this is bbc news. i'm sarah mulkerrins live in tokyo where olympic games begins in three days time. as athletes arrive, there are more positive coronavirus tests, forcing some athletes to self—isolate — others to withdraw. we will take you through the athletes to keep your eye on and some the new sports you'll be able to watch during the tokyo olympics. i am sally bundock in london. in other news: a bomb blast in iraq kills at least 3a people in a mainly shia muslim area of baghdad. and billionairejeff bezos prepares to blast into space. on board will be the oldest and youngest people to ever leave the

earth's atmosphere. hello from tokyo, where after a year—long delay, the olympics games are now just three days away. we're here at tokyo bay, in the south of the japanese capital, to bring you all the build up and then the sport when it gets underway, for the most controversial olympics for a generation, with tokyo hosting the games in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic. the olympic village, which hosts the athletes, has been hit by four coronavirus cases. two south african footballers were the first to test positive there, followed by a czech beach volleyball player and an american gymnast.

there've also been cases reported among media and other personnel, and we've just heard that 2 members of mexico's olympic baseball team have tested postive before they were due to leave forjapan. the city of tokyo has entered its fourth state of emergency as cases rise. but the international olympic committee insists that these positive cases do not pose a wider threat to the population. let's speak to our reporter mariko oi in shibuya. what have people been telling you the? i what have people been telling ou the? ~ , ., ., you the? i think it is fair to say that — you the? i think it is fair to say that people _ you the? i think it is fair to say that people are - you the? i think it is fair to say that people are not - you the? i think it is fair to - say that people are not exactly convinced by the ioc argument. those confirmed covid—19 cases inside the olympic village definitely making people very nervous about it, and if i may

say, it has been one scandal after another. the latest has been that the composer of the opening ceremony�*s music had to step down after apologising for bullying disabled classmates when he was at school, but he somewhat boasted about it in a magazine interview in the 1990s and criticism was notjust towards the composer himself but also the organising committee because if you remember over the last few years we have had their own president having to step down because of his sexist remarks, but also the creative director of the opening ceremony wanting to dress a plasticised model as a pig and called the olympic ceremony as olympig. there has been a lot of negative feeling the japanese public towards the game is in stark contrast to eight years ago when it was first announced. i wanted to know what people feel about it

with the three days to go, until the start of the olympic games and this is what they said. translation: | am a nurse - and hospitals are overwhelmed, so i don't think it makes sense to go ahead with the olympics. translation: | think - we have to live with covid. major league baseballjust had its all—star game, so i thinkjapan should go ahead with the olympics too. translation: the number of new infections is rising, l so it's worrying to have many people arriving from overseas. i know they have to quarantine, but i don't think the rules are that strict. translation: the olympics are only worthy with spectators, - there was a baseball game without any fans and it was a bit lame. translation: it would've been a lot more fun if it wasn't - for covid, but instead of more people getting ill i think it's best to have the games without any spectators.

as you heard, some people voicing concerns about those overseas athletes and staff arriving into japan, but can you actually see behind me, i nearly forgot, tokyo is now under the state of emergency, and this is not a strict lockdown, there is no penalty, evenif lockdown, there is no penalty, even if you don't follow the rules, but when the state of emergency was first declared backin emergency was first declared back in april last year, people are getting a bit tired of it, and i can also sense that a lot of people who were against the olympic games, they are now just starting to give up, the games were going to go ahead of regardless of how they feel about it and they are just hoping it goes smoothly and safely with no rising covid cases, but we are seeing covid cases, but we are seeing covid cases inside the village but also in the japanese capital, we are seeing an increasing number of covid—i9 cases as well, so definitely not a good

start. thank you very much, we're down here in the south of tokyo, this is tokyo bay, a lot of the events will be around here, the olympic village isjust events will be around here, the olympic village is just over left shoulder, and there have been four confirmed cases among the athletes when they have got there. i got the assessment of tara kirk sell — former silver medal winning swimmer and current health security specialist atjohns hopkins. i think that the mitigation measures put in place by the ioc make a lot of sense. the frequent testing, the isolation that you mention, the high vaccination rate, it gives this event a chance. there are always human factors and the possibility but thanks to go wrong when they are put in place, so hopefully what we're seeing now with the that have been identified other working as expected. we

