this is bbc news — welcome if you're watching here in the uk or around the globe. i'm mike embley. our top stories: 70 years of the people's republic — china's anniversary celebrations are underway live with a military parade and a presidential speech. i'm mariko oi in hong kong. lots of shops being shut down ahead of expected protests. president trump's personal lawyer is ordered to handover documents on ukraine as part of the impeachment inquiry. and we've a special report from madagascar where child prisoners are held

in terrible conditions for stealing vanilla beans. china is hosting enormously lavish events to mark october 1st, the 70th anniversary of the founding of the people's republic of china. the communist leadership has organised a huge military parade in beijing, and is hoping the big day isn't overshadowed by demonstrations in hong kong. transmack today, a socialist china is standing in the midst of the world. and there is no force that can shake the foundation of this great nation. no force can stop the

chinese people in the chinese nation forging ahead. in a moment we'll speak to the bbc‘s mariko oi in hong kong, but first let's go live now to beijing. our correspondent robin brant is there. robin, significant not only what the president was saying but where he was standing on what he was wearing. in exactly the same spot, where chairman mao, the revolutionary founding father of the people's republic stood in 1949 to declare that the communists had one a civil warand it that the communists had one a civil war and it was now the beginning of modern china, xijinping stood in the same spot and was wearing the familiar attire of chairman mao, the only man standing on that stage one oi’ only man standing on that stage one or $0 only man standing on that stage one or so hours ago. pretty obvious this

country's current leader was actually making no secret of his desire to evoke the memory of chairman mao and gave a brief speech. it was brief. familiar themes appeared. a century of humiliation is the chinese talk about the 100 years that preceded the founding of the prc and since then, a story of progress in a way, inexorable rise. that is what xi jinping wanted to espouse and what he focused on. now we have the military parade and this is quite something. tanks, new hypersonic drones. new nuclear missiles on display and in the past few minutes, dozens display and in the past few minutes, d oze ns of display and in the past few minutes, dozens of tanks rolling down tiananmen square. anonymous sign, 30 yea rs tiananmen square. anonymous sign, 30 years ago in 1989, today this is

about a country showing off essentially to the rest of the world and showing the rest of the world how far it has come but having said all of that, there are no foreign dignitaries. this is a chinese centred event for essentially a chinese domestic audience. the choreography is immense. in tanks, on tanks, under tanks. choreography is immense. in tanks, on tanks, undertanks. the choreography is immense. in tanks, on tanks, under tanks. the military leadership in the run—up to today, has been a huge amount of operation. we are saying this isn't about china flexing its muscles. this isn't a show of strength. some looking at these images will have a huge dollop of cynicism about that claim. what it definitely is. seeing how far it has come. 0ur capabilities now but

make no mistake, the centre of the celebrations is very much a military event at the heart of this parade, military hardware. robin, thank you. let's go live to hong kong. mariko oi let's go live to hong kong. mariko 0i was there. at a time when hong kong is facing a number of challenges. carrie lam was therefore the parade in beijing but a previous fireworks display was cancelled. the parade in beijing but a previous fireworks display was cancelledlj am fireworks display was cancelled.” am standing in a popular shopping district causeway bay but in the last ten or 15 minutes, many shops around here are shut today, despite being a public holiday and usually people will be coming here to shop and that's because we are expecting more democracy protests in a few hours' time. the authorities didn't give permission for the marchers to

go ahead but some protesters still took to the street and over the weekend, hearing causeway bay, we saw violent clashes the protesters and the police and that is why many shops are shut ahead of it. we were talking about the strength of the military show in beijing. hearing over the weekend that the numbers of chinese military in hong kong had been step up. 0ut chinese military in hong kong had been step up. out of the protesters expect this to end? i think that's the big question. i've been speaking to the number of protests, organisers, what their plans are. also what their endgame is because as you say, it's highly unlike the beijing giving universal suffrage. they are demanding exactly that alongside other things like the unconditional release of all the arrested protesters, as well as an independent investigation into the allegations of police brutality, the excessive use of force but so far,

we've not really seen that many concessions, as the chief executive, mariko 0i, held something of a town hall dialogue. —— carrie lam. they kept repeating the same lines that she supports the hong kong police, that violence must end and it is really ha rd to that violence must end and it is really hard to imagine how violence could come down because week after week, the last weekend was the 17th weekend of protests here in hong kong and when you speak to the protesters, they don't want to back down but at the same time, you don't really see the hong kong government backing down and we know beijing is behind what the hong kong government is doing, the withdrawal of that controversial bill which started all this, the withdrawal of that, which would have been improved by the president. how beijing would react after today is something many people are keenly watching. mariko oi in hong kong, thank you very much.

