welcome to bbc news, i'm tim willcox. our top stories: a standing ovation for president zelensky at the un general assembly, as he condemns russia's invasion of ukraine. a crime has been committed against ukraine and we demand just punishment. thousands protest in russia, as president putin orders the mobilisation of military reservists. and there's this warning for the west. translation: if the territorial integrity of our country - is threatened, then to defend russia, and our people, we will, of course, use all means at our disposal. i am not bluffing.

at least ten people have been killed following another day of protests in iran over the death of a young woman in custody. the father of the british teenager who took her own life, after viewing harmful content online, tells an inquest how shocked he was after she died to discover the hideous material she'd been looking it. and, we have a special report from central china, as the government continues with its zero—covid strategy. president volodymyr zelensky of ukraine has received a standing ovation after addressing the united nations general assembly in new york. in a pre—recorded video speech delivered in english, mr zelensky said russia deserved to be punished for stealing ukrainian territory and murdering civilians. he also said a tribunal should

bring the perpetrators to justice. a crime has been committed against ukraine and we demand just punishment. the crime was committed against our state borders. the crime was committed against the lives of our people. the crime was committed against the dignity of our women and men. the crime was committed against the values that make you and me a community of united nations. and ukraine demands punishment for trying to steal our territory. punishment for the murders of thousands of people, punishment for tortures and humiliations of women and men, punishment for the catastrophic turbulence that russia provoked with its illegal war and not only for us, ukrainians, but for the whole world,

for every nation that is represented in this whole of the un general assembly. i am speaking on behalf of the state which is forced to defend itself but has the formula for peace. all day on wednesday, world leaders at the un general assembly have been lining up to condemn russia's actions and pledge support for ukraine. president biden accused russia of violating the un charter with its invasion while in the final speech of the day britain's prime minister had this to say. in had this to say. ukraine, barbarous weapons are in ukraine, barbarous weapons are being used to kill and maim. rape is being used as an instrument of war. families are being torn apart. this morning,

we have seen putin trying to justify his catastrophic failures. he is doubling down by sending even more reserve iss to a terrible fate. a regime without human rights and freedoms. he is making yet more bogus claims and rattling threats. this will not work. the international alliance is strong and ukraine is strong. more than 1,000 protesters have been arrested in cities across russia, according to a human rights organisation, after president putin announced that hundreds of thousands of military reservists could be called up to fight in ukraine. it's the first mobilisation of russian civilians since world war ii. russia has been losing ground in eastern ukraine in recent weeks as ukrainian troops recapture some parts. in his televised address mr putin accused the west of occupying ukraine and engaging in nuclear blackmail. and he again warned he'd use all means to protect russia,

including nuclear weapons. 0ur russia editor, steve rosenberg, reports from moscow. under pressure in ukraine, russia's president has chosen the path that is most familiar to him — escalation. translation: to defend our motherland, its sovereignty l and territorial integrity, for the security of our people, and on the liberated territories, it is necessary to support the proposal of the defence ministry and chief of general staff to announce a partial mobilisation of military reservists. seven months after invading ukraine, the kremlin is calling up 300,000 reservists to support what it still calls the "special military operation". and from russia's commander in chief, this threat to the west... translation: our

country, too, has l different weapons of destruction. in some cases, they are more modern than those of nato. if the territorial integrity of our country is threatened, then to defend russia and our people we shall, of course, use all means at our disposal. i am not bluffing. so, why the threat, and why now? well, in a few days�* time, the kremlin will try to annex a whole swathe of ukrainian territory. vladimir putin's sabre—rattling sends a message to ukraine and to the west — "don't attack, "don't try to take those areas back." as news of mobilisation spread, there were reports that flights out of russia were selling out fast amid concern that men of fighting age would soon not be allowed to leave the country.

"i'm worried this is just the start," sergei tells me, "and that there could be full mobilisation." but margarita says, "if our leaders demand this, "we must do our duty. i trust putin 100%." later, the president met his defence minister. they have decided on mobilisation because they are short of troops. so short, that in prison camps across russia, this mercenary chief, a close putin ally, has been recruiting inmates to fight in ukraine, promising them their freedom if they serve six months with his group, wagner, and survive. when vilena went to visit her husband in prison a few days ago, she was told the husband, a convicted murderer, wasn't there. translation: | said, - "what do you mean, not here? "he has been here 13 years

