this is bbc news broadcasting to viewers in the uk and around the world. i'm lewis vaughanjones and these are the latest headlines: at least 26 people are now known to have died after severe storms batter the north—east of the united states. the bbc has been told there are �*positive updates�* in the case of british men, two of whom are pictured here, who were arrested by the taliban in afghanistan earlier this year. pope francis presides over palm sunday mass at the vatican — just a day after leaving hospital in rome for treatment for bronchitis. more than a hundred thousand people take part in protests across israel for the 13th consecutive week

againstjudicial reforms — despite the government's decision to pause the legislation. authorities in the united states have been assessing the damage caused by severe storms and tornadoes. at least 26 people are now known to have died — as the storms ripped through the south and the midwest — leaving a trail devastation. hardest hit — were tennessee, arkansas and indiana. in illinois, one person was killed — when a theatre roof collapsed in chicago. our reporter shelley phelps has more. two tornadoes left a trail of destruction in arkansas. this was the small town of wynne where at least four

people were killed. homes and businesses lie flattened. the local high school torn apart, devastated teachers and students came to see the extent of the damage for themselves. yeah, i taught here for 25 years. this is my classroom and when i walked out yesterday i didn't realise that would be the last time i would be teaching in this classroom. it's just... god protected this town, and he will rebuild it and everything will be fine again. i am a sophomore. i have been here since first grade. the school, ijust love it. we have many traditions that... voice waivers ..that i'm so proud of the school for. i'm just so sad it is gone. i know we can come back stronger. we can build a better school, keep those traditions going. 100 miles away in the state

capital of little rock, another person killed, over 50 hospitalised and at least 2,000 homes and businesses damaged. it was constantly making screaming noises. i could hear it blowing through the cracks in the van, pushing in, shaking the whole thing. if i didn't have as much equipment in that fine and it didn't have the bulkhead and some other stuff attach to the van to make it a bit heavier, i am pretty sure it would have been blown away. also hit was the central state of illinois where a storm caused a theatre roof to collapse at a packed heavy metal gig in belvedere. inside wasjessica, whose friend had convinced her to go at the last minute. the lights go out, i hear noise.

everything crashes down, which is the ceiling and i felt like a tornado hit. i honestly don't know. but that went down. one person was killed in the tragedy and dozens of others injured. recovery operations are working at pace but some of the affected areas could face more storms on tuesday. shelley phelps, bbc news. cbs correspondent bradley blackburn gave me the latest on the tornado. we know that at least two dozen people have died. slightly more than that because the numbers do keep increasing. this storm system moved into the north—east last night. it's blamed for at least one death in delaware, where a tornado touched down and affected homes, knocked down trees. we've seen the death toll in places, in communities in tennessee. as many as nine people died in one county. your reporter mentioned in arkansas, five deaths there. so this storm system took a serious toll in terms of lives and many,

many structures damaged. the power of tornadoes is so fascinating because it is sporadic, but it is so intense. yeah, the intensity, too. and also where this is all impacting. give us an idea of the extent of all this. it's across a broad part of the united states, multiple states, at least eight states affected by this, with it, with some serious damage. but, as i mentioned, with tornadoes, it can be isolated in particular communities. so in illinois, where you mentioned the incident that happened in the theatre in northern illinois, we know that 90 mile per hour winds were recorded in that community. it was strong enough to pull a roof off of that theatre when hundreds of people who were inside attending a concert, it sent parts of that roof caving down on them. rescuers were trying to pull people out of that rubble. at least one death reported there and dozens of people were were hospitalised. so you see pictures like that. and of course, many homes, other structures destroyed, people trying to pick up the pieces.

