this is bbc news. these are the latest headlines in the uk and around the world. president biden confirms the head of al-qaeda, ayman al zawahiri, has been killed by a us drone strike in kabul. he made videos including in recent weeks calling for his followers to attack the united states and our allies. nowjustice has been delivered and this terrorist leader is no more. experts predict typical household energy bills will rise to more than £3,300 a year in the uk this autumn, and climb even higher next year. it comes as bp reports £6.9 billion in quarterly profits, its highest in m years.

china warns the united states it will "pay the price" if us house speaker nancy pelosi visits taiwan during her asia trip. life support is expected to be withdrawn from 12—year—old archie battersbee today, after court of appeal judges said his treatment should not continue. british airways halts sales of tickets on short—haul flights from heathrow for a week as disruption for travellers continues. hello and welcome, whether you're watching in the uk or around the world. the leader of al-qaeda, ayman al—zawahiri, has been killed in an american drone strike in afghanistan. al—zawahiri was one of the masterminds behind

the september 11th attacks against the united states in 2001. after years of tracking him, the cia targeted him with two missiles from a drone flying above the afghan capital, kabul, killing him instantly. announcing the strike, president biden said the killing would bring closure to families of the nearly 3,000 victims of the 9/11 attacks. the killing comes nearly a year after the us�*s chaotic withdrawal from afghanistan, as our washington correspondent nomia iqbal reports. after decades, america has killed one of its most wanted terrorists. my fellow americans, on saturday, at my direction, the united states successfully concluded an air strike in kabul, afghanistan, which killed the emir of al-qaeda, ayman al—zawahiri. the president said he gave his personal approval to kill ayman al—zawahiri. justice has been delivered, and this terrorist leader is no more.

people around the world no longer need to fear the vicious and determined killer. the united states continues to demonstrate our resolve and our capacity to defend the american people against those who seek to do us harm. you know, we make it clear again tonight that no matter how long it takes, no matter where you hide, if you are a threat to our people, the united states will find you and take you out. it's taken 21 years. 0sama bin laden was the face behind the 9/11 attacks, but al—zawahiri was seen as the brains. officials say his tactics and organisational skills were responsible for the deaths of nearly 3000 people. both men were close, appearing in propaganda videos. al—zawahiri was even bin laden�*s personal physician. the us wanted him dead or alive for $25 million. i think what this reflects is, really, the challenges we have had

on our counterterrorism policies where al—zawahiri has been able to survive for two decades, outlasted the afghanistan war in safety, prior to us being able to eliminate him. when bin laden was killed by the americans in 2011, al—zawahiri took over. the president said america hunted him for a year, eventually locating him to a safe house in kabul last weekend. they shot two missiles at him. his family members were unharmed. al—zawahiri was rumoured to be in bad health, becoming a remote figure, and with the rise of other terror groups like the so—called islamic state, his influence was marginal compared to his predecessor. the taliban has called the killing "a violation of international principles". but al—zawahiri's presence in kabul has cast doubt on the taliban's promise its country would not be a haven for terrorists. nomia iqbal, bbc news, washington.

0ur chief international correspondent lyse doucet is in the afghan capital kabul and has more now about the mission. the strikes on a crowded residential neighbourhood took place just streets away from where we are standing now. it is quite a gaudy mansion, a villa, in quite a wealthy residential neighbourhood, next to a popular supermarket and a major bank. we were able to approach the house. the neighbours said it had been, the house, a several storey villa with balconies, which had been struck in the early hours of sunday morning. it turns out they were two hellfire missiles fired from a drone. we can see this morning that plastic screening had been put on top of the balconies. the windows of the nearby house had been shattered. now, the neighbours said to us that they believed it had been an empty house.

they said they don't recall seeing anyone around there, although the us said that al—zawahiri had used the house for many months, that he liked to sit on the balcony. whether or not the neighbours did not want to speak, whether they didn't know or whether his movements were so discreet that they were not noticed, i think we will have to wait a bit of time before these details become clearer. but the house is said to be owned by sirajuddin haqqani, a leading member of the taliban movement. he is now the interior minister and he is under us terrorism sanctions. of course, it is a very complex story about the efforts to hunt down ayman al—zawahiri. there were, there has been discussion about, it seems to have been carried out by the cia, by the us�*s top spy agency, not by the us military, which since the pull—out of us forces last year, had been said to maintain, they use the phrase,

"over the horizon" operations, operating from bases outside of afghanistan. it seems they got a tip—off, credible information, they said. there was even talk that president biden had been shown a mock—up of the house and they had been studying it for the past three months. so very detailed, very painstaking operation. 0ur security correspondent gordon corera is here with more details. tell us a little bit more about why this man was such an important target for the united states. hugely im ortant, target for the united states. hugely important, emotionally, _ important, emotionally, symbolically, for the united states because he was so closely associated with the 9/11 attacks which killed thousands. he had been present at the creation of al-qaeda, he had been there from the start, the deputy to bin laden and then the success and the fact he had not been caught 20 years after 9/11 was significant so you could sense in joe biden�*s address last nightjust how important it was in that sense.

that is slightly different from saying he was operationally important. he had been issuing messages from wherever he had been in the last few years but people had been paying less and less attention to the messages. to some extent, al-qaeda had been eclipsed by other, even more violent groups like isis. i think the sense in which al zoe heery was significant is really in that symbolic nature rather than the fact he was planning attacks at this moment against the united states. —— in which al is our hearing was significant. in which al is our hearing was significant-— in which al is our hearing was siunificant. ., , , , ,, significant. how surprised when you that he was — significant. how surprised when you that he was in _ significant. how surprised when you that he was in the _ significant. how surprised when you that he was in the afghan _ significant. how surprised when you that he was in the afghan capital. that he was in the afghan capital kabul and not hiding away in remote countryside with yellow i think it is surprising and in a wealthy neighbourhood of kabul as well, he was thought to be hiding in the tribal areas of pakistan for the most of the last 20 years, that was away is the assumption. but i most of the last 20 years, that was away is the assumption.— away is the assumption. but i think the move into _ away is the assumption. but i think the move into kabul _ away is the assumption. but i think the move into kabul is _ away is the assumption. but i think the move into kabul is significant l the move into kabul is significant and people will be looking at that and people will be looking at that and saying, did he get permission from the taliban to take up a safe haven, to take up a safe house, who was protecting him and why, what is the significance of that? it could

cause problems between the us and afghanistan, the us is under pressure after the withdrawal last summer which was so chaotic, people saying, isn't there a risk that al-qaeda and other groups will find safe haven again? well, it looks like they did find a safe haven there in terms of their leadership but it also looks as though the us was still able to strike them even from a distance without boots on the ground. we from a distance without boots on the round. ~ , ., �* ground. we must leave it there. but thank yom — let's speak to dr afzal ashraf, international relations and security teacher at loughborough university. he also served in the raf and has written about and has written about al-qaeda's ideology. very good to have you with us. welcome to bbc news. in your view, is this the end of al-qaeda, or does it remain a dangerous threat? i think it is the end of the al-qaeda that existed during and shortly after the 9/11 era. al—zawahiri is

the last of the iconic leaders, of course, bin laden was killed and so have others been, many others, including some whose names will not be household names, except in the extremist circles, such as abu nasser al—zarqawi who gave birth to the isis movement. so the point here is that the old al-qaeda is dead but the brand of al-qaeda will continue, as indeed the nazi brand continued after the death of hitler and the defeat of the nazis in germany. so i don't think we could call it an end but a transition phase in whatever al-qaeda morphs into eventually. you

mention the — al-qaeda morphs into eventually. you mention the isis movement and i wonder if you could tell me a bit more about al-qaeda's ideology and how it differs from other factions, including the islamic state group? well, i am not sure there are significant differences in terms of ideology. some scholars tend to pick small, if you like, differences in the way that for example isis defines who is a muslim and therefore, who can be killed for being an upper state —— an apostate. they have had to do that in order to exclude al-qaeda and research that i have done recently, speaking to al-qaeda affiliate and isis prisoners in central asia, indicates that there is a bloody feud going on between the former al-qaeda affiliates and isis, with massive

killings at the lower levels that we don't hear about. so there is, if you like, a very fine difference in the way they interpret or corrupt theology, but i don't think there is a significant ideological difference, certainly not in my understanding of ideology, having looked at it funnily 25 years. —— for nearly 25 years. they just looked at it funnily 25 years. —— for nearly 25 years. theyjust need to find some excuses to justify their violence and so isis have come up their violence and so isis have come up with some bizarre interpretations of obscure theology for them to justify the killing of al-qaeda members by isis members. i’m justify the killing of al-qaeda members by isis members. i'm afraid we don't have — members by isis members. i'm afraid we don't have very _ members by isis members. i'm afraid we don't have very much _ members by isis members. i'm afraid we don't have very much time - members by isis members. i'm afraid we don't have very much time but - we don't have very much time but just a brief thought if you would of why the taliban were sheltering a member of al-qaeda, do you think? why the taliban were sheltering a member of al—qaeda, do you think? i member of al-qaeda, do you think? i don't think that alabama should be seen as a single entity. they are not like a government —— that the

taliban should be seen. they are not like a government or a political party with some kind of structure. they are a franchise movement and as lee smith that said, the house belonged to possibly the haqqani network and we know there are close ties between the haqqanis and ayman al—zawahiri and al-qaeda and i think, i would forecast that there will now be a massive fissure within their taliban organisation because many of them will not have wanted this to have happened. and i am sure many taliban leaders were unaware that ayman al—zawahiri was given asylum in the centre of kabul. they are going to suffer greatly as a consequence of this decision, presumably carried out by one of their leaders.— presumably carried out by one of their leaders. thank you for “oining us. their leaders. thank you for “oining apologiesfi their leaders. thank you for “oining us. apologies that h their leaders. thank you for “oining us. apologies that we h their leaders. thank you for “oining us. apologies that we are _ their leaders. thank you forjoining us. apologies that we are short - their leaders. thank you forjoining us. apologies that we are short of| us. apologies that we are short of time. really interesting to talk to you, we are very grateful. the energy company bp has reported the second highest profit in its history.

between april and june, it made £6.9 billion, three times as much as in the same period last year. it comes on the back of soaring energy prices which have left consumers facing big increases to their household bills. our business correspondent ramzan karmali gave us his assessment of bp's results. it is their second—biggest profits ever, the biggest in 1a years. i mean, it is huge, these are big numbers, and don't forget, these come on the back of last week, we heard from royal dutch shell and they had massive profits, too, and the two american oil giants, chevron and exxon mobile, have announced massive profits, so people are starting to wonder, hang on, we are paying a lot more money for our gas and our petrol, yet these companies are making money, and huge amounts of money. it also comes on the back of today we heard from one analyst that thinks that the energy price cap could rise to over £3600 in october. so these profits, yes, for bp and their shareholders, who are going to get an increase in their dividend of

around 10% as well. and possibly pension holders as well, if pensions are invested in bp. exactly, good news for them but consumers will be looking at this, thinking, hang on a second, we are paying through the nose for petrol at the moment and these guys are making money like there's no tomorrow. so will it reignite the debate as to whether more profits should go towards helping people pay their household energy bills? so bp, this time last year, were paying about £100 million in tax on their oil profits, but they reckon this time, they will be paying about £1 billion windfall tax, so they are saying, we are already paying as it is, and when we were making losses a few years ago, shell and bp will argue, they were not asking to be subsidised for the losses they were making so they will feel it is unfair, but there is pressure mounting. these companies are making huge amounts of money at a time when consumers are suffering, and something should be done about this. household energy bills in the uk could rise even higher than expected this autumn,

with the price cap set to go up again in october. the energy watchdog 0fgem had previously warned that the average yearly gas bill will be £2,800, but energy analysts cornwall insight say the figure is likely to be £500 more than that, before rising even more next year. here's ben boulos. in the summer, it's much easier because we don't have to have the heating on, we don't have to use the dryer, i can hang all these clothes on the line. ruth, a mother of two, has already cut back on her energy usage. might have to change some of the way that we do things inside the house, and maybe i'll be out here in the cold pegging the washing on the line. now, news of another hike in energy bills this autumn is putting the pressure on. the latest prediction is that it will go up in the autumn to £3358 per year for an average household.

what are your thoughts on that? i mean, it'sjust frightening, really, because it's such a huge amount of money and you can't get around it. there's things that you can't change, you know, when it's winter, we have to put the heating on, we have to put the lights on. maybe we won't have the heating on as much, maybe we'll have to put extra jumpers on. but there's some things that you can't change and you can't stop. i still have to wash the clothes. so it's going to be a challenging winter, i think, for everybody. in april last year, the energy price cap increased, pushing the annual bill for an average household on a variable rate from just over £1000 to £1138. within a year, the price cap had risen to its current level, which puts a typical bill at £1971. but energy analysts cornwall insight think it will go even higher to more than £3358 this october.

and these price rises are expected to continue, with families potentially paying as much as £3729 by this time next year. but while our household bills are soaring, energy firms are making record profits. shell made £9 billion between april and june. british gas owner centrica's profits were five times higher in the first half of this year compared to the year before. the government says it's providing support worth billions of pounds, including a £400 discount on energy bills for every household in england, scotland and wales. but citizens advice said the number of people seeking help because they can no longer afford to eat and heat their homes has tripled in a year. ben boulos, bbc news. an international study says that the risks of a climate change catastrophe, including the extinction of the human race, are not being taken

seriously by scientists. the authors say the consequences of warming beyond three degrees celsius have been "dangerously underexplored" and the world needs to start preparing for the possibility of what they term the "climate endgame." the report's authors, who include scientists from the universities of cambridge and exeter, say that in the case of warming more than three degrees, two billion people would be living with extreme heat by 2070 in some of the most politically fragile and densely populated parts of the world. the first ship carrying grain from ukraine to world markets is expected to anchor in istanbul later today. the ship, which is transporting more than 25,000 tonnes of corn, left 0desa yesterday, after a deal struck between ukraine and russia last month. the ship has been called a "relief for the world" by ukraine's foreign minister

as global food prices soar. let's speak to our correspondent james waterhouse. what is the latest we have got on the progress of the ship?- what is the latest we have got on the progress of the ship? well, as we seak, the progress of the ship? well, as we speak. it _ the progress of the ship? well, as we speak. it is _ the progress of the ship? well, as we speak, it is continuing - the progress of the ship? well, as we speak, it is continuing to - the progress of the ship? well, asj we speak, it is continuing to make its way down the black sea. it seems to have made its way out of ukrainian waters and is expected to arrive in istanbul tonight, where it will be inspected as part of this landmark grain agreement, involving ukraine and russia. but there's a reason why you are not seeing fleets, whole convoys of vessels following suit, because the country's minister for infrastructure has said he expects between one and three ships to follow over the next few weeks. so we are very much still in the testing stage of this operation. the

first vessel coming the other way is expected to arrive next week, we are told. but this is about building confidence. 0ne told. but this is about building confidence. one of the main hurdles is insurance, where shipping companies and the authorities have struggled to afford the kind of coverage needed for vessels to make their way across these mine infested waters. the minister highlighted that not only were there ukrainian mines along this route but minds from the second world war still in this area, which is why in his words it is so important to follow the planned route spanning from the region of 0desa, through the black sea and down to turkey which is acting as a gateway. the united nations, which brokered the deal, along with turkey, has urged for it to be honoured completely, for this agreement to be able to get up and running but as you can see, we are some way off ukraine realising its ambition of once again importing 5