been identified other working as “meted-— been identified other working as waded-— as expected. we are seeing these positive _ as expected. we are seeing these positive coronavirus l these positive coronavirus cases, we have had four within the village but we know there have been 62 in total from the contention that have come in now. how do you take into account those numbers, and whether that shows that the system is working, or whether there is a possibility that that might pose a risk to the widerjapanese population? i wider japanese population? i don't widerjapanese population? i don't find the cases we are seeing comforting, but i don't think it is unexpected. we will see cases continue to be identified as people come into the country, but the key is to keep those cases from becoming something more, so catching cases is the thing we need to see happen more and more now. what are the issues that we have had from these games, one of the countermeasures is that now, the organisers are not going to have public attending. is that a right call for you? i think that was the right call, to have no fans since japan has

been slow to get its vaccination rates up, we are seeing cases rise in tokyo, i think it is the right call, it will be strange and eerie, but perhaps it is really appropriate to let us know that there is still a pandemic defied, and we need to do better to prepare for pandemics in the future.— in the future. you know exactly what it is _ in the future. you know exactly what it is like _ in the future. you know exactly what it is like to _ in the future. you know exactly what it is like to be _ in the future. you know exactly what it is like to be an - what it is like to be an athlete, to compete at the very top of your sport and win a medal at the olympics. how do you think those athletes would be feeling knowing some of those would be diving into the ball and nobody will be in there. will it be different? it will be strange, but when i was an athlete, i had international competitions where it was dead silence when i walked out to be introduced, so many of these athletes train without a fan base as well, so i think some will find it very strange and some will find it less of a distraction, we will have to see what happens.

i'm joined now byjohn daub, an american who's lived in tokyo for 2h years and who runs the youtube channel "only in japan". pre— pandemic this would be a moment for you to be able to show off the city, everything that you do on your youtube channel. how are you feeling now about tokyo hosting these olympic games? i now about tokyo hosting these olympic games?— olympic games? i guess it is 'ust olympic games? i guess it is just about — olympic games? i guess it is just about what _ olympic games? i guess it is just about what can - olympic games? i guess it is just about what can i - olympic games? i guess it is just about what can i show. olympic games? i guess it is| just about what can i show my viewers about the tokyo games? i was just down at the olympic village trying to scope out what it feels like, it looks like a present to me, there wasn't any kind of story i could tell, it seems like i will not be able to go to any of the events or the venues to show my viewers, so not much i can do. i canjust try and look at the bright side and maybe interview some of the athletes from afar through resume and some of the other social media

platforms. i'm not really sure, but this is a huge letdown for me as someone who has been looking forward to the game since 2007 when i ran the tokyo marathon on and i got to meet with the governor who was trying to plan the games for 2012, we finally got it in 2020, and not much i can do about it. 2020, and not much i can do about it— about it. john, what do you think, because _ about it. john, what do you think, because we - about it. john, what do you think, because we have - about it. john, what do you| think, because we have had about it. john, what do you - think, because we have had this whole, these games were initially backed as the recovery games, and everything that japan wanted to project out onto the world, and obviously with the pandemic over the last year and a half, that has all changed, but what do you think these games will now mean to the city of tokyo, and how it will impact the future here?— and how it will impact the future here? well, again, it looks like — future here? well, again, it looks like we _ future here? well, again, it looks like we as _ future here? well, again, it looks like we as citizens, i looks like we as citizens, residents ofjapan, we really are going to see much of the benefits of it, i know a lot of

