welcome to bbc news. i'm nuala mcgovern. our top stories: a meeting of minds ahead of the winter olympics. china's president xi backs his russian counterpart in opposing the expansion of nato. the games open officially in beijing, amid chinese pride and international controversy. mike pence criticises donald trump for saying the ex us vice—president could have overturned the outcome of the 2020 presidential election. president presidential election. trump is wrong. i had no president trump is wrong. i had no right to overturn the election. the presidency belongs to the american people, and the american people alone.

as tensions in ukraine continue, we have a special report from the eastern region that for years has suffered loss of life on the front line with russia. emergency workers in morocco are hopeful of reaching a 5—year—old boy who's been trapped for four days in a deep well. and two years after the global tv hit game of thrones aired its final episode we'll tell you where you can visit a new £40 million attraction housing sets, costumes and props from the epic drama. hello, and welcome to audiences in the uk and around the world. china and russia have announced a new partnership, hailed by president putin as an unprecedented pact of cooperation. china says it'll back russia's foreign policy aims, and says it supports russian demand that nato halt its expansion.

xijinping and vladimir putin held talks hours before the official opening of the winter olympics in beijing, with the low—key ceremony held amid concerns about covid and a diplomatic boycott over human rights abuses. from beijing, robin brant reports. china's capital city, an olympic host for the second time. the bird's nest stadium built for 2008 is still glorious. but there is a different man in charge now and it feels very different in 2022. xijinping promised a safe, efficient games. for most people in beijing tonight, this is the closest they're gonna get to the opening ceremony of the olympic games — watching it on a roadside near the stadium or on a walkway over the motorway. we're actually being moved away from this area at the moment. now, it's because there are not enough tickets on sale, there are no tickets on sale to members of the general public — that's part of those extreme covid restrictions. "i came to feel the vibe," this woman told us. standing at her side,

her son asked, "can we see it or not, mum?" "it doesn't matter," she said, "at least we are trying." for the athletes, just getting here is a lifetime achievement but their leaders have stayed away. britain, like australia and around a dozen others, hasjoined a us—led diplomatic boycott — a protest over what they claim is egregious abuse, or even genocide, carried out by china against muslim minorities here. but this leader was here — in fact, he was the star guest. russia's president putin is one of 20 or so presidents, prime ministers or kings who are keen to show their support for china in person. but mr putin came for more — face—to—face talks — and he has agreed trade and energy deals and a new friendship of closer cooperation with china. they used to share communist rule. now what binds russia and china is concern about resurgence us influence as tension over ukraine increases by the day. the moment the olympic flame

was installed was a subtle one — no big cauldron set alight — but not so the other message sent out by the host from this stadium, that china and russia are forging a new, much closerfriendship. robin brant, bbc news, beijing. we can now speak to dr erkin sidick, who is the president of the uyghur projects foundation and senior advisor to the world uyghur congress. he joins us from los angeles. you are so welcome, doctor, thank you forjoining us. we are talking about this alliance between china and russia, we are seeing at the winter olympics open, but what are you looking for? there has already been a diplomatic by cut by many countries to underline human rights abuses in china. the diplomatic boycott is a good step for humanity,

actually. but the overall situation is still very bad. i say this because we just go through a genocide in east turkestan forced we have about 20 million uyghur population living there until recently, and about inaudible have disappeared from the uyghur society now. the very first is the chinese spring festival. in relation to this festival the chinese government are forcing uyghur young people to dance on the street, traditional han chinese dances, traditional han dresses as well. and also they are carrying out the red song competition, the red songs that were created during the cultural revolution. uyghur people are being forced to do those kinds of things right now. ., _,

