this is bbc news with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. i'm freya cole. democrats say they'll implement a huge covid relief package with or without republican support, as the us passes 25 million cases. riot police in the netherlands clash with protesters demonstrating against new lockdown restrictions. relief, andjoy, in china, as eleven miners are rescued after two weeks trapped underground. and a new record has been set for the number of satellites launched into space on a single rocket.

we begin in the united states, which has now recorded more than 25 million coronavirus cases. that analysis from johns hopkins university means the us, is the hardest hit country in the world, with neary a18,000 people dying with the virus so far. presidentjoe biden has signed executive orders to expand testing and vaccine the production of essential and guarantee unemployment benefits as part of his covid action plan to try get on top of the pandemic. our correspondent nomia iqbal is in washington with more on why tackling covid is president biden�*s top priority. he has said he believes that the pandemic is going

to get worse before it gets better. he has signed around ten executive orders you laid out to try and tackle the pandemic, especially now you have this grim milestone of 25 million cases, that comes days after more than 400,000 people have died. but there needs to be more done and he knows that. so one of the key things he will try to push through is a package which is worth more than $1 trillion through congress. among some of those things, as well as providing a one—off check to americans, increasing the rate at which americans are vaccinated. he wants 100 million to be vaccinated within the first 100 days and he needs money for that to happen. and the fear is that with the coronavirus, it could mutate into a strain that all these approved vaccinations so far could resist. so that is a huge concern. it is a bit of a race

against time at the moment. the us has begun to roll out the vaccine to priority groups, but significant gaps have begun to emerge between states, with some proving more successful at administering the doses they have recieved. it's largely rural counties that are leading the way. both north dakota and west virginia have administered 72% of doses in their the heavily affected state of california —— of doses in their stores. lags behind, with just 37% of the doses in their possession having been given to the public. west virginia has taken a unique approach to the vaccine rollout amongst us states, primarily using independent pharmacies, rather than major chains. to tell us more lets speak to gretchen garofoli, clinical associate professor at west virginia university, who has been directly involved in the rollout.

thank you for your time. just tell us a little bit more about why your state, west virginia, is unique to others?— is unique to others? sure. it has been — is unique to others? sure. it has been an _ is unique to others? sure. it has been an amazing - is unique to others? sure. it - has been an amazing experience, the highlight of my career, truly, to be involved in this effort. west virginia, like you mentioned, partnered with pharmacies throughout the state so we did not go with the federal plan, we followed our state plan which included all pharmacies that wanted to be a part of it. so that was really the key to our success, was utilising everybody that we could to get out there and the vaccines. �* , , ., vaccines. and tell us, in your experience. _ vaccines. and tell us, in your experience, have _ vaccines. and tell us, in your experience, have you - vaccines. and tell us, in your experience, have you had - vaccines. and tell us, in your| experience, have you had any issues, any teething problems? we have not really had any issues. we have had a lot of success. we have all worked together to get the vaccine from the point of distribution to the pharmacies, to then the people and the nursing homes, the school teachers, whatever group that we are currently

working on immunising. if you think this _ working on immunising. if you think this is — working on immunising. if you think this is the _ working on immunising. if you think this is the way _ working on immunising. if you think this is the way forward, l think this is the way forward, what kind of advice do you have for the new administration? i forthe new administration? i would say we really need to look at what is working well here in west virginia. like i've said, it has been largely due to the teamwork. 45% of the pharmacies and our state are independent pharmacies and they are in the more rural areas which has really helped to get the vaccines out to those who might not otherwise be able to get the vaccine, so i would say look at our model, look at what is working well, look at the teamwork that we have employed. it is truly a team effort for us to be able to successfully distribute the vaccines that we have in a timely manner and get them into the arms of those who need it the most and help us to quickly work through the groups that we need to vaccinate. find that we need to vaccinate. and ou have that we need to vaccinate. and you have been _ that we need to vaccinate. and you have been working in aged care homes for the vaccine rollout, have you experienced any anti—vaccine sentiment? there is hesitancy with this

vaccine as there are with any vaccines, so we have really utilised this to educate and provide that education to the staff at the nursing home, and most of the nursing home facilities, most of the residents have decided to be vaccinated. where we are seeing some hesitancy has been with regards to the staff. so we utilise that as an opportunity to answer any questions they may have to help alleviate any hesitation they may have and when we went back to second both clinics at the first nursing home vaccinated, we did have a lot more staff at that point and time that did decide to get vaccinated, which we considered a win. vaccinated, which we considered awin. �* , vaccinated, which we considered a win. absolutely, gretchen, thank you — a win. absolutely, gretchen, thank you for _ a win. absolutely, gretchen, thank you for your _ a win. absolutely, gretchen, thank you for your time. - some news coming injust now: mexico's president andres manuel lopez 0brador has tested positive for covid—i9. he said his symptoms were light and that he was receiving medical treatment.

