this is bbc news broadcasting in the uk and around the globe. i'm joanna gosling. our top stories — polls have opened in france in the first round of the french presidential election, with french president emmanuel macron facing a strong challenge from marine le pen. uk pm borisjohnson meets president zelensky in kyiv, as britain says there's further evidence that russian troops have a deliberate strategy of targeting civilians in ukraine. the deadline has passed in pakistan for candidates to put their names forward to succeed imran khan, who has been ousted as prime minister.

france is voting in the first round of its presidential election, with opinion polls suggesting president macron is narrowly ahead of the far—right candidate marine le pen. voters are choosing from 12 candidates in the first round, but only two will go through to the run—off in a fortnight�*s time. our europe correspondent nick beake reports from paris. the fate of the planet was the theme of this big climate rally in paris, but it's the temperature of the french public that's being taken this weekend, and many want something new. this election is absolutely key for our future. this is the motto of this march, and it's key for socialjustice, environmentaljustice. there's a feeling president macron spent too much time on the kremlin than the campaign trail.

talking more to vladimir putin and not listening to the french people. all the while, the far right candidate marine le pen, has been gaining ground in this, her third presidential race, honing a softer image this time. but immigration and security are still at the heart of her agenda. retired secretary janine tells us le pen is now ready for the highest office. and if you shut your eyes fora moment, can you imagine marine le pen in the elysee palace as your president? why not? i think she would be not so bad. not so bad as macron. with the very latest polls suggesting more support for marine le pen, more people are asking whether france is on the verge of its own brexit moment or trump moment. in other words, a political earthquake, something that has far reaching consequences, notjust here, notjust in europe, but beyond.

but le pen appeals less in cosmopolitan paris, and emmanuel macron remains the frontrunner in the national polls. translation: i will vote for him. i've seen his values, what he can do at the geopolitical level, how he runs the country, how we listen to the french and took care of covid and dealt with protests. he's shown that he's a president up to the challenge. in this first round, the french have many candidates to choose from, but only two go through, meaning lots of voters will have to think again in a fortnight�*s time. if the polls are right and it's between macron and le pen, then what do you do? just not living in france anymore. seriously? yeah! no, really the worst thing that can happen. did you vote for macron last time? yeah, yeah, but never more.

in france, unemployment is down, but the cost of living is rising fast. can emmanuel macron hang on as his appeal seems to wear thin? nick beake, bbc news, paris. we can go live now to tim wilcox in paris. you join in the north—west of paris, about four miles from the centre. this is a former working class area, about 20 to 25% is non—eu immigration. it has now been gentrified in the last two years, and income levels are rising here, but certainly that is the issue for the selection, for cost of living, and as marine le pen, her campaign focus has been on what people are allowed and can afford to buy in a time of rising prices after the

pandemic etc. and as nick was saying, what is interesting this time around is that even in 2017 when marine le pen went through to the second round with french president emmanuel macron and was crushed by him then, is france now believing that potentially marine le pen could get to the presidency? she has been slightly detoxified by the far right wing candidate to her right as well, who has taken on a lot of that bitter rhetoric about racism and emigration, while she has focused on the cost of living. the polls here are not allowed to be published in france, but we will have exit polls when the polls shot at 8.00. we can speak to somebody from one of the polling organisations now. is it possible that marine le pen at this time could do it?—

could do it? well, there is a significant _ could do it? well, there is a significant change _ could do it? well, there is a significant change in - could do it? well, there is a significant change in marine i could do it? well, there is a i significant change in marine le pen's image compared to five years ago a particular lutely proportion of people who say i will never vote for her has dropped by ten points, making her closer to be considered as a serious candidate against french president emmanuel macron. and in parallel, emmanuel macron�*s image has worsened, particularly due to the yellow vest protests. we can see the gap narrowing significantly between both, with a certain degree of uncertainty and the turnout is very difficult to anticipate. but her manifesto _ very difficult to anticipate. but her manifesto on immigration has not changed, for example she wants to ban the wearing of the burqa in public spaces, she believes that france is for the french and its citizens and they should have priority over migrants when it comes to housing, education and health