and suddenly he's gone?" they told me they had no more information. a few days later he called me from a ukrainian number. i know for sure that my husband is in ukraine. even if he agreed to go there, he was sent illegally. sending convicts into combat is against the law. now the kremlin will be sending reservists to ukraine. but in moscow tonight, a protest against mobilisation. hundreds have been detained across the country. not everyone in russia is willing to stay silent about vladimir putin's invasion of ukraine and his war with the west. steve rosenberg, bbc news. michael bociurkiw is a global analyst and non resident senior fellow at the atlantic council. he used to be spokesman in the ukraine monitoring

mission for the un's organisation for security cooperation in europe. he lives in 0desa, butjoins us now from vancouver. 300,000, is this enough? absolutely not, it shows his desperation. and the ukrainians have been fighting further and further with modern weaponry from a distance, so i think the only thing this will do for mr putin is through my man at this problem. many of them will come back, i am sad to say, in boxes. then what will happen, this war, is good is going to touch people and areas that have not been touched or have been able to ignore it or inoculated themselves from the wall. i think for mr putin this is a very risky role of the dose that could bring even

further destabilisation, massively.— further destabilisation, massivel . . further destabilisation, massivel. . ., , massively. there are new laws for peeple _ massively. there are new laws for peeple who _ massively. there are new laws for people who desert - massively. there are new laws for people who desert or- massively. there are new laws l for people who desert or commit atrocities on the battlefield. is this going to generate dissent within russia for those people who are now eligible to be called up? people who are now eligible to be called up?— be called up? that report showed the _ be called up? that report showed the harsh - be called up? that report i showed the harsh measures be called up? that report - showed the harsh measures are already being taken by people who even protest silently. i think the russians will find around these ways around these restrictions, however we do know for example the prisoners who have been sent to in ukraine, if 5= do for example come . dofor example comeback they do for example come back to russia or desert they will the barrel of the gun from face the barrel of the gun from the russian side, so there is little kidding around here. you can't blame people for trying to get out of russia now before this mobilisation happens. president putin is going to try and frame this as saying there are legitimate reasons for ukrainians or other areas to

become a part of russia in those referenda. i want to look into that in more detail. everyone in the west says this is a sham referenda. what are we looking at in the detail? how many people will vote? this is a war zone as well, so how can it possibly be monitored? it can't because western professional observers, for example from the osc are not allowed in these territories and there actually no western journalists on that side of the frontline. this is already pre— bag. the kremlin knows exactly what the vote will turn out to be. even if they are very few people left, there are some areas where the only remaining areas where the only remaining are elderly. they will go ahead and declare victory. then i think what will happen is mr putin will go ahead, annexed these territories and declare this as russian federation

territory. should the ukrainians or anyone else attacked them, he will use that as a basis to retaliate with harsh measures. it is a chilling thing to say, but i think also with those tactical nuclear weapons, we are at a very bad place at the moment. do you really believe that? usually when people say they aren't bluffing they probably are, and surely the use of a tactical nuclear weapon would take this into a spiral or escalation of having to go further as well? is president putin capable of something like that? would he be allowed to do something like that given that three people have to have codes for the use of any nuclear strike? it for the use of any nuclear strike? , , strike? it is definitely crossing _ strike? it is definitely crossing a _ strike? it is definitely crossing a redline. i l strike? it is definitely - crossing a redline. i think he is capable. don't forget his days as leader of russia is numbered. he is an elderly man.

but the other thing we may see, should his problems start ratcheting up even more on them battlefield in ukraine i could see a scenario where for example they attacked those aboriginal nuclear power plant or create nuclear contamination, which could be a pretext to withdraw troops for their safety. we are not out of their safety. we are not out of the woods whatsoever. in fact, this is an escalation. i think the west now has to use what other measures it has left, there are not many, to tighten there are not many, to tighten the noose around putin. for the united states administration could declare this russia state—sponsored terrorism which would unleash further sanctions.— would unleash further sanctions. a ., ~ sanctions. michael bociurkiw, thank yom — sanctions. michael bociurkiw, thank you. stay _ sanctions. michael bociurkiw, thank you. stay with - sanctions. michael bociurkiw, thank you. stay with us - sanctions. michael bociurkiw, thank you. stay with us on . sanctions. michael bociurkiw, l thank you. stay with us on bbc news. ground zero. china continues with hard—line anti— covid strategies. more from the cities.