president trump is under growing pressure as the impeachment inquiry puts two of his key aides under the spotlight. his personal lawyer rudy giuliani has been ordered to hand over to congressional committees all documents relating to his work foertrump in ukraine. and it's been revealed that last week the president asked and it's been revealed that last week the president asked the australian prime minister to cooperate with an investigation, led by attorney—general william barr, aimed at discrediting the mueller report. last week evidence emerged from a whistleblower of concerns among white house officials that mr trump tried to pressure ukraine's leader to interfere in next year's us election. in response, mr trump has suggested, without offering any evidence, that one of the senior democrats investigating him could be arrested for treason. i made a call, the call was perfect. when the whistleblower reported it, he made it sound terrible and then you had adam schiff who even worse, made up my words, which i think is just horrible,

i've never even seen a thing like that. earlier i spoke to peter bowes about the pressures facing president trump and his allies like rudy giuliani. the subpoena to rudy giuliani, the president's personal lawyer who really is at the centre of this political firestorm, it's a subpoena to provide documents, copies of texts, emails, any kind of evidence that is involved in his communications, his contact with ukraine. he has acknowledged that contact, all in relation to that telephone call where the president asked the ukrainian president for assistance in investigating joe biden. rudy giuliani really at the centre of all of that, he gave several interviews over the weekend and also implied that other people within the trump administration were involved and said that he had these records and i think that's in part prompted the congressional investigators, the democrats to ask

for that evidence going back 2.5 years so a lot of documentation is being asked to produce and he has until the middle of october to produce it. phil mercer, asking the australian prime minister to help with the investigation to discredit the robert mueller report. there are reports here in australia and the united states that australia is being asked to honour evidence to discredit that mueller investigation the president trump is described as a witch—hunt so australia is being drawn into the great and unpredictable political drama being played out in washington. we know that when president trump met the australian prime minister scott

morrison last week, words were exchanged and we understand that mr trump asked for mr morrison's help. you have to remember as well that the mueller probe into alleged links between the trump campaign in russia was in part triggered by a former australian foreign minister and foreign diplomat by the name of alexander downer. a few years ago, he was australia's high commissioner serving in london, answering to australia in britain. and he reported a conversation he allegedly had stating that a member of the trump campaign team had knowledge of moscow's assertions or desire to discredit hillary clinton so it's a very murky political game that australia is being drawn into. just very briefly, is there a suggestion that mr morrison agreed to this

request? we understand from a spokesperson for the australian government here in australia that the government in canberra is ready and willing to assist and co—operate. 0pposition politicians here in australia say no australians wa nt to here in australia say no australians want to see their prime minister in any way to be a lapdog of the united states and opposition politicians demanding to know if australia is being used by the us president to discredit his political enemies. british government sources have told the bbc the legal text of an updated suggested brexit deal has been prepared, and prime minister borisjohnson is expected to make those plans public in the next ‘two to three days'. but it is said to include the possibility of creating customs posts in so—called clearance zones some distance from the border between northern ireland and the republic. here's our europe editor katya adler. the leak tonight's not yet an official position

but a suggestion and it has been made by the uk government and it would see customs infrastructure on the island of ireland, so not exactly on the border but set back five or ten miles. there would be hecks on goods as well and gps tracking systems on traders as well. what the eu has said to date is, you want to bin the backstop, that is fine, boris johnson, as long as you come up with an alternative that meets our main criteria, respecting the single market, number one, and number two, safeguarding the northern ireland peace process. for the eu, this means no customs infrastructure, not on the border, not near the border. it means no checks at all. i've spoken to the european commission tonight. the bbc has spoken to the irish government. their response is that this is not an official uk position yet so they can't officially comment on it but were these customs posts to become the official uk position it would be dismissed and rejected by the eu as insufficient.

one of the most renowned operatic sopranos of the twentieth century, jessye norman, has died in new york. she was 7a. she sang in church from the age of 4 and made her opera debut in wagner's "tannhauser" in 1969, with a voice described as sumptuous and shimmering. she was the soloist at events including the bicentenary of the french revolution, bill clinton's second inauguration, and the unveiling in new york of two monumental columns of light, 6 months after the 9—11 attacks. stay with us on bbc news. still to come: in the saddle, and not a horse in sight. the german cyclists bringing pedal power to jousting. in all russia's turmoil, it has never quite come to this. president yeltsin said the day would decide the nation's destiny. the nightmare that so many people had feared for so long is playing

out its final act here. russians are killing russians in front of a grandstand audience. it was his humility which produced affection from catholics throughout the world. but his departure is a tragedy for the catholic church. this man, israel's right winger, ariel sharon, visited the religious compound and that started the trouble. he wants israel alone to have sovereignty over the holy sites, an idea that's unthinkable to palestinians. after 45 years of division, germany is one. in berlin, a million germans celebrate the rebirth of europe's biggest and richest nation. this is bbc world news.

