this is bbc news. i'm nkem ifejika. our top stories: international inspectors have finally been able to collect samples from douma in syria, where it's alleged chemical weapons were used two weeks ago. after nine days of demonstrations in armenia, the protest leader says he's ready for talks with the prime minister. the funeralfor the former first lady of the united states barbara bush has been held in houston, texas. her sonjeb described how he had asked her if she was ready to die. without missing a beat she said, "jeb, i believe injesus and he is my saviour, i don't want to leave your dad, but i know i will be in a beautiful place." queen elizabeth celebrates her birthday with a concert featuring music from each decade of her reign. hello and welcome to bbc news.

two weeks after the suspected chemical attack in syria, international experts have finally carried out an inspection in the former rebel—held town of douma. the organisation for the prohibition of chemical weapons said its inspectors had gathered samples, which would be examined in specially—designated laboratories. andrew plant reports. it is now two weeks since these scenes played out on screens around the world. released by the syrian opposition, appearing to show the aftermath of a chemical attack. the allegation that chlorine had been used was met with international condemnation. a team of expert from the opcw arrived in damascus earlier

this week. attempts to reach the site in douma were thwarted when their security team came under fire, leading to a three—day delay. experts say that of chlorine was used, that timescale could now make it hard to detect. if that was a chlorine bomb attack it is much harder to have any evidence at this point in time, two weeks after. chlorine evaporates quickly, it does not remain in bodies, it is not remain in soil so it would be very difficult to find conclusive proof that it was a chlorine attack. america's defence secretary has accused the syrian government of orchestrating the delays while a cleaned up the area. it is now one week since the us, uk and france launched air strikes in syria against, they said, chemical weapon depots and production facilities. syria and its ally russia have denied that any chemical weapons

attack took place. a team of experts will now send their samples for analysis to see what, if anything, can still be detected on the ground. with me is the british—born syrian journalist danny makki. he has just returned from spending two months in damascus. thank you so much forjoining us. we appreciate it. firstly, why did it ta ke appreciate it. firstly, why did it take opcw so long to get there? there have been there for up to one week and there have been reports since the initiation of this entire incident that the syrian government would allow them in and there had been statements by the syrian representative to the un, stating that they would be given full access immediately within syria. there have been there for one week before they have had access to the site. they tried to go yesterday and apparently they were fired upon in a pre— rehearsal for today. they finally managed to get to today. the hindrance of this axis has raised many questions as to the political

games that are being played by the syrians and most of all, the russians, who have a larger presence within the city than the syrians. there russian military police checkpoint and around douma and russian military police inside douma enforced. as per agreement, there is no syrian army in there. there is a written agreement preventing the syrian army from dolly to the area officially, which is why the presence of the russians is so strong. they have access to these sites. that is one of the rebel groups you were speaking about there as well. why would they be doing this? you can't really hide the use of chemical weapons, can you? to an extent... the chemical weapons attack, the suspected attack was either sarin gas or chlorine gas. curran is a liquid and chlorine is a gas. if sarin was used, the effects would stay for a number of months. it was chlorine, as a gas, it would

be possible to tamper with the scene somewhat. it would erode throughout the day ‘s and some remains will stay. more importantly is the actual civilian casualties who were buried, those killed in the attack. you can get a sample from them, right? they area get a sample from them, right? they are a crucial piece of evidence and are a crucial piece of evidence and a varied in aside unknown to the syrian government and the russians but it is now known to the opcw inspectors after the precise location they were told by activists and people who were there. the evidence on that site is of crucial importance. as you saw in the statement from the opcw today, stating that they wanted to return. i think stating that they wanted to return. ithink in stating that they wanted to return. i think in reference to perhaps visiting the site. the issues that arise are twofold. firstly the access they will be given by russians as they go back and, secondly, the revelation of such a location, is a moral aspect to tell the russians and the syrians of the

presence of such a graveyard. is this something that the activist do? do they know that this kind of site could be crucial and so they hide it from the syrian government and from the russians? perhaps that may be a ploy which they have used. it is something that they have definitely donein something that they have definitely done in the past in different areas, hiding evidence. what we now have is a problem because if they want to return to decide they can only do so with russian and syrian presence. if they reveal the side then, immediately, it may raise questions about why they go back and may create another further crisis to add to this long wait. restrictions have been placed on this team and they have managed to get some sort of samples that whether they will return is clearer in the forthcoming days —— will be clearer in the forthcoming days. let's take a look at some of the other stories making the news. the indian government has approved the introduction of the death penalty for anyone convicted of raping a child under

