this is bbc news. i'm victoria valentine with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. as aid agencies race to bring help to turkey and syria, the death toll from last week's earthquakes rises to more than 41,000. will this be enough to help the millions who are now thought to be homeless? and second, if this had happened earlier, could more lives have been saved? scientists in america say they may have developed a drug for use as a contraceptive pill for men. republican nikki haley enters next year's us presidential race in a challenge to herformer boss, donald trump. and koh—i—noor no more — why a controversial diamond claimed by india won't be making an appearance

at the coronation of king charles. we begin with the race to get more aid into southern turkey and northern syria, where the death toll from last week's earthquakes has now surpassed 41,000. millions are still left without shelter in freezing conditions with little food and poor sanitation. the challenge in northern syria is particularly difficult — the political situation is unstable after years of war, and control of the border is ssplit between the syrian government and rebel groups. until now, aid has been routed through a single crossing point at bab al—hawa. 0ur correspondent laura bicker has been there and sent this report. every day in antakya,

relatives huddle around piles of rubble that were once family homes, waiting for news. but rescue efforts have slowly become recovery missions, and now, as workers comb through bricks and dust, the hope is of finding a body to say a final farewell. 30 people are entombed in what is left of this building. layers of concrete are pulled apart to reveal the remains of someone�*s living room. five of this woman's family lived here. translation: all of those | people died while screaming, "save us, save us." there was no one. human life has no value in turkey. there are some who are still defying the odds. after more than 200 hours, two women were pulled from deep within the ruins.

at least three others were rescued in other parts of turkey, but there are fewer miracle moments each day. and for survivors, living in fractured cities where damaged buildings are still collapsing, coping with freezing temperatures with no heating, little water and food, is becoming more difficult by the day. translation: they're asking . for wet wipes, soaps, shampoos. there's water, but there's nowhere to take a shower. people are struggling. president erdogan has denied accusations that his administration's response to this disaster was slow. translation: obviously our country has faced issues that i would have been seen in any part of the world, but our people should have no doubt that our state went all out to reach the earthquake zone. the wait for aid has been longer in syria, but more is now on its way.

until today, this was the only route available for aid to get through to syria, but the united nations has now organised two other border crossings. but it leaves key questions. first, will this be enough to help the millions who are now thought to be homeless? and second, if this had happened earlier, could more lives have been saved? the search for survivors in idlib is over. the living are now focused on staying warm and alive. this has been one of the world's deadliest earthquakes, but without urgent help, this disaster could claim even more lives. laura bicker, bbc news, in antakya. to the war in ukraine now and at a meeting of defence ministers, nato's secretary—general says allies are talking about how to increase support for ukraine. jens stoltenberg says kyiv is using up ammunition faster than it's being provided

and has called on member countries to increase production. the kremlin says nato demonstrated its hostility towards russia every day, and was becoming more and more involved in the conflict in ukraine. here'sjens stoltenberg's opening remarks at the meeting. nato allies are providing unprecedented support to ukraine to help uphold its right of self—defence. and from the start, we have been working very closely with the european union, determined to support ukraine for as long as it takes. today, we will discuss our continued support, which is essential to help ukraine prevail as an independent sovereign state. as ukraine continues to fight against russian offensives, the kremlin continues to wage another war — against critics at home. draconian laws have been passed to punish dissent. public criticism of president putin's so—called �*special

military operation�* carries the risk of a long prison sentence. 0ur russia editor steve rosenberg travelled to the northern russian city of arkhangelsk to see how russia is silencing opposition to the war. 20—year—old student 0lesya krivtsova has been missing a lot of classes lately. she's under house arrest — her every move monitored by this electronic tag. for social media posts critical of the war in ukraine, 0lesya faces up to ten years in prison. she's been charged with discrediting the russian army and justifying terrorism. translation: i never imagined you could get such a long - prison sentence for posting on the internet. i've already been added to the official list of terrorists — the list that includes school shooters and groups like islamic state. it's crazy. her putin spider tattoo declares "big brother is watching you".

