with more from bei'ing, here stephen mcdonell. ., , ., ., , mcdonell. the great _ mcdonell. thousands of delegates down of the great heart _ mcdonell. thousands of delegates down of the great heart of - mcdonell. thousands of delegates down of the great heart of the - -- all —— all of the people are not aware the city hosting the communist party congress has started to implement localised lockdowns. i say they are possibly not aware because those delegates are in isolation, to stop them from being infected. at the moment in beijing, it is at the housing estate, housing compound type level, where there are lockdowns being imposed. if you are a contact if someone infected or contact of the contact, you have to stay at home. if you have to a part of the city deemed high risk, your health code will change colour. you are also ordered to stay at home. earlier this week, china�*s leader xi jinping said that the no swerving from the zero covid approach, despite this is having a huge impact on the economy. we don�*t really know the latest figures, in terms of t

stephen mcdonell reports.jinping led out china's new leadership team in order of rank, with him at the top. it confirmed one of the world's worst kept secrets, that he'd officially broken the mould in place for decades limiting party bosses to two terms in power, lest anyone become too strong. it would have taken a bold conference delegate to oppose this move, which leaves mr xi at the helm for as long as he likes. translation: china is embarking on a long journey filled _ with glory and dreams. the road map has been drawn and the bugle has been sounded. again, there were no women on the seven—person politburo standing committee, the group at the top of china's governance system, now stacked with xi loyalists. the appointment of li keqiang as premier will concern some. he oversaw the disastrous months—long shanghai lockdown with significant food shortages. now mr li is in charge of managing china's economy. i think the appointment of li keqiang as the premier shows that xijinping is not principally interested

stephen mcdonell reports.nping led out china's new leadership team in order of rank, with him at the top. it confirmed one of the world's worst kept secrets, that he'd officially broken the mould in place for decades limiting party bosses to two terms in power, lest anyone become too strong. it would have taken a bold conference delegate to oppose this move, which leaves mr xi at the helm for as long as he likes. translation: china is embarking on a long journey filled _ with glory and dreams. the road map has been drawn and the bugle has been sounded. again, there were no women on the seven—person politburo standing committee, the group at the top of china's governance system, now stacked with xi loyalists. the appointment of li keqiang as premier will concern some. he oversaw the disastrous months—long shanghai lockdown with significant food shortages. now mr li is in charge of managing china's economy. i think the appointment of li keqiang as the premier shows that xijinping is not principally interested in

stephen mcdonell, bbc news, beijing.r levels because of heavy rainfall in brazil — up from 1.5 million litres per second to more than 16 million litres per second. the falls are classed as one of the seven new natural wonders of the world and are a popular tourist attraction. fears over the fast—moving water have meant that footpaths have been closed for weeks. the auction of a 150—million—year—old dinosaur fossil takes place in paris later this week. zephyr was an iguanodon and its remains were found in what is modern—day colorado. it's estimated this dinosaur skeleton could sell for around $500,000, as the bbc�*s tim allman explains. meet zephyr. the dinosaur who will fit in your front room. well, it would have to be quite a big front room but, as dinosaurs go, zephyr is fairly diminutive. part of the iguanodon family, it's no more than about 1.5m in height and around 3m in length. small, but remarkable nonetheless. translation: the interesting thing about zephyr, firstly, - its provenance, because it was found in one

stephen mcdonell, bbc news, beijing. now to sue—lin wong, china correspondent for the economist and host of the prince — a podcast series about xijinping's rise to power and how he has consolidated it. shejoins us from beijing. thank you forjoining us. i have been listening to your podcast and one of the thing thatis podcast and one of the thing that is striking to me is the amount of access you have had to his childhood friends and people who knew him early in his career. so what exactly do we know about president xi from these people? xi we know about president xi from these maple?— these people? xijinping had an incredibly traumatic _ these people? xijinping had an incredibly traumatic childhood. | incredibly traumatic childhood. he was born into communist party royalty. his father fought alongside mao zedong and is considered a founding father of the people's republic of china, but when he was nine years old, his dad was purged, and xijinping became, he was labelled a counterrevolutionary. mao zedong's red guard atta