now. doctor, let me come in there, now. doctor, let me come in there. i _ now. doctor, let me come in there, i understand - now. doctor, let me come in there, i understand you - now. doctor, let me come in there, i understand you are l there, i understand you are outlining some of the abuses as you see them, and you see this diplomatic boycott is a good first step. but let's talk about the practicalities of these olympics. for example, do you think the athletes should be boycotting the olympics? yes, they should. because the chinese condemn other governments for saying that they are making big games political, but the chinese government is the number one but does this by itself. for example, just yesterday night, friday night in china, one uyghur, an athlete, he did the torch lighting thing in china, after uyghurs go through so much genocide, and also beijing chose a torchbearerfor much genocide, and also beijing chose a torchbearer for the olympic names, part of the military command that attacked india in 2015... i

military command that attacked india in 2015. . ._ india in 2015... i understand what you — india in 2015... i understand what you are _ india in 2015... i understand what you are saying, - india in 2015... i understand what you are saying, one i what you are saying, one market, is that you feel china is making it a political issue. butjust is making it a political issue. but just finally, is making it a political issue. butjust finally, before i let you go, do you think that people in their homes should try and not watch the olympics, do you think that would be an effective way to influence how china behaves in the future? yes, it is. the minimum thing but ordinary people can do about what the chinese are doing, and resist the chinese evil doings in east turkestan and around the world. ponder, thank you _ and around the world. ponder, thank you so — and around the world. ponder, thank you so much _ and around the world. ponder, thank you so much for- and around the world. ponder, thank you so much forjoining. thank you so much forjoining us on bbc news. —— dr erkin sidick at thank you. the chinese embassy in the uk has responded to allegations of human rights abuses in xinjiang. a spokesperson said: "we urge the relevant elements to stop interfering in china's internal affairs and spreading lies about xinjiang. ioc president thomas bach called on all political leaders around the world to observe

their commitment to the olympic truce. we urge the relevant parties to stop spreading rumours and stop politicising sports." and so that a discussion continues. —— that discussion. let's get some of the day's other news. the death toll from the covid—i9 pandemic in the united states surpassed 900,000 on friday, according to thejohns hopkins university coronavirus tracker. new cases linked to the omicron variant are falling, but daily deaths continue to rise, with an average of 2,400. currently, only 64% of the population are fully immunised — that's despite highly effective vaccines being widely available. five people have been killed by an avalanche in the austrian state of tyrol. rescuers say the victims were buried under snow near spiss, close to the border with switzerland. a sixth person, an injured woman, has been evacuated to hospital. the nationality of those involved isn't yet clear. the media giant, news corp, says it was attacked by hackers last month. the company, owned by rupert murdoch, said the breach

was done by someone seeking to gather information to benefit china. some email accounts and documents from its business divisions were affected, but no customer and financial data appears to have been impacted. france's fisheries minister has called for an inquiry after a spillage of more than 100,000 dead fish off the country's atlantic coast. video footage filmed by environmental activists shows a mass of corpses floating on the sea surface. the incident occured when a net belonging to margiris, the world's second—largest supertrawler, broke. as the us republican national committee censured two republicans critical of donald trump, his former vice president, mike pence took on his old boss, saying he was wrong to claim he could have overturned the 2020 election. mr pence said no one person could choose the president. president trump is wrong. i had no right to overturn the election. the presidency belongs to the american people and the american people alone and, frankly, there is no idea

more un—american than the notion that any one person could choose the american president. i've been speaking to our north america correspondent, david willis, who told me more about the reaction to mr pence's comments. mike pence, of course, was one of the most loyal vice presidents you could everfind. he was renowned for his almost filial loyalty to donald trump, defending mr trump even in some of his most controversial moments, so these remarks are being seen — being granted with some astonishment here. they are the most outspoken criticism of his former boss to have come from mike pence. but in the last few days, donald trump has basically ground down on the narrative that mike pence could have done more to basically prevent the election from going tojoe biden. he said he could have overturned the results of the electoral college. now, that is, of course, false.

