this is bbc world news. i'm rich preston. our top stories: a jury orders the conspiracy theorist alexjones to pay more than $900 million to the families of the victims of the sandy hook massacre. urgent action is required to reverse biodiversity destruction. that's the stark warning from the world wide fund for nature after wildlife populations decline by almost 70% in 50 years. the un general assembly votes overwhelmingly to condemn russia's attempts to annex four ukrainian regions. the us is promising more weapons for ukraine — including air defence systems. we are going to do everything we can as fast as we can to

help the ukrainian forces get the capability they need to protect ukrainian people. and scientists in australia teach brain cells grown in a lab to play a video game. we find out why. the next stage could open up options such as cyber security management or upon as devices and perhaps could lead to sentiment and fully autonomous robots. —— sentience welcome to our viewers on pbs in america and around the globe. ajury in the us has ordered the conspiracy theorist, alexjones, to pay $965 million in damages to the families of victims of the sandy hook massacre. mrjones falsely claimed for years that the mass shooting had been staged by the government to try

to introduce tighter gun controls. the school principal was among the 26 people killed in the attack in 2012. 0ur correspondent peter bowes has been following the story and joins us now from los angeles. good to see you. remind us what prompted this case. this good to see you. remind us what prompted this case.— prompted this case. this goes back a decade _ prompted this case. this goes back a decade and _ prompted this case. this goes back a decade and it - prompted this case. this goes back a decade and it is - prompted this case. this goes back a decade and it is as - prompted this case. this goes back a decade and it is as a i back a decade and it is as a result of the families, they say they were harassed and persecuted by followers of alex jones because of the lie that he told and as you have described he said essentially the shooting was staged, that it did not really happen. he went as far as to question the very existence of some of the children who died and said that the parents who appeared at news conferences in the days and weeks afterwards, he described them as crisis actors. as a result, the

parents say they suffered significantly over the years. they brought this action and, clearly, it was about money and we have seen this colossal amount, almost $1 billion that thejury has awarded amount, almost $1 billion that the jury has awarded for alex jones to pay the families. but they also made the point that this was a case about highlighting the importance of telling the truth. fix, highlighting the importance of telling the truth.— telling the truth. a colossal amount of _ telling the truth. a colossal amount of money, - telling the truth. a colossal amount of money, as - telling the truth. a colossal amount of money, as you l telling the truth. a colossal i amount of money, as you say. one of the family said now that the verdict has been given. they are clearly relieved. there was a lot of emotion in the courtroom and there are several families and individuals involved and a complex decision so we did take some time for this verdict to be announced and you could see the emotion in the faces of those parents, those relatives and talking afterwards they say that it and talking afterwards they say thatitis and talking afterwards they say that it is over, they wanted to make the point that really you cannot just make the point that really you cannotjust go out there and tell lives. yes there is

freedom of speech in the united states but you cannot tell lies and especially lies that have the kind of consequences that these families suffered. liz dunning is a gun violence survivor and vice president of development and partnerships at brady, an organisation that advocates for gun control and against gun violence. shejoins us now from washington thank you for being with us in good to see you. as i mentioned you yourself are a survivor of gun violence. what will it mean for the families to have this ruling in court?— for the families to have this ruling in court? survivors are not a monolith _ ruling in court? survivors are not a monolith so _ ruling in court? survivors are | not a monolith so everybody's individual experiences their own that i will say for me, the amount ofjust incredible amount of just incredible relief, amount ofjust incredible relief, i was becoming emotionaljust listening to the lead in, knowing that the justice they had been waiting for and hoping for an wishing for and hoping for an wishing for and hoping for an wishing foran dreaming of for and hoping for an wishing for an dreaming of is here. i cannot imagine and i hope that they are finding time tonight and in the days ahead to be

