welcome to bbc news, broadcasting to viewers in north america and around the globe. my name is mike embley. our top stories: reaching the final furlong. president trump makes one last pitch ahead of the us midterm elections. a blast from the past. barack obama stumps for the democrats. he calls this a defining moment. a major search is underway to find 79 children kidnapped from a boarding school in north—west cameroon. and how we shall remember them? 100 years of changing attitudes towards the first world war. millions of people have already voted, and for the rest, polls open in just a few hours right across the united states for the mid—term elections that will determine president trump's ability to govern for

the next two years. he's not on the ballot, but if his party loses control of even one of the houses of congress, it will have a huge impact on what he can do, for the rest of his first term. this from the bbc‘s north america editor, jon sopel. his name is not on the ballot anywhere across the united states, but the forthcoming elections are all about donald trump. he's put himself at the absolute centre of this campaign, hurtling around the country energetically. and so it's impossible to avoid the conclusion that the results of tomorrow's midterm elections will be a referendum on his presidency. today he was in ohio. everything we have created and achieved is at stake on election day, it is. if the radical democrats take power, they will take a wrecking ball to our economy and to our future. booing the issue that's grabbed more

attention than any other is this, the caravan of immigrants making their way up from central america and heading towards the us border. the president has deployed thousands of troops and fearsome rhetoric. "america is about to be invaded," he says. fear mongering, say his opponents. getting fewer headlines is health care, but arguably of far greater concern to many more americans. the administration stands accused of watering down people's ability to get insurance cover if they have pre—existing conditions. make sure we turn out that the vote. the democrats in this climate are struggling to find their voice and so they are relying on someone who seems to have lost his. if you vote, you might save a life. that's pretty rare, the way it happens. barack obama was today campaigning today in virginia and has been the one democrat still able to draw a crowd and enthuse supporters. healthcare for millions is on the ballot. a fair shake for working families is on the ballot. and most importantly,

the character of our nation is on the ballot. the numbers turning up at rallies, the numbers turning out to vote early, are extraordinary. these are midterm elections like no other. let's get more now live from the bbc‘s dan johnson in washington. on that point thatjohn just raised, the turnout, even so far, what does it tell us, clearly that people are engaged and interested, does it tell us engaged and interested, does it tell us anything about the way they might vote 7 it doesn't really, we just know american politics has been very polarising over the last two years, many people feel very strongly even in favour of donald trump or against him, and the signs are whichever side they're on, they're likely to turn out and vote tomorrow in record

numbers, if they haven't already cast their ballot in early voting or through postal votes, because about 35 million americans have already done that, that's way up on the last mid—term elections four years ago. there's an excitement and energy about these elections that no one can remember at any other previous mid—terms. it's become a cliche to say american opinion is polarised, but it absolutely is. yes, there's very little middle ground to be found in any of this campaigning. the strategy from both sides and seems to have been in the last few days just to appeal to their core, natural supporters and try and get as many of those to actually turn out and vote as possible in the hope that will enable the democrats in theiraim to turn that will enable the democrats in their aim to turn over the house of representatives and take control there. that would let them frustrate there. that would let them frustrate the president's plans over the next couple of years, because they would have the control of key committees that would determine how much money

they can spend and what acts of congress he can actually put through. the president thinks if he can cling on to the senate and if he can cling on to the senate and if he can also do well in the house of representatives race, he will be in bold and to carry on with his strategy and the make america great again slogan, sort of direction —— emboldened. that's what he's been repeating at his rallies, the core m essa 9 es repeating at his rallies, the core m essa g es of repeating at his rallies, the core messages of how well the economy has been doing but the threat of immigration, something he's returned to time and time again. the democrats say this is about the character of the country and the direction of america over the next two years. although donald trump's name isn't on the ballot paper, everybody is seeing this as a test of how his presidency‘s performing so of how his presidency‘s performing so far. dam, thank you very much indeed. —— dan, thank you very much indeed. and we'll have more on the elections later. and you can find full converage of the midterm elections here on the bbc. tune in from 2300 gmt

