this is bbc news with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. the author sir salman rushdie has reportedly been taken off a ventilator and is able to talk after being stabbed at an event in new york state. in ukraine, president zelensky warns that russians shooting at the zaporyzhzhia nuclear plant will immediately be targeted by ukrainian forces. and labour is to call for the energy price cap in england, scotland and wales to be frozen in october, to help with the cost of living. the tories say their plan won't work. i think we have to be a little bit careful of some of these labour seemingly magical solutions that will just wish seemingly magical solutions that willjust wish it seemingly magical solutions that will just wish it all away. seemingly magical solutions that willjust wish it all away. that willjust wish it all away. that will have consequences.

firefighters in france say a huge forest fire in the gironde region is now being contained — after overnight rain. and warnings in the uk over the use of disposable barbecues after a weekend of wildfires in parts of england. hello, welcome if you're watching in the uk or around the world. the author sir salman rushdie has reportedly been taken off a ventilator and is able to speak again after he was stabbed in new york state. there's been no official confirmation from the hospital in pennsylvania where he's being treated although us media outlets say the news was confirmed by his agent. our north america correspondent nomia iqbal reports. a day after sir salman rushdie was stabbed, he is now said to be awake and off a ventilator.

the author's condition has not yet been fully updated, but fellow writers have been tweeting their relief at finding out he's able to talk. michael hill, the president of the chautaqua institution where mr rushdie was attacked, tweeted his happiness at the news. this comes as the man accused of attempting to murder him appeared in court. 24—year—old hadi matar was arrested at the literary event. he had bought a ticket to attend. onlookers had held the suspect down as the author lay on the stage injured. i've been coming here for 31 years and this is one of the most peaceful, quiet places i've ever been in my life. and, you know, the guy has a price on his head from 1989. and, of all the places he might be attacked or hurt or, god forbid, die, chautauqua would be the last place i would think of. inside court, wearing handcuffs and prison clothing. hadi matar pleaded not guilty to charges of attempted murder and assault. reports say that a law enforcement review of his social media accounts

found he was sympathetic to the causes of the iranian revolutionary guards, a major military and political force in iran. it was in 1989 when iran's spiritual leader at the time placed a death sentence on sir salman. his book, the satanic verses, was considered an insult to islam and led to global riots, which killed 45 people. he went into hiding for nearly a decade, but in recent years shunned the high levels of security, saying he wanted to be able to live freely. ever since the attack on friday, world leaders have been issuing words of solidarity for sir salman rushdie. president biden released a statement praising the author for his refusal to be intimidated or silenced. nomia iqbal, bbc news, pennsylvania. president zelensky says that every russian soldier who shoots at the zaporyzhzhia nuclear plant

or uses it as a base to shoot from will himself become a target for ukrainian soldiers. he said russians involved in what he called "nuclear blackmail" must be tried by an international court. translation: every russian soldierj who strikes the znpp must or shoots from its territory must realise that he will become a special target for our intelligence, special services and our army. the bbc�*s hugo bachega is in the ukrainian capital, kyiv, and has more now on the background of the significance of the nuclear plant. tensions remain high around the zaporizhzhia nuclear power complex. for days russia and ukraine have traded accusations of who's to blame for shelling the complex.

the background to this is that russia has been occupying this complex since the beginning of march, although ukrainian technicians are still operating this facility. the ukrainians accuse russian forces of essentially turning this nuclear facility into a military base. using it to launch attacks against ukrainian targets, knowing that ukrainian forces are unlikely to retaliate. now, the russians reject these accusations. they say the russian troops are there to protect this facility, and calls are growing for international monitors to be allowed to visit this complex. the un secretary general, antonio guterres, called for the introduction of a demilitarised zone around this complex. we are hearing similar calls in kyiv, but so far it is very unlikely that any kind of deal is going to be reached, at least for now.

in the south, in the occupied region of kherson, there were attempts to attack a bridge from ukraine. and that would mean that all four bridges used to supply russian troops on the western bank of the river are damaged or destroyed. the ukrainians, for weeks now, have been targeting supply lines and infrastructure used by the russians there. kherson has been under russian occupation since the beginning of march to reinfoprce their positions, and the ukrainians have said they are going to launch an offensive to recapture this region of southern ukraine, even though it seems that, so far, the ukrainians do not have the capacity or the weapons needed to go ahead with this major offensive. the labour leader, sir keir starmer, will use a speech on monday to call for a freeze to the energy price cap in england, scotland and wales in the autumn.

