this is bbc news, with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. i'm tim willcox. another day of record infections and deaths in india. a special report on just how badly this crisis is affecting rural health facilities. a brazilian police operation against drug traffickers in rio ends with the deaths of 25 people. polls close across england, scotland and wales in �*super thursday', the biggest test of opinion since the uk general election of 2019. and us secretary of state, antony blinken, on a visit to kiev, urges russia to end what he calls its reckless and aggressive actions towards ukraine.

hello and welcome to bbc news. in the grip of the most brutal second wave india has seen yet another record rise in coronavirus infections — more than 400,000 new cases in less than 2a hours. that figure, though, is almost certainly an underestimate. the virus has spread from india's cities to the countryside, where hospitals are poorly equipped. 0ur correspondent yogita limaye has travelled to varanasi in uttar pradesh — and a warning, her report contains distressing footage and flashing images. in less than an hour, we saw 13 funerals here. the government says there were just seven

in the whole day. and this is prime minister modi's own constituency. the human cost is being suppressed. this is the reality all over india. we'll never know how many died of the virus in this country. india's hinterland is where most of its people live. amidst lockdowns in big cities, masses are returning to their homes in small towns and villages. the virus is spreading. rundown hospitals trying to cope with a crisis they have never been equipped for, conditions the government doesn't want people to see — so we filmed secretly. covid patients being treated amidst people with other illnesses, the sick being cared for by their own families for a lack of doctors.

this is the intensive care unit — we saw toilets overflowing on its floor. just outside, we met this man. "if she'd got the right medicines and treatment, she might have survived, but she didn't get it here." his wife was 35. this is the rural health centre she was first taken to, the only one for villages around. here they didn't discover she had covid until she became severely ill. there were no resources to treat her. i've asked each person standing in this queue what they are suffering from. most of them have told me it's fever or a cough, and they are waiting in line at a primary health centre,

this is the first place that someone from the village would come to. they are waiting for the doctor inside to tell them what is wrong with them. most of these people weren't tested for covid and haven't had the vaccine. we drove miles to reach the deceased woman's village. even getting to basic healthcare is out of reach for most here. her husband says their whole family had covid symptoms. she was the mother of two children. people here are angry. "the prime minister makes announcements on televisions, but nothing reaches us," a neighbour says. "there is little we can do," she says, "those who are lucky to survive, whoever has to die will die." yogita limaye, bbc news, uttar pradesh. well, as the pandemic continues to ravage india, there's growing pressure on richer countries to share their vaccine stockpiles with poorer nations.

it's become a question of global concern: will countries waive intellectual property protections for coronavirus vaccines? the us has backed a proposal to do just that — a move welcomed by the director—general of the world trade organisation. ngozi 0konjo—iweala says vaccine inequality must be overcome. what wto members are trying to negotiate is a pragmatic agreement. it will allow access to people in developing and poor countries, because it is not right to have an inequity of access that we have now.

it's not right that of the 1.17 billion doses that have been administered, 83% is in rich countries. something needs to be done about that. but i would say wto members are negotiating. they need to negotiate to be able to come to the right solution that would be pragmatic and allow companies to work with their technology and know—how to help to boost supply. so, i don't want to prejudge what that outcome of the negotiations would be, but i'm quite convinced we can come up with an answer that will allow access to the volumes needed for poor countries whilst at the same time, reassuring manufacturers that research and development and innovation will be protected. a police operation against drug traffickers in brazil has ended with the deaths of 25 people. it happened in one of rio dejaneiro�*s poorest neighbourhoods, known as favelas. courtney bembridge has this report. and a warning: some of the details are distressing. as police swooped in helicopters and i met vehicles, suspects could be seen trying to escape across the rooftops.

