this is bbc news, broadcasting to viewers in the uk and around the world. the headlines. aid agencies call for better access to the earthquake disaster zones from turkey to syria, as the number of people killed in both countries rises to more than 25,000. over on that side of the border, there is the constant sound of sirens, of heavy machinery, of people working. there is none of that here. down there are small children removing the rubble. people are still being pulled out alive from under the rubble in turkey, more than 120 hours after the first earthquake struck. the un aid chief calls the scale of the disaster, and the response to it, unprecedented. what is so amazing is that people

are still coming out of the rubble alive six days in. so it's shocking, it's also, in a perverse sense, quite heartening. in other news, us fighterjets shoot down an unidentified aircraft over alaska after president biden gave the order to "seek and destroy". troops are trying to salvage the wreckage. welcome to the programme. we begin with the latest developments in the aftermath of the earthquake in turkey and syria. the united nations aid chief has described the earthquake in turkey and syria as the worst natural disaster to hit the region in a century. he has landed in the area and has

been speaking to lyse doucet, we learned some interesting details from him, talking about over 100 countries having donated and about the scale of the challenge here, and one of the challenges is getting the aid into northern syria, and the difference, the contrast between the rescue efforts, some of which we are seeing now, between the two countries, turkey and syria. quentin somerville is in syria, just by the builder with turkey. —— the border with turkey. take a listen to what he says about the contrast with what is happening in the two countries. this is the town of harem in north—west syria. there is a bit of activity here, but nothing like you see there in terms of activity on the other side, on the turkish side of the border. the border is literally just across that hill. the people here have lost about 700 buildings. another 4,000 or so are unsafe. so they are living in tents, and if we just swing around here, you can perhaps see the internally displaced

people's camp that has been set up over there. they are also telling us that in terms of foreign aid, they have received next to nothing. some spanish doctors made it to some of their hospitals, but nothing else. the contrast here with what is going on in turkey is astonishing. over on that side of the border, there is the constant sound of sirens, of heavy machinery, of people working. there is none of that here. down there are small children removing the rubble. while the international community isn't here, it is being left to small boys to remove the rubble from these broken buildings and to try and find bodies. and it is bodies they are trying to find now because they say that the time for looking for survivors has passed here, that that passed 2a hours ago. this is mainly a recovery mission, they are no longer rescuing people, and the reason they are no longer rescuing people is because the aid just didn't come quick enough.

stark words there from quentin somerville come on the syrian side of the border. 0ur chief international correspondent lyse doucet described the problem is exactly, is a crisis within a crisis. she is on the northern side of the board at the moment, in turkey, and she has been interviewing martin griffiths, the humanitarian chief at the united nations. let's take a listen to their conversation. martin griffiths, you have seen so many disasters in so many different parts of the world. how does this compare? i think it is the worst natural disaster i have ever seen. and it is also the most extraordinary international response, as you know. we have more than 100 countries who have sent people here, so there's been an incredible response. but there is a need for it, as we see behind us. and what is so amazing is that people are still, as you know, lyse, coming out of the rubble

alive six days in. so it is shocking. it is also, in a perverse sense, quite heartening. heartening in what way? well, the response. the response. the fact that the people with great expertise who got here very quickly, committed, working day and night to do what is needed. that is remarkable and i hope that when we launch our appeals for both turkey and syria in the next day or so that we will get the generous donor response as well. what do they need the most now? what they need the most now is to come to a conclusion as to when they call off the rescue efforts, which is a really difficult question because of who is left behind. then, i think, as tedros from the who has said, really worried about medical next, particularly in north—west syria, where we have cholera already. but medical facilities here are obviously overwhelmed, as you know, so there is a huge need for urgent medical care, mobile

clinics, field hospitals. i think the united kingdom is sending in a field hospital, for example. and then the period of humanitarian aid, the next three months, for which we are appealing, which will cover shelter, livelihoods, food, nutrition and health care. and so, to give people a sense, those people who have had to leave their homes, that there is a stable future, awaiting them, even in this awful time. we will return to what is happening in turkey and syria later. some news now. the united states is trying to recover the debris of an unidentified object which was shot down as it flew over alaska's north coast. a pentagon spokesman said the object was unmanned, and about the size of a small car. it comes almost a week after the us military brought down what it says

