welcome to bbc news. broadcasting to viewers on pbs in north america and around the globe. my name is nkem ifejika. our top stories: zimba bwe‘s newly elected president appeals for unity after violence following his election victory. i urge everyone to be calm and peaceful and to look forward. lawyers for harvey weinstein, try to have the rape charged against him thrown out of court. despite the falling numbers of people trying to cross the mediterranean into europe, the un warns the journey has become deadlier than ever before. and britain's theresa may visits the french president at his holiday retreat to push her vision for brexit. hello.

zimbabwe's president emmerson mnangagwa has called for peace and unity after being accused of winning a "fraudulent and illegitimate" election. opposition leader, nelson chamisa has refused to accept the result and says he can prove that the electoral process was rigged. the us has said its observers are reviewing the election‘s outcome and called for ‘graciousness in defeat‘. our africa editor fergal keane reports from the capital harare. "open for business", the newly elected president's voice, as the the police order people back to work. this a day after the army pushed them home. who really runs this country? and what kind of zimbabwe is it becoming? questions on the morning after victory. we were there in the early hours of the morning when the result was finally declared after days of waiting. mnangagwa emmerson dambudzo, of the zanu—pf party, is therefore duly declared elected

president of the republic of zimbabwe, with affect from the 3rd of august, 2018. cheering. there you have it, at 12:45 in the morning, to muted cheers from a few supporters, the news that emmerson mnangagwa becomes the president of zimbabwe after this highly contested, volatile election. the slenderest of majorities amid claims of rigging, but enough for these party loyalists. this is a story of parallel politics. for elsewhere in the city there was terror, soldiers beat civilians in several opposition strongholds. this man told us how they attacked around 50 people at a bar. "we were just beaten and i don't know why," he says. "i lost consciousness." "they beat men and women with rifle butts and whips". he showed us the

bruises on his body. as these reports were emerging, a public relations disaster for the government. riot police arrived at a hotel where journalists had gathered to hear the opposition leader. they were pushed out. "isn't this a democracy," i asked? no luck, there. then, a government minister arrived. at first there were angry exchanges with mdc supporters. none of you police, don't stop the president. a senior zanu—pf figure has appeared here and he is arguing with a member of the opposition, trying to get control of the situation. why did you come here? why did i come? yes. because i was told there was going to be a press conference, but the police anded up saying, "no." i'm saying, let's go ahead. and so the opposition

leader was able to appear, partly thanks to a minister's intervention. significantly, he called on his own supporters to disavow violence. we are a democratic organisation and we do not believe in violence. we do not believe in anarchy. we do not believe in the use of weapons of war. and within the hour, the president himself had decided to speak. no triumphalism, but an appeal to his defeated opponent. to nelson chamisa, i want to say that you have a crucial role to play in zimba bwe‘s present, and in its unfolding future. i watched the press conference with his foreign minister, a keen mnangagwa ally. who is really in charge in this country, the president or the security people? in fact, that question, i can even answer it when i'm asleep, because i know very clearly, that it is ed mnangagwa who is in charge. and very firm indeed.

tonight zimbabwe must hope for a more tolerant politics. it is by no means guaranteed. fergal keane, bbc news, harare. the hollywood film producer, harvey weinstein, is attempting to have criminal charges against him dismissed. his lawyers say evidence was not disclosed, which they say shows he was involved in a long—term relationship with one of the women he's accused of raping. he denies the charges. let's speak to our correspondent paul blake in new york for more details. could you explain exactly what his lawyers are trying to do here? could you explain exactly what his lawyers are trying to do here ?m seems like the key defence here is around these e—mails that came up in court today and they connect back to the accusation that involves from

