welcome to newsday on the bbc. i'm rico hizon, in singapore. the headlines: president trump openly calls on beijing to launch an inquiry into the democratic frontrunner, joe biden, and his son. china should start an investigation intojoe biden china should start an investigation into joe biden because china should start an investigation intojoe biden because what happened to china isjust intojoe biden because what happened to china is just about as bad as what happened with. .. to china is just about as bad as what happened with... with ukraine. an bbc investigation in iraq uncovers evidence of sexual exploitation of children and young women by some shia muslim clerics. i'm lewis vaughanjones, in london. also in the programme: britain's prime minister, boris johnson, announces a new brexit plan. the eu's response so far?

lu kewarm at best. a deadly outbreak of dengue fever in the philippines claims a thousand lives — we report from the worst affected area. live from our studios in singapore and london, this is bbc world news — it's newsday. good morning. it's 7 am in singapore, midnight in london, and 7 pm in washington, wher the row over the democrats‘ impeachment inquiry for donald trump has reached a new level. in effect, the president has doubled down, by calling openly notjust for ukraine to investigate the democratic presidential candidate, joe biden, but for china to do so as well. the democrats are describing it as repugnant, and a fundamental breach of the oath of office. but mr trump sees it differently.

take a listen... china should start an investigation into the bidens because what happened to china is just about as bad as what happened to ukraine so i would say that president volodymyr zelensky, if it were me, i would recommend they start an investigation into the bidens because nobody has any doubt they we re because nobody has any doubt they were cricket, that was a crooked deal 100%. joe biden‘s team have hit back. his deputy campaign manager kate bedingfield said mr trump's words were just a ‘grotesque choice of lies over truth, and self over the country'. and she added that, with regard to the race for the white house, ‘donald trump is terrified that joe biden will beat him like a drum.‘ our washington correspondent chris buckler is in the us capital with more.

it seems remarkable that donald trump would first of repeat words he said in private on a phone call with the ukrainian president and again repeat them in public and essentially feel the democrats anger at this idea that in some way he was encouraging a foreign government to interfere in a us election and, on top of that, he extends into china and says they should be investigating joe biden and his son, hunter biden, about his business dealings in the country and the reality is, and these are news conferences he has been throwing out allegations against his democratic rival, joe biden, one of the frontrunners to challenge him into the presidential election next year and he has been doing so without any shred of evidence and, as a result, we have had a strong statement from the biden campaign saying that he is melting down on national television,

desperately looking to theories that have been debunked but it gives you this sense that president trump is determined to push this issue because he is concerned about these calls for impeachment by democrats and they are determined to push the issue particularly as they believe that in 2016 russia interfered in the presidential election and that in 2020 he is encouraging other governments to do the same. what is likely to be next after all this rhetoric from donald trump and the democratic investigations? well, the reality is democrats are pushing ahead with their inquiries into potential impeachment and that has got under way already. today, inside congress, in front of three congressional committees, although they were behind closed doors, they have been speaking to the former us special envoy to the uk, you might remember he resigned last week after he was named in that whistleblower

report into those conversations that took place between president volodymyr zelensky and president trump. we do not know what was said by the former envoy but at the same time abc and fox have got hold of some text messages that he gave to the committee apparently and in one of them he says that the top us diplomat ukraine said it was crazy to withhold security systems for help in a campaign. let's take a look at some of the day's other news. european leaders have said they remain unconvinced by the british prime minister's lastest offer to break the brexit deadlock and get a deal approved by the end of the month. borisjohnson has been trying to muster support for his plan, but his irish counterpart, leo varadkar, said the proposal fell short. our objective is very clear,

we do not want to see amy customs posts between north and south and nor do we want to see any tariffs or restrictions on trades north and south. they were all abolished in the 1990s and we do not want to go back to that. the majority of people in the north and the majority of people in ireland do not. but if we're going to into customs unions it will be creating difficulties hard to reconcile. the issue of the irish border with the uk has been the main sticking point throughout the brexit negotiations — it was why former prime minister theresa may's deal with the eu was rejected by british mps. with more, here's our europe editor katya adler. the eu mood can probably best be summed up in a tweet today from the president of the european council donald tusk who said he spoke to the irish prime minister and boris johnson today and his message to dublin is that the eu fully stands behind ireland and it will not abandon irish interest to get a

deal. to boris johnson abandon irish interest to get a deal. to borisjohnson he said that he remains open to his proposals but unconvinced. the prime minister's main convoy is in brussels today trying to do some heavy convincing and the brexit negotiator has a string of questions. the eu worries the proposals are not legally watertight and if they expose the single market to smuggling and put the northern ireland peace process at risk. also making news today: police sources have confirmed to the bbc that the man who stabbed to death 4 of his colleagues at police head quarters in paris had converted to islam some 18 months ago. though police say they have yet to establish a motive. the assailant‘s house has been searched and his wife detained. our correspondent lucy williamson reports from the scene he seems to have been a long—term member of the police administer for went into headquarters today and carried a knife into his office and