and today, mike pence decided to call donald trump out on that, saying that mr trump was wrong in that assertion and also saying that such a move by a vice president would be, as he put it, "un—american". this comes, though, at the same time — as i alluded to there, david — the republican party censuring two of its top lawmakers for investigating the capitol riot. what did they call it?, "legitimate political discourse", which liz cheney and adam kinzinger would disagree with. so, i mean, what does it tell us about the republican party and perhaps going forward, 2024, the next presidential race? well, this all points to the fact that the events of january sixth are deeply controversial still, as far as the republican party is concerned and, as you mentioned, the party decided today to censure liz cheney and adam kinzinger for basicallyjoining the committee looking into the events of that fateful day. they believe that no republicans should have joined the committee and that it will basically lead to a witch—hunt that will ultimately end up

with donald trump being accused of more things. now, they also said — the members of the committee today — that this constituted, as they put it, "persecution of ordinary citizens engaged in legitimate political discourse". now, adam kinzinger has already said that he will be leaving congress before his term is up and liz cheney could face some sort of challenge for her seat in wyoming. now, she issued a statement today, saying that republican leaders had, as she put it, "made themselves willing "hostages to a man who admits attempting to overthrow "a presidential election" — a none—too—concealed barb there against donald trump, of course. and i do not know whether it is possible to know this, david, but that phrase, you know, "legitimate political discourse" — i mean,

will many, you know, republicans maybe that supported mr trump, maybe that didn't, would they take on with that description that the rnc is putting forward? well, it's interesting because mike pence today, in that speech, also called the sixth of january "a dark "day in the history of the us capitol" and he was one of the lawmakers, of course, that was rushed to safety after the capitol building came under siege from a mob of donald trump supporters — some of whom are, of course, were calling for the vice president to be hanged. now, there is a large feeling in the party — amongst some, anyway — that these were terrible events and that this was something that the party really should seek to bury and move on from. there are others, of course, like liz cheney, who believe

that there should be some sort of reckoning as a result of this. a possible russian invasion of ukraine is a top international concern, but communities in the east of the country have had to endure a conflict for years. some 111,000 people have been killed, soldiers and civilians. and despite an official ceasefire, the deaths continue. the conflict broke out eight years ago when russia annexed ukraine's crimea peninsula. then russian—backed separatists seized parts of eastern ukraine, which is home to many ethnic russians. our international correspondent orla guerin reports from the city of kramatorsk, on one family and their loss. bugle plays the last post. it was a funeral for a hero. a fallen soldier in the war ukraine is already fighting. valery hierovkin was just 22. he was killed on the front line in december by russian—backed separatists.

mourned by loved ones and by his home town, kramatorsk. his mother, anna, is consoled by one of his brothers in arms who was standing right beside valery when the sniper�*s bullet pierced his helmet. buttressed by her husband, yevgeny, anna remembers their eldest son — a boy who was funny, kind, a bit naughty, who grew up to love football and defend his homeland. translation: of course, i we didn't expect it was going to turn out this way, but i'm proud of my son because he gave his life for his country. he gave his life for ukraine, for the people, and for his family — that's why i'm so proud of my boy. valery made this video just weeks before his death. the song says, "my heart aches.

"i don't believe you're gone." his father, a pastor, wonders if somehow he sensed what was coming. translation: sometimes, ifeel that perhaps he was expecting . to die, because he spent the last two days of his holiday with us and he made that video. when he was boarding the bus, he said, "i have a heavy heart. "i don't want to leave." but i said, "son, you have to. "you made the decision,

so you have to go." now, they mourn and worry. their city was shelled in 2015. they fear a new phase of war would dwarf the suffering so far. but for them, the worst has already happened — a beloved son is gone. orla guerin, bbc news, kramatorsk, ukraine. this is bbc news. the headlines: the presidents of china and russia meet ahead of the winter olympics opening ceremony. president xi backs russia in opposing the expansion of nato. mike pence criticises donald trump for saying the ex us vice president could have overturned the outcome of the 2020 presidential election. emergency workers in morocco are hopeful they'll soon reach a five—year—old boy who has

