the american entertainer bill cosby has had his conviction for sexual assault overturned by the supreme court of pennsylvania. mr cosby has served more than two years of his sentence at a state prison near philadelphia. he had originally been found guilty of drugging and molesting a woman in 200a. officials in northwestern canada and the us are warning of the threat of wildfires, following several days of record—breaking high temperatures. british columbia, in canada, reported a hundred excess deaths, thought to have been caused by the heat. dozens have people have died as a result of the conditions. china's communist party is marking its 100th anniversary. events are taking place in tiananmen square and president xijinping is expected to give a keynote address. the party was founded in 1921 by chinese intellectuals. exhibitions are expected to take place around the country for the rest of the year.

the nhs has been told to start preparing a vaccine throughout the uk in readiness for winter. experts advise that more than 30 million of them most vulnerable people should receive a booster, including all adults aged 50 and over and anyone else who qualifies for flu vaccination. fergus walsh has more details. it was in december that margaret helped launch the covid immunisation programme. since then, nearly 33 million adults here have received both doses of vaccine. the body which advises government on vaccines says it is still unclear whether the adults will need a third booster dose from september, but planning needs to start now. if a booster campaign is launched this autumn, it will be divided into two stages. top

priority would be given to those aged 70 and over. people who are immunocompromised or extremely clinically vulnerable and frontline health and social workers. in stage two, all of those over 50 plus younger adults deemed to be in a flu or covid at risk group. vaccination remains the absolute key out of this nightmare that we have been an and for well over a year now. we all want to see this nightmare over. it means get out there and get your vaccines. if you haven't already, please do so, and it also means having this booster programme which we will start in september. that is our plan. it means we can keep it at bay. in most people, two doses of vaccine get very strong protection against severe covid, which lasts at least six months. by the end of august, scientists will have a better idea of whether immunity is beginning to wane. a booster

dose would likely be given as the same time as a flu vaccine. covid shot in one arm, flew in the other. we really welcome this and it is good to plan, but we have to remember this has to be on sustainable footing. the nhs is under huge pressure, dealing with a backlog of care, rising demand for emergency services and mental health services, and preparing for the winter. booster doses was most likely be of current vaccines rather than new version tweaked to deal with variance. it is unlikely those getting the doses now for the first time will need a third shot in autumn as younger adults have a better immune response. it has not been decided whether12—i7 —year—olds are to be offered jabs. they are at at very low risk of covid but it might help prevent outbreaks in schools. that was fergus walsh our

medical editor. now, it is time for our world. it should be the safest place a child could be. why do you study? from there, to go back towards what? but schools in northern nigeria are being targeted by kidnappers. since december, more than 1,000 students have been abducted in the region. and it's affecting everyone from the youngest to the oldest pupils, rich and poor. save this country from the hands of these evil people! she said: "mummy, they came to our school yesterday night and kidnapped us. " she now says: "mummy, come and see, they are just beating us." so, why are criminal gangs kidnapping schoolchildren? to find out, i've travelled across northern and central nigeria, speaking to those affected.

this banditry is not some mere criminality. and the only way to deal with it is to launch a full—scale war against the bandits. under the cover of darkness, criminal gangs are disturbing the peace. armed men are targeting boarding schools, stealing children away as they sleep. since the kidnapping of the chibok girls in 2014, the mass abduction of schoolchildren has become an increasingly common phenomenon here in nigeria. and every time, it follows a similar, chilling pattern.

armed gunmen storm dormitories in the middle of the night, often arriving by foot or by motorbike, and take dozens of students with them into nearby forests. 39 students and staff were seized from the forestry school in the northern state of kaduna in early march. a video of the hostages was sent to the parents on social media. victory sani and her sister, rejoice, were among those abducted. since that day, their parents have been trying to secure their release. victory is my first daughter, she has done a lot of schooling, she's a brilliant student. rejoice is someone who loves hairdressing, she plaits, she braids.

the two of them are too addicted to themselves that they are always finding it difficult to live with each other. mr sani, since the incident, have you been contacted by the bandits? first contact that we was from the bandits, demanding for 500 million naira from the state government. and when we got a video of our children being flogged in the bush, i was sent to the social media by the bandits. we decided to go in protests. chanting.

after ten days with no news of the 39 pupils seized at the forestry school... chanting. ..friday sani and other parents took to the street to protest. the government threatened to prosecute anyone negotiating with the kidnappers, including parents. the government came out again with another press statement, thjat anyone caught negotiating with the bandits would be arrested and prosecuted. but we would prefer to be arrested, provided our children would be in their home, at home. so, you are saying the strategy is not working? it's not working. if there is any strategy at all! people are dying and look as if nobody cares. it looks as if nobody cares. and we are still calling on the government to do something, fast. because those people will lose their patience and do something irrational. over the past seven months,

a wave of kidnappings targeting schools and universities has swept the region. there have been nine mass abductions of students across five states. many believe the payment of ransom has created an industry. more than 1,000 students and staff have been taken and nine students have been killed. this round of kidnappings started in december, when more than 300 schoolboys were abducted from their dorms in the town of kankara. the town lies in a rural part of nigeria's north—western katsina state, vulnerable to attack. at the time i travelled to kankara to cover the story. back then, i met usama, a student with sickle cell, who had managed to escape the kidnappers. i also spoke to ruqayya bello and bello sidi, whose asthmatic 14—year—old son, umar, was still missing.

