james reynolds, bbc news, rome. and james reynolds joins us from rome. ames, coming at a time when the country is very much divided over the whole issue of immigration. and immigration has now become the central issue in the italian general election campaign. remember, voters will have to pick a government on march the 4th. the right—wing opposition, a coalition of forces including the anti—immigrant northern league, has decided to make migration its main issue. it reminds people that over the last four years, and in 600,000 migrants, most of them from africa, made it across the mediterranean on to italian shores. not all of those migrants have stayed. many of them have left. but the cumulative effect of so many years of the of arrivals has been powerful here in italy. and the attack today takes place amid the attack today takes place amid the backdrop of that angry debate. james, thank you. james reynolds in rome. a local council has taken the highly unusual step of imposing emergency spending controls after saying it's facing severe financial challenges

james reynolds, bbc news, rome.red tomb, which is thought to be more than 2,000 years old. it's 200 kilometres south of cairo and contains dozens of ancient burials. it's hoped that it'll boost tourism. bill hayton reports. eight metres below ground, buried treasure, centuries old. stone coffins, carved sarcophagi, ancient statues and jewellery. this was a burial place for priests from a nearby city. it is only the beginning. i think we need at least five more missions to work. but we are going to add very soon a very new archaeological attraction in middle egypt. among the many finds were the remains of sacred animals, preserved as offerings to the afterlife. and about 1000 small statues, known as ushabti, intended to act as servants to be dead. —— for the dead. and one very special piece ofjewellery: an amulet with a message. translation: on the 31st of december, a colleague alerted me to a scarab which carried the words "happy new year" in heiroglyphics. it felt like a message to us from the afterlife. a wonderfu

james reynolds, bbc news, rome.as claimed that she was sexually assaulted by the film producer harvey weinstein in london in the 1990s. two other women have contacted british police to say they were also attacked by him. mr weinstein denies all the allegations of non—consensual sex. ben ando has more. these latest accusations were made late last year but have onlyjust come to light. in one, a woman alleges that she was attacked by harvey weinstein in the republic of ireland in 1991. in another, a different woman alleges that she was attacked in london in 2011 and in an unnamed foreign country in 2010. now, this all comes as the actress uma thurman has given an interview in the united states in which she says that after the release of the film pulp fiction, which was produced by harvey weinstein, she accuses him of trying to attack her in hotel rooms in london and paris. she said she managed to wriggle away. a spokesman for harvey weinstein said that any incident that took place was a result of him misreading her sig

james reynolds reports from rome.—year—old italian armed with a pistol, turned the italian city of macerata into a terrifying place. reports say that the gunman fired from his car at anyone who appeared to be a migrant from africa. there was no time for his targets to hide. i was passing by this morning to go and buy cigarettes when they shot me on my leg this morning, you know? so the person who was inside the car was shooting, you know? but i don't actually see his face, yeah. during the attack, the authorities posted warnings instructing the city's residents to stay inside. the gunman was arrested when he got out of his car. he's identified as 28—year—old luca traini. the italian media reports that he'd been a candidate forthe anti—immigrant northern league party in local elections held in 2017. this attack comes at a time of high anxiety in the city of macerata. earlier in the week, the dismembered body of a young italian woman was found. a nigerian migrant was arrested in connection with her death. now migrants h

james reynolds, bbc news, rome.tical commentator and journalist. thank you to joining thank you tojoining is thank you to joining is this even thank you tojoining is this even in here on bbc news. this was a shocking attack which everyone says was motivated by racism. unless the country being reacting to it? well, with dismay and shock. now the country knows exactly what the next election will be, voters going to be, a vote around xenophobia, racism, this kind of stuff, illegal emigration, which is not necessarily what the country needs. the country needs jobs, to what the country needs. the country needsjobs, to get what the country needs. the country needs jobs, to get out of the economical problems, but this fact, this tremendous episode today really is bringing up to the conscience of everybody a delicate is the situation with 500,000 illegal immigrants mostly from africa in the country, being in the country illegally. and the figures as you say are pretty stark, aren't they? clearly there were areas of italy th

