welcome to newsday, reporting live from singapore, i'm mariko oi. the headlines. in the besieged port of mariupol — officials say russia has launched a major assault on the remaining ukrainian forces there. the us central bank raises interest rates by half a percentage point — the most aggressive increase in more than twenty years. no escape from omicron for hong kong's poorest, we meet those living in such crowded conditions, self—isoloation is almost impossible. amber heard takes the stand in the defamation trial brought by former husband johnny depp she alleges domestic abuse. he's let me again, like.

it was clear it wasn't a joke anymore. live from our studio in singapore this is bbc news it's news day. it's six in the morning in singapore, and midnight in brussels, where the eu has announced its toughest sanctions package yet — aimed at vladimir putin and the war in ukraine. it plans to ban imports, of all russian oil by the end of this year. "putin must pay a price", said the european commission president. meanwhile, russian forces have intensified their attacks on ukranian infrastructure — hitting a number of locations, including lviv in the west. one other development — the mayor of mariupol says they've lost contact with fighters

at the steel plant with reports of russian forces storming the area. our eastern europe correspondent sarah rainsford reports from kyiv. the sarah rainsford reports from kyiv. very centre cam tonight. the very centre came at a fire tonight. the missile hit five minutes after an tonight. the missile hit five minutes afteran air tonight. the missile hit five minutes after an air raid siren, no time to reach cover. it's been ten weeks of war now and russia is still attacking ukraine from east to west. translation: moscow is boasting of its success filming as it fires on its success filming as it fires on its neighbor. it says it's targeting supply routes from the weapons from the us and europe but it's hitting far more than that. so the european commission wants to ramp up the pressure on moscow. it's proposing that eu countries and russian oil imports though not gas. the commissioner said vladimir putin

should pay a high price for his brutal aggression.— should pay a high price for his brutal aggression. today we are announcing _ brutal aggression. today we are announcing our _ brutal aggression. today we are announcing our dependence - brutal aggression. today we are announcing our dependence on | brutal aggression. today we are - announcing our dependence on russian oil and let's be clear, it will not be easy. because some member states are strongly dependent on russian oil. but we simply have to do it. so today we will propose to ban all russian oil from today we will propose to ban all russian oilfrom europe pulled up applause. these stations need unanimous support. and while europe argues, these women's relatives are under fire, argues, these women's relatives are underfire, the last ukrainian fighters in mariupol. they are encircled by russian forces at a giant steel works maria pulls mayor believes is up to 30 children still with them. across the donbas region the fighting is relentless. the

local governor says no city here is now say. around kyviv they knew exactly how that feels. staff at this hospital near ukraine's capital talk of operating under fire, saving the lives of wounded civilians but in terrible danger themselves. are these the missiles and hit the hospital? i asked the hospital director what she thinks about western sanctions. she thinks some countries don't understand what's happening here. she says perhaps they don't believe it but they should. hunger is already said it will veto the ban on oil imports. with the wreckage of war all around, many ukrainian struggle to understand what the west would even as about sanctioning russia. because the point you hear time and again here is that every dollar spent on russian oil and gas is funding a military that's doing all this.

ukraine did defend its capital. but russia's war has shifted focus now, it hasn't stopped. the us central bank, the federal reserve, has raised interest rates by half a percentage point — the most aggresive such increase in more than twenty years. the move is intended to tackle rapidly rising prices, fuelled by the impact of the war in ukraine and new covid lockdowns in china. inflation in the united states is at a 40—year—high. the chair of the federal reserve, jerome powell, said the bank understood the hardship inflation was causing and was moving quickly to bring it down. he said there would be further rate rises of a similar size. the feds monetary policy actions are guided by our mandate to provide maximum employment and stable prices for the american people.

