all this is bbc news — welcome if you're watching here in the uk or around the globe. i'm frankie mccamley. our top stories... anger continues in france over president macron�*s pension reforms with plans for more protests. these are the dramatic scenes just minutes ago in western france. and we have a special report on the mis spy who defied orders to help bring peace to northern ireland. indian opposition leader rahool gandhi says his disqualification from parliament is politically motivated. from the slopes to the stand — gwyneth paltrow gives evidence in a trial where she's accused of causing a skiing accident, but insists she was the real victim.

i was skiing, and looking downhill, as you do, and was skied directly into by mr sanderson. and a once—in—a—decade flyby, as an asteroid passes between the earth and the moon. hello. security forces in france remain on high alert, after legislation to raise the state pension age caused massive protests. the dispute — and outbreaks of violence — forced the authorities to postpone a planned state visit by the british monarch, king charles. meanwhile, separate demonstrations have begun in western france, linked to concerns over water usage by large—scale agricultural producers.

it's feared the disputes could converge at a time of growing tensions. let's look at some pictures now. these are protests in sainte—soline, western france, where people are protesting against the deployment of a new water—storage infrastructure for agricultural irrigation. that's despite an official ban on the gathering. and you can see protests are still going ahead. bethany bell is in paris for us. this afternoon. and, bethany, a number of different protests going on at the moment, just talk us through what is happening. well, the most dramatic _ through what is happening. well, the most dramatic one _ through what is happening. well, the most dramatic one at _ through what is happening. well, the most dramatic one at the _ through what is happening. well, the most dramatic one at the moment i through what is happening. well, the most dramatic one at the moment is | most dramatic one at the moment is this one you are seeing pictures of, in western france. this was a demonstration that has been planned

for a while. it was or is expected to attract radical protesters and we have seen at least two police vehicles in flames —— always expected. we understand police have used tear gas so that protesters have —— and also, protesters have their fireworks at police. and there has also been use of water cannon. and this of course is a separate protest from the very big protests we have seen against president macron�*s pension reforms. but of course, it adds to this general atmosphere of anger, of uncertainty here in france and a sense that many protesters are angry and that they may develop a sort of situation where you see generalised anger fuelling those pension reform protests. fuelling those pension reform rotests. �* ., , fuelling those pension reform rotests. �* . , protests. and we are still looking at those pictures, _ protests. and we are still looking at those pictures, bethany, - protests. and we are still looking at those pictures, bethany, in . at those pictures, bethany, in western france. but where you are in

paris, are we expecting any further protests there and, if so, is anybody heading to the capital, a tourist being given any information at the moment?— tourist being given any information at the moment? well, i think you can see behind me _ at the moment? well, i think you can see behind me there _ at the moment? well, i think you can see behind me there is _ at the moment? well, i think you can see behind me there is a _ at the moment? well, i think you can see behind me there is a very - at the moment? well, i think you can see behind me there is a very heavy l see behind me there is a very heavy security presence here in the capital. overnight and this morning, paris has been quiet. we haven't seen the sort of widescale protests that we saw on thursday. but another day of national action has been planned for tuesday. the tenth day of national action. and one of the reasons that the visit of king charles was postponed as the french government didn't want his visit to take place on that tenth national day of action. and also, what has emerged here is the sense many of the protesters are angry with president macron because they perceive him, they say, is somebody

who is behaving above his powers. some of the protesters in fact carried signs suggesting he was acting in a king —like manner. and the danger, the government felt, was if there were pictures of mr macron having dinner with king charles in the former royal palace of versailles, that wouldn't do his image any good. so there is really the sense of a crisis here at the moment, people are not quite sure how this is going to be resolved and the government, of course, saying that the pension reform was necessary, it was necessary for france's economy. but many french people here, even if they are on board with the idea of a pension reform, they say they are concerned that president macron is not acting in a way that is compatible with democracy as they see it here. and while you are speaking, we are seeing live pictures now from