he announced it via twitter and said he remained optimistic. mexico is battling one of the worst outbreaks of coronavirus in the world — and president 0brador has played down the importance of wearing a mask. dutch police have deployed water canon and tear gas on anti—lockdown protesters in the southern city of eindhoven. the demonstration, which violated the current covid—i9 measures, were organised in response to the latest restrictions, introduced in an effort to stop the spread of the virus in the netherlands. there were smaller demonstrations in the capital amsterdam too. more than a hundred people have been arrested. anna holligan reports. burning bicycles were built as a barricade. in eindhoven, they wore facemasks to avoid detection. and hurled rocks to repel the riot police. who eventually used tear gas

to clear the streets. families stopped to stare, while others steered clear. the roads were blocked and supermarkets lucid —— the roads were blocked and supermarkets looted as frustration turned to opportunism. the netherlands has just entered its toughest lockdown since the start of the pandemic. while the number of daily covid—i9 cases have generally been falling, there are considerable concerns about the risks posed by the new variants. first detected in the uk, south africa, south america. on saturday, all flights from these places were banned. there is resentment, too. this liberal nation that enjoyed a relatively relaxed lockdown during the first wave has been forced to change its tune and is now facing one of the toughest in the world. anna holligan, bbc news, in the hague. in france, the top scientific adviser says the country probably needs a third coronavirus lockdown.

jean—francois delrassy says the situation will be extremely difficult by mid—march if authorities fail to contain new covid variants. earlier this month, france brought forward the start of its nightly curfew to 6pm, but since then, the average number of new infections has increased from 18,000 per day to more than 20,000. hospital admissions and deaths remain stubbornly high. the german government is reported to have bought a supply of regeneron, the experimental antibodies treatment credited with helping donald trump recover from covid—19. the country's health minister said germany would start deploying the drug next week, the first european union country to do so. it's hoped it will work like a passive vaccination, helping to protect high—risk patients in the early stage against a serious deterioration. 0ur correspondent damien

mcguinness in berlin has more. according to german media, the german government has now bought 200,000 doses of regeneron, at a cost of around 2000 euros per dose, so it's not a cheap drug. and the way it works is really, it's described as almost like a passive vaccination. so, usually, the vaccines we've been talking about so far always spark the body to actively generate antibodies, which then fight or prevent infection. the way this drug works, antibodies are made in a lab. they're then administered to people and people then have the antibodies which, if they have the beginnings of an infection, it would then prevent them from having severe complications from that infection. as you said, quite correctly, donald trump received the drug. he described it as having done a fantasticjob and, judging from his recovery, that does seem to be the case. so, it's being seen as another way to really get those quite high fatality numbers being seen in germany right now down a little bit more because,

over the summer, the total death toll from the pandemic stayed at about 10,000 right through the summer, and that's a very low number considering the size of germany. now, the last few months, it's suddenly rocketed to 50,000 and the death toll is still really high. so, drugs like this are really needed and i think that's going to be some welcome news for some of those hospital workers and people in hospital right now, who have the beginnings of what could be a severe infection. rescuers in china have freed 11 miners, who were trapped 600 metres underground for two weeks. an explosion at a gold mine in shandong province caused the collapse of its entrance tunnel, while a total of 22 miners were below ground. stephen mcdonell has the latest. after two weeks trapped underground, he took his first breath of air above the mine. his eyes masked against the glaring light, his gratitude

to be alive overwhelming. one of 11 miners rescued today, after a dramatic change in fortune. the first miner out prompted cheers. he was barely conscious, after being found still alive but separated from the main group, which had been receiving food and medicine. soon, others were emerging. there were injuries, but many could walk, with the assistance of those who'd been battling through freezing conditions night after night to reach them. translation: the rescuers checked the miners to see l if they had any injuries and covered their eyes for protection. after lifting up all the trapped miners, we'll go on with the search for the missing ones. 22 workers were on shift on the 10th of january when the blast hit the shandong gold mine. 11 miners were trapped together. one, 50 metres below them, ten others missing. an initial delay of 30 hours in reporting the accident led to the sacking of local officials. then a week later, miners were discovered alive,

and a long, thin communication tunnel meant emergency deliveries, even prompting a request for sausages. one of the main group died from his head injuries and they lost contact with their colleague, trapped below. with underground water rising, it was looking grim when officials said it would take 11i more days to dig a rescue tunnel through 600 metres of granite. but somehow, a large ventilation shaft was cleared which led all the way to them and, within hours, they were being rescued and on their way to hospital. stephen mcdonell, bbc news, beijing. portugal's conservative president, marcelo rebelo de sousa, has secured a second term in office winning the presidential election with 61% of the vote. he inflicted a heavy defeat on his left—wing rival, ana gomes, who secured only 13%, and the far—right populist, andre ventura, who got about 12%. there had been fears turnout would be low due to the pandemic but in the end, 49% of the electorate took part.

