welcome to bbc news. i'm david eades. our top stories: "shoot on sight." the orders for security forces in sri lanka amid violent protests calling for the president to step down. a warning for china — the world health organization says beijing must change course on covid. when michelle jaques zero covid strategy, we don't sustainable considering the behaviour of the virus now and what we anticipate in the future. we are in the city of odesa as ukraine's strategic port struggles under the barrage of russian missile strikes.

last night when we were here, it was difficult to see the full extent of the damage. but this morning, you can — the rocket has completely ripped into the back of the shopping centre here. you can see it's completely folded. and, going back to the past, the company trying to prove that sailboats are a greener way to transport cargo. welcome to our viewers on pbs in america and around the globe. security forces in sri lanka have been ordered to shoot anyone seen looting or damaging public property in the latest attempt to stop anti—government protests. since last month, the country has been rocked by demonstrations over soaring prices, power cuts and a lack of medicines. at least 8 people have died in the violence and 200 have been injured, as our correspondent rajini vaidya nathan reports

from colombo. a capital under curfew. troops told to shoot at sight at anyone who damages public property or threatens lives. the skeletons of a bustling city scorched by an economic crisis. reeling after a day of violence. yesterday, supporters of the prime minister attacked anti—government protesters, who until that point had been peacefully demonstrating. at the city's main hospital more than 200 have been wounded, many were beaten up. this man fractured his leg after a tear gas canister landed on it. war veterans yigit and assuncao are out of hospital. men who lost their legs in mines during sri lanka's civil war say they were beaten up by the very people they made sacrifices for.

"they started punching me. "i was left with only one crutch. "they pushed me and i fell." "when we served in the army, people used to pray for us. "now we're being attacked." with trust in the government shattered, the homes of at least two dozen politicians who backed the ruling party have been torched. this was one of the houses that was vandalised last night. it belonged to a supporter of the government, a local mayor. and this was the bedroom. it was set on fire. all you can see now is the metal that forms the coils of the mattress. and if we just move into the living room, completely trashed — just look around. tonight, a resort belonging to the son of sri lanka's former prime minister mahinda rajapaksa, who quit yesterday,

was set alight. and clashes broke out in the city of negombo. protesters want the president gotabaya rajapaksa to resign — as long as he stays, tensions on this island will be inflamed. rajini vaidyanathan, bbc news, sri lanka. the head of the world health organization has said china's zero—tolerance policy against covid is not sustainable. the authorities in beijing have imposed lockdowns affecting tens of millions of people, lasting several weeks, to try to prevent any spread of the illness, but the who's director general said he had told chinese experts it was time to change that approach. when we talk about the zero—covid strategy, we don't think that it's sustainable considering the behaviour of the virus now, and what we anticipate in the future. we have discussed about this issue with chinese experts,

and we indicated that the approach, you know, would not be sustainable. we can now speak to saad omer who's director of the yale institute for global health. thanks very much forjoining us. it is fair to point out, isn't it, this zero covid approach has meant, relative to most other countries, a very successful containment of the west of covid, so what is not sustainable about it?- west of covid, so what is not sustainable about it? well, the oli sustainable about it? well, the policy had _ sustainable about it? well, the policy had its — sustainable about it? well, the policy had its value _ sustainable about it? well, the policy had its value at - sustainable about it? well, the policy had its value at the - policy had its value at the beginning, or even at the — well, you know, if you months after the start of the pandemic. if you are in a football game and your first ten minutes strategy is being played out in the overtime, if you will, there is something

wrong, and so i do not it is sustainable in the light of the current variant, its infectivity, but also the fact that there are other tools available. so, china has other tools at its disposal that can be deployed, and i think it should seriously consider expanding a little bit of focus on these other tools and easing up on these other tools and easing up on the so—called zero tolerance or zero covid policy. when you talk about the other tools, i presume that vaccines are one of those. either the vaccines are not terribly effective in beijing's mind or they are struggling to get people to take them. what is it? in people to take them. what is it? , ., ., u , , it? in terms of vaccines, it is not a yes _ it? in terms of vaccines, it is not a yes and _ it? in terms of vaccines, it is not a yes and no _ it? in terms of vaccines, it is not a yes and no question. . it? in terms of vaccines, it is not a yes and no question. itj not a yes and no question. it is notjust vaccines but what kind of vaccines are being destroyed — whether they are deploying boosters. iwill give you an example. —— deployed. china focused on the inactivated vaccines that were extremely useful in the

