15/11/2017 Outside Source

Hello, I'm Kasia Madera,

this is Outside Source.

Zimbabwe's leader Robert Mugabe

is detained as the army seizes

control of the country -

but they insist they

are not staging a coup.

We are only targeting criminals

around him who are committing crimes

that are causing social and economic

suffering in the country.

We're going to be live in the US

State of Alabama as the Republican

candidate for state's vacant Senate

seat hits back at historic sexual

assault allegations.

The tit-for-tat between Russia

and the United States over

allegations of meddling in the 2016

US election continues.

Russian MPs have backed a law that

could force foreign media outlets

to register as foreign agents.

And remember you can

always get in touch.

The hashtag is #BBCOS.

Welcome to Outside Source.

We start the programme in Zimbabwe,

where the army has taken over

and where one of the giants

of African politics,

President Robert Mugabe,

is thought to be under house arrest.

The whereabouts of his wife

Grace Mugabe is not clear.

It's been a tumultuous 24

hours in the country.

These are the pictures we brought

to you on OS at around

this time last night.

They show army vehicles

on the streets near the capital.

We also reported that the ruling

Zanu-PF party had accused

the country's army chief

of treasonable conduct.

General Constantine Chiwenga had

challenged President Mugabe

after he sacked the vice-president.

A lot has happened since then.

Early this morning,

the army was on the airwaves

as well as the streets.

Troops entered the headquarters

of the national broadcaster ZBC,

and Major General Sibusiso Moyo read

out a statement on

national television.

Zimbabweans were told that

while there hadn't been a coup,

the army was in now charge.

We wish to assure the nation that

his Excellency the President of the

Republic of Zimbabwe and

commander-in-chief of his mobile

defence forces, can read Robert

Mugabe and his family are safe and

sound and that security is

guaranteed. -- Comrade Robert

Mugabe.

I asked the BBC's Anne Soy, who's

in Zimbabwe, to clarify the point -

that that although the military

denying calling it a coup,

that's exactly what it looks like.

Absolutely, and there could be some

explanations about that. One, they

may not want to alienate Mr Mugabe's

supporters, both in the country,

civilians, as well as those in the

military. Apart from that, Zimbabwe

is a key member of the African

Union, and in the past that has

expelled or suspended countries

where coups were successfully

staged, such as you... Egypt. To all

intents and purposes everyone says

it is a coup, but the military says

it is not.

Robert Mugabe is under

house arrest, what about his wife,

Grace?

That is not known. There has

been speculation that the

information has not been verified

that she might have been allowed to

leave the country. What is clear is

she has fallen out with the military

and her ambition to succeed her

husband to lead this country is what

could have led to the situation the

country is in at the moment. There

is a lot of uncertainty. Some people

he would speak to say they have been

waiting for a change in this

country, they have been suffering

economically, but they did not know

in what format change could come,

and now that it has, many of them

are happy but they are also cautious

because they are apprehensive as to

what this means. Many will not want

to have military rule in their

country but they want the situation

resolved, and there are talks going

on, led by regional leaders, to try

to resolve the situation.

What are we seeing on the streets?

The military is calling for calm, is

that what we are seeing?

There is relative calm in the

streets, people are going about

their business, children coming back

home from school. However, there is

a heavy presence of military

officers in the streets in key

installations in the capital and

that is not a situation that people

are used to seeing. So the faster

the political situation is resolved,

the better for the people of

Zimbabwe, who can get back to their

daily lives as normal.

There's been reaction from around

the world to the events in Zimbabwe.

As you would expect.

Let's look at what some

the key international

players have been saying.

Jacob Zuma, the President

of South Africa - which has

a border with Zimbabwe -

says he's spoken with Robert Mugabe.

He says Robert Mugabe is safe.

President Zuma is

appealing for calm.

I have taken a decision to send an

envoy to be able to conduct the

leaders of the defence Force who

have undertaken these operations,

but also to meet with President

Mugabe so that we have a more clear

picture of what is happening in

Zimbabwe. I am hoping that the

Defence Force will not move onto

more damage, that they will be able

to respect the constitution of

Zimbabwe, as well as the people of

Zimbabwe.

Nigeria is another

major power in Africa.

A spokesperson for President Buhari

posted this comment on Twitter.

Once again, lots of appeals for

calm.

The African Union has called

for the military to stand down.

Alpha Conde, the President of Guinea

said it "seems like a coup.

Clearly soldiers are trying

to take power by force."

But Zimbabwe's military is insisting

that they have not staged a coup.

So what is this?

What is happening in Zimbabwe? My

online team are looking at different

content taking place. Let's have a

look at some of the views from

cartoonists.

Here's the Kenya-based

cartoonist Victor Ndula.

It is pretty clear what he thinks.

And a cartoonist in South Africa

with a similar line.

