welcome to newsday, reporting live from singapore, i'm karishma vaswani. the headlines. the earthquakes in turkey and syria have killed more than 12 thousand people — it's feared thousands more are still trapped. president devine has edited mistakes have been made. the rescuers say — mistakes have been made. the rescuers say they _ mistakes have been made. tue: rescuers say they will mistakes have been made. tte: rescuers say they will come back tomorrow and the next day, they will return to sites like this for as long as it takes to return loved ones to their relatives. return loved ones to their relatives-_ return loved ones to their relatives. ~ , , , ., ~ relatives. we will be speaking to the turkish _ relatives. we will be speaking to the turkish ambassador - relatives. we will be speaking to the turkish ambassador to | to the turkish ambassador to singapore about the scale and response. other headlines...

russian forces of pushing hard but ukrainian troops are using drones to push back. it's time for us to move but now that the drone is back in grenada has been dropped. we can't say in this location for more than two or three minutes because there's a risk we will be targeted here. applause president zelensky on his visit to the uk since the russian invasion thanks mps for their support but urges the uk to give fighterjets to the ukraine. give fighter 'ets to the ukraine.— give fighter 'ets to the ukraine. ., ukraine. the writing on the helmets reads, _ ukraine. the writing on the helmets reads, "we - ukraine. the writing on the helmets reads, "we have l helmets reads, "we have freedom, give us wings to protect it. " applause. live from our studio in singapore. — applause. live from our studio in singapore, this _ applause. live from our studio in singapore, this is _ applause. live from our studio in singapore, this is bbc - applause. live from our studio in singapore, this is bbc news. | in singapore, this is bbc news. it's newsday.

welcome to bbc news, broadcasting to viewers in the uk and around the world. we begin in turkey and syria, where more than twelve thousand people are now known to have died in the earthquakes which devastated the region just two days ago. rescue workers continue their search for survivors, but hope is beginning to fade. in turkey, there's growing anger at the speed of the rescue effort — with many complaining that they've had no help, trying to pull people from the rubble. while in syria, the state media is reporting that some three—hundred thousand people have been forced to leave their homes. more from syria shortly, but first let's hear from our middle east correspondent anna foster — who was among the first journalists to reach the epicentre zone — she sent this report from the turkish city of karaman—marash. the devastating power of the earth, seen from the air. swathes of this city lie in ruins — buildings, homes, lives have been destroyed.

in many cities, the search now isn't for survivors, it's only for the dead. when the rubble shows a sign, the digger stops. behind this blanket, an arm reveals a body. slowly, carefully, it's uncovered. and then the moment of realisation. screams. a father lost. screams. the goodbye is painful and public. screams. the goodbye is painful and public.

and here in maras, ambulances are now hearses. they've spent the whole day here searching for bodies, and the light is starting to fade now, but the rescuers say they will come back tomorrow and the next day. they will return to sites like this for as long as it takes to return loved ones to their relatives. they're rare now, but there are still moments of hope. a little girl, healthy and alive, after three days buried. the rescuers celebrate. she says her siblings are down there too. today, president erdogan came to visit those who have lost everything. but there is growing anger that help is coming too slowly, and there is not enough of it.

he says it is impossible to prepare for disasters on this scale. translation: we had some problems with places - like airports in the beginning. we had problems on the roads, but it is better today, and it will be even better tomorrow. bodies now fill this sports hall. more are arriving all the time, among them, yunus' fiancee. they were just weeks away from getting married. translation: i was planning to dress her in her wedding i dress, but now i will dress her in a funeral shroud. i am like the walking dead, i am the living dead. i lost my feelings. each of these bundles marks a future cut short, a family separated. every hour, the death toll rises, and even now, it is impossible to know how many lives this quake has claimed.

