welcome to bbc news — broadcasting to viewers in north america and around the globe. i'm reged ahmad. our top stories: the us secretary of state mike pompeo arrives in riyadh just as a senior saudi prince critcises the american decision to withdraw troops from syria. the us actions, from my perspective is, is that it is going to further complicate the issue rather than find any solutions to it. the mayor of gdansk is in a serious condition after being stabbed on stage during a charity event in poland. more heavy snowfall expected in the alps as parts of europe continue to grapple with the worst winter weather for three decades. and the fragile yemen ceasefire has been dealt a fresh blow following clashes in the port city of hodeida over the weekend. a senior member of the saudi royal family has warned

against a planned american troop withdrawal from syria — describing it as a very negative development. prince turki al—faisal was speaking to the bbc as one of the us president's closest advisors, secretary of state mike pompeo, arrived in riyadh for talks. he's been touring the middle east in an attempt to reassure allies of america's commitment to the region. but the visit comes at a time of added tension between the two countries, over the killing of the saudi journalist jamal khashoggi. the bbc‘s barbara plett usher is in riyadh where she sat down with prince turki al faisal. the us actions the us actions from my perspective is that it is further

going to placate the issue rather than find solutions and it will further intensified the iranian ‘s and the russians so from that perspective of course, it's a very negative development. general mattis was well—known here. negative development. general mattis was well-known here. yes, he was a man who had experience in the area, the commander of centre command, he served in iraq and afghanistan so pretty well—known. served in iraq and afghanistan so pretty well- known. do you served in iraq and afghanistan so pretty well-known. do you think that his departure is a loss for us — saudi relations? i think it is action that counts rather than personalities. we still have to wait and see what is going to happen with his departure. when it comes to iran, but think israel is a better ally than qatar? as long as they occu py ally than qatar? as long as they occupy arab territory and look at how they are treating the palestinian people in the west bank and gaza, there will be no

cooperation between the kingdom and israel. there is over cooperation between the both already. you tell me how and where. intelligence sharing. i have no idea and i don't think there is. nothing remains secret. the fact that the israeli government and mr netanyahu has been leaking these views about saudi — israeli cooperation is to serve his purposes. if the crown prince was com pletely purposes. if the crown prince was completely in the dark over the murder of mr khashoggi, isn't that a staggering level of incompetence to let that go on under his nose? rogue actions by subsidiaries is not unique to the kingdom of the crown prince. the crown prince's reputation has been damaged internationally. a matter of concern? of course it is and it's been an unfair attempt to criminalise the crown prince on the

pa rt criminalise the crown prince on the part of the media. there has been no proof at all of these participation in the various activity at all. you feel president trump and mr pompeo are strongly supporting the saudi government and relations at this point? they have publicly said so and they clearly say there is absolutely no evidence that the crown prince has been involved in this case. the mayor of the polish city of gdansk has been seriously injured in a knife attack at a charity event. pavel adamowicz was stabbed on stage in front of thousands of people — he is now undergoing emergency surgery. kim gittleson reports. it was supposed to be a joyous event celebrating poland's biggest

charity. then suddenly at 27—year—old man rushed on stage and stabbed pavel adamowicz, the popular mero gdansk. as bystanders rushed to his age, his attacker remained on stage, arms raised, saying he blamed the mouths former political party for wrongfully imprisoning him. mr adamowicz was resuscitating before being rushed to hospital. his condition remains unknown and an investigation is ongoing. translation: i say it is important for us right now to establish how this happened, how the man came so close to the mayor of gdansk. we know he was using a press pass and we need to establish how he got hold of this press id and allowed to be on stage in the most important question is what motivated him to commit such a dramatic act. mr adamowicz has been the mero gdansk

