welcome to bbc news, i'm mike embley. our top stories: in hong kong, as the violence intensifies, police say the rule of law is on the brink of total colla pse. australia escaped the worst feared impacts of bushfires, but the threat still remains high, as more than 70 uncontained fires continue to burn in queensland and new south wales. countdown to the next crucial phase of the impeachment inquiry. washington braces for public hearings into the president's dealings with ukraine. the bolivian opposition senator jeanine anez declares herself interim president, as the former leader evo morales begins life in exile.

in hong kong, a senior police officer has said that unrest has brought the territory to the brink of total collapse. in the latest clashes with democracy campaigners, the violence spread to a university campus, where police fired tear gas, rubber bullets and water cannon. some of the protesters built barricades and threw petrol bombs. our correspondent robin brant was there. yelling. "run", she is shouting in cantonese, and they are running, but not for fun. hong kong students at their university racetrack were escaping the tear gas and rubber bullets as police raided their campus.

moving onto the grounds of the chinese university is a marked escalation by the police. they said they needed to stop people throwing bricks and other dangerous items from a campus bridge onto passing traffic. by night, that bridge became the front line in a stand—off, police on one side, protesters on the other, a raging fire in between. 2a hours previously, this place had been completely normal. across the university, protesters and students formed a human chain to supply the front line with water and food. others sat in groups, preparing their supply of weapons. you're sitting here making kind of, for want of a better phrase, petrol bombs. why we are doing this? because yesterday, you know,

they used real bullets, shoot us right in the chest, and that can kill someone. so, if they upgrade their weapons, we need to upgrade our weapons to protect ourselves, too. this scene shows you how drastically the nature of this confrontation has changed. it started out five months ago with hundreds of thousands of people marching on the streets in peaceful demonstration. now, at the entrance to a university, there is a roadblock on fire, a burned—out car blocking the entrance to this bridge, and around me dozens of protesters in black sitting and waiting, not knowing what's coming next. the start of this week has been different here. the stand—off at the university more dangerous. in its sixth month now, this particular part of the protest felt less like a competition and more like a conflict. robin brant, bbc news, hong kong. raging bushfires have damaged properties across parts of australia and briefly spread to suburbs of sydney. the catastrophic day that was forecast has so far not materialised, but there are still 7a uncontained fires burning

in new south wales. fire chiefs are warning the dangers facing the state and neighbouring queensland are far from over. live now to the north of sydney, and our correspondent phil mercer. it and our correspondent phil mercer. could have bee still it could have been worse but it is still pretty bad. yes, this toxic haze, mike, that smothered much of syd ney haze, mike, that smothered much of sydney and a vast swathe of new south wales has mercifully been blown away by very strong winds. this part of the country is no longer under those catastrophic fire warnings, but we now hear that, since this emergency began on friday of last week, about 200 homes have been destroyed. and sadly, three people have lost their lives. those fires you referred to in suburban sydney, about 15 kilometres from the harbour bridge, there is a suspicion that they may have been started on

purpose. so bushfires for the australian community, they are traumatic, they are devastating, and they are frightening to hear that some of them may have been started on purpose, will anger and frustrate an entire nation. so phil, what is likely to make the difference, the most difference, in the next few days? well, here in new south wales, more hot and windy conditions are forecast for the end of the week. further north, in queensland, they are facing dangerous conditions right now. it is all hands on deck. there are evacuations in popular holiday destinations in the state of queensland. so while firefighters in new south wales, they are still battling many, many fires, having something a respite, their collea g u es something a respite, their colleagues to the north are finding conditions very, very tough indeed. and we are hearing that queensland has drafted in firefighters from as far away as new zealand, because the dangers up there are so severe. phil, thank you very much for that.

let's get some of the day's other news: the former treasurer to the vatican, cardinal george pell, has been granted a right to a final appeal in australia's high court against his convictions for child sexual abuse. in march he was found guilty of attacking two choirboys in the 1990s, and sentenced to six years in prison. zimbabwe's central bank has introduced new banknotes. it is an attempt to ease an acute cash shortage, but there are fears it could fuel inflation, in a country where the rate is already about 300%. workers for mcdonald's in the us have filed a lawsuit alleging the fast food company has a systemic problem of sexual harassment. they accuse mcdonald's of allowing a toxic work culture. the firm hasn't yet responded. it has about 14,000 restaurants in the us. the impeachment inquiry in washington is about to go public. until now, the testimony has been heard behind closed doors. house democrats are looking at whether president trump abused his power by witholding military aid from ukraine while pressing for an investigation into the bidens.

