welcome to bbc news. i'm david eades. our top stories: separatist leaders in ukraine announced a series of referendums to decide if their region willjoin russia. western leaders queue up at the un to condemn president putin's invasion. , . , , , invasion. they are responsible for the displacement - invasion. they are responsible for the displacement of - invasion. they are responsible for the displacement of vast . for the displacement of vast populations, the idea of organising a referendum in those regions where people have been forced to flee is the very signature of cynicism. exhuming the dead. we report from one city in eastern ukraine where the bodies of civilians are being dug up. further protests across iran over the death in custody

of a young woman accused of breaking the islamic dress code. and a hollywood comeback. the golden globes return to television screens after being dropped due to a lack of diversity. welcome to our viewers on pbs in america and around the globe. western leaders are warning president putin not to annex parts of ukraine, as officials in russian—held areas of the country said they would be holding referendums on becoming part of russia. there are plans for votes to take place in donetsk, luhansk, kherson, and zaporizhzhia regions — here in red — but a chorus of leaders at the un general assembly in new york said such ballots would be a sham. more on the implications of such a move in a moment, but it does come as russia has suffered a series of setbacks on the battlefield in ukraine recently. and in areas newly liberated by ukrainian forces,

disturbing accounts of torture by russian soldiers are continuing to emerge. our senior international correspondent orla guerin reports now from the city of izyum. a warning — orla's report contains some distressing testimony. in the centre of izyum, the heart of darkness. ukrainian investigators say the russians turned this police station into a torture chamber. we were taken down to the cells in the basement. our escort checking carefully every step of the way, in case the enemy

left any booby—traps. you can just imagine the fear people must have felt when they were brought into these cells. on the walls, someone has scratched a date and it looks like the 22nd ofjune of this year. the conditions are squalid and there's just thin mattresses, no glass in the windows. people were kept here without light or heat and accounts are still emerging from those who say they were tortured here. we met one of them at the city's main hospital which somehow is functioning. mihilo has been treated here for his injuries. he is a pensioner aged 67, but that did not stop the russians. he says they held him down and broke his arm. they suspected him of sabotage. "they tortured me for 12 days," he says.

"i was taken from there half dead three hours "before our forces arrived. "they tortured me with an electric current. "they gave me shocks in my fingers. "how they burned. "they put needles into my back. "they were long and they put them under my skin. "here and here, inside." and across town, at the former russian command centre, a grim discovery. we are told there's blood on this axe. the chief investigator says he doesn't know whose. then, suddenly, panic. distant whistle shouting

"get to the basement," he says. police running for cover after what sounded like incoming fire. but this time, there was no explosion. in the forest at the city's edge they are still exhuming the dead. more than 160 so far, mostly civilians. officials say some had their hands tied and bore signs of torture. olaina arrives with her husband yuri. they have come to look for her father. she's caught between hope and dread. her father was last heard from on the front lines in april. "we know families who were in the same situation

"as we are now," says yuri. "but they have found remains. "they were happy to at least have a body to bury." in the countryside near izyum ukrainian forces are still on the move. having swept forwards so fast, they have to secure their gains and plug any gaps. inside the broken city, food is in short supply. she leaves with a handful. there is no power, no running water, just war�*s long shadow. dasha cradles her son tim but can't soothe all his fears. "we are scared," she says.

"we don't know if it will be safe over the longer term. "we're on thin ice. "military actions are still going on. "victory isn't certain." she says she's praying for peace, for a brighterfuture for ukraine's children, who have already suffered too much. orla guerin, bbc news, izyum. i wanted take you live to the un general assembly now in new york. we have had a series of world leader speaking. we have heard from the prime minister of morocco. he has literally just finished talking, and

mario draghi, prime minister of italy is expected to take to the stage in just a moment. what many of them have been providing is a pretty unequivocal condemnation of president putin and russia at the usga. japan's pm, for example, said the un's credibility was in danger because of the invasion of ukraine by permanent un security member, and german chancellor olaf scholz said president putin would only give up president putin would only give up his imperial ambitions when he realises he cannot win the war. this is mario draghi, who wasjust starting out, before he spoke a little bit earlier, the french president, emmanuel macron, had this to say. translation: is macron, had this to say. translation:— macron, had this to say. translation: , , ., ., translation: is 'ust another provocation_ translation: isjust another provocation which, _ translation: isjust another provocation which, in - translation: isjust another provocation which, in my - translation: is just anotherl provocation which, in my view, does not change our position. russia must leave ukrainian territory. the russian army

