welcome to newsday, reporting live from singapore, i'm mariko oi. the headlines. thousands of people have been fleeing sudan on the first day of a shaky ceasefire. let's finish thisjob. let's finish this job. i know we can. biden announces he'll run again for the white house, at 81 he will be the oldest us president to seek re—election. accused of breaching sanctions against north korea, british american tobacco pays 600 million dollars to us authorities. prince harry claims that the owners of the sun newspaper paid prince william

�*a very large sum' —— to settle claims of phone hacking. # 0h, island in the sun... and tributes to the legendary singer, actor and civil rights activist harry belafonte, who's died at the age of 96. it's seven in the morning in singapore, and one am in khartoum in sudan where an uneasy truce appears to be holding. thousands of people have been fleeing the country due to the violence there, as countries from around the world work to evacuate their citizens. people living in sudan have spoken of their fears of looting, vandalism and hunger.

andrew harding has this report. safely out of sudan, the first plane carrying british nationals landed back in cyprus this evening. the rescue mission began early in the morning, several raf planes setting off for sudan capital khartoum not know if a ceasefire in the city would last days or even hours. it has been incredibly challenging because of the changing nature. we have had to work up complex plans involving numerous royal air force aircraft and a great number of military personnel who have been flown in from the uk over the last few days. sudan's ceasefire came into force in khartoum overnight. look how dark it is. after ten days of war, there is no power. precious little food or water left. by dawn many sudanese

were already on the move, hoping to use the intermittent pause in fighting to catch buses heading out of the city. british evacuees soon began making their own way to the airport. including this woman, mightily relieved. at some point i started to feel like we had been abandoned by the government, especially watching while other countries evacuated their people. until this morning, we receive the e—mail about getting to wadi saeedna as soon as possible for the evacuation. i am on the bus right now. and i pray we reach safety and get back and be able to see my kids again. across this vast country, many foreigners and locals have been making their own risky journeys to safety. some driving to the red sea coast, a british navy frigate is already heading to a port here. others have headed in

the opposite direction, here to neighbouring chad, one of many poor conflict ridden nations bordering sudan. this is our second evacuation. meanwhile, amar osman from dunfermline in scotland, has alreadyjoined the crowds heading north to egypt, before he left, telling the bbc he had no choice but to make his own way. i'm just going there myself, i'm not waiting. because i don't know, even if they got in touch, i don't know how...they were going to go about it where they would meet and... so i'm going to do it myself. ithink, well, i hope i've done the right decision. britain has faced some criticism for the way it has handled these evacuations. too little information, too slow. but this afternoon the prime minister gave an update. we now have over 100 people

on the ground into sudan, the first flight has already left for british nationals ——with, and we have more flight this evening we will have many more into tomorrow. that is down to the hard work of a lot of people we have already contacted over 1,000 people in sudan and spoken to hundreds, that is what the people here have been doing, making their way to the airfield and we will safely evacuate them as quickly as we can. but look at what is left of khartoum today. destroyed by days of fighting, by looting to come by two rival armies that still threaten, ceasefire or not, to tear this african nation apart. andrew harding, bbc news, johannesburg. 0ur middle east correspondent, tom bateman, is on egypt's border with sudan. tonight we have just witnessed hundreds of this region's newest refugees passing from north of sudan here into southern egypt.

we have just been at the border crossing where the egyptians have allowed thousands of people to pass. they are mostly sudanese but we also saw foreign nationals including british citizens who were crossing there. i have been speaking to one family, a man who is a cardiac surgeon in khartoum and he spoke about days of terror, in his words, before the family made the arduous two—day journey to this border crossing. he said that they were trapped in the city for nine days without power and he said, with no clean water. but the worst, he said was the sound of bombing leaving his family in fear of their lives. now they made the decision to leave before the military evacuation by the uk was announced in put into place today. so they arrived crossing over that border, but behind them are many, many thousands more, mostly sudanese desperately trying to escape and while the egyptians are allowing

the elderly and women and children to pass we are hearing stories of some men who are being turned back for the visas to be processed in the nearest sudanese city. the queues are growing longer and the conditions by day our baking and cold and we have had a sandstorm here at night. this crisis is only deepening for the refugees trying to cross into egypt. to some breaking news. it is reported that the isis leader responsible for the planning of the 2021 attack at the kabul airport... that took the lives of 13 us service members has been killed by the taliban. the white house is witholding the name of the man, but described him as the "mastermind" of the assault on the airport. it was at a main point of entry for those trying to evacuate afghanistan during the us withdrawal.

