of civilian killings that could amount to war crimes. this is more thanjust a collection of terrible deaths. it's a crime scene, because under the laws of war, civilians are supposed to be protected. and we report from the battle—scarred town of irpin, just 13 miles from kyiv, now a symbol of ukrainian resistance. this was a key battleground and ukraine's victory here was critical. if the russians had been able to push through here, they would have been on the way to kyiv. also tonight...

millions are hit by the biggest rise in energy prices in living memory, tightening the squeeze on household budgets. covid—19 infections in the uk hit a record high. nearly five million had the virus last week. england! and at the world cup draw in qatar, england could face scotland or wales in the group stages. and coming up in the sport on the bbc news channel, a solid second round for england's georgia hall keeps her in contention at golf�*s first major of the year, the chevron championship in california. good evening. in ukraine, more evidence tonight of the unbearable toll on civilians of russia's invasion. in the last few hours, the red cross has had to abandon

a planned evacuation of thousands of people from the besieged city of mariupol, here in the far south east, due to safety fears. officials say they'll try again tomorrow, amid truly appalling conditions in the city, encircled and cut off for weeks by russian forces. meanwhile, in the north, the bbc has found evidence that russian troops have been forced to pull back from some positions held since the start of the war, but civilians are once again paying a price. just outside the capital kyiv, on a stretch of the e40 highway, is where shocking images from the early days of the war emerged. they showed russian troops firing on civilians trying to escape. jeremy bowen has now reached the scene of the attack and found evidence that war crimes may have been committed. it is important to bear witness to this, to the barbarity of the war, and so some viewers may find his report graphic, as well as distressing.

on a stretch of road that runs between two villages with names that translate as "dream" and "sweetheart" is all the savagery and waste of war. ukrainian forces had just recaptured it, their troops moving in after a heavy bombardment from their artillery. this was only a few hours after the russian retreat. in the early hours of this morning, this was recaptured? absolutely correct. so, basically, around 2am today, our reconnaissance team report that they start to see movement. oleksandr, a ukrainian volunteer who's back home from england to fight, showed a position where a russian tank had been dug in. so that's where the russian tank was and that's exactly where he... this is the line of fire, that's how they shoot. on 7th march, oleksandr�*s drone unit filmed the tank in action. the drone showed civilians trying to get to kyiv to escape the russians.

and then they saw the tank. one of the cars was forced to stop. the driver tried to show he was harmless. and the russians shot him dead. they also killed his wife. the dead couple were maksim and his wife, ksenya. they were travelling with their six—year—old son and a friend, who both survived. she said maksim had been shouting that they were with a child when he was killed. almost four weeks later, maksim's badly burned body lies next to the hulk of their car. his wedding ring is still on his finger. ksenya's remains are inside. her mouth is open, as if in a scream. the car and the back seat are riddled with bullets. the vehicle and their bodies were not burnt when they were killed. the hypothesis is that russian soldiers tried to destroy the evidence of what they'd done.

the drone operator who filmed their death says the russians must have known maksim's car was not a threat. so they were trying to say that they were civilians? yes, yes, they know it. you can see it, the whole car is civilians, not an army car, and they shoot it. in the woods near the road, there's evidence the russians left in a hurry. you can see the place where, in the trees, the russians were living. there's a dug—out. there's beer bottles. it's like the marie celeste, half—finished meals. they were here for a month. the camp is full of the soldiers�* rubbish. on a front line, that is usually the sign of an ill—disciplined unit. they tried, unsuccessfully, to hide another tank in the trees. that was punished by the ukrainians, who destroyed it. a much bigger question is whether there will be a reckoning

for what happened on the highway. maksim and ksenya were not the only ones who were killed near the tank dug into the roadside. more bodies here? yes. one, two, three bodies, ithink. yes. you're absolutely right. in a couple of hundred yards, with oleksandr from the ukrainian army, we counted 11 other dead bodies. it's ukrainian. three were wearing recognisable ukrainian military uniform. the others wore civilian clothes. some of the dead were piled up and surrounded by tyres. they deliberately burned them. they set on fire to hide their... to hide what they did. in the desolation are a mass of questions about who they were and how they were killed.

