this is bbc news. i'm celia hatton with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. outrage after another atrocity in ukraine — at least 50 people are dead and hundreds more injured in a rocket attack on a train station. as you can see, the station, outside it, it's empty. but this morning, it was packed with people, many of them women and children, trying to flee this city to safety. the president of the european commission sees for herself the horrors of the war in the city of bucha. we take a first look at the chernobyl nuclear site, now back in ukrainian control after the russians fled. and after growing pressure on the uk chancellor, his wife says she'll now pay tax on her overseas income.

hello and welcome to audiences in the uk and around the world. ukraine says at least 50 people are dead and dozens wounded after a rocket hit a train station in the city of kramatorsk in eastern ukraine. kramatorsk had become a major hub in the war, for civilian evacuations from the donbas region. it's seen fighting by russian separatists for many years and is now the focal point of vladimir putin's war effort. it's thought around 4,000 people were in and around the station when the missile hit, most of them women, children and the elderly. russia denies any involvement in the strike. 0ur defence correspondent, jonathan beale, has the very latest from kramatorsk — and a warning, you may find his report distressing.

all they were trying to do was to flee their city for safety. but many never made it out. these were the scenes outside kramatorsk�*s train station soon after the explosion — killing dozens, including children, and injuring many more. the emergency services were soon on the scene, collecting the bodies and taking the wounded to hospital. among the bodies, their belongings, still scattered across the station — a mobile phone and a children's toy. translation: ijumped into the passage where there are walls. i everyone was panicking. people were screaming and crying. then i saw a wounded woman. she was bleeding heavily. she was taken somewhere into a room. there were also several wounded people there. i saw people lying in front of the building. i don't know whether they were wounded or dead.

translation: people - were panicked and stressed. some of them were badly wounded and we tried to help them. the remains of a missile lay close by. painted on the casing — in russian — the words "for the children". but why? questions, too, as to why no crater and why so much was still intact. did it malfunction, or could it have been shot down? western officials still believe it's likely it was a russian missile fired indiscriminately. with the sound of air raid warnings, this has been the scene at kramatorsk station over the past few days — thousands of people trying to get out. they've been told to leave as russia steps up its offensive in the east. kramatorsk has already been targeted. as you can see, the station,

outside it, it's empty. but this morning, it was packed with people, many of them women and children, trying to flee this city to safety. you can see the effects of the blast on these parked cars behind me, now burnt out. and on the pavement, you can see bags of food that they were taking for their journey to safety, along with dried blood that's smeared across the pavement. russia says it wasn't responsible. it even claims that it wasn't its missile. but ukraine's president has dismissed those denials. the region's governor believes this was a cluster munition designed to kill and maim over a wide area. if this was a deliberate attack on civilians, then the british government says it's another russian war crime. jonathan beale, bbc news, kramatorsk.

the british prime minister borisjohnson announced that the uk is sending another £100 million — or $130 million — worth of military equipment to ukraine, including surface to air missiles and anti—tank weapons. mrjohnson was holding talks with the german chancellor 0laf scholz at downing street, while the eu president ursula von de leyen has been visiting ukraine to offer her support. 0ur diplomatic correspondent paul adams reports. in bucha, a chance to ponder the brutal realities of this war. ursula von der leyen, president of the european commission, in the town where ukraine says hundreds of civilians were killed by russian troops. the whole world is mourning with the people of bucha, and they are the ones who are, as you said, defending the border of europe, defending humanity, defending democracy, and therefore, we stand with them. but how much more are ukraine's friends willing to do to help? today, slovakia became the first country to send

a major air defence system. with another russian offensive looming, this is the kind of equipment ukraine says it badly needs. in downing street, with germany's new chancellor by his side, borisjohnson said britain was also doing more. today, i can announce that the uk will send a further £100 million worth of high—grade military equipment to ukraine's armed forces, including more starstreak anti—aircraft missiles, which fly at three times the speed of sound, another 800 anti—tank missiles and precision munitions capable of lingering in the sky until directed to their target. supplies are coming in from all over the world. the czech republic has sent a fleet of russian—made battle tanks. the ukrainians know the t—72 well and can use it with no extra training. russian military wreckage litters the roads where they've been and gone. ukraine's armed forces have fought tenaciously and with great skill,

but most believe sterner tests lie ahead. will all the new equipment arrive in time, and will it be enough? and could the west do more on the economic front? the german chancellor facing difficult questions about his country's continued reliance on russian oil and gas. do you really think that germany has gone far enough, fast enough to move away from russian energy? i can give you the very clear answer, we are doing the strongest investments and we are doing the hardest activities feasible to get independent, and we will be successful. britain is also bolstering nato. the defence secretary, ben wallace, in romania today, offering two more raf typhoon jets. whoever wins the war in ukraine, nato's presence in eastern europe has been utterly transformed by this war. paul adams, bbc news.

