i'm helena humphrey. glad you could join me. we start with what has been an extraordinary 2a hours in russia. the head of the wagner mercernary group, yevgeny prigozhin, has left for belarus. prigozhin told his forces to return to their bases earlier to avoid bloodshed after negotiations with belarusian leader alexander lu kashenko to end their rebellion against the russian defence ministry. wagner fighters have been leaving the southern city of rostov—on—don, according to reports. security had been tightened in moscow, with the mayor telling residents to avoid travelling. all mass outdoor events have been cancelled until 1 july, but russia's tass news agency is now reporting that all restrictions previously imposed on russia's motorways have now been lifted. here you see the wagner leader

departing russia for belarus earlier, following the announcement to cancel the rebellion. prior to that announcement, a huge convoy had been heading towards moscow in what vladimir putin had described as an attempted mutiny. charges against prigozhin and his wagnerforces will be dropped. president putin's press secretary said that wagner mercenaries who wish to sign a ministry of defence contract can, and fighters who took part in the uprising will not be prosecuted. meanwhile, these are the latest images of locals chanting "wagner" as the troops from the mercenary group were leaving rostov, and here you see tanks boarding trucks and leaving the area. earlier, in an audio message posted on telegram, prigozhin said the time had come to stand down. translation: they wanted to disband the wagner. -

on 23june we went out on a justice march. within a day, we were just 200 kilometres away from moscow. during that time, we did not spill a single drop of blood of ourfighters. now, the moment has come when the blood can be spilt. therefore, understanding all the responsibility for the fact that russian blood will be spilt on one of the sides, we're turning our columns back and leaving in the opposite direction, to the field camps, according to the plan. let's look back at the past 2a hours. early friday prigozhin questioned the war in ukraine, blaming russian defence minister sergei shoigu, claiming he did it to gain military honours. prigozhin called for an armed rebellion, vowing to march forjustice, and accused the kremlin of hitting his troops with a missile strike on friday. in moscow, security is stepped up as wagner takes rostov—on—don. on saturday prigozhin declared 25,000 of his troops crossed the borderfrom ukraine in the early hours of the morning.

a video appeared online showing prigozhin inside russia's southern military headquarters. russian president vladimir putin denounced the "criminal adventure" and warned of punishments in a tv address. over the course of the day wagnerforces make progress up the m4 motorway towards moscow, seizing military facilities in voronezh. just hours ago, prigozhin said that he had agreed to stop the movement of his troops, turning them around from their route to moscow. belarus revealed its leader, alexander lukashenko, had been holding talks with prigozhin and putin and had agreed to it. russian state media reports that prigozhin will leave for belarus and that criminal charges against him and his troops will be dropped. with me is barbara starr, former pentagon correspondent at cnn and senior fellow at the usc annenberg center in california.

barbara, it has been great having your analysis on the programme. prigozhin, as we know, reportedly headed to belarus. is this it for this open feud with the defence ministry? i know it is a huge question, but where could this potentially go? you question, but where could this potentially go?— potentially go? you know, the auestion potentially go? you know, the question does _ potentially go? you know, the question does anybody - potentially go? you know, the question does anybody think l question does anybody think prigozhin is going to quietly go into retirement and live happily into old age— people who challenge russian leadership, that does not often happen to them. so that will be one thing to watch. what will happen with the wagner group? they have some 50,000 fighters inside ukraine, according to the british mod, at one point. and the big question, perhaps, right now is what about putin? how damaged is he? is his position weaker? will he lash out? and the russian military high command, the defence minister, shoigu, the chief of

staff, these are guys that putin— he had been estranged from them in recent days. perhaps the one thing he had in common with prigozhin is neither of them liked the way the war was being prosecuted at some point, and it was a few days ago that the us intelligence community began to see the signs of this, that prigozhin might have been stockpiling ammunition and weapons. what was he going to do with all of that? that is still a big question. did he really think he was going to get to moscow and depose putin? it seems extraordinarily unlikely, so what happened here? and what is going to happen now? very few people know the answer.— happen now? very few people know the answer. huge question marks, know the answer. huge question marks. as _ know the answer. huge question marks. as you — know the answer. huge question marks, as you say, _ know the answer. huge question marks, as you say, barbara, - marks, as you say, barbara, right now. in light of these remarkable events, what kind of conversations do you think the us administration is having behind closed doors right now? well, i think they are probably trying to figure out topic number one, what happens with putin now? will he remain in power? will he remain in power as strong as he is right now? is his position damaged? will

