this is bbc news. i'm julian worricker. the headlines at eleven: theresa may has backed calls for borisjohnson to apologise, for comments about muslim women who wear full—face veils i think boris johnson i think borisjohnson used language in describing people ‘s appearance and has caused offence to dig it was the wrong language to use and he should not have used it to get nothing to apologise for, blown out of all proportion by those who wish to cause him political damage. six men are found guilty of trying to smuggle albanian migrants in speed boats across the english channel. firefighters in california battle the biggest blaze ever to hit the state, and it could be burning for weeks. the increase in uk life expectancy has stalled, and the slowdown is one of the worst of any of the world's top economies. it's golden night for great britain's athletes, at the european championships. and preparations for the 100th

anniversary of the battle that helped end the great war, at amiens. and at 11:30 we'll be taking an in—depth look at the papers with our reviewers jim waterson, who's the media editor of the guardian, and jack blanchard the editor of the politico london playbook. stay with us for that. good evening. the prime minister has backed calls for borisjohnson to apologise, for comments he's made about muslim women wearing full—face veils. the former foreign secretary wrote in a newspaper article, that the women "look like letter boxes," and that the burqa was "weird" and "ridiculous." theresa may says women should be

able to choose how they dress, and that some of mrjohnson‘s words "obviously caused offence." mrjohnson has so far refused to apologise, amid accusations of islamophobia. here's our chief political correspondent vicki young. from online abuse to attacks on mosques did it crime figures suggest islam phobia is on the rise in britain. and the conservative party has faced accusations that it has not done enough to deal with incidents in its own party. and now boris johnson and now borisjohnson is underfire with prime minister backing calls to him to apologise. boris johnson used language in describing peoples appearance and has caused offence to dig it was the wrong language to use nt should not have used it. on the keyissue nt should not have used it. on the key issue of to where burke, if they choose to do so, that should be a matter for the woman to choose.

writing in the telegraph, the former foreign secretary said, a total ban is not the answer but schools should be able to tell students to remove a burqa if they turn up looking like a bank robber. he went further saying, it is ridiculous that people should choose to go around looking like letterboxes. baroness warsi was britain's first muslim cabinet minister. for years she has been calling for an inquiry into islamophobia in the party. she says borisjohnson is using bigotry to further his career. to use language like letterboxes and armed robbers and colourful language to further this debate is not about having a serious debate on a serious issue, it is about trying to get airtime and attention on an issue that he knows will resonate with a certain part of the tory party. but friends of mrjohnson say it is ridiculous that his views are being attacked and that difficult issues had to be debated. it was an erudite column with a bit of humour about the pertinent issue, that denmark have banned the burqa but boris does not think

that is the answer to the issue in our country. and he made his comments, nothing to apologise for. it has all been blown out of all proportion by those who wish to cause him political damage. but a source close to borisjohnson says he was actually speaking up for liberal values and would not be apologising. vicki young, westminster. 0ur political correspondent jessica parker is in westminster for us tonight. i was speaking earlier to the chair of the conservative muslim forum, an affiliated group to the conservative party. he was saying that the ball is in boris's course. he wants to hear borisjohnson apologise. as we have heard, the former secretary ——

former secretary, his friends have suggested he will not do so. some people, for example baroness warsi says that if borisjohnson does not apologise issue face disciplinary action. at the moment it is an awkward stand—off between boris johnson and senior figures of the conservative party and we will need to wait it out. at the moment it seems unlikely that boris will capitulate. disciplinary action will come from the chairman of the party? there is discussion about whether the whip should do it. and tonight on newsnight we see a conservative member saying that the whip should be taken from him, that he should be kicked out of the parliamentary party. at the moment it does not

deal like that will happen. this is not the first time boris might have said something controversial or perceived is out of line and when you listen theresa may, it is interesting, her answers today that she did not actually say that boris should apologise, she said she agreed with brendan lewis who said thatjohnson should agreed with brendan lewis who said that johnson should apologise. agreed with brendan lewis who said thatjohnson should apologise. so it seems at the moment that the conservative party hopes the former foreign secretary will apologise. theresa may is not quite ready yet to say the actual words and there are those saying she needs to take firm action. summon the labour party say she should call him out for islam phobia. —— some in the labour party. six men have been found guilty of trying to smuggle albanian migrants across the english channel. the old bailey heard that one vessel was so overcrowded, it began to sink and those on board had to be rescued. the national crime agency described the plot as "staggeringly reckless," and said the men had been risking lives for profit.

