will have an exclusive report from ukraine's eastern front. in the uk, travelers are being warned to expect further disruption after a fault on monday saw hundreds of flights cancelled. in the us, florida braces as hurricane idalia is forecast to intensify to a category four storm with life—threatening storm surges expected in some areas. hello, i'm rajini vaidyanathan. officials in the ukrainian capital say the city has been subjected to the most powerful russian attack since the spring. the mayor of kyiv says two people have been killed and another wounded in the latest russian air attack on the ukrainian capital. vitaly klitschko says several buildings were set on fire by falling debris from targets destroyed by air defences. these are the moments the debris

fell to ground in kyiv. as you can see, there was a large explosion when it came down. and this is more video from kyiv — it's not clear if this is a separate incident, or the same debris filmed from another angle. this footage was filmed shortly after dawn in kyiv. you can see how there still appears to be smoke billowing from the area where the debris landed. our correspondent paul adams is in kyiv and he gave us this update on what happened there in the early hours of the morning. we had had a succession of air raid alerts for about two or three hours before that. when the alerts come, they appear on your mobile phone and people can track where things are being fired from. and so the country as a whole was braced for attacks. then at around 5:00 in the morning, we heard several explosions as we headed down to our secure

bunker here in kyiv. and as we now know, those were, we think, all caused by intercepted missiles or drones. this was a combined attack using the smaller so called kamikaze drones, but also some larger ballistic missiles. we don't quite know the exact composition. the ukrainians say they shot them all down. but as a result of falling debris, two security workers in the city were killed. there were other reports and we're still getting those coming in from other parts of the country. odesa, we know that there were explosions heard there, too. to the west of kyiv also was under alert and also some parts in the north. so this was a a widespread attack, rather reminiscent of some of the widespread and combined drone and missile attacks that we saw, particularly over the last winter. and a little unusual at the moment.

that is the bbc�*s paul adams there. meanwhile, russia has reported ukrainian drone attacks in six different regions, with military cargo planes damaged at an airport in pskov. the local governor said the military was repelling an attack. he uploaded video showing a large fire while an explosion could also be heard. all flights have since been cancelled as local officials investigate the scene. pskov is more than 600km — or about 370 miles — away from ukraine, close to the border with estonia. our russia editor steve rosenberg sent us this update from st petersburg. well, this is following a pattern. in recent weeks, we've seen drone attacks across russia, sometimes deep inside russian territory. what's been happening over the last few hours is a particularly large—scale attack, a mass drone attack, as you say, targeting

six russian regions. and also russian—occupied crimea. it's unclearjust how much damage those attacks have done. most of the drones have been shot down by russian air defence systems. the most significant attack seems to have been in pskov, where the airport was targeted. initially, russian officials said 4 transport planes, military transport planes. that was revised down to 2. attacks also in the region which borders ukraine. and reports this morning suggest that those attacks have been continuing this morning with an attempt on the local tv tower there. ukraine's summer counter—offensive has met stiff russian resistance, resulting in minimal gains over the last few months. our correspondent quentin sommerville has been reporting from the front line and speaking to ukrainian soldiers and civilians, who are being bombarded by russian artillery in the fight for territory.

the battle on ukraine's eastern front has reawakened. it is in these fields and trenches that the conflict now burns at its hottest. ukraine says. there has been a lot of russian activity in this area for the last few days, air strikes on the last few days, air strikes on the village just behind me. the last few days, air strikes on the villagejust behind me. we the last few days, air strikes on the village just behind me. we are now having to move to get to the trenches. south of here, they cast of russian full test out of here almost a year ago, but the enemy is threatening to return. in these fields, russian has advanced in recent weeks. the men of the 68th brigade, newly installed, are here to assure that they go no further. they are up against infantry and

artillery attacks daily along these lines. we can see here, that is outgoing artillery. along the front, it is said there is some hundred thousand russian troops gathering, newly formed battle troops along the tree line. around here, there has been incoming fire here, lots of damage. there is plenty of trench positions to take cover in. it is easy to forget, with so much focus on the counteroffensive in the south of ukraine, that there are vicious battles going on here in the east and the north and south are making progress bit by bit, but here in the east, it is russia that is advancing. this is a war on many fronts and is training russian resources, but also those of

