i'm kasia madera with bbc world news. our top story: a day of mourning has been declared in ethiopia after a plane crash killed all 157 people on board. the boeing 737, owned i'm rico hizon in by ethiopian airlines, was carrying passengers from more than 30 countries. it came down shortly after taking singapore, the headlines: off from the capital, addis ababa. ethiopia declares a national day of mourning after the plane crash outside addis ababa that killed syrian forces backed by the us have begun their assault on the last enclave held all 157 people on board. by so—called islamic state. most of the group's supporters have now surrendered to kurdish forces. families and fighters leave the islamic state group's last this story is doing well online: stronghold in syria as the final assault it's the moment a deer by western—backed forces begins. was rescued from an icy pond at pittsburgh zoo. one of the keepers plunged into the water to help. luckily the animal was able to get we have a special report. out and returned to its herd. i'm babita sharma in london. that's all. stay with bbc world news. i'm kassia madera in london. also in the programme: india braces for the world's biggest election. 900 million could vote next month and the top story in the uk: as prime minister narendra modi seeks a second term. a 27—year—old man is due to appear

in court on monday after aston villa and women behind the wheel — the new australian taxi app putting passenger safety first. good morning. it's 9:00am in singapore, 1:00am in london and 4:00am in addis ababa, where monday is a day of mourning for the 157 passengers and crew of an ethiopian airlines plane which crashed shortly after take off. the plane, a boeing 737 max—8, is the same make and model as the lionair plane that crashed in october off the coast of indonesia. alastair leithead has the latest. there is very little left of

ethiopian airlines flight 302. this is where it crashed, just moments after ta keoff. is where it crashed, just moments after takeoff. there were 149 passengers and eight crew on board. the search and rescue operation began but the fire was intense. the earth left blackened as the aircraft ploughed into the ground. eyewitnesses describe the intensity of the impact. translation: it came directly from the sky downwards. we had a huge explosion, there was no fire before it crashed at once it crashed we saw a huge cloud of smoke. the flight, bound for nairobi, took off from the ethiopian capital, addis ababa, at 8:38am local time. butjust moments later it disappeared off the radar. it crashed just 37 miles from the airport. the cause of the disaster is not yet clear, but the pilot had reported difficulties and had asked

to return to addis ababa. there were people from 35 different countries on the plane. 32 of the passengers we re on the plane. 32 of the passengers were kenyan, 18 canadian, and seven we re were kenyan, 18 canadian, and seven were from the uk. in south london, ben coria heard this afternoon that his father, who has dual british and kenyan citizenship, was among the dead. i found out that nearly everybody had passed away, and it was just a frantic rush to work the phones to try to get any information that we could get. the aircraft was brand—new. ethiopian airlines, africa's biggest and most successful operator, received its first boeing 737 800 macs aircraft injune. this one was only delivered four months ago, and was flown from johannesburg this morning. it is the first kind of aircraft that crashed off

indonesia last year, operated by lion air. boeing said it was deeply saddened and that a technical team was ready to provide assistance. while all thoughts are with the families of those killed, work has already begun to find out what caused the crash. the us federal aviation authority says it will be involved in the investigation. a little later we will be looking at that lion air crashed a little more closely. stay with us for that. let's take a look at some of the day's other news. algeria's ailing president, abdelaziz bouteflika, has flown back to the country. mr bouteflika, who's 82, is rarely seen in public after having a stroke in 2013. he'd been receiving medical treatment in switzerland. there have been major demonstrations across algeria after president bouteflika announced that he's standing for fifth term in office. teachers and students have been on strike and many shops have been closed, as protests continue. russians have been protesting in moscow against plans to give

the kremlin the capacity to isolate the country's internet service from the rest of the world. activists say 15,000 people took part, double the police estimate. the russian government says the digital sovereignty bill passing through parliament will reduce the country's reliance on servers in the united states. critics call it increased censorship. venezuela is suspending schools and business activities on monday as a blackout continues. some parts of the country have now been without power for 72 hours, and there's no indication of when it might be restored. there've been reports of sporadic looting in the capital, caracas. a woman who stepped over a barrier to take a selfie at a zoo in the us state of arizona has been attacked by a jaguar. when she tried to photograph herself with the big cat, it clawed her through the fencing, leaving deep gashes on her arms. the wildlife world zoo director said people shouldn't cross the barriers, and that the animal

