this is bbc news, i'm lukwesa burak. the headlines at 16:00: 15 bodies — including those of six children —— are found by sri lankan security forces, after a gun battle with islamist militants. northern ireland politicians are being urged to deliver on power—sharing — by the priest who received an ovation at lyra mckee‘s funeral. i get the sense that people want our politicians to move, and they want them to move now. and by that, i mean in terms of entering into those talks, and in a way that will actually bring a positive result at the end of them. nearly 100 labour mps and meps — including shadow ministers — are demanding thatjeremy corbyn backs another referendum on any brexit deal.

they change my life. they certainly put me on the market to be a glamour model. the victoria derbyshire programme investigates cosmetic quick fixes and reveals how ministers are hoping to prevent ‘botched' procedures. that's in half an hour, here on bbc news. good afternoon and welcome to bbc news. sri lanka's security forces have said 15 people were killed in an explosion and gun battle with suspected islamist militants. six children were among the dead. the search is continuing for the bombers who carried out a series of attacks on easter sunday. from sri lanka, our correspondent, yogita limaye, reports. the search continues for those behind sri lanka's horror.

police have been carrying out raids across the country. on friday, they followed a tip—off to this house in the eastern city of ampara. armed men were inside, who set off an explosion. a gun battle followed and the house burned down. more than a dozen died. six are believed to have been linked to the bombings. several children were also caught up in the violence. in another house, in the same city, police found a huge stash of bomb—making material — a discovery that shows how grave the threat of more attacks still is. this banner of the islamic state group, which has claimed responsibility for the easter sunday attacks, was also found. not far is the town where this man lived, zahran hashim — the alleged mastermind of the attacks, believed to have been one of the suicide bombers himself.

several suspects are still at large. these photos were released by the government earlier this week. perhaps the most inhuman of the bombings was at this church in batticaloa, because children were the target. young boys and girls, who were attending sunday school. the bbc‘s tamil service spoke to a pastor, who recalls seeing the bomber. translation: he was wearing a shoulder bag and a camera bag. i wasn't aware of his purpose at that time. many children were drinking water in the entrance of the church after their sunday school class. people and children are entering. that's when the bomb went off. workers have begun to clear the trail of destruction, and most of those who died have been laid to rest, but fear remains. yogita limaye, bbc news, colombo.

dr rajesh venugopal, assistant professor at the london school of economics, told me that the decision to give security forces extra powers has been causing concern and tension in sri lanka. this was an obscure and tiny extremist organisation that operated in the south—east of the country, and that was largely found to be a menace within the muslim community for some time. and that community had tried to report this organisation to the authorities, but very little action had been taken. yeah, i understand it was the sufis that had reported the leader, the alleged leader of this group. where would they have received the funding? once again, it's speculation. there is a lot of speculation going around and rumours going around that it may have come from the middle east, perhaps from isis. once again, there's very little hard evidence out there, so i would be very careful to add to that very fetid atmosphere of rumour.

what were they after? because there is some description that they were part of the wahhabi tradition. what did they want? well, this organisation has been trying to campaign against other muslim organisations, other muslim sects in the east of the country for some time now. and it appears that they are one of a clutch of extremist organisations that have been sort of operating within that sort of milieu. in december last year, there were reports they had slightly moved beyond that and started attacking other religious monuments, such as buddhist monuments, which is when they first came to the serious attention of the authorities. what does this now mean, do you think, for everyday life in sri lanka? because many people are very hesitant. they do not want to return to the days of civil war,

with a high military presence on their streets. is this inevitable? well, i think there is a huge tension now between security and protecting the rights of people. and this is something which is a grave tension because, in the past, when there was a state of emergency and when there was a much more intense scale of militarisation, there were also serious abuses that were committed and serious problems with that sort of greater degree of power and flexibility that was allowed to the security forces. so, there is a real tension and there are very serious concerns that giving those extra powers is to be, you know, is a cause for concern. around 100 labour mps and meps — including a number of shadow ministers — have now signed a letter demanding the party commits to holding another referendum on any brexit deal. labour's ruling national executive will meet on tuesday, to finalise the party's manifesto for the european elections, which are due to take place in less than four weeks‘ time. 0ur political correspondent, susana mendonca, has been

