with russia and other people supporting syria, this is a country that should not have chemical weapons, we should have removed them and suddenly they have removed them and suddenly they have them again. people will ask why we didn't do this sooner if we knew where these alleged chemical sites work, we could have taken them out

and maybe stopped the horrible events we saw last week in douma and eastern ghouta. the us and ourselves have been keen to say we will talk as much as we can, we have to find out where the facilities are and the syrians are trying to keep them secret, so we had to get intelligence, then we have targeted the sites, we have minimised casualties, very few indications of casualties. it is hard work and infrastructure that has been taken out but there is more to follow if you misbehave. people tuning in now will understand that in the early hours this morning and are strike took place over syria between the us, france and the uk. in the hours running up to that, who would have been notified, when with the decision had been made absolute and

then the buttons pushed? for most of this week i think military planners will have been consulting political leaders to say this is what can be done and i hope the military leaders would have been saying, what effect do you want to achieve? what is the strategy we will contribute to? and i hope that is something our political leaders have an answer to today, then within the art of what is legal, what is proportionate and what will get the regime's attention, and this is a very targeted strike with the promise of more later if it doesn't go the way we wa nt more later if it doesn't go the way we want it to. chris, we will speak to you through the morning and you will keep you us up to date with your analysis. later this morning, we are expecting to hear

from theresa may in downing street. we will bring you the prime minister's statement live. we will be back shortly. good morning. britain, the united states and france have carried out heavy air strikes in syria in the early hours of this morning. the syrian government has described them as a flagrant violation of international law. the action was taken in response to the suspected chemical weapons attack on civilians in the town of douma a week ago. loud explosions have been reported in the capital, damascus, and in the city of homs where three locations were targeted. these are the latest pictures from damascus, showing air defence missiles being launched by the syrian regime. we are waiting for pictures and

updates. at just after 2 o'clock this morning, the prime minister sent this statement. this evening, i have authorised british armed forces to conduct coordinated and targeted strikes to degrade the syrian regime chemical weapons capability and to detertheiruse. we are acting together with our american and french allies. in douma last saturday, a chemical weapons attack killed up to 75 people, including young children, in circumstances of pure horror. the fact of this attack should surprise no—one. the syrian regime has a history of using chemical weapons against its own people in the most cruel and abhorrent way. and a significant body of information, including intelligence, indicates the syrian regime is responsible for this latest attack.

this persistent pattern of behaviour must be stopped. notjust to protect innocent people in syria from the horrific deaths and casualties caused by chemical weapons, but also because we cannot allow the erosion of the international law that prevents the use of these weapons. we have sought to use every possible diplomatic channel to achieve this. but our efforts have been repeatedly thwarted. even this week, the russians vetoed a resolution at the un security council, which would have established an independent investigation into the douma attack. so there is no practicable alternative to the use of force to degrade and deter the use of chemical weapons by the syrian regime. theresa may will be giving a

statement at nine o'clock, which we will bring you. the foreign secretary borisjohnson has tweeted in support of the strikes this morning: "welcome the news of uk military strikes against major chemical weapons facilities in syria alongside our us and french allies. the world is united in its disgust for any use of chemical weapons, but especially against civilians." this action was taken without parliamentary approval, and that something nicola sturgeon has picked up something nicola sturgeon has picked up on. something nicola sturgeon has picked up on. scotland's first minister tweeted to say: "my first thoughts this morning are with service personnel called to action.

syria's use of chemical weapons is sickening — but the question that the pm has not answered is how this action, taken without parliamentary approval, will halt their use or bring long term peace." president trump announced the air strikes in a television broadcast from the white house — and directly addressed last week's suspected chemical attack in douma. these are not the actions of a man, they are crimes of a monster instead. following the horrors of world war i a century ago, civilised nations joined together to ban chemical warfare. chemical weapons are uniquely dangerous, not only because they inflict gruesome suffering, but because even small amounts can unleash widespread devastation. the purpose of our actions tonight is to establish a strong deterrent against the production, spread and use of chemical weapons. establishing this deterrent is a vital national security interest of the united states. the combined american, british and french response to these atrocities will integrate

all instruments of our national power — military, economic and diplomatic. we are prepared to sustain this response until the syrian regime stops its use of prohibited chemical agents. i also have a message tonight for the two governments most responsible for supporting, equipping and financing the criminal assad regime. to iran and to russia, i ask, what kind of the nation wants to be associated with the mass murder of innocent men, women and children? to iran and to russia, i ask, what kind of a nation wants to be associated with the mass murder of innocent men, women and children? the nations of the world can be judged by the friends they keep. no nation can succeed in the long run by promoting rogue

states, brutal tyrants and murderous dictators. president trump announcing those attacks, a very different tone, very sombre language, compared to his tweets. syria's president has been seen for the first time since the strikes. this is the latest footage — and it appears to show president bashar al—assad arriving for work. now those were the only pictures that were filmed this morning. the caption that was sent with it says "the morning of resilience". the nato secretary general, jen stoltenberg, has tweeted in support of the strikes saying: "nato considers the use of chemical weapons unacceptable.

