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 anniversary. dozens of canadians �*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.

welcome to our viewers on pbs in america and around the globe. the american entertainer bill cosby has had his conviction for sexual assault overturned by the supreme court of pennsylvania. mr cosby, who's 83,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. but dozens of other women had also publicly accused him of sexual assault, but no further action was taken against him. michelle fleury reports from philadelphia. this is the moment bill cosby left present a free man. he had served two years of a three— to 10—year sentence. his fall from grace was sealed in 2018 after he was found guilty of three counts of sexual assault for drugging and molesting andrea constand in 200a. but in a stunning reversal, pennsylvania's highest court said the entertainer should never have been charged. in the split ruling, judges wrote that

the trial shouldn't have gone ahead because of an immunity deal mr cosby had struck with a previous prosecutor. he can't be retried. hejust said his heart was racing. he couldn't believe it. he said they was ringing his cell, they were just knocking on the walls, the inmates. he said they said, "look, you're free, get up! get up!" and he was like, "what are these guys talking about?" gloria allred who represented 30 of bill cosby�*s accusers said: bill cosby became known as america's dad for his role as cliff huxtable in the 1980s hit sitcom the cosby show. his conviction was seen as proof that even when the accused is one of the most famous people in the world, the voices of the victims of sexual assault could be heard in the us justice system. now, he has a chance

to restore his reputation. michelle fleury, bbc news, pennsylvania. earlier i spoke to a divorce and trial lawyer, asking what she thought of the decision. none of us expected mr cosby to walk free today, but mr cosby waived his fifth amendment constitutional right against self—incrimination, with the belief and expectation that criminal charges would not be brought against him, and that is what the supreme court focused on, the fact that this case should never have been brought in the first place because of the deal that he entered into with the initial prosecutor, and it was inherently unfair, which is what the court focused on it — fairness. forthe

what the court focused on it — fairness. for the second prosecutor in 2015 to bring these charges back in, and to unseal the deposition transcript, that is the crux of this issue. how unusual is this? this is getting a lot of attention obviously because of the profile bill cosby has, but is this unusual for a court to do something like this? it is not unusual for a something like this? it is not unusualfor a supreme court to focus in on the constitutional issues and whether they have been violated. in a case like this, mr cosby�*s decision to waive his fifth amendment right against self—incrimination, and then have the basis on which he waived it overturned and used against him for criminal charges, that is unusual i believe. it isn't very common, so the supreme court had to do exactly what it did, which was balanced the fact that there are certainly alleged victims in this case and it didn't reach the point of completely

vindicating or addressing the actual allegations, vindicating or addressing the actualallegations, but vindicating or addressing the actual allegations, but it focused on the constitution, and that's what has to happen in a case like this. when iraq has been violated, that is what you would expect the court to do. —— when a right. what happens when the substantive issues in the case itself, is this the end of the legal line? is this case closed, matter over? here is the thing, certainly the prosecution, they could file motions to reconsider. they could try to repeal the case, but given that the supreme court of pennsylvania issued the 79— page opinion which was well thought out, well articulated, the odds of the prosecutor filing a well articulated, the odds of the prosecutorfiling a motion to reconsider and prevail on it is probably pretty low, so the expectation they are going to do that is probably pretty

unlikely. so, with respect to this particular case, this is probably the end of the road for the prosecution, but it remains to be seen. at the moment, it would appear to be end of the road and mr cosby as a free man at this time. president xijinping president xi jinping says that time of china being bullied is over. he is currently celebrating 100 years of the communist party of china. these are live pictures. the party was founded in 1921 after radical ideologies like marxism gained traction among chinese intellectuals. the party grew quickly, and by 19119 intellectuals. the party grew quickly, and by 1919 it depleted the kuomintang's nationalist organisation. the ideology of the communist party

has undergone enormous and sometimes drastic changes. joining us now, a research fellow at the lowy institute and independent think tank based in australia. how significant is this milestone for the chinese communist party in your view?— in your view? thank you for havin: in your view? thank you for having me _ in your view? thank you for having me on. _ in your view? thank you for having me on. it— in your view? thank you for having me on. it is- in your view? thank you for having me on. it is 100 - in your view? thank you for l having me on. it is 100 years since the communist party was founded, and it is a huge celebration as you have seen. it is a huge milestone for both the country, the people's republic of china, and the communist party as well. it is an event that is solidifying xi jinping's rule, and he has taken away any time limits to his rule. i think this is an indication of the communist party, and also of the president xijinping. it is interesting, because he has served, xijinping has served two terms or is in his second term. most chinese

