hello, this is bbc news — our top stories. pounded for weeks, kharkiv has been decimated by russian shelling, but ukrainian fighters are resisting. we have a special report from the frontline. they've tried to punch through here, again and again and again, and they've failed. the ukrainian armed forces are keeping them at bay. in the south — rescuers search for survivors — after a theatre is bombed with hundreds sheltering in the basement. are we closer to a peace deal? russia's president has put forward his proposals to turkey. do they leave or stay behind — the agonising decisions

being made in the crucial port city of odesa — including in the main orphanage, where some are too sick to travel. they need oxygen, how can i move them? am i supposed to take the healthiest to safety and abandon the rest. and around the globe. russia's president vladimir putin has set out what he wants in exchange for a peace deal in ukraine. he laid out his demands in a phone call with the president of turkey — who's acting as a go—between in peace talks. putin wants guarantees that ukraine neverjoins nato, eastern parts of ukraine can break away and crimea be accepted as part of russia. more on that in a moment.

first an eyewitness report from the frontline. ukraine's second city of kharkiv has been under heavy daily bombardment but the ukrainian army is continuing to hold off the russian advance. for this special report, our correspondent quentin sommerville and camera journalist darren conway have been following the ukrainian army as they defend kharkiv. russia says it's demilitarising ukraine. instead, it's creating a wasteland. what it can't have, it destroys with vengeance. these were family homes on the edge of kharkiv. civilians are daily targets in vladimir putin's war. by the back door, a dead russian soldier. suburban gardens have become battlefields from europe's past. but here, the men of ukraine's 22nd battalion have pulled off a miracle. they've stopped the might of the russian army

at their city gates. ill—equipped and vastly outnumbered, three weeks on, they're still holding the line. russian boots have failed to gain hold here. frustrated, they've sent troops elsewhere, leaving heavy artillery to bomb the city into submission. explosions. constantine, a former air force pilot, has come out of retirement to fight. translation: this is the first line of defence for the city. . if they get through here,

they will enter kharkiv. this road takes you from russia to the very heart of the city. but the heart of kharkiv, and ukrainian resistance, is still beating. just beyond this position, there's only open country, and russians. they've tried to punch through here again and again and again and they've failed. ukrainian armed forces are keeping them at bay. they've also tried to encircle the city,

but again, they failed. so, they're taking out their frustration with artillery, bombing notjust... you can hear it... bombing not just these front lines, but also the entire population of kharkiv. a russian missile screeches above us. in this crater, six ukrainian soldiers died in a single strike. roman tells us, "they're chickens. "they won't show themselves again, but we'll respond good and proper." and away from the front, no neighbourhood is safe. explosion and breaking glass. russian grad rockets fall all around us. get in here! get in, get in! this is the reckless targeting of human life. to the south, the invaders are advancing, but here in ukraine's second city, kharkiv stands defiant while russia rages with incandescent fury. and russia knows hundreds

of thousands of people are still living here. how do you keep out such horror? explosions. sasha and svetlana's apartment is now the front line. for the men and women of the ukrainian army, she has a message.

translation: i'm very grateful to them for defending our land. | hold on, guys. we will always support you. explosions. both of my daughters and a granddaughter are fighting for ukraine. quentin sommerville, bbc news, kharkiv, in eastern ukraine. in the besieged city of mariupol there are reports many people have survived after a theatre was bombed by russian forces. hundreds of people were thought to be sheltering in the basement. ( ukraine's president volodymyr zelensky has accused russia of deliberately targeting the theatre but russia has denied carrying out the attack. our international correspondent, orla guerin reports on the continuing russian assault.

it's mariupol, he says, the theatre. here's the russian world. new footage shows what's left of the cultural landmark where so many sought shelter. ukraine says russia deliberately dropped a bomb here. this satellite image shows the russian word for children clearly marked at the front and back of the theatre. that didn't deter russian jets. in the darkness a week ago, crowds of women and children were filmed in the bomb shelter below ground. officials have said the shelter withstood the attack. so far, there are no reports of deaths, but mariupol is still being shelled, and information is slow to emerge. here's what three weeks of russian bombardment have done to the city.

