hello. you're watching bbc news. i'm rich preston. our top stories: china warns of counter measures after the united states approves a $1 billion arms package to taiwan, saying it's to maintain its self—defence capabilities. fears of food shortages in pakistan: the government says up to half of the country's crops have been destroyed by floods. the scale of these floods is difficult to imagine. 80% of dadu district is already submerged. chanting. thousands rally in argentina to support vice president cristina fernandez de kirchner after she narrowly avoids assassination. serena williams is defeated at the us open in new york in what is likely to be her

last competitive match. welcome to our viewers on pbs in the united states and around the world. china has warned it'll take counter measures unless the united states revokes a $1.1 billion arms deal with taiwan. it comes amid rising tensions between washington and beijing over the island. the deal includes anti—ship missiles, air—to—air missiles and support for taiwan's surveillance radar programme. so, how will the spend be broken down? $1.1 billion has been promised by the us government. $355 million will be spent on harpoon air—to—sea missiles. $85 million is earmarked for sidewinder air—to—air missiles. and $665 million is for

a surveillance radar system. earlier, i spoke to our north america correspondent peter bowes for more details on the deal. well, we know that this is a very big package of measures — $1.1 billion — so it includes anti—ship missiles, it includes air—to—air missiles and that major investment in taiwan's surveillance radar system — that's an early warning system for incoming missiles — and we've heard from the white house, saying that this reflects washington's assessment of taiwan's defence needs under threat posed by china. it's very clear this is a response that what has been happening over recent weeks and months — we've seen those chinese military exercise close to taiwan and then, to some extent, it came to a head about a month ago when nancy pelosi, a senior us politician, visited taiwan to express her own personal support for its independence, for its democracy, for the people of the island. she wasn't representing the biden administration — she's from a separate part of us government —

and that was a strong point that was made by the us at the time. but nevertheless, china didn't like it and i think what's happening now is only going to raise tensions between beijing and washington. peter, you say china didn't like it. unsurprisingly, in this instance, already an angry reaction from beijing? yes, a very swift reaction. we're hearing this from a spokesperson at the embassy here in the united states, saying that there will be countermeasures if these this $1.1 billion package isn't revoked. now, there are no signs from washington that it is going to be revoked — indeed, there is widespread political support in washington. democrats and republicans all in favour of the us continuing to support taiwanese independence, and especially the democracy of that island.

the spokesperson at the chinese embassy also saying it severely jeopardises relations between washington and beijing. peter bowes. that's going to south asia now. —— let's go to south asia now. aid agencies are warning of food shortages in pakistan after the devastating floods washed away nearly half of the country's crops. around 1,200 people are known to have been killed, but unicef says many more children could die from the rapid spread of diseases such as cholera and malaria. our correspondent pumza fihlani is in pakistan. meet badal. he's two days old, najima's sixth child. as he sleeps under a tree that's become this family's only shelter, his mother is anxious. this is no place for a baby.

translation: we don't even have a tent, just this tree. . we spent the whole night in the rain, running away from the flood, trying to get to safety. when we arrived, this was the only space we could find here. it gets really hot and he starts crying and won't stop. it's very difficult. baby badal was born in a nearby hospital, but najima was forced to return to the river bank because she'd left a husband and five young children. hundreds of families have taken refuge along a flood wall in kali mori. their homes were washed away by the floods. this was the only high ground for kilometres. the scale of these floods is difficult to imagine. 80% of dadu district is already submerged. the families that you see around me came here hoping they'd be safe, but they now fear that things are about to

get a lot worse. and with good reason — the water across this district is rising and 250,000 people are in harm's way. it's notjust najima who's worried about her young family. there are children in each tent we come across and scores of pregnant women. 0n the other side of the flood wall, i meet mariam. she is due to deliver any day. her village is buried under water 20 kilometres from here. when the floods came, all they were able to save from her old life were the clothes on their backs and four cows. translation: i've already got eight children. - look at where we live. i can barely take care of them. sometimes, we don't eat for days. i'm worried notjust about my health, but about my unborn baby. i don't even have money to go to hospital. if i get sick here, i wouldn't know what to do.

