welcome to bbc news, i'm mike embley. our top stories: tens of thousands of germans attend vigils for the nine people murdered by a far—right extremist. donald trump's former adviser gets a three—year sentence for lying to congress, but the president is already talking about a pardon. an exclusive report, how a prisoner and her guard fled north korea. they tell us about their remarkable escape. and we speak to the actor daniel radcliffe about his new film, based on a true story of political prisoners in apartheid south africa. it is so genius and so brilliant, i was like, how has the story not already been told? how do normal people not know about this?

tens of thousands of germans have attended vigils for the nine people murdered by a far—right extremist on wednesday. authorities are treating the shootings in the western town of hanau as a terror attack. many of those who died were members of the city's turkish community, who were at two local smoking cafes. one was romanian. it's believed the gunman then killed his mother, before taking his own life. our europe correspondent gavin lee is in hanau. the aftermath of what now looks to have been a premeditated racist attack in the quiet german town of hanau, the suspected gunman‘s target, to shisha bars, cafes for smoking scented tobacco and popular with germany's turkish and kurdish community. it was around ten o'clock it was around ten o'clock when it was around ten o'clock when police say the attacker started shooting from outside at those

inside the midnight bar. by car, drove over a inside the midnight bar. by car, drove overa mile inside the midnight bar. by car, drove over a mile and shot inside those at the arena bar. nine people were killed, five victims were of turkish region. eyewitnesses have described the panic during the attacks i shocked, and everybody run, who are on the right, who are on the left. i see much panic. panic, panic. police say the government, named as 43—year—old german national tobias r returned to his home, killed his mother and himself. forensic teams have been searching his property and car. investigators are also scrutinising his website which contained a written manifesto reporting to espouse deeply xenophobic views and painting a picture of a man with deep mental health issues. talking of the state trying to get into his brain. there are big questions now how german authorities can stop right—wing extremism and the rise in the number of attacks. in the past year there has been an assassination of a german politician and an attack

on a synagogue in the east of the country and three days ago german police say they dismantled an extremist right—wing cell, and now this incident. angela merkel, at a summit in brussels today, poke about the poison of hatred and racism infecting german society. the local mp told me of existing tensions in the town and said extremism was an issue which she claimed could be linked to the growth in populism. you really have to put signs, stop signs there and really set red lines. and be far more strict on hate speech. this evening, some of the ethnic minority families living here have told me they are too afraid to go out tonight, worried that a threat may still exist but many people of hanau are gathering, laying flowers and tributes to those who have lost their lives. gavin lee, bbc news, hanau. president trump's friend and ally, roger stone,

has been sentenced to more than three years in prison, for impeding a congressional investigation into links between the trump campaign and russia. stone's case has played out amid upheaval at the justice department, after prosecutors recommended he spend nine years in prison, only for the attorney general to disagree. handing down the sentence, judge amy berman jackson was scathing about mr stone's conduct. "the truth still matters," she said. "roger stone's insistence that it doesn't, his belligerence, his pride in his own lies, are a threat to our most fundamental institutions, to the very foundation of our democracy." but the president spoke out in defense of his friend. he has become a big part of the news over the last little while, and i am following this very closely, and i want to see it play out to its fullest because roger has a very good chance of exoneration, in my opinion. for another perspective on roger stone, here's christine spadafor, a lawyer and management

consultant from washington. roger stone has been an adviser to president trump for decades. he is a self—proclaimed dirty trickster, and he has been an operative for a number of republican politicians over the years, including richard nixon, and he proudly displays a tattoo of richard nixon's face on his back. and what do you make of this sentence, the shenanigans leading up to the sentence and the chance of even this sentence staying in place? a jury found mr stone guilty of seven counts, interrupting a congressional investigation, witness tampering, and five counts of lying. he was found guilty on all seven. the prosecutor recommended 7—9 years, and then judge amy jackson berman believed that the recommended sentence was a little harsh.

she suggested a0 months, and she said he deserves jail time because the crimes he committed were so deliberate and expansive. it's a powerful and unusual statement. and his behaviour towards her has been pretty unusual. the social media attacks, his publication of a gun's crosshairs close to her head in one post. yes, she excoriated him today in court. the incident that you mentioned about the social media prompted her to ban him from all social media. some people have asked is it a surprise that he did that with thejudge. one of his approaches is attack, attack, attack, so i don't think it is surprising that he had those social media postings about the judge, and it is very much in character with the environment around a whole trump orbit.

