this is bbc news with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. forced labour and population transfer — an exclusive report on china's policy of moving hundreds of thousands of uighurs to factories often farfrom home. britain's mass vaccination programme helps see covid deaths fall by a more than a quarter in a week. in the us — from competition to coordination. president biden announces a joint—effort by merck, and johnson &johnson to get vaccines to the public. american sanctions on russia, over the poisoning of opposition leader alexei navalny. it's the first time the biden administration has targeted kremlin officials. and the marvel of the flamingo

migration in india. we'll take a look at the annual spectacle wowing locals and bird—watchers alike. hello and welcome to bbc news. a bbc investigation has found evidence that china's policy of transferring hundreds of thousands of uighurs and other ethnic minorities from north—west xinjiang to factoryjobs often far from home is being used as a method of uprooting and assimilating the population. it's also uncovered possible connections between these workers and major international brands. china says transferring workers away from the region is a way of tackling rural poverty and unemployment. our china correspondent john sudworth has this report. at this factory, the uighur workers are clearly visible.

more than 2000 miles from home, brought all the way to central china by a massive relocation scheme. now the bbc has found compelling evidence of how it works. in this xinjiang village, the authorities need 100 people to send to jobs on the other side of the country. they set up a stall, but this 2017 state media report shows no one's interested. so they go house to house. "if you stay here," this official says, "you will be married soon "and never able to leave." "will you go?", he asks. "no," she says. but with a mixture of propaganda... ..and heavy persuasion, the young woman eventually agrees.

"i'll go if others go," she says. the bbc has new evidence that this separation from family and culture is, in part at least, precisely the point. a chinese study produced for senior officials says, "labour transfers help assimilate uighur minorities, transform "their thinking and reduce uighur population density." the study was posted online in error. some of xinjiang's mainly muslim minorities are sent first to the giant re—education camps where china says its fighting extremism, then to the factories. very few have managed to leave china after their release. translation: there were 200 workers in the factory. - we sold children's clothes and we were obliged to sing the chinese national anthem. they said, "the faster you work,

the faster we let you go." but most of those transferred to work have not been in the camps and are sent direct from poor villages. the study also outlines how they are transported in groups, accompanied by security guards and put through political indoctrination. this is just an unprecedented authoritative source, written by really leading academics and former government officials, with unprecedented high level access in xinjiang itself. that drives home the implications of what is going on here. there are higher goals of manipulating population density and demographics that, in my opinion, are very concerning, and they really point us towards crimes against humanity. we found products that may contain yarn from this company on sale in amazon in the uk. the factory says it no longer employs uighurs, and amazon told us it doesn't

tolerate forced labour. and this factory makes plastic mouldings for some major international brands. so we've spoken to one worker here, who has confirmed that as many as a few hundred uighurs are employed in this factory. but, unlike the chinese staff, they are unable to leave the factory premises. in a statement, the chinese government said the study seen by the bbc reflects only the author's personal view, and much of its contents are not in line with the facts. but in large part it echoes government thinking. "some uighurs," it concludes, "are unwilling to leave "their homes, a problem that should be tackled with strong guidance "and persistent measures. " john sudworth, bbc news, beijing. dr adrian zenz — who you just heard — is an anthropologist specialising in xinjiang re—education camps. hejoins us now from minnesota.

does this latest revelation just reinforced the picture of what is happening in xinjiang and elsewhere and in what way does that flout international rules or treaties? the new evidence _ international rules or treaties? tue: new evidence is international rules or treaties? tte: new evidence is really unprecedented. it'sjust incredible, unprecedented. it's just incredible, both unprecedented. it'sjust incredible, both the video obtained by the bbc and the document and report compiled by a former senior official talking about the securitize nature of the transfers and a key piece of evidence in the report is its service to assimilate uighur and reduce the population density. i am confidentially by the evidence that i obtained of the reports talking about the need to break up uighur society to a legal expert, a former

advocate —— a senior adviser to the us holocaust museum and the report says these are crimes against humanity, of forcible transfer weighed out by the rome statutes. we saw people being persuaded quite strongly to leave. but what evidence do we have of force? we strongly to leave. but what evidence do we have of force?— do we have of force? we have evidence _ do we have of force? we have evidence that _ do we have of force? we have evidence that the _ do we have of force? we have evidence that the recruitment| do we have of force? we have l evidence that the recruitment is very coercive for of people who resist local government directives are labelled to be placed in internment camps. the report itself says that some of these workers are trained in facilities in xinjiang that are going by security guards and one government official is assigned to each dormitory of these workers most of the workers are then transferred in batches a company by supervising government officials and by police guards and there are for the security guards and government officials who monitor, survey and manage them on—site in the factories in eastern china.