million tonnes of de jager exporting 5 million tonnes of grain out of its ports per month like it did before the war. . ~ ports per month like it did before the war. ., ~ , ., ., ports per month like it did before the war. ., ~' i., ., ., ports per month like it did before the war. ., ~ i. ., ., , the war. thank you for “oining us. james waterhouse _ the war. thank you for “oining us. james waterhouse in h the war. thank you forjoining us. james waterhouse in 0desa, - the war. thank you forjoining us. l james waterhouse in 0desa, there. i'm joined now by andrey stavnitser, the owner of the largest port in ukraine, tis, near 0desa. good to have you with us. thank you. i wanted to pick up on whatjames was saying, how confident are you, first of all, that the ship will arrive safely because as james was saying, it faces a dangerous journey through mine infested waters. thank ou so through mine infested waters. thank you so much — through mine infested waters. thank you so much for— through mine infested waters. thank you so much for having _ through mine infested waters. thank you so much for having me. - through mine infested waters. thank you so much for having me. there i through mine infested waters. t�*iafua; you so much for having me. there is a small correction i would like to mention, technically, there is no agreement between ukraine and russia so the agreement that we have is technically with the un and turkey and then there is a mirror agreement between turkey, the un and russia and if you saw the ceremony, we never actually signed anything with russia directly. now the vessel that

is carrying 26,000 tonnes of grain is carrying 26,000 tonnes of grain is on its way to turkey out of ukrainian waterways so we expect nothing to happen with this particular vessel. there are many more vessels to come in the coming days and weeks, and to be quite honest, i am worried about it because i think the russians are not to be trusted. as you remember, up until the signing ceremony, they have attacked the port of 0desa. the ink on the document has not dried and they have shot at the port of 0desa. i think it is really an adventurous and tricky path ahead of us. , , , ., ., adventurous and tricky path ahead of us. , , ., us. very interesting, you are saying there are more _ us. very interesting, you are saying there are more vessels _ us. very interesting, you are saying there are more vessels to _ us. very interesting, you are saying there are more vessels to come - us. very interesting, you are saying there are more vessels to come but can you give us a sense of how long it will take for grain shipments to get back to what they were before the war? ~ , ., ., the war? well, we still have about 20 million tonnes _ the war? well, we still have about 20 million tonnes of— the war? well, we still have about 20 million tonnes of last - the war? well, we still have about 20 million tonnes of last year's . 20 million tonnes of last year's harvest stuck in the country because it is very difficult to get it out

by land and by rail. so 20 million tonnes is probably a third of our normal exports, plus we have about 30 million tonnes of the new year's crop which is arriving right now. if we take 50 million tonnes and we say we take 50 million tonnes and we say we have a capacity of exporting every month, let's say 5—8 million tonnes, it is going to take us approximately 6—8 months to take all of that out. find approximately 6-8 months to take all of that out. �* ., , ~ , ., of that out. and does it keep or does it deteriorate? _ of that out. and does it keep or does it deteriorate? it - of that out. and does it keep or does it deteriorate? it is - of that out. and does it keep or| does it deteriorate? it is starting to net does it deteriorate? it is starting to get rotten _ does it deteriorate? it is starting to get rotten because _ does it deteriorate? it is starting to get rotten because the - does it deteriorate? it is starting i to get rotten because the ukrainian storage capacity is not meant for long—term storage. we normally produce and export, we don't store grain for too long. therefore, some grain for too long. therefore, some grain is starting to get spoiled, thatis grain is starting to get spoiled, that is right. is grain is starting to get spoiled, that is right-— that is right. is your terminal tarueted that is right. is your terminal targeted by _ that is right. is your terminal targeted by russian - that is right. is your terminal targeted by russian strikes? | that is right. is your terminal - targeted by russian strikes? no, thankfully not. _

targeted by russian strikes? iirr, thankfully not. nikolai ever was less fortunate, the ports have been attacked, and churn a mosque as well but luckily we have not been attacked yet. but but luckily we have not been attacked yet.— but luckily we have not been attacked yet. but luckily we have not been attacked et. �* ., attacked yet. but other ports are bein: attacked yet. but other ports are being attacked. _ attacked yet. but other ports are being attacked. if— attacked yet. but other ports are being attacked. if the _ attacked yet. but other ports are being attacked. if the russians l attacked yet. but other ports are - being attacked. if the russians make it impossible to export grain from ukraine, briefly if you would, what does the world need to do? weill. ukraine, briefly if you would, what does the world need to do? well, it is auoin to does the world need to do? well, it is going to be _ does the world need to do? well, it is going to be a _ does the world need to do? well, it is going to be a big _ does the world need to do? well, it is going to be a big issue _ does the world need to do? well, it is going to be a big issue because i is going to be a big issue because ukraine is number two or three in the world so if we don't export our grains, the whole world actually, including london including europe and the us, will face increased prices for protein and meat, particularly talking about chicken. so what is going to happen is that the current stocks and resources will start to dry out and the whole world is going to feel it by the end of the year. i'm not ready to say how many percent the increase is

going to be but i would reckon over 20%. going to be but i would reckon over 2096. ., ~ going to be but i would reckon over 2096. . ~ , ., going to be but i would reckon over 2096. . ~ i. ., ., , going to be but i would reckon over 2096. . ~ ., ., , . 20%. thank you for “oining us. we must leave _ 20%. thank you for “oining us. we must leave it h 20%. thank you forjoining us. we must leave it there, _ 20%. thank you forjoining us. we must leave it there, but _ 20%. thank you forjoining us. we must leave it there, but very - 20%. thank you forjoining us. we j must leave it there, but very good to talk to you. the speaker of the us house of representatives nancy pelosi is expected to visit taiwan as part of her tour of asia, although there is no official confirmation on this yet. china has warned of serious consequences if the trip to the self—ruled island goes ahead. last week, president xi jinping told president biden not to "play with fire". i'm joined by professor kishore mahbubani, a regionalforeign policy expert. thank you forjoining us. why is this visit potentially so dangerous? there is only one issue in the whole world that can trigger world war iii and that can incinerate all of humanity, and that is taiwan. and

the reason why it is taiwan is because the world's largest geopolitical contest that has ever broken out in human history in 2000 years, has now broken out with the world's number one power, the united states and the number one emerging power, china, and the one issue that can trigger a war with the united states and china is taiwan. this is why tom friedman of the new york times is right when he says this visit is reckless, dangerous and irresponsible, because all of humanity could suffer the consequences if world war iii breaks out. i don't predict it this time around but each such step brings us closer to it and that is why we should take taiwan very, very seriously. so should take taiwan very, very seriously-— should take taiwan very, very seriousl . ., , ., , seriously. so what in your view is the strategic _ seriously. so what in your view is the strategic purpose _ seriously. so what in your view is the strategic purpose of - seriously. so what in your view is the strategic purpose of the - seriously. so what in your view is| the strategic purpose of the trip? what is nancy plaisir hoping to achieve? —— nancy pelosi. i what is nancy plaisir hoping to achieve? -- nancy pelosi. i must say ou have achieve? -- nancy pelosi. i must say you have asked _ achieve? -- nancy pelosi. i must say you have asked a _ achieve? -- nancy pelosi. i must say you have asked a brilliant _ achieve? -- nancy pelosi. i must say you have asked a brilliant question, i you have asked a brilliant question, and this woman, all she cares about,

to be very honest with you, are her domestic, poor ratings. how many headlines is she going to get in the american domestic media? how will it make her look in the build—up to the midterm elections, which she fears, because as you know, the democrats are going to lose the mid—term elections and she is going to lose herjob as speaker, so she is only interested in her personal political fortunes and is utterly indifferent to the fact that her actions will create in the long run the steps towards world war iii and this is why it is so reckless and dangerous and i think the west and the world should pay more attention to this, speak out more clearly and tell her, please, don't endanger the whole world just to look good domestically. i world just to look good domestically.— world just to look good domestically. world just to look good domesticall. ., ., domestically. i may have to interact ou in 'ust domestically. i may have to interact you in just a — domestically. i may have to interact you in just a moment _ domestically. i may have to interact you in just a moment but _ domestically. i may have to interact you in just a moment but i - domestically. i may have to interact you in just a moment but ijust - you injust a moment but ijust wanted to ask you —— interrupted you. if it is as reckless as you suggest, why would president biden let her go? he suggest, why would president biden

let her no? . ., , ., , ., let her go? he claims he does not have the authority _ let her go? he claims he does not have the authority to _ let her go? he claims he does not have the authority to stop - let her go? he claims he does not have the authority to stop her - have the authority to stop her because of the separation of powers under the us constitution, but the world is puzzled that a democratic president... i world is puzzled that a democratic president- - -_ world is puzzled that a democratic resident... , , , president... i must 'ust interrupted ou, if president... i must 'ust interrupted you. if you _ president... i must 'ust interrupted you. lfyou would _ president... i must just interrupted you, if you would just _ president... i must just interrupted you, if you would just wait - president... i must just interrupted you, if you would just wait one - you, if you would just wait one second because we have to say goodbye to viewers on bbc two, enjoy the rest of your day. professor, if you would just pick up your point, as to why president biden is not able to prevent nancy pelissie going —— nancy pelosi going to taiwan if it is as unwise as you suggest? are you able to pick up your thought and continue? sorry. definitely. joe biden claims that he can't stop the speaker because under the separation of powers, the executive branch has no power over the legislative branch, but the rest

of the world believes that if you have a democratic president in office, likejoe biden believes he could do, is use all the political muscle he has to stop her from could do, is use all the political muscle he has to stop herfrom going and by the way, this is going to also damage the efforts of the west in ukraine, i assure you of that. so this is a complete geopolitical loss for the west and the west can't stop it from happening because this one—woman cares about her domestic political fortunes in the one—woman cares about her domestic politicalfortunes in the us one—woman cares about her domestic political fortunes in the us and thatis political fortunes in the us and that is very dangerous. taiwan have said they are determined to defend themselves against chinese threats. i5 to defend themselves against chinese threats. , ., , , threats. is there a possibility these threats _ threats. is there a possibility these threats are _ threats. is there a possibility these threats are lost - threats. is there a possibility these threats are lost more | threats. is there a possibility - these threats are lost more than anything else and that we should not have to take this fiery rhetoric too seriously? i think anybody believes it is a

bluster they do not understand chinese history. china have erased all the traces of the century of humiliation except one and that is taiwan and taiwan was initially when the japanese defeated the chinese in 1895 so you must know this rich history of thailand to understand that as far as china is concerned, we chinese people may disagree on many things but there is a complete agreement that in due course taiwan must return to china because of this part of china's territory and by their weight, part of china's territory and by theirweight, most part of china's territory and by their weight, most countries in the world have agreed there is one china policy which is also us policy that there is a one china policy which is

precisely whyjoe biden is very unhappy with the visit of nancy pelosi to taiwan because it undermines america's stance of the one china policy. professor, really good to talk to you. thank you forjoining us on bbc news. doctors here in london are preparing to switch off the life—support treatment of 12—year—old archie battersbee this lunchtime, after his parents lost a number of legal challenges. archie was found unconscious at his home in april. doctors say he is "brain—stem dead". ellie price reports. another court hearing, another crushing disappointment for the family of archie battersbee. doctors say the 12—year—old is brainstem dead and judges from the high court and court of appeal have repeatedly maintained it's in his best interests to switch off life support. but his mother fights on. i have got my son's best interests at heart, and paul, and the siblings. nobody else has got archie's best interests at heart and i say,

and i still stand by it, archie's best interests would be to allow that child time to recover. if he doesn't recover, he doesn't recover, but give him time to recover. archie was injured during an incident at home and taken to southend hospital on the 7th of april. after a series of tests, a high courtjudge ruled on the 13th ofjune that archie is dead, based on mri scan results, and that treatment could be withdrawn. 0n the 20th ofjune, the family asked the court of appeal to reconsider the case and it ruled that a new hearing should take place. that new hearing was held on the 15th ofjuly, and a judge ruled that life—support treatment should end. a decision supported by the court of appeal. thejudge in yesterday's hearing has said that there should be no further postponement of the withdrawal of life support beyond midday today. for archie's parents, their last hope now lies with the supreme court. ellie price, bbc news. british airways says it will stop selling tickets on short—haul flights from heathrow airport until monday.

the move is due to the cap on daily passenger numbers that the airport has imposed over the summer, in an attempt to reduce travel delays. the sales suspension will affect ba's flights to domestic and european destinations. joining me now is our transport correspondent, katy austin. what kind of impact is this going to have because presumably if you have already got tickets you should be ok? , , , ., ., already got tickets you should be ok? , , , , , 0k? yes, this is good but preventing last-minute — 0k? yes, this is good but preventing last-minute bookings _ 0k? yes, this is good but preventing last-minute bookings this _ 0k? yes, this is good but preventing last-minute bookings this week. - 0k? yes, this is good but preventing last-minute bookings this week. the j last—minute bookings this week. the background as airports and airlines have been under pressure from the regulator, and the department for transport to make sure their schedules are robust enough to cope with the increasing demand we are seeing because we had seen in recent months a lot of disruption with staff shortages being blamed to a large extent for that. last month heathrow airport says it was going, it was what he passengers were not

getting the service they should, as numbers increased and resources perhaps were not there among ground handlers to match that. it imposed a daily cap on the number of passengers that could leave heathrow over the peak summer period and that was 100,000. british airways says what it is now doing, i understand british airways has realised for this week it was coming close to the number of passengers it could handle under that cap so it has said it is going to stop selling short haul tickets from heathrow, on domestic and european routes, it says that is and european routes, it says that is a responsible action to help maximise rebooking options for existing customers, given the restrictions imposed and what it saysis restrictions imposed and what it says is an ongoing challenges facing the entire aviation industry. this is about preventing people buying tickets this week, those short notice tickets so there is still some leeway in the system. ongoing

challenles some leeway in the system. ongoing challenges facing _ some leeway in the system. ongoing challenges facing the _ some leeway in the system. ongoing challenges facing the entire - challenges facing the entire aviation industry, is this problem is not limited to heathrow, what is the picture at other european airports? it the picture at other european airorts? ., , ., , airports? it varies. there have been widespread — airports? it varies. there have been widespread problems, _ airports? it varies. there have been widespread problems, heathrow- airports? it varies. there have been widespread problems, heathrow is| airports? it varies. there have been i widespread problems, heathrow is not the only airport to impose limits on passenger numbers and gatwick airport capped the number of flights, amsterdam ship limited passenger numbers over the summer and today it said it said it will extend that cap into september and october as well, the cap is not as big as heathrow�*s, it is 67,500 departing passengers in amsterdam and says it's doing this to keep things safe and reliable. thank you. let's return to our top story: confirmation from president biden that the us has killed the leader of al-qaeda, ayman al—zawahiri, in a drone strike in afghanistan.

