this is bbc news. i'm sally bundock with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. in a surprise announcement, new zealand's prime minister, jacinda ardern, says she will stand down in less than three weeks. i know what this job takes, and i know that i no longer have enough in the tank to do itjustice — it's that simple. a day of mass strikes begins in france over a rise in the pension age and a date�*s set for the biggest walk—outs in the uk's health service history. orphaned by ebola. a decade on from west africa's largest outbreak of the disease, we have a special report on the children who lost both parents. found and killed after

four days on the run. the escaped pet tiger who left johannesburg residents worrying for their safety. hello and welcome. the prime minister of new zealand, jacinda ardern, has announced she will stand down next month, saying she no longer has "enough in the tank" after 5.5 challenging years in charge. her party will elect her replacement on sunday. our correspondent, shaimaa khalil sent this report. holding khalil sent this report. back tears, as she made this holding back tears, as she made this announcement. i holding back tears, as she made this announcement.— this announcement. i will not be seeking — this announcement. i will not be seeking re-election. - this announcement. i will not be seeking re-election. in . this announcement. i will not be seeking re-election. in ani be seeking re-election. in an emotional— be seeking re-election. in an emotional press _ be seeking re-election. in an emotional press conference i emotional press conference jacinda ardern said she was no secret scandal behind her

resignation, only that she no longer have the energy to go on as leader. i longer have the energy to go on as leader. ~ ., longer have the energy to go on as leader-— as leader. i know what this 'ob takes and fi as leader. i know what this 'ob takes and i �* as leader. i know what this 'ob takes and i no i as leader. i know what this 'ob takes and i no longer fl as leader. i know what this 'ob takes and i no longer have h takes and i no longer have enoughin takes and i no longer have enough in the tank to do it justice. enough in the tank to do it 'ustice. ,, . , enough in the tank to do it 'ustice. ,, ., , , ., , justice. she was the youngest head of government - justice. she was the youngest head of government in - justice. she was the youngest head of government in the . justice. she was the youngest i head of government in the world when she was elected prime ministers in 2017. just 37 years old at the time. she soon became a global icon for progressive politics. she gave water —— birth to her daughter in power becoming the second woman in modern history to do that after pakistan's mate leader, benazir bhutto. she said while the last five and half years with the most fulfilling of her life, they also had their challenges. her premiership has been tested time and time again, especially by the christchurch terror attacks. the worst in new zealand's modern history, 50 people were killed and dozens wounded when a gunman shot worshippers during friday

prayers during march 16 and 2019. she agreed with the families and her decisiveness and input united the nation at the most tragic of times. she also steered the country to the covid—19 pandemic, thanks to an early and strict lockdown, new zealand has had one of the lowest birth rates globally. she will be remembered as a really great historic and great promise to, we had relatively few deaths, we had that lockdown and she had an incredibly good communicative style. incredibly good communicative s le. ,, ., incredibly good communicative s le, ,, ., ., ., , style. she won a landslide second term _ style. she won a landslide second term in _ style. she won a landslide second term in twenty20 | style. she won a landslide - second term in twenty20 bout her popularity has led as a public trust in government steadily declined with a deteriorating economic situation. his centre—left labor party will elect a new leader and prime minister. the general election will be held on october general election will be held on 0ctober1li, but her last day in office as february seven.

she will be remembered for steering her country through tough times and as ahead of state hooted with kindness and compassion. shaimma khalil, bbc news. just time to let you know, there's much more about jacinda ardern, and how she changed politics in new zealand and around the world on our website. you can find details of the problems she faced and how she tackled them by logging on to bbc.com/news or you can go via the bbc app. more than a thousand ambulance workers in wales have started the first of two 24—hour strikes. in england, nurses are holding their second day of strike action in a row. unions representing the health workers have called for pay rises that reflect the soaring cost of living, but ministers say such increases are unaffordable. john maguire reports.

