this is bbc news, i'm reged ahmad. our top stories: a stark warning from iran's president: the country could face the worst conditions in decades as us sanctions bite. dozens of us states join a lawsuit against major drugs companies accusing them of price—fixing and trying to reduce competition. president macron‘s party launches its eu election campaign — can europe's mainstream hold off the populists? it's known as the ‘0lympics of the art world,‘ artists descend on venice for its biennale international art festival.

as us sanctions begin to bite, iran's president has issued a stark warning to his country. hassan rouhani said the nation was facing pressure never before seen in the history of the islamic revolution. banks, oil sales and international trade have all been affected, he said. with the us deploying a second warship to the region. mr rouhani urged his country's factions to unite and counteract the threat. i'm joined now by professor seyed mohammed marandi in iran. he helped negotiate the iran nuclear deal and is now working at the university of tehran. professor, thank you so much for your time. first of all, hassan rouhani, the iranian president, has wa nt of rouhani, the iranian president, has want of difficult times ahead. what

is he talking about? well, he was saying that the situation is very similarto during saying that the situation is very similar to during the war period when saddam hussein was supported by western countries and the united states. he was even giving —— given chemical weapons by western countries to use extensively against iranians. there was a war, we were sanctioned and he was given everything he needed but now he is saying that the sanctions are that ofa saying that the sanctions are that of a different nature and they target ordinary iranians. americans are trying to weapon eyes global financial institutions and with the help of the saudis and the emirate is -- help of the saudis and the emirate is —— weaponise was not they are trying to carry out warfare against ordinary iranians in order to bring them to their knees. what was happening in the 80s at the time in iran, if you can painta picture,

that would cause the president to compare what the current present—day is to that time. well, he was saying that in the 1980s there was a great deal of unity so despite the shortcomings and difficulties, people united and rallied around the government. he was asking the different political parties to rally around the government, for the parliament to co—operate more with the current administration, so that the current administration, so that the iranians government can overcome the iranians government can overcome the substantial difficulties. the iranians were not very concerned about the us deployment in the persian gulf because the iranians ever since the invasion of iraq by the united states, the iranians have been preparing themselves, so they have extensive underground facilities all across the persian gulf. there obviously must be concerned about what the economic impact might be as sanctions really begin to hurt. well, the sanctions are already hurting and they are

targeting ordinary iranians. the americans are trying to prevent iran from importing anything including medicines. large numbers of people have died at times because of a lack of certain medicines. they are trying to prevent companies in iran, factories, from functioning so people lose theirjobs and they are trying to devalue the currency as much as possible so that ordinary people and the more vulnerable suffer. this is the main concern of the government. of course the government is responding, it is selling oil increasingly on the open seas. many countries are trying to co—operate with the run because countries like india and china are deeply concerned that us weaponisation of financial institutions could target them in the future. they do not want to rely

on to saudi arabia and the united arab emirates because these two countries are inherently unstable and because they are so close to the united states. and in addition, i think, because iran is already talking about push against these two countries because of their cooperation with the united states. thank you very much for your time. thank you very much for your time. thank you. let's get some of the day's other news. polls open for the sixth of seven phases in the indian elections. around 140 million people are expected to vote. cricketer virat kohi was among the early voters who turned up at a polling booth in gurgaon this morning to cast his ballot. in a new rally, the venezuelan opposition leader has again urged his supporters to go on nationwide protests against president nicholas maduro. juan guaido is recognised as interim president by more than 50 countries. this follows a failed military uprising in an attempt to oust mr maduro last month.