ayman al—zawahiri was on the us most wanted list for his role in plotting the 9/11 terror attacks in 2001, which killed nearly 3,000 people he took over the terrorist group al-qaeda after the death of 0sama bin laden president biden said al—zawahiri was also behind the attack on the naval destroyer the uss cole, in aden, which killed 17 us sailors in the year 2000 and the attacks on the us embassies in kenya and tanzania in 1998, which killed 223 people. announcing the drone strike, president biden said al—zawa—hiri had �*carved a trail of violence and murder against american citizens'. he said: �*nowjustice has been delivered and this terrorist leader is no more'. a short time ago i spoke to chris hunter, an author and former major in the british army. he explained ayman al—zawahiri's role in the history of al-qaeda and told us more about the attacks the militants carried out. i think, first and foremost,

he was instrumental in the 9/11 attacks, he was really the mastermind behind it, secondly, he was the second in command to bin laden, and then took over as the emyr once 0sama bin laden had been interdicted and killed by the united states seal teams. he was the head of al-qaeda, and therefore, a very significant target and somebody who was still very much in the forefront of the biden administration's minds and certainly the carry over from the 0bama administration. how difficult an operation would it have been to find him, to track him and then to ultimately kill him? finding somebody is not too difficult. surreptitiously is incredibly difficult. this is the real issue. we understand he was under surveillance for several months which is quite typical, when you find somebody, you develop what is called a pattern of life, basically looking

at their movements, their routines, their daily habits, if you like. ultimately, it is to enable the interdicting forces to identify any areas they can exploit, the weaknesses. at that point, they can come up with some kind of plan and we know that president biden and his administration ordered the defence chiefs to go away and look at some options. we know that an entire mock—up of the building was constructed and several different options were looked at and, ultimately, it was decided eventually to go for the two hellfires fired from a drone. how surprised are you that he was living in kabul, and not for example hiding out in remote countryside? it is interesting, there was a report last month issued and i'm going to read from it, he had been confirmed to be alive and communicating freely with regular video messages and providing proof of life.

it's noticed his increased comfort and ability to communicate coincided with last year's taliban takeover in afghanistan. that is quite crucial, it suggests he has been there since the taliban took over, but it also raises further questions about the doha agreements which effectively website were signed to say the americans would not have any military forces in afghanistan and nor would the taliban governments basically provide safe haven or any support to terrorist groups and in particular al-qaeda. we have seen taliban members going to clean the scene, effectively, to remove any trace of him heery being in that building and then we have seen a strong condemnation from the afghan government, saying america has breached the doha agreements and similarly, america hasjustified its strike by saying the taliban regime has broken the doha record by harbouring terrorists and in particular al-qaeda, in the first place. so if those agreements have been breached, what might be possible repercussions be? well, i guess, because both of them have breached them, it is some kind of stalemate.

but it certainly nullifies the agreement, that is for sure, i would suggest, and it is going to take some serious diplomacy going forward to reach an impasse, i think. some breaking news to bring you. a total of 696 people were detected crossing the english channel in small boats on monday, the highest number on a single day so far this year. the figures have been released by the ministry of defence. non—surgical cosmetic procedures like botox and fillers should be better regulated to prevent people who are struggling with their appearance from being exploited. that's one of the recommendations from a health committee report into body image, which has looked into the link between how people feel about the way they look, and their mental health. 0ur correspondent zoe conway reports.

when you look at nyome nicholas—williams, what do you see? yeah, beautiful. i can get all of your new tattoos as well! photographer alexandra cameron sees bravery. nyome is a model with influence. she has worked with brands like dove, adidas and boots. but her success has not come easy. growing up, she struggled with how she looked, and developed an eating disorder. and i equated my tallness with being my bigness, and i was like, ok, maybe if i could be smaller, like, i could appear shorter and and it's all psychological. it's like what alex said with my inner dialogue, i really struggled to just understand that my body was ok and that i didn't have to be like the girls in my class and just because i was taller or bigger, that didn't take away from the essence of who i was. but i couldn't understand that at that age and it lasted a long time. she despairs that so many people have a negative view of their body. after being so uncomfortable with myself for many years, just for me to be, like,

present and ok with who i am, that's all i want. and people, they like that. so obviously i know people want to be more like themselves. and ifeel like because i am unapologetically myself and i never will change, i think that is what people resonate with. images of so—called perfection are all around us. millions tuned into love island, but of course, it's not the first reality show. the only way is essex first blinged its way onto tv 12 years ago. one of its earliest stars, charlie king. go on, charlie! throughout his life, charlie has struggled with how his body looks, or what is called body dysmorphia. it drove him to have cosmetic surgery on his nose. i went on a plastic surgery journey which i thought was going to be incredible, the making of me. and it was totally the opposite. the surgery didn't go to plan. i have had to wait two years to have my nose fixed,

and i have had to live with that and that choice, and that has been one of the hardest lessons that i've ever learned, all because i thought i needed to change. he is grateful for the opportunities that towie gave him but he's worried about the effect reality tv could be having on young people. and when you're being bombarded with it, you don't see diversity, or different sorts of bodies being represented, if we are looking at certain reality tv shows, then what? because that seems to be what sells, that's what's going to get the viewings, that's what's going to get people talking and ultimately that's what's going to be seen as attractive. that's dangerous. a new report by the health select committee is concerned about the impact that body images are having on mental health. they want to see labelling of digitally altered commercial pictures and regulation for nonsurgical cosmetic procedures within a year. so, i have had filler in my lips, i have had filler in my nose, i've had it on my nose to mouth

lines, chin, jawline. i have had filler in my cheeks multiple times. every time kim booker got filler put in her face, she felt euphoric. but the feeling never lasted. she would spend hours on social media looking at adverts for cosmetic surgery. she once had so much filler in her nose, it came close to collapse. she also wants to see more regulation of cosmetic procedures. it's really sad, it's... it'sjust, yeah, it's really, really sad that i have, ijust disliked the way i looked that much at those times. and it's just everywhere you look, and i still have those moments. it's still something that... because everywhere you look, there's this image of perfection. she is now in a much happier phase of her life, and she has this message

for her younger self. you are worth more than what you look, you're worth so much more. sorry. it's just really, it's just really sad. in a statement, the government spokesperson said... alex cameron hopes that her photography can help reframe how we view ourselves and each other. it's so powerful to see a woman like nyome standing up and saying, "i'm amazing," which she is, because for too long, society and the world for some reason told her she wasn't

and that is the shift that needs to happen, the acceptance, and it is happening. the body positivity movement is huge in that, but so much more needs to be done and people really need to watch themselves online. people need to understand kindness. zoe conway, bbc news. liz truss's bid to become the next prime minister has received a boost after her former leadership rival penny mordaunt pledged to back her. the trade minister described ms truss as the "hope candidate" at a leadership hustings event in exeter, where her rival rishi sunak attacked her plans to cut taxes. now, keeping a bunch of children entertained during the summer holidays can sometimes be costly. with household budgets under increasing pressure, fiona lamdin reports now from leeds on family fun that doesn't break the bank.

meet the robbins—tyrrell family from ramsgate. terry, june, sienna, ethan, maisie, and lola the puppy. so our goal is to keep everyone entertained and fed on a very tight budget. do you think that's possible? no. yeah. not going to happen. terry runs a security business, but things are tight. unfortunately, i don't think there's a holiday this year. but we're trying to find local stuff and cheaper options to keep the kids entertained. all three children are i growing, feet are growing. they need everything for school. so we're having to tighten our belts throughout each week, _ to say that we've got that extra money to put aside for- those school uniforms - that they are going to need. first stop, the tennis courts. hello, everybody. _ welcome to tennis for free. nice to see you all. all right, let's get. some rackets then. shall we get started? | so, have you played tennis before? |

when was the last time you played? yeah, about 20 years ago. 20 years ago? yeah. - 0k, great. up and down the country, the lawn tennis association is funding free coaching throughout the summer. here we go then, bounce and... ..hita cone! it's getting people of all ages, - doesn't matter whether you've played before, on a tennis court hitting lots of balls _ it's great fun physically, - and for mental health as well. well, i almost hit the instructor while hitting the ball over the net. i had a go and on the last go i hit the ball really hard, and then it landed all the way over there. it's the first time i've played tennis and... do you like it? and i like it. next stop, ramsgate fire station. wow! do you want to sit in that one? all right? there we go. - sit around like that. you look good in that, don't you? i'm sure i'll see you on the job sometime in the future. - it's made your day, hasn't it? yeah? are you going to be

a fireman one day? and it's notjust here in kent. fire stations right across the country are flinging open their doors this holiday. hosing down the house is a definite hit. mummy, i'm hungry! ok. ok _ shall we go and get some lunch? they've been so busy, they haven't had time to eat. but it's already two o'clock, and everyone's ready for lunch. feeding a family can easily add up. but at this supermarket cafe, children can eat forjust £1. that's £3 altogether, please. £3. guys _ give the lady your pound. this deal, which is running in england and wales, is available all day, every day. and there's no pressure on adults to buy any food, which certainly helps on our very tight budget. it tastes really yummy. yeah, it's very nice. with the children fed, there's £2 left, just enough for a drink and a piece of fruit for mum and dad. 1.90, please. thank you. i with everyone refuelled, they're now off to a nearby lake for a fishing lesson.

any of you fished before? no. so, do you think you're going to catch a fish? yeah. yes. probably not. probably not? no _ so, fishing gives people the opportunity to get outside into the countryside, and enjoy the british wildlife, and use skills such as teamwork, fishing with people, concentration, patience, and also being quiet and at one with nature. free lessons like these are happening all over the uk. and it isn't long before sienna catches her first fish. i think we should name him fred! what do you reckon on that? you caught him. are you going to swap now? well done, buddy. give us a high five. well done. they've been on the go now for eight hours. we have packed so much in today, and had so much fun, and somehow managed to come in under budget. we've still got 10p change. what's been your favourite thing? probably the fishing and the tennis.

catching the fish and getting wet. my favourite part was the hose. do you know, just seeing the kids' faces, they've loved every minute of it. and it's all been free. you smashed it, you did it, and in under a fiver. did you ever think that would be possible? no, i didn't. honestly, i didn't. when we got set that challenge, in my head i was laughing. and it's been a long day. but so much we've done. and, yeah, i think they're all going to sleep well tonight. i want to tell you now about an incredible operation that saw brazilian twins who were joined at the head successfully separated. virtual reality projections of the twins helped refine techniques to separate the three—year—olds, as mark lobel explains, and his report contains some images of the surgery itself. bernardo and arthur are twin brothers born with a fused brain in brazil.

described as otherwise healthy nearly four—year—olds, they could not sit or walk, robbing them of a normal childhood. as of around seven weeks ago, they now look like this, a remarkable moment, only the sixth such a separation of its kind, but this time, surgeries in rio dejaneiro came with direction from great 0rmond street street hospital in london. what we were able to do this time around which was a world first was to do it in virtual reality across the two continents, with us setting it up on our platforms here. we wore the vr goggles and then invited the team in brazil to join the vr theatre and all of the surgery was done in virtual reality, all the steps were taken before we actually lifted the scalpel. to handle the complex task of dealing with the brain, blood vessels, the skin, the bone and covering of the brain, each step was mapped out using simulations,

over a six—month period. the advantage of practising on virtual reality projections of the twins meant that the team were able to refine things when they repeatedly hit dead ends. nonetheless, as the surgeons involved concluded, it was still high—risk surgery. translation: i talked to their mother and told her i believed | we could separate her children. i learned the phrase, "when you have 1% possibility, you have 99% of faith." 0nce their parents were made aware of the risks, it was up to them to give surgeons the green light. translation: | had become - so desperate because i could not bear my sons' condition. the twins had seven surgeries. the final operation alone took over 27 hours and involved nearly 100 medical staff. it is hoped this will be a template for helping conjoined twins around the world. what we have been able to do at gemini untwined is to pool the global experience so that

when the next set of kids are born with that, be it in israel, turkey or rio, in this instance, we are able to share our experience and our knowledge with the local team and then undertake the surgery and support them. the boys are said to be recovering well in hospital, after their blood pressures and heart rates were said to be through the roof after their separation, until they were reunited, four days later, and touched hands. they will undergo rehabilitation for the next six months. mark lobel, bbc news. just time to bring you these pictures of the biggest flower fight in spain, in which more than 1,000 people took part. locals and tourists joined in the fun in valencia with organisers saying more than a million flowers were thrown during the fight. the tradition has been taking place for more than 100 years and the idea was borrowed from the carnivals in the french resort of nice. it was the first time the event had taken place for two years

because of the pandemic. you are watching bbc news. hello again. it's been a cloudy, murky start to the day with some rain and also some heavy, thundery showers. that's courtesy of this area of low pressure, with its attendant fronts. you can also see from the isobars that it is a windy day ahead, or certainly a blustery one. as we go through the rest of the day, most of the rain will fade but we will be left with some murkiness across south—west england and wales, for example, and there will be a few showers dotted around elsewhere, but for many, it is going to dry out and as temperatures continue to rise, we will see more sunshine. even though it is blustery, it will still get up to 2a in aberdeen and birmingham and 30 as we push down towards the south—east. for the commonwealth games, we started off on a cloudy,

wet note but it should now remain mostly dry. there will be variable amounts of cloud around with temperatures getting up to the low 20s. into this evening and overnight, here comes our weather front sinking south as a band of cloud with some spots of rain in it, not getting into the south east. there will be further showers coming in across the north west, some of those merging to give longer spells of rain. and it is going to be a muggy night, temperatures falling away to between 13—18 degrees. tomorrow, we have got the remnants of the front in the far south of england. it is reallyjust going to be a band of cloud. there might be the odd spot of rain in it but most of us won't see that. and then a lot of dry weather, a fair bit of sunshine around as well. as the wind changes to more of a north—westerly, we will see further showers coming in across scotland, northern ireland and also northern england, and note the wind direction. it is starting to change to more of a north—westerly. in the north west, we have got highs of 15 degrees. you come further south, it is still going to be humid, 27 or 28. from wednesday into thursday, low pressure moves away and high pressure starts to push in. we still have weather fronts

crossing us, still producing bands of cloud and a few showers, but for most, we will miss them altogether. it will be dry with a fair bit of sunshine around and with the north—westerly breeze, it is going to feel fresher. top temperature on thursday, up to 26 degrees. you can see that reflected quite nicely on this chart. the ambers indicate the higher temperatures and the yellows just telling you it is going to be warm as we go through the next few days. high pressure remains firmly in charge on friday and also saturday, with a lot of dry weather except for in the north west where there will be some rain.

