hello. this is the briefing. i'm ben bland. our top stories: no regrets aboutjoining is, but hoping to return home. a london schoolgirl lifts the lid on her brutal life in the so—called caliphate. another busy day at westminster in the latest bid to break the brexit deadlock. but will mps back theresa may? talking trade. chinese and us officials hope to strike a deal in beijing to prevent even steeper tariffs. and after 15 years on the red planet, nasa calls time on one of the most successful mars missions ever. also coming up in the business briefing: germany recession fears. new figures could confirm europe's biggest economy continued to shrink in the last three months of 2018, as trade tensions and brexit doubts take their toll. a warm welcome to the programme, briefing you on all you need to know

in global news, business and sport. and you can be part of the conversation. tell us what you think about the stories we're covering, just use #bbcthebriefing one of three schoolgirls from east london who went to join the islamic state group in syria four years ago says she has no regrets, but she wants to go home to the uk. shemima begum has spoken to the times newspaper, which found her at a refugee camp in northern syria. the teenager, who is pregnant, says she wants to give birth to her third child in britain as herfirst two babies died of malnutrition. daniel sandford reports. pictured for the first time in almost four years in a camp

in northern syria, shamima begum, one of the three schoolgirls from bethnal green who left to join the islamic state group, which by then already had a murderous reputation. just 15 when they went, she told the times about their arrival in is 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. mps at westminster will debate and vote on the next steps

in the brexit process later, as theresa may continues to try to get a deal through the british parliament. a series of amendments designed to change the direction of brexit will be considered in the debate, which is expected to be a routine procedure. but as our political editor laura kuenssberg reports, the prime minister could be facing another defeat. it is not meant to be high noon, it is not meant to be a big showdown. it is meant to be a day where the prime minister asks for permission from the parliament to keep the show on the road, to keep going for another few weeks, to keep going with her pursuit to get a tweak, a change to the brexit compromise she has done with the european union over such a long period of time. and, in that way, well, mps will be putting forward all sorts of different ideas, arguing for another referendum, arguing to take the idea of leaving without a formal arrangement off the table.

and it shouldn't in that sense really be a big event, because none of those things, as things stand, necessarily have a majority on their own. but where the prime minister may come unstuck yet again is that those brexiteers, her trickiest customers in all of this, those mps on her own backbenches, are threatening not to vote with her, which could in the end result in another government defeat. why does that matter, i hear you ask, when this is not a big decision—making moment? well, it matters because right now theresa may is in an evidence—proving session with the european union. her counterparts around the continent want to see that she can get parliament on her side, and if she can't, well, that chips away at her credibility again, that credibility that she needs to show to her counterparts in the european union if they are to give her the change that she believes she needs to get her deal through in the end in a few weeks‘ time. and you can keep up to date with the latest brexit developments,

on the bbc website. you'll also find a feature on how mps could alter the brexit process and a simple guide to brexitjargon, that's all at bbc.com/news. let's brief you on some of the other stories making the news. senators in the united states have introduced a bipartisan bill that would impose sanctions on russia's energy and banking sectors. they say a tough response is needed to moscow's alleged aggression in ukraine, support for president assad in syria and interference in the us presidential election in 2016. president trump's former campaign manager, paul manafort, is expected to face a tougher prison sentence for fraud after a judge ruled he had breached a plea agreement. he was found to have deliberately misled investigators over issues including his contacts with a russian political consultant. 13 same—sex couples across japan are taking legal action

against the government, demanding the right to get married. they have chosen valentine's day to file lawsuits seeking damages for being denied the same rights as heterosexual couples. ai nakajima, 40, from japan, and 31—year old german tina baumann are among them. experts from britain and canada are warning parents not to be complacent about the risks of teenagers using cannabis. a team of researchers say the drug increases the risk of developing depression in later life by almost a0%. us treasury secretary steve mnuchin and trade representative robert lighthizer are holding trade talks in beijing. the us has imposed a 10% tariff on $200 million of chinese goods in retaliation for what it claims are unfair trade policies. those tariffs are set to ratchet up to 25% on march 1st if a comprehensive trade deal isn't struck. michaela bergman from the asian

