welcome to bbc news — i'm david eades our top stories: engineers prepared to demolish the partially collapsed apartment block near miami before tropical storm endangers the lives of rescuers.— the lives of rescuers. bringing the lives of rescuers. bringing the building — the lives of rescuers. bringing the building down _ the lives of rescuers. bringing the building down in - the lives of rescuers. bringing the building down in a - the building down in a controlled manner is critical to expanding our scope of search as, you know, in the pile and allowing us to search in the area closest to the building which is currently not been accessible. afghanistan's been accessible. afg hanistan�*s military been accessible. afghanistan's military patrol the country alone is the kind final nato troops pull out after nearly 20 years.

troops pull out after nearly 20 ears. , ., troops pull out after nearly 20 ears. ~ , troops pull out after nearly 20 ears. ~ ., years. south africa's former president — years. south africa's former president says _ years. south africa's former president says he _ years. south africa's former president says he will - years. south africa's former president says he will defy i years. south africa's former| president says he will defy a court order to hand himself start a 15 month jail sentence. he also said he was not scared of going to jail, he has been there before but this time around he refuses to go because he believes it was an injustice to be sentenced to a prison term without having gone to trial. �* . ., , , term without having gone to trial. �* , , ., trial. and counting sheep in a whole new — trial. and counting sheep in a whole new way. _ trial. and counting sheep in a whole new way. time-lapse i whole new way. time—lapse aerialfootage whole new way. time—lapse aerial footage goes viral. we will have more. in miami the demolition of a tower block, which partially collapsed more than a week ago, has been brought forward due to safety fears about storm elsa. 2a people have been confirmed dead so far and search and rescue efforts for 121

people missing have been suspended. daniella levine cava is the mayor of miami—dade county. as i have said before we will move forward with the demolition as soon as it is safe to do so between 10pm and 3am tonight. bringing the building down in a controlled manner is critical to expanding our scope of search as, you know, in the pile and allowing us to search in the area closest to the building which has currently not been accessible to the teams, given the great risk to our first responders due to the instability of the building. due to the temporary pause of our search and rescue efforts on the scene there have been no changes in the figures that i have reported earlier to you. so as soon as the building is down and once the site is deemed to be secure we will have our first responders back on the pile to immediately

resume their work. we have been hearing the latest on the situation from david willis. they spoke about it for a while but now their hands are being forced, if you like, because officials fear that tropical storm irma which is bearing down on the peninsula could bring a heavy wind and rain and that could send parts of the debris toppling down on top of rescuers, search and rescue workers below. so they have scheduled a demolition and are using a technique, a technique known as energetic felling which relies on a series of small explosions at various parts of the structure and gravity itself to raze the building to the ground.

they drilled into the walls over the last 2a hours and packed them with explosive and we have been told that the demolition will take place between 10pm this evening local time and three o'clock in the morning. i should point out that 121 people are still missing. it is interesting to hear the mayor talk about bringing the building down helping to expand their own scope of search. as a layperson is hard to imagine. and they are very keen, david, that the search and rescue operation should resume as quickly as civil once the demolition has occurred. anything within one hour of that exercise taking place, in fact because they are keen to bring closure to those who have loved ones and family friends and so on, family members missing in the rubble. you are absolutely right. about 200 search and rescue people will

be moving back onto that site more or less as soon as the demolition has taken place. it is hoped as well that the exercise will open up new areas for the search and rescue teams to be looked into, particularly the garage area which has been a focus of their enquiries, more or less, since this incident happened ten days ago. they believe it was prone to flooding and it is possible that water from there corroded the concrete which had some impact on this whole event. there is still much to know about how it all came together. you talk about the energetic felling, the demolition technique. nonetheless it is difficult to imagine it would not cause a lot of disruption for the neighbourhood. absolutely. and the mayor of miami dade county who we heard from earlier was warning that people in nearby areas should close their doors and windows

and switch off their air—conditioning units and so on because there would be a lot of debrie in the area. but there is no forcible evacuation going on of buildings surrounding the stricken complex. that is something but this will happen overnight and it is possible, of course, apart from the noise that those able to sleep through this will awaken to a different landscape in the morning. let's bring you the scene as it is right now. it is getting well into the evening there, it is just after 9pm and it will be sometime after ten o'clock when we can expect demolition take place. but that is the scene as it is at the moment, a picture that will be familiar as the demolition takes place in due course. we will keep across the you here on bbc news. for us presidentjoe biden has been celebrating the 11th ofjuly holiday — marking

