this is bbc news. i'm gareth barlow. our top stories: chinese president xi jinping has sworn in hong kong's new leader at a ceremony marking 25 years since the end of british colonial rule. the us supreme court deals a major blow to efforts to tackle climate change, with a ruling that limits government powers to cut greenhouse gas emissions. this is a setback in our fight against climate change when we already far off track from the immediate goals of the paris agreement. amid tight security, thousands of religious scholars and tribal elders from across afghanistan are meeting in kabul for the first time since the taliban seized

power last year. and temperatures injapan are at the highest in nearly 150 years. now, fears the electricity grid could be overwhelmed. welcome to our viewers on pbs in america and around the globe. the chinese president, xijinping, has sworn in hong kong's new leader, john lee. the territory is marking 25 years since the handover from british colonial rule. mr lee is taking over from carrie lam, whose time in office saw beijing tighten its grip on hong kong. this was scene in hong kong in the last hour asjohn lee took the oath of office. mr lee is a security chief who oversaw the police response to hong kong's huge democracy protests in 2019. it's mr xi's first trip out of mainland china since the beginning

of the covid—19 pandemic. and it's his first to hong kong since swearing in carrie lam. translation: the practice of one country. _ translation: the practice of one country, two _ translation: the practice of one country, two systems... l translation: the practice of l one country, two systems... the rule of law is a cornerstone of hong kong's success. since our return to the motherland, the basic law has protected the rights and freedoms of hong kong residents as well as the independentjudiciary and final independent judiciary and final adjudication. to understand the context of today's events i spoke to ho—fung hung, professor of political economy at thejohn hopkins university, in baltimore. i've asked him

what these celebrations of the 25th anniversary of hong kong being returned to china tell us about the level of chinese control over the city. the 25th year anniversary of the hong kong handover is an important landmark. also after the uprising in 2019 and the national security law in 2020, president xijinping is national security law in 2020, president xi jinping is very much interested in showing that hong kong is back to stability and beijing has full control of hong kong now and as many chinese scholars in official media have been talking about, the second return of hong kong, the second return of hong kong, the first return in 25 years ago, was the first but there is still opposition around and people not very loyal. but now i second of a general and substantially if return, president xijinping is substantially if return, president xi jinping is trying to claim this is as important as the first formal return of

hong kong anyone to throw support of the new government and urge them to facilitate a revival of the hong kong economy, which is not in very good shape. economy, which is not in very good shape-— economy, which is not in very good shape. what is president xi's position — good shape. what is president xi's position and _ good shape. what is president xi's position and stands - xi's position and stands towards hong kong signal towards hong kong signal towards taiwan, for example? definitely, in the beginning, when china crackdown on hong kong, after 1997, there was a lot of discussion about whether it showed a bad example to taiwan and made the taiwan people more hesitant in accepting beijing olive branch in striking a deal. but after 2019 uprising and the national security law, i don't think beijing has about taiwan's reaction anymore and they would judge that, the taiwan people

not that enthusiastic about reunification anyway so they are preparing in full force the military options in solving the taiwan question and making hong kong fully in control, i don't think they care too much about taiwan reaction anymore. you mention there _ taiwan reaction anymore. you mention there hong _ taiwan reaction anymore. you mention there hong kong fully in control. it has been 25 years since it re—entered beijing's severe of influence and the protest you reference, they have been far more turbulent. do you expect to see more control over their territory or do you think beijing is happy with things as it stands? ., ., it stands? from a baiting perspective. _ it stands? from a baiting perspective. -- - it stands? from a baiting perspective, -- beijing,| perspective, —— beijing, control is a relative mt matter and they're always worried about pockets or spaces of resistance. they fill very

