the death toll in china from the coronavirus rises to 26, with 800 people infected. people in ten chinese cities are being stopped from travelling, but the virus has spread to other countries like japan and the united states. in london the cobra commuting is meeting this lunchtime. we'll have the latest from downing street and from our correspondent in beijing. also this lunchtime... a coroner says the death of this baby at a maternity unit in kent was "wholly avoidable". a denial ofjustice — britain condemns the united states for refusing to extradite the woman accused of killing teenager harry dunn. prince charles makes history

with a visit to the occupied palestinian territories. and every little helps — tesco scraps the plastic packaging on its multipacks of tins. and coming up on bbc news, 15—year—old coco gauff knocks out the defending champion at the australian open, beating naomi osaka. serena williams is also out. good afternoon and welcome to the bbc news at one. the government's cobra emergency committee is meeting this lunchtime, to discuss the outbreak of the coronavirus. 14 people have been tested for the disease in the uk, though there are no confirmed cases here at the moment.

the virus originates in china, china, where 26 people have died so far, and hundreds more have been infected. people are being stopped from leaving the city of wuhan, the centre of the outbreak, and there are also severe travel restrictions in several other cities. but cases of the virus have been reported in neighbouring countries such as japan, thailand, south korea and singapore. our china correspondent, stephen mcdonell, is in beijing. well ben, the chinese government is throwing massive resources in dividing this virus. it seemed it has learned the lessons of 2000 when a cover—up of the sars outbreak led to more than 600 deaths. this time the information is flowing much more freely as it takes ever more drastic steps. you can't move around china at the moment without being aware of this crisis.

health screening is in place at transport hubs across the country. public celebrations marking the lunar new year are being cancelled, and the inconvenience is considerable. but most people are welcoming decisive action from the government. translation: china is a very strong country. it can definitely control this virus. also, a vaccine will be developed. we are very confident. translation: i think this thing will almost certainly go away in the near future, like sars in 2003. now the government'sjob is to prevent its spread. i think in a while this virus will perhaps disappear by itself. in wuhan, where the coronavirus outbreak started, hospitals are stretched to the limit. the stress on the system is starting to take its toll. translation: i had a fever and a cough, so i am worried i am infected. i don't know the results yet but i am concerned. i'm a bit nervous i have the virus. translation: wuhan is a very large city with a very large population.

the medical capacity of wuhan alone cannot withstand the outbreak of the virus. it needs the support of the whole country. the chinese government has released footage of a new quarantine facility under construction at a frantic pace. they say it will be used to cope with an ever—growing number of patients infected with the coronavirus. china's new year's eve is much more quiet this year than it normally would be. in most cities there are very few people on the streets. it seems a lot of people don't want to leave their homes for fear of catching the coronavirus. instead of a mood of celebration it's one of trepidation, with many wondering just how bad this problem is going to become. the potentially deadly coronavirus is thought to have spread from animals into humans at a live produce market in wuhan. officials have all but locked down

the city of 11 million people to try to slow the speed of the sickness spreading. translation: if your work as one we can contain the virus in wuhan and export no more cases from here. we can stop the virus from spreading nationwide. for many this chinese new year is pretty bleak, but if they can get through it without them or their loved ones falling ill, they will be pretty happy. i think that the chinese officials are very aware they owe it to the rest of the world to keep this situation under control. medical teams have mapped the sequence of the virus, send that information to teams in other countries so they can effectively test if people there have the virus. the world health organization has said it fully understands why china is effectively locking down these cities as it tries to stop this problem from becoming much worse than it already

is. stephen, thank you. stephen mcdonell in beijing. the government's cobra committee is meeting in the cabinet office to discuss the threat to the uk from coronavirus. our political correspondent, jessica parker, is in downing street. yes, and the prime minister appeared on the steps of number or a short while ago because he is hosting a reception to celebrate chinese new year. a short time ago the chinese ambassador to the uk arrived at downing street for that reception and said the chinese government is doing everything it can to curb this crisis. the cobra meeting, an emergency meeting, started at midday. that is being chaired by the health secretary, matt hancock. cobra meetings are when key ministers and officials come together to coordinate the uk response to a crisis. among those attending are people from the foreign office, the department for transport, of course, there