for more on this story and joined by the turkish ambassador to singapore who joins us in the singapore studio today. thank you so much for coming in to speak with us today. i'm very sorry, our condolences for the loss of life in your country. just talk us through the scale of this disaster and what people need right now. disaster and what people need riaht now. ., ~ disaster and what people need riaht now. . ,, i. disaster and what people need riaht now. ., ~' ,. ., disaster and what people need riaht now. . ,, i. ., ., right now. thank you for having me here- _ right now. thank you for having me here- we — right now. thank you for having me here. we were _ right now. thank you for having me here. we were hit - right now. thank you for having me here. we were hit by - right now. thank you for having me here. we were hit by two i me here. we were hit by two major earthquakes on february six. the first one took place at 4am in the morning, 7.7 on the richter scale. nine hours after that there was another major earthquake, 7.6 on the richter scale so two major earthquakes. the first earthquakes. the first earthquake was followed by almost 700 aftershocks. the aftershocks are still ongoing.

the earthquake of such magnitude because a huge distraction. unfortunately, we have 8900 people dead. we've heard more than for thousand 900 people wounded. according to data. and as the president said, this is one of the biggest national disasters in the history of turkey. t biggest national disasters in the history of turkey.- the history of turkey. i will aet the history of turkey. i will net to the history of turkey. i will get to the _ the history of turkey. i will get to the response - the history of turkey. i will get to the response to - the history of turkey. i will| get to the response to what the history of turkey. i will- get to the response to what the president has said in just a moment. in terms of things people need right now, in terms of aid that communities need. what is that?— what is that? their harsh winters prevailing - what is that? their harsh winters prevailing in - what is that? their harsh winters prevailing in the l winters prevailing in the region. we urgently need tents. apart from this we need to prepare people for winter conditions. we need electric heaters, socks, winter coats,

winter shoes, tents, sleeping bags, ready to eat food. and socks, underwear. this is in terms of in—kind donations we need those items. we need also medical items, including portable monitors, first aid kits etc. our embassies across the world are coordinating with their host governments. t the world are coordinating with their host governments. i know ou're their host governments. i know you're doing — their host governments. i know you're doing something - their host governments. i know you're doing something quite . you're doing something quite similar in singapore. the president has come under criticism from his people, your citizens in turkey that the effort to help people didn't happen fast enough for that we've heard from our own reporters desperate stories of people trying to help their own relatives, digging through the rubble with no help from authorities. why did it take so long to get help to those in

need? , long to get help to those in need? . ., . long to get help to those in need? , ., ., , , ., need? first of all, this is not a localised — need? first of all, this is not a localised earthquake - need? first of all, this is not a localised earthquake as - a localised earthquake as opposed to or compared to the previous ones. this took place in a vast region. just to give you an idea the crust of the earth is said to have moved to a half metres into the mediterranean sea so such was the scale of the earthquake. as of now we have almost 100,000 people search and rescue workers on the ground, going through the rubble, restoring the badly damaged infrastructure. we have more than 5500 vehicles, more than 120 aircraft and helicopters and also more than 5500 international rescue workers helping us. the disaster of such a scale is unprecedented in our history. t such a scale is unprecedented in our history.— in our history. i know right now the —

in our history. i know right now the focus _ in our history. i know right now the focus must - in our history. i know right now the focus must be - in our history. i know right now the focus must be on| now the focus must be on helping people in need and getting to those who are trapped underneath the rubble but there's also been concerned about the lack of regulation around some of the infrastructure come around the buildings was that people have said if those buildings had been better built than not so many would have collapsed and possibly more lives could have been saved. tit possibly more lives could have been saved-— been saved. in our history we have had _ been saved. in our history we have had earthquakes. - been saved. in our history we have had earthquakes. one i been saved. in our history we| have had earthquakes. one of the major ones being the 99 earthquake. after that our government and the current government and the current government took some robust measures to increase the quality of construction in turkey. many of those buildings are old ones. and of course, again, the magnitude of the earthquake really caused many buildings to collapse.—

buildings to collapse. turkish ambassador _ buildings to collapse. turkish ambassador to _ buildings to collapse. turkish ambassador to singapore, i buildings to collapse. turkish i ambassador to singapore, thank you forjoining us on the programme. there is a lot of aid efforts taking place right now. to remind you if you are looking to contribute to aid efforts in turkey and syria there are many ways you could do that including two charities and ngos. we've been talking about turkey but the situation in northern syria was desperate even before the earthquake struck the region is home to millions of refugees displaced by years of civil war. some emergency aid has been flown in from iran and the gulf states but the syrian government has also asked the european union for help. the group of volunteers known as the white helmets are leading the rescue efforts. our international editor jeremy bowen reports. something to celebrate at last in a place without much good news. a family of six was rescued alive from the rubble in idlib, the last part of syria still controlled by rebels.

