welcome to bbc news. the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world: the senior us envoy to afghanistan stepped down from his role less than two months after the taliban takeover. south korea's military says the north has fired a ballistic missile into the sea ofjapan. seoul has convened its security council. the european union sends emergency coronavirus aid to romania as it records the highest covid mortality rate in the world. translation: ~ ~ ., , ., translation: we know it is a daily average _ translation: we know it is a daily average of— translation: we know it is a daily average of 15,000 - daily average of 15,000 infected people. we have a daily average of unfortunately 300 deaths.

and it known as the french disruptor for his strident anti—immigrant right—wing views, the bbc has an exclusive interview, with speculation he may run for presidency. welcome, the top us envoy to afghanistan, zalmay khalilzad is stepping down from his role less than two months after american forces withdrew from the country. zalmay khalilzad was born in afghanistan and grew up in kabul. he is a veteran us diplomat holding previous positions under format presidentsjoe biden, donald presidents joe biden, donald trump, presidentsjoe biden, donald trump, barack obama and george w bush. he led the us dialogue with the taliban, but months of

diplomatic talks failed to prevent the militant group from seizing power in august. in his resignation letter, zalmay khalilzad acknowledged that the political arrangement between the afghan government and the taliban did not go forward as envisaged, and he was saddened for the afghan people. zalmay khalilzad is paying the . .,�* disasterous exit from afghanistan. it was he who was the architect of the trump administration's peace agreement with taliban, an agreement that was reached of course without the involvement and the cooperation of the afghan government. it led to the taliban agreeing to hold the fire on departing us troops, provided they made a complete exit from the country by may of this year. that deadline of course later extended. but throughout all negotiations, mr khalilzad

was seen as relinquishing leverage, of offering concessions to the taliban, not least over their demand that 5000 taliban prisoners be released from jail throughout the country. there are those who say that he was facing an impossible task, being sandwiched between two american presidents, and an impossible situation with both those presidents are keen to withdraw american forces and to end america's longest war. but he has now resigned, stepped down from his post, just two months after the taliban ran amok and took control of the country and the capital, kabul. let's talk about what is happening in south korea where the military says pyongyang has fired a ballistic missile from the eastern port into the sea of japan. the eastern port into the sea ofjapan. north korea has embarked on a series of missile

test recently, in defiance of international sanctions. the launch comes as intelligence envoys gathered in seoul. sung kim has reiterated that the us is open to meeting north korea without preconditions. let's talk this through with our correspondent list and seoul stop another missile test. tell is more? it was lodged within the last few hours. a ballistic missile we know from south korea's joint chiefs of staff. we don't know how many. seoul says it is one missile, officials in tokyo say there were two stop the fact that it was fired from the port arthur sinpo on the east coast of north korea is what is making analyst watch this one carefully. this is where they base their submarines. there has been speculation in recent months over whether pyongyang

would test a submarine launched ballistic missile, and that is why they have fired one from its sinpo base, many will be wondering if this is new technology, technology we have seen before. so far, south korean media report that it was a submarine launched ballistic missile, however officials have not yet confirmed that. so we are treating that with caution. certainly, that is what analysts are looking for. it flew east. we know it landed in the east c, also known as the sea of japan. the east c, also known as the sea ofjapan. the national security council and seoul was convened, and they are also looking at the missile. the timing is incredibly interesting. the intelligence envoys from washington, south korea and japan are meeting in a seoul today. washington's envoy to korea sung kim is on his way to seoul for meetings later this week. as you mentioned, the biden

administration has made it clear that they are willing to meet with north korea without any preconditions, but they are also emphasising that they want those strict international sanctions, the sanctions aimed at curbing north korea's nuclear programme, they want them implemented. they are giving two clear messages to north korea, and so far pyongyang has yet to respond to the united states and their willingness for talks. it'll be interesting to see what happens next, given all of these intelligence envoys gathered right now, and of course north korea sending a clear message today. the other thing worth pointing out is that here in south korea, the country is holding one of its biggest ever arms fairs. it is showing of brand—new fighterjets, attack brand—new fighter jets, attack helicopters, brand—new fighterjets, attack helicopters, drones, and that is all happening this afternoon. it comes one month afternoon. it comes one month after south korea tested its own submarine launched ballistic missile. certainly,

