this is bbc news. i'm david eades with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. donald trump and joe biden have made rival tv appearances, with the president refusing to condemn online conspiracy theories involving him. i know nothing about that, you told me, but what you told me doesn't necessarily make it fa ct, doesn't necessarily make it fact, i hate to say it out. while taking heat over criminaljustice and taxes at his town hall in philadelphia, joe biden also criticised mr trump's handling of the coronavirus. we are in a situation where we have 210,000 plus people dead and what is he doing? nothing.

he is still not wearing a mask and so on. as europe battles a coronavirus resurgence — and france reports its highest ever daily infection figure — more than half of england's population will now be living under high restrictions. the world health organisation says the drug remdesivir, often used a possible treatment for covid—i9, makes no substantial difference to a patient‘s health. and forget the highways, find the slow ways to explore the uk with the croatian —— creation of the new, slow maps. thank you forjoining us. well, there was no tv debate but there was plenty of argument as president trump and his democratic party rival, joe biden, took part in separate, televised

events with their respective moderators. george stephanopoulos of abc news and nbc‘s savannah guthrie also playing a role as inquisitor as much as referee. donald trump became agitated and sometimes combative as he was questioned about his handling of the coronavirus and his refusal to condemn extreme right wing groups. joe biden tussled with his moderator over another key issue, the make up of the supreme court. david willis reports. it was a prime—time split screen showdown, the presidential candidates competing for eyes in duelling debates, a stark reminder of how strange this entire campaign has been and when it came down to the pivotal issue of the day, a virus that is claimed more than 215,000 american lives, the two men seemed to occupy, notjust rival channels, but competing orbits. he said he didn't tell anybody because he was afraid

americans would panic. americans would panic. americans don't panic. he panicked. the president insisted america has turned a corner on the coronavirus. many people are catching it, getting the disease that was sent to us by china and should not have been allowed to happen. everybody is working hard to get this thing out of our country, get out of the world. look at what is going on in europe. massive spikes. the president defended his conduct in response to the pandemic, including an event at the rose garden of the white house that has since been deemed as a super spreader, no—one in the audience wore masks and practice social distancing and dozens practice social distancing and d oze ns of practice social distancing and dozens of sins tested positive. for his part, joe biden pledged to ta ke for his part, joe biden pledged to take a vaccine once one becomes available and urged others to do the same. if the body of scientists say that this is what is ready to be done and it has been tested, gone through phases, yes, i would take it, i would encourage people to take it.

undershot questioning, president trump is called upon to denounce qanon, the false conspiracy theory that democrats are part of a global paedophile ring. he declined.” know nothing about qanon. i know nothing about qanon. i know very little. you told me that what you tell me doesn't necessarily make it fact, i hate to say that. i know nothing about it. i do know they are very much against paedophilia. the president was also present on claims that he owes hundreds of millions of dollars to foreign creditors. are you confirming that yes you do owe some $400 million?” are you confirming that yes you do owe some $400 million? i am saying it is a tiny percentage of my net worth and we are doing things, you know? more than anything else, the duelling debates emphasise the contrast in styles between the two candidates with fewer undecided voters are now than four years ago their impact on the outcome may be limited. a second face—to—face debate is due to take place in nashville, next week.

david willis, bbc news. we are waiting to get confirmation nashville and you heard a lot about coronavirus there and we will have full coverage there in a moment, notably in europe. let's get some of the day's other news: european union leaders have expressed concern at the lack of progress in negotiations with britain on a trade deal after brexit. but the german chancellor, angela merkel, said that brussels must also make compromises given britain's desire for what she called a certain measure of independence. twitter says it's launched an investigation after a global outage. users weren't able to tweet and were sent error messages saying "something went wrong". twitter says the issue was caused by an inadvertent change made to their internal systems. the united nations' special envoy for afghanistan has warned that a new wave of violence in the country could undo what had been a downward trend in civilian casualties this year, and damage any progress made at the peace talks.

hundreds of prisoners are being freed in the biggest such exchange between the warring sides in yemen since the conflict there began in 2015. more than 600 houthi rebels and 400 pro—government prisoners are expected to be released over the next two days. the mass prisoner exchange was agreed during un—supervised talks in switzerland last month. the number of coronavirus infections in europe has now overtaken those in india and the united states. as european countries battle this resurgence, catalonia in north—eastern spain has toughened its restrictions closing some bars and restaurants. there are new restrictions, too, in poland and ireland. half of the uk population is caught up in tighter regional restrictions, while france reported more than 30,000 new cases on thursday — its highest ever daily figure. gareth barlow reports.