passengers travelling from china back to the uk are being offered advice as they land. and the department for education attending as well. one of the reasons we understand that that is because many chinese students may have travelled home to china to celebrate chinese new year. the department for education working with english, scottish, northern irish and welsh universities to ensure they are prepared for the return of those chinese students as well. downing street are keen to stress there are no confirmed cases of the virus in the united kingdom but i think the fa ct the united kingdom but i think the fact there is a cobra meeting this afternoon perhaps a sign of some heightened concern. jess, thank you. jessica parker, our political correspondent. public health england has told gps to isolate anyone they suspect of having the disease and to avoid physically examining them. our medical correspondent fergus walsh is here. what advice is being given? for the people who have returned from wuhan over the past couple of weeks, and there have been three

flights a week coming back to the uk, if anybody falls ill in the next 14 days, because that seems to be the maximum incubation period, they should call nhs iii, the maximum incubation period, they should call nhs 111, not the maximum incubation period, they should call nhs iii, notjust turn up should call nhs iii, notjust turn up at theirgp should call nhs iii, notjust turn up at their gp surgery. if they develop flu—like symptoms. i think there is a danger of overplaying the risk here in the uk. what is happening in china and especially in hebei province is very worrying. that is where all the deaths have been. there have been a handful of cases outside china. this does not seem to be as serious. there is a lot we don't know about it, which is why we should be concerned. it does not seem to be as serious as sars. we had four cases in the uk 16 years ago, none of whom died. i think we need to keep this in context. globally, this is a real concern. locally, we really don't need to worry that much about this virus. it's a very low risk. fergus, thank

you. fergus walsh, a medical correspondent. a coroner has found that the death of a baby at a hospital in kent was wholly avoidable. harry richford died a week after he was born at the queen elizabeth the queen mother hospital in margate. the coroner said neglect contributed to his death. significant concerns have been raised about maternity care at the east kent hospitals nhs trust, after a bbc investigation revealed seven preventable baby deaths had occurred since 2016. michael buchanan reports. tom and sarah didn't get to hold their first tom and sarah didn't get to hold theirfirst child tom and sarah didn't get to hold their first child until the day he died. just a week old, harry was filed repeatedly by the medics responsible for ensuring his safe entry into the world. -- failed. it has tested us, it has detested family relationships, it has tested our ability to work, to live a normal life, and it shouldn't have

happened in the first place. today a coroner agreed, finding and liked by east kent is contributed to the newborn's death. they were a series of failings in hurry‘s care, according to the coroner. a junior doctor described as being out of his depth, delayed delivering the baby, who was born pale and fluffy. he would have survived and have been healthy if a paediatrician had not failed for 28 minutes to properly resuscitate harry. it is a nice vindication in some respects that we didn't do anything wrong. there is nothing more we could have done. i feel like it is very easy and early on it was very easy to blame myself a little bit. what would i have done? but now we don't blame ourselves necessarily. we blame the systems in place at the trust. harry richford's case is one of seven preve nta ble richford's case is one of seven preventable deaths at east kent is trust since 2016. this morning they said they were deeply sorry and

wholeheartedly apologised for the failings in harry's care. but for the young couple those catastrophic errors will lingerfor a the young couple those catastrophic errors will linger for a lifetime. harry was perfect when we saw him. and to have to withdraw the care from your baby and to live with that afterwards, it's a whirlwind of negative emotions to try to cope in everyday life. the family's determination to uncover the truth in the face of resistance from the trust has ensured justice for harry. michael buchanan, bbc news, kent. the foreign secretary has accused the us government of a "denial ofjustice", after it refused an extradition request for the woman accused of killing teenage motorcyclist harry dunn. the 19—year—old died after a collision in northamptonshire in august with a car driven by anne sacoolas, the wife of a us intelligence officer. after the accident she left britain for the united states, claiming diplomatic immunity.