yeah, they will need a lot of help. what assistance is there? in the us, this comes down to the state, so it's on governors to assess the damage and then request assistance from the federal government. we know that process is already under way in arkansas. the governor there, sarah huckabee sanders, has requested that president biden make a disaster declaration that would clear the way for federal funds to help with rebuilding. she's also declared a state of emergency in her state, activated the national guard to assist with search and rescue in the town of wynne. there they were trying to comb through homes, looking for people that may have been trapped inside some of that rubble to try and render them aid. the bbc has been told there are �*positive updates' in the case of the british men, arrested by the taliban in afghanistan. the government said it had been in negotiations following the news of their detention. yetunde yusuf has more. back under taliban control since the summer of 2021,

now it's emerged that three british men have been held in custody by the taliban in afghanistan. so i may be on my way back tonight, maybe next week, maybe a month. it's understood one of them is miles routledge, who was evacuated from the country during the final days of occupation in 2021. he's gained a social media following visiting countries deemed dangerous by the authorities. two other british men were also arrested. kevin cornwell, a 53—year—old charity worker and paramedic, and another british man who hasn't been named. in the last few hours, the organisation supporting the families of the two men told us there have been some developments. we have had confirmation that the two detained britons are in good health, and we have further positive events to hopefully relay very shortly. and we believe this is a strong indicator that we're moving towards

a situation of a resolution, hopefully. meanwhile, the home secretary says people should be cautious about travelling to dangerous countries. if there are risks to - people's safety, if they're a british citizen abroad, then- the uk government is going to do whatever it takes to - ensure that they're safe. updates on the men are expected in the next 2a to 48 hours. yetunde yusuf, bbc news. pope francis has presided over palm sunday mass at the vatican — just a day after leaving hospital in rome. the 86—year—old was admitted with breathing difficulties, and later diagnosed with bronchitis. the pontiff's admission to hospital came ahead of the busiest week in the christian calendar. thousands of people gathered in st peter's square waving palm and olive branches as pope francis was driven into the huge esplanade, sitting in the back of a white, open—topped vehicle.

he then celebrated mass, his initial blessing was made standing up, but he spent the rest of the service sitting down. in his homily he called on people not to ignore those experiencing great suffering and solitude. the service ended with a procession in st peter's square. and the pontiff left waving to crowds of worshippers from his popemobile. 0ur correspondentjenny hill sent us this update. the palm sunday mass has just ended and the atmosphere in this square is one of real excitement and joy. that is in part because pope francis has just done a couple of turns of the square in his popemobile, waving really rather energetically to the crowds who were delighted to see him. that is of course because so many here feared he would not make it to the palm sunday mass but he has been here, he was able to preside over the service, although he sat for most of it and a cardinal took the more strenuous job of standing and presiding over, celebrating the actual mass at the altar. pope francis himself, even as he left hospital yesterday, seemed really keen to show how

enthusiastic he was to get back to doing the job. this is a really important moment in the church calendar. palm sunday kicks off holy week which culminates next weekend in easter sunday. it is the most sacred, the most important time in the christian church calendar. he will have known what it will have meant to the people here today that he was up there, to the side of the altar, presiding over events. nevertheless, his hospital stay has of course intensified speculation over his longer term future. he himself has indicated repeatedly that he would stand down were his health to really fail him and so there are many here who look at him and think, this is a man of 86 who has a number of significant health problems, who start to wonder perhaps that time may come sooner rather than later. but for now, everyone here i think feels really rather cheered, really rather buoyed up by having

seen and heard from the pope today. at times his voice, sometimes strong, sometimes a little weak, perhaps that is to be expected given he has onlyjust finished treatment for bronchitis, but the vatican has assured worshippers, the tens of thousands of people here, the millions of catholics watching around the world, that he will participate as originally planned in all of this week's upcoming easter services. people in poland have been taking part in marches to defend popejohn paul ii following reports he was aware of and did not act against priests who sexually abused children when he was an archbishop there in the 1970s. the marches have been organised by politicians and conservative catholic groups and are taking place on the 18th anniversary of the polish pope's death. many people in poland consider popejohn paul ii to be the greatest ever pope for the 13th weekend in a row,