at the time north korea called the attempt that south korea made clumsy, saying their weapons were better. so there is a bit of an arms race between north and south korea, as well as all of these efforts to try and — certainly by the united states — it would be ongoing. in recent weeks, north korean state media have said they don't believe the united states is not hostile, they don't believe the offers for talks on the table, and have rejected it, but they certainly said that, in some releases, they may be willing to pursue some kind of peace with seoul if certain conditions are met. what we don't know yet as if seoul can meet those conditions and what is going on with regard to what north korea may be willing to offer in return. i think there is some movement going on within the peninsular as well as his weapons test. certainly, pyongyang seems to be more active than it has been

in recent months despite being under strict economic sanctions and despite being under strict lockdown due to covid ten. thank you so much, the very latest on that story. —— covid-i9. donald trump has sought to prevent the release of papers investigating the assault on the capital onjanuary investigating the assault on the capital on january six. investigating the assault on the capital onjanuary six. he has called the request for the papers as illegal, unfounded and overbroad. he claims the material is covered executive privilege, protecting the confidentiality of some whiteout records. richard painter, chief house lawyer under george bush, he spoke to us at the bbc about executive privilege. i want to say that the executive privilege is unclear

as to what it covers. the courts said, for example, that president nixon could not assert executive privilege over the white house tapes recording his phone calls in which he had instructed others to obstruct the watergate investigation. sometimes executive privilege is upheld. but one thing is very clear — that the executive privilege belongs to the president of the united states — the current, sitting president of the united states — and that isjoe biden. joe biden has the right to assert the executive privilege with respect to communications of any prior president because he holds the presidency, and then the courts would decide whether the executive privilege stands or does not. unlike richard nixon back in 1973, donald trump is no longer president. there is no way that he can assert the privilege sitting in a golf cart in florida as a former president.

he has no standing to assert privilege. i don't believe the federal courts will pay any attention to this. new york city officials voted unanimously to remove a controversial statue of thomas jefferson from the council chamber at city hall. jefferson, one of the founding fathers of the country and the third us president called slavery a modern depravity but owned hundreds of slaves over his lifetime. british members of parliament had paid tributes to sir david amess, conservative mp for south and west who was stabbed to death on friday. a minute's science was held and a service took place at st margaret's next to parliament. at 25—year—old british man, ali harbi ali is being held under the terrorism act. gas boilers could be unavailable in the uk within 15 years under new government proposals. ministers

hope to promote low carbon alternatives to heat homes by 2035, with subsidies offered for electric heat pumps in england and wales. environmental groups welcomed the decision but say more funding will be needed to meet those targets. we will have more detail on that in our business coverage and 20 minutes. six months to go before the next presidential election, not president macron or his far—right rival marina pen dominating magazines, instead, a new face. he hasn't even formally announced for candidacy but also suggesting he is on track to challenge le pen. a reporter went to his campaign rally to meet him. he says france protected the duesin

he says france protected the dues in world war ii, now being submerged by immigrants and parent should be made to give their children french names. meet eric zemmour, challenging le pen. among his targets — the french media. a propaganda machine that hates france, he said. paid with your taxes they constantly split on french history and culture. they spit on the french people who they want to see disappear. their first ever political family for this family. translation: family for this family. tuna/mom- family for this family. translation: , ~ translation: he tells it like it is. he translation: he tells it like it is- he is — translation: he tells it like it is. he is more _ it is. he is more down—to—earth. it is great. he is shaking up the french presidential elections. i think he is a bit like borisjohnson. i asked them who they will vote for if he doesn't run.

translation:- for if he doesn't run. translation: ., , ., , translation: that is a big question. — translation: that is a big question. i _ translation: that is a big question, i don't _ translation: that is a big question, i don't know. - question, i don't know. after the rally, i asked eric zemmour how he would do french ivan uk relations differently if he was president of france. translation: i if he was president of france. translation:— translation: i respect the british, they _ translation: i respect the british, they are _ translation: i respect the british, they are great - translation: | respect the | british, they are great people. i think the european commission in brussels doesn't respect them, they never forgave them for brexit. this is home turf for marine for brexit. this is home turffor marine le pen, she did very well here in the last presidential race but as eric zemmour has risen in the polls, she has dipped. one recent survey even had him beating her to a run—off with president macron. a local mayor affiliated with the party of marine le pen is friends with both her and eric zemmour. he is calling for them to join forces to take on emmanuel macron. translation: i macron. translation: ., , macron. translation: i was explaining to eric, translation: i was explaining to eric. you _ translation: i was explaining to eric, you can't _ translation: i was explaining to eric, you can't win _ translation: i was explaining to eric, you can't win without i to eric, you can't win without marine le pen. it is impossible. and i told marine le pen, you cannot win without

