welcome to bbc news — i'm reged ahmad. our top stories: campaigners in hong kong promise to keep going, after mass protests force the government to suspend a china extraditon bill. and the british—iranian mother jailed in iran for alleged spying, begins a new hunger strike. hello and welcome to bbc news. hong kong's government has suspended its controversial plan to allow alleged criminals to be extradited to mainland china. the proposals resulted in mass protests in the former british colony, some of which turned violent. people are expected to return to the streets on sunday, despite the pause in

the government's plans. our correspondent rupert wingfield hayes reports from hong kong. fellow citizens and members of the media... as she stood alone at the podium, carrie lam must have known every pair of eyes in hong kong was watching her. after a week of mass street protests and running battles between protesters and police, would she or wouldn't she back down and drop the widely hated extradition bill? i now announce that the government has decided to suspend the legislative amendment exercise. not a withdrawal, then. so is this just a trick to pacify the protesters? it has nothing to do with an intention or wish to pacify. how could i restore, as fast as possible, the calm in society, and how could i avoid any more law—enforcement officers and ordinary citizens being injured? the fear of more angry protesters returning to these barricades

is what has prompted carrie lam and her administration to make what is clearly a major climb—down. this is not a temporary pause to the extradition bill — this is an indefinite suspension. nevertheless, it may not be enough to prevent very large crowds from coming out here again on sunday for another huge show of discontent. on wednesday, the policejust... this young protester and many of his friends will be out there, and possibly thousands more like them. they want the bill completely withdrawn, but for them it is about so much more. we don't trust the government. we don't need a small victory. we want to cancel the bill, but not temporarily. and i don't want to see hong kong to be invaded by a totalitarian government. the problem for passionate young hong kongers like this is that communist china is just 16 miles away across the harbour.

somehow they are going to have to learn to live with that fact. rupert wingfield—hayes, bbc news, in hong kong. nazanin zaghari—ratcliffe, the british—iranian woman who was jailed in iran on spying charges, has begun a new hunger strike to demand her unconditional release. she's been held since 2016 and denies any wrongdoing. it comes at a time of increasing tensions between iran and western powers. our world affairs correspondent caroline hawley reports. these are the moments before nazanin zaghari—ratcliffe‘s arrest, more than three years ago at tehran airport. she thought she was heading home with her young daughter when she was approached by iran's revolutionary guards, then accused of espionage and sentenced to five years in jail in a case that's been called a mockery of justice. # wind the bobbin up...# just a few days earlier, they'd been enjoying a holiday together with herfamily in iran.

happy birthday! hello, sweetheart! today in london, a celebration for gabriella's fifth birthday, with her on the phone from tehran. # happy birthday to you.# can you blow it out? but no cake for richard ratcliffe, as hejoins his wife on an open—ended hunger strike. she called him from jail this morning. so previous phone calls, she'd been quite tense and sort of stressed and angry and, you know, distraught. actually, today she was quite calm, you know, she'd made the decision, she said she sent her letter due to thejudiciary, so it's now started, and nervous is how she sounded on the phone, but also calm, and we'll see how things go. this is a desperate move by an ordinary couple caught up in extraordinarily complex international politics. their case is intricately connected to the difficult relationship between the uk and iran — a relationship that's just got even more fraught.

last month, the us sent an aircraft carrier and warplanes to the gulf, within striking distance of iran. the military build—up came a year after donald trump unilaterally withdrew from a key agreement with iran to curb its nuclear ambitions. tensions have escalated further with a series of recent attacks on oil tankers, including this on thursday in the gulf of oman, one of the world's busiest waterways. the us quickly blamed iran, and britain followed suit. iran categorically denies involvement and has been angered by the british stance. our message to iran is, whatever the disagreements you may have with the united kingdom, there is an innocent woman at the heart of this, she just wants to get back together with her daughter gabriella, to reunite that family. please show that you have humanity, show that you have a heart, let nazanin come home. this morning, jeremy hunt met richard ratcliffe. he's praised the family's bravery, but there's concern that the latest trouble in the middle east will do nothing to solve his wife's plight, as they embark on a joint hunger strike aimed at bringing

