i'm rico hizon in singapore, the headlines: the moment a boeing aircraft came down with 176 people on board, canada's prime minister says there's mounting evidence to what caused the tragedy. the evidence indicates that the plane was shot down by an iranian surface—to—air missile. this may well have been unintentional. a day after the duke and duchess of sussex announce they're stepping back from royal life, meghan leaves the uk for canada. i'm lewis vaughanjones in london. also in the programme: bushfires are still burning in australia with temperatures forecast to get higher

in some places. i'm lucy hockings live in kangaroo valley and i will be speaking to the owners of the kangaroo valley bush retreat about how you rebuild when fire has taken everything. and the bbc speaks to carlos ghosn, the fugitive businessman now banned from leaving the country he fled to. it's 8:00am in singapore, midnight in london and 7:00pm in ottawa where the prime minister justin trudeau has said there's evidence from multiple sources that the ukrainian passengerjet that crashed near tehran was shot down by an iranian missile.

all 176 people on board were killed, including dozens of canadians. iran's civil aviation chief has dismissed reports that a missile had hit the aircraft as "scientifically impossible". nick bryant has the latest from washington. american media say these images appear to show the moment the ukrainian airliner was hit by an iranian missile shortly after take—off. the plane did not explode immediately and continued flying for several minutes as it tried to return to tehran airport. this video appears to show the boeing 737, which seems to be on fire, as it went down. just before it crashed, a satellite apparently detected the heat trails of two missiles, followed moments afterwards by an explosion. us officials said it was highly likely the plane, with 176 people on board, was mistakenly shot down by iranian anti—aircraft missiles.

63 canadians were among the dead. the country's prime minister, justin trudeau, shared with his people news that he said would shock. we have intelligence from multiple sources, including our allies and our own intelligence. the evidence indicates that the plane was shot down by an iranian surface to air missile. this may well have been unintentional. it was just five hours after iran launched the missile strikes on us forces in iraq that the plane crashed shortly after take—off. iran's anti—aircraft systems would probably have been active, anticipating american retaliatory strikes that never came. speaking before his canadian counterpart, president trump revealed his own suspicions. it is a tragic thing when i see that, it's a tragic thing. but somebody could have made a mistake on the other side, could have made a mistake. it was flying... it was flying in...

not our system, it's nothing to do with us. it was flying in a pretty rough neighbourhood and somebody could have made a mistake. there might be crucial evidence that lies within this wreckage. the iranians have been bulldozing the crash site and are not yet sharing information from the black box recorders. the country's head of civil aviation claimed reports of an iranian missile strike were illogical rumours. at this prayer vigil in canada, the faces of the dead, the anguish of the relatives who now mourn them. i think everyone is just heartbroken, everyone is trying to process it and believe it. relatives in ukraine want answers, too. their loved ones, casualties of a conflict of which they were no part. officials in britain, canada and here in america tonight are all saying this was a mistake.

not a reason, then, for now at least, to further escalate tensions with iran. nick bryant, bbc news, washington. let's take a look at some of the day's other news. the democratic—led us house of representatives has voted to approve a resolution which limits president donald trump's ability to take military action against iran, unless congress gives its approval. house speaker nancy pelosi says the drone strike that killed general soulemani was a dangerous and unneccessary provocation. 0ur north america correspondent peter bowes gave us this update. expect, because the democrats are in control of the house of representatives, this resolution has passed with a comfortable majority, i see thatjust three republicans sided with the democrats and this is a resolution that essentially curbs the president's powers to go to war, to launch military action. it

doesn't take absolute power away from the president as indeed mr trump himself noted earlier today, but sometimes in a wartime situation, split—second decisions have to be made and the president is still at liberty to make those decisions. also making news today: riot police in france have fired tear gas at demonstrators in paris who were pelting them with objects. it's the latest day of nationwide strikes and protests against the french government's plans to overhaul the pension system. the unions are angry at proposals to standardise the system, and raise the average age at which people receive a full state pension by two years, to 64. the army in niger says a suspected jihadist attack on a military camp in the west of the country, near the border with mali, has killed at least 25 soldiers. the statement said over 60 militants have also died. it's not yet clear who carried out the attack which comes amid a worsening islamist insurgency in the sahel region.

