we've seen a very bullish response from both the dup and sinn fein to the announcement of those talksmay the 7th. while welcoming those talks, they've reallyjust restated their positions from the collapse of the previous talks process. arlene foster, the leader of the dup, she has called for a parallel process for devolution to be restored while a separate talks process takes place to deal with the issues that remain unresolved, such as an irish language act and the legalisation of same—sex marriage, but sinn fein has rejected that. they say those issues need to be dealt with before any resolution of devolution. so really it is hard to see where the two governments will find compromise in this talks process, particularly as it begins in the middle of a european election campaign. as you say, european elections, and therefore that is merely going to add to the partisan nature of the politics at the moment, and make it even more polarised, not less, but is there a prospect that the two parties could emerge from that by the end of may, there are english local elections at the beginning o

the issues dividing, particularly the two main parties there, the democratic unions and sinn fein arewant to for example the dup do not want to legalize same—sex marriage in northern ireland, sinn fein do. there are disagreements on how you investigate hundreds of unsolved killings from the troubles, the parties are far apart on brexit, the dep are brexiteers, sinn fein say brexit will be a disaster for this part of the world. and perhaps the biggest sticking point in previous negotiations which haven't worked out has been that sinn fein want a stand—alone piece of legislation to protect and promote the irish language. the dep feel that is a step too far for them and their supporters. so everybody‘s making it clear at the next few weeks will be hard, the talks will start on tuesday the 7th of may, nonetheless, all the parties involved in the government say they are committed to restoring devolution, that they're going to work in that spirit, whether or not there will be in agreement that the end of may were governments as they will review things, at the moment, very hard to tell, we s

there is still plenty of issues dividing them, for example the issue of same—sex marriage, sinn feindup don't. the dup are in favour of brexit and sinn fein has said it will be a disaster for this part of the world. also big disagreement on the troubles and whether there should be legal protection for the irish language. the parties have started to give their reaction to news that there will be a talks process and we have heard from the vice president of sinn fein michelle o'neill. there is an onus on all of us to find a way forward. i don't think the electorate would thank us. we need to test it and see if there is a way forward. we are determined to get stormont up and running again but it has to be credible. as for sinn fein‘s form a partnership, the democratic unionist party, arlene foster has said that the dup won't be found wanting in any talks process saying that northern ireland needs a sustainable assembly and thatis needs a sustainable assembly and that is best delivered through working together with other parties. so on the whole positive sentiment is from the parties is a

sinn fein do. there is the issue of investigating unsolved killings from the troubles.rhaps the biggest sticking point in previous negotiations which has not worked out has been that sinn fein wants a stand—alone piece of legislation to promote the irish language. the dup feel that is a step too farfor them language. the dup feel that is a step too far for them and their supporters. so everyone is making it plain the next few weeks will be hard, talks will start on tuesday, the 7th of may, but nonetheless, all the 7th of may, but nonetheless, all the parties in the north and the government say they are committed to restoring devolution, that they are going to work in that spirit. whether or not they will be an agreement by the end of may, when the government say they will review things, well, at the moment, very ha rd to things, well, at the moment, very hard to tell. we should get an idea of progress when the talks to begin. there is no doubt they will be far from straightforward, though. chris page there. joining me now from the vale of neath in wales is the former no

, father mcgill, i watched sinn fein, and that extraordinary, father mcgill, iwatched it sinn fein, andll, i watched it live at lyra mckee's funeral, says what in gods name has the death of a 29—year—old... gods name has the death of a 29-year-old. .. it gods name has the death of a 29-year-old... it made gods name has the death of a 29-year-old. .. it made a gods name has the death of a 29-year-old... it made a real impact. i saw terrace free to target tourist hot the suggestion that... as they lose the territory, we knew that because they call themselves islamic state, it is not a state, they have lost the geographic supremacy and territory are so apparently it has freed up a lot of different terrace in different countries to actually target foreigners and this, it is not a new tactic, we are talking about the maldives, east african results in kenny, tanzania which are the most vulnerable and this will be on the one hand people will think it is scaremongering, but it is important for people to be aware of that. that is them losing in serious. that's it for the papers this hour. john s