sainte—soline of a bus that we understand has been lit on fire there. ., , ., . ., there. lots of police gathering around. there. lots of police gathering around- it _ there. lots of police gathering around. it looks _ there. lots of police gathering around. it looks like _ there. lots of police gathering around. it looks like things - there. lots of police gathering i around. it looks like things seem there. lots of police gathering - around. it looks like things seem to be getting out of hand there. and as you have mentioned, clearly, a lot of anger. and we're just watching those live pictures now. it is not just a bus, but there are a number of cars on fire, too.— just a bus, but there are a number of cars on fire, too. yes. and some of cars on fire, too. yes. and some of those cars _ of cars on fire, too. yes. and some of those cars we — of cars on fire, too. yes. and some of those cars we know _ of cars on fire, too. yes. and some of those cars we know our - of cars on fire, too. yes. and some of those cars we know our police i of those cars we know our police vehicles. as i said, though, this was a protest that was always expected to attract radical protesters. the protesters themselves say 30,000 people are there. the authorities say 6,000 people are there. 1,000 of whom are radical and potentially contributing to this violence. but as i said before, again, we understand that fireworks have been thrown at police. tear gas has been used by the police. and water cannon. in an

attempt to bring these protests under control. but yes, really a sense of anger there in western france. �* ., , sense of anger there in western france. �* . , , ~ , france. bethany, 'ust well we keep lookin: at france. bethany, 'ust well we keep looking at those — france. bethany, just well we keep looking at those pictures _ france. bethany, just well we keep looking at those pictures and - france. bethany, just well we keep looking at those pictures and quite | looking at those pictures and quite dramatic pictures as you say, there is different numbers expected —— while we keep. police saying one thing and protest are saying something else. is there any sign right now as we seen these dramatic pictures of any kind of resolution on these matters? because there are so many different matters and so many different protests going on in the country over different things. it is a complicated situation at the moment and what we are hearing from various people from all sides, they are saying that they don't quite say —— don't quite see a way out at the moment. you have president macron who is saying he is sticking to his line. there are members of his own party who are worried that that might not be the correct way forward. and some people are saying

he is looking increasingly isolated. there are other people saying that they would like to negotiate. we have heard from the unions saying that they see president macron as somebody who is really very top—down and somebody, a presidentjust for the wealthy here. and then you have president macron's own argument, which is that france's economy needs to see this pension reform, it is the right thing, he said, for pension age to be raised to 44, 64 instead of 62 years old. so many, many different arguments here. and as i say, a big day of protests planned for tuesday. we will see how things pan out over the next few days. things pan out over the next few da s. ., ~ , ., , . days. 0k, well, thank you very much. bethany bell— days. 0k, well, thank you very much. bethany bell in _ days. 0k, well, thank you very much. bethany bell in paris _ days. 0k, well, thank you very much. bethany bell in paris as _ days. 0k, well, thank you very much. bethany bell in paris as we _ days. 0k, well, thank you very much. bethany bell in paris as we have - bethany bell in paris as we have been seen protests continuing across the country. several tornadoes have killed at least 23 people in the us state of mississippi. the authorities said

the twisters left a trail of damage for more than 150 kilometres. trees and power lines were torn down, and tens of thousands of power outages reported. radar information indicated that at one point, debris was being pulled more than 6,000 metres into the sky. search and rescue operations are under way. operation chiffon was the codename given to a top—secret british intelligence operation that eventually paved the way for the good friday agreement — bringing an end to more than three decades of violence in northern ireland. at the centre of it all was an undercover agent known as robert. journalist peter taylor has spent more than 20 years tracking him down and, in a new documentary, he explains what really happened. by the early 1990s, more than 3,000 people had been killed on all sides, in what was known as the troubles.

the continuing violence was fed by one question — should northern ireland remain in the united kingdom or become part of a united ireland? when peace finally came, with the good friday agreement, i was convinced that an m15 secret agent had played a vital role in helping to make it happen. he ran a top—secret back channel between the british government and the leadership of the ira. ifinally tracked him down, but following mis�*s rules, he lied to me and said he wasn't the man i was looking for. then astonishingly, in 2021, i received a letter. "dear mr taylor. you will no doubt be surprised to hearfrom me after so many years. for a variety of reasons, i could now give you some background, which might fill in some gaps." robert was due to meet senior republicans, but the government cancelled the meeting after ira bombs in warrington killed two children.