beginning, especially against the earlier variance and severe disease, but since then, there have been variance for which you would require additional doses and perhaps different kinds of vaccines. so, there are two applications pending in china for nrma vaccines and i think china should focus on acquiring the technology but also producing mrna vaccines for boosters or reconsidering the schedules in line with the variance they are facing. the other thing is they have a sub optimal immunisation rates in some of the highest risk populations in china, so they need to be a major focus. populations in china, so they need to be a majorfocus. and then coming back to the... sorry — dust on that point. that seems an extraordinary, an anomaly, really, within china that that is allowed to happen because if they want to impose

certain restrictions as they have done with isolating people and locking down, why can't they impose the insistence that they impose the insistence that they have vaccines?— they have vaccines? well, they are - again. — they have vaccines? well, they are - again, even _ they have vaccines? well, they are - again, even before - are — again, even before draconian mandates or strict mandates, there are a lot of things in the toolbox of public health entities, including in china, for example, soft mandates meaning requiring vaccination for certain activities and countries like france have shown that using those kinds of nudges or strong nudges can be helpful. fik. those kinds of nudges or strong nudges can be helpful.- nudges can be helpful. ok. we will have to — nudges can be helpful. ok. we will have to leave _ nudges can be helpful. ok. we will have to leave it _ nudges can be helpful. ok. we will have to leave it there, - will have to leave it there, but thank you very much indeed for your expertise as china continues to battle with the challenge of covid there. the us house of representatives is deciding whether or not to approve another $40 billion in

aid for ukraine. we have got some live pictures. a vote is expected in the course of the next hour or so. that figure is more than president biden requested. there were casts at the sound of 33 billion but these funds would be used to provide military support ukraine and humanitarian assistance to those civilians affected by the russian invasion. as we see there, the debating still goes on. as soon as we have a vote, we will bring you the results. the fighting goes on, nonetheless. russia has targeted the black sea port of 0desa, using what the ukrainians say were hypersonic missiles, which fly at five times the speed of sound. one person is reported to have died. it comes as the united nations has estimated that the number of civilians killed in the conflict far exceeds the officialfigure ofjust over 3000. from 0desa, caroline

davies reports. as russia celebrated victory day, 0desa burned. this was one of the city's shopping centres, incinerated, by a missile strike. the ukrainian authorities say seven missiles were launched at the city yesterday, killing one person and injuring five more. this morning, the smell of burning plastic still hung in the air. last night when we were here, it was difficult to see the full extent of the damage, but this morning you can. the rocket has completely ripped into the back of the shopping centre here. you can see it has completely folded. there are still fires that the fire brigade here are trying to put out and the electricity wires on this side have been ripped away. russia has been targeting the port city of 0desa on ukraine's southern coast. it's strategically important. before the war, it was a key international port, taking ukrainian products to the world. president zelensky appealed again to end the war, so that the port can reopen. missile strikes don't only destroy infrastructure. they shake lives.

this eight—year—old boy lives 300 metres from the strike. as we talk, he fiddles nervously with two pieces of blackened metal that he found — shards of the missile. "i heard a loud explosion," he says, "i fell out "of bed and started to cry. "then i ran down the corridor to find my dog, max." "mum tried to calm me down, but there were more explosions. "we don't know what will happen next." the force of the blast smashed many of the windows in this block of flats. fortunately, most were unoccupied. katarina and her two—year—old daughter arina were on the other side of the courtyard. "we were about to go to bed when the air alert "began," she tells me. "i heard a very loud explosion, and i grabbed two pillows "and covered my daughter's ears with them. "i didn't want her to hear the sound of the explosion "and be frightened by it. "the whole house was shaking." then she asks her daughter, "what do we do when we hear "the air raid siren?"

"we run," she says. "we run away." young minds already used to living with the constant threat of war. caroline davies, bbc news, 0desa. elon musk has said he will reverse the twitter ban imposed on donald trump once he takes over the social media company. the richest man in the world agreed a $44 billion takeover bid with the twitter board last month, but he said it was not a done deal and that ideally it would be completed in the next 2 or 3 months. 0ur correspondent james clayton has more. he has kind of already intimated that this was going to happen. this is the first time he has committed to saying that he would actually reverse this ban, and donald trump has not been able to tweet for 15, 16 months now after the capitol hill riots he was accused of stoking, those that elon musk said that it was morally reprehensible to have done,

that it was a mistake. the former chief executive of twitter has said that he regrets that too, so the door is open for donald trump to come back to twitter. the problem is that donald trump has said he does not really want to come back to twitter. he said he would much rather post on his own platform. so, i would not necessarily assume that he is going to suddenly start tweeting. the other thing to mention is that elon musk has not actually bought twitter yet, and he seemed very low energy about the deal today, i thought. i am not necessarily 100% sure — i don't think elon musk is either — that he is actually going to buy twitter. so, lots of reasons why donald trump might not come back on, but the door is more ajar than it ever has been for the former president to make a twitter return. stay with us on bbc news.