wouldn't be put down. the defence case begins today in kuala lumpur for one of the two women accused of killing with a toxic nerve agent kim jong—nam, the estranged half—brother of north korea's leader kim jong—un. siti aisyah and doan thi huong both deny the charges and could face the death penalty if found guilty. our south east asia correspondent, jonathan head, told me more. we are expect things to support her defence position, which is that although she and this indonesian defendant, siti aisyah, were both responsible for smearing the agent on kimjong—nam, she responsible for smearing the agent on kim jong—nam, she was the second to do it, so they believe that the indonesian defendant initially put a precursor on. it is too dangerous to

handle on its own, this nerve agent, and it was doan thi huong who put on the activating agent. we are expecting her to read a statement in vietnamese, it will be translated, and we expect her to explain that she was recruited by what we now know to be north korean agents. we know to be north korean agents. we know that they are now agents for a tv show, and she was carrying out televised pranks. she will claim that at no point did she understand that at no point did she understand that she was carrying out a public execution. there were more than 30 witnesses, and the judge found that there was reasonable cause to believe that the two women might well have known exactly what they we re well have known exactly what they were doing. he cited the fact that doan thi huong rushed to the toilet and wash her hands afterwards, which she was clearly instructed to do,

suggesting she knew she was handling something dangerous. it will be interesting to see how she explains that in this statement, and then of course she will be cross examined by the defence and prosecution. jonathan, you were in hanoi, vietnam, earlier this month to cover the donald trump kimjong—un summit. was there any sign that this case was raised with the north korean leader? no, none at all. and you would think, to think there is a vietnamese woman on trial for her life here, it is capital punishment, who says she was duped by north korean agents into carrying out this killing. kim jong—un was received korean agents into carrying out this killing. kimjong—un was received in vietnam, the first visit for 50 yea rs by vietnam, the first visit for 50 years by north korean leader, as a visiting dignitaries, with enormous p°mp visiting dignitaries, with enormous pomp and formality, and there is no sign at all—in fact, we were warned not even to mention this trial. that if we did, the bbc would have its

operation for the summit shut down, which tells you that as far as vietnam's concern, it does not want this trial to interfere with its relations with north korea. and i would have to say, much the same applies to malaysia, the malaysian government says it is ready to reopen its embassy in north korea, having shut it down in the aftermath of this investigation. so, the woman on trial behind me is very much on her run, there is no sign that the government is giving her much support. us—backed syrian democratic forces have resumed their attack on baghouz, the so called islamic state group's last stronghold in syria. is once had dreams of a global caliphate, but most of the group's die—hard supporters have now surrendered to kurdish forces. as is faces its final battle, civilians have been fleeing — they include yazidi women and children, who were enslaved by the group for years. earlier, the bbc was given an exclusive look inside baghouz. our middle east correspondent, quentin sommerville, and cameraman jewan abdi,

have sent this report. this is the end of the road. beyond here, we were given a first look inside all that remains of the islamic state group's caliphate. is are close enough to shoot. under their black flag — it was raised only the day before — the diehards hold firm. improvised bombs are left behind, but the caliphate is reduced to squalid camps. no one knows how many remain inside. the men of the syrian democratic forces wait for the final assault. just a mile away, is true believers meet their apocalypse. more than 12,000 supporters, including their children, gave up to kurdish forces in the last week. girl sings.

the daughter of a french is fighter. this is not a lullaby, but a propaganda ballad. she sings of martyrdom and paradise. her extremist father was killed earlier this week. women shout. their hateful ideology, which brought terror here, still pollutes minds. allahu akbar! "go film the men", they scream, "we are the women of the islamic state, god is great", as they attack our camera. hundreds of is fighters have been killed, but hundreds more have survived the battle to retake the last tiny village of baghouz. they are headed for kurdish prison. many of the islamic state supporters view the surrender not as defeat, but as only a setback.

the is leadership told them to give up. the wives expect to see their husbands again, and those husbands expect to take up arms again. that leadership has already fled, and now all across northern syria, there are tens of thousands of hardcore is supporters being held together in camps and prisons, and they are waiting for what comes next. allahu akbar! 11—year—old amar from iraq told us he wants to be a jihadist. allahu akbar! adiba, a yazidi woman, is revealed casting off is oppression. they burn the abaya she was made to wear. forcibly converted to islam, adiba was passed from one moroccan fighter to another. she says she suffered regular beatings, was raped and had a child. nearby, we meet her

latest captor, ahmed. "she wasn't a slave", he says, "she lived with my wife and parents". he'd taken her after her previous ca ptor was killed. is committed a genocide against adiba's people. now her life begins again. and the nightmare caliphate ends. but here in syria, the islamic state group's people and its toxic ideology still cling on. quentin somerville, bbc news, syria. you're watching newsday on the bbc. still to come on the programme: after the ethiopian airlines crash and the loss of 157 lives, we look into the plane's safety record. also on the programme: the world's biggest democracy announces dates for its general election. indian prime minister narendra modi seeks another

