welcome to bbc news. our top stories: a special report from texas where thousands of migrant children are being held in overcrowded camps with very limited medical care. all the evidence is that under the care of the us government, these children are being severely neglected and in some cases, put in danger. as senate republicans block the expansion of voting rights in the us, president biden says the fight is far from over. myanmar troops clash with fighters opposing military rule in the country's second city, mandalay. also, pop star britney spears prepares to appear in court.

hello and welcome to audiences in the uk and around the world. thousands of migrant children are being held in a camp in texas, which is ridden with disease, is insanitary and is lacking medical resources. an investigation by the bbc has revealed facility at fort bliss in el paso as grossly overcrowded. children are sleeping several hundred to a tent, with shortages of clean clothes. staff working there say that illnesses such as covid and flu have affected hundreds of children in recent months. deep in the chihuahuan desert of west texas is a tented camp holding thousands of migrant children in conditions

that are alarming. these are the camp's white tents. it's set in a military base. we weren't allowed near it but you can glimpse it from the road. there it is, there it is. it's just down there, behind these white buildings. these pictures are the world's first look inside. they were taken secretly by employees who are banned from filming or speaking about conditions. the tents are massive. hundreds of children are crammed in. i'm texting staff inside. they say disease is everywhere. an employee has agreed to an interview after work. this is not his real voice. there are very significant numbers of kids with covid. i know there were quite a few with strep throat. lice became a very big problem. at one point when all the girls were consolidated

into one tent, the lice were so widespread they actually had to put the tent into lockdown. and how many girls were in that tent? hundreds and hundreds of girls. when a child gets covid their bed is stripped, then they are moved to tents that at times, we are told, have held hundreds of sick children. this is a rare look inside one of the covid tents. this 15—year—old spent five harrowing weeks in detention. he's now been reunited with his mother here in america. in the camp he became severely ill with covid and struggled to fully recover. this is not his real voice. it was difficult to see a doctorfor medicine. when we went to ask for medicine they gave us dirty looks and they always laughed among themselves. children wear wristbands. they're checked any time they leave a tent. they are marched in their hundreds to meals. the food was not well cooked. sometimes the chicken had blood on it, the meat was very red. we were so hungry we ate it

but we got sick from it. the desert climate here is harsh. wild winds blow sand which breaks into the tents, coating the children. there is a shortage of clean clothes. the heat is relentless. over a million migrants have tried to cross into the us this year, mostly from central america. many adults are deported. but under president biden, children may stay. most have relatives here but the system is failing them. there are thousands of children in this camp who have no idea how long they'll be here, or when they will be reunited with theirfamilies. and many of them are vulnerable children who fled their home countries to seek safety here in america. but all the evidence is that under the care of the us government these children

are being severely neglected, and in some cases put in danger. downtown el paso. i'd been told where to collect a memory stick containing secret audio recordings of a camp training session in which staff said children were being sexually abused. an employee came out of the camp to meet us. she said the department of homeland security had spoken to staff about a rape. this again is an actor's voice. dhs mentioned there was a rape. they're giving girls pregnancy tests. i also heard theyjust announced the results in front of everyone here. and i heard the other night that another contractor was caught in a boy's tent, you know, doing things with him. the authorities have not responded to the specific allegations in this report but say that children in their custody are given

the required standard of care and access to medical services. they say they're working to speed up the release of children to their relatives. many children have been in here for over a month. some, like this boy, have tried to run away. the 15—year—old we met sank into despair. i watched the days go by and i felt very low. i thought that i was not going to get out of there, that i was not going to see my family again. and sometimes at night we would cry. during the worst time i was nearly at the point of committing suicide. this camp is closed to public scrutiny, yet the biden administration portrays itself as compassionate and open. staff here took serious risks to expose the damage being inflicted on children. but there are around 12,000 children in other camps around america whose condition remains largely unknown. hilary andersson, bbc news.

whenjoe biden moved into the white house he made the issue of voting rights one of his key platforms. but the democrats�* attempt to push forward a bill to make it easier for people to register and to cast their vote has failed to win the necessary support in the senate. they onlyjust managed to keep all 50 democrats onside — and failed to win over a single republican. in fact many republican—led states have enacted additional limits on voters�* access to the polls. and the senate minority leader mitch mcconnell described this �*for the people�* bill as a �*partisan plan to tilt every election in amercia permanently�*. so what are the republicans objecting to? the bill would ensure the right to vote by mail — remember many democrat voters cast their ballot this way in 2020. it would protect the right to cast a vote in the run up to election day. the bill would also allow

ballot drop boxes — so people wouldn�*t have to stand in line to cast their vote. so as we said, the bill was blocked by republicans. here�*s the reaction of vice president kamala harris. it is clear, certainly, for the american people that when we�*re talking about the right to vote, it is not a republican concern or a democratic concern. it is an american concern. this is about the american people�*s right to vote, u nfettered. it is about access to the right to vote in a meaningful way, because nobody is debating, i don�*t believe, whether all americans have the right to vote. the issue here is that is there actual access to the voting process, or is that being impeded? and the bottom line is that the president and i are very clear — we support si, we support thejohn lewis voting rights act, and the fight is not over.

