welcome to bbc news — broadcasting to viewers in north america and around the globe. my name is nkem ifejika. our top stories: the venezuelan government says there's been an unsuccessful attack on president maduro — by drones, dropping explosives at a military parade. shortly after the attack, mr maduro told the nation he was well and that the president of neighbouring colombia was behind the attack. nominated from a cell — brazil's former president injailfor corruption, is chosen to make another run for the presidency. lebronjames gets the backing of the first lady hours after the president makes insulting remarks about the us basktball star. hello, and welcome to bbc news. the venezuelan president,

nicolas maduro, believes an attempt has been made on his life. officials said drones loaded with explosives were flown towards a military parade he was attending — they exploded, injuring seven national guards. the president, who was in the middle of a speech, was unharmed. shortly afterwards, he spoke of a right wing conspiracy against him, involving domestic enemies and neighbouring colombia. lebo diseko reports. president maduro is in the middle of his televised speech when this happened. the camera shakes, his wife looks up and then he does. the pictures then cut to soldiers at the event, do we see running. officials say two drones packed with explosives had been flown towards the parade and exploded, injuring seven soldiers. and in the aftermath

have come recriminations. the communications minister said the opposition was behind the attack. it's not hard to see why mr maduro might feel and battles. police and anti—government activists clashed regularly, the protest continuing against what opponents say is mr maduro‘s increasingly authoritarian rule. the country has the largest oil reserves in the world but the economy is on its knees. hyperinflation and food shortages mean shelves are off families go hungry. mr maduro says the current crisis is the result of a western plot to crush a socialist government and says the opposition is in on it. speaking after the attack, he claimed it was engineered by columbia and financed from florida. so while his detractors both at home and abroad may beg to differ, for mr maduro and his supporters, these

latest events prove that they are the ones under attack. lebo diseko, vbc the ones under attack. lebo diseko, vb c news. let's just one picos allegations that the colombians were responsible. what do you think of that? thank you very much are having the no—show. first i would like to say it is rather irresponsible for president maduro to claim that president maduro to claim that president santos has anything to do with it. given the relationship they had in the past, president maduro, who was very helpful with the peace accord, venezuela was one of the main countries to support the accord. so he owes a lot to want to come out and say something like that, rather a responsible. you mean the colombian peace accord? yes,

between the rebels in the colombian government. there are plenty of radical right—wingers in venezuela already. they could have made this attempt on nicolas maduro's life. for example, a student leader in 2014, he was in columbia, meeting with a number of party members. —— columbia. in fact, with a number of party members. —— columbia. infact, president with a number of party members. —— columbia. in fact, president urribe protected him in multiple scenarios that he was deported back to venezuela because there were audiotapes for him planning out terrorist attacks against civilians and he has claimed the best way to get rid of nicolas maduro was to assassinate him. why did think mr macro “— assassinate him. why did think mr macro —— why do you think nicolas maduro is making these accusations against columbia? you lachie does

have a point in the point is, the president—elect, ten days after he was elected, he travelled to washington dc to meet with a number of trump administration members such as marco rubio, but he also met with michael pompeo and the vice president michael —— mike pence. after that, he mentioned the united states and the colombians are going to align strategies. as we all have heard, the trump administration has actually put on the table the military ‘s solution. i assume the president is some sort of claims to that but we would not expect anything like that to occur. thank

you very much. the former brazilian president, luiz inacio lula da silva, has been nominated by the workers party to run in october's presidential elections. he's leading in the opinion polls, but there's a bit of a snag: he's actually serving a jail sentence for corruption. gail maclellan reports. some 2,000 members of the workers party gathered in sao paulo and declared lula their presidential candidate, cheering as a message from the man was read out. "brazil needs to restore its democracy," he said. the former president is leading most opinion polls and is appealing his conviction for corruption but it is uncertain whether the electoral court will allow him to stand. he has denied taking bribes from a construction company and said his conviction was part of a right—wing plot to prevent him from returning to power. if he loses the appeal, his party will be able to nominate another candidate.

