this is bbc news. i'm lewis vaughan jones, with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. police and protesters clash on the streets of beirut. france's president calls for "profound change" from lebanon's leadership and an international investigation, as he visits beirut after tuesday's explosion. taking aim at the national rifle association — new york's attorney general accuses the group of fraud and attempts to disband it. a landslide at the ballot box in sri lanka, but the ruling party's win sees little celebrations among human rights campaigners. and as italy struggles to draw back the tourists, new ways to try to make visitors feel safe.

hello and welcome to the programme. the people of lebanon have vented their mounting fury at the government for what they believe is negligence that led to the huge explosion in beirut on tuesday, leaving swathes of the city in ruins. crowds gathered around the french president, emmanuel macron, as he visited the stricken port area. mr macron, whose country shares close colonial ties with lebanon, called for a new political order in the country. the blast killed at least 137 people and injured around 5,000 more. from beirut, our correspondent quentin sommerville reports. france's president said he was here to bring home truths to lebanon's politicians.

he received an earful of them in beirut‘s gemmayzeh neighbourhood. woman shouting. they stopped clearing up their shattered homes and streets, and begged for help. please help us! please, please! do something about us! the french president is being pulled in all directions behind me, there is a great deal of anger here among the lebanese people. some are calling for a revolution. others are telling them that there needs to be political change in this country. most are just asking for help. their own president, they declaimed as a terrorist. and as they've demanded for nearly a year now, they called for a revolution. one woman, angry that the government wasn't doing enough to find the dead and injured, let rip. in the country's hour of need, it was a foreign leader who listened. few lebanese politicians dare get this close. the french president

spoke to aida heosh. he said, "you must try," our best again and again. we shall do this because for our children, the future of our children, because... we are all desperate because we have had enough. we are hopeless in this country. every time we try to do some project or... we don't have dreams any more. we don't have dreams. translation: we know that the crisis here is serious and implies a historical responsibility on the part of the leaders in place. it is a political, moral, economic, and financial crisis of which the lebanese people are the first victims. but some in lebanon can't yet worry about the future. they‘ re too lost in the present. this family hold a vigil outside the gates of the docks. they take it in turns. zeinab is searching

for her husband, ali. he had a good job until lebanon's economic crisis. two months ago, he started work at the port forjust a few dollars a day. "we've been here for days," she told me. "no one came to hear our cries and no one tells us "whether he's alive or dead. "if it was any of their sons missing, they would be "moving heaven and earth. "for us, no one has showed up." this was lebanon's lifeline to the world and it's now in ruins. this is what's left of the country's electricity provider. it barely functioned before the explosion. rebuilding this will take billions — whole neighbourhoods have been abandoned. a job like this will require international effort. and tonight, the anger boils over again. more fury at the leaders who don't appear to be listening.

the response in lebanon's hour of need was more tear gas. the government's incompetence has brought tragedy here. it may unleash much more. quentin sommerville, bbc news, beirut. new york's attorney general has filed a major lawsuit against the us national rifle association, in an attempt to dissolve the group. top officials are accused of funding their lavish lifestyles by corruption and misspending. the nra's defence of the right to bear arms gives it huge cultural and political influence in the us. 0ur north america editor jon sopel has more. that protesters can freely walk the streets of america armed to the teeth is largely down to the formidable power of the national rifle association, arguably the most influential lobbying organisation in the us. the right to bear arms is their cause but how the nra has been spending its money has led to them coming under distinctly unfriendly fire

from the new york attorney general. just a few minutes ago, my office filed a lawsuit against the national rifle association, to dissolve the organisation in its entirety. she paints a picture of wild indulgence. they use millions upon millions of dollars from the nra for personal use, including for lavish trips for themselves and their families, privatejets, expensive meals, and other private travel. the national rifle association also spends fortunes backing like—minded candidates in elections and none is more like—minded than donald trump. coincidentally, the nra announced today it would be spending millions in the battleground states supporting the president, attacking his opponent, joe biden. donald trump has never sought to hide his admiration for the nra leadership. i am thrilled to be here in indiana with the men

and women of the nra. you are great american patriots. but today he tried to switch the focus away from their excesses, to what a joe biden presidency might mean for gun rights. he is following the radical left agenda. take away your guns, destroy your second amendment, no religion, no anything. hurt the bible, hurt god. he's against god, he's against guns. millions of ordinary americans own and carry weapons and go to gun shows like this one in the same way you would a garden centre or diy store. can i just walk out with it if i give you the money? if you give me the money and show me your driver's license. but after every mass shooting, there is a familiar chorus for gun control. the move by new york's attorney general won't bring a swift demise to the nra, but it will ensure that guns will be a well—trodden cultural battleground come this november's election. jon sopel, bbc news, virginia.

