♪ ♪ 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. narrator: funding was also provided by, the freeman foundation. and by judy and peter blum kovler foundation; pursuing solutions for america's neglected needs. announcer: a now, "bbc news".

♪ >> this is bbc world news america. dangers heatas the world in its grip, the consequences of climate change. thousands of actors and writers strike for better working conditions. india launches a lunar first, looking to make its mark as a space superpower. welcome to world news america. let's begin with hot weather impacting the globe. in the u.s., record highs with heat alerts affecting 100 million people in 15 states, from the western u.s. to south

florida. greece, the country's most popular tourist dtination was closed to protect visitors. temperatures reached 120 fahrenheit. in italy, red alerts have been issued for rome and nine other cities. reporter: the health authorities have issued a red alert warning for tent cities today. that is going to go up to 40 cities tomorrow. people are advised to stay indoors in the afternoon, to drink plenty of water, avoid coffee and alcohol and to check on the elderly neighbors if they live alone. it is the middle of july. there are lots of tourists in italy. many have told us they are not following this advice. they have come here on holiday from japan, australia, the u.s. they don't want to spend hours

inside their hotel rooms, not eating or drinking italian food or wine. what we're seeing is several tourists who have collapsed in the last few days because of heatstroke. because of climate change, heat waves like this one are becoming more frequent and severe. they can be dangerous. last year, 60,000 people died in europe because of the heat. >> paolo, climate scientist in london, thank you for joining us. why are we seeing extreme heat in many parts of the globe right now? >> the culprit is climate change. it is notnusual in summer to have a heat wave. but becomes unusual is the collection of waves. heater waves around the globe,

they are becoming more frequent and severe. to give some numbers, scientists have estimated a rare heat wave would occur once in 50 years in the climate before humans had any influence, before the industrial revolution, is now occurring five times as frequently and is hotter. it is more intense. the baseline temperature is going up. therefore, you're making the likelihood of extreme temperatures more likely. >> explain the basic science behind what makes these heat waves more frequent. >> the basic understanding is the greenhouse effect. certain gases in the atmosphere trap heat. me water vapor when warmer. when it rains, it rains more heavily. you can see a combination of

extreme events involving droughts, also at the same time, you get extreme rainfall when it does rain, therefore flooding impacts. >> we have seen heavy flooding in the usa. how can we adapt to this extreme heat? what can we do to prepare ourselves for this becoming a regular phenomenon? >> short-term, we have to deal with the enhanced likelihood of extreme heat. it's down to the local health authorities to recommend safer behaviors. to minimize the risk, especially for those vulnerable, like elderly people. now looking further into the future, we have a big role to play. i mean humans and human societies. we hold the future in our hands. we know the scientific truth is

as long as we continue admitting greenhouse gases, the earth will get warmer. simple as that. the only way we can stop this becoming more severe is by reducing emissions as quickly as possible, ideally to net zero. once we get to net zero, we can expe global temperatures to stop rising. >> what should governments do around the world? >> i am a scientist, not a politician. i don't want to oversimplify the problem. it's a huge challenge to adapt to climate change. we need to find a way to spread the cost of the transition in the fairest way possible and get to net zero as quickly as we can. >> are you confident this has been a wake-up call, seeing this increasing frequency of these weather events? >> i wouldn't say confident but i am depressed to see these events happening and at the same

time reassured to see there is media attention, like right now and in general, people seem to be aware of what is going on. i hope, even if in the short-term, the consequences are bad, i hope this means longer-term, we will take decisive action. >> thank you very much for your interesting insight. >> my pleasure. >> thousands of hollywood actors have gone on strike forming picket lines in new york and los angeles. film and tv productions in the u.s. and around the world have come to a halt. this was outside netflix in l.a. the vast majity of american film and television productions are affected including highly anticipated motion pictures. the strike is going on, actors cannot appear in films or promote movies they already made. what do the actors and writers want? the screen actors guild wants streaming giants to agree to a

fairer split of profits and better working conditions they say. other demands like protecting actors from being replaced by digital replicas face wider challenges. the union wants guarantees that artificial intelligence will not be used to replace actors. not since 1960 has there been a strike on this scale. that was led by ronald reagan, seen here with his wife nancy and james cagney. hollywood heavyweights are weighing in including brian cox, who spoke to the newscast about the strikes. >> i'm a pessimist. i can see it going on until the end of the year. that's a long time. they are trying to freeze us out. they will try and beat us into the ground. there's a lot of money to be made in streaming. they know that.