stephen mcdonell, bbc news, beijing.or a crackdown on the kinds of protests used by some environmental groups. ms braverman said she wanted to stop protestors holding the public to ransom. activists say they won't be intimidated by changes to the law. there has historically been a right to protest in this country which has been used by all kinds of campaigns, and the climate nature crisis is so serious that anything this government does to clamp down on it will not stop it, it may even intensify it, at the moment, it's very peaceful and everybody is really grounded in that, and i would hate for them to push it so far that people feel pushed to take even more severe action. it's so simple to get us off the streets, it is just to act on the climate and nature crisis. i think it's a disgrace that the government is trying to prevent us from telling the truth and exercising our human right to assemble and to protest, and we will carry on. the more that the government tries to undermine democracy, the more we will continue tel

steve mcdonell, bbc news, xianbei. you're watching newsday on the bbc. we all love good news, especially in uncertain times like these. but is it really possible to see goodness all around, or are we just glossing over the challenges we face? we will explore this with the founder of the good news movement. parts of san francisco least affected by the earthquake are returning to life, but in the marina area where most of the damage was done, they're more conscious than ever of how much has been destroyed. in the 19 years since he was last here, he's gone from being a little—known revolutionary to an experienced and successful diplomatic operator. it was a 20—lb bomb that exploded on the fifth floor of the grand hotel, ripping a hole in the front of the building. this government will not weaken. | democracy will prevail. it fills me with humility and gratitude to know that i have been chosen as the recipient of this foremost honour. this catholic nation held its breath for the men they called the 33. and then... bells toll. ..bells tolled nationwide to ann

stephen mcdonell, bbc news, beijing.programme, but in the rugby league world cup, ireland had a comfortable win againstjamaica, and there was a shock defeat for scotland, as adam wild reports. a global competition, but in newcastle very much a european challenge. both scotland and italy are still developing as rugby league nations, but taking the game to new areas and crucially to new fans is all part of the world cup mission. it may only be their opening game, but for both, a feeling that this was a match crucial to any chance of progressing at this tournament. italy seemingly in no mood to wait, chasing from the start, luke polselli getting there first. scotland clinging on, within touching distance, just, at the break. after, italy broke away completely. jake maizen scoring three times to put beyond scotland the game and any real chance of making the knockout stages. and so deep disappointment for scotland. and with matches against fiji and reigning world champions australia still to come, this world cup isn't going t

steve mcdonell, bbc news, xianbei. island discs from the 19605 and �*70s have been discovered in a box of old reels. the interviews with a host of famous stars from bing crosby to margot fontaine are amateur recordings made by listeners at a time when programmes weren't automatically saved for the bbc�*s archive. let's take a listen to the lost recordings. desert island discs theme music. all the scenery, the costumes and everything were left behind in holland when the germans invaded that country, and we left rather hurriedly and in an improvised manner in what we were wearing and what we could wear on top of our ordinary clothes. i started writing when i was about 12 or 13, i think. i wrote some splendid plays when i come to think of it. i'd rather forgotten them! they were all very, very short. and one luxury to take| with you to the island? that will have to be a piano, although i don't know how it's going to stand up to the hurricanes and so forth. it will be an upright piano, - of course, so with an upright piano

stephen mcdonell, bbc news, beijing.w by charles parton, a former british diplomat who's worked in china for more than two decades and is now a fellow at the thinktank council on geo—strategy. thank you forjoining us. i want to begin by asking you, what did you think of president xi's speech yesterday?— think of president xi's speech esterda ? ~ ., , ., , ., yesterday? well, it was, as ever, a continuation _ yesterday? well, it was, as ever, a continuation of _ yesterday? well, it was, as ever, a continuation of what _ yesterday? well, it was, as ever, a continuation of what he _ yesterday? well, it was, as ever, a continuation of what he has - yesterday? well, it was, as ever, a continuation of what he has been i continuation of what he has been saying for the last ten years. i don't think it was unexpected, one wouldn't expect a whole raft of new policies or trends to come out. he is clear that the last ten years have been a great success and he seesit have been a great success and he sees it continuing. this was a sta