the kidnapped boys were released after six days. now, the school remains closed, leaving many boys at home without an education. the situation remains precarious. less than six months ago, we drove down this road to the town of kankara, to cover the kidnapping of over 300 schoolboys by armed men. since then, the area has become even more unsafe, with multiple reports of attacks. ursama and others in his year have been relocated to a school in a safer location, closer to the state capital. why do you study? from there, to go back toward, what? what about the second one?

he's one of the lucky few attending class, so he can take his school leaving exams. z is what? y? - that moves from 2 to y. while he's pleased to be reunited with his friends, the past is hard to forget. as a young person studying in nigeria today, how safe do you feel?

14—year—old umar has also been reunited with his parents. he remembers the day he got to see them again fondly. tell us about your time in the forest, umar, what was it like? was it difficult, did you have enough to eat?

when you think about umar going back to the school, to sleep there, do you feel a bit nervous?

in katsina, where ransoms were allegedly played, umar and others were safely reunited with theirfamilies. but one state in nigeria's north has taken a different approach. i am travelling to neighbouring kaduna, where the state's governor has taken a stand against the payment of ransoms. he has repeatedly appeared on loca media to say he will not speak to, let alone negotiate with, armed gangs that are attacking rural communities. it has had devastating consequences — the number of kidnappings have increased. # we sing his praise. # we rise to see ourjesus.#

mr and mrs yoanna's daughter dorothy attended the private greenfield university. 0n the day after she was abducted, mrs yoanna got a phone call from the kidnappers who put dorothy on the line. she said, "mummy, they came to our school yesterday night—time, they kidnapped us, we are in the bush. she now said, "mummy, come and see, they are just beating us." then the man collected the phone and he said they need money. if you want them to release our children, we must pay 800 million. i shouted and screamed, i said "800 million?" so they asked for 800 million naira. that's about $2 million. did you have that kind of money?

no. and i told him, "how did you expect us to get such money?" that was the last i spoke to her, and the man. we are still asking questions as to how this thing - happened, why our daughter? just two days later, mr yohanna got a call from the university telling him to come to a local hospital to identify the bodies of three students. when i went inside, the first person i saw was my daughter. i screamed, i said "they killed my daughter!" ijust wept and then _ it was when i came to the home that i broke the news to them that dorothy is no more. - that was when i started crying. that is when my voice now ceased, that very day. you both had the worst

possible news that any parent could hear. are you satisfied with the response from the authorities? i'm not satisfied because this thing happened on tuesday, and they called me on wednesday, and on friday, they killed my daughter. there is nojustice in that. i don't believe there is justice in that case. kaduna's state government says it has a strict policy of not negotiating with criminals, they don't pay ransoms. what do you both make of that decision? the people whojudge, the whole world should judge on that. therefore we will be praying for our whole nation, - nigeria. this nation is burning. if they are not ready to negotiate with criminals, i also hope they have the way of getting the criminals because if they don't get the criminals and they are not negotiating with them,

then we are in trouble. father, keep watch over your children. | you are the keeper of zion, | you never sleep or slumber. save this country from the l hands of these evil peoples. you know, the more you speak to parents whose children have been kidnapped, the more overwhelming this problem is. i became a parent myself a year ago so i understand, if your child has been taken, all you want them is for them to come back home. but then there is the other side of the argument. if you pay ransoms, the kidnappings continue, its an industry that is growing, so if you are a parent in nigeria right now, it's frightening because you want it to stop, but then you want your children to come back, and there are no clear answers. two more students from greenfield were killed after dorothy.

eventually, the remaining abductees were released after the parents paid the kidnappers 150 million naira. that's $360 , 000. but nasir el—rufai, the governor of kaduna state, is refusing to pay ransoms, a policy which only seems to have emboldened the kidnappers. they have decided that they have to bring this state government to its knees by concentrating their attacks in this state. so you think that one of the reasons why they may be targeting the states is because you've made it clear that you won't pay ransoms? yes. do you think then that by making that statement, you're putting your citizens, your residents of kaduna state, at greater risk? not necessarily. i think, in the long run, or even in the medium term, it actually makes the state safer. we still have kidnappers, we have individuals being kidnapped, we even have attempted kidnap of students, they have been successful in two cases, but not on the kind of scale

you've seen in other states. here in kaduna just last week, three university students were kidnapped. yes. so how can you tell their parents that their children were safer? i commiserate with the parents, i sympathise with them, but that will not change our stand. the only way to end kidnapping is for societies to stake a stand that we will not pay. i know the pain of losing children, but i have to subordinate that to the overall interest of the society which elected me to provide leadership. the nigerian government has long denied the links between criminal groups operating in north—western nigeria and the extremist group boko haram in the north—east. but in recent months, they have acknowledged that the two security crises may now be connected. we have to branches

of islamic state active or building up here, and it's quite worrying, and this is why i said that the country is at war. this banditry is not some mere criminality, it is war, and the only way to deal with it is to launch a full—scale war against the bandits because the bandits and terrorists are linked, and they are one and the same. if boko haram's influence is spreading, doesn't it show that the federal government doesn't have a handle on security at all in nigeria, like many nigerians are saying, they haven't handled security well. no, security has definitely improved. those that are, yeah, yeah... i think many parents would disagree with you. when we came into office, boko haram occupied how many local governments in borno state? today they are restricted. should they have been wiped out? yeah. we work with the security forces to try to rescue the students. they are doing their best, but they can do better. the resources available to them can be improved, definitely. criminal gangs are not only targeting schools. they also regularly abduct civilians travelling by road.