must respect internationally recognised orders. when they are responsible for the displacement of vast populations the idea of organising a referendum in those regions where people have been forced to flee is the very signature of cynicism. mr macron drawing on those referendums as they have been announced. and they were done in a very co—ordinated fashion. for more on that, we are joined now by michael o'hanlon, senior fellow at the brookings institution, he specialises in defence and foreign policy issues. very good to see you, michael. let's start with that announcement. they are very neatly co—ordinated announcements of the referendums. what did you make of that call and why now? greetings. well, putin is on the ropes, he realises the whole momentum of war has turned against him, maybe he is trying to consolidate some limited gains, maybe he is trying to signal to the world that, in fact,

trying to signal to the world that, infact, his trying to signal to the world that, in fact, his war aims have been reduced, the but they are not zero. he is not going to end this fight until he gets at least maybe crimea and donbas. they don't quite know what to make of it but they do know that putin doesn't like to be on the ropes for long and he will look for someone to change the conversation, which he has done. so this referendum or series of referenda is not going to be legitimate in the eyes of most of the world, as we have heard, but putin can still try to wrap himself in some kind of a democratic veneer and claim he is respecting the will of the people and even though it is a charade at one level, it does actually raise the important question, depending on where walker's next, as to whether there are any parts of ukraine occupied now by russia that could, in fact, occupied now by russia that could, infact, be occupied now by russia that could, in fact, be somehow treated differently in terms of maybe not this referendum, but a referendum in 20 years... crosstalk. sorry. it does indicate that there would be, as you put it,

a change of conversation, but also a change of almost negotiation landscape, that there is something else for him to bother with.— to bother with. exactly. let's sa if in to bother with. exactly. let's say if in a — to bother with. exactly. let's say if in a few— to bother with. exactly. let's say if in a few months, - to bother with. exactly. let's say if in a few months, or - to bother with. exactly. let's say if in a few months, or if i say if in a few months, or if us, more likely in a few months and 2023, putin comes to the world and his is i am prepared to end this war, as long as ukraine agrees never to join nato and i get to keep crimea, which was always more russian and ukrainian anyway, and the people of donbas attitudes their future. people of donbas attitudes theirfuture. if he people of donbas attitudes their future. if he says that in the alternative is to keep fighting, is going to create some interesting fishes and dynamics within the west and it would be a cynical move on peter's pass, it would be a reflection of his awareness that he hasn't gained his maximum goals and probably can't, but it might also be, you know, fairly cleverly and cynical ploy to a list in this phase of the fighting. and if he does that he might actually succeed. so it's going to depend on the battlefield dynamics. as well, europe is

going to have to hold firm this winter and to deal with less natural gas, lessee, less industrialisation, second they will have to seehofer they can was the counteroffensive, if they run to a stalemate, by next spring and summer that kind of an offer from boote next spring and summer that kind of an offerfrom boote may have to be taken seriously. yes, it perhaps feeds into the sense of fatigue for this conflict finally makes people change their position is a little bit. we also have the issue, potentially, of awful awful immobilisation of forces. how significant a step would that be, again, for president putin? fist that be, again, for president putin? �* ., putin? at the moment i said more as _ putin? at the moment i said more as public— putin? at the moment i said more as public relations - putin? at the moment i said| more as public relations than anything real. and, by the way, if putin's troops who were trained for a few months and then invaded ukraine on 2a february god mowed down, why do we have any reason to worry or think that these additional conscripts from mass mobilisation will do any