their family back together. caroline hawley, bbc news. a series of attacks in somalia and kenya has left at least 25 people dead. eight were killed by a car bomb in the somali capital mogadishu — 16 others were injured. gareth barlow has more details. this over mogadishu moments after the car bomb exploded. buildings shredded by the force of the blast, buildings left in ruins and at least eight people confirmed dead. translation: as i came out of the mosque i saw a speeding carfiring bullets. i took, mosque i saw a speeding carfiring bullets. itook, and mosque i saw a speeding carfiring bullets. i took, and soon the car drove off. the attack took place at a checkpoint near the somali parliament. across the country on saturday, al—sha bab militants carried out a series of deadly attacks. i saw at least five dead bodies, including a religious man

who came out of the mosque at the time of the blast. all those bodies have been removed. in neighbouring kenya, eight police officers were killed by a roadside bomb in another attack that had all the hallmarks of al—shabab. the militant group has seen its power dwindle in recent yea rs, seen its power dwindle in recent years, but despite that it continues to wreak devastation and death across africa. let's get some of the day's other news. european election observers have called on nigeria to consider urgent electoral reforms following what they describe as systemic failings in the recent elections. the eu mission said there were serious operational, security and transparency problems. the poll, which was won by the incumbent muhammadu buhari, is being challenged in court by the main opposition candidate, india says it's imposing trade tariffs on 28 us products, including almonds, apples and walnuts. the tariffs will come into effect from sunday. india says the move is in response to washington's refusal to exempt delhi from higher steel

and aluminium taxes. the first female president of slovakia, zuzana caputova, has taken office vowing to fight injustice. anti—corruption campaigner said that while people were considered equal under the slovak constitution, too many found that wasn't the case in reality. 14 people have been arrested after five separate attacks in london left three men dead and three others injured in the space of 2a hours. two teenagers were killed in separate incidents in wandsworth and plumstead on friday, while a man in his 30s was fatally stabbed in tower hamlets on saturday afternoon. the other two incidents were in clapham and brixton. the london mayor, sadiq khan, said he was sickened by the incidents. hundreds of homes in and around wainfleet in lincolnshire have been

evacuated because of concerns that the river steeping will breach its banks again. the area's already suffered severe flooding after two months worth of rain fell in just two days. from wainfleet, luxmy gopal sent this report. from the air, you can see the vast extent of the flood waters, the river steeping swollen after two months of rain fell in two days. more flooding is expected, and around 600 homes have been evacuated. this is the second time rebecca and jodie have had to move. you've got where all the electrics have to dry out, because you can't put them back on. so it is finding the emergency accommodation that you are going to be setting basically a new home up, when you know your home's underwater. and it's so hard. sorry. the environment agency says the river could breach at points where its flood defences are vulnerable. an raf chinook has returned today to help shore up the bank.

it's this stretch of the river steeping that's expected to burst its banks, and that's why the raf chinook behind me has been flying back and forth with bags of sand and gravel to try to plug any breach. volunteers have travelled for miles to help the flood—defence operations. been out for the past three days, we've just had to rescue a 97—year—old lady. as i say, we'rejust dropping sand bags off, rescuing people, knocking on the door, making sure we can... dropping sandbags, just basically helping people, doing what we can do. emergency crews will continue to monitor the river levels, but for now residents don't know when they or their families, four—legged or otherwise, will be able to return home. luxmy gopal, bbc news, wainfleet. rivals competing to be the next leader of the conservative party, and prime minister, have

dismissed suggestions they should withdraw and allow an uncontested coronation of the frontrunner, boris johnson. they've been campaigning for the support of party members at a meeting in london. our political correspondent nick eardley was there — his report contains flashing imagery. blink and you'll miss him — boris johnson arrives at the first leadership hustings for tory activists. in here, he told them he's a winner, and he's undoubtedly the man to beat, but his rivals say a coronation would be a mistake. that would be a complete disgrace. the public deserve the chance to look at these leaders. mrjohnson‘s opponents insist this isn't over. we had a coronation last time, it didn't work out well, so let's not make the same mistakes again. jeremy hunt insists he can shock everyone and come from behind to win. michael gove agrees it's all still to play for. the leadership hustings so far have been taking place behind closed doors. that will change tomorrow with the first televised event, at which five of the six candidates, minus mrjohnson, will attend. but ultimately those standing for the leadership know that it's people like the ones

