this is the briefing. i'm sally bundock. our top story: former fbi directorjames comey steps up his war of words with president trump, claiming he's not up to the job. i don't think he's medically unfit to be president, i think he's morally unfit to be president. more fallout after the air strikes on syria:. the us threatens new sanctions against russia over its support for president assad. and no more silent nights. the nasa mission using sounds from stars to seek out new worlds. an abrupt exit for an advertising giant — sir martin sorrell steps down as the boss of wpp after 33 years. i'll be speaking to one leading expert about why his resignation could have a big impact on the ad business. a warm welcome to the programme,

briefing you on all you need to know in global news, business and sport. and you can be part of the conversation. as we've mentioned, former at the eye directorjames comey has called donald trump a dangerous and morally unfit leader. —— former fbi director. tell us what you think. just use the hashtag #bbcthebriefing. let's look at that story now in more

detail. the former fbi directorjames comey has said he believes donald trump is morally unfit to be president. in an exclusive interview with abc news‘ george stephanopoulos, mr comey said donald trump was incapable of holding presidential office because of his constant lies, and his views on race and women. the bbc‘s chris buckler reports from washington. and bears james. he has become more famous than me! president trump has made no secret of his anger at the huge amount of attention being given to james comey and his tell all book. instead of handshakes, they announce changing insults. ahead of mr coney‘s prime—time television interview, donald trump called him on twitter a liar, leaker, and an untruthful slimeball, among other things. —— mr comey. this was a chance for the man he fired at an the eye director to fire back. —— fired as fbi director. in excuse in

—— exclusive interview with abc news, james comey made clear his disdain for the presidency once served. i don't think he's medically unfit to be president, i think he's morally unfit to be president. a person who sees moral equivalence in charlottesville, person who sees moral equivalence in cha rlottesville, who person who sees moral equivalence in charlottesville, who talks about and treat women like they are pieces of meat, who lies constantly about again small and insist the american people believe it, that person is not fit to be president of the united states on moral grounds. our president must embody respect and i adhere to the values that are at the core of this country, the most important being true. this president is unable to do that. he is morally unfit to be president. if you are right, what is the remedy? should he be impeached? impeachment is a question of law and fact in politics. you are a citizen, you have a judgement. politics. you are a citizen, you have ajudgement. i will politics. you are a citizen, you have a judgement. i will give you a strange answer. i hope not. i think impeaching and removing donald trump

from office would let the american people off the hook and have something happen indirectly which i believe they are duty—bound to do directly. people in this country need to stand up and go to the voting booth and devote their values. and so impeachment, in a way, would short—circuit that.|j made way, would short—circuit that.” made a mistake using a private email. that's for sure! james comey was sacked for allegedly mishandling an investigation into hillary clinton's emails during the 2016 in action. he claims before he was dismissed mr trump asked him to end an enquiry into his former national security adviser michael flynn, who has since pleaded guilty to a number of charges. another person would have said, sir, you can't ask me that, it is a committal investigation and that would be obstruction of justice. investigation and that would be obstruction ofjustice. was president trump obstructing justice? possibly. there are certainly some evidence of it. this very public fight feels deeply personal, and the consequences still have the potential to be political. donald trump andjames potential to be political. donald trump and james comey seem intent

not just trump and james comey seem intent notjust on defending their own reputations but destroying the other‘s. so, do get in touch and tell us what you think about james comey had to say. also, later in this programme, we will be going live to washington, dc to get more reaction to that interview. do get in touch with us and we will share your views as well. the arab league hasjoined calls for an international investigation into the use of chemical weapons in syria. the united states is preparing new sanctions against russia, targeting companies supplying damascus with chemical weapons capability. president putin meanwhile warned that any further western missile strikes against syria would cause international chaos. lebo diseko has more. this is the man who says he is convinced donald trump —— says he convinced donald trump —— says he convinced donald trump to change his mind on syria. just weeks after mr trump said the us would soon be

pulling out, france's resident and partner in those strikes on syria says he managed to get the us to commit to stay in long—term. now mr trump's ambassador to the un says defeating isis and containing iran need to happen first. yes, it is all of our goal to see american troops come home, but we're not going to leave until we know we accomplished those things. what he has done is spoken to our allies and said they need to step up more, they need to do more. and it shouldn'tjust be us doing it. and i think that's the right approach. but be very clear. if we leave, when we leave, it will be because we know that everything is moving forward. the strikes by the united states, france and the uk reduced this site to rubble. a chemical weapons plant, says the us. a research centre, says syria's government. now inspectors from the opcw government. now inspectors from the 0pcw arion the country, trying to find a fax behind this alleged chemical attack which led to the

