welcome to bbc news, broadcasting to viewers in north america and around the globe. i'm reged ahmad. our top stories: new zealand's prime minister opens a book of condolence for victims of the christchurch attacks, writing "together we are one. they are us". she's been discussing changes to the country's gun laws with her cabinet. what the public rightly are asking right now is why is it and how is it that you should and are currently able to purchase military style semiautomatic weapons in new zealand? the owner of new zealand's biggest gun shop says his staff sold four guns to the alleged attacker, but not the semi—automatic weapon used. he said he felt no responsibility for the shooting. as counter—terrorism police raid two homes in australia

where the suspect, brenton tarrant, grew up. hundreds of new zealand school children perform the traditional haka in tribute. hello and welcome to bbc news. the investigation into the shootings at two mosques in new zealand has seen counter terrorism officers carry out two raids in australia, where the man arrested for the killings, brenton tarrant, grew up. police said: "the primary aim of the activity is to formally obtain material that may assist new zealand police in their ongoing investigation", and that "the family of the australian man arrested in christchurch continues to assist police with their inquiries."

speaking to media, australian authorities confirmed brenton tarrant spent only 45 days in australia over the past three years and was not on any terror watch lists. in new zealand, a teenagerfaces14 years prison after being accused of distributing video of the deadly attack. meantime, prime ministerjacinda ardern signed a book of condolences before she held a cabinet meeting on new gun control laws. she has been holding that cabinet meetings and is due to hold a press conference to update on what they have decided. speaking on national tv, ms ardern said she was determined to change the law and take military style weapons out of circulation. i have some initial proposals for cabinet to discuss. i do not want to pre—empt that discussion but i can assure you that our gun laws will change. i know that there is understandably both grief and anger in new zealand. there are questions that need to be answered and that we are looking

for as well. we need to provide assurances to the public that everything that could have been done has been done but whether or not more could and should have been done. we will be putting in place what needs to occur to answer those questions. there are ways we can bring in effective regulation of firearms that actually target those who we need to target and that is our focus. what the public rightly are asking right now is why is it and how is it that you should and are currently able to purchase military style semiautomatic weapons in new zealand. that is the right question to ask. i think i am feeling exactly the same way that all new zealanders feel at the moment. everyone is grieving and i grieve with them. but i also have a important job to do. i need to make sure we are looking after those affected, that they have ongoing care

and support, not just in the coming days but in the months and years. and that is why i am incredibly focused. i have a job to do. the new zealand prime minister, and she is due to speak soon. the managing director of new zealand's largest gun retailer, david tipple, confirmed a short time ago that the alleged gunman purchased four weapons online from his company, but not the assualt rifle reportedly used in the massacre. mr tipple refused to engage in any gun law debate. we detected nothing extraordinary about the license holder. the military style semiauto reportedly used by the alleged gunman was not purchased from gun city. gun city did not sell him that weapon, only a category firearms. i and gun city fully support

the prime minister's swift and decisive actions following this tragedy. the community in christchurch has come together in the wake of the events here. schools will reopen with special counsellors on hand, to help children and teachers traumatised by the attack. and as the country has begun to come to terms with the massacre, tales of heroism, suffering and incredible grace have began to emerge. a police helicopter surveys a scene of mass murder below. while on the ground nearby, an armed response stands ready just in case. members of christchurch's muslim community are gathering to volunteer. they must care for children now orphaned, help feed families that no longer have breadwinners. they must organise the burials of the dead. all this pain because of 30 minutes of madness.

everyone was frightened. many caught up in the violence recorded the aftermath on their phones to bear witness. abdul aziz was in the linwood mosque. he was next to my 11—year—old son. so, that dead man there? yeah, because he shot him through the window. and he was standing next to your son? yeah. his four children were praying at the time. they survived. abdul aziz tried to tackle the killer. when i ran outside i saw two dead bodies on the floor and i saw one man with army clothes near his car and i yelled at him. i said, "who are you?" and i swore at him. i knew he wasn't an army person, or something. so he was dressed in army fatigues, army clothing? yeah, army clothing, everything army. he drops his gun there and runs to his car. when he runs to his car, he saw i was chasing him with his own rifle, with his own shotguns. that he'd discarded 7 yeah, he discarded them on the floor. ijust threw the shotgun on his car

