i'm sharanjit leyl in singapore, welcome to newsday. the headlines: police in the philippines arrest the head of a news website highly critical of president duterte for an alleged cyber offence dating back seven years. the fact that an arrest warrant has been issued, well, really interesting and i will follow. i am just shocked that the rule of law has been broken to the point that i can't see it. no regrets aboutjoining the islamic state group but hoping to return home. a london schoolgirl lifts the lid on her brutal life in syria. i'm kasia madera in london. also in the programme. a valentine's day plea from japan's same—sex community — 13 couples demand the government recognises their relationships as marriage. and declaring war on the boar. hong kong steps up the fight against a plague of wild pigs. live from our studios in singapore and london,

this is bbc world news. it's newsday. good morning. it's 8am in singapore, midnight in london, and 8:00 in the morning in manila where the head of the philippines news website rappler is facing charges which carry a penalty of up to 12 years injail. maria ressa is accused of cyber crimes over a report dating back to 2012. this was the moment maria was led out of the company's headquarters, surrounded by media. she was able to speak to some of them before being taken away. the fact that an arrest warrant has been issued, well, really interesting and i will follow. i am

just shocked that the rule of law has been broken to the point that i can't see it. there's already been widespread condemnation of the arrest, with some groups seeing it as an attempt by the government to silence the opposition. founded in 2012, rappler has become known in the philippines for its ha rd—hitting investigations. it's also one of the few media organisations in the country that is openly critical of president rodrigo duterte. but it has won awards for its reporting — particularly with its investigation into how president duterte has waged his war on drugs. for more we can speak to the bbc‘s howard johnson, who's in manila. howard, we already are hearing rights groups like amnesty international saying that this is a trumped up charge and its brazenly politically motivated, they say. just how worrying is this arrest? yes, it's never a good site to see

an award—winning journalist being led away by officers of the law but that's what happened here late last night. what we have heard is that there is this libel case against rappler and maria ressa and a former reporter of the rappler website. they say the charges are baseless and this is a politically motivated attack to clamp down on the freedom of expression. let's not forget, president duterte has been angered by their coverage of the war on drugs in this country in which thousands have died. human rights groups allege many killings are illegal summary executions. we've also heard from the spokesperson of the president saying this is a private case, nothing to do with expression of the media orfreedom of expression by the media and said that this is just a libel case brought against rappler and we have to find out what happens in the

courts in the days and weeks ahead. howard, do we know much more about maria ressa's condition? was she held overnight? yes, maria ressa was held overnight? yes, maria ressa was held overnight? yes, maria ressa was held overnight at the national bureau of investigation‘s headquarters here in manila. rappler journalists are questioning the timing of this arrest warrant being served yesterday late, five o'clock, too late to get bail from the local courts here so when she went to the nbi headquarters, bail was not served and she spent the night in those headquarters. we are expecting today she will seek bail and we will find out whether she will be released a little bit later on this morning. tell us more about rappler because we know this isn't the only problem it's based. tell us about its struggles. the rappler website

is quite fearless in its criticisms of the government of president duterte. we saw the start of last year, the security and exchange commission looking at the potential illegalforeign commission looking at the potential illegal foreign ownership of the company, as they alleged. rappler said that is not the case, that they had donors from outside the country and eventually gave the money to rappler, stopping that case, but also there are five tax evasion cases against maria ressa. she says this is a concerted effort on the heart of the government to try to silence them, bludgeon the media into silence, a sheep puts it. there is an orchestrated on line troll campaign with death threats, rape threats against her so this is a worrying situation if you step away from the legal cases, also a lot of threats and cyber bullying that goes on line here in the philippines. howard johnson, thank you for

bringing us up—to—date on the story. we will monitor that and bring you any developments. let's take a look at some of the day's other news. and the us is potentially facing another government shutdown! donald trump says he hasn't yet decided whether to give his backing to a deal worked out between the republican and democratic parties, which could prevent another it. —— one. a vote is expected on thursday. if there's no agreement, the current funding runs out at midnight on friday. the agreement only gives a fraction of the money the president wants to build his border wall. here he is. we have not got it yet. it will be sent to us at some point and we will ta ke sent to us at some point and we will take a very serious look at it. we have a lot of things happening right now. we are building a lot of wall right now would money we already have and when people see what we are doing, i think they will be very surprised. we are doing a lot of work. i do not want it see a shutdown. i think a point was made with the last shutdown, people