my colleagues and i are acutely aware that high inflation poses significant hardship, especially on those least able to meet the higher cost of essentials, like food, housing and transportation. we are highly attentive to the risk the higher inflation poses to both sides of our mandate and we are strongly committed to restoring price stability. the rise in us interest rates hasn't done much to change the value of the dollar on the international markets — it's slipped down a little. but us stock markets rose — the dow was up nearly 3% and it's also worth noting that while this was happening, the european commission's proposal to ban imports of oil from russia saw the price of a barrel of brent crude go up by almost 4%. we'll have much more on all of this in asia business report — coming up after newsday for some of our viewers around the world. for years hong kong managed to control the spread of covid i9. but the omicron variant overwhelmed the healthcare system. the city recorded the highest death rate in the world. many of those affected

are the city s most vulnerable, the underprivileged and elderly. danny vincent reports from sham shui po district. for mr fong, home is a three metre square cage. the cities extreme poor live in subdivided apartments. hong kong is one of the most densely populated cities in the world, until recently, six people lived in this room. but when omicron hit, he lost two roommates in the space of a week. translation: one person died on that bed, the other person also died. - he slept over on that bed. we called the ambulance, it got through but no one picked up. for the poor, living with covid means living in tiny apartments where the virus can easily spread, self isolating is almost impossible.

translation: it was too late, | he died at about 8pm that night, he suffered a lot, he kept saying he was unwell, he had asthma and underlying illnesses. hong kong is coming out of the fifth wave of covid—i9. this city is stuck between two seemingly opposing policies and its most vulnerable in the society that have suffered. nine families live inside this narrow dwelling. we are taken to another subdivided apartment. since the latest outbreak, they've been living in isolation, supported by social workers. he has been living in his cramped apartment for 12 years, he's barely left his room for three

months, he's unvaccinated. translation: many of| the elderly in hong kong are reluctant to get the jab. whether or not to consider getting vaccinated, this is a key question, it depends on whether your health can handle it and is suitable or not. the right decision is in your hands. now the government enforces people to get vaccinated, now it is calling for the fourth jab, it feels like it's never ending. the elderly lives alone without neighbours, if they died and no one will know. china is determined to eradicate covid. in hong kong, the fifth wave led to the highest death rate in the world, here, the impacts will last long into 2022. north korea is testing its weapons with renewed urgency.

earlier in the week, it fired its 14th known round of missiles so far this year. it comes days before south korea s new president takes office, who is promising to take a hard—line on north korea. the outgoing president, moonjae—in staked his legacy on achieving a breakthrough with the north ? using diplomacy but his attempts failed. our seoul correspondent jean mackenzie has been looking back at what went wrong, and what lies ahead with tensions on the korean peninsula rising once again. forjust a moment, peace looked possible. but north korea is back to testing its biggest, most powerful weapons. a disappointing end for south korea's outgoing president, who staked his legacy on building peace. remarkably, he convinced the us president to meet north korea's leaderfor the first

time in history. excitement built at these leaders announced to an audience of north koreans their plans to end the war that's divided their country for decades. 150,000 north korean citizens were applauding his speech. it was really a moving moment for me. a special adviser to the president, professor moon attended all the summits, even sharing food with kim jong—un's sister. but when talks between these unlikely friends broke down, so did talks between the koreas. is it fair to look back now and say that you failed? no, i don't think so. was there war on the korean peninsula? the moon government has shown very clearly what kinds of

incidents can bring north korea to the negotiation table. but for years, kim jong—un has continued building more sophisticated weapons while president moon has been accused of appeasing a brutal regime. i saw those images of their arms are in each other, laughing, and i remember seeing that and it just sent shivers down my back. like, this is... this is a dictator. now south korea has elected a tough talking president who's promising to do things differently. north korea is the enemy, he said, and he will strike if necessary. last week, north korea paraded its missiles with this warning.

these south korean students, about to start their compulsory military service, would be on the front line of a conflict. what do you think about your president's policy of taking a more hard line on north korea? the world might be looking elsewhere, but north korea is getting harder to ignore. jean mackenzie, bbc news. you're watching newsday on the bbc. still to come on the programme. amber heard takes the stand in the defamation trial brought by former husband johnny depp,

she alleges domestic abuse. i nelson rolihlahla mandella do hereby swear to be faithful to the republic of south africa. after six years of construction and numerous delays, the channel tunnel has been formally opened by the queen and president mitterrand. the tunnel is still not ready for passengers and freight services to begin. for centuries, christianity and islam struggled for supremacy. now the ppope's visit symbolises their willingness to coexist. roger bannister became the first man in the world to run a mile _ in underfour minutes. memories of victory as the ve celebrations reached their climax. this night is dedicated to everyone who believes in a future of peace and freedom.

