welcome to bbc news — i'm chris rogers. our top stories: do you find that mr deb has proven by clear and convincing evidence that ms heard acted with actual malice? the hollywood actor johnny depp wins his multi—million dollar lawsuit against his former wife amber heard. russia accuses the united states of escalating the conflict in ukraine — after president biden promises to send hi—tech rockets to help ukrainian forces. another shooting incident in the united states — four people are dead and others are injured at a hospital campus in tulsa, oklahoma. and the final rehearsals have taken place and the celebrations are about to begin — for queen elizabeth's

70 years as monarch. johnny depp has won his libel case against his former wife, amber heard, after she claimed in an article that she'd endured domestic violence during their 15—month marriage. the jury found that ms heard's statements about her marriage were "false" and that she'd acted with "actual malice". our correspondent, david sillito, has been at the hollywood trial of the century since it began in april — and looks back at a case that provided powerful testimony about the actors�* relationship. mr foreperson, is this the verdict of the jury? after six weeks in court and six years of angry disputes since their divorce, finally, a judgement by a jury

on the allegations that johnny depp had violently assaulted his ex—wife, amber heard. was this defamation? the answer... yes. cheering. outside, there were cheers from the waiting fans, the end of a trial that had been provoked by an article in the washington post in which amber heard had written of being a victim of domestic abuse, allegations that she said were backed up with real proof. there were videos, photographs and, remember, a uk court ruled in 2020 that her account of abuse during her marriage was substantially true. slapped me across the face. then he slapped me again. hejust kicked me — in the back. i thought he was the love of my life. he was, but he was also this other thing. cheering.

for six weeks, johnny depp has arrived at court each day to cheers. amber heard, silence — and sometimes worse. can you please tell the jury why you're here today? um, yes... the answer to that question was reputation. johnny depp, hollywood star, was trying to prove to the world that his ex—wife's claims of domestic violence were simply untrue. and more than that, he was claiming that he was the real victim. ms heard, in herfrustration and in her rage and her anger, she would strike out. she'd given me a good chop in the ear, you know. suddenly... i said, "go ahead, hit me." bam!

so, two completely different accounts of a marriage, and one in whichjohnny depp said he was the victim, and that is what the jury has agreed with today. and not only that, they have accepted that amber heard acted with malice, with a reckless disregard for the truth. but there has been a second case going on here, one that's been taking place in the court of popular opinion. over six weeks, amber heard had been accused of lying, faking injuries, fabricating evidence. and online... i receive hundreds of death threats regularly, if not daily. thousands since this trial has started, people mocking... ..mocking my testimony about being assaulted. this was a case all about words — amber heard's right to say she was a victim of domestic

violence, an accusation that johnny depp says was simply a lie, he was the victim here. and thejury — and much of the watching public — has, after hearing it all, believed him. david sillito, bbc news, fairfax, virginia. what do those in the know when it comes to law then make of this? we can now speak to neama rahmani, who's president of west coast trial lawyers. he joins us from los angeles. billions of people watch this on social media and on television sets around the world. it is fascinating, really. but it the centre of all of this is whether a female was the victim of domestic abuse or not. a very important trial for victims of domestic abuse, particularly when they stand up against a celebrity. my stand up against a celebrity. my understanding is that when

you are that famous in hollywood you need to have an overwhelming amount of proof for a defamation case that when you watch the child was there? public figures like johnny you watch the child was there? public figures likejohnny depp public figures like johnny depp have public figures likejohnny depp have to meet a higher standard and that is aced on an important supreme court decision. they have to prove that statements were false by clear and convincing evidence. a higher standard than you typically have in a civil case which is preponderance of evidence. additionally they have to prove actual malice, the reckless dig —— disregard for the truth or knowledge. and thatjohnny depp was able to overcome these legal hurdles which are higher here in this state than they are in the uk and the burden is on the defendant to prove that the stamp mincer substantially true was nothing short of extraordinary. this is one of the most surprising legal and public relations results in my career. 50 public relations results in my career. y public relations results in my career. , .,

public relations results in my career, , ., , ., “ career. so why do you think the 'u career. so why do you think the jury came _ career. so why do you think the jury came to — career. so why do you think the jury came to the _ career. so why do you think the jury came to the decision - career. so why do you think the jury came to the decision that l jury came to the decision that they did? two reasons. johnny depp was simply much more likeable and credible. amber heard lied. she lied about donating $7 million to charity. she lied about leaking video and tipping off reporters and she exaggerated her injuries. she testified that she saw johnny depp was going to kill her, that he struck her so many times that she lost count. but the pictures and video she presented to the jury to the world did not support an attempted assault. it showed misdemeanour battery. and because of those lies and exaggerations she lost with the jurors and the rejected her testimony entirely. £2 million has to be paid to her byjohnny depp and she has to pay him $15 million. it is an awful lot of money but do you think this was a case about money or was it