the ira was looking for peace. at the meeting, he gave them an extraordinary prediction. "the final solution is union. it's going to happen anyway. this island will be as one." is that what you said? i must have done. that's what's in the... if they wrote it down, then i... but you had no authority to say that... no. ..and what you said flew directly in the face of what british government policy was. yes. those words were absolutely crucial because it appeared that behind the scenes, the british government was secretly working towards a united ireland, the ira's goal, but to unionists, treachery. but in the autumn of 1993, with no sign of the violence ending,

robert's secret mission was exposed. he resigned from m15. the operation looked like a failure. but that's not the end of the story. the ira still had a desire to carry on discussing a way forward, remembering robert's words, "the final solution is union, this island will be as one." i believe that robert's words helped pave the way for the ceasefire and, ultimately, the good friday agreement of 1998. it also meant that an uncountable number of lives were saved. looking back, it's a degree of pride that i've played a small part in history, done some good in the world. peter taylor, bbc news. uk audiences can see peter's full story on bbc 2 at 7pm tonight, at ten to ten in northern ireland,

and it's also on the iplayer. and for international audiences, there's full coverage on the bbc news website. two teenage boys have appeared in court this morning charged with murdering a 16—year—old who was stabbed to death in northampton. rohan shand died in kingsthorpe on wednesday. the hollywood actor gwyneth paltrow has told a court in the us that she did not cause a skiing accident in 2016, in which the man suing her was injured. terry sanderson wants more than a quarter—of—a—million dollars in damages, claiming the oscar winner is to blame for the long—lasting brain injury he suffered. our north america correspondent david willis reports. day four of this trial saw the oscar—winning actress take to the witness box to give her account of the ski—slope collision she stands accused of causing. i was skiing and two skis came between my skis,

forcing my legs apart. and then, there was a body pressing against me and there was a very strange grunting noise. so, my brain was trying to make sense of what was happening. ithought, "am i...? is this a practicaljoke? is someone, like, doing something perverted? this is really, really strange." my mind was going very, very quickly. more used to the red carpet of hollywood premieres than the austere surroundings of a utah courtroom, gwyneth paltrow denies she was to blame for a collision on the slopes of the upmarket ski resort park city that left a 76—year—old retired optometrist, terry sanderson, suffering from brain damage and broken ribs. his lawyers maintain she was skiing recklessly and, asked what effect the accident had had on mr sanderson, his daughter, shae, had this to say. my dad is very insecure. he doesn't show it, but he doesn't trust his brain any more.

gwyneth paltrow told the court she felt sorry for mr sanderson, but maintained that he hit her, rather than the other way round. mr sanderson's lawyers claimed she was distracted by her children and fled without checking if he was hurt. i think you have to keep in mind when you're the victim of a crash, right, your psychology is not necessarily thinking about the person who perpetrated it. ..no, you did not inquire? ldid not _ terry sanderson is due to give evidence next week, along with gwyneth paltrow�*s children, moses and apple. david willis, bbc news, washington. sport, and for a full round—up, from the bbc sport centre, here's olly foster. thanks, indeed. wales face ireland in cardiff

in the next hour as the women's six nations championship gets under way. england start the defence of their title later, the grand slam champions take on scotland in newcastle jo currie is at kingston park for us, and england are strong favourites once again. and england are strong favourites once again-— once again. absolutely, you can robabl once again. absolutely, you can probably see — once again. absolutely, you can probably see the _ once again. absolutely, you can probably see the finishing - once again. absolutely, you can i probably see the finishing touches taking place with the game kicking off in a few hours' time. but it will be england and france who have really dominated this tournament over the last seven years, england winning five titles, france winning two. it is worth saying this will be the first year where all six nations taking part in the women's six nations have been offered full—time or some sort of permanent contract by the rfu so the hope is perhaps not this year but certainly in the coming years, the gap between those top two sides and the chasing pack will start to narrow. but should it come down to england and france once more, that takes place in the final weekend of the tournament at twickenham, where 40,000 tickets have already been sold. england's

