welcome to newsday. reporting live from singapore, i'm mariko oi. the headlines: violence and shooting in lebanon. six people are killed after snipers attack a protest led by the shia group hezbollah. we can hear regular bursts of automatic gunfire, we can hear the thump of rpgs like that one. we've seen somebody shooting from the top of a building and the army now trying to work out how to contain the situation, which escalated so rapidly. we'll be speaking to a prominent lebanese analyst about what prompted the violence and where the country might be heading. also on the programme:

taiwan's deadliest blaze in decades. questions about poor safety standards after 46 people are killed in a high—rise apartment block fire. we visit south sudan, where — like many african countries — very few people have been vaccinated and the covid virus is spreading. and coldplay�*s environmentally friendly world tour — a tree planted for every ticket sold — but they're keeping their private jet. live from our studio in singapore, this is bbc news. it's newsday. it's 6am in the morning in singapore and 1am in lebanon,

where a national day of mourning has just begun for six people shot dead in violent clashes in the center of the capital beirut. there have been international calls for calm, with the united nations, the us and france all urging a de—escalation of the tensions. gunfire erupted during a demonstration by shia muslim groups against the judge investigating last year's devastating port blast. from beirut, anna foster has the latest. it started as a protest. but the tension quickly mounted. within minutes, it became a battlefield. nobody knows yet who started the shooting. rapid gunfire but the exchanges of gunfire between christian and shia armed groups stirs ghosts of the country's civil war.

for hours, shooting echoed through the streets of beirut. not everyone survived. translation: my wife was hiding downstairs, | but our neighbour was killed. she was shot in the head with a bullet. she had kids, her daughter got married just two days ago. it's a very confused picture right now, there are many, many soldiers out here on the streets trying to work out exactly where the firing is coming from. a lot of the exchange of fire is going on just at this cross—section here. we can hear regular bursts of automatic gunfire, we can hear the thump of rpgs like that one. we've seen somebody shooting from the top of a building and the army are now trying to work out how to contain this situation, which escalated so rapidly. as the shooting faded, the clean—up started, but the scars and the divisions remain. accountability for the port blast is vitalfor the lebanese people, but tonight, it feels further away than ever.

anna foster, bbc news, beirut. i'm joined now by hanin ghaddar. she's a fellow at the washington institute for near east policy and focuses on shia politics in the levant. thank you so much forjoining us on the programme. firstly, do we know what triggered thursday's violence? hello. thank you for having me. and thank you for importing this event, and i would like tojust thank you for importing this event, and i would like to just say one thing that... this does not come from vacuum, right? what started down that triggered it started a long time ago. there is a short—term sugarin long time ago. there is a short—term sugar in a long—term trigger for so the short—term trigger was the protest against the judge investigating the bbtt report and hezbollah�*s supporters were marching towards the palace, but some of them

diverted and went into residential christian area, so this is the main question, who actually shot at who first —— investing the beirut port. if you look at the bigger context, this is not the first time something like this happen and it will not be the last time. there have been very similar incidents, actually, in sunni areas. very similar things have happened, where people acted against act iii in similar ways. that says a lot about the mounting discontent in lebanon against hezbollah as hezbollah is becoming more and more the authority responsible for smuggling subsidise items, for the economic lapse, for hindering anything, including, lastly, this investigation in the beirut port, to this mounting aggressiveness against hezbollah is

becoming apparent and this is the third incident, not the first, and it will not be the last. so what really happened, who shot at who, we are still waiting for more information coming from the lebanese army, we don't know what happened, but there was some kind of provocation by hezbollah supporters when they entered this christian area with a lot of lebanese forces supported living there. if they actually shot at them, this is one thing. they are denying it. we're waiting it for more information. but the main issue was much larger than this incident. find the main issue was much larger than this incident-— this incident. and i guess the big . uestion this incident. and i guess the big question is. _ this incident. and i guess the big question is, where _ this incident. and i guess the big question is, where is _ this incident. and i guess the big question is, where is this - this incident. and i guess the big question is, where is this all - question is, where is this all headed? is there a risk that the violence could escalate into even possibly another civil war? that's actually very _ possibly another civil war? that's actually very good _ possibly another civil war? that's actually very good question. - actually very good question. obviously this is the main question today for i do not think they will be a civil war because of two reasons. one is that no one has the capability of actually going,