protect the nhs. again today as yesterday and for the third time this winter, tens of thousands of nurses are leaving wards and joining picket lines outside. wards and 'oining picket lines outside. , ._ wards and 'oining picket lines outside. , , ., outside. every day is a struggle _ outside. every day is a struggle for _ outside. every day is a struggle for all - outside. every day is a struggle for all of - outside. every day is a struggle for all of us i outside. every day is a - struggle for all of us working in the hospital. we have to deal with short staffing every single day, asking our workforce to stretch themselves, more than they are able to do. we have been doing it for so long we are running on fumes. it for so long we are running on fumes-— it for so long we are running on fumes. ., , u, on fumes. the union is calling it these days _ on fumes. the union is calling it these days are _ on fumes. the union is calling it these days are previously i it these days are previously unprecedented action to demand a pay rise, currently 19%. talks with the government had taken place but often have endedin taken place but often have ended in acrimony and no resolution. ministers maintain the nhs pay review body is independent, a claim the british medical association a doctor's union describes as a sham. but the government is

insisting the 4.75% rise recommended by the body as fair. ~ ., ., recommended by the body as fair. ~ . ., ., “ fair. we want to work constructively - fair. we want to work constructively with i fair. we want to work| constructively with the fair. we want to work i constructively with the trade unions in terms of the pay review body process, there is of discussions to be had that as a constructive way i and other ministers are engaging with respective trade unions. 0ne with respective trade unions. one out of four hospital and community services are affected by the strikes, but emergency and urgent care is continuing. anyone with an appointment who hasn't been told it's cancelled should still attend. next month, though, the situation will worsen. forthe month, though, the situation will worsen. for the first time on february six in england and wales, nurses from the union will strike once again but this time, will bejoined by ambulance service workers from the gmb union. disruption will be widespread in that first day will be the biggest of industrial relations in the nhs fa unless in the meantime, a solution to this very damaging

dispute can be found. john maguire, bbc news. well, in france, president emmanuel macron is facing similar discontent. his plans to push back the retirement age from 62 to 64 by 2030 are about to face their biggest challenge yet. unions have said they will stage a day of mass strikes, in what's being called "black thursday". 0ur news reporter azadeh moshiri joins us now. and this isn't the first time by any means that a french president has tried to raise the retirement age. what do unions say we can expect today? what do unions say we can exaect today?— expect today? one of the [arc est expect today? one of the largest mobilisations i expect today? one of the i largest mobilisations france has seen in years, extremely rare for all unions to band together like this, even the most moderate of unions is joining in and that hasn't happened for more than a decade. that means things like intercity and commuter trains will be disrupted, some schools will be disrupted, some schools will shut, will be disrupted, some schools willshut, even will be disrupted, some schools will shut, even some flights have been cancelled, and unions

are saying there will be large demonstrations across france and especially paris, and remember, this parliamentary process to get this bill through will take weeks, not days, so these disruptions, have occurred for quite some time, so it's a very significant challenge for president macron, despite the concessions he has tried to make. , , ., ., ., concessions he has tried to make. , ., ., ,.,, make. this is an ongoing story, something _ make. this is an ongoing story, something previous _ make. this is an ongoing story, something previous presidents| something previous presidents has tried to change and failed, where they want to increase the retirement age in france, the argument as it is not affordable? it argument as it is not affordable?— argument as it is not affordable? ,�* ., affordable? it isn't popular now under _ affordable? it isn't popular now under president i affordable? it isn't popular i now under president macron or popular before, sharks chirac tried in the 90s and it failed, nicolas sarkozy did manage to in 2010 but it took huge disruption and protest to get that through yet the government is arguing it is extremely necessary, that's why president macron has been pushing for this since his first term in 2017, they are saying this