from what the president is saying it sounds pretty certain this has not ended here. he looks likely to put the attorney general into quite a difficult position. the attorney general said that he would hope that the president would halt or stop the tweets that he interpreted as interfering with thejustice department. some question whether that is really true, because since barr has taken over as attorney—general, the general sense is that he has been in place to do the president's bidding. four prosecutors resigned over the president's interference. one actually left the department ofjustice, and 2000 former prosecutors have signed a petition for attorney—general barr's removalfrom office. christine, very interesting to talk to you, thank

you very much. let's get some of the day's other news. a man has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder after a stabbing at london central mosque. an elderly man in his seventies has been taken to hospital. it's thought his injuries are not life—threatening. scotland yard is not treating the incident as terror—related. the portuguese parliament has taken the first step towards legalising euthanasia for terminally ill people. protests were staged outside parliament as the deputies voted. the roman catholic church and pro—life groups are demanding any changes to the law be put to a referendum. the irish prime minister leo varadkar has resigned. but he is staying on as interim leader of fine gael while the three main parties battle through deadlocked coalition talks. after an inconclusive election, attempts in the irish parliament to elect a new prime minister have ended without agreement. the man found guilty of the murder of the british backpacker, grace millane in new zealand, has been sentenced to life in prison.

her mother gillian told the court she'd considered taking her own life after her daughter's death. she appeared at the hearing at auckland's high court via videolink and addressed the defendant directly, this isjust some of what she said. you walked into our lives and destroyed grace in the pursuit of your own sexual gratification. now my family will never be the same. so many other innocent people, including your own family, have had their world destroyed. i want you to know i don't think of you, because if i did, that means i care about you and i simply don't.

our correspondent shaimaa khalil was in court. a very, very emotional day in court here. you heard grace millane‘s mother gillian speak there, address the killer quite directly. she said that he had shot a hole in her heart, that her heart will always be broken because he took away her daughter's future and they no longer have a chance to make memories together. her brother declan also spoke and he said the killer didn'tjust declan also spoke and he said the killer didn't just take grace‘s life but a part of his own life as well and that he has struggled with his mental health after his little sister's death who he thought he could protect but he felt helpless. really, most of the people were there and it was noticeable that many young men we re noticeable that many young men were in the public gallery, choosing to attend that sentencing. everybody was so emotional, at some point the killer himself, who showed no

emotion up until this point, bowed down and looked like he was wiping a tear as grace‘s mother spoke. then it was the prosecution and the defence making the argument about the sentence being and then the judge finally passed the sentence, life in prison with i7 sentence, life in prison with 17 years without parole. with that sentence, he ended the case that really gripped and shocked new zealand but also devastated grace‘s family. there was a very poignant moment in grace‘s mother's speech where she said, no life sentence that you receive will match my life sentence, without grace. stay with us on bbc news, still to come: the prime minister of lesotho announces his resignation, after being charged with murdering his estranged wife. nine years and 15,000 deaths after going into afghanistan, the last soviet troops

were finally coming home. the withdrawal completed in good order, but the army defeated in the task it had been sent to perform. malcolm has been murdered. that has a terrible effect on the morale of the people. i am terrified of the repercussions on the streets. one wonders who is next. as the airlift got under way, there was no let—up in the eruption itself. lava streams from a vent low in the crater flow down to the sea on the east of the island, away from the town for the time being, but it could start flowing again at any time. the russians heralded their new—generation space station with a spectacular night launch. they called it mir, the russian for peace.

this is bbc news. the latest headlines: tens of thousands of people in germany have attended vigils for nine immigrants murdered by a far—right extremist in the western town of hanau. president trump has said he'd love to see his long—time friend and former advisor roger stone exonerated, after he was sentenced to forty months in prison for lying to congress. the bbc has spoken to two north korean defectors who managed to escape from prison, and flee the country. not that many people manage that! what makes their story more unusual, is that one of them was a prison guard, who escaped with one of his detainees. the pair spoke to bbc korean‘s hyung eun kim, about life inside the country they once called home. rare pictures smuggled out of north korea. footage kim jong—un‘s government doesn't want you to see.

troops tend to cornfields, trying to feed the population. more soldiers browse government approved dvds. others patrol the border with china. it's here where most of those who want to escape make the desperate dash for safety. now two people who made it out want to tell their story. we're on our way to a safe house, where the defectors are being kept. everything about their movements has to be kept secret for their safety. this man was a prison guard at a detention centre near the chinese border. kim, whose name we have changed, was in prison for arranging phone calls between north korea and the outside world.

kim was eventually caught and brought to the man's prison. they drew closer and talked of a potential life outside north korea. then, one night, they decided to make a break. they say they ran about 200 metres from the prison to the tumen river, which marks the border with china. they began to swim across in total darkness. but they finally reached the other side — their first steps outside their homeland.