there's been plenty of interest in this story, officials for this year's tokyo 0lympic and paralympic games have revealed the beds that the athletes will be sleeping on. why are they special? the frames are made entirely from cardboard, which, along with the mattresses, will be recycled after the tournaments are finished. and if you're wondering how sturdy they are, the manufacturer says the beds can bear a weight of around 200 kilograms. more now on our top story, and us officials and the canadian prime minister have said evidence suggests an iranian missile brought down a ukrainian passenger plane which crashed near tehran, possibly by mistake. iran has ruled that out, and says it's scientifically impossible. well i've been speaking to combat airpower and technology expert justin bronk, and asked him whether he agreed with iran's assessment.

it is certainly not scientifically impossible. what it ought to be as procedurally impossible. the airliner which was hit was fully in contact with tehran air—traffic control, it was broadcasting a transponder identification that made clear to anyone with a radar screen what its identity was, where it was, what its identity was, where it was, what altitude, and it was using a well used flight path according to a prefiled flight plan. if any air defenders were following proper procedure, cross—referencing radar picture with civilian air traffic control and just thinking logically about the fact that there is an international airport regularly in use on that flight path, this should have been impossible. but the united states, canada, and the uk would not make this sort of cast—iron declaration without witty strong

evidence and that will probably be in the form of overhead infrared of the launch signatures of those surface to air missiles as well as the impact and also probably detection from outside the airspace, remote detection of the radar... so, justin, if you say this is not procedurally impossible, how did the iranians make such a major mistake, and could they have stopped it once they fired at? i would suspect that something that requires this many errors in order to happen, compared to what should have been done, is only really explainable if you assume that the crew is relatively poorly trained in this system, that they were probably exhausted for having been on high alert for days due to this confrontation and since the assassination of qasem soleimani, and they were probably operating with limited communications to try to avoid detection, because if there had been

aus detection, because if there had been a us strike, one of the first things that tend to happen is surface to air missiles get hit, so it is less likely than larger systems to have been taking data from outside. it's been confirmed to the bbc that meghan, the duchess of sussex has left the uk for canada. the news came as the queen summoned an urgent family conference to find a way to accommodate prince harry and meghan‘s wish to go it alone. the queen, prince charles and prince william have instructed their staff to find a solution within days after the couple's surprise announcement left the royal family scrambling to cope with the implications of their unprecedented move. gareth barlow reports. just a few days ago, harry and meghan together in london. now, the duchess of sussex has flown back to canada, where the couple spent six weeks over christmas. her husband remaining at home, as the royal

family plans for their future. the queen, alongside the prince of and the duke of cambridge have instructed senior staff to work with the sussex household and the government to find a solution to harry and meghan‘s wishes. government to find a solution to harry and meghan's wishes. i'm not really one for them trying to follow the rules over there right now because if they want to shy away from them and do what they want to do, let them live, let them be themselves. i don't know how they will pull it off but i'm sure they will. the royal family is far from ordinary but the household strives to be organised and orderly. the senseis to be organised and orderly. the sense is that the sussex's announcement lacks the letter. meghan's departure from the uk sends a clear message, they are determined to follow their own path. it's a shame that she couldn't remain and kind of be the face for the people. 0bviously kind of be the face for the people. obviously has got to do his duty with the queen, so i don't know. direction, that. from finances to

titles, their home to their personal security, there is a long and complex list for the royal family to work through. prince harry will remain as sixth in line to the throne and the couple will keep their house in the grounds of windsor castle. in many respects, thatis windsor castle. in many respects, that is the easy decisions made. next, it's all about money. a difficult topic for any family, let alone the royal family gareth barlow, bbc news. you're watching newsday on the bbc. still to come on the programme: we'll be live in the australian state of new south wales where increasing temperatures and high winds threaten the spread of renewed bushfires. the japanese people are in mourning following the death of emperor hirohito. thousands converged on the imperial palace

