this is bbc world news, i'm ben brown. our top stories: the oxford astrazeneca vaccine offers limited protection against mild disease caused by the south african variant of covid—19, according to early trials. oxford vaccinologist professor sarah gilbert said the jab will still protect against the virus. we may not be reducing the total number of cases, but there is still protection in that case against deaths, hospitalisations and severe disease. tens of thousands of anti—coup protestors gather for a second day in myanmar, demanding the release of leader aung sann suu kyi. because of this military dictatorship, many of our lives have been destroyed. we cannot let our future generation meet the same fate. the collapse of a himalayan

glacier causes flash flooding in northern india. over 100 people are missing, feared dead. final preparations are made for the australian open as tennis players gear up for one of the world's biggest sporting events amid the pandemic. heavy snow could bring significant disruption to the south—east of england in the coming hours with weather warnings issued by the met office for large parts of britain. hello, and welcome to bbc news. if you are watching in the uk or around the world, do stay with us for the latest analysis from what is happening here and around the globe. astrazeneca, which makes the oxford coronavirus vaccine, says a small study suggests it offers only limited protection

against mild disease caused by a covid variant that emerged in south africa. the company said it had yet to establish how effective the jab is in preventing severe disease caused by the strain. tim allman reports. day after day, jab afterjab. the battle between virus and vaccine is waged. more and more people are getting their first dose, but covid—19 doesn't stand still. the financial times is reporting a study showing the oxford astrazeneca vaccine may not offer protection from all forms of the virus. a spokesperson for the drug company said... this was a relatively small test group and according to the financial

times the data has not yet been peer—reviewed, but astrazeneca seems confident its jab will offer protection against more severe forms of the virus as it creates neutralising antibodies. i do think the coronavirus is here with us to stay, unfortunately, but on the optimistic side it has been wonderful to see that these vaccines do seem to prevent hospitalisations, which is the thing that we are most concerned about. astrazeneca, along with other drug companies, is looking at ways to adapt its vaccine and a new version, if needed, could be ready for delivery by the autumn. as the virus evolves, science reacts. tim allman, bbc news. professor sarah gilbert leads the team at oxford university that produced the astrazeneca vaccine. she says they will still provide protection against the threat of serious illness caused by coronavirus. what we are seeing from other

vaccine developers is that they have a reduction in efficacy against some of the variant viruses. and what that is looking like is that we may not be reducing the total number of cases, but there is still protection in that case against deaths, hospitalisations and severe disease. so that pushes us more back to the first scenario, with the pyramid of cases that i was talking about. maybe we won't be reducing the number of cases as much, but we still won't be seeing the deaths, the hospitalisations and the severe disease, and that is really important for health care systems. even if we are having mild and asymptomatic infections, to prevent people going to hospital with covid would have a major effect. the new version of the vaccine will generate antibodies that will recognise the new variant and then it will be very much like working on flu vaccines. so people will be familiar with the idea that we have to have new components, new strains in the flu vaccine every year to keep up with the main flu strains that are circulating and there are regulatory procedures that are well established for that.

it is called a strain change and vaccine developers know how to go through that process. so we will be following that process again in future for the coronavirus vaccines. that was professor sarah gilbert. i'm joined now by keith neal, who is an emeritus professor in the epidemiology of infectious diseases at the university of nottingham. thank you so much for being with us. how worried should we be about the south african variant in particular, do you think?— do you think? well, first of all, there is probably _ do you think? well, first of all, there is probably not _ do you think? well, first of all, there is probably not a - do you think? well, first of all, there is probably not a lot - do you think? well, first of all, there is probably not a lot of. there is probably not a lot of numbers are in the united kingdom and public health england are trying to track as many down as quickly as possible. we always knew the vaccine would rotate over time and this comes as no great surprise. —— would mutate. it comes as no great surprise. it doesn't appear to be virulent, a bit quicker, a bit like the uk can strain. i think the answer is the vaccine will give some protection. our policy has always

