:00:09. > :00:10.This is BBC World News Today reporting from
:00:11. > :00:16.A powerful earthquake strikes Italy - killing at least 120 people
:00:17. > :00:23.Rescue teams continue to scour the destruction for survivors.
:00:24. > :00:32.There is a risky going on in the rubble here. -- rescue. You can see
:00:33. > :00:34.right now they are bringing somebody out on a stretcher.
:00:35. > :00:37.The American University in Kabul confirms that a militant attack
:00:38. > :00:39.We'll get the latest from the Afghan capital.
:00:40. > :00:42.Ukraine marks 25 years of independence from the Soviet Union
:00:43. > :00:44.with a military parade in Kiev amid rising tensions
:00:45. > :00:54.the US National Parks Service is 100 years old.
:00:55. > :00:56.I visited an exhibition highlighting the splendour of America's
:00:57. > :01:13.A massive rescue effort is underway in Italy after an earthquake
:01:14. > :01:19.At least 120 people are dead and more than 150 others missing
:01:20. > :01:27.The tremor was so strong it was felt 170 kilometres away in Rome.
:01:28. > :01:29.A major rescue operation is still underway as the search
:01:30. > :01:33.The epicentre was near the town of Norcia in Umbria,
:01:34. > :01:38.The tremor was strong enough to be felt along the entire
:01:39. > :01:42.Among the worst hit places were the towns of Amatrice
:01:43. > :01:48.and Accumoli, and the village of Pescara del Tronto -
:01:49. > :01:50.said by the local mayor to no longer exist -
:01:51. > :02:10.Deep in the mountains, a piece of Italy has been destroyed.
:02:11. > :02:20.The residents of were about to celebrate
:02:21. > :02:22.a summer festival, and were hit as they slept.
:02:23. > :02:24.Through piles of rubble, rescue workers tried
:02:25. > :02:27.We have made it to the centre of Amatrice.
:02:28. > :02:29.There is a rescue going on in the rubble there.
:02:30. > :02:32.You can see, right now they are bringing out someone
:02:33. > :02:41.It looks like she is, which will be a huge relief
:02:42. > :02:48.The woman is being escorted down to an ambulance
:02:49. > :02:56.We also saw rescuers carry away a number of dead bodies,
:02:57. > :03:05.Many survivors were barely able to talk.
:03:06. > :03:07.It is hard to comprehend how your town can fall
:03:08. > :03:16.TRANSLATION: There is nothing left standing.
:03:17. > :03:19.I am so sorry for so many people that are under the rubble.
:03:20. > :03:37.And here, an official talks to a woman who is trapped.
:03:38. > :03:49.Stay calm, he tells her, we will come to get you.
:03:50. > :03:51.In Amatrice, Sister Marianna told us she was pulled from
:03:52. > :03:56.Some of her fellow sisters are still trapped.
:03:57. > :03:58.When I realised what happened I tried to hide myself
:03:59. > :04:09.This region is vulnerable to earthquakes, but no
:04:10. > :04:17.From above, the devastation of Amatrice is clear.
:04:18. > :04:31.It is too dangerous to take them inside Amatrice's damaged hospital.
:04:32. > :04:45.Their homes, their lives have collapsed around them.
:04:46. > :04:53.Let's talk to the Italian Red Cross. They are currently in the centre of
:04:54. > :04:58.Amatrice. These pictures show total ever station. The death toll is
:04:59. > :05:06.rising. How big is this operation? -- ever devastation. It reminds me
:05:07. > :05:16.of an apocalypse. There is destruction everywhere. It is very
:05:17. > :05:23.difficult in terms of logistics. We are still working around the clock
:05:24. > :05:26.in terms of the teams and we have now deployed a support team but
:05:27. > :05:34.there is still a lot of challenges. How quickly do you have to work?
:05:35. > :05:43.Presumably people are trapped under many layers of rubble. Actually as
:05:44. > :05:52.fast as possible. As Red Cross and the Italian protection umbrella, we
:05:53. > :05:56.respond to this type of emergency. Unfortunately, we have worked on a
:05:57. > :06:01.lot of earthquakes in the past. I am thinking in 2009, for instance. We
:06:02. > :06:11.knew the first hour after the earthquake was fundamental. This is
:06:12. > :06:18.why we have deployed hours after the first earthquake. You said you know
:06:19. > :06:26.people in Amatrice. Do you have any word about how they are doing and
:06:27. > :06:30.how are people coping in general? Actually, one of my best friends was
:06:31. > :06:36.here. I am thanking God he is alive. He ran away with his family from his
:06:37. > :06:44.apartment right after the building collapsed. The point is people are
:06:45. > :06:50.shocked. Shocked because this was under 42 seconds, really a, not
:06:51. > :06:56.really a long earthquake. You can imagine how difficult it is to live
:06:57. > :07:00.after an earthquake like this. The important thing I want to underline
:07:01. > :07:02.is that we have got a queue of people we are ready to help, ready
:07:03. > :07:12.to do something for their own community. In this tragedy there is
:07:13. > :07:18.a beautiful picture. Our thoughts are with you. Thank you very much.
