Transcripts For BBCNEWS BBC News At Ten 20240713

Would involve some customs checks on the island of ireland something dublin is strongly opposed to. We now have written proposals that we can engage on, our objective is very clear. We dont want to see any customs posts between north and south, nor do we wa nt between north and south, nor do we want to see any tariffs or restrictions on trade, north and south. And in brussels, the eu says thejohnson plans are unconvincing. Also tonight. At the high court in belfast, a woman denied a legal termination wins her case that abortion laws in Northern Ireland breach human rights. A special report from iraq on Sexual Exploitation of children and young women, by some shia muslim clerics. A man is shot dead after killing four Police Officers at their headquarters in central paris. And at the world athletics championships there could be another gold for Great Britain, this time in the heptathlon. Yes, ina yes, in a matter of minutes Katarina Johnson thompson is odds on favourite to take the World Championship gold, with just the 800 metres to go. And coming up on sportsday on bbc news. Ireland remain on course for the Rugby World Cup quarterfinals. Thats despite not looking their best in a win over russia. Good evening. The new brexit proposals unveiled by Boris Johnson have already provoked a wave of scepticism, both at westminster and across the eu. The Irish Government says it has deep concerns and the European Council president says hes unconvinced. The main proposals relate to Northern Ireland. It would stay in the eu Single Market for all goods, and that would mean accepting eu rules and standards. But crucially, Northern Ireland would leave the customs union, and that would mean new customs checks on the island of ireland. But all of this would depend on a future vote by the Northern Ireland assembly, a body which is currently suspended. Our deputy Political Editor john pienaar has the latest. His report does contain some flash photography. Boris johnson is looking serious, and no wonder. Can you get a deal, Prime Minister . Truth is, he doesnt know. But his plan today, tone down the fighting talk in the commons. Order statement, the Prime Minister. The speaker wasnt attacking him, for once. Sore throat. But today, the pms message, ive compromised, now its your turn. So we have made a genuine attempt to bridge the chasm, to reconcile the apparently irreconcilable, and to go the extra mile, as time runs short. Still the same warning, though. Britain would leave with no deal if it had to. If our european neighbours choose not to show a corresponding willingness to reach a deal, then we shall have to leave on october the 31st without an agreement. And on the eu side today, a deal looked farfrom certain. Not a no from the irish leader on a visit to stockholm, but he wasnt convinced. The proposals that have been put forward by the uk are certainly welcome in the sense that we now have written proposals that we can engage on. But they do fall short in a number of aspects. There are plenty of doubts to overcome. The european parliaments Brexit Steering Group said mrjohnsons plan breached agreed principles. We are very sceptical about these proposals because mainly it is a repackaging of the old proposals that have already been discussed. Boris johnsons offer was never likely to be bought by the eu as it stands. The Prime Minister is about to take his case to european leaders, hoping they will compromise in the end, rather than face the disruption of a no deal brexit. If there is a deal, and that is still a big if, the Prime Minister could get it through parliament, though not without a fight and not without help from labour mps prepared to defy the leader and vote alongside him. Deal or no deal. Certainly nothing the pm says or does seems that all likely to get Jeremy Corbyn onside. No labour mp could support such a reckless deal that will be used as a springboard. Used as a springboard to attack rights and standards in this country. Hard maybe for theresa may to hear her brexit deal rubbished and then watch brexiteer tories and conservative outcasts praising her successors efforts. Can i urge the Prime Minister to go to his eu colleagues with some confidence and to tell them that there is every likelihood, if not certainty, that this proposition will command the support of the house of commons. Can i welcome very much the pragmatic approach and the demeanour that my right honourable friend has taken today and look to our european neighbours and i might say, the leader of the opposition, to respond in kind. Inside downing street, the diary is full. Diplomatic talks, meetings with sceptical mps. The Prime Minister can say he is optimistic. That doesnt guarantee a happy ending. John pienaar, bbc news, westminster. Whatever might be finally agreed on the border between Northern Ireland and the republic, it will be the