this is bbc news. i'm sally bundock with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. bells toll washingtoncathedral bells toll and president biden holds a candle—lit vigil to honour the half a million american lives lost to covid—19. uk prime minister boris johnson insists easing coronavirus restrictions in england slowly is the best chance to avoid another lockdown. as protestors take to the streets of myanmar in unprecedented numbers, the us imposes sanctions on two more members of the militaryjunta. and images of a land far, far away. the moment perversance touches down on mars. the intrepid rover sends back previously unseen footage

from the red planet. hello and welcome. president biden has described the deaths of more than half—a—million people in the united states from coronavirus as a truly grim and heart—breaking milestone. speaking at a vigil at the white house, mr biden said more americans had died in one year of the pandemic that in the first and second world wars and the vietnam war combined. the president has ordered flags on federal buildings to be flown at half mast for five days as a mark of respect to those who have lost their lives.

just before he and the vice president led a moment's silence, he had these words for americans. as we all remember, i also ask us to act to remain vigilant, to stay socially distanced, to mask up, get vaccinated when it is your turn. we must end the politics of misinformation that has divided families, communities and the country and has cost too many lives already. it is not democrats and republicans who are dying from the virus, it's our fellow americans, our neighbours, our friends, our mothers, ourfathers, oursons, our daughters. husbands, wives. we have to fight this together, as one people, as the united states of america. let's speak to our north america correspondent david willis.

the president trying his very best to get americans to pause and think and also enable those to grieve. and think and also enable those to urieve. ~ , , , to grieve. absolutely, sally. and 'ust to grieve. absolutely, sally. and just by _ to grieve. absolutely, sally. and just by way _ to grieve. absolutely, sally. and just by way of _ to grieve. absolutely, sally. | and just by way of reminder, to grieve. absolutely, sally. i and just by way of reminder, in march of last year this country's top infectious diseases expert warned that 240,000 people could die of the coronavirus now, at the time, that figure seemed utterly unimaginable but here we are, less than a year later and more than double that number of deaths have occurred here in the united states and joe biden, very moving in the eulogy he gave at the white house today basically saying that it was unimaginable and heartbreaking as well, the number of people who have died

and he focused his message on the families, their relatives, the families, their relatives, the loved ones of those who passed away. he's very good at that sort of thing, of course, and he also extended a note of hope and said this nation will smile again, we will know sunny days again, we will no joy again. we will get through this, i promise you. figs again. we will get through this, i promise you. as you sa , this, i promise you. as you say. he's — this, i promise you. as you say. he's very _ this, i promise you. as you say, he's very good - this, i promise you. as you say, he's very good at - this, i promise you. as you | say, he's very good at this, because it's something he knows only too well. he knows bereavement. he lost his wife and two children, in fact. but in terms of where the us is headed, the vaccination roll—out is happening but the warning is that there are more deaths to come before this country gets on top of the pandemic. country gets on top of the pandemic— country gets on top of the andemic. . �* , , pandemic. that's right, sally, and joe biden _ pandemic. that's right, sally, and joe biden himself - pandemic. that's right, sally, and joe biden himself has - and joe biden himself has warned that the death toll could rise to 590,000, close to 600,000 by the summer time. he

has also, on a brighter note, pledged to get everybody who wants a vaccine vaccinated by the end ofjuly, and the man i just mentioned, the top infectious disease expert has himself said that america could dash back to some semblance of normality by the end of the year but others have said that by thanksgiving in november. crucial to all of this is combating the variance of the coronavirus that have emerged in the uk and south africa and other places, which is the big unknown at this time and that is what is vexing a lot of these top medical experts in these top medical experts in the country right now.- the country right now. david willis, thank— the country right now. david willis, thank you. _ borisjohnson has insisted his plan for easing coronavirus restrictions in england over the coming months offers the best chance to avoid another lockdown. the prime minister told a news conference he could not guarantee the changes