uncertainty surrounds the families marooned on this sliver of dry land. not even the next meal is promised. whatever little there is has many hungry mouths waiting and, as always, there isn't enough for everyone. pumza fihlani, bbc news, dadu. thousands of people, including politicians, cultural figures and human rights advocates, have rallied in the centre of buenos aires in support of argentina's vice president cristina fernandez de kirchner following thursday's attempt on her life. she escaped unharmed when a gun pointed at herfailed to go off. the gunman, who's been named as fernando andres sabag montiel, was arrested close to the scene. our south america correspondent katy watson reports. this is the moment the gunman pointed a weapon just inches from the vice president's head. the trigger was pulled,

but none of the five bullets inside the gun were fired for reasons that aren't yet clear. amid the commotion, ms kirchner ducked down to retrieve an object from the ground as people warned her to be careful. cristina fernandez de kirchner is one of latin america's most controversial politicians. she was the president between 2007 and 2015 and is currently facing a corruption trial after being accused of defrauding the state while leader. if convicted, she could face 12 years in jail. she denies the allegations and had been greeting supporters who'd been keeping vigil outside her house when the gun attack took place. the home of the suspected gunman has been raided. he's been named by argentine police as 35—year—old fernando andres sabag montiel, a citizen of argentina and resident of buenos aires. it's believed he was born in brazil. political violence is rare in argentina. the country's president alberto fernandez held an emergency cabinet meeting

and has said it's the most serious incident since argentina returned to democracy in 1983. translation: we can have deep disagreements, but hate speech | cannot take place because it breeds violence and there is no chance of violence co—existing with democracy. government ministers and opposition leaders have condemned the attack, as have leaders across the region. brazil's former president lulu da silva, who is running in next month's presidential elections, said ms kirchner was a victim of a fascist criminal who doesn't know how to respect divergence and diversity. argentina's president has declared friday a national holiday to show solidarity with his deputy. katy watson, bbc news. it's been revealed in court documents that the fbi recovered more than 11,000 government documents and photographs during the search of donald trump's home in florida last month. the details come after president biden warned in a speech that donald trump and some of his supporters represent a real threat

to american democracy. our north america editor sarah smith reports. election season has begun in america, so fun times at this wayne county fair in pennsylvania come with a serving of politics on the side. oh, i'm voting republican. republican, all the way. gotta get the democrats out. they had their chance and they haven't done anything, in my opinion, so... donald trump is not on the ballot in november but he still dominates the debate. oh, i'm definitely voting for trump again, absolutely. this guy has gotta go! chuckles. his whole party has gotta go. they scare the clap out of me. anybody but trump. anybody that he supports, i do not. so, republicans have lost their shot at getting your vote because donald trump's made himself front and centre here? yes, and i'm a republican. voters in pennsylvania had better buckle up. they're going to be getting a lot of attention from politicians

in the coming weeks. this is one of the key states that will determine whether republicans can seize control of congress in the midterm elections, and it will be a real test of donald trump's current electability because he's got a number of hand—picked candidates on the ballot. my wife wants some vegetables for crudites. including the tv celebrity dr oz, who is running for the senate in pennsylvania. like many of trump's inept choices, he could lose a winnable seat with clumsy campaign messages, talking about crudites. guys, that's $20 for crudites — and this doesn't include the tequila. i mean, it's outrageous and we've gotjoe biden to thank for this. in pa, we call this a "veggie tray". the democratic candidate john fetterman is having a lot of fun at dr oz�*s expense, and it may cost the republicans a senate seat. president biden came to pennsylvania to launch his midterm campaign with a dramatic warning of the threat to the soul of the nation...

