this is bbc news, our top stories: in cuba, the biggest protests against the communist government in decades, president biden says the protests are a clarion call for freedom. at least a0 people have been killed in a fire at a iraqi hospital treating coronavirus patients, in the city of nassiriya. dozens of patients are also missing. south africa's president appeals for an end to days of violence and looting, sparked by the jailing of his predecessor. the england footballer tyrone mings, criticises the british home secretary, for condemning the racist abuse directed at his team—mates, after she had previously called taking the knee

"gesture politics." welcome to our viewers on pbs in america and around the globe. opponents of cuba's communist government say dozens of activists have been arrested after thousands of people joined the biggest protests in decades. some were detained at the demonstrations, others were arrested at their homes. the protests called for democratic freedoms and criticised the handling of the coronavirus pandemic. president miguel diaz—canel has blamed the united states�* embargo for the unrest. he said it was aimed at encouraging dissent and social unrest. our north america editor jon sopel has more. libertad! "libertad", the crowd in havana shouts, orfreedom.

but while many cubans feel this in their hearts, it's extremely rare for protesters to take to the streets to give vent to their anger in this one—party communist state. translation: we are here because of - the repression against the people. they are starving us to death. havana is collapsing. we have no house, nothing, but they have the money to build hotels and they have us starving. and shouting "down with the dictatorship," as many of the protesters did, can come with a heavy price. but a toxic cocktail of economic collapse, a faltering response to the pandemic and lack of civil liberties has emboldened these people. and the response of the president? "blame your over—mighty neighbourjust 90 miles "to the north, the united states." translation: there will be a revolutionary response, i so we call upon all the revolutionaries in the country, all the communists, to take to the streets of any of the places where these provocations are

going to take place. for decades, cuba was a flashpoint in the cold war between the us and the soviet union. archive report: the familiar communist brainwashing - technique is displayed in propaganda books i constantly spewed out as required reading. . nearly sparking a nuclear confrontation between the superpowers. in this period, hundreds of thousands of cubans fled to the us and to miami. and it was no surprise that last night the exiled community was out in force to support their countrymen, support that's come from the american president, too. i don't think we've seen anything like this protest in a long, long time, if, quite frankly, ever. the united states stands firmly with the people of cuba as they assert their universal rights, and we call on the government of cuba to refrain from violence, and their attempts to silence the voice of the people of cuba. this is being watched incredibly closely by the white house.

sanctions that were intensified in the trump era have not been relaxed byjoe biden. what needs to be weighed is whether this is just a spasmodic outburst or the start of a cuban spring and something much more fundamental. jon sopel, bbc news, washington. how will all this unfold? professorjorge duany is director of the cuban research institute at florida international university in miami. i asked him if he thought the protests would continue int he following days. it appears from reports seen today on television and in the news that the government has failed to control the protests and i saw an image of the capitol building that had been surrounded by protesters yesterday and today it was cordoned off and there were just policeman on the streets so it appears that it was quite quickly controlled by the

government. in quickly controlled by the government.— quickly controlled by the government. quickly controlled by the covernment. . , ., , government. in which case, as ou government. in which case, as you know. _ government. in which case, as you know, president _ government. in which case, as you know, president canal- government. in which case, as i you know, president canal makes a very clear point in the first time, that this is the fault of the united states. given the nature of the embargo and perhaps given the biden administration's lack of movement in terms of the embargo, does he have a point? i think he does, it is the traditional knee—jerk reaction, anytime there is an economic or political problem the government thinks to blame somebody else, particularly the us and also what they call the cuban mafia here in miami and there is no doubt in my mind that the timing of the embargo and the previous administration under donald trump made life more difficult for cubans of all walks of life. perhaps nothing much to the people in the government but actually just regular cuban citizens, just regular cu ban citizens, depriving just regular cuban citizens, depriving them of income, remittance is and travel from the united states like

cuban—americans however there cu ban—america ns however there are structural cuban—americans however there are structural problems in the cuban economy, there are many problems with the way the pandemic has been handled by the cuban government and of course the other issues have to do with the collapse of the tourist industry and cuba after the closing of international borders. . , , , borders. clearly the problems are many _ borders. clearly the problems are many fold, _ borders. clearly the problems are many fold, but _ borders. clearly the problems are many fold, but do - borders. clearly the problems are many fold, but do you - borders. clearly the problems i are many fold, but do you think what we are seeing is going to shift the dial at all in terms of the biden administration's response because it has seemed pretty low on the priority list. , , ., , list. yes, they have been sa in: list. yes, they have been saying that _ list. yes, they have been saying that they - list. yes, they have been saying that they are - list. yes, they have been i saying that they are revising the us policy towards cuba, nobody knows what they are talking about, what they are thinking about, so i think that might actually accelerate that thinking and perhaps we will see some near future announcement of what the changes will be and the biden administration policies over cuba. �* ., , administration policies over cuba. �* . , , cuba. and that is the big question. _ cuba. and that is the big question, isn't _ cuba. and that is the big question, isn't it, - cuba. and that is the big question, isn't it, whichl cuba. and that is the big i question, isn't it, which way do they go? my

