Antony blinken, has voiced his concern that nigersjunta might turn to the Russian Mercenary Group wagnerfor help. The group is active in neighbouring countries and its leader has welcomed the takeover. The coup leaders are currently Standing Firm against calls to restore democratic rule. Heres what mr blinken had to say about wagner. For sure, we have concerns when we see Something Like the wagner group possibly manifesting itself in different parts of the sahel. And here is why we are concerned. Because every single place that this group, wagner group has gone, death, destruction and exploitation have followed. Insecurity has gone up, not down. It has not been a response to the needs of the countries in question for greater security. I think what happened and what continues to happen in niger was not instigated by russia or by wagner but to the extent that they try to take advantage of it and we see a repeat of what has happened in other countries where theyve brought nothing but bad things in their wake, that wouldnt be good. Niger has been a crucial staging post for us and other troops fighting islamists in the region. So, mr blinken was asked, will us troops stay if the junta continues to defy calls from the Regional Bloc Ecowas to step down . We strongly support the work that ecowas is doing to try to help restore the Constitutional Order in niger. Ive been in close touch with president bazoum and many colleagues in the region including the nigerian president , colleagues at the african union, and it is very important that that Constitutional Order be restored. And right now, i think ecowas is playing a very Important Role in moving the country back in that direction. So an Important Role for ecowas says mr blinken as many observers are asking, how did niger reach this point . The country has seen Military Coups in the past but has been relatively stable when compared to several of its neighbours. Niger and neighbouring countries including mali and burkina faso have seen violence from Islamist Groups in recent years. The coup leaders from nigers president ial guard insist theyre more able to deal with growing Security Concerns than the previous democratically elected government. Wagner Group Mercenaries have been active in the region theyre seen here in the Central African republic. Nigers president Bazoum Deposed in the coup had complained of Disinformation Campaigns by wagner against his government. The wagner leader, yevgeny prigozhin, has released an Audio Message Refering to the coup in niger. The recording was released on telegram, though the date and location cant be independently verified. He had this message apparently for the coup leaders. Translation we are always on the side of goodness, justice and on the side of those who fight for sovereignty and for the rights of their people. Call us any time. Well, todays interview with Antony Blinken was done by my colleague Waihiga Mwaura of bbc focus on africa. I asked him about how much interest there was in what mr blinken had to say. As someone who speaks on behalf of the United States in that position of Secretary Of State, whatever he says is deemed as the voice of the us in matters of Food Security and the situation in niger. There is a lot of interest in what he had to say. His views on the president of niger, who is under house arrest, and his views on the wagner group, a lot of interest, and also, a sense in which whilst he was speaking to the bbc yesterday, in that exclusive interest, focus on africa, the Secretary Of State was in niamey trying to help. What speculation is that you are seeing is that the us are increasingly trying to assert itself, may be more prominent in terms of what happens moving forward in niger and we are monitoring that. Having Antony Blinken speak with us was definitely something to take note of. There is a concern in niger that america could remove some of its Military Support in niger and also a considerable amount of aid they give the country. We have already heard that some of the aid has been withheld, not only america, but western countries, and this fund is up to 40 of the budget of the country. Yes, you did that gathering at the stadium in Niamey On Sunday where 30,000 people gathered, they were not referring to the us specifically but chanting anti france slogans and waving russian flags. Some analysts say they love one and hate the other, in the deep sense of it, it is a question of looking at the historical legacy of certain countries in niger and a sense by some in the army that they would likely change the status quo and when the us speaks out, putting a statement on the official social media accounts of her office stating that she was in niger in the push for a return to democratic rule, that is something that Antony Blinken echoed, some in niger may be more vocal of the feeling that this is interference. There is a discussion around african countries determining their future and that could be part of the reason why some of the statements made by america could be viewed maybe with suspicion by some in niger, it depends on who youre talking to. What did the us Secretary Of State say about the collapse of the Ukraine Grain Deal . He was categorical, the reason there is a black sea grain deal to begin was because of the Russia Ukraine war, he heaped the blame on russia. He