giving me more details. we've got a number of mps, around 100 mps and meps on the labour side saying that they want the party to offer a clear commitment that it is committed to having a vote on a brexit deal and that they want that to be part of the manifesto, ahead of the european elections, which are due to be held on the 23rd of may, provided that we do have european elections, because we know the prime minster hopes that if she can get a deal done before then, it might not happen. but presuming that election goes ahead, we are expecting labour to come out with their manifesto next week, finalising it. so these mps are trying to push for that and it comes off the back of a week when we have had a bit of concern raised by some of those within labour, because there was a draft leaflet that was revealed in the week which had no mention of a referendum on the brexit deal. now, we have since discovered

today that labour intends to change that leaflet, that it plans to include a general election on there and also what they refer to as a confirmatory ballot — so, effectively, a referendum on a final deal. so, that will be in that leaflet. these mps are saying that as part of that whole manifesto, they want a clear message so that would make them the only viable alternative to the brexit party. labour have a real challenge here because within the party, there is a lot of controversy over whether or not they should be going for that clear message on another referendum, or if that could deter labour voters in some of those key northern heartland from voting for labour, people who perhaps voted for brexit. so there are those who think labour should not be going down that road. just to clarify, it is not a given that we will be taking part in those european elections? no, it is supposed to happen on the 23rd of may, but if the prime minister can do a deal before then, presumably, that election would not happen.

that's what the tories would like to see. they have their own challenges because they have activists who say that they will not take part in campaigning, they have donors who say they do not want to contribute to the campaign. they have their own issues — many in the conservative party who did not want there to be european elections and they are very unhappy if they do go ahead. a formal investigation has begun into a decision by the home office to accuse more than 30,000 international students of cheating in english language tests. there are claims now that many of the accusations were unfair. many students had their visas revoked — and more than a thousand were removed from the uk — after evidence of cheating was uncovered by the bbc‘s panorama programme. the national audit office will conduct the inquiry. the catholic priest father martin magill, who criticised northern ireland's political leaders at the funeral of the journalist lyra mckee,

has told the bbc that people want results from new talks next month to restore power—sharing at stormont. power—sharing broke down more than two years ago. 0ur ireland correspondent, emma vardy, reports. at lyra mckee‘s funeral, the words of father martin magill received a standing ovation when he shamed politicians for failing to reconcile their differences to restore devolution. why, in god's name, does it take the death of a 29—year—old woman with her whole life in front of her... applause. in his first interview since the address, he urged politicians to listen to the people. i get the sense that people want our politicians to move and they want them to move now, and by that, i mean in terms of entering into those talks and in a way that will actually bring a positive result at the end of them. political adversaries in northern ireland have been

brought together by the death of the journalist who was shot during rioting in londonderry. more than two years since power—sharing collapsed in northern ireland, yesterday, the british and irish governments announced that in the wake of lyra's death, there would be fresh discussions to try to reach a new power—sharing agreement, beginning after the local elections next week. and we will work with all the parties to help them do that. but repeated rounds of talks have previously failed, and big sticking points between the parties remain. emma vardy, bbc news. clinics offering cosmetic surgery — such as botox and fillers — have said they will introduce new checks to ensure vulnerable people are not sold unnecessary or damaging treatment. it follows a warning from the nhs director of mental health services that the cosmetic industry is doing too little to stop those with body image obsessions undergoing potentially harmful treatments. richard galpin reports. cosmetic procedures like botox injections and fillers are popular and easily available —

notjust in clinics, but also in high street outlets. the nhs is concerned there's a link between young people's mental health and these kinds of procedures. 25% of youngsters are worried about their appearance, 50% are worried about their weight, and we know that the evidence is if you've got those concerns, if you are feeling pressure or bombarded around idealised body image, that you are more likely to seek procedures, but you are also then more likely to be dissatisfied with the outcome of those procedures. to try to tackle this, the nhs wants all those providing cosmetic procedures to sign up to an online training programme teaching them how to recognise the signs and symptoms of vulnerability and mental ill health, and ensuring they tell customers where to get help if they show signs of being vulnerable. but the course is voluntary and, so far, only 10% of providers have signed up for the training. richard galpin, bbc news.

