welcome to newsday, reporting live from singapore. the headlines: familes desperately search for loved ones after one of india's worst train crashes leaves nearly 300 people dead. we speak to ukrainians who've had enough of exile and are heading back to their homes near the front line. and the plight of the platypus facing a bleak future of plastic pollution just one of the issues under discussion on world environment day. lab from our studio in singapore, this is bbc news. it

is newsday. thank you for being with us. it's 8:00 in the morning in singapore, and 5:30am in odisha in india, where the country's worst train disaster in decades happened. there's a growing sense of shock as the scale of the crash becomes more apparent. the rescue operation has been called off — with more than 275 people known to have been killed. a major investigation is under way. officials have confirmed that signalfailure may have been a factor, but there are broader concerns, too. our correspondent archana shukla has been at the scene. we'll hear from there shortly, but first, let's show you this report. a painful search. sifting through photos, from hospital to hospital, and now morgue to morgue. inconsolable and traumatised.

22—year—old himanshu can barely speak. his brother was on the train that crashed. "can i see my brother, just once?" he keeps repeating. and at this makeshift morgue, he is just one of the many families in the desperate search to find those missing. but not everyone has answers yet. ten members of mukul singh�*s family were on the train. eight found, one dead, and one still missing. his family spent £160, much beyond their means, to come here from another state. "these photos are unrecognisable. "how could we find him in this?

"i had never thought this would happen. "just a day before we had so much fun," he tells me. many families arriving at the accident site only to find their relatives have been moved elsewhere. with limited resources to manage the dead, government has now shifted all the casualties to the capital city, five hours away from here. but over 180 bodies still remain unidentified. officials have started posting the photos of dead bodies on government websites and have said they'll start resorting to dna identification. these tracks that tell the story of loss are still being cleared. rail services has been restored on some tracks. questions on what led to the disaster still looms large. what we have found is that there

is probability of some kind of signalling, i won't even call it a failure, of signalling interference. the driver of the train survived the crash. he told officials he did notjump a red signal. as hope fades for those families still searching for love ones, attention will now turn to just why this disaster happened. archana shukla, bbc news, balasore, odisha. i caught up with archana a short time ago and she told me the latest on what we know so far. well, the preliminary investigation has revealed, according to railway officials and the railway minister, that it could have been a fault in the electronic signal system which are installed to avoid direct head—on collisions. that's essentially if the train is running on one track, it doesn't divert on the other track where some other train is already stationed.

there has been a fault in the electronic signalling system, is what the initial report has said. but how did that fault occur? who was behind it? these are some questions that the railway minister and all the officials at the railway board have also said we should wait for the final investigation report to come in to get those details. but this is just one question on this one particular equipment failure. although they have ruled out a human errorfrom this, the driver of the train who survived the crash had said that he didn't jump a green signal, which means the human error in this part has been ruled out. as you say, investigations are still ongoing. but if the cause could be a signalling fault, that's quite worrying, isn't it? building and i guess people will want to know what the authorities are doing to prevent it from happening again. absolutely. and even some of the family

members who we meet here of the injured, they are raising questions on how a massive accident like this has happened. now, remember, india does have one of the largest rail networks, and accidents have been happening for — since time immemorial. although, in the last few years, the severity and the number of accidents has actually come down. but the massive scale of this accident, the deadliest that india has seen in many decades, has posed questions. and some of the analysts that we spoke with said that if we look at numbers, while the government has been spending a lot of money in rail on railway infrastructure, it has largely been on starting new trains, starting newer technology of trains, more high—speed trains, but lesser amount of money has been going into track maintenance, or strengthening railway safety and signalling system. system so possibly that is where the government going forward

will need to — will have to start focusing in. and, archana, many people remain unaccounted for. how do they plan to identify them all? one of the biggest reasons why, you know, this is happening is because most family members have not been able to reach the site because the rail services in this area have not each side yet come up on track, and has not started. so, many family members are still coming in to claim the bodies, to find those who have been injured. but it is a difficult task, and it is a chaotic task every single day here in hospitals. but the government for now says that, you know, all the casualties have been moved to better hospitals and better morgue facilities in the capital city, which is a five—hour drive from where we are right now. and there are many unaccounted and unclaimed bodies where the government officials say they are — they have started uploading pictures of those bodies