western military action. —— are in the country. the british prime minister will face repercussions from that attack later. the decision was made without consulting parliament. and with mps returning from their easter recess, there are unlikely to be any easy answers. let's brief you on some of the other stories making the news. the veteran montenegrin politician milo djukanovic has won the country's presidential election with almost 54% of the vote. the result means mr djukanovic, the leader of the democratic party of socialists, will not have to go through a second round of voting. he has dominated montenegrin politics since first becoming prime minister in 1991, during the break—up of yugoslavia. former us first lady barbara bush is said to be in "failing health" and no longer seeking medical treatment. a statement from the office of her husband, former president george bush senior, said the 92—year—old has chosen

to focus on "comfort care." the founder and chief executive of the world's largest advertising group wpp, sir martin sorrell, has resigned, less than a fortnight after it announced he was being investigated for misconduct. he leaves after 33 years in the job. cornelia meyer is the ceo of the business consultancy, mrl corporation. shejoins me now. this is something which has emerged over the weekend. as far as the investigation into misconduct is concerned he has denied any allegations, denied any wrongdoing whatsoever, and there is an investigation ongoing in that. but he has decided to quit.” investigation ongoing in that. but he has decided to quit. i think he has done the only right thing. this was neither good for him nor was it

good for the company. so he has done the only thing... i mean, i wish more chief executives did that. after 33 years, he can, he built wpp from actually nothing into this huge, huge advertising empire. from actually nothing into this huge, huge advertising empirem from actually nothing into this huge, huge advertising empire. it is an enormous empire. there are many questions now about what might happen next. i mean, we are saying on the bbc website that he is set to make £20 million from wpp shares. there is analysis here, but also, at business editor simonjack there is analysis here, but also, at business editor simon jack haslam there is analysis here, but also, at business editor simonjack haslam a blog on it as well, talking about the fact that the agreement brokered between sir martin sorrell and wpp p means he could set up a new company. —— our business editor. means he could set up a new company. -- our business editor. he might. but he is also 73. he is not a ao—year—old young guy. but he is also 73. he is not a 40—year—old young guy.” but he is also 73. he is not a 40-year-old young guy. i have met and interviewed him many times, he has huge amounts of energy. yes, huge amounts of energy, starting

something from scratch... he will probably do something. he is not somebody who will sit around. but, well, he can, but this has been the best thing for the company. for him to go. the company has become enormous. i to go. the company has become enormous. i remember to go. the company has become enormous. i remember reading wire copy all the time of this company being bought by wpp p, that company being bought by wpp p, that company being bought by wpp. actually too big in the environment here, where google and facebook completely dominate the advertising industry. there might be something to that. it had lost something like a third of its value within one year. procter & gamble, all the other advertising agencies, they go directly to places like google now. so that space has changed. so maybe it is a good thing for him to change and go and see and do some in that is in line with this new world. thank you very much indeed. cornelia, we will come back to you later. just to say, actually,

sirmartin did agree to you later. just to say, actually, sir martin did agree with me that he would come in and do their slot on the breathing. maybe he will do that in the future. that invitation is still open to you, sir martin. the islamic state group says it was responsible for killing two christians and injuring seven more in a targeted attack in western pakistan. officials said the assailants in quetta, capital of balochistan province, shot at worshippers from a motorbike as they left church. tim neilson has more. they were leaving their place of worship when they became victims of terror. gunman on motorbikes, a p pa re ntly terror. gunman on motorbikes, apparently from the so—called islamic state, opening fire on these people as they left church. —— gunmen. translation: the injured people belongs to the christian community. we rushed the injured to the hospital. two of the injured, in a serious condition, died later. the

drive—by shooting happened in quetta, the capital of balochistan, an area which has seen its fair share of violence, and a minority group that has done so too. it was here that four members of a christian family were gunned down after easter. at least ten were killed by suicide bombers in a church a week before christmas. islamic state says it was behind those attacks as well. as night fell, the anger felt was visible. locking roads and earning tyres on the streets. given the violence and instability in this robbins, it is unlikely to be the last time this community and others find themselves being targeted. —— in this province. stay with us on the briefing. also on the programme: the philadelphia 76ers win their first nba play—off against miami heat as they extend their unbeaten run to 17 games. that and more in the sport briefing. pol pot, one of the century's

greatest mass murderers, is reported to have died of natural causes. he and the khmer rouge movement he led were responsible for the deaths of an estimated 1.7 million cambodians. there have been violent protests in indonesia, where playboy has gone on sale for the first time. traditionalist muslim leaders have expressed disgust. the magazine's offices have been attacked and its editorial staff have gone into hiding. it was clear that paula's only contest was with the clock, and as for a sporting legacy, paula radcliffe's competitors will be chasing her new world—best