infrastructure investment bank joins me now. good to see you. so, notjust in the region but around the world, people have been watching these talks, and they will hope that there is some kind of breakthrough. absolutely, i think everybody is really concerned. the impact — both huge economies. the impact — both huge economies. the fact they have been at loggerheads about this issue. people are concerned. they don't want to make decisions. it is really important that they now come together. they have obviously got a deadline to force them to think about things and find a way around this. they are to make huge trading nations and they have to find some sort of solution. and you make the point about the size of their

economies. this trade war, this trade row doesn't just economies. this trade war, this trade row doesn'tjust affect economies. this trade war, this trade row doesn't just affect the two countries, the ripple effects are being seen far more widely. yes, it affects both countries, we know prices have gone up, potentially will go up in both countries, but of course other countries are watching, and then what happens with exports, and then what happens with exports, and it will have a ripple effect in the region and globally, so the fact that there has not been... that there has been concern about an agreement not being made has been very anxious, and this time of turbulence and uncertainty in europe, itjust turbulence and uncertainty in europe, it just doesn't turbulence and uncertainty in europe, itjust doesn't add... it is not helpful for business, not helpful to make decisions. not helpful for business, not helpfulto make decisions. of not helpful for business, not helpful to make decisions. of course there is this deadline looming, this march one deadline, and i suppose that has helped to focus minds, but president trump sort of easing a little bit, hinting that maybe those 2596 little bit, hinting that maybe those 25% tariffs won't kick in as hard as

it sounded that they might. yes, so they say, who knows, but it seems that he will not maybe stick to that deadline if negotiations are going well, and it seems that they are going well. we have high level, president xi taking part, very high—level representation from both sides actually meeting, notjust the second tier level, it is the first tier, so we would all hope that they can come to some sort of agreement sooner can come to some sort of agreement sooner than later. ok, for the moment, thank you, but you will be back later to go through the papers, so we back later to go through the papers, so we will speak more to you then. it's election season in nigeria. on saturday, the country will elect its president and national assembly, with state governor elections to follow in march. africa's most populous nation has been dealing with a range of challenges since its first democratic transfer of power four years ago. 0ur nigeria correspondent mayeni jones looks at the front runners for the top job and the issues they'll have to overcome. four plus four, these voters hope to

see president muhammadu buhari gain power for another four years. the former army general was the first opposition leader to win an election since nigeria's return to democracy 20 years ago. the all progressives party. we are committed to deepening the work we start of this past term. questions over the 76—year—old's health and whether he has been cloned have dominated the second half of his tenure. 72 other candidates will be on the presidential ballot, but his main contender comes from the previous ruling people's democratic party. it will be atiku abubakar‘s previous stint in government that he will rely on to win. allegations of corruption during his time as president continue to dog him. here

he promises to restore peace in the north—east of the country. and that is the first order of business for any future leader, solving insecurity. the current administration has made some inroads. before the last elections four years ago this market would have been cleared, security was so bad that it led to a delay in the polls. 0utside bad that it led to a delay in the polls. outside the city, boka arm has increased attacks on military bases and in central nigeria clashes between herders and farmers have left hundreds dead, while in the south militant groups continue to target the country's oil reserves and it is the country's dependence on the liquid that defines the second issue, solving the economy. 0il accounts for the majority of the revenue and that means the government tends to focus a lot on the oil sector to the detriment of the oil sector to the detriment of the other sectors. the money doesn't go through a lot of processes, a lot of systems, a lot of people. which brings us to the third major issue

of this election, corruption. it colours the way people think. and if our institutions are seen to be free, fairand our institutions are seen to be free, fair and just, then everybody will begin to behave themselves. how the eventual victor tackles these election issues will have important repercussions on and off the continent. the presidential outcome is expected to be a closely fought race, and with both sides already claiming foul play it is unclear whether either will concede peacefully. stay with us on bbc news. still to come: spurs put one foot firmly in the champions' league quarter—finals with a scintillating 3—0 win against borussia dortmund at wembley. 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. you're watching the briefing. 0ur headlines: 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. theresa may is facing another key vote in westminster — it's the latest bid to break the brexit deadlock. let's bring you some breaking news on airbus and the company has announced plans to scrap production of the a380 superjumbo. with me is our business reporter, kim gittleson. do we know why they have taken this decision? the number one buyer is the world's biggest passenger plane, is emirates airline. the straining —— austrian carrier qantas abandoned it. now emirates says it only once