it's hard to imagine the fear these people must have gone through in the last few moments of their lives or, indeed, the anguish survivors, families, must be feeling now. but this is more than just a collection of terrible deaths. it's a crime scene. because under the laws of war, civilians are supposed to be protected. we drove to the next village to confirm a ukrainian claim that they'd destroyed more russian tanks. the russian armour was broken and, except for soldiers, the village was deserted and still. the russians could be redeploying to the eastern battlefields, butjust a few hours after they had left this strategic area close to the capital, it was clear they were being forced out. many civilians are mourning relatives and friends they say were killed by russian troops. as and when they retreat, they might leave behind more

evidence that could add up to war crimes. jeremy bowen, bbc news, outside kyiv. well, just a few miles from the e40 highway where jeremy was reporting lies the town of irpin, 13 miles from the capital and also the scene of recent heavy fighting and terrible damage, as russian forces tried to encircle kyiv. now the ukrainians say it's been liberated, and our international correspondent orla guerin has been there with ukrainian troops. again, you may find some of her report upsetting. underforeboding skies, we entered the town of irpin. it now stands as a testament to ukrainian resilience and russian defeat. we travelled under armed escort. a tense journey along a carefully chosen route. we were warned russian

forces might still be in the forests on the outskirts. they occupied about a fifth of irpin and have left their mark. but ukrainian troops have driven them out and reclaimed the ruins. the damage here gives a sense of how fierce the fighting has been. this was a key battleground and ukraine's victory here was critical. if the russians had been able to push through here, they would have been on the way to kyiv. the capital is just a short drive down the road. where is the child who cherished this toy? and where are the families who were shelled, day and night? most had to flee, but irpin withstood the assault and has been given the honorary title hero city of ukraine. the troops here are savouring their victory, but know the enemy may be back.

"they need kyiv," says this man, "because putin will lose "if he doesn't take kyiv, so perhaps they will try. "but we are prepared, in case they come back." his dayjob is tv presenting. just up the road, in tree—lined suburbia, a powerful message to the russian leader. his losses are mounting here. his original battle plan has failed. well, you can see here what happened to this russian tank. it's been ripped to shreds. this is an example of the defeat that was inflicted on the russians, and they are gone for now, but in the future they may try to regroup and make another push for the capital. now, irpin can begin to recover its dead,

to reclaim bodies from the rubble. there could be no proper burials under shelling. the mayor says up to 300 civilians were killed here. as supplies are going in, bodies are coming out. some were targeted even as they tried to flee. cat meows. today, another trickle of civilians making the difficultjourney out. troops carrying what they could not leave behind, their much loved pets. all here are scarred — those who stayed and those who fought. how do you feel about the russians who did this? no obscenities? no. i hate them, i hate them from the depths of my heart.

i used to treat them normally. i had friends from russia, i don't believe i have any more. there are no excuses for this. an ambulance waits for a frail survivor of a merciless and failed russian attack. and ukrainian soldiers leave the battlefield with the swagger of victory. orla guerin, bbc news, irpin. let's talk tojeremy bowen now, who's back in kyiv. jeremy, your reporting of wars goes back to el salvador in the 1980s. i just wonder, have you seen anything before like the images you have witnessed in this conflict? sadly, i have. witnessed in this conflict? sadly, i have- wars _ witnessed in this conflict? sadly, i have. wars are _

witnessed in this conflict? sadly, i have. wars are savage _ witnessed in this conflict? sadly, i have. wars are savage and - witnessed in this conflict? sadly, i have. wars are savage and dirty, i witnessed in this conflict? sadly, i i have. wars are savage and dirty, and terrible things happen. that's why there is international humanitarian law which is meant to regulate the way that armies behave in wartime. now, it is often broken. and i have seen the russian army breaking in grozny in the 1990s, in syria since 2015 and here in the last month or so. what can we conclude from this? well, a lot of armies do break international humanitarian law and often commit war crimes, but sometimes it might be a rogue unit or individuals. in other cases, it is systemic. looking at the pattern of behaviour, i would say with the russians, it is systemic. it comes from the top. if we look at what has been happening here around the capital, in the last few days,

