welcome to newsday. reporting live from singapore, i'm karishma vaswani. the headlines — details emerge of more than 100 ukrainian civilians held captive in a cellar for weeks by russian forces. it happened in chernihiv, which is now back under ukrainian control. there were people here, including dozens of children, who were living amongst corpses for hours, sometimes days. in israel, at least two people are dead and eight have been wounded after a shooting in central tel aviv. pakistan's supreme court says the suspension of parliament, in a bid to block a vote against prime minister imran khan, was unlawful.

25 million people under a covid lockdown in shanghai as cases rise. people there say food supplies are running out. live from our studio in singapore, this is bbc news. it's newsday. it's 7am in the morning in singapore and 2am in kyiv in ukraine, where more harrowing accounts have emerged of life under russian occupation. the city of chernihiv, north of the capital, has just about survived, subjected to a siege lasting several weeks. tens of thousands of residents endured punishing conditions with little food, water or power. whole neighbourhoods have been flattened, and details are emerging of 130 people held captive in the basement of a school for a month. conditions were so cramped, some had to sleep standing up.

12 people died. their corpses were left for days. my colleague yogita limaye has more. i want to warn you — some of the details in her report are distressing. another area the russians have withdrawn from, more unimaginable trauma. yahidne, a village in the north—east, close to the border with belarus. this man took us to the basement of the local school, filled with the stench of disease and decay. he was held here for four weeks, along with 130 others. the elderly, children, babies, whole families, rounded up at gunpoint, crammed together. translation: i had only half a metre of space. . i was sleeping standing up. i tied myself with my

scarf to the railing here so i didn't fall over. i spent 25 nights in this position. the main thing i thought was, i have to survive, for my daughter and granddaughters. a crude calendar marked every day of pain. four children lay in each of these cots. the constant sound of bombardment allowed barely any sleep. translation: for toilets there were buckets. - they would overflow. sometimes russian soldiers took people outside and used them as human shields. the room has no ventilation. he says 12 people died here. those who died in this room, they were mostly elderly people, believed to have suffocated to death, and when they died it wasn't immediately possible to take the bodies out. russian soldiers

wouldn't allow it. also there was fighting going on outside, so it was often too dangerous, so they would then pick up the bodies and put them here in the corner, so essentially there were people here, including dozens of children, who were living amongst corpses for hours, sometimes days, until they were allowed to take the bodies out and keep them upstairs on the ground just outside the school building. 15—year—old anastasia was also held captive. "i knew the people who died. "they were kind. "i felt really sad," she said. "for no reason, theyjust died, sitting there." russian soldiers took villages like this in a bid to encircle and capture the city of chernihiv. they weren't able to enter

it, but large parts have been destroyed. a crater created by aerial bombing. a whole neighbourhood in northern chernihiv flattened. nina's home was shelled. her daughter lost a leg. "all of us were knocked out by the explosion. when we came to our senses, we began to search for each other. then i saw her screaming. "�*mummy, i don't have a leg.�* "it was horrific." how does she respond to russia denying it's targeted civilians? "tell them to stop lying. "they lie a lot," she said. "there's a woman in a hospital without a leg. "that is the truth." yogita limaye,

bbc news, chernihiv. meanwhile, earlier today, the un general assembly voted to suspend russia from the human rights council following reports of "gross and systematic violations of human rights" by russian troops in ukraine. the resolution garnered 93 votes in favour, with 2a voting against. a two thirds majority of the votes cast was needed to suspend russia from the geneva—based council. ukraine's foreign minister told nato today the battle for donbas in the east of his country will remind people of world war ii, involving thousands of tanks, planes and artillery. this comes as vladimir putin's spokesman has admitted to significant russian troop losses. russian forces have withdrawn from around the capital kyiv for now as moscow focuses attention on eastern ukraine, specifically the donbas region. the bbc has witnessed hundreds of thousands of civilians fleeing that area, where separatists have been fighting for eight years.