coming up in a moment: flying the flag for their country, ukraine qualifies for the final of the eurovision song contest. we will have more on that. the pope was shot, the pope will live — that's the essence of the appalling news from rome this afternoon, that, as an italian television commentator put it, terrorism had come to the vatican. the man they called the butcher of lyon, klaus barbie, went on trial today in the french town where he was the gestapo chief in the second world war. winnie mandela never looked like a woman just sentencedl to six years injail. the judge told mrs mandela there was no indication - she felt even - the slightest remorse. the chinese government has called for an all—out effort to help the victims of a powerful earthquake — the worst to hit the country for 30 years. the computer deep blue has tonight triumphed over the world chess champion, garry kasparov. it is the first time a machine has defeated a reigning world champion in a classical chess match. america's first legal same—sex

marriages have been taking i place in massachusetts. god bless america! cheering hello, you are watching bbc news with me, david eades. the latest headlines: anti—government protestors defy a nationwide curfew in sri lanka, calling for the country's president to step aside. the head of the world health organization has said china's zero—tolerance policy against covid is not sustainable. it's widely expected that finland will begin the process ofjoining the nato alliance this week. finland becoming a nato member would significantly redraw the security map of europe and the prospect is already viewed with undisguised hostility in moscow. from finland, our special correspondent, allan little, sent this report, which

includes some stark images. finland may be a small country, but it has one of the biggest armies in europe. defence and security are notjust matters for the armed forces here. they are woven into the fabric of the civic life of the country. we have a firm role in society. we still have a conscription, which means that majority of the finns are somehow part of the national defence via their conscription and service. and give me some sense of how big the finnish armed forces are. how many service personnel could you mobilise in the event of a real national emergency? 208,000 is the figure right now. from a population of five million. exactly. that's huge, isn't it? it is. these are mostly conscript soldiers. they serve full—time for a year, and will then do regular refresher training throughout their adult lives. for men, it's compulsory. some women also volunteer. i have two older brothers

and my father also, so when they were in the army, i just thought that if there was a war, i want to be there too. i don't want them to go, like, and i would stay home. i want to go too. newsreel: today little finland is putting up such a savage defence as the modern world has rarely seen... finland's thinking about defence is still shaped by this — an attempt by the soviet union to invade and occupy the country in 1939. finland's resistance then is an echo of ukraine today. among the wreckage, the finns found propaganda films, which were to have been shown in helsinki after the russians had taken the capital. this is also 1940, the winter war. yes, during the winter war. analisa antilla was a teenager in the city of vyborg. the soviets captured it and made it part of russia. finland never got it back. and did you witness some of the destruction yourself? "yes, of course," she told me.

"i was there when the bombs were falling. "we had to get down on the floor. "people were fleeing with their belongings. "my mother and i were on the last bus to leave "vyborg." and are you still sad that it's a russian town now? of course. finland's border with russia is 800 miles long. its accession to nato's would strengthen the alliance's military might right on russia's doorstep. the trees beyond the frozen lake are in russia. 0n the other side of this frontier, this further advance of nato will be seen as more evidence of malign western intent, as a direct threat to the security of russia itself. finland's army is already compatible with nato's. this is a british tank taking part injoint training exercises on finnish soil already. for finland was once part of the russian empire,

and the spectre of a resurgent russian imperialism has driven finland into full alignment with the western military alliance, and is redrawing the security map of europe. allan little, bbc news, finland. i'll show you will be aware it's the revision time. —— eurovision. eurovision song contest favourites ukraine have been voted through to the final on saturday, following the first semi—final which has been heldf in the italian city of turin. the band delivered an energetic performance of their song, stefania, to secure a place in the final. at the end of the performance, the folk—rap group thanked everyone for supporting ukraine amid the russian invasion. earlier one of its members told the bbc why taking part was so important. translation: for our country it's important _ translation: for our country it's important to _ translation: for our country it's important to have - it's important to have victories and always so if we win it'll be another opportunity to show ukraine to the world and remind people about ukraine and increase

