welcome to newsday. reporting live from singapore, i'm karishma vaswani. the headlines... protests against china's srict covid restrictions have spread, with some openly calling for president xi to stand down. the government seems to have drastically underestimated popular discontent — yet for the moment, has no easy way out. is this the goal that keeps germany in the world cup? we have the latest on the action in qatar. rescue efforts continue on the italian island of ischia — after a mudslide engulfed buildings and swept away people's homes. and with modern wheat varieties coming under pressure

from disease and climate change, we'll look at the older grains that could seed future crops. live from our studio in singapore. this is bbc news. it's newsday. hello, and welcome to the programme. it's 7am in singapore and in shanghai, china's biggest city — where online videos show thousands of people have taken to the streets protesting strict covid restrictions, and directing their anger at president xijinping. these public outbursts are rare, but protests have ecalated since rules aimed at stamping out the virus were blamed for people not being able to get out of a burning building in western xinjiang province. there have also been protests

in major cities like nanjing, wuhan, and the capital, beijing. our china correspondent stephen mcdonell reports from there. it's not unusual to see acts of defiance in china, but this was something different. chanting a crowd of protesters in shanghai chanted, calling for the country's leader, xijinping, to stand down and for the communist party to give up power. a fire which killed ten residents in xinjiang last week has prompted widespread anger in china. zero—covid restrictions have been blamed for hampering people's escape and slowing the access for fire crews. whether this is true or not, it sparked waves of protests in the regional capital, urumqi. this has now spread to other cities

and university campuses, transformed into demonstrations calling for an end to lockdowns. translation: it's all too chaotic. the implementation has been so messy. it's been three years already. translation: the pandemic policy is prolonging our suffering. - this policy is neither sustainable nor scientific. this policy won't change unless we speak up. people are also blaming xi jinping personally for not changing the zero—covid approach, which is forcing business after business to shut down. the policy is tied to something that really hits people in their everyday lives. the question of whether they can get on with going to work, that's where these restrictions have really come up against the idea that it is the leadership that is forcing these policies. protests have been building in china all year, with people

here increasingly sick of zero—covid restrictions. the government seems to have drastically underestimated popular discontent, yet, for the moment, has no easy way out of the zero—covid corner it's painted itself into. officially, china's goal is to return each outbreak to zero new infections using strict stay—at—home orders, travel restrictions, and mass testing. entire cities are still being locked down. but it's been criticised for not prioritising vaccination amongst high—risk groups and not increasing hospital capacity. there's also still no stated plan to open up, even at some time in the future. stephen mcdonnell, bbc news, beijing. for more on this, i am joined now by scott kennedy, senior adviser in chinese business and economy at the centre for strategic and international studies. he joins us from virginia.

it's great to get you on the programme, mr kennedy. we'vejust seen the reporting from my colleague — just in terms of your career covering china, have you seen this scale of protests before? what can be read into how this has all come about? ~ �* , _, about? well, i've been covering china for about _ about? well, i've been covering china for about 34 _ about? well, i've been covering china for about 34 years, - about? well, i've been covering china for about 34 years, and i about? well, i've been covering china for about 34 years, and of course that includes 1989 and the june four protest. but since then, protests by workers, by rural people and others — protest is a fact of life in china, but we forgot about that under xijinping life in china, but we forgot about that under xi jinping because of the top—down clinical nature of the system, and the fact that it looked like 0—covid was working until earlier this year and people are just tired of it. it will be very difficult for the communist party to address the concerns that people have because they really, as your reporters have said, painted themselves into a corner and it's

not an easy problem to fix. where do ou see not an easy problem to fix. where do you see things _ not an easy problem to fix. where do you see things going _ not an easy problem to fix. where do you see things going from _ not an easy problem to fix. where do you see things going from here? - not an easy problem to fix. where do you see things going from here? do i you see things going from here? do you see things going from here? do you see things going from here? do you see protests escalating, more police presence on the street? i think it'll probably take a combination of steps by the government. one is to keep the protest from getting out of hand, much larger than they have, so we are likely to see arrests and detainment of protest leaders. also an effort to try and adjust some of the challenges which, as many know, means more vaccinations, better preparation for hospitals there, to move to a post—pandemic era — that's really the ultimate solution here. so the government will try and keep the protests from growing, but also try and address some of the challenges that generate the protests in the first place. scott,

it seems quite — protests in the first place. scott, it seems quite unprecedented i it seems quite unprecedented certainly to see these scenes, at least for me, looking at what we've seen over the last few days. it wasn't long ago that people in china for the most part were sort of going along with the zero covid policy, along with the zero covid policy, along with the zero covid policy, along with lockdowns and the strict quarantines — what do you think has changed? quarantines - what do you think has chanced? , , , quarantines - what do you think has chanced? , , _ . ., changed? very simply, omicron. that's what _ changed? very simply, omicron. that's what changed _ changed? very simply, omicron. that's what changed everything. | that's what changed everything. pre—february 2022, zero covid policy in china and many other places worked. it didn't require these occasional lockdowns and the economy was moving along. but once omicron came along, the rest of the world adopted strategies to live with the virus through vaccination and other measures, but china did not. and their strategy has really not been able to cope with a much more virulent virus since then. i was in