meanwhile, the establishment heavyweight geraldo alckmin secured his nomination from the centre—right psdb in coalition with a number of influential conservative parties. they object to all that lula and his workers party stand for, accusing him of corruption and nepotism. official campaigning starts in two weeks' time. gail maclellan, bbc news. some other news: sporadic protests have continued for the fifth successive day in several iranian cities despite heavy security measures and riot police presence. videos of the protests have been shared on social media. according to fars news agency, one protester was shot dead and at least 20 have been detained. a new outbreak of the ebola virus in the east of the democratic republic of congo is thought to have killed more than 30 people. the area — near the ugandan border — includes a trading hub and crowded refugee camps, making the outbreak difficult to control

if it takes hold. the trump administration had overturned a ban that was linked to declining numbers of bees. environmentalists have expressed angen the first lady of the united states, melania trump, has come out in support of basketball star lebronjames, just a day after president trump questioned the nba player's intelligence on twitter. during an interview about his latest project, opening a school for at—risk children, lebron james criticised the president calling him ‘divisive' and it's not the first time he's spoken out about mr trump. chris buckler reports from washington. lebronjames

lebron james is lebronjames is without lebron james is without any lebronjames is without any doubt one of the biggest stars in american sports. when he recently signed for the la la kers, sports. when he recently signed for the la lakers, it made the headlines but is found himself in the news again because of his criticism of donald trump. on cnn, he accused the president of using sport to split the us apart and it's not the first time he spoken out against mr trump. i'm not going to, when i have this platform, but one individual no matter the power, no matter the impact that he should have or she should have, ever use sport as a platform to divide us. in an angry tweed, donald trump fired back at both the basketball star and the news network, stating: it is farfrom

it is far from the first time an athlete or cnn have angered the american president. holding the trophy... earlier this year, american president. holding the trophy... earlierthis year, mr trump cancelled a traditional visit to the white house by the super bowl winners after most of the philadelphia eagles players said they did not want to go. and after some american football players neeld during the national anthem to protest against police brutality against african—americans, he demanded they were fine. but lebron james has a surprising ally in this latest fight, mr trump's own life. a statement by the first lady's spokeswoman said melania trump was impressed by lebronjames's work to do good things on behalf at the next generation. he'sjust opened do good things on behalf at the next generation. he's just opened a do good things on behalf at the next generation. he'sjust opened a new school for at risk students in his hometown in ohio. the school offers

a range of support for children from low income families and mrs trump made clear that she was open to the idea of going to visit it.|j made clear that she was open to the idea of going to visit it. i love you too, man, i really do. that is a sign of support the lebronjames even has he feuds with her husband. chris bucknell, bbc news, washington. 18 people have died in a helicopter crash in north—western siberia, russia. the russian transport ministry says they are investigating allegations of negligence and whether safety guidelines had been violated. the incident took place shortly after take off, near the town of igarka. sarah rainsford reports from moscow. the helicopter was 100 metres off the ground when its propellers hit the external cargo of another helicopter. it lost control, crashed and burst into flames, killing all 18 passengers and crew on board. the helicopter it hit was able to carry out an emergency landing. translation: that there were 15 passengers and 3 crew members on board.

we discovered that at 9:48 local time, the helicopter crashed 180km north of the city of igarka. one probably cause of the fault is that the aircraft hit the cargo suspended from a mi—6 helicopter. those who died were workers heading for the start of a shift on a remote siberian oil field run by a subsidiary of the state oil giant rosneft. the company has called the actions of the crew inexplicable, adding that they had been warned the other helicopter was dangerously close. russia's investigative committee says all causes for the accident are being examined including pilot error and added that the crew's training and flight history would be checked. stay with us on bbc world news, still to come: what appears to have happend to a studio in beijing owned by the dissident chinese artist ai weiwei. 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 top story: the venezuelan government says there's been an unsuccessful attack on president maduro, by drones, dropping explosives at a military parade. shortly after the attack, mr maduro told the nation he was well and that the president of neighbouring colombia was behind the attack. there has been no response so far from columbia. soaring temperatures in portugal and southern spain have led to a series of major wildfires. more than 1,000 firefighters are trying to bring the flames under control. temperatures reached 46 degrees celsius in some areas. sima kotecha reports from cordoba in spain. there's hot, and then there's really hot, and it is, across the iberian peninsula.

in southern portugal, the intensity of the heat led to wildfires. more than 1,000 firefighters tackled the blaze in a popular tourist destination. here in cordoba, in southern spain, by mid—morning, temperatures had already reached 30 degrees celsius, and then it got hotter. we arrived here yesterday afternoon, when it was about 43 degrees. peter stayed in the hotel. i said, "i'm going out for a walk", and i came back pretty quickly. as this torrid weather continues, the government is frequently reminding people here how to stay cool, and doctors have told us that they're particularly concerned about those who are visiting from colder climates. it's so much warmer here, so much warmer, but we have come to see cordoba and that's what we'll do. i didn't listen to the health warnings, ijust wasn't going to cook my head. there's no sign of this extreme heat subsiding soon. forecasters say it's expected to be

like this for at least a few days yet, but determination often prevails, and for some, no heatwave is going to get in the way of having a good time. sima kotecha, bbc news, cordoba. boorman has become the first person in denmark charged with wearing a face veil. it was officially introduced on wednesday after it passed in denmark parliament earlier in the year. it does not engender backup by names but says anyone that wears the government hiding the face will be punished. —— burka. thousands of student protesters in bangladesh have blocked traffic in the capital dhaka for a seventh day running, calling for stricter traffic laws.

