welcome to newsday, reporting live from singapore, i'm karishma vaswani. the headlines: the us senate approves joe biden�*s landmark bill to fight climate change, channeling billions of dollars towards ambitious clean energy goals. the world will be a better place for my grandchildren because of what we did today and that makes me feel very, very good. a ceasefire comes into effect between israel and the palestinian militant group, islamichhad, but there are already reports of continued fighting. the fight for life in afghanistan — one year since the taliban takeover, we see how the country's maternity services are at breaking point. this week we'll

have a series of reports looking at life in afghanistan. also on the programme: more than 80,000 tourists are stranded in a chinese resort, after a coronavirus outbreak sparks a lockdown. and the icelandic volcano spewing out lava and molten rock, that's become a hit with tourists. live from our studio in singapore, this is bbc news — it's newsday. hello and welcome to the programme. there were tears ofjoy amongst democrats in the us senate as a landmark bill to tackle climate change was passed. after more than a year of intense wrangling, the sweeping reforms are being seen as a major victory for president biden. republicans had tried to derail the legislation,

worth $430 billion, claiming it would undermine economic growth. it also contains measures to reduce the price of healthcare and introduce new taxes for business. senate majority leader, chuck schumer, shared hisjoy that the bill has passed. 0ur bill reduces inflation, lowers costs, creates millions of manufacturing jobs, enhances our energy security, and is the boldest climate package in us history. the senate has now passed the most significant bill to fight the climate crisis ever. it is going to make a difference to my grandkids. the world will be a better place for my grandchildren because of what we did today and that makes me feel very, very good. very, very good. 0ur washington correspondent gary 0'donoghue sent this update. this is a huge win for

the democrats and forjoe biden. the largest piece of climate change legislation ever passed by congress. it will go something like 80% of the way to reducing carbon targets by 2030. it will also mean for individuals, they can get $7,500 in tax rebate if they buy an electric vehicle. incentives, too, for businesses to switch to renewable energy. there will be higher taxes on businesses with profits more than $1 billion and there will be attempts to bring down prescription drug prices. the hugely contentious issue in this country. it is the latest victory forjoe biden. a series of legislative wins for him. and that will, they hope, influence the november elections, when congress gets re—elected. the problem though, is that those elections are often a referendum on the administration itself and joe biden�*s approval ratings are underwater.

earlier i asked professorjeff colgan, director of the climate solutions lab at brown university, for his reaction to the bill being passed by the senate. finally, finally, we have good news on the fight against climate change. this is a major step forward not only for the united states but really for the whole world. professor, it is wonderful to hear you as enthused and i certainly — i appreciate that lots of people in the audience will be feeling like that as well, but just talk us through the sort of ambitions and the size and scale of what this bill is trying to achieve. yes, so i love a bunch of the different features of this bill. one is it closes about two—thirds of the gap between where the united states is headed right now and where it needs to go under the paris agreement.

and for the first time, this bill puts takes on methane, which is a really potent greenhouse gas and is maybe the obvious place for us to start in terms of reducing us emissions. it also gives, as your reporter said, tax credits to individuals for purchasing electric vehicles, for heat pumps, for doing all the kinds of things that we need to change america's economy away from one that is heavily dependent away from one that is heavily dependent on fossil fuels and america's love affair with the internal combustion engine that drives cars and switching instead to a much cleaner energy technology. professor, i just want to put to you some of the criticism that we have heard from the republicans who have said that this bill will inflict more damage on the american economy and they call it reckless and a spending spree. how true is that your view? well, i think it is just remarkable that the republicans, not one republican senator was willing to stand up for climate

change in this regard and their criticisms economically are just breathtaking, in the sort of hypocrisy, because this bill actually reduces the deficit by $300 billion, which is part of the deficit that was inherited from the previous republican administration. and so, i do not normally like to take such a partisan view but it is really a win to see that the party that cares about climate change is really to make some progress on it and do so in a way that is economically sustainable. professor, how challenging do you think it might be for the us to try and bring the world along with it, for want of a better phrase, in this sort of battle to combat climate change, particularly when we have got these tensions between the us and china now and also the us has been accused of hypocrisy before, hasn't it, by countries like india, who say it is not doing enough to combat

climate change? right, so for years, us�*s diplomat have been going around the world and encouraging other countries to do more on climate change and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and they have always had a weak case to make because the us has not had its own house in order and this bill really goes a long way to strengthening not only, of course, the actual emission reductions, are real leg to stand on and to be able to say, yes, the us is not only back in the paris agreement but also has started to reduce its emissions really significant ways and is, you know, 80% on track to getting to the paris commitments. now we can start to say, look, the next step for the world is — europe has made a lot of progress, the united states