stay with us on bbc news, still to come: israel announces a ban on incoming flights from monday evening until the end ofjanuary, to try to contain the spread of the virus. he has said that he believes the pandemic is going to get worse before it gets better. he signed around about those 10 executive orders you laid about there to try to tackle the pandemic. especially now you have this grim milestone a 25 million cases and it comes days after more than 400,000 people have died. but there needs to be more done and he knows that. one of the key things he will be trying to push through is a package which is worth more

than $1 trillion through congress. amongst some of those things, as well as providing a one—off check to americans is trying to increase the rate at which people are vaccinated. he has got a target, he wants about 100 million people to be vaccinated in the first hundred days and he needs that to happen — make money for that to happen. the fairies with the coronavirus, it could mutate into a train that all of these approved vaccinations so far could resist. it's a bit of a race against time. this is bbc news, the latest headlines: democrats in the us congress say they'll implement a huge covid—19 relief package with or without republican support, as the country passes 25 million cases of the virus. riot police in the netherlands have used water cannon and tear gas to break up protests against coronavirus lockdown restrictions.

the uk health secretary matt hancock says 77 cases of the south african variant of coronavirus have been found here in the uk, but they can all be linked to international travel and there's no evidence it's spreading in the community. matt hancock also said we are a "long way" from covid restrictions being eased, as scientists warn vaccinated people may still be able to pass on the virus. 0ur science editor david shukman reports. all kinds of surprising locations are now mobilised in the push for vaccination — even the black country living museum near birmingham. used as a set in the drama peaky blinders, this celebration of an earlier age is ready to offer the most modern of medicines, everything prepared for coronavirus vaccines. please, please come and get your vaccine. we are here and we are ready and we are waiting for you. it is vitally important that people protect themselves, protect their families

and protect one another. we do know that the injections offer good protection. they boost antibodies in the bloodstream and keep people from getting ill. but it's not clear if that stops the virus causing infections that can then spread to others. as we understand more and more about this virus that anybody, really, with a variety of underlying health conditions or perfectly healthy can still get severe covid, so it is important we still maintain our social distancing and wear masks and the other procedures we are experiencing, because the risk of passing the infection could still be considerable. and another concern is how the virus is changing. a variant in south africa is one of several being checked to see how effective the vaccines are against it. there are 77 known cases of the south african variant here in the uk. they are under very close observation, and we have enhanced contact tracing to do everything we possibly can to stop them from spreading.

the majority of those have had contact with, or come from, south africa, and that is why we've got such stringent border measures in place. so, a big question is how to manage the uk's borders. many countries require travellers to quarantine in hotels. there's pressure on the government for stricter controls. on monday, we got this delayed announcement, yet again delayed. we would fully expect the government to bring in tougher quarantine measures, we would expect them to roll out a proper testing strategy, and we would expect them as well to start checking up on the people who are quarantining. only three out of every hundred people who are asked to quarantine when they arrive in the uk actually faces any checks at all. that's just simply not sufficient. and meanwhile, not everyone is getting the message. the police broke up an illegal rave in east london in the early hours and they issued fines totalling £15,000. david shukman, bbc news.

israel will ban passengerflights in and out of the country from monday night for the rest of january, in an effort to halt the spread of new virus variants. the government says more than a quarter of the population have received at least one dose of the pfizer vaccine, including teenagers, but it has been criticised for not providing jabs for the majority of palestinians, as mark lobel reports. teenagers are now being vaccinated in israel. to help protect their studies in a country now already scoring top marks with a quarter of its population inoculated with a first pfizer dose. translation: i study in high school and came to get vaccinated to be the virus so we can go back to studying normally, not over zoom and really succeed in our exams. ~ ,, �* zoom and really succeed in our exams-_ i - zoom and really succeed in our exams._ i had . zoom and really succeed in our| exams._ i had to zoom and really succeed in our. exams._ i had to go exams. translation: i had to go into quarantine _ exams. translation: i had to go into quarantine when _ exams. translation: i had to go into quarantine when i _ exams. translation: i had to go into quarantine when i took- exams. translation: i had to go into quarantine when i took an - into quarantine when i took an exam — exam in the summer next to a

