this is bbc news with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. this is bbc news with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. tear gas is fired at protesters in beirut during mass demonstrations after last week's catastophic explosion in the city. here in the uk, prime minister boris

johnson says it's a "moral duty" and a "national priority" for schools to reopen fully in england next month. i'm very pleased that the prime minister is making schools a priority. i've been arguing for some time that my fear was that children were being left behind in this relaxation of lockdown. 400 taliban militants are to be released after a vote by afghanistan's loya jirga, or grand assembly, in kabul. japan remembers the victims of nagasaki, 75 years after the atom bomb was dropped on the city. in cricket, england stage a stunnng comeback to snatch victory in the first test.

international leaders will hold talks later today aimed at raising aid for lebanon following the devastating explosion in beirut five days ago. the video conference is being coordinated by france and the united nations and president trump is expected to join the call. at least 158 people died and 300,000 were left homeless when a huge store of ammonium nitrate exploded in a warehouse in the city's port. officials estimate that it caused up to $15 billion worth of damage and a crater that is 43 meters deep. today's conference of world leaders follows a day of anti—government protests. many demonstrators called for the government's resignation — and even for revolution. 0ur middle east correspondent

tom bateman is in beirut. huge anger there understandably on the streets, but will anything change? well, they are still clearing up here. we have seen a site that has not become symbolic of the aftermath of the blast, people with their own brooms and shovels. this morning they had been clearing up this morning they had been clearing up here in march's square after the demonstrations last night. this was the focal point. we saw demonstrators search from here down several streets towards the parliament building that the security forces had barricaded. the protesters were met with tear gas and rubber bullets. they occupied several ministries as the evening went on, but after about ten o'clock things began to melt away, really. we started protesters disappeared at that point. there are more calls for

protest today, calls for resignations and revolution continue. after the heat was taken out of the corner of it last night, it doesn't feel like it has the momentum at the moment. of course, the anger is so strongly felt. this is such a volatile situation. the coming days will be decisive in terms of the direction this country ta kes. terms of the direction this country takes. we have this aid conference today. what exactly does beirut need? we today. what exactly does beirut need ? we know today. what exactly does beirut need? we know that there are so many people homeless, so many people injured and so much devastation in the city, but what exactly is beirut asking for? it needs vast amounts of international aid. it simply can't cope with the skill of this on its own, an infrastructure that was already on its knees well before the blast. losses have been estimated at somewhere in the region of $15 billion. there is this international aid conference today being hosted

online by french president emmanuel macron. the problem is where the money goes. everyone you speak to here says they simply don't want the eight going into the hands of their politicians. they believe that their political leaders are corrupt elite that does not have the interests of their country at heart. that is something that the french president has reflected, saying he has a determination that money should go to the people on the ground. that is extremely challenging. you can simply bypass an entire national government. it remains to be seen how there will be done. people have little trust in their political leaders. here in the uk, prime minister boris johnson says getting all pupils in england back to school in september is now a "national priority". he also insists that schools will take priority over pubs, shops and restaurants in any future coronavirus lockdowns. here's our political

correspondent nick eardley. for many children across the uk, it's been months now since they set foot in a school. the coronavirus lockdown has led to warnings of young people falling behind. in england, an attempt to get pupils back in the classroom before the summer break failed. but the prime minister has now made a full return next month, a key test for his government. he writes today in the mail on sunday: borisjohnson adds: the government has been warned, though, that reopening one part of society might require compromises in others. we have probably reached near the limit or the limits of what we can do in terms

of opening up society, so what that means, potentially, is if we wish to do more things in the future, we may have to do less of some other things, and these will be difficult trade—offs, some of which will be decisions of government and some of which are for all of us, as citizens, to do. i also understand mr johnson has made it clear when schools do reopen, they should only close again if absolutely necessary. he's told ministers shops, pubs and restaurants would be expected to close before schools if there are local lockdowns in the future. the pm also believes the harm done to education prospects and mental health is far more damaging than the risk posed to young people by the virus. there are still questions being asked about what the return of schools will look like, but the government has made it its national priority in the coming weeks. nick eardley, bbc news. the children's commissioner for england, anne longfield, said schools have been working "flat

out" to ensure they can reopen safely. well, i'm very pleased that the prime minister is making schools a priority. i've been arguing for some time that my fear was that children we re time that my fear was that children were being left behind in this relaxation of lockdown. they can go to the park, they didn't go to youth clubs, many couldn't go to school and many couldn't learn because they didn't have that home environment or the technology to do so. my argument was that children needed to be made a priority. of course the economy is very, very important for children's education is, too, and that will have an impact on the economy, so i'm very pleased that this has been stated very clearly and i we seem to be followed through to september to make it a reality. let's speak to geoff barton, the general secretary of the association of school and college leaders. thank you for being with us. the

