this is the briefing — i'm sally bundock. our top story: us prosecutors charge two former twitter employees with spying for saudi arabia. it's claimed they targeted critics of the saudi government and royal family. with the impeachment inquiry hotting up — president trump lashes out at the democrats accusing them of staging show trials. lebanon's mass protests continue — but what are they about? three young people tell us their dreams for the future. and going supersonic with the bloodhound, the british mission to break the world land speed record.

in business, betting the farm. can the world find a sustainable way to feed itself? we look at the multi—billion dollar rise of plant—based meat. this thursday's briefing, will make sure you gci’oss this thursday's briefing, will make sure you across all you do know in global and sport. would love to be pa rt global and sport. would love to be part of the conversation, have you become a fact —— have you become thinking? is it for health reasons or to reduce your carbon footprint? isn't it.

prosecutors in the us have charged two former twitter employees and a third man with spying for saudi arabia. they are accused of accessing personal information of some twitter users who criticised the saudi government and royal family. our north america correspondent, peter bowes, has the very latest. according to the usjustice department, they face charges of working for the cave of saudi arabia without registering as a foreign agents, the charts claim after the arrest on the vomited employees, us is and who is alleged to have spied on the account of three uses. the second former church employee who was an engineer with twitter is accused of accessing the personal information of some 6000 twitter accounts, this is during 2015. after be recruited by saudi agents. 0ne accounts, this is during 2015. after be recruited by saudi agents. one of those accounts belong to a prominent

dissident who became phrased with the generalist schumacherjudge who was assassinated in istanbul last year. this vomited employees they use a company brick —— rentals to access personal information of users convert that person is a saudi citizen who was employed by the saudi royalfamily citizen who was employed by the saudi royal family and citizen who was employed by the saudi royalfamily and is citizen who was employed by the saudi royal family and is settled acted in —— between the two employees and the saudi officials. we've had a statement from adjusted barb material the united states saying the us will not allow us companies and us elegy to become tools of foreign oppression in violation of us law. twitter have also issued a statement saying it recognises the lakes that actors will go to to try to undermine its service.

president trump has lashed out at his democrat opponents, with a defiant speech at a rally in louisiana. speaking hours after it was confirmed that public impeachment hearings would begin next wednesday, he accused the democrats of staging show trials and trying to overthrow american democracy. mr trump was in louisiana to support the republican candidate for governor in upcoming elections. now, corrupt politicians nancy pelosi and shifty adam schiff and the crooked media have launched the deranged, delusional, destructive and hyper—partisan impeachment witch—hunt. now we go again. except a lot of things have happened. because you know, i don't know if you saw — ijust got off, i'm coming off the plane and they handed me this, look at this character.

0k, theyjust handed me this story. whistleblower‘s attorney said in 2017 — you know when that was? that was a long time ago. it is all a hoax. they say january 2017, a coup has started, and the impeachment will follow, ultimately. it's all a hoax, it's a scam, and you know who helps them? these people right back here — the media. let's brief you on some of the other stories making the news. details are expected to be revealed today of a general election pact in the uk between the liberal democrats and other pro—remain parties. the lib dems, the greens and plaid cymru will reportedly not run against each other in dozens of consituencies. the lib dem leader, jo swinson called it a significant moment for voters across the country who to reverse brexit. at least 37 people have been killed in burkina faso after a convoy carrying workers for the canadian gold mining company semafo was attacked. the leading escort vehicle was reportedly struck by an explosive device before a group of gunmen opened fire.

a report has concluded iran is the most influential country in the middle east, ahead of its rival, saudi arabia. the international institute for strategic studies says despite greater defence spending elsewhere, the balance of effective force in the region is now in tehran‘s favour. the collins dictionary has named climate strike as its word of the year. popularised by the teenage environmentalist, greta thunberg, it refers to the climate change protests that people skip school or work tojoin. the dictionary also recognises non—binary, to define someone who's not exlusively masculine orfeminine, and prefers the pronoun ‘they‘ to ‘he' or ‘she'.

