this is bbc news. i'm shaun ley. the headlines at 11... two british tourists are among three people kidnapped at gunpoint in a democratic republic of congo national park. voting is underway in iraq's first parliamentary election since the country declared victory over the group that calls itself islamic state. the worst wage crisis in modern history. the tuc says workers are still feeling the effects of the financial crisis. mps and campaigners criticise a "lack of progress" on mobile connectivity in rural areas. also in the next hour... we'll hear about a novel plan to regenerate the high street in dumfries. a community group is leading the fight against decline in the town's centre, with hopes of drawing the crowds back to the shops. and at 11.30, dateline looks at the implications of president trump's withdrawal from the iran nuclear deal and what next month's summit with north korea could bring. a £500,000 ransom for their release.

the tourists were kidnapped at gunpoint yesterday in the democratic republic of congo. the pair were among three people who were taken by armed men at the virunga national park conservation area. the director of the park said a ranger who was in a vehicle with the tourists was killed. the bbc‘s louise dewast is in the congolese capital, kinshasa. a little earlier she gave us this update. good morning. so what we know this morning is that hostages are still in captivity, so the situation is very serious. the attack yesterday happened north of goma, inside the national park which is a world heritage site known for its mountain gorillas, but also as an area where there are armed groups operating around the park and there have been kidnappings there before.

human rights groups have been saying that about 50% of the kidnappings are for ransom in that area of the country. and this specific area where the attack happened is what we call a military area, means that the national army is present in the area, fighting against these armed group, and are most likely responding as we speak to this situation. iraqis are voting in a general election today, in a vote which could have an impact on the balance of power in the middle east. todays poll will be the country's fourth parliamentary elections since the invasion of 2003 that removed saddam hussein from power, and the first since the defeat of the islamic state group, which took control of large parts of the country in 2014. security forces are on high alert after is militants threatened to carry out attacks against politicians and voters.

0ur correspondent rami ruhayem is in baghdad, where the threat from terrorism during the election is still a major concern. you can't of course expect complete securityjust months after the end of a war like that in which so much destruction was wrought on several large cities and several areas of the country, and so many people were displaced, six million at the peak displaced, many of them have returned now, so it is about expectations, think. the iraqi authorities believe that the country's secure enough for people to head to the polls today and they have been saying that. it is of course much more secure than it was at any time for example last year, or during the fighting against so—called islamic state but, as you say, it doesn't just transform overnight. the so—called islamic state group has threatened to target these elections.

the government says these threats are empty and they will not be able to do it. we will see as the day progresses. just to give us an indication of the security issues affecting iraq, writers says the prime minister has just announced reopening of a space which was closed during the election because of fears of some kind of attack. it is a routine reopening of inner space which had been closed because polling was taking place. real wages, which take into account increases in the cost of living, are still below where they were before the financial crisis, according to a new report. the trades union congress has found that workers in britain are experiencing the longest squeeze in real incomes in modern history. our business correspondent, joe lynam has more. more of us are at work than ever before and real wages

are finally rising again. that means our spending power in the shops is going up but, according to the trades union congress, we are still poorer than we were a decade ago. using official data, the tuc found that real wages, which takes account of inflation, went up by 27% in the decade before the financial crisis of 2008 but in the last 10 years, they have fallen by 4%. it says the average worker will have lost around £18,500 in real earnings by 2025. the tuc, which is holding a demonstration in london today, is calling for a new deal for workers and public services. working people are now suffering the longest pay squeeze in 200 years. on average, workers worse off in real terms, £24 a week. and of course it's going to take until 2025 until they get back to where they were before the financial crash. that's pretty shocking.