carrien — exam in the summer next to a carrien this _ exam in the summer next to a carrier. this won't happen once lam _ carrier. this won't happen once i am vaccinated. the pros outweigh the cons.- i am vaccinated. the pros outweigh the cons. for added protection. — outweigh the cons. for added protection, the _ outweigh the cons. for added protection, the government l outweigh the cons. for added | protection, the government is also closing its skies from monday night to prevent deadlier variance from entering its borders, grounding flights for the rest of the month. and to deal with sections of its community ignoring nationwide restrictions, it is threatening heavy fines. translation: i must point out that most of the ultraorthodox sector adheres to the guidelines but there are exceptions and exceptions that work in an unacceptable way. therefore, for those who do not follow the guidelines, we will act. �* , . act. but the israeli government's - act. but the israeli i government's actions act. but the israeli - government's actions have act. but the israeli _ government's actions have also been called into question. palestinians in the west bank and gaza strip so they are not receiving vaccines decide two despite a legal obligation for israel to provide them under

the geneva convention. but the israeli government points to a different instruction under the oslo accords.— oslo accords. what exactly is the responsibility _ oslo accords. what exactly is the responsibility of- oslo accords. what exactly is the responsibility of the - the responsibility of the palestinian health minister? to take care of the dolphins in the mediterranean, by authorised passing some vaccines to those medical teams who directly work with coronavirus patients and the palestinian authority. and as you can hear from palestinian authority. and as you can hearfrom this interview, it is not because i think we have a legal obligation, it is because i understand that they are doctors and nurses and they don't get the vaccine at this stage. don't get the vaccine at this sta . e. �* , don't get the vaccine at this staie. �* , ,., don't get the vaccine at this stae. �*, , , don't get the vaccine at this staie. a , , stage. as both sides face turbulence _ stage. as both sides face turbulence over - stage. as both sides face turbulence over the - stage. as both sides face l turbulence over the issue, israel is enjoying its run away success, hoping its economy will take off as early as next month. mark lobel, bbc news. the us company spacex has set a new world record for the number of satellites launched on a single rocket. 143 payloads were on board the falcon rocket which launched from florida. it beats the previous record of 104 satellites set by an indian mission

four years ago. jonathan mcdowell is an astronomer at the harvard smithsonian center for astrophysics. he's in boston. jonathan, thank you so much for your time. jonathan, thank you so much for yourtime. can jonathan, thank you so much for your time. can you jonathan, thank you so much for yourtime. can you paint jonathan, thank you so much for your time. can you paint a picture ofjust how busy space is looking at the moment and what this latest device has done to contribute to those numbers?— done to contribute to those numbers? ., ., numbers? right, there are now over 3000 _ numbers? right, there are now over 3000 working _ numbers? right, there are now over 3000 working satellites i numbers? right, there are now over 3000 working satellites in | over 3000 working satellites in orbit. the number of satellites launched last year over 1200 is twice as many in any previous year, and the ones launched today, that is to be how many you would launch an a whole year. it's getting really crowded out there. it is not just the number of satellites by the number of players. the small satellites are affordable for start—up companies, for universities, so there are many more different layers involved in space right now. it more different layers involved in space right now.— more different layers involved in space right now. it sound so bus , in space right now. it sound so

busy. what _ busy, what are the majority of the satellites being used for? well, this launch is a good example stop there were 64 of the satellites that went up today were for communications of some sort. it is a really growing sector, communications between iot and end of things devices relaying data back to their home companies, and so on. 50 of them were for imaging the earth, a new growing sector's radar satellites which can see through clouds and take pictures even during bad weather. so that is good for british imaging.— british imaging. what are some ofthe british imaging. what are some of the biggest _ british imaging. what are some of the biggest dangers - british imaging. what are some of the biggest dangers of - of the biggest dangers of having too many satellites in space? having too many satellites in sace? �* ., , space? all of their satellites are going — space? all of their satellites are going on _ space? all of their satellites are going on all— space? all of their satellites are going on all different - are going on all different directions at 18,000 miles an hour so you can see what the problem might be. even though spaceis problem might be. even though space is the right, it is getting crowded enough that there is a serious risk of collisions. in these modern

