this is bbc world news broadcasting to viewers in the uk and around the globe. i'm lewis vaughan jones. our top stories: the taliban seizes a provincial capital in southern afghanistan, as the un's envoy demands the militants end their offensive. we are extremely concerned about the safety and security of people in cities under taliban attacks and what brutality would await them. at the olympics, it's another gold medalfor team gb as galal yafai beats carlo paalam of the philippines in the flyweight boxing. tom daley wins bronze in the 10m platform final, gb�*s 60th medal of the games. nearly half the regions in greece are on high alert,

as the worst wildfires in decades rage across the country. from the charts to the stage — pop star lily allen makes her acting debut in the west end. people say, "oh, you have been on a stage before", but it is a completely. different experience. it's much scarierfor me, anyway. hello and welcome. the taliban in afghanistan say they have captured a prison in the northern province ofjowzjan and freed hundreds of prisoners. video on social media showed inmates leaving the jail in the provincial capital shebhergan — the stronghold of former afghan vice—president abdul rashid dostum, whose supporters fight against the taliban.

it comes as all british nationals are being urged to leave the country as violence intensifies between government forces and taliban fighters. the united nations�* special envoy has warned that the country is facing potential catastrophe. richard galpin has more. in the heart of the afghan capital, another assassination. taliban gunmen opening fire on this car, killing the head of the government's media information centre, dawa khan menapal. they'd warned officials would be targeted in response to air strikes by afghan and us forces. the war now increasingly spilling into the capital. but the taliban are also now targeting other key cities in this, their latest offensive. they claim to have captured the city of zaranj in the south—west of the country. officials say, if true, it would be the first provincial capital to fall into their hands in this, the latest

upsurge in fighting. and the taliban claim more will follow. at the united nations in new york, there are now calls for action. the council must act and prevent a catastrophic situation. we are alarmed by reports of incidents of gross human rights violations by the taliban and their foreign terrorist associates in almost half of our country. and we are extremely concerned about the safety and security of people in cities under taliban attacks and what brutality would await them. the question now, though, is what action can be taken, given the taliban advances have been precipitated by the withdrawal of foreign troops from afghanistan. the futures of millions of afghans are at stake. i think the region should very clearly tell the taliban that taliban coming to power through force and continuing the violence is unacceptable. they need to see that their government will not be

accepted and recognised. but for now, at least, it seems unlikely the taliban will stop their offensive. they seem determined to seize as much ground as they can. richard galpin, bbc news. lynne o'donnell is the former kabul bureau chief for the associated press and current writer for foregin policy magazine, who's just returned to kabul from the city of herat near the iranian border. i asked her about the situation on the ground. herat is probably the third biggest city in afghanistan and it's the capital of herat province, which borders iran. it is a very important, wealthy province. a lot of trade goes through the border with iran. the taliban are inside the city and have been for quite some time. there is fighting on the edges. i spent time with military forces who were fighting alongside what is being called �*uprising forces�* — that is citizens

who are being armed and, in the case of herat, being led by a warlord called ismail khan. these militias are very important to the fight across the country because the afghan security forces have been badly let down by their leadership and by the government. they are struggling for logistical resupply and other support and so as the taliban's assault and advance across the country has really frightened afghan people, citizens have been taking up arms, joining these militias and fighting on the front line. that is what i saw. i also saw a city that is incredibly tense. there are a lot of people who are leaving. extra flights were put on yesterday when i came back to kabul. the road to the airport from the city is intermittently taken over by the taliban and then again by the security forces, so flights either go or don't go, some days they are cancelled. yesterday there were more flights,

people bringing everything possibly can with them, including extended family, to kabul to get away from what they fear will be a serious assault on the city. we can cross to mike bushell in the bbc sports centre for a full round—up. other highlights on day 15 of the games in tokyo includes the final of the men's football between brazil and spain. let's start with the diving, mike. the man's tended to fowler has just

finished, it resulted in the 60th battle of the games for team gb. it was another battle between china's superstar divers and tom daly of team gb. tom daly was hoping to spoil the chinese party again. tom daly was overtaken by yang jian, the world champion, whojust kept raising overtaken by yang jian, the world champion, who just kept raising the bar. he took the gold and became the first man in olympic history to win gold in three different disciplines. it was hard in the mouth stuff. let's reflect on the drama, we can speak to somebody who knows all about this sport. matthew dixon is a commonwealth games medallist. the margins in the sport are so fine. most of us can't tell how good a typeface at this level, they all look amazing. it is out of this

