this is bbc news, with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. hope as the world marks exactly a year since the pandemic was declared, with the vaccine now reaching some of the most cut—off communities. the motion is adopted. nearly $2 trillion approved by lawmakers to kickstart the us economy — with some of the money going straight into americans�* pockets this bill represents an historic, historic victory for the american people. i look forward to signing it later this week. in myanmar, protests step up as the military clamps down. we hearfrom over a dozen burmese police officers

who fled to india — after being told to shoot at protesters. the brother of ghislaine maxwell tells the bbc that the conditions of her detention in an american prison are degrading and amount to torture. hello to you. it's exactly one year since the world health organization officially declared the coronavirus outbreak is a pandemic. that is the point the disease was confirmed as a truly global problem. covid—19 has so far claimed 2.6 million lives, but there is hope on the horizon as vaccines reach some of the furthest corners of the world. our global health correspondent

naomi grimley has been looking at the pandemic, one year in. it's been a year that most of us will remember for the rest of our lives. one of grief and loneliness on a scale none of us could've imagined. it's exactly 12 months since the world health organization officially sounded the alarm about the seriousness of covid—19. we have therefore made the assessment that covid—19 can be characterised as a pandemic. and yet, after a whirlwind of scientific discoveries, we're now seeing vaccines being distributed to some of the most remote communities on earth. in brazil, they've mounted a vaccination campaign reaching reservations and villages like this one, deep in the amazon jungle. translation: i'm happy. we are grateful for the vaccination, so we will not catch the disease and my people will get better. because of a new variant spreading there, brazil has seen some of the worst death toll figures since the pandemic began

in the last few days. but overall, scientists are positive about bringing the pandemic to an end. we're in a much more powerful situation because we understand so much more about the virus now. so i am very optimistic of the future, i think we have a better handle on the virus, and we're able to keep up, i suppose, with the race against an evolving virus. this graph shows some of the differences in pace, however, of vaccination rates globally. chile, israel, and the us have powered ahead. faring less well are brazil, russia, and china. in europe, there's been a huge amount of disquiet over disappointing vaccination rates. the situation in france has not been helped by negative remarks from president macron about the oxford—astrazeneca vaccine, which he later this family doctor is doing his best to persuade reluctant patients. translation: there's always a hesitation, i and we have to convince some patient. that's time and energy used.

if we don't have support, both from government and media, it's hard to go up from there. patients trust us — but only to a certain extent. meanwhile, the international covax programme says it's delivered over 20 million doses to more than 20 developing countries, mostly in africa. but it's really only enough to vaccinate key medical workers. whether it's drive—through vaccinations in la or doctors and nurses in nigeria — get ready for an increasingly divided world, depending on who's been vaccinated and who hasn't. with over 2.6 million deaths in the pandemic so far, everyone can agree that much better protections are needed to ensure it never happens again. naomi grimley, bbc news.

a month after the military coup in myanmar that saw the government of aung san suu kyi overthrown, dozens of police officers have fled the country — refusing to carry out the orders of the army. the defectors have fled to india, fearing they would be forced to kill or harm civilians. violent protests have taken place across the country, during which demonstrators have been killed. our south asia correspondent rajini vaidyanathan — reports now from the indian state of mizoram — which lies on the border with myanmar. they fled the brutal crackdown in myanmar. these policemen and women are now hiding in india. all in their 20s, they're terrified. they say they were ordered by the military to use violence translation: as protests| were taking place, my boss ordered us to fire at the crowd. i refused to shoot them. isaid i'd rather side with the people. later, i told him i was going to visit my family. that's when i ran away.

the military�*s becoming more and more brutal. he tells me he's left behind his wife and two daughters. the youngest is just six months. he's worried he may never see them again. the bbc couldn't independently verify the accounts of those we spoke to. as pro—democracy protests escalate, security forces in myanmar have been accused of killing at least 50 people and injuring hundreds more. some of the officers we met say they witnessed brutality firsthand. translation: people were beaten up. - i had sleepless nights, when i saw innocent people bleeding, my conscience wouldn't permit me to take part in such evil acts. we travelled across the remote and mountainous state of mizoram, now refuge for those fleeing the violence, and more keep coming every day. this part of north—east india shares a 250—mile border with myanmar.