realised how bad the border is, how u nsafe realised how bad the border is, how unsafe the border is an think a lot of good points were made but i don't wa nt to of good points were made but i don't want to see another one, there is no reason for it and we are going to look at the legislation when it comes and i will make a determination. mr trump also touched on venezuela during his meeting with the colombian president ivan duque. he said the venezuelan leader nicolas maduro had made a terrible mistake by refusing to allow humanitarian supplies into the country, to help people who are starving. mr maduro has accused the us of using the aid operation as a pretext to invade. when asked, mr trump said all options were on the table, to bring the crisis in venezuela to an end. a suicide bomber has killed at least 27 members of iran's elite revolutionary guards near the border with pakistan. the attacker used a car packed with explosives, to target the soldiers while they were travelling in a bus. the sunni muslim militant group, jaish al—adl, said it was behind the attack. the sister of thailand's king

says she's "saddened" that her attempt to be the country's next prime minister has created what she called "a problem that shouldn't happen in this day and age". she was disqualified by the country's election commission on monday. spain's prime minister pedro sanchez has failed to get his budget through parliament, after losing the support of his coalition partners, the catalan separatists. media reports suggest he will announce the date of a general election on friday. we've all heard of the film black panther, well, here's the real thing. this extremely rare big cat was filmed in kenya. it's the first time one of the creatures has been documented in africa for around a century. while it's called a panther, it's actually a leopard, with its black colouration spreading across its fur, until it joins up. proof that just sometimes, a leopard can change its spots. one of the three schoolgirls

from north london — who travelled to syria to join the islamic state group — has been speaking of her experiences. shamima begum told london's times newspaper that she didn't regret joining is but that she was 9 months pregnant and wanted to return to the uk. our home affairs correspondent daniel sandford reports. pictured for the first time in almost four years in a camp in northern syria, one of the three school calls from bethnal green who left tojoin the school calls from bethnal green who left to join the islamic state group which by then, already had a murderous reputation. just 15 when she went, she told the times about their arrival in ias territory. she told the times reporter,

anthony loyd, her friend kadiza sultana was killed in an airstrike, but she said the third bethnal green girl, amira abase, was still alive two weeks ago. shamima begum doesn't accept they made a mistake injoining the islamic state group. but she says that while she was with is she lost two children through malnutrition and sickness. she's nine months pregnant with a third child and is now desperate to get back to the uk.

though it is far from clear whether the british government will allow anyone who spent so long with the brutal islamic state group to return. daniel sandford, bbc news. there is more on daniel's story on the website. valentine's day is a day for celebrating love in all its forms. but for same—sex couples injapan their relationships are not legally recognised as marriage. now 13 same—sex couples are to file lawsuits nationwide against the japanese government demanding that be changed. ai nakajima and kristina baumann one of the couples taking part in the lawsuit, they explain what happened when they tried to register their marriage injapan. well, the explanation was saying

simply that japan does not recognise same — sex couple marriage. simply that japan does not recognise same - sex couple marriage. tina, how did that make you feel? well, of course, because we are married in germany so it's kind of sad that they denied our marriage here in japan. we are frustrated having been legally accepted as a married couple ina legally accepted as a married couple in a different country to come back from japan and have this situation? yes. definitely. we've been married in partnership over the last three yea rs. in partnership over the last three years. japan does not recognise our relationship and i'm very sad and at the same time very angry about the japanese rule at this moment. so what do you hope, ai, will happen with this lawsuit? at the end of our

long journey, by taking this with this lawsuit? at the end of our long journey, by taking this to with this lawsuit? at the end of our long journey, by taking this to the court, the japanese government will allow the same—sex couple marriage overin allow the same—sex couple marriage over injapan. allow the same—sex couple marriage over in japan. there are some places injapan, ai, but to hand out certificates to gay couples. is that something that you'd consider? yes, definitely. i think that is one little step towards same—sex marriage in japan but little step towards same—sex marriage injapan but it's not really enforced by law and teeny here from germany can't claim for a spousal visa in japan. tina, here from germany can't claim for a spousalvisa in japan. tina, it's not only the legalities. how does life as a same—sex couple —— same—sex couple compare to germany? it's still kind of car engine —— china andjapan, it's still kind of car engine —— china and japan, to come out to family orfriends. china and japan, to come out to family or friends. a lot of friends of ours still live in the closet so in germany, it is much more easy,