0ur defence correspondent jonathan beale reports now from lysycha nsk. 21st—century combat on ukraine's eastern front can look and sound more like something from the first world war. but they've been fighting russian—backed separatists this way for the past eight years. western officials say this is where ukraine has some of its best—trained and most battle—hardened troops. they're certainly not all young. from his dugout, 52—year—old anatoly says he can already see russian troops just 500 metres away. translation: if they try to take this position, - i'll kill them. if i don't kill them, they'll kill me. those are the rules of war. they know their enemy can be brutal. they've had little rest from the fighting.

they can already hear the russian artillery getting closer. but they say morale is high. translation: without | trenches to defend from, we would all die. but these trenches will protect us. very different from the fighting that you've seen both sides well dug in. very different from the fighting that you've seen in kyiv, in urban areas. both sides well dug in. easier to defend, but of course the russians have significant firepower, and we know they're bringing more, too. the mass exodus of civilians from eastern ukraine is already under way. this, a 50—mile tailback of traffic heading west. the donbas is emptying fast. we enter the town of lysychansk, already being targeted by russian artillery. now a ghost town.

this was a children's centre. books and clothes now strewn amongst the rubble. but down in the basement, we found a few seeking shelter — the poor, the frail and the old. even before this war started, russian—backed separatists were occupying part of the donbas, and it soon became apparent that pro—russian sentiment hasn't died here, despite their bombs. translation: i'm sorry, | but it is my understanding that this land was sold. they're destroying our. donbas to give the land away to the americans. the americans bought it to place their- nuclear weapons here. back above ground, we did find one woman, valentina, who did blame president putin for the destruction of the town. translation: putin is to blame for the war. l he gathered this army here. why did he do this? but our guys did nothing.

they said they were exercising. the russian offensive around the capital kyiv may have failed, but here in the donbas, they're slowly taking ground. waging war by artillery, their tactics still seem the same. and once again, it's ukraine's civilian population that's likely to suffer most. jonathan beale, bbc news, in eastern ukraine. other stories for you, medical services in israel says two people have been killed and at least eight people wounded by a gunman who opened fire in central tel aviv. the attack caused panic in a busy area thronged with bars. the gunman is reported to still be at large. it's the latest in a wave of recent attacks. 0ur middle east correspondent yolande knell sent us this update from jerusalem. this shooting took place on one of the busiest streets in tel aviv. there's security camera footage you can see from the scenes where people are in a packed bar and they start to flee, scattering their bar

chairs as they go. police have now brought in hundreds of officers, and they say they're still searching for the shooter. they've told local residents to stay in their homes. this, as you said, is the latest in a series of deadly attacks in israel, actually the most deadly attacks that there have been for several years. now a total of 13 people killed in just over two weeks. the palestinian militant group homes has once again praised this attack, and it's all happening at a very sensitive time. tomorrow is the first friday players of the islamic holy month of ramadan. that's the time when tens of thousands of palestinians from the west bank are hoping to cross intojerusalem to pray at al—aqsa mosque. israel could very well now introduce new restrictions because of its own security fears. let's turn next to the constitutional crisis in pakistan, where the supreme court has said a decision to block a vote of no confidence

against the prime minister, imran khan, was unconstitutional. meanwhile, the election commission has said it can't hold fresh elections within 90 days, which is required after parliament was dissolved on sunday, a move that was also unconstitutional. 0ur correspondent in islamabad secunder kermani explains what's next for prime minister imran khan. well, this is a political drama that's been full of twists and turns, but, as of the moment, it looks as if imran khan is on his way out. last week, he was meant to be facing a vote of no confidence in parliament, which he was widely expected to lose after a number of his coalition allies deserted him. instead, at the last minute, the deputy speaker of the house blocked the vote from going ahead. and instead, imran khan's party called for early elections, dissolving parliament. now the supreme court has ruled they did not have the right to do that, and so pending any further twists, that vote of no confidence will go ahead on saturday morning.

and it seems the opposition will be able to remove imran khan from power and nominate their own prime minister without elections taking place. what has imran khan been saying? well, he alleges he's the victim of an international conspiracy orchestrated by the united states because of his more anti—western foreign policy. most analysts don't believe him, but it is a narrative that's resonating with his voters. in reality, it seems as if imran khan and his party have fallen out with pakistan's powerful military, with whom they previously had a close relationship. and that's the reason why his opponents have sensed a weakness in him and have launched this attack against him. you're watching newsday on the bbc. still to come on the programme, a theory that has predicted the behaviour and properties of particles for half a century might turn out to be wrong.