james reynolds in rome.scrubs prison in west london. ahmed kyre, kalif dibbassey and enton marku — all in their early 20s — are due to appear in court next week. the snp‘s deputy leader angus robertson has announced that he is stepping down with immediate effect. it comes eight months after he lost his westminster seat. the scottish first minister nicola sturgeon has paid tribute to mr. robertson, thanking him for contribution to the party. small businesses affected by the collapse of the construction giant carillion are being offered the chance to apply for government—backed loans from high street lenders. thousands of suppliers were left unpaid, after the firm went into liquidation last month. our business correspondent joe lynam reports. britain‘s second biggest construction company collapsed three weeks ago leaving debts of almost £1 billion and a pensions deficit ofa similaramount. apart from those directly employed at carillion, thousands of smaller suppliers and contractors faced ruin due to unpaid de

james reynolds, bbc news, rome. stay with us on bbc news.han 2000 years old, is uncovered in egypt. are you prince charles has chosen his bride. the prince proposed to lady diana spencer three weeks ago. she accepted, she says, without hesitation. as revolutions go, this had its fair share of bullets. a climax in the night outside the gates of mr marcos's sanctuary, malacanang, the name itself symbolising one of the cruellest regimes of modern asia. the world's first clone has been produced of an adult mammal. scientists in scotland have produced a sheep called dolly using a cell from another sheep. citizens are trying to come to grips with their new freedom. though there is joy and relief today, the scars are everywhere. not for 20 years have locusts been seen in such numbers in this part of africa. some of the swarms have been ten miles long. this is the last time the public will see this pope, very soon for the sake of the credibility and authority of the next pope, benedict xvi will, in his own words, be hidden from the world for the res

james reynolds, bbc news, rome.exual assault against harvey weinstein. it brings the total number of women who have reported weinstein to british police to nine. earlier, i spoke to our correspondent ben ando, who gave explained more about the allegations. it was october the 11th when the police were first contacted by a woman in this country claiming that she had been sexual assaulted by harvey weinstein. there are a further six women who came forward. up to christmas this year, that's what we thought. there were seven alleged victims making a variety of allegations. what has emerged today though is that on october the 31st, a woman came forward to claim he attacked her in the republic of ireland. the police say that they forwarded that information to the irish police. also, on november 13th of last year, another woman came forward and claimed she was attacked on two occasions. one in london in 2011 and another in 2010 in a foreign country. the police aren't saying which country that is but they say they will forwa

james reynolds, bbc news, rome.a thurman, has claimed that she was sexually assaulted by the film producer, harvey weinstein, in london in the 1990s. two other women have contacted british police to say they were also attacked by him. mr weinstein denies all the allegations of non—consensual sex. ben ando has more. these latest allegations here in london were actually made at the end of last year, but they have onlyjust come to light. in one, a woman came to scotland yard to allege to detectives that she was attacked by harvey weinstein in the republic of ireland back in 1991. another says she was attacked her in london in 2011 and in an unspecified country in 2010. now, at the moment, the police aren't saying where that other country is. the latest high profile figure to step forward, uma thurman, accusing mr weinstein of assaulting her in the 1990s. and there has been, as i was saying earlier, some reaction to that from his people? now, harvey weinstein, through a spokesman, has said that any incident that took pl

james reynolds, bbc news, rome.e of the red cross has said the recent revelations of sexual misconduct by aid agency workers is a watershed moment for the charity sector. yves daccord's comments came as he revealed that more than 20 of his staff have been dismissed in the last three years for sexual misconduct. our diplomatic correspondent caroline hawley reports. the red cross emblem is seen as a symbol of protection around the world, like here in south sudan. and, most of the time, it is. but the icrc has now revealed behaviour it says was a betrayal of the people it was set up to serve. since 2015, 21 members of staff either resigned or were dismissed for paying for sex. the head of the icrc spoke of the silence around sexual misconduct being shattered and called this a watershed moment for the humanitarian sector as a whole. yesterday, 22 british aid organisations came together to write a joint letter, promising to root out staff who have abused their power and saying they were truly sorry. among them was oxfam.

