welcome to newsday, reporting live from singapore, i'm arunoday mukharji. let's get you the headlines. a space capsule carrying the largest asteroid sample ever collected lands safely in utah, which could shed new light on how planets were formed. france will end all military co—operation with niger and withdraw its ambassador and several other diplomats within hours, following a coup. armed soldiers are offered to the metropolitan police after a large number of officers step back from firearms duties. the spanish town shaken after fake naked images of local girls, generated by artificial intelligence, are shared.

the impossible became possible. that's how the head of nasa described an extraordinary mission to retrieve a capsule containing fragments of an asteroid on sunday. the capsule had travelled a billion miles to land on the asteroid, named bennu, before returning safely back to earth earlier after seven years in space. scientists are now examining the sample, which they hope is 250 grams of rock and dust from the surface. they say it could explain how life on earth began. the retrieval of the capsule happened in the us state of utah, from where rebecca morelle reports. it has entered the earth's atmosphere. a first glimpse of the capsule after

its epicjourney through space. high up in the atmosphere, a parachute opens, slowing its descent. touchdown! it has touched down. a textbook landing in the middle of the utah desert. for the team who have spent decades working on the osiris—rex mission, it's an emotional moment. it went absolutely perfectly. perfect landing, we didn't move, we landed a nice, soft soil. the capsule looks flawless. i cried like a baby in the helicopter when i heard the parachute was open. it was an overwhelming moment for me. inside the capsule is the most precious sample, fragments of an asteroid called bennu, that could reveal the story of our solar system. the team quickly secures the craft, to prevent contamination,

and attaches it to a 30—metre line slung beneath a helicopter. this is the moment that nasa has been waiting for. after seven long years, travelling billions of miles to bennu and back, the capsule is finally here. the priority now is getting it out of the dusty desert environment, and into the safe and sterile clean room as quickly as possible. a quick knock to say they have arrived, the capsule is in. the painstaking and meticulous process begins. they need to remove the layers like a russian doll, to get to the dust and rocks inside. the whole procedure will take weeks. so, why all this effort? bennu tops the list of nasa's most hazardous space rocks, so studying its make—up could help us to stop it if we have a need to. it could also reveal more about our origins. it's a perfectly preserved relic from the dawn of the solar system. it's going to keep scientists busy for a long time. one of the most important parts of the mission is that we take 75% of the sample

and we are going to lock it away forfuture generations. people who haven't even been born yet, to work in laboratories that don't exist yet, an instrumentation you have not thought of yet. so it is an incredibly valuable sample we are bringing back. scientists think they have a treasure trove on their hands, one that includes extraterrestrial material unlike anything we have seen on earth before. you can find more analysis about this story on our website i'm joined now by tim haltigin, a senior mission scientist in planetary exploration at the canadian space agency.

thank you for your time on newsday. quite an exciting time. i believe you and your team were in utah, what was the entire experience like if you could describe what you saw and experienced? it’s you could describe what you saw and experienced?_ experienced? it's been 'ust an incredible * experienced? it's been 'ust an incredible day. t experienced? it's been 'ust an incredible day. it's _ experienced? it's been just an incredible day. it's been - experienced? it's been just an incredible day. it's been an . incredible day. it's been an exciting day, it's been an emotional day, the entire team is thrilled with how everything went. right, and tell us a little — with how everything went. right, and tell us a little more _ with how everything went. right, and tell us a little more about _ with how everything went. right, and tell us a little more about the - tell us a little more about the manoeuvres, because it was quite a complex procedure, i believe, to bring that down safely.— bring that down safely. that's ri . ht, bring that down safely. that's riuht, it bring that down safely. that's right, it started _ bring that down safely. that's right, it started really - bring that down safely. that's right, it started really early i bring that down safely. that's l right, it started really early this morning. the navigation team, two o'clock in the morning doing their final checks, making sure everything was safe for the capsule to be released. my alarm went off at about 3:30am this morning and the first thing i did was check my e—mail. there was a message saying we were