backin the accusation that involves from back in 2013. the lawyers state that just after the incident up until four years later and they point to no assault happening. they say that it points out that there was a long—term consensual, intimate relationship between harvey weinstein and the woman who is accusing him. the woman has not been identified so there is a way to get her side of the story outside of the courtroom. that is the first defence they are putting up. the second is that essentially get this case thrown out on a technicality. they set up one of the cases from 2004, the alleged incident has not been given an exact date for when it happened, instead there has been a three—month range and the defence says that is not acceptable. in the other at —— says that is not acceptable. in the otherat —— in says that is not acceptable. in the other at —— in the other incident they say they were not given enough time to defend themselves, not enough notice given before the charges were brought about. so what does that mean for the prospects for the case? that is the big open question now. the next hearing is

september 20, we are still in this pre—trial period but if this goes to and he is convicted of the most serious charges, he could potentially see himself with life in prison. this case is being watched closely, one of hollywood's heaviest hitters, one of the biggest film producers in hollywood but when the accusation start to emerge last 0ctober accusation start to emerge last october at his career has essentially imploded, his company has gone bankrupt and fired him as the namesake and this has been watched very closely because those accusations are what kicked off this global movement that has seen women coming forward over the past few months with accusations of sexual harassment or misconduct especially in the workplace. this will be watched very closely over the coming weeks and. —— weeks and months. more than 500 people have died in heavy rains in india so far this year, and there's still a month of the monsoon season to go.

the north—eastern state of assam has been particularly badly hit. as a result of the devastation, several camps have been set up for those who've lost their homes. nick beake reports. water is painting a dramatic picture in many corners of india. rice fields, now sprawling lakes. schools submerged. communities cut off. coping with the annual monsoon floods is a way of life here. but this year, it is the threat to life that is causing such alarm. at this relief centre, the strain of flood after flood is taking its toll on mother of two, pompy. translation: this happens to us every year. i am so tired of it. my entire family was crying last night because the water was neck high and no one came to rescue us. as we venture to more remote starts of assam state,

it feels like an aquatic ghost town. but then signs of life and we meet those who refuse to abandon their homes. translation: what willl do if i leave this place? i have my house, my field is here. somewhere else, i'll have nothing. i stayed here because i want to protect my house and all that i have. they tried to bring as many of the animals inside as possible, along with the scooters, but the floor here is completely caked with thick mud where the water came rushing in. if you just have a look inside the bedroom, you will see that they have tried to stack up as much of the furniture as possible, but really they are fighting an extremely difficult battle and this is why. we're told the river normally is about half a kilometre away from here, today the water has rushed all the way towards us, it now completely surrounds this house, leaving the owner totally isolated. some of india's biggest cities have

also been inundated. this, mumbai, and in patna — a hospital deluged. fish swim among the patients in their beds. many are furious that have not been better protected. the indian authorities deny they have neglected their people and even criticised these flooded protesters. they are simply miscreants and we have, we were able to disperse them and no relief camp is without relief. many scientists say climate change will bring more flooding from increasingly destructive storms and put some of the world's the world's poorest and vulnerable people at the greatest risk. nick beake, bbc news, north—east india. united nations officials say more than 1,500 migrants have died

already this year trying to cross from africa to europe. the numbers of people attempting to make the crossing has fallen compared to last year — but a higher percentage are dying as smugglers use increasingly risky and overcrowded vessels. andrew plant has the story. another night, another rescue. this spanish ship helping 87 migrants. there are fewer this year attempting to cross from north africa to europe. but people smugglers overloading boats unsuitable for the sea means it is high risk for those on—board. around 60,000 people have crossed the mediterranean so far this year, around half as many as during the same period last year, and return to pre—2014 levels. however, one in every 31 people attempting the crossing injune and july died or are missing, compared to one in 49 during the course of 2017. almost 250 people are being rescued every day. 15,000 this summer. and this is now the most popular route, between morocco and spain.

the strait of gibraltar between tangier and the reception centre at algeciras, just a few dozen kilometres. these migrants are being taken to reception centres. spain now setting up a central command unit to cope with the summer surge. prime minister pedro sanchez in talk with morocco to try to stop the smugglers. translation: we will continue to strengthen our cooperation with morocco and we will introduce a 30 million euros emergency plan, to increase the number of places in reception centres, and for a new central command unit to co—ordinate migrant arrivals. it has become more difficult for migrants to get to the north african coast, but those that do face an increasingly perilous journey, with 850 deaths estimated this summer so far and thousands more migrants in morocco waiting to try to cross the water. andrew plant, bbc news. stay with us on bbc news.