those responsible must be held accountable. " four british rafjets were involved in thejoint operation in the early hours of this morning, with the united states and france, on suspected chemical weapons sites in syria. they launched storm shadow missiles. they launched storm shadow missiles. the information we have is they were launched at a four mile missile base west of homs, launched at a four mile missile base west of horns, and that is where the

us, britain and france say they believe the syrian regime has been stockpiling chemical weapons in breach of syria's obligations under international law. these pictures show the rdf tornadoes ticking off from cyprus and then coming back into cyprus a short time later. we have seen pictures of the skyline of damascus of those explosions. they have returned safely. the bbc‘s defence correspondent jonathan beale is at the raf base in cyprus. jonathan, what more can you tell us about this operation? those four raf tornado jets took off in the early hours of this morning. they were each carrying one of those

large storm shadow cruise missiles, which have a a50 kilograms warhead on. they have a range of about 300 miles, so they wouldn't have had to have flown ready for it to be within range of their target. they believe the chemical weapons storage facility 15 miles west of homs, they believe that site had the precursor is for syria's chemical weapons programme. those missiles would have been pre—programmed with gps to reach their target. they would have skimmed along the surface and then climbed and dived into their target. as virus they are concerned, kiev analysis to maximise destruction but minimise the risk of contamination. they also say this was not a populated area, so they wanted to avoid civilian casualties. thejets came back at 5am our time, so 3am

your time. they are safely back. they were out of syria's air defence range. the missiles have a range of up range. the missiles have a range of up to 300 miles. as virus whether this is a one—off or there will be more action, the sense we are getting here is that this was a one—off. it was clearly designed, unlike last year's attack by america, specifically on the weapons programme. last year it was on an airfield where they believed aircraft were being used to carry out chemical attacks. this time they have gone for a research centre they believe was involved in the weapons programme and also to have these sites, including the one hit by the raf, where chemical weapons was stored. in the words of the defence secretary, this sends a unified message and a warning to president assad not to use chemical weapons. we're hoping to talk to the defence

secretary on this programme and little later on. what more do you know? as you said, the hope is that this has drawn a line under this for the moment. in terms of military personnel, there is no state, they are always ready. i think the important thing is to say that you have to remember they have been flying the raf missions against so—called islamic state for years from this base. this mission was different, because they were not flying over targets as they do in iraq and syria when they are targeting i guess. the word essentially well away from the dangers of those syrian air defences, using a weapon that has been used against ids on a few occasions. these missiles can be bunker busters, they can go through concrete. they are used for

long—range targets, they are called fire and forget, they are programmed that way. essentially, life on the bees will continue. they still have these eight tornado jets, these six typhoon jets, these eight tornado jets, these six typhoonjets, which these eight tornado jets, these six typhoon jets, which can carry out attacks and they will be doing those missions against isis, even though they have obviously changed operation here to focus on targets in syria against president assad. thank you very much for talking to us thank you very much for talking to us from cyprus. meanwhile, russia has warned there will be consequences for the air strikes. our correspondentjonah fisher joins us from moscow. just goes through the words, the language, the response from vladimir putin. not directly from vladimir putin. not directly from vladimir putin himself. we have had comment

from russia's ambassador to the united states. he has been posting on social media this morning. this is what he said. he said it was a predesigned scenario being implemented. again we are being threatened. we warned that such actions will not be left without consequences. he did not go on to specify what those consequences might be. we have also had some pretty crosswords from the foreign ministry here. those behind all this claim moral leadership in the world and a clear that they are exceptional. you really need to be exceptional. you really need to be exceptional to show syria capital at the moment when it had gained a chance of peace in the future. the most significant thing to come out of russia this morning is from the ministry of defence. they have confirmed effectively that there was a military contact between the united states and russia overnight,