for a special programme with all the latest news, results and reaction from washington and around the united states. the trump administration is claiming that the iranian economy will collapse unless the government in tehran changes its policies. the us has reimposed sweeping economic sanctions. president trump claims iran has violated the international agreement which limits its nuclear programme, although other countries who signed the treaty say it has not. the uk has criticised the american decision and says it will carry on trading with iran. this from our diplomatic correspondent, james landale. across iran today, they tested their air defences, an annual display of military prowess which happens to coincide with the moment american sanctions came back into force. translation: we are in a situation of economic war confronting a bullying power, and we will proudly bypass your illegal and unjust sanctions. in tehran, protesters burned the american flag in a familiar ritual, but the sanctions on oil, banks and shipping are expecting to make it harder for people to buy

food, fuel and medicine in a country already suffering economic hardship. these sanctions had been lifted in a ground—breaking dealfour years ago when iran agreed to limit its nuclear programme in return for more trade with the west. but donald trump claims iran has not kept its word and calls it the largest state sponsor of terrorism using the money it's raised through trade to destabilise the region. by, for example, supporting terrorist militias in syria and yemen. acting in ways that threaten american allies. for a few months, iran will be able to keep selling some of its oil to a few countries including china and india to avoid destabilising the market. but the us is clear

about what it wants. the islamic republic of iran is the destabilising force in the middle east today. the iranian regime has a choice, it can do a 180 degrees turn from its current course of action and act like a normal country, or it can see its economy crumble. the question is how much these sanctions will also hit british and european businesses. firms like rolls—royce and airbus that have worked closely with iran in the past. some financial firms could also be hit. the eu does have a plan to try and help companies avoid sanctions. but many have already pulled out for fear of losing their trade with the us. the british government is disappointed by the actions taken by the united states, although it's no surprise. the action we are taking is to maintain a position within an agreement which the iranians are sticking to, and we believe we should stick to as well. we don't agree with the concerns the united states have about iranian behaviour, we just think there's a different way to go about it. so there are deep divisions between europe and the united states over this whole approach to iran,

and the fear amongst some diplomats is that in the face of all these sanctions, iran, instead of improving its behaviour, simply hunkers down and perhaps even steps up its nuclear programme. the one thing that is clear is life for people in iran is about to get harder. james landale, bbc news. let's get some of the day's other news. the trial of the world's most notorious drug lord joaquin ‘el chapo' guzman is now under way in new york with security extra tight for the infamous jail escapee. the former leader of the sinaloa cartel is facing 17 counts of murder conspiracy, drug trafficking and money laundering. guzman is believed to have smuggled tens of thousands of kilograms of drugs into the us. the european union's chief brexit negotiator has said negotiations with london about leaving the eu are not driven by any sense of revenge. in brussels, michel barnier said a no—deal or hard brexit would spell trouble for expatriates in both regions. britain's prime minister theresa may has said she's confident of reaching

agreement on trade and security on the irish border a big obstacle to any deal. a tourist has died after being mauled by a shark in australia's whitsunday islands. paramedics travelled by helicopter to cid harbour, off the queensland coast, where the man had been swimming on monday. he later died in hospital. it's the third serious shark attack in the same area in the past two months. a full—scale search is underway to find 79 children kidnapped from a boarding school in north—west cameroon. it's thought the school's principal is among three staff also abducted by gunmen. separatist rebels are being blamed for the attack. caroline rigby has the story. abandoned, the scattered belongings of missing students, left behind after gunmen broke into their dormitory. in all, 79 pupils were

adopted from bamenda's presbyteries in secondary school, along with the principle and two other staff members. i's student who witnessed the attack described hiding under a bit in order to escape a similar fate to his classmates. one of my friend was coe, was being beaten mercilessly. all the big boys around mercilessly. all the big boys around me but to what the regional governor blamed the attack on separatist rebels. this is in the first time students have been abducted in the area, but it's the first time —— worst incident so far in an insurgency that is becoming creasing the violent. they are going to face strong powerful reaction by the powers that be —— is becoming increasingly violent.

