this is bbc news. i'm nkem ifejika. our top stories: (chanting) hundreds of thousands protest across the united states against president trump's hardline immigration policies. syrian forces shell opposition—held deraa as rebels refuse to surrender. events begin marking 21 years since britain handed hong kong back to china. game overfor messi and ronaldo — argentina out, portugal sent packing — the first day of the world cup knockouts. hello and welcome to bbc world news. from coast to coast, in major cities and small towns, hundreds of thousands of americans have come out to protest against president trump's immigration policies. protesters have been calling for migrant families split up

at the us border to be reunited. the rallies were organised before mr trump ordered an end to the widely criticised zero tolerance policy of separating children from their parents. but most of those 2,300 children are yet to be reunited with theirfamilies. chris buckler has been speaking to protesters in washington. (chanting) no trump, no kkk, no fascist usa. a nation that was built on the back of immigration seems more than ever divided by the issue. vote them out! no hate, no fear! across america, tens of thousands gathered to protest at how people are treated when they arrive at this country's borders. from new york to san francisco, families marched together in support of other families. no kids should be put injail. in washington, on a stage that could be seen from the white house, children were among those sending a message to president trump.

you could imagine if somebody took away our kids, you know, under the guise of giving them a bag. it's horrible, we want the families together, we want them to be together as soon as possible. and you know, we're here to make our voices heard. (cheering) it was public anger that forced donald trump to change his policy of separating families. however, there is concern here that many parents have still not been reunited with their children. there's also a worry about what will come next. this suggestion that families could simply be held together. but president trump knows among his supporters there are many who want this border with mexico to remain secure. and he believes america couldn't cope with the huge numbers that want to make the country its home. i can't imagine being these people. ican't imagine not speaking the language. i can't imagine not having lawyers. i can't imagine not knowing what's going to happen to you. this day of action was planned before the outcry over family

separations, but the white house knows the president's polarising policies will remain under close scrutiny. chris buckler, bbc news, washington. hong kong is marking the 21st anniversary of the handover of hong kong from britain to china with a flag raising ceremony. thousands of hong kong residents are expected to take to the streets today for an annual protest march as tensions continue to simmer over the financial hub‘s democratic future. our correspondent martin yip is in hong kong. this marks the first anniversary of mars carrie lam's office —— of mrs carrie lam's office as hong kong's chief executive. just before she entered this venue for the flag raising ceremony, she was greeted by pro—beijing spectators, waving both hong kong and china flags. according to some pro—democracy legislators, the past year has been more harmonic between them and the government. while they do see those recent sentences against activists involved in the umbrella movement

and the clashes as political persecution, while according to government, this is only the exercise of the rule of law. for mrs carrie lam, there next year will still see challenges, including the execution of the joint checkpoint plan, where a piece of legislation just got passed by the local legislature not so long ago. that will see chinese police officers, immigrations officers, and customs officers exercising their power on hong kong soil. andrea myles is the ceo of the china australia millennial project. bank if adjoining us. how significant are these protests, or are they more of the same that they have every year? i do think that it is significant. we are seeing a rapid cycling of the popularity from her high as record numbers to her lowest net —— record numbers in the

space of a few weeks. it is very interesting demographically. there are such distinct characteristics of these young people in hong kong that i would not be surprised if we see the perfect storm brewing. what is the perfect storm brewing. what is the perfect storm brewing. what is the perfect storm? i think you are seeing, you have the rapid rise of china, you have the institution of megalopolis which make hong kong's 7 million population seem quite community as compare to hong kong and other cities, a 55 million strong population. in terms of the characteristics of hong kong and how strong hong kong is feeling in itself, it needs to have a leader which reflect that. if i was in her position, i am stocked —— stuck between a rock and a hard place because i have a chinese government

