this is bbc news. i'm lewis vaughanjones and these are the latest headlines in the uk and around the world. after being targeted over the last week, more drone attacks in crimea as sevastapol, the home of russia's black sea fleet, comes under fire. mexico's former attorney—general is arrested in connection with the disapppearance of 43 students eight years ago. human rights campaigners call for the immediate release of a saudi student jailed for 3h years over critical tweets. the widow of the basketball legend kobe bryant tells a court of her devastation by leaked photos of a crash that killed her husband and daughter and six others. more travel disruption on train lines across the uk as thousands of rail workers go on strike for the second time in three days over pay and working conditions.

and environment experts blame the recent heatwave and drought in parts of the uk for autumnal conditions which are already being seen in england — a month ahead of time. hello and welcome if you're watching in the uk or around the world. the home of russia's black sea fleet in crimea — sevastapol — has once again come under drone attack — the latest in a series over the past few days. the russian—installed regional head said a ukrainian drone had been shot down over a naval headquarters and fell onto the roof of the building. he said no damage had been done. several other drone attacks were reported overnight in crimea, including one at an airbase.

meanwhile, russian president vladimir putin says un officials will be granted permission to visit and inspect the zaporizhzhia nuclear complex. the kremlin made the announcement after a call between mr putin and french president emmanuel macron late on friday. it came as claims of fighting near the plant continued, with four civilians reportedly injured by russian shelling. the plant at zaporizhzhia has been under russian occupation since early march. our correspondent hugo bachega has more from odesa. we haven't heard any details about how a possible visit from inspectors is likely to be organised, any timeline, but it seems russia has dropped its demand that inspectors should travel through russian —controlled territory. a proposal the ukrainians had rejected. rafael grossi, the head of the international atomic energy agency,

has welcomed the news of a possible visit, and he said he was willing to lead a delegation himself. here in odesa, antonio guterres, the un chief, told me yesterday that it was a priority to allow international inspectors into the russian—controlled zaporizhzhia nuclear complex and also hinted at discrete diplomacy as perhaps the way forward to de—escalate tensions around this facility. yesterday more reports of shelling around the complex, the ukrainians say at least four civilians were injured after russian shelling. the ukrainians, for days, have accused the russians of turning this nuclear facility into a military base, using it as a shield to launch attacks against ukrainian targets, perhaps knowing the ukrainians are not likely to retaliate. russia rejects these allegations and says russian troops are protecting the plant. but this level of military activity has raised fears of a nuclear catastrophe, so any indication that international monitors will be allowed into the facility could suggest

a de—escalation in this crisis. reports from the somali capital, mogadishu, say at least 10 people have been killed during the ongoing occupation of a hotel by islamist militants. gunshots. the assault on the hayat began with the detonation of at least two car bombs followed by a fierce gunfight. the islamist militant group, al—shabaab, says it is carrying out the attack. it's not clear how many gunmen are alive. dozens of people including many children were earlier rescued from the hotel. it is popular with government officials and politicians, and several are reported to have been wounded in the attack. a former british member of an islamic state terror cell is beginning a life sentence in the united states for his role in the murder of western hostages in syria. el shafee el—sheikh was part of a group of is members — nicknamed the beatles —

involved in torturing, beating and executing prisoners. his actions are said to have resulted in the deaths of four american hostages. the authorities in mexico have arrested the man who was serving as attorney—general when one of the country's worst human rights atrocities took place. jesus murillo is accused of forced disappearance, torture, and obstruction ofjustice — in relation to the case of 43 student teachers who went missing eight years ago. tim allman has this report. even in a country steeped in violence, this was a crime that shocked the nation. dozens of young men heading to a demonstration in mexico city simply vanished. all that was ever found was a few bone fragments from three of the student teachers. now the man who was, at one point, ultimately responsible for the investigation into their disappearance has himself been arrested.

jesus murillo, attorney general under the former president, enrique pena nieto, had already faced criticism for errors in an earlier inquiry. he had blamed police and the drugs cartel, but not the armed forces. now he faces charges including torture and obstruction ofjustice. this comes only a day after a new truth commission set up to investigate the disappearance pointed the finger of blame at military personnel. the disappearance of the 43 students "constituted a state crime," said alejandro encinas, the head of the commission. "a crime which agents from various state institutions participated in." when the current president, andres manuel lopez obrador, took office four years ago, he promised to uncover the truth about what happened. now more than ever he still wants

justice to be done. translation: punishment of those responsible helps to ensure that it l does not happen again. that such regrettable acts do not happen again in our country. for the families of the missing, the pain of the last eight years has been unimaginable. they will hope the truth is now closer than ever before. tim allman, bbc news. concerns are growing over a student from the university of leeds who's been jailed for 34 years in saudi arabia for the way she used twitter. salma al—shehab — who is also a mother of two young children — was charged for following and retweeting dissidents when she returned to her home country for a holiday in 2021. she was initially sentenced to serve six years in prison but an appeals court later handed down the new sentence of 34 years.

i'm joined now by dr emily ryall, who is senior lecturer in philosophy at the university of gloucestershire. she is also a member of the executive committee for the british philosophy of sport association, this is the case of an individual woman using twitter, taking place in saudi arabia and it is hosting a very high—profile boxing match this evening as anthonyjoshua is fighting and that raises the ethical issues, yet another case in the country of human rights abuses, it would appear and yet we have a huge western sporting event taking place there. should it go ahead? it you

there. should it go ahead? if you are asking _ there. should it go ahead? if you are asking my — there. should it go ahead? if you are asking my opinion, _ there. should it go ahead? if you are asking my opinion, i- there. should it go ahead? if you are asking my opinion, i mean, l there. should it go ahead? if you l are asking my opinion, i mean, i'm not into boxing myself. what the sporting governing bodies is use their leverage in terms of being able to say, if you want us to host able to say, if you want us to host a particular big global sport event in your country you need to do x or y. so sporting bodies effectively need to negotiate _ y. so sporting bodies effectively need to negotiate is _ y. so sporting bodies effectively need to negotiate is what - y. so sporting bodies effectively need to negotiate is what you i y. so sporting bodies effectivelyl need to negotiate is what you are saying? need to negotiate is what you are sa in: ? �* ., need to negotiate is what you are sa in? �* ., , ., saying? i'm not saying they need to renegotiate. _ saying? i'm not saying they need to renegotiate, they _ saying? i'm not saying they need to renegotiate, they need _ saying? i'm not saying they need to renegotiate, they need to _ saying? i'm not saying they need to renegotiate, they need to be - saying? i'm not saying they need to renegotiate, they need to be more| renegotiate, they need to be more canny and strategic because on the one hand if you with boxing, i don't think it's ever been held as a paragon of social activism, but there are some governing bodies that will promote inclusion and women's rights and lgbt q will promote inclusion and women's rights and lgbt 0 rights and if they will do that on the one hand and say, we stand for these values, they need to also use that power and

leverage they have when it comes to hosting big sporting events otherwise they are hypocrites, but i don't think boxing has ever been in that category. don't think boxing has ever been in that category-— that category. interesting. in your mind the hypocrisy _ that category. interesting. in your mind the hypocrisy is _ that category. interesting. in your mind the hypocrisy is crucial - that category. interesting. in your mind the hypocrisy is crucial and l that category. interesting. in your| mind the hypocrisy is crucial and if you don't ever pretend that you are about inclusivity and promoting certain values, it is less of an issue to go to a country like saudi arabia with these apparent human rights abuses. but surely those in charge of boxing would abide by human rights, they would condemn human rights, they would condemn human rights, they would condemn human rights abuses but they are still hosting the event in a country like saudi arabia. i still hosting the event in a country like saudi arabia.— like saudi arabia. i think you are riuht. like saudi arabia. i think you are right- there _ like saudi arabia. i think you are right. there is _ like saudi arabia. i think you are right. there is a _ like saudi arabia. i think you are right. there is a bit _ like saudi arabia. i think you are right. there is a bit of— like saudi arabia. i think you are right. there is a bit of a - like saudi arabia. i think you are right. there is a bit of a double l right. there is a bit of a double standard and hypocrisy and i think ultimately, elite sports, is a form of entertainment, i think you will often hear this line, sport and politics shouldn't and doesn't mix and that is honestly not the case because sport and politics mix is all the time. boxing, i can't

imagine, you have to ask the promoters of the event as to what they think, but as i say, i think boxing has never been held up as... leave the boxing aside. we have the big golf tournament, there has been formula i there, there is a big programme, a deliberate policy by saudi arabia to bring in these big sporting events and its been accused of sports washing. what you make of that? i of sports washing. what you make of that? 4' of sports washing. what you make of that? ~ ., , , that? i think that sport, in itself, seems to be _ that? i think that sport, in itself, seems to be structurally - that? i think that sport, in itself, seems to be structurally free - that? i think that sport, in itself, seems to be structurally free of i seems to be structurally free of ethical value and individuals in individual countries will place whatever value they wish to on those sporting events and saudi arabia is not alone in using sport as a form of soft power. russia does it, china does it, the usa does it. countries want to use sport as a way of

promoting soft power and prestige, so saudi arabia is doing what it's been doing for many years when it's been doing for many years when it's been trying to host these global sporting events on the difficulty is when you come up with a clash of values. on the one hand you have saudi arabia, they might have certain values we don't agree with a holy condemn, but sport itself is structurally free of ethical values, so you can have a football tournament without those sporting values attached and the difficulty is when you come up with a clash of values about what sports should be like and what sport should stand for. �* , ., like and what sport should stand for. �*, . . for. it's a fascinating philosophical- for. it's a fascinating philosophical and - for. it's a fascinating - philosophical and ethical for. it's a fascinating _ philosophical and ethical issue. thank you very much. the widow of the basketball star kobe bryant, who was killed in a helicopter crash in 2020, has told a los angeles court how

she was left devastated after discovering that photos of the accident had been taken and circulated. kobe bryant, his 13 year old daughter gianna, and six family friends died in the crash. vanessa bryant is suing los angeles county for alleged negligence and invasion of privacy. our correspondent in la, peter bowes has been following the story. it was a short time afterwards that the los angeles times did a story that these photographs had been taken at the crash scene by members of the sheriffs department and firefighters. and it is through the media coverage of that that vanessa bryant actually found out about the existence of these photographs. now, last november, she and anotherfamily were offered a sum of money, $2.5 million, in compensation for the distress that was 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. it was very emotional testimony, she was sobbing as she appeared, she said she was blindsided, she was devastated, she was hurt, 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. from the early leaf fall and auburn colours, you might be thinking autumn has already arrived, sooner than expected. but according to experts, this hint of a change in the seasons isn't genuine, but a result of the heatwave and drought. leigh hunt from the royal horticultural society is with us today to tell us more about this phenomenon. so, it is still summer here in the uk but we are getting these autumn light conditions with leaves falling and turning orange. what is going on? , ., ., , , . and turning orange. what is going on? yes, we normally expect to go crunchin: on? yes, we normally expect to go crunching amongst _ on? yes, we normally expect to go crunching amongst the _ on? yes, we normally expect to go crunching amongst the leaves - on? yes, we normally expect to go crunching amongst the leaves and | crunching amongst the leaves and kind of september and october at the very earliest but it's already happening and normally autumn occurs when we have short days and lower temperatures, but we are not there yet, it's very much an autumn field, so the plants have responded to the

stress of the dry conditions, the drought we have got and basically they are losing some of their older leaves or the leaves inside the canopies, and that is a response to stress and a way of reducing the amount of leaves they've got and the amount of leaves they've got and the amount of leaves they've got and the amount of water they need to get to those leaves because there are less of them. 50 those leaves because there are less of them. , ,, ., , those leaves because there are less ofthem. , ,, ., , , , of them. so stressed leaves. is this a --roer of them. so stressed leaves. is this a preper threat _ of them. so stressed leaves. is this a proper threat to _ of them. so stressed leaves. is this a proper threat to some _ of them. so stressed leaves. is this a proper threat to some trees? - of them. so stressed leaves. is this i a proper threat to some trees? could it kill them off? lots a proper threat to some trees? could it kill them off?— it kill them off? lots of mature trees are _ it kill them off? lots of mature trees are well _ it kill them off? lots of mature trees are well able _ it kill them off? lots of mature trees are well able to - it kill them off? lots of mature | trees are well able to withstand it kill them off? lots of mature i trees are well able to withstand it and have good root systems but things on drier soils, porous soils and young trees as well, they don't have the roots. you will see some that look very brown and if you see trees with brown leaves still attached to those stems and branches, that might be a sign that they are not doing well and will struggle to come through. but thankfully we have had some rain so maybe not all is lost yet. {lin thankfully we have had some rain so maybe not all is lost yet.— maybe not all is lost yet. on that then, if maybe not all is lost yet. on that then. if we _ maybe not all is lost yet. on that then. if we get — maybe not all is lost yet. on that then, if we get a _ maybe not all is lost yet. on that then, if we get a load _ maybe not all is lost yet. on that then, if we get a load more - maybe not all is lost yet. on that then, if we get a load more rain. then, if we get a load more rain now, canet the process go into reverse? , �* , , .,

reverse? yes. it's interesting. that will rive reverse? yes. it's interesting. that will give the _ reverse? yes. it's interesting. that will give the key — reverse? yes. it's interesting. that will give the key thing _ reverse? yes. it's interesting. that will give the key thing the - reverse? yes. it's interesting. that will give the key thing the plant - will give the key thing the plant needs, which is water and any gardener will know if you have a plant that has wilted, you get some water on in time and it will pick up and survive. it will look a bit peaky for a while but it will get on and do 0k. the odd thing, although it is good news, you might start to see some other curious things and thatis see some other curious things and that is effectively that the plants go white. this is a tough time, but the water that i need is there so i will try —— try and grow a bit more, flower a bit more and effectively try and set seed and ensure another generation. you might see some odd things. once we have had the rain we will start to see things like primroses flowering again, so after a false autumn we get a funny second spring which is more like a mediterranean climate. aha, spring which is more like a mediterranean climate. a false autumn and — mediterranean climate. a false autumn and a _ mediterranean climate. a false autumn and a second - mediterranean climate. a false autumn and a second spring. l mediterranean climate. a false autumn and a second spring. i | mediterranean climate. a false i autumn and a second spring. i am learning every day. what about coming your long years, not too

long, not being offensive, but in watching this stuff, have you seen this phenomenon happened before and is it happening more often? it’s an is it happening more often? it's an interestin: is it happening more often? it's an interesting one. _ is it happening more often? it's an interesting one. definitely - is it happening more often? it's an interesting one. definitely back- is it happening more often? it's an interesting one. definitely back in| interesting one. definitely back in the mid—90s and in the early 2000 is we saw these kinds of springs, but it does feel like they are getting more frequent and if we think towards climate change with more erratic conditions, hotter, drier summers, but the rain coming in big packets as well, so erratic rainfall through the period. that does feel, certainly to gardeners, because we are out there every day, seeing literally what is going on and how plants are responding and this is becoming more of a challenge and we are using our green fingered skills to keep things going. so we are learning how to adapt at the same time to the future.— time to the future. interesting stuff. fascinating. _ time to the future. interesting stuff. fascinating. thank- time to the future. interesting stuff. fascinating. thank you i time to the future. interesting l stuff. fascinating. thank you for coming on and talking us through the changes we are seeing. writers have gathered in new york in solidarity

with the author sir salman rushdie, who was seriously injured when he was stabbed on stage, one week ago. the 75—year—old has faced death threats for many years, over his novel "the satanic verses". our north america correspondent, nada tawfik, has the latest. 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 memoir, joseph 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. chanting: 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, i think, 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. chanting: stand with salman! michael gove has announced his support for rishi sunak in the conservative leadership contest. writing in the times, the former cabinet minister criticised mr sunak�*s rival, liz truss, saying she appeared to be taking a "holiday from reality" with her plans to cut tax,

rather than give direct payments to struggling households. she has previously argued that high taxes are "potentially choking off economic growth". earlier i spoke to our political correspondent helen catt who told me michael gove says he is deeply concerned that the framing of the leadership debate by manly has been a holiday from reality that the answer to the cost of living crisis has not to reject further hand—outs and cut text and instead he believes that rishi sunak has the right approach to tackling the cost of living. this is certainly a helpful intervention for team rishi sunak. michael gove is a big figure in uk politics and has been for more than a decade now and is seen as a serious politician, a serious thinker, so for him to come out and back rishi sunak�*s policies is helpful and is helpful at this point

as well because we seen in recent weeks people who were backing rishi sunak publicly switch their support away to liz truss, so it is good for rishi sunak�*s campaign in those terms that they have a big figure coming out for them now. however, i coming out forthem now. however, i don't coming out for them now. however, i don't think it's really a surprise to anyone that michael gave his backing rishi sunak over liz truss, so in terms of this being one of those things that can shift a contest and move it in a different direction, this is not one of those interventions, i don't think. just to be clear. _ interventions, i don't think. just to be clear, that _ interventions, i don't think. just to be clear, that is _ interventions, i don't think. just to be clear, that is because at the moment, liz truss, as far as we know is way ahead in the polls. and moment, liz truss, as far as we know is way ahead in the polls.— is way ahead in the polls. and she has been consistently _ is way ahead in the polls. and she has been consistently through - is way ahead in the polls. and she has been consistently through thej has been consistently through the contest. there's been a series of polls on the usual caveats apply and it's tricky to get accurate polls in this contest because you're looking at a very small group comparatively of conservative members, not the whole electorate. that said, the polls have consistently given her a large lead, the most recent this week put her at about 32 points ahead of rishi sunak. so the lead

has seemed to be pretty big and pretty strong throughout this whole contest, so i think the feeling certainly is that it is most likely to be liz truss. passengers are experiencing more severe disruption across the uk's rail network today as more than 40,000 workers go on strike. it's the sixth day of walk—outs so far this summer, in an ongoing dispute over pay, jobs and conditions. network rail says only a fifth of its services will be running as normal. our correspondent, sanchia berg is at london euston station. she told us how the rail strikes are affecting those travelling today. i have been speaking to inside the station said they did see ways they can get two to liverpool or scotland, and the services. sooner than usual. people were pretty supportive of the strikers though, even though their own day,

their own journey had been severely disrupted. as you are saying, this is a familiar sight across a railway stations in the uk, as the rmt strike days go on and on. there are negotiations scheduled for next week, they will be sitting down with their employers again, but the union say they are ready for more strikes and certainly the mood here, people joining the picket line seem ready to strike again. as i say, it is different from the first days of the strike because trains are leaving, there just aren't as many of them and they will be stopping earlier. the insolvency service says it won't take criminal action against p&o ferries — after the company fired nearly 800 workers in march. p&o's actions sparked outrage from politicians and the unions — as some staff found out they no longer had a job via a pre—recorded video message. they were replaced by cheaper agency staff, paid below the uk minimum wage. a civil investigation is ongoing.

it sounds like something out of a children's book — a seal taking up residence in a family's home — but that's what happened in new zealand. this is the moment the creature was discovered exploring the house, which is about 150 metres from the sea, after squeezing through the cat flap. after posing for some photos, the seal — who's been named oscar — was collected by conservation officers and returned to the ocean. before the days of surround—sound and booming speakers, music and sound effects in the cinema came from an organ played live in the theatre to accompany silent films. inevitably, as the grand picture palaces closed, many of the organs fell into disrepair — but now, a charity in south wales has started a collection to preserve them. here's our wales correspondent, tomos morgan.

the cinema organ being raised back to life once more. for in the music palace in an old chapel in porth, south wales, is this pipe organ, another three and ten electric versions of the instrument. it's a museum and performance hall. but why build a collection here? i don't think it matters exactly where you are. it's been a great asset to the local community because we've had parties here and we've had lots of groups that is a big space that locals can use, and it's the only form of live entertainment really in the area. this sort of venue, i think, is the future for a lot of these instruments, private collections where the public can come to to enjoy them. a common sight up until the �*80s, just two cinemas now home a regularly used organ. the collection has been made possible by the work of ben, but also the charity he works for — paul kearney�*s theatre organ collection, who restored

the collection and the pipework so a modern generation can be aware of what was once a key part of going to the pictures. with all its bells and whistles, the cinema organ was the earliest version of the modern day synthesizer. now, with silent films seeing a resurgence, its time to shine has come once again. it's a valid medium. they've never really been out of date. i mean, all the subtle nuances to, you know, for a love scene or a drama scene or whatever, you craft...it's a craft in its own right. with a full list of performances already scheduled for the rest of the year, what's the future for this treasure trove in the rhondda valley? we've got far too many organs and they take up a lot of room, as you've seen. so we've actually purchased a similar chapel at the other end of the street, and it's our intention to put four further pipe organs in there.

and as a spectacle, you just can't quite beat a bit of this nostalgic music theatre history. tomos morgan, bbc news, porth. now it's time for a look at the weather with ben rich. hello. there will be places that stay dry through the rest of today with some lengthy spells of sunshine. but in other spots, some blustery winds and some quite heavy thundery downpours, particularly along the line of a weather front. this narrow band of rain pushing out of southern scotland and northern ireland into the far north of england could be the odd flash of lightning, the odd rumble of thunder, some heavy thundery showers into northwest scotland. quite windy out there for many. highest temperatures across eastern england, up to 25, maybe 26 degrees. through this evening and tonight, this band of rain will sink its way south tending to break apart, but still the potential for the odd sharp shower in north wales, the north midlands. by the end of the night, more showers into north west scotland, dry elsewhere with lows between ten and 15 degrees. now, tomorrow across northern ireland, scotland,

the far north of england, it should stay mostly sunny with just the odd shower. further south we'll see more cloud rolling in from the west, providing rain for parts of wales and the southwest by the end of the day. highest temperatures in the east of england, 25 degrees. hello. this is bbc news. i'm lewis vaughanjones and these are the headlines. after being targeted over the last week, more drone attacks in crimea as sevastapol, the home of russia's black sea fleet, comes under fire. mexico's former attorney—general is arrested in connection with the disapppearance of 43 students eight years ago. human rights campaigners call for the immediate release of a saudi student jailed for 34 years over critical tweets. more travel disruption on train lines across the uk, as thousands of rail workers go on strike for the second time in three days over pay and working conditions.