a very warm welcome to bbc news — broadcasting to viewers in north america and around the globe. my name's mike embley. our top stories: mr trump announces he and the north korean leader, kim jong—un, will meet in singapore next month. iran appeals to israel to avoid new tensions in the middle east, both sides have launched air—strikes against targets around the golan heights. the british government apologises for its role in the detention and torture of a libyan man and his wife, after theirforced return to tripoli. ahead of national elections in iraq, we have a special report from mosul, former stronghold of the islamic state group. and, the mountains of abandoned hire bikes springing up across china as commuters switch to cycle sharing apps. hello. a date has been set for the historic summit between president trump and the north korean

leader, kim jong—un. the two men will meet on the 12th ofjune, in singapore. just before that announcement, the us president welcomed home three americans who'd been detained in north korea — their release apparently a gesture of goodwill ahead of the summit. this from the bbc‘s nick bryant in washington. it is full speed ahead in negotiating a new nuclear deal with north korea and after alienating close european allies, his administration is forging an improbable relationship with one of america's long—standing enemies. in the middle of the night, before the birds or the president had started tweeting, the plane carrying the freed prisoners touched down on american soil. from the trauma of detention to a triumphant welcome from donald trump, he didn't want to miss this dramatic homecoming, for it offers flesh and blood proof that his unconventional approach to diplomacy is working. my proudest achievement will be —

this is a part of it — but will be when we denuclearise that entire peninsula. this is what people have been waiting for for a long time. nobody thought we could be on this track in terms of speed, so i'm very honoured to have helped the three folks. this was a made—for—television moment, but the white house quickly turned it into cinema. slow motion footage, rousing hollywood—style music. the former reality tv star claimed this must have set the all—time record for ratings at 3am in the morning. north korea's state broadcaster didn't show that kind of panache, but these are remarkable pictures nonetheless. kimjong—un meeting the new us secretary of state, mike pompeo, in pyongyang. the leader mocked as

"little rocket man", enjoying a lighter moment with the americans, ahead of his summit with mr trump. vice president mike pence has been talking about us expectations. i think the president senses an opening, that may result in an historic agreement. what kim jong—un has said publicly, and in discussions, is that he is prepared to negotiate to achieve complete denuclearisation of the korean peninsula. so the north korean leader's security team will soon be pacing the streets of singapore — the venue for the summit. but has enough diplomatic legwork been done to make it a success? there are many in the american foreign policy establishment who think that this summit has been rushed, that it is premature and not enough arrangements had been made. that runs the risk that if it fails,

that could put america on the path to war. donald trump rejects that kind —— to war. donald trump rejects that kind of! to war. donald trump rejects that kind of— the £151" e‘én—‘j oni 2“? on june 3:3. onjunei2, g: onjune 12, in —“f onjunei2, in will be meeting with to be meeting with kim jong—un to pursue a future peace and security for the world, the whole world. —— of. and the relationship is called, what

you remember everybody in the fake news, where they were saying he is going to get us into a nuclear war, he is going to get us into a nuclear war. and you know what gets you into nuclear war is? and you know what gets you into other wars? weakness, weakness. donald trump in indiana. injusta weakness. donald trump in indiana. injust a few weakness. donald trump in indiana. in just a few minutes, we will get the latest from our correspondent in washington, dc, live from there. let's take a look at some of the other stories making the news. the united nations is warning that 400,000 children in the kasai region in the democratic republic of congo are starving and need immediate help to prevent them dying. unicef officials say double that number are acutely malnourished. an attack on a mosque in south africa has killed a local imam and seriously injured two other people. three men wielding knives attacked them after midday prayers. police say the motive is not yet clear.

at least 47 people have been killed in north—west kenya, where heavy rains burst a dam. authorities say that number could rise. they estimate at least 2,000 people have been left homeless. the us treasury department has imposed sanctions on six people it's linking to iran's revolutionary guards. also, three other iranian organisations. it's alleged they're all part of a large—scale currency exchange network. there is concern internationally at the growing confrontation between iran and israel. iranian forces in syria fired rockets at israeli positions on the occupied golan heights. israel responded with airstrikes on iranian targets in syria. iran's president, talking to the german chancellor, has insisted tehran wants to reduce tensions in the middle east. this from the bbc‘s tom bateman. israeli missiles in the skies above damascus overnight. it was part of