manage them on-site in the factories in eastern china.— in eastern china. what should and could the international _ in eastern china. what should andj could the international community do? joe biden is saying that he will use all available tools to control china, he was talking about trade at the time and the top priority was to address humans rights abuses in china. that does not sound particularly strong, does it? much more is needed _ particularly strong, does it? much more is needed to _ particularly strong, does it? much more is needed to be _ particularly strong, does it? much more is needed to be done. - particularly strong, does it? tj�*im�*t more is needed to be done. much more. evidence of forced labour in china is mounted. previously there was reporting of these labour transfers both in xinjiang but across china. now we have even more authoritative evidence not only that these transfers are happening and are securitized and coercive but we also have a statement that they serve to alter the demographics, to tear apart serve to alter the demographics, to tearapart uighur serve to alter the demographics, to tear apart uighur society and change the dynamics on the ground which creates really a new level here. it is high time that the international community takes the next step, either the uk or the european union

notjust the united states. the united states has already taken steps. t united states has already taken ste s. ., united states has already taken stes. ., .., ., . steps. i wonder if the economic argument _ steps. i wonder if the economic argument has _ steps. i wonder if the economic argument has more _ steps. i wonder if the economic argument has more impact - steps. i wonder if the economic argument has more impact on | steps. i wonder if the economic i argument has more impact on the chinese for example if there were boycotts by western brands for some of the material and equipment being made in these factories would have a severe impact on the flow of money, would that have more impact? yes. the economic— would that have more impact? yes. the economic side _ would that have more impact? yes. the economic side is _ would that have more impact? yes. the economic side is the _ would that have more impact? t2; the economic side is the most promising side. unfortunately it's unlikely that diplomatic or political measures will stop this atrocity. i think the economic side with boycotting also just regular consumer boycotts and consumer awareness of writing letters to companies who might be implicated, i think that is one of the few chances for the global community to really effectively bring about some kind of change for the uighurs.— change for the uighurs. doctor adrian zenz, _ change for the uighurs. doctor adrian zenz, thank _ change for the uighurs. doctor adrian zenz, thank you - change for the uighurs. doctor adrian zenz, thank you so - change for the uighurs. doctor. adrian zenz, thank you so much change for the uighurs. doctor- adrian zenz, thank you so much for joining us on bbc news. positive news from the uk. there's growing evidence that the national lockdown combined

with the highly successful roll out of vaccines is leading to a sharp reduction in covid deaths. according to the latest figures from the office for national statistics the number of registered coronavirus deaths in england and wales has fallen by more than a quarter in a week, to the lowest level since the start of the year. here's our health editor, hugh pym. the streets may still look quiet, but we're on the road to recovery. that's the message from ministers in england today, with positive news about the impact of vaccines on preventing serious illness and deaths. and the hunt for a missing person infected with the brazilian variant of coronavirus has been narrowed down to 379 households in the south—east of england. mr speaker... the health secretary, while warning of the need for caution, gave mps an upbeat assessment. the vaccine is working, reducing the number of deaths among those who were vaccinated first and preventing hospital admissions. this is real world evidence that the vaccine is protecting the nhs and saving lives.

0ne measure of the covid impact is the total number of excess deaths in the uk. this line shows the five—year weekly average for total reported deaths, and here's what's been happening since the start of 2020, where there was a sharp spike last april — largely because of covid. then the numbers fell back again before another steep increase at the end of last year and into january. since then, the number has been falling back. this map shows cases per 100,000 people last week in different parts of the uk. light blue shows the lowest numbers. 0verall totals have been falling but there are still some hotspots, including in eastern and central england, shown here in red. the numbers are moving in the right direction but there's still intense strain on the front line of the nhs, with no sign of respite for hospital staff.

as the cases come down, they are coming down from a really high level, and across our whole membership we are hearing from nhs leaders that covid—19 remains a major pressure. russell is normally fit and active but is recovering from covid at home after leaving hospital last week. it's like drowning, it's horrible. he'd been in a ward where others did not pull through. his message is, don't think covid has gone away. it is so serious. and i have seen people pass by. it's not very nice. people might think they are immune from it or they are scared of a vaccine. i wish i got the vaccine in may. it's a reminder that the vaccination programme has a way to go and that people are still getting very sick with covid. but the overall picture is looking brighter than it was. hugh pym, bbc news. meanwhile in the united states — president biden has announced that the us is on track to produce enough vaccines to inoculate every adult in the country by the end of may. mr biden said education workers

would be prioritised so that schools could be re—opened. the us has seen a sharp decline in new cases since january, but is still averaging more than 67,000 cases a day. speaking a short while ago, president biden said his administration was bringing in "wartime" strategies to fight the spread of coronavirus and boost its vaccination programme including getting two rival pharmaceutical companies to work together. this is a wartime effort, and every action has been on the table including putting together breakthrough approaches. and today, we are announcing a major step forward. two of the largest health care and pharmaceutical companies in the world, that are usually competitors, are working together on the vaccine. johnson &johnson and merck will work together to expand the production ofjohnson & johnson's vaccine. this is the type of collaboration between companies we saw in world war ii.

