welcome to bbc news. i'm james reynolds. our top stories: funerals begin for the victims of the stampede in israel — at least 45 people died at a crowded jewish festival. as india deals with a huge surge in coronavirus cases, the us announces it will restrict travel from the country next week. we have a special report from mali, as british troops join what's been described as the world's most dangerous peace—keeping mission. and heading back to the dancefloor, without social distancing. it's part of a uk pilot on how to gather safely without spreading covid.

welcome to our viewers on pbs in america and around the globe. for the victims of a deadly crush at a religious festival. at least 45 people are known to have died, and more than 150 were injured at meron, the site of the tomb of a revered second—century rabbi. almost all of those affected were ultra—orthodoxjews, in attendance to mark the lag b'omer holiday. our middle east correspondent tom bateman sent this report from the scene. and a warning, it contains distressing images. they came to celebrate and to be blessed. tens of thousands ofjewish pilgrims at the mountain tomb of an ancient rabbi. but instead they were met with panic and a deadly crush. men and boys left the shrine,

descending a narrow walkway which was badly overcrowded. those at the front became trapped. people tried tearing away metal barricades to free them. all of a sudden we saw paramedics from mada and whatever, running by, like mid—cpr on kids and then one after the other started coming, ambulances, then we understood, something is going on here. pilgrimsjoined paramedics in a desperate search. dozens had been suffocated or trampled on. children became separated from parents and army helicopters evacuated the wounded. in the hospitals, there has been anguish as relatives wait for news. many of the dead still have not been formally identified. this man took his two young sons to the festival.

when it got crowded, he says they tried to get out. "we reached a ramp," he tells me, "where there was a river of people. i fell on my back and others piled on top. i prayed. my ten—year—old son was screaming for help, shouting, �*i'm dead' and my 13—year—old son, he was gone." his ten—year—old made his way home by himself but the teenager was missing. the family searched hospital wards for news. later, he was confirmed dead, among at least seven children who lost their lives. the annual festival sees ultra—orthodox jews flock for the night of prayer. bonfires are lit too. this was the country's biggest gathering since the pandemic. israel has lifted many covid restrictions after the world's fastest vaccination rate,

and police had planned for crowds. so what went wrong? this is where the surge took place. crowds were heading down this metal ramp here. eyewitnesses have said it was slippery. people were then turning around this corner, heading down the steps. and some have said that a barrier was blocking the route and that is where the crush took place. at the scene, prime minister benjamin netanyahu called it a national disaster and promised a full enquiry. this afternoon they began burying the dead. amid the grief and the funerals, questions mount over whether it could have been prevented. after a night of ritual, this was the one no—one wanted. let's get some of the day's other news: a huge blast in eastern afghanistan has killed about 30 people and injured dozens more.

officials said a car bomb went off near a guesthouse in pul—e—alam, the capital of logar province. it's not yet known who carried out the attack. a study has found the brazilian part of the amazon released 20 % more carbon dioxide into the atmosphere in the past decade than it absorbed. large scale logging and deliberately lit forest fires are being blamed. police in houston have found more than 90 people crammed into a 2—storey suburban house and suspect it was being used in a people smuggling operation. the victims — most of them men — were found huddled together in different rooms and many hadn't eaten for days. some were showing symptoms of covid. police say there weren't any children in the house. the us will restrict travel from india next week to try to stop the spread of covid—i9. the measure will come into force on tuesday. vice president kamala harris said at the same time the us would send more than $100 million worth of supplies. mark lobel reports.

grasping valuable oxygen, receiving care in a car. 0thers receiving care in a car. others still urgently seeking it. translation: we still urgently seeking it. tuna/mom- still urgently seeking it. translation: ~ ., ., translation: we are waiting in the hoe translation: we are waiting in the hepe they — translation: we are waiting in the hope they will help us. in - the hope they will help us. in the hope they will help us. in the meantime we are trying to organise oxygen from another source. figs organise oxygen from another source. �* , ., source. as in our all-too-familiarl source. as in our- all-too-familiar cues or source. as in our— all-too-familiar cues or oxygen all—too—familiar cues or oxygen continue. it is notjust oxygen, would is in short supply also, with so many cremations like this taking place. translation: people are ho - in: place. translation: people are hoinu to place. translation: people are heping to help — place. translation: people are hoping to help from _ place. translation: people are hoping to help from their- hoping to help from their fellow human beings because the government has given up. everything now depends on god. there is a shortage of vaccine as well. this centre no longer able to offer promise jabs for the young to stop the virus spreading elsewhere, australia has temporarily made it illegal for its citizens to return home from india. for its citizens to return home from india-—