two other defendants were found not guilty. frankie mccamley has the story. around a mile and a half off the coast of kent in the pitch black, a boat designed for six people carrying 20 and taking on water quickly. 18 albanian migrants on board. each had paid £5,500 for the crossing. all desperate to be rescued. the only two on board with life jackets were robert stewart and mark stribling, both pleading guilty and being convicted of people smuggling two years ago. today these six men from the same gang found guilty of conspiring to smuggle people across the channel. including the men described as the ringleaders, a father and son pair and an albanian national ‘s who acted as the travel agent finding

people who wanted to go to the uk. this is an excellent result for national crime agency. we're very pleased with the result. it sends a clear message to other crime groups who are thinking about facilitating people over the english channel by this dangerous method that we will look to identify you and look to prosecute you. it was what officers found next to this slipway in dymchurch, kent, that launched the whole investigation. 0ne abandoned boat and after making initial enquiries they realised that that was part of a much bigger operation. police convert lead filmed another boatin police convert lead filmed another boat in ramsgate being prepared for a trip to france. francis wade, on the phone, who was cleared of all changes, called to say that it was too dangerous to travel. the pair then struggled to get the gps system to work. we still can't do it... the

next day, francis wade said he deliberately ran out of fuel after becoming suspicious about the operation. anotherfailed trip becoming suspicious about the operation. another failed trip for the game meant they had to be more creative. three members meet by a jet ski to do the job and said that they are arrested soon after. the plans were so dangerous they had to be stopped. it was a reckless operation, making money from those whose only hope was for a better life. sentencing will take place next month. the increase in life expectancy in the uk has stalled in recent years and the slowdown is one of the worst of any of the world's top economies. the office for national statistics says women have been particularly badly hit. between 2005 and 2010, the increase in life expectancy per year was 12.9 weeks for women, and 17.3 weeks for men. but the next six years saw the figures fall to 1.2 weeks for women, and 11.2 weeks for men. our health editor, hugh pym, has been looking at the data. we are living longer,

but the speed at which life spans increase in each generation is slowing. that's the main message of a new report that looks at life expectancy across a range of wealthy nations. medical advances have helped more people to live longer with healthier lives and enjoy their retirement years. but one of the biggest slowdowns in the rate of increase has been in the uk. i think there's too many fast foods that people eat now. we always had plain meat and vegetables. obesity, diabetes is a big problem in this country at the moment. possibly lack of exercise. i'm very surprised, yes. i thought in this generation people were starting to live longer. what do the figures actually show? male and female life expectancy at birth rose consistently in the uk from the early 1980s until 2011,

but from then the rate of increase slowed right down. in effect, stalling atjust over 79 for men and just under 83 for women. how does that compare with other countries? here is the trend for female life expectancy at birth. first for the uk, which started in the middle of the pack. here's the czech republic, which have nearly caught up from a lower start. japan and spain are among those pulling away from the uk. some argue it is partly down to austerity policies including cuts in social care in england. when you cut services, when you cut adult social workers coming and checking on old people, when you cut meals on wheels, bus services, the nhs, then it has an effect on health. 0thers argue more research is needed

on people's lifestyles and general health issues. it's far too simplistic to blame austerities for these changes. we have to look more widely, we have to look at our lifestyle, the way we become more obese, the way we eat unhealthy food, we need to look at housing, public health, immunisation. the department of health and social ca re the department of health and social care said that action was being taken, for example a diabetes prevention plan and an obesity strategy. that public officials have been asked to carry out a review, looking for explanations to these changing trends. a seven—year—old boy has died in a house fire in south east london, which police are now treating as murder. the body ofjoel urhie was found after the blaze in deptford in the early hours this morning.