care. . �* , to housing, education and health care. . h ., care. that's true, her position about immigration _ care. that's true, her position about immigration has - care. that's true, her position about immigration has not. care. that's true, her position - about immigration has not changed that much, but she can count on part of the french voters who are worried about not only immigration, but the very identity of france. what has changed significantly compared to five years ago as her programme in europe. five years ago, she proposed to exit the euro zone, and to take some distance with the european union, which could have threatened some of the voters. that doesn't exist any more now, but firstly demeaning question, if she has improved her image and a soften her image compared to five years ago, where are we with her credibility to form a government or winning majority in the parliamentary election that will take injune? have relationship via the vladimir putin and russia has softened a little bit, she has not said she believes the russian troops are guilty of atrocities in ukraine, she has a big bank loan from a russian

bank from 2014, she has pulped 1.2 bank from 2014, she has pulped1.2 million this was that she was going to using the selection with her shaking hands with vladimir putin, what has changed there? that shaking hands with vladimir putin, what has changed there?— shaking hands with vladimir putin, what has changed there? that was one ofthe what has changed there? that was one of the surprises — what has changed there? that was one of the surprises of _ what has changed there? that was one of the surprises of the _ what has changed there? that was one of the surprises of the last _ what has changed there? that was one of the surprises of the last weeks, - of the surprises of the last weeks, because when russia attacked ukraine, we anticipate that every candidate would delete that had showed some proximity with vladimir putin in the past would show that intention, but now she has a clear position to condemn the attack on ukraine, but still her previous proximity with vladimir putin, her electability is probably not that much affected. probably less with a

lower propensity to consider milling the pent guilty of that. we lower propensity to consider milling the pent guilty of that.— the pent guilty of that. we will see. the pent guilty of that. we will see- thank _ the pent guilty of that. we will see. thank you _ the pent guilty of that. we will see. thank you very _ the pent guilty of that. we will see. thank you very much - the pent guilty of that. we will. see. thank you very much indeed. if as expected milling the pen gets through to the second round with french president emmanuel macron, just rememberfive years french president emmanuel macron, just remember five years ago she was crushed by at macron. and just briefly in that second round, who's going to pick up the votes of the far left candidate and the far right candidate? could you possibly get enough votes in the second round so the some on her third attempt, gets her to the presidency? thank you very much, tim. the british defence ministry says there's further evidence that russian forces have adopted a deliberate strategy of targeting civilians in ukraine. the assessment says the russians have been using improvised explosive devices and are attacking infrastructure targets with a high risk of harming civilians. the governor of luhansk has warned that russia was increasing its shelling

and preparing for a ground assault. nine trains are being laid on for sunday to help evacuate civilians from the region. the ukrainian president, volodymyr zelensky, has welcomed the uk's support for ukraine, describing it as "decisive and significant." during a surprise visit to kyiv yesterday, borisjohnson announced that britain was sending 120 armoured vehicles and new anti—ship missile systems, as well as guaranteeing further loans through the world bank. the prime minister is the first leader of a g7 country to travel to the ukrainian capital for talks since the start of the russian invasion. mark lowen has this report from kyiv. how are you? there's little time for niceties when you're a leader at war. volodymyr zelensky welcomed borisjohnson to kyiv as ukraine battling russian aggression pleads for more western help. you are strong. the strength of the underdog. ukraine's president battling for his country's survival, welcoming and pleading with the outside world to help fight russian aggression.

the unannounced talks came as britain pledged 120 armoured vehicles and new anti—ship missile systems. the two men were keen to suggest ukraine is on the front foot — a walkabout in kyiv inconceivable a fortnight ago. borisjohnson, basking in praise for his support from the public and the president. translation: we have to exert pressure in the form _ of sanctions, and i'm grateful to the united kingdom that continues and intensifies the sanctions and also provides significant support to ukraine by reinforcing our defence capacities. the other democratic western countries should follow the example of the united kingdom. from borisjohnson arriving as horrors are unearthed from neighbouring towns, warm words for a leader he called a lion. i thank you for what you've been able to do.

