welcome to newsday, reporting live from singapore, i'm karishma vaswani. the headlines: japan and the us condemn china's military exercises in the waters around taiwan and call for an immediate halt. this and call for an immediate halt. afternoon china fire missiles this afternoon china fired missiles from the coast of china across the taiwan strait and they fell into waters and the exclusion just here of the north taiwan coast. the primary objective is obviously intimidation. the conspiracy theorist alexjones is ordered to pay more than $4 million in damages afterfalsely claiming the sandy hook school shooting was a hoax. us basketball star brittney griner gets a nine year sentence on drug charges in russia — president biden denounces it as "unacceptable."

and the indian adaptation of the hollywood classic forrest gump is released next week. we hear from the bollywood superstar aamir khan. it kind of feels like it is a dream now because it has been such a long journey and we have come to the end and it feels a bit unreal. live from our studio in singapore, this is bbc news. it's newsday. it's eight in the morning in singapore, and 9:00am in tokyo where japan is demanding an immediate end to china's military exercises around taiwan, after five chinese missiles landed injapan�*s exclusive economic zone.

the us national security spokesman, john kirby said beijing had no reason to act aggressively. beijng, you'll remember, is conducting live firing exercises in the sea around taiwan for the next several days, in response to a recent visit there by the senior us politician, nancy pelosi. from taiwan, rupert wingfield—hayes reports. it began with this barrage of rockets streaking into the sky from the southeast coast of china. it's thought these came down somewhere in the middle of the taiwan strait. but this was just the prelude. further inland, rocket forces were preparing to launch these much bigger and much more capable ballistic missiles. in all, china is thought to have fired 11 of these missiles into waters around taiwan. japan says several of them also fell inside its exclusive economic zone. in taipei, president tsai ing—wen addressed the nation, urging calm and calling on china to end its irresponsible acts. "i want to emphasise — we will not escalate

this conflict," she says. "but we will firmly protect our sovereignty and our national security. " so this is exactly what we suspected might happen. this afternoon, china fired dongfeng ballistic missiles from the coast of china across the taiwan strait, and they fell into waters in the exclusion zones just here off the north taiwan coast. now, the primary objective is obviously intimidation, but these tests also bring tremendous disruption to taiwan's shipping industry, to its airline industry, and to its large and important fishing fleets. on the dockside, we found these rather glum fishermen fixing their nets. they can't go fishing, and no fish means no income. this captain told me he tried to put to sea, only to be ordered back by the coastguard. "we don't know where these exclusion zones are," he told me. "so we had no choice but to do what the coastguard tells us." taiwan's defence ministry has described these missile tests as an attempt

to blockade the island. but this retired navy captain told me what china is really doing is an elaborate performance. "what china is engaged in is psychological warfare," he says. "all the missiles being fired, all the explosions, it's to show china's domestic audience how tough beijing is being, while at the same time intimidating the people of taiwan." it is nevertheless an impressive show and illustrates just how far china's military has come in the last two decades. and it's not over yet. captain liu says china's next step could be to fire a missile over the top of taiwan — something it has never attempted to do before. rupert wingfield—hayes, bbc news, in taipei. earlier i spoke to wen—ti sung, a political scientist who teaches the taiwan studies programme at the australian national university. i asked him what is the point of these military exercises now.

i think it is more about political messaging more than true preparation for a next level up in terms of military activities. in a way i think china is trying to show defiance to both its domestic nationalist audience and also to counter messages from the visit of nancy pelosi to taiwan because nancy pelosi obviously visited in defiance of a serious chinese military threat and the fact that she did go shows the credibility of the chinese threat went down as a result. so right now china is also showing defiance as a way to regain credibility and it is also about countering nancy pelosi's claim that such a high level american officials visiting taiwan can make china feel like it puts wind under