time for years to come. quite quietly, but quicker and quicker, she is seenjust to slide away under the surface and disappear. you're watching the briefing. the headlines: more fallout after the air strikes on syria, as the us threatens new sanctions against russia over its support for president assad. james comey — the man sacked as director of the fbi — has said he believes donald trump is morally unfit to be president. and let's stay with that story. we can speak now to political commentator, eric ham. heed to those live in washington. good to see you. what did you make of the interview? i thought it was a very stunning admission from the

former fbi director who suggests, or emphatically states that he believes president trump is morally unfit to lead the nation. i mean that is a very stunning indictment from the nation's former top law enforcement officer about the current, sitting us president of the united states. yes, a mean that many would agree with you on that point but given the fa ct with you on that point but given the fact that james comey was fired as director of the fbi id trump administration, many would just say perhaps this is sour grapes but what about his statement that he believes president trump was absolutely obstructing justice. how damaging is that, for example? i think it could really have ramifications for the president because again, remember, all of this is taking place in a vacuum. robert mueller, who is leading an investigation into russian collusion, undoubtably knows all of this information and i am sure has had conversations, in—depth

conversations with former fbi directorjames comey, so he has all of this information and i am sure he is using this information to methodically built his case and we know now that this investigation is right at the doorstep of this president. do you feel that that is the real issue here? because when it comes to statements about how he treats or his, the fact that he is morally unfit, that is the kind of thing we have heard many, many times before the actual election itself and saint, but when the fbi director is saying that actually this president obstructs justice, is saying that actually this president obstructsjustice, is is saying that actually this president obstructs justice, is that not more powerful and therefore, how damaging is this? well, i think that is the key and i think that goes much further along in terms of moving this investigation forward and where robert mueller might be looking to take this investigation. we do know that he is zeroing in on the president trump and so a lot of

this other, a lot of these are the issues that james comey address tonight, that is just noise and it is information that many people have already, it is information that is baked in about president trump when you look at some of the comments, some of the damaging things that have been said, for example, when he said that he likens president trump to mop loss, we see, what it suggests is that president trump maybe has some criminal tendencies in how he operates, and he sees an organisation, so again, you look at this from the land is not in terms of the back and forth between the former fbi director and the president, but how robert mueller is actually looking at this and how he is looking to build a case, build an argument brick by brick and end this investigation against the president. and just briefly, the report he did the interview the bbc news did

grilled james comey quite a lot about the fbi's decision to renew an investigation into hillary clinton's e—mails prior to the election day, as it were, the day that people went to the polls, just a few weeks before that, and that was a real game changer it seemed for the hillary clinton campaign. he did not seem hillary clinton campaign. he did not seem to be, he seemed to be a bit on the rocks of that part of the interview, i felt. i thought the rocks of that part of the interview, ifelt. ithought so the rocks of that part of the interview, i felt. i thought so too. if you look at what the reporter actually said, that many past, former fbi directors, director generals have said that they disagree with james comey‘s idea of reopening this investigation publicly and actually inserting himself so publicly into the campaignsi himself so publicly into the campaigns i felt that that was something that did putjames comey back onto the rocks. there are people on both the left and the right in the united states is simply

will not see james comey as a sympathetic figure and so again, i think this is something where it could be damaging to the president is how much of this information that can be used to build this argument, build this narrative, to build this legal case against the president? but again, it isjust legal case against the president? but again, it is just another battle that president trump is fighting along with so many others, but i think would be debilitating, particularly as we head into a mid—term congressional elections. 0k, mid—term congressional elections. ok, thank you so much for your time. thank you for being on the bbc. let's just share some of your comments, you have been sending them in thick and fast so far today. damage, war of words, no, this man spoke truth and the tweets from trump are just ramblings spoke truth and the tweets from trump arejust ramblings in spoke truth and the tweets from trump are just ramblings in the schoolyard bully. when she says this man, i believe she is referring to james comey. then we have got others who just feel that actually, we have

got a comment he says that actually, i believe trump will be impeached eventually. interesting comments, keep them coming in. we will share some more later. nasa is set to launch a mission to look for planets around the stars closest to us. a critical part of the tess mission is to capture the vibrations from the stars, which can be turned to sounds. this will help researchers identify their age and size. our science correspondent pallab ghosh has been to the kennedy space centre in florida, where the space telescope is due to be launched monday night. the night sky is littered with stars — they shine and they also sing. these are the vibrations of a distant star, similar to our sun, converted into sound. radio waves, and this is another much bigger and older star. professor bill chaplin is analysing these sounds.

of course there's no air in space so the stars can't actually be heard, but they do vibrate and so generate sound waves. when we hear the sounds of the stars, first of all, it tells us that out of this turbulence, this almost chaos, we get these ordered sounds and it's incredible that stars resonate just like a musical instrument. this will be the first mission to scan nearly the entire sky, sector by sector. the sound a star makes will tell scientists how big and how hot it is. many of them will have planets in orbit around them, some will be too close. those that are the right distance away will be the ones most capable of supporting life, in what scientists call the goldilocks zone, where the temperature is just right. in a few years' time, we'll know how each of the stars in the night sky sound and whether the planets around them might harbour life.