ukraine. in the south and the east, the demands on ukrainian forces are rising. the demands on ukrainian forces are risinu. , , ., ., rising. this is front line, front line. i cannot— rising. this is front line, front line. i cannot go. _ rising. this is front line, front line. i cannot go. he - rising. this is front line, front line. i cannot go. he is- rising. this is front line, front line. i cannot go. he is taking us forward, line. i cannot go. he is taking us forward. the _ line. i cannot go. he is taking us forward, the russian _ line. i cannot go. he is taking us forward, the russian drone - line. i cannot go. he is taking us i forward, the russian drone spotted his vehicle before we took cover. we must go, he says, get in the car. one dozen shells landed in as many minutes. we first met him injune, when he was fighting in the southern counteroffensive. this eastern front is far deadlier, he says. translation: it was less dangerous there. far fewer soldiers there than the arc year and they have more weapons here, more at everything, that is why it is more dangerous here. the names why it is more dangerous here. the

games are — why it is more dangerous here. the games are modest, but from the south, —— the games are modest, but russian is resurgent. it's especially fierce. we are heading deeper into the forest. there is a lot of fighting here.— deeper into the forest. there is a lot of fighting here. there was an attack this morning, _ lot of fighting here. there was an attack this morning, a _ lot of fighting here. there was an attack this morning, a couple - lot of fighting here. there was an attack this morning, a couple of i attack this morning, a couple of hours _ attack this morning, a couple of hours ago _ attack this morning, a couple of hours ago. you can still see it burning — hours ago. you can still see it burning. all this road was shelled, can you _ burning. all this road was shelled, can you see? look at the trees. they com are can you see? look at the trees. they compare the — can you see? look at the trees. they compare the artillery _ can you see? look at the trees. tue: compare the artillery barrage can you see? look at the trees. tte: compare the artillery barrage is can you see? look at the trees. tt21: compare the artillery barrage is for the first world war. there is a new lethal threat here, kamikaze drones. yelling. the governor has fallen inside. ——

gunner. he is unhurt. what about the drone attack?— drone attack? russian drones! they saw us, drone attack? russian drones! they saw us. they _ drone attack? russian drones! they saw us, they sent _ drone attack? russian drones! they saw us, they sent the _ drone attack? russian drones! they saw us, they sent the drone - drone attack? russian drones! they saw us, they sent the drone and - drone attack? russian drones! they| saw us, they sent the drone and now they are _ saw us, they sent the drone and now they are seeking _ saw us, they sent the drone and now they are seeking us _ saw us, they sent the drone and now they are seeking us in _ saw us, they sent the drone and now they are seeking us in hunting - saw us, they sent the drone and now they are seeking us in hunting us. i they are seeking us in hunting us. we need — they are seeking us in hunting us. we need to— they are seeking us in hunting us. we need to go— they are seeking us in hunting us. we need to go faster. _ they are seeking us in hunting us. we need to go faster. the - they are seeking us in hunting us. we need to go faster.— we need to go faster. the drones work in pairs. _ we need to go faster. the drones work in pairs. a — we need to go faster. the drones work in pairs, a surveillance - we need to go faster. the drones| work in pairs, a surveillance drone is still up above, so the get of the road. we have had to stop going forward. the danger here is the deeper you get into the forest, the cover does not get better. there is constant russian artillery and it sets the trees on fire. it's turning the areas into exposed areas. no tree cover here. we have had to come off the road. drains up above. i've

just seen what they can do. the humvees thick armour meant that everyone inside was unhurt. and of course, civilians along the reignited front lines had no such protection. villagers around this area are being evacuated from their homes. they are now in range of russian guns, and russia does not discriminate. last year, they enjoyed six months of occupation here. they refuse to again. once more eastern front, the advance of russian guns casts ukrainian families apart. victor gives his family one final hug before they

separate. sofia isjust five months old. she is too precious to remain in harms way. why are you leaving? translation: because it is scary to live here. i want to safeguard my children. it's very scary not knowing if the shelling will hit or not. if we will survive or not.— shelling will hit or not. if we will survive or not. victor hope that he was done with _ survive or not. victor hope that he was done with goodbyes. - survive or not. victor hope that he was done with goodbyes. but - survive or not. victor hope that he was done with goodbyes. but as l was done with goodbyes. but as richer advances, was done with goodbyes. but as richeradvances, he was done with goodbyes. but as richer advances, he is once again left praying that he will see his family again.