on government websites and they've said that they'll resort to dna identification going forward if need be. we could all be paying more for petrol and diesel very soon. that is after oil exporting countries including saudi arabia and russia that are part of a big group agreed to extend cuts in production. in a statement following talks in vienna, the group which is facing lacking oil prices said it was committed to a stable market. together, the cartel delivers about 40% of oil production meaning its decisions can have a huge impact on the market and prices and people have a lot more on this story on asia business report in 20 minutes time. stay tuned for that. now to ukraine, where its military says it's made small advances in two areas of the front line in the east of the country. it isn't clear whether this is part of a much anticipated

counter—offensive against russian forces. despite the danger, and warnings from officials to stay away, thousands of ukrainians are returning to their homes close to the front line. our correspondentjames waterhouse has been to the eastern town of pokrovsk, to find out why some are deciding to go home. the end of the line. we're on a journey, which people are being told not to take. a train notjust to the battlefield, but home. viktoria has had enough of being a refugee and is heading back with her precious cargo — her baby. translation: it was impossible to live like that. _ we travelled all around slovakia and ukraine, but i have to settle our family. this is where we belong. after travelling across the country, she's welcomed by who she left behind. her husband, serhiy.

translation: i feel overwhelmed and very glad to see my _ beautiful daughter and my wife. here, men typically stay behind to eitherfight or in serhiy�*s case, work. he and thousands of others chose to stay for this coalmine. it's a major employer which binds pokrovsk together. workers have to balance their safety with simple economics. "i had to continue working", this man tells us. "i also need to financially support my family who've come back." his employer is still hiring staff. despite the dangers, it's an enticing prospect for those thinking about returning. mining is, afterall, part

of the donetsk region's dna. before the full scale invasion, pokrovsk�*s population was 65,000. it dropped to a third but is now rising. it's become a destination for those escaping occupied cities. residents have also been enticed back by power and water being restored, but the sharp end of this conflict is just 26 miles from here. it's why locals are being told to stay away. is it safe enough for people to return to pokrovsk? translation: no, even though pokrovsk is not right _ at the front of the donetsk region, we cannot say it is a safe city. multiple rocket launchers can reach here. on the outskirts of the city, closer to that threat, is the last line of defence. amidst all of the talk of a ukrainian counteroffensive, there's always a risk

of the russians breaking through the line. there is a sympathy in the trenches for those wanting to come home. "if you have to die", he tells me, "it's better to die at home than somewhere abroad. it's the watchful eyes of soldiers like him which are allowing people to move back into harm's way. for serhiy and viktoria, it's a conscious decision. translation: who knows when it will become safe here? _ maybe a year, two or five. we don't want to wait even one year. overall, we are prepared. yes. in these times of turmoil, there is a hope and belief they won't last forever. futures depend on it. james waterhouse, bbc news,

pokrovsk, in eastern ukraine. we have some update on the war in ukraine because the defence ministry, moscow says, it thwarted a ukrainian offensive in the southern donetsk region. there has been no comment from kyiv and the russian claim has not been independently verified but a video posted by the ministry showed military vehicles being attacked from the air. so, of course, we will bring you all the latest as we get it. the united states has accused a commander of a chinese warship of navigating in and unsafe manner in the taiwan strait. here the chinese ship can be seen approaching from the port side of the us ship passing less than 150 metres in front. the us described the approach as a contravention of the maritime rules of the road and said its ship was forced to slow down to prevent a collision.