began attacking his colleagues. he then moved to other areas of the building before being shot dead by an officer who won eyewitnesses said then sank to his knees weeping after shooting him. it is another blow for the police force after years of terrorist attacks, public assault that have left them struggling to cope. the government in hong kong is expected later on friday to announce a ban on the wearing of face masks during public gatherings as the city struggles to curb four months of anti—government protests. chief executive carrie lam will hold a special cabinet meeting to consider implementing the ban using colonial—era emergency legislation. the us health authorities say at least 18 people across the country are now known to have died from lung problems linked to vaping e—cigarettes. the centers for disease control and prevention said one thousand and eighty cases of probable lung injury had been reported in the united states so far. democratic presidential hopeful

bernie sanders is said to be up and about, according to a statement released by his wife, jane, after he underwent a heart procedure wednesday. the campaign for the 78—year—old senator says he will participate in the democratic persidential debate scheduled for october 15. and these pictures show what can happen when a protest goes a little bit wrong. these environment protestors were spraying red liquid at the treasury building here in london, as a protest against the use of fossil fuels. but the high pressure hose failed, leaving a big red puddle on the road, and a few red faces. four people were later arrested on suspicion of criminal damage. an undercover investigation by the bbc in iraq has exposed evidence of sexual exploitation of children and young women by some shia muslim clerics. it centres around a practise known

as "pleasure marriage", which allows men to take wives for a short period of time, sometimes as little as an hour. and in some cases, money is changing hands for girls who are controlled by clerics. you may find some parts of this report by nawal al maghafi distressing. karbala — the holiest shrine in shia islam. visited by millions of pilgrims every year. in the streets around the shrine are marriage offices, where couples come to get wed. but they hold one of iraq's darkest secrets. we had heard some clerics were abusing their power, using temporary marriages to facilitate prostitution with young girls. it is a marriage contract with an expiry date which can be as short as an hour. some say they can be a positive move for couples who are aware of what they are doing. but they are also ripe

for exploitation. in a year—long investigation, we went undercover around some of iraq's holiest shrines. these temporary marriages are illegal in iraq. however, we found clerics willing to do them. not only facilitating them with young girls, but also offering justification through their interpretation of islamic law to have sex with them.

we showed our footage to this expert in islamic law, a former high—ranking cleric himself. translation: what this man is saying is a crime. that must be punished by law. he says it is one reason he decided to speak out against the clerics. translation: i realised that these rules were ugly and cruel, and could not come from god or from anyone human. throughout our investigation, we gathered evidence of clerics willing to facilitate sex with young girls in return for cash. in one incident, we were told children cost as little as £700.

rasul is 16 years old, but already, she has been sold to more men than she can remember. with no parents and a younger sister to support, she was groomed by a cleric atjust 13 years old. this cleric denies carrying out temporary marriages. and we received no response from this cleric. both say they're followers of grand ayatollah al—sistani, one of the most senior figures in shia islam. we put our findings to his office, which released the following statement...

countless years of war have left millions of women and girls vulnerable and destitute. as long as the religious clerics operate with impunity, they will continue to be victims of iraq's secret sex trade. nawalal—maghafi, bbc news, iraq. you are watching newsday on the bbc. still to come on the programme: we report from a region in the philippines hit by one of the worst dengue fever outbreaks in years. 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 have 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 newsday on the bbc. i'm rico hizon in singapore.

i'm lewis vaughanjones in london. our top stories: president trump has urged another foreign country, china, to launch an investigation into his democrat rivaljoe biden and his son. the british prime minister, boris johnson, puts forward further proposals to break the brexit deadlock, but european leaders say they are not convinced. let's take a look at some front pages from around the world. we start with the philippine star, which leads with president duterte's visit to russia. it carries a picture of the two leaders, who agreed during talks in sochi to pursue stronger defence cooperation and closer economic ties. the south china morning post reports on the fatal bus crash in the north district of hong kong. the paper says a woman has died and 1a people were injured in a accident involving two vehicles. finally, the straits time features a story about the new mega

tuas port in singapore. it quotes the port operator saying that the port is set to be the world's largest fully automated terminal when completed in 2040. now, lewis, a daring escape in colombia is getting lots of attention online. yes, rico. it was a trip to the dentist with an unexpected ending. keep your eye on the left of the screen. you'll see a woman jump down into view from the building above. she is aida merlano, a congresswoman who has beenjailed for corruption, and she gave her guards the slip after persuading them to let her go for a tooth whitening session. an accomplice on a motorbike was waiting to whisk her away, and she is still on the run. the philippines is struggling to cope with the worst outbreak of dengue fever for seven years. around 1,000 people have died in what is being treated as a national epidemic,

