As the impeachment inquiry around President Trump intensifies, with congressional hearings due to go public next week, more revelations have emerged from testimony already given behind closed doors. This time from bill taylor the top american diplomat in ukraine. He told the hearing he was astonished that the president appeared to have made military aid to ukraine, a us ally under threat from russia, dependent on ukraine investigating joe biden, one of his rivals for the white house. Ambassador taylor responded that was my clear understanding, Security Assistance money would not come until the president of ukraine committed to pursue the investigation. Then from the lawmaker questioning him so if they dont do this, they are not going to get. That was your understanding 7 ambassador taylor says yes, sir. The follow up are you aware that quid pro quo literally means this for that . The response i am. Speaking within the past hour at a Campaign Rally in louisiana, President Trump accused democrats and the media of being behind what he called the impeachment witch hunt. Now, corrupt politicians, nancy below sea and the Crooked Media have launched the deranged, delusional destructive and hyper partisan impeachment witch hunt. Now we go again. Except a lot of things have happened, because you know, i dont know if you saw, im coming off the plane and they handed me, look at this character. Whistleblowers attorney said in 2017, you know when that was . That was a long time ago. It is all a hoax. They say january 2017 a coup has started and the impeachment will follow ultimately. It is all a hoax, its a scam, and you know who helps them . These people right back here, the media. That is what the president thinks. Max kutner is a us journalist in new york covering the impeachment inquiry. What are you thinking about the bill taylor testimony . Previously know that he said, although that was pretty damaging to the president , bill taylor is not a resistance figure, he is a vietnam war veteran, he isa figure, he is a vietnam war veteran, he is a west Point Military academy graduate, he is a longtime diplomat, so we as graduate, he is a longtime diplomat, so we as the public can probably trust what he is saying, and what he is saying is that there were irregular channels that were going about these ukraine thing, run by the president s lawyer rudy giuliani, he was this quid pro quo, and he is saying that basically his understanding was that unless ukraine committed to investigating burisma holdings, there would not be a white house meeting and also the Trump Administration would withhold this aid. We know this new information today, and this of course is coming out about one week before he is going to be testifying in an open setting before congress. And what difference do you think this might make when all these hearings are in public . It is going to make a big difference, this is going to speed up the impeachment enquiry. This is going to start moving at warp speed, certainly seeing what these long term diplomat, these careerists from the state department and from elsewhere, seeing them testify is going to be a lot more powerful than just reading their testimonies, which are quite lengthy, this transcript that are coming up. It is not clear, though, what impact this is having on the people of the united states, particular how it might impact on the president ial election next year. It does seem possible, doesnt it, there have in some impact on those results from kentucky and virginia. We did have an election here in the states yesterday, certainly made all of this impeachment enquiry news, kentucky what you saw was interesting. Festival, the republican hasnt conceded yet. Matt bevan, it was a very small margin, so bevan, it was a very small margin, so it is still a bit of a tossup, although the democrat in that case is saying that he did win, but if you look at all the other statewide races and this is something that President Trump has been pointing to today, the republicans did windows in kentucky, so it is a bit of a split state. Then you turn to pennsylvania which trump one by a small margin in 2016 and there was a lot of Movement Towards the democrats in that state. Virginia as well, democrat did win control for the first time in a generation of the first time in a generation of the entire government there, so you are having some wins for the republicans, some wins for the democrats to be a lot of wins for the democrats, in fact. Thank you very much. Doctors in chile say nearly 200 people have been treated for severe eye injuries caused by Police Action against Anti Government protesters in recent weeks. The unrest has also seen more than 20 people die, prompting an investigation by the un into allegations of human rights abuses against demonstrators. Andy beatt reports. Its been three weeks of sirens. Tear gas and Water Cannons on the streets of santiago. And the mass Anti Government movement shows no sign of slowing down. Clashes between protestors and police have grown so violent, the United Nations has deployed a team to investigate alleged human rights abuses. Already, chiles Medical College has recorded more than 180 eye injuries. It