china in september and octoberfor seven weeks, and i can tell you that people were really tired of this, and some people were really traumatised because of the long lockdowns they had faced. so what they are really asking for is a real solution to get to a post—pandemic era. there is a road map, but it's a challenging road map, and we will see if xijinping and his colleagues have the courage to implement it. i'd like to get your thoughts on this, as well, there's been some suggestions certainly on social media that chinese people have been watching the world cup, but remarking on the fact that many of us, most of us are watching and participating in all this without masks — how much do you think masks have a role in all this? masks - how much do you think masks have a role in all this?— have a role in all this? when i was in china in — have a role in all this? when i was in china in september— have a role in all this? when i was in china in september and - have a role in all this? when i wasl in china in september and october, people were wearing their masks, they were scanning to get into buildings and following the rules, but they didn't do so out of a sense that it was really protecting them,

but a sense of obligation. they look and see what's going on around the world and for the first few years of the pandemic, they thought china was in a better situation — now that comparison shows china is worse off, their economy is suffering, their international reputation is suffering, people can't travel in and out of china. so i think this is and out of china. so i think this is a pressure cooker that's been growing and people are sounding off like we wouldn't expect them, but comparable to what they've done in the past and it puts the leadership in a bind because they have to address this, or protests and dissatisfaction will grow. scott kennedy thank _ dissatisfaction will grow. scott kennedy thank you _ dissatisfaction will grow. scott kennedy thank you so - dissatisfaction will grow. scott kennedy thank you so much i dissatisfaction will grow. scott kennedy thank you so much for joining us in the programme. the bbc has issued this statement about the detention of one of ourjournalists in shanghai. the bbc is extremely concerned about the treatment

of ourjournalist ed lawrence, who was arrested and handcuffed while covering the protests in shanghai, he was held for several hours and later released. during his arrest he was beaten and kicked by the police. we've had no official explanation or apology from the chinese authorities. you will find more on the protests in china on our website, where there is a live page keeping you up to date on developments — that's bbc news at the usual place. it's been another dramatic day of action at the the world cup in qatar — with germany managing to draw 1—1 against spain, keeping their hopes of qualifying for the next round alive. here's gavin ramjaun at the bbc sport centre with all the latest. it was looking dreadful for germany but they scrambled a late equaliser. both goals in the 1—1 draw

coming in the second half, the substitute putting spain one—up. and it looked as though germany were staying on no points, with their hopes diminishing as the game passed until one of their replacements, nicholas fullkrug, came to the rescue with an emphatic finish. let's get some more reaction to that game now with our reporter rhia chohan, in qatar. great to see you, talk us through the match and where it leaves germany in the tournament. gavin, it was the headline match in the group stages, and spain were looking for that win to send them straight through after that emphatic victory over costa rica, the 7—0 win. and as you mentioned, it was a great finish for morata in the 62nd minute, putting them ahead. but even more was riding on it for germany — and that was because they wanted to avoid a second group stage exit in successive world cups. and it was germany's best player on the night that did set up that crucial equaliser. nicholas fullkrug making it a draw,

germany clenching it with that one point that they crucially needed. so if you talk about permutations now, germany still need to win the final game against costa rica. and it will come down to the goal difference betweenjapan and germany. and it's spain that do playjapan. thank you very much indeed, rhia chohan for us. there was a shock in group f earlier — morocco's sensational 2—1 win against belgium, they took the lead in the second half through this free kick, which somehow managed to squeeze past the goalkeeper in the belgian goal. then made it two in stoppage time — the result means morocco move above belgium on four points, level with croatia, and it makes belgium's route to the last 16 in little more complicated. well, in the game after,

croatia sent out a real statement after a bit of rivalry in the build—up to that match. and they made easy work of canada with a 4—1 victory to top the group. canada got off to the best possible start, davies headed home with less than two minutes gone for canada's first—ever world cup goal. but croatia, finalists in 2018, showed their experience and they got back into the game later in the first half. andre kramaric with the first of his two goals to pull them level, and marko livaja wrapped up the match in injury time. the defeat means that canada are now out of the world cup. and just a reminder — in the big game of the day, spain and germany finished 1—1. updates from that and the match reaction on the bbc sport website. but that is all the sport from us for now, we will see you soon.

