this is bbc news with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. i'm aaron safir. chanting. in belarus, huge crowds fill the streets in one of the biggest protests yet against the president. but alexander lu kashenko remains defiant, telling his supporters he won't give up his country after a week of demonstrations against his contested re—election. us house speaker nancy pelosi announces a vote to prevent changes in postal services

ahead of the election. as the democratic party prepares to hold its national convention, we take a look at how the party faithful view their presidential candidate joe biden. and in thailand, more anti—government rallies in bangkok, with student activists demanding political change and reforms to the monarchy. hello and welcome. in belarus, the largest anti—government protests since last week's disputed elections, have been taking place, with further calls for alexander lu kashenko to step down. but he's vowing to stay in power, claiming belarus is under threat from foreign forces. mr lukashenko is accused of rigging the vote

and unleashing a violent crackdown against demonstrators. it's thought as many as 100,000 people took to the streets in the centre of the capital, minsk, from wherejonah fisher, has sent us this report. a week after the disputed election, belarus is voting with their feet. the capital taken over with their feet. the capital ta ken over by with their feet. the capital taken over by 100,000 people. the only president this country has ever known, alexander lukashenko. i really hope that when he sees all these people, he will step down. do you think thatis he will step down. do you think that is likely? he has been here a long time. i hope so. do you think this sort of demonstration is going to convince the president to go?

yes, we believe it. this is why we are all here. all of minsk, all of our country. belarus has never seen all of our country. belarus has never seen demonstrations like this before. they were rare and usually brutally snuffed out by the government. now there are people marching as far as the eye can see through the centre of the capital minsk. there is a real sense of change in the air. but for now, president lukashenko clings air. but for now, president lu kashenko clings on air. but for now, president lukashenko clings on to power. this was his rally today in minsk. just a few thousand showed up, and embarrassing turnout for a man who claims to have won 80% of the vote. in a defiant speech, he rejected calls for new elections, telling his supporters that nato tanks were near the border. "leave, leave", they

chanted. exactly how they do that, is unclear. do you think the president is going to go peacefully? i'm not sure about it but we're not going away. today, tomorrow, next week, we will sit here on the streets andi will sit here on the streets and i would like to say that i was born in 1998 and i spent all my life with president lukashenko and i don't want it anymore. this was a day when ella roosy and found their voice. —— macro two. dax —— belarusians. lock voice. —— macro two. dax —— bela rusians. lock him voice. —— macro two. dax —— belarusians. lock him up, they chant, their president may have passed the point of no return. mitchell a 0renstein is professor of russian and east european studies at the university of pennsylvania. thanks forjoining us here on bbc news. we heard jonas in his report saying that lukashenko

might be past the point of no return. what do you think about? i personally believe thatis about? i personally believe that is true. i simply cannot imagine howa that is true. i simply cannot imagine how a dictator who has ruled his country so brutally over $0 ruled his country so brutally over so many years can ruled his country so brutally over so many years can stay in power when no—one's any more afraid of him. as you can see in minx today —— minsk today, thousands on the street and regime tried to brutally beat protesters for several nights that had to say they didn't have the ability or manpower to brutally beat enough people off the streets and i think that is a shocking victory for the opposition forces was a bit is the beginning of the m4 lukashenko, in my view. why do you think we're seeing many big protests now. this is hardly the first election that has been described as rigged and not the first time people have protested. why do you think they have gained so much

momentum? in your presentation and your report, i was inking, the your viewers have to understand is most likely lukashenko lost the selection massively. —— i was thinking. they claimed he won 80% of the vote was not the reality is most likely the opposite. that 80% of people voted for sviatlana 80% of people voted for sviatla na tsikhanouskaya, the main opposition candidate and lukashenko may main opposition candidate and lu kashenko may have main opposition candidate and lukashenko may have only received 6— 10% of the vote. when you take a country that everybody i think on the street knows, they all voted for the opposition and you come out and say to them, oh, a 180% of the vote. it is just, say to them, oh, a 180% of the vote. it isjust, it wasjust too much. —— i won 80%. maybe he got 45% and you can claim 60% but when the proportions are like that, everybody on the street knows he lost the election and they are not going

away, in my view. what has happened, in fact, away, in my view. what has happened, infact, is away, in my view. what has happened, in fact, is they have created a national movement probably for the first time in belarus. what you are seeing is the standing of a nation, very similarto the standing of a nation, very similar to 1989 the standing of a nation, very similarto1989 in the standing of a nation, very similar to 1989 in prague. something like that which is, i think, a unique moment for belarus. you are a professor of eastern european studies. let us eastern european studies. let us talk ruefully, if you can, about russia. the role of belarus. the mind people out on the streets. —— let us talk, if you can. allan it is a complex of russia and belarus have played an interesting dance for quite a long time. lukashenko has perfected it. russia really wa nts to has perfected it. russia really wants to dominate ella roos. russia looks at belarus as a domestic issue. —— belarus. it

