lebo diseko reports. be watching on wednesday, malgorzata gersdorf, who was the head of the supreme court. she was supposed to step at midnight, in line with a new law cutting the retirement age for supreme courtjudges from 70 to 65. it means around a third of the country's judiciary could lose their jobs unless the president extends their terms. but professor gersdorf says she will defy the new legislation — which she called "a purge." translation: as far as my status is concerned, it has not changed after talks with the president. tomorrow, i'll come to work. i have a 6—year term in line with the constitution, and i have to act in accordance with the constitution. i have appointed judge jozef iwulski, the president of the chamber of labour and social security, to perform duties during my absence, because i intend to go on vacation. i think i deserve it. her supporters plan more protests like these for wednesday over what is the latest in a series of laws passed to increase control over the judiciary. th

lebo diseko, bbc news. much more on that and all of the news on the bbc news website.twitter. i'm @bbc mike embley. that's it. thank you for watching. hello again. love it or loathe it, it looks like the hot weather is set to return to south—east england towards the end of the week and the weekend as well. before we get there, though, we'll showers on monday. there will be further showers around today as well. of more immediate concern is this developing area of cloud towards the south—west approaches. this is going to reactivate a weatherfront, and during the early hours of tuesday, we will see showers widespread in southern england, wales, the midlands and one or two in northern england as well, but as well as those showers, there's going to be a clump of heavier rain that will probably become quite widespread across central, southern england, the south midlands and swinging into east anglia and south—east england. the thing with this big area of rain is we will have squally winds and could have some lightning in it as well. the rain could be intense, so we could hav

in a moment, we'll have the latest from lebo diseko here in the studio but first this report from duncannedy. four months to the day after the salisbury attack, and dawn sturgess and charlie rowley have become the new victims of nerve agent poisoning in britain. the couple were taken ill from their home on saturday are now critically ill in hospital. this is the moment the emergency unfolded on saturday night. the bbc has been given these phone images of the fire and ambulance services at the property. this man says he is a friend of the couple and saw what happened. he was sweating, dribbling and he couldn't speak and was making funny noises and was rocking back and forwards, there was no response, he didn't even know i was there. it was like he was in another world, hallucinating. the nerve agent was identified in porton down near amesbury in the same place used to identify the novichok liquid in march. tonight the metropolitan police counterterrorism unit confirmed the latest findings. following the detailed analysis of those samples, we can confirm the man and woman have been exposed

lebo diseko has more.nds on the streets of moscow challenging proposed pension reforms. this sign and the skeleton with it expressing theirfears. "worked all his life but did not get his pension." translation: sadly a significant number of both men and women will not make it to the age of planned retirement that our government is proposing, so this may unfortunately mean many of our citizens are not even destined to live until their pension age and will have to work into the grave. russia's lower house parliament, the duma, gave first reading approval to the measure earlier this month. the proposal was put forward by cabinet on the eve of the world cup and opponents accused the government of trying to slip the changes through while the nation was distracted. protesters are demanding a referendum on the issue, and around three million people have signed a petition against the changes. president putin says he doesn't like the idea of raising the pension age, but doing nothing was not an option. he also says,

lebo diseko, bbc news., including two children and their great—grandmother, as a huge wildfire sweeps across northern california. well, more on this now. brianna sacks is covering the wildfires for buzzfeed news in redding. she gave me an update earlier after attending a community meeting in the city. they had all the top they had all the top officials from the federal, state and local authorities here, helping to fight this fire. there is about 31100 personnel on this incident. they we re personnel on this incident. they were talking with concerned residents about the fire status. it is still holding a 5% contained, despite almost doubling in size. it is now more than 80,000 acres, something close to 81,000 acres. i spoke with the incident commander, a fire chief here in shops to county —— shosta county, and he was saying that every time we say a fire is in prison at it, we have never seen it before, it is the same sentiment with this one, they have not really seen a fire in this type of situation before,