still to come: heavy rains lash the american state of virginia, and there are growing fears a dam may burst. the question was whether we want to save our people, and japanese as well, and win the war and taking a chance to win the war by killing our young men. the invasion began at 2am. mr bush, like most other people, was clearly caught by surprise. we call for the immediate and unconditional withdrawal of all the iraqi forces. 100 years old and still full of vigor, vitality and enjoyment of life. no other king or queen in british history has lived so long, and the queen mother is said to be quietly very pleased indeed that she's achieved this landmark anniversary. this is a pivotal

moment for the church as an international movement. the question now is whether the american vote will lead to a split in the anglican community. this is bbc news, our main story this hour. zimbabwe's newly relected president insists the country's election was fair, free and credible — but calls for calm after violence that's left six people dead. let's have more on that story. alexander noyes is senior associate with the africa program at the centre for strategic and international studies. thank you forjoining us, alexander. so, what happens next? we have the

president elected and we have calls for calm. is this the end of the matter? thanks for having me. well, i think it is not going to be the end of the matter. you are going to have ndca pursuing a legal challenge through the course, which have a long bias in favour of the ruling party and against the opposition, and also continuing street demonstrations. peaceful protests area demonstrations. peaceful protests are a constitutional right and this must be respected. but the continued deployment of the military under the repressive security act, in common nation with further protests, will certainly raise already high tensions. does prevacid emmerson mnangagwa have international credibility on the basis of this election? —— president. credibility on the basis of this election? -- president. not yet. it would be wise to wait until the election results are verified by both local and international observers. at the moment things are still up observers. at the moment things are stillup india. —— observers. at the moment things are still up india. —— the air. as you

know, the commission result —— announced results if they but the opposition is contesting them, and i think they will do that in two ways, one through the courts and two to restrict demonstrations. let's just say hypothetically that the opposition have a case. do you really think that the zanu—pf, the governing party, will give up the reins of power at this stage? no, that's highly unlikely. as i said, a legal challenge in the courts is unlikely to bear fruit are exactly the reasons you said. if people at the reasons you said. if people at the top have changed, the system has not. when you say the people at the top have changed, president mugabe was kicked out of office in november last year, and emmerson mnangagwa took over. has anything changed on the ground in zimbabwe? do people feel a difference there? the ground in zimbabwe? do people feel a difference there ?|j the ground in zimbabwe? do people feel a difference there? i think this election was a step forward and a step back. political space opening briefly and allowing the opposition to open the campaign in a former

zanu-pf to open the campaign in a former zanu—pf stronghold, this certainly marked a departure from the mugabe regime. that it was an unfair playing field and that remains the case through the election period. media bias, vote buying, volker impression —— voter invitation and voter suppression. is this the time for zimbabwe to move on and rejoin the international fold? for zimbabwe to move on and rejoin the international fold ? does for zimbabwe to move on and rejoin the internationalfold? does this kind of, despite the challenges, does this try line under things? -- draw a line. i think the post—election violence in which we saw the military deployed, six killed and dozens injured, suggest the answer is no. in the post— coup zimbabwe, the military has been on the ascendancy. the crackdown on wednesday was straight out of the mugabe playbook. this heavy—handed response was certainly a step for the country which will hurt, though not fatally, residents mnangagwa's effo rts not fatally, residents mnangagwa's efforts to re—engage with the international committee. it would be wise for international actors do not re—engage until the results are