local businesses are hurting really badly with change towards inbound tourism for a lot of our economy, with a population shrinking. for me, the biggest class for the city of tokyo with this is the infrastructure changes that have happened as a result of the olympics. it was a time where for the last several years we were massively inconvenienced with new construction of buildings and infrastructure and i think that will be what we remember the most from the tokyo olympics from 2021 onwards. do most from the tokyo olympics from 2021 onwards.— most from the tokyo olympics from 2021 onwards. do you get a sense that _ from 2021 onwards. do you get a sense that potentially _ from 2021 onwards. do you get a sense that potentially when - from 2021 onwards. do you get a sense that potentially when the l sense that potentially when the action gets under way and everybody is looking at all these brilliant sporting moments, that it may suddenly turn into more positive feeling here? i turn into more positive feeling here? . . , turn into more positive feeling here? . ., , here? i certainly hope so. auain, here? i certainly hope so. again. i — here? i certainly hope so. again, i love _ here? i certainly hope so. again, i love the - here? i certainly hope so. again, i love the olympic| here? i certainly hope so. - again, i love the olympic games and for me this has been a rollercoaster ride of information, we simply don't know what is going on right now, but i have a feeling on the 23rd, when the opening

ceremony starts, we will be watching it all on tv, even though i am a couple of kilometres away from the national stadium, i will be really positive about it because i'm excited to see the rivalries, the competition, i'm not sure, i guess the legacy of the olympics will be about how this goes with the pandemic because it has just been so overpowering with the information that we get from the media here that that seems to be the story until the games start. . ~ to be the story until the games start. ., ~ , ., to be the story until the games start. . ~' , ., , to be the story until the games start. ., ~ i. , . to be the story until the games start. . ~ ,, , . ., start. thank you very much for our start. thank you very much for your time _ start. thank you very much for your time here _ start. thank you very much for your time here on _ start. thank you very much for your time here on bbc - start. thank you very much for your time here on bbc world l your time here on bbc world news. john was talking about the action, we know the opening ceremony will get under way on friday, then the action proper will start, but we do have a little bit of a sneak peak because on wednesday, as is the tradition, we will have football and also softball, which is back in the olympics with japan kicking of the tournament in that on wednesday, so they will be a

little bit of action ahead of that opening ceremony on friday, and then the action will get under way and i think a lot of the organisers are feeling that they want to get to that more positive story potentially when the action gets under way. a lot to look forward to. iraqi officials say at least 3a people have been killed and at least 60 others injured in a bomb attack in a busy market in a mainly shia muslim district of baghdad. the islamic state group says it carried out the attack. people shopping on the eve of the muslim feast of eid al—adha would have been caught in the blast. mark lobel�*s report contains some distressing images. the grim task of sifting through the rubble, looking for clues after the worst suicide bombing in baghdad for months. targeting this time a marketplace in a shia area crammed with men, women and

children, out shopping for food to celebrate the important festival of eid ul—adha. there were screams of terror as roofs were screams of terror as roofs were ripped off market stalls. the islamic state unleashing their deadliest attack since january. back then, they claimed this deadly double suicide bombing in a busy commercial area of baghdad, killing 32. since iraqi forces defeated islamic state fighters in 2017, after a three—year battle, large bomb attacks, once an almost daily occurrence in the iraqi capital, have become rarer as islamic state sleeper cells wager low level of insurgency in the country. but following the sudden killing and wounding of the others, the iraqi prime minister ordered an investigation into what he called a heinous crime. along with the arrest of the commander of the federal peace regiment, in charge of security

in this once bustling everyday market. mark lobel, bbc news. more than 2,000 firefighters are battling to control a raging wildfire in the us state of oregon. the bootleg fire has forced thousands of residents from mostly rural areas to abandon their homes and burned through more than twelve hundred square kilometres. at least 160 buildings have been destroyed so far. since starting two weeks ago, it has become the largest of over eighty major wildfires currently burning across the us. scientists say that climate change increases the risk of the hot, dry weather that is likely to fuel wildfires. stay with us on bbc news, still to come: with hundreds still missing after devastating floods in central europe, the spotlight falls on the search and recovery operation.