If you're still not sure,

my colleagues writing

for the website have put this guide

together - "How can you tell

if a coup is happening?"

A beginners guide, if you like,

comparing various different

countries around the world and how

what is happening in Zimbabwe

compares to that.

Zimbabwe was, of course, a British

colony before independence.

Since leading the independence

movement and subsequently

taking office in 1980,

President Mugabe has been

accusing Britain of trying

to destroy the country.

Here's the British Foreign

Secretary, Boris Johnson,

giving his take on events.

Allbritton has ever wanted the

Zimbabwe is to be able to decide

their own future in free and fair

elections. Mugabe's consuming

ambition was also to Rash was always

to deny them a choice, and this

House will remember the brutal

litany of his 37 years in office.

The elections he rigged and stole,

the murder and torture of Poland 's

-- opponents, the illegal seizure of

land leading to the worst

hyperinflation in recent history,

measured in the billions of

percentage points in forcing the

abolition of the Zimbabwe dollar.

That was the British Foreign

Secretary Boris Johnson giving us

some information.

Robert Mugabe has been in power

since the liberation war

of the 1970s and this,

the country's declaration

of independence in 1980,

which ended white minority rule.

Historic images.

He's now 93 years old and people

have begun considering

who will succeed him.

Two main candidates have emerged.

The first is Emmerson

Mnangagwa, vice

president until last week -

who is backed by the military

and his fellow veterans

of the 1970s liberation war that

dominate the government.

The other is the president's

wife, Grace Mugabe.

She enjoys the support

of the youth wing -

known as Generation 40 -

and, of course, her husband.

The fierce rivalry between the two

has split the ruling Zanu-PF party.

It all came to a head last week

when Emmerson Mnangagwa

was sacked as vice-president,

after he was accused

of plotting against Mr Mugabe.

The army's commander,

and close ally to Mr Mnangawa,

sent this warning on Monday.

It is pertinent to restate that the

forces remain the major stockholder

in respect to the gains of the

reparations struggle. We must remind

those behind the current treacherous

shenanigans that when it comes to

matters of protecting our evolution,

the military is right to step in.

Focus on Africa presenter Nancy

Kacungira spoke to me earlier.

She gave us a little bit of detail.

We must remember that the military

has been instrumental in keeping

Robert Mugabe in power for the last

37 years, and they have been very

involved within the Zanu-PF party.

We are seeing a split between what

you could call the old guard, who

are the ones who fought in the

liberation struggle, and the new

guard, which you could say is now

calling themselves the GE 40,

Generation 40. Many of them seem to

support Grace Mugabe as a successor

to President Robert Mugabe, the old

guard would prefer it be someone

from their country, basically. So

there is a power struggle when this

succession issue arose. When it

seemed like Grace Mugabe, who used

to be Mugabe's typist, would now be

able to take over, the army had a

very different view to that.

Why are people concerned? There have

been many years of corruption, what

do people want to see now?

Since the

year 2000 there have been lots of

economic issues in Zimbabwe. Between

2000 and 2008 the economy shrank by

a third, at its highest unemployment

was at about 80%. It is difficult to

get imports into the country, the

currency has crashed multiple times,

it is a very difficult economic

picture. Millions of Zimbabweans

have gone to look for opportunities

in South Africa and further afield.

What people really want is change,

and the question they are asking now

is did the military do this just to

prevent Grace Mugabe from succeeding

the president, or did they do it to

bring about change? That is the

question that most Zimbabwe and are

concerned about, we'll just be power

shifting within the same group or

are they going to cede real

solutions to the problems within the

economy, the problems within the

collapse of the agricultural sector,

to the currency? Will they start to

see real transformation?

We are continuing to monitor those

events. But we have the story still

to come.

Tit-for-tat between

Russia and America.

Russian MPs have backed a law that

could force foreign media outlets

to register as foreign agents just

days after the US forced a Kremlin

backed news channel to do the same.

Scotland is set to become the first

country in the world to set

a national minimum price for alcohol

- that's after the Supreme Court

rejected a legal challenge

from the Scotch Whisky Association.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon says

she is delighted with the ruling.

This has been a very long road. I

introduced the legislation to the

Scottish parliament, took it through

Parliament, when I was still Health

Secretary. Five years have passed as

it has been held up in court

challenges, so to get to the end of

the process with minimum pricing now

able to proceed is really good. The

policy is by its very nature

controversial, again, this is an

example of Scotland's leading the

world. It will continue to have its

critics but it is the kind of bold

and necessary policy that we need to

tackle our public health challenges.

The Health Secretary will set out a

statement to the Scottish Parliament

next week setting up the steps we

will now take towards

implementation.

This is Outside Source live

from the BBC newsroom.

Our lead story is...

