this is bbc news. i'm sally bundock with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. president biden says us troops could stay in afghanistan beyond the end of the month, if more time is needed to get every american out. the taliban strengthens its grip on power, as many afghans try to flee their country. who will help us? the people of haiti hit by saturday's powerful earthquake, say there's still no assistance. thousands are moved to safety as firefighters continue to battle blazes from greece to the french riveria. and the prosecutor in the trial

of the singer r kelly, calls him a sexual predator, who groomed and exploited young people. president biden says us troops might stay in afghanistan beyond his deadline at the end of the month, if more time is needed to get every american out of the country. it comes three days after the taliban takeover, which prompted thousands of people to try to leave. here's our north america correspondent, david willis. in correspondent, david willis. the afghan capital, pi scared in the afghan capital, people, scared and desperate are still trying to flee the country. the tell about our coming for me, this girl cries. one of

hundreds pressed to the gates of kabul airport in the hope of joining a flight out. president biden continues to blame the chaos on the craven capitulation of the afghan government and conceded it might not be possible to complete the american withdrawal by the deadline in two weeks time.— two weeks time. americans should understand - two weeks time. americans should understand that - two weeks time. americans | should understand that trips might have to be there beyond august 31st?— august 31st? people will have to understand _ august 31st? people will have to understand that _ august 31st? people will have to understand that we're - august 31st? people will have | to understand that we're going to understand that we're going to try— to understand that we're going to try to— to understand that we're going to try to get it done before theft _ to try to get it done before then. but if you don't... we will— then. but if you don't... we will determine at the time who is left — will determine at the time who is left. �* will determine at the time who is left-- and _ will determine at the time who is left.- and if— will determine at the time who is left.- and if there's - is left. and? and if there's american _ is left. and? and if there's american citizens - is left. and? and if there's american citizens left - is left. and? and if there'sl american citizens left we're going — american citizens left we're going to _ american citizens left we're going to stay until we get them all out — going to stay until we get them all out the biden at the discretion has brokered a deal with— discretion has brokered a deal with the — discretion has brokered a deal with the taliban to allow civilians safe passage to us flights, _ civilians safe passage to us flights, but with checkpoints throughout the city, bottlenecks are bound and the remit — bottlenecks are bound and the remit of — bottlenecks are bound and the remit of these us soldiers doesn't _ remit of these us soldiers doesn't extend beyond the

airport— doesn't extend beyond the airport perimeter. the taliban are in and _ airport perimeter. the taliban are in and around _ airport perimeter. the taliban are in and around kabul- airport perimeter. the taliban are in and around kabul rightl are in and around kabul right now but they are not interfering with our operation. through the state department, the taliban are facilitating the taliban are facilitating the safe passage to the airport for american citizens, that is us passport holders. despite its conciliatory _ us passport holders. despite its conciliatory tone - us passport holders. despite its conciliatory tone if - us passport holders. despite its conciliatory tone if you - its conciliatory tone if you believe the taliban will tolerate any challenge to its leadership. a number of demonstrators were reportedly shot dead in the eastern city of jalalabad after the taliban of jalala bad after the taliban flag of jalalabad after the taliban flag was lowered and the afghan trickle it raised in its place. having promised a more inclusive approach to government, it is unclear what form that might take. professor william maley is the vice—president of the refugee council of australia, and author of several books on afghanistan. good to talk to you again, professor. you and i spoke at the beginning of this week and

you expressed your grave concerns then. what are your thoughts now, given what we have seen in the last few days including that extraordinary press conference held by the taliban? �* , , ., ., taliban? i'm still very alarmed b the taliban? i'm still very alarmed by the trajectory _ taliban? i'm still very alarmed by the trajectory of _ taliban? i'm still very alarmed by the trajectory of the - by the trajectory of the situation in afghanistan. to the taliban have made it quite clear that they have no interest in a democratic political system and that we are staring at the repossession of the kind of autocracy that they ran in the late 1990s. the situation on the ground seems febrile as the events yesterday in jalalabad febrile as the events yesterday injalalabad suggest febrile as the events yesterday in jalalabad suggest and febrile as the events yesterday injalalabad suggest and given the evidence from 2019 that 85% of the population had no sympathy whatsoever for the taliban i think it might only take a couple of clashes for things to spend in a very dangerous direction with possible shooting at crowds and things like that so i think we are farfrom out things like that so i think we are far from out of the woods at this point and so are the afghan people. in

