another country. a very warm welcome to bbc news, my name is mike embley with the latest headlines for view within the uk and around the world. president trump's nominee to the us supreme court evades questions from senators including kamala harris, discussed laws on abortion, healthcare or a marriage copy we re healthcare or a marriage copy were you aware of president trump's statements committing to nominatejudges who trump's statements committing to nominate judges who will strike down the affordable care act? as i am sitting here, i don't recall seeing those statements. the president tries to shore up support in pennsylvania, his second campaign rally since his covid-i9 campaign rally since his covid—19 diagnosis. europe is scrambling to stop a second wave of coronavirus infections

with new restrictions announced in several countries. and the story behind this award—winning image from eastern russia, it took months to capture. hello to you. president trump's nominee to the us supreme court has been meeting with lawmakers on capitol hill for the second day of her confirmation hearings. amy coney barrett spent a lot of time telling senators she will not use a seat on the supreme court to impose her conservative views on american law. democrat spent a lot of time trying to prove that she will. in the past hour oi’ so that she will. in the past hour or so kamala harris questioned thejudge at the or so kamala harris questioned the judge at the hearing. protesters rallied on the second day of hearings but nothing is getting on the way

of the republican rush to confirm the new supreme court justice. amy coney barrett came prepared for confrontation, confident in her record and her memory. she spoke without notes, unlike many of the senators who were grilling her. judge barrett got a softball start, asked to introduce her family. but questioning quickly pivoted two issues where democrats feared she would undermine existing rights such as abortion. do you agree with justice scalia's view that roe was wrongly decided. justice scalia's view that roe was wrongly decidedlj justice scalia's view that roe was wrongly decided. i have no agenda to try to overrule casey, i have and agenda to stick to the rule of law and decide cases that they come. that's really too bad because it is rather a fundamental point for large numbers of people, i think, point for large numbers of people, ithink, in point for large numbers of people, i think, in this country. judge barrett sidestepped specific questions on some matters that could come before the court. she said she would take a conservative approach but not an act first one. judges can'tjust wake up

one. judges can'tjust wake up one day and say, i have and agenda, i like guns, i hate abortion, and walk and like a royal queen and impose their will on the world, you have to wait for cases and controversies. democrats pressed her on an ongoing controversy pressed her on an ongoing c0 ntrove i’sy over pressed her on an ongoing controversy over healthca re pressed her on an ongoing controversy over healthcare has are worried that president trump's nominee might rule against obamacare when it is challenged in court next month. we on this side do not believe obamacare is we on this side do not believe obamaca re is the we on this side do not believe obamacare is the best way to provide quality healthcare over time. republicans have tried to defeat what is known as the affordable care act in congress and judge barrett has criticised earlier rulings supporting it but she insisted she didn't necessarily oppose it. i'm not hostile to any statute that you pass. i apply the law, i've followed the law, you make the policy. the election was front and centre. mrtrump has said election was front and centre. mr trump has said he wants a supreme courtjustice mr trump has said he wants a supreme court justice confirmed in time to make sure that he gets a good hearing and any

election dispute. butjudge barrett declined to say if she would step aside from an election related case. would step aside from an election related caselj would step aside from an election related case. i have had no conversation with the president or any of his staff on how i might rule in that case. it would be a gross violation ofjudicial independence for me to make any such commitment or for me to be asked about that case and how i would rule. the hearings continue but there is little doubt she will get the job. republicans almost certainly have the votes to cement a conservative majority on the supreme court for a generation. much of the questioning from kamala harris focused on obamacare, the kamala harris focused on obamaca re, the affordable kamala harris focused on obamacare, the affordable care act. republicans are scrambling to confirm this nominee as fast as possible because they need one more trump judge on the bench before november ten to win and strike down the entire affordable care act. this is not hyperbole.