us authorities described its journey through the strait as routine, but china accused the us of deliberately provoking risk in the region the leader of hong kong's opposition party has been detained by police in hong kong on the 34th anniversary of the tiananmen square crackdown. she was holding a candle and two flowers in the causeway bay shopping district, when authorities surrounded her and forced her into a police van. shopping district authorities surrounded a number of other arrests were also made, including surrounded including the prominent democracy activist alexandra wong — known as "grandma wong". rana mitter, professor of the history and politics of modern china at oxford university, explains the parallels between present day and the time of tiananmen square on 4june1989. today, china has been in a crackdown situation certainly for the last five to six years or so in terms of civil society, free speech and so forth. it is worth noting that during the �*90s,

so in the years after tiananmen square, but let's say until about ten years ago, there was a relative opening up of some areas such as journalism and free speech on areas such as constitution, constitutional change and democracy. china was still an authoritarian communist state, but there was more space to talk broadly about some of these political issues in the last six to seven years. most of that space in public, at any rate, has disappeared. and it's not really possible to talk about anything that the communist party that rules china would see as undermining its own rule. professor rana mitter there. around the world and across the uk this is bbc news.

you're live with bbc news. a capsule with saudi arabia's first female astronaut aboard returned safely to earth earlier this week. rayyanah barnawi is a breast cancer researcher and she was accompanied by fellow saudi and fighter

pilot ali al-qarni and two americans. the four travelled to the international space station to conduct research. rayyanah said the mission, titled the ax—2, showed just what could be achieved with global cooperation. rayyanah barnawi told my colleague helena humphrey about the experience. the lift of, getting all the way to the international space station, meeting with the crew of the station and then going back, splashing down, and then within ten days, it only happened four days ago, so i'm very happy to tell that story. and what was it like being there at eiss? and what was it like being there at £55?— and what was it like being there at eiss? well, i say that there at eiss? well, i say that the moment — there at eiss? well, i say that the moment that _ there at eiss? well, i say that the moment that you - there at eiss? well, i say that the moment that you enter i there at eiss? well, i say that| the moment that you enter the international space station you feel you are visiting a new family and they are very welcoming and trying to introduce you to the different parts. you always train here knowing that you are in a simulator, but then when you

are up there in the international space station it feels a little bit like home, a home that you have not visited before and it was really spectacular seeing all the hardware, software, all the machines that we will be working on. it was mind blowing. working on. it was mind blowing-— working on. it was mind blowinu. �* ., , ., blowing. and how did you re are blowing. and how did you prepare for _ blowing. and how did you prepare for this? - blowing. and how did you prepare for this? and - blowing. and how did you prepare for this? and did| blowing. and how did you - prepare for this? and did you face any challenges when you are up there? fin face any challenges when you are up there?— are up there? on the international - are up there? on the international space l are up there? on the - international space station, before we go there we usually train here, we started training last year and it lasted for ten months of training, with the crew led by the commander, alp ola john shuttler, and my partner in this mission, mission specialist ali al-qarni. we have been training on the difference situations that could happen on board the station on the way back, on the

way there on the way back. find way there on the way back. and 'ust way there on the way back. and just talked _ way there on the way back. and just talked with _ way there on the way back. and just talked with a _ way there on the way back. and just talked with a little bit about the practicalities of the situation. you are carrying out scientific experiments while at the same time experiencing weightlessness. how did that feel? did that surprise you at all? ~ ~ , all? well, i think it is the only thing _ all? well, i think it is the only thing that _ all? well, i think it is the only thing that we - all? well, i think it is the only thing that we cannot really train on. i wasn't really train on. i wasn't really the best on flotation, but i tried to improve that. it is really challenging for a little bit in the beginning to be able to lake float in the station without trying to miss the station up in the beginning, but it went well. they can imagine that takes some getting used to. you are the first arab woman in space and you have said that you would like to be an inspiration to all arab girls. what is your message to them? my to all arab girls. what is your message to them? my message to them is the — message to them? my message to

them is the international _ message to them? my message to them is the international space - them is the international space station, us going there was only the first step and i'm really keen to see more and more of you learning more about stem education, science, technology, mathematics, and all the different set is that would help build the space sector in saudi arabia especially. let's ta ke let's take a look at some of the stories in the headlines for you. authorities say a sonic boom heard across washington, dc was caused by militaryjets responding to a plane in restricted airspace. pilots also used flares while attempting to intercept the civilian craft. officials say the pilot of the cessna citation was unresponsive and later crashed in southwest virginia. they deny the fighter jets caused the crash. police injapan have arrested a youtuber and former mp over threats he allegedly made to celebrities. yoshikazu higashitani, known on youtube as gaasyy, was kicked out of parliament after failing to attend any sessions. he was placed on an interpol most wanted list after allegedly posting videos threatening and slandering several people.

