20/07/2017 World News Today

Former US football star OJ Simpson appears before a parole board

After nine years in prison, Mr Simpson says he hasn't ever made

End of week two in the Brexit talks and still no deal on some

of the sticking points - will they be able to

This crawling ground is actually a door in the floor.

Soon the remains of Salvador Dali, which lie beneath, will be exhumed

Hello and welcome to World News Today.

Former American football star and actor OJ Simpson has appeared

before a parole board asking for his release from prison.

The 70-year-old has served almost nine years of a maximum

33-year sentence for armed robbery and kidnapping.

In 1995, Simpson was cleared of the murders of his former wife

Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend Ronald Goldman.

In 2007 he was arrested for holding up two dealers in sports

memorabilia, he said he has done his time and here he was making his case

based on anger management techniques he learned in prison a short time

ago. I have always thought I have been pretty good with people and I

have basically spent a conflict free life. I never got into fights on the

street or with the public or anybody but they give you a bunch of tools

about how to talk to people instead of fighting and throwing punches,

tools I have used here. For more on this we can speak

to our correspondent James Cook Thank you for joining us. This is

the first time we have seen OJ Simpson in public for some time.

What more can you tell us? Well, he spoke for quite a long time, perhaps

40 minutes or so, perhaps longer in the court room. He was not in the

hearing room itself, she was in the Lovelock correctional Centre a

couple of hours drive from where the hearing took place in Carson City in

Nevada. He spoke at some length about the crime for which he was

convicted which was basically taking some armed men into a room in Las

Vegas, come out Hotel room, to get back some sports memorabilia which

he insisted was his by right. The problem was these men were carrying

guns, he claims not to know about that and one of them pointed a gun

at a man who OJ Simpson said was a friend of his antics that his friend

had been traumatised by this and they talked about it, you apologised

to him, he essentially said he was contrite about what had happened and

to also said I have done my time. Adding I believe in the jury system.

He said a lot of experience of the jury system because this is not the

most infamous crime for which he was arraigned and brought to court, that

was the murders of his ex-wife and her friend back in the 1990s for

which she was acquitted. But later found liable in a civil court and a

recent survey suggested only 7% of Americans believe he did not commit

crimes. What happens now, what will the parole board be considering when

they decide whether or not OJ Simpson might end up being a

freeman? The hearing is just concluding but what we are hearing

again is that, it is still continuing, and we are hearing that

it will continue for a little longer and we expect perhaps in the next

hour or two that we will know the decision of these four

commissioners. There was one thing, he did make a reasonable case I

thought for his release, not least talking about a course he attended

to reduce violence but it did not attend an alcohol related Corsie had

been asked to attend so perhaps that will count against him. We have

heard others testifying in the case including OJ Simpson's daughter.

A second week of official Brexit talks in Brussels has ended

Both the UK and the EU admit that major differences

highlighted again today by the EU's chief negotiator Michel Barnier,

centres on the issue of citizens rights once Britain leaves the bloc.

Brussels wants an eventual deal to be backed by

the European Court of Justice - but the British government

the British Brexit Secretary, David Davis, admitted that

Another sticking point is how much the UK will have

to pay to leave the EU - a figure of 57 billion dollars has

is in Brussels and has been following today's developments.

Their goals - one for the UK, the other favouring the EU -

They agree a Brexit deal is possible, but after

week two of negotiations, acknowledged it will be tough.

..Three, the EU's visibly exasperated

chief Brexit negotiator called a total of eight times

for clarification of the UK's Brexit vision.

Without that, he said, negotiations could not progress.

Clearly there's a lot left to talk about and further work before

Ultimately getting to a solution will require flexibility

What about concessions from the EU side?

Where will the EU show some give, perhaps

as a trust-making exercise, isn't there any wiggle room?

TRANSLATION: Negotiations have only just started.

Of course there are compromises to be made but it is too early to talk

Week two of Brexit talks have now ended with no

major breakthrough on

The UK's so-called Brexit Bill, and the

rights of EU citizens in the UK and British expats in the EU.