prime minister has written an article for the mail on sunday saying it is a moral duty for the country to reopen schools, a national priority. do you agree with that, are you pleased the prime minister has said that?|j that, are you pleased the prime minister has said that? i think a lot of people will read that and wonder why it was not a priority early on. what the article essentially says in a slightly petula nt to essentially says in a slightly petulant to is telling us three things. one is that number ten has a nice little primary children will go back into school, and the next day the government because ‘s and guidance make that possible because of the conditions itself. secondly, it is not a good look for a government that seems to be encouraging people to go to pubs and restau ra nts encouraging people to go to pubs and restaurants when its children are sitting at home. thirdly, by blaming the unions for all of this, the same trade union support with the welsh government where every child has been able to go back into school before the summer holiday because we

have the moral imperative to do it. there is a lot of talk from the government behind—the—scenes about this trade—off if it comes to act that the government would rather shot down pubs and restaurants and schools, that schools would have to priority. do you welcome back? it seems to be a very bizarre analogy. running a school is very different from running a pub, partly because you have a responsibility for 1500 children and young people in my case. you couldn't stand at the door and say, sorry, this colour is full, you can comment. 0ur and say, sorry, this colour is full, you can comment. our members have been working to get the schools ready for the autumn. yesterday, the schools minister said more money was going into school transport. what does that mean? my school had 22 buses. they wouldn't be picking up children in particular year groups.

again, it feels like corporaljones, as if the government is always on the back foot, putting us in the position to try to make sense of their guidance. it is a little bit rich for us to be hearing the prime minister saying this is a priority. it should have been a priority right from the beginning. looking ahead and thinking if the scientific advice is only a certain amount of social interaction as possible because the virus is rising again, then schools will have a priority. surely that is welcome. it is. but the implication with this is the community transmission, what are the implications. the schools minister yesterday appeared to be saying that when they are sitting on the school bus children have to wear lace masks, but when they get into school they shouldn't be wearing them. we

need absolute clarity. we need a plan b if it is the case that schools to close down the particular areas, let's work through the details of that so that parents feel reassured that the right people are taking the right decisions. thank you for your time this morning. thank you for your time this morning. britain's home office has formally requested the royal navy's help to deal with migrants attempting to cross the english channel from france. a total of 151 people reached the uk via small boats yesterdaym following record numbers earlier in the week. simonjones is in doverfor us. it isa it is a lovely morning here in dover. conditions in the channel are very calm once again. yesterday, 15 boats managed to reach the uk. in the past three days more than 500 migrants have made the crossing.

judging by what we are seeing at the moment, more are likely to do so today. dine at the port we have seen border force staff arrived. it in the channel there is a border force vessel that is likely to bring migrants back to shore. there has been talk from the british government of using the navy to try to stem this issue. it is not exactly clear what the navy would do. there is some suggestion that the navy could try to turn boats back at sea, to act as a deterrent, but for that to happen to british government would need the permission of the french authorities if this was to take place in french water. also, could potentially be dangerous, a lot of these craft are overloaded, sometimes not seaworthy. the idea of doing this has been welcomed by the local mp. these are incredibly dangerous crossings and life has already been lost on this small boats route. it is absolutely critical that, for the safety of the migrants

in northern france, that we bring an end to this dangerous trafficking route. for me, that has three parts. the first is that france needs to stop these boats leaving the french shores in the first place. the second is that whereever the boats are picked up in the channel, they need to be returned back to france. the third is if people do make our shores through this illegal route, they need to be returned swiftly and promptly. so, the mp talking there about the french needing to do their bit. the french needing to do their bit. the french according to one up today's newspaper says, actually, we need a lot of money to do that, you have to give us £30 million. yes, a lot of this comes down to hard cash. in recent yea rs this comes down to hard cash. in recent years britain has given the french government millions and millions of pounds to try to deal

with the issue. initially, that involved improving security at the port of calais and also eurotunnel, but as a result of that, migrants are increasingly trying to get across the channel by boat. we have heard from french officials that if they want to step up surveillance along the french coastline, they are going to need more british money to do that. another development today is that the home secretary has created a new role. it is the clandestinely channel threat commander. the idea is the person responsible for this, a man called dan 0'mahony, will be responsible for trying to stem the tide. he is a former royal marine, he has previously served in iraq and kosovo, and he has said what he wa nts to kosovo, and he has said what he wants to do initially his try to tackle the heinous crime being perpetrated by people traffickers. he also says this is a very pressing issue. he could have the help of the

