welcome to bbc news. i'm rich preston. our top stories: the us secretary of state says urgent steps are needed to restore calm between israel and the palestinians after weeks of heightened violence. i comment on all parties to take urgent steps to de—escalate tensions, establish conditions for the security and stability that both israelis and palestinians deserve. security is stepped up in pakistan after at least 59 people are killed in a bomb attack on a mosque in peshawar. three emergency service workers in memphis are sacked following the death of tyre nichols, and another two police officers suspended. former brazilian president jair bolsonaro applies

for a tourist visa to allow him to extend his stay in the us. and former new zealand rugby international campbell johnstone becomes the first all black to publicly announce he is gay. welcome to our viewers on pbs in america and around the globe. the us secretary of state antony blinken has been holding discussions in the middle east, to try to resolve the escalating crisis there. mr blinken said urgent steps are needed to restore calm between israelis and palestinians, following days of rising violence. he travelled tojerusalem for talks with israel's prime minister benjamin netanyahu. he'll meet the palestinian

leader mahmoud abbas later. our middle east correspondent tom bateman reports. injerusalem the wreckage is spreading, and another generation grows up in its wake. israel's knew far—right police minister is vowing to step up home demolitions of palestinian attackers and their families. this home in occupied eastjerusalem was bulldozed yesterday but it was his brother that did the crime. and islamicjihad militant jailed 16 years ago for murder. this has been the worst period of violence in years, and now you have some of the most radical voices in israeli politics in the government calling for more of this for the families of attackers, evictions, expulsions and home demolitions. the un calls it collective punishment, banned under international law. the israeli government says it deters further attacks. the us�*s top diplomat landed

at what he called a pivotal moment. mr blinken called to preserve the international formula for peace, but that is a distant fading ambition. he meets mr netanyahu in one of the worst periods of violence for years. this is why we are urging all sides now to take urgent steps to restore calm, to de—escalate. we want to make sure that there is an environment in which we can i hope create the conditions to start to restore a sense of security for israelis and palestinians alike which is of course sorely lacking. there was also what sounded like a warning from mr blinken, for the israeli government to stick to democratic values amid its plans to boost politicians�* power over the courts. proposals which have sparked mass protests against mr neta nyahu's coalition.

we share common interests which are growing by the day. we share common values. two strong democracies which will remain, i assure you, two strong democracies. meanwhile, there were more funerals on monday. a palestinian man was shot dead by israeli forces, one of more than 30 this month alone in the occupied west bank. the army said he drove into a soldier when ordered to stop. while israelis are mourned, another of those killed in friday's attack by a palestinian gunman outside a synagogue in a jewish settlement. international calls for calm are growing but so too are fears of an inevitable slide into far greater violence. lets go to south asia now. security has been stepped up in the pakistani capital islamabad after a deadly attack on a mosque in the city of peshawar. nearly 60 people, many of them policemen, were killed and many others injured.

the prime minister shehbaz sharif described the bombing as an attack on pakistan itself. the attack has been linked to the pakistan taliban, which ended a ceasefire in november. we can speak now to dr asfandyar mir from the us institute for peace. hejoins us from he joins us from washington. thank you very much for being with us. talk to us a bit about the significance of this attack. , , ., ., ., attack. this is one of the more devastating — attack. this is one of the more devastating attacks _ attack. this is one of the more devastating attacks to - attack. this is one of the more devastating attacks to have . devastating attacks to have taken place in pakistan in recent years, in particular, against pakistani security forces. the pakistani police along the north—west border of the country have been under the gun. there has been a lot of violence, attacks, against them, but this attack, killing at least 65—70 police officers and soldiers, microbial escalation. i think it will have a real demoralising effect

on the police, but has been under a lot of pressure, and it also suggests that the insurgent forces of the pakistani taliban are looking to step up their fight against the pakistani state. the pakistani _ the pakistani state. the pakistani taliban - the pakistani state. the pakistani taliban that l the pakistani state. the pakistani taliban that you mentioned there, the ttp, there has been a back—and—forth over whether they were responsible for this. what is the evidence suggesting what do you think if they are indeed behind it that they are indeed behind it that they are indeed behind it that they are looking to achieve? initially, we heard from two senior leaders of the ttp from a particularfaction of senior leaders of the ttp from a particular faction of the ttp who accepted responsibility for this attack. they said that this attack. they said that this attack. they said that this attack was revenge for the killing of one of their top leaders, commanders, in eastern afghanistan last year. later run, the central leadership of the ttp disassociated itself from the attack and said that the ttp was not behind it. so,