the protests have continued since a boy and a girl were killed by a speeding bus. jill mcgivering has more. chanting. they're young and they're angry. bangladesh hasn't seen anything quite like this before. school children in uniform took control of the roads for a seventh day on saturday, causing chaos. they want the government to make the roads safer. the trigger came last sunday when a boy and girl were knocked down and killed by a bus. "we have been protesting for days", said this boy, "we wantjustice for the students who were killed by a bus. we want safe roads". some transport companies have responded by staging their own strike. these buses are off the road and the drivers are angry, saying the students are the ones causing trouble. "we stopped running our buses because students attacked and damaged our vehicles," said this driver, "we can't go on the roads, students hit our drivers, so no vehicles can move."

but the students are getting support from many teachers and parents. they all want the government to take action, to stop corruption, improve standards and enforce regulations. several thousand people are killed in accidents every year, giving bangladesh one of the world's worst road safety records. the russian foreign ministry says it has appointed the actor steven seagal as a special envoy for humanitarian ties with the united states. steven seagal, whose martial arts prowess helped to make him an international film star in the late 1980s and early 90s, was granted russian citizenship in 2016. the actor has previously praised president vladimir putin's policies, calling him "one of the great living world leaders". the dissident chinese artist ai weiwei says the authorities in beijing have demolished his studio there. in a series of clips on instagram showing the former factory being torn down, ai says he was given no notice of the decision.

the 66—year—old has lived in germany since leaving china in 2015. he is a strong critic of china's government. georgina smyth reports. as the walls of his studio were torn down, ai weiwei said farewell. a post on social media explaining that the space where he had created and kept some of his most iconic work was being destroyed. workers boxed up what they could but itjust wasn't possible to move everything before the demolition started. they had known they had to leave by the 15th of this month, the lease had come to an end. what they had not expected was the wrecking the machines. translation: someone called me and said we must move out of the building within three days. in only three days, of course i don't have the ability to move everything out in three days. outside are remnants of works left where it had been standing

in the place mr ai had used for 12 years. it's not the first time this has happened. another one of his studios in shanghai was destroyed in 2011. that time, too, he'd said he had no warning. mr ai was a favourite of the chinese government but has since become an outspoken critic and some would say has paid the price. in 2011, he was detained for 81 days on charges he says were politically motivated. he has since moved to berlin. it was not clear if the destruction was targeting ai directly. authorities have been clearing large parts of beijing for redevelopment and demolitions have been taking place in this complex for the past three months but given relations between the man who may be china's most famous artist, and the authorities, many will be asking why his studio and why now. georgina smyth, bbc news. two—thirds of plastic food

containers which we put in our recycling bins end up being buried or burned, because they can't be recycled. according to the local government association of england and wales, the combination of plastics used in many yoghurt pots and ready—meal trays mean they can't be properly processed. matt cole has the story. plastic isn't meant to end up here, choking the seas and the life in it. but despite a growing public awareness of the need to recycle, councils say their efforts are being undermined by manufacturers. it's at sites like these across the country that the recycling process begins. mountains of rubbish needing separating into what can and can't be reused. now, when it comes to plastic, well, there are bottles like this, fairly easy to separate and recycle. but what about these? plastic fruit punnets containing mixed materials. that's not so easy.

and then there's these. black plastic microwave trays. the sensors in recycling sorting machines can't detect the black, and as a consequence, problems with things like this. that means two thirds of plastics just end up being thrown away. most ends up in landfill or is incinerated, but that's more expensive for councils and taxpayers. it's very confusing. i washed up black things for ages because i did not want them hanging around smelling before i went and put them into recycling, and then heard that black, you know, you can't do it. to be honest, ijust look at it and go plastics going in there. and i think that's what a lot of people do. the choice of packaging to present their product is seen as crucial by some manufacturers. but now there are calls for change. black plastic cannot be recycled currently, and so we're saying that actually black plastic should be banned completely and manufacturers should be made to use plastics that can be recycled. another solution could be to vary

the current flat rate paid by manufacturers to help recycling costs, charging extra for more difficult materials. i think what we need to do is drive designers and manufacturers and brand retailers to go towards those types of packs which are more easily recycled, because these ones yield secondary material which can be used again. the government acknowledges more work is needed, but says it is working with manufacturers to improve recycling rates. matt cole, bbc news. following their two week ordeal trapped in a flooded thai cave, 11 boys and their football coach have completed nine days living as buddist monks. this period of quiet reflection is a tradition in thailand for males who suffer adversity. tom donkin reports. heads shaved and draped in orange robes, thailand's now famous wild boars entered this temple as a football team. they depart as a squad of spiritual enlightenment.