pa rents of increasingly violent. parents of the missing children are anxiously waiting for any news. a major search involving the army is now under way to find their children. caroline rigby, bbc news. stay with us on bbc news. still to come: symbol of division. the banksy work of art that continues to cause controversy in the middle east. the israeli prime minister, yitzhak rabin, the architect of the middle east peace process, has been assassinated. a 27—year—old jewish man has been arrested and an extremistjewish organisation has claimed responsibility for the killing. at polling booths throughout the country, they voted on a historic day for australia. as the results came in, it was clear, the monarchy would survive. of the american hostages, there was no sign. they are being held somewhere inside the compound and student leaders have threated that, should the americans attempt rescue, they will all die. this mission has surpassed

all expectations. voyager one is now the most distant man—made object anywhere in the universe, and itjust seems to keep on going. tonight, we proved once more that the true strength of our nation comes not from the might of our arms or the scale of our wealth, but from the enduring power of our ideals. you're watching bbc news. one main headline for you this hour: campaigning reaches fever pitch — just hours now until polls open for the us mid—term elections, which could dramatically affect president trump's ability to govern. steve herman is white house bureau chief for voice of america news. he's in alexandria, virginia. i know you're a veteran of this, you

travel with president trump to more than ten countries, what is this early turnout telling you? the early turnout is something that the democrats see as very encouraging. they believe that because there is a lot of younger voters who were tend to vote for their party rather than the republicans, that that is a very good sign. and looking at other brea kd owns good sign. and looking at other breakdowns of the data, they believe that this shows everything going in their direction. and a number of pollsters are also waiting in with that. but with the caveat, as we saw with 2016, that the polls don't a lwa ys with 2016, that the polls don't always get it right on the mark. yes, steve, if you were a democrat, there are reasons for being nervous. the economy is very strong. the president has been pushing very hard on immigration, which matters to democrats as well as republicans. frankly the republicans have been efficient at making it harder for

people who might vote democrat to vote at all. certainly that seems to be the case in some areas and there are those who say that that is backfiring because that is even making people more motivated to believe that they may be disenfranchised to kowtow to the polls either on election day —— to get out to the polls on election day 01’ get out to the polls on election day or through early voting. do you know what my turnout? i hesitate to make any predictions, but i used to live in las vegas and if i was putting some bets down it would be quite co mforta ble some bets down it would be quite comfortable going with the direction of what the odds makers, the pollsters, are saving, that essentially what it does look like is that the democrats should be able to win enough seats based on the president's level of popularity, below 50%, historic precedent for that, to pick up a couple of dozen

seats at least at least take the house. now, the senate, according to nearly all the pollsters, is expected to remain in the hands of the president's party. you get used to the extraordinary with donald trump. it is worth mentioning this extraordinary situation where a campaign caveat put out by the president has been pulled by facebook, nbc, cnn, fox, for being racist. correct. this ad really caused a backlash, including from actors and film producers associated with nbc and universal who said they we re with nbc and universal who said they were ashamed to be affiliated with the network. and then cnn as a matter of fact said from the beginning that it was never going to run it at all. that it really rejected it based on its standards. the president was asked about this and acted like he was unaware of any controversy. and then asked about critics, saying that it was offensive. he said a lot of things are offensive, including your questions on what of the time. thank

you very much indeed. —— a lot of the time. donald trump's name is not on the ballot for tuesday, but he has put himself front and centre of the republican campaign, criss—crossing the us. christian fraser, presenter of the bbc show beyond 100 days, has been on a bit of a road trip himself, to west virginia, to see how the president's message is going down with voters. #to # to the place i belong. # west virginia... west virginia is one of donald trump's favourite state. back in 2016 he won the election here. he got almost 70% of the vote. and you know why, because it is coal country. you land in charles turne, you see the rolling hills. i guess they believe the policies he put in place are reviving the state. which might be donald trump's reason for coming eight times since he was elected and why he's here again in