businesses on the ground that will have to make it work. As things stand, Many Companies say theyre worried about any prospect of more regulations and customs checks. Our Northern Ireland Business Correspondent John Campbell explains. Theres already a sort of border between Northern Ireland and the rest the uk. All live animals coming in from Great Britain are checked at this inspection post. Under the Prime Ministers plan, these checks would be extended to food and other goods. Thats because Northern Ireland would continue to follow the eus standards and rules, needed to keep the land border open. The rest of the uk would not. But for businesses like this, near the border with the irish republic, its the other part of the plan, to do with customs, thats the big worry. The proposal would mean the whole of the uk leaving the eus customs union. That inevitably means a new Customs Border in ireland. Is this a good deal . Well, you know, whats a good deal . With new requirements for cross border traders. We would be exporting on a daily basis to the republic of ireland. And at some times, we would have orders for the republic of ireland which would possibly go to donegal, then come back in at strabane. I cant imagine how were going to be able to put export orders and Northern Ireland orders on the same truck in the future. The Prime Minister believes the impact of this Customs Border can be minimised. Instead of customs posts at the frontier, the border would effectively come here, to the factory or warehouse. Most customs checks and formalities would take place in the company premises. But even if this could be made to work, it will add cost and complexity to cross border trade. There are other worries for businesses like this printing firm. Northern ireland wont automatically follow the eu rules necessary to keep the border open. Instead, the Northern Ireland assembly at stormont will have to approve this arrangement every four years. Ijust dont think that will be accepted by the European Union at all. Stormonts not a sovereign government. Its a regional government. The European Union only works with sovereign governments. You know, we havent had a Stormont Executive for over 1,000 days. They cant decide on very, very small things. How in gods name would we ever be able to get them to decide on something as significant is this . How to solve Northern Irelands border issue has been the question thats bedevilled this brexit process. The Prime Minister may think hes found his answer. Much of Northern Ireland business disagrees. John campbell, bbc news, londonderry. And it hasntjust been the island of ireland, north and south of the border, reacting to the Prime Ministers new brexit proposals. Throughout the day, there has been reaction across the eu to borisjohnsons plans. 0ur europe editor katya adler joins us from brussels. Are we saying basically that there is no hope for these plans, as far as brussels is concerned . Well, you could say the Prime Minister is stuck between a rock and a hard place. He seems cautiously optimistic that the majority of mps would support his new brexit proposals but the eu doesnt. And if he moves closer to the eus position, say over customs, then he risks losing support from hardline brexiteers at home. So now what . Well, the eu mood can probably best be summed up in a tweet today from the president of the European Council, donald tusk. He said he spoke to the irish Prime Minister and to Boris Johnson spoke to the irish Prime Minister and to borisjohnson today. His message to dublin was that the eu fully stands behind ireland meaning it wont abandon irish interests just to get a deal, and to Boris Johnson, he said that the eu remains open to his proposals but unconvinced. Now, the Prime Ministers main eu envoys in brussels tonight and tomorrow, trying to do some heavy convincing, and the eus chief brexit negotiator has a string of questions for him. The eu worries that the Prime Ministers proposals arent legally watertight, that they expose the european Single Market to smuggling, and that they put the Northern Ireland Peace Process at risk. Michel barnier says he wants to suss out the uks room for manoeuvre. Can borisjohnson budge out the uks room for manoeuvre. Can Boris Johnson budge any further . Depending on the answers he gets, mr barnier says hell tell germany, france and the rest of the eu whether he thinks its in their interest to keep negotiating. Katya adler, with the latest in brussels. The high court in belfast has ruled that Northern Irelands abortion laws breach human rights. The case was brought by a woman who was told by doctors that her unborn child would not survive outside the womb, but was denied a legal termination. Theres a near total ban on abortion in Northern Ireland, but the law is set to change later this month. As our ireland correspondent emma vardy reports. Sarah ewart became the public face of a