during the war, the chernobyl former nuclear power site was occupied by russian troops but is now back in ukrainian hands. there were concerns the plant may have been damaged in fighting. 0ur correspondent yogita limaye is one of the first journalists to reach the site, north of the capital kyiv, since russian forces left. access to chornobyl has onlyjust opened up on an off—road track. the bridge to it was destroyed to stop the russian advance. this is the site of the world's worst nuclear disaster, among the first parts of ukraine to be captured when russia invaded. "they surrounded us with tanks and there were aircraft flying "overhead", security officer petro says. russian forces broke into monitoring and control stations. electricity was cut off for a few days — a major threat.

translation: we store nuclear waste. _ if we'd lost power, it would have been catastrophic. radioactive material could have been released. i wasn't really worried for my life, i was scared of what would happen if i wasn't here. it's not possible for us to go any further because it could be risky but, if you walk down here, in that direction is an area of very high levels of contamination known as the red forest. and drone video has now come out which officials here have seen and they've confirmed to us the russian soldiers not only built trenches there, but they appear to have stayed there as well. this is evidence of how little they knew about nuclear safety. the soldiers were exposed to significant doses of radiation, ukraine says. below the plant is a basement, where 170 members of the national guard securing chornobyl were held captive.

no—one still knows where they are. they were taken by russian forces. former ukrainian president petro poroshenko visited chornobyl today, with a warning for the world. are we sure that tomorrow, russian troops cannot appear here? my answer would be no. putin is completely unpredictable. and nuclear, the nuclear smoke can reach eastern europe, central europe and even great britain. for now, there is relief here, but also a sense of unease. the threat is just ten miles away, across the border. yogita limaye, bbc news, chornobyl. and we will be hearing from a human rights analyst a little later on the global impact of that strike on the train

station. in other news, a former goldman sachs banker in new york has been found guilty of corruption and laundering money from the malaysian government's investment fund, 1mdb. roger ng helped embezzle hundreds of millions of dollars from the fund and bribed officials to win business for goldman. the guilty verdict marks the latest chapter in one of the biggest financial scandals of recent decades. here in the uk, the wife of the britain's chancellor rishi sunak says she has volunteered to pay uk tax on her worldwide income. akshata murty, who is exempt from paying uk tax because of her status as a non—domiciled uk resident, had been criticised for not paying it. our political correspondent iain watson is at westminster and said this change of heart may help the chancellor only a little. i don't expect him to be quitting number 11 downing street tonight. but it might not help him quite as much as he might like, because only this morning, he was saying that attacks on his wife's tax status were a smear and that she'd done nothing wrong.

but by tonight, under pressure, that tax status has changed. that's led to some of his own conservative colleagues questioning his politicaljudgment. one former cabinet minister said to me, "where was "his political brain?" and his conservative critics are worried this continued focus on his family's elaborate tax arrangements — at a time when everyone else's taxes are going up — is political damaging. now, his supporters say this is just the politics of envy, and they accuse opponents inside as well as outside his party of being out to get him. but i think this week is a reminder, if any were needed, that political fortunes — just like investments — can rise, but they can also fall. the prime minister of pakistan, imran khan, has said that if he is ousted from power, he will not accept what he called an "imported government". he was speaking ahead of a no—confidence vote in parliament on saturday which he is expected to lose. last sunday, the country's supreme court ruled that he acted unconstitutionally in asking the president

to dissolve parliament before the vote could take place. here's imran khan speaking in a late—night address. translation: we have accepted the verdict - of the supreme court, but i am very disappointed because unfair things are happening openly in pakistan and no—one is taking it seriously. i would not accept an imported government. i will go out to my people. i do not belong to a politicalfamily. neither my father nor any relative was in politics. stay with us on bbc news. still to come... to boldly go. the first ever commercial mission to the international space station gets under way. 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.

