a night—time drone attack has hit russia, according to moscow mayor sergei sobyanin. a commercial building that was struck over the weekend damaging the facade of the tower block was struck again, he said. sobyanim added that several other drones were downed by air defence systems. this happened after officials in ukraine s second largest city 7 kharkiv 7 say drone strikes destroyed two floors of a college dormitory there and also hit the city's centre. they say one person has been injured. this follows an earlier stike that killed at least six people in the hometown of ukraine's president, volodymyr zelensky. it partially destroyed a residential block. zelensky has called the strike an act of terrorism'. our ukraine correspondent james waterhouse has more on this attack. so we're hearing now that the search has now finished in the central city of president zelensky�*s hometown after russian missile struck overnight. we know six people

have been killed, including a mother and her ten year old daughter. almost 70 have been injured and around a dozen are trapped under rubble. it is a familiar yet still horrifying sight where you have a residential block with a chunk missing smoldering debris and rescue teams frantically trying to save who they can. and when you have wave after wave of missile strikes, there is always a place in ukraine that is the most acute, acutely hit, and it is the turn of kiev. but alongside this, ukraine is desperately trying to seize the initiative in its counteroffensive, which is coming up to two months old. the gains it has made have been modest and they have been intensely contested. we are seeing an increase in fighting. it is true to say that they are concentrating men and machinery, notably in the southeastern and eastern parts of the front line. but we are getting comments from the kremlin alleging that the counteroffensive is not going according to plan,

in their words, saying that all of that western hardware is getting wasted in that endeavor. but kiev still sees its destiny in this invasion in its own hands, and it will be desperate to try and achieve its ultimate goal of repelling russia completely. it is refusing to accept russia's presence in the country. but you fear that as long as russia keeps hold of what it has taken, it may start to slip away from kiev�*s control. but i've got to stress, neitherside has played its full military hand in this counter—offensive, and the next two months could well be crucial ahead of the onset of autumn and winter, when any kind of development will be near to impossible. meanwhile, after a year and a half of bloodshed, the battle for bakhmut shows no sign of ending. the city holds little strategic value, but it holds great symbolic value for both sides, especially as ukraine pushes on with its counter—offensive. (biv)the bbc the bbc has been given exclusive access to a team of elite snipers, named the ghosts of bakhmut, conducting night raids

close to the city. our defence correspondent jonathan bealejoined them on a journey to the front lines. we're on our way to a secret location, a place they call the edge of existence. behind the wheel, the man simply known as ghost. he tells me his team of snipers are all known as the ghosts of bakhmut because they silently bring death. their base is already well within range of russian artillery. rumble. that was close. but they'll be going even closer towards enemy lines. translation: you can hide from artillery, - but not from snipers. and their work is more

precise than the shelling. do you know how many russians your team have killed? translation: yes, - the confirmed number is 524. 76 of those are mine. the ghosts have been operating on the edges of bakhmut for the past six months, often looking for high—value russian targets. they record every kill through their sights. kusia will be the marksman for tonight's mission. before the war, he worked in a factory. translation: when i was a civilian, i didn't - like weapons, but now i've had to take up arms to defend my country. of course i'm scared. only a fool wouldn't be.

a quick blessing. music plays. we leave with dusk approaching. the music to lift the mood and mask the sound of artillery. several times, the driver, kuz, warns "incoming". they wear british—supplied uniforms. the insertion of the team can often be the most dangerous part of the mission. from here, they'll have to walk another mile to reach their target. explosion. and that's a big explosion. we soon discover that shrapnel has torn through one of the back tyres. it's a long, nerve—racking limp home. metallic clunking. now the anxious wait for the team's return. ghost says he hand—picked each man for their patriotism. while he waits for news, he calls his seven—year—old daughter.