the rescuers, a group called the white helmets that the uk helps to fund, are experts. they've been digging out survivors of the assad regime's air strikes for much of syria's long war. the geological faults that brought down these buildings cut right across the front lines and zones of influence that have devastated syria since 2011. this is aleppo, syria's biggest city, back in regime hands since the rebels here were defeated in 2016. now syria has a huge natural disaster on the back of the man—made catastrophe that broke the country. in aleppo hospital, every bed has its own tragedy. only three members of this man's family survived when their home collapsed. 13 of them were killed. they were, he says my father, my mother, my brother, his wife, and their four children.

and the wife and two kids of the brother who was rescued with me also died. faced with such disaster, the un, which already helps care for millions of syrians, appealed for some national solidarity. we are hoping that everybody puts the interest of the people first. we keep the politics aside, all authorities move away from the issue, from the politics, and put the interest of the people first. in damascus, the capital, citizens are rallying around giving blood. so far, grassroots relief efforts seem to be the best hope. but it's not clear whether aid collected and delivered in damascus will make it across the front line into rebel—held idlib province. back in aleppo, russian troops, whose intervention salvaged the rule of the assad family, are helping the syrian red crescent alongside algerian rescue workers.

the damascus regime says its allies, also including iran, are flying in aid. allies and who controls what won't matter much to families who are homeless or nervous about sleeping in damaged buildings. an earthquake tests any nation's resilience. war has taught a generation of syrians that they have to fend for themselves. in idlib province, the white helmets rescued another child, a boy. people do their best. broader aid efforts, let alone rebuilding, will need a miracle to overcome the blight, hatred, and distrust of a generation of war. jeremy bowen, bbc news. you are watching newsday on the bbc. still to come on the programme. we need to ukrainian

groups using drones to fight back against russia's invasion. there's mr mandela, mr nelson mandela, a free man taking his first steps into a new south africa. iran's spiritual leader, ayatollah khomeini, has said he has passed a death sentence on salman rushdie, the british author of a book which many muslims say is blasphemous. the people of haiti have flocked to church to give thanks for the ousting of their former president ba by doc duvalier. because of his considerable value as a stallion, - shergar was kept in a special secure box in the stud - farm's central block. shergar was driven away. in a horse box the thieves had brought with them. there stepped down from the plane a figure in mourning, elizabeth ii, queen of this realm and of all her other

realms and territories, head of the commonwealth, defender of the faith. this is newsday on the bbc. the earthquakes in syria have killed more than 10,000 people it's fitted are still trapped. meanwhile, in ukraine, there's been fierce fighting around the eastern city of bakhmut. russian forces are trying to encircle the city and there is street to street fighting in some areas. russia's president putin is pushing hard for a victory in bakhmut before the first anniversary of the invasion in a few weeks' time and before ukraine takes delivery of tanks from western allies. from eastern ukraine, our senior international correspondent orla guerin reports.

on the battlefields around bakhmut, we follow ukrainian national guardsmen hunting for the enemy. every minute counts, russian forces are attacking from three sides. this is the safest place, here on the front line. because we have 1.5 kilometres for the russian troops. now it is here. we will fight with a drone and try to find somebody. and if they find russian forces, they will drop this modified german grenade, held in place with a bit of velcro. we know that here, a lot of russian soldiers walking, living, sitting and so on.

