i'm rico hizon in singapore. this is newsday on the bbc. the headlines: seven weeks after his arrest, former chairman of nissan, carlos ghosn is to make his first appearance in a tokyo court. thailand says an 18—year—old saudi woman — who's seeking asylum — wont be deported against her will. i'm kasia madera in london. also in the programme. a fourth visit to china by north korea's leader — amid speculation about another meeting with president trump. the unsolved murder of a british woman in beijing 80 years ago. why does the case still draw so much attention? good morning.

it's 8am in singapore, midnight in london and 8am in tokyo where the former chairman of the nissan motor company is due to appear in court shortly. it will be carlos ghosn‘s first public appearance since he was arrested in november on allegations of financial misconduct. he requested the hearing and his lawyers are expected to ask why he has been held for so long. our correspondent rupert wingfield—hayes joins us from tokyo. everyone is indeed very curious, rupert, what he would look like and what he will say in this court appearance. all right, we have some

technical problems outside the tokyo court and we will be back with rupert ina court and we will be back with rupert in a moment. we will try and get some communications back up with rupert. but first, let's take a look at some of the day's other news. the us partial government shutdown has entered its third week. president trump says he'll visit the us mexican border on thursday and make a televised statement to explain why he wants five billion dollars to build his border wall before he reopens the government. he's repeated his threat to call a state of national emergency if congress will not agree the funding. also making news today: the president of the world bank,jim yong kim, is leaving his post next month in an unexpected resignation. mr kim's term was due to end in 2022. the world bank says kristalina georgieva, the chief executive officer, will take over as interim president. a nepali spiritual leader is under investigation over

the disappearance of several devotees, accordign to police in kathmandu. ram bahadur bomjan is believed by his followers to be a reincarnation of buddha. he's also previously been accused of physically and sexually assaulting some of his flock. china has warned its citizens that anyone who misbehaves during the upcoming chinese new year travel rush will be temporarily banned from trains and planes. travellers were reminded not to smoke on trains, steal seats reserved for others or travel without tickets. the government says the travel campaign was part of a larger effort to improve social behaviour. the british government has been testing plans to reduce border disruption in the event of a no—deal brexit, with this convoy of 89 lorries taking part in two exercises at a disused airport in the uk. officials said the traffic ran smoothly, but critics say the process should have

begun months earlier. the former chairman of the nissan motor company is due to appear in court shortly. our correspondent rupert wingfield—hayes joins us from tokyo. everyone is indeed very curious, rupert, what he would look like and what he will say in this court appearance. that's right. he is expected to appear here in the caught behind me in1.5 hours time appear here in the caught behind me in 1.5 hours time and it's been a long time since we've seen or heard anything from carlos ghosn, detained at tokyo airport on november 19 and since then held incommunicado essentially from the rest of the

world in a cell at the tokyo detention centre. he's been allowed to see his lawyer. he is being questioned daily, for the last seven weeks. according to his son who gave an interview he has lost some weight but he says his father is determined and today in court is going to could proclaim his innocence and his lawyers are going to demands to know why he is being held for so long. we are seeing now live pictures outside the tokyo court where our correspondent rupert wingfield—hayes is located. rupert, a loss of attention on the japanese judicial system 7 attention on the japanese judicial system? yeah, i can tell you there isa system? yeah, i can tell you there is a lot of interest in what is going on today. hundreds of ordinary tokyo citizens lining up outside the court this morning hoping to get the opportunity and a lottery to go in

and watch this court hearing going on. there are a fewjournalists have entered a lottery to sit in the courthouse because obviously there is massive interest in seeing carlos ghosn, seeing what he looks like and what he has to say because it is the first time that we have heard from him in so long and you are right, there is huge attention onjapan, not just because carlos there is huge attention onjapan, notjust because carlos ghosn is such a high—profile figure and he was head of a huge corporation, nissan and renault, but it also shed light on the japanese judicial system and those who don't know much about the system are surprised at how long carlos ghosn can be held, seven weeks, and he has been charged with one charge back at the end of december. he was arrested again on a second accusation that is being held for another period of time and this can go on and on. we could see him

arrested again when his current period of detention ends on the 11th. people i've been surprised to see that japan can hold people without bail, without a proper court hearing for so long. to bangkok where an 18—year—old saudi woman — rahaf alqunun — is now in the care of the united nations refugee agency. she became the centre of international attention after a weekend hiding in a hotel room and refusing to leave. she said she feared deportation back home where she could be killed by herfamily. jonathan head sent this report. i'm still in the room. erm... i have no choice. a few hours earlier, she was barricaded in, sending out messages of defiance and pleas for help. i'm not leaving my room

