welcome to bbc news. my name's mike embley. our top stories... india suspends all major exports of the astra—zeneca vaccine following a domestic surge in coronavirus infections. brazil's daily covid—19 death toll passes 3,000 for the first time — as the virus continues its rapid spread. virginia becomes the first southern us state to sign away the death penalty. democrats says a flawed legal system often led to mistakes. even just evenjust a even just a few years ago, signing this into law would be unthinkable but it is the by—product of a tonne of hard work, and a lot of passion by advocates across the state, and lawmakers, and i think a change in the climate here in virginia and across the country. egypt is due to restart efforts to free a giant

container ship that's been wedged across the suez canal for almost 48 hours. and the tokyo olympic flame is lit — as the torch relay gets under way injapan. the delayed games are expected to start injuly. the global demand for covid vaccines has reached a peak just as the number available appears to run into problems, at least for some countries. joe biden will talk to eu leaders on thursday and they will be hoping to get more cooperation over supplies as the us continues to enforce an export ban. on wednesday, india suspended all major exports of the astrazeneca covid vaccine following a surge in the number of infections there. officials said it was a temporary squeeze to meet domestic demand for the jabs. the serum institute of india, the world's biggest manufacturer of vaccines,

produces the astrazeneca dose under licence. the institute has already delayed shipments to countries including brazil and the uk. the who—backed covax scheme is also affected. 0ur correspondent nikhil inamdar is in mumbai and following developments. this is a temporary squeeze, or a temporary suspension, according to government sources that the bbc has spoken to, because domestic demand for vaccines here in india has shot up because the government is speeding up its inoculation programme, and also because people above the age of 45 are now being allowed to take the vaccine starting next month. it's unclear when these exports will resume, but certainly it's a move that will hit several countries, given that the serum institute of india is the world's largest vaccine manufacturer and india has shipped over 60 million doses. that's more than it has used to domestically inoculate its own people.

clearly, with the country now in the firm grips of a second wave, it does seem like india's vaccine diplomacy is going to have to take a back—seat, at least for now. after weeks of tension between the uk and the european union over the distribution of vaccines — a joint statement has been issued pledging to "create a win—win situation and expand vaccine supply for all citizens". it was a notably different tone to the one struck earlier by the eu, when the commission proposed tougher controls on exports of vaccines. 0ur europe editor, katya adler, spoke to the eu's internal market commissioner thierry breton, who said that whilst the uk was reliant on the bloc for vaccines, its issues were with the drug maker astrazeneca and not the british government. i understand that the uk is heavily, heavily dependent on the eu to get vaccines. probably more than two—thirds

of the vaccines to date injected into its citizens are coming from the eu, so, i understand the concern, because the uk is not at all self—sufficient. but, of course, for us, in the eu, what we want is to have reciprocity and to have clarity. let me give you an example. we have a contract with now four companies and of course everything is going extremely well, except with astrazeneca and with astrazeneca, we have ordered 120 million doses, and so far we receive only 13 million doses. at the same time we understand that astrazeneca, and i don't blame it, they have delivered 100% of what was committed for the british government. we just want to understand why, where does it come from? that is why we need to have reciprocity and transparency. it seems with the new

proposals you're actually penalising countries that have been successful with their vaccine roll—out, unlike the eu. no, i would say that there is nothing against anybody, and especially not the uk, so i want to be very clear on that. we are the largest producer of vaccines for us, and for the world. we know that the us is not exporting anything at all, and we export vaccines already for 32 countries. all of our partners, all of our nato allies, and of course massively for uk. but we just want reciprocity. let me give you an example. for this astrazeneca, in our contract, there are two factories in the uk which were part of our supply chain, and we were expecting them to deliver doses to the eu, so we want them to do it. we want to have an explanation if,

from our side, we deliver massively to the uk. there was nothing to penalise. we just want to have plurality, and to be able to discuss. in brazil, 300,000 people have died from covid—i9. with oxygen running low in some of the busiest icus it is the frontline in the battle against the virus at the moment, and it would appear things are going from bad to worse. the bbc�*s mark lobel reports... counting the cost of coronavirus. translation: ~ ., ., translation: we are in a situation — translation: we are in a situation that _ translation: we are in a situation that affects - translation: we are in a situation that affects the l situation that affects the whole _ situation that affects the whole world, _ situation that affects the whole world, and - situation that affects the whole world, and so - situation that affects the whole world, and so farl situation that affects the . whole world, and so far no situation that affects the - whole world, and so far no one has been — whole world, and so far no one has been able _ whole world, and so far no one has been able to _ whole world, and so far no one has been able to contain - whole world, and so far no one has been able to contain it - has been able to contain it because _ has been able to contain it because the _ has been able to contain it because the one _ has been able to contain it because the one who - has been able to contain it. because the one who decides has been able to contain it - because the one who decides is god~ _ because the one who decides is god. �* , . , . , because the one who decides is god. , ., god. but statistics in brazil are particularly _ god. but statistics in brazil are particularly grim. - god. but statistics in brazil are particularly grim. it - god. but statistics in brazil| are particularly grim. it has the second—largest death toll the second—largest death toll the world. highly contagious variants are sweeping through the country, creating a tsunami of new infections, and many