says that number is the highest its doctors have seen anywhere in the world. Translation the issue of eye loss surpasses any other period in the history of the country and even internationally. No other country has ever reported this number of cases. Even comparing long conflicts like palestine or paris and hong kong. This 15 year old boy was caught in a crossfire while passing through a protest. He was hit six times by rubber bullets and is now blind in one eye. He blames Police Brutality something the president denies. Translation the president s lying there are people marching peacefully but the police are the bad ones because ofjust a few people, they re implicating everyone. Chiles Human Rights Institute says there have been nearly 150 complaints against the police for torture. President pinera has promised to prosecute police accused of violations with the same force as rioters and looters detained during the protests. But so far he has refused to resign. The uk Election Campaign is officially underway. Borisjohnson has called on voters to deliver a majority for the conservative party, so that he can get brexit done by the end of januray. The Opposition Labour Party leader, Jeremy Corbyn, is promising to sort out brexit in six months, in part through a second referendum. 0ur political editor, Laura Kuenssberg has all the details. He has been one of the best known politicians in the country for a decade, but fame and having faith are not the same thing. He may be the tory partys darling, but he wants you to trust him, and to stay in number 10. I didnt want an election. And no Prime Minister, frankly i love myjob, and no Prime Minister wants an election, particularly when im enjoying it theres so much that we want to get on and do. But, my friends, we have no choice. The whole brexit delay is holding us all back. Its like a bendy bus i banned them in london a bendy bus jackknifed on a yellow box junction. Laughter and adoration in this room, but if clearing a crop of mps is the answer, why should the new ones be from his side . We get this deal through parliament and get on with the fantastic projects in which this government is engaged. Uniting and levelling up our country, giving people opportunity across our country, with better education, better infrastructure and new technology. That is what this government is all about. Cheering. Its about giving hope and a chance. Get used to hearing this. This country is aching to move on. So lets make next year the year of prosperity and growth. Lets get brexit done, my friends, and get on with our project of sensible, moderate sensible, moderate but tax cutting one nation conservatism, spreading hope and opportunity across the whole of the uk. Hang on a loud, cheering crowd doesnt drown out tory woes. Like a small clutch of protesters here tonight, there will be many people who just dont buy it. And a minister had to quit this morning. Yesterday, the welsh secretary was nervously scratching his head in cabinet. At lunchtime today, he resigned, after claims he knew about a former member of staffs role in collapsing a rape trial. One of your colleagues had to quit this morning. I think that boris has showed today why hes the right person to be Prime Minister. Hes got out there, fantastic speech just now, great reception, and i think were all ready. A glossy rally is one thing, but he is risking his all. Win, and he will get his brexit, and maybe five years in at number10. Fail, and Jeremy Corbyn will be right behind instead. I welcomeJeremy Corbyn. For four years, his ranks of supporters have dreamt of him walking through downing streets door. Like his rival, he wants to move on from the mess. Westminster hasnt exactly covered itself in glory recently. Youre right to feel frustrated with the political system, because its not working for you. Politics should be about your life, your community, your job. But on what to do instead, their solutions are different very different. If the british people elect a Labour Government on 12 december, ill be proud to be a labour Prime Minister. But i have to warn you, it will be very different, because i was not born to rule. None of us in this room were born to rule. The politics that i stand for is about sharing power and wealth with people who dont have a lot of money, dont have friends in high places, so that they can take control of their own lives. The two contenders for the top job can both pack a room. Both prompt cheers and chants on their own side. But they both divide, too. Which one will govern . Laura kuenssberg, bbc news, birmingham. Foreign ministers from ethiopia, egypt and sudan are holding talks in washington on a controversial mega dam along the river nile. Ethiopia is about half way through building the four billion dollar project, but egypt is worried about the impact on its Water Supplies and how much water sudan will use. From our correspondents in the region, lets hear more of what each country is saying. Since ethiopia began building the nile dam, it has insisted that in addition to it being an integral part of its developmental efforts, it will bring trans boundary benefits. Countries in the region including egypt and sudan could