welcome to bbc news, my name is mike embley. our top stories: secret recordings of princess latifah, daughter of the ruler of dubai, are released exclusively to the bbc. she says she's being held captive by her family. i'm a i'm a hostage and this villa has been converted into a jail, all the windows are barred shut, i cannot open any window. president biden arrives in wisconsin for a televised debate on his $1.9 trillion covid rescue package. more protests against myanmar�*s military coup, ousted leader aung san suu kyi faces new charges. and once in a generation snowfalls across the southern us. texas bears the brunt

of freezing conditions. welcome to our viewers on pbs in america and around the globe. the bbc has obtained secret recordings, made by the daughter of the ruler of dubai, in which she accuses her father of holding her in solitary confinement. sheikh mohammed bin rashid al maktoum is a close ally of the united kingdom, with extensive business interests here, and he claims that princess latifa is safe in the care of the family. it's known that the princess tried to leave dubai in 2018, but was captured by troops and forced to return. last year, the high court in london found that sheikh mohammed had �*ordered and orchestrated' the abduction. our correspondent, nawal al—maghafi, has the story. princess latifa, daughter of one of the most powerful men in the middle east — sheikh mohammed bin rashid al—maktoum, ruler of dubai.

here she is skydiving. it looks like the perfect life, but it's not one that she wanted any more. she says that she's a princess held captive. she filmed this video in 2018 as she was about to flee. i'm feeling positive about the future. just waking up in the morning and thinking, i can do whatever i want today, i can go wherever i want. with the help of her friend tiina, they managed to flee dubai and board a yacht. the plan was to cross the indian ocean and seek political asylum in the united states. but eight days later, as they were about to reach india, her pursuit for freedom was shattered. we started hearing noises from the upper deck which sounded like gunshots. basically, the boat was taken over by indian special forces.

latifa was saying, "oh, my god, oh, my god, they're here." she continued screaming and kicking and trying to get away. that's the last time i've seen my friend. princess latifa was taken off the boat by force in international waters. she disappeared. princess latifa would only be allowed to step out of the villa for this, a lunch with former un human rights commissioner mary robinson, arranged by her stepmother, princess haya. nothing has been heard from her since, until now. so i'm repeating to them, i'm repeating that my name is latifa al maktoum. i don't want to go to dubai. i want to get asylum. panorama has obtained these videos, recorded over a period of many months. in them, she details where she is being held, a villa in central dubai. i am a hostage and this villa has been converted into a jail, all the windows are boarded shut, i cannot open any window.

i have been by myself in solitary confinement, no access to medical help, no trial, no charge. nothing. she sketched what she can see. the villa is being guarded by around 30 police on rotation. panorama has independently verified the details of where and how she's being imprisoned. nobody should be subjected to that. solitary confinement of that sort is broadly considered to be a form of torture as it becomes prolonged, the way this has been right now. for three years now, life for sheikh mohammed bin rashid al—maktoum has continued as normal. here's sheikh mohammed, speaking with her majesty the queen. but he's been responsible for the imprisonment and abuse of his own daughter. until this day, the sheikh maintains that princess latifa's return to dubai was a rescue mission. i don't want to be a hostage in this jailvilla, ijust want to be free.

a few months ago, her secret phone went silent. these messages would be the last we'd hear from her. we have taken the decision to release some of this evidence. we haven't taken this decision lightly. i feel that she would want us to fight for her and not give up. every day i am worried about my safety and my life. i don't really know if i am going to survive the situation. the police threatened me that i will be in prison my whole life and i'll never see the sun again. princess latifa ending that report there by our correspondent nawal al maghafi. as we mentioned, the sheikh found himself criticised by the high court in london last year, when his daughter's circumstances were considered. the sheikh is one of the richest heads of state in the world, and a somewhat controversial figure. but he is also an extremely well connected, not least because of his business interests, including his horse racing empire, which has brought him into contact

with the queen. our diplomatic correspondent james landale considers the potential impact of the bbc panorama investigation. sheikh mohammed bin rashid al maktoum might be prime minister of the united arab emirates and one of the richest heads of state in the world, but he is also one of the biggest landowners in britain, who shares a passion for horses with the queen, and whose stables are a mainstay of the british racing industry. his wealth flows through britain. he owns passenger ferries, the london gateway port and vast estates in scotland, surrey and here in suffolk where he keeps hundreds of horses. but the sheikh is also a man who, according to a high courtjudge, not only intimidated his then wife, princess haya, seen here, but also imprisoned his daughter, something latifa has now confirmed herself. world leaders now need to look at who they are calling friends and doing business with and distance themselves from sheikh mohammed until he abides by not only his own laws