windows and smashed his window and at that time he got a bit frightened. the murderer got away, his twisted thoughts made real. it's believed abdul aziz‘s courage in taking on the killer helped save lives. one ray of brightness on a dark day. clive myrie has also been speaking to the man of christchurch.” clive myrie has also been speaking to the man of christchurch. i think there has always been a feeling that we are a safe country, and that is why this has happened here. i will not give voice to the hatred and the expressions that are seen to be the motives behind this. but i am

pleased to see city leaders around the world standing up against islamophobia, standing up against racism, standing up against all of those things that drive this form of hatred, at the extreme end. this is an extremist act. i have spoken to many in the muslim community here over the last few days, and they say that what is happening here does not reflect the attitudes of the vast majority of people, notjust in christchurch but across the country. that's right, i have been speaking with members of the community, and they are using words like "in all they are using words like "in all the time i have been living here... " macho man people have been living here for decades. that was a very

powerful expression, and they know thatis powerful expression, and they know that is not universal because there are people in the world who don't treat people as equals, but you can see in the tributes behind me that there is an overwhelming outpouring of love and support and compassion and kindness, and i think those are the qualities that so many of our muslim brothers and sisters, that is what they see in everyday life, and that sentiment is expressed here today. what is yourjob in trying to bring this community together, to heal it after this trauma?|j bring this community together, to heal it after this trauma? i think that it heal it after this trauma? i think thatitis heal it after this trauma? i think that it is really important that people focus on what got us through oui’ people focus on what got us through our experience of the earthquakes, which is neighbours came together and supported each other. communities came together and supported each other, and i think thatis supported each other, and i think that is going to be really important too. there is an expression, and i presume it is universal, you start the day when you meet somebody you

greet them with the words " how why you", that has real special meaning, and they think what is really important is when somebody says, well, when you say to someone, how why you, you have to stop and listen for the answer, because some people will be doing this very very hard, especially in the wake of our previous experience, and we need to be there to support people and help. the mayor of christchurch speaking to clive myrie. there've been many moving tributes to victims in christchurch since the attack on friday and here's a distinctly kiwi one from the area's young people. this is a group of local high school students performing the haka for shooting victims. the haka is a ceremonial dance in maori culture. students also left flowers and held a minutes silence.

and you can find out more about any new developments in the investigation and on plans for new gun laws on the bbc website. that's all at bbc.com/news, or you can download the bbc news app. now to other news. ethiopia's transport minister has said that flight data recovered from the ethiopian airlines disaster suggest clear similarities with a crash off indonesia in october last year. meanwhile, memorialservices to remember the victims were held today in addis ababa and nairobi. diplomats, relatives and worshippers prayed for the 157 passengers who died in the crash last sunday. the bbc‘s ferdinand omondi reports. it was a sombre mood inside the ethiopian orthodox church in nairobi. it has been a difficult week for many of them, from learning about the plane crash to absorbing the tragedy

of the loss. several governments sent their representatives to mourn with the bereaved — from neighbouring countries to as far away as russia. passengers from more than 30 countries were on board the ethiopian airlines flight from addis ababa to nairobi. in ethiopia, similar memorial ceremonies were held. relatives wept and threw themselves on the coffins of victims at the holy trinity cathedral in the capital, addis ababa. some of the coffins contained charred earth from the crash site, because it has not been possible to recover the bodies. families have been told it would take up to six months to identify the remains. translation: what makes us depressed is the fact we didn't find any of her body parts. she was very brilliant, hope and future for her family and country. translation: she was very kind to people. i don't know how to describe her. we are broken and bruised deeply. it's very difficult to speak.

these people do not yet know why the plane carrying their loved ones crashed so tragically. it may take a while to get the answers. the ethiopian government has said the investigations into the crash will take time. ferdinand omondi, bbc news, nairobi. dominic gates is the aerospace reporter with the seattle times. he gave me his response to the statement from the ethiopian authorities. the latest news isn't a surprise because over several days we have been finding out about similarities between the crashes, and what they have now is the full flight data from the black box and that is just cementing and solidifying the idea that there are similarities. we had already seen the first three minutes of the flight trajectory, that looked similar, and they found a piece of the plane that moves the horizontal tail, it is called the

