this is bbc news, i'm rich preston. our top stories: europe's intense heatwave ignites wildfires, many have died in extreme temperatures across the continent. this is a very various time of yearfor this is a very various time of year for wildfire risk and we are seeing significant instances of fires reigniting. in other news, moscow orders its forces to step up operations in ukraine, as russian missiles strike several 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 bbc news. 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 south—western gironde region, from where our europe correspondent, jessica parker, sent us this report. the fight to tackle flames through western france. they have been battling these fires four days. 1a,000 people have now been evacuated across the area of gironde.

it went so fast, and the fire as well as big, big, big. my friends woke me up and i was like, 0k, what do i take in my room? ,, . , like, 0k, what do i take in my room? ,, .,, ., ~ like, 0k, what do i take in my room? ,, ., ~ ., room? she was working and livin: at room? she was working and living at a — room? she was working and living at a local _ room? she was working and living at a local campsite - room? she was working and living at a local campsite for now. this conference and is her home. it has also become an office for this comes workers. the popular. everybody is saying, come on monday, we do the same for tuesday, and so on and so on. others here wait for news. all others here wait for news. all the chance to — home to fetch what they left behind. we the chance to - home to fetch what they left behind.- what they left behind. we are t in: to what they left behind. we are trying to get _ what they left behind. we are trying to get our— what they left behind. we are trying to get our cat, - what they left behind. we are trying to get our cat, so - what they left behind. we arei trying to get our cat, so we're 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 wasn't

like that a couple of hours ago. it means that people waiting here to be quickly escorted back into the village to get your pets that were left behind, perhaps personal belongings as well, that has been put on hold. authorities say around 100 square kilometres of forest up been ravaged by fire here. there are two main places. 0ne ravaged by fire here. there are two main places. one a little inland, another right by the coast. translation: , , coast. translation: , translation: this is a very dangerous — translation: this is a very dangerous time _ translation: this is a very dangerous time of _ translation: this is a very dangerous time of year - translation: this is a very dangerous time of year for l dangerous time of year for wildfire risk and we are seeing significant instances of fires reigniting. significant instances of fires reigniting— significant instances of fires reiuanitin. , . , ., reigniting. temperatures are set to edge _ reigniting. temperatures are set to edge towards - reigniting. temperatures are set to edge towards 40 - reigniting. temperatures are i set to edge towards 40 degrees set to edge towards a0 degrees in the coming days. this is a famous tourist destination, this year the views are dizzy. jessica parker, bbc news, gironde. 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. a national emergency has already been declared. our correspondent,

jon 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 her 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 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 ogmore beach, in wales, this weekend, people were enjoying the sea air. but in some parts of the uk it is forecast to be 10 degrees

hotter on monday 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 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. 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 donnison, bbc news. let's look at the link between politics and climate with lisa friedman. let's talk about the us in particular. joe biden said he wanted to continue the word of the obama

administration on that front, has healed up to those promises?— has healed up to those promises? has healed up to those romises? ., ~ , ., ., ., promises? thank you for having me. it is promises? thank you for having me- it is a _ promises? thank you for having me- it is a pretty _ promises? thank you for having me. it is a pretty big _ promises? thank you for having me. it is a pretty big moment . me. it is a pretty big moment right now in the united states and climate policy. you're right, president biden came into office with perhaps the most aggressive climate change agenda of any president. he promised to cut us emissions 50-52% promised to cut us emissions 50—52% below promised to cut us emissions 50-52% below 2005 promised to cut us emissions 50—52% below 2005 levels by 2030. that isn'tjust a goal for the us. all countries, many countries including the european union, uk, put forward targets that would each help to keep the planet on a trajectory of 1.5 degrees above preindustrial levels. that's a level beyond which scientists say that the kind of heat waves we are seeing now and other catastrophic events become a much more likely. crosstalk. earlier this week, congress all

but admitted defeat on addressing climate change this session. these agreements were made at cop 21, reasserted at cop26 in glasgowjust recently. john kerry, the us climate and boy has been making trips to of cop27, what is hoped—for at that meeting? at the moment, the us in action is what everyone is talking about. earlierthis is what everyone is talking about. earlier this week, a pivotal senator in the united states, joe manchin of west virginia, let it be known that he would not be able to vote at this moment for legislation that would have helped president biden achieve that goal, so the goals at cop27 are multiple, but the most important one is for all countries to move toward reducing emissions and getting on this 1.5 degrees pathway. if

the us isn't able to move forward, that'll have implications for every other country. you mention this concern about usn action. why is american politics so important to the global climate change picture? undeniably, the us is the largest historic matter, the largest historic matter, the largest country, it has the power to lead or not. we saw in the trump administration that the trump administration that the us tried to withdraw from the us tried to withdraw from the paris agreement and it was four difficult years of global climate policy. present biden came back, hejoined the paris agreement, said the us would join, but if the us is not actually cutting emissions it makes it very hard to then commence particularly developing countries and countries like china, india and brazil who are of course still addressing development needs of

