this is bbc news. the headlines at eight... geraint thomas crosses the finish line in paris to become the first welshman to win the tour de france. he just was a really good kid. he enjoyed riding a bike, he enjoyed getting off the bike and he was just good fun to be around with and it's just incredible what he's done and he deserves everything he gets now. five people die, hundreds of buildings are destroyed and tens of thousands flee their homes, as wildfires rage across northern california. i have a wife and kids and i said i'd better facetime my wife just in case. i didn't tell her why i was doing it but i wanted to see her face one more time. tourists are led to safety as a powerful earthquake hits the indonesian island of lombok — at least 14 people have died and more than 100 are injured. also coming up... the growing threat of fake news. the government promises action over misinformation on facebook, and other social media, to regulate political ads and abusive posts.

also coming up... the travel show team take part in an action—packed battle re—enactment in jordan. 11 years ago, he was the youngest rider competing in the tour de france. but today as he crossed the finish line in paris, geraint thomas became the first welshman to take the title. the 32—year—old team sky rider follows sir bradley wiggins in 2012 and four—time tour champion chris froome as britain celebrates a sixth tour de france win in seven years. already the tour de france victor has been inundated with congratulations, especially from wales. geraint thomas‘s former cycling club

said he's inspired a new generation. sian lloyd joined them for their party in cardiff. the party was in full swing by the time that geraint thomas finished the tour in paris. back home, friends and fans had gathered to celebrate their champion. some have known g, as they call him, since hisjourney into cycling began aged nine. i am just bursting with pride, it is amazing, but also unbelievable, in a way, that little boy next door sort of thing is now winning the biggest sporting event in the world, ijust can't believe it. for the young members of his former club, this was a huge day — excited and proud of his connection with the local club. i am really happy and excited, because he has won the tour de france, and it proves, because he came to the same club us, that we could get to the same

standard, and i wish there was a tour de france for women. he has helped chris froome, now he has got a chance to shine. he is a hero, the first welshman ever to win the tour de france, just amazing. he has long had his place at the hall of fame at his local school. steve williams coached him alongside two other pupils who made it to the top — former wales rugby international sam warburton and footballer gareth bale. cool character, i would say, for his own sport, most probably the same as sam and gareth, a breath of fresh air in his own sport. in tribute to his greatest achievement, landmark buildings were bathed in yellow last night and will be lit up again this evening. some of these young riders willjoin members of the public in a celebratory bike ride

across the welsh capital later. in this city and across wales, the partying isn't over yet. sian lloyd, bbc news, cardiff. emergency crews are tackling around 130 wildfires, all along the west coast of north america — from canada down to new mexico. 40,000 people had to abandon their homes in the town of redding in northern california from where james cook reports. the devastation wrought by the wildfire which roared through redding is becoming clear. survivors described an apocalyptic scene as they fled, with swirling tornadoes aflame. some feared they would not make it. homes were exploding, cars were exploding, i have a wife and kids, and i said i had better facetime my wife, just in case. i didn't let her know why, i just wanted to see her face one more time. the inferno left hundreds of homes in ruins, and a boy, his sister and their great—grandmother are dead.

two firefighters were killed too, one had been cutting vegetation with a bulldozer, 81 years old. and everyone here will tell you they've never seen anything like this. every single person that i've talked to so far has maybe mention that, i don't know why it's doing what it's doing, it's burning differently, it's burning more aggressive than it has in years past, and i know we say that every year, but it is unprecedented. the firefighters of the american west are now stretched to the limit. more than 10,000 have been deployed in california alone. 130 majorfires blazing across the from new mexico to alaska. canada has more than a0 major wildfires. this has become normal for california, fires are now burning year—round, rather than just in the summer. and scientists say the reasons for that our human activity, natural weather patterns,

and a warming climate. james cook, bbc news, in northern california. joining now from shasta county isjonathan cox, who is the battalion chief for california's department of forestry and fire protection. thank you forjoining us. such a busy and crucial time for you. tell us busy and crucial time for you. tell us how the scale of what you were dealing with this year compares with previous years. for some perspective we are dealing with 17 major fires in northern california right now and we have 2000 acres currently burning, football pitch is about one maker, a massive scale of the amount of fire we are dealing with. also seeing some one unprecedented weather events, the western part of redding, it has not been seen before, it is indicative, tender and

