Transcripts For BBCNEWS BBC 20240703

Defences. President Volodmyr Zelensky again called for more air defence supplies, urging the west not to turn a blind eye to russias continuing attacks. Russian president Vladimir Putin has hosted talks with the belarusian leader, alexander lu kashenko. Putin said that the latest attacks on ukraine are part of an effort to demilitarize ukraine. 0ur Eastern Europe correspondent sarah rainsford, reports from kharkiv. Here in kharkiv there was just another air raid. And those are happening almost every day now. We heard the sound of explosions and thats when metro stations like this one become a shelter for people. People head underground to hide from those missiles, because itjust takes a few seconds before they reach this city from russia, which is around about a0 kilometres away. Now, we dont know what was targeted this time, but we do know over overnight here in ukraine, there was a Massive Attack by russia on the Energy Infrastructure right across the country, from west to here in the northeast. And here in kharkiv, 300 missiles were fired. They destroyed a power substation, electricity substation, and they damaged yet another power plant here. And the city is struggling. You know, the metro is up and running, but there are long gaps between trains. People are facing blackouts in the Electricity Supply to their houses, shops, businesses, industrial production, of course, are all affected. The city is going on, though, you know, life is kind of normal. Out and about on the streets between the air raids. Its a hugely sunny day here, lots of people around and about. But across ukraine, these attacks are becoming very serious. The Energy Infrastructure is under sustained and deliberate attack by russia. And just overnight in kyiv, kyiv region, an entire power plant was destroyed. I spoke to the boss there. He said 100 of their Electricity Generation has now been wiped out. They need parts, spare parts from western allies. But what they really need here in ukraine, he said, is air defence protection, because without that, he said, we can do the impossible, we can rebuild, but if we cant protect these energy power plants, these power plants, then russia will attack again and ukraine will be left without power. Ukraines parliament has approved an Army Mobilisation Bill to boost Troop Numbers in the fight against russia. It toughens punishments for Draft Dodgers and is designed to boost recruitment. But the legislation also prompted some anger, in particular the removal of a clause that would allow long serving troops on the frontline to return home. President biden says the United States is ready to defend the philippines from any attack in the south china sea. The white house hosted philippines president Ferdinand Marcosjunior and japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in a first of its kind trilateral summit on thursday. The three countries expressed quote serious concerns over what the three countries call chinas dangerous and aggressive behavior in the south china sea. Thereve been repeated confrontations between chinese and philippine vessels in waters off disputed islands and mr biden said any attack on philippine aircraft, vessels or armed forces would invoke the mutual defence treaty. Earlier, japans Prime Minister Fumio Kishida emphasised the us role in International Affairs in the first speech to a Joint Session Of Congress by a japanese leader in nine years. Mr kishida praised the Japan Us Alliance for upholding peace in the asia pacific region, but he warned that ukraine today could be east asia tomorrow, telling lawmakers that without us support in ukraine, the result there could embolden china. The leadership of the United States is indispensable. Without us support, how long before hopes of ukraine would collapse under the onslaught from moscow . How long before the indo pacific would face even harsher realities . Us Secretary Of State Antony Blinken has called on his counterparts in china and europe to help dissuade iran from launching a retaliatory strike against israel. Mr blinken asked them to make it clear to tehran that an escalation of the conflict in gaza is in no ones interest. Fears are growing that iran could launch reprisals for last weeks attack on a diplomatic compound in syria that killed senior iranians. The un has condemned the strike, while syria calls it a violation of international conventions. President biden says us support for israel is ironclad. Us Secretary Of Defense lloyd austin spoke with his israeli counterpart on thursday to reiterate their commitment. 