the latest headlines: china is celebrating 70 years since the communist party came to power with a military parade in tiananmen square, in the centre of beijing. let's talk to professor bates gill, an expert on chinese foreign policy and military affairs at macquarie university in sydney. thank you very much for your time, professor. what messages are you reading from this display in beijing? well, there's lots. i mean, most of the message i think as to the domestic audience in china, you know, to remind them of the narrative of the chinese communist party, it still holds the gun and is responsible for all the success and future dream that xi jinping responsible for all the success and future dream that xijinping claims the chinese people will achieve. the second message, ithink, to the chinese people will achieve. the second message, i think, to external audiences is one of deterrence, that this is a military on the move. it's

making important advances and is going to be able to deter and if they have their way defeat adversaries in the future. yes, we are told officially that this is not meant to be a military display, but clearly it is. i think there is also talk that we are going to see the world's biggest intercontinental ballistic nuclear missile. well, that's right, at the very end of the parade you saw that when xi jinping did his review. but it is at the very, very end. it is the df—41, which is china's biggest multi— warhead nuclear missile, able to reach the united states. it is their most powerful nuclear weapon, and again, a single of the —— signal of deterrence to countries like the united states. and given your experience and your study in this field, how much of what the president has been saying and is projecting is founded in reality, would you say? well, the reality i think is yet to be proven

militarily. let's remember that the pla, the people's liberation army, is untested for the most part. it hasn't fought a real, you know, a real battle, a real war, for some a0 yea rs. real battle, a real war, for some a0 years. it certainly seems to be making advances technologically, but you know, it's going to be in the heat of battle that we will really see whether all this technological prowess finally pays off for china. and looking at all this, how much danger is there, do you feel, politically and of hong kong raining on this parade? well, it certainly has the possibility. i mean, i think the day, obviously, is generating a great deal of interest among the protesters, because of what it symbolises. we can hope that they remain relatively non—violent, that all sides can show restraint today. i think the important point is that, following this important anniversary for beijing, i think they will begin to turn their sites a lot more

seriously towards trying to resolve the problems that hong kong has presented to them. we may well see some greater use of force going forward , some greater use of force going forward, once this anniversary is behind them. professor, thank you very much indeed for that. thank you. the island of madagascar is the world's largest producer of vanilla beans, and this booming industry has also meant a sharp growth in vanilla bean theft. it is treated as a special crime. adults can to be imprisoned for up to 5.5 years without trial, children for nearly three years, and those accused are likely to spend a long time in prison before trial. there is particular concern about conditions for child prisoners. the bbc‘s southern africa reporter pumza fihlani has gained access to one of the main prisons in the sava region. the squalor is extreme and unrelenting. the innocence of childhood is overwhelmed by it. but 180 children are held here,

in conditions so crowded there is hardly room to lie down. their mattresses bare concrete. this boy is one of them. he was just 13 when he was imprisoned, over three years ago. he is a quiet child with a gentle manner. resigned to his fate, he says prison has destroyed his life. what is the hardest thing for you about being here? like most of the children here,

he is accused of stealing vanilla. but he maintains he is innocent. antalaha prison was built for 280 people. the children here live side by side with over 2,000 adults, against international standards. many don't know what a lawyer does, let alone their right to one. we meet another boy, 16 years old. he is also accused of stealing vanilla. he has been in prison for nine months, and told me many of his friends had to defend themselves in court. there are about 100 children here who have not seen a lawyer, have not even had a trial, and many of them don't even know when they will be going to court. and how many of you have had access to a lawyer? just five?

madagascar‘s justice system allows for a long detention periods. for children held here, it means living under these harsh conditions even before they've been found guilty of a crime. the justice ministry says it has no other option. as a human being, how do you feel when you see these prisoners?

