this is bbc news. i'm lewis vaughan jones. our top stories: buckingham palace reveals that queen elizabeth spent wednesday night in hospital for preliminary medical checks, she's now back at windsor castle. more than 150 people die in floods in southern india. we have a special report. in this one small village alone, more than 100 homes were completely destroyed, and just as many were left damaged. as the river rose earlier in the week, people say they ran for their lives. the world health organisation says millions of health workers across the world are still unvaccinated, and blames rich nations. and a potential breakthrough — surgeons successfully transplant a pig kidney into a human without it being rejected by the immune system.

welcome to our viewers on pbs in america and around the globe. we start breaking news in the us. details still coming through. us law enforcement officers say alec baldwin, the american actor, has accidentally shot a woman during filming of his new movie. police say a gun being used as a prop was discharged during filming for the 19th century western called rust. a woman has been shot dead on a

film set near santa fe in new mexico. a western starring actor alec baldwin was being made at the time. people say two people were shot during the filming of the movie and a woman has died. these details are still coming through to us. we will of course cross to the us when we get more details and clarification on that story. to the uk, buckingham palace has revealed that queen elizabeth has spent a night in hospital, after cancelling a visit to northern ireland. a spokesperson said the queen, who's 95, underwent "preliminary investigations" at a private hospital in central london. she returned to windsor castle on thursday. she's said to be in good spirits. i spoke to our news correspondent megan paterson who told us the latest. last night around 10:30 uk time, we're told the queen attended hospital in central london on wednesday afternoon for preliminary investigations. she saw a specialist and then, for practical reasons, the palace say, she then stayed in hospital overnight. she then returned to

windsor castle yesterday afternoon, thursday afternoon. we're told she was in good spirits and she then returned to her desk for lighter duties yesterday afternoon. this is the first time that the queen has had an overnight stay in hospital for eight years. this will cause some concern for some people. it will be a matter of interest. the palace are seeking to reassure people that it was preliminary investigations, it was a practical reason she stayed in for overnight, and it's not thought to be linked to covid—19. i see. and she is remarkably healthy at 95 years old and particularly busy as well, a normally jampacked schedule. incredibly busy. and she has been incredibly busy since she returned from balmoral at the start of october. she cancelled a preplanned engagement in northern ireland earlier this week. we heard about that, of course, in the press — interest in that. she was said to be very disappointed by that. she's a woman who has a busy

diary and likes to stick to those engagements. but she cancelled that because of medical advice from her team. she regretfully stayed at home to rest. so a development in that story. we know she was then treated in hospital. the preliminary investigations. the tone of statements from buckingham palace is one of reassurance, telling people she isjust taking some rest, somewhat reluctantly, perhaps, but as you say she is 95 years old, she is incredibly busy, and she does has a busy schedule she likes to stick to. but we're told is taking some rest to recuperate over the next few days. thanks to megan for that update. as a rapidly expanding economy, india is one of the world's biggest polluters. the country is also seeing at first hand the effects of climate change on weather patterns. recent flash floods in the region have claimed the lives of more than 150 people. from kerala, here's our south asia correspondent, rajini vaidyanathan. her report contains some distressing images.

kerala, india's coastal paradise, is testament to the beauty of nature. but it's also been a reminder of the devastation it can leave in its path. the state's had more than double the usual rainfall it gets in october. thousands have been left homeless after floods and landslides. dozens have died — many of them children. a smart and friendly three—year—old was buried under the mud. his mother, sophia, is in hospital, covered in bruises. she was trapped by the landslide and said the mud came right up to her head. "my son woke up in the morning "and went to brush his teeth," she told me. "he didn't even have his breakfast. "then we heard a noise like thunder, "and the house fell down." in a nearby bed, sophia's two other children,

who were also injured and are facing the pain of life without their sibling. rescue teams are still searching the river for victims. in this one small village alone, more than 100 homes were completely destroyed, and just as many were left damaged. and we are just standing in what is left of one family home. as the river rose earlier in the week, people say they ran for their lives. images of this house in a village went viral. just like that, it was gone. this girl lived here with her parents and escaped minutes before the family home was washed away. we never expected this to happen in just a few moments. we lost everything. so have these familes staying at a makeshift camp.