more than a hundred thousand israelis have held protests across the country against a radicaljudicial overhaul, despite prime minister, benjamin netanyahu's decision to pause the reforms earlier this week. talks have been initiated between the government and the opposition, but protest organisers fear the legislation could still be brought to a vote. we propose pose there to say goodbye to our viewers around the world. the home secretary suella braverman has said she sympathises with people who've faced long delays trying to get across the channel at dover — but has rejected any suggestion brexit is to blame. she's insisted the issue lies with transport companies and port authorities, and that it's a busy time of year. extra ferries were laid on overnight to try to clear the backlog — which led to some coach passengers facing waits of 14 hours. simonjones has the latest day three of the delays at dover, and once again it is coach

passengers who are bearing the brunt of the problems. this group is trying to get to luxembourg for a short break, but before that it's going to be a long wait. once we arrive at the port, it will take four hours to clear customs and then get on the ferry, so we are looking at ten hours. i have got mostly elderly passengers on that have paid good money for a holiday, and basically i think some of them now want to go home. the problem is we have got one driver so i don't think we will get to where we are going tonight. i don't really know what we're going to do. how are you feeling? unhappy, my birthday celebration is not often the best of starts but what can you do? those that have made it onto the ferries are still concerned about their onward journeys. 0ur drivers will run out of driving hours. _ 0ur drivers will run out of driving hours, because _ 0ur drivers will run out of driving hours, because they _ 0ur drivers will run out of driving hours, because they have - 0ur drivers will run out of driving hours, because they have been l 0ur drivers will run out of driving. hours, because they have been up 0ur drivers will run out of driving - hours, because they have been up all night, _ hours, because they have been up all night, our— hours, because they have been up all night, ourtour— hours, because they have been up all night, ourtour company— hours, because they have been up all night, our tour company are - hours, because they have been up all night, our tour company are having . night, ourtour company are having to organise — night, ourtour company are having to organise for— night, ourtour company are having to organise for a _ night, ourtour company are having to organise for a driver— night, ourtour company are having to organise for a driver to - night, ourtour company are having to organise for a driver to come - night, ourtour company are havingl to organise for a driver to come and meet _ to organise for a driver to come and meet us _ to organise for a driver to come and meet us so — to organise for a driver to come and meet us so that _ to organise for a driver to come and meet us so that they _ to organise for a driver to come and meet us so that they can _ to organise for a driver to come and meet us so that they can take - to organise for a driver to come and meet us so that they can take us i to organise for a driver to come and meet us so that they can take us to|

meet us so that they can take us to the resort— meet us so that they can take us to the resort to — meet us so that they can take us to the resort to start _ meet us so that they can take us to the resort to start the _ meet us so that they can take us to the resort to start the kids - meet us so that they can take us to the resort to start the kids are's - the resort to start the kids are's ski trip — the resort to start the kids are's ski trip a — the resort to start the kids are's ski trip a day— the resort to start the kids are's ski trip a day late. _ extra ferries were laid on overnight and freight traffic and cars are getting through without any major hold—ups. the government says the ongoing issue with coaches is a matter for the ferry companies. they have seen an acute pressure of bookings, of coaches and journeys across the channel. it's a very busy time of year. there's been some bad weather, but they have been putting on extra journeys overnight. they are positive that this will be eased very soon. 0n the part itself says french immigration checks following brexit have been an issue. it says it is deeply frustrated by the problems this weekend. let's get more on the problems at dover with simon calder, travel editor at the independent newspaper whojoins me now. thank you for coming in. let's get the latest, what is happening down there at the port?— there at the port? things are caettin there at the port? things are getting much. _ there at the port? things are getting much, much - there at the port? things are i getting much, much smoother, there at the port? things are - getting much, much smoother, as you would predict. there was a surge on friday, loads of schools and universities were breaking up and