blame the president for opposing lockdowns and masks. he remains resolute. translation: i he remains resolute. translation: ., ., translation: i want to reassure the brazilian — translation: i want to reassure the brazilian people _ translation: i want to reassure the brazilian people and - the brazilian people and confirm _ the brazilian people and confirm that _ the brazilian people and confirm that vaccines i the brazilian people andi confirm that vaccines are guaranteed~ _ confirm that vaccines are guaranteed. by- confirm that vaccines are guaranteed. by the - confirm that vaccines are guaranteed. by the end i confirm that vaccines are i guaranteed. by the end of confirm that vaccines are - guaranteed. by the end of the year— guaranteed. by the end of the year we — guaranteed. by the end of the year we wiii— guaranteed. by the end of the year we will have _ guaranteed. by the end of the year we will have reached - guaranteed. by the end of thej year we will have reached 500 million — year we will have reached 500 million doses— year we will have reached 500 million doses to _ year we will have reached 500 million doses to vaccinate - year we will have reached 500 million doses to vaccinate the | million doses to vaccinate the entire — million doses to vaccinate the entire population. _ million doses to vaccinate the entire population. we - million doses to vaccinate the entire population. we will- million doses to vaccinate the i entire population. we will soon reiurn— entire population. we will soon return to — entire population. we will soon return to normal— entire population. we will soon return to normal life. _ entire population. we will soon return to normal life. his - return to normal life. his optimistic _ return to normal life. his optimistic message - return to normal life- optimistic message drummed return to normal life— optimistic message drummed out by brazilians bashing pots and pans, in several cities. 0utside one of rio dejaneiro's hospitals, a moment to reflect on the huge pressures on beds inside intensive care units. presidentjair bolsonaro has president jair bolsonaro has installed presidentjair bolsonaro has installed a fourth health minister as he attempts to reassert his authority, introducing his new recruit, as he launches a new crisis committee to deal with the surge, promising weekly meetings and coordination with

governors. irate meetings and coordination with governm— meetings and coordination with rovernors. ~ . ., ~ ., governors. we are talking about a president _ governors. we are talking about a president who _ governors. we are talking about a president who after _ governors. we are talking about a president who after an - governors. we are talking about a president who after an entire l a president who after an entire year announced he is going to create a five strong team. we are by far in their worst moment of the pandemic. we still don't have a decent vaccination plan so far. we have vaccinated only 5% of our population. i am sure that we have lost thousands of lives that could be spared, if we had a president if we had a leader, who takes the whole situation seriously. who takes the whole situation seriousl . ~ who takes the whole situation seriously-— who takes the whole situation seriousl . ~ ., , , seriously. with thousands dying each da , seriously. with thousands dying each day. the — seriously. with thousands dying each day, the outlook _ seriously. with thousands dying each day, the outlook remains. each day, the outlook remains bleak. mark lobel, bbc news. defence officials in tokyo and seoul say north korea may have fired a ballistic missile into the sea of japan. if confirmed, it would be pyongyang's first ballistic missile test since the biden administration took over. so far, the south korean government has just spoken of an unidentified projectile. japan says no debris fell within its territory — but the coastguard has warned ships not to approach

fallen objects. 0ur reporter nari kim joins me from pyongtaek, where the us force korea is based. what is the latest on this? it was around 7:30am thursday korea time that the korean chiefs of staff informed reporters that north korea has launched an unidentified project files into the sea between the korean peninsular and japan. due to the launch, the presidential office held an emergency national security council meeting which usually happens thursday afternoon, but they moved it to 9am this morning, due to the missile launch. it was not immediately identified, whether it was ballistic missiles orjust a normal missile or short missile or long—range missile, we don't know yet, but if it was a

