buried under rubble after the earthquake and tsunami that hit indonesia. one week after the disaster, officials say they fear many more people than initially believed to have been buried in the area. we'll have the latest from sulawesi. also this lunchtime: a criminal investigation is launched by the environment agency after it emerged tonnes of medical waste, including body parts, have been stockpiled by an nhs contractor. political leaders from northern ireland meet the eu's brexit negotiator in brussels to discuss possible solutions to the irish border question. fuelling climate change and producing too much waste — mps say britain's clothing chains are damaging the environment and must reduce their impact. and — what i did in my summer holidays: the eight—year—old girl who uncovered a isoo—year—old sword. and coming up — as manchester united

look to avoid their first home defeat this season, jose mourinho admits losing to newcastle tomorrow would be unacceptable. good afternoon and welcome to the bbc news at one. one week after the earthquake and tsunami that hit the island of sulawesi in indonesia, officials say they fear more than a thousand people could still be buried under a housing complex in the city of palu. the number confirmed missing is more than a hundred, but rescue teams now believe more may have been unable to escape the buildings as they were submerged under mud when the tremor hit. emergency workers are still pushing into previously inaccessible areas. more than 1500 people are known to have died. from sulawesi, our correspondent hywel griffith sent this report. one week ago, this shopping centre

was full of life as palu's people started their weekend. today, it is where the search for hundreds of bodies slowly continues. there is little family members can do but wait. hope of finding anyone alive has almost disappeared. in some places, it's hard to know where to begin, like here, where homes are encased in meters of mud. it means the final death toll could eventually double. i think it will be increased, as in many places, houses are buried, and we still don't know how many, but maybe double. law and order has been

restored, but palu's jail is still missing 600 of its inmates after the earthquake turned it into an open prison. when the ground started the sheik, the prison started to collapse. this is what's left of the internal wall of the cells. it came down, the prisoners could just walk over, and this is what is left of the external wall. jump over this, and they were out. the governor said he tried to stop them but was attacked as prisoners started to flee. translation: we panicked when the earthquake happened, then there was more panic as hot water, mud and sand started coming up through the ground. but remarkably, a phew, including andy, decided to hand themselves in after checking on theirfamilies. he themselves in after checking on their families. he is themselves in after checking on theirfamilies. he is injailfor shooting someone. translation: theirfamilies. he is injailfor shooting someone. translationzlj have less than one year left to spendin have less than one year left to spend in prison. i have been injail for a long time, about six years,...

humanitarian aid is now reaching many of those who need it. shelter kits and solar lamps and britain have now arrived in indonesia, but it will take another day before they arrive in sulawesi. the need for help here will last for many months, if not years, as people tried to rebuild their lives. a criminal investigation has been opened by the environment agency, after it emerged that hundreds of tonnes of medical waste, including human body parts, have been stockpiled by a contractor working for nhs hospitals. the private company blames the backlog on a shortage of appropriate incinerators. the government says there is no risk to the public. lauren moss reports. hundreds of tonnes of medical waste, backed up inside this treatment facility in west yorkshire. pharmaceutical refuge including chemicals and even body parts are

waiting to be disposed of. there are also delays at five other site in england and scotland, delays which have been described as staggering. this is a scandal that simply shouldn't have happened. this is a really solid example of what happens when we start to regard services that should be central to our public services, services like cleaning, catering, portering as ones that can easily be contracted out and we can absorb south —— absolve ourselves of responsibility. the environment agency says that healthcare environment services, the contractor in charge of removing and incinerating hospital waste, is in breach of its permit, and has launched a criminal investigation. here, 350 tonnes of waste is piled up, five times the amount there should be, stored in secure, refrigerated containers. the health secretary chaired a cobra meeting to

discuss the backlog last month, but there is anger that this was not made public sooner. if this issue was serious enough for a criminal investigation to be launched, serious enough for the environment agency to raise concerns about the wider environmental health consequences, and serious enough for the health secretary to convene a meeting of cobra, why was it not serious enough for parliament to be informed? today, the department of health says it is monitoring the situation and insists there is absolutely no risk to patients or the public. a spokesperson says: on its website, healthcare environment services describes itself as the uk's leading independent provider of health care waste management. the company says it has repeatedly told authorities that there has been a reduction in the capacity to use