at this point and so are the afghan people.— at this point and so are the afghan people. in terms of the leadership _ afghan people. in terms of the leadership and _ afghan people. in terms of the leadership and what _ afghan people. in terms of the leadership and what this - afghan people. in terms of the leadership and what this new. leadership and what this new government, which is not in place obviously, whatever it will be called going forward, do you think the level of international scrutiny on them will make a difference this time around as opposed to in the 19905? i time around as opposed to in the 1990s?— the 1990s? i don't think we should overestimate - the 1990s? i don't think we should overestimate the i the 1990s? | don't think we . should overestimate the effect on the taliban of international scrutiny, they are more likely to be susceptible to the consequences of specific policies rather than words which they can discount altogether. a crucial issue i think will be what is the impact on the afghan economy of the freezing of the reserve's of the bank, which are held internationally and that could well lead in short order to the collapse of the afghan currency and sharp spike in food prices

as winter looms and this is the kind of combustible environment in which things can get very rough and once the international presence has diminished markedly in kabul, that's i think when there is a real danger that the taliban will take the gloves off and go extremely hard for the people they see as potential leaders of the future.— of the future. because the freezing — of the future. because the freezing of _ of the future. because the freezing of reserves - of the future. because the freezing of reserves you i freezing of reserves you mentioned, that is with some 9 billion us dollars and also the international monetary fund has announced that it will not be providing to afghanistan millions of dollars in funding that they were due to receive next week, so as you say, these will be the pressures that have more impact than the eyes of the world on their every move at the moment.— the world on their every move at the moment. yes. how long those eyes _ at the moment. yes. how long those eyes remain _ at the moment. yes. how long those eyes remain in _ at the moment. yes. how long those eyes remain in place - at the moment. yes. how long those eyes remain in place is l those eyes remain in place is of course a debatable question. i suspected that the united states means what it says, but if you pass the fine print, the

suggestion is that the united states will leave as soon as americans have been evacuated and i think that does raise questions about the evacuation efforts of the government such as the english and australian government which will be looking to the united states to provide security at kabul airport so that the rescue of people who have been associated with those other countries and who are vulnerable as a result can go ahead and i think one nightmare scenario is that the united states will cut and run as soon as it has served its own interests and leave allied governments to the task of rescuing those to whom they own a duty of responsibility. this rescuing those to whom they own a duty of responsibility.— a duty of responsibility. as we were hearing _ a duty of responsibility. as we were hearing their— a duty of responsibility. as we were hearing their and - a duty of responsibility. as we were hearing their and my - were hearing their and my colleague's report, there are several thousand more americans and also afghans who have assisted the american military over those years that need to get out of afghanistan and for the afghans it would seem the taliban is not willing to let them go?—

them go? no. if they do, i suspected _ them go? no. if they do, i suspected will _ them go? no. if they do, i suspected will be - them go? no. if they do, i suspected will be because | them go? no. if they do, i- suspected will be because they try to exact some kind of price from the international community in exchange for providing them with those vulnerable people the opportunity to get to the airport and that will be very difficult to manage. at the moment i can't underestimate the scale of fear which afghans in kabul are feeling at the moment and i have actually heard credible reports of people who had studied abroad now burning their degree certificates in case those qualifications be a basis on which they come under the attack of the taliban even though that's exactly the kind of documentation they may be required to produce by western bureaucracies if they are to be resettled at some point in the future. �* , ., , future. an extremely worrying situation- _ future. an extremely worrying situation. thank _ future. an extremely worrying situation. thank you - future. an extremely worrying situation. thank you so - future. an extremely worrying situation. thank you so much | situation. thank you so much for talking to us, good to get your analysis and just to say later in this programme in around about 20 minutes time we will be looking in more detail at the economic outlook given the news that we have had three

from the imf and also the freezing of assets that we talked about in that interview, more on that later. in other news let's turn to haiti now. the head of the pan american health organization has called on the international community to provide urgent medical personnel and equipment to the country, which suffered a devastating earthquake last saturday. the earthquake is now known to have killed nearly 2,200 people. our correspondent james clayton reports from the village of maarsseleen, near the epicentre of the quake. as you head out from the city of les cayes to rural marceline, the road is marked by landslides... ..and deep cracks. the village is remote and the scale of the damage, catastrophic. rosemary took me to her house. her 15—year—old son was charging his phone when the quake hit. the wall collapsed on him.