the sales of taiwan is claims to be a true sovereign state actor. in that sense china is trying to have live fire activity military activities in what taiwan calls its own teller or reward is an precisely show that of taiwan does not escalate in response then china can claim, see? these territorial waters are not taiwanese territorial waters, they are chinese and thatis waters, they are chinese and that is why i can do what i want here. that then goes further to undermine the fact that nancy pelosi has on taiwanese claims. [30 that nancy pelosi has on taiwanese claims. do you see the chinese — taiwanese claims. do you see the chinese being _ taiwanese claims. do you see the chinese being satisfied i the chinese being satisfied with his military drills or do you see the fact that ms pelosi going to taiwan has accept accelerated the desire of beijing for reunification with taiwan by force or by other means? i taiwan by force or by other means? ~ , taiwan by force or by other means? ~' , ., means? i think the visit of oli means? i think the visit of policy will _

means? i think the visit of policy will have _ means? i think the visit of policy will have an - means? i think the visit of policy will have an impact | means? i think the visit of i policy will have an impact on relations, of course, but i think china right now is truly trying to optimise and calibrate the level for the show right now because on one hand they have to satisfy their own domestic audience but they cannot go all the way with military escalation because that will unleash so much that will attempt —— that will create complications for president xi. so right now i think china will be trying to find the optimal balance, to show enough to make the domestic audience happy but not so much as to make true escalation down the road. what is the potential— escalation down the road. what is the potential for _ is the potential for miscalculation here you think? given these military drills are taking place around taiwan and so many of its neighbours have already said that china needs to stop? already said that china needs to sto - ? ,, already said that china needs tosto? ., already said that china needs tosto? to stop? the risks of accident ou can to stop? the risks of accident you can never _

to stop? the risks of accident you can never truly _ to stop? the risks of accidentl you can never truly completely rule them out despite the nature of the accident. that is what there. at this point i think it is almost a cliche to say that a war is in nobody�*s interest in what we see a lot of fiery rhetoric from the chinese side it is important to pay attention to the opinion of the leaders in china whose leaders that make his opinions count. so last week, even though nancy pelosi was intending, she still took —— president xi still took a phone call with president biden and i think that tells something. president xi also set the tone as well in the readout afterwards. president xi said he described the president biden that it is wrong to characterise the relations is primarily one of competition. it should be one of cooperation on many issues. so that tells us that if competition is not

what china wants then provocation or war. the officials underneath she trying to determine how fired escalate militarily to keep them happy but not too much to cause international pushback. em international pushback. an interesting analysis there. let's show you these latest pictures from tokyo where us house speaker nancy pelosi is meeting with japan's prime minister, fumio kishida. it's the final stop of her asia tour, following a visit to taiwan that angered china. let's turn to the us now, where right wing talk show host alexjones has been ordered to pay over $4 million in damages to the parents of one of the children killed at the sandy hook

elementary school in 2012. jones, founder of the infowars website, has regularly claimed the shooting was a hoax organised by the government and the parents of the dead were actors. 20 children and six teachers died in the incident. let's talk to our reporter azadeh moshiri who has been looking at this story for us. great to get you on the programme. explain to us, what was he accused of and what does this ruling mean? figs was he accused of and what does this ruling mean?— this ruling mean? as you mentioned _ this ruling mean? as you mentioned this _ this ruling mean? as you mentioned this goes - this ruling mean? as you| mentioned this goes back this ruling mean? as you i mentioned this goes back to sandy hook and that killing of children and adults back in 2012 and alexjones is known as a far right broadcaster, a conspiracy theorist and the host of info walls and he has repeatedly claimed that the shooting was a hoax organised by the government to take away gun ownership rights and in fact the parents of these children were actors and so for the parents to come to court they have been seeking at least $150 million in damages because

they claim that alex jones's comments have led to harassment and emotional distress. alex jones, for his part, has argued that all of this is an attack on his freedom of speech and he seeks to dial back those comments. but thejury seeks to dial back those comments. but the jury has set the damages and he is to pay $4.1 million in damages to the parents despite his claims to the contrary. it is also worth mentioning that these are compensatory damages and that the punitive damages that could follow a yet to be set but they will follow. and this isn't the first time he's lost a defamation suit brought by parents of the victims correct? he has had this situation happened to him before. he has. the difference here is that it is the first time that damages have been set by a jury and

