live from london, this is bbc news. fbi agents are questioning a 21—year—old man over a major leak of classified us documents. he's expected to appear in court on friday. protests in france — as the highest legal body will decide whether president macron�*s pension reforms can become law. in the last few moments, the president of brazil met his chinese counterpart as he continues his official visit in beijing. hello, and welcome.

a us air national guardsman is being questioned, after being arrested by fbi officers investigating the leaking of classified documents. jack teixeira, who's just 21, is expected to appear in court in boston later. the leaked material first appeared on an online chat forum, and has exposed details of ukraine's war plans. it also reveals the extent of the us's spying on its allies. here's what we know about jack teixeira. the 21—year—old is a us air national guardsman. he was listed as a member of the intelligence wing of the massachusetts air national guard, based at otis air national guard base in western cape cod. according to his service record, which was obtained by our us partner cbs news, mr teixeira joined the force in 2019. david willis has

the latest from washington. dressed in shorts and a t—shirt, with news helicopters hovering overhead, the suspect in the latest us intelligence drama was taken into custody outside the family home south of boston. today, thejustice department arrested jack douglas teixeira in connection with an investigation into alleged unauthorised removal, retention, and transmission of classified national defense information. fbi agents took teixeira into custody earlier this afternoon without incident. jack teixeira is 21—years—old and worked for the intelligence wing of the massachusetts national guard. one of the friends with whom he allegedly shared information told the washington post teixeira was neither a whistle—blower nor a foreign agent. any claims that he is a russian operative or pro—russian is categorically false. he is not interested in helping any foreign agencies with their attack on the us or other countries. he was a young, charismatic man who loved nature, god, who loved shooting

guns and racing cars. among the leaks were us assessments about the progress of the war in ukraine. top secret information shared amongst a small group of friends on the chat app discord, so it's claimed, a process that had been going on for months, motivated in this case not by ideology, but by a desire to gain kudos within the group. we have an individual who's leaking material because they want to develop personal friendships online. in effect, they're using the release of top secret us intelligence documents as leverage to gain friendships with individuals in online chat forums. and i think that the insider threat remains the same as always, but the motivation is perhaps different from what we've seen before. the pentagon says it's looking into how such information is distributed, but a spokesman also made the point that it was the nature of the us military to entrust young service members with high levels of responsibility.

jack teixeira is due to appear in court in boston later today, charged with the unauthorised removal and transmission of classified information. david willis, bbc news, washington. daniel lippman, is a reporter with politico newspaper based in washington. he has more on why such a major intelligence leak has been allowed to happen again. we are not doing as much of the insider threat analysis and psychological evaluations to make sure that you don't have people who are prone to leaking this information. in an online world, we're all kind of addicted to our phones and to likes on instagram. and for someone who's 21 and isolated, especially in the last few years during the pandemic, you can... this guy got sucked in. and i think there's a lot of questions about why someone who is a 21—year—old

massachusetts air national guardsman had access to stuff going on in ukraine that he had no business knowing and probably should not have been in a position to get all that information about our allies in south korea, for example. by arresting this guy, they're trying to prevent future leaks because he had more of this information in these documents on hand that he was dribbling out to the press. and so with him injail right now, they're not going to allow that to happen. but there's still a lot of these documents that have come out in the last week. and this guy seems to have been a martyr, unlike someone like edward snowden who fled to russia. this guyjust stayed at his parents house and was seemingly willing to just get arrested for something that is not an ideological thing that he did. this was more of him wanting to appear macho in an online form.

but there's — our allies know that we spy on everyone, including ourfriends. that is not a huge secret. but some of the documents that revealed how, say, serbia was helping ukraine when they are more, you know, neutral, that is going to make it a little tougher. and also, we have to smooth over relations with ukraine because there's documents that said, hey, we don't really think that their military is as strong for a spring offensive. that was daniel lippman of politico. the highest legal body in france will decide later today whether president macron�*s controversial pension reform plans — raising the state pension age from 62 to 64 — can become law. the bill was forced through without a parliamentary vote — triggering months of protests. on thursday, hundreds of thousands of demonstrators took to the streets in cities across france, as yetunde yusuf reports.