lithuanians are electing a president to replace the popular dalia grybauskaite at the end of her second and final five—year term. with nine candidates in the running, it could go to a run—off at the end of the month at the same time as the european parliamentary elections. more than a0 states in the us have filed a lawsuit against 20 pharmaceutical companies. they are accusing them of price—fixing and conspiring to reduce competition. this follows a five—year investigation into why prices have sometimes suddenly increased and in some cases by over a thousand percent. chris buckler, our correspondent in washington, explained why over a0 states are filing these lawsuits. according to that investigation at times they seem to be doubling, tripling, or as you mentioned there, rising by more than i,000%, sometimes with no explanation whatsoever. and that is why the states have been looking into this, and have now brought the lawsuit. and they're suggesting that 20 of these companies, along with 15 individuals, have been involved in some kind of conspiracy essentially to try and manipulate prices and also

to try and restrict competition — of course, extremely serious charges. what they say they want to do is bring this suit to try and force change but also to claim damages and try to ensure that drug prices remain lower. obviously there are 20 companies and 15 individuals, and we don't have a response from all of them. but it seems clear that the majority of them, if not all, will fight this suit. we had a response from teva, an israeli pharmaceutical giant, one of the biggest companies named in this suit. we had a response from teva, an israeli pharmaceutical giant, —— we had a response from teva, an israeli pharmaceutical giant, one of the biggest companies named in this suit. in it, they say they have done nothing wrong. they insist they have broken no rules, have broken no laws. and what is included in this lawsuit are a number of claims. in the official statement they say that teva supply high—quality medication to patients around the world while maintaining commitment to all laws and rules, and they say they will continue to examine the issue internally, and there is nothing in their conduct that could lead to civilian or criminal accountability. but if you listen to any politicians

here, including president trump, they say time and time again that americans are paying more than people in other parts of the world for their medications, and they cannot understand the reason for that. and it is one of the rare issues in the us at the moment that unites republicans and democrats. they both want something done about it, although they can't quite agree on what that should be. some democrats, for example, have suggested that they should try to tie the prices of these medications — and we're talking about generic drugs here, that are much cheaper than some of the brand names, but do the same job to tackle conditions and illnesses such as diabetes, high blood pressure, cancer and the like. and they feel if they tied those prices of those generic medicines to the costs paid in other parts of the world, that would ensure that americans were getting a fair deal. so far we have no proposals for legislation that will address this issue properly, and i suspect it will be talked a lot about leading up to the 2020

presidential campaign. europe goes to the polls in less than two weeks to elect a new parliament in brussels. increasingly, the contest is being framed as a fight between mainstream parties and insurgent populists. nowhere more so than in france, where president macron‘s party is being targeted by the hard right led by marine le pen. the result is likely to shape the future direction of the continent as caroline rigby reports. under the banner of project renaissance, natalie, the head of macron plasma party candidates, want the future of the european project is under threat from the rise of populists — mike warner. —— the head of emmanuel macron‘s party candidates. translation: we do not

wa nt candidates. translation: we do not want a world in which the european construction of the founding fathers is destroyed. i don't want it for myself, children. i don't want to ta ke myself, children. i don't want to take that risk. we will not be europe's sleepwalkers. since the campaign, she has faced criticism for a series of blunders and with them last of the major political —— political parties to list its candidates, many believe the french president is counting on himself as much as anyone else to ensure success. much as anyone else to ensure success. at a rally on friday, far right leader marine le pen suggested mr macron‘s engagement in the race put his future in the hands of the voter. she has urged him to leave if he fails. yellow vest protesters in recent months serve as evidence of the power of the people. and the far right is expected to perform

strongly in a country where those in charge have come under increasing scrutiny but this picture is not confined to france. across the continents, people are closely monitoring the potential impact of populist movements. translation: right wing extremism and populism are the major challenges in this campaign. we take seriously the worries behind them like economic decline, unregulated migration, but we will be very clear in ourfight against right migration, but we will be very clear in our fight against right wing extremism. i will not allow for europe, as we have created it, a europe, as we have created it, a europe of freedom and solidarity, to be undone nationalists. polls suggest the centre—right european people's party which this man belongs to is likely to remain strong but with right spread addictions of historic gains of populists and nationalists to, the sta kes populists and nationalists to, the stakes remain high for establishments parties. caroline

rigby, bbc news. the united nations says houthi rebels trying to topple the government in yemen, are honouring a pledge to withdraw troops from key ports in the country. hodeida and a number of other smaller ports are crucial for the distribution of international aid, in a country where millions are on the verge of starvation. this report from our chief international correspondent, lyse doucet, contains some distressing images. the first signs of life, in a deal which was almost dead. today, houthi fighters started pulling out from three key ports, saying all their men will be out within four days. they have been in charge here for nearly five years. now, the coastguard will be running yemen's vital gateway. they put on a bit of a show today. the yemeni government says it is all a show, accusing houthi fighters of just changing uniforms, to keep their men in place.