question, isn't it, which way do they go?— question, isn't it, which way do they go? my expectation is that they will _ do they go? my expectation is that they will go _ do they go? my expectation is that they will go somewhere l do they go? my expectation is| that they will go somewhere in between, they will not turn to the full obama engagement policy although ironically president biden was the vice president biden was the vice president then and he fully supported that policy, but i don't think the biden administration is ideological are committed to keeping the status quo, in fact during the campaign here in miami, then candidate biden promised to remove restrictions on remittances by cuban—americans remittances by cu ban—america ns to remittances by cuban—americans to cuba and also make it easier for people to travel, a third policy option might be to reopen the us embassy in havana so that people in cuba can actually get legal visas to migrate, none of those things have been changed so far. a majorfire has broken out at a hospital treating coronavirus patients, in the southern iraqi city of nassiriya. we understand the number of patients to have died has already risen to at least 50. health officials say the fire at the al—hussain hospital has

now been brought under control and a search operation is being carried out. tanya dendrinos reports. a roaring inferno and a sea of disparate voices. fire crews battled the flames raging against the night sky. dozens of people have died, many were injured and others are still unaccounted for. what makes this scene all the more devastating is the fact it is at a coronavirus hospital in a country already ravaged by war with a health system under significant strain. as medical teams work to treat terms, the search operation continued in the burnt out was. charred body is carried out of the building. the blaze was likely caused by the explosion of an oxygen tank and it wasn't long before rage spilt onto the streets.

protesters gathered outside the hospital and the mayor's office, demanding the resignation of officials. the prime minister has held an emergency meeting, initiating a high investigation into the incident and direct and urgent medical aid to the region. yet another tragedy just months after a similar incident at a hospital in baghdad which claimed more than 80 lives. south africa has deployed its military to two of the country's provinces, following deadly riots that erupted afterformer presidentjacob zuma handed himself in, to begin a is—month jail sentence. mr zuma was convicted of contempt of court, afterfailing to attend an inquiry into corruption during his presidency. the bbc�*s southern africa correspondent nomsa maseko has the latest. south african police were clearly overwhelmed. they had their hands full, trying to stop mobs

who started looting shopping centres. nothing was spared. every shop was looted here. the military was then deployed. with more on the ground, the government hopes the protests and looting will come to an end. the jailing of south africa's former president, jacob zuma, resulted in violent protest action, followed by looting incidents in two provinces — mr zuma's home province of kwazulu—natal and gauteng, the country's economic hub. more than 200 people have been arrested. police are investigating the deaths of six others. south africa's president, cyril ramaphosa, addressed the nation. he said criminal activity would not be tolerated. i have today authorised the deployment of the defence force personnel in support

of the operations of the south african police service. the nationaljoint operation and intelligence structure known as natjoints has intensified deployments in all the affected areas in kwazulu—natal and in gauteng. beyond the looting of businesses, which has a negative impact on the economy, the violent protests have now caused a delay in the vaccination roll—out for covid—i9. centres are closed, citing security concerns. it remains unclear when they'll open, as protesters vow to continue their protest action untiljacob zuma is released from prison. nomsa maseko, bbc news, pietermaritzburg. france has warned that any health workers who refuse to be vaccinated against covid—i9 will not be paid.

greece is also following suit, after italy unveiled similar measures back in april. mark lobel reports. to france's healthca re to france's healthcare workers, a message from the president. get vaccinated in the next two months or risk not being paid. translation: it is months or risk not being paid. translation:— months or risk not being paid. translation: it is the only way to return to _ translation: it is the only way to return to normal— translation: it is the only way to return to normal life. - to return to normal life. initially for healthcare staff in hospitals clinics and retirement homes, institutions for people with disabilities, for people with disabilities, for all professionals or volunteers who work in contact with the elderly or frail including their home. clinician will be made compulsory without delay. will be made compulsory without dela . , ., will be made compulsory without dela. , delay. president macron says it is a race against _ delay. president macron says it is a race against the _ delay. president macron says it is a race against the clock i delay. president macron says it is a race against the clock as i is a race against the clock as the take—up of firstjabs is falling and less than 40% of the population has had two shots. that is a concern because of a rise in cases of coronavirus with the delta variant causing a surge in hospital admissions. variant causing a surge in hospitaladmissions. not everyone has welcomed the move. translation: iii

