the taliban appears set to announce a new government for afghanistan within days, but the european union and britain have said they won't be recognising it. it comes as the taliban claim progress in their battle to eliminate the final resistance to their rule in the panjshir valley. president biden has praised people in louisiana and mississippi for their response to hurricane ida last sunday. but he noted the frustration at delays in restoring power, and promised that infrastructure would be "built back better". he said the white house would make sure that private insurance companies paid customers who had to abandon their homes. the us president has admitted employment figures showing a sharp drop in employment growth are disappointing. but he said that, with employment still rising, america's economy remained durable and strong.

the senior british commander on the ground in kabul has been speaking for the first time about the evacuation operation. the last of the one thousand british troops returned home at the weekend, after helping to rescue more than 15,000 people. brigadierjames martin says his troops did their duty in the midst of the most harrowing scenes. he's been talking to our defence correspondent, jonathan beale. this is what british troops faced soon after they landed in the cauldron of kabul airport. the desperation of thousands of people trying to flee a country now under taliban control. soldiers trained for combat, trying to instill some order in the chaos. a massive humanitarian mission that's taken its toll. when you are dealing with a very large crowd that is fearful, in fear of its life, crushing, pressing against you,

when women and children are being crushed and, yes, dying, in some cases, in your arms, your agency to deal with the situation and change it is very different than when you're on combat operations. there was emotions all the way through the operations. you can't see a young child, a baby, a woman crushed to death in front of you and then you having to deal with the aftermath of that, you can't see any of that without being emotional. there've been tears? yeah, of course there've been tears. and they did all this while their own lives were under threat. it culminated in a suicide attackjust over a week ago. 13 of their us comrades were killed in the blast, along with more than 150 afghans who were hoping to get on a flight to freedom. it was carnage, it was carnage. when that level of explosion and combination of shrapnel is detonated, there is only one result, and that is carnage.

but the way in which i witnessed our soldiers react to that incident was, you know, one of the finest things i've seen. they ran towards the explosion. they provided immediate medical succour and support to the afghan civilians that had been wounded. brigadier martin himself has done several tours fighting the taliban, who are now back in control, so the question — was it worth it? what price 20 years of freedom for those people? what price no terrorist attacks emanating from afghanistan? so, you know, i put the ball back in your court. is that worth it? in the end, they helped rescue more than 15,000 people. and while questions still remain about the speed of the government's response, who can question the courage, commitment and compassion shown by britain's armed forces? jonathan beale, bbc news. now on bbc news,

the travel show. this week on the show, could ships like this be the future of more sustainable cruise holidays? it can be saving, on the energy, up to eight tonnes per day. we get a new view of an iconic skyscraper that celebrates its 90th birthday this year... welcome to new york city. ..why they can't wait to get the party started again in the bahamas... you are caught up in the rapture. - ..and we share the secret to making the perfect paella in spain. mm! the golden age of sail, where tall ships ruled the seas and followed the prevailing trade winds around the world.

the golden age of sail, where tall ships ruled the seas and followed the prevailing trade winds around the world. it ended with the advent of steam and diesel power in the mid 19th and early 20th century. but now, could we be about to enter another age of sail? this is the golden horizon, the largest tall ship in the world and the biggest of its kind ever made, today is its maiden voyage. you can see them loading on the equipment and the provisions as i talk. now, it's a journey that begins here in dover, and sees it sail on the high seas around the world for the next few years. in that distant pre—covid world

of 2019, a record 30 million passengers worldwide took a cruise. and that figure was projected to grow — and with it, a fear of a negative impact on the environment. well, we all know what happened next. and with cruises starting to resume, we're here to see if things can be done a little differently. horn bellows so, this is the moment. the sails are coming up. well, of course, there's a grand unveiling of what is 42 sails on a five—mast boat. it's pretty incredible, actually. and the music, which they've composed specially, is the background to this. and i've got to be honest, it's a lovely, lovely scenario.

