a very warm welcome to bbc news. my name is mike embley. our top stories. as infections and deaths from coronavirus mount, the world health organization fears in some countries are not taking the threat seriously enough. shares fall on world markets as concerns about the virus affect prices on international top —— stock exchanges. a ceasefire in verrier‘s idlib presents but —— syria public idlib province. this is from the bomb? yes, civilians, civilians. elizabeth warren ends her run for the white house but holds back from backing joe biden or bernie

standards. and harry and meghan have one of their last senior engagements before they step back as a senior royals. governments around the world are racing to contain the coronavirus and break —— bracing for the economic impact. iran has closed its schools until march 20 as cases their spike. uk has its first death, a woman in her 70s. italy is still the worst affected outside china, 148 people have died in italy. wall street has taken another tumble, down more than 3%. and off the coast of california, a cruise ship has not been allowed to dock as a passenger has died from the virus. around 2500 people ordered the

grand princess going to mexico. two people on that cruise contracted coronavirus and one of them died yesterday. the ship has now been prevented from docking in san francisco. more than 35 people are said to have symptoms, a disconcerting time for those on board. there have been seven confirmed cases in los angeles. among them, a medical screener in lax, one of the biggest airports in the world. in new york, several schools have closed after an outbreak in westchester cou nty. closed after an outbreak in westchester county. there will be more cases. ourfocus westchester county. there will be more cases. our focus today is on what we believe is an increasingly vulnerable population. it appears from some of the worldwide data we have collected that seniors in particular, particularly seniors who have other health

challenges, represent the most vulnerable population. across the united states, infection rates are now impacting businesses, the economy and education. there is bitter disappointment in san francisco asa disappointment in san francisco as a school trip to china is cancelled. we have been waiting for this trip for nearly a decade now and we have been promoting it, fundraising for it, donating and stuff like that, but to see it not happen is just really sad. that, but to see it not happen isjust really sad. we were all really bummed because we were looking forward to it. authorities are urging vulnerable people to be cautious and encouraging employees to work from home while also reminding people that the risk of contracting coronavirus remains low. you saw there for a few moments ina you saw there for a few moments in a cast —— in the past couple of hours, the us vice president who is co—ordinating the american response has been speaking on the outbreak from seattle in washington state.

iam here i am here with a very simple message. to all of you who are standing with the people dealing with coronavirus and the people of washington state, is, we are with you. i am here to ensure that all the resources of the federal government, in support of the state of washington's efforts. the vice president. let's go to peter bowes in los angeles. mick —— mariko oi in singapore. what is the latest, peter. over the last few hours, the coast card over the last few hours, the coast ca rd has over the last few hours, the coast card has been using helicopters to drop testing kits on board grand princess. we are told fewer than 100 people who have been identified as being at risk, suffering from flulike symptoms, a total of three thousand 500 people,

passengers and crew, but it seems the possibility of the spread of this infection is limited to a small number of people. as we heard, one person died who had been on the cruise ship ona died who had been on the cruise ship on a previous cruise, a round trip to mexico, that the ship had since gone on on a cruise to hawaii and it was that leg of the cruise that had to be cut short as people started to fall sick on the vessel. and peter, this outbreak generally worldwide brings all type of economic difficulties and tragedies but isn't the united states a real political hot potato, isn't it? with the -- political hot potato, isn't it? with the —— presidential election on the horizon. it is. the way that the president and his team deals with this is certainly being scrutinised. donald trump was on tv about 24 hours ago talking about the fa ct hours ago talking about the fact that he believes it was ok people, even if they had mild symptoms, still to go to work.

he has been roundly criticised for that and health experts are saying that is absolutely the wrong advice to people. that if you are feeling sick, you should stay at home and medical attention. the other focus of attention. the other focus of attention has been on the supply of the testing kits with mike pence a little while ago acknowledging they were not enough kits looking forward with the potential of any more people being infected. mariko, wall street took a tumble. how is it looking from there? as you can imagine, it has been a tough couple of weeks here in asia. it has been a rollercoaster ride. this friday, japan's nikkei has traded well below 2% at this hour. also hong kong's hang sengindex hour. also hong kong's hang seng index has opened lower, 110w seng index has opened lower, now down by almost 2%. they are taking their cue from wall

street where we saw all three major indices falling by more than 3% and even though we have seen these wild swings both ways over the last couple of ways, —— weeks, it feels like investors are ways, —— weeks, it feels like investors a re really ways, —— weeks, it feels like investors are really starting to worry about this outbreak possibly pushing the global economy into a recession and thatis economy into a recession and that is why we are seeing this sell—off yet again. that is why we are seeing this sell-off yet again. what other worries and warning signs people are looking out for? firstly it was contained to china, the fact that china is a factory of the world and how it will affect the global supply chain. now we know it is a much more global issue and we have been reporting about a lot of cities shutting schools which affect working parents and a lot of people staying indoors instead of going out to restau ra nts instead of going out to restaurants or entertainment parks and so on. all of that, all of those activities are being shut down and that