it turns out that 0lesya's fellow students were watching her posts — closely. just before her arrest, 0lesya had discovered this online chat. in it, students, some she knew, were discussing denouncing her to the authorities for her anti—war stance. translation: some of them wanted to tell the security - services or the police. others were saying it's better just to discredit me. in the end, they decided that it was their duty as patriots to denounce me. the only time 0lesya's allowed out is to be in court. herfashion statement — her protest against young russians being punished for criticising the authorities. thejudge ruled to keep her under house arrest. from the russian people, the russian authorities expect

total, unflinching support for the offensive in ukraine. if you don't support it, you're expected at the very least to stay silent. if you don't stay silent, well, there's a whole string of repressive laws now in russia for punishing dissent. this opposition politician was convicted of spreading fake news about the army. ilya yashin was sent to prison for eight and a half years. for vladimir kara—murza, the charge is treason. the kremlin critic and anti—war activist faces 20 years in jail. 0n the streets of arkhangelsk, it's not big brother watching you — he's a russian soldier who was killed fighting in ukraine. the patriotic messaging is persuasive. we found little sympathy here for people with anti—war views who are being prosecuted. "those people who are discrediting our army or spreading fakes,

they are sick in the head", konstantin says. "they should be sent off to the front line as cannon fodder." as for 0lesya, she says she dreams of a russia that embraces freedom of speech, where russians are not seen as criminals just for having a different opinion. steve rosenberg, bbc news, arkhangelsk. scientists in america say they may have developed a drug for use as a contraceptive pill for men. they say it works by temporarily stopping sperm from propelling itself. the drug switches off an enzyme that sperm needs to be able to swim to reach a females egg. tests done on mice show that the effect is short—lived, with normal function restored within 2a hours. for more insight on this, let's now speak to stephanie page, an endocrinologist and professor at the university of washington school of medicine.

university of washington thank university of washington you so much forjoining me thank you so much forjoining me and talking to me about this. this is really interesting and i know very much within the focus of your research as well. you are involved in the development of a male contraceptive pill, also a male contraceptive pill, also a gel as well. how excited are you about what you're hearing today? i you about what you're hearing toda ? ~ , , ., , today? i think this is really important _ today? i think this is really important work. _ today? i think this is really important work. we - today? i think this is really important work. we have i today? i think this is really - important work. we have been working towards developing a male contraceptive pill for a number of decades now and this is really work that is proof of principle that at least in an animal model, conceptually and on demand contraceptive pill could be available to men and women in the future.- could be available to men and women in the future. now, this ma be women in the future. now, this may be a _ women in the future. now, this may be a silly _ women in the future. now, this may be a silly question - women in the future. now, this may be a silly question but - women in the future. now, this may be a silly question but i. may be a silly question but i am asking it because i think it is important. how sure are you that what you see in mice will definitely be replicated in humans? will this work for men? i think there is quite a bit of work to do to show that. again, this is exciting work that we have a long road ahead. this

work shows that in mice, in a short period of time, given high doses of this blogger, so to speak, that this can be effective, but translating findings in mice and even in nonhuman primates to humans has been particularly challenging and really in the area of reproductive health, even more challenging than in some other areas, so it is a exciting work but there is quite a lot more to do. �* ., but there is quite a lot more todo.�* ., , to do. and of course, where does this — to do. and of course, where does this development - to do. and of course, where| does this development stand to do. and of course, where . does this development stand in terms of protecting against things like sexually—transmitted infections, diseases and the like? ., , ., , infections, diseases and the like? ., , ., like? that is really nothing here that _ like? that is really nothing here that would _ like? that is really nothing here that would suggest i like? that is really nothing l here that would suggest that like? that is really nothing - here that would suggest that it would protect against that. we are often asked in the field about the relative importance of this relative to condoms, for example, which are obviously a really important part of sexual health. there is a goal of developing what we call dual—purpose methods that would be contraceptives and protect against sexually transmitted diseases, particularly hiv, but this particularly hiv, but this particular molecule is a target won't do that, but it could