sweet is strikers zlatan ibrahimovic says he is going to end his football career. the lti—year—old's contact at a similar one expires at the end ofjune, bringing to an end remarkable career including becoming sweden's all—time top scorer and leading european teams including managers united and paris saint—germain. six women have set off on an epic challenge to row around the entire coast of great britain. if they completed the team will smash a number of world growth boards stopjonah fisher has the story, this report contains flashing images. tower bridge and central london. by this start and, if all goes well, if it is lied for a journey of 2000 miles around great return. this is known as the world's toughest rowing race. for

this is known as the world's toughest rowing race.- toughest rowing race. for a reason- _ toughest rowing race. for a reason. six! _ toughest rowing race. for a reason. six! amy _ toughest rowing race. for a reason. six! amy is - toughest rowing race. for a reason. six! amy is the - reason. six! amy is the youngest _ reason. six! amy is the youngest of _ reason. six! amy is the youngest of the - reason. six! amy is the youngest of the women on board, and is the only a road across atlantic ocean.— atlantic ocean. this is the most other _ atlantic ocean. this is the most other than _ atlantic ocean. this is the most other than the - atlantic ocean. this is the i most other than the atlantic. navigating busy coastal waters can be more dangerous than following a course through the open sea. following a course through the 0 en sea. ., , , , open sea. the land, the ships, ou've open sea. the land, the ships, you've got _ open sea. the land, the ships, you've got rocks, _ open sea. the land, the ships, you've got rocks, you've - open sea. the land, the ships, you've got rocks, you've got i you've got rocks, you've got islands. it'sjust you've got rocks, you've got islands. it's just so you've got rocks, you've got islands. it'sjust so much more complicated. islands. it'sjust so much more complicated-— complicated. last year, all three boats _ complicated. last year, all three boats that _ complicated. last year, all| three boats that attempted complicated. last year, all. three boats that attempted to go round britain had to be rescued in the irish sea. the waves were _ rescued in the irish sea. the waves were huge, _ rescued in the irish sea. tue: waves were huge, you rescued in the irish sea. tta: waves were huge, you know, rescued in the irish sea. "tt2 waves were huge, you know, like three stories high. filth. waves were huge, you know, like three stories high.— three stories high. oh, here we no. three stories high. oh, here we go- emma _ three stories high. oh, here we go. emma somehow _ three stories high. oh, here we go. emma somehow kept - three stories high. oh, here we go. emma somehow kept on i go. emma somehow kept on filmin: go. emma somehow kept on filming as — go. emma somehow kept on filming as her _ go. emma somehow kept on filming as her boat - go. emma somehow kept on j filming as her boat capsized. this year, she is the skipper. and if the six women make it back to tower bridge in under 51 days they'll be record breakers. this is a non—stop challenge, which means the crew are going to be taking it in turns, rowing for two hours, then having a breakfor turns, rowing for two hours, then having a break for two hours. let's take a quick look at the living quarters down

here. emma, took me through what we've got here. this here. emma, took me through what we've got here.— what we've got here. this is where we — what we've got here. this is where we are. _ what we've got here. this is where we are. this is - what we've got here. this is where we are. this is our. where we are. this is our sleeping bags. we got through that we keep under here. we get freeze—dried food so it's nice and light. add boiling hot water there, that's our cooker. there i ask you, emma? what about showers, what about toilets? , ., , ., toilets? the shower is a wet wi -e toilets? the shower is a wet wipe and — toilets? the shower is a wet wipe and the _ toilets? the shower is a wet wipe and the toilet - toilets? the shower is a wet wipe and the toilet is - toilets? the shower is a wet wipe and the toilet is a - wipe and the toilet is a market. wipe and the toilet is a market-— wipe and the toilet is a market. ., �* , ., ., �* , market. that's the loo! there's also a scientific— market. that's the loo! there's also a scientific component - market. that's the loo! there's also a scientific component to l also a scientific component to the trip. as they row, the boat will be sampling the seawater, recording aquatic sounds, and looking for the presence of tiny plastic particles called micro plastics. when they leave the terms of the crew will head west along the south coast, before starting the long and potentially treacherous row north towards scotland. jonah fisher, bbc news. good luck to them.