with young children particularly vulnerable to the mosquito—borne disease. our philippines correspondent howard johnson has visited the worst—affected part of the country, western visayas, and sent this report. the lush, green paddy fields of this area. ha rvests a re the lush, green paddy fields of this area. harvests are so good here they called the town the rice granary of the island. in the stagnant pools of surface water, a deadly virus is lacking. dengue. numbers affected by the mosquito borne tropical disease have spikes here in recent months. during the peak lastjuly, we have an overflowing number of patients. the patients were in the corridor, in the beds. it is the worst dengue outbreak i have ever seen. in 2018 there were 1100 dengue cases and four deaths recorded in iloilo, but

this year, up to september, there have been more than 16,000 cases and more than 70 deaths. emergency tents we re more than 70 deaths. emergency tents were set up to cope with the overflow of patients. this is one of the hardest hit communities. this woman lives in this seven house compound with her extended family. 16 people contracted dengue here in july, including herthree 16 people contracted dengue here in july, including her three sons. so i just put her here, just to remember. her eldest, 11—year—old rynard, didn't survive. even though he looked good, deep inside the dengue was affecting his fever. leovy said her local community had sprayed with

pesticides during the outbreak but it had done little to reduce the outbreak there. and the options against the virus are limited. in 2016 the philippine government cancelled a nationwide dengue vaccination programme after the makers of the vaccine said that the vaccine could increase health risks in cases where the patient hadn't suffered from the virus before. in the absence of a universal dengue vaccination programme, the government and charities like the philippine red cross are urging local communities to check their areas for potential mosquito breeding grounds. you can see these children here checking plastic bottles. during the rainy season they can fill up with water and mosquitoes can breed and multiply there. for now, efforts at tackling there. for now, efforts at tackling the crisis have focused on prevention, but leovy says she feels helpless to protect her family against the silent killer that no—one knows when or where it will strike next. the buildings and architecture

of a place or city have always been a way to impress people throughout history. think the forbidden city in beijing, the taj mahal in india, and the temples of angkor in cambodia. in more modern times the story is no different, and in asia we have more than ourfair share of impressive buildings, particularly here in singapore. in fact, there is an annual event called archifest being held in the city right now to celebrate the art of building. joining me now is david nelson, the head of design and senior executive partner of foster + partners. he is based in london and joins me 110w he is based in london and joins me now in our singapore studios. thank you so much forjoining us. ijust basically showed them the beautiful skyline and the unique architectural designs of singapore. but are they sustainable? it depends on how you measure it, and the time. i think if you look at the current criteria under the paris agreement, letting the temperature only get 1.5 degrees

or two degrees, nothing we have at the moment will comply with that. why? because the codes we have all been working to, all the architects all over the world, there are about 250 different codes, all at their highest level, if you achieve the highest level, if you achieve the highest possible performance in all of these codes, and they are not law, you don't even have to bother with these things, but if you go to that level, three degrees. three degrees, but of course, the paris agreement says 1.5 degrees. so something here, mr nelson, has to change. regulations have to catch up. they will. the trouble is to actually upgrade all those regulations, and all the current organisations know it, is going to bea3— organisations know it, is going to be a 3— five year programme, and in 12 years' time we reach a point of irrevocable change. so we have to do something else, and we all have to ta ke something else, and we all have to take action. and what kind of materials have to be used to be able to attain this kind of sustainable

architecture? and i'm sure a lot of developers are also thinking, oh my gosh, it is too expensive.” developers are also thinking, oh my gosh, it is too expensive. i think the materials is exactly the right thing to identify, because at the moment, when we talk about all these codes, it concentrates on what we call operational energy. so all the lights on air—conditioning and everything else. once the building is finished, that's called operational energy. in order to get down to the target, we have to tackle all the energy that is used in the process of designing and building the building. and that we call embodied energy. so we have to tackle that and find ways of calculating carbon. and four foster + partners and your architectural designs, are you trying to attain that 1.5 degrees and the paris agreement? we are trying to collate that. because it it is a methodology that. because it it is a methodology that doesn't exist. it is a standard being applied to all the buildings in the world. so we have to invent something. you either wait for three yea rs, something. you either wait for three years, three — five years, for all

