tonight at ten — the double jabbed can jet off this summer, as the government changes the travel restrictions for england. from july 19th anyone who is fully vaccinated can travel to an amber country without having to quarantine on return. it's take—off for the travel industry, with a flood of last—minute bookings abroad now expected. we'll have all the details. also tonight... the number of patients in hospital with coronavirus is at its highest for three months — amid warnings of significant pressure ahead on the nhs. a final withdrawal from afghanistan for british troops — but some who lost loved ones question whether it was worth it. i'd like to see with my eyes what did we achieve? what was their sacrifice for? because it's too

high a price to pay. protests in brazil over the president's handling of coronavirus — around 2,000 people are still dying every day. and celebrating all the way to the final, as england prepare to make history on sunday. and coming up in the sport on the bbc news channel... it's a barty party. ashleigh barty is into the final of wimbledon, where she'll take on karolina pliskova on saturday. good evening. in 11 days�* time anyone in england who is fully vaccinated against covid—19 can travel to an amber country without needing to quarantine on return. under 18s won't have to self—isolate either, meaning families can travel abroad this summer. the relaxation of rules is expected to result in a big boost

for the travel industry, as people rush to book a last minute summer holiday. but despite no quarantine, tests are still needed on return to england — pushing up prices. a number of countries — like italy — still won't allow british travellers in without a period of isolation. and some amber countries won't let british holiday—makers in at all. here's our transport correspondent, caroline davies. the empty aircraft and quiet departure halls may soon be full of noise again. today's announcement is the most significant change to international travel seen this year. from the 19thjuly, anyone fully vaccinated doesn't need to quarantine when they travel from an amber list country to england. but they will still need to take a test before they travel and another pcr test on arrival. under 18s won't need to quarantine at all. under fours won't need to take any tests. five to 11—year—olds will need to take a pcr test after they arrive and 11 to 17—year—olds will need to take a predeparture test and a pcr test.

for now, this is only open to those jabbed in the uk. northern ireland has said it will do the same from the 26th ofjuly, a week later. scotland and wales are yet to announce whether they will adopt the policy. at the moment most countries in the world are on the amber list and it's the news many in the travel industry were desperate for. if we thinkjust a week ago we had less than ten destinations on the green list that we were able to sell and now we're selling 85 destinations which are both on the amber and green list, so it's massive news. we believe testing is the next thing that needs to be removed and there should be restriction—free travel very similar to how much of europe currently operates. and some are delighted that this means they can get away, including shay and herfamily, who are going to greece. it's really good in terms of the fact we are not going to have to self—isolate on our way back, which is really good, so that means we can go straight back into work after we've finished our holiday,

but it's not great that we are going to have to take pcr test. but for some the change doesn't help. joanna is 2a and won't have her second vaccine for weeks, and her mother can't come to see her because she was double jabbed in bulgaria. it's quite disappointing because it's making a lot of plans notjust for me but i believe a lot of people who are wanting to go and see their families being reunited, they were making plans and unfortunately that's not happening now. the government has said it will look at whether it's possible to phase in people jabbed in other countries over the summer. what are you going to say to young people and those who are the last to be vaccinated that when it comes to international travel they are going to be left behind? children will be able to travel as if they were double vaccinated even though they haven't been vaccinated at all, and, look, as a government we have a choice of simply saying people will never be able to travel until every single last person has been vaccinated, or at least starting to open things up so people can see their friends, their family, maybe

travel for business. but some are still urging caution about opening up. we can open travel but we have to have the right safety measures in place such as a good testing regime to capture people who bring the virus back from their holidays. the policy is just about what happens entering the uk. whether other countries will let uk travellers in and under what conditions is a different matter. the outlook is sunnier, but travel this summer could still be rocky. caroline davies, bbc news. the number of coronavirus cases in the uk is soaring — it's the highest in europe. but as you can see here, cases are starting to rise again across the eu — particularly in popular holiday destinations like spain, portugal and greece. it all points to an uncertain summer ahead. let's talk to our political correspondent, chris mason. relaxing the rules is the boost the travel industry has been desperate for. there's still a lot of uncertainty, though.