this is not a hypothetical. this is happening. and here is what you have to know. people are scared. people are scared of what will happen if the affordable care act is destroyed in the middle of a pandemic. there are more than 100 million americans with pre—existing conditions like asthma and diabetes, heart disease, who know that they could be denied coverage and charged more by insurance companies if donald trump is successful in getting rid of the affordable care act. let's speak live to president and ceo of the national women's law centre. very good to you, thank you very much for your time. with her kamala harris making a lot of points, in truth we have heard very little in the way of meaningful aunt from thejudge. i think in the way of meaningful aunt from the judge. i think that is one of the things that stands out about this hearing is that

all day, she tried to sidestep and evade important questions and evade important questions and the thing is, she actually has a meaningful record on access to abortion, on roe v wade, she has a meaningful record on the affordable care act, so there is an additional need to hear more from her and you mostly heard her saying either, i don't recall or i cannot answer. you say she's got a record, it is pretty clear what she thinks, what her intentions may be from the judgements she has given, also from the statements and advertisements she has signed. right, she signed onto an advertisement that called roe v wade barbaric. her decisions while on the seventh circuit court of appeals, each time, found against access to abortion care and she has used the language of the extremist right whose goals are to ban abortion, even at the hearing

today using the language of eugenics bands to describe abortion bands that are tied to reasons people need at. all of that paints a picture of someone that paints a picture of someone who would overturn roe v someone who would overturn roe v wade. there's a similar picture the affordable care act where she has criticised that ruling before as well. and i suppose she really doesn't have to answer, does she, given the republicans majority in the senate, she is almost certain to be nominated so what is the point of what the democrats are doing? is it essentially to worry voters ? doing? is it essentially to worry voters? what i saw democrats doing today was three things. putting people front and centre, they were talking about healthcare, and centre, they were talking about healthca re, we and centre, they were talking about healthcare, we are still in the middle of a pandemic, they were talking about the urgent relief and pointing out that the republicans are rushing this through rather than solving those problems but you saw senator booker remind his colleagues that they only need two more republicans or forjudge barrett to withdraw

to pause this and let the people decide, that would be the right thing to ensure that the right thing to ensure that the supreme court isn't diminished in this process. you will know better than me but in the past, judges who become justices on the supreme court have a record of not always conforming to presidential expectations, don't they? they don't always do what they are expected to do. the thing is, we have had a fewjudges come forward that have a record like judge barrett that have this many abortion decisions, that have the sort of statements she has made, that have the close ties to radical groups. when we saw ties to radical groups. when we sanustice ties to radical groups. when we saw justice cava nagh come forward , saw justice cava nagh come forward, he also had a record that was pretty extreme, and what we found in his short time on the court as he has lived up to president trump's promised that he would appointjudges that he would appointjudges that would overturn roe v wade, that's what he tried to do last year, in the case that was before the supreme court, so we have every expectation that if

she is confirmed, that's what will happen. thank you very much indeed. let's get some of the day's other china and russia have been elected to the united nations top human rights body, despite accusations they are some of the world's worst abuses of human rights. saudi arabia had hoped for a seat but failed. it is not clear whether the criticism over saudi journalist jamal khashoggi was a factor. after months of political uncertainty, one of malaysia's best—known politicians has made a bid to become prime minister. he visited the king to tell him he has the support of a majority of mps in the parliament, but a statement has cast doubt on that, saying that he failed to provide a list of names. at least 20 people have been arrested in thailand as police dispersed protesters in the capital bangkok. demonstrators gathered in the centre of the city near a royal motorcade carrying the king. they have

been calling for the resignation of the prime minister who seized power in a coup in 2014. across europe, many countries are imposing more extreme measures to fight the second wave of the coronavirus pandemic. the czech republic has a new three—week state of emergency, schools are shut down. the dutch prime minister has announced a partial lockdown which will mean the com plete lockdown which will mean the complete closure of restau ra nts, complete closure of restaurants, hotels and cafe ‘s. germany, which did have relatively low infection rate, has now imposed an iipm curfew on bars and restaurants right across the country. spain has declared a state of emergency in madrid. police are patrolling the streets to stop people leaving their neighbourhoods. this is an early night by spanish standards. last orders now at 10pm, and no one is allowed to leave or enter the city unless it is essential. but with the rules chopping and changing for weeks, people are tired and confused.