eric zemmour. for once, we could win. his latest book focuses on familiar themes — immigration, culture, identity. french politics has shifted to the right in recent years. it is early days in the selection, there is for the future of france has already begun. lucy williamson, bbc news. still to come — saving one of australia's most beloved native species with a programme to vaccinate 400 koalas against chlamydia. a historic moment that many of his victims have waited for for decades. the former dictator in the dock, older, slimmer. and as he sat down, obedient enough. dawn, and as the sun breaks

through the piercing chill of night on the plain outside, it lights up a biblical famine now in the 20th century. the depressing conclusion, in argentina today- it is actually cheaper— to paper your walls with money. we've had controversies in the past with great britain, but as good friends, we have always found a good and lasting solution. concorde bows out in style after almost three decades in service. an aircraft that has enthralled its many admirers for so long taxis home one last time. you are with bbc news. the top stories. the senior us envoy to afghanistan stepped down from his role less than two months after the delavan takeover.

south korea's military says the north has filed an unknown elastic missile into the sea of japan so has convened its national security council. the eu is sending emergency covid aid to romania which has this week recorded the highest covid mortality rate in the world. it's intensive care units are full and patients are being sent for treatment into neighbouring hungary. inside romania's overwhelmed intensive care unit, a country intensive care unit, a country in a covid critical condition. translation: i in a covid critical condition. translation:— in a covid critical condition. translation: �* , ., translation: i can't breathe in the air is vital. _ translation: i can't breathe in the air is vital. outside - translation: i can't breathe in the air is vital. outside some - the air is vital. outside some hosnitals. — the air is vital. outside some hospitals, medical— the air is vital. outside some hospitals, medical staff - the air is vital. outside some| hospitals, medical staff make space. romania's vaccination campaign chief says eastern european countries experiencing the same scenario italy bothered lombardi region suffered last year. patients

pile up in this hospital corridor, waiting for treatment. all in tears are stepping up. translation: i stepping up. translation: ., �* ~ ., translation: i don't know whether i — translation: i don't know whether i will— translation: i don't know whether i will resist - translation: i don't know whether i will resist the - whether i will resist the fourth wave entirely, whether i will have the energy to do it. this wave is terrible. the most severe one. this wave is terrible. the most severe one-— severe one. things are so full here, romania _ severe one. things are so full here, romania is _ severe one. things are so full here, romania is now - here, romania is now transferring some of its covid—i9 patient neighbouring hungary. translation: ~ hungary. translation: ., . ., ., , translation: we notice a daily averaue of translation: we notice a daily average of approximately - translation: we notice a daily| average of approximately 15,000 infected people. we have a daily average unfortunately of 300 deaths.— daily average unfortunately of 300 deaths. one ma'or reason for all of this, _ 300 deaths. one major reason for all of this, romania - 300 deaths. one major reason for all of this, romania has - for all of this, romania has the second lowest vaccination rate in the eu. translation: ' in rate in the eu. translation: '::f ., translation: some 9096 of the hosnitalised _ translation: some 9096 of the hospitalised patients _ translation: some 9096 of the hospitalised patients are - translation: some 9096 of the hospitalised patients are not - hospitalised patients are not vaccinated. i hospitalised patients are not vaccinated.— vaccinated. i am not vaccinated. - vaccinated. i am not vaccinated. i- vaccinated. i am not vaccinated. i was . vaccinated. i am not i vaccinated. i was afraid vaccinated. i am not - vaccinated. i was afraid of the vaccine — vaccinated. i was afraid of the vaccine i_ vaccinated. i was afraid of the vaccine. i will see after i get better _ vaccine. i will see after i get better i_ vaccine. i will see after i get better. i want to get vaccinated.- better. i want to get vaccinated. , ., ., , vaccinated. daily coronavirus cases have — vaccinated. daily coronavirus cases have shot _ vaccinated. daily coronavirus cases have shot up _ vaccinated. daily coronavirus cases have shot up since - cases have shot up since september. romania now has the

highest weekly covid mortality rate in the world by population. many more than russia, the us, uk, braziland india. with its close neighbours also recording alarming numbers. a raid on one of the most popular markets in the capital, bucharest. to check mandatory masking rules are enforced. there is no lockdown here, and schools remain open, but only the fully vaccinated or those who have already been infected are allowed in restaurants and cinemas. with the weekend curfews for the unvaccinated. cu rfews for the unvaccinated. eu curfews for the unvaccinated. eu countries have started sending covid—i9 drugs and equipment to treat patients here. but with around two—thirds of the country unvaccinated, and a fortnight of rising cases, some already warned of a fifth wave of the pandemic, hitting romania even before this fourth one is under control. mike lobel, bbc news.