health officials in pakistan say they have suspended a nationwide anti—polio campaign, after a series of deadly attacks in the last week. a health worker — and two security officers — were killed in separate incidents. thousands of parents have refused to allow their children to be given the vaccine. officials are blaming mis—information being spread on social media. cyclone kenneth has become the second powerful storm to hit mozambique in two months. rescue teams are attempting to reach remote villages in the north of the country, where thousands of people may be trapped. the storm hit the comoros islands first, killing three people.

it then made landfall on thursday, in the cabo delgado region, near the tanzanian border. heavy rain has increased the risk of flooding and landslides. 0ur correspondent, pumza fihlani, is watching from the capital, maputo. it's the worst storm this part of mozambique has seen. the people here were unprepared. days after cyclone kenneth hit, many are still shocked at the force of mother nature. heavy wind of up to 200 kilometres ripped through northern mozambique, destroying homes and uprooting trees. the people of mozambique had barely recovered from another cyclone, which hit the port town of beira just over a month ago, causing death and destruction. the authorities this time around want to move faster. they're desperate to get their hands on resources which will make it possible for them to get help to where it's needed most. the operation is dependent on how nimble they are on the ground. torrential rains are expected here over the next few days. this means there's a high risk of flooding and landslides. there are fears thousands

of people could be left trapped in remote villages. there are nearly 20,000 people in displacement centres — schools and churches that survived the impact. but as a clearer picture emerges of the destruction, more may be needed, local authorities have said. the worst—hit areas include pemba. teams have been deployed to the area. officials say this will determine where help is needed most. 0ne death has been confirmed, but there are fears that figure will rise over the next few days. but for some, life now has become a search for the next meal. they are relying on aid efforts. it's a desperate time for survivors. rebuilding their lives will be slow and daunting for many people of this poor country. the headlines on bbc news: 15 bodies — including those of six children — are found by sri lankan security forces, after a gun battle

with islamist militants. the authorities say the militants set off explosives, as troops surrounded a house in the east of the country. nearly 100 labour mps and meps — including shadow ministers — are calling onjeremy corbyn to back another referendum on any brexit deal. northern ireland politicians are being urged to unite to deliver on power—sharing, by the priest who received an ovation at lyra mckee's funeral. (1615 nc headlines) and in sport... tottenham have missed out on the chance to cement their place in the top four, as london rivals west ham became the first away side to win at their new stadium. a goal from their number 5 with 67 minutes on the clock gives celtic a poignant victory that takes them to the brink of their eighth consecutive scottish title on the day they celebrated the life of billy mcneil. and charles leclerc‘s hopes of putting his ferrari on pole position ended in the barriers, as he crashes out of qualifying

at the azerbaijan grand prix, as valtteri bottas takes pole. and three—time champion mark selby has suffered a shock defeat by gary wilson in the second round of snooker‘s world championship in sheffield. more from bbc sport throughout the day. spaniards go the polls tomorrow in a fiercely—contested general election — the third in the past four years. the controversial far—right vox party is threatening to shake up spanish politics, but critics say its divisive message could set the country back decades. andy beatt reports. spain's third general election in just four years. with as many as 40% of voters still undecided ahead of sunday's vote, politicians of all colours have been campaigning hard.