term in office. the numbers of dead and wounded defied belief. this, worst terrorist atrocity on european soil in modern times. in less than 24 hours then, the soviet union lost an elderly sick leader and replaced him with a dynamic figure 20 years hisjunior. we heard these gunshots in the gym. then he came out through a fire exit and started firing at our huts. god, we were all petrified. james earl ray, aged 41, sentenced to 99 years and due for parole when he's 90, travelled from memphis jail to nashville state prison in an 8—car convoy. paul, what's it feel like to be married at last? it feels fine, thank you. what are you going to do now? is it going to change your

life much do you think? i don't know really. i've never been married before. this is newsday on the bbc. i'm rico hizon in singapore. i'm kasia madeira in london. our top stories: ethiopia declares a national day of mourning, after the plane crash outside addis ababa that killed all 157 people on board. syrian forces backed by the us have begun their final assault on the last enclave held by so—called islamic state. let's take a look at some front pages from around the world. here's the international edition of the new york times with a story about china's largest oil and gas producer suspending some

of its fracking operations. there have been several deadly earthquakes in china's sichuan province, prompting thousands of residents to stage a protest. they blame widespread drilling. the front of the business times has this on chinese insurers slowly but surely expanding into singapore. the article says china appears poised to use singapore as a springboard into the emerging markets of southeast asia, which have increasingly wealthy populations and a growing middle class. and the us edition of the financial times has this: kim jong un casting his vote in north korea's elections. millions of north koreans are required to take part in the supreme people's assembly elections, in which they are only allowed to endorse the sole candidate.

let's return to our top story, the ethiopian airlines crash in which all 157 passengers and crew have been killed. the aircraft, a boeing 737 max—8, is exactly the same model as the one involved in the lion air crash just off the indonesian coast five months ago. our transport correspondent tom burridge has more. debris recovered in october, when another boeing 737 max went down off indonesia. the crash raised questions about automatic computer systems on board the aircraft, and whether pilots were properly informed about how the new plane had been modified. in the weeks after the crash, the authorities in america issued an emergency airworthiness directive about the 737 max. authorities believe a computer system designed to prevent the plane from stalling received incorrect data and put the plane into a nosedive.

boeing later issued a warning to airlines to ensure pilots were aware of an override switch to deactivate the system. ryanair is due to deliver passengers on the 737 max next month. it's boeing's short—haul, fuel—efficient plane. it began commercial flights in 2017. some 4,500 of the 737 max have been ordered by airlines worldwide. the 737 max which has been involved in the incident today is the latest version of this aircraft. it is very important to boeing as part of their portfolio of aircraft offered to airlines, and it's important to airlines because they want to build on the reliability of this model, and they want the 737 max because it offers much greater efficiency and payload capacity. it's far too early to say what caused the ethiopian airlines flight to crash. former and serving pilots i have spoken to say the crater and debris suggest it descended fairly vertically and at some speed.

a modern aircraft crashing twice in six months is rare. airlines and passengers will want re—assurance. it's known as the largest democratic exercise in the world. india has announced the dates of its general election. more than 900 million people will vote in a rolling poll so large that it takes place over six weeks. votes will be counted on may 23. prime minister narendra modi is seeking re—election. india's recent military action in pakistan will play a part in the campaign, but there are other issues too that could affect the polls. the bbc‘s yogita limaye reports from kerala. cheering and applause. india's most powerful man. five years ago, he won the biggest majority in nearly three decades. narendra modi enjoys an almost cult following in the country. viva modi! and now, after a tense time

for the people of india, he's projecting himself as the man who can keep the nation safe. influence of terrorists and tell them has been curtailed and it is going to be curtailed even more! —— terrorism. this is a new india! this is an india that will return the damage done by terrorists with interest! in response to this suicide bombing in indian kashmir in february, the country's air force launched strikes on what it says were terror camps in pakistan. the strong action has boosted support for narendra modi. but national security is only one issue on the minds of people. the prime minister's record on economic growth and cracking down on corruption has been questioned. one of his main rivals is rahul gandhi who comes from india's foremost political dynasty and leads the country's oldest and one—time strongest party. the congress, though, suffered a humiliating defeat in 2014 and for the past five years, they've been trying to regain their influence.