jacks grew, and the position of that jacks grew, and the position of that jacks grew, and the position of that jacks grew indicated that the tail had been in such a position as to point the nose down. these things we re point the nose down. these things were all pointing to similarities with the lion air crash, so u nfortu nately with the lion air crash, so unfortunately now, yes, the full data is becoming available and we are seeing that there may be a common cause. you yourself have been looking into how the 737 max was approved. can you tell us a bit about your findings from that investigation? sure, we had a front—page story this morning because i look into the certification of the system that is now suspected of potentially causing both crashes. it is basically a piece of software that was inserted to move the horizontal tail in a certain extreme case of a high—speed stall. because of a faulty sensor, it is understood in the lion air crash, that system activated repeatedly and brought the plane

down... there is still some detail that needs to be worked through. i want to do that but still move as quickly as we can. i absolutely always knew that there would be these kinds of issues to work through. it is, i think, incredible that we have been able to bring together the information needed for the principal decision that has already been made. it is about making sure the details and implementation work is prepared. inaudible. these are the kinds of issues that add layers of complexity toissues issues that add layers of complexity to issues around gun—control rule changes and management. if you reflect on what australia did, that was involved. they will be details i

will announce in the nearfuture. inaudible. absolutely. we are of one mind. we are absolutely united as a cabinet. but you have the leader here, he can speakfor but you have the leader here, he can speak for himself. this was a cabinet decision. inaudible. again, we're making the announcement today or stop you didn't hear my answer. this was a cabinet decision and that is the answer. inaudible. i don't think to be clear, i am not sure the committee went down into the range of issues that have been canvassed between ourselves around issues of availability, so i am not happy for the question, but i am not sure that was part of the enquiry to the best of my knowledge. inaudible.

cannot answer that question? it is serious. i'm seriously concerned about the illegal guns. the reality is that after 1pm on the 15th of march our world changed forever, and so march our world changed forever, and so will some of our laws. absolutely. inaudible. one of the horrific things that i have learned in a very short period of time around events that other countries have experienced before is that this is a trend that occurs, has occurred in regions that have experienced these kinds of horrific attacks. we are looking to the lessons that have been learned in other jurisdictions around lessons that have been learned in otherjurisdictions around the patterns that tend to follow,

retaliatory messages, suggestions of copycat activity. these are patterns of behaviour, so our agencies alive to that, we see the police are taking a precautionary approach with their and their activities. it is also one of the reasons we remain with a threat level of higherjust to ensure that our agencies are live to ensure that our agencies are live to some of those patterns we see internationally. inaudible. ido inaudible. i do not have anything that quantifies that. certainly, our agencies are taking all information seriously, they are taking a precautionary approach, they are focused on ensuring the safety of new zealanders. that is our number one priority. inaudible. i have still the same information, i don't believe i received an update to the one that we received i believe last night that indicated at

that time they had removed, and it would i am sure i am no doubt a higher number now. 1.5 million versions, occasions where the video had been loaded. of course, in the direct aftermath, they removed the offenders instagram and facebook account. they are continuing to automatically remove but also i believe automatically and also remove any replica of that video and any form whether it is cut or in full. the point i would like to make, though, is obviously there is a proliferation of its availability. 1.5 million times. the fact that only1.2 of 1.5 million times. the fact that only 1.2 of those times have been automated, there are powers to take automated, there are powers to take a very direct approach to instances of speech that incites violence. all

that incites hate. and i would call on our social media platforms of all variety to demonstrate the kind of responsibility that both lead to these events and that includes those who perpetuate the messages in the aftermath. there is a lot of work that needs to be done. inaudible. they have certainly indicated, sent their condolences for new zealand, they have indicated that they are working very proactively on the sharing of videos and content in the aftermath, they have acknowledged some of the systems they have already around what they have termed hate speech. my view is that there is more that can and should be done. inaudible.

no, i believe the police haven't been able to really verify that, i know that there was, i believe, anecdotal suggestions of that. look, all i would say is that i would exercise caution for anyone who was considering investing at this point. simply waita considering investing at this point. simply wait a few more days, have some certainty. inaudible. i spoke to them the other day. inaudible. we didn't talk about that. we talked about their offer to provide us with support alongside their feelings of sincere condolences support alongside their feelings of since re condolences about support alongside their feelings of sincere condolences about the disaster that has happened here. inaudible.