live now to our north america correspondent, david willis. what are than some of the allegations against these leaders in the nra. letitia james paints a picture of almost back and aryan behaviour. particularly by the vice president, who she accuses along with three other top officials of basically squandering $60 million plus over the course of the last three years on lavish gifts, private jets and trips to the bahamas and so on. indeed letitia james made the point she believes that the organisation is so corrupt, the only way of remedying that it which she is seeking to do.

this is of course a highly political. the nra traditionally supports republican politicians and causes. letitia james, i may not need to tell you, is a democrat. on that politic, it is interesting, donald trump it has been one of his montrose to say that his opponentjoe biden wa nted say that his opponentjoe biden wanted to take away the right to the second amendment. ———— mantra. this case is supposed to be completely separate from politics. how will you enter the political point now? —— how will he. with less than three months ago until the presidential election, and at the time when the nra, this powerful lobby group, has come under pressure in the wake of some high profile school

shootings here, scrutiny over its finances, the former president 0liver its finances, the former president oliver north, remember him, departed the organisation last year and this lawsuit is seen as the biggest threat yet to the future existence of the nra. the new york attorney general is effectively looking to put the organisation out of business and characteristically, the nra is fighting back, filing a lawsuit of its own. what this means is that we will see gun—control becoming an issue once again in the presidential election as it has indeed in previous presidential elections and this could all be the subject of a long, drawnout legal battle that will go on way beyond the presidential election and possibly last for many years. i was a big issue in the us. thank you, david. sri lanka's president, gota baya raja pa ksa, has secured a landslide victory in the country's parliamentary election.

results so far suggest he's close to a two—thirds majority as he seeks to formally install his elder brother as prime minister. 0ur correspondent, anbarasan ethirajan has the details. president gotabaya president gota baya rajapa ksa has one a landslide victory in the parliamentary elections. so far it indicates, seen here during his campaign, has taken his party to a two—thirds majority he and his brother. we we re very majority he and his brother. we were very certain however we can see that people have placed a lot of confidence on us because of the future plans we have placed without manifesto. the opposition had no answers to the gotabaya rajapaksa juggernaut. if you look at the southern province, almost 100%

has voted with the government so has voted with the government so that shows what the slogan and platform is, . so that shows what the slogan and platform is,. it is not a big surprise for sri lankans but, at the same time, human rights activist i have concerns about the government trying to change the constitution including giving more powers to the president and if that happens that could lead to greater authoritarianism. the two brothers are popularfor defeating that tommy 0ar rebels in 2009. thousands went missing in the wall. tamil. there is a lack of political will to change and move on. u nfortu nately, change and move on. unfortunately, there are people who still remember that because

they have lost loved ones, family members, property. the priority for the new government will be to revive the economy and generatejobs. will be to revive the economy and generate jobs. that will be to revive the economy and generatejobs. that may prove to be more challenging than winning the election. anbarasan ethirajan, bbc news. stay with us on bbc news. still to come: a rodent returns — england's first wild population of beavers for 400 years get the green light to stay. the question was whether we want to save our people and japanese, as well and win the war, or whether we want to take a chance on being able to win the war by killing all our young men. the invasion began at two o'clock this morning. mr bush, like most other people, was clearly caught by surprise. we call for the immediate and unconditional withdrawal of all the iraqi forces. 100 years old and still full

of vigour, vitality and enjoyment of life. no other king or queen in british history has lived so long, and the queen mother is said to be quietly very pleased indeed that she's achieved this landmark anniversary. this is a pivotal moment for the church as an international movement. the question now is whether the american vote will lead to a split in the anglican community. this is bbc news. the latest headlines: police and protesters clash on the streets of beirut as grief turns to anger following tuesday's explosion. france's president calls for "profound change" from lebanon's leadership, and an international investigation as he visits

the damage—hit capital. to africa now, we are confirmed coronavirus cases have reached 1 coronavirus cases have reached i million. take a look at this graph comparing some of the worst affected countries on the continent. as you can see, cases are running higher in egypt and then much higher in south africa. i'm a correspondence across the continent have been monitoring the virus‘s spread over the last few months. we begin with south africa. just over 3 million people have been tested for coronavirus in south africa, which recorded its first case five months ago. about 8000 people have died, and just over half a million people have tested positive for the virus. africa's most industrialised nation announced the nationwide lockdown at the end of march to prevent the spread of covid—i9, but it has now eased restrictions to boost economic activity. but infections peaked as restrictions eased, and in mozambique, about half the