that suggests there is some internal tension and not a lot of co—ordination, perhaps targeting is decentralised. so, some internal dysfunction there, but there is no question at this point that these parts of the ttp were behind this attack. , , . , , ., of the ttp were behind this attack. , , , ., ., attack. this is a big year for pakistan- — attack. this is a big year for pakistan. it _ attack. this is a big year for pakistan. it is _ attack. this is a big year for pakistan. it is an _ attack. this is a big year for pakistan. it is an election . pakistan. it is an election year. talk to us about the challenges when it comes to securing the country and keeping the country secure. the deteriorating _ keeping the country secure. tue: deteriorating security situation comes at a time when pakistan is facing major economic headwinds. some might even describe the economy as a state of freefall collapse, perhaps, there is a lot of talk of pakistan defaulting in the near term. there is a lot of political dysfunction, a lot of political dysfunction, a lot of political drama, a lot of

controversy between the major political parties — the ruling party, the main party, and the opposition, led by a cricketer turned politician as well as the military so this security deterioration comes at a very bad time when pakistan is looking very vulnerable economically and politically, and i am afraid that more of this is on the cards. i fear that the forces of the ttp are looking to keep up this rate of violence, which would put a lot of pressure on the pakistani government.— of pressure on the pakistani government. 0k. doctor 5 van jamir, government. ok. doctor 5 van jamin thank— government. 0k. doctor 5 van jamir, thank you _ government. 0k. doctor 5 van jamir, thank you very - government. 0k. doctor 5 van jamir, thank you very much. i let's get some of the day's other news. the city of auckland in new zealand is seeing more rain days after what the city mayor called a once—in—a—century flood. four people have died in the floods, and hundreds more were left homeless. large parts of the city were inundated with three—quarters of the usual summer rainfall in just 15 hours. peru's congress is delaying a vote on whether to bring forward elections to october.

the proposal, brought forward by president dina boluarte, follows weeks of violent protests following the impeachment of her predecessor. the proposalfor snap elections, seen as key to ending the political crisis, was rejected by congress two days ago. the last—ever commercial boeing 7a7 jumbo jet will be delivered to atlas air on tuesday. it's the cargo version of the distinctive jet. forfive decades, it's been the most successful passenger plane ever built, and is affectionately known as the queen of the skies. it first took off in 1970. the fire department in the us city of memphis in tennessee says it has suspended three people in connection with the fatal police beating of tyre nichols. an investigation found that the first—responders failed to provide him with adequate care. five police officers have been charged with murder over the incident. a further two have been suspended from their roles. for more on this, i am joined now by our correspondent

david willis, who's in los angeles. what more do we know? well, followin: what more do we know? well, following the _ what more do we know? well, following the release - what more do we know? well, following the release of- what more do we know? well, following the release of those | following the release of those harrowing images of tyre nichols being beaten in that confrontation with the police, that was on friday that the pictures were released, of course. the circle of discipline has been widening, and two more memphis police officers have now been disciplined in regard to their involvement in that confrontation. they are a white 0fficer, preston hemphill, and another officer whose name and ethnicity have not been revealed. that, on top of the five black officers, who was sacked from the force and have subsequently been charged with second—degree murder. now, preston hemphill is said by his lawyer to have fired a taser at tyre nichols, but you have not been present the scene of the

second confrontation where the beating was administered, and that, of course, is perhaps one of the reasons why he has not been charged as yet with a crime. now, the family of tyre nichols, nonetheless, reacted angrily to that news. they say that he has been shielded, this white police officer. why, they are asking, has his involvement onlyjust been released, and they are calling for mr hemphill to be fired and charged. hemphill to be fired and charged-— hemphill to be fired and charued. ., , charged. david, where does the investigation _ charged. david, where does the investigation go _ charged. david, where does the investigation go from _ charged. david, where does the investigation go from here? - investigation go from here? well, it is a wide—ranging enquiry, rich, and the memphis police department have said it will be a very thorough, and they made the point that they could be further charges, or further disciplinary action, taken in connection with the death of tyre nichols. in line with his family as demand, they have said that despite seeing