there has also been a lot of attention on his conduct in the conduct of his lawyers throughout this case. one particularly memorable moment when one of the lawyers for the parents who brought the suit argued and revealed in court that his lawyer had sent them two years worth of text messages and these text messages and these text messages potentially contradicted some of the comments that he made in court. thejudge has also rebuked him several times for comments made in and out of court and he has claimed he is now a corrupt and thejudge said that claimed he is now a corrupt and the judge said that is not true and he is also used in broadcast platform to attack both jurors and the judge and so there are many reasons that this case has taken on so much attention. it is emotionally charged, punitive damages will be set and there are more pending charges to follow. thank you for keeping us

up—to—date on that story and i am sure you will be watching closely as it develops idea on bbc news for us. let's take a look at some other stories in the headlines. monkeypox has been declared a public health emergency in the united states. over the past two months, the us has confirmed over 6000 cases, more than any other country. the decision will release federal resources for fighting the outbreak. negotiators from the united states and iran have met in vienna for a fresh round of talks aimed at trying to revive the 2015 nuclear deal. the white house says time is getting "very short" for iran to accept a return to the international deal to manage its controversial nuclear programme. there have been violent attacks against suspected illegal miners in the south african township of kagiso, west ofjohannesburg. the latest reports say one person has been killed. last week eight women were gang—raped there while filming a music video — the attack was blamed on irregular miners, many of whom are thought to be

immigrants from nearby nations. to russia now, where the us basketball player brittney griner has been sentenced to nine years injail by a court. it found her guilty of possessing and smuggling drugs. president biden said washington would use all means possible to guarantee her release, and added that her sentencing is "unacceptable. " the two time 0lympic gold—medallist admitted to possessing cannabis oil when she was detained in february. 0ur russia editor steve rosenberg has been following this story in moscow. in court today brittney griner said she made an honest mistake when she bought cartridges with cannabis oil into russia. she made a plea for leniency and that fell on deaf years when the judge found her guilty and sentenced her to nine years in a russian prison. her defence team says it will appeal.

president biden said the sentence was unacceptable and said that brittney griner should be released immediately. question, might russia release her? we know that america and russia have been talking about a possible prisoner swap that could involve griner and also a former us marine, paul whelan, is also injail in russia. washington says it is put a substantial proposal on the table. some reports suggest that in order to bring these two people home america may be prepared to release the notorious arms traffic. he was sentenced to 25 years in an americanjail sentenced to 25 years in an american jail one sentenced to 25 years in an americanjail one decade sentenced to 25 years in an american jail one decade ago. now there is no doubt that there would be a degree of controversy over such a swap because victor was alleged to because victor was alleged to be one of the most prolific arms dealers in the world and was dubbed the merchant of death. so it would be a

controversial swap. death. so it would be a controversialswap. he death. so it would be a controversial swap. he was rumoured to have links to russian intelligence agencies and he has denied that in the past but this is someone the kremlin has long wanted to bring back to russia and if it manages to bring him back there is no doubt the authorities here would present that is a major victory. you're watching newsday on the bbc. still to come on the programme: it's an american classic that's been given an indian treatment — bollywood star aamir khan tells us about his latest film — an adaptation of forrest gump. the question was whether we wanted to save our people, and japanese as well, and win the war, or whether we want to take a chance on being able to win the war by killing all our young men. the invasion began at two o'clock this morning. mr bush. — like most other people, was clearly caught by surprise. we call for the immediate and unconditional withdrawal