been trapped for four days in a deep well. the child, whose name is rayan, fell more than 30 metres into the shaft while his father was repairing it. the shaft is narrow, so rescuers are digging a large hole parallel to it to reach the boy, as simonjones reports. it's a race against time. rayan has now spent a fortnight trapped deep underground, pictured by a camera lowered into the well. above him, the effort to save the five—year—old has continued round—the—clock. rescue workers say they won't stop until they get him out, while worried locals can only look on and hope. locals can only look on and ho e. �* ,, �* ~ locals can only look on and hoe. �* ,, ~ ~ ., hope. translation: we are ra in: hope. translation: we are praying for — hope. translation: we are praying for rayan _ hope. translation: we are praying for rayan to - hope. translation: we are praying for rayan to be - hope. translation: we are| praying for rayan to be alive. may his family have patients, and honestly, our hearts are breaking. and honestly, our hearts are breaking-— and honestly, our hearts are breakinu. ~ ,, ~ .,, breaking. translation: i hope he'll come _ breaking. translation: i hope he'll come out _ breaking. translation: i hope he'll come out of— breaking. translation: i hope he'll come out of this _ breaking. translation: i hope he'll come out of this 0k. - breaking. translation: i hope he'll come out of this 0k. he'sl he'll come out of this 0k. he's like -- — he'll come out of this 0k. he's like -- it's— he'll come out of this 0k. he's like —— it's like one of our own— like —— it's like one of our own children has fallen. we are praying — own children has fallen. we are praying for his safety. he is one — praying for his safety. he is one of— praying for his safety. he is one of our— praying for his safety. he is one of our children.- one of our children. this is the opening _ one of our children. this is the opening of— one of our children. this is the opening of the - one of our children. this is the opening of the well-

one of our children. this is l the opening of the well that rayan fell down. it's too narrow for the rescue is to get to him, so they have had to come up with a different plan. a large hole is being dug parallel to the well to try to reach the boy. there are only a few metres to go. but that rings with it its own dangers — the possibility of a landslide. the gathered crowd are desperate for progress and a happy outcome. rayan's father says he hasn't slept a wink. his mother says she was mad trying to remain positive. but this is a complex and delicate operation. oxygen and water has been sent down the well. a helicopter is on standby to get the way to hospital. but rayan remains trapped, while the most challenging part of the rescue is still ahead. meta has announced a new feature to tackle harrasment in the metaverse. the feature will create more personal space in virtual reality world by preventing avatars from coming within a certain distance of each other and by making it

easier to avoid unwanted interactions. meta has long been under scrutiny from global lawmakers and regulators over its handling of problematic content and abuses on its existing social media platforms, such as facebook and instagram. following the massive oil spill in peru last month, vets are nursing a number of rare humboldt penguins back to health. 12,000 barrels of crude oil spilled into a marine biodiversity hotspot after a refinery was hit by waves linked to a volcanic eruption on tonga. zoologists say many of the penguins arrived at lima zoo very stressed. the penguins have been bathed, watered and fed to aid their recovery. the government has called the oil spill the country's worst ecological disaster. it has been two years since game of thrones aired its final episode and the show, which was mostly filmed in the mountains and moorlands of northern ireland, remains a global phenomenon. now, fans of the fantasy series have the chance to go behind the scenes of westeros as the studio opens its doors to the public for the first time.

john maguire has gone to pay a visit. winter has arrived, and so has the chance to walk in the footsteps of the mother of dragons, the lannisters orjohn snow. these are some of the actual sets used in the filming of what is often described as the biggest tv show in history. and for the actor ian beatty, the rare opportunity of a job near his home here in northern ireland. . �* , ireland. that's right, i auditioned _ ireland. that's right, i auditioned for - ireland. that's right, i auditioned for a - ireland. that's right, i auditioned for a role l ireland. that's right, i | auditioned for a role in ireland. that's right, i - auditioned for a role in season one and another actor got it, and i was not happy about that. i was five minutes away from the studio. thankfully, they auditioned me again and i won the role, which lasted for five years, and the role i had originally auditioned for lasted for five episodes in season one, so i think i got the best part of it. but season one, so i thinki got the best part of it.- the best part of it. but who can blame _ the best part of it. but who can blame him. _ the best part of it. but who can blame him. when - the best part of it. but who l can blame him. when filming other locations, croatia,