—— armoured vehicles that make some had high—powered weapons let down in the street, please were closing in. 0fficers described it as a war scenario. it the deadliest police operation since 2016. here is the account of one resident who says an injured boy came into her home. "when the police saw the blood, they came in screaming, where is he, where is he? i put my children behind me and they killed the boy in the room. may only reaction was to protect my family. my nine—year—old daughter saw everything. she will never want to see that happen again." seems like this have become much less common after a supreme court order lastjune supreme court order last june outlawing supreme court order lastjune outlawing raids during the coronavirus pandemic unless they are deemed essential. these are some of the weapons that were seized. police say the gangs involved in drug trafficking, robbery, assault, murder, and hijacking subway trains. residents took to the

streets to protest, accusing the police of using excessive force. they are calling for peace and justice. human rights activists say it's not clear whether all of the people killed were suspect, and say some could have been residents caught in the crossfire. please launched the raid after concrete intelligence that drug traffickers were recruiting children, they say, but one sociology professor from the laboratory for the analysis of violence is not a brazilian newspaper" everyone knows these gangs have miners that work for them. to say you are going to lodge a massive raid because you discovered that traffickers recruit children is a joke the number of shootout death in five others has dropped by 70% since the supreme court ruling, but there was no corresponding spike in crime. murders were down bailey's 50%. courtney bembridge, bbc news. —— down by

at least 50%. rafael alcadipani is a member of the brazilian forum on public safety, an ngo that researches violence and security policies in brazil. hejoins me now. 0ne one of the deadliest, if not the deadliest police raids in rio. and looking at the casualties, let alone the deaths, they were not the most forensic, was it? it deaths, they were not the most forensic, was it?— forensic, was it? it seems that this police _ forensic, was it? it seems that this police raid _ forensic, was it? it seems that this police raid had _ forensic, was it? it seems that this police raid had no - this police raid had no planning, they were not willing to challenge the criminals as they should. it is completely unacceptable. the only place in the world where the police and “p the world where the police and up with 25 dead. in the world where the police and up with 25 dead.— up with 25 dead. in some quarters _ up with 25 dead. in some quarters they _ up with 25 dead. in some quarters they have - up with 25 dead. in some quarters they have been | quarters they have been cheered, this has been seen in the tabloids is a huge victory against what is a real problem in terms of drug trafficking, but others consider this a massacre. where you stand? i think it's a massacre. if this

type of police operation would solve resilient problems, rio dejaneiro would be a land of peace. during this year in, year out, nothing has changed. we need to challenge criminals, we need to challenge drug trafficking, but we need to use intelligence, we need to seize assets, we need to make an operation with a proper number of police officers with proper planning, not this type of situation that seems to be very primitive. there is no room in the world for this kind of police operation.- the world for this kind of police operation. some would sa that police operation. some would say that is _ police operation. some would say that is very _ police operation. some would say that is very naive, - police operation. some would say that is very naive, you - say that is very naive, you know, these are drug gangs into extortion, exploitation, prostitution and everything else. they are heavily armed. critics would say you have to go in hard, that is the only way to deal with them. well, fi . ht way to deal with them. well, fight against _ way to deal with them. well, fight against the _ way to deal with them. well, fight against the gangs - way to deal with them. well, fight against the gangs that i fight against the gangs that bring weapons to brazil first

into the favelas. police corruption has a big responsibility and role to play in the number of weapons in the hands of criminals in brazil. matthew have to use intelligence. you have to avoid having weapons gets you criminals. —— weapons getting to criminals. and putting children and the general public at risk, as it happened in rio dejaneiro. at risk, as it happened in rio de janeir0-— de janeiro. where does brazilian _ de janeiro. where does brazilian public - de janeiro. where does brazilian public opinion | de janeiro. where does - brazilian public opinion stand on this? how many people would support your views on how many people would support the views expressed in the popular papers? expressed in the popular -a ers? expressed in the popular .a ers? ., , expressed in the popular papers?— expressed in the popular n-aers? , ., papers? the last polls would say about— papers? the last polls would say about 6096 _ papers? the last polls would say about 6096 of _ papers? the last polls would say about 6096 of the - papers? the last polls would i say about 6096 of the brazilian say about 60% of the brazilian population would support my view, a view that there are good criminals and bad terminals. but in the bolsonaro presidency, we have seen this rise of criminal police operation, i would rise of criminal police operation, iwould have rise of criminal police operation, i would have to say.

