this is bbc news with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. royal crisis injordan — former crown prince hamza says he's under house arrest. he's accused of being involved in a plot to destabilise the country. england is to trial covid passports, in a bid to allow the safe return of mass events. the fa cup final will be among the pilots. they sing. a scaled back easter sunday — although the choir was able to perform at canterbury cathedral. at the vatican, the pope called for vaccines to be shared with the world's poorest countries. on home water, it is still theirs, cambridge has the victory. and it's a double win

for cambridge in both the men's and the women's boat race. hello and welcome if you're watching in the uk or around the world. the government ofjordan has accused the country's prince — hamzah bin hussein — of a plot to destabilise the country. this comes after the former heir to thejordanian throne released a video to the bbc saying he had been placed under house arrest. jordan's deputy prime minister says the prince's wife had been in contact with foreign intelligence agencies. up to 16 people have arrested, including senior officials. ealier the deputy prime minister ofjordan said that the government had been monitoring calls from prince hamza. translation: the security agencies have looked into the long-term -

activities and movements of prince hamza and others that target the stability and security of the country. the investigations monitored interference and calls, including calls with foreign parties regarding the suitable timing to start steps to shake the security of our studyjordan. the prince's mother - queen noor — tweeted earlier that she was praying that truth and justice would prevail for all the innocent victims of what she called wicked slander. prince hamza — who was removed as crown prince in 2004 — has accused jordan's leaders of incompetence, corruption and harassment. he has denied any wrongdoing in the video passed to the bbc via his lawyer. here's some of what he had to say. i am not the person responsible for the breakdown in governance, for the corruption and for the incompetence that has been

prevalent in our governing structure for the last 15—20 years. the dispute has its roots in thejordanian royal family's line of succession. for much of the 20th centuryjordan was ruled by king hussein, who passed away in 1999. handing power to his son by his second wife, queen muna, who was crowned abdullah the second king hussain had another son with his fourth wife queen noor. his dying request was to name that son — prince hamzah — as crown prince and eventual successor — as he was seen as too young to take power at the time. but in 2004, abdullah rescinded the crown prince title, giving it to his own son, prince hussein. bbc arabic�*s suzanne goussous is in amman and has more information on what was said byjordan�*s government earlier today.

there has been a press conference held at the prime ministry today in the jordanian capital this afternoon which showed, the official government statement has said, the initial investigations show that prince hamzah had been involved and had been carrying out some activities that targeted the stability and security of the country. and the official statement had said in the press conference, the vice president of the prime minister had said that the army chief had been in contact and had been having talks with prince hamzah, telling him to cease activities around the kingdom. however, it was received in a negative manner by the prince, and he was not being cooperative as was said in the press conference just a while ago. i'm joined now by fawaz sharges — professor of international relations and middle eastern politics at the london school of economics who knows some of the people

involved in the crisis. thank you forjoining us on bbc news. why do you think the government felt it was necessary to act now? ~ ., , , government felt it was necessary to act now? ~ . , , ., ~ ., act now? well, really, my take on it is that this — act now? well, really, my take on it is that this is _ act now? well, really, my take on it is that this is really _ act now? well, really, my take on it is that this is really a _ act now? well, really, my take on it is that this is really a family - is that this is really a family dispute between prince hommes and king abdulla the second. —— hamzah. i think despite if you isolate all the noise, i think this is a palace coup designed to really silence hamzah who was seen as a troublemaker. hamzah was meeting with tribal leaders, tribal elders. he is very popular among certain tribes. he tweets, he gives voice to the grievances of many people, including the tribes. so in a way,

at this particular stage, giving the convergence of many challenges and many problems facing jordan, i think what the government has done is to connect the dots between what hamzah has been doing, being invited to meet with the tribes and also some of the criticisms of the incompetence of the government and the corruption and the multiplying economic problems. i think this is what we are seeing, really, the tip of the iceberg, what has been happening injordan in the last four years. do happening in jordan in the last four ears. y ., ~ happening in jordan in the last four ears. ~ ., , .,~ happening in jordan in the last four ears. ~ ., , , years. do you think troublemaker is fair? how do _ years. do you think troublemaker is fair? how do you _ years. do you think troublemaker is fair? how do you see _ years. do you think troublemaker is fair? how do you see the _ years. do you think troublemaker is fair? how do you see the activities | fair? how do you see the activities of prince hamzah. look, prince hamzah was basically, i mean, supposed to be the future king ofjordan. this is an open secret. he was his father's favourite, king