was a chinese spy balloon. jon donnison reports. it's almost a week since the us military shot down what it said was a chinese spy balloon off the coast of south carolina. now the pentagon says fighterjets like these have intercepted another unidentified object, this time in the skies above alaska. we have no further details about the object at this time, including any description of its capabilities, purpose, or origin. the object was about the size of a small car, so not similar in size or shape to the high altitude surveillance balloon that was taken down off the coast of south carolina on february 4th. defence officials say this latest object had been flying at around 40,000 feet close to an area called prudhoe bay, much lower than last week's balloon. a military transporter plane, as well as helicopters, have now been sent to try and recover the debris. the biden administration came under a great deal of political criticism, particularly

from republicans in congress and elsewhere, for not dealing with that last balloon more quickly. and i think it's no surprise that when they found an opportunity to take a shot at whatever this was over alaskan waters, they did so, presumably one consideration being that this was to avoid the potential circus of yet another foreign object transiting the continental united states for days or weeks. wreckage of last week's balloon has now been recovered, and is being analysed by us intelligence. they want to do the same with whatever they find in alaska. meanwhile, chinese officials have accused the us of political manipulation and hype. jon donnison, bbc news. we are going to return now to our top story. we know, unfortunately, the number of people concerned to

have died in turkey and syria is more than 25000 and on top of that awful number, of course, is the countless number of people who have survived but are now without homes and crucial supplies. i'm joined now by antonio vitorino, director general of the international organization for migration, one of the un agencies responding to the earthquake. an expert in how to deal with the challenges that are being faced with so many people. thank you for joining us. so many people. thank you for joining m— so many people. thank you for joining us— so many people. thank you for joining ne— so many people. thank you for “oininu us. ., ~ , , joining us. thank you, my pleasure. what are the _ joining us. thank you, my pleasure. what are the immediate _ joining us. thank you, my pleasure. what are the immediate challenges | what are the immediate challenges you are facing right now? well. what are the immediate challenges you are facing right now?— you are facing right now? well, at this moment. _ you are facing right now? well, at this moment, the _ you are facing right now? well, at this moment, the immediate - you are facing right now? well, at i this moment, the immediate needs you are facing right now? well, at - this moment, the immediate needs are shelter, food, warm clothes, heaters, that we are trying to channel from gaziantep, where we have a huge warehouse, to north—west syria. unfortunately, one has to recognise that there is only one cross—border point and we need to

amplify the number of cross—border points so that we can deliver all the goods that are in need because we are confronted with, as martin has said, a terrible catastrophe and we have more than 25 —— more than 20,000 people on the move at the current moment because they have become homeless and they need urgent shelter and food, hot food, and also, heaters to confront the very negative temperature in the region. ijust negative temperature in the region. i just want to go back to the idea of crossing points because we had from our correspondent a little earlier about the difference in the aid response right now in northern syria and turkey and he suggested this is a political point, that physically, aid could cross the border between turkey and syria but it is a political decision to stick to the single crossing point but there is hope that more crossing points will be allowed. are you confident they will? i points will be allowed. are you confident they will?—