Zimbabwe's leader Robert Mugabe

is detained as the army seizes

control of the country -

but they insist they

are not staging a coup.

Let's turn to the US state

of Alabama, where the race

is on to become the next senator,

replacing Jeff Sessions,

who's now the Attorney General.

This is Roy Moore.

He's the Republican politician who's

currently campaigning for the post.

But his campaign has been marred

by allegations of sexual misconduct.

A number of women have accused

Mr Moore of sexually

assaulting them decades ago,

when they were teenagers.

He denies the claims.

Nonetheless, he's been told

to step down by a number

of senior Republicans,

including House Senate majority

leader Mitch McConnell.

Rajini Vaidyanathan

is in Montgomery, Alabama.

She can give as reaction from

Alabama. Roy Moore is very defiant?

Yes, he is. He's spoke at a rally

last night. He has been tweeting

today saying we will not quit. He

says he is going to stay as

candidate, but as you mentioned

there is huge pressure from the

Republican leadership for him to

step aside in the wake of these

allegations. Let's take a look at

the story and some of the

allegations made against him, which,

of course, he denies.

Out on the campaign trail, Roy Moore

was defiant as he heads back at

allegations of sexual assault.

I am

now facing allegations, and that's

all the press want to talk about.

But I want to talk about the issues.

I want to talk about where this

country is going.

In the past week five women have

accused him of sexual misconduct

dating back several decades. He

denies the claims. The youngest say

she was just 14 when she was

sexually assaulted.

Beverly Young Nelson says she was 16

when he forced himself on her.

I

thought he was going to rape me, I

was twisting and struggling and

begging him to stop.

The former judge is no stranger to

controversy. He is pro-gun,

anti-gay, doesn't believe in

evolution and one said Islam was a

false religion.

At a gathering at Montgomery country

club the majority of voters we

talked to were not troubled by the

allegations.

You cannot tell how

world anybody is in the south, for

sure, some of these girls look like

they are 20, some like they are 14.

I don't know, that is why I say I

feel it is very suspicious it took

40 years for anybody to come

forward.

I think they have been put up to it.

That may have been problems 40

years, I don't know, but Judge Moore

is a gracious man, a good man and he

wants to win for this country.

Unfortunately, in this state, I

think he will still win. I don't

think he should.

Here and across the States there is

still huge support for Roy Moore.

Many say they do not like being told

what to do and believe it is

apolitical conspiracy conceived by

the Democrats. But beyond these

quarters, there is growing pressure

on Roy Moore to step aside.

Back in Washington, senior

Republicans have been lining up to

denounce him.

Roy Moore should step aside. The

women who have come forward are

entirely credible, he is obviously

not fit to be in the United States

Senate.

Fresh from his trip to Asia,

Donald Trump will have to decide how

to deal with the unfolding scandal.

A year ago he himself was the

subject of sexual assault

allegations, which he denied, but

they did not hurt his path to the

White House. With Roy Moore still

ahead in the polls, it might not

make a difference in this race,

either.

Well, the latest opinion polls that

have just been released this

afternoon and Alabama suggest that

actually the Democrats, and remember

this is a solidly Republican state,

could actually be gaining ground in

the wake of these allegations. That

does not reflect the people I have

spoken to, the Republicans who say

they are still very much behind Roy

Moore. The local Republican steering

committee here is due to speak

within the hour to discuss what to

do about Roy Moore's candidacy. Of

course there is pressure from the

Republican leadership for him to

step aside in this race, but Roy

Moore, a bit like President Trump,

likes to make his views known on

Twitter and has been tweeting this

afternoon. He says we are everything

the Washington elite hates, we will

not quit. We also expect to hear

from Roy Moore's lawyer in the next

couple of hours as well, not sure

what that statement might be. But

the tweets suggest he is not going

anywhere.

Rajini

anywhere.

Rajini, thank you. Those elections

coming up in December.

The tit-for-tat between Russia

and the United States over

allegations that the Kremlin meddled

in the 2016 US election

has taken a new turn.

Russian MPs have backed a law that

could force foreign media outlets

to register as foreign agents.

It's in response to

the States exerting pressure

on the Kremlin-backed TV channel RT

America to do the same,

which it did on Monday.

The US decision was in part based

on this report released in January.

In it, US intelligence agencies

accuse the channel of involvement

in a campaign of Russian

interference in the election

won by Donald Trump.

From Moscow, Sarah Rainsford

explains what the retaliation

from the Russians means.

The deputies here in Russia's lower

house of parliament have voted

unanimously in favour of the law

which gives the government the right

and ability to label all foreign

media operating in Russia as foreign

agents. What does that mean, it

sounds sinister? It means any media

company, whether funded by a foreign

state or private individuals, could

now be blacklisted, meaning any

information that foreign media

producers would have to be labelled

as funded from abroad. It is a

stigma, essentially. It means there

will be all sorts of audits and

bureaucratic hoops to jump through.