good to go and everything was going smoothly. a group of us in salt lake city made the journey to the ground about an hour and a half away, a celebrated removed. some colleagues we haven't seen in years, a lot of friends and dear people we worked very closely with. as the time got closer to the landing, you could feel thing is getting quieter and quieter. those last five or ten minutes were something i'll never forget the rest of my life. everyone blue to the screen watching the telemetry, seeing the images coming back from the aircraft following the capsule. everyone holding their breath, and the elation and the eruption with the group when it was confirmed the main parachute had deployed, finally a few minutes later when it touched down softly on the surface, it's been an incredible day. the surface, it's been an incredible da . , ., ., the surface, it's been an incredible da. , ., ., day. tell us more about how the canadian space _ day. tell us more about how the canadian space agency - day. tell us more about how the canadian space agency insisted l day. tell us more about how the | canadian space agency insisted in this entire mission.—

canadian space agency insisted in this entire mission. canada has been involved since _ this entire mission. canada has been involved since the _ this entire mission. canada has been involved since the very _ this entire mission. canada has been involved since the very beginning. i involved since the very beginning. they have been supporting scientists from around the country. a number of scientists from universities everywhere in canada have been part of the team. we contributed one of the science instruments on board, the science instruments on board, the canadian instrument was called the canadian instrument was called the osiris-rex the canadian instrument was called the osiris—rex ultimate, it was a sd scanner that allowed us to make a very detailed topographic map of the surface of the asteroid. about 500 metres across. our instrument shot s billion individual measurements. we now understand the sd shape of this body down to about five centimetres, it was crucial not only for science interpretation in terms of better understanding the formation and the evolution of bennu, but also enabling us to select a safe landing site to collect a sample from. this

helped with the navigation, to plan how to get a sample. thankfully everything worked incredibly well. thank you very much, tim, for your perspective on pap. more exciting details will come out as the research gets under way. —— on that. french president emmanuel macron has announced that france will end its military presence in niger. it will remove its 1,500 troops stationed there by the end of this year. in a televised interview, macron announced plans to withdraw the french ambassador and several other diplomats from niger within hours, followed by its military contingent in the coming months. it comes in the wake of a military coup injuly, that saw the ousting of the country's pro—paris president. macon has refused to recognise

the junta as niger's legitimate authority but said paris would co—ordinate the troop withdrawal with the coup leaders. let's bring in dr michael amoah, who's a senior visiting fellow at the london school of economics, and a specialist in west african security and politics. thank you very much for your time on newsday. how are you viewing this decision to pull out, what do you think was the reasoning behind france taking this call? well, for almost three weeks now, we are aware that the french troops have been having secret talks with the other troops about negotiating a partial withdrawal, and i think it has become quite clear during these talks that the presence of the french troops would be untenable. i think france came to a conclusion in practical terms they wouldn't be able to do any counterterrorism at a

place where they are not welcome. so president macron made a decision that the troops have to leave, as well as the ambassador. in any case, the ambassador has been holed up in the ambassador has been holed up in the embassy, not allowed to go out. the water and electricity supplies had been cut off. so it was going to be extremely difficult for them to live in niger, let alone co—operate in niger. live in niger, let alone co-operate in nicer. ~ ., live in niger, let alone co-operate in nicer. . ., ., live in niger, let alone co-operate in nicer.~ ., ., live in niger, let alone co-operate in nicer. . ., ., ., live in niger, let alone co-operate in nicer.~ ., ., ., _ in niger. what do you mean by the counterterrorism _ in niger. what do you mean by the counterterrorism operations - in niger. what do you mean by the counterterrorism operations on - in niger. what do you mean by the j counterterrorism operations on the ground? it counterterrorism operations on the round? ., , ., counterterrorism operations on the round? . , ., . ., ground? it means that henceforth nicer will ground? it means that henceforth niger will be _ ground? it means that henceforth niger will be co-operating - ground? it means that henceforth niger will be co-operating more l ground? it means that henceforth i niger will be co-operating more with niger will be co—operating more with mali and burkina faso, and perhaps the rest of the local countries. we have seen ecowas meeting to plan how they could set up... now is the time

for ecowas to converge and co—operate, collaborate with the rest of the countries in west africa, to deal with counterterrorism. we are actually aware that, in some respects, the french troops were not happy with niger's generals co—operating in counterterrorism with mali and burkina faso, and that was causing friction between the niger troops and the french troops. but this is going to be a big blow to france, because it appears to be one step ahead in terms of the gradual unravelling of french influence in the subregion and for the french influence in africa as well. thank ou ve influence in africa as well. thank you very much — influence in africa as well. thank you very much for _ influence in africa as well. thank you very much for giving - influence in africa as well. thank you very much for giving us - influence in africa as well. thank you very much for giving us your| you very much for giving us your perspective on newsday.