potentially be coupled with something else that might be effective in that area.- effective in that area. didn't there is demand _ effective in that area. didn't there is demand for- effective in that area. didn't there is demand for a - effective in that area. didn't there is demand for a male | effective in that area. didn't i there is demand for a male pill from men?— there is demand for a male pill from men? absolutely. there is . uite from men? absolutely. there is cuite a from men? absolutely. there is quite a bit _ from men? absolutely. there is quite a bit of — from men? absolutely. there is quite a bit of work, _ from men? absolutely. there is quite a bit of work, there - from men? absolutely. there is quite a bit of work, there is - quite a bit of work, there is work sponsored by a variety of agencies and surveys that have been asking men recently if they are interested in contraceptives and really that response and the response we see in a is extremely positive, so i think there is certainly a market here. it is really about creating more choices and, if you will come a contraceptive menu for men, so that they can become more engaged in contraception.— become more engaged in contraception. community get around science community get around the fears, the understandable fears, that consumers would have around this wearing off, that it isn't affecting their long—term fragility, that this is just a short—term situation? that is really important, developing reversible contraceptive methods for men is really important and addressing potential

side—effects, so really that has to be shown in a long—range study and a long—term study, so i think it is really important to remember as well that every method won't work for every person and so just like for women we are creating lots of contraceptive choices and that means there is more contraceptive engagement and we can expect the same thing from men. there is a lot of work to do that would show men and their partners, most importantly, that these methods can be effective, but i think that that can be done in the future. . , , future. really interesting. thank you _ future. really interesting. thank you so _ future. really interesting. thank you so much. - future. really interesting. | thank you so much. thank future. really interesting. - thank you so much. thank you for having _ thank you so much. thank you for having me. _ stay with us on bbc news. still to come: love during wartime — the ukrainian soldiers tying the knot on valentine's day. nine years and 15,000 deaths after going into afghanistan, the last soviet troops were finally coming home. the withdrawal completed in good order but the army

defeated in the task it was sent to perform. malcolm has been murdered. that has a terrible effect on the morale of the people. i'm terrified of the repercussions in the streets. one wonders who is next. explosions. as the airlift got under way, there was no let—up in the eruption itself. lava streams from a vent low in the crater flow down to the sea to the east of the island, away from the town for the time being. it could start flowing again at any time. the russians heralded their next generation space station with a spectacular night launch. they called it mir, the russian for peace. this is bbc news. the latest headlines: as aid agencies race

to bring help to turkey and syria — the death toll from last week's earthquakes rises to more than 41,000. scientists in america say they may have developed a drug for use as a contraceptive pill for men. buckingham palace has said the controversial koh—i—noor diamond will not be used in the coronation of king charles. instead camilla, the queen consort, will be crowned with queen mary's crown, which has been taken out of the tower of london to be resized for the coronation on the 6th of may, at westminster abbey. the bbc�*s azadeh moshiri reports. it may not be the largest diamond in the world, but it's certainly the most controversial. the koh—i—noor is even said to carry a curse. buckingham palace has decided to keep it out of the coronation. so when camilla the queen consort is crowned alongside king charles in may,

it will be with this one, queen mary's crown, worn by the consort of king george v in1911. in a statement, buckingham palace said: but for many, this does not resolve the dispute around who owns the diamond. if it's in a treasury box, does it shine any less brightly or burn any less brightly in the psyche of people who feel they have been wronged? there are many theories about the stone's origins. historians generally agree it was taken from india by nader shah, an iranian ruler in 1739. that's him on the right, next to the mughal emperor muhammad shah. india argues it eventually made its way back home, but that one of its