scientists in india say rising sea temperatures are to blame for extreme weather here. it's often the poorest who are hit the hardest. rajini vaidyanathan, bbc news, kerala. let's get some of the day's other news: the fbi has confirmed that human remains found in a florida wilderness park are those of brian laundrie, the partner of gabby petito, a well—known travel blogger, who was found dead in wyoming last month. mr laundrie had been missing for several weeks, after returning to florida from a cross—country trip without her. a long—time ally, and former advisor of donald trump could face criminal prosecution for refusing to cooperate with an investigation into the us capitol riots earlier this year. the us house of representatives has now voted to hold steve bannon in contempt of congress. the matter is now expected to be referred to the justice department. the world health organisation estimates that between 80,000 and 180,000 health workers have died

from covid—19 since the start of the pandemic. millions are still unvaccinated. the head of the who puts the blame at the door of the 620 group of rich nations. he says they must meet the promises they've made about sharing doses with poorer countries. well, in those richer nations around 80% of health workers have been vaccinated. but globally the figure is far less, around 20%. and in africa, it's thought less than 1 in 10 health workers are vaccinated. well, earlier i spoke to dr andres gomez, a hematologist from monterrey. he explained the challenges faced by health care professionals in obtaining a covid—19 vaccine. me and my wife got a vaccine, we had to go to the us around the end of march, 2021, and that was at a time that there was a lot of uncertainty regarding the date when we would have to get the shot,

and then again, my wife is not a physician, so she was not in the plan of the national vaccination plan as family of a healthcare worker, so we were fortunate enough to be able to travel to the united states and get both shots of the pfizer vaccine but that was unfortunately not available for most of my colleagues around the country, i must say. as you said, you were lucky, you had that option and you were able to take it. it does sound a suboptimal approach to have to go to a different country to get it. you mentioned there, lots of other frontline workers not able to get the vaccine like you? correct. so around the beginning of this year, it was quite a while until most of the healthcare workers were vaccinated. in fact, one of my trainees has

just received the vaccine, her second shot, around august of this year, so it was quite a while before all of us could get the shot. the system there is split between public and private. was it the case that the government prioritised the public sector rather than private doctors? correct. so most people in mexico are not privately insured, so around 90% of the population is treated in public centres, so it makes sense that the government prioritise the public institutions. however, everybody was treating covid patients at the time and still are, so it was a difficult time in a climate in the country when doctors in the private sector felt slighted, you know, put aside and considered as a different group of physicians

than the ones in the public sector. however, one could argue, if a young person, even if you are a doctor, you should get the vaccine before an elderly individual who is arguably at higher risk of complications. it still is a controversial issue, i must say. dr andres gomez. the opening day of the use it was marked by pollard accusing the eu of blackmail, following a threat to withdraw funds. this is after polish judges declared some eu laws were incompatible with the country's constitution. holding things together isn't always easy. they know that here in a blustery brussels. he's been urged to change

course, but poland's prime minister appears largely unmoved. translation: we will not act under pressure of blackmail. l we are ready for dialogue. we don't agree with the constantly broadening range of competencies of the european union, but we will of course talk about it. warsaw, the capital. there are calls for eu funds to be withheld from poland. a legal challenge another option being considered after a recent polish court ruling was said to challenge the primacy of eu law. i am totally against the european union, and poland should commit a pole exit. it is very, very bad, look at what is going on in england and great britain. polls suggest a large majority here are in favour of remaining in the eu. poland's prime minister has also dismissed talk of pol—exit.

but the court ruling has been described as a challenge to the bloc�*s legal order. this comes on top of longer standing concerns. i think we have to be tough. the question is how we will get there. the independence of the polish judiciary is the key issue we have to discuss and settle. poland's governing party have their allies. the best economy. democracy is prevailing. elections are fair. what is the problem with poland? they have a lot to discuss around that table. big issues — surging energy prices, coronavirus, migration. the rule of law and what is happening in poland wasn't even an official item on the agenda, yet it still threatened to overshadow this summit. enter germany's angela merkel, advocating political dialogue over big legal battles. but also acknowledging contrasting views. translation: how do countries envisage the european union? .

is it ever—closer union or is it more national statehood? that is notjust a question about poland and the eu but is something discussed in other member states, too. 2005, herfirst european council as chancellor. this week is likely to be her last. disagreements over the bloc�*s direction didn't end with brexit. as she leaves the stage, the eu will have to find its way without her. jessica parker, bbc news, brussels. stay with us on bbc news. still to come: big price for a big dinosaur — the fossilised remains that have sold for millions at auction. 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 plane 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. this is bbc world news, the latest headlines: buckingham palace has

revealed that queen elizabeth has spent a night in hospital for medical checks, but is now back at windsor castle. more than 150 people have died in flooding across india and nepal. india's military has been drafted in to help rescue efforts. disagreements over the rule of law in poland have president biden says he is confident about getting both his infrastructure antisocial spending packages through congress. the two pieces of legislation are at the heart of his agenda but progress has been hindered by weeks of disagreements within his own party. he has been speaking at a live town hall audience in baltimore, and our correspondent in los angeles at david willis told us more about the event. well, this is this sort of event thatjoe biden enjoys greatly, lewis. he prefers these sort of events to normal press conferences, of which he has given surprisingly few since he took office. but these sort of events enable him to be avuncular, to be friendly, to tell tales as well, which he loves to do.