raised concerns with the decision of russia to halt the deal stating it is the biggest threat to Food Insecurity at the moment with an estimated 250 Million People around the globe under food insecure status as we speak. He also sought to address claims by russia, assertions by that they are Setting Sides of the deal that has not been met. The deal was brokered by the United States and turkey, russia is key in there with ukraine, and the us is a key player. Antony blinken went on record to say there are no sanctions against russian grain, they have been able to flow away from the sanctions and he said he has written letters of comfort to american banks to tell them to facilitate any deals that involve the movement of russian food as well. For him, also mentioning, however, the un has a deal ready for russia, russia has not responded to this, he feels that russia is not being sincere and he did not mince his words about that. He also spoke to some of the allegations and assertions made by russia that in terms of Food Insecurity, it was an issue before the Russia Ukraine war, and russia blamed the western world for that. For the secretary, a 15. 5 billion investment in Food Security from the United States, an investment in the World Food Programme was his statement that america is fully invested in Food Security and they would like russia to be on the same table in regards to that conversation. The leaders of eight South American nations that share the Amazon Rainforest are gathering in brazil to discuss how best to protect it. Scientists are concerned that deforestation in the amazon may be approaching an irreversible tipping point. Brazils president Lula Da Silva is seeking a coordinated regional approach to tackle illegal mining and logging, as well as other environmental crimes. Scientists say the amazon is a crucial buffer in the global fight against Climate Change and 60 of it is located in brazil. The Rainforest Acts as a major carbon sink absorbing Carbon Dioxide emissions, which are driving Climate Change. President lula has promised to end deforestation by 2030. Rainforest destruction had surged under his predecessor, jair bolsonaro. And it appears some progress is already being made. Injuly this year, 500 Square Kilometres of rainforest was cleared in brazil 66 less than injuly of last year. The rainforest is home to 50 Million People, including hundreds of indigenous groups. Indigenous leaders have called for bold action to protect their rights as well as the ecosystem they depend on. 0ur south america correspondent katy watson now reports from para, the most deforested state in brazil. Virgin forests still exist here in the amazon, but every day, the illegal loggers get closer. For those living under the rainforests canopy, its been a difficult few years. Translator you have no idea how much pressure i there was in our community under the bolsonaro government. Landowners circling planes, soya farmers wanting to buy the land to deforest it. Hobson and his trees stood firm. Hes buying into a booming carbon credit industry, taking part in Sustainable Farming projects that sell Carbon Credits to companies wanting to offset their emissions. Its become so popular in this part of the amazon that authorities have accused carbon Credit Companies of harassment, pressuring communities to sign contracts. Bianca and herfamily, like many in the region, want better services, like schools and health centres. But theyre suspicious of these newcomers offering to help. Translator no, it is not that transparent. We cannot see how it would give us a secure life. We are always on the back foot and fear the consequences. Because of these stories we heard, we decided not to sign a contract. How to ensure the amazons future and how to provide for its people is the biggest dilemma facing leaders at this weeks summit in belem. Lulas ambitious, but its no easy task. Just to get to this part of the amazon, it took 13 hours overnight on a riverboat and now this smaller boat to get to the communities here. But if you look on a map, it all looks so close together, and itjust goes to show how vast the amazon is, but also how difficult it is to navigate and, ultimately, also how difficult it will be for lula to achieve his zero deforestation by 2030. This is hernandes plantation, the tools and training funded by a carbon credit company. Last year, the community had to drive out five illegal Sawmills Felling Trees from their land. But defending their territory from loggers is an Impossible Task on their own. Partnering with those who have the funds is the only option. For the company, empowering the community is key. So, too, is empowering the region as a whole. When global north comes to global south and says, i have the solution, were like, really . Have you been to the amazon . How do you know whats good for them . You dont have your boots on the ground. So its very easy to say, i have the solution. People here want south americas voice heard before its too late. Katy watson, bbc news in para. Details of tens of millions of voters could have been accessed by hackers who targeted the uk elections watchdog. The Electoral Commission said there was little risk of hostile actors being able to influence the outcome of a vote, but apologised for the breach in its systems. With more on this, lets talk