is starting to make progress, now, it is really the onus is on china and to a certain extent india, for making much bigger progress than they have to date. professorjeff colgan. let's take a look at some other stories in the headlines: it's reported the israeli military has struck targets in gaza within minutes of a ceasefire coming into force between israel and palestinian militants. the truce, negotiated by egypt, was designed to end three days of violence in which 44 palestinians were killed, including 15 children. there'd been heavy rocket fire from the islamichhad group against israeli cities in retaliation for the killing of one of the movement's top commanders in the bombardment of gaza. from jerusalem, our middle east correspondent, yolande knell, reports. a crush of grief for islamichhad's most powerful commander in gaza.

"revenge," the mourners shout. and soon it came, the armed group firing barrages of rockets at israeli cities. the death of the veteran militant is a serious blow to the jihadist group. he was killed here with seven others in intense israeli bombing. "it was horrifying. "they targeted the house with five or six rockets," says this man, who lives nearby. "there were bodies on the ground." and today, the violence also reached jerusalem, as israeli nationalists visited its most disputed holy site for a jewish holiday. israel's air defence system could be seen intercepting two palestinian rockets over the city, leaving trails of white smoke. israeli officials say they launched their military operation to prevent attacks by islamichhad on israeli civilians,

that they had precise, detailed intelligence of its plans. but normal civilian life has been on hold in much of israel. this evening, warning sirens sent beach—goers in tel aviv rushing to air raid shelters. further south, that's become routine. we have to live with this situation. we have a shelter in our house. it's ten seconds to go there. and then we need to stay there ten minutes. after fighting since friday there are hopes that a ceasefire brokered by egypt will stick. but people here know that a truce is always temporary. yolande knell, bbc news. you're watching newsday on the bbc. still to come on the programme: as the commonwealth games draw to a close, australia sit top of the medals table — we hearfrom one of their gold medal winners.

the big crowds became bigger as of the time of the funeral approach. as the lives of fancy became longer, police prepared for the hugejob of became longer, police prepared for the huge job of crowd control. india men, uganda? brutal formal dictator has died at the age of 80. amin. 2 formal dictator has died at the age of 80. amin.— age of 80. amin. 2 billion --eole age of 80. amin. 2 billion people around _ age of 80. amin. 2 billion people around the - age of 80. amin. 2 billion people around the world i age of 80. amin. 2 billion - people around the world have seen the last total eclipse of the sun to take place in this millennium. it ended with the sun set over the bay of bengal.

this is newsday on the bbc. 0ur headlines: the us senate approves joe biden�*s landmark bill to fight climate change, channeling billions of dollars towards ambitious clean energy goals. a ceasefire comes into effect between israel and the palestinian militant group, islamichhad, but there are already reports of continued fighting. pregnant women, new mothers and their babies are being affected by acute shortages and a lack of basic services in afghanistan. it comes nearly one year on from the taliban takeover. to give birth in remote parts of the country means difficult journeys on makeshift roads, sometimes being turned away from hospital, sharing beds on wards, and little medicine.

0ur report was filmed in badakhshan province in the north—east of afghanistan by cameraman sanjay ganguly, producer imogen anderson, and correspondent yogita limaye. some viewers may find this report distressing. in afg hanistan�*s maternity wards, women forced to endure unbearable suffering. groans. no drugs to ease the pain. barely any resources for an emergency. 0nly female staff are allowed here. they scramble around a woman in a serious condition. bibi sara's waters have broken too early. the only female doctor helps sara pull through. her baby is rushed to critical care. there is a faint heartbeat but she isn't breathing.

to treat the child, a male doctor is called in. these are crucial moments. after half an hour of intense efforts the baby girl is stable. doctors have told us she has a good chance of survival now. but they see scenes like this every single day here. it's also the middle of the day on a weekday when all of the staff were here. but there's just one female doctor and five nurses in an area that's home to more than 200,000 people. life is precarious here. a day later, before she could be named, the baby's condition worsened and they couldn't save her. one of too many such cases. the number of newborns dying in badakhshan province has almost doubled since foreign funding to afghanistan

was frozen last year. in this striking but harsh land, two decades of progress saving the lives of babies and mothers is in rapid decline. imagine taking a woman in labour on these roads. that's what this family had to do three weeks ago. abdul hafeez�*s wife and the mother of these two children died in a car, turned away from the local clinic, which wasn't equipped. zeinab was 38. "i feel like i've lost my whole life, i'm so lonely." she says "i've lost my main support. "without her, my life is meaningless." in the neighbouring village,