world. what was the difference in that final? ., ., ., , ., that final? tom had a little bit of a bad dive _ that final? tom had a little bit of a bad dive on — that final? tom had a little bit of a bad dive on the _ that final? tom had a little bit of a bad dive on the fourth - that final? tom had a little bit of a bad dive on the fourth round. l that final? tom had a little bit of a bad dive on the fourth round. i | a bad dive on the fourth round. i say bad, — a bad dive on the fourth round. i say bad, it— a bad dive on the fourth round. i say bad, it was almost near perfection, just not quite as perfect _ perfection, just not quite as perfect as the chinese were. you want _ perfect as the chinese were. you want to— perfect as the chinese were. you want to get a nice take—off, nice shape _ want to get a nice take—off, nice shape and — want to get a nice take—off, nice shape and go into the water with no splash _ shape and go into the water with no splash and — shape and go into the water with no splash and as upright as you can. he went a _ splash and as upright as you can. he went a little — splash and as upright as you can. he went a little short. that was the only difference. other than that he fought— only difference. other than that he fought with the chinese the whole way. fought with the chinese the whole wax |t— fought with the chinese the whole wa . ., , fought with the chinese the whole wa. ., ., way. it was spectacular. tom does a lot of netting _ way. it was spectacular. tom does a lot of netting when _ way. it was spectacular. tom does a lot of netting when he _ way. it was spectacular. tom does a lot of netting when he is _ way. it was spectacular. tom does a lot of netting when he is diving - way. it was spectacular. tom does a lot of netting when he is diving to i lot of netting when he is diving to keep them calm. all the work that goesin keep them calm. all the work that goes in just for that split second in the air, all those moves in the air to prepare for.—

air to prepare for. tonto is the nettin: air to prepare for. tonto is the netting just — air to prepare for. tonto is the netting just to _ air to prepare for. tonto is the netting just to calm _ air to prepare for. tonto is the netting just to calm himself i air to prepare for. tonto is the i netting just to calm himself down and take — netting just to calm himself down and take as my of diving. it is such and take as my of diving. it is such a mental— and take as my of diving. it is such a mental sport and a drains you a lot. a mental sport and a drains you a lot he _ a mental sport and a drains you a lot he has— a mental sport and a drains you a lot he has a _ a mental sport and a drains you a lot. he has a nice hobby at the side, _ lot. he has a nice hobby at the side, which _ lot. he has a nice hobby at the side, which is going really well, it is att— side, which is going really well, it is all over— side, which is going really well, it is all over his instagram! the -h sical is all over his instagram! the physical side _ is all over his instagram! the physical side of _ is all over his instagram! the physical side of the _ is all over his instagram! [jg physical side of the sport is all over his instagram! tie: physical side of the sport is hard to comprehend. i suppose you train a lot on trampolines. if you enter the water from that height in a room where you can be quite dangerous and hurt. we train with weights, with two a lot of work on the trampoline, or into a foam pit. we do a lot of weights and purityjust training in typing. the contact from the water, we fall around 30 miles an hour. when you do like —— land wrong it will hurt. our muscles will build

strength for that. you have been an inspiration to so many, as has tom. what next for tom daly, could we see him in paris? could we see him in three years? we definitely do it. we honestly don't know _ definitely do it. we honestly don't know i_ definitely do it. we honestly don't know. i have spoken to him and we don't _ know. i have spoken to him and we don't know— know. i have spoken to him and we don't know what he's going to do. he could _ don't know what he's going to do. he could be _ don't know what he's going to do. he could be there in paris, during an individual. — could be there in paris, during an individual, synchronised. he could treat— individual, synchronised. he could treat the— individual, synchronised. he could treat the mixed synchro, if that gets _ treat the mixed synchro, if that gets added. to be honest, i don't really— gets added. to be honest, i don't really know. gets added. to be honest, i don't really know— really know. let's let the dust settle first — really know. let's let the dust settle first of _ really know. let's let the dust settle first of all _ really know. let's let the dust settle first of all on _ really know. let's let the dust settle first of all on a - really know. let's let the dust settle first of all on a brilliant | settle first of all on a brilliant performance by team gb and tom daly. thank you forjoining us. it was great to watch the diving. what else has been going on? it has