lebo diseko, bbc news.d and clearly also for barcelona forward lionel messi, captured showing off his skills with his dog hulk via his wife's instagram account. probably driving the dog nuts in the process! much more on that and all of the news on the website. and you can get in touch with me and most of the team on twitter, i'm @bbcmikeembley. thanks for watching. hello again. love it or loathe it, it looks like the hot weather is set to return to south—east england towards the end of the week and the weekend as well. before we get there, though, we'll showers on monday. there will be further showers around today as well. of more immediate concern is this developing area of cloud towards the south—west approaches. this is going to reactivate a weatherfront, and during the early hours of tuesday, we will see showers widespread in southern england, wales, the midlands and one or two in northern england as well, but as well as those showers, there's going to be a clump of heavier rain that will probably becom

lobo the second, bbc news. —— lebo diseko.th increased demand and an ageing population is to integrate healthcare and social care. two years ago, the government in scotland merged the nhs and social budgets to try to improve services. our scotland editor, sarah smith, has been looking at the changes made and challenges ahead. tom bailey used to have a chronic lung condition, he used to be out of hospital all the time, now he can be monitored from home. the day goes straight into the tablet and straight into the tablet and straight to the ward? any change in this condition and this healthcare tea m this condition and this healthcare team will phone or visit him at home. they are able to help older people. the fact i'm not going into hospital frees up a bit. people. the fact i'm not going into hospitalfrees up a bit. i can be treated here much simpler, much easier and more cost—effective. treated here much simpler, much easier and more cost-effective. and that makes a difference to you? aru, yeah. tom's day arrives here at big a

lebo diseko, bbc news.senior fellow at the washington institute, and a former senior director for middle east affairs at the national security council, says palestinian demonstrations, and israeli air attacks have both been increasing over the past few weeks. we have seen since the end of may, eve ryo ne we have seen since the end of may, everyone will remember the demonstrations taking place on the gaza border followed by demonstrations taking place on the gaza borderfollowed by the so—called inseam jerry brickell incendiary kites which caused fires. there has been rocket fire. there has in demand from israelis for a response, deterrence, for these attacks. you have seen a back and forth fire in the israeli response using fighterjets. has the ceasefire held? it has not held as far as ceasefire held? it has not held as farasi ceasefire held? it has not held as far as i know. additional mortar fire came sunday morning in israel. the attempt for a ceasefire mediated egypt has been attempted for some time sinc

lebo diseko, bbc news. to date with all the latest news from the middle east on our website. you'll find futher reaction and analysis regarding the current situation in gaza as well as reports from correspondents and eye witness accounts. just go to the website on your screen. 0r download the bbc news app. let's get some of the day's other news. at least two student have died during an attack on a church in nicaragua. dozens of students had been taking part in anti—government protests when they came under attack from paramilitaries and became trapped in the church on friday evening. they could be escorted out after the intervention of the roman catholic cardinal and another bishop. hundreds of people had been holding a vigil outside the church. officials in somalia say at least seven people have been killed in two car bombings in mogadishu. five of the dead are said to be from the islamist group al shabaab which carried out the attack. british police have recovered more than 400 items and samples in connect

lebo diseko has more.distressing images from the start of her report a community gripped by shock and grief, as victims arrive in hospital, caught up in what is the worst militant attack in this country for nearly four years. more than 100 were killed in the suicide bombing at an election rally in the province of baluchistan. translation: we reached the blast site and found people scattered, there was hardly a person who was in a good condition. we alerted our vehicles and sent 30 ambulances to help the wounded. the army had claimed that militants had been cleared from the region near the afghan border, which has been marred by ongoing violence and instability. in a separate incident, four people were killed in a bomb blast in the north of the country. another politician's campaign convoy was hit. it's less than two weeks before pakistan goes to the polls, and these attacks could trigger a new set of tensions ahead of an election already marred by controversy. lebo diseko, bbc news. more than 200 people ar

my name is lebo diseko. our top stories: the controversial head of the us environmental protection agency quits afterjust five months. scott pruitt‘s facing at least a dozen investigations into his conduct. moving towards a trade war? a wide range of chinese exports will be hit by donald trump's twenty 5% tariffs from today. racing against the rain — rescuers step up their efforts to get the trapped boys out of a flooded cave in thailand before the weather worsens. police investigating the new novichok poisoning in britain say the victims probably picked up something used in the attack on sergei skripal, four months ago. it is completely unacceptable for oui’ it is completely unacceptable for our people to be either deliberate toorak ‘s event will targets, or four—hour streets, our parks, toorak ‘s event will targets, or four—hourstreets, our parks, our towns, to be dumping grounds for poison. —— deliberate or accidental targets. hello, and a very warm welcome. it was, according to critics, a question of whe