the uk ministry of defence has confirmed to the bbc it will be providing support to the metropolitan police, after a large number of officers withdrew from firearms duties. their action is linked to the case of an armed officer who was charged with the murder of a man who was shot and killed in south london last year. on sunday, the met commissioner called for reform of the way police officers are held to account, as ellie price reports. you'd only expect to see the army on the streets of london after a terror attack. but following the decision of more than 100 met police officers to hand in their permit to carry a firearm, military personnel are on standby in case of an emergency. earlier, suella braverman called for a review into armed policing. her intervention was welcomed by the metropolitan police commissioner sir mark rowley. in a letter, he said improvements at the met police were being undermined by "a system not set up to help officers succeed," identifying police pursuits and the use of force as areas of "the most

glaring unfairness." he said, "officers need sufficient legal protection to do theirjob and keep the public safe." a former officer agreed. i was on armed response for 2s years, i was on vip protection, and i hugely enjoyed the professionalism, the teamwork of it, and i would miss that. would i put my weapon down today? yes, iwould hand it in. it's not worth it. it all comes after a met police officer was charged on thursday with the murder of unarmed chris kaba last year. he was fatally shot while in a borrowed car in south london, a car the police say was linked to an incident involving a gun. the met police has been keen to stress tonight that military personnel will not be involved in armed patrols across the streets of london. that work will be done by police officers, the majority of which, i am told, will be from the met, so their numbers will be bulked out with officers from other forces from across the country.

it is understood, though, that some officers from those other forces have refused to work in the capital in solidarity with their met colleagues. the home secretary said she ordered the review to ensure armed officers have the confidence to do theirjob. the big question is whether that instills confidence in the communities they serve. ellie price, bbc news. around the world and across the uk. this is bbc news. let's look at some other stories making news. three days of strike action planned by non—teaching school staff school by non—teaching school staff in scotland will go ahead after last ditch talks over the weekend failed to find an agreement over pay. unison members in 2a council areas will walk out on tuesday, with the vast majority of schools in affected areas expected to close. members of the unite and gmb unions have had their strikes suspended whilst members are consulted on a new pay offer. the first buses brought back into public control in nearly a0 years have begun running services in parts of greater manchester.

the bee network fleet of electric buses started operating in bolton, wigan and parts of salford and bury this morning. the mayor of greater manchester, andy burnham, says he hopes it will lead to cheaper fares and better services. the liberal democrats have agreed to the first draft of their manifesto for the next general election, including a pledge to give people the right to see a doctor within a week, or a day if it's urgent. members at the party's conference in bournemouth approved the document. you're live with bbc news. hundreds of ethnic armenian refugees from the disputed enclave of nagorno—karabakh have started arriving in armenia. they're the first to cross the border since it was captured by azerbaijani forces earlier this week. the territory is at the heart of one of the world's longest—running conflicts. it lies in the mountainous south caucasus region of eastern europe and asia, between the black sea and the caspian sea. it's recognised internationally

as part of azerbaijan, but has been controlled by ethnic armenians for three decades. 0lga ivshina and her team are there, and have just sent this report. as guests of the azeri military, we enter a region that's been cut off from the outside world since the start of recent hostilities. no sign of civilians, only the relics of fighting. this is shusha, a key azeri stronghold since 2020. we are led up to a viewpoint from where we can see stepanakert. karabakh armenians have claimed this city as their capital for the past s0 years, but now it's surrounded by azeri forces. 0n show are the seized arms of the other side. we are being shown armoured vehicles and ammunition which was surrendered by karabakh armenians. it seems that azerbaijan tries to show that they