0ur Diplomatic Correspondent James Landale is in jerusalem with this update. The target was precise, a carefully calibrated straight. But the fallout may be harder to control. Irans Supreme Leader says israel must be punished for its strike on the consulate in damascus that killed a top Military General and six other people. Israel has promised direct retaliation for any attack on its soil. Its worried enough to cancel leave for all combat units and call up its air force reserves. Translation we have established a simple principle. Whoever harms us, we will harm them. We are prepared to meet all the Security Needs of the state of israel, both defensively and offensively. A warning for iran thats also being heard at home. Were always aware about something in the corner that maybe would come and surprise us, like in october. Weve prepared a shelter, weve put some water inside and a transistor and a tv, so we can see whats the condition outside, whats happening. And we wish everything would be ok. Israel has been fighting iran backed groups like hezbollah for years, but a direct confrontation with tehran could bring the conflict right into the centre of israel. Leaders both here and in the United States are watching to see what iran does next and what iran does next will determine whether this becomes a much bigger war. Neither side is seen as wanting all out war right now, but the stakes of any miscalculation are high. When israel will be attacked, if it is attacked by iran, and depending on where that attack comes from and how and what the target is, that will dictate for israel how it responds and retaliates, so a miscalculation, even when both sides want to keep this contained, can very quickly and easily lead to a larger and wider regional war. Tonight, irans Foreign Minister said his country did not seek to expand the conflict, but that, without International Condemnation of the attack on its consulate, it was necessary to contain israels aggression. Israel, fighting on two of its borders and under attack from groups in syria, yemen and iraq, faces a dangerous moment in what is already a regional war. Lucy williamson, bbc news, tel aviv. Oj simpson, The American Football star who was controversially acquitted of Double Murder, has died at the age of 76. Using his account, the Simpson Family announced his passing on x, asking the public for privacy and grace. In 1995, he was cleared of the murder of his ex wife nicole brown and herfriend ron goldman, after a televised trial that became a global sensation. But he was later found liable for the deaths in a civil suit brought by the victims families. 0ur los angeles correspondent, emma vardy reports. This is one of those scenes that would only happen, honestly, here in southern california. Tonight, oj simpson is a fugitive. Watched by millions, oj simpson famously led police on a car chase through los angeles, after becoming the main suspect in the murder of his ex wife and her friend. Around the world, viewers watched the unfolding drama as people came onto the street cheering him on. Couldnt actually see 0j, but we saw a guy driving past. Thats 0j, though. Police attempted to apprehend him live on tv. He was eventually taken into custody at his california home. He was clearly the best running back of the � 70s. Oj simpson had had a remarkable life. From an impoverished childhood, he had gone on to become one of the greatest american Football Players in history, setting records in the sport still unbroken today. Ship . Boat . Thats right, a boat. His celebrity status didnt end on the football field. He later became a hollywood actor. Drugs. Hey, nurse, quick, give this man some drugs, quick. But oj simpson will be forever remembered for this nine month televised trial, for the Double Murder that transfixed america. He was accused of killing his former wife and a friend in a jealous rage. Nicole Brown Simpson had been murdered in a brutal knife attack outside her home in a fashionable los angeles neighbourhood. Gavel bangs known as the trial of the century, people tuned in from all over the world. At one point, oj simpson was shown struggling to try on a pair of gloves found at the crime scene, leading to his attorneys famous line. If it doesnt fit, you must acquit. We the jury in the above entitled action find the defendant, 0renthal james simpson, not guilty of the crime of murder. The jury took just three hours to deliver their verdict. The oj Simpson Trial sparked deep public emotion in america, seen by some as a case of a white police force trying to frame the star, he was acquitted by a mainly black jury. But to this day, many people believe he simply got away with Domestic Violence and murder. Oj simpson later did go to jail, having been charged with Armed Robbery after a confrontation with two Sports Memorabilia dealers in las vegas. He was released in 2017 after nine years behind bars. In a seemingly twisted take on reality, he published a book called if i did it confessions of the killer. Hey, let me take a moment to say thank you to all the people who reached out to me. Seen little in public life in recent years, hell be remembered for his Rags To Riches Story and fall from grace, which left the unresolved question in Popular Culture ever since about whether justice was ever truly served. Emma vardy, bbc news, los angeles. Oj simpson was a divisive figure, but, by the end of the last century, he was recognisable worldwide. 