morale in the whole country. well, the executive supervisor of the contest, martin osterdahl, has been explaining the significance of this year's contest against the backdrop of the ongoing war in ukraine. translation: it's affected all of us, translation: it's affected all of us. not _ translation: it's affected all of us, not all _ translation: it's affected all of us, not all of _ translation: it's affected all of us, not all of us _ translation: it's affected all of us, not all of us in - of us, not all of us in eurovision but everyone in the world. if anything it's a broader and the eurovision family, so to speak, closer to each other and we realise that when we stand united on the stage, that we are uniquely powerful and it's a message of unity across europe and that's what we're gonna show yet again this year. what we're gonna show yet again this ear. . . , what we're gonna show yet again this ear. ., ., , , ., this year. that family is a broad one. _ this year. that family is a broad one. australia, - this year. that family is a broad one. australia, for| broad one. australia, for example, will take part in the second semi—final. their representative is 23—year—old sheldon riley. his song is not the same. he wrote the lyrics about his experiences growing up. he was diagnosed with asperger syndrome atjust six years old. joining me now is a eurovision fan in australia.

hayley wilkinson is in wagga wagga, new south wales. hayley, very good to see you. thanks forjoining us. before we get onto sheldon, there will be a huge step give it for ukraine but what do you rate them in terms of their performance and their song? i think that by father had the most standout performance of the first semi—final. the staging, the energy, the crowd was completely on their feet, not a single person sitting down. you could really feel the energy all the way down and australia at 530 in the morning it was a standout performance and they truly deserve to be in the final. . �* , . and they truly deserve to be in the final. ., �* , ., ., , the final. that's a generous commentary _ the final. that's a generous commentary on _ the final. that's a generous commentary on ukraine. i the final. that's a generous i commentary on ukraine. what about your boy, sheldon riley? not the same as the title of the soul and its very much his whole persona, isn't it?- whole persona, isn't it? yes, sheldon stood _ whole persona, isn't it? yes, sheldon stood out _ whole persona, isn't it? yes, sheldon stood out from - whole persona, isn't it? yes, sheldon stood out from the l sheldon stood out from the moment that we found out that he was going to be in a national selection. he was going to be in a nationalselection. i he was going to be in a national selection. i think he was a fan

best male locals in the whole competition this year. one of the stronger, strongest ballads. and the staging, he has emptied up. we are well known for having good staging but sheldon with his 40 kg dress, he really is going to stand out. dress, he really is going to stand out-— dress, he really is going to stand out. ., ., ~ ., stand out. you are well known for our stand out. you are well known for your attraction _ stand out. you are well known for your attraction to - for your attraction to diversity and inclusion in terms of eurovision. is sheldon just a perfect role model in that respect, would you say? absolutely. he comes from a diverse background. he comes from filipino heritage, he is a proud member of the lgbtqi+ community and he also stands out for, you know, challenging fashion, challenging vocals, you know, and he really does bring a message that a lot of people can get behind this year

at eurovision.— at eurovision. they can be a lot of politics _ at eurovision. they can be a lot of politics in _ at eurovision. they can be a lot of politics in the - at eurovision. they can be a lot of politics in the voting. | lot of politics in the voting. we know that. it doesn't always work out that way. doesn't really matter, do you think, who wins? you are one of the big fans. who wins? you are one of the bi fans. ., ., ~' who wins? you are one of the bi fans. ., ., ~ . who wins? you are one of the big fans-— big fans. look, at the end of the day. _ big fans. look, at the end of the day. i — big fans. look, at the end of the day, i think— big fans. look, at the end of the day, i think it _ big fans. look, at the end of the day, i think it really - big fans. look, at the end of the day, i think it really is i the day, i think it really is more about the celebration of bringing all these different languages, people from different backgrounds altogether. at the end of the day everyone is a winner and has a moment in the spotlight. although we would love to see australia when, i think at the end of the day, other wins is deserving of the trophy. very aood. deserving of the trophy. very good- hayley. _ deserving of the trophy. very good. hayley, enjoy- deserving of the trophy. very good. hayley, enjoy the i deserving of the trophy. very good. hayley, enjoy the final and thank you forjoining us. thank you. each year, billions of tonnes of goods are transported around the world by sea. huge cargo ships travel the oceans, contributing to greenhouse gas emissions. now one company is trying