Russia and the deputies in

Parliament say they have been forced

into this, it is a response to a

step in America where the Russian

state funded arty, Russia today, has

been forced to register as a foreign

agent.

So they say the law was passed

unanimously in the lower house, it

needs to go to the Senate.

And then has to be signed off

by President Vladimir Putin.

Let's hear from Russian politician

Alexander Yushenko about why

it was so well supported.

TRANSLATION:

We were forced to adopt

the law by those who today do not

allow Russian media to work openly

at the territory of other states.

The United States of America has

clear double standards towards

freedom of speech. They either like

it or not and they suppress what

they want to suppress.

So who could this law affect?

Well, US media such as Voice

of America and its sister

broadcaster Radio Free Europe,

or Radio Liberty, are thought

to be among the targets -

they both receive funding

from the US Congress.

Here's Jeff Trimble of

the Broadcasting Board of Governors.

First of all, what we do in US/

International media is not

propaganda, it is fact -based,

independent, balanced journalism.

Second, what we are looking at might

happen from the Russian side, it

would simply further constrain and

close what is already an extremely

difficult, almost closed market for

US International media in Russia.

That, as opposed to what the

Russians have in the United States,

where they can freely disseminate

content via cable television, radio

and other outlets.

I am sure we will get more reaction

on that. Let's turn to Australia,

boaters have overwhelmingly

supported legislating same-sex

marriage. Roughly 80% of eligible

voters took part in the non-binding

survey, with 61.6% saying they

support changes to the marriage

laws. Lots of celebrations and

scenes across Australia after the

result was announced. Thousands of

supporters of same-sex marriage took

to the streets to celebrate the

results. There were, of course,

tears. This is Penny Wong, the

leader of the Australian Labour

Party in the nation's upper house,

an openly gay woman. The result was

so much for her, she was unable to

hide her emotions. Both sides of the

debate have reacted to this

decision. This is a little of what

we have heard.

I was nervous today. For me, it was

something that I was really anxious

about, because it is such an

important outcome for so many people

right across the country, and we

just wanted to get it right.

The decision of the public should be

respected by the parliament, but I

think it is also very important that

quite legitimate concerns that were

raised by many people, including me

and my friend and former Deputy

Prime Minister John Anderson about

the protection of parental rights,

religious freedoms and freedom of

speech, these are not small matters.

The Australian people have declared

overwhelmingly Australia is ready

for marriage equality!

CHEERING

They voted yes for love.

And now it is up to us here in the

Parliament of Australia to get on

with it, to get on with the job the

Australian people have tasked as to

do and get this done, this year,

before Christmas.

So a clear message, you heard the

Australian Prime Minister saying he

wants same-sex marriage legislation

passed before Christmas.

How realistic is that? Let's speak

to Hywel Griffith, a la Sydney

correspondent.

Early in this campaign the

government gave pledges it would

bring legislation, a change in law

by Christmas. That does not leave

very long, but there is a bill ready

and drafted to go. But there is a

cancer bill being put forward by

some or conservative politicians who

were no voters and did not want the

change, what they want measures put

in to ensure the rights of religious

freedoms and freedom of speech,

potentially to measures against

changes in education and gender, all

the things they say a liberal elite

wants to bring on the back of

same-sex marriage. The debate is not

over but the pledge has come from

the Prime Minister and his Cabinet

that they expect a change in law

before the end of the year.

Hywel Griffith in Sydney. He will

monitor whether a change in law

happens, whether they get it through

before Christmas.

Lots more coming up in the next

edition of Outside Source, so stay

with us.

Here's your nightly look at some of

the big weather stories. If you were

with me this time yesterday we spoke

about pollution across parts of

India, that is ongoing at the

moment. Also going as this area of

cloud, the developing weather system

pushing in from the Bay of Bengal,

parts of north-east India in

particular will seek flooding rains

through Thursday and Friday,

damaging winds as well, spreading to

other parts of north-east India and

Bangladesh. If you are planning a

trip to North America very soon,

something is going on at the moment.

A weather system clearing away from

the north-east, lots of rain and

mountain snow in the West, but the

big story is how temperatures

oscillate from one extreme to the

other, a little bit like we have

seen in the UK as we continue to see

ripples of Caldara Mark Roe push

across Canada and the northern US,

but crucially in the run-up to

Thanksgiving, is very cold air

pushing into the north-east,

including New York and Washington.

If you have a trip plan to the

Caribbean, unusually heavy rainfall

for the time of year across an

essential parts, clusters of

thunderstorms easing away from parts

of Cuba and Jamaica, that Haiti,

Dominican Republic and Puerto Rico

are particularly wet, around Costa

Rica and Panama, the potential of

flooding rains over the next few

days.