ballistic missile it would be in violation of the un security council resolution, so we would need to still find out whether it was ballistic missiles or not. , ., ., ., , not. the rest of the world has become quite _ not. the rest of the world has become quite used _ not. the rest of the world has become quite used to - not. the rest of the world has become quite used to north l become quite used to north korea firing missiles. does this feel like a significant test for the biden administration? , , administration? this is the second test _ administration? this is the second test within - administration? this is the second test within a - administration? this is the second test within a week. | administration? this is the - second test within a week. last weekend it was sunday that north korea carried out the first weapons test since the us presidentjoe biden took over in office along with two projectiles which actually president biden does not consider as a provocation but, in fact, if this is a ballistic missile, then it could be a different story. this could be actually a threat to the us and its allies, south korea, as well as japan, so it really needs to define whether it is

ballistic missiles or not, we really need to, i think, the united states, has to probably say something about the security issues when they find out what kind of missile it is and dependent on that, it could be a kind of message that they are trying to send to the biden administration. in the vatican, pope francis has ordered pay cuts for cardinals and priests. from april, cardinals will be paid 10% less although lower orders will see fewer cuts to their salaries. the vatican's income has fallen during the pandemic particularly by the closure of its museums. the pontiff said pay cuts were preferable to having to fire people given the current tough economic climate. to china now, where the retail giant h&m is facing a huge backlash, and potential boycott, because it won't source its cotton from china's xinjiang province. in a statement last year, h&m said that it was "deeply concerned"

by reports of "forced labour and discrimination" against xinjiang's muslim minorities. then on wednesday, the chinese communist youth league posted this message on social media, saying... chinese state tv released photos mocking the h&m logo, calling it ridiculous, and even celebrities have claimed they're breaking ties with the retailer. jeremy goldkorn is the editor—in—chief of the china—focused news website sup china. hejoins me now. thank you for your time. what you make of this reaction now given that the statement was issued by h&m about a year ago. i'm not sure why h&m was picked on itself at the timing, the last few days has seen a war of words with sanctions imposed by

the european union and renewed sanctions by the united states and criticism of china from australia and elsewhere, about internment camps for uighurs in the region of xinjang. and the state propaganda authorities, the foreign ministry, as well as state media, have been stepping up their rhetoric against these accusations and this seems to be a part of that. ., , , ., , ., that. there does seem to be a lot of youthful _ that. there does seem to be a lot of youthful nationalist - lot of youthful nationalist energy in china at the moment. how would you expect this to affect h&m, and how will the actions of h&m affect xinjang? the second question, i don't see this affecting xinjang very much, at all, unfortunately, at least not for the better. h&m might be in trouble in china

aside from the consumer boycott which many people in social media are calling for, the government seems very displeased, and the state media are open to using h&m is an object lesson in the folly of this the chinese government. the fact that e—commerce companies took down h&m products, that is much more serious than people calling for a boycott. it means that there is already a loss of revenue. this is a sign, in a way, that sanctions might be having an impact. it sanctions might be having an im act. , sanctions might be having an imact. , . ., , sanctions might be having an imact. ,. ., , ., sanctions might be having an imact. ,. ., ,~~ impact. it is certainly a sign that they — impact. it is certainly a sign that they are _ impact. it is certainly a sign that they are having - impact. it is certainly a sign that they are having an - impact. it is certainly a sign - that they are having an impact. the sanctions and the international condemnation are certainly making chinese very uncomfortable, and this is very clear evidence of that. as to whether they are working it depends on how you define work, because unfortunately, the chinese authority has been hardening its stance about the correctness of its course in

xinjang. it does not seem to be seeking to avoid criticism by changing its behaviour, but by heating up its rhetoric. the bbc has done _ heating up its rhetoric. the bbc has done a _ heating up its rhetoric. the bbc has done a lot - heating up its rhetoric. the bbc has done a lot of- heating up its rhetoric. the bbc has done a lot of work on the situation in xinjang. jeremy, thank you very much indeed. ~ , jeremy, thank you very much indeed. y , stay with us on bbc news. still to come. egyptian authorities try to free a huge container ship that became wedged across the suez canal. i'm so proud of both of you. let there be no more wars or bloodshed between arabs and israelis.