they include for example same—sex marriage, sinn fein want gay marriage, sinn fein want gay marriageuble should be investigated and perhaps the biggest sticking point, legal recognition for the irish language, sinn fein wa nt for the irish language, sinn fein want a new law to protect it, the dup do not want that. a change in the dynamic caused as you say by the murder of thejournalist the dynamic caused as you say by the murder of the journalist lee rudnicki in londonderry just murder of the journalist lee rudnicki in londonderryjust over a week ago. there has been unprecedented public outrage about the murder of a young woman killed. —— lyra mckee. there‘s been increase pressure on politicians to try and get power—sharing back, no one thinks if stormont returns that would mean dissident republicans give up violence but it means, many would say, send and in powerful —— powerful and important message that northern ireland wants a stable future. chris, some suggestions there might be an attempt to try and compartmentalise to one side, some of the big issues that divide the two main pa

dup and sinn fein politicians also attended the service at st anne's cathedral in belfast.ovation when father martin magill demanded to know why it had taken a murder to bring the two sides together, asking — "why in god's name does it take the death of a 29—year—old woman with her whole life in front of her to get to this point?" power—sharing in northern ireland broke down injanuary 2017 — and sinn fein and the dup have been in a stand—off ever since. so what, if anything has changed? here's jayne mccormack. what we're hearing is dup has promised a time—limited process to restore the assembly immediately alongside a tox process to resolve high standing issues, including culture and language. sinn fein rejected that proposal when it was first proposed back in 2017, and it says that as of right now, it has set out clear terms that it wants to see the us and be restored on the basis of rights and equality. —— assembly restored. so at this moment in time, there is no indication that anything significant has changed, back over to the british and the irish governments to see if

sinn fein said it was "heartbreaking". those people who carried out this attack have no place in society. those people who carried out this attack do not have any support. those people who carried out this attack have attacked all of us. climate change protests in london are entering their fifth day, with more than 1,000 police officers deployed to cover the demonstrations over the easter weekend. local authorities are accused of the social cleansing of people who rough sleep, beg or loiter by misusing council powers to issue fines. this is the scene live in paris where notre—dame cathedral services have been moved elsewhere, as firefighters continue working to ensure no further fires erupt. two women have died after they got into difficulties in the water off aberdeen beach. chelsea and arsenal are through to the europa league semi—finals. good morning and welcome to bbc news. a journalist has been shot dead in londonderry in what police are treating as a terrorist incident. dissident republicans are being blamed for the

attended a vigil in londonderry where lyra mckee was shot, leaders of the dup, the uup, the sdlp, sinn fein the green party standing as one. they have released a joint statement earlier in the day saying the killing was a pointless and futile act to try to wreck the progress made in the past 20 years. yesterday was good friday, the good friday agreement was signed on good friday in 1998. there has been a universal condemnation from politicians here of the killing and many have attended other vigils. there will be more vigils across northern ireland today, perhaps indicative of the horror and revulsion that this young woman plasma killing has provoked across the community. the group police are blaming for the murder are known as the new ira. let's find out more about them by speaking to henry mcdonald — he's a journalist based in belfast who has written several books about irish republicanism. good to speak to you again despite the circumstances. who are the new ira? they are an organisation formed in 2012, theirfirst ira? they are an organisation formed in 2012, their first communique was g

of course, the talks last year ended because there wasn't a deal and, you know, no amount of sinn fein it a deal because if there is to be a deal, it has to be agreed by both sides. the events in derry which led to lyra mckee‘s death were a throwback to northern ireland's past. the question now is whether this tragedy can lead to political change for the future. emma vardy reporting. the former northern ireland secretary, lord hain said that the longer a stormont government remained out of action, the more difficult it would be to maintain a working relationship between the parties as outlined in the good friday agreement. i'm sorry to say it in blunt terms, but if a political vacuum is created, that is filled by extremists. we saw so terribly late last week, the consequences of that, and politicians have got to step up to the market, and that doesn'tjust include the leaders of the dup and sinn fein, both of whom are culpable in all of this, but it also means both prime ministers of both governments. talking of consequences, let's just say if no deal is agreed in these talks, are we ta