satellites are all manoeuvring and changing somewhat unpredictably in their orbits so it is a real challenge because no—one is really in charge of, like with our plans with an air traffic control, telling each satellite where to go. telling each satellite where to o, ., , , telling each satellite where to go. that brings me to my next question. _ go. that brings me to my next question. do _ go. that brings me to my next question, do you _ go. that brings me to my next question, do you think there l question, do you think there needs to be more regulation in this area?— this area? yes i think so. a lot of what _ this area? yes i think so. a lot of what we _ this area? yes i think so. a lot of what we have - this area? yes i think so. a lot of what we have in - this area? yes i think so. a| lot of what we have in space goes back to the 1967 outer space treaty which was very much cast in terms of the us and the soviet union superpowers owning the satellites then. and it is really, you know, showing its age. so i think there really needs to be new standards, new controls and a really international approach to how we manage the traffic in outer space. we manage the traffic in outer sace. �* we manage the traffic in outer sace. ~ ., ., ., space. and how would you go about an _ space. and how would you go about an international- space. and how would you go l about an international approach when you have got students and governments sending satellites up governments sending satellites up into space?— every satellite, government has to be responsible for it, even if it is owned by a private

company or a university. but it is very tenuous. so i think there really needs to be a move towards, for a start, easier registration of satellites for small companies. 0ne registration of satellites for small companies. one thing that is really interesting is that today's flight shows, is that there are actually about six companies that were not wanting satellites themselves but bundling other people's satellites to sort of interface between them and spacex. so there is a whole middle layer of companies that really a representative now of a complex economy in space. and so i think that those sort of companies can help in organising things. jonathan mcdowell. _ organising things. jonathan mcdowell, astronomer, - organising things. jonathan i mcdowell, astronomer, thank organising things. jonathan - mcdowell, astronomer, thank you so much forjoining us also great to have a chat. a reminder of our top story: the democratic leader in the us

senate, chuck schumer, says president biden's multibillion—dollar covert relief plan will be in fermented with or without support from the republican party — 202. thank you for your company, see next hour. hello. monday will start with widespread frost and ice after a wintry weekend which, of course, brought some significant snow in places. it won't be the last covid—secure snowman we see sent in to us this winter and, hopefully, sunday's weather did bring a bit of fun at least. but of course, more people have to be out in the morning, and so that does mean some difficult conditions on untreated roads because it will be icy in places with that widespread frost. after further wintry showers overnight and into the morning across parts of scotland, rain and sleet on the coasts, some snow inland and into the hills. maybe the odd shower into northern ireland and northern england but, actually, monday is one of the better weather days of the week. most places will be dry, variable cloud, decent amount of sunshine and it will feel

a bit less cold than it did over the weekend. into monday night, still some showers, wintry in nature, particularly to hills, affecting parts of scotland, northern ireland and northern england. still frosty and icy, although temperatures start to come up across western areas as we see another system moving our way. and that's going to spread its rain and a bit of hill snow northwards during tuesday. it brings a bit more rain, as do others that follow this week, so if you are in a flood—affected area, certainly worth keeping across conditions near you. not as much rain as last week, but more rain isn't necessarily what you want. we see some rain spreading further north and east during tuesday, into the colder air. at least hill snow into parts of northern england and scotland, and the chance as tuesday comes to an end, especially in scotland, some snow even to low levels here. whereas further south, it turns a bit more milder, but of course, it is wetter. as we go into wednesday, the next weather system will start to move in. looks like it's a pretty slow affair, bringing its rain to the south—west initially, and it is of course the source of milderair coming in from the atlantic. but running into that cold air towards the north and east, it does set up a bit of a battle, and as that battle

takes place during wednesday, again as the wet weather starts to move in, as it moves further north and east, there's the chance of seeing some snow out of that, particularly as we get into wednesday night. although some parts are turning milder this week, it isn't going to last because by the end of the week and into the weekend, the colder air will come south again and there is the chance again next weekend of some parts seeing a bit of snow. that's the forecast.

this is bbc news, the headlines: the democrat leader in the us senate, chuck schumer, says president biden's multi—billion dollar covid—19 relief plan will be implemented, with or without support from the republican party. the number of coronavirus cases in the us has now exceeded 25 million. riot police in the netherlands have used water cannons to break up protests against coronavirus restrictions. demonstrators in the city of eindhoven had gathered in defiance of a 9:00pm curfew. some threw fireworks and looted supermarkets. there were similar clashes in amsterdam. the search for workers still missing at a gold mine in china is continuing, after eleven others were rescued. the miners were trapped hundreds of metres underground after an explosion two weeks ago. it's not clear whether the remaining ten are alive.

now on bbc news, in the week joe biden is sworn in