debate about a deeply personal issue. Six years ago she travelled to london from her home in Northern Ireland to have an abortion. Her unborn baby had a condition that meant the child couldnt survive outside the womb. Its not something i would ever have even dreamt of. Id rather have the memory of seeing it move on screen and hearing the heartbeat. And see the end. She allowed her experience to be filmed, because she believed Northern Irelands near total ban on abortion was wrong. Today, Belfast High Court ruled that Northern Irelands abortion laws had led to a breach of her human rights. Its a massive relief that we have actually heard today, that the judges recognised we did have the standing and that my human rights were breached. While opinion polls suggest a majority of people in Northern Ireland are in favour of changing the law, there remains strong support for Campaign Groups who argue an unborn childs right to life should be protected. For the people of Northern Ireland, its a very sad day for the future unborn children with special needs, when a court would make a decision to deny the very personhood and deny the right to life of unborn children here. Marking the strength of opposition, thousands marched on stormont recently to protest against legislation passed by westminster in july, which means the law on terminations is set to be relaxed. The change will come in if Northern Irelands devolved government at stormont, which collapsed two and a half years ago, isnt restored in the next few weeks. Women in Northern Ireland have been able to access free abortions by travelling to england since 2017. Although the law is set to change in 18 days time, its likely Services Wont be set up locally until the spring. At the moment, more than 1,000 women a year for a multitude of reasons leave Northern Ireland to seek an abortion elsewhere. And todays ruling is another mark of the change taking place in what was a very socially conservative Northern Ireland. Access to abortion remains one of the most divisive issues here. But its now on the brink of change, decades after the rest of the uk. Emma vardy, bbc news, belfast. Campaigners have lost a legal fight over the rise in the state pension age for women. The threshold has risen from 60 to 65, in line with men, and will be 66 next year. Campaigners say it was discriminatory and unfair, as they were not given enough time to adjust to the changes. The high court rejected their arguments, saying the policy corrected historic discrimination against men. A man wielding a knife has killed four staff at the Police Headquarters in paris. The attacker, who was also an employee, was later shot dead by officers. Police sources suggest hed converted to islam. Officials say they have yet to establish a motive. The incident came a day after police went on strike across france, to draw attention to increasing violence against officers. 0ur correspondent Lucy Williamson reports from paris. The threat today came with a familiar face. A police it worker and colleague of 20 years. Who brought a knife into the Police Headquarters this lunchtime and killed four people. He was shot dead by an officerjust a few months out of training, who was then seen sinking to his knees and crying. Translation we cant know what went through his head. We are not safe anywhere, even at the Police Headquarters. With no clear sense of a motive, a criminal investigation has been launched into why a 45 year old it worker should attack his colleagues like this. Translation this man was known to his colleagues, had never shown any behavioural problems, never shown any warning signs. Then today he committed a string of murders. This afternoon investigators searched the attackers home. Police say he recently converted to islam, but that hasnt been linked to the enquiry. His wife has been taken in for questioning, along with at least one other person. Tonight investigators are starting to unpick the story behind this unexpected attack. The police here say they are already struggling to cope after years of terrorism, protests and public assault. Protecting france is taking its toll, they say. Not expecting they would need to protect the safest place in paris from someone they already knew. Lucy williamson, bbc news, paris. The scale of the threat to britains wildlife has been laid bare by a new report which outlines the rapid and widespread decline of the uks plants and animals. The state of nature report, which examined data from more than 7,000 species, said Climate Change and more intensive farming methods are to blame. In total around 1 in 7 uk animal species are threatened with extinction, according to the report. More than 1 in 4 mammals, 26 percent, are at risk of disappearing altogether. And around 1 in 5 plant species are at risk of extinction. Conservationists have called it the great thinning of biodiversity. You can read more on that story online bbc. Co. Uk news. The parents of a five year old have won their High Court Battle to move their daughter to an Italian Hospital for further treatment. Tafida raqeeb suffered a bleed on the brain in february, which has left her severely brain damaged and unable to breathe on her own. Her doctors in london argued it was in her best interests to withdraw life support. 