the authorities say around 2500 people have been killed, but many bodies lie uncounted in the rubble. hard to believe it looked like this last month, when we filmed these pictures. then, it was a bustling port city. families strolling past the theatre that was loved by so many, including an opera singer who has managed to flee. you know, it's so devastating, it's a very personal story for me, as well and as for a lot of actors and musicians who sang there. it's even more devastating to know that this place actually was a shelter for more than a thousand people, including children. today, in moments of quiet, some were getting out,

leaving their homes and their city with what they could carry or drag. "we all left the building," this woman says. "i was the last. "then there was an explosion. "they left us with nothing. "we live in the basement. "how can we live like that? "what was our crime?" the street of this strategic city are littered with evidence of russian attacks. still, the kremlin claims it does not bomb cities and did not bomb the theatre. officials in kyiv say russia is carrying out a genocide. so, the intention of russian aggression is to destroy mariupol to the ground, but the main thing and the main tragedy that they are losing our people. we will rebuild ukraine, but we will not, you know, we cannot bring back our people. they have died. today, this exodus of the living.

they managed to flee, though convoys are often shelled. an estimated 300,000 people remain trapped inside the suffering city, where conditions are said to be medieval. orla guerin, bbc news, kyiv. through all of this fighting of course has been the hope of a peaceful outcome — and now what appears to be an outline of a peace agreement seems to be emerging. in a phone call between president putin and turkey's president erdogan, the russian leader set out his demands. the bbc�*s world afairs editor, john simpson, who's in istanbul, has been given details of that call. half an hour after coming off the call, he started to tell me

what had been happening. president putin is proposing six things. one is that ukraine should be neutral and notjoin nato. it is accepted that. there should be disarmament which simply means ukraine would not have heavy attack russia if it wanted to. it should protect the russian language within ukraine. the question of denazification. in the strange thing to my mind. i have not really figured out what that means. a bit insulting to ukraine. the man they completely there's never been notification of ukraine or ukrainian lands but the russian side has brought this up. i think that is the easier items to deal with. those of the four

easy things. now for the two difficult ones. they are both territorial. one is about donbas although the turks were much, much vaguer about the details of this but it could be that russia would demand the independence of those two small russian speaking states in eastern ukraine and the second is crimea. , eastern ukraine and the second is crimea-— is crimea. this meeting should take place _ is crimea. this meeting should take place sooner _ is crimea. this meeting should take place sooner rather - is crimea. this meeting should take place sooner rather than i take place sooner rather than later because it is only at that level, strategic level with the leaders meet, the key decisions will be taken and hopefully a permanent ceasefire and peace agreement will be reached. all other initiatives are important and they help but ultimately, it is president putin who is going to call this

thing off. putin who is going to call this thin off. ,, ., putin who is going to call this thin off. ,, . . thing off. russia took crimea from ukraine _ thing off. russia took crimea from ukraine illegally - thing off. russia took crimea from ukraine illegally in - thing off. russia took crimea l from ukraine illegally in 2014. now maybe they want to force ukraine to say it was legal which would be a very very bitter pill for ukraine to have to swallow. you were just a few minutes ago listening to president putin talking on the phone. there's been quite a lot of speculation about his state of speculation about his state of mind and his sanity even and health and so on. what did you think? what was your impression as you listened? in the making of the same as usual. calm, confident. he did not talk about nuclear or anything and he talked about the negotiations and diatoms on the table. it was kind of around that tone and framework. calm? the other and calm.

today, we have closed the book on apartheid and that chapter. cheering. more than 3000 subway passengers were affected. nausea, bleeding, headaches and the dimming of vision — all of this caused by an apparently organised attack. the trophy itself was on the pedestal in the middle of the cabinet here. now, this was an international trophy, and we understand now that the search for it has become an international search.

above all, this was a triumph for the christian democrats. of the west — offeringl reunification as quickly as possible — and that'sl what the voters wanted. this is bbc world news, the latest headlines. the ukrainian army is continuing to hold off the russian advance in the second city of kharkiv, even as it comes under heavy daily bombardment. emergency teams in the city of mariupol are rescuing survivors from the rubble of a theatre bombed by russia — officials say the number of casualties is still not clear. new british intelligence reports suggest moscow's invasion has �*largely stalled' with heavy russian losses and fierce ukrainian resistance. for places in ukraine like the city of odesa — yet to witness an offensive, residents are faced with a difficult decision,

to leave or stay. russia is eager to take the crucial port city on the black sea coast. our correspondent andrew harding is in odesa as it prepares its defences, and he sent this report. on ukraine's black sea coast, they're getting ready for the russians. filling sandbags... ..and blocking the streets of odesa, an ancient port city once attacked by lenin, then by hitler, now braced for putin's invasion. some here cling to a sense of normality. "of course the war will come, with all its death and suffering, and for what?"