of all the iraqi forces. 100 years old, and still full of vigor, vitality and enjoyment of life. no other king or queen in british history has lived so long, and the queen mother is said to be quietly very pleased indeed that she's achieved this landmark anniversary. this is a pivotal moment for the church as an international movement. the question now is whether the american vote will lead to a split in the anglican community. this is newsday on the bbc. i'm karishma vaswani in singapore. 0ur headlines: china launches live missiles as part of large—scale military

exercises around taiwan. the us says it's irresponsible, while japan calls for the drills to stop. washington condemns the nine—year sentence handed down to basketball star brittney griner in russia, and urges moscow to accept a deal for her release. four serving and former police officers in the us have been arrested and charged over the fatal shooting of breonna taylor two years ago. their alleged crimes include the illegal use of force and obstruction. let's remind ourselves of exactly what happened. breonna taylor was shot in her home in louisville in 2020 by plain—clothes police. at the time, the police said they were executing a search warrant as part of a drugs investigation. no drugs were found in the property. it led to scenes like this, racial injustice protests, all over the country. this is the lawyer for breonna taylor's family reacting to the news.

because of a breonna taylor, we can say this is a date that black women saw equaljustice in the united states of america. a short time ago i spoke to our correspondent peter bowes, who's in los angeles. i asked him about the reaction of breonna taylor's family. we have heard from herfamily. in fact, we have heard from her mother who said that she rated 874 days to hear this news. she says this is why she is concerned it proves that these officers should not have been there and that breonna did not deserve what happened. it was marked 16th in 2020 shortly after midnight. she was asleep at home with her boyfriend when the police officers forced their way in. her boyfriend kenneth walker had a gun and fired in self—defence but breonna died during the exchange of gunfire. now, we have federal charges against these four officers, they

include a civil rights offences, unlawful conspiracy, unconstitutional use of force and three of the officers face charges of falsifying a search warrant. rihanna 2's address was on it that a search warrant and the authorities have said that they believed her address was being used by a former boyfriend in a drug says, but in fact, as he reported, no drugs were found at that address. drugs were found at that addres— drugs were found at that address. �* ., , ,., address. peter bowes reporting on the story _ address. peter bowes reporting on the story for— address. peter bowes reporting on the story for us. _ to the uk now where the bank of england has taken the unprecedented step of warning that the economy faces a prolonged period of recession, starting this year and continuing right the way through 2023. it would make it the longest downturn since the financial crisis in 2008. in an effort to curb inflation and soaring prices, the central bank has raised interest rates by half a percentage point to 1.75%, which will hit many mortgage holders. 0ur economics editor faisal islam reports.

as the essentials, from fuel to food, continue to surge in price, with little sign of an end, hitting every household in the country, eventually the entire economy too will actually begin to shrink, a recession now predicted for britain. at the bank of england the governor presented the grim news with troubling charts, almost all heading in the wrong direction... gdp growth in the uk has slowed and the economy is now forecast to enter recession later this year. ..alongside the announcement of a bumper rise in interest rates. just explain simply to somebody at home who is facing £300 a month energy bills why their mortgage costs have to go up? if we don't act now — - and i realise how difficult this is, i realise particularlyl for those on lower incomes, particularly those with . higher borrowing costs — but if we don't act inflation i will become more embedded, it will get worse and we'll. have to raise interest rates by more, and that — -

we have to act to stop that. so the bank today raising rates for the sixth successive time, up by the largest amount in over a quarter of a century to 1.75% and despite recession heading still higher but recession heading higher to try and keep a lid on it that inflation. 0n the streets of cardiff the overall hit to household incomes is becoming clear to all. it's a lot of stress, and financial stress is one of those hidden ones that no—one wants to talk about. the prices are so high now that i've had to start cutting back. so if they do keep going up, we're going to see a lot more, you know, homelessness, we're going to see a lot more people applying for benefits. 0ur savings have been eroded. it'sjust not good. just from the day—to—day.