that emerge? if it is, does that emerge? if it is, does that emerge? if it is, does that emerge right away or does it sort of chip away over time? and if there is that kind of instability in russia, further instability, what does that mean? what does it mean for the russian military? what does it mean for the war in ukraine? what does it mean for nato's eastern flank that butts up against russia in ukraine? because it is one thing the intelligence community needs to gather as much information as it can, learn more. they know that's theirjob. for the us military and for the military services in europe, along the eastern flank, what they don't like his uncertainty. they want to know what they need to be prepared for, and right now theyjust prepared for, and right now they just can't prepared for, and right now theyjust can't be sure. fin they 'ust can't be sure. on that theyjust can't be sure. on that point _ theyjust can't be sure. on that point about uncertainty, do you think there will also be a conversation here about being a conversation here about being a little bit caught out? are there any indications that us officials were slightly

surprised by this? right, i thinkthat _ surprised by this? right, i think that there _ surprised by this? right, i think that there are - think that there are indications they knew but they didn't know exactly. so was it knowable, if you will, that what prigozhin was going to do and how putin might react, and that lukashenko would be brought into all of this? this became a very complicated mix of developments, within several hours, so was that even knowable? and they will have to go back and look at that. will we ever find out the answer? maybe not, but they will need to go back and figure out what they heard, what they saw, what intelligence they had and what it really all added up to, and did they miss any signs so they don't miss it next time. exactly, barbara starr, really great having you with us tonight. great having you with us toniaht. ., ~ great having you with us toniaht. . ~ i. let's take a closer look at the man who called for the rebellion, yevgeny prigozhin, and the group

of mercenary soldiers he leads, known as the wagner group. 0ur security correspondent gordon corera has more details. yevgeny prigozhin outside russian military headquarters in rostov—on—don this morning, boasting his wagner group have taken it without firing a shot. butjust who is this man challenging russia's leaders? prigozhin began as a criminal from st petersburg. after leaving jail, he began selling hot dogs, but then graduated to running expensive restaurants. he caught the attention of russia's leader, leading him to be known as putin's chef. he catered to world leaders when they visited, even america's president, but also became rich from lucrative military contracts. about a decade ago he began to carry out operations around the world on behalf of the kremlin, even interfering in america's 2016 election. but prigozhin became best known as head of wagner, an often—brutal private

mercenary group working to the kremlin�*s agenda. it has been operating across the middle east and africa, including syria, libya and mali, allowing putin to project power without being directly involved. but it is in the last year in ukraine that it has really come to the fore. as putin's plans for a quick victory faded, prigozhin�*s forces undertook some of the heaviest fighting. some of them came from prisons. here is prigozhin recruiting them in return for an early release. laying flowers on the graves of those who died helped him cultivate an image in russia as a nationalist hero, one who would fight harder in ukraine. but battles like in bakhmut led to growing tension between prigozhin and the regular russian military leadership. he angrily accused its leaders,

like defence minister shoigu and military chief gerasimov, of using his men as cannon fodder and denying them vital supplies. prigozhin claimed russia's soldiers had been let down by their leaders, and his attacks on them became increasingly outspoken. it was clear one side or other would have to move, bringing what had been a simmering crisis to the boil. in the last hour, i spoke about about the conflict in russia with william taylor, former us ambassador to ukraine. is putin still in trouble? he is certainly diminished — he is certainly diminished. both sides, both putin and prigozhin, made statements that indicated that they were up for a fight. you've reported both of those. putin said this is treason and he's going to crush them,

and prigozhin said that all the ministry of defence was doing was killing russians and that there was no reason for putin's invasion in the first place. so they were both staking out strong positions and they both backed down. they both backed down today. neither wanted to have the real fight, it looks like, and so the compromise is what we saw here today. i'm wondering, though, if they did appear to back down, about the optics and what that might lead to in this, because you said that the russians are supposed to be fighting the ukrainians and they might be distracted. those soldiers might even run. what do you think that these latest developments, these latest optics, now mean for vladimir putin's army? i think putin's army has been shaken. they've been shaken by this mutiny by one of their best forces, one of the best units.

