i'm babita sharma in london. the headlines: despite stinging criticism and a string of resignations, the british prime minister says she'll see her brexit deal through. i believe with every fibre of my being that the course i have set out is the right one for our country and all our people. mass protests delay the repatriation of rohingya muslims from bangladesh to myanmar. i'm rico hizon in singapore. also in the programme: president trump will travel to california to meet victims of the wildfires that have killed at least 59 people. and genocide verdicts against two former leaders of cambodia's khmer rouge are due to be delivered shortly. welcome to newsday.

it's 7am in singapore and midnight here in london, where it's been a day of brexit turbulence here in london, and it shows no sign of ending any time soon. the british prime minister, theresa may, has insisted she is determined to carry on with her plan to take britain out of the european union. but some within her own party don't sign up to it. there have been seven resignations so far and it's not clear yet whether it's done enough to quell rumours of a leadership contest. our political editor laura kunessberg begins our coverage from westminster. there seems to be a certain interest in today's proceedings. on exactly the spot where theresa may took on the spot where theresa may took on thejob of prime minister... the march of the brexiteers trying to walk her to the exit. what we need isa walk her to the exit. what we need is a leader who will say to the

european union, it is impossible to divide up the united kingdom, it is impossible to agree to a situation where we have a perpetual customs union. those who still back her, exasperated. stop rocking the boat, stop wrecking, otherwise this will prove historic disastrous period, notjust for the prove historic disastrous period, not just for the conservative prove historic disastrous period, notjust for the conservative party and the government but for the country. hope dashed by this man, the brexit secretary who quit and didn't make the journey to work today. but she is still there, even with resignations and open revolt. can she stay? she'll try. serving in high office is an honour and privilege. it is also a heavy responsibility. that is true at any time, but especially when the stakes are so time, but especially when the stakes are so high. prime minister, is it not the case now that you are in office but you are not really in power? i'm going to do my job of

getting the best deal for britain. i'm going to do myjob of getting a deal that is in the national interest. when the vote becomes before the house of commons, mps will be doing theirjob, and am i going to see this through? yes. she makes it plain she wants to stay but she may have to go. with colleagues revolting or departing, some are organising to try and shoved her from office. this decision is not theresa may's alone. this could be a gale that sweeps through in a couple of days or a storm that brings a prime minister and her government down. and she can't ignore this. listen to the now departed brexit secretary con deming the deal. dozens and dozens of his colleagues hold this view. i fought very hard to get this deal, a deal that i could in good conscience take to the country and my colleagues. if you look at what's being proposed now, it's not only in my view damaging to the economy but it's impossible to reconcile to the promises we made at the last election. statement, the

prime minister. and beyond departed colleagues, is it realistic to expect theresa may can get her version of brexit through parliament? i do not pretend that this has been a comfortable process, oi’ this has been a comfortable process, or that either we or the eu are entirely happy with all of the arrangements that have been included within it. mr speaker, when i first became prime minister in 2016, there was no ready—made blueprint for brexit. many people said it could simply not be done. i've never accepted that. but watch her colleagues, half of them cheering, half of them arms crossed, not knowing where to look. then 57 minutes of bitter complaint after bitter complaint. the government must now withdraw this half baked deal which it clear does not have the backing of the cabinet, this parliament or the country as a whole. but, like it or not, it is in

a circus that the government's future will be decided. has it done it again? in a moment of the absurd, theresa may cracking a joke at a moment of intense crisis. the prime minister at the mercy of others but still in place. let's take a look at how the markets have been reacting. in currencies, the pound tumbled after british ministers resigned in protest, as you heard just now. tumbling against the american dollar. it's rekindled fears of a chaotic departure for britain from the european union in just a few months. investors want certainty and all they want is a deal than no deal at all. that's why we are seeing the asian markets quite positive, because they are basically forecasting a