the final hours of the life of the british backpacker grace millane, captured on security cameras in new zealand, have been shown at the trial of the man accused of her murder. grace millane was killed in auckland last december after a meeting a man on an online dating app. the defendant, who can't be identified for legal reasons, has pleaded not guilty. 0ur correspondent, phil mercerjoins us now from auckland. give us more details. thejury has seen a compilation, very detailed compilation of images captured in december of last year of grace and the man who would go on to kill her later that evening. in december of

last year, we see the british backpacker living the hospital where she was saying, we see the eating outside the casino here in auckland, and other pets seen to order cocktails at a bar, there seemed to drink heavily, there also seemed to be enjoying it as company, this footage shows them kissing and embracing and tools end of the videos, they visit a bar they are there for about an hour afterwards, they make the short walk across the road to the man's apartment in more security footage shows and going on to lobby and up on the left to the third floor where the man's apartment was. when grace stepped out of the left, that's the last time she is seen alive. so what went on that apartment is at the height of this case, prosecutors say the british backpacker was deliberately strangled. the defence has a very

different take on this, believe she was killed accidentally and die as a result of a consensual sex game that went wrong. so a lot of the jury to be ——to decide over the next few weeks as this trial continues. thank you phil massa. —— thank you phil. more than a thousand people were forced to evacuate. a london theatre on wednesday evening after part of the ceiling collapsed during a show. emergency services were called to the piccadilly theatre in the west end, which was packed for a performance of arthur miller's play death of a salesman. five people were treated in hospitalfor minor injuries. wendell pierce, who stars as willy loman, spoke to the crowd outside. i did not mean for it to go like this. laughter. i would like to thank you all for, one, safely evacuating. we apologise and we are glad that no—one is hurt and i ask

you all to come back and see our production. we are so honoured that you came tonight. two things went bad, if you think started to panic, it wasn't a bus panic. 0ne audience member who saw the roof come down told us, beforehand, the crowd could hear water coming through the ceiling for several minutes. yeah, and a few people started to panic but really, i wouldn't say there was a mass panic but there was a very, very quick evacuation. let's turn to our top business story now — because we are talking food. a regular report is out later today and is expected to confirm the demand for animal —based foods, so

meat and dairy, is continuing to grow up and up, preproduction now contributes more than a quarter of all greenhouse gases, much of that is from meister. does the answer lie with plant —based alternatives bus becoming a multibillion—dollar industry. a beacon... for consulting people that we are beggars. i'm very aware of that, you're not big on because recent decision. there are so because recent decision. there are so many reports and calls for us to change our diet because it would help reduce our carbon footprint in a major way. what more reason to be beaten? some people it was elected, others is religion based, i happen to be indivisible, so second to begin from and now we have their environment. we here at climate change, people say what should i do? get a smart metre, all the rest of it, according to the data, eat less meat. because 80% of the world 's land resources, agricultural land

sources are used for meat production wearers in the 80% of our covers, from it, we are seeing a shift in this area, plant —based foods, so company built is earlier this year of the... company built is earlier this year ofthe... iama company built is earlier this year of the. .. i am a shareholder, company built is earlier this year of the... i am a shareholder, i declare interest. possible foods is not the big name, we see them in the uk. we had a lady and work life, they farm sewage. so the interesting thing about this is some other the companies apply best insight beyond meat and the share prices come down dramatically since it's 500% rise, -- . consider excitement that they had, they could see the trend is going to be more demand for this, obviously outside, the panel ages, it's put it that way, have come out in force and some are saying in

america in particular were lobbying has big money, they are saying no, it's a national icon like the gun, you can't. they‘ re it's a national icon like the gun, you can't. they're not saying about the gun. you can't move us towards a different kind of date. the demand, the demand in the us is really on the demand in the us is really on the up. population growth... apply base chicken burger, we've got to stop but will assume a bit legible in his breathing. and we will look forward to see your views and opinions. also to come... bayern munich and juventus book their places in the last 16 of the champions league. the israeli prime minister, yitzhak rabin, the architect of the middle east peace process, has been assassinated. a 27—year—old jewish man has been arrested, and an extremistjewish organisation

has claimed responsibility for the killing. at polling booths throughout the country, they voted on a historic day for australia. as the results came in, it was clear. the monarchy would survive. of the american hostages, there was no sign. they are being held somewhere inside the compound, and student leaders have threatened that should the americans attempt rescue, they will all die. this mission has surpassed all expectations. voyageri is now the most distant man—made object anywhere in the universe, and itjust seems to keep on going. tonight, we proved once more that the true strength of our nation comes not from the might of our arms, or the scale of our wealth, but from the enduring power of our ideals. you're watching the briefing. 0ur headlines: us prosecutors have charged two

former twitter employees with spying for saudi arabia. it's claimed they targeted critics of the saudi government and royal family. president trump has lashed out at his opponents — he accused the democrats of staging "show trials" and trying to overthrow american democracy. over the past months, thousands of protesters have been flooding major cities across the world. here on bbc world news, we are asking is there a common thread to all this anger and anxiety? in lebanon many thousands have been demanding the government step down. many of those are young and inspired by protests taking place in other countries. so why are they taking to the streets in such large numbers? we asked three young protestors in beirut how they see their country. chanting. i am a lebanese artist and