homily for lyra mckee that those people who applaud it are not what you would regard as dup and sinn feint add as lyra mckee herself was, and in many ways the government have been forced because of this outpouring of sentiment, perhaps a little prematurely, because we have a convergence of circumstances in northern ireland which are mitigating against the possibility of resolving the differences between the dup and sinn fein in the immediate future. that would mainly be brexit looming large, the supply deal that the dup has with the tory government those are the two big issues, and also we are reaching a historical tipping point which is not spoken of at the moment in northern ireland, where nationalism is now, non—unionism i should say, is now, non—unionism i should say, is almost neck and neck with unionism in terms of electoral representation. if a deal is not reached, what is the likelihood that we could either go to another election or direct rule? how does that threat affect decisions made?” got the distinct impression that for the meantime the two governments we re the meantime the

funeral homily for lyra mckee, those people who applauded it are not what you would regard as dup and sinn feinmiddle ground as lyra mckee herself was, so in many ways the government's hand has been forced because of this outpouring of sentiment. perhaps a little prematurely, because we have a convergence of circumstances in northern ireland which are mitigating against the possibility of resolving the differences between the dup and sinn fein in the immediate future. that would mainly be brexit looming large, the confidence and supply deal that the dup has with the tory government. those are the two big issues, add also we are reaching perhaps a historical tipping point which is not spoken of at the moment, where nationalism, or non—unionism isn't there can with unionism in terms of their electoral representation. the headlines on bbc news: 15 bodies, including those of six children, are found by sri lankan security forces after a gun battle with islamist militants. the authorities say the militants set off explosives as troops surrounded a house in the east of the country. nearly 100 labour m

sinn fein said it was "heartbreaking". those people who carried out this attack have no place in society. those people who carried out this attack have no support. those people who have carried out this attack have attacked all of us. climate change protests in london are entering their fifth day. thousands of police officers are deployed to try to clear the demonstrators. local authorities are acused of the "social cleansing" of people who rough sleep, beg or loiter by misusing council powers to issue fines. two women, aged 22 and 36, have died in the water off aberdeen beach. police don't believe there are any suspicious circumstances. what's this? wow, i see it. and how queen's brian may wants to bring back a victorian technique used to create sd effects. that's in 45 minutes here on bbc news. a journalist has been shot dead in londonderry in what police are treating as a "terrorist incident". dissident republicans are being blamed for the death of 29—year—old journalist lyra mckee in a shooting during rioting after pol

i think it was martin mcguinness was to form a provisional ira leader but later sinn fein's chief negotiator for the good friday agreement twenty one years. ago over three decades he and the ira for british rule in northern ireland john donnelly was the leading political force in terry northern ireland second largest city he was instrumental in because aiding ira operatives to lay down their. twenty one years on the conflict seems to have been settled. but for many this is merely a superficial arrangement. donnelly says poorer areas of derry are still waiting for the peace dividend to kick in. says the peace agreement up till now only. tangible. shuffler people can put their finger on their luck. that that was. that's what happened early good for you remember that a.b. and c. . in the rossa moment community center the former i.e. fighter is a social worker helping those who are off. to punish so-called anti-social behavior radical elements imposed witchell and stressed as in the poorer areas of town this is a holdover from earlier times when the ira police neighborhoods a tradition that radi

sinn fein will not acquiesce in the denial of rights.vernmental conference dude meet and remove those obstacles and that would pave the way for the institutions to be restored. that would pave the way for the institutions to be restoredm seems she nearly had a deal last february but the dup couldn't sell it to the grass roots. do you think you will go back to that situation, could not form a template? we had a deal last february. the issues remain the same. these issues are well rehearsed. everyone knows what needs to be done in order to restore the institutions and we will play our part, but there is a responsibility to deliver citizens' rights in society for everybody where people are treated fairly. the government that represents them delivers for all people. how realistic is a talks process in three weeks, in terms of restoring this place? i think there is no doubt that will be difficult. i also believe that you should give people hope. i also believe that we did reach a deal last february so things are possible. what we have to do i