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 judgment 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: a standing ovation for president zelensky at the un general assembly as he condemns russia's invasion of ukraine. hundreds of protesters have been arrested in russia after president putin ordered a partial mobilisation to raise more soldiers to fight in ukraine. theramine for violent protests in iran for a 15 over the death and custody of young who was detained by the morality police for allegedly violating the islamic republic of dress code. ten people are reportedly killed including a policeman. negar mortazavi is a journalist, political commentator and host of the iran podcast in washington, dc, and shejoins me now. a worrying escalation. how do

you think the protests concur to previous ones, the most recent in 2019?— recent in 2019? yes, the protests _ recent in 2019? yes, the protests have _ recent in 2019? yes, the protests have been - recent in 2019? yes, the i protests have been ongoing recent in 2019? yes, the - protests have been ongoing and piling up as disagreements have piled up over the past few years and the timeframe, distance between protests have gotten shorter instead of once every few years, we are seeing a few rounds of protests every year. these protests are unprecedented in the way of their demands, led by a lot of young women, it is centred around this opposition to mandatory hijab and violent practices of the morality police and people are essentially risking a lot, risking their lives by coming to the street. as far as the number of people coming out and extent of protests, it is happening in more than a dozen cities across the rhine and major universities. within a

middle—class adjoining. it is not as large in scope as the 2009 protests, after the presidential election, that was the largest since 1979 revolution in iran but still these protest, their nature and these protest, their nature and the demographics that are participating in them are unprecedented. is participating in them are unprecedented.- participating in them are unprecedented. participating in them are unrecedented. , ., ., unprecedented. is there a fear that perhaps _ unprecedented. is there a fear that perhaps we _ unprecedented. is there a fear that perhaps we are _ unprecedented. is there a fear that perhaps we are not - unprecedented. is there a fear| that perhaps we are not seeing the true repression that is taking place on the streets in iran, thinking perhaps outside the more urban areas, where perhaps the constraints are tougher? perhaps the constraints are tou:her? ., v perhaps the constraints are tougher?— perhaps the constraints are touher? ., �*, . . tougher? that's correct. when it comes to — tougher? that's correct. when it comes to this _ tougher? that's correct. when it comes to this very _ tougher? that's correct. when it comes to this very issue, . it comes to this very issue, the mandatory hijab and the enforcement by the morality police, in smaller cities and rural areas, police, in smaller cities and ruralareas, it police, in smaller cities and rural areas, it becomes tougher and more strict as compared to larger cities like tehran. i

also see a sense of solidarity when it comes to this opposition. what i saw was significant, was even some religious iranians, even a group of women who themselves observe the hijab and a religious, have religious belief, are launching online campaigns saying i am religious but i oppose the morality police. they see this as an immoral practice and they are saying it is not what they believe in and it shouldn't be donein believe in and it shouldn't be done in their name. i see this sense of solidarity but at the same time he also reported there will be a violent crackdown. already seeing this occur, repressing the protesters, and i'm afraid we're going to see more as the protests are growing to more areas in the country. {lilia protests are growing to more areas in the country. 0k, negar mortazavi. _ areas in the country. 0k, negar mortazavi, thank _ areas in the country. 0k, negar mortazavi, thank you _ areas in the country. 0k, negar mortazavi, thank you for - mortazavi, thank you for joining us on bbc news. thank

ou. the father of molly russell, the british 14—year—old who took her own life five years ago after being exposed to harmful content online, has told an inquest into her death that he was shocked when he discovered what she'd been looking it. ian russell said it was only after her death that he realised she'd been accessing large numbers of disturbing posts concerning anxiety, depression, self harm and suicide. angus crawford, who first told molly's story, reports from her inquest in north london. bleak, dark, endless... what molly saw on instagram, described as a world of despair. herfather ian called it a drip feed of daily hopelessness. also revealed in court, a twitter account we discovered years ago, and here's what she wrote — words her family were never meant to see. some of them are so painful to read. we just wish we'd been able to...help her. june 2017, six months before

she died, and she wrote, she also wrote, "how can you tell the people you love "that you want to die?" at times, her mood did lift. she followed celebrities like ariana grande and she loved harry potter. but then her worries and insecurities would seem to overwhelm her. in a way, molly does seem to have been asking for help, but ian says she was just shouting into the ether. none of the celebrities she tweeted messaged her back. of course they didn't. how could they have noticed her amongst their millions of followers ? celebrities, like an american influencer called salice rose.