all the time we are breaking the rules and nobody cares. like, even the police, they don't say anything. very soon after spain reopened, cases surged, giving madrid the highest levels of coronavirus in europe. yet thousands have come out to protest against the latest measures. many are angry their sacrifices have been squandered. people in madrid are fed up. they have already been through the strictest lockdown in europe, and here they are again, with their movement being restricted. they want instead for the government to be focusing more on other measures to control the virus, so more tracing and testing, more doctors. a couple of weeks ago, only some neighbourhoods were locked down, the poorer, more overcrowded ones, including elena's.

they were trying to make a line and divide the city with the poor people, the contagious people. the national government intervened, concerned madrid's politicians were not doing enough, and imposed a state of emergency, against their will. now it is a political war. they are creating a lot of confusion and we have been days, like, i don't know, what can i do tomorrow, i don't know if i can do this, i don't know if i can do that. i think that is the main problem. and second of all, i think we can't last this for a long time. a solution cannot be a lockdown. do you accept that a lot of the confusion and resistance has come because people have been given two different ways that they can do things?

but getting spaniards to eat before their 10pm curfew is a tall order. tonight, many restaurants have not even bothered to open, and julian says they will just continue the night back at his. as patience erodes, it is clear countries will need much more than just rules and restrictions. jean mackenzie, bbc news, madrid. to stay with us on abc news, much more to come including this. we can tell you who won the award of the 2020 wildlife photographer of the year organised by london's natural history museum. parts of san francisco least affected by the earthquake are returning to life, but in the marina area, where most of the damage was done, they are more conscious than ever of how much has been destroyed. in the 19 years since he was last here, he has gone from being a little—known revolutionary

to an experienced and successful diplomatic operator. it was a 20—pound bomb which exploded on the fifth floor of the grand hotel, ripping a hole in the front of the building. this government will not weaken, democracy will prevail. it fills me with humility and gratitude to know that i have been chosen as the recipient of this foremost of earthly honours. this catholic nation held its breath for the men they called the 33. and then... bell tolls. ..bells tolled nationwide to announce the first rescue and chile let out an almighty roar. this is bbc news, the latest headlines: president trump's nominee to the us supreme court has evaded questions from senators, including the democrat's vice presidential candidate, kamala harris,

refusing to discuss laws on abortion or gay marriage. pennsylvania has already been visited by president trump. amy coney barrett was questioned by kamala harris. a corrupt bargain exchange for his pa rty‘s bargain exchange for his party's nomination, he has handed control to the socialists and marxist and leftist extremists make his vice presidential candidate. that is another great one. i just watched on television come again because on air force one we have more televisions, they are in closets, in the ceiling andi are in closets, in the ceiling and i watched and i compared

her to amy, great future supreme courtjustice. her to amy, great future supreme court justice. cheering and applause. and i will tell you, amy has made a great impression. joe biden spent the day campaigning in florida. folks, donald trump chaotic and divisive leadership has cost us far too much. 215,000 dead from covid—19 and rising. experts say we will lose nearly another 200,000 lives in the next two months unless he fundamentally changes cause. i prayed for his recovery when he got covid—19 andl recovery when he got covid—19 and i hoped he would come out of it at least chastened but what has he done? he has

doubled down on the misinformation and made it worse. so many lives have been lost because this president cares more about the stock market than the well—being of seniors. exit polls in 2016 showed 50% of white women in pennsylvania helping donald trump to flip the state for donald trump. one of them was my next gas. you previously —— gaston. surely donald trump has brought an great deal of disruption? is that not what you wanted ? i disruption? is that not what you wanted? i would not go that far. of course, he was entertaining to me during the primaries but i did not think i was hoping he would be disruptive. obviously he was and it is unfortunate. i hope he would just be a businessman

that he claimed he would be and make america great. honestly, he led us down. he had the chance of a lifetime to make america great and he let us down. how do you judge him america great and he let us down. how do youjudge him now in more detail? not very well, i hate to say. with the coronavirus, without economy, listening to him at his rallies, he is so boastful and insulting. it just never rallies, he is so boastful and insulting. itjust never ends. he seems to get everybody all riled up and it isjust he seems to get everybody all riled up and it is just very negative and do not see it ending well for him. many white women voted for him in 2016 despite women accusing him of sexual assault and him boasting about sexual assault. what reaction are you getting from the women you know? are they likely to vote for him again?