11 of these boys have been ordained as novice buddhist monks and during their short stay, they reflected on their recent ordeal through prayer and meditation. part of a tradition here for young males who survive adversity. under the care of temple monks, this has been an opportunity to retreat from the at times frenzied international attention. the past nine days have been an important period for honouring those responsible for their rescue. especially the former navy diver who died during the complex operation. nine is a lucky number here in thailand and this period has been very different to the nine days these children and their coach spent trapped in darkness. that was until two british divers found them. it would take a further nine days to complete the risky operation to get them out. this temple stay is the latest

in a series of spiritual rites and activities the boys have taken part in. recently, the team were blessed in a traditional ceremony in a process of religious cleansing which took place at the mouth of the cave. thailand is a deeply spiritual country and the extraordinary escape of this team has captivated the population deeply. many now hope this process will bring an end to their suffering and allow them to embark on a new beginning. those are all the stories we have time for now. you can reach me on twitter — i'm @ nkem ifejika. thank you for watching. bye—bye. hello.

if you had the sunshine on saturday, there is more to come on sunday. like saturday, though, there will be more cloud once again across northern ireland and scotland and, at times, that could bring some showery rain, but for most, it is mainly dry and there will be a good deal of sunshine, as this area of high pressure continues to develop from the south—west. clear skies overnight for much of england and wales, will give way to sunshine by day. always more cloud though for scotland and northern ireland, with this front to the north—west actually bringing some rain later in the day — more on that in a moment. could just be some patchy rain fopr a time across the western side of scotland. the best of any breaks in the cloud the further east you are. some brighter sunny spells for northern ireland, even though there is a lot of cloud. but the lion's share of sunshine once again across england and wales. some fairweather cloud developing through the day. highs of 15 to 19 celsius for scotland. 21 for northern ireland. mid to high 20s celsius for much of england and wales, and getting close to 30 celsius for east anglia and south—east england. for many, it is a fine evening to come on sunday, with late spells of sunshine and clear skies overnight.

but further north and west, i'm sure you can see, the cloud increasing, outbreaks of rain coming into scotland, northern ireland and slowly sinking its way south and eastwards. temperatures a little higher than they will have been on sunday night. 13 to 17 celsius the overnight low on monday morning. so this is how we start the new working week, holding on to high pressure. the heat and the sunshine across much of england and wales. further north and west that front really starting to make inroads, increasing the cloud and bringing further rain through monday morning across northern ireland and into scotland. behind that, you can see there is some fresher air trying to sink its way south—eastwards. but it is going to take its time to get across to much of england and wales, probably not until wednesday or thursday that we start to see a noticeable dip in temperature. for monday morning in a little bit more detail — further cloud and rain for northern ireland and scotland. some of that rain just perhaps getting into the far north of england through monday morning.

but elsewhere, further south, it's going to stay dry and again, there will be plenty of sunshine. in fact, temperatures even higher again on monday, parts of east anglia and south—east england exceeding 30 celsius. notice the contrast as you head further north and west, the high teens to early 20 celsius so quite some contrast. that theme continues really for scotla nd, northern ireland, and the far north of england. it will be cooler here. there will be some showery rain at times through tuesday and wednesday but many places largely dry, particularly across northern england. head further south and east and, yes, we are hanging on to the sunshine but slowly you will start to see these temperatures starting to drop away. it stays dry but it will be turning cooler. bye— bye. this is bbc news. these are the headlines: the venezuelan govenment says explosive drones were flown towards a military event attended by president maduro. shortly afterwards, the president broadcast to the nation to say he was well, and that neighbouring colombia's president was behind the attack. there has been no reponse so far from bogota. the former brazilian president, luiz lula da silva, has been nominated by his party to run in october's presidential

elections, and that's despite serving a jail sentence for corruption. he's currently leading most opinion polls in brazil, but it's uncertain whether the electoral court will allow him to stand. the american first lady, melania trump, has come out in support of basketball star lebronjames, a day after the president questioned the nba player's intelligence on twitter. james had criticised mr trump, calling him "divisive".