13 over the next two years and, as a result, airbus says it will cease production by 2021. why have emirates not keen on these big planes any more? airlines would rather operate small, fuel—efficient aircraft. when they were thinking of producing this plan in the 80s, they thought these big carriers would be the future. they can fit anywhere over a hundred passengers. that is what airbus thought the future of air travel would be but that has turned out not to be the case. what does it mean to airbus is a company? it isa does it mean to airbus is a company? it is a blow. they invested $20 billion, that has got to have an

anywhere from 3000— 3500 positions could be impacted. emirates is not shifting business with airbus at shifting business with airbus at shifting strategy. but are highlighted 320 is the possibility. the changing habits have caused emirates to cool their enthusiasm for the 380, are others airlines doing the same? singapore airlines, after a ten year lease, decided it did not want to keep many of its planes and got rid of those. we have seen

planes and got rid of those. we have seen that other airlines have decided to shift away and that is the key problem for airbus, particularly as it tries to compete with its rival, boeing, with a smaller model which many airlines think better fit smaller model which many airlines think betterfit their smaller model which many airlines think better fit their needs. it is a disappointment because i was looking at twitter before i came on here and a lot of people love this plan, it is big, cool to be in. it is quiet, environmentally friendly but the problem for airlines in these to be at relatively full capacity for them to make it efficient and that is something that have not been able to do over the past couple of years. thank you very much indeed. to recap the breaking news, airbus has announced it will scrap reduction of its bay 380 super jumble —— a380 after emirates, its

largest customer has decided to reduce the number of orders for those plan models instead opting for smaller, more efficient lighter plane models instead. we will of course bring you more on that later in the business briefing. now it's time to get all the latest from the bbc sports centre. hello, i'm tulsen tollett, and this your thursday sport briefing, where we start with the news that tottenham will take a 3—0 advantage into the second leg of their last 16 champions league tie against borsussia dortmund, in three weeks time. all three goals came after the half time interval and the manager was understandably happy with the result against the germans. i think, of course, 3— ithink, of course, 3— meal i think, of course, 3— meal is a very good result but when it is against a team like them, i think

they always get the respect and, of course, we need to think that we have to go to germany with the idea to win. while in amsterdam, var made its first ever appearance in the champions league, but it didn't benefit ajax. they had a first half goal ruled out for offside in a game they lost 2—1 to real madrid, who are looking for a fourth successive european title. west indian bowler shannon gabriel will miss four one—day internationals against england, following comments he made in the final test. he was charged by the icc for breaching their code of conduct. they didn't say if it was a homophobic slur, but based onjoe root‘s reaction, in which he said, "don't use it as an insult, it's ok to be gay," the presumption is it was. arsenal, sevilla and inter are all in action in the last 32 of the europa league later on thursday, but lots of the attention will be on chelsea, as they travel to face swedish side malmo. maurizio sarri's position

as manager seems to be coming more and more perilous, in the wake of their 6—0 thrashing at the hands of man city at the weekend, but he says he has spoken with the owner roman abramovich since he took over this season. the interview was in italian and in italian i am better than you so i am sure. reporter: so you have spoken and been at chelsea? yes, of course. not in this week, not in the last three weeks. and 27 years on, tiger woods returns to riviera golf club in southern california on thursday, the site of his first pga tour appearance. but the 14—time major champion doesn't have a great record at the genesis 0pen. he's played there 12 times, without a victory. the most of any tournament that he hasn't won. and what a group he tees off with on thursday — former world number one, justin thomas, and four—time major champion,