hussein, he's charismatic, popular, and it was really at the last minute that king hussein decided that hamzah was too young, he was inexperienced and that king abdulla the second form of the current income is really much more qualified and much more, basically experienced to basically navigatejordan in a mine field. he was made the crown prince, and then into thousand four, was basically king abdulla the second made his son crown prince. so you can imagine the anger, the grievances. and my take on it is that prince hamzah has never really basically come to terms with this particular reality, and given the multiple problems facing jordan, prince hommes has emerged as kind of

a voice, as a kind of courageous voice, voice that is willing to criticise the government, to listen to the grievances of the people, and given who he is, what he represents, surely, the security forces and the intelligence community feel that prince hommes i could really represent a threat, even if the situation basically reaches a particular boiling point in the country. particular boiling point in the count . �* ., particular boiling point in the count .�* , , , ., country. and ask you briefly “ust to address the — country. and ask you briefly “ust to address the other interests _ country. and ask you briefly just to | address the other interests affected in the region or even globally, which other state you think has most reason to be concerned about instability injordan? reason to be concerned about instability in jordan?- reason to be concerned about instability in jordan? well, i think every state _ instability in jordan? well, i think every state in _ instability in jordan? well, i think every state in the _ instability in jordan? well, i think every state in the region - instability in jordan? well, i think every state in the region should l instability in jordan? well, i think. every state in the region should be concerned about the stability of jordan. historically, we look at jordan. historically, we look at jordan as a buffer zone. we think aboutjordan�*s neighbours. jordan borders israel and palestine, syria, iraq. it seen as a major oasis,

relative oasis in a very wonky see. i was a bit concerned today that the jordanian government basically put the foreign minister as opposed to the foreign minister as opposed to the interior minister to address this particular crisis. this tells me that the jordanian this particular crisis. this tells me that thejordanian government basically points to certain foreign elements involved and it made the argument. ijust don't elements involved and it made the argument. i just don't see a foreign conspiracy here. yes, i don't have the intelligence. i think this is really more of a family dispute. i think the characters involved, i mean take... who was one of the key suspects who is basically arrested. he is a functionary, he is an outsider. he has no connections to the security forces are the

military. the only connection that he has or has had was king abdulla the second who made him the chief of staff, and he was made the economy minister, and that led jordan into thousand eight, it was a cloud of suspicion and corruption. i’m thousand eight, it was a cloud of suspicion and corruption. i'm afraid we have to — suspicion and corruption. i'm afraid we have to leave _ suspicion and corruption. i'm afraid we have to leave it _ suspicion and corruption. i'm afraid we have to leave it there, - suspicion and corruption. i'm afraid we have to leave it there, but - suspicion and corruption. i'm afraid| we have to leave it there, but thank you so much forjoining us and for your expertise. you so much for “oining us and for your expertise.— pope francis has used his easter "urbi et orbi" message to focus on the victims of coronavirus. he urged a quickening of the vaccine roll—out around the world. the pope called the resurrection of christ a symbol of hope during the pandemic. our rome correspondent mark lowen reports. st peter's basilica echoed to its emptiness. beneath michelangelo's dome, a small group of worshipers gathering for easter mass, more a consolation than a celebration, a time to reflect on a painful year and for the leader of the world's catholics to comfort those whose faith has been shaken. pope francis focused on the pandemic in his message,

calling the resurrection of christ a symbol of hope for those who had lost loved ones, jobs and time with friends or in the classroom. and he spoke of the panacea. translation: vaccines - are an essential tool in this fight. i urge the entire international community in a spirit of global responsibility to commit to overcoming delays in the distribution of vaccines and to facilitate their distribution, especially in the poorest countries. the pope talked of conflict across the world, condemning what he called "scandalous military spending amidst the pandemic." there were words too for the victims of the burmese coup. translation: i am close to young i people from all over the world, l and at this time especially to those of myanmar who are committed to democracy, making their voices heard peacefully, aware that hatred can only be dissipated by love.