lebo diseko, bbc news.from the oil giant, bp, it will report its earnings at 7am uk time. how good, bad or ugly will those numbers be? i will have an oil analyst to discuss that. there's many other stories i want to highlight on the bbc news app, we can't cover them all on the briefing but there's plenty to read and look at, including this story, which we will discuss in the news briefing in around 20 minutes, that's the news that apparently in the uk many pupils are unable to speak in full sentences before they begin school. this is described as a scandal by the relatively new education secretary damian hinds, he promises this is something he will fix during his term as education secretary. we're talking about what's behind early talking and reading skills, that's in the news briefing coming up that's in the news briefing coming up with jane foley. as i've mentioned, there are many other stories on the bbc news app, take a look, including that story i discussed with laura bicker in seoul, the news that nor

lebo diseko, bbc news. state, mike pompeo, has wrapped up his "make or break" meeting with the north korean leader's right hand man, kim yong—chol. this is his third trip to pyongyang, and the first since the historic summit between president trump and kimjong—un. mr pompeo is expected to meet the north korean leader on saturday before he leaves for tokyo. here's the bbc‘s mariko oi in seoul. as you mentioned, mike pompeo arrived on friday afternoon and he met with kim jong—un‘s right—hand man. that was the only meeting as far as we know that took place late yesterday. it wrapped up around 7:30pm local time and they spoke about three hours before breaking for dinner. apparently the mood appeared relaxed. mike pompeo joked that this was his third time and that if he came another time he would have to start to pay taxes. to which the right—hand man suggested that the more he came the more trust could be built. this morning his first meeting was scheduled at 9am local time, about one hour ago. we still do not

lebo diseko, bbc news.gh, a senior fellow at the washington institute, and a former senior director for middle east affairs at the national security council says palestinian demonstrations and israeli air attacks have both been increasing over the past few weeks. we have seen since the end of may — everyone remembers those demonstrations which were taking place on the gaza border which were followed by incendiary kites — they fly and land in israel and create fires. they have been followed by rocket and mortar fire. there has been a demand from israelis for a response to this, for deterrence against the attacks. i think what you have seen is a back and forth now between rock and mortarfire coming from gaza and an israeli response using fighterjets. this ceasefire we have been talking about, has it held, do you know? it has not held, as far as i know. as far as i know, there was additional mortar fire sunday morning in israel. this attempt for a ceasefire to be mediated by egypt has been going on for some ti

lebo diseko reports.y call them tornadoes of flames, spinning whorls of fire powered by gale—force winds so powerful they suck in cars, trees, homes, people — anything in their path. in its wake, families are left devastated. ed bledsoe was looking for his great—grandchildren, james and emily, aged four and five, along with his wife, melody. they have since been found dead. residents say they should have been given more warning to evacuate. we weren't told we were in danger. this was like you see in movies with tornadoes. one minute, it's fine. the next minute, everybody‘s screaming. firefighters have battled to contain the blaze since it began on monday, apparently after a car malfunctioned. it has since destroyed an area larger than the city of san francisco, and tens of thousands of people have had to leave their homes. firefighters say it's unlike anything they have seen before. every single person that i have talked to so far has made the mention that, "i don't know why it is doing what it's doing."

lebo diseko, bbc news. for this year's american television awards, the emmys. the series has nominations in 22 categories, including best drama. game of thrones is up against the crown, stranger things and the handmaid's tale. it's the first year a streaming service has got more nominations than a tv service. also the singer john legend has the chance to become an egot, with grammys, 0scars john legend has the chance to become an egot, with grammys, oscars and tony's. tennis now, and serena williams will face germany's angelique kerber for an eighth wimbledon singles title this weekend after both won their semis in straight sets. the american, former world number one overpowered germany'sjulia goerges 6—2 6—a. williams was in control from the outset against the 13th seed, who was making her grand slam semi—final debut. meanwhile, two—time grand slam champion angelique kerber reached her second wimbledon final with a commanding performance against an error—prone jelena 0stapenko. you can reach me and some of

