this is bbc news. i'm nuala mcgovern with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. europe's intense heatwave ignites wildfires. many have died in extreme temperatures across the continent. this is a very dangerous time a year, and we are seeing instances of fires reigniting. record—breaking temperatures are set to hit the uk next week. transport services could face significant disruption. moscow orders its forces to step up operations in ukraine — as russian missiles strike cities. president biden wraps up his first middle east tour, with a promise the us will remain fully engaged in the region.

and beer for sunflower oil — the munich pub finding an unusual way to beat a frying oil crunch. hello and welcome to the programme. the heatwave in southern europe is intensifying — with wildfires forcing thousands of people to flee towns and villages. a number of people have already died, and temperatures are predicted to go well above a0 celsius in parts of spain and portugal. scientists say climate change is a factor in the severity of the heatwave. more than 11,000 people have been forced to leave france's southwestern gironde region, from where our europe correspondent, jessica parker, sent us this report.

they've been battling these fires for days. 1a,000 people have now been evacuated across the area. everything went so fast, and the fire, too, was big, big, big. and my friends woke me up and i was like, 0k, this is very serious, what do i take in my room? manon was working and living at a local campsite. for now, this conference centre is her home. 0thers wait here for news or the chance to dash back now, plans of change. last niaht, now, plans of change. last night, everyone _ now, plans of change. last night, everyone said - now, plans of change. last night, everyone said no - now, plans of change. last night, everyone said no need to move — night, everyone said no need to move we — night, everyone said no need to move. we did the same for tuesday— move. we did the same for tuesday and so on.- move. we did the same for tuesday and so on. others here wait for news _ tuesday and so on. others here wait for news or— tuesday and so on. others here wait for news or the _ tuesday and so on. others here wait for news or the chance - wait for news or the chance to go home to fetch what they left

behind. we are trying to get our cat, so we are going to go- to the village, escorted | by police, and try to get the cat and get out. you can see the smoke billowing in the distance, and it was not like that a couple of hours ago. it means that people who are waiting here to be quickly escorted back into the village of casseuil to fetch pets that were left behind, perhaps personal belongings as well — that's been put on hold. authorities say around 10,000 hectares of land have been ravaged by the flames in the gironde region. this is a very dangerous time of year— this is a very dangerous time of year and _ this is a very dangerous time of year and we _ this is a very dangerous time of year and we are _ this is a very dangerous time of year and we are seeing - of year and we are seeing significant _ of year and we are seeing significant instances - of year and we are seeing significant instances of i of year and we are seeing . significant instances of fires reignited _ with temperatures set to edge closer to a0 degrees in the coming days, people watch on and hope soon this year, the views are hard to see. jessica parker, bbc

news. here in the uk, the government has held an emergency meeting, to discuss how to respond to the record temperatures, expected to hit parts of the uk next week. 0ur vorrespondentjon donnison has the latest. 0ur correspondentjon donnison has the latest. it is without doubt weather for mr whippy, and at roundhay park in leeds, he's been doing a roaring trade. so, yeah, it's been extremely busy. we're just working 12 hours every single day, in the heat and obviously monday and tuesday next week, itjust looks like it's going to be unbearable. here we go. keeping cool is going to be key... ..with temperatures expected to reach the high 30s and even a0 celsius. concerned about my dogs, so i'm going to get a paddling pool, try to keep her inside as much as possible, but then also i've got a mother in a nursing home so that's concerning me. ,so i've got a meeting today to find out what they're so, i've got a meeting today to find out what they're going to do to make sure that the residents

are kept cool. doctors have warned it's not just the vulnerable who are at risk from such extreme heat. the uk health security agency says a far more moderate heatwave last summer led to over 1,600 excess deaths. and all this comes with hospitals already under mounting pressure because of the recent surge in covid cases, and there's a particular warning from health officials today that patients shouldn't be left stuck in ambulances in sweltering temperatures while doctors wait for beds to clear inside. but speaking on a visit to the east of england ambulance trust today, the new health secretary said the government was prepared. we're putting in additional capacity, whether it's with call handlers, whether it's the number of paramedics on duty, whether it's extra capacity in 111 as well. so, we're putting in that additional capacity and we're working with hospital trust leaders in terms of where we're able to increase bed capacity on the wards.