we will bring you more as we get it that is breaking news this hour. president biden has announced he's running for a second term in office next year. he confirmed the news in a video message focusing on protecting personal freedoms, and drew a clear line between his party and certain members of the republican party who he called "maga extremists". personal freedom is fundamental to us as americans. there is nothing more important, nothing more sacred. that's been the work of my first term — to fight for our democracy. this shouldn't be a red and blue issue. a little later, president biden appeared for a speech in washington in front of trade union members. it's time to finish the job. finish thejob. chanting: four more years! four more years! _

mr biden�*s opponent from 2020, donald trump, jumped to the attack after the announcement — releasing a 4—minute video criticising biden�*s candidacy. you could take the five worst presidents in us history and they would not have done the damage thatjoe biden has done to our nation and just a few short years. not even close. thanks to joe short years. not even close. thanks tojoe biden�*s socialist spending calamity of american families are being decimated by the worst inflation and half of a century. i've been speaking with associate professor ian chong from the political science department of the university of singapore. i asked him whether we were expecting any reaction from america's regional allies. so i think for us allies, us allies have worked closely with the us for a long time.

there is a lot more comfort with a joe biden presidency. they've seen the tumult that came with the previous trump presidency. and they like the fact that joe biden represents a certain degree of consistency, that he represents a certain degree of order, i suppose so, and also support against what they see as mounting pressure from the prc. so this would be japan, south korea, australia. singapore is in a bit of a mixed position, singapore, i think. it's not a us ally, it likes a smoother relationship with the us. so i think it appreciates biden�*s sort of more stable kind of politics as opposed to trump's, however they are. there is some concern about perhaps this mounting intensity of competition between the us and china. i think for singapore that's been in the sort of middleman position. they are sort of wary of a biden administration pushing further on competition with the us. of course they are just as concerned with with the prc

in case anyone mistakes what i'm trying to say. interesting you mentioned tensions between washington and beijing under the 0bama administration when mr biden was the vp. there was very much a policy of pivot to asia. how do you rate mr biden�*s policy towards asia for the for his first term? so i think president biden�*s policy in asia has been pretty consistent. he's had his people show up. he's been trying to put a strong face of the us in asia to show that it's a resident actor in asia as opposed to such claims that it shouldn't be here. so i think that part is appreciated. but i think there's also a degree of maybe frustration, maybe of confusion over what to do about us—china competition. this would be less among us allies, but more among sort of neutrals and sort of partners that feel that they don't have as much at stake. so i guess it's a little bit of a mixed picture, but it is a lot more appreciated that the us is present and active

than when it is not right. so in this sense, to have a the consistency of biden, to have a relationship that is that the people are confident that the us is here and present i think is something that's appreciated. it would've been the first private venture to land a rover on the moon. the mission by a japanese company pierced to feel that the last moment. the company says they lost contact with the unmanned spacecraft just before it was due to touched on. the company says it will keep trying to communicate with the tract which was launched towards the moon back in december. let's take a look at some of the stories in the headlines in the uk.... the former first minister of scotland nicola sturgeon says the past few weeks have been beyond her worst nightmares. she was speaking at the scottish parliament

for the first time since her husband peter murrell, the former chief executive of the snp, along with the party's treasurer were both questioned by police. i understand the view that some people might have that i knew that all of this is going to unfold and that is why walked away — nothing could be further from the truth. i could not have anticipated in my worst nightmares what would have unfolded over the past few weeks. a bank of england economist has warned prices in the uk will continue to rise unless people understand that they are poorer. huw pill told a podcast there was a "reluctance to accept" that people were worse off. around the world and across the uk. this is bbc news. for dame sharon white as chair of thejohn lewis partnership.

she's normally focused on profit, but at this blood donation centre in stratford, the focus was on giving blood and the pressing need for more black donors. i'm so happy. it's been a long time since i last gave blood 20 years ago and ijust feel really happy and very lucky. sickle cell anaemia is the fastest growing genetic condition in the uk and far more prevalent in black people over the last five years the numbers of blood donations needed to treat it has increased by 66%. i'm here giving blood. this is yourfirst time, is it? it is. lord simon woolley, the principal of hamilton college in cambridge and founder of operation black boat, was also donating. and the two hope that their example will lead to others doing the same. and black donors are particularly important because the ethnically matched blood provides the best treatment and the blood of these two well known donors will be ready to use

