this is bbc news. i'm maryam moshiri. our top stories: a national day of mourning is being held in israel to remember the victims of friday's crush during ajewish pilgrimage. a lockdown in the indian capital, delhi, has been extended for another week in the face of rising covid infection levels. as foreign troops begin their delayed withdrawal from afghanistan, a warning to the taliban against renewed attacks. the american actress and oscar—winner olympia dukakis has died at the age of 89. and an icon of manhattan, the empire state building, turns 90.

a national day of mourning is taking place in israel after friday's deadly crush at a jewish pilgrimage. 45 men and boys died after being trapped in a narrow walkway during the festival at mount meron, attended by up to 100,000 mostly ultra—orthodox jewish people. mark lobel reports. mourning a tragedy — one that's shone an uncomfortable light on israeli society amid the search for how one of israel's worst peacetime disasters unfolded. for now, grief overtakes the demand for answers. the dead includes a rabbi, foreign nationals reportedly from america, canada, and the uk, and at least 12 children and teenagers. during the stampede, many young lives were suddenly

at risk. we received several dozen injured people, among them we had two children who died, and we had another three or four children who are severely injured. the crash happened late at night on a passageway in 0man�*s section during a religious festival attended by ultraorthodox jews. this man says he saw people screaming in fear on a steep ramp, trying to get out, but noticed the exit seemed blocked. he says hundreds of people fell and trampled over one another. he thought about coming back to offer help, but he says it was too terrifying. prime minister benjamin netanyahu visited the site and promised an enquiry, as questions remain. were prior warnings of the risk of a disasterfrom israel's state watchdog heeded? should numbers have been limited this year?

did the police help or hinder the events that night? was simple human error to blame? all painful questions at a painful time. mark lobel, bbc news. a lockdown in delhi has been extended for another week in the face of rising covid infection levels. everyone in india over the age of 18 is now eligible for a vaccine, but there are reports of a shortage ofjabs in many states. and hospitals are still struggling to cope, short of beds and oxygen. devina gupta has more from the capital delhi. 400,000 and counting — surging covid cases now making inroads in india's hinterland. these villagers in the eastern indian state of 0disha are living in fear. people here are so poor that they can't afford a proper

mask, let alone expensive treatment. now three people have tested positive. translation: there are no facilities for oxygen - in our village. we have to go to the city. but how can we, when there is a shortage, even in city hospitals? and his concern echoed in this private hospital in delhi where 12 people lost their lives when the oxygen stock ran out. translation: we begged them| to arrange oxygen from anywhere that they could. during that time, there was a gap of about 45 minutes when the stock ran out. despite this, we failed. this is a warning that india's running out of time to save lives as the virus continues to challenge the inadequate health infrastructure here. experts believe the country needs a national lockdown

to prepare better and break the cycle, but so far india's prime minister has opposed this idea, emphasising on vaccinating more people. in fact, in an ambitious plan, he has expanded the vaccination drive to all adults above 18 years. and with an estimated 600 million more people asking forjabs, most vaccine centres have run out of stocks. translation: we were told that it would be a _ first—come—first—served thing here but the vaccination centre is deserted. we will see what we are going to do — whether we will get it or not. the government here continues to deny there's a vaccine shortage. but as cases climb, most nations are closing their borders for india. australia has even asked its citizens who have stayed in the country for over 14 days not to return. a move that will reportedly impact 9,000 australians here. for now, those living here are betting against odds for a vaccine, to get a fighting chance against this pandemic. devina gupta, bbc news, delhi.

well earlier, i spoke to nimi vashi, who is a cancer scientist in new york. she has become a �*covenger�* — an organiser who is trying to amplify and get help to rural people in india. i asked her what she's hearing. the situation in rural india, from everything i know from friends and family, is as bad as in urban areas. and as you are showing a couple of minutes ago, the problem with rural areas is people have to go into the cities to get any kind of support, as in hospitalisation, when they need. and rural people do not have access to great healthcare infrastructure as the people in cities have. what more can be done, do you think, to help those people who clearly are so badly in need? so, some things that we