been one of— what else has been going on? it has been one of the _ what else has been going on? it has been one of the best _ what else has been going on? it has been one of the best 88 _ what else has been going on? it has been one of the best 88 for - what else has been going on? tit is; been one of the best 88 for the team gb boxing team. now have a gold medal, added to galal yafai he is the hero. he is from a boxing family in birmingham and has two other fighters as brothers. just six years ago he was working in a car factory. he spoke of his dream of becoming olympic champion. now it is reality after beating carlo paalam. his brother typing been tweeting, saying they have been lost for words. it has been an incredible day for him and the whole family. the philippines are now celebrating the silverfor philippines are now celebrating the silver for carlo philippines are now celebrating the silverfor carlo paalam. we used to scavenge around rubbish heaps to make ends meet. boxing is given a way out of poverty, changed his life

around. his medal means it is the best ever olympics for his country, the philippines. it was the woman's marathon earlier. this was moved to the northern city of sapporo, where it is supposedly cooler than tokyo. it was also moved to 6am in the morning, but it was still a sweltering 28 degrees. ia runners didn't finish, including the reigning world champion from calais —— kenya. kenya were able to celebrate winning gold and silver, but maybe not in the order we expected. the world record holder brigid kosgei was overtaken by her compatriot, peresjepchirchir, who won by 16 seconds in the end. also

today, team usa secured a fourth straight olympic gold medal in men's basketball, as they picked france 87, 82. france, they inflicted the usa's first came slow since 200a in the group stage, but it wasn't to be repeated because the favourites, he had underperformed in the build—up, hit their stridejust had underperformed in the build—up, hit their stride just when it mattered most and kevin durant was amazing, the standout player, scoring 29 points. the usa have celebrated another gold in the women's golf. the final round was interrupted by rain and thunderstorms, but nelly korda held her nerve to become olympic champion, finishing on 17 under par. second place went to a japanese athlete. nelly korda finished one shot ahead. the japanese athlete got

the silver, lydia ko got the bronze. families of the victims of the 11th september attacks in america are among those calling on president biden not to attend this year's memorial events unless he declassifies files that they contend will show saudi leaders supported the atrocity. this year marks the 20th anniversary of the attacks in new york, virginia and pennsylvania, which killed nearly 3,000 people. our north america correspondent barbara plett usher explained more about what the group is asking of the president. there's around 1,700 people who have signed this letter and they have long been asking for access to classified government documents on whether the saudi arabian government was implicated in the al-qaeda plot — so whether saudi officials assisted or aided orfunded these hijackers in any way. the saudi government has always said

it was not involved and previous us administrations have refused to declassify the documents, saying that it's a national security issue. now, this letter is saying, look, it's 20 years since this happened. there's just no reason why this information has to be kept secret. and furthermore, joe biden made a campaign pledge to try to resolve this issue, and if he doesn't do so then the people who signed this letter say �*we will feel obliged to publicly stand against him participating in any of the memorial services come september'. so they're basically drawing a line in the sand, and the white house has responded. the white house spokesperson jen psaki said that mr biden was still committed to that pledge. she also said that white house officials had met family members a number of times. but the issue is not — it's not clear how this is going to play out. let's get some of the day's

other news in brief. lawyers for the governor of new york, andrew cuomo, have called into question the results of an independent investigation that found mr cuomo had sexually harassed 11 women while in office. the governor has denied the allegations. earlier, one of mr cuomo's accusers, a former aide, filed a criminal complaint against him. police have arrested two burmese citizens accused of plotting to kill or injure myanmar�*s ambassador to the united nations. khaw moe tun has been a vocal critic of myanmar�*s military rulers. he earlier thanked the us government and un for their protection. the us military�*s central command has announced the results of an investigation into last week's fatal drone attack on a merchant tanker off oman. its experts concluded the drone was made in iran. a british security guard and the ship's romanian captain were killed. tehran had already denied orchestrating the attack. a volunteer firefighter has died

as wildfires spread across greece. the 38—year—old was hit by a falling electricity pole in a suburb of athens. thousands of people have been moved from their homes in the northern suburbs of athens — those who remain have been urged to stay indoors. a short time ago i spoke to the freelance journalist anthee carassava. she lives in ekali and went to an area very close to her house that was under threat. i'm actually at the place where the fire started. we are day four into this, which shows no sign of letting up. you can see some of the smoke behind me. this is one of the locations where several of these fires are raging. as i said, it was the start of this inferno, this is where it started initially, and it is back into this location again, with fresh flare—ups,

kind of leaping to life, even when people thought the situation had been brought under some kind of control. this is along a main motorway, which is acting as a kind of stop between this nature reserve and main residential district. the scramble for the authorities is to block flames that are coming down these slopes from sweeping in and tearing into these residential districts — that would spell complete and utter catastrophe for the capital of greece, athens. altogether we have seen 98 new fires sparked in the last 2a hours, 15a blazing altogether across this country that is under siege by these blazes, and 6a of them actually active as we speak.