to our cyber correspondentjoe tidy. What to our cyber correspondentjoe tidy. We know abol attack . What we know about the scale of the attack . ,. ,. , what we know about the scale of the attack . ,. , attack . This is a serious Cyber Incident and attack . This is a serious Cyber Incident and they attack . This is a serious Cyber Incident and they have attack . This is a serious Cyber Incident and they have been i attack . This is a serious Cyber Incident and they have been dealing with it since they discovered it in october 2022 last year, initially part of a investigation, the initial entry point for the hackers was august 2021, so a big lag between the initial intrusion and then the discovery which is not unusual when you are dealing with noncriminal hackers, those sort of teams, because what they tend to do is be very sophisticated and patient and Electoral Processes are being hacked all the time Around The World. The Electoral Commission have said they are sorry for the incident and they have kicked out the hackers and they say it will not happen again but it is a big concern. The data that could have been accessed is less of a concern, and the potentialfor what could have happened. There are millions of people that could have been affected because the hackers had access to the Electoral Roll but it is not that secret document you can get this if you are a phonebook company. But the difference is, the hackers were able to access people who wanted to keep their names and addresses private, so if you wanted to have those details off the phone book and not sold on the companies, the hackers may have been able to get those details. Anybody who wanted to register to vote anonymously, like when your safety is in danger, for example, if you are a victim of domestic abuse, and you are in a safe house, for example, those people have not had their details hacked, so that is a cause for people to relax a bit but the potential here is a more serious situation and the Electoral Commission have said they have praised the system saying it is very hard to hack. Imilli praised the system saying it is very hard to hack hard to hack. Will it be looked at Closel B Hard to hack. Will it be looked at closely by peeple hard to hack. Will it be looked at closely by people who hard to hack. Will it be looked at closely by people who want hard to hack. Will it be looked at closely by people who want to i hard to hack. Will it be looked at i closely by people who want to know what protections were actually in place and what improvements were made . ~ ,. , , place and what improvements were made . ~ , ,. , made . Absolutely, this will be a big olitical made . Absolutely, this will be a big political story made . Absolutely, this will be a big political story because made . Absolutely, this will be a big political story because this made . Absolutely, this will be a big political story because this is made . Absolutely, this will be a big political story because this is a i political story because this is a serious situation. Hacking Electoral Process has been one of the number one fears in the cybersecurity world for the last ten, 15 years. This is not what has happened here but we have come a step closer to that situation and politicians want to know how this happened. It is hard to protect undetermined and Well Resourced and patient rival nations but they have said, the Electoral Commission, that they are sorry that they let this happen. They let this happen. Thanks for oininr they let this happen. Thanks for joining us Around The World and across the uk. This is bbc news. Lets look at some other stories making news in the uk. Nhs flu jabs and Covid Boosters will be scrapped for under 65s this winter. 12 Million People aged 50 to 64 who were eligible during the pandemic can no longer get the free jabs. The rollout of boosters is expected to start in october, a full month later than usual. A man has been arrested on suspicion of causing grievous bodily harm, after a man was stabbed close to the british museum. The Metropoliton Police stress the incident is not terror related with no outstanding risk to the public. The man who was stabbed in the arm has been taken to hospital. A man from leeds has been remanded into custody following the death of a 12 year old boy while crossing a motorway. Callum rycroft died on the m62 in West Yorkshire on saturday, after he was hit by a car. The 36 year old has also been charged with Dangerous Driving and failing to provide a specimen. Youre live with bbc news. The American Red Cross has announced it will allow gay and bisexual men to donate blood without restriction. The move comes after the federal food and Drug Administration further eased a longstanding policy that specifically targeted them over their sexual orientation. Restrictions were introduced early in the aids epidemic, before Blood Screening for Hiv Infection was effective. The American Red Cross says a recent shortage of donations led to an appeal for more donors. The creator of the popular song cha cha slide Dj Casper Has died at the age of 58. The us songwriterfrom chicago whose real name is Willie Perrer was diagnosed with kidney and liver cancer in 2016, and died from the illness. He orginally wrote the song in 2000, where it initially peaked at no 83 in the us charts. However, it gained massive