this is newsday on the bbc, i'm mariko oi in singapore, our headlines. in the besieged port of mariupol, officials say russia has launched a major assault on the remaining ukrainian forces there. the us central bank raises interest rates by half a percentage point — the most aggressive increase in more than twenty years. amber heard has taken the stand in the defamation trial brought by her former husband johnny depp. he originally sued for $50 million over an article in the washington post where she claimed she was a victim of abuse. he denies the allegations. amber heard then counter—sued

depp for $100 million. a warning there's some strong language in this report by our correspondent david sillito. thank you, your honour. will you please state your name? it is amber laura heard. amber heard. over the last three and a half weeks she has sat in court each day and listened as a series of witnesses and her ex—husband have described her as violent, emotionally unstable and a liar. this was finally her chance to give her side of the story. why are you here? i am here because my ex—husband is suing me for an 0p ed i wrote. how do you feel about that? i struggle to have the words. i struggle to find the words to describe how painful this is.

this is horrible. this has been, this is the most painful and difficult thing i've ever gone through. this, the beginning of her story of a marriage she said left her injured and traumatised, and. and sitting just feet away in front of her, the man she says assaulted and abused her, johnny depp. do you remember the first time he physically hit you? yes. please tell the jury about it. she said johnny depp had been taking cocaine and it was a comment about one of his tattoos that lead to abusive language and violence. he slapped me across the face. and i laughed. i laughed because i. i didn't know what else to do.

i thought, this must be a joke. he said, you think it's funny, you think you're a funny beep? and he slapped me again. it was, she says, just the beginning of years of abuse. but he was the love of my life. and he was. he was. but he was also this other thing. he was also this other thing. and the other thing was awful. throughout it all, johnny depp sat head down with his notes and jelly beans, all of it, he says, is untrue, but his ex—wife has a much more to say. i am joined live by emily d. baker legal analyst and host of the emily show podcast in nashville who has been following the developments. some very emotional

allegations from ms heard. use allegations from ms heard. been following it very( what use been following it very closely, what did you make of today's testimony? fist what did you make of today's testimony?— what did you make of today's testimony? what did you make of today's testimon ? �* ., ., , testimony? at the following it very closel . testimony? at the following it very closely- thank _ testimony? at the following it very closely. thank you _ testimony? at the following it very closely. thank you very _ testimony? at the following it very closely. thank you very much - testimony? at the following it very closely. thank you very much for. closely. thank you very much for having me. amber heard took the stand today really starting to tell about her childhood and i thought would see a lot more testimony on that but they move very quickly, directly into her meeting johnny depp on the rum diaries and then into her allegations of abuse. things we haven't heard before but work on the photos we have not seen before in court and there were moments of her testimony that ring is very authentic. there were some moments that were very dramatic and i'm not sure how those will play to the jury. i'm not sure how those will play to thejury. she i'm not sure how those will play to the jury. she was looking right at them for most of her testimony, a very different testimony that what we soughtjohnny depp give. i very different testimony that what we sought johnny depp give. i think it's fair to say _ we sought johnny depp give. i think it's fair to say that _ we sought johnny depp give. i think it's fair to say that it's _ we sought johnny depp give. i think it's fair to say that it's one - we sought johnny depp give. i think it's fair to say that it's one of - it's fair to say that it's one of the big as he said she said trial that we've seen in a while. i was looking at social media and opinion

seem to be really split about who was the victim and who was the abuser. ,, ., was the victim and who was the abuser. ,._ ,., was the victim and who was the abuser. _ ,., ., abuser. some say both are in the wrong. absolutely. _ abuser. some say both are in the wrong. absolutely. i— abuser. some say both are in the wrong. absolutely. i think- abuser. some say both are in the wrong. absolutely. i think it's - abuser. some say both are in the l wrong. absolutely. i think it's very reasonable that the jury could find both are in the wrong. they are trying to determine who defamed who, who lied. this is really not about determining what happened but his arm and lying about what happened. and if the jury says arm and lying about what happened. and if thejury says both might be wrong or in the wrong they might find that no one defamed the other over her statements are that op—ed for the washington post. that's a very real possibility here. but johnny depp has had his side and now it's amber herz turned to state no, this is what happened in the stories. —— heard. chester come weeks and weeks at their story is checking against everything she says. fist checking against everything she sa s. �* says. at the same time, the reputation _ says. at the same time, the reputation old _ says. at the same time, the reputation old damage - says. at the same time, the reputation old damage to i says. at the same time, the l reputation old damage to the says. at the same time, the - reputation old damage to the both of them could be quite huge. absolutely. i don't know if a rule and for each of them will fix that reputational damage with how much is