rory mcilroy. now, for those of you who have ever played basketball, i don't know about you but when i manage to score a three—pointer, i'm pretty pleased with myself! but a simple three—pointer isn't enough for these guys. you might‘ve guessed — yes, it's the harlem globetrotters. for their latest stunt they've been onboard the queen mary, in long beach california, and look at the distance on some of these shots. nice shots. you can get all the latest sports news at our website — that's bbc.com/sport. but from me tulsen tollett and the rest of the team that is your thursday sport briefing. nasa has declared that the 0pportunity rover it sent to mars is officially dead,

after nearly 15 years on the red planet. the robotic vehicle transformed our understanding of mars by confirming that water once flowed there. kim gittleson has more. designed to lastjust 90 days, 0pportunity landed on mars in 2004 and instead decided it would stay awhile — spending the next decade and a half roving over the eerie martian landscape, reliably sending postcards back home. including proof that water, that necessary building block of life, did indeed flow at one point in martian history. but then a summer dust storm covered the rover‘s solar panels and on the 10th ofjune it sent back this image — before falling silent. now, after sending thousands of unreturned messages after the past eight months, scientists have come to the inevitable conclusion — opportunity is no more. it is, therefore, that i am standing here with a sense of deep

appreciation and gratitude that i declare the 0pportunity mission as complete. and with it, the mars exploration rover mission as complete. but mars exploration isn't over yet. a new rover will be launched in 2020 and curiosity, which landed in 2012, is still covering ground. like many on social media, it offered its own eltonjohn tribute to its fallen fore—robot, saying... but the death of the rover some have nicknamed 0ppy marks the end of the longest serving space robot, which gave us the first glimpses of hope of the possibility of life elsewhere. kim gittleson, bbc news. just to recap the breaking news, the

planemaker airbus has announced it. producing the a380 superjumbo. this is after the main airline that buys them, emirates, has decided to cut back the number from 162 to 123 but emirates have confirmed in a new deal worth $21 billion it will be buying smaller planes thought to be more cost—effective, fuel efficient, hence their decision to switch to those. airbus is to stop producing the super—jumbo a380. i'll be back with the business briefing in just a few moments. hello, good morning.

it feels like spring has sprung. a temperature of 1a degrees the highest. temperatures could get higher. it is so mild because our air is coming from a long way south, from the canaries. mild late date but still the potential for some chilly nights, especially under clear skies and we have those across a good part of england and wales. much milder. it and northern ireland we re much milder. it and northern ireland were there is more cloud around. we're looking at sunny skies to develop more widely and it will still be very mild. 0ne develop more widely and it will still be very mild. one or two mist and fog patches in southern england. sunshine coming through but a little bit hazy across the northern parts of the uk. the bluer skies across

england and wales. 12 — 1a degrees, maybe 15 around the moray firth. south south—westerly wind lighter through thursday and friday. a fair bit of sunshine around. mist and fog patches in england and wales should not last too long. more cloud and a bit of rain and drizzle arriving particularly in the north—west of scotland. those temperatures could hit 16 degrees in north—east wales and perhaps north—eastern scotland. 0ver and perhaps north—eastern scotland. over the weekend, not a huge amount of change. mild and dry for most places. more cloud for saturday, particularly noticeable across southern parts of wales. sunshine further north. most places dry. some

weather fronts on the same but very, very weak. still mild. still dry weather continually on saturday in the eastern half of the uk. weather front pushing into the western side of the uk and ringing each of rain and drizzle. ——0f bringing. this is the business briefing. i'm ben bland. germany recession fears — new figures could confirm europe's biggest economy continued to shrink in the last three months of 2018 — as trade tensions and brexit doubts take their toll. plus, showdown in beijing. us finance chiefs meet china's vice premier — amid growing signs of the damage their trade war is doing on both sides. and on the markets. investors cautious as those vital trade talks continue — although better than expected export figures from china providing some relief about the state of the global economy. japan's nikkei edging higher after wall street shares closed up.