opponents today, scotland, they have got a bit of a point to prove, having lost all five games last year, albeit in some cases quite narrowly. they finished bottom off the table. france travelled to italy tomorrow. but the first action of this women's six nations this year kicks off in around one hour in cardiff as wales host ireland. last year, these two teams finished third and fourth respectively. ireland in particular have been through a number of changes since then and have a number of big players missing this tournament because they are away with the rugby sevens, trying to qualify for the other pic tournament. but when it comes to newcastle today, here, it is all about one woman's sarah hunter, one that stands for the england captain before she calls time on her illustrious career. and at full—time, you can expect some emotional scenes. full-time, you can expect some emotional scenes.— full-time, you can expect some emotional scenes. there should normally -- _ emotional scenes. there should normally -- there _ emotional scenes. there should normally -- there certainly - emotional scenes. there should i normally -- there certainly should normally —— there certainly should be. live from newcastle, thank you very much indeed. a brazilian court has fined

the three—time formula 1 world champion nelson piquet £780,000 for making racist and homophobic comments about mercedes driver lewis hamilton. the 70—year—old used a racially offensive term when referring to hamilton in an interview in 2021. piquet later apologised for the remark — the charges against the brazilian were brought by a number of human rights groups. a representative for qatari banker sheikh jassim has confirmed that a second bid has been submitted to buy manchester united. jassim hasjoined the ineos owner sirjim ratcliffe in submitting a revised deal, with ratcliffe also putting in his second bid, after wednesday's extended deadline. finnish businessman thomas zilliacus has also made an offer. what's more on the bbc sport website, keep across the european championship qualifiers late on saturday —— lots more. and that's all the sport for now. wonderful, thank you. an asteroid large enough to destroy a city will pass

between the orbits of the earth and the moon this weekend — luckily for us, missing both. the object, named 2023 dz2 — or, more simply, dizzy — was discovered a month ago. although asteroid flybys are common, nasa says that given its proximity and size, it is a one—in—a—decade encounter. but the asteroid will be visible through binoculars and small telescopes across the globe from 68,000 kilometres away. let's go live now to liverpool, where we can speak to dr ashley king. he's a planetary scientist with the natural history museum. thank you forjoining us on bbc news. can you put this into context now? how far away is this asteroid from the earth? and should we be worried? ., ., , ., �* , worried? no, no, we shouldn't be worried. this _ worried? no, no, we shouldn't be worried. this is _ worried? no, no, we shouldn't be worried. this is definitely - worried? no, no, we shouldn't be worried. this is definitely not - worried. this is definitely not going to hit us, but it is close. dizzy, the astro dimension discovered about a month ago, is

going to passjust discovered about a month ago, is going to pass just under discovered about a month ago, is going to passjust under 200,000 away from the earth —— the asteroid you mentioned discovered. close to the moon, so nearby but it is not going to hit us. the moon, so nearby but it is not going to hit na— going to hit us. this asteroid was discovered _ going to hit us. this asteroid was discovered around _ going to hit us. this asteroid was discovered around a _ going to hit us. this asteroid was discovered around a month - going to hit us. this asteroid was discovered around a month ago, | going to hit us. this asteroid was. discovered around a month ago, is this normal, do we often found a month in advance and asteroid is quite close to us? so month in advance and asteroid is quite close to us?— month in advance and asteroid is quite close to us? so most asteroids are relatively — quite close to us? so most asteroids are relatively small— quite close to us? so most asteroids are relatively small and _ quite close to us? so most asteroids are relatively small and they - quite close to us? so most asteroids are relatively small and they tend i are relatively small and they tend to be very dark so they are actually quite difficult to detect. the big ones, we know where they are, but the smaller ones, it is only when they get closer to us that we can spot them. yes, it can sometimes be a month or so before they make their closest approach before we even know they exist. but once we have spotted them, we can track them really accurately and we can be confident working out this is not going to hit us. ~ ., , working out this is not going to hit us. ~ . , ., ., , working out this is not going to hit us. ~ . , , ., working out this is not going to hit us. well, that is good news for us, we will be — us. well, that is good news for us, we will be able _ us. well, that is good news for us, we will be able to _ us. well, that is good news for us, we will be able to sleep _ us. well, that is good news for us, we will be able to sleep titanate. l we will be able to sleep titanate. but you talk about the size and also researchers like yourselves, how exciting is something like this for you, is it something you can get intelligence on?—