the latest headlines: condemnation after another atrocity in ukraine — at least 50 people are dead and hundreds more injured in a rocket attack on a train station. the president of the european commission has been in the city of bucha, as britain and germany agree more military aid for the ukrainian army. staying with that story now. marti flacks is director of the human rights initiative at the center for strategic and international studies. she says it's too early to say if the attack in kramatorsk was a war crime. so there will obviously need to be an investigation to understand what happened in this particular instance, and in particular the question of whether that train station full of civilians fleeing from the conflict was targeted, either intentionally to hit civilians or with the intention of hitting what was perceived to have been a military target but in fact clearly disproportionately

harming civilians. and if either of those things are the case, that is clearly an example of a very serious war crime. certainly, we've seen a consistent pattern of what the us government and other governments have called very serious war crimes over the course of this campaign, both in the context of the aerial bombardments of cities that we have seen happening over the last several weeks in mariupol, the targeting of health infrastructure — over 100 health facilities have been hit in the course of this bombing campaign — and then these specific strikes, like the one today and like the one we saw a few weeks ago in the theatre in mariupol that killed some 300 people sheltering from the conflict. but we're also starting to see emerge information about war crimes perpetrated by forces on the ground, so the situation we saw last weekend in bucha and that i suspect we will continue to see as ukrainians take back territory of really horrific atrocities committed by the russians as they capture the territory on the ground as well.

marti flacks speaking there. the american presidentjoe biden has hosted a celebration for the newest member of the us supreme court. ketanji brown jackson was confirmed by the senate on thursday. she'll become the first black woman to sit on the nation's highest court and only the sixth woman in history. speaking on the south lawn, the incoming justice reflected on the historic nature of her appointment. in my family, it took just one generation to go from segregation to the supreme court of the united states. cheering and it is an honour, the honour of a lifetime, for me to have this chance tojoin the court, to promote the rule of law at the highest level and to do my part to carry our shared project of democracy and equal

justice under law forward into the future. latest polling suggests the french president emmanuel macron is just two percentage points ahead of his main rival — the far—right candidate marine le pen — as france prepares to vote in the first round of the presidential election on sunday. there are nine candidates, with macron and le pen the favourites to win the most votes and go through to a deciding run—off vote in a fortnight. lucy williamson reports from the campaign trail. he won the presidency last time by standing out from the crowd. five years on, emmanuel macron, seen by many as arrogant and out of touch, is keen to show he is close to the people. a classic defence, when your far—right rival is right

behind you in the polls. the message here in brittany, he's notjust a president for capitalists but for left—wing voters, too. translation: it's europe that allows us to reform excessive l and sometimes crazy capitalism. if we want to put social and environmental concerns at the heart of the market economy, it's europe that allows us to act. left—wing territory like this backed mr macron five years ago against his far—right rival, marine le pen. many left—wing voters are more disillusioned now, but polls suggest that marine le pen is closer than ever to winning this election, and mr macron is hoping that's enough to get the left to vote again. down the road, in the local boulangerie, sophie said she voted for president macron five years ago because she was nervous about voting for marine le pen. not this time. translation: she's evolved. she learnt from her mistakes. she is very human. we understand her when she speaks.

i think, this time, the right person will win. i hope so, because i've made a bet with my customers. marine le pen has worked hard to soften her image. she still wants to ban muslim headscarves in public places and give french nationals priority in benefits, housing and jobs. but her focus in this campaign has been rising prices, made worse by the war in ukraine. at a rally in the southern city of perpignan this week, 18—year—old anwar flores said le pen was right to focus on the things that matter to french people and less on security issues. mr macron still has the edge in this election, but he has warned that nothing is impossible. as the man who broke the political mould here five years ago, if anyone should know that, it's him. lucy williamson, bbc news, paris. now to hollywood, where the actor will smith has been banned from all academy events

or programmes for ten years after he slapped the comedian chris rock at the oscars. our north america correspondent peter bowes has more on the academy's explanation to suspend will smith. they say will smith's behaviour was "unacceptable and harmful", and that it overshadowed the work of the many other nominees and winners. the event, the oscars were supposed to be a celebration of the achievements of the film industry — whereas it turned out to be dominated by the actions of one man, will smith, that moment that was seen round the world when he stormed on stage — because a comedian told a joke about his wife that he didn't like. essentially, that is why the academy is coming forward with this punishment — a ten—year ban, which is perhaps a little more than some people had been expecting from the oscars and all of the other annual events that the academy puts on. has the academy admitted any fault of their own

in how they decided to handle the incident? yes, they have, and they have acknowledged that they didn't handle the situation well. and the tenor of the statement released, in fact an open letter to the academy's members, is that this is a learning experience for the academy, that it needs to regain and work on its reputation. and they say, bigger picture, their moves today are all part of looking forward and protecting those guests that appear on the oscars, people involved in the show, protecting them in the future. so yes, i think there is a significant amount of — in terms of saying, "look, we could have handled this better," the academy is acknowledging this and i think acknowledging that they have work to do, as well, as they move forward. any response from will smith? yes, a very short statement — he says that he accepts and respects the decision