to pay their respects when it was announced he was dead. good grief! after half a century of delighting fans around the world, charlie brown and the rest of the gang are calling it quits. the singer paul simon starts his tour of south africa tomorrow in spite of protests and violence from some black activist groups. they say international artists should continue to boycott south africa until majority rule is established. teams were trying to scoop up lumps of oil as france recognises it faces an ecological crisis. three weeks ago, the authorities confidently assured these areas that oil from the broken tanker erika would head out to sea. it didn't. the world's tallest skyscraper opens later today. the burj dubai has easily overtaken its nearest rivals. this is newsday on the bbc.

i'm rico hizon in singapore. i'm lewis vaughanjones in london. our top stories: canada's prime minister says there's evidence that an iranian missile brought down a ukrainian passenger plane that crashed near tehran. and a day after the duke and duchess of sussex announce they're stepping back from royal duties, meghan leaves the uk for canada. let's take a look at some front pages from around the world. the arab news is one of many newspapers looking at the ongoing tensions between the us and iran. the pope has added his voice to the calls for self—restraint but the paper suggests that tehran is still sending mixed messages over whether it will seek further retribution for the death of general qasem soleimani. next to the south china morning post and the efforts to stop the spread of a viral pneumonia

outbreak in central china. japan and malaysia are among the countries stockpiling medical gear to protect citizens against the illness, which chinese scientists have identified as a new strain of coronavirus. and on the front page of the gulf news, the united arab emirates isjoining the growing list of countries seeking to provide aid to australia as the fire crisis continues. a senior minister has held talks with australia's home minister to determine what kind of help is needed and several uae companies are throwing their support behind the cause. hotter weather and high winds on friday and saturday are threatening renewed and spreading bushfires in australia. the state of victoria has declared a state of disaster as temperatures there are set to spike. more than 100 bushfires are still burning along the new south wales—victoria state border. lucy hockings is in the state

of new south wales for us. hi, of new south wales for us. lucy. fire hi, lucy. fire crews have been readying themselves all week for today because hot and windy conditions are set to return to new south wales. there are 100 fires are still burning in the state. they are worried about the alpine areas and those near the state of the tory aware the state of emergency has been extended. south australia and kangaroo island are closely watching, where there is also a of emergency. i'm in a very beautiful pa rt emergency. i'm in a very beautiful part of new south wales, the kangaroo valley, and if i can show you some pictures of me arriving to where i am now, the kangaroo valley bush retreat. the currowan fire ripped through this property over the weekend and in 45 minutes, at the weekend and in 45 minutes, at the damage it did. the charred remains of buildings, trees, everything that you can see, and the

trees are still smouldering. there are still embers in some of the trees and it is quite staggering. i am at trees and it is quite staggering. i amata trees and it is quite staggering. i am at a wedding venue. 900 couples have got married here. every weekend this year had been booked out for people coming here to experience the natural beauty and to get married and when they would arrive, they would come here to the main reception area and you can see here as well, some of the facilities, and in the bush there would be places for people to go camping and clamping and there are cabins as well, but now it is a singed remain. kurt, you came back here for the first time this morning. how was it? it was the first time, we couldn't bear to come back a few days ago but it is devastating. what was a greenbelt and a thriving wedding venue greenbelt and a thriving wedding venue with a lot of happy people, it is pretty awful to be honest.