mr trump calls the inquiry a hoax. the first two people in front of congress on wednesday are william taylor, the top us diplomat in ukraine, and george kent, deputy assistant secretary for european and eurasian affairs. and on friday, former us ambassador to ukraine marie yovanovitch is due to testify. meanwhile, donald trump has announced plans to "probably" release another transcript of his conversation with ukraine's president by the end of the week. more on that and other developments from our north america correspondent david willis. first of all, on the impeachment hearings, david, what to expect, exactly? well, you mentioned the evidence there, mike, the public evidence there, mike, the public evidence from people such as william taylor, george kent, the senior state department official. they of course have given evidence in

private. but this will be the first public testimony, indeed, it will be the first televised impeachment proceedings, in the us in 20 years. lots of people will be watching. 0f that we can be absolutely sure, because there will be blanket coverage here both on cable news networks and on the main networks here. not since watergate, of course, have we seen such interest, i think, course, have we seen such interest, ithink, in course, have we seen such interest, i think, in impeachment proceedings. and these two witnesses who are due to give evidence tomorrow are seen as highly credible. certainly as far as highly credible. certainly as far as democrats are concerned, william taylor, the top us diplomat in ukraine, george kent, the senior — the state department official, are both expected to articulate their concerns about the sort of shadow ukraine policy that was being implemented, in their view, ukraine policy that was being implemented, in theirview, by president trump's personal lawyer, rudy giuliani. now, we will hear

from marie yovanovitch, the former ukraine— us ambassador to the ukraine, on friday. and it has been announced, mike, that there will be eight other witnesses giving testimony in public next week. and david, just on another important point, the supreme court has given a strong indication, hasn't it, that it plans to take mr trump's side on an immigration issue that affects hundreds of thousands of people. that's right, it's been hearing oral arguments today, mike, to do with that plan by the trump administration or that intention by the trump administration to scrap what is known as the daca agreement. that would basically abolish protections for about 700,000 immigrants who came to the united states as children, through no fault of their own illegally. and of course, they were given an extension by the 0bama administration. mr

trump wants to take that away. he wa nts to trump wants to take that away. he wants to abolish the so—called daca programme, and attempts to do that have been frustrated by the court, so have been frustrated by the court, so this matter has gone all the way to the highest court in the land, which is hearing evidence today. it has some time, though, before it will deliver its verdict. that is not expected until the middle of next year, by which time, of course, the 2020 presidential campaign will be in full swing, during which it is expected immigration will of course bea expected immigration will of course be a key factor. and just very briefly, david, mr trump be a key factor. and just very briefly, david, mrtrump has be a key factor. and just very briefly, david, mr trump has sent very mixed signals on the dream is, hasn't he? he has, yes, indeed -- dreamers. today he tweeted that although some of them are in his view criminals, there will be some attempt to basically reach agreement with the democrats were the us supreme court to vote in favour of his administration in striking down

the daca programme. it remains to be seen, of course, what sort of shape that agreement would take. because previous attempts by this administration or previous assertions that the administration would actually collude with the democrats over the subject of immigration have of course so far come to nothing, mike. david, thank you very much for that. and be sure to tune in to the bbc‘s special coverage of those public impeachment hearings on capitol hill. we will bring those to you live, along with updates and analysis from our team in washington, starting at 3:00pm gmt. the deputy head of the bolivian senate has declared herself interim president, without the support of congress. jeanine anez said she was next in line under the constitution after the resignation of the former leader, evo morales, and much of his govenrment. the former president has arrived in mexico, where he has been given political asylum. gareth barlow has more: evo morales was a socialist president. now, he is an asylum seeker. the former bolivian leader

arrived in mexico, saying he fled in fearfor his life. arrived in mexico, saying he fled in fear for his life. translation: they ransacked and burned my sister's house. the day before, they ransacked my home. they tried to burn it, but thankfully my neighbours defended it. back in bolivia, supporters of the country's first indigenous president took to the streets of the capital, as police and the military work to restore calm. translation: the opposition will never be able to govern as evo morales has done. evo morales was our leader. we miss and love you, evo. we have been left orphaned. as the barricades grow higher, the power vacuum deepens. the deputy leader of the senate has declared herself interim president,

despite failing to receive enough support from senators. meanwhile, at a special meeting, the organisation of american states called for fresh elections. translation: the auditor tea m elections. translation: the auditor team cannot validate the results of the present election, and recommends another electoral process. likewise, we would like to point out that any future elections should rely on new authorities. as prisoners protest and soldiers stand guard to protect society, there is no doubt bolivians are walking a new path. but there is no clarity as to where it will end. stay with us on bbc news. still to come: the king and queen of spain begin an historic visit to cuba, the first by a spanish monarch. the bombastic establishment outsider, donald trump, has defied the pollsters to take the keys to the oval office.