this is bbc news. the headlines at 11:00am: president biden confirms the head of al qaeda, ayman al zawahiri has been killed by a us drone strike in kabul. he made videos including in recent weeks calling for his followers to attack the united states and our allies. nowjustice has been delivered and this terrorist leader is no more. life support is expected to be withdrawn from 12—year—old archie battersbee today, after court of appeal judges said his treatment should not continue. experts predict typical household energy bills will rise to more than 3,300 pounds a year this autumn — and climb even higher next year. it comes as bp reports 6.9 billion pounds in quarterly profits —

its highest in 1a years. china warns the united states it will "pay the price" if us house speaker nancy pelosi visits taiwan during her asia trip. british airways halts sales of tickets on short—haul flights from heathrow for a week as disruption for travellers continues. mps are calling for non—surgical cosmetic procedures like botox and fillers to be better regulated. the leader of al qaeda, ayman al zawahiri, has been killed

in an american drone strike in afghanistan. he was one of the masterminds behind the september—the—eleventh attacks against the united states in 2001. after years of tracking him, the cia targeted him with two missiles from a drone flying above the afghan capital, kabul, killing him instantly. announcing the strike, president biden said the killing would bring closure to families of the nearly 3,000 victims of the 9/11 attacks. the killing comes nearly a year after the us's chaotic withdrawal from afghanistan, as our washington correspondent, nomia iqbal, reports. after decades, america has killed one of its most wanted terrorists. my fellow americans, on saturday, at my direction, the united states successfully concluded an air strike in kabul, afghanistan, which killed the emir of al-qaeda,

ayman al—zawahiri. the president said he gave his personal approval to kill ayman al—zawahiri. justice has been delivered, and this terrorist leader is no more. people around the world no longer need to fear the vicious and determined killer. the united states continues to demonstrate our resolve and our capacity to defend the american people against those who seek to do us harm. you know, we make it clear again tonight that no matter how long it takes, no matter where you hide, if you are a threat to our people, the united states will find you and take you out. it's taken 21 years. 0sama bin laden was the face behind the 9/11 attacks, but al—zawahiri was seen as the brains. officials say his tactics and organisational skills were responsible for the deaths of nearly 3000 people. both men were close, appearing in propaganda videos. al—zawahiri was even bin

laden's personal physician. the us wanted him dead or alive for $25 million. i think what this reflects is, really, the challenges we have had on our counterterrorism policies where al—zawahiri has been able to survive for two decades, outlasted the afghanistan war in safety, prior to us being able to eliminate him. when bin laden was killed by the americans in 2011, al—zawahiri took over. the president said america hunted him for a year, eventually locating him to a safe house in kabul last weekend. they shot two missiles at him. his family members were unharmed. al—zawahiri was rumoured to be in bad health, becoming a remote figure, and with the rise of other terror groups like the so—called islamic state, his influence was marginal compared to his predecessor. the taliban has called the killing "a violation of international principles". but al—zawahiri's presence in kabul has cast doubt on the taliban's

promise its country would not be a haven for terrorists. nomia iqbal, bbc news, washington. our correspondent secunder kermani is on the streets of the capital, kabul, and has been the site of the strike. the house targeted in this drone strike is right in the centre of kabul. we were there earlier this morning before the taliban prevented us from filming, insisting there was nothing to see whilst at their fighters blocked off access to the site to the media. frankly speaking, it is impossible to believe that the ayman al zawahiri, the leader of al-qaeda was here in hubble without the approval of senior taliban figures and that puts the taliban in a difficult situation because they have been publicly insisting al-qaeda is a group that no longer

really exist in this country. al-qaeda and the taliban do have a long established relationship. al-qaeda being based was the reason that america invaded back in 2001 following the nine 11 attacks. more recently the taliban have been playing down those ties after signing an agreement where they promise not to allow militants to use afghan soil to plot attacks against the west. that was part of an agreement signed by the taliban with the united states paving the way for the withdrawal of american soldiers from afghanistan last year. now, al-qaeda no longer represents the kind of global threat that it once did but while the killing of ayman al zawahiri will be seen as a victory for president biden's administration, particularly in light of that chaotic withdrawal last august, it will to deepen the distrust between the taliban and the west.

distrust between the taliban and the west. i'm joined now by sir nick kay who was the uk's ambassador to afghanistan between 2017 and 2019, and former nato senior civilian representative to afghanistan. thank you very much forjoining us here on bbc news. we've had a lot of reaction, notjust from president reaction, not just from president biden reaction, notjust from president biden himself, the us have also reacted, as have saudi arabia. how significant is this death? i reacted, as have saudi arabia. how significant is this death?— significant is this death? i think, politically. _ significant is this death? i think, politically. it _ significant is this death? i think, politically. it is _ significant is this death? i think, politically, it is extremely i politically, it is extremely significant because it shows that, however long and however far away the enemies of peace and security are, they will not escape justice. and, you know, my thoughts today are very much with the thousands of families who have victims of terrorism whether it is the twin

towers, the sinking of a ship, the attacks on embassies that ayman al zawahiri helps to orchestrate. i take no pleasure in the death of any man. i certainly will not mourn the passing of this individual. just lookinl passing of this individual. just looking at _ passing of this individual. just looking at the _ passing of this individual. just looking at the current situation on the ground in afghanistan, obviously, ayman al zawahiri felt safe enough to return. we believe he had sanctuary for some time, about 20 years, in pakistan. what is the relationship between the taliban and al-qaeda and where does that leave al-qaeda and where does that leave al-qaeda now? al-qaeda and where does that leave al-anda now?— al-qaeda and where does that leave al-qaeda now? al-qaeda have sworn alleliance al-qaeda now? al-qaeda have sworn allegiance to — al-qaeda now? al-qaeda have sworn allegiance to the _ al-qaeda now? al-qaeda have sworn allegiance to the taliban _ al-qaeda now? al-qaeda have sworn allegiance to the taliban many - al-qaeda now? al-qaeda have sworn allegiance to the taliban many years | allegiance to the taliban many years ago and that imposes, if you like, obligations, even, upon the taliban to give them hospitality and i've never believed that the taliban have shown any inclination to reduce or

to end that relationship and i think the killing of ayman al zawahiri in a guesthouse in kabul shows how deep those relationships have been. that said, i think it is true that there had been less tendencies to actively plan attacks on the west stemming from ayman al zawahiri and the al-qaeda network based in afghanistan because the taliban do not wish to put that in trouble. but, yeah, the links are there and the links will remain and it is a huge embarrassment, i think, for the taliban, at this stage.— taliban, at this stage. there were two notable _ taliban, at this stage. there were two notable occasions _ taliban, at this stage. there were two notable occasions where i two notable occasions where president biden did signpost these, what we have come to know as the over horizon counterterrorism activities. straight after the chaotic withdrawal from afghanistan and then again injanuary he wore end that missions will be considered

in afghanistan in terms of countering terrorism operations. what message do you think this is sending to the taliban and to other groups that are operating in afghanistan as well because we have on the ground there. is this message going to cut through? irlot on the ground there. is this message going to cut through?— going to cut through? not only on the ground _ going to cut through? not only on the ground but — going to cut through? not only on the ground but in _ going to cut through? not only on the ground but in the _ going to cut through? not only on | the ground but in the government. yes, i mean, it will. it will absolutely remind all those, whether al-qaeda or isis or any other international terrorist of the danger that they face from this kind of attack and the succession of al-qaeda will be very interesting to see. which individuals will take over leadership. this is the death of their leader but it is certainly not the death of al-qaeda. they will continue and however the future leaders are constrained also, so,

yeah, it is a reminder that there is an over horizon capability and that is real. i think however, there is no substitute for having a presence, whether it is an embassy or other other kind of presence on the ground in afghanistan. afghanistan, the afghan people face enormous challenges so let's not forget that winter is just around the corner and we've undergone a very difficult 12 months and that is only going to get worse if there is no serious economic relief of the country and so i do believe the nisi more engagement now by the west and hopefully this event will cause the taliban to address what it needs to do to build confidence and bridges with the us and other international partners. with the us and other international artners. �* , ., �*

with the us and other international artners. g ., ~ ., ., with the us and other international artners. �*y ., ~ ., ., ., partners. ayman al zawahiri was a former doctor. _ partners. ayman al zawahiri was a former doctor, wasn't _ partners. ayman al zawahiri was a former doctor, wasn't he? - partners. ayman al zawahiri was a former doctor, wasn't he? you i partners. ayman al zawahiri was a | former doctor, wasn't he? you met some of bin laden and treated some of the troops during the soviet era led fight in afghanistan. the two menjoined together. when led fight in afghanistan. the two men joined together. when 0sama led fight in afghanistan. the two menjoined together. when 0sama bin laden was killed, he took very much of a low profile position within al-qaeda. where was he planning. he was known as a strategist. a lot of people are talking about the affiliates that looked to al-qaeda, particularly across northern africa and that rich recruitment ground. does that still exist or will they now be turning to 0|s, for example? there is a global competition, if you like, however, ayman al zawahiri did, yes, deviate slightly from the summer bin laden desire to mount long—range attacks on the enemy as

they saw them. and concentrated much more on developing, if you like, more on developing, if you like, more grassroots community based affiliates in, for example, the horn of africa. but also al-qaeda as well. that strategy, you know, is one, c whether it continues under a successor or not but it does mean al-qaeda have at present present, notjust in pakistan, afghanistan where they, but also more widely now. thank you. doctors in london are preparing to switch off the life—support

treatment of 12 —year—old archie battersbee this lunchtime, after his parents lost a number of legal challenges. judges in the court of appeal ruled yesterday that archie's treatment should not continue beyond midday today. archie was found unconscious at his home in april. doctors say he is "brain—stem dead". ellie price reports. another court hearing, another crushing disappointment for the family of archie battersbee. doctors say the 12—year—old is brainstem dead and judges from the high court and court of appeal have repeatedly maintained it's in his best interests to switch off life support. but his mother fights on. i have got my son's best interests at heart, and paul, and the siblings. nobody else has got archie's best interests at heart and i say, and i still stand by it, archie's best interests would be to allow that child time to recover. if he doesn't recover, he doesn't recover, but give him time to recover. archie was injured during

an incident at home and taken to southend hospital on the 7th of april. after a series of tests, a high courtjudge ruled on the 13th ofjune that archie is dead, based on mri scan results, and that treatment could be withdrawn. 0n the 20th ofjune, the family asked the court of appeal to reconsider the case and it ruled that a new hearing should take place. that new hearing was held on the 15th ofjuly, and a judge ruled that life—support treatment should end. a decision supported by the court of appeal. thejudge in yesterday's hearing has said that there should be no further postponement of the withdrawal of life support beyond midday today. for archie's parents, their last hope now lies with the supreme court. ellie price, bbc news. the headlines on bbc news. president biden confirms the head of al qaeda, ayman al zawahiri has been killed by a us drone strike in kabul. life support is expected to be withdrawn from 12—year—old archie battersbee today, after court of appeal judges said his treatment should not continue. experts predict typical household

energy bills will rise to more than 3,300 pounds a year this autumn — and climb even higher next year. the energy company, bp, has reported the second highest profit in its history. between april and june, it made 6.9 billion pounds, three times as much as in the same period last year. it comes on the back of soaring energy prices which have left consumers facing big increases to their household bills. our business correspondent, ramzan karmali, gave us his assessment of bp's results.

household energy bills in the uk could rise even higher than expected this autumn — with the price cap set to go up again in october. the energy watchdog 0fgem had previously warned that the average yearly gas bill will be 2,800 pounds — but energy analysts cornwall insight say the figure is likely to be 500 pounds more than that, before rising even more next year. here's our business correspondent ben boulos: in the summer, it's much easier because we don't have to have the heating on, we don't have to use the dryer, i can hang all these clothes on the line. ruth, a mother of two, has already cut back on her energy usage. might have to change some of the way that we do things inside the house, and maybe i'll be out here in the cold pegging the washing on the line. now, news of another hike in energy bills this autumn is putting the pressure on.

the latest prediction is that it will go up in the autumn to £3358 per year for an average household. what are your thoughts on that? i mean, it'sjust frightening, really, because it's such a huge amount of money and you can't get around it. there's things that you can't change, you know, when it's winter, we have to put the heating on, we have to put the lights on. maybe we won't have the heating on as much, maybe we'll have to put extra jumpers on. but there's some things that you can't change and you can't stop. i still have to wash the clothes. so it's going to be a challenging winter, i think, for everybody. in april last year, the energy price cap increased, pushing the annual bill for an average household on a variable rate from just over £1000 to £1138. within a year, the price cap had risen to its current level, which puts a typical bill at £1971.

but energy analysts cornwall insight think it will go even higher to more than £3358 this october. and these price rises are expected to continue, with families potentially paying as much as £3729 by this time next year. but while our household bills are soaring, energy firms are making record profits. shell made £9 billion between april and june. british gas owner centrica's profits were five times higher in the first half of this year compared to the year before. the government says it's providing support worth billions of pounds, including a £400 discount on energy bills for every household in england, scotland and wales. but citizens advice said the number of people seeking help because they can no longer afford to eat and heat their homes

has tripled in a year. ben boulos, bbc news. the number of border crossings from ukraine has passed 10 million for the first time since the war began, according to the un refugee agency. last week the government announced more than 100 thousand people fleeing ukraine have arrived in the uk through visa schemes. the first ship, carrying grain from ukraine to world markets, is expected to anchor in istanbul later today. the ship, which is transporting more than 25 thousand tonnes of corn, left 0desa yesterday, after a deal signed by russia and ukraine, and mediated by turkey and the un last month. the ship has been called a �*relief for the world' by ukraine's foreign minister as global food prices soar. earlier i spoke to our ukraine correspondent — james waterhouse — who gave us the latest. well, as we speak, it is continuing to make

its way down the black sea. it seems to have made its way out of ukrainian waters and is expected to arrive in istanbul tonight, where it will be inspected as part of this landmark grain agreement, involving ukraine and russia. but there's a reason why you are not seeing fleets, whole convoys of vessels following suit, because the country's minister for infrastructure has said he expects between one and three ships to follow over the next few weeks. so we are very much still in the testing stage of this operation. the first vessel coming the other way is expected to arrive next week, we are told. but this is about building confidence. one of the main hurdles is insurance, where shipping companies and the authorities have

struggled to afford the kind of coverage needed for vessels to make their way across these mine infested waters. the minister highlighted that not only were there ukrainian mines along this route but minds from the second world war still in this area, which is why in his words it is so important to follow the planned route spanning from the region of 0desa, through the black sea and down to turkey which is acting as a gateway. the united nations, which brokered the deal, along with turkey, has urged for it to be honoured completely, for this agreement to be able to get up and running but as you can see, we are some way off ukraine realising its ambition of once again importing 5 million tonnes of de jager exporting 5 million tonnes of grain out of its ports per month like it did before the war. thank you forjoining us. james waterhouse in 0desa, there. the latest figures from the end ofjuly — relating to covid—19 — show the number of people dying from the virus has risen.

the office for national statistics says, more than 12,000 deaths were registered, in the week to the 22nd ofjuly — which is 17 percent above the 5 year average. in that time, at least 864 deaths were registered with covid—19 being the cause. that's rougly 168 than in the previous week. 696 people were detected crossing the english channel in small boats on monday — the highest number on a single day so far this year. french authorities say they stopped one boat at sea with 35 people on board. it's been more than three months since the home secretary announced plans to send migrants to rwanda to try to deter people from crossing the channel. an international study says that the risks of a climate change catastrophe, including the extinction of the human race, are not being taken seriously by scientists.

the authors say the consequences of warming beyond three degrees celsius have been "dangerously underexplored" and the world needs to start preparing for the possibility of what they term the "climate endgame." the report's authors, who include scientists from the universities of cambridge and exeter, say that in the case of warming more than three degrees, two billion people would be living with extreme heat by 2070 in some of the most politically fragile and densely populated parts of the world. china says it will take strong and firm measures if nancy pelosi visits taiwan. we can see such a visit is apparently very much dangerous, very much provocative. if the us insists on making the visit, china will take firm and strong measures to safeguard our national sovereignty and territorial integrity.