important and brave reporting fare from my colleague quentin. army officers have appeared on national television in gabon — claiming they have seized power. they said they were annulling the results of the election on saturday where president bongo was declared the winner. this was when it was announced. translation: in the name of the people of gabon - and as guarantors of the institutions, we have decided to defend peace by putting an end to the current regime. to this end, the general elections of 26th august 2023 and the truncated results are cancelled. the borders are closed until further notice. all the institutions of the republic are dissolved. gabon is a former french colony, located on the west coast of central africa. the electoral commission said president bongo had won just under two thirds of the votes in an election the opposition argued was fraudulent. concerns over delays in returning the election results led to an internet shutdown, and a night—time curfew

by the government. mr bongo came to power when his father omar died in 2009. if he has been overthrown, it would end his family's 53—year hold on power in gabon. live now to paul melly, consulting fellow for the africa programme at the international affairs think tank chatham house. thank you very much forjoining us, paul. first of all, to construe the events of this morning. basically, it was very. _ events of this morning. basically, it was very. very _ events of this morning. basically, it was very, very early _ events of this morning. basically, it was very, very early hours - events of this morning. basically, it was very, very early hours of. events of this morning. basically, | it was very, very early hours of the morning, when most people in gabon was still asleep. the results of the election were announced, showing that president bongo had won around 65% of the votes and his main challenger had got about 30%. that look like quite a clear margin. just a few minutes later, a group of

shoulders from a range of military units appeared on television and announced that they were taking power and that basically all of the institutions of the gabonese republic were being dissolved. on the grounds that the election had been mismanaged. and was not credible. so, that is what really has happened through the night. we have heard little sense. we have seen one or two images of people celebrating somewhere in the town in the interior of gabon, but we don't have much information about what is going on right at the moment. or where president bongo is. all the opposition challenger. nor do we really have much information about what has happened to members of the

government. but it looks as if this coup sticks, if the soldiers do establish their control, which would be in contrast to much smaller attempted coup that took place in early 2019, that would be a really big change because bongo succeeded his father in 2009 in the family have been running gabon basically for around six decades. find have been running gabon basically for around six decades.— for around six decades. and very briefl , for around six decades. and very briefly. paul. — for around six decades. and very briefly, paul, tal— for around six decades. and very briefly, paul, tal is _ for around six decades. and very briefly, paul, tal is a _ for around six decades. and very briefly, paul, tal is a little - for around six decades. and very briefly, paul, tal is a little bit i briefly, paul, tal is a little bit about bongo.— briefly, paul, tal is a little bit about bonuo. , , , ., about bongo. basically, his father was a long-time _ about bongo. basically, his father was a long-time ruler. _ about bongo. basically, his father was a long-time ruler. when i about bongo. basically, his father was a long-time ruler. when he l about bongo. basically, his father- was a long-time ruler. when he died, was a long—time ruler. when he died, he would have been defence minister, he would have been defence minister, he ran, was elected but in the election whose results were quite opaque and cloudy, shall we say, and his sales pitch, as you like to the public, after becoming president was that he would deliver the sort of

reforms that they might have expected had they had an opposition figure, he was going to modernise things, improve public services and he did do some of that. and he did, for example, take some action in terms of trying to equalise incomes, improve social, tackle social inequality and he has been a big figure on biodiversity and the environment because gabon has an important part of the congo basin rainforest and he has made impressive reforms to tackle that. there has also been disenchantment with his regime and concerns about his health. he suffered a stroke in 2018. ., ~ , ., , his health. he suffered a stroke in 2018. . ~ y . ., 2018. thank you very much for brinuain 2018. thank you very much for bringing us _ 2018. thank you very much for bringing us context _ 2018. thank you very much for bringing us context on - 2018. thank you very much for bringing us context on that i bringing us context on that developing story. of course, we have a live page on the bbc website has the very latest on gabon that you can take a look at as well. around

the world and across the uk, this is bbc news. let's look at some other stories making news. australia will hold a constitutional referendum on the fourteenth of october on whether to recognise its indigenous people for the first time. the prime minister, anthony albanese, announced the date and urged australians to vote yes. he said they'd have a once in a generation chance to bring the country together and make it better. police in canada have brought an additional 12 charges against a man accused of supplying a poisonous chemical to people who died by suicide. 57—year—old kenneth law had already been charged in may with two counts of counselling or aiding suicide in canada. ajudge in the us has rejected a bid by burger king to dismiss a lawsuit claiming it cheated hungry customers by making its whopper sandwich appear larger than it actually is. burger king was accused of portraying burgers with ingredients that overflow over the bun, making itappear the burgers are 35% larger.