from the heart of europe, a stark warning. we are quickly running out of time. everyone needs to do what is necessary to avoid the devastating health, social and economic effects of a generalised lockdown. as cases climb in france, britain, italy and germany, governments are introducing more measures to curb the spread of the virus. night—time cu rfews curb the spread of the virus. night—time curfews in nine french cities, school closures in italy is hotspots, the hospitality sector shutdown in the netherlands. the full search continues to unfold in europe with exponential increases in daily cases and matching percentage increases in daily deaths. the evolving

situation in europe raises great concern. daily numbers of cases are up. great concern. daily numbers of cases are up. hospital admissions are up. and covid—19 is now the fifth leading cause of deaths. in the czech republic, which currently has the highest infection rate in europe, this situation facing hospitals like this is so grave, temporary units are being built, and requested be made to send patients to germany. meanwhile, as millions of people in london prepare for more restrictions this weekend, regional leaders in northern england are pushing back against tighter measures. they are asking us to gamble our residence' jobs, homes and businesses and a large chunk of oui’ businesses and a large chunk of our economy on a strategy that their own experts tell them might not work. we would never sign upfor might not work. we would never sign up for that. the

disagreement in the uk highlights the challenge facing mainland europe, a clock with open borders between countries, all of you tackling the pandemic in different ways popular this situation is getting more and more worse. and strong action is needed. most of all it is important, good cooperation and discipline. and the commission has been working hard to support the member states in the fight against the virus. in the fight against the virus. in the health dimensions. europe was one of the regions worst hit at the start of the coronavirus pandemic. now, more than six months on, in hospitals, cities and in the corridors of power, their current nightmare has returned, a second wave just as serious as the first. gareth barlow, bbc news. just want to focus on one of

the drugs we have had so often being referred to in terms of covid—19. the drug remdesivir has often been mentioned, and used as a possible treatment for covid—19. president trump no less took it when he had tested positive but the world health organization has now disclosed that remdesivir makes no substantial difference to the health of a patient suffering from covid—19. the drugs own manufacturer, gilead, said the data appeared inconsistent. joining me now is associate professor paul griffin, associate director for infectious diseases at mater health services. thank you very much indeed for joining us. first of all, the world health organization's view is based on its own solidarity trial, i think they called it. how convincing is that trial even? it was a really well constructed trial involving a large number of people over 11000 and 405

hospitals and there were 2750 people given remdesivir in that trial compared to three other interventions and u nfortu nately, interventions and unfortunately, those interventions tested showed no significant benefit. 0k, interventions tested showed no significant benefit. ok, so, so tell us what it does and does not do, if you can, remdesivir. there are people as we know some high—profile his whereby this? that is right. there were promising early data that suggested a quicker improvement on the drug so it was subtle but there. 15—11 days in people that had the drug, leading to more widespread use and incorporation into a number of guidelines. this however is a big trial that was really and constructed comparing a number of interventions and all the outcomes measured, mortality, the need for ventilation, and the need for ventilation, and the time of hospitalisation, all three measures were no different in people that had remdesivir or had no therapy, so this being the biggest trial

so this being the biggest trial so far would suggest that perhaps it does not have much to offer. right, we pointed remdesivir hippel but hydroxychloroquine, interferon, these have all been examined and it seems to be the same case for all of them? that is right. i guess we have to keep in mind that these are fairly early versions of the drugs all repurposed drugs, initially designed for other things and while it is obviously a little disappointing that the study did not show that has much benefit but in some ways it is not surprising and hopefully there are better drugs coming through. let's focus on that phrase any benefit, is there any benefit in taking these drugs in any case? i mean, they have properties? that is right. this study was focusing on hospitalised patients and this study was negative, does not exclude the fact that these drugs, particularly remdesivir may have an effect on people

for example who are outpatients of they get the drug earlier, so obviously if it is not favourable, it still may not com pletely favourable, it still may not completely exclude some kind of benefit. i'm certain that studies will continue without drug in particular. i suppose it's a difficult message as we see another spike in infections, certainly in europe, australia in parts of australia, the lockdown goes on. it a tough old world, many people are having to work out what on earth they are going to do. people will still turn to these medicines? yes, i think is not unreasonable to still trial remdesivirfor the is not unreasonable to still trial remdesivir for the people in which it was indicated and there is really good data on dexamethasone, a steroid in getting onto people quicker especially on the severe end and also progress on vaccines and also progress on vaccines and therapies coming behind this range of therapies. while not great news to see negative results in this trial, i still think there is genuine cause for optimism as the other therapies continue to be

developed. or griffin, thank you very much indeed. pleasure. stay with us on bbc news. still to come: how the so—called ‘latino vote' is playing an important role in the run—up to the us election. 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: donald trump and joe biden have taken part in simultaneous tv appearances instead of their second presidential debate, as early voters head to the polls. europe is battling a coronavirus resurgence, with france reporting its highest ever daily infection figure — and more than half of england's population now living under high restrictions. this week we've been looking at the state of the us presidential campaigns

