welcome to newsday, reporting live from singapore, i'm karishma vaswani. the headlines. ukraine's military warns russia is regrouping its forces — we've a special report from the south of the country. shells land periodically in this area, and it's occupied by russian troops, with civilians being killed in these villages. us intelligence suggests president putin feels misled by the military resulting in tensions with top generals. also in the programme. president biden gets a second covid boosterjab, and urges americans to keep their guard up in fighting the virus.

and celebrities pay tribute to australian cricket legend shane warne at a star—studded memorial service in melbourne. it's 8am in singapore, and 3am in kyiv, where ukraine's president volodymyr zelensky has spoken to president biden seeking further military support, as russia continues its assault on his country. it comes as fighting is continuing around the capital kyiv and other northern cities, despite russia's pledge yesterday to draw back from these areas. in the south, too, russian forces have advanced further into the ruined city

of mariupol — while in mykolaiv, 12 people were killed by a russian strike. in the east, russia's defence ministry has said they are focusing on the donbas region. our correspondent wyre davies reports from the frontline town of orikhiv in southern ukraine. a warning some viewers may find his report distressing. russia says it's not deliberately targeting civilians in this war. but there is no other description for what happened to natalia than deliberate. it's a miracle she's still alive, after the day russian troops occupied her town of polohy. translation: | walked i to where my mother lived. a soldier stopped me and i raised my hands. i told them i had been let through, but the soldier fired a burst of gunfire, hitting me in the legs. hitting me everywhere from the waist down. everything is damaged. my private parts, too. he was shooting to kill.

orikhiv is the next town along the southern road from where natalia was shot. still in ukrainian hands, but regularly shelled by russia. this village is the last one before the front line. shells land in these fields periodically and the next village, down the road, is occupied by russian troops and civilians have been killed in these villages. now, many younger people have left here already, but others in particular, the elderly, they remain, but they know that they are taking a big risk. lyda's modest farm is right at the edge of orikhiv, the most exposed, dangerous part of town. she takes me to see where she sleeps. not in the house, but in this cold, damp cellar. primitive cover from the russian shells. "i am hiding here in this bunker, because they're bombing us and attacking us from each

side," says lyda. "i hate them, i hate them. we used to live in peace and we were happy." speculation about russian troop withdrawals around kyiv is treated with scepticism here in the south, where heavy fighting continues. russia's assault on mariupol is intense. civilians like natasha, who was blinded by russian shelling, are still suffering. translation: my sons were in the basement. l the 19—year—old visits me, but as for the five—year—old, i don't think he should be seeing his mum like this. i miss them so much. i want to give my little boy a hug and a kiss. wyre davies, bbc news, orikhiv. that's the picture in ukraine.

meanwhile, the white house says it has intelligence that president putin feels misled by the russian military over ukraine, resulting in tensions with top generals — more on that in a moment. in russia itself, there's further signs of a clampdown on internal dissent. here's our russia editor steve rosenberg. there were peace talks this week, but there's no peace yet. the russian military released these images of it launching ballistic missiles towards ukraine. an army spokesman said russia was continuing its special military operation, and had destroyed fuel storage sites, arms depots, and ukrainian drones. continuing in russia, encouraged by the authorities, public displays of support for the offensive. these buses form the letter z, that's painted on russian

military vehicles in ukraine. you will find zs on billboards, on government buildings, even on the side of theatres. and here, this is the home of human rights activist oleg orlov. those who criticise russia's onslaught in ukraine have become targets of abuse. translation: russia is heading towards, in fact has almost - arrived at, something very similar to what we saw in germany in the 1930s. everything feels very familiar. and that's important. in russia right now, there is no room for alternative views, for public expressions that contradict the official opinion. and that is particularly true of events in ukraine. the kremlin wants the public here to believe that the russian offensive there is both necessary and just.

the russian authorities have banned the word "war", in relation to ukraine. so, when dmitry reznikov took part in an anti—war protest, he didn't use any words at all. he was still arrested, though, and fined for "discrediting the russian army". translation: i was detained within 30 seconds. _ i don't think it would have mattered what was written there. some people have been arrested just for holding up a plain piece of paper. because everyone knows what it means and what it stands for. in vladimir putin's russia, even the slightest hint of dissent is seen by those in power here as a significant threat, to be eliminated. but, in a country where opposition to the government has been crushed, where critical voices are being silenced, where the media is under almost total state control, for now, the kremlin

doesn't feel under any public pressure to make peace in ukraine. steve rosenberg, bbc news, moscow. the white house says it has intelligence that president putin feels misled by the russian military over ukraine, resulting in persistent tensions with top generals. the white house spokesperson said senior advisors were scared to tell the russian leader the truth about how badly his military was performing, a view echoed by the pentagon. we would concur with the conclusion that mr putin has not been fully informed by his ministry of defence at every turn over the last month. i want the caveat that. we do not have access to every bit of information that he has been given or every conversation that he has had.