and you certainly will in 20 minutes' time. if you want to get in touch with me, i'm on twitter — @bbckarishma. you're watching newsday on the bbc. still to come on the programme: one of the world's most vital crops — wheat. we have a special report on how scientists are looking at older crops to help secure future grains. it's quite clear that the worst victims of this disaster are the poor people living in the slums which have sprung up around the factory. i'm feeling so helpless that the children are dying in front of me, and i can't do anything.

charles manson is the mystical leader of the hippie cult suspected of killing sharon tate and at least six other people in los angeles. at 11am this morning, _ just half a metre of rock separated britain from continental europe. it took the drills just i a few moments to cut through the final obstacle. then philippe cozette, a miner from calais, . was shaking hands and exchanging flags with robert fagg, _ his opposite number from dover. this is newsday on the bbc. i'm karishma vaswani in singapore. our headlines... protests against strict covid policies have been held in some of china's biggest cities. china's population has faced nearly

three years of mass testing, quarantines and snap lockdowns. germany have kept their hopes of staying in the world cup alive with a 1—1 draw against spain. a late equaliser helped the germans avoid a second defeat in a row. now to italy, where a state of emergency has been declared on the island of ischia — after torrential rains triggered a landslide that destroyed homes and hurled cars into the sea. at least seven people have been killed. our correspondent mark lowen travelled to the island, which is just off the coast of naples, and sent this report. rescuing the fragments of once tranquil ischia, divers picked out what they could after the mudslide that cascaded through this island, tossing what lay in its path into the ocean or into each other. some cars battered beyond recognition as torrents of mud poured down here. they scoured the seas for wreckage and bodies.

with the number of deaths growing and reports of islanders still missing, the fear is that as more areas are reached, other victims will be found. it began before dawn on saturday after torrential rain, the deepest and most sudden on record here, unleashing the chaos that tore down the hills. from above, the destruction was clear, with houses buried, many of them illegally built and unable to withstand the mud. what lay in its wake swept into the sea. this just shows the weakness of man against nature. while a crane and a whole team are needed to liftjust one vehicle, the mudslide hurled so many of them with its force. when the torrent of debris and earth came hurtling down here, little could withstand it. up the hill, the desolation deepens. a whole square under mud, desperate attempts to save what they can. we found a woman devastated

by the destruction of her shop that rents motorbikes to tourists. translation: my son has shut himself indoors because he doesn't _ want to see any of this. he feels ill because he's seeing all of our sacrifices were worthless. i hope someone will help us. i'm speechless. with rescue teams inundated, her husband and elderly father have had to step in to help clear. translation: i feel destroyed for my daughter, of course. - we'll try and see if someone will help, because we've worked all our lives to build this, and all of a sudden, it disappeared. supplies have been brought forward dozens evacuated from their homes put up in hotels, guests on their own island. this woman from ukraine has lived here for 25 years. -- 20 —— 20 years. i came out shouting to my husband that our neighbours had

lost their daughter and her baby. i was back in ukraine during the war, then i came here and our houses are destroyed and people are missing. how could this happen? then a mass to bring solace to those seeking answers in tragedy. their minds turn to the moment the earth broke away and engulfed their lives, an island overwhelmed by itself. mark lowen, bbc news, ischia. let's take a look at some other stories in the headlines... in an online video, the niece of iran's supreme leader, ayatollah ali khamenei, has called on all foreign governments to cut ties with tehran. activists say farideh moradkhani was arrested injanuary, and is being held in a notorious tehran prison. pope francis has spoken of his worries about increased violence between israelis and palestinians. the pontiff highlighted last wednesday's bomb attacks injerusalem that killed an israeli teenager and the death

of a palestinian boy on the same day in the occupied west bank. let's turn to ukraine now — where snow is falling in kyiv, and temperatures are hovering around freezing, as the country battles to cope with power cuts after a barrage of russian missile strikes targeting ukraine's energy grid. the cold weather is pushing up energy needs even as repair workers race to fix wrecked power facilities. jessica parker reports from kyiv. it's almost a novelty, the lights come on. the water too! ludmilla, who lives on her own had, like millions, been without power for days. these outages could keep happening again and again this winter. is it bearable? translation: it's impossible to live in the city without electricity -

and water, the radiators doesn't work, the water is cold, it's cold everywhere. only one hope remains, that we will win. we had found her here the night before, in a tent by a main road, one of the many public refuges springing up across ukraine. it's a lifeline for everyday contact, but also emergencies. irena, nine months pregnant, wants to know she can call for help just in case. we come here because we need extra call to 911, for emergencies, because i am pregnant, and after today, i am due. here there is heat, a chance to work, or play. some just sit in silence. this war could be a long wait.