it's world environment day — led by the united nations. this year's theme focusses on solutions to plastic pollution. up to 23 million tons of plastic end up in lakes, rivers, and seas every year. australia's platypus is one of the animals at risk of being entangled by plastic. it is of course only found in australia. there is now a project to protect its population. earlier i spoke to gilad bino, from the centre for ecosystem science at the university of new south wales, who explained more. obviously, platypuses are a highly iconic species that is only found here in australia. plastic is a significant environmental concern, definitely. large plastic and rubbish in general. it is a problem for platypus is because of the way they forage, they close their eyes in our use highly specialised bills to forage for food in the water. and so as a result of this kind of foraging behaviour, platypuses are prone to getting

plastic and rubbish tangled around their necks. that could lead to definitely strangulation and death. more broadly, microplastics are also a big issue. we don't know exactly the impact to platypuses, but microplastics can definitely harm animals in a range of ways, including physical ingestion that could lead to malnutrition. and also, there's issues with toxicity that can impact reproduction, immune system, and generally metabolic problems and developing disorders. so, these microplastics can definitely pose impact to our freshwater environment, and there's still a lot to learn. we've got very little time left, but can you just tell us how the project is going? are you hopeful? yeah. so we're very hopeful. i mean, this project aims to facilitate critical natural processes of movement of animals and recolonisation. we've been really neglecting taking care of our freshwater environment and fragmenting environments. and so this project aims to reintroduce platypuses back to an area where they've been locally extinct for over 50 years.

that's all for now. thank you so much for watching newsday. hello there. very little change for the weather for this upcoming week. it's going to remain mostly dry and settle with plenty of sunshine as our area of high pressure continues to dominate full so always warmers and sunnis like it has been for the last couple of these across central and western areas. a bit cool, cloudy, breezy orfurther western areas. a bit cool, cloudy, breezy or further is. there's a chance of a few showers putting up into southern areas by the end of the into next weekend, courtesy of this area of low pressure moving up from iberia. in the short—term, plenty of weather to start the new working week. a bit of low cloud which will burn back to the coast from the midlands into eastern england. it could stay quite cool along north sea coast, more breezier the southeast. slim chance of a showers in scotland and northern ireland, otherwise a warm, sunny day once again, the

highs of the damages out west. rosebud west was too much of the northern east of england, perhaps even ian swales. by the end of the night, clear skies, western scotland, northern ireland. temperatures falling between four and nine degrees. tuesday, grey start. that cloud will start to melt away as the strong june sunshine gets going again. also quite full, amy gray along north sea coast. moura breezier the southeast. the rest of the sunshine and the warmth. a slim chance of a showers in scotland and northern ireland. wednesday, we do it all again. a bit of that was central and eastern areas which will tend to burn back for the coast theme for northeast scotland. most of this line judge was the south and the west. we will see highs 22- 23 and the west. we will see highs 22— 23 degrees, otherwise it is the low to mid genes along north sea coast. we maintain that north—easterly breeze across the eastern the southeast on thursday, so a bit

more cloudier, called by the north sea coast. further west is going to be mostly dry with plenty of sunshine once again. now, as we head into friday although it is a similar story this area of low pressure encroaches into the south—west, more of a breeze as well and we could see some cloud, a few showers as we head into the weekend. one thing is was certain, will start to draw warmer out of the near continent and a south southeast leawood. the southern half of the country, thick lee southern influence does not england well. to warm up. we could be into the upper 20s celsius. there is the threat to a few showers.