:07:19. > :07:24.And we can go to Jenny Hill, who is also at the scene in Amatrice. With
:07:25. > :07:31.the latest death toll, we have 120. What are you hearing? Is there any
:07:32. > :07:36.update? Yes, in Amatrice itself we have been told 75 people have been
:07:37. > :07:42.killed and at least 100 are reported missing. Some are thought to be in
:07:43. > :07:46.this building behind me. This is a convent. It is thought nuns were
:07:47. > :07:50.inside when the earthquake hit in the early hours of the morning. A
:07:51. > :07:58.delicate operation is under way here. They are trying to make this
:07:59. > :08:03.building safe. Because just minutes ago, the rescue teams, who have
:08:04. > :08:09.tried to get into this building for most of the day, they think they
:08:10. > :08:17.heard some sign of life inside. The town fell silent every so often as
:08:18. > :08:21.rescue teams ask people to be quite as they shout into buildings were
:08:22. > :08:25.sniffer dogs indicate people might still be alive and they are asking
:08:26. > :08:29.if anyone is there. I would like to show you this. It has pretty much
:08:30. > :08:33.been destroyed, the end of the building, this is still the convent.
:08:34. > :08:37.A number of rescue teams were up here and the sniffer dogs were
:08:38. > :08:43.inside. We all fell quiet and somebody shouted, are you in there?
:08:44. > :08:46.If you can hear me, knock. Everyone was silent for a few moments and it
:08:47. > :08:51.sounded as though there is somebody inside. The rescue team is trying to
:08:52. > :08:55.work out how best to get to them. You can imagine the difficulty of
:08:56. > :09:00.the task ahead. This building is in a tricky state. We can only assume
:09:01. > :09:05.they are trying to shore it up and make it safe and take down the parts
:09:06. > :09:10.in danger of toppling. After the shocks, the ground shakes. These
:09:11. > :09:14.very precarious buildings will shake with it. The task ahead for the
:09:15. > :09:20.rescuers is not only challenging, but very dangerous. Still tonight,
:09:21. > :09:25.the light is fading. They hope they can still find people alive. Most of
:09:26. > :09:30.the people who live in the town have moved away down to a nearby sports
:09:31. > :09:33.centre where they can get some rest and sit and wait for news of loved
:09:34. > :09:39.ones. But a number of people are stood here, dazed, exhausted,
:09:40. > :09:45.watching as the emergency teams go about their very difficult job. They
:09:46. > :09:52.had just removed that window. Look at what is inside. That was once a
:09:53. > :09:55.room. Now it is filled with rubble. It was in their people were sleeping
:09:56. > :10:00.when the earthquake struck at half past three this morning. Very hard
:10:01. > :10:04.to imagine anybody is still alive. But we are told there is still hope.
:10:05. > :10:09.Jenny Hill with the latest in Amatrice. Horrific pictures here.
:10:10. > :10:10.Another earthquake, measuring six-point-eight,
:10:11. > :10:12.has struck the central region of Myanmar.
:10:13. > :10:14.The tremor was felt as far away as Bangkok in Thailand
:10:15. > :10:18.At least three people are reported to have died in the quake,
:10:19. > :10:21.Dozens of buildings have suffered damage, including some
:10:22. > :10:24.of the country's celebrated temples in the ancient city of Bagan.
:10:25. > :10:26.Photos posted online show clouds of dust and the tops
:10:27. > :10:38.A militant attack has been launched against the American University
:10:39. > :10:39.in the Afghan capital, Kabul.