more about reputation? it a case about money or was it more about reputation? it had nothin: more about reputation? it had nothing to _ more about reputation? it had nothing to do _ more about reputation? it had nothing to do with _ more about reputation? it had nothing to do with money. - nothing to do with money. in—depth lawyers did not even ask thejurors to in—depth lawyers did not even ask the jurors to award anything. this was a case about johnny depp telling his story here in the united states in front of a camera. let's not forget, as lawyers wanted cameras in the courtroom and hers did not. now he will be one of the most wanted actors for every hollywood studio and every corporate sponsorship whereas amber heard, her career is essentially over and i don't think any studio will cast her. thank you for that analysis. thank you for that analysis. thank you for having me. a war of words has erupted between moscow and washington over america's decision to supply advanced rocket this artillery to ukraine. russia has accused the united states of adding fuel to the fire with the move. the weapons, which have been described as game changers, have a longer range than russia's. russian forces are now said to be in control of around 70% of the strategically important

city of severodonetsk. james waterhouse has the latest from kyiv. faces of anxiety, wives and mothers of ukrainian soldiers on the front line, brought together by a frustration of their lack of support. translation: i'm very worried. i know he's sitting in the trenches there. i know there are wounded and killed. i believe that if they receive proper weapons, they're real warriors and they will fight for the serenity of ukraine, defend our country and get our seized territories back. olga's son was called up to fight two months ago. today is his 41st birthday. translation: it is his birthday today, but i cannot even - congratulate him and tell him that i love him and wait for him.

a56 miles to the east, a reflection of ukraine's loosening grip on the luhansk region, satellite images showing damage from shelling to komyshuvakha and severodonetsk. russian soldiers now appear to move through its streets and wander into this state security service building. they're thought to be chechen fighters, and have a reputation for being fierce. almost all of the luhansk region is in moscow's control. russia's gains are relatively small, but the cities they now occupy won't be easily retaken, and that is why ukraine is asking for help to do more than simply be on the defensive. one wish has been granted by the us — precision—guided missiles, which can travel up to 45 miles — with a condition. the ukrainians have given us assurances that they will not

use these systems against targets on russian territory. there is a strong trust bond between ukraine and the united states, as well as with our allies and partners. the kremlin has described kyiv�*s request for weapons as a provocation to bring the west into this war. ukraine has long seen them as crucial for its survival. james waterhouse, bbc news, in kyiv. police in the us city tulsa in oklahoma say four people have been killed in a shooting in a hospital. let's get more details from our correspondent david willis.

is offering support to local and state officials. it is thought that the government was looking for a particular doctor in the hospital complex. it is not clear whether he managed to make contact with that physician. police have yet to identify the gunman although they say he is aged 35. of course this is just the latest shooting in this country coming eight days after an 18—year—old gunman opened fire on a classroom in texas killing 19 schoolchildren and two teachers and 18 days after another 18—year—old gunman opened fire in a grocery store in the city

of arthur lowe, york, killing ten people. president biden has called for tougher gun control laws in the country and, indeed, a small group of bipartisan senators has been meeting to discuss some possible measures but republicans remain stoutly opposed to any form of gun control in this country. they argue that more policing and greater mental health checks are the answer to incidents like this and, indeed, it is thought now that there will be very little done as a result of this and, indeed, there were measures, calls for measures after the shooting nearly ten years ago in sandy hook but no legislation was passed by congress. staying in the us, the 18—year—old white man accused of shooting dead ten black people at a supermarket in buffalo in new york last

month, has been charged with murder, hate crimes and domestic terrorism. prosecutors allege payton gendron, who earlier pleaded not guilty, was motivated by racial hatred. mexican officials say hurricane agatha, the first of the pacific season, killed 11 people when it struck the south of the country on tuesday. at least 22 others are missing, mostly in mountainous areas. gail maclellan reports. this makes clear the awful power of the storm. the hurricane hit with winds of 169 kilometres when it made landfall on the coast. people were swept away as heavy rains triggered landslides and destroyed buildings. many did not want to leave their homes, fearing they would lose everything. translation: when we were told _ everything. translation: when we were told to _ everything. translation: when we were told to leave _ everything. translation: when we were told to leave we - everything. translation: wie'i we were told to leave we wanted to take something but we could not. i did not take a single