it is an easily ignite but environment. how do you try to deal with the fire vortex or fire tornado which can be so unpredictable for you? we have majorjob tests and fired peoples here trying to predict these patterns and in those situations we are getting people out of harms way and evacuation zones because of how unpredictable these fires are becoming. how great a risk is it to your firefighters? we know that two people have died trying to put out this blaze. it is extreme. every firefighter gets into the service to help people protect their homes and serve the community. it also brings up the fact that we are ina also brings up the fact that we are in a state of mourning as we these fires, but it gives us more motivation to work to contain these fires and the conditions at the moment. obviously as you say the

public are your main concern and you are trying to evacuate thousands of homes, but at what point do you say this is too dangerous even for us, we have the pull—back was mike —— we had to pull back? firefighters are putting public safety first and their public safety as well. we have had instances on the spire were firefighters have literally been burning from fire and the vehicles exploding and debris hitting them while they are performing rescues, these evacuation orders coming out, we are crossed the state there are fires burning" the locations. we know there have been members of public who have died in these fires but we also understand the impulse people have two die to protect their property. how often do people ignore your warnings? unfortunately not eve ryo ne eva cuates your warnings? unfortunately not everyone evacuates when orders come

through and that can be for a variety of reasons, maybe mobility issues when it takes them longer, but we stress windows evacuation orders go out that is the time to leave. firefighters are in a very dangerous position, one thing we can really ask is for people to get out while they can because conditions are right now are changing so rapidly that time is of the essence. what is the forecast for the conditions? how will they help or hinder you? i think we have lost him u nfortu nately. hinder you? i think we have lost him unfortunately. but we understood very much the risk that he and his crews a re very much the risk that he and his crews are facing as they try to battle what he said was 17 fires which have broken out in shasta county, part of california. that was

jonathan cox the battalion chiefs therefrom the forestry and fire protection department. at least 1a people have died and more than 100 others have been injured after a 6.4 magnitude earthquake struck a popular tourist destination in central indonesia. residents and tourists poured onto the streets and into open fields to escape damaged buildings on the island of lombok. the tremour was felt in bali, 60 miles away. 0ur correspondent katharine da costa reports. buildings and lives shaken to the core. this was the scene dozens woke up to in northern lombok. the distress clear to hear. the quake, measuring 6.4 on the richter scale, was quickly followed by more than 60 smaller earthquakes. the jolt was felt 60 miles away on the holiday island of bali. people are staying in the car, still

waiting for the after—shock, because now there have been many after—shocks, so they are still waiting for confirmation. many buildings have been damaged. it is thought at least a0 people are injured, many are still being treated after being hit by falling debris. a malaysian tourist on a hiking trip is reportedly among those killed. the epicentre of the earthquake struck 30 miles north—east of the city of mataram in the north of the island. indonesia is prone to earthquakes. it lies on what is called the ring of fire, the line of quakes and volcanic eruptions that circle virtually the entire pacific rim. the region is on constant alert for tremors that might trigger tsunamis. this time no alert was issued. the country's disaster agency says the main focus now is evacuation and rescue. at least 1a people are known to have lost their lives.

at least 60 people have died in northern india after floods were triggered by heavy rains. thousands have been affected by flooding in the state of uttar pradesh, which has caused severe water logging. many people have been injured since heavy rains and lightning began on thursday, with one city building collapsing. after suffering an unprecidented heatwave which killed at least 300 people, japan has now been battered by a powerful storm moving across the country. the storm has injured at least 21 people, disrupted flights, road and rail transport, and cutting power to thousands of homes. residents in the south of the country have been warned to evacuate their homes, with up to 200 millimeters of rainfall forecast over the next 2a hours. the government says it's looking into ways of increasing transparency around online political advertising. ministers also want to crack down on cyber abuse, against candidates in elections. the plans follow a report into the extent of ‘fake news‘ on social media, and its impact on the democratic process.