among them, the far—right populist party vox, enjoying a surge of support and hoping to upstage their rivals. but in madrid, activists from feminist group femen, written across their bodies, "this isn't patriotism, it's fascism." and the anti—franco slogan, "they shall not pass." anti—immigration, anti—separatist, and anti—women's rights, vox is one of five parties with a chance of entering government. if it does, it would become the first far—right group to sit in parliament for nearly a0 years. its leader, though, is keen to brush aside links with spain's fascist past. translation: vox is the only party capable of defending national unity

and the freedoms for spaniards, that are under attack from socialism, communism and separatism. the party's rise, dubbed an earthquake in spanish politics, has clearly shaken the country's socialist prime minister. translation: i ask you all to unite around the only party that can guarantee spain looks to the future and doesn't go back 40 years, as the right would have it. political tremors have also unsettled the centre—right. led by the main opposition people's party. they‘ re likely to lose votes to vox, or end up depending on them to hold power. after the convulsions of the campaign, saturday has been set aside as a day of reflection. but with results expected to be close and followed by lengthy coalition talks, the calm is not

likely to last. to america, where president trump has urged americans to get immunised against measles, despite previously casting doubt on the vaccination. health officials believe the recent spike in cases of the virus is partly connected to misinformation about the jab. in the latest outbreak, about 270 students and staff have been in quarantine — after cases were confirmed at two universities in california. caroline rigby reports. the president's line on measles has not always been consistent. but as the us faces a major resurgence of the disease, he had this message for parents. they have to get the shot, the vaccinations are so important. this is really going around now, they have to get their shots. a marked change in direction from a man who previously promoted now—discredited anti—vax theories, and suggested inoculations are linked to what he described as "a big increase in autism". his call to arms in the battle

against measles comes amid a new outbreak in california, after two infected students attended two separate universities. 0ne visited a campus at the university of california, los angeles, potentially coming into contact with 500 people. the other went to a library at california state university, attended by up to 2,000 people a day. there's a blanket order and statement that if you were in this area, you would need to be quarantined, notify the health centre, notify your immune status, or you will be quarantined. so far this year, 700 cases have been reported across 22 states. that's the highest number since the us declared the disease to be eradicated at the turn of the century. and the outbreak isn'tjust confined to the us — the un warns the number of cases around the world has nearly tripled compared to last year. health officials have linked

the increase in the us to misinformation around the safety of the measles vaccine, and discredited theories about possible related side—effects. they will hope the president's call to action will encourage more people to get immunised — in turn, helping to limit the spread of the disease. in the uk, around half a million people have a debilitating form of heart failure that doctors know very little about. the condition stops the heart from relaxing, meaning the muscles become too stiff to function properly. now, researchers at four british universities are looking into how to diagnose and treat the condition. here's our science correspondent, richard westcott. around 500,000 people have a type of heart failure we know very little about. it's called hfpef. ..

if you are ready, we can stop there. and this is a new study to find out what makes it tick. i didn't realise i had a heart condition and i thought, why, i'm so fit? i can't be — i've been a dancer, done so much, gardening, et cetera, i can't believe it. so you are quite good at walking on the flat, but not the inclines? definitely. as well as the physical tests, they will be asking patients about their lives. if i said, could you walk to the shop and back again? no, i couldn't. this is a very interesting patient group that are pretty much left to their own devices, there are not any evidence—based treatment therapies for them, so it's really interesting to try to find out what would help them. it wasn't long ago that some clinicians doubted hfpef even existed. it might be common, but it's hard to recognise. symptoms can be similar to more well—known types of heart failure, or even other conditions, but there is a key difference. a normal heart muscle needs to be able to expand and contract so it can pump the blood. around half the people with heart failure have a muscle that's too loose, but they know how

to diagnose that and treat it. the other half have a muscle that's gone thick and goes too tight, and that's the one they need to find out a lot more about. this is one of the more obvious signs we sometimes see. this blue jet you see here is blood leaking back because this valve should be closing, but it's not, and that can occur because the heart muscle has become thickened. we know that there are things that we can do for this group of patients and it's just ensuring that there's a systematic way of diagnosing and managing, that people are more aware of it, and that they know, right, if we get the blood pressure controlled, if we control their diabetes, if perhaps we make sure that they're doing more physical activity, that we can actually improve them. researchers will study around 200 patients for a year. well, i hope they find the reason why we go downhill like we are. and i'm quite pleased, actually,