the houthis accuse them and their saudi—led backers of blocking any progress. translation: now the ball is in the court of the un, and the so—called government, and the people of yemen, who will pressure those who are trying to obstruct this agreement. we cannot move forward unless other countries keep their promises. un vehicles were on the move today too. it is up to them to monitor this fragile process. if this first step succeeds, both sides are meant to withdraw their forces from this strategic area. it could help move yemen toward peace talks, and away from a looming famine. almost all of its crucial aid and imports come through here. we anticipate and we expect that, as the port becomes — or all three ports become demilitarised, that the united nations in the form of the mission here will have unhindered access to carry out their responsibilities to support the port authorities. this shocking starvation has come

to symbolise yemen's plight. millions of yemenis need aid, but even more than that, they need peace. lyse doucet, bbc news. officials in pakistan say an attack on a luxury hotel in the port city of gwadar in baluchistan has ended with the deaths of all three gunmen. at least one security guard at the pearl continental hotel was killed. a militant separatist group, the baluchistan liberation army, said it carried out the attack, saying it was targeting chinese and other foreign investors. our correspondent in islamabad secunder kermani explained how the attack unfolded. well, what we know is that three gunmen, we believe, entered the heavily guarded pearl continental hotel in the port city of gwadar, killing a security guard who was attempting to stop them.

security forces then surrounded the gunman inside the hotel and engaged them in a gunfight. the balochistan liberation army is a separatist militant group, they have claimed responsibility for the attacks, saying it was targeting deliberately chinese and foreign investors. now, this group is part of a long—running nationalist insurgency in the south—western province of balochistan. it is pakistan's most deprived province. militants claim its natural resources are being exploited by outsiders. the port city of gwadar, where the attack took place, is the focal point of the huge chinese infrastructure project which aims to cut import and export times to china from the middle east by moving goods through pakistan so it is probably why the militant groups have decided to target this city. these same separatists have targeted chinese interests in pakistan before. stay with us on bbc news, still to come: arrests and counter protests in cuba as its annual pride parade is suddenly cancelled. the pope was shot, the pope will live. that was the essence of the appalling news from rome this afternoon, that, as an italian television commentator put it, terrorism has come to the vatican.

the man they called the butcher of lyon, klaus barbie, went on trial today in the french town where he was the gestapo chief in the second world war. winnie mandela never looked like a woman just sentenced to six years injail. the judge told mrs mandela there was no indication she felt even the slightest remorse. the chinese government has called for an all—out effort to help the victims of a powerful earthquake, the worst to hit the country for 30 years. the computer deep blue has tonight triumphed over the world chess champion, garry kasparov. it is the first time a machine has defeated a reigning world champion in a classical chess match. america's first legal same—sex marriages have been taking place in massachusetts. god bless america! this is bbc news. the latest headlines:

iran's president has warned that, as us sanctions bite, his country is facing the worse conditions in decades. dozens of us states have joined a lawsuit against major drugs companies, accusing them of price—fixing and trying to reduce competition. migrants who survived when their boat capsized off the coast of tunisia have given their account of the disaster, in which at least 60 people drowned. initial reports said those on board were from sub—saharan africa, but the survivors say most of the passengers were from bangladesh. with more, here is rahuljoglekar. these are the faces of men who have seen death at close quarters. some too shocked to say anything, others devastated by what they saw. they all set off to start a new life in italy. a dream interrupted by the harsh reality of death at sea.

ahmed from bangladesh is one of just 16 who survived. fighting for life, we — fighting we, swimming eight, eight hours. eight hours in the swimming. then people dying, one by one, every minute people going under, down. every minute, one is going, we lost him. i have lost my two brothers. italy doesn't want more migrants, and is cracking down, as 30 migrants were being saved on friday. the italian interior minister declared that this was the last voyage for the rescue ship. it is a stance that wins elections in italy, and has brought down the number of migrants making the journey. 15,900 migrants arrived in europe from the mediterranean this year.