see you coming down the ladder now. that's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind. a catastrophic engine fire is being blamed tonight for the first crash in the 30 year history of concorde, the world's only supersonic airliner. it was one of the most vivid symbols of the violence and hatred to that tore apart the state of yugoslavia. but now a decade later, it has been painstakingly rebuilt and opens again today. there's been a 50% decrease in sperm quantity, and an increase in malfunctioning sperm unable to swim properly. thousands of households across the country are suspiciously- quiet this lunchtime - as children bury their noses in the final instalment of harry potter. -

this is bbc news, the latest headlines: days before the start of the tokyo olympics, more positive covid cases among athletes and officials, with some forced to withdraw from the games. the british prime minister's former chief adviser, a bomb blast kills many in mostly shia muslim area of baghdad. german chancellor angela merkel will visit an area devastated by the floods later, as her government defends against accusations that warnings systems were inadequate. at least 20a people died in extreme weather that hit western europe last week, the majority of them in germany and belgium. german police say 170 people are still missing. anna holligan reports from ahrweiler.

this is the village of schultz, and are so many of the villages here that won't washed away have been left uninhabitable and unsafe. many people, politicians, weather experts, have blamed a monumental failure in the system, because flood alerts were given 24—hour is an advance, and yet this is the destruction. remarkably, in this village, everyone managed to get out alive, but if you see, if you look through some of these windows, you can see they are entirely gutted inside these homes. the receding floodwaters have revealed that not only the extensive damage, but the politicians have to answer three questions, really. the first, from the people here, when will the proposed

aid package reach the people who need it most? some of these people clearly evacuated. will it change anything that politicians are saying on policy on things like climate change, and should they have acted earlier? how can this have happened in one of the world's well—developed richest and well—developed countries and well—developed countries and 2021. the economy minister has called for a thorough investigation into failings in the warning system, saying it is not about pointing the finger but preparing for the future. people have been chatting about whether for a long time, and a trivial kind of way, but as the public broadcaster said, that is over now, the weather is something

that has become highly political. the election authority in peru has declared the socialist, pedro castillo, the country's next president. mr castillo addressed supporters from his campaign headquarters in lima. he beat his right wing rival, keiko fujimori, by only 114,000 votes in a highly divisive run—off election at the beginning ofjune. the official result has been delayed by appeals from ms fujimori who claimed, with little evidence, that electoral fraud had cost her the presidency. andrew lloyd webber has accused the uk government of "idiocy" after its self—isolation rules led to performances of cinderella being cancelled. he said the theatre industry was "on its knees" and called the self—isolation system "u nte na ble". our reporter leigh milner has been to london's west end.

it was meant to be england's so—called freedom day, but for andrew lloyd webber and the cast of this theatre, it was four closure day. last night's performance of cinderella was cancelled after member of the cast tested positive for covid 19. those in close contact were given pcr tests, all coming back negative, but under government guidance, anyone who comes into close contact with somebody who tests positive, they must self—isolate for ten days. guidance which andrew lloyd webber once the government to change. what i can't - can't — government to change. what i can't - can't get— government to change. what i can't - can't get to _ government to change. what i can't - can't get to grips - government to change. what i can't - can't get to grips with l can't — can't get to grips with is that this government does not seem to understand that theatre is the lifeblood of our cities. every other country in the world seems to have done so, america has completely grasped this. we cannot go on like this, the theatre is now on its knees. there is no way forward. more than 1200 guests are expected and this theatre

tonight in the first full capacity performance of cinderella. 50% of the proceeds are due to be donated to the nhs and stjohn ambulance. please, please, will this government, for once, listen to us, listen. we do know what we are doing. we do, just listen, and not all of these platitudes and not all of these platitudes and endless, endless, rules that don't apply just across the board. that don't apply 'ust across the mob the board. oliver dowden, secretary _ the board. oliver dowden, secretary of _ the board. oliver dowden, secretary of state - the board. oliver dowden, secretary of state for - the board. oliver dowden, i secretary of state for culture, media, and sport, said he was disappointed to hear about the cancellation of cinderella, tweeting that while this need to self—isolate as an economy wide issue, he recognises the particular challenges it presents to the arts, and i am strongly making the case for it in government. it is not yet clear when cinderella will return to the stage, but one thing is for sure, for theatres like this to survive, the show must go on.