better? so it may be a lot of bluster, it may not be a critical —— credible on ross's but, if putin doubles down on the one hand, but also sort of hinting at a negotiated outcome thatis hinting at a negotiated outcome that is a compromise on the other, we may see a new russian strategy starting to emerge. this is a lot of conjecture. i'm not really claiming i have figure this out or that putin has decided this, but that is a possible nomination, going to threaten us with the mobilisation while trying to induce us with the referendum may be to make us think there are some parts of ukraine insist on holding onto but the rest is prepared to surrender. i don't know. but these are the kinds of ideas they get raised with this sort of an issue. i think we all recognise it is a world of guessing and second—guessing. michael, thank you very much indeed for your expertise. you very much indeed for your expertise-_ and thank you for being with us here on bbc news. do stay. still to come: fortunes of war. we'll speak to the young ukrainian inventor whose work may end up

saving countless lives. benjohnson, the fastest man on earth, is flying home to canada in disgrace. all the athletes should be clean going into the games. i'm just happy that justice is served. it is a simple fact that this morning, these people . were in their homes. tonight, those homes have been burnt down by serbian _ soldiers and police. all the taliban positions along here have been strengthened, presumably in case the americans invade. it's no use having a secret service which cannot preserve its own secrets against the world, and so the british government has no option but to continue this action even after any adverse judgement in australia. concorde have crossed the atlantic faster than any plane ever before, breaking

the record by six minutes. this is bbc news. the latest headlines: as the future of ukraine hangs in the balance, the un secretary—general warns of a winter of discontent. three people have died in protests in iran, following the death of allman arrested by the morality police. it is said that she died of natural causes but her family says that she was attacked by police. our bbc reporter has sent this report. you may find some images distressing. women in iran set their headscarves on fire in fury. they are tired of the morality police beating them up and the islamic republic leaders who police their every move.

their protest is sparked by the death of this woman. her name is mahsa amini. she wasjust 22. she was arrested by the morality police in tehran earlier this month. they said she wasn't wearing the mandatory hijab or headscarf properly. the securities of forces have released the cc footage of mahsa in detention. it's heavily edited. suddenly, mahsa collapses. the authorities say she had a heart condition. but eyewitnesses say she was beaten up in the police van. she's taken to hospital and ends up in a coma. a few days later she's dead. women cry, "death to the dictator" and wave their headscarves at her funeral. the inscription on her gravestone reads that she

is not dead, her name will become a symbol and live forever. she was kurdish but protests are spreading across iran. a woman stands calmly in front of a water cannon until it has to reverse. and here, a police motorbike is set on fire. the woman filming shouts, "look, we've got nothing but we made them run away!" as mahsa's family predicted her name has already become a symbol. a symbol of resistance. rana rahimpour, bbc news. the impact of social media on young people is being examined

after a 14—year—old killed herself in 2017 after viewing material about self—harm, suicide and depression on instagram. now her grieving parents are taking on social media companies they believe are at fault for not doing more to prevent this. our correspondent angus crawford has been at the hearing in north london. a family wanting answers — why did molly die, and what part did social media play? ahead of them, two weeks in court, hundreds of pages of evidence containing many thousands of images, some too distressing to broadcast. a bright, apparently happy teenager, molly was just 1a when she took her own life. going through her social media accounts, herfather, ian, discovered she was being bombarded with content about suicide, depression and self—harm, on instagram, pinterest and other apps. this is an inquest. no—one's on trial. the aim — to find out why

a child ended her own life. but, for the first time, executives from two social media companies will have to give evidence under oath about what they do to protect their young users online. it contained some material that i'm sure is going to be very upsetting. ahead of them, a forensic look into molly's use of social media. ian, with his legal team, have already seen much of that evidence — files full of it. there was just no let—up for molly. this is relentless. i remember my disbelief when i saw my lifeless youngest daughter. over the years, ian has become a high—profile campaigner for internet safety... the corporate culture at these platforms needs to change... ..addressing mps... we need to be proactive rather than reactive. ..even meeting prince william, hoping that his campaigning and what the coroner decides here will make social media a safer place for all young users. this is both an intensely private moment for the family, hoping to find answers, but also a very public inquiry

into the impact of social media on young minds. and with the online safety bill making its way through parliament, it's sure that this inquest will be closely watched at westminster and in silicon valley. one of the biggest events in hollywood is making a return next year — the golden globes. for decades it was a precursor to the oscars and kicked off the annual film award season. but last year it was dropped by its broadcaster nbc, the chief reason being a lack of diversity among its judges. dozens of new people have since been admitted to the hollywood foreign press association, which chooses the winners. our north america correspondent peter bowes in hollywood.