across france, protesters made a lively return to the streets. this was the scene in toulouse. many of the protests have been peaceful, but there's also been widespread disruption. in paris, once again, there were clashes between demonstrators and the riot police. people here are angry over plans to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64. and in recent weeks, that anger has intensified after the government forced through the legislation without a vote in the lower house of parliament. today, the constitutional council will make a decision on the reforms. unions want the new laws to be struck down. translation: whatever the opinion of the constitutional council, - unless it changes the law, unless it says stop, that the law is not

constitutional, we, the unions, will continue protesting. the french government says the changes are needed to keep the pension system viable as people live longer. whether council members approve the whole of the law, reject all of it, or parts of it, the verdict today will be crucial in determining how the very vocal opposition movement plays out in the weeks and months ahead. yetunde yusuf, bbc news. a short time our paris correspondent, hugh schofield said there was no way of knowing which way the vote will go. what the decision will be — it's not known. you talk to one constitutional expert and they'll say one thing and then the next will say the opposite. we really are in the dark here. but on this decision hinges an awful lot. it's hard to see how this campaign,

which has been going on for three months now, of almost weekly strikes and protests, can keep going after today. if it's a victory for the unions and they strike the law down, then obviously the movement will wind up because they've won. if it doesn't, if it gives more or less a victory to the government, then i find it hard to see how the movement or protests can continue much longer because that would mean that the government then promulgated the law, it would become law. it would be hard to see what the protests would do. i suspect they would continue for a bit but i suspect they would also dwindle, which is not be to say that the anger will disappear but simply there'll be a sense of, what's the point in keeping going? hugh, we've just got a shot of the constitutional court here for viewers to look at. we've got security guards in front of a high sense. —— infront —— in front of a high fence.

in terms of what's going on on the streets and depending on the outcome and the ruling of the court, what does it feel like in paris? is the apprehension of what could take place later? we had those strikes yesterday and for many days before, as well. well, we had marches and demonstrations yesterday and we have had them sporadically, as we've been saying, for the last three months. i suspect there is a strong chance of spontaneous demonstration, not that spontaneous that everyone will be waiting, but of demonstrations taking place this evening — particularly if the council decides that the law basically can stand. i mean, the likelihood, ithink, is that the council will say that there are bits of the law which are not in accordance to the constitution but basically it can stand, including the key measure, which is raising the pension age. if that happens, there'll be a lot of angry people and, yes, i suspect there will be more demonstrations which will last into the evening and then dissipate.

that was hugh schofield there. we're just going to take you to france. you may not recognise recognise that but those are two of the towers of notre dame in the capital of paris. the reason we are showing you that is president macron is due to visit what is essentially a construction site after that fire on the 15th of april 2019. site after that fire on the 15th of april2019. so, mr macron visiting the site of the fire. the reconstruction is of course taking place on the eve of the anniversary of the fire that partially destroyed notre dame. there has been considerable work taking place at the cathedral itself. it will be interesting to see if there are any members of the public that are also at that site, who potentially could heckle mr macron, because that did take place recently on a visit to the netherlands. we will bring you those pictures as and when we get it, on the day that we expect a

ruling from the constitutional court on whether his decision to push through his pension reforms were or was legal. north korea has described its latest weapons test — that took place on thursday — as a major step in its ability to carry out nuclear strikes. pyongyang said that for the first time, it had successfully launched an intercontinental ballistic device that used solid fuel. our correspondent in south korea, jean mackenzie, told us about the significance of this latest missile test. a major breakthrough in north korea's nuclear weapons programme. it is a more advanced version of its long—range missile, so the sort that is intended to target the united states. the solid fuel element, it's a technical detail but it's an important one. solid fuelled missiles doesn't need to be fuelled ahead of launch. this means that they can be launched far more quickly in a crisis and with much less warning.