i think your leadership has been extraordinary and i think in what putin has done in places like bucha and in irpin, his war crimes have permanently polluted his reputation and the reputation of his government. borisjohnson was long keen to come here to kyiv, but was waiting for the security situation to stabilise following the withdrawal of russian troops from the area. and while this city has calmed, the renewed russian offensive in the east has made ukraine push even harderfor more military aid. russian tanks pushed on as a governor in the east urged civilians to flee immediately, warning of troops massing nearby. bucha, near kyiv, now free of russian troops, shows what might lie in store elsewhere — 360 people are said to have died here and ukraine, the david against the goliath,

is still crying out for help. mark lowen, bbc news, kyiv. earlier today i spoke to our our correspondent catherine byaruhanga in 0desa. as you can see, we are on a rooftop overlooking the city of 0desa and we cannot hear much. the only thing you can hear are the birds flying past. there has been an order from the regional authorities asking people to stay home and they say there is a threat of a missile strike on the city. over the past three days we have been here, we have had about three explosions taking place in and around the city, so there is a lot of tension. what we're hearing from residents in different parts of 0desa we cannot get to at the moment, people are obeying this curfew. this is a curfew that will last for much of the day. sunday is a significant date in 0desa, it is when russian forces liberated the city when it was occupied

by nazi germany. it is a significant day in the city's history, but also one in which people are full of fear. 0desa is on the black sea, and there are concerns of an attack on 0desa from the sea. britain is now giving ukraine anti—ship missile systems, what difference would that make? yes, just a few minutes' walk in front of me is the black sea. what we know is that since russia began its invasion of ukraine there have been a number of ships just off the shoreline, about 25 to 30. now the concern is that, as russian forces reorganise there may be more forces coming here to the south that could stage an amphibious landing. with this british support, the hope is that by having these anti—ship missile systems that skim the sea and can

hit their targets, the hope is it will force russian forces to push back, and therefore will not be able to stage an attack on 0desa. ukrainian troops have been fighting on the front line against the russian invasion for weeks now, but a growing number of international volunteers have also signed up to fight. the uk government has warned people not to travel to the conflict, but that hasn't stopped some british recruits, as emma vardy has been finding out. a rallying call. this recruitment video for ukraine's newly—formed international legion appeals for people to join the fight from all over the world. there are times we get maybe 20 to 23 air raid sirens a day. and it's clear what's happening on ukraine's front lines is resonating with people much further afield. there's just too much to watch, you know, it's like asking a firefighter to walk past a burning house and not do anything, you know? most ex—veterans like myself probably feel exactly the same way, that they couldn't sit back and just watch the destruction,

the attacking of the civilians and stuff like that. a], a former soldier with the british army, traveled here from belfast in northern ireland. following his previous military career, more recently, he'd been appearing in dramatic war scenes as an extra on game 0f thrones, but decided he wanted to return to the battlefield for real. due to my military background, i felt this would be the best place for me, helping the ukrainian troops with the weapons training and drills, what to do under fire and stuff like that. and i'm not i'm not like a war tourist or somebody like that. i was comfortable back home sitting with my cat. how have people reacted to you being there? i've got a pretty broad belfast accent, so when people, when i'm out and about, people notice you and they tend to like, just come up, shake your hand. and i think they need to see things like that, you know, because they need to know the world's behind them. the patch represents valhalla, that's our squad name. aj's now been on the front lines for over a month. his is one of several battalions with international volunteers fighting alongside the ukrainian army. we were surprised the number of people who wanted to come to us.