are doing and that many philanthropic organisations are doing on the ground in india is people have come together, and they're making makeshift hospitals. people are selling oxygen cylinders, concentrators. we have ourselves arranged five ventilators and have deployed them to hospitals and we hope to save at least one life with them. and its philanthropic efforts like these that would help india immensely. so if anyone has access to an oxygen concentrator or a ventilator, please, please send them — do not hold them. in terms of the vaccination programme, obviously know any adult over the age of 18 can get theirfirst vaccine, but we are hearing stories of a lack of access to vaccines. what are you hearing, from where you are? so yes, vaccinations — as in the second dose for people — have been delayed, from what i know. but what i am surprised about is the rest of the world i would like to use this platform to request

president biden to help india vaccinate its population. it is notjust an india problem, it could soon be a world problem, because variants can arise anywhere. so, anyone with vaccines, please send them to india. i know you are in new york, but it has to be said covid has touched you personally, hasn't it? yes. so we started this movement, unfortunately, when we lost the clinician who treated my father two years ago. and he was also a close family friend of ours when we lost him, and people in extended networks, mentors, and people. the last two nights i have spent them arranging ventilators and beds for my friends and family. nimi vashi talking to me there. a cancer specialist in new york who is helping those in need in india.

let's get some of the day's other news. police in brussels have fired tear gas and water cannon at anti—lockdown protesters in a city park. officials said two police officers were injured as they tried to break up the protest. organisers said it was a follow—up to last month's protest which was broken up in a similarfashion. portugal re—opened its land border with spain and began the final stage of its programme to ease covid—19 restrictions. it recorded zero fatalities on friday for the second time in a week. as well as the lifting of the border controls, the opening hours for cafes, restaurants and cultural venues was extended, in particular at weekends. the world—famous leaning tower of pisa has re—opened to tourists for the first time in nearly six months. it was closed on november 3rd after italy was hit by the second wave of the pandemic. only 25 people are allowed inside at a time and have to follow strict social distancing measures. before the pandemic, the monument attracted five million visitors each year. more than a 100,000

people turned out for france's traditional may day protests. but in the capital, paris, police arrested 46 people as demonstrations turned violent. the bbc�*s azadeh moshiri reports. police huddled together as they struggle against hooded protesters, and teargas follows. more than 100,000 people joined in traditional may day protests across france, but in paris, they turned violent. bank windows were destroyed, fires were blazing as thousands of police officers were deployed to control the situation. and there was more than just a may day custom that propelled the protesters to the streets. translation: this is to prevent may in the coming months - of being identical to what we have experience before the lockdown, meaning restructuring of companies,

a lot of money given to those already who had a lot and even less given to those who did not have anything. the protesters were made up of unionists, as well as members of the movement behind a previous wave of anti—government protests. this time, they are demanding the government to reconsider changes to france's unemployment benefits, and with an upcoming election in france, the issue was front of mind to candidates. translation: tomorrow could be beautiful, tomorrow could be - bright, so i hope i can come back on may the first, 2022, as the president of the country to see you. when president macron was elected, he promised major reforms, but changes often meet with resistance. the head of the us—led military mission in afghanistan, general scott miller, has warned against attacks on foreign

troops as they start to withdraw, saying they had the means to "respond forcefully". it comes after the taliban said the militants were no longer bound by an earlier commitment not to attack international forces there. that undertaking was part of the an agreement last year which also committed the us to withdrawing all troops by today. the delay to their departure until september has angered the taliban. our north america correspondent, peter bowes, is following developments. i think there are mixed feelings across this country, of course. this is america's longest war. we have heard presidentjoe biden refer to it as the forever war. we have heard donald trump talk about endless walls. —— wars. they both have the goal of bringing all us poses home but at different times. the1 all us poses home but at different times. the 1 may was to have been the deadline set by donald trump's administration. this is why the

taliban, seemingly so angry that the united states has broken that agreement, and why over the next few months with the new deadline of september 11, they will initially be an increase in the number of forces and tightening security with the fear of reprisal attacks. i think across the country there is some ambivalence towards afghanistan. it is interesting looking at surveys, public opinion polls, over the 20 years, about people's opinions in this country towards us presence in afghanistan. moved. initially there was strong support. even now the deep wound of the attacks of 9/11 is very much part of people's lives, that has affected people's opinions of the withdrawal. the next few weeks will be tense. a lot of people looking on, a lot of