churches could stay open today despite the whole of italy being put into the tightest covid restrictions. but the measures were strict with italians battling a third wave. with shops and restaurants closed across the country, it's a second straight lockdown easter. "it's just a few of us at lunch today," she says. "we were hoping for a faster solution to all of this." "i'm meeting with my family today, my mother has already been vaccinated, so we are beginning to see light at the end of the tunnel," he says. not a moment too soon for the medics, who managed a touch of easter cheer today and some sweet treats. how they keep their spirits up is itself a miracle, giving us all hope that realjoy isn't too far off. mark lowen, bbc news, rome. the british government is to trial measures in england,

including covid passports, to allow the safe return of sports matches, major events and nightlife. they'll show if a person has been vaccinated, had a recent negative test or has antibodies. the pilot will include one of football's biggest games, the fa cup final, and will last until mid may. here's our political correspondent, nick eardley. england's national stadium has been quiet for some time. but in the next few weeks, fans will be back at wembley, cheering on teams as part of pilot schemes. this year's fa cup final will be used to trial covid passports, where you have to prove your status before you're allowed in. the key purpose of looking at this option is to see how it can enable us to open up getting back to the things that we want to do, if this can be at all, to enable businesses to open sooner, because it could potentially mean that we can get rid of social distancing sooner.

that could mean that some of these businesses can open sooner, and if they are open, then they can open more profitably. this isn'tjust for people who've had the vaccine, it could be a few months before all adults have had both jabs, but status certificates would allow you to prove that you've had the vaccine, a recent negative test or that you have natural immunity based on having had the virus in the past six months. ministers have ruled out having to prove your status to get on public transport or to go to essential shops. and when pubs reopen in the next few weeks, you won't need one either. the government believes that covid passports could be most useful for mass—spectator events. if you've got to buy and take a ticket, why not an app as well that shows that you don't have the virus. but while you will not need one for restaurants, when they reopen in the next few weeks, ministers are still looking at whether they could be useful for reducing, maybe even removing, social distancing. it's very different

from anything we have done in britain outside wartime. we are not used to presenting papers, or indeed the electronic equivalent, to go to the pub or to go to a football match. that's not what we think of as our freedoms, our freedom is the freedom to have a normal life. this outdoor cinema in liverpool will be part of test events in the next few weeks, looking at how to safely allow larger gatherings. the opportunity to get back to full capacity, i think, is something that is so prevalent at the moment and is underpinning so many of the hopes of the events and entertainment industry. so, this scheme, we feel, is the right way to go. events will be tried out in sheffield later this month too. some here have reservations. there is the thing about having your liberties taken away, which is really quite worrying, about the health passports, but i also sort of get it. how do you make people feel safe and reassured, but how do you make sure that we still have that freedom?

it's probably for. the best to have it. the government will set out more details tomorrow. the reopening of society is continuing but it could get more complicated. i am nowjoined by the ceo of the night time industries association — michael kill. michael, what do you think about this pilot, are you pleased with how it's looking?— it's looking? very much so. we are very pleased _ it's looking? very much so. we are very pleased that _ it's looking? very much so. we are very pleased that d _ it's looking? very much so. we are very pleased that d cms, - it's looking? very much so. we are very pleased that d cms, the - very pleased that d cms, the cultural department for the uk government, has been working very hard alongside many of the trade bodies and businesses to bring about these nine pilot schemes which are looking at testing many pieces of the puzzle for us to move forward and be able to open, looking at things like customer behaviour, mitigating measures as well as looking at the logistics for the covert certificates which has been debated heavily over the last few

days. debated heavily over the last few da s. ., ., . , ., days. you mention customer behaviour- — days. you mention customer behaviour. i— days. you mention customer behaviour. i suppose - days. you mention customer behaviour. i suppose there l days. you mention customer| behaviour. i suppose there is days. you mention customer- behaviour. i suppose there is the risk that people will feel frustrated, they can't wait to get back out there and go to events and go to clubs and being asked to take tests or stand in line or distance might add to the pressure for you. i think there is no doubt that there is an appetite to come out. we have seen many of the festivals in the uk sent out very quickly giving —— given the road map and the ability to be open at the earliest of the zist to be open at the earliest of the 21st ofjune. it there is a certain 2ist ofjune. it there is a certain amount of concern and anxiety amongst operators. there are some huge concerns from parliamentarians within the uk government that this could be divisive and discriminatory measure that has been put in place in terms of these certifications and could present barriers. but there is definitely a disparity between some of these spaces that they are looking to use them in, especially with pubs and restaurants now taken out of that pool of businesses that will be required to take part in