malta, could see him lose half a stone a day. malta, could see him lose half a stone a day-— a stone a day. this is identical— a stone a day. this is identical to _ a stone a day. this is identical to my - a stone a day. this is - identical to my costume. this was another man's costume, but it's identical in every way, all 28 kilos worth. which was some fun in the dubrovnik sun because the sun would hit the breastplate and then you would start to cook. so it was quite interesting to wear, but i have to say one thing: when you put that costume on, well. you are a king �*s guard. that costume on, well. you are a king 's guard-— a king 's guard. the studio tour is built _ a king 's guard. the studio tour is built around - a king 's guard. the studio tour is built around where l a king 's guard. the studio - tour is built around where some of the show�*s filming took place. much of its success is derived from the huge scale of the production, but also attention to detail. here you can see, close up, the costumes, the weapons, the set designs, the make up and the prosthetics. husband and wife team sarah and barry gower are responsible for turning fancy tv into what looks like reality

tv. they make monsters. the show runners, _ tv. they make monsters. the show runners, david - tv. they make monsters. tue: show runners, david and tv. they make monsters. tte: show runners, david and dan, wanted us to design a character which was quite regal and almost had the form of a crown in its design, basically. so we are thinking along the lines of snow, ice and icicles, so we actually incorporated these kind of pointy icicle like shapes slid into the forehead in the back of his head, so it kind of gave us— kind of an incorporated crown look and feeling to the design. find incorporated crown look and feeling to the design. and it's made of? _ feeling to the design. and it's made of? this _ feeling to the design. and it's made of? this is _ feeling to the design. and it's made of? this is made - feeling to the design. and it's made of? this is made of- made of? this is made of silicon- — made of? this is made of silicon. these _ made of? this is made of silicon. these are - made of? this is made of silicon. these are silicon | silicon. these are silicon appliances, with a very thin, fine vinyl skin. so the actual material this is made of his lack a silicon gel product. it's a good job they are married. some days and set at 21 hours long, and they share some unusual interests. and some unusual interests. and 'ust some unusual interests. and just blood — some unusual interests. and just blood that _ some unusual interests. and just blood that was - some unusual interests. and just blood that was used in game _ just blood that was used in game of— just blood that was used in game of thrones — we all felt that— game of thrones — we all felt that each— game of thrones — we all felt that each department, we should consider— that each department, we should consider what blood we were going — consider what blood we were going to _ consider what blood we were

going to use, and so we agreed that we — going to use, and so we agreed that we would test all the different blood is that a pre—med, the colours, put it on film, _ pre—med, the colours, put it on film. and — pre—med, the colours, put it on film. and we _ pre—med, the colours, put it on film, and we can all decide which _ film, and we can all decide which blood was the most realistic— which blood was the most realistic to use, and then we would — realistic to use, and then we would all— realistic to use, and then we would all agree to use that kind — would all agree to use that kind of— would all agree to use that kind of blood. it would all agree to use that kind of blood.— would all agree to use that kind of blood. it is a bit like ou aet kind of blood. it is a bit like you get weird _ kind of blood. it is a bit like you get weird names - kind of blood. it is a bit like you get weird names for - kind of blood. it is a bit like i you get weird names for paint, there is a game of thrones blood. , ~ . , blood. there is, i think it was venal blood, _ blood. there is, i think it was venal blood, we _ blood. there is, i think it was venal blood, we agreed - blood. there is, i think it was venal blood, we agreed to . blood. there is, i think it was | venal blood, we agreed to use the venal blood. the venal blood, we agreed to use the venal blood.— venal blood, we agreed to use the venal blood. the tour, like the venal blood. the tour, like the show _ the venal blood. the tour, like the show it _ the venal blood. the tour, like the show it embodies, - the venal blood. the tour, like the show it embodies, is - the venal blood. the tour, like the show it embodies, is big . the show it embodies, is big budget. it cost £40 million to build. included in your entry ticket, the chance to be in step with the white walkers and the wildings. this is cool. there are several of these interactive screens throughout. you can get yourself dressed up, there are other bones, trousers, coat, head, helmet. there it is, and then it will copy your body movements. the