buy electricity that the dam is expected to generate cheaply, it has said. Officials in addis ababa have repeatedly argued that ethiopia is only after an equitable and reasonable utilisation of the nile waters and accuse egypt of trying to maintain a colonial era treaty that they say upholds unfairness. In line with that, Nobel Peace Prize winning Prime Minister abiy ahmed recently said that ethiopia has no desire to put harm on any interest of egypt or sudan. Sudan has traditionally sided with egypt when it came to these treaties, when it came to negotiations about the use of the waters of river nile, but since 2011, when ethiopia began the construction of the grand ethiopian renaissance dam, weve seen its position slowly shift to siding with ethiopia. We already see that the infrastructure has been put in place because this dam is being constructed just near the border with sudan. It will solve a perennial problem, a problem of flooding of the farmlands in sudan. The Egyptian Ministry of irrigation says that if egypts share of the nile water is to be reduced by only 2 , nearly 200,000 acres of land could be destroyed. The Prime Minister also says the country is already suffering from water poverty. Egyptians warn the ethiopians to fill the dam reservoir quite slowly, over nearly ten years or so, so that egypts share of the water wont be affected. Stay with us on bbc news, still to come australias womens football team, the matildas, strike a landmark deal which will see them earn, equal pay to their male counterparts the israeli Prime Minister, yitzhak rabin, the architect of the middle east peace process, has been assassinated. A 27 year old jewish man has been arrested, and an extremistjewish organisation has claimed responsibility for the killing. At polling booths throughout the country, they voted on a historic day for australia. As the results came in, it was clear. The monarchy would survive. Of the american hostages, there was no sign. They are being held somewhere inside the compound, and student leaders have threatened that should the americans attempt rescue, they will all die. This mission has surpassed all expectations. Voyageri is now the most distant man made object anywhere in the universe, and itjust seems to keep on going. Tonight, we proved once more that the true strength of our nation comes not from the might of our arms, or the scale of our wealth, but from the enduring power of our ideals. This is bbc news, the latest headlines us Congressional Democrats announce theyll begin public hearings on impeaching President Trump next wednesday. Doctors in chile say nearly two hundred people have been treated for severe eye injuries caused by Police Action against protesters. More protests in major cities across the world this week and on bbc news were trying to work out why. Is there a Common Thread . Why are so many young people taking to the streets . How are governments responding . Events in hong kong have been gripping the headlines sincejune. A plan to extradite suspects to mainland chinese courts, controlled by the communist party, triggered mass demonstrations, which have now become a call for widespread reform, including full democracy, one person one vote. Most did not expect this crisis to last this long. 0ur china correspondent Stephen Mcdonell has been speaking to some of the demonstrators. They didnt want to be identified. You cant be in hong kong these days and not be exposed to political conflict. This clash of ideologies is everywhere. Its plastered on the walls. Its seen in the graffiti. Freedom versus stability. Upheaval versus the way things were. The authorities have tried to crush the movement, but 3,300 arrests later, it hasnt gone away. Five months into this campaign, why do you still come out every week and protest . Ithink. Tear gas, tear gas. I think its a bit of we need the justice to be fulfilled. We met an activist who works in the finance industry. When he is not in the office, he is involved in the campaign. Of course, on the weekend, like today, notjust me, most of the youngsters and even some old people, we all march together to fight. And what you think of the impact on your city . Does it worry you . About the impact on your city . I think its a 50 50 question. Im worried about the city future, but im still optimistic. Because i can see the youngsters, they are the energy. He knows this mess defiance is hurting hong kong. Mass defiance. But come monday morning, heading to work, he hopes short term pain will eventually deliver a freer, more sustainable economy. He says he has many friends prepared for a long struggle. I believe most of the hong kong people, we already embed the rebel into our life. Hong kong is now one of the most political cities in the world. The longer the crisis goes on, the more people are pressured into choosing a side. Activists colour code businesses like shops and restaurants in terms of their political allegiances, and if an establishment is deemed to be pro beijing, well, it is seen as a legitimate target for attack. Translation yes, we have been attacked. But the colour, how they categorise us, we cant control this. 0ur boss is actually neutral. This small