until i see unhcr. i want asylum. she said her family would kill her for running away. she'd arrived in thailand at the weekend from kuwait, fleeing a family, she said, that might kill her. but thailand typically takes a hard line against asylum seekers. it had promised to deport her. yet after a blaze of publicity, it relented, the immigration chief the immigration chief coming to her hotel to promise that she would not be forced to go back. "i'm using my authority to let her enter thailand," said general surachate hakparn, "and hand her over to that's unusual in thailand. a senior un official was quickly dispatched to the airport and given firm promises about her safety. i am confident in the reassurances provided by the commissioner for immigration and other thai government officials. you're confident she won't be

suddenly sent back? well, that... we have received assurances and guarantees that that will not happen. well, throughout today, this hotel has been the scene of extraordinary comings and goings, with officials going in and out, trying to persuade the young saudi woman to come out of her room. at one point, we thought she'd be deported. now we know that thailand has given her an entry permit, the un is involved, and her request for asylum, they say, will be properly assessed. it might have been a very different ending. another saudi woman — deported from the philippines in similar circumstances — has not been seen since. rahaf‘s case is very symbolic of many, many women inside saudi arabie who are trapped in abusive situations. they cannot travel abroad, maintain a passport, or exit prison without the consent

of their male guardians. this young woman has certainly been lucky, although her ultimate fate is still unclear. jonathan head, bbc news, bangkok. the north korean leader kimjong—un is in china for a summit with the chinese leader xi jinping. it will be the fourth summit between the two leaders and comes as us president trump says negotiations are underway to decide the location for his next summit with kim jong un. we have just had confirmation from north korea that kim jong—un we have just had confirmation from north korea that kimjong—un is on his way to china so what is thought to be his 35th birthday will be spent perhaps meeting with president xi, the fourth meeting between the two and it's worth noting the last time the two have met its come before a major saliva summits with the south korean president moon

jae—in or the us president, donald trump. when it comes to that summit with donald trump there is a lot of speculation once again as to whether location will be. it was in singapore last time. what is the location to be? you and i remember very well the number of times i was on your programme speculating as to where the summit might be between kim jong—un where the summit might be between kimjong—un and where the summit might be between kim jong—un and donald trump and indeed it was going to go ahead. we are not quite sure and getting various reports from south korean newspapers who say they have sources telling them it may be in hanoi. others say mongolia or perhaps here at the demilitarised zone that kim jong—un met president moonjae—in, various locations being touted. the main thing will be what progress can be made with a second summit and where is the current progress? some people will say we've gotten everywhere in the last year. kim jong—un has met with moonjae—in and

donald trump and president xi, he stepped onto the global platform and engaging with the international community but it depends where you put that progress gauge. no nuclear weapons have changed hands, there is know that north korea is going to give up any of its nuclear weapons and it seems to be dictating the terms by which to negotiate. if you are looking at that site —— that site in the united states said they wa nted site in the united states said they wanted a complete irreversible bald —— irreversible denuclearisation, that won't happen, but the meeting itself could be seen as progress. actor kevin spacey appeared in court on the island of nantucket today — charged with sexually assaulting an 18—year—old man in a bar there in 2016. the oscar—winner and house of cards star said nothing — but was given bail, and lawyers entered a plea of not guilty on his behalf. our north america correspondent nick bryant was in the courtroom, and has this report.

this was a journey kevin spacey didn't want to make. touching down on this jet—set island before completing a televised drive to his first appearance in court. clear the sidewalk, please. his legal team argued he shouldn't have to appear in person because of the negative publicity that's already surrounded this case. but the actor who has spent so much of his life in front of the cameras found it impossible today to avoid them. there was even a live stream from the courtroom to record the charge levelled against him. this complaint charges that, in the town of nantucket onjuly the 8th, 2016, did commit indecent assault and battery on a person 1a or over. the oscar—winning actor shared a joke with his lawyer but did not address the court. he has pleaded not guilty and agreed not to approach his accuser. stay away and no contact with the victim and the victim's family. thank you. nantucket is the playground of america's elites. in the summer of 2016, kevin spacey is alleged to have sexually assaulted an 18—year—old waiter. during a late night drinking session in this bar, he is accused of unzipping the man's trousers and groping his groin

for about three minutes — an encounter that he claims was consensual. i will never cease... the actor was fired from the hit drama, house of cards, because of multiple sexual assault allegations against him. and you trusted me even though you knew you shouldn't. but bizarrely, he revived his character, president frank underwood, in a video posted online shortly after he was charged. you and i both know it's never that simple, not in politics and not in life. but you wouldn't believe the worst without evidence, would you? you wouldn't rush to judgments without facts, would you? outside court, he confronted another wall of lenses. what are your feelings today, mr spacey? but chose not to answer our questions. mr spacey... mr spacey? kevin spacey has already been dondemned in the court of global opinion, but now a legal