pushing back, it is certainly a significant victory for the ukrainians, buti significant victory for the ukrainians, but i fearto significant victory for the ukrainians, but i fear to say that this war is still in its relatively early phases. so there will be more trouble ahead and there might be more trouble here in the capital as well. no one has won. no one has lost yet. but i think that looking ahead, civilians in this country are still going to have to brace themselves for bad times. many thanks. themselves for bad times. many thanrs- jeremy _ themselves for bad times. many thanks. jeremy bowen, - themselves for bad times. many thanks. jeremy bowen, live - themselves for bad times. many thanks. jeremy bowen, live in i themselves for bad times. many i thanks. jeremy bowen, live in kyiv. the biggest rise in energy prices in living memory has come into effect in britain, just as millions of households are dealing with a surge in the overall cost of living. the energy price cap has risen by 5a%, the maximum suppliers in england, wales and scotland can charge, for each unit of gas and electricity we all use. that means an average increase in bills of nearly £700 a year, or around £60 a month, for a typical household, taking the total tojust under £2000 a year.

and those on pre—payment meters face an even bigger rise, £708 a year, taking the average bill tojust over £2,000. but it's notjust the rising cost of energy. car and council taxes, as well as water bills, for many, have also gone up today. however, there has been a rise in the national living wage, by 59p, up to £9.50 an hour. our consumer affairs correspondent colletta smith has been finding out how some households are trying to cope with the rising cost of living. it's costing me so much money. i'm scared to see how that's going to go. so am i going to be able to afford to eat, wash my pots, and also have my heating on? winston doesn't spend big. his state pension has been enough until now. but charges for his prepayment meter are leaping up, while his pension is not. that's going to cost me £20 a weekjust for gas. and where are you getting that money from?

well, i'm not. that's the whole point, i'm not. you know, the state pension that we get at the moment does not cover what i need. you know, i was stood here the other day washing up and i was thinking about my grandchildren, and i'm going to tell you the truth, tears came to my eyes about how the future's going to be for these children. if we don't try and save some money for our grandchildren now, if we can, you know, then they're going to have nothing. at westminster primary school in bradford, they've now started collecting blankets, dressing gowns and hot water bottles to give out to pupils. we're totally expecting that as the energy crisis really bites, that more of our families will be pushed into a poverty situation and, therefore, the children will be coming to us having maybe not eaten a warm meal every day, that may be coming from a cold home or not slept properly, and the impact on that then for us with their education is quite extreme. one, two, three, four, five...

the government are offering some help — by knocking £150 off most council tax bills in england, and then lending an extra £200 in october, which will be paid back through your energy bills over the next five years. but that still only covers half of the increase in a typical household's energy bill. energy prices are going to affect everybody, but the people for whom its worst are the people on low incomes, on fixed incomes. academics crunching the numbers are worried about the long—term impact. so, the government say they have offered some help to people and they have done what they can. i think it's fair to say that the council tax rebate will help people. these energy price rises come in a context. they come in a context where it's going to mean less money available for other goods, but the prices of those are going up too. so people on the lowest incomes definitely needed some support and it's regrettable that the chancellor chose not to do so in his spring statement. the government say they'll monitor

bills into the autumn and will consider further support, if needed. although the minimum wage is increasing today, for this mum of three, lots of her other bills are increasing as well. there's more chances of us going into debt with the rises of all the electricity, water bill, the council tax. everything is having a rise, plus the petrol. if you're struggling to pay, then it's important to contact your supplier straight away and get help from a debt advice charity. in homes across the country, lights are going off to keep the costs down. colletta smith, bbc news. our business editor simonjack is with me. how did we get here? why is all this happening? i how did we get here? why is all this ha enin: ? ~ how did we get here? why is all this haueninu? ~' how did we get here? why is all this haueninu? ~ ., happening? i think the cost of livin: happening? i think the cost of living crunch _ happening? i think the cost of living crunch we've _ happening? i think the cost of living crunch we've been - happening? i think the cost of. living crunch we've been talking about for weeks started to hit home today but the origins of it are many months ago. you had the covid pandemic, which shut the world