old usain bolt, there. this one. he's got some moves, this quy- one. he's got some moves, this guy. how fun is that? the studio tour is located in banbridge between belfast and dublin, but hold the door, because here you walk through to another world, arriving in westeros, where the i throne weights. over the next few weeks, we'll see a lot of athletes competing against each other at the olympic games, but take a look at this. this is omar menchaca. he is a retired kayaking champion in mexico. but now that he is no longer competing against others, he has decided to kayak for the benefit of his community, so every morning, he paddles along a river in mexico city and picks up any trash he finds floating on the water and banks. he says that he hopes his efforts will make a difference in preserving this place for future generations.

thanks for watching. you can reach me on twitter. i'm @bbcnuala hello there. snow was a feature of the weather for some parts of the uk on friday, and it continues to feature as part of what is actually quite a varied weekend weather menu. snow and ice continuing to be an issue, particularly in scotland. elsewhere, some rain at times, some brisk winds, but there will also be some spells of sunshine. the big weather maker for the weekend is this weather front extending all the way from north america across the atlantic towards our shores. this front will bring some outbreaks of rain. there will be some quite strong winds, but also this front dividing cold air, which will be returning from the north from this mild air, staging a temporary comeback down towards the south. so this is how

saturday shapes up. a touch of frost for some to start off. dry to start for much of england and wales, but you can see this wet weather on the move southwards as the day wears on. some particularly heavy bursts of rain developing over hills in the west. the south of england likely to stay dry for a good part of the day. northern scotland brightening up, but with some increasingly frequent snow showers, and a windy day for all. those are the gusts — gusts of 40—60 mph in exposed places in northern scotland. afternoon temperatures, quite a range, three there for stornoway, ten for london, plymouth and saint hellier. through saturday night, our weather front continues to journey southwards across northern ireland, it will cling on for a good part of the night, i think. certainly some wet weather crossing england and wales. for scotland, frequent snow showers. we could see up to 15 cm of snow accumulating over high ground. a mild night in the south, a colder one further north. and then we look ahead to sunday. well, this rain could well drag its heels. it could actually turn heavy for a time on sunday morning, and it may struggle to clear the south of england. but elsewhere, we should see some spells of sunshine

through the day. showers continuing, snow showers across high ground in scotland, but those showers even wintry to quite low levels. strongest winds at this stage could well be down towards the south, with gales likely through the channel. and temperature — again quite a range. four in the north, nine or ten further south, maybe 11 for the channel islands. now, as we head into the start of the new week, an area of high pressure not too far away, trying to build its way northwards. a weak frontal system but it is a warm front, so that will bring some milder air returning from the west. so quite a mild start to the new week. we will see some rain at times, but particularly the further south you are, the week should start on a mostly dry note.

this is bbc news.

the headlines: ahead of the opening ceremony of the winter olympics, china's president, xijinping, met his russian counterpart vladimir putin and gave his support to moscow's security and foreign policy aims. the official opening in beijing was toned down due to covid restrictions. the former us vice—president, mike pence, has said he could not have overturned the result of the 2020 presidential election, his strongest rebuttal so far of claims by donald trump. mr pence said it was un—american to think that any one person could choose the president. emergency workers in morocco say they're hopeful that they'll reach a 5—year—old boy trapped for four days in a deep well. the child, who's called rayan, slid more than 30 metres into the narrow shaft on tuesday while his father was repairing it. coming up in around 10 minutes' time, we'll have newswatch.

but first on bbc news, here's click.