to provide an alternative, and it involves the use of an ancient technology, as the bbc�*s tim allman explains. in the shadow of a city built on trade, the president meets the past and in doing so, could point to the future? at this point to the future? at this point in newjersey, they are loading a cargo ship, well, technically a boat, that harks back to an earlier age. the grand sale is powered by the wind, goods across the atlantic, the old—fashioned atlantic, the old —fashioned way. atlantic, the old-fashioned wa . ,, ., ., , ., way. the mission of grand assail is — way. the mission of grand assail is to _ way. the mission of grand assail is to reinvent i way. the mission of grand i assail is to reinvent shipping and away by doing it with a cargo sailboat to reduce the impact on the environment so we want to produce and sell great gastronomic product and we come from far away. the gastronomic product and we come from far away-— from far away. the sailboat is a 72 foot, _ from far away. the sailboat is a 72 foot. to _ from far away. the sailboat is a 72 foot, to master- from far away. the sailboat is a 72 foot, to master the i a 72 foot, to master the scooter, carrying around 50 tons of cargo, a tiny fraction of what a modern transporter ship can old. one trip takes around 3.5 weeks, weather

permitting. so patience really is a virtue for any potential customers. is a virtue for any potential customers-— is a virtue for any potential customers. ~ ., , , , ., , customers. we assure people that it's possible _ customers. we assure people that it's possible to _ customers. we assure people that it's possible to make i that it's possible to make green transportation with a cargo, selling cargo, just to take time and it's possible, yes. take time and it's possible, es. ., , ., , ., take time and it's possible, es. ., , ., ., yes. there are plans for a sister vessel _ yes. there are plans for a sister vessel that'll i yes. there are plans for a sister vessel that'll be i yes. there are plans for a i sister vessel that'll be about twice the size of grand assail and can make more trips. no—one is under any illusions that sailboats are about to replace modern cargo ships but in the fight against climate change, every little helps. tim allman, bbc news. a bit ofa a bit of a way to go for that. it's progress of a sort, isn't it? i'lljoin your attention to our webpage. bbcnews.com. there you'll find all the latest news.

and the cost of living, affecting notjust the uk but worldwide. our correspondence giving answers and insights into many different parts of that. you are watching bbc news. hello there. tuesday was a day of sunshine and showers — most of those showers were across scotland and northern ireland. and there was quite a lot of rainfall across parts of western scotland at times — some of these showers quite heavy, even some rumbles of thunder, too. for the next few days, it's going to remain breezy, rather unsettled, low pressure nearby, and we'll see showers or even longer spells of rain. now for wednesday, this feature could bring some significant rainfall to parts of england and wales throughout the day. now some of that rain really will be quite heavy across parts of wales, south—west england through wednesday morning. and then, that rain will push in towards the midlands, parts of eastern england into the afternoon — i think the northern extent of it being around the greater manchester area, not further north than that. but as this rain band begins to move south—eastwards into east anglia in the southeast, it will begin to fragment.

again another windy day to come, particularly across southern britain with that rain band. quite gusty, as well, across the northwest of scotland, where we'll see sunshine and showers. and temperatures will range from around 14—17 celsius. pollen levels on wednesday, again, will be rather high, but maybe not quite as high across england and wales as we'll have that rain band. now, that rain will clear away from the south—east as we move through wednesday night, then skies will clear. winds will turn a little bit lighter, as well, but there'll be further showers across the north and the west of scotland in particular. now, with the clearer skies, a slightly cooler air mass — it'll be a fresher night to come for wednesday night, with temperatures down into single figures for most. the pressure chart for thursday, then, shows more weatherfronts affecting northern parts of the uk — so again, it'll be quite breezy and showery here, a little bit drierfurther south. so, best of the sunshine for england and wales throughout thursday. after that fairly fresh start, temperatures will begin to rise. more cloud, though, for northern england, northern ireland, and scotland — there's the north—west

of scotland, which will see most of the showers and also the strongest of the winds. after that cool start, temperatures will reach highs of 14—18 or 19 degrees across the south. for friday, again, weather fronts bring more showers and blustery conditions across the north of the uk, but as we head into the weekend, this area of high pressure begins to build in. it turns sunnier and warmer, but we could see potential of some thundery showers across southern areas, especially on sunday. so, those temperatures will be building as we head on into the weekend, as that area of high pressure starts to establish itself. and there'll be increasing amounts of sunshine, but also some heavy showers in the south.

this is bbc news. the headlines: tens of thousands of military personnel have been deployed in the sri lankan capital colombo as the government struggles to contain protests against the spiralling cost of living. security forces have been given the right to shoot anyone suspected of looting or posing a risk to life. china has been urged to change its zero—covid strategy by the world health organization. the head of the un agency said efforts to eliminate the virus were unsustainable. many cities in china have faced lockdown restrictions as the country suffers its worst covid outbreak since the pandemic began. russia has targeted the black sea port of odesa, using what the ukrainians say were hypersonic missiles. one person is reported

to have died. it comes as the un has estimated the number