lebo diseko, bbc news.cyclist gai—rint thomas has arrived back in the uk. —— geraint thomas has arrived back in the uk. discussions are underway in cardiff about how to mark his achievement, but the champion says he doesn't think all his success, will change him. sian lloyd reports. the city waiting for geraint thomas to come home. flags have gone up at cardiff castle. behind the scenes, plans are being made to give him a hero's welcome. ijust think it is amazing that geraint thomas has won tour de france and, you know, it inspires little kids to get onto their bikes. i was watching the tour de france and i want to know when is he coming back to cardiff, geraint thomas? we don't know yet, but when we do, we'll let you know. all right, thank you. one step closer to home, geraint thomas is back in the uk and headed to the one show sofa tonight. cheered on by young members of his former cycling club from cardiff, excited to meet their hero. but he is still trying to take it all in. it's been nuts. it's just be

lebo diseko, bbc news.date with all the latest news on the middle east on oui’ latest news on the middle east on our website. you can find further analysis as well as reports from correspondence and eyewitness accounts. just go to the website will stop we can download the bbc news apt. the prime minister, theresa may has warned her own conservative mps not to put the government's plans for brexit at risk. she's appealed for them to back her in key votes in the house of commons in the coming week. 0ur political correspondent iain watson has more details. basically some long—standing leavers are unhappy with her brexit plan, her white paper, so they are trying to scupper key elements of it by trying to change legislation in the house of commons next week. writing in the mail on sunday she is warning them that if they do so and do not get behind the plan, they risk a disorderly brexit, or as she puts it, possibly risk brexit itself. the mail on sunday splashed it on the front page, "back me or there will be no

lebo diseko, bbc news.g for urgent access to south western syria after several weeks of fighting. the un says tens of thousands of people remain in desperate need of assistance. the syrian government has retaken control of most of daraa province, but cross—border aid supplies are being denied access. 0ur middle east correspondent tom bateman reports from thejordan—syria border. lined up on the border with syria, but going nowhere. these aid supplies are for tens of thousands of people who have fled the fighting in at daraa province, but they remain stuck beside a desert road in jordan. ebrahim has a lorry full of food, the engine runs day and night keeping it cool, he is syrian, he left da raa keeping it cool, he is syrian, he left daraa with his family in 2014. translation: nobody knows what is going to happen, whether we will go in or not. i feel optimistic. going to happen, whether we will go in or not. ifeel optimistic. i haven't seen my relatives in four yea rs. haven't seen my relatives in four years.

my name is lebo diseko.n agency quits afterjust five months. scott pruitt‘s facing at least a dozen investigations into his conduct. moving towards a trade war? a wide range of chinese exports will be hit by donald trump's 25% tariffs from today. racing against the rain: rescuers step up their efforts to get the trapped boys out of a flooded cave in thailand — before the weather worsens. police investigating the new novichok poisoning in britain say the victims probably picked up something used in the attack on sergei skripal, four months ago.

lebo diseko has more.ry to control the blaze which has swept try to control the blaze which has swe pt a cross try to control the blaze which has swept across yolo and napa counties since it broke out last saturday. dry conditions and powerful conditions are making matters worse and the national weather service says it is expecting gusts of up to 40 kilometres per hour. no casualties reported or buildings damaged yet at hundreds of local residents have been evacuated. it is still not clear what caused the blaze but this has been a particularly active fire season in the us. authorities say the risk is much higher than normal in many western states. by wednesday this so—called county fire had ravaged more than 30,000 hectares of grass, bush and scrub. this area is famous for its winegrowing and picturesque views. the fear now is even when the fire is eventually put out the damage to crops and businesses could be longer lasting. now it's time to get all the latest wimbledon action from the bbc sports centre w

my name is lebo diseko. environmental protection agency quits afterjust five months. scott pruitt‘s facing at least a dozen investigations into his conduct. moving towards a trade war? a wide range of chinese exports will be hit by donald trump's 25% tariffs from today. japanese media say seven mebers of a cult including its leader have been executed for carrying out a sarin attack in 1995. a dangerous time for rescuers and the trapped voice of. one of the