entering a traditional war against hezbollah who is today stronger than the lebanese army and all the other authorities in lebanon combined. the second thing is that no one is interested in another civil war. the civil war is still present in people's memories, the order generation in my generation but not the younger generation and no one wants it. however, iam not the younger generation and no one wants it. however, i am not saying this is not going to develop into something else. this is the third incident of its kind and we will see something like this. there is a series of similar incidents that show people's discontent, reaction to the crisis, reaction to the political dominance of hezbollah, reaction to everything happening in lebanon. we will see more expression of discontent in the streets and sometimes in violence like this. hanin ghaddar, thank you so much for

joining us on the programme. for comprehensive coverage of the situation in lebanon, don't forget our website, which includes full analysis of the tensions surrounding the port blast investigation. that's at bbc.com/news or on the bbc news app. investigators are at the scene of a 13—storey tower block in southern taiwan where a fire killed at least 46 people. you are seeing live pictures from taiwan, where we saw that fire yesterday. dozens more seriously injured during the blaze in a residential and commercial building in the city of kaohsiung. it's the island's deadliest fire for decades and it's raised concerns about poor fire safety standards in taiwan. our asia—pacific editor michael bristow reports. the fire broke out at night, when most residents were at home and in bed.

it started on the lower floors, which once housed busy restaurants, karaoke bars and a cinema — businesses that had long since closed down, leaving much of the place derelict. it was known as kaohsiung's number one ghost building. the flames spread to the upper stories, where most people were living. many of them were old or disabled. most died from smoke inhalation. some residents, though, did manage to escape. translation: there were loud bangs everywhere on the ground floor. - i barely managed to escape. translation: | came down . because i heard some screams. i thought it was somebody quarreling, but it turned out to be a fire. the rescue was hampered by piles of unused items in the empty lower floors which blocked doorways and exits, even though the building is supposed to have had four fire checks in the last two years. these details and taiwan's sometimes patchy safety record will no doubt be scrutinised in the investigation into what led to such a devastating outcome.

michael bristow, bbc news. let's now take a look at some of the stories in the headlines in the uk. up to 800 foreign abattoir workers are to be granted temporary visas to work in the uk, after warnings that healthy livestock are being culled on farms because of staff shortages. the government said butchers could stay for six months, amid concerns that supply chain problems could affect food deliveries over the christmas period. the pig industry, in common with many parts of the food industry, has seen a loss of staff as many of the eu citizens that they relied on left during the pandemic. nothing to do with brexit. they have settled eu status. they were entitled to stay. but many of those chose to return, to be with their families during the difficult time of the pandemic. and many of those are not returning.

the number of babies born for each woman in england and wales has fallen to its lowest level since before the second world war. the office for national statistics said there were just under 614,000 live births last year, a drop of 4% from 2019. the fertility rate would have been even lower but for the growing number of births among mothers who were born abroad. more than nine out of ten people in africa are still unvaccinated, nearly two years after covid—i9 emerged. while wealthy nations have pledged to donate more than a billion vaccine doses worldwide, only a small proportion have been delivered. in south sudan, one of the world's poorest countries, only a tiny fraction of the population is protected. the problem is not just vaccine supply. poverty, insecurity and poor infrastructure are all adding to the challenge. from south sudan, anne soy reports.

a south sudanese welcome dance. this is a celebration to mark the arrival of vaccines, even if it's just a trickle. not many countries have vaccinated fewer people. here, just over 120,000 doses have been administered so far in a country of more than 11 million people. this is a donation from the us government through the global covax initiative. covax was meant to make sure that low income countries like south sudan would not be left behind. by now, it was hoped that one in every ten people would have been vaccinated, but the reality on the ground is that only one in every 500 south sudanese have been fully vaccinated. but it's not as easy as just bringing vaccines to south sudan. this is a country roughly the size of france but you can't reach people everywhere. the issue is deployment.