:10:40. > :10:42.Attackers are said to have stormed the compound and accounts
:10:43. > :10:44.from the site say there's been at least one explosion
:10:45. > :10:48.Police are describing it as a "complex attack" and special
:10:49. > :10:51.Several students and professors, including Pulitzer Prize-winning
:10:52. > :10:53.photographer Massoud Hossain, are trapped inside and appealing
:10:54. > :11:09.Harun Najafizada of the BBC's Persian Service joins me
:11:10. > :11:22.What is the very latest? The situation is still developing. We
:11:23. > :11:27.know after 20 minutes of silence this series of sporadic gunshots
:11:28. > :11:34.restarted at the University in western Kabul. We know from sources
:11:35. > :11:40.at least 19 people have been wounded. They have been transferred
:11:41. > :11:49.to local hospitals, some here in the city. Afghanistan -- special forces
:11:50. > :11:54.are trying to carry out operations under the cover of the night. We
:11:55. > :12:04.know some American special advisers are here, a small number of them are
:12:05. > :12:09.advising on the operation to protect the campus from the militants. We do
:12:10. > :12:14.not know who they are because nobody has taken responsibility for the
:12:15. > :12:20.attack. This is the second attack this month. Two faculty were
:12:21. > :12:26.abducted this month. How vulnerable is this university? The security
:12:27. > :12:34.protocol and measures for the American University of Afghanistan
:12:35. > :12:39.is quite tight. Despite that, as you say, we had a report of abduction a
:12:40. > :12:47.couple of weeks ago of two officers, one American and one Australian. The
:12:48. > :12:57.gate to get to the Americans is quite tight and other security. But
:12:58. > :13:01.explosions like this we heard from police is a suicide bomb and it is
:13:02. > :13:09.difficult to defend. In spite of a tall wall of about five metres.
:13:10. > :13:14.There were so many students who tried to escape from the attack.
:13:15. > :13:20.Some climbing the wall. And as we speak some of them are still stuck
:13:21. > :13:22.in the situation. The ongoing situation there, the latest from
:13:23. > :13:28.Kabul. Thank you for joining us. Turkish-backed Syrian
:13:29. > :13:29.rebels say they've entered the Islamic State-held
:13:30. > :13:30.town of Jarablus. The attack began when Turkish tanks
:13:31. > :13:33.crossed the border at dawn - US planes carried out airstrikes
:13:34. > :13:41.supporting the operation. This
:13:42. > :13:42.footage from inside Jarablus shows through deserted streets -
:13:43. > :13:45.and bomb-damaged buildings. Rebel commanders say most
:13:46. > :13:47.of the IS fighters retreated, Meanwhile, US Vice President Joe
:13:48. > :13:53.Biden has become the highest-ranking Western official to visit Turkey
:13:54. > :13:55.since last month's failed coup. Mr Biden pledged unwavering support
:13:56. > :13:57.for Ankara and emphatically denied reports that Washington had
:13:58. > :13:59.supported the treasonous military. Mr Biden said the US
:14:00. > :14:15.was Turkey's greatest friend. The people of Turkey have no greater
:14:16. > :14:20.friends than the united states of America. I offer my personal
:14:21. > :14:25.condolences and those of the President to the people of Turkey.
:14:26. > :14:34.Not only for what they went through in the coup attempt, but shortly
:14:35. > :14:44.after that. Over 50 people murdered, apparently from what we are told, by
:14:45. > :14:49.Isis, suicide bombing. 28 or 29 young people under the age of 18
:14:50. > :14:58.were killed. The suffering of your people at the hands of Isis and PKK
:14:59. > :15:00.in the of your country is beyond what any people should have to
:15:01. > :15:05.sustain. For more I'm joined
:15:06. > :15:06.by Soner Cagaptay. He's the director of the Turkish
:15:07. > :15:18.program at the Washington Institute Emphatic words of support from Joe
:15:19. > :15:25.Biden for Turkey. Will the Turks be convinced? Relations are very
:15:26. > :15:28.strained. Better late than never, I think. I think the visit was
:15:29. > :15:34.delayed. The Turks wanted him there earlier, right after the coup. The
:15:35. > :15:41.mood in Turkey is very dark. They survived the coup plot. This was a
:15:42. > :15:44.bloodied coup. It was a factional uprising of the military. They not
:15:45. > :15:47.only went after the president and tried to assassinate him but also
:15:48. > :15:53.their own military and bombing the capital of the country. The last
:15:54. > :15:57.time the country came under attack was in 1402 when the armies occupied
:15:58. > :16:04.it. It is a big shock in Turkey. Turkey wanted to feel the American
:16:05. > :16:09.love and care and embrace. I'm happy to see Joe Biden is their hand is
:16:10. > :16:14.giving a warm embrace. One big sticking point is the Turkish
:16:15. > :16:20.government blames someone living in America. Joe Biden directly referred
:16:21. > :16:28.to that. He said the authorities were working together to look at
:16:29. > :16:33.excavation. -- extraditing. How much do they want him back? They both
:16:34. > :16:37.believe that he is 100% behind this coup plot. They have not yet
:16:38. > :16:42.presented evidence linking into it. But many Turkish analysts say
:16:43. > :16:47.officers aligned with the movement from the core were perhaps the
:16:48. > :16:52.backbone of the coup plot. Evidence to linking directly to the plot has
:16:53. > :16:56.not yet been presented. Where Joe Biden's visit comes in handy, he
:16:57. > :17:00.will explain to the Turkish president, the US has an independent
:17:01. > :17:08.court, unlike the Turkish one which is authoritarian. Turkey has to
:17:09. > :17:12.present a waterproof case to get the exhibition process. The best he can
:17:13. > :17:15.offer in Ankara is to convince him the White House is going to give a
:17:16. > :17:21.swift and thorough review to their request for extradition. And the
:17:22. > :17:28.Turkish operation inside Syria right now, how much more difficult this
:17:29. > :17:33.situation get? This is good news because Bagan -- Jarablus is a major
:17:34. > :17:36.crossing point into Syria with fighters in and out. This is really
:17:37. > :17:41.good news it has been captured by Turkey. I think this will really
:17:42. > :17:46.cripple Isis. Maybe it is the beginning of the end for this group.