everyone has welcomed the move. translation:— translation: if it's compulsory we will do it. _ translation: if it's compulsory we will do it, of— translation: if it's compulsory we will do it, of course. - we will do it, of course. translation:- we will do it, of course. translation: ., ., . ., translation: for me, forcing an aaent to translation: for me, forcing an agent to be _ translation: for me, forcing an agent to be vaccinated _ translation: for me, forcing an agent to be vaccinated with i translation: for me, forcing an agent to be vaccinated with a i agent to be vaccinated with a specific— agent to be vaccinated with a specific product is total nonsense.— specific product is total nonsense. , ., ., nonsense. new rules also mean that from _ nonsense. new rules also mean that from next _ nonsense. new rules also mean that from next month _ nonsense. new rules also mean that from next month the i that from next month the nonvaccinated will struggle to get into one of these, these, these, or get away without a negative covid—i9 test. greece has announced vaccines are now mandatory for care home staff and will be for healthcare workers from september, with new restrictions for the nonvaccinated in bars, cinemas and theatres. in holland, there has been a screeching u—turn of the loosening of restrictions unveiled just three weeks ago as nightlife resumed, infection levels surged to their highest levels surged to their highest levels this year. the dutch prime minister admitted an error ofjudgement. translation: i error ofjudgement. tuna/mom- error ofjudgement. translation: ., 4' translation: i do think the prime minister _

translation: i do think the prime minister open - translation: i do think the prime minister open things l translation: | do think the | prime minister open things too early. it would have been better to wait a few more weeks because now we are in a surge again. because now we are in a surge aaain. �* , ., because now we are in a surge a.ain_ �*, .,, ., because now we are in a surge aaain. �*, ., , , again. it's a shame because everybody _ again. it's a shame because everybody expected - again. it's a shame because everybody expected to i again. it's a shame because everybody expected to have again. it's a shame because i everybody expected to have like an open — everybody expected to have like an open summer with all the activities _ an open summer with all the activities. i know that my friends _ activities. i know that my friends were all buying tickets and everything, and now it is all and everything, and now it is aiiiust— and everything, and now it is alljust cancelled again. as euro -e alljust cancelled again. is europe faces rising numbers of infections, mainly due to the delta variant, several countries' tolerance of those avoiding injections appears to be waning. mark lobel, bbc news. stay with us on bbc news, still to come: millions struggle with soaring temperatures, as wildfires rage across the western us. after months of talks and missed deadlines, a deal has been struck to keep greece within the eurozone. the immediate prospect of greece going bust in the worst crisis to hit the eurozone has been averted.

emergency services across central europe are stepping up their efforts to contain the worst floods this century. nearly 100 people have been killed. broadway is traditionally called the great white way by americans but tonight, it's completely blacked out. it's a timely reminder to all americans of the problems that the energy crisis has brought to them. leaders meet in paris- fora summit on pollution, inflation and third world debt. this morning, theyjoinedl the revolution celebrations for a show of military might on the champs—elysees. i wildlife officials in australia have been coping with a penguin problem. fairy penguins have been staggering ashore and collapsing after gorging themselves on a huge shoal of their favourite food, pilchards. some had eaten so much, they could barely stand. this is bbc world news, the latest headlines:

opponents of cuba's communist authorities say dozens of activists have been arrested since sunday's anti—government demonstrations on the island. at least 50 people have been killed in a fire at a iraqi hospital treating coronavirus patients, in the city of nassiriya. dozens of patients are missing. the aftermath of england's last—gasp defeat to italy in the euros final at wembley has been dominated not so much by the performance itself, as by the racist abuse aimed at three players, who missed their penalties at the end of the match. the manager gareth southgate described the highly offensive language as "unforgivable". the prime minister said those responsible should crawl back under the rock they came from. one of the players targeted, marcus rashford, said he will never apologise for who he is. our sports editor

dan roan reports. it had all started so well. having waited more than half a century for their first major final, england took the lead afterjust final, england took the lead after just two final, england took the lead afterjust two minutes. it then suffered the cruelty, and all—too—familiar fate against italy, losing once again on penalties. a tournament that had ripped up the summer ended in tears. the manager left to reflect on what might have been. .. ., �* ., been. the fact that we've had the first signs _ been. the fact that we've had the first signs of _ been. the fact that we've had the first signs of some - the first signs of some consistency, semi—final, final. it has to be a step in the right direction, it is not ultimately where we wanted to get to and when you're so close, it is even more painful, of course. it feels like your stomach has been ripped out this morning.— this morning. became's aftermath _ this morning. became's aftermath was - this morning. became's aftermath was soured l this morning. became's i aftermath was soured still further. the three england players who fail from the spot, magic —— marcus rashford, bukayo saka and jadon sancho, all subject to online abuse.