their own to say, "hey, you should be reducing emissions as well." , , .g should be reducing emissions as well." , , ,"., well." this is off the back of resent well." this is off the back of present biden's _ well." this is off the back of present biden's trip - well." this is off the back of present biden's trip to - well." this is off the back of present biden's trip to the l present biden�*s trip to the middle east in which he was encouraging an increase in oil production to ease economic pressures. these two messages don't really go hand—in—hand, don't really go hand—in—hand, do they? don't really go hand-in-hand, do the ? ., , don't really go hand-in-hand, do the ? . , , , do they? certainly present biden and _ do they? certainly present biden and saudi _ do they? certainly present biden and saudi arabia - do they? certainly present - biden and saudi arabia talking about energy and fist pumping the saudi leader at the time of the saudi leader at the time of the collapse of the climate legislation in the united states was a difficult moment for this administration. but, there are still things at the biden administration can do which it says it is going to do, regulate power plants, regulate emissions from vehicles and other moves but it is undeniably a difficult time for climate policy in the us. lisa friedman from the new york times, we will leave it there. thank you forjoining us. you can find out more about the links between extreme heat and climate

change on our website. there's this 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. it comes as russian missiles struck cities right across the country, including at a space rocket and satellite factory in dnipro. our defence correspondent, jonathan beale, has this report. on 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. 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. 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. thousands of hungarians have protested for a fifth day on the streets of the capital, budapest, against the introduction of steep taxes on small businesses. parliament approved the law change on tuesday, which raises the tax rate for hundreds of thousands of small firms. hungary's inflation is at its highest in two decades. 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. 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 a00 metre runner, randolph ross, has also been suspended.

stay with us on bbc news. still to come: the munich pub that's found a novel way to beat europe's cooking oil shortages. radio: i see you coming down the ladder now. i that's one small step for man... ..one giant leap for mankind. a catastrophic engine fire is being blamed tonight. for the first crash - in the 30—year history of concorde, the world's only supersonic airliner. _ it was one of the most vivid symbols of the violence and hatred that tore apart the state of yugoslavia but now, a decade later, it's been painstakingly rebuilt and opens again today. there's been a 50% decrease in sperm quantity and an increase in malfunctioning sperm unable to swim properly.

all: seven, six, five... thousands of households across the country are suspiciously quiet this lunchtime as children bury their noses in the final instalment of harry potter. this is bbc news. the latest 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. our 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 forfuel, 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. after 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 should — we have to face another two, three years. can you live like this for another two or three years? no, 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. president biden is returning to the us 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. our 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 crown prince mohammed bin salman, the kingdom's de facto ruler, one to one. the cia concluded that the crown prince 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 for foreign affairs adel al—jubeir, 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 that what you may 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 this funding murder? but they're 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 questions about whether this controversial visit achieved enough to be called a success. anna foster, bbc news, jeddah. the rolling stones have invited two ukrainian children's choirs to perform their hit you can't always get what you want together at a concert in vienna. # you can't always get what you want. the boys and girls choirs travelled from kyiv to perform the stones�* classic.

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. danke schon. 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's offering people the chance to exchange one litre of oil for one litre of beer. one 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: i bought 80 litres i of sunflower oil and in return, l i got 80 litres of beer, or eight crates. i mixed it all a 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 is also helped because there's an oil shortage in germany. a litre of beer costs around 7 euros in a german bar and a bottle of sunflower oil is just a.5 euros, so it's little wonder that customers are loving it. wendy urquhart, bbc news.

and there's just time to tell you about one sport that's not for the faint—hearted. it's the cliff diving world series competition event that has been taking place in the danish capital, copenhagen. the men's event was won by romanian constantin popovici, who performed the dive of the day with a very steady handstand to clinch the win from the roof of the royal danish opera house. and for the first time in the event's history, women were able to take part and display their skills from more than twice the olympic diving height. australia's rhiannan iffland came first with a faultless dive, despite some very windy conditions. all the ladies did super great to deal with those conditions and dive that well but yeah, i think it makes the win extra special, just to know that i was resilient and that i stood there and my mind was stronger than the conditions were.-

than the conditions were. great stuff. than the conditions were. great stuff- that's — than the conditions were. great stuff. that's it _ than the conditions were. great stuff. that's it from _ than the conditions were. great stuff. that's it from us - than the conditions were. great stuff. that's it from us for - stuff. that's it from us for now. you can reach me on twitter — i'm @richpreston. but by. —— goodbye. you've probably heard already that a national emergency has been declared on account of this unprecedented heatwave. the english temperature record, which is also that of the uk, is going to get obliterated in the next few days, as indeed will the record for wales. in scotland, probably getting 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 one ever issued for all these areas of england, including many of england's largest cities — that's in force for monday and tuesday, the peak of the heatwave. but across sunday through to tuesday, for england, wales, southern scotland, we have a widespread amber weather warning. impacts to health, impacts to infrastructure are expected. over the next few hours, seeing some showers push into northern scotland.

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

tuesday, we start to see some storms break out in the west, bringing some 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. only 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: the extreme heatwave across southern europe, is continuing to intensify. wildfires have now spread to the coast of croatia and the greek island of crete where they have caused widespread destruction. in spain and portugal, over 300 people are thought to have died from the heat. moscow has ordered its military to step up the offensive in ukraine, as russian missiles continue to strike cities, across the country. an official statement said their aim is to prevent strikes by ukrainian forces on eastern regions no longer controlled by kyiv. 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