plate, cup or change of clothes. not even sheets or towels. nothing.— clothes. not even sheets or towels. nothing. this was the strongest _ towels. nothing. this was the strongest hurricane _ towels. nothing. this was the strongest hurricane to - towels. nothing. this was the strongest hurricane to hit - strongest hurricane to hit mexico's pacific coast at this time of the year since records began. flash floods, mud and rock falls continue to threaten mountain communities and with communications down, the vulnerable will be harder to reach. gail mclennan, bbc news. stay with us on bbc news — still to come: fourteen and counting — we'll tell you about one queen and a lot of american presidents. the queen and her husband began their royal progress to westminster. the moment of crowning, in accordance with the order of service, by a signal given, the great guns of the tower. tributes have been paid around the world to muhammad ali, who has died at the age of 74. outspoken but rarely outfought, ali transcended the sport

of boxing, of which he was three times world champion. he was a good fighter. he fought all the way to the . end, even through his illness. yes, he did. uefa imposes an indefinite ban on english clubs playing in europe. today is the 20th anniversary of the release of the beatles�* lp, sgt pepper's lonely hearts club band, a record described as the album of the century. this is bbc news, the latest headlines: the hollywood actorjohnny depp wins his multi—million dollar lawsuit against his former wife amber heard. russia accuses the united states of escalating

the conflict in ukraine — after president biden promises to send advanced rocket systems to help ukrainian forces. let's turn to shanghai now, where there's celebration mixed with relief and caution on the streets of china's biggest city, after a significant lifting of covid restrictions. our correspondent, robin brant reports. what would you do if you were free, after 65 days locked up in your home? for some in shanghai, it was the simple things, things they've been barred from doing for months. for others, well... as morning came round, the reality of daily life now was clear — scanning your phone, showing a code. the government's going to monitor who goes where, when, to try to prevent another disastrous outbreak. the speed of the reopening

of shanghai has been, frankly, quite surreal. we've had this big—bang event in one single day, where cars are back on the streets, some of the shops have reopened, there's a basic service that has resumed on the metro. but the new normal now for me and for millions of people here are centred on this — testing, testing, testing. this lockdown was harsh, brutal for some. it crippled shanghai's economy. it destroyed martin lee's business. he opened his hair salon just a few weeks before the lockdown came. there was no furlough scheme here, no pay cheque from the government. on the day most of shanghai reopened, he was packing up. he can't afford the shop any more. really, really sad, like, extremely sad. how do you say? my shop is like my baby. i had to close my shop. it's like i killed my baby. i don't know if you understand how sad ifeel.

this is the first day for me to go back to work, but i wasn't feeling happy. i wasn't feeling happy at all. for the communist party leaders here, though, this is a vindication. people in china's biggest city, its financial heart, are back by the river. they're spending money again. confirmed covid cases are barely a trickle. lockdowns work, they say. the forced confinement of 25 million people is over, mostly. but as the new normal here sets in, they know, i know, everyone knows that china's commitment to zero—covid means it could happen again. robin brant, bbc news, shanghai. and finally, it was a football match unlike almost any other. ukraine taking on scotland in a long delayed world cup qualifier. of course the build—up was entirely dominated by russia's ongoing invasion of the visiting side's country, with some of ukraine's players having not played a competitive

match for months. our correspondentjoe inwood watched the match with a group of soldiers in the capital, kyiv. this is no normal world cup qualifier, and these are no normal fans. these young ukrainians have all volunteered to join the fight against russia's invasion. 23—year—old alex used to be a software engineer. he will soon be heading to the front. i will be really proud of myself, because i'm doing a really great thing for my country. football is a big deal here, even in the darkest of times. everybody, especially the ukrainian team, feel their responsibility, because they want to show to us that they are fighting, too. now, of course, normally for a game like this, this significant, all the bars,

the restaurants, the sports pubs would be packed, but of course there's a curfew, and so people are watching it at home — or, in this instance, in their military base. an unusual setting for an almost unique sporting event. right now, for us, it's really- important to have some victory, like we won eurovision, and also the ukrainiansj would be really happy if we win this match. i but in their way, a scotland team that almost everyone assumed would beat ukraine. but not here. cheering. 1-0. cheering. 2-0. these soldiers have grown used to remarkable victories, but they also know that victory can turn into defeat. it's actually been a really good game, but it is getting tense now. ukraine have got a one—goal advantage, but scotland are pushing.