his mother and sister escaped byjumping out of a first floor window, and are being treated in hospital. jenny kumah reports. the charred remains of a family home which was engulfed by flames in the early hours of the morning. it took the life of seven—year—old joel urhie. his family say he dreamed of becoming a fireman. today, investigators are picking their way through the evidence of what police believe is a suspected arson attack. i would directly appeal to anybody who was in the area or saw anything suspicious at around 3:30am or who has any information about who was responsible for starting the fire to contact the police immediately. his father, who moved out of the family home five years ago, visited the scene earlier. it is terrible. it is a difficult situation right now. the alarm was raised at around three in the morning, neighbours were woken

by the unfolding horror. initially, i got woken up to the screaming of, i think, the mum or one of the women. my flatmates are safe, ijust don't... i can't even imagine what they are going to go through now. around 35 firefighters tackled the blaze. before they had arrived, joel's mother and stepsister jumped from the first floor. they were taken to hospital, their injuries are said to be non—life—threatening. police described joel as an innocent boy who lost his life in what should have been the safest place for him. jenny kumah, bbc news. a 31—year—old man has been charged for murdering a rapper in london. the man was found stabbed to death. theresa may has been challenged to set out a plan b

for brexit, by the scottish government. she's been meeting scotland's first minister nicola sturgeon, who said their talks had failed to ease concerns, that the uk could leave the european union, without a deal. mrs may says the scottish government should get behind her brexit proposals, instead of trying to "sow division". donald trump has warned anyone trading with iran that they will not be able to do business in america, following his re—imposition of sanctions on the country over tehran‘s nuclear programme. in a defiant response, the european union promised to protect companies trading with iran and ministers here said firms can use eu law to protect themselves from american penalties. the headlines on bbc news: theresa may has backed calls for borisjohnson to apologise, for comments about muslim women who wear full—face veils. six men are found guilty of trying to smuggle albanian migrants in speed boats across the english channel. the increase in life expectancy has

stalled and the slowdown is one of the worst of any of the world ‘stop economies. a court has heard claims that the england cricketer ben stokes, mocked two gay men and became abusive to a bouncer, shortly before allegedly getting involved in a fight at a nightclub. he and two other men, deny a charge of affray in bristol last september. our sports editor dan roan reports. he should have been training with his england team—mates today for this week's test match at lord's, instead, ben stokes was back in court. also here, bristol bouncer andrew cunningham, a witness to the events leading up to the brawl at the centre of the case. stokes is accused of losing control and attacking two local men, ryan hale and ryan ali, in the early hours of september 25 last year, all three denying a charge of affray. head doorman at the mbargo

nightclub, cunningham said that earlier, ben stokes had been spiteful, angry and a bully, after he refused the cricketer and his england team—mate, alex hales, re—entry to the venue. the court was shown this cctv footage. cunningham claimed ben stokes, who he described as the ginger one, insulted his teeth and prominent tattoos, and then mocked two gay men, making camp gestures and throwing a cigarette butt at one of them. defence barrister gordon cole qc suggested that cunningham, who said he did not like cricket, had been aggressive towards ben stokes and alex hales. definitely not, said the doorman. cole said the cricketers had been laughing with the two gay men about stokes's gold encrusted shoes, suggesting it was just playful banter. the players were laughing at them, not with them, insisted cunningham. the court heard from then local resident, max wilson,

who filmed the fight on his mobile phone. the men, he said, were clearly drunk and sounded like football hooligans. one of the investigating police officers then told the court the footage showed both hale and ali holding bottles and cricketer hales, who was interviewed under caution, but not arrested, deliberately stamping on ali, before kicking him in the head. stokes is one of world cricket's highest profile talents, helping england beat india last week. but his team will have to make do without him in the second test. the trial continues. dan roan, bbc news, bristol. more than 100 people have now died, and another 80,000 are in need of shelter, following sunday's powerful earthquake that hit an indonesian island. the 6.9—magnitude quake was the second to hit the area injust over a week. mehulika sitepu reports from lombok. it's 48 hours after the earthquake hit lombok.