you have to deploy to the states and then to the counties. it's not an easy thing. given our country, given our health system, which is also not very strong. the health workers are not well paid. they are sitting for long hours, there's a lot of people queueing up for the vaccine, so it is not an easy situation. in times of hunger, this is how food gets to people in remote parts of the country. some vaccine supplies have to be airdropped. insecurity and flooding render some airstrips unusable, making distribution a huge challenge. more than ten times expensive here in south sudan compared to some other neighbouring countries where you have a reliable road network. and yet, the distribution often has to be done quickly when the vaccines arrive. the last batch of astrazeneca doses brought here was just a month away from expiry. this is not improving the confidence that people

have in the vaccine, when they know that they are receiving vaccines that are close to expiration. it's like dumping product in africa when other people have used the majority of them. i think having vaccines that are coming on time will increase the visibility in terms of planning. here, in the world's youngest country, beset by poverty, there were hopes that wealthy countries would ensure fair play when it came to sharing vaccines. many say it's in their interests to do so. instead, despite covax, south sudan's people remain largely unprotected. anne soy, bbc news, juba. you're watching newsday on the bbc. still to come on the programme: chris martin tells the bbc how coldplay are making their new world tour carbon neutral, but they're still opting to use private planes.

parts of san francisco least affected by the earthquake are returning to life, but in the marina area, where most of the damage was done, they're more conscious than ever of how much has been destroyed. in the 19 years since he was last here, he's gone from being a little—known revolutionary to an experienced and successful diplomatic operator. it was a 20—pound bomb which exploded on the fifth floor of the grand hotel, ripping a hole in the front of the building. this government will not weaken! democracy will prevail! it fills me with humility and gratitude to know that i have been chosen as a recipient of this foremost honour. this catholic nation held its breath for the men they call "the 33". and then... ..bells tolled nationwide to announce the first rescue,

and chile let out an almighty roar. you're watching newsday on the bbc. i'm mariko 0i in singapore. our headlines: there have been calls for calm following an outbreak of fighting in the heart of the lebanese capital, beirut, which left six people dead and dozens injured. taiwan's deadliest blaze in decades. questions are being asked about safety standards after 46 people were killed in a high—rise apartment block fire. police in norway are treating a bow and arrow attack which left five people dead as an act of terrorism. a 37—year—old is being held, after a man went on the rampage on wednesday night in the town of kongsberg, from where mark lowen sent this report.

a medieval weapon of modern terror, piercing the calm of this once sleepy town. police were called after six o'clock last night when an attacker fired indiscriminately from his bow and arrow. when they tried to intervene, he unleashed more volleys. by the time they caught him half an hour later, he had killed four women and one man and injured three others. today, police identified him as 37—year—old espen andersen brathen, a local resident of danish nationality, who had converted to islam and had previously raised concerns over radicalisation. and they say he's confessed. the act itself looks like a terror act, but we do not know what is the motivation of the perpetrator here. the supermarket where the killing spree began bears the scars of the horror, and kongsberg,

this town of 25,000 people, has been shattered. norway's new prime minister, on his first day in the job, takes over a country in mourning. translation: these are gruesome acts that have been committed, - quite surreal. my thoughts go to those who have been exposed to this, relatives, families and everybody who has been seriously frightened. tonight, they paid tribute to the victims. this close community in one of the world's most peaceful countries has been devastated. it's scary. beata was out shopping with her children when the rampage began. so we hid in the sport shop for, like, 45 minutes, i guess? it was dark outside and we were quite frightened. this is a small town and it's safe here. i've never been afraid to walk out in the dark before, since i was this age,

but now it feels kind of unsafe. amidst the heartache, questions will linger over how a man flagged as a security risk seemingly slipped through the net. but for now, it's a time to remember and reflect on how this town's carefree spirit was crushed and how to rekindle it. the british band coldplay have announced they are to go on a world tour next year but will aim to offset their carbon emissions as they go. they're working to develop a kinetic floor which would convert their fans' dancing into electricity. the band's singer chris martin also said they would plant a tree for every ticket sold. but they have still opted to use private planes. here's our entertainment correspondent colin paterson.

