today at six — russia broadens its attack on ukraine, extending further into the country and hitting more cities. an air strike on the central eastern city of dnipro hits a nursery, an apartment block and a shoe factory. we report from the scene. this site is one of complete devastation. the smoke is still rising from the ruins of this building, hours after the missiles struck. near the capital kyiv, the exodus gathers pace as russian forces edge closer. russia accuses ukraine of developing biological weapons, prompting fears that moscow could use it as a cover for a chemical attack. here, we'll have the latest on the uk's response to the growing refugee crisis.

also on tonight's programme. it was not your fault. the state let you down. a formal public apology is made to survivors of abuse carried out in children's homes in northern ireland, over seven decades. covid—19 infections rise in all four nations of the uk. levels in scotland are at a record high. and we speak to the woman who could make awards history this weekend. ari wenger is the first female cinematographer ever nominated for a bafta. and coming up on the bbc news channel, england lose an early wicket on day four of the first test match against west indies as they hope to bat out a decent lead in antigua.

good evening and welcome to the bbc news at six from lviv. russian forces are widening attacks on areas across ukraine, and are now closing in on the capital kyiv. the aerial bombardment was stepped up overnight, with russian forces attacking some cities for the first time, including lutsk and ivano—frankivsk in the west. and to the east, dnipro, which has been a place of refuge for ukrainians fleeing other parts of the country, was also hit. from dnipro, our eastern europe reporter sarah rainsford. they struck at dawn, and dnipro wasn't expecting it. this was not a military target. russia's missiles have destroyed a shoe factory. and they've shattered the idea

many had clung to here — that this city was safe. amongst the rubble of their workplace were factory staff, trying to clean up. dazed and disbelieving. many more could have died here, had the factory not stopped work because of the war. "you see that black bag," this woman says. "that was our security guard. what else can i tell you? "you can see it all." many ignored the wail of the air raid siren because central dnipro had never been hit. this site is one of complete devastation. the smoke is still rising from the ruins of this building, hours after the missiles struck, and the smell here is really accurate. but the thing that strikes me most, just being here, is that there are so many apartment blocks, residential buildings, all around here. the shock swept across the square, smashing windows and shaking

the shockwave swept across the square, smashing windows and shaking buildings for blocks around. we saw irina cleaning up the mess, and she called us in. for her family, the attack was terrifyingly close — right on their doorstep. they are scared, but they are also furious here, at russia. "we didn't ask them to come and save us," irina tells me. "we were living fine in our own country. "we love our country, and will defend it," she says. across the hallway, alexander is clearing up for his 90—year—old aunt, distraught that she lived through one world war and she's now been caught up in all this. and down the road we met natalya, demanding to know why russia is firing at them. haunted by the terrified screams of her son.

they didn't make it to the bomb shelter — the missiles came in too fast. rescuers have been salvaging scraps from the factory wreckage. but however resilient ukraine is, this kind of attack sews fear and saps morale. because when the sirens go now, no—one can feel safe here. sarah rainsford, bbc news, dnipro. as the conflict intensifies, the column of armoured vehicles that had been heading to kyiv, the capital, peer to have been redeployed to surrounding areas, causing more concerned that a new attack on kyiv could be imminent. our international correspondent orla guerin has been to the front line, close to the town of bucha where russian troops are battling ukrainian forces just 15 miles from the centre of kyiv. the lonely road towards russian

positions on the outskirts of kyiv. we headed carefully towards the commuter town of bucha, bombed day and night. there are battlegrounds along the way. well, this is as far as we can go. we've just come through the last ukrainian checkpoint. up ahead is no man's land, and the next checkpoint is in the hands of the russians. we've been hearing the sounds of battle in the last few minutes, with outgoing shelling from here towards the russian positions. "the fighting is hard, very hard," says viktor, breaking down. "15 days."

he is a pensioner turned defender of ukraine. "overall, it's fine," he says. "we have our children... "..our wives. "this is our land." anatoli, who is 72, was risking his life to look for petrol. "everything is destroyed," he tells me. "there is no electricity, no gas. "it's very cold in the house. "i'm sorry.