the age of twelve. it was cleared at a special cabinet meeting chaired by the prime minister, narendra modi. the decision follows a series of high profile child rape cases. there have been widespread protests with much of the anger directed at the governing party, the bjp. the government of nicaragua says it's ready to begin talks with people who've been protesting against social security reforms. there have been violent clashes between demonstrators and police since wednesday. at least ten people have died and dozens have been injured. tens of thousands of hungarians have protested in budapest against government control of the media. it's the second consecutive saturday of mass protests against the government of the recently re—elected prime minister viktor orban. the mostly young demonstrators say the nationalist prime minister and his fidesz party use the media to promote anti—immigration policies. the organiser of anti—government protests in armenia says he'll hold talks

on sunday morning with the country's long—standing leader, prime minister serzh sargsyan. nikol pashinyan has been leading calls for his resignation, saying that's the only matter he's prepared to discuss. russell trott reports. anger on the streets of the armenian capital as police arrest protesters who brought the street to a standstill to the ninth consecutive day. then an appearance that few expected. flanked by bodyguards, the country's new president arrived to meet protest leaders and to call for dialogue to prevent what many here fear could become violent confrontation. shaking hands with pashinyan, the man who has led the opposition demonstrations, the president reiterated his warning that there would be no winners in all losers for a country that some say has struggled to modernise and

is overly dependent on russia. real political power lies with this man, sa rgsya n political power lies with this man, sargsyan who have led the country for ten years. he stepped down as president recently at the same time as the constitution was changed to vest supreme power in his new prime ministerial role. opposition supporters have criticised him over poverty, corruption and the influence of powerful oligarchs. was his supporters say he has provided much—needed national—security amid continuing tensions with turkey and azerbaijan. some here are calling for a peaceful velvet revolution are similarto for a peaceful velvet revolution are similar to what took place at place in other states after the collapse of the soviet union. but with over 300 arrested over the last two days alone, the concern is that things could still get out of control. stay with us on bbc news. still to come: american actor verne troyer has died at the age of 49. the stars and stripes at half—mast

outside columbine high, the school sealed off and the bodies of the dead still inside. i never thought that they would actually go through with it. some places and have already had nearly as much rain as they'd normally expect in an entire year. for millions of americans, the death of richard nixon in a new york hospital has meant conflicting emotions. a national day of mourning next wednesday sitting somehow uneasily with the abiding memories of the shame of watergate. and lift—off of the space shuttle discovery with the hubble space telescope, our window on the universe. this is bbc news.

the latest headlines: international inspectors have finally been able to collect samples from douma in syria where it's alleged chemical weapons were used two weeks ago. after nine days of demonstrations in armenia, the protest leader has said he's ready for talks with the prime minister. american actor verne troyer, who was best known for playing mini—me in the austin powers films, has died at the age of 49. the star was born with a genetic disorder which restricted his height and he was known as one of the shortest men in the world. his family said he struggled with alcoholism and depression for many years. entertainment journalist jeannie wolfjoins us now from los angeles.

thank you forjoining us. was this a surprise? for people who were not very close to him it was a surprise. now we discover he has been in hospitalfor now we discover he has been in hospital for quite sometime, almost on life support. it does seem that there is a feeling that perhaps he tried to take his own life. he suffered from alcoholism, he suffered from alcoholism, he suffered from alcoholism, he suffered from depression if you did not know him you would never know that. he liked to make people laugh, he made fun of himself. spoke about the fact that he said that he was such a star when he goes out in public he wears a hat and sunglasses but it did not help him. they recognise me anyway. a sense of humour. for some people, a certain generation of people, for whom he is character mini—me is iconic. generation of people, for whom he is character mini-me is iconic. that's right. and iconic character. and you need to give mike myers credit for

coming up with an idea for a mini—me and having dr evil mirror himself with this tiny guy. a risky proposition. and vernon told me that at the beginning he thought his role would be a lot smaller. but it was working and mike kept on adding things. it was cool for him to be in such a popular movie. you have people of a certain height such as gary coleman, they are few and far between... peter dinklage. i would say that verne was... the person who lay the path for people like peter dinklage. he was very proud of that. he said he did not want to always play an elf or the tiny thing that little people always had. so when he got the part of mini—me in such a big movie he said he could show people that were possible for

someone like him, someone like verne who never thought he could do something —— anything. who like to make people laugh, he liked to be an inspiration and in 2009 terry gilliam cast him in the imaginary of octopi massey is, —— in a movie that was supposed to star heath ledger. and he was proud that in that film he was cast in a dramatic part instead of the funny part. as often happens in hollywood, these very talented people still struggle with daemons. you can imagine. when you are bored you can imagine as a kid you must have been called a freak or treated that. he had two normal siblings and his parents tried to