that. ~ . , ., will be required to take part in that. . that. what is your message to people who do think — that. what is your message to people who do think that _ that. what is your message to people who do think that this _ that. what is your message to people who do think that this is _ who do think that this is discrimination, just that you have to take this, because it's the only way that we can go forward? what would you say to them? i way that we can go forward? what would you say to them?— way that we can go forward? what would you say to them? i think the bi est would you say to them? i think the biggest challenge _ would you say to them? i think the biggest challenge that _ would you say to them? i think the biggest challenge that we - would you say to them? i think the biggest challenge that we have - would you say to them? i think the biggest challenge that we have is l would you say to them? i think the i biggest challenge that we have is we need more information on it. we have had pretty much the last week or two to really sort of indulge ourselves in information. initially, it was unlimited —— a limited release of looking up covert passports. we are now waiting for a response from a prime minister. i think the issue we have at the moment as if we are not fully armed were forewarned, it is difficult to anticipate or understand the impacts of the government's band without understanding them fully and being able to scrutinise them to a point to see whether they logistically work for us and then we can start moving forward by being able to communicate appropriately with customers and levy some sort of understanding of how that will work within these environments. just a cuick within these environments. just a . uick final within these environments. just a quick final thoughts _

within these environments. just a quick final thoughts remind - within these environments. just a quick final thoughts remind us . within these environments. just a quick final thoughts remind us what the night—time industries are worth to the economy. it's all part of opening the economy back up as well. i mean, some years back, we were looking at circa 66 billion in terms of revenue, we are now looking at 70-80,000,000,000 pre-cobit. 1.3 million people employed 70-80,000,000,000 pre-cobit.1.3 million people employed and responsible for somewhat 300 million nightlife tourism per year, so hugely important industry and we have so many businesses that work alongside it as well as freelancers and some of those key workforce that at the moment are not being supported as well as they should be by uk government. fiend supported as well as they should be by uk government.— supported as well as they should be by uk government. and it will be the same across — by uk government. and it will be the same across the _ by uk government. and it will be the same across the world. _ by uk government. and it will be the same across the world. michael, - same across the world. michael, thanks so much forjoining us. thanks so much for “oining us. thank ou. the headlines on bbc news... royal crisis injordan — former crown prince hamzah says he's under house arrest. he's accused of being involved in a plot to destabilise the country. england is to trial covid passports, in a bid to allow the safe return of mass events. the fa cup final will

be among the pilots. the pope uses his easter sunday address to call for covid vaccines to be shared with the world's poorest countries. sport, and for a full round—up from the bbc sport centre, here's gavin. —— lizzie. thanks so much. we start in the english premier league, where second placed manchester united have come from behind to lead brighton 2—1. they're into the final couple of minutes in that game at old trafford. earlier, tottenham missed out on the chance to move into the top four after drawing 2—2 with newcastle. joe willock with the late equaliser for steve bruce's side. the result means that jose mourinho's team are fifth. ijust think that i just think that we ijust think that we made mistakes. we made _ ijust think that we made mistakes. we made defensive mistakes that led to instability. in the first half, we were — to instability. in the first half, we were always in control, even in

the second — we were always in control, even in the second half when we have the ball, the second half when we have the bail. we _ the second half when we have the ball, we didn't have any problems. we scored — ball, we didn't have any problems. we scored goals, we could score a couple _ we scored goals, we could score a couple of — we scored goals, we could score a couple of more, when we got in defensive — couple of more, when we got in defensive situations, we created instability with our mistakes. and instability— instability with our mistakes. and instability brings hope to the opponent. earler, aston villa came from a goal down to beat fulham, who stay in the relegation zone. southampton also came from behind to beat burnley 3—2. valencia's players left the pitch in protest during their la liga match at cadiz after a racist comment was allegedly made to defender mouctar diakhaby. he reacted furiously after a first—half altercation with a cadiz player resulting in the valencia players walking off. diakhaby later asked his team—mates to return and they resumed the game but he was substituted. leader patty tava—tanakit tees off in the next half an hour in her final round at the ana inspiration, as she looks to win the first major of her career. the 21 year old from thailand has lead throughout and now has a comanding 5 shot lead over

the rest of the field at mission hills in california on ia under par. charley hull is the best placed british player at 7 under. cambridge have won both the men's and women's university boat race, continuing their dominance in the famous event which was staged outside london for the first time since the second world war. our correspondent katie gornall reports. it's one of sport's most traditional showdowns, but this year nothing about it looks familiar. gone is the river thames lined with hundreds of thousands of fans. in its place, a landscape devoid of all the usual landmarks. here on the banks of the great ouse, the crews would have to make their own atmosphere. go! the pandemic and the closure of hammersmith bridge has forced the change of scenery, giving cambridge a home advantage, and yet the women's race was nervily close. sudden movement and clashing, and this can cause all sorts of problems. on a straight course,