within hours. you're live with bbc news. here in the uk, prince harry has claimed that prince william was paid a �*very large sum' by news group newspapers to settle claims of phone hacking in 2020 — according to documents lodged at the high court in london. the payment was revealed in papers from lawyers acting for prince harry, in his legal action against rupert murdoch's uk news operation. 0ur media editor katie razzall has been following the case. more than 1,000 people have settled phone hacking cases with the publishers of the sun. and what was the news of the world in recent years. today we learnt a new, very high profile name. according to prince harry's witness statement, his brother william privately settled with news group newspapers three years ago for a very large sum. of course, prince william isn't part of this case, and he's made no comment. prince harry has chosen the public route and with the actor hugh grant

is going to court instead. a trial is planned injanuary, but today news group tried to have that thrown out, arguing allegations of unlawful information gathering are legally out of time. these are just some of the headlines from the news of the world and the sun that prince harry says were based on illegal activity. many relate to his relationship with chelsy davis, including allegations of listening into voicemails, blagging to get private information and the use of private investigators. but harry says unlawful information gathering began when he was a child and it felt like being under 2a hour surveillance. in his witness statement, he says it created a huge amount of paranoia in my relationships. 0ur circle of friends became smaller and smaller as we naturally began to suspect. naturally began to suspect people. also revealed in prince harry's witness statement what he claims was a secret agreement between the royals and news group executives, that the royals wouldn't take any legal action over phone hacking until the other damages claims were nearing an end.

so avoiding having to give evidence in court, that's one reason, he says, he didn't bring this case sooner. that's denied by news group, which says there was no such secret agreement. it's admitted phone hacking at the news of the world, which it shut down and has paid out many millions but has always denied wrongdoing at the sun. in another swipe at his family, harry also says they appeared to block his legal action in order to keep the papers on side. he claims to smooth the way for camilla and charles to be accepted by the british public as queen's consort and king. buckingham palace has been approached for a response. now prince harry has made reforming the press his life's work, and he's also suing associated newspapers and the mirror group. the risks and costs of going to court are huge, and lawyers often encourage a settlement that doesn't appear to be harry's intention. it's up to the judge to decide whether this case can proceed. one of the world's largest tobacco companies, british american tobacco, has agreed to pay more than $600 million after being accused of selling cigarette

materials to north korea. it's the most severe action ever taken by us authorities against a company for breaking sanctions on north korea. my colleague simi jolaoso has more. this $635 million fine relate to british american tobacco activities in north korea between the years 2007 and 2017. it's after subsidiary admitted to selling cigarettes there where they made approximately $428 million. now, the issue is this was in violation of sanctions that the us put on the country, particularly over its nuclear and ballistic missile activities. last year the us even attempted to get the un security council to ban exports of tobacco products to north korea. however, russia and china vetoed this. now the usjustice department has said the settlement is the single largest north korean sanctions penalty in the history of the department. and the head of the british

american tobacco has apologised for the compa ny�*s misconduct. for years, north korea has faced tough sanctions over its nuclear and ballistic missiles programmes and launches and tests. and while the leader, kim jong—un himself is a heavy smoker, it's not certain the settlement nor sanctions will deter him from continuing the country's weapons programme. let's take a look at some other stories in the headlines. russian foreign minister sergei lavrov says sudan has the right to use the russian private military company wagner. last week wagner group denied it was operating in sudan. western diplomats in khartoum had previously accused the group of being involved in illicit gold mining in the country, alongside military activities. translation: well concerning wagner it is a private _

military company. central african republic, mali, sudan and another of other countries whose governments whose legitimate authorities turn to these kinds of services have the right to do so. russian missiles have hit a museum in eastern ukraine, killing two women. 10 other civillians were injured. local authorities confirmed the ukrainian museum of history in the city of kupyansk in kharkiv region had been hit. president volodymyr zelenskiy condemned the strike. american singer, actor and human rights activist, harry belafonte, has died at the age of 96. his success with calypso—inspired pop music helped to break down racial barriers, at a time when segregation was widespread in the united states. our arts correspondent david silitto looks back on his life. # day—o, day—o # daylight come and me want go home...

harry belafonte — the king of calypso. # me say day, me say day, me say day, me say day—o # daylight come and me want go home... and now it says here tonight that we're going to have the fabulous harry belafonte. here he comes! he was born in new york, but his sound was caribbean. from the calypso of trinidad to the folk songs of his childhood home, jamaica. # but i'm sad to say i'm on my way... it was a career that took him from the clubs of new york to recording the first ever album to sell one million copies. the first performer to sell over a million copies of a single album, ladies and gentlemen... # when your lover decides to fly... i he also landed major roles in movies such as carmenjones. but there should have been more. # shake, shake, shake, senora, shake your body line... this was the era of the battle for civil rights. inspired by his hero

paul robeson, he was there at the heart of it, shoulder to shoulder with martin luther king, and he paid a price. i wound up on mccarthy's blacklist, i was being called a communist. for a long time, i couldn't work or get employed. looking back, he described himself essentially as an activist who just happened to become a singer. but what a singer he was. # and man will live forever more because of christmas day.# i spoke tojoan walsh, producer of the documentary "the sit in: harry belafonte hosts the tonight show." i asked why it was important for him to host the programme in 1968.