this man's sister was turned away from two medical facilities and died on the road to the third a few months ago. he's taken in her daughter, a five—year—old, whose father works in iran. translation: if we had proper clinics _ and good roads i would not have lost my sister. now what will happen to her daughter? he was hoping to get his sister to this facility, badakhshan�*s main hospital. better equipped than any other in the province, but overwhelmed. since foreign funds stopped they've had to reduce their beds by a third. in every cot there are at least two women. staggering evidence here of how quickly the situation is unravelling. this room and another one next

door is full of women who have miscarried. doctors tell us there are twice as many miscarriages this year than in 2021. stress and hunger are the main triggers. this woman tells me what she eats every day. translation: | drink tea - in the morning, tea for lunch, and for dinner we find something to cook and eat. we had no food the day this happened. i was going to our relatives�* home to borrow some rice or flour. i started to feel weak and began to bleed. 0n the floor above, the number of premature babies also surging sharply. this boy was born at seven months, still to be named. nurses and doctors are exhausted. and the taliban's bar on girls�* secondary schools means

no reinforcements are coming. a series of blows have been inflicted on afghan women in the past year. its collective impact nowhere more visible than in the country's maternity wards. yogita limaye, bbc news, badakhshan. let's turn to china now, which continues to pursue its hardline zero—covid policy. an outbreak at the resort city of sanya has sparked a lockdown. the restrictions on sanya, which is on the southern hainan island and a popular surfing destination, come during the peak tourist season. all flights and trains have been cancelled, leaving more than 80,000 tourists stranded there. i've been speaking professor yanzhong huang who is a senior fellow for global health at the council on foreign relations and he says this lockdown is just part of china's

lockdown strategy. if you look at how that policy is being pursued in china, basically by each locality with singledigit cases being banned, they are supposed to launch immediate factors stomach measures to keep the crisis in control. in sanya, it is no exception, that is part of the chinese policy response to covid—i9. chinese policy response to covid-19-_ chinese policy response to covid-19. ., ., ., covid-19. you say that, and i understand _ covid-19. you say that, and i understand that _ covid-19. you say that, and i understand that it _ covid-19. you say that, and i understand that it is - covid-19. you say that, and i understand that it is part - covid-19. you say that, and i understand that it is part of i understand that it is part of the response, so we should expect it, but how real is the risk to public health at this point, given we are talking about a locking down several

thousands, tens of thousands of people? iii thousands, tens of thousands of eo - le? , ., thousands, tens of thousands of neale? l, thousands, tens of thousands of --eole? ,, ., people? if you look at the actual cases _ people? if you look at the actual cases that - people? if you look at the actual cases that have - people? if you look at the actual cases that have so | people? if you look at the i actual cases that have so far been identified, more than 1100 cases, three quarters of them are considered confirmed cases, one third of them are asymptomatic once, but even among those confirmed cases, all of them are considered mild ones, there are no severe cases or even deaths, so in that sense, really, they are not considered a serious concern in our opinion, but in china, because of their zero covid policy, they cannot tolerate any infections, and it is still considered a real challenge the. ., . , , considered a real challenge the. ., . , the. how much is this political as well though _ the. how much is this political as well though professor? - the. how much is this political as well though professor? we| as well though professor? we have talked about the health aspect of this but there has been some speculation that

after the big leadership meeting in china later this year, that covid restrictions may well be eased. do you see that happening? it may well be eased. do you see that happening?— that happening? if we define the response _ that happening? if we define the response as _ that happening? if we define the response as the - that happening? if we define the response as the political| the response as the political response, because of the high political steaks, giving up zero covid is notjust a public health problem, it is a political problem, so in that sense, the end of the congress will open a political window for potential policy pivot. that was a senior fellow for global health at the council on foreign relations are speaking to us a little earlier. the commonwealth games are drawing to a close in birmingham later. there have been some incredible performances but perhaps unsurprisingly australia top the medals table. once again their swimmers

enjoyed considerable success in the pool. and that included 23—year—old zac stubblety—cook. he secured gold in the 200 metres breastroke. a little earlier, zac spoke to me about what it was like to be part of the games. yeah, the moment of victory in birmingham was pretty special for me. four years ago, i didn't make the final, so it was special for me to be able to stand up on those blocks and have the crowd back and have that moment, all my team—mates and my family there, it was pretty special. yeah, i can imagine. what a moment indeed for you. give us a sense of how difficult competing in the commonwealth games was in comparison to the olympics, for example. yeah, i mean, every race is always a little bit different. for me, this year has probably been different again. last year, i came in as an underdog, this year i've come in kind of coming in as that guy to beat. so that's been different pressure.