this makes it harder to intercept them, harder to shoot them down. with north korea having the ability to target the united states with next to no notice, that makes it more dangerous and crucially it also gives it a lot more leveraged. the bigger picture to this is that north korea is making rapid progress in terms of its nuclear weapons programme. a couple of years ago, kim jong—un set out a list of the weapons that he wanted to develop over the next five years and he is burning through that list at an alarming speed. a speed that is concerning weapons experts here in seoul and in washington. the big question is, why does kim jong—un want all these weapons? there are some experts that believe that what he's trying to do is to build north korea's programme to such an extent that the international community has no choice but to accept north korea as a fully fledged nuclear weapons state, much as it has done with india and pakistan. but there are others who say that kim jong—un does

still want to negotiate and what he is trying to do is build up his stockpile to such a degree and to increase the threat so that when he's ready to talk, he has more to negotiate away. but whatever the answer to this question, with each of these new missiles that north korea develops, each seemingly more sophisticated than the last, north korea is becoming more of a threat and when it gets to the point that north korea can successfully target the us and targets closer to home, so here in south korea, with little to no warning, then these countries are going to have to really think how they defend against north korea and how they deal with north korea. that was jean mackenzie in that wasjean mackenzie in seoul. let's look at some of the day's other news. the white house has condemned republicans in florida for passing a bill that bans abortions after six weeks of pregnancy. a statement from washington described the legislation as extreme and dangerous. florida currently allows terminations up to 15 weeks after conception. the launch of the european space

agency'sjuice mission is set to take place later. it aims to discover whether jupiter's icy moons are capable of hosting extraterrestrial life. the mission was postponed for 2h hours due to bad weather. a powerful tropical storm has hit the north west coast of australia. cyclone ilsa made landfall in the town of port hedland last night, but avoided the most populated areas. residents have been told to stay indoors as the storm continues to move inland. our correspondent in sydney, phil mercer, gave us this update. well, this was the first category five cyclone — that's as severe as it gets in the current grading system — to cross western australia's coastline since 2009. so this clearly is the most powerful tropical storm to hit that part of the country in well

over a decade. now, a record wind speed was also recorded. so this was a tropical storm that was packing an almighty punch, but, mercifully, it avoided the most populated towns and communities in that part of the north—western coast of western australia. if you look at a map of australia, about a third of the continent is covered by the state of western australia. so the area we're talking about is towards the north—western tip of western australia, and they cyclone is now tracking inland. it's now been downgraded to a category two storm, but it's still a huge danger to those communities in its path, raising the risk of those destructive winds causing more damage and flash flooding in those areas as well. that was phil mercer there. around the world and across the uk. this is bbc news.

ukrainian youngsters and their english friends just being children. i'm so glad that i am here. and i'm safe here and it's so nice. the easter camp has been organised by the change foundation. it's about seeing them just hang out with their friends and having conversations. rewind a year and we were all on our phones, using google translate. now it's like we are actually getting more interaction, they are teaching us things. it'sjust amazing seeing how it develops and grows. the two day event is a world away from the fighting in ukraine. the war which broke out a year ago is preparing for a spring surge, following a winter of stalemate and stagnation. back in burgess hill, parents are just thankful their children are safe. it brings her to life again. she is not afraid of big... of loud noises from outside, and i think it will help her to be friends with more and more people.