There are flooding rains in the

Mediterranean, this cloud has

spiralled, produced well over a

month's worth of rain in 24 hours to

the east of Italy, and we have seen

snow fall and damaging winds. Here

is the scene in Greece through parts

of this week. Torrential

thunderstorms, flash flooding,

damaging transport disruption.

No P at, the central Mediterranean,

the area of low pressure circulates,

could strengthen further, bringing

cold air across Sardinia, more rain

across Sicily and southern parts of

Italy and sporadic but intense

thunderstorms on Thursday across

Greece.

Through Thursday into Friday, those

bright colours could mount up to

several hundred millimetres of rain

in parts of Greece and southern

Italy and the winds strengthened.

This circulation might get returned

by Friday in which the low pressure

system has some of the

characteristics of a hurricane,

instead of being driven by strong

seas it is a contrast. The wind is

not as strong as a hurricane boat is

enough to cause damage and

destruction, perhaps more problems

with frequent lightning and flash

flooding.

Back to the UK, turning brighter

tomorrow but also colder, because we

have a band of rain. It starts early

doors in Scotland and Northern

Ireland, sweets towards southern

England and Wales and by the end of

the day Sunshine follows in its

wake, temperatures dropping. More

details and your weather for the

week ahead in half an hour.

Hello, I'm Kasia Madera.

This is Outside Source,

and these are the main stories

here in the BBC Newsroom:

Zimbabwe's leader Robert Mugabe

is detained as the army seizes

control of the country -

but they insist they

are not staging a coup.

We are only targeting criminals

around him who are committing crimes

that are causing social and economic

suffering in the country.

Remember

you can always get in touch. The

hashtag is BBCOS.

Hello, welcome.

After nearly 40 years

as leader of Zimbabwe,

President Robert Mugabe has been

detained in the capital.

The army has taken control

in Harare - armoured

vehicles are on the streets.

The military's denied it's a coup,

but it seems to be a move to thwart

the ambitions of Mr Mugabe's wife

Grace to become the next president.

The BBC's Shingai Nyoka

is in Zimbabwe.

This is what Zimbabweans woke up to

this morning, tanks on the streets

of their capital city. Something

that has never happened in nearly 40

years of independence. So what has

changed? The answer came early this

morning, with a statement from the

military on state TV, saying that

the Mugabe family was safe and that

this was not a coup.

What this

defence forces is doing is to pacify

a degenerated political, social and

economic situation in our country,

which is not addressed may result in

a violent conflict.

Overnight,

President Mugabe, the world's oldest

leader, lost control of the country

he has led for 37 years. The

generals say he remains president,

but clearly there is no longer

calling the shots. The presence of

the military is being felt here on

the streets of Harare, and some

parts of the city are locked on.

This is as close as we can get to

some of the military tanks that have

stationed themselves in strategic

positions. One, as you can see here,

has blocked off access to the

President's office. Another has

blocked off access to Parliament.

The president still has his

supporters, especially in rural

areas, but here in Harare it is a

different story. TRANSLATION:

We are

going to have a good life now. We

looking forward to Christmas because

of what has happened. We want to

thank those who organise this, and

we want them to remain until our

problems are resolved.

I want to

thank the generals for removing this

tyrant. He was ruling the country as

if it belonged to his family.

Much

will depend on how Zimbabwe's

neighbours react, especially South

Africa. Its president Jacob Zuma

spoke on the telephone to Mr Mugabe

earlier. He will now sensor that

the's defence minister to Zimbabwe

to assess the situation first-hand.

I am hoping that the defence Force

will not move and do more damage,

that they will be able to respect

the constitution of Zimbabwe as well

as the people of Zimbabwe.

But in

the end this was all about a power

struggle within Zimbabwe's ruling

party. Last week this man on the

left, Emerson Mnangagwa, was sacked

as vice president. Like Mugabe he

was a veteran of the country's

struggle for independence but in

recent years he has found himself up

against this woman, Robert Mugabe's

young, ambitious, and some would say

ruthless, wife. One of the most

important figures in the country.

She is a divisive figure. Listen to

the reception. These were boos, not

cheers.

I will do it, I don't care!

She had wanted to take over as vice

president. Tonight a warning from

the British Foreign Office to

British nationals in the country.

Stay at home, stay in your hotel

room, wait until things settle down

a little bit.

Zimbabweans wonder

what lies ahead. President Robert

Mugabe remains in the country while

the whereabouts of his wife is not

clear. Shingai Nyoka, Zimbabwe. A

lot of confusion but it is important

to stress the military in Zimbabwe

are calling for calm.

The US Secretary of State has called

for a credible and independent

investigation into abuses

against Myanmar's Rohingya Muslims.

Rex Tillerson's comments came

on a visit to the country

and a meeting with its de facto

leader, Aung San Suu Kyi.