has been pushing vocally and visibly, publicly, lukashenko, this year, to have more integration with russia. the path towards becoming part of russia or some kind of soviet union 2.0. lukashenko's valiant leaders resisted. playing the west off against russia, taking this way, taking that way and he in fact has maintained belarus as a relatively independent nation which is why he is making these arguments that he thinks he is belarus. "without me, belarus won't exist, i am the only one who can solve the situation". in the past, this convinced enough people but now i think the

nation has divined itself that exists without lukashenko. —— defined itself. moscow will continue to press either lukashenko, they might be using the leveraged this gives them over lukashenko and that will bea over lukashenko and that will be a difficult part of the pattern. when he is in trouble and has nowhere else to turn. inaudible russia has so many levels of influence over belarus and they can't ignore their giant neighbour on the eastern border. thanks so much for your insight here on bbc news. new zealand's general election has been postponed because of the recent outbreak of covid—19 in auckland. the poll had been due to take place in september but has been pushed back by four weeks to the 17th of october. the prime minister, jacinda ardern took

the decision after consulting the other political parties. i have sort and received advice from the electoral commission on a range of options, including retaining the current date of the 19th of september, moving the election by four weeks to the 17th of october and the final possible date the electoral commission considers the election could realistically be held, which is the 21st of november. having weighed up all these factors and taken wide soundings, i have decided on balance to move the election by four weeks to the 17th of october. at the end of last week, i was advised that this date is achievable and presents no greater risks than had we retained the status quo. i've also been advised that in moving to a 17 october election day, the commission will be able to leverage and draw much of the work already undertaken

to deliver the election. new zealand prime minister jacinda ardern. australia has recorded its deadliest day of the coronavirus pandemic after the state of victoria recorded 25 deaths in 2a hours. victoria's previous daily record was 21, recorded last wednesday. there were 282 confrimed cases in the state in the past 2a hours, the second consecutive day where the number of new cases was below 300. so far a21 people have died with covid—19 across the country. moving to the united states now. the speaker of the us house of representatives, nancy pelosi, says she's recalling the chamber later this week to vote on legislation to protect the country's postal service. there are already plans for top figures in the usps to testify before lawmakers amid allegations of widespread mail delays and potential interference by president trump.

the democrats accuse the president of trying to suppress postal voting in november's presidential election. well, in north carolina protesters gathered again outside the home of the head of the post office, postmaster general louis dejoy. mr dejoy is a supporter of donald trump and a major donor to the republican party. the protesters say he's intentionally gutting the postal service to help president trump. for more on this, i'm joined by steve herman, voice of america's white house bureau chief. thanks for your time. let us talk through what happens then. the house of representatives will be recalled, the democrats who have a majority there, will vote on a bill. it goes to the republican—controlled senate and presumably that's the end of it. well, maybe not. it really remains to be seen if they will be enough pressure put on republicans ——

republican senators to act on whatever the house presents to them. normally you would be right at something that would come from the democrat and trolled house would really not go anywhere with the republican—controlled senate. but what we know with the issue with the post office is affecting some rural district where there are republican senators who are feeling vulnerable in this november's election and they are also pushing back on what the president has been saying and what the postmaster general has been doing. it is interesting to see, the post office is obviously a very important aspect of people's daily lives. it is in the headlines was not why has this story gained so much traction? why has it gained so much enthusiasm and alarm in the us? is a bit of a perfect storm. because of the coronavirus pandemic, we're going to see a record number of people who are casting male in

or absentee ballots, something the president has been talking a lot about and keep saying absentee ballots are fine but mail—in ballots are not. where election districts mail out mass ballots to people who the president contends could be a reason for there to be fraud although there is no concrete evidence of that beyond a very, very tiny percentage. also this new postmaster general who was a political appointee donor to donald trump has been coming under a lot of suspicion and been removing sorting machines and even mailboxes in cities. he says this is all in a move to increase the efficiency of the post office which has been losing billions and billions of dollars per year and it is really not political. democrats, of course, are not buying into that and say this is just buying into that and say this isjust a move buying into that and say this is just a move to throw sand in the gears of the postal service and really cause chaos of all

these mail—in ballots that could conceivably help the president. we're talking about the us postal service in the context of the election and mail—in ballots but of course people get a lot of other stuff, people rely on the postal service for a lot of other things, medicine, social security, is there alarm around those issues, too? that is what lawmakers including republicans have been hearing from their constituents, that their medicines are not showing up. 0ther medicines are not showing up. other pieces of mail that would normally take a couple of days to get somewhere else are now taking weeks or not been delivered at all. so it is becoming, to some degree, a bipartisan issue with the president on one side, the democrats entirely on the other side but also now some republicans as well. it is interesting, we talk about divisions in the us politics and usually it is between two