:17:47. > :17:49.Turkey need good news right now to latch onto this and the capture of
:17:50. > :17:51.Jarablus with US backing is extremely good news. They certainly
:17:52. > :17:56.need that. Thank you. Ukraine has marked 25
:17:57. > :17:57.years of independence from the Soviet Union
:17:58. > :17:59.with its biggest ever Tanks, artillery, and other military
:18:00. > :18:02.hardware were on full display by Ukrainian troops
:18:03. > :18:04.in Kiev's Independence Square. The day carried added meaning
:18:05. > :18:07.because of the ongoing battles with rebels in the east
:18:08. > :18:09.of the country and Russia's Celebrations to mark 25
:18:10. > :18:27.years of independence from the Soviet Union
:18:28. > :18:29.are particularly poignant, given the fact Ukraine is undergoing a battle,
:18:30. > :18:32.if you like, for its sovereignty today, with the war in the east
:18:33. > :18:36.of the country and of course the First 20-something
:18:37. > :18:47.years, we were not totally independent,
:18:48. > :18:49.but kind of a satellite of Russia, While the last years, we are truly
:18:50. > :18:57.independent and we fight I think what we saw here
:18:58. > :19:06.today is that Ukraine is But we do need the world
:19:07. > :19:09.to recognise the sacrifice we are doing
:19:10. > :19:11.and the sacrifice really If Russia is permitted to take over
:19:12. > :19:20.Ukraine again, this is like World War II,
:19:21. > :19:30.it is appeasement all over again. The Ukrainian military was rebuilt
:19:31. > :19:32.after 2014, it was suffering back then
:19:33. > :19:35.from decades of neglect. Over the course of
:19:36. > :19:37.the past two years, Today is about putting that
:19:38. > :19:47.on display, sending a signal of And part of the intended audience
:19:48. > :19:54.is of course Moscow. Russia has got its own little
:19:55. > :19:56.problems, why don't Apart from spreading influence
:19:57. > :20:05.and empire building? Those days should have been
:20:06. > :20:10.gone by now. In my opinion Ukrainians
:20:11. > :20:12.became independent Up to then there was no
:20:13. > :20:26.movement in this country, no Since then, albeit
:20:27. > :20:33.slow, it is happening. We were brought up to want
:20:34. > :20:36.to realise a dream like the independence
:20:37. > :20:37.of Ukraine. We never thought we would see
:20:38. > :20:39.it in our lifetime. Now a look at some of
:20:40. > :20:48.the day's other news... Severe monsoon floods in northern
:20:49. > :20:51.and central India have now caused more than 150 deaths,
:20:52. > :20:56.according to the government. It says 2.4 million people
:20:57. > :21:00.are affected in the state The level of the river Ganges
:21:01. > :21:06.is continuing to rise. Tens of thousands of people
:21:07. > :21:08.are being sheltered in camps. One person has been killed and 30
:21:09. > :21:11.injured in two bomb explosions in the southern resort
:21:12. > :21:13.of Pattani in Thailand. The first blast, which
:21:14. > :21:16.was in a parking lot behind the Southern Hotel,
:21:17. > :21:18.didn't cause any casualties. The second explosion
:21:19. > :21:20.was near the hotel entrance, opposite a karaoke bar
:21:21. > :21:25.and a massage parlour. The world's largest aircraft has
:21:26. > :21:31.crashed during its second test flight since Boeing
:21:32. > :21:33.revamped in the UK. At 302 feet long, the Airlander
:21:34. > :21:36.10 is part plane, part It was damaged at its base
:21:37. > :21:39.in Bedfordshire this morning. Our transport correspondent
:21:40. > :21:43.Richard Westcott reports. The world's largest aircraft takes
:21:44. > :21:47.a long time to crash. Almost in slow motion,
:21:48. > :21:49.the pilot can't stop it The cockpit with the crew up front
:21:50. > :22:00.is clearly smashed up. For Angela, an enthusiast
:22:01. > :22:05.who shot this footage, Because you know, well you don't