potential deal between the eu and the uk. big asian investors want a deal sooner rather than later. japan, for example, employs 140,000 people in the uk, and has about $60 billion invested there. asian companies operating in the uk to gain access to the eu markets are now reassessing their strategy. those are the markets. let's move on 110w those are the markets. let's move on now to other news. mass protests by rohingya muslims have stalled their planned repatriation from bangladesh to myanmar. the government of bangladesh has said they are prepared to begin sending refugees across the border, but they would not force anyone to go. the bbc‘s yogita limaye reports from cox's bazar. there was chaos in the camps. we don't want to go back, shouted thousands of rohingya refugees. it was a response to an announcement by

the bangladeshi government. arrangements were in place, they said, if anyone wanted to return to myanmar. the answer was clear. translation: they shot and killed my pa rents translation: they shot and killed my parents and set my house on fire. until we getjustice, parents and set my house on fire. until we get justice, we parents and set my house on fire. until we getjustice, we won't go. they are trying to convince us to go there, but, if we do, we'll be slaughtered. over the past week, this camp has been rife with rumours, with hushed conversations, about the list of people who might be asked to return to me and mark, about who will be asked to go. today those voices have grown louder, and they've gone out here very emphatically saying they don't want to return. since repatriation plans we re to return. since repatriation plans were announced, the has been growing in the camps. exterior old del mohammed was so scared he tried to kill himself. a landlord in myanmar,

he now lives in a small hut. two of his nephews were shot dead but he managed to escape with his wife and sons. translation: all the memories of how they tortured us came back to me. they killed our people and they threw children in the fire. they even burnt down our homes. 0n threw children in the fire. they even burnt down our homes. on my way here, i saw so many horrific things. i'm so worried. like him, hundreds of thousands of rohingya muslims fled violence in myanmar last year and have been living in these camps in bangladesh since then. two months ago, the countries agreed on a plan to start repatriating refugees. the un says it's too soon. we think at this point now the situation is not conducive for the return of the rohingya to myanmar. the bangladeshi government has said it won't force anyone to return. we will follow the

principle of voluntary repatriation. thank you. it's unclear if the government will try to convince people to repatriate again but it's unlikely to succeed any time soon. also making news today: sri lanka's parliament has descended into chaos with members throwing punches at each other after the speaker declared there was no government. 0ne legislator was hospitalised and several injured. turmoil began when president maithripala sirisena fired the incumbent prime minister and replaced him with mahinda rajapa ksa. saudi arabia's public prosecutor is seeking the death penalty for five out of the 11 suspects charged in the murder of journalist jamal khashoggi. an official told reporters that khashoggi was killed in the country's istanbul consulate by lethal injection, and that his body was dismembered and removed from the building. exams in korea are like no other country: 600,000 students sat the national university entrance test, and the entire country got behind them.

all flights were grounded foran hour to avoid distracting aeroplane noise. businesses and government offices opened late and candidates who got held up could even get a police escort. the director of the us emergency agency says that paradise, the town in california ravaged by wildfires, will take years to rebuild. he described the destruction as one of the worst disasters he had ever seen. so far 59 people have died and 130 more are still missing. 0ur correspondent dan johnson has more. these are the teams that must answer the painful questions that hang in this acrid air. where is my family member? what happened to my loved one? how many more people are dead? team five starting search on location.

house after house, street after street, the ashes of this community are slowly revealing the lives once lived here. this work is difficult and the conditions can be dangerous and the scale of the task is almost impossible to comprehend. more than 10,000 properties ruined, and more than 100 people still missing. there is no good news here, no positive outcome. 0nly another name to add to the list of lives lost. they sift through the rubble with respect. and they are trying to preserve some dignity. they're special people. i don't think humans are intended to see this stuff to be honest with you. but i think everybody that does this, they come in with the intent of trying to provide closure to the families. because right now they are missing. so there's still more for them to do, and as they look further, it only gets worse.

