Transcripts For BBCNEWS Newsday 20170618

Where Emergency Workers are hoping for lower temperatures and winds after at least 61 people were killed and as many again injured in a huge forest fire at the weekend. Many died in their cars while trying to flee the densely forested district of pedrogao grande. Portugals Prime Minister has declared three days of mourning and officials expect the death toll to rise as more bodies are found. Paul adams reports. A desperate, sometimes hopeless, battle against nature. Searing heat, strong winds and low humidity, the worst possible conditions. Large areas of Central Portugal now ablaze. This mountainous area is no stranger to forest fires, but these are some of the deadliest ever. The speed and ferocity of the flames catching people in their cars and homes. A woman screams for her house. As the fire rages on several fronts, entire villages have been evacuated. Officials still not sure what remains. Translation we were inside the house, the fire was all around us. The firefighters came to get us out because we could hardly breathe any more. As to whether the house burned or not, it must have burned, for sure. Almost instantly, we saw the fire on the right hand side of the car, and within10 15 seconds at the most, the wind that the fire created leapt across to the other side, and within 30 seconds, it was to the right, to the left, to the back of the car. You had no option but to keep driving into the fire. At times, the response has seemed chaotic. Hundreds of firefighters working furiously since yesterday. But some people say they have been left to fend for themselves while their homes burn. Thick low lying clouds of smoke are making it hard for firefighting aircraft to work effectively. France and spain have sent their aircraft to help. As the death toll mounts, the goverment has declared three days of National Mourning. With no signs of a break in the weather, this battle isnt over. Paul adams, bbc news. Lets take a look at some of the days other news. At least two people have been killed after militants attacked a tourist camp close to bamako, the capital of mali. Special forces managed to free around 30 other people. 0ur West Africa correspondent thomas fessy says the situation is being brought under control. The Security Minister talked about guests who have been rescued. Its not clear whether theres a Hostage Situation or not. What we know is the operation is still under way, there are helicopters hovering in there are helicopters hovering in the skies above the leisure centre. As you said, the mali and troops supported by france soldiers and also un peacekeepers are at the site and its unclear how many attackers have been involved, is itjust one all were there several . Where are they from and which group do they belong to . These are the details we are still waiting for but we understand that at least 30 people have now been rescued from that tourist centre. Thomas fessi reporting. Also making news today iran says it has launched a series of Missiles Into Syria in revenge for deadly attacks on its parliament that were claimed by the Islamic State Group Earlier this month. The missiles were fired from western iran across the border into northeastern syria, targeting what tehran called terror bases. The United States says one of its fighterjets has shot down a syrian warplane. The us says the syrian aircraft was bombing american backed forces fighting Islamic State militants in raqqa province. Us Central Command said its Mission Remains defeating is not fighting with syrian or Russian Forces but that it must defend its partners. The Philippine Military says it has killed nearly 250 militants in its fight against the Islamist Maute group holed up in the Southern City of marawi. Troops are continuing to pound militants allied to he is with air strikes and artillery. Military says resistance is dwindling 26 days into the offensive. Sailors missing after the Uss Fitzgerald collided with a Container Ship offjapan have been found dead. Seven sailors were left missing and three injured after saturdays collision, which the us navy said almost sank the destroyer. Damage was significant. This was not a small collision. It was right there near the pilots house, and there near the pilots house, and there was a big puncher, a big gash underneath the water line. Chinese foreign minister huang yi has met his russian, indian and South African counterparts who are in beijing for the first brics Foreign Ministers meeting on bilateral matters. Huang did not meet though with representatives from brazil. These meetings are ahead of brics Leaders Summit to be held in china in early september. Singapores veteran politicians have called for the end of a bitter family feud over the will of the former leader lee kuan yew, who died in 2015. Mr lees younger son says his father wanted his home to be demolished as it says in his will. But his older brother and singapores Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has raised concerns over the addition of that clause. Its a big day in the modern history of the United Kingdom as negotiations start to leave the european union. Talks will encompass issues like the future rights of eu citizens living in britain and uk nationals living in the eu. And the uks divorce bill, about which there has been a lot of speculation and argument already, is also likely to be discussed. The talks come as tensions continue within the british cabinet about what type of brexit to pursue. Alex forsyth has the story. It was a key reason for calling the election. Every vote for the conservatives will make me stronger when i negotiate for britain with the Prime Ministers, president s and chancellors of the european union. 0n the Campaign Trail A repeated plea. Strengthen my hand in those brexit negotiations. Thats what shed hoped. Strengthen my hand. Instead, by losing her majority, negotiations look tougher. 