welcome to bbc news. i'm tim willcox. our top stories: the russians fleeing their country to avoid president putin's partial mobilisation of military reservists to fight in ukraine. translation: when i refused to take the call-up papers, - an official said, "suit yourself, but you'll be sent "to prison for ten years". back in ukrainian hands, but still under russian attack, we report from the city of kupiansk. unrest spreads across iran sparked by the death of a woman detained by the �*morality police'. her father says they lied about how she died. translation: i asked why they did not transfer her i

to the hospital earlier and they said the ambulance's key was lost for 20 minutes and they could not find it. can you believe this? and anger over violence against women in south korea after a shocking murder highlights the country's weak stalking laws. hello, welcome to the programme. many russian citizens are trying to flee their country to escape the military mobilisation announced by vladimir putin. tickets for direct flights between russia and serbia have sold out and there are long queues on other border crossings. president putin's order to mobilise 300,000 russian reservists to fight in ukraine led to protests on wednesday, at which more than 1,000 people were reportedly arrested. 0ur russia editor steve rosenberg reports from moscow.

called up by the kremlin, they set off for ukraine. russian reservists now part of vladimir putin's war. there were scenes like these across russia. a sense of shock at the first mobilisation here since world war ii, and apprehension at what lies ahead. child cries. "daddy," cries a child, as another group departs. but there was anger, too, outside a recruitment office. the protester says, world war ii was a real war, but this one is just politics. protesting in russia can be dangerous. mikhail was detained at an anti—mobilisation protest in moscow. he says that down at the station, police tried to give him call—up papers.

translation: when i refused to take the call-up papers, - an official said, "suit yourself, but you'll be sent "to prison for ten years". she said it was against the law to refuse the draft. the public�*s being told the motherland is in danger. the message from the russian authorities to the russian people is "we had to call up the reservists. "the west is trying to destroy us. "nato is waging a war against us. "this is a fight for russia's future." but some russians have now concluded that for them there is no future here. at russia's border with georgia, the queue of cars was unusually long as some russian men of fighting age tried to leave the country. i heard some speeches... viktor has decided to leave russia because of the call—up. �*viktor�* is not his real name — he's asked us to hide his identity.

there is a choice — for example, you go and you kill innocent people, or you go to jail. i decided i don't want to make this choice. i'm better to live my life somehow, i don't know, from abroad. up until now, many russians have tried to block out what's happening in ukraine and get on with their lives. the call—up of hundreds of thousands of reservists has changed that. reality is starting to hit home. steve rosenberg, bbc news, moscow. earlier, i spoke to evelyn farkas, who is executive director of the mccain institute and a former pentagon official responsible for russia. i think this mobilisation, it's more of a public relations and terror — i won't say stunt, but move, as opposed

to a real military move at this point because i am unclear how quickly they can actually mobilise 300,000 people who are supposedly all reservists and equip them because we do not know whether the russians have the equipment, and of course make sure they are trained and they can be sent to the front and not become immediate cannon fodder for the ukrainians. so i think the call—up is, in part, a test to see how the russian public react. clearly, they are not reacting well to it, but the demonstrations are not as large as they might be otherwise, so perhaps this is a way for the russian government to gradually try to acclimate the russian people to the idea of a total war with ukraine. crosstalk. so even if it is just a test, many of the people are being called are in the far east of russia — almost on the border with china — but in terms of the protest from the people on the ground, who is more dangerous for president putin, them, or the ultranationalist

pro—war above him? good question. wel first, so, in regard to the part of your question about the geography, all along, putin has been dagestan, chechnya, ethnic minorities. he has actually isolated — or insulated, rather — the citizens of moscow and saint petersburg from the war. somewhere, as couple of months ago somewhere i read that 11 casualties total between st petersburg and moscow. so, he is deliberately picking the parts of the country that he is targeting for the — you know, pressing people into service one way or another. in regard to which is more dangerous to him, that is a really good question. certainly, the nationalists have always been putting pressure on him, but they clearly put enough pressure on him that he decided he had to make this reservist call—up and he also had to declare he was going to annex the territories that they had seized since february 2a, plus the ones