here, party activists, that they have to convince. do you think the wider membership are listening, or it's boris and that's it? no, i think they are listening, i think they are listening. it always, always, always was going to be borisjohnson for me, but i'm now...less sure who would be the second option. i had thought i was close to making up my mind, but i've now got a bit more of an open mind after today. i mean, i'd vote raab, i must say, given the chance, but it's going to be boris. are members still listening to your pitch, mr hunt? they were, yes! the fight to be our next pm goes on. the longer this goes on, the more the underdog gets their shot. to beat this man, though, won't be easy. nick eardley, bbc news. the exam board edexcel has launched an investigation into how part of an a—level maths

paper was leaked online. blacked out images of two questions were shared on social media, ahead of the exam yesterday. pearson, which runs edexcel, said the images were circulated "in a very limited way," and that pupils would not have to re—sit the paper. public health england has sought to reassure people after two more patient deaths were linked to a listeria outbreak, saying the overall risk is low. a total of five people are now known to have died. the health secretary matt hancock has ordered what he called a root and branch review of hospital food. leigh milner reports. two people have died at the manchester royal infirmary, another at aintree hospital, after eating sandwiches and salads containing listeria. it's not yet been revealed where two other patients died. listeria is a bacterium which typically causes mild food poisoning, but can prove fatal if people are already seriously ill. tanya marsden from ashford in kent was at the william harvey hospital having treatments for crohn‘s disease when she became

infected with listeria. listeria can be fatal, and that obviously is what's playing on my mind now. i worry about whether there's any lasting implications for me, particularly because my immune system is so suppressed at this moment in time. eight trusts have been affected, but we've not been told which ones. i asked dr yvonne doyle from public health england why. the full details of the investigation and the trusts involved will be available next week. the reason we haven't put that out now is that the clinicians have asked us to give them some time to have those discussions with the patients who are alive and with the relatives of those who have deceased. well, the health secretary, matt hancock, has called for a review of nhs food. in a statement, he says he's deeply concerned about the issue and strongly believes that a new, radical approach is needed

into the way food is served in the nhs. the good food chain, which is being linked to the outbreak, has voluntarily ceased production. as investigations continue, public health england insist any risk to the public remains low. leigh milner, bbc news. this is bbc news, the latest headlines: campaigners in hong kong promise to keep going, after mass protests force the government to suspend a china extraditon bill. more now on that. protists are planned later on sunday. we can speak to antony dapiran, the author of city of protest: a recent history of dissent in hong kong. hejoins us from hong kong. thank you for your time. this has been a win for protesters and opponents of sorts yet people are still so angry, why is that? people

are incredibly angry at the way the chief executive carrie lam has handled the entire incident and angered by the statements you made at the press conference last night where she announced she was going to temporarily pause the bell. the first thing that it was a temporary pause, not a complete withdraw and she did not apologise or police behaviour. they feel she has been patronising, treating hong kong people as children are not listening to their voices. what could the chief executive carrie lam done differently to avoid the personal anger she is experiencing? the first thing she could have done is given the statement she made last night a week ago, last sunday evening after a million people took to the streets here to protest. immediately after that protest, she and the government came out and said they would be no

change and it took the violent incidents on wednesday for them to sit up and take notice and that has angered people. the second thing is her messaging which has been consistently poor and the way it has been presented to people has felt vile them up. isn't this carrie lam's pet project or was she under pressure from beijing? the official line is that this has been entirely carrie lam mahmoud abbas idea and that beijing backed that up. but one has to wonder, given the incredibly incompetent way this has been handled and rammed through, whether there wasn't a larger hand behind it. the politician would not commit this kind of political suicide. you have looked back at the history of