asks 77—year—old alexander. others are already facing immediate, impossible decisions. in odesa's main orphanage, 18 of its children are too sick to be taken abroad. translation: they need oxygen. how can i move them? am i supposed to take the healthiest to safety and abandon the rest? for now, her plan is to move them all to the basement. up the road at odesa's zoo, the staff have agreed to stay put, whatever the war brings. the director now sleeps in his office, afraid the sound of explosions might panic the animals. and more animals keep arriving, pets dropped off by families preparing to flee. i'm afraid. but we stay here.

we love our city and we will stay here. and we will fight. meanwhile, teenage recruits are still signing up for odesa's civil defence units, ready to fight the russians street by street, knowing it may soon come to that. it is impossible to imagine the russians bombarding this precious city, a place steeped in the russian language, in russian culture, and in centuries of russian history. and yet the events of the past few weeks here in ukraine suggest that this city, odesa, could be under attack at any moment. out of sight, off the coast, a russian armada is circling. odesa has already sandbagged its most precious monuments. while each new air raid sends people down to the city's old cellars... ..to wait for whatever russia has in store. andrew harding, bbc news, odesa.

a russian court has extended the detention of a female american basketball star for a further two months. brittney griner — who's a double olympic champion — was arrested at an airport in moscow last month after cannabis oil was allegedly found in her luggage. rachel galligan — women's basketball analyst with the just women's sport website is in denver. thank you. what we know about her detention? _ thank you. what we know about her detention? honestly, - thank you. what we know about her detention? honestly, not i thank you. what we know about her detention? honestly, not a l her detention? honestly, not a lot. her detention? honestly, not a lot- they've — her detention? honestly, not a lot. they've kept _ her detention? honestly, not a lot. they've kept a _ her detention? honestly, not a lot. they've kept a lot - her detention? honestly, not a lot. they've kept a lot very - lot. they've kept a lot very private. news did not, for close to a month that she had been like you mentioned, she was caught with cartridges of cannabis oil going to moscow airport from new york. brittney griner has played with a top

russian club since 2014 and thatis russian club since 2014 and that is a pretty common thing amongst top women's possible players to play professionally so experienced in russia. unusual circumstances. honestly, a lot of the details are unknown.— are unknown. that must be hu:el are unknown. that must be hugely frustrating - are unknown. that must be hugely frustrating because | are unknown. that must be i hugely frustrating because we would want to know what is going to happen next but not much of a that either? ho. going to happen next but not much of a that either? no. hard to sa . much of a that either? no. hard to say. speculation _ much of a that either? no. hard to say. speculation over - much of a that either? no. hard to say. speculation over here i to say. speculation over here primarily in the states as to whether this arrest is politically motivated or if she were specifically targeted. speculation, there is no proof to any of that. we don't even know where she is. she is believed to be moscow but a

primary location is unknown so, they said before, those details have been very difficult and use even but today that the us state department has still not had access to her. those close to her have gotten frequent updates from her team of russian attorneys but really, outside of the extension, and that was the big news today, that was the big news today, that she will be held there until at least may 19 while her trial is continued, there's not a whole that we no. this trial is continued, there's not a whole that we no.- a whole that we no. this is civen a a whole that we no. this is given a fresh _ a whole that we no. this is given a fresh burst - a whole that we no. this is given a fresh burst of - given a fresh burst of publicity today with hillary clinton. , , ., ., clinton. yes. there is a lot of, clinton. yes. there is a lot of. there's _ clinton. yes. there is a lot of, there's two _ clinton. yes. there is a lot of, there's two sides - clinton. yes. there is a lot of, there's two sides to - clinton. yes. there is a lot| of, there's two sides to the coin here. there is one narrative that has been seen, we need to stay quiet. another said we should be, this should be the number one story in america in terms of what the situation is and hillary clinton came forward and said

three brittney griner. that was a big movement. itjust shows you, the last couple of weeks, when this news broke, and it is only a couple of weeks we have known about it, keep in been a russian jail known about it, keep in been a russianjailfor known about it, keep in been a russian jail for close to a month and a half. so hillary clinton coming forward and bringing light to the situation and it was a big move and will take some heavy hitting power to hopefully try and find some answers for the situation and unfortunately does not like it is going to be resolved anytime soon. , , , ., soon. very briefly, for those outside the _ soon. very briefly, for those outside the us _ soon. very briefly, for those outside the us are - soon. very briefly, for those outside the us are those - soon. very briefly, for those | outside the us are those who don't follow basketball, her big name is she?— big name is she? probably riaht, big name is she? probably right, arguably _ big name is she? probably right, arguably the - big name is she? probablyj right, arguably the biggest women's basketball name in this type of generation. what she did from the collegiate standpoint to where she is now, she is a dominant presence. the