pallab ghosh, bbc news, at the kennedy space centre in florida. now it's time to get all the latest from the bbc sports centre. hello, this is your monday sport briefing. coming up, manchester city so the glory in their title winning campaign. the celebrations suite for captain vincent kompa ny. campaign. the celebrations suite for captain vincent kompany. —— sweet. we will tell you exactly how manchester city won the premier league in a moment, but first we turn our attention to the other end of the table. northampton hosted stoke. both teams are facing relegation. they have a lot of work to do with just five games remaining. novak djokovic has worries of his own, the former world number one has been struggling for

form and fitness so far in 2018. he is the main attraction at the monte carlo masters on monday as he tries to turn his season around. rafael nadal is the defending champion and is aiming fora nadal is the defending champion and is aiming for a record extending eleve ns is aiming for a record extending elevens title. thrilling end to the regular season, the nba play—offs have a to live up will stop so far, things have not gone miami's way. they trail the philadelphia 76ers 1-0. they trail the philadelphia 76ers 1—0. ben simmons help to get them over the line with this lamb in the third quarter. it finished 130— 133. "130- third quarter. it finished 130— 133. -- 130- 103. the miami third quarter. it finished 130— 133. —— 130— 103. the miami heat know they need to be stronger in the final quarter. we knew that manchester city were going to win the league that few would have predicted them clinching the title on sunday. their 2—1 win over totte n ha m on sunday. their 2—1 win over tottenham on sunday put them back in

the driver's siege that they needed their neighbours manchester united slip up. they surprised everyone with a 1—0 win at old trafford. that means that manchester city have an unassailable 16 point lead over manchester united. here's how the coach reacted. i knew it, i knew it. lots of years and years in the top competitions, of course, i knew it. they are the best team, sooner or later they were going to get the points. so... no dramas when the best tea m points. so... no dramas when the best team wins the league, no dramas. psg at champions in their league and talk about winning it in style, demolition of monaco secure than the title. in the netherlands, he eindhoven have clinched the title after beating ajax and 3—0. it is

their third championship in four seasons. jon rahm fired a closing eight underpar 67 to win the spanish open on sunday. he becomes the third spaniard to win the tournament since it gained european ranking. he won his home event in madrid, over sergio garcia and the republic of ireland's paul dunne. he secured a third win from just 19 european tour events. you can get all the latest sport news from our website but for me and all of the sports team, that is your sports briefing. i'll be back with the business briefing in just a few moments. i will see you

morning. the last time somewhere in the uk had a high of 25 degrees it was 29 august 2018. guess what? somewhere in the south—east, there is the potential to see 25 degrees. not just the south—east, widespread averages in the low 20s in the uk's expected wednesday into thursday. something to look forward to. for monday morning it is a relatively quiet start. the area of low pressure starting to show its hand by the end of the day. we will see showery rain across scotland. that will ease away. cloudier skies for many. hopefully with some brightness here and there. the best of the sunshine perhaps likely across the extreme south. highs of 13 to 15 degrees. turning increasingly windy, gales likely, with the arrival of this area of low pressure. the front will move in, bringing some rain, some of it heavy through northern ireland,

northern england and scotland as we go through into tuesday morning. heavy rain for a time. the weather front will weaken substantially as it pushes a south and east. behind it, fresher with scattered showers and highs of up to 1a or 15 degrees. ahead of that front, if we keep some sunshine coming through eastern england, south—east england, we could see 18 or 19. that will feel quite pleasant. moving from tuesday into wednesday, we need to look across to the new continent. with this high pressure building, it will be the driving force in the story. it will deflect weather fronts in the atlantic up into the north—west, but at the same time around that high in a clockwise direction the wind will start to come in from the warm dry south—easterly and that will be the reason why those temperatures are set to climb above the average for this time of year. so get out and enjoy it if you can. the best of the sunshine on wednesday across central and southern england. eventually into scotland, across the borders. rainfora time. not quite as warm here.

16 or 17 the highest values. highest in the south—east likely to be 23. lighter winds again. some turnaround on thursday. just a little bit of fair weather cloud. generally speaking, thursday looks likely to be the best day of the week if it is warmth and sunshine you are after. that is one we could see 25 degrees, 77 fahrenheit. yes, it is only the middle of april. take care. this is business briefing. i'm sally bundock. an abrupt exit for an advertising giant — sir martin sorrell steps down as the boss of wpp after 33 years. and does your office have bean bags and free food? if it doesn't, maybe it should. we get the lowdown on the pleasures and perils of the modern work place. and on the markets: a mixed session so far as investors

weigh up the military action in syria. oil prices are falling.