protest in hong kong. these are protists, given they have succeeded somewhat, has it changed hong kong was make is it a different type of territory? it has hardened hong kong people's result. five years ago, the protest was seen as a failure and people were wondering if people from hong kong had lost their spirit. the government has aggressively pursued an persecuted the leaders of those protests five years ago but events of the past week have shown that the spirit remains as determined as ever and they will come out and protest and they will come out and protest and dissent against policies they feel strongly about. thank you so much for your time and your insights. thank you, it's a pleasure. more now on the mass celebrated earlier at notre dame cathedral, the first in the building since the devastating fire in april. freya cole reports.

it's not your usual attire for a religious service but given the iconic notre—dame isn't structurally sound, a hardhat is a necessity. the intimate service is a first since a spectacular fire spread through the cathedral in april, devastating parisians and sending shockwaves around the world. translation: a monument such as the notre—dame continues to live on even if there was a fire. it's not a lost monument, it continues to have life. just 30 people were invited for a mass led by the archbishop of paris. translation: it is with strong emotion that we find ourselves here celebrating the consecration of this cathedral but we are profoundly happy to be able to celebrate the eucharist. it's why it was built. authorities now know the fire started near the base of the spire.

flames spread through the roof within a matter of hours, consuming more than 800 years of history. what was lost will never be exact to the same but it can be rebuilt and replicated. donations for the cathedral‘s reconstruction have hit nearly $1 billion. it's the beginning of a new chapter in notre—dame's ancient history. freya cole, bbc news. the netherlands have confirmed their place in the world cup knockout stage with a game to spare after they beat cameroon at the stade du hainaut in valenciennes. here's paul frostick. the first a0 minutes of the netherlands and cameroon first meeting was somewhat forgettable but, after an uninspiring start, the match exploded into life. the european champions finally showed the class as vivianne miedema found the class as vivianne miedema found the target. they barely had time to celebrate though, less than three

minutes later gabrielle onguene got the equaliser. her perfectly timed run exposing the dutch defence. after the break it was cameroon who we re after the break it was cameroon who were caught sleeping. this time another arsenal player, dominique bloodworth with the easiest of goals. cameroon had their chances to make a 2—2 but this was to be vivianne miedema's day, her goal sending them through the last 16 and making her the country's all—time top scorer. paul frostick, bbc news. tens of millions of people will be watching pakistan take on india in the cricket world cup later. it's one of the biggest global sporting rivalries, and the first match between the two neighbours since a dangerous flare up in tensions earlier this year. rajini vaidyanathan takes the pulse in delhi.(tx in every corner of this cricket crazy nation, they play. and in every corner they also watch.

it's one of the biggest rivalries in sport, between two nuclear neighbours. india's won every world cup match against pakistan. this team, led by superstar captain virat kohli, is hoping to continue the tradition. it's that this academy in west delhi that indian captain virat kohli first honed his skills and many say it's his team that's india's best hope in a generation. rajkumar sharma first coached a nine—year—old virat kohli. today he continues to train a cricket's future stars. it is a much hyped game. the whole world is looking at this. and people will enjoying even playing for an indian team that we should not lose this much. once india beat pakistan the fans will feel we have won the world cup. and to some fans, this match means war. but for budding spin bowler gunmay,

just ten years old, the game's a way of bringing the rival nations together. on the pitch when you go it is a normal match, not a war, not political, anything. it is just a normal political cricket match. a normal match with abnormal expectations. yes, india will win it. i know that. and i will support india through all the world cup and we will win the world cup. i believe in india. for one day, the hopes of an entire nation rest on one cricket match. but there could be something that gets in the way — the british weather. rajini vaidyanathan, bbc news, delhi. the italian film and opera director franco zeffirelli has died at the age of 96. he was twice nominated for an oscar, and is perhaps best known for his adaptations of shakespeare's works. he's said to have died peacefully after a long illness. nick higham looks back at his life. operatic music.