in the key electoral state of florida. and other key electoral states. there, the so—called ‘latino vote' accounts for around a sixth of the electorate and with less than three weeks to polling day, both the democrats and republicans are working hard to win their support. from miami, our north america editorjon sopel sent this report. this is donald trump's hispanic armada, making a splash against miami's famous skyline. around 200 boats. it is chaotic, noisy and exuberant. if every election throws up a new way of campaigning, this is 2020's innovation — the boat parade. the president's son eric is the star attraction. eric, are you feeling confident? how are you feeling? oh, you tell me how it looks, right? is there love in this country or is there love in this country? tremendous love. we're going to win this thing. trump 2020! if you look at the polls, donald trump is facing, well, very strong headwinds.

he's being outspent. in key battle ground states, he's down. but among hispanic voters, his head above water and in this critical state, that could be a vital lifeline. the hispanic and latino vote in florida is critical. many of these latinos have already seen what the rhetoric is on the left side, pushing socialism, free stuff. they don't want it, they are hard—working americans that are here and they want the freedom to choose. they want donald trump. both sides are pouring millions into ads for the hispanic tv market. so i said to my people, slow the testing down, please! joe biden... even on spanish language stations, there is no escape from the election. adios. for president, did you vote for biden or trump? i voted for biden. biden? thank you. but the hispanic vote is not a monolithic block, as this democratic canvasser in little havana explains. here the community is not just the latino vote.

it is the cuban vote, the honduran vote, the venezuelan vote. and so it is important to kind of understand where these people are coming from. joe biden was here earlier in the week and though he has a spring in his step, polls suggest he's doing way worse among latino voters than hillary clinton was four years ago. hello, florida! but why? the number two in the democratic party for the crucial miami—dade district gives a brutally candid answer. the trump administration has run a playbook which has been sheer genius for the past three years and basically itjust says, democrats are socialists. and that's hurting you? so when you come from a country in latin america, that everything you have had was taken away from you under the guise that it is a socialist government which is really a left—wing dictatorship, then when you hear that the democrats are socialists, you're running away. as these trump boater voters discovered today, the climate in florida changes fast.

predicting whether it will be sunshine or heavy rain come november 3 is decidedly risky. jon sopel, bbc news, miami. let's get the latest sports news from the bbc sports centre. hello there, i'm tulsen tollett and this is your friday sport briefing, where we start with the footballing news that the english football league has rejected the proposed $65 million bailout from the premier league. the offer would have helped teams in leagues 1 and 2, but not the championship. the efl said there was a "strong consensus" that any rescue package must meet the requirements of all 72 clubs — and that this figure falls well short of this. it is in fact the lost revenues that these clubs would have. you forget the confusion that comes in when people saying, well, the owners should be finding this because they have committed the club. we have taken out committed the club. we have ta ken out revenues committed the club. we have taken out revenues that are missing, because the clubs are

complying with what the government want to do and not having crowds. holders bayern munich eased through to the second round of the german cup after a 3—0 win over dueren who play in the fifth tier. after scoring the first, eric choupo—moting was then brought down and received a penalty just before half—time, which thomas mueller had no trouble converting. and then later on, cameroon international choupo—moting steadied the ball on the edge of the box to put the ball wide of the keeper, rounding off the victory. in major league baseball, carlos correa hit a walk—off homer in the 9th inning to win game seven of the american league championship series for the houston astros against the tampa bay rays. the rays still lead the best of seven series 3—2 heading into game six on friday, as the astros became just the fourth team out of 39 ever to trail a play—off series 3—0

and even force a game six. astros win! ac milan have been preparing ahead of the milan derby against inter on saturday in weather more suited to the ducks. the rain was steadily falling at their training ground but there was still time for some fun with zlatan ibrahimovic proving he's over his covid scare as he returned to the set up and proceeded to wrestle with v. —— with daniel maldini spaniard adrian otaegui shot a flawless opening round at the scottish championship to lead by three strokes heading into friday at st andrews. england's aaron rai who won the scottish open in aberdeen a fortnight ago is also in contention on six under par, thanks to shots like this on the sixth hole — while otaegui carded 10 birdies in total and six of them on the back nine this the last of them on the 18th. portuguese riderjoao almeida retains the race leader's pink

jersey heading into stage 13 at the giro d'italia later on friday. ecuador‘s jhonatan narvaez took his first win at a world tour event in fading light and incoming rain on thursday — the ineos grenadiers rider was part of an early breakaway — which was reduced to just two over the final climb and decent when his rival mark padun suffered a puncture 24 kilometres from the finish line and had to settle for second. it wasn't a good day for russian daniil medvedev, who was knocked out of the st petersburg open where he was defending champion. the home favourite and top seed lost out to american reilly opelka and promptly took out his frustrations on his racquet, in what was a fourth loss in his last five matches. you can get all the latest sports news at our website — that's bbc.com/sport. but from me, tulsen tollett, and the rest of the team,