high—temperature incineration facilities. for now, the focus is on disposing of the ways. questions will need to be answered about how this happened in the first place. the irish prime minister, leo varadkar, has suggested that a deal between the uk and the eu could be reached within a fortnight. speaking in brussels, he said there is a ‘good' opportunity for an agreement, though he urged the government to confirm plans to avoid a hard border between northern ireland and the republic as soon as possible. four of northern ireland's pro—remain parties have been meeting the eu's chief negotiator, michel barnier, this morning, as pressure grows to reach a solution to the irish border problem before the eu summit later this month. our reporter, adam fleming, is in brussels. jane, last night, diplomats from eu member states had a meeting with the eu commission, who run the talks, and the message from this building was that there is light at the end of the tunnel. lots of the

outstanding issues are very close to being closed, apart from one, which is still a big sticking point: how to agree a back—up plan for avoiding the reintroduction of checks between northern ireland and ireland. the problem is now the subject of a frantic bout of diplomatic activity. a broken leg didn't stop the leader of sinn fein in northern ireland joining the dash to solve the irish border issue, with three other parties opposed to brexit making their case to the eu's chief negotiator. we want to protect the special relationship which we have, north—south and east—west. we need to see the protection of citizens‘ rights , we need to stay in the customs union and single market, so we'll be seeking assurances in terms of the eu stance which they have held to this point, but as we reach the end stage of the negotiation, it's important that they stay firm. michel barnier is sticking with his plan that northern ireland could stay in the eu's customs arrangements and parts of the single market, but he is tweaking it. it's still opposed by the uk, though, and the government's drawing up an alternative, one that could involve a customs deal

covering the whole uk. and powers for the northern ireland assembly at stormont to approve any new regulatory checks. guys, are you making progress on brexit? on his own visit to brussels yesterday, the irish prime minister was optimistic a deal could be done, only if the uk publishes its proposal well before an eu summit in two weeks. very important now over the next couple of weeks that everyone gets down to business. i think we are entering a critical and decisive stage of these negotiations, and there is a good opportunity to clinch a deal over the next couple of weeks, running through october into november. it's also the case that theresa may will have to satisfy her partners in the democratic unionist party as well. we've been very, very clear that we leave the eu as one country, because to do otherwise, to separate our economy and to put barriers up, that's the test, put barriers up, would do real damage to the economic

future of northern ireland. the dup will be ushered through the eu's doors next week in a search for a solution. if there isn't one, the whole brexit deal risks being hobbled. and the four politicians who were here this morning have been talking to journalist, and they said they would not approve a situation where the northern ireland assembly was given power over extra regulatory checks because in their view it would give the dup too much power. another example if any were needed, of just what a nightmare this another example if any were needed, ofjust what a nightmare this is the order. we have had a statement from the department for exiting the european union in the uk, saying they will be bringing forward proposals soon for the backstop which they say will protect the constitutional integrity of the whole united kingdom. thank you, adam. the anglo—dutch consumer goods giant, unilever, has abandoned a plan to move its corporate headquarters from london to rotterdam, in the netherlands. unilever, which makes goods including marmite and dove soap,

said the proposal hadn't received the support of some significant shareholders. our business editor, simonjack, is with me. so, what exactly is going on here? yellow might like one of their most famous products, you either love it oi’ famous products, you either love it or hate it, and enough —— famous products, you either love it or hate it, and enough -- love it or hate it. with its london listing and corporate headquarters in the ftse 100, the premier league of companies, that means a lot of investors, like pension funds, after by their shares. if they left their london headquarters, they would no longer be in that list and they would have to sell it. a lot of people, always tempted to look at this through a brexit lens. unilever said it was about simplifying the

