this is bbc news. i'm rich preston. our top stories — in eastern ukraine, further fighting for control of lysycha nsk. the ukrainian army rejects russia's claims they've encircled the city. russian state media says two more british men, captured by russian forces in ukraine, have been charged with being mercenaries. warnings of further disruption this summer at heathrow, for travellers passing through the uk's busiest airport. and the biggest ever london pride — more than a million people take to the streets for the annual event.

hello and welcome to bbc news. ukraine says its forces are enduring intense russian shelling in the eastern city of lysychansk, but it denies claims its troops are surrounded. lysychansk is the last ukrainian—held city in luhansk, which is part of the industrial donbas region. these pictures, from russia's state—owned domestic news agency, ria, show drone images of battles near the city. but kyiv denies claims that russian—backed fighters have encircled the city. elsewhere, russia is continuing its missile strikes. in the south, ukraine's military says the city of mykolaiv has been hit by ten missiles, targeting the port, and other industrial infrastructure. it's not yet clear if there are any casualities. ukrainian authorities have accused moscow of hitting civilian targets, in an effort to force them into making territorial concessions. meanwhile, two more britons,

captured by russian forces in ukraine, have been charged with being mercenaries, according to russian state media. it comes after two other british men were sentenced to death last month. joe inwood reports. andrew hill travelled to ukraine to help fight the russian invasion. dylan healy went there to help evacuate civilians. both men now face being tried as mercenaries, in an unrecognised separatist court. they would not be the first to appear there. last month, aiden aslin, shaun pinner and a moroccan man, brahim saaudun, were all sentenced to death by the so—called donetsk people's republic. according to dominic byrne, who is working on their cases, it is no coincidence most of them are british. this really shows that the russians are putting more and more pressure on the british government than other governments and using the british prisoners as more of a political tool and negotiation tool more than others, and we believe

that's the case because the british government have really seemed to rattled the russians within ukraine. rattled or not, on the battlefields of the east, russia is very much on the advance. they're said to be taking ground in lysychansk, the last part of the luhansk region held by the ukrainians. russia is moving to encircle the city. if they do, they will cut off some of ukraine's most experienced soldiers. but it's notjust the eastern donbas region that has felt the effects of russia's invasion. the last fortnight have seen attacks right across ukraine. here in the capital, kyiv, at a shopping centre in the town of kremenchuk, and most recently in the resort of serhiyivka. 21 people are now known to have died when three russian missiles struck the popular holiday destination. roman tried to help. translation: everyone - who was inside at that moment, they all died. my neighbour was a very good person. it's a great pity. she simply died in my arms.

it's really scary. i don't know how to put it into words. the attack on serhiyivka came just a few hours after russia was driven from the strategically important snake island, under massive ukrainian bombardment. russia claimed it left as a gesture of goodwill, but last night returned to bomb the equipment it had been forced to leave behind. joe inwood, bbc news, kyiv. religious leaders and tribal elders, who've been holding a three—day meeting in the afghan capital kabul, have called on the international community to recognise the taliban as legitimate rulers of the country, and lift all sanctions. around 3,000 clerics attended the male—only conference. 0ur south asia editor, anbarasan ethirajan, has more details. after the taliban captured power in august, they had a

military cyst sector but they didn't have the support of the entire community, because they always argued this was the first time that united the entire of afghanistan even under the previous rule, the northern part was under the control of a rival group, and this time they wanted legitimacy from their own community, because taliban are not going to have any democratic elections. so that is why they wanted the tribal elders, as well as religious clerics, to give them the backing, the rubber stamp of authority. and that is why they called for nearly 3000 of these clerics to kabul this three day meeting and they passed quite a few resolutions, important of them being asking for recognition from the international community, recognising them as the authority within afghanistan, and also urging the international donors to release the frozen funds of the country. they also warned that anyone who supports the rebellion against the taliban rule, then acts will be taken against them.

let's get some of the day's other news. activists in libya say they will continue protesting, until all the ruling elite step aside. on friday, protesters stormed the parliament in tobruk, and set it on fire. the demonstrators want the elections, originally scheduled for last december, to be held. the united nations says it is time for libya's leaders to listen to the demands of the country's youth, and put aside their differences. authorities in israel say they've shot down three unarmed hezbollah drones, heading towards a rig in the karish gas field. ownership of the field is disputed between israel and lebanon. the militant group says it launched the drones as part of what it called a reconnaissance mission. a search and rescue operation is under way in the south china sea, for 27 sailors, who went missing, after their cargo ship sank, near the eye of typhoon chaba. officials in hong kong say the vessel snapped in half, some 300 kilometres from the city. rescuers were able to lift three survivors from the water. as the us prepares to