duncan kennedy reports. harry dunn was a teenager with the ability to enjoy life and spread fun. but last august he was killed here in northamptonshire after his motorbike collided with a car. anne sacoolas, here on her wedding day, has since been charged with causing death by dangerous driving. she has left the uk, two weeks after the accident, claiming diplomatic immunity and was staying at this house near washington, dc. immunity and was staying at this house nearwashington, dc. she immunity and was staying at this house near washington, dc. she has refused to return to britain. now harry's family have heard of the american government has formally turned down a request to extradite mrs sacoolas. this morning harry's mum gave her reaction. we are quite happy to continue our fight. nothing is going to stop us, nothing is going to make us go away and it doesn't matter how long it takes. if it means we have got to wait until the next administration, in four to

five years time, we will. it was mike pompeo, the american secretary of state, who e—mailed the british government with the news that the extradition was being blocked. in its legally dense message, the state department said... but that prompted this reply from the foreign secretary, dominic raab, who said... it's now nearly five months since harry died here and his parents had been expecting it would be for the american courts to decide whether to extradite anne sacoolas. now that the american government has stepped m, the american government has stepped in, they do see that as a setback but say their fight will go on.

harry dunn's family have already started a series of protests outside raf croughton. the american base anne sacoolas left moments before the accident. the prime minister's official spokesman said today the government would carefully consider what future action can be taken, and is urgently considering options. duncan kennedy, bbc news, northamptonshire. the government's spending watchdog says the risk and complexity of building the hs2 rail line were underestimated from the start. the national audit office says it can't estimate the overall cost of the project, but a leaked review this weak said it could be over £100 billion — tens of billions more than original estimate. ministers will make their final decision on the project in the coming weeks and say they are already acting on many of the report's recommendations. our transport correspondent, tom burridge, reports. today, a critical report on hs2, as work to build a new high—speed line goes on in birmingham.

clearance for a new station here has revealed the remains of the old one. archaeologists now need to look at the foundations of the old station and work out if any of it needs to be preserved, before this entire site can be cleared to make way for the new station. it's another indication of the complexities of this entire project which, according to today's report, hs2 and the government underestimated, and that's one of the reasons why the budget has ballooned. this, the vision for that site, once the station is built. the national audit office says risks and uncertainty weren't properly managed, but says the budget for phase one of hs2 is now robust. they've done an awful lot of work to understand the cost and they now have a better estimate of how much it will cost, and how long it will take to build the railway between london and birmingham. that said, the programme

as a whole is at a very early stage and risks remain. the first stretch of the railway links london and birmingham. the second phase — linking birmingham to manchester and leeds — is at a much earlier phase. costings on that are so uncertain that the overall budget of hs2 is hard to predict. some conservatives have urged the prime minister to rethink, but other seniorfigures in the party say hs2 has to go ahead. this part of the country, the north, turned decisively to the conservative party. the prime minister's talked about levelling up. this is literally the investment that will level up the economy. lots of what you see on the skyline here didn't exist four years ago. hsz has already driven the economy of the west midlands, and that's why i say it would be unthinkable that my party would turn its back on this investment. today's report warns that if the construction work on the railway doesn't begin

here by march, there'll be further delays. tom burridge, bbc news, in birmingham. the time isjust 13:17. our top story this lunchtime: the death toll in china from the coronavirus rises to 26 — with hundreds more people infected. people in ten chinese cities are now being stopped from travelling, but the virus has spread to other countries like japan and the united states. and the teenage tennis sensation coco gauff knocks out the defending champion in the australian open. coming up on bbc news: after a rain delay this morning, england have the 11th test under way in johannesburg against south africa, as they try and secure a first test series win in over a year. the prince of wales has begun his historic first visit to the occupied palestinian territories

with a symbolic gesture of unity — walking through bethlehem with muslim and christian leaders. speaking at a reception in the city, he said he had been heartbroken to see continuing suffering and division in the region. our royal correspondent, jonny dymond, sent this report. a palestinian welcome for the prince. this is his first time setting foot in the occupied palestinian territories. he did not travel far, but it is a different world from israel, where he spent yesterday. a diplomatically delicate day started at the only mosque in the old city. charles, he wrote, once in english, then again, in arabic. a short and somewhat chaotic walk through the old city. after the mosque will come the church of the nativity and it is the proximity of