they done to correct all of those faults, peter? there has been a huge — those faults, peter? there has been a huge overhaul- those faults, peter? there has been a huge overhaul in - those faults, peter? there has been a huge overhaul in the i those faults, peter? there has i been a huge overhaul in the way the organisation is run, its bylaws have changed. as you say, crucially they have brought in new voters for the golden globes, summer 20 new members, six of whom are black, and from outside the organisation more than 100 people brought in, racial diversity there to also vote for the golden globes stop this was clearly necessarily because it was certainly looking like there was no awareness of racial diversity of its than 87 members, none of being black. this was a huge expose by the los angeles times about one and a half years ago. there was a big question over whether the globes would ever return, such as the outcry in hollywood, the backlash and even boycotting of

the organisation, the refusal of publicists to get actors to take part in events that they did during the year, people like tom cruise returning his golden globe that he won in the past. golden globe that he won in the ast. , ., ., golden globe that he won in the ast. , . ., , past. given that, and perhaps the falling _ past. given that, and perhaps the falling ratings _ past. given that, and perhaps the falling ratings over- past. given that, and perhaps the falling ratings over the . the falling ratings over the years, and the golden globes not being the biggest deal in town, the oscars still holds that ground. is there any surprise that nbc has been so quick to sort of resurrected? yella—mac nbc do seem to be convinced by what the hollywood foreign press association has done and we can't forget the fact that it isn't as prestigious as the academy awards, the oscars, but it does kick things off and it gets the celebrities out there on television talking about their movies. perhaps more people will go and see them as a result, and ultimately it is all about money and are selling tickets, and that is in part what it manages to do, as well

as simply drawing attention to those filmmakers and individuals who could potentially be up for oscars, and that is what hollywood enjoys. and that is what hollywood en'o s. , ., , en'oys. everyone is potentially a enjoys. everyone is potentially a winner. _ enjoys. everyone is potentially a winner, providing _ enjoys. everyone is potentially a winner, providing the - a winner, providing the abundance of and the way the winners are chosen are not tainted by controversy as they have over the last couple of years. have over the last couple of ears. ,., , ., , , years. indeed, golden globes the redemption, _ years. indeed, golden globes the redemption, i— years. indeed, golden globes the redemption, i suppose i years. indeed, golden globes. the redemption, i suppose they will be talking about it. thank you peter. there are an estimated 100 million unexploded landmines planted across the planet, providing a constant risk to many millions of people. a new technique for detecting them has been recognised with a major prize, going to a 17—year—old ukrainian student. the prizes worth $100,000, awarded to igor, who has developed a quad copter plant detector, beating of 7000 nominations from all

over the world. as you see, igorjoins us now from new york. many congratulations. that is a lot of money to put into your project!— into your pro'ect! thank you very much. — into your project! thank you very much. it _ into your project! thank you very much. it is _ into your project! thank you very much. it is a _ into your project! thank you very much. it is a pleasurel into your project! thank you i very much. it is a pleasure to speak to you today. tell! very much. it is a pleasure to speak to you today.— very much. it is a pleasure to speak to you today. tell me a little bit about _ speak to you today. tell me a little bit about the _ little bit about the quadcopter.- little bit about the quadcopter. little bit about the quadco ter. , ., little bit about the quadcoter. , ., . ., quadcopter. we help to create two devices. _ quadcopter. we help to create two devices, one _ quadcopter. we help to create two devices, one can - quadcopter. we help to create two devices, one can provide l two devices, one can provide the exact co—ordinates of objects, so we are improving it. we will make bigger ones. we have a prototype. they can provide notjust exact provide not just exact co—ordinates provide notjust exact co—ordinates but we will also use artificial intelligence to know the type of the landmine and whether it is safe for removal. also we want to spray paint on the point where the landmine is located, to warn of potential devices.— landmine is located, to warn of potential devices. how far away are ou potential devices. how far away are you from — potential devices. how far away are you from bringing _

