this is bbc news — welcome if you're watching here in the uk or around the globe. our top stories: the head of russia's wagner group claims its forces now surround most of bakhmut — the eastern ukrainian city that's been the focus of intense fighting. we have practically surrounded bakhmut. only one route out of the city remains. a failure we were fighting against the professional army, now we are increasingly seeing old people and children. police in australia say they've made one of their biggest ever drug busts, seizing cocaine worth one billion us dollars. the british government is preparing to announce where the uk's first "carbon capture" power station will be built — but will the technology make a difference?

and the ceremony injerusalem to consecrate the oil that will be used to anoint king charles during his coronation in may. ukrainian and russian forces are fighting in the northern suburbs of the city of bakhmut — which has been pulverised by seven months of fighting. oleksandr marchenko, the deputy mayor, confirmed the street clashes, but said the russians have not taken control. western analysts say the scene has been set for ukrainian forces to carry out a fighting withdrawal. a british defence ministry update said ukrainian soldiers are digging new trenches west of the city and are being reinforced by elite troops. the capture of bakhmut

would be the first russian victory of note in more than six months of fighting. our diplomatic correspondent, james landale, sent this report from the capital, kyiv. for more than six months of russian shells and missiles have rained down on the city. thousands of russian soldiers have died trying to seize it and now their commanders are growing increasingly confident. we've almost surrounded bakhmut. there is only one mode that remains in and out of the city. the pincers are closing. before, we were fighting against the professional ukrainian army but now we fight against old men and boys. ukrainian forces are still— against old men and boys. ukrainian forces are still defending _ against old men and boys. ukrainian forces are still defending the - against old men and boys. ukrainian forces are still defending the city - forces are still defending the city

street by street and reports suggest reinforcements are being sent in. but these russian troops either ukrainian army is destroying bridges like these, potentially to prepare for what western analysts call a controlled fighting withdrawal from parts of the city. local officials insist ukraine still bakhmut but accept there is now fighting in the streets. . , , ., streets. the city is almost destroyed- _ streets. the city is almost destroyed. not _ streets. the city is almost destroyed. not a - streets. the city is almost destroyed. not a single i streets. the city is almost - destroyed. not a single building has remained untouched foot of the bridges are destroyed. currently there is no communication in the city so it is cut off. the russians are shelling everything. they have no goal to save the city. they to destroy bakhmut like they did marry you pull. destroy bakhmut like they did marry ou ull. ,, ., , destroy bakhmut like they did marry ouull. ,. , you pull. russia broadcast pictures of its defence _ you pull. russia broadcast pictures of its defence minister _ you pull. russia broadcast pictures of its defence minister making - you pull. russia broadcast pictures of its defence minister making a i of its defence minister making a rare flying visit to his forces in eastern ukraine. but the kremlin seizing bakhmut would be of a victory and they hope a stepping stone to gaining more territory but

for now ukrainian fighters on the ground seem ready to fight every inch of the way with russia paying a much higher and bloodier price. let's speak to our diplomatic correspondent, james landale, in kyiv. what is the situation? as we have heard it is pretty _ what is the situation? as we have heard it is pretty confusing - what is the situation? as we have heard it is pretty confusing but. heard it is pretty confusing but there is clearly growing confidence amongst russian commanders in terms of what they are saying publicly and british military are saying the forces are coming under increasing pressure say there is in indications ukrainian forces are destroying bridges, the indication being that is designed to slow russian progress. they say russia is making advancesin progress. they say russia is making advances in the north and ukraine are sending elite forces to try to