0ur correspondent rupert wingfield—hayes is in the taiwanese capital, taipei. the rhetoric has been very fiery, certainly from the chinese side, over the last few days, there have been all sorts of threats, both from senior figures, but mostly from the chinese state media, warning that nancy pelosi is is doing something that's very dangerous and that china would not stand idly by while she comes and visits taiwan. i have to say, the mood here in taipei is very calm, partly because people here have heard these sorts of threats over and over against the island and its government and visitors over many decades. and they say this is the normal sort of rhetoric and threats that we get when these sorts of things happen.

the attitude of people here — i've spoken to a number of politicians here from both the ruling party and the opposition, and what they're saying is ms pelosi is extremely welcome here and taiwan should be allowed to choose who it invites, who travels to taiwan, and it should not be dictated by beijing. now it's time for a look at the weather. it been a cloudy, murky, wet start to the day today but as we head on into the afternoon a lot of that rain will ease. we will be left with a few showers and, as temperatures continue to rise, we will see sunshine coming through. blustery windy depending where you are unfeeling humid with temperatures the 20s and locally, the south—east, just into the 30s. as we head on into the evening and overnight a weather front and sinking south. it will bring cloud with it. not getting into the south—east. showers coming in across the north west.

some of those will merge to give longer spells of heinous is going to feel humid. 0vernight lows 16—18. into tomorrow, then, we start off a cloud in the fire sale. you might see the odd spot of rain but most won't. largely largely dry but the wind will have the advantage more of a north—westerly. there will be a few showers. temperatures of 28.

hello this is bbc news. the headlines: president biden confirms the head of al-qaeda, ayman al zawahiri has been killed by a us drone strike in kabul. he made videos including in recent weeks calling for his followers to attack the united states and our allies. nowjustice has been delivered and this terrorist leader is no more.

life support is expected to be withdrawn from 12—year—old archie battersbee today, after court of appeal judges said his treatment should not continue. experts predict typical household energy bills will rise to more than £3,300 a year this autumn — and climb even higher next year. it comes as bp reports £6.9 billion in quarterly profits — its highest in 1a years. china warns the united states it will "pay the price" if us house speaker nancy pelosi visits taiwan during her asia trip. british airways halts sales of tickets on short—haul flights from heathrow for a week as disruption for travellers continues. mps are calling for non—surgical cosmetic procedures like botox and fillers to be better regulated.

we're going to catch up with all that sport and of course the commonwealth games are taking place in birmingham at its the lovely jane. hello, jane. good morning from birmingham, where it is day five of the commonwealth games. 37 gold medals up for grabs, and wales have just won their second of the games. it came in the lawn bowls, in a very tight match against england. jarrad breen and daniel salmon beating jamie walker and sam tolchard19—18to win men's pairs gold at victoria park. and scotland beat northen ireland to win the bronze. the atletics at the alexander stadium begins today. katarina johnson—thompson begins the defence of her heptathlon title. she's hoping to improve on her eighth place at the world championships last month. the 29—year—old has been plagued with injuries. she recovered from a ruptured

achilles to make last year's 0lympics, only for a calf injury to force her out. so far this morning, she finished fifth place in the 100 metres hurdles. it's the long jump up next. england's nethaneel mitchell blake is through to the semifinal of the men's100 metres. mitchell—blake was beaten by nigeria's 0ghene tejiri ashe in the heats. he edged mitchell blake as the two took the automatic qualification spots. in the women's t37/38 100m qualifying a season—best time of 12.80 seconds saw england's sophie hahn finish clear of the competition and safely book her final spot. wale's 0livia breen also got her best time of the year with to finish second. england's women could seal their place in the semi finals of cricket's t20 competition with a win over south africa at edgbaston today. england beat sri lanka

in their first match and if new zealand beat the sri lankans today, then england will be through to the last four. england are currently 68—2 in the eighth over. they lost the first wicket earlier, sophie duncan went with at yorker. these are live pictures — you can watch the match live on iplayer and the bbc sport website. 0n the final day of track cycling yesterday dame laura kenny overcame her self doubts to take england's first gold at the velodrome. kenny powered past scotland's neah evans in the 10km scratch race to win in an exciting final lap. the five time olympic gold medalist had struggled earlier in the week, only picking up bronze

in the team pursuit. speaking to bbc breakfast this morning she said she thought she had lost her spark before picking herself up mentally and going on to win the race. kenny says she'll take her time before deciding whether to retire. iam not i am not going to make any decision she, i'm not going to set that's it, i'm done, just based on the feelings i've had over the last 48 hours but right now i basically would say what adams said, i would like to have some time away and then i can decide. 0bviously some time away and then i can decide. obviously this is my career, it is not one of those things i can just... if i step away, i step away and that is it, as an athlete you're leaving it behind literally so i just need some time to decide what i want to do, going forward. more from the athletics today and more gymnastics as well and thejudo where hopefully that is a medal hope for england. but that is all the

sport for now. some breaking news concerning the death of jamal edwards. the assistant coroner concluded there was evidence of cocaine toxicity in his body adding that the cause of death was cardiac arrhythmia which was sparked by cocaine use. his death was a drug—related death. jamal edwards, who died at the age of 31, in february this year. the two remaining candidates to be the next conservative leader have continued setting out their priorities — in the race to become the next prime minister. liz truss has faced criticism from unions over plans to pay civil servants differently — depending on where in the country they live. while rishi sunak says he'd bring

in the largest cut to income tax in 30 years. let's speak to our political correspondent nick eardley at westminster. tax seems to be dominating this morning, nick. tax seems to be dominating this morning. nick-— tax seems to be dominating this morning, nick. there is a massive row brewing _ morning, nick. there is a massive row brewing over _ morning, nick. there is a massive row brewing over these _ morning, nick. there is a massive row brewing over these plans i morning, nick. there is a massive row brewing over these plans has| row brewing over these plans has come up with to basically change the way pay awards for civil servants and public sector workers happen in england. the idea liz truss has is to cut a bunch of money from the public spending bill by changing p two happening on a regional level, basically regional pay boards which would take into account the local cost of living, to basically come up with some slightly lower pay in certain parts of the country. these plans have not been completely explained, how exactly in practice

that would work but it seems to mean if you were in parts of the country where the cost of living is lower your pay would be lower as well and that has caused massive outrage among some of rishi sunak�*s supporters, some mps in the north of england, local mayors who are saying frankly this would undermine the government's hole levelling up strategy and would mean the exact opposite, levelling down. a man keen on the idea of shaking up how whitehall works and are supported liz truss is jacob rees—mogg, here's what he told the bbc this morning about the idea. it is what he told the bbc this morning about the idea.— about the idea. it is saying we will t this about the idea. it is saying we will try this with _ about the idea. it is saying we will try this with civil _ about the idea. it is saying we will try this with civil servants - about the idea. it is saying we will try this with civil servants and i about the idea. it is saying we will try this with civil servants and see | try this with civil servants and see if it is— try this with civil servants and see if it is possible to do and if it works— if it is possible to do and if it works to _ if it is possible to do and if it works to have regional pay boards. i think— works to have regional pay boards. i think that _ works to have regional pay boards. i think that is — works to have regional pay boards. i think that is perfectly reasonable as your— think that is perfectly reasonable as your moving jobs out of london for new_ as your moving jobs out of london for new employees, anyone who currently — for new employees, anyone who currently works for the civil service _ currently works for the civil service will remain on their current terms _ service will remain on their current terms but — service will remain on their current terms but new people will be paid the market rate in the area in which they live _ the market rate in the area in which they live and that is quite rightly

taken _ they live and that is quite rightly taken care of taxpayers' money. i taken care of taxpayers' money. i got _ taken care of taxpayers' money. i got to— taken care of taxpayers' money. i got to say, that is not the way it is being interpreted by a lot of conservatives who say frankly the idea you would go into a general election saying we will pay people outside london less, that's the big pitch for cutting civil service wages and extending that to the public sector, theyjust do not think that is going to work. we've heard various figures within the conservative party really panning this policy this morning. have a listen to liam fox who supported rishi sunak. it listen to liam fox who supported rishi sunak-— listen to liam fox who supported rishi sunak. it sounds like the old treasury orthodoxy, _ rishi sunak. it sounds like the old treasury orthodoxy, what - rishi sunak. it sounds like the old treasury orthodoxy, what the i rishi sunak. it sounds like the old i treasury orthodoxy, what the tragedy have been— treasury orthodoxy, what the tragedy have been trying to push, i am not sure it _ have been trying to push, i am not sure it is _ have been trying to push, i am not sure it is well thought through. the bil sure it is well thought through. the big problem is a £55 billion of unfunded tax cuts, to then try to rebatance — unfunded tax cuts, to then try to rebalance it on public sector wages is not _ rebalance it on public sector wages is not something that is likely to be down — is not something that is likely to be down very well so the outside of london _ london. liz- london. liz truss has been loudou. — liz truss has been seen as the frontrunner in this campaign, she

has had a pretty good campaign so far, she's been very popular with tory members but ijust wonder if this policy is going to raise some questions about how she is coming up with his ideas, we've had a lot of bold pledges over the past few days but when you dig down into the detail they are a bit more complicated and in the case of this one they are proving really unpopular with some conservatives will stop and ijust unpopular with some conservatives will stop and i just wonder unpopular with some conservatives will stop and ijust wonder if unpopular with some conservatives will stop and i just wonder if this policy might have to be dumped by liz truss's team because it is proving so controversial with so many conservatives. we've got quite a few weeks to go, we will see how that pans out but thank you, nick. let's return to our top story — confirmation from president biden that the us has killed the leader of al-qaeda, ayman al—zawahiri, in a drone strike in afghanistan. ayman al—zawahiri was on the us most wanted list for his role in plotting the 9/11 terror attacks in 2001,

which killed nearly 3,000 people he took over the terrorist group al-qaeda after the death of 0sama bin laden. president biden said al—zawahiri was also behind the attack on the naval destroyer the uss cole, in aden, which killed 17 us sailors in the year 2000, and the attacks on the us embassies in kenya and tanzania in 1998, which killed 223 people. announcing the drone strike, president biden said al—zawahiri had �*carved a trail of violence and murder against american citizens�*. he said, �*nowjustice has been delivered and this terrorist leader is no more�*. there have been questions over the use of armed drones. let�*s speak now to khalil dewan, head of investigations at london law firm stoke white,

who is researching for a doctorate on the �*intersection�* between international human rights law and the use of armed drones. thank you forjoining us on bbc news. first off, these type of strikes from afar, how have they proved for the us and other allies? i think. all it is a very complex matter of course we are talking about, under international law, it is also a reflective point for president biden on his drone programme and the counterterrorism strategy moving forward in afghanistan. in this particular case we heard since the morning, whilst it is being alleged there have been no civilian casualties there is still a 20 year track records that has been diligently recorded by

journalists globally of civilian casualties in many places as a result of the us drone programme which never really reaches the headlines. but i think it is too important as a reflective point to think about this because this strike comes after 20 years of the global war on terror, particularly in the armed conflict in afghanistan, and we really need to move beyond the symbol of the em cute nine drone, the drone we perceive as this is highly symbolic and the questions we should be asking is how does the us have the capability to still have intelligence acquiring assets on the ground as well as in the sky and still reportedly execute targets. what we need to then discuss is whilst it is a drawdown and withdrawal of troops, what the interpretation of the us in striking individuals outside of a war zone or transitional piece phase where there

are certain agreements in place for use of force and what is the justification for them. clearly you pose some great questions, i will put those straight back at you, one of the first ones, you said how does the us have the capability to acquire this intelligence, are you talking about this from our legal point of view? don�*t most nations have this? indeed, and after 20 years of the drone programme we are now moving into a very sophisticated phase of satellite signals and cable intelligence and effectively war in space. no longer does the us require its ct strategy in afghanistan to be based on the ground, rather it is using satellite intelligence including use of private it companies to support that system and this ecosystem is actually one of

violence. it is really important to consider this because impact on the legality. in 2013 a un report was written, where he said the killing of individuals outside of an armed conflict is never likely to be legal. so whilst there are people who will be celebrating this attack on ayman al—zawahiri and his killing there are also some very unsettled international law question surrounding the use of drones because primarily, and solely, the us believes the world is a battlefield. i�*m getting a little bit confused, and wondering if you break it down, when you talk about international law, are you talking about the use of these assets whether privately owned satellites or whatever you�*re referring to there, or is it the

fact that there may well be innocent people killed as part of these strikes? what is the issue with international law because surely what you have said is a war in space truck that is the way things are going, isn�*t it? truck that is the way things are going. isn't it?— truck that is the way things are going, isn't it? yes, it is but we must remember _ going, isn't it? yes, it is but we must remember under - going, isn't it? yes, it is but we must remember under the i going, isn't it? yes, it is but we must remember under the law. going, isn't it? yes, it is but we l must remember under the law we going, isn't it? yes, it is but we - must remember under the law we have use of traditions of how we conduct ourselves under international law, it is very clear drone warfare is pushing these boundaries and we have now come at a clinical stage where the us interpretation of that is it believes it has the ability to strike anywhere it wants to, really. and it is a very highly problematic under the law, you can only target someone outside of context of war if there is a concrete specific and imminent threat and if we look at the doha agreement which has been talked about, it specifically states it will prevent attacks. these are the justification is that states use

for drone warfare outside these grey areas and it is subject to a 20 year discussion so it is really interesting point for the drone programme and another important point to note on international development on this is the new drone states who are creating drones and using drones in several different parts of the world, and they will be looking at this conduct, trying to replicate it elsewhere which is highly dangerous. khalil dewan, thank you very much indeed. british airways says it will stop selling tickets on short—haul flights from heathrow airport until monday. the move is due to the cap on daily passenger numbers that the airport imposed over the summer, in an attempt to reduce travel delays. the sales suspension will affect ba�*s flights to domestic and european destinations.

joining me now is our transport correspondent, katy austin. quick clarification, monday, next monday we�*re talking about? quick clarification, monday, next monday we're talking about? yeah, basically them _ monday we're talking about? yeah, basically them not _ monday we're talking about? yeah, basically them not selling _ monday we're talking about? yeah, basically them not selling tickets i basically them not selling tickets on some short—haul routes, from heathrow domestic and european routes, until next monday come over the next week. this is about stopping last—minute bookings. lots of these flights will be quite busy already with people going on holiday and those existing bookings are not affected but the reason this is airport last month said it would put a limit on how many passengers could fly out of heathrow every day of heathrow every day over at their peak summer season and it said that was basically because there had been a lot of disruption and it said the system was not really giving passengers the service they need as demand increased so quickly but may beat the resources were not all there. it�*s put this cap on

passenger numbers and as i understand that british airways which of course is the biggest carrier at heathrow, the most affected by these kind of decisions, for the coming week it was getting close to the limit on passenger numbers that it could fly under that control and it has stopped selling tickets on the short—haul routes for this week to kind of mixture that is enough for manoeuvre in the system and —— make sure it is enough room for manoeuvre, to the further disruption. very quickly, if you are a prospective traveller you will be thinking there is a cap on numbers but how likely is it will see a rise in prices because of this? this but how likely is it will see a rise in prices because of this?- in prices because of this? this is an unprecedented _ in prices because of this? this is an unprecedented move, - in prices because of this? this is an unprecedented move, it- in prices because of this? this is an unprecedented move, it does in prices because of this? this is i an unprecedented move, it does not affect existing bookings so people should not worry about that i understand british airways or the founders a very frustrating decision, not selling tickets in your peak summer season —— british airways will have found this very

frustrating. despite not being at the top of as other cancellations, some of the impact is may be push up prices on other routes, ultimately you are giving people less choice if they want to book or at the next week so that is one side effect we could see but in terms of the impact this is having, british airways has already cancelled around 30,000 flights proactively over the whole april— 0ctober schedule so this is affecting one week, not as big impact in that way still very unusual move in a very unusual summer. this practice has been taken by amsterdam schiphol airport. has that helped? heathrow is not the only one introducing a cap on passenger numbers, gatwick cap flights for the summer but amsterdam�*s airport has done this as well. it has clearly felt it has worked because they�*ve announced todayit worked because they�*ve announced today it will continue into september and october so they are

cap is lower than heathrow, 67,500 departing passengers and yet it says it will carry this into september and october to keep things safe and reliable for passengers. thank you. pakistan�*s election commission has ruled that the pt! party of the former prime minister, imran khan, has received illegal funds. in a case that has been going on since 2014, the investigation found that the party received and concealed more than two million dollars from several undeclared foreign sources. let�*s go live now to islamabad where we can speak to the bbc�*s pumza fihlani. just remain as more about this case, if you could. just remain as more about this case, if you could-— if you could. this is an extraordinary - if you could. this is an extraordinary case. i if you could. this is an i extraordinary case. one that if you could. this is an _ extraordinary case. one that could have huge implications forformer prime minister imran khan�*s party.