he's already taught her how to strip a gun. seven hours later, the two—man team are extracted. early morning, just before the shelling resumes. the relief is palpable. kusia, the sniper, says the mission was a success. just one shot. "one shot, one target," he says. the commander, ghost, is just relieved they're safe. translation: every trip could be our last. - but we are doing a noble deed. it's also part of ukraine's psychological warfare — killing from a place that can't be seen and with a sound that can't be heard. burkina faso and mali have issued a joint statement saying they'll regard any military intervention in niger as a declaration

of war on them. the two countries — which have both also seen recent military coups — say in such a scenario, they will come to the defence of their eastern neighbour. it comes after a west african bloc gave niger's military seven days to give up power, and threatened to use force if that didn't happen. elected president mohamed bazoum was deposed on wednesday. reports from niger say 130 officials from the president's party have now been arrested. mr bazoum himself remains a captive of the army. but we've now seen the first picture him since the coup began — sitting on the right. it was published shortly after he met with the president of chad, who's working to resolve the crisis. chad's president also met with the coup�*s leaders in niger's capital. earlier, and before mali and burkina faso's joint—statement, i spoke to niger's ambassador to the us. ambassador, thank you very much forjoining us

here in our studio. military coup leaders in niger have on monday arrested two more cabinet ministers, as well as the head of the governing party. what do you make of these latest developments? i mean, that shows that thejunta has no intention to respect human rights as he started by claiming that he will do that. and again, i mean, this coup has really no reason whatsoever. there was no political tension. there is no situation, security situation that is worsening as they claimed, that just faints. the security situation is improving in our country. you know, you accept to power by the ballot, not by the bullets.

and we have elected a legitimate president, mohamed bazoum, and we want him to be restored, like all the international community echo us, the regional body, the african union, the united states of america, france, all our european union, all are asking them just to give back power to preseidnt bazoum. you mentioned ecowas. i do want to ask ecowas, the economic community of west african states and they have threatened military action. would you welcome that, that west african states would stage a military intervention here? yeah, my position my position is is as following. of course, i would hope and wish a peaceful solution that thejunta will come to reason and give up, give back power to president bazoum and to the parliament that were again elected in a fair and transparent election. but if that is not possible, i will not rule out any solution that will restore democracy in my country, including a military. absolutely. i will not rule out any solution because this junta in africa comes to power by the force they want to

substitute force to election. this is not acceptable. they do exactly the same as the terrorist jihadist group were fighting because we have the bullets we have to rule the country. but if there were to be a military intervention, we could then see a full fledged conflict between the military leaders and any intervening forces. are you worried about that again? i am worried about anything that will create damage to my people. but if the choice is to the junta, they have to come back to reason. they have to realize thatjust because you have the bullets, because you have the arms, you are not ruling a country. if you want to rule the country, you have to run in an election. what about the people themselves? because we have seen protesters on the streets,

especially in the capital, waving the flags, for example, of russia burning the flags of france and also supporting the coup leaders here. what do you make of that? and do you think this opens the door for russia to gain more influence in your country? i think two things. first of all, demonstration, if you know west africa, if you know urban cities in west africa, you have a lot, a lot of young people without jobs. these people are easy to manipulate and to make demonstration. demonstration are not a substitute for election. so you're saying these demonstrators are just being manipulated? yes, i can see it loud and clear. and again, demonstration, even if it is not manipulated, is not a substitute of election. you go by power, go to power by election, not by demonstration. but at the same time, there was a recent survey from the afrobarometer that

showed that 52% of the people who were surveyed in your country said that they thought the country is going in the wrong direction, that they wanted the government to do more for the economy, to reduce the inequality between the rich and poor. do you think there is a level of frustration there that the president did not anticipate? i mean, what you are asking me is that if if the opinion if the opinion if those who are rating a president or a government as bad or is that the favorable the positive rating is not good, then the president should go. if you go by this one, it will be no president in any ocd country. so from time to time people yes, people can be upset. people can be impatient for the policies to deliver. but we are working hard. we have done 7% of economic growth. we have had the first the first peaceful school year in 15 years. no strike. there is no strike at all in our country for the last year. so, yes, we are a poor country.

people have a hard time in their day—to—day life. but that's not a justification for people who keep the arms, who are supposed to protect the president, who are

to protect our freedom. to protect our liberties. to come and to seize power.

very quick final question. you are the ambassador here in washington. what do you want to see washington and its allies do? washington is is already doing a lot. have you seen all the statements by secretary blinken and he keep doing it? that's what we want him to do and that's what he's doing. our un, our us partners are standing with us firm and strong. they want democracy back immediately in niger. and that's exactly what we want. ambassador, thank you so much for the conversation today. thank you. around the world and across the uk. this is bbc news.

