♪ ♪ narrator: funding for this presentation of this program is provided by... narrator: pediatric surgeon. volueer. topiary artist. a raymond james financial advisor tailors advice to help you live your life. life well planned. brook: these are people who are trying to change the world. startups have this energy that energizes me. i'm thriving by helping others everyday. people who know, know bdo.

narrator: funding was also provided by, the freeman foundation. by judy and peter blum kovler fodation; pursuing solutions for america's neglected needs. and by contributions to this pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. announcer: and now, "bbc news". >> hello, and welcome to "the context." on the program this evening, the latest from sudan, where gunfire has been heard in the capital after a 24-hour cease-fire was supposed to come into force. residents of khartoum told the bbc the fighting has stopped. we will be talking by the court case that is just gotnderway in the united states. it is dominion, fox vs.

dominion. all eyes on the court case. >> it is going to be a huge spectacle in part because by midweek you could see rupert murdoch on that witnessed and being questioned by dominion's lawyers. >> this is about the tension between, on the one hand, broad protection for freedom of the press, and on the other hand, consequences for the telling of a known lie. >> hello, and welcome to "the context" on this evening. we will be getting the latest from sudan, where gunfire has been heard in the capital after a 24-hour cease-fire was supposed to come into forceful residents of khartoum told the bbc the fighting hasn't stopped. the rival generals whose troops have been fighting for control agreed to a humanitarian pause to allow civilians to escape. there are signs of recovery in the afghan economy.

the u.n. says those assigns are weak and at risk of being undone by recent restrictions on women working at ngo's. the parade rehearsals under the cover of my time as the king's coronation -- of nighttime as the king's coronation is weeks away. our top story, the dominion vs. fox trial, variously described as explosive, a bombshell trial, and today's getting underway on the u.s. a company that makes voting machines, dominion, is suing the conservative fox news network for defamation. rupert murdoch, along with many star presenters, is likely to be on the dock giving evidence, weaving through all of it was donald trump's bogus claims that e election was stolen. let's remind us what it is all about and what is at stake. dominion voting systems is assuming the tv network for $1.6

billion -- suing the tv network for $1.6 billion, claiming its reputation was heard after fox knowiny spread lies about its voting machines. then president donald trump attacked the voting machine, buddy, falsely claiming it rigged the election to favor winner joe biden. dominion says the network amplified the allegations despite knowing them to be false. fox argues that allegations against dominion's machines were newsworthy and should be protected by the first amendment, which enshrines the right to free speech. fox hosts tucker carlsen and sean hannity are expected to testify, as could the network's chairman, rupert murdoch, who has previously knowledge that some of the networks of stars has endorsed claims that the 2010 election was stolen, but he denied that all of fox endorsed the claims of election fraud. to win, 2 million needs to prove

that fox acted with actual malice and that -- dominion needs to prove that fox acted with actual malice. for fox to win, it needs to prove it d not defame dominion in intentional way. reporter: one of america's most watched networks has been accused of endorsing the lies of donald trump during the 2020 election, and it could cost them billions of dollars. dominion voting systems is suing fox news for defamation. it alleges the conservative news channel knowingly spread false information and accused them of trying to rig the election of against him trump. fox news has insisted it was presenting newsworthy opinions and not facts, and that the law protects its first amendment free-speech rights. some evidence collected by dominion show private communications between big names at fox news that contradict what they aire.d

there is a lot at stake for fox news when it comes to money and defamation. it is hard to win these lawsuits in america because of free-speech protections. if fox news loses, it could end up at the supreme court and that would have a huge impact on media organizations. >> we are joined by a professor of law at a delaware law school. thank you for joining us and giving us your insight. this was a court case that yesterday wasn't sure if it was going to go ahead. it delayed for any four hours, but it is going had-- 24 hours, but it is going ahead. >> it is this rising to people that -- surprising to people that it is going forward because there is a lot of incentive for fox to settle the case. they are under a microscope here, and there is very strong evidence that the new -- that they knew what they said was false, that has already been established by the judge, and there is strong evidence that