the irish language act, the demand from sinn fein, and brexit, still big points of division.ith lyra mckee's death bringing politicians together, there is a big desire from london and dublin now to give this a real push. thank you very much indeed, emma vardy at stormont. britain's top civil servant has demanded ministers co—operate with his inquiry into a leak of classified information from the national security council. sir mark sedwill has written to ministers and is reported to have given them an ultimatum that they either confess to or deny the leak about government plans to allow chinese firm huawei help build britain's new 56 network. our political correspondent chris mason reports. look who happens to be in beijing today, talking up the prospect of business deals between the uk and china, the chancellor, philip hammond. back home, a row is raging, yes, hammond. back home, a row is raging, yes , over hammond. back home, a row is raging, yes, over a chinese telecoms firm but also over who did it, who, after a meeting of the national security council, where those there h

and talking to the leader of sinn fein, mary lou mcdonald, who was at the funeral.n stories on bbc news at 5: the death toll rises again in sri lanka — 359 people died in the easter sunday attacks — one of the bombers — who studied in the uk — has been named. huawei — the chinese telecoms giant — welcomes reports that the government will let it help build britain's 56 data network. nicola sturgeon says she wants to hold a second referendum on scottish independence by 2021 if the uk leaves the eu. and a crucial night in the premier league, can united derail city's title bid in tonight's much awaited manchester derby? the funeral of the journalist lyra mckee — who was shot dead during rioting in londonderry last thursday — has taken place in belfast. the prime minister theresa may, the labour leaderjeremy corbyn, ireland's president and prime minister and the leaders of northern ireland's political parties all attended the service. a priest was given a standing ovation when he asked northern ireland's politicians "why in god's name" it had taken the death of a 29—year

and i think it was martin mcguinness was to form a provisional ira leader but later sinn fein's chief negotiator for the good friday agreement twenty one years. over three decades he and the ira for british rule in northern ireland john donnelly was the leading political force in terry northern ireland second largest city he was instrumental in curse aiding ira operatives to lay down their hopes. twenty one years on the conflict seems to have been settled but for many this is merely a superficial arrangement. donnelly says poorer areas of derry are still waiting for the peace dividend to kick in. says the peace agreement ok up till now it has been all kinds of all. there's a lot there's often the people who put their finger on and say look. that's that was that's what happened at a good faith you got a b. and c. . in the rossa moment community center the former i.e. fighter is a social worker helping those who are off. to punish so-called anti-social behavior radical elements impose ritual and justice in the poorer areas of terry this is a holdover from earlier times when the ira poli

it's not the dup and sinn fein talking to each other, its parallel talks to see what progress can beens. staying with the sunday times. cash for lords crackdown. who knew that members for the house of lords don't actually have to declare the sources of their business interests. how much they have earned or whether money has come from. unlike mps in the house of commons who do. i don't know why ididn't of commons who do. i don't know why i didn't know that. i didn't know that you didn't know that and i assume most of the british public didn't know that so thank you to the sunday times for pointing it out. apparently, a government minister is determined to crack down on it being," red money". lobbying firms around parliament and the city. this is money that paid to people to represent various interests in russia or china. nothing inherently wrong with that but we need to know. it is only right and proper. but a p pa re ntly it is only right and proper. but apparently we don't. the other element to this story is that ministers are thinking of actually ringing forward and espionage bill

it's hoped fresh talks between the dup and sinn fein, will now restore the power—sharing government inter kathryn johnston. thank you very much for your time. i know you knew lyra very well so it has been a difficult time for the likes of you and her family there. tell us, people have talked about a positive coming out of her death. do you think this offers an opportunity? i think it is up to all of us to work to ensure that it does andi of us to work to ensure that it does and i have known father martin magill for a number of years and i have utmost respect for the work he has done with communicating with leaders of faith communities and in terms of reconciliation and opposition to a paramilitary tax. it was no surprise to anyone in the cathedral that he showed such leadership on the day of lyra's funeral but what was a surprise was the anonymity with which the congregation in the cathedral stood more 01’ congregation in the cathedral stood more or less as congregation in the cathedral stood more 01’ less as one congregation in the cathedral stood more or less as one and the politicia