unfortunately, there is some kind of support for him but we hope that will change in the near future.— near future. 0k. rafael alcadipani, _ near future. 0k. rafael alcadipani, thank - near future. 0k. rafael alcadipani, thank you l near future. 0k. rafael. alcadipani, thank you very near future. 0k. rafael- alcadipani, thank you very much indeed forjoining us live from rio. polling stations have closed in england and wales in what has been called super thursday. and in wales. at stake are the devolved parliaments in scotland and wales, dozens of councils and 13 directly—elected mayors in england. it's the biggest test of opinion since the uk's general election of 2019. the results will be closely watched, not only for the state of the parties and their leaders, but also for their potential impact on the future of the united kingdom. 0ur political correspondent jessica parker has the latest. the activity has been going on “p the activity has been going on up and down the country, as you say, scotland, wales and england, where we have seen this huge set of elections that we are going to be chewing over four days partly due to covid,

but the sheer number of elections going on and the way councils have been organised —— for days. and we'll be talking about the results until monday when we get the police crimes and —— police crimes commissioner. 0n and —— police crimes commissioner. on saturday evening we will have a fuller picture of what happened in terms of the scottish parliament. and particularly whether the snp, nicola sturgeon�*s party, has gained a majority and can therefore push again for that referendum on independence that it wants, a referendum of course that boris johnson, the prime minister, has made it clear that he will resist. that is the sort of stage that has been set ahead of saturday huge implications for scotland, huge implications for scotland, huge implications for the united kingdom. jessica parker. stay with us on bbc world news. still to come: the new research that shows that reducing methane could have a bigger impact on reducing global warning

than previously thought. i, nelson rolihlahla mandela, do hereby swear to be faithful to the republic of south africa. after six years of construction and numerous delays, the channel tunnel has been formally opened by the queen and president mitterrand. the tunnel is not yet ready for passengers and freight services to begin. for centuries, christianity and i islam struggled for supremacy. now the pope's visit symbolises their willingness to coexist. - roger bannister became the first man in the world to run a mile in underfour minutes. memories of victory as the ve celebrations reach their climax. this night is dedicated i to everyone who believes in a future of peace and freedom. -

this is bbc news, the latest headlines: another day of record infections and deaths in india. the crisis is now spreading from the towns and cities and affecting rural health facilities. a brazilian police operation against drug traffickers in rio has ended with the deaths of 25 people. us secretary of state antony blinken has urged russia to end what he called its reckless and aggressive actions towards ukraine. on a visit to kyiv, mr blinken said the us is looking at increasing security assistance to the country. russia last month amassed 100,000 troops on ukraine's borders, the biggest mobilisation since moscow seized crimea in 2014. those forces have begun to withdraw but significant numbers remain.

moscow also continues to back a pro—russian insurgency in ukraine's eastern region where more than 13,000 people have been killed, according to the united nations. president zelenskiy wants the us to back ukraine's bid for nato membership but washington says the country needs to tackle corruption. but it's understood secretary blinken assured president zelensky that the us stands with ukraine. of course ukraine was tested again just weeks ago this spring as russia pushed more forces to the ukrainian border more than any time since 2014 when it invaded. i can tell you, mr president, that we stand strongly with you, partners do as well. i heard the same thing when i was at nato a couple of weeks ago and we look

to russia to cease reckless and aggressive actions. we will continue to strengthen our security partnership and close collaboration with you to make sure that ukraine can defend itself against aggression. that was antony blinken. we can now speak tojohn herbst who's a former us ambassador to ukraine and now director of the eurasia centre at the atlantic council. thanks forjoining us here on bbc news. president putin is very clear that he is sensitive about the ukrainian position geographically and its desire to get closer originally to the european union and to nato as well. what good will come of this dialled up rhetoric from antony blinken? it this dialled up rhetoric from antony blinken?— antony blinken? it is really very simple- _ antony blinken? it is really very simple. moscow- antony blinken? it is really very simple. moscow is - antony blinken? it is really. very simple. moscow is right now conducting a war against the ukraine after occupying crimea. it is led by russian