insecure about the possibility of a system failing any consider tight security measures they take when president xijinping is visiting and they closed all the roads and across regions of hong kong so they don't take any chances and definitely by putting john lee with a kind of security police background as the next, the new chief executive of hong kong, unprecedented in hong kong and evenin unprecedented in hong kong and even in local leaders in the chinese provinces and cities to have someone who has a security background to be the leader of the local area shows they are still anxious about the possibility of resistance flaring up, which is possible very well in the long run. so they were definitely doubled down in increasing the hot control of hong kong so the people and revamping the universities, the high schools,

the curriculum, to make sure that people are biologically falling in line. —— idea logically —— idea logically. the practice of one country, two — the practice of one country, two systems has been achieved success— two systems has been achieved success by all. it has been returned _ success by all. it has been returned to the motherland. hong — returned to the motherland. hong kong has been a pioneer, riding _ hong kong has been a pioneer, riding the — hong kong has been a pioneer, riding the wave of our country's great cause of reform and opening up. it has leveraged its role as an important window and bridge, connecting the chinese mainland with the — connecting the chinese mainland with the world. let's get some of the day's other news.

the government of ecuador has signed an agreement with indigenous leaders to end more than two weeks of protests that have paralysed much of the country. the powerful confederation of indigenous nationalities has agreed to stop its demonstrations against the high cost of living. in return, the government will make some concessions. five civilians and a soldier have died during the clashes. at least six people have been shot dead and many injured during pro—democracy protests in the sudanese capital, khartoum. large crowds gathered in several cities, calling on the army to leave politics, following a military coup which toppled the government last october. wall street has had its worst performance for the first half of the year since 1970. the s&p 500 closed down almost a full percentage point on the last day ofjune. investors are wary amid high inflation and supply chain issues, which are fueling fears of recession.

the biden administration has condemned a supreme court ruling which curbs the us government's power to limit carbon emissions from coal—fired power stations. all six members of the conservative majority in the supreme court backed the landmark ruling, which marks a victory for the coal industry. from washington, here's our north america editor sarah smith. in california today, wildfires burning out of control are a vivid reminder of the urgent need to take action on climate change. america is a large part of the problem — the second biggest emitter of greenhouse gas in the world after china, but also a victim. you can see from the water line above the vast lake mead how much it has shrunk in recent years, impacting the water supply for millions of people in the south—west. president biden came into office pledging to lead a global effort to reduce carbon emissions, promising at the cop summit in glasgow last year to lead by example. will we act?

will we do what is necessary? will we seize the enormous opportunity before us or will we condemn future generations to suffer? future generations may not thank the us supreme court for a decision today that restricts the federal government's ability to regulate energy producers. the supreme court ruling makes it much harderforjoe biden to try to meet his climate change goals. the court has decided the environmental protection agency does not have the authority to impose carbon limits, unless there is new legislation coming from congress, and that's something joe biden knows he just does not have enough votes to get passed. coal lies at the heart of the problem. america still relies heavily on this most polluting fossilfuel to keep the lights on. the supreme court case was brought by 19, mostly republican, states that were worried they could be forced to move away from using coal to generate electricity. those are states that contribute an outside share of america's carbon emissions, and have done little so far

to reduce them. california's majestic landscape is particularly vulnerable to the effects of climate change. a democrat—run state, it's spending billions — more than most countries — to protect the environment but that effort will be undermined by today's supreme court ruling. the idea that the us supreme court moved to take away one of the most significant and historically powerful tools to address the ravages of climate change is incomprehensible. in the states that won this case, they are celebrating a ruling that gives them a right to make their own rules on carbon emissions, rather than be told what to do by washington. and they say it will prevent a rise in the price of electricity. the united nations secretary general�*s spokesman says they're disappointed by the move. while it is not our role to provide legal commentary