company and making it more nimble. it is difficult when you have a dual structure, half in rotterdam and other in london, and they say there we re other in london, and they say there were simplifying it. paul dummett is not a brexit related issue, this ringing endorsement of london, with investors saying, we want blue—chip companies like this to stay in london and in the ftse100, will be a welcome pre—brexit boost. london and in the ftse100, will be a welcome pre-brexit boost. simon jack, thank you. more than 300 people were arrested as thousands of people attended a protest in washington dc against president trump's nominee for the supreme court. republicans say an fbi investigation has exonerated brett kavanaugh of sexual assault allegations, but democrats said the probe was ‘incomplete'. the final vote on his confirmation is expected to take place tomorrow. our washington correspondent, chris buckler, has more. the senate, like america, is divided. and protesters have been doing all they can to be heard by the small handful of politicians who're still deciding

whether they will vote for brett kavanaugh. inside the senate's own buildings it was obvious how political and personal beliefs have hardened positions on both sides. a vote for kavanaugh is a vote saying women don't matter. yes. let's stay together, let's fight, let's keep showing up! cheering before the senate'sjudiciary committee, christine blasey ford accused brett kavanaugh of sexually assaulting her decades ago at a party when they were both teenagers. his at times angry denials in which he attacked the democrats led almost 2500 law professors to question whether he has the temperament to become a supreme courtjustice. in an article for the wall streetjournal, judge kavanaugh has now admitted, "i might have been too emotional at times. i know that my tone was sharp and i said a few things i should not have said." but donald trump is continuing to fiercely defend the man he selected for the supreme court.

democrats have been trying to destroyjudge brett kavanaugh. crowd boos since the very first second he was announced, and he was announced for one simple reason — he's an incredible intellect. the protests and the politically charged debate will continue, but a final vote on whether brett kavanaugh should have a seat on america's highest court now seems likely this weekend. chris buckler, bbc news, washington. our correspondentjane o'brien is in washington. so, what is the timetable now, jane? what do we expect? in the next couple of hours or so, senators will

decide whether or not to move ahead with this confirmation vote. if they do, then they'll have 30 hours to actually do that vote, so we could see something happening perhaps on saturday. now, all eyes are still on four or five key senators who are undecided, even at this late stage, even after all the testimony and extended background checks by the fbi, they are still undecided, and they are two female republican senators, and crucially, a democratic senator who is defending his seat in the deep red state of west virginia. and he still wants to see the fbi report, he wants extra time to look at it again. protesters slept outside the senate steps last night. we are expecting more demonstrations from them, and all morning, we've had a parade of senior republicans coming through, making their last pitch, describing democratic efforts to prevent brett kavanaugh from being confirmed as

demolition derby. this is an extraordinary situation, but even at this late hour, we still don't know whether brett kava naugh this late hour, we still don't know whether brett kavanaugh will be appointed to the supreme court. jane, for now, thank you. stop our top story this lunchtime... a week after the earthquake and tsunami that hit sulawesi in indonesia, officials say they fear more than 1000 people could still be buried on the island. and still to come... crowds gather to watch giants stalk the streets of liverpool. coming up on bbc news... lewis hamilton fires a warning to title rival sebastian vettel as the formula one champion delivers a practice double for the japanese grand prix this weekend. two companies that sponsor the footballer cristiano ronaldo have expressed concerns about an allegation of rape made against him. nike described the claim as "disturbing" and said it was deeply concerned.

the video game maker, electronic arts, said it is closely monitoring the situation. nike's deal with ronaldo is worth a reported $1 billion. he denies assaulting kathryn mayorga in las vegas in 2009. caroline rigby reports. as one of the biggest names in sport, cristiano ronaldo is used to being in the spotlight. his performances on the field have attracted huge endorsement deals, but it's an allegation of an incident off it that has led to two of his biggest sponsors expressing concern. with a contract reportedly worth almost £800 million, the us sportswear giant nike has said "we are deeply concerned by the disturbing allegations and will continue to closely monitor the situation". a sentiment echoed by another sponsor of thejuventus star, ea sports. the former manchester united and madrid star insists he's innocent, tweeting, rape is an abominable crime that goes against everything i am and believe in.

