this is bbc news. i'm rich preston our top stories: a ukrainian presidential advisor warns of heavy losses as fighting intensifies in the east of the country. i'm sorry, it's difficult. difficult to look at some of the images and think that somebody, any well thinking, serious, but surely that would do that, so i can't talk to his psychology, but i think we can all speak to... the pentagon'sjohn kirby shows the strain describing what he calls president putin's depravity over the invasion of ukraine. a tennis super star begins a new life behind bars. boris becker is jailed for two and a half years for hiding millions of dollars worth

of assets after going bankrupt. a suicide attack on a mosque in the afghan capital, kabul, kills more than fifty people during friday prayers. and, a big fight, in the big apple. katie taylor and amanda serrano square up, ahead of the most important women's boxing match, in history. hello, and welcome to bbc news. as heavy fighting continues in eastern ukraine, an advisor to the country's president volodymyr zelenskyy has acknowledged that ukrainian forces have suffered serious losses. he said ukraine had lost control of some towns and villages, but claimed russia's casualties had been, in his words, "colossal". this report from our eastern europe correspondent sarah rainsford contains some images you may find distressing.

vera gyrych was carried from the wreckage of her home in a body bag. she'd been found buried beneath rubble after a russian missile strike on central kyiv. vera was 55, a journalist for the american broadcaster radio liberty. it says it's shocked and outraged by the meaningless manner of her death. we saw forensic workers bring out what looked like fragments of the missile. russia's defence ministry claims it was firing precision weapons. only the military factory opposite the apartment block is scorched, but still standing. this couple feel lucky to be alive today, even able to salvage something from the ruins. misha said they'd just got home when they heard the first blast. "if we'd been in a lift a minute longer," he tells me, "we'd have been burned or killed."

russia may well have been aiming at a military facility across the road here, but once again it's civilians who are the casualties of this strike. the mayor here in kyiv now says 100 civilians have been killed in ukraine's capital alone in a war that russia began over two months ago and still shows no sign it wants to stop. and down in mariupol, the besieged city by the sea, there are still civilians and fighters under fire, surrounded at the giant azov steelworks. the rest of the shattered city is now under russian control. olia's husband and natalia's brother are both soldiers there. trapped, with supplies running out. so, the women came to kyiv to urge the government to do more to save them. they're talking about civilians, but not about military, and i'm really worried about it because the military are also people.

they don't want to die in that city that is already destroyed. why do they have to do it? i don't understand. they have been holding the whole ukraine and even europe for two months, and they deserve to come back alive. kyiv itself has begun to come alive again now that russian force have retreated from its suburbs. but even this half normality is fragile when moscow has shown it can strike at any time. sarah rainsford, bbc news, kyiv. john kirby, the us defense department's spokesman has accused russian president vladimir putin of depravity in his invasion of ukraine. apparently becoming emotional, john kirby paused to collect himself during his remarks. it is hard to look at what he is doing in ukraine, what his forces are doing in ukraine, and think that any... ethical,

moral individual could justify that. it is difficult to look at the... voice waivers sorry, it is difficult to look at some of the images and think that any well thinking, serious, mature leader would do that. earlier, russia's foreign minister sergey lavrov has said that his country does not consider itself to be at war with nato over ukraine. he also blamed ukraine for the failure of peace talks jonathan schroden is a military operations analyst and director of cna's special operations programme. thank you for being with us. tell us a bit more about what is being reported about this increased training by us forces of ukrainian troops.—

of ukrainian troops. yes, the defence department, - of ukrainian troops. yes, the defence department, the . defence department, the pentagon announced today that it had already begun within the past week or so training ukrainian military forces on some of the heavier weapon systems the us is now providing, so they are now on the second class on training of howitzer systems, they are heavy artillery pieces. they have trained 50 ukrainian armed forces and they are on the second class of 50 now, and the us has also begun a class of training on how to use a specific type of radar system, as well as how — a separate training course on how to drive and maintain armoured personnel carriers. so these are three courses the us has stood up within the last few weeks, training primarily in germany but in two other unidentified sites as well.— sites as well. what is the significance _ sites as well. what is the significance of _ sites as well. what is the significance of the - sites as well. what is the significance of the type i sites as well. what is the | significance of the type of weaponry being used in the training and what does it mean for ukrainian forces in their defence of their territory?