been to stop people getting ill with this disease and dying, rather than stopping the spread because we never knew it weather the vaccines would interrupt transmission. once you have been exposed to a coronavirus like virus, you will have some antibodies in advance and therefore your immune system gets a head start, should you meet another one. and we have heard quite a lot about tweaking the various vaccines to deal with these variants as they emerge. how easy or difficult is that tweaking process? i’m emerge. how easy or difficult is that tweaking process?- emerge. how easy or difficult is that tweaking process? i'm not an exert on that tweaking process? i'm not an exoert on this. — that tweaking process? i'm not an expert on this, but _ that tweaking process? i'm not an expert on this, but actually - that tweaking process? i'm not an expert on this, but actually these | expert on this, but actually these are rna vaccines and they use rna in the production process and all we need to do is put a different rna in that matches the area of concern. this is actually not that different to tweaking the flu vaccine. when ou look to tweaking the flu vaccine. when you look at _ to tweaking the flu vaccine. when you look at the — to tweaking the flu vaccine. when you look at the roll-out _ to tweaking the flu vaccine. when you look at the roll-out of - to tweaking the flu vaccine. when you look at the roll-out of the - you look at the roll—out of the vaccine across this country generally, are you surprised by the speed, the efficiency... it has been

quite extraordinary, hasn't it? how optimistic are you that it is going to make a difference quite soon to all our lives?— to make a difference quite soon to all our lives? having been involved in planning — all our lives? having been involved in planning mass — all our lives? having been involved in planning mass vaccine _ all our lives? having been involved l in planning mass vaccine campaigns, the real stumbling block is the supply of vaccine. we have trained large numbers of extra vaccinators and clearly if we had more vaccine we could go faster. we have always really known that the production supply has been the major issue and that applies to vaccines around the world for 20 or 30 years. but that applies to vaccines around the world for 20 or 30 years.— world for 20 or 30 years. but are ou world for 20 or 30 years. but are you worried _ world for 20 or 30 years. but are you worried that _ world for 20 or 30 years. but are you worried that although - world for 20 or 30 years. but are you worried that although the . you worried that although the roll—out in this country is going very well, in other countries it isn't and it is quite slow and as we keep hearing, it is really until the whole of the world is vaccinated this isn't going away?— whole of the world is vaccinated this isn't going away? correct, they think we need _ this isn't going away? correct, they think we need to _ this isn't going away? correct, they think we need to work _ this isn't going away? correct, they think we need to work out - this isn't going away? correct, they think we need to work out how- this isn't going away? correct, they think we need to work out how we | this isn't going away? correct, they i think we need to work out how we can get vaccines to countries across the world, which is why the oxford vaccine, which can be delivered in the same whether other vaccines are already delivered into across

africa, with the cold chain it is already there and that will work. having one's vaccines requiring —80 degrees were never going to be effective for the whole world. goad effective for the whole world. good to talk to you. _ effective for the whole world. good to talk to you, thank _ effective for the whole world. good to talk to you, thank you _ effective for the whole world. good to talk to you, thank you so - effective for the whole world. good to talk to you, thank you so much. keith neal, emeritus professor in epidemiology and infectious diseases at nottingham university. tens of thousands of people in myanmar have demonstrated for a second day against the recent military coup and in support of the ousted leader, aung san suu kyi. tens of thousands of people in myanmar have demonstrated in the main city of yangon, protesters chanted slogans against military dictatorship. in the southern town of myawaddy, on the border with thailand, there are reports that shots were fired as police broke up an anti—coup protest. from bangkok, our correspondent jonathan head reports. once more they poured in along the main road from the north of yangon. more younger people this time, wearing the red colour of the national league for democracy, the party whose government was overthrown by the coup.

others carrying pictures of aung san suu kyi, the woman who for so many years symbolised resistance to military rule and who is once again under military detention. the crowd slowed down the sunday traffic, but drivers used their horns to show their support. some also showing the nld flag. three fingers, the new symbol of popular defiance borrowed from neighbouring thailand and from the hunger games. many of them are students. mindful of the role played by previous generations of students in protesting against the military, but hopeful that many more burmese willjoin this movement. translation: this is really unfair. despite the landslide win in the election, the military staged a coup with false accusations. we thank the people for coming out on the streets. we have to fight together

with respect for all. most internet services have been blocked in myanmar, but they are still finding ways to get these images out. and to show that the coup will not go unopposed. myanmar is a very different country from when people last came out to protest like this. this generation has experienced ten years of relative freedom, which they are not ready to give up. but on everyone's minds is one question. will the military resort to the terrible violence and repression of the past to enforce its will? underneath this show of courage there are good reasons to fear. jonathan head, bbc news, bangkok. nyein chan aye is a bbc burmese service reporter on the ground in yangon, he filed this update from the protests.