you're live with bbc news. brazil's president, lula da silva, is meeting the chinese leader xi jinping at the climax of his official visit to china. there was a large ceremony to greet mr lula when he arrived. the two leaders are expected to sign trade deals and to also discuss the war in ukraine. let's get more from our correspondent, joao da silva, who's keeping across the story. hello to you. what can we expect from the meeting today?- hello to you. what can we expect from the meeting today? well, let me first start by — from the meeting today? well, let me first start by saying — from the meeting today? well, let me first start by saying that _ from the meeting today? well, let me first start by saying that indeed - first start by saying that indeed this meeting is a huge dealfor both sides. wejust saw this meeting is a huge dealfor both sides. we just saw those live pictures earlier of the huge welcome ceremony for president lula and the delegation, red carpet, a guard of

honour and all of it. waiting for his delegation was very large group of high—level chinese officials and that signals the importance that the two sides attached to this visit. now we don't know exactly what is on the agenda for this meeting but there is at least a couple of issues that you mentioned there that are likely to make it into the talks. first of course is trade and investment. the brazilian side had said they expect to sign more than 20 bilateral agreements and it signals their desire to strengthen economic relations with china. president lula, who has returned to power only months ago, knows he needs brazil's largest trading partner if he is to deliver on his promises to fight poverty and really boost brazil's stagnant economy. and china, china is also interested in consolidating trade ties with brazil. beijing is facing growing tensions with the united states, which is its largest trading

partner. so it is looking to boost its company's —— country's presence in other markets. brazil being latin america's largest economy makes it an obvious choice. the other issue that could make it on the talks and you mentioned in your introduction is of course the war in ukraine. neither of them has joined western nations in imposing sanctions on russia but both are very keen to play the role of mediator is in the conflict and have offered ideas on what they think is the best path forward towards peace. find what they think is the best path forward towards peace.- what they think is the best path forward towards peace. and i wonder how closely it — forward towards peace. and i wonder how closely it is _ forward towards peace. and i wonder how closely it is the _ forward towards peace. and i wonder how closely it is the state _ forward towards peace. and i wonder how closely it is the state visit - how closely it is the state visit being followed at home in brazil, how do brazilians regard china? well, i think for brazilians right now, their economy is stagnant. there is a lot of hardship back home and they are looking at this visit with hope. they know that china plays a huge role in the brazilian

economy. it is brazil's largest trading partner. so what they want to see is of course this meeting between president xijinping to see is of course this meeting between president xi jinping and president lula translate into a series of trade deals, investment deals that will ultimately create jobs back home. that is what people back home in brazil want to see. the other side of this is president lula really wants to portray himself as a world leader once again. he wants to put brazil back on the world stage. under his predecessor, brazil pursued a bit of an isolationist foreign policy and of course president lula wants to change that. he wants brazil back on the international stage. earlier this year, he was in the united states, in february, now he is in china meeting with another world leader, xijinping. qm. meeting with another world leader, xijinina. meeting with another world leader, xijin-uin. ., ., ,, ., meeting with another world leader, xijin-uin. ., ,, ., ., ~ xijinping. 0k, joao da silva, thank ou ve xijinping. 0k, joao da silva, thank you very much _ xijinping. 0k, joao da silva, thank you very much indeed, _ xijinping. 0k, joao da silva, thank you very much indeed, thank - xijinping. 0k, joao da silva, thank you very much indeed, thank you. | president biden continues his

visit to the republic of ireland. today, on his final day, he will visit ballina in north county mayo, where he has family roots. earlier i spoke to our correspondent charlotte gallagher, who is in ballina in the republic of ireland following president biden on his trip. it is a gorgeous day here in ballina. thankfully, a bit of sunshine after a fair bit of rain forjoe biden�*s visit to the island of ireland but fingers crossed it'll stay like that and the town is looking incredible. there is barely a building that isn't covered in us and irish flags. there are signs in the window of pubs, inviting him to come on in, saying the kettle's on. he has been offered free ice creams, free gifts. ballina is ready forjoe biden but isjoe biden ready for ballina? he might not expect the huge reception he is going to get here. behind me is the town's cathedral where he will be speaking tonight, at around 9.50. we expect him to obviously talk

about his family ties to ireland and how he feels so proudly irish—american. he's got family in the town as well. he has some cousins here that he sees pretty regularly. they sometimes go out to the white house, for st patrick's day, for example. so a real homecoming for one of their famous sons and possibly there is something in the water in county mayo in ballina or maybe it's just coincidence. across the river from the cathedral is the house where the first female president of ireland, mary robinson, grew up. so two world leaders coming out of ballina. mary robinson herself will be here tonight for the speech, along with thousands and thousands of other people. we're expecting the town to be absolutely packed. charlotte, how did yesterday's schedule go for president biden? very busy! i don't know how he does it, actually, because i am exhausted after following him for a week but he's doing all these speeches on top of that.