for them to be abused is on to bigger will, for them to be abused is on to biggerwill, really. we for them to be abused is on to bigger will, really. we have to make sure we're there and align with their clubs and making sure that we look after those boys absolutely.— sure that we look after those boys absolutely. this morning, the fa's president, _ boys absolutely. this morning, the fa's president, the - boys absolutely. this morning, the fa's president, the duke . boys absolutely. this morning, | the fa's president, the duke of cambridge, said he was second by what he called abhorrent behaviour. "it must stop now". he added. borisjohnson said he hoped that those responsible would call back under the rock that he emerged but keir starmer said he failed to show leadership. downing street they said they always supported the player's right to protest. but tonight england defender tyrone meanings also said witty patel was stoking the fire —— priti patel. the police are

investigating what they call racially motivated vandalism. marcus ratcheted said he would never apologise for who they are —— marcus rashford. this never apologise for who they are -- marcus rashford. as long as they are _ are -- marcus rashford. as long as they are scoring _ are -- marcus rashford. as long as they are scoring and - are -- marcus rashford. as long as they are scoring and getting l as they are scoring and getting results and of course, we are all england, all behind you. the minute that doesn't happen, the abuse comes out. haifa the minute that doesn't happen, the abuse comes out.— the abuse comes out. how you doin: the abuse comes out. how you doing today? _ the abuse comes out. how you doing today? they _ the abuse comes out. how you doing today? they euros i the abuse comes out. how you| doing today? they euros dream over, the hurt _ doing today? they euros dream over, the hurt continues - doing today? they euros dream over, the hurt continues to i doing today? they euros dream over, the hurt continues to for. over, the hurt continues to for england but as they head home, the that these players are going in the right direction. rather than the day of celebration english football had hoped for, this was a reminder that while its team proved a you're in —— unifying and uplifting force, the issues of racism have not gone away. but after an historic campaign that they will never forget, southgate and his players can plan for next year's world cup with renewed belief that finally they are contenders

again. 30 million people across the western united states and canada have been enduring another blistering heatwave. las vegas has matched its record of just over 47 degrees, or around 116 degrees fahrenheit. in death valley in california, the temperature was expected to reach a mind—boggling 52 degrees celsius, or 125 degrees fahrenheit. and the extreme heat is having some devastating consequences. wildfires have been burning six western us states. our correspondent sophie long reports from los angeles. wildfires in northern california grow in size and intensity, destroying homes in multiple communities as increasing winds complicate already dangerous firefighting conditions. this fire is raging out of control in southern oregon, as millions of people across the western united states are hit by another round of

scorching temperatures. i'm on the west side... more than 60,000 acres are currently burning. california is no stranger to wildfires, but scientists say they're becoming more frequent and more intense as global temperatures rise. the national weather service recorded temperatures of 130 degrees in california's death valley, some of the highest ever recorded on the planet. people in desert communities are being warned how quickly they can dehydrate or overheat. not realising that how quickly you can run into trouble with dehydration and heat exhaustion or the body overheating. but even those following the advice in palm springs are struggling. it's too hot. i'm drinking as much water as i can. i'm drinking my weight in water every day. i think the best way to describe it, which is actually the way my friend described it, is that moment

when you open the oven and that gust of heat hits you in the face. the extreme heat has led to the deaths of dozens of people across the western united states in recent weeks. it's also putting a massive strain on the region's power grid. californians are now being told to reduce their water usage by 15%. it's not a compulsory, but it underscores the harsh reality that millions of people living in cities like los angeles are now facing. as the record—breaking temperatures continue, people can only do their best to stay cool. sophie long, bbc news, los angeles. it's the world's biggest search engine and its boss says the model of a free and open internet is under attack. sundar pichai says many countries are restricting the flow of information and the western model, free from political censorship, is often taken for granted. google is under huge pressure from regulators around the world for its approach to privacy, data, and tax. our media editor, amol rajan, spoke to google's chief executive at the company headquarters in silicon valley,

california. for the past two decades, one californian company, more than any other, has designed and built the internet with a dominance in digital advertising. now google is journeying into the unknown with two big bets — unimaginably powerful quantum computers and, above all, artificial intelligence. i viewed it as the most profound technology that humanity will ever develop and work on, and we have to make sure we do it in a way that we can harness it to society's benefit. sundar pichai is the man leading google into this new era. be it healthcare, be it education, be it how we manufacture things and how we consume information. if you think about fire or electricity or the internet, it's like that, but i think even more profound. born of humble roots in tamil nadu in south—east india, sundar pichai trained as an engineer.

