this is newsday on the bbc. i'm rico hizon in singapore. the headlines: after weeks of improving relations between north and south korea, pyongyang suddenly cancels talks with seoul in protest atjoint military exercises with the us. palestinians bury their dead, after clashes with israeli forces on the border with gaza. politicians and diplomats abroad call for peace, but real peace talks ended, failed a long time ago. i'm kasia madera in london. also in this programme: myanmar‘s forgotten crisis. kachin‘s christian minority forced from their homes by an upsurge in fighting. and doubts continue about whether meghan markle‘s father will be at the royal wedding this weekend. it's now reported he needs surgery. live from our studios in singapore and london, this is bbc world news. it's newsday,

it's 7am in singapore, midnight in london and 8am in pyongyang, where in breaking news, north korea has cancelled planned talks with south korea in protest againstjoint military exercises being held by the south and the united states. the state news agency even went so far as casting doubt over the planned summit between kim jong—un trump. the us state department spokesperson heather nauert had this to say a little earlier. kim jong—un had said kimjong—un had said previously kim jong—un had said previously that he understands the need and utility of the united states and the republic of korea continuing in its joint exercises, they are exercises that are legal, they are planned well, well in advance. we have not heard anything from that government

orfrom the government heard anything from that government or from the government of south korea to indicate we would not continue conducting these exercises or that we would not continue planning for a meeting between president trump and kim jong—un next month. earlier, i spoke to the bbc‘s barbara plett usher in washington. i asked her how the white house reacted to this development. a very terse statement really, actually not quite as optimistic as announced. north korea has said independently, we will continue to co—ordinate closely with our allies. it seems it was a statement they we re it seems it was a statement they were not expecting and not really welcoming it, as you can imagine. as the state department's spokeswoman was saying they have not stopped planning for the summit, until they get a clear indication from either north korea or south korea that they should discontinue doing that. and

some analysts are saying that this latest move by quay could be aimed at testing president trump's willingness to make concessions ahead of the singapore summit on the 12th ofjune. ahead of the singapore summit on the 12th ofjune. well, i suppose it could be it. it is a return to rhetoric of the past, i think it was not unlikely that there would be at some hiccups on the way to the summit. habs not this late in the game andi summit. habs not this late in the game and i think as vets go, it was reasonably mild. it was something about the us needed to carefully consider its operations, which is more like saying it would be a shame for the summer not to go ahead, rather than it will not go ahead. i think kim jong—un has rather than it will not go ahead. i think kimjong—un has made it pretty clear that he wants that photo opportunity with president trump. you may be right, he may be using this as a way to send a warning, to test how far president trump and indeed the president of south korea are willing to go to appease him or

to engage with him, and i think you might also be looking at him saying that he does have somehow a year. president trump and his officials had been saying that kim jong—un has come to the table because of the sanctions regime, they have sort of squeezed into the point that he has been forced to come to the table. the north koreans are saying no, this is our choice, we have finished a nuclear weapons programme, this is something that we want to do. so it may be that he is making the point that the north koreans have this in their hands too. now to some of the day's other news. funerals have been held for some of the more than 50 people killed when israeli troops fired on palestinian protestors in gaza monday. it is the fiercest clashes since 2014, and officials say that more than 2000 other people were injured. there have been further smaller protests tuesday. 0ur middle east editorjeremy bowen reports now from gaza. 0n the border, the soundtrack was anti—israeli songs, not gunfire. 2a hours after the killing, the big protests have stopped, but tyres were burning

and palestinians looked warily towards the israeli positions. enterprising traders brought refreshments. so what's next? the israelis deal with the international political fallout, the palestinians have 60 dead. politicians and diplomats abroad call for peace, but real peace talks ended — failed — a long time ago, and with the current generation of palestinian and israeli leaders, there is no chance of them being revived. the israelis started firing tear gas. the crowd, by then including many families, was getting too big. and the young men were getting too close to the border wire. 0n the other side, the israelis say they're in the right.

we are not here looking to create casualties of palestinians, that is not our aim. we are simply here to defend what is ours. we are defending our sovereignty, our civilians that live in close proximity, against an onslaught led by a terrorist organisation that is using civilians in order to penetrate into israel. much of gaza's rage is born in places like beach camp, still a home for refugees 70 years after more than 700,000 palestinians fled or were forced out of their homes by newly independent israel. palestinians call it "nakba" — catastrophe. 70% of palestinians in gaza are refugees, stuck fast in history. at the al—farooq mosque, yazan tobasi's funeral was much quieter than his death — shot through the eye during the protests. his body was wrapped in the hamas flag. he was 23 and his friends were there to bury him.