the biggest single strike by israel against neighbouring syria in a generation. the assault targeted iranian military positions deep inside the country, including a battering israel said launched a barrage of 20 rockets towards its territory. —— battery. barrage of 20 rockets towards its territory. -- battery. the units that are deployed all across syria are 106 kilometres away from iran. iranians are the ones who are the aggressors, they are the ones who are building offensive military infrastructure inside syria with a clear goal king the menace and terrorise civilian. residents of the israeli golan heights have been urged to open bomb shelters. air force, the bombs, everything. syria's military said the israeli strikes killed three people and claimed its air defences destroyed a large part of the barrage. israel

has seen the balance of power change during the years of war in its northern neighbour. it sees a growing threat from iran's presence in syria. but the iranians are staying put, determined to support the iranian regime. israel and iran have been on a collision course and last night saw a significant escalation. as karma turn the israeli controlled territory, that there was a call from russia and france for restraint, but the us accused iran of reckless actions. syria's war still threatens to spill out further into this region. a libyan dissident who was kidnapped with the help of the british security services in 2004 says he's grateful that the government has formally apologised. the couple say they were abducted by the cia in thailand after a british tipoff,

flown to libya, and then tortured. mr belhaj has been speaking to our security correspondent gordon corera in istanbul. in istanbul, britain's ambassador stands alongside abdel hakim belhaj, a man who says britain colluded in the six years of torture he suffered in a libyan prison. the handing over of a letter from the prime minister and a handshake signals the closing of a dark chapter for the british government, as it finally admits what it did. she was soon released, eee ee ee’fe eze ilifeeffiefi eerefee by british officials. after gaddafi's fall in 2011, letters from mi6 to libyan officials were discovered detailing britain's involvement. six years ago, mr belhaj launched a legal action against the british government, sir mark allen, an m16 officer named in the files and jack straw, who was foreign secretary at the time. today, jack straw acknowledged he had given verbal approval for some intelligence to be shared, but says he'd always acted lawfully.

whether he was fully briefed by mi6 remains unclear. 0utside parliament, lawyers who had worked with the family described the day as a victory for everyone who opposes injustice, secret detention and torture. the uk lost its way when it got mixed up in the rendition of an innocent pregnant woman and an anti—gaddafi dissident, but today, i think it stood on the right side of history by recognising its mistakes and by apologising. while his wife received compensation o 0.5 million pounds, mr belhaj said he did not want money, just an apology. and today, he got it. stay with us on bbc news. still to come... why mountains of abandoned hire bikes are springing up across china. the pope was shot, the pope will

live. that is the essence of the appalling news this afternoon that has italian television commenting. they man they call the butcher of leon went on trial today in the french town where he was the gestapo chief in the second world war. winnie mandela never looked like a womanjust winnie mandela never looked like a woman just sentenced to six years in jail. the judge told mrs mandela there was no indication she felt even the slightest remorse. the chinese government has called for an all—out effort to help the victims ofa all—out effort to help the victims of a powerful earthquake, the worst the country for 12 years. a computer has tonight chat, triumphed over the world chess champion. it is the first time a computer has defeated the reigning world champion in a classical chess match. legal same—sex marriages had been taking place in massachusetts. god loves america. this is bbc news.

the latest headlines: president trump announces that he and the north korean leader, kim jong—un, will meet in singapore next month. iran appeals to israel to avoid new tensions in the middle east, after both sides launch air—strikes against targets around the golan heights. let's return to our main story now. 0ur correspondent, chris buckler, is in washington. what do you make of it? donald trump does not do things by halves. it is clear from his recent does not do things by halves. it is clearfrom his recent campaign speech he is personally invested in the north korean summit. the date is set, june 12, singapore. speaking at a campaign rally, which was really about domestic issues, he could not

help but get into foreign policy. he was concerned the future of peace and security for the whole world was at stake and he believes it will be at stake and he believes it will be a very big success. he is making it out that he believes there is potential for a deal. at out that he believes there is potentialfor a deal. at the out that he believes there is potential for a deal. at the same time, he was contrasting what was happening in north korea with what happened under the 0bama administration in iran. and he talked about the iran deal he withdrew from at the start of the week, saying as far as he was concerned it was the most embarrassing deal that america had ever gotten involved in and therefore issued a bit of a warning that as far as he was concerned, he would not enter into a deal like that with north korea. we are starting to see hard discussions are still to be had. certainly, donald trump believes there is opportunity here and he wants to put himself at the centre of it. that is why yesterday we saw him climb off that