leaders will give weight to the next person at that point. the tone of his speech today didn't sound like someone who is winding down, preparing to hand over at all, did winding down, preparing to hand overat all, did it? h0. winding down, preparing to hand over at all, did it?— over at all, did it? no, i think the _ over at all, did it? no, i think the abolishment l over at all, did it? no, i| think the abolishment of over at all, did it? no, i- think the abolishment of term limits to his rule allows him to rule, essentially, for as long as he desires. i think that rhetoric we have seen today and also of the past few years indicates that china is on the rise, that it is seeking its rightful place in the world, and xijinping is the person, the man to lead this charge. some interesting lines emerged from his speech, and one of those was about china will no longer be bullied. who do you think his intended audience was for that line, and what do we read into it? this is both for the domestic audience, the chinese people rightfully are proud of their

achievements since china opened up achievements since china opened up to the world under deng xiaoping. but, the speech he made is also an indication to the us, to western liberal democracies that china is seeking to be on par, if not greater, and it wants to be a peaceful power, but under the current tensions between the us and also between here and china, we see that it is creating a lot of friction for what china seeks to achieve in the world. the other line that dropped out from the speech was about china being on a irreversible historical course. what does he mean by that? we have seen over the past few years that xi jinping is

getting stronger. has led the way in terms of being a leader in production of solar power, solar panels, in climate change responsibility, but china is also doing its part in the pandemic as well — providing vaccines to developing countries, but it wants to be on the same level as the us, it wants to be recognised as a global leader as well as a global leader as well as a global power, and this desire is in many ways, for xi jinping, cementing his rule, cementing his power both at home in china and abroad. thursday marks the 24th anniversary of hong kong being handed back to china, to chinese rule. that hasn't featured very strongly in at

the celebrations so far. something i suppose of a sore point, a weakness for the party, and the way that the party, and the way that the party has been seen overseas, how protests and demonstrations have been handled, how it has exerted a much tighter grip on hong kong. yes, i think hong kong hong kong. yes, ithink hong kong is hong kong. yes, i think hong kong is seen as a sort of weakness with xi jinping and the communist party rule. the introduction of national security law is also on july one. national security law is also onjuly one. that is something that has created lots of tension, both in hong kong and also generated a lot of criticism abroad as well. that erosion of hong kong's autonomy, democratic rights, the closing of apple daily.

these are all things that are seen as a resurgence of authoritarian rule. and now it is seen in hong kong as well. this is perhaps not something to be celebrated by the communist party but it is certainly happening as we speak. certainly happening as we seak. ., ~ certainly happening as we seak. ., ,, ,, certainly happening as we seak. . ~' ,, , . speak. 0k, thank you very much. thank you- _ canada is marking its national day on thursday, but celebrations have been overshadowed by the discovery of more indigenous graves at a former residential school run by the catholic church. the latest discovery involves more than 180 graves, believed to contain the remains of pupils aged seven to 13. there have been a spate of fires at catholic churches in recent weeks that police say are being treated as suspicious. courtney bembridge has more. a century old church and

alberta destroyed. it is one of several catholic churches that have been targeted over the past month after hundreds of unmarked graves were found at residential schools previously run by the catholic church. the first minister of alberta visited the church and released this video. we cannot accept, under any circumstances, hateful acts of violence targeting faithful communities in this province. up communities in this province. up until the 1990s, more than 150,000 indigenous children were forced into residential schools like this under canada's assimilation policies. abuse was rife and thousands of children died of disease, neglect, and other causes. the latest discovery is the third such find in a school site in just a month, and the prime ministerjustin trudeau accepts that make canadians will not feel like celebrating the national day. on the eve of canada day, the