celebrates independence day, it hasn't gone unnoticed on social media that in some states, the freedom being celebrated is being taken away from women's reproductive health choices. presidentjoe biden has weighed in on the topic, and around the world, there have been protests in solidarity with the pro—choice movement. michelle goodwin is professor of law at university of california, irvine, and has written extensively about abortion, and the effects of criminalising it. professor goodwin, thank you very much for making the time for us. as we know, there are these states that have almost immediately brought in restrictions to abortion. is this a threat, or are prosecuted in the states fully prepared to start legal proceedings against women who seek out the procedure?- seek out the procedure? thank ou for seek out the procedure? thank you for having _ seek out the procedure? thank you for having me _ seek out the procedure? thank you for having me on _ seek out the procedure? thank you for having me on this - seek out the procedure? thank| you for having me on this show. it is more than a threat, it is a reality in many states, because we have only seen this. the profile has been black and brown women over the last 20,

30 years in the united states, but that has already laid the ground for what we will now see. interestingly enough, the type of policing and criminal evasion recently enrolled women who are pregnant, many who wanted to maintain they were pregnant but were being prosecuted because they were not perfect in their pregnancy, threatened with arrest because they wanted a c—section, or arrested because they attempted suicide while pregnant, orfell down the steps while pregnant. but now prosecutors who already see that as a precedent find it quite easy, i think, under this new regime, to go after women who are threatening to have an abortion, want to have an abortion, want to have an abortion, orthey abortion, want to have an abortion, or they want to leave and go to another state in order to terminate their pregnancies. order to terminate their reanancies. ~ ., ., pregnancies. mentioned women travellina pregnancies. mentioned women travelling to _ pregnancies. mentioned women travelling to other _ pregnancies. mentioned women travelling to other states. - pregnancies. mentioned women travelling to other states. one i travelling to other states. one of the technical challenges here is the push and pull between federal law and state law. in practice, how would it work, if a woman travels from a state where abortion is restricted to a state where she can have the procedure and then

returns home? could she be prosecuted, in those circumstances? well, it is really important - circumstances? well, it is really important that - circumstances? well, it is really important that we l circumstances? well, it is. really important that we deal with clear facts and i'm really important that we deal with clearfacts and i'm glad you asked that question, because there is so much confusion. it dates back well over 150, 70 years in american jurisprudence, that people are free to travel, it is enshrined in our constitution and constitutional practices. in fact, the constitution we have in part was the result of confusion in the colonies, where people could travel, and whether their rights and privileges would be recognised in other states, and so it has been a long tradition within american law that people are free to travel and receive the benefits in the state in which they travel to. that said, there are prosecutors saying that they don't care about that. there are legislators saying they don't care about this history, they don't care about the rule of law in this context, and that they are keen

on drafting legislation that would allow them to even prosecute doctors in states that are free to perform abortion. now, they don't have the history of law on their side, they don't have the rule of law on their side, but those issues, if litigated, remain up to courts, to some degree, this is what troubles many people in the wake of the supreme court's decision just last week. we decision 'ust last week. we have decision just last week. we have officials _ decision just last week. we have officials from so—called sanctuary states like california, illinois, new york, calling for president biden to do more on a federal level to protect women's rates to seek out an abortion. is that something you see the president doing? something you see the president doinu ? ~ , something you see the president doinu? ~ , . . , doing? well, it is certainly something _ doing? well, it is certainly something that _ doing? well, it is certainly something that he - doing? well, it is certainly something that he is - something that he is articulating, and it is something that he could very well do. keep in mind we still have an equal rights amendment, where 38 states have ratified it, meaning that it could now be signed into law. president trump actually blocked it from

being signed into law during his administration. president biden could very well do that and we could see what that might lead to. president biden could collaborate with members of congress and really push them to get the women's health protection act enacted, and thatis protection act enacted, and that is an act that codifies roe versus wade. there is a lot of authority and power within the president's hand to make action, so we are all waiting to see what president biden may actually do. to see what president biden may actually tin-— to see what president biden may actually tic-— actually do. 0k, we will have to leave it — actually do. 0k, we will have to leave it there, _ actually do. 0k, we will have to leave it there, professor l to leave it there, professor goodwin from the university of california, thank you very much for sharing your expertise. appreciate it.— for sharing your expertise. appreciate it. thank you very much. this is bbc news. the latest headlines: in eastern ukraine, further fighting for control of lysycha nsk. the ukrainian army rejects russia's claims they've encircled the city. russian state media says two more british men captured by russian forces in ukraine have been charged with being mercenaries. here in the uk, there are fresh allegations about the behaviour of chris pincher, the mp