at 0gmore beach, in wales, this weekend, people were topping up their tans. but by monday, in some parts of the uk, it could be 10 degrees hotter than today, and the advice is to stay out of the sun. and forecasters say all this is something we're going to have to get used to. scientists believe now that we l are going to see more extreme heat and potentially - for a longer period of time. we're10% more likely. now to see extreme heat as a result of climate change and man—made influence. i so, the next few days could see records broken and britain's weather move into uncharted waters. but climate scientists say extreme temperatures in the summer are already becoming the new normal. john dawson, bbc news. you can find out more about the links between extreme heat and climate

change on our website. there's also a video on why it's so hot in europe at the moment. just go to the bbc news site to watch. russia's defence minister has ordered all forces to step up operations across ukraine. sergei shoigu said it was to prevent attacks on the occupied east of the country. this comes as russian missiles struck cities right across the country, including at a famous space rocket and satellite factory in dnipro. 0ur defence correspondent, jonathan beale, reports. 0n ukraine's eastern front, they're about to target russian positions. this time, using american—supplied howitzers and ammunition. explosion. ukraine's still vastly outgunned. these help, but they can't hang around. explosion. western weapons like this have given ukraine an advantage in terms of accuracy and range, but they've also become high—value targets, with russia trying to hunt them down.

they prepare to move out quickly before they become the target. explosions. go, go, go! explosions. well, that's a russian reply coming in just now. they fired their shots and, within minutes, russian artillery were responding, shells landing close to us, where we are now. gunshot. there's another one. this time, they miss. the howitzers get away. the artillery commander tells me the russians are regularly targeting them because of their western weapons. "because they're precise and effective," he says. ukraine's also having to learn a western way of war, the emphasis on precision. and this one's making a difference — the us himars rocket launcher. ukraine doesn't have many, but it can now strike

targets from distance. but it's creating a massive logistical challenge. ukraine's now having to maintain dozens of weapons from dozens of countries, like these british—supplied armoured vehicles. each one requires separate training and spare parts. and weapons supplied by the west also use a different calibre of ammunition, like these german self—propelled guns. the west still claims it's not directly involved in this conflict, but in truth, it's now an essential part of ukraine's war machine. jonathan beale, bbc news, eastern ukraine. brendan kearney is a retired us marine colonel. his last assignment was as chief of staff for us marine corps forces in europe. he says he doesn't believe russia can �*step up'

its ukraine offensive beyond its current form. i think there's an excellent chance that excellent chance that we'll see an increase in the number of cruise missiles and other high—technology missile attacks on soft targets in ukraine. that seemingly is something they're very enamoured with, and sadly, i think we will continue to view that on a daily basis. but when you get to the real aspects of increasing your offensive capability — say, taking over air control in the skies of ukraine — they failed so far. taking over the northern part of the black sea around 0desa — they failed miserably at that. and control issues continue, and they continue to the logistic issue seems to continue, their command and control issues continue, and they continue to have significant morale problems. so, i think it's more rhetoric than anything else. so, with that, i mention dnipro there. we also saw this week vinnytsia, another place that was also hit. what can ukraine do,

or nato, to assist to stop those type of attacks? well, part of the shipments that are going into ukraine, there's been increasing technological sophistication with some of the anti—air weapons that are the west, so that may help. again, the proof will be in the pudding in how successful they can interdict those cruise missiles. but other than that, most are being fired from inside russia, so unless the ukrainians want to go after those launch sites — and a lot are mobile launchers, so very difficult to identify and then target — there probably won't be much they can do. but what they will be able to do is continue to target with these new multiple—launch rocket systems that the uk has provided and taking out

the russian artillery system. the ukrainians in the last month have proved to be very successful in that. now, but how do you see this going forward? many talk about, it could be a conflict that continues for many more years, particularly in the east. i'm curious, just briefly, how you see it. sadly, i think it's going to continue that way. i think what we basically see right now is what was going on during world war i on the western front. it's trench warfare, it's artillery bombardment — it's awful. casualties on both sides and, certainly on the ukrainian side, tremendous civilian casualties in the regions that are being contested. so, i think this is going to go on for months, if not years, and we can only hope there's a break on the part of the ukrainians or the russian

military falling apart with its leadership. or its leadership. that would bring about a certain peace and a quick one, but i think the bloodbath�*s going to continue. thanks very much to colonel kearney, giving us his analysis. some of the background if you go to bbc .com/ news and find it or download our app. let's get some of the day's other news. the un says gang violence in a single district of the haitian capital, port au prince, left more than 200 people dead within a matter of days earlier this month. the caribbean nation has seen a catastrophic rise in gang—fuelled violence following the assassination of presidentjovenel moise a year ago. the instability has been exacerbated by fuel shortages and rising food prices. parliament in north macedonia has voted in favour of a deal which paves the way for long—delayed talks onjoining the eu.