process is under way. he flew out minutes afterwards on a private jet but a trial now is in the offing, where the public scrutiny will be intense. nick bryant, bbc news, nantucket. you're watching newsday on the bbc. still to come on the programme: a british woman murdered in beijing — still unsolved after eighty years. now there are new theories about what really happened also on the programme, australians are warned to stay out of the water — wejoin the we join the dutch army on the frontline against islamic insurgents in the african country of mali. the japanese people are in mourning following the death of emperor hirohito. thousands converged on the imperial palace to pay their respects when it was announced he was dead. "good grief." after half a century of delighting fans around the world,

charlie brown and the rest of the gang are calling it quits. the singer paul simon starts his tour of south africa tomorrow, in spite of protests and violence from some black activist groups. they say international artists should continue to boycott south africa until majority rule is established. teams were trying to scoop up lumps of oil as france recognises it faces an ecological crisis. three weeks ago, the authorities confidently assured these areas that oil from the broken tanker erika would head out to sea. it didn't. the world's tallest skyscraper opens later today. the burj dubai has easily overtaken its nearest rivals. this is newsday on the bbc. i'm rico hizon in singapore. i'm kasia madera in london. our top stories: seven weeks after his arrest on

allegations of financial misconduct, the former nissan chairman is due to make his first appearance in a tokyo court. thailand says an 18—year—old saudi woman who's seeking asylum won't be deported against her will. let's take a look at some front pages from around the world. the south china morning post reports on the latest round of trade talks between us and china. they have this leaked picture from the chinese vice—premier's appearance at talks with the american delegation. the timeframe for a new malaysian king is on the front page of the strait times. a new king will be appointed by the end of this month after sultan muhammad v of kelantan stepped down on sunday, just two years into his five—year reign. and a self—driving train is making headlines in the japan times. the japan times

reports on the successful test run of a self—driving train in central tokyo. the system was developed to cope with the labor shortage injapan. the company hopes it will be in use. mali has become the epicentre of the global war on terror as both al qaeda and the so—called islamic state exert their influence. this increases the challenges facing a multinational un peacekeeping mission, which was established to oversee a peace deal between the government and rebel groups. the bbc has gained exclusive access with the dutch army on a reconnaissance mission in northern mali. our africa security correspondent tomi oladipo has this report. resupply run into the hearts of the desert. the dutch army are on the move on a reconnaissance patrol to

be troubled border of mali and burkina faso. dangerous and ungoverned territory. this is the first time the un has been here. they are here to meet locals and gather what information they came on violent extremist groups. they are the eyes and ears of the four scamander. rock to rain means it is difficult bowling and they are not a lwa ys difficult bowling and they are not always welcomed. miley soldiers are unhappy with this intrusion. a brief stand—off confused between two armies that are supposed to be on the same side. access is finally granted to meet the village elders. we are at the office of the mayor of this town. he has been speaking to the dutch contingent expressing concern about security, border crossings and people coming from neighbouring countries are unchecked. this is what the un

mission in mali is meant to look like, engaging with local communities, seeking to win hearts and minds. but it is rare. this dutch effort is only a drop in the ocean. getting the messaging across in related areas can be a challenge. bites what happens with the intelligence that this operation covers ? intelligence that this operation covers? we are not responsible for what connects with this. we provide information but someone needs to act on it. as night falls, a drone is spotted. it is not a friendly one. a few hours later it returns. eyes in the sky hovering above the camp. a search is launched to find the drone operator using a thermal imaging camera. and then... a warning to whoever it is to back off as an

illumination mortar lights up the night. only one country stands between mali in the mediterranean, making this un mission of particular interest. we do not want miley to become the next failed state where terrorists have freedom of action. at the same time we do not want miley to be a transit area for everything we do not want to see smuggled into europe. the dutch make up smuggled into europe. the dutch make up onlya smuggled into europe. the dutch make up only a small part of a much larger un mission. but how much impact can they have in such a vast ungoverned space when many of their partners appear to be simply going through the motions? there is agreement that mali would be worse off if the un were to leave. however, at the cost of $1 billion a year and no end in sight, for how much longer will contributing nations be prepared to pay for peace in mali? it was the 8th january in 1937, and a 19—year—old british woman was brutally murdered