the battle of the billionaires in space continues asjeff bezos follows richard branson into space. the amazon founder will use his blue origin new shephard rocket to take an 11 minute journey to the karman line — the 62—mile—high boundary between earth's atmosphere and outer space with three other passengers. 82—year—old wally funk will become the oldest person ever to fly to space six decades after undergoing training in the 1960s. mark bezos, jeff's brother, and a mystery person who paid $28m at auction for a seat will also be on board. sophie long reports. deepin deep in the west texas desert, the richest man on earth is preparing to take his first passengers to space, making history and dreams come true. we will fly up into space, the very first flight. laughter. with hemmant will be the

trailblazing aviator, wally funk, who at 82 will become the oldest person ever to travel to space. can't hardly wait! also on board will bejeff bezos's youngest brother, mark, and to join them will be a dutch teenager, oliver damon. spaceships are becoming the new super yachts, with the launch coming one week after another billionaire realised a lifelong dream. sir richard branson may have been the first to make it to the edge of space, but when jeff bezos launches and has rocket, he will be faster and going higher. it will travel at more than three times the speed of sound to 62 miles above the surface of earth, with no human pilot on board. we have been training, the vehicle is ready, the crew is ready, wejust vehicle is ready, the crew is ready, we just feel really good about it. they will feel weightless for a few minutes before the capsular freefall is back to earth. parachutes will release to soften the impact with the

desert. if it all goes to plan, this will emerge as proof for future tourism at the sky is no longer the limit. sophie long, bbc news, texas. the sky surely isn't the limit for some people. we will talk more about that new endeavour on the part of the former ceo of amazon. we will talk to a space writer from the astronomical society. he will give us more on that expedition taking place later today. also, we will look at key issues in business coverage — and the uk, the supply chain to some of the key manufacturers could be at the edge of collapse the summer. one of the reasons why — the lack of hgv drivers across the uk. it is a real issue. we will talk about that,

and look ahead to the results of easyjet, as it tries desperately to get drivers across europe this summer. will they get on board? see you soon. hello again. monday was another hot and sunny day for the majority of us, but there were a few storms that popped up. one or two affecting sussex and kent, there were a few storms in south wales for a time and there was one in the veil of york but otherwise we have skies like these can be the majority of us having dry, sunny and hot day. and talking of heat, the met office have issued their first extreme heat warning. why now? well, these warnings only started being issued injune and this is just the first hot spell we have seen. but this area, it represents an area of concern to the met office where we could see some impacts from the heat whether that be impacts to health or indeed infrastructure, things like trains might need to go slightly slower due to the tracks heating up in this hot weather. at the moment there's not too much going on, it's a clear start to the day tuesday and of course it has

been very warm overnight, those temperatures starting off tuesday morning at around 16 degrees across parts of england and wales. a little bit fresher for scotland and northern ireland. but it's going to be another hot and sunny day. high pressure firmly in charge, however into the afternoon some thunderstorms will break out and i think this is the kind of area we are most likely to see the downpours. they are likely to be bigger storms, so want to hear reports of some localised surface water flooding in one or two of the biggest storms that do pop up. otherwise, it's another hot and sunny one. temperatures widely mid to high 20s, the low 30s in the very hardest parts of the country. and we are used to this, aren't we? after such a hot day those temperatures slow to come down, this is 11 o'clock at night and you can see those temperatures are still up at 23 there in birmingham and london. again, a little bit lower than that for scotland and northern ireland, but still plenty warm enough. now our area of high pressure hangs around to wednesday, the only real change is it reorientation slightly to push that hotter air a little bit further northwards.

so one thing you will notice as temperatures tending to rise in northern ireland and scotland into more generally the high 20s i think as we go into wednesday. again there could be an odd shower popping outcome of but for the majority it will continue with that dry run of weather with temperatures in the high 20s to low 30s in the hottest areas. beyond that thursday and friday we keep the hot and sunny weather for the most part, there will be a change eventually coming, it looks look at might come through on the weekend. with heavy rain for some.

this is bbc news with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. keep on trucking — the uk's leading manufacturers warns supply chains are on the brink of collapse due to a shortage of hgv drivers. the fear factor is back — the threat of the delta coronavirus variant hits stock markets worldwide. we'll be live to asia for the latest. and a look back with the world's very first space tourist, as amazon founderjeff bezos prepares to head out later today.