"this is life." inside bucha, there is no life. so today, once again, civilians were fleeing. from russia, this choice — go or be bombed. documents are checked before they head for kyiv. ukrainian forces don't want russian saboteurs getting through. cars trimmed with white ribbons, and brimming with desperation. a playful safe passage. —— a plea for safe passage. did you see the russian forces in your area? "we passed three of their checkpoints. "there were tanks there," says alexander. his wife, natalya, also weeps for ukraine. russian armour is now closing

in on kyiv, according to these satellite images. the pentagon says the russians may now be less than ten miles from the city centre. orla guerin, bbc news, on the outskirts of kyiv. in towns and cities across ukraine, military funerals are now a daily occurrence. this country's regular armed forces — its soldiers, sailors and airforce — have beenjoined by volunteers, men and women who three weeks ago had never picked up a weapon, but who are now fighting and dying in defence of their land. three soldiers were buried here in lviv today. fergal keane was at the ceremony. sung prayers, weeping. the dead are returning... ..to homes far from the battlefield.

today, they buried dmitro kabakov, 59, andrei stefanushin, 40, taras diduk, aged 25. for all the solidarity of crowds... ..this grief is solitary. prayers continue. each loss individual. forfamilies. for comrades. prayers continue.

singing. ukraine's dead in this war are full timers, reservists, and conscripts. andrei stefanushin was a permanent soldier, married, with a three—year—old daughter. jaroslav is a friend from when they worked on the railways together. translation: we kept in touch, talked. - he was a great guy. god takes away the best from us. these men had plans. taras diduk had a girlfriend. he was godfather to a friend's daughter. translation: he was brave. he said, "mama, who is going to protect you, if not me?"

i know how he was. i can't praise my child, but for me, he was the best. a mother grieving a dead son, war�*s eternal story. fergal keane, bbc news, lviv. let's speak to our chief international correspondent lyse doucet, in kyiv. lyse, the russian bombardment seems to have stepped up today. today has been another day where more sanctions have been imposed on russia, more strong words of condemnation from many capitals, including in the last hour from the un security council, and yet, it has no impact, it seems, on the course of this war. day 16 of russia's invasion, the days we have been reporting where russia has intensified and widened this war,

attacking targets in the north west and south—west, which are far from the main lines of attack. attacking dnipro, in the centre of the country, which was considered safe. today, the united nations condemned russia for using long—range artillery, rockets, even cluster munitions, which are widely banned, to target residential areas. there is meant to be humanitarian corridors, 12 in all, to ease the suffering of people but yet again, in mariupol to the south, shelling stopped relief getting in and anyone getting out in a place where conditions are now described as primeval. figs conditions are now described as rimeval. �* , . conditions are now described as rimeval. ., ~ conditions are now described as rimeval. �* , . ., ~ conditions are now described as rimeval. a. ., ~ i, primeval. as always, thank you. lyse doucet, there- _ russia has called for foreign volunteers to fight alongside its troops in ukraine, suggesting there were thousands in the middle east ready to join. us officials said these

could include fighters from syria, which is a long—standing ally of russia. from moscow, our russia editor steve rosenberg reports. for russia's defence minister, sergei shorgu, it was a busy day. medals for his troops wounded in action. and a video call with the kremlin to announce that 16,000 volunteers from the middle east want to fight for russia in ukraine. "good idea," said the president. translation: if you see that some volunteers would like to come - and help people in the donbas, especially without being paid, then we should meet them halfway and help them relocate to the war zone. soon after, this. chanting. russian tv showed what it said were pro—russia fighters in syria, ready and willing.

they've helped moscow in the syrian war, but what will happen if they fight in ukraine? they'll be very ruthless, and they'll use syrian tactics liberating ukrainian cities by reducing them to rubble. this war is turning into a war of attrition in which russia cannot win because the ukrainians are going to have more supplies, more money coming their way, while the russian financial system is going broke because of sanctions, the russian economy is tanking. vladimir putin has much to reflect on after 16 days of what he calls his "special military operation". the kremlin says that by sending thousands of foreign fighters to ukraine, it's acting no differently from the ukrainian government, which has also been signing up volunteers. but remember, it was russia that launched this offensive, sending its troops across the border into a sovereign nation. moscow seems determined to secure a military victory. but at what cost to the russian people?

in moscow today, more queues, more western shops closing, more economic pain from sanctions. for some, the priority now is buying an air ticket out of here. but president putin insists his country will get through this. when he met the leader of belarus, vladimir putin said in the past, sanctions had made russia stronger. from the kremlin leader, no hint of regret. steve rosenberg, bbc news, moscow. president zelensky has rejected russian claims that chemical weapons or weapons of mass destruction were developed in ukraine. in a video address, he also warned that russia would get "the most severe sanctions response" if it were to use such weapons. the us said the allegations were intended to justify a potential russian chemical attack. with more here's our security correspondent gordon corera.