but the government said the new higher and national living wage had boosted pay for the lowest earners by £2,000 already. it said that it had cut taxes and was making sure people had the skills they needed to secure high—quality, well—paid jobs. joe lynam, bbc news. america says it will help north korea to rebuild its economy if it agrees to give up its nuclear weapons. the us secretary of state mike pompeo made the remarks after meeting his south korean counterpart. president trump and kim jong un are due to meet for talks next month. rajini vaydya nathan reports. another step towards the historic summit between america and north korea as us secretary of state mike pompeo welcomed his south korean counterpart to washington. both countries have a shared goal of what they want from pyongyang. if north korea takes bold action, the united states is prepared to work with north korea to achieve prosperity on a par with our it's been a whirlwind

week for mr pompeo. on monday night, flew to north korea where he met with kimjong—un. he returned on thursday with three americans who had been detained by pyongyang. his boss, president trump, was there to welcome the freed prisoners back to american soil. for a president whose style of diplomacy isn't to everyone‘s taste, it's been quite a turnaround. the north korean leader, once the pariah, now the recipient of praise. kimjong—un did a great service to himself, to his country by doing this. and remember, it's only been eight months since he described him as "little rocket man". speaking to a crowd in indiana, the president was full of optimism for the planned summit. the two men will come face to face in a months time in singapore and for president trump,

the stakes couldn't be higher. countryside campaigners are calling for action on what they say is an "appalling lack of progress" in improving mobile phone coverage in rural areas. they've been backed by more than 50 mps, who've accused mobile operators of failing to put up new masts, despite help from government. jon donnison reports. these days, life without your mobile, for many, seems almost unimaginable. but in some parts of rural britain, it remains a reality. the communications regulator 0fcom says only 57% of people living in premises in rural areas are able to make phone calls on all four mobile networks. that compares to 90% in urban areas. now 50 rural mps have written to the secretary of state for digital culture, media and sport, matt hancock, calling for urgent action to change that. they want legally binding targets

to force mobile operators to improve coverage. but the operators say they are investing millions of pounds in rural areas but that planning applications for new mobile phone masts are often rejected by local people. the government says mobile phone coverage is improving, and that it is already changed planning laws to make it easier to put up new masts. it says the mobile companies now need to respond to those changes and act fast to increase coverage in rural areas. jon donnison, bbc news. downing street says the prime minister has reiterated to donald trump that the uk remains committed to the iran nuclear deal. in a telephone conversation last night, theresa may said the agreement remained the best way to stop tehran from developing a nuclear weapon. here's our political correspondent, chris mason. this telephone call serves to emphasise the wedge that now exists between the uk and america,

between washington and europe, over this whole question of a deal that was done with iran three years ago. the uk and the us were signatories, amongst others, and the idea was iran would curb its nuclear ambitions in return for an easing of sanctions but president trump has argued for a while that he thought the deal was a dud. he said on tuesday the us was withdrawing from it but in this telephone call last night, the prime minister emphasised the uk would maintain its position alongside its european partners in standing up for this deal and also stressed her concern about the potential impact on british businesses who do business in iran and could be hit by this new wave of us sanctions. what's intriguing is that we have learned all of this from downing street. a spokesman for downing street giving us a sense of this telephone call. a spokesman for the white house who had seen the same conversation going on did acknowledge that, yes,

the two leaders had talked about iran but made no reference whatsoever to this big disagreement on policy. worth also mentioning president trump coming to the uk on a visit in a couple of months‘ time. the former italian prime minister, silvio berlusconi, has won his court battle against being barred from public office. a court in milan ordered his rehabilitation, despite a conviction for tax fraud in 2013. italian law bans anyone convicted of an offence carrying a jail sentence of more than two years from serving in government for six years. mr berlusconi heads the forza italia party which, together with the right—wing populist party the league, is the biggest gouping in the italian parliament. malaysia's new prime minister has said there is sufficient evidence to begin an investigation into the former prime minister razak nijab. it comes just hours after mr razak resigned from his positions as president of the umno party and chairman of the barisan nasional alliance.