potential devices. how far away are you from bringing this - potential devices. how far away are you from bringing this into l are you from bringing this into operation, from it becoming a mass produced detection device? mark we have been working on a minimum viable product for certification, then we can begin as production. i have spoken to ourfactory begin as production. i have spoken to our factory providing military equipment for ukrainian militaries. they say if they can get a minimum viable product i can get help for mass production to help as fast as we can. hopefully this will take us 2—3 years. fast as we can. hopefully this will take us 2-3 years.- will take us 2-3 years. many congratulations, _ will take us 2-3 years. many congratulations, a _ will take us 2-3 years. many congratulations, a huge - congratulations, a huge achievement. you are studying at the ukraine polytechnic institute. how difficult has that been? are you indeed still studying there? this that been? are you indeed still studying there?— studying there? this year i finished 11th _ studying there? this year i finished 11th grade - studying there? this year i finished 11th grade at - studying there? this year i finished 11th grade at the i finished 11th grade at the institute and nowadays i am getting two degrees, full—time degree in canada and i am studying there full—time, and i

am studying online part—time at am studying online part—time at a technical institute. 50 am studying online part-time at a technical institute.— a technical institute. so you have moved _ a technical institute. so you have moved on _ a technical institute. so you have moved on from - a technical institute. so you have moved on from a - a technical institute. so you have moved on from a key i a technical institute. so you - have moved on from a key have already. we will leave it there, but many congratulations, keep it going, we look forward to the finished product. thank you. thank you for joining us here on bbc news. hello. whist weather conditions have been fairly quiet for us, across the other side of the atlantic we have seen a hurricane batter has batted parts of puerto rico, the dominican republic and turks and caicos, a first major hurricane with winds gusting over 30 mph. getting close to bermuda, thursday, friday, but could maintain the hurricane status as it slams into the east of canada, aided and abetted by unusually warm sea waters in the north atlantic. instead of spinning towards us, it could head to the arctic, seeing some very warm air there as well. to our shores, rather cool conditions. milder with south—westerly winds developing ahead of the weather front. it means it's going to take a few days before the warm air gets in because it will be a chill start to wednesday, six degrees across the south—eastern areas, mist and fog. mildest towards the north and west but here the breeze,

cloud and outbreaks of rain. western isles, rain all day long. orkney, shetland, some outbreaks of rain developing as we will see in cape ness. to the west of northern ireland it will turn damp late in the day. isolated showers for southern scotland, northern england. most of the uk having a dry day. mist and fog in the south clearing, some cloud through eastern england, sunny spells elsewhere into the afternoon, the best of which are around the coasts, feeling warmer than recent days. temperatures up a degree or so. winds lighter to the south and east on wednesday afternoon. strongest towards the north and west. across the western isles, we could see gale force winds before the day is out. the winds strengthen across the rest of scotland and northern ireland as we go into wednesday night. wednesday night into thursday, outbreaks of rain developing widely. a little bit of a rain shadow so not much rain towards the north—east of scotland. some rain into cumbria and the isle of man. around that rain band, a pretty mild night, 12—111, fresher further south. the odd mist and fog patch but a dry and bright start for most on thursday for england and wales. turning cloudy with outbreaks of rain, north—west england, north and west wales

through the day. that moving to the south—east of northern ireland and staying that way in the south and east of scotland. but north—western part of scotland, the rest of northern ireland should brighten up, feeling fresher later on. to the south—east of the rain band, which will be in to west wales by the end of thursday, it's going to be another reasonably mind if not warm day of 21—22 degrees. milder air squeezed gets out as the weather front moves slowly and erratically to the south—east corridor heading into friday, it could bring rain to cardiff and london, showing up on the capital city forecast. but by the weekend, fresherfor all again, many places will be dry.

this is bbc news. the headlines: western leaders are warning president putin not to annex parts of ukraine, as officials in russian—held areas of the country said they would be holding referendums on becoming part of russia. a chorus of leaders at the un general assembly said such ballots would be a sham. in iran, three people have died in protests which have followed the death in custody of a woman who was arrested by the morality police. the authorities say 22—year—old mahsa amini died of natural causes, but her family says she was attacked by the police. one of hollywood's most famous awards ceremony, the golden globes, is set to return to television screens in 2023.

the star—studded event was dropped by the broadcaster