but there's no question that the republican party today is dominated, driven and intimidated by donald trump and the maga republicans, and that is a threat to this country. ..unusually calling out donald trump by name and saying he's undermining democracy. they promote authoritarian leaders and they fan the flames of political violence that are a threat to our personal rights, to the pursuit ofjustice, to the rule of law, to the very soul of this country. joe biden is telling the nation the coming elections are a choice between him and trump, between democracy and extremism. people who might have otherwise voted for a republican and were maybe even excited to sort of send a message to joe biden and the democrats, now they're looking at these republican candidates and saying, "ugh, i'm not sure i can vote for them, they're so extreme." at his mar—a—lago residence

in florida, donald trump has other things to worry about. the classified documents found there by the fbi are a huge problem, but won't stop him hitting the campaign trail this weekend in pennsylvania. sarah smith, bbc news. we're going to take a short break now. stay with us on bbc world news. still to come: # there's a starman waiting in the sky... the handwritten lyrics to david bowie's 1972 hit starman are going up for auction. she received the nobel peace prize for her work with the poor and the dying in india's slums. the head of the catholic church had said mother teresa was a wonderful example of how to help people in need. we have to identify the bodies, then arrange the coffins and take them back home. parents are waiting and wives are waiting, so...

hostages appeared, - some carried, some running, trying to escape _ the nightmare behind them. britain lost a princess today, described by all to whom she reached out as "irreplaceable". an early morning car crash in a paris underpass ended a life with more than its share of pain and courage, warmth and compassion. this is bbc world news. the latest headlines: china warns of countermeasures after the united states approves a $1 billion arms package to taiwan, saying it's to maintain its self—defence capabilities.

there are fears of food shortages in pakistan: the government says up to half of the country's crops have been destroyed by the floods. some breaking news from new york within the last hour — the 23—time grand slam winner serena williams has lost her third—round match of the us open tennis tournament after over three hours of play. she was beaten by australian ajla tomljanovic in a three—set thriller. last month, the ao—year—old announced that after the us open she would be "evolving away" from playing tennis. she did not, she has a story for the ages and appeals to every generation and the fans we were speaking to here, the

soaking up the match in the sun or watching in the stands, they wanted more from this farewell tour and serena williams came out fighting. she really produced an astonishing first set, leading 5— three and looked to be sailing through when the tide turned and eila tomljanovic from australia silenced the crowd as she raced to the next four games and stole the first set. —— ajla tomljanovic. she did then go to a fawsitt leave in the second set, she had a few setpoints but squandered those. —— four set lead. then we were taken to a tie—break with so much at stake. serena williams did win that. the noise was deafening, people started to believe she could do it again and turn it around and get this swansong going but in the third set, tomljanovic was not holding back and seemingly undaunted by what she was about to do. she took it on the sixth touch

point. serena williams putting up point. serena williams putting up a valiant fight to save five of them but tomljanovic did in the end when this and pull the curtain down on a phenomenal careerfor curtain down on a phenomenal career for serena williams and then, she actuallyjust let serena williams take the microphone, serena gave her a wave to the crowd, did her trademarked well and we heard from her afterwards. he trademarked well and we heard from her afterwards.— from her afterwards. he really is uuite from her afterwards. he really is quite the — from her afterwards. he really is quite the crowd _ from her afterwards. he really is quite the crowd atmosphere behind you. is this as she suggested the end of her professional career? she was incredibly _ professional career? she was incredibly emotional - professional career? she was incredibly emotional in - professional career? she was incredibly emotional in that l incredibly emotional in that post match interview on the court. there have been questions given the level she has produced this weekend whether she might reconsider. was asked that on the court and she gave the three words, you never know. she is leaving some doubt and people's mines. if this was to be the end, what a way to go out. she put everything out on the court, had the fancier in tears. but

many of them were actuallyjust saying thank you to her for everything that she has done notjust everything that she has done not just for everything that she has done notjust for tennis, but everything that she has done not just for tennis, but for women and women's small. prove that you can have a child and get back into sport. the fans wanted to show their gratitude for everything she has done. our sports correspondent in new york, thank you very much. voting has closed in the uk conservative party leadership race. after two months of campaigning and eight initial candidates whittled down to two, we will find out on monday whether liz truss or rishi sunak has been chosen by party members to be the next leader to succeed borisjohnson as prime minister. here's our political correspondent ben wright. after a long, rancorous campaign, it's now time to count the ballots. just 160,000 tory party members are picking their next leader, the next prime minister. and the challenges facing them are huge.