the aftermath of a shelling in kharkiv. as russia's tactics become more aggressive and desperate, the growing fear is that it could use chemical weapons. ukraine's leaders today added his voice to those warning of that danger. translation: what else have you prepared for us? - where will you strike with your chemical weapons? at the maternity hospital in mariupol? at the church in kharkiv? or at the children's hospital? so, what are chemical weapons? they release a toxin or poison, often a gas, and were used to devastating effect in the syrian conflict by russia's ally, the assad regime. and russia itself used a nerve agent, a type of chemical weapon, in salisbury in the uk four years ago. so, what is russia saying? 0ne concern is that moscow has been making claims that ukraine has its own weapons programmes. russia actually called a un meeting today amid claims of a secret

us—backed biological weapons lab, something washington and ukraine deny. russia asked the security council for today's meeting for the sole purpose of lying and spreading disinformation, and that is exactly what you have heard from the russian pr this morning. the fear is that russia is preparing for what's called a "false flag", using chemical weapons itself and then blaming the ukrainians in order to justify the invasion. that, one western official said today, seems more likely than widespread military use of chemicals. so, what would the consequences be? in 2013, parliament voted not to take military action after the use of chemical weapons in syria, even though they'd been described by the west as a "red line". so, what would happen this time? 0fficials here at the foreign office and across the west have been vocal about their concerns, but also careful not to say exactly how they would respond.

i'm not going to speak| about the intelligence, but russia would pay a severe price if they used chemical weapons. - a strike on lutsk overnight, the devastation is already terrible. the hope will be that public warnings may dissuade moscow, though, from taking action which could bring even more suffering. gordon corera, bbc news. that's all from us here in lviv this evening, i'll hand you back to jane in the studio. thank you very much. the united nations says more than 2.5 million people have fled ukraine since russia invaded. most of them have entered ukraine's nearest european neighbours, and volunteers are helping to support refugees across eastern europe. the eu says ukrainians will be allowed to work in member states without a visa for three years. here, the prime minister say plans to allow some refugees to live with host families in the uk will be revealed next week.

for ukrainian people waiting to get here, the announcement can't come soon enough. here's our special correspondent lucy manning. millions are on the move — out of ukraine, inside ukraine. all have lost their homes and are looking for a new one. into the third week of this invasion, and finally british families will get the chance to help. the children of the dnipro orphanage have each other, but little else. everyone caring for someone. fleeing from the fighting just in time. probably still a couple of hours away from the polish ukrainian border. heading to meet them in lviv, a scotsman — part of a group of hibernian football fans who've been supporting this orphanage for years. steve and his charity have arranged homes and care for the children in scotland, but they still can't get them to the uk. the only thing that needs to happen

for us to be able to bring the kids back is for the uk government to say that it's ok to bring them in. we've got the support network in place, we've got the funding in place. the children know us and trust us. and that's it, that's all we are asking — just let us in. what's your message to the government on setting up the sponsorship scheme? get it done quickly and make it easy. the longer it takes, the more pain and suffering you are putting those kids through. we've got them away from the initial worry of being stuck in dnipro, but they are still in limbo. the government will eventually announce next week plans to allow british families to open up their homes to ukrainians, and the companies and communities to sponsor refugees. but millions in poland, hungary, moldova, have already been doing this well british people have only been able to donate. the bus with the children finally crossed into poland last night. most of these children don't have

passports, so they and others will still face visa bureaucracy. it's not clear how long they will have to wait to restart their lives — to be children again. for those who have watched the dislocation from the comfort of their homes and want to bring refugees into them, vetting will be required, which could also take time. but as many ukrainians can come to the uk as there are people and organisations willing to harass and support them, the country is set —— willing to houses and support them. to show its generosity. lucy manning, bbc news. a formal public apology has been made to people who suffered abuse at children's homes in northern ireland over seven decades. a number of survivors were in the stormont assembly chamber to hear the apology, after an inquiry found that thousands of children had suffered physical, sexual and emotional abuse

in residential institutions run by the church and the state between the 1920s and 1990s. 0ur ireland correspondent emma vardy reports. the pain of abuse has lasted long after childhood. it was a nightmare in that place. notjust what happened to us, but what we seen all the children go through. the beatings. the coldness. no affection. you never seen a smile. jimmy was placed into a catholic run home when his mother died. the systematic abuse of children in northern ireland's religious and charitable institutions was denied and hidden for many years. for those who as children suffered sexual, physical or emotional abuse, today, recognition of the suffering that was caused, and an apology. we neglected you, rejected you. we made you feel unwanted. it was not your fault.

the state let you down. for survivors, this has been a long awaited moment. an apology had been recommended five years ago after what was at the time the uk's biggest child abuse public inquiry. but a three—year collapse in power—sharing here meant the wait dragged on. you couldn't believe this, you know, that we'd have to do this, beg and plead for someone to listen. we did that as young children. but the way we have been treated all these years has hurt and damaged us so much. the apologies from some religious leaders today were coldly received. but statements from stormont�*s five main parties were welcomed. it's huge, its huge. and it's about time. it's way, way past time. many survivors say a feeling of shame and guilt has never left them. but today, some sense of vindication and healing. applause.