bulgaria has agreed to lift its veto on north macedonia's membership, in return for bulgarians being recognised as an official minority group. thousands of hungarians have protested for a fifth day on the streets of the capital, budapest, against the introduction of steep taxes on small firms. parliament approved the law change on tuesday, which will raise the tax rate for hundreds of thousands of small businesses. hungary's inflation is at its highest in two decades. two athletes at the world athletics championships in the us state of oregon have been sent home for doping violations. they include kenya's lawrence cherono, who was seen as a contender in sunday's race. the american 400—metre runner, randolph ross, has also been suspended. president biden is returning to america, after completing his first tour of the middle east since taking office. he insisted his administration would remain engaged

in the region, and he's been trying to persuade gulf states to boost oil production, to help cut global prices. 0ur middle east correspondent, anna foster, has more details. standing side by side once again. joe biden came here to saudi arabia to mend relations with america's old ally, and the president made a promise not to desert the middle east. we will not walk away and leave a vacuum to be filled by china, russia or iran. we will seek to build on this moment with active, principled american leadership. but some say mr biden abandoned his principles by coming here. yesterday, he met crowned and is mohammed bin salman, the kingdom's the factorial were one—to—one. the kingdom's de facto ruler, one—to—one. the cia concluded that the crimp and is approved

the brutal murder of jamal khashoggi in istanbul, though he's always denied it. afterwards, the president vowed to make saudi arabia a pariah. today, the saudi minister of state forforeign affairs told me that was simply election talk. what happens in campaigns is what i call what happens during the silly season. but disagreement with the regime, descent, is still frowned upon and ultimately punished, so when will that change? i think we can have a discussion about this and an argument about this because what you call a dissident, we call a terrorist. what you may call somebody expressing their opinion, it is incitement. when somebody gives money to a group that murders people, is that expressing their opinion? or is it funding murder? but they are presented outside saudi arabia as if they are activists. many believe the president came here to negotiate for more oil. if that was the case he left

empty—handed and that raises if that was the case, he left empty—handed, and that raises questions about whether this controversial visit achieved enough to be called a success. anna foster, bbc news, jeddah. this is bbc news. here are the headlines. europe's intense heatwave ignites wildfires — many have died in extreme temperatures across the continent. moscow orders all its forces to step up operations in ukraine, as russian missiles strike cities across the country. sri lanka's parliament has gathered to begin the process of choosing a new president. that new leader will replace gotabaya rajapaksa — who fled the country and resigned in the face of massive anti government protests. 0ur correspondent secunder kermani reports from the capital, colombo. tight security outside parliament this morning as politicians began

the process of selecting a new president. this is the man it's most likely to be — ranil wickremesinghe, currently acting leader. he's an old political face and has been the focus of protester anger. the president's office is still under the control of demonstrators, though they've handed back other official buildings. a few metres away, the main protest camp, named the gota go home village, a reference to the ousted president, gotabaya rajapaksa, who they forced to resign and flee the country. but those here have always also demanded ranil wickremesinghe, who looks likely to succeed him, should resign too. we're halfway there with gota going home, it is a win. but ranil still being there, still being acting president is a problem for us.

we need him to step down as well. he is going the path that he's taking as we see it, is that he's going to be a failed leader, just like gotabaya. and as people gathered here to send a failed leader home, they'll gather again. but the longer this instability continues, the more difficult it's going to be to sort out the terrible problems with the economy here. yeah, that's true, but the thing is, without sending home the people that initiated, that started this crisis, we don't see a possibility of us getting into any sort of stability. meanwhile, much of the country has ground to a halt. cars line up waiting for fuel as the government can't afford to import enough. wherever you go in this city, you see these huge queues of cars that stretch on and on and on. people waiting for days just to get fuel. and for whoever takes charge of this country,

resolving this economic crisis is going to be a massive challenge. hilmi and fahim have pushed their car for the last five kilometres of this queue. how long have you been waiting for fuel? five days. and you were in this queue for those five days? yes. do you think your new leader is going to be able to sort out this problem? is he going to be able to bring fuel? honestly, we don't know. honestly, it seems like this problem we have to face another two or three years. can you live like this for another two or three years? no, we can't. sri lankans are suffering, with food prices rocketing up, too. continuing political instability will make an imf bailout deal all the more difficult. but protesters here say they want to see real change. secunder kermani, bbc news,

colombo. the mexican navy has captured one of the country's most wanted drug lords — rafael caro quintero. the us attorney general says the united states will now seek his immediate extradition. the arrest came days after mexico's president, andres manuel lopez 0brador, metjoe biden at the white house. claudia redmond reports. with a bounty of $20 million on his head, this is the moment drug lord rafael caro quintero was captured after a search dog found him hiding in bushland. quintero was released from prison in 2013 after a court overturned his ito—year sentence for the 1985 kidnapping and killing of a us drug enforcement administration agent. he was added to the fbi's most wanted list in 2018. his arrest comes just days after mexico's president andres manuel lopez 0brador met joe biden at the white house.