that is a i7% drop from last year. the un's refugee agency says that, while the number of deaths at sea has halved, the rate of deaths per number of people attempting the journey has risen sharply. we were shocked that 250 people died crossing the berlin wall during a generation of cold war, and now we seem to accept 2,500 or more people dying per year in the mediterranean. as the arguments continue over a long—term solution to a complex problem, thousands still gamble everything they have, including their own lives, to cross over to europe. rahuljoglekar, bbc news. south africa's governing african national congress has promised a fresh start after winning another five years in office with a reduced majority. the president acknowledged the anc had made mistakes in

government the main opposition also suffered a fall in its share of the vote. the radical economic freedom fighters gained seats. at least three gay rights campaigners have been detained at a march in the cuban capital, havana, after the island's annual gay pride event was cancelled without a clear explanation by the authorities. after the state announced the usual march wouldn't be held, citing foreign interference, a number of activists organised another one via social media, putting it in conflict with the government. from havana, our cuba correspondent will grant reports. havana's gay hava na's gay pride havana's gay pride is normally much bigger than this, an annual celebration of the island's gay and lesbian community, and their decades long struggle to be recognised. but this was an improvised event, with word spread by social media, after the cu ban word spread by social media, after the cuban government cancelled this yea r‘s the cuban government cancelled this year's march at the last minute. this particular gay pride march

might not look very big, but what it represents is really quite significant in cuba. after being told they weren't allowed to hold the march, many have simply turned up the march, many have simply turned up anyway. the organisers said they had always wanted to hold their normal events, and only decided to put this one together instead as they were never given a coherent reason for the cancellation. translation: they obliged us to hold this event. we had every intention of participating in the government organised event, the usual gay pride march. but what we still don't understand is why the march was cancelled. we know the excuses they have given us are not the reasons, because they lack any real foundation. in essence, the decision to go ahead with a smaller march, in defiance of the authorities, put the participants in conflict with the government improved gay rights body, and its head, seen here at a gay pride march a few years ago. the daughter of the former president, raul castro, and denise of fidel.

once the improvised march began, the event was held in a festival atmosphere. walking down one of the main boulevards of old havana. however, at their destination, the marchers came up however, at their destination, the marchers came up with a large number of police and state security —— up against. at least three people were arrested, some of them violently detained. the image of peaceful gay and lesbian marchers being dragged away was exactly the kind of scene in which the island's lgbtq community hopes was finally behind them. gay pride has been held in havana peacefully in previous years and the fact that this one ended in some confrontation is a reflection of the fact that the authorities aim to control anything that hasn't been government sanctioned. however, the organisers say the entire situation could have been avoided if they had been allowed to hold their original march in the first place. it has been called the olympics

of the art world, attracting big names, big money, and big crowds. the venice art biennale opened on saturday with 90 national pavilions, each featuring the work of artists commissioned to represent the host country. our arts editor will gompertz has been checking some of them out. if a city could ever be called a work of art, surely it is venice. that man—made masterpiece rising out of a salty lagoon, with its magnificent palazzos, shimmering canals, and napoleonic gardens — at the end of which is the british pavilion — a neoclassical building that plays host to a disturbing and at times brutal installation by the artist cathy wilkes, whose display of eerie mannequins and household objects is representing britain at the 2019 venice art biennale. she trained in belfast, as did the sculptor eva rothschild, who has filled the irish pavilion with an array of materials and shapes that create a sort

of landscape of art to wander through, and to climb on, to talk about the biennale's founding idea, dating back over 100 years, an artist representing a country. is there an argument against it, that it's an anachronism? i think there could be, if it happened everywhere. i think it's the fact that it is anachronistic, and it is the only thing. i mean, if every major art exhibition was themed around national identity, i think that would be deeply problematic. but this is the only one. and venice itself is an anomaly. i mean, who can believe it exists? not far away, across a narrow canal, is a welsh pavilion, where the cardiff—based artist sean edwards has created a forest of art. it's based on woodlands on the estate where i grew up, in llanedeyrn in cardiff. and how these woodlands where the boundary of the estate as you grew up... so there was this idea that what is actually a boundary suddenly becomes an open space that leads you on to somewhere else. i've come from the welsh pavilion, which is just down the canal there,