the final days of the mid—term campaign. bottom the of this hill is huntington and we are going to see a radio host, from wvhu. conservative talk radio host, right? is that something people are concerned about? three things, really, coal, god and guns. tom has a daily morning show and get the lot of callers, so he is a good barometer of the republican mood. guns, god and coal, that is west virginia. i will throw in another one, donald trump. yeah, he has moved into the top four, maybe the top three, because what he says resonates with all of those other three. he talks about those things. he has talked about those things. he has talked about religious freedom, protecting second amendment rights, and you can ask any west virginia and in coal country, we are seeing the coal trains roll again. there is such a

fierce debate about immigration. i've just come from washington where they're appalled by some of the things he has said. i listen to the radio here and it is a different story. yes. why? because we want to see west virginia treated well. are they voting in west virginia for the party, policy, or the they voting in west virginia for the party, policy, orthe person? they voting in west virginia for the party, policy, or the person? there isa party, policy, or the person? there is a busload of supporters here. let's go and ask them. what's the most important issue for you in this election, what is the thing matters most? to me it is about one, jobs in oui’ most? to me it is about one, jobs in our country. americans working again. what's the most important thing in this election? the economy. i agree. is donald trump the only one who can breathe life into the economy? the only one who's tried to fix it in 60 years, you know. they have been working on it for years and years and couldn't get it done. he has done it in six months. donald

trump has set a frenetic pace this week and this one reminds me more of his presidential campaign rallies. here we are in a small hangar, air force one is gonna pull up behind the stage, he's going to get out to a rock star's welcome, i mean, made for tv. and you can see why he loves it, he arrives to these adoring crowds. west virginia is a state where he is very comfortable, they love him, he shows up and everybody chairs. # proud to be an american. he has flown into huntington to try to make the difference in a number of close races in the state. after yea rs of of close races in the state. after years of rebuilding other countries we are finally rebuilding our country. cheering and applause. we have ended the war on beautiful, clea n we have ended the war on beautiful, clean coal and we're putting our coalminers back to work. we love you, president trump. that's right.

if they win here, trott will claim the credit, but if republicans lose... that's what you end up with, it's your fault, lose... that's what you end up with, it's yourfault, mine, remember that. good drama. you've been to a lot of these, what do you think? closing days of the campaign he hits the three big things — coal, it is west virginia, immigration and then of course appeals to women voters because they have a problem with women. so the instincts, jobs, immigration, coal, but he needs them to go out and vote, he needs them to vote for republicans on tuesday. christian and katy on the road. in a slightly surreal move, the gru, russia's military intelligence agency, has celebrated its 100th anniversary. internationally, it's accused of interfering in the us presidential election and carrying out a deadly nerve agent attack in britain. on home soil, russia's military spies have been praised by vladimir putin for their dedication and unique abilities. the bbc‘s steve rosenberg reports. dimitri tells me that, if what the west is saying

about the gru is true, it means the russian agents are doing a good job. it means they are scared of us. not everyone here is so upbeat. with the gru also implicated in election meddling in the west, and in a failed coup in montenegro, some russians believe the spy agency is playing a dangerous game. translation: this situation is not normal. if every country did the kind of things the gru is accused of, this could end very badly for the whole world. as for the show, well, it ends bizarrely, and rather violently. when russia has a problem, it throws everything at it, all its power. then again, if there is one thing russia despises, it is weakness. it plays tough, and it plays to win, and controversy about its intelligence agencies isn't going to change that. when you think of the artist known

as banksy, what comes to mind is likely to be politically charged graffiti. one of his best—known works is a series of paintings on the side of israel's controversial security barrier. now he has re—created it for a travel fair in london. the bbc‘s tim allman has more. ba nksy banksy and notoriety go hand in hand, but in a career that's hardly of controversy this probably his most controversial work, well, a replica at least, an installation promoting tourism to the west bank.