good evening to you, one of the defining characteristics of this pandemic is uncertainty and it's not going away. the challenge for societies and governments is how they manage risk, how they restore our liberties and how we juggle the practicalities of weighing up those two options. now, the government, when you speak to them and i've been speaking to people in government tonight, they say this is about balance, this is about weighing up those things on either side of the ledger, if you like. they point to the wall of protection offered by the wall of protection offered by the vaccines, 35 million people now double jabbed, but, as you were saying, there is a soaring number of cases and with that there's been a soaring number of people being pinged by the nhs at and having to self—isolate. the biggest number, a third of a million being asked in the last week ofjune, the highest number by a mile this year and as things open up further a week on

monday the expectation is they will be more mingling, there will be more cases, there will be far more people pinged by the app, not least because until the middle of august even those who have been double jabbed will still have to self—isolate. tonight, again, speaking to those in government, they say they are aware of this, they are looking at potentially refining the app, making it less sensitive. they are also saying the app offers advice for you to self—isolate rather than telling you that that is what you have to do. , ~ . , ., you that that is what you have to do. , ~ ., , ., . , , do. chris mason in westminster, thank yom _ ministers in northern ireland have opted for a cautious route out of lockdown. the devolved government will ease many restrictions on july 26th, including opening theatres and conference venues, and allowing people to not wear masks in places of worship, but social gatherings will still be limited to 15 people in private gardens. stormont will consider easing all other measures next month. the latest official figures show that in the past 2a hours 35 deaths were reported and 32,551 new infections were

recorded across the uk. daily cases have now doubled in a fortnight. in the past week there's an average of 28,209 new cases per day. almost 87,000 people received a first dose of the vaccine in the latest 24—hour period. more than 45.6 million people have now had theirfirstjab — that's 86.6% of uk adults. more than 171,000 people have had their second dose. so more than 3a million people are now fully vaccinated — that's 64.9% of adults. the number of people in hospital with coronavirus in the uk is at its highest level for three months — though deaths remain low. 0ne nhs leader says relaxing lockdown restrictions will put "very significant" pressure on the nhs. the latest figures show that a record 5.3 million people in england are waiting to start routine hospital treatment. 0ur health editor, hugh pym reports.

roz from leeds is finding that everyday life and work is a struggle because of her arthritis. she was referred for treatment by her gp in september and now it seems she'll have waited for at least a year before getting a hip replacement. i am in pain all the time and sitting down for any length of time is particularly difficult, which is very challenging for me because i'm working at home in an administrative role. nhs england said the pandemic had caused huge disruption to routine care, but the number like roz waiting more than a year had fallen back. hospitals are doing all they can to reduce waiting lists, but they're very busy in most other departments as well. in some cases there are more patients coming through the doors of a&e than there were before the pandemic. so there is intense pressure, but here at milton keynes they say they are carrying out more routine operations to try to get through the waiting lists. we are starting to make inroads into our backlog.

we have seen our clinical teams really step up and put on additional lists. but with covid cases arising that might have to change. if the number of patients who are covid positive continue to go up i can see a situation whereby we end up cancelling planned elective operations again to make sure that we look after those infectious covid patients properly. non—urgent operations have already been postponed at aberdeen royal infirmary and two other scottish hospitals. that's because of mounting covid pressure and staff absences due to self—isolation. the first minister said case numbers could be levelling off, though she added while there could be some easing onjuly 19th that wouldn't be the end of all restrictions. many of the baseline measures we use, things like face coverings, physical distancing, rigorous hand hygiene, advising on good ventilation, these are going to continue to be

important mitigations in protecting ourselves and others from the virus, perhaps for some time yet. some scottish cases were linked to euro 2020 football. now it's been suggested as a factor in england after research showing men were nearly a third more likely than women to test positive. whatever the reason, the data will be watched closely ahead of final decisions on ending restrictions in england. hugh pym, bbc news. the england team returned to training at their base in staffordshire today after their nail—biting win against denmark last night. gareth southgate's men secured their first place in a major final since the 1966 world cup in front of a crowd of 60,000 at wembley. their victory sparked celebrations across the country that went on long into the night. they'll now face italy in the euro 2020 final on sunday evening. here's our sports editor, dan roan. # touching me...