but he fielded questions on a variety of issues, ranging from climate change to the vaccine policy here, to the future of policing in this country. in response to supply chain problems here, he was asked directly if he would consider getting the national guard involved in moving supplies around the country, he said yes, if the number of truckers couldn't be increased. he was asked about the defence of taiwan. if china threatened to taiwan would the us defend it and he said "yes, we have a commitment to do that." and he was also asked about steve bannon, that's donald trump's form a close aide who has been refusing, of course, to give evidence to a committee looking into the events of 6january this year when a mob, of course, ran amok throughout the capitol building. mr bannon refusing to give evidence and today, of course, the house voted to refer the matter to the usjustice

department. mr biden was asked about the comments he made earlier in which he said, yes, he thought that steve bannon should be prosecuted by the usjustice department for contempt of congress. he said tonight that in hindsight those remarks were inappropriate because they could be seen to be impinging on the impartiality of the justice department and that impartiality, he said, was important, in his view, to repair following four years of the trump administration. latvia has become the first eu country to lock down to limit the spread of credit licence countries reopened this year, is because the vaccines became widely available. latvia has a low vaccination rate, along with bulgaria and romania combinations which were part of the former communist eastern block. i ran i younger has this report, which contain some flashing images. latvia in

lockdown. nonessential shops are closed and cinemas and headdresses closed for a month. this in a bid to break the world plasma quest covid rate. i think this is the only chance to make people think. it is our own fault, because those people who say vaccination is not necessary are doing a lot of harm to the country.- necessary are doing a lot of harm to the country. less than half the population _ harm to the country. less than half the population here - harm to the country. less than half the population here is - half the population here is fully vaccinated. there is anger and frustration from business owners. translation: i just want to ask why. i don't understand why can't we be like other european or scandinavian countries. it seems like we haven't grown up to that yet. in bulgaria, just one in four people are vaccinated, the lowest rate in europe. the health minister this week described the covid situation is critical. protesters took to the streets in the capital, sofia, and other cities,

against a mandatory vaccine certificates that came into force on thursday. residents now need to show proof of vaccination to eat at restaurants, go to the cinema or into a shopping mall. there is defiance despite the record number of covid cases and rising death toll. this sign says "no to the vaccine, my body my choice". and in romania, just 36% of people are fully vaccinated. covid patients lie on trolleys waiting for a bed, oxygen cylinders are unloaded. doctors are frustrated. translation: fist are frustrated. translation: git the vaccination pace and the rate at which people refuse to answer calls to get vaccinated, the fourth wave was predictable.- the fourth wave was predictable. the fourth wave was redictable. , ., . predictable. lets face it. the buildinu predictable. lets face it. the building trust _ predictable. lets face it. the building trust towards - building trust towards institutions by citizens takes decades, and in the old warsaw pact _ decades, and in the old warsaw pact countries one can observe that— pact countries one can observe that the — pact countries one can observe that the level of trust towards institutions is still low.

vaccine _ institutions is still low. vaccine hesitancy and a lack of faith in government are all playing their part in a load take that low uptake in poor eu countries, leading to rising infections. but cases are on the rise in richer countries as well, such as the uk or benevolence. and in ireland, when 90% of over 16s vaccinated, plans on further reopening there have been put on hold. scientists are hailing a new surgical breakthrough, which could help solve the worldwide shortage of transplant organs. in the most advanced experiment of its kind, doctors successfully transplanted a genetically modified kidney from a pig into a human. jim reed reports. it's been called an astonishing step in medicine. surgeons worked for two hours attaching this pig kidney to a human patient. they say they found a way to genetically alter the organ to stop it being attacked by the body's immune system. biopsies viewed under the microscope showed no evidence of rejection. what was profound about these findings is that the pig

kidney functioned just like a human kidney transplant. the patient in this case was on life support and had no brain function. she was operated on with the consent of her family. the surgeons attached to the kidney to blood vessels in her leg, maintaining it outside her body where it successfully processed waste. after three days, the new kidney was removed. the surgeons say they recognise there are real concerns about using animals in this way, but there is an acute shortage of organ donors around the world. nearly half of the patients waiting for a transplant become too sick or die before receiving one. the traditional paradigm that someone has to die for someone else to live is never going to keep up with the ever—increasing incidents of organ failure. the team in the us hope this first step may pave the way for full clinical trials, with transplants of other organs possible within a decade, though many hurdles, both scientific and ethical,

will have to be cleared first. jim reed, bbc news. the fossilised remains of the largest triceratops dinosaur ever discovered have been bought for almost $8 million at an auction in paris. the three—horned, eight—metre long skeleton called big john was unearthed in the american state of south da kota. the bbc�*s tim allman has the story. # big john, big john #. when you see him, in all his glory, the nickname makes perfect sense. a giant of the late cretaceous period and a discovery that's almost unprecedented. translation: these auctions are absolutely rare _ and exceptional, simply because the raw material is rare. we often find dinosaur fossils, but it is more difficult to find connected, complete, or almost complete fossils. the remains of big john consists of more than 200 bones