focusing on this here, this gives an idea about what's going on on the ground in palestine, how palestinians are suffering because of the israeli occupation in palestine. israel calls it a security barrier, a necessary weapon to combat violence and protect its people. the palestinians see it as a sign of oppression and occupation. ba nksy sign of oppression and occupation. banksy has previously opened a hotel in the shadow of the barrier, and this re— creation is subtly different. the walls are broken but in the replica that banksy made here it isa in the replica that banksy made here it is a broken wall and i think he's kind of making a statement about that one day this wall will fall — it will not remain as it is. that seems unlikely, at least, for now. this still a symbol of tension and division — wounds that have yet to

heal. tim allman, bbc news. and before we go, we'd like to leave you with some big news for girl power. # la—la—la... yep, the spice girls are back and are going on a uk tour, after nearly two decades apart. they shared the news on their official twitter page. but they have revealed that victoria beckham won't be joining the group for their re—launch. she says she is too busy with her fashion career. and a reminder of the main news — millions of people have already voted, and for the rest of polls open in a few hours right across the united states for the mid—term elections that will determine president trump's ability to govern for the next two years. he is not on the ballot, of course, but it is republican party loses control of even one of the houses of congress it will have a huge impact on what he can do for the rest of his first term. more on that and all of the news any time on the bbc news website. thanks for watching.

hello there. the pressure patterns set up across the uk for the next few days will be crucial to how the weather is going to look and certainly feel. we've got a big area of high pressure over the continent, spinning clockwise, and a big area of low pressure over the atlantic, to the west of us, spinning anti—clockwise. and this is driving up southerly winds right across the country, and this mild air moving up from the mediterranean, through france, and across our shores. but as we go through the next few days, this area of low pressure across the west will slowly encroach into our shores, so although it's going to be mild, it will start to turn windier, and there will be outbreaks of rain pushing in from the west. now, early this morning, it's going to be a largely dry start. some mist and murk around from the bonfires and fireworks on the previous evening. but there will be some splashes of rain pushing into some western areas, but generally light at this stage. and a very mild start to the day, no lower than 8—11 degrees. so for tuesday morning, we start off on a largely dry note. for much of england, wales and scotland, there will be some spells of sunshine around, but quite a bit of cloud too. as we head into the afternoon,

this more active weather front will start to throw in some pretty heavy rain at times through parts of cornwall, devon, in towards western wales as well. could even be a rumble of thunder with this rain as it moves in. could also be pushing into north sea coastal areas, maybe the far west of north—west england, in towards northern ireland, certainly be wetter here, and then eventually western scotland. and it will be a blustery day for all, but certainly across western areas. temperature—wise, pretty good further east. where we have the dry and bright conditions, 17 or 18 degrees. but even further west, with the cloud, the rain and wind, 13 or 1a degrees. and then through tuesday night, that rain will continue to edge its way eastwards, perhaps not reaching the far east of scotland and england until we head into wednesday morning. we've got a secondary area of low pressure developing out of this as it moves across our shores, so wednesday is looking particularly unsettled — very windy, cloudy, some heavy rain pretty much anywhere through the morning. maybe a rumble of thunder or two, particularly in the showers,

these blustery, heavy showers, which will arrive across southern areas into the afternoon. temperature—wise, not quite as high as monday and tuesday, looking at 12—14 celsius. and it will be a windy day, with gales in exposure, certainly around coasts and over hills. and then as we end the week, well, we maintain a south or south—westerly wind, with low pressure still out towards the west. because high pressure could still be close by, it could remain dry. spells of rain, but again, with the winds coming in from the south, it should be pretty mild for the time of year. this is bbc news. the headlines: in the final stages of campaigning ahead of us mid—term congressional elections, president trump has told supporters that his republican party is delivering the american dream. the former democratic president, barack obama, said the character of the country was on the ballot in the midterms. the cameroonian government has launched a huge search operation for 79 children kidnapped from a boarding school. unidentified gunmen seized the students at the facility

in bamenda in the north—west of the country. students have described hiding as the hostage—takers ransacked the building and selected which children to abduct. the us secretary of state mike pompeo says washington will exert relentless pressure on iran unless it changes its current course. speaking after the reimposition of sanctions, mr pompeo said the objective was to starve the country of the revenue he said it used to fund violence. now on bbc news — monday in parliament.