this is bbc news. the headlines at 6pm. china denies an accusation by foreign secretary dominic raab that they're carrying out human rights abuses against its uighur population. can i ask you why people are kneeling blindfolded and shaven and being led to trains in modern china? why? what is going on there? i do not know where you get this video tape. it is deeply, deeply troubling. and the reports on the human aspect of it, from forced sterilisation to the education camps, are reminiscent of something we have not seen for a long, long time. borisjohnson says he doesn't believe another nationwide lockdown will be needed — even if there's a second spike of coronavirus this winter. police and public health

officials are investigating a mosque in blackburn, after 250 people attended a funeral there on monday. it's since emerged that the imam has tested positive for coronavirus. ten temporary nightingale courts are being set up to help clear a backlog of hearings caused by the coronavirus pandemic. they'll begin operating in england and wales from tomorrow. the united arab emirates prepares to launch a mission to mars — making it the first arab nation to do so. and it's kickoff at wembley — as manchester united and chelsea compete for a place in the fa cup final. amid growing tensions

between beijing and london, china has threatend repercussions, over british criticism of its handling of hong kong. the foreign secretary dominic raab will set out in full tomorrow, number ten's response to beijing's tough new security law for the territory, amid calls from some senior conservatives to suspend the uk's extradition treaty with china. there's also criticism of the reatment of the muslim uighur population in the province of xingjiang, amid claims some women are being forcibly sterilised. our diplomatic correspondent caroline hawley has the story. it has never been an easy relationship, but now, troubles are mounting on multiple fronts. there is deep concern for the future of hong kong after china imposed new security laws on the former british colony, undermining its autonomy. the government is now preparing to escalate its response. i said we would conduct a review of our extradition arrangements,

and also a range of other measures we might wish to take. i have now, with the home secretary and the rest of government, concluded that review, i will update the house of commons on what further measures we are taking tomorrow. today china warned britain not to follow the us in imposing sanctions. if uk government goes that far, goes that far to impose sanctions on any individuals in china, china will certainly make resolute response to it. china reacted with fury to britain's decision to ban huawei's technology because of security concerns. there are fears now of the potential economic fallout for british business. other countries, including the us, japan and australia, have paid a price forfalling out with china. china has sanctioned commerce, trade, the companies of those countries operating in china. so to be honest, it is difficult to predict what china might do with regard to the united kingdom,

but we might have to expect that british companies would be in the cross hairs. what china is doing to its uighur minority has caused international outrage. men have been forced into mass re—education camps. women forcibly sterilised. dominic raab said the human rights abuses were egregious and deeply, deeply troubling. the ambassador was shown a video that appears to show bound blindfolded men being forced on to a train. this was his response. uighur people, enjoy harmonious life, peaceful harmonious co—existence with other ethnic groups of people. uighur people is just one small portion of the chinese population, even among the muslims, but they are, the majority of them are living happily, peacefully, harmoniously. the british government says it can't stand by and watch abuses take place but it also wants a good relationship with china and with the us at the same time.

an almost impossible balancing act. caroline hawley, bbc news. ting zhang is the founder and ceo of crayfish.io — a business service platform working with uk—china collaborations, trade and investment. she told me that rising political tensions between the uk and china were already having an impact on business relations. yes, indeed. as someone who has been working passionately for the last 20 years to facilitate uk—china trade and investment, iam deeply upset by this rapid decline in the relationship in the last week. how else does a country make its position clear about its anger and displeasure about what is happening to one of its former territories, and indeed on a human rights level with the overwhelming evidence that seems to be emerging of what china

is doing and beijing is doing with its uighur population in xinjiang? well, i think there are undoubtedly as we can see different political systems, different legal systems, and such challenges have been there between the uk and china. but we are talking about business and trade interests and we should not let those interfere with what is otherwise growing trade interest between the uk and china. but some will be startled at that comment. you think business should be allowed to run smoothly whatever the human rights record of a country? i am not saying that. i work with british businesses every day. as well as chinese business and investors. what i can see is they are working together to form a partnership. that is adding to the economic interests of both countries.