james reynolds, bbc news, rome.her women have made scotland yard have confirmed that allegations of sexual assault against the hollywood producer harvey weinstein. against the hollywood there are now nine women who've made allegations in the uk. the actress uma thurman has accused allegations in the uk. mr weinstein of assaulting her in the early 1990s. the star — in an interview with the new york times — described several incidents in which she claims the film producerforced himself on her. in which she claims the film in a statement, a spokesperson for mr weinstein said he acknowledged that he'd made a pass at her — and that he immediately apologised. a pass at her — and that he the government has announced a package of financial support for small companies affected by the collapse of the construction company, carillion. by the collapse of the construction the state—backed british business bank will allocate £100 million in loans. business bank will allocate customers worried about repaying mortgages will also be

james reynolds, bbc news, rome.as written a book on neo—fascism in france and italy. i asked him if this incident gives us an insight into a wider problem across europe. it isa it is a wider european if not western problem. any migrant influx coming and changing our traditional lifestyle. the tradition of europe oi’ lifestyle. the tradition of europe or the west at large, even in the us, we have this — we are seeing this with some supporters. naturally, this is the art of a single man, it probably wasn't perfectly mentally good, i'm sure about this, i don't think there are leagues, official leagues with parties in this case. but this is — this is showing us the rizal widespread anger towards migrants, are racial tensions in italy and also in other european countries. are racial tensions in italy and also in other european countrieslj mean, you said you clearly have mental problems but we don't know that and actually he might not and that and actually he might not and thatis that and actually he might not and that is

james reynolds, bbc news, rome.l support for small companies affected by the collapse of the construction company, carillion. the state—backed british business bank will allocate £100 million in loans. customers worried about repaying mortgages will also be offered help. thousands of suppliers were left unpaida after the firm went into liquidation last month. a syrian rebel group says it shot down a russian fighter plane near the city of idlib on saturday. the syrian 0bservatory for human rights monitoring group said the pilot ejected from the plane and was killed, but this has not yet been confirmed. video posted on social media appeared to show the plane being hit, while other video showed burning wreckage on the ground, with a red star on a wing. russian fighters have been bombing positions south of the city of aleppo in support of a syrian government offensive. a prominent conservative mp has stepped up his criticism of civil servants at the treasury — accusing them of "fiddling the figures" in brexit forecasts,

james reynolds, bbc news, rome. stay with us on bbc news. is uncovered in egypt.les has chosen his are you bride. three weeks ago. she accepted, she says, without hesitation. as revolutions go, this had its fair share of bullets. regimes of modern asia. the world's first clone has been produced of an adult mammal. from another sheep. citizens are trying to come to grips with their new freedom. though there is joy and relief today, the scars are everywhere. part of africa. some of the swarms have been ten miles long. for the rest of his life. this is bbc news. calling for a thirty—day humanitarian ceasefire in syria. which is thought to be more than two thousand years old. of ancient burials. it's hoped it'll boost tourism. bill hayton reports. eight metres below ground, buried treasure, centuries old. stone coffins, carved sarcophagi, and ancient stones and jewellery. this was a burial place for priest from a nearby city. this isjust the beginning. i think we need at least five more missions to work. in middle egypt. animals, preserved as offerings to the afterlif