this case is related to funding being investigated for a few years, there were allegations his party accepted and later concealed millions of dollars worth of political funding. millions of dollars worth of politicalfunding. this is illegal in pakistan because the government wants to say there is no political interference, it is a lot set up to try to preserve the integrity of the electoral process. imran khan earlier this year when commenting on this investigation said he welcomed it and said it would prove his party has nothing to hide. he is not said anything on this latest development yet but his party has reacted, saying they will take the matter to court and accused the electoral commission of malice. what we also need to watch out for is what mr imran khan�*s supporters will make of this, she recently has made a very popular his views western influence

it in the political landscape in pakistan although has provided no evidence of this so some experts expect he will try and use even this decision as further proof he was pushed out of power and somebody else behind—the—scenes is trying to run the show here. else behind-the-scenes is trying to run the show here.— run the show here. thank you very much for that _ run the show here. thank you very much for that update. _ i want to tell you now about an incredible operation that saw brazilian twins who were joined at the head, successfully separated. virtual reality projections of the twins helped refine techniques to separate the three—year—olds, as mark lobel explains, and his report contains some images of the surgery itself. bernardo and arthur are twin brothers born with a fused brain in brazil.

described as otherwise healthy nearly four—year—olds, they could not sit or walk, robbing them of a normal childhood. as of around seven weeks ago, they now look like this, a remarkable moment, only the sixth such a separation of its kind, but this time, surgeries in rio dejaneiro came with direction from great 0rmond street street hospital in london. what we were able to do this time around which was a world first was to do it in virtual reality across the two continents, with us setting it up on our platforms here. we wore the vr goggles and then invited the team in brazil to join the vr theatre and all of the surgery was done in virtual reality, all the steps were taken before we actually lifted the scalpel. to handle the complex task of dealing with the brain, blood vessels, the skin, the bone and covering of the brain, each step was mapped out using simulations, over a six—month period. the advantage of practising on virtual reality projections of the twins meant that the team were able to refine things when they repeatedly hit dead ends.

nonetheless, as the surgeons involved concluded, it was still high—risk surgery. translation: i talked to their mother and told her i believed | we could separate her children. i learned the phrase, "when you have 1% possibility, you have 99% of faith." 0nce their parents were made aware of the risks, it was up to them to give surgeons the green light. translation: | had become - so desperate because i could not bear my sons' condition. the twins had seven surgeries. the final operation alone took over 27 hours and involved nearly 100 medical staff. it is hoped this will be a template for helping conjoined twins around the world. what we have been able to do at gemini untwined is to pool the global experience so that when the next set of kids are born with that, be it in israel, turkey or rio, in this instance, we are able to share our experience and our knowledge with the local team and then undertake the surgery

and support them. the boys are said to be recovering well in hospital, after their blood pressures and heart rates were said to be through the roof after their separation, until they were reunited, four days later, and touched hands. they will undergo rehabilitation for the next six months. mark lobel, bbc news. now take a look at these pictures. they show a massive sinkhole that�*s appeared over the weekend in chile. 0fficials became aware of it on saturday and have dispatched specialist personnel to the area. it is believed it has a depth of nearly 200 meters. more than 1,000 people have taken part in the biggest flower fight in spain.

locals and tourists joined in the fun in valencia. organisers say more than a million flowers were thrown during the fight. the tradition has been taking place for more than 100 years and the idea was borrowed from the carnivals in the french resort of nice. it is the first time the event has taken place for two years because of the coronavirus pandemic. now it�*s time for a look at the weather with carol. hello again. it�*s been a cloudy, murky start to the day with some rain and also some heavy, thundery showers. that�*s courtesy of this area of low pressure, with its attendant fronts. you can also see from the isobars that it is a windy day ahead, or certainly a blustery one. as we go through the rest of the day, most of the rain will fade but we will be left with some murkiness across south—west england and wales for example and there will be a few showers dotted around elsewhere, but for many, it is going to dry out

and as temperatures continue to rise, we will see more sunshine. even though it is blustery, it will still get up to 24 in aberdeen and birmingham and 30 as we push down towards the south—east. for the commonwealth games, we started off on a cloudy, wet note but it should now remain mostly dry. there will be variable amounts of cloud around with temperatures getting up to the low 20s. into this evening and overnight, here comes our weather front sinking south as a band of cloud with some spots of rain in it, not getting into the south east. there will be further showers coming in across the north west, some of those merging to give longer spells of rain. and it is going to be a muggy night, temperatures falling away to between 13—18 degrees. tomorrow, we have got the remnants of the front in the far south of england. it is reallyjust going to be a band of cloud. there might be the odd spot of rain in it but most of us won�*t see that. and then a lot of dry weather, a fair bit of sunshine around as well. as the wind changes to more of a north—westerly,

we will see further showers coming in across scotland, northern ireland and also northern england, and note the wind direction. it is starting to change to more of a north—westerly. in the north west, we have got highs of 15 degrees. you come further south, it is still going to be humid, 27 or 28. from wednesday into thursday, low pressure moves away and high pressure starts to push in. we still have weather fronts crossing us, still producing bands of cloud and a few showers, but for most, we will miss them altogether. it will be dry with a fair bit of sunshine around and with the north—westerly breeze, it is going to feel fresher. top temperature on thursday, up to 26 degrees. you can see that reflected quite nicely on this chart. the ambers indicate the higher temperatures and the yellows just telling you it is going to be warm as we go through the next few days. high pressure remains firmly in charge on friday and also saturday, with a lot of dry weather except for in the north west where there will be some rain.

this is bbc news. the headlines: president biden confirms the head of al qaeda, ayman al zawahiri has been killed by a us drone strike in kabul. he made videos including in recent weeks calling for his followers to attack the united states and our allies. nowjustice has been delivered and this terrorist leader is no more. life support is expected to be withdrawn from 12—year—old archie battersbee today, after court of appeal judges said his treatment should not continue. experts predict typical household energy bills will rise to more than 3,300 pounds a year this autumn — and climb even higher next year. it comes as bp reports 6.9 billion pounds in quarterly profits — its highest in 14 years. china warns the united states it

will "pay the price" if us house speaker nancy pelosi visits taiwan during her asia trip. british airways halts sales of tickets on short—haul flights from heathrow for a week as disruption for travellers continues. mps are calling for non—surgical cosmetic procedures like botox and fillers to be better regulated. doctors in london are preparing to switch off the life—support

treatment of 12 —year—old archie battersbee, after his parents lost a number of legal challenges. judges in the court of appeal ruled yesterday that archie�*s treatment should not continue beyond midday today. archie was found unconscious at his home in april. doctors say he is "brain—stem dead". we can speak now to our reporter matt cole, who is at the royal london hospital. matt cole, who is at such matt cole, who is at a complex case, isn�*t it? shore much such a complex case, isn't it? are much so- — such a complex case, isn't it? are much so. indeed. _ such a complex case, isn't it? sits: much so. indeed. they such a complex case, isn't it? sire: much so. indeed. they are such a complex case, isn't it? fife: much so. indeed. they are waiting for a statement from the hospital here in central london where archie has been since the 8th of april. that is the day after he had an accident at his southend home. he was starved of oxygen and subsequently, doctors have repeatedly said that he is brain

stem dead. this family have fought a host of legal battles at different levels of uk courts. the high court, the appeal court, the supreme court. we had been expecting the possibility a final set of appeal is being launched this morning. we have, at this time, not heard anything so we are anticipating a statement from the hospital here. the courtjudge yesterday did say that a stay of any further weight to not withdraw life support was not in archie�*s best interests and so no later than noon they said that life support should be withdrawn. we are now waiting to hear whether there was a final legal challenge. the hospital had made clear in a statement yesterday that they would be led by the court. that they would prepare to begin the withdrawal of life support but they would not do it if there were still court

proceedings in place. we have had nothing thus far this morning from the supreme court although a christian organisation who have been supporting the family had told me this morning they thought papers were being lodged at the supreme court imminently but we don�*t understand that has happened. we are waiting to hear if there is been a statement from the hospital given that noon deadline for withdrawing support has just passed. brute that noon deadline for withdrawing support hasjust passed.— support has 'ust passed. we have been support hasjust passed. we have been hearing. _ support hasjust passed. we have been hearing, like _ support hasjust passed. we have been hearing, like you _ support hasjust passed. we have been hearing, like you said, i support hasjust passed. we have. been hearing, like you said, you've been hearing, like you said, you�*ve just outlined a number of organisations and comments and reactions to this. what have archie�*s family been saying on the matter? archie's family been saying on the matter? ~ : :, archie's family been saying on the matter? . _, :, :, , matter? welcome throughout this, the have matter? welcome throughout this, they have been. — matter? welcome throughout this, they have been, in _ matter? welcome throughout this, they have been, in their— matter? welcome throughout this, they have been, in their view, i they have been, in their view, fighting to keep archie on life support. they have taken a host of legal challenges to different levels of court. most recently, we had them appealing to the united nations and thatis appealing to the united nations and that is what led us to the point we

are right now. a committee of the united nations had asked if there could be a stay, a pause for the withdrawal of life support and how they looked at this, the family had conversations with the united nations committee linked to the convention on the rights of persons with disabilities. that had asked there could be a delay while they looked into it but yesterday, the appeal court, a judge said that the convention that that committee pertained to, part of the united nations, did not have any basis in the uk law and as a consequence, could not defer what was due to happen here at noon as a consequence of that. thejudge happen here at noon as a consequence of that. the judge also said they would not grant the appeal to the supreme court but this family were allowed to go to the supreme court. holly has been determined throughout that her son archie should be

allowed to die naturally, not how his life support withdrawn from him. and has been fighting ever since. doctors have repeatedly supported by the courts, said that archie is brain stem dead, the treatment is not in his best interests and they are now, the courts have heard in previous hearings that every bodily function is now maintained by artificial means and so, at every turn, the ports have supported the difficult decision made to the doctors that maintaining life support is not in his best interest. thank you very much for that update. if you�*re just thank you very much for that update. if you�*rejustjoining us here on bbc news were actually waiting to hear what the final decision is concerning the live support for archie battersbee. it was expected to be switched off at midday today. it is six minutes past midday so as

that decision comes through we will bring you the latest on that tragic story. in the meantime we have got some more into us here at bbc news and that concerns the story concerning the children�*s services at bridgend county borough council. this comes a year after the death of a five—year—old well, a care inspectorate has raised issues of the management and record keeping. let�*s get more on this. our wales correspondent has been following this very closely. what has been said? what is the background, just remind said? what is the background, 'ust remind ._ said? what is the background, 'ust remind , , , :, , ., remind may be best to start with the back round remind may be best to start with the background and _ remind may be best to start with the background and five-year-old, i remind may be best to start with the| background and five-year-old, logan background and five—year—old, logan mwangi who was found dead just over a year ago, his body was found in

the river. the police investigation found that he had been killed in his own home by his mother, his stepfather and his stepbrother. logan was known to the local social services in bridgend. he was registered for around a year as a child at risk but about a month before his death, his case was downgraded to being a child in need but there had been visits to the home and the family, social services were also involved with his stepbrother and concerns had been raised about him. put all that in the context of the fact that the inspectorate here in wales had raised concerns about the local children services. issues raised in april 2021, children services. issues raised in april2021, months children services. issues raised in april 2021, months before logan�*s death. and with them now from a report published today that, even in may 2022, months after logan�*s death, those concerns still remained. they are around the management of risk when assessments

are made about children�*s welfare and safeguarding issues and also the pressure that the social workers are under. it makes clear that, even if staff are trying their utmost to protect children, the sheer demand facing his bigger than the resources they have. we�*re still waiting a child practice review. a formal investigation into the issues around logan�*s death and the safeguarding issues and essentially, whether more could and should have been done to protect little logan and if there had been concerns if they had been acted on sufficiently to try to protect him. we should

the leader of al qaeda, ayman al zawahiri, has been killed in an american drone strike in afghanistan. al zawahiri was one of the masterminds behind the september the 11th attacks, against the united states in 2001. after years of tracking him, the cia targeted him with 2 missiles from a drone flying above the afghan capital, kabul, killing him instantly. announcing the strike, president biden said the killing would bring closure to families of the nearly 3,000 victims of the 9/11 attacks. the killing comes nearly a year after the us�*s chaotic withdrawal from afghanistan. 0ur washington correspondent, nomia iqbal, reports. after decades, america has killed one of its most wanted terrorists. my fellow americans, on saturday, at my direction, the united states successfully

concluded an air strike in kabul, afghanistan, which killed the emir of al-qaeda, ayman al—zawahiri. the president said he gave his personal approval to kill ayman al—zawahiri. justice has been delivered, and this terrorist leader is no more. people around the world no longer need to fear the vicious and determined killer. the united states continues to demonstrate our resolve and our capacity to defend the american people against those who seek to do us harm. you know, we make it clear again tonight that no matter how long it takes, no matter where you hide, if you are a threat to our people, the united states will find you and take you out. it�*s taken 21 years. 0sama bin laden was the face behind the 9/11 attacks, but al—zawahiri was seen as the brains.

officials say his tactics and organisational skills were responsible for the deaths of nearly 3000 people. both men were close, appearing in propaganda videos. al—zawahiri was even bin laden�*s personal physician. the us wanted him dead or alive for $25 million. i think what this reflects is, really, the challenges we have had on our counterterrorism policies where al—zawahiri has been able to survive for two decades, outlasted the afghanistan war in safety, prior to us being able to eliminate him. when bin laden was killed by the americans in 2011, al—zawahiri took over. the president said america hunted him for a year, eventually locating him to a safe house in kabul last weekend. they shot two missiles at him. his family members were unharmed. al—zawahiri was rumoured to be in bad health, becoming a remote figure, and with the rise of other terror groups like the so—called

islamic state, his influence was marginal compared to his predecessor. the taliban has called the killing "a violation of international principles". but al—zawahiri�*s presence in kabul has cast doubt on the taliban�*s promise its country would not be a haven for terrorists. nomia iqbal, bbc news, washington. our correspondent secunder kermani is on the streets of the capital, kabul, and has been the site of the strike. the house targeted in this drone strike is right in the centre of kabul. we were there earlier this morning before the taliban prevented us from filming, insisting there was nothing to see whilst their fighters blocked off access to the site to the media. frankly speaking, it is impossible to believe that ayman al zawahiri, the leader of al-qaeda was here in hubble without the approval of senior taliban figures, and that puts the taliban in a difficult situation because they have been publicly insisting al-qaeda is a group that no longer really exists in this country.