no. i cannot speak for myself. inaudible. no. i cannot speakfor myself. i have not. inaudible. i made it very clear to the foreign minister last night that anything of that nature that mrs epps —— misrepresents that country given this was not a citizen, it is totally unfair. we made it very clear and we are close to terra 's —— terrorism clear and we are close to terra 's — — terrorism whatever clear and we are close to terra 's —— terrorism whatever shape it may be. we had a long dialogue on the

need for any other country or turkey for that matter to ensure that our country, new zealand was not rip —— misrepresented. we did not start and bring about this disaster and we are honest with that. inaudible. i haven't asked that specific question or received any alternative. inaudible. do you think people want to see something? my to see something? my apologies if i did not make it clear. absolutely, there will be a national commemoration and a service held in orderfor all new national commemoration and a service held in order for all new zealanders to gather together and acknowledge the terrorist attacks on friday. that will absolutely be the case.

what we want to ensure is that we allow the time and space for families to be able to bury their loved ones, and keeping in mind that some have not received their loved ones. and so our concern was that this friday may not have allowed some of that process on their side to be completed. so that is the decision, that is why it will not be this week. we are looking to set a date as soon as we can. i anticipate making announcements in that regard very soon. i also want to make sure that i talk to the community in christchurch and the mayor in christchurch and the mayor in christchurch city council. inaudible. of course, we had a range of conversations around the implementation of that decision. i

intend to make announcements on that in the very near future, and as intend to make announcements on that in the very nearfuture, and as i have said, it will be before cabinet meets next monday. inaudible. why wasn't more done? i saw those reports, and specifically have asked that question of our agencies. they acknowledge that those agencies have met the individual who has made those statements, that they have in the past had conversations around a perception around there being unfair targeting, and that has been the focus on some of those conversations. they have also given me the assurance that any specific issues that have been raised, any leads, any threats have always been followed up on. however, it is not enough for me to simply pass on the assurances of our agencies under

these circumstances, and that is why cabinet has made the decision that there will be an enquiry. it will exist to look into these very issues because the public deserve answers to those questions. should there be a royal commission? we haven't made a specific decision around the nature of the enquiry, so there are three options. royal commission, public enquiry and ministerial enquiry. very few differences between the first two, the third one gives you a little more ability to manage timelines and a few more options around the management of classified information, but actually, as i have said, what we will be looking at when making a decision over the nature of the enquiry, is timeliness, public confidence and dealing with classified information. those are some factors we need to keepin those are some factors we need to keep in mind. some of the critical elements around the ability to look into these agencies exist across all three options.

inaudible. no. absolutely not. there isn't. simply put, there is probably a reason it took australia 12 days. i think the fact we are here giving you now an assurance that we have made a decision as a cabinet, we are unified, there are simply details to work through. these are not simple areas of law. that is simply what we will be taking the time to get right. inaudible. certainly, my intention is for the minister of police to share certainly the intent of where we are heading, the decisions that cabinet has made, and it will be up to them

whether they choose to support or not. from the indications i have seen from the conversations i have had from the leader of the opposition, i imagine they will be supportive. inaudible. i haven't received a request, i don't know the nature of what he would like to talk about, but i consider all requests that come to me on consider all requests that come to meona consider all requests that come to me on a range of issues, but i never say i haven't seen it. last couple of questions. inaudible. i think what we have two acknowledge, the deputy prime minister is absolutely right. in this case, the primary suspect here, the person who has been arrested for this terrorist attack, was not a citizen of new zealand. however, thatis citizen of new zealand. however, that is not to say that there are not those who live in new zealand

who hold values and ideas and use language that is completely counter to what the vast majority of new zealanders believe. and so i don't think that we can ignore that, we cannot ignore that. if we have to continue to ensure the safety of our muslim communities and others, the 200 ethnicities that live in new zealand, we have to be life to the fa ct zealand, we have to be life to the fact that there are those who do not share our values of openness, of diversity, of compassion. and that is something we are going to have to confront as a nation. inaudible. some companies are considering pulling their advertising on facebook. they are spending upwards of $100 million a year. inaudible. you will forgive me that this is just not an area that we have to date invested thinking and time

into. we have been quite focused along the operational issues, of course, decision—making around policy changes and so on. we have certainly raised our areas of concern around the spreading of m essa 9 es concern around the spreading of messages and videos and so on and will continue to do so, but we simply have a look beyond that at this point. i will take the last question. inaudible. yes, i have spoken to him since then. right, thanks everyone. you've been watching the new zealand prime minister cffr update. after she met with her cabinet. they were due to meet today to talk about gun control, what her party and her

government wanted to do about