earlier i spoke to our correspondent in jerusalem, james reynolds.bout the cases. the police have come out tonight with a lengthy statement detailing exact we wyre davies decided to recommend charges and the first case they outline what they say is nine yea rs they outline what they say is nine years in which mr netanyahu received lavish gifts, cigars, pink champagne and jewellery for him and his family over a period of nine years, the value of which was about £200,000, and in exchange the police suggest that he gave special treatment to his wealthy friends. mr netanyahu has come out and said the recommended charges against him are baseless. so what about the next move in this? he is obviously not going to be arrested for this. no. it's simple what happens next. the police have made their recommendation. they now give it to the country's attorney general, who will study it and hear from the country's attorney general, who will study it and hearfrom mr netanyahu's will study it and hearfrom mr neta nyahu's laura will study it and hearfrom mr netanyahu

motivated, with the shooter targeting african migrants — one man has been arrested. 0ur correspondent james reynoldsng, james? we are getting a little bit of a picture about what happened in the day. as far as we can tell from the local media and the police, the gunmen opened fire from his car in the city of macerata. he targeted a group of people who appeared to be migrants from africa. the gunmen was able to continue going and continue firing against other groups of people. at that point, the other authorities said outreach telling people to stay indoors. the gunmen was then arrested, and has he was detained, there were reports that he gave as a gesture which can be interpreted as a fascist salute. at the moment, the police want to interrogate him and find out the exact motive for the attack. what is the back ground to this. it is not the back ground to this. it is not the first attack in macerata, is it? no. a lot of people are looking at what happened over the week near macerata. the dismembered body of an 18—year—old italian woman was found near the city. after her body was found, a nigerian mi

james reynolds.een watching south africa very closely lately, butjacob zuma is still president — even though he's officially been asked to resign for the sake of the country. earlier, in pretoria — the governing party, the anc announced that its executive had told zuma to go as soon as possible. the party is clear about what it wants — this was said in the news conference. the collective of the anc believe that indeed president cyril ramaphosa must take over the presidency. you can't then have another president who is still president of the anc. jacob zuma is expected to respond to that by wednesday — and we're hearing he'll hold a news conference at 8 gmt tomorrow — that's 10am local south african time, but remember — he's under no legal obligation to step down as president — yet, and so far, says he'll resign in 3 to 6 months — which isn't what his party wants. this is the man waiting in the wings, ready to take the job of president — the party's leader, cyril ramaphosa. our africa editor fergal ke

the bbc‘s james reynolds reports from jerusalem. n0 audio. sorry about that.seem to be having some audio problems with that. we will return as we possibly can. is bring you updated with what is happening in the senate. the leaders of us intelligence agencies have been updating senators on the threats facing the country. they spoke of military and nuclear challenges around the world, and warned of more election interference at home. but domestic politics also featured, with the head of the fbi contradicting the white house version of events over the departure of senior aide rob porter. jane o'brien has more on the day's testimony. part of the job of america's intelligence chiefs is to sound the alarm and dan coats rang it loud and clear. the united states is under attack. under attack by entities that are using cyber to penetrate virtually every major action that takes place in the united states. and while iran, north korea and china were all named, russia was emphasised. we expect russia to continue using propaganda, social media, personas, sympathetic spokesm

the bbc‘s james reynolds reports from jerusalem.olice leibler benjamin netanyahu the police leibler benjamin neta nyahu received lavish the police leibler benjamin netanyahu received lavish presence of champagne, cigars and jewellery. the second is about manipulation of the media. officers say that mr netanyahu the media. officers say that mr neta nyahu negotiated favourable coverage from one major newspaper in exchange for curtailing the circulation of one of its rivals. israel's leader has dismissed police recommendations. translation: over the years, there have been pressures to open no fewer than 15 investigations would be aim of toppling me from power. all began with explosive headlines, live broadcast and thunderous police recommendations. all these results endedin recommendations. all these results ended in nothing. this time as well they will result in nothing. the opposition calls on mr netanyahu to step aside. it's a sad day for israeli democracy when the prime minister is suspected in bribery. this is why we believe reall