here's our political correspondent, alex forsyth. every day we're subject to a barrage of data. more and more we rely on social media to find out what's happening in the world around us. that's according to mps, who say there is too much disinformation, particularly around elections, and that could threaten democracy. this is something you see in the palm of your hand every time you pick up your smartphone or go on to your facebook app. so it's much more intrusive than before. but secondly, it's not always clear who is advertising to you. the reason the russians could abuse facebook to run ads to target people in elections was because you didn't know that is who was doing it. 0nline advertising has become a major part of political campaigning. mps looked at techniques used by leave campaigners in the brexit referendum to target certain voters. they concluded there needed to be more transparency about where adverts come from and who exactly is putting them out. this report describes the internet as a wild west

where private companies, political campaigns and even foreign countries can manipulate our data for their own ends. it says internet firms must take more responsibility for what's on their platforms, and it calls for reform of electoral law. so how much of what is served up online really cuts through? how discerning are these diners in north yorkshire about what is fed to them? i tend to ignore the news other than what i see on facebook or on the internet, really. then i get a bit sucked in by it. there is a headline and digesting, oh, i willjust see what there is. i am not very good at having my own opinions, so everything i read will make me believe that, yes. i do find it helpful, but sometimes you don't know if it's true or not. facebook is already highlighting fake news and says it is working on ways to authenticate and label political adverts.

meanwhile, ministers are looking at new rules to ensure the source of election material is identified. what we're doing is a couple of measures that we hope will really help to get voters to be well—informed about digital campaigning, but also to be able to be protected from intimidate three behaviour during elections. the digital world has undoubtedly thrown up new challenges for democratic systems. this report says urgent action is needed to make sure fake news doesn't crowd out the real thing. alex forsyth, bbc news. the headlines on bbc news... geraint thomas crosses the finish line in paris to become the first welshman to win the tour de france. five people die, hundreds of buildings are destroyed and tens of thousands flee their homes, as wildfires rage across northern california. at least 1a people have been killed in an earthquake which struck the popular indonesian tourist island of lombok. also coming up...

in the biggest shake—up to the blue badge parking scheme, permits in england will be made available to those living with mental health issues and conditions such as autism. sport now, and a full round—up from the bbc sport centre. no doubt starting on two wheels. you guessed it. after 21 stages, three weeks, and over 2000 miles of racing, geraint thomas has ridden his name into history. he's the first welshman to win the tour de france, beating dutchman tom dumoulin by one minute 51 seconds. let's hear from thomas. he's been speaking to gareth rhys 0wen. it is mental. whenever anybody says iti it is mental. whenever anybody says it ijust it is mental. whenever anybody says it i just have it is mental. whenever anybody says it ijust have to pinch myself. it will take a while to sink in. as its own gain in terms of compared to yesterday, you were extremely emotional yesterday? how do you feel now? a bit more smug? may be a bit

more used to it, but yesterday was just raw emotion. i never thought about the outcome. it was always about the outcome. it was always about the outcome. it was always about the process and doing small things right in thinking about the next day and the planning, staying calm and collected. suddenly then realising i had one macro and i didn't know to react and it all came pouring out and it is just insane. there is a feeling doing the rounds that you were planning a dollar long. i wish i was, but that you were planning a dollar long. iwish i was, but obviouslyi had my chance and really happy to have taken the opportunity. now you have taken the opportunity. now you have stepped in the level of legend in sporting terms, how do you cope with that? will that change you? i don't think so, i hope not, time will tell. i don't think so. i will

a lwa ys will tell. i don't think so. i will always be the same. it looks like it has gone crazy back home, so i am looking forward to getting back on celebrating with everyone, but at the same time looking forward to but of normality as well, watching brea kfast tv of normality as well, watching breakfast tv in bed with coffee and having some toast on the sofa, simple things. and then realising i have won the tour is just crazy. toast on the sofa, surely he deserves more than that. lewis hamilton has extended his lead at the top of the formula 1 drivers‘ standings with a dominant win at the hungarian grand prix, 0n the tight hungaroring track, hamilton had done much of the hard work by securing pole position. he was never really under threat. hamilton's championship rival sebastian vettel fought his way back up into second to keep the gap down to 2a points in the race for the title. but he couldn't stop hamilton securing his sixth win in hungary. somerset have beaten middlesex in the t20 blast in taunton somerset made 229 from their 20 overs