but international law. such is the family's influence that in 2018 it persuaded a former president of ireland and ex—un human rights commissioner to meet the princess in dubai. mary robinson was supposedly there to prove latifa was alive but unwell. she now admits she was tricked and wants an investigation. i was misled, initially by my good friend princess haya because she was misled. haya began to explain that latifa had quite a serious bipolar problem, and they were saying to me, very kind of in a way that was very convincing, "we don't want latifa to go through any further trauma." i didn't know how to address somebody with bipolar about their trauma, and i really didn't actually want to talk to her and increase the trauma over a nice lunch. the question is what impact these revelations might have, if any, on sheikh mohammed. buckingham palace would not

comment on his relationship with the queen, and some doubted the british government would intervene. is it britain getting involved to make britain feel better, or is it britain getting involved because it might create a change of heart and lead to the freedom of this particular young woman? people have to be pretty candid about these things. it's not going to work. the united nations has, in the past, asked sheikh mohammed's ministers for news about princess latifa, but to no avail. in the end, his daughter's fate seems to lie in his hands and his alone. james landale, bbc news. president biden is taking questions in his first town hall, so he can broadcast his post—trump agenda and promote his coronavirus relief package proposal. viewers are accustomed to televised town halls with candidates — but such events with presidents occur much less often. the televised event is being held in wisconsin. let's discuss this more

with natasha korecki is washington correspondent at politico. president trump loved a rally of course but he never did townhall�*s when he wasn't campaigning, what exactly is president biden up to? this is all wrapped — president biden up to? this is all wrapped up _ president biden up to? this is all wrapped up in _ president biden up to? this is all wrapped up in his - president biden up to? this is all wrapped up in his agenda. | all wrapped up in his agenda. president biden�*s number one goal right now is to advance this $1.9 trillion covid—19 relief package, that is really key to his presidency. he is well aware that if he does not sell this thing, he could be in some big trouble. he needs to get covid—19 under control in the united states the kids can go back to school. the majority of schools are still not in session in person, and he also, you know, wisconsin is really a microcosm of the united states because it is no politically divided equally, so he really has to sell this to both sides.

he needs to get public support for it, so he is doing that, but he is also trying to just remind people they need to trust in the vaccine. there is still 30% of americans who have said that they probably won't get the vaccine. that is a problem for president biden too, because again he can't reopen the economy or send kids back to school if he can't get this pandemic under control. and i think the figures suggest he needs to persuade quite a lot more people to wear masks as well, doesn't it? people do seem to care about these town halls, are they? seeing candidates after donning answering questions from the public directly means something?- public directly means something? sure, it's a gesture. _ something? sure, it's a gesture, certainly. - something? sure, it's a gesture, certainly. this| something? sure, it's a - gesture, certainly. this middle america here, and that he is willing to talk to people and get their input and answer their questions, and it is a lot more personal, and there is a element to it of

accountability that he is going to talk to americans directly and answer questions. so that is enormously influential, and the fact again that he is having it and was concerned, a state that he only won by less than a percentage point i think is telling for both political and policy. i is telling for both political and policy-— is telling for both political and oli . , ., ., ., and policy. i 'ust want to ask ou and policy. i 'ust want to ask you about — and policy. ijust want to ask you about what _ and policy. ijust want to ask you about what mr— and policy. ijust want to ask you about what mr trump i and policy. i just want to ask| you about what mr trump has been saying about the leader of his own party in the senate, it feels like more of the early shots in a war that is going to go on for a while. it’s shots in a war that is going to go on for a while.— go on for a while. it's been awfully quiet _ go on for a while. it's been awfully quiet without - go on for a while. it's been| awfully quiet without trump go on for a while. it's been - awfully quiet without trump on twitter but in this case, mitch mcconnell went at trump really hard. voted to acquit trump in the senate trial, but he basically, he did blame trump for inciting this riot, this insurgency on the capital, but still, when you hear stuff like