He pledged more aid for the Rohingya

refugees who've fled to Bangladesh.

Mr Tillerson called what's

happened "horrific."

It's hard to watch what's happening.

So that's the sense of urgency,

as we want to see the human

suffering relieved.

The crisis itself won't end

until a lot of very deep

issues are addressed,

and that will take time.

Barbara Plett-Usher

is at the State Department

in Washington and told me

about the questioning

of Aung San Suu Kyi.

She was asked point-blank about why

she had stayed silent about the

atrocities committed, and she said I

wasn't silent, I just wasn't

interesting or exciting. I was

trying to be accurate, suggesting in

general she had been trying not to

further inflame the sectarian

tensions behind the violence. Her

defenders also say she has to tread

carefully because if she provoked

the army it may roll back further

the Democratic gains that have been

made, and it was interesting she

said that Myanmar could co-operate

with the United States and the

international community in

addressing this crisis is the focus

was on peace and security and not on

punishment, which seems to have been

Mr Tillerson's approach, because she

thanked him for keeping an open mind

and for his understanding.

Briefly,

if you would, the issue of

sanctions, he said it was something

not advisable at this stage. Quite

surprising?

Said targeted sanctions

might be a possibility if there was

more evidence about who exactly is

the perpetrators called for these

investigations, but he said

broad-based sanctions would not

solve the crisis. It was a very

complex crisis that needed time to

be resolved, so he said that was not

the answer. But he said what was the

answer was for the humanitarian

crisis to be resolved immediately

and he called on the government and

the army to act on statements they

had made about bringing refugees

back safely.

Of course we have had

the Burmese military investigation.

How does that fit into all of this.

That is something he was dressing

before he came, that there should be

a credible investigation of what

happened so that those responsible

could be held to account. He

repeated that quite a lot during his

comments after meeting with both the

head of the Army and with Aung San

Suu Kyi. I think he said about six

times there should be a credible and

independent investigation, no doubt

a response to the military's ever,

it's an internal investigation which

found out it has done absolutely

nothing wrong, and it an edge those

details just before he games, so

that would be his answer to them. Of

course the military has also refused

UN investigators to do this

independent investigation as has the

civilian government headed by Aung

San Suu Kyi but Washington has been

careful to hold the military

accountable for what is happening

and to express support for the

civilian government, and Rex

Tillerson did that too. Again and

again during his comments he said we

support the elected government, we

are committed to the democratic

transition and working through this

crisis is a big part of that and

that is the US goal, so that was his

message.

Barbara Plett-Usher at the

US State Department, thank you. Time

for a bit of history.

There are fewer than 20 surviving

paintings by Leonardo da Vinci -

most of them are held

in the world's great museums.

There is just one in private hands,

Salvator Mundi -

a painting of Christ

as the Saviour of the World.

The work is expected to fetch

at least $100 million

at auction in New York

in a few hours' time.

Martin Kemp is an art history

professor at Oxford University

and said that the work might not

fetch the price that the current

owner paid out for it.

He paid over 136 million for it, and

we know he was sold at by a man who

runs tax-free facilities for storing

works of art. And he paid 15 million

less for it, so if the price is

between the two it will struggle to

make 100, but we will see. It is

being put in a celebrity modern

picture, so they hope to boost it

that way. It was incredibly badly

damaged and heavily restored, but

when it was all cleaned and tidied I

think there is no doubt about it.

What happened was at some point it

got badly damaged. It was on a panel

that sort of lifted and somebody has

shaved off the bits lifted which was

a hideous thing to do, then

repainted over the top of it to make

it look like a picture again.

Horrible things happen to pictures,

they haven't the heart -- horrible

things have happened to pictures in

the past and they certainly have to

this one. Two dealers noticed it and

thought it might be worth a punt,

just to see what we have got here,

and when they started cleaning it

and taking off this terrible over

painting, they began to see, wow,

this is really quite something.

You

can keep an eye on that and all of

our stories on our website.

The British Foreign Secretary,

Boris Johnson, has held his first

meeting with the husband

of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe,

the British citizen jailed in Iran.

Mr Johnson pledged to leave no stone

unturned in trying to free her.

Mr Ratcliffe described the meeting

as "positive and constructive".

Lucy Manning reports.

He has waited 19 months.

Richard Ratcliffe finally on his way

to meet the Foreign Secretary,

with his wife still in prison in

Iran.

Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe,

a dual citizen, was accused

of trying to overthrow

the Iranian regime.

Today her husband said

the meeting was positive,

but there were reservations

about giving his wife diplomatic

protection and he's still waiting

to hear if he can travel to Iran

with the Foreign Secretary.

He said, "Listen, I'm open

to the idea, you know,

I would love you to come.

But I need to check both

with the Foreign Office officials,

whether they think it is a good

idea, and also with Iran."

