you're watching bbc news, i'm rich preston. our top stories... life in prison for el shafee elsheikh, a british fighter from the islamic state group sentenced for his role in the murders of western hostages. relatives of his victims say justice has been done. now we receive the best of our country, and i am very grateful, obviously, but that is what makes it a hollow victory, if you will. russia's president, vladimir putin, agrees on the need to send inspectors to ukraine's zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, as fears grow about its safety. the widow of basketball legend kobe bryant says she was left devastated by first responders�* photographs of her dead husband and daughter after a fatal helicopter crash.

and the scottish city returning cultural artefacts looted from india during british rule in the 19th century. hello and welcome to bbc news. we start in the us, where a former british member of the islamic state group has been sentenced to life in prison by a court in virginia. 34—year—old el shafee elsheikh was among a group of british is members who carried out a brutal reign of terror in syria. our north america correspondent nomia iqbal reports from virginia. and then they would ask me to... el shafee elsheikh claimed he was a simple is fighter who wanted to help. but it wasn't true. he was part of the islamic state group which terrorised large swathes of iraq and syria

between 2014 and 2017. beatings, electrocutions and mock executions were carried out by the jihadists on western hostages, who called their torturers the beatles due to their english accents. elsheikh, who left london tojoin is, was convicted of his part in a hostage murder plot in which four americans were killed — james foley, steven sotloff, peter kassig and kayla mueller, as well two british aid workers, alan henning and david haines. the judge described what el shafee elsheikh did as horrific, brutal, barbaric, callous, and criminal. he said the sentence had to act as a deterrent. elsheikh refused to comment when given the opportunity. none of the victim' bodies have ever been found. outside court, the families gathered. diane foley's sonjames died eight years ago today. it is a hollow victory. our country has lost four

of its very best citizens. we families lost our loved ones for ever. and now, elsheikh and kotey have lost their freedom, country and families. it is a tragic cycle of violence and heartbreak for all involved. elsheikh�*s co—conspirator alexander kotey already pleaded guilty and will serve the rest of his life injail. as part of his plea deal, he met some victims�* relatives, including the family of kayla mueller, who was raped and tortured by the leader of is. he was eventually killed in a us raid. i did meet with kotey for two—and—a—half hours. so i spoke to him at length. and i would meet him again and i hope to. elsheikh does not have to meet with us. if he would, i would want him to. but my prayer all along in all of this is i have asked

god to soften any hearts out there that know anything about any of this, that would come forward and help us. and we are getting people helping us. another member of this group, mohammed emwazi, known in the press asjihadi john, is dead. elsheikh and kotey were eventually captured in syria when is diminished in 2018. the group hated the western world, particularly america. but these two men now face spending the rest of their lives in a us jail. nomia iqbal, bbc news, virginia. jason blazakis is a senior research fellow at the soufan center, a global security research group. and he previously served in the bureau of counterterrorism at the us state department. he state department. joins us from washington, dc. he joins us from washington, dc. what is your reaction to today's sentencing?- dc. what is your reaction to today's sentencing? thanks for havin: today's sentencing? thanks for having me _ today's sentencing? thanks for having me on _ today's sentencing? thanks for having me on the _ today's sentencing? thanks for having me on the programme. | today's sentencing? thanks for| having me on the programme. i think it is a appropriate

measure ofjustice for think it is a appropriate measure of justice for the horrific actions that el shafee elsheikh was engaged in. being known as the cruellest garden amongst the so—called beatles, to given it is something, in terms of ringing a little hollow. it something, in terms of ringing a little hollow.— a little hollow. it has been a lona a little hollow. it has been a long time — a little hollow. it has been a long time coming, - a little hollow. it has been a long time coming, bringing | a little hollow. it has been a i long time coming, bringing to these men tojustice. took long time coming, bringing to these men to justice. took cut through some of the complications in this case. first and foremost, geographic, el shafee elsheikh and alexanda kotey were operating out of syria until they were captured so getting hands on them to bring them to justice were difficult. second, the united states system has the death