even though it's patrolled by security forces, people are risking the crossing. well, i'm standing in the indian state of mizoram, but on the other side of the banks here is the country of myanmar. and this river makes up some of the border which separates the two countries — and it's across here that dozens of people have made that journey, fleeing the military crackdown and coming to india for safety. and we've been told that they're expecting many more to make a similarjourney. authorities in myanmar have asked india to return the defectors, to uphold friendly relations. but the officers we talked to say they can't go back. translation: they wanted us to arrest our friends. _ if we continued to remain in myanmar, our lives would be in danger. we want peace to come quickly to the country and for the military

to be defeated. local politicians say they'll provide temporary help to those arriving from myanmar. but as people flee to this corner of india, the national government has yet to decide what happens to them next. rajini vaidyanathan, bbc news, mizoram. to the us now, where a huge financial aid package to help americans struggling through the pandemic has cleared its final hurdle. president biden�*s plan worth almost $2 trillion, has passed both houses of congress without a single republican vote in favour. he'll sign it into law on friday. here are some of the details. the so—called american rescue plan gives one—off payments worth $1,400 to most americans. it allocates $350 billion to state and local governments, and $130 billion to schools. it also provides $49 billion for expanded covid—i9 testing and research, as well as $14 billion for vaccine distribution. and the bill extends unemployment benefits of $300 a week until september. millions of americans had been

set to lose their benefits in the coming weeks — not any more. so, a big moment for the us economy — and an important political moment for president biden. he said there was now light at the end of the tunnel for the american people. this bill represents a historic, historic victory for the american people. i look forward to signing it later this week. everything in the american rescue plan addresses a real need, including investments to fund our entire vaccination effort — more vaccines, more vaccinators, and more vaccination sites. millions more americans will get tested, including home testing. schools will soon have the funding and resources to reopen safely on national imperative. the president of the usa, of course. the republican leader in the house described his opposition to the measures, calling the bill "a laundry

list of left—wing priorities." you send the government your tax dollars, but you only get a fraction of what you pay for at the very best. you know, we warned people on the internet about e—mail scams. it's like the ones with those e—mails where you get a promise you'll get millions of dollars — but first, you have to wire them some money. that's exactly what's happening here today. this is the reality of this bill before us. it showers money on special interests, but spends less than 9% on actually defeating the virus. kevin mccarthy there for the republicans in the house. professor teresa ghilarducci is an economist at the new school for social research. she's in santa cruz california. professor, thank you very much for your time. whatever your politics, this is a big deal, isn't it? �* , politics, this is a big deal, isn't it? ~ , ., isn't it? right. as an economist, - isn't it? right. as an economist, this - isn't it? right. as an economist, this is i isn't it? right. as an economist, this is al isn't it? right. as an - economist, this is a huge deal and it's really welcome for the us economy and the world economy. its $1.9 trillion over

3 trillion which has a ready been spent, and it is that kind of fiscal stimulus this deep recession needs, the recession in the us and the recession in the rest of the world, caused by the disease, the disease also triggered a recession. so i am happy today. and the stock market is happy today. figs i am happy today. and the stock market is happy today.— market is happy today. as an economist. _ market is happy today. as an economist, speaking - market is happy today. as an economist, speaking in - market is happy today. as an - economist, speaking in economic terms, what you then make of the republican argument it is kind of unfocused, a laundry list of left—wing priorities, as kevin mccarthy said, and also, socialism of the kind that people on the right would say is not appropriate for the united states, and that it is bigger than it may need to be? there is a lot there. is an economist we look at how much fiscal policy we need to have the appropriate multiplier to get people back to work. and this is about the right size. so, no matter what it is spent

on, we know this from economics during the great depression, we need to jumpstart the economy, the private sector coming with fiscal stimulus, so it is right out of the textbooks and the size is correct. the republicans, with a of criticism towards the bill and many off of them were wrong. —— they through. it does not speak of socialism out of. —— adult. this is public money given to private households so they can buy private goods —— at all. there will be more demand from for—profit companies, that is why they outline for—profit companies and that is quite encouraging right now. because this is way far away from a socialist bill there is hardly any public investment in the bill. so that is wrong. the other thing that is wrong that republicans say is the economy is strong and doesn't need it.