british military in coming weeks, but others have tried that before and it will not be an easy task. the headlines on bbc news: tear gas is fired at protesters in beirut during mass demonstrations after last week's catastophic explosion in the city. security officials say the blast left a crater 43 metres deep. here in the uk, prime minister borisjohnson says it's a "moral duty" and a "national priority" for schools to reopen fully in england next month. 400 taliban militants are to be released after a vote by afghanistan's loya jirga, or grand assembly, in kabul. the coronavirus death toll in brazil has reached 100,000 on the same day that the country registered a total of three million cases. it's the worst hit country after the united states and there's no sign of the virus slowing down. gail maclellan reports.

grief. as south america's largest country passes 100,000 deaths due to coronavirus. infections have reached the three million mark. experts say the official figures are most likely an undercount and they estimate the total number could be up to six times higher due to insufficient testing. translation: this dramatic situation is notjust a consequence of the seriousness of the illness, but also from the complete disorganisation of federal institutions for the adequate confrontation of the disease. anger has focused on the president, jair bolsonaro, who has played down the virus from the start, despite falling victim to it himself. he called it the ‘little flu' and flouted all medical advice for prevention of the virus.

earlier this week, he said he was sorry for all the death but suggested everyone carry on with their life. a message that some took to heart, flocking to clubs and bars and ignoring face coverings and social distancing. at the urging of the president, the country is focusing on reopening and people are returning to work. this, despite the fact that the pandemic is not yet near its peak. on rio's copacabana beach, activists marked the moment. red balloons to remember the 100,000, and the numbers still climb. a grand council of elders, or loya jirga, in afghanistan has approved the release of 400 taliban prisoners, hoping the move will bring progress in peace talks. the council includes both afg hanistan‘s elected leaders, ashraf ghani and abdullah abdullah, and it agreed to the release after meeting for a third day in kabul.

the government has already complied with taliban demands to release several thousand other prisoners but the remaining 400, described by the government as "serious criminals", had become a sticking point. let's talk now to our south asia editorjill mcgivering. how significant is this decision to release these 400 prisoners?m seems very significant. there is a real sense of sudden movement again and hopes of the peace process after and hopes of the peace process after a long time of stalemate. as you say, the government has already released nearly 5,000 taliban prisoners, but these 400 proved a sticking point and it didn't seem that they would find a way forward. there are people accused of things like murder, kidnapping, drug trafficking. basically, the government has tried to come up with a way around it, the offered

substitutes for example, but the taliban held firm and they said if you don't release these 400, there can be no process. there is a sudden sense of movement and there is the chance of talks beginning in a matter of days. so, this obstacle to the peace talks has been removed. what are the chances of successful round of peace negotiations? how close are we to a breakthrough? certainly closer than we were yesterday. the fact that the loya jirga has come behind this will be seen as significant for a lot of people watching this in afghanistan. the loya jirga did people watching this in afghanistan. the loyajirga did come up with a few conditions that will be carefully watched and appreciated by a lot of afghans. they said they wa nted a lot of afghans. they said they wanted a permanent ceasefire to be in place between both parties before those talks take place. it doesn't give long to negotiate that. we have

had short—term ceasefires in the past and they have been very successful, they held. a permanent one would do a lot to reassure people that consume living in a positive direction. they also talked about human rights and say what they do sit down for talks they want the rights of women, of religious groups, ethnic minorities to form pa rt groups, ethnic minorities to form part of those discussions, so a key message there. it is 75 years since the us dropped two atomic bombs on the cities of hiroshima and nagasaki injapan, leading to the end of the second world war. a bell rang out to commemorate the moment the second bomb struck nagasaki 75 years ago. it's estimated that 74,000 people died in nagasaki, on 9th august, 1945, in addition to the 170,000 when the first atom bomb was dropped

on hiroshima three days before. the bombs led to japan's surrender in world war two, but the radiation from the bombs caused the deaths of thousands in the months and years that followed. those who survived are called ‘hibakusha' in japanese. terumi tanaka is one of them. he was a 13—year—old school pupil when the bomb was dropped in his hometown, and recalls the moment of the explosion. translation: all of a sudden i heard a big sign, i didn't know what the sign was. but as soon as i thought i heard the big sign, my surroundings turn bright white. people say it was a flash, but for me everything turned bright white. i didn't hear a sign, soi turned bright white. i didn't hear a sign, so i was surprised. ifelt this was something terrible so i ran

