welcome to newsday, reporting live from singapore. i'm karishma vaswani. the headlines: a court hearing's happening now that could spell the end for britney spears' conservatorship. he's set to be japan's new prime minister. but who is fumio kishida? translation: no matter who becomes the leader of the _ translation: no matter who becomes the leader of the ruling _ translation: no matter who becomes the leader of the ruling party, _ translation: no matter who becomes the leader of the ruling party, i- translation: no matter who becomes the leader of the ruling party, i do - the leader of the ruling party, i do not think it will make any big difference. a british woman, sarah everard, who was raped and murdered in march had been falsely arrested and kindapped by a police officer. and how the trade in wildlife trafficking is returning to asia despite the coronavirus pandemic.

live from our studio in singapore, this is bbc news. it's newsday. it's 6am in the morning here in singapore and 3pm in the afternoon in los angeles, where a court hearing is taking place that could bring an end to britney spears' conservatorship, a legal arrangement that prevents the troubled singer having control of her life. after much public controversy, the spears family all now seem to agree the conservatorship should end. but how to do it and what role, if any, britney's father james spears should play will depend on thejudge's ruling. i'm joined now by sophie long live in los angeles. outside the courthouse right now. sophie, in the first instance, what

are we expecting to hear today? what is happening right now? i am are we expecting to hear today? what is happening right now?— is happening right now? i am afraid he cannot hear— is happening right now? i am afraid he cannot hear you _ is happening right now? i am afraid he cannot hear you very _ is happening right now? i am afraid he cannot hear you very well, - is happening right now? i am afraid he cannot hear you very well, it - he cannot hear you very well, it suddenly got very loud here, there is very loud support for britney spears and has been throughout the morning here. the hearing is now under way. morning here. the hearing is now underway. members morning here. the hearing is now under way. members of the free britney movement have been tweeting what is going on. there is no mobile phone usage allowed in that court. but it seems there won't be a determination on the conservatorship today. britney spears lawyer has argued there should be and a potential termination in 30—45 days, but what he has argued for very clearly is that jamie spears, britney spears father, should be suspended as conservator with immediate effect. he said that he is going to give testimony to the fact he had abused her. jamie spears's

lawyer is denying that at this stage, but it does seem that what britney spears legal team is pushing for today is that jamie spears should be removed as conservator. they want the conservatorship itself to continue for 30—45 days. that's all we are getting out from the court at the moment. it started about an hour ago. it is likely to go on for another hour or so, so we won't have any definitive ruling certainly till then. there are certainly till then. there are certainly multiple possible outcomes they could come from the hearing. one is that the judge could remove jamie spears and replace them as conservative her. what many here hoping for here is that the conservatorship is removed completely. thejudge conservatorship is removed completely. the judge could conservatorship is removed completely. thejudge could deny both positions they have had apply to the court. it is unlikely that will be the result of today's hearing. will be the result of today's hearinu. , ., ., ~ ,, will be the result of today's hearinu. , ., ., ~ i. ., hearing. sophie long, thank you for “oininu us hearing. sophie long, thank you for joining us from _ hearing. sophie long, thank you for joining us from what _ hearing. sophie long, thank you for joining us from what seems - hearing. sophie long, thank you for joining us from what seems to - hearing. sophie long, thank you for joining us from what seems to be i joining us from what seems to be a very busy scene outside the

courthouse. i am sure you will keep us updated. meanwhile, i want to bring you this story. there are at least 220 female judges currently hiding in afghanistan. most have passed judgment in legal cases involving violence against women and the men they sent to prison are now threatening to kill them. the bbc has spoken to one of the judges who is terrified about the future. her words are spoken by a translator. translation: i'm one - of the judges in afghanistan. i studied very hard at the faculty of law and i completed the legal course. i worked in different courts. i worked as an active judge for eight years, until the day when the taliban took over. i dealt with different cases, such as kidnapping, human smuggling, migrant smuggling, membership in groups such as is and the taliban and so on. with the taliban takeover, judges like me live in fear. we live with anxiety and depression. we are not safe. i am so scared. i live in fear and in hiding. i am not safe at all.