the manner of their escape has put the north korean authorities on high alert. how do you feel about being one of north korea's most wanted men? their hope is that by speaking out more north koreans will be encouraged to defect, but the control of information is still so tight that only a few will be able to hear their story. hyung eun kim, bbc news. in california, more than 150,00 people are homeless. the golden state governor called this a disgrace on wednesday and vowed to act. a shortage of affordable housing and the high cost of living are fuelling the crisis, especially in ultra—wealthy regions like silicon valley. the bbc‘s sarah svoboda took a ride on the valley's notorious overnight bus, the motel 22, and heard the stories of its passengers.

in the dead of night people 0. they are here not for the ride, but for the refuge. this is the only all—night bus that runs the —— throughout silicon valley. it is known as the motel 22. the rout passes some of the well‘s most valuable companies, companies that have made this a top earning region. if it were a country, the silicon valley would be the second richest in the world. it's also now one of the most expensive places to live in the united states. a comfortable life on a 6—figure salary can be difficult. on anything else it's next to impossible. by 2am the bus is a shelter on wheels. you going to sit by him? no. 0k, you going to sit by him? no. ok, all right.

you going to sit by him? no. 0k, all right. i don't want to leave them out there. they don't have anywhere to go. i'd tried to be friendly, treat everyone like a human. but it's not only those in the back who are struggling. shannon, the driver, was born and raised in this area. she since been priced out. eventually, at times, slept in her car. i feel a little defeated, because i'm working my tail off out here and we don't make enough money to live out here, but we make too much money to get some type of assistance. nancy is 73 yea rs of assistance. nancy is 73 years old. she's been riding for the last nine months. for her is a lifeline. what are you doing on the bus tonight? writing from one place to another place, at night. some place to stay. some pleased to be. to have a roof over one's head. and you're safe. and if you won't hear tonight, where would you be? oh, i would hate

to think. i guess walking the streets, you know. no, i know i would be walking the streets. with four times as many homeless shelter beds in the valley, these riders have simply nowhere else to go. more people are also now living along the bus route in their cars, in camper trailers, and in tents. and so in the very place that is leading the welding cutting edge technology, even the homeless must innovate to survive. last stop. sarah svoboda, bbc news. the other side of silicon valley. the prime minister of the southern african nation of lesotho is to resign, amid charges that he murdered his estranged wife. the case has shocked the continent. thomas tha bane, who is 80 years old, has said he will step down but has refused to comment on the case. the bbc‘s rich preston

has this report. lipolelo thabane was shot dead in 2017, gunned down on a dirt road on the outskirts of the capital, maseru. at the time, thomas thabane described her killing as senseless. his current wife, maesaiah thabane, has been charged with murder. she's already appeared in court, though hasn't yet entered a plea. now police believe the prime minister was involved too. even though he's not the one who pulled the trigger, but he played part to facilitate those people who ultimately killed his wife. actually, he made everything successful. at the time of the killing, lipolelo thabane was going through bitter divorce proceedings with her husband. there had been a legal battle over the right to be called first lady. a battle lipolelo thabane won. the murder happened

just two days before mr thabane took office. mr tha bane's new wife joined him at his inauguration ceremony. two months later they were married. the prime minister's announcement to step—down made no reference to the killing. today i wish to reiterate my announcement to retire from office. i might still have the necessary favour to continue serving my people and country, but the truth is at my age i've lost most of my energy. i'm not as energetic as i used to be a few years ago. the case has shocked the tiny landlocked country... today i wish to reiterate my announcement. . . ..and the wider african continent. lesotho has a delicate economy and fragile politics. there are worries the prime minister's resignation and potential criminal charges could bring turmoil and trouble. rich preston, bbc news.

a new film, escape from pretoria, tells the true story of two political prisoners who managed to break out of a notorious south africanjail in 1979. tim jenkin and stephen lee were jailed for distributing pamphlets for banned organisations. tim jenkin is played by daniel radcliffe, who's been speaking to the bbc‘s kasia madera. defendant number one and chief bomb maker, timothy jenkin, you are sentenced to imprisonment for a total of 12 years. as soon as i read the story and found out about the escape and the nature of the escape, ijust thought it is so genius and so brilliant, i was like, how has this story not already been told, like, how do normal people not know about this? laying out the most pernicious aspects of this anc ideology, that all races are equal, and all this sort of thing... in the run—up to this film, i read tim's book and actually that was really interesting in terms