it's 100 years since it's100 years since the mg rolled out of the garages in oxford and the century on they are still drawing a crowd. the a- eal are still drawing a crowd. the appeal when _ are still drawing a crowd. the appeal when i _ are still drawing a crowd. the appeal when i was _ are still drawing a crowd. tue: appeal when i was a are still drawing a crowd. tta: appeal when i was a youngster was it was a sports car, a two seater and you could have fun with it. �* ., seater and you could have fun with it. �* . ._ seater and you could have fun with it. �* . .., with it. but a wet day could dam en with it. but a wet day could dampen all _ with it. but a wet day could dampen all that. _ with it. but a wet day could dampen all that. it's - with it. but a wet day could dampen all that. it's not i with it. but a wet day could dampen all that. it's not a l with it. but a wet day could i dampen all that. it's not a car at all for _ dampen all that. it's not a car at all for the _ dampen all that. it's not a car at all for the rain. _ dampen all that. it's not a car at all for the rain. it _ dampen all that. it's not a car at all for the rain. it is - dampen all that. it's not a car at all for the rain. it is its - at all for the rain. it is its first_ at all for the rain. it is its first outing in the rain since completing its four—year restoration and as i say, it's totally— restoration and as i say, it's totally original and i've done all the — totally original and i've done all the work myself.- totally original and i've done all the work myself. mg, 435 ears, a all the work myself. mg, 435 years. a magic— all the work myself. mg, 435 years, a magic name - all the work myself. mg, 435 years, a magic name to - all the work myself. mg, 435| years, a magic name to those who loved thoroughbreds. the abin . don who loved thoroughbreds. the abingdon factory finally closed in 1980. what is this? built in china some purists will argue this is not a true mg. fist china some purists will argue this is not a true mg. at least it's keeping — this is not a true mg. at least it's keeping the _ this is not a true mg. at least it's keeping the mark- this is not a true mg. at least it's keeping the mark alive i this is not a true mg. at leastl it's keeping the mark alive and bringing new people into the car club. ., ., , ., , car club. for more stories across the _ car club. for more stories across the uk, _ car club. for more stories across the uk, head - car club. for more stories across the uk, head to i car club. for more stories| across the uk, head to the car club. for more stories i across the uk, head to the bbc news website.

an affiliate group of the islamic state — the iskp — is claiming responsibility for a suicide bombing at a political rally in pakistan. mourners are burying the dead after sunday's attack which killed at least 54 people in the north of the country. it injured hundreds more. pakistan's goverment says it will find those responsible. 0ur pakistan correspondent, caroline davies, reports from islamabad. we've now heard from the amaq news agency that the so called islamic state in kp. this is the province where the suicide blast took place that that group has now claimed responsibility for the suicide bombing that took place on sunday afternoon so far, taking the lives of 45 people. now, this has come through the amaq news agency, which is quite often the outlet that the so called islamic state tend to use to announce when and claim various different attacks and the same thing for their affiliate groups as well. now, while this declaration did include the name of the individual that they say was the suicide bomber,

it hasn't contained any further details of the motive and the intention behind it. but the fact that this has happened and this is not the first time that the so—called islamic state has carried out attacks in pakistan. this many people are already suggesting that this appears to show a growing rift between the so called islamic state and other religious groups operating in pakistan, and that this is becoming increasingly serious. for more on the perspective here in washington, i spoke to former us ambassador at—large and coordinator for counterterrorism, nathan sales. ambassador, thank you so much forjoining us. i want to start with who is responsible for this attack in pakistan, because the islamic state has claimed responsibility on its news agency, saying the following, quote, "the attack comes in the natural context of the ongoing war waged by the islamic state against democracy as a regime hostile to true islam and in conflict with its divine law." and they struck an election rally that was being held for a cleric that is pro—taliban. what exactly is happening here?

why is this group being targeted? well, i think over the past two years, we've seen a very pronounced increase in terrorist attacks carried out by the local isis affiliate, isis k or khorasan. and these attacks are happening notjust in pakistan, but even more so across the border in afghanistan. and this increase in violence, i think, is the direct result of the united states and nato's withdrawing from afghanistan nearly two years ago. over the past 24 months, we've seen, i think, about 400 attacks in afghanistan and in pakistan carried out by isis—k with as many as 2000 people killed. so unfortunately, the security environment in this part of the world is dire and it looks to be getting worse with attacks like this. why is pakistan's government struggling to stop these kinds of attacks? well, i think the pakistani government has tried to counter terrorist threats within its borders and coming across the borders.