there are hundreds of messages per day. what do british fighters bring to the war here? they have combat experience or military experience. a lot of these people have been to iraq, afghanistan, syria. i don't know if you guys know what this is behind me, - but that's a russian tank, which we've taken out. i of course, joining a foreign war isn't something to be done lightly. and the international legion invited us to meet some of its members, who are now helping to vet the many applicants that want to join. we turn away anyone who doesn't have combat experience and we turn away people who don't pass our individual assessments. do you worry at all this could attract the wrong people with the wrong motivations? i won't lie to you, we've seen quite a lot of these, especially in the early days, and i hope that we've now

been sufficiently clear in our communication that this is not call of duty, it's not a video game, it's a war and we need people that know their way around the battlefield. ukraine's armed forces are clearly very proud that they've had so many international fighters wanting to come and join them. and what they're saying here today is that the alleged war crimes that have been taking place show that ukraine's fight, they say, is everyone's fight and they're calling for more people like this to come and join them. we met sandra, who's had a pretty drastic change of scene, leaving behind herjob working on fishing boats in norway to come to ukraine. sandra, what made you decide to get involved? morally obligated. i'm european, this is home base. as the world watches ukraine's conflict unfold, it's becoming clear that a powerful sense of international solidarity is helping to bolster ukraine's front lines.

emma vardy, bbc news. let's bring you some breaking news now. an inquiry is now under way into how the tax arrangements of rishi sunak�*s ways became public. bbc news understands the chancellor had apparently been demanding an inquiry into who leaked details about his wife's non—domiciled status, which meant that she is not required by law to pay uk taxes on overseas income, although since the news broke, she has now decided to voluntarily change her tax arrangements, and she will be paying tax here even though she does not have a legal requirement to do that. the chancellor's allies have previously said very few people had access to the personal information

which rishi sunak declared to whitehall officials when he became a minister in 2018. so now there is an inquiry into how those tax arrangements became public. you are watching bbc world news, our top stories — polls have opened in france, for the first round of the french presidential race, with president macron facing a strong challenge from marine le pen of the far—right national rally. uk pm borisjohnson meets president zelensky in kyiv, as britain says there's further evidence that russian troops have a deliberate strategy of targeting civilians in ukraine. members of pakistan's parliament are due to decide on monday who should succeed imran khan, who was ousted as prime minister in a late—night confidence vote after he was deserted by coalition partners. they blame him for a crumbling economy and failure to deliver on campaign promises. analysts say the new prime minister is almost certain to be the opposition leader, shehbaz sharif. mr khan has said he is the victim of an international conspiracy. shelley phelps has the latest.

amongst the crowds gathered outside pakistan's parliament, there wasjoy and anguish as the news of imran khan's removal came through. it was a night of intense political drama. this is the moment the speaker of the house announced the result. 174 members have recorded their votes in favour of the resolution. consequently, the resolution for a vote of no confidence against mr imran khan, the prime minister of islamic republic of pakistan, has been passed by a majority of the total membership of the national assembly. cheering. the opposition erupted. frontrunner as next prime minister, shahbaz sharif, is hailing the moment as a chance for a new beginning. translation: a new dawn has started, a new day is coming. _ allah has answered the prayers of millions.

69—year—old cricket star—turned politician mr khan, says he will not recognise an opposition government and blames a us—led conspiracy for his removal. public opinion is divided. translation: imran khan has been removed through - a foreign conspiracy. god willing, we will fight back and make him prime minister again. we don't want these thieves, opposition politicians. translation: this is | a victory of democracy. pakistan needs an opportunity for growth and advancement. i pray for pakistan's progress. analysts warn things won't be easy for those who toppled mr khan from power. that next government is indeed going to face a lot of challenges. it will inherit a major economic crisis, there have also been a resurgence in terrorist attacks, and also imran khan will go back to the opposition, a role that he played for so long before he became prime minister, and he will try to be disruptive.