what apartheid was but also what the day—to—day life was of people who were resisting apartheid. and it is a fascinating part of the story which is they would probably not have been able to do this escape had they been a black because, even down to the way black and white prisoners were searched going into prison, there was still sort of more dignity afforded to the white prisoners in terms of how they were searched. this is an extremely tense film — you are literally gripping the edge of your seat when you watch it — how do you convey that across? i have to say a huge amount of that is down to director francis hannah. you felt the sense of tension in the script but then ther ewas always a part of me that was going, well, when you watch it you willjust be watching me make a key. so much of that tension is dependent on the shots he choses to use, and the way he uses music, and the wya he uses editing. we do not get to see what they do not see until they see it but we do get to hear it, so sound was

an important element. so i think these sort of techniques meant that you were really with them, over their shoulder, the whole time and trying to keep the camera in their perspective was one way to make sure that you felt now they are here, now they are there. will they make it, won't they? no, no, no. what responsibility is it to get tim's story right? he was on set for a good portion of the film. you are very aware of those days. we onset playing somebody‘s life. so the one thing you want to do is get it as right as possible. it turned out to be very exciting. and it's pretty close to the absolute truth, you know. it follows the pattern. i was worried it would take off ina certain was worried it would take off in a certain direction, but it didn't. and, certainly, the

beginning and end were absolutely how it was. for someone to object against an injustice is a very important thing. for someone then to suffer as a result of that injustice showed they are really sticking their neck out, but for someone then to say, i'm going to go beyond those things and really try and find my version of fighting back — this is a political act. breaking out is a political act. just time to show you these pictures of a very energetic crowd taking part in the super nintendo world challenge in new york's grand central terminal. dozens turned up to compete for a chance to win a trip to a nintendo theme park in osaka ahead of its official opening this summer. the winner was randomly selected from the participants.

the moral of the story might mean that it does not mean much in the mario well. that's it for now. thank you very much. hello there. the weather is staying unsettled to end the week and indeed into the weekend we have got more rain at times, also some strong winds, thanks to an active jetstream bringing areas of low pressure in. for friday, it's going to be a very windy day, and most of the rain would be across western hills, across the northern half of the country. here it is on the pressure charts. you can see lots of isobars across the country, so it will be windy and these weather fronts bringing outbreaks of rain to parts of northern ireland, particularly western northern ireland, into western scotland, north—west england and, at times, into northern and western wales. further south and east, it should be drier and brighter but a very blustery day for all. those winds gusting 30—110 miles an hourfor many. parts of south—east scotland, east of the pennines, could see gusts around 60 miles a hour so these,

in their own right, could cause some transport issues. temperature wise, though, milder than what it was on thursday. temperatures 10—12 degrees. now, as we head through friday night, it stays wet across western hills in the north, but it looks like some of that rain will start to push a little bit further southwards, so affecting parts of south—west england and in towards wales. of course, anymore rainfall here is extremely unwelcome. lots of showers piling into scotland. temperatures falling here so they'll be wintry on the hills. but it will be milder across the south. that weather front pushes its way southwards and eastwards into saturday, bringing an unwelcome band of rain there, but further north, it stays very windy indeed. a real squeeze in the isobars there and there will be lots of showers. these piling into much of scotland, some heavy with hail, thunder, and also settling snow on the hills and maybe some blizzard conditions as well with the strength of the winds. further south, rather cloudy, outbreaks of rain, mainly towards the west but it will be another mild day in the south — 11—14 degrees, but colder further north.

and then as we move through saturday night, this next feature runs into england and wales which could bring a spell of unwelcome rain once again. further north, it will be quite windy with further showers but at least the good news is, through sunday, that rain should clear away quite quickly and then skies brighten up quite nicely, with plenty of sunshine around, so a welcome day of drier and brighter weather but it will feel a bit colder. that settled spell of weather, thanks to this ridge of high pressure, will be short—lived because, across the atlantic, we will see the next very deep area of low pressure moving in on monday. pushing towards the north of the uk to bring a spell of severe gales and further rain at times. so with more rain in the forecast for the next few days, flooding could be a further issue so just head on line to the bbc weather website to check out the weather and flood warnings.

this is bbc news, the headlines: in germany, tens of thousands have attended vigils for the nine people shot dead by a far—right extremist in the western town of hanau. many were immigrants from turkey — one was romanian. the president has called on germans to unite against hatred, racism and violence. police are investigating whether the gunman had accomplices. president trump has said he'd love to see his former advisor roger stone exonerated — he's been sentenced to forty months in prison for witness tampering and lying to congress about russian interference in the 2016 presidential election. the irish prime minister, leo varadkar, has resigned after the first session of the new parliament. he'll remain acting prime minister until a new government is formed. coalition talks are deadlocked. his party, fine gael, finished third in the elections earlier this month, behind the centrists fianna fail and the left—wing sinn fein.

there are still many parts of the uk, struggling