it was 1968 as you know, our country was just ramped by riots and the anti—war movement was turning people apart and even the civil rights movement was coming apart between a younger generation that was ready for black power and an older generation that was still pushing for non—violence, integration. harry straddled the two factions in a crucial way that kept people talking to each other. people would go talk to each other at his upper west side apartment in new york here. hejust did... he was the glue for so much that mattered in that period. and also when i found out about that week, i was like, how do people not know about that? so i think those two things, knowing that he was such,

he was a civil rights hero to me more than an entertainer. but also that he really bridged all of these gaps, it was a story that we had to tell. what was he like in person? is there anything you think will surprise viewers to know about harry delafonte? i don't know what your viewers know, but i feel surprised by myself, not surprised because it was my experience. what i am finding today is all of people who ran into him in an elevator, you know he's a dirty worker, i'm sorry, he got dirty he is not dirty, he is doing manual labour and he's in this fancy elevator and harry is the only one who shakes his hand. other people who were like we ran into him in a pharmacy or at a party and he talked

to my 14—year—old son. there's the sense humility about him, that was my experience, quite honestly. i met him at the msnbc greenroom, i guess you guys probably have those as well. and he was like, thank you so much for what you've done civil rights and i almost cried. my dad loved him. and i was like i have done nothing, thank you. he was always reaching out like that and making people feel really good about themselves, their their contributions, but also just their daily lives. he was a citizen of new york who just made an impression on so many people because he stayed open in his daily life. and i really think that is something that i did not know until today, to be honest.

a lot more on our website on his legacy. that's all for now — stay with bbc world news. hello there. here in the uk, spring warmth is in short supply at the moment. another rather chilly day lies ahead, but it's a very different story in spain and portugal. in fact, a concerning early season heat wave building here, temperatures over the next couple of days could well climb to 38, maybe 39 celsius. that heat has been building to the south of the jet stream. we find ourselves to the north of the jet stream, and so we remain in this rather chilly air mass, at least for the time being. and a really cold start to the day, particularly in the north of scotland, not as cold further south, because here,

there is more cloud in the mix. and for many of us, it is going to be a rather cloudy day, particularly across the south of england, into southern wales and also northern ireland. extensive cloud producing some bits and pieces of rain at times. now, through north wales, the north midlands, northern england, southern scotland, it's a mix of patchy cloud, some sunny spells and the odd shower. the best of the sunshine will be found in northern scotland. but, again, the odd shower here, temperatures of 7—13 celsius, so a little disappointing for the time of year. now, through wednesday night, we'll tend to keep large amounts of cloud. we'll see some rain getting close to northern ireland, into the western side of scotland, some pushing towards the south west of england as well. another rather chilly night, particularly in the north of the uk, not as cold further south. but as we head into thursday, well, this is a rather messy weather chart. there are a couple of different weather systems, one here, one here, likely to bring some outbreaks of rain. this first band of rain is likely to be pushing northwards across scotland. could be some snow over the highest ground for a time, and then outbreaks of rain pushing northwards across parts of england and wales.

there may be a drier slot in between those two rain bands. temperatures, if anything, starting to climb a little. a sign of things to come, because as we head towards the end of the week, we will start to pull in some slightly warmer air. now, we're not talking about spanish or portuguese heat wave here, but we are talking about something a little bit less chilly. and, actually, on friday, while there will be some showers around and perhaps some more persistent rain in northern scotland, we should actually start to see a little bit more in the way of sunshine for many of us. and those temperatures climbing just a touch, and into the weekend, it is going to feeljust a little bit warmer. there will be some dry spells, a bit of sunshine around, but still some showers.

is the worst over for big tech? microsoft and alphabet beat analysts' expectations despite the downturn in the technology sector. and we delve deep into joe biden�*s economic scorecard, as the us president asks voters for more time to finish thejob. hello and welcome to asia business report. i'm mariko oi. we begin with the financial results of two us tech giants this morning — goggle's parent company, alphabet, and microsoft have both unveiled quarterly report

cards that beat expectations. alphabet shares jumped after—hours as the company announced that its quarterly revenue rose to more