military families, of course, looking on, with obvious live very deep personal interest, in terms of the security and the process as it unfolds towards september 11. north korea has hit out at the biden administration as it prepares to unveil its strategy for dealing with pyongyang and its nuclear programme. the foreign ministry said recent comments out of washington showed president biden was intent on maintaining a "hostile policy". earlier this week, mr biden called north korea's nuclear programme a "serious threat" to global security. earlier a statement was read out on the newsagency. translation:- out on the newsagency. translation: ~ , translation: we consider the movement _ translation: we consider the movement in — translation: we consider the movement in the _ translation: we consider the movement in the south - translation: we consider the movement in the south is - translation: we consider the movement in the south is a - movement in the south is a propagation against a state and will look into corresponding action. this is bbc news. the headlines: israelis hold a vigil for the 45 people who lost their lives in a stampede. sunday has been declared

a national day of mourning. a lockdown in the indian capital delhi has been extended for another week in the face of rising covid infection levels. the philippines is battling one of the worst coronavirus outbreaks in asia with the recent surge centred around the capital manila. president rodrigo duterte has extended the lockdown in the capital region and four neighbouring provinces for another two weeks. earlier this week, the nationwide tally of those infected crossed the one million mark, although many claim that the actual number could be much higher. ranjit rye, professor of political science at the university of the philippines in manila, told me the situation in the philippines is extremely serious. we are in the midst of this surge but, unlike other current countries where the surge, which has been driven by variants, are still going up, in the philippines it has reached a peak and is now

in a downward trend, which is somewhat good, but the cases are still high and hospitals are still filled up so we are hoping that the extension of the lockdown and communities, you know, the government and the private sector working together will help reverse this surge. how worried are you that things could become worse and develop into something more serious? in a surge driven by more contagious variants, you are always worried that, you know, trends, downward trends can easily be reversed, and so while we are still challenged by this existing surge in manila, we are optimistic that the collaboration between communities, between the private sector and government will continue, and we will be able to drive the surge down and overcome it. give us a sense of how successful the vaccination programme has been in the philippines. well, i don't know about

the success, but it has started and over a million people have been vaccinated. it is a bit slow, but that's to be expected, given the global supply problem. we hope to pick the vaccination up towards the end of the year but it will still be a long time from now and because vaccination is slow, places like metro manila, countries like the philippines will be always vulnerable to outbreaks and surges in covid—19, so this is the continuing challenge. the vaccine is a step forward but it's taking some time to deploy all over the country — and largely because of the supply problem, which is why i would like to take this platform also to urge governments in the west who have excess vaccines, to share them with developing countries like the philippines. we need to accelerate the vaccination progress and we need the help, of countries that have excess supply to be given to countries

like the philippines, who are in great need of vaccines. the american actress olympia dukakis, who won an oscar for her role in the 1987 romantic comedy moonstuck, has died aged 89. she had a long and distinguished career in theatre, both as a performer and as a director, but it is for her roles in comedy films such as moonstruck and steel magnolias that she found internationalfame. the singer and actress cher, who played dukakis' daughter in moonstruck, has been among those sharing their memories of her, tweeting that she had spoken to dukakis shortly before her death. george decay also paid tribute, saying the entire world was moonstruck by her. jeannie wolf is a hollywood journalist and has been giving me her reaction to the news. i was very sad, had not realised she has been sick for several months and she is not someone you ever think of that way. she was full of pep and full of ideas and full of humour and made such an impression on the screen so it was very sad for me to hear of that. ., ., , ., “ was very sad for me to hear of that. ., ., ,, ~ i. that. how do you think you will be remembered _ that. how do you think you will be remembered as _ that. how do you think you will be remembered as an - that. how do you think you willj be remembered as an actress? you know, should not like to be asked how she would be remembered! but we know how she

will be remembered, as tough as ardent as passionate about her work, a great actress and a gentle, motherly and sensible woman. ,, ., ~ woman. she came into her kind of, ou woman. she came into her kind of. you know. _ woman. she came into her kind of, you know, hollywood - woman. she came into her kind of, you know, hollywood movie fame, if you like, a little bit later in her career, didn't she? how did that impact her as a person and indeed her career? she says it was much better! she says it was much better! she loved acting in plays, she loved the theatre. but movies, she said, made herfinally be able to pay off her credit cards! and have things that she wanted. i sent my kids to couege wanted. i sent my kids to college on credit cards, she said. i never knew what it was like to have money that you did not have to worry over. i also think that she loved the fame, people would just walk down the street and yell out lines from her movie to her. and she felt that was a great compliment because they treated her like a