stephen mcdonell reports.w leadership team in order of rank, with him at the top. it confirmed one of the world's worst kept secrets, that he'd officially broken the mould in place for decades limiting party bosses to two terms in power, lest anyone become too strong. it would have taken a bold conference delegate to oppose this move, which leaves mr xi at the helm for as long as he likes. translation: china is embarking on a long journey filled _ with glory and dreams. the road map has been drawn and the bugle has been sounded. again, there were no women on the seven—person politburo standing committee, the group at the top of china's governance system, now stacked with xi loyalists. the appointment of li keqiang as premier will concern some. he oversaw the disastrous months—long shanghai lockdown with significant food shortages. now mr li is in charge of managing china's economy. i think the appointment of li keqiang as the premier shows that xijinping is not principally interested in the economy. he's never

our correspondent stephen mcdonell has the latest from there. applause.eam in order of rank with him at the top. it confirmed one of the worst kept secrets in the world, that he'd remain in power into a third term and potentially for as long as he likes — barring some unknown upheaval in the future. translation: china is embarking on a long journey filled _ with glory and dreams, and the bugle has been sounded. again, there were no women on the seven person politburo standing committee, a group stacked with xi loyalists. the appointment of li keqiang as premier will concern some. he oversaw the disastrous months—long shanghai lockdown with significant food shortages. now mr li is in charge of managing the chinese economy. i think the appointment of li keqiang as the premier shows that xijinping is not principally interested in the economy. he's never really been interested in the economy except as a political tool. china's new leadership faces exploding youth unemployment and a massive property crisis. they also have to generate economic activity while im

stephen mcdonell, bbc news, beijing.lier i spoke to sue—lin wong, china correspondent for the economist, and host of the prince, a podcast series about xijinping's rise to power, and how he has consolidated it. i asked what do we actually know about president xi. xijinping had an incredibly traumatic childhood. he was born into communist party royalty. his father bought allowance— royalty. his father bought allowance ., ., , ., ., allowance alongside mao zedong and is considered _ allowance alongside mao zedong and is considered a _ allowance alongside mao zedong and is considered a founding - and is considered a founding father— and is considered a founding father of— and is considered a founding father of the people's republic of china — father of the people's republic of china but when it xi jinping was nine _ of china but when it xi jinping was nine years old his dad was purged — was nine years old his dad was purged and xi jinping became at - was_ purged and xi jinping became at — was labelled a counterrevolutionary

stephen mcdonell, bbc news, beijing. tehran were killed and 61 others injured after a fire broke out there. four of the injured are said to be in critical condition. the evinjail houses hundreds of political prisoners, including some who were involved in recent anti—government demonstrations. azadeh moshiri reports. flames engulfing iran's notorious evin prison in the midst of widespread unrest. it's a scene that frightened iranians, both inside and outside the country. officials say a riot broke out between inmates. what people saw on social media was fires raging across the compound and gunshots heard in the distance. scenes of riot police and firefighters rushing to the prison did little to calm people's fears. for the inmates' families, it's pure panic. they rushed to evin, clogging the roads with traffic, trying to find out if their loved ones were safe. but evin is also known for housing hundreds of political prisoners, as well as dual nationals, which is what prompted this tweet by ned price, the us state departme

stephen mcdonell, bbc news, beijing.d nearly a0 minutes late after a power failure led to technical problems with some of the referee's equipment at elland road. a win for arsenal would take them four point clear at the top. and they have just called to take the lead as they approach half—time. elsewhere there are leaves for chelsea and southampton. that is the latest from manchester united and newcastle united who are yet to break from deadlock. the late kick off in the premier league is a big one. but today's fixture between liverpool and manchester city might feel a little different. city are looking unstoppable with erling haaland at the helm while liverpool sit 11th in table after a poor run of domestic form to start the season. this game requires all of your focus, all the things you know about football. i enjoy preparing the game, but it is the biggest challenge to face in football because football is all about closing down spaces and players, it's a home game, it's anfield, it is us against man city, at the momen

