at least 17 people have died after an air india plane skidded off a runway during heavy rain, in kerala. many of the injured have been taken to local hospitals. the aircraft with around 200 people on board broke in two afterfalling down a ravine, but didn't catch fire. the lebanese shia movement, hezbollah, has denied any link to tuesday's deadly blast at the beirut port. the united nations is warning of a humanitarian disaster, with widespread medicine and food shortages. 154 people are now known to have died in the blast and thousands more were injured. union leaders are threatening industrial action, after accusing british airways of naked greed, in forcing some cabin crew out of theirjobs. others will have to sign new contracts on lower pay. the airline says the changes are needed for its survival following the coronavirus pandemic. now on bbc news.

it's time to click. this week, hong kong activists. a touch of space tourism. fire, fire! and cgi catwalks. hey, welcome to click. hope you are doing 0k. laura certainly is, because look, she has got a new friend. that's right, basil, meat spencer, spencer meet basil. hello, basil, nice to meet you, look at us we are talking to plants, that's what lockdown has done to us. yeah, that's is what it has come to. this is a small example of my amazing gardening talent. you may recall a few weeks ago i planted a whole vertical farm.

yes i do, how was it, is it still alive? yes, it's doing really well, and i think device like this or that really stop you from going wrong. because once you have got them plugged in and you make sure they don't run out of water, the device does the rest of the job. later in the programme i will show you all of the food that i have been growing. wow, thanks laura. we will come back to laura in a few minutes. first of all, we are going to hong kong. now you will probably know that there have been protests in hong kong against the chinese authorities for over a year. and now beijing has introduced new laws to crack down on civil unrest. there are fears that these will give the authorities unfettered control over the internet, and many worry that the great chinese firewall is about to be extended. danny vincent has been talking to hong kong tech activists on the front line. every day at midnight, hong kong's most prominent activist, joshua wong, live streams his updates

to the world on facebook. he is using the lifestream to report he is to his followers will stop its one small way that young activists in hong kong are using technology in the wake of the new national security law. joshua thinks the authorities are building a case against him, and arrest is imminent. we have no confidence at all to guarantee all of our speech, and all of our statements could be legal under the framework of the law. hong kong saw thousands of protesters take to the streets last year in a position to an extradition bill. they say they are now facing an even greater threat to their freedoms in the form of a new national security law. they say they're not only facing heavy policing on the streets, but also online. she is a tech activists, she sees the internet is a new battle ground. she says the new national

security law limits freedom of speech online. digital sovereignty, it's they were that china and beijing often use. they use it to describe that they have to have the right to control what information and what is available online for chinese citizens. this is how theyjustified their great firewall in china. and they are now trying to expand this kind of concept into hong kong by implementing the national security law into hong kong, they are trying to argue that they have the sovereignty over hong kong and they have the rights to control what is available on the internet. the central government says the introduction of the new law is to restore order after a year of often viole nt protests. it criminalises state subversion. punishment could mean life in prison. the law gives the authorities the power to force internet providers to delete content. china is evolving into a digital superpower.

they have a really smart and comprehensive approaches in controlling its people including hong kong years. they have the great firewall in china, and their implementing it in hong kong. not the physical infrastructure, because we have the open telecommunication system, but then they are trying to implement it through having this national security law because that will encourage platforms and their users both to censor themselves and their users, and we have limited access to information. this footage is from a lifestream of recent arrests of student activists suspected of violating the national security law. their phones and computers were taken into custody. tech activists are worried about mobile phone extraction technology used by the police force, equipment reportedly provided by an israeli company. the software allows users to access the content of mobile phones without using security features such as passwords. when the law was passed,

people were thinking of deleting telegram and replacing with something else. when you are in custody, police can still use that hardware and software to obtain your deleted messages and recover all of them. there are cases proving that messages deleted could be recovered by that software. encrypted apps like telegram were used for mass communication to organise the street demonstrations. protesters like simon say the police are using data extracting technology to build cases against young protesters. tony is an it professional, and protester. he asked us to hide his identity. he says the protesters and residents are adapting to the new changes, he says hong kong must have been deleting past messages and starting to use encrypted apps en masse. people feel empowered that their physical identities will not be traced easily to their virtual entities. it's a wise ask that people start deleting their previous messages, because it might not have existed on a safe channel

or on a secure medium. it's a prudent move that people switch to new alter egos. china and america are engaged in another tech war, donald trump is in the process of banning chinese app tik tok over national security concerns. american social media apps could be banned outright in china. hong kong seems stuck in the middle. there are fears here that this city, promised political freedoms for 50 years, maybe becoming just another chinese city. wow. ok, that was danny vincent. and danny is online with me now from hong kong. danny, how are you right now, how are you feeling? the new law was a huge shock to notjust the activists, not just the protesters, not just the tech activists but also ordinary people. that did not expect this law and changes to come about so quickly, and it feels like the city is really bracing for what comes next.