and so we just give them some gift and you will see the boom. yes, here. it was our grenade. it is time for us to move now that the drone is back and the grenade is dropped. we cannot stay in this location for more than two or three minutes because there is a risk we will be targeted here. inside bakhmut, few dare to venture out. it feels like a city on borrowed time. but some still survive here in their basements, in the depths of war. in this darkness we find a bright spark, seven—year—old anna. she lives with her mother, grandfather, two cats and a dog.

she is happy to see a familiarface. pavlo from the white angels, ukrainian police team. anna knows how to spring a trap. it can bite, she says. i sit in the cellar almost all day long, she tells me. in the street i walk and take mooshka for a walk. but she is afraid of the booms and constantly comes back. only in the morning at dawn when it is quiet,

i can take her out. anna's mother has turned down police offers of evacuation. she says no where in ukraine is safe and she can't afford to go abroad. all pavlo can do is keep anna warm with a new sleeping bag and hope she survives another night, as russian forces try to shelve this city into submission. and we have heard that anna has been safely evacuated from bakhmut. a little bit of good news. ukraine's president zelensky has been visiting european allies for the first time since his country was invaded by russia last year.

he's been asking them to send more military help. in the past few hours, he's been in paris, where he met president macron and the german chancelor olaf scholz. he urged them to deliver the equipment ukraine needed "as soon as possible". earlier, president zelensky was in the uk where he addressed both houses of parliament at westminster. he again appealed for more military help — including fighterjets. i will explain. the helmet of a real ukrainian pilot, he's one of our most successful and he is one of our kings. the writing on the helmet reads, "

we have freedom, give us wings to protect it. " let's ta ke let's take a look at some of the other stories make it headlines today. the driver has been arrested and charged with homicide and dangerous driving. the canadian prime ministerjustin trudeau said he was devastated and couldn't imagine what the families were going through. a memphis policeman took photos of tyre—ee nichols, while he sat bashed, bleeding and in need of medical help, newly released documents have revealed. officer demetrius haley, who is one of the five former policemen who have been charged with second degree murder over the death of mr nichols, took two photos of mr nichols, sharing them with at least five people. us officials say there have been at least four previous spy balloons that had drifted over american sites that were of interest to china.

they said three happened under donald trump's administration and a fourth, early on injoe biden's. no details were given of the flights paths they took. the latest was shot down by us fighterjets on saturday. art and virtual reality technology combined in a free at london south bank centre. donning vr goggles going along to discover more. giving art in a different dimension at this exhibition at bfi southbank you can enjoy the artwork, short films through virtual reality goggles. tt films through virtual reality to: ales. , ., films through virtual reality to: ales. .,, films through virtual reality nonles. ., goggles. if you grab the front and adjusted _ goggles. if you grab the front and adjusted to _ goggles. if you grab the front and adjusted to your - goggles. if you grab the front and adjusted to your eyes - and adjusted to your eyes bringing technology and art together to bring you closer to the story. virtual reality really is an immersive medium, you kind of get lost inside of it. it creates the apathy that no other medium can create.

telling a story that is about someone else you immediately put yourself in their shoes. the work is about the challenge of non—binary parents trying to adopt a child. the of non-binary parents trying to adopt a child.— adopt a child. the exhibitions artist are all— adopt a child. the exhibitions artist are all non-binary - adopt a child. the exhibitions artist are all non-binary or i artist are all non—binary or women to counter the idea that techis women to counter the idea that tech is a man's world.— tech is a man's world. there is a stereotype — tech is a man's world. there is a stereotype that _ tech is a man's world. there is a stereotype that new- tech is a man's world. there is a stereotype that new and - a stereotype that new and emerging technologies are predominantly male, which is absolutely not true. immersive media — absolutely not true. immersive media in— absolutely not true. immersive media in storytelling era amazing female non—binary amazing female non— binary creators _ amazing female non—binary creators working on powerful and exciting stories with up here — and exciting stories with up here at— and exciting stories with up here at the bfi we want to showcase. here at the bfi we want to showcase-— here at the bfi we want to showcase. ~ , , ., showcase. when i first began trainina showcase. when i first began training in — showcase. when i first began training in this _ showcase. when i first began training in this medium - showcase. when i first began training in this medium i - showcase. when i first began | training in this medium i went to a there were 20 participants that i was the only woman. it was entirely white. things needed to change. i think this is going to be a real game changer. it really shines a light on the fact that there are women who are in this space and making such amazing pieces of work. ~ ., , .,