of course, the talks last year ended because there wasn't a deal and, you know, no amount of sinn feindeal will make it a deal because if there is to be a deal, it has to be agreed by both sides. the events in derry which led to lyra mckee‘s death were a throwback to northern ireland's past. the question now is whether this tragedy can lead to political change for the future. now on bbc news — with toxic water in the southern iraqi city of basra causing tens of thousands of people to fall sick last summer, martin patience investigates iraq's environmental catastrophe. last summer, the city felt sick. the streets of basra erupted in anger. the cause? the city's water supply. a toxic cocktail that is poisoning the people. this is cancer. if we don't fix this, this cancels red. we runa don't fix this, this cancels red. we run a journey from the mountains of northern wright to the southern marshes to investigate the country's environmental catastrophe. and understand how the city of basra has become the country's drain, the centre of the crisis. where all the filth ends up. —— wright. a li

. ♪ emma: side-by-side, the leaders of the democratic unionist party and sinn fein, bitter adversariesy united in condemnation of the events which led it to lyra mckee's death. british and irish prime minister's brought together two, as theresa may and labor leader jeremy corbydkjoined leo va and the irish president michael higgins. >> lyra is many things to many people. emma: tributes were paid to her writing and activism. gshe campaign for peace a rights in northern ireland, and her family appealed for people to embrace her vision for change. >> we have the power to create the kind of society that lyra envisioned. one where labels are meaningless. emma: then came a reproachful plea directed at northern ireland's divided poli >> why in god's name did it takh death of a 29-year-old woman with her whole life in front of her -- [applause] emma: an uncomfortable reminder that man two years since the breakdown of power-sharing in northern ireland, these leaders who've come together in inlidarity today have failed to show the same unit government. >> i dare to hope that lyra's murder on hol

sinn fein said it was "heartbreaking".ace in society. those people who carried out this attack have no support. those people who have carried out this attack have attacked all of us. climate change protests in london are entering their fifth day. thousands of police officers are deployed to try to clear the demonstrators. local authorities are acused of the "social cleansing" of people who rough sleep, beg or loiter

.# side by side, leaders of the democratic unionist party and sinn fein, bitter adversaries, today unitedr condemnation of the events which led to lyra mckee's death. and british and irish prime ministers brought together too, as theresa may and labour leader jeremy corbynjoined leo varadkar and irish president, michael d higgins. lyra is many things to many people. tributes were paid to her writing and her activism. she campaigned for peace and gay rights in northern ireland, and her family appealed for people to embrace her vision for change. we have the power to create the kind of society that lyra envisioned. one where labels are meaningless. then came a reproachful plea, directed at northern ireland's divided politicians. why, in god's name, does it take the death of a 29—year—old woman with her whole life in front of her... applause an uncomfortable reminder that more than two years since the breakdown of power—sharing in northern ireland, these leaders, who've come together in solidarity today, have failed to show the same unity in government. i dare to hope that lyra's murder on h

dup and sinn fein politicians also attended the service at st anne's cathedral in belfast.ing in for theresa may at prime minister's questions, david lidington led tributes in the commons. this was a brutal, cowardly murder of a young woman, a brilliant journalist who represented all that is good in northern ireland. and those responsible for her murder have nothing to offer anyone from any community in northern ireland. reading the statement from the so—called new ira last week with its talk of attacking enemy forces and its sincere condolences for lyra's death was a sickening throwback to the days we thought we'd left behind 20 years ago. from despicable individuals whose only desire is to turn back the clock and destroy the progress that has been made. so does the minister for the cabinet office agree with me — this is one of the central reasons that we must find an answer to the northern irish border question, rather than give these evil terrorists the divisions that they crave? i don't think that those murderers in derry were motivated by any thoughts about a border or