this is the second day in a row people are taking to the streets in yangon. people nearby are also cheering up and supporting. they also singing songs and waving flags. what they are saying essentially here is they don't want military and they want better elected leaders. —— they want better elected leaders. —— they went back their elected leaders. as you can see behind me, there are more people here than yesterday, from lots of universities. there are so many young people involved in this. when i talked to them i was told they are not associated with any political party or group, theyjust take part this course is common people. the security forces are nearby, closely watching the protest, but they did not do anything yet. we see only police. people are also shouting. police are for the people, not for the military detector. we still

don't see military troops in yangon. also no violence crackdown. there are separate protests against the military and other parts of the country as well, including another main city, where thousands of people are gathering today. this is for the older generation, who experienced this kind of protests before and they are also worried if the military retain full force and take action against the protesters. the latest there from yangon. at least two people have died and dozens more are missing after a himalayan glacier broke away in uttarakhand state in northern india. the flash flooding washed parts away of a dam. most of those missing are believed to be workers in the construction of a hydro power project. state authorities said the water level was stabilising. disaster relief forces have been rushed to the area. i'm joined now by our south asia editor, anbarasan ethirajan, in london.

what more do we know about this disaster? i what more do we know about this disaster? . , , . ., , ., what more do we know about this disaster? . , , . ., ,, disaster? i appreciate you saying that this- -- _ disaster? i appreciate you saying that this... washed _ disaster? i appreciate you saying that this... washed away, - disaster? i appreciate you saying that this... washed away, broke| disaster? i appreciate you saying - that this... washed away, broke away part of this town. there have been a couple of construction projects going on that critical area of the state and basically for hydropower projects and many of those are missing or believed to be working in these power projects and as a we speak hundreds of emergency services personnel have been deployed to the area, and so far they say they have recovered three bodies and dozens are still missing. but the government has already asked the army to be on standby and more people are being rushed to the area. but there is a fear that people will maybe going along the riverside, along the banks of this river, could be missing because many people take the cattle for grazing and they also go around collecting firewood. these

people could be missing in this particular area is very, very ecologically sensitive and the government says that it is doing all it can to rescue as many people as possible. but it can to rescue as many people as ossible. �* ., , ., ., ~' ~' possible. but it does look like the death toll could _ possible. but it does look like the death toll could rise _ possible. but it does look like the j death toll could rise significantly? yes. one is the thing is, tunnels, according to these officials, that are completely blocked and dozens of the workers are still trapped inside, they are trying to reach out to these people, but they are not very hopeful because it is completely submerged in the emerge. this particular area also witnessed another flooding this particular area also witnessed anotherflooding in mid—2013, when thousands of people were killed and they have been... for a long time morning against locking up these rivers. they will finally go and join the mighty river ganges, and you're in for the last four or five years people have a warning, there have been court about building a road in this particular sensitive areas, though close to the himalayan

mountains and also bringing downs. but now the officials will have to think twice because part of this dam has been washed away. they need to revisit this whole project again. anbarasan ethirajan, thank you very much indeed. a selfish billie south asia editor. farmers have blocked roads to pressurise the government to roll back agricultural reforms. many troops were deployed around delhi stop farmers are objecting to plans to open up through production to big business. let's have a look at our latest headlines. the oxford—astrazeneca vaccine offers limited protection against mild disease caused by the south african variant of covid—i9. tens of thousands of anti—coup protestors gather for a second day in myanmar demanding the release

of leader aung sann suu kyi. the collapse of a himalayan glacier causes flash flooding in northern india — over 100 people are missing, feared dead. police are continuing to investigate a series of stabbings that took place in london over the last 48 hours. a22—year—old man has died and nine others were injured in separate incidents in the croydon area on friday night. another man in his 20s died in kilburn yesterday evening. police say they are not connected and have condemned the violence is needless and abhorrent. in belarus, the opposition leader svyatlana tsikhanouskaya has called on people across the world to support belarusian protesters byjoining the day of solidarity today. belarus has seen mass protests since august's disputed presidential vote, amid claims of poll—rigging. here's poland's deputy foreign minister, marcin przydacz.