How closer do you think

you are now to your wife

coming home for Christmas?

Well, the Foreign Secretary

did not make any promises.

He promised to do his best.

And, you know, I could not

ask for more than that.

In terms of how close do I feel,

it feels like with all the attention

and concern, that can only be

a good thing.

But the Foreign Office has always

been reserved that more attention

makes it more complicated.

Mr Johnson upset the family

two weeks ago, appeared

to contradict her claim

that she was just

in Iran on holiday.

He spoke ahead of the meeting.

People here in the Foreign Office

and across government has been

working very hard over the last 19

months to secure the release

of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe,

and indeed to solve some other very

difficult consular cases in Iran.

And we are going to

continue to do that.

And we will leave absolutely

no stone unturned.

If you ask me if Nazanin

is still cross with him,

yes, she is still cross with him.

If you ask me if I am

cross, I'm not cross.

Me, I'm focused on just

bringing her home.

And to bring home his

three-year-old daughter Gabriella

who is also still in Iran.

Mr Ratcliffe now has the publicity

and the political profile,

but will it help to ensure

the release of his wife?

The kind of concessions

that the Iranians want

of the British Government cannot

be done publicly.

It is much better to try and do

these things behind the scenes,

just as the kind of concessions

that they have to give goes

through a similar sort of stages.

But with reports the charity

worker's health is deteriorating,

her husband hopes there can be

a diplomatic solution.

Lucy Manning, BBC News.

Let's turn to Afghanistan now.

In particular to poppy production,

opium production.

A report by the United Nations has

revealed opium production has jumped

to record level,

increasing by 87% in 2017.

Let me show you this map.

It shows the change in opium

production in the last 12 months.

The yellow shows provinces

where things stayed the same,

the pink - an increase of 11 to 39%,

and the red are areas

where opium cultivation has

increased by more than 40%.

The white are provinces

that are "poppy free".

Afghanistan's opium drives most

of the world's supply of heroin.

Secunder Kermani travelled to Kabul,

he found children as young as nine

are becoming opium addicts.

They seem happy enough, but these

children are some of Afghanistan's

youngest heroin addicts. We are not

showing their faces at the request

of the centre they R:N.. Most are

here with their mothers, also being

treated for addiction. -- the centre

they are in. This nine-year-old

began smoking heroin three months

ago. TRANSLATION:

We were living

with our aunt, she was an addict.

One day I had a toothache and she

said, spoke this and you will get

better. After that I became addicted

and so did my mum and my dad. It was

really hard for me to give up at

first. My body hurt and I used to

cry a lot.

Children spend 45 days in

the clinic, undergoing counselling

and medical treatment, but the

number of admissions is rising, and

some end up back here.

TRANSLATION:

Once they leave our

centre they go back to their homes,

where they got addicted in the first

place. So they end up coming back

here. Some children have returned

three or four times.

There are over

1000 reported child addicts in

Afghanistan and only ten centres

like this one to treat them. A

report by the United Nations says

more opium than ever is being

produced in the country, which means

more children will end up here, and

it means more heroin in the streets

across the world.

The vast majority of the global

supply of heroin is made from opium

cultivated in Afghanistan. For some

farmers it is the easiest way to

support their impoverished families,

and it is believed to be one of the

main sources of income for the

Taliban.

Until we really start

fighting with opium the way we are

doing with terrorism, these two,

they either two sides of the same

coin, so it is a concern. If there

is a rise, most definitely, they are

getting more money for the war.

In a squalid camp underneath the

bridge in Kabul hundreds of heroin

users gather every day. If they are

not treated, this is where the child

addicts will end up living, too.

Drugs adding to the misery in a

troubled country. Secunder Kermani,

BBC News, Kabul.

As Secunder Kermani alluded to,

the implications of this massive

increase in opium cultivation travel

well beyond the borders

of Afghanistan.

Here's the UN's Angela Me -

who was part of the team

behind this report.

This is a record high and will have

tremendous implications, both inside

Afghanistan, but also outside

Afghanistan, in its neighbouring

countries, but also on the streets

of London or other European cities,

where there will be much more heroin

available cheaper, and so more

affordable, and so this may cause

an increase in drug use and heroin

used throughout the world.

There are underlying

causes why farmers have

turned to opium in Afghanistan,

and this is the weak rule of law, of

limited economic opportunities that

farmers have in Afghanistan.

But this year this

has been exacerbated

by the deterioration in political

stability and an security,

particularly in the north of

Afghanistan, where we see there has

been a large increase in production.

Angela part, of the UN team behind

that report. -- Angela Me, part of

the UN team.

Leading politicians are heading

to Germany today to join the world's

annual talks on climate change.

They're trying to finalise

the details from the big climate

change accord in Paris

two years ago.