from india. and this for america... _ from india. and this for america... there - from india. and this for america... there will. from india. and this for| america... there will be from india. and this for - america... there will be travel restrictions starting on tuesday on the advice of the centre of disease control. medical experts, our national security advisers. but medical experts, our national security advisers.— security advisers. but some fli . hts security advisers. but some flights will _ security advisers. but some flights will take _ security advisers. but some flights will take on - security advisers. but some flights will take on extra - flights will take on extra importance. it is much needed needed arriving from the us, oxygen, medical kits and masks. belgium, more rain and china, but 40 belgium, more rain and china, but a0 country ever to deal with the situation in india. although the country remains in the grip of a civil crisis, we are encouraged by the international support for india. in international support for india. ~ , ., international support for india. ~ ., ., india. in mumbai, a group of dentists joining _ india. in mumbai, a group of dentists joining the - india. in mumbai, a group of| dentists joining the frontline, all hands to the deck. somebody has to be there _ all hands to the deck. somebody has to be there to _ all hands to the deck. somebody has to be there to save - all hands to the deck. somebody has to be there to save lives. - has to be there to save lives. but even if cases are now successfully contained, it is predicted there is still a tough month ahead. the daily

case count — tough month ahead. the daily case count is _ tough month ahead. the daily case count is likely _ tough month ahead. the daily case count is likely to - tough month ahead. the daily case count is likely to pick - case count is likely to pick up, the death count picking up two weeks later until the end of may. two weeks later until the end of ma . ~ ., , of may. within either deadly fire and an _ of may. within either deadly fire and an indian _ of may. within either deadly fire and an indian hospital. fire and an indian hospital treated coronavirus patients, claiming a lease a dozen lives, india's battle with this pandemic remains on many fronts. mark lobel, bbc news. well, we can speak now to dr prashant yadav, a lecturer on global health supply chains at the centre for global development in washington. thank you so much forjoining us. i would like to look at vaccines. how is the vaccine supply in india, this supply chain? �* , . chain? enter's current production _ chain? enter's current production in - chain? enter's current production in the - chain? enter's current production in the last| chain? enter's current - production in the last couple of months has been averaging around 2.5— 3 million doses a day, 75 million doses a month.

india's rate of vaccinating on a daily basis is... this was for people over 50 or those with capabilities. supplies are still fairly constrained. the early phase when supplies were high and demand was lower, those have already been used up or were part of the export that india did to covax and other countries. the start of new vaccines and other supplies, possible public take a couple of months so during that period there will be a phase where demand will far exceed supply. can it afford for factories to

be billed for accent to carry on, you cannot afford this weight? on, you cannot afford this weiuht? , , ., on, you cannot afford this weiuht? , , . weight? yes but at the same time you _ weight? yes but at the same time you have _ weight? yes but at the same time you have to _ weight? yes but at the same time you have to keep - weight? yes but at the same time you have to keep in - weight? yes but at the same. time you have to keep in mind that for managing the current crisis, vaccination may not necessarily solve the problem in the short term. that would be a stronger medium term strategy. it has to be two pronged. one is how to extend manufacturing capacity, be clear in terms of when supplies become available and how much. and then plan how they are best allocated even in the next few weeks and certainly in the 2— three months period in the meanwhile use other interventions and physical distancing, oxygen supply, other things that are much more important in the short—term.