franco zeffirelli made his name as an opera director, on stage and occasionally on film. opera taught him how to deal with highly strung and highly talented performers. it is a simple as that — holding their hands, really dealing with vulnerable people, really charming little kids that can't believe their luck, and they are afraid. will thou take petruchio to be thy lawful wedded husband? his experience proved useful when he made a film with a famously temperamental couple, richard burton and elizabeth taylor. i will not...! his film version of romeo and juliet was nominated for an oscar, but it was controversial. olivia hussey, then just

15, appeared topless. zeffirelli, who'd started out as a stage and screen designer, was sometimes attacked for self—indulgence and for sentimentality. but jesus of nazareth, made for television, showed a different and more austere side to his work. if my kingdom were of this world, my followers would have fought to prevent me from being captured. in 200a, he was given an honorary knighthood. he'd always been an anglophile. i think about england in terms of the country that i would like to see married with my country, italy. and i managed, you know, one way or other, to make this marriage happen with my work and my association with british talent. such a traditional honour meant a lot to a director renowned for his love of formality, opulence and beauty. franco zeffirelli who has

died at the age of 96. let's get the latest weather prospects now with alina jenkins. hello. another day where we've seen some torrential rain across parts of the uk, exacerbating the flooding we saw earlier in the week. this was burton upon trent in staffordshire during saturday afternoon. for others, blue skies and sunshine. and it's this mixture that we keep as we go into sunday, our area of low pressure still slow moving to the north—west of the uk. and another frontal system working its way north and eastwards. so this will generate showers through sunday morning, initially across northern ireland, wales, south—west england, but soon extending north and eastwards across much of the uk. now, where these showers develop they'll be heavy, they'll be thundery, they'll be slow—moving. some gusty winds as well associated with these showers. here's an idea of average wind strengths. but the gusts will be even higher. could well see some hailstones, too. meanwhile, across parts of southern and south—east england fewer showers

through the afternoon, more sunshine, so 20 or 21 celsius. where we've got the frequent showers struggling to get much above 1a or 15. and these showers merging at times to give a longer spell of rain. certainly the case as we go through sunday evening. some heavy spells of rain working their way across northern england, into scotland, continue across parts of northern ireland, some rain returning to wales through the early hours of monday morning. it's not a cold night for most. we're going to hold up to between 11 and 13 celsius. high single figures across rural scotland. so as we start the new week, our area of low pressure still to the north—west of the uk, generating some heavy showers for scotland and northern ireland. a cold front draped across northern england and wales bringing some spells of rain through monday morning. but turning more showery as the day wears on. to the south and east of this, mainly dry, some spells of sunshine, some heavy and thundery showers, though, across a large swathe of scotland and northern ireland. so temperatures here again 1a or 15 celsius. in the sunshine, further south and east, 20, maybe 21 celsius.

now, as we go into tuesday, briefly, we see this ridge of high pressure across much of england and wales and southern scotland. keeping an eye on this area of low pressure, though, could bring some heavy rain later on tuesday into southern parts of england. still some heavy showers and longer the spells of rain across parts of scotland. but they should ease across northern ireland on tuesday. much of england and wales having a mainly dry day with some sunshine, but keeping an eye on this rain arriving into southern counties of england later on tuesday. ahead of this, some warmth, 20 or 21 celsius for much of england and wales. we could see some heavy rain for a time, later on tuesday and into wednesday. as that clears, things are looking drier and a bit warmer towards the end of the week. bye— bye.

this is bbc news, the headlines campaigners in hong kong are promising to continue demonstrating — after a week of mass protests forced the government, to suspend a china extradition bill. they argued it would plug a legal loophole — and prevent the city becoming a safe haven for overseas criminals. nazanin zaghari—ratcliffe — the british—iranian woman being held in prison in iran, has started a hunger strike to demand her unconditional release. in 2016 she was arersted and subsequently sentenced to five years in prison — for allegedly trying to topple the iranian government. she denies the charge. a roman catholic mass has been held at notre dame cathedral in paris for the first time since fire ripped through the iconic building two months ago. for safety reasons the priests and other religious leaders attending the small service had to wear hard hats.