coming out in court. i wonder if after all of this plays out publicly the damage will already be done and might not be repairable. figs the damage will already be done and might not be repairable.— might not be repairable. as you said, this might not be repairable. as you said. this is _ might not be repairable. as you said, this is a _ might not be repairable. as you said, this is a jury _ might not be repairable. as you said, this is a jury trial - might not be repairable. as you said, this is a jury trial was - might not be repairable. as you said, this is a jury trial was up l said, this is a jury trial was up can you remember something as exclusive as this? i can you remember something as exclusive as this?— can you remember something as exclusive as this? i don't remember a civil 'u exclusive as this? i don't remember a civiljury trial— exclusive as this? i don't remember a civiljury trial that _ exclusive as this? i don't remember a civiljury trial that we've _ exclusive as this? i don't remember a civiljury trial that we've ever - a civil jury trial that we've ever seen like this. normally in the states we see big trials like this that are televised in the criminal space. even though these are allegations of physical and sexual abuse, this is not a criminal case, this is a civil defamation case. i truly can't remember anything quite like it in this context. johnny depp fought very hard to have cameras in the courtroom, amber heard fought against it and here we are playing out day over day for everyone to see it now in four weeks of really rapt attention to see what can happen in court the next day. i'm still surprised that george did notjudge is allowing jellybeans of the courtroom, i've never seen that either. ~ ., .,

either. meanwhile, the trial continues. _ either. meanwhile, the trial continues. what's - either. meanwhile, the trial continues. what's next - either. meanwhile, the trial continues. what's next in l either. meanwhile, the trial. continues. what's next in how either. meanwhile, the trial- continues. what's next in how much longer are we going to keep seeing this explosive drama taking place in court? we this explosive drama taking place in court? ~ . . this explosive drama taking place in court? ~ ., ., ., , ., court? we have at least two more weeks after _ court? we have at least two more weeks after we — court? we have at least two more weeks after we close _ court? we have at least two more weeks after we close out - court? we have at least two more weeks after we close out the - court? we have at least two more| weeks after we close out the week this week for this case for that what we will see is at least another day or two of amber heard testifying. and i imagine a day and half of cross—examination. but next week the court is dark because the judge has a following week. they are hoping this will be done by the end of may but i'm not so sure because we still have the rest of amber heard's witnesses and potential rebuttal witnesses and potential rebuttal witnesses from johnny depp where he can recall himself or his doctor of the witnesses in his case and then closing arguments that will take at least a day if not a day and a half. this is the second time that these two are fighting in court. are you getting a bit tired of hearing all

the stories? it seems like at least as far as i can see the audiences attention isn't going away. the audience attention isn't going away. tue: audience attention attention isn't going away. tte: audience attention is attention isn't going away. t'te: audience attention is definitely there. now i think people are juxtaposing her testimony here versus her testimony in the uk sun trial. you can be seen that in social media for the people almost cross—examining her as her testimony is happening live saying, shouldn't say that in the uk, this is different. we will see all of that and cross—examination. but it's a different case forjohnny depp more sort two more so here because he can bring in more witnesses than the sun case because the question of are as different. amber heard should be largely consistent, she had 14 instances that she was pointing out to the judge in the uk, instances that she was pointing out to thejudge in the uk, i wonder if she'll eliminate the ones he didn't believe from her testimony in this case. eitherway, johnny believe from her testimony in this case. either way, johnny depp steam will be able to cart two cross—examining her on it. i wonder if thisjury is cross—examining her on it. i wonder if this jury is is wrapped in cross—examining her on it. i wonder if thisjury is is wrapped in her story as they were with depths story or after three weeks of trial there are a little tired which is a real