stephen mcdonell, bbc news, beijing.oners have died from smoke inhalation after a fire at a prison in tehran which holds hundreds of political prisoners as well as foreign detainees. 0ther unconfirmed reports suggest that around 60 people have been injured. foreign governments, including the uk and the united states, have expressed concern. evin prison also holds inmates who've taken part in a wave of anti—government protests in recent weeks. at the women's rugby union world cup, wales have been thrashed by the hosts new zealand in their latest group match. the reigning champions ran in ten tries in auckland to beat wales by 56—12. joe lynskey reports. wales came to auckland with hope — they'd played one and won one — but now faced down the team to beat. this is new zealand — the world cup hosts and reigning champions — and who wales have never beaten. they were kept at bay for 16 minutes... donna rose, try! ..but then the black ferns forced through. that would be the first of ten new zealand tries. in all forms of rugby

stephen mcdonell, bbc news, beijing.rs, with the cost of living crisis continuing to squeeze household budgets. 0ne community group in middlesbrough helping people to put food on the table, say they're busier than ever — but are concerned that public donations are beginning to dry up. stuart whincup reports. itwas 30 or it was 30 or a0 weeks, it is now jumped to hundred. they have around 300 people living in crisis. now, it barely receives any. every day there — now, it barely receives any. every day there was _ now, it barely receives any. every day there was some _ now, it barely receives any. every day there was some come - now, it barely receives any. every day there was some come with . now, it barely receives any. every day there was some come with a i now, it barely receives any. every. day there was some come with a bag or box— day there was some come with a bag or box or— day there was some come with a bag or box or someone _ day there was some come with a bag or box or someone would _ day there was some come wi

stephen mcdonell, bbc news, beijing. sight in one eye and the use of one hand — his agent has confirmed. the author was stabbed in the neck and the abdomen at a literary event in new york in august. he received death threats from iran in the 1980s after his novel the satanic verses was published. this is bbc news. it comes as ukraine's army claims russian forces are continuing to retreat from the city of kherson in the south. defending troops are continuing to launch counter offensives towards the west of the regional capital and say invading forces are setting up new positions across the dnipro river. moscow's been accused of placing explosives on a key dam as it pulls out — which it denies. 0ur ukraine correspondentjames waterhouse has been to some of recently liberated villages in the area. in the kherson region, there is activity, military movements back and forth from ukraine's counter—offensive, a logistical artery weaving through recently liberated villages. after months of shelling, it's finally quiet. ukraine is

stephen mcdonell reports.ople are possibly not aware that the city, which is hosting the communist party congress, has started to implement localised lockdown. now i say they are possibly not aware because most delegates are in isolation to stop them from being infected. at the moment, in beijing though, it is at the housing estate, housing compound type level, where there are lockdowns being imposed. if you are a contact with someone who has been infected or a contact of a contact, you have to stay home. if you've been to a part of the city deemed to be high risk, your health code will change colour and it will also order you to stay home. earlier this week, china's leader xijinping said there would be no swerving from the zero—covid approach. despite the fact that this is having a huge impact on the economy. we don't really know the latest figures in terms of that impact, because gdp figures which were supposed to come out this week, have been delayed. presumably because it would be more bad economic news. d