that i had that call from faye last year, when she asked me would i come and participate in research? because it must help the future. they will then recommend new ways to identify and look after the hundreds of thousands who suffer. richard westcott, bbc news. it's being claimed that some fitness trackers from leading brands are so inaccurate, that they can be out by up to eleven miles when logging the distance of a marathon. the consumer group which? has published analysis of some of the most popular devices from big names in the market. the watchdog used a calibrated treadmill to compare different trackers, logging the number of steps and distance travelled. it's warning some simply can't be relied upon. well, months of training will come to fruition this time tomorrow, when thousands of amateur and professional athletes line up for the london marathon. in the men's wheelchair race, all eyes will be on david weir, who's looking for a record ninth course victory. his team mate, johnboy smith, is an upcoming wheelchair racer whose life was changed in a split

second as a teenager. kate grey has been to meet him at his training base, at richmond park. johnboy smith is one of britain's rising stars on the wheelchair racing circuit, but he never set out to be. his life changed at the age of 16, in a tragic case of mistaken identity. i stumbled upon the wrong farm, at the wrong time. mistaken for a poacher, i was accused of poaching and everything like that. the farmer fired a warning shot at me, instead of asking questions — "are you poaching? was you here before?", or whichever. fired a warning shot, me and my friends ran back to our car. the gun that the farmer shot me with was a rifle. he shot through the back of the car, through the seat and into my spine. that's the less gory, short story. and that was it? that was it. instantly, total paralysis. before his injury, he was a keen amateur boxer in his traveller community. that was clearly no longer an option, so during his

five months of rehab at stoke mandeville hospital, he had to come to terms with his new way of life. my mum was pushing me around the hospital in a wheelchair and i was thinking, one, i'm not going to let her do that, because that's going to get her down. and, two, i'm a 16—year—old boy, i need some dignity. that sort of like inspired me to be better, be stronger, physically and mentally. and, yeah, itjust all snowballed from there, really. over time, johnboy tried out a number of different sports and eventually found his calling as a marathon racer. it's going to be silver and bronze for england! success soon followed, winning silver at last yea r‘s commonwealth games. the best moment in his wheelchair racing career so far. but ultimately, it's not about the medals forjohnboy. he wants to be a role model in his community and prove that anything is possible. you can have the worst news in the world — you've lost the use of your legs, you can't box any more, you can't have a normaljob. i just wanted to show that there's life after disability, there's life after tragedy. i'm just a local lad from kent,

and itjust so happens i'm very good at wheelchair racing. now it's time for a look at the weather, with tomasz schafernaker. tomorrow is a better day across the uk. it is still pretty windy, but those winds gradually ease through the evening. and there will still be showers around, some of them heavy, particularly around north west uk. this is how we end the day, temperatures around 12 degrees in the south, 9 degrees in the north. and watch the showers go, still quite a strong north—westerly wind around the coast of lancashire, northern wales and blustery england. by northern wales and blustery england. by the end of tonight, most places are dry and very nippy, northern towns and cities as low as 4 degrees, closer to 8 degrees in the south. tomorrow it really is very different. mars and chain around, much later winds. if you are showers, just the odd one here and there. —— fewer showers around.

maybe 16 degrees in the lowlands of scotland. 0verall, not bad day.

area hello. 15 bodies, including those of six children, are found by sri lankan security forces after a gun battle with islamist militants. the authorities say the militants set off explosives as troops surrounded a house in the east of the country. nearly 100 labour mps and meps, including shadow ministers, are calling onjeremy corbyn to back another referendum on any brexit deal. northern ireland politicians are being urged to unite to deliver on power—sharing talks, by the priest who received an ovation at lyra mckee's funeral. i get the sense that people want our politicians to move, and they want them to move now. and by that, i mean in terms of entering into those talks,