danjohnson, bbc news, paradise. the judges at the khmer rouge tribunal in cambodia are about to deliver a verdict on the genocide charges against the two leaders of khmer rouge, nuon chea and khieu samphan. they are accused of carrying out a policy of targeting and eliminating two ethnic minorities in the country. we are joined now by our southeast asia correspondent, jonathan head, in bangkok. are these very likely to be the last ever verdicts? yes, they are, the end of a very long process that has lasted well over a decade of hearings, and much longer than that, if you think about the first negotiations to hold this international tribunal. these two leaders have already been convicted and sentenced to prison for life for crimes against humanity. that's related to the mass deaths and killings of cambodians under the

extreme rule of the khmer rouge. this is a far more specific charge of genocide, and it doesn't relate to the killings of cambodians because of the definition of genocide, it relates to specific minorities, the vietnamese community. the khmer rouge was notably anti—vietnam ease. in many ways, it will be a slightly anticlimactic verdict, whichever way it goes. these two men are the only senior khmer rouge leaders to have been convicted. two others who were charged died before they were able to get to the verdict. so in a way this is just charges to get to the verdict. so in a way this isjust charges being piled on people who have already been sentenced to prison for life. but it isa sentenced to prison for life. but it is a moment, once these verdicts are m, is a moment, once these verdicts are in, for everyone to reflect on the value of these international hybrid tribunal ‘s, and on whether in fact any kind of justice tribunal ‘s, and on whether in fact any kind ofjustice has been served in looking into the atrocities under the khmer rouge. briefly, nearly $300 million has

been spent in these trials, and only three convictions. have they really been worth it? that's a question, i think, that is currently being debated, and will continue to be debated for a long time. this has been in many ways an u nsatisfa ctory time. this has been in many ways an unsatisfactory process. it's a hybrid system where cambodia ultimately has a veto, and the current leadership has restricted the legal processes to just a few senior leaders. 0n the other hand, the immense amount of documentation of what happened is a very valuable and important historical record for those who suffered so much under the khmer rouge and future generations, andi khmer rouge and future generations, and i suspect for some of those who did suffer really badly, there has been some form of closure, albeit a very incomplete one. and will this end the book? is this the end of the chapter of the khmer rouge? well, it is, really. it's so many yea rs well, it is, really. it's so many years ago now, younger cambodians don't have any experience of that. it's not talked about much in

cambodia. there are very different political challenges today, but the fa ct political challenges today, but the fact that record exists, and usually, in a part of the world, southeast asia, where history is often not well documented or remembered, at least for those who ca re remembered, at least for those who care about what happened under the khmer rouge, the record is now there. thanks for the update from bangkok. you're watching newsday on the bbc. still to come on the programme: china has some of the tightest controls on information in the world — so why are its authorities so worried about fake news? also on the programme: rico gets a schooling from singapore's gold medal—winning swimmer. benazir bhutto has claimed victory in pakistan's general election. she has asked pakistan's president to name her as prime minister. jackson's been released on bail

of $3 million after turning himself into police in santa barbara. it was the biggest demonstration so far of the fast—growing european antinuclear movement. the south african government has announced that its opening the country's remaining whites only beaches to people of all races. this will lead to a black majority government in this country and the destruction of the white civilisation. part of the centuries—old windsor castle, one of the queen's residences, has been consumed by fire for much of the day. 150 firemen have been battling the blaze, which has caused millions of pounds worth of damage. hello, everyone. glad you are

staying with us. this is newsday on the bbc. i'm rico hizon in singapore. yes, thanks forjoining us. i'm babita sharma in london. our top stories. despite stinging criticism, and a string of ministerial resignations, the british prime minister has promised to see her brexit deal through. president donald trump will travel to california on saturday to meet with victims of the wildfires that have killed at least 59 people. let's take a look at some front pages from around the world. and, no surprises, it's awash with brexit headlines. look at how the new york times has summed it up with this headline, "brexit deal has arrived. hello, chaos." the opinion piece says the next few weeks will be an exercise in brinkmanship. the financial times is also leading with brexit. it's reporting on the eurosceptics calling for a no—confidence vote, and the drop in the sterling, while theresa may remains defiant.