analysts believe the cap will rise to around £3,500 in october — sir keir wants to keep the current price cap atjust under £2,000 for the average household. earlier i spoke with the energy minister greg hands.. i think the government has to look at all the options are available. that is what we are doing at the moment. rishi sunak has been clear that if he becomes prime minister after the 5th of september, he will be wanting to take direct, immediate action to help people this coming winter pay those bills. particularly their most vulnerable, particularly pensioners and so on. in terms of their specifics, a little too early to say. i think the idea from labour of abolishing price rises in energy. energy price rises are set globally, driven by the invasion by vladimir putin in ukraine. we would have to find a way to compensate people by effectively trying to abolish the price rise and that would inevitably lead to higher taxes. we had to be a little bit careful

with some of these seemingly magical solutions by labour to wish it all away. that will have consequences. it all away. on that, keith anderson does have a plan for the costs to be met over a much longer period, so it is not the sudden cliff that people are facing, which would mean suppliers covering the gap between keeping their limit at £1,971 where it goes beyond that could potentially beyond £11,000. a deficit bank supported by commercial banks, with many being repaid over ten to 15 years and over that period, that is when consumers would breakdown their bills. it is a big move but is a big move required now when we look at the scale of the increases? we are talking about inflation, obviously, heading for 13%. when we are talking about energy bills, it is what? 200%, 300%. that is a big chunk of people's outgoings. keith anderson from scottishpower is very capable. someone i know well and have worked with well over the last year.

the government needs to look all the available options. we can't simply wish away the rising energy prices. it has to be paid somewhere along the line by either bill payers, by taxpayers and so on. the government needs to look at all the available options and that is what we are committed to do. what i am also saying is rishi sunak, if he were prime minister, is committed to making sure we get money in people's pockets this winter, not through tax cuts but making sure particularly the most vulnerable have the ability to pay those bills. that is what he is committed to. how would you, how does rishi sunak define the most vulnerable? this is causing catastrophic levels of outgoings for people that goes well beyond what would normally be thought of as the most vulnerable — teachers, middle—class

people who had been able to previously perhaps afford the luxuries that now have gone out of the window, signing up to the don't, can't pay, won't pay campaign. i think the can't pay, won't pay campaign is deeply irresponsible because ultimately the shortfall would have to be paid by somebody else. it is likely to lead to court action, that kind of thing, which i don't think we would want to wish on anybody. in terms of helping the vulnerable, the package of support and aren't so far, the £37 billion of government support so far this year on cost of living, that is a huge amount of money and includes £1,200 to the 8 million most vulnerable households. that would give you an idea of the sort of numbers

that the government has committed so far, when rishi sunak was chancellor, committed to as well. that is the sort of policy i would expect to be the basis of where rishi sunak would like to take things forward were he to become prime minister. we will have to see. the government rightly is looking at all the available options. there is a recognition more will have to be done. we will have to see what does get done. the price cap rise does not happen until october. the support does not kick in until september/october. some of the support that has already been announced has not actually yet ta ken effect. 70 charities and community organisations have written to the contenders to become the next uk prime minister, liz truss and rishi sunak — calling on them to reassure low income families there will be further support to help with soaring bills. rachelle earwaker is a senior economist at one of those charities,

thejoseph rowntree foundation, a think tank focused on tackling poverty in the uk. what is your view of how the couldn't help either given out are lined up to come into effect will have compared with the reality of these rising bills? the government had already — these rising bills? the government had already pledged _ these rising bills? the government had already pledged around - these rising bills? the government had already pledged around £1200 | these rising bills? the government l had already pledged around £1200 to each of the most vulnerable house hold back and majored in the cost of living statement by rishi sunak and it is starting to come through now. unfortunately runaway energy bills we know are increasing distortion lately in the next few months and inflation looking at around 30% by the end of the year means that support packages no longer sufficient at all. we know that energy bills for the households on the lowest incomes and around £1800 higher than last year and other

costs like food and transport have risen by around £1000 at the same time so low income households are looking at around £2800 of increased payments being required by them over the coming year and it means that £1200 payment to everyone on the cover is less than half of that rise and absolutely shows the need for more support to those households on at least the same sort of magnitude. you may not have worked this out but these costs are not factored into these costs are not factored into the official inflation rate which as you mentioned is predicted by the bank of england to hit 30% later this year. do you know what the real inflation rate is for the sort of families you are talking about? this discussion came _ families you are talking about? ti 3 discussion came up quite a lot and in the year that the inflation rate for low income households is much higher because they are spending

much higher proportions of already low incomes on essentials, so we haven't got the exact calculations what that can be coming towards the end of the year but i would say that evenin end of the year but i would say that even in may before we see the october price rise kicking in, 7 million households on low incomes were already going without essentials, equivalent to the whole north of england. we knew that 4 million households were already behind on their bills and for households behind on their energy bills they are also an average behind and three other kinds of bills, and that was back in may so the absolutely enormous impact this is having on households who could not pay their bills in nay no looking at the 2800 pounds increase in the amount they are having to find this year is eye watering the terrifying. find this year is eye watering the terri in. , , ,