translation: these are his books. - he had recently got them so he could start a new year of school. and now, he's gone. i wrap his shirt around my waist. it keeps me strong. when you come to these rural areas, the level of destruction just ups a notch. almost every single house here is completely destroyed. five people were killed in this house alone. and to understand why, you have to look at the cement and rock that these houses are built from. it's really hard to lift this, it's really heavy and of course, when those kinds of walls fall down, they can cause catastrophic injuries. with no sign of aid or help, many people are living on top of the rubble of what was their homes. "do we have to scream

for the government to hear us," this woman says, "or is life over?" the people of haiti feel like they've been forgotten, and in many ways, they have. james clayton, bbc news, marceline. hundreds of firefighters in france have spent a third day battling a fast—moving fire near the french riveria. it's the latest in a string of deadly fires in the mediterranean in recent weeks, amid intense heatwaves. officials have blamed climate change. courtney bembridge reports. this is what firefighters are up against. a fast moving fire fuelled by an intense heat wave. thousands of residents and tourists have been moved to safety, while others went back to inspect the damage after a terrifying escape. translation: the fire arrived about eight o'clock, _ it was so fast. it came from higher up. we tried to control the sparks but it was too intense, so we took refuge

in the vineyards. europe has been ravaged by wildfires this summer, with record temperatures across the mediterranean. greece has been badly head, this is the latest fire burning through one of the last pine forests near athens. residents here were caught by surprised atjust how quickly the flames reached their homes. translation: we watched as it all burned, from the front - and from the back. and there was no—one, no—one here, no want to warn the citizens here with our houses. and we were running, we were running. greece fought more than 100 wildfires this month alone as they battle the severe heat waves. scientists say it is another reminder of the impact of man—made climate change. courtney bembridge, bbc news.

a wildfire near the californian city of sacramento has exploded and grown by a factor of eight in just 2a hours. the caldorfire suddenly expanded on tuesday morning and within a day was consuming more than 53,000 acres. two people have been seriously injured and thousands of residents have been evacuated from the eldorado national forest. it's one of many fires currently raging across the western united states. stay with us on bbc news, still to come: new york's central park becomes an impromptu battlefield as teams of knights battle it out in full medieval armour. the big crowds became bigger as the time of the funeral approached. as the lines of fans became longer, the police prepared for a huge job of crowd control.

idi amin, uganda's brutal former dictator, has died at the age of 80. he's been buried in saudi arabia, where he lived in exile since being overthrown in 1979. two billion people around the world have seen the last total eclipse of the sun to take place in this millennium. it began its journey off the coast of canada, ending three hours later, when the sun set over the bay of bengal. this is bbc news, the latest headlines: president biden has defended his decision to withdraw us troops from afghanistan, insisting there wasn't a way for them to

leave "without chaos ensuing." desperation in haiti — as hundreds of thousands hit by saturday's powerful earthquake — say there's still no assistance. many of the afghans who want to come to the uk worked alongside british forces and diplomatic staff in the 20 years since the invasion following the 9/11 terror attacks. britain's ambassador in afghanistan says the aim now is to fly out about 1,000 people a day, but he admitted that time was limited. our special correspondent lucy manning has been speaking to one afghan interpreter who is desperate to escape with his family to britain. faces hidden to try to protect them, but a message they want this country to see, uk, please do not leave us. ahmed, not his real name, was an interpreterfor british forces, now

he needs action, not words. trapped in afghanistan. life has ended for us when kabul collapsed. we arejust... we arejust left behind in a dark tomb. last week, before the taliban's advance, he was finally given permission to come to the uk. the family celebrated. the next morning, he woke to find kabul had fallen. he's now hiding. the taliban, some of the spokespeople have talked about not wanting revenge, but do you feel they will come after you for being an interpreter? the taliban are not to be trusted, as you know. if they find me, there will be no mercy. i did a lot information, shoulder to shoulder with the british army, like family, like a brother. it is a major truth

for me, if they know me, there will be no mercy. ahmed worked with uk soldiers for three years. he said during fighting, the taliban were targeting interpreters as they were the eyes and ears of the forces. british soldiers were my brothers. i served my country and i served great britain forces. i never complained about that, but the situation is now worse. everyone who worked with coalition forces will need to be relocated as soon as possible. a small team of british officials are trying to get some of the trapped and frightened britons and afghans to the uk. but while they have made it onto planes, many more wait outside the airport, even more stay hidden at home, unsure how they will get out. how long have we got? it really depends on other things outside our control, the security situation, the approach of the taliban. we're working on the basis of days, not weeks. ahmed now uses his