let's bring all the latest sports news. hello there. this is the latest from the bbc sport centre. arsenal scored a late equaliser into stoppage time to spoil the return to the club when he was once a hero, written interface team when he is one three english premier league titles as a player, he thought his palace side were on freight famous women. they were leading at the emirates but in the dying moments a — when they pounce. i dying moments a - when they ounce. ., ., , pounce. i am a little bit frustrated _ pounce. i am a little bit frustrated as _ pounce. i am a little bit frustrated as well - pounce. i am a little bit i frustrated as well because pounce. i am a little bit - frustrated as well because i think we play some really good football, but we don't turn those games into a win. we want to win games, i want to win games and the performance is good but we have to turn those performances into a win. england have been given a two stallion banned by uefa, one of them suspended for two years after the chaotic and violent scenes around the 2020 final. hundreds of people without tickets attempted to break through barriers and 10,008 to

get inside wembley for england's match against italy in the final. the punishment was for a lack of order and discipline inside and around the stadium and there is also finding the football association 100,000 euros. match day three in european champions league on tuesday in liverpool are insane to face the league champions madrid. they will have allison andrea migno back in contention after the brazilian pair missed the brazilian premise that the weekend league win at watford to fly straight to madrid for the much following the international break. liverpool currently top the group with two wins from two. elsewhere, sheriff will hope to take on the fairytale when they take on champions in milan. the group leaders with two wins from two. esg faced the bottom side of their group on tuesday night. they will be at without one player who picked up an injury in brazil. the la dodgers have been

ordered what to do. the national league championship series and are 2—0 to the braves won the second game 5—4 in georgia in the best—of—7 series. they scored the winning run, the dodgers will have home advantage for game three at the dodgers stadium. scotland both up new guinea on tuesday hoping to build on their opening world cup t20 seller, beating bangladesh. sri lanka got their campaign to a winning start against namibia. they did slip to 26 for three but an unbroken partnership of 74 social anchor over the line. victory sealed with a six. elsewhere, i'll be the netherlands by seven wickets. from may, we will see you next

time. we will. we will see gavin and the team soon. now to australia where 400 koalas will be vaccinated against chlamydia as part of a trial that researchers say could play significant role in the long—term survival of one of the country was a most beloved native species. the australian koala foundation estimates there are less than 100,000 koalas left in the wild, and chlamydia, a sexually transmitted disease, affects up to half the population. the disease, which can be spread from mothers to their newborns, can cause debilitating conjunctivitis, blindness, bladder infections and, at times, infertility. although chlamydia can sometimes be treated with antibiotics, researchers say preventing the spread of the disease is preferable to treating it. the animals will come in, they'll go through their normal treatment processes, and when, just the day before they're ready to be released back into the wild, they'll get the vaccine and they'll get

a microchip and get some data afterwards to see how well it went. scientists call the vaccine a game changer. even if it is 50 to 70% effective, it doesn't even have to be 100% effective, because no vaccines are that effective, that should make a big difference to the other half of the population. following australia's devastating bushfires in 2019, which are thought to have killed more than 60,000 koalas, protecting the native marsupials from disease is more crucial than error. sophia tran—thomson, bbc news. now, in the wake ofjames bond's return to the big screen on the hollywood sci—fi epic junejoined dublin on the hollywood sci—fi epic june joined dublin seven and the campaign to entice people back to cinemas after the pandemic. the star—studded remake of david lynch's 1980s remake of david lynch's1980s cult hit goes on theatrical release this week. timothee chalamet leaves the latest film from acclaimed canadian