the prigozhin wagner group was one of the toughest ones. they did grinding work but they did effective work, in bakhmut, as we know, and they were pulled off the line. prigozhin pulled the wagner group out of the line to march north towards moscow. it's thought they might be going back to the south. they haven't gone back into ukraine yet. all to say that the russian forces are still weaker today than they were two days ago. russian forces in ukraine are trying to defend that long line of like 600 miles, 900 kilometres. that's a long line for them to defend, and they have fewer people to do it. and their morale is lower because they have seen this chaos in the kremlin. sorry, ambassador, but with all of this in mind, potentially diminished morale, the fact that these troops haven't yet gone back,

what could this essentially been on the battlefield for ukraine? how can they take this moment to capitalise, and also do they have what they need to do so? we will see if they have what they need to do so. if they succeed, that is, if they break through the line and they then exploit that breakthrough in the russian line, then they will know they have what they needed. we should give them more and make sure we have given them everything they need. but you asked if there is an opportunity. yes, there is an opportunity now. the russians, as we said, are weaker. they are demoralised. the ukrainians are emboldened. they are pleased that their enemy is in disarray, and the ukrainians have been looking for weaknesses up and down the line.

they've preparing their new brigades, newly equipped, newly trained, ready to go. those are just — the timing is really good for the ukrainians, because even before this craziness of the last day, the ukrainians were mounting or about to mount or about to commit their main forces into this counteroffensive. so they are in a good position to explode. so how long do you think it will be before we see some potential successes — some potential gains? i would say weeks — i would say weeks. certainly the summer we will see those potential gains. and what about putin? he has said to these wagner troops that there won't necessarily be punished or them won't be repercussions, and has asked them to sign up with his forces. we don't know how that will play out right now. ultimately, do you think that putin can succeed on the battlefield without those wagner troops? over the long term, he probably can. there are a lot of russians. there are 140 million russians.

he has a lot of russians to pull into a draft, but it'll take him time. it'll take a long time to round them up. it'll take a long time to train them. it'll take a long time to equip them. they've lost a lot of equipment at these battles. so over the long term, putin, yes, can regenerate those forces. that is why the ukrainians need — and they know they need — to move now. if you're talking about regenerating those forces, essentially what does this mean for people still in russia right now? does this mean more draconian laws, drafts, further crackdowns? it absolutely does. people say that the crackdowns so far are as bad as people can remember in living memory. that is, the oppression right now, the control, that putin has over the country is firmer now, is harsher now, that it was during

soviet times. and as you say, it will only get worse. if he has to institute the draft again, another mobilisation, a larger mobilisation than last time, even last time he had trouble getting his 300,000, and more than a million left the country. so he's got problems, but he can do that. there is a large pool of russians that he can draft into his army over time. it's going to take him time. if we contemplate for a moment, a russia without putin, would that mean for the country?

would that lead to some kind of political vacuum? what could we then bubble up? yes, after putin, it could get worse or it could go into chaos, as you said. it is unlikely to get better but it could get worse. chaos could be the scenario for a while. probably if putin were to leave, one way or another, the prime minister would take over. not a strong leader, and there would be continued to be jockeying. we remember when stalin died. this is likely what would happen. so it would be a difficult time, a time of troubles for the russians. but again, the ukrainians would have an opportunity, a great opportunity, to force them to the negotiating table, to push the russians out of ukraine, in that scenario, and to force the new government to negotiate. a new development for you now. 0ur colleagues at bbc russian are reporting that an explosion has been heard n the south—east ukrainian city of zaporizhzhia — that's according to the public broadcaster in ukraine. now, an air raid alert has apparently been declared in the city and the region. a reminder that zaporizhzhia is the site of the largest