some of the prisoners who have been freed are a danger to us. judges feel most scared of them. i know some have been going to the court to find out addresses forjudges. somejudges have been followed and threatened. we are living in a dark time. i had to leave my house and live somewhere else. i don't want anyone to find me. they are chasing us. marzia babakarkhail was one of afghanistan's female judges and is now living in england. she describes her experiences when the taliban were first in power. they tried to kill me when they became in power in 1997. the taliban came in our house and they searched our house to find me and shoot me, because of myjob, because of my career, because i tried to empower women in my town. and the second time in pakistan, again, i established a school for refugees,

again, my title was with me as a judge, they ran over a car on me, put me... that was my experience with the taliban. and every day when i receive messages, just i am crying because i am a very hopeless and powerless person. please provide emergency visa for the femalejudges. they need safety. they need security. their children are in a very bad place, just as my message on behalf of the female judges in afghanistan. marzia ba ba karkhail there, marzia babakarkhail there, talking about the plight of afghan female judges threatened by the taliban. let's take a look at some of the stories in the headlines in the uk. the leader of britain's main opposition labour party, keir starmer, has made a stinging attack on prime minister boris johnson, calling him "a trickster" and "a showman with nothing left to show".

after last year's virtual conference, he also apologised to supporters who felt his party were unelectable at the last general election. to the voters that thought we were unpatriotic or irresponsible, or that we looked down on them, i say these simple but powerful words — we will never, under my leadership, go into an election with a manifesto that is not a serious plan for government! the fuel situation in the uk is starting to improve, british prime minister borisjohnson has said, as he urged drivers to fill up their cars in the "normal way". he said the situation at fuel stations was "stabilising" and people should be "confident" to go about their business, after days of queues and pump closures. a british court has heard how an off—duty policeman performed a fake arrest using handcuffs to convince a woman that she was being detained for breaching

coronavirus regulations. the policeman, wayne couzens, has admitted raping and murdering sarah everard in march. the case sparked an outcry against male violence towards women. our special correspondent lucy manning reports. "she was my precious little girl," said sarah everard's mother. "i can never talk to her, never hold her again. i am tormented at the thought of what she endured." that was at the hands of wayne couzens, in handcuffs when he was arrested at home, telling lie after lie. he'd already kidnapped, raped, murdered and burnt sarah. he's asked if he knows her. do you know sarah? i don't, no. within minutes, he's pretending he's handed sarah over alive

to an eastern european gang. as sarah walked from her friend's house, couzens was hunting for a victim. this, the moment of that deception. his car on the pavement, hazard lights on, he stops sarah. his arm outstretched, showing her his warrant card. using his handcuffs, he arrests her. he'd previously been on covid patrols, so knew what to say. witnesses see sarah with her arms behind her back, but they think it's an undercover police operation. it was kidnap. he used all the equipment and knowledge of being a police officer to do it. couzens sat in the dock, never lifting his head. sarah's family and friends listened to the devastating detail that is their daily reality. in the hours after kidnapping her, there was a mixture of the banal and the evil.

after dumping sarah's body in woods in kent, he stops at costa coffee to get a hot chocolate. police think he's raped and murdered sarah by this time. the next day, he goes to buy a green can and fills it up with petrol. he returns to the woods and burns sarah's body in a fridge. later, it's dumped in water. he goes back again to the woods for a family trip with his wife and children, just days after he'd left sarah's remains there. sarah's family remained so dignified as they told the court about sarah and about what they had lost. her father and sister asked couzens, who had his head bowed, to face them. couzens started shaking. mr everard told him, "sarah was handcuffed and unable to defend herself. this preys on my mind all the time. i can never forgive you for taking sarah away from us. all my family want is sarah back. you have broken our hearts."

couzens has still never explained what exactly happened that night. a police officer betraying his uniform, a family left with no answers and without sarah, and a woman who had her life, herfuture, taken. lucy manning reporting there on that case with sarah everard. in other news, north korean leader kim jong—un says has no reason to hurt or provoke south korea. kim jong jong—un says has no reason to hurt or provoke south korea. kimjong un also has expressed a willingness to restore hotlines in october. he accused the us of continuing with its hostile policy towards his regime. he levelled the us offer for dialogue as facade. to impose my comments come a day after north korea conducted three missile tests this month that include successful testing of a new hypersonic missile.