parties attended a vigil in londonderry where lyra mckee was shot, members of the dup, the sdlp, sinn fein and the green party standing as one. they have released a joint statement earlier in the day saying the killing was a pointless and futile act to try to wreck the progress made in the past 20 years. yesterday was good friday, the good friday agreement was signed on good friday agreement was signed on good friday in 1998. there has been a universal condemnation from politicians here of the killing and many have attended other vigils. there will be more vigils across northern ireland today, perhaps indicative of the horror and revulsion that this young woman plasma killing has provoked across the community. well, earlier this morning lyra's close friend alison miller spoke to the bbc. she had so many friends. there has been a mass outpouring of grief everywhere, never mind just the streets of derry and her family and her partner sarah. this is a strop for everyone —— this is such a shock. we were going to have a dinner party yesterday and she had been phoning me up until the end but she

.# side by side, leaders of the democratic unionist party and sinn fein, bitter adversaries today unitednation of the events which led to lyra mckee‘s death. and british and irish prime ministers brought together, too, as theresa may and labour leader jeremy corbynjoined leo varadkar and irish president michael d higgins. lyra is many things to many people. tributes were paid to her writing and her activism. she campaigned for peace and gay rights in northern ireland, and her family appealed for people to embrace her vision for change. we have the power to create the kind of society that lyra envisioned. one where labels are meaningless. then came a reproachful plea, directed at northern ireland's divided politicians. why in god's name does it take the death of a 29—year—old woman with her whole life in front of her... applause. an uncomfortable reminder that more than two years since the breakdown of power—sharing in northern ireland, these leaders who have come together in solidarity today have failed to show the same unity in government. i dare to hope that lyra's murder on holy thurs

the deputy leader of sinn fein, michelle o'neill, calling it an attack on all the community. leader of the democratic unionists, arlene foster, saying it was a senseless act. creggan is an area which is a housing estate so this is outside peoples houses was where the rioting was happening. so they had come out, there were young people, there were children on the street, there were teenagers milling about and a gunman just fired indiscriminately up the street. tributes on the social media have described the killing ofjournalist lyra mckee as heartbreaking. dissident republicans are being blamed for last night's violence which led to her death. emma vardy, bbc news. the prime minister has reacted to the incident. she tweeted. .. "the death of lyra mckee in last night's suspected terrorist incident in londonderry is shocking and truly senseless. my deepest condolences go to her family, friends and colleagues. she was a journalist who died doing herjob with great courage." that was the message from the prime minister. the climate change protests in london are entering their fifth

of course, the talks last year ended because there wasn't a deal and, you know, no amount of sinn fein it a deal because if there is to be a deal, it has to be agreed by both sides. the events in derry which led to lyra mckee‘s death were a throwback to northern ireland past. the question now is whether this tragedy can lead to political change for the future. in the two years since this place has been without a government, we had seen public services like schools and hospitals across northern ireland deteriorating and if anything in that time, the gulf between the parties has widened, with the relationships on both sides becoming particularly bitter and difficult. at the moment, what we know from the talks process is there will be a format to bring people together, to bring people around the table. we know little more than that at the moment but big sticking point between the parties remain, such as sinn fein‘s demand for an irish language act one of the biggest hurdles to overcome. but at the moment, we know alongside this, there is campaigning for the local and european elections ta

and it is the challenge to the leaders of sinn fein and dup that they have got to choose.y build politics of unity and purpose? the time has come for the democratic process to debate. no more red lines. we need to get business done. that can only be done by returning to stormont to those elected representatives who want to deliver what our people needs, legislative change. i do agree the time has come for politicians to get back and run the schools and hospitals and infrastructure projects that cross my desk today i didn't day out. people are crying out for those decisions to be taken. this is why it is so important that we show such resolve in this house to support those politicians because it will be difficult. there will be very challenging things that need to be done and said in the next few weeks. that will be hard. there is growing concern about the number of pupils who are extruded from schools in england. —— excluded. the government has initiated a review but the report is yet to be published. at question time, labour mps asked if there was a link between the risin