0ur medical correspondent fergus walsh has the story. Tafida has been on a ventilator and tube fed since february. She is minimally conscious, but able to move her limbs. This motion with her right arm could be a reflex action. For her parents, its a small sign of recovery. A huge relief for the family, then, when the high court refused permission to allow life support to be withdrawn and approved transfer to a hospital in italy. 0ur beautiful daughter tafida is not dying. We are continuously seeing small but important signs that she is gradually improving. The entire experience of having to fight for our daughters life over the last three months has been exhausting and traumatic for all of my family members, and were glad that it is now finally over. The judge said there was no hope of tafida being cured or her condition improving substantially, so he had to consider whether further treatment was futile. Mrjustice macdonald said this is a very finely balanced case. Although tafida is minimally aware and totally reliant on others, she is medically stable and not in any pain. He said, given that for the parents, tafidas sanctity of life was of the utmost importance, he was satisfied that Life Sustaining treatment should continue. Good morning, tafida. Tafida will not get any novel treatment in italy, but doctors there will insert a breathing tube in her windpipe to make Long Term Care easier. This little girl isnt suffering and that the treatment that she is receiving it may not be benefiting her, but it isnt a burden to her and in addition, travelling to italy wont be burdensome for her, and that her condition is stable. She could live for another 10 20 years and, ultimately, perhaps, even be cared for at home. Here i am this was tafida before her sudden brain injury a bright and lively girl. Her parents, described by thejudge as committed muslims, believe tafida would wish to live, no matter how poorly her condition. They hope to transfer to italy as soon as possible, although barts nhs trust is considering an appeal. Fergus walsh, bbc news. An undercover investigation by the bbc in iraq has exposed evidence of Sexual Exploitation of children and young women by some shia muslim clerics. Bbc news arabic has discovered how some clerics are grooming and exploiting vulnerable girls in karbala and baghdad, through the use of a so called pleasure marriage. The practice, which is illegal under iraqi law, but believed by some to be allowed under an interpretation of sharia law, allows a temporary marriage, sometimes for as brief as an hour. The clerics captured on camera offer girls for sale, and give advice on sexual acts with children, that they claim is permitted during these pleasure marriages. This special report from Nawal Al Maghafi contains details of child abuse that you may find distressing. The holiest shrine in shia islam. Visited by millions of pilgrims every year. In the streets around the shrine are marriage offices, where couples come to get wed. But they hold one of iraqs darkest secrets. We had heard some clerics were abusing their power, using temporary marriages to facilitate prostitution with young girls. It is a marriage contract with an expiry date which can be as short as an hour. Some say they can be a positive move for couples who are aware of what they are doing. But they are also ripe for exploitation. In a year long investigation, we went undercover around some of iraqs holiest shrines. These temporary marriages are illegal in iraq. However, we found clerics willing to do them. Not only facilitating them with young girls, but also offering justification through their interpretation of islamic law to have sex with them. We showed our footage to this expert in islamic law, a former high ranking cleric himself. Translation what this man is saying is a crime. That must be punished by law. He says it is one reason he decided to speak out against the clerics. Translation i realised that these rules were ugly and cruel, and could not come from god or from anyone human. Throughout our investigation, we gathered evidence of clerics willing to facilitate sex with young girls in return for cash. In one incident, we were told children cost as little as £700. Rasul is 16 years old, but already, she has been sold to more men than she can remember. With no parents and a younger sister to support, she was groomed by a cleric atjust 13 years old. This cleric denies carrying out temporary marriages. And we received no response from this cleric. Both say theyre followers of grand ayatollah