in a shock election loss, najib razak was toppled from power last week, and he and his wife, accused of large scale corruption, have now been blacklisted by immigration officials and banned from leaving the country amid speculation that they were planning to flee. mr razak has tweeted that he would respect the decision made by immigration officials and stay in malaysia. 0ur south east asia correspondent jonathan head has been following the story, and joins us from our bangkok bureau. just to give people a sense of the significance of this victory, he was prime ministerfor significance of this victory, he was prime minister for many years and he led the party that he has now defeated. is this a case of revenge being best serve cold? he has insisted there will be no

retribution but he spoke of upholding the rule of law. some would say it wasn't very well upheld in his days. he was a very strong leader and lots of people were jailed. and was much wastage of money. he is very charismatic, 92 yea rs money. he is very charismatic, 92 years old. he has certainly been key in this extraordinary election victory. the system they have in malaysia, a bit like putting, first past the post, but the rules are stacked so heavily against the opposition that nobody thought they could unseat a party for 61 years. it was his old party and the old party of his partner in opposition, he once jailed. it is almost like a soap opera. but the tables have been turned decisively against the former prime minister who is now in serious trouble with a massive corruption scandal. he said he was going to go

on holiday for a short break with his wife this morning to indonesia but he was blocked from doing that, barred from leaving the country. we are hearing an investigation into corruption will start soon and the former prime minister is likely to face questioning and arrest. you mentioned the falling out between the prime minister. what is the explanation for the release from prison? his daughter expects him to be out on tuesday. what a turnaround. ibrahim was jailed by —— on what he said were trumped up

suddenly charges. part of the deal with mohammed was that if they were victorious pardon would be pushed for. if he is released on tuesday, the process is beginning very quickly. harold wilson said a week isa quickly. harold wilson said a week is a long time in politics but he obviously haven't been to malaysia. the headlines on bbc news... diplomats are working with authorities in the democratic republic of congo after two british citizens were kidnapped in a national park. voting is underway in iraq. it's the first parliamentary election since the country declared victory over so—called islamic state. the tuc says workers are experiencing the worst wage crisis in 200 years. there was once a time when saturday afternoons were spent taking

a trip to the shops, but online buying and out—of—town superstores have changed that tradition. in the town of dumfries in south—west scotland, the community appears to have hit upon a novel way to regenerate its high street, as our correspondent lorna gordon has been finding out. it's a familiar image — a high—street lacking shops and homes and getting emptier by the year. look at it. we've got more shops that are empty in dumfries than we have got that are occupied at the moment. this high street, though, is fighting back and evie copland is part of a group of locals leading the charge. it's a real sad state of affairs but we have got a dream to change the face of our high street and bring a bit of love back to dumfries town centre. and you are from dumfries, aren't you ? so this must be something you really care about. absolutely, lifelong from here. i'm so proud to come from here. all i want to do is make it somewhere for everyone to be proud of. the challenges here are not unique

but the people driving this project think they've hit upon a really novel way of regenerating the centre of this town. scottish land reform leglation could be used here in a way not seen before and the community will be able to buy shares in the scheme too. it's an incredibly exciting project in scotland, we have a recognised culture of community land ownership, particularly across the western isles and in the highlands. this is taking the thing to a whole new level which is being watched by communities across scotland to see how successful it will be. and for people likejohn downson, one of a handful of residents left on the street, change can't come soon enough. i would really like to have some neighbours, you know? when i look out this window, i'm looking out sometimes on a desert and i would like to look at this window and see a lot of people living close to me because that's where you get a feeling of community and you're not quite as alone and isolated as we are at the moment. so this campaign, which started

as an idea by local artists, now involves many more. they do accept there are challenges ahead — fining absentee landlords, raising funds — but are determined not to pass the buck. people say, oh, but that is someone else's fault, the council should fix it or the government should fix it or somebody higher up ought to be fixing this problem for us and because they're not, we are in this terrible state but actually, what we found is it's really empowering for people to stop and say, maybe we can just go out and clean that problem ourselves. if people power works here in dumfries, others could follow, using land reform legislation to save their high streets and bring life back into the centre of their towns. it's the eurovision song contest tonight and increasingly it's about more than just the music.