you've got all this going on around you in the most amazing vessel. the golden horizon weighs a whopping 8,770 tonnes and took five years to be built in croatia. it's taking me on a 160—mile journey to the isle of wight, off the south coast of england, before heading to the mediterranean and croatian coast. captain, permission to come on the bridge? yes, permission granted, please. now, look at this. this is really high—tech. and yet, you're the captain of a sailing ship which has got five masts and 42 sails — it's like a combination of the old and new, right? yes, it is. it's not only the sails, what we need. we need the steering, we need that engine for the operation in the port.

we need all this equipment to make the safe navigation of the seas. by using the sails, how much fuel are you saving? if we utilise the sails in their full power, then we are only using the generators to produce the energy we need for the, let's say, cooking, erm, lights, and so on. so, it can be even up to eight tonnes per day, saving on the energy. there are 136 cabins and suites over the ship's four decks. this won't be a cheap holiday, but what's on offer here is very different from one of your regular mass—market traditional cruises. it's obvious that this is a very complex ship to operate, and making things run smoothly takes a lot of skill and teamwork. it's all hands on deck, just to set the sails without any problems. right. i know it's really skilful, but is there any way that i can learn the ropes? i mean, can i have

a go at doing this? well, i think it's not a problem. i think the guys are still setting the sails, so let's go! great, brilliant. ok, so that's for you. yeah. you're holding this rope. yeah. right now, are you ready? so, this guy over there is on the left side of the same sail. yes. he's pulling the left corner of the sail. and we've got to co—ordinate between the two of them? yes. you'll have to keep the same tension on both sides. 0k, we're ready. slowly, slowly — you see how slowly the sails is coming out of the yard. that's the speed that we have to give, like, very slowly. very careful. is this good? yes. god, you feel the responsibility! yes. this is the most critical bit now, is it? yes. you have to be really careful that this corner is not going to get into and out of lock. 0k, stop. secure! now you can be a part of the sail station. they laugh. thank you. brilliant!

the wonderful thing on the small ship, and especially on a sailing ship, is that when we have a lot of wind, when we have a storm, we all need to work together and rely on each other. because sometimes, we also have to go up in the rig on these yards up there, and furl in the sail, if the semi—automatic system doesn't work. so, that creates a lot of bonding. but the only thing that counts here is your skill. so, do you think this is the future? this is true sustainability. and it's also time—proven sustainability, because sailing ships have been around for hundreds of years, and now we are coming back to something that we know already and develop it a little bit further. now, i've got one more thing to try before i head back to land... just come here. yeah. so, here we... 0ne leg. yeah. the other leg... ..and that is to check out the view from the top. so you're going to climb? ok, i'm going to keep

this tensioned. 0k. step... step on this, all the way up. ..and then...step... ..and then... ..step. look ahead. they laugh and then, step... 0h... it's actually a lot higher than i thought. all right. i'll be honest with you... it's scary — and also gets narrower. 0k. and this is the worst bit, for sure. hold on to where, this? this one, and this one. this is also good to hold, because it's not slippery. and this... you might have to pull me. 0k, 0k, 0k, 0k. oh, yes! all right. victory! you got it. that... i've got to be honest with you. that was a little bit frightening. phew! well, the view was well worth it.

this has been such a different experience to being on board a much bigger, more conventional modern cruise ship. and it's really hard to compare the two experiences. clearly, nobody is suggesting that sail power will take the place of engines throughout the entire cruise industry. but the golden horizon and ships like her will open up more sustainable options — and that could encourage more traditional cruise lines to up their game when it comes to things like emissions and waste, which, hopefully, could be a win for everyone. next up, we're off to spain to meet a global gourmet who claims that he has the secret to preparing the perfect paella.

mm! well, stay with us, because still to come on the travel show... ..the caribbean island that's determined that the party will go on... we've had dorian, and now we have covid. and, as we have done with every other crisis before this, we will survive. ..and the empire strikes back in time to celebrate a landmark birthday in new york. the steel is a big part of the history of the building, the fact that it was erected at a rate of four—and—a—half storeys per week.

for two days every winter in nassau, the capital of the bahamas, the city's main street is traditionally transformed into a river of sound and colour. this is the festival ofjunkanoo. it has been documented in the bahamas for over 200 years. but, of course, we believe it started long before that in secret places in dark of night. the story ofjunkanoo dates back to the island's links with the transatlantic slave trade. junkanoo takes place on boxing day and the 1st ofjanuary, traditionally the only days that enslaved africans were given off during the year. i think of our ancestors who were in the crisis of slavery.