25 years of hatred and rage as theyjump up on the statue. this funeral became a massive demonstration of black power, of power to influence. today is about the promise of a bright future, a day when we hope a line can be drawn under the bloody past. i think that picasso's i works were beautiful, they were intelligent, and it's a sad loss - to everybody who loves art.

this is newsday on the bbc. i'm karishma vaswani in singapore. 0ur headlines — details emerge of more than 100 ukrainian civilians held captive in a cellar for weeks by russian forces. it happened in chernihiv, which is now back under ukrainian control. in israel, at least two people are dead and eight have been wounded after a shooting at a busy area in central tel aviv. as shanghai continues to face its biggest ever covid—19lockdown, some residents are complaining about a lack of food as they continue to be banned from leaving their homes to buy groceries. let's cross live to shanghai and speak to frank tsai, who's the founder of the consultancy firm china crossroads.

great to have you back on the programme and in the first instance i understand, you have been now in lockdown for i think about seven days, a week or so. talk us through what it's like for you there, what you are able to do and what you are not able to do.— are not able to do. yes, we have been _ are not able to do. yes, we have been locked _ are not able to do. yes, we have been locked down - are not able to do. yes, we| have been locked down here are not able to do. yes, we . have been locked down here in the western part of shanghai for seven days, and about around april the 1st, the government had said that we would be locked down for four days but it's been extended indefinitely. what is life like for us please make it is very comfortable. we had no idea we will be lockdown this law was that we had a few days to get food, so i bought groceries, only enough for a week it's already been a week. as you mentioned, we are experiencing food insecurity and anxiety here in china and i would say that more than half of the people i know are having trouble ordering food online for a variety of reasons for thatis for a variety of reasons for that is mostly has to do with the fact that there are not enough delivery staff in

shanghai deliver all this food was that many of the online stores are in lockdown themselves. some of the logistics companies who deliver the food are in lockdown. and it's the food are in lockdown. and its leading to a cat a perfect storm of embarrassment for the government because it's pretty obvious that they did not plan this too well. 50 obvious that they did not plan this too well.— this too well. so what does that mean _ this too well. so what does that mean in _ this too well. so what does that mean in the _ this too well. so what does | that mean in the immediate this too well. so what does - that mean in the immediate term for you and as you point out the people that you have been talking to in terms of getting food supplies? if your food is running out in the coming days, where are you going to get it from? ,., ., , ., from? good question. so we cannot get — from? good question. so we cannot get things _ from? good question. so we cannot get things from - from? good question. so we cannot get things from the l cannot get things from the online apps for the people spent a lot of time just trying to order but the system is jammed up with too many orders came five—man people all are ordering it once and not enough delivery staff also so we have a couple of workarounds but never won the government has the municipal package of beef and another one soon and also in our buildings, our

neighbourhood committee co—ordinates food group by four different wholesalers we are able to sometimes get some food when we co—ordinate with our neighbours. i when we co-ordinate with our neighbours-— neighbours. i ran for the last time that _ neighbours. i ran for the last time that you _ neighbours. i ran for the last time that you were _ neighbours. i ran for the last time that you were on - neighbours. i ran for the last time that you were on the i time that you were on the programme, we talked about the zero—covid approach in china. do you have a sense then as a result of this lockdown, china might shift that policy or rethink that zero—covid approach at all? i rethink that zero-covid approach at all?- rethink that zero-covid approach at all? rethink that zero-covid a- roach at all? ~ ., approach at all? i think we are at an inflection _ approach at all? i think we are at an inflection point - approach at all? i think we are at an inflection point right - at an inflection point right now in this two—year saga of covid. it's kind of an irony that china is the first to make it up being the last of the road to be dealing with this. so the thinking is definitely changing, certainly educate people and realising that omicron is not so deadly and that all the kind of disadvantages, lost medical care, lost economic activity, could be worse in the virus itself of the great mass of] people still support the zero—covid policy because it mostly because the government