those are just some of the stories from around the world. you're live with bbc news. here in the uk, the man who was chief executive of the national health service trust where nurse lucy letby murdered seven babies said he was asked to take a top job in london after her arrest. tony chambers has been accused of ignoring concerns raised by doctors who worked with letby. earlier this month, she was convicted with the murder of seven babies and the attempted murder of six others. she will never be freed from prison. michaeljoins me live. tell us more about the development. the chief executor of the hospital

while lucy letby was working there, was approached by geriatric doctors that work on the neonatal unit, they were excused on ignoring or downplaying a lot of concerns and in many cases, turning against the very doctors who could not understand why the babies were dying. letby was arrested in july the babies were dying. letby was arrested injuly of the babies were dying. letby was arrested in july of 2018, the babies were dying. letby was arrested injuly of 2018, in september of 2018, tony chambers resigned as chief executive of the countess of chester trust, in part because appears relationship with the paediatric doctors had broken down and he was potentially facing a vote of no confidence, so he leaves in september 2018, injanuary 20 20, he turns up within the nhs and can be approached as the chief executive of this large trust in the east of london. he wrote in a blog that has

now been deleted, we accessed at the time, he wrote that having had a long and varied career in the nhs, i have made lots of friends. including the nhs regional directorfor the nhs regional director for london, the nhs regional directorfor london, he has been trying to persuade me to work in london for years. some of this is an opportunity to do something different. and while he was being appointed as interim chief executive in london, interestingly nhs england in london, interestingly nhs england in the north—west of england, heath felt that they were blocking him of getting a job leading across because of the way his time at chester ended. , . , , of the way his time at chester ended. , ., , , ., of the way his time at chester ended. , .,, ,., ,, of the way his time at chester ended. ,.,, ,., ,, ., ended. this raises an issue about communications _ ended. this raises an issue about communications between - ended. this raises an issue about| communications between different trust. have we heard comments about this from nhs england? he trust. have we heard comments about this from nhs england?— this from nhs england? he said that he was appointed — this from nhs england? he said that he was appointed after— this from nhs england? he said that he was appointed after a _ this from nhs england? he said that| he was appointed after a competitive process. the nhs official there that i mention the said he had no idea what happened at the countess of chester when he asked him to come to

london. other questions emerged about that. after he left the job in london, he got an interim job in cornwall is chief executive there and then he got an interim job in sussex as a chief executive as well. that second job in sussex, he was appointed into the role while the lucy letby trial was actually ongoing. both those interview panels were representatives from nhs england, huge questions to be asked as to why nhs england felt it appropriate to put in place, as an interim base, cheese in decorative at a couple of trust, a man who had fallen foul of his own doctors in chester and who nhs england in parts of the country had concerns about allowing to lead another trust. thank you very much from bringing us that update. the uk's foreign secretary, james cleverly, has travelled to bejing, the first such visit in more than five years. this is the moment he was greeted by vice president han zheng —

the body language seemed to be warm enough, despite some recent tensions between the uk and china over human rights, espionage and the war in ukraine. mr han spoke of promoting what he described as the "healthy and stable development of bilateral relations" through what he said would be "mutual respect and pragmatic co—operation." so what's likely to have been on the agenda for the meeting? the uk is unhappy over china's growing military support of russia in its war in ukraine. london has also voiced concerns about china's crackdown in hong kong and its ongoing treatment of the uyghurs. and then there are accusations that china is spying on the west — something beijing strongly denies. our correspondent in beijing, steve mcdonell, sat down to speak to mr cleverly after he met mr han — here's what he had to say. we have got to recognise that china is an incredibly potent trading partner in countries all over the

world have very high volumes of trade with china. the report that you quote has been drafted over quite an extended period of times. and since it was written, but before it was published, the uk put in place legislation to help us protect ourselves against malign economic activity, from wherever it comes, notjust activity, from wherever it comes, not just from activity, from wherever it comes, notjust from china, but activity, from wherever it comes, not just from china, but from activity, from wherever it comes, notjust from china, but from where ever it comes. and i made it clear that while we want to maintain a good relationship with china, our national security comes first and if there is ever a situation where our security concerns are at odds with our economic concerns, our security our economic concerns, our security concerns our economic concerns, our security concerns win out. much of their criticism highlighted in the report has already been addressed by the british government.