there were tender moments. israel says it told them to stay away from the border and hamas is responsible for what happened. his friend said yazan had worked at the hospital, without pay because of gaza's collapsing economy. poverty and grief breed anger. and so do the deaths of children. a family gathered for another funeral. it was for leyla al—ghandour, who was eight months old. she had a weak heart and when she inhaled tear gas, she died, herfamily said. children make up half gaza's population. six were killed on monday, according to the ministry of health. her mother mariam was in a pit of grief. at shifa, the main hospital, wounded men were being transferred to egypt for surgery. inside, they were still treating

casualties from the protest. this boy is 16. all day, i've been asking palestinians if hamas forced them to risk their lives at the protests. no—one said yes. "i did it becausejerusalem is palestinian", said this unemployed 24—year—old. this is the busiest time at the hospital since the 2014 war. as a human being, i speak, it's horrible to think about. if you see yesterday, the situation, it's horrible. crying, bloody, pain, painful... what's happening? after the protests, it seems that many people are hoping for some kind of turning point. but the fundamentals of this conflict don't change. jeremy bowen, bbc news.

and we have much more background and analysis on our website. also making news today: the european union's foreign policy chief says the eu can't provide any legal or economic guarantees to iran about delivering the benefits of the nuclear deal, now that the us has withdrawn. iran's foreign minister mohammad javad zarif has been meeting with european union countries about the future of the deal. the eu says it's still considering options to save the agreement. facebook has revealed it's removed more than 580 million fake accounts. it's also published data for the first time about the amount of inappropriate content it removes, showing a sharp increase in the number of posts containing graphic violence. it follows calls for transparency after the privacy scandal involving a british firm, cambridge analytica. and rico will have more on this in asia business report, straight after the

edition of newsday. the russian opposition leader alexei navalny has been sentenced to 30 days in prison for organising protests ahead of president putin's inauguration for a fourth term in office earlier this month. mr navalny was among at least 300 people arrested at an unauthorised rally held in central moscow on the fifth of may. and russia's president said that he is confident that people will love the new bridge linking russia and the crimean peninsula. vladimir putin inaugurated this highly controversial bridge by a truck across it himself. crimea was annexed by moscow from ukraine in 2014. ukraine says that russia is continuing "to act outside international law". the burmese military has intensified its assault on christian rebels fighting for independence in myanmar‘s kachin state. some 4000 people have

fled their homes since early april — according to the united nations, and there are fears that many people remain trapped in conflict—stricken areas, near the border with china. 0ur myanmar correspondent nick beake reports from yangon. desperate and with nowhere to go, these are the christians of the northernmost part of myanmar, forced from their homes by recent fighting. elephants off the only way of escape, carrying men, women and children across the water and whatever possessions they could gather. the conflict here in kachin state has dragged on for more than half a century but has been overshadowed recently by the scale of the persecution of rohingya people muslims in the west of the country. but the burmese military has now intensified its assault on

the christian rebels fighting for independence in kachin. the army is accused of bombing this school, although it insists it does not target civilians. no pupils were in lessons at the time of this reported attack. a bomb exploded 40 to 50 feet away from the baptist mission school's kitchen. it was inside the compound in the village. many in myanmar fed up with the ongoing conflict in the country's border regions, and at the weekend, they showed it. in the main city, gambon, the police arrested demonstrators. 17 now face charges, a move condemned by human rights groups. —— yangon. the prime minister aung san suu kyi now says the priority is bringing peace. it seems a long way

off. nick beake, bbc news, yangon. you're watching newsday on the bbc. still to come on the programme.., reports meghan markle's dad needs surgery cast more doubts over his attendance at the royal wedding. also coming up on the programme... malaysia prepares for a pardon. thejailed opposition icon anwar ibrahim is hours away from his royal reprieve. the pope was shot, the pope will live — that's the essence of the appalling news from rome this afternoon that, as an italian television commentator put it, terrorism had come to the vatican. the man they call the butcher of lyon, klaus barbie, 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 woman just sentenced to six years injail. 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 of a powerful earthquake, the worst to hit the country for 30 years.

the computer deep blue has tonight triumphed over the world chess champion, garry kasparov. it's the first time a machine has defeated a reigning world champion in a classical chess match. america's first legal same—sex marriages have been taking place in massachusetts. god bless america! this is newsday on the bbc. i'm rico hizon in singapore. i'm kasia madera in london. our top stories: after weeks of improving relations between north and south korea, pyongyang has suddenly cancelled talks with seoul in protest atjoint military exercises with the us. palestinians bury their dead, after clashes with israeli forces on the border with gaza. let's take a look at some front pages from around the world.

