shaun hassett reports. get to the back... the upper floors of a building in downtown new orleans gave way. still under construction, it was set to be a new hard rock hotel, now it is a disaster site. there was lots of noise. we saw workers up there. i mean, it was crazy. ijust can't even imagine what was going on up there. it sounded like — we thought it was gunfire but it wasn't gunfire, it was a building collapsing. construction workers ran for their lives, as the building crumbled around them. some escaped injury by a matter of metres. this man was on the 18th floor at the time. i turn around and i see one guy lose his balance and he kind of fell on the concrete and things werejust... smoke started coming from everywhere so i could not really see where, you know, the problem started at, but the concrete started falling. emergency crews were on the scene quickly, rescuing people from the rubble, then clearing the area around the building. a second part of the building fell off about an hour after the initial collapse. autho

shaun hassett, bbc news.ss protests against austerity measures in ecuador has vowed to continue the demonstrations. the government has ordered toops to take over responsibility for security in the capital, quito. azadeh moshiri reports. a sign that the state appears to be losing control, protesters occupy the roof of a government building. the violence appears to be worsening, more than a week after it began. the police response, tear gas and hoses, while protesters build barricades and set fires to tyres. the demonstrators are demanding the government scrap austerity measures. fuel prices more than doubled when subsidies were removed. since the protest began last week, hundreds of people have been arrested, and at least one protester has died. reacting to these chaotic scenes, president lenin moreno has placed the capital under strict curfew and military control, insisting he would restore order in all of ecuador. indigenous leaders have accepted to hold direct talks with the president, the first sign of a p

shaun hassett, bbc news.they will no longer prioritise guarding islamic state detainees if turkey's offensive continues. torrential rain and fierce winds have claimed seven lives injapan in the country's worst storm for 60 years. there have been big celebrations in kenya and elsewhere, that's after long—distance runner eliud kipchoge became the first person to complete a marathon in under two hours. in a feat of seemingly super—human endeavour, he made it through the finish line in1 hour, 59 minutes and a0 seconds. the reigning olympic champion, who also holds the official marathon record, was cheered on by huge crowds around a specially—designed course in the austrian capital, vienna. we can now speak to the long—distance runner ryan hall, who is the only american to run a marathon under two hours and five minutes. hejoins us from flagstaff, arizona. ryan, thanks so much forjoining us on bbc news. first of all, your reaction to what is obviously an incredible feat? it was so exciting. when everyone breaks th

shaun hassett, bbc news.ision to pull us forces out of north—eastern syria has opened the way for turkey to launch an attack on kurdish fighters across the border. now — in global questions — we ask if turkey is bidding to become the powerhouse of the region? this week, turkey has launched an assault on territory held by kurdish that forces, key allies of the united states in the region after president trump announced washington was withdrawing its troops from northern syria, effectively giving turkey a green light for its offensive. president erdogan says the aim is to prevent the creation ofa the aim is to prevent the creation of a terror corridor on the border. jackie plan is to create a safe zone, creative kurdish militias that will how's syrian refugees. global questions travel to istanbul to discuss turkey ‘s role as a regional power. hello, iam in istanbul recording this edition of global questions on turkey's role as a regional power. you work at, i have to say a broadly pro—government think tank in i

shaun hassett, bbc news. to come: we take a special look at how social media makes big profits out of our personal data. 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 are more conscious than ever of how much has been destroyed. in the 19 years since he was last here, he has gone from being a little—known revolutionary to an experienced and successful diplomatic operator. it was a 20—pound bomb which 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 of earthly honours. this catholic nation held its breath for the men they called the 33. and then, bells tolled nationwide to announce the first rescue and chile let out an almighty roar. this is bbc news. the latest headlines: heavy fighting continues as turkey presse

shaun hassett has more. get to the back...s of the building gave way. still under construction, it was said to be a new hard rock hotel, now it is a disaster side. there were lots of noise. we saw workers up there. it was crazy. i cannot even imagine what it was like up there. we thought it was gunfire but it wasn't, it was a building collapsing. construction workers run for their lives, some escaped injury bya for their lives, some escaped injury by a matter of metres. this man was on the 18th floor at the time. by a matter of metres. this man was on the 18th floor at the timelj by a matter of metres. this man was on the 18th floor at the time. i saw one guy kind of fall. things... smoke started coming from everywhere so smoke started coming from everywhere soi smoke started coming from everywhere so i could not really see where the problem started. emergency crews we re problem started. emergency crews were on the scene quickly, rescuing people from the rubble than clearing the area around the building. a second part of the