welcome to bbc news, broadcasting to viewers in north america and around the globe. my name is mike embley. our top stories: facing bankruptcy. the company at the heart of the facebook data scandal, cambridge analytica, announces it's shutting down. wwe have the details. america's new top diplomat mike pompeo is sworn in and says he'll be "tough" on iran and russia. there's a pledge too on north korea. we have the unprecedented opportunity to change the course of history on the korean peninsula. we will not repeat the mistakes of the past. a bad deal is not an option. after weeks of anti—government protests, armenia's parliament prepares to vote. it looks likely the protest leader will be the new prime minister. and nearly 4,000 artefacts smuggled into the united states are heading back to iraq. the company at the centre of the privacy scandal about the use

of private data from facebook is shutting down. cambridge analytica is accused of improperly obtaining personal information from tens of millions of facebook users on behalf of political clients, including the trump election campaign. the firm has denied any wrongdoing but claims media coverage of its work means it can no longerfunction. investigations are likely to continue. 0ur media editor, amol rajan, reports. it sold itself as the pioneer of a new kind of digital marketing, able to give companies and political campaigns unprecedented control over their message. but cambridge analytica bowed to the inevitable. the company, which denies wrongdoing, received the data of some 3.7 million users via an app developer. it was the harvesting of that data which ultimately caused its undoing. in undercover filming by channel 4 news, the company's most senior figures claimed they could decisively influence elections. in recent months, scrutiny of the company's practices has been remorseless. the london offices were raided by the information commissioner. people see the work that we did

in a negative light... erstwhile ceo alexander nix stepped down not long after a grilling by the culture, media and sports select committee. the committee's chairman said this wasn't the end of the matter. we've got to make sure that this is not an attempt to run and hide, that these companies aren't shutting down in order to avoid being vigorously investigated for the allegations made against them, the misuse of data, the ethics and legality of their practices. those investigations have to continue. we have to know what happened. in a statement, cambridge analytica said the scandal had driven away virtually all customers and suppliers, leaving the comp no longer viable. fallout from the controversy is global and ongoing. the founder and ceo of facebook, mark zuckerberg, apologised in washington last month for his company's failure to control the british firm. we didn't take a broad enough view of our responsibility, and that was a big mistake. and it was my mistake and i am sorry.

many analysts believe this scandal will have a long—lasting impact. this whole affair has changed people's perceptions of social media. we've drifted into the way that we use these tools without really a clear understanding of the way that that data is used, and how it is targeted by advertisers. we have had too much more mindful people and making people more mindful of what they share. the company says it will honour its obligations to staff, but many think the company still has questions to answer. rajan, bbc news. let's take a look at some of the other stories making the news. the us government is looking into unconfirmed reports that three americans detained in north korea have been moved from a labour camp to a hotel in pyongyang, possibly in preparation for release, ahead of the planned summit between kimjung un and president trump. the state department will only say the safety of its citizens abroad is one of its highest priorities. the un secretary general is urging

the united states not to withdraw from the iran nuclear deal. antonio guterres warned that the middle east faced a dangerous situation and there could be a risk of war. the 2015 agreement between teheran and six world powers is aimed at curbing iran's nuclear capability. the extremist group that calls itself islamic state is claiming it carried out one of the bloodiest attacks in the libyan capital in several years. suicide bombers stormed the headquarters of the electoral commission in tripoli, exchanging fire with security forces, killing at least 12 people and wounding more. two black men arrested in a stabuck‘s coffee shop after being falsely accused of trespassing have settled a legal case against the city of philadelphia. donte robinson and rashon nelson will each receive a symbolic $1 from the city, which has also promised to contribute $200,000 to help set up a programme for young entrepreneurs. donald trump has made his first trip to the us state department since he became president to attend the formal swearing—in

of his new top diplomat mike pompeo. the new secretary of state, former head of the cia, has a worldview very close to mr trump's own. so, will it make for a more coherent american foreign policy? jane 0'brien reports. mike pompeo became the 70th secretary of state in a ceremony of political theatre a shot of pomp for a beleaguered department that for the past year has struggled with morale and direction. i want the state department to get its swagger back. we need our men and women out at the front lines, executing american diplomacy with great vigour and energy, and to represent the finest nation in the history of civilisation, we should be proud of that and i'm counting on you all to help communicate in every corner of the world. and true to type, mike pompeo got straight down to business. we are committed to the permanent, verifiable dismantling of north korea's weapons of mass destruction programme and to do so without delay.