you're watching newsday on the bbc. still to come in the programme: the bbc�*s life at 50 degrees series looks at how global warming is drying up usthe us's once mighty colorado river.

this is newsday on the bbc. i'm karishma vaswani in singapore. our headlines: a court hearing is under way in los angeles that could spell the end for britney spears conservatorship. two female judges britney spears conservatorship. two femalejudges in britney spears conservatorship. two female judges in afghanistan britney spears conservatorship. two femalejudges in afghanistan have spoken to the bbc about their fears of retribution from the taliban and others. over 20 femalejudges of retribution from the taliban and others. over 20 female judges are in hiding and desperate to get out.

japan's governing liberal democratic party has elected a new leader. fumio kishida is set to become the country's prime minister within days after winning a tight election within his party. he replaces yoshihide suga, who resigned after only a year in office partly because of his handling of the coronavirus pandemic. mariko oi reports. meetjapan�*s soon—to—be 100th prime minister, who will most certainly be confirmed on the 4th of october by parliament, after winning the ruling party's leadership election. fumio kishida, just like many other lawmakers injapan, comes from a family of politicians. the former foreign minister is known as a moderate liberal, so he's expected to steer the ruling party slightly to the left. and while his critics describe him as bland and boring, he's known to stand for stability. he's long been seen within the party as a consensus builder and a future leader who had the backing

of its elders. translation: from today, i will with all my energy - get straight to work. party members around the country and members of parliament, please work with me. mr kushida is well—known for his advocacy for nuclear disarmament, who helped realise the then—us president barack obama to visit hiroshima in 2016. but he wasn't the most popular among voters. and as he has to call the general election before the end of next month, he needs to gain the support from the public, who don't know him too well. his victory was greeted with mixed views. translation: from the candidates' i policies, i feel that all of them i are thinking about people and doing various things for us. but among them, i personally was convinced by kushida's proper policies. translation: no matter who becomes

the leader of the ruling party, _ i don't think it will make any big difference. however, with kushida, the bureaucrats will get to work. in that sense, i think he will run the next administration smoothly. translation: the current prime minister lacks - popularity a little bit. when it comes to popularity, appearances matter a lot - when you show up in the media, so i think kushida is good - because of his physical appearance. the party's popularity has already suffered after the government pushed ahead to host the tokyo olympics despite strong public opposition. so far, he's promised to spend billions of dollars to help the world's third—biggest economy recover from covid restrictions. china was also high on the agenda, and mr kushida has accused beijing of wanting to export its authoritarian system. ahead of the general election, voters will be watching how he aims to balance relations with the us and china. mariko oi, bbc news.

well, let's take a look at some other stories in the headlines. divisions in the democratic party in the us are threatening presidentjoe biden�*s $1 trillion infrastructure bill. the bill has already passed the senate, and must now be voted through by congress on thursday. although the democrats control congress by a small majority, progressives in biden�*s party are threatening to vote down the bill unless another multitrillion package is promised for social spending and climate change. next year's winter olympics and paralympics in beijing will be held without fans from overseas with tickets restricted to fans living in mainland china because of the covid—19 pandemic. the international olympic committee also said only fully vaccinated participants would be exempt from serving a 21—day quarantine upon arrival unless an athlete can provide a "justified medical exemption". lava from a volcano on la palma has now reached the sea, ten days

since it first began erupting. thousands have been evacuated as the lava has now engulfed nearly 530 houses and several banana plantations. spain has labelled the island a disaster zone, promising financial aid. conservation groups in south east asia have warned of a recent increase in wildlife trafficking and consumption. over the past two months, authorities have seized 50 rhino horns in malaysia and 17 tigers from a basement in vietnam. consumer demand for wildlife fell at the start of the pandemic, when it was believed that covid—19 had originated in a wet market in wuhan, china, but people's appetite for illegal wildlife in the region is returning. for more on this, i am joined now by the bbc world service environment correspondent navin singh khadka. great to have you on newsday, navin.