we showed the conditions of the prison to a human rights lawyer. he believes vanilla theft should be treated as a petty, not serious crime. we sense here that the priority of this land is much more on vanilla than on human beings. has the justice system failed the children of madagascar? yes, yes, it's — clearly, yes. it's very sad. madagascar is a country clinging to its vanilla industry at all costs, and these children are paying the price. pumza fihlani, bbc news, antalaha, madagascar. when you think ofjousting, what comes to mind? knights in shining armour atop powerful stallions, perhaps. in berlin, there is an annual event where they do things a little differently, as the bbc‘s

tim allman explains. for the modernjouster, it seems to be a case of four hooves bad, two wheels good. that was certainly true for the competitors in berlin's pedal battle. all kinds of bicycle—based tomfoolery, where the old meets the new, and it can be a fairly hazardous business. translation: when you hold the lance and hit your opponent, it really affects your wrist and hand, so i think injuries in that area will definitely be the worst thing that happens. 0therwise, just a few scratches and bruises. there's notjustjousting. there's — whatever this is. you can enjoy a little mediaeval catering, and then there is liquid

refreshment of a more familiar kind. the event takes place every year, but this time it is a little bit different. it is now an equal—opportunities joust. translation: women have the same rights as men, and we're allowed to fightjust like the men. this time there's a women's team, the valkyries, and we want to lead the men to valhalla. a celebratory parade for all those taking part — knights of the modern age, with armour, lance, and bicycle clips. of course, it makes perfect sense. let's ta ke of course, it makes perfect sense. let's take you back to those live pictures from beijing. a reminder of that top story. beijing is hosting

enormously lavish events to mark the 70th anniversary of the founding of the people's republic of china. a huge military parade featuring thousands of troops and military hardware and 160 planes, we are told, and an enormous ballistic missile. the president, xijinping, recently abolished term limits for hisjob and recently abolished term limits for his job and has recently abolished term limits for hisjob and has been recently abolished term limits for his job and has been addressing the crowd in the exact spot where chairman mao addressed the crowd in 19a9. thank you for watching. hello again. the average height of a uk two—story building is around seven metres high. imagine then, just if you can for a moment, waves that are three times that height, at around 22 metres high. that's the kind of size of waves we're looking at generated by this hurricane, hurricane lorenzo, with its 105 mph sustained winds. now, lorenzo is tracking in a north—easterly direction, and those 22—metre—high waves are what we could see battering the western azores as we go through tuesday night, as that hurricane passes very close by. after that, it turns into a normal area of low pressure, and will end up probably close to the british isles, but there's still some uncertainty exactly where it ends up.

our main focus here in the uk, however, is on the continuing flooding threat across england and wales, after the recent very heavy rain that we have seen, and the extra rain we've got that will fall through the rest of the day today. we've got rain with us already for northern england and northern ireland, heavy showers packing in across wales and south—west england. something a bit drier in scotland, but‘s also a bit colder, and there are still a few showers around as well. it's just that they're not as angry. through the rest of tuesday, what will happen is these heavy showers and thunderstorms across wales and south—west england will have, to start off the day. they'll tend to push eastward with time across the midlands into east anglia and south—east england. these showers, well they could bring around 30—a0 mm of rain injust the space of a few hours. so, given that the ground is completely saturated, that rain could cause some localised surface water flooding problems and some quite nasty conditions out on the roads. apart from those heavy downpours, though, it is relatively mild in the south, with temperatures

up to 19 degrees. but notice the green colours for northern england, northern ireland and scotland, as the air continues to get colder. yes, there'll be some sun, and a few showers for northern scotland. now, overnight, the rain clears away from england and wales, so it will become drier. showers will feed in across northern scotland. but for many of us, it's going to be really quite a cold night. heading into the early part of wednesday morning, those temperatures will be well down into single figures, and indeed, in some places in the countryside, there'll be a few pockets of frost. now, heading into wednesday, we've got northerly winds. they'll be pushing the colder air right the way southwards, reaching southern parts of england and wales. but at least it's going to be a dry day, and that will allow some of those floodwaters to slowly ebb away. not entirely dry, though. there will be some showers for northern scotland, and one or two sneaking down to affect the eastern coast of england — the north sea coast, really. a cooler—feeling day, temperatures in london at around 1a degrees. that's your latest weather.

thanks this is bbc thanks news. the headlines: china is celebrating 70 years since the communist party came to power with a military parade in tiananmen square in the centre of beijing.president xi has been addressing the crowds and new military hardware has been put on display. president trump is under growing pressure as the impeachment inquiry puts 2 of his key aides under the spotlight. his personal lawyer rudy giuliani has been ordered to hand over to congressional committees all documents relating to his work foertrump in ukraine. british government sources have told the bbc prime minister boris johnson is expected to make the legal text of an updated brexit deal public in the next few days. but it is said to include the possibility of creating customs posts in so—called clearance zones some distance from the border between northern ireland and the republic.