yes, it is indicative of where this war is headed in terms of the phase we are in now. the original assistance of the us provided was largely defensive in nature, things like anti—air and ante amma rockets and missiles, for example, to help the ukrainians defend the capital, kyiv, and some areas in the centre and north of the country. now that the fight has shifted to the east of the country, the ukrainians are in some places trying to go on the offensive to regain lost territory from the russians. and so the us is providing more offensive weapons systems now like armoured personnel carriers, long—range artillery, loitering munitions, various unmanned aerial vehicles for example, so much, much heavier more offensive weaponry, and this training package designed to help them use some of this assistance they may have

previously not known how to use. sergey lavrov has is that russia sees itself not at war with nato but, as you mentioned, this is more offensive equipment, is this likely to change that? both sides have been very careful in their language, so the russian foreign minister's statement is in line with that, to a large extent. certifying that russia doesn't see itself at war with nato, certainly the us has been pretty clear that its actions are designed to help ukraine defend itself against this aggression, although, the secretary of defence's recent, that he would like to see russia weekend as a result of this was certainly an exploratory comment as well, so both sides will continue to be measured in their tones, even as these more offensive steps are taken by the west. we will leave it there, thank you, jonathan schroden.

boris becker, who, at 17 years old, stunned the tennis world in 1985 by winning wimbledon, is spending his first night in a british jail following a dramatic fall from grace. he's been sentenced for 2.5 years for illegally concealing hundreds of thousands of dollars in assets in a bankruptcy case. our sports correspondent natalie pirks has more. as he walked into court, his tie in the colours of wimbledon, where he'd made his fame and fortune, boris becker was no doubt contemplating how it came to this. unknown and unseeded, becker had forged an instant bond with the british public in 1985 when he won wimbledon atjust 17, the youngest man then to do so. in sentencing remarks, it was said that he showed no remorse or humility and failed to heed the chances given from his past conviction of tax evasion 20 years ago in germany. the court

was packed. becker looked shocked and red—faced as he was sentenced to 2.5 years in prison, with half on license. as you can see, this case has generated considerable interest across europe. a picture was painted in court of a man with nothing to show for his glittering sporting career, a man with chaotic finances, with no future earning potential whose reputation lies in tatters. unknown and unseeded, he donned a bond with the public when he won wimbledon atjust17, the youngest to ever do so. during his 1a—year career he won a total of 49 singles titles, six of them grand slams, making him a rich man with a successful stint as a pundit, and novak djokovic's coach afterwards. but he was soon fast — expensive lifestyle commitments including a high—profile

divorce and payments for a child conceived one night at a london restaurant saw him in financial trouble. career earnings of £38 million were gone, and a tax evasion and bankruptcy case followed. i think, today, the tennis world is a little bit sad about what has happened. you see somebody who was such a great talent and had so much to offer, and he is still a very lovable, likeable character, and you know, i think it is very sad to think where he is at tonight. his partner left tonight to begin life without him. he will now spend more than one year in prison, a career on quarter ended safely inside one. let's get some of the day's other news. a member of the infamous group of islamic state extremists known as "the beatles" because of their british accents, has beenjailed for life in the us. alexanda kotey admitted more than half a dozen charges linked to the abduction, torture, and the murder of hostages in syria. a usjudge has thrown out a motion to overturn

the conviction of ghislaine maxwell for sex trafficking, for her role in helping jeffrey epstein sexually abuse teenage girls. maxwell sought a retrial after one of the jurors in the case admitted he had falsely stated he was not a victim of sexual abuse. the bbc understands a consortium led by todd bowley, the owner of the la dodgers baseball team, is likely to be named the preferred bidder for chelsea football club. the club was put up for sale in march, before the owner, roman abramovich, was sanctioned for his alleged links to the russian president vladimir putin. the head of a mosque in the afghan capital, kabul, says at least 50 worshippers were killed in a powerful explosion that struck just after friday prayers, thought to be by a suicide bomber. but taliban authorities in the country say only 10 people died. it's the latest in a spate of attacks during the muslim holy month of ramadan. with me is our news reporter azadeh moshiri.