i asked our correspondent david willis whether the fight is overfor the moment. it would appear to be, david, apart from if there are changes to the rules in the senate. most cases, a 60 vote majority is required in the 100 member house for legislation to pass, and those ten republican votes were not there today. this was a very wide—ranging piece of legislation that would have basically ensured voting rights, it would have ensured as well the integrity of elections and as far as the democrats are concerned, they saw it as a means of offsetting. the sort of measures that the republicans have put in place in many individual states, which make voting actually more difficult. republicans argue that those measures are necessary in order to protect against the prospect of voter fraud which is something that they say, and still believe, cost donald trump the presidential election last year. even though, of course, no evidence has been found of substantial voter fraud. —— republicans argue that those

measures are necessary in order to protect against the prospect of voter fraud which is something that they say, and still believe, cost donald trump the presidential election last year. even though, of course, no evidence has been found of substantial voter fraud. given that the republicans and democrats seem to point in pretty much opposite directions on this issue, david — was it always a bit of a pipedream to think that there could be a bipartisan vote on something as strident as this? a pipedream, perhaps, david, but as far as the democrats were concerned, chuck schumer echoed this point after the vote today — it was important that there be discussion of these sort of matters because they are so fundamental to democracy and of course all of this is so raw following the election last year. a lot of people in the republican party support donald trump�*s notion that this election, that election was somehow stolen from him, so it�*s a very controversial issue in this

country at the moment, and democrats had at least been hoping that they would get the chance to discuss it in the senate. this vote today it basically kills this bill stone dead. and how much can we read into it in terms of its significance? there are loads things that are very high on a priority list, butjoe biden made a point about this — he wanted this to be a cornerstone at least. i think some progressive democrats feel maybe hejust wasn�*t quite up for the fight here. well, you�*re right. joe biden had called this the fight of his presidency and he said as well that this battle will go on. in fact, all the democrats are speaking in harmony on that — they say this is reallyjust the start of their fight to ensure a level playing field when it comes to voting in this country. but you�*re absolutely right — joe biden has other priorities,

among them a huge infrastructure bill which he�*s struggling to steer through congress, but this was definitely something that he put a great deal of value on, and this will be a setback for him. david willis in la. david, thanks very much indeed. let�*s get some of the day�*s other news. the us justice department says it�*s taken control of more than 30 websites belonging to iranian state broadcasters and three operated by an iranian backed hezbollah militia. websites belonging to state controlled press tv and al alam are among those displaying us government agency seals with a message that they�*ve been seized.

the world food programme says tens of thousands of people in southern madagascar are living in famine—like conditions. its director says the crisis has been caused by climate change, with drought after drought. david beasley said wealthy nations had a moral obligation to help. india�*s health ministry says a new mutation of the delta variant of coronavirus is now a variant of concern in the country. labelled, delta plus, around two dozen cases have been detected. early testing shows it is likely to be more transmissible and that vaccines or antibodies might not offer as much protection. europe�*s football authorities are facing a growing backlash over a decision not to allow a stadium in munich to be lit with rainbow colours for wednesday�*s match between germany and hungary. the city asked it to do so as a gesture of tolerance — sparked by recent a hungarian law banning what�*s been termed the promotion of homosexuality to under—18s. stay with us on bbc news, still to come:

the sounds ofjazz returns to saint louis as senegal�*s music festival resumes after a year�*s break. members of the neo—nazi - resistance movement stormed the world trade centre, armed with pistols and shotguns. - we believe that, according to international law, that we have a rightful claim to certain parts of this country as our land. i take pride in the words "ich bin ein berliner". cheering and applause. as the uk woke up to the news that it is to exit the european union, leave campaigners began celebrating. in total, 17.4 million people voted for the uk to leave the eu. the medical research council have now advised the government that the great increase in lung cancer is due mainly to smoking tobacco.