they knew or were reckless in not knowing that the statement were false. this 5-6-week trial will be a parade of witnesses, document or evidence, testimonial evidence that i am relatively confident will establish what dominion is trying to establish, that fox personnel new or with reckless disregard should have known that what they were saying was inaccurate. >> and that will be for a jury to decide. five- or six-week trial. a lot of witnesses will be taking headlines. we expect early on rupert murdoch, the owner of fox news, to take the stand. lots of people will be listening for what he has to say. >> that's right. he has already said a few things in the depositions that are remarkable, quite frankly. one thing he said was that what they were broadcasting was not

about red states or blue states, as we ca them in the u.s., republicans or democrats, but about green, which is money. they didn't want to risk losing viewers to even more conservative sites like newsmax here in the u.s. so they gave space and credibility to people that were peddling these false claims. the jury is going to hear a lot of testimony to that effect over the next several weeks. ros: and of course too -- >> and of course tucker carlson, sean hannity, huge names in broadcasting, and the reputation of fox news news on the line. >> that's right, and one consequence of this decision is that we can look at the possible effect on fox news in a couple of different ways. one thing we might say is how are they going to handle this financially if theare forced to cough up $1.6 billion, may

punitive damages as well. they can afford that. apparently they have $4 billion in reserve and they have insurance. the bigger question is what will happen to the network if they are found to have acted with actual malice, to have peddled these falsehoods. i think the whole big lie about the election being stolen is going to collapse and have collateral effects on both trump and on fox going forward if they lose credibility to this extent it will be difficult even for more conservative viewers to credit what they see moving forward. it is a hugely important case. >> we have pictures of the court from wilmington, delaware, just waiting for the judge and jurors to come back in. we are showing you pictures of those soon. just to say, libel law --

notoriously difficult to succeed under libel laws, and the jury will have a five or six weeks of evidence to go through. definitely not a done deal. >> not at all. as you say, in the.s., defamation cases against public figures like dominion are very difficult to win the supreme court in a 1964 decision explain why it should be so difficult for public officials and public figures to be able to recover for defamation, because the ideas we want there to be a robust discussion, we want networks and broadcaers in all media to be able to make mistakes. and so the actual malice standard requires more than negligence. you have to show that they knew what they were saying was wrong, or at least reckless and should have known.

it is difficult to win these cases in the u.s., but another contexts this case is incredible he strong, and if this is not a good defamation case, it is difficult to see what would be. >> ok, thank you very much for your expertise, and we will be talking about that court case on the rest of the program. for the moment, around the world and the rest of the u.k., this is bbc news. let's look at other stories making headlines. energy firms have signed up to a new code of practice which will stop them from forcibly installing prepayment meters in the homes of anyone over age 85. campaigners are concerned that the rules are voluntary, but often says the reputation of energy firms will be on the line if they don't reply. there has been a slight rise in the number of people looking for work in the u.k., according to the latest figures. pay continues to rise sharply especially in the private sector, but not fast enough to keep up with price rises. we will be able to buy free

range eggs again in the next few days as berkeley research and's are lifted across most of the u.k.--bird flu restrictions are lifted across most of the u.k. experts say the h5n1 virus is still circulating and is an ongoing risk with wild birds. a 95-year-old the trombone player has been honored with the guinness world record for his lifelong love of music. he has been named the longest-serving man to play in a brass band. you are live with bbc news. police in scotland investigating the finances of scottish national party have made a second arrest this time of the snp's treasurer. they are investigating how donations were used. it comes to weeks after the party's former chief executive was also arrested. he was subsequently released without charge pending further

investigation. officers spent two days searching the home as well as the party headquarters in edinburgh. our scotland editor james cook as the story. james: he is not a familiar face, but the man who was once an international banker was the heart of thenp for two decades, holding purse strings as the party soared in popularity and gain power. at around 8:00 a.m., the msp was arrested here at his home in don keefe and taken into custody to be questioned as a suspect by detectives investigating the funding of finances of the snp. another headache for the first minister. >> i can't comment on a live police investigation. >> have you suspended him from the party? >> i've said already that people are innocent until proven guilty. >> police had already been to the home of the party's former

chief executive, the husband of nicola sturgeon. he was arrested and later released. on the same day, officers removed boxes from the snp's headquarters in edinburgh and seized a motorhome from outsize -- outside of property. what that up to the inquiry? from 2017 to 2020, the snp raised 600 70,000 pounds to campaign for independents. questions arose when it emerged the party had hundred 97,000 pounds in the bank at the end of 2019. mr. moral learned the party 170,000 pounds of his own money. this house is the last building which they wanted to be the focus of attention today. he has inherited a party in crisis but he has also taken over a government facing immense challenges. this afternoon he set out how he intended to meet them. >> this government's work will be defined by three distinct and interdependent missions.