0n brexit the Prime Ministerfaces pressure from all sides. Some think the chancellor, who backed remain, could push for a moderate approach. Today he upped the stakes on the need to get a good deal with the eu. No deal would be a very bad outcome from britain. But there is a possible worse outcome that is a deal that is deliberately structured to punish us. To suck the lifeblood out of our economy. He said the uk would leave the Single Market and the Customs Union but there couldnt be a cliff edge. Thered have to be transitional arrangements to keep trade flowing, the economy must come first. He even attacked the tory Election Campaign for not making more of it. Its true that my role in the Election Campaign was not the one i would have liked it to be. I did a lot of travelling around. Why was that do you think . I met lots of very interesting people and i heard lots of interesting stories. I would have liked to have made much more of our economic record. Whatever the reason for the election result, this is the outcome. Anger from some, but lacking enough mps on their own, the tories have turned to Northern Irelands democratic unionist party, their views on brexit will now have to be considered too. Theresa may is facing tough battles here. Theres a whole raft of laws relating to brexit that need to be passed. The parliamentary session has been extended to two years, giving the government more time, but that wont make it much easier. The tories alone are divided about what brexit should mean, and thats without the views of political opponents. Labour could flex its muscles, suggesting today the uk could stay in the Customs Union, which allows tariff free trade within the eu. Well, i think that should be left on the table. So we could stay inside the Customs Union . Yes. Theres also this notion of no deal being a viable deal, which theresa may and the government have repeatedly said. No deal is what happens if you get to the end of the two years and you havent been able to reach agreement. Youre pushed over the cliff. Extracting the uk from the eu isnt going to be easy, and theres still no real clarity from anyone about what brexit should or will look like, but its clear that here as well as in brussels, the Prime Minister is facing a tough fight. Alex forsyth, bbc news, westminster. Youd be forgiven if you didnt know where the sulu and celebes seas are. But this stretch of water in South East Asia is one of the riskiest regions in the world. I spoke to Maritime Defence Expert Collin Koh from Nanyang Technological University and asked him why it took so much time for the region to agree on this security arrangement. Actually there are a few issues, the main one has to do with the political issue of sensitivity for one anothers sovereignty. Thats the problem when it comes to the severity of this issue and there is something more practical, the need to not just co ordinate something more practical, the need to notjust co ordinate with agencies of these three countries but within each country the Co Ordination of various agencies because its unlike the case of the macau straight when we are looking at piracy, we are dealing with terrorism so your requiring co operation between the Home Industry and the Foreign Ministry so its complex. It is a complex undertaking but have all these three countries got their Heads Together with the political will in one deal to be able to make this happen . Yes, correct. This is actually replicating the previous macau straight patrol and i think at the end of the day they recognised if they dont resolve this issue it is going to dent the image of the association of South East Asian nations as well as to affect the trade that is taking place in the sea. Were talking about a total of 40 sea. Were talking about a total of a0 billion us dollars annually in Terms Of Trade passing through. Because of the terrorism and the transnational issues, we are looking at schippers being concerned because they have to reroute and they incur more costs. We are looking at a return to the early issues in the macau straight where the issues of economic pressure and the severity of issues come into play. Theres one more issue, the South China Sea chinese intervention as well. This isa chinese intervention as well. This is a major agreement that has to be signed by these three countries, but will it have the assistance of maybe the americans or the chinese, these two global powers . the americans or the chinese, these two global powers . I think if we go by the normal approach taken by asean countries, they will not want extra regional direct intervention and policing of the waters off financial, technical or training assistance will be welcome. Maritime defence expert colin koh. Youre watching newsday on the bbc. Still to come on the programme a victory for french president Emmanuel Macron, with his Party Winning an absolute majority in parliament. There was a bomb in the city centre. A code word known to be one used by the ira was given. Army bomb experts were examining a suspect van when there was a huge explosion. The South African Parliament has destroyed the foundation of apartheid by abolishing the population registration act, which for a0 years forcibly classified each citizen according to race. Germanys parliament, the bundestag, has voted by a narrow majority to move the seat of government from bonn to berlin. Berliners celebrated into the night but the decision was greeted with shock in bonn. Just a day old and the royal baby is tonight sleeping in his cot at home. Early this evening, the new prince was taken by his mother and father to their apartments in kensington palace. The Real Focus Today was valentina tereshkova, the worlds first woman cosmonaut. What do you