star but they also treated her like they knew her. find star but they also treated her like they knew her.— like they knew her. and of course she _ like they knew her. and of course she was _ like they knew her. and of course she was very - like they knew her. and of course she was very much | course she was very much involved in acting as a profession and the theatre from early on though, wasn't she? very much so, she was part of the theatre company, she loved the theatre company, she loved the part she played. she helped teach people and she is very much remembered for that. a little like the woman she played in tales of the city, except the woman entails of the city was flamboyant and a bit outrageous. but she also guided people, try to tell them how to live, tried to be honest about life and what it brings and about love and what it brings. it was fun to be around olympia, she had great ideas about things.— about things. and the movie moonstruck, _ about things. and the movie moonstruck, which - about things. and the movie moonstruck, which for - about things. and the movie moonstruck, which for which about things. and the movie - moonstruck, which for which she won an oscarand moonstruck, which for which she won an oscar and other awards, i believe, jeannie, you were backstage after she actually won? i backstage after she actually won? , ., won? i remember that night. i remember— won? i remember that night. i remember that night - won? i remember that night. i remember that night very - won? i remember that night. i| remember that night very well.

she was calm. she said i thought i would be a wreck but she was calm. she said this feels so great and at that point, it was earlier in the evening and she said oh, i hope cher went, evening and she said oh, i hope cherwent, i hope evening and she said oh, i hope cher went, i hope cher wins and cher went, i hope cher wins and cher did win but she was very frank with the audience and she said fame, it is another stage in life. if you have weathered what i have, bringing up children and living in tough times, fame, you learn to cope without too. she was a gentle toughie. without too. she was a gentle tou~hie. ,, . . ,, u, without too. she was a gentle tou~hie. ,, . ., ,, ., ., toughie. such a special woman. and more _ toughie. such a special woman. and more recently _ toughie. such a special woman. and more recently a _ toughie. such a special woman. and more recently a new - and more recently a new generation of fans know her from tales of the city which was a success on netflix. how do you think she changed the way that older actresses, actresses with more experience, were viewed in the early mid 80s, early 90s?— 80s, early 90s? interesting because at— 80s, early 90s? interesting because at the _ because at the beginning, everyone asked her about playing mother rolls and she said i am a mother, i like playing mother rolls. but tales of the city, she got to dress in all these crazy clothing,

she became a gay icon because of that part, she built her audience even wider and got more offers. and i think it did change the perception of her. and i think that was so much fun for her.— and i think that was so much fun for her. olympia dukakis, who died at — fun for her. olympia dukakis, who died at the _ fun for her. olympia dukakis, who died at the age _ fun for her. olympia dukakis, who died at the age of- fun for her. olympia dukakis, who died at the age of 89. i a crew of four astronauts have left the international space station in a capsule built by spacex. the vessel, called the crew dragon resilience, will circle earth a number of times before splashing down early on sunday morning in the gulf of mexico. onboard will be three nasa astronauts and one from japan's space agency. one of the world's most famous buildings, the empire state in new york, is marking its 90th birthday. celebrations at the tower will include a special light show and the number 90 illuminated on its famous mast that king kong clung to in the famous final scene from the film. when the empire state opened on may1, 1931, it was the tallest building in the world. since then, it's become one of new york's must—see attractions that in

pre—pandemic times welcomed more than 4 million visitors a year. david farber, professor of modern american history at the university of kansas says the building was the brainchild of a visionary businessman. john raskob was one of those amazingly wealthy new yorkers who had helped really create modern american corporations. he was the force behind general motors, the dupont company and then in 1928, got and itch in his fingers —— got an itch in his fingers to start building skyscrapers. and he built the empire state? why did he build the empire state — what was it built for? i think it was built as much as anything to best his close friend walter chrysler, who was putting up another massive and very famous skyscraper today. i think these new york elites were just looking for one more challenge, little knowing that they were starting their building craze just as the great depression was taking off.