those missions center on the principles of equality, opportunity, and community, require us to tackle poverty, to build a growing economy, and to improve our public services. they will be central to our efforts over the next three years to improve the lives of the people of scotland. james: the first questions were about some thing else. >> the first minister makes the statement today as scandal continues to engulf his party. the snp is in total meltdown. it is past time that he tackled the scandal had on improve to the scottish public that he is his own man, instead of deflecting from his predecessor's tarnished legacy. >> what he cannot escape from is he is not now running a functioning government. this is an snp that is mired in andal, mired in division, talking to themselves about

themselves, and it is not just an indication of how they are governing their party, but how they govern our country. james: whatever the outcome of beattie's arrest in legal terms, this investigation is having serious political implications. >> let's take a quick look at some of the background to this probe into snp finances. from 2017 to 2020, the snp raised 603,000 pounds to campaign specifically for independence. at the end of 2019, questions arose when it emerged the party had less than 100,000 pounds in the bank. in june 2021, the former chief executive limited more than 100,000 pounds -- loaned it more than 100,000 pounds of his own money. he's married to former first minister nicola sturgeon. police scotland launched a formal investigation into the snp's finances after receiving

complains about how donations to the party were used. last night he resigned from the snp after taking responsibility for misleading the public about plummeting membership figures. and now colin beattie has been arrested by police. we have heard that he has returned to his home. colin beattie has just returned to his home and made no comment to journalists as he arrived home. it was after 8:00. a few minutes ago. with me is brian taylor, a former abc scotland political editor and commentator and "scotland harold columnist. you have been following the snp for years and years and years. i wonder how this is being received in scotland. >> it is an currently difficult situation for the snp. it is a particularly difficult situation -- he was not the leader at the time being investigated.

he was now the chief executive. he was now the treasurer. and yet he has to take all the potential political hit and flakka. he is left in the middle unable to intervene with the police investigations, unable to have any influence with the discussions that may go on within the crown office, and yet facing endless attacks from his opponents and having to answer the political questions. he made a statement in the scottish parliament this afternoon setting out his new priorities. it was meant to be a reset for the scottish government after his election as first minister to replace nicola sturgeon. all his opponents wanted to ask about was the chaos and turmoil at the core of the snp. one liberal democrat ader set the entire statement by humza yousaf had been torpedoed. frankly, it is hard to argue. >> indeed, very difficult.

he did not make a, directly addressing this after the speech. he was setting out his priorities for the next three years, taking over from nicola sturgeon, who wasn't such a powerful figure in scottish politics -- who was such a powerful figure in scottish politics. and having such a difficult start to his time as first minister. >> and it is difficult to see how he gets out of it because there is nothing he can do. generally in politics you try to fix something, cajole somebody else, or seek a compromise. you cannot seek a compromise with the police and crown offices. not going to happen. he is going to have to hope and wait and at the same time take all the flak from the opposition party. entirely understandable entirely understandable. opposition parties are saying this is about nicola sturgeon, she is the leader. ok, it is about her husband, peter murrell, he was the chief executive. it is about the long-standing treasurer colin beattie. but it is also about humza

yousaf, even though he was not directly involved and responsible for the events that are being investigated, nor is there anything really that he can do about those events. what he can do is three things -- he takes a tripartite strategy. he disowns nicola sturgeon, distances himself from her. she had to do the same with her predecessor, alex ament, for very different reasons. she is likely to keep a low profile anyway. second, he launches an investigation into the way the party ask going forward, more ternal advice, more information available on finance. thirdly, he needs to reengage with the public, the voters in scotland. he needs some wind, he something to go his way. i was struck by the tone of the statement. it sounded as if kate forbes was the one who was the pro-business contender. the tone from humza yousaf was all about working with business, growing the economy as well as equality. he is saying on the one hand we