those images of people administering that terrible beating to tyre nichols, there were a lot of other officers who were just standing around at the scene, and they believe that by not intervening they were culpable and they should be charged as well. now, over the weekend, the memphis police department announced that it was disbanding the special force that these officers were a member of — the scorpion street patrol force that was set up a few years ago to crackdown on street crime in the city of memphis. fik. crackdown on street crime in the city of memphis. 0k. david, thank yom _ the city of memphis. 0k. david, thank yon _ stay with us on bbc news. still to come: former new zealand rugby international campbelljohnstone on why he has decided to announce publicly that he is gay. this is the moment that millions in iran have been waiting for. after his long years in exile,

the first hesitant steps of ayatollah khomeini on iranian soil. south africa's white government has offered its black opponents concessions unparalleled in the history of apartheid, and the anc leader nelson mandela is to be set free unconditionally. mission control: three, two, one. a countdown to a critical moment. the world's most powerful rocket ignited all 27 of its engines at once. and apart from its power, it's this recycling of the rocket, slashing the cost of a launch, that makes this a breakthrough in the business of space travel. two americans have become the first humans to walk in space without any lifeline to their spaceship. one of them called it, "a piece of cake." thousands of people have given l the yachtswoman ellen macarthur a spectacular homecoming - in the cornish port of falmouth after she smashed the world record . for sailing solo _ around the world, non—stop.

this is bbc news. the latest headlines: the us secretary of state, antony blinken, says urgent steps are needed to restore calm between israel and the palestinians after weeks of heightened violence. security has been stepped up in pakistan after at least 59 people were killed in a bomb attack on a mosque in peshawar. a bbc investigation has revealed how violent criminal gangs in egypt are tracking, abusing and extorting people from the lgbtq community they meet online. it also shows how police are using the same dating apps to seek out and arrest lgbtq people. ahmed shihab—eldin reports, and a warning that this report contains scenes that some viewers may find disturbing from the start. a group of friends ambushed by someone they thought they could trust, naked, terrified, and forced to dance at knife—point. the whole humiliating ordeal

was filmed and posted online. it was viewed more than 2 million times. these are the victims of gangs targeting lgbtq people in egypt. translation: they were the most disgusting six hours _ of my life. i could have died. i was scared to death. leila, who identifies as transgender, was in the video. sharing her story with us is risky, so she has chosen a 3d face tracking mask to conceal her identity. we have also changed her name. being exposed as transgender leaves leila open to targeting by the police. there is no explicit law against homosexuality in egypt. but our investigation has found that the law against debauchery is being used to criminalise the lgbtq community. the lg btq community. it was originally a charge guarding sex work.

queer is an offensive word to some, but for the people i spoke to, it was their preferred term to describe their sexual orientation or gender identity. any positive depiction of homosexuality is banned in the media here. on this call—in show on state tv, the presenter tells a mother worried about her gay son that he needs treatment. this stigma and the way the law is being used leaves people like leila vulnerable to attack. by interviewing other victims and through online research, we were able to confirm the identity of one of the leaders of the gang. his name is yahia. he is the man with the knife in the video. we have evidence that his gang has carried out at least four similar attacks. sahid is just 18 and another of yahia's victims. translation: he asked - for money, which i didn't have, so he called my parents and the video spread all around egypt. he wanted to report the attack to the police, but his lawyer

advised him against it. translation: he said, - "both of you will be jailed." because i am a gay man and because he stole. he said his offence isn't as big as mine in egyptian society. we found the police themselves have been impersonating users on dating apps to find and arrest members of the lg btq community. we have been given exclusive access to extraordinary police transcripts and investigation records that show in detail exactly how street level police are targeting people online. have you slept with men before? yes. how about we meet? but i live with mum and dad. come on, dear, don't be shy. we can meet in public and then go to my flat. in some of the exchanges, the police seem to be pressuring people into offering sex for money. but in others, there is no mention of any financial transaction, so the transcripts appear to show evidence that people are being arrested