on the streets of beijing. the killer was never found, but the mysterious death of pamela werner is still being investigated in the form of rival books. our correspondent stephen mcdonell has been finding out why this gruesome killing continues to draw so much attention. it is january eight, 1937. the foreign delegation quarter of old beijing. pamela is writing to her death. she was probably bludgeoned to death. organs were removed. there is debate about who killed her and why. almost instantly have realised it was his dead daughter. over 80 years later, a historian and this is a

monthly walking tour tracing her final hours. when you have a murder ignites such interest that you can make people care about the narrative during beijing during the 1930s. that they would otherwise have no relationship to. she was in russian jewish orphan who grew up in beijing and adopted by edward were not who would spend the rest of his life trying to solve his daughter ‘s murder. the former british diplomat‘s correspondence was found by an author, paul french, who wrote a best selling book that has become the interpreted —— accepted interpretation of events mr wernher thought that his daughter and others had been led to a party. she realised what was happening and something went wrong. a good book and enjoyable to read but it may

prove good story. from a police perspective it did not make sense to me. she was found somewhere around here? just on the other side of this wall. former policeman had his own dive into the archives and has now written a rival book about the murder. i think the stronger likelihood is that it was a former chinese schoolfriend of‘s paul french is dismissive of the student killer theory. to assume that a 19—year—old or a teenage student who was dating her would suddenly decide to murder her, that seems, frankly, to murder her, that seems, frankly, to be desired. gran shepherd's interest in the case was sparked by an ancestor 's involvement. his wife's grandfather was in charge of the failed inquest. and herfamily was angry at how he was betrayed in paul's will. paul french says this

means gran shepherd is not an impartial investigator. mcgrane shepherd says paul french's book relies too heavily on the letters of the grieving father. so there you have it. duelling authors, pens drawn, different killers. this complicated historical showdown could well be coming to a leach rich festival near you. in the meantime, the mystery continues, with plenty of others developing their own theory is of a murder that will almost certainly never be solved. you have been watching newsday. i'm kasia madera in london. and i'm rico hizon in singapore. stay with us. hello there. northern parts of the

uk are particularly blustery. when cast in excess of 70 miles an hour for some. eastern areas will see the strongest weather through the day ahead. the swell of cloud is responsible for that very windy weather in the north on monday. sliding its way eastwards towards scandinavia but on its western flank we are still bringing in strong wind with risk northerly wind particularly close to those eastern coastal areas. the wind of either couple of showers in towards the east of the uk at times through the day but generally speaking we are looking at a lot of dry weather. some spells of sunshine, large areas of cloud floating around as well. breezy wherever you are but if you spend a day close to the east coast of scotla nd spend a day close to the east coast of scotland you can expect a wind gust of 40, 45 mph, a couple of showers drifting through as well. down the east coast of england, wind gusts the same but may be close to

50 miles an hourfor some gusts the same but may be close to 50 miles an hour for some spots around east anglian coastline. combine those wind with strong high tide and there is the risk of coastal flooding. temperature between six and nine degrees but when you factor in the strength of the windy it will feel a bit colder than that. the day is breezy in eastern areas as we go through tuesday night with the potential of a couple of showers. our west where the wind is lighter and the sky is clear, parts of western scotland and northern england down into the midlands, we could see a touch of frost but many places. wednesday morning just above freezing. during wednesday it will still be breezy, not quite as windy as tuesday and that wind still feeding some showers in across south—eastern parts of england. we also see cloud thickening for northern ireland and western scotland, a bit patchy rain here late in the day. in between, spells of sunshine, temperatures is struggling lebed with seven or eight degrees. it is set to turn milder as we head towards the end of the week, high pressure builds its way back in

and we start to bring the winds back in from the atlantic. it is from the north—west and will turn a bit milder. holding onto some chillier across the south—east on thursday. some places could begin with a touch of frost but i think that is where we will see the best of the sunshine through the day. north—east dongle and —— england and eastern scotland authors in some sunshine and the is but a drizzle but towards the west, things start to turn milder. through friday into the weekend, all of us will get into the milder air. there will get into the milder air. there will be some cloud and the rain at times, especially in the north. i'm kasia madera with bbc news. our top story: the former boss of nissan, carlos ghosn, is to make his first appearance in court in tokyo. it will be his first public appearance since his arrest in november on allegations that he under—reported his income by tens of millions of dollars.

he's expected to ask why he's been held for so long. the 18—year—old saudi woman who had been hiding in a bangkok airport hotel is being looked after by the un refugee agency. she said she feared she could be killed by her family. and this story is trending on bbc.com. these bluebottle man—o—wars have stung thousands of beach—oers in queensland, australia, forcing the closure of many beaches. around 13,000 stings have been recorded in just the past week. that's all. stay with bbc world news. now on bbc news, hardtalk.