and you are no longer owned by you. you are owned by somebody. you are classified as an animal. and in the midst of the horror and the degradation of slavery, you say to yourself, "i cannot be an animal. because when we were back home in the mother country, we had rituals and ceremonies. animals don't have those things." arlene was just four years old when she first danced in the parades, and has even transformed her childhood home into a museum devoted to junkanoo. these are all my costumes in here from different parades. i have the hard part, because i get to dance in them and look pretty and have people admire me all morning. she chuckles ah, the good old days! 0ur costumes have really evolved over the years. in the old days, the costumes

were made from indigenous materials — sponge, leaves, feathers, palm branches, whatever we could find. i tell the children this is sponge—bahama—bob. sponge made its way to bay street, indigenous materials on the parade. and eventually, paper came to be the main medium of costuming, which, for me, is very significant, because africans were not permitted to learn to read and write. the parade begins at the corner of george street and bay street. whenjunkanoos say, "let's go to bay!", it's a rallying cry to go to the parade. when those drums start, and they start to penetrate right into your chest, you are caught up in the rapture of the moment.

so, you are going to hear the pounding of those drums, the shaking of the bells, and you are going to hear a variety of horns. it is the richest experience of the people of the bahamas. and i think our visitors become immersed in that same feeling of expression when they witness it. in 2019, the bahamas was struck by hurricane dorian. and the country's tourist industry has also been dealt another massive blow by the covid pandemic, forcing manyjunkanoo festivities online for the time being. junkanoo itself is the story of resilience. it really is a symbol of how strong and determined we are as a people.

we have had dorian, and now we have covid. and, as we have done with every other crisis before this, we will survive. as we say in the bahamas, "we will bounce back." and that is just a part of "who we is", to put it in bahamian english. to end this week, we're off across the atlantic to one of america's — if not the world's — most famous skyscrapers. the empire state building in new york is celebrating its 90th birthday this year. and although it stopped being the world's tallest building back in the early 19705, there's still something iconic and powerful about this wonder of art deco design and engineering.

well, travel to the united states is still restricted for us here in the uk, so we asked the bbc�*s laura jones, who's based in the big apple, to head to manhattan to wish the empire state a very happy birthday. of the top five tallest buildings in new york, the empire state building is by far the oldest. construction began in 1930 and was finished injust a10 days. the building really captured the imagination of hollywood and ended up playing a pretty big part in the movies itself, like in king kong... ..the rom—com sleepless in seattle, and one of my absolute favourites, the musical on the town.

even today, it's still one of the most visited attractions in new york city, usually welcoming about 4 million people every year who get to come up here and take in those beautiful views. it is amazing to witness their reaction when they step out into any of our observatories, whether it be the 86th floor or the 102nd floor. you can hear them gasp. he oversaw renovations for the brand—new observation deck on the 102nd floor, which opened a few months before the pandemic. we went into the design phase and started thinking about, "how do we get out of the way of the views?" we're able to reveal the beams. you know, the steel is a big part of the history of the building, the fact that it was erected at a rate of four—and—a—half storeys per week. and even though the empire state is one of the world's most recognisable buildings,

it still has its fair share of secrets. this is exciting! just one floor up from the 102nd public observation deck, there's another floor that only vip guests and celebrities get to visit. wow! this is absolutely incredible. welcome to new york city! a tiny viewing balcony on the 103rd floor forms a ring around the building spire. hi there. is it good to go? yes. thank you so much. back down on the ground, there are a few other closely—guarded secrets. siobhan macshane runs an exclusive access—all—areas tour. something you may not know that we have here in the empire state building is an old, abandoned bank vault. i most enjoy bringing guests down here and seeing the expression of surprise. you would never imagine there being a bank vault in the empire state building. but if you can't afford