for their sexuality. police forces in egypt receive training from the uk via the un. the egyptian interior ministry did not respond to the bbc�*s request for comment. yahia denied involvement in any attacks. lgbtq people in egypt are forced to hide their sexuality to survive. leila and sahid hope their stories can help break the silence. ahmed shihab—eldin, bbc news. and you can watch the full investigation on bbc iplayer, just search for the title and you will find the full investigation there. the former president of brazil, jair bolsonaro, has applied for a tourist visa which would allow him to remain in the united states for another six months. mr bolsonaro entered the us on a month—long diplomatic visa when he left brazil in december shortly before his term ended. he's received hospital treatment during his stay

in florida, and faces numerous investigations in brazil. let's crossover to rio dejaneiro and speak to the executive director of open society foundations for latin america and the caribbean, pedro abramovay. thank you very much for being with us, mr bolsonaro was a nice six—month vacation in the united states, bit of sightseeing, what do you think you would like to do that? i think mainly he wants to stay away from brazil, especially, i mean, he left until the end of his presidency to avoid passing the sash to the president miller, the president sells sash, now trials are beginning to start, all continue against him. i think he has good reasons to avoid getting back to brazil. the biden administration has

been pretty critical of mr bolsonaro, it has deemed responsible for what happened in brazil, those riots that we saw a month or so ago, do you think you will be granted this visa? i mean, visa? imean, i visa? i mean, i don't want to guess in this case but, yes, it is true, for the united states to have bolsonaro, someone that comes from our country, a country like brazil that is causing so much damage to brazilian democracy from florida is something, it is nothing comfortable for the us. i think florida has been, many times, a source of instability for latin america and i think maintaining scenario for the idea of instability for the region, it comes from the united states, that is not something i think the us administration would like to maintain. this is a six month visa, not a

permanent visa, he will ultimately have to go back to brazil, what kind of reception will he get when he returns? bolsonaro... brazil is a very polarised country, he got 49% of the vote for president, so there is an important support. it is true that since the electoral day he has been much quieter than he used to be. he is to have weekly lives, he is not doing, some say it is the press, they happened recognise the outcome of the election, he hasn't continue to give these speeches, but he has silently or quietly endorsed the coup attempts and demonstrations, the clear attempts against brazilian democracy, so part of his supporters i think are frustrated or feeling deceived and not maintaining government at this level but the truth is there are of course supporters,

significant, maybe a third or more of the population that will definitely welcome him back, and our course there's the majority of the population that voted against him that will be, you know, really opposing not only has presence in brazil but mainly the fact that he is trying to avoid meeting with justice, which that he is trying to avoid meeting withjustice, which i think he is meeting with 'ustice, which i think he is— meeting with 'ustice, which i think he is_ right i think he is inaudible right now. thank _ think he is inaudible right now. thank you. _ new zealand's first all blacks rugby player has publicly come out as gay. 43—year—old campbelljohnstone was a prop who played in three test matches in 2005 and in an interview with tvnz said he hoped coming out would take away the pressure and stigma surrounding the issue. his story has been widely praised by many for marking a significant moment for new zealand sports. let's talk now to shaneel lal, they're an lgbt activist in new zealand.

shaneel, thank you for being with us, how significant is this? there is significant for so many reasons. the rugby union team was established 131 years ago and the rugby sevens team was established 50 years ago, and in that time only one rugby player has come out as gay, that should tell you how difficult it is for gay men to play rugby in new zealand. they must have been many gay men who have played rugby as all blacks but they were never afforded the safety to come out. just a few months ago, seven rugby players in australia refused to players in australia refused to play rugby game because they were asked to play rugby in a jazzy that had rainbow stripes on it. discrimination against gay men is widespread in new zealand. this is groundbreaking because despite what our community has ensured we are here. ., w community has ensured we are here. ., ., . ., ., here. for those watching around the world. _ here. for those watching around the world, talk _ here. for those watching around the world, talk to _ here. for those watching around the world, talk to others - here. for those watching around the world, talk to others about | the world, talk to others about the world, talk to others about the rugby culture in new zealand. how much does it