he moved to the us to pursue his dream and joined google's founders, larry page and sergey brin, when the company was just six years old in 200a. now, he's the boss of both google and its parent company alphabet, which includes youtube. and he faces unrelenting scrutiny from us lawmakers to, most recently, at the g7 and g20 summits, where tax was in focus. historically, has google paid enough tax in the right places? we are one of the world's largest taxpayers. if you look at on an average over the past decade, we have paid over 20% in taxes. we do pay the majority of our share of taxes in the us, where we originate and where our products are developed. i think there are good conversations, and we support the global oecd conversations figuring out what is the right way to allocate taxes. and this is beyond a single company to solve. you've got two teenagers, i understand. what's your policy on screen time for kids?

i think this generation needs to learn to adapt to technology. it's going to be a big part of their lives, so i've encouraged them to develop boundaries on their own, but i've approached it as a journey of personal responsibility. how worried are you that, today, the internet seems to be splitting into different domains, where we have a kind of californian internet and increasingly a chinese one, and the chinese one might be in the ascendant? the free and open internet has been a tremendous force for good, and i think we take it for granted a bit. but i do think the model is being attacked. and so i think it's something we take for granted, but i hope we can stand up, particularly in countries with strong democratic traditions and values. sundar pichai is clear, it's up to democracies, as much as any tech giant, to shape our digital future. amol rajan, bbc news, in silicon valley. huge challenges there for google, for sundar pichai i and

for us as well because we are the ones that consume so much of what they do. more of that on the website. you are watching bbc news. hello there. we had some pretty impressive downpours across different parts of the country on monday. the radar picture shows one of these bands of heavy rain working into north—east england, particularly north yorkshire, and then we have this second band of rain across the west london area. now in kew, in west london, we picked up 46 mm of rain from the shower band. that was pretty much smack bang on a whole months of rain and the majority of that fell in just the space of two hours. if you were wondering what that looks like, it looks like this.

three miles down the road in twickenham the roads flooded, and there were reports of flooding elsewhere as well. now, over the next few hours, those showers that we have seen by day will continue to very gradually fade away. the majority of us will eventually become drier over withjust an odd patch of rain still lingering into the east. temperatures around 12 to 1a celsius, feeling a little on the muggy side as well, particularly across parts of eastern england. now, for tuesday, we've got much more in the way of dry weather and sunshine with fewer showers, and for most of us, it's going to be a dry morning. the early morning cloud breaking, sunny spells developing widely and there should be quite a lot of that sunshine. but into the afternoon, we're likely to see some showers develop. look at this line of showers forming across parts of northwest england, the midlands and perhaps another one affecting wales down towards parts of dorset as well. now, those showers could be fairly heavy at times, but away from those shower bands, there should be a lot of dry weather to take us through the rest of the afternoon. temperatures pushing into the low 20s quite widely. it will feel warm in the sunshine. now, wednesday, we see a little weather front working into the far northwest of the uk. that's bringing some thicker cloud. might get a few

patches of rain just skirting into the north and west of scotland. but otherwise, probably a bit more cloud around, but still some bright or sunny spells developing. the best of those towards the east of high ground and those temperatures still into the low 20s. it's going to be another day that will feel pleasantly warm where the sunshine breaks through the cloud. now, beyond that, it was the end of the week, the weekend and next week. this area of high pressure is going to be dominating our weather picture, and that means we've got a lengthy spell of dry and sunny weather. temperatures on these charts pushing into the high 20s. well, it wouldn't be surprising to see temperatures into the low 30s in some places next week.

this is bbc news, the headlines: the cuban opposition says dozens of activists have been arrested since sunday, when thousands of people joined the biggest protests in decades against the island's communist government. many were detained at the demonstrations, others were picked up from their homes. president diaz—canel has blamed the united states for the unrest. at least a0 people have been killed in a fire at a iraqi hospital treating coronavirus patients, in the city of nassiriya. health officials say the fire is now being brought under control but dozens of patients are said to be missing. south africa's governing anc party has warned that continuing violent demonstrations will have a devastating economic impact on the country. troops have been deployed to protect property, as protestors set buildings on fire and looted shops. the violence was triggered by the jailing of the former president, jacob zuma.

now on bbc news,