welcome to bbc news. i'm monika plaha. our top stories: the actor alec baldwin is to be charged with involuntary manslaughter after a fatal shooting on the set of the film rust. growing pressure on nato countries to send more tanks to ukraine. we have a special report from the front line. explosions. very active front lines this morning. very close to soledar, seized by the russians in the last few days. reports of more deaths and more protests as antigovernment demonstrations continue in peru.

# continue in peru. immigration man # immigration man # cani # immigration man # can i crush you. # and tributes for the celebrated 19605 and tributes for the celebrated 1960s folk rock singer, david crosby, who has died at the age of 81. the hollywood actor alec baldwin is being charged with involuntary manslaughter after a gun he was handling on set went off and killed the cinematographer hutchins. the armourer of the film rust, who was responsible for the weapon, will face the same charge after the gun that baldwin fired was found to contain live ammunition. ms hutchin�*s family have released a statement saying they support the charges. sophie long has the latest from los angeles. the frantic efforts to save halyna hutchins

in the moments after she was shot. it was during rehearsals on a ranch in new mexico when the shootings and deaths depicted on the 19th century western they were filming became all too real. are you doing 0k? no, i'm not, actually. 0k. alec baldwin was holding the gun that discharged the bullet that killed her. he was also one of the film's producers. am i being charged with something? prosecutors now say he will be charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter. in a statement, the actor's lawyer said: i'm the armour. hannah gutierrez reed, who was in charge of weapons on set, faces at the same charges. her lawyers say they are a result of a flawed investigation. how many people in the room at time? the assistant director, david halls, who is reported to have told baldwin the gun was safe, has agreed to pleaded

guilty to negligent use of a deadly weapon. in a statement the prosecutor for the state of new mexico said: the charges all relate to negligence, nothing intentional. they are not trying to show that any part of this was not accidental. they were just trying to show they were not exercising caution and care in how they handled the gun. the criminal charges are a devastating blow for baldwin who has said he was heartbroken by the incident. halyna he is survived by her young son and her husband, matthew hutchins. sophie long, bbc news, los angeles. we can now speak to ron zambrano from west coast trial lawyers. he joins us from los angeles.

thank you forjoining me on bbc news. first of all, just talk us through these charges and how serious are they?- us through these charges and how serious are they? right, so these charges — how serious are they? right, so these charges have _ how serious are they? right, so these charges have to _ how serious are they? right, so these charges have to do - how serious are they? right, so these charges have to do with i these charges have to do with involuntary man slaughter, win means that there's not an attempt to say that he tried to kill anybody. that alec baldwin or anybody tried to kill anybody, but there was a breach of some type of duty of care. some carelessness. criminal negligence that led to this person losing their life and it's quite a stretch. most of the community here saying that this is kind of a stretch for him, personally, because he says — i didn't pull the trigger, i'm not in charge of firearms, i wasjust trigger, i'm not in charge of firearms, i was just holding it. so it's kind of a bit of a shock and it would be a huge precedent for a jury to go — for alec baldwin at least, personally, to be criminally negligent for what happened. it's also something that he has to fight. so it's like his career is on the line. leading

on from that, archibald's lawyers, they say that the decision is a terrible miscarriage ofjustice, saying that there was no reason to believe that a live bullet was actually in the gun, and they will fight the charges. just talk us through the process, if you will. what happens next? and what's the time frame involved?— and what's the time frame involved? , , ., involved? so, it depends what ha--ens involved? so, it depends what happens in — involved? so, it depends what happens in new _ involved? so, it depends what happens in new mexico - involved? so, it depends what happens in new mexico and i involved? so, it depends what. happens in new mexico and the county that he's in. first, he has to be a rained, he would have to appear. there would be a decision as to whether or not he would serve jail time. as to whether he would post bail, if he could. obviously, he has a means to escape, but he's so high profile, it would be easy it find him if you were. so i think it would be unlikely that he would have to serve jail time. also, the maximum penalty, assuming everything goes right for the prosecution, is five years in jail, which any days injail, you want to avoid. but again, because of the relatively not high stakes, it's not a first degree murder, i don't think that they're