of work. with the vr headset on ou are of work. with the vr headset on you are placed — of work. with the vr headset on you are placed within _ of work. with the vr headset on you are placed within the - of work. with the vr headset on you are placed within the art. i you are placed within the art. it's like the room is moving and i'm getting pushed closer to the tv in this image. the backdrop becomes your surroundings. you feel less of a passive observer.— a passive observer. children need to be _ a passive observer. children need to be taught _ a passive observer. children need to be taught to - a passive observer. children need to be taught to treat i need to be taught to treat delete _ need to be taught to treat delete that— need to be taught to treat delete that respect - need to be taught to treat - delete that respect traditional modeh — delete that respect traditional modeh i've _ delete that respect traditional model. i've been— delete that respect traditional model. i've been taught - delete that respect traditional model. i've been taught i - delete that respect traditionall model. i've been taught i have an available _ model. i've been taught i have an available right _ model. i've been taught i have an available right to _ model. i've been taught i have an available right to be - model. i've been taught i have an available right to be gay. i an available right to be gay. that — an available right to be gay. that really— an available right to be gay. that really does _ an available right to be gay. that really does pull- an available right to be gay. that really does pull you - an available right to be gay. l that really does pull you into the story cover really effectively because you feel like you are actually there. you are sat in the room and you are dropped downwards, so it really doesn't make you feel a lot closer to the story. this closeness, this immersive element provides a powerful campus. the exhibition shifting perspective is free and continues until sunday. she had a really good time there. you will find lots more detail and background about all the

stories we've been covering on newsday on our website. that is it from us. thank you for watching. hello there. there was a hard frost across england and wales with plenty of sunshine on wednesday here. but we had gale force gusts of winds and rain further north. this is how we closed out the afternoon in highland. and that weather front that was responsible for this continues to sink its way steadily south and east. no significant rain by the time it pushes south—east as it bumps into this area of high pressure. so a band of cloud, light drizzle from east anglia down to cornwall, slowly clearing towards the channel. behind it, some sunshine coming through. a brisker north—westerly wind will continue to feed in showers, particularly north—west of the great glen. and winds still gusting a0 to 50 miles an hour at times. so a noticeable, strong westerly wind. temperatures around

7 to 9 degrees. one or two places, if we're lucky, just seeing ten celsius as a high — 50 fahrenheit. now, as we close out thursday into the early hours of friday, we'll start to see a contrast. more cloud pushing in to the far north, some showery outbreaks of rain here. but milder — temperatures holding up above freezing. with clearer skies temperatures falling just below freezing once again across england and wales. so we can't rule out frost and fog again for friday, but high pressure dominates for england and wales. still a bit more of a breeze up into the far north—west. and this westerly feed of air will continue to be a story. so it will be a slightly milder feel. generally across the country, we're likely to see temperatures into double digits. that weather front toppling across the high will bring outbreaks of showery rain into scotland. more cloud, high cloud across northern england and wales as well. highs generally of 9 to 13 degrees. now, as we move into the weekend, that milder air

will continue to be the story. the high pressure reallyjust sitting across europe and clinging on to central and southern england with weather fronts toppling across that high. so that means we'll always run the risk of more cloud and outbreaks of rain with a stronger wind across the far north and west. there'll be quite a lot of cloud generally on saturday, but it will be largely fine and dry for england and wales and a little bit milder — 9 to 13 degrees, the high. similar story as well as we go into sunday. watch out for that early morning mist and fog once again.

this is bbc news. we will have the headlines and all the main news stories for you at the top of the hour as newsday continues straight after hardtalk. welcome i am stephen sackur. the first anniversary of russia all out invasion of ukraine is fast there's both a feeling here and in moscow that would herald a new phase in the war.

president zelensky is visiting european pinay flies with his