chain of hong kong cafes has already to shut one of its outlets. Apart from a protest and boycott, there has been a 50 drop in tourist numbers, and an economy in technical recession. Translation there are going to be long term effects. This isnt a short term thing. Special outer layer walls are going up all across hong kong, to protect certain businesses from vandalism. Mainland chinese banks look like bunkers. Yet life goes on in the protest city, which appears to have changed forever. Well have more on this protest and many others taking place across the world you can find more on the key issue on our website simply head to bbc. Com news. Lets get some of the days other news. Police in jordan say several people have been stabbed in the Northern City ofjerash, a tourist site, famed for its roman ruins. Officials say four tourists from mexico and one from switzerland, are among the wounded. Fourjordanians were also attacked, including a police officer. One man has been arrested. Prosecutors in the us have charged two former twitter employees and a third man with spying for saudi arabia. They are accused of accessing personal information of some twitter users who criticised the saudi government and royal family. Italy is to become the first country to make it compulsory for schoolchildren to study climate change. From september next year all state schools will dedicate almost an hour a week to the surrounding issues including sustainable development. China has announced new guidelines intended to restrict how long young people spend playing online video games. All users will need to verify their ages by registering with a national database, and players younger than eighteen will be allowed to play for only 90 minutes on normal days, 3 hours on holidays. More than 1,000 people were forced to evacuate a london theatre on wednesday evening after part of the ceiling collapsed during a show. Emergency services were called to the piccadilly theatre in the west end, which was packed for a performance of arthur millers play death of a salesman. Five people were treated in hospitalfor minor injuries. Wendell pierce, who stars as willy loman, spoke to the crowd outside. I did not mean for it to go like this. Laughter. I would like to thank you all for, one, safely evacuating. We apologise and we are glad that no one is hurt and i ask you all to come back and see our production. We are so honoured that you came tonight. 0ne audience member who saw the roof come down told us, beforehand, the crowd could hear water coming through the ceiling for several minutes. I think its the normal thing, youre sitting in a theatre, youre watching the show and very stoical, you just sit there and let things happen, and then you suddenly realise somethings happening that shouldnt be, and clearly things werent right. Yeah, and a few people started to panic but really, i wouldnt say there was a mass panic but there was a very, very quick evacuation. The actor emma watson has re ignited a conversation about what it means to be single. Or to use the phrase she used self partnered. The harry potter star is about to turn 30, a time when, as she noted wearily, women start getting a lot more questions about when they might settle down. In an interview with british vogue, she said shed long resisted any pressure or expectations about marriage and babies but then, suddenly, at 29, became stressed and anxious. Lisa bonos has written for the Washington Post about these issues. We asked her about self partnered. the world single sometimes doesnt convey the richness and fullness that can happen in a Single Persons life. It doesnt acknowledge the fact that a Single Person might have really healthy friendships and relationships with their family and here at the Washington Post a couple of years ago, we coined a term soloish to describe the idea that a Single Persons life is their own but its also full of other fulfilling relationships beyond a partner. Its hard to know why emma chose the term. It is resonating with people on twitter and stuff, sometimes in a joking way, people saying that theyre going to tell their nosy relatives when they enquire about their dating lives that they are self partnered. But i think, for her, it was a chance to say, no, im happy single, and sometimes the word single can sound like something is lacking or that a person is looking for a partner and thats not always the case. So plenty of single people are happy that way and self partnered might be a good way to describe that. Australias womens football team, the matildas, have struck an historic pay deal. The top male and female players will be on the same pay scale, and all players get the same perks, such as flying business class. Freya cole has the story. The matildas work hard on the field and for the last four years, theyve worked hard off the field. Theyve scored a landmark deal which closes the gender pay gap with the mens socceroos. For female athletes around the world, its something to cheer about. Its enormous. In my playing career, i never thought i would see the moment where equality was reached in the way that it has been. I think its an enormous sign of respect from the federation and the