nuclear power plant in europe that was captured by the russians last may after fierce fighting. this news comes after ukraine's president zelensky accused russia of plotting a "terror" attack on the plant. moscow denies it. and for more info on everything happening in russia, please head to the bbc news website and app, where our team is tracking every development with full background, analysis and the latest bbc reporting. turning to some other news now. it's been a year since the us supreme court overturned the 1973 roe versus wade ruling, which had given women the constitutional right to abortion. today, across the united states, activists are marching to mark the day. as they marched against the ruling in washington, across the country, anti—abortion rallies have taken place to mark the day. for more on what's happening

on the anniversary of the roe v wade overturning, north america correspondent sophie long reports. we wa nt we want abortion on demand! as news broke of the supreme court's ruling, protests erupted across america. abortion automatically became illegal in some states. mississippi's last abortion provider is now a furniture shop those who worked here on our performing the procedure two states and i7 our performing the procedure two states and 17 hours' drive away in new mexico. we moved everything _ away in new mexico. we moved everything from _ away in new mexico. we moved everything from jackson - away in new mexico. we moved everything from jackson here i everything from jackson here and we opened the facility here for women, we mostly serve texas women here. i think it is a great loss for mississippi. i think it is a... i think they have taken itjust like they have taken itjust like they have everything else in mississippi and they've taken mississippi and they've taken mississippi backwards. in

mississippi backwards. in mississippi, everything has changed and nothing has changed. in the poorest parts of america's poorest state, for some, accessing an abortion was almost impossible before the band. 0ften, almost impossible before the band. often, the only support available is crisis pregnancy centres run by anti—abortion organisations —— ban. i understand not knowing if the food will be there. i understand the lack of resources. i understand what a lot of these women are going through. i understand infertility. i understand that the decision of do i abort, do i keep? i understand a lot of things that maybe when you look at women like me, or others that run facilities like this, that we don't understand, but we do, and we do this because we understand. 0ver over the past 12 months, the united states has become a confusing patchwork of abortion laws. in texas, where i am now, with illegal. butjust across the border in new mexico, women

still have the right to choose. and so, doctors like aaron campbell travel thousands of miles every week to carry out the procedure they've dedicated their lives to, legally. i'm not in my own clinic because we had to close. it's a felony in tennessee to provide abortion at any stage of pregnancy. i believe in this right for people to be able to make this decision for themselves. and i believe that they should be able to get that care from someone who knows how to do this safely. meanwhile, in mississippi, even though terminating an unwanted pregnancy is now illegal, anti—abortion activists continue their campaign. the abortion pill, the poison pill, in mississippi — we know that it can be sent through the mail or across the border, so we're concerned about women still obtaining unsafe abortions without the proper medical care. and then also, women can

still go across state lines. last year, an important battle may have been won by the anti—abortion lobby at the fight over reproductive rights in america continues with no end in sight. sophie long, bbc news, mississippi. investigators in canada have boarded the support ship used to launch the titan submersible which was destroyed during a deep dive to the wreck of the titanic last week. all five people on board were killed. the ship, the polar prince, returned to port in newfoundland, where police and safety inspectors had gone to gather information and conduct interviews. the us coast guard will also be involved in the investigation. the ship had its flag at half—mast. it was towing four white buoyancy tanks used to launch the doomed submersible. bbc�*s nomia iqbal is in newfoundland. the polar prince made its long journey home nearly a week since it left for the high seas. the flag flew at

half—mast out of respect for the five men who died. these are among the last known pictures of the submersible. the polar prince launched it into the atlantic last sunday that contact was lost one hour and 45 minutes later. they notify the coastguard after more than four hours. following an international search lasting days, parts of the sub were eventually found on the seabed near the titanic wreckage. it had suffered a catastrophic implosion. as the polar prince gets ready to dock, this is not the end of its story. the vessel is going to be investigated. there are lots of questions about how, why and when did this disaster happen? the buoyancy tanks used to launch the sub were towed away. inspectors from canada's transportation safety board entered the vessel. they will interview staff and crew. the us coast guard will also be involved. wreckage of the sub will be examined too. it's owner 0ceangate is facing