were irreversible, but said they would make people's lives incomparably better. the measures will be eased in four stages, with each one dependent on vaccine success, infection rates and the containment of new variants of the virus. here's our political correspondent iain watson. it's been a long, hard winter with some of the things we used to take for granted now beyond reach and the prime minister says with the successful vaccination programme, the end is in sight. vaccination programme, the end is in siuht. , vaccination programme, the end is in sight-— is in sight. this unparalleled national effort _ is in sight. this unparalleled national effort has _ is in sight. this unparalleled | national effort has decisively shifted the odds in our favour. but with every day that goes by this programme of vaccination is creating a shield around the entire population. which means we are now travelling on a one—way road to freedom. find one-way road to freedom. and what are the _ one—way road to freedom. and what are the milestones on that road? 0n what are the milestones on that road? on march the 8th, all

children in england will go back to school. two people from different households will be allowed to socialise to get outdoors. care home residents will be allowed one regular visitors. 0n will be allowed one regular visitors. on march the 29th, six people to our souls can meet outdoors and outdoor sports facilities will open. from april to 12 at the earliest, nonessential retail and personal care such as headdresses will reopen and gyms will be open for individual use. 0utdoor hospitality such as beer gardens can open up and from may the 17th at the earliest, most restrictions and a meeting outdoors will be lifted and six people of two households will be able to meet indoors and his indoor hospitality, pubs and cafe is and hotels will reopen. from june the 21st at the earliest, the remaining restrictions will end. some of boris johnson�*s own restrictions will end. some of borisjohnson�*s own mps think the pace of change is too slow but he says a cautious approach is more likely to mean any easing of restrictions won't be

reversed, but this cannot be absolutely guaranteed. i can't guarantee _ absolutely guaranteed. i can't guarantee that _ absolutely guaranteed. i can't guarantee that it's _ absolutely guaranteed. i can't guarantee that it's going - absolutely guaranteed. i can't guarantee that it's going to i absolutely guaranteed. i can't| guarantee that it's going to be irreversible but the intention is that it should be irreversible and that is why we are going in the way that we are, and that is why we are taking the steps we are. find taking the steps we are. and even when — taking the steps we are. and even when existing - taking the steps we are. and even when existing restrictions end, some existing paraphernalia of the pandemic might remain. masks might still be advisable next winter according to the government's chief scientific adviser and they will be a review into the use of what government calls covid status certificates which raises the prospect of people having to provide proof that they have been vaccinated or had a recent negative test to access some venues and possibly workplaces beyond june, so if a vaccine busting variant doesn't disrupt things, life is to feel a lot normal by the summer but perhaps quite as we knew it before covid struck. business

leaders are trying to get their heads around this and i will be talking to them in about 20 minutes' time to get their reaction. let's get some of the day's other news a study in nigeria suggests that coronavirus infection rates are far higher than officialfigures. researchers say as many as four million people could have been infected in the city of lagos, where the official total is currently fifty— four thousand. more than eighteen hundred people have died in the country from covid—i9 the wife ofjailed mexican drug lord joaquin "el chapo" guzman has been arrested at dulles international airport. emma coronel aispuro, who is 31, is expected to appear in a federal court in washington. she's been charged with drug trafficking. close to 8 milion people in texas are still experiencing issues with their water supply in the wake of a deadly winter storm last week. two dozen people died in the storm which caused widespread blackouts across texas — a state unaccustomed to extreme cold.

south korea's prime minister chung sye—kyun says he's confident the country will achieve herd immunity from covid—i9 by the autumn, despite a later start to its vaccination programme. around 1,500 people have died in south korea from coronavirus. it was one of the first to be hit by the and became a role model for its mass testing and aggressive contact tracing measures. speaking to the bbc, the prime minister said he was surprised that other wealthy countries had not followed its example. south korea was quick to act when the pandemic kit. the first outbreak was brought under control with a mass testing and aggressive contact tracing. in contrast, the vaccine roll—out has been slow.