the labour market is very, very weak. we have 10 million people out of work and the way going if the economy is left on its own, we wouldn't get to the jobs that we had a year ago. so the economy is soft. and this is welcomed by for—profit companies, so there is really nothing, again, the republican criticism there that has any economic merit ic. often they do, but this criticism today from the house republicans was not based on evidence. —— that i see. not based on evidence. -- that i see. , ., ., i see. there is nothing on pensions. _ i see. there is nothing on pensions, it _ i see. there is nothing on pensions, it doesn't - i see. there is nothing on| pensions, it doesn't really change the balance of between employers and employees, it doesn't change the minimum wage to be but the child tax credit could be a game changer?— child tax credit could be a name chanaer? �*, ., ~ ., game changer? let's talk about the balance _ game changer? let's talk about the balance of— game changer? let's talk about the balance of power— game changer? let's talk about the balance of power between l the balance of power between labour and capital. before this pandemic, even the big, private hedge funds were talking about

how the balance of power and the wealth inequality has gotten too far, and they admitted that most workers in the united states did not have what they deserve because of a decline in union and erosion of the minimum wage. none of that is in the built. the labour market is so soft that when workers go back to work, they will likely be on employers' terms b and the companies working from the recession will be bigger and stronger, so this is a promo and recovery —— pro—monopoly. let's talk about the child care tax credit that was amazing to me, and the economist that were watching, of all the good ideas but never got implemented, i think two things made it possible for the child tax credit to be in the bill. one was that mitt romney, a republican, pronator list, pro child republican, said we needed it —— pro—natalist, and

the recession really hurt women and children, and young families with children the hardest copy so it's a temporary provision as well, nothing permanent is in the bill. but temporarily, families with children will get relief from the tax code. and that is directly related to the disease and the recession.— and the recession. professor ghilarducci, _ and the recession. professor ghilarducci, thank _ and the recession. professor ghilarducci, thank you - and the recession. professor ghilarducci, thank you so - and the recession. professor . ghilarducci, thank you so much. it was good talking to you. thank you. let's get some of the day's other news. still to come: we'll find out why nasa's perseverance lander on mars has been recording the sound of the lasers it's been firing at rocks on the red planet. the numbers of dead and wounded defied belief. this, the worst terrorist atrocity on european soil in modern times. in less than 2a hours, then, the soviet union lost

an elderly sick leader and replaced him with a dynamic figure 20 years his junior. we heard these gunshots in the gym. then he came out through a fire exit and started firing at our huts. god, we were all petrified. james earl ray, aged 41, - sentenced to 99 years and due for parole when he's 90, i travelled from memphis jail to nashville state prison in an eight—car convoy. i paul, what's it feel like to be married at last? it feels fine, thank you. what are you going to do now? is it going to change your life much, do you think? i don't know, really — i've never been married before! this is bbc news. the latest headlines: president biden has scored an important victory after just fifty days in office, with the house of representatives

approving his covid stimulus package worth almost $2 trillion. dozen of burmese police officers have fled to india after they said they were being told to shoot at anti—coup protestors. police in the uk searching for sarah everard have found remains. the police commissioner said the news the man arrested was one of her officers are sent shock waves through the country and the force. , ., ._ ., force. the news today that it was a metropolitan - force. the news today that it was a metropolitan police i was a metropolitan police officer who was arrested on suspicion of sarah's murder has sent shock waves and anger through the public and through the mat. i speak on behalf of

all my colleagues when i say we are utterly appalled. nasa scientists have released the first sounds of a laser being fired on another planet. they were made by an instrument on the perseverance rover which landed on mars three weeks ago. researchers say that by listening to the laser at work through an onboard microphone, they can gain additional insights on the rocks the robot is studying. let's have a listen to the probe firing—off its high—powered laser. keith cowing is the editor of nasawatch.com. he's in reston, virginia just outside of washington, dc. isn't on the face of it, the sound isn't much but it's pretty meaningful scientifically? pretty meaningful scientificall ? , .,