this is bbc news, the latest headlines. india suspends all major exports of the astra—zeneca vaccine following a domestic surge in coronavirus infections. the number of coronavirus deaths in brazil has

surpassed 300,000 as the virus continues its rapid spread. virginia has become the first southern us state to abolish the death penalty. signing the bill into law, the democratic governor, ralph northam, said capital punishment had been applied disproportionately to black people, and a flawed legal system had too often led to mistakes. i asked jayjones, who is a delegate for the virginia state legislature and chief co—patron of the legislation to abolish the death penalty, for his reaction. it is an incredibly big deal. we are the first southern state to abolish the death penalty, the 23rd in the us. evenjust to abolish the death penalty, the 23rd in the us. even just a few years ago, signing this bill into law would be unthinkable. it is the result of a tonne of hard work and passion by lawmakers across the state and lawmakers, and a changing climate across the country. changing climate across the count . , , ., changing climate across the count. , ._ ., country. this is a penalty that has been _ country. this is a penalty that has been applied _ country. this is a penalty that has been applied historically. has been applied historically across the country,

disproportionately against black people. this practice has its roots in racism. it is the descendant of lynching. it is state—sponsored murder in a way that we don't want to happen in our system any more. it that we don't want to happen in our system any more.— our system any more. it does not reflect — our system any more. it does not reflect our— our system any more. it does not reflect our values. - our system any more. it does not reflect our values. it - our system any more. it does not reflect our values. it is i not reflect our values. it is not reflect our values. it is not who we are. the data speaks for itself. it disproportionately affects black people particularly in virginia and that is something we could no longer stand for. clearly for a long time it did reflect a significant portion of the values in the state. was there a particular moment, a case, that changed enough's lives? it case, that changed enough's lives? ., , case, that changed enough's lives? _ , ., . case, that changed enough's lives? _ . ., lives? it was the by-product of a lot of work. _ lives? it was the by-product of a lot of work. i _ lives? it was the by-product of a lot of work. i think _ lives? it was the by-product of a lot of work. i think we - lives? it was the by-product of a lot of work. i think we got. lives? it was the by-product of a lot of work. i think we got a l a lot of work. i think we got a point where we needed to really reassess the justice system and this was one of many things we were able to do notjust in this session in 2021 but even last year during a special session in 2020, and i think that as we move ahead, people will look to virginia for

continued reforms in our justice system and i think this is one that we will herald as a long time coming and something that will make our country more equitable and just.— equitable and 'ust. when was the last time — equitable and just. when was the last time virginia - equitable and just. when was. the last time virginia executed somebody, and were the people close to dying under the death penalty you will now not? irate penalty you will now not? we have not penalty you will now not? - have not executed someone in quite some time. there are two folks on death row and this legislation means that they will not be executed and is retroactive in its application said it will spend the rest of their lives in prison but will not be executed by the state. today when the governor signed that bill at greens bill correctional facility it was a powerful moment to be there, in that moment knowing that there were two folks there who will no longer be subjected to this heinous and barbaric punishment. in a few hours, work will start again to try and dislodge the giant container ship that is currently blocking the suez canal.

the ever given tanker has been stuck since tuesday, and as more than 10% of global trade passes through the canal, the hold—up has seen oil prices rise on international markets. this, from our global trade correspondent dharshini david. there are bottlenecks on the daily commute, and then there's this — a ship the size of the empire state building blocking one of the busiest shipping lanes, after it was aground by strong winds, it's claimed. behind the stricken ever given, owned by ever given, owned by evergreen, a mounting queue of marine traffic, carrying cargo from oil to clothes and food. whereever they hail from — china, the middle east or south asia — they're going nowhere. seen from above, the problem is clear. ships have grown to match our appetite to consume more, but they are ill—suited to a waterway that's just 205 metres wide. this canal, connecting the red sea and the mediterranean, was originally built 150 years ago. it's still crucial

for modern trade. the ever given ran aground at 5:40am on tuesday morning. it's one of 52 ships a day that travel through this passage of water. they carry i2% of global trade, worth over £2 billion per day. there is no easy alternative route, so this disruption could be costly. the suez canal is blocked for, what, the third time in its history. how damaging could that be to global trade? when we think about exports from china, they will take about 10% longer, in terms of shipping time, to arrive at their destination. and when we think about the importance of chinese products for the production of goods all over the world, we have to be worried that this will have major consequences. they're hoping tug boats, diggers and the tide will refloat the ship. tonight, a side channel has

been opened to divert some traffic, but it could take weeks to deal with the consequences of this disruption. however mighty the forces of globalisation, we're all vulnerable to the whims of nature. dharshini david, bbc news. 50 years ago, bangladesh, then east pakistan, started a nine—month struggle for independence. the northern village of ataikula endured some of the worst atrocities of the conflict — men were shot and women were raped by pakistani soldiers. decades later, the women have been given the honorary title "war heroine". they were promised financial support that many still haven't received. akbar hossain has been talking to survivors. this woman survives by making pottery at her home in northern bangladesh, where she has lived for over 50 years. she was a young woman with a husband and two children when soldiers arrived in her village.

