this is bbc news, i'm lewis vaughan jones. our top stories: a record single—day increase in coronavirus infections around the world. nearly 260,000 new cases are registered in 2a hours. russia's ambassador to the uk rejects allegations his country interfered in british politics — or tried to steal vaccine research. i don't believe in this story at all. there is no sense in it. us presidents from across the political divide pay tribute tojohn lewis — an iconic figure of the american civil rights movement. and — prosecutors believe a fire at the cathedral in the french city of nantes may have been started deliberately.

hello and welcome to bbc news. the number of global coronavirus cases has seen a record single—day increase. the world health organization says nearly 260,000 new cases have been recorded in 2a hours, the highest ever daily increase. while western europe and east asia have largely managed to contain covid—i9 the picture elsewhere is bleak. in brazil and the us, where lockdown measures are patchy, there's little sign of the curve being flattened. and scientists say india — which has the world's third biggest outbreak — could be months away from reaching a peak. with me is our news reporter paul hawkins. shall we start with the numbers? do you want to take us

through them? the biggest increase is unsurprisingly, united states, brazil, india and south africa. according to figures from the world health 0rganization. figures from the world health organization. a total number of worldwide deaths is around 7000. that is the biggest daily increase for just over two months. they haven't recorded figures like that since may ten. west europe and asia have largely managed to contain covid—i9 but in brazil and us weather are patchy lockdown measures and no sign of the curve being flattened. looking into figures in the us, 41 states out of 50 are seeing rising numbers of confirmed cases. july the 18th, a daily increase of 6.4%. the trend for june and july has been increasing massively. the rising number of cases where

they are rising fastest are in they are rising fastest are in the southern and western states so the southern and western states so that is arizona, california, florida and texas. this startling statistic. in florida this week, for one day alone, they reported more new coronavirus cases in a 24—hour period than the entire european union. that is 21 million population of florida, a50 million people in the european union. startling statistics. it shows you the scale of what is going on there. let us look at some of the specific countries, india and south africa. india has the world's third biggest outbreak and scientist say that the peak could still be months away. they have added 35,000 in the last day. the pandemic here was slow to start. they had a two—month lockdown early on which seemed to contain the virus. that was then lifted and as soon as that happened, cases been soaring. 0ne silver lining is they have a very low death rate. 1a.3 per million which in

absolute death terms, eighth in the world but 1a.3 per million. when looking at south africa, daily deaths there have headed past a000. they are back under national lockdown as of last sunday. they have a night—time cu rfew, sunday. they have a night—time curfew, there is a ban on alcohol and all south africans have to wear masks. thank you very much for that clear picture, paul. now with update now on the allegations that russian intelligence services tried to steal coronavirus vaccine research. the russian ambassador to the uk has flatly rejected the british claims. andrei kelin told the bbc he saw "no sense" in the accusations and went on to claim cyber attacks originating in the uk had ta rgetted his country. we do not interfere at all. we do not see any point of interfere as because for us, whether it is conservative party or labour party as the

head of this country, we will try to establish better relations than now. i do with this or with that. now conservative party are here and we're working on this relationship. i have to mention that the commission, now studying the results, have discovered several cyber attacks. also proceeding from the territory of the united kingdom. but we do not accuse of the united kingdom what has happened. we can now speak to jason healey who is a senior research scholar at columbia university's school for international and public affairs where he specialises in cyber conflict. thank you very much forjoining me on the programme. cheers, good evening. let us start with the russian denials, what do you make of those? i don't put that much at stake in it. it was interesting, even with the wording that the ambassador used, he was not even claiming that the united kingdom government was behind it and he just said it was from the uk