i'm joined now by our news reporter azadeh moshiri. let's start with the white house. what are you hearing about what the white house says is president putin's perception of the war?— is president putin's perception of the war? ~ . . ., ., ,, of the war? according to the us intelligence _ of the war? according to the us intelligence forces, _ of the war? according to the us intelligence forces, they - of the war? according to the us intelligence forces, they say - intelligence forces, they say president putin feels he has been badly misled by his most senior military advisers, and that this has created a rift between him and those officials. that includes so gay sure you, his defence minister, who was one of the people in the inner circle, his most trusted adviser. we know that inner circle has always been quite small. and the reason for this according to the white

house, these advisers feel there will be repercussions if they give president putin noise he doesn't want to hear —— sergei shoigu. anthony blinken said this is the problem with these systems, people don't feel they can speak truth to power. feel they can speak truth to ower. , ., , feel they can speak truth to ower. , ._ ., power. president putin may not fully understand _ power. president putin may not fully understand that _ power. president putin may not fully understand that the - power. president putin may not fully understand that the war i fully understand that the war is badly stalling for russia. i'm sure some in the audience must be wondering, is this all part of the narrative war between the west and russia, and how much can we trust this intelligence from the white house? ~ ., �* , house? well, that's right, trust is a _ house? well, that's right, trust is a big _ house? well, that's right, trust is a big issue, - house? well, that's right, i trust is a big issue, because traditionally we know us intelligence is very careful about what information they release and when. but there are a few things we can keep in mind. the us did release the information, it declassified

the fact president putin was planning to invade ukraine. that turned out to be right. and in this case the information is also backed by uk intelligence, gchq, and we know that its chief, sirjeremy fleming, is planning to give a speech on thursday morning in australia, where he says president putin massively misjudged the situation in ukraine, that he overestimated the capabilities of his military forces, and that russian soldiers are currently low in the role and refusing to carry out orders. and a big point, peace negotiations are going on right now, and the white house saying they are very concerned that if president putin doesn't have all the information, that could impact his decision—making. fascinating stuff. thanks for joining us. the only trial in the us involving a member of one

of the most infamous terrorist organisations in the world has begun. 33—year—old el shafee el sheikh, from the uk, was part of an islamic state group cell nicknamed the beatles by captives because of their english accents. el sheikh is accused of murdering american and british hostages in syria. our north america correspondent nomia iqbal reports. they were once considered one of the most brutal terrorist organisations on the planet. the islamic state group, the self—declared caliphate, controlled huge parts of syria and iraq in 2014, claiming responsibility for acts of terror across the world, including the 2015 paris attacks. a group of men became infamous as part of is propaganda. the so—called beatles were given their nickname by their captives due to the fact all four were from the uk. they were a cell of is and filmed gruesome and horrific beheadings ofjournalists and aid workers on camera. the chief member was mohammed emwazi, nicknamedjihadijohn.

today, your military air force is attacking us daily in iraq. he was eventually killed by a drone strike in 2015. aine davis is injail in turkey, convicted on terrorism offences. alexanda kotey and el shafee elsheikh were captured in 2018 by syrian kurds. they were asked by the bbc at the time about their involvement with the so—called islamic state. do you still deny that you are a member of the group known as the beatles, which carried out executions and beheadings? yes, of course. el shafee? same question? yes _ the uk eventually agreed for the men to be tried here in the us, after the death penalty was taken off the table. the entire united states government remains committed to bringing to justice anyone who harms our citizens and today we are demonstrating that resolve by bringing

to our shores two men who left britain to become isis terrorists. now they are going to face justice in an american court of law for crimes against american citizens. but last year, kotey pleaded guilty in a us court to all the charges. el shafee elsheikh maintains his innocence. he is charged with the murders ofjournalists james foley, steven sotloff and aid workers abdul—rahman kassig and kayla mueller. he is also accused of being involved with the deaths of british aid workers david haines and alan henning. none of their bodies have been found. this is a huge moment for the families of those who died. they will be attending the trial and looking for answers. they have long wanted this once—feared terror group to finally face western justice. nomia iqbal, bbc news, virginia. you're watching newsday on the bbc. still to come on the programme.