validated and the necessary political and economic reforms included, including the repeal of repressive legislation. thank you very much. let's get some of the day's other news at least 25 people have been killed in a suicide attack on a mosque in eastern afghanistan. two men wearing women's burqas opened fire on shia muslims attending friday prayers in the eastern city of gardez. dozens of people were injured, including children. it's unclear who carried out the attack, although the islamic state group has targeted the shia minority in the past. chile has become the first country in south america to ban the commercial use of plastic bags. handing out cloth bags on the streets, president sebastian pinera said chile was willing to move away from a "throwaway culture." small shops have two years to comply with the legislation. in the meantime, customers will be limited to two plastic bags each. president macron of france has described talks

with the british prime minister as "friendly," after the two leaders met on friday to discuss theresa may's brexit proposals. mrs may cut short her holiday for the meeting, having already spoken by phone to the head of the european commission. it came as the governor of the bank of england intervened in the brexit debate, warning that the chance of a no deal is "uncomfortably high." our business editor simonjack reports. wish you were here. this is no holiday. government ministers are touring the scorching capitals of europe, hoping to persuade leaders to get behind its proposed deal with the eu. the prime minister even cut short her own holiday to join the french president on his. meanwhile, the governor of the bank of england cranked up the temperature at home with this strongly worded warning. the possibility of a no deal is uncomfortably high at this point. it does mean that potential disruption, certainly it does mean disruption to trade as we know it. and as a consequence of that, a disruption to the level of economic activity, changes higher prices, for a period of time. the governor of the bank of england doesn't say anything by mistake. he knows his every utterance

is carefully scrutinised, so this was a very deliberate intervention at a crucial time from a governor who thinks it is his job to highlight risks to the financial system, a governor who people think is too political. the canadian bank manager who won't be here in a while or so has told us that everything that is going to be terrible and the end of the world. he said that before but the british people said "no, we are coming out of the european union" and i am afraid people like the manager of the bank of england have got to accept it. but the boss of rbs today said the uncertainty over how we leave is affecting the value and prospects of a bank still largely owned by the taxpayer. so we are preparing this bank for a very, very slow time in 2019. no matter what happens through brexit, we are able to look after our customer base, it brings down the share price and stocks. so there is a brexit discount

on uk focused stocks? there definitely is. any uncertainty brings a discount. the bank of england might be sweating about the brexit outcome, but the governor also offered reassurance. the financial system will be ready for that undesirable and still unlikely possibility. the financial system will be ready. ready, but hardly willing. tonight, french president emmanuel macron is entertaining a guest on a mission. not the holiday either would have hoped for. simon jack, bbc news. as europe sweats its way through another heatwave, people in portugal and spain are bracing themselves for the continent's highest—ever temperatures. on friday, thermometer readings nudged 46.4 degrees in el granado in southern spain, near the portugese border. but forecasters say the current european record of 48 degrees could be broken in the coming days. sima kotecha reports. a city exhausted by the heat.

in monduro, there is little movement today. and the sweltering conditions are having an impact on the younger and older generations. translation: i drink a lot of water. i go to the swimming pool and i have a siesta in the afternoon. translation: old people do not go out, between three and half six or seven in the evening here. you will see nobody on the streets. everyone is at home with their fan and these days, air conditioning. if you can afford it. temperatures here have been the highest in the country over the last few days. with the gauge peaking at 45 degrees yesterday. an hour or so away in cordoba, in the southern region of andalusia, there is concern about those who are visiting. of course, people coming to cordoba, they want to see everything, they want to visit all the places in cordoba,

but they are not used to these temperatures, so, it is ok if they are inside the places, but do not walk around in the midday, it is dangerous for them. of course, summers in this part of the world are hot, but this heat is exceptional. most of it is down to the hot air coming in from northern africa and stagnating over the iberian peninsula. the great mosque dominates the centre of this city. its ancient heritage, an intricate detail that attracts tourists from across the world. for those from britain, the torrid weather is unbearable. we just feel like we are absolutely melting. it is so hot, i think we are just kind of dodging the sun and trying to find some shade, get some ice creams, trying to stay hydrated, it is absolutely boiling. we just got in the car, put on the air con, we had just travelled for an hour. we will get back into the car soon. is that ice cream cooling you down a bit?