impacts the economic activity and that is why we have been hearing from the world bank, the imf, many institutions offering money, especially to developing countries in order to combat and tackle the economic impact from the outbreak. but also economists are outbreak. but also economists a re really outbreak. but also economists are really starting to worry about not just the are really starting to worry about notjust the united states and china, but the global economy suffering a really severe impact. the worst since the global financial crisis. mariko in singapore, peter in la, many thanks to both of you. let us round up some more news was up at least 11 people have been killed when a building collapsed in the pakistani country —— city of karachi. it went down suddenly, damaging buildings next to it. police say more than a dozen people we re say more than a dozen people were hurt. the us secretary of state has criticised the decision by the international criminal court to authorise an investigation into allegations of war crimes investigation into allegations

of warcrimes in investigation into allegations of war crimes in afghanistan by us military personnel and others. mike pompeo claims that it -- it is others. mike pompeo claims that it —— it isa others. mike pompeo claims that it —— it is a truly breathtaking and reckless move by an unaccountable political institution. the icc overturned a previous request for an investigation. this winter has been the warmest on record across europe. the data from the satellite shows the average temperature 1.4 celsius above the previous hi four years ago. the warm winter temperatures lead, among other things, to the first complete failure of germany's ice wine harvest. a ceasefire in syria's idlib province has just come under effect after months of heavy bombardment bike syrian government forces and russian allies. the truth was agreed by the presidents of turkey and russia. idlib is the last area still controlled by the rebels, some of them jihadists, who have been trying with jackie to overthrow president assad. the

war has forced most1 million people from their homes since december. russia backs the assad regime and russian airstrikes killed 16 civilians sheltering in a farm. our international correspondent o rla international correspondent orla guerin was there. how —— her report contains a distressing images. working by flashlight, to reclaim the living from the rubble. the target here inexplicably a poultry farm which became a refuge for some of idlib's displaced. by day, a refuge no more. just hours before ceasefire talks began in moscow, this devastation was russia's handiwork. last night while i slept, i slept here, here. this is my home. here.

when the russian aircraft bombed... this is from the bomb? yes. civilians, civilians, we are civilians. and they were killed as they slept, though the syrian regime and its russian backers say they are targeting terrorists. when you take a look around here amongst the scattered belongings you can see that this was a home, a place where parents were trying to keep their children safe. some of the toys are still here and the dishes are smashed at my feet. what possible justification could there be for bombing a place like this full of civilians? but in idlib this has been happening day in and day out, and as the sound now of more explosions, we have been hearing bombings in the distance since we arrived. ahmed tells me it's fine if he dies but he's worried

for his children who by chance were not here last night. where do you think you and the children will sleep tonight? "i don't know", he says, wondering if any where in his broken homeland is safe. not the local hospital — it's a target, like all medical facilities. here, we found victims of the air strikes, like this boy, who is nine, as old as syria's war. "i want to be a doctor", he says, "to treat patients so they get better and no—one dies in syria or the rest of the world". willa ceasefire bring an end to the agony here? or will this merciless multilayered war

keep doing its very worst? orla guerin, bbc news, idlib. the fighting in syria has put more pressure on turkey which is already sheltering a lot of refugees. accusing the european union on a lack of action, turkey opened its border degrees last week. since then, others have been trying to cross into the eu. syrian refugees have learnt to be sceptical about ceasefires. in western turkey thousands who escaped the battles before idlib and other middle eastern wars, followed a fence to the greek border. they went because turkey's president finally came through with his threat to pressurise the eu by creating a new refugee crisis. greece kept its gates closed.

for a generation that grew up with death, with war, stealing their chances of education, it was yet another blow. translation: my future has gone, that is why i think more about the future of my children. i want to have a house for them, give them a good life, where they don't need to rely on me or anybody else to support them. this family with six children had made it to greece where they said the police stole all their money and burnt their id papers before they were sent back. trying to salvage some dignity. translation: there are women here and we don't have toilets, what should they do? we have girls ten and 11 years old, they can't go in the open in front of people. if you look at the leaders in the countries who have interfered and been involved with the war in syria, can you look at somebody

and think, they are to blame? it's theirfault? translation: the main person responsible for us is basher al—assad, as president it is a pity that you kill a child or harm a human being just to stay in power. these people are pawns in a much bigger game, it's roots lie in the catastrophic international failure to stop the war in syria and the players in the game are the big military powers who have intervened in the syrian war in their own interests with little or no regard for the safety of millions of people. a local turkish man gave out food, "let europe see this", he said, "i hope you're ashamed". it was cold, they at defy out of plastic rubbish to heat his baby son's milk. three sisters were