english skills to plead for a way out. is there a message you would like to give to the prime minister about your family's situation and what help you need? ijust want him to provide a pathway to safety for me and my family. and i beg him. lucy manning, bbc news. the prosecutor in the trial of the american r&b singer r kelly has called him a sexual predator, saying he targeted, groomed and exploited young people. the 54—year—old is on trial in new york charged with sexual abuse, kidnapping and bribery. the musician denies all charges, but if found guilty, could face between 10 years and life in prison. samira hussein reports. r kelly is one of the most successful artists of all time. sometimes called the king of r&b, kelly has been credited with redefining r&b music. but for the last two years, the embattled musician has been behind bars. r kelly and members

of his entourage open some people's eyes, what we have known for the past five years, and start this journey, because we knew something wasn't right and whatever did it had to stop. in wasn't right and whatever did it had to stop.— it had to stop. in those opening _ it had to stop. in those opening statements, l it had to stop. in those _ opening statements, prosecutors said kelly targeted, groomed and exploited young girls and boys of his own satisfaction. that this case was not about a celebrity who likes to party, but a sexual predator. in his defence, kelly's lawyer argued that he was the victim, but the women were liars who misrepresented their ages, and had benefited from his fame and money. it is a spectacular fall from grace for one of the most successful artists of all time. once referred to as the king of ireland be, if kelly is convicted of all counts, he faces ten years to life in prison. —— king of r&b.

allegations of sexual abuse are not new for kelly, but the only time he has previously faced criminal charges, in 2008, he was acquitted. several of our kelly's alleged victims are expected to testify against him, unlike his previous trail backin him, unlike his previous trail back in 2008. and these charges are more serious, and come at a time in which the culture has changed. the me too movement has made it much harderfor rich, famous abuses to hide their misdeeds. now let's spring up to date on all the latest sports news. hello, i mike edwards with sport. the fifth and final women's major of the year gets under way on thursday would be open taking place at carnoustie in scotland. thanks to deep bunkers, fast fairways and a seabreeze which often picks up, there is a reason it is known as car musty. there is a reason it is known as car musty-— as car musty. probably the trickiest — as car musty. probably the trickiest british _ as car musty. probably the trickiest british open - as car musty. probably the trickiest british open i - as car musty. probably the | trickiest british open i have

played out. i have heard a lot about this place. i have watched it, when the guys played a few years ago, and obviously it has held the championship a lot of times. but i think you have to be strategic, you play with what you get, and i'm just going to enjoy about here. it is going to be a great experience, and i'm excited to be at a golf course where so much —— weather is so much history. course where so much -- weather is so much history.— is so much history. meanwhile that could _ is so much history. meanwhile that could be _ is so much history. meanwhile that could be a _ is so much history. meanwhile that could be a changer, - is so much history. meanwhile that could be a changer, a - that could be a changer, a record of purse on offer at carnoustie. a5 $.8 million total prize fund, double the prizemoney of the 2018 edition. the winner will bake a huge $870,000. fabulous news for the players and for the women's game as a whole. it players and for the women's game as a whole.— game as a whole. it is phenomenal- game as a whole. it is phenomenal and - game as a whole. it is phenomenal and it. game as a whole. it is phenomenal and it isl game as a whole. it is - phenomenal and it is fantastic to hear that, and that this is now actually happening. you know, we can and we doubt we want to play for big prize funds, and itjust recognises what an amazing event this is. to me, it is the biggest event in women's golf, so it is great news for all of us players.