counter that they are so the suggestion is russia is making some gains that potentially, at least according to western analysts, we might be at that stage where ukraine is potentially ready to make what they call a controlled fighting withdrawal. there are already reports of new trend has been dug in the west of the city so in other words, potentially, we could be at that stage where ukraine decides the price of defending bakhmut, the cost in lives of their own troops is now too great and they now might begin a stage withdrawal but were not there yet. that is merely the analysis of western officials and western analysts on the basis of the available information. find analysts on the basis of the available information. and james, what is the _ available information. and james, what is the value _ available information. and james, what is the value of _ available information. and james, what is the value of bakhmut - what is the value of bakhmut strategically?— what is the value of bakhmut strategically? what is the value of bakhmut strateuicall ? ~ ., ~ ., strategically? well, if you talk to western analysts _ strategically? well, if you talk to western analysts to _ strategically? well, if you talk to western analysts to talk - strategically? well, if you talk to western analysts to talk to - western analysts to talk to ukrainians they say there is little strategic value. it is not a military help. it is not a communications hub or a transport hub but, that said, russia has had

very few victories for quite a long time in this conflict. and so any seizure or capture of part or most of bakhmut would be seen as a success, as a victory by the kremlin and they would use it as evidence to try to suggest that russia is beginning to make advances and its much heralded offensive is beginning to pay off and make some gains. i think russia would also claim that it is somehow a stepping stone to seizing other territory in the donbas and eastern ukraine but, you know, at the moment, you know, ukrainian officials counter that by saying, well, maybe, but the cast, the sheer cost in blood of russian soldiers that has been paid to make this claim for a strategically not that important city will be one that ukraine might suggest means that, you know, the price has been to— russia's point of view and just as

sheer numbers of thousands of people who have been thrown out that city to try to defeat it.— who have been thrown out that city to try to defeat it. yes, and james, the russian — to try to defeat it. yes, and james, the russian defence _ to try to defeat it. yes, and james, the russian defence minister - to try to defeat it. yes, and james, the russian defence minister has l the russian defence minister has beenin the russian defence minister has been in the city. is that an indication that he sees this as an important city? i indication that he sees this as an important city?— indication that he sees this as an important city? i don't think he has been to the — important city? i don't think he has been to the city. _ important city? i don't think he has been to the city. i _ important city? i don't think he has been to the city. i think— important city? i don't think he has been to the city. i think russian - been to the city. i think russian defence ministry says he has been to visit forward command posts. in eastern ukraine. and precisely where, that means, is unclear. but i think what it does show is that, you know, russian military commandos who don't pay that many, you know, high—level visits on the ground, it is a display of confidence, it is a display perhaps ofjust a willingness to come down and thank the troops, he pens the medals on some chests. but little more than that. you know, we are relying on

the russian account, obviously, for precisely, you know, where he went. but the suggestion is it is forward command posts, not necessarily bakhmut. police in australia say they've made what's thought to be the country's biggest ever drug bust, seizing cocaine with a street value of a billion us dollars. the joint operation with the united states has led to 12 arrests linked to a mexican cartel. australian police had been following the delivery for months and at the last minute substituted the cargo with fake drugs. from sydney, phil mercer reports. australian police say the drugs were intercepted by us authorities off the coast of ecuador in november. the large haul of cocaine was bound for western australia. investigators substituted the illicit cargo with plaster of paris, a fine, white powder. the shipment was dropped into the indian ocean, west of perth,

and monitored by drones and helicopters. over a number of weeks, our officers and other offices assisted to reconstruct those identical packages and dropped 1.2 tonnes of those drugs into the ocean a0 miles off the coast. over the next few days, the police watched as a criminal syndicate with alleged links to a mexican cartel used two boats to find and retrieve the consignment. surveillance images show one of the vessels towing the other after it had washed up on a beach where two men were arrested. others suspected members of the gang were later detained at a harbour in perth, the western australian state capital. the police also stopped a vehicle on a highway several hundred kilometres away where they found a large amount of cash. 12 people have been arrested, including a 39—year—old man from the united states.