al sistani, one of the most senior figures in shia islam. We put our findings to his office, which released the following statement. If these practises are happening in the way you are saying, then we condemn them unreservedly. Temporary marriage is not allowed as a tool to sell sex in a way that belittles the dignity and humanity of women. Countless years of war have left millions of women and girls vulnerable and destitute. As long as the religious clerics operate with impunity, they will continue to be victims of iraqs secret sex trade. Nawalal maghafi, bbc news, iraq. And you can watch the full film undercover with the clerics, iraqs secret six trade. Itll be available on the bbc iplayer at the end of this programme. Scotland has become the first part of the uk to ban the smacking of children. Msps voted almost three to one for the legislation. The new law is expected to come into force in a years time. At the world athletics championships in doha, britains athletes were in with a chance of a second gold medal in two days. Natalie pirks has the latest. Gold medallist and world champion, Dina Asher Smith last night she was overcome with emotion. Today, the trademark grin was back. Britains golden girl is slowly adjusting to her new title. Youre standing up there with the National Anthem and when they were announcing it and saying you are world champion, it is something that is really surreal. And i think im going to have to hear it a few more times to believe it. The red hot favourite executed her race to perfection. Dina asher smith is away and shes going to take the gold medal its Dina Asher Smith she is the champion world champion. She has nowjoined the pantheon of british sporting greats. I saw a picture that said, dina joins paula radcliffe, chrissie 0, jess ennis, i think it was fatima whitbread, liz mccolgan. And i wasjust like, wow because that is just such an illustrious list and it feels so strange that my name would be there as well. Well, that was britains first gold of the championships, but could there be a second today . Katarina Johnson Thompson led the heptathlon overnight. Theres three more events to go, and first up is the long jump. She has long had a love hate relationship with the sandpit. She is good at it, but it has also seen her quest for gold unravel spectacularly in the past. What a beautiful jump forJohnson Thompson not today, though. After two lifetime bests yesterday, she pulled a seasons best out of the bag. Its 6 77 the world and olympic champion nafi thiam is the belgian record holder. But her best was far shorter and it sanohnson thompsons lead extend before the penultimate event. The javelin is where she had a meltdown in rio that left her in a really bad place. Another seasons best would be handy right now. Look at the smile on her face she knows. Thiam can throw almost 60 metres on a good day. But with an elbow injury, this was turning into a bad one. The reigning champions second throw. Its high. Its out towards 50 metres. With that, she left the stadium and forfeited her final throw. And with just the 800 metres to go, Johnson Thompson was staring down the barrel of the world title. In the last ten minutes britain has a new world champion. Johnson thompson, her lead going into the final that she had a ten second buffer but she still ran a lifetime best betting the record of Jessica Ennis hill that she set in 2012. A lifetime best in four out of seven 2012. A lifetime best in four out of seve n eve nts 2012. A lifetime best in four out of seven events and she looked a different athlete to the one we saw implode in other world events in the past her score of 6981 is a world leader, an unbelievable result. Thats it. Now on bbc one, time for the news where you are. Have a very good night. Hello, welcome along to sportsday. Im adam wild, on the way tonight. Great britain has another golden girl. Katerina Johnson Thompson is the world heptathlon champion. Well go live to doha injust a moment. Also tonight a masterclass from martinelli, as arsenal set the standard in the europa league. And at the Rugby World Cup, ireland remain on course for the quarterfinals, but still with plenty of room for improvement. Hello and welcome to sportsday, im adam wild. Good evening, Great Britain had to wait for their gold medals, but now its two in two nights. In the last few moments, katerina Johnson Thompson has become the world heptathlon champion. Lets get straight across to doha, ade adedoyin is there for us. Ade, another golden night for Great Britain, and this was the performance of a lifetime. There was a big shock as well in the last hour in the womens 400 metres . Yellow makes you produce the best performance really mattered and she w011 performance really mattered and she won herfirst Global Performance really mattered and she won her first global title and she isa won her first global title and she is a phenomenal title,