on judicial decisions of individual member states, just more generally, i can say that this is a set back in ourfight against climate change, when we are already far off track in meeting the goals of the paris agreement. the secretary general has said repeatedly that the g20 must lead the way in dramatically stepping up climate action. noah diffenbaugh is an american climate scientist and professor at stanford university. he told us more about the impact of fossil fuels on climate change. not only is global warming happening but the climate is changing, extreme events are intensifying and we have very clear evidence now that those changes are already impacting people and ecosystems, from the equator, to the poles, in the ocean, on land, on the coast, at the coast, in the tops of mountains, and it is costing us. it is costing billions of dollars a year, it is exacerbating economic inequality and it's harming ecosystems around the world. so, we have very

clear evidence that this is notjust a problem for the future, it is a challenge for the present, and the more global warming we have in the future, the more those impacts will intensify, and we know that global warming is going to be determined by the amount of emissions. stay with us on bbc news, still to come: wildcard katie boulter produced the shock of the day at wimbledon, coming from a set down to beat last year's runner up and number six seed karolina pliskova. china marked its first day of rule in hong kong with a series of spectacular celebrations. a huge fireworks display was held in the former colony. the chinese president, jiang zemin, said unification was the start of a new era for hong kong. the world's first clone has been produced of an adult mammal. scientists in scotland have produced a sheep called dolly that was cloned in a laboratory using a cell from another sheep.

for the first time in 20 years, russian and american spacecraft have docked in orbit at the start of a new era of cooperation in space. tennis balls thwack cheering and applause challenger powered past the bishop rock lighthouse at almost 50 knots, shattering a record that had stood for 3h years, and there was no hiding the sheer elation of richard branson and his crew. this is bbc world news, the latest headlines: chinese president xi jinping has sworn in hong kong's new leader at a ceremony marking 25 years since the end of british colonial rule. a setback for the biden administration, as the us supreme court issues a ruling limiting the government's ability to regulate

emissions from power plants. nato leaders have pledged more financial aid and weapons for ukraine. the alliance also renewed calls for president putin to end the invasion. nato's secretary general, jens stoltenberg, insisted that ukraine must prevail as an independent state. here's our political editor, chris mason. salisbury plain. usually a place where british troops train. now, those in ukrainian uniforms are here, too, being taught how to use the weapons and equipment being given to them by the uk. this as the prime minister, at the end of the nato summit in madrid, promised more money to help ukraine further. the best way for us to win the argument around the world about our values is for the ukrainians to win. and that's why i'm pleased today that we've announced another billion pounds�* worth

of military support. so, prime minister, what is the overall objective of the uk's help and strategy for ukraine? we want to give them the means to repel the russians, to expel the russians from the territory that they have occupied, because that is the right thing under international law. this gathering of the world's biggest defence alliance has had a sense of urgency — even emergency. an invasion in europe, a hostile russia, an ongoing war without obvious end — huge human suffering, profound global economic consequences. president putin has been meeting his allies in turkmenistan. his decision to go to war in ukraine has spooked others close to russia's borders. for years, sweden and finland felt sufficiently safe to be neutral. no longer — russia's aggression means they're joining nato. translation: we don't -

have a problem with sweden and finland, as we do with ukraine. ukraine and its people's well—being is not the aim of nato or the west, it's just a means to defend their own interests. the prime minister has spent the last few days urging other countries to commit more to defence spending, while facing criticism at home that the british army is shrinking. nice to meet you. how are you doing? he's also faced criticism from the scottish and welsh governments, who feel while helping ukraine is noble, they've been pickpocketed by the government at westminster to help pay for it. but he's set a big long—term goal, saying by the end of the decade, the money allocated to defence will rise to 2.5% of national income — much more than most other countries. in afghanistan, the taliban are holding a gathering in kabul of more than 3,000 muslim clerics, scholars and tribal leaders from across the country.