they were taking advantage of the first opportunity they had at easter for three years to get away on brakes, typically going skiing in the alps. so they all converged on dover and it was really first contact between post coded, post—brexit travel. also... contact between post coded, post-brexit travel. also... let's aet into post-brexit travel. also... let's get into that. — post-brexit travel. also... let's get into that, suella _ post-brexit travel. also... let's get into that, suella braverman| get into that, suella braverman talking about other issues that were behind it, but from your perspective, brexit, clearly, a significant issue? i perspective, brexit, clearly, a significant issue?— significant issue? i really am . uided significant issue? i really am guided by — significant issue? i really am guided by what _ significant issue? i really am guided by what the - significant issue? i really am guided by what the boss - significant issue? i really am guided by what the boss of l significant issue? i really am l guided by what the boss of the significant issue? i really am - guided by what the boss of the port of dover has been saying and indeed the ferry operators, they say this is due to the time it takes to process people through immigration. unlike lastjuly, when you might remember at the start of the summer holidays there was chaos at dover, partly triggered by a french passport officials not turning up, this time no blame seems to have

been placed on the french. remember we have the so—called juxtaposed to border controls, so everybody�*s passport is controlled before they leave the uk. in normal times that is great, you get to france and you are free to go, but at times of high pressure, it is very tricky, because the port of dover have a very constrained site beneath the white cliffs, is never designed for strong passport checks. and now, instead of, you might remember, if you were driving, experienced this, you might waive the passports at the cheerful officer, he or she usually waives you through it. if they won't have a quick look, they would check your possible photo. now they are obliged to go through and have a at your stamps in and out of the eu, make sure you haven't stayed too long, have to stamp your passport. this increases the transaction time and, i think, even with everything working well, a coach takes 20 minutes to process, they have a 300

coaches through on a saturday. that adds up to an awful lot of waiting as we saw. adds up to an awful lot of waiting as we sava— adds up to an awful lot of waiting as we saw-— adds up to an awful lot of waiting as we saw. , ~ , ., , adds up to an awful lot of waiting aswe saw. , ~ , ., , as we saw. these kinds of delays, is that it's? to — as we saw. these kinds of delays, is that it's? to be — as we saw. these kinds of delays, is that it's? to be expect _ as we saw. these kinds of delays, is that it's? to be expect that - as we saw. these kinds of delays, is that it's? to be expect that as - as we saw. these kinds of delays, is that it's? to be expect that as the l that it's? to be expect that as the new normal? is there anyway to improve its? i new normal? is there anyway to improve its?— improve its? i think, probably tomorrow _ improve its? i think, probably tomorrow morning, _ improve its? i think, probably tomorrow morning, they - improve its? i think, probably tomorrow morning, they willl improve its? ithink, probably- tomorrow morning, they will festival be... the situation will have calmed down, but i can imagine that ministers going to call in the port of dover, the ferry companies and say, we cannot have this again. so, therefore, there will be mandated capacity limits, which will be carefully worked out by the port, by the ferry companies, so that they know that they can cope. this is going to be bad news for people who perhaps decide at the last minutes to travel, because you will find that you cannot. however, it seems the only way of managing it. there is an analogy with eurostar, running trains from saint pancreas amsterdam

and brussels. they now leave one third of their seats empty, because they simply don't have the room at they simply don't have the room at the station, terminus and say pancreas, they don't have room to process people. so they send off trains one third empty and the same could happen with various.— could happen with various. lastly, ou could happen with various. lastly, you brought _ could happen with various. lastly, you brought those _ could happen with various. lastly, you brought those passwords, - could happen with various. lastly, l you brought those passwords, there is an issue with passwords as well? yes, unfortunately we have a passport strike that begins tomorrow, the pcs union, a pay dispute with the government, they are going to be going on strike at 7am. in scotland, from tomorrow, for five weeks, home office are it not get any holidays booked in until you have your passport and allow ten weeks. ., ~ have your passport and allow ten weeks. ., ,, , ., have your passport and allow ten weeks. ., ~' , ., , have your passport and allow ten weeks. ., ,, i. , . the british home secretary has defended the government's plans to send migrants, who arrive in britain by crossing the english channel in small boats, to rwanda. suella braverman described the plans as being a �*significant deterrent�*, but the opposition labour party has criticised the move, accusing the government