have to redistribute resources and help the poor. but to get those resources in the first place, we need prosperity and growth. it was quite a startling and striking tone. is that being heard, is that being heated, among the climber and a note -- clamor and noise assaulting the snp? >> i should say the police scotland have said colin beattie has been released without charge -- >> as was the case with peter murrell, identical timetable, arrested and questioned and released this morning. >> i just wonder from your perspective, you have been deeply ingrained in scottish politics for so many years. where does this leave scotland and independence? does it change anything? >> it is difficult to say, because on the one hand, the thing that unites -- the thing that makes the snp different is they are not just a political

party, a coalition of the more or less willing. they are because, they are -- they are a cause, they are a movement. independence tends to pull the party together were other things would divide them. humza yousaf made reference to independence today but his statement was mostly in response to questions and challenges. it was not put there upfront in the statement. it was more about using existing powers within the existing devolved settlement to help the people of scotland for the does he abandon independence? of course he doesn't. does it reduce the stallions of the demand for an early independence referendum -- salience of the demand for an early independence referendum? yes, it does. >> perhaps being vieerinst tnha s it iin scotland. >>d well, things are always viewed differently in westminster from they are in scotland. they are viewed in westminster from westminster prism,

and thin in scotland always seemed different. that is the nature of the dichotomy between scottish politics and u.k. politics. it is the nature of the sjuncture that is afflicting humza yousaf. he wants to lead a party and have a dual strategy of governing well and sensibly and inviting the voters to presume how much better things could be if there was a full path to independence. he can do the first at the moment if he can get an audience. the second will be much more difficult because will be much much much more difficult for the snp to mount a credible campaign for independence when they are facing such incredible internal difficulties themselves. will they give up? not a chance. >> other parties presumably making -- we were talking about the comments being heard in the scottish parliament today. obviously, the opposition parties see this as a way into perhaps reduce the dominance snp

has had over so many years now. >> the snp had a problem of membership reducing down to 72,000. 72,000, the other parties would pray for that level of membership. in scotland, the snp has been dominant. they have never had a majority of the popular vote. the last party to achieve a majority of the popular vote in scotland, it was the conservatives come then known as the unionists, in 1955. those were different times in different motivations for voting. snp got 49.98, or something extremely close. they are very much in the lead and are hoping to maintain that lead in the u.k. general election next year. the scottish elections are set for 2026. they face a challenge right now. humza yousaf has to hope that the challenge is transitory and moves on to other matters. >> always very fascinating

hearing your thoughts. thank you so much for them this evening. the kremlin has published video footage of what it says was a visit by president putin to russian-occupied parts of southern and eastern ukraine. this is the video. he is shown meeting military commanders in the curse on -- k herson and luhansk regions. there has been a lot of speculation about when and where this video was felt. we will see if we can get some more from bbc monitoring. >> there have been a lot of questions about this video. one of them is whether the video itself was even filmed in the occupied kherson region. we have an answer for you and let me talk you through some of our findings. we know that the video itself was filmed somewhere around a port city in the kherson region

because at some point in the footage we see just about a road sign pleading to the city. now, the footage itself also offers us way more in terms of clues of the exact location where it was filmed. here you can see the white building with an air conditioner and also in the background you can see a tall structure which looks like a communications tower or a water tower. we spent a lot of time on google maps trying to find these clues and match the location. after sometime, we managed to locate it to a summer camp outside of the city and you can see the location does matter because we can see the same white building and we can see that same tall structure which turns out to be a water tower. now if you zero out and look at the map, you can see the same

identifiable objects. the water tower, the same building, some vegetation around it. but another shot, you can make out the shape of this very distinctive building that belongs to that summer camp in the background fu. we are certain this is the area where the video with vladimir narr: atorfuinndg for this presentation of this program is provideby... narrator: financial services firm, raymond james. man: bdo. accountants and advisors. narrator: funding was also provided by, the freeman foundation. by judy and peter blum kovler foundation; pursuing solutions for america's neglected needs. and by contributions to this pbs station from viewers like you. thank you. ♪ ♪

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♪ ♪ narrator: funding for this presentation of this program is provided by... narrator: pediatric surgeon. volunteer. topiary artist. a raymond james financial advisor tailors advice to help you live your life. life well planned. brook: these are people who are trying to chan the world. startups have this energy that energizes me. i'm thriving by helping others everyday. people who know, know bdo.