i'm sharanjit leyl in singapore. the headlines: tens of thousands of people in the philippines have begun evacuating from coastal areas as super typhoon mankhut heads towards the island of luzon. and in the united states, there's more extreme weather as hurricane florence looms. forecasters expect life threatening flooding as a result of a storm surge. i'm kasia madera in london. also in the programme. we'll be talking to malaysia's first daughter, marina mahathir, about human rights and why she's not one to shy away from the spotlight. and bye bye beetle: german car manufacturer volkswagen announces it's stopping production of the iconic car next year. it's 8am in singapore, 1am in the morning in london, and also 8am on the island of luzon in the philippines, where people are doing what they can to prepare for typhoon mangkhut. it's due to make landfall on the northern tip of luzon at the weekend. this is how it looks in the weather imaging — wind speed are expected to reach up to 255 kilometres per hour and there are fears it could be hugely destructive. reged ahmad reports. heavy rocks tying down houses

in the north in the hope it might save the roofs of their vulnerable homes when typhoon mankhut arrives. the philippines is hit by about 20 typhoons and storms the year. the destruction killing hundreds and leaving millions in a cycle of poverty. but this super typhoon has been described as the strongest yet of 2018. schools and offices have been ordered shut, thousands are evacuating. at about 100 kilometres in diameter, the storm is expected to pack powerful wind speeds with heavy rains, triggering landslides and flash floods. storm surges, too, are big threat, with high waves likely to inundate the coastline. but the biggest fear is for the estimated 10 million people in the path of the storm, with worries authorities and rescue services will be stretched

thin. but the important thing is for the government to make sure that evacuation happens. in the evacuation centres, there is no panic and they can provide food. the government is ready with food. officials do want to see a repeat of the super typhoon which killed thousands in 2013, forcing many from their homes. this time, as people prepare and stock up on supplies, some even say they plan to stay, in the hope they can protect their property. as super typhoon mankhut draws ever closer. reged ahmad, bbc news. the other tropical storm raising much concern, this time in the us, is hurricane florence. it's nearing the east coast and is expected to bring life—threatening flooding as a result of rainfall and storm—surge. that's according to forecasters who say heavy rainbands with tropical storm—force winds were spreading across the coast of north carolina. i've been speaking to our correspondent, laura trevelyan,

who's in wilmington in north carolina. she says florence has been downgraded but the storm has become wider. as you can see behind me, the leading edge of hurricane florence is just reaching us here in wilmington north carolina. we are really being battered by rains. the winds are getting much, much heavier. although the hurricane has been downgraded to a category 2, forecasters are saying don't be complacent about that, because it has become much wider. and it is in effect a category 5 flooding threat. if this carries on for several days, we may get record rainfall here in north carolina. and that could lead to catastrophic flooding, as there is nowhere for the water to run off as water levels rise on the coast,

and also inland. so this is potentially a very dire situation, and already, by the way, it 60,000 people are without power, even as the hurricane just approaches. laura, are they listening to evacuation notices? in general, yes, they are. there is a barrier island behind us. people there have mostly heeded the warnings. a couple of people are trying to ride out the storm and think they will be all right, or people who have ridden out other hurricanes before. but people are taking the warning seriously. there was buying of supplies, and all the gas has been bought up. most people have headed out of town, because when you were told that it is a monster, life—threatening storm, most people are taking that warning seriously. but of course a lot of concern over the rainfall? yes. exactly. also, this is a very, very slow—moving storm.

that is the other thing. because of changes to the jet stream, which may be associated with climate change — normally the jet stream moves the hurricanes off the eastern seaboard and pushes them away into the atlantic. but we saw with hurricane harvey last year, when i reported on that in houston, the storm sat over houston for several days, leading to heavy rains and catastrophic flooding. essentially the same thing could happen here. this is a new phenomenon of hurricanes lingering for days. the threat of flooding is so acute. well past hurricanes are continuing to have a political impact. politicians across the united states have rebuked president trump for questioning the number of puerto ricans killed as a result of hurricane maria last year. the president sent a flurry of tweets rejecting official findings that nearly three thousand people died in puerto rico as a result of last year's storms.