you, is it something you can get intelligence on? yes, as you said, this is kind _ intelligence on? yes, as you said, this is kind of — intelligence on? yes, as you said, this is kind of like _ intelligence on? yes, as you said, this is kind of like a _ intelligence on? yes, as you said, this is kind of like a once - intelligence on? yes, as you said, this is kind of like a once in - intelligence on? yes, as you said, this is kind of like a once in a - this is kind of like a once in a decade or so type of event so this asteroid is probably about 70 metres orso asteroid is probably about 70 metres or so in diameter. it is going to pass by quite close to the earth so we are going to be able to study it. we will be able to use our observatories, our telescopes to look at this asteroid as it passes by. asteroids are these amazing objects, they are the leftover building blocks of our solar system. they take is all the way back to the start of our solar system just over 4.5 billion years ago and they tell is how we ended up with planets like the earth so we are really excited, this is a fantastic opportunity to learn what this asteroid is made from and what it structures like and what that can tell us our origins. it is notjust you that will be excited, i'm quite excited about this, i would like to look outside my window this evening, was somebody like me be able to see it with the naked eye or do we need binoculars and do we need to be in a certain part of the world?— and do we need to be in a certain part of the world? there is a chance of seeini part of the world? there is a chance of seeing it — part of the world? there is a chance of seeing it in _ part of the world? there is a chance of seeing it in the _ part of the world? there is a chance of seeing it in the northern - of seeing it in the northern hemisphere. i think the naked eye,

probably not, binoculars is probably going to be a bit of a struggle. small telescopes have got a chance of picking this up. it will pass of picking this up. so it will pass by i think about ten minutes to eight this evening. but if you can't do that, there be lots of do that, there will be lots of streams i think on the internet as well so you will be able to watch this thing as it whizzes past the earth. �* , ., this thing as it whizzes past the earth. �* ,, ., ~' this thing as it whizzes past the earth. �* i, ,, i, , this thing as it whizzes past the earth. �* i, ,, , , earth. and you talk about this being iuite safe, earth. and you talk about this being quite safe. we _ earth. and you talk about this being quite safe, we are _ earth. and you talk about this being quite safe, we are going _ earth. and you talk about this being quite safe, we are going to - earth. and you talk about this being quite safe, we are going to be - earth. and you talk about this being quite safe, we are going to be ok i quite safe, we are going to be ok andi quite safe, we are going to be ok and i will keep repeating that. but what if one was to come close to the earth, what mitigation measures are in place to protect us? yes. earth, what mitigation measures are in place to protect us?— in place to protect us? yes, that is a really good _ in place to protect us? yes, that is a really good question. _ in place to protect us? yes, that is a really good question. so - in place to protect us? yes, that is a really good question. so we - in place to protect us? yes, that is a really good question. so we are. a really good question. so we are now, people out there watching the sky is basically looking out for these things and trying to detect them as quickly as we possibly can. just recently, we had a nasa mission that fired a kind of impact into an asteroid to see what would happen and how the dust comes out and one of the aims of that was to slightly change the orbit of that asteroid. so that is one of the ways we think if one of these things is going to hit us at some point, we might be able to send spacecraft out to knock

these things from their orbit so they passed by the earth rather than hitting us. and we have a mission actually coming up called nasa's cyrus rex mission which went to an asteroid and collected samples which are coming back in six months which is very exciting, and one of the aims is to learn about the composition of asteroids, their structure, so we can develop plans for if they are going to hit us, we want to work out the best way to stop that happening. absolutely, well, thank _ stop that happening. absolutely, well, thank god _ stop that happening. absolutely, well, thank god we _ stop that happening. absolutely, well, thank god we have - stop that happening. absolutely, well, thank god we have people | stop that happening. absolutely, i well, thank god we have people like you. thank you very much, doctor ashley cain, planetary scientist with the natural history museum. —— ashley king. the indian opposition leader rahul gandhi has said his disqualification by parliament on friday is politically motivated. he says it's an attempt to distract from accusations he made against prime minister narendra modi over his relationship with the billionaire businessman gautam adani. mr ghandi also faces two years in prison, after a court found him