popularity over the years, Topping Uk Singles Charts in march 200a. To ukraine now, where at least seven people have been killed in a Russian Missile attack on the eastern town of pokrovsk. Dozens of others were injured in the strikes which came around a0 minutes apart. The head of the Donetsk Region said they damaged a hotel as well as shops and office buildings. Straight to kyiv. 0ur Correspondentjames Waterhouse is there. James, what more can you tell us about the attack . Are there bodies trapped in the rubble . ,. . ,. , rubble . Yes, Rescue Efforts are continuing rubble . Yes, Rescue Efforts are continuing today. Rubble . Yes, Rescue Efforts are continuing today. They rubble . Yes, Rescue Efforts are l continuing today. They proposed overnight because of the risk of shelling, we are told, but this is one of many front line towns where art of the population was hollowed out after the full scale invasion of last year, people in their thousands have been returning to cities like this despite the very real danger. Authorities are saying, stay away, it is still not say, and there are reminders of the thread with damaged buildings dotted about. You have the hotel here and a Mafia Themed Colleoni Restaurant because myself and Anotherjournalist Colleoni restaurant because myself and another journalist and colleoni restaurant because myself and anotherjournalist and civilians and anotherjournalist and civilians and soldiers, it is where you stay and soldiers, it is where you stay and eat when you go to places like this, theres not much in the way of choice, but the people there are very friendly and this is a city that has learned to cope how to live despite being around 20 miles from the front line and the reality is, when you are that close to the front line you are within range of more russian weaponry like Grad Missiles and artillery fire. The risks do go up. There is no doubt that russia targeted it because lots of ukrainian soldiers go through there but this is a civilian locator nevertheless, it is a small town. Here we are with a familiar sight of rescue teams lifting through the rubble and the fact that so many of the injured are made up of Police Officers reflects the strikes occurring within a0 minutes of each other, where Russian Forces let rescue teams come in and then they hit it again in a very deliberate act. , hit it again in a very deliberate act. ,. , in ireland, mourners have gathered for the funeral of the singer Sinead Oconnor, who died last month, aged 56. The Funeral Procession in the coastal town of bray, near dublin, passed the musicians former home. Thousands of people lined the route. 0ur reporter sara garvin was there. Much of that crowd of thousands that has lined the streets here in bray since very early this morning has now dispersed. Some fans do remain outside the singers former home here in bray. You can hear that they are playing music, they have been singing, laying flowers and tributes and sharing memories of the singer and activist. 0ne fan told us earlier that she got up at 2am this morning to travel here. Another couple have just stopped us to show us pictures of their grandchildren with the star. That is how much shes thought of here, and how important it was for people to be in bray today. After a private service this morning, just about an hour ago, the Funeral Cortege passed through this coastal road, past her home. Music had been playing up until that point, people had been singing, but when the car got here, you could have heard a pin drop. There was silence. But not for long, because there were rounds of applause after rounds of applause as people were embracing each other and throwing flowers at the vehicle. Really, really emotional scenes. Then the vehicle went on down this road, it went on to a private burial. This was the only public part of the service. One of the attendees at the private part was the irish president , michael d higgins, and he said not long ago that sinead 0connor� s contribution to music was phenomenal. He said it came from incredible pain. Perhaps too much for one to bear. Despite her international stardom, it is this place that Sinead Oconnor loved to call home and really enjoyed living for 15 years. Her family said previously she loved bray and the people in it. For their part, the people here have been really grateful that they got to say their final goodbyes. It was a day of very mixed emotions, of mourning but of celebration too. To the womens world cup now france beat a 0 morocco in adelaide. The french side secured a hat trick early in the first half and added another in the second with no reply from the moroccan team. The winner of this game goes on to face tournament hosts australia on saturday. Earlier today, we saw a little more world cup history made with colombia advancing to the quarter finals for the first time. The South American side confirmed their spot in the final eight with 1 0 victory over jamaica in brisbane. It was the first time in the entire tournament that jamaica has conceded a goal. Colombia will now meet england in the quarterfinals. The lionesses barely made it past nigeria securing a win in a penalty shoot out. What a day for colombia. Live now to bogota we can speak to bbc mundo correspondent daniel pardo. The game was in the middle of the night but im sure there were people