:22:06. > :22:10.know if the people in there have If the ground crew are OK,
:22:11. > :22:15.just didn't know. Very shaken afterwards, I mean,
:22:16. > :22:17.I did shake when I was holding the camera trying to get
:22:18. > :22:20.the pictures of them, And I did say if anyone can hold
:22:21. > :22:23.it steadier than me, It went very quiet, the other people
:22:24. > :22:27.stood here went very quiet. Eyewitnesses here told me they saw
:22:28. > :22:31.sparks coming from the mooring rope But I understand that's not
:22:32. > :22:35.connected to the crash. There was no chance of a fireball
:22:36. > :22:39.because the Airlander is full of inert helium gas,
:22:40. > :22:44.not the explosive hydrogen gas of the famous old airships,
:22:45. > :22:47.like the Hindenburg. You might think airships
:22:48. > :22:50.are old technology, but many believe Using a third less fuel
:22:51. > :22:57.than a normal aeroplane, and able to stay in the air for days,
:22:58. > :23:00.they can carry huge cargoes This accident is an embarrassing
:23:01. > :23:04.setback on just its second test flight, but the company says
:23:05. > :23:20.Airlander should fly again soon. marks the 100th anniversary
:23:21. > :23:23.of the US National Parks Service. Some of the most famous sites
:23:24. > :23:25.include Yellowstone, the Grand Canyon, and of
:23:26. > :23:27.course the National Mall I went to the Smithsonian's
:23:28. > :23:30.Natural History Museum to visit a photo exhibition
:23:31. > :23:33.to celebrate the occasion. These are the gems in
:23:34. > :23:37.America's jewel box. The unrivalled landscapes
:23:38. > :23:39.from across the States that attract But this exhibition reveals another
:23:40. > :23:46.side of the National Parks. More than two-thirds of the system
:23:47. > :23:48.consists of cultural and historic sites that recount
:23:49. > :23:55.the nation's history. The Edmund Pettus Bridge
:23:56. > :23:57.is the story of one of the bloodiest The civil right marchers clashed
:23:58. > :24:08.with the police and the resulting violence actually was a shift
:24:09. > :24:10.in the civil rights movement because those images started
:24:11. > :24:13.to change the narrative in this country about civil rights,
:24:14. > :24:18.and about what was going on. The Edmund Pettus Bridge is part
:24:19. > :24:25.of the National Historic Trail. The National Parks also offer
:24:26. > :24:27.scientists a vast laboratory to study the nation's
:24:28. > :24:32.natural diversity. It is a partnership that dates
:24:33. > :24:35.from the 19th century when explorers of the American West brought back
:24:36. > :24:38.rocks from the volcanic The specimens that they carried back
:24:39. > :24:45.helped influence Congress to establish Yellowstone
:24:46. > :24:47.as the first national They were volcanic, they indicated
:24:48. > :24:55.that this land was not going to be good for agriculture
:24:56. > :24:57.or for mining, or for any So they set it aside
:24:58. > :25:03.for preservation. The National Parks even
:25:04. > :25:05.extend under water. There are diving trails
:25:06. > :25:07.in Florida's Biscayne Bay. But climate change is threatening
:25:08. > :25:13.many of these natural havens. We are seeing shifts in animal
:25:14. > :25:16.migratory patterns and habitats. In Fort Jefferson, for example,
:25:17. > :25:19.it sits right on the island and, as the sea-level rises,
:25:20. > :25:32.it is slowly going underwater. And funding remains
:25:33. > :25:34.another challenge. Investment is needed
:25:35. > :25:36.to preserve the existing parks, whilst securing new ones to keep
:25:37. > :25:55.pace with America's constantly Really stunning pictures. A powerful
:25:56. > :26:00.earthquake has struck central Italy, leaving at least 120 people dead and
:26:01. > :26:04.hundreds more injured. It had a magnitude of 6.2. The epicentre was
:26:05. > :26:06.between Rome and Marussia.