together and be proud of the incredible strength and effort that they have demonstrated over this long period of time. stories of gun violence are unfortunately not rare in the united states. as someone with a strong personal connection to this you find it difficult to follow stories like this? there is an aspect — follow stories like this? there is an aspect of it _ follow stories like this? there is an aspect of it that - follow stories like this? there is an aspect of it that is - is an aspect of it that is absolutely re— traumatising but i am of parent of children and i am of parent of children and ifeel like it is i am of parent of children and i feel like it is also my duty to be present and pay attention and apply myself because of my experience to create a better world for my kids and everybody's children. alex jones has _ everybody's children. alex jones has suggested - everybody's children. alex jones has suggested he i everybody's children. alex jones has suggested he will appeal. what is your reaction to that? i appeal. what is your reaction to that? , , , ., appeal. what is your reaction to that? ,, , ., ., to that? i guess it is not a surprise — to that? i guess it is not a surprise because - to that? i guess it is not a surprise because he - to that? i guess it is not a surprise because he is - to that? i guess it is not a | surprise because he is who to that? i guess it is not a - surprise because he is who he is but the incredible victory role and hate that he spewed for a very long time does

stalk. there was a message today that truth and justice met matters and is your correspondent said, lies and lies in of this vitriolic unspeakable nature are unacceptable and i would imagine that the nextjury or judge that reviews this case would find similar to this group of incrediblejury group of incredible jury members group of incrediblejury members who will group of incredible jury members who will surely take group of incrediblejury members who will surely take a long time to get what they have seen and heard out of their minds. ., ., minds. you mentioned the message _ minds. you mentioned the message that _ minds. you mentioned the message that this - minds. you mentioned the message that this verdict i minds. you mentioned the - message that this verdict says about spreading lies and misinformation. longerterm about spreading lies and misinformation. longer term do you think this will affect the narrative when it comes to gun control in the united states? i certainly hope so. i think unpacking moments like this are important and we know, actually, that most americans are with us in preventing gun violence. 90% want to expand what are called background checks on firearms and 70% of

americans want to ban assault weapons. it is not everybody and it is most of us who want to lean into this different world and i think the more that we can shut down these conspiracy theories and these unspeakable liars, the more that we can move to a place where we can keep our kids safe. let's get some of the day's other news. north korean state media says the country's military has test—fired two long—range strategic cruise missiles. the state news agency says the operation had been successful and was aimed at enhancing the reliability of tactical nuclear weapons. kcna reported that the missiles flew for 2000 kilometres — just over 1200 miles. authorities in nigeria say more than 500 people are now known to have died in flooding that has ravaged the country in recent weeks. experts say it's the worst floods during the rainy season in over a decade. 1.5 million people have

also been displaced. meanwhile, at least 18 people have died in flooding in northern india. dozens of villages in uttar pradesh have been affected with some being totally cut off. officials say the monsoon season has extended into 0ctober — it normally ends in mid—september. iran's education minister says some schoolchildren arrested in protests over the death of mahsa amini won't be released until they've undergone re—education in psychological centres. there's no sign that the demonstrations which began last month are running out of steam. hundreds of palestinians have protested in eastjerusalem over the blockade of a major refugee camp there by the israeli military. the army have sealed off the shuafat camp and a neighbouring town while they search for a gunman who killed a female soldier on saturday. palestinian media have described the blockade as a total siege.

the un general assembly has voted overwhelmingly to condemn russia's attempts to annex four regions of ukraine. only four countries voted with russia: belarus, north korea, syria and nicaragua. meanwhile, the us and its nato allies have reaffirmed their support for ukraine in the face of intensifying russian agression — promising to send military hardware to kyiv for as long as it takes. in the past few days vladimir putin has given us all another grim preview of a future in which the appetites of aggressive autocrats outweigh the rights of peaceful states. we will do everything we can as fast as we can to help the ukrainian forces get the capability they need to protect ukrainian people. the minister of defence in britain says he has authorised the supply of new air defence missiles to ukraine's military. ben wallace said the advanced medium—range air—to—air missile would be delivered in the coming weeks. the weapons are thought to be capable of shooting down

the russian cruise missiles which have hit urban areas across ukraine during a wave of strikes in recent days. the german government has said the first of its four iris—t air defence systems was delivered to ukraine on wednesday. for his part, vlaidimir putin has accused the west of stoking the global energy crisis, suggesting damage to the nord stream gas pipeline was the result of �*international terrorism'. with mr putin under increasing pressure at home and abroad, our russia editor steve rosenberg considers what his next move might be? what will vladimir putin do next in ukraine? what is he thinking? his special military operation has not gone according to plan. but u—turns? that's not his style. this is. at an event in moscow, classic putin — the kremlin leader painting russia as the victim and the authorities in kyiv as terrorists.