al-qaeda and the taliban do have a long established relationship. al-qaeda being based here was the reason that america invaded back in 2001 following the 9/11 attacks. more recently the taliban have been playing down those ties after signing an agreement where they promise not to allow militants to use afghan soil to plot attacks against the west. that was part of an agreement signed by the taliban, with the united states, paving the way for the withdrawal of american soldiers from afghanistan last year. now, al-qaeda no longer represents the kind of global threat that it once did but while the killing of ayman al zawahiri will be seen as a victory for president biden�*s administration, particularly in light of that chaotic withdrawal last august, it will to deepen the distrust between the taliban and the west. 0ur security correspondent gordon

corera is here with more details. it does not represent the kind of global threat it was once known for. where are we with al-qaeda right now? it where are we with al-qaeda right now? ., , where are we with al-qaeda right now? :,, .p ., , where are we with al-qaeda right now? ., , ~ now? it has affiliates in the middle east, as now? it has affiliates in the middle east. as well— now? it has affiliates in the middle east, as well as _ now? it has affiliates in the middle east, as well as the _ now? it has affiliates in the middle east, as well as the central - east, as well as the central leadership but it is certainly not the threat it was at the time of the 9/11 attacks. ayman al zawahiri has been a more marginalfigure. he has been a more marginalfigure. he has been appearing in videos but far less influence and less sense of the group being constrained. that could change in the future and we don�*t know who might succeed him what kind of changes they might institute in the group but there is a sense that this is eclipsed by other groups, the so—called islamic state. is a

the so-called islamic state. is a ower the so-called islamic state. is a power vacuum _ the so—called islamic state. is a power vacuum dangerous thing when we talk about extremist groups like this? it talk about extremist groups like this? .., talk about extremist groups like this? :., , talk about extremist groups like this? .: , , talk about extremist groups like this? , , ., ,, :, this? it can be. it is hard know, reall , this? it can be. it is hard know, really. how _ this? it can be. it is hard know, really. how big _ this? it can be. it is hard know, really, how big the _ this? it can be. it is hard know, really, how big the core - this? it can be. it is hard know, really, how big the core of i this? it can be. it is hard know, i really, how big the core of al-qaeda is that we have left now. at one point after 911 it was driven out of afghanistan and into largely view tribal border areas with pakistan. there, the us really pummelled it with drone strikes and other counterterrorism operations over an extended period. this interesting and significant that certain leadership figures, ayman al zawahiri included, felt safe enough to go back to campbell and go back to go back to campbell and go back to afghanistan. clearly it was not to afghanistan. clearly it was not to say that he assumed it was in the intelligence community was able to track him but how significant it is is pretty unclear at the moment. we�*re hearing a lot about the doe heart agreements and the story. could you put it in the context for me, please? you make the whole issue of why the us went into afghanistan

in 2001 is because the taliban had basically offered sanctuary, offered shelter to al-qaeda._ basically offered sanctuary, offered shelter to al-qaeda. when the us was ne . otiatin: shelter to al-qaeda. when the us was negotiating about _ shelter to al-qaeda. when the us was negotiating about its _ shelter to al-qaeda. when the us was negotiating about its potential - negotiating about its potential withdrawal from afghanistan in negotiating about its potential withdrawalfrom afghanistan in doha part of the deal was the taliban would not return to sheltering groups like al-qaeda and that was one of the things that had supposedly been agreed so clearly there will be questions about two new of ayman al zawahiri�*s whereabouts and the fact that he was in afghanistan. that may raise difficult questions for the taliban but equally they will be unhappy about the us carried out a drone strike in the country so i think thatis strike in the country so i think that is one of the things to watch for in the coming hours and days is how this plays out between the two sides and what it means for the relationship between the us and the taliban. pl. relationship between the us and the taliban. : ., , relationship between the us and the taliban. : ~' , :, :, taliban. a likely reaction from al-anda _ taliban. a likely reaction from al-qaeda and _ taliban. a likely reaction from al-qaeda and anyway? i taliban. a likely reaction from al-qaeda and anyway? they l taliban. a likely reaction from l al-qaeda and anyway? they are taliban. a likely reaction from i al-qaeda and anyway? they are not for the scene _ al-qaeda and anyway? they are not for the scene as _ al-qaeda and anyway? they are not for the scene as having _ al-qaeda and anyway? they are not for the scene as having the - al-qaeda and anyway? they are not for the scene as having the ability i for the scene as having the ability to strike in the west in the way

they used to sew whether they do have some capability to do something perhaps in the region or perhaps through one of their affiliate groups, that is something people will be on guard for, i think. {guild will be on guard for, i think. could ou ve will be on guard for, i think. could you very quickly _ will be on guard for, i think. could you very quickly summarise i will be on guard for, i think. could you very quickly summarise who i will be on guard for, i think. could you very quickly summarise who and what and where they are? yes. you very quickly summarise who and what and where they are?— what and where they are? yes, lots of 'ihadist what and where they are? yes, lots ofjihadist groups _ what and where they are? yes, lots ofjihadist groups and _ what and where they are? yes, lots ofjihadist groups and other - what and where they are? yes, lots ofjihadist groups and other parts i ofjihadist groups and other parts ofjihadist groups and other parts of the world would affiliate themselves. they�*re often pre—existing groups and then they would affiliate themselves to al-qaeda. later on, it was interesting. some with than affiliate devices but you saw significant groups in places like yemen which would affiliate themselves with al-qaeda in somalia, north africa, nigeria and places like that. and those groups also ended up posing more of a threat than the al-qaeda core leadership which was in that pakistan afghanistan tribal area. over the horizon counterterrorism, i afghanistan tribal area. over the horizon counterterrorism, this i afghanistan tribal area. over the i horizon counterterrorism, this was an example of what we had about and it was discussed after their withdrawal from afghanistan last

year. business also sending a very powerful message? yes, positive strike for president biden, the the symbolism?— symbolism? that is the most important — symbolism? that is the most important thing _ symbolism? that is the most important thing about - symbolism? that is the most important thing about this. it symbolism? that is the most i important thing about this. it is about the emotional power particularly for the american public of reaching out and being able to take out the person involved in planning those 9/11 attacks which still have that enormous resonance and that is where the emotional power is for president biden and potentially politically at home and with the american public. yes, it also shows that over the horizon counterterrorism can work. that it is possible to strike targets even when you don�*t have bits on the ground but you still need intelligence can do that. here, they were able to collect it over a period of months that i think there are still questions and a lot of counterterrorism experts would question whether it is possible and is easy to carry out counterterrorism issues when you don�*t have a presence on the ground

and to do this over the horizon. this is clearly a case where they put a huge amount of effort and resources into tracking this one individual because of his prominence.— individual because of his rominence. ., ~' , :, , individual because of his rominence. :, ,, , . prominence. thank you very much indeed. thank you very much indeed. sport and for a full round up, from the bbc sport centre. good morning from birmingham, where it is day 5 of the commonwealth games. 37 gold medals up for grabs, and wales have just won their second of the games. it came in the lawn bowls, in a very tight match against england. jarrad breen and daniel salmon beating jamie walker and sam tolchard19—18to win men�*s pairs gold at victoria park. scotland beat northen ireland to win the bronze.

the athletics at the alexander stadium begins today. katarina johnson—thompson begins the defence of her heptathlon title.the athletes are currently competing in the highjump. kjt is hoping to improve on her eighth place at the world championships last month. the 29—year—old has been plagued with injuries. she recovered from a ruptured achilles to make last year�*s 0lympics, only for a calf injury to force her out. so far this morning, she finished fifth place in the 100 metres hurdles. it�*s the highjump up next. england�*s nethaneel mitchell blake is through to the semi—final of the men�*s 100 metres. mitchell—blake was beaten by nigeria�*s 0ghene tejiri ashe in the heats. he edged mitchell blake as the two took the automatic qualification spots. england�*s 0jie edoburun. scotland�*s adam thomas and wales�* british championjeremiah azu are also safely through.

the crowd is amazing. i was not expecting it to be this full. i couldn�*t stop smiling. it is exciting, this is what we want. we train so hard we want to show it off to the world. thank you to who came out because it has been amazing so far. in the women�*s t37/38 100m qualifying. a season—best time of 12.80 seconds saw england�*s sophie hahn finish clear of the competition and safely book her final spot. wale�*s 0livia breen also got her best time of the year with to finish second. in the last few minutes, england�*s keeley hodkinson and scotlands laura muir made it through to the 800 metre finals on saturday. but disappointment for scottish team matejemma reekie. who misses out.

she is appealing that so fingers crossed for her. she is appealing that so fingers crossed for her. england�*s women could seal their place in the semi finals of cricket�*s t20 competition with a win over south africa at edgbaston today. england beat sri lanka in theirfirst, and if new zealand beat the sri lankans today, then england will be through to the last four. england are currently 102—5 in the 14th ocver these are live pictures — you can watch the match live on iplayer and the bbc sport website. south africa won the toss and decided to bowl, you can see there england are 164—5.

the conservative leadership contender, liz truss, has backtracked on her plan to save billions of pounds by paying public sector workers less in poorer parts of the country. the idea faced strong criticism from some tories, who�*ve suggested it flies in the face of the levelling up agenda, with one conservative mayor saying the idea left him �*speechless�*. but in the last hour, mrs truss said she�*s been misrepresented. let�*s speak to our political correspondent nick eardley at westminster. so why the backtrack? quite frankly, it was the absolute _ so why the backtrack? quite frankly, it was the absolute panning - so why the backtrack? quite frankly, it was the absolute panning that i it was the absolute panning that this policy was getting from the labour party but also from a lot of conservative politicians who are deeply worried that it gave the impression that the levelling up agenda was gone and that this would lead to lower pay for civil servants and ultimately, potentially, for

teachers, for nurses, for members of the armed forces across parts of the uk. now, the policy that was outlined by liz truss last night was that she wanted to move to regional pay boards for civil servants. the idea being that when civil servant start to move out of london, as if the for the government, you should pay them according to the cost of living where they were settling. the suggestion from her team is that ultimately this would save billions of pounds because it could be extended to the public sector in general. as i say, including teachers, nurses, nhs staff, members of the armed forces, etc. the reaction to it was apoplectic quite frankly from some conservatives who said it would undermine the conservatives in different parts of the country and be impossible to take into a general election. ultimately that it would be levelling down. in the last hour, there has been a pretty dramatic and pretty swift u—turn from team truss

who say they think their plans are being slightly wrong be described and they will now not go ahead with the idea of regional pay boards. so, there is the policy u—turn and the wider question about what this does to the state of the race because as we have been hearing for the past few days it was generally accepted that liz truss was a bit ahead of rishi sunak. you seem to have all of the momentum but her campaign seem to be going pretty well. i�*ve got to say, speaking to people in team soon out in the last few minutes there are pretty confident this will be good for their campaign and it was, in the words of catastrophic error ofjudgment from liz in the words of catastrophic error of judgment from liz truss, in the words of catastrophic error ofjudgment from liz truss, that it would give, damage her campaign and ultimately give some invigoration to mr sunak so the question now is what this does to tory members. does it make them think that her policies are not as a well thought through as

she may have been hoping? does it change, potentially, some of the dynamic in this leadership race? it is the sound bite versus the credentials, isn�*t it, if we think about it here? you can see how rishi soon aqua take that around with it. how are those polls looking at the moment? eithera how are those polls looking at the moment? either a few out there? what are they saying? you make that are not many. a couple of weeks ago at the polls we had seen suggestions that liz truss was quite a bit ahead. there is no one out today which suggested actually, the race is a lot closer. yes she is ahead but mr sooner because only a bit behind by about five points. that reflects a lot of conversations over the last few days were team sooner, saying this is tighter than people realise that he�*s getting a good reception for members particularly in the south of england. it is interesting though that the whole policy agenda over the past few days has been basically red meat for tory

members. both teams trying to track the votes of conservative members as their ballot paper stuck to land by saying things that they think will be popular. the truth is that when you scrutinise them, when you look into the details, the complete detail of how it would work is not always there. there have been a few holes in the policies, few questions about how they would work in practice and as i say, i wonder if liz truss�*s policy falling apart today might lead some to question whether some of our other policies stand up to scrutiny and it may be a bit of a moment in this race where team sunak hoping it gets them on the front foot. we don�*t know for sure. what about her policy of ignoring nicola sturgeon? there are some tories who think that the idea that you could just ignore nicola

sturgeon is a bit far—fetched. more of a sound bite and a policy because she is the first scotland and the government�*s approach in london anyway is to try to build better relations with the scottish government. of course there is going to be a row between the scottish and uk governments over independence and whether they should be another referendum. liz truss said she would never agree to one. the idea that she would nor nicola sturgeon is probably a sound bite, though, and in the two will have to work together in some form. it is quite muqqy together in some form. it is quite muggy out there. helen has the weather for eyes. muggy out there. helen has the weatherfor eyes. it muggy out there. helen has the weather for eyes. it really is quite close, isn�*t it, out there? today is the muggy is day of the week. we have much—needed rain. 0ver100 millimetres and cumbia overnight and into the morning. you can see it starting to ease away now. it slowly

starts to meander southwards but never really reaching the south and east and allowing sunshine to break through further north. it is a breezy day to day across the board but actually will see higher temperatures of 24 or 25. 29 or 30 so with the muggy in the south. another close night to come. notably so, again, across and wales. it mightjust be a tad fresher across scotland but still warm. rain coming in here. it is still breezy. mixing the moisture around so mist or low cloud. but our weather front is a weakening feature. no more than the odd shower here. it will feel fresher today. a few degrees down but with the muggy in the south.

hello, this is bbc news. the headlines: ayman al—zawahiri has been killed by a us drone strike in kabul. he made videos including in recent weeks calling for his followers to attack the united states and our allies. nowjustice has been delivered and this terrorist leader is no more. life support is expected to be withdrawn from 12—year—old archie battersbee today, after court of appeal judges said his treatment should not continue. experts predict typical household energy bills will rise to more than £3,300 a year this autumn — and climb even higher next year. it comes as bp reports £6.9 billion in quarterly profits — its highest in 14 years.

our top story — the us has killed the leader of al-qaeda, ayman al zawahiri, in a drone strike in afghanistan. al zawahiri was on the us most wanted list for his role in plotting the 9/11 terror attacks in 2001, which killed nearly 3,000 people. he took over the terrorist group, al-qaeda after the death of 0sama bin laden. president biden said al—zawahiri was also behind the attack on the naval destroyer, the uss cole, in aden, which killed 17 us sailors in the year 2000. and the attacks on the us embassies in kenya and tanzania in 1998, which killed 223 people. announcing the drone strike, president biden said al zawahiri had "carved a trail of violence and murder against american citizens".