but there's a sense in which the pakistani government is now reaping what it has sown for many years. for decades, the pakistani government has played a double game, a risky double game with the united states and with nato and with other western countries. 0n the one hand, partnering with us on certain occasions to combat terrorist threats, but on the other hand, secretly and maybe even not so secretly bolstering the fortunes of the taliban in afghanistan. and today we're seeing the results. the afghanistan taliban is not really capable of countering the threat posed by icis. you know, they seem to be more worried about the threat posed by women and girls going to school or working than they are about the threat posed by isis—k. and so it's sorry to say, but there is a sense in which the dire security environment that pakistan faces today is the direct result of a pakistani government's efforts to bolster

the taliban over many years. how big of a threat is isis—k in not only this region in pakistan, but across the country? i think it's a very significant threat. and, you know, don't take my word for it. a couple of months ago, the commanding general of us central command assessed that within a matter of months isis—k would have the capability to strike us interests in the region or abroad. now, he didn't say that it was going to be in a position to carry out a 9/11 style attack on the us homeland. but this is definitely a group that has the capability and is rapidly developing more capability to be a significant threat, notjust in afghanistan, notjust in pakistan, but across the region. and that's why i think it's so important for the united states, for pakistan, for other interested countries to figure out how to degrade this group, because the current approach of outsourcing security to the taliban is just not cutting it.

a top state department official said in february when asked about this rise of terror attacks in pakistan that you've been talking about, he said that the us is trying to quote, wrap its head around the evolving terrorism situation in pakistan. what do you make of that and what should washington and its allies be doing about it? well, i think the time for wrapping heads around problems is over, and the time has come to start acting and acting decisively. look, over the past two decades, the united states and our allies have developed a reliable playbook for how to degrade terrorist organizations. we were successful in degrading core al-qaeda in afghanistan after 9/11 to a shadow of its former self. and we followed a similar, similar approach in syria in destroying the so—called isis's caliphate. and it's no secret, what you need is a credible partner force on the ground that will carry out the brunt

of the fighting, backed by overwhelming air power provided by the united states and our nato allies. that kind of arrangement in afghanistan really isn't possible right now in view of the biden administration's decision to withdraw from that country two years ago. so we're going to have to find an alternative. does that mean partnering with pakistan to carry out counterterrorism operations? maybe. there's other countries in the region that we should be considering, as well as potential partners. but the one thing that's obvious, that's painfully obvious, is the taliban simply does not have the capability to fight terrorism on its own, and we should not trust them to do so if it's a matter of our own national security. the united states needs to act and nato needs to act. ambassador, thank you so much for the conversation. thank you for having me on. to sudan now, where the war between the army and a paramilitary group known as the rapid support forces has been going on for

more than three months. in that time, dozens of women have reported incidents of rape and sexual violence. various un organisations published a joint statement in july saying that sexual violence is being used "as a tactic of war". bbc arabic�* s mohammed 0sman has spoken to several women from across the country, who told him they were raped by rsf soldiers. a warning that his report includes distressing descriptions of rape and sexual violence. they were very barbaric. they took turns raping me. raping me under the tree where i had gone to gather wood to keep warm. the r sf have committed ultimate forms of humiliation and intimidation and oppression against — and intimidation and oppression against the women and men in areas — against the women and men in areas of— against the women and men in areas of conflict in sudan. sudan _ areas of conflict in sudan. sudan has been gripped by a bloody conflict since april. it

is a power struggle between the regular army and the planetary —— paramilitary rsf. but rights groups say the rsf are committing mass atrocities. three rsf fighters stormed into our home in the afternoon. my brother was out. when i saw them i screamed and tried to run away. but one of them locked the door.— run away. but one of them locked the door. bbc arabic has soken locked the door. bbc arabic has spoken to _ locked the door. bbc arabic has spoken to women _ locked the door. bbc arabic has spoken to women across - locked the door. bbc arabic has spoken to women across the i spoken to women across the country who say they were raped by rsf soldiers.— by rsf soldiers. they pointed their guns _ by rsf soldiers. they pointed their guns at _ by rsf soldiers. they pointed their guns at me _ by rsf soldiers. they pointed their guns at me and - by rsf soldiers. they pointed their guns at me and told i by rsf soldiers. they pointed their guns at me and told me| by rsf soldiers. they pointed i their guns at me and told me to be quiet. i was ordered to lie on the bed. when i refused, he hit me hard and attacked me. he then raped me. before i could wake up from the shock, another soldier came in and did the same. i couldn't believe it. i wake up in the middle of the