prior to that, so then donetsk oblast, and then putin added onto that his nuclear sabre—rattling. a clear statement aimed at national side of the statement and, of course, the call—up had the opposite effect when it comes to the russian people, as we have seen. but it remains to be seen whether the kremlin can manage it. clearly, they decided to take the risk because they had to do something about the nationalists and the people, indeed, living in donetsk and luhansk who were starting to panick about whether the russian government would stick with them. and yet, the prisoner swap, extraordinary in terms of who the russians have given back to ukraine — i mean, albeit via turkey in some places. i mean, the leader of the azov brigade, the people who held out in mariupol, that will not please the nationalists either, will it? no, and in fact, we have reports of them being upset. now, this was done with nationalist leadership agreeing to the swap because they wanted their people back as well and also,

they are loyal to president putin, so the political leadership there, they're saying that they supported this because president putin clearly wanted viktor medvedchuk back — and this is an individual who is a ukrainian, pro—russian to the extreme politician, was somebody who, i believe ukrainian intelligence has indicated if not western, the russians were holding as a potential replacement for the government, for president zelensky, and so he was very important to putin because putin is an old veteran spy and you do not leave your spies behind. it is shocking, frankly — or surprising, i would say — that this swap included so many individuals — first of all, in number and then, as you said, from the azov brigade and others we may not have expected the russians to swap — several foreigners as well who had been captured in the donetsk area. yes, andi

yes, and i think viktor medvedchuk, president putin's godfather to his child or something so there is a family connection there as well. yes, but as i'vwe tweeted, i want somebody to count up how many godchildren vladimir putin has because i think it is a way of showing loyalty and fealty. evelyn farkas speaking to me earlier. that's the picture in russia. meanwhile, russia's conduct in ukraine has been strongly condemned at a special meeting of the un security council. the american secretary of state antony blinken said president putin had shown contempt for international law and the world must not let him get away with it. his comments came as the ukrainian military continues to make gains in the east of the country. 0ur senior international correspondent 0rla guerin reports now from the newly liberated city of kupiansk. this is kupiansk. ukraine calls it �*liberated territory'. during our visit with an army escort, it does not sound that way. explosions in distance.

every few minutes, more shelling. explosions. and it is soon very clear that war isn't far away. loud explosions. come on, come on, come on. a few minutes ago, we heard there's a russian helicopter doing some shelling and it was nearby us, so we need to go to save your life and going from there.

is this happening a lot in kupiansk? a lot of attacks? yes, yes — every day, kupiansk under russian shelling and russian artillery. quickly, quickly. now, ukrainian forces are back, looking for signs of life. do not have a bad word to say about their former occupiers. "they treated people normally," 0leksandr tells me. "there was no torture, nothing like that. "for us, it was no different with them all without them. —— "for us, it was no different with them or without them. "they were here. "but it feels like they were not. "they came and then, they left." explosions. he says most here stand with ukraine. either way, they are now caught in the middle...

explosions. ..with shelling back and forth. i ask leliah how she copes. "i do nothing," she says. "i stay home and pray that nothing hits the house." explosions. ukraine's victory in this city is messy and incomplete. there are untold stories of suffering here. and some believe sooner or later, the russians will be back. 0rla guerin, bbc news, kupiansk. let's get some of the day's other news. in italy, the three leaders of a right—wing alliance that's predicted to win sunday's general election have addressed their final big rally of the campaign. giorgia meloni of the far—right brothers of italy party promised to protect italy's borders and restore the nation's freedom and pride.

polls indicate she's best—placed to become prime minister. she hopes to lead a coalition with matteo salvini's far—right league party and forza italia, of the former prime minister silvio berlusconi. a brazilian study based on satellite observations of the amazon rainforest indicates a significant increase in carbon dioxide emissions from the region. scientists say they more than doubled in 2019 and 2020, compared with the average of the previous eight years. the study connects the increase to the fall—off in law enforcement in the same period. presidentjair bolsonaro has been accused of allowing the destruction of the amazon. the late desmond tutu's daughter has been barred from leading the funeral service of her godfather because she is married to a woman. mpho tutu van furth is an anglican priest in washington, dc. she had been due to officiate

at the funeral in england but, under church of england rules, is not allowed. a spokesperson said the ban was in line with the house of bishops' current guidance on same—sex marriage. police in iceland say they've arrested four people in connection with what they believe to have been preparations for the first ever terrorist attack on the island. 0fficers said the motives of the four people were as yet unknown. emily brown reports. iceland, considered to be one of the most peaceful places in the world. a country where violence is rare — until now. in an unprecedented operation, four men have been arrested after investigation into an alleged terrorist plot. up to 50 police officers took part in this huge operation. it's saw semiautomatic weapons as well as thousands of rounds