coldplay, back on stage in london this week, and today, they've announced a 2022 world tour. but one with a difference. two years ago, their lead singer chris martin told me they wouldn't tour again until they could do so in a carbon—neutral way. we're taking time over the next year or two to work out how can not only our tour be sustainable, but how can it be actively beneficial? and it turns out that interview was a game changerfor the band. well, last time we spoke, i sort of made that up when we were talking. really? because i was trying to think of something cool to say. and... and then it sort of became a headline. and then we thought, "well, that is actually what we really feel." within a couple of weeks, the band employed two people dedicated to working out how to tour in a cleaner way. today, coldplay have revealed their 12—point action plan,

including working with bmw to develop the first—ever mobile rechargeable concert battery. the whole show is powered from renewable energy, which is amazing. and then in terms of offsetting people being there, we're able to plant a tree for every ticket sold. and that's a lot of trees. their last tour was seen by 5.4 million people. other ideas include a kinetic floor, allowing the audience to provide power by dancing along. you know when a front man says, "we need you to jump up and down"? when i say that, i literally really need you tojump up and down. when rock stars speak about the environment, there are always cries of hypocrisy, especially when private jets are being used. yeah. are you ready for the inevitable backlash? yeah, i don't mind any backlash at all. we're trying our best, and we haven't got it perfect. and the people that gave us backlash for that kind of thing, for flying, they�* re right. how do you tally that with yourself, then?

i don't know, i don't mind criticism at all. it's ok. because sometimes criticism leads to improvement. and so far, coldplay�*s ideas have been well received. and it's clear chris martin believes coldplay concerts are now green enough that he can once again go around the globe singing yellow. we wouldn't be announcing a tour unless we felt like we're far enough along that it's ok in our hearts. but we're definitely not finished. colin paterson, bbc news. for more on this, i'm joined now by adam gardner, founder of reverb, who work directly with the music industry and artists to reduce their climate footprint. adam is also a performing musician and joins us from portland, maine. thank you so much forjoining us. firstly, what is your reaction to coldplay�*s announcements? are there plans really feasible? coldplay's announcements? are there plans really feasible?— plans really feasible? absolutely, i'm plans really feasible? absolutely, i'm excited. _ plans really feasible? absolutely, i'm excited, and _ plans really feasible? absolutely, i'm excited, and my _ plans really feasible? absolutely,

i'm excited, and my initial- i'm excited, and my initial emotional response is, yes, this is great, this is exactly what the industry needs. it has been working towards that. reverb has been working with artist since 2004 like what coldplay is doing, but we've not seen it before to type that scale, with global city matures. so this is exciting for it is the natural tension of the work we've been doing with jackjohnson, maroon five, and now we have tours we are on now, like billie eilish and harry styles, they are doing a lot of these things and taking into the next level, exactly what chris just said in that interview — we are actually doing more good than harm by having these concerts and tours exists. 50 by having these concerts and tours exists. . ~' by having these concerts and tours exists. ., ~ , ., , exists. so talk us through exactly how big and _ exists. so talk us through exactly how big and negative _ exists. so talk us through exactly i how big and negative environmental impact music tours and big events can have? , ., ,, , impact music tours and big events canhave? ., can have? they absently can't, and i think all you — can have? they absently can't, and i think all you do _ can have? they absently can't, and i think all you do is _ can have? they absently can't, and i think all you do is look _ can have? they absently can't, and i think all you do is look down - think all you do is look down at yourfeet at the think all you do is look down at your feet at the end of an average

concert and see the sea of plastic you have to wade through to get back to your car while you sit and wait in traffic on the way out. so this obvious visceral negative impacts, but we focused a lot on the positive solutions to those. for example, waiver programme we have with a bottle company where we have eliminated over 4 million single use plastic water bottles and concerts alone, and they take it home and you it beyond that, so we are addressing theissues it beyond that, so we are addressing the issues right there on the concert. what can we do to make the events themselves more sustainable and how do we use the cultural power of music, the special connexion bands have with their fans to make that change lasting and changeable's minds, hearts and actions around all of this? we have a new campaign where we are doing exactly that, bringing together the music industry — the fans, the industry pros as well as the artists — altogether to fight the climate crisis, because it's very hard as one music fan to