the performances these days are increasingly spectacular, and for many artists it's a life changing experience, as our david sillito has been finding out. good evening, europe! and good morning, australia! hello to the rest of the world! and if there are any submarines passing by. all: hellooo! eurovision. it's a world all of its own and whatever you think of the songs, it certainly knows how to do spectacle these days. # cos i'm way up and i ain't coming down. # keep taking me higher #. and this is where it's all going to be happening tonight and what gets you about this is how big it has become. it has grown like topsy over the years. but at the heart of all of this are very personal stories of many artists who never, ever thought they'd get a chance to be on such a stage. # i'm not your toy. # not your toy. # you stupid boy. # stupid boy #. this is netta from israel, and she's one of the frontrunners. the song, a rallying cry of female empowerment.

butjust getting here has been life—changing for her. i didn't expect to win. i expected to get recognition, to get some gigs to afford my rent. you know, i had a — i had a hard time being me as a child. i was fat. i am fat. sorry, i'm still the same girl. and i was thinking "how can i be this skinny star? i have to be skinny if i want to be a star. it needs to happen. i will be beautiful when i grow up, i will be skinny and i will perform everywhere." and looking back then — me looking back — and i'm realising i'm the same girl. i look exactly the same. and this is big. this is absolutely — this is big. i feel sexy, i feel pretty, ifeel me. i feel myself.

# storms don't last forever. # forever. # give all you've got #. of course, it's been 20 years since israel last won. and for the uk, it's 21. # give all you got. # hold your head up. # through the storm #. this year, the bookies have the uk's surie at 200—1. but this is a place for outsiders and for netta, whatever happens on the night, just being here is already a victory. david sillito, bbc news. sport now, and a full round up, from the bbc sport centre. after the weather washed them out yesterday, ireland have finally started their first ever match as a test side. they‘ re playing pakistan in malahide, and our cricket commentator charles dagnall is there for us.

there was so much disappointment. there was so much disappointment. the amount of work that went into making it a realfestival occasion for ireland's test debut against pakistan. everyone was disappointed the weather didn't come to play yesterday. but much better as you can see buying to me. we might get a shower a little later but the forecast is good. so rather than a five—day test, it is a four day. much better prospects for play today. and what about some for ireland against one of the greats. how competitive can they be? i think they can be very competitive. it is a golden generation from roland. a lot of players with experience in county cricket. but those players are ageing. forfive years cricket. but those players are ageing. for five years down the line

who will they be bringing through? people to replace the 0'brian brothers, joyce and others. but right now i think they have a very good chance. they‘ re right now i think they have a very good chance. they're going to be hugely excited but pakistan are quite a prospect, they have a fearsome pace attack. i think and so does william porterfield, they can win the match and cause an upset. let's have a look at how ireland are getting on so far. they won the toss, and captain william porterfield chose to field. pakistan are currently seven without loss. now to the the teams chasing the biggest prize in football, a place in the premier league. and it's advantage derby in the first semifinal, in the championship play—offs. they beat fulham 1—0 in the first leg at pride park thanks to cameron jerome's first—half header. the second leg is at craven cottage on monday. middlesborough play aston villa tonight in the first leg of the second championship semifinal.