we saw the leaders of the democratic unionist party, arlene foster and michelle 0'neill, the sinn fein, come together at a vigil near the scene of the murder. that was quite a show of the murder. that was quite a show of unity. that is not an area of the city where unionist politicians would be seen out on the streets and they were given a warm welcome by they were given a warm welcome by the people of that area. at that vigil sara canning, the partner of lyra mckee also spoke. the senseless murder of lyra mckee has left a family without a beloved daughter, a sister, an aunt, and a great aunt, has left so many friends without their confidant. victims of the lgbtqa community are left without a tireless advocate and activist. it has left me without the love of my life, the woman that i was planning to grow old with. we are all poorer for the loss of lyra. 0ur hopes and dreams, and all of her amazing potential, was snuffed out by a single barbaric act. this cannot stand. lyra's death must not be in vain, because her life was a shining light in everyone else's life. and her legacy will liv

sinn fein said it was "heartbreaking".ut this attack have no place in society. those people who carried out this attack do not have any support. those people who carried out this attack have attacked all of us. climate change protests in london are entering their fifth day, with more than 1,000 police officers deployed to cover the demonstrations over the easter weekend. local authorities are accused of the social cleansing of people who rough sleep, beg or loiter by misusing council powers to issue fines.

side by side, the leaders of the democratic unionist party and sinn fein. events which led to lyra mckee‘s death. theresa may and labour leaderjeremy corbyn joined ireland's president and prime minister. lyra was a person who broke down barriers and reached across boundaries. this was her hallmark in life. and this is her legacy. in death. lyra is many things to many people. tributes were paid to lyra mckee for her writing and her activism. she campaigned for peace and gay rights and today, her family appealed for people to embrace her vision for change. we have the power to create the kind of society that lyra envisioned. 0ne where labels are meaningless. and a pre—to political leaders. where labels are meaningless. and a pre-to political leaders. why, in god's name, does it take the death ofa god's name, does it take the death of a 29—year—old woman with her whole life in front of her? more than two years since the breakdown of power—sharing in northern ireland, a call for them to show this same unity and government. ireland, a call for them to show this

of course, the talks last year ended because there wasn't a deal and, you know, no amount of sinn feindeal because if there is to be a deal, it has to be agreed by both sides. the events in derry which led to lyra mckee‘s death were a throwback to northern ireland's past. the question now is whether this tragedy can lead to political change for the future. debenham's has announced it's closing 22 stores next year, as part of its plans to reduce its debts, putting 1,200 jobs at risk. stores in wolverhampton, guildford and southport are among those being shut. debenham's has 166 stores across the uk, and plans to shut a total of 50 within the next few years. our business correspondent emma simpson reports. it's folkestone‘s biggest store, a cornerstone of the town centre. this morning, shoppers were taking in the news that it's now set to go. it is closing. what's folkestone going to do without it? you know, we've got no shops. so, we will miss it, won't we, joan? definitely miss it, yeah. debenhams has been here for donkeys years, since i was a little child. and it'sjust another big sto

stormont broke down in january 2017 and since then, the two main parties — the democratic unionists and sinn feinnt on a range of issues. plans for new negotiations were announced following the shooting of journalist lyra mckee in londonderry last week. father martin magill, who led her funeral service, stressed the need for peace and a resolution. i get the sense that people want our politicians to move and move now. that means entering into those talks ina way that means entering into those talks in a way that will actually bring a positive result at the end of them. health officials in pakistan say they've suspended a nationwide anti—polio campaign, after a series of deadly attacks on health workers trying to vaccinate children last week. a health worker and two security officers were killed in separate incidents. thousands of parents have refused to allow their children to be given the vaccine. officials are blaming mis—information being spread on social media. cyclone kenneth has become the second powerful storm to hit mozambique in two months. rescue teams are attempting to reach remote vil