earlier i asked are the protests any closer to succeeding? of course, the situation is very complicated and belarus people have been protesting for the last couple of months without a positive result, so mr lukashenko is not ready to resign, he is not ready to start any dialogue with them, with the society. what he is ready to do is to ease the whole apparatus to repress the people, right? to detain them. so that is why madame svyatlana tsikhanouskaya and the other opposition leaders are announcing the solidarity with belarus because in their opinion the struggle is not finished yet, so just to keep its eye on the international agenda and just to help somehow to keep the spirits of freedom among the people today,

we have this day of solidarity, but the people are really ready to fight for the freedom also in the future, only because of the condition, because of the oppressions, maybe those numbers are a bit less visible, but the spirit of freedom are still there. the spirit of freedom is still there, but as we say it has been many months now of protest. do you think the struggle, as you call it, can succeed? cannot be victoriousi am absolutely sure that the belarussian can it be victorious? i am absolutely sure that the belarussian society is completely different compared to the previous years. this soviet society has changed. i mean, there is awakening national and social awakening is a matter of fact. it is a fact that at this very moment, while there is no change it is mostly because of the support, economical, political, military from russia,

which mr lukashenko got a couple of weeks and months ago, but i am pretty sure that the nation, the society will succeed because one cannot rule the country without any popular support, so in this case we don't know when it happens, but it will happen. the change which society is struggling for will come. you talked about russia and vladimir putin. he is facing protests of his own at the moment, so he is probably not going to change the support that he is giving to lukashenko in belarus. yes, he will not change probably because it would be very dangerous case for himself. i mean, changing the autocratic regime by the people on the street is a knife mark for putin himself. look at what is happening right now in moscow,

petersburg, other cities of russia, so of course the autocrats are helping each other. that is why the european union, the west, should push, not only belarus, but also on russia and should support the civil society independent media in belarus. that is the only way we can do. people are still there, people are fighting for the freedom in belarus, but also right now in russia and they need our support of the free world. and for you in poland, of course, what happens in russia and belarus is absolutely strategically crucial? it is, of course, it is just next to our borders for security reasons, but also for historical and cultural reasons. we are very close culturally. our language, for example, with our belarussian neighbours. so what is happening there is very important for us. the other factor is that we have a huge minority of polish people living in belarus, so it is important,

but not only important for poland, it should be important for the whole of euro—atlantic family, as i call it. the eu because they are a threat to our common security, but the violation of human rights which is taking place right now in belarus and russia should be a matter of consideration also for all of us, for uk, us and elsewhere. that is why we are so active on the international platform just to keep the interest of the west to the situation in the eastern part of our continent. that was polling's deputy foreign minister talking to me a little earlier. the australian open tennis tournament starts on monday. it's the most ambitious sporting event since the beginning

of the covid—i9 pandemic. this event is only happening because australia has been able to control the spread of the virus. but not everyone is pleased. our australia correspondent shaimaa khalil reports from melbourne. it has been a bumpy ride for the australian open. but the stage is set now. with the most unusual of build—ups, it is finally ready to go. even before the grand slam begins, tennis fans have come for the warm—up events. with the ongoing travel ban most spectators this year are locals, and after melbourne going through one of the longest and strictest lockdowns in the world, they are very excited to be here. the safety is the main thing i think everyone really wanted it to happen, but that it is able to go on like it has and, you know, like we are here, at melbourne park, it is pretty awesome. it's unreal, really. it feels like a new life. melbourne is a huge i sporting capital of the world and people love this sport here, it makes them happy. - actually you feel maybe more connected with the tennis because you don't have the big crowd. you actually can watch and enjoy the show. literally because this is what it is, it is a big show!

getting to this stage has been controversial and often dramatic. hundreds of players flew in from around the world, some under tighter quarantine rules than others because of covid—i9 cases recorded on their planes. preparing as best they could. and then last week, another setback. more than 500 players and officials had to isolate and be tested after a coronavirus case at their hotel. not everyone in melbourne supports the tennis going ahead. some have argued that holding a tournament of that size in the midst of a pandemic isn't worth the risk. melburnians sarah and jackson won't be at any of the matches. they are stuck in the uk because of limits on international arrivals. they say there's not enough quarantine places, but then when it comes to sporting events, suddenly they can find more spaces and they can lift those caps. it makes me feel abandoned.

