This is bbc world news america. European nations begin evacuating their citizens from niger as the country remains in limbo. Evacuation orders have eased for an explosive wildfire at the u. S. Canada border but residents are still on alert. Underage of pakistani migrants have reportedly drowned in a deadly voyage to europe. The bbc takes a look at their dangerous journey. Welcome to world news america. We start with the deepening crisis in niger as european nations begin evacuating hundreds of citizens. France, italy and spain announced the evacuations over concerns their nationals would become trapped after a military coup plunged of the nation into crisis. The regional block has threatened to use force to reinstate the ousted president. Nigers new military leaders have warned against these attempts. Some countries in the region have come to the new leaderships defense including burkina faso, mali and guinea declaring any military intervention would be considered a declaration of war. Niger is located in a key region for western countries in counterterrorism operations. Uk foreign secretary is visiting west africa and talked to the bbc about the coups impact on the fight against insurgency. It is incredibly disruptive. It is wrong. And it his clear it is clear the International Condemnation to this action and leadership the region. What i mean here to demonstrate is the fact africa as a continent has huge potential. For more on how western governments are responding to the crisis, our africa correspondent sent in this report. Some european governments say they are working hard to get their citizens out of niger. There is the french. The french government said it would start evacuations on tuesday afternoon. This is because it says nigers airspace has been closed making it hard for individual citizens to get themselves out of the country. Italy and spain are following suit but the u. K. Government says it is advising citizens to stay indoors and to register. For the momt it will not be carrying out evacuation missions. This is all happening because there has been a growth of antiwestern sentiment in niger over the last few days since a coup happened on wednesday last week. The antiwestern sentiment has been focused toward france which is nigers former colonial power. The French Embassy was recently attacked during protests in the country. Niger matters for western governments because it has been a key ally in the fight against Islamist Groups in the region. Groups that are allied to the socalled Islamic State and al qaeda. This is a region that has been fighting the insecurity. We have seen other countries, for example burkina faso, mali where crews have also happen. There is a worry there will be growing instability in the region. There is also the prospect russia could take advantage of the instability to grow allegiances in west africa. It has close ties with mali. Has forces from the wagner Group Fighting in mali. It has alliances with working a faso. There is a prospect niger could be a new ally for russia in west africa. That is a big concern for western governments at the moment. And for more perspective on the story, i spoke with u. S. State departments Principal Deputy spokesperson. Thank you so much for joining us. France has taken the decision to evacuate citizens from niger. I know the state department is assessing the sh the situation but what conditions with their need to be for the u. S. To evacuate citizens . Thanks so much for having me. The state department has no higher i already then not just the safety and security of american citizens abroad but also our personnel and diplomats that work and operate in our facilities overseas. We are continuing to assess the security situations on the ground as we would in any country. The important thing to remember is at this time it continues to be relatively calm. Our embassy, continue to have full accountability. It is operating as standard today and will continue to adjust and make assessments should the circumstances on the ground change. It is relatively calm but West African States have threatened to use force if the president is not restored to power. We asked nigers ambassador to the u. S. If he would support and intervention. This is what he told us. I will not rule out any solutionecause comes to power by force. They want to substitute forced reelection. This is not acceptable. The same as the terrorist jihadist we are fighting. Let me say groups have shown immense leadership and partnership as this incident has unfolded over the past number of days. They shared the United States vision and goal which is the release of the president and his family and the return to Constitutional Order in the recognitn of the demo attic leah elected ever the democratically elected president and government. We will you will working closely with regional partners as it relates to this. Im not going to get into hypotheticals but we will continue to work closely with the relevant partners on this. But we have seen in the region burkina faso and mali saying any use of intervention or force on the ground in niger would be seen as a declaration of war. Are you concerned is the state department concerned about the possibility we could see a spillover of violence from niger into the region . Any kind of attempted takeover by force like this one has the potential to lead to further