sinn fein's request for an irish language act being one of the major hurdles, and the campaigning botht and european elections could make it a difficult environment in which to find compromise, but after the death of lyra mckee there is clearly a desire in both dublin and london now to give this a big push. emma, thank you. the brother of the manchester arena bomber, salman abedi, wasjust days away from being returned from libya to britain to face charges over the attack in may 2017 which left 22 people dead at a concert. but libya's interior minister has told the bbc that his extradition is now on hold because of heavy fighting that has broken out on the outskirts of the libyan capital, tripoli. more than 270 people have been killed in libya since fighting erupted nearly three weeks ago — in a battle for control of the capital. from tripoli, our international correspondent, orla guerin, reports. gunfire on the outskirts of tripoli, another round of battle. gunfire government fighters mounting a chaotic defence of the capital. it's under attack by forces from eastern libya. one unseen

the deputy leader of sinn fein cold itan the deputy leader of sinn fein cold it an attack on all theleader of the democratic unionist party, arlene foster, said it was a senseless act. the 29—year—old journalist who was killed has not yet been officially named by police. dissident republicans are being planned for last night's mass violence which led to her death. climate change activists have been warned they'll face a robust response from police if they carry out threats to target heathrow airport. scotland yard says the operation to tackle demonstrations by members of the group "extinction rebellion" is putting a strain on the force. police rest days have been cancelled over the bank holiday weekend as more than 1,000 officers are being deployed in london. kathryn stanczyszyn reports. camped out in four central locations, these campaigners say they are in for the long haul. i've taken a couple of weeks holiday for this. as long as we can really. it means another day of major disruption for the capital. already thought to be costing millions to businesses. for some, enough is enoug

more than two years since the power—sharing coalition made up of the democratic unionist party and sinn feinice and community leaders expressed, the way that could be exploited by dissident republicans who are opposed to the peace process and those views have grown since she was shot dead in londonderry, lyra mckee, the young journalist, her funeral was held in belfast, theresa may attended and at that funeral, a catholic priest praised politicians for being united in condemnation of the year do expect murder but issued this challenge. wine gods name doesn't take the death of a 29—year—old woman with her whole life in front of her... —— why in god 's name does it take the death ofa god 's name does it take the death of a 29—year—old woman with her whole life in front of her... the last few days, the british and irish governments have met members of the stormont litigant parties. the first substantial negotiations since february last year and it is believed the plan would start after council elections which are due on thursday. it's worth remembering that nobody thinks restoring the devolved

so far been quite a frosty reception from both the dup and sinn fein.lved another government will collapse again. i would like to finish our conversation with a thought about lyra you had an interesting way of becoming friends. a way that betrayed her kind personality. becoming friends. a way that betrayed her kind personalitylj becoming friends. a way that betrayed her kind personality. i had been receiving quite a bit of on line abuse from social media trials and she contacted me to get in touch and she contacted me to get in touch and offered solidarity —— trolls. it was something i had not expected. i did not know her but as a fellow journalist she wanted to show solidarity and send the horrendous events of last week, many generous journalists have come forward, offering support and solidarity and to be kind and encouraging to other people and i think it gets to show what a very warmhearted and generous person she was and how much she will be missed. thank you very much for your time this morning. here's carol with a look at this morning's weather.

ahead of wednesday's funeral, sinn fein president mary lou mcdonald condemned the assassination. >> it is past timeme now for the groups that masquerade as republicans to pack up and pack it in, to end their activities, and to let the people get on withth the work of building a nw united ireland, the ireland that we'll want. an ireland that will be a true to our patriots and toto all who died. the ireland in which lyra mckee should have lived. amy: and those are some of the headlines. this is democracy now!, democracynow.org, the war and peace report. i'm amy goodman. nermeen: and i'm nermeen shaikh. welcome to all of our listeners and viewers from around the country and around the world. we begin today's show in syria. a major new investigation by amnesty international and airwars has revealed the u.s.-led military coalition killed more thaha 1600 civilians during the 2017 offensive to oust isis militants from the syrian city of raqqa. the coalition launeded thousds air strikes andens s of thousandofof artlery s sikes on the city. u.s. troopfired more artillery into r raqqa thahan any