parties. we have another division brewing. thanks so much for your time. stay with us on bbc news. still to come: he's not donald trump. but is that all democratic challengerjoe biden has going for him? we investigate ahead of the national convention. washington, the world's most political city, is today assessing the political health of the world's most powerful man. indeed i did have a relationship with ms lewinsky that was not appropriate. in fact, it was wrong. in south africa, 97 people have been killed today, in one of the worst days of violence between rival black groups. over the past ten days, 500 have died. czechoslovakia must be free! russia is observing a national day of mourning for the 118 submariners who died on board the kursk. we all with them now.

with — in our hearts. the pope has celebrated mass before a congregation of more than 2.5 million people in his hometown of krakow. "stay with us, stay with us", chanted this ocean of humanity. "well, well", joked the pope, "so you want me to desert rome?" this is bbc news. the latest headlines: tens of thousands of people have turned out at one of the biggest demonstrations in the history of belarus to protest against what they see as the rigged election victory claimed by president lukashenko. the speaker of the us house of representatives, nancy pelosi, has said she will recall the house to vote on legislation which would prevent changes in post office services. democrats are concerned changes would affect postal voting in november's election.

in thailand, an estimated 20,000 people havejoined a protest in bangkok calling for sweeping political reform. the thai government has successfully contained the coronavirus, but the tourism—dependent economy was badly hit and a series of other blunders have eroded its popularity. however, it is the student movement's unprecedented call for reform of thailand's monarchy which has stunned the country, where harsh laws criminalise any negative comment about the royal family. jonathan head reports. they haven't seen a protest this big in thailand since the military seized power six years ago. and for these youthful demonstrators, the military‘s influence is still too great. i's performance in government on freedom, human rights, and in managing an ailing economy is now a burning grievance. this large gathering at the monument which has always symbolised

the hopes for a real democracy in thailand is the culmination of weeks of student—led protests demanding wholesale reform of the political system. but that is not all they are demanding. they are also asking for significant changes to the monarchy, an institution that is officially viewed as sacred and untouchable. and in a country where few have even dared to broach the subject before, that is revolutionary. it is almost unimaginable. only a couple years ago, saying what the youth are now demanding on stage as part of their manifesto for reforms. they seem to be unafraid i would say. they haven't been held back by the concerns that previous generations had before, not even to talk about, not even discuss about the monarchy. complaints about the monarchy have been heard

at the protests in recent weeks. but it was the manifesto read out by this young woman at a university rally last monday that sent shockwaves through the country. for the first time, it demanded an accountable monarchy. one that limited its power and its spending. the king, making a rare visit back to thailand this week from germany, where he stayed during the covid—19 crisis, has said nothing. the prime minister, while acknowledging the students' right to protest, said he would investigate who was behind them and punish any who had broken laws. the students, though, seem undaunted by threats of prosecution or worse. we have to try to start talking about and making it a new norm for the society that it is ok to talk about the monarchy. do you think many thai people agree with your programme?

i think the silent majority itself want to talk about it, and the monarchy, because if you don't act on something or reform something, nothing will happen, and it will collapse on itself. this is a historic moment for thailand. a taboo has been broken by a younger generation who have lost faith in the old, royalist establishment and want change. it is though hard to imagine that they will be allowed to go on saying what has always been unsayable here. somali special forces say they have ended a siege at a hotel in the capital mogadishu, that was stormed by armed militants. reports say more than 20 people were killed when a car bomb exploded on the recently built elite hotel on lido

beach, which is reportedly owned by an mp and is frequented by government officials. according to one government source, more than 200 people, including cabinet ministers and members of parliament, were evacuated from the beachside hotel. the al—shabaab militant group has claimed responsibility. the democrats will host their national convention on monday, wherejoe biden will be confirmed as the party's nominee for us president in november's election. the event has been scaled down due to the coronavirus pandemic. mr biden knows there are some in the party less than enthusiatic about his nomination, particularly on the left. but there is a belief his choice of running mate, senator kamala harris, can help him unite the party and turn a healthy lead in the polls against donald trump into victory. folks, thanks, i understand there are thousands of you on this zoom... campaigning, covid style. this is a socially—distanced fundraiser. but there are no phone banks,

just thousands on a zoom call. and since kamala harris joined the ticket, the money's been pouring in. $48 million raised injust 48 hours. the excitement is palpable! at least i'm excited. but enthusiasm is hardly the right word. even among democratic voters, like these college kids. he's getting older. i don't think h's the strongest candidate that was out there, but he is the lesser of two evils, definitely. maybe not the most, like — the person i would want if i had any option, but, yeah, definitely the lesser of two evils. i'm voting for him, sadly. um, because at the end of the day, electoral politics is... it's basically damage control. and these students aren't exceptional. a newly published pew research poll asked democrats why they'd be voting for biden. a staggering 56% said it was because he wasn't donald trump. the next most important was his leadership performance. just 19% said that would be the reason for backing him.