because it's just a in germany, it is much more easy, because it'sjust a regular in germany, it is much more easy, because it's just a regular part of life. best of luck to them. you're watching newsday on the bbc. still to come on the programme: netflix vs the academy. the streaming giant pulls out the stops to help its most successful movie roma win big on oscar night. also on the programme: find out why these wild boars have become such a nuisance in hong kong. there's mr mandela. mr nelson mandela, a free man, taking his first steps into a new south africa. iran's spiritual leader ayatollah khomeini has said he's passed a death sentence on salman rushdie, the british author of a book which many muslims say is blasphemous. the people of haiti have flocked to church to give thanks for the ousting of their former

president, 'baby doc' duvalier. because of his considerable value as a stallion, shergar was kept in a special secure box in the stud farm's central block. shergar was driven away in a horse box the thieves had brought with them. there stepped down from the plane a figure in mourning. elizabeth ii, queen of this realm and of all her other realms and territories, head of the commonwealth, defender of the faith. this is newsday on the bbc. i'm sharanjit leyl, in singapore. i'm kasia madera, in london. our top stories: police in the philippines have arrested the head of a news website highly critical of president duterte. maria ressa, from rappler,

is accused of a libel offence dating back seven years. a schoolgirl from london, who travelled to syria to join the islamic state group, says she now wants to return to the uk because she's pregnant. let's take a look at some of the front pages from around the world: we begin with the japan times which reports that two lawyers, defending former nissan chief carlos ghosn, have resigned. the shock decision is the latest twist in a saga that has gripped the business world, since mr ghosn was arrested for financial misconduct in november. the philippine star says hospitals have been ordered to open fast lanes for measles, to help deal with an outbreak which has so far claimed 87 lives. the department of health predicts that it won't have the disease under control for another two to three months. and the south china morning post leads on a near—total ban on e—cigarettes being introduced in hong kong.

under the new law it will still be legal to use e—cigarettes, but anyone who sells them will face up to six months in prison. to india now, where toxic alcohol has claimed the lives of dozens of people in the last few weeks. the product is often cheap, and available even in places where alcohol is outlawed but, as sangita myska reports, its effects can be deadly. this woman is inconsolable after the sudden death of her husband. translation: he vomited twice and said he was losing consciousness. he could not see anything and then he died. the villagers are in a state

of shock but this is not the only death from toxic illegal alcohol. at this hospital, more people have been admitted the treatment. many have gone blind. translation: admitted the treatment. many have gone blind. translationzlj admitted the treatment. many have gone blind. translation: i have a lot of difficulty speaking. i cannot see anything. i am not able to speak clearly. in just see anything. i am not able to speak clearly. injust one see anything. i am not able to speak clearly. in just one weekend, dozens of patients were treated here. translation: this toxic alcohol acts immediately after mixing with the blood and when it has lots of ethanol it hits the brain, liver, kidney and the optic nerve and that is what causes blindness. up to $2000 in compensation have in offered by the government. police have ceased thousands of litres in this area alone but deaths like these remain unavoidable as those

who supply illegal alcohol continue to make it. sangita myska, bbc news. wild boars are causing a stir in hong kong. the number of reports of them straying into built—up areas has more than doubled in the last five years, and there are worries that the wild animals could attack and injure someone. earlier i spoke to roni wong from the committee of the hong kong wild boar concern group. not a lot of people think it is a problem. i would say i would classify it as a conflict between human beings and wild boars. as you know, hong kong, there is more chance to get in conflict with the animals. apart from that, the organisation spread into the rural area and changes the condition of the wild boars. it has been

seriously effective. the disposal of waste and four facilities will make the conflicts worse. it is interesting, we are looking at some footage and they look rather cute and cuddly and it is the year of the pig in many chinese speaking cities so they seem someone lucky at have they been a major problem, in terms of attacks, coming into conflict with the urban population? since 2017, our government has suspended the hunting because it is not civilised and it means... during the

year of the pig, every people respect the animals and it will be good luck. hong kong never is a leader in the animal rights movement but we are very proud to say that oui’ but we are very proud to say that our government has stopped the hunting. are there any examples of them being violent to people? many naturalists say that another take u nless naturalists say that another take unless they are attacked? anyway, i would want to say, the animal, wild boars, would not attack people u nless boars, would not attack people unless they encounter threats or dangers. it is the year of the pig, anyway, we have to respect their living rights in our city. not long to go now until the oscars and hollywood's traditional film industry could be excused