people tested positive for coronavirus have recovered fully, but less than 20 fatalities reported. there's been a 30 day state of emergency to prevent the spread of coronavirus. the country president has imposed another 30 days state of emergency to prevent the spread of coronavirus. they have followed the example of them and people are not complying with covid—i9 regulations because of alcohol. let us now go to egypt. the first african country to record a case back in february. the latest from the capital, cairo. egypt, one of the worst hit countries, has experienced a sharp drop in the number of infections and deaths in recent days, according to official figures. but the government has been constantly criticised for not doing enough tests. the authorities have called on the people here to wear face masks in public places and commit

to social distancing. but very few seem to abide by these rules. the borders have been open now and tourists are back. egypt depends on tourism as at a major source of income. and so do other north african countries like tunisia and morroco, have witnessed a sharp spike in numbers as restrictions have been largely eased. numbers are rising and this does not come as a surprise to libya, the country has been suffering from internal fighting and divisions for years. medicalfacilities are quite unprepared. these countries are quite worried about a potential second wave of the virus. the world health 0rganization says one of the african countries fuelling the surge is kenya.

nairobi. the most affected region, more than 84,000 covid—i9 cases have been reported here. in east africa, kenya, ethiopia and sudan have the highest number of covid—i9 cases. this is been contributed to increased testing and reopening of the economy by various heads of state. kenya, ethiopia, rwanda and uganda have conducted more than 200,000 covid—i9 tests. and like south africa, where healthcare workers are going into the community looking for symptomatic cases, governments here are conducting targeted testing, focusing on a particular population or an area that a cluster of cases. the african cdc is concerned about the cases

being reported in kenya, ethiopia and sudan, where cases arising fast. it is also urging the tanzanian government to share its statistics on covid—i9, and we're still waiting for data for the past three months. let us cross over to nigeria where my colleague chris will share what governments in west africa are doing to contain the spread of covid—i9. in west africa, some countries are seeing what looks like leveling of the curve, but some are also witnessing a rise in cases of covid—i9. nigeria now has a4,890 cases, with over 32,000 of them already discharged. and 927 deaths so far. the last few days, the number of cases in nigeria has been reducing, but the minister of health says it's not time to rejoice because it's too early to be thinking

that the curve is flattening. next, more than i next, more thani million americans are filed for unemployment benefits for the 20th week in a row as the coronavirus continues to take a heavy toll on the economy. about 60 million workers are still receiving benefits, more than double the last week during the financial crisis in 2008. monthly figures released on friday are expected to show that recovery in the us labour market lost momentum in july that recovery in the us labour market lost momentum injuly as virus cases surged. all this week bbc news has been looking at the impact of coronavirus on travel and tourism. italy was the first european country to be badly hit by the virus, with the north of the country seeing the north of the country seeing the most cases. 0ur correspondent mark lowen has been to tuscany, a popular destination for british tourists, see if the region is recovering. as chianti's grapes ripen, its tourism is turning sour. if only business at the antinori vineyard looked as promising as this year's harvest.

visitors are trickling back, but few foreigners. these big casks are quite typical of chianti... the family has been making wine here since 1385. the 26th generation to run it says she's never seen it so bad. the british market has always been very, very important in terms of tourism and in terms of work as well. the only replacement we've had was the italians, so we lost like 90% of tourism here. it's very big. we've never lived anything like this, in my generation i've never lived anything like this. this is like a war. so, it is like being after the war. in nearby florence, it's usually hard to move for august tour groups. no longer. the first western country crushed by coronavirus is emerging scarred, with tourism — i3% of italy's economy — expected to drop by half this year. the lucky ones see an uncrowded treasure. we was meant to be on honeymoon in bali, which got cancelled,

and when we saw italy was now available to travel to, we'd always said we wanted to come to italy and we thought, help out the travel industry at the moment and it's so quiet here at the moment, we felt really reassured. at the uffizi gallery, thermal scanners are the new installation. just half the pre—covid capacity can now visit the renaissance gems, meaning you're often alone with leonardo — an opportunity for change, says the director. we also have the chance to really rethink our model of tourism. i don't think that we really would want to return to the point of last year, to have over—tourism, people in the museums that just come to take some snapshots and selfies and then rush out. next door, they're trying out new methods. well, this is an extra covid measure that florence cathedral has brought in, a special device that's given to you already disinfected, you hang

it around your neck and then, if you get closer than 1.8 metres to the person next to you, it vibrates. ingenious. this is the first place in the world to introduce it and several cathedrals in britain have already been in touch, saying they want the same. there is suffering in beauty and art. and this city of both is now feeling it. mark lowen, bbc news, florence. now, irritant returns. beavers vanished from england over 400 yea rs vanished from england over 400 years and have been gradually reintroduced over the last decade. 15 families have now been given the permanent rate to stay in their new home in devon. it's a trial to see what impact they will have on the wildlife and people around them. our correspondent claire marshall has more. it's dust on the river otter. they were born here in the wild, the first 400