possibility. are a little tired which is a real possibility-— are a little tired which is a real possibility. are a little tired which is a real ossibili . ., ~ . ., possibility. thank you so much for “oininu possibility. thank you so much for joining us- — uk voters will be going to the polls tomorrow in local government elections. the public will elect councils which run services in england, wales and scotland, and the government in northern ireland. the election is the first test at the ballot box for boris johnson since the westminster partygate scandal broke. and we will have full coverage of the results on thursday in a special programme for viewers in the uk, after the voting has come to a close. let's take a look at some other stories in the headlines. us secretary of state antony blinken has tested covid. mr blinken had hosted both the mexican and swedish foreign ministers in washington over recent days. joe biden's foreign policy chief had been set to make a landmark speech regarding us policy towards china on thursday, but that has been postponed.

authorities in guinea say they will prosecute the former president, alpha conde, for murder and other crimes allegedly committed during his rule. mr conde was toppled in a military coup last september. dozens of opposition supporters in guinea were killed by the security forces during protests sparked by a constitutional amendment in 2020 that allowed mr conde to run for a third term. this football shirt has become the most expensive piece of sporting memorabelia in history. it was worn by argentine legend diego maradona, when he scored the famous hand of god goal against england. his second goal during that world cup quarter final in of 1986 is reagrded as one of the greatest in the history of the beautiful game. maradona's shirt sold for $9.6 million at an auction in london.

thank you so much for watching. hello. some spots down the eastern side of england had more rain on wednesday than they've had in four weeks. it is a different weather set—up, though, for the day ahead. high pressure building in will most of england and wales dry. closer to weather fronts in scotland and northern ireland, there is a chance of seeing a little rain. in fact, a cloudy and damp start for many places here. and as for temperatures, well, it will be a cooler start. the chilliest parts of england and wales perhaps down to mid—single figures, a little bit lower in some areas. so, a lot of cloud across scotland and northern ireland. the chance of seeing a little light rain. it's more especially in western and mainly north west scotland. this will be most persistent. eastern and southern scotland may see some sunny spells,

and into the afternoon, a few breaking through in northern ireland. for wales and england, there is a slight chance of catching a shower. the vast majority will stay dry. and though there'll be a lot of cloud around, it'll be a warmer feeling day with some occasional sunny spells, up to 22 in the warm spots in south east england. so, here, a lot of dry weather will continue as we get on into thursday night, but the rain really gathering into scotland and northern ireland going into friday morning. so, it'll become more widespread and heavier, and it'll be a milder start to the day across the board. so, some rain in scotland and northern ireland, gradually clearing southwards during friday. sunny spells and a few showers following on behind. the rain moves into northern england, heaviest to the west of the pennines, into wales, parts of the midlands, perhaps south west england getting on into friday evening. whereas ahead of that, there ll still be some sunny spells for a time before it clouds over. and this is where we'll see the date's highest temperatures, just into the low 20s. now, it looks as if those parts of eastern england that have been

so dry will see some more rain as we get on into friday night before clearing early on saturday morning and another area of high pressure moves in. could be a lot of cloud for a time in scotland, northern ireland and northern england. one or two light showers or some patchy light rain and drizzle, and a cooler feeling day towards these north—eastern coasts. whereas elsewhere on saturday, if we do break out into some sunny spells, it'll feel quite pleasant. and then for part two of the weekend on sunday, well, most will stay dry, again with some occasional and pleasantly warm sunny spells. another weather system moving close to northern ireland and especially into scotland, with a chance of seeing a little more rain here. that's your latest forecast. bye— bye.

this is bbc news. the headlines — ukrainian officials say russian forces have launched an all—out assault on the steelworks which is the last ukrainian holdout in mariupol. at least 200 ukrainian civilians are thought to remain trapped. hungary has rejected a proposed eu—wide ban on imports of russian oil put forward by the european commission. it requires the approval of all member states to be adopted. the us central bank, the federal reserve, has raised interest rates by half a percentage point, the most aggressive such increase in more than 20 years. the move is intended to tackle rapidly rising prices. amber heard has taken the stand at the defamation trial brought by ex—husband johnny depp, describing how she first fell in love with him. but later in her testimony she said mr depp had repeatedly slapped her. he denies the allegations.