going to require him to be in prison pending trial.- going to require him to be in prison pending trial. what do ou prison pending trial. what do you expect — prison pending trial. what do you expect the _ prison pending trial. what do you expect the prosecution i prison pending trial. what do | you expect the prosecution to argue? you expect the prosecution to an ue? �* , ., you expect the prosecution to anue? �*, ., ., you expect the prosecution to araue? �*, ., ., ., . ., argue? it's a tough one. what they have _ argue? it's a tough one. what they have to _ argue? it's a tough one. what they have to argue _ argue? it's a tough one. what they have to argue is - argue? it's a tough one. what they have to argue is that - argue? it's a tough one. what| they have to argue is that alec baldwin should have done more than he did. and because he didn't do that thing, the bullet went off. so everybody is speculating — are they going to argue that he should have given the gun to another person? are they going to argue that he is so familiar with guns that just that he is so familiar with guns thatjust by holding it, he knew that there was a live round? they have to show that when he had the gun in his possession or was handed to him, he had to do something else to prevent this tragedy. or maybe on a larger scale, that there was prior problems with either the person in charge of the firearms or the props, that he should have done more before he even got the gun in his hand. it really... a lot of people are scratching their heads, how the prosecution is going to do this.— heads, how the prosecution is going to do this. yeah, indeed. and 'ust going to do this. yeah, indeed. and just how — going to do this. yeah, indeed. and just how unexpected - going to do this. yeah, indeed. and just how unexpected is - and just how unexpected is something like this? because it was a pretty strong message,

isn't it, from the districk attorney after months of investigations —— district attorney after months of investigations. it attorney after months of investigations.— investigations. it is surprising - investigations. it is surprising to - investigations. it is - surprising to everybody that they're going after alec baldwin personally. everybody anticipated that the firearms expert and the prop master were going to be charged. but it's quite a shock. and what's more interesting is that how they're pleading it. there's two charges that they're asking for and the alternative. one is just 18 months in prison. but if he's convicted of the other one, which is manslaughter and carrying out something that's lawful. so you're doing something that's lawful that happens to kill somebody. because of the use of the firearm, it could lead up to five years. so, it's a very curious tactic. one maybe intentionally done to confuse a jury. intentionally done to confuse a 'u . ., intentionally done to confuse a jury. ron, thank you very much for our jury. ron, thank you very much for your analysis. _ to the war in ukraine now, and ukrainian forces have

acknowledged stepping back from the bitterly contested ca ptu red captured by... ..captured by russian forces last week, in their first key victory after many months in retreat. soledar is where some of the most dangerous fighting of the war has been taking place. it's close to bakhmut, a crucial supply route. our correspondent andrew harding has been to the front line. and his report contains some scenes that you may find difficult to watch. incoming artillery fire as we arrive close to the front line. a lot of incoming. a quick run for cover. we're in an area where russian and ukrainian infantry now appear to be fighting at close quarters. i'm clambering through

the remains of a house here hit by a shell. heading towards the ukrainian position. ok, we'rejust hearing small arms fire, as well as this heavy artillery fire, which means that the russian lines are very close. in fact, we're hearing they're just maybe a kilometre away across the fields behind me. ukrainian troops firing from the outskirts of the nearby town of soledar. they're clinging on here. but soledar itself is now in russian hands, the kremlin�*s first significant victory in months. you've lost territory here, you've lost soledar? we have quite tough situation here, so, but it's controlled situation anyway. sometimes it's really better to take step back,

but destroy enemy. then, after that, to make attack and to already crush enemy completely. we are destroy each day 50, 100 enemy people. ukrainian drone footage appears to back that up. a russian position here coming under artillery attack. several wounded russian soldiers visible in the aftermath. ukraine is losing men too. it's not clear exactly how many, but medics insist morale remains high. they are tired, they are cold, they are wounded. but they ask me, "man, doc, when can i return to my boys?" they don't say, "oh, thanks, god, i'm wounded, now i can relax and so on." no. careful, careful. very active front lines this morning. the ukrainians have withdrawn, but they're now trying to pound russian positions as hard as they can