the international edition of the new york times has a story about the former russian double agent sergie skripal, who was nearly poisoned to death in march, here in the uk. it says he met with foreign intelligence operatives and spies, offering briefings on russia. but it's not certain whether his travels made him a target or if the russian government knew about them. next the gulf news features one of our main stories, the violence in gaza, in which dozens of palestinian demonstrators were killed by the israeli army in protests against the opening of the us embassy in jerusalem. it shows a picture of a palestinian mother mourning the death of her 8—month—old infant, who died after inhaling tear gas. and the international edition of the china daily has a heartwarming story about an autism coffee shop. the shanghai non—profit cafe which trained autistic teenagers to interact with others, has received over 500 offers from venues, after they closed down earlier this month due

to rent issues. malaysia's former deputy prime minister anwar ibrahim anwar was jailed on sodomy charges in 2015 but the election of prime minister mahathir mohamad last week, has paved the way for him to be given a full royal pardon. with me is dr maznah binti mohamad, associate professor of malay studies and southeast asian studies at the national university of singapore. bethesda, thank you so much for joining us. after that pardon, will prime minister mahathir mohamad on his pledge for anwar ibrahim to

eventually take flour?|j his pledge for anwar ibrahim to eventually take flour? i think so, that was his campaign pledge so i don't think he will go back on his words and also because mahathir‘s party in the coalition is a small proportion of the coalition which won the election. how soon will anwar ibrahim take power? according to mahathir, 1—2 years. anwar ibrahim take power? according to mahathir, 1-2 years. sooner? i don't think so because mahathir himself is determined to institute one, the charges against najib's administration which was involved in the scandal, and i think that is his first commitment, to see through that, at least some people get to be charged on the scandal. the other thing is, institutional reform. that will least take two years if not

more. we are very determined —— they are determined to put in place the institutions to see those reforms. right now, anwar ibrahim's white is the deputy premier. when anwar ibrahim is pardoned, would he like to ta ke ibrahim is pardoned, would he like to take the position as deputy premier? not quite sure how it will go but i think he has to recover first healthwise. some analysts are saying he would not want to be deputy premier because he has had a bad experience in the past. he would bea bad experience in the past. he would be a political adviser. he has to contest be a political adviser. he has to co ntest a n be a political adviser. he has to contest an election first. that is for sure. he has to be elected a member of parliament and then can be absorbed into the cabinet, even as a minister and later, straightaway, taking over mahathir‘s position at

the moment. i don't think he will transition as a deputy prime minister first but transition as a deputy prime ministerfirst but she transition as a deputy prime minister first but she has to give way to him. is there a possibility when mr mahathir steps down that we have anwar ibrahim as prime minister and wan aziza as deputy premier? we are not imagining this situation at the moment because for anwar ibrahim to contest, wan aziza might have to step down for him to contest so if he steps down, there is no way she could be in the cabinet while he is in the cabinet. thank you very much bea in the cabinet. thank you very much be a time. meghan markle's father is reported to have said he won't attend his daughter's wedding to prince harry on saturday because he needs to undergo

a heart procedure. there have been concerns over his health since allegations surfaced that he'd staged press photographs of himself preparing for the wedding. from buckingham palace our royal correspondent nicholas witchell has this update. the picture really is absolutely unclear tonight. a few hours ago, the celebrity gossip entertainment website tmz wjhich was the first to report that thomas markle to report that thomas markle would not be attending the wedding has reported he has changed his mind and announced that he wanted to come to the wedding to hearing from his daughter. there is one major problem, he is in hospital, it has been reported that he suffered chest pains and suffered a heart attack a few days ago. it has been reported he is undergoing tests and suggested that he may be having surgery tomorrow. if that is correct, and it has not been confirmed, i think that would rule out him being at st george's chapel on saturday. i think meghan markle, as much she has wanted herfather to be there to walk her down the aisle, her major concern now is for her father's

health and wellbeing. tonight, to the question — will be will the father of the bride get to the church on time? there is still no definitive answer. meanwhile, a charity based in india has some new found fame because of the royal wedding. it's one of seven charities that prince harry and meghan markle have asked guests to donate to instead of giving wedding presents. it's also the only non—uk based organisation on the list. myna mahila foundation works to give women in india access to menstrual hygiene products. a few women from the charity have also been invited to the wedding. the bbc‘s yogita limaye reports from mumbai. women on a mission. they are selling salad sanitary towels in a mumbai slum. low—cost pads and try to get more women to use them. this work caught the attention of meghan markle and now she and prince harry last wedding guests to donate to the organisation. menstruation is still

a taboo topic in india. translation: many people banging the door now faces. if there are men around, the women don't talk to us but since the royal wedding news, more people recognise us, they tell us they have seen us on recognise us, they tell us they have seen us on tv, they recognise our brand. mumbai is one of india's biggest cities but even here, several women don't have access to sanitary pads because of social and economic reasons. now this is something meghan markle has seen first hand when she visited slums like these last year and interacted with residents here. she also saw how the pads were made and then wrote about her visit and the stigma surrounding periods in india in time magazine. the founder of the charity says she wasn't expecting to be on the list of organisations chosen by the list of organisations chosen by the royal couple. we were definitely very surprised but we were happy that she really kept her word that