officers with russian equipment and russian money. american support for ukraine's first to russia that we will provide initial sanctions on you if you escalate aggression in the war in the ukrainian east. and also we will send ukraine weapons and they will be able to better defend themselves and more russian soldiers will die. that is a political problem for putin because he is lying to his people and saying russian officers are not fighting their. america is helping to make sure that russian aggression is protected for president zelensky. i aggression is protected for president zelensky.- aggression is protected for president zelensky. i was there in 2014 and _ president zelensky. i was there in 2014 and 2015 _ president zelensky. i was there in 2014 and 2015 so _ president zelensky. i was there in 2014 and 2015 so much - president zelensky. i was there in 2014 and 2015 so much | - president zelensky. i was there in 2014 and 2015 so much i am | in 2014 and 2015 so much i am aware of the geography of the situation. isn't the problem now though that with this rhetoric, it has got to be followed through. if you're going to have red lines than they need to be kept and initiallyjust they need to be kept and initially just a few weeks initiallyjust a few weeks ago joe biden diverted two warships to the region and then pulled back. what impact does that have on somebody like vladimir

putin? i have on somebody like vladimir putin? ~ , ., �* putin? i think you're right, that was— putin? i think you're right, that was a _ putin? i think you're right, that was a mistake. - putin? i think you're right, that was a mistake. the i putin? i think you're right, - that was a mistake. the biden administration has handled this current crisis reasonably well with that as a single bad step. while the russians got destroyers into the black sea i believe british destroyers did get there or are on the way there. they talked about additional sanctions on washington is talking about additional weapons to the ukraine so we sent several messages and all but was good but you're right that was a serious mistake.— but you're right that was a serious mistake. and if more weapons _ serious mistake. and if more weapons are _ serious mistake. and if more weapons are sold _ serious mistake. and if more weapons are sold to - serious mistake. and if more weapons are sold to the - serious mistake. and if more i weapons are sold to the ukraine and there was an agreement by the united states to accept ukraine into nato, or certainly sponsor that, what do you think the response would be from russia? ~ , russia? well, first while united states _ russia? well, first while united states in - russia? well, first while united states in a - russia? well, first while | united states in a general russia? well, first while - united states in a general way supports ukrainian membership into nato, it understands that nato is not yet ready to agree

to membership for the ukraine. but i have little doubt that if ukraine were to enter nato, moscow would decide that ukraine was too difficult a challenge with military aggression and again, seizing crimea with russian soldiers who are identified. they are fighting a hybrid war, s0 so—called hybrid war. there was a british strategist in ukraine saying that ukraine must enter nato because that is the only way russia will leave them alone. i wish he was wrong about that but he has a point. john herbst, thank you very much for speaking to us. my pleasure- — reducing methane emissions is far more important in tackling climate change in the short term than previously thought, according to a major united nations report just published. methane is a potent global warming gas produced when organic material decomposes. but the un says the good news is that rapid and significant reductions in the greenhouse gas are possible using cheap, existing technologies. here's our chief environment correspondent, justin rowlatt.

you are about to meet methane — the gas that fires your stove, seeps from rotting organic material, and bubbles from our stomachs and those of cows and sheep. butjust look what happens when you add a little bit of pure oxygen. methane is a much more potent greenhouse gas than carbon dioxide. each molecule has 120 times the effect, and the real difference between methane and carbon dioxide is that methane breaks down after about a decade. but carbon dioxide will be with us for thousands of years. methane concentrations in the atmosphere have been steadily increasing, but because it breaks down so quickly in the air, the un says if we can cut emissions, we can rapidly get rid of this powerful warming gas.

that means urgently tackling the methane produced by the oil and gas industry, by agriculture, and in our waste. methane is second only to carbon dioxide when it comes to driving climate change, and the assessment shows that to put the world on a path that is consistent with the paris agreement target of the 1.5 degrees, methane emissions must be reduced by 45% by 2030. the report says the fossil fuel industry has the greatest potential to cut methane emissions cheaply by plugging leaks at oil and gas wells and at coal mines. but we can all do our bit to help. we can cut back on red meat and dairy, and if you get a compost collection, do always put your organic waste in it, because it's much easier for emissions to be controlled that way. and technology can help — a new network of high—resolution satellites has been launched that can spot methane emissions.

like the methane plume from this rubbish dump in the indonesian capital, jakarta. it's spewing methane equivalent to the c02 from 750,000 cars. and methane is also linked to air pollution that causes tens of thousands of deaths a year worldwide — yet another reason, says the un, to start reducing emissions right now. justin rowlatt, bbc news. in south africa, mourners have been gathering at the palace of queen mantfombi dlamini zulu, who died last week in johannesburg. the burial will take place privately in the next few hours. her family has not announced the cause of death, and a decision on who will now lead the zulu kingdom is expected after the queen's funeral. the bbc�*s nomsa maseko reports.