for over 20 years and he recently appeared ina for over 20 years and he recently appeared in a video appeal of the event which was in support of the great orchestra christmas charity. his stabbing has shocked poland. translation: i have to say all was great until we heard the disastrous news about the attack. it was shocking and unbelievable. we don't know what his condition is but we know what his condition is but we know something horrible has happened, a result of aggression and hatred. poland's interior minister said ina hatred. poland's interior minister said in a tweet the act was an attack of any dash of ex——— inexplicable barbarity and will be investigated. the polish prime minister and president also condemned the stabbing, hoping mr adamowicz would make a full recovery. let's get some of the day's other news. greece's prime minister alexis tsipras says he will call a confidence vote in parliament, after thejunior partner in his coalition government withdrew its support. the two parties disagree over an agreement made by tsipras's government, which would see greece's northern neighbour given the official name of north macedonia. the deal has yet to be ratified by greece's parliament.

french rescue workers have found the body of a missing woman, bringing the number of people killed by a powerful explosion in paris on saturday to four. two firefighters and a spanish tourist were also killed in the blast and dozens injured. the latest victim lived in an apartment directly above the site of the explosion, a bakery in a popular tourist area. president emmanuel macron has published an open letter to the french people in an attempt to defuse the "yellow vest" protests that have rocked france for nine weeks. he has called for a nationwide debate until march to discuss the future of the country. in the 48 hours before the british parliamentary vote that could define brexit — and herfuture — the uk prime minister has told mps not to play games — but to do the right thing for the country. theresa may is widely expected to lose a commons vote on the withdrawal deal she's

negotiated with the eu. the opposition leaderjeremy corbyn says his labour party will table a vote of no confidence in the government soon after. mrs may says voters' trust in the democratic process is at stake if brexit is not delivered. 0ur chief political correspondent, vicki young, reports. she bought herself more time by delaying this crucial brexit vote, but theresa may has just two days to persuade mps to back her deal. so far there is little sign of growing support, but the prime minister continues to make her case. writing in the sunday express she warned mps that if parliament stopped brexit it would be a "catastrophic and unforgivable breach of trust in our democracy." the government is hoping for more reassurances from the eu on the terms of the uk's departure. the brexit secretary admitted the government faces a challenge

to get its deal through. we are working hard with colleagues, we are working hard with eu leaders, the pm speaking to them in terms of the specific concerns we have heard, particularly on the issue of backstop. after losing crucial votes in the commons, downing street says it is worried opponents of brexit could find a way to take control of parliamentary business. mr berkeley said it should focus the minds of brexiteers. the uncertainty in terms of what will happen in the house has increased so those on the brexiteer side seeking ideological purity with the deal are risking brexit. last week, the speaker, john bercow, made it clear he is determined to allow mps to have their say on brexit, so an unpredictable political situation is even more uncertain. but even if mps can seize control of what's going on in the house of commons, can they agreed on an alternative to theresa may's plan? some want to stop a no—deal brexit. others want a different kind

of deal, or another referendum. will you win a confidence vote? so what does the labour leader want? jeremy corbyn is against theresa may's deal and wants a general election. many in his party want another referendum. he sounds reluctant. my own view is, i would rather get a negotiated deal now if we can, to stop the danger of a no deal exit from the eu on 29 march, which would be catastrophic for industry, trade, and the long—term effects of that would be huge. we will do everything we can to prevent a no deal exit. the people's vote campaign group were out in force in sheffield this weekend, insisting support for another referendum is increasing. the liberal democrats' leader thinks mps will assert themselves if the government lose on tuesday. parliament will take control of this process, will insist that we pursue the option of no brexit. it could happen in one of two ways — it can happen simply by cancelling

article 50, which i think would be resented by lots of people, or it can happen by parliament saying, actually, we go back to the public to have the final say. it is hard to find anyone in westminster who thinks theresa may will win the vote. everyone is talking about plan b, but there is no agreement about what that is. 0ur europe editor katya adler is in brussels — and gave us this assessment of the eu's possible moves on the coming days. the eu is unwilling to make any significant move until it can see that parliament is behind theresa may, or it can see mps moving around a particular alternative to her deal, or around a particular amendment, if the eu thinks it can swallow that amendment, but we are nowhere near there at the moment. so, at the moment, lines of communication ahead of the vote are wide open between brusells and number ten. and in fact my sources here are telling me that they have a letter of assurance is ready on the deal and they are waiting for the go—ahead from number ten as to when to publish that letter, and whether to publish it at all actually, because it won't contain anything new. it will contain assurances