Key sticking points, the UK wants to check the criminal

record of all EU citizens wanting to stay while the

EU says UK expats would lose the right to move

This is a joint EU- UK paper on citizens

rights, colour-coded to show areas of agreement and disagreement.

Not every negotiating session can end in

harmony but UK is under pressure to move on from divorce issues like

this to talk of the future with the EU, our biggest trading partner.

The UK's trade Secretary was in Geneva

today to talk about global opportunities but he admitted and in

between stage may be needed after Brexit to ease the UK

Frankly I have been waiting to leave the European Union for a very long

Another two years would not be too much to ask.

Brussels is still hearing all sorts of voices in

The EU waiting impatiently for that clarity

while there is still time to negotiate.

And we can cross live now to Brussels to speak

Divorce is never easy but with so many sticking points, what is the

way forward? No, it is not easy and these have been technical

discussions this week but we also must remember this is only round two

and it is the first week where they have looked at the substantive

issues in three areas, the citizens rights, Ireland and how to get

around having a hard border between North and South and this issue of

the financial settlement and they are still somewhere parts on all

three issues. What you detect from the two sides is a slight difference

in tone, David Davis is trying to make the point they have made quite

a lot of progress on citizens rights but there is one issue and that is

the future role of the European Court of Justice and that would have

to go to a higher level to be resolved and it might be result for

two or three months. The other issue is the financial settlement. This

week the European Union has set out a legal analysis of what it expects

the UK side to pay but in briefings to night in Downing Street the UK

side is saying it will not set out a position paper on a financial

settlement and that may be because this is a political hot potato at

home. The Prime minister there are plenty of backbenchers do not think

we should spend anything to come away from the European Union and

there are those who think we should spend something in order to get a

proper deal at the end of it so there is a divergence of views

within the party and they were to set up this position paper in my

cause severe diplomatic problem so I think over the next two or three

months we will edge closer towards a deal but we will not get headline

issues resolved. That'll come in October at that point when the UK

wants to start talking about the future trading relationship.

President Trump is certainly known to speak his mind and this time

it's his Attorney General he is sounding off about.

In an interview with the New York Times Mr Trump said

he wouldn't have picked Jeff Sessions to lead the justice

department if he had known that he was going to recuse himself

from matters related to the 2016 presidential campaign

and the investigation into Russian interference.

Today Mr Sessions was asked if he would carry on in the post.

I have the honour of serving as attorney general, it is something

that goes beyond any thought I would ever have had for myself, we love

this job, we love this department and I plan to continue to do so as

long as that is appropriate. And joining me now from

Washington is Matt Viser, Deputy Washington Bureau Chief

for the Boston globe. Jeff Sessions says he is not going

anywhere but how workable is his position now his own boss has been

so outspoken about his position? Yeah, you will notice in his

comments he said he will serve as long as appropriate, you could argue

President Trump is suggesting it is no longer appropriate in some of his

comments so the working relationship is quite dicey at this point between

the attorney general, one of the top positions in the administration and

President Trump. But as you heard, Jeff Sessions has no intention of

going anywhere just yet. President Trump gave an extensive interview to

the New York Times, tell us more about the other people he criticised

in the article? It was a harsh indictment from the president on the

entire Justice Department commie criticised Jeff Sessions and the

deputy attorney general as well as the former FBI director James Komi

as well as Bob Muller who is leading the investigation into Donald Trump

and the Russian meddling in the United States election so Trump was

quite critical of those people who are all impositions right now of

investigating the President. So, it gets into those questions of

obstruction of justice that some have brought up about President

Trump weighing in on some of the legal matters affecting him. And it

is not justice investigation going on by the special counsel but next

week there will be three big names testifying before the Senate, Paul

Manna fought, Donald Trump's son and his son-in-law, Jared Kushner. How

significant are those hearings? They are major moments, particularly the

ones with Donald Trump junior which is likely to be in a public setting.