a man is pulled out a collapsed mosque, and a search for survivors continues. nearby, a 23—year—old woman is rescued after being trapped beneath a flattened convenience store. translation: they thought they smelt dead bodies, but when we opened up an access point, it was just rotten eggs. then we heard a voice. the ones that survived have been taken to the nearest hospital which has also been damaged by the earthquake. patients are being treated in tents outdoors, mostly suffering from broken bones. translation: there are too many patients. we have to prioritise who among them need the most help. so, for patients that can bear the pain, we put them on hold. we handle those who are in emergencies first. 0n the gili islands,

many continue to wait to be ta ken to safety, but now thousands have been able to leave. it was really scary. there were so many people injured, but nobody came to the island. so maybe we were there for, like, 12 hours before a boat came or anybody came. since sunday's earthquake, hundreds of after—shocks have been felt in the area, with more expected. for the rescue crews it means treacherous conditions, as they continue their search for survivors. mehulika sitepu, bbc news, lombok. the murder and kidnapping ofjournalists and western aid workers by the islamic state group, graphically highlighted their brutality, and ricardo vilanova who's a spanish photographer, was one of their captives. he says his tormentors were a group of four british jihadists, dubbed "the beatles" by their hostages, a gang who are thought to have tortured and murdered as many as 27 people. in this exclusive report, mr vilanova returns to syria, with our middle east correspondent,

quentin sommerville, to find the former prisons he was held in, and the men he claims, who locked him up. 0n the river euphrates, photojournalist ricardo vilanova is on a personal assignment. war, he says, brings out the best of us — and the worst. in raqqa, he experienced both. under kurdish escort, he's come to find his formerjail. and his formerjailers. an is gang of britishjihadists, known to their prisoners as "the beatles". this is the right place but we don't know exactly, because maybe the house is there... ricardo was held captive for eight months.

he and his british, french and american cell—mates were moved regularly to prevent any western rescue attempts. once an is stronghold, this ground now belongs to the kurds. the house was destroyed by a coalition air strike. this is the place. this was the view that ricardo saw, a rare glimpse of sunlight from underneath his blindfold. we are here in the room, and we used to sleep there, and we had the toilet there, on the second floor. now, ricardo is free to go where he wants. the cells under raqqa's stadium are a reminder that is brutalised a population. and new sadism was born here in this is prison. he was held nearby. ricardo heard the screams of the tortured and the dying on a daily basis.

yeah, we spent three months here in a cell like that, three people. eventually, his government secured his freedom. ransoms were paid. then, he went back to work. but his task here is not complete. here are the men suspected of imprisoning him. alexanda kotey and el shafee elsheikh are accused of torturing and killing 27 hostages. ricardo wants to confront them. he says they're cowards who fled the battlefield. they refused to answer his questions and quickly bring the interview to a halt. before he leaves, he takes a final picture. but they want to shut him out.

afterwards, he gave me his reaction to the meeting. translation: i wanted to see the suspects and look them in the face, that's it. the first thing i thought when i saw them was gaddafi or saddam. they were able to torture and murder, but when the moment arrived, they handed themselves in order to survive. i think that's despicable. should they face the death penalty? no, i don't believe in the death penalty. but i think they should spend the rest of their lives in prison, and in the same conditions they kept their hostages. his tormentors are now dead or injail. ricardo vilanova had the strength and the opportunity to survive. but more than that, he's had the courage to return