guilty of criminal defamation for a comment made at a rally where he disparaged mr modi's surname. mr ghandi is a leading figure in the main opposition congress party. here he is speaking at a news conference on saturday. i'm here defending the democratic voice of the indian people. i will continue to do that. i am not scared of these threats, of these disqualifications, of these allegations, of these prison sentences. i don't care. i'm not scared of them. 0k? these people don't understand me yet. i am not scared of them. they are used to everybody being scared of them. i am not scared of them. let's get some of the day's other news authorities in rwanda have released dissident paul rusesabagina from prison,

after his 25—year sentence for terrorism offences was commuted. the us citizen was sentenced in 2021 over his ties to a group opposed to president paul kagame. he is also widely known for his heroic acts during the 1994 genocide. sharp declines in banking shares in europe have renewed concerns that the panic triggered by the collapse of two us banks and rushed takeover of swiss giant credit suisse may not be easily contained. shares in germany's deutsche bank fell by 14% at one point on friday, with other lenders also seeing big losses. the us president has spoken of north american unity and improved economic ties, in a landmark address to the canadian parliament in ottawa. mr biden said the two countries' prosperity was deeply connected to their shared security. he and the canadian prime minister, justin trudeau, pledged to stand together against authoritarian regimes. president biden also addressed rumours about the chinese government supplying arms to russia.

you are watching bbc news, if you want more and today's stories, you can head to our website. i am also on twitter. hello. another fairly changeable day ahead, but certainly, our soggy march weather is continuing towards the end of the month. so we're going to see a mix of some sunshine, but also more of those showers. they won't be quite as heavy or as frequent as they were yesterday. and the blustery winds that we've seen of late, especially in the south, are going to be gradually easing through the day. low pressure is going to just drift its way out towards the north sea, towards the east, and a smaller ridge of high pressure for a time — it was going to be building in from the south—west. so if you're stuck underneath that weather front today across parts of southern scotland, northern england, for a time for northern ireland as well, it's going to be quite grey with outbreaks of rain. into the afternoon,

there is some sunshine across the bulk of england and wales. still a scattering of showers, you could be seeing one or two heavy ones, perhaps the odd isolated rumble of thunder towards east anglia, lincolnshire, could be a bit of hail, but generally, they are not going to be as frequent or as heavy as we have seen. and brightening up too for northern ireland, north wales. here, we could see some sunshine, just one or two showers through the afternoon. but still staying damp and cloudy for much of northern england, central and southern scotland. a little bit of wintriness over the highest ground, as that cold air cuts its way in from the north. now, overnight tonight, the next area of fairly heavy rain sweeps its way eastwards across the southern half of england and wales too. so a really soggy start to sunday morning in the south, but mild, five to seven degrees. colder conditions further north, particularly for the far north of england and scotland, where we're likely to see a bit of frost to start your sunday. so that colder air moving in from the north on sunday. further south, as low pressure drifts towards the east, we'll still see that mild air just holding on for parts of southern england, perhaps south wales, but colder conditions working in for many of us through the day. some wintry showers, some snowfall for parts of northern and eastern scotland, perhaps the odd snow flurry

across the pennines. further south, cloud and rain through sunday morning gradually easing away towards the south and the east through into sunday afternoon, hopefully drying up for the cambridge—oxford boat race in the afternoon. temperatures in single figures for many of us, i think, on sunday, a coolerfeeling day, but we'll just about hold on to double figures in the far south—west. and don't forget, saturday night into the early hours of sunday, the clocks are going to spring forward by one hour. so it's the arrival of british summertime from sunday onwards. the weather not looking particularly summery over the next few days, but monday brings us a bit of a drier, quieter interlude. turns unsettled from tuesday onwards, but things are warming up during the middle of the week. bye for now.

this is bbc news, the headlines. security forces in france are tackling more chaotic protests from people angry about president macron's retirement reforms. these are the scenes in western france where fires have taken hold destroying several vehicles. several tornadoes have killed at least 23 people in the us state of mississippi. the authorities said the twisters left a trail of damage for more than 150 kilometres. trees and power lines were torn down, and tens of thousands of power outages reported. and revelations from an m15 spy who helped bring peace to northern ireland. he's told the bbc he met ira leaders in march 1993, despite talks being called off by the british government. gwyneth paltrow has repeatedly

insisted that she was the victim in a skiing accident that's the subject of a lawsuit in the us state of utah.