that has different wants and needs from a own population, particular that young population. i call that the perfect storm. speaking of the megalopolis you are talking about, across the border from megalopolis you are talking about, across the borderfrom hong kong, there is one, and i guess hong kong must be feeling a bit shrunken in the grand scheme of things. must be feeling a bit shrunken in the grand scheme of thingslj must be feeling a bit shrunken in the grand scheme of things. i think that that is right. when you are seeing the ability for the chinese communist party, the government to create legislation which minimises hong kong's role as a financial services hub in preference to a new hub, like shanghai, we are seeing so much change take place here that i wouldn't be surprised if the hong kong example is seen as something of a case study how independent may roll—out in the decades to come if

we are looking at places like tibet, which is also a hub of unrest. i imagine hong kong would be the pointy end of that conversation, particularly at the moment with such a strong middle class population who can go out and into the streets. thank you very much. talks aimed at stopping the fighting between government forces and rebels in southern syria have ended in failure. the opposition forces were attempting to negotiate a ceasefire with the government's russian allies in order to stop a major offensive by syrian military forces in deraa province, which is near the border withjordan. but the rebels have reportedly rejected what they called a humiliating demand to surrender. bill hayton reports. deraa was one of the first cities to rise up against president assad seven years ago. since then, it's been a battleground, and now it's being pounded into submission. from the air and the ground, russian jets and government soldiers

are close to destroying the last major rebel stronghold in southern syria. around half the city is reported to be in government hands and another eight nearby towns fell to the regime on saturday according to local reports. translation: we have successfully fulfilled our mission in the region. our soldiers' health, ourfaith in victory and our commitment to the president enabled us to win this victory and defeat the terrorist groups in this rugged region. the current offensive has been going on for almost two weeks. the rebels are caught between government forces and the border with jordan, but are refusing to surrender. a bitter battle is taking place around a military airbase. casualty figures are not known, but one human rights group estimates that 100 civilians have been killed in deraa in the past week. the united nations says around 160,000 people have been

forced to flee. some are headed to a sliver of territory held by a rival rebel group linked to islamic state. with the government and russian forces and syrian government forces making steady progress, it looks like the end of rebel—controlled southern syria is not far away. bill hayton, bbc news. let's get some of the day's other news. at least one person has been killed and around a dozen injured during a march in the nicaraguan capital, managua, in memory of the young protesters who died over more than two months of anti—government protests. rights groups reported armed men shooting at marchers during the demonstration. the militant islamist group al—shabab has banned single—use plastic bags in areas under its control in somalia. according to media outlets affiliated with the group, the militants consider plastic bags a serious threat to the well—being of both humans and animals. al—shabab did not say how it would implement the ban, but because of widespread fear of the group's use of violence, orders are usually followed. stay with us on bbc world news.

still to come — it's game over for argentina and portugal after losses on the first day of the world cup knockouts, messi and ronaldo among the heavyweights heading home. china marked its first day of rule in hong kong with a series of spectacular celebrations. a huge firework display was held in the former colony. the chinese president, jiang zemin, said unification was the start of a new era for hong kong. the world's first clone has been produced of an adult mammal. scientists in scotland have produced a sheep called dolly that was cloned in a laboratory using a cell from another sheep. for the first time in 20 years, russian and american spacecraft have docked in orbit at the start of a new era of cooperation in space. challenger powered past

the bishop rock lighthouse at almost 50 knots, shattering a record that had stood for 34 years. and there was no hiding the sheer elation of richard branson and his crew. this is bbc world news. the latest headlines: from dc to la, hundreds of thousands of americans protest across the states against president trump's immigration policies. let's stay with that story. well, earlier, iwas joined from washington by daniella burgi—palomino, senior associate for mexico, migrant rights and border issues at the latin america worker group. i asked her, with her wealth of experience of working with families at the us—mexico border, what was different this time. what we are seeing now is an