for feeling a little nervous at the challenge posed by the rise of the streaming services. netflix, for example, has for the first time been nominated for best picture — the black and white, autobiographical movied roma. tom brook reports. roma has been the subject of a massive campaign by netflix to win oscars, aiming to bring a best picture to the director, alfonso cuaron, largely autobiographical the trail of his family in mexico city in 1970s. alfonso cuaron is taking the push in his stride. the company, any of the films, they do a lot of work. i am any of the films, they do a lot of work. iam pleased any of the films, they do a lot of work. i am pleased about it because

roma is a very unlikely film to have this amazing support, in terms of a marketing campaign. it is estimated netflix spent $25 million on its campaign. it knows winning will definitely can rate return, bringing top filmmakers to them and they need high—quality content providers and oscars help with that goal. high—quality content providers and oscars help with that goalm high—quality content providers and oscars help with that goal. if you can show that you might win an oscar, it will put a lot into helping you get that. it helps them retain and attract the very top talent in the film industry and that is important, especially as you have more and more competition. and more competition is coming. distin will be launching a big streaming this year as well as other media entities. —— disney. harvey weinstein was a major force in winning oscars and others are taking

his place. netflix has bought the publicity that harvey weinstein often used to promote his films for a mewhort consideration. academy awards. they won a lot of oscars and people would say he had a special touch. what would happen on the big night? it is a chance that roma can pick up the trophy for best foreign film but also the best picture award. that would delight the executives which make the big hollywood studios shudder over the competition. i have not seen roma but we will have the big buildup on sunday. the

24th, i believe, of february. you have been watching newsday. i'm kasia madera, in london. and i'm sharanjit leyl, in singapore. iam waiting i am waiting to watch that movie as well, and the oscars. stay with us. and stay with us, combating a country's labour crisis. and before we go, we'd like to leave you with these pictures. the harlem globetrotters having a bit of fun. a floating museum ship to demonstrate freak shots. there was no shot to tricky, though positioned too awkward to give it a try. thanks for everyone here are watching. season. good morning, the highest

temperature ever recorded in february in the uk was back in 19 98th. on wednesday it was 1a. february in the uk was back in 19 98th. on wednesday it was 14. still mild. the highest temperatures in the north—east of scotland. over the next few days we could see temperatures approaching 16 celsius. very mild indeed. the air coming south, from the canaries. chilly nights and we have the clearer skies and that is what we have at the moment the england and wales. much milder. and northern ireland, where their rhys mcleod. the cloud feeding and braking and sash and developing more widely. —— were there is cloud. some sunshine developing. a little

bit hazy at times. blue skies will england and wales. the wind is not as strong. temperatures 12—14, maybe even 15 degrees. high pressure keeping it essentially fine and dry. south of the south—westerly winds are milder. a lot of sunshine ahead of friday. more mist and fog is for england and wales early in the morning. a bit of rain mainly to the north—west of scotland. elsewhere probably drive. another lovely day for the most part. possibly 16 in north—east wales and north—east scotland. on the weekend, some slight changes but still mild. rob lee a bit more cloud around on saturday. —— probably. further

north, some brightness and sunshine coming through. one or two spots of drizzle to the north—west. essentially a dry day. still south south—westerly winds. temperatures 13-14 south—westerly winds. temperatures 13 — 14 celsius. the high—pressure squeezing into continental europe where temperatures continue to rise. a bit of rain and drizzle to the west. further east, and otherfine day, less mild perhaps on monday but little rain and most places will be fine and dry with south—westerly winds. i'm kasia madera with bbc world news. our top story: police in the philippines have arrested the award winning head of a news website that's been critical of president duterte. maria ressa is accused of libel for an article that was written seven years ago. ms ressa and her news organisation, rappler,

are already under investigation for tax fraud. mr duterte's government has launched a number of legal actions against the president's critics. a schoolgirl from london, who travelled to syria to join the islamic state group, says she now wants to return to the uk, so she can care for her unborn child. and this story is trending on bbc.com: indian researchers have discovered a new species of frog, in a roadside puddle in the western ghats region. small and mysterious. that's all. stay with bbc world news. now on bbc news, stephen sackur is in florida with hardtalk.