these two partly different numbers given here, what more do we know? religious leaders are putting the death toll at a much higher number. what we know is that the mosque was in high attendance because it was the last friday prayers before the end of the holy month of ramadan. the head of the mosque has said that a suicide bomber joined the congregation and then detonated his explosives. it seems like the suicide bomber was targeting this sufi muslim minority community. many were wounded, some in critical condition sent to nearby hospitals. the un have said that two of their own staff were in attendance along with our own families. they have otis for a full investigation. and a special un report on human rights has put out a tweet.

that is because right now nobody has claimed responsibility for the attack. unfortunately, this is not a stand—alone incident, is it? that's right, they have gone through so much instability since the rule of taliban over last summer, and attack as a part of an attack during ramadan. islamic state have claimed responsibility for some, they seem to be targeting minority communities like the sheer, hazara and sufi communities. they seem to be taking place in places like mosques and schools. just last thursday, two bands had bombs donated on—board, carrying shia muslims towards the northern city of mazar—e—sharif stop and also we saw blasts tearing through high school in kabul, six people dying there, so while the taliban so they have

a handle on the security situation in afghanistan, these attacks, the violence, is continuing. you say the taliban so they have a handle on security but have a handle on security but have they said anything of a possible insurgents of islamic state? state ? they state? they have praised their intelligence units, the military capability, but as far as experts and ices watches are concerned, they say a resurgence is very much possible. resurgence is very much possible-— resurgence is very much ossible. , ., ., possible. this would threaten the region. — possible. this would threaten the region, threaten - possible. this would threaten | the region, threaten afghans, and as far as the taliban is concerned, they need to show that they have a handle on the situation and that since they have taken over stability will return to afghanistan. but, when you look at this spate of attacks, that is not clear right now. thank you. there has been a aloft in the us stock markets with the dowjones industrial average closing friday's trading more than 900 points down. the nasdaq index of mostly technology companies pulled in more than 13 percentage points lower, the

biggest monthly decline since the financial crisis of 2008. analyst say that the drop shows many investors are seeing trouble ahead for the global economy, with growing fears of a recession. for more on this i'm joined by takara small, a business and technology reporter based in toronto. the worst month on the market since march 2020 in the us, why is this? ., ., ., is this? you mentioned that dreaded r _ is this? you mentioned that dreaded r word, _ is this? you mentioned that dreaded r word, recession. | dreaded r word, recession. really, i think investors are concerned about what is happening in the ukraine, and in china which is limiting supplies and commodities, and of course we are seeing their likely is a hike in interest rates around the corner. all of that together smell spells trouble for the economy. the nasdaq in — trouble for the economy. the nasdaq in particular, what does this tell us about faith in some of those bigger tech companies, netflix, amazon, apple and so on?—

companies, netflix, amazon, apple and so on? well, netflix saw a huge _ apple and so on? well, netflix saw a huge drop _ apple and so on? well, netflix saw a huge drop recently - apple and so on? well, netflix saw a huge drop recently this | saw a huge drop recently this week, as well as amazon which did not meet expectations, that has been a cash cow that has been a reliable soccer people. i think a lot of companies, a lot of investors really got used to this boom we saw during the pandemic where there was a lot of consumer spending and a very targeted area. but these tech companies rely on certain materials and supplies that are often coming from china, or coming from ukraine. and again russia has been completely cut out of the global commodities as well. i think a lot of people are seeing that the tech companies themselves are seeing higher costs, and that spells trouble and will be passed on down the line to consumers. what impact will this have day—to—day on regular consumers in the us? i day-to-day on regular consumers in the us?— in the us? i think consumers tend to be — in the us? i think consumers tend to be left _ in the us? i think consumers tend to be left out _ in the us? i think consumers tend to be left out of - in the us? i think consumers tend to be left out of this - tend to be left out of this conversation. right now consumer spending seems to be somewhat stable but that will change, especially with interest rates that are likely going to increase, the federal

reserve has said quite blatantly that that is around the corner. you have inflation, a troubling job market at the same time, it means people will be pulling back and not spending as much as things —— on things that are not essential. netflix saw a huge drop, and when it comes down to food or entertainment, people will choose food.— will choose food. really appreciate _ will choose food. really appreciate your - will choose food. reallyl appreciate your analysis, will choose food. really - appreciate your analysis, thank you forjoining us, takara small in toronto. here in the uk, a member of parliament for the governing conservative party has been suspended over allegations he watched pornography in the house of commons chamber. neil parish, the mp for a constituancy in devon, in the south—west of england, has referred himself to the parliamentary standards commissioner, and says he'll cooperate fully with any investigation. the 65—year—old said he's embarrassed by the allegations, and suggested he may have opened the video on his phone by accident. here's our political correspondent, ben wright. having told his wife, he faced the cameras waiting on his driveway.