and then he a question, should the limited supply of vaccines be first used to get those who have received their first dose fully vaccinated, also those at high risk making sure they have received the vaccine so that chances of developing severe disease or other implications are better manage or using limited supply in areas where surge infections is happening much more rapidly in other region but as to the plan talked about is to expand phase three and that demand will over power the supply by many factors. ., ~ , ., power the supply by many factors. ., ~ i. power the supply by many factors. ., ~ . factors. thank you so much. thank yom _ in other coronavirus developments: turkey has approved the emergency use of

russia's sputnik v covid—i9 vaccine, after signing an agreement to purchase a total of 50 million doses. turkey is currently under new lockdown restrictions for two weeks following a surge in cases russia has recorded more than a00,000 excess deaths from last april to march this year during the pandemic — that's according to state statistics. epidemiologists say excess death figures are the best way to measure the true coronavirus toll. the film and tv industry has sought to distance itself from the british actor and director, noel clarke — who's facing multiple claims of sexual harassment. clarke is known for playing mickey smith in doctor who from 2005 to 2010, and for his film trilogy kidulthood, adulthood and brotherhood. he is also a writer, director and producer. in a statement the a5 year—old said:

his statement comes after 20 women accused him of harassment and bullying. broadcasters itv and sky have now dropped his shows and he's been suspended by bafta, almost three weeks after the british film and television academy gave him an award for his outstanding contribution. stay with us on bbc news. still to come: heading back to the dancefloor without social distancing. it's part of a uk pilot on how to gather safely without spreading covid. nothing, it seemed, was too big to withstand the force of the tornado. the extent of the devastation will lead to renewed calls for government help to build better housing. internationally, there have already been protests. sweden says it received no warning of the accident. indeed, the russians at first

denied anything had gone wrong. only when radioactivity levels began to increase outside russia were they forced to admit the accident. for the mujahideen, the mood here is of great celebration. this is the end of a 12—year warfor them. they have taken the capital which they have been fighting for for so long. it was 7 o'clock in the morning on the day when power began to pass from the minority to the majority, when africa, after 300 years, reclaimed its last white colony. this is bbc news. the latest headlines: mourners in israel have begun burying the victims of a stampede, after at least a5 people died in a crush at a crowded jewish festival.

the biggest uk military operation since iraq and afghanistan is currently underway in the west african state of mali. 300 british soldiers have joined part of what the un is calling the most dangerous peacekeeping mission in the world — nearly 250 un troops have lost their lives since the mission began eight years ago. mali is suffering from a rise in violent islamist extremism, coupled with severe poverty. the country has a scattered population of 20 million people and the size of the country alone makes it very difficult to counter the threat with limited security forces. our defence correspondent jonathan beale and cameraman james anderson are the first broadcast journalists to join british troops on patrol. british troops are back in harm's way, in their most dangerous deployment since the wars in iraq and afghanistan. this time as part of a un peacekeeping mission in mali, a country in crisis, suffering extreme poverty, the impact of climate change, weak governance, and a surge in violent extremism. more than 300,000 people have been forced to

leave their homes. we need to try and understand the sorts of terrorist activity. if you've got any security concerns in the area, try and identify that as well as looking for anyone who does look suspect. we were among the first journalists tojoin them out on patrol. they're on high alert. they soon notice a group of men leaving on motorbikes. groups of five to six motorcyclists who have seen us, it's just a bit suspicious. strangers coming through the area. they know extremists have been here, but for the locals there's often a fear in speaking out. they are reluctant to say what the issues are, which suggests there are some sort of fear of reprisals if they are starting to open up of the true issues they do face, and it's giving them a sort of understanding and being a presence to provide that security. jihadist groups have been

conducting a reign of terror. this, a propaganda video of the group calling itself islamic state in the greater sahel. they're in competition with other extremists linked to al-anda. these long—range reconnaissance patrols are designed to gather intelligence, to protect the local population, and to drive the extremists out. but they're having to cover a vast area of thousands of miles. and the question is, can a few hundred british troops really make a difference? tens of thousands have become refugees in their own country. these families have left their villages for the relative safety of a nearby town — the victims of the violence. he said they killed some of theirfamily, most of their family. killed most of their family?