territory. which is not a very strong claim. and it would not surprise me, though, it edition intelligence were trying to find out about the course of the pandemic in russia. it has been something that putin has been something that putin has been trying to hide, even from his own people, so it strikes me as his own people, so it strikes measa his own people, so it strikes me as a kind of thing... sorry, just to be clear here, you are saying all governments are up to this? all governments are cyber to this? all governments are i 9 to this? all governments are ' on to this? all governments are cyber spying on each other? this is one of the most incredibly dangerous to geopolitical moments we have seen since the end of the cold warand it is seen since the end of the cold war and it is affecting all nations, so it is no surprise that states that can, will use their digital spies to try to reduce that uncertainty and risk. 0k, reduce that uncertainty and risk. ok, if it is going on and everyone's at it, where should we be drawing the line here? the uk government came out and

said even spying on the vaccines is unacceptable. i am not quite sure i agree with that because everyone's going to be looking for it. sabotaging vaccines, going in and messing with the data or causing a disruption to the researchers themselves, that is striking me is a much more dangerous line than just trying to figure out what is going on with the vaccine. but that is an interesting position saying actually, let's just let eve ryo ne actually, let's just let everyone spy on each other because everyone wants to know what everyone's up to with the vaccine, as long as we don't interfere. is that really a tenable line or actually, that is just tenable line or actually, that isjust a tenable line or actually, that is just a realistic line? tenable line or actually, that isjust a realistic line? given how much digital spying the united states and britain have done, it strikes me as a very reasonable line to say yes, you can go and try and look for what is happening in this incredibly dangerous moment and reduce your uncertainty, but whatever you do, cannot be disruptive in this incredibly important global moment. 0k, that's interesting full stop

when you think this leaves us more broadly? we focused on, obviously, the cyber spying, where does that leave us more broadly with relations between russia and the west? it strikes me that it can hardly be worse. even in the last couple of days, the british government has echoed the us government in saying the russians interfered with elections. which again strikes us as much more dangerous than merely the spying on what's happening with covert. great to talk to you. thank you. —— covid. let's get some of the day's other news. european union leaders are to extend negotiations on a covid—19 recovery plan for their economies and a new eu budget into a third day. they are struggling to reach a compromise between wealthier northern countries. a revised package under consideration was for a50 billion euros in grants. talks are due to resume on sunday. the authorities in north—east spain have further tightened

restrictions in an area which was returned to lockdown a week ago. catalonia is registering more covid—19 cases than any other region of the country. the surge led to tough new measures being announced on friday. the leaders of france, germany and italy have warned that they're ready to consider imposing sanctions against countries who violate a un arms embargo on libya. in a joint statement they called sides to end what they describe as the increasing interference in the libyan conflict. twitter has confirmed that hackers made use of tools that were supposed to have only been available to its own staff to carry off wednesday's cyber attack. the breach saw the accounts of barack 0bama, elon musk, kanye west and bill gates among other celebrities used to tweet a bitcoin scam.

us presidents past and present from across the political divide have paid tribute to one of the leading figures in the american civil rights movement, john lewis, who has died at the age of 80. he was one of the organisers of the 1963 march on washington, where martin luther king made his "i have a dream speech". rajini vaidya nathan looks back at his life. john lewis dedicated his life to fighting racism. he marched alongside martin luther king and lived to see a black president. born in alabama in 19a0, john lewis grew up in an america that was deeply segregated. i will come home and asked my mother, my father, my grandparents, my great—grandparents, why segregation, why racial discrimination? they would say "that's the way it is, don't get in the way, don't get in trouble". but doctor king inspired me to get in the way, to get in trouble.

he became a close ally of martin luther king. a message of nonviolence was not he took pa rt of nonviolence was not he took part in sit ins against white only lunch counters and was beaten by white mobs as he peacefully protested segregation on buses. you arrest me, you beat me, you throw me injail, well what else can you do to me? in 1963, john lewis was the youngest speaker at the march on washington web —— where doctor king delivered his famous i have a dream speech. looking out over that crowd, i saw hundreds of thousands of young people, fresh from the jails of the south, fresh from the struggle, the frontline. there, we we re struggle, the frontline. there, we were ready, we were prepared to go back to the american south and fight the good fight. and so they did. two years later marching for voting rights for african—americans. they walked to montgomery, alabama. where they were