One controversial element

is the attempt by President Trump

to sell American coal technology

at the conference.

Here's our environment

analyst Roger Harrabin.

Are we changing the climate?

Well, scientists are more convinced

than ever that it's mainly our fault

that the planet is heating.

13 US agencies say there is no

other realistic cause.

Scientists say carbon dioxide

emissions from our society

didn't trigger the California

wildfires, for instance,

but it did make them worse.

The oceans are also absorbing

some of that carbon dioxide

and that is making sea

water more acidic.

Scientists warn that all marine

life will be affected.

The vast majority of the countries

in the world understand that

climate change is real,

that it's caused by humans,

that it's already doing great

damage to life, health,

property, economies and ecosystems.

And that it's in everybody's

interest to work together

to reduce the threat.

So what are we doing about it?

In Paris, world leaders promised

to hold the world's temperature rise

as close as possible to 1.5 Celsius.

That is thought to be

a danger point.

That would mean very steep cuts

in greenhouse gases.

But look, this is what

the politicians' pledges

in Paris will give us.

A steadily increasing level

of greenhouse gases.

So there's a huge gap

between what politicians are doing

and what they admit they need to do.

And unless things improve,

scientists think we're heading

for a dangerous temperature rise

of three Celsius.

So what is this meeting about?

CHANTING:

Save the world!

This year, governments, led by Fiji,

have gathered to agree

the fine print

of the Paris Climate Accord.

Every nation is on board,

except the USA.

My administration is putting

an end to the war on coal.

We're going to have clean

coal, really clean coal.

But environmentalists are furious

that President Trump

is trying to promote coal

at the climate talks.

Some developing countries do want

the energy that coal can bring.

But scientists are clear

that the climate cannot be

stabilised if nations invest

heavily in coal.

Nobody said it was easy.

Roger Harrabin, BBC News.

And now for some history

from the Witness team.

Today we're going back

to a very different era -

and the closure of a national

institution here in the UK.

The Windmill Theatre

in London's Soho was -

for a long time - one of the few

places in Britain you could see

naked women onstage,

due to a loophole in

the censorship laws.

Former Windmill performer

Jill Millard Shapiro

talks about her memories

of performing at the theatre.

ARCHIVE FOOTAGE:

A particular blend

of glamour and tattiness,

sweat and Eau de Cologne.

Something seedy, yet also

touching and innocent...

It was a national institution.

There was nowhere else like it.

They never can be.

There never can be.

Whatever it was, it

has a great story...

It was by accident.

I was walking along Archer Street,

and I saw the sign saying,

"Windmill Theatre, stage, door."

So I walked in, I don't know why,

and I said to the stage door man,

can I have an addition, please? So

the phoned upstairs to the office,

and I went upstairs, and Vivian

didn't audition me, but he just

said, I like you, and I will take a

chance on you. What he didn't know

is that I was 14 and a half years

old. He signed the contract, then

realised my age and told me to go

home and come back when I was 15 and

a half, so I did. I didn't realise

it was naughty. Looking back at it,

I think, yes, it was! The Windmill

was nonstop review, it was called

Revudeville, so it was a review

theatre, with nudes. Once you bought

your first ticket, that was it, so

the audience could sit there all

day.

The proudest years of the

Windmill were during the Second

World War. It allowed nothing to

interfere.

It was only West End

theatre open throughout the London

Blitz. And really brave girls who

stood there while the bombs landed,

all around them.

The house manager

came out onto the stage, stops the

show, and ask the audience if they

wanted the performance to continue.

Almost every time the answer was

yes.

One of the most important things,

and they think the audience would

come to see, it was the nude poses

at the back of the stage. It was the

obscenity laws, and you were not

allowed to move in the nude on a

London stage or on any stage in the

country. It was censorship.

You

can't be sexy if you stand still.

Well, I don't know...

Saw the Lord

Chamberlain's office, they'd come.

Very happily. They were very pleased

to come to the shows and say, no,

that's a bit too much, you can't say

that, but they always kept us off on

their way. -- tipped us off. 1964,

and by then so -- Soho had changed a

lot with the strip clubs. Three

streets away, where we weren't

allowed to move, she did she get

about as much as she liked, so we

lost a lot of the audience. People

who perhaps wanted to see more, they

could go to the clubs, whereas we

were still a theatre, and we thought

it was better to close. While we

were still respected, than to even

attempt to change, and the girls

wouldn't have done it. So we closed.

With our heads held high. We're all

friends to this day, those of us who

are still living. Being Windmill

girls.

Goodness, what memories, but

certainly a different a row. That

was a fantastic character.

The former Windmill Girl Jill

Millard Shapiro talking

about her memories of performing

at the Windmill Theatre.

Here in London. What's more is

always on our website and you can

get in touch with me and the team on

social media.