it will start this week, but only in small numbers. the general population will have to wait until at leastjuly to get the jab. but the prime minister is confident that this confident —— country will achieve herd immunity by the autumn. ., ~' ., achieve herd immunity by the autumn. ., ~ ., ., ., ., , autumn. you know that koreans are the master— autumn. you know that koreans are the master of _ autumn. you know that koreans are the master of speed. - autumn. you know that koreans are the master of speed. yes, l are the master of speed. yes, it's not an easy goal to achieve but we aim to achieve the first vaccination of 70% of our population by the end of the third quarter in september. i believe it is possible. sure, some might resist getting vaccinated, but this government will encourage more people to get the jab. will encourage more people to get the jab-— get the 'ab. just over 1500 eo - le get the jab. just over 1500 peeple have _ get the jab. just over 1500 people have died - get the jab. just over 1500 people have died from - get the jab. just over 1500 i people have died from covid get the jab. just over 1500 - people have died from covid in south korea and infection numbers have remained relatively low. there has been genuine surprise here that others failed to follow this country's lead.—

others failed to follow this country's lead. others failed to follow this count 's lead. ., ., country's lead. south korea has learned about _ country's lead. south korea has learned about democracy - country's lead. south korea has learned about democracy and l learned about democracy and gained technology from advanced countries like europe and the uk. i neverwould countries like europe and the uk. i never would have thought that they would suffer so much from covid. south korea was focused on the three principles of testing, tracking and tracing the virus and the three values of democracy, transparency and openness. we did not realise how well we were doing. it was only later that we learned that we were managing better than others around the world.— managing better than others around the world. south korea's northern neighbour— around the world. south korea's northern neighbour is _ northern neighbour is struggling with the economic fallout of closing its borders to prevent the spread of coronavirus so hopes to offer humanitarian aid but also harbours hopes for more talks. north korea must also be contemplating a variety of options. what has to be done to keep— options. what has to be done to keep the — options. what has to be done to keep the regime stable? but north korea _ keep the regime stable? emit north korea also has to feed as people. whether the olympics

will take place this year in japan depends on the pandemic, but the start of inter—korean talks rose from the last winter olympics. the frozen state of talks can be thawed by these opportunities.— opportunities. you have said now is not — opportunities. you have said now is not the _ opportunities. you have said now is not the time - opportunities. you have said now is not the time to - opportunities. you have said. now is not the time to answer whether or not you will run for president, so when will be the time for you?— facebook will restore news content to its users in australia less than a week after implementing the ban. the social media giant blocked news to australians last thursday in response to a proposed law to make tech platforms pay news publishers for content. australian treasurer, josh frydenberg said news would be restored on facebook "in the coming days" adding amendments will be made to the law. stay with us on bbc news, still to come: celebrating cool britannia —

the iconic symbols of british culture up for auction. prince charles has chosen his bride and proposed to lady diana spencer three weeks ago and she accepted, without hesitation. as revolutions go, this had its fair share of bullets, bullets outside the sanctuary and the name itself symbolising one of the cruisers regime of modern asia. the world's first clone has been produced of an adult mammal and scientists in scotland have produced a sheep called dolly that came from a cell from another sheep. warren beatty and faye| dunaway announced the world that the winner of best| film was la la land, the only trouble was it wasn't. the only time the - mistake was put right was between gushing - speeches from the team. not for 20 years have modern locuts

been seen in this part of africa and some of the swarms have been ten miles long. this is the last time the public will see this pope, and very soon for the sake of credibility and authority of the next pope, benedict xvi will be, in his own words, hidden from the world for the rest of his life. this is bbc world news, the latest headlines president biden holds a candle—lit ceremony at the white house to honour the half a million american lives lost to covid—19. uk prime minister boris johnson insists easing coronavirus restrictions in england over the coming months is the best chance to avoid another lockdown. the united states has imposed sanctions on two more members of myanmar�*s military junta, in response to this month's coup earlier this month. us treasury say the burmese military must reverse their actions and urgently restore the democratically

elected government. eu diplomats say the bloc has also agreed to impose sanctions. all this as human rights activists make a last—ditch legal bid to halt the deportation of 1,200 myanmar detainees from malaysia to their homeland. 0ur reporter katie silver is in singapore. the international pressure is becoming more and more intense. any reaction from the military to all of these moves in europe and the us? 50 to all of these moves in europe and the us?— to all of these moves in europe and the us? so far they haven't soken and the us? so far they haven't spoken out _ and the us? so far they haven't spoken out about _ and the us? so far they haven't spoken out about the _ and the us? so far they haven't spoken out about the new- spoken out about the new sanctions but when the first ones were announced they said they had handled sanctions before and now they were in the strongest spot economically after years of corrupt investment and they can handle and withstand it again, but however, given the reliance of