# touching you... wembley had rarely, if ever, witnessed anything quite like it. # sweet caroline # bah—bah—bah... amid scenes of euphoria, this what it meant to the players who had ended england's long quest to reach a majorfinal. and to the fans, after so many years of disappointment. across the country, the same sense of elation and emotion. england! who'd have thought this, you know, like, six months ago, in the depths of the coronavirus pandemic? this is just what the country needed. absolutely brilliant. england in the final for the first time in... who cares how many years?! back inside wembley, meanwhile, the man whose revival of the national team is almost complete, left to celebrate a historic win. i've not heard this new wembley like that ever, and to be able

to share that with everybody and share it with everybody at home is very special. but earlier, what tension england had been forced to endure. commentator: on the spot for his country... _ eventually needing harry kane's extra—time penalty, the captain's second attempt, to compete a rousing comeback against denmark. delight for england, although not without controversy — replays suggesting a laser pen had been pointed from the stands at goalkeeper kasper schmeichel — uefa issuing charges against the fa. but after 55 years of hurt, this a result that meant everything. i so want to do it for the people at home, you know. the messages i've been getting, seeing the reactions, the crowds, you know, i'm a fan as well, so to see that, i wish i could be there with them cheering! but yeah, what a night, and we've got to soak it all up. and for one lucky fan, last night was extra special. england midfielder mason mount giving this youngster a gift she couldn't believe

and will never forget. last night's coverage, meanwhile, was viewed by peak tv audience of 27.6 million, the most watched football match ever shown in the uk on a single channel. imagine what sunday's final against italy could generate. this is for the next generation now, any young people watching this tune in and enjoy it and fingers crossed we can do it. this is a very good italian team, let's make no mistake about that but we've got that ability to beat them. whatever the result here on _ ability to beat them. whatever the result here on sunday _ ability to beat them. whatever the result here on sunday in _ ability to beat them. whatever the result here on sunday in england's most important match since 1966, the team has already succeeded in shifting the national sporting psyche and proving a healing force off the field too. england trained today ahead of the biggest game of these players�* lives. when once more in the first ever european championship will be there is along with sporting immortality. dan roan,

bbc news, wembley. it�*s been announced there�*ll be no spectators at the olympic games in tokyo after organisers decided to ban them because of rising coronavirus infections. the games — which have already been delayed by a year — start in two weeks time. but a state of emergency has been declared in tokyo until august 22nd because of a rise in cases. the prime minister has set out details of britain�*s final military withdrawal from afghanistan. it�*s nearly 20 years since the uk and other foreign forces entered the country, in the wake of 9/11. there are concerns that the departure, led by the us, will leave the afghan government vulnerable to the taliban, who have been making gains. 0ur defence correspondent, jonathan beale, reports. at one of the few nato bases left in kabul, the lowering of the union flag signalled the end of the mission.

most of the 750 british troops who remained in the country have now returned home. time to reflect on the sacrifices made and to assess what they�*ve achieved. no—one should doubt the gains of the last 20 years, but nor can we shrink from the hard reality of the situation today. the taliban are already advancing. but the prime minister still insisted britain wasn�*t abandoning afghanistan. i hope that no—one will leap to the false conclusion that the withdrawal of our forces somehow means the end of britain�*s commitment to afghanistan. millions more afghan children, including girls, are now in school. after 9/11, the government also says, the world is now safer — the legacy of the last 20 years. gunfire but the afghan security forces are now on their own, and the taliban already control