points will be allowed. are you confident they will? i think that there is an _ confident they will? i think that there is an absolute _ confident they will? i think that there is an absolute need - confident they will? i think that there is an absolute need and l confident they will? i think that i there is an absolute need and we should not politicise this issue. the first statements by the syrian government are encouraging. they admitted the possibility of authorising further crossing points and as martin griffiths has just said, he is going to damascus tomorrow and i hope that one of the positive outcomes of those meetings will be to open new crossing points that are badly needed. qm. will be to open new crossing points that are badly needed.— will be to open new crossing points that are badly needed. ok, now, you are clearly experts _ that are badly needed. ok, now, you are clearly experts in _ that are badly needed. ok, now, you are clearly experts in migration - that are badly needed. ok, now, you are clearly experts in migration and i are clearly experts in migration and in huge numbers of people on the move which is exactly what we have right now. what are the things that you provide or can do? is it a case of building thousands upon thousands of building thousands upon thousands of temporary shelters or moving people far enough away to undamaged areas? what are the kind of things that you are doing?— areas? what are the kind of things that you are doing? well, we manage several camps — that you are doing? well, we manage several camps already _ that you are doing? well, we manage several camps already in _ that you are doing? well, we manage several camps already in idlib - that you are doing? well, we manage several camps already in idlib and - several camps already in idlib and we see people arriving to the idlib camps, coming from the region that were more seriously hit by the

earthquakes. the first priority is to accommodate those people, to find tense and shelter for them, whether individually or in collective facilities. secondly, we are very concerned, as martin also mentioned, about the situation of the health sector. this kind of disruptive situations are always prone to the proliferation, notjust of cholera but other diseases. health facilities and health support and medicines are badly needed to support those people that are on the move. food and health are top priorities. move. food and health are top priorities-— priorities. give us an idea of timescale — priorities. give us an idea of timescale because - priorities. give us an idea of timescale because we - priorities. give us an idea of timescale because we will. priorities. give us an idea of - timescale because we will continue to focus on the here and now and rightly so because their needs are so acute right now and no doubt we are going to talk to you again about them butjust give us an idea, in examples like this, when the scale is so huge, how long is your thinking? what kind of timeframe do you need support for? months, years?

well, we are going to launch a famine appeal in the un system for the next three months, those are the top priorities forfunding. i would say we are notjust dealing with the immediate livelihood assistance but also psychosocial support. these people have been traumatised by a terrible earthquake and they need to be supported. they have lost their loved ones and they need psychosocial support as well as health support.— psychosocial support as well as health su--ort. ., ., ., health support. antonio, thank you for our health support. antonio, thank you for your efforts _ health support. antonio, thank you for your efforts and _ health support. antonio, thank you for your efforts and thank - health support. antonio, thank you for your efforts and thank you - health support. antonio, thank you for your efforts and thank you for i for your efforts and thank you for sparing the time to talk to us. we are going to take a break from coverage of our lead story and come back to the uk now. detectives are questioning three people arrested on suspicion of violent disorder after clashes outside accommodation for asylum seekers on merseyside. crowds gathered near the suites hotel in knowsley last night, where a police van was set on fire. nick garnett reports.

flames light up the dark as a police van is set on fire. initially peaceful, eventually violent, the protest called after claims about the behaviour of some people staying at the hotel towards young girls living locally. some rooms at the suites hotel have been used to house people seeking asylum. but as fighting broke out between protesters, counter—protesters and the police, all those inside could do was watch what was happening below as officers tried to restore calm. stones, bottles and bricks rained down. hundreds of protesters were involved. a number of arrests were made for public order offences and criminal damage. eventually, after more officers were drafted in and local roads were temporarily closed, police were able to disperse the crowd. well, this is what the van looks like now. now the police are withdrawing, things have calmed down and the roads are being cleared. but rebuilding relationships here — well, that's going to take a lot longer. as most police withdrew

from the area and the roads were cleared of debris, half a dozen vans with officers and police dogs spent the night inside the hotel gates to make sure things remained calm. nick garnett, bbc news, knowsley. with me now is chief executive of the refugee council, enver solomon. thank you forjoining us. hello, thank you for “oining us. hello, thank you — thank you for “oining us. hello, thank you for— thank you forjoining us. hello, thank you for having _ thank you forjoining us. hello, thank you for having me. - thank you forjoining us. hello, thank you for having me. what | thank you forjoining us. hello, i thank you for having me. what is our thank you for having me. what is your reaction _ thank you for having me. what is your reaction to _ thank you for having me. what is your reaction to what _ thank you for having me. what is your reaction to what happened i thank you for having me. what is i your reaction to what happened last night? it your reaction to what happened last niuht? , your reaction to what happened last niiht? , your reaction to what happened last niuht? , ., night? it is appalling, what happened _ night? it is appalling, what happened last _ night? it is appalling, what happened last night. - night? it is appalling, what happened last night. any l night? it is appalling, what - happened last night. any attempt to protest and intimidate people who have come to this country from countries like afghanistan, countries like afghanistan, countries like afghanistan, countries like syria, where we know people have been displaced by war and terror, turned into refugees, and terror, turned into refugees, and are now affected by that horrendous earthquake, and people from iran, and we know what is happening in iran at the moment with the crackdown against protesters, these are the kind of people that are having to be placed in hotels because of the government's own