this is the scenario every one was worried about, that both sides would clash in some way. what russia has said this morning is that the missiles flew overnight did not go near their military bases or the naval base which they have in syria, and that they did not fire the drone missile defence system overnight. i think what most observers will be seeing this morning and indeed are saying this morning is that what we are seeing is a calculated display of outrage, of indignation about what has happened overnight, but the prospect of this developing into something much more serious, the possibility of military contact between the us and russia, that has receded, and there is a degree of relief. thank you. our middle east thank you. correspondent martin patience is in beirut, over the borderfrom syria. martin, how have countries in the region responded to these attacks? very close to syria, damascus is at

two or three yard drive from here, the syrian government have denounced it, they said these were illegal western air strikes and they were doomed to fail, like the rebel groups which the west supported at the start of this conflict. we also had video of president bashar al—assad apparently showing him in the presidential palace, the message being business as usual, we saw crowds gather in the main squares waving syrian flags and chanting support for the president, so they feel that yes, they have been targeted but they were perhaps expecting more military action. as things stand, we had the sound and fury building up to this action but

if there are no further military strikes, as appears to be the case, the syrian government may see this asa the syrian government may see this as a limited strike. martin, thank you. we have been talking to correspondence around the world to get reaction to those coordinated military strikes on syria, between the us, the uk and france. we will keep you up to date through the programme. and we expect to get another update from theresa may in the boat and are's time in downing street. first let's get the next weather. for anybody going out and about this weekend is something better on the way, certainly today a better day of the weekend, more of us will get to

see a bit of sunshine, though breeze picks up and there will be a bit of rain around on sunday but most places today will be dry. it's been a bit misty in places to begin with, in others that have started with blue sky, the cloud will build, but no word getting clear blue sky, often some cloud around but it is mainly dry, a big change in temperature on the north sea coasts, back into double figures and some spots getting to 18 degrees in south—east england. for the grand national, we had a few cloudy days, there will be a bit of sunshine fighting through that cloud, just a light breeze and temperatures reaching the mid—teens. this evening across southern parts there may be a shower, especially in south—east england and east angular, it may be

heavy and thundery. we will see increasing cloud into northern ireland, wales and south—west england overnight, then some rain, temperatures holding in the apple single figures for most of us, a bit cooler in north—east scotland. sunday we are watching this area of low pressure pushing this weather front in, are windier picture in western areas and some outbreaks of rain as it gradually moves north—east and many of us will see as bit of rain for uptime, the exception the far north of scotland. brightening up again behind that area of rain, but because there is more cloud around, a better chance of seeing rain and temperatures are down a few degrees compared to today. we have been talking about warmth on its way next week and that still looks like the picture.

monday, tuesday, still quite windy through northern ireland and scotland, but it is midweek, wednesday, thursday, friday, widely we will get this warmth now, some may well get to 2a degrees, most of us may well get to 2a degrees, most of us won't get that high but it is still widely the high teens and low 20s across most of the uk with much more sunshine for a time next week. we're staying with coverage of the air strikes on syria this morning, but if you're normally tuning in to see newswatch you can see it on the website or on the bbc iplayer. we will keep you up to date with everything that is happening after those early morning are strikes but let's not go to mike bushell who was in australia. mike, you have been taking stock of what has been

happening in the commonwealth games and some interesting action happening. yes, it's the penultimate day and the busiest day of these commonwealth games with aa gold medals up for grabs. we havejust seen probably the most dramatic moment in terms of netball, england have made history by reaching their first final at the commonwealth games but they did it the hard way, coming from behind. they were seven or eight down in the last quarter and then with seconds to go, they had a chance to wind the match, first helen housby missed but then jo harten picked the ball up, if she did itany jo harten picked the ball up, if she did it any longer it would have gone to extra time and they now go through to the final to face australia or new zealand tomorrow. what an incredible finish that was with england coming from behind to

beat jamaica, and making with england coming from behind to beatjamaica, and making up for disappointment for years ago. it has already been a successful day for england with medals in the boxing and the athletics and relay, as james burford reports. the roar of the crowd can only mean it's the drama of the 100 metres relay. england fended off south africa and jamaica for gold in the men's race. what had been a tricky track championships for the team has got off to the best of starts on the gold coast's penultimate day. like kate told the skies yesterday, we came out today to do our best in the finals and came out with no sleep, still came here and got the job done and i told them, once you focus, i'm focused, i'm as hungry as you skies are to help you skies deliver and that is what we did today. one gold, how about another? moments later the baton was passed to the women, who duly delivered a sprint relay double for team england and smiles all round.