and a change of pace with the international edition of the japan times, which says 12 flights operated by japan airlines were delayed over the past 15 months because pilots failed to pass alcohol tests. and those are the papers. now, babita, what stories are sparking discussions online? this was all of the social media. and so was this bbc language interpreter. this clip of the interpreter went viral on twitter after her animated facial reactions were seen by many to perfectly convey the complexities and turmoil of the british government. the clip has been shared tens of thousands of times. well, let's stay with wesminster politics, and that day of political turbulence. a short time ago, the bbc‘s political correspondent ben wright told me about the latest twist and turns. happily people are going to bed now

in london so there is a chance things will come down for the next 12 hours. and it feels that there is a bit ofa 12 hours. and it feels that there is a bit of a lull after extraordinary drama. the prime minister got her cabinet to agree to the draft brexit withdrawal deal on the table yesterday. and then almost immediately her brexit secretary, the man responsible for this negotiation, walked out this morning, quickly followed by the resignation of another brexiteer. it felt as if this was going to trigger a domino of resignations that would just destroy her cabinet and destroy theresa may's authority. that didn't then happen. she had a really tough time in the house of commons trying to explain the compromises she has had to take to get it to this point. she was quizzed about how on earth she was going to get this through the commons when it is opposed by a huge chunk of her own party as well as the opposition labour party. but she soldiers on and then she had a press co nfe re nce she soldiers on and then she had a press conference in downing street and said that she believes the deal

on the table is in the best interest of the country and that she is absolutely certain to see it through so that the result of the referendum to leave the eu that was had two yea rs to leave the eu that was had two years ago would be honoured. so she battles on. i must say around westminster, among tory mps, there is respect for her resilience. now, what's going to happen next? nobody knows. there is a sense of crisis, there is no doubt. remember, the uk is set to leave the european union injust four months. is set to leave the european union in just four months. the bbc's political correspondent ben wright. all this week on bbc world news, we've been looking at how the issue of fake news is affecting countries around the globe. in china, the state exercises great control over the media, but the government there is still concerned that false information is being spread. some say they're using the problem as an excuse to increase censorship. professor maria repnikova is a specialist in chinese media at georgia state university in atlanta. i asked her whether china is doing the right thing to fight fake news and misinformation. china is taking a lot more steps

than any other country in the world to fight fake news, which includes restrictive legislation, large scale campaigns, and investigations of social media companies. however, the result been somewhat ambivalent with fa ke result been somewhat ambivalent with fake news continuing to rise. so if you look at the resort and effectiveness of these campaigns, it is not clear whether china has managed to battle fake news entirely. so you're saying that fake news is still on the rise despite all of these measures being implemented by the government, what should they do, then, to be able to battle and combat fake news? so, fa ke battle and combat fake news? so, fake news, in any country, but especially in china, is rooted in deeper societal issues, including social insecurity. so people are concerned with the pollution crisis, all sorts of societal issues of the day. that is what they are speculating about online. the best thing the government can do is be

transparent about these hard social issues to inform the public and respond to their concerns. but also, arguably, the rumour spreading is pa rt arguably, the rumour spreading is part of self—expression. people want to express their opinions and ideas. so further crackdown and more censorship doesn't result in less disinformation. so it means then it would be difficult for the major western social media platforms to get into china? well, western social media platforms have had a hard time getting into china for quite sometime, but i think there are many political reasons attached to that, including the protection of local social media giants. fake news expert maria repnikova. many of you will have heard ofjoseph schooling, who won singapore's first—ever olympic medal in swimming in 2016, beating his childhood idol michael phelps. he's about to compete in the world championships in singapore, but managed to squeeze in time to talk to me at the pool.

iam here i am here withjoseph schooling, one of the fastest swimmers in the world, and, you know what, we will be finding out if he can answer questions as fast as he can swim. ready, set go. yourfavourite precondition song. what are your goals for the tokyo 0lympics? precondition song. what are your goals for the tokyo olympics? best times. your favourite movie of all time? texas barbecue? how many hours per day do you train? five hours per day. what is your guilty pleasure? local food that i shouldn't be having because it makes me fat. favourite junk food you are not