walked over this wooden bridge and arrived at this spot, which is the scottish pavilion. up until a couple of months ago, it was a working boatyard. but the vessels have moved out and art has moved in, with charlotte prodger, the turner prize—winning artist, showing the third in her trilogy of films, which is a memoir on love, loss and queer identity. and it's in this space, which is a rather disorientating black hole. voiceover: you understood what that meant, don't you? idid. and after that, it was like a switch went off, and i didn't go back. there are 90 national pavilions competing for this year's prestigious golden lion. every one is fascinating in its own way, revealing not only how a country sees itself, but also how it wants to be seen. will gompertz, bbc news, venice. don't forget you can keep up to date all with the latest news, business and sport on our website. there is reaction and analysis from around the globe, including updated live pages and reports from our correspondents

in more than 80 locations. you can reach me on twitter. i'm @regedahmadbbc. hello there, good morning. sunday still looks like the best day of the weekend. quite a few showers around on saturday. a good day for chasing rainbows. mind you, here in yorkshire, some of the showers earlier on were heavy and thundery. pretty much everywhere is dry now, mind you. and as we head towards the morning, we may well have a frost in scotland, won't be too far away from freezing elsewhere across the uk, and a colder night for east anglia and the south—east. given the earlier showers, there may be one or two mist and fog patches. but high pressure is building in right the way across the uk, limiting the chance of catching a shower on sunday. that weather front approaching the far north west may turn

the sunshine a little bit hazy at times. western parts of northern ireland, later in the north—west of scotland. but a good deal of sunshine, as you can see. limited amount of convection, patchy cloud bubbling up, may get an isolated light shower over the peaks, the pennines, and maybe the downs in the south—east. but more dry weather around more widely and for most of us, temperatures will be higher than they were on saturday. mind you, as we head into the evening, it gets chilly very quickly as the sun goes down. not so much across northern ireland, with a southerly breeze, and it won't be as cold in scotland either. there's much more cloud coming in overnight, so maybe escaping a frost here this time. maybe not quite so lucky across east anglia. temperatures won't be far from freezing in some rural areas. but this is the story, really, as we head into next week. high—pressure, dry weather, more in the way of sunshine. as a result, it will feel warmer, much better than it has been over the last week or so. we still have some patchy cloud around, i think on monday. the sunshine probably a little bit hazy in places. cloud coming down from the north—west, so it's not blue skies everywhere. but for many of us, those

temperatures are continuing to rise, helped by the southerly breeze in northern ireland. and in scotland, temperatures could be close to 20 degrees or so on monday. as we move into tuesday, we're going to find still very light winds for the most part across the uk. probably more in the way of sunshine this time. more of a breeze picking up towards the south—east. warmer southerly winds for northern ireland and into scotland as well. so it's mixed fortunes in terms of temperatures as we head through next week. high pressure sitting where it is. the air towards the south—east of the uk won't be quite as warm, with the warmest air and the highest temperatures more towards the north—west. but we're still better than we have been. so we're 17, maybe 18 degrees here in the south—east of the uk. but we've got more of an easterly breeze, whereas if you head the north—west of the uk, it is more of a southerly breeze so it will be warmer in the north—west of england, northern ireland, particularly scotland, temperatures could get as high as 23 or 2a celsius.

this is bbc news, the headlines: iran's president has warned of difficult times ahead as renewed us sanctions increase pressure on the economy. hassan rouhani said iran could be facing greater economic problems than in the 1980s when it was subject to international sanctions during the war with iraq. more than a0 states in the us have filed a lawsuit against twenty pharmaceutical companies. they are accusing them of price—fixing and conspiring to reduce competition. it follows a five—year investigation into why prices have sometimes