not a well—known name before today, the conservative neil parish has been identified as the mp accused of watching pornography in the house of commons chamber. you have had the conservative whip removed. where does that leave you? it leaves me still as the member of parliament for tiverton and honiton. i have just come back from a surgery in honiton. i will maintain my duties very much as the mp and while i remain chair of the environment, food and rural affairs select committee, i will also keep up my work there. is this embarrassing? of course it's embarrassing, and it's embarrassing for my wife, and the family, and so that is my main concern at the moment. i have a very supportive wife and i thank her for that. at a meeting of tory mps on tuesday, two women said they had seen a male colleague viewing porn on his phone. first, the conservative party said the matter should be investigated by parliament's independent complaints and grievance scheme. the mp involved had still not been named

when neil parish himself was asked about the allegations in an interview on wednesday. i think the whips' office will do a thorough investigation and we will wait and see that result. and now we have it. after meeting the tories�* chief whip today, mr parish was suspended from the parliamentary party and referred himself for investigation by the commons standards commissioner. labour said it should have happened much sooner. the conservatives have obviously known for days who this mp was. now, having known, they should have done something about it, they should have acted swifter. we can boost production... neil parish has represented the devon seat of tiverton and honiton since 2010 and is chair of the environment, food and rural affairs select committee, a seniorjob for a backbench mp. but now he is under pressure to explain what he was doing with his phone. neil, was it a mistake? i will await the findings of the inquiry. i'm talking about, did you open something up by error- in the commons? i did, but let the

inquiry look at that. there has been a chorus of cross—party condemnation about this, and it has renewed claims that westminster has a problem with misogyny and sexism, a parliamentary culture that needs to change. i'm shocked, as most people are shocked, that that would happen. and, you know, we have got inquiries going on, but i'm really pleased that the chief whip has acted quickly. these things should not be left to fester. but the investigations may not be quick, and for now mr parish shows little sign of retreating. the premiere of the british virgin islands has been charged with drug trafficking and money laundering in america. just over a week ago andrew foy was opening athletic scheme. now

the leader of the british virgin islands is injail and his country is in crisis. he was arrested by undercover drug officials at this airport. agents from the drug enforcement agency were pretending to be members of the mexican cartel, and wanted his help smuggling cocaine into the us. an agent reported that at one meeting, mr foy asked for a slice of the profits from smuggling the drugs. the court paper states that: the drugs would be hidden in: it is also alleged that: mr fahie was shown part of his: mr fahie was

alleged to have said: mr fahie appeared via video link in the court behind me. he was dressed in what looks like was in uniform and his head was found. the charges were centred to him and he will return here next week for a pre—trial hearing. the us government says he has a flight risk and danger to the community. to add to the crisis, it comes a day after the islands�* governor released an investigation into corruption and bad governments in the british virgin islands. he is appointed by the queen and the investigation has now recommended the uk takes direct control for two years. i recommended the uk takes direct control for two years.— control for two years. i pledge that the people _ control for two years. i pledge that the people of _ control for two years. i pledge that the people of bvi - control for two years. i pledge that the people of bvi will. that the people of bvi will continue to be my overriding concern. ensuring transparent, honest and open governance. with andrew fahie in us

custody, the territory faces huge uncertainty. the uk says a clear path will be announced soon. saturday will see one of the most anticipated boxing matches in history between two female fighters, katie taylor and amanda serrano. ade adedoyin reports from new york. the best facing the best. katie taylor, amanda serrano! neither wanted to blink first. the weigh—in was like an event in itself. both have had their names in lights all week. the pair reach a new height here in new york... ..a photo op on the empire state building ahead of this landmark moment in boxing. i think saturday night could definitely well be the best night of my career. there�*s something different about this fight, this is a moment in history. ireland�*s former olympic champion is the crossover star. serrano a sevenweight world champion the co—star looking to steal the show. 13 years as a pro fighter, i�*ve struggled, i�*ve fought my way to this spot