it's getting nerve—racking, even for the neutrals. cheering. we won this match, so it's really great, so it means that there is nothing impossible for our country, and we're going to win this war. joe inwood, bbc news, in kyiv. the uk is preparing forfour days of celebrations for queen elizabeth's platinum jubilee. 70 years is a long time, and she's met countless world leaders. there have been 1k us presidents while the queen has been on the throne, and she's spent time with almost all of them, as the bbc�*s tim allman explains. archive newsreel: america salutes, as the big _ royal canadian air force plane lands at washington airport. she wasn't even queen when she met herfirst president. princess elizabeth arriving

in washington in 1951. her first visit to the states, and harry s truman was there to say hello. it certainly is a very great pleasure for me, as the president of the united states, to welcome you to the capital of our country. the president's car is now approaching, and princess elizabeth awaits his rival. this time she was playing host, this time to president eisenhower, who she invited to her castle at balmoral, in scotland. next up, president kennedy, seen here at a state banquet in buckingham palace in 1961. the only president she never met was lyndonjohnson, but she did meet his successor, richard nixon, in 1969. president gerald ford welcomed her to the white house in 1976, as part of america's bicentennial celebrations. another banquet, another president, this time jimmy carter being wined

and dined at the palace. president reagan made quite the impression on uk—us relations, so much so he was given an honorary knighthood. as was his vice president, george bush snr, when he took over at the oval office. bill clinton met the queen several times, this, his final trip to the uk before leaving office. george w bush invited her to a state dinner at the white house, where she paid tribute to the bonds between the two countries. if the atlantic unites, not divides us, ours i is a partnership always to be reckoned with in| the defence of freedom. president number 12 was barack obama, being shown around the picture gallery at buckingham palace. donald trump was invited to tea at windsor castle, as was his successor,

joe biden, the latest president to have the honour of meeting this longest lasting of queens. tim allman, bbc news. before we go: for you avid gardeners out there, the largest known plant on earth has been discovered in australia. it's a seagrass, covering about 77 square miles, underwater, off australia's west coast. the meadow is believed to have grown from a single seed, over at least 11,500 years. researchers from the university of western australia were studying the genetic diversity of the species, and were astonished when dna results confirmed the meadow was a single plant. johnny depp has won his libel case against his former wife amber heard after she claimed in an article that she had endured domestic violence

during their 15 month marriage. thejury found that during their 15 month marriage. the jury found that her statements were false and she acted with actual malice. and thatis acted with actual malice. and that is the latest, thanks for watching. hello again. we had some warm spells of sunshine around on wednesday but also some scattered showers, particularly across northern and eastern areas. one or two heavy ones mixed in. but in the west, a largely fine day — some lovely sunshine there in anglesey. satellite picture, at the moment, shows largely clear skies, but we do have some thicker cloud approaching from the northwest. that's going to be bringing some rain into northern ireland, as we head deeper into thursday, but for the time being, the skies are clear in most areas and it's another pretty chilly night, really, underneath those clear skies, with light winds for the time of year. we are looking at temperatures down to around 5—7 celsius

for a number of you, which is on the cool side, certainly, forjune. now, looking at the pressure charts, pressure's actually rising a little bit across the uk, but then we've got this weather front — that area of cloud i showed you a moment ago — well, that is set to swing its way in, so cloud will increase across northern ireland, and we'll steadily see outbreaks of rain moving in here, turning quite heavy, by the time we get to the afternoon. scotland, england and wales, a lovely sunny start to the morning, if somewhat cool, but those temperatures will quickly rise. a bit of cloud bubbles up. that could bring a few scattered showers to scotland and northern england, but for many, it's a dry day. temperatures a bit higher — 18 in glasgow, but we're into 19—21 kind of territory for england and wales, so it is warmer. that warmer trend to the weather continues

into friday, but again, friday not wholly dry. there will be a a few showers, this time across wales, northwest england, western scotland and northern ireland. again, pretty well spaced out, so you do have a chance of missing them. the emphasis is still on some warm spells of sunshine, for most. temperatures quite widely reaching the high teens to low 20s. now, this weekend, the weather will stay fine across the north of the uk, so scotland, northern ireland and northern england keeping the dry weather and sunshine, but the weather starts to get more iffy in the south. you see, on saturday, we'll start to see some thundery showers move up from the near continent, the greatest risk of those probably across the southwest of england and south wales. there will be a few more storms coming up through saturday night, and then into sunday, the storms kind of merge together to give some spells of heavier rain across parts of england and wales. now, this rain band could vary in position a little bit by the time we get to sunday, but, nevertheless, warm spells of sunshine, a few showers over the next few days, but we are going to see some heavy, thundery rain developing over the weekend.

this is bbc news, the headlines: the hollywood actorjohnny depp has won his libel case against his former wife, amber heard. she claimed in an article that she'd endured domestic violence during theirfifteen month marriage. the jury found ms heard acted with "actual malice". mr depp has been awarded $15 million in damages. a war of words has erupted between moscow and washington over america's decision to supply advanced rocket artillery to ukraine. russia has accused the united states of adding fuel to the fire with the move. the weapons, which have been described as game changers, have a longer range than russia's. police in the us city of tulsa in oklahoma say four people have been killed in a shooting in a hospital campus.