suspended from the conservative party amid allegations he groped two men. mr princher resigned as deputy chief whip on thursday, after admitting he had drunk far too much and embarrassed himself at the carlton club in london. he now says he's seeking professional medical support. 0ur politcal correspondent damien grammaticus has more. the sunday papers, which will be out in the morning, they are now saying that they have new allegations, and that these are just allegations made about chris pincher and his behaviour. the mail on sunday and the sunday times in particular including things like the daily mail says they have spoken to someone who claims that a decade ago when they were 2a, they were subjected to unwanted advances from mr pincher. another claimed that a tory staffer said they tried to prevent lecherous advances to a young man at a tory conference, and mr pincher threatened to report that staffer to her boss.

another claim that boris johnson was made aware two months ago about claims that mr pincher had made unwanted advances to a tory mp, and when rebuffed, had gone to that tory mp's wife with allegations of a sexual nature about the mp. so all of these are now being reported by the sunday papers. london has seen its biggest ever pride. more than a million people have taken part in the first event since 2019 because of the pandemic. it's also the 50th anniversary of london's first pride event. 0ur lgbt and identity correspondent lauren moss reports. cheering it's loud, it's proud, and it is back where it all began. the pride march took to the streets of london once again, led by the gay liberation front, who started it in 1972. generations came together under the rainbow

flag, including 17—year—old aaron, and her mum vicky, who travelled from leicestershire. i came out this year to my mum as bisexual, and i have a voice wanted to come to one of these festivals, and when i discovered we would be down here because we went to a guns and roses concert yesterday, i askedif and roses concert yesterday, i asked if we could go, and my mum was so for it. i asked if we could go, and my mum was so for it.— mum was so for it. i am so roud mum was so for it. i am so proud of — mum was so for it. i am so proud of aaron, _ mum was so for it. i am so proud of aaron, i - mum was so for it. i am so proud of aaron, i really - proud of aaron, i really am, and — proud of aaron, i really am, and to— proud of aaron, i really am, and to see _ proud of aaron, i really am, and to see everybody today, it is the — and to see everybody today, it is the most amazing experience. for others, — is the most amazing experience. for others, it was a homecoming. jamison went to his first parade 46 years ago. it is wonderful now to see the progression— is wonderful now to see the progression of— is wonderful now to see the progression of what - is wonderful now to see the progression of what it - is wonderful now to see the progression of what it was, | is wonderful now to see the - progression of what it was, and what _ progression of what it was, and what we — progression of what it was, and what we have _ progression of what it was, and what we have become. - progression of what it was, and what we have become. it- progression of what it was, and what we have become. it is - progression of what it was, and what we have become.- what we have become. it is not around 30,000 _ what we have become. it is not around 30,000 people - what we have become. it is not around 30,000 people took. what we have become. it is not. around 30,000 people took part in the parade today, passing some of the original from 1972. it is one of the most colourful celebrations of the country. but pride is still a protest at its heart. but pride is still a protest at its heart-— its heart. not being complacent, - its heart. not being complacent, we - its heart. not being | complacent, we saw its heart. not being - complacent, we saw this time last week in oslo, hours before they are parade, a terrorist

attack, leading to two people being killed and more than 20 people being injured, so we can't pretend that there isn't discrimination, bias and violence against people in this community foster violence against people in this community foste— community foster pride is reaching _ community foster pride is reaching far _ community foster pride is reaching far and - community foster pride is reaching far and wide - community foster pride is reaching far and wide in l community foster pride is l reaching far and wide in the community foster pride is - reaching far and wide in the uk with offence from shetland to salisbury. and will continue for the next several weeks. lauren moss, bbc news. there are warnings of further disruption for air travellers passing through heathrow this summer, with more flights likely to be cancelled in the coming weeks at the uk's busiest airport. the cuts are expected as the airlines change their schedules ahead of the school holiday period. our business reporter noor nanji has the story. after big queues at airports this summer, warnings of more disruption, with a new wave of flight cancellations expected to be announced next week. we're now right in the midst of the peak summer travel season but we're still experiencing the problems of lack of manpower, not only for airlines but across airports,

ground handlers and even in some cases border control staff, so the mix of high volumes and lack of people is causing tremendous dislocation at many airports. the government is allowing an amnesty on airport slot rules, which they say is part of their plan to tackle disruption ahead of the summer season. it means airlines are able to cancel flights without being penalised for not using their slot, but they must finalise their schedules by this friday. british airways services from heathrow are likely to bear the brunt of any cancellations. but ba said the relaxed rules would help them provide certainty to customers by making it easier to consolidate some quieter flights. ba is already facing the threat of summer strikes from cabin and ground crews over a pay dispute. today, there are already strikes by ryanair and easyjet cabin crew in spain, and some passengers are being stranded across europe. so what should you do if you're