keep in mind, though, that it was russia that invaded ukraine. constantin's newspaper has criticised russian officials for nuclear sabre—rattling during the special operation. he says putin wants a new world order and don't expect de—escalation any time soon. he's authoritarian leader of a nuclear power. he's unchallenged leader in this country, and he has some strong beliefs and perceptions which drive him crazy, and he's started to believe that this is existential. would putin really go nuclear in ukraine? he's dropped unsubtle hints. days before the russian invasion, the president oversaw massive nuclear drills. he's since warned the west he's not bluffing about

the nuclear option. in putin's mind, for him, defeat is unimaginable. if you'd run a country for 22 years like vladimir putin has, and if you'd silenced all your critics and crushed the opposition like putin has, you may well feel like putin appears to feel — that you will always end up a winner. to acknowledge that any other outcome is possible means facing up to an unpalatable fact that you are not invincible. and in a country with no checks or balances, and where the leaders don't feel accountable to the public, there are few constraints on kremlin decision—making. the problem is that the system which was created in this 30 years didn't create the society.

there is a lot of very nice people in russia. i think you met them. but there is no civil society. that's why russia can't resist. for now, resistance to the kremlin is coming from ukraine and the west. steve rosenberg, bbc news, moscow. stay with us on bbc news, still to come: we'll tell you how scientists in australia have taught lab—grown brain cells how to play an iconic video game.

this is bbc world news, the latest headlines: a us jury orders conspiracy theorist, alexjones, to pay over $900 million to the families of the victims of the sandy hook massacre.

a new report, that's just been released by the world wide fund for nature, has shown that on average, monitored wildlife populations have declined by a staggering 69% since 1970. it says governments, businesses and the public must take what it called �*transformative action' to reverse the destruction of biodiversity. for more on this, let's speak to the wwf�*s chief scientist, dr rebecca shaw, whojoins us from san francisco. good us from san francisco. evening to do there. 69% is good evening to do there. 69% is a staggering figure. are there any particular species that have prompted this spike, this huge number? i that have prompted this spike, this huge number?— that have prompted this spike, this huge number? i think when ou have this huge number? i think when you have a _ this huge number? i think when you have a staggering _ this huge number? i think when you have a staggering loss - this huge number? i think when you have a staggering loss of i you have a staggering loss of population, average population numbers across the planet, you are talking about a lot of species, a lot of individuals across a vast geography, and so

there are certain species that have declined more than others, and those include things like sharks and rays which i think we've all heard about in the news. it also includes low land gorillas and it also includes other species like the australian sea lion and amazon pink mentioned their australie and the amazon. talking geographically, what particular parts of the world are of concern to you?- parts of the world are of concern to you? parts of the world are of concern to ou? ~ ., , , concern to you? what we see is the steepest — concern to you? what we see is the steepest declines _ concern to you? what we see is the steepest declines in - the steepest declines in population abundances in the tropics, so tropical marine systems, tropical rain forests and we also see the biggest declines in latin america. so we're about 94% decline in average abundance of populations in latin america.