pretty meaningful scientificall ? scientifically? everyone can hear pew — scientifically? everyone can hear pew pew _ scientifically? everyone can hear pew pew pew, - scientifically? everyone can hear pew pew pew, but - scientifically? everyone can l hear pew pew pew, but that's not what we got. listening to that you could learn a hundred rings about mars, the atmosphere, the rocks that it, or sort of things having a sort of microphone there is a new thing. of microphone there is a new thin. �* �* ., thing. and we've heard the sound of— thing. and we've heard the sound of wind _ thing. and we've heard the sound of wind blowing - thing. and we've heard the sound of wind blowing on l thing. and we've heard the - sound of wind blowing on mars as well, just recently. i think this technology was used by the previous rover, wasn't it? what previous rover, wasn't it? what is different _ previous rover, wasn't it? what is different now? _ previous rover, wasn't it? what is different now? something i is different now? something that was not as sophisticated. this is quite a sophisticated system. if you add the fact the camera which is deployed is two metres high, if you take in the sound that you've heard, the wind and what you see in the horizon, it's as if you are a two metres tall person standing on mars. you have to have a spacesuit but you get a good idea of what it would be like. coming up next is the helicopter experiment. i like the sound of that, what is the helicopter experiment? ingenuity, it's about this big, not that much bigger than a couple of sixpacks of beer, and

it will fly on mars and the idea is to demonstrate that you can fly vehicles in a very in atmosphere but also this gives you a sort of ability to see ahead of where the rover is going, to look at the horizon, look at different places, see what the best route might be because satellite images only get you to so much level of detail stop this will get you very close. further missions may have something far more sophisticated than this but this is a real trailblazer, the first time they've blown anything on that world. generally how do you think it's going? what is exciting you and what is disappointing you? i’m what is disappointing you? i'm the what is disappointing you? i“n the disappointed in anything yet. it's only been 1.5 weeks and everything is working perfectly. i can't wait for it to move around and do the astrobiology research, that is what i'm interested in.- what i'm interested in. great to talk to _ what i'm interested in. great to talk to you, _ what i'm interested in. great to talk to you, hope - what i'm interested in. great to talk to you, hope we i what i'm interested in. great to talk to you, hope we can i what i'm interested in. great. to talk to you, hope we can do it soon. brazil's former leader luiz inacio lula da silva has

returned to the forefront of his country's politics, with a strong condemnation of president bolsonaro's covid—19 policies. at a speech in sao paulo, the popular left leader declined to say whether he would run against bolsonaro next year, after a judge annulled his corruption convictions, reinstating his right to run for office. the us senate has confirmed merrick garland as president biden's attorney general. twenty republicans sided with democrats, including mitch mcconnell, who as the senate majority leader in 2016 — blocked judge garland as president obama's nominee to sit on the supreme court. ian maxwell, brother of ghislaine maxwell, who's in jail facing trial in new york has said his sister is being held in degrading conditions which amount to torture. ghislaine maxwell is seeking bail ahead of her trial on charges of helping the convicted sex offender jeffrey epstein. she denies the charges. our new york correspondent nada tawfik has the story. jeffrey epstein and

ghislaine maxwell shared an intimate relationship. to epstein's alleged victims, the pair were a dangerous combination. of the convicted sex offender. and now herfamily is finally speaking out. ian maxwell defended his sister in an interview with the bbc. he said she was being treated in a fashion that amounted to torture. physically, she's a 59—year—old woman and we understand that she's losing her hair, and that she's also having trouble with her eyesight and her ability to concentrate, because this is a tremendous pressure to be under. his comments come as his sister is seeking bail for a third time, desperate to leave the federal prison here in brooklyn and to wait out the trial under home confinement. thejudge has previously ruled that she is a flight risk. ghislaine maxwell says she's innocent. her brother denies that she is seeking to flee or that she is a suicide risk.

ghislaine is not a suicide risk. she has never been a suicide risk. there are daily mental evaluations of her. she has shown no indication that that is her intention. she's been completely overmanaged. and why is that? because jeffrey epstein, who was under federal custody at the time of his death, died in federal custody, and so this is a grotesque overreaction. for her alleged victims, though, it's not. women that i represent, these 20 victims, many of them have suffered for so many years. they have, some of them, engaged in self— blaming, feel ashamed. they are understanding now that it's not their fault, but this has been a long, long process.