their differences can be sorted between other constructive dialogues. how concerned are the business people based in china that you are speaking to about this deterioration of relations? there is a lot of uncertainty, definitely negative feelings, feelings of being misunderstood or hurt. just as there is on the uk side. but if we are able to repair this relationship in the coming months, i think that concern can go away. how much concern is there with your british business here about the theft of property rights, patents, and other issues like that? for which china stands accused? i think china has only been doing business with the west

in the current days, for a few decades, and a lot of legal systems have been improved. this year, china actually started the new foreign investment law which gives a lot of new advantages over foreign businesses so that they can actually help protect them better to do business with china. i think we should see the trend is improving. there are problems still, ip protection is one, but there are cultural misunderstandings, different ways to do business. that is why there are people like us and governments trying to help smooth out and make this work. the west can trust china, can it, when it comes to doing business with china? i think the trust has to be built, and it has been built. yes, i think trust is something that has to be constantly worked

at by both parties. and just like china used to trust the west, the west needs to trust china. notjust between governments, but between businesses and individuals, at all levels. borisjohnson says he'd be extremely reluctant, to impose another nationwide lockdown if there's a second widespread wave of coronavirus infections this winter. it comes as a senior health official in the north west in blackburn and darwen, a borough with one of the highest infection rates for covid—i9 in england, has warned the current test and trace system isn't working well enough. here's our health editor hugh pym. blackburn today. part of an area which has seen one of the biggest recent increases in coronavirus cases. it's been identified by national health officials as needing enhanced support for tackling the virus. the local council has introduced its own measures, including limiting household gatherings.

i think the two metre distance has more or less gone, but that's not the council's fault. that's down to silly people, isn't it. we need to take control of the virus, you know, and, yeah, i think, i think at the end of the day, if everybodyjust needs to obey, you know, by the rulings. in communities like this, the test and trace scheme is vital. finding people who have been in contact with those who have tested positive and telling them to self—isolate. but the local public health chief said the national system wasn't yet effective. we could risk seeing an exponential growth, because up to half of the people that may have been infected by an index case, by the first case with the virus, will themselves not know they are infected or at risk of infection and get tested and self—isolate. the department of health said the test and trace service was working closely with local authorities in england, to help manage local outbreaks

and data was shared daily. in the week ending july 8th, officials managed to get through to 78.7% of those who tested positive. that was up slightly on the previous week. they were asked to give details of their recent contacts. of those, 71.1% were reached and asked to self—isolate. that was down slightly. in total, since the scheme was launched in late may, 156,000 contacts have been traced. speeding up test results and getting to more contacts is seen as crucial as winter approaches. experts say this is especially important in places where infections are seen to be on the increase. there has to be very large testing in those areas, with tracing, to be able to keep the epidemic under control. and certainly, i think that is where that, if you like, rise in the ability of us to test and the number of tests is incredibly important.

on friday the prime minister announced new powers for local councils in england to control outbreaks. he said today another national lockdown would only be like a nuclear deterrent — a last resort. hugh pym, bbc news. the number of new coronavirus cases worldwide rose by almost 260,000 injust the last 24—hour period. the world health organization says it's the largest single—day increase, since the pandemic began. more than 600,000 people have died. our medical correspondent fergus walsh takes a look now at the people most at risk from covid—i9. the risk of catching and dying with covid—i9 varies dramatically depending on your age, and roughly doubles every five to six years. now if we look at data for england and wales up to the end ofjune, if you're over the age of 90 there was a one in 49 risk of dying with covid—i9. butjust look how quickly that risk

falls away the younger you are. under the age of a5, there was a greater risk of dying in an accident during that period. and for the five to 14—year—olds the risk was one in 2.4 million. there were three covid deaths in that age group during that period, compared to 138 from other causes. but even though the risks to the young are incredibly low, they can still pass on the infection to older and more vulnerable people. i think the figures for covid are quite extraordinary. we know that in normal life older people are at a greater risk of dying each year than younger people, but for covid the difference between the old and young is far more extreme than in normal life. older people might have 1,000, 10,000 times the risk of a very young person. of course it is notjust your age that's important. men are twice as likely to die in hospital with covid—19 as women. people living in deprived areas

are also at increased risk, as are some occupations, such as security guards, bus and taxi drivers. now even after adjusting for socioeconomic factors, ethnicity plays a key role. black and south asian men have up to twice the risk of dying as white men, and women from these ethnic groups are also at increased danger. then there is your overall health. nine in ten people who have died have had at least one underlying condition, such as diabetes, high blood pressure or lung disease. this scientists have developed a tool to help them assess an individual‘s vulnerable to covid—19. take peter. he is a 63—year—old white man. now his body mass index of 37 adds five years to his covid age, but it is his type—2 diabetes that has the biggest impact, adding eight years, giving him an overall covid age of 76,

which places him in a more vulnerable age group. now, what about mantej, who is 65? we know women are less vulnerable than men, so we can take eight years off her covid age, but because she is of south asian origin, we have to add four years back on, giving her an overall covid age of 61. now it is not possible to give a completely personalised risk, but it is clear that sex, ethnicity, age and overall health are key factors. the headlines on bbc news. china denies an accusation by foreign minister, dominic raab that they're carrying out human rights abuses against its uighur population. borisjohnson says he doesn't believe another nationwide lockdown will be needed — even if there's a second spike

of coronavirus this winter. police and public health officials are investigating a mosque in blackburn, after 250 people attended a funeral there on monday. it's since emerged that the imam has tested positive for coronavirus. a mosque in blackburn is being investigated by police and public health officials after 250 people attended a funeral there on monday. the jamia ghosia mosque emailed its congregation following the service to warn them that the imam tested positive for coronavirus. the mosque‘s chairman told the bbc they made a mistake and believed any number of people were allowed to attend as long as social—distancing guidelines were adhered to. the government advice in england limits weddings and funerals to 30 people. the bbc asian network reporter rahila bano gave us the details.