under these blankets. no tents, no tarpaulins, no hope. jeremy bowen, bbc news, turkey. stay with us if you can on bbc news. much more to come including this: a of duties, harry and meghan mccurry out there last official engagements before they step back as senior royals at the end of the month. —— meghan. first, the plates slid gently off the restaurant tables. then suddenly, the tables, the chairs and people crashed sideways and downwards, and it was just a matter of seconds as the ferry lurched onto her side. the hydrogen bomb. on a remote pacific atoll, the americans had successfully tested a weapon whose explosive force dwarfed that of the bomb dropped on hiroshima. i had heard the news earlier, and so my heart went bang, bang, bang!

the constitutional rights of these marchers are their rights as citizens of the united states, and they should be protected even in the right to test them out, so that they don't get their heads broken and are sent to hospital. this religious controversy — i know you don't want to say too much about it — but does it worry you that it's going to boil up when you get to the states? well, it worries me, yes, but i hope everything will be all right in the end, as they say. welcome back. good to have you with us on bbc news. one main headline dominating the news. as infections and deaths now, the world health organization here some countries are not taking the threat of the coronavirus seriously enough stop elizabeth warren has become the latest political casualty of super tuesday. the massachusetts senator is

leaving the race committee did not even when her own home state earlier. michael bloomberg also threw in the tail. her departure means there are no prominent women candidates left in the race. let's get more on this from doctor michael cornfield, an associate professor of political management are george washington university. professor, i say this as an old, white guy, how did it happen that this has come to two old white guys taking on another old white guy when that list was one of the most diverse in history with six women on it? it was and they we re women on it? it was and they were persons of colour on there as well. in the end those two old, white guys are the most familiar candidates. bernie sanders has been running for president since almost 2015, and joe biden was the vice president of the united states. they are one year different in age and the fact that they are old, white and in the 70s is

coincidental, i think. old, white and in the 70s is coincidental, ithink. we old, white and in the 70s is coincidental, i think. we heard some people say they liked and respected elizabeth warren but if hillary clinton couldn't be donald trump, she couldn't either? that may be true. elizabeth warren was a very strong campaigner. she had a very appealing and pertinent autobiography that she told whenever she spoke, she established human touches in her campaign. she would make random phone calls to donors and surprise them and that would be videotaped and would circulate around the country. she didn't think he promises with little girls, all of these brought her a and a lot of support —— pinkie promises. she was famous for her policy plans, i think it was close to 100 when she finally stopped. she had one majorflaw, she couldn't stick to one message. and that brought her down from her hides in october two the

point where she had to pull out today could there be a comeback? does he have a future in politics? surely there is some lasting impact, the running mate should be a woman? i agree with that, she deserves some credit. she put another big crack in the proverbial glass ceiling that hillary clinton spoke about, that keeps women from sending to the highest office in the land. but no, ithink highest office in the land. but no, i think she will resume her career as a frontline senator or take career as a frontline senator ortakea career as a frontline senator or take a position if the democrats win the presidency, but i don't see her making another run for the presidency. very briefly, i ask you to look into your crystal ball of political management for us. he was going to face donald trump and who is going to win? joseph biden, is going to be the nominee. and who will be president? yep, well, i'mjust

about to answer that. i think that really depends on the spread of the coded —— covid—19 virus and how president trump is in handling it. i think this is in handling it. i think this isa is in handling it. i think this is a big issue, americans look to presidents for confidence, for guidance and if president trump is perceived as falling short on that, he will lose. on the other hand, if the virus turns out to be contained, he will get credit for that and he will get credit for that and he will win. so i'm really thinking that that of all things — this pandemic — will be decisive was a very interesting. doctor michael cornfield, thank you so much. thank you. the high court has found the ruler of dubai abducted two of his daughters and subjected his former wife to a campaign of intimidation in a series of judgement we marked the court also said allegations of physical abuse could be relied

upon and overruled the shake buzz make efforts to keep the actions secret. extraordinary and damning allegations of abduction and intimidation committed by the by‘s ruler sheikh mohammed al—maktoum, published today by britain's high court. the details have emerged during a lengthy custody battle between the sheikh and his former wife princess haya of jordan. here at the royal courts of justice, princess haya, seen here in white, is alleging intimidation by the sheikh, after discovering the alleged fate of two of his daughters. this court case is lifting the lid on what is alleged to have been going on in one of the more secretive ruling families in the middle east. allegations that include the forced return of two princesses, one of whom was allegedly seized right here in britain. one sister, latifa, was recaptured at sea two years ago off the coast of india.