overwhelming number of migrants, families and children mainly from the three northern triangle countries of south america, and increasingly, they are coming with claims, asylum of freeing persecution. we have seen in the last month, in terms of the treatment upon their arrival by the administration, has been tactix, institutionalising and families separation, sending ms each to these migrants but they should not be coming, and if they do come, they will be treated in this way, separated and claims of asylum will be rejected. withoutjudging the actual policy of separating families and putting children aside, on the families you have spoken to, are they thinking twice about whether they thinking twice about whether they would make thatjourney,

sending messages america, this is how you are treated, so don't do it? we are faced with life or death situation and you are not really thinking about safety, and the protection of your child and yourself. so you might not really thinking about what is happening to you at the border. i would say it hasn't made an impact in their decision—making. so quite simply, separating families doesn't act as a deterrent, from your experience? no, it doesn't. in the statistics show that. when we look at the numbers of water apprehension for the last three months, there has been no change in terms of the numbers we are seeing. it has only

been an increase. think this is reflect that of the conditions that families and children are fleeing from in central america. the policies in place now have always beenin policies in place now have always been in place, at least for the couple —— the last couple of presidents. the enforcement of the policies... family separation, as you say, but it was not an actual formal part of the policy of criminal prosecution, once you cross the border. mexicans go to the polls later to choose a new president, as well as 500 congressmen, more than 100 senators, as well as governors and local mayors. the front—runner for president is the left—wing former mayor of mexico city, andres manuel lopez 0brador. but the campaign has seen some

of the worst political violence in the country for decades. in 0campo in the western state of michoacan, the entire local police force was arrested after a candidate for mayor was murdered, as will grant reports. until very recently, 0campo was a town without a police force. still hanging over the streets as the image of a dead candidate, fernando and jealous, murdered in his home and jealous, murdered in his home and it's the bloodiest election campaign modern mexican history. shortly after his killing the entire force, all 28 officers, were arrested by state police. it was all arrested by state police. it was all a mistake, insists 0fficer garcia. we are clean policeman. if we weren't, we would still be in jail. just 2a hours ago these officers we re just 2a hours ago these officers were under arrest for the alleged involvement in the murder of a political candidate. now they are back on the streets patrolling their town and protesting their innocence. the charges, which still haven't

been dropped, were for dereliction of duty over the killing. the mayor is adamant his police did nothing wrong. no, no, no. in this case, the local police are not responsible for protecting the candidates. that has to be requested by the political parties directly through other institutions of the state. it is ha rd to institutions of the state. it is hard to know exactly what happened here in mitch larkin, one of the most dangerous states in mexico, such are the murky links between drug cartels and eight institutions. —— michocoan. the crime rate alone has many voters wanting change in this election. at so does the economy. 0campo depends on the surrounding forests for ecotourism and logging. at this wood mill, the workers say they find it hard to make ends meet and have had enough. translation: it is really time for a change. we want things to improve. we need so much in the country to be different. we need a new start in

both the economy and the security situation. the frontrunner going into this vote, under as manuel, is in the lead largely because he has been saying the same thing. he has built a been saying the same thing. he has builta campaign been saying the same thing. he has built a campaign around promises to tackle corruption, root and branch, having been runner—up twice before, this time he needs those who have thomas zinn their votes to deliver. —— promised him their votes. in myanmar, authorities have told the bbc they've started to welcome back some of the 700,000 rohingya muslims driven from their homes by a military crackdown last year. but there are doubts overjust how many people have actually returned and grave fears for the safety of any rohingya who do travel back. the un says what happened in northern rakhine state was a textbook example of ethnic cleansing. journalists are normally banned from the area, but our myanmar correspondent, nick beake, managed to reach there, and has sent this special report. 0na scrap