in 2019, we will have a government that will make up for all the crimes that narendra modi has done against the farmers over the last five years. this fresh energy at the congress‘ rallies because the party has seen some success in recent state elections but indian polls are about so much more than just the two national parties. regional players are extremely popular and could make a big difference to final results. more than 1,800 parties are registered and hundreds of millions of people cast their vote. in the coming weeks, india's election authorities will need to prepare for a democratic event like no other

in the world. yogita limaye, bbc news, kerala. and you can keep up to date with india's election preparations on our website. you'll also find a guide to the issues that will influence whether prime minister, narendhra modhi secures a second term. australia's only women—friendly ridesharing platform promises women safe transport without the fear of being harrasssed. it's helped restore one disabled woman's trust in travelling after she suffered an accident and two sexual assaults. katy has been telling the bbc about the positive impact it has had on her life. hi, i'm katy, this is my guide dog zeke. i'm 33 with narcolepsy, albinism, an unstable pelvis, hip tear, complex regional pain syndrome. as a person who has low vision, there is a lot of trust that i need

to give to others. lots of people have said the app is sexist and they're right, it is. men can never worry about where they sit in a cab. women always have to think about where they're sitting ina cab. i've been sexually assaulted twice. the first was when i was with a group of girlfriends who went into a store to grab something and left me in the car with the nice grandfatherly figure who took advantage. i started shebah because my daughter was at an age where she was noticing that there was a big difference in the way she was being treated by cabs and ubers. one of her friends had had someone lock the doors, uber drivers had got enough information about them to find them on facebook. one of her had had her face grabbed. and i said, "well, why aren't you complaining? " and she said, "he knows i live."

i realised that i'd actually have to start using taxis or rideshare which i had been avoiding like the plague because it's never been a good experience for me. given my history of assault and the joy of rideshare apps, i was over it. and then one day i found the female rideshare app. i have been blessed to meet a lot of wonderful women. i've met sam. i have also had kerry and kim. they are all wonderful. zeke liked sam the moment he met her. i can feel the slightest wiggle through the handle which means he is excited. it feels a lot more like calling a friend and saying hey, can you pick me up and i'll pay for petrol. have you done your nails today? yes, i used the polish you got me. the grand vision is to be available

for every woman who has ever felt scared in a confined space with a man. since the accident, my world was pretty grey and i'd just about given up hope. shebah and the wonderful ladies have restored my faith in humanity and given me my hope back. you have been watching newsday. i'm kasia madera in london. and i'm rico hizon in singapore. stay with us. coming up, we'll be taking a snaphot of tokyo in the first part of our leading cities series. today we will be looking at some of the more inventive solutions the city's come up with to house its ageing population. and let's end with some good news from the united states. it's the monent a deer was fell into an icy pond at pittsburgh zoo. one of the keepers plunged into the water to rescue the deer. the animal was safely returned to the other members of the herd.

good morning. well, sunday morning started off for some on a wintry note. the far north and west of the country had overnight sleet and snow showers. icy stretches on the roads as well, as you can see by this weather watcher picture in tissington, derbyshire. a different story further south across england and wales. yes, sunshine, but gale force winds strong enough at times to uproot trees. it looks as though the winds will be a key feature to our weather forecast throughout this week. potential for severe gales and also heavy rain, particularly tuesday into wednesday. but, fingers crossed, some dry and bright interludes. you can see a little bump of high—pressure building as we speak, so allowing for a quieter day today but waiting out in the wings another area of low pressure to arrive for tuesday. on this monday morning, we start with the risk of a few wintry showers which will ease through the morning. further north and west, still a windy start but nowhere

near as strong as yesterday. and there will be some sparkling sunshine. highs around 8—11 degrees will feel more promising as the winds are lighter. by the end of the day, we will see gales strengthening in the far north—west as the area of low pressure moves in from the atlantic. it will bring significant rain, a couple of inches on west—facing slopes and some strong—gale force winds. quite likely 40—50 mph inland. on exposed coasts, 50—60 mph. a spell of wet weather moves south and east, clearing from the south—east corner during tuesday afternoon. behind it, sunny spells and scattered showers. some of these showers again with hail and sleet and snow mixed in. as we move out of tuesday and into wednesday, we could see the strongest of the winds through the night. to the southern flank of the low as it drifts off into the north sea,

we could see a spell of severe gales for a time and that is certainly worth bearing in mind. if you are going to be travelling on the roads on tuesday night and into the early hours of wednesday morning, it is worth bearing in mind and keep abreast of your weather forecast and your bbc local radio station will tell you if there is any disruption. as we move into wednesday, it looks as if the winds will slowly start to ease through the day. it will be a windy but showery day. i suppose the good news with the strength of the winds is those showers will rattle through at quite a pace but after those severe gales, the winds will start to slowly abate as we go through the afternoon. temperatures will probably peak at 9—11 degrees as the overall high. take care.