what we know is last monday, funeral prayers were held for someone who had passed away at the jamia ghosia mosque in blackburn on chester street. we have to be careful because there are several jamia ghosia mosques in the town. but this one is on chester street. according to a message which was sent out by the management committee yesterday, around 250 people attended the funeral prayers. the day after, on tuesday or wednesday, the imam who led the funeral prayers wasn't feeling well. he had a cough, he was feeling quite faint. he went to one of his local testing centres in the town to be tested and it was discovered there that he was positive for coronavirus. i spoke to the imam earlier today. he was recovering at home. as far as we know, he told me that he wasn't aware of anyone else who had tested positive

and who had been there on the monday for the funeral prayer. i have also spoken to the mosque chairman today. he told me that they had made a mistake. he said that as far as they were aware, the mosque was allowed to safely accommodate a number of people, in their case, it was around the 220 mark. he said because they had congregational prayers on the friday and the law said as far as they could accommodate that number of people or any number of people safely, bearing in mind the two metres social distancing, they would be allowed to have a similar numberfor the funeral prayer service. there seems to be slight confusion. he says they have made a mistake. it wasn't deliberate. as far as they are aware they don't want the whole community

to be blamed for this. basically they did not realise they could not have more than 30 people. the guidelines say only 30 people are allowed forfuneral prayers ata place of worship. for the first time since the coronavirus pandemic began, the number of new daily infections around the world has surpassed a quarter of a million. the biggest increases were in the us where the total number of virus—related deaths has just passed 140,000. more 78,000 people have died in brazil and cases have surpassed two millions and those numbers are still rising. and the death toll in india now stands at 26,816. but the united states remain the worst—affected country. speaking on fox news, president trump disputed the impact on the country and said that the us has the lowest

mortality rate in the world. when you talk about mortality rates i think it is the opposite. i think we have one of the lowest mortality rates. that's not true, sir. we had 900 deaths in a single day this week. we will take a look. check it out. can you get me the mortality rates? kayley is right here. i heard we had one of the lowest, maybe the lowest mortality rates in the world. do you have the numbers, please? because i heard we had the best mortality rate. number one low mortality rate. our north america correspondent peter bowes says despite what the president is saying medical experts remain concerned about the growing number of coronavirus cases in the us. it was a contentious interview over the numbers, mortality rate.

what we cannot dispute is the number of coronavirus cases here in the us and the positivity rate which is all—important, the numbers of those tested as a percentage is increasing dramatically. the president continues to insist that is more —— because more people are being tested. he says some of those cases should not be cases. what he means is they should not be considered cases because they recover very quickly. 99.7% of people he says recover very quickly. but the fact is, a positive test is a positive test, and what health experts are saying over and again is that those, many young people testing positive, have the potential to pass the virus to others in their family and perhaps older people who are less able to survive. the government has announced that ten temporary nightingale courts, which are being set up to help clear a backlog of hearings caused by the coronavirus pandemic,

will begin operating tomorrow in england and wales. the new courts include a medieval chamber and the ministry ofjustice‘s headquarters. the courts will hear civil, family and tribunals work, and juries will deal with non—custodial crime cases. it comes amid a backlog in england and wales of thousands of violent crime cases including robbery, rape and murder. justice minister robert buckland said efforts to clear the backlog could extend into next year. the criminal bar association said the government needs to increase funding overall for the court system, saying its own analysis suggests the government spends only 39 pence per person each year on average onjustice in england and wales. eu leaders have extended their summit in brussels after failing to reach an agreement on a plan to spend 750 billion euros to revive their economies following the coronavirus crisis. the german chancellor angela merkel said it wasn't clear

that a solution would be found today, because as she put it there was "a lot of good will but also many positions". our europe correspondent gavin lee explained what the main sticking points were. it is a political rubik's cube at the moment. it matters because, with a50 million people across europe, a continent which is going into deep recession, some economies shrinking by about 11%. in spain, overall, about 8% this year. the decisions in the building behind me over the past 48 hours is going to affect the future of the economic recovery. the big issue is part of the recovery fund, 750 billion euros, 500 billion of it is argument about this being given out as grants to countries that need it. they will not have to pay it back. the frugal four — the dutch, the austrians, the swedes, and the danes — plus finland are saying they want to reduce that amount as low as possible and add conditions to that.