gutwrenching, louise, and notjust for you, but for all the people that this has been such a special place for. as you mentioned, 900 happy couples. it was obviously beautiful surroundings and an amazing venue, lots of happy memories have been created here. what sort of reactions have you had? absolutely devastating. it feels so bleak. heartbreaking. have people been reaching out to you? absolutely, through our facebook page and social media, we've had an incredible and overwhelming response. past brides and couples have been sending their thoughts and messages and, i guess, it's a testament and affirmation that we definitely have to come back and rebuild. amazing you can talk about that so soon but kurt, are you feeling you can rebuild? absolutely. we have an incredible local economy and the village of kangaroo valley is so supportive, including our neighbours. we have the... we have

decided we will rebuild after the outpouring of the brides. the local government has been amazing, shoalhaven council reached out and called me, which was very nice. shoalhaven council reached out and called me, which was very nicem that the support you need and are looking for? we need government support and local community support with the businesses, they will help us with the businesses, they will help us with planning and getting through things quicker and get our feet on the ground. we have a huge number of people who benefit out of this, employment, and employment for tourism. with the weddings, we have a couple of hundred people involved who right now can't come to the venue so we who right now can't come to the venue so we want to be open as soon as possible. louisa, have you been impressed by the resilience of of your neighbours and the australians that have gone through the trauma like you? absolutely. it is the australian spirit. the amount of support we've had has been incredible. it'sjust of support we've had has been incredible. it's just amazing. incredible. it'sjust amazing. it's been amazing. overwhelming. iwant

to say to everybody, australia isn't burning, it is little pockets. we all need the support of tourism, as with any natural disaster, and hopefully we can get people coming to kangaroo valley and the south coast. is that the impression that people have, the whole country is on fire? it is a lot of national parks burning and it has come close to residences and there has been loss of life and tragically loss of buildings but tourism will pick up again. i hope everyone can come to kangaroo valley and the south coast. it is heartbreaking to your property now, i hear the generator but the sound of silence when i arrived, it's not just sound of silence when i arrived, it's notjust the buildings and the forests by the animals that lived here. that's right. it is the loss of everything really. the animals. 0ur resident animals, animals in the area. it will take a little while to

recover, but i think it is definitely recoverable. what do you make of the government response, kurt? they have been pretty good. possibly slow at the start but they have come in big—time with their support and i think scott morrison has really gone ahead and said he's going to throw everything at it and i hope he does and he well, because australian resilience and australian people are needed, everyone is going tojump in, including the army and volunteers. i want to thank the rfs volunteers. i want to thank the rfs volunteer firefighters. it is amazing how many there are working weeks and weeks on end. thank you for sharing your story and your property. i know it will regenerate and rebuild and thank you for showing us. this is one of many stories you hear in parts of fire—ravaged new south wales. 2000 homes around australia have been lost to fire, but the spirit of optimism and resilience about what's to come next is incredibly strong in

these communities. today, with the temperatures and wind, firefighters are at the ready across new south wales and we will monitor that for you from here in new south wales. thank you so much for that report from new south wales, the bbc‘s lucy hockings. fugitive businessman carlos ghosn has been banned from leaving lebanon after he fled there from japan last month to avoid trial for financial misconduct. the former nissan boss, who dramatically skipped bail, said he was prepared to face justice in lebanon if neccessary but that he would not return to japan. he has been talking to world affairs editorjohn simpson. hello. very nice to see you. thank you. even though the lebanese courts have said he can't leave the country, carlos ghosn has lost none of his bounce. i'm free to receive my family, i'm free to see my wife, to live with my wife. these are all things which were forbidden when i was injapan. he's consistently refused to talk about his escape

from japan by private jet, hiding in a box for musical equipment. even so, i gave it my best shot. it must have been a pretty unpleasant experience, mustn't it? i don't know, you should ask somebody else. have you ever been in a box? well, you have, tell me about it. that's what you think. come on, come on! if you had been caught, head down in the box... not much air... this is your interpretation but i'm saying i was willing to take the risk. but he's still predictably bitter about nissan, the company he rescued and which he says conspired to have him arrested. i asked him about nissan's british operation in sunderland. it's suggested that there was a sweetener offered to nissan by the british government in order to persuade you to stay there and not move out, because of brexit.