anything we can do to allow them to live a normal life fearfrom fear of rape, murder or robbery, is a success for us. they're having to work alongside mali's own security forces, who have been accused of committing human rights abuses. but they're taking casualties too. 30 malian soldiers were killed in an ambush here just a few weeks ago. so what if the british become the target? if someone's going to attack us we're not going to sit and watch them do that. we will defend ourselves. and if someone is going to attack or is about to attack the local nationals then our job is to protect them, and if protecting them involves using violence then we will use violence. the uk's committed to this peacekeeping mission for at least three years, but thousands of french troops have been fighting in a separate counter—terrorism mission here since 2013. for britain the question is can it really help bring peace to mali, or is this another long, unwinnable war? jonathan beale, bbc news, eastern mali.

the european commission has formally accused tech giant apple of anti—competitive behaviour, by disadvantaging rival music services on its app store through the use of high fees. the commission said that apple's policy of charging a 30% commission on subscriptions amounts to abuse of its dominant market position. the case was launched two years ago, following a complaint from music streaming service, spotify. the commission's findings are preliminary, but if they're confirmed, apple could face heavy fines. this is what eu's antitrust regulator had to say. apple users, music streaming providers, they have to go via the app store and accept the rules apple imposes on them. our preliminary finding is that apple exercises considerable market power in the distribution of music streaming

apps to owners of apple devices. on that market, apple has a monopoly. let's find out more. we can speak to australian antitrust expert, rob nicholls. he's an associate professor in regulation and governance at the university of new south wales in sydney. professor, you had the european commission spokesperson there, official there, saying monopoly? officialthere, saying mon0poly?- officialthere, saying monool? , ., official there, saying monool? , ., monopoly? yes. so, what you have got is for the _ monopoly? yes. so, what you have got is for the apple - have got is for the apple store, essentially you can only get apps and content out to apple users, iphone users, via the apple store and the same with the google play store as well. if you are in one ecosystem, you can't move to the other one, and there are only two, and both had very similar approaches.- only two, and both had very similar approaches. what kind of changes — similar approaches. what kind of changes might _ similar approaches. what kind of changes might apple - similar approaches. what kind of changes might apple be - of changes might apple be compelled to introduce? well, one of the _ compelled to introduce? well, one of the approaches - compelled to introduce? well, one of the approaches is - compelled to introduce? well, one of the approaches is to - one of the approaches is to say, well, treat your own services in the same way as you treat purposes that are on the

app treat purposes that are on the app store. for example, it's possible to rate spotify, what do you think of their app. but it's not possible to rate apple music. is not clear that apple music. is not clear that apple music is treated differently to spotify. these are things that start to say, probably, there is an abuse of market power going on. so making the process much more transparent, and making sure that there is no favouring of apple services over services that go via the app over services that go via the app store is one way of making a difference.— a difference. professor, looking _ a difference. professor, looking at _ a difference. professor, looking at this - a difference. professor, i looking at this historically, are companies like apple and other companies we know dominate the online world, either in a historical context, too big, too powerful, endanger, orat too big, too powerful, endanger, or at risk of being broken up? i endanger, or at risk of being broken on?— endanger, or at risk of being broken up? i don't personally thinkthat _

think that breakup is right approach. the logical way of dealing with vcs using existing antitrust and competition law to say you can have market power, but you can't abuse market power. and so, with the getting so big comes a responsibility to act in a way thatis responsibility to act in a way that is fair, transparent, reasonable and with others. the reasonable and with others. the reason is if apple and other major players do not actually respond to that, then the option will be exercises to break them up, but i don't think we're quite there yet. professor rob nicholls, thank you so much. professor rob nicholls, thank you so much-— clubbers have been deprived of the dancefloor for more than a year now — but to their delight thousands returned here in england, and without masks or social distancing. it's all part of a uk government pilot programme to establish whether large crowds can safely gather without spreading covid. 6,000 people are attending

a two—day event in liverpool this weekend. dan johnson reports. the masks are off and the volume is rising. finally, we're free to do what we want to do — embracing music and each other. anywhere else, this would be illegal tonight. i think it's really going to be a magical moment in history, to be honest. and look what it means to be back in front of a crowd. i think it's going to be electric, absolutely buzzing. people are going, "oh my god," just screaming their heads off, like, so excited. and this city is leading the way. i spent three weeks at home on this outfit. deciding what to drink, deciding what to wear. big cheers to liverpool.