the club med countries of spain, italy and greece are saying that is not fair. these are countries that have been affected by the financial crisis in the past and this is nothing to do with their own doing. that's part of it. the dutch prime minister, they say he has been keeping a stiff leg. basically keeping his cards close to his chest. he is not compromising, so much so that angela merkel and emmanuel macron apparently walked out of the talks early in frustration. the dutch prime minister saying they were in a grumpy mood. the other thing to briefly consider is that there are conditions attached to some of this money. keep to the ethics, the rule of law of the eu. poland, slovakia and hungary have argued against that. they have had proceedings against them and been investigated for these reasons. that is why there is another issue to sort out here. diplomacy has slipped a bit here because the hungarian prime minister has said to the press, it is not me who's holding things back, the dutch guy is to blame for all of this.

diplomacy is slipping, no sign of a deal. the foreign secretary dominic raab has admitted britain is powerless to force the united states to extradite the american woman who is suspected of involvement in the fatal crash which killed a teenage motorcyclist in northamptonshire in august last year. he said the family of harry dunn had suffered a "denial ofjustice" because the suspect — who is the wife of an american intelligence official — used diplomatic immunity to avoid being extradited. dozens more migrants have crossed the english channel in small boats to reach the uk. the home office says 65 people completed the journey yesterday, bringing the total in the last week to 516. seven migrants were picked up by the french this morning after their boat was spotted by a ferry. a man has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder, after a member of staff was stabbed at a hospital in brighton. the victim, a man in his 50s,

was attacked at the royal sussex county hospital. armed police attended the scene and the site was put into lockdown. the first mission to mars by an arab nation is preparing to lift off later today. the rocket will send the united arab emirates probe, named hope, into orbit to the red planet, to learn more about its atmosphere and weather. it's part of a plan to help the uae move away from oil and gas production, and enter the global space industry. our science correspondent rebecca morelle reports. mars is a mysterious planet. it has always fascinated people on earth. heading for the red planet, the first arab mission to mars. the united arab emirates about to make history. the spacecraft is called hope. it was built over six years, with help from american scientists. until now, the uae‘s only launched satellites to earth orbit. getting to mars is a huge leap.

feeling more nervous than anything else. we've tested and tested and tested the spacecraft to ensure it can survive every single scenario, and now all of that rests on a launch pad on top of a rocket that is destined to a planet that is millions of miles away from us. our view of mars is about to be transformed. most spacecraft that have been there have orbited around the planet's poles and very close in, but this has meant a limited view. hope is a mission with a difference. it's heading towards the equator, and in a much wider elliptical orbit, and this means it will reveal almost every part of the planet, at every time of day, in each ten—day cycle. the spacecraft will study the martian atmosphere to give us much more information about its weather and climate. even though the atmosphere on mars is around a thousand times thinner than the atmosphere on earth, we still see these weather—type events, so dust storm, clouds,

fog, lightning even, so understanding the weather on mars will help us understand more about the weather on earth. until now oil and gas have driven the uea's economy, but it is trying to diversify with its burgeoning space industry. around half of all missions to mars have failed. but the stakes are higher for this country. it's a scientific mission and failure is an option. however, failure to progress as a nation is not an option, and what matters the most here is the capacity and the capability that the uae gains out of this mission. the spacecraft will take seven months to reach mars, and if it does succeed, a new player in the global space race will have truly arrived. rebecca morelle, bbc news. now it's time for a look at the weather with nick miller.

it has been a fine end to the weekend across most of the uk. some patchy cloud but some sunshine. as this weather watcher you shows today. it complete turnaround in the weather in south—east england. cloudy, some rain. kent yesterday was the sunniest in the county, but cloudy today. this area of cloud and rain has spent three days moving south across the uk and gets out of the way. a few showers in scotland continuing into monday. high pressure is building infor into monday. high pressure is building in for most of the uk. that will settle things down. this is how the night is shaping up. the chance ofa the night is shaping up. the chance of a shower in scotland especially further north—west. patchy cloud elsewhere will fade away. rain and cloud goes from kent. most of us will have a dry, clear and quite cool night for the time of year. city centre temperatures in

mid—single figures. a lot of sunshine for monday morning. it is still strong sunshine. some patchy cloud developing. a few more showers in scotla nd developing. a few more showers in scotland through the day. most of these are north of the central belt. the chance of catching on in northern ireland and northern england. temperatures a bit below average in some spots. into the low 20s. high pressure still hanging on. into tuesday, weather fronts close by. bringing rain towards northern ireland and scotland by wednesday. tuesday, another chilly but sunny start. again, some areas of cloud. still a few showers in scotland. clouding up in northern ireland. some light rain later in the day.

temperatures close to average. some a bit