the two that brings charles here. pa rt the two that brings charles here. part of his decades long effort to bring faiths together. inside, one of christianity‘s holiest places. a chance to see the spot where christians believe jesus chance to see the spot where christians believejesus was born. and to hear first—hand christians believejesus was born. and to hearfirst—hand of christians believejesus was born. and to hear first—hand of the struggle of christians in the middle east. we are doing our best to survive. to fight against every difficulty and situation. it is a struggle, prince charles has spoken of it many times. more meetings, more greetings and a time to express his concern for the challenges palestinians face. no one arriving in bethlehem today could miss the signs of continued hardship and the

situation you face. and i can only join you, or communities, in your prayers for a just and lasting peace. a short trip, but an opportunity to see for himself the lives of palestinians and the religious mosaic of this part of the middle east. jonny dymond, bbc news, bethlehem. our correspondent barbara plett usher has been following the visit from bethlehem. how symbolically important do you think this visit has been, barbara? i think it has been symbolically important for the palestinians here in the palestinian territories in bethlehem. the prince, prince charles did meet the president mahmoud abbas. it wasn't a political visit, it was more like a courtesy call, although he did spend 45 minutes with him. but the palestinians at this point feel very much on the back foot because the

american administration has aligned itself so closely with israel on key aspects of the conflict and they saw it as aspects of the conflict and they saw itasa aspects of the conflict and they saw it as a show of support for the palestinian leadership and the palestinian leadership and the palestinian cause. 0k, barbara, thank you very much indeed. barbara plett usher for us there in bethlehem. the heads of the european commission and council — ursula von der leyen and charles michel — have signed the withdrawal agreement, ahead of the uk's exit from the eu next friday. the queen signed it into law yesterday, after it passed both houses of parliament. and next wednesday, the european parliament is expected to back the agreement. huge numbers of people have been marching in the streets of baghdad, as they demanded that all us troops be expelled from iraq. tensions have been heightened by the american military‘s recent assassination of the iranian general qasem soleimani in baghdad. our middle east correspondent, martin patience, is there. he sent is the latest update. well, this was a dramatic show

of force here in the iraqi capital, baghdad, and it was a stark warning to america that it can no longer take anything for granted in the country. the us assassination of iran's top military commander, qasem soleimani, at baghdad airport, changed the dynamics here — dangerously so — and iraq now finds itself the battleground between america and iran. and as we heard on the streets today, with the supporters of muqtada al—sadr, they simply don't want that. they want american forces to immediately leave the country. the protest was peaceful, but what you have to remember is that fighters loyal to muqtada al—sadr have fought american forces in the past. so whilst there was a carnival—like atmosphere, this remains not only a dangerous moment for iraq, but for the region as well. martin patience reporting.

the un is appealing for international help after east african countries experienced the biggest locust invasion in decades. huge swarms have invaded about a dozen countries on both sides of the red sea — between africa and the arabian peninsula — threatening food security in the entire region. our senior africa correspondent, anne soy, reports. from a distance, it looks like northern kenya is burning, but these are swarms of desert locusts, spreading like wildfire across the horn of africa. just one swarm can have more than 200 million insects. these are tiny creatures flying above me. they look harmless, but if you consider that hundreds of millions of them are flying at the same time, the amount of destruction they can cause is unimaginable. this man tells me this is the second invasion of locusts he's witnessed in about 60 years.

this time, he's lost nearly all his maize and bean crops. translation: it's painful. we had no rain for several years. when it did finally rain last year, we were so happy, but then these insects have come and destroyed our crop. we have incurred huge losses. he says he brought dozens of people here to help ward off the invasion. elsewhere, gunshots, tear gas and whistles. people, and governments, across the region are desperate to save plants from being devoured. which way are they moving? they are moving this way. conservation groups are helping track the movement of the swarms.