with lewis gregory top scoring with 62. they were then helped on their way by this fantastic catch from jamie 0verton and ended up winning comfortably by 38 runs. he should play in goal. they are now up to third in the south group. in the women's super league, western storm beat loughborough lightning by 18 runs. rain delayed the start and reduced the match to just six overs each. but there was no shortage of fireworks in taunton. some of the batting spectacular. english golfer richard mcevoy has won his first european tour title at his 285th attempt. it's been a long time coming — he's 39 years old. he birdied the final hole in hamburg to finish on 11 under par to win the european 0pen by a single shot and earn himself about £300,000 — more money over four days than he's won in any year of his career to date. hearts are through to the knockout

stage of the scottish league cup after beating inverness caledonian thistle 5—0. inverness actually started well but hearts then scored three goals in just four minutes, uche ikpeazu with the opener. but the goal of the game came from ben garuccio, a fantastic free kick straight into the top corner. the result means hearts will play dunfermline in the last 16. before we go, just time to tell you that england's women are in action at the hockey world cup. they‘ re playing ireland. the score is currently 0—0 in the final quarter. you can follow it on the bbc sport website. a labour mp who is being investigated over his behaviour during a row about the party's anti—semitism code has denied "screaming" abuse. ian austin is facing possible suspension after the argument with the party's chairman, ian lavery. speaking on bbc radio 4's the world this weekend, he says he was upset by the decision not to adopt the standard definition

of anti—semitism in its entirety in labour's new code of conduct and was ashamed of the labour party. i said that i thought the labour party's failure to adopt the... i said i thought the nec‘s decision was a disgrace. look, am i upset about anti—semitism? yes, iam. i'm upset about that and i'm upset as well about the leadership's failure. i think the refusal, really, you know, to deal with this properly. i grew up listening to my dad tell me how he'd escaped from the holocaust, and how his mum and sisters were murdered in treblinka and that led to me joining the labour party as a teenager, determined to fight racism and the first thing i did when i became an mp 13 years ago was to organise and lead a campaign to drive out the bnp here in dudley, and i'm really shocked, you know, that a party that has a proud tradition throughout its entire existence of fighting racism has ended up causing such huge offence and distress to thejewish community in britain and i think this could never have happened before. i'm appalled it has happened, i'm ashamed of the labour party. i really am. and i think, if i'm honest,

i think we're becoming a different political party. this could never have happened in the past. a five—year—old british boy has drowned at a resort in portugal's algarve region. according to police, the five—year—old had been playing with his two siblings in a swimming pool at the resort near silves on saturday. the foreign office has said officials are providing support for the family. a six—year—old girl has died after getting into difficulty in the sea in margate. kent police say they were called to the harbour yesterday afternoon after concerns were raised about a child in the sea. the girl, who was from erith in south east london, was taken to hospital where she later died. blue badge parking permits are to be made available for people in england with "hidden disabilities," such as autism or mental health problems. the change will come into effect next year, and is the biggest shake—up of the scheme since it was launched in the 1970s. wales and scotland have already changed their rules, as alexandra mckenzie explains. morag davidson has six children.

they all have autism. getting out and about can be daunting. two of her children have blue badges under the scheme in scotland. she says it is life changing. it makes it easier to go out with the kids. there are a lot of challenges with going out with children with autism. refusal, not wanting to go out, standing in the middle of the road and refusing to move. scotland and wales have already extended their eligibility criteria for the blue badge scheme to people with so—called hidden disabilities. that includes mental health conditions. similar changes will be made in england next year. we spoke to one particular family who said they have had a blue badge in the past. it has been taken away. and as a result they almost never go out. morag acknowledges that not everyone welcomes the scheme. people can be quite opinionated

about whether or not they think people with autism should have blue badges, because in their mind they equate a blue badge with a wheelchair. for people like morag and her children, the frustration and anxiety of going out has been eased. she hopes the changes will help many other families. alexandra mackenzie, bbc news, livingston. a palestinian teenager who slapped an israeli soldier in the occupied west bank has been freed after eight months in jail. ahed tamimi had an emotional reunion with family and friends today, after becoming a symbol of resistance against israel when the footage of her slap went viral. tom bateman reports. a palestinian teenager reunited with her family after eight months in israeli jails, ahed tamimi's case brought a new spotlight