instability. Not just of course in the immediate country on the continent and the region broadly. Of course we are concerned and we are continuing to pay close attention. That is why the United States has taken this situation so incredibly seriously. Secretary blinken, ambassador greenfield, the Vice President all have had the opportunity to engage directly with appropriate interlocutors and have been speaking in unison with the same goal which is the release of the president and his family as well as the return to Constitutional Order and recognition of the democratically elected government and leader. And if that is not happen, what would the consequences be . With the u. S. Consider imposing sanctions . E are not going to preview any potential u. S. Actions from here but the secretary when he was asked about this over the past couple days has been incredibly clear there are a lot of things that are at risk as a result of this attempted takeover by force. Whether it be the immense Security Partnership and cooperation we have in niger, whether it be humanitarian assistance, all of these have the potential to be impacted. Important thing to remember is the president has not resigned. He is still the constitutional elected leader of the government of niger and we are going to get you to work with relative partrs to restore order and have him and his family released. We saw the u. S. Secretary of state Antony Blinken visit niger in march and he announced 150 million of direct assistance. He called the country a model of democracy. Did the u. S. Focused too much on nigers geo chose tj geostrategic ports as an ally and the region and too little on the government and what is happening in the country . I think at that time and currently niger continues to be an incredibly important partner in the region and othe african continent. It continues to be an important partner in a number of spaces including when it comes to security cooperation. As i said these aspects continue to be at risk with this attempted takeover but i would echo secretary blinkens words from that trip earlier this year. The bbc has been speaking to protesters who support the coup on the ground in niger and they say the west, particularly france but also allies including the u. S. As needing to leave niger and they want pressure to be their primary partner. Does the coup open the door for russia to expand its influence in africa . Nearly the incidents in africa . The incidents that have unfolded are about no other country other than niger itself. So of course as i said, any kind of instability is prime for further instability spreading nojust in the immediate country but in the region broadly. This is why we are continuing to pay immense attention but at this time im not going to speculate. I do want to ask you a question about what is happening in russia at the moment because moscow has seen drone attacks on its financial center. Also on buildings that belong to the defense ministry. Crane has not directly address these but residence lenski said after sundays attack it was and evitable, natural and absolutely fair to bring the war to russian territory. I know the Biden Administration has said it does not support attacks in russia itself but does the u. S. See this development as president alessi said absolutely fair . President zelenskyy said absolutely fair . You are spot on the nose. This government has been incredibly clear we do not encourage such attacks or actions to take place. Our focus has been on supporting ukrainian partners so that they can defend themselves against russian aggression and take back the territory that has been taken from them. It is imrtant to remember the reason we are having this conversation, the reason you are asking me about russia and ukraine is because last february russia made the unlawful illegal decision to subjugate ukraine and its borders on consistent with the u. S. Charter basically attempting to erase the borders of a neighbor. Russia could end this war today if it wanted to end every day it has instead chosen to escalate, chosen to target civilians, chosen to target civilian infrastructure and civilians across ukraine and that is fully unacceptable. The u. S. Is going to continue to do everything at dentist or ukrainian partners. Thank you for joining us on bbc news. Now to russia where hundreds of Civil Servants spent the day working from home after a drone struck there Moscow Office block. The kremlin is blaming ukraine for the latest attack on a skyscraper in the capital with president zelenskyy winning the conflict could move to russia. Russia has caused this debt has called the strike and attempted terrorist attack. Russias air defense says the drones flew in direct from ukraine. Earlier Russias Defense Ministry said it had destroyed three ukrainian drones that tried to attack two naval ships in the black sea. It has claimed russian commercial ships have been targeted but kyiv dismissed any suggestion it would attack merchan vessels. T after the first attacked everyone said it would not hit the same place twice. Today we all woke up and were a bit shocked. I dont know what i am going to do but i think i will move from here. The bbcs James Waterhouse has more from kyiv. We are in the throes of drone strikes happening in ukraine and russia. It is worth stressing in ukraine dozens of civilians die every week. We have seen