to prevent them from advancing here and encircling the next bigger prize, which is the town of bakhmut, which the ukrainians have been defending fiercely for months now. ok, let's go. time to leave a fluid front line that is costing both sides so much. andrew harding, bbc news near soledar, ukraine. in peru now, and thousands of antigovernment protesters are holding marches in the capital, lima. many are supporters of the former president, pedro castillo, who was arrested after he tried to dissolve congress last month. at least three more people are reported to have died as protesters call for president dina boluartay�*s resignation. azadeh moshiri reports. it's pure anger on the streets of peru. dozens have died

following weeks of protests. but despite the danger, peruvians are determined. for days, thousands of protesters from rural parts of the country have descended upon its capital, lima. what they want is president dina boluarte out. translation: we want | the usurper dina boluarte to step down and call for new elections. these protests will continue. the south of the country is rioting. we came to lima from all the southern regions. more people are dying in clashes with police. the un has accused them of using disproportionate force. it has infuriated peruvians. in a southern town of macusani, an entire police station is reported to have been set on fire. it all came to a head last month when the former president, pedro castillo, was arrested for trying to dissolve congress. he is being investigated

on charges of rebellion and conspiracy — accusations he denies. his supporters want him released. translation: we want - we want dina boluarte - to resign immediately. for now, ms boluarte is holding firm and is instead calling for peaceful protests, but after weeks of chaos, it is clear that is a tall order for a country that is rejecting its leader. azadeh moshiri, bbc news. let's get some of the day's other news. america's federal aviation administration says the computer issue which led to more than 11,000 flights being disrupted last week was not caused by a cyber attack. it says its investigation pointed to staff unintentionally deleting files while synchronising databases. a spokesman said the system has now been made "more resilient". police in the uk are investigating claims that the prime minister,

rishi sunak, committed an offence after social media footage appeared to show him riding as a passenger in a moving car without wearing a seatbelt. it can be punished with a $600 fine. downing street has apologised for what it says was a "brief error ofjudgement". now, a cane toad thought to be the largest ever captured has been found in a rainforest in australia weighing in at 2.7 kilograms — that's nearly 6 pounds. the animals are not native to australia and are considered to be pests. it was placed in a container and removed from the wild, but not before being given the nickname �*toadzilla'. now, it'sjust over 2a hours since new zealand's prime minister, jacinda ardern, surprised the world by announcing she was standing down. she's had a night to sleep after her news conference, and journalists were still trying to get more details as to why she's resigning,

prompting this exchange early on friday morning in napier. reporter: how are you feeling today? | i'll have to admit i slept well for the first time in a long time last night. but it is still a range of emotions. i, of course, feel, um, you know, sad but also i do have a sense of relief. what has the reaction been like? oh, i actually feel deeply humbled by the response that i have received. to have those messages of gratitude has been really moving for me and for my family. looking forward crosstalk. i will go home for a little bit and just pack, get ready for a bit of time in wellington. focus for the team obviously is on selecting a new leader of the labour party and therefore a new prime minister for new zealand. it is an incredibly important decision and the team is very, very focused. stay with us on bbc news.

still to come: pakistan's former prime minister imran khan has said he fears his country's economy could be set for a crash — he will explain why in his own words. 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. welcome back to bbc news. to pakistan now where the former prime minister, imran khan, has warned that his country could follow sri lanka with an economic collapse if there is not a general election early this year. mr khan was ousted in a vote of no confidence last april, but is still politically active, and his critics say he is making the situation worse. our pakistan correspondent caroline davies went to meet him. clinging to the side of a moving truck while others

weave behind on motorbikes, this is the chase for the chance just to buy a bag of wheat flour. a complicated mix of the country's own issues, last year's floods and the international market are biting in pakistan, and the economy is under pressure. this is where people feel the problems that are happening in the economy. the price of food here and across pakistan has gone up dramatically and people don't know how high the prices are going to go and when that problem is going to be fixed. "onions used to be 200 rupees per 5kg bag," says this seller. "now, it's 1,000. "buyers and sellers are both very worried." the machines have stopped in this cotton printing factory, 300 workers sent home for over a week. the owners say that they can't import the dyes they need because there's a shortage of dollars around the country. translation: if we can't - import, we can't manufacture. we have already made a loss. 2023 is an election