night and wish i had never been born. ,, , ., , born. rsf fighters have been active in sudan _ born. rsf fighters have been active in sudan for— born. rsf fighters have been active in sudan for decades. | active in sudan for decades. they have been accused of using sexual violence as a weapon of war against black african tribes in darfur.- war against black african tribes in darfur. rape is being used systematically. - tribes in darfur. rape is being used systematically. it - tribes in darfur. rape is being used systematically. it has i used systematically. it has been — used systematically. it has been used in darfur or in the past — been used in darfur or in the past and _ been used in darfur or in the past and in this current war it is being — past and in this current war it is being carried out particularly by the rsf. the rsf have — particularly by the rsf. the rsf have denied _ particularly by the rsf. tt2 rsf have denied any involvement in rape incidents. they say these allegations are aimed at tarnishing its reputation. t tarnishing its reputation. i called this an illegal war tarnishing its reputation. t called this an illegal war and an illegal war does not have any victors. it only has victims. we have more coverage of the conflict in sudan on our

website. thank you for watching bbc news. hello. july has certainly been a pretty wet month, and we started off the new working week with another dollop of rain, particularly across northern areas of the country. so skies quite cloudy like these in cumbria. it was also quite windy as well. and so far this month we have seen some areas picking up more than three times as much rainfall as during an average july, for example, in preston. so it has been very wet. even as the area of low pressure that brought the rain on monday starts to edge away, out in the atlantic, underneath this trough in the jet stream, we're developing another potent area of low pressure that's set to bring wet and windy weather our way by wednesday. now, over the next few hours, it is a story of the rain across scotland, northern ireland, northern england, gradually turning a little bit lighter and a bit patchier in nature. it's largely dry, though, further south for southern

wales, the midlands, east anglia, southern parts of england. so it should be a fine start to the day for these areas. on tuesday we go, and i think the thickest cloud we'll see will be across south—east scotland, northeast england, threatening a few patches of rain, probably a few showers running into the north—west of both england and wales, but otherwise should be a brighter kind of day. a little bit of sunshine poking out to northern scotland and across wales and parts of southern england as well. heading into tuesday evening and overnight, that area of low pressure i showed you on the satellite picture will continue to develop and will start to swing its way in. and this one will bring quite widespread outbreaks of rain and a swathe of strong winds just running in to its southern flank. so quite wet weather for northern ireland, northern england, some heavy rain also pushing into wales in the south—west, but it is across the south—west of england, really along the south coast, that we could get gusts of around 40 or 50 miles an hour, 50 to 60 perhaps across parts of northern france and the channel islands. that is likely to lead to some localised disruption.

a few trees down in the ferries across the channel could be affected by those strong winds and large waves as well. across northern scotland, that's probably where we'll have the best of the dry weather with some sunshine coming through. temperatures not that special across the north, not that special anywhere to be honest. highs of about 17—21. that low pressure pulls away and for thursday the winds get a bit stronger in northern ireland for a time, but elsewhere the winds will gradually calm down. but it'll still be quite a blustery kind of day on thursday, a day of bright spells and passing showers. and as you can see, as we work deeper into the first week of august, there's no real change. it stays unsettled.

you're watching bbc news. the latest news and headlines follow at the top of the hour, after this programme. so, this is a radio drama studio. hello, i'm john wilson.

welcome to this cultural life, a radio four podcast in which i ask leading creative figures about the influences and inspirations that have fired their artistic imagination. my guest in this episode is sir kenneth branagh. a huge talent, a star of stage and screen for more than four decades now. he's an actor, director, writer and film—maker whose credits range from hamlet to tenet, from henry v to thor. we spoke in the very atmospheric radio drama studio of bbc broadcasting house. ken, welcome to this cultural life. a show about cultural inspiration, cultural influences. what is your earliest cultural memory, do you think? something that had a big impact? i think, early doors, i can remember winston churchill's funeral, i think it was 1965, seeing it on the television