religious, social and economic issues are being discussed, but no women have been included in the meeting. from kabul, the bbc�*s south asia correspondent, yogita limaye, reports. for the first time since they seized power, in august last year, the taliban are holding a national meet. from more than 300 districts of afghanistan, clerics and tribal elders have come to kabul. but no media allowed, and no photo or video of the gathering has been released so far. the roads to the meeting tightly secured, but earlier in the day, a gun battle took place outside the venue. a little—known anti—taliban group, called national liberation front, claimed responsibility. the taliban say, they've killed the attackers. on wednesday, this video was released showing preparations for the meeting, in which the taliban hopes

to get an endorsement from muslim scholars and tribal leaders in the country. but women and people from different ethnic groups have been excluded. and when asked about whether a decision on lifting the ban on secondary schools for girls would be discussed, the answer was vague. translation: girls' education is definitely an issue _ which needs a solution from the government. people want it, and it is a need for the future as well. but for conditions to be suitable and for all religious scholars to reach a consensus, will require some time. nafeesa bahar is a women's rights activist. "the religious scholars who attend this meeting "cannot be representatives of women. "i'm sure they will not talk about women's rights. "we have so many women who could've attended "the gathering and negotiated for us. "but if half the population is missing from it, "then i don't think the meeting

has any legitimacy," she said. and it's notjust that they're missing from the gathering, since the taliban seized power last year, women have begun to disappear from public life. unless the group can make firm commitments on women's right to work and be educated, this gathering will not further their case for international recognition — something they really need to pull the country out of the economic crisis it's in. yogita limaye, bbc news, kabul. in japan, an unprecedented heatwave has got many worried about global warming, and a possible shortage of electricity to keep air conditioners going. tokyo reported record breaking temperatures on thursday, making it the worstjune heatwave injapan since records began nearly 150 years ago. rupert wingfield—hayes reports. in isesaki, it is another

blazing hot day. at 11am, the temperature is already somewhere north of a0 celsius. for masaya maruyama, his wife, and brother, working outside in these conditions isn'tjust hard, it's dangerous. masaya shows me the electric fans in his jacket, designed to keep him cool, but they hardly seem up to the task. "it went up to 47 degrees on the car's thermometer yesterday," he tells me. "is it dangerous?" i ask. "yes, it's dangerous. "we've never had temperatures like this before injune. "usually, it's raining now." a week ago, most people had never heard of the little city of isesaki, 100 km north of tokyo. now, it's suddenly famous. this is now officially the hottest place injapan. it's been above a0 degrees twice already this week, and according to my thermometer, it's well above that out there in the sunshine today.

this has never happened before injune, anywhere injapan. this should be the middle of the rainy season, and it's causing huge problems forjapan's electricity—generating system. it's just barely keeping up with demand, and if it fails, people are going to die. these heatwaves are notjust a naturalfluctuation in weather. man—made climate change is making them more extreme and more dangerous. over the past 100 years, the average temperature forjapan has risen by about one degree, which is more than a world record. for tokyo, it was like three degrees higher, so temperatures have been rising. so, definitely, climate change is part of the reason. the increasingly frequent heatwaves are particularly dangerous for old people, of which japan has many. so, here in the north of tokyo, they've opened a cooling—down centre, where i find 86—year—old kiyoji saito taking refuge

from the heat and playing japanese chess. "i'm overwhelmed by the heat," he says. "coming here to cool down is really important. "i don't want to use the air—con at home, "but we've been told if we don't, we could die." four years ago, another heatwave killed scores of elderly people and put 20,000 in hospital. this one is expected to break on sunday, and for millions of people across japan, it won't come a moment too soon. rupert wingfield—hayes, bbc news, in tokyo. tennis now, and it was a rainy day four at wimbledon, where rafael nadal is through to round three. chethan partik was watching the action.