0n the eve of canada day, the discovery of hundreds of children across british columbia and saskatchewan have caused us to reflect on the historic and ongoing injustices that indigenous people have faced and face. indigenous canadians including former students have been invited to the vatican in december to meet with pope francis, but prime minister trudeau, a catholic, says any papal apology should take place on australian soil. stay with us on bbc news, still to come: how news, still to come: the world wide web was created. how the world wide web was created. the original code is sold at a virtual auction. china marked its first day of rule in hong kong with a series of spectacular celebrations — a huge fireworks display was held in the former colony. the chinese president, jiang zemin, said unification was

the start of a new era for hong kong. the world's first clone has been produced of an adult mammal. scientists in scotland have produced a sheep called dolly that was cloned in a laboratory using a cell from another sheep. i for the first time in 20 years, i russian and american spacecraft have docked in orbit - at the start of a new era of cooperation in space. cheering and applause. challenger powered past the bishop rock lighthouse at almost 50 knots, shattering the record that had stood for 3h years, and there was no hiding the sheer elation of richard branson and his crew. this is bbc news, the latest headlines: three years after he was sent

to prison for sexual assault, the american entertainer bill cosby has his conviction overturned. president xi jinping addresses the chinese communist party's100th anniversary celebrations, saying the error of china being bullied is over —— era of china being bullied is over. president biden has warned that the western part of the united states is facing more danger from wildfires this year than ever before. the area is experiencing an extreme heatwave, which has led to record temperatures along the coast: 49.5 degrees in british columbia in canada. dozens have people have died as a result of the conditions. 0ur science editor david shukman reports. a sign of trouble in a world that's getting hotter — an emergency cooling centre in a region that normally never needs one. the western united states and canada are experiencing heat they're just not used to. i think it's incredibly important that we set up these spaces so people can come in, feel taken care of, feel safe, get cool and get some water and a bite to eat

if they need it. you know, the hotels seems to be sold out as well because people are running away. they need to go somewhere cool with ac. it's just unbearable. it's impossible to be out. it's most dangerous for the homeless. helping them with shade and water is essential. in canada, which is famous for its cold, the heatwave has been blamed for more than 100 deaths. it's the elderly, who are less able to regulate their body temperature, who are most vulnerable. whether you have heart or breathing problems, or even if you're an elderly person, sometimes you just don't cope quite as well in the heat and sun. and the hotter it gets, the more wildfires are likely to start. this one was filmed in california a few days ago. president biden has warned that the rising temperatures bring all kinds of dangers. the extreme heat we're seeing in the west is not only a risk amplifier for wildfires, it's a threat in and of itself.

people are hurting. it's more dangerous for kids to play outside. roads are buckling under the heat, and again, i need not tell all of you. so, what's causing this heat? well, there's a vast dome of high pressure above western canada. it's like a lid in the atmosphere, trapping warm air and pushing it down where it gets even hotter. and the heat is held in place by the path of the jet stream, so temperatures have kept climbing. and this is really unusual. the dark red area is far warmer than average. and scientists say that it's human activity, the burning of fossil fuels, that's made this far more likely. our analysis of the temperatures that we're seeing in the western side of north america just wouldn't have been feasible in the natural course of events. we've analysed the climate that you would expect without emissions of greenhouse gases, and you just don't see these sorts

of extraordinary temperatures that we're seeing at the moment. the next big worry is farmland, and whether crops will survive the punishing temperatures. the heatwave won't last forever, but it is a reminder of what climate change can really mean. david shukman, bbc news. let's get some of the day's other news. the death toll in the collapse of a florida tower block has risen to 18 with the discovery of two more bodies. nobody has been pulled alive from the rubble since the early hours of the disaster but officials have said they still harbor hope of finding survivors. rebel forces in tigray, northern ethiopia are continuing to gain ground after seizing the regional capital mekelle from government troops. the ethiopian prime minister downplayed the city's capture, saying that government forces withdrew because it was no longer the conflict�*s centre of gravity and there was nothing special about it. former president donald trump has made what he calls a �*fact—finding' mission to the us—mexico border, his second public appearance in four days. speaking in front of a section

of texas border wall in texas, mr trump said that the united states was a �*sick country�* and criticised the immigration policy of his successor presidentjoe biden. donald rumsfeld, one of the principal architects of the invasion of iraq in 2003, has died at the age of 88. he served as secretary of defense under president george w bush, and his leading role in promoting the bush administration's so—called �*war on terror�* has been heavily criticised by many. 0ur north america editor jon sopel has more. military band plays donald rumsfeld served four presidents over five decades. hawkish in outlook, and a waspish personality, he was a key architect of america's response to 9/11 — the invasion of afghanistan and, most controversially, the invasion of iraq. a navy pilot in the 1950s, rumsfeld later became an illinois congressman.