even before he was confirmed as america's top diplomat, mike pompeo made a secret visit to north korea over easter. he met with kimjong—un himself in a bid to pave the way for the highly anticipated summit with president trump in the coming month. the trip caught most people by surprise, like much of us foreign policy itself, and the president hinted at more to come. and we'll be doing things that you don't even know about. right now, they're not even a glimmer in your eye. but... and we have a couple going, mike, right now that a lot of people don't know about, that are very, very encouraging. mr pompeo‘s predecessor, rex tillerson, was often at odds with the president, who frequently contradicted him in public, before unceremoniously firing him by tweet. i think rex will be much happier now, but i really appreciate his service. thank you. mr pompeo is clearly more in tune with mr trump — at least for now. less clear is whether that will translate into a more coherent foreign policy, particularly on contentious issues such as syria, iran and north korea.

jane 0'brien, bbc news, washington. anti—government protests that have brought much of armenia to a standstill have been suspended now the governing republican party has indicated it will not oppose the protest leader, nikol pashinyan, becoming prime minister. that will still depend on a vote in parliament. the bbc‘s steve rosenberg reports from the armenian capital, yerevan. it was the day armenians made their voices heard — louder than ever. the day people power appeared to be changing a country. tens of thousands of protesters had

packed into republic square, elf trying getting? pfifigr, the man they want for the job is nikol pashinya — once a journalist, now an opposition mp. he's been leading the protests that have been sweeping armenia, and he's become something of a political superstar. revolution have won, and people's victory should be recognised. there can't be power or government that doesn't support their opinion and doesn't support the people. he is our new prime minister. he believe us that we are together, we are strong, and he can take our nation to the winning world. we believe in him. earlier, people power had brought armenia to a standstill. nikol pashinya had called on supporters to block

roads and railways. a day of civil disobedience that felt more like a national holiday. they're calling it here "the revolution of love and tolerance". 0n the road from yerevan airport into town, we hit a roadblock at every intersection. we managed to get through, along with some of the protesters. tonight, nikol pashinyan ordered a pause in the protests, after reports he may have won the backing of the ruling party to become prime minister. but he called on supporters to remain vigilant. the idea that power resides with the people and that those in power are beholden to the people, that idea is inspiring huge crowds across armenia. and these protesters say they will continue to take to the streets until they see real political change here. and if change happens, the biggest challenge for any new leader of armenia will be living up to the expectations of the people. steve rosenberg, bbc news, yerevan. for more background on that, go to the website. there is a guide on the

six things you may not know about armenia. after months of resistance, myanmar‘s leader, aung san suu kyi, is saying she will now allow un agencies to help return some of the one million rohingya refugees who've fled across the border to bangladesh. it looks like a significant softening of her position. here's our myanmar correspondent, nick beake. with around i million rohingya refugees stuck in makeshift camps in bangladesh, this is the biggest refugee crisis in asia, the biggest refugee crisis in the world today. but so far, the message from here in myanmar has been no, we don't want any help from the outside world. however, there has now been a change in tone and message from aung san suu kyi. she says that the time is right for the un to come in with their expertise and help her government. she says together they want to create the conditions whereby rohingya can come back and not live in fear, as she puts it. the un seems to think they pretty near the signing of some sort of agreement with the authorities here.