volodymyr and his mother are here to get hot water for his child, who's unwell. olga says the strain of it all is getting to her. translation: it was already very difficult for me, - i used to hold on but now my nervous system cannot cope with this load. it's so hard, this morning i could barely get up. winter brings a few guarantees, except the cold, and fears russia will keep targeting ukraine's energy system, driving people here to shelter from their own homes. jessica parker, bbc news, kyiv. one of the global effects of the war in ukraine has been wheat becoming more scarce and more expensive in many countries — because of the disruption to grain from ukraine. but there's also a need for new varieties of wheat better able to cope with disease and climate change.

our science editor rebecca morelle has more. archive: wheat. in britain, the most momentous harvest of all time. it's a crop we've long relied on. wheat being harvested in 1946. their enemies are wind and rain. it was the start of a farming revolution, growing only a few varieties chosen to produce as much grain as possible. could contain a solution. there are 12,000 specimens of wheat and its relatives stored here, and they date back to the 1700s and come from every continent apart from antarctica. and the hope is that looking back into the past can help us to produce the crops of the future.

this specimen, which was collected on captain cook's first voyage to australia... oh, wow, you can see the dates, can't you? every wheat specimen is painstakingly examined and photographed, and 1,500 of them will have their genomes sequenced. because the collection spans also across time, across 300 years, we have specimens that are from before the introduction of various agricultural techniques, so they can tell us something about how wheat was growing wild, or before things like artificial fertilisers. the project will take months to complete. ah, so here we are. at thejohn innes centre in norwich, they're also shining a light on the past. i wanted to show you these old herbarium sheets. their samples go back 100 years and they're looking to crossbreed these older plants with today's varieties. and what we want to do is look for new and useful genetic variation. so disease resistance,

stress resistance, increased yield. they've already started some field trials. it's essential to find solutions. climate change and the extreme weather it brings is reducing the amount we can grow globally. and pests and diseases are a big problem, too. one fifth of the projected yield is lost to them each year. there's a very important disease of wheat, which is a global problem called yellow rust, and that has been increasingly difficult to control and defend wheat against. within this collection of old wheat, there are new resistances to that disease which stand up against this disease. and they're being deployed by breeders right now to defend this really important threat to wheat production. the wheat we grow is going to have to change. looking back into our past and rediscovering lost varieties could be the best way to move forward. rebecca morelle, bbc news.

that's all for now — stay with bbc world news. hello. the week ahead will bring something drier and a bit colder, also some issues with the lingering fog. this afternoon, we've had issues with lingering rain, plenty of showers for western areas, heavy and thundery for north—west scotland. this large swathe of cloud is attached to a frontal system which has been very slow to clear from east anglia and south—east england. this is the earlier rainfall. you can also see the showers pushing in to western areas, and it's these two areas that will keep seeing some rain as we head through the overnight period. eventually, it will start to clear away from south—east england and east anglia. plenty of showers, though, pushing into western areas. in between, some clearer skies, but where we've got lighter winds, that will encourage some fog to form, particularly across north—east england. the winds generally lighter for most, but could still be fairly gusty for the western isles

of scotland and some irish sea coasts, and particularly gusty in association with any showers. slightly colder night than recently. temperatures could get low enough for a touch of frost across parts of north—east scotland, maybe north—east england, where the skies do stay clear. so, for the week ahead it's looking much drier across the uk, but with lighter winds that could bring some issues with the lingering fog, and it will gradually start to turn colder as well. monday, for many, starts mainly dry with some sunshine, but still with some showers around. it will start to fade across scotland, northern ireland and north—west england, but will keep some going through parts of wales, south—west england and also some southern coastal counties and the channel islands. could see that fog lingering across parts of north—east scotland. for many, though, it's a dry day with some sunshine, feeling a little cooler compared to the weekend. so, 9—12 celsius the top temperature, and with light winds on tuesday, that overnight mist and fog once again could be slow to clear. there will be some bright or sunny spells, those best placed will be through parts of south—west england, wales, northern ireland and northern scotland, but some places could sit under

the low cloud, mist and fog all day, and where we do, of course, that will have an impact on the temperatures. as we head through wednesday, thursday and friday, we start to see this dominant area of high pressure across eastern europe, starting to exert its influence across the uk. we pick up more of an east or south easterly wind, and so gradually, we'll start to see some colder air heading our way. at this stage, not very cold, but it will be feeling colder than it has done recently. so, for the week ahead, for many, it's looking mainly dry. not lots of sunshine, there will be a lot of cloud around, some lingering fog, but those temperature slowly starting to come down.

hello and welcome to our look ahead to what the the papers will be bringing us tomorrow. with me are andrew kidd, lawyer and broadcaster and the former british ambassador to the united states, lord kim darroch. lovely to see you both again. a quick look through our pages. the daily telegraph leads on anti—lockdown marches in china. it says that beijing is facing "unprecedented disobedience". the front page of the times calls the demonstrations the "biggest since tiananmen" and highlights

students protesting on the grounds of two universities in beijing.