queen mantfombi dlamini zulu's homecoming. the zulu say loosely translated means the queen's sun has set. 65 —year—olds due to be buried on thursday a private ceremony near the royal palace. the burial will be followed by a state funded memorial on friday. the queen's death has bought fresh tension over succession in the zulu monarchy. factions within the royal family have brought a legal challenge to hold the naming of a successor after questioning the authenticity of the late king goodwill�*s will who died in march. but elders and the royal family believe this can resolve ——be resolved

amicably. this can resolve --be resolved amicably-— amicably. are not different from other _ amicably. are not different from other human - amicably. are not different from other human beings. | amicably. are not different - from other human beings. people arrive in peace. we are no different, we are the same we are all homo sapiens species like that and other human species. and actually we act like other human beings will be sought at our problems. the next zulu — sought at our problems. the next zulu monarch _ sought at our problems. the next zulu monarch will be chosen from one of the late king's 28 children, and his first task will be to reunite the divided family. nomsa maseko bbc news. plenty more on that story and indeed all the other stories on the website. if you are watching in to let you know, coming up over the few hours were being to be alive in india with the latest on those terrible figures and

the second wave there. also the latest on the by—election in a few hours time in the uk. from me and the team, see you soon. hello there. thursday bought another rash of showers, some significant snow to some parts of scotland. it's still cold air with us for the day ahead, so it will be a chilly start, and there will be further snow showers over the hills of scotland. but as we've gone through the evening and overnight, the showers have tended to fade away. we had a lot of hail and thunder in eastern areas, but under the starry skies once again, because it's cold air, temperatures approach freezing — a little below — and given there is some dampness on the surfaces, it could be a bit icy in a few spots. perhaps a little bit of river mist as well. but an abundance of sunshine first thing. the showers already with us in some areas, as you can see, become more widespread as the morning goes on. initially, across many parts of england and wales developing across scotland, one or two for northern ireland, but then congregating

on the east into the afternoon. hail and thunder and snow over the hills. so, again, chilly, but temperatures probably a little bit higher than yesterday, up to 15 perhaps in the south. but then, it's all change as we go through the coming night and into saturday. we've got the next weather system coming in, so the frost won't be as widespread by saturday morning. more limited to the far northeast of scotland, which is where we probably won't get the milder air in. it's this deep area of low pressure that's pulling itself in off the atlantic, giving us all, really, a spell of wetter weather. looks quite wet in western areas, and given we've got the south—westerly wind coming in off the atlantic, it is bringing much milder air in, which means a lot of rain potentially across south—west england, wales, into the north of england. you can see a wetter day for northern ireland and much of scotland. it may actually dry up and brighten up in south—eastern areas later. the rain may not actually reach the far north of scotland, and the milder air slow to arrive here, perhaps some wintriness on the hills. but we could see 16 or 17 if it brightens up in the south. through the night, that weather front�*s dragging its heels, really slow to move its way eastwards. we've got one band of rain moving up towards the north

of scotland, showers following in behind. still the south—westerly wind into sunday, so still mild, but with plenty of showers merging together across north and west areas near the centre of the area of low pressure. it will be windy through the weekend as well, but we could see 20—22 celsius and possibly some late afternoon thunderstorms in south—eastern areas. quite a lot of uncertainty on the detailfor sunday, but it does look a very unsettled weekend ahead. you can get more from the website.

this is bbc news. the headlines: india has once again reported a record number of cases and deaths. a new variant of coronavirus discovered in india in march may be linked to the massive surge — after the big cities rural health facilities across the country are coming under increasing pressure. police in brazilian city of rio dejaneiro have defended their operation against drug traffickers in which at least 25 people died. 0fficers said that the action had been planned for almost a year after they had received information that criminal gangs had been recruiting children and minors. polls in britain have closed for elections to the devolved parliaments in scotland and wales, and to local government authorities in england. a parliamentary seat in hartlepool in north—east england is also being contested. we are expecting a result for that in the next few hours.

those are the headlines.