for example on the irish backstop, where the eu will say once again that it is a guarantee mechanism, something it doesn't want to activate. that if it had to activate it, it wouldn't want to keep it live for any longer than absolutely necessary. as i say, brussels isn't willing to go further than that until it can see in what direction parliament is going. for now the eu wants to keep up the pressure on the uk, saying this is the only deal, end of story, but europe will be if the deal passes. and if it doesn't, by how much? and then the internal conversation will start inside eu circles. three people have been killed — and a fourth is missing — after an avalanche near the austrian ski resort of lech.

austria has been hit by record snowfall in the past week — and there have been more than twenty weather related deaths across parts of the alps so far this month. bethany bell reports. mountain regions in austria are used to snow, but this is extreme. days of heavy snowfall are taking their toll. last night, three skiers from germany were killed in an avalanche in lech. their bodies were found on a ski route that had been closed off because of the danger of avalanches. a fourth person is still missing. translation: yesterday evening we decided to cancel the search because it had become too dangerous. we know how the weather will develop, so we can probably initiate the search again on wednesday. the risk of more avalanches is very high. some ski resorts and mountain villages have had to be evacuated. other areas are snowed in. these firefighters near the town of kleinzell in central austria are working round the clock to clear snow from homes and buildings.

the snow is very heavy and there is a real risk this roof could cave in. translation: it's quite dangerous work. as you can see, all the men are harnessed because you can easily slip off while coming down. so the risk is relatively high. driving conditions are treacherous. it's a struggle to keep the streets clear. underneath this white blanket is a tarmac road. this area hasn't seen this much snow in well over a decade. in neighbouring germany, the army has been brought in to help clear the roads, and people here are bracing themselves for more. heavy snow is forecast over the next few days. bethany bell, bbc news, near kleinzell in the austrian alps. stay with us on bbc news, still to come: booming tourism in tasmania might be good for some — but locals say it is putting pressure on an already tight housing market.

day one of operation desert storm to force the iraqis out of kuwait has seen the most intense air attacks since the second world war. tobacco is america's oldest industry, and it's one of its biggest, but the industry is nervous of this report. this may tend to make people want to stop smoking cigarettes. there is not a street that is unaffected. huge parts of kobe were simply demolished as buildings crashed into one another. this woman said she'd been given no help and no advice by the authorities. she stood outside the ruins of her business. tens of thousands of black children in south africa have taken advantage of laws passed by the country's new multiracial government and enrolled at formerly white schools. tonight sees the 9,610th performance of her long—running play the mousetrap. when they heard of her death today, the management considered

whether to cancel tonight's performance, but agatha christie would have been the last person to want such a thing. this is bbc news. the latest headlines: as us secretary of state mike pompeo arrives in riyadh, a saudi prince tells the bbc america's decision to pull troops out of syria is "a very negative development". the mayor of gdansk is in a serious condition after being stabbed on stage during a charity event in poland. in yemen, clashes over the weekend in the strategic port city of hodeida have dealt a fresh blow to the fragile truce that's been in place since last month. the ceasefire agreed between houthi rebels and government forces backed by saudi arabia and western allies has allowed some much—needed aid into the country. the un says 80% of yemen's population are in need

of assistance. but some of the more remote areas have yet to receive any aid at all. a bbc team travelled to one such village, raymah, that's had no outside help since the war began four years ago. nawal al—maghafi reports. in the mountains of yemen, villages like raymah are sheltered from the war, but not its consequences. aid agencies can no longer reach these remote areas and all government funding has stopped. 16—year—old samar is one of many children who have been forced to leave school in order to earn a little money to survive. she's carrying rice and flour to a local village. translation: i want to live like the other girls. they get provided for, they get to rest. the money samar made today is only enough to pay for this bread and tea.