terrifying. the energy minister greg hands making _ terrifying. the energy minister greg hands making the _ terrifying. the energy minister greg hands making the point _ terrifying. the energy minister greg hands making the point the - terrifying. the energy minister greg hands making the point the cost - terrifying. the energy minister greg hands making the point the cost of| hands making the point the cost of energy and the dramatic increases as a hard reality that can't be wished away, there is no magic solution to this. what would you say to him if you are talking directly to him? we are in you are talking directly to him? - are in the tone of absolute crisis right now and throughout history it is the role of the government to provide support to households to need it and we know at a time of crisis we saw it during the pandemic using the furlough scheme and the uplift of £20 to universal credit and we need support from the government we will face a winter of truly terrifying circumstances. the headlines on bbc news:

reports in the us say salman rushdie, who was stabbed at an event in new york state, has been taken off a ventilator and is able to talk. ukraine's president has warned that any russian soldiers who shoot at the besieged zaporizhzhia nuclear plant will be targeted by security services. and labour is to call for the energy price cap in england, scotland and wales to be frozen in october, to help with the cost of living. several european countries have seen a wave of deadly wildfires, triggered by record temperatures and drought across the continent. here you can see there are currently major fires in much of western europe. officials are concerned that windy conditions could make the situation worse. authorities in france say the �*monster�* fire south of bordeaux is being contained although firefighters remain vigilant. our correspondent bethany bell is in the gironde region.

the big fire near here has been contained. everybody here is on high alert, and this place tells you why. we were here yesterday and saw a fire crew hosing this area down, putting out small fires. there has been rain today, but as you can see, it is still smoking here. this area has a lot of peat—rich soil, and the embers burning underground, orjust on the surface of the ground, and it is still very easy for new fires to set off. firefighters say a huge fire which tore through a popular nature reserve at studland heath in dorset and forced the evacuation of a beach was most likely caused by a disposable barbecue. the hot weather and drought conditions have led the met office to issue its highest alert forfire severity over the weekend, warning there is an "exceptional" risk of blazes spreading. will batchelor reports. the true cost of a

disposable barbecue. firefighters say this huge blaze which tore across studland heath in dorset was almost certainly caused by picnickers trying to cook food on the tinder—dry beauty spot. after battling the flames all night, they found a disposable barbecue among the ashes. we really are appealing to members of the public to consider what you're doing. if it's going to potentially start a fire, try to avoid it if you possibly can. this field fire near chelmsford was one of 75 in essex. it covered 91 acres, and containing it required the help of local farmers. if you were downwind you wouldn't have kept up with it running. luckily, the wind direction was away from the houses, and so it wasjust a question of stopping it spreading back towards the houses again, but when the wind changed direction,

suddenly it would move towards you and, yes, it is frightening. in north london, this grassfire billowed smoke across the busy m25 motorway. in surrey, a different problem. in cranleigh, near guildford, residents queued up for bottled water after their taps ran dry. thames water said there were technical issues at one of its treatment works, and that fixing it was taking longer than they'd hoped. and it isn'tjust humans who need hydration. one farmer in suffolk has been filling 70 water troughs a day to make sure the wildlife have enough to drink. an amber heat alert is still in place today and the drought in parts of england could potentially last into next year. at least seven people have been injured by gunmen injerusalem. the shooting, which happened in the early hours of the morning, is being treated by israeli police as a terror attack. the attackers opened fire at two locations in the city, targeting a bus as well as people waiting in a car park near the western wall. two of the seven wounded are in a critical condition, and all have been taken to hospitals injerusalem. the shooting comes a week

after israeli raids in gaza, which killed more than a0 palestinians. one person has been arrested following a shooting incident at canberra airport. there have been no reported injuries and police say they have also recovered a firearm. witnesses reported hearing several gunshots, while others have described chaos and confusion at the airport check—in area. some passengers who have been waiting aboard planes on the tarmac have been allowed to disembark and authorities say they are working to resume flights out of canberra airport as soon as possible. more than 20,000 people have been detected crossing the english channel in small boats so far this year, uk government figures show. that compares to a figure of around 28,000 throughout the whole of 2021. despite the growing numbers, the uk arrivals in small boats are a fraction of the number

of people going to europe. we are heeding that the 16 skegness. —— we are hearing that a 16—year—old boy was discovered in the water around 630 in the evening on saturday. a search was carried out by the coastguard and the boy was recovered at around half past 11. the coastguard said at one point within two hours they had ten calls, all of those reported missing other than the child who sadly died were reported safe and well. police say their thoughts are with the family. almost six months ago, thousands of ukrainian civilians

joined the military to fight invading russian forces. among those who signed up were members of one of ukraine's top rock bands, annitteela. they became army medics in kharkiv — helping to treat wounded soldiers. the bbcjoined them as they headed to the front line. it is russian mortarfire. come on, come on, come on. all good? yeah. here. we're here, it's ok. come on. listen. i'm 0k. i'm taras topolya, the frontman of antytila, a popular band in ukraine. now me, with my friends, serving in territorial defence forces. we are a paramedical team — paramedical squad. singing we've been playing for more than 12 years. we released seven albums.