economy down essentially, and as it recovered from this slumber, this covid induced coma, there was this massive surge in demand for energy far outstripping supply. meanwhile in europe, to which we are very much connected, we get more gas from norway than we do the north sea these days. there were low levels of storage and not much wind, so renewables were not supplying as much, therefore gas had to be leaned on to provide more. and of course there is russia. 40% of the supply that europe gets comes from russia. fears that will be switched off or people will boycott it which led to an international bidding war around the world for the other gas supplies, so its global and the wholesale price, that's why we've seen them so high. but wholesale price, that's why we've seen them so high.— wholesale price, that's why we've seen them so high. but things could aet worse. seen them so high. but things could get worse- the _ seen them so high. but things could get worse. the price _ seen them so high. but things could get worse. the price cap _ seen them so high. but things could get worse. the price cap is - get worse. the price cap is reviewed every six months so could go one way? every six months so could go one wa ? . . , ., every six months so could go one wa ? . ., ., way? yeah, as of tonight, clive, rices way? yeah, as of tonight, clive, prices are _ way? yeah, as of tonight, clive, prices are six — way? yeah, as of tonight, clive, prices are six times _ way? yeah, as of tonight, clive, prices are six times higher, - prices are six times higher, wholesale prices, than they were this time last year and we've seen peaksin this time last year and we've seen peaks in recent weeks and those are the prices on which the next price cap will be based so it's quite

likely we could see another 600 or £700 added in october and that's why the chancellor is under enormous pressure to do more than he's already done to help consumers but also to provide an energy strategy so that we need more gas in the short term but less gas in the long term and a long—awaited overdue energy strategy as opposed —— is supposed to come out next week and don't forget about businesses who are not protected by a price cap. every fish and chip basket you fry, every piece of steel you smelt, their energy prices are going up by 500 or 600%, they are passing that on in places and that's why we are seeing the incredible cost of living crunch and the chancellor is under pressure to do more to help consumers. pressure to do more to help consumers-— pressure to do more to help consumers. ,, ., g ., . ~ ., ., , consumers. simon jack and many thanks. and you can find more information on today's energy price increase and the rising cost of living on our website, including money saving tips. that's at bbc.co.uk/news, or go the bbc news app. new figures suggest covid—i9

infections in the uk have hit a record high. the office for national statistics says it estimates nearly five million people had the virus in the week ending the 26th of march, compared with 11.3 million the week before. the new data comes as free covid testing ends for most people in england. our health editor hugh pym reports. the roll—out of fourth jabs for the most vulnerable is being stepped up, including for residents of this care home in surrey. they have got some long—term conditions that make it difficult for them to move around the community, so us coming into the care home means they are less exposed to the outside world. christine is one resident who feels the latestjab provides more confidence about life with the virus. i think we should all settle down and get on with our lives now. it's definitely time. to just live with it, like we've lived with other things. but outside in local communities,

levels of covid are relatively high. it's still spreading. the latest survey by the office for national statistics suggests that around 4.9 million people in the uk had the virus last week, the highest recorded yet. there were increases in england to one in 13 people, and wales, one in 14 with the virus. in scotland, where there were one in 12, and northern ireland with one in 15, the trend was said to be uncertain. this virus expert, who has been a member of the sage committee, said the data underlined the importance of vaccination. although there's a huge amount of virus out there in the community, for most people who have received their full course of vaccines, they're catching the virus, they're getting a cold or a flu—like illness, but it's not making them severely ill. it's not causing the catastrophic rises in hospitalisations and indeed deaths that we saw in earlier waves. so there aren't the same pressures on the nhs and covid cases tend to be different.

the number of covid hospital patients in england is close to january levels. yellow shows those being treated with other conditions who also have the virus. red shows those where covid is the primary illness and that proportion is lower. but even so, the outgoing chief inspector of hospitals in england told me life was still very difficult on the front line. if you're sick with a heart condition or diabetes or other long—term condition and you get covid on top of that, it may not be your primary problem, but it does add to the problems and complications of treatment. remember, covid in hospitals affects the hospital's capacity because the hospital needs to segregate people with active covid from other people. restrictions and free lateral flow tests are being phased out around the uk, but that doesn't mean the virus is fading away. hugh pym, bbc news. criminal and civil investigations looking into p&o ferries' controversial decision to sack