some think that negotiation is the only way to end the the kidnapping pandemic sweeping rural areas. villages have been raided and the death toll is rising. according to the international crisis group, many but not all of these gangs are made up of members of the seminomadic fulani ethnic group. traditionally they made their living from cattle rearing but climate change and competition for resources has left many of them without an income. controversial islamic cleric ahmad gumi has made acted as a self—appointed mediator between groups of kidnappers and the government but the sheikh says the marginalisation of the nigeria's fulani population is counterproductive. they are voiceless in nigeria so they express themselves in a violent way.

it's dangerous for a nation like nigeria that has a lot of money to allow a big segment of this population, without any formal or informal education, to behave in a certain manner. i understand that they might be unhappy with the way they've been treated by the authorities in the past. do you think that that killing, that action is justified? it doesn't justify crime at all from whatever angle it is. when you put people in the middle of a war, they feel it is right to kill the opposite. that is what is happening in nigeria now. the press has been saying, fulani men are criminals, killers, the nation is charged against fulani. innocent people.

while we were filming, there is news of victory and rejoice, the missing sisters from the forestry school. they finally made it home. theirjoyful prayers this time, as the girls are reunited with their family. rejoice and victory, you're home. welcome home. ijoined them on a video call from lagos.

what is it like to have your daughters home with you, how do you feel? now that the this thing has happened to you, this terrible thing, are you going to apply to university? do you want to continue with your education? what about you, rejoice, are you scared? especially if you have to sleep there? the students�* release was negotiated by sheikh gumi. the return is not an uncommon experience. the majority of children who have been kidnapped

in the last eight months have gone home. but there is no doubt that education here has been deeply disturbed. the subject is what, plural. the answer is plural. even before the kidnappings, nigeria was home to the largest number of out—of—school children in the world. it is correct. in the north of the country, only one in two attend school. now schools here are no longer secure. many have been forced to close. families continue to live in fear that their child could be the next to be taken.

hello there. the first couple of days ofjuly look pretty similar to how we ended the month ofjune on, and that's with quite a lot of dry weather around with some sunshine. but there will be some showers around, too. generally isolated, but they will be quite heavy and slow moving where you catch them, as there will be very little wind to move them on. that's because we're in between weather systems, as you can see here, this weak area of high pressure building in. this is the area of low pressure which has brought a lot of grey, damp weather across eastern parts of the country throughout the week so far. it will still be close enough to bring further grey,

damp, drizzly weather from east anglia up towards northumberland, but a much drier and brighter day, i think, for the southeast of england. elsewhere, early cloud clearing to allow for some sunny spells, but we could see a few isolated showers here and there. perhaps a bit of low cloud and mist lapping on to western england and west wales�* coastline. and it will be warmer where you have the sunshine — low 20s celsius — but cooler along the east coast. so a better looking day for wimbledon for thursday and friday. more sunshine around. it'll feel warmer, but it does turn more unsettled as we head on into the weekend thanks to a new area of low pressure. through thursday night, any showers should tend to fade away. and again, we'll see variable amounts of cloud, a bit of mist and fog here and there and some clear spells. and for most of us, i think those temperatures holding in double figures, the odd single value there under clear skies and some of the glens in the north. so to end the week, again, a similar pressure pattern, but this area of low pressure is heading towards our shores just in time for the weekend. so for friday, then, there will be variable cloud to start with, a bit of mist too, but it looks like that will melt away. we should see some good spells of sunshine. the thinking is now we could see a few more showers

around on friday, pretty much anywhere, but especially across central and southern scotland. it will be heavy, and with light winds, they will be slow—moving as well. but top temperatures, again, 22—23 celsius. then into the weekend, low pressure takes over, it becomes more unsettled for all of us. and you can see it moving here from the southwest. could bring a spell of more prolonged rain across england and wales on saturday. further north could see some heavy, slow moving showers. into sunday, it looks like the whole of the uk will see a mixture of sunny spells and heavy, perhaps thundery showers. so temperature—wise, because there will be more cloud around and showers, not quite as warm as how we've ended the week — temperatures ranging from high teens to the low 20s.

welcome to bbc news. our top stories: three years after being sent to prison for sexual assault, bill cosby has his conviction overturned. president xi jinping attends a celebration of the chinese communist party �*s 100th of the chinese communist party �*s100th anniversary. dozens of canadians die in north america's heatwave. president biden says the climate thread is now critical. we look at the legacy of donald rumsfeld who has died at the age of 88.