this, it is stilljarring, trump said mitch is a dour, sullen and unsmiling political hack, and we are actually also reporting that trump wanted to talk about mcconnell in very personal and disparaging terms about his physical attributes, and one of his aides stopped him from doing that, so it could have been much more daring than it actually was searing. he is well aware that there are more investigations, he just overcame this senate impeachment, however. is a criminal investigation that was openedin criminal investigation that was opened in georgia for a phone call he made right before the senate special election. there is also investigations in new york into him, so he is right

now, believe it or not, listening to some of his aides when they tell him, just stand down right now, but he couldn't help it with mitch mcconnell, apparently. help it with mitch mcconnell, apparently-— help it with mitch mcconnell, anarentl. . ., , apparently. natasha, we will be back to all _ apparently. natasha, we will be back to all of that, i'm sure. - back to all of that, i'm sure. thank you very much. in myanmar, the trial of the detained civilian leader aung san suu kyi has begun, behind closed doors. she appeared in court via video link, accused of violating the natural disaster law, on top of earlier charges of possessing illegal communications. protests against the military coup have continued across myanmar. a military spokesman has claimed aung saan suu kyi is being confined for her own safety. this report from our south east asia correspondent jonathan head. when you have lost the monks in myanmar, you're in trouble. they led the last big uprising against military rule. now some arejoining the protests against the coup. it's the diversity and inventiveness of this civil disobedience movement

which has stumped myanmar�*s new military rulers. this impromptu painting shows a young woman who was shot in the head by police last week. the involvement of so many professional groups is also challenging the authorities. these are engineers, refusing to co—operate with the new regime. here people joined railway workers to ensure that the trains don't run on time under military rule. public services are beginning to crumble under the strain. banks are running out of cash. putting troops on the street is no answer to this kind of protest. so, two weeks after seizing power, the military offered their own version of events to journalists today, accusing protesters of violence and intimidation, and insisting their power grab was not in fact a coup.

but this was also the day the generals put aung san suu kyi on trial, on what looked like trumped up and trivial charges. after that, any battle for hearts and minds was already lost. even for the nameless and mainly younger organisers of this movement, she is still the popularly elected leader of the country. jonathan head, bbc news. stay with us on bbc news, still to come: lift off on diversity — we hear about the european space agency's ground—breaking new recruitment drive. nine years and 15,000 deaths after going into afghanistan, the last soviet troops were finally coming home. the withdrawal completed in good order, but the army defeated in the task it had been sent to perform.

malcolm has been murdered. that has a terrible affect on the morale of the people. i'm terrified of the repercussions on the streets, one wonders who is next. gunfire. as the airlift got under way, there was no letup . in the eruption itself. lava streams from . a vent low the crater flowed down to the sea the east of the island, i away from the town for the time being. | it could start flowing again at any time. i the russians heralded their new generation space station with a spectacular night launch, they called it �*mir�* — the russian for peace. this is bbc world news. the latest headlines: chilling new videos from the daughter of the ruler of dubai —

princess latifa says she is being held prisoner by her father after trying to flee. president biden has arrived in wisconsin, a state hit hard by the pandemic, for a televised debate on his $1.9 trillion rescue package. at least 11 people have lost their lives in the united states, as once—in—a—generation freezing winter weather hammers the southern states. more than 150 million americans are now under winter storm warnings, and officials have declared a state of emergency in texas. angelica casas sent this from san antonio. the winter weather in texas started out as a fun. power went out in the heights so if i'm freezing my butt off, might as well be out in the snow. but this dreamy scene soon turned into a nightmare, with temperatures dropping to 0 fahrenheit across the state — that's —17 celsius. power supplies have failed, leaving over 4 million people without electricity. this man's house froze up, forcing him to drive 30 miles to houston to find

a hotel for him and his family. got a newborn, just trying to find a hotel and trying to find a place to stay. we called several hotels — everybody was just booked up. many have been left to fend for themselves. rolling blackouts have been put in some areas of the state to keep powerfor hospitals, police and fire stations. texas is not used to the fury of a cold winter. i have been seeing people put food outside to freeze, instead of in the freezer, charging their phones into their vehicles, and even spending the night in their turned—on cars just to stay warm. but the state is the biggest energy producer so many families are telling me that they are upset that texas did not prepare in advance for the freezing temperatures that we are seeing now. local officials say they are doing their best to get back on track, especially during this pandemic. the hurst county public health department building lost power.