caught up in all of this? crucially, i know what my rights are if anything is cancelled and that is to get a replacement flight on the same day if there's anything available that will take me there at the airline's expense, and then furthermore hotel accommodation if need be and compensation if it's the airline's fault, which if it's technical issues or staff shortage, it generally is. but for one passenger who's stuck in geneva after having his flight to bristol cancelled for three days in a row, it's tough. i don't have any available funds to pay for anything. easyjet have said they'll refund me any expenses, but i can't pay for anything at the minute. after two years of covid rules, the travel industry and passengers were hoping for a return to normality, but for now those fears of delays and cancellations are not going away. and it's notjust the uk, where there could be disruption.

ryanair cabin crew based in spain are to walk out for a total of 12 days this month to demand better pay and working conditions, according to unions there. it comes as the latest strike, which began on thursday, comes to an end — that resulted in the cancellation of ten flights. ryanair says they expect minimal if any disruption to its schedules as a result of what they called minor and poorly supported spanish labour strikes" let's go to cambodia, and this weekend hundreds of local and foreign runners are participating in the elephant trail run, in the pine woods of kirirom national park. the 32—kilometre race takes its name from the time when wild elephants roamed the forest. we can speak to hui chim, the organiser of the race who joins us now. good morning to you there in cambodia, we can see you are on the trail. this sounds like an

incredible setting, in the highlands of cambodia. tell us more about the location and where you are running through. we are located about two hours south—west of the capital, prolonged pen, it is on the highland, about 900 elevation, it is a very cool place. predominately pine forest here, thatis predominately pine forest here, that is what it is famous for. i am glad you say it is a cool place because when you say south—east asia you think of heat and humidity. it must be quite a challenging environment in which to train and compete. absolutely, it is hard all year round more or less, but this is quite unique in southeast asia. we have this island, and it is around 22, 20 three degrees. in the morning it can go under 16. how big an event is this and how popular is trail running in cambodia? trail running is still influencing cambodia. we had two races before covid. this is

the first after covid. people are just now starting to understand what trail is all about but lots of people are doing today, over 200 people. the interest in running has gone up across the region, vietnam. in fact the bbc producer in thailand is a huge trail running down. what does cambodia have to offer for trail runners?— cambodia have to offer for trail runners? first of all, we have the _ trail runners? first of all, we have the angkor, _ trail runners? first of all, we have the angkor, this - trail runners? first of all, we have the angkor, this is - trail runners? first of all, we have the angkor, this is the l have the angkor, this is the only mountain trail. i think we do have a lot of potential in terms of trail running. it is just a matter of time before more locations come on—board. in terms of the competition itself, people competing to get their name on the board, for a championship, to travel further afield if they were met? yes, in terms of competing, i think it is also an early

stage. peoplejust run it for fun mostly, but i guess there are some people working on ranking, you know, so that probably will take some time. for example, we don't have age—group rankings here in cambodia. somebody in the uk is working with the team, trying to put up some rankings, so hopefully that will take place soon. i hopefully that will take place soon. , ., , ., soon. i 'ust do some up. your back soon. ijust do some up. your back right _ soon. ijust do some up. your back right now _ soon. ijust do some up. your back right now it _ soon. ijust do some up. your back right now it is _ soon. ijust do some up. your back right now it isjust - soon. ijust do some up. your back right now it isjust about | back right now it is just about having fun. if somebody is getting into trail running and if they are thinking about coming to cambodia to do that, how would you sell it?- how would you sell it? well, indistinct _ how would you sell it? well, indistinct speech - how would you sell it? well, indistinct speech get - how would you sell it? well, | indistinct speech get away how would you sell it? well, - indistinct speech get away from you know, the traffic, from the road, running, so this is a unique combination where you can get away from the heat, the city, get into some natural environment so it is a perfect combination. and we are able to

sell that, and there is a sharp demand for it, actually, we only open for two weeks and people are still calling to get in, yes. fantastic. i hope it goes well today, thank you joining us. palestinian authorities have handed over to us expects the bullet that killed the palestinian american journalist shireen abu ableh when she was working for the al jazeera use network. palestinian authorities say she was goodbye is really sold as well working in the west bank. israel so she was not shot intentionally. greece has welcomed more than 200 vibrators from other european union countries who will help contain some wildfires. firefighters from spain, bulgaria and romania will be joined by colleagues from france, finland, germany and norway. they are being funded ljy norway. they are being funded by the eu's civil and disaster protection unit. it is now known that at least 24 people have killed and the landslide in north—eastern india. the