plane along with three detained prisoners from north korea, putting himself at the centre of a televised event and campaign opportunity. but he needs to get a result. and that is going to be difficult because that issue of denuclearisation, giving up nuclear weapons, what america wants, whether kim jong—un is willing to listen, we will only find that out after the summit. at least now the date and location is set. iraq is preparing to hold a general election in a vote which could have an impact on the balance of power in the middle east. this weekend's poll will be the the first since the defeat of the islamic state group, which took control of large parts of the country in 2014. 0ur middle east editor, jeremy bowen, reports from mosul, which was the biggest city in the country to fall under is control. for 800 years, this mosque was the centre of mosul until thejihadists and islamic state blew it to pieces in june last year when they were on the brink of defeat. the ruins are still a symbol

of what the extremists did to iraq and of the risks of another political failure after this weekend's elections. in iraq, failure doesn'tjust mean not rebuilding cities destroyed by war. only a few of the thousands who lived in the centre of mosul have found a way back. volunteers patrol the ruins, still collecting war dead who lie where they fell. when politicians fail in a country this fragile, it can mean the deaths of a lot of people. some neighbours are helping each other rebuild. like most people in mosul they're sunni. these men are worried that shia fighters could influence the election. we don't want sectarianism, the men said, it will destroy us. this man said that if iran left they could live in peace forever, and if it doesn't iraq is finished. many want the election

to be a new start. part of a wave of younger candidates, he says the old guard used sectarianism to generate loyalty through fear. people now are more angry. in 2003 they were happy because saddam's regime was dismissed. in 2009 it was between shia and sunni, so people were busy fighting each other, not about their future. now i think that the majority of people look at the government

and politicians, especially those politicians in iraq, to stop playing those games. let us rebuild our country. first, they will have to end corruption — powerful men steal public money before it gets to the people who need it. whoever wins the election faces some very big challenges. reconstruction, holding the country together and stopping the slide into another sectarian civil war. you can fix an alleyway, a street, even a town, but when communities turn on each other it rips the heart out of the country. public events happen with a lot of security. iraq's elite fighters are well—trained, but there are limits to what leaders here can control. foreign intervention has had deadly consequences and it might do again. iraq will have to work hard to stay out of the crisis between iran and its three main enemies — the us, israel and saudi arabia.

watching closely are the men of the popular mobilisation units. their leader is a credible candidate for prime minister. they are funded by iran and they're deeply anti—american. iraq has to enter into a battlefield by america and other countries fighting each other, but when we look at what's happening with america pulling out of the iran nuclear deal itjust shows how americans are not interested in peace in the area. all they want is for the wars, disputes, tensions and sectarian fights to continue the middle east. mosul held its spring festival for the first time since the americans and british invaded in 2003. they want a new beginning, they hope the election will give them one. the current prime minister

is favoured to win, but forming a government could take a long time here. some of the dead in the war against is were commemorated. the hopes of iraqis are real, but so are their fears after years of killing. the biggest obstacle to a new start might not come from within, but from the middle east spiralling and deadly crisis. an australian scientist who was an advocate for assisted suicide has ended his life at a swiss clinic at the age of 104. david goodall, who was born in london, was not terminally ill, but he said old age had made his quality of life significantly worse. the sacked former head of the catalan regional government in spain, carles puigdemont, has given up on attempts to reclaim hisjob. he has instead named his preferred successor, quim torra, a political newcomer. madrid has thwarted moves in catalonia to try to reinstate mr puigdemont, who is

currently in germany contesting extradition proceedings. the veteran politician mahathir mohamad has been sworn in as prime minister of malaysia — making him the world's oldest leader. the 92—year—old came out of retirement to lead the country's opposition party to its first ever victory. he unexpectedly defeated his former protege, najib razak, who has been accused of corruption and was reportedly offering bribes to opposition candidates to swap sides. spotify has announced it will no longer actively promote r kelly's music on its service. the r&b star has been the subject of a string of sexual misconduct allegations from several women. he's denied the accusations. users will still be able to find his music on the streaming service, but it will no longer feature in playlists or user recommendations. the humble bicycle has been a mainstay of chinese life for decades. but in the past few months, giant mountains of discarded bikes have been cropping up across the country. that's because the authorities have been impounding thousands upon thousands of rental