richard nixon and henry kissinger saw in him a cold ruthlessness and gave him a job in cabinet. a strong defence posture gives weight to our values and our views in international negotiations. in 1975 under gerald ford, he became the youngest ever defence secretary. ronald reagan sent him to the middle east, where he met saddam hussein, the leader he'd one day help to overthrow. i'm submitting the name of donald rumsfeld to be secretary of defence. nearly 20 years later, george w bush reappointed him defence secretary. within months, america came under attack. rumsfeld was in his pentagon office on september 11, 2001 when an airliner hit the building. he helped move the injured and then planned a way to strike back. rumsfeld believed the iraq war

would be over quickly, but there was no plan for building a peace. a fierce insurrection followed that claimed thousands of lives. and the pretext for the invasion — saddam's weapons of mass destruction. but none were ever found. and rumsfeld struggled to explain why. there are no knowns. there are things we know that we know. there are known unknowns. that is to say, there are things that we now know we don't know. but there are also unknown unknowns. there are things we do not know we don't know. in this so—called war on terror, he was prepared to push boundaries, including the treatment of suspected militants. but when these photographs of the brutalisation of iraqi prisoners appeared, there was a backlash. these events occurred on my watch. i am accountable for them and i take full responsibility. the scandal damaged him, and with his iraq strategy increasingly questioned,

he resigned in 2006. donald rumsfeld was a neo—con, a man who believed american power could be used to spread democracy. he was never short of critics, but until the end he remained steadfast in his belief that he'd acted in america's best interests. donald rumsfeld, who has died at the age of 88. the original source code for the world wide web has been sold at auction for more than $5 million. the data took the form of a non—fungible token, or nft, a certificate of ownership for digital assets. i should stress, only the source code and not the web itself has been sold. it doesn't look that impressive, a collection of

words and symbols that would seem pretty meaningless to most people. but these are no ordinary words &. they did in fact change everything. this is the source code for the world wide web. in effect, the basic rules of how the modern internet works, devised by the british scientist sir tim berners—lee, is now being sold as a completely unique form of data. ., ., , ., ~' data. the owner of this work will ultimately _ data. the owner of this work| will ultimately fundamentally be buying something that has come from sir tim, but equally is uniquely their own and their ownership will be recorded on the block chain as well. sir tim wrote _ the block chain as well. sir tim wrote the _ the block chain as well. sir tim wrote the original source code in 1989, revolutionising the way computers and people interacted with each other, creating a system that was patent free, royalty free and designed to be collaborative. i wanted something which was both a way of tracking information, so a form of communication, so

one of the goals was i could use it to collaborate with people i've worked with. some have criticised _ people i've worked with. some have criticised non-fungible i have criticised non—fungible tokens as get rich quick schemes that are bad for the environment but at least one better that forked out more than $5 million thinks this one is worth every penny. just before we go, let's take you back to events and ageing. this is seen live there live in tiananmen square. at the chinese communist party's100th chinese communist pa rty�*s 100th anniversary chinese communist party's100th anniversary celebrations. president xijinping has been addressing the event. he praised china's a reversible course from humiliated colony to great power, and said that china is now on an irreversible historical course. we will

continue to bring you coverage of key moments from the celebrations right here on bbc world news. you can reach me and most of the team on social media as well. i'm @benmboulos. 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.

this is bbc news,

the headlines: the american entertainer bill cosby has had his conviction for sexual assault overturned ijy for sexual assault overturned by the supreme court of pennsylvania did it mr cosby has served over two years of his sentence in a state is a near philadelphia. 0riginally he was found guilty of drugging and molesting a woman into thousand and four. the chinese president is attending a celebration of the communist party �*s 100th celebration. events are taking place in and around tiananmen square. he said the era of china being bullied is over. they ignored the purges and famines of the early decades of power. 0fficials early decades of power. officials in the us of the threat of wildfire following several record—breaking days of high temperature. 0ver100 excess deaths are thought to have been caused by the heat. dozens of died as a result of conditions.

now on bbc news, wednesday in parliament.