the nation's 245th birthday. after a holiday in michigan and golfing near his family home in delaware, mr biden has been hosting his biggest party yet at the white house — inviting around a thousand people for burgers and fireworks. he said he's looking forward to a rebound from the covid—19 pandemic. this year, july four, today a special celebration where we are emerging from the darkness you of one year of pandemic and isolation. are a year of pain and fearand harp rake. a year of pain and fear and heartbreaking loss. think back to where this nation was one year ago. think back to where you were one year ago. and think about how far we have come. nato's military mission in afghanistan is now

all but over. america and its allies, including britain, invaded the country in 2001, following the september 11th attacks. two decades later, the last of the troops are leaving, save around a thousand that will provide security. but as the us withdraws, the taliban is resurgent — and it's warned that if any international forces including contractors remain in afghanistan, they will be treated as an occupying force. from kabul, yogita limaye reports. afghan soldiers now managing what used to be america's biggest base. international forces making a quiet, hasty retreat. gains made here over 20 years in threat of being lost. people have voted in elections. once repressed by the taliban, afghan women are in school and work. for this woman, an mp, fears the taliban will be back in power. the women are finished here.

it would be like black days for afghan women. notjust women, all the people. there won't be any rights, any freedom, any life here. how do you view international forces leaving afghanistan at this time? they are leaving so irresponsibly. after 20 years, theyjust went into an agreement with the taliban and said to the taliban that it's ok, you can do whatever you do. it's a failure. 20 years ago, foreign forces arrived here with a fierce push. the moment in 2001 when the hardline islamist taliban regime was driven out of kabul. america's response to the 9/11 attacks, with the uk and other nato allies. the united states military has now begun strikes against al-qaeda terrorist training camps and military installations of the taliban regime in afghanistan. years of fighting followed in

provinces across the country. this is helmand in the south, where some of the fiercest battles were fought. hundreds of british and foreign troops died here. thousands of afghan soldiers. the taliban were kept at bay. but not defeated. finally, the us signed a deal with the militant group last year. agreeing to fully withdraw foreign forces. they are leaving amidst rising violence. this is one of the roads that leads out of kabul. in the province just beyond, the taliban are battling afghan government forces. that's how close the fighting is to the capital. battles are being fought in more than half of the country's provinces. hundreds are dying every week. thousands being displaced. every day, more areas

are falling to the taliban. but the group says there is no violence. it told the bbc that hundreds of afghan soldiers are defecting to the taliban — a claim the government denies. from their political office in doha, a taliban spokesman also told me that residual foreign troops would be considered an occupying force. all foreign forces should withdraw from the country, whether they are a contractor, adviser or trainers. because they were a part of occupation. that's a violation. we will react. but that reaction will be based on the decision of our leadership. he said embassies and ngos would not be targeted. the foreign war in afghanistan has ended. all its legacy will be determined what happens here next. yogita limaye, bbc news, kabul.

i was mentioning joe biden there with thejuly for there with the july for celebrations. he was having burgers and fireworks for all his 1000. here are the fireworks, let's look at pictures of those now. these pictures of those now. these pictures are live and that is the view you will get from the white house. spectacular and to a day of celebration as the united states of america marks its 245th birthday. turning now to south africa. the former president of south africa, jacob zuma, has fiercely criticised the judges who sentenced him to fifteen months injail, insisting that he won't turn himself in. he was handed the prison term on tuesday for failing to appear before a corruption inquiry. hundreds of his supporters have been camping outside his home in kwazulu—natal saying they were protecting him from being arrested. our southern africa correspondent nomsa maseko is there.

it has been an eventful day with the spotlight firmly on south africa's former president jacob zuma. hundreds of his supporters lined the streets and gathered at his home saying that they were forming a human shield to prevent him from being arrested. earlier in the day there were some confrontations between the supporters of that one mac and police who were trying to prevent supporters from going to his house together because that gathering was illegal and the level four regulations here in south africa aimed at covid—19 infections. but later on mr zuma addressed his supporters and said that it would have been a massive confrontation if police had dared to arrest him. he also said that he was not scared of going to jail, he has been there before. this time around he refuses to go because he believes it was an injustice to be sentenced to a prison

term without having gone to trial. so as things stand, mr zuma will not hand himself over to authorities because his lawyers have asked the constitutional court to rescind the judgement that they made to say that mr zuma needs to go to jail for 15 months. as things stand, mr zuma's lawyers will go back to the constitutional court onjuly 12 where the court has said it is prepared to hear him out. stay with us on bbc news, still to come: china marked its first day of rule in hong kong with a series of spectacular celebrations. a huge firework 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. for the first time in 20 years, russian and american spacecraft have docked in orbit _ at the start of a new era of cooperation in spacej 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:

engineers prepare to demolish the partially collapsed apartment block near miami — before a tropical storm endangers the lives of rescuers. any follow at —— any foreign troops left in afghanistan after the deadline will be at risk as occupiers, the taliban it tells the bbc. on that story, let's hear what christine phair has to say about this. she is a professor of studies at georgetown university and i asked her if nato's withdrawal could be described in any way mission accomplished. the described in any way mission accomplished.— described in any way mission accomplished. the short answer is no. i have been a very long—standing and vocal critic of just about everything that the united states has done in afghanistan. you know, this was, to call it what it is bluntly, a defeat and it was a defeat that was purchased

on the instalment plan. at every point along the way over the last 20 years, we made decisions about what troops would or would not do in afghanistan, how many troops there would be, where they would be, what their mission would be, but at the core of this, israeli pakistan, you know, the taliban are not independent actors, to call this an insurgency, is really, i think, misspoken. it's really a proxy war, and without an effective pakistan policy to punish pakistan for continuing to support the taliban as well as the haqqani network and other militant groups that pakistan uses to prosecute as palestinian afghanistan, we're pretty much doomed to see a return of the taliban. sorry to interrupt you there, but you probably know, joe biden has said that he sees that the whole thing isjustified in as much as afghanistan can't once again become a base for foreign jihadists to plot against

the west, as you put it. honestly, i'm a democrat, i'm really glad that we have a rational president at the helm. but he, like every other president, since george w bush, has really misunderstood the problems that, in this case, afghanistan's already a sanctuary for international terrorist groups, and unlike previous presidents who may or may not have actually known that, i actually think he does know that. back in 2009 when he was vice president, i had the privilege of having a very small dinner with him at his residence and we talked about afghanistan and pakistan's role and he actually was very clarion on on this issue. but he's always been a supporter of what we would call counter—terrorism operations

instead of counter—insurgency. so this was never — this was not a war that he wanted to remain engaged in, so he's basically effectuating the policy of obama. is your view, then, that the nato forces, the us forces, should remain in afghanistan at least until a harder line on pakistan is taken and affected? alright, so, this is kind of a chicken and egg problem, because the two countries that really matter most when it comes to pakistan is, quite frankly, the united kingdom and the united states, albeit for very different reasons. neither the united states nor the united kingdom has had any stomach for this, and the reasons are different. in the united kingdom, pakistani britons are an important vote bank. both the united states and the united kingdom press on fatf to not give pakistan, which is basically this terrorism financial watchdog which is kind of obscure, both have pressed that pakistan

not be given the blacklisting it so much deserves, because a blacklisting would mean that it would be cut off from imf funding. so we are in this really strange place where the united states, particularly the united states, has been waging this war in afghanistan, we have been treating pakistan like an ally, even though, while it was taking our money with one hand, it was shifting it to the other hand to give the taliban, and everyone has known this. a military transport plane has crashed in the southern philippines as it tried to land on the island of holo. 47 people were killed in the crash and 49 were injured. most of those aboard the hercules plane were soldiers who'd just finished their basic training. they were being deployed to fight militants who operate in the southern philippines. david campa nale reports. a large ball of black smoke was seen above the wreckage of the transport plane,

a lockheed c130 hercules, supplied to the philippines by the united states. the head of the armed forces said it had missed the runway — it's not clear why — and then tried to regain power, but had failed and hit the ground. many of those on board were soldiers. they were flying from mindanao to the provincial airport ofjolo when the plane came down in patikul. remarkably, a number of soldiers were seen jumping out of the aircraft before it hits the ground, sparing them from the explosion caused by the crash, according to an army statement. dozens of soldiers were pulled from the site of the burning wreckage. they're now receiving hospital treatment. the soldiers were part of the military�*s stepped up presence in the southern philippines to combat islamist militants such as the abu sayyaf group. officials there said there was no sign that the aircraft had been attacked, and an investigation would start once the rescue operation was complete. many of those on board had only recently completed basic military training. david campanale, bbc news.