emma vardy, bbc news. the high court has ruled that the metropolitan police breached the rights of four women who were organising a vigil for sarah everard, after her murder by a serving police officer one year ago. the women cancelled the event because police told them they could be fined for breaching covid restrictions — an unofficial gathering then took place on london's clapham common. today judges ruled that the force had failed to consider whether there was a reasonable reason for an organised vigil. covid—19 infections have risen in all four nations of the uk, in the last few minutes buckingham palace has announced the queen won't attend the annual commonwealth service due to be held on monday. she is understood to regret being unable to attend. the decision has been taken about concerns about her comfort travelling to and from the service. it is not thought to be related to any illness. she will be

represented instead by the prince of wales. covid—19 infections have risen in all four nations of the uk, with levels in scotland at a record high. the office for national statistics infection survey estimates that 2.6 million people had coronavirus last week, up from 2.4 million. more details from our health editor hugh pym. the message from scotland's first minister — covid hasn't gone away and people should still take sensible precautions. patient numbers in scottish hospitals with the virus are the highest in more than a year. a big decision is looming — whether to press on with ending all remaining legal restrictions on march the 21st. we have to do, in some respects, learn to live with covid. but of course we've also got to factor in the harm that it causes people, particularly those that are at high risk and vulnerable. the latest survey by the office for national statistics suggests that around 2.6 million people in the uk had the virus last week, up from about 2.4 million the previous week.

in scotland, it was1 in 18 people, and northern ireland, 1 in 13, while in england about1 in 25 had the virus, and wales, 1 in 30. case rates were higher in all the uk's nations. we are concerned about rising infection in the community and an increase in hospital admissions, but we have decoupled the worst health harms in this virus due to vaccination. the demand on intensive care beds is still lower, as is mortality. so we just have to watch very carefully and try and mitigate our way out of this phase of the pandemic. with cases rising, some have called for the next boosterjab, planned for older people and those with weakened immune systems, to be launched as soon as possible. a minute's silence, meanwhile, was held at the national memorial arboretum in staffordshire to mark the second anniversary of the world health organization declaring there was a coronavirus pandemic, and to remember sacrifices made by health and care workers.

hugh pym, bbc news. history could be made this weekend at the bafta film awards — if ari wegner wins the statuette for best cinematographer, for her stunning work onjane campion�*s the power of the dog, set in 1920s montana. wegner is the first woman ever nominated in the category — and she's in the running for an oscar two weeks later. she's been speaking to our culture editor katie razzall. i think there is a ceiling there that's very hungry to be broken. 25 years since our first run together... will ari wegner be the first female cinematographer ever to win a bafta or even an oscar? period western the power of the dog has 12 academy award and eight bafta nominations. you are marvellous, rose. and central to this visual feast of a film is a cinematographer who got into the business without realising quite how rare she was. i was so naive at the time. i had no idea that it was not a job that women usually did.

she is now at the top of her game and, with the acclaimed directorjane campion, has created 1920s montana on the south island of new zealand — inspired not by other movies but by paintings. yeah, i love using art as a touch point more than films. we talked a lot about andrew wyeth and lucian freud and kind of pulling apart what is it about those works. something can be beautiful without being traditionally beautiful, what kind of rugged face... whatjane and i really find beautiful is kind of the imperfection, and realness is so beautiful. before ari wegner, a female cinematographer had never been nominated for a bafta. a win there, or at the oscars, would make her a trailblazer, but... i think it's something like 6% of bigger budget films are shot by women, which is not much. it's, like, slightly depressing and also, like, progress. i would hope that the change would be faster, if anything, but i think we are getting there —

one movie, one award at a time. perhaps, with this movie, cinematography�*s glass ceiling is about to shatter. katie razzall, bbc news. time for a look at the weather — here's tomasz schafernaker. the weekend is upon us and we have a mixed bag on the way. today it has been pretty cloudy, outbreaks of rain, i think most of us by now will have had at least some rain. tomorrow, i see a mixed bag, have had at least some rain. tomorrow, isee a mixed bag, there is actually going to be a fair amount of sunshine around as well. 0verall it's not a bad weekend but it will be very blustery and the winds will make their presence felt, particularly across the west country. here is the weather front has been crossing us today, extensive cloud right now and outbreaks of rain coming and going. through the night it is quite breezy, showers on and off, really a damp night out there. 0nce

breezy, showers on and off, really a damp night out there. once again very mild, just