she would support us in any way we could. but can now go to many more communities, speak to many more women and we feel confident about what we are seeing because it is a validation that what you're doing is important and taking you on the right as well. suhani jalota hopes it will help employ more women and reach more communities. a few of the women from the foundation had also been invited to the wedding. they plan to wear traditional saris. travelling on a plane, this is the first time we will travel in a plane and we are very excited and very happy, i can't explain it. just for a few days, they will be flying far away from the many challenges they and so many other indian women face. that is one of the charities that meghan markle and prince harry have

asked guests to donate to rather than give them wedding presents and there has been a lot of concern about meghan markle's father. he is reported to have said that he will not attend his daughter ‘s wedding, the wedding on saturday, because he needs to undergo a heart procedure. a lot of different, a lot of concern about his health after the allegations surfaced that he had staged those press photos preparing for the wedding and at a moment that we get any clear comment about that, we get any clear comment about that, we will of course bring that to you and as you know, the bbc is the channel to watch for the royal wedding coverage, special coverage from thursday the 17th of may ahead of that wedding on saturday. you have been watching newsday. stay with us. as facebook closes more than 580 million accounts, we find out how the social media giant deals with graphic and violent content.

and before we go, let's take a look at these pictures. a rare blue diamond has sold at auction in geneva for $6.7 million after spending the last 300 years in european royal houses. the 6.1—carat diamond, mined from india's famous golconda mine, was given as a wedding present to elizabeth farnesi, the daughter of the duke of parma, when she married king philip v of spain in 1715. it sold afterjust four minutes of bidding, passing its estimate by more than a million dollars, a reflection of its rarity, and history. that's all for now — stay with bbc world news. fellow again, good morning. nearly all of us look like still being dry through the rest of this week into the weekend as well. the temperatures are going to change a

bit and we have got some chilly nights on the way that here in hampshire we have the highest temperature on tuesday, 23.7dc but the next few days will be cooler why day as well is finite but a lot of dry weather and some sunshine around as well. now, the cooler comes around this area of high pressure following that weather front air and ahead of the weather front we have some stronger winds making it feel chillier across many parts of england and wales, together with all this cloud so cloudier skies. 0n the weather front itself, not much rain around. as you head further north, increasing amounts of sunshine, across north wales and certainly northern england and scotland and northern ireland, temperatures lower across the board than they were on tuesday, quite a significant drop for eastern scotland. quite a chilly wind blowing into the evening and overnight across eastern and south—eastern parts of england. the cloud tends to break up and we are pushing some cool about. with the clearer skies, temperatures will

fall away, a chilly night in the south. we could be starting at 12 degrees on thursday morning but plenty of sunshine around. probably in feeling a bit of clout the scotla nd in feeling a bit of clout the scotland and northern ireland but a dry day, the wind is not as strong across the south. it will feeljust across the south. it will feeljust a little bit warmer. maybe those temperatures not soaring —— not showing too much size of creeping up with a bit warmer on friday. high pressure in charge of our weather, these weather fronts not making much progress into the uk, it the western isles which might see a spot of rain on friday otherwise a dry day with some sunshine, maybe a little bit more cloud developing across east anglia and the south—east on friday but tending to become a bit warmer so but tending to become a bit warmer so 18, 19 degrees through the central belt of scotland, similar temperatures through parts of southern england as well. the position of the jet stream means we are steering areas of low pressure to the north—west of the uk, keeping at high pressure firmly in charge.

the ras some showers nearby, we are not expecting them to arrive in wins or the south—east of england, should be fine for the royal wedding. a fair bit of clout mind you but a bit warmer, temperatures 20, 20 one degree. even into sunday and monday, very little rain heading our way. mostly high pressure, quite warm in the sunshine, the winds, if anything, coming infrom the sunshine, the winds, if anything, coming in from the near continent. hello. i'm kasia madera with bbc world news. our top story: north korea has cancelled planned talks with south korea in protest at military exercises with the united states. pyongyang also warned washington to think carefully about whether next month's summit between kim jong—un and us president donald trump could go ahead as planned. the united nations security council's held a minute's silence for the 60 palestinians who were killed by israeli forces over the past two days. two more palestinians were shot dead in gaza while the emergency session was taking place.

and this video is trending on bbc.com. it's of a rare blue diamond, which has sold at auction in geneva for $6.7 million, after spending the last 300 years in european royal houses. it sold after just four minutes of bidding, passing its previous estimate. that's all from me now. stay with us here on bbc world news.