do you get the sense that you are not going to be able to report as freely from hong kong? for me as a journalist working here, the lions have simply changed almost overnight. in some ways you could say it feels even stricter than mainland china, because in the mainland at least you have a reference point. you know what can be written about, what can be said live on tv, you know what the lines are. but here in hong kong today it is not clear what the lines are. it's not clear what the future will bring, and the city in some ways it feels quite unrecognisable. to reiterate, whatever i've been to china and hong kong the difference is very stark. as soon as you cross the borderfrom hong kong into china google stops working, other services become unavailable, and it pretty much does happen at the border. so the worry may be is that, are you saying that they will extend into hong kong?

that is the fear. the issue with the law is that it is so vague that people don't know exactly how it will be interpreted, and don't know how people will be charged. don't know how quickly these further changes will be implemented. the activists right now that i have been speaking to you are confident that at least online when it comes to the apps they are using like facebook, twitter or instagram, they think it will still be able to use them for a while. people i have spoken to are also very much aware that hong kong is now caught in the middle of this new cold war essentially between washington and beijing. what is the worst case scenario that the great firewall and all of the restrictions there are unmanned in china, just extend and hong kong is subject to executive same restrictions? is the feeling of the hong kong is living on borrowed time. many people are now choosing to leave the city because they do think it's going to become just another ordinary chinese city with those types of restrictions.

listen, thanks so much for doing that report. and stay in touch. hello and welcome to the week intact. it was the week that the european commission announced it will carry out a full—scale probe into google's takeover of fitbit. nasa launched exploration rover perseverance into space as it begins its seven month journey into mars. but while that goes up, space x's crew dragons splashed down. yes, the first commercial spacecraft to travel to the international space station came straight back down to earth after a successful mission. samsung has unveiled the galaxy 2 fold two. its screen is 1.6 inches bigger than the last galaxy fold, as it's a small and federally sides with one of its biggest criticisms. and finally, the force is strong as a key scene from starwars, the empire

strikes back has inspired researchers to create electronic skin with feelings. it's made up of a network of sensors connected via a single electrical conductor. it can be used in robots or prosthetic limbs to potentially recreate a sense of touch that feels pain, temperature, shape and texture. its most recent development allows robots to read braille and classify objects. vertical farming. a controlled environment to create perfect crops, sometimes even seen in restaurants or supermarkets. now home devices allowing you to do the same on a smaller scale are growing in popularity. and in my garage. well, here is my click and grow smart garden. that is that the actual name. as you can see, everything has grown pretty nicely. when i planted it i looked at it all in the outcome at the app does not sync up

with the device, there is a bluetooth version coming soon that will do that. but it does provide a good diary function. i know i planted these 27 days ago, and i have given that advice on how long it takes for them to be ready to eat. my lettuce is ready, my tomatoes are not. never received the alert to refill the water that i should have done, but that was apparently down to a glitch in the app which i'm told has since been fixed. and walking away seeing lights left on did feel quite odd, but i was left with some really nice leaves. it will take you a few fair lettuces to get your money's worth on buying the kids, but in the uncertainty of a global pandemic, devices like this do seem to have their own appeal. i feel like i was going to battle when i went to the grocery store with my mask and my hand sanitiser, and my wife's, so it has been really nice to be able to grow

my own food here. sanitiser, and my wipes, so it has been really nice to not have to worry about that. here you see my mature plants and these are my newer plants coming in for my second harvest. new modular concepts to allow you to personalise your set up. choosing whether you want one salad shelf or two, or three. and like many of the latest grovers, this one connects to an app to remind you to add water or nutrients, or to harvest your veggies. one of the trickiest problems was getting the whole system integrated so that you can replace these trays, having it seek an add on trellises to the system, add on modular systems later, integrating all the sensor data of where the water is, and with the ph levels are in the nutrient levels. putting all that into an app. whilst big brands lg and samsung have shown off some intriguing kitchen concepts, lesser—known farmers shelf has a device that might beat them to market.

its indoor farm gives sensors and computer vision to monitor the plants, automatically providing the right amount of water and nutrients. we are collecting data on how the plants are growing and monitoring those from equations as well as the images are analysed. in the as that data set to gross we are able to automate more and more actions in the system as well as automatic notifications. and changes to the plant recipes at the plant progresses through its lifecycle. everyone smile! for communities like this women's shelter, having an on—site farm has been a lifeline through the coronavirus crisis. this huge container can house at 9000 plants to help feed her more than 1000 women and children staying there each night. food supply chains have been varyingly broken across our country.