at that location we had 8,430 moderna vaccines, so we got to work, under the mission to avoid losing those vaccines with the loss of power. there have been hundreds of road crashes in texas and in other states too. the national weather service says this abnormal weather is down to a cold outbreak that has come through from the arctic. it says nearly 73% of the united states is covered in snow right now and the cold snap will stay for another week. angelica casas, bbc news, san antonio. let's get some of the day's other news: north korean hackers are reported to have tried to break into the computer systems of pharmaceutical giant, pfizer. according to south korea's spy agency, the hackers were looking for information on the vaccine. north korea has been under self—imposed isolation since january last year. leader kimjong—un has denied that the country has had any coronavirus cases.

reports from yemen say thousands of people already displaced by the conflict have been forced to flee an offensive by houthi rebels on the government—held northern city of marib. aid agencies and local organisations say that since the advance began a week ago, makeshift camps in the desert outside the city have been shelled by houthi artillery. the us state department has urged the houthis to cease all military operations. the world's biggest cryptocurrency, bitcoin, has broken through the $50,000 barrier for the first time. it continues an upward trend that's seen it rise almost 900% since march last year. bitcoin has been given a boost by news of large firms, like tesla and mastercard, showing support for the currency. the lower house of the french national assembly has approved legislation to combat extremism, which the government says threatens national unity. president emmanuel macron�*s flagship project is meant to nurture republican values and has militant islam as its prime target. conservatives say the bill

doesn't go far enough muslims in general. it includes closer scrutiny of religious associations, tighter controls on home schooling and a new offence of posting personal details online to endanger others. the senate will debate the measures next month. the night—time curfew in the netherlands could be in doubt after a court ruled that the government hadn't shown why it was necessary to stop coronavirus spreading. the challenge to the curfew was brought by an anti—lockdown group, although the government has appealed the decision as paul hawkins reports. protests which turned to riots. this was a reaction when the nighttime curfew was introduced in amersfoort and geleen. only last week, the nighttime curfew was extended to march, the

government saying it was necessary to stop the spread of coronavirus but one anti— lockdown group was so enraged that government to court and one. . , ., ., y one. the curfew is not only unsubstantiated _ one. the curfew is not only unsubstantiated but - one. the curfew is not only unsubstantiated but also . unsubstantiated but also illegitimate. it was found on one or two grounds that he could not continue. there is no legal basis for a curfew. then you have to show there is and the necessity, an emergency, that it the necessity, an emergency, thatitis the necessity, an emergency, that it is a kid. but the necessity, an emergency, that it is a kid.— that it is a kid. but the court has also _ that it is a kid. but the court has also ordered _ that it is a kid. but the court has also ordered the - that it is a kid. but the court has also ordered the curfew| that it is a kid. but the court l has also ordered the curfew to state in place until friday, when the appeal by the government will be heard. translation:— government will be heard. translation: the curfew is a mean, translation: the curfew is a mean. what — translation: the curfew is a mean. what a _ translation: the curfew is a mean, what a goal. _ translation: the curfew is a mean, what a goal. the - translation: the curfew is a mean, what a goal. the goal. translation: the curfew is a| mean, what a goal. the goal is to keep the coronavirus under control in the best way we can in order to regain all our freedoms in a safe manner. that is why i heard everyone to stick to the curfew. —— urge

limit out social contact as much as possible. limit out social contact as much as ossible. , much as possible. government is draftin: much as possible. government is drafting legislation _ much as possible. government is drafting legislation to _ drafting legislation to strengthen legal basis for the curfew but for now the streets of the netherlands remain empty at least until friday morning when the government's appeal is heard. what happens after that it is unclear. like others rather well, some people's patients is wearing thin and peoples tempers are boiling over. paul hawkins, bbc news. few people have ever been to space but, soon, that number will be growing. for the first time in over a decade, the european space agency is recruiting new astronauts. agency is recruiting new astronauts. and they plan to select at least one astronaut living with a disability. so what does it take to go to space? our science correspondent victoria gill has been finding out. if you've ever dreamed of a career in space exploration, now could be your chance. how does that look to you? being selected to become an astronaut used to be the preserve of young men with military backgrounds. it was 1991 before the first european woman, britain's helen sharman, flew in space.