think of the russian woman in space . I think its a wonderful achievement and i think we might be able to persuade the wife it would be a good idea if i could to get her to go up there for a little while. This is newsday on the bbc. Welcome back, everyone. Im rico hizon in singapore. Devastating forest fires in portugal kill more than 60 people. Three days of National Mourning have been declared. Historic brexit negotiations are set to begin. But there have been signs of some possible divisions on the british side between the Prime Minister and Finance Minister. Lets take a look at some front pages from around the world. In the uk, the Times Newspaper reports on heightened tensions at the very top of british politics. It says the countrys Finance Minister, philip hammond, effectively knifed Prime Minister theresa may on national television. In a tv interview, mr hammond criticised his own partys general Election Campaign, which focussed heavily on mrs may. Meanwhile, the china daily has a story about an unlikely energy source, combustible ice. It says reserves of gas hydrate could represent a major breakthrough in clean energy. Finally, the gulf news reports on the ongoing fallout between qatar and its regional allies, some of whom have accused it of sponsoring extremism. It says the spat could affect the fifa world cup, thats scheduled to take place in 2022. Those are the top stories around the world. The United Nations has called on thailand to amend the harsh law against insulting the monarchy. The office of the un High Commissionerfor Human Rights said it was deeply troubled by the high rate of prosecutions and the disproportionate sentences for the offence. The un said that since the military coup in 201a, the number of people investigated for violating the Lese Majeste Law has risen to more than double the number investigated in the previous 12 years, and that only a of those charged were acquitted. Trials are routinely held in closed session, often in Military Courts where defendants rights are limited. Earlier this month, a man was given a 35 year sentence for facebook posts judged to have defamed the monarchy, the harshest penalty to date. 0ur South East Asia correspondent looks at the case of a woman who was given a similarly harsh sentence two years ago, in the city of chiang mai. 0nce once a week, this woman takes a day off work and gets her granddaughter is ready to meet her mother. Her daughter is in prison. Her crime, posting on facebook and insulting the monarchy of thailand. Translation it is difficult. I have to ta ke translation it is difficult. I have to take care of them alone. As they are girls, i have to make sure they are girls, i have to make sure they are safe, even if they are home and out of work. The chiang mai womens prison is a short drive away. 20 Yea Rs Prison is a short drive away. 20 years ago, she prison is a short drive away. 20 years ago, she was prison is a short drive away. 20 years ago, she was given a sentence of 28 years. Few of the other families waiting to see inmates are dealing with sentences like that translation i never thought this would happen. Ithought translation i never thought this would happen. I thought it would be a one year prison term, i thought it would be suspended. We did not sell drugs, we did not kill anyone or steal anything. I thought it was just for questioning. I did not think it would turn out like this. She has told me it all started because of her anger over her husband, who had gone off with another woman. She says a friend suggested a way at getting back at her, by setting up a facebook account in her name and posting controversial comments. But she did it using her computer, which was later traced by the police. Even by the harsh standards of thailands majesty law, the sentence passed on her was exceptionally severe, especially considering she has no history of political involvement, says she was coerced into pleading guilty and doing the initial act, and would not even be in prison if she was not informed on by ordinary thai citizens who believe it is their duty to defend the monarchy. This is a passionate royalist. Memories of the late King Bhumibol who died last year still affect him deeply. He runs a group of volu nteers deeply. He runs a group of volunteers in chiang mai who Monitor Facebook for anti monarchy content. He is the one who informed on her posts. Translation he is the one who informed on her posts. Translationzlj he is the one who informed on her posts. Translation i do not regret it. No one does. This is an issue affecting the highest and most respected institution in the country. We are the only country in the world who still have decent feelings and treat them like gods. Our late king was more than a god, he was a living god. That is how thais feel about him. In her home, they still keep the tattered calendar on the wall fixed on the month when she was arrested. Translation the children were stressed that first. The oldest one seems to understand. She knew her mother was given a 28 year prison sentence, but she could not imagine how many days or months those 28 yea rs how many days or months those 28 years would be. The little one, when she heard 28 years, thought her mother would come back on the 28th of the month. Her long sentence has now been reduced in a world pardon to 12 years. But that still means that her daughters will have grown up that her daughters will have grown up by that her daughters will have grown up by the time that she comes out. Bbc news, chiang mai. In france, president Emmanuel Macrons new party has won a big majority of seats in parliamentary elections. La republique en marche will be the Biggest Party in the assembly. This is after a second and final round of parliamentary elections. More than half of its candidates have never been elected before. Lucy