teach him —— treat him as normally as possible. had you still know your possibilities are limited. it was ha rd possibilities are limited. it was hard on him and people close to him saw that he knew his deep depression. he tried to be public with his struggles with alcohol but, you know, his addiction finally did he mean. used to drive around town ina he mean. used to drive around town in a specially fitted car and he would stop at the gas station, talk to people and he liked to mock complain. about how he was always asked to sign autographs and... but he was proud and he knew how symbolic his rise was. it's emerged that documents recording the arrival of thousands people who came to the uk from the caribbean after 1948, are being stored at the national archives in west london. the government has been criticised after many of the so—called windrush

generation have struggled to prove that they live in the uk legally. the home office says the records don't provide proof of ongoing residency, but will review evidence provided. here's our political correspondent eleanor garnier. news archive: the empire windrush brings to britain 500 jamaicans. could there finally be some good news for hundreds of the windrush generation? many in this first wave of commonwealth immigration don't have proper paperwork and are struggling to prove their right to remain after immigration rules were tightened. despite being here legally, some have been threatened with deportation, denied access to nhs treatment, and lost their jobs. but now it's emerged that the national archives in london holds passenger lists of thousands of people who came to the uk decades ago. we arrived in england on the 20th of the eighth... samantha's dad has been here since 1959 but after returning to jamaica he says he's been refused entry back into the uk. my dad's been taken away from me, but he's still alive. and that's not a nice feeling. ijust think, where's your heart?

all right, you might have made a mistake, that's fine, you've made a mistake. but that mistake can be corrected and the mistake can be forgotten. the prime minister has apologised to commonwealth leaders and the emergence of the records will help people caught up in this row but they'll still need further evidence to prove their long—term residency. the home office is expected to set out exactly how it plans to compensate windrush migrants who have been unfairly treated in the week. but the row has been extremely embarrassing for the government and the pressure is unlikely to ease until there is significant progress in the process to help people prove their right to be here. # london is the place for me... for those who have been here for decades and call the uk their home, uncertainty will remain until their situation is finally sorted. eleanor garnier, bbc news, westminster. the funeral of barbara bush was held on saturday.

around 1,500 mourners gathered in texas to say goodbye to the former first lady. chris buckler reports. in the houston church she attended for most of her life, four living presidents gathered with others to pay tribute to barbara bush. among those former heads of state were both her widower and her son. she was described as the rock of undoubtedly what is a political dynasty, but, at its heart, was and is a deeply loving family. my dad is a phenomenal letter writer, and he would write mum on their wedding anniversaries, which totalled an amazing 73 years. this was written onjanuary 6, 1994. "will you marry me? ooops, i forgot we did that years ago. i was very happy on that day in 1945, but i am even happier today. you have given mejoy that you may know. you have made our boys into men by bawling them out,

and then, right away, by loving them. you have helped our daughter be the best daughter in the whole wide world. i have climbed, perhaps, the highest mountain in the world, but even that cannot hold a candle to being barbara's husband." during their many decades together, they were seen to support each other, but barbara bush was never afraid of making her own physical opinions known. as first lady, she campaigned for literacy and pushed her own liberal views, sometimes bringing her into conflict with others in the republican party. but she believed that she and her family could make a difference and was back on the campaign trailjust two years ago, when her sonjeb ran to be the republican nominee for president. she was a smart, strong, fun, and feisty. at times her considerable wit could be biting, but warmth, along with humour, was central in the many stories told about her in this funeral service.

she corresponded for several years with a young girl who named her "heifer" after barbara. the child sent frequent updates on the bovine barbara bush, which competed in the houston rodeo and livestock show one year and finished in eighth place. "i was sorry to my little friend," barbara said later, "but i was slightly relieved because i wasn't sure i could have stood the headlines, ‘barbara bush wins the fat stock show‘." the current first lady, melania trump, was among those in attendance. although her husband, the current president, was absent. he said he wasn't attending to avoid extra security be needed at the church.

although the bush family have had a difficult relationship with donald trump, the often feisty barbara bush would have been the first to acknowledge. her sonjeb said he had imagined his mother telling him to keep the service short and not to get weepy. but that proved impossible for many of the family she was so devoted to. chris buckler, bbc news. let's head to italy now, and a very special birthday. the city of rome is marking the day of its founding more than 2,700 years ago with a celebration re—enacting some of the traditions from its imperial past. the bbc‘s tim allman has more. they came, they saw, they reenacted. roman soldiers. well, sort of. even the odd vestal virgin. all of them

celebrating quite a milestone, marching into the roman forum was like marching back in time. ceremonies held to one of notjust a city but an empire. translation: it is the anniversary of the city, the birth of rome. it is the date of the foundation of the city. we are here with 1700, 1800 historical re—enactors from all over the world. legend has it that rome was founded in april 753 bc by the mythic figure of romulus. from that day, an empire grew that would dominate much of europe, north africa and the middle east. the significance was not lost on those taking part. translation: we are not really amp is all soldiers but we have passion. being