— around 60% of his body that had to be painstakingly reassembled by specialists in italy. translation: what's here? there's mostly the vertebrae, the lowerjaw of the skull and the leg bones, so it's really a nightmare to reassemble because they're quite fragile and quite heavy bones at the same time. the triceratops dates back more than 65 million years, a plant—eating dinosaur, one of the dominant creatures of its era. so, a large turnout for this auction and, in at the end, big john went for a big price... bangs gavel. applause. ..almost five times the estimate. the buyer happy, but wanting to keep a low profile. it's been acquired by an american collector and that individual is absolutely thrilled with the idea of being able to bring a piece like this to his personal use. although these fossilised remains are now part

of a private collection, the auction houses says the buyer may lend them out to a museum or gallery for public viewing. # big bad john. either way, big john is coming home. # big john #. tim allman, bbc news. before i go this hour i want to bring you up to date without breaking news that we started this bulletin with, coming out of the united states, the american actor alec baldwin on a film set shooting a movie. he fired a proper gun and a woman has died as a result, and a man was injured. ali2—year—old woman was injured. ali2—year—old woman was taken to and died of her injuries, and a man is being treated for his injuries. this detail coming from police in new mexico. we will of course keep you right up to date with developments out of the united

states with that shocking story. that is it from me. i'm lewis vaughan—jones. this is bbc news. bye. hello. after what was a decidedly chilly day on thursday in most places, temperatures have been allowed to drop where night skies have been clear. but the skies certainly aren't clear everywhere — areas of cloud spilling down from the northwest, which have been producing some outbreaks of showery rain. most of us, though, starting friday in the midst of this relatively cool air, and a decidedly chilly feel in the northeast of scotland — that's where we will have some of the coldest weather through the day, some of the windiest weather, but some of the sunniest weather. for shetland, for 0rknay, for the north and east of the mainland. elsewhere, southwest scotland, northern ireland, england and wales starting off with large amounts of cloud, some showers — the showers becoming fewer and further between as the day wears

on — and, even in these cloudy areas, there will be spells of sunshine. the winds for most will ease through the day, it will stay quite blustery up towards the northeast, temperatures for at lowick and aberdeen only getting to 8—9 celsius. but elsewhere, a slightly milder afternoon, 12—14 celsius. as we move through friday night where we keep these clear skies in eastern scotland and eastern england, it will turn really quite chilly, temperatures getting close to freezing in some spots. but out west, it will be becoming milder, windier, the wind starting to come up from the south, bringing milder air our way with a lot of cloud, mist and murk, and hill fog as this weather front begins to approach from the west. now this will introduce rain through saturday across parts of northern ireland and western scotland — ahead of it, we'll see increasing amounts of cloud, and also crucially, this southerly wind setting up, bringing some milder air. so a milder feel to the weather as we go through the weekend, but that weather front will bring outbreaks of rain from time to time across northern ireland, particularly up towards the north and the west of scotland. further south and east, quite a lot of cloud developing — it will stay mainly dry, particularly for england and wales, those winds though coming up from the south, quite a strong wind across the western side of scotland, and those temperatures will be higher by this stage —

ten for lowick, 1a for glasgow, 15 for belfast and plymouth. now into sunday, we keep the southerly winds, still quite a strong wind in places. the weather front in the west breaking up into showers — so it's a mixture of sunshine and showers, really as we head through the day on sunday, byt we keep those slightly higher temperatures. values in most spots around 1a—15 celsius.

this is bbc news. the headlines: buckingham palace says queen elizabeth spent wednesday night in hospital for preliminary medical investigations, after her doctors advised her to cancel a trip to northern ireland and take several days of rest. the palace said the queen had returned home to windsor castle on thursday and remained in good spirits. more than 150 people have died following several days of flooding and landslides in india and nepal. officials from the two countries said dozens were missing after torrential downpours swept away houses, roads and bridges. with heavy rainfall forecast to continue in the coming days, authorities are urging people to stay indoors. the world health organisation says millions of health workers across the world are still unvaccinated. the head of the who says the g20 group of rich nations must meet the promises they've made about sharing doses with poorer countries. now on bbc news, it's time for hardtalk.