here so that these dark horrors won't be forgotten. quentin somerville, bbc news, raqqa. officials in california say they're now dealing with the largest ever wildfire to hit the state, and they're warning it could burn for the rest of the month. it's the result of two fires that have joined together, with the mega blaze already destroying more than 280,000 acres of land. nine people have died since the fires broke out last month. from california, here's peter bowes. california's new normal. raging wildfires eclipsing previous records in their size and ferocity. about 150 miles north of san francisco, two fires have merged to create this monster. its sheer size is

overwhelming, about the same area as the city of los angeles. fuelled by it intensely hot weather, strong wind, low humidity and tend it dry rush, bush, the planes are consuming everything in their path. what can you say? it makes you sit to your stomach. everything they worked for all of their white pawn in a heartbeat. the firefighting effort is intense. we are working with the aircraft, cooling it down and that is allowing the ground crews in there to put out the fire. throughout california, more than 14,000 throughout california, more than 111,000 firefighters, some from overseas, and hundreds of us army personnel are battling at least 16 major wildfires. weather forecasters are warning no letup in the temperatures, it could take weeks to get the current fires under control and the long, hot summer is far from

over. commemorations will take place in the french city of amiens tomorrow, marking the 100th anniversary of the battle that proved so decisive in ending the first world war. prince william and theresa may, will take part in a cathedral service there. robert hall has been looking at why the battle of amiens was so important to the outcome of the war. 0na on a hilltop, north of amiens stands a white power of stone. memorial to australian forces, some of whom advanced across a landscape which has changed the tool as a sentry rolled by. it is the perfect spot to view the start line of a surprise attack which changed the war. if you had stood here on the morning of august eight 1918, you would have seen august eight 1918, you would have seen the smoke and flames as allied artillery systems systematically destroyed german guns and you would have heard the rubble of injured as 500 tanks and more than 50,000 troops advanced through the fog

towards enemy lines. with every step, the men left the stalemate of trench warfare further behind. in front of them and protecting them, the tanks were able to move unhindered across open country. the preparation was absolutely enormous, right down to the last piece moving forward of the casualties clearing station. they had everything to be an degree. stories that they will be told at tomorrow's commemoration which reflects the range of countries were together for the attack. —— brought together. countries were together for the attack. -- brought together. we travelled light and stayed in the woods in the daytime. they captured 27,000 prisoners and the whole thing of 45,000, besides those who were killed. german high command called

it the black day of the german army. we called it the beginning of the la st we called it the beginning of the last 100 days. exhausted german defenders did what they could to slow the attacks, but the allies come nowjoined by the americans, we re come nowjoined by the americans, were growing stronger. the men who fought and died here didn't know it, but on that august date there are events but on that august date there are eve nts too k but on that august date there are events took the world closer to peace. —— there are events. —— their advance. and we'll be taking an in—depth look at the papers with our reviewers and we'll be taking an in—depth look jim waterson and jack blanchard. tthat‘s coming up after the headlines at 11:30. now it's time for the weather with sarah keith lucas. hello there. the heat wave of summer 18 will go down in the history books, but it is now being replaced by something more typical. 0n tuesday we saw that which is up to 32 degrees in parts of east anglia, by wednesday, those temperatures will be more like 23 degrees. some

parts of the country singing a drop in almost 10 celsius. ins are turning cooler across—the—board. in almost 10 celsius. ins are turning cooler across—the—boa rd. you can see those orange hues and warm weather getting squeezed further east across europe, blue and green colours returning. things will be not only cooler, but certainly less humid particularly in the south—east. there will be some showers on wednesday, in the north and west by parts of northern scotland, north—west england and wales, the south—west of england and was the south and east more likely to stay dry. temperature is 23 or 24. slightly fresher further north, 18 or 19. heading through wednesday night and wherever you are it will bea night and wherever you are it will be a fresher night. we lost the sticky heat and humidity of recent night. 15 degrees towards the atlantic, but further north we are looking at single figures. eight or nine celsius for scotland and