we will have to wait and see. speak to human rights groups though, and they are sceptical. they say look at the 500,000 rohingya people who have not fled for their lives still in rakhine state, they don't have access to education or healthcare and they don't have citizenship. they think that they should be the priority before other people are. so a change of message from aung san suu kyi but for now, it is a change in words, not in actions. stay with us on bbc news. still to come: we meet a troop of girl scouts. they are young and determined and homeless. nothing, it seems, was too big to withstand the force

of the tornado. the extent of the devastation will lead to renewed calls for government help to build better housing. internationally, there have already been protests. sweden says it received no warning of the accident. indeed, the russians at first denied anything had gone wrong. only when radioactive levels started to increase outside russia were they forced to admit the accident. for the mujahideen, the mood here is of great celebration. this is the end of a 12—year war for them. they've taken the capital, which they have fighting for for so long. it was 7:00am in the morning, the day when power began to pass from the minority to the majority, when africa, after 300 years, reclaimed its last white colony. this is bbc news.

the latest headlines: the company at the heart of the facebook data scandal, cambridge analytica, has announced it can't stay in business anymore and is closing down. america's new top diplomat is sworn in. mike pompeo claims he can "change the course of history on the korean peninsula." the british prime minister has asked for "revised proposals" after meeting with senior ministers to discuss britain's trading relationship with the european union after brexit. theresa may discussed her preferred "customs partnership plan" with cabinet colleagues this afternoon but downing street says that more work needs to be done on the options. 0ur political editor, laura kuenssberg, has more details. it never rains but it pours, especially in this famous street. reporter: sir, would a custom partnership make trade deals impossible? oh, yeah. the prime minister stuck between her senior ministers. talked of hours about how customs at

work after brexit. they simply couldn't agree. what they're clashing about matters. how should we sort out customs after we leave the eu? well, one of the prime minister's ideas is the so—called customs partnership. where britain would collect tariffs on behalf of the whole continent when goods arrive here from the rest of the world. but many of her colleagues think that is fanciful and unworkable, and are trying to get rid of that plan. brexiteer backbenchers put their objections in black and white. a hefty document passed to the bbc and sent to number 10, described to me as a threat they would collapse the government if the idea remains. it would be extraordinary if the prime minister were to undermine her own policy by following this scheme, which sounded superficially attractive, initially, but now the details have been looked at and the consequences examined, appears to be a bad scheme. but other elements in

the tory party protest. they want to preserve closer ties with the eu and keep the partnership principle. we shouldn't be closing down options. if i have a criticism of some of my conservative colleagues, it's that they seem to be resolute, and obsessed, and closing down options. the two sides at home pushing the pm arejoined by the realities of the two sides on the irish border. the irish government and the eu keep warning that unless there are better solutions to the customs conundrum, the whole brexit deal could stall. we want to see real and meaningful progress byjune, if we're going to meet the december deadline. there is a real risk we won't meet the december — the october deadline, rather — if we don't see real and meaningful progress in june. this afternoon's crunch meeting was, in the end, more like chewing the ideas over. questions to the prime minister! but listen very carefully

to the prime minister early on. does she sound stuck on just one idea? we are committed to delivering on our commitment of no hard border between northern ireland and ireland, and ensuring we have as frictionless trade as possible with the european union's. there are a number of ways that can be delivered. she said there may be many ways and has to be because the cabinet could not agree. a suggestion of ministers campaigned against the idea, that is denied by number ten, campaigned against the idea, that is denied by numberten, but campaigned against the idea, that is denied by number ten, but theresa may has asked for more revised proposals. and admission that the government still does not have a customs plan with full backing of the cabinet, let alone the rest of the cabinet, let alone the rest of the eu. this is complicated, and has

taken a long time. in other words, no decision yet. laura kuenssberg, bbc news, westminster. the british government has admitted hundreds of women may have died because of breast cancer screenings. us officials say nine people were aboard a military cargo plane which crashed near an airport in the us state of georgia. the c—130 aircraft was embarking on a training flight from savannah international airport when it went down shortly after ta keoff. the us authorities said it was unlikely any of those on board survived. steve a nd steve and manish and is in beijing trying to limit a growing dispute between the two countries. president trump has been threatening to impose steep tariffs on chinese goods to rebalance the trading relationship he has long said is unfair. thousands of ancient artefacts that were illegally imported to the us have been returned to iraqi officials in washington. the objects described as "national treasures",