like two thirds of yemenis, she doesn't know where their next meal is coming from. her mum says life hasn't always been like this. translation: we were once happy and comfortable. now we live day—to—day. if samar is sick, we all end up hungry, waiting for her to get better. i'm sad because of this reality that we are living in. death is kinder than this. seven months ago, fatima gave birth to her daughter, lamia, and has struggled to feed her since. doctors have told us she is severely malnourished. translation: i want her to get better, to grow like other children. i don't want her to stay like this.

i want her to to take her first steps and walk. but because of the war, she won't get better. it has left us with nothing. 4,000 families used to rely on daud mohammed's clinic for basic health services. "we used to care for the children suffering from malnutrition. we used to distribute aid," he says. but without any support, it's been forced to close. outside, a man arrives with severe fever and urgently needs to be taken to the nearest clinic. with fuel so expensive, the car isn't an option. people have to make these dangerous and lengthy journeys through the mountains on foot. abdullah has been walking for over three hours, carrying his grandson in a basket. translation: we just can't afford to take a car here. i've been walking for hours

with the baby on my back because he needs to see a doctor. this centre was set up to provide patients with vaccinations and aid. now it has to cope with life—threatening illnesses. it's overwhelmed. and it's notjust the clinic that is struggling. at this school, one of the few in the area still open, teachers haven't been paid for over two years. but they still show up, hoping the children at least have a chance at a better future. nawal al—maghafi, bbc news. a former italian communist militant has been arrested in bolivia in an international police operation. cesare battisti is wanted in connection with four murders in italy in the 1970s, which he denies committing. battisti escaped from prison in italy in 1981 and lived in france and brazil, developing a career as a crime novel writer. brazil's new far—right president bolsonaro vowed

to extradite him, and so battisti went on the run. naomi lloyd reports. the many faces of cesare battisti — former communist militant, crime novel writer, and wanted man. these are the images brazilian police released of the disguises he might be using. finally tracked down in bolivia, moments before his arrest, he is sporting a fake beard and sunglasses. convicted in italy in the 1970s of belonging to an outlawed terror group, battisti escaped from prison. he is wanted in connection with four murders, which he denies committing. after fleeing italy, he took refuge in france and reinvented himself as a crime novel writer. the change of french government meant he faced extradition and in 2004, he fled to brazil. after years in custody, he was freed by the then president lula in 2010,

to the anger of italy. a popularfigure among many on the left, he continued writing and has a 5—year—old son with his partner. but when brazil's new far—right president bolsonaro came to power, the good life in brazil for battisti was over. facing extradition, he went on the run again and this time, his time was up. long sought by italian authorities, battisti now faces life in prison in his home country. for decades, the australian island of tasmania was considered a cultural backwater with little to offer the outside world. but in recent years, its reputation has been transformed, bringing a record number of tourists and a property boom. as our correspondent hywel griffith has been finding out, the capital hobart has now become australia's least affordable city. we adore wonderful? tasmania, it

seems, could be both. mona, the museum of old and new art plays on the island's reputation and galleries feel more like a nightclub, ——in eight years it is made chilly hobart yedlin the cool and drawn visitors from around the world. we do have opened up a box of curiosities that allows tasmania to expose its quirkiness and we've given licence perhaps to market that and celebrate that instead of trying to deny it. last year saw record 1.3 million tourists arrive here, more than doubled the island's population. 0nce sleepy tasmania is 110w population. 0nce sleepy tasmania is now in the middle of a broom, and there are plenty of people trying to cash in with the shortage of hotel