criticism. the bbc has seen e—mail which accused the late ceo stockton rush of putting clients at risk, which the firm has denied.— clients at risk, which the firm has denied. once you believed that, it's has denied. once you believed that. it's very _ has denied. once you believed that, it's very dangerous... - that, it's very dangerous... the tragedy has affected people here in the province used to maritime disasters.- here in the province used to maritime disasters. you've got to have respect _ maritime disasters. you've got to have respect for _ maritime disasters. you've got to have respect for the - maritime disasters. you've got to have respect for the ocean. | to have respect for the ocean. because you may not fear it but you've got to have respect for it because if not, the ocean comes first.— it because if not, the ocean comes first. we hope for the best outcome _ comes first. we hope for the best outcome but _ comes first. we hope for the best outcome but it - comes first. we hope for the best outcome but it was - comes first. we hope for the i best outcome but it was really tragic— best outcome but it was really tragic to— best outcome but it was really tragic to hear. you know, deep down, — tragic to hear. you know, deep down, we _ tragic to hear. you know, deep down, we always have a little bit of — down, we always have a little bit of hope yeah, it was really. _ bit of hope yeah, it was really, really sad. my god. what they _ really, really sad. my god. what they are _ really, really sad. my god. what they are going - really, really sad. my god. i what they are going through, you know? _ what they are going through, you know? i_ what they are going through, you know? i would _ what they are going through, you know? i would have - what they are going through, l you know? i would have wished a better outcome _ you know? i would have wished a better outcome maybe _ you know? i would have wished a better outcome maybe but - you know? i would have wished a better outcome maybe but it's. better outcome maybe but it's too unforgiving _ better outcome maybe but it's too unforgiving out _ better outcome maybe but it's too unforgiving out there. - better outcome maybe but it's too unforgiving out there. thej too unforgiving out there. the chances of _ too unforgiving out there. the chances of the _ too unforgiving out there. chances of the men's bodies being recovered is near impossible but these investigations will aim to bring answers and some closure to their grieving families.

nomia iqbal, bbc news, stjohn's, newfoundland. thank you forjoining us. i'm helena humphrey in washington, dc. we'll have more on the chaotic day in russia, plus other important stories at the top of the hour. in the meantime, you can always head to our website. stay with us here on bbc news. goodbye for now. hello. a hot night out there, very humid indoors, too, after what was a hot day. on saturday in the south—east of england, temperatures hit 29 degrees celsius and sunday is going to be hotter still. again, humid for many of us and there's a chance of storms,

particularly across northern parts of the uk. now, some of the storms could be pretty nasty with frequent lightning, hail and gusty winds. this is what's happening right now. there is a cold frontjust to the west of our neighbourhood. it is going to sweep in some fresher conditions but ahead of it, we've got that plume of heat and also moisture, that humidity coming in from the southern climes, so there is a change on the way. this is what it looks like early in the morning on sunday, those temperatures still holding around the high teens. this is where the weather front is. it's ready to sweep across the uk. not everybody�*s going to get the rain. the rain will fall in northern ireland during the morning, then the skies will brighten up and it'll be a fresh afternoon. and then, that rain will reach scotland and parts of northern england. there'll be a few showers in wales, too, but it's across northern and eastern scotland, the north—east of england and all the way down to lincolnshire — this is where we're likely to see the heaviest downpours with the hail and the gusty winds as well. south of that, that's where we'll have the heat and humidity. in london and the south—east,

temperatures could hit 32 degrees celsius but for the west, it's going to be fresher — plymouth, 23 celsius, about that in cardiff, and i think a very pleasant 19 degrees celsius in belfast in the sunny spells and maybe the odd shower. and during the course of sunday evening, still some showers there across parts of scotland and northern england but for many of us, a very pleasant end to the day. let's have a look at monday now. we're sort of in between weather systems. 0ne weather front clears away, another one waiting in the wings out towards the west of the uk. so, the morning starts off sunny on monday. through the course of the afternoon, clouds will bubble up. there'll be a few showers here and there, particularly across northern parts of the uk but, essentially, a very pleasant day — a lot fresher, too. you really will notice the difference across many parts of england. in london, from the 32 degrees, more like 23 degrees celsius. and if we have a look at the weather for the week ahead, you can see the weather is looking a little bit mixed every now and then but still

pretty warm in the south — temperatures low or mid 20s. the high teens expected further north. bye— bye.

voice-over: this is bbc news. we'll have the headlines and all the main news stories for you at the top of the hour, straight after this programme.