no, ido likely to vote for him again? no, i do not know anyone who is voting for him this time around. iam voting for him this time around. i am ashamed to admit i voted for him in 2016. what makes you lean towards mr biden and kamala harris? empathy and honesty. i think they will get the coronavirus under control and get our country back on track. mr trump would say, he quite clearly thinks joe track. mr trump would say, he quite clearly thinksjoe biden is not up to the job and that he would wreck the economy for the sake of the pandemic which mrtrump does the sake of the pandemic which mr trump does not think is that serious? i disagree. i think joe biden will do a good job with the economy but the first order of business is the pandemic. we need to get this far is out of control and make sure we're are safe. i know you are concerned about the black lives matter. kamala harris was

a former prosecutor and you hear that phrase, kamala harris isa hear that phrase, kamala harris is a cop. everyone changes. here i am supporting joe biden 100%. i think they are on the right track and they will do the right thing. thank you very much for talking to us. thank you so much. twitter has decided to suspend a number of fa ke accou nts decided to suspend a number of fake accounts purported to be run by lack supporters of donald trump. —— black supporters. it is thought to have had thousands of retweets before suspended. cristiano ronaldo has tested positive for coronavirus. the portuguese star is going into self isolation and will not play

against sweden on wednesday. five times the player of the year, cristiano ronaldo, seen here training with the portugal national team, is doing well, without symptoms but now in isolation. translation: without symptoms but now in isolation. translationzlj without symptoms but now in isolation. translation: i spoke to him. from the moment he was tested positive, he went to the room and complied with all the rules of the general directorate of health. obviously, he knows we are here. he's in his room and down here. he's in his room and down here. he's in his room and down here. he posted this picture and gave the thumbs up was watching his team from the hotel balcony. rinaldo is the tea m hotel balcony. rinaldo is the team captain and the first european captain to scott 100 international goals in men's football when his side beat sweden in september. —— cristiano ronaldo. translation: obviously did not use. what

with this to happen but it is now part of the game and we need to deal with therefore we are prepared for anything that might happen. sweden and portugal are due to meet in the fourth round on wednesday. translation: we are facing one of the world's boasting and thatis of the world's boasting and that is with or without cristiano ronaldo. it is also true that cristiano ronaldo decided the game in stockholm so it could obviously be positive for us to face portugal without him. as a result of this quarantine, he is also said to ms matches for his club, juventus, in the italian league and the championship. . he has played in both of portugal's matches so farand in both of portugal's matches so far and has scored in each of his club's appearances this

season. the portuguese football association says everyone else in the team has tested negative. a photograph of a siberian tiger — one of the the rarest creatures on earth — was captured using a camera that was set up for months in the forests of russia's far east, and it's brought sergey gorshkov the award of 2020 wildlife photographer of the year. the annual award, organised by london's natural history museum, was announced during an online event, as our science correspondent victoria gill reports. in the wilderness of russia's far east, taking even a blurry snapshot of one of earth's rarest creatures would be a realfeat. but with a combination of skill, luck and months of persistence, photographer sergey gorshkov managed to capture this. while the judges said it looked like an oil painting, it is a photograph of an endangered female amur tiger. it was caught by a camera trap that was triggered by the movement of the animal herself. and here, i have been inspired...