this to come down... but you can't be alone, it has to be industrywide. exactly, and at the moment we are taking some action and we are piloting having a methodology for calculating carbon in material content and operational energy and actually comparing out all the way down. can you give us a structure or a building here in asia that is about to attain that 1.5 degrees for sustainable architecture? about to attain that 1.5 degrees for sustainable architecture ?|j about to attain that 1.5 degrees for sustainable architecture? i think it's... sustainable architecture? i think it's. .. there sustainable architecture? i think it's... there are some examples around the world, but i think they tend to be relatively small scale projects. there's a lot in the pipeline, and it depends on the materials and the scale, everything that you use. but i developers here in asia open to the of sustainable architecture, or does cost matter to them? and architecture, or does cost matter to them ? and with architecture, or does cost matter to them? and with all the 250 building codes, are you happy with three degrees? well, three degrees is then we have a natural disaster. so everybody has to become aware of it. at the moment i think it is our mission, everybody‘s mission, to inform everybody that first there is

a problem, and secondly agree on a method of dealing with it. the political will has to be there. thank you so much forjoining us, david nelson, head of design and associate partner at foster + partners. a really interesting interview, rico. clearly lots of big challenges ahead, unfortunately. you have been watching newsday. i'm lewis vaughanjones in london. and i'm rico hizon in singapore. stay with us. coming up: how to avert a cat—astrophe. we will be looking at how one business is making money by cat—proofing homes to prevent furry felines from falling from high places. do stick with rico for that. and before we go, we would like to leave you with these pictures of a rather unseasonable heat wave in washington, dc. temperatures were as high as 97 degrees fahrenheit, that's just over 36 degrees celsius, breaking records for an october day which date back to 19111.

that's all for now. stay with bbc world news. hello. at one stage, hurricane lorenzo way out in the atlantic had winds gusting up to 190 mph. it is no longer a hurricane. it only weakened quite quickly as it moves from ireland across the united kingdom during friday. that said, it is still quite windy, though nothing too unusual for the time of year. as we start friday, winds easing in northern ireland, but they are going to be picking up toward south wales in south—west england. and it will be fairly blustery wherever you are, with cloud and outbreaks of rain. a much milder start compared with thursday morning. and the winds pick up thursday morning. and the winds pick upa bit thursday morning. and the winds pick up a bit further south wales, south—west england, during friday morning. maybe gusting along suncoast, up to maybe 60, 65 mph before easing later. a lot of cloud,

outbreaks of rain to start the but edging southwards across south wales in southern england through the afternoon, replacing any early brightness. where is elsewhere it turns a bit dry and a little brighter. the best of the sunshine in northern scotland and throughout the day in the northern ales, and temperatures a little bit higher compared with thursday. so the winds ease further as we go onto friday night. still some cloud and petty rental parts of southern england, south wales, into northern ireland. the clearest guys to the north and east of that. they will be a few mist and fog patches developing, and where you are clear, temperatures are dipping down into single figures as we start the weekend. so, on saturday morning, then, some mist and fog patches around. some sunny spells are further if you are, but there's another weather system coming in from the atlantic. and that's going to spread cloud further east. with it, initially some light and patchy rain. that rain, though, turning heavierfor northern ireland and western scotland, with a strengthening south—easterly wind during the day. and as for those temperatures, of course it will feel best where you get to see some sunshine. then again, as the breeze

picks up, well, we'rejust talking about the mid to low teens. now, let's ta ke about the mid to low teens. now, let's take a look at the big picture going into sunday. this frontal system is coming across as quite slowly, with some heavy and persistent rain. there could be some quite large rain totals in places on into sunday, so that is something worth watching. while there is a bit of uncertainty about how quickly this is going to clear eastwards, some of us will emerge into the sunshine on sunday. but the further east you are, some of us, as you can see, will not. we will keep updated on how that looks over the next few days. and again, as for damages, we are talking mainly about the mid—teens. with any cloud and rain it is going to feel cold on sunday compared with saturday. and just to look into next week. a selection of places here. it's looking very autumnal. it will be quite windy throughout the week. it will be wet at times, not all the time. there will be some sunshine occasionally as well.

i'm lewis vaughan jones

with bbc world news. our top story: president trump has publicly asked a second country, china, to investigate one of his main political rivals, joe biden. mr trump, who's the subject of an impeachment inquiry over claims he made a similar request to ukraine, told reporters that beijing should look at investments made by mr biden‘s son, hunter. the british prime minister, boris johnson, has put forward further proposals to break the brexit deadlock but european leaders have said they're not convinced. and this story is getting a lot of attention on bbc.com activists from the group, extinction rebellion, were spraying red liquid at the treasury building here in london, as a protest against the use of fossil fuels. but they lost control of ther high—powered hose, leaving a red puddle on the road. that's all. stay with bbc world news. now on bbc news, hardtalk.