penalty, so the united kingdom and the united states had to negotiate around that. and thirdly, collecting the information, in a difficult intimate —— paste like syria and iraq and using it in a court situation, also difficult to do. , . , , . to do. he is appealing, will that be successful? - to do. he is appealing, will that be successful? it - to do. he is appealing, will that be successful? it is i to do. he is appealing, will. that be successful? it is very unlikely to — that be successful? it is very unlikely to be _ that be successful? it is very unlikely to be successful. . that be successful? it is very unlikely to be successful. it| unlikely to be successful. it is very clear both the charges were very warranted so el shafee elsheikh will sadly live the rest of his years behind bars very likely at a maximum prison and colorado. you have sent prison and colorado. you have spent your— prison and colorado. you have spent your career _ prison and colorado. you have spent your career studying - spent your career studying middle islamist terrorists, where these men genuine jihad is? where these men genuine 'ihad is? , , ., is? they were first and foremost _ is? they were first and foremost involved - is? they were first and foremost involved in l is? they were first and . foremost involved in petty theft before theyjoined isis. they used religion, the ices brand of religion, to practice their brutality and their nihilism, and i really do

represent a microcosm of what ices was, a brutal terrorist group. ices was, a brutal terrorist u-rou. ., ices was, a brutal terrorist ”rou, ., ices was, a brutal terrorist u-rou. ., ., . , group. you say what ices was, once upon _ group. you say what ices was, once upon a — group. you say what ices was, once upon a time _ group. you say what ices was, once upon a time they - group. you say what ices was, once upon a time they were i group. you say what ices was, once upon a time they were inj once upon a time they were in the headlines every day, we hear less about them nowadays, what risk they pose the moment? they still pose a significant risk but they are not as prominent as they were in 2015 when i had a colour that the size of great britain. there was a report issued documenting how much impact ices still has on the ground in places like africa and in afghanistan and where the group operates within —— with impunity. ices leaders are calling for the establishment of a caliphate in africa. so we have to keep our eye on the group, it is a group that remains relevant,

unfortunately. state media in somalia say security forces are trying to contain an attack on a hotel in the capital, mogadishu. the assault on the hayat hotel began with the detonation of at least two car bombs followed by a fierce gunfight. dozens of guests and staff are reported to have been rescued. the islamist militant group, al—shabab, says it is carrying out the attack. the german chancellor, 0laf scholz, has testified for the second time to a parliamentary committee in hamburg that's investigating whether local political figures helped a private bank avoid paying back millions in falsely claimed tax rebates. mr scholz was hamburg's mayor when the fraud was exposed in 2017. he said after the hearing, it had produced a clear conclusion that he had exerted no influence in the case, but a representative of the christian democrat opposition accused the chancellor of failing to cooperate with the committee. presidents putin of russia and macron of france have agreed on the need to send

inspectors to ukraine's zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant as fears grow over its safety. it comes as the un secretary general antonio guiterres said he hopes discreet diplomacy can secure the safety of the plant, amid concerns it could be damanged by shelling. he's been speaking to the bbc during a visit to the port of 0desa. 0ur correspondent, hugo bachega, has more. the visit by mr guterres has been overshadowed by the tensions around the zaporizhzhia nuclear power complex. for days, russia and ukraine have traded accusations of who's to blame for shelling the complex. the ukrainians accuse the russians of essentially turning this nuclear facility into a military base, using it to launch attacks against ukrainian towns, perhaps knowing the ukrainians are unlikely to retaliate. the russians reject those accusations, they say russian troops are there protecting this complex. i ask mr guterres about the situation at the zaporizhia complex and also about

the rejection by russia of his idea of demilitarising the zone around the facility. take a listen. i hope it will be possible to start engaging in a way that we will come, at least for the moment, to end all military operations and then afterwards to a situation which is returning to its civilian nature. i also asked antonio guterres whether any negotiations were happening behind the scenes to allow those international inspectors to visit the zaporizhia complex. he didn't confirm, deny. and he mentioned discrete diplomacy and he did mention the grain deal was negotiated between the russians and the ukrainians and also the united nations and turkey. there was, according to him, after discrete diplomacy. so he sounded a little bit hopeful that perhaps a deal can be reached to allow those inspectors into the plant.