it makes me feel as if i don't matter as much as these athletes or celebrities, even though i am a citizen. for the next two weeks, everyone here hopes the focus will shift from coronavirus to the courts. but it will feel very different. crowds have been kept at half capacity and covid safety measures are everywhere. many will be watching this closely. notjust for the tennis, but also what it tells us about the future of holding major sporting events in this very different and difficult time. shaimaa khalil, bbc news, melbourne. heavy snow could bring significant disruption to the east and south—east of england in the next few hours. an amberwarning — meaning possible travel disruption and power cuts — is in force until monday morning. snow has already fallen elsewhere across the uk, and simonjones such has billie sent

us this update from just outside dover. northern england and scotland have already experienced heavy snow in the past week but now it's going to be far more widespread. in parts we could see up to 30 centimetres of snow and the whole of the east of the uk has weather warnings in place for snow and ice from today until wednesday, so this is going to last quite a period of time and it is notjust the snow, we have also got storm darcy blowing through, bringing winds of up to 50 mph and although it says on the thermometer it is around freezing, when you add in the wind chill it is actually feeling more like —7. the advices, don't go out unless you have to do. that really coincides with the government advice to stay

at home because of coronavirus, but i think the reality is when people see a bit of snow a lot of them will want to come out and enjoy it. simon jones, braving the cold weather there in kent. frank rothwell, is the oldest man to a zero sailed across the atlantic by himself. he arrived one week ahead of schedule and raise more than £600,000 for alzheimer's research uk is part of his efforts. thank you him. as the lockdown continues and new covid variants emerge, the government is constantly looking at what restrictions are needed to bring the virus under control. one thing that's so far been ruled out is axing the bubble system — because, for many, bubbles have represented a lifeline during the pandemic. hope bolger has been taking a look at how they've helped. it's been a lifeline. i don't know how people are doing without it.

the difference it has made it to our quality of life, to her quality of life, is huge. it has actually saved my life. coronavirus has caused many of us to feel isolated at times. during the first lockdown some people spent weeks without any real human contact. alex was one of them. the most meaningful conversation i had was with the lady in the co—op over the road about eggs. it was incredibly isolating, it got really, really lonely. when support bubbles were brought in lastjune, they offered people in similar situations a vital chance to reconnect. it has actually saved my life. had the situation of being on my own, being away from people, gone on for much longer, i don't know what state i would have ended up in. honestly, i owe my friends who said "come over" a world of gratitude. because without them, we might not be having the conversation. the rules across the uk differ slightly.

in england, wales and scotland, you can form a support bubble if you are the only adult in the house. separately, england has childcare bubbles for families with kids under 14. scotland lets couples who live apart bubble, even if there are other people in their households and in northern ireland two households of any size can form a household bubble. it's even really difficult thinking back to it, just how much of a struggle it was. with a tantruming really needy two—year—old it was so, so, so difficult. nessa runs a new business and is a university lecturer, all while looking after her toddler, jacob. she gets help from her mum, pam. it's been a lifeline, i don't know how people are doing without it. my business definitely wouldn't have been able to survive because we are a new business, i do need to go on to site quite often. at a time when schools are closed, shops are shut and pubs are empty some have raised concerns that

bubbles contribute to the spread of the virus, but would ditching them lead to more problems? in the last few weeks the government has dismissed rumours it might suspend bubbles. the bubbles that we have in place, the childcare bubbles, the support bubbles, are very important and we are going to keep them. experts say it's a case of weighing up the risks. so it's really important that you form the bubble with the right people to optimise your mental health and at the same time to reduce your chance of contracting the virus. what would you do if we couldn't come round and make your dinnerforyou? starve. 93—year—old margaret worked in the land army during the second world war. this support bubble has really allowed us to actually keep her independent in her home because the reality is if— it didn't exist she'd have to go into a home or she'd have to move in with us, which she vehemently does not want to do. as with everything during this pandemic, it's about finding

the right balance, but for those in bubbles their importance cannot be overstated. we saw that really cold weather in kent with our correspondent, simon jones. now it's time for a look at the weather with susan powell. we have a cold week ahead, particularly biting today, thanks to easterly winds, and we will also have those tomorrow. the threat for some today of heavy, disruptive snowfall, and the met office have marked out an area across parts of east anglia and the south—east that could be at risk of up to 20 centimetres of snow falling. this is the tail end of storm darcy, bringing with it strong winds, so blizzard and drifting, and additional hazard. to the north, with a keen easterly, quite a few showers across northern england and into scotland as well. some areas will avoid them and see some decent sunshine, but even in the sunshine it will feel particularly raw. these are the temperatures you would read

on the thermometer, but we have to factor in the chilling effect that