he spoke in the irish parliament and once again stressed those strong irish roots that he has

because of the political instability we have _ because of the political instability we have in northern ireland, obviously, the union is, the dup, the largest— obviously, the union is, the dup, the largest unionist party, they were _ the largest unionist party, they were not— the largest unionist party, they were not happy about the visit. he did were not happy about the visit. hrs. did say were not happy about the visit. did say i am were not happy about the visit. he: did say i am coming here to listen. i want to listen to what you want. he said he was not there to tell people how to get things back up and running but it started a dialogue, perhaps, but nothing formal was achieved. . . , perhaps, but nothing formal was achieved. . ., ., achieved. that was charlotte gallaher speaking _ achieved. that was charlotte gallaher speaking to - achieved. that was charlotte gallaher speaking to me - achieved. that was charlotte - gallaher speaking to me earlier. before we go, i want to show the inside of notre dame cathedral, the reason we are on these shorts is

because we are expecting emmanuel macron to visit the construction site. it is four years ago, the eve of the great fire that partly destroyed it. back in a moment. good morning. it is going to be another day dominated by sunny spells and sharp and thundery downpours for many of us. so if you have seen some early morning sunshine, i hope you managed to get out and enjoy it a little. it does become quite messy as we go through the day. we had a line of more heavy persistent rain from these weather fronts that are slipping their way south and east over into france. the heaviest of the rain across south—west england and south wales over the last few hours and as it pushes its way through the channel isles, we'll see a fair amount of cloud and some showery outbreaks of rain almost anywhere across the channel coast. at the same time, we'll see a line of more heavy thundery downpours developing across wales, up through the midlands, into eastern england through the afternoon, some of these really quite torrential and quite widespread. for northern ireland and scotland,

it is not quite as severe. sunny spells and a few isolated showers as we go through the day. top temperatures of nine to 12 degrees across scotland and northern ireland, maybe ten to 13 across england and wales. we will see a spell of heavy rain moving its way through eastern england overnight. clearer skies out to the west, a real contrast with the feel of the weather first thing on saturday morning. low single figures, frost not out of the question in sheltered rural parts, but where that rain is, well, that is where we are likely to see the temperatures holding up. so, on the whole, it is an improving picture as we go through the weekend. finally, we are going to lose the frequent showers and we are going to import a southerly flow, so milder air will start to push in and temperatures slightly above where they should be for the time of year. so early rain will clear away through eastern england, cloudy skies for a time, but the sunshine, the best of it, out to the west. it will be a pleasant afternoon for many of us. largely fine and dry, any showers will become fairly isolated.

temperatures likely between ten and 16 degrees. as we move into sunday, that dry weather story is set to continue. we could see a little more in the way of cloud particularly up the far north—west, and thick enough maybe for a spot or two of drizzle, but, on the whole, dry, settled, pleasantly warm and certainly better than it has been over the last few days. and that trend is set to continue through the week ahead. an easterly wind mightjust prevent those temperatures from climbing too high, but, nevertheless, settled and pleasant.

live from london. this is bbc news. fbi agents are questioning a 21—year—old man over a major leak of classified us documents. he's expected to appear in court later. dermatologists say they're dealing with a wave of life changing allergies caused by some gel nail polishes. asjunior doctors in england stage their fourth day of strikes, the result is due today of a ballot of nurses. hello and welcome.

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