We will hear from them testifying under oath before a major Senate

committee. The discussion with Jared Kushner is likely behind closed

doors so will know less about that particular meeting that it is a key

moment for members of the Trump inner circle testifying before

Congress which has become almost a monthly occurrence of having these

major moments of testimony from people involved were related to the

Russian investigation. Lots to look at next week, thank you for joining

us. And for more on how all of this

is impacting Trump's agenda six months in I am joined now

by Jim Gilmore, former head of the Republican national committee

and governor of Virginia. Thank you very much for joining us.

How frustrated are you that Russia is dominating the headlines instead

of other policy areas? I do think that we have to look at the

administration six months in and recognise a great deal has been

accomplished despite the fact the Russian issue has distracted but

that is a deliberate effort by the left to try to get Trump off of his

programme. And to get us talking about things that really do not move

the country forward in any significant way. One of your

colleagues said the president is a distraction such as Republicans who

think this, too. Well, listen, I think the whole issue is a

distraction but what we need to do is get away from the destruction

which is deliberate and instead focus on the progress that has been

made and if you look at this President's progress, Nato, getting

rid of free riders and get people in Europe to feel like they have to

make your contribution communities Polish speech which I have described

as one of the great speeches I have seen from any President in which she

was very substantive and decisive about his commitment to Europe and

Polish and other Eastern European security and Western European

security so you have seen all of that, defence budgets are going up

and finally domestically we are talking about the right kinds of

issues a reform of health care, tax reform which will give us an

opportunity for more investment and he succeeded in the courts on the

border issue so I think he has made a great deal of progress concerning

the fact that has been a decisive and strong opposition to the

progress he is making. You mentioned lots of areas of progress that

health care is still very much a work in progress, where'd you see

that going now because the president had at lunch yesterday with

Republican senators but he still cannot get them all to agree. That

is true but we need to remember if he had not been elected we would not

even be having this conversation. The opposition party and people on

the far left are happy with this programme as it exists today which

is not working very well but we Conservatives need to articulate

what concerns are and our concerns are there is now programmed at

number one isn't working, number two depends upon subsidies to work which

means you are going into the pockets of the taxpayers, it rejects the

free market which is quite anti-American said there was a lot

of things that need be reformed and at least we are talking about the

right topics. Six months into President trumps time in office, he

is posting very low approval ratings come how much does that concern you?

It is always a concern but as the administration goes on and progress

is made, people will become adjusted to the factory making a change after

major Democratic administration, his numbers will improve but it is all

about assessing his actions as he goes forward, not the words either

his tweets or the people on the left saying things on television or

otherwise which do influence polls. At the end of the day his programme

or make a successful president both in the polls and substantively.

One in three cases of dementia could be prevented if more people

looked after the health of their brain

Those are the findings of an international study

The report also lists key risk factors -

including lack of education, hearing loss, smoking

Here's our Medical Correspondent, Fergus Walsh.

These runners aren't just improving their fitness,

they're reducing their risk of developing dementia.

I joined the Serpentine Running Club in Hyde Park.

Their motivation is as much mental as physical.

For me, it's mindful, it's relief for stress,

and it just helps me be more resilient during the day.

It makes me more connected, I think, emotionally.

It also makes me, actually, just more alert.

I just think it must be benefiting my long-term health.

The main risk factor for dementia is old age,

but just as with cancer and heart disease, we can all significantly

That means thinking about our brain health throughout our lives,

What's good for your heart is good for your head.

There's really strong evidence that there is an associational link

between heart disease and risk factors for heart disease

and diabetes as well, are clearly associated with dementia

Learning a new language can help build what's

called cognitive reserve, strengthening the brain's networks.

So it can still function in later life despite damage.

A new study says a third of dementia cases could potentially be prevented

They are - lack of education, hearing loss, smoking,

depression, social isolation, physical inactivity,

high blood pressure, obesity, and diabetes.

Alcohol and diet may also play a role.

Eve Laird is part of a study in Edinburgh which is trying

to identify changes in the brain that may be an early warning sign

of dementia many years before symptoms emerge.

Her mother has Alzheimer's, so this is personal.

I'm now 44, and I think that only leaves me a few years

So many traits I see in myself, similarities between myself

and my mother, that it would be no big surprise if I was diagnosed

What we are looking at here is the MRI scan itself.