we'll also invoke the defense production act to equip to merck facilities to the standards necessary to safely manufacture thej&j vaccine, and with the urging and assistance of my administration, johnson &johnson is also taking additional new actions to safely accelerate vaccine production. johnson &johnson's vaccine manufacturing facilities will now begin to operate 21w. he also appealed again to americans to continue wearing masks for his first 100 days in office — even as states like texas plan to lift their mask mandates. i want to conclude with this. we're making progress from the mess we inherited. we're moving in the right direction. and today's announcements are a huge step in our effort to beat this pandemic. but i have to be honest with you, this fight is far from over,

i told you i'd be straight up with you from the beginning. as i've said many times, things may get worse again as new variants spread and as we face setbacks like recent winter storms in the midwest and south. but our administration will never take this public health threat lightly. though we celebrate the news of a third vaccine, i urge all americans — please keep washing your hands. stay socially distanced. wear masks, keep wearing them, get vaccinated when it's your turn. now�*s not the time to let up. i've asked the country to wear a mask for my first 100 days in office. now�*s not the time to let our guard down. people's lives are at stake. we have already, we have already and i carry this in my pocket, lost more — as of today, we've lost more than 511,839 americans as of today.

it's got to stop. the us government has announced sanctions on seven senior members senior members of the russian government — over the attack on the dissident alexei navalny. it includes the nation's top spy. washington says russia was behind the poisoning of mr navalny and says it will also tighten export controls on 1a firms involved in the production of biological and chemical agents. the us has also called for the release of mr navalny, who is being held in a russian prison camp. the opposition leader's team posted a video about the conditions at the camp where the 44—year—old believed to be held. the facility has a reputation for torture—like conditions, that are used by the kremlin, to break the spirit of the detainees. here's sarah rainsford in moscow. even by russian prison standards, it's a pretty brutal sounding place.

they've been speaking to former inmates who talked about punishment beatings. they've talked about really tough physical conditions there. and one former political prisoner said for the entire time he was incarcerated, everyone was banned from speaking to him. now, the eu and the us have reacted today to mr navalny�*s treatment more broadly with a whole package of new sanctions. they're very specific, they target individuals, senior officials here in russia. they don't target the economy more broadly, and they don't do what mr navalny�*s team had asked for which is to go after oligarchs, seniorfigures here very close to vladimir putin. they gave a whole list to the us administration that they wanted sanctioned. now as for the kremlin's response, well, dmitry peskov — vladimir putin's spokesman, has dismissed the use of sanctions once again. he says that the west is addicted to applying restrictions. he said, "they should ask themselves one question though. "does it work?" and according to the kremlin spokesman, itjust doesn't. sarah rainsford. stay with us on bbc

news, still to come — as the un warns that cutting humanitarian aid to yemen would be a "death sentence", we report on what the lack of funding means for people in the country. first, the plates slid gently off the restaurant tables, then suddenly the tables, the chairs and the people crashed sideways and downwards. it was just a matter of seconds as the ferry lurched onto her side. the hydrogen bomb. on a remote pacific atoll, the americans had successfully tested a weapon whose explosive force dwarfed that of the bomb dropped on hiroshima. i had heard the news earlier. and so my heart went bang, bang, bang. the constitutional rights of these . mergers are there rights as citizens of the united states, _ and they should be protected even in the right to test them out, -

so they don't get their heads broken and are sent to hospital. this religious controversy, i know you don't want to say too much about it, but does it worry you that it is going to boil up when you get to the us? well, it worries me, yes, but i hope everything will be all right at the end of the day. this is bbc news. the latest headlines. a bbc investigation has found evidence that china's policy of transferring hundreds of thousands of uighurs to factory jobs often far from home is being used as a method —— of forced labour and population transfer. in the uk — the mass vaccination programme is helping cut covid deaths — which have fallen by a more than a quarter in a week. on monday, we told you the story of nine—year—old ahmed in yemen. he and his friends attend school in the ruins of their classrooms —

close to front—line fighting between the government and houthi rebels. ahmed is just one of millions of children suffering from the brutal civil war there, now in its sixth year. and in a worrying trend, international aid has been decreasing. the uk government, for instance, plans to cut its donations to yemen by half. our international correspondent 0rla guerin sent this report, and a warning that viewers may find some elements of this story distressing. imagine if this was the school your child was going back to. the building and its pupils, hanging by a thread. it's a snapshot of childhood in yemen. a country that will now get much less aid from the uk. this is ahmed, who touched many hearts in our story last night. he stands in when his teacher is absent.