caltex socceroos, to agree to want to move in this direction together. The top players will be paid on the same scale, regardless of gender, and theyll get identical training conditions and entitlements. But the deal doesnt take into account prize money, which means the socceroos will still take home a bigger pay packet. Even still, its a huge step forward for equality in sport. It will give the next generation of female players further opportunities to become professional footballers. The gender pay gap has been a hot topic off the back of a hugely popular womens world cup injuly. The reigning champions, the united states, have launched a lawsuit against the Us Soccer Federation over paying conditions. Theyre hoping for the same outcome as the australian matildas and their fans hope so too. Freya cole, bbc news. Mexican archaeologists have announced theyve found the first man made mammoth trap to be discovered anywhere in the world. The team from the National Institute of anthropology and history say theyve unearthed at least 1a mammoths from a pit near mexico city. Some of the bones showed evidence of butchery. They say the mammoths were from five herds that roamed alongside horses and camels more than 111,000 years ago. Hello there. Parts of england and wales look extremely wet on thursday with the risk of localised flooding in places and the risk of some travel disruption, all courtesy of this new area of low pressure which is going to park itself across the uk and this very slow moving front will bring some very wet conditions through central portions of the uk. Early on thursday, that rain band will be slowly spreading its way northwards so some places quite wet. Blustery showers across the southwest and some showers across scotland which will be wintry over the high ground. A little bit of sunshine around and not quite as cold a start as what we have seen the last few nights because we have cloud around. But through thursday morning, that rain band will almost grind to a halt across parts of north wales, the north midlands, Northern England and the rain will be heavy and persistent at times. Like i said, producing some localised flooding and travel disruption in places and well also have quite a keen east north east wind, making it feel pretty raw so not very pleasant conditions throughout the day on thursday here. To the north of it, bright, probably the best sunshine for western scotland. A few showers which will be wintry on the hill but quite blustery here and some heavy, maybe thundery showers across southern and south western parts of england and it will be quite blustery here, too. But into the midlands and the south east we should see some sunshine, slightly lighter winds. It will be a chilly day wherever you are, just about 10 degrees across the south and single figure values further north. And like i mentioned, feeling really chilly underneath that cloud and rain. Through thursday night, a slow improvement. That weather front with the band of rain continues to ease down and push towards the south and east so it will be a dry and chilly night across many northern and southern areas but where you have the cloud, not quite as cold, ranging from 2 6 degrees there. The pressure chart, as we head into friday, shows this area of low pressure slipping off into the near continent. A bit of a hand back across the eastern side of the country with this weather front which will continue to bring a fair amount of cloud and one or two showers, but a ridge of High Pressure builds in across the north and west, so here, after a chilly start, it should be a fine day with plenty of sunshine around. Much of the country should see a bit of sunshine apart from the eastern side of england where its going to be another chilly day. As we had through friday night, eventually well see the cloud and the rain in the south east clear away, its going to be a cold night under clear skies with a widespread frost. The next weather front will arrive across the west, so not quite as cold for Northern Ireland as it will be across much of britain. Into saturday, a cold, frosty start for many but that rain will spill in from the west to many areas and then on sunday, its a gradual improvement with some sunshine developing. This is bbc news. The headlines democrats in the us congress have announced they will begin public hearings on impeaching President Trump next wednesday. So far, witnesses have been behind closed doors. The inquiry centres on mr trump withholding military aid to ukraine, a us ally under threat from russia, and whether he made aid dependent on ukraine investigating joe biden, one of mr trumps rivals for the white house. Doctors in chile say they have treated nearly 200 people for severe eye injuries caused by Police Action against Anti Government protesters. Weeks of unrest have also left at least 20 people dead and prompted a un investigation into human rights abuses. The uks Election Campaign is formally under way, Prime Minister borisjohnson calling on voters to give him a majority so he can take britain out of the european union. The day was overshadowed by two resignations, welsh secretary alun cairns and labours deputy leader, tom watson