he said, "nowjustice has been delivered and this terrorist leader is no more." earlier i spoke to sir nick kay, uk ambassador to afghanistan between 2017 and 2019, and former nato senior civilian representative to afghanistan. i asked him about the significance of ayman al—zawahiri�*s death. i think, politically, it is extremely significant because it shows that, however long and however far away the enemies of peace and security are, they will not escape justice. and, you know, my thoughts today are very much with the thousands of families who have victims of terrorism whether it is the twin towers, the sinking of the uss cole, the attacks on embassies that

ayman al zawahiri helped to orchestrate. i take no pleasure in the death of any man. but i certainly will not mourn the passing of this individual. just looking at the current situation on the ground in afghanistan, obviously, ayman al zawahiri felt safe enough to return. we believe he had sanctuary for some time, about 20 years, in pakistan. what is the relationship between the taliban and al-qaeda and where does that leave al-qaeda now? al-qaeda have sworn allegiance to the taliban many years ago and that imposes, if you like, obligations, even, upon the taliban to give them hospitality and i�*ve never believed that the taliban have shown any inclination to reduce or to end that relationship and i think the killing of al zawahiri in a guesthouse in kabul shows how deep those

relationships have been. that said, i think it is true that there had been less tendencies to actively plan attacks on the west stemming from ayman al zawahiri and the al-qaeda network based in afghanistan because the taliban do not wish to court that trouble. but, yeah, the links are there and the links will remain and it is a huge embarrassment, i think, for the taliban, at this stage. there were two notable occasions where president biden did signpost these, what we have come to know as the over—horizon counterterrorism activities. straight after the chaotic withdrawal from afghanistan and then again injanuary he warned that missions will be considered in afghanistan in terms of countering terrorism operations. what message do you think this is sending to the taliban

and to other groups that are operating in afghanistan as well because we hakani on the ground there — is this message going to cut through? not only on the ground but in the government. yes, i mean, it will. it will absolutely remind all those, whether al-qaeda or isis or any other international terrorist, of the danger that they face from this kind of attack, and the succession of al-qaeda will be very interesting to see. which individuals will take over leadership. this is the death of their leader but it is certainly not the death of al-qaeda. they will continue and however the future leaders are constrained also. so, yeah, it is a reminder that there is an over—horizon

capability and that is real. i think however, there is no substitute for having a presence, whether it is an embassy or other kind of presence on the ground in afghanistan. afghanistan, the afghan people face enormous challenges, let�*s not forget that winter is just around the corner and they�*ve undergone a very difficult 12 months and that is only going to get worse if there is no serious economic relief of the country and so i do believe there needs to be more engagement now by the west and hopefully this event will cause the taliban to address what it needs to do to build confidence and bridges with the us and other international partners. that was the uk ambassador to

afghanistan between 2017 and 2019. going to discuss some of the reaction from jihadist figureheads now. some of the reaction we have not been hearing about. who has been reacting and what have they been saying and why is it significant? first of all al-qaeda has yet to comment on the announcement about the death of ayman al—zawahiri, usually they take their time and do not rush to confront it but because it�*s been such a big announcement from the us i think they will have to hurry up and say something to their supporters at least. however heavyweight high supporters of al-qaeda, the clinics and influential figures online on telegram and twitter have come out to pay their respects to al—zawahiri and called him a martyr and it would

suggest they are privy to internal al-qaeda information that he has indeed been killed. that is a sign from thejihadis indeed been killed. that is a sign from the jihadis community. you indeed been killed. that is a sign from thejihadis community. you have the other side of the camp within the other side of the camp within thejihadis community, that is isis or so—called islamic state, they are staunch rivals of al-qaeda and they have been revelling in the news and referring to al—zawahiri disparagingly. isis has called them senile, out of touch, as part of the rivalry, in the past. and then also try to suggest the taliban concluded with the us in killing al—zawahiri so interesting of course because thatis so interesting of course because that is a very embarrassing moment for the taliban, to say the least because on one hand they have vowed to not allowjihadists to operate on their soil and they have denied any links or ongoing sheltering and yet al—zawahiri was in their own back

yard. 0n the other hand it�*ll be difficult with hardliners within the community because even if many are not voicing it, they will be thinking, did the taliban have any hand in passing information about his whereabouts? that sounds that there is a lot of jostling taking place at the moment for future a strong position for these jihadist groups. we for future a strong position for thesejihadist groups. we mentioned listening to the ambassador, he raised the question about succession, as there are obvious al-qaeda successor? that succession, as there are obvious al-qaeda successor?— succession, as there are obvious al-qaeda successor? that is one of the big reasons _ al-qaeda successor? that is one of the big reasons it's _ al-qaeda successor? that is one of the big reasons it's a _ al-qaeda successor? that is one of the big reasons it's a big _ al-qaeda successor? that is one of the big reasons it's a big blow- al-qaeda successor? that is one of the big reasons it's a big blow for. the big reasons it�*s a big blow for al-qaeda. most of its high—profile heavyweight leadership figures from the days of 0sama bin laden, al—zawahiri was one of the last companions of bin laden and the open taken out in drone strikes so there is a very limited selection as to who could succeed him however, this publicly, there is one deputy currently, a further egyptian, he is

known to be in iran, under house arrest and some kind of security restrictions and this is from accounts ofjihadists and other sources. so if he were to succeed al—zawahiri and still being based in iran, that would really undermine his credibility and authority. because of that situation it is not difficult to know who will succeed al—zawahiri. it could be one of the regional branches, leaders of the regional branches, leaders of the regional branches, leaders of the regional branches of al-qaeda such as in yemen or north africa or mali. it remains to be seen because even in the past when bin laden was killed there were rumours he deputy was the head of al-qaeda in yemen so it�*ll be interesting to see if al-qaeda goes to appoint one of its originalfigures. original figures. you should come originalfigures. you should come bearing a map! thank you very much for pointing that picture is micro—. —— painting that picture is micro—. —— painting that picture for us. we�*ll take you

through some breaking news concerning alfie battersby. i am going to take this slowly ijust need to get the wording right. the supreme court has received permission to appeal, application to appeal in the case of archie battersby. he is 12 years old and has been in a deep coma since the 7th of april of this year and his parents holly dance and paul wish to challenge thejudgment parents holly dance and paul wish to challenge the judgment to restore life supporting treatment. the proposed stay is to allow more time

for the un commission for the rights of people with disability to consider their complaint. that withdrawal of life—sustaining treatment is a breach of that convention. the supreme court is aware of the urgency of this matter, it�*s a panel of three judges who will consider an application for permission to appeal on paper, in the usual way, and as soon as we have more details on this, we will bring it to you. archie battersbee who has been in a coma since the 7th of april, and there is an appeal, permission to appeal, application thatis permission to appeal, application that is now being considered in his case. more as and when we get it. i�*m just going to add here, we may have had a statement from his family. they have

filed this urgent appeal to the supreme court following the headline on withdrawing of life—support. we understand the family have been waiting on the response and hospital have said they will not begin withdrawing any treatment until they have direction from the supreme court. andrew mcfarlane yesterday rejected the un committee on the rights of persons with disabilities interim measures injunction, reinforcing it is in archie�*s at best interest to have life—support removed. that is a brief summary terms of a statement from archie�*s own family. archie�*s family and legal team are wishing to emphasise that are cheap because of his medical condition, —— archie,,

medical condition, —— archie, , quoting medical condition, —— archie,, quoting what the family are saying, note doctor was prepared to diagnose archie as brain stem dead, that is in the family statement —— no doctor was prepared to diagnose archie as brain stem dead, that is in family statement. i will also bring in someone to take us through the complexities of this particular story. thank you very much forjoining us. first off, a legal analyst, a commentator on medical law, your initial reaction to this latest development? i expected because of the media attention and involvement of the un there would be a further appeal an application would be made today, i did not expect any abrupt withdrawal of treatment from archie, because this case has been going on since

the middle ofjune. the important thing to point out is the decision the courts ordered it is in line with 31 years of precedents in similar cases, with 31 years of precedents in similarcases, in with 31 years of precedents in similar cases, in cases where there has been no hope and where experts have agreed to this, the judges have always acted in the best interests and i had the final say. that is different if there was treatment available in another country, that would be a different scenario, is not happening here so that the judges have the unfortunate task of having to make the final decision because i completely understand where the parents are coming from, they believe where there is life there�*s hope but the question has never been answered how long did the parents wish we life—support to continue? it could not be indefinitely because a system of precedents would have to apply to every other person on live support whether a child or not. you understand a decision has to be made. the great issue that i see

here is how the conflict has escalated by the repeated appeals and it is also for ourjustice system to show the door has been open to hear the parents. it�*s such a tragic case. i think they will get more time but unfortunately i do not see how any... there will be no change in the facts overnight and then i cannot see any change of outcome and that is tragically sad in my heart goes out to be parents but we have a long established legal precedent for the best interests and withdrawal of treatment that has to happen unfortunately. you mentioned the precedents that we have, how long... i know is that it is a very difficult and that is the problem, in terms of precedents, how long is this likely to continue? the onl other

long is this likely to continue? tie: only other option open to archie's only other option open to archie�*s periods is the european court of human rights which is different from the un instruments —— archie�*s parents. we�*ve incorporated this into uk law so that could mean if the european court was prepared to hear it life—support would continue until that healing happens. they have been quite quiet on the european court angle and i was quite surprised the un committee on the rights of persons with disability not involved because that has less strength than the eu court of human rights. that was almost like a bit of the diversion. it�*ll be interesting to see whether they allow the eu court of human rights because beyond the supreme court thatis because beyond the supreme court that is the only place to go. the court has _ that is the only place to go. the court has to _ that is the only place to go. the court has to give _ that is the only place to go. the court has to give permission to appeal to them and are waiting to

hear on that. from a legal point of view we understand there is a panel of three justices considering this particular application on paper, what does that mean for them to say it�*s been considered on paper and in the usual way? what exactly are they looking at? f way? what exactly are they looking at? y�* ., :, “ way? what exactly are they looking at? f :, :, ,, ., .,, at? they're looking at, i was... some of— at? they're looking at, i was... some of the — at? they're looking at, i was... some of the judgments - at? they're looking at, i was... some of the judgments of i at? they're looking at, i was... some of the judgments of 40 l at? they're looking at, i was... i some of the judgments of 40 pages long. they will look at what is happening to archie for almost four months now and what happens on a daily basis. archie is being ventilated, these details are very distressing and unpleasant but the courtjudgment said he is having constant diarrhoea and being fed through a tube and has to be given optimum amount of liquid. this is a carefully managed exercise happening on a daily basis since the 7th of

april. i know it has only come to attention of some people later than the 7th of april but those in the field have been available for some time. you could have for the justices on the supreme court but there is no change in the legal issues, that is... nothing needs extra interpretation ship, the first judge in the case on the 13th of june it said the law is settled but difficult to apply and it has become more and more difficult as there has been more media and unfortunate what we�*re doing now is giving more air to that but ijust want we�*re doing now is giving more air to that but i just want to we�*re doing now is giving more air to that but ijust want to reassure the public you can trust doctors, you can trust medics and you can trustjudges. cases like this, unfortunately they happen quite regularly and in the recent wear hearing about it is because the appeal is being launched all the time —— the only reason we are

hearing about it. parents in the past could have said they accept that nothing can be done and do not appeal, we are only hearing about this because it has reached these levels. that is a lot proposed cull charlie�*s law in response to the charlie�*s law in response to the charlie gard case in 2017 where there would be attempt to get mediation at the very early stage to prevent this escalating in such a way. i�*m not expecting any change in outcome and that is really unfortunate but one good pictures is the process, judges and medics... i think also talk of doctors and judges playing god it is unhelpful because if there was any hope under the case law and the rigorous

assessment of the facts, this would not, there would not be saying no to this. thank you very much for that. british airways says it will stop selling tickets on short—haul flights from heathrow airport until monday. the move is due to the cap on daily passenger numbers that the airport imposed over the summer, in an attempt to reduce travel delays. the sales suspension will affect ba�*s flights to domestic and european destinations. joining me now is sally gethin who�*s a journalist covering the airline industry. was this necessary, sally? yes, it obviously was because there is no way any successful and reputable large airline is going to inflict this wound, this agony on itself at the peak of the summer season, when

revenues will be at their highest, selling premium seats, last—minute seats on those valuable short—haul routes out of heathrow. could we see further moves like this not only from airports but also from aeroplanes they think that move themselves?— aeroplanes they think that move themselves? , :, , , ., themselves? they are but they are beinl themselves? they are but they are being coerced _ themselves? they are but they are being coerced into _ themselves? they are but they are being coerced into it, _ themselves? they are but they are being coerced into it, really - being coerced into it, really because heathrow itself introduced a daily cap of 100,000 passengers last month which will continue until september the 11th. month which will continue until septemberthe11th. back month which will continue until september the 11th. back with that is the government and the regulators threatening enforcement action if the aviation industry does not sort itself out, to avoid the travel chaos that has been impacting customers and passengers. will it affect the price of tickets? 0bviously will it affect the price of tickets? obviously you will have a smaller number of flights, is it...

obviously you will have a smaller number of flights, is it. . .- number of flights, is it... carry on. it number of flights, is it... carry on- it will— number of flights, is it... carry on. it will because _ number of flights, is it... carry on. it will because also - number of flights, is it... carry on. it will because also british| on. it will because also british airways, it�*ll be painfulfor them because it�*s like giving an advantage in the competition so airlines like ryanair and easyjet and wiz area that have so—called low—cost airlines that operate on short—haul network routes will of course gain an advantage because british airways customers who would have put those flights on british airways will now seek alternatives at the last minute and sort that will force the prices up definitely. if you have a ticket right now, you�*re 0k. if you have a ticket right now, you�*re ok. if you�*re looking to travel in the short term, you are not. how do you see this panning out and what should passengers be doing? what it means really is you cannot book a departure out of heathrow. you can coming into heathrow from, say, france or italy or whatever but not going out. for passengers with existing tickets the whole reason

for this is to be able to rebook those passengers that were disrupted before on to existing capacity. going forward, this spells further uncertainty because this was announced just in the past 24 hours at the last minute. this signifies the fact the airline industry might potentially make further sudden cuts. sadly, sorry to interrupt, we are just out of time. thank you for that. and the advice that follows. cocaine sparked the death of entrepreneur and youtube starjamal edwards, a coroner has concluded. the music entrepreneur died in february this year, at the age of 31. the coroner has concluded the cause of death was cardia arrhythmia which was sparked by cocaine use. jamal edwards was described as an entrepreneur and today at the inquest into his death, last

february in west london. his assistant coroner concluded he had taken cocaine and that combined with alcohol had caused a cardiac arrhythmia, leading to his death. this inquest heard jamal had been out djing in islington before returning to his mother�*s at home and it was there where he became increasingly erratic and paranoid before collapsing. attempts were made by his friend, uncle and london ambulance service to resuscitate him but all of those attempts were unsuccessful. today there was a statement read out by his mother and tv personality brenda edwards. she described her son as genuinely beautiful and a sensitive son who she was proud of. she went on to say his legacy will be the trust has been set up since his death. thomas mcgill, bbc london, at west london coroner�*s court.

let�*s catch up with the weather now with helen. it�*s let's catch up with the weather now with helen. v , let's catch up with the weather now with helen. �* , , ., with helen. it's been an exceptionally _ with helen. it's been an exceptionally dry i with helen. it's been an exceptionally dry july i with helen. it's been an| exceptionally dry july for with helen. it's been an i exceptionally dry july for many southern and eastern parts, the driest on record but this chart shows it has been dry, the brown indicating less than average rainfall, dry across most parts of the uk. monday into tuesday night we have much—needed rain but in the north particularly, 50—100 millimetres in the mountains in wales and north—west england because of low pressure. quite a brisk wind for the rest of the day in the shower started to fizzle and very little rain for the south and east. drizzle and misty low cloud. temperatures higherfor drizzle and misty low cloud. temperatures higher for parts of scotland and northern ireland compared with yesterday and a very muqqy compared with yesterday and a very muggy 30 celsius in eastern and

southern areas and another muggy night tonight, misty low cloud and southern areas, further showers and longer spells of rain and north west. perhaps a dampening for some of the gardens in southern and western areas but no more, just a few showers on that weather front. warm and muggy start again and it�*ll feel very warm through the day. further north still quite a breeze, not as much as today but it�*ll be fresher across scotland, northern ireland but for much of england and wales we still have the muggy field. that will be around for the commonwealth games during today, tomorrow but it should freshen up as we head into thursday behind this cold weather front here which moves away through thursday morning and we�*ve got a north—westerly breeze bringing in some showers, quite a few to scotland in particular, perhaps one or two into the north of northern ireland and north west of

england but temperatures in the north around a bit average if not below and closer to average further south as well, a fresher night for sleeping, thursday into friday and fewer showers on friday further north. lots of dry and warm feeling weather with the sunshine but quite out fair—weather cloud. drier and more settled weather continuing into the weekend and still feeling fresher by then.

the energy giant bp records its second highest quarterly profit in its history — nearly £7 billion. soaring oil and gas prices are behind the rise — it�*s more than three times what the company made in the same period last year. it comes as there are warnings that the average household energy bill could be more than £3,600 this winter.