incompetence, its own chaos in the asylum system, which is leaving tens of thousands, 150,000 waiting for a decision on their claim, the average waiting time is 18 months. it is a consequence of this incompetence and chaos in the system that people are in hotels. it is now appalling that they are being targeted by protesters. most communities in this country welcome people. they support them when they arrive in this country, when they are in hotels, we work with communities to help people who have come seeking safety. but it is tragic that this did not happen yesterday evening and there was this incident. ., , incident. ok, i am sure the government— incident. ok, i am sure the government would - incident. ok, i am sure the government would take - incident. ok, i am sure the l government would take issue incident. ok, i am sure the - government would take issue with some of what you have set and we have reached out to the home office for a response and we will bring that to viewers when we get it. back to the issue in hand, what would you like to see happen right now because what —— are? i like to see happen right now because what -- are?— what -- are? i think it is imperative _ what -- are? i think it is imperative we _ what -- are? i think it is imperative we hear - what -- are? i think it isj imperative we hear from what -- are? i think it is- imperative we hear from the what -- are? i think it is— imperative we hear from the home imperative we hearfrom the home secretary and the immigration

minister, we have not had a statement yet and i think it is absolutely critical that all political leaders seek to overcome hatred and division, don't use language that fuels hatred and division, language that has been used by this government, the word "invasion" when referring to people coming from countries like afghanistan and syria and iran, men, women and children who are coming as refugees. it is imperative that our political leaders use a different language and that the community is brought together to recognise who these people are and to ensure that they are given the support that they need and are not others or treated as though they are some kind of aliens. �* ., ., ,., as though they are some kind of aliens. �* ., ., , .,, ., aliens. and what about people who don't use inflammatory _ aliens. and what about people who don't use inflammatory language, | aliens. and what about people who - don't use inflammatory language, who are not other ring people but you do have concerns about people coming into the country, what do you say to them? i into the country, what do you say to them? . ., , into the country, what do you say to them? , , �*, . , them? i recognise people's concerns, i them? i recognise people's concerns, i understand — them? i recognise people's concerns, i understand that _ them? i recognise people's concerns, i understand that when _ them? i recognise people's concerns, i understand that when people - them? i recognise people's concerns, i understand that when people see i i understand that when people see images of the flimsy vessels coming

across the channel, it creates anxiety and concern for people. we believe at the refugee council that absolutely we need to control our borders but in a way that demonstrates compassion, that demonstrates compassion, that demonstrates we will give people a fair hearing on uk soil, that understands who these people are, that they are men, women and children, as i say, from countries like afghanistan, syria and iran, and when they come to the uk, we should treat them like any other individual who is fleeing war and bloodshed. this country opened its doors to ukrainians. we believe in this country that people should be welcomed if they are refugees and should be given a fair hearing. that is what should be happening to every individual who comes in, even if they are on a small boat. i understand people's fears but i also believe that people think that they should be given the opportunity to have their case heard. they shouldn't be prejudged. they shouldn't be prejudged. they shouldn't simply be vilified or

rejected or othered by politicians. thank you forjoining us. sport and for a full round—up, from the bbc sport centre, here's hugh ferris. good afternoon. the world's top two sides are meeting in the opening six nations match of the weekend. ireland could register a record 13th home win with victory against the defending champions france, who are unbeaten in 1a themselves. it is living up to the billing, it has been a fascinating first half, four tries already, ireland with three of them, leading 22—16. chelsea continue to stutter in the premier league after being held to a 1—1 draw at west ham. signs looked promising for graham potter in the opening exchanges, typified by the opening goal for chelsea when new signings enzo fernandez and joao felix combined in clinical fashion. the visitors had a further goal ruled out for offside which would have given them breathing space, but it was former chelsea player