in the early days of the pandemic, people stayed away from wildlife, didn't they? because they were scared of catching covid. what has changed now?— scared of catching covid. what has chanced now? ~ . �* ., ., changed now? what we're hearing from cam aiuners changed now? what we're hearing from campaigners is — changed now? what we're hearing from campaigners is that _ changed now? what we're hearing from campaigners is that because _ changed now? what we're hearing from campaigners is that because of - changed now? what we're hearing from campaigners is that because of this - campaigners is that because of this unsettled state of the origin of the virus, as you know, scientific community or even intelligence committee are divided over whether it was a spill—over from animal to human or was it a lab leak, and scientists are saying that it will take many years for us or reach a conclusion, and so wildlife can pin her telling me that this unsettled state has kind of led to people being less reluctant, or let's say more relaxed, in terms of consuming wildlife. in the meantime, we're also seeing an increased number of seizures, so they are very worried we might be heading back to the scene the pandemic levels of wildlife consumption.- scene the pandemic levels of wildlife consumption. navin, how

widescale is _ wildlife consumption. navin, how widescale is the _ wildlife consumption. navin, how widescale is the problem? - wildlife consumption. navin, how widescale is the problem? or- wildlife consumption. navin, how| widescale is the problem? or how widescale is the problem? or how widescale are people concerned about the problem becoming? there widescale are people concerned about the problem becoming?— widescale are people concerned about the problem becoming? there has been no stud in the problem becoming? there has been no study in terms _ the problem becoming? there has been no study in terms of _ the problem becoming? there has been no study in terms of how— the problem becoming? there has been no study in terms of how many - the problem becoming? there has been no study in terms of how many people | no study in terms of how many people are really going back like that, or surveys, but what campaigners but why life investigators are telling us is that they have suddenly spoken to people and have found that this relaxed attitude, and in the meantime, as you said, so many seizures in vietnam or in thailand, and just last year, or in 2019, after the outbreak of the pandemic, there have been reports that in the greater mequon region or loman cong region, there has been telling all this wildlife products — in one report, they found 80,000 different wildlife products in more than 1,000 outlets —— mekong region. and also in the meantime, there have been major seizures in africa, and

investigators... regular destination hot spots. investigators... regular destination hot sots. . ., ., hot spots. navin, what are authorities _ hot spots. navin, what are authorities doing - hot spots. navin, what are authorities doing about. hot spots. navin, what are | authorities doing about this hot spots. navin, what are - authorities doing about this given the scale of the problem you've described? this the scale of the problem you've described?— the scale of the problem you've described? �* , ~ ., ., ., described? as we know, china and vietnam, described? as we know, china and vietnam. they _ described? as we know, china and vietnam, they have _ described? as we know, china and vietnam, they have introduced - described? as we know, china and - vietnam, they have introduced bands, as you know. china for instance, basically it's about certain terrestrial wildlife, in terms of food. similar restrictions, a similar ban in vietnam, but the issue here is that these countries, in china, or instance, they allowed traditional use of medicines or even ornaments, and experts are telling me that these are loopholes, and even when these countries are trying to implement those bands, the market is so entrenched, it is a huge area, enforcement is really challenging. in the meantime, because of the border restrictions, suppliers are offering discounts. that's a huge

challenge. offering discounts. that's a huge challenue. . ,, ., challenge. navin singh khadka, the bbc world service's _ challenge. navin singh khadka, the bbc world service's environment i bbc world service's environment corresponded, thank you forjoining us on newsday. in our latest film for the bbc�*s life at 50 degrees series, we have travelled to the colorado river, which once ran through from the us down to mexico. but for years now, the river has dried up long before it reaches the sea. traditionalfishing communities are being put at risk, whilst at the same time, rising temperatures are threatening lives in mexico's cities. alejandra martins has sent this report. this used to be water. for years now, it's been dust. the colorado river used to be the lifeblood of this community. because of climate change, there is less water to go around and most of the rest is used upstream for agriculture.

antonia's mother blames the us for using more than its fair share. but the us says it is meeting its water commitments to mexico. with climate change, the whole region is becoming drier and hotter. in the nearby city of mexicali, police are responding to yet another heat—related emergency.