the myanmar military has on foreign investment and the fact that they own or have shares in the major telecommunications companies as well as electricity companies, that investment is very important for them but they are facing increasing international pressure, no more so from what is going on today in terms of malaysia and hearing that the us has called for them not to deport or return the detainees from malaysia as well as the un who were calling for entrance into into the refugee camps to make sure that they are genuine refugee and not convicted criminals that malaysia are suggesting they are. we have seen for days _ suggesting they are. we have seen for days and _ suggesting they are. we have seen for days and days - suggesting they are. we have seen for days and days wide l seen for days and days wide spread of peaceful protest, a general strike on monday, that was widely attended, wasn't it? many people downed tools on monday so the pressure is intensifying, would you say, on

the military?— the military? absolutely, so the military? absolutely, so the protest _ the military? absolutely, so the protest yesterday - the military? absolutely, so the protest yesterday were l the protest yesterday were phenomenal in the order of around a million people taking to the streets across the country and today the protest don't seem as large but while they have been peaceful there are increasing violent clashes between the authorities where they are with the protesters and we saw two deaths over the weekend off to protesters in the mandalay region and another death last week, so as tensions ratchet up there is no doubt that increasing international pressure as well as for example from the likes of germany, japan, singapore, one of the largest investors in myanmar, to basically restore what the protesters are calling for, to restore democracy and release the leader. restore democracy and release the leader-— the leader. thank you very much. nasa has released remarkable images of its space rover landing on mars, the first of their kind

from the planet. it shows the final minutes of last week's tense descent with clouds of dust and grit being blown around as the vehicle is lowered to the floor of the crater. the rover, perseverance, has been sent to an ancient crater lake to search for signs of past life. our global science correspondent rebecca morelle has the story. the parachute has deployed... from the release of a supersonic parachute, to the shedding of a heat shield... first look at the surface. an out—of—this—world view — mars as never seen before. as the rover nears the surface, the dust is kicked up, then a change of camera as perseverance is lowered on ropes before touchdown... touchdown confirmed. perseverance safely on the surface of mars! ..and the landing system is jettisoned away. we can't test it on the earth, so this is the first time we've had a chance as engineers to actually see what we designed and ijust can't... it's hard for me to express just how emotional it was

and how exciting it was. there are new still images too — a selfie of the rover. and a vista of the alien world it now sits in, providing a glimpse of the terrain it's about to explore. checking the raft of instruments on perseverance is the priority. its drill will gather samples of martian rocks and the labatories will look at them for signs of life and the technology will try to make oxygen from the carbon dioxide rich atmosphere, essential kit if humans go to mars but first it will be launching this — a mini mars helicopter to provide a new view of the red planet. the atmosphere of mars is really thin so it will need to work harder to be able to raise itself so the rotors will spin much faster. but if it works, it will be

able to fly off and look ahead at what hazards there may be. it's just got all sorts of potential. this footage is already providing crucial information to scientists and they'll continue to study it as perseverance gets to work. it's just a taste of what's to come. rebecca morelle, bbc news. let's get all the latest sport now. hello i'm tt and this is your tuesday sports news where we start with football and juventus have beaten bottom of the table crotone 3—0 in italy to move 3rd in serie a. cristiano ronaldo scored a first half double to help his side move to within 8 points of leaders inter milan — juve still have a game in hand though as they chase a 10th successive scudetto. while in england christian benteke scored a winner for crystal palace

over brighton in the 5th minute of injury time. the win takes crystal palace up to 13th in the premier league, while brighton remainjust four points clear of the relegation zone in 16th place. we were unable, unfortunately, to create as many chances as we would have liked but created enough from crosses and they were both good ones on both of the goals were good ones but it's a wonderful feeling to come here in such an important game and such an important rival and go away with all three points. france have now confirmed that 10 players including their captain charles 0llivon have tested positive for coronavirus ahead of this weekend's six nations fixture against scotland in paris. les bleus are top of the six nations table after winning their opening games against italy and ireland and a decision on whether the match can go ahead or not is expected on wednesday. if they postpone it a week, then scotland are the victims because they won't have players available because of the international regulation so

there is no easy answer and whatever they do decide to do, people will not be happy, so it's really difficult for them, i have to say. the champions league continues later on tuesday with the opening leg of the last 16 tie between atletico madrid and chelsea. the match will be played in budapest due to covid restrictions, with callum hudson 0doi still a chance to start the game against the spanish league leaders according to his manager. that's despite playing only 31 minutes against southampton on saturday after he himself had come on as a sub. he went back to the normal mood, to a good mood, to a smile, to good training and the next day to very good training today and that is it and i already said after the game it is a decision for today and this is the lesson to learn from today, for him, for me also, and we go on and then it is forgotten.