on a scrap of land between two countries, a people who have lost everything. the rohingya, living in fear, in limbo, and in desperate need of a home. this is no man's land, between myanmar, from where they fled rape and murder, and bangladesh, where they see no future. we are crying. nobody wants to live in these conditions. won't you please help us, to go back to oui’ you please help us, to go back to our homeland? put pressure on the myanmar government. the government here in myanmar insists it once to bring home the rohingya families as quickly as possible, but they are deeply skip full. they believe they are the people no country wants. they escaped from this lush landscape. we have managed tojoin a government chipped to rakhine state. build as a chance to see —— see peace and stability. but there is a

dark history here, because all along the route we glimpse remnants of rohingya muslim villagers, burned to the ground last year. they torched their own homes, is the burmese army's explanation. for a moment come we lose our minders. this is pa rt come we lose our minders. this is part of the trip they did not want us part of the trip they did not want us to see but we have managed to stop you. this used to be a rohingya village. the people are long gone. if you look around you can see evidence of fire here, and all along this stretch of the countryside you find spots like this. they are trying to usher us away again. why can we not go in here? why can we not go inside? this is very dangerous. if something explodes or something happens, we don't know, so please don't come in there. it is time to move on. myanmar claims it is working hard to bring back any rohingya who wants to return. so we are taken to a reception centre, fully staffed, but no one to

register. then we are invited to meet these men. i'm prompted, they produced newly issued id cards. —— i'm prompted. we are told they are among the 138 returning rohingya who have already been processed. but it $0011 have already been processed. but it soon appears they have never actually been to bangladesh. next, the village of indin, the only place where the military has admitted its soldiers killed rohingya civilians in the latest violence. the family still here are ethnic rakhine, buddhists. their hatred of their former muslim neighbours is clear. this woman says she would be petrified if they return. we track down the village administrator. how would you describe the rohingya people come in three words? he only needs one. terrorists? the un says this corner of myanmar is not ready

to receive the standard rohingya, that they would not be safe. —— stranded. so for now, they remain homeless, helpless, as the world watches on. a privately developed rocket has exploded and crashed to the ground just seconds after lift—off in japan. hundreds of people were watching in shock as the rocket fell from the sky in flames at a test site on the island of hokkaido. it was unmanned and there were no injuries reported. the rocket was developed by a start—up company, interstellar technologies, which is hoping to provide affordable commercial space flights. soldiers in thailand have continued to carry out evacuation drills as they search for missing boys in a

cave. fate of the boys, aged between 11 and 16, and their football coach, has gripped the nation as they went missing seven days ago in shane ryan ovens. the bbc has been spending time behind the police called in, where children's families and rescue workers are waiting anxiously. —— police cordon. the relatives of the missing 13 have been waiting inside this tented area now for a week. they have heard very little from search and rescue teams since their boys went missing inside the caves, which were flooded following heavy rain. in times like this, thai families come together to pray, eat together and comfort one another. 0ne mother we spoke to said it would be depressing to stay at home waiting for them. "staying together helps to give moral support," she said. but they are part of a wider thai community here, and central to the support effort is food. it is what really bonds the thai people. these meals here have been provided by the thai king. there are also hundreds of civilian

volunteers helping out here. this morning i saw three cavers going off into the hills behind us to find routes into the caverns. this woman has come along to help with her translation skills. why did you decide to come along and help? because i watched the news from the first day and i have my own children, two children at home, and i thought if they are in the cave, so i could not sleep or eat, so i come, maybe i can support and help here. what we have seen in the last few minutes is one of thailand's most prestigious monks arrive to give a ceremony for the relatives of the missing 13. you can see it going onjust behind me over here, and it demonstrates what happens when a vip arrives at the site — lots of media flock around to see what's going on, police blowing whistles. sometimes it can get a bit chaotic here. there are hundreds of search