law enforcement authorities say australia's appetite for illegal drugs makes it a potentially aggressive destination for traffickers, but not this time. this haul is estimated to be about half of australia's annual consumption of cocaine. in the next few weeks the british government will announce where the uk's first "carbon capture" power station will be built. the carbon dioxide created by the gas fired plant will be captured, and transported under ground. our environment correspondent, jonah fisher, has been to one of the possible locations. it doesn't bother me. i am quite happy to have a power station on my doorstep. this story is of the uk's energy past, present and future. if the chimneys were smoking, you had an idea of what you would be doing the day. he used to work at a coal power station, grinding the coal

down for use in the furnaces. it sounds like every dirtyjob. very dirtyjob. the washing machine had a pretty hard life. three, two, one! in 1991, as the uk phased out coal, the iconic towers of the power station, the cricket stump so they were known, were brought tumbling down. in its wake, an era of cheap gas dawn. now, second gas plant is about to come on stream, and we were given a look around. they pass through the turbine. much cleaner than coal, it still emits the carbon dioxide that is warming up planets. from here on top of the cooling tower you get a real sense of the energy transition here.

over there on the horizon, those mountains are the leftovers from when there was a coalfired power station. you can see the wind turbines along the horizon. just down there, well, that could very well be the site for the uk's first ever gas—fired power station where the carbon dioxide is captured. the idea behind a carbon capture power station is that instead of releasing carbon dioxide into the atmosphere where it contributes to climate change, the gas is captured and transported underground. in this case, beneath the north sea. we are looking at probably double the cost. it is expensive, but later this month, a decision is expected on whether the new uk's first carbon capture power station is here, or further north on teesside. on those days when the wind isn't blowing, the sun isn't shining, when it is cold, and it is dark and still, there are

going to need to be other sources of power that will keep the light switched on, and that is the role that low carbon solutions like carbon capture play. so, will it work? there are plenty of scientists and activists deeply sceptical of any climate solution that involves burning more fossilfuels. if you translate pound for pound, you will get a better output from a power plant based on renewables and supported by storage than a power plant that has carbon capture attached to it. even former coal worker andy has his doubts. whatever we do, we have to reduce the amount of pollution that we are creating, better manage the waste, etc. but you don't think that capturing the carbon is a way to clean up ouract? i think we have to reduce the carbon that we produce. for now, the government seems intent on giving carbon capture a try. gas may still have a role

to play in could be and in the renewable revolution. jonah fisher, bbc news. there has been severe flooding in malaysia in the southern state ofjohor near neighbouring singapore. police said at least four people have died since wednesday, including a man whose car was swept away by floodwaters and an elderly couple who drowned. nearly 41,000 people from six states have been evacuated to schools and community centres. malaysia is facing torrential rain from the monsoon season. the white house says president biden had a cancerous skin lesion successfully removed from his chest last month. the president's doctor says no further treatment is required. the lesion was spotted during a routine health check and a biopsy confirmed it was a common form of skin cancer which does not normally spread. our north america correspondent, peter bowes, has more details.

president biden had his annual physical last month. we were told the bottom line from the doctor's report was that he was fit for duty. we were told that he had this lesion removed, some tissue was sent away for testing, the result of that there is now in, as you say, it was determined that it was cancerous, a form of cancer that does not easily spread to other parts of the body. we are told that the president does not need any further treatment. that he is healing nicely on the spot on his chest with the lesion was removed. and that the doctors will of course continue to monitor his health. this is the most common form of skin cancer. in fact, it is one of the most common forms of all cancers, this particular skin cancer.

around 3.6 million cases are diagnosed every year in this country. there will be many people who will understand what the president has gone through over the last few weeks. we also know that before he became president, joe biden had a number of similar lesions removed from his body. let's get some of the day's other news. the roman catholic church in portugal has promised to take steps to deal with its history of child sex abuse. it follows a highly critical report that found that nearly 5,000 children had been abused by clergy since 1950. the head of the united nations nuclear watchdog, rafael grossi, has been meeting officials in tehran, after un inspectors detected samples of uranium that had been enriched to near weapons—grade level, at iran's underground fordo nuclear plant. tehran says it restricts uranium enrichment, but acknowledged that what it called "unintended fluctuations" may have occurred.