system is costing the equivalent of 14% of the french gdp, one of the highest in the world. and other european countries have taken similar measures, italy and germany have raised the retirement age to 67, 66 in the uk, but whether it makes sense or not as political rivals are making hay out of this.— as political rivals are making hay out of this. interesting to see how this _ hay out of this. interesting to see how this pans _ hay out of this. interesting to see how this pans out - hay out of this. interesting to see how this pans out in i hay out of this. interesting to | see how this pans out in time, because you say this will take weeks to become law in france but does with protest going on daily, if they do and the disruption it causes, this will be really tough?— be really tough? absolutely, durin: be really tough? absolutely, during the — be really tough? absolutely, during the cost _ be really tough? absolutely, during the cost of— be really tough? absolutely, during the cost of living i during the cost of living crisis, the fact there is a war in ukraine impacting energy bills, small businesses are feeling this, and people feeling this, and people feeling it on their purses and pockets as well, so it is a especially difficult time to do this, a time when francis dealing many challenges. thank ou so

dealing many challenges. thank you so much. — dealing many challenges. thank you so much, in _ dealing many challenges. thank you so much, in 20 _ dealing many challenges. thank you so much, in 20 minutes i dealing many challenges. thankl you so much, in 20 minutes time when we look at our business coverage we will go live to paris to get an expert view on the strike action, what economic case is for and against, all that coming later. let's get some of the day's other news. the white former police officer who killed the african american george floyd is appealing against his conviction. derek chauvin is serving a 22.5—year sentence for murder. his lawyers say he didn't get a fair trial because of intense media attention and alleged errors in legal procedure. brazil's president lula has blamed the intelligence services in the country forfailing to give him prior warning of the uprising against his presidency earlier this month. in an interview on brazilian television, lula said that his intelligence "didn't exist" on the day of the violent protests in which presidential offices and the congress building were vandalised. officials in california say a man reported missing

while walking in the san gabriel mountains north of los angeles is the british actorjulian sands. the 65—year—old was last seen on friday. he'd been walking in an area known as the baldy bowl, where conditions are described as treacherous, with torrential rain and freezing overnight temperatures. this year marks a decade since the largest ever outbreak of ebola began, which killed more than 11,000 people in west africa. the three main countries affected were sierra leone, liberia, and guinea — where the outbreak started. it left around 20,000 children without one or both of their parents. the bbc�*s caroline loyer has been to meet two teenagers in western guinea to find out how they managed to cope with the loss of their parents at such a young age. her life is now one of normality and stability. but in 2015, herworld

normality and stability. but in 2015, her world collapsed when ebola tore through her family. i have lost 11 family members. all in the space of a few weeks. the outbreak started in guinea at the end of 2013 before spreading to liberia and syria leone. in three is 11,000 people died and 20,000 children lost one or both parents. she was nine years old when she contracted the virus at the same time as her parents. and it wasn'tjust a same time as her parents. and it wasn't just a disease destroying communities. it was disinformation as well.- disinformation as well. people would say _ disinformation as well. people would say if — disinformation as well. people would say if you _ disinformation as well. people would say if you go _ disinformation as well. people would say if you go to - disinformation as well. people would say if you go to the i would say if you go to the hospital they will kill you. if you take the medicine you will die. i would you take the medicine you will die. iwould refuse you take the medicine you will die. i would refuse to take the medicine. die. i would refuse to take the medicine-— medicine. and it was the survivor _ medicine. and it was the survivor who _ medicine. and it was the survivor who managed i medicine. and it was the | survivor who managed to convince her to take distin and eat. she was a volunteer at the hospital, ebola had taken her