attacked by police. by the 50th anniversary of that march, john lewis had become a politician known as the conscience of the us con —— congress. known as the conscience of the us con -- congress. it is a rare honour in this life to follow one of your heroes. and john lewis is one of my heroes. and it was barack 0bama who awarded him the presidential medal of freedom, america's hires a billion honour when he was 70. —— american‘s highest. diagnosed with pancreatic cancer last year, john lewis was seen at recent protests after the killing of george floyd will document we must keep ourfaith, keep our floyd will document we must keep our faith, keep our eyes on the prize. john lewis lived through many chapters of the civil rights movement. his mantra was simple, never give up, mantra was simple, never give up, never mantra was simple, never give up, never give mantra was simple, never give

up, nevergive in. we can now speak to dr rashawn ray who's a david m rubenstein fellow in governance studies at the brookings institution. we will come to the man himself ina we will come to the man himself in a moment but i am going to start, we are 2a hours on from the news being announced. what do you make of the reaction that we have seen from so many people over the last 2a hours? imean, i people over the last 2a hours? i mean, i think that the reaction has in widespread. not just in the united states across the world. and i think it highlights thatjohn lewis was a revolutionary figure. and of course he has a several quotes but one of the ones i a lwa ys quotes but one of the ones i always think about is when he says, "getting good trouble, necessary trouble, and redeem the soul of america". i think this is where we are in moment, not just around the this is where we are in moment, notjust around the united states but around the world and

i think you will be a galvanising light moving forward to november to put the united states on a different course. so interesting you quote those words because we spoke on this programme a few weeks ago about the words of frederick douglass. the abolitionist, of course. antislavery reformer. the speech that he gave that still echoes through generations and echoes through generations and echoes through generations and echoes through time. you just quoted the words there. do you think the words ofjohn lewis will have a similar power?|j think will have a similar power?” think so. he said so many things that he said. on voting, for example. he said, "some of us for example. he said, "some of us gave for example. he said, "some of us gave a for example. he said, "some of us gave a little blood for the right to participate in the democratic process." so while some people are thinking about staying home for the 2020 election in the united states, john lewis' words will help people get to the polls and not just to the polls that deal with gerrymandering and voter suppression which was central to whatjohn lewis was about.

let us move from his words to his actions. this was fundamentally a brave, brave man. without a doubt. he had been arrested dozens of times. he had been eaten. he helped to desegregate cities. nashville, tennessee, where he went to couege tennessee, where he went to college and murphy spell which isa college and murphy spell which is a stone spell away —— stone's throwaway philipe was the originalfreedom stone's throwaway philipe was the original freedom fighter. but if that was he was beaten in plenty sunday which was known as the movie selma but it happened in selma alabama on the bridge and that is something we will never look back on. i think when we think aboutjohn lewis, and the sacrifices he made, it is disrespectful not use our voices to stand up and not vote. then of course we know he was elected to congress in 1988, never looked back, ran opposed many times and there was something he did that oftentimes people look over. 0ne oftentimes people look over. one of his first bills that he

presented was for a museum to highlight the experiences and history of black americans. that became the national museum for african—american history and culture that sits on the national mall, just a few feet away from the washington monument. he was concerned with kids, he was concerned with what we do with criminal justice reform, he was concerned with how we provide medical services for underserved communities and he had a series of honours from an navy ship to the presidential medal of freedom to over 50 honorary degrees and this was a man that we should honour and we should aim to hold up his legacy, moving forward. extraordinary list of accomplishments. you used him and his legacy and his life and what he stood for very much as a call to action right now, as in get out and vote. what do you think of the timing and the significance, if there is any, of his passing when we are