nearly half of the country. a57 british troops lost their lives, most here in helmand. 12 years ago was one of the bloodiest. these some of the faces of five soldiers who went out on one patrol and never came back. among them william aldridge, who�*d just turned 18. his mother is still asking why. show me what we did achieve. i�*d like to see with my eyes, what did we achieve? what was the sacrifice for? cos it�*s too high a price to pay. we had five killed and 35 wounded. from the company group, it was a total of ten killed and 50 wounded. richard steatfield also served in sangin in 2010. he fears the exit of nato forces will open the floodgates of violence. anyone who looks at afghanistan, looks at the future of afghanistan,

cannot see a situation where removing the forces that have kept the balance of peace in afghanistan is a good idea. it means that there will be bloodshed, and it is difficult not to see this as a strategic disaster. britain will retain a very small military presence to protect its embassy. but their war is now over — it�*s not for afghanistan. jonathan beale, bbc news. meanwhile, this evening president biden confirmed that the us military mission in afghanistan will finish at the end of august. he said he was ending america�*s longest war. 0ur north america editorjon sopel is at the white house for us. is he declaring mission accomplished? if having a stable government is missing accomplished, afghanistan is 1 million miles from that, and so

joe biden in his news conference said, well, is not inevitable that the taliban will take back over but it sounded as though they expect them to make sweeping gains across them to make sweeping gains across the country, but that said, it was an impassioned defence of his policy. he said, it may not be popular, but we cannot go on for ever with this. it is already america�*s longest war it if you make the argument one more year, what are you going to do at the end of that, another year, another year? and that is the paradigms shift that needs to happen now, to pull the forces out, even though he accepts there is going to be uncertainty. we heard in that report, the mother saying, what was it all for? joe biden gave an interesting comment and he said this mission has not failed, and then he paused and said, yet.— paused and said, yet. thanks for “oininu paused and said, yet. thanks for joining us- _

the prime minister has been criticised for not giving a prompt explanation about who paid for his holiday to the caribbean island of mustique in 2019. but mps on the standards committee cleared borisjohnson of breaking the rules. the founder of carphone warehouse and a conservative donor, david ross, had contributed £15,000 for mrjohnson�*s luxury villa accommodation. the chancellor has given his strongest indication yet that the government could break the so—called "triple lock" on pensions. 0fficial forecasts suggest that its link with earnings growth could mean the state pension rises by a bumper 8% next year. rishi sunak told the bbc any decision on pensions would be "based on fairness for pensioners and for taxpayers". brazil�*s president bolsonaro is under growing pressure over his handling of the covid pandemic, with protests on the street. more than half a million people have died with the virus in brazil — the second highest death toll in the world after the us. 0nly13% of the population is fully vaccinated and around 2,000 people are still dying with the virus every day.

our international correspondent 0rla guerin reports from sao paulo. brazil�*s agony, carved into the soil. fresh graves in sao paulo await the new covid dead. the virus is still reaching many here, long before vaccines do. josildo died from covid in mayjust hours after these pictures were taken and days before he was due to get a jab. the father of five was the heart of his family. his son felipe joined the recent street protests, seeking justice for his dad.

for those who have come out on the streets here, this is notjust about grief and anger, it�*s about political responsibility. they believe that many of the dead are victims of president bolsonaro, his policies and his inaction, as well as victims of covid—19, and the pressure on the president is growing. the focus is here, a heated parliamentary inquiry which has become must watch tv. it has already uncovered that pfizer offered to supply vaccines to the government last year, and for months was ignored. we met the opposition senator 0mar aziz, leading the inquiry. his own brother is among the dead.