also, and we go on and then it is forgotten-— is forgotten. that's the latest board. britain has always prided itself on being a country that punches above its weight when it comes to culture. this is of course the home of the beatles, james bond and the spice girls. now an auction is taking place celebrating seventy years of so—called cool britannia. the bbc�*s tim allman reports. these boots were made for selling. several pairs, designed by damien hirst, on display and soon to be on sale. part of a major auction highlighting what a cultural powerhouse the uk was and still is. the sale, overall, is a celebration of british creativity from 1950 until now and the idea is we are celebrating all aspects of creativity, so notjust the fine arts, but photography, fashion, entertainment memorabilia and also prints and multiples. some of those prints are by the notorious street artist banksy and include this one, girl with balloon, expected to sell up

to anything up to £150,000. hopefully it won't share the same fate as the original which was famously shredded moments after selling at auction in 2018. and you will hardly have a display celebrating cool britannia without celebrating the coolest of it girls. this fantastic piece titled kate moss, she is light, pure, has been donated to the sale by chris levine and the supermodel kate moss, very generously, and the estimate on the work is between 20 and £30,000 and all proceeds from the sale will go to 0xfam gb for the fight against poverty. also up for grabs dresses by vivienne westwood and alexander mcqueen and iconic photos of iconic british rock groups. proof that this country's cultural legacy is timeless. tim allman, bbc news. we will be bringing you all the

other business stories and a few times, stay with us, i will see you in a minute. hello, northern and western parts of the uk saw some of the best of the sunshine on monday. have a look at this picture from one of our weather watchers in cumbria. beautiful blue skies overhead but i think on tuesday it will look very different because this slice of sunshine is being replaced by a bank of cloud pushing in from the west and the cloud is going to bring a lot of rain across parts of northern ireland, wales, north—west england, some rain maybe into the far south—west of england but the wettest weather is likely to be found across scotland where there is a met office amber warning in force across parts of the southern uplands and the southern grampians. we could see up to 120 millimetres of rain in the wettest places falling on already sodden

ground, so a risk of flooding and disruption and it will be a windy day where ever you are, particularly gusty for western areas with gusts up to 50 or 70 mph for exposed parts of northern ireland or scotland. very mild, ten or 14 degrees, maybe 15 in the south—east but we should say dry with a bit of sunshine. through tuesday night and into wednesday, the stripe of cloud and rain keeps coming, moving very slowly south—east and it is going to be a very, very mild night indeed and those are the minimum temperatures with cardiff and plymouth maybe no lower than 12 degrees. we head on into wednesday and the winds are a little bit lighter, still fairly blustery out there and the frontal system will still be bringing rain across and western areas but to the south—east of the weather front we will be tapping into some very mild air indeed and given any lengthy spells of sunshine temperatures will shoot up to around 16 or 17 degrees across parts of east anglia and the south—east. the band of cloud and rain still affecting

south—west, into wales, southern scotland with sunshine and showers to the north—west of that but as i mentioned, the temperature is 17 degrees possible in london but it is another mild day where ever you are. as we move out of wednesday into thursday, the frontal system will clear east and high pressure will start to build in from the south and we may see weather fronts grazing the far north—west bringing a little bit of rain but for most of us it will be dry to end the week and there will be some sales of sunshine and still mild by day, but rather chilly at night.

this is bbc news with the latest business headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. the end of lockdown restrictions is in sight — june the 21st — but is this too late for some businesses? we get reaction from leading business bodies to the prime ministers roadmap to re—opening england's economy. the big pivot to asia — europe's biggest bank hsbc reveals its annual profits fall by a third and why it is betting more than ever on the far east. and the battle between the streaming giants heats up! with disney plus set to launch a new channel in europe focusing on �*grown—up' content — analysts say it's not just "mickey mouse".