There's nothing we can do to guarantee a life free

from dementia, but this research shows we can increase our chances

Let's take a look at some of the other stories making the news...

The US senator, John McCain, has revealed he has brain cancer.

The 80-year-old, who is a Vietnam veteran and a critic

of Donald Trump, was the Republican nominee, for the US

He had been recovering from surgery, to remove a blood cot above his eye.

Well wishes have been coming in from both sides of the aisle.

He was known as a master of surrealist art and with that

signature mustache - Salvador Dali gained

But now his biography could be taking a new twist.

Forensic experts in Spain are preparing to exhume his body

to carry out paternity tests using DNA.

A woman in her sixties says her mother had an affair

with the painter when she worked as a maid in the seaside

Our Arts Editor, Will Gompertz has been to visit the crypt at Dali's

In the mid-1960s this was an abandoned theatre that

Salvador Dali, a local artist, identified as the perfect place

But not just that, to create the ultimate Dali experience,

a Dali world which he ended up liking so much that he decided

So when he died in 1989 his body was embalmed, placed in a coffin

and he was buried here in this crypt in his theatre-museum,

But this memorial stone will not be disturbed for the exhumation,

it has been decided that the best place to access the

This is the entry point, a one-and-a-half tonne unmarked

stone, a sort of door in the floor, which will be eased aside,

the coffin will be removed and opened and a sample

from the artist's remains will be taken.

It's a process that they reckon is going to take pretty much all night.

We are just a day away from the release of Dunkirk -

one of the most eagerly anticipated films of the year.

Its focus is the historic 1940 evacuation of more than 300,000

British and Allied soldiers surrounded by German forces

But as Tom Brook reports - the big production represents

a major gamble for both the Hollywood studio

backing it and British director Christopher Nolan.

Dunkirk chronicles a huge military operation, the mass 1945 evacuation

Dunkirk chronicles a huge military operation, the mass 1940 evacuation

of more than 300,000 British and Allied troops from the French

coast, who had become hemmed in by the Germans.

The film doesn't present a typical story of wartime heroism.

Its aim is to immerse audiences in the operation

by following soldiers on the beach, pilots in the air and ordinary

civilians who took small pleasure boats across the English Channel

I read that you don't actually view it as a war film,

you see it more as a story of survival, is that right?

What drew me to this story is it is a survival

It seems to me that it's one of the great suspense

stories of all time, that there is this

In film terms, Dunkirk was a major undertaking.

There were real Spitfires flying overhead, warships

in the background, they'd set-dressed the whole beach,

There was one day where there was 1300-1500 extras

Dunkirk is a risky project an American studio backing

it, especially in relation to the US market.

It had Harry Styles, former One Direction British pop

sensation, in the cast, but there are no American stars

and it's presenting a World War II conflict of which the target

audience of young American males knows little.

Christopher Nolan has a huge following, maybe more

than any other working director, certainly in terms of

an impassioned Internet fan base and a young male fan base.

Every film on this scale is always a tremendous gamble.

I think as a film-maker I've been very fortunate to have financial

That gives me a little more trust from the studio,

gives me a bit of latitude to try and push boundaries

as to what you might be able to do on this scale.

It's not, of course, paying tribute to a military victory.

Instead, it's honouring the heroism of those who survived and triumphed

To Mark Rylance, who plays a civilian at the helm of a small

vessel rescuing soldiers, the film is presenting that Dunkirk

spirit of people rallying around at a time of great adversity.

In that way it was a victory, because if they hadn't had

that miraculous retreat, we would have been

After an intense promotional campaign, Dunkirk has finally been

It's been getting some glowing early reviews,

with some critics calling it a masterpiece.

The box office returns are yet to come.

But for Christopher Nolan it looks like Dunkirk is a gamble

We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing ground.

A quick update to the lead story, the parole decision of former

football star OJ Simpson. We expect that shortly so do stay with us with

BBC world where we will have the latest.

You have probably noticed the air feeling a good deal fresher today.

The humid conditions we have seen got swept away by a cold front