live now to sydney, and our correspondent phil mercer. hi there, phil.people including the premier and emergency services minister come at the emergency service commissioner, are we expecting things to get worse? we are not expecting things to get worse? - are not expecting things to get any better by at least thursday. a new south wales government minister had been warning that sydney was bracing potentially for a rain bomb, the main dam, the main reservoir that supplies australia's biggest city west of the cbd is overflowing for the first time in five years. that is prompting authorities to order evacuations in certain parts of sydney. there was a mini tornado that hit one suburb as well but it has been extremely wet and authorities are warning that by the time this is all over towards the end of next week, parts of eastern australia could well have had one metre of rain injust a australia could well have had one metre of rain in just a week. australia could well have had one metre of rain injust a week. so, it is wet and getting wetter. m50 is wet and

phil mercer, bbc news, sydney.pe which triggered public outrage. abid malhi and shafqat ali bagga attacked the pakistani—french woman when she was stranded in her car on the side of a motorway — with her two children. police had questioned why she was alone so late at night. these comments sparked a public outcry — with thousands of women demanding justice and better protection for women. thousands of people are continuing to protest against the self—imposed military rule in myanmar — despite escalating violence. videos uploaded to social media show large crowds of people in the country's capital — naypyidaw — fleeing from live ammunition. according to the un, at least 149 people have died since the 1st of february — though the actual figure is thought to be much higher. large numbers of mourners in tanzania have been paying their respects to the late president, john magufuli, who died on wednesday. thousands have been filing past his flag—draped coffin at uhuru stadium in dar es salaam. there is no social distanci

from sydney, phil mercer reports.otentially facing a rain bomb. homes have been swamped. emergency crews have been responding to hundreds of calls for help. said's main reservoir is in the risk of flooding. —— the main reservoir in sydney is at risk of flooding. suburbs are at risk of flooding. we worry about do we escape or stay here. so what about now? we prepare my handbag and some things, ready to move. we are just inundated at the moment. the water is still rising, about one foot in the last hour. this is the worst i have seen it. last yearjust after christmas it was pretty bad as well but not this bad. lots of people might not get their houses flooded but will not get to work, the roads will be wrecked. across new south wales, australia's most populous state, residents in many low—lying areas have been told to leave. communities to the north of sydney have been badly affected. in parts of the mid and north coast regions which are experiencing a one in 100 year event there has been sustained damage to infrastruct

let's talk to our correspondent in sydney, phil mercer.ected was the level of funding, in particular in new south wales?— level of funding, in particular in new south wales? australia is a land well used to — new south wales? australia is a land well used to nature's _ new south wales? australia is a land well used to nature's extremes - new south wales? australia is a land well used to nature's extremes but . well used to nature's extremes but records are tumbling left, right and centre. the new south wales premier says parts of sydney are enduring a once in 50 year weather event and to the north parts of new south wales are in the midst of a once in 100 yearfreak weather event are in the midst of a once in 100 year freak weather event when you the freak storms were coming. the weather forecasting apparatus here in australia is severely punished by extremely sophisticated. it gave people warning to move themselves in livestock to higher ground. —— apparatus here in australia is extremely sophisticated. we knew it was going to rain but man

here's phil mercer.oads into rivers and fields into lakes. homes have been swamped, and emergency crews have responded to thousands of calls for help. for the first time in years, sydney's main reservoir is overflowing, putting suburbs at risk of flooding. we worry about, do we escape or stay here? we don't know. this is the worst i've seen it. last year, just after christmas it was pretty bad as well, but not this bad. there's going to be a lot. of people that maybe don't get their houses flooded, l but they won't get to work, the roads will be wrecked as well. across new south wales, australia's most populous state, residents in many low lying areas have been told to leave. communities to the north of sydney have been badly affected. i just want to say to everybody in new south wales who is experiencing that fear and anxiety, that our thoughts are with you and we'll get assistance to you as soon as we can. oh, my goodness. near the town of taree, a house was washed away down a river by floodwaters. it'