like so many 2020 events, the ceremony for the wildlife photographer of the year was held online, and the duchess of cambridge announced the winner. so it is with great pleasure that i can announce this year's wildlife photographer of the year is... sergey gorshkov for his image, the embrace. many congratulations to you, sergey, and thanks to all of those who entered for showing us the magic of the natural world. the awards acknowledged photographers who had shown the impact of our exploitation of wildlife. but primarily, they celebrated some of the most captivating images of the natural world taken in the last, very tumultuous year. while we can all ponder on the photographic prowess, patience and skill, this winning image, quite simply, captures one beautiful moment. victoria gill, bbc news. some other striking pictures.

brace yourself for this... the biggest world war ii bomb ever found in poland has exploded underwater as navy divers tried to defuse it. no—one was hurt and at least 750 people were evacuated. the royal air force adopted in 1945 during a raid that sank a nazi cruiser. it weighs almost 5400 kilos. briefly, the main news again, president trump's supreme court nominee face hours of questioning. amy coney barrett repeatedly declined to a nswer barrett repeatedly declined to answer questions about her views on same—sex marriage, obama care and abortion. she was asked if she was aware of

comments by donald trump who said he would appoint a judge who would scrap obama care. she said she did not recall such comments before her nomination. thank you for watching. hello. some sunshine on the way for the majority of us today, albeit with some showers coming in from the east, as the day pans out. there will be quite a chilly breeze as well, again, coming in from the north—east and that is what will drive the showers a little bit further westwards through the course of the day. but overall, what we're looking at in terms of our weather pattern for the next few days is high pressure coming to dominate. though it will become increasingly quieter through the end of the week and into the weekend. first thing wednesday, a little bit more in the way of persistent rain and some stubborn cloud across southern scotland. it should get brighter here for the afternoon. but you can see the showers here, pushing into eastern england on the north—easterly breeze, even through the morning,

and then they will get driven afar away westwards come the afternoon. that north—easterly breeze a notable feature to the weather. this is the sustained wind speed — gusts could reach up to 30mph at times in some more exposed spots. best of the shelter in the west will give us the best of the temperatures — 15 or 16 degrees. in the east, 13 or 14 just about covers it. we tend to see those showers clearing though as we head overnight wednesday into the small hours of thursday. could be a few still lingering across east anglia and the south—east of england. some more general cloud speeding towards the north of scotland. overnight lows, 6—8 degrees. perhaps a little bit closer to freezing towards the far north of scotland. and then for thursday daytime, we're talking about an essentially dry day, as that high pressure establishes itself. i can't promise you though wall—to—wall sunshine. it looks like we will pull in quite a bit of cloud from the north sea, into some eastern and eventually central areas. temperatures, 12—13 degrees. stuck under the thicker cloud, it will feel chillier though with the effect of the breeze. and towards the end of the week, some of the nights will

start to get colder. that could leave us with some chilly starts and some stubborn fog by day. so, our temperatures widely on friday, 11—12 degrees, but in a few spots, if we do get lingering fog, they could struggle at the low—end single figures. and then that ridge of high pressure is going to stay with us all the way through the weekend. so, a very similar story for saturday and sunday to that of thursday and friday. it will take until the beginning of next week, i think, for us to see something a little bit wetter and more windy moving its way in from the atlantic. so, a lot of fine weather to come for the weekend, some on the chilly side for the time of year, and some rather stubborn cloud.

this is bbc news, the headlines: president trump's nominee to the us supreme court amy coney barrett has refused to say whether she would vote to overturn laws on abortion, healthcare or gay marriage. the democrats vice presidential candidate kamala harris is among senators questioning judge barrett on day two of her confirmation hearings. mr trump is trying to shore up support ata is trying to shore up support at a rally in pennsylvania at his second campaign outing since his covid—19 diagnosis. it is an important state for mr trump who took pennsylvania in 2016 by less than one percentage point to get him to the white house. across europe, many countries are imposing more extreme measures to try to fight the second wave of the coronavirus pandemic. a state of emergency declared in the grid, police are patrolling the spanish capital trying to stop people leaving their neighbourhoods.