right in the middle of this black lives matter movement? well, i would well, iwould imagine well, i would imagine on one hand he is feeling something can happen that he passed away while donald trump was in office. just days beforejohn lewis passway ct vivian also passed away he was a civil rights icon as well. mlk said he was the greatest pro—jihad ever her. john lewis was given the presidential medal of freedom by barack 0bama in 2011. when a thing about that legacy, moving forward, the fa ct legacy, moving forward, the fact that one of the last images we have ofjohn was him looking at black lives matter laszer that led to the white house, think that is a moment we can all remember —— black lives matter plaza. john lewis's was a very, very releva nt lewis's was a very, very relevant in this era. when you see something that is not right, not fair, not just, see something that is not right, not fair, notjust, you have to speak up you have to say something, when you have to do something. when i think

about my grandfather, two wells, purple heart, bronson ross, that your silence is acceptance. we need allies and advocates and agitators. part of this is the legacy ofjohn lewis to do what's right and to get into good trouble. 0k, we will leave it there. it's great to have you in the programme as always. thank you very much, dr rashawn ray. thank you. you are watching bbc news. the headlines this hour: a record single—day increase in global coronavirus infections, as nearly 260,000 new cases are recorded in 2a hours. russia's ambassador to the uk rejects allegations his country has interfered in british politics or tried to steal coronavirus vaccine research. here the transport secretary, grant shapps, has insisted that life could be back to normal by christmas, as long as people stay alert to the potential threat from coronavirus. scientists had questioned the practicality of the government's vision, set out by borisjohnson when he announced a further easing of lockdown restrictions in england. 0ur political correspondent

nick eardley reports. just a few weeks ago, streets across the uk were deserted. now, in many places, life is starting to pick up. shops, cafes, pubs, all opening again. but coronavirus hasn't gone away. many things will look different for some time. in rochdale, extra precautions are being taken because of concern at the number of new cases. people are being told to limit the number of visitors to their home to just two, and being asked to wear face coverings in shops before it is made mandatory in the rest of england. targeted local action is part of the government's strategy. ministers say if it works, life could return to something like normal by christmas. it is possible we can get there, and the prime minister

and i and others have spoken about it this week because we want to give people some sense of direction, because a lot of people are running businesses or rely on the christmas period for example, and need to know that if everything goes well, that this is our intention. the government is desperate to avoid another national lockdown because of the huge impact the last one had on the economy. so in england actions will now be targeted, looking at individual areas, communities, even specific premises. from today, local councils in england have new powers to close shops, close public spaces and shut down any events taking place if they think it will help curb the virus. in rochdale, the local council welcomes new powers. but... the thing that we need, apart from getting the same message over time, is some money to cope with all

the extra problems that we are getting. this morning, one of the government's advisers said a return to life like it was before lockdown is a long way off, despite the optimism in government. the view in rochdale... it's not going to be the same, nothing will be the same, shops and stuff, because you have to wear masks. potentially it could. but right now, rochdale isn't good on the covid numbers. the government has warned it won't hesitate to introduce some restrictions again. but it hopes getting on top of local outbreaks could help life return to something more normal sooner rather than later. nick eardley, bbc news. one of bollywood's most famous actresses, aishwarya rai bachchan, has been taken to hospital after testing positive for covid—19 earlier this week. according to reports, she's being treated at a hospital in mumbai. it comes days after her husband and father—in—law were admitted for treatment.

french police say a fire in nantes cathedral may have been started deliberately. investigators say the fire started in three different spots, which points to arson. it took around 100 firefighters to bring the blaze under control. it comes a little more than 12 months after the devastating fire at france's most famous cathedral, notre—dame. reged ahmad has more. huge, bright orange and red flame seemed to engulf the middle of this ancient gothic building, as black smoke billows out from between the two towers. it took around 100 firefighters to get the blaze in the historic nantes cathedral under control, but not before it blew out the stained glass windows at the front and completely destroyed the grand organ inside. locals gathered anxiously outside to watch the firefighting effort. this cathedral dates back to the 15th century and took around 500 years to finish building, so it holds a special