stephen mcdonell reports from beijing.t hall of the people as a leader confident that he enjoys unchecked power. but what many wanted to hear from him was whether covid lockdowns and travel restrictions might soon be eased. the short answer — no. translation: people's lives come first. - we will not waver in our zero covid policy. there was no acknowledgement of the pain this country has suffered, that cities have shut down for months on end, nor the rising youth unemployment as businesses close their doors. translation: the epidemic has really hit that economy, - and i was hoping to hear new policy to help people. if we could find a job . we wouldn't be studying for a masters degree right now. on matters of great international concern, mr xi said he wouldn't rule out taking taiwan by force. china considers the self—governing island part of its territory, and military drills have accompanied rising tensions in recent months. he also defended the hong kong crackdown, which he said had restored order. a few days ago protest

stephen mcdonell, bbc news, beijing. you're watching newsday on the bbc.more russian forces retreat from the southern kherson region, our correspondent pays a visit to some of the recently liberated villages. indira gandhi, ruler of the world's largest democracy, died today. only yesterday, she had spoken of dying in the service of her country and said, i would be proud of it, every drop of my blood will contribute to the growth of this nation. after 46 years of unhappiness, these two countries have concluded a chapter of history. no more suspicion, no more fear, no more uncertainty of what each day might bring. booster ignition, and lift—off of discovery with the crew of six astronaut heroes and one american legend. well, enjoying the show is right, this is beautiful. a milestone in human history. born today, this girl in india is the 7,000,000,000th person on the planet. this is newsday on the bbc. i'm mariko oi in singapore. our headlines... and then there were two. borisjohnson drops out of the race to be tory leader and prime minister — leaving rishi

our correspondent steve mcdonell has more from beijing. xxxxxx.om these incredible events in the great hall of the people is that china's former leader when asked to leave doesn't want to go, and you have to ask yourself, why, what is going on? because he represents a type of government so different to the way things are done now. a period of opening up to the outside world, collective leadership, speculation has first turned to the possibility that this was a piece of political theatre, that he was being symbolically removed to show who is really in charge. but then when you look at the footage more closely, he doesn't seem to be well, at times he doesn't seem to know what's going on. if there were legitimate health reasons, though, for him to be removed, why did hu jintao have to go so suddenly, and why do it in front of the cameras? unfortunately, china's system is so opaque that we are getting nothing else from the government by way of explanation. earlier i wasjoined by earlier i was joined by a specialist from the university of california, s

was behind the move, during what's usually a highly choreographed event. 0ur correspondent, steve mcdonell a lot of people scratching their heads wondering what's going on. i think to unpack this, it's probably best to take it chronologically. so the morning session initially was behind closed doors. then the second part of the last day at the congress, some journalists were allowed into the great hall of the people. hu jintao was sitting in the front row on stage and then in front of the cameras, several officials came along and said to him, you could see the ushering, "you should go." he looks like he doesn't want to leave. but then he says something to xijinping, who nods. he tapped his protege, li keqiang, on the shoulder and is helped off the stage. now there are only two possibilities, really. one is that this is sort of chinese power politics on display with xi jinping out with the old in with him. you know, there's something like that. and that was people's initial feeling, the initial thought of what was going on. really, though, i think what's much more likely is that it's someth

steve mcdonell, bbc news, xianbei.ess on the bbc website. it is due to kick—off sunday and will see around 2300 officials and party delegates descending on the capitol. also, more on that rare protest we have been telling you about again on the bbc site or simply downloaded the bbc news app. well, on this programme we have had news and reports about flooding, haven't we? financial meltdown, the rise of the cost of living. does it seem familiar? it seems there is no end to the avalanche of bad news around us so is there a more positive way of looking at the world or does that riskjust glossing over the challenges that we all face? i have been speaking to michelle figueroa, the founding of the instagram account good news movement. here is what she thinks. mi; news movement. here is what she thinks. g ., , news movement. here is what she thinks. g , thinks. my “0b is during good news is thinks. my job is during good news is seven _ thinks. my job is during good news is seven days _ thinks. my job is during good news is se