the bbc‘s james reynolds has more. there appear to be similar recommendations from the police.. they recommend he faces charges in both cases, fraud, breach of trust, bribery. the most important thing to say is this. the most important step is yet to come. the files now get handed to israel's attorney general and it is up to the attorney general to decide whether or not to indict or whether or not to do nothing and that decision is expected to take at least several months. the pacific island of tonga is dealing with the consequences of the worst storm to hit the country in over 60 years. the parliament building is among the structures that have been completely flattened. high winds battered the island overnight into tuesday, lifting roofs of houses and bringing down electricity lines. at its peak, cyclone gita reached 233 km/h. the dutch foreign minister has resigned after admitting he lied about meeting vladimir putin in 2006. halbe zijlstra had said he had heard mr putin outline expansionist ambitions. on monday he admitted the information was second hand, yet his source then

our correspondent james reynolds reports from jerusalem. israeli police recommend charges against the country's prime minister in two separate cases. the first centres on gifts for favours and police believe that benjamin netanyahu gave special treatment to wealthy friends after receiving lavish presents of champagne, cigars and jewellery. the second is about manipulation of the media. officers say that mr netanyahu negotiated favourable coverage from one major newspaper in exchange for curtailing the circulation of one of its rivals. israel's leader has dismissed the police recommendations. translation: over the years, there have been pressures to open no fewer than 15 investigations with the aim of toppling me from power. all began with explosive headlines, live broadcasts and some with thunderous police recommendations. all these attempts resulted ended in nothing. i tell you, this time too, they will result in nothing. the opposition calls on mr netanyahu to step aside. it's a sad day for israeli democracy that a prime minister is suspe

our rome correspondent, james reynolds, travelled with a group of nurses who were all trying for thee is these jobseekers best way to get to the test. they are travelling from southern italy to compete with hundreds of others for a single 6— month contract. translation: ijust want month contract. translation: i just want to have more dignity so that i don't have too exhaust myself going up and down the country like this. i made a lot of sacrifices at university but all those find myself starting again from zero. blue translation: i am just from zero. blue translation: i amjust getting by from zero. blue translation: i am just getting by on short—term jobs. it is hard for me to plan a future, to think about buying a home and starting a family. it is very difficult for those of us from southern italy. the people who get ahead and those who have connections. there is no transparency. roughly, himselfa recentjob seeker, decided to lay on these cheap bus rides to get candidates tojob these cheap bus rides to get candidates to job exam and interviews. translation: this job was born out of

james reynolds reports from milan.ing plotted with him and even helped write her own ransom note. she says that none of this is true. last summer, chloe ayling re—enacted her experiences for the police. she says that lucas herbert called her to this —— lucas tamme one called her to milan with promise of work as a model. she was then taken to a remote farmhouse where she says she was held. my hands were, the ha ndcuffs was held. my hands were, the handcuffs were like around here. and the same, handcuffs around here and my feet were there. so that's where i spent the first day and night and... this court is not expected to bring chloe ayling back to italy to testify, and that means there will be no confrontation between her and the man who accuses her of staging her own abduction. being kidnapped and not being believed in your own country, and even mocked... i rememberseeing country, and even mocked... i remember seeing photographs of other models posing inside big handbags. that must eat, that's atrocious. models posing

reynolds, and actress and dancer debbie allen. >> i think the first time i realized i was black and that it meant something was hearing james brown black and i'm proud." i thought, wow, we can say this. i am proud. it was a moment of realizing that black was beautiful, and having come from the south and coming from a jim crow south into that moment, it was everything. >> i saw the signs that said white men, white women, colored men, colored women. ♪ my skin is black >> i knew i was black. hayed to tell the story. we have to tell the story so we can be inspired. >> there were all these barriers and, you know, glass ceilings and wooden and iron doors to get through. you can't get caught up in the madness of hate and anger. you won't get there. the create irv spirit has to live in place of joy and light. not darkness. >> think about the fact i get to be a writer born from a lineage of people who were not supposed to read. like how could i not with overcome with joy and overcome with the pride. >> it was illegal for us to read and write in this country for quite a while, for centuries, in fact, and punishable by death and far worse,