he accused democrats of inflating the official death toll to make him "look bad". the official figure was released last month after an independent study. paul ryan, the republican us house speaker, is one of those who disagrees with president trump's comments. casualties don't make it doesn't look bad. that's not... there is a reason to dispute these numbers. i was in puerto rico after the storm. it was devastating. the uk cabinet has met for several hours to discuss what would happen if britain left the european union without a formal deal. ministers have published contingency plans for areas including passports, driving licences and mobile phones. new york auction house christie's has revealed what they say will be the most expensive work of art by a living artist ever sold at auction. they estimate this piece, portrait of an artist, by david hockney, will sell for about $80 million. the 1972 painting, described

by christie's describe as iconic and one of hockney‘s greatest works, will go up for auction in november. let's return to our top story — that's the huge storm heading towards the philippines. typhoon mangkhurt is expected to hit the northern philippines on friday and with winds of up to 255 kilometres an hour, there's fears for the safety of the up to ten million people in its path. the bbc weather‘s darren bett has more about the storm and where it's heading. —— typhoon mangkhut. typhoon mangkhut is another large and powerful typhoon. as a category four, it is maintained strong winds in excess of 120 miles an hour, that is 205 kilometres an hour. that will

be the first typhoon that will directly hit the philippines this year. it is bearing down across northern parts of the philippines. northern areas of luzon, well north of manila, it will properly make la ndfall of manila, it will properly make landfall friday night into saturday morning. moving quickly, it will probably take about 12 hours to ci’oss probably take about 12 hours to cross northern parts of luzon, bringing torrential rain, flash flooding, and damaging winds, as well as a storm surge. emerging out into the south china sea, it will be weakened by this stage. broadly to the south of hong kong, now, by sunday. that is a change in the forecast. by then, the typhoon will not be as powerful or damaging as it is right now. the two men named as suspects in the salisbury nerve agent attack have appeared on russian state television and denied any involvement. the men dismissed british claims

that they were intelligence officers, and insisted that they work in the fitness industry. they said they were on a short break to the uk to visit salisbury cathedral. sarah rainsford reports from moscow. speaking out for the first time, the two russians accused of the deadly nerve agent attack in salisbury. today, they appeared on pro—kremlin television to declare their innocence. translation: our friends had been suggesting for quite a long time that we visit this wonderful city. they do resemble the two men identified by british police, but they deny they're russian intelligence agents. asked what they were doing in salisbury, they came up with this. translation: it's a tourist city. they have a famous cathedral there, salisbury cathedral. it's famous throughout europe and in fact around the world, i think. it's famous for its 123—metre spire. it's famous for its clock. it's the oldest working clock in the world. the men claim they were so keen to see the sights that they made two trips here in two days.

the weather was so bad that they came back. british police believe the first visit was actually a recce for the attack. so did they visit the house where sergei skripal and his daughter were poisoned? translation: maybe we passed it or maybe we didn't. i never heard about them before this nightmare started. i never heard this name before. i didn't know anything about them. from the start, the kremlin has dismissed the accusations coming from london as lies. officials here have called the whole affair absurd, a soap opera. now these two men are being presented as definitive proof of that, however implausible their own story actually sounds. the skripals survived the poisoning, but dawn sturgess died after spraying novichok from a perfume bottle her boyfriend had found. police believe that is how the nerve agent was brought to britain. translation: when you go through customs, they check all your belongings, so if we had anything

suspicious, any police officer would have questions. why would a man have women's perfume in his luggage? accused by britain, the men now claim they are worried for their lives. they even demand an apology. but this appearance was controlled, carefully choreographed. the suspects who have vanished as suddenly as they appeared for the state tv camera. sarah rainsford, bbc news, moscow. we've all heard of first daughter ivanka trump but what about marina mahathir? a writer, activist and the eldest daughter of the newly elected malaysian prime minister mahathir mohamad, she is not one to shy away from the spotlight. vocal about human rights and her defence of the lgbt community — despite homosexuality being illegal in the country — she's well known for directly criticising her father's government. well, earlier, i was lucky enough to speak to her in the studio, and i asked her about her staunch defence of womens' rights. i am really talking about human rights. and whether you are female or male and whatever your sexuality is,

you are human beings. so you are entitled to the same rights as every other human being. we have a constitution that guarantees equality before the law. and i am just calling on people, particularly the authorities, to follow the law. it is about the rule of law. we recently saw two women caned for homosexual acts. when you see much change happening in malaysia in terms of the strict islamic laws, the shahia laws, is progress being made? we should know that that is in a state will buy it the opposition islamic party. i think it was an attempt to assert their authority in the face of this new government which promises to be more open, more progressive. more democratic. so it was kind of a provocation. and the government — or the federal government — has said that they did not approve of it, they do not condone it, because, under the constitution, women cannot be caned. and basically we want to get rid of corporal punishment altogether for anyone. and that's the issue. it has never been done before. that women are being caned in public and everything.