0ur North America correspondent John Sudworth has been looking at the Cultural Impact of oj simpson in the us. Oj simpson once personified the American Dream a black sporting star from the humblest of routes at the pinnacle of wealth and celebrity. But as that car chase came to an end, his arrest and trial held up a mirror to a different reality. I see no weapons drawn by the lapd. A country in which racial divisions and deep rooted Police Discrimination were never far from the surface. The crowd is cheering. There he is. It took place in the shadow of the rodney king case, the acquittal of four White Los Angeles Police Officers for the beating of a black man. Questions of racism in that same police force became a highly effective part of oj simpsons defence. Almost three decades later, reacting to news of his death, one of his lawyers are still questions the fairness of his eventual sentencing for robbery. The sentence that he received in that case was a payback for the acquittal that we obtained in los angeles. Popular dramas have kept the story alive for a whole new generation of viewers, highlighting not only the issue of race, but of Domestic Violence, too. The star continued to receive lucrative Media Contracts despite the allegations and a conviction for the assault of his wife in the years before her murder. But perhaps the biggest legacy of the Simpson Trial is on the Justice System itself, ushering in the era of the television trial. Because it was televised, it became a national obsession. Everybody watched it. I mean, i Meta Guy In Hawaii who told me he changed his whole Work Schedule so he could get up in the middle of the night hawaii time to watch the show. The boundary between entertainment and the law was blurring, and it could be exploited by those with access to the highest paid lawyers, sometimes regardless of the evidence. John sudworth, bbc news, new york. Kato kaelin was the house guest of oj simpson at the time of the murder and testified at the trial. Hes now co host of one degree of scandalous a podcast which looks at major trials and scandals. He told the bbc how the oj case continues to sit in the public consciousness. The things that stand out in a persons mind will go on forever as far as the late johnnie cochran, you must acquit if it doesnt fit, you must acquit, with trying on the gloves. The expressions, and it became, i guess, very pop thing, and everything slipped back on that trial. They won eight emmys on the tv show, an oscar eight emmys on the tv show, an 0scarfor A Documentary Eight Emmys on the tv show, an oscar for a documentary on eight emmys on the tv show, an 0scarfor a documentary on it, and it will go on forever. Around the world and across the uk, this is bbc news. Lets look at some uk stories making news. More than £34,000 Of Uk Taxpayer Money has been used to cover the cost of legal fees for the science secretary Michelle Donelan after she falsely accused an academic of extremism. The government defended using public money to pay the bill, claiming her comments had been made in the course of her ministerial duties but labour has called for her to pay the money back. A former uk Sub Postmistress who was wrongly jailed while she was pregnant has rejected an apology by a former Post Office Boss who congratulated the team behind her conviction. David smith apologised to seema misra at the inquiry into the post office scandal. She was eight weeks pregnant and sentenced to 15 months in prison. Baldur� s gate iii has won big at this years Bafta Games Awards in london. The game by Larian Studios picked up five awards, including best game, best narrative, and players choice. Alan wake 2 and viewfinder won two awards each. A0 games were nominated across 17 categories, this year. Youre live with bbc news. Turning now to the race for the white house. Vice president Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump are both in pennsylvania this week, trying to shore up support in the battleground state. President joe biden won pennsylvania in 2020, while his likely opponent, mr trump, won there in 2016. Polls this year have the candidates neck and neck. 0ur chief presenter Caitriona Perry has been traveling to some of the most critical Battleground States in the country, and she is in pennsylvania for us with more. Well, were travelling through key Battleground States that will most likely decide who is president following the election in november. We have been taking the temperature of voters of polling day. Both candidates have been putting a lot of attention and focus and focus on the voters in pennsylvania so we have been speaking to the voters find out just what matters to them. Erie, pennsylvania, formerly a rustbelt hotspot. Asjobs left, so did the people. The population has declined by 40,000 since the 1970s. The cost of living a problem, as food prices have risen by almost 25 in four years rising faster in pennsylvania than in any other state this year. Erie is a swing county in this swing state. As president s battle to win it, some local people battle to survive. We had hard times with president trump, and, were, you know, were still struggling with President Biden, as well, so. Charities step in to help those struggling. Quite the ordeal. Megan is 31 and has eight children. She comes to this food pantry several times a week and couldnt survive without it. So its like a godsend and we are blessed to have home house here. I do get food stamps and medical i dont get cash. So ijust survive on that, work work when you can, and its definitely hard to work a lot, because of all the children and its a struggle to stay afloat, but god has been blessing us. We have been doing it. Shes not alone. Demand has risen dramatically for the services of this home house of erie. Alright, have a good one. Yeah. Oh my goodness, it has increased tremendously. Particularly this year. And ive seen unemployment drop. However, there has been an increase when it comes to the food that is in the supermarkets and whatnot, the prices have gone up. It does matter. It does matter whos in the white house. If youre asking me to be personal, itll swing to the republicans. Much of the food comes from the Second Harvest foodbank, which 9. 