molly idolised her and messaged repeatedly. "i don't want to be in this world any more," molly wrote. "i kind of want to die." louisa runs children's mental health charity beyond. it's a clear call for help. it's a clear call for support. she's saying that she needs help. but she's saying it into this kind of vacuous void. but the reality is that social media can't respond. it's not equipped. it's really sad. salice rose didn't want to be interviewed, but she did send us this video message. i'm sad that i didn't know her before she even did what she did. i wish i knew her so i could have called her and been like, "hey, "you know, don't do this. you know?" _ like, "things get better." it's november 2017, and molly

writes her final message. molly tweeted to salice rose, "happy birthday, have "an amazing day. " that evening, i really don't know that she was thinking that she wouldn't be there the next morning. all i would say is, if you're in a place, a horrible, low place where you actually want to end your life, please reach out to those people that you love, because they would so much rather you did. angus crawford, bbc news. in the weeks leading up to china's communist party congress, which is due to usher in xi jinping's historic third term in office, there is considerable pressure on the country's massive economy. beijing's zero—covid strategy is a big part of this. strict measures remain in place to return each outbreak of the virus to no new cases. the scheme has taken the pressure off the country's

medical system, but it hasn't come without social and economic pain which is also bringing political risk. 0ur china correspondent stephen mcdonell�*s report starts on the outskirts of beijing. this is one of china's biggest draw cards for both domestic and international tourers. but strict zero covid measures are crippling the industry with ongoing lockdown. ladies and gentlemen, please pay attention... and travelling to the city or anywhere in the country means risking becoming stranded if cases suddenly emerge in your phone app health code changes colour. so on arrival we have to scan a new local health code and then do a pcr test before we can even leave the station. ancient sites once packed with travellers are now

only sparsely covered with local tourers. at times, they've been empty. so far, xian is best preserved. there's been no work for specialist international tour guide. no income. this is my lowest point. and as a man i can't do anything. just generally speaking, how damaging for the tourism industry has the pandemic been? wow. for the international tourism, 100%. killed it? yes, yes, because no one could come to china, come to china, come to xian. xian�*s muslim quarter dates back to the tang dynasty, but these days you can see near—empty restaurants and businesses closed because of a lack of customers.

this shopkeeper says she's barely holding on. translation: ijust started my business and paid two years - of rent the day before the pandemic closed us. what can she do? nothing, really nothing. i thought about opening an online store. when does she think china will return to normal? it is hard to know, because the outbreaks come again and again. china's hospitals are not swamped with coronavirus patients, but its policies are crushing the economy and isolating the country. if the government has a way out, it's not revealing it, leaving a huge question mark over how this could end. stephen mcdonnell, bbc news, xian.

more on that story on the website: bbc.com/news. we are back later. from me and the team though, goodbye. hello, there. the weather is going to be changing through the rest of this week. but on wednesday, temperatures reached 22 degrees in surrey, but also in the northeast of scotland, where we had some sunshine for a while. towards the northwest of scotland, things were rather different, and looming large, really, on the satellite picture, is this broad band of cloud that is heading down from the northwest. it's due to a weather front, of course, and that weather front notjust bringing cloud, but this band of rain. that wetter weather is pushing further into scotland and northern ireland. and that weather front will take the rain southeastwards over the next couple of days, pushing away the warmer air ahead of it, and replacing things with more of a northwesterly breeze, bringing cooler conditions, following the rain.

but the rain is still falling early on thursday morning in scotland and northern ireland, heavy in places. that rain willjust trickle down in northern england, and it will get wetter here during the day, especially in the northwest of england. some rain in the afternoon, heading into wales, but ahead of the rain, midlands, much of southern and eastern england will be dry, some spells of sunshine and still quite warm air. so, we could make 22 degrees again in the south east. but following the band of rain, whilst we'll get some sunshine in scotland and northern ireland, and the winds will be quite light, it's cooler air, so temperatures will be typically 15 or 16 degrees. that band of rain, still initially rather heavy in places, willjust trickle down into the midlands and head towards the southeast of england by friday morning. but we will have clearer skies following to the north, and this time, the coldest weather on friday morning will be across the northern half of the uk, much milder further south, where we still have cloud and some rain. it will look a little different across east anglia and the south east with more cloud, some rain at times and some of weather likely to be here across kent and sussex.

away from here some spousal sunshine, scattering of some light showers, mainly because scotland and northern ireland but temperatures are typically going to be around 17 degrees on friday to end the week. now let's head into the weekend, and we could still see some rain not far away from the far southeast of england, high pressure trying to build in from the atlantic, but this is what's happening in the far north by the end of the weekend, some wetter, windier weather is beginning to arrive. but for much of the weekend, it's going to be but rather cool to see some sunshine from time to time. goodbye.

this is bbc news. the headlines: president zelensky of ukraine has addressed the united nations general assembly in new york. in a pre—recorded speech, he said russia deserved to be punished for stealing ukrainian territory and murdering civilians. he said a special tribunal should bring the perpetrators to justice and pay the victims full compensation. a russian human rights organisation says the authorities have arrested more than 11100 people for demonstrating against president putin's mobilisation of reservists to fight in ukraine. mr putin stressed that he would use all available means to protect russian territory, implying this could involve nuclear weapons. the united kingdom's new prime minister,