were bought through dealers in the united arab emirates and israel. andy beatt reports. centuries of iraqi heritage illegally smuggled to the united states, is going home. nearly 4000 items dating back as many years, represent one of the biggest repatriations of cultural property to iraq — a country heavily plundered in the 15 years since the invasion that toppled saddam hussein. officials from both countries celebrated the return, saying it struck a blow against the black market in antiquities and militant groups such as so—called islamic state. such efforts are to be noted, not only does it enforce the law, it says as a sense of historic justice and helps the fight against cruel and terrorist networks. the tablets and clay labels are covered in cuneiform script, one of the regions earliest

systems of writing. among them, ancient schoolbooks, religious texts and records of day to day trade, all offering a unique glimpse into the past. the writing on these cuneiform tablets describes life in ancient mesopotamia. contracts, messages about the distribution of grain, fish, even food for the palace dogs. in those times, professional scribes walked through marketplaces with clay tablets the size of smartphones, recording agreements. the items were labelled as tile samples and brought to america by a chain of art and craft stores called hobby lobby. officials said the firm ignored warnings they may have come from looted archaeological sites, more than 1000 imported items remain unaccounted for. the hope is that eventually these will end up in the restored museum in mosul. andy beatt, bbc news. now world leaders have a tough job, constantly making international trips where even the slightest misstep could turn into a highly publicised gaffe.

it's something french president emmaneul macron might be feeling right about now. while addressing the australian first couple he had a bit of a linguistic faux pas. take a listen. i wanted to thank you for your welcome, thank you and your delicious wife for your warm welcome. it is the perfect organisation of this trip, thank you very much. not going to forget that one. and to be fair, he was speaking in a foreign language. pay a visit to girl scout troop 6000 in new york and you'll find what you would at countless scout meetings — young people working hard to earn that next badge. but this troop stands apart as the first for homeless girls living in the city's shelters. it's an attempt to build community and skills. on my honour, i will try. all: on my honour, i will try. to serve god and my country. all: to serve god and my country.

67% of the children who come to us have already been in shelter or living on somebody‘s couch or floor. homeless children go to at least two schools are year. they come from a disjointed education. all of this is trauma that the children internalise. and we saw what happened with veterans. if you don't provide an outlet, that trauma will just fester and fester, and what it does for homeless children is make them twice as likely to be homeless adults. have you ever changed your appearance or clothing, style, to please others? i have more than enough understanding of what the mothers of homeless little girls are going through, because i too was homeless for 3.5 years. when you're going through those kinds of things, you don't think about dressing up, or the little girl dreams that you had. you think they don't apply to you. but what we do, and what we've been able to do, is let them know that they can dream.

i would start my own business, like, it would be a clothing business. what are some things that you think you need to have? how would you be successful? i want to be a criminaljustice lawyer, to help people with crime and all that stuff, and i would hopefully want to win all the cases. the girl scouts are helping me become a lawyer by dealing with problems, and just being considering and caring about how people feel. often you think of shelters as places where dreams don't exist. but the girl scout troops create another place where dreams are fostered, and those will come to a reality someday for these homeless kids. a town in canada's western province of british columbia has an unlikely menace stalking its streets. it's being overrun by wild peacocks. the large birds have invaded backyards and can even be seen knocking on people's windows. and as virginia langeberg reports, locals are not exactly rolling out the welcome mat for their

feathered neighbours. they are often admired for their majestic appearance, but when these residents of sullivan heights moved m, residents of sullivan heights moved in, it is likely most locals had no idea what they were in for. any time they are disturbed, they start screaming. and it sounds a lot like a crane baby, i have gone into making through thinking they are crying and it turns out to be a peacock. around 150 of the large, exotic birds now freely roam these streets undisturbed and they are have well and truly made themselves at home. you can't send their kids out in the backyard to play, my kids never played in the backyard because the patio is full of them. my neighbours, i sometimes heard scratches on their cars. the neighbourhood is located in surrey, british columbia, where peacocks fall outside the scope of animal control. and just where it did they come from? it isn't rumoured they