so then, at the time this building craze happened, these huge buildings popped up, the depression occurred. the history of the empire state building after that, in my mind, is very much connected to hollywood and the movies and king kong. is that what made it really iconic and famous? because if it hadn't been for that film, would it be the kind of thing that it is today? i think you're right. it's just a little over 1.5 years after the building opened that famous king kong movie was shown throughout the united states — and much of the world, indeed — and that image of king kong grasping the spire of the building, some 1,300—1,a00 feet in the air, i think imprinted that building in the minds of people around the world and it became iconic. and is it still iconic today? there are so many buildings that are taller, perhaps even more beautiful than the empire state. it is still so important now, isn't it? well, i do think it is still a beautiful building, but you are quite right — it is no longer nearly the tallest building.

and yet, there is something about it piercing the skyline of new york city that makes people just amazed when they come. and as you said, millions of people still come every — at least pre—covid, and hopefully post—covid — charged up to $75 a person. they make hundreds of millions of dollars just letting people up to the 102nd floor. is that how much it costs — $75?! is that how much it costs to get up there, $75? and loads and loads of people pay that, don't they? i'm amazed, too! but, yes! but is what an adult has to pay to see that incredible view. maybe we are both amazed and a bit tight, hey? laughter. i know new yorkers must love it, but what do americans feel about it? it must have a national draw as well? it certainly does. i mean, i'm impressed by the fact that it's still one of those things, a kind of bucket list thing for so many americans. even young people still love the empire state building. it is the iconic king kong

message of it, towering above the world, people love it. indeed, they do. you can reach me on twitter. i'm @bbcmaryam. goodbye for now. hello again. well, there probably aren't too many of you that escaped with a completely dry day today. it's been a day of sunshine and showers but those showers have been really widespread. so, yes, although skies looked like these at times, other times we had the heavens open. and this one, quite an impressive shower bringing a covering of hail to the roads and pavements of leek in staffordshire. you can see just how extensive today's showers have been — nationwide, really — and although they are beginning to fade away now, there are still a few left over. now, the reason we've had so many showers during the day is because over the last few days, we've had a lump of cold air move across the uk, and that gets heated strongly by the may sun, which causes the air to rise, causes those showers to break out. and we've got the same kind

of mechanism with us for the forecast into sunday. now, right now, most of the showers have cleared out of the way — just one or two left over for scotland to take us into the first part of the night. it's another cold night, though, with clearing skies, light winds and a widespread frost. temperatures getting down to about —2 or —3 in the very coldest areas. so a cold start to the day sunday morning but then a lovely start with clear, blue skies for many of you. through the day, though, showers will start to break out, initially across the north—west of the country, and then they'll become really extensive for most areas as we head into the afternoon. probably some of the heaviest showers across central and eastern england, eastern areas of scotland. and those temperatures, well, a bit disappointing, really, for this time of year — highs of 11—14 degrees for most of you. and talking about disappointing weather, here comes your bank holiday. yeah, it's an area of low pressure coming in off the atlantic, bringing wet weather, bringing windy weather, bringing fairly chilly weather as well. now, it may will start off

bright across eastern areas of the uk, but outbreaks of rain will quickly spread in from the west. it might well be cold enough even to have a little bit of snow mixed in of the highest ground in scotland and northern england, and it's going to be pretty windy. pretty windy and pretty chilly, really, for the time of year. temperatures doing well enough to get into double figures across england and wales. further north, scotland and northern ireland, about 7—9. maybe the far north of scotland the place to be for the best of the weather. after that, it stays pretty showery, i think, for most areas and we could see further low pressures coming in from the south—west. that's your latest weather.

this is bbc news. the headlines: a national day of mourning will take place in israel on sunday after friday's deadly crush at a jewish pilgrimage. 45 men and boys died after being trapped in a narrow walkway during the festival at mount meron, attended by up to 100,000 mostly ultra—orthodoxjews. a lockdown in the indian capital, delhi, has been extended for another week in the face of rising covid infection levels. everyone in india over the age of 18 is now eligible for a vaccine, but there are reports of a shortage ofjabs in many states. the head of the us—led military mission in afghanistan has warned against attacks on foreign troops as they start to withdraw, saying they had the means to "respond forcefully". the comments come after the taliban said they were no longer bound by an earlier commitment not to attack international forces.