both leaders said they would step up the fight against drug trafficking. the former leader of the guadalajara cartel was one of the primary suppliers of heroin, cocaine and marijuana to the united states in the late 1970s. in a statement confirming the arrest, it emerged that a blackhawk helicopter used in the operation had crashed, killing 1a of the 15 passengers on board. the cause of the crash is still being investigated. claudia redmond, bbc news. let me show you some incredible pictures of drought in syria. these dry expanses are what's left of the khabur river near the village of sabaa sukour in northern syria. it was once one of the main water sources for the nearby city of hasa kah. but years of crippling drought have depleted riverbeds, and local farmers say there's no future for them. they blame climate

change for the drought. the russian invasion of ukraine has caused severe oil shortages, particularly in europe, which gets 80% of its oil from ukraine and russia. now a brewery in germany has come up with a cunning plan to make sure customers can still order the fried schnitzel they love. wendy urquhart reports. who would have thought that the best thing to take to the pub in germany would be a bottle of cooking oil? the war in ukraine has caused a severe lack of rapeseed and sunflower oil. supermarket shelves are empty and several shops in munich alone have slapped a limit on the number of bottles people can buy. translation: getting oil is very difficult. - you can only get small quantities in the shops. if you need 30 litres a week and only get 15,

at some point you won't be able to fry schnitzel. now the munich pub has come up with a novel way to make sure it has enough oil to cook tasty lunch and dinners. for the foreseeable future it is offering people the chance to exchange one litre of oil for one litre of beer. 0ne customer bought a truckload of sunflower oil during a humanitarian aid trip to ukraine and was delighted to be able to swap them for a few cold beers. translation: are about 80 litres of sunflower oil - translation: i bought 80 litres of sunflower oil - and in return, i got 80 litres of beer, or eight creates. of beer, or eight crates. i mixed it alla bit — a bit of wheat beer, a bit of light beer, a bit of shandy. i think it's cool because we get cheap beer and giesinger

brewery also helped because there's an oil shortage in germany. a litre of beer cost around 7 euros in a german bar and a bottle of sunflower oil is just 4.5, euros so it's little wonder that customers are loving it. wendy urquhart, bbc news. a novel idea! the rolling stones invited two ukrainian children's choirs to perform their hit you can't always get what you want at the end of their concert in vienna on friday night. mickjagger told the audience that the choirs had driven a long way to get there from kyiv. that is what was happening. i just want to bring you a reminder of the top story. more people have been ordered to evacuate their homes in france as wildfires continue to intensify across southerrn europe for a sixth day.

thanks very much for watching and stay with us if you can. you've probably heard already that a national emergency has been declared on account of this unprecedented heatwave. the english temperature record, and also that of the uk, is going to get obliterated in the next few days, as indeed is the record for wales. in scotland, probably there or thereabouts, northern ireland perhaps just missing out. but this is an unprecedented spell of hot weather. a met office red extreme weather warning, the first ever issued for all these areas of england, including many of england's largest cities. that is in force on monday and tuesday at the peak of the heatwave. sunday through to tuesday, for england, wales, southern scotland, we have a widespread amber weather warning, impacts to health and infrastructure are expected. in the next few hours, showers push into northern scotland. look at these temperatures,

this is as cool as the weather gets for the next few days, so if you're up early on sunday morning, take advantage of the cool air, open your doors and your curtains and windows, let that cool air into your house and into your flat for the first couple of the hours of the morning, then shut everything, shut the windows, shut your doors, shut the curtains, shut that exceptional heat out. we will see temperatures building widely into the 30s across england and wales as well. what follows on monday is a spell of dangerous heat. we have sunshine across the board and temperatures hitting a0 celsius or so. the current uk temperature record is 38.7, so this is the hottest day we have ever had in our country. and it's notjust a day time temperatures, overnight, 10pm on monday night, still widely into the 30s, that will be horrendous for getting a good night's sleep, hence the importance of keeping your flats and houses as cool as possible. tuesday, some storms breaking

out in the west bringing slightly fresher air into western areas but otherwise, it's another day of dangerous heat. this heat is dangerous for people's health, so you can mitigate some of those problems. i've already mentioned some tips, keeping curtains closed, particularly on the sunny side of your house. 0nly open windows and doors if it is actually cooler outside. that would often only be at the end of the night. drink plenty of water and remember, a cool shower can help you cope.

this is bbc news. the headlines... an extreme heatwave in europe that's already caused deaths and wildfires is intensifying. fires are causing widespread destruction on the coast of croatia and on the greek island of crete. a thousand firefighters are tackling blazes in southwest france. temperatures are set to rise further in the coming days. president biden has ended his visit to the middle east with a promise that america is committed to remaining fully engaged in the region. mr biden has been trying to persuade gulf states to boost oil production to help lower global prices. saudi arabia said oil wasn't specifically discussed. moscow has ordered its military to step up the offensive in ukraine, as russian missiles strike cities right across the country.