are the victim in this conflict and their actions are only in response to provocations by karabakh armenians, whom they call separatists. 0ur tour ended there, and we weren't allowed to go any further. but with more than 100,000 people unable to leave nagorno—karabakh, this is what we've found out. hi, 0lga, thank you for reaching me. now even residents of stepanakert don't have food, so it's really hard for everyone, actually. we are all, all stepanakert, all country is a big refugee camp now. we still don't know even how many missing persons we have, killed and injured. tonight, in the past few hours, hundreds of karabakh armenians have made it out and begun arriving in armenia. children, the elderly and the sick. speaking to the bbc, one refugee said the evacuation has begun,

there will be more. at the military cemetery in azerbaijan's capital, they are mourning for more lives lost in this conflict. the aliev family has just buried their son. he was 29 years old. translation: for us, he is still alive. - he is our hero. can we make peace with armenians? yes, of course. we shouldn't be at war forever. in the end, we have to learn to live peacefully together. i just wish this war hadn't taken so many lives. while new graves are being dug on both sides, will this ceasefire hold ? with so many lives lost, peace seems only possible if both sides are ready to learn from each other�*s pain. 0lga ivshina, bbc news, nagorno—karabakh. a stand—off between police and armed men at a monastery in kosovo has come to an end,

with at least three people dead. a police officer was killed in an ambush by the armed group hours earlier. here's our balkans correspondent guy delauney. the shooting appears to be over and the monastery is again a quiet place of contemplation, worship and pilgrimage, but the mutual recriminations between serbia and kosovo have onlyjust begun. the serbian president has made a televised address to the nation, describing the killing of a kosovo police force officer as absolutely reprehensible, an event that could not be justified. however he also made it clear that he thought the kosovo prime minister bore responsibility ultimately for the shooting and the events which followed, after a campaign of provocations against the ethnic serb minority who live in north kosovo. the authorities in pristina are

unsurprisingly having none of that. the kosovo prime minister has described the armed group who carried out the attacks as being supported logistically and financially by official belgrade. partners of kosovo and serbia have expressed their outrage at the events. the european union said the shooting of the kosovo police officer was a hideous attack, and foreign policy chief go burrell has called on serbia and kosovo to return to the negotiating table to de—escalate tensions. the philippines has accused china of installing a "floating barrier" to stop fishing boats from entering a disputed area in the south china sea. coastguards say the s00 metre obstacle is preventing fishermen from working in a lagoon in the scarborough shoal. china claims more than 90 per cent of the south china sea as its own territory. the uk defence secretary grant shapps says it would be "crazy" not to look again at the rising cost of

the hs2 rail project. a decision on whether the government will scrap the birmingham to manchester section of the line is expected soon, as noor nanji reports. it's a grand project, first dreamt up in 2009. the aim — to speed up journey times and create more capacity. but hs2 has faced delays, cuts and spiralling costs. the original plan would have connected london to birmingham, and then leeds and manchester. in 2021, the section from birmingham to leeds was cancelled. now there is speculation the line might end in west london rather than going all the way to euston, and the birmingham to manchester bit is in doubt as well. the last official estimate on hs2 costs — excluding the cancelled eastern section — added up to about £71 billion, although this was in 2019 prices. £22.5 billion has already been spent on the london to birmingham leg, whilstjust over £2 billion has been spent on preparing for the other sections. this morning, the defence secretary, and former transport secretary,

said no decision has been taken yet, but that it's important to respond to the budget. every government has to look at the overall budgets and then make serious decisions, which go beyond the sort of back—and—forth in a studio like this... 0k. ..to say, is this affordable, under current circumstances? i'm absolutely confident, for example, that when those statements were made, no—one knew we'd be in a war in europe right now. 0k. all of the consequences, all of the costs and all of the inflation. and any government that doesn't go back and then look at it is crazy. labour has so far refused to confirm it would fund the hs2 line to manchester if the conservatives axe it, despite pressure from some local mayors. this was the parliament when they said they would level us up. if they leave a situation where the south, the southern half of the country, is connected by modern, high speed lines, and the north of england is left with victorian infrastructure,