5 million meals each year in this area. Much of the food comes from the Second Harvest foodbank it serves 9. 5 million meals each year in this area. Latest Government Figures show one in eight people in erie dont have enough to eat. For children, thats one in six. A quarter of the people helped by this service our children. We have seen about a 33 increase in neighbours in need, looking for assistance food assistance. In the last four years, the current time period we are in is the highest number we have seen needing assistance from our foodbank. During covid, people had supplemental food stamps and they had extra benefits that made it easier for them to stretch a dollar. Those sorts of things have been removed, and now people have been really feeling the increase of inflation, the cost of gas, the cost of rent. Joe schember is mayor of erie. It is going to be interesting to see what happens this year, with votes for the president. Typically they say that pennsylvania goes whichever way erie goes. I hope that we support President Biden and get him in for another term. Yeah, we were just talking about. The trump operation here is small. Biden has already opened several campaign offices. The chair of the republican party, tom eddy, says a recent law extending mail in ballots could boost that. U nfortu nately, unfortunately, republicans dont like that. They resisted, significantly. Resist it. The democrats, and im not saying they are bad people, accepted it. Most of our effort is to get republicans to realise that it is better to vote than not. And if it means you have to use the mail in ballot, use it. With such narrow margins, every vote will count, as well every appearance. President biden has already visited the state four times. 0n on saturday, donald trump will come for the third time to visit the Keystone State that is a key to the white house. Early state level polling here in pennsylvania has it set out to be a very close race indeed. Joe biden is ahead in some polls, donald trump in others, but with narrow margins between both. And both men want to win in pennsylvania. They need to win in pennsylvania. Pennsylvania, the state that put donald trump into the oval office in 2016 and did the same forward joe biden, proud son of scranton, in 2020. But voters here want to know what these president s will do for them if brought in for a second term. Lets turn to some Important News around the world. The widow of the russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny says he wrote an autobiography before he died in prison in february. The book, titled patriot, will be published simultaneously in different languages in october. Yulia navalnaya said it would be a final show of defiance to the kremlin. The Us Department of justice is charging a man with fraud for allegedly stealing more than 16 million from us baseball star shohei 0htani. Ippei mizuhara served as an interpreterfor the la dodgers player. Officials say Mizuhara Impersonated 0htani in conversations with banks, in order to cover gambling debts. Mizuhara faces up to 30 years in prison if convicted. The Ancient Roman city of pompeii, which was buried in a volcanic eruption almost 2000 years ago, has revealed more of its treasures. Stunning artworks depicting mythical greek figures have been uncovered in what was a banqueting hall. Its thought shimmering candlelight would once have brought the paintings to life. 0ur Science Editor Rebecca Morelle went to pompeii to see them. So this is the black room. Its the salone nero. Hidden from the world for 2000 years, new part of pompeii comes to light. This is the most beautiful when i have ever seen. This is the most beautiful one i have ever seen. Small, intricate paintings of greek medical scenes stand out against this dark backdrop. This is a Banqueting Room where the wealthy owner once entertained important guests. Theres an almost complete white mosaic floor. Why were the walls black . This room probably was used after sunset. The smoke from the lamps which deposit on the walls, so you would like to have them back so you wouldnt see this immediately. And then you have the light, the shimmering light of the lamps, and the paintings almost coming to life. The excavation, the biggest in a generation, has been followed for a bbc documentary series. A second room with rare full height frescoes appears from beneath the volcanic debris. Who ever lived here had high status. And it isntjust the walls that were lavishly painted. So