lebo diseko has more. the only surviving member of a neo—nazi terrorist cell.rs. for the families of the victims, this day has been a long time coming. a five—year trial almost two decades after the first killing. the nationalist socialist underground murdered eight ethnic turkish people, a greek citizen and a policewoman between 2000 and 2007. she denied taking part in the murders, saying she only knew of them after they had happened. she blamed two members of the msu, they killed themselves in an apparent suicide pact. but the court found she was possible and gave a verdict that carries an automatic life sentence. translation: i believe that the sentence imposed on her for life imprisonment is a substantial and right. she is not a woman who was in the wrong place at the wrong time. she is a nazi, a racist and a murderer. there has been anger at what many see as the failures of the police, who at first blamed the killings on immigrant gang violence. and many families believe institutional racism hampered the investigation and the trial. so while they may welco

my name is lebo diseko. our top stories: the controversial head of the us environmental protection agency quits afterjust five months. scott pruitt‘s facing at least a dozen investigations into his conduct. moving towards a trade war? a wide range of chinese exports will be hit by donald trump's 25% tariffs from today. japanese media say seven mebers of a cult including its leader have been executed for carrying out a sarin attack in 1995. a dangerous time for rescuers and the trapped voice of. one of the navy seals rescuers has died. —— trapped bullies. —— trapped boys. hello and welcome to bbc world news. it was — according to critics — a question of when and not if. now, after being under pressure for many weeks — the head of the environmental protection agency — scott pruitt has stepped down. his resignation follows a series of ethics scandals that have dogged his tenure. president trump announced it in his usual way — by tweeting. he said: "i have accepted the resignation of scott pruitt as the administ

lebo diseko, bbc news. you have been watching newsday.back to california were firefighters are battling to contain wild fight —— wildfires which been causing devastation for weeks. this is santa clara, parts of the city of redding in the north of the city of redding in the north of the state have been completely burnt out. police there have been going from door to door checking bodies. we now know that at least seven people have been killed, four of them firefighters and 50,000 people have been displaced because of the wildfires that are burning out of control. some progress has been made since sunday. there is still some way to go. we will keep you updated. hello again. love it or loathe it, it looks like the hot weather is set to return to south—east england towards the end of the week and the weekend as well. before we get there, though, we'll showers on monday. there will be further showers around today as well. of more immediate concern is this developing area of cloud towards the south—west approaches. this is going to reactivate a

my name is lebo diseko. our top stories: the controversial head of the us environmental protection agency quits afterjust five months. scott pruitt‘s facing at least a dozen investigations into his conduct. moving towards a trade war? a wide range of chinese exports will be hit by donald trump's 25% tariffs from today. racing against the rain: rescuers step up their efforts to get the trapped boys out of a flooded cave in thailand — before the weather worsens. police investigating the new novichok poisoning in britain say the victims probably picked up something used in the attack on sergei skripal, four months ago. hello, and a very warm welcome to bbc news. it was — according to critics — a question of when and not if. now, after being under pressure for many, many weeks, the head of the environmental protection agency, scott pruitt, has stepped down. his resignation follows a series of ethics scandals that have dogged his tenure. president trump announced it in his usual way, by tweeting. he said: "i have

lebo diseko reports. this is the woman that poland will be watching on wednesday.ahead of the supreme court. she was supposed to step at midnight, in line with a new law cutting the retirement age the supreme courtjudges law cutting the retirement age the supreme court judges from law cutting the retirement age the supreme courtjudges from 70 265. it means around one third of the country's judiciary could lose their jobs unless the president extends their terms. but ma gorzata gersdorf says she will defy the new legislation which she has called a purge. translation: as far as my status is concerned, it has not changed after talks with the president. tomorrow i will come to work. i have a six year term in line with a constitution and i have to act in accordance with the constitution. i have appointed a judge, the president of the chamber of flavour and social security, to perform duties during my absence because i intend to go on vacation. i think because i intend to go on vacation. ithinki because i intend to go on vacation. i think i deserve it. her because i inte