year in pakistan. imran khan wants that vote to be earlier rather than later and is trying everything in his power to force the government's hand, from mass rallies to dissolving two of the country's provincial assemblies. his critics say he's trying to create chaos to add to the economic instability. the only way pakistan could get economic stability is through free and fair elections. but those elections are due to happen this year. what you are calling for is to have them earlier. what's the difference? it's just a few months. but the fact that you're doing this could cause further economic damage. will you acknowledge that? actually, the damage has been done. it's only going to worse the longer this government stays. the worry — worry in pakistan is we could have a sri lanka—type situation. the pakistan government say this is all said to suit mr khan's agenda. his ego is taller than the country. his own hit for his opponents is bigger than the economy of

pakistan. for one person's personal interest, we cannot put the whole country into limbo. while the politicians pick at their opponents, pakistan waits to see when they will go to the polls. caroline davies, bbc news, lahore. france has been hit by a nationwide strike affecting travel, finance, education and other sectors in a protest organised by unions against pension reform plans. there were some scuffles and clashes with police in paris. other major cities also saw arches and demonstrations. organisers say they are opposed to raising the state pension age from 62 to 64. president macron says it's the best way to ensure the system remains affordable. our correspondent hugh schofield spent the day in paris. he sent us this update. there's no doubt in my mind that the unions are going to be he calling today a big success.

four hours after the demonstration here in paris started and they're still coming down here at the place de la bastille as night falls. the cgt union is saying 400,000 people have turned out here in the streets of paris — probably a gross exaggeration, these figures tend to be — but even if it's only half of that, it's still a big turnout, the pictures are very impressive. president macron knows that the next step will be more protests to come. probably very soon, we'll get the announcement of another day like this to be staged next week, with more strikes, more protests. president macron needs to get this bill through parliament as quickly as possible, but the challenge is going to grow. hugh schofield reporting. a major cold snap is continuing across much of europe. temperatures have plummeted in many places, and there's been heavy snow in parts of spain. in eastern europe, the problem is rain and flooding, as the bbc�*s tim allman explains.

what a difference a couple of weeks make. here in the basque country, officers of the civil guard have to help dig out a driver wholes car got stuck in the snow. earlier this month, the snow. earlier this month, the entire area was sweltering in record high temperatures for this time of year. it's a similar story across much of the iberian peninsula. the storm has brought heavy snow fall to many places with ice causing problems in the pyrenees. and the forecast is more sub—zero temperatures are expected for the next few days. further north, parts of brittany have had an unexpect delivery of snow. plenty of fun for some, delivery of snow. plenty of fun forsome, but delivery of snow. plenty of fun for some, but it's quite an ordealfor for some, but it's quite an ordeal for those for some, but it's quite an ordealfor those who for some, but it's quite an ordeal for those who have to contend with icy roads. "it slips a bit", says this driver. "but we deal with it." further east in serbia, it's heavy rain causing problems. this man was swept away by flooding as he tried to rescue someone in the water. both of them are still missing and local authorities

have declared a state of emergency. a deluge of rain has caused already swollen rivers to burst their banks and flood nearby villages. and there won't be any let—up. officials say more rain is on the way. tim allman, bbc news. the musician david crosby has died at the age of 81. he co—founded both the byrds and crosby, stills and nash. he was a leading voice in the soft rock sounds of los angeles in the 1960s. david browne, is senior writer at rolling stone. he wrote a biography of crosby, stills, nash and young in 2019 and interviewed david crosby at length. david crosby was first of all one of the major characters in rock and roll. he was this fiercely opinionated, cantankerous guy with a twinkle

in his eye. but he also was one of the real architects of taking rock and roll to places it hadn't been before the mid—60s. he played the guitar with open tunings. he was rooted injazz with open tunings. he was rooted in jazz and with open tunings. he was rooted injazz and classical, as much as rock and roll. and he had that amazing carnivore voice. and when you put that all together, you had music we hadn't really heard before in rock and roll. he was one of the people who said — ok, rock and roll can really explore and go into lots of different directions we haven't heard yet. directions we haven't heard et. �* ., ., ., yet. and he had a colourful life, didn't _ yet. and he had a colourful life, didn't he? _ yet. and he had a colourful life, didn't he? but - yet. and he had a colourfull life, didn't he? but multiple run—ins with the law? he run-ins with the law? he absolutely _ run-ins with the law? he absolutely had _ run—ins with the law? he: absolutely had a sort of proud rock and roll rebel outlaw life. he had problems with drugs and he almost died a few times. he had health issues up to the end. and he basically, letting the freak flag fly as