pakistan's parliament will meet to vote for the country's new leader on monday. shelley phelps bbc news. the bbc�*s secunder kermani has been following all the developments and has the latest now from islamabad. for much of the day, it seemed as if the vote of no confidence against imran khan would not be held, as of imran khan would not be held, as of imran khan's party would prevent it, block it for a second time in spite of a supreme court order, saying that it should go ahead. in fact, we will getting reports that the supreme court was ready to open its doors at midnight, possibly to issue a contempt of court notice against imran khan's allies if they did not go ahead with that vote of no confidence. of course, it did, because a number of imran khan's allies had already publicly deserted him. 0pinion here is really quite heavily polarised. if you are a supporter of imran khan, you are

heartbroken. we were outside parliament late last night at around 3.00 in the morning, and a woman from a poor working class background came up to us, everyone else are pretty much left the scene at that point, she poured out her heart, saying that she thought imran khan was the best thing that had ever happened to pakistan, she did not know how the country would continue without him. but if you are a supporter of the opposition, what until now was the opposition, you see this as a great victory for democracy, and that imran khan was endangering the constitution of pakistan by refusing to hold the sort of no confidence, refusing to accept the decision of parliament, and even now, as you heard in that report, he has said he will not accept any government that comes out of this process, and he has called for his supporters to come out into the street after evening prayer later tonight and register their protest peacefully. the first all—private mission to the international space station has docked. the crew — consisting of a pilot and three passengers —

have been welcomed inside the international space station. they are due to spend eight days orbiting the earth. the flight is being hailed as a milestone in the commercialisation of space flight. before we go, a reminder of our top story this hour. french voters are casting their ballots in the opening round of a presidential race that opinion polls have suggested could be very close. until recently, president macron appeared to have a strong lead, but the latest polls suggest the far—right leader marine le pen could be close enough to cause a political upset. voters are choosing from 12 candidates in the first round, but only two will go through to run—off in a fortnight s time.

we will keep you updated. you are watching bbc news. hello. i think the weather is looking decent enough for many of us this afternoon. it was a little bit on the chilly side this morning and this afternoon is not going to be desperately warm either but at least it is looking dry and bright today. but tomorrow, however, rain in the forecast. not everybody is going to get it. here is the satellite picture with the pressure map, and you can see a weather front wrapping around this rather large area of low pressure. this weather front is approaching, and that's why the skies will turn hazier and hazier and eventually cloudy across western parts of the uk, even the possibility of a few spits and spots of rain in northern ireland in the middle of the afternoon. but the rest of the country should have that dry and bright day, 13 in the south, around 11

in newcastle, still on the parky side in aberdeen, 8 degrees. so the focus for this evening stays dry. they could even be some clear skies across the south and the south—east. but this weather front is very slowly approaching. you can see the wind is blowing out of the south or the south—east. with that and all of the cloud it is not going to be particularly cold tonight. perhaps, a touch of frost in the highlands there, but for many of us you can see it is about 3—6 degrees celsius. so the weather map for monday shows that low pressure still way to the west of our neighbourhood but the weather front is brushing western parts of the uk. so watch these areas of rain moving into cornwall and devon, brushing parts of wales, and then eventually the irish sea coasts, perhaps some of it getting into lancashire, cumbria, south—western parts of scotland and northern ireland. but many of us towards the east and the south actually getting away with a decent enough day. cloudy at times but up to 17 degrees in the south. you know that milder air is spreading in from the south but it won't quite reach everywhere. it does look as though it's reaching scotland, doesn't it? but here, because we will have

a fair bit of cloud and outbreaks of rain through the course of tuesday and a south—easterly wind off the north sea, it could still actually be quite chilly in places like aberdeen. to the south we have got the warmer air, some sunny spells and much higher temperatures, 18 or 19, for example, in london and norwich. so quite a mixed bag for many of us on monday and tuesday. here is the outlook for the rest of the week. wednesday, thursday and friday, those temperatures continuing to climb. and at the moment the easter weekend is not looking bad at all with high pressure building. bye— bye.

this is bbc news. the headlines — polls have opened in france, for the first round of the french presidential race that could deliver a shock victory — after president macron's lead over his main challenger, the far—right leader marine le pen fell dramatically in recent weeks. the prime minister borisjohnson meets president zelensky in kyiv — as britain says there's further evidence that russian troops have a deliberate strategy of targeting civilians in ukraine. an inquiry into how the tax arrangements of akshata murthy became public is now under way. rishi sunak had demanded it to find out who leaked details about his wife's tax arrangements.

akshata murthy has said she will pay uk taxes on her overseas income.