is that true? i don't think there was a specific amount of money which was on the table. but the british government said to you, we'll make it ok for you to stay? sure. so, that's a sweetener, isn't it? yeah, but this is a promise. how precarious is the future of the sunderland plant as britain gets closer to brexit? so, if nissan loses competitiveness in europe, well, then the future of sunderland is bleak. he doesn't yet know what he'll do, but whatever it is, he won't be able to leave lebanon. are you a happy man now? not sure i'm a happy man, but i'm a happier man than what i was one year ago. john simpson, bbc news, beirut. you have been watching newsday. i'm lewis vaughanjones in london. and i'm rico hizon in singapore. stay with us. we will have more on taiwan's election this weekend and the impact it might have on its trading ties with china

and the us. i know will like these pictures, because they are pretty cute. these cute baby bats that you see have lost their mums in the australian bushfires. now they're recovering in these handcrafted wraps and pouches made by volunteers thousands of kilometres away. the fires have caused a lot of destruction, and many animals have been orphaned and injured. but these little pouches give the baby bats and joeys a similar environment to their mums and hopefully they will recover quickly. please take care of those very cute bats. exactly! that's all for now, stay

with bbc world news. hello there. it looks dry with sunshine across much of the country on friday. we have seen some heavier rainfall central eastern england earlier on, that's continuing to push away together with that weather front. before this one arrives from the atlantic, that red rock point means skies are clearing. a chilly start to friday, noticeably colder than we've seen for a while across much robin lunn and wales with a frost more likely further north. sun trying to start the day, one or two early showers in western parts of wales, into western scotland, maybe east anglia but those won't last long and we'll see plenty of sunshine. cloud in over more in the north—west as the winds pick up through the day, that rain holding off until hopefully after dark.

6-9d, off until hopefully after dark. 6—9d, cooler than of late in southern england and wales, but pleasant in the sunshine. into the night, that weather front makes further inroads into scotland and northern ireland, bringing outbreaks of rain. at the same time, the winds will pick up in many areas and we will pick up in many areas and we will draw our will pick up in many areas and we willdraw ourair will pick up in many areas and we will draw our airfrom the will pick up in many areas and we will draw our air from the azores again, so turning milderfor the start of the weekend. windy, strong to maybe gale force winds. still rain in scotland, northern ireland, maybe cumbria. wettest over the hills, drier high ground. strong and gusty winds quite widely, perhaps easing off in the north—west later on as the rain starts to clear and tempt drop away. ahead of that, we are looking at 11—13. very mild once again. that weather front will eventually take that rain across the whole of the country on saturday night and then we will introduce this showery air stream coming in from the atlantic, and that will bring with it cooler air. not too

cold to start the second half of the weekend because there will be a fair bit of around. we've still got temperatures in double figures across the southeast, colder air in scotla nd across the southeast, colder air in scotland certainly. still rain to clear from south—eastern england first thing on sunday and then a fair bit of and showers coming in, even pushing eastwards across england and wales. that's the morning, in the afternoon most of those have gone with the shower is restricted to the north—west of scotla nd restricted to the north—west of scotland where it is quite a bit colder with temperatures 5— six again and potentially double figures in the south—east in the sunshine. into next week, we still have a strong jetstream pushing right away across the atlantic, picking up these areas of low pressure. you can see a lot of isobars on the chart as well. windy into next week, which means it's likely to be mild, although there will be rain at times.

are throwing their support behind the cause.

this is bbc world news. our top story: canada's prime minister, justin trudeau, has said that there's evidence from multiple sources that the ukrainian airliner which crashed near tehran on wednesday was shot down by an iranian missile. earlier iran dismissed claims of a missile as scientifically impossible. all 176 people on board were killed. australia is bracing itself for another day of bushfires with high temperatures and strong winds predicted. prime minister scott morrison warned friday would be a difficult day in the eastern states. and this story is trending on bbc.com. officials for this year's tokyo 0lympic and paralympic games have revealed the beds that the athletes will be sleeping on. the frames are made entirely from cardboard, which, along with the mattresses, will be recycled after the tournaments are finished. that's all. stay with bbc world news.