the kenyan and ethiopian governments are using aerial spraying to try and kill the insects, but with little success. a region devastated by years of drought seemed to have recovered when it received unusually heavy rains, but that has now brought this misery, leaving communities on the edge. anne soy, bbc news, moyale. tesco has become the first major retailer to pledge to remove plastic wrapping from multipacks of tins. britain's biggest supermarket is working with the likes of heinz and green giant to replace plastic—wrapped multipacks with multibuy deals. environmental groups have welcomed the move, which it's thought could cut plastic waste by around 350 tonnes a year, but they've also called for the industry to go further. emma simpson reports. multipacks. we love ‘em. buy more, save more — from baked beans and tinned tomatoes

to pasta, tuna and soups, they're a big seller. we buy more than 200 million multipacks a year at our main supermarkets alone. tesco's now getting rid of this wrapping from every single tin, saving 350 tonnes of plastic waste a year. it's what we think is the right thing to do. it's also because it's what it is our customers would want us to do, on their behalf. they challenge us to say, is plastic completely necessary? in some cases, it is, and where it's necessary, we need to reduce it to an absolute minimum and then recover it and recycle it. but where it's not necessary, or it can't be recycled, we need to take it out of our business completely. and that means getting big suppliers on board. this is europe's largest food factory — heinz, in wigan — where they churn out a billion tins a year. and 40% are multipacks. this plastic film is nonrecyclable. heinz is ditching it for tesco, but would like to go further. we're making the first move, but it's also the largest move. so, this represents about a third of our total shrink

wrap in the industry. and of course, what we expect is that consumers will learn how to shop in a slightly different way and then, hopefully, we can learn how to eliminate shrink wrap from other retailers as well, going forwards. getting rid of all this plastic wrapping seems such an obvious thing to do. of course, it's just a tiny fraction of the plastic that still ends up in our shopping trolleys, but the pressure's now on to remove it. especially from young people. dear tesco, we are writing to you because we have a great concern about plastic pollution. these plastic wrappings are often unnecessary. these primary school children in kent have just recorded an open letter to all the supermarkets to do more. we look forward to your reply. they've got a mountain to climb. but there is lots going on — from waitrose trialling bring—your—own containers, to plastic—free fruit and veg at morrisons, and reusable produce bags at sainsbury‘s. consumers notice.

i really do get upset about the amount of plastic i take home when i've been out shopping. when it's as bad as that, that is just ridiculous. not for much longer. tesco says the price at the till won't change. the real deal will be doing away with pointless packaging. emma simpson, bbc news. teenage tennis star coco gauff has stunned the defending champion naomi osaka to reach the fourth round of the australian open. the 15—year—old american won in straight sets on a day of upsets in melbourne, as serena williams was also beaten. andy swiss reports. homework — instead, she was making history. just another remarkable day in coco gauff‘s remarkable rise. the 15 year old was up against

the defending champion, naomi osaka. a gulf in experience, but it was soon osaka who was struggling. roared on by herfamily, gauff seized the first set. would the pressure get to her? well, not a bit of it. whatever osaka threw at her, gauff got it back. the champion had no answer to gauff‘s guile and grit. and in barely an hour, it was all over. after reaching the last 16 at wimbledon, she'd done it again, the biggest win of her life. "this is crazy," she said later, but on this showing, it just might get even crazier. gauff wasn't even born when serena williams won her first australian title. she's now searching for a record—equalling 24th grand slam crown, but she won't find it here. china's wang qiang beat her in straight sets. williams later described her error—strewn performance as "unprofessional". "i can't play like that again," she added. but one defeat today

was particularly poignant. former world number one caroline wozniacki losing to onsjabeur in herfinal match before retiring. she ended it being embraced on court by her father. "if you have a dream and work hard," she later said, "anything is possible." andy swiss, bbc news. in cricket, england have made a good start to the 11th test against south africa in johannesburg. start to the 11th test against south africa injohannesburg. after a delay for rain, joe root won the toss and batted. a short time ago, they were 88 without loss, england leading the series 2—1. time for a look at the weather. here's lucy martin. good afternoon, the weather has been stuck in somewhat of a rut for the last few days. for the lucky few, it has meant blue skies. this picture sentin has meant blue skies. this picture sent in by a weather watcher in north yorkshire. for the majority, it has been cloudy and grey and murky. this photo sent in from the isle of wight. today and start the

weekend, high—pressure hot sun, and that means