that is your friday sport briefing. thank you, tulsen tollett. going out for walks was a welcome distraction for lots of people during the national lockdown in the uk, earlier this year and many of us took the opportunity to explore the great outdoors. but finding the best and safest routes can be difficult so volunteers across the country have stepped in to create ‘slow maps' as david sillito has been finding out. sue and nina, two friends, like many of us, have done lots of local walking in recent months. and one thing surprised them. just that there were so many footpaths, really. the government's official advice at the moment is walk, if you can. how viable is it? the first village of the road is a place called wellington here. and according to my phone, it's a simple 47 minute walk.” according to my phone, it's a simple 47 minute walk. i am really starting to regret my

rout here, i don't think it is really working. i think we need to find a — really working. i think we need tofinda —a really working. i think we need to find a — a better way to wellington if, and someone has been working on that. this is daniel raven ellis, geographer, walker and the man behind the slow map application. a means to show the best, safest walking route between villages. surely a solo on our phones these days? using the typical navigation platforms, they are driving. for walking, they can ta ke driving. for walking, they can take a down some pretty dodgy and unsavoury routes. these survey maps are used to plot out these slow ways walking routes. so this is the theory of volu nteers routes. so this is the theory of volunteers have come up with? and they are testing it? some of these routes might not work. we have 10,000 people to

help us map 100,000 kilometres of slow ways routes. so that brings us back to sue and nina and plan b. i took out the map and plan b. i took out the map and took the suggested slow route, which took us through a herefordshire orchard. this is what walking is about for me. an apple orchard, birdsong, what more do you want? a winner, just another 990,000 kilometres to go —— 99,000 kilometres to go —— 99,000 kilometres to go —— 99,000 kilometres to go. and before we go, a little something to make you smile — ten penguins have been released back into the wild in brazil. many of the penguins washed ashore weak and hungry, in the southern state of santa catarina in july and august. animal rescue organisation, r3 animal, said the penguins were juveniles and had most likely gotten lost while embarking on their first annual migration from patagonia in search of food. they received medical attention and were microchipped before happily making their way back into the ocean, frolicing among the

waves, upon release. that is bbc news, business news is coming right up. hello there. we are moving into a quieter spell of weather. it may only be short—lived, mind you. essentially, we've got high—pressure dominating, but again, the centre of the high pressure is towards the north of the uk, hence those winds off the north sea, as we've seen over the past few days, bringing with them a few showers as well. probably not as many showers today compared with what we had yesterday, and more places will be dry with a little sunshine, but it will be a chilly start to the day on friday, especially where we've got the clearer skies in the west. we start with a few showers to the east, they will run their way through lincolnshire, through the midlands, towards parts of wales and showers in the extreme south—east of england, the odd one possibly

in northern ireland, too. but more sunshine for northern england, the rest of the sunshine in the north will be on the west side of the country for many parts of scotland. it looks cloudy, it will be a cool day, as it was yesterday. that cloud continues to push down across scotland into northern england, one or two showers continuing into the night, maybe a few more showers arriving in the far south—west of england as well. but probably not quite as cold early on saturday morning compared with friday morning, those temperatures under the cloud at around six or seven degrees. the weekend looks quiet, little or no wind — winds very light, lots of cloud around, many places will be dry. it is still quite cool. a few showers towards the south coast of england, the odd one for england and wales, a bit of drizzle coming in across northern and eastern scotland, perhaps into the north—east of england, that will make it feel quite cold, but is struggling to make double figures in northern scotland. 12 or 13 is going to be a typicalfigure, a lot of cloud around, too. and on the whole, it looks

quite cloudy on sunday but if anything cloud thinner for many areas, so a better chance of seeing some sunshine. a little rain is arriving in northern ireland, perhaps the north—west of scotland. and that is a sign of things to come, really, because if we look further ahead into the early part of next week, instead of high pressure dominating the weather, pressure is falling and low pressure is going to take charge. you can see we have got a number of weather fronts on the scene as well. so we can tidy that up, really and just — with this sort of headline, because the early part of next week looks like it's going to be a big change in weather — to wet and windy conditions, maybe not quite as chilly as the weekend.

this is bbc news with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. ‘fears for tiers' — hundreds of thousands ofjobs hang in the balance as restrictions tighten across the uk plus, facing the music — or lack of it. a billion pound live performance industry all but silenced by the pandemic, leaving thousands of artists with no income and an uncertain future