watching this History Making Moment For Colombia. Watching this History Making Moment For Colombia for colombia. Yes, it was in the middle of for colombia. Yes, it was in the middle of the for colombia. Yes, it was in the middle of the night for colombia. Yes, it was in the middle of the night and for colombia. Yes, it was in the middle of the night and that i for colombia. Yes, it was in the | middle of the night and that has being the connotation of this world cup, games are when people are sleeping, but people are taking it seriously as the team achieves better results and we all woke up and saw the news and it was a really nice goal scored by the captain, a very charismatic and a huge leader for the team. It is not the first goal that this team has scored which is a beauty. We saw the goal against germany when they beat germany. It is becoming a symbol, to see this team achieving things which are beautiful but also historical. What beautiful but also historical. What are the expectations beautiful but also historical. What are the expectations when they go on to meet england . Do you think people will be watching . Will bars show the game . Will be watching . Will bars show the iame . Will be watching . Will bars show the name . ,. ,. , will be watching . Will bars show the name . ,. , game . Some people will go straight throu~h game . Some people will go straight throu. H the game . Some people will go straight through the night game . Some people will go straight through the night and game . Some people will go straight through the night and watch game . Some people will go straight through the night and watch the i game . Some people will go straight i through the night and watch the game at five oclock in the morning. Us who have to work will wake up early in the morning and watch but there is a huge expectation and there is a consensus that england is the favourite. South American Teams in this kind of competition tend to be underdogs but there is a huge momentum right now and people are starting to believe and they have grounds to believe they can be a huge team like england. The charisma of this team has been fantastic. It is a game we look forward to. We cant wait. Thanks forjoining us. Hello there. I think most of us have had to manage our expectations a little with summer 2023 across the uk, and the next few days no exception, im afraid. So far today the best of the sunshine has been through the north scotland, Northern Ireland and northern england. There has been a bit of a north south divide. Further south it was a cloudy, misty, murky, drizzly start to the day and that cloud and drizzle is pushing its way steadily east as we speak out of wales, out of south west england, over towards the capital and along the kent coast for the remainder of the afternoon. In fact, we draw a line really from north wales over to lincolnshire. Anywhere north of that will continue to see the best of the sunshine. A few scattered showers. The winds will strengthen close to gale force across the northern isles, tied in to storm hans thats affecting scandinavia at the moment. But one unifying factor is the feel of the weather still disappointing for this time of year. High teens for most, maybe, if were lucky, 20 or 21 degrees. Now, as we go through the evening and overnight, well see that rain easing away from the kent coast. We keep some Cloud Filtering in across the south west. Where weve got the breaks in the cloud temperatures into single figures, but it feels quite humid down to the south west by the end of the night as were tapping in to that warmer air coming from the near continent. High pressure is building and we will start to see an improving picture on wednesday, but this warm front toppling across the high will still introduce more in the way of Nuisance Cloud and drizzle. Quite murky conditions once again on those exposed west coasts. Northern and eastern areas seeing the best of the sunshine and potentially the best of the warmth on wednesday, but all of us will be a degree or so up in comparison to of late, so low 20s, possibly as high as 2a or 25 degrees. Thats the mid 70s fahrenheit. Warmer still as we go into thursday. Were going to tap into some extreme heat thats pushing its way up from iberia. By the time it gets to us, its not going to be, obviously, as hot. But nevertheless, thursday is likely to be the hottest day of the week as we see those temperatures widely into the mid 20s, possibly as high as 27 degrees. Thats 80 fahrenheit. But its not expected to last, as somewhat cooler and showery conditions are set to return from friday and into the weekend. Thats it. Take care. Chinas trade troubles. Exports and imports fall sharply injuly, sparking concerns for the Global Economy. Taking a bite out of fake burgers. Beyond meat shares fall more than 15 because of falling sales. Welcome to World Business report. We start in the worlds second biggest economy, china. Thats because the country saw a big fall in both exports and imports in july. Its a worrying sign for the health of the Global Economy given so many countries do so much trade with china. Chinese Government Data shows that the value of exports fell 1a. 5 compared to the same month a year ago. That suggests the rest of the world is buying less stuff. The value of imports also fell by more than expected