villa finished the season seven points above boro, but form counts for little now. iam not i am not nervous yet. when any big games come up you i am not nervous yet. when any big games come up you have to realise that's what we are in for. better than finishing 13th last year. it was always name, can we be there or thereabouts? we are and we have got into the play—offs in a good position, difficult opposition obviously, but a couple of semifinals to try to get over and if we can achieve being successful then asi we can achieve being successful then as i have said many times it is a great way to go. we are at a point now where we have to focus and do everything you can to focus and do everything you can to clear the minds of the players. you don't want them going out with

any inhibitions at all, you want them to give it their best shot. not just on the park but off the park as well. making sure they are really focused. the third round of the players championship gets under way injust over an hour's time, but rory mcilroy won't be there. he missed the cut at the tournament dubbed the fifth major after an erratic second round, which saw him finish one over par. not so bad you'd think, until you realise it's a full 16 shots behind runaway lead webb simpson. the american matched the course record at sawgrass with nine birdies and an eagle on his second round, he's 16 under overall. there was progress for britain's non stanford at the world triathalon series in japan. she secured her first podium finish in two years taking bronze in yokohama. she finish 43 seconds behind the winner, bermuda's flora duffy. britain's jodie stimpson finished in 12th. that's all the sport for now. now for the weather. compared to last weekend where we saw record—breaking warmth

and sunshine for that bank holiday weekend, this one is looking a little bit cooler and more unsettled. there will be some rain at times, particularly across the eastern side of the country during tonight and sunday morning. that said, some areas will stay dry, lots of sunshine, a warm weekend. it has been a glorious start across much of the uk this morning. further south, we start to see the cloud build up. outbreaks of rain will begin to push towards the south—east because of some rain moving across the channel. you can see itjust pushing into the south—east as we head into the latter part the morning and into the afternoon. a few showers will develop across the south west of england and towards south wales, too. maybe the odd shower elsewhere, maybe for northern ireland. but essentially central and northern areas looking dry for the afternoon. very pleasant indeed. temperatures reaching around the high teens celsius. we could make 18—19 across the far south—east. this evening and overnight, the rain across the south—east tends to pick up. it becomes heavier and more widespread and will spread northwards into much of eastern

england and eastern scotland as well. it could push a little further west, some uncertainty how far westwards it will push but generally for western scotland, northern ireland, most of wales and the south—west of england it will be a dry night with clear spells. quite cool, but under the rain maybe double figures. a nice start across the western side of the country for sunday morning. further east, a grotty start. outbreaks of rain, some of it quite heavy. atrocious conditions on the roads if you're heading out early. the good news is the rain should start to become lighter and confined to the north—east of scotland, maybe the north—east of england, with some dry and brighter weather into the south—east. the best of the brightness will be further west, with a top temperature of around 17—18. then things settle down a lot into next week. that is because we see this big ridge of high pressure coming in from the south—west. it will bring lighter winds for monday, and plenty of sunshine. a bit of cloud rolling into the hebrides, scotland, maybe into northern ireland as well. we could see a little bit of cloud

elsewhere across central and southern england but many places staying dry with sunshine all day and it will feel warmer because of light winds. 19, 20, maybe 21 celsius. it looks like it'll be even warmer into tuesday but it's actually a nice start next week because of the high pressure, and it's going to stay dry for most. hello, and a warm welcome to dateline london. this week's news has been dominated by news from and about the middle east. we'll discuss what happens now, given donald trump's abandonment of the iran nuclear deal. we'll also consider the prospects for the forthcoming north korea summit. my guests this week, janet daley, columnist with the sunday telegraph. from bloomberg markets, stryker mcguire. the iranian writer amir tahiri. and the arab affairs writer abdel barri atwan. welcome to you all. so, president trump called the iran nuclear agreement — signed in 2015 by iran, the five permanent members of the un

security council and germany — a "horrible, one—sided deal", and pulled the us out of it, reimposing sanctions. many european leaders had, over the last couple of weeks, urged him not to and france has since floated the idea of maintaining the agreement. what will iran do next? and what does it mean for relations across the middle east? an awful lot to grapple with. let's start with the deal itself. he had promised to do this and he said he would come followed through on it, was the right to pull the us out? he thinks so. he made this campaign promise long before he knew very much about frankly what was going on and before he knew much about the treaty. in fact he made it ata time about the treaty. in fact he made it at a time when he did not expect to be president of the united states. he is sticking to it. i think