bicycles that, they say, are clogging city streets. john sudworth reports. it could be mistaken for a field of flowers. but look closer. this is a crop not of plants, but of metal and rubber. thousands upon thousands of bikes, impounded in the city of wuhan. bike—sharing has taken china by storm. unlocked with a wave of a phone, they can be hired, or off—hired, anywhere. but the innovative technology has brought with it a frenzy of speculation. chinese cities have been deluged with bikes, millions of them. backed with huge investment, dozens of companies have been fighting for market share, resulting in blocked pavements... and a random sprinkling of abandoned

bikes almost everywhere you look. in some cities, the authorities have had enough. the extraordinary thing is that many of these bikes are brand—new, hardly used at all. forget stock—market bubbles and property bubbles, forget the dotcom bubble. this is one with wheels on. this is china's bike—sharing bubble. photos of other bike mountains have been propping up online. here is one in the city of xiamen, and this is shanghai. yes, those really are bikes down there. but the reality is, china faces a far bigger transport challenge — traffic congestion, chronic pollution and a growing health crisis. and it's notjust bikes that block pavements.

the bike companies now plan to use the huge amounts of data they collect to monitor rider behaviour and penalise bad parking, and they insist chinese cities still need them. there needs to be a framework to regulate the growth of the industry, but from a general point of view, taking a step back, cities want this kind of commuting method, because it reduces pollution, reduces congestion, it puts people back on their bicycles. but it's also our responsibility as the leader in the industry to provide this with a thoughtful and responsible approach. as the chinese bike—sharing schemes arrive in more british cities, lessons, they say, will have been learned. and look at this dusty and dry expanse of land. it is a lagoon in

chile, or was. the lake, 12 kilometres of it, has dried up. authorities say drought is to blame along with overconsumption of water by humans. anti-donald trump says he will be pursuing peace and security for the whole world when he meets with kim jong—un next for the whole world when he meets with kimjong—un next month. —— and donald trump. that is it for now, thank you for watching. hello once again. let's bring you right up—to—date with how we see the next couple of days developing across the british isles and i have to say there is some uncertainty about how the weekend is exactly going to shape up. thursday was a very pleasant day indeed, came to a glorious end and indeed, for the many parts, was a glorious day, plenty of sunshine on offer. i hope you made the most of it, especially so if you are intending to spend friday across the western side of the british isles

because looming not very far over the horizon is another set of weather fronts. notice too how those isobars begin to tighten up and that stronger wind will be there that we had across parts of scotland and indeed northern ireland as well. not a bad start to the day across central and eastern parts, quite a chilly one as well. some of the overnight temperatures, 1, 2, 3 degrees, something of that order. a bright enough start with the sunshine flooding through. that won't the case out towards the west where in the middle part of the afternoon, the first signs of the thicker cloud producing rain across the western isles and the western fringes of the mainland. some pleasant sunshine further to the east. the rain all over northern ireland, some of it really quite heavy at times and the rain becoming more of a present threat there across the western and southern parts of wales down to the south—west of england. it's a dry day for the most part across central and eastern parts. in fact, you won't get to see that rain until realy quite late on in the night, if you see it at all, i think it will be confined to the northern half of the british isles. the banner of cloud helping to keep

the temperature up much higher than will have been the case from thursday on into friday. so this is the weekend. low pressure not a million miles away, will gradually to sink its way towards the south—western approaches. it's the weather front further to the east that's causing the forecasting headaches at the moment and it looks as though having been a rather weak affair, it may well pep up from the south—east and the rain becoming really rather stuck over scotland. some of that is really open to a good deal of uncertaintyjust at the moment. we think there will be a peppering of showers across some eastern spots during saturday and then a great dry swathe and as you come back towards that area of low pressure, that'll throw some showers into parts of wales and the south—west, the odd one getting into northern ireland as well. here is saturday night on into sunday, it may well be the heavier parts of rain works its way up to the south—eastern quarter and runs along the line of the front and it may well become the dominant feature across a good part of scotland as we get into the latter part of sunday, then drier swathe and we come back to that raft of showers across the south—west

the latest headlines: the date has been set for the historic summit between president donald trump and kim jong—un. historic summit between president donald trump and kimjong—un. they will meet on the 12th ofjune in singapore. just prior to that announcement, three americans being held in north korea were released. iran's president, hassan rouhani, has insisted that tehran does not want new tensions in the middle east. he was speaking hours after israel launched a wave of missile strikes against iranian military targets in syria. the uk government has apologised to a libyan dissident and his wife, after its actions contributed to their detention, transfer to libya and torture

by colonel gaddafi's forces in 2004. theresa may said abdul hakim belhaj and fatima boudchar had suffered "appalling treatment". it's just after 2:30am.