my clear conscious, he said, will thereby allow me to wait with tranquillity the results of any and all investigations. the portuguese international has been left out of the squad for this month's matches against poland and scotland. his coach isn't saying why. translation: do you think i will tell you here what i discussed with the player, how he felt or not? i will not. these are intimate personal issues. as for ronaldo, he kept his head down as he left training in turin. caroline rigby, bbc news. leading scientists have been meeting in south korea to discuss the rise in global warming. they will publish a report next week, which is expected to say urgent action is needed to keep the rise in temperatures below 1.5 degrees celsius. many low—lying countries say they may disappear under the sea if that limit is breached. our science editor david shukman has

travelled to the mekong delta in vietnam, one of the areas most vulnerable to the effects of rising sea levels. he sent this report. i'm in the incredibly hot mekong delta in the south of vietnam. this region is described as one of the most vulnerable anywhere in the world to the effects of climate change. i'm on board with a team of scientists, so let's find out what they're investigating. one of the scientists on board is professor dan parsons from the university of hull. just to interrupt for a second, what are you trying to find out here? we're using this acoustic sonar technology to map the flows of water, of sand, silts across this large delta plain. how much is this region changing? it's changing rapidly and changing very significantly. you found out the amount of silt carried by the river has reduced dramatically. the silt is what actually builds the land up here. how serious is the situation?

absolutely right, the silt and the sands that are delivered from the basin upstream are the only thing that is offsetting sea level rise across the entire delta, which is home to 18 million people. i mentioned this is a hotspot for climate change. what makes it so vulnerable? it's low—lying, it's a large delta plain and it's sinking. the sea level is coming up. it's essentially drowning. serious stuff. many, many thanks indeed. let's go see what else is happening. one of the really big concerns is food supplies, because the mekong delta is one of the world's greatest regions for producing rice. professor steve darby, university of southampton, you're looking into this. what are the risks to rice production? well, there are a number. the first and most important is with rising sea level we are seeing a flow of that salt water onto the agricultural soils in the delta. the sea water's getting into the fields? that's right. during the flooding periods and during the dry season that salt water can flow over onto the rice growing areas and seep

into the soils. it can contaminate them for productive rice agriculture. presumably rice can't grow when the water is too salty? that's right. some species or some crop varietals are very intolerant to that salt content. long—term, what are the implications? if you've got the land sinking, sea rising, sea water getting into the fields, what happens? unless there's a switch to some more tolerant varieties that can withstand that kind of salt pollution, then the current system of agriculture will have to change dramatically in order to be able to continue. to try to end on a positive note, what can be done? all of us need to do what we can to limit climate change, but also we need to find ways to learn how to live with the worst impacts. many thanks for that. professor steve darby there of the university of southampton. we're waiting for a report from the un climate panel looking into the implications of trying

to limit global warming in the way vietnam and other countries want. we'll see if that is going to be possible. david shukman there in vietnam. this year's nobel peace prize has been jointly awarded to two campaigners against the use of rape as a weapon of war. the nobel committee said the congolese gynaecologist denis mukwege, and the yazidi human rights activist nadia murad, had made a "critical contribution" to the fight against sexual violence in conflicts. french police are investigating the disappearance of the head of the international police organisation, interpol. the family of meng hongwei, seen here on the left, say they have not heard from him since he left to travel to china a week ago. mr meng became the first chinese national to head interpol when he was elected in 2016. some of britain's leading fashion retailers are being asked by mps to explain what they're doing to reduce the environmental

and social impact of their clothes and shoes. the commons environmental audit committee says the clothing industry fuels climate change, spreads microplastics into the oceans, and fills up landfill sites. our environment analyst roger harrabin reports. fashion is worth £28 billion a year to the uk economy. mps say british shoppers buy far more new clothes than any nation in europe. clothing production has more than doubled globally over the last 15 years and in the uk we are buying twice as much as we were buying 15 years ago. what that means when we have more clothes is we are using them, we are wearing them, less. you have those go—to things, don't you, but i do get bored after new fashions come in, new colours, new styles. every time i go out for shopping i pick something up. but what happens to all these clothes that are

loved and then junked? this warehouse in north london sorts some of them and sends them to charity shops for resale. that saves the environmental impact of making new clothes. but it's only a tiny proportion of garments and shoes that get recycled. most are scrapped, with around 80% ending up in landfill, around 20% getting incinerated. the fashion industry is ranked fourth in terms of environmental impact, after housing and food and transport, so that gives you an idea of the massive impact. the fashion industry as an industry that poisons soil, pollutes rivers, generates a lot of massive amounts of carbon emissions. and here's another recently identified problem — fragments of synthetic fibres that are washed off our clothing. they're being eaten by creatures in the sea. working conditions in the fashion industry