a state memorial service at the melbourne cricket ground to honour former australian cricketer shane warne. the accident that happened here was of the sort that can, at worst, produce a meltdown. in this case, the precautions worked, but they didn't work quite well enough to prevent some old fears about the safety features of these stations from resurfacing. the republic of ireland has become the first country in the world to ban smoking in the workplace. from today, anyone lighting up in offices, businesses, pubs and restaurants will face a heavy fine. the president was on his way out of the washington hilton hotel, where he had been addressing a trade union conference. the small crowd outside included his assailant.

it has become - a symbol of paris. 100 years ago, many parisians| wished it had never been built. the eiffel tower's birthday is- being marked by a re—enactment of the first ascent by gustav eiffel. i this is newsday on the bbc. 0ur headlines. ukraine's military has warned that russia is regrouping its forces. the outskirts of kyiv and the city of chernihiv have come under attack a day after russia said it would scale down its military operations. us intelligence suggests president putin feels misled by the military resulting in tensions with top generals. to another story now for you, about the australian journalist cheng lei, who is going on trial today in beijing,

on state secrets charges. she worked as a television anchor for chinese state media, but was detained in 2020 and formally arrested a year ago on suspicion of illegally supplying state secrets overseas. i'm joined now by stephen mcdonell, who's in front of the courthouse in beijing. talk us through at this stage what we know, and what in fact is going to be taking place today. 50 is going to be taking place toda . is going to be taking place toda _ ., is going to be taking place toda . ., ., today. so we are here at the second intermediate - today. so we are here at the l second intermediate people's court in beijing for the trial of cheng lei. people are going to want to know, what is she accused of doing? what is the evidence against her? what does she say about this, and what do her lawyers say about the accusations? we don't know any of that because the entire thing has been kept secret

since she was picked up here in august 2020. all we know is she is accused of this vague passing on state secrets to an overseas body or person. in china, what constitutes a state secret can be very vague. it can include almost anything the government says is a state secret, to tell the truth. either way, we don't know the specifics at all of what she is said to have done. in about 45 minutes, this is the entrance to the court behind me, the australian ambassador and other diplomats will attempt to gain access to the trial. we think they won't be allowed in because it's all been in secret. even though the australian government says this is part of the consular agreement with china, that there should be an australian representative allowed in to listen to the hearing, we don't think they will get in. so we

will be here when the ambassador arrives, tries to get in, and if he can't, as we expect, he will say something afterwards. expect, he will say something afterwards-— afterwards. how is this case bein: afterwards. how is this case being reported _ afterwards. how is this case being reported in _ afterwards. how is this case being reported in china, - afterwards. how is this case being reported in china, if. afterwards. how is this case | being reported in china, if at all, given as you have pointed out, so much of the proceedings are being held in secret? nobody knows anything about this in china, it has not been covered very much. there has been some coverage in the chinese press, i guess fringe blogs, people speculating on what she may and may not have done. but nothing in terms of serious coverage in the big media outlets here. throughout the australian government has called on china to adhere to its own rules, to treat her well. there has been some criticism from the australian government about her treatment in prison. for example, she was

held for the first half a year in secret detention without access to a lawyer or anybody outside, and throughout this, she has been separated from her two young children, who are in australia. there have been calls from the journalist union in australia, from the international press federation, for the chinese government to show some sort of mercy, to halal her, for the sake of her kids, to go back to australia. as we say, we have no idea how serious the charges are against her or what they are at all. thank you for keeping us up—to—date on that story. in the us, president biden�*s become one of the first to receive a second covid—19 booster vaccination. it comes as health officials authorised a second jab for those over the age of 50,

citing data showing waning immunity and the risks posed by 0micron variants of the virus. the president described it as a new moment in the pandemic, described as a second booster. interesting data out of israel says the second booster does improve the immunity of those people who had the initial shots, and the first booster. some scepticism and criticism from those who suggest the data is actually quite limited, and there haven't been any long—term studies of those who have had the second booster so far. that said, the authorities in this country believe it is indeed worthwhile for people of 50 and over, as you said. not 65 and over, which is what a lot of people had been expecting. 0fficials explaining that a lot of people in the united states over the age of 50 have those underlying