he's nine and was born blind. he's a beacon of hope and resilience. here in one of the world's poorest countries, the united nations says cuts in aid will be a death sentence. the spectre of famine is hanging over this land. in ad dali province, mothers queue to have their children checked for signs of severe acute malnutrition. labour has accused the government of leaving children to starve. the foreign secretary says britain is doing its bit, and remains one of the top five

donors to yemen. baby hamas is the latest to be diagnosed. nurse abdullah al khadri is pained by what he sees. it's already too late for saif hassan. this video was taken the day before he died from hunger. his brother, abu bakr, was by his side. saif lies buried here.

aid agencies warn cuts in funding will be measured in lives lost. 0rla guerin, bbc news, southern yemen. in the us — senators have been questioning the director of the fbi on the storming of the capitol building. they want to find out how much the agency knew about right—wing these are images from that attack on the 6th of january. at least 18 people associated with the far—right proud boys have so far been charged. nine people tied to an anti—government militia, known as the 0ath keepers, are alleged to have conspired — as far back as november — to try preventjoe biden from becoming president. here's some of what chris wray had to say about the attack. i was appalled, like you, at the violence and destruction that we saw that day. i was appalled that you,

our country's elected leaders, were victimised right here in these very halls. that attack, that siege, was criminal behaviour, plain and simple. and it's behaviour that we, the fbi, view as domestic terrorism. it's got no place in our democracy, and tolerating it would make a mockery of our nation's rule of law. thousands of flamingo birds migrate to lakes and wetlands of western india to find food and better nesting grounds. the annual spectacle in navi mumbai city has drawn a crowd. bird watchers say the growing number of flamingos is a good sign — but they want authorities to do more to ensure their annual migration pattern isn't disturbed.

it is not really normal to see from it goes like this. so when it is their migratory period and you see them like this and this herd together, it is somewhat of a fantasy because i love animals in general. so when i see something like this, it is something really magical that you can see. a splash of colour to and the bulletin. 20 more on these stories on the bbc news website. for me in

the team, see you soon. hello there. a week ago we were seeing temperatures of 17, even 18 degrees in the sunshine. this wednesday, though, will be a lot cooler across the uk than it was last wednesday. mainly because there's a lot of cloud around. this was the scene in pennine areas of west yorkshire where temperatures were only two or three degrees on tuesday afternoon. it was a lot warmer in the sunshine out towards the west with more shelter, and the north—west of wales in particular. and the reason for those differences, really, is high pressure to the east of the uk and easterly wind drawing in all of that moisture. and two things are happening overnight, that low cloud is becoming more extensive so there's more mist and fog, and towards the south—west this cloud is thickening to bring some showers. now with a lot of cloud by the end of the night for most

places it will be a few degrees above freezing. where we have some clear skies and parts of scotland, northwest england, there will be a frost. there could be some sunshine around, though, on wednesday morning. it's the fog, though, that's more of an issue. it will gradually tend to lift. many places, though, will stay dull and cloudy. it may well brighten up a bit in northern ireland, but the showers in the south west will spill into wales, and then into the midlands, the south east of england into the afternoon. ahead of the showers in the south east, if it does brighten up a bit, those temperatures will get a boost, but across eastern scotland and the north east of england with the low cloud, going to be four or five degrees. the showers that do develop will continue into the evening. some of them heavy and possibly with the odd rumble of thunder before becoming confined to the south east and east anglia by the end of the night. and as we head into thursday we see another area of high pressure. this one is moving down from iceland, and it's bringing with it colder air and a north—easterly breeze. there will still be some showers towards the south—east early on thursday. those will move away. that we have got this line of mostly light rain or drizzle.

early snow over higher parts of scotland, and it's behind that that the colder northeasterly wind comes in. as you can see, a lot of cloud around on thursday, so it's going to be a cold day with temperatures typically 5—8 degrees. let's look ahead to friday and saturday, and temperatures aren't going to change very much by day. could be a bit colder in the mornings with some clear skies. the cloud tending to bubble up and developed more widely during the course of the day. but high pressure is going to be in charge on friday. perhaps into saturday as well, but there are signs of weather fronts coming in from the atlantic, and that signals a change as we head into next week.

this is bbc news, the headlines.

a bbc investigation has found evidence that china's policy of transferring hundreds of thousands of uighurs, and other ethnic minorities, from north—west xinjiang, to factory jobs often far from home — is being used as a method of uprooting and assimilating the population. president biden says the united states is on course to produce enough coronavirus vaccine to inoculate every adult in the country by the end of may. the national lockdown and the roll out of vaccines has lead to a sharp reduction in deaths from covid in england and wales — to the lowest level since the start of the year. the biden administration has announced sanctions targeting seven senior russian officials over the poisoning of kremlin critic alexei navalny — with novichok. it includes the nation's top spy. the european union has announced similar measures.