so a long way to go before malaysia truly becomes a modern society, would you say? i would not say. that is an isolated case on the east coast. you optimistic about the future? i am very optimistic. i think a lot of good signs. marina mahathir, the first daughter of malaysia. you're watching newsday on the bbc. still to come on the programme... we'll take you to vostok — where russia is holding its biggest military exercise since the cold war. also on the programme, volkwagen lose the love bug for their beetle. production of this iconic car is to end next year. there are people live on people not

alone. it isjust help in whatever we've got. it looked as though they had come to fight a war, but their mission is to bring peace to east timor, and/or a nurse needs more badly. the government's case is being pursued by the justice minister. he is campaign to grisly for abolition, having once witnessed one of his clients being executed. elizabeth spends a lot of time at the grotto. every year, hundreds of pilgrimages media. now that she is a saint, is expected that there will be hundreds of tourists. the boom will be another blessing. this is newsday on the bbc. i'm sharanjit leyl in singapore. i'm kasia madera in london.

our top stories: tens of thousands of people in the philippines have begun evacuating from coastal areas as super typhoon mankhut heads towards the island of luzon. on the east coast of the united states, there's more extreme weather as hurricane florence looms. let's take a look at some front pages from around the world. on the front page of the south china morning post, there is an exclusive story about cathay pacific. they will be revamping their pay and perks package for new pilots. those who fly more, will take home more. on the front page of the philippine star, it shows that evacuations are now underway in luzon. it is the most powerful typhoon to threaten the country this year. as a precaution, some schools and offices have already closed. the centre of typhoon ompong, which is also known as mangkhut

is expected to hit cagayan tomorrow. and finally, the international edition of the new york times has an article about a museum exhibition dedicated to political anger. the exhibition is called ‘i object' and is in london. it traces political anger all the way back to the ancient egyptians! items include a babylonian brick and a banksy prank. now, what stories are sparking discussions online? sharanjit, the story that has got people really interested online is the singer dua lipa calling her fans "brave". it's after what happened during her concert in china last night. videos appear to show security guards dragging people from their seats and removing them from the venue in shanghai. it's been claimed those fans targetted, were waving gay rights flags. a china representative for dua lipa's record company told the bbc that no—one was available to comment. let's take you to siberia now where russian

troops are taking part in the country's biggest military exercise since the cold war. as we've been reporting on newsday this week china is lending its support, sending more than 3,000 troops to the region, with military, economic and political ties seen to be strengthening between the two countries. from siberia steve rosenberg reports. from over the hills, the russians are coming. they are the largest russian manoeuvres since the cold war. a third of the entire russian armed forces is taking part, says moscow. and joining them here, troops from china. under pressure from the west, russia tilting east. the army invited us to watch the show. the aim of the exercises across the russian far east, to test combat readiness.

the drills, moscow insists, purely defensive. some experts suspect the russians have inflated troop numbers, but the show of strength was indisputable. we weren't the only ones watching. vladimir putin followed the drills and then pledged to make russia's armed forces even stronger. translation: russia is a peaceloving country. we don't have any aggressive plans. but we have a duty to the motherland to be ready to defend russia's sovereignty, security and national interests. the message russia wants to send with all this is pretty clear, that it has a powerful army and powerful allies in the east, and that moscow has no intention of giving in to pressure from the west. and that's where china comes in. presidents putin and xi have been cooking up a strategic partnership as a counterweight to the west.

moscow sees closer ties with beijing as a recipe for surviving western sanctions. russia always wanted to be integrated into the west. now this era is over and russia needs a very strong external partner which can provide technology, new markets and investments. and that's china. so russia is slowly drifting into china's embrace, definitely ignoring the bigger picture and ignoring these tectonic shifts between the two. i think it's very dangerous and shortsighted. but, in courting china, will russia end up thejunior partner? it's determined not to. moscow continues to see itself as a military super power. volkswagen has said it will stop making one of its most recognisable cars, the beetle, next year. the german car maker says it's moving towards a more family friendly fleet of cars

and putting more emphasis on developing electric vehicles. beetlemania, one of the bestselling cars of all time, but now the end ofan era. after an official speech from hitler... it was originally the dream of a despised dictator that came to symbolise the freewheeling ‘60s, finding mass fame in the disney film, love bug, and capturing hearts with its cheap price and funky design. reliability, economy and the distinct look ensured its success, but now, as volkswagen looks towards mass—market electric cars, production is to cease. there will be two final edition models costing around $23,000. there is shock on social media. autonews europe announced...