to the decades—old conflict. translation: from the house of the martyr, i say resistance is continuing until the occupation is removed. all female prisoners injail are strong, and i thank everyone who stood by me in prison. aged 16, ahed tamimi slapped and kicked an israeli soldier outside her home, demanding the troops leave. her family live—streamed the footage on facebook. there had been clashes in her village, a frequent site of palestinian protest in the israeli—occupied west bank. so much of the debate in this case stemmed from ahed tamimi's age. where israel saw a teenage assault against a soldier, palestinians saw an act of dignity. for them, she has become a 16—year—old symbol of resistance against an occupation entering its 52nd year. human—rights groups criticised her military trial and detention. but israel says the family's activism exploits its children —

ahed was filmed aged 11 confronting a soldier — and israelis condemned comments in last year's video where ahed blamed us policies for any palestinian violence. i don't think that you can ever call requests or cause from the commission of suicide bombings as peaceful resistance. ahed tamimi is a new icon for palestinians. she may suffer from a weight of expectations, with both sides watching. tom bateman, bbc news. let's return to the wildfires which are raging in parts of california. by are raging in parts of california. by peoples have died and many have had to leave their homes. jenn pirro is from redding, california, one of the worst affected places. she has been evacuated from her home and now speaks to us live from california. thank you very much for talking to

us thank you very much for talking to us here on bbc news. tell us what has happened to you and your home. from what i know my home is still standing. i drove by my subdivision last night, national guard was blocking it than they won't let anybody in. the fire originally started 16 miles away and the wind drove it and what happened in my neighbourhood was a spot fire directly behind my house, a green belt behind it, we are in a very wooded area. i was at work, being evacuated from there, and i got a call from someone saying my neighbourhood was being evacuated, soi neighbourhood was being evacuated, so i called home, my daughter was there because she had been evacuated from her house and came on stage with me. i got home probably five minutes before the close up my neighbourhood, but what i could and tha nkfully neighbourhood, but what i could and thankfully i have a wonderful employer in my town and they reserved hotel rooms and reserved

hotel rooms for all displaced employees, i'm staying in a hotel in town waiting to be told they can go back to my neighbourhood. right now i have heard they are checking the neighbourhoods for possible gas lea ks, neighbourhoods for possible gas leaks, or electrical neighbourhoods for possible gas lea ks, or electrical problems, neighbourhoods for possible gas leaks, or electrical problems, once they have it clear route they will start repopulating all the evacuated areas but they have to do a lot of safety checks before they will let families back into their homes. how do the wildfires of the summer compare with previous years in terms of their intensity and scale?|j compare with previous years in terms of their intensity and scale? i have lived here, iam of their intensity and scale? i have lived here, i am originally from the midwest, i moved here about 29 years ago. we normally have fires every season but it is just given in our area, but the past three weeks we have had temperatures over 100 degrees the day the fire broke out, it was 112. a lot of wind. i have never seen a it was 112. a lot of wind. i have never seen a fire like this, or town has 90,000 people and over 30,000 have already been evacuated from

their homes. then they had to evacuate the animal shelter which to gain everyone's animals, but this community has come together, many businesses are paying for hotel rooms for their employees, some of them have had to turn away donations because they have so many but this community is great and everyone is for each other. we have had some totality is, there was a family that was unable to get out of their home by the time the fire came through. a grandmother and her two great—grandchildren. and we lost two firemen. we have been reporting on those depths. it just firemen. we have been reporting on those depths. itjust shows you i suppose, the risks that firefighters are taking for you and the people who live in shasta county. they are. every time we have had a fire, it is just amazing how our town will come together and rally round everyone

and help support people. i have some friends that have lost their homes andi friends that have lost their homes and i have got friends were there entire neighbourhood burned down but their house was spared. it is most like when a tornado goes through, all houses get demolished but one, and it is kind of like that here, the fire chose what it was going to do and it was just really scary. the fire chose what it was going to do and it wasjust really scary. can you think about what might happen when these fires finally are but don't and how you as a community recover and rehouse yourselves? our town, we are in a very heated recreation area, and some of the resorts have completely burnt down, one of the lakes, boats caught on fire, you would never think about being on the water would catch on fire but the fire just blew through. it will be a lot of rebuilding. there are