director dennis who has urged audiences not to di their experience by watching it at home. london wasn't leicester square played host to a special red carpet event. thomas mcgill was on hand to speak to some of the film stars. well, the crowds are back in leicester square, despite the rain, and of course, it is doing what it does best — hosting a gala screening of a pretty epic movie, and the screams you were hearing earlier — well, they're all for the star—studded cast, and tonight, we have got timothee chalamet and our very own londoner sharon duncan—brewster as well. guys, sorry about the weather first of all. no, this is lovely, it adds a sort of glimmer. it's the ambiance. this is like the vibe of london, the spirit. this is what london's always like, right? his is it! — he's getting used to it now! exactly! i love it. well, you would know — you've spent the last six months here, so how's it been? not quite, maybe like a month or two months, but it's been great, i've got good friends here, hopefully! and, no, but i love it here. i'm from new york, so it doesn't feel

that much different. very true. i was asking sharon earlier, has she given you any tips on where to go, or has she taken you to east london yet, proper london. no, i'm not staying in east london, but... this is the place, baby! i'll take you there. it's started right now. let's get him some delicacies, a whole lot of clubs and stuff, and we'll party, i'll get it right, i promise. man, i have a feeling in a month you're going to see us out and about. fantastic, guys. i'll let youse get in, out of this terrible weather. have a fantastic time. see the movie on your screens, cinema! yeah, go and see it at imax, not on a tv! there you have it. you heard it from timothee chalamet himself. let's talk about kanye west. he is now known legally as ye. yes, that is right. just the word ye. ajudge in la gave the go—ahead for the star to officially change his name with no middle or last name, and you may ask why, but his diehard fans are not surprised by the change.

in 2018, the rapper called his eighth studio album ye after being inspired by the bible. yes, there you have it. the latest on ka nye west. yes, there you have it. the latest on kanye west. you are up—to—date. i am latest on kanye west. you are up—to—date. iam back latest on kanye west. you are up—to—date. i am back with the business stories next. hello. good evening. quite a few parts of the country had temperatures of 18 degrees today, and it's likely to get warmer tomorrow, if and when the sunshine does come out. the warmer air is coming our way, thanks to the winds from the south or south—west, but as we've seen already, that has brought with it a lot of cloud. the cloud is still around at the moment, and this cloud here, coming infrom the atlantic, is going to bring the next area of rain later in the night. the earlier rain and drizzle is moving away and, for a while, there could be a few breaks in the cloud. that'll lead to the odd mist and fog patch, and then that thicker cloud arrives, mainly across the western side of the uk, to bring some rain for these areas. and, of course, after the warmth that we had during the day, then the temperatures aren't going to fall very low overnight, 12 to 14 degrees.

we start, though, with a lot of cloud. we've got some outbreaks of rain around. that could be heavy for a while over some of these western hills. mostly, as we head into the afternoon, the rain is in the north and west. it could cheer up again later across parts of northern ireland. but ahead of the rain in the afternoon, we should get some sunshine in east anglia and the south—east, and it's here temperatures could reach 20 or 21 degrees, more typical of early summer. but even where we have cloud and outbreaks of rain, it's around 17 to 19 celsius, so a very mild day. but there's more rain in the forecast for wednesday, this time generally moving northwards across england and wales. some thundery downpours possible. either side of that, there's going to be some sunshine. it's still a mild day on wednesday, just not quite as mild as tuesday, and we've got this rain arriving in the north—west of scotland. that's going to be significant because to the north of that, there is colder air, and that will push across the country through the rest of the week, and the weather will feel very different. now, we still have a tangle of weather fronts on the scene during wednesday. as we head into thursday, these are the main ones drifting down across the uk,

bringing with it some showery outbreaks of rain, and then those northerly winds come setting in, and it's those northerly winds that will drop the temperatures as well. now, we've still got some outbreaks of rain to clear away from some eastern parts of england on thursday. otherwise, there'll be some sunshine, a rash of showers, the showers in the far north over the higher ground maybe of a wintry flavour as well, and it's going to be a windy day. the winds generally from the north, possibly touching gale force around some north sea coasts, and that of course will make it feel colder and very different from what we're feeling at the moment. so 8 degrees the best in northern scotland, 13 in southern england and wales.

this is bbc news with the latest business headlines, for viewers in the uk and around the world. uk households to be offered a £5,000 incentive to install electric heat pumps as the government attempts to hit net to zero x 2,050. a new area for apple. two new high—end laptops powered by apple silicon chips. in the uk, manyjobs lost in the music industry since the start of the pandemic. it calls on the government to intervene.