she says the details of what happened to her are too horrific to discuss. 36 women were raped in this village alone. this woman also struggles to describe what happened to her. in this sleepy rural area, one of the worst atrocities of the war took place. the pakistani army and their bengali collaborators attacked fellow muslims across the country. but in this village, the hindu bengalis

were singled out, suspected of being pro—india. 52 men from the village were killed, shot by firing squad. the women were the poorest of the poor in 1971 and still are today. the survivors tell me they struggled to raise a family on their own. they made a huge sacrifice for independence, and the state is yet to recognise it. many years after the war, women who had been raped were told to apply for birangana, or war heroine status. it meant they would be given financial support. but in this village, less than a third of the women were accepted. after 50 years, they're still waiting. akbar hossain, bbc news, northern bangladesh.

the olympic torch is starting its four—month journey around japan, as it heads to tokyo for the delayed opening ceremony of the 2020 summer games. the olympic flame, lit in fukushima. the location is significant — fukushima was of course the site of the devastating tsunami and nuclear disaster in 2011, with the concept behind the olympic torch relay "hope lights our way". the olympic flame, flown down from greece, will travel through the country's 47 prefectures, carried by some 10,000 runners. starting with members of the japanese national women's football team. and before we go, as the temperature warms up in many parts of the world, some people may hope to start sailing — but in the cold of russia, well, they do it a bit differently. ice yachters from around the world gathered on lake baikal, the world's deepest freshwater lake, for ice sailing week. sailors braved the frigid siberian cold

reaching speeds of up to 62 miles per hour. there is more on the bbc news website. keep a watching. —— thank you for watching. hello there. the weather's looking pretty unsettled over the next few days and it's going to be turning a bit colder as well. before we get there, though, today on the satellite picture, we can see some thick cloud developing to the west of the british isles. and this is going to be moving its way across northern ireland, with a little bit of rain here developing over the next few hours. more general rain and cloud heading into western scotland, so wet weather into the highlands, the western isles and perhaps pushing into 0rkney as well as we head into the first part of thursday morning. so for these northwestern areas of the uk, cloudy with rain at times. now, there will be a few showers elsewhere developing through the day across england, also some spells of sunshine, but towards eastern england, we're going to have a zone of convergence. this is where the winds bash together

and make a line of showers. and if you happen to live in this kind of area, that's where the greatest chance of showers are, whereas across the midlands and across the south coast, your chance of showers is much lower and there should be more in the way of sunshine. in the sunshine, temperatures widely around 13 or 1a degrees across england and wales. a bit cooler across scotland and northern ireland, 10 to 12 celsius, about 10 where it stays cloudy with rain. now, it is going to be turning colder. colder air that's just to the west of greenland at the moment has our name on it, and it's going to be arriving across the british isles as we head into friday behind this stripe of rain, which is our cold front. so, this band of rain, squally winds on it, will push its way eastwards across england. then, sunshine and showers follow. cold enough for a little bit of snow across some of the higher mountains across the northwest of the uk, and those temperatures really taking a plunge. just 7 celsius in both belfast and in glasgow through friday afternoon. now, beyond that, into the weekend, it does stay pretty unsettled. often, the weather's going to be quite windy and there will be some rain

around as well. of the two days, probably saturday the better of it, but quite cloudy across western areas with some patches of rain, more general rain spreading into northern ireland. and all the while, we'll have gusty winds. temperatures still below par for the time of year, about 9 to 12 celsius on saturday. and on sunday, we've probably got some heavier rain on the way, working into some central portions of the uk. to the south of this area of rain, temperatures not so low. we're looking at highs of around 12 or 13 degrees. but cold still in scotland, about 8 to 10 — below average, then, for the time of year.

this is bbc news, the headlines: india has suspended all major exports of the astrazeneca covid vaccine, because of a surge in the number of infections. the foreign ministry said rising cases mean domestic demand was expected to pick up in the coming weeks, so the doses were needed for india's own rollout. in brazil, the number of deaths from covid—19 has now passed 300,000 with oxygen running low in some of the country's busiest hospitals. brazil is the second worst affected country in the world after the united states, and has recorded more than 12 million cases of the virus. virginia has become the first southern us state, and the 23rd overall, to abolish the death penalty. signing the bill into law, the democratic governor ralph northam said capital punishment had been applied disproportionately to black people, and a flawed legal system had too often led to mistakes.

now on bbc news, wednesday in parliament.