that's phil mercer in sydney.to be speaking to a resident, glenn schaefer in a coastal village to find out how they are coping there. do stay with us for that, that's coming up later in the programme. two other events now. the us defence secretary has refused to say whether american forces will leave afghanistan by the may deadline, which was announced by donald trump while he was president. lloyd austin was speaking after talks with the afghan leader, ashraf ghani, during a brief visit to kabul. he didn't refer directly to the peace talks with the taliban, which are taking place in qatar — but did say, he hoped a negotiated settlement to end the conflict could be reached. that process of reviewing the conditions that have been met or not met is ongoing. as you have seen with our efforts in doha, so, i will not care to comment on that, but what i will say is that it is obvious that the level of violence remains pretty high in the country. we would like to see that violence come down, and i think, if it does come d

phil mercer, bbc news, orange, in new south wales. stay with us on bbc news, still to come.xplore the boom in caravaning. today, we have closed the book on apartheid, and that chapter. more than 3000 subway passengers were affected. nausea, bleeding, headaches and a dimming of vision. all of this caused by an apparently organised attack. the trophy itself was on a pedestal in the middle of the cabinet here. now, this was an international trophy, and we understand that the search for it has become an international search. above all, this was a triumph for the christian democrats of the west, offering reunification as quickly as possible, and that's what the voters wanted. this is bbc world news, the latest headlines. boris johnson expresses his "deep concerns" — about footage showing police officers detaining women — at a vigil in memory of sarah everard. martial law is imposed in more areas of yangon after one of the deadliest days since protests began against the myanmar coup last month. now, what is the most valuable private company that silicon valley has produced? you ma

phil mercer, bbc news, sydney.ast 2a hours. let's see how it is looking today, sarah? scottish champions rangers remain on course for an unbeaten season after a 1—1 draw in todays old firm. celtic went ahead in the first half through mohamed elyounoussi. but the sides were level before the break, alfredo morelos' first goal in 13 old firm derbies levelled things. rangers now have five matches left to complete a whole season without defeat. chelsea have got one foot in the fa cup semi—finals — they're1—0 up at home to sheffield united with just a few minutes left. thomas tuchel�*s side had a slice of luck to take a first half lead, ben chilwell�*s shot deflected in the unfortunate 0llie norwood of sheffield united. and the blades did have an excellent chance to equalise in the second half — david mcgoldrick really should have done better with this header. the last of those fa cup quarterfinals gets under way at 5 o clock with leicester city hosting manchester united. the game is live on bbc one. and the visitors to

phil mercer, bbc news, sydney.an when she was stranded in her car on the side of a motorway — with her two children. police had questioned why she was alone so late at night. these comments sparked a public outcry — with thousands of women demanding justice and better protection for women. thousands of people are continuing to protest against the self—imposed military rule in myanmar — despite escalating violence. videos uploaded to social media show large crowds of people in the country's capital — naypyitaw — fleeing from live ammunition. according to the un, at least 149 people have died since the 1st of february — though the actual figure is thought to be much higher. the uk government has been warned that its decision to slash billions of dollars from its overseas aid budget is illegal. britain's former top prosecutor ken mcdonald said the commitment to meet a un target of spending 0.7% of national income on foreign aid was enshrined in domestic law. 0ur diplomatic correspondent, james landale told us more abo

from sydney, phil mercer reports. wind farms are a part of corporate australia's action plan.a—cola and the telecom giant. it is one of the country's biggest consumers of electricity and has power to be —— might promise to be powered by 100% renewables by 2025. we by 10096 renewables by 2025. we have by 100% renewables by 2025. - have agreements we enter into with solar and wind farms which allows us to reduce our emissions ourselves and contributes to the decarbonisation of the grid because we are providing that confidence for people to invest in renewables. mil confidence for people to invest in renewables.— in renewables. all australian states and — in renewables. all australian states and territories - in renewables. all australian states and territories have i in renewables. all australian l states and territories have set a target of net zero emissions but the federal government is being accused of being delayed by refusing to see beyond the use of fossil fuels. the by refusing to see beyond the use of fossilfuels. the prime minister says his greenhouse gas policies are