or 500 since they —— 400 or 500 yea rs or 500 since they —— 400 or 500 years since they were hunted to extinction. it's unknown how the survivors escaped captivity. they don't seem to be bothered by us. they are shaping the river, but it goes much wider than that.|j shaping the river, but it goes much wider than that. i think people are starting to see natural solutions to some of the big problems we face, and beavers are not going to solve everything, but they can be pa rt everything, but they can be part of a natural solution to a lot of the issues we face. that is the government's conclusion, too. the environment minister visited their habitat in east devon to make the announcement. she believes this project could influence how farmers and landowners are subsidised after the uk leaves the european union. if he wants more diverse habitats to work alongside with our farming and our healthy and sustainable food production, then natural management

systems like this that the beavers can provide are one of the answers that farmers could be paid to have the beavers on their land. but they are rodents and they do cause problems. scotland's beavers were given protected status last year, but some farmers said they were ruining valuable land. and dozens have since being culled. the angling trust feels not enough research has been done. that mammal was here a long time ago and our rivers have changed since then. are they at the moment in a fit place for a mammal like the beaver to be reintroduced ? despite some worries, a lost character of the past is now gliding into our present. claire marshall, bbc news, devon. and just before i go, let's ta ke and just before i go, let's take a look at these live pictures to show you the reaction right around the world to events in lebanon stop christ the redeemer, the famous statue there lit up in the lebanese flag. that's it for

me. you can reach lebanese flag. that's it for me. you can reach me on twitter. i am lewis vaughan jones and this is bbc news. goodbye. hello. friday brings some weather deja vu, with temperatures soaring once again. one week on from last friday, this is how it looked at the start of the day. the uk was set to record its third—highest temperature on record. so, here we go again this friday. heat surging up from the south. not everybody‘s going to get it, but the hottest area — around london — could reach 36 celsius. and unlike last friday, this is the start of several days of heat, so for parts of england and perhaps wales, the start of a heat wave. but, again, not everybody will get it. this weather front for northern ireland, into scotland, will bring some outbreaks of rain and keep temperatures into the low 20s. pretty warm and muggy start to friday. some cloud around, a lot of sunshine from the word go through central and eastern england. but for northern ireland and

scotland, here comes the rain. maybe some heavy and thundery bursts pushing eastwards during the day. i think parts of the east and south—east of scotland will stay largely dry until the evening. there may well be some misty low cloud hanging on towards some western coasts of england and wales. could be a bit drizzly in places here, but for the bulk of england and wales, it'll be sunny, though the cloud increasing in southern england may just bring the odd sharp shower later in the day. but, really, it's about those temperatures in england and wales. very warm to hot. parts of the midlands, eastern and south—east england in excess of 30 celsius, and exceptionally hot in the hottest parts of south—east england, where, of course, after such a very warm to hot day, it'll be very warm overnight and into saturday morning through a large part of england and wales. even where you have clear skies, difficult for sleeping. but as that weather front has pushed on and cleared away from scotland and northern ireland, some cooler, fresher air here, and some actuallyjust dip into single figures as saturday begins. high pressure in control on saturday. that means a lot of fine weather to start the weekend. plenty of sunshine. bit of a breeze just kicking in towards some of these north sea coasts will actually take

temperatures back down a bit from friday. even where it was so very hot, you may not be quite as hot on saturday, not so much, i think, as many people would notice. it is still very warm to hot across a large part of england and wales. 0vernight and into sunday for england and wales, the growing chance of seeing a few showers and thunderstorms break out, but many places will still stay dry and have a fine sunday. quite a range of temperatures across the uk, but it's those hottest parts of england and wales that will see the heat continue into the start of the week.

this is bbc news. the headlines: police and protesters clash outside the parliament building in the the lebanese capital, beirut, as grief turns to anger after tuesday's explosion in the city. people there accuse the lebanese government of negligence and say corruption and mismanagement led to the deadly blast, which killed more than a 130 people. france's president is the first foreign leader to visit the country since the disaster. he was mobbed people pleading for help and asking that those responsible face justice. emmanuel macron called for a "profound change" in lebanon's leadershio and an international investigation. the state of new york is suing the powerful gun lobby, the national rifle association, with the intention of dissolving it. state attorney general letitia james accused the organisation of financial mismanagement. the nra has called the lawsuit "baseless and desperate"

the coroner at the inquest into the death