ian maxwell says that he met epstein once fleetingly, and that he only saw him and his sister together once. there are numerous photos, including this infamous one with prince andrew, which he was asked about in his bbc interview. i don't know anything about the photograph, other than that i've seen it's been published. do you recognise the setting of that? was it taken in ghislaine's house in london? i do recognise that setting. he believes his sister still considers prince andrew a friend. the prince, meanwhile, has stepped back from royal duties to reduce his public profile. with the trial drawing near, the world may finally get to uncover the truth about epstein, his associates, and what's been called the most notorious sex trafficking ring in us history. nada tawfik, bbc news, new york. its report the duchess of sussex was filed formal

complaint with itv about the conduct of presenter piers morgan. the host of good morning britain stormed off the set and later resigned, saying he didn't believe a word of the interview. the duchess raised concerns about the likely impact of his comments on those suffering from mental health issues. recreational marijuana use has been put forward to be legalised in mexico. just before we go, a bit of bird news for the role northern albatross. flying is an effortless act. and, before we go, a bit of bird news. for the northern royal albatross flying is an effortless act — but when it comes to landing, well, that can be a different story. the albatross often has trouble coming back down to earth because of its narrow wings, which make it harder for the bird to fly slowly. so it may not have quite made the landing as planned, but who among us gets it right all the time.

as will probably know, they are completely amazing birds. much more on the news on the bbc website and also our twitter feeds. think you for watching. hello. march may have come in like a lamb, but the lion has now arrived early. and, after a stormy night, we have a very windy thursday to come — yes, some sunshine, but also heavy, blustery all around an area of low pressure that's sitting to the north of us, but the tightly—packed isobars right across us indicating that wherever you are, thursday will be a very windy day. but it's england and wales bearing the brunt of the strongest, most disruptive winds, particularly early in the day as we see this area of wet weather move across northern england, wales, the midlands, and on towards east anglia. first thing in the day, the strongest winds will be wales, western england, gusting up to 70 mph, maybe more exposed coastal hills, especially in wales, very rough seas and large waves hitting the coastline here, so that could be disruptive in terms of flooding.

and the winds across england and wales as they continue to gust, 50—60 mph, maybe a little bit more in places during the morning, could be disruptive before easing gradually into the afternoon. weather—wise, wherever you are, it is sunshine and blustery showers from heavy hail and thunder. these are your wind gusts at the end of the afternoon, so they're easing a bit in england and wales, but still very windy in northern ireland — in fact, the winds picking up again in northwest scotland, approaching 60 mph at this stage. single figures in scotland and northern ireland, 9—12 celsius in england and wales. and it remains very blustery overnight thursday and into friday. further showers around increasingly falling as snow into the hills of scotland, perhaps northern ireland, into the pennines, as well — some here with a covering of snow at the higher ground as friday starts. and these are your temperatures. and then, for friday, spot the difference — yes, there'll be drier moments and sunshine, but there'll be further

heavy showers around, some with hail and thunder, and still falling as snow into the hills of scotland, northern ireland, northern england, perhaps into wales at times, too, the higher up you are. and, ifanything, perhaps a little bit cooler on friday. and then, into the weekend, well, still low pressure. a frontal system bringing more wet weather more widely overnight and into saturday. then saturday, it's sunshine and showers. bit of a lull first thing sunday, but this weather system bringing more rain at least into western parts as we go on through sunday. so, a selection of locations here for your sunday weather. and then, looking into next week, well, it turns drier and calmer once again, as that march lamb makes a comeback.

the latest headlines for you from bbc news. it's one year on from the moment the world health organization declared the coronavirus outbreak a pandemic. despite more than 2.6 million deaths and at least 117 million confirmed cases in just about every country on earth, the source of the virus has still not been scientifically confirmed. president biden's massive coronavirus relief package has cleared its final hurdle in the us congress. the economic aid plan — worth almost $2 trillion — was approved by the house of representatives without a single republican vote in favour. the bill includes a one—off payment of $1,a00 for most americans. burmese police who've fled across the border to india have told the bbc, they left the country after refusing to follow the orders of the military. they said they'd been told by senior officers to shoot at protesters.