one thing we knew that we always had with our farm. the container farm cost over $100,000, but it has certainly proved its value. we have produced in less than nine months over $40,000 equivalency, and in fresh, leafy greens and vegetables. whether it's the pandemic or just the everyday uncertainty of life in a homeless shelter, it has been a tool for learning and healing on every level. although for most of us these high—tech guardians will be more of a hobby, these self—sufficient grovers can seriously help out in applicable times. maybe needs a bit of dressing, but it's good. now then. we have 90 of earthbound worries at the moment, but that has not stopped developments in commercial space travel. spacex has successfully sent

a crew to the international space station and back again. it looks like space tourism outfit virgin galactic has been busy as well. the company recently announced partnership with engine manufacturer rolls—royce to develop a supersonicjet capable of flying at three times the speed of sound. that's one to sydney in five hours. for now the company still has its sights set on space. as mark reports. fire, fire! work continues that virgin galactic to realise its goal, the reusable space flight that allows the space tourists to experience zero g and if use of the earth from low orbit. i spoke with virgin galactic‘s chief space officer george whitesides about space flight testing during the pandemic. we had a great run so far this year, so the next flight we are going to do is just have

two pilots and a friend. soon after that employees will help us test the experience will make sure it's amazing for our customers. virgin atlantic announces plans to cut more than 3000 jobs in the uk. the economic effects of the coronavirus pandemic have caused big problems for virgin galactic‘s founder sir richard branson. have times when sir richard bra nson launched virgin atlantic. the billionaire request financial bailout from the uk government for struggling virgin atlantic, hit hard like all airlines due to the collapse of travel during the pandemic. uk's government rejected the bid. this week, a uk court also heard a carrier could run out of money if its creditors don't approve a £1.2 billion rescue package, which has now been secured through private funding. and is part of the court sanctioned process needs the creditors approval, virgin atlantic has filed chapter 15 bankruptcy protection in us courts. since the crisis began, branson has now sold

a £a05 million stake in virgin galactic, part of which has now been pumped into the airline. however the virgin group's wider albums affected virgin galactic? we were in a relatively strong financial position before the covid hit, and so we have been lucky to be in a relatively good place where all of our direct employees have been retained throughout this crisis. the pandemic means that galactic has turns to virtual reality as a means of revealing the cabin interior of its spacecraft to journalists. welcome to virgin galactic virtual reality. the vr experience for the oculus quest highlights the project achievements to date and allows the user to make galactic‘s test pilots and astronauts. my name is kelly latimer, and i'm a virgin galactic pilot. as well as giving us a virtual taste of space flight. jeremy brown is responsible for the design of the ship cabin, as well as the interior of spaceport america.

we could not be more socially distanced as he is only other side of london, but he's able to get a quick tour in the er. my vr guide gives us the lowdown on some of the cabin's main features. 17 windows on board, we provide a 360 degrees view. capturing it with 16 cameras on board. not only do we know the size of your suit and that will be perfectly fitting, but also your sneakers as well. i betjeremy farewell as i continue my space 0dyssey solo. before we blast off, i can investigate the spacecraft up close and personal with them. you really can see all the details and check them out. for me, this experience is all about getting up in the air. and the beauty of the is you can do that very, very quickly indeed. and here we are, wow. that view, that is what you pay £250,000 four.

the view of the planet earth from low orbit. even in vr, i have to say, it's pretty breathtaking. and i can do something that you can't do on a real spaceship, and that's stick my head outside of the ship. in galactic‘s recent financial quarter results call, it's of the pandemic had slowed the compa ny‘s place. its latest plans suggest sir richard branson will take a flight to space in the first quarter of 2021 with actual paying customers following later in the year. for those of us i don't have a quarter of £1 million to drop on the real thing, the vr is perhaps the closest we will get to a jaunt in low earth orbit. if you excuse me i will pop the headset back on and enjoy the view. now, the fashion industry is worth an estimated two and a half trillion dollars. and in the uk alone, nearly 900,000 people work in it.