the desires not to share it with writers or performers. >> let's go live to l.a. where sophie long is standing by. good to see you. you've been speaking to striking actors and writers. what are they telling you about why they joined the picket lines? >> what you hear from every actor throughout today is they are frustrated. that the negotiations went on so long. they gave them an extra two weeks. they are frustrated how they feel the studios didn't meet them. they didn't take their issues seriously. the other thing is a huge amount of anger. there is optimism. solution. they seem to be in this for the long haul. brian cox said it could go on for some time. the main sticking points, rules that should govern the future news of ai and what share of the entertainment industry's profit

should go to those who create content? writers and actors. thtwo sides seem nowhere near reaching an agreement. there's a huge amount of solidarity on the picket lines. the writers strike is into its 11th week. we haven't seen any movement there. there has been a show of solidarity throughout. this is the first day, 160,000 members, including almost every film and television and radio actor in the country. it is huge. it has brought a halt to the industry. a lot of studios stopped production anyway. the repercussions of this will go on for some time. >> what are the studios and producers saying? has there been any movement on reac a ahimegrnntee? there has been no movement at all. bob iger, ceo of disney said he

thought, the strike would be disruptive. he said, the sense you get from the studios is that sag walked away from what they called their historic offer on pay and a groundbreaking proposal of protecting actors from ai. sag does not accept that and say they have not engaged. bob iger said it will be disruptive and cause financial hardship, not just to the writers and actors, but to all those workers in industries adjacent to the entertainment industry which includes drivers, accommodations. there are so many industries in california that will be affected. it will cost the california economy millions of dollars every day. >> what does fran drescher say to you? >> she made a rousing speech

yesterday when they gave a news conference at the union headquarters announcing the strike. there was more like a rally than a news conference. she was very angry. she repeatedly say how dare they treat us like this? she came to sunset and bronson studios at 9 a.m. this morning. she got off the coach with a lot of union members. there were huge cheers. she is very popular on the picket lines here, especially after the speech yesterday. she's very angry. a lot of those people on the picket lines today share that feeling. at the moment, the atmosere on the picket lines is upbeat. there's a huge show of solidarity. they want to show their power. they say they are the people that create content. not just the actors but the writers as well. with both those industries out on strike at the moment, we will see what will happen. it's not just productions that will cease, but also premieres, film promotion and award shows.

the whole industry is ground to a halt. >> great to speak with you. president biden is back in the u.s. after a trip overseas that included the nato summit in lithuania. members of the alliance made pledges to ukraine as the war there continues. i spoke with matt miller, the u.s. state department spokesperson about those promises. thank you for joining us. i want to ask you about the nato summit. president biden saying president zelenskyy understands "whether or not he is in nato is not relevant now." he is speaking about the security guarantees. ukraine has made it clear they want nato membership to prevent russia froattacking again. can these guarantees deter russia? >> we fully expect ukraine will be a member of nato.

you saw the nato make that clear. the only question is a matter of timing. we said we don't believe for the u.s., that it should be while ukraine remains at war with russia. that would put the usa instantly in war with russia. you could see how that would escalate into full-scale conflict that i don't think anyone in the world wants. at the same time, we want to continue assistance we have been providing since before the onset of this full-scale invasion, some 16 months ago. this is the important thing, make clear to ukraine we are there for them in the long term. i don't just mean the u.s. but members of the g7 and other countries who signed onto a statement the g7 issued this week to make sure we are not just preparing ukraine to defend itself in the short term, but that they have the long-term capability to build their defense capabilities, so the pressure gets the message the u.s. isn't going anywhere, the

g7 isn't going anywhere, nato isn't going anywhere and we will continue to stand by ukraine. vladimir putin is thinking about whether he can outlast the last. we are making clear the answer is no. >> what vladimir putin said is the following "i am sure this will not increase the security of ukraine itself and in general will make the world more vulnerable and lead to additional tension in the international arena." is this promise of nato membership down the road going to lead to heightened tensions? >> i don't think anyone should be looking to vladimir putin for any signals about what will increase the security of ukraine. one of the things before the onset of this war that putin made public demands about repeatedly, was that he did not want to see ukraine enter nato. before the outset of the conflict, we were willing to enter into discussions with him

about legitimate security questions, that nato's open-door policy would remain, but if he had legitimate conservancy concerns, we were happy to enter discussions. putin made clear from day one he had no interest in real discussions. wanted to invade ukraine because he wanted to erase ukraine from the map and capture their territory. he failed in that goal, as the president said this week. he continues to rain death and destruction upon ukraine. i don't think we need to listen to lectures from vladimir putin about whawill increase the security of ukraine. we know what will increase this 30 of ukraine, which is to ensure that they have what they need to defend themselves. >> it's been more than 100 days since an american journalist was wrongfully detained in russia. the president said he was serious about a prisoner swap.

how confident is the government it would be possible? >> we continue to make clear to the russian government we want to secure the release of him and another american wrongfully detained in russia for far too long. we have made clear to the russians we are serious about that. they have refused to engage with us. there are private conversations we have had with them in the past. we will continue to press our case. i don't want to get into the details. we have no higher priority than bringing home these wrongfully detained americans from russia and arnd the world. >> thank you very much. >> thanks for having me. >> the u.s. department of defense believes the russian paramilitary group wagoner is no longer participating in combat in any capacity in ukraine. a pentagon spokesperson said most forces were still present in russian occupied areas.