almost 800 workers without notice are getting underway. the insolvency service is examining the circumstances around the redundancies and says it will consider "prompt and appropriate action" if the law was broken. the transport secretary, grant shapps, has also asked the service to consider disqualifying p&o's boss, peter hebblethwaite, from being a company director. the metropolitan police is launching a pilot scheme in two london boroughs, to improve how it conducts strip searches of under—18s. the force has been criticised over the way officers searched a 15—year—old girl, who's black, known as child 0, in a school in east london in 2020. now a strip—search of any child will need the approval of an inspector. the pilot is being rolled out in hackney and tower hamlets. the first of the "partygate" fines for breaking covid laws within government have been issued, but some have issued concerns that they're only being given

to morejunior staff. as the met�*s first 20 fines are handed out, some whitehall insiders have told the bbc they believe police targeted "low—hanging fruit", while another source cautioned that it was too early to say until all fines are issued. downing street has confirmed that the prime minister has not received a fixed penalty notice. england will face the united states and iran in the group stages of the world cup being held in qatar in november. england will also play either scotland, wales or ukraine, when one of them qualifies for the tournament. our sports editor, dan roan, is in the qatari capital, doha. good evening, clive. many people still struggle to believe where and when this world cup will be happening. of course the first to be staged here in the middle east, the first to be staged in the middle of

winter, but this evening's draw perhaps helped it feel a little more plausible, a little more real, and there was suddenly intrigue surrounding the outcome and that will please organisers who no doubt hope that helps shift the attention from the controversy in the last 12 years since this country won the right to stage the event and more towards the football and competition and as you say, group b was the one which produced the headlines. england found themselves placed in it alongside iran and the united states. iran have never played, they've failed to beat the united states in their previous two encounters at world cups and quite apart from the obvious geopolitical element to that drawer was even more intrigue because they have the potential for an all british affair because they will play the winners of a play—off between other wales or scotland and ukraine, who have to wait untiljune to play, so if scotland win that we will know that they will be for the first time a match at the world cup between

england and either them or against wales. elsewhere, france ended up in group d. they could face the winners of group b, england's group, as early as the quarterfinals. gareth southgate's side will be a team to be feared after the resurgence they've enjoyed under him and i think they'll be very pleased with the draw that appears to be quite kind but as ever with the world cup, nothing is certain.— nothing is certain. indeed, many thanks, nothing is certain. indeed, many thanks. dan— nothing is certain. indeed, many thanks, dan rowan, _ nothing is certain. indeed, many thanks, dan rowan, in _ nothing is certain. indeed, many thanks, dan rowan, in the - nothing is certain. indeed, many| thanks, dan rowan, in the qatari capital doha. that's it. now on bbc one, time for the news where you are. have a very good night. hello, there. it will get cold again tonight, as most of today's showers fade away. we've got some wetter weather moving away from western scotland, still some showers for northern ireland into the night, and some wetter weather comes into wales and the far southwest, with some snow over the hills. but a more widespread frost, i think, across scotland and for much of england, a few icy patches, as well —

nowhere near as cold as last night, though, for northern ireland, nor indeed for wales. and here, we'll see the back of that wet weather fairly quickly in the morning, and then, a fair bit of sunshine for a while. the cloud will bubble up again, we'll see a few more scattered showers developing — not as heavy, not as many as today, most of them for england and wales. much of scotland, northern ireland likely to be dry, temperatures a degree or two higher than they were this afternoon. second half the weekend, again, starts cold and frosty, increasing cloud for scotland and northern ireland, rain from the north. later on, cloud will increase across england and wales, just 1—2 showers. many places will be dry with some sunshine at times. those temperatures continuing to creep up a little bit to 10—11 celsius.

hello, and welcome to our look ahead to what the papers will be bringing us tomorrow. with me are sienna rodgers, editor of labourlist, and broadcaster and journalist, james lewer. welcome to both, lovely to see you again, things are going up part of yourfront and i be again, things are going up part of your front and i be with us. here's the papers as we have them so far. the times says british weaponary has, for the first time, shot down a russian helicopter in ukraine. that's also a picture of the former brazil footballer, cafu, pulling out england at the world cup draw in qatar. the chancellor's response to the cost—of—living crisis is the focus of the weekend edition of the i. thousands of onshore wind turbines may be built, as the government looks to increase the uk's energy capacity, according to the telegraph. the ft focuses on the finances of roman abramovich,

and also how companies are dealing with staff absences