and rescue workers here waiting to be called into action the moment that the boys are found. but the conditions here are tough. there is mud everywhere. it is hot and humid, and when it rains, it is torrential. for now, all they can do is be patient and wait for news on the teams inside the cave. a great white shark has been spotted near the island of the yorker. this footage was captured by a conservation group. it is the first timea conservation group. it is the first time a shark like this has been seen in the area for over a0 years. the last confirmed such sighting of a great white shark in balearic islands was by fishermen in 1976. great white sharks can weigh up to two tons, grow up to banks of 20 feet, and reach speeds of a0 kilometres an hour. —— lengths. that obviously means it is a killer. so be careful. football, and saturday saw two

of the greatest players in the history of the game crash out of the world cup within a few hours of each other. argentina's lionel messi and portugal's cristiano ronaldo both lost in the first knock—out stage as france and uruguay moved on to the quarterfinals. the bbc‘s tim allman watched the action. they have been, without doubt, the players of their generation. arguably, two of the best players of all time. but neither lionel messi nor cristiano ronaldo have ever won a world cup. and, now, barring something fairly extraordinary, it seems unlikely they ever will. it was lionel messi who departed first. argentina losing in a fantastic match against france. a penalty gave the french an early lead but a few minutes before time for new stars to shine. just a reminder, you can get in touch with me on twitter. goodbye. hello there.

june has been exceptionally dry for large parts of the uk. the heat has been far and wide. so too the sunshine. and for the first day ofjuly, many of us will see more of the same. but not quite everywhere, because we've got the chance of a few thundery downpours towards the far south—west. that's because here, we're going to be very close to this growing area of cloud that has sort of sprung into life over the past few hours. that high—based cloud is drifting towards the south—west of the uk. ahead of it, we're drawing in a slightly different wind direction, more south—easterly, but that's picking up more heat and more humidity blowing into the south. that humidity and that cloud triggering a few thundery downpours towards the far south—west and the channel islands for a while. at the same time, a very weak weather front brings cloud towards northern ireland. maybe a few spots of rain in the far north—west of scotland. but elsewhere, it will be dry and sunny. temperatures in the mid—20s, scotland and northern ireland, high 20s, perhaps 30 degrees or so across england and wales. well, let's focus on those showers, and we've got thunderstorm warnings issued by the met office for the very first time for the south—west of england and south wales, but a few storms

could arrive all the way towards sussex into surrey, maybe later on into the south midlands. don't take the position of those areas of rain as gospel because it is a developing situation, all developing around this very flabby area of low pressure that's bringing that cloud and the potential for some storms. but at the same time, we've got high pressure building in across the north. so on monday, most places are going to have a dry and sunny day once again. there will still be a few storms not far away from the far south—west through the english channel and towards the channel islands. but away from here, no sign of any rain. those temperatures still on the high side for this time of year, particularly high towards the south—east into the midlands. 30 degrees quite likely here. and for the first week ofjuly, not a great deal of change. more dry, sunny and quite hot weather for most. the highest temperatures will be in the south where there is still the chance of one or two thundery downpours, although that threat, that risk, that chance is diminishing as the week goes on. because that high pressure is going to be building in across more of the uk, settling things down once again, and again on tuesday, it's sunny skies for most areas.

but with the high pressure building in across the north, here, it's somewhat cooler and fresher, there's a bit more cloud for northern scotland for a while, but fewer showers through the english channel. as you can see, in the outlook for our capital forecast, it looks like it should stay dry, temperatures widely into the mid—to—high 20s. that's it from me. goodbye. this is bbc world news. the headlines: hundreds of thousands of people have taken part in protests across the united states against president trump's immigration policies. people took to the streets in cities as far and wide as washington, san francisco and atlanta, calling for migrant families split up at the us border to be reunited. at least one person has been killed and around a dozen injured in the nicaraguan capital, managua. armed men are reported to have shot at crowds of people who were marching in memory of young protesters who died during more than two months of anti—government protests. and in the world cup, it's game over for argentina and portugal after losses on the first day of the knockout stage in russia. lionel messi and cristiano ronaldo are among the goalscoring greats

who'll be heading home. their sides lost to france and uruguay respectively. now on bbc news, it's time for a look back