that is massive in a place that is so species rich and so vital to our climate change future because it stores so much carbon. , , . , , carbon. this is a simple question _ carbon. this is a simple question but _ carbon. this is a simple question but perhaps i carbon. this is a simple i question but perhaps with carbon. this is a simple - question but perhaps with a not so simple answer, what is causing this?— causing this? well, it is a re causing this? well, it is a pretty simple _ causing this? well, it is a pretty simple answer. - causing this? well, it is a| pretty simple answer. we causing this? well, it is a - pretty simple answer. we have unsustainable practices that are associated with energy use and production and food reduction, consumption and waste that need to be reversed and there is lots of good information about how the nations of the world, the governments of the world can do that, and we have really important conferences coming up in november and december of this week, sorry, of this year to get after that. you can find out more at our website. pare

out more at our website. are out more at our website. are you calling — out more at our website. are you calling on _ out more at our website. are you calling on any _ out more at our website. are you calling on any governments to take any particular actions? we are calling on all governments to do what they can do to actually tackle the inextricably linked challenges of biodiversity loss and climate change. many of the solutions for each of these crises are shared and therefore going after both the setting, the targets, the financing and the targets, the financing and the implementation in the next decade is going to be critical for making sure that we have a world that is worth living and, that we can pass on to our grandchildren and their grandchildren and their grandchildren and their grandchildren and to sustain healthy production of food, healthy production of food, healthy and clean air to breathe and healthy water, so i think we have a decade to turn the corner on thesejoint the corner on these joint crises and i am optimistic that

we can do it. we have the kind of practices in place, we can do it if we all focus together. thank you very much. authorities in india have ordered a pharmaceutical company to stop producing cough syrups after reports that they may be linked to the deaths of dozens of children in the gambia. the west african nation is facing a growing scandal, as nearly 70 children have died with acute kidney injuries in just the past four months. this report from tom brada, and a warning that you might find some of it upsetting. when two—year—old fatoumatta developed a fever earlier this year, she was rushed to hospital, diagnosed with malaria and sent home with a prescription for a paracetamol syrup. less than a week later, she was dead. she's one of nearly 70 gambian children to die of acute kidney failure sincejuly, linked to four cough

syrups produced in india. fatoumatta's father described how his infant daughter suffered before she died. translation: she couldn't get anything down her throat. the child wasn't eating — she couldn't eat because of the pain. there was even blood coming from her mouth and her nose. last week, the world health organization issued a global alert, following reports from the gambia that dozens of children were being diagnosed with serious kidney problems. the four medicines are cough and cold syrups produced by maiden pharmaceuticals limited in india. maiden pharmaceuticals says it is shocked by the deaths, but insists that it does adhere to internationally recognised quality control standards. but indian health authorities are less convinced. they have now halted all manufacturing activities at the company. the cough syrup scandal

has also exposed problems with the health care system in the gambia, and is raising broader questions about the global pharmaceutical trade. behind the political route is the reality of a country which is mired in poverty and which lacks many of the safeguards taken for granted in other parts of the world. and it's the many bereaved mothers and fathers who are dealing with the consequences. translation: to me, we share this sad, devastating situation with all the families of the 69 children. we are devastated, but we will have to take heart and have faith in god. according to the red cross, more than 16,000 harmful medicines have now been identified and taken away to be destroyed. as authorities race to prevent further tragedy, officials have been going door—to—door, searching for products still in circulation and hoping their efforts aren't coming too late. tom brada, bbc news. scientists in australia have

grown brain cells in a lab that have learned how to play a basic video game. they say that their so—called mini—brain can sense and respond to its environment. the team also claims to have created the first �*sentient�* lab grown brain. other experts describe the work as �*exciting' but say that calling the brain cells sentient was going too far. here's our science correspondent, pallab ghosh. these little white blobs are clumps of brain cells that have been grown in a lab. researchers connected cells similar to these to a computer. under the microscope, you can see the tiny wires that sent electrical impulses in and out. it learnt to play a 1970s game called pong, in the rectangle on the screen. the lab—grown brain moves a white line to try and stop the dot getting past. right now, we have the chance for drug discovering, disease modelling, understanding intelligence. the next stage could

open up options such as cybersecurity management, or more autonomous devices. finally, perhaps we could even lead to sentient and fully autonomous robots that can act and change in the real world. the researches grew a clump of 800,000 brain cells from a mixture of mouse neurons and human stem cells. the plan is to see if more of these mini—brains become worse at playing the game after they've been dosed with alcohol, just like a human player would. mini—brains are also being grown in a uk lab in order to study brain development. it's taken researchers six weeks to grow these mini—brains. you can see the electrical activity of their neurons on this screen here. it's precisely because they behave similarly to human brains, even though it's at a very rudimentary level, that researchers here are taking great care in the way they develop the technology. there may be the potential, probably much further down the line, to simulate