are another concern for mps. they've written to the chief executives of the uk's ten leading fashion retailers to find out what they are doing to reduce the environmental and social impact of the clothes and shoes they sell. we as retailers have a really big responsibility in making sure that those clothes are as sustainable as possible. we know from the figures that we've been looking at, working with government, how we have cut things like energy and water use. there is much more we can do and that's what we've said in response to this report. the mps welcome the move, but say there is a fundamental problem with an industry that relies on people throwing away good clothes because they're last year's colour. they say fashion firms must try harder. roger harrabin, bbc news. the american first lady, melania trump, has arrived in kenya on the next stage of her trip around africa. she visited a rescue centre for orphaned elephants,

where she fed some of the animals. it's mrs trump's first major trip abroad without her husband since he took office. president trump has not visited africa since his election. an eight—year—old girl in sweden has found a sword believed to date from 1500 years ago — before the viking era. saga vanecek stepped on the sword in a lake this summer, when the water level was low because of a drought. the discovery was kept secret until now, to give archaeologists time to search the lake for other artefacts. richard galpin has the story. despite the approach of winter, this lake in southern sweden is still a popular destination for those in search of ancient treasures. because earlier this year there was an extraordinarily discovery here of something that had lain under the water for up to 1,500 years. and this is it. a sword dating back to the sixth century,

before the vikings, and it's surprisingly well preserved. translation: scientifically, culturally and historically it's very important for us. it's an important piece of history for this area and it's attracted attention abroad. and the discovery was made not by a seasoned archaeologist or treasure hunter, but by an eight—year—old girl who had been playing in the water here while on holiday with her family. translation: i felt around with my hands and knees when i noticed something that felt like a stick. so i was on the verge of throwing it away but i didn't. then i picked it up and i said to my dad, "i have found a sword". it felt very cool and also a bit scary. since then, archaeologists have found a relic dating back to the third century. but it's the discovery of this iron age sword which is now the prize exhibit at the nearby museum.

richard galpin, bbc news. giants, created by a french street theatre company, are appearing across liverpool today. the huge puppets, created by royal de luxe, are expected to draw large crowds over the weekend. the company first brought their creations to the city in 2012, and returned again two years later, in a performance to mark the centenary of the first world war. but they say this will be theirfinal performance. our correspondent, jayne mccubbin, is in liverpool, where people have gathered to watch. hello to you, hello, yes, let me introduce the dog, not not two, but three giants in liverpool this weekend and crowds expected of over 1 million people. come and meet the

not so little little boy. i don't know how it's sleeping, some kind of 19805 know how it's sleeping, some kind of 1980s mix tape going but he's sleeping through it. this is what he's been getting up to this morning, very playful, as he woke up in front of saint georges hall and started to entertain the crowds down there. as you say, this is all from there. as you say, this is all from the imagination of royal de luxe, arguably the world's best street theatre company, and this is going to be the last time anybody ever sees these giants. they've been seen in 174 different cities around the world and after this they retire. you guys are gutted, aren't you, because let me introduce this lady here. are you or their number one fan? i think it's absolutely wonderful, i do. you've followed them from day one in liverpool. what's magical about them ? them from day one in liverpool. what's magical about them?m them from day one in liverpool. what's magical about them? it brings out the inner child, it makes you feel like you are 12 gain or even younger. it's just amazing. feel like you are 12 gain or even

younger. it'sjust amazing. do you feel honoured to be part of the last audience that will enjoy this? really, really honoured. and very sad it's the last time but we're going to make the most of this weekend. we were there last night and will be here for the rest of the weekend. you will have a ball. from us weekend. you will have a ball. from us and the giants underwear liverpool, back to you. time for a look at the weather. earlier today, one of our weather watchers took this beautiful picture of millport in north ayrshire. over the next 24 hours we will see the cold air pushing southwards across the united kingdom, so a big, big drop in temperatures across