husband, one of her children and almost her as well. she wanted to make sure patients were listening to medical advice, so they too had a chance of survival. after she got better, she wanted to go home to live with her siblings but some in herfamily home to live with her siblings but some in her family were convinced she was too contagious and refusing to loud at the time. eight years on the pain is terrible. i at the time. eight years on the pain is terrible.— pain is terrible. i was suffering _ pain is terrible. i was suffering and - pain is terrible. i was suffering and they i pain is terrible. i was i suffering and they didn't accept me. i will never forget what they did to me till the day i die. it what they did to me till the day i die-— what they did to me till the da i die. ., ~ ., ., day i die. it was mumma who ave day i die. it was mumma who gave her— day i die. it was mumma who gave her a — day i die. it was mumma who gave her a home, _ day i die. it was mumma who gave her a home, along i day i die. it was mumma who gave her a home, along with| gave her a home, along with four other orphans.- gave her a home, along with four other orphans. when i took on these children _ four other orphans. when i took on these children it _ four other orphans. when i took on these children it was - on these children it was difficult because they were always thinking about their parents, because of the epidemic, they could not attend the funerals, they kept asking for their parents, it was hard but i was able to comfort them because i went through the same

thing. we went through it together and now we are strong together. together and now we are strong touether. ., ,., ., together. the region ebola left hundreds of — together. the region ebola left hundreds of orphans. - together. the region ebola left hundreds of orphans. i - together. the region ebola left hundreds of orphans. i have i hundreds of orphans. i have lost my father, _ hundreds of orphans. i have lost my father, two - hundreds of orphans. i have lost my father, two uncles, | hundreds of orphans. i have i lost my father, two uncles, my mother. and a sister. he lost my father, two uncles, my mother. and a sister.— lost my father, two uncles, my mother. and a sister. he was 12 when he was — mother. and a sister. he was 12 when he was taken _ mother. and a sister. he was 12 when he was taken in _ mother. and a sister. he was 12 when he was taken in by - mother. and a sister. he was 12 when he was taken in by his i when he was taken in by his grandmother. but like cardio he suffered rejection.— suffered re'ection. people wouldn-t_ suffered rejection. people wouldn't come _ suffered rejection. people wouldn't come near i suffered rejection. people wouldn't come near me, | suffered rejection. people i wouldn't come near me, they wouldn't come near me, they would back away, even my friends here didn't want to play with me. to friends here didn't want to play with me— friends here didn't want to play with me. to david lipson the community _ play with me. to david lipson the community have - play with me. to david lipson| the community have changed, play with me. to david lipson i the community have changed, he no longer lives in chamber at the memory of his parents as always with them. i the memory of his parents as always with them.— the memory of his parents as always with them. i think about my appearance _ always with them. i think about my appearance every _ always with them. i think about my appearance every single i always with them. i think about. my appearance every single day, when i see parents playing with the children, memories come back, sometimes it even makes me cry. pl, back, sometimes it even makes mec . �* ., , back, sometimes it even makes mec .~ . ,~~~ back, sometimes it even makes mec .~ ., me cry. a heavy absence but he sa s he me cry. a heavy absence but he says he is _ me cry. a heavy absence but he says he is now _ me cry. a heavy absence but he says he is now hope _ me cry. a heavy absence but he says he is now hope the - me cry. a heavy absence but he

says he is now hope the future. | says he is now hope the future. i want to finish studying to help my grandmother the way she helped me, she is my mother and my father, she is my everything. caroline loyer, bbc news, western guinea. a series lthlth tacks by armed groups. the bodies of 42 people, including women and children had been discovered in the village and a further seven men in the village. stay with us on bbc news, still to come:

donald trump is now the 45th president of the united states. he was sworn in before several hundred thousand people on the steps of capitol hill in washington. it's going to be only america first — america first. demonstrators waiting for mike gatting and his rebel cricket team were attacked with tear gas and set upon by police dogs. anti—apartheid campaigners say they will carry on the protests throughout the tour. they called him 'the butcher of lyon'. klaus altmann is being held on a fraud charge in bolivia. the west germans want to extradite him for crimes committed in wartime france. there, he was the gestapo chief klaus barbie. millions came to bathe as close as possible to this spot — - a tide of humanity- that's believed by officials to have broken all records.