the armed group, which played a key role in the violent invasion of ukraine sought to topple russia's military leadership before backing down. the whereabouts of its founder are still largely unknown. speaking to the russian newspaper, vladimira prudent said it no longer existed. perts at the who have classified aspartame as a possible cause of cancer. aspartame is widely used in diet drinks and low calorie foods. it is 200 times sweeter than sugar. the current daily limits on consumption don't need to be changed, they say. reporter: aspartame is found in thousands of products, most commonly in sugar-free drinks, but also some toothpaste, yogurts and cough sweet.

it is 200 times sweeter than sugar, so you get the sweet taste for a fraction of the calories. a w.h.o. committee has lifd it as possibly carcinogenic on the basis of limited evidence that it may increase the risk of liver cancer. it wants more research. >> this shouldn't be taken as a direct statement that indicates there is a known cancer hazard from consuming aspartame. this is more a call to the research community to better clarify and understand the carcinogenic hazard that may or may not be posed by aspartame consumption. >> it has been placed in a group of products deemed possible because her genic to humans -- possibly carcinogenic to humans. this is below things deemed probably carcinogenic like night shift work and eating red meat. the highest group, where there

is clear evidence that can cause cancer includes smoking, alcohol and processed meat. given the weakness of the evidence, the official advice on how much we can consume is unchanged. the who's safety limits for aspartame are based on a person's weight. i am 70 kilos or 11 stone. i would need to drink more than 14 cans of diet coke a day to exceed safe levels. that's a lot of cola. >> people can be reassured by this, which essentially says, whether there is limited evidence of possibly having a role in cancer, aspartame is safe at the levels we currently recommend. >> when asked which was better for you, a can of diet or regular sugary cola, a w.h.o. scientist recommended a third option. water. bbc news.

>> let's get in update on other headlines. police in new york have charged a man with multiple counts of murder in connection with the unsolved killings of 10 women. the women were found on long island more than a decade ago but no arrests were ever made until today. autopsy shows lisa marie presley died of complications from previous weight loss surgery. a small bowel obstruction, she died in january after being hospitalized due to cardiac arrest. 800,000 student loan borrowers will have their debts forgiven. the u.s. educati department announced it has moved to cancel $39 billion in old federal student loan debt, an effort to remedy years of mistakes where borrowers didn't have all their payments counted. let's bring you some live pictures from the eiffel tower,

where france is celebrating bastille day in paris at the moment. the indian prime minister was treated to one of france's most spectacular accolades. these fireworks going off in paris behind the eiffel tower. the guest of honor at bastille day military to read was the indian prime minister, modi and president macron watched on as troops marched. the celebrations come at a delicate time for the president, who was booed by some of the public as he drove down the champs-elysees a. the. comes shortly after new delhi deepened defense ties between the countries. as best deal date comes to a close, the final celebration with fireworks in paris. a rocket from india has blasted

off for the moon on a mission to be the first to land near the little explored south pole. it is due to reach the moon around august 23. if successful, india will be the fourth country to achieve a soft landing on the moon after the u.s., the soviet union and china. the bbc sent us this report from the launch site. >> there is still a lot of excitement and energy here. we have seen a handful of people, among the thousands who gathered here, to witness the launch of the third mission to the moon. this is just outside the space center. people are here trying to take selfies and photographs outside the rocket models. this excitement is what it is all about. india is hoping they will be able to successfully make a soft landing on the south pole of the lunar surface.

four years ago, the same mission resulted in failure. if they manage it this time, they will become the fourth country in the world to have achieved this feat. the u.s., russia and china. it is important. it is attempting to land on the southern side of the moon and release a rover for further exploration because this area is the same place where the first moon mission 15 years ago from india discover the possible presence of water. they are likely to build on that research. india takes up 2% of the global space economy. they want to propel themselves into a larger orbit. india opened up india's space sector to private players for the first time in decades several years ago to make itself more competitive and open itself up to commercial possibilities. india is hoping witthese launches, it also makes itself a larger player in the world in terms of the global space economy. >> in the u.s., nasa is heading

back to the moon. they announced plans to send a module to the south pole by the end of 2024. thank you for watching world narrator: funding for this presentation of this program is provided by... narrator: finaial services firm, raymond james. narrator: funding was also provided by, the freeman foundation. and by judy and peter blum kovler foundation; pursuing solutions for america's neglected needs. ♪ ♪

"the newshour" tonight, house republicans use a traditionally bipartisan defense bill to pick a fight with the biden white house. we look at the impact. >> a year after the reversal of roe v. wade, the correlation between the lack of reproductive rights and domestic violence becomes clearer. >> of we want renewable energy but not in our backyard.