after months of being hit away at home in our comfy clothes, fashion could be making a comeback. the issue is, how on earth can fashion shows take place? well, jen has been taking a look at how technology hopes to help. designers are getting creative with using technology in their campaigns and live events. burberry‘s photographer nick knight asked to model kendalljenner to take 200 pictures of herself at home. she was then recreated using stills and a model in a motion capture suit and a completely computer environment. and for men's paris fashion week designer is the key chain, combined images from german artist and photos of a trip to the river banks of the river ganges. along with a clothing designers there is of course a whole host of people that work on fashion shows. from soundtrack designers to make up artists

and even journalists. in fashion weeks have typically driven the cycle of demand. is that all about to change? some clearly think so and are working in this way even before the pandemic. at rebellion studios in didcot near 0xford the team is working on the post pandemic fashion show might look like. he's a world—renowned visual designer who has collaborated with artists like alexander mcqueen and beyonce. if you're working with leading company mbs to use tracking systems, led screens and coded to create experiences in mixed reality. the screen is 20 metres wide by four metres tall command over 10 million pixels here. essentially to a giant 4k screens. his team include specialist in visual effects and motion capture and motion sensory theatre.

but these models are all computer—generated along with the environments they are walking through. what really makes it cool is when he grabbed the camera we actually move around and can go into the space. so that's what makes it amazing. with the pans come you can see that the entire parallax is changing. if you are inside you can actually, i can move around the space. directly to make it feel like it's there. 0k, yeah. oh, yeah, there we are. but we will be in the space? we are in the space, 0k. working in this new it only impacts the way the fashion show is consumed by the viewer, but on what we physically can see directly met consumer. fewer governments need to be made if any as experience of fabric can be done digitally. patterns are tested before any fabric is cut or ordered. and she saw the latex trying to build a text avatar with the dress, she loved it so much

she called her pattern maker and made in latex. because she saw the possibilities. do you think this is the future because i do think it's the future. i don't think shows should cease to exist because they are important, they bring elements to the theatricality of it is amazing, but i do think that the industry needs a revolution. look at the grey dress like a really fine. and john galliano has embraced this revolution showcasing the autumn winter collection in a short film. it features zoom calls, thermal imaging cameras and an x—ray app. the technological revolution brought in by the pandemic will have long—lasting effects on the fashion industry, we may even see the end of the traditional seasonal show. that was jen, and that is it for this week. as ever you can keep up with us on social media come on youtube,

instagram, facebook and twitter @bbcclick. thanks for watching, and we will see you soon. bye— bye. hello there. for the second friday in a row, some of us have experienced some extreme heat drifting up from the near continent. in fact, the first friday of august saw temperatures peaking at 36.4 degrees in central london, and the heat was pretty widespread across the midlands, central and southern england. widely seeing those temperatures in excess of 30 degrees. that said, not for all. in parts of north—west wales and the outer hebrides we saw temperatures only at around 16 or 17 degrees, and here there were some showery outbreaks of rain.

so over the next few hours those temperatures will fall into single figures, by contrast in the south—east it's going to be a very uncomfortable night for getting a good night's sleep. we wake up on saturday morning, perhaps low to mid 20s. so that means plenty of sunshine around, albeit hazy for the weekend. we keep the heat in the south—east for some very warm nights to come, much fresher in the far north—west. that's because we are under this influence of high pressure, but there is a weak weather front slicing across the high. now this is just a band of cloud, really. maybe the odd spot of light drizzle, but it's the dividing line between the fresher air up into the north—west, and circulating around that high is a north—easterly breeze that will just make it feel a little more comfortable, perhaps, along those exposed east coasts. at the same time, after that warm and sultry start, the temperatures in the south are set to climb once again. so widely we are going to see mid to high 20s, possibly into the mid—30s once again. further north and west, that's

where temperatures should be, really, for the time of year. 17 to 22 degrees. that weather front could spark a few showers through the night, but generally speaking it will be a quiet night, and a quiet start to sunday morning yet again. again it's going to be another uncomfortable night down into the south with low 20s to greet us first thing on sunday morning. we could see a few isolated showers here and there across eastern england on sunday, but generally this weekend it's with a dry story with some hazy sunshine coming through. again, that north—easterly breeze just peppering the feel of the temperatures, really, across the east coast. highest values on sunday afternoon are 32 degrees. now that heat is set to stay with us, and it could, as we go into next week, trigger off the risk of some sharp and thundery downpours. that's it, have a great weekend.

this is bbc news. i'm james reynolds. our top stories: an air india plane with around 200 people on board skids off the runway at an airport in kerala — 17 die and dozens more are injured. the un's warning of a humanitarian disaster in lebanon. many are still missing. hundreds of thousands are made homeless. there is a massive clear up going on. they come from all over the country and the devastation here is enormous. strike action could be on the cards over british airways' plans to cut cabin crew, and their pay. and we hearfrom one of brazil's indigenous communities trying to prevent the spread of coronavirus.