we love this city. we're all excited. practically in tears. we are not even drunk yet, we're just ready for it. - airflow monitors will work out if the virus will spread. there will be cameras and ai looking at the movement of people. are there any bottlenecks that could be removed? are there any pockets? we have chosen a deliberately big, airy venue. we have monitors for covid safety and carbon dioxide levels. everyone being here is helping us collect the data while it is safe to do so and both rates are very low. they will be tested before and after. 5000 in sefton park will also be tested before and after. we asked people to take a pcr test five days afterwards and that allows us to understand the transmission. we want people to enjoy themselves, we want people to have a good time.

really important for individuals, but it's also part of the scientific experiment to capture what we can learn from it. this is just a taste of what we have missed. hopefully it brings us all closer together. a team of polish scientists say they have discovered the only known example of a pregnant egyptian mummy. the mummy was thought to be a male priest but x—rays and scans revealed the mummy was a woman in the latter stages of pregnancy. experts believe the remains are most likely those of a high status women from the ancient egyptian city of thebes, aged between 20 and 30, who died 2000 years ago. before we go, a very different type of ocean crossing caught our eye. is a ship without any passengers. the world's first autonomous ship that will soon leave the south—west coast of england through the atlantic. it will. marine pollution while at sea. the mastermind behind the project said unlike most other

voyages, on this trip, no—one will get seasick. that's the way to do it. do stay with us. hello there. we are seeing a change in the month, but not too much change in the weather. it is staying cold. if we look at april 2021, it's been exceptionally cold the past month or so. in fact, the overnight temperatures on average have been the lowest in almost 100 years, and it is going to stay quite cold on into the first part of may as well. this was the picture on friday. the final day of april brought us sunshine and april showers, and those april showers will be rolling on through the course of the first weekend in may as well. so, sunny spells in store, but also some scattered, fairly heavy downpours. we're in between a couple of areas of low pressure at the moment, this one waiting in the atlantic. that will be more of a pair

by the time we get to bank holiday monday, but for the here and now, we've got these cold northerly winds drawing in this chilly arctic air, so still cold for the time of year. after that frosty start to saturday for some of us, lots of sunshine around through the day. cloud will tend to bubble up as the ground heats up and that will bring some scattered showers almost anywhere during the course of the afternoon. so, they're going to be hit and miss. if you do catch one, there's a risk of hail and some thunder mixed in as well. still quite chilly around the east coast — 7—11 degrees. further west, 13 or 1a celsius. so, heading through saturday night overnight into sunday, showers clear away for the most part, so clear and dry and cold once again. so, an overnight frost,

i think, as we start out the day on sunday, with temperatures in more rural spots getting down below freezing once again. sunday evenings another day of some sunny spells and a few scattered showers. probably fewer, i think, on sunday compared to saturday, but again, by the afternoon, it will be that hit—and—miss risk of catching those heavy downpours. possibly a little bit warmer than saturday — up to about 13 or 1a degrees fairly widely. still chilly across the north of scotland. but then it's all change into bank holiday monday as low pressure approaches from the atlantic, so something we haven't seen in a while — quite a deep area of low pressure. although many areas start off dry, the strong winds and the fairly heavy, persistent rain will move across most areas. probably just dry across the far north of scotland, could be some mounting snow mixed in as well. not only the rain, but the strong gusty winds for many of us on bank holiday monday, it will feel cold with temperatures only about 9—12 degrees. bye— bye.

this is bbc news, the headlines: funerals have been held for victims of the stampede in israel which saw at least a5 people die. almost all of those affected were ultra—orthodoxjews, attending a festival to mark the lag baomer holiday. prime minister netanyahu promised an inquiry would ensure such a tragedy did not happen again. president biden has banned nearly all travel to the united states from india, to try to stop the spread of covid—19. most non—us citizens will be barred from entering from tuesday. the white house described the number of coronavirus cases in india as extraordinarily high. leading british teams and players from sports including football, cricket and rugby have begun a four—day boycott of social media. they want facebook, instagram and twitter to take stronger action against people who post racist and sexist comments. all three social media platforms say they're taking action to tackle online abuse. now it's time for a look back at the week in parliament.