emerson who scored next to earn the hammers a point. leaders arsenal are one of those with a 3 o'clock kick—off. they can extend their advantage to eight points with a win over brentford. it is currently goalless at the emirates. just two goals so far, fulham leading at home to nottingham forest and the first goal of the day from rodrigo bentancur at the king power, where spurs lead leicester. league 2 elgin are attempting to reach the quarterfinals of the scottish cup for just the second time. they're playing at championship side ayr. 0ne one of four 3pm kick off this afternoon in the scottish cup and just one goal, there could be a shock on the cards, raith rovers leading motherwell. celtic are in action later against st mirren. holders rangers play tomorrow. manchester city gained revenge for their league cup semifinal defeat to arsenal earlier this week by winning their wsl

match 2—1 this afternoon. city's england internationals put them two up in the first half. the first from lauren hemp, then chloe kellyjust before half time. rafaelle souza got one back in the second half from a free kick. but city's win takes them above arsenal into third in the table. england are chasing 136 to win their opening match of the women's t20 world cup against west indies. sophie ecclestone took three wickets in west indies�* total of 135 for 7. west indies won the toss and decided to bat first. england now batting and it's 58—2 with chinelle henry taking both. india have thrashed australia by an innings and 132 runs inside three days in the first test in nagpur. india extended their first innings to 400 all out and then tore through australia's batting line—up.

spinner ravi ashwin took five wickets, including both openers. mohammed shami took the last wicket as australia were dismissed for a paltry 91. steve smith was left 25 not out. the second of the four tests starts on friday. that's all the sport for now. you can find more on all those stories on the bbc sport website. that's bbc.co.uk/sport. scotla nd scotland against wales is the second six nations match of the day which will be available on bbc one at 4:45pm. more in the next hour. we just want to bring you an update on the story we were talking about before we went over to the sport. when we were speaking a few minutes ago about it, three people had been arrested after clashes with police outside a hotel which is providing refuge for asylum seekers on merseyside. in the last couple of

minutes, we have an update on that, and it is now 15 people who have been arrested after the violent disorder outside the hotel which houses asylum seekers in knowsley on friday night. the ages of those arrested are between 13 years old and 54 years old. 15 people have now been arrested after that. now an update on the russian invasion of ukraine. you will remember perhaps over the last couple of weeks that president zelensky of ukraine has been urging the west and its partners to provide a fight it up —— to provide fighter jet and we have an update on that. poland's president has cast doubt on whether his country can provide ukraine with the fighterjets that kyiv says it needs to win the war with russia. andrzej duda said any decision would have to be taken collectively by nato. in an interview for tomorrow's sunday with laura kuenssberg

programme on the bbc, mr duda warned that by giving jets to ukraine, poland would end up weakening its own military defences. translation: we think i that this requires a decision by the allies anyway, which means that we have to make a joint decision. also, due to the fact that there is a very serious need for maintenance of f—16s, if they were to be deployed somewhere, it is not only about the jets. you also need maintenance and technical background, technical servicing and so on and so forth. so it is not enough just to send a few planes, a fewjets. and a problem that we are facing, at least in poland, is as follows. we have some jets, but they are fewer than 50, so as a matter of fact, this is our only stock of jets that we have. this poses a serious problem if we donate even a small part of them anywhere, because i don't hesitate to say that we have not

enough of these jets. we would need many more of them. a decision today to donate any kind ofjets, any f—16s, to donate them outside poland is a very serious decision and it is not an easy one for us to take. millions of people have taken part in pro—government rallies in tehran, and other iranian cities, to mark the 44th anniversary of the islamic revolution in 1979. demonstrators chanted slogans and waved banners that condemned the us and israel. this yea r�*s event follows months of mass protests against the theocratic system. local authorities in england and wales are calling for vaping products to be regulated in the same way that cigarettes are, including plain packaging and being kept out of sight behind the counter.