something like certainly intelligence and cognition, and we want to make sure that we know ahead of time where that boundary is, so that we don't accidentally stumble over it. the scientists are working with ethics experts to develop new rules to regulate the research. will these so—called mini—brains develop to the point where they can feel pleasure or pain? and how might we consider their moral status if they were conscious or sentient? and how should we regulate the use of this research in future technology? these are questions that we haven't begun to consider. today's mini—brains are a very long way off from becoming self—aware, and many researchers believe that's unlikely to ever happen, but they agree that they do need to proceed with caution. pallab ghosh, bbc news.

the hollywood starjamie lee curtis has had her hands and feet immortalised in concrete stop it has been a prestigious honour for the last 95 years. the actress signed the date is october 31 rather than today's date october 12, october 31 rather than today's date 0ctober12, in tribute to the film that launched her movie career. before we go, bear with us, for the finale of a story that's gripped the world. a new champion has been crowned in this year's fat bear week. yes, that is a competition, with cameras following bears across katmai national park in alaska, as they devour fish ahead of their winter hibernation. and the winner is... bear 747. here he is back injune at the start of the salmon run, and here he is in september. since then, he kept gaining weight, reaching an estimated 635kg, that's 11100 pounds, and becoming one of the largest

brown bears on earth. you can reach me on twitter — i'm @richpreston. hello there. 0ur weather story is becoming a little bit more unsettled as we head towards the weekend. no two days the same at the moment, not only in terms of weather, but also the feel of things, both by day and night. now, for thursday, many of us will see some sunny spells, but there will be blustery, squally showers developing in the far north—west. over the next few hours, we'll start to see this weather front easing away from channel coasts. it mightjust continue to bring a little bit of early—morning rain on thursday. look at the temperatures — double digits because of the cloud and the rain around. further north, though, it's going to be a chilly start, with a touch of light frost in rural parts. but as we go through the day,

there will be a good slice of dry and sunny weather to look out for for most of us. into the afternoon, however, the winds will strengthen, we'll see some squally showers developing into northern ireland and north—west scotland in particular. elsewhere, temperatures pretty similar to the last few days by the middle of the afternoon. we're looking at highs of 11—17 celsius — that's 63 fahrenheit. now, that weather front will continue to move its way steadily south and east, weakening all the time. it's going to be replaced by another one moving through scotland and northern ireland as well. at the same time, there's the potentialfor a little bit of showery rain once again, just clinging on to channel coasts first thing on friday. sandwiched in between the two, we should see some drier, brighter interludes, and behind, its going to be bright and breezy with showers. so, friday's a really messy story, a real autumnal picture of blustery showers. warm in the sunshine still, with 17 degrees the high. now, low pressure never too far away as we head into the weekend. plenty of isobars, particularly the further north you go. gusts of wind, 40—50 mph, and they're going to be driving weather fronts

in around those areas of low pressure. so, saturday is going to be a case of sunny spells and squally showers, the showers most frequent out towards the west, but some of those will start to push a little bit further inland as the day continues. favoured spots for the best of the drier weather, parts of aberdeenshire and perhaps through south—east england as well. and here, we'll see highs again of around 11—17 celsius. not much change as we go into sunday and monday. the winds stay blustery from a warm source, plenty of showers to dodge as well. take care.

this is bbc news. the latest headlines: ajury in the us has ordered the conspiracy theorist alexjones to pay more than $900 million to the families of the victims of the sandy hook massacre. jones falsely claimed that the incident was staged by the government to try to tighter gun controls. —— tighten. the world wide fund for nature has urged governments businesses and the public to take what it's called "transformative action" to reverse the destruction of biodiversity. the plea come after their biannual report showed wildlife populations have declined by almost 70% since 1970.

the un general assembly has voted overwhelmingly to condemn russia's attempts