president bolsonaro continues to set this kind of example, not wearing a mask, while thronged by die—hard supporters last month. he was fined. and in the midst of a pandemic, leading a bikers�* rally. he insists the wheels of the economy must keep turning and says staying home is for idiots. "the president actually guaranteed that covid would spread," according to pedro hallal, the epidemiologist leading brazil�*s largest study of the virus. 0ur president said, "oh, it�*s coming to an end," in april last year,

and then he said that the vaccines were not safe. the statements from the president himself was, they produce damage and they killed people, and this is what needs to be said. the protesters go much further, accusing the brazilian leader of genocide. they want him out. for now, he�*s going nowhere, but the bereaved are hoping there will be a reckoning. 0rla guerin, bbc news, brasilia. world number one ash barty has sailed into the women�*s final at wimbledon after beating former champion angelique kerber in a thrilling centre court match today. on saturday, the australian will face the eighth seed karolina pliskova, who came from a set down to defeat aryna sabalenka. it will be the first final at the all england club for both players. and we end tonight

on england�*s victory. the countdown is under way to sunday and what will be only the second major final in the team�*s history. it has been a long journey, a long wait since 1966. our sports correspondent natalie pirks looks at how they got there, and what�*s different this time round. commentator: into the final of a major tournament - for the first time in 55 years. another night to savour. for generations, sunday will be the first final they will have seen england�*s men in but as fans know only too well this is no overnight success. after the failure of the 2010 world cup, building blocks were put in place. an overarching philosophy was brought in, coaching was overhauled across the age groups, and st georges park was opened as the home of all england teams. a year later in 2013, two ambitious targets were set.

the first is for the england team, to at least reach the semifinals of the euro championships in 2020, and the second is for us to win the world cup in 2022. i think a lot of people thought i was nuts. gareth has played a big part in this. he was in the fa, so when he became the england manager he was rooted in that structure with all those people. i think, without him, it would not have all worked. the backroom staff have all bought into gareth southgate�*s philosophy. steve holland has worked with him for eight years and has vast premier league experience. coach chris powell played with southgate at crystal palace. he listens. if you see anything he�*s missed he wants to know. for me, he is the modern day sort of manager in how you should do things. he�*s very engaging with people and he gives time to people. i don�*t know how he does it. in years gone by, boredom and bickering would often set

in but under southgate club rivalries have been largely banished, replaced with friendships. laughter what are you laughing at? coming off the top rope! players seem to genuinely enjoy their time together. he�*s created a very friendly, happy environment. we had that in 96 and i think he�*s learnt so much from that. he�*s given everyone a freedom to go out and enjoy their football and not play with any fear. commentator: and england are out of the world cup. - for all the times that have gone before... oh, no! for sunday, back at wembley once more, for the year everyone has endured, perhaps this really is england�*s time. natalie pirks, bbc news. that�*s it. good night. good evening.

0ur changeable theme to the weather continues over the next few days. we will see that mix of some sunshine around, but also some scattered, heavy showers and some thunderstorms on offer, as well. so, certainly a mixed picture. most of the showers we had earlier on on thursday are easing away — so for the rest of tonight, we�*re looking at a lot of dry weather out there. cloudier in the north and the west in general, a bit of patchy rain for eastern scotland for a time overnight, too. but temperatures holding up between about 12—14 celsius, a touch lower than this in more rural spots first thing friday. some sunshine from the word go across central and eastern england, but eastern england in eastern scotland will see some heavy showers and thunderstorms bubbling up during the afternoon. they�*ll be slow—moving — if you do catch one, there could be some hail and a bit of surface—water flooding, as well. further west, things are looking dryer through the course of the day. but into saturday, more heavy downpours, particularly in the south and the east, a little bit drier towards the likes of northern ireland during the day. and top temperatures on saturday around 16—21 celsius. bye— bye.

this is bbc news.

the headlines: president biden has announced the us military mission in afghanistan willl end on the last day of august. he said continuing to fight in afghanistan was not an option, as it would mean us troops staying there indefinitely. the japanese government has said that spectators will not be allowed to attend olympic games events at venues in the capital. the government is placing tokyo under a new state of emergency from next week because of rising coronavirus infections. a haitian minister says one of the men arrested on suspicion of involvement in the assasination of presidentjovenel moise in a pre—dawn raid on his residence on wednesday is a us citizen. the european parliament has approved a resolution condemning hungary for a recent law forbidding the depiction of homosexuality and gender change to under—18s. the parliament called on the european commission to take urgent steps against the hungarian government.