feel alone and go, what can i possibly do something as huge as the climate crisis? the answer is, there's millions of you and millions of us, and together, we can chip away at it. of us, and together, we can chip away at it— away at it. but can i ask briefly, thou . h, away at it. but can i ask briefly, though. they — away at it. but can i ask briefly, though, they are _ away at it. but can i ask briefly, though, they are holding - away at it. but can i ask briefly, though, they are holding onto l away at it. but can i ask briefly, . though, they are holding onto their private jets, though, they are holding onto their privatejets, so though, they are holding onto their private jets, so as chris set himself, they could be accused of greenwashing the climate impact? i think they're very smart the way they are talking about it. it is true. nobody is saying it is perfect, and i think the key is transparency and very specific actions and impacts that the tour is doing. that's exec that reverb does with all our artists on our tours and that sounds good they are planning on doing and that's the right way, because you cannot fault someone for trying to be better. and if you do, your voice should be taken with a grain of salt. and i also like if he is saying, if you have something that processes us, that's good, we want to look at how we can continue to be better. we are

not done. �* ., we can continue to be better. we are not done. �* . ., ., , �* ., not done. adam, apologies, we're of time. not done. adam, apologies, we're of time- thank— not done. adam, apologies, we're of time- thank you _ not done. adam, apologies, we're of time. thank you for _ not done. adam, apologies, we're of time. thank you forjoining _ not done. adam, apologies, we're of time. thank you forjoining us. - not done. adam, apologies, we're of time. thank you forjoining us. and l time. thank you forjoining us. and thank you for watching. hello. a chilly start to friday across the north of the uk. we've had a cold front gradually working its way southwards through thursday. that's been bringing some outbreaks of rain. and as its name implies, behind it, we've got colder air, so likely to see a touch of frost through parts of northeast scotland and northeast england to start the day on friday. further south, still holding onto this milder air through parts of south wales and into southern england. and it's here we've still got that frontal zone through friday morning, so cloudier, maybe the odd patch of rain. most of that will have fizzled out. through the afternoon, the cloud should thin and break here. and for all of us, we should see some good spells of sunshine during friday. just more cloud pushing into northern and western scotland through the afternoon. temperatures lower here,

just nine or 10 celsius the top temperature. certainly a fresher feel compared to friday. 13 to 15 celsius further south, perhaps 16 across southwest england. but it's a fine end to the day for most, late spells of sunshine before cloud piles in across the north and west of scotland overnight, also into northern ireland and western parts of england and wales too. further east is where we'll have the clearer skies and once again a cold night, particularly for northeast scotland and northeast england, where we could see a few pockets of air frost. but this brief autumnal chill doesn't last for long. as we head into the weekend, we've got further frontal systems approaching from the west. and with those, we'll see a return of the milder air across much of england, wales and northern ireland on saturday and eventually back up into scotland on sunday. so let's take a closer look at saturday, which overall will be a cloudier day compared to friday. most will be dry, the odd patch of rain, but some rain will arrive into northern ireland as we head into the late afternoon. temperatures starting to recover on saturday, but still a fairly cool feel across the far northeast of england and into scotland.

and on sunday, this frontal system will slide its way across and begin to weaken — look what's happening out in the west. but on sunday, we're likely to see some showers, maybe some longer spells of rain. but come the afternoon, looks like the rain will begin to ease and we should see a few spells of sunshine developing. temperatures back up into the mid, if not high teens and starting to feel a little bit less chilly across scotland as well. but as we move into next week, it will be mild, yes, but we're also likely to see some frequent showers or longer spells of rain. goodbye.

this is bbc news. the headlines... there have been calls for calm following an outbreak of fighting in the heart of the lebanese capital, beirut, which left six people dead and dozens injured. the shooting began as supporters of the shia group hezbollah gathered for a protest. a day of mourning has been announced. tributes are being left for the victims of a bow and arrow attack that killed five people. police say they're treating the incident as an act of terrorism. police are investigating taiwan's deadlest blaze in two decades — after 46 people died in a tower block fire. residents were trapped inside their flats on the upper floors. a banksy painting that shredded itself the last time was auctioned has been re—sold for more than ten times its previous value — at a record 25 million dollars. "love is in the bin" sold at auction for almost