of ammunition seized. it is said to be the first time an investigation of this type has been launched in iceland, which has a population ofjust 375,000. local media reports officers were exploring potential links to nordic far—right groups and that the police were a central target. —— were the central target. translation: we have conducted larger operations but not _ like this one — and this is a factor. of course, we have looked at the fact that various things have been happening in europe, including the nature of terrorist acts. the four icelanders, who were arrested in a suburb of reykjavik, are said to be in their 20s. two have been remanded in custody. it is still unclear what their motive was, and police say more people could be brought in for questioning. for now, investigations continue into the biggest operation of its type this small nation has seen. emily brown, bbc news. stay with us on bbc news. still to come —

hollywood facelift: we'll tell you why this iconic sign is getting a fresh lick of paint. 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. presumably in case the americans invade. it's no use having a secret service which cannot and so the british government has no option but to continue

concorde have crossed the atlantic faster than any this is bbc news. the latest headlines: the russians fleeing their country to avoid president putin's partial mobilisation of military reservists to fight in ukraine. police in iceland say they've arrested four people in connection with what they believe to have been preparations for the first ever terrorist attack on the island. protests in iran have now spread to more than 80 cities and towns on the sixth day of unrest triggered by the death of a young woman after she was arrested by the country's morality police. 23 people are reported to have been killed so far, but according to our correspondent that figure could be higher. rana rahimpour has this report.

women across iran are setting their hijabs on fire. they are tired of being beaten up by the morality police for not observing strict islamic dress code. cheering and applause. their anger was sparked by the death of this woman, 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 properly. they say she died of a heart condition, but eyewitnesses say she was beaten up in the police van. her father told me she was a healthy young woman with no medical condition. translation: i still cannot believe she's dead. - i don't want to believe she's not alive. iranian state media are saying she had health conditions before, but that's a lie. the medical report was full of lies. the government has cut

the internet in much of the country, so it's hard to get accurate information at the moment. but last time they did this, three years ago, they killed hundreds of people. with thousands of people protesting across the country, there are fears that far more might be killed this time. cheering and applause. protests are quickly spreading across the country and they are no longer just about clothing — it's about regime change. now, men, next to women, are standing together, chanting "death to the dictator". but for iran, change comes slowly. the iranian president, who is at the un, insists that hijab is a personal choice. but even in new york, he demanded that the world—renowned broadcaster christiane amanpour wears a headscarffor an interview. this was refused. but the same refusal in iran is costing lives. rana rahimpour, bbc news.

in south korea the murder of a young women last week has led to widespread anger after it highlighted the country's weak stalking laws. the man suspected of stabbing the subway worker to death had been stalking her for many years and was due to be sentenced the next day. 0ur seoul correspondent jean mackenzie reports. what should be a safe space now a shrine to a young subway worker stabbed to death here by a suspect who had been stalking her for years. horrified, people have come to express their anger, sorrow and fear. "where have we gone wrong?" writes this mother, now questioning whether to let her teenage daughter travel to school alone. jeonjoo—hwan was due to be sentenced for stalking the day after her murder.

police had asked the courts to detain him while they investigated but their request was denied. this murder has exposed weaknesses in south korea stalking laws. it's proof, people write, korea isn't doing enough to protect young women. translation: i feel angry. women are continually being stalked and attacked. and our politicians are ignoring it. people say south korea is safe but as a woman in my 20s i think it is very dangerous. flowers from remorseful politicians decorate the funeral home. her family tells us they never used to worry about their daughter, she was so smart and independent. she never told them what was happening. 0nly her lawyer knew. she reveals how the victim had written to the judge begging forjeon to be put in prison so he couldn't hurt her. was this woman failed by the current law?