of failing to �*get a grip�* of the migration system. it comes as the bbc understands the government could announce alternatives to hotel accommodation for migrants as early as next week, two military sites and ferries could be used to house arrivals, thousands of whom are currently staying in hotels at a cost of nearly £6 million a day to the british taxpayer. earlier, our political correspondent david wallace lockhart gave us this update. home secretary is very keen to see this plan become a reality, but it is bogged down in legal challenges at the moment. no timescale yet on that. of course, this is a key plank of the government�*s migration policy that they want anyone who arrives in the country without permission to be detained and then sent to another country. in the case that they can�*t go back to their home country, the most likely country they would go to would be rwanda under a deal that they�*ve signed. now, the home secretary was asked this morning when she was on the laura kuenssberg on sunday programme about a 2018 incident when there were protesters,

refugee protesters in rwanda who were fired upon with live rounds resulting in 12 deaths. she didn�*t know about that particular incident, but stressed she�*s still confident rwanda remains a safe country to send refugees to. obviously, a big issue for the government at the moment due to the numbers crossing the channel in small boats. big questions around where they are kept at the moment as well. and that�*s something the home secretary spoke about this morning. well, let's be clear that our scheme to detain and swiftly remove does not require 50,000 new detention places. the government is in no way planning to do that. what we need to do is we do need to people arrive. what happens if more people arrive? we do need to increase our detention estate. we've got several thousand places already that we use and we've got capacity there. we will need to increase some of our detention capacity. but what we believe to work is that once we are able to relocate people

from the uk to rwanda, pursuant to our well world leading deal, that will have a significant deterrent effect and people will stop making the journey in the first place. they'll stop paying the evil people smuggling gangs in the first place and numbers will come down. and that's notjust a speculation that's actually borne out of experience. so other countries who rolled out a similar scheme, for example, australia. now that idea there that the rwanda scheme being up and running will therefore deter people trying to cross the channel that�*s not being bought by opposition parties. labour have actually been criticising the policy, not really from an ethical point of view, but more focusing on the fact that they think it�*s expensive, they think it�*s unworkable, it�*s been talked about for months and months, yet no one has been sent to rwanda under the scheme and the shadow levelling up secretary lisa nandy was on television this morning essentially saying that given how long the conservatives have been in powerfor, they have to take responsibility for the state of things at the moment. let�*s have a listen to what she had to say.

this is so far a policy that has cost the british taxpayer a huge amount of money and hasn't seen a single person go to rwanda. so i think the evidence so far suggests that this is just yet another outlandish nonsense claim from a home secretary that is unable to do the very basics of getting her own system working. she complains about an asylum system that's broken. i think she really does need to ask who broke it. and the answer to that lies by looking in a mirror. i think this is a con trick being perpetrated on the british people. the government is not processing asylum claims. they've got an enormous backlog. they've added £500 million to the costs because of these delays that have been caused by them pursuing all these new strategies. now much of that criticism there is shared by the liberal democrats, they�*ve called the scheme botched. today they say it won�*t stop any boats crossing the channel. now, the home 0ffice�*s own figures, one of their estimations was the figures this year could reach up to 80,000.

that will, of course, be something the government will be trying their best to avoid. that is not a figure they want to see, given that one of rishi sunak�*s key policies is to stop these boat crossings. but with that rwanda scheme still tied up in legal challenges with questions about where exactly asylum seekers would be would be detained under the government�*s new migration policy. lots of questions about how that number will be avoided and when these schemes will be operating. school bosses who run more than 200 academies in england, say 0fsted must rethink how it carries out their inspections. they�*ve told the bbc the regulator often fails to take into account the effect of the covid pandemic on poorer areas. their concerns follow the death of a head teacher who took her own life, after her school was downgraded. 0ur education editor branwen jeffreys, reports. music is important at this london primary school. but two 0fsted inspections in the last year have struck a note of discord.