yeah. yeah? in neighbouring portugal, it has also been intense, with similar temperatures. it is often said that britons like complaining about the weather, but now it seems even the spanish are catching the habit. sima kotecha, bbc news, cordoba. thousands of people have fled their homes in the american state of virginia as heavy rains cause major flooding. there are concerns that a dam near the city of lynchburg could give way, releasing millions of gallons of water. the bbc‘s tim allman reports. for days, the rains have come. a relentless torrent battering much of the east coast of america. millions have been warned about the possibility of flash floods. but in certain places,

the flooding has already arrived. roads have been closed, some buildings and vehicles damaged or destroyed. as bad as things are, they could get worse. there are concerns about college lake dam, which holds back a nearby reservoir. in its path, a city of some 80,000 people, a danger dramatically spelled out on us television. the worst—case scenario, if that dam does breach, as officials are worried it might, is that that water would go surging downhill into lynchberg and it could drown that city, at least parts of it, in 17 feet of water in about seven minutes. already, thousands have been evacuated. some had to be rescued in the middle of the night. for now, the dam remains stable and there is talk of opening a sluice gate to try to relieve the pressure. but if the rain continues and the dam does give way, the consequences could be catastrophic. you can reach me on twitter,

i'm @nkem|fejika. hello there. we had a bit of rain around on friday across parts of northern england, north wales, into the midlands as well, but for most places it was another warm and dry day. this is how weak ended the day in topsham in devon. heading towards the weekend we will see scenes a little bit like this, more spells of sunshine around and it is looking dry and warm wherever you are. just the chance of the odd shower across northern and western parts of scotland, but it should be a dry weekend elsewhere. heading through the day on saturday, we have high pressure building its way in from the west, a couple of weak weather fronts pushing further south across the uk, introducing slightly fresher conditions to northern and western parts. down towards the south—east of england, that this where we keep the heat and humidity through the day on saturday. most places dry, best of sunshine towards the south and east,

particularly for northwest scotland we will have a bit more cloud, perhaps the odd shower. temperatures not quite as hot, the yellow colours on the map, but down towards southern england we will see those red colours returning. the heat building once again in the south—east, temperatures of 33 celsius on fridays at the 29 or 30 degrees by the time it gets to saturday, not quite as hot as recent days and slightly fresher further north. 0vernight into sunday and most of us are staying dry with light winds, pretty warm but not as quiet as humid as it has been recently. a few showers towards the north—west of scotland, dry elsewhere and temperatures falling between 12—16 degrees for most towns and cities as sunday morning. the second half of the weekend and it is high pressure once again that is going to be driving our weather, moving its way in from the west and holding on for the next few days. sunday looks like another dry day for most, northern scotland seeing a bit more cloud, bringing the prospect of a few more showers to the highlands of scotland too. sunny spells for scotland, northern ireland and northern england, on spells of sunshine for england and wales and it is towards the south—east that we see the highest temperatures.

generally 18—29 degrees for most of us on sunday. into monday and we will start to see a bit more cloud, with a weak front into northern ireland and the west of scotland, one or two showers and perhaps in the far north of england. further south again, a dry day with lots of sunshine and light wind. we could see 31 celsius, a little bit more warmer over time it gets to monday and a touch fresher north. to the middle part of the week and those temperatures will get down a little bit, most places staying dry. a few showers in the west. bye bye. this is bbc news. the headlines: zimba bwe's newly re—elected president emmerson mnangagwa has called for peace and unity after being accused of winning a "fraudulent and illegitimate" election by the opposition mdc alliance. there have been some clashes with police. the mdc leader nelson chamisa says he'll challenge the result in court. the hollywood film producer

harvey weinstein is trying to have criminal charges against him of rape dismissed. his legal team are arguing that prosecutors should have shared e—mail evidence with the grand jury that indicted him. mr weinstein denies all the charges. britain's prime minister, theresa may, has held informal talks with france's president macron at his summer retreat, to try to push her plan for leaving the european union.