now, in an effort to be much more inclusive, the european space agency says it plans to recruit at least one person with a disability. the ultimate aim is to adapt spacecraft in order to enable astronauts with disabilities to be part of a crew. people with lower limb deficiencies or who have restricted growth, circumstances that would have made them ineligible in the past, are being encouraged to apply. they are being quite particular about the kinds of disabilities that they are looking at but this is a really great step in the right direction. any young person with a disability who wants to chase this dream, who wants to be an astronaut, i think absolutely hang on to that dream. the space agency is working with international paralympic committee, with the intention of making para=astronauts a reality. you don't know, you could have been excluding the best astronaut in the world just purely based on the fact that they have physical difference, whereas now actually giving people that opportunity, hopefully, there might be somebody out there that makes

the best astronaut in the world, and that is super exciting. every recruit will have to go through rigorous mental and physical preparation, something the last british astronaut to be recruited is just so diverse but it is an incredible journey. are you excited to see who makes it through? this is a new era of space exploration that we're about to embark on. we're involved in the artemis program, that's returning humans into the surface of the moon, and is a steppingstone to going onto mar, so this selection process could potentially be picking the first europeans who will set foot on mars. so if you would like to chase your own dream of interplanetary travel, the online application opens in march. victoria gill, bbc news. more on that and all the news anytime on the bbc website and also on our twitterfeed. anytime on the bbc website and also on our twitter feed. thank you so much for watching.

hello there. we can expect more mild weather through the rest of this week, but with that, there will be more outbreaks of rain. through wednesday, yes, it will be mild but also windy, some outbreaks of rain at times. quite a wet start to the day, actually, thanks to this frontal system pushing its way eastwards. now, that rain will clear from many areas quite quickly, but you can see this frontjust dangling down towards the south. that means the rain is going to linger across southern counties of england in fact, pushing back northwards into parts of south wales, the midlands and east anglia through the afternoon. elsewhere, it's a sunshine and showers day. some particularly heavy showers towards the northwest where it will also be windy. gusts of 70 mph in exposed spots in western scotland. but as you can see, it's quite a blustery day for all parts of the uk.

temperatures ranging from 7 celsius there in stornoway to a high of 12 celsius in london. now, as we move through wednesday night, we see more wet weather ploughing its way northwards, particularly heavy bursts of rain across the west. the winds coming up from the south, it's going to be a pretty mild start to thursday morning, but, we will see this rain pushed eastwards as we go through the day — pushed eastwards by a weather front, a cold front, and so behind our rain band, we will start to feel the effects of some slightly colder air. you can see the rain pushing eastwards quite quickly through the day. sunny spells and showers following on behind. more persistent rain bending back into northwest scotland. but temperatures actually falling away as the day goes by. these are the values you can expect at 3 o'clock on thursday afternoon. feeling quite chilly, actually, across the west, but that's only a temporary shift to something cooler, because by friday, the winds will be hurtling back up from the southwest again. with that, we will see some outbreaks of very heavy rain,

maybe some flooding in some western areas, but those temperatures beginning to climb upwards. and as we head into the weekend, well, this weather fronts is going to be quite troublesome because it will be wriggling around, bringing pulses of rain. some uncertainty about exactly where the wet weather will end up, but to the southeast of these weather fronts, we will continue to tap into some pretty warm air wafting up from the south. so, temperatures could get as high as 15 or 16 celsius in southern areas, but there will also be some outbreaks of rain at times.

this is bbc news, the headlines: the daughter of the ruler of dubai says she is being held prisoner by her father. the bbc has obtained video in which she says she's being kept in solitary confinement, after an earlier escape attempt. sheikh mohammed bin rashid al maktoum says princess latifa is safe in the care of the family. president biden is taking questions from the public in his first town hall debate, so he can broadcast his post—trump agenda and promote his coronavirus relief package proposal. viewers are accustomed to televised town halls with election candidates, but debates like the one in wisconsin with presidents occur much less often. in myanmar, the trial of the detained civilian leader aung san suu kyi has begun behind closed doors. ms suu kyi faces a new charge of violating the country's natural disaster law and an initial charge of possessing illegal communications. protests against the military coup have continued across myanmar.

now on bbc news, global questions. with schools, colleges and universities around