none of it's good. we just have to see exactly how the government goes when we get the new prime minister coming in, and what they do. the big decision today was to raise interest rates by half a percentage point. but the big surprise were the forecasts showing not just inflation rising above 13%, but at the same time, that there will be a recession lasting longer than a year. that wouldn't just upend the household finances of millions of ordinary families, it could also wreck the public finances, changing the borrowing numbers that have formed the basis of the debate over who becomes britain's next prime minister. right now, there are few good options, and a sense for households, for the bank of england, and for the government too, that we aren't fully in control of rampant inflation and its impact on the economy. faisal islam, bbc news. now to bollywood, and tossing away the old adage don't mess with a classic. the film forrest gump won oscars, and is in the dna of cinema audiences

around the world. but an indian version, starring the superstar aamir khan, isjust about to be released. the movie, laal singh chaddha, follows very similar themes of a simple message of kindness, through the characters' relationships and friendships weaving through key chapters of history. aamir khan, who also produced the film told the bbc about remaking a classic. i had no intentions of remaking forrest gump. it's a film i've seen in the 90s and loved it and it just stayed with me. but this happened quite by accident, a friend of mine who is an actor, he and i were discussing films one night and he said what your favourite film? and i said one of them is forrest gump. and we ended the night and i forgot about it and then two weeks later he called up and say, i've got a script for you. i was a bit surprised, i said you don't write, and he said ijust give it a shot.

isaid 0k. he said last few week i have been writing a script and i said which one is that — i've written a version of forrest gump. i didn't take them seriously. but when i finally heard his adaptation, that's when it really hit me. i could never imagine a film so deeply rooted culturally in america. how would you translate in society like india? somehow, magically, he managed to make it a new experience for me. it will be interesting to see if audience feel the same way about forrest gump. let's and with some extraordinary images from iceland with the latest eruption of a mechanic close to reykjavik. plenty of alternate lover, but so far no real ash cloud, so no problem with commercialflights or cloud, so no problem with commercial flights or any wider issues, but look at that. spectacular. it certainly is

quite a sight to behold. with that, it brings us to the end of this hour. to stay with bbc news for the latest global headlines. little change on the weather front as we head into friday and the weekend. for most of us, it's going to be predominantly dry. there is some rain in the forecast, but it'll fall in the form of hit—or—miss showers, and most of that is expected in western and northern scotland. indeed, the weather fronts that have been crossing the country in the last few days mostly fizzle away by the time they reach southern parts of the country. so, here, it remains bone—dry, and this high pressure which will be building across the uk and europe will be responsible for bringing some very warm weather, some hot weather towards the end of next week. so, the short term, then — a few showers around western scotland, around the irish sea as well, but elsewhere, it's a case of clear spells or clear skies.

temperatures around 14 in london, but in rural spots of scotland, five degrees possible on friday morning, so a bit of a nip in the air there in the north. let's have a look at friday — a northwesterly breeze, scattered showers for scotland, the lake district, maybe the pennines, maybe one or two sneaking across the pennines and getting into lincolnshire and hull, but south of that, it is predominantly bright or sunny. warm in london, 24 degrees. typically more around 20, so not all that hot — 17 in the north. for the commonwealth games in birmingham on friday, we're expecting highs of around 20 degrees with bright or sunny skies, so very pleasant weather overall. here's the weekend, and saturday, the weather fronts bringing those outbreaks of rain that we're forecasting for northwestern and northern scotland, so fresher here — 15. elsewhere, it's generally dry, turning very warm in the southeast, up to around 26 by the time we get to saturday. and those temperatures will continue to climb into sunday and monday and tuesday and wednesday as this high

pressure builds in off the atlantic, spreads right across the uk into scandinavia and many other parts of europe as well, and will draw in that hotter air, that really warm atmosphere from the southern climb. so, the confidence is increasing for that hot spell to arrive, at least from midweek onwards. let's have a look at those temperatures — in fact, quite conservative estimates here. the indication is that temperatures by the end of the week could actually approach low or the mid 30s. in some parts of southern britain. bye— bye.

this is bbc news.