right now and i want to go out there and just secure that victory. and the target? the undisputed lightweight title and a place in history. so what can we expect on fight night between katie taylor and amanda serrano? we have a clash of styles, and after about a round, katie taylor can box no longer, she has to brawl. and that�*s we get what i call the rocky moment, when everybody stands up, you can hear the tunes in your head, and theyjust hit each otherfor 10 rounds. this blockbuster bout is notjust significant, but also lucrative. both will earn over $1 million — that�*s double the challenger�*s career payday. and youtuberjake paul, who promotes serrano, is putting his money where his mouth is. i bet amanda wins for $1 million. and the bookies agree with him. let's shake up on it, let's go. well, the last time katie taylor fought here at madison square garden, she unified the division. all those belts are up for grabs on saturday, and the odds—makers are backing the local favourite amanda serrano to

dethrone the champion. ade adedoyin, bbc news, new york. that�*s one to watch. that is it from us here in london, we will be back with the headlines at the top of the hour. now time for the weather. hello there. there�*s some rain in the forecast for this bank holiday weekend. not that much for england and wales, but certainly for scotland and northern ireland, it could be quite heavy at times. for gardeners and growers, that will provide some good news as it�*s been so dry for this month of april. there�*ll also be quite a bit of sunshine around, particularly on saturday across england and wales under this area of high pressure, which is slowly declining as this low pressure system continues to sweep into scotland and northern ireland. we start off on a mainly dry and quite chilly note for england and wales, plenty of sunshine here. much brighter day for eastern england after the recent cloudy days. but for scotland, northern ireland, it will be turning windy, cloudy and wet. and some of that rain will be quite heavy at times. certainly western scotland

could even hear the odd rumble of thunder there. that will impact the temperatures. it will be cooler here than the last few days. further south, we could see 17 or 18 degrees and a little bit of fairweather cloud just bubbling up here and there. the cloud will increase across northern and western england and wales as we head into the latter part of the day and into the evening. that area of low pressure will continue to drift its way southwards, tending to weaken as it does so. but there will be a lot of cloud around for saturday night, so that means it will be a mild one, with the temperatures no lower than seven to 10 degrees. so for sunday, then, our area of low pressure will continue to weaken, pushing towards the southern half of britain, so that means it will be the south which will see the thickest of the cloud with outbreaks of rain. so some wet weather for wales, south west england through sunday. some of that light and patchy rain and drizzle will drift its way eastwards. further north, it will be brightening up, the clouds. will tend to break up and we�*ll see some sunny spells, bar the odd shower around, so it will be a bit warm here, 16, maybe 17 degrees. a little bit cooler further south, low to mid teens.

that area of low pressure clears away, so for bank holiday monday, it�*s looking a bit drier across the board. there will be quite a bit of cloud around here, one or two showers developing across northern and central areas but also some sunny spells. and where that happens, we will see temperatures reaching highs of around 18 degrees. further north, the low to mid teens. very little change as we move through the new week. it looks like pressure will remain high with very little wind, so again the air will be quite stagnant. we�*ll have variable amounts of cloud, a bit of sunshine, maybe one or two showers around, and possibly tuesday could see most of the showers through central and northern areas. butjust a hint of it turning perhaps a little bit brighter and warmer towards the south by the end of the week.

this is bbc news. the headlines: a ukrainian presidential advisor has warned of heavy losses as fighting with russia intensifies in the east of the country. in the us, the pentagon�*s spokesman was visibly upset saying it was hard to look at some of the images of what he called president putin�*s brutality and cruelty. here in the uk, the six—time tennis grand slam champion boris becker has been sentenced to two years and six months in prison, after being found guilty lying about $3 million of assets during bankruptcy proceedings. ajudge in london said he showed no remorse. a british mp for the governing conservative party has been suspended over allegations he watched pornography in the house of commons chamber. neil parish, who represents a constituancy in devon, has referred himself to the parliamentary standards commissioner, and says he�*ll cooperate fully with any investigation.