a College Dormitory directly hit by a Russian Missile overnight. What we are also seeing are more and more drone strikes deep inside either russian territory or russian controlled territory in ukraine. Kyiv will never acknowledge responsibility but theres been a definite heightening of language used where you have president zelenskyy warning that the war is gog to come to russia. Today we have a Senior Advisor talking about the conflict being brought to the authors of this war. He has promised more drone strikes. Ukraine really is stretching the boundaries of denial but we dont know for sure who is behind these drone strikes russia is no stranger to false flag operations where it fabricates events to justify for church justify future actions. It is currently raising currently lowering the conscription age you wonder what ukraines western allies make up what is happening because they have long been wary of this war spreading yonder ukraine and into russia out of fears of escalation. Possibly, their hopes of these drone strikes destabilizing russias invasion, they might outweigh those fears of moscow taking things to another level. James waterhouse reporting for us. July ended as the hottest month ever on record and august has kicked off with scorching global temperatures. Temperatures maxed out in phoenix at 108 degrees fahrenheit monday ending the 31 day long streak of temperatures over 110 degrees fahrenheit. That is roughly 43 degrees celsius. Residents are bracing for even hotter temperatures possibly reaching 115 degrees fahrenheit or 46 celsius by the end of this week. While phoenixs respite is shortlived iran has called for two days of Public Holidays because of the quote unprecedented heat according to state media. The government warned those who are elderly or with Health Conditions are to remain indoors as temperatures soared as high as 100 23 degrees fahrenheit in some parts of the country. That is nearly 51 degrees celsius. Many evacuation orders for a wild fire blazing on the u. S. Canadian border have been lifted all the residents should remain vigilant. Officials have greatly reduced the number of evacuation orders for residents in Washington State and what is columbia, canada. Evacuation alerts loom from 2600 properties in this area. Torrential downpours have forced tens of thousands to flee their homes in beijing. At least 11 people have died and many more are missing. Pictures show cars being swept away and bridges destroyed. The death toll is expected to increase. Authorities have issued a red alert. Highest warning for dangerous or in full several regions as down ors are forecast to continue. State media say more than 50,000 people in the city have been evacuated. In Southern China the typhoon is expected to hit in the coming days. Our china correspondent reports from beijing. Methods from the old days of being pulled out to reach people cut off by flash floods. Boats have been the best option for emgency teams but in places there are not enough of them. Roads have become perilous fastmoving rivers. And some have not heeded the warnings trying to drive through suburban beijing in dangerous situations. Yesterday, cars were washed away by the dozen. It is not clear how many people died. Rescue workers have been stretched to the limit in a race against rising waters. The neighboring province has been especially inundated after water was diverted to take the pressure off the capital. Still beijing has had to move more than 120,000 residents to safer areas where supplies have been stockpiled. We have prepared water, red and hot water to keep people going. Government warned people to remain indoors and ordered employers to allow staff to stayathome. But the city is not used to flooding like this. Certainly not like the cities in the south of china. The last couple days have been very tough. Locals have pitched in to defend their neighborhoods. When firefighters arrived, they are the most vulnerable. And now receiving rains have receiving rains have revealed the devastation. Questions being asked about the frequency of extreme weather events in china. Scientists are pointing squarely at climate change. In the shortterm what is needed is a solid break in the rain to take control of the situation. In other typhoon was expecd to hit the south of the country over the next 24 hours. It may now head towards japan instead. Steven mcdonald, bbc news, beijing. The bbc news has lent thousas of pakistani migrants are taking a dangerous route to reach europe illegally. Many are traveling from pakistan to libya sometimes via egypt. Almost 300 pakistanis are thought to have drowned taking this route in june. According to the police in pakistan nearly 13,000 pakistanis headed for libya and egypt this year. Most have not returned. Caroline davies reports. The sharp end of the crackdown on illegal migration. All of these are men that you have arrested in association with human smuggling. The majority here are alleged to have an in filling the migrant boat that left libya and sank off the coast of reese including this man. He denies he was involved but willingly admits he has been a smuggler for more than 10 years. We started this because there was no other business. Everyone is ready to take this journey. The government is not doing anything for the young generation here. I do not have a main road. It is the people sitting in libya