an architect. i was born after the war. i think of my close friends, a circle of 15 people, we are ten not living here now because of again, sectarianism and how it works. it is very ha rd sectarianism and how it works. it is very hard getting a job, find a position, get a commission without knowing someone who knows someone who knows someone who is going to give you thejob. who knows someone who is going to give you the job. everybody wants to come back but it is very hard for them. i am 22 years old and i am a student. i didn't get to vote in the la st student. i didn't get to vote in the last elections because i was under age but it is my chance to raise my voice and the voice of all the other lit youth. —— other youth. we want jobs for women, men and any kind of religion. i am a lebanese artist. i used to pay on campuses at home and sell them but because of the revolution, i decided to go on the

streets and paint so i can inspire people, protesters, the media, international community, and the protesters and to write our stories. i hope we can really make a change and change the system. i mean, we have had the same politicians since before i was born and they want to see new faces, technocratic people, people who are really, who can really save the country, who can save us. really save the country, who can save us. it is time. we don't want people who were involved in wars. we deserve to live in an amazing country but we are not able to because of our politicians. and we are hoping now to change the system. we have had enough and we really need change. its time. we'll have more on protest movements across the globe here on bbc news — and you'll find lots more on the key issue on our website — bbc.com/news. you can also download the bbc news app.

here's our briefing on some of the key events happening later. vietnam's foreign ministry will hold a news conference in hanoi about the deaths of 39 people found in the back of a truck near london last month. at the hague, the international criminal court will sentence the former congolese military leader bosco ‘terminator‘ ntaganda for war crimes and crimes against humanity. and in london, legendary who guitarist and songwriter pete townshend will launch his first novel " the age of anxiety". now it's time to get all the latest from the bbc sports centre. hello, i'm gavin ramjaun, and this is your thursday sport briefing. bayern munich put a week of drama behind them to maintain their perfect record in the european champions league and reach the knockout stages. the german champions, who sacked manager niko kovac this week, won 2—0 against 0lympiacos.

robert lewandowski got his 20th of the season, he's now scored in every league and european game for bayern before substitute ivan perisic sealed the victory. another giant of the european game, juventus, willjoin them in the last 16. the italians left it late, to beat lokomotiv moscow 2—1. douglas costa was the man to thank — his stoppage time winner proved the difference. paris saint germain also made the knockouts, beating bruges. atletico madrid and manchester city have to wait though. atletico lost at bayer leverkusen. and city used three goalkeepers, including england defender kyle walker, in the draw with atalanta. the english champions could have qualified for the last 16 on wednesday. raheem sterling gave them the lead. after gabrieljesus missed a penalty, mario pasalic equalised in the second half, scoring past claudio bravo who came on for the injured ederson. bravo was later sent off for a foul, meaning an outfield player, walker, had to go in goal! he had little to do, and the score finished 1—1 in italy. an icon of the boxing ring is retiring. british double 0lympic champion nicola adams,

has decided to call it a day, over fears she'll lose her vision. 37—year—old adams, became the first female 0lympic boxing champion in london 2012. she retained olympic gold at rio 2016, turned professional the year after. adams retires as the wbo world flyweight champion. manchester united welcome partizan belgrade to old trafford for thursday's europa league encounter. united claimed a 1—0 victory in serbia, in their last europa league match. win later on, and this would guarantee qualification to the knockout stages. but united's form is a cause for concern — they haven't won at old trafford, since a 1—0 victory of astana, in the europa, in mid september. the work everyone does every day, thatis the work everyone does every day, that is pleasing for me as a manager, to see them. they want to do well. and for one reason or the

other, sometimes we haven't got the results. we have had margins against us, we have deserved a few more results that we haven't got and its just to keep working. we know that we are on the right track. india and bangladesh are set to play their 2nd t20 international on thursday, provided the weather doesn't get in the way. cyclone maha is expected to land in gujarat on match day. the first match in delhi was heavily affected by smog. india suffered a huge seven—wicket defeat in the first match. finally — everton midfielder andre gomes has gone on social media to thank fans for their support after his serious injury, during the 1—1 draw against tottenham hotspur on sunday. the portuguese midfielder fractured his ankle during a challenge and faces a lengthy spell on the sidelines. hi, everyone. as you know, everything went well. i am at home with my family and i would like to

thank you all for the support and m essa 9 es thank you all for the support and messages and the positive energy. thank you. you can get all the latest at our website — that's bbc.com/sport. but from me, gavin ramjaun, and the rest of the sport team, that's your thursday sport briefing. don't blink or you'll miss it, because a british team are increasingly confident they have a car capable of breaking the land speed record. their arrow—shaped vehicle, known as bloodhound, has been getting progressively faster and faster during trials in south africa. they plan to test their car to approximately 965kms/hour this week — ahead of a full attempt next year at 1600kms/hour. 0ur africa correspondent, andrew harding, has been to meet the team at the hakskeen pan in the kalahari desert.