before trying to escape, she recorded this video her earlier treatment by her father's agents, a testament need the court ruled as credible. it was constant torture, constant torture, and even when they weren't physically beating me up they were torturing me. they would switch off all the lights, i was in solitary confinement, by myself totally, and there are no windows and lights on when they switch off the lights it is pitch black. dubai is sensitive about its reputation, it is a global destination and sheikh mohammed is a huge figure in the international horse racing world and the queen paid a royal visit to the uae in 2010. his legal team has rejected many of the claims, a statement issued after referred to... the court also heard that princess haya, a former olympic equestrian, had begun an adulterous affair with her bodyguard.

the court ruled she had been subjected to a campaign of intimidation and she had been told she would never be safe in england. the duke and duchess of sussex have carried out some of their final duties as senior royals. this package contains flashing images from the start. lights, a lot of them, cameras lots of them, but when it comes to action from the royal variety, there won't be much more of these two. this was the first public appearance by meghan in this country the last two months, since harry and her announce their new direction in one of the last by the couple before they begin their new life in north america. they we re life in north america. they were at the mansion house in

london for the endeavour awards for service personnel and by all accounts looking relaxed. recognising achievement over adversity, that is expected of the royal family. harry, adversity, that is expected of the royalfamily. harry, with his military background is seen to have a natural affinity for it. both appeared on stage, meghan, to present an award. good evening, everybody. it's very nice to be back. and harry, to speak about the experience of serving. for some, the military community represents a brotherhood of sisterhood that no other organisation can provide stop and for others, it is a way of life which you never want to leave. for a lot of us, it is both. being able to serve queen and country is something that we all are rightly proud of and it never leaves us. it was a powerful speech, harry sounded motivated and fulfilled. puzzling, that in a few days he and meghan will step away to

return to canada. nicholas witchell, bbc news. that is it for now, thank you for watching. hello, then. there were winners and losers with the weather on thursday, parts of northern england had close to nine hours of sunshine. look at this beautiful weather watch a picture sent into the lake district. it was a different story south and east, in fact, the only brightness possibly down to east sussex in the beach huts because there was over1.5 beach huts because there was over 1.5 inches of rain. the rain pretty persistent, now moving into the new continent. not many isoba rs moving into the new continent. not many isobars on the chart so light winds and clear skies are not as allowing those temperatures do fall away. it is going to be a chilly start to our friday morning and certainly it is worth bearing in mind as temperatures fall just below freezing in a few spots. the exception, perhaps

the south—east clinging onto cloud and northern ireland. there will also be mist in foreground first thing as well. a few showers from the word go out to the west and some of these showers will merge together for long spells of rain as we go through the day. but for many, it is a case of once that mist and fog has lifted away, dry with some sunny spells coming through and certainly a quieter story for many. temperatures ranging from 7- 11 many. temperatures ranging from 7— 11 degrees. now, as we move out of friday into the weekend, we start to see another area of low pressure starting to move in from the atlantic. but i really wa nt in from the atlantic. but i really want to emphasise as we move through the weekend, it isn't going to be a write off by any means. yes, it is going to turn increasingly windy and there will be some rain at times, but for many of us the rain actually arrives saturday night into sunday morning. so you can see for the bulk of the country on saturday, clouding over from the west but it will stay largely dry. we will have some rain, some of that heavy persistent into north—west england, western scotland and northern ireland and by the end of the afternoon, the winds

will strengthen as well. temperatures ranging as well between 7— 11 degrees. because the winds are strengthening, gusts in excess of 50—60 miles an hour without rain, it will push that rain throughout quite a pace overnight saturday into sunday. so, for many of us we will actually see a good deal of dry weather around the early morning rain clearing in the south—east, a blustery day on sunday with plenty of frequent showers putting in from the west but as with the nature of showers, some of you may escape them altogether and keep some drier, sunnier moments. i was between 7— 11 celsius. and it looks as though this theme is set to continue for the early half the new working we. it stays blustery, yes, with plenty of sunny spells and scattered, sharp showers. whatever you're doing this weekend, take care.

a very warm welcome to bbc news. my name is mike embley. our top stories: governments around the world are trying to contain the coronavirus embracing the economic impact as stock markets fall. the world health organization says some countries are not taking the threat seriously enough. a ceasefire agreed between the russian and turkish president have come in force in idlib including a safety corridor. escalated fighting has escalated fees between direct confrontation between russia and turkey, sending a million people away from their homes. elizabeth warren has dropped out of the race to become the nominee for the democratic party to fight donald trump. one time seen as a front runner she failed to win massachusetts in the super tuesday primary. she has declined to endorse joe biden albany standards for the