in the us, where hurricane idalia is nearing florida's gulf coast and evacuations are under way. it's expected to develop into a category four hurricane, with �*catastrophic�* storm surges forecast. the state governor has mentioned that many states could lose electricity and you should... if you are in an evacuation zone and you've been directed to evacuate, particularly if you're in a low—lying area or coastal area in that big bend region, now�*s the time to do it. you still have a little bit more time. if you wait much longer, by the time we get in further into tonight, the weather is going to start getting nastier and nastier. and we're looking at an impact of the eye wall arriving sometime tomorrow morning. so you really got to go now. now�*s the time. if you don't, if you stay hunkered down tonight, it's going to be too nasty tomorrow morning to be able to do it. more on hurricane idalia on the bbc news site where we have a live page.

a chance to share some rare footage of the natural phenomenon known as st elmo's fire. here it is — it looks a lot like lightning, but it's a bit different in the way it forms — usually emerging not from clouds, but from rod—like objects on the ground. this was filmed from the cockpit by two pilots from macdill air force base in florida — in the build up to the arrival of hurricane idalia. no—one was hurt, and no damage was caused by the spectacular display. asi as i said earlier, there is more in the bbc news website. stay with us here in bbc news. hello again. over the next few days, the weather is going to become more settled. but we do have some rain in the forecast, and today we also have sunshine and showers. low pressure is still very much driving our weather and we've got showers wrapped around it. and as we go through the course of today, what you'll find is with fair weather cloud bubbling

up, we'll see a few more showers develop and some of those, especially across east anglia, could be heavy and thundery. but many of us will miss them and get away with a largely dry day with sunny spells. now, temperatures today down a little bit on yesterday. we're looking at a range of 15 in the north to 20 as we push further south. into this evening and overnight, then, many of the showers fading. a lot of dry weather, a lot of clear skies. out towards the west, though, the cloud is going to thicken, heralding the arrival of a weather front, which is going to bring in some rain and also strengthening winds. but if you want to see the supermoon, you've got a good chance in central and eastern parts of the country. but you'll need to wrap up warmly because it's going to be a chilly night, especially in the countryside. tomorrow, we start off with a lot of dry and sunny weather in central and eastern areas, but the rain is going to continue to push northwards and eastwards as we go through the course of the day. so the best of the sunshine will be across northeast england and also much of scotland. temperatures, 15 to about 20 degrees north to south.

so then as we move from thursday into friday, high pressure starts to establish itself across the uk. so we're looking at a fair bit of cloud to start with, some mist and some fog — that will lift. there will be a few showers dotted around as well, but fewer than on thursday and we are looking at a lot of dry weather and sunshine by the afternoon. highs, 1a to 21 degrees. so here is that area of high pressure i was talking about, really establishing itself across the uk as we head on through the course of the weekend. so a lot of dry and a lot of settled conditions to come. so on saturday, we start to off with some low cloud, some mist and some fog, that will slowly lift. there will be one or two showers here and there, but most of us again will miss them and get away with a largely dry day with sunny spells. temperatures 1a to 23 degrees, so those temperatures starting to pick up. and then for sunday, again, a similar story with high pressure firmly in charge, a lot of dry weather, a fair bit of sunshine,

with highs up to 22.

this is bbc news. the headlines: here in the uk, travelers are being warned to expect further disruption after a fault on monday saw hundreds of flights cancelled. tony chambers, who was chief executive of the nhs trust

where nurse lucy letby murdered seven babies, says he was asked to take a topjob in london after her arrest. a super blue moon will be visible on thursday night, treating stargazers to a phenomenon that will only happen once this year. four women, who were all raped by the same man, have waived their anonymity to campaign for better treatment for rape survivors in the justice system. 23—year—old logan doig was sentenced to nine and a half years, with a further three years extended sentence, at glasgow's high court last month. our reporter catriona renton has been speaking to three of the women about supporting each other in court and making it easier to get justice in scotland. i don't think any of us realise once we walked at the dolls what would happen. we walked at the dolls what would ha en. . ., , , happen. recreating their selfies the took happen. recreating their selfies they took after _ happen. recreating their selfies they took after they're - happen. recreating their selfies they took after they're caught . happen. recreating their selfies they took after they're caught a | they took after they're caught a deal is finally over. their pictures

on social media