lebo diseko has more.st cell, beate zschaepe was found guilty of ten racially motivated murders. for the families of the victims, this day has been a long time coming — a five—year trial almost two decades after the first killing. zschaepe's gang, called the nationalist socialist underground, or nsu, murdered eight ethnic—turkish people, a greek citizen and a policewoman between 2000 and 2007. she denied taking part in the murders, saying she only knew of them after they had happened. she blamed two members of the msu. they killed themselves in an apparent suicide pact. but the court found she was responsible, and gave a verdict that carries an automatic life sentence. translation: i believe that the sentence imposed on ms zschaepe, for life imprisonment, is a substantial and right. she is not a woman who was in the wrong place at the wrong time. she is a nazi, a racist, and a murderer. there has been anger at what many see as the failures of the police, who at first blamed the killings on immigrant gang v

lebo diseko reports.miles and hello as some of the 12 boys give a traditional thai greeting, say their nicknames and that they are in good health. with them, are thai navy seal who tells them, are thai navy seal who tells them the whole world has been following our story. there is even a moment of laughter as one of the boys sissy was forgotten in the round of introductions. watching on a monitor outside the entrance, their mothers. translation: i am so glad he is alive and safe, i am speechless and i want to thank everyone who helped, thank you very much. translation: i am dying to see him, i miss my son. but getting the 12 boys and their coach out won't be easy. for one thing, none of the boys can swim in the dark passages are certified and parts that they will have to go through one by one. the boys will have to wait up to four months for the flooding to go down. water is being pumped out to try and stock levels were rising. and authorities say they won't rush to get the boys out. what is more importan

lebo diseko reports. make their voices heard.on the streets of the capital, managua, with one message. president daniel 0rtega needs to stand down. translation: i am here demanding justice, demanding a change. there are too many dead, too many tortured, too many people stifled unjustly only for having raised at voices against this government that is killing us, day after day. —— raise their voices. the protest started back in april over the cost of social security. they soon grew into an anti—government movement calling for democratic reforms. rights groups say demonstrators have faced a legal crackdown from security forces. they claim the deadliest day was last sunday, with 38 people killed in the violence. but president 0rtega still has his supporters, seen here confronting catholic airships days ago. the church has been trying to mediate between the government and opposition. it says it will continue trying to broker talks. president 0rtega is still rejecting calls for an early general election, saying he was democratically el

my name is lebo diseko.rotection agency quits afterjust five months. scott pruitt‘s facing at least a dozen investigations into his conduct. moving towards a trade war? a wide range of chinese exports will be hit by donald trump's twenty 5% tariffs from today. racing against the rain — rescuers step up their efforts to get the trapped boys out of a flooded cave in thailand before the weather worsens. police investigating the new novichok poisoning in britain say the victims probably picked up something used in the attack on sergei skripal, four months ago.

lebo diseko has more. are making matters worse, and the national weather service says it's expecting gusts of up to a0 kilometres per hour. no casualties reported, or buildings damaged yet, but hundreds of local residents have been evacuated. it's still not clear what caused the blaze, but this has been a particularly active fire season in the us. authorities say the risk is much higher than normal in many western states. by wednesday, this so—called county fire had ravaged more than 30,000 hectares of grass, bush and scrub. this area is famous for its wine growing and picturesque views. the fear now is, even when the fire is eventually put out, the damage to crops and businesses could be longer lasting. politicians in europe have rejected proposals for a controversial overhaul of eu copyright law in what is being the plans will now go back to parliament for further debate. the proposed reform, which had strong support from from artists including james blunt... my my name is james blunt. i have been so luc

lebo diseko reports. some of the 12 boys who had been missing in these caves give a traditional thai greeting, say their nicknames and, "we are in good health." with them, a thai navy seal, who tells them that the whole world has been following their story. there is even a moment of laughter as one of the boys says he was forgotten in the round of introductions. watching on a monitor outside the cave's entrance, their mums. translation: i am so glad they are still alive and safe. i am speechless. i want to thank everyone who helped. thank you very much. translation: i'm dying to see him. i miss my son. but getting the 12 boys and their coach out will not be easy. for one thing, none of the boys can swim. and the dark passages flooded with water are so narrow in parts, they would have to go through one by one. the boys may need to learn how to dive or have to wait up to four months for the flooding to go down. water is being pumped out to try and stop levels from rising. the local governors say they won't