it was closing time for checkpoint charlie which, for 29 years, has stood on the border as a mark of allied determination to defend the city. this is bbc news. the latest headlines: an investigation by the bbc has found over 2,000 migrant children being detained in a camp in texas, in appalling conditions. senate republicans have blocked a move that would have expanded voting rights in the us. president biden says the fight is far from over, and democrats will be ramping up their efforts for democracy. myanmar�*s armed forces have clashed with a militia group myanmar�*s armed forces have in the country�*s second city, mandalay. it�*s the first such exchange of fire between the so—called people�*s defence forces — which are fighting

to restore democracy — and the military in a major urban centre. the army says four protesters were killed in a raid and eight arrested. several soldiers were also injured. rebecca henschke reports. "aim at the second floor," instructs this myanmar soldier. "go closer, lift the gun up and shoot," he orders. they are raiding a border house in mandalay after being tipped off by an informer that it�*s being used as a base for a civilian militia fighting to restore democracy. they call themselves the people�*s defence force, or pdfs. they respond to the raid with gunfire and hand grenades. the sound of battle ringing out across the city. gunfire. the pdf were no match for the might of the myanmar military.

the bbc spoke with a member who managed to escape. translation: we were - outnumbered by them in the used rpg launchers to attack us. so, we had to give up this place, but we will continue to do what we have to do. we protested peacefully but had no choice but to take up arms against them as a last resort. state owned a television broadcasted the military�*s version of events, labelling the civilian fighters terrorists. more than 800 people have been killed by security forces since they seized back power on the first of february. the brutal crackdown has pushed some to take up arms and fight back. some protesters turning to the ethnic armies who have been fighting the military for decades, for training and support. the military has responded to recent attacks with artillery and airstrikes, displacing thousands of people from their homes. there are now fears of what they would do in mandalay.

we are deeply concerned that these militaryjunta, who are guilty of crimes against humanity, is trying to commit crime against the people of mandalay, so the people of myanmar are left with no choice but defending themselves with all they can. i�*m afraid that every day we are closing to blow of great civil war, blood baths which will end in another genocide. until now, the fighting has largely taken place in rural areas. now it is happening on the streets of the country�*s second biggest city, with both sides in this deeply uneven conflict vowing to fight on. rebecca henschke, bbc news.

that is what it looks like in mandalay. the un�*s special rapporteur on human right in myanmar, tom andrews says he�*s very worried by clashes between the military and militias. this effort is an effort to protect — not only protest but protect. in my view, what is so important is to give the people of mandalay, but also all of myanmar, some hope, and that would come from a much stronger and much more robust, much more unified international response. yes, i hate to say it but that is moving slowly, at best. i suppose i should put it this way, what do you fear is a likely consequence of the start of this sort of activity within major urban centres? we already know that over half of the country is facing poverty in the next year. but now we�*re talking about significant loss of life. i believe if this trend continues in this direction, and the junta feels it has even more license to than it has taken up to this point to begin to barage people in cities with these militias and this incredible fighting force that

has been unleashed in these urban areas, we could see a significant loss of life. the singer britney spears is due to appear in court on wednesday, herfirst due to appear in court on wednesday, her first court appearance over her conservatorship. it is thought she will appear remotely. she was first place in 2008, effectively having a guardian at the very height of her mental health struggle. britney is reportedly fighting to be free of it so she can take care of her own well—being. i spoke to a senior using editor from a variety to ask him what to expect from britney�*s appearance. well, it will be riveting one way or another, that is for sure. nobody has seen her speak in this way for such a long time.

she has had plenty of instagram posts and things like that, but what she says is going to be very interesting, especially in light of the new york times story — yesterday for you, actually — that brought out, apparently, some legal documents that hadn�*t been seen that said she�*d been fighting to stop her fatherfrom being her conservator for many years. yes, and some detail coming out of those papers as to the sort of restrictions being placed upon her. they are unbelievable. i mean, without sidebarring too much on the complexities of conservatorships, they are designed largely for elderly people who may have dementia or are otherwise aren�*t able to take care their own affairs. they aren�*t really designed for somebody like britney who probably needed some form of assistance in 2007 when she was at the height of the challenges that she was facing at the time, but it

for it to have gone on for this long is really kind of inconceivable. so, what happens? maybe nothing happens immediately, i don�*t know, but is this boiling up to a sort of final denouement where she can break the shackles of this conservatorship? i think we are a long way off from that denouement. the most that can happen yesterday is interesting perspectives get aired that may change the public opinion. now, there is a lot of precedents for situations like this, for example, with r kelly about two years ago, a television documentary sort of made everybody wake up and see how far that situation had developed, and it prompted an awful lot of outrage. i would say a similar thing is happening with britney spears, although obviously not to the same degree — for the transgressions

involved, and things like that. we are most likely to see tomorrow some testimony that makes people change their minds, that galvanises public opinion. the conservatorship is not going to end tomorrow. her father is not going to be dismissed as her conservator tomorrow, except for in a very extreme circumstance that i can�*t even imagine. so i think all we�*re likely to get is just moving it a little further down the road, or not. the coronavirus pandemic led to pretty much the complete shutdown of live music all around the world. concerts, festivals and gigs were cancelled. now, as the lockdown eases, music is being played once more. in senegal, a renowned jazz festival has returned, providing entertainment and vital economic activity. the bbc�*s tim allman reports.