tom brady of american football. she is as big a name as it gets in women's professional basketball.— in women's professional basketball. thank you for cominu basketball. thank you for coming on _ basketball. thank you for coming on and _ basketball. thank you for coming on and talking - basketball. thank you for coming on and talking as| basketball. thank you for l coming on and talking as to that. thank you. thank you. president macron of france has set out his platform for re—election, promising to steer the country through �*a new era of crisis'. polls indicate he has a growing lead ahead of the first round of voting in april. mr macron said he would make france a stronger, more self—sufficient nation which could contribute to a world facing war and climate change. reports from the united states suggest that russia has made the first interest payment on its foreign debt since sanctions were imposed. the american bank, jp morgan, is reported to have received a payment from russia's central bank. moscow says it has met its obligation to pay 117 million dollars in interest on its dollar—denominated bonds. the payment means that, for now, russia has managed to avoid defaulting

on its foreign debt. arnold schwarzenegger has called for an end to a "senseless war" in ukraine in a video appeal to russians and russian troops — using russian subtitiles. he warned them not to fall into the same trap as his father , who fought for the nazis — as he said that broke his father's will, physically and mentally. the austrian—born bodybuilder said the world's turned against russia. as a long—term friend of the russian people i hope that you will hear what i have to say. it is a humanitarian crisis. because of its brutality, russia is now isolated. from the society of nations. you are not being told the truth about the consequences of this war on russia itself. i regret to tell you that thousands of russian soldiers that have been killed. you can reach me on twitter —

i'm @ l vaughanjones. hello there. the weather is really settling down. there's going to be a lot of dry weather, probably, for the next week or so. now, on thursday, we saw more cloud mainly across northern parts of the uk, giving us a few showers. but we're going to see less of this and more of this — blue skies over the next few days, very colourful picture there in the centre of london. now, this was the cloud that gave us the rain on wednesday. that's well out of the way. this cloud is not really reaching our shores, and the speckle cloud, the showers in the north of scotland are tending to fade away. so, with clear skies, light winds, it is going to be a chilly start to friday morning with some frost, particularly across scotland and northern ireland. maybe a few mist and fog patches across wales, the midlands, across the west country, too. these will lift in the morning, and then the sunshine comes out

far and wide once again. the winds tending to freshen up a little bit in the afternoon, but it's likely to be a warmer day than it was on thursday. temperatures of 13 degrees in the central belt of scotland and newcastle, and a high of 16 celsius in the southeast of england. the weather's quitening down because high pressure's building across the uk on friday. the centre of that strong highs going to be pushing to the east of our shores with quite a few isobars on the chart on saturday. it's going to be dry on saturday, but the winds will be quite a bit stronger — that'll be a noticeable change for all parts of the country. so, no frost around, probably no fog around on saturday morning, but there will be lots of sunshine during the day. the winds coming in from the east or southeast means that the highest temperatures will always be across more sheltered western areas. across some eastern parts of england, temperatures maybe no higher than 12 or 13 degrees. could make 16 along the coast of northwest england, but it's up towards the northwest highlands and perhaps even into the moray firth that temperatures could reach 17 or 18 degrees, and it could be the warmest day of the year so far. as we move into sunday, there are going to be some changes. it's going to be colder for a start and a bit

more cloud around, too. there'll still be some sunshine around on sunday, but more cloud, especially for some eastern parts of the uk. it could just be thick enough to give one or two light showers in east anglia and the southeast of england. the winds won't be as strong on sunday, but temperatures are going to be lower, struggling to make double figures around some of those eastern coasts. but let's end on a positive note, because early next week, it's going to get warmer.

this is bbc news, the headlines: russia's president vladimir putin has set out what he wants in exchange for a peace deal in ukraine. he laid out his demands in a phone call with the president of turkey, who's acting as a go—between in peace talks. the demands include a guarantee that ukraine neverjoins nato. the ukrainian army is continuing to hold off the russian advance in the second city of kharkiv, even as it comes under heavy daily bombardment. a planned humanitarian corridor to allow people to be evacuated from the city failed to operate, due to shelling by russian forces. in the besieged city of mariupol, there are reports many people have survived after a theatre was bombed by russian forces. hundreds were thought to be sheltering in the basement.

ukraine's president zelensky has accused russia of deliberately targeting the theatre, something russia denies. now on bbc news, panorama. cheering super rich russians like roman abramovich have become part of british life. explosions but the war in ukraine has ended the uk's love affair with wealthy russians and their cash. it's absolutely preposterous that we're only tackling this now. we've been investigating how britain's most famous russian made his money. roman abramovich has stolen money from russians, billions of dollars, of money of russian taxpayers. we uncover new details about roman abramovich's

murky past...