section of a health fell on a railway construction camp in at the state of metaphor after heavy rains. 38 people are still unaccounted for. there's been a major upset at wimbledon in the women's tournament with the top seed iga swiatek defeated, 6—4 6—2, in the third round by alize cornet of france. earlier on centre court, coco gauff was also knocked out of the tournament. chetan patak from bbc sport is at the tournment. we have seen the upset of the championship so far. an incredible match—winning street came to an end, as the 32—year—old came on, first knocking out serena williams. she now has the other standard result in her wimbledon resume ljy result in her wimbledon resume by knocking her out. she says she is ageing like a beautiful

wine. her opponent, very honest saying she is struggling to make the transition from clay to grass. evidently has work to do if she is to add wimbledon to already two french open titles. coco gauff reach the french open final against igar, progressing quickly. her wimbledon has been brought to an end by the fellow american, amanda anisimova, winning in three sets. coco gauff doctor first but credit to amanda anisimova who has reached the fourth round, really powering through the second and third sets, leaving the woman saw wide open. another perhaps surprising results, not a shock at all, fair to say, but the two time champion petra kvitova is out. she went into the champion winning the title in

eastbourne but she has been knocked out by the fourth seed and numberfour paula badosa showing herself as a contender on grass. we also have howe cup on grass. we also have howe cup on sunday, another contender we have been talking about, 0ns jabeur. biting has continued around lysychansk biting has continued around lysycha nsk as biting has continued around lysychansk as fighting lysycha nsk as fighting continues lysychansk as fighting continues for the region. they have been intense shillings, but a spokesperson has denied that russian backbiters have encircled the city. at kansas state media russia claimed that more britons have been charged with being mercenaries. dylan healey and andrew hill are being held on the east of the country. two other british men along with the moroccan man was sentenced to death last month. more on that story on the website.

you can reach me on twitter — i'm @richpreston. thank you for your company. see you next time. hello there. pa rt part two of the weekend is looking and settled as well. more shells around, some could be heavy in places, rumbles of thunder. the winds are light in the south, breezy across northern areas. it is because we have low pressure to the north of the uk, higher pressure to the south, and a couple of weather fronts crossing the country that will enhance shower activity. one such front will be like a couple of weather fronts crossing the country that will enhance shower activity. one such front will be like across central parts of the uk through the morning so quite breezy across scotland and northern ireland. into the afternoon, all areas will see sunshine and showers. it could turn dry for the western errors

laid on the day. now, there could be a passing shower at wimbledon, but i think the emphasis will be on drier and sunnier weather, with light winds, and a top temperature of around 22 degrees. now, through sunday night, it looks like the showers will fade away. lengthy clear skies again across england and wales. scotland and northern ireland will stay breezy, with showers or longer spells of rain, and temperatures will range from around nine to 12 celsius across the uk. so, monday, we start off with some sunshine across southern and eastern areas, a few showers developing here into the afternoon. most of the showers, though, will be across the north and west of the country, leaving some longer spells of rain at times, for the north and west of scotland. temperatures again, the mid—teens in the north. we could see 22, or even 23 degrees, across southeast england. this area of high pressure want to continue to build into the southwest, but around the top of it, it will feed in a lot of cloud to northern and western parts

of the country. some cloud getting down into the south and the east as well, maybe just one or two showers here, and top temperatures around 17 to 22 celsius. now, as we move deeper into the week, it looks like this area of high pressure will continue to influence our weather, pushing these weather fronts away, but it'll always be cloudier, with the chance of some showers, and stronger breeze across the north and the west of the uk for the rest of the week. you can see the cloudier sky across scotland and northern ireland. the further south that you are, a better chance of staying dry, and it should start to turn warmer, perhaps reaching 26 degrees on friday.

this is bbc news. the headlines. fighting appears to be intensifying around the ukrainian city of lysychansk as russian forces try to take the only remaining city in the luhansk region not under their control. it's come under intense shelling but a ukrainian spokesman denied claims that russian—backed fighters had now encircled the city. two more britons captured by russian forces in ukraine have been charged with being mercenaries, according to state media. dylan healy and andrew hill are being held in the east. two other british men, along with a moroccan man, were sentenced to death last month. a three—day meeting of religious and tribal leaders in afghanistan has ended with a call on the international community to recognise the taliban government and lift all sanctions on the country. the male—only meeting also declared that any