rooms, some rental homes have been turned into lucrative shortstay holiday houses. but that isn't putting the squeeze on people who live and work here, hobart has become the least affordable city in australia. for renters. for day and, it is meant being priced out of her community, after a 20% hike in her rent. she has had to move 15 kilometres out of town. itjust pushes all the people who can least afford it away from all of the resources and support they need. i quite literally could have been homeless. three months ago. you could be living and working in tasmania... the boom isn'tjust in tourism, the state government is actively encouraging more people to move here from the mainland. do you like the beach? this one is on the beach! predicted would just be the lifestyle which draws people in, global warming could be a factor too. the climactic outlook for

tasmania is more positive here than it is anywhere else. we are going to see a lot of big risks, a lot of increased bushfire risk of increased security risks, but those risks are already happening on the mainland as well. and they are going to be reduced here. whatever pulls people into tasmania, the challenge for the island will be to make sure everyone here feels the benefit of its economic bounce. hywel griffith, bbc news, hobart. before we go, let's leave you of these pictures. —— before we go, let's leave you with these pictures. the world's longest aircraft — a combined plane and airship — is set to go into full production, taking commercial passengers. it comes after the current test model, the airlander 10, completed its final trials in england. the company behind it hopes the new version of the aircraft will be taking paying customers hello again.

it's been a mild winter so far and one thing we've not seen a great deal of is snow. however, over the last few hours, behind this cold front, we have seen some snow showers push in across shetland, so if you're heading outside soon, you might see more of these coming and going, some clear spells in between, and a cold wind. scotland, cold enough for patches of frost but otherwise, there is too much wind and cloud around, showers too, so it's not especially cold. for england and wales and northern ireland, temperatures for most between 6 and 8 celsius for the early risers. that takes us to the first part of monday, still a lot of cloud around and passing showers. probably sunshine for scotland but a frosty start here before thicker cloud works its way west and we see rain arriving. also some of that rain getting into shetland. mildest weather across western and southern parts, temperatures into double figures, but noticeably cooler across eastern parts of the uk — temperatures 3 in lerwick and 5 in aberdeen. the cold weather doesn't last long.

a warm front pushes through on monday night and tuesday. this weather front targeting western scotland, bringing heavy rain to the highlands. here, 50—100mm of rain over the mountains — quite a wet spell of weather. elsewhere, a lot of cloud, a few limited bright or sunny spells but it's milder. temperatures for most of us between 10 and 11 celsius. notice those temperatures coming up in shetland, so the threat of any snow receding with that milder weather arriving. through tuesday night, the slow—moving weather front bringing rain in scotland will eventually push southwards, bringing the wet weather from scotland into northern ireland across parts of england and wales as well. to the south of our weather front, the cold front continues to move in during wednesday. we should see some reasonable temperatures in the south with highs expected to reach about 10 celsius or so, but noticeably colder further north — cold enough for some hill snow there across northern parts

of scotland with single—figure temperatures. that colder air moves southwards wednesday night and by thursday, winds coming down from the arctic and with that, a lot of dry weather and sunshine, but cold with a sharp frost and showers around as well. those showers are likely to be wintry with snow showers into the north of mainland scotland and the odd bit of sleet in the showers down the north sea coast as well. a cold day then. temperatures between 3 and 7 degrees celsius. that's your latest weather. goodbye. this is bbc news, the headlines: the us secretary of state mike pompeo has arrived in riyadh as part of his middle eastern tour. before his arrival a senior figure in saudi arabia's ruling establishment, prince turki al—faisal, criticised the us decision to withdraw its troops from syria, describing it as a "very negative development". the mayor of the polish city of gdansk is in serious condition after he was stabbed on stage in front of thousands of people during a charity concert. pawel adamowicz has served as mayor of gdansk since 1998. a suspect was arrested at the scene. at least five people have been

killed in the alps this weekend after heavy snow. three germans died in an avalanche in austria and a fourth is still missing. parts of austria, france, sweden and germany are at a standstill after severe snowfalls closed roads and trapped people in their homes. more snow is forecasted now on bbc news, the week in parliament.