the local government association has reported a rise in the number of shops illegally selling e—cigarettes to children. david fothergill is chair of the local government association's community wellbeing board — he told me more about the changes they'd like to be introduced. vaping products are actually a very good way to get yourself off smoking and we would encourage people to stop smoking and move to vaping. that is a really good alternative with less risks. but if you are under 18 and you are coming to vaping as a lifestyle choice, really, that seems to be completely the wrong thing to do. first of all, it's illegal and second of all, the marketing of these products does encourage youngsters to adopt them, and ultimately it is a way into smoking, rather than a way out. so you want changes to the way they market it? we certainly do. we believe that clearly, it is illegal, but we do have to tackle the marketing of them, so what we would like to see is they're moved into plain packaging,

that they're moved away from the counter and shop windows, and some of these products are really highly attractive colours, they have cartoon characters on them, they are very sweet, they are fruity and, i mean, there are even bubble gum flavours, so we would like to see them moved behind the counter, in plain packaging with clear labelling telling people just what the risks are and that, we believe, would be less attractive to youngsters under 18 from buying the products. and presumably there is evidence to back up that happened with cigarettes and that did make a difference? of course. i mean, there is legislation there, it is illegal to sell these products, but they are still being sold. 16% of those that have acquired vaping products have got them from newsagents and 20% of them from supermarkets, so they are still being sold. we need to make sure they are less accessible and less attractive so they don't become a lifestyle choice for the youngsters and make sure they don't then want to go into the shops to acquire them.

i remember part of the argument at the time with cigarette packaging, that somehow making it plain packaging, less visible behind the counter, added to the attraction of the product that was kind of being hidden. well, i think that is an argument, but i am not sure it is the one that wins this one, because clearly at the moment what we have got is products that are highly attractive to children, under—18s, they are very sweet flavours, they are fruit flavours, they are bubble gum flavours, they are attracting youngsters into this market place. and we not saying that vaping is wrong. people need to be able to access vaping products because if they want to get off smoking, this is a really, really good way to do it, but we have to stop the youngsters getting into it and the only way we can do that is by making the packaging less attractive.

0ur colleagues in ash say that there should be a single tax use on vaping products, we have not gone that far, but we do believe that could also be something that would persuade young children and teenagers to not get into it. now on bbc news the weather with ben. good afternoon, a lot of cloud out there right now but some glimmers of brightness and sunny spells, and we will continue to see some sunshine through what is left of the afternoon and temperatures peaking at 11-13. it is afternoon and temperatures peaking at 11—13. it is very mild and the wind is relatively light. as we go through this evening and overnight, we will keep large amounts of cloud but where there aren't some breaks, north—east scotland, may be parts of east wales and the south—west of england, we could see patchy frost and most places with temperatures holding above freezing. heading into tomorrow, again, quite a lot of cloud around certainly to start but as the breeze picks up, a better chance of sunny spells across south—west england, wales, northern ireland, scotland, particularly in the north—east of scotland where you have some shelter from the breeze.

temperatures, 10—12. that leads us into a largely dry start to the new week but as we had through monday, a bit more in the way of sunshine. fog causing problems in the south on tuesday morning. this is bbc news. i'm lewis vaughanjones and these are the headlines... aid agencies call for better access to the earthquake disaster zones from turkey to syria as the number of people killed in both countries rises to more than 25,000. the united nations estimates the earthquakes may have left nearly 5.5 million people homeless in syria. the government there says it will allow aid to be delivered to rebel—held parts of the country. despite the odds, people are still being pulled out alive from under the rubble in turkey, more than 120 hours after the first earthquake struck. us fighterjets shoot down an unidentified aircraft over alaska after president biden gave the order to "seek and destroy". troops are trying to salvage the wreckage.

three people have been arrested following clashes with police, outside a hotel providing refuge for asylum seekers