downstairs and ducked. i covered my ea rs downstairs and ducked. i covered my ears and closed my eyes and the moment i ducked down i lost consciousness. in the current ruins of their worships of that assembled human beings. rescuers haven't arrived after three days, so those who couldn't leave due to serious injuries were severe burns and haven't receive help or hunched, lying on the ground. maika nakao is a historian at nagasaki university. she joins us from vienna. tell us about the commemorations on the 75th anniversary in nagasaki.|j couldn't attend the commemoration

event physically today but i watched it online. because of covid, the celebration was much smaller than normal —— commemoration. it is very meaningfulfor the normal —— commemoration. it is very meaningful for the survivors and the people in nagasaki. in terms of what people in nagasaki. in terms of what people feel they are now, how much anti—american sentiment is there in nagasaki, if any? in my opinion, i feel many people are not so much feeling hostility towards the us, people don't have that kind of feeling. they want a peaceful, nuclear free world, that is more important for the people of nagasaki. of course, the two bombs falling very close to each other, but in terms of the casualties, and

also in terms of the bombs, they we re very also in terms of the bombs, they were very different attacks, won't they? yes, yes. the difference between the two cities are quite substantial because the bombing of nagasaki was second. it is said that there was no strategic meaning for there was no strategic meaning for the bombing of nagasaki, so some people felt that the bombing of nagasaki is more cruel and harder to understand. in addition, the bomb was dropped in an area of nagasaki that was known as the centre of the christian community. thank you very much indeed for talking to us this morning on the 75th anniversary.

the 75th anniversary of the dropping of the atomic bomb on nagasaki. you are watching bbc news. the number of companies in the uk planning mass redundancies injune was five times higher than during the same period last year, according to figures obtained by the bbc under a freedom of information request. airbus, royal mail and hsbc were among nearly 1,800 firms which announced job cuts injune. here 5 our business correspondent katy austin. the number of companies planning mass redundancies injune was five among the businesses which announced redundancy plans in june were airbus, centrica and the restaurant group, the owner of frankie & benny's. there are fears of furtherjob

losses when the furlough scheme ends in october, and firms planning to make 20 or more staff redundant have to notify the government. data obtained by the bbc through a freedom of information request shows a steep rise in the number of positions being considered for redundancy between march and june this year. injune, the government was notified of plans to cut over 139,000 jobs in england, wales and scotland, although information from 79 firms wasn't available when the numbers were compiled. injune last year, the number was 24,000 planned job cuts and far fewer employers planned them. there are a number of industries that have been directly affected by the crisis where demand won't be returning, and they are now starting to lay people off. that is particularly the case in hospitality and in transport. but then i think this is also showing those industries that are having to restructure now, because underlying changes are being accelerated, and particularly in retail, the move to online shopping, the move away from high street shopping is driving quite significant restructuring in retailers. so, some of those jobs won't come back. the redundancy process takes time, which helps to explain why official redundancy figures gathered by the office for national statistics don't yet show a significant rise. however, employers often end up making fewer

redundancies than the original number they notify. in response to the bbc‘s findings, the department for work and pensions said the government's plan forjobs would give business the confidence to recruit and retain workers, and that new, subsidised jobs for young people would be created through the kick—start scheme. katy austin, bbc news. the operator of the stranded japanese tanker that ran aground off mauritius leaking tons of oil into the indian ocean has publicly apologised for what environmentalists are calling an "ecological disaster". a state of emergency was declared in mauritius after the tanker — operated by mitsui osk lines — began leaking tons of oil into an area close to a coral reef. the executive vice—president apologised "profusely and deeply for the great trouble we have caused" and added that the company would do "everything in their power to resolve the issue." we'll be taking an in—depth look at the papers with our reviewers

james rampton, from the independent, and rosamund urwin, senior reporter at the sunday times. that's coming up after the latest headlines and a full sport update. now it's time for a look at the weather with stav danaos. hello, there. part two of the weekend to stand very warm and humid for most of us, particularly england unveiled. this is where we will see the highest temperatures, particularly in the south—east. we started on a grey note for parts of england and wales thanks to this low cloud and mist which is continuing to burn back to the east coast to the afternoon. a good steak grey, cool and breezy on the east coast. elsewhere, we will see plenty of sunshine. very warm and humid in the south—east. tonight we may see the cloud return to eastern parts of the

uk, may as shower or thunderstorm developing across northern and western areas, but most cases will be dry. it will be a one night to come, particularly in england and we are is, very muggy in the south—east. tomorrow will stay warm and humid, but there is an increasing chance of thunderstorms, some of which could be severe, so stay tuned to the forecast.