terminate society? how much of a big deal is this?— a big deal is this? people live and breathe _ a big deal is this? people live and breathe rugby _ a big deal is this? people live and breathe rugby in - a big deal is this? people live and breathe rugby in new. and breathe rugby in new zealand. 50,000 people sell out our stadiums to watch our players play. we adore them, they make us proud. they are a sign of our national identity, but the team itself has become exclusive to cis gender, heterosexual man. since campbell coming out i have heard many people say, "i do not care he is gay, as long as he is a good player." the reality is, they do care, anytime all blacks get married they are pictured on the cover of magazine with their life. we are constantly reminded of the et normative family unit that we have to live up to. well, —— heteronormativity. and i think living up to this factor has been very debilitating for many people. you have been very open about this on your instagram and twitter, talk about how this will impact young people in new

zealand. i started the second year of my high school in 2015 at such an early age i already knew that i did not belong in physical education, orthe did not belong in physical education, or the sports field, i was the only feminine kid in my all boys physical education class, and put simply it was hellish. i went to the gym at once and i heard a voice say to another, well, look, your boyfriend is here, and they all started laughing. in that moment not only did i feel afraid but i felt ashamed. i did anything to be in the gym or in the proximity of these boys. just looking at these boys. just looking at these boys could result in a beating, because i am gay i am attracted to all men that have ever existed or i am asking for it. i am so sorry, i will need to cut you off thereby thank you very much forjoining us on the programme. we appreciate it. you can reach me on twitter —

i'm @richpreston. do get in touch. we will see you next time. hello there. most of us had a fine day on monday with plenty of sunshine around. it is arguably one of the best days weather—wise we'll see this week, with the sunshine and relatively mild air. did tend to cloud over in the west later in the day. and that's a cloud is all associated with an area of low pressure. this up near iceland in the north atlantic. look at this weather front wrapped round and round and round the centre of the deep low, kind of like water going down a plughole. now, this low is going to influence our weather because the weather fronts are associated with that low, even though it's over 1,000 miles away. all those fronts are actually dangling across the uk, a warm front followed by a cold front. so we've got a bit of rain from that feature. here comes the cold front southwards over the next few

hours, bringing a little bit of rain across parts of england and wales, showers following into the north—west. now, although we did have an early dip in temperatures in the nights down to about freezing, actually, temperatures by dawn coming up about seven or eight degrees pretty widely. and it's tuesday morning, the dregs of that weather system clearing the south pretty quickly. any rain, light and patchy. sunshine follows. a few showers into the north west of england and wales, but the majority of the day showers for northern ireland and scotland, where some of the showers will be falling as snow in the mountains about 500 metres elevation. so for the most part should be above the road network, really. not expecting any major problems. it's going to be a windy day wherever you are, but particularly so in scotland, with gusts of wind reaching around 50 or 60 miles an hour, and the winds get even stronger than that as we go through tuesday night. the iceland low passes close to the faroe islands, just kind of squeezes the isobars and give us wind gusts of 70 or even 80 miles an hour across parts those winds could be disruptive then for a time, still very windy across these northern areas into wednesday before the winds start to ease down a little bit later in the day, it will

still be pretty blowy. we've got a warm front that is going to be bringing some rain wednesday across northern ireland into south—west scotland, northwestern parts of england and wales, quite a bit of cloud elsewhere, a few breaks, but mild weather. temperatures 11 degrees across the south. and then looking at the weather picture later in the week, we've got relatively mild air coming around the top side of this area of high pressure. so, weather—wise, well, for many of us, it's going to be largely dry, probably quite a lot of cloud around and staying quite breezy. but look at these temperatures, 12 degrees for a time. for reference in london this time of the year, the average is about seven. bye for now.

this is bbc news. the headlines: the us secretary of state says urgent steps are needed to restore calm between israel and the palestinians after weeks of heightened violence. antony blinken was speaking after talks in israel with prime minister benjamin netanyahu. he stressed the importance of a two—state solution to bring peace and security. security has been stepped up in the pakistani capital islamabad after a deadly attack on a mosque in the city of peshawar. at least 59 people, many of them policemen, were killed and many others injured. an investigation is under way into how a suicide bomber breached tight security. the fire department in the us city of memphis says it has suspended three people in connection with the death

of tyre nichols.