has been saying for two years that this is what makes us better in china and while we have more affective systems. so popular support is not there yet, and also is clinically sensitive. the party congress is coming up in the fall, and the government has to avoid embarrassment of a huge outbreak so i don't predict this ending but i think the thinking is changing on this issue. , ., ., thinking is changing on this issue. , . ., ., issue. great to get you on the programme — issue. great to get you on the programme and _ issue. great to get you on the programme and i _ issue. great to get you on the programme and i do - issue. great to get you on the programme and i do wish - issue. great to get you on the programme and i do wish you| issue. great to get you on the . programme and i do wish you the best of luck over the next coming days or weeks in the as this lockdown continues for you in shanghai. this lockdown continues for you in shanghai-— in shanghai. thank you very much. the speaker of sri lanka's parliament has warned that the country is at risk of severe food shortages and starvation if the economic crisis there persists. record inflation and power cuts continue to inflict misery on the island nation. protests are continuing across sri lanka, calling for the president and prime minister, the rajapaksa brothers, to step down.

from their home town of thangalle in the south of the country, our south asia correspondent rajini vaidyanathan sent this report which does contain flashing images. these are dark days for sri lankans, like this rickshaw driver. he's one of millions forced to endure lengthy power cuts. living costs are rising rapidly in the worst economic crisis of recent times. now, he and his wife are having to ration what they eat. nowadays we can have only two. translation: this government isn't unable to provide us - with affordable food. only god can help us now. if you want to get an idea of the desperation being felt across sri lanka, you just have to come to a petrol forecourt. people have been queuing for hours at this one,

just to get their hands on basics like cooking gas. sri lanka uses foreign currency to import essentials like fuel. a drop in tourism due to the pandemic is one reason it's now struggling to pay for them. in this beach town, i meet a hotel owner who blames the government, led by president gotabaya rajapa ksa, for this crisis. did you vote for the rajapaksas? oh, i hate them! i'm 35 years old, i voted for rajapaksa — i'll never vote for them again. never, never, never. anger towards the ruling rajapaksa brothers is at boiling point, even in their own backyard. huge crowds have been protesting outside prime minister mahinda's house here in tangalle. president gotabaya rajapaksa appeared before mps on thursday — he's still refusing

to step aside. elected in 2019, critics say economic mismanagement, sweeping tax cuts and high borrowing mean he should take the blame for this crisis. this has grown into a movement to oust a political family which has run sri lanka out with an iron fist. and until they go, protesters say they'll stay. i want to tell you about a new discovery which is being described as the first step in a big shift in our understanding of the universe. scientists at fermilab just outside chicago have found that the mass of a particle is not what the main theory of subatomic physics states it should be. the result has been described as "shocking" by the researchers because the theory has successfully predicted the behaviour and properties

of particles for 50 years. here's our science correspondent pallab ghosh. scientists explain how the universe works using the theories of physics. but those ideas could be about to change. a particle accelerator just outside chicago has made a measurement that could change physics forever. researchers here have discovered that the mass of a subatomic particle called a w boson is not what it should be. and in the world of physics, that's a huge deal. the world could look very different. it could mean that the standard model as we know it is wrong, or it needs to be modified in some important way. it is also possible that there are other fundamental particles out there waiting to be discovered, and our colleagues around the world will have a lot of fun discovering them. the standard model is one of the most important theories in physics. and in the journal nature, researchers say this might be