a un report says gang related violence in haiti has reached levels not seen in decades. in a new assessment the organisiation says criminal gangs that control many parts of haiti are getting more access to sophisticated weapons and ammunition. mps investigating the conduct of the former british prime minister borisjohnson, say he may have misled parliament multiple times over gatherings at downing street during the pandemic. our political correspondent, helen catt reports. did borisjohnson know more about lockdown parties in downing street than he told mps? for months now, mps on the privileges committee have been building a picture. they have studied photos with lots of booze but little social distancing, taking evidence and even gone on a tour of number 10. the report says the evidence suggests breaches of guidance would have been obvious to mrjohnson at the time he was at the gatherings.

i believe that what we were doing was implicitly within the rules, and that's why i said what i said in the house of commons and that is why, i thank the committee for their labours, and i'm sorry it has all been going on for so long, but there has been no contempt here. # happy birthday to you... mrjohnson was fined for attending a party on his birthday in 2020. not here, but this party has late in the day in the cabinet room. the report includes whatsapp messages which suggested to some of those who advised him concerned when the story came out. his director of communications message to number 10 official saying, "i'm struggling to come up with the way this one is in the rules in my head." the number 10 official suggested reasonably necessary for work processes. a director of communications replied, not sure that one works, does it?

also blows another great gaping hole in the pm's account, doesn't it? but it is what mrjohnson told parliament that is the subject of investigation. the committee says there is evidence that he may have misled it when he told mps about claims which have since been proven to be true of a party held in number 10 in december. i have been repeatedly assured since these allegations emerged that there no covid rules were broken. and that is what i have been repeatedly assured. the committee says the commons may also have been misled when mrjohnson failed to tell the house about his own knowledge of the gatherings where the rules or guidance had been broken. it said it appears mrjohnson did correct the mistakes mrjohnson repeatedly made and did not use the well—established procedures of the house to correct something that is wrong at the earliest opportunity. sir keir starmer who was in northern

ireland earlier, was scathing. i think the evidence of wrongdoing by borisjohnson is already pretty damning. i think it's important to bear in mind that rishi sunak, at the time, was honestly very close to all of this and sat on his hands. and i think first and foremost of the families, not just those that lost loved ones, but also all the other families who were obeying the rules and changing their lives, whilst those in government were not even following their own rules. the labour leader has himself caused a row and enraged some conservative mps after he offered a top job as his chief of staff to the civil servant who investigated partygate sue gray. she resigned from the civil service but will wait for advice from the appointments watchdog before taking up the role. as for boris johnson he will have the chance to put his case to the privileges committee in person later this month before they reach their final conclusions.

a ceremony has taken place injerusalem to consecrate the oil that will be used to anoint king charles during his coronation in britain in may. our royal correspondent, nicholas witchell reports. it is the most sacred moment of the combination service, so much so that at the coronation of the late queen elizabeth, she was shielded from view by a canopy as she was anointed with holy oil. yesterday, at the church of the holy sepulchre injerusalem, the oil to be used at the coronation of king charles was consecrated. it's been made from olives harvested from the mount of olives and perfumed with traditional oils and orange blossom. it was brought to the church, built on the spot where it is believed christ was crucified, to be blessed by the patriarch and anglican archbishop ofjerusalem. the consecration of the oil for the enthronement and the coronation brings about something of a deep and profound meaning, both to king charles, to the church injerusalem,

to the holy land, and i think to the whole world. the oil will be brought to westminster abbey in london where at the combination service and in line with ancient tradition, it will be used to anointed king and queen consort. the academy awards takes place next weekend. as acting royalty gather in hollywood, among them will be veteran british actor — bill nighy, who has been nominated for an oscar for the first time for his role in "living". a bureaucrat resigned himself to an ordinary life, but when he is told he's about to die, he realises he has forgotten how to live. it is an adaptation of a film made in kazuo