19th—century rulers was then tricked into handing it to the brits during colonial rule. pakistan made an official plea to have it back because it was a jewel of the treasury of lahore. lahore is now in pakistan, it wasn't at the time, but it is now. the sikhs want it sent back maybe to the golden temple because they say it was part of the sikh kingdom. you go back even further, iran has a claim on it, afghanistan has a claim on it. buckingham palace says the coronation on may 6th will be shorter, smaller and more diverse than before. now the royals have made clear they won't let the koh—i—noor�*s sharp edges outshine their big day, proving not all diamonds are a girl's best friend. azadeh moshiri, bbc news. nikki haley, the former governor of south carolina, has announced she's running to become the next us president. she was appointed by donald trump as us ambassador to the united nations, and is the first person

to challenge mr trump for the party's 2024 nomination. here's some background on the new republican challenger. the people of south carolina chose me as their first minority and first female governor. i was the proud daughter of indian immigrants. not black, not white. i was different. a hate filled murderer who massacred our brothers and sisters in charleston has a sick and twisted view of the flag. it's time to move the flag from the capitol grounds. during anxious times, it can be tempting to follow the siren call of the angriest voices.

i can promise you what i'll be doing is campaigning for this one. and we will remember it when so many countries come calling on us, as they so often do, to pay even more and to use our influence for their benefit. america will put our embassy injerusalem. some people look at america and see vulnerability. they all think we can be bullied, kicked around. you should know this about me. i don't put up with bullies. and when you kick back, it hurts them more if you're wearing heels. i'm nikki haley, and i'm running for president. let's get all the latest sports news.

hello there. i'm tolson tollett. and this is your sports news where we start with this season's champions league, which has reached the knockout stage with the first to last 16 matches played on tuesday in a repeat of the 2020 final, bayern munich beat paris saint—germain with kingsley coman scoring the only goal of the game against his former club. bayern's french defender benjamin pavard was shown a second yellow card in stoppage time and he'll miss the return leg in germany in three weeks' time. in the night other game, the italian champions ac milan

beat tottenham 1-0. the only goal of the game was scored after only seven minutes by brahim diaz, who is on loan from real madrid. one the final score and tottenham will hope they can turn around that deficit in next month's second leg. i came into the game with with high intensity, with a lot of pressure. it was difficult to play for us. to play for them. it was a pity to concede a goal after five minutes, because i think that in this specific situation, we could do much better. there are two more last 16 leg games on wednesday with chelsea travelling to germany and a match up against borussia dortmund. graham potter's team trained in the fog in london on tuesday before flying out for the fixture. but blues forward pierre—emerick aubameyang won't be making a return to his former club after being admitted from potters 25 man champions league squad earlier this month. elsewhere, club brugge will contest a knockout phase tie in europe's top club competition for the first time when they welcome portuguese side benfica to belgium. in the premier league, it's first versus second later as arsenal host champions manchester city. the game has been dogged by controversy in the build up with the gunners on the wrong end of a controversial decision against brentford on saturday. but mikel arteta,

who was city assistant manager previously knows the challenge they face. what they have done in the last six years, they absolutely merited, they merited on the pitch and the way they play, the way they have competed, the way they have gone through difficulties. and for us, the challenge is to get to that level, you know, and we need to use that challenge and that energy to — this is what we want to be. cricket and the holders australia thrashed bangladesh to make it two wins out of two at the women's t20 world cup in south africa. bangladesh batted first after winning the toss and their captain nigar sultana jyoti top scored with 57 as they made 107 for seven from their 20 overs. australia cruised to victory thanks to a second wicket stand of 69 between alyssa healy and captain meg lanning. ashley gardiner hit the winning runs as the defending champions reached their target with ten balls still to spare. it was an eventful tuesday for ronnie 0'sullivan at the welsh 0pen snooker. the tip of his cue came

off twice in his match against scotland's ross muir. he was then penalised for not hitting a red at the third time of asking before being forced to concede the frame as a result. 0'sullivan came through the decider, though, to book his place in the third round with a43 win. you can get all the latest sports news, of course, at our website. but for me and the rest of the team that's your sports news for now. it's almost a year now since russia began its invasion of ukraine. in that time an unknown number of people have lost their lives and many more have been injured. thousands of men have joined up to defend their country. 0n valentine's day some of them took a moment to remember what they're fighting for. the bbc�*s tim allman reports. when your country is at war, it certainly concentrates the mind. and the heart.