but so far, there is no sign that the russians are willing to allow those monitors to visit this complex in southern ukraine. sir salman rushdie continues to recover in hospital with severe injuries, a week after the author was stabbed on stage. in a show of support for the indian—born british novelist, hundreds of writers gathered at the new york public library to read his extracts from his works and pay tribute. 0ur north america correspondent nada tawfik has this report. new york has been sir salman rushdie's home for the past decade and a half. as he lies in hospital on the road to recovery, the literary community here is still reeling from the attack on his life and the attack on his freedom to write. salman, my dear old friend... in a show of support, authors gathered on the steps of the public library to read aloud passages from his body of work, including the controversial novel

the satanic verses, viewed by some muslims as blasphemous, as well as books such as midnight's children, his memoirjoseph anton and the golden house. i crawled before i could walk. i walked before i could run. the organisers hope this rally raises sir salman's spirits. they say he knows it has taken place and intended to watch. equally, they hope this is a galvanising moment and that others stand up to fight for freedom of speech. amanda foreman, a british biographer and historian, wasn't surprised to hear that the suspected attacker hadn't read the satanic verses beyond a page or two. freedom of expression isn't easy, it's not simple. it's highly problematic. people do get offended. terrible things are sometimes said. this is not a perfect society and freedom of expression is not a perfect principle, but it's the best one we have, and if we are frightened, if we are silent, then

the bullies and the silencers have won. censorship has got to go! the demonstration today is reminiscent of another held in 1989 after iran's ayatollah issued a religious ruling calling for sir salman's death. writers then also stood up for the indian—born british author and criticised stores that refused to carry his novel. but how much has changed since then? so much of our public discourse now happens in the digital arena. we face online harassment, the viral spread of disinformation. here in the united states, we're dealing with a pandemic of book bans and curriculum bans in higher education across the country. so it's a different environment. it's also the case that in 1989, you would have thought an attack like this on us soil was really unheard of. sir salman's friends and colleagues hope this will be a watershed moment for free speech, and they say they look forward to hearing his voice again soon. nada tawfik, bbc news, new york. stand with salman!

among those at the rally was poet, lawyer and activist reginald dwayne betts — he explained why he felt it was important to do so. i wanted to be there because the job of a writer is to not be afraid, it is to be fearless, in a way. but i think no writer worth his salt confronts a situation like this without some fear and some trepidation. and i think i was there to say that the act of creating art has to happen in the face of fear, in the face of adversity, and also that when you try and silence artists, other artists have to step up and make sure their voices are heard, so i wanted to step up and make sure that rushdie's work was heard and i was a vehicle to be present when he couldn't be present. you know, it is profound in a way, this argument that what books do is not always change the way

we view the world. some books, most books, get ignored, but there are a few that touch us and hit us to the core and they do so because of how they inspire us with a sort of ineffable quality of love, and how we carry those books around with us and they become part of how we move around in the world and how we walk in the world. and the fundamental argument in that lecture is that hate does not do the same thing, you can't be inspired and pushed and changed and shaped by hate in the same fundamental way that you can be by love. and the bottom line of it all, when we're talking about literature and when we're talking about books, we're talking about love, and the possibility of it. the widow of the basketball star kobe bryant, who was killed in a helicopter crash in 2020, has testified in court that she had panic attacks after learning that emergency responders took

photos of the crash that killed her husband. kobe bryant, their 13—year—old daughter daughter gianna, and six family friends died when their helicopter crashed in thousand oaks, california in january 2020. vanessa bryant is suing los angeles county for an unspecified amount after first responders allegedly circulated pictures from the accident. let's get more from our correspondent in la, peter bowes. tell us more that what has happened. well, this was a particularly horrific crash and you havejust particularly horrific crash and you have just described the circumstances, it is a very foggy day but it was a short time afterwards that emerged, the los angeles times did a story about these particularly gruesome photographs had been apparently taken by the crash, seen by members of the sheriffs