translation: yes, in part she was. - we were not able to protect her. this is now the eighth victim. we cannot miss this opportunity to act. but despite these promises, anger was rife. "we will fight to the end," they shout. people here feel that this murder is symptomatic of a much bigger problem in korea. that women here are just not safe and violence against women is not being taken seriously enough. translation: we all feel| connected through this one death. we fear it could happen to any of us. this isn't about the law. what we need is to change the authorities' attitude towards victims. they are not hoping for a watershed moment, change has failed to

materialise too many times before. instead these ribbons symbolise a safety net. a promise to try and protect each other. pakistan's foreign minister has called the large—scale flooding in his country a humanitarian crisis. he estimated it could take a decade for communities to fully recover. 33 million people have been affected, more than 1500 died since rising waters enveloped one third of the entire country. it's one of the most iconic symbols in the world — and soon it will celebrate its centenary. the hollywood sign has been a hallmark of glamour and glitz since the early 1920s, and the trust that looks after it is making sure it looks its best before its big birthday — as the bbc�*s tim allman discovered. in this city, of all cities, the occasional facelift is practically mandatory.

they repaint the hollywood sign every ten years or so but this time it's a little bit different. a very special day is on the horizon, the sign�*s centenary and that requires some very special effort. people don't realise that when you are standing at the sign, each letter is 45 feet high, the length of each letter but they are also about 10—14 feet off the ground. not all the letters but on average. so some of these guys are up 50 to 60 feet up in the air. when it first went up in 1923, the sign said hollywoodland. it was an advertisement for a nearby property development. eventually it lost four letters but gained a place as the symbol of a city associated with movie stars and sex appeal. painting a ginormous

sign is no easy task but no—one here is complaining. itold my family, i'm pretty sure i'm going to be on tv and i'm pretty excited and speechless honestly. that they gave me this opportunity to work in this crazy hollywood sign, it's amazing. this particular hollywood makeover is expected to last until the middle of november, just in time for the birthday celebrations next year. and just so you know, apparently the w is the hardest letter to paint. tim allman, bbc news. some of us have been wondering if it wouldn't be quicker to spray it? more information on this story as well as on the

mobilisation in russia for 300,000 people to fight for russia. you can reach me on twitter — i'm @bbctimwillcox. hello there, we had a real mixture of weather around on thursday. it was pleasantly warm across south—eastern areas. temperatures in hampshire and cambridgeshire reached 21 celsius, 70 fahrenheit. temperatures are going to be dropping over the next few days. it looks like it's going to turn particularly cold at night—time. we have the cooler air moving down from the north—west, it follows this band of cloud here that brought a lot of rain into cumbria. that rain is now sliding its way down towards the south—east and east anglia where we start the day with some rain. elsewhere, further north, clearer skies means it's going to be a much colder start here, particularly in eastern scotland and north east england where we will start with some sunshine. it looks like it's going to be quite a cloudy day across east anglia and the south—east, some rain from time to time. it should cheer up in

the midlands and much of england and wales away from the south—east will be dry with some sunshine, scattering of showers come in on the north—westerly breeze to scotland and northern ireland. and temperatures may struggle to around 15 to 16 degrees. still sitting at 18 or 19 though with that cloudy damp weather towards the south east on that weather front there, which is only very slowly moving away. around this area of high pressure, we're going to drawn down that northerly breeze bringing in that cooler air and may be bringing in a scattering of showers this time on saturday for central and eastern parts of england. further west likely to be drier and it should be a dry day with some decent amount of sunshine for scotland and northern ireland. still the threat of a little rain in the far south—east of england but should be moving away and typical temperatures will be around 16 degrees or so on saturday afternoon. saturday night though could be quite cold around this area of high pressure. we've got that chilly air, never really establishes itself because this is going to be quite a feature of the weather as we head through the latter part of the weekend and into the start of next week. a lot of dry weather to come

on sunday but with that approaching deep low in scotland and northern ireland, the winds will be picking up and in the northwest we'll see some outbreaks of rain, sunny spells elsewhere, mind you. still on the cool side after quite a cold start, the temperatures around 15 or 16 degrees. i showed you that deep area of low pressure on the weather front that's going to be sliding southwards overnight and on monday it'll bring a spell of rain. but following on from that, we'll find the winds turning to distinctly a chilly direction and a much stronger northerly wind will drop the temperatures early next week.

this is bbc news. the headlines: queues have sprung up along russia's border as men attempt to leave the country to avoid a military call—up for the war in ukraine. president putin announced a partial military mobilisation on wednesday. 300,000 russian reservists have been called up. protests have led to more than 1,000 people reportedly arrested. reports from iran suggest more than 30 people have been killed in clashes with security forces during protests about the death of a woman in custody. mahsa amini, who was 22, was arrested by the morality police, who'd accused her of breaking strict rules on the wearing of the hijab. police in iceland say they've arrested four people