so we had a lot of big ukrainian tours, and we had three american and canadian tours. here, it is a front line. this is our position. this yard was destroyed by russian mortar fire. it's far away. you know, blood smells disgusting for me. and also, when this smell compares with the smell of the shelling, with smell of the explosion, it's the most disgusting smell of my life.

after doing my duties, i call my wife and my kids. i have no tears any more. i'm tired to cry. ijust can't wake up, like a dream. i'm in a dream. and i want to wake up, wake up in my home. i don't want to lie that sometimes the sadness defeat me. i want to create a new album, new antytila album, after the war. we will need new kind of songs. songs of happiness. with a smile on our face.

if we will survive, we will do this, of course. pakistan is marking 75 years of independence with commemorative ceremonies being held in different cities across the country. the day dawned with a 31—gun salute in islamabad and prayers have been offered through the day. the south asian nation gained independence from british rule following the partition of colonial india into the independent nations, hindu—majority india and muslim—majority pakistan in 19117. about 15 million muslims, hindus and sikhs swapped countries in the political upheaval, marred by violence and bloodshed that cost more than a million lives. india will celebrate its independece on monday.

some gorgeous new additions have made their debut at a zoo in gaza city — three extremely cute lion cubs. the animals, born on friday evening, are said to be in excellent health, but zoo—keepers admit a lack of medication and food might make them difficult to care for. one visitor to the zoo said the cubs were wonderful. now it's time for a look at the weather with sarah keith lucas. hello. we have one final day of extreme heat today. things will gradually turn cooler over the next 24—48 hours and there is some rain in the forecast, too. today we are already seeing some heavy showers and thunderstorms, particularly across northern ireland and scotland. they will become more widespread over the next couple of days. here and now, extreme heat warning, amber warning still involves across much of england, into wales as well. health and transport impacts

possible due to the high temperatures we are seeing for the seventh day in a row now. some heavy showers and thunderstorms are going to be pushing across northern ireland, western scotland, gradually reaching eastern scotland later in the afternoon, and one or two isolated showers across the lake district, for instance, snowdonia as well. but down in the south, the east, central parts of england, south wales, temperature is 33, 3a degrees, so another hot day ahead. into the evening hours, some of the heavy downpours in the north—west creep a little bit further south and east across northern england, wales and the south—west of england as we start monday morning. wales and the south—west of england but it is going to be another warm and sticky—feeling night for sleeping. temperatures in the mid to high teens. could be 20 degrees, another tropical night, across southern england and south wales. monday, low pressure becomes more established across the uk, so more of us are going to see some heavy showers and thunderstorms as well. but if you do catch one or two of these really sharp showers, could be some large hail mixed in, frequent lightning, as well as the potential for localised flooding, with some heavy showers falling

on the really dry and hard ground. it is going to be another day with temperatures above 30 degrees, the eighth consecutive day in the south and east. but turning cooler in the north and west. the northerly winds continue on tuesday for northern ireland and scotland. some more persistent perhaps thundery rain for parts of scotland and northern england. and further south across england and wales, later on tuesday, more of a chance of some fairly heavy showers and thunderstorms. temperatures starting to cslm down below 30 degrees, mid to high 20s in the south and east. typically high teens across the north west. things feeling cooler and fresher. middle of the week, low pressure not far away, so, hopefully, a bit more rain towards the south. but it could be heavy with the potential for localised flooding. then it looks like things turn a little bit drier, particularly in the south, later in the week. bye— bye.

hello, this is bbc news. the headlines: sir salman rushdie, stabbed at an event in new york state, has reportedly been taken off a ventilator and is able to talk. in ukraine, president zelensky warns russians shooting at the zaporizhzhia nuclear plant will immediately be targeted by ukrainian forces. firefighters in france say a huge forest fire in the gironde region is now being contained after overnight rain. warnings in the uk over the use of disposable barbecues after a weekend of wildfires in parts of england.

and labour is to call for the energy price cap in england, scotland and wales to be frozen this autumn, to help with the cost of living. now on bbc news dateline london with shaun ley. hello, and welcome to the programme, which brings together leading uk commentators with the foreign correspondents who write, blog, podcast and broadcast from the dateline london. this week, a meeting between borisjohnson and the energy companies about the ticking time bomb which is the capping of energy bills. the cap will rise further in october. the meeting achieved nothing. the british have a government that apparently must wait for action until the conservatives have

chosen their leader, the country's next prime minister.