i feel great about the election result. i voted for him because i genuinely believe that he cares about the country. it's keeping the candidate's name always in the public eye that counts. success or failure depends not only on public display, but on the local campaign headquarters and the heavy routine work of their women volunteers. berliners from both east and west linked hands and danced around their liberated territory. and with nobody to stop them, it wasn't long before the first attempts were made to destroy the structure itself. yasser arafat, who dominated the palestinian cause for so long, has died. palestinian authority has declared a state of mourning. after 17 years of discussion, the result was greeted with an outburst ofjoy. women ministers who'd long felt only grudgingly accepted in the ranks of clergy suddenly felt welcomed.

this is bbc news. the latest headlines: hong kong police warn the rule of law is on the brink of collapse, as the spiral of violence intensifies. bushfires across much of eastern australia are still burning out of control — as some of the blazes reach the suburbs of sydney let's get more on that story now. chris turney is professor of climate change and earth science at the university of new south wales. he joins us now from wollongong. to of the present situation? thanks u nfortu nately to of the present situation? thanks unfortunately eased off a fair bit overnight. i'm on the south side of syd ney overnight. i'm on the south side of sydney in new south wales. yesterday we had catastrophic fire warnings, even down here as well and is the first time we've ever had those. we are regularly keeping an update on the absent example here, this one

showing where the fires up and down the coast. further north, they are having a horrendous time, particularly in queensland, as you've heard. stilli particularly in queensland, as you've heard. still i think i'm a 70- you've heard. still i think i'm a 70— plus fires burning uncontained. some of these fires are notjust related to climate change, it is arson. it is one of the things where you see this strange event happening and people are saying not to talk about climate change, the fire seasons are getting longer, they are starting earlier and just last month, we had 20 of the most senior retired firefighters across all the states in australia actually warning that it was going to be a bad fire season, we need to be better prepared and i was meant to be a coast in the northern part of new south wales, talking about climate

change where our climate emergency was recently cleared and some of our friends and colleagues of her, they lost their homes, defended their businesses from fire, it's just heartbreaking. seeing what happened up heartbreaking. seeing what happened up the coast. let's talk about climate change. a senior member of the government was saying it's only a concern in australia for inner—city liberals. a concern in australia for inner-city liberals. that is a point of view, isn't it? the science is unequivocal. longer and harder fire seasons this year, the winter was the longest and driest and warmest 6- the longest and driest and warmest 6— month period since records began. this is a land of fire and drought with the intensity seems to be increasing and we are not even in summer increasing and we are not even in summer yet. i think there is a really interesting point that needs to be made as a point of view but i think a lot of people, the conversation yesterday, we can share

empathy with people who are struggling and having a terrible time on the tragedy up the coast but at the same time also recognising that climate change is having a profound influence on australia. we are the canary in the mind, u nfortu nately. are the canary in the mind, unfortunately. we are experiencing climate change and this is just one expression of that impact. professor, very interesting to talk to you, thank you very much. venice has been hit by the second highest tide recorded in the lagoon city. as tourists and locals managed to cope with the rising water — city officials said the level peaked at i.87m on tuesday night, just short of the all—time record, set in 1966. raised wooden walkways are in position in the piazzas for tourists and locals to keep relatively dry. protests in chile have entered their fourth week — as thousands vent their anger at the cost of living and inequality and continue to call for president pinero's resignation. andy beatt reports. santiago at a standstill. more mass

protests in the capital and across the country with no end in sight. president pinero's recent promise to rewrite the constitution to help the poorest and struggling middle classes doing little to calm the mood. translation: we are no longer co mforta ble mood. translation: we are no longer comfortable with this government. we wa nt to comfortable with this government. we want to change it completely and get new people with new proposals. our protests will continue until the government gives in. what began as an outcry against a hike in metro fa res has an outcry against a hike in metro fares has spiralled into a state of emergency. clashes have left nearly 20 dead and thousands injured. that's prompted an investigation by the un into allegations of human rights abuses against demonstrators. translation: the truth is that i have more anger than fear, more hate

than grief and it's against those people who are out there shooting, mutilating people, torturing them. there is massive damage as well to the country's economy. widespread disruption costing billions of dollars. the peso slumping to an all—time low. politicians were also unable to work. blockades forcing congress to close for the day. but as chilly‘s crisis continues to deepen, it's the voices on the streets, not in the corridors of power, but seem to hold the most sway. —— chile's. king felipe and queen letizia of spain have arrived in cuba for the first official visit by a spanish king to the island. the trip is taking place in the week of the five hundredth anniversary of the founding of the city of havana, and on their trip the royals will see much of the restoration work of the city's colonial architecture. from havana, will grant reports. it's a visit heavy with historic symbolism. when king felipe stepped