that is a recipe for the north—south divide to become a north—south chasm over the rest of this century. this weekend, business groups and political voices have been lobbying the government not to truncate hs2 further, with pressure mounting for decisions to be made. noor nanji, bbc news. a story in spain has seen an outpouring of anger and outrage this week. in a small town of s0,000 people, naked images of school girls have been circulating. they are fake, and it's believed they've been created using artificial intelligence, with the faces of real teenagers. the police there are investigating. guy hedgecoe reports. almendralejo is a small, sleepy town, but many of its families are having their world turned upside down by technology. nude images of girls aged between 11 and 16 have been circulating on messaging apps. but the pictures are not real. they were created using artificial intelligence.

translation: even i had to look twice because i had doubts. - my daughter's crying all the time. her self—esteem is already very low, so this is terrible for her. a total of 28 girls have complained that fake nude pictures of them have been circulating on messaging apps. the images were created using real photos of the same girls, fully clothed, often taken from their own social media accounts. these were then fed into an ai application which provided imagined pictures of the girls unclothed. police are investigating at least ten boys, aged 12 to 1a, who have been identified as being involved. there is also one case of a girl who was allegedly the target of an extortion attempt. translation: even if they are manipulated images, . if they are realistic images, they are considered child pornography. i spoke to the mother of one of the girls affected. translation: the girls appear naked i in the pictures, and in a situation i which looks pornographic. the worry is that these

pictures could end up on pornographic websites, and imagine the impact that could have on a girl. what's been the effect on all this of the people of almendralejo? translation: this is a game which is leading to crimes i being committed and irreparable damage being caused. there are cases of women previously have committed suicide because their privacy has been violated. but while this case has shaken a small spanish town, it is clear that with al technology so readily available, this could have happened almost anywhere. guy hedgecoe, bbc news, spain. a rare octopus has been filmed live in the deep ocean. dubbed dumbo because of its ear like fins similar to the 1940s disney cartoon, it appeared on the ev nautilus live stream. it was caught on camera by a remotely operated ocean exploration trust vehicle

in the north pacific ocean. that's all for now — stay with bbc news. hello, most of the week will be a story of sunshine and showers, we could see stormier weather wednesday into thursday. first it has been windy so far and strong winds attached to these fronts, the strongest of the winds will clip the north—west of scotland before easing. it leaves many of us with clear skies for monday. 12 to 15 degrees, not cold by any means. still some showers in the south—east first thing. some showers in central and western scotland and northern ireland in the rush hour and later, but very few showers in the forecast on monday. even if you see a shower, it should be a fleeting one. only one or two in your day. for many in england and wales the day will be dry 17 to 22 celsius.

the breeze will strengthen into tuesday morning. some showers and thunderstorms pushing into southern england and maybe south—eastern parts of wales. a littler cooler. tuesday we are drawing in this front and this will work its way across many parts of england first thing in the morning. the risk of showers and thunderstorms. fewer showers and more dry weather. but some heavier showers for northern ireland and particularly in scotland through the afternoon. in the sunshine between the showers, again temperatures like monday around 16 to 22 celsius. as we go into the middle of week, all eyes are on this low pressure. it could be a stormy one, rattling in through wednesday and into wednesday night. let me show you how things develop. it will be a quiet start for many. but cloud increases from the south and west, and the rain pushes in and widespread gales developing

in the afternoon and evening. temperatures on the cool side where the winds are strongest in the north. the position of that area of low pressure is open to question. but we could see wednesday into wednesday night winds around irish sea casts and southern scotland and north—east england. the rain moving north. a pretty stormy night wednesday into thursday and thursday although things turn quieter there could be some damage and travel disruption. take care.

welcome to hardtalk. i'm stephen sackur. after two years of restored taliban rule in afghanistan, two thirds of afghans are experiencing food insecurity and close to 900,000 children face acute malnutrition. at the same time, the kabul regime has barred girls from secondary school and university and banned women from many workplaces. so there is a massive ethical dilemma facing the international community to engage or not to engage with the taliban.