israel says that it is talking to other countries to try to unload its surplus of pfizer biontech covid vaccines. about a million doses are due to expire by the end of the month. a plan to transfer them to the occupied west bank fell through last month and a deal to swap them with the uk is not going ahead. mark lobel reports. israel set the pace on vaccinations last december. it secured early deliveries of the pfizer vaccine, agreeing to share its medical data along the way. but recently, about a million excess doses have built up after a slower youth drive. so who else could they go to? so far, around 30% of eligible palestinians in the occupied west bank and gaza have received at least one vaccine dose, but last month, the palestinian authority cancelled a deal to receive them, saying they were too close to the expiry date,

thought to be july 31. in the past few days, the uk has also turned down a deal to swap them for doses manufactured later on. there's a humanitarian imperative that these vaccines end up in somebody�*s arms, preferably some people who are at high risk of being exposed or dying of covid. one hopes that on the international stage, similarly, the right people will make decisions swiftly. israel says it's in talks with other countries to offload its surplus vaccines and that pfizer would have to approve any deal. a pfizer spokesperson says the company is happy to discuss potential donation requests of the pfizer—biontech covid vaccine between governments on a case—by—case basis particularly if this helps ensure the vaccine is used to protect people from this disease. the countries who have

the financial muscle to do so have ordered many more doses of vaccine than they actually need, and there is clearly a need for agility in ensuring they don't go to waste when they haven't got people available to give them to. the world health organization has been crying out for donations to the covax facility they organised, which would be one mechanism to ensure these vaccines are swiftly distributed. researchers are considering whether vaccines can be viable for longer, and israel may need some of these vaccines as the more infectious delta variant pushes up case numbers there. but with time running out to find countries with the ability and desire to receive and distribute hundreds of thousands of vaccines in time, there is a growing fear such a valuable resource could simply be thrown away. mark lobel, bbc news. we have been teasing these sheep pictures. an israeli

photographer got these. an israeli photographer has captured an unusual view of sheep. the mesmerising and rather soothing aerial footage was shot by drone above a farm in peace valley in northern israel. the photographer is lior patel from haifa he admits he was shocked when his images went viral on facebook. amazing pictures, aren't they?

i do want to show you the situation as it is right now in miami. surfside, at least. in the north of miami. here is the apartment block which we are going to see a demolition there. it could be from 30 minutes onwards, actually, to bring the rest of that building down. we will keep across it for you. hello, sunday evenings showers brought some flash flooding to edinburgh. for example, we had widespread thunderstorms for a time and it's because we've got low pressure sat on top of the uk and it is with us through the day ahead. we're also watching this developing area of low pressure to bring some more persistent rain in later. but still plenty of showers as we get going on monday morning, perhaps a few in the south and east as well as those close to the weather system in the north, so needless to say a pretty mild start to the day, but it does look as if we will see more sunshine compared with sunday across the southern half of the uk. still plenty of showery rain across northern england,

northern ireland, north wales and scotland as well, some misty low cloud near the coast, and some of those will turn out to be quite heavy again with some thunder around, can't rule out the odd one further south but fewer than we saw during sunday. some strong sunshine, but look at this coming in through during the mid afternoon to the south and the west. with more sunshine, strong sunshine, high levels of pollen, grass pollen this time of year for many so that's something to be aware of you are heading off to wimbledon for the day. i think quite a lot of dry weatherfor the most part but come the evening, we are going to start to see those clouds thickening and the rain rolling in, and that's really a risk for tuesday as well, would like to rule out showers wednesday or thursday, but this is the low pressure we are watching. clearly we've got the scope for some some intense and torrential downpours is with localised flash flooding and then this system comes in, sweeps its rain and across england and wales across the course of monday evening and overnight, so several hours of quite heavy rain but also some unseasonably

windy weather, some gale force winds and gusts even 40—50 miles an hour inland so that's unusual for this time of year and it could well, combined with the rain, cause some disruption further north and west as you can see. still some showers around on tuesday, that low pressure makes its way into the north sea, dragging rain across the east coast of england and scotland with showers following behind, so the pattern remains really quite unsettled, some sunshine in between, 18 or 19, so not quite as high as the day ahead. now, that low pressure then starts to drift and fill further north and east so the isobars open up, not as windy by the time we get to wednesday and thursday, in fact a ridge of high pressure starts to build and so that will quieten down the shower activity but there is still some in the forecast even until late in the week. bye for now.

this is bbc news, the headlines: engineers in florida are preparing to demolish a partially collapsed apartment block near miami the operation is being carried out because of fears that an approaching tropical storm could bring down debris onto rescuers. more than 120 people are still unaccounted for following the disaster. south africa's former president, jacob zuma, has fiercely criticised the judges who sentenced him to 15 months injail, insisting that he won't turn himself in. he said the country was �*sliding back to apartheid rule.�* the term was imposed after he failed to appear before a corruption inquiry. afghanistan's troops have raised concerns about patrolling their country alone — as the final nato forces pull out, after nearly 20 years. resurgent taliban forces have already seized hundreds of trucks, armoured vehicles and artillery left by departing american forces.

now on bbc news, the week in parliament.