plane with queen letizia, he became the first spanish king to make an official visit to cuba. the upcoming 500 anniversary of havana seemed a good opportunity —— opportunity to the communist run government to show them the island which christopher columbus once described as the most beautiful land ever seen. for years, havana has slowly been restoring its resplendent architecture like the u of building and the government is keen to show its best face to the spanish royals. among those to be honest during the trip is this man, responsible for hannah ——of anna's reservation. translation: we will illuminate the lamp at the top of the central dome as it was originally, and a ray of light which along with the castle represents a symbol of havana for the ages. yet the royals arrive at a complicated time as well. cuba is feeling the pressure of new economic sanctions from washington, targeted at the island's fuel supply. as the spanish

royals are driven around the city, they may notice the long queues were petrol. the effects of the latest tightening in sanctions by the trump administration can be seen here at the petrol pump. the collapse in bilateral relations has turned the simple act of filling the car with fuel into a daily ordeal. at a recent forum and have anna —— havana, the cu ban recent forum and have anna —— havana, the cuban foreign minister warned that worse was to come. translation: i feel the duty to tell you the difficult times are coming in which the efforts of everyone before the north american aggression will be decisive and possibly definitive. in that regard alone, this spanish royal visit is important to the cuban government. as the spanish king laid a wreath to cuba's national hero, the island

once known as the pearl of the caribbean needs international support at the moment, even if does come from theirformer support at the moment, even if does come from their former colonisers. will grant, bbc news, havana. hundreds of thousands of tourists visit paris each year but one guy gives a tour with a different twist. from world war ii resistant fighters to the writers who spoke out against french colonialism. he tries to challenge the perception of what it means to be french.

very special tour of paris there. a

giant mural of greta thunberg will gaze down on the people of the people of sandro —— san francisco. one of the previous works by the artist was a giant mural of robin williams. that is it for now, thank you so much for watching. hello once again. after so much wet weather in recent weeks, it looks as though wednesday for much of the british isles is going to start at least on a drier, brighter, colder note, although there's no disguising the fact there is in fact another set of fronts to bring some rain to western areas later in the day. but it's a cold, crisp start, a frosty one for many northern parts of the british isles. a run of showers over the north sea through south—west scotland to the north—west of england. but as you see, even

on into the afternoon, many central and eastern areas will end up with a dry, sunny but not overly warm day. temperatures down into single figures. where we will see a significant change through the afternoon is rain getting into northern ireland, wales and the south—west of england. and just be advised that, in the more intense bursts over the moors of the south—west and the brecon beacons, you could well end up with a covering of snow. here we are on into thursday. that same band of weather's still producing an awful lot of rain across the southern counties, and as the day progresses, so this more southern feature is joined by a more northern feature. and that's the concern, because the rain looks set to return to some of the flood—affected areas. there are already met office warnings out and available on our website. from thursday on into friday, the big area of low pressure still close by over the near continent, and it's still a north to north—easterly feed off a cold north sea that will generate an awful lot of cloud across the greater part of england, wales, maybe the southern parts of scotland too. and enough about the cloud for there to be the odd bit and piece of rain. the best of the sunshine across much

of northern and western scotland, through northern ireland, the western side of wales, maybe down into the west country as well. but again, it is a cold, and underneath those weather fronts a miserable, dank sort of day. here we are at the start of the weekend. what's changed ? really, not very much at all. the low pressure ever closer towards the south—eastern quarter. still the onshore feed into the eastern side of the british isles, still the suggestion of enough cloud for there to be bits and pieces of rain falling from that. no great intensity, but of course, any rain into some areas is really not very welcome at all. here we are as far ahead as sunday. no signs of mild air creeping its way towards british isles, so sunday is another dank, chilly sort of day. the best of the sunshine perhaps behind a more westerly feature here, out into parts of northern ireland, and still that stripe of thicker cloud all the way from the north—east of england down

through wales, the midlands and on towards the south—west. and again, single figures are the order of the day. so further rain to come, some hill snow, often windy, and a bit cold too.

this is bbc news. the headlines : a senior hong kong police officer has warned that unrest has brought the city to the brink of total breakdown. in the latest clashes between police and democracy campaigners, the violence has spread to a university campus, where tear gas, rubber bullets and a water cannon were used. raging bushfires have damaged properties across parts of australia and briefly spread to suburbs of sydney. the catastrophic day feared by forecasters has largely been avoided, but more than 70 uncontained fires are still burning in new south wales and queensland. an opposition senator in bolivia, jeanine anez, has declared herself interim president. the country's former leader evo morales has fled to mexico after being granted political asylum. he was forced to resign on sunday. mr morales has described her appointment, which wasn't formally