this is bbc news. the latest headlines: jacinda ardern is resigning as prime minister of new zealand after five years — saying she has nothing left in the tank. a day of mass strikes begins in france over a rise in the pension age and a date's set for the biggest walk—outs in the uk's health service history. let's go to afghanistan now, where the most senior un delegation to visit the country since the taliban seized power in 2021 has flown into kabul — to raise concerns about restrictions on women working for aid agencies. the visit by the un deputy secretary general, amina mohammad, comes as some international aid organisations have partially resumed work in afghanistan after receiving assurances that women can work in healthcare. 0ur chief international correspondent lyse doucet

reports from kabul. winters are always harsh in afghanistan but this is the winter of all winters. not only the temperatures below freezing but this is a country where electricity is erratic or absent and heating is hard to find, especially in remote areas of afghanistan, which are all but cut off by snow. but on top of that, this year, the taliban have decided that afghan women can no longer work for the international aid agencies who are desperately trying to get this urgently needed aid to millions of people who need it. so, just how urgent is the situation? we'rejoined here in kabul by samira sayed rahman, who works for the international charity, the international rescue committee. how worried are you? you know, international rescue committee was able to reach five million afghans last year. we've suspended most of our activities across the country because we are not able to work

without our female staff at all levels of our organisation. we were already seeing earlier last — at the end of last year that most families around this country were having to choose between food or heating. the taliban recently clarified that they'll make an exception when it comes to the health ministry because they do need women doctors and nurses to serve women of this country. is it possible that, step by step, this edict could be reversed ? as we saw with the health sector, it's notjust doctors and nurses. we also need female staff at all levels of our organisation — in admin roles, in finance roles, in technical support — to work alongside ourfemale colleagues. this is a conservative society. samira sayed, we wish you the best and we — all eyes now are on this high level united nations delegation. it says there needs to be a woman. there also needs to be women coming to this country at this high level to underline that educated women playing senior roles in society is absolutely part of the world we live

in today because it's not just that afghan women are being stopped from working in certain states notjust aid, but in many government industries. afghan girls are not going to school. they're not going to university. they're also not even allowed to go to public parks in this city. the world wants to say with one voice this is not acceptable. lyse doucet reporting. a state of emergency is in place in peru's capital, lima, where thousands of anti—government protesters are taking part in demonstrations. they are calling for the resignation of president dina boluartay, the release from custody of the man she replaced — pedro castiyo— and new elections. buses brought protesters into the capital. 0rganisers have described their action as 'the taking of lima.�* one woman has died today and more than a0 people have been killed in a month of protests in the country since mr castiyo was forced from office.

sigrid bazan is a congresswoman of the together for peru party. she is demanding the immediate resignation of president dina boluarte and early elections. what's been happening in peru, we've been having these protests since december 7 with the ousting of pedro castillo. and also, they have been growing due to the excessive repression of this government. we're joining these protests that ask or demand, basically, dina boluarte's resignation, also early elections, and finally, a new constitution that's also something that in many regions outside lima, protesters have been demanding and claiming. so tomorrow there's a big protest that has been called by several unions, indigenous communities and other organisations, students, etc. so we're hoping that this peaceful protest that is

actually a constitutional right can be held with the guarantees and also with the respect of human rights. a tiger which had been on the loose south of johannesburg for four days has been found and euthenised. tigers are not native to south africa, and animal welfare charities say they're bred there for commercial purposes. gail malellan reports. whistling the hunter, hunted — for four days, special police and community units searched through farmland south ofjohannesburg for sheba, an eight—year—old bengal tiger who it's believed had been kept as a pet on a small holding. they tracked her movements and were hoping to be able to dart and anaesthetise the tiger.