phil mercer, some of the survivors say they still feel like they need more support?ngoing trauma for many of those bereaved families, and they say that the psychological scars may well be with them for ever. as we heard there the new zealand prime minister, jacinda ardern, the government is still trying its best to help those bereaved families. but many do believe they have fallen through the cracks and of course psychological scars will continue. but also for many, the physical scars still healing as well, that turkish man we referred to, that survivor, he has had seven surgeries with more to come, and he says for the rest of his life he will be carrying shrapnel within his body. and i think that is a potent symbol. here we have a man walking around new zealand, or trying to walk around as best he can, with structural steel in his body. that really is a very potent symbol of the pain, the ongoing pain, that many people still feel. it ongoing pain, that many people still feel. ., , ongoing pain, that many people still feel. . , , ongoing pain, that many people stillf

let's speak now to our correspondent in sydney, phil mercer. nice to see you, phil.es government have been warning that the city of sydney, the most populous city in the country, was in the path of a "rain bomb." they don't seem to be wrong. this was an extreme event hitting sydney. authorities are now saying parts of western sydney are in the grip of a weather system that is a once in 50 years event. now, the main reservoir supplying sydney, the warragamba dam, is overflowing for the first time in about five years. that is making nearby suburbs extremely vulnerable to flooding. thousands of people could well be ordered to leave their homes. many other low—lying communities have been ordered to evacuate. many thousands of calls have been received by emergency authorities, rescuing people from floodwaters. the surf is absolutely wild. you know of at least one swimmer who has gone missing, to the north of sydney. —— we know. is there a respite on the way, yes, but we may have to wait until the end of the week but to happen. in the meantime the rollout of the coronaviru

next, lets hearfrom phil mercer in sydney.orkplace culture in parliament house, but that whistle—blower who revealed those lewd videos in the last 24 hours said that amongst some of his colleagues in federal parliament, they had displayed behaviour that was morally bankrupt. and here's australian independent mp zali steggall on what she thinks should happen next. am i surprised? sadly, probably not and itjust speaks more about the leadership that is needed in this place and the clean up that is needed in this place in terms of the workplace culture, the people employed, the terms on which they're employed. there needs to be clearly a full review of what are the acceptable conducts and standards of conduct in this place. the governmentjust deflects, constantly delays addressing these issues. clearly there is a problem and it has to be addressed. now, some potentially earth—shattering news. scientists working at the large hadron collider at cern in switzerland have made a breakthrough discovery about how a certain subatomic part

phil mercer over the next few days will turn much more unsettled, much weather we have been used to —ming our way, but there is a lot of dry weather and a fair bet of sunshine before it does. a weak weather front takes cloud and the odd spot of rain with age, but in light breezes with temperatures between about 11 and 13, it will feel quite pleasant —— the odd spot of rain with it. in northern ireland in western scotland, rain by mid—afternoon and strengthening winds. these black circles represent the strength of the wind gusts and they increase as we go through the night. gusts of up to 75 mph across the north—west of scotland as the rain advance south and east. the rain will clear over scotland and northern ireland, some of the showers will be wintry. wet for england and wales tomorrow, more rain to northern ireland, pushing into scotland, 80 degrees in aberdeen to about 12 towards cardiff —— eight degrees in aberdeen. the gusts will strengthen over the overnight period into thursday morning, which you can see by looking at the squeeze on the isobars. in line gales and severe gales

let's speak to phil mercer, who's in sydney.appening in? i'm not sure what the collective noun for mice _ happening in? i'm not sure what the collective noun for mice is. - happening in? i'm not sure what the collective noun for mice is. is - happening in? i'm not sure what the collective noun for mice is. is it - happening in? i'm not sure what the collective noun for mice is. is it a i collective noun for mice is. is it a miss cheap or a carpetbut some of images on social media shows farms have been overrun by thousands of mice. they are prolific breeders and there is a cruel irony in all of this. many of these farms have enjoyed years of doubt. that drought is mostly over and has delivered a bumper harvest, but as you say, where there is more grain and food, there are inevitably more mice and farmers say that in many parts of eastern australia, they have been inundated. it is notjust an agricultural problem. several people are in hospital and had been bitten and we are hearing that elderly residents have been powerless to sto