the great champions have a habit ofjust finding a way to win. that's exactly what rafael nadal showed here on thursday on centre court. he hasn't played on grass for three years when you consider these championships were postponed in 2020 and he missed wimbledon entirely last year. but he's finding his feet underneath the grass. again, he may have dropped a set against ricardas berankis, but his hopes of winning a third wimbledon title continue in this extraordinary year, where he's already won the french open and, before that, the australian open. his biggest fan is the world number one, iga swiatek. she survived a big scare and also progressed to the third round. thursday's stand—out result here — for the british fans, at least — involved home favourite katie boulter. at 25 years old, her career plagued by injuries. she's now ranked outside the top 100. she knocked out last year's beaten finalist, karolina pliskova, the biggest win of boulter�*s life. she's never reached the third round of a grand slam until now. after the match, she dedicated her win to her grandma, who died only two days ago.

and also worth keeping an eye out for two former champions looking very good — simona halep is through to the third round, as is the two—time winner petra kvitova. and in the men's draw, all eyes on a fascinating third round match between the fourth seed stefanos tsitsipas, who won earlier in straight sets. he's now going to play nick kyrgios, who always gives us unmissable moments here at wimbledon. he also went through in straight sets against filip krajinovic. and there's just time to bring you some news from chile, where keepers at santiago zoo are delighted to announce "it's a boy" after the birth of a baby giraffe was captured on camera earlier this month. weighing in at 100 kilograms and standing almost 2 metres tall, the baby giraffe was presented to the public on wednesday. a contest to choose his name is underway. i would say gareth the jarrah.

you can reach me on twitter — i'm @gareth barlow. hello again. well, thursday was a day of sunshine and showers but the day's showers were a lot bigger, there were loads more thunderstorms around than we've seen over the past few days and whenever you see big clouds tearing upwards through the skies like these, well, you know someone's getting soaked. someone lived in south newington as those heavy downpours came through here. really hefty shower. now, the showers and thunderstorms that developed through the day have actually kept going for the first part of the night as well and they have tended to migrate towards the pennines, north east england and will generally begin to fade away over the next few hours. but at the same time, we'll probably see some rain just spinning its way across the north sea, grazing north east scotland over the next few hours. here are your morning temperatures. now, for friday itself, we've

got low pressure in charge. it's a day of sunshine and showers, broadly speaking. however, we will see another low bringing some more general rain into northern ireland as we go through the afternoon. here's the forecast for wimbledon. the computer reckons it's dry. well, you might be lucky, i suppose, but i'd go for a chance of a shower, to be honest. the showers are going to be quite widespread. they'll get going through the morning and, come the afternoon, some of them will turn heavy and thundery. the greatest chance of seeing those heavier showers will be across eastern areas of scotland and down the eastern side of england, down to about norfolk, i suspect. temperatures similar to recent days — high teens across western areas, low 20s in the east. feeling warm in the sunshine with a bit more of a breeze around on friday compared with the last couple of days. the weekend sees further weather fronts diving eastwards across the uk and so on saturday, we start off with this weak weather front. a band of rain pushing eastwards across england and wales. what follows is, yeah, sunshine and showers again. some of them heavy, particularly across north—western areas this time. it's here where we've got the greatest chance of seeing some thunder.

and those temperatures not really changing a great deal — low 20s in the east but generally, for most of us, we're looking at temperatures into the high teens. now, pressure starts to gradually rise from the south—west as we go through sunday, so probably dry for wales, good part of western england and probably the midlands, too. a few showers elsewhere, notably across scotland and northern ireland, and temperatures, well, they haven't changed very much, have they? pressure will rise more generally into next week, so more of us will enjoy drier weather, a bit more sunshine and it will start to get a bit warmer as well.

this is bbc news, the headlines: the chinese president, xijinping, has sworn in hong kong's new leader, john lee. the territory is marking 25 years since the handover from british colonial rule. mr lee is taking over from carrie lam, whose time in office saw beijing tighten its grip on hong kong. the us supreme court has dealt a serious blow to president biden's plans to tackle climate change. it's issued a ruling that limits the government's ability to regulate emissions from power plants. the case was brought on behalf of nineteen mostly republican— led states. nato leaders have pledged more financial aid and weapons for ukraine. the alliance also renewed

calls for president putin to end the invasion.