they said in one of their own songs. and he embodied that counter culture rebel of the time. and i think that's why a lot of people loved him and related to him. they saw... they either wanted to be that, or saw themselves in that. send or saw themselves in that. and he was working _ or saw themselves in that. and he was working until quite recently, wasn't he? his most recently, wasn't he? his most recent album, for free, and that was released back in 2021? he had one of the most amazing second, third orfourth acts maybe we could say in music. over the last decade, he was on this incredible creative role. he was making new songs almost every year. i remember being in the recording studio watching him make one of those. and i asked him and i said "i don't know how much longer i'm going to be around i' got stents in my heart, i have a new liver. i have all of this muse new music

in me and i have to get it out." it was sad to hear him say that, but also incredibly inspiring. you're watching bbc news. hello there. quite a change of fortunes with our weather this week. it's been cold and frosty, has even been some snow showers around as well. we're going to close out the working week on a similar story — a frosty start, maybe some freezing fog around but for many of us, it's going to be sunny and cold. temperatures to greet us first thing below freezing in towns and city centres, so colder still in more rural spots, particularly where we've got that lying snow. but we've got this little brief ridge of high pressure that's going to quieten things down and give us some sparkling sunshine throughout the day. weather fronts waiting in the wings. a change is on its way. now, a brisk northerly breeze mightjust drive a few showers along that exposed east coast.

they'll be fairly isolated. for many, after a frosty start, lots of sunshine. freezing fog may linger in northern ireland for a time but generally, those temperatures are going to peak for around 3—7 degrees. maybe a little bit milder in the south—west — the reason being this weather front that's going to drive in this milder air. so, a south—westerly wind starts to kick in to northern ireland and scotland for the start of the weekend. that will bring milder air with it, a rapid snow melt, as well, at times. you can see to greet us first thing on saturday morning 3 or 4 degrees here, but across much of england and wales, still temperatures below freezing. it's going to be another cold, frosty start. lots of sunshine around across england and wales on saturday but the cloud will push in through scotland, northern ireland, maybe north west england, and there'll be some showery outbreaks of rain — not really amounting to too much — but a difference with the feel of the weather, 9 or 10 degrees here, maybe temperatures around 3—7 across england and wales. still that weather front creeping in for the second half of the weekend but the far south—east corner may well cling onto that colder air

throughout the whole of the weekend, so it's a slow process. certainly on sunday, there'll be more cloud around than we saw on saturday. there'll be showery outbreaks of rain along west—facing coasts — some poor visibility here. the best of any brightness perhaps in the south—east — only around 3 or 4 degrees. out to the west, again, we could see double digits. the milder air will start to push in across the country but it comes at a price, unfortunately — we're going to lose that sparkling winter sunshine. there'll be a little more in the way of cloud around but we'll see double figures for all.

this is bbc news. the headlines: the hollywood actor alec baldwin is to be charged with involuntary manslaughter over the fatal shooting of a cinematographer on set in 2021. halyna hutchins was killed when a prop gun fired a live bullet. the film's armourer will also be charged. the united states has announced details of its latest package of military aid to ukraine worth about $2.5 billion. the pentagon said the assistance included scores of armoured vehicles and support for air defence. president zelensky has called for more help. riot police have fired tear gas at stone—throwing protesters on a further day of antigovernment demonstrations in peru.

on the streets of lima, members of the security forces confronted crowds demanding the resignation of president dina boluarte. the latest reports say a building is on fire in the city centre. now on bbc news, panorama. the nhs is under intense pressure. emergency departments are packed. it's the most pressure i have felt as a clinician in my time since i qualified. all: we want fair pay! staff say they are at breaking point. all: your nhs, our nhs. ambulances are queueing for hours. it can be desperate for patients. we sat there, and e&a was just absolutely crammed full.

so what needs to change? i've been meeting doctors and nurses rethinking