allowed to have? mcdonald's. will you go into politics? never say never, maybe. what do you hate about training? the cold pool early in the morning. singapore or texas? singapore. did he meet the time? one minute and five seconds, i am sorry, joseph, you'll have to jump minute and five seconds, i am sorry, joseph, you'll have tojump in minute and five seconds, i am sorry, joseph, you'll have to jump in the pool joseph, you'll have to jump in the pool. i will have to take you with me. oh, no! oh, my goodness, i beat him fair and square, babita, but he was the one who dumped me into the pool. do you know, i think i have to agree with you, you were doing your very best, rico, and it was completely unfair, but who better to throw you in the pool than a gold—medal winner?|j offered to challenge him in the 100 metre butterfly, but he didn't want to get in the pool. i am sorry, you lose, joseph. he knows you are going to beat him hands down. well done to

you. it was fantastic to see you doing so well as well. you have been watching newsday. i'm babita sharma in london. and i'm rico hizon in singapore. and, before we go, rico and i wanted to show you this — a new discovery — astronomers have discovered a planet around one of the closest stars to our sun. nearby planets like this are prime targets in the search for signatures of life. the planet's mass is thought to be more than three times bigger than our own, which means it's called a "super ea rth". look out for it, as more details come on the bbc news website. thank you so much forjoining us. rico and i will be back with asia business report and we will have more of course on the latest developments on the brexit politics continuing here in the uk. hello, though. we started this week

with some drenching downpours. we end the week on a much quieter note. albeit quite a murky one. some cloud, some mist and fog to start friday. i am cloud, some mist and fog to start friday. iam hopeful that cloud, some mist and fog to start friday. i am hopeful that things will brighten up a little bit later on. but sunshine amounts will vary depending on where you are. most of us depending on where you are. most of us starting off grey and murky with some mist and hill fog. but as we go on through the day that cloud will tend to break up. northern scotland should see some sunshine even in the morning. and then into the afternoon a few other places willjoin in. mostly where you get a bit of shelter from mostly where you get a bit of shelterfrom high mostly where you get a bit of shelter from high ground mostly where you get a bit of shelterfrom high ground in the south, north cornwall, north devon, western and northern wales, a decent chance of seeing a little sunshine. elsewhere the cloud should thin and break a little bit to reveal that lee some brightness. temperatures generally around 13 or 1a degrees. northern ireland, perhaps cumbria, the northern half of scotland, these areas likely to see some spells of sunshine with those temperatures a gang up sunshine with those temperatures a gang up to 13 or 1a degrees. ——

again. but as we go through friday night, most places will turn quite cloudy, the cloud lowering down onto the hills, it will be quite murky, some patches of missed, as a consequence, not a cold night, and minimum temperatures between six and 12 degrees. so a mild start to saturday morning. quite a grey start as well. there are some changes to come. high—pressure sitting here are cross the near continent. but the winds around high pressure flow in a clockwise direction and that's going to start to bring us more of a south—easterly flow. we will tap into some dry air and so this cloud is going to retreat. we are going to peel it back from the map and we will see increasing amounts of sunshine. so after that grey start things should tend to brighten up. and by saturday afternoon most of us should have blue skies overhead. those temperatures, ten, 11, 12 degrees, that won't feel too bad, although it will be quite breezy. and then for sunday quite a cold start, actually, a touch of foster round, then a lot of sunshine to

ta ke round, then a lot of sunshine to take us through the day. still quite breezy and not especially warm. —— frost around. temperatures around nine to 12 degrees. but those temperatures are only going to head in one direction as we head to the start of next week, and that is downwards. we are going to start to import some much cold airfrom downwards. we are going to start to import some much cold air from the near continent, and so temperatures are going to take a tumble. at the same time, we are going to bring in more of the way of cloud. so, largely grey skies as we go into monday and tuesday. it will still be quite breezy, and temperatures for many stuck in single digits. i'm babita sharma with bbc news. our top story: after several high profile resigniations, the british prime minister has appealed to her party to get behind her brexit deal. theresa may had been forced to defend her plan following a day of stinging criticism inside and outside parliament, including from the man who set up the deal, the brexit secretary, dominic raab. a planned repatriation of rohingya muslims from bangladesh to myanmar

has been delayed after a mass protest. more than 700,000 rohingyas fled myanmar last year to escape violence and military operations which targeted them. and brexit is trending on bbc.com. this clip of a bbc sign language interpreter has gone viral after actor ell potter tweeted it.