conditions, those potentially killer diseases of old age, beginning to start, which makes them more vulnerable to a virus like covid—19. therefore, they believe it is important to boost that immunity once again. let's look at some other stories in the headlines. the future of pakistan's prime minister, imran khan, looks uncertain after the largest partner in the government's coalition switched sides ahead of a parliamentary vote of no confidence. 0pposition parties accuse imran khan of mismanaging the economy and foreign policy, as well as targeting critics. no prime minister in pakistan's history has seen out a full term. the confidence vote is due to start on thursday. hollywood's bruce willis will step away from his acting career after being diagnosed with aphasia, a condition that impedes a person's ability to speak and write. the 67—year—old's family released a statement saying

his cognitive ability is impaired. willis is best known for playing john mcclane in the 1988 hit die hard. will smith was asked to leave the oscars after hitting comedian chris rock, but refused, according to organisers. the academy described it as a deeply shocking, traumatic event and apologised to other nominees, guests and viewers — and added it has initiated disciplinary proceedings against the best actor winner. in melbourne, thousands of people have attended a memorial service celebrating the life of shane warne, one of cricket's greatest ever spin bowlers. the australian star died of a suspected heart attack earlier this month, at the age of 52. phil mercer reports. this was a celebration of an extraordinary life. operatic singing.

both on and off the cricket pitch, shane warne was an australian icon who elevated his sport and took showmanship to a new level. his family has struggled to cope with his sudden death. looking forward to a future without shane is inconceivable. but we do take comfort in knowing that shane packed more in his life of 52 years and five months and 19 days than most people would in two lifetimes. # i sit and wait # does an angel...# there were powerful messages and musical performances, too, from famous friends. even though he played for australia and he dismantled england too many times, everybody on the planet who has seen him play and experienced, i don't know, warney being warney, thinks he is one of us. with shane warne, scandal

was never far away. he took money from illegal bookmakers, was banned for using prohibited drugs, and his private life delighted the tabloid newspapers. but, despite his flaws, he's remembered as a sporting genius. when he was in the team, australia believed they could beat anyone and he had so much gratitude for the era he played in as well. he often talked about how lucky he was to play with the legends that he did. he had so much passion for cricket and the history of cricket as well. shane warne said of himself, "i smoked, i drank, and i played a little cricket." phil mercer, bbc news, at the melbourne cricket ground. that service ended with the unveiling of the shane warne

stand at the mcg by his children. that's all for now, stay with bbc world news. hello there. spring is on hold as we edge towards the end of march. cold air has been sweeping southwards. some of us have seen some sleet and some snow. and through thursday, the day starts off with a widespread frost and some ice. it's going to turn into a day of sunny spells and wintry showers. this cold front has been ushering in the cold air. along the line of this weather front, a band of cloud, rain, sleet and snow. behind it, speckled shower clouds in cold air. that's where we have some wintry showers feeding in from the north. so the very first part of the morning, we'll tend to clear that rain, sleet and snow away from the far south. some of those wintry showers continuing to push in the especially eastern scotland and northeast england, but there will be one or two elsewhere. temperatures widely falling below freezing, “4 or —5

to start the day across some rural northern areas, and ice a potential difficulty across parts of eastern scotland and northeast england. through the day, it's a mix of sunny spells and wintry showers, the showers a mixture of rain, sleet, hail and snow, most accumulating snow, i think, confined to the hills. could be a few more showers just easing into southeast england at times, where it will be windy. around some of these eastern coasts, could see gusts of 40—50 miles per hour, just adding to that cold feel. temperatures for most between 5 and 8 degrees, maybe 10 in parts of south wales and southwest england. through thursday night, we will see further wintry showers streaming in from the northeast, potentially some more persistent rain, sleet and hill snow clipping the far southeast of england, and temperatures again widely below freezing. a widespread frost for friday morning. could well be some icy stretches here and there. for friday, for most, it's a similar day, a cold day, a bright day, with plenty of sunshine but some further wintry showers. we will see some slightly more widespread rain,

sleet and snow pushing into western scotland, maybe getting into parts of northern ireland as we go through the afternoon. temperatures, well, maybe just a notch higher, but still disappointing for what will be the 1st of april, 6 to 10 degrees. and those temperatures don't climb an awful lot through the weekend. they may climb a little. there's quite a lot of dry weather on the way, but there will be some showers as well. but as we head into next week, signs of a more significant change. the winds turn to westerlies, and that will bring milder air from the atlantic. with that, though, some rain at times.

we will have the headlines and all the main news stories for you at the top of the hour, straight after this programme. when i came in this factory, i was absolutely gobsmacked at what everyone was doing, how loud it was, crazy. it's nice when you see the finished product coming off the line. you see celebrities in them and you think we've made them. i've been here about nearly 41 years. probably spent more time here than at home. me sister only works down the bottom of the line. she puts your pockets on, me sister.