of the academy. we know that he, previous to today, has issued a couple of statements, he's apologised several times. but it's clear that will smith, at a very personal level, still has a lot to do to redeem himself and perhaps rebuild his own reputation. the three—time wimbledon champion boris becker has been found guilty of concealing cash and property following his bankruptcy in the uk in 2017. he was convicted of four offences but cleared of 20 others at court in london. he'll be sentenced later this month and could face jail. four astronauts have left earth on the first all—private mission to the international space station. the crew took off from florida's kennedy space centre on a spacex falcon rocket. they're expected to dock at the station on saturday and will spend eight days on board. the bbc�*s tim allman reports.

it's often been said — the business of america is business. the axiom 1 crew as they exit the suit up room... and what typifies that more than a fully commercial mission to space? one pilot and three very wealthy men, each paying a reported $55 million to spend a week or so orbiting the earth. this is our first step. we're working with a commercial company to have them come to our international space station, and we're learning to work together and figuring out how to work together. and this is going to be an important step for us. three, two, one... zero. ignition. liftoff. go, falcon, go, dragon. godspeed, axiom 1. axiom space is the private company leading the mission, but it's elon musk�*s spacex provided the rocket that took them into orbit. it's been stressed of these men are not space tourists — they will carry out

what's being called "meaningful research". and this could be the beginning of something big. we would like, by the early 2030s, for us to be flipping the roles and have our professional astronauts going up and focusing on the research and technology we need for exploration, but allowing commercial providers to be doing the hard work of maintaining the laboratory. this is the laboratory they'll have to work out of for now — the international space station. axiom space are thinking big — someday soon, they want to build this station of their own. one small step for man, one giant leap for commercial space travel. tim allman, bbc news. the queen has pulled out of attending the annual royal maundy thursday church service. buckingham palace said she would be represented for the first time by the prince of wales and the duchess of cornwall. the 95—year—old queen has had mobility issues and has been taking part in virtual audiences this week.

and that's all from us for now. thanks forjoining us. good evening. today wasn't quite as cold as yesterday because the wind wasn't as strong, but we have still ended the week with temperatures below par for the time of year. we take that chilly arctic air with us into the start of the weekend. however, as we move into next week, a shift in the pattern — southerly winds delivering some warmer conditions across the uk. so, for this weekend, it will be chilly, particularly at first. some cold and frosty nights, often dry, just a few showers. next week, it will feel warm where we get some sunshine, but it won't be sunny all the time. there will also be some outbreaks of rain. talking of rain, we saw some heavy downpours across southern england and the channel islands during this morning. that clearing away. then some sunny spells, but also, as you can see from the radar picture, lots of showers, some thunderstorms, some wintry showers, especially across northern areas.

now, most of those showers will slowly fade as we head through the night. clear skies overhead. that will allow for quite a widespread frost. temperatures even in the towns and cities down around or below freezing. could see lows of around “4 out in the countryside in parts of northern england. so, into tomorrow, a cold, frosty but bright and sunny start. through the day, we will see some showers once again, but these most plentiful up towards the north and the east where it will stay breezy. further south and west, lighter winds, not as many showers, more dry weather, and plenty of sunshine. temperatures still a touch below the average for this point in april, 7—12 degrees. as we move through saturday night, this little ridge of high pressure topples its way eastwards. again, that will allow it to get cold and frosty. this frontal system pushing in from the west will start to introduce a little more cloud. so temperatures out west in belfast and plymouth for example may stay above freezing. most places, again, having

a cold start to sunday morning, but a bright start with plenty of sunshine. through the day, as that weather system approaches, we will see more cloud building in from the west. the majority will stay dry. a bit of rain could just splash into parts of northern ireland later on. but the winds starting to come up from the south, so temperatures will climb just a little. a trend that will continue into next week. if we do get some sunshine, could see highs of 18—19, maybe close to 20 degrees. but there will also be some rain at times, especially in the north and west.

this is bbc news, the headlines... ukraine says at least 50 people are dead and dozens wounded after a rocket hit a train station in the eastern city of kramatorsk. kramatorsk had become a major hub in the war for civilian evacuations from the donbas region. it's now the focal point of vladimir putin's war effort. the head of the european commission says ukraine is marching towards a european future as russia descends into economic, financial and technological decay. speaking alongside president zelensky in kyiv, ursula von der leyen promised

to speed up the early stages of ukraine's bid tojoin the eu.