butjoe biden has likeability. ask the owner of this diner in his home town of wilmington, where the biden family have been regulars for decades. i wouldn't just vote democratic, ijust... i'm on his side. you know, iagree with his policies and hopefully that's going to get us out of a big mess. for the past five months, joe biden has scarcely emerged from his basement hideaway in the house behind me. and keeping such a low profile, paradoxically, has served him well. his poll numbers keep going up. but, surely, in the next three months, he's going to have to campaign hard if he wants to win the presidency. trump campaign ads have sought to portray the 77—year—old as a man who is losing it. i'll make sure that we are... ..in a position that... go ahead. oh, no, probably best i don't. certainly, biden is gaffe prone. if you have a problem

figuring out whether you're for me or trump then you ain't black... and that i'm going to beatjoe biden. we hold these truths to be self—evident. all men and women created by the... you know the... you know the thing. the next vice president of the united states of america! in 2008, when a youthful barack 0bama stood with joe biden as his running mate, the optimistic and positive message was hope and, yes, we can. ready, set, go. in this strange 2020 election, not being donald trump might be joe biden's biggest plus. jon sopel, bbc news, wilmington, delaware. as we said, that convention starting on monday — plenty of coverage here starting on monday — plenty of coverage here on starting on monday — plenty of coverage here on bbc news. a reminder of our top story. an enormous crowd of opponents of belarusian president, alexander lu kashenko, has gathered in minsk to demand his resignation.

it comes amid growing anger over alleged poll—rigging, and police violence at subsequent protests. but the president vows to stay in power, claiming belarus is under threat from foreign forces. you can reach me on twitter. i'm @aaronsafir. thanks for watching bbc news. hello there. we had lots of thunderstorms across england and wales on sunday, but it's not every day you see one of these. yes, a waterspout that formed out in the bristol channel, and this was seen by a number of our weather watchers, actually, from north somerset. it was also spotted around the newport area of south wales as well. that was all associated with this low pressure that's across northern france. we can see an occlusion. this band of cloud here that brought some thunderstorms across eastern england, and they were torrential. 28 mm of rain on sunday fell in bedford. looking at the weather picture at the moment, this system, essentially,

is going to split into two bits, with this branch not really making much progress further north. that means the rain will continue to affect greater manchester, lancashire, merseyside along with wales for a time before easing later in the night. it won't really push that much farther north. that means the far north of england, northern ireland and scotland stay largely dry over the next few hours, but with low cloud. there'll be some mist and fog patches, and maybe a little bit of drizzle around some of the eastern coasts in scotland as well. for the rest of monday, the low pressure will continue to move its way in, and that will bring showers. this time, the showers will be affecting scotland and northern ireland through the afternoon, but it's further south across england and wales that the day's heaviest showers are most likely to be. 20 or30 mm in the space of an hour. again, that's enough to cause some localised flash flooding. in between those showers in the sunshine, still feeling warm, still a little on the humid side. but we're not finished

with the showery story just there, because tuesday will be another showery day. this time, the heaviest showers look more set to go in across northern england and scotland. lots of thunder and lightning, a bit of hail mixed in with some of these. fewer showers in the south. still one or two fairly pokey ones as we go into the afternoon. beyond that, we see some changes in the weather. this area of low pressure, slow—moving, will be with us for much of the rest of the week with fresher air following this cold front through. it means on wednesday, many of us start off on a dry note, but the cloud and rain will spread in across northern ireland, england and wales. eventually, it will turn a fair bit windier across the south—west. gusts of around 30—110 miles an hour, all the while staying largely dry in scotland through the afternoon with sunshine. fresher air then arrives from thursday onwards, but that's not an end to the wet story. it stays unsettled with rain or showers to take us into next weekend.

this is bbc news, the headlines: an enormous crowd of opponents of bela rusian president, alexander lu kashenko, has gathered in minsk to demand his resignation. it comes amid growing anger over alleged poll—rigging, and police violence at subsequent protests. but the president vows to stay in power, claiming belarus is under threat from foreign forces. the speaker of the us house of representatives, nancy pelosi, has said that she will recall the chamber later this week to vote on legislation to protect the postal service. democrats have accused president trump of trying to hamstring the cash—strapped postal service to suppress postal voting in november's election. new zealand's prime minister has announced that general elections due to take place in mid—september have been postponed because of a fresh covid—19 outbreak. jacinda ardern told a news conference the poll date has been pushed back to october the 17th, giving parties time