historical aficionados with roman clothes and entering the roman forum which us re—enactors is sacred is something that cannot be described because it is too powerful. tourists and locals looked on as this extraordinary birthday was marked. all hail rome, the eternal city. 2771 yea rs all hail rome, the eternal city. 2771 years and counting. tim allman, bbc news. queen elizabeth celebrated her 92nd birthday on saturday, culminating in a concert at the royal albert hall in london. andy moore reports. it's not unusual to go out at any time. sir tom jones kicked off the show backed by the sound of traditional indian drummers. it's not unusual, it happens every day. bizarrely ball presented a nice she described as the biggest party of

the year. —— zoe ball. described as the biggest party of the year. -- zoe ball. like anyone of us on our birthday, the queen has booked the local. it is of course the stunning and historic royal albert hall. the performers came from across the commonwealth. kylie minogue from australia, sean mendes from canada and from jamaica, shaggy. there has been a really broad range of music tonight's concert. not everything may have been to her majesty's taste but there have also been some her favourites. majesty's taste but there have also been some herfavourites. the majesty's taste but there have also been some her favourites. the queen is said to know the lyrics of all the george formby songs, a ukelele orchestra is supported by some celebrity players paid tribute to him. prince harry was there with

meghan markle. the wedding is over a month away. he spoke briefly. your majesty, if you don't mind me saying, you are not someone who is it's easy to buy gifts for. many members of the royal family were at the event along with the british prime minister and commonwealth heads of government. surrounded by performers, the queen came on stage at the end to a short rousing tribute from prince charles. would you will give her majesty free unbelievably rousing cheers on her birthday. hip, hip, hip. hurray! queen is spending the day after her 92nd birthday at windsor castle where she will officially start the london marathon 26 miles away in east london via satellite link. andi mohr, bbc news. happy birthday, your majesty. just a reminder, you can keep up with the new is on the website. goodbye.

good morning. well, after the heat of saturday, some spectacular storms through the night across parts of england and wales. they ease out the way starting sunday. some showers was through the day, particularly in the west, but fresher weather is on its way and that fresh air is coming in behind us, tracking from west to east throughout the day. introducing atlantic air, sweeping away the warmth we have had its way in. some warmer air across parts of eastern england for the start of the day. once the showers clear, temperatures rising quickly. in the west we have that weather front to begin the day across parts of western scotland and northern ireland, bringing outbreaks of rain, and some thunder off just off the east coast of scotland. thicker cloud bringing some showers just to the western fringes of england and wales.

but the sun is out in the south—east, east anglia and estern england, so once the early showers have cleared it is looking fine for the london marathon, for spectators at least. celsius possible. probably a refreshing shower later. that's tied in with this weather front, working its way east. some sunshine. brightening more quickly across parts of england and wales. but we could see the warmth in the south—east spark off some heavy showers later on, could be a rumble of thunder across east anglia too. 23 or 2a in london and norwich, 13 in belfast. we finish the day here with sunshine and showers. showers continue through the night in the northern half of the country. clear skies developing further south. a fresher night than we've had over the past few days, in all parts of the uk temperatures dropping back down to single figures to start your monday morning. that's a sign for next week, it's back to normal. back to factory set for the weather, because it's spring

and it will feel like it once again. a cool start to your monday. not a good deeal of sunshine around in central and eastern areas. a fine day for many, the cloud will increase. in the west the cloud will be thicker. it will turn damp, grey and drizzly towards the south—western coasts. temperatures where they should be for this time of year. 17 possible in the south—east corner. the south holds onto cloud and patchy rain and drizzle at times. brighterskies, particular during the middle part of the day. further north, a lot more sunshine around. but more of a breeze and here, a scattering of showers. note the cool temperatures across the north. they will be with us as we go through the rest of next week. always brighter further south. further north, frequent showers expected. and some rumbles of thunder too. this is bbc news — the headlines: two weeks after the suspected chemical attack in syria — international experts have finally carried out an inspection in the former rebel—held town of douma. the organisation for the prohibition of chemical weapons said its inspectors had gathered samples — which would now be carefully examined. the organiser

of anti—government protests in armenia has said he'll hold talks on sunday morning with the country's long—standing leader — prime minister serzh sargsyan. nikol pashinyan has been leading calls for his resignation — saying that is the only matter he is prepared to discuss. the funeral of the former us first lady, barbara bush, has taken place in texas. she died on tuesday at the age of ninety—two. barbara bush was the wife of george hw bush — and the mother of george w bush. former presidents bill clinton and barack obama attended the service. the first minister of wales, carwynjones, has announced that he'll step down from the post in the autumn.