department and also firefighters. los angeles counties employees. and it is through the media coverage of that that vanessa bryant actually found out about the existence of these photographs. last november, she and another family member were offered $2.5 million in compensation for the distress caused but she turned that down, preferring instead to bring this federal case, an invasion of privacy case, and we are now roughly about 50% of the way through that case and she, as you have reported, appeared on the witness stand just a short time ago.- appeared on the witness stand just a short time ago. what did vanessa bryant _ just a short time ago. what did vanessa bryant have _ just a short time ago. what did vanessa bryant have to - just a short time ago. what did vanessa bryant have to say - just a short time ago. what did l vanessa bryant have to say when she took the stand? it vanessa bryant have to say when she took the stand?— she took the stand? it was very emotional _ she took the stand? it was very emotional testimony, - she took the stand? it was very emotional testimony, she - she took the stand? it was very emotional testimony, she was l emotional testimony, she was sobbing. she said she was blindsided, she was devastated, she was heard, and betrayed by the fact that these photographs had apparently not only been taken but distributed amongst the colleagues of those people

who took them, and she says that she lives in fear that one day, they will pop up in social media. now, so far in this case, we haven't heard the defence for los angeles county but i understand that one of their arguments may well be that this was an accident scene and during the normal course of events of an investigation, photographs are taken, and that in fact none have appeared in social media, none have appeared on the internet. we will get more detail about that when the defence presents its case through its lawyers next week. finland's prime minster, sanna marin, says she has nothing to fear after taking a drugs test following the emergence of a video of her at a party. the 36—year old took the test after some in finland interpreted comments by partygoers in the footage as referring to drugs. here's caroline hawley. these are the pictures that have put the finnish prime minister in an uncomfortable

spotlight, sanna marin in the black top enjoying herself with celebrities at a weekend party. with the leaking of the footage came calls for her to take a drugs test. and today she announced she had. though she said she considered the calls unfair and was doing it for her own legal protection. she had, she said, always been in a fit state to lead the country. we didn't have any government meetings during that week and i had time off and spent it with my friends and did nothing illegal. when she was elected in 2019, she was the world's youngest head of government, applauded by her supporters for combining the topjob with an active social life. 0n instagram, you can follow her celebrating her wedding anniversary, at pride events, visiting ukraine. finland neighbours russia and has applied for nato membership, so emit a crisis in europe, herjudgment is being called into question, not for the first time. last december, she went

clubbing after her foreign minister tested positive for covid and missed a text that she needed to isolate. she had to apologise then for her actions. the 36—year—old prime minister said she would have left the latest party had she needed to work. but she has always insisted that she is a real person, as well as finland's youngest ever leader, with a right to a night out. caroline hawley, bbc news. apple has released an update for iphones, ipads and macs, to fix a security flaw which could allow hackers to take control of the devices. apple says it recommends all users to download the update. there are no known reports of the security flaw being used against people or their apple devices. the city of glasgow in the central belt of scotland has reached an agreement with authorities in india to send back seven cultural artefacts looted from india during british colonial rule in the 19th century.

it's thought to be the first repatriation deal with india from a british museum. six of the objects, which include a ceremonial sword and an ancient door jamb, were looted from temples and shrines. glasgow officials says it showed the city's commitment to redressing wrongs of the past. speaking from glasgow, the first secretary for trade and commerce at the high commission of india, jaspreet sukhija, welcomed the return of the objects. we would like to see almost all items returned back to india, all items, and we are working towards that. in the past three years, we have had three occasions where items and other artefacts have been sent back home by various partnerships and to the efforts of the high commissioner of india. this, although it stands out, because this is the first time that a british museum is restituting back some artefacts, historical artefacts which came here decades

back, to india. frank stella is one of america's most celebrated sculptors. now 86, he's still working, using computers to create his three—dimensional works. his latest show is at long island's outdoor sculpture park. the bbc caught up with stella at his new york studio. i'm frank stella. we're doing an interview here about an exhibition i'm having in the eastern end of long island called the ranch. competing with mother nature is really kind of tough. you know, you plunk something there and then around you is something really beautiful. and, you know, you lose the focus about what it's supposed to be about.

so this is a model and we can do whatever we want with it and try it out. and then when we think it's ok, wejust build it, which means fabricating this at this scale. and everybody likes it like this. we're very close to being done here, and it took us three years to get from there to here. and we've got one out at the ranch, which is finished theoretically. that's the last piece that i've been working on. it's outside there to really test how well the painting will hold up. you know, i had to bite the bullet at some point and see if it was going to work at all outside. yeah, i think it's in a way fairly straightforward. i mean, it's a kind

of evolution from paintings to relief to a more complicated form of relief painting. of course, it's going to end up with a freestanding sculpture. it's always sort of been about painting, sculpture and architecture. right now, it's a little tricky because i was sick for six or eight months and it changed the way i see things and everything, but it's pretty debilitating. i mean, iwon't finish, you know, dealing with the models that i've already made. so that's a fact. so how i deal with that is not as interesting as it sounds. you know, i come here, i'm happy to be able to come here. and we do the best we can.

before we go — news of an opportunist break—in for one family at their home in new zealand. this seal — nicknamed 0scar — made himself at home at a property in mount maunganui — a coastal town about 200 kilometres south of auckland. the animal got in through two cat—flaps — and had a bit of a nosey round. eventually 0scar was collected by new zealand's department of conservation and returned to the sea. we will be speaking to the

family that met 0scar in the next programme. stick with me. from all of us, thank you for your company, see you soon. hello there. we ended the week with some warm sunshine but some showers, mainly in the north, close to an area of low pressure. and that same area of low pressure is sitting in the same place for the start of the weekend. but around the base of it, we've got this weather front thickening the cloud, bringing some rain and some stronger winds as well. ahead of that, with some clear skies in england and wales, it'll be a cooler start on saturday morning, significantly cooler than the previous night in southeastern parts of england. some sunshine for england and wales, one or two showers pushing across in the morning, ahead of this main band of rain that's heavy for a while, accompanied by some strong and gusty winds, sweeping away from scotland and northern ireland, followed by sunshine

temperatures similar to what we had on friday so up to the mid—20s at best. the low pressure will keep the showers going into the first part of the night, moving slowly from the night, moving slowly from the atlantic, it will push a lot of cloud ahead of it. the sunnier skies further north on sunday, the showers easing in scotland, sunny spells here, sunshine for northern ireland, other parts of england and wales turning more cloudy, clouds thickening to give drizzle, mainly west and wales and south—west england where temperatures will struggle to around 20 degrees. 18 or 19. and in northern ireland. the cloud continues to thicken on sunday night, we start to a bit more rain proper coming in, from the atlantic, it is that low pressure had a name for the west. little or no rain for northern parts of scotland, patchy rain elsewhere, the heavier best elsewhere. some

western areas should turn drier and brighter through the afternoon. temperature wise, making 23 again across southern england and south wales and 18 in the central belt of scotland. into next week, this is whether jet stream scotland. into next week, this is whetherjet stream is going to be positioned. it may start to be positioned. it may start to buckle a little bit but it means any warm air is stuck in the south east of england, confined to the south—east and no heatwave by any means. monday looks the wetter day, after that, mostly dry and they will be some sunshine from time to time.

this is bbc news. the headlines: a former british member of an islamic state terror cell has been sentenced to life in prison for his role in the murder of western hostages in syria. el shafee elsheikh was part of a group — nicknamed the beatles — involved in torturing, beating and executing prisoners. the french president emmanuel macron says his russian counterpart, vladimir putin, has agreed on the need to send inspectors to ukraine's zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant as fears grow about its safety. the site has been under russian occupation since early march and the area has recently come under heavy fire.

in a show of solidarity for sir salman rushdie —