they were on the ceiling . Yes, very high. This is plasterwork from an upper floor with exquisite detail. You can see All That Remains of of a lavish life. Not only some fragments, but they are houses, they are objects. For this reason, pompeii is unique. But the grand residence is part of a bigger complex, with a laundry, a bakery, and a darker side to roman life. A bakery would have been one of the worst places to have been a slave. The intense heat from the oven, they would have been flour everywhere, making it difficult to breathe. In here, they would have been squeezed in with animals, donkeys, turning these big millstones to grind the ancient wheat. The team has also discovered that the living quarters in the back. And they say there were bars on the windows and on a skylight above. It would have been impossible to escape. Like a prison, really. The buildings seem to be owned by the same person, and there are clues about who this might be. We are standing next to probably our greatest clue of all it is a red painted inscription on the wall. And we know who arv is and we know him to be Aulus Rustius verus, who we know to be a politician. He might be funding the bakery, but he is unlikely to be living here. This is far too a sort of impoverished little place for a grand politician. So we then, hopefully, maybe have the idea that he was living in this big, grand house behind us. The excavation is far from finished, and new discoveries are emerging here every day. Rebecca morelle, bbc news, pompeii. Really like a trip back in time there. That is all from us here in washington. Stay with us. Our colleagues in london have 0ur colleagues in london have more on bbc news. Hello there. We still had the same Southwesterly Breeze on thursday but more sunshine led to a warmer day. The highest temperature in the sunshine was measured in norfolk with temperatures reaching 20 degrees. This in Northern Ireland whilst it did cloud over later on and we got some rain as well, temperatures here reached 18 celsius the warmest its been in Northern Ireland so far this year. Now, this is the temperature anomaly map. The red colour� s showing that its warmer than average across the whole of the uk. Well get similar temperatures again on friday but then, over the weekend, it gets cooler from the northwest. That cooler weather arrives in the southeast by sunday. Now, heading into early friday, weve got some sunshine to begin with in scotland. Weve got these showery bursts of rain coming back into Northern Ireland, into cumbria and showers pushing into scotland. For england and wales, though, the cloud should be breaking up. Well get more sunshine more widely, although some western coasts could stay a bit grey and cloudy. But in the sunshine, its going to feel Warm Temperatures in the southeast and east anglia reaching 20 or 21 degrees and again, in the north east of scotland, 18 degrees, where were missing those showers. But the weather starts to change into the weekend because weve got a few Weather Fronts coming down from the northwest, bringing more cloud, some rain and some cooler air, too. First Weather Front here is bringing this cloud and patchy rain across Northern England and wales, pushing into the midlands and South West England later. And then, following on behind, a lot of showers for scotland and Northern Ireland, some of them heavy and thundery with some hail. The last of the warmth and some sunshine still across east anglia in the southeast temperatures 20 degrees here but elsewhere, those temperatures are going to be several degrees lower on saturday. Now, were replacing that warmer southWesterly Wind with something much cooler a Westerly Wind which will bring in more showers on sunday and well see showers, particularly in scotland and Northern Ireland and just for a while, there could be a bit of winteriness over the mountaintops. Therell be a few showers coming in over the irish sea to North West England and north wales but further south and east, it may well be dry but its certainly going to be cooler weve got temperatures back down to 15 degrees, which is near normal for this time of the year, but struggling to 10 or 11 across much of scotland and Northern Ireland. And here, were going to find a lot of showers overnight and into monday. Low pressure moving down across the uk. Thats going to bring a stronger northWesterly Wind and make it feel chilly on monday. But after that, the weather should improvejust a little with fewer showers and it wont be quite as windy. Voiceover this is bbc news. We will have the headlines for you at the top of the hour, which is straight after this programme. Welcome to hardtalk. Im stephen sackur. How can we understand the present without interrogating the past . History matters to our sense of ourselves, the place we live in, and the world beyond. So believes my guest today, the writer and historian sathnam sanghera, whose own family story, indian sikhs migrating to the english midlands prompted him to look afresh at the impact of the British Empire, both on britain and the vast territories colonised and controlled from london. Did the British Empire really do so much to shape the world of today