# let me love you... #. in saint louis the sounds are always smooth and the groove always smooth and the groove always fresh. the city�*s jazz festival draws in the crowd, safety precautions permitting. after this year�*s cancellation, this was a welcome sight for locals. i this was a welcome sight for locals. . , . locals. i was relieved and everybody _ locals. i was relieved and everybody else _ locals. i was relieved and everybody else was - locals. i was relieved and i everybody else was relieved locals. i was relieved and - everybody else was relieved to, it was a beautiful energy, beautiful vibration, a beautiful vibration, a beautiful link between stage and the audience. fin beautiful link between stage and the audience.— beautiful link between stage and the audience. on a small island where _ and the audience. on a small island where the _ and the audience. on a small island where the cynical- and the audience. on a smallj island where the cynical river meets the sea, the old town of saint louis is famous for its colonial architecture and its love of music. in one akbar, jammjazz a love of music. in one akbar, jamm jazz a fusion band from dhaka do their thing. it is not just art, it is fusion as well.

translation:— just art, it is fusion as well. translation: the festival not takinu translation: the festival not taking place — translation: the festival not taking place was _ translation: the festival not taking place was economic - taking place was economic disaster for saint louis. i understand why this year, despite the crisis, the festival was held. if not, it would have been a huge blow for the city. would have been a huge blow for the ci . , , , would have been a huge blow for theci. ,,, the city. this is built as africa's _ the city. this is built as africa's biggest - the city. this is built as africa's biggest jazz - the city. this is built as - africa's biggest jazz festival. africa�*s biggest jazz festival. it's africa�*s biggest jazz festival. it�*s sound, it�*s vibes survived a global pandemic. the music of saint louis goes on. tim allman, bbc news. croatia have now joined croatia have nowjoined england and the check republic in the lockout stages of the euros. they came in second. the final matches take place on wednesday. group b has slovakia against spain and sweden taking

on poland and group f, called the grip of death, germany place hungry and portugal plays france and then we will know the final 16. this is bbc news. hello there. it certainly was a chilly start across eastern scotland on tuesday, but that is where we had the lion�*s share of sunshine — over 1a hours of it. and it was our top spot in terms of temperatures as well, 21.4 celsius the high. now, we have been drawing a curtain of cloud, though, across scotland over the last few hours. this weather front bringing in some showery outbreaks of rain, and it will bring a change of fortunes to start our day on wednesday. yes, it will be a cloudier and slightly damper story, but it will also be a milder one. double digits first thing in the morning. clearer skies across england and wales. that�*s where we�*ll start with the best of the sunshine through the day. now, as the day progresses, perhaps clouding over into north wales and northern england, into north wales

and northern england, as that weather front slowly meanders its way out of the scottish borders. we keep quite a lot of cloud and some bits and pieces of rain into the far north—west. quite murky to coasts and hills as well. the best of the sunshine further south and east, and we�*ll see temperatures peaking at 21 or 22 degrees. that�*s 72 fahrenheit. moving through wednesday evening, we�*ll continue to see a little more cloud pushing out of the north of england, down into the midlands, but it should be a largely fine and dry end to the day across the south—east. that weather front will continue to move its way slowly south and east. and at the same time, another weather front will introduce some heavier rain into the far north of scotland. so, as thursday goes, we can split the country to three. the best of the sunshine, east anglia, south—east england. a weak weather front, a band of cloud slowly brightening up into northern england later. and then for northern ireland and scotland, some of that rain still quite heavy for a time here. top temperatures on thursday afternoon, again, 22 degrees, 72 fahrenheit. now, as we move out of thursday into friday, those weather fronts continue to push their way steadily south.

and a little area of low pressure forms. and circulating around that low on friday, there will be bands of showery rain. so, not a complete wash—out. bit of a messy story, really, to tell on friday. the best of any drier weather, but with a northerly breeze, will be in the far north of scotland. so here, not particularly warm. we should see temperatures peaking at 22 degrees, 72 fahrenheit. that low pressure will influence the story for the start of the weekend, still bringing the risk of some sharp showers. the best of the drier weather is likely to be further north. take care.

this is bbc news, the headlines: a bbc investigation has found over two thousand migrant children being detained in a camp in el paso, texas in appalling conditions. the facility at fort bliss is overcrowded and ridden with disease, with shortages of clean clothes and a lack of medical care for the children. republicans in the united states senate have blocked a bill that would have led to a wide ranging debate on expanding voting rights across the country. president biden said the fight is far from over — and that democrats would be ramping up their efforts for democracy. myanmar�*s armed forces have clashed with a militia group in the country�*s second city, mandalay. it�*s the first such exchange between the so—called people�*s defence forces — which are fighting to restore democracy — and the military,

in a major urban centre. the army says four protesters were killed.