oxford, here on the right, almost veered into cambridge's path, but the light blues fought back and found their rhythm. and they have that feeling now. cambridge across the finish line. living up to their billing as favourites to win for the fourth successive time. history had been made before the men's race even started as sarah winckless became its first female umpire. go! under her watch, both teams kept their distance to make a powerful start. without the twists and turns of the thames, this felt like a sprint to the finish. cambridge edged in front and, while oxford pushed them, they failed to reel them in. on home water, it is still theirs. cambridge have the victory. a double victory then for cambridge in a year unlike any other — time to toast a new chapter in this event's storied history. katie gornall, bbc news. this year's french open tennis could be postponed again, in light of the spike in coronavirus

cases in the country — according to france's sport minister. the tournament at roland garros is due to take place from the 23rd of may to the 6th ofjune. but after the country entered a third national lockdown on saturday — there are discussions over whether the dates should change. that's all the sport for now. lizzie, thanks very much. choirs are perfoming in churches in england for the first time in months after being silenced by the pandemic. but the sights and sounds of this year's easter music are looking a little different as our religion correspondent harry farley explains. for most of the past year, the choir at chingford parish church was silent. in places of worship around the country, singing has been restricted. now, for the first time in many months, the choir has returned. singing.

the last time that we sang must have been in september, october time, so quite a few months. it feels really good. i think itjust doesn't have the same essence when you're singing to a backing track. i think a lot of what being a choir is about is the community, it's being able to know that you're singing with someone in that moment, it's the connections you make, it's hearing the harmonies that surround you, and notjust coming at you from a screen or in a headset. like many other places of worship, chingford parish church moved its services and its choir online in the past year. even as people return in limited numbers, a hybrid of in—person and on—line worship will continue. but there are fears about the toll the pandemic has taken. most places of worship voluntarily closed in the latest lockdown. many suffer from reduced donations but this easter,

squires returned to churches like this, a moment of hope and a glimpse of normality. harry farely, bbc news. you are watching bbc news. now it's time for a look at the weather with ben rich. good evening. for most of us, easter sunday has brought sunshine and temperatures for some as high as 17 degrees. but if you're in the north of the uk, you will know the weather has been changing. that was the scene in shetland earlier on, with snow showers and very cold air, and that cold air is going to dig its way all the way southwards through tonight and into tomorrow. so, the start of the new week, some cold days and frosty nights in store. there will be snow showers quite widely, and blizzard conditions across northern scotland, the snow really packing in here as we head through the night. cold air coming in behind this cold front, bringing a band of cloud and patchy rain.

in southern areas overnight, temperature staying above freezing but in the northern half of the uk, very cold indeed, —8 in parts of scotland, where it will be snowing in parts in the morning, especially in the north. a band of patchy rain will tend to break up and push southward but behind that, all of us getting the cold conditions with a mixture sunshine and showers. showers down the eastern coast, into northern ireland and perhaps wales and the south west as well, blowing on strong winds, particularly in northern scotland, gusts up to 70mph. so while the thermometer may read between three and nine degrees, it will feel subzero for some, “4 the feels—like temperature in aberdeen, and the snow keeps coming across northern scotland. some really poor travelling conditions here. monday night, widely it will be cold with a frost for most places and then getting into tuesday, another day of sunny spells and showers, most of the showers falling as snow or perhaps

hail in places. mainly across coastal areas, though some developing inland in parts of england and wales across the afternoon. another cold—feeling day but a subtle change on the way as we head into the middle part of the week, courtesy of this frontal system developing out west. it is a warm front, bringing cloud and patchy rain but also something a little less cold. no heatwave but those temperatures will climb a little through the middle part of the week, double digits towards the south, but in northern areas, friday will turn cold again.

hello, this is bbc news. i'm philippa thomas. the headlines...

royal crisis injordan — former crown prince hamza says he's under house arrest. he's accused of being involved in a plot to destabilise the country. england is to trial covid passports, in a bid to allow the safe return of mass events. the fa cup final will be among the pilots. a scaled back easter sunday, although the choir was able to perform at canterbury cathedral. at the vatican, the pope called for vaccines to be shared with the world's poorest countries. and it's a double win for cambridge in both the men's and the women's boat race. now on bbc news, across the uk, covid—i9 has claimed the lives of more than 126,000 people. behind each death, of course, is a very personal story of loss. on the one year anniversary, last month, of the first nationwide lockdown, the bbc�*s spotlight team heard

from some of those grieving in northern ireland.