we re come from? it isn't rumoured they were on a rural property in the area a decade ago but now it seems anyone's backyard can be a new nest. 0ne resident has taken matters into their own hands, cutting down a healthy tree on his property where peacocks were nesting. the homeowner 110w peacocks were nesting. the homeowner now faces a 1000 fine and potential for much more. we are looking into further legal actions and finds, for the home and and the individuals. the city says it plans to hold community meetings to educate residents on how best to deal with the birds. let's ta ke let's take a look at these pictures are. usually at festivals you try to avoid the mud, but this one held every year in south—west china is all about it. people throw it around to bring good fortune to all involved. the more mud cake you are, the better your luck will be. —— mud

caked. cambridge analytica is closing down, saying media coverage says it cannot no longer function as a company. investigations into the directors we are told, will continue. much more for you at any time on the bbc website. i'm @bbcmikeembley. and you can get in touch with me and most of the team on twitter. hello. there's warmer weather on the way for the bank holiday weekend. for most of us, it's looking dry, as well, with increasing sunshine as the weekend goes on. we're not quite there yet, though, this weather front went through on wednesday, with some rain followed by showers. this weather front is coming in from the west thursday, though by no means all of us will get rain from it. but even from the word go, in the morning, that bit of patchy

rain for parts of northern ireland and western scotland, whilst for many, particularly across eastern parts, it will be clear, it will be sunny once the sun is up, but it will be chilly, with low single figures in places, and that sunshine will be lost to increasing cloud as we go into the afternoon. from the cloud for northern ireland, western scotland, some spots north—west england, and a few in wales, there will be some patchy rain around, shouldn't amount to too much. and a brisk breeze blowing across the northern half of the uk, moderate to fresh west—south—westerly wind. around 10—14 degrees for most places, as high as 17 in south—east england. even into the afternoon, even into the evening, southern and eastern parts of the uk will see a few breaks in that cloud, allowing a bit of sunshine to come through. now, as we go on through thursday night and into friday morning, a lot of cloud around away from east anglia and south—east england, but even here, under clear skies, not as chilly as it will be first thing thursday. so a milder start on friday. a lot of cloud around, misty, murky in places. some outbreaks of rain, particularly affecting the north and north—west of scotland.

this little piece of energy runs away northwards. still a bit of drizzle, i think, parts of western scotland and northern ireland. but for many, friday will be a dry day, if not a particularly sunny day. but, when the sun comes through the cloud, occasionally it is going to feel warmer. notice those temperatures are starting to edge up. and that is the process that accelerates into the weekend, with high pressure for most of us, though the further north—west you are, you're still close to weather fronts. with breeze, it's going to be cooler here compared with elsewhere, especially north—west scotland. but, for most of the weekend, this includes the bank holiday, it'll be fine, it'll be dry, and it will be getting warmer. just take a look at saturday and sunday for now. on saturday, i think some cloud to begin the day. rather misty and murky in places, and cloud could increase in northern ireland and western scotland. north—west scotland beginning to see some outbreaks of rain coming in. but for most it'll be dry, and a few spots start to get above 20 celsius. and then for part two of the weekend, on sunday, could be some rain affecting mainly the north of northern ireland, running through central parts of scotland for a time, whereas england and

wales are looking dry. and again that sunshine starting to break out more widely, even more so by the bank holiday, along with that welcome, for many of us, warmth. this is bbc world news. the headlines: the company at the centre of the privacy scandal about the use of private data is shutting down. cambridge analytica denies improperly obtaining personal information from tens of millions of facebook users on behalf of political clients, including the trump election campaign. criminal investigations into the firm's directors continue. in washington, mike pompeo has been sworn in as the new us secretary of state, america's top diplomat. the former cia director insisted north korea must immediately dismantle its nuclear programme. and said he would help the us diplomatic corps "get back its swagger." anti—government protests that have brought much of armenia to a standstill have been suspended now the governing republican party has indicated it will not oppose the protest leader, nikol pashinyan,, becoming prime minister. 0fficially, that still depends on a formal vote in parliament. now on bbc news:

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