ishiguro's native japan within 70 years ago. for me the eureka moment was, what if bill nighy was in this film, at the centre of it? suddenly i can see how this film could work. if bill nighy had not been in that they were not have been persuaded to do it. for me the concept was not a remake of the film, it was this thing with bill on it. the other thing, it should feel like a british movie from the 1950s. and for you, bill, a dream come true to have a part like this written for you, or is it a huge amount of pressure? it is more of the former,

and a little bit of the latter. but, weirdly, because i'm quite good at manufacturing pressure, i did not feel daunted or oppressed by the originalfilm of the situation. i just felt that i was very fortunate, beyond lucky, to be considered in those terms, not least by kazuo ishiguro. the result is a quintessentially british study in restraint. from written word, to delivery. a sweetly sentimental drama unfolds as mr williams befriends a young employee who effortless exuberance inspires him to leave something lasting, and give life meaning in the face of death. it has led to first—time oscar nominations for both men, in careers that collectively spanned more than eight decades. you have been very well recognised in your work, you have one the nobel prize for literature, how does an oscar nomination compare?

it compares pretty well. the nobel prize is like a european fairy story. you go to some kind of european palace covered in snow to meet kings and queens. this is the real hollywood dream, kind of thing. it feels like you have come to the middle of the american dream. it feels very good. it is marvellous. it is exciting for myself and for my family, and for everybody back home. i had an invasive medical procedure recently. before he performed this invasive procedure, the dr said, i have never done this to an oscar nominee before, then he did something truly invasive, which i'm not going to describe, because it would make you all feel uneasy. but that is the effect it has had in my life.

this man, until yesterday was living a sale of existence. you are all up to date for now. a few look to the skies it is all about shades of grey this weekend. a lot of cloud around particularly up to the west. a few breaks here and there but there is also a scattering of showers across north and east facing coast in particular. in turns of the feel of the weather, 6—9, on the chilly side with those grey skies but nowhere near as cold as it is going to get foot of the breeze will freshen a little too the night and that could dry then showers to exposed coasts. turning increasingly wintry to the tops of the mountains here. on the whole, we keep the

cloud but we can't rule out there are a few breaks. a little touch of light frost here and they are. a chilly start to sunday morning. a largely grey one. plenty of showers on exposed coasts and more widespread showers across the far north of scotland. once again those temperatures will set between six and eight or 9 degrees. indications of the cold air starting to arrive into the northern isles. from sunday night into monday morning it is going to turn increasingly cold and windy, which means we will also increase the risk of some snow and some isa around. and that's because we've got arctic air starting to push down from the north. the high pressure that has dominated is starting to slip away from the uk and we have got this weather front arriving. it is a cold front introducing this cold air behind so to start with it will be rain as it pushes its way south and then we'll

see a frequent rash of showers into northern scotland and potentially northern scotland and potentially north east england. temperatures for — six. ahead of it on monday, still in that milderairso — six. ahead of it on monday, still in that milder air so we might see nine or ten foot of the remnants of that front eases away during the early hours of tuesday. tuesday will be a case of sunny spells and scattered showers. showers most frequent across the north and east coast and yes, it could be wintry in nature. accompanied by a brisk northerly wind it is going to feel more like close to freezing. that is going to be quite a shock to the system so a few got out our plans next week it is certainly worth keeping abreast of the weather story. snow and isa could be an north—east and east of scotland and north—east and east of scotland and

north—east england.

this is bbc news, the headlines: the head of russia's wagner group says its forces now surround most of bakhmut — the eastern ukrainian city that's been the focus of intensive fighting. we have practically surrounded bakhmut. only one route out of the city remains. if earlier we were fighting against the professional army, now we are increasingly seeing old people and children. police in australia say they've made one of their biggest ever drug busts, seizing cocaine worth us$1 billion. the white house confirms president biden had a cancerous skin lesion removed from his chest during a routine health screening. and the ceremony has been held injerusalem to consecrate the oil

that will be used to anoint king charles at his coronation in may.