williamson reports. Two months ago, this result would have stunned france, more than 60 of Parliament Won by a party that a year ago did not even insist. The only surprise today that they didnt win more. Proof of how much mr macron and his party have reshaped french politics. Translation today you have given a clear majority to the president. This majority will have the mission to act for france. The majority of french people have preferred to choose hope over anger, optimism over pessimism, and trust over fear. The Front National won just a handful of seats, one of them going to their lead at marine le pen. She will enter the National Parliament for the first time. Translation in the face of this party and in the face of this beast of the system, we are the only force of resistance to the dilution of france, of its social models, and its identity. Never before has a french Political Party won such a stunning majority from scratch, big enough for mr macron to push forward with his bold and controversial labour reforms, big enough even for him to weather the inexperience and diversity of his new mps. And with around 200 seats shared among a divided opposition, some are asking where real political pressure will come from. We must put something on the table, and for the moment, we have nothing to put on the table but to say, you are going to work more. And you are going to be paid less. If he will succeed, he will have to cope with us, and it will be a fight. Who wins . I dont know. We will see. Mr macrons sweeping victory hides a more complex national mood. Turnout was just a3 today, the lowest for decades. And many voters wanted change, but most did not pick Emmanuel Macron as their first choice for president. And not everyone agrees with his plans for economic reform. Mr macrons new elected army has been drafted quickly. Most have never served before. Having swept away the old political order, will they deliver something new . Lucy williamson, bbc news, paris. In cricket, pakistan have won the Champions Trophy after comprehensively beating their great rivals india at the oval in london. Pakistan started as the underdogs, but set the world champions a big total to beat, and then bowled out indias star batsmen, in the end winning by 180 runs. The two countries do not play each other outside of International Tournaments because of political tensions. Bbc urdus henna saeed has been with fans celebrating in the pakistani city of lahore. The Pakistani Cricket Team has defeated the indian cricket team. This is lahore, pakistan. The crowd is going crazy. They have a reason to celebrate. The iccs Champions Trophy is coming to the sun and they could not be more happy coming to pakistan. The sentiments are extreme. They cannot control their happiness. The Pakistani Team were the dark horse at the start of the tournament, and now they are the winners. The celebrations will continue for a long time. Get used to this bbc urdus henna saeed there in lahore. You have been watching newsday. Stay with us. Troubles in indias it industry. Well be looking at whats behind the recent mass lay offs in just a few moments. Thats all for now. Good morning. A hot and dry and sunny weekend for many of us. It may have been too hot for some of you. The best place to be is on the coast. This is east sussex. It could be many places through the weekend. Refreshing sea breezes. The only exception was the final coerced, i3 degrees in shetland. Far north west. Cloud and drizzly rain. To the south, a warm start to the monday morning. Overnight lows only sitting at around 18 20 degrees. Hardly a cloud in the sky. Temperatures set to rocket once again. The Weather Front will go south into Central Scotland and Northern Ireland, increasing cloud. A hot and dry afternoon in the south. A chance of isolated showers. They will be very isolated. The temperatures will be the talking point, low 30s quite widely. Pretty hot close to the coast. A light seabreeze. High uv expected across much of the country. The cloud in Northern Ireland in Central Scotland. Northern and Western Isles will see bright weather. Sunshine for a change. A few showers. The Weather Front will continue south overnight monday introduced it. Not much rain on it. Mid teens into the north is quite likely. The north of england in the midlands, cloudy skies, midtwenties more likely. South of that front, sunny. High 20s not out of the question. Wednesday, sunny weather and dry weather in the south east corner. A fresh feel with a breeze off the sea. By the end of the day, sharp and possibly thundery downpours from the west. A legacy of cloud. Extreme heat in the south east potentially on thursday. 30 degrees or more. It is the start of queens. It will be pretty hot for spectators and players. Sunscreen will be necessary. It will be hot at royal ascot as well. The weather will be Fairand Royal Ascot as well. The weather will be fair and set to be hot. Take care. This is bbc world news. Our top story Devastating Forest Fires in portugal have killed more than 60 people. Three days of National Mourning have been declared. Many victims died in their cars while trying to escape. Firefighters have tackled over 150 blazes across the country. Portugals Prime Minister described it as the greatest tragedy the country has suffered in recent years. Historic brexit negotiations are set to begin on monday in brussels. There have been signs of some possible divisions on the british side between the Prime Minister theresa may and her Finance Minister phillip hammond. And this story is trending on bbc. Com. Pakistans cricket fans have gone wild after their team thrashed india in one of the Biggest International Sporting Clashes of the year. They won by 180 runs to pick up the Champions Trophy at the oval. Thats all from me now. Now on bbc news its time for hardtalk