here, in the ukrainian city of kharkiv, 0leg, a soldier on leave from the front, takes the opportunity to marry his sweetheart yulia. it turns out this is a conflict that both separates and unites. translation: the war introduced us, - since he is from the donetsk region and i am from the kharkiv region. if it wasn't for the war, we wouldn't have met. we care about each other. every moment is special. further west, in the city of cherkasy, the weddings are taking place on an almost industrial scale. 50 couples have been walking down the aisle, almost every groom a soldier. and there were plenty of guests to offer a little moral support. translation: this kind of event shows that life goes on, - a little bit ofjoy for my comrade, for my friend. for those who just want to go on a date, rather than a more permanent commitment,

why not try this train of love? setting off from kyiv, there are candles, decorations, and a romantic meal. but once again, the shadow of war looms large. translation: travelling in this train are soldiers l and their wives. these guys defend our land, defend our country, and today it is our honour to give them moments of personal happiness. and to sweeten the deal, those soldiers get to travel for free. tim allman, bbc news. and finally: this is the moment part of a valentine's day mural by renowned british street artist banksy was removed just hours after it was completed. the mural had depicted a 1950s housewife shutting a man into a freezer, but local council workers in kent said it needed to be "made safe", despite protests from bystanders.

you can reach me on twitter. hello. after a dry but misty night for some, there is actually some rain in the forecast over the next few days, which may come as a bit of a shock to places such as benson, 0xfordshire, pershore, worcestershire, and bramham in yorkshire, because these areas over the last four weeks have barely seen over a millimetre of rain. now the rain clouds are gathering, they're out there in the atlantic at the moment. this one will come in through thursday. but we need to shift this one first. it's been held at bay in an area of high pressure, but that high pressure is going to weaken a little bit, allowing that weather front to trundle in. by the end of the night, start of wednesday, that rain will be in across western scotland, northern ireland but it will be a mild enough start to the day. but east of scotland, england and wales, temperatures still low enough for some frost around. and the eastern counties

of england, some dense patches of fog — that won't last as long as the fog did on tuesday. we'll also see the rain in northern ireland quickly clear to brighter skies before more cloud later. rain through the morning in scotland, sunshine and showers later. but then from late morning through into the afternoon, the rain spreads across wales, northern western parts of england into the midlands. east anglia, the south east, the channel islands staying dry all day long, the breeze picking up relative to the past few days and the mildest conditions in the southeast corner, 14 or 15 celsius, even though for some in the west a bit of a drop compared with tuesday. temperatures still above average for this stage in february. now we finish wednesday with some patchy rain or drizzle, east anglia and the southeast but after a brief clearer spell, more widespread rain and drizzle spreading across england, wales, southern scotland through wednesday night and into thursday morning. it's going to leave a lot of low cloud around, quite a misty, murky, damp sort of day on thursday, especially around hills and coast. there could be a little bit of brightness here and there, best of which will be in the north of scotland. and another mild day, even with that cloud nine to around 13 celsius.

rain's gathering, though, behind me. that's a deepening area of low pressure, which will spill to the north of the country as we go through into friday, bringing some rain southwards, but a lot in the way of stronger winds. the winds will be rattling across the country. the cloud and patchy rain pushing its way southwards. sunshine, blustery showers later in the day across northern half of scotland. and temperatures still on the milder side, especially in the south. but the winds will be a key feature and it's one we'll certainly have to watch. we could see winds top 80 miles an hour across some parts of scotland, gusty winds to the east of high ground in northeast england and eastern scotland, too. we'll keep you updated.

this is bbc news with the latest business headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. a soft landing for the us economy, with inflation continuing to slow. has the fed been vindicated? meanwhile in the uk, uncertainty in the jobs market continues to weigh on growth, with all eyes on the latest inflation figures due today. a booking bonanza — as foreign travel rebounds and airbnb posts its first full year of profit. and how to make chess less stuffy and more flashy.

let's start in the us where inflation has been