the first time it's been shown to be wrong. everything in the world around us is made from atoms, which in turn are made from even smaller particles. their interaction can be explained by the standard model — and for over 50 years, it's predicted their behaviour perfectly with no errors whatsoever — until now. more experiments will be needed to confirm the results, but there have been other indications that there might be more going on in the universe than can be explained by the standard model. there have been hints of a completely new fifth force of nature from data from the large hadron collider on the swiss—french border. this doctor is among the physicist trying to explain these anomalies.- physicist trying to explain these anomalies. the hope is that these — these anomalies. the hope is that these cracks _ these anomalies. the hope is that these cracks eventually i that these cracks eventually turn — that these cracks eventually turn into _ that these cracks eventually turn into a chasm and that not only— turn into a chasm and that not only confirms that the standard

model— only confirms that the standard model has broken down but gives us some — model has broken down but gives us some idea of what the theory he on _ us some idea of what the theory he on the — us some idea of what the theory be on the standard model is. so this data — be on the standard model is. so this data eventually develops into a — this data eventually develops into a new direction for how we might— into a new direction for how we might get— into a new direction for how we might get a better understanding of what is at play — understanding of what is at play in _ understanding of what is at play in nature. all understanding of what is at play in nature.— play in nature. all eyes are now on the _ play in nature. all eyes are now on the lhc, _ play in nature. all eyes are now on the lhc, which - play in nature. all eyes are now on the lhc, which is i play in nature. all eyes are - now on the lhc, which is about to restart after a three year upgrade. experiments here could soon confirm the result and make more discoveries which could lead to a new more complete theory of how the universe works. one last story before we go, and to the united states, where the country's supreme court has a newjustice. ketanji brown jackson has been confirmed by the us senate. president biden congratulated her on the result as they watched the vote in the roosevelt room at the white house. as well as becoming the first black woman to sit on the supreme court, ketanji brown jackson will also be just the sixth woman in history to sit on the highest court in the land. that's all for now. stay with bbc news.

hello again. thursday brought us a mixture of sunshine and showers. some of those shower clouds were brought in by these big cumulonimbus clouds, thunder clouds. we also had reports of a bit of hail around, and generally it was quite a windy day, too. 0n the satellite picture, we've got a developing low pressure that's going to be bringing some way and windy weather to france for friday, and we've got a trough that's going to enhance the showers and downpours. well, that's going to be swinging in from the north—west as we go on through today. so, right now, we've got showers mostly affecting northern areas, particularly in scotland where some are falling as snow, particularly over the high ground, bringing a risk of some icy stretches and a widespread frost as well. so, it's a cold start as we head into the first part of friday morning. now, friday, let's take a look at this low pressure to the south. the outbreaks of rain from this

system just about grazing the south coast of england. wouldn't take much either way to either bring the rain in across southern england or equally keep it out to sea, so it's one of those forecasts that's going to be a really close call today. away from that, many of us will start the day with some sunshine. cold and frosty first thing in the morning. there will be widespread showers and thunderstorms that then move in across scotland and northern ireland through the morning and across into northern england, north wales through the afternoon. the showers really widespread across these areas. they will have hail, and they will have some thunder mixed in. temperatures about 10—11 celsius, but the winds won't be quite as strong. so, if you're out and about, it might feel slightly more pleasant. 0nto saturday's forecast, again it's a rather showery forecast. the majority of the showers across northern and western areas, although tending to die away from northern ireland later on saturday as pressure begins to rise. we're looking at temperatures again about 9—13 celsius in the south. the second half of the weekend sees this area of low pressure start to very slowly move in towards our shores

off the atlantic. so, sunday, a nice enough start to the day with plenty of morning sunshine. the weather will then tend to cloud over from the west, and we may well start to see a few patches of rain, light stuff really, arriving in northern ireland before the end of the day. but as the winds start to turn more to a southerly direction, so it gets a little bit milder. 10—14 celsius for most, still quite chilly across the far north of scotland. next week, unsettled, a spell of rain followed by some showers. that's your latest.

this is bbc news. we'll have the headlines and all the main news stories for you at the top of the hour, as newsday continues — straight after hardtalk.