it�*s been a year like no other. on a visit a year ago, inspectors raised concerns they�*d heard racist, sexist and homophobic language in the playground and wanted better record keeping on child safety. the headteacher was told the school would go from good to inadequate. i went walking for about 5 hours before i could find the strength to to return home and face people again. it was five months until the report was published in september. i wasn�*t sleeping. i was always anxious. i had lost my confidence. you have to be seen to be resilient and strong and confident. but internally, your every essence of your being has been eroded. two months after that first report, different inspectors were back. the school had made a few changes. at the end of term,

it was judged good again. 0fsted has a legal duty to inspect all state schools, checking that children are safe, happy and get the education they need. i�*ve been speaking to people who, between them, run hundreds of schools across england. they share similar concerns about 0fsted. they told me the way inspections are carried out is too rigid and that one grade that is awarded at the end doesn�*t give parents the full picture of what�*s going on. this nottingham school is part of a group of 38 academies. the chief executive says 0fsted isn�*t taking account of the impact of the pandemic and many others share his view. i think that there is an issue particularly for disadvantaged communities and schools that serve disadvantaged communities, how fair their experience is when 0fstead are looking for things that are becoming increasingly challenging -

for things that are becoming increasingly challenging for any school to deliver. 0fsted said it recognised the challenges schools face, adding there is a legitimate debate about how schools are graded. branwen jeffreys, bbc news. let�*s get the weather. following a wet march, plenty of dry weather and sunshine too. sunny sunshine in pembroke show captured by a weather watcher and in derbyshire, a lot more than to come as we head through the next few days, it�*s dry and fine for most, particularly away from the farther north and west, while? because high pressure is dominating. it the south—west and to the east, setting this chilly north—easterly breeze towards north sea facing coasts. here it is always going to feel a little cooler and there will be some cloud across scotland and northern ireland, small chance of a shower, a bit more cloud, but still breaking

up bit more cloud, but still breaking up at times across western wales and the far south—west of england. temperatures peaking between nine and i3 temperatures peaking between nine and 13 degrees celsius a little bit more strength in the sunshine at this time of year. in the best of that it this time of year. in the best of thatitis this time of year. in the best of that it is going to feel pleasantly warm. as we head through this evening and overnight, a lot of clear skies around, winds a full lighter and there will be some frost developing into tomorrow morning, temperatures hovering around freezing, you can see from the blue tones here with a frost will tend to become a little milder towards the south—east of england and across the far north and west of scotland and northern ireland, but but cloudy and breezy here. as we head through monday, plenty more sunshine to come, forecast, weatherfronts blocked by the area of high pressure, more sunshine, a bit more cloud across northern ireland, that will tend to break and across the far north—west of scotland too. temperatures 10—13 c, an onshore breeze, the north sea facing coasts, so a little cooler here. another frosty start to the day on tuesday, start to see these weather fronts

making more inroads into the far north—west of scotland, cross western isles, eventually pitting his wits across eastern scotland too, but, again, more sunshine, hanging on for england and wales on tuesday, temperatures peaking between 12—14. as we head through the middle part of the week, weather fronts will gradually push eastwards, largely fizzling out as they hit the high pressure that we could see some rain towards eastern areas and then high pressure builds backin areas and then high pressure builds back in as we head through good friday and the easter bank holiday weekend, let more cloud round than today, temperatures at or slightly above the seasonal average.

this is bbc news. i�*m lewis vaughanjones and these are the headlines. pope francis has led mass in st peter�*s square in front of more than 30,000 people, kicking off the year�*s easter services, just a day after leaving hospital in rome following treatment for bronchitis. authorities in the united states have been assessing the damage caused by storms and tornadoes. at least 26 people are known to have died and dozens are missing after the severe weather left a trail of devastation. the uk home secretary says the government is looking at further land sites and vessels to house migrants who travel to the uk on small boats, just days after announcing three former military sites will be used.

coach travellers in dover face estimated waits