i wouldn't say it's easier or a different quality, it was just, yeah, a different race, if you will. it was still a tough race, so that's always great to come away with a win. what is it like to go from that transition from being, as you have described it, you know, the underdog to the man to beat in pool? it is a strange feeling in something i'm still learning to deal with and learning how to race, given that, and the last 12 months has been an absolute whirlwind like it was 12 months to the day from tokyo to the 200m breaststroke and birmingham. so it was a pretty special 12 months and something i'm still learning how to do, at the end of the day, i stand behind the blocks and represent my country, but i'm representing myself and trying to get the best out

of myself and trust that process and continue to perfect that process. you know, a lot of people watching, i'm sure, are wondering, the discipline that is involved in becoming the kind of athlete you are and having to push yourself every single points. what do you do in order to sort of psych yourself up, i suppose, to get even faster and beat that next record? i enjoye the challenge, i guess, is the easiest way to put it. it's always about trying to find the best of myself, i guess, that's kind of the way i view my life, if i was to pass away or die tomorrow, would i be content with the life i've lived? trying to live each day to its last, and that is kind of how i live and how i continue to live in trying to get the best out of myself each and every day and make the most of each and every day, and that means challenging myself in and out of the pool both in life and in the pool. try to just be the best person i can be, it's

as simple as that, i guess. wise words there. now to an unusual tourist attraction in icleand. the fagradalsfjall volcano erupted last wednesday, but as it spews out lava and streams of molten rock, tourists and locals have travelled to the site to view the spectacular show, and in some cases to enjoy a picnic. nature is humbling, it's very exciting, and once—in—a—lifetime chance. exciting, and once-in-a-lifetime chance. ~ once-in-a-lifetime chance. we like hiking _ once-in-a-lifetime chance. we like hiking so _ once—in—a—lifetime chance. we like hiking so we ended up here having — like hiking so we ended up here having a — like hiking so we ended up here having a picnic by a volcano. finally, some pictures of the dogs making a splash at the year's world dog surfing championships, the annual event held in california sees owners help their fairy friends catch some waves and wow the spectators and judges, and they arejudged on multiple factors,

including length of ride, technique, confidence and size of wave. that's it from us, thanks for watching, do stay with bbc news. hello there. there was a lot of dry, sunny, very warm weather over the weekend, certainly across england and wales. and that's just the taste of things to come, because as we move through this upcoming week, it's set to get very hot and sunny across parts of england and wales, a developing heatwave here. but even scotland and northern ireland will turn much warmer with plenty of sunshine. now, high pressure will keep control of the weather through this week, weather fronts always flirting with the northwest corner of scotland and will bring more cloud, breeze, outbreaks of rain. and then towards the end of the week, the area of high pressure will sit towards the east of the uk, and that will bring very warm southeasterly winds off the near continent. now, of course, we know it's been very dry last month across england and wales and we

continue the dry theme into august. very little rain over the next few days for much of the country. most of it will be falling across the north and the west of scotland. and there will be further splashes of rain across northwest scotland, over the northern and western isles, over the course of monday. more sunshine, though, for northern ireland, much of central, southern and eastern scotland. most of the sunshine, though, and warmth will be across england and wales. so we've got the low 20s across the north in the sunniest spots, the high 20s further south. we could be up to around 29 degrees in a few spots across the midlands and southern england. monday night, then, dry and clear for most, a bit of mist developing here and there. it'll stay cloudy and breezy across the north and west of scotland, further splashes of rain here. and temperatures will begin to creep up, 10—16 degrees will be the low. and as we move through the week, the nights will get warmer. so for tuesday, then, it's a fairly mild start to the day, plenty of sunshine across the country. again, the far north and west of scotland will see most of the breeze and the cloud. quite windy across the west highlands, into the western isles. 17 degrees here, the mid—20s further south, and we could be close

to the 30 celsius mark across parts of england and wales. until wednesday, i think a sunnier picture across much of scotland and northern ireland, that weather front just pushing to the northwest of the country. so we're up to around 2a, 25 degrees through central, southern scotland, up to 30 or 31 celsius across the midlands and the south wales, southern england. and it gets hotter across england and wales as we move towards the end of the week, perhaps up to the mid—30s in places. warm as well for scotland and northern ireland. don't forget, the nights will get much warmer as well.

this is bbc news. we will have the headlines and all the main news stories for you at the top of the hour, straight after this programme. i've been an opera fan for decades and i want to share my passion with you, so i'm on a mission to find out how opera is making itself fit for the future. i've come to munich to meet one of my all—time opera heroes, the german tenorjonas kaufmann, who's widely viewed as the world's leading opera singer.

he's a charismatic person, performer.