authorities say it is mainly vulnerable people such as the homeless who are affected. medics told us that some get so hot that their internal organs begin to cook. a total of 422 people in the state of baja california suffered heat—related illnesses over the summer. in the city of mexicali, 27 of these people died. meanwhile, the impossible has happened. after a long campaign, the us has released 43 million cubic litres of water to fill the river this summer.

alejandra martins there. i want to bring you some breaking news now, and our leading story, that court case involving britney spears and her conservatorship. the judge case involving britney spears and her conservatorship. thejudge has just ruled that the singer's father should be suspended from his role in the conservatorship, which runs her personal affairs. the conservatorship, which runs her personalaffairs. it's the conservatorship, which runs her personal affairs. it's according to the reuters news agency. but it appears the conservatorship will continue at least for now, just to give his background to this. a los angelesjudge according give his background to this. a los angeles judge according to the news wires suspended the father of britney spears from that 13 years long role as the comptroller of the singer's business affairs. we are looking at life pictures right now of celebrations outside the courthouse. and currently what we're understanding is that the judge has said the current situation is not tenable. it reflect a toxic

environment which requires the suspension ofjamie spears environment which requires the suspension of jamie spears effective today. we will try and get the latest from our correspondent who is at the courthouse on later editions. thanks forjoining us. hello there. after what was a mostly dry and clear end to wednesday for most of us, the weather steps up a gear through thursday and into the weekend. with spells of rain, some strong winds, some drier, brighter interludes in between, but the culprit — no prizes for guessing — is low pressure. and this frontal system pushing in from the west is going to bring rain for many of us through the day ahead, with some quite brisk winds as well, particularly in western areas. gusts across western scotland for a time in excess of 50mph. through the day, we will see cloud, we will see outbreaks of showery rain on and off with some drier interludes. best chance of any sunshine across northeast scotland and maybe for a time in the far southeast of england. those are the average wind speeds through the afternoon. gusts will be stronger than that. temperatures ranging from 13

degrees in aberdeen to 17 in cardiff and in plymouth. now, through thursday night, we will see more cloud, more showery rain, and then through the early hours of friday, it looks like we'll have a band of really heavy rain and potentially some quite squally winds that will start to work eastwards, but a much milder night in prospect, with temperatures for many places staying in double digits. so this band of heavy rain and strong winds will cross east anglia and the southeast through friday morning. behind that, england and wales will see some sunshine, but scotland and northern ireland seeing further outbreaks of rain, very windy, with gusts in excess of 50mph across parts of scotland particularly, and temperatures between 13 and 17 degrees. and then we get to the weekend and this frontal system running in from the west could spell trouble, could spell disruption for some, bringing some very heavy rain and then potentially spinning into a really deep area of low pressure drifting northwards across the uk, with the risk of gales, perhaps most especially across scotland, and heavy rain affecting

most areas at times. so saturday may start off dry for many of us, but it looks like we'll see some really very heavy and persistent rain working in from the southwest, maybe northern scotland staying just about dry. the winds picking up as well. and then through saturday night, that's when we're expecting an area of low pressure to develop. the detail may change between now and then, but we could see a bout of very strong winds drifting across scotland, some rain continuing here into sunday. sunshine and heavy showers further south and top temperatures to end the weekend between 12 and 17 degrees.

this is bbc news the headlines. a court hearing's is under way in los angeles that could spell the end for brightening spears conservatorship a legal arrangement that prevents the troubled singer having control of her life. two female judges in afghanistan have spoken to the bbc about their fears of retribution from the taliban and others over 220 femalejudges are in hiding and desperate to get out. japan's governing liberal democratic party has elected a new leader fumio kishida. he's set to become the country's prime minister within days. mr kishida won after a tight election within his party. and lava from a volcano on la palma has now reached the sea, ten days since it first began erupting. lava has now reached the cd ten days sendsit lava has now reached the cd ten days sends it first began erecting it lipoma. thousands have been evacuated as the lava has now engulfed nearly five hundred and 30 houses and several banana plantations.