the bbc�*s stephen mcdonell is in beijing and has been watching events at the congress.he most important thing for most chinese people was to hear whether or not there might be an easing of the country's covid restrictions after the party congress. the short answer is no. the mass testing, the lockdowns, the scanning, the quarantine, they're all to stay. xijinping said there'd be no wavering on zero covid, because of the need to save people's lives. however, there was no acknowledgement in the speech of the pain that zero covid is causing economically and socially. in fact, on several fronts, there was nothing from china's leader, for example, nothing about youth unemployment, nothing about the housing crisis. in fact, it was a two—hour speech, very long on standard rhetoric and very short on actual practical solutions to the serious problems that this country is facing. when it comes to hong kong, he defended the crackdown there, saying that order has been restored. with taiwan, he said that his administration would genuinely seek peaceful reunification with taiwan, how

stephen mcdonell, bbc news, beijing. stay with us on bbc news.oom. the small skeleton that could sell for a big price. a historic moment that many of his victims have waited for four decades — the former dictator in the dock older, slimmer and as he sat down, obedient enough.— slimmer and as he sat down, obedient enough. dawn and as the sun breaks _ obedient enough. dawn and as the sun breaks through - obedient enough. dawn and as the sun breaks through the - the sun breaks through the piercing _ the sun breaks through the piercing chill of night on the plane — piercing chill of night on the plane outside corum, it lights up plane outside corum, it lights up a _ plane outside corum, it lights up a biblicalfamine now plane outside corum, it lights up a biblical famine now in the 20th— up a biblical famine now in the 20th century. up a biblical famine now in the 20th century-— 20th century. the depressing conclusion, _ 20th century. the depressing conclusion, in _ 20th century. the depressing conclusion, in argentina - 20th century. the depressing

our china correspondent stephen mcdonell has the latest from beijing.third term and can now stay in powerfor as long as he likes. barring some unforeseen political upheaval in the future. now, when xijinping revealed the new standing committee today, the top leadership of the country, it was stacked with xi jinping loyalists. and most significantly, he has put the man who was in charge of the disastrous shanghai lockdown, a lockdown in which tens of millions of people were confined to their homes for months on end with significant food shortages, that is the person who has been placed in charge of the economy. it is hard to imagine that you can't find somebody in this enormous party a bit better qualified to manage this huge significant economy, and yet there you have it. i think analysts will see this as an example of loyalty to xijinping trumping proven ability. the communist party, for all its other faults, the communist party, for all its otherfaults, had in the past said it was a meritocracy. and you wonder how you can stack up that appointment as

miracles of rapid economic development and long—term social stability. 0ur china correspondent stephen mcdonellusly considered that this communist party congress would have done anything but reinforced xi jinping as the leader of china, and that's exactly what's happened. he's now moved into his historic third term, and can now stay in powerfor as long as he likes, barring some unforeseen political upheaval in the future. now, when xijinping revealed the new politburo standing committee today, the top leadership team of the country, it was stacked with xi loyalists and, most significantly, he's made li keqiang the new number two leader, therefore the person in charge of the economy and now he's put the man who was in charge of the disastrous shanghai lockdown, a lockdown in which tens of millions of people were confined to their homes for months on end, with significant food shortages, that's the person who has been placed in charge of the economy. it's hard to imagine that you can't find somebody in this enormous party a bit better qualified to manage this huge, significant economy, and yet, t

when they saw steve mcdonell in that wheelchair, it can only cause you to think about what happens toup waits a split second, do you know what happens to him? they become a -- >> ladies and gentlemen, i'm going to ask you to retire to the jury room. >> the judge stopped the trial, asked the jury to take a break. and then immediately got angry with what the defense was up to. >> he had no right to be brought into this courtroom after we started the morning session! it is a terrible thing that has been done! a terrible thing! >> i know what it was, to make the jurors look at him to say that this is what could've happened to one of the other cops. but that had nothing to do with this, to me, this incident had nothing to do with it. >> there has to be something done, absolutely, unequivocally in relation to the officials and spectators. the state police, beginning monday, will be taken care of. this is security and any job of admission into this courtroom. >> the new jersey state police came in and replaced the burton county sheriff's department as security for the trial. >> i don't know