the $1160 price tag that comes with that tour, here's a little teaser of what you would learn. the vault is made of pure, solid steel and weighs so much that it would be almost impossible to remove it, at this point, from the basement. this actually belonged to one of our original tenants from 1931 that was on the second floor. and the bank knew that they had a lot of leverage with the building, being it the great depression, so they demanded that the building put in a bank vault for them. it looks like i'm planning how to break into it! she laughs thousands of workers, who were known as sky boys at the time, raced to finish the construction of the building injust over a year. but today, there's a much smaller team on the ground keeping things running. tim dailey has worked at the building for six years. he's an engineer who keeps everything safe and running

smoothly, even in its underground wind tunnel. my dad grew up in the depression, 1922. i have relatives that actually worked on this building during the construction. the wind tunnel itself is the lowest level of the empire state building, and this represents technology and workmanship in 1930. the air conditioning was just fresh air and fans. this iconic feature of the new york skyline has been thrilling tourists for 90 years. it's reopened thanks to the hard work of its staff behind the scenes during the pandemic, and it's still just as captivating as when it was first built. happy birthday to the empire state building — still looking good after 90 years. well, that's all we've got time for today. but catch us next week, if you can, when...

..mike�*s in kenya to meet the young performers who are limbering up to get back on stage again... cheering ..and we're discovering some of the dark history behind one of america's biggest psychiatric hospitals, which has become a tourist attraction in its own right. so, hopefully, you can join us for that. in the meantime, don't forget, if you want to check us out online, just search for bbc travel. but for now, from me, rajan datar, and the rest of the travel show team here on the south coast of england, it's goodbye.

hello. weather changes on the way — many areas that have been stuck under cloud for the past week or so, especially in england and wales, gradually breaking out into brighter skies on sunday. if not then, at the start of next week. why? because high pressure is moving away, a flow of air around that bringing something clearer and warmer in from the south—east. where we have seen some sunshine occasionally this week in northern ireland and scotland, a change here to something wetter, gradually, during sunday. it may not be a bad thing, though, where things have been so very dry recently. it's as you were, though, as we start off on saturday morning. a lot of cloud around, some hill fog, some poor visibility, some patches of fog in wales and south—west england, where there may well be a few sunny spells around to begin the day. the cloud in the east thick enough for some drizzly rain at times, and for many, it'll stay cloudy. a few sunny spells trying

to come through northern scotland, northern ireland, more especially wales and south—west england. this easterly breeze, with the cloud, the chance of drizzle as well on the eastern coast of scotland, north—east england, keeping the temperature around 15 celsius. for many, 17—20. into the low 20s, though, in wales and south—west england with prolonged sunny spells. and there mayjust be an increase in sunny spells more widelyjust before sunset on saturday. 0vernight and into sunday, cloud continuing across eastern parts, some clear spells to the west, double figure temperatures as sunday begins. and then on sunday, well, that changes to something a bit brighter and warmer across england and wales. there will still be some stubborn areas of cloud through eastern and central england that will be very slow to clear. but overall, it's a brighter story in england and wale. it'll feel warmer. the breeze picks up in scotland and northern ireland, and still with a bit of uncertainty about timing. we'll see some outbreaks of rain moving in as the day goes on. that moves south overnight and into monday before fizzling out, but on monday, we could well start across central parts of the uk with cloud and some outbreaks of rain. south of that, in some sunny spells on monday, it's going to be warming up, with the warm spots here into the mid—20s. and that warmth on monday is, for tuesday and wednesday,

going to spread northwards. so for tuesday and wednesday, most of the uk are going to be warm to very warm for the time of year, some temperatures reaching into the upper 20s, before another weather change later next week, as we see temperatures come down again and an increasing chance of showers and thunderstorms.

good morning, welcome to breakfast with nina warhurst and charlie stayt. 0ur headlines today: gps are forced to delay flu jabs because of a shortage of hgv drivers, which has disrupted supplies. a mass vaccine rollout for 12— 15—year—olds could still go ahead despite a decision by the government's scientific advisors not to support it. us presidentjoe biden has warned about the dangers of climate change after visiting communities devastated by hurricane ida. a magnificent seventh gold medal, for hannah cockcroft. she's the paralympic champion once again in the t34 800 metres, the first of three golds already today for the british team in tokyo.