this is bbc news. our main headlines: the uk has warned its citizens to leave afghanistan for their own safety, as fighting intensifies between government forces and the taliban. the militants have freed hundreds of inmates from a prison they've captured in the north of the country. and at the olympics, team gb have secured another gold medal, galal yafai beating carlo paalam of the philippines in the flyweight boxing. tom daley won bronze in the men's solo 10 metre diving. social distancing rules have been abandoned in wales with the lifting of most covid restrictions today. for the first time in almost 17 months, nightclubs can reopen and bar service can resume, but face masks are still required by law in shops and on public transport. despite falling covid cases, the country's first minister, mark drakeford, has warned

against a "free—for—all". the university of sussex in southern england is trying to incentivise students to get vaccinated against covid—i9. campus authorities have introduced a raffle with the main prize being a cheque for £5,000. anyone who can prove they've been fullyjabbed or are exempt from a shot can be entered into a draw for the money. in the uk, one of the largest muslim conventions has returned for the first time since the pandemic began. the three—day meeting called jalsa salana is the annual gathering of the ahmadiyya muslim community and takes place in alton in southern england. the bbc�*s atif rashid reports on the first day of the event. this on the first day of the event. is not your ordinary i’( gathering. this is not your ordinary religious gathering. it is taking place on 200 acres of hampshire farmland turned

into a makeshift village and hundreds of volunteers have been working all week to get it ready. i working all week to get it ready. i work as an investment banker, i work in canary wharf, puppetry these three days i will be spending my time getting my hands dirty, picking up time getting my hands dirty, picking up litter, packing up ends, taking up up litter, packing up ends, taking up mass, trying to make the site look as clean as possible. usually, 35,000 peeple — look as clean as possible. usually, 35,000 people from _ look as clean as possible. usually, 35,000 people from around - look as clean as possible. usually, 35,000 people from around the i look as clean as possible. usually, i 35,000 people from around the world to ten, but this year only 10,000 people from the uk are allowed. the ahmadiyya muslim community is a reformist movement within islam, persecuted in other countries it is found refuge here in the english countryside, from where the ahmadiyya caliphs can openly preach his message of peace, patience and prayer. it his message of peace, patience and ra er. , ,., ., prayer. it is something that we constantly _ prayer. it is something that we constantly need _ prayer. it is something that we constantly need to _ prayer. it is something that we constantly need to be - prayer. it is something that we constantly need to be working | prayer. it is something that we i constantly need to be working on, prayer. it is something that we - constantly need to be working on, to be reflecting about and this is an

opportunity for us to get together at this community. i'm very, very excited for the next three days. seeing a lot of old faces i have been able to meet within the last 18 months in time to reflect on their own past two years.— months in time to reflect on their own past two years. please wear your facemasks- _ own past two years. please wear your facemasks. covid _ own past two years. please wear your facemasks. covid has— own past two years. please wear your facemasks. covid has drastically - facemasks. covid has drastically changed this event, with like so many others had to be postponed or cancelled last year. strict measures are being enforced at the reduced numbers, people have to separate their masks on inside of a socially distance marquee. it their masks on inside of a socially distance marquee.— distance marquee. it feels a bit weird wearing _ distance marquee. it feels a bit weird wearing the _ distance marquee. it feels a bit weird wearing the mask - distance marquee. it feels a bit weird wearing the mask all - distance marquee. it feels a bit weird wearing the mask all the | distance marquee. it feels a bit - weird wearing the mask all the time because you can field your breath coming back onto you, but all the restrictions are for our own safety. added to food, i wonder about the exhibition, then everyone takes their seats in the main marquee to listen to speeches and worship together on a scale like this for the first time since pandemic began. the british singer lily allen has made her acting debut

in london's west end and she's revealed she finds the theatre experience far scarier than performing a music concert. afterjust five weeks of rehearsals, the 36—year—old is starring in �*two twenty—two', a supernatural thriller about four friends caught up in a night of high tension. mark lobel reports. the multi—award winner's performed in front of tens of thousands on glastonbury�*s famous pyramid stage. # when do you think it will all become clear? # �*cause i�*m being taken over by the fear #. now in her new incarnation as an actress, following five weeks of rehearsals, she says she really is being taken over by the fear. i know people say, oh, you�*ve been on a stage before, but it is a completely different experience, it�*s kind of like, much scarierfor me.