tennis, and top world number one ashleigh barty is through to the third round of the cincinnati masters, as we build continues to the final grand slam of the us open. ashleigh barty had a bye in the opening round and was playing for the first time since her shocked around exit at the olympics. she beat great britain's heather watson in straight sets but was made to work hard for her victory. ash barty taken all the way to a tie—break in the second, 6—4, 7—6. former world number one and reigning cincinnati champion victoria azarenka will be her next round opponent. while over in the men's draw common anti— murray is out of the cincinnati masters after losing tonight seed and wimbledon semifinalist hubert hurkacz. having seen of richard gasquet in the previous round, murray was unable to continue his run against the polish world number 12. murray is a two—time champion in cincinnati, but lost a tie—break in the first set before being broken late in the second, going out 706, six item three. formula 1's japanese grand prix is due to take place

in october but has been cancelled due to the rising number of covid cases in the country. if one says the decision to cancel the grand prix was taken by the japanese government, with the revised calendar for the season to be revealed in the coming weeks. belgian cyclist yasmin phillips won wednesday's fifth stage of the vuelta e espana to claim his second stage victory at this year's race. phillipson won a sprint for the line, edging out fabiojakobsen to replace him in the greenjersey as the leader of the points application. the overnight leader, at intel eight was caught up in a crash near the end, and lost more than two minutes. the race leader is now frenchman ken emerson. that is all your spotify now. from me, mike edwards, and the rest of the team, goodbye. when you think of knights in shining armour, you no doubt think of medieval europe. pitched battles involving broadswords, chainmail and lances. now, some of those conflicts

are being re—enacted, but in a venue you might not expect, as the bbc�*s tim allman explains. it was another age, another place, a time, we are told, of chivalry, honour and violence — lots and lots of violence. now you can try it out for yourself, here in new york's central park. these are gladiators nyc, a group who meet up once a month, put on steel armour and then attack each other. it is a combination of mediaeval compact and mixed martial arts, although there is not much chivalry involved. victory is really not the main point of the fighting for me. i am nowhere near good enough to compete for any sort of place or title or medals. i don't have the time, i don't have the energy, i don't have the money for the kit. so i'm just here for the violence — dish and receive. this is pretty gruelling stuff.

the armour can weigh up to 45 kilos or more, and it was all the brainchild of a former gladiator of wall street who says he's trying to make a positive difference. we just hit the core of it, which is, be healthy, do fitness. when you start to do more fitness, you eat more healthy, you change your lifestyle, and now we are saving lives. it is a free programme available to anyone who is interested. a chance to improve your fitness and, who knows, become a knight of the big apple. tim allman, bbc news. things to do in the big apple. we've got so much more to come in the programme. the top business stories, including a look at how the dairy industry can milk its market but at the same time fight greenhouse gas emissions. we'll be answering that question as well.

hello. it feels a little bit like our weather has been sulking so far this week — kind of stuck in a rut of grayness and lingering cloud. it's not in a great hurry to get out of that position through today, either. we did see some sunshine on wednesday across central and eastern england, and i'm hopeful we will see some for at least a time today — this break in the clouds ahead of a weak weather front coming in from the west. so through the morning, some sunnier skies working their way eastwards, perhaps something a bit brighter behind that band of showery rain further west for the afternoon. but still, a lot of cloud for many of us, and temperatures a little down on where they should be for the time of year. a few heavier showers roaming around through the evening, but overnight, guess what — it's all pretty quiet and light

winds, a lot of cloud, quite misty and murky around the coast and for the hills. friday daytime, looking at that chart, you think, oh, things might start to get moving. well, not in any great hurry, i'm afraid. this weather front will push some rain into northern ireland through the day, throwing some showers towards wales, as well. potentially, though, with a little bit of a strengthening southerly breeze, we could break the cloud up a little bit more across southern and eastern england. looking pretty gloomy and murky there across scotland and generally across the northern half of the uk. for the weekend, however, this low will make a bit more of an effort, and friday into saturday, this front pushes slowly further eastwards. the notable thing that it does, though, is drag up some warmer air from the south for central and eastern england. so after a week where temperatures have sat below average, we could actually see some significantly warmer weather, at least briefly this weekend. but there is a price to pay. saturday, we will see, i think, temperatures getting up into the mid—20s across central and eastern england with some sunshine. but coming into the west, some heavier and more persistent rain, some

strengthening winds, as well as that area of low pressure finally gets down to business. for sunday, even more widespread showers, i think, as the low pressure sits across the uk. and we start to lose that southerly airstream as the low shifts, temperatures edge down yet again. a bit drierfor monday, but still a little on the cool side.

this is bbc news with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. the imf holds back funds from afghanistan, as international organisations grapple with whether the taliban can be recognised as its government. how canthe dairy industry fight greenhouse gas emissions when a quarter of global emissions comes from food production? with many cinemas closed and others operating at half capacity it takes courage to release a new film in india, i'll talk to a producer who is doing just that.