at 20 and now with a highjump silver medal to her name, morgan la ke silver medal to her name, morgan lake is aiming high. she wasn't too far off the top spot. british boxing brilliance is showing no signs of fatigue as the ring delivered another golden morning. england's lisa whiteside overcame northern ireland carly mcnaul. after years of playing second fiddle to nicola adams, finally whiteside on the right side. next the chance fell to birmingham's own galal yafai. he punched his way to the win. gold clearly felt good. england kept up their record of bringing a medal at every commonwealth games since hockey was introduced, emphatically claiming the bronze in a 6—0 win against india, a victory that also gives the country their 100th medal. eleanor barker sacrificed her own medal chances for welsh team—mate danny wrote, here in the red, rolling her away to third place in the women's road race.

whether it's the track, the ring or the road, the home nations are feeling right at home on the gold coast. other metals, ross wilson picked up a gold in table tennis in the tt 610 categories and laura wickman has won bronze in the 500 metres, impressive because she normally runs a shorter distance —— 5000 metres. talking about gold medals, we have two winners here, we can see you have beenin winners here, we can see you have been ina winners here, we can see you have been in a scrap with a shine but you have to go to the doctors to be checked out. it has been when i rolled for we had an elbow or ahead but but it feels fine and it for that gold medal. you wondered on unanimous points decision. what did it mean to be standing here in the anthem? i struggled, the bottom lip

went, it means the world to me to represent my country but also to note the backing i had at home and my family, to speak to them afterwards. what did they say? they we re afterwards. what did they say? they were singing and cheering and saying how much they loved me, i couldn't do it without them. you fractured skull in 2015 and nearly quit the sport. by year and a half ago, i fractured my skull but because of my family and friends and my coach, i had the strength and willpower and i'm so glad i didn't give up. to come out here and get gold, it's the icing on the cake. a fantastic achievement. and for you, a split decision, you don't look like you have broken sweat but it was tough. i knew it would be a tough fight, it

was but i got the gold medal. and your two brothers are boxers, what was their reaction? they're overwhelmed that i have come out with a gold medal and they were up watching it early. how will you celebrate? i will probably have a few burgers and chips, i will enjoy a bit of food with friends and family. enjoy that, as you cannot in training. what does it mean to hear the anthem ? training. what does it mean to hear the anthem? to represent england is like great thing, and as a team we all want to win gold, so it's great. and that bass and gets passed on to your home city, birmingham, tomorrow. it's a bit of a change for me but it should be a great games in four years. and how are you

celebrating, lisa? i need to get over the experience, let it sink in and geta over the experience, let it sink in and get a bit of food and relax for now, i can't wait to get home and see my family. congratulations, galal and lisa. it's just see my family. congratulations, galal and lisa. it'sjust a bit of see my family. congratulations, galal and lisa. it's just a bit of a scratch. it's worth it for the gold medal. we will move away from the games briefly. liverpool got the draw they wanted for the semi—finals of the champions league. they'll play roma, the side who knocked out barcelona, with the first leg at anfield. in the europa league, arsenal have a really tough draw — they'll face atletico madrid. in the premier league, manchester city will be looking to end to their three—match losing run — they take on tottenham at wembley. a win will take city to within two points of the title and pep guardiola says his players are ready to put a bad week behind them. that will be good for our future, you have to handle that, you have to learn of that and know

when to do that, because at the end we are not able, and united win the league, all we can say is just congratulations, united, reflect what we have done bad in the last month and move forward. that in football can happen. it can't really happen, though, surely. of course it can happen, i assure you. real madrid, years ago, lost six games in a row and didn't win the league, so of course it can happen, no doubt about that. aston villa are guaranteed at least a championship play—off place, thanks to a 1—0 win over leeds — lewis grabban with the goal. they're only two points behind the second automatic promotion spot. in the next few moments pole position will be decided at the chinese grand prix. lewis hamilton was struggling in qualifying. the world champion has won three of the last four chinese grand prix, but has been more than half a second

off the pace in the first two sessions of qualifying in shanghai. it's the grand national this afternoon but the going is heavy after a lot of rain fell on ladies day and overnight. today's race will be notable for featuring three female jockeys for the first time for 30 years. an estimated £150 million will be bet on the race, with 70,000 people expected at the course and 600 million following it worldwide. a lot of people will be watching here at 2:15 am. the contrast between your sunny beach and the west and windy rain with umbrellas up was stark. we will keep you up to date on the court noted attacks on syria between the us, uk and france. —— coordinated attacks. hello, this is breakfast with naga munchetty and jon kay.

britain, the us and france have bombed multiple government targets against president assad in syria. three alleged chemical sites were targeted in an overnight operation — the biggest show of force against the man donald trump described as a "monster"