who are rich. Do you feel guilty for the sort of things that have happened to people on these routes . I feel sorry and we are ashamed over this but what can we do . If i do not do this someone else will do it. Hundreds of pakistanis are thought to have drowned when the packed boat sank in june including teenaged brothers. Their family may never have a body to bury. Instead, they only have photos and voice messages. The message their father they message their father Early Morning from somebodys mobile saying we are leaving. Tell mother this is our last message. They took a popular route flying from pakistan to egypt and then libya. Officials told us nearly 13,000 pakistanis traveled to the two countries in the fst six months of this year. Almost double the number of all of last year. Around 10,000 are unaccounted for. Do you have any idea where these thousands of people are . They have gone to libya and we dont know whether they are still in libya or they have gone to any of the european countries. Their flights out of the country are legal. These people have legal documents. They have a legal visa. They have legal passports. We would not stop them. Some who hope to cross are still stuck in libya. This group did not want us to show their faces. Afraid the young men held their might face retaliations for their family speaking. My son is living in a lot of difficulty. Sometimes they only give food after two or three days. My son cries a lot and says what kind of trouble have you landed in. We gave them money and we are dying there. Pakistans economy is in turmoil. Youth unemployment is high and despite the dangers in crackdown, some still want to play the odds. Many are afraid to appear on camera in case they are arrested. We have spoken to multiple pakistanis who have told us they would still take an illegal journey. We have also spoken to a smuggler who says they are still taking people out of the country. And we have spoken to Police Authorities who confirmed they know the people are still leaving illegally. They spent months weighing up whether to let their teenage sons go. They went with the same smuggler had taken him to germany illegally eight years before. I thought we are poor people. Even if they get educated they will not find a job. We do not have much land so i thought they will go there, get educated and work. It does not matter how much anyone convinces you. You should not go. This village mayor member those who died in greece waters but many we spoke to hold little faith in what stan can offer and the pull to go can outweigh the fear. Lets take a look at some other headlines. The lieutenant vernor of the u. S. State of new jersey has died. Sheila oliver had been serving since 2018. Before that she was the state first black woman to be speaker of the general assembly. New jersey governor murphy praised her as a trailblazer in every sense of the word. She was 71 years old. A settlement has been reached between the descendants of Henrietta Lacks an Thermo Fisher scientific. This comes after the biotech firm exploited her cancer cells following her death to develop revolutionary new treatments fueling a billiondollar biotech industry. Her abnormally resilient cancer cells were removed without consent and used for decades without her familys full knowledge. Her cells where the first human cells to survive and reproduce indefinitely in lab conditions. Job openings in the u. S. Are at the lowest novel in two years. On the lt day of june the u. S. Labor department ordered nine 85 2 million job openings. It is a drop of 34,000 from the month before. This apparently premarket resilience suggest the Federal Reserve keep rates higher for longer. Nasa says it has received a signal from a distant spacecraft that accidentally severed contact. The American Space agency had lost communication with its voyager two probe after it mistakenly sent at the wrong command. Now two weeks later the Space Agency Says contact has been reestablished. The signal came through during a regular scan of the sky. Given that the spacecraft is almost 20 billion kilometers or more than 12 billion miles away that signal will have taken around 18 hours to reach earth. Nasa says the news confirms voyager two is still broadcting and is in good health. The probe has been floating in space since 1977 when it was launched to study the outer solar system. You can find more on all the days news on our website to see what we are working on anytime. Make sure to check out on twitter. Thank you for watching world news america. Narrator funding for this presentation of this program is provided by. Narrator Financial Services firm, raymond james. Narrator funding was also provided by, the freeman foundation. And by judy and Peter Blum Kovler foundation; pursuing solutions for americas neglected needs. Introducing a technological achievement so advanced. It rivals the moon landing. Wow ok. Rude. Thats one small step for man. One giant leap for mankind. Amna good evening. Im amna nawaz. Geoff and im geoff bennett. On the newshour tonight. Amna the National SecurityCouncil Discusses white house efforts to change military protocols for investigating sexual assault. Geoff by the debate over Opioid Settlement money has sparked a legal battle in ohio. Every state is doing things differently and there are very few firemens for states to publicly report how to use this money