on stage, lily�*s character examines the supernatural late into the night. as the witching hour approaches, she argues ghosts are like random memories. you mostly ignore them, but every so often one sticks out because it sets off some emotional response, so you share it again. the choice of london�*s noel coward theatre for lily allen�*s west end debut comes with a hint of irony, with her character convinced her home is haunted. apparently, the theatre is haunted, as well. the guy that built the theatre, charles windham, apparently he walks across the stage and goes into the dressing room by the stage, which is lily allen�*s dressing room. as long as he stays in there, that�*s fine. it�*s lily allen�*s problem, it�*s not mine. haunted or not, the outspoken number one selling singer�*s fully aware her surprising move to the theatre dressing room after being approached by a casting director out of the blue, comes with a risk of, well, a premature exit stage left.

the fact that i do live in new york kind of meant there�*s a very clear exit strategy if it all goes terribly wrong. if i was living in london, i probably wouldn�*t have taken the job �*cause i�*d have to live with the consequences, but yeah, no, everything�*s great, it�*s all working out fine. indeed, after a few rave reviews from fans in previews before next week�*s official opening, it looks like the 36—year—old can believe in herself once more, as well as the ghosts they�*re all staying up to see. mark lobel, bbc news. a reminder of our top story: the united states and britain have urged their remaining citizens in afghanistan to leave immediately because of the worsening security situation there. the taliban have seized a provincial capital in southern afghanistan. they�*ve also released hundreds of inmates from a prison they�*ve

captured in the northern province ofjowzjan. you can reach me on twitter. i�*m @lvaughanjones. hello, hello, everyone. i hope you�*re doing all right. well, typically, just in time for the weekend, unsettled conditions will bring us some heavy, thundery unsettled conditions across much of the uk. looking at the big picture, there is the area of low pressure. you can see these weather front swirling around it. not only will this introduce the downpours but also some breezy conditions a time. some heavy rain in wales, this move towards the east. further north, a scattering of heavy showers. will anywhere about this today?

i wouldn�*t hold your breath, really. eastern parts are more likely to get drier and brighter conditions. it is blustery at times. today�*s top temperatures, nothing too exciting, between 15 and 20 celsius. moving through towards this evening, the showers will continue. some of these will generate a lot of rainfall in a short space of time. tonight, they will tend to lose some of their energy. the low temperature tonight between 11—15. let�*s return to the pressure chart. this low is just creeping towards the north, so tomorrow it will bring further unsettled conditions at times, but hopefully we are tipping the balance toward something drier and brighter across many parts. you can see the showers are thinning out across parts of england and wales. this will continue across the north west and southern parts

of scotland initially. we are seeing them across northern ireland, as well. the top temperatures tomorrow will be very similar to today, between 1a and 20. the low pressure will stay with us for the next couple of days. this low pressure will keep us company into next week, as well. it is on the move, then hopefully we will have an area of high pressure building as we head from tuesday into wednesday. that will bring something drier, brighter. temperatures potentially rising a bit in places, as well. but there are some yellow weather warnings in place for thunderstorms today. i will keep you posted and all the very latest online and on the bbc weather app. stay safe.

this is bbc news, the headlines:

afghan officials say the taliban have seized the south—west city of zaranj, the first provincial capital to fall to the militants for five years. during a un emergency meeting to discuss the worsening violence, its envoy to the region demanded the militants end their offensive. the greek government has put almost half of the country�*s regions on high alert as wildfires continue to spread. huge clouds of smoke are billowing over the outskirts of athens. a man�*s been killed in a village north of the city after being hit by a falling electricity pole. at the olympics, there�*s been another gold medal for team gb as galal yafai beat carlo paalam of the philippines in the flyweight boxing. in the men�*s solo 10m diving, it was a china one—two, with britain�*s tom daley taking bronze. now on bbc news, zeinab badawi meets two sublime young opera

stars who are grappling with a new world of opera.