place in french culture. translation: it was like a nightmare. i wanted it to stop. it wasn't possible for the cathedral again to be burning. we have seen paris, but we have also seen it here. translation: it was really incredible, it's something we never wanted to see, that we never wanted to experience. firefighters say the damage isn't as bad as initially feared, but french police believe the blaze was a result of three fires that started in the building and are investigating whether they were deliberately lit. translation: we have observed that the fire started in three spots and have opened an investigation for arson with regionaljudicial police. once the fire was out, the french prime minister toured the area to see the damage for himself. thanking firefighters for their efforts. translation: i would like to express to the people

of nantes the solidarity of the nation after this dramatic event that has hit the beautiful city. it is time now for an investigation under the supervision of the prosecutor. this cathedral has survived past disasters, from allied bombings in world war ii to a blaze in 1972, which destroyed the roof. the french government has promised to help repair the damage as quickly as possible and get the cathedral back to what it was. reged ahmad, bbc news. we will stay in france for a slightly more positive story. parisians have enjoyed a real taste of summer with the opening of paris plages, where the banks of the seine look more like a seaside resort. launched in 2002, the popular summer festival brings a wealth of activity to the beach area, but this year there's been an new attraction added — covid—19 testing centres,

and even on day one they were proving popular with visitors. so the figures gathered to marc mundell a day on saturday. marked annually to honour nelson mandela on what would have been his birthday. it encourages people to take action and inspire change. hundreds of chefs gathered to propose suit for those in vulnerable communities. some said it was a great opportunity to get back in the same compassionate spirit of nelson mandela himself. a reminder of our top story. the number of global coronavirus cases has seen a record single—day increase. the world health organisation says nearly 260,000 new cases have been recorded in 2a hours. the russian ambassador to the uk has rejected british allegations that his country's intelligence services

interfered in british politics. you can reach me on twitter. i'm @lvaughanjones. this is bbc news. well, a weather front that first moved into scotland and northern ireland from thursday night is still bringing some cloud and rain across parts of southeast england in the day ahead. where is for us it is a fine sunday on the way. here's a weather front which has clearly been very slowly moving south across the uk. that won't clear away from southeast england until tonight. this is how things are shaping up. warm, muggy start to the south clearing away from wales maybe still a bit towards parts of the midlands. into southern england as the day starts. where else where it's a fine and quite cool start to the day. you get the sunshine few showers run across scotland mainly towards the

north and the west. but northern ireland, northern england, wales increasingly into the midlands gradually to southwest england there will be some sunshine. across much of east anglia and southeast england still cloud even at this stage of the afternoon. still some patchy rain around for some of us here too. for the most part temperatures just into the teens with up quite a change from yesterday was so warm and humid. change compared to saturday's washout. with the sunshine in the day ahead as we go on through sunday evening still a bit of rain towards essex and kent. it will finally clear away. along with that weather front at last, keeping a few showers across parts of northwest scotland. as much of the uk will be dry going into monday morning. and cooler across the board. many of us will be into single figures as monday begins. with the ridge of high pressure building into monday and tuesday for that matter. a lot of dry weather, dry everywhere because still around that ridge of high pressure there will still be a few

showers coming in. especially into scotland but during monday there is a chance of catching northern ireland as parts of northern england as well. whereas the bulk of england and wales will stay dry. a cool start to the day temperatures recover in some sunny spells but we still mainly talking temperatures into the high teens. just a few spots getting into the low 20s. so, most stay dry again on tuesday by wednesday we will see a bit of rain into parts of northern ireland. especially scotland whereas much as england as well a chance of a shower later in the week will stay dry.

this is bbc news, the headlines: the number of global coronavirus cases has seen a record single—day increase. the world health organisation says nearly 260,000 new cases have been recorded in 2a hours. in brazil and the us where lockdown measures have not been enforced strictly there's no sign of the curve being flattened. the russian ambassador to the uk has rejected british allegations that his country's intelligence services interfered in british politics — or tried to steal vaccine research. the denial comes days before a report into allegations of wider russian interference in uk democracy is due to be published. us presidents and foreign leaders have joined the tributes to civil rights iconjohn lewis, who has died of pancreatic cancer at the age of 80. lewis was one of the ‘big six‘ civil rights leaders, which included martin luther king jr.