they were spelt out today by the current chancellor. he's backing liz truss, the presumed frontrunner. there are no easy options. we have war on our continent. we'vejust come through a pandemic. but this economy is resilient. reporter: how will they handle soaring inflation? _ borisjohnson�*s ejection from office injuly triggered a stampede of wannabe successors. tory mps had the job of picking two final candidates... sunak, 137. truss, 113. ..leaving the former chancellor and liz truss to slug it out in front of party members. good evening. it's fantastic to be... ..here in darlington. it's fantastic to be... ..here in eastbourne. gosh, it's fantastic to be... ..here in birmingham. and at hustings around the country, one issue dominated. this autumn and winter, a conservative government that i'm privileged to lead will be proud not just to cut vat on energy bills, but to go further to support the most vulnerable in our society,

because that's what compassionate conservative governments do. i would lower taxes. we shouldn't have put up national insurance, we said we wouldn't in our manifesto, and i will have a temporary moratorium on the green energy levy to make sure that customers' bills are lower. she promised immediate tax cuts — rishi sunak said that would be a huge mistake. both avoided spelling out precisely what they would do in a coming budget. in downing street today, a clear sign change is coming. borisjohnson is moving out, but the two candidates vying to replace him have very different views about the departing prime minister. he's one of the most remarkable people i've met. i was very grateful to him that he gave me thatjob and i'm really proud of all the things we achieved in government together, actually. but it got to a point where for me, personally, and these things are personal decisions and liz made a different decision to me on this, but that's understandable, enough was enough. he admitted he made mistakes, but i didn't think the mistakes

he made were sufficient that the conservative party should have rejected him. borisjohnson remains pretty popular among tory party members, and liz truss sounded more loyal to the outgoing leader. she also pitched herself as a born—again brexiteer despite voting remain in the referendum. decision—making in government has been paused while the candidates court the tory party faithful. the winner will have to grip the troubles facing the country. ben wright, bbc news, westminster. the head of the international atomic energy agency says military activity has violated the physical integrity of the zaporizhzhia nuclear plant in ukraine, several times. six members of an iaea team remain at the plant and have carried out a second day of inspections. the russian energy giant

gazprom says its key gas pipeline to europe will remain closed indefinitely due to an oil leak in a turbine. the turbine maker, siemens energy, said this was not a technical reason to stop pumping gas. a sri lankan official says the former president, gotabaya rajapaksa, who fled abroad after mass protests injuly, has returned to colombo. sri lankans blame his government for the island's economic crisis. nasa is preparing the second launch of its most powerful rocket in 50 years. technical problems and bad weather thwarted the artemis 1 moon mission lift—off on monday and engineers have spent the week reviewing data to find out what went wrong. hopes are high that saturday's take—off will be trouble—free and the 37—day mission to the moon can get under way. speaking of reaching for the stars... the handwritten lyrics to david bowie's starman are going up for auction later this month.

the track was initially released in 1972 and was a part of the hit album the rise and fall of ziggy stardust and the spiders from mars. let's have a quick reminder of the song. # there's a starman waiting in the sky... he knows it is all worthwhile. earlier, i spoke tojem aswad, the deputy music editor at variety, and also a david bowie fan. i asked him why the lyrics to starman are so important. this is a song that really made him into a superstar, particularly in britain. if you read any number of bowie biographies, you can find a galaxy of future music stars from the �*80s, saw top of the pops that day, i think it was 6july1972,