wright the bloodhound calls out into the desert sunshine. british engineering brought halfway around the world to the flattest stretch of dried mud you will everfind. 0ut the world to the flattest stretch of dried mud you will everfind. out on the scorching track, the team prepares to power up the car's secret weapon. a jet engine on loan from the raf. the driver, current world land speed record holder andy greene does his final check. what is going through your head? preparation for the run. the highest temperatures it has run and i will doa temperatures it has run and i will do a gentle left—hand turn, pointing it exactly into the wind at the moment, 500 miles an hour. this time, they are testing the parachutes to slow the car down. when you are travelling at 500 mph, you can't just slam when you are travelling at 500 mph, you can'tjust slam on the brakes which is why the track here is ten miles long. it is half what formula

1car, miles long. it is half what formula 1 car, half a spaceship. and he is off. a gust pushes the car sideways. this is a difficult and dangerous business. 501 mph today. after this yea r‘s tests, business. 501 mph today. after this year's tests, the aim next year is to strap on an extra rocket and perhaps to reach 1000 mph. amazing. goodness me! that was the most impressing i have seen yet. this is that your share businessman now finding it after it nearly went bankrupt last year. —— yorkshire businessmen. this ambitious, perhaps eccentric campaign, is notjust about speed. the real aim, the

organisers insist, is to inspire a whole new generation of students to ta ke whole new generation of students to take up engineering and perhaps to confront and overcome bigger challenges. andrew harding, bbc news, hakskeen pan, south africa. you have been very vocal either our conversation today about changing ourdiet conversation today about changing our diet more plant —based diet. as many of us are being urged to do like organisations —— by organisations like the united nations to help reduce the temperature on the planet. we have heard from many of you. gordon f thenit heard from many of you. gordon f then it says he has dropped almost all red meat since may and the inta ke all red meat since may and the intake of beans, eggs, more fish, he still eats cheese, though. that is his food advice. we have also heard from taylor elizabeth rose who said she has made more decisions to go

client base. she uses coconut cream for coffee. if billions more people don't make the same choices, though, what difference will this make? still, we all need to try and make a change. see you soon. hello there. parts of england and wales look extremely wet on thursday thanks to an almost stationary weather front which is tied into this new area of low pressure which will park itself on top of the uk. after a pretty wet night for parts of england and wales as that rain band has been moving northwards, it will end up across parts of east anglia and then northern england into north wales. the north and south of it through the day, we should see some sunshine but also some showers. but concerns for this portion of the country which could see some, at times, heavy and persistent rain, certainly for northern england and into north wales where there could be some localised flooding and also some travel disruption, it'll feel quite cold and raw with that strong

east—north—easterly wind. to the north of it, there'll be some sunshine, probably the best of it across western scotland. a few showers here, wintry on the hills. it'll be blustery in the north and a few heavy, maybe thundery showers in the south and south—west but also some sunshine. temperature wise, maybe reaching 10 degrees in the south in the sunshine there, but it's going to be a really cold day pretty much wherever you are, temperatures in single figures. it continues to rain through the latter part of the day and into the evening across the same areas, so again, the risk of flooding. but the rain band will gradually ease down as it begins to pivot and turn in towards the south and the east of the uk. so under clear skies to the north and south of it, it's going to be cold night where you have the cloud and around 3—6d. that area of low pressure slips off into the near continent. a bit of a hang back with that weather front but a ridge of high pressure builds in to the rest of the country so it's going to be a cold, frosty start to the north and the west, but bright with plenty of sunshine, and looks like the sunshine will continue to build in to many central areas but we'll still have a bit of cloud.

one or two showers across the east of england thanks to that weather front. a chilly day wherever you are but at least there will be more sunshine around to compensate. and then through friday night, we eventually lose the weather front under clear skies, it turns really cold and frosty, but the next frontal system will at arrive across the west so maybe not quite as cold for northern ireland to start saturday morning as it will be across the rest of the country. so, saturday starts cold and frosty for many but we'll have that rain quickly spreading to many areas through the day, some of it heavy, and then on sunday, it's a gradual improvement. as the rain clears away, we should see more sunshine around.

this is the business briefing. i'm sally bundock. betting the farm. can the world find a sustainable way to feed itself? we look at the multi—billion dollar rise of plant—based meat. plus — caffeine buzz — how gourmet coffee is perking up the economy in remote parts of indonesia and on the markets: but the possum a beer agreement to defend the trade talks between us and china, it might be pushed into next month.