This is bbc world news today. Our top stories. Millions prepare to return to work in virus hit china after the extended Lunar New Year break. But how long before a return to normality . Meals come with their own reminder of Chinas Health emergency. A note recording the temperature of the chef, the food packer, and the delivery driver. Chanting. Thousands attend a vigil for the 29 people now known to have died in a mass shooting in thailand. Irelands Political Landscape is transformed by a surge in support for the left wing Republican Party sinn fein in the countrys general election. Swiss voters back a new law banning discrimination on the basis of Sexual Orientation. Well get live reaction from geneva. And hollywood gears up for the 92nd Academy Awards ceremony, the film industrys biggest night of the year. This is the scene live in los angeles. Hello and welcome to world news today. Infections and deaths from the coronavirus are still going up in china but the speed at which it spreads is slowing down, thats according to officialfigures. Monday is the first day back at work for hundreds of millions of people after the extended new year holiday, but there are severe travel restrictions still in place across the country. From beijing, John Sudworth reports. Its lantern festival, traditionally marked with a lavish tv gala. But this year theres not an audience member in sight. The fear of contagion is everywhere, from the fever checkpoints. The masks on literally everybodys faces. And the careful monitoring of peoples movements. In the almost impossible balancing act between containing an epidemic and getting its economy moving again, china is turning to its vast network of neighbourhood committees the old tools of mass mobilisation. But while workers may be trickling back to the cities, the continued uncertainty means all britons are still being advised to leave china. We are currently seeing numbers of infections double every four to five days. We dont know what implications that has. We have seen the chinese put in place local transport measures. Some cities and towns have been closed down, so it is getting more difficult to leave china, if that is what people plan to do. So that is why we advise people to think about leaving. We know that the evacuation flight has got out of wuhan. Are we confident now that most people who wanted to get out from the epicentre have managed to . We have not got everybody out, we know that. Unfortunately, two people failed temperature checks early this morning. They have had to go back into wuhan and we are in touch with them and we will try and support them to get them onto another countrys flight. As usual, chinas skylines have been lit up for lantern festival. But look closely. The streets below are empty. The virus looms large over almost every aspect of daily life. Hello. Meals come with their own reminder of Chinas Health emergency. A note recording the temperature of the chef, the food packer and the delivery driver. In this case, thankfully, all fever free. But at a time of year all about new beginnings, there is also, perhaps, a glimmer of good news. Official figures show the rate of increase in infections may be slowing. John sudworth, bbc news, beijing. Large crowds have held a vigil for the victims of a mass shooting by a junior army officer in the thai city of Nakhon Ratchasima. At least 29 people are now known to have died in the attack. Richard galpin reports. Chanting. Just a few hours after the gunman was shot dead by the security forces, thousands of people gathered here in the heart of Nakhon Ratchasima city for a vigil in memory of all those killed. The Buddhist Monks leading prayers as the people of this city absorb the enormity of whats happened a mass shooting of unprecedented scale in this country. I have two kids of my own and just thinking about those lives in there, i could not sleep at all last night. I was just trying to get the right news and was just wanting to help somehow, butjust news and was just wanting to help somehow, but just could news and was just wanting to help somehow, butjust could not. It happened right here. In our hometown, behind us, right in the heart of everything. It is just tragic. And before finally filing away to head home, they laid flowers and wrote messages, pledging never to forget those whose lives have been cut short. In the aftermath of the attack, the police have been gathering forensic evidence, including from these cars next to the Shopping Mall targeted by the gunman. Who was this man Sergeant Major jakrapanth thomma. Hed armed himself not only with rifles stolen from his barracks, but also a machinegun. His motive, according to one official, was apparently a personal problem over the sale of a house. How will those now mourning the loss of loved ones ever come to terms with what has happened here in the city this weekend . Richard galpin, bbc news. Lets take a look at some of the other stories making the news. The us military says two American Service members in afghanistan were killed and nine others injured when a person wearing Afghan Military uniform opened fire on them. Local Officials Say an afghan soldier was also killed in the incident. The motive behind the attack in Nangarhar Province is unknown. Iran has launched a domestically made satellite but the defence ministery says it failed to reach orbit. The launch was the latest in a programme which the United States says is tehran advancing its Ballistic Missile technology, iran has denied this. Indias top court has ruled that a quota system that reserves some governmentjobs for disadvantaged groups, is not a fundamental right. The scheme called reservation gives people from lower castes and other minorities opportunities they might not otherwise get. This ruling overturns a previous decision that found the state had a duty to help these groups. The votes have almost all been counted in ireland following the countrys general election on saturday with final results expected later. So far it seems to be something of an upset for the traditional parties of government fine gael and fianna fail. Each has