she is dead. it has been confirmed she has been euthanised this morning, just before 11:00. as she roamed the farmland getting closer to more denseply populated areas, sheba is believed to have killed two dogs and attacked a man who escaped with injuries. this man's dog was a victim. translation: my brother-in-law screamed, "joseph, joseph, i there's a tiger over there!" my wife and i went outside with a torch. when the tiger saw the light, it ran away. in the early hours of the morning, it came back and attacked my dog. police were hoping they would be able to remove sheba to a big—cat sanctuary, keeping her and the public safe. they honour permits to protect these wild and exotic animals. these animals don't belong in a residential area. they don't belong in captivity. they belong in the wild, where they can exhibit their natural

behaviour and what they're meant to do. animal welfare organisations are calling for the south african government to make it harderfor people across the country to keep exotic — and often dangerous — animals as pets. and, moreover, to end the commercial trade in big—cat species. gail maclellan, bbc news. a brazilian woman has become the first person to run up the tallest mountain in antarctica. fernanda maciel reached the summit of mount vinson which is nearly 5,000m in height. tim allman reports. vamanos! climbing a mountain is hard enough. running up one is a whole different story. but that is what fernanda maciel and her guide sam hennessey decided to do. a vast expanse of snow and rock and ice, becoming, in effect, a racetrack.

the condition is completely extreme, it's —30 to —50, and the route is hard. you can say that again. when you are not running at a constant energy sapping angle, you are trying to climb up a rope as quickly as possible. it normally takes anything up to a week to scale mount vinson. fernanda did it in little more than 6.5 hours. and after a quick look around, she and sam promptly ran all the way back down. we had so much fun, to go down this 1200 metres rope, it was so funny to run that, it's crazy. with gravity on their side the return trip took little more than three hours. and fernanda is now thinking of a fresh challenge. her dream is to run up mount everest.

tim allman, bbc news. hello. this week's weather has been following a familiar pattern — most of the wintry showers have been across northern and western parts of the uk, so some good covering of snow in places, especially into the higher ground. the further east you are in the uk, it's been mainly dry. even though it's been sunny though, it hasn't melted the frost. and we're in the cold air, clearly. there is a change though going into the weekend — milder air toppling in across the north and west of the uk. warmer colours doesn't translate into sunshine, mind you. the blue hanging on a bit longer towards east anglia and the southeast — so here through the weekend, we'll stay cold. until the weekend, though, it is cold still across the uk. however, where we've had those wintry showers, once we get past thursday morning, they are going to be easing. another widespread and quite hard frost as the day begins, and do watch out for ice

after the showers we've had overnight, and there'll still be some falling into the morning — northern scotland, for example, for northern ireland, for wales and for western parts of england. there are met office warnings out there, do check those if you're heading out early on. through the day, most of these wintry showers will fade. a lot of people will have dry weather, but windy with further rain, sleet, and snow pushing back in across northern scotland, adding to the snow we've already got here, and maybe the odd shower brushing the north sea coast of northeast england into the afternoon. temperatures only slowly heading up, but it'll clearly feel quite cold — though, for many away from northern scotland, there is a lighter wind. through thursday night and into friday morning, still some wintry showers across northern and eastern scotland, along some north sea coasts, as well. but for most, it's dry and clear, though, the chance of getting some fog patches across western parts. and maybe not as cold first thing, but still a widespread frost. and actually on friday, the focus of the showers will be in north sea coastal counties. where we've had most of the wintry showers so far today, it'll be dry and mainly sunny.

temperatures maybe a degree or so higher in places, but it's still going to feel cold out there. into the weekend, though, the changes are under way — now i mentioned, although it is turning milder across the north and west, there'll be plenty of cloud around, there will be patchy rain. where it's clearer still, down towards the south and east, the cold air hangs on after a frosty start. there could be a few fog patches reluctant to clear, and perhaps more widespread fog towards the southeast on sunday. temperatures only gradually rising across southeast england, where elsewhere it's turning much milder — 11 degrees, for example, in armagh.

this is bbc news. maxed out! the us will hit its borrowing limit today — $31.4 trillion in the red. now begins the bitter political battle over america's finances it isa it is a recipe for economic catastrophe. as president biden has made clear congress must deal with the debt limit and do so without conditions. also coming up — inflation still at dangerous levels in the uk says chancellorjeremy hunt as food prices continue to soar. plus — work two more years? non! france braces for a general strike over plans to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64.