beatle fan deezus tweeted. .. drivergifts lamented... and hillary said... the company admitted the loss of the beetle after three generations and nearly seven decades would evoke a host of emotions from its many devoted fans, but the company has hinted the model could be revived at some point. never say never, it teased. saleswomen in the south indian state of kerala recently won the right to sit at work. it was seen as a major advance for worker rights. saleswomen in the south indian state of kerala recently won the right to sit at work. it was seen as a major advance for worker rights. saleswomen in the south indian state of kerala recently won but are the women actually able to claim this right? the bbc‘s divya arya

has been investigating. it's a mad dash to get to work in the morning to begin the long term— hour day, largely spent on your feet. most owners of retail outfits here in kerala forbid women, the bulk of the workforce, to sit. after eight years of campaigning by women, the government has said it will end the government has said it will end the practice but little seems to have improved. none of the women working in these showrooms were ready to talk on camera. when i met them in private, they said they are afraid they will lose theirjobs and still too scared to ask their bosses for the right to sit. my lost her job four years ago when she demanded this right. translation: we had pain in ourlegs, this right. translation: we had pain in our legs, barrackers baynes, uterus related complaints, you marry infections because we wouldn't drink enough water, and of other health issues. maya do strength from viji,

the woman who set up an trade union. this is why i had to be the voice. but the traders association says shop assistants are given and a brea ks to shop assistants are given and a breaks to rest. translation: there are thousands of shopowners in kerala. if one or two or of them are acting badly, that does not mean they are all bad. but the government says it received many complaints and will now would introduce fines as well but until the laws are enforced, the sale assistance will have to weight to reclaim the rights. you have been watching newsday. i'm kasia madera in london. and i'm sharanjit leyl in singapore. stay with us. coming up in asia business report, lessons learned. what asia got out of the global financial crises ten years ago and how it moved on. and before we go, we'd like to leave you with these live pictures

from cape fear in north carolina where you can just see the impact of strong winds from hurricane florence hours before its expected to make landfall. forecasters are warning the storm could drop as much as a metre of rain. about 10 million people live in the path of hurricane florence. hello. well, before we go to the weather for the uk, an update on hurricane florence battering the east coast of the united states. and the worst of the weather

is technically still out to sea. the storm's eye isn't expected to cross land, that is, make landfall, until around about lunchtime on friday uk time. but it has already been battering north carolina, south carolina, areas towards the north as well as further inland, and it is a slow—moving storm, that means it is dumping a lot of rainfall in the same place for a considerable amount of time, and those destructive winds, the storm surge, likely to be some destructive flooding from this or the system. meanwhile, in the asia—pacific, we have a very powerful storm, even stronger, typhoon mankhut, a super typhoon heading for northern parts of luzon in the philippines, and the effects of the storm could be catastrophic, so two very powerful storms both sides of the globe. meanwhile, here in the uk, obviously it is a lot

quieter, thank goodness. showers in the north, much more dry in the south, and this is a satellite image from the last 12 hours, clouds into the northern part of the country, further south the clouds have broken up at bit, so we have clearer weather. and that's how we start friday morning. a lot of dry weather notjust in the south but some eastern areas, whereas in the north—west notice the rain in northern ireland, western scotland and the north—west of england. as we go through the morning into the afternoon, there is the clock, ten, 11, 12, showery spells, in the south—east it should be dry, if not even sunny, 19 in london, fresh in aberdeen at around 15 degrees. now that takes us into the friday night and eventually saturday. high pressure to the south of the uk will bring warm and sunny weather in the near continent and not so bad in the south of the uk as well and in the midlands. sunshine on the way for saturday. you can see some of the bright weather extends all the way to scotland but a weather front only coming from the north—west, so eventually on saturday

in the north—west there will be some rain and a decent breeze. 21 the top temperature on saturday. here is a look at sunday's weather forecast and a weather front is expected to move across the uk. that means the central swathe of the country could have some rain, but either side we have some brighter weather and the warm spot of course in the south and the south—east up to around 22 degrees. that's it from me. you're watching bbc news. our top story: typhoon mangkhut is heading towards the philippines. tens of thousands of people have begun evacuating from coastal areas as the super typhoon heads towards the island. 10 million people are believed to be at risk in the path of the storm. there's more extreme weather, this time on the east coast of the united states, as hurricane florence looms. forecasters expect life threatening flooding as a result of a storm surge. residents are being warned that ‘time is running out‘ if they are to leave their homes. and this story is trending on bbc.com.

the singer dua lipa has called her fans "brave" after videos showed security guards dragging people from their seats in shanghai. it's been claimed those fans targetted were waving gay rights flags. that's all. stay with bbc world news. and the top story in the uk: theresa may has described a russian television interview given by two men suspected of poisoning of a former russian spy