and said "it changed my life." boy george, ian mcculloch from echo and the bunnymen, the guys from pet shop boys, they guys from joy division, they all saw that performance and said that it completely changed them. a lot of them saw him on that that year. so people call it the summer of ziggy stardust, the summer of 1972. so i feel like the lyrics represent the beginning of that, and represent the cornerstone of something that really did change a lot of people's lives. and what was it for you that changed your life from david bowie, what was it that drew you towards him? initially, i was ten years old, and there used to be these late—night television shows here in the states that had rock bands on them. i saw the new york dolls, i saw sly and the family stone and all these groups, and they aired the footage that became the ziggy stardust concert film. and i was just transfixed — by his presence, but mostly by the songs,

and ijust started diving in, album after album, throughout my teens, and to this day, there are lots of artists you can look at their hot streaks of brilliance — joni mitchell, stevie wonder, prince, kanye west, and bowie in the �*70s was that. just almost unparalleled innovation, and every record was so different and so challenging, and so "how did he think of that?" and i still feel that way about them. i've got a copy of these lyrics here, and the remarkable thing about them is of course they're handwritten. and in an age when people are writing things on their phones, tablets, laptops, this is quite precious, this is something that's dying out, isn't it? yeah, it's not quite the same thing as, i don't know, i guess you can get a file of somebody�*s voice notes or a text or something like that, but, yeah, there's something much more intimate and personal about something that was handwritten by someone, someone famous, someone legendary, as opposed to typed. so i think that does

make a big difference. that is it from us for now. you can reach me on twitter — i'm @richpreston. thank you for your company. we will see you soon. bye—bye. hello there. september can often be a contrasting month as the battle between summer and autumn really takes shape. in fact, on friday, we saw a high of 27 celsius — 80 fahrenheit — in suffolk. it was pretty humid as well. but out to the west was a different story and as we head through the weekend, we will see heavy, thundery rain with the wettest of the weather continuing out to the west and the winds, well, strengthening to gusts in excess of 40mph at times. so this low pressure not really going very far, very fast, and it will flick these frontal systems in an anti—clockwise direction around that low — that's where the heaviest of the rain is likely to be. take a look at the accumulation totals as we go through the weekend.

take a look at northern ireland and parts of south—west scotland — the darker blues, the brighter greens suggest that we could potentially see as much as 50—100mm of rain before the weekend is through. so that's where this relentless wet weather is likely to be, but elsewhere, we will see some sunshine. and if you dodge any showers and keep that sunshine, once again, you could get some warmth. some of the showers merging together in sort of organised bands up through parts of east anglia towards north—east england, but with the sunshine, we could see highs of 2a degrees. through saturday night, into the early hours of sunday morning, as the low shifts position a little, we might see a squeeze in the isobars with this next pulse of wetter weather — that suggests that we could see those winds gusting in excess of 40mph. and some of that rain, again, quite heavy — the brighter greens suggesting that, across north—west england, south—west scotland and, at times, parts

of northern ireland. there will be showers elsewhere, but not everyone will see the showers. it'll be a slightly windier day generally, but the wind direction still coming from the south, we could see some more persistent showers arriving across the channel coast by the end of the day. but again, those temperatures may well peak at 2a or 25 degrees — that's still into the high 70s. early into next week, that low pressure really stays with us, so we will continue to see frontal systems moving in across the country. it's not going to be consistent in terms of where the showers are likely to be, but some of us will see showers on and off throughout the week, and some of them could be heavy.

this is bbc news. the headlines: china has warned of counter measures, unless the us revokes a $1.1—billion arms deal with taiwan, as chinese military drills take place around the island, which some see as a precursor to an invasion. the white house says the us is providing taiwan with what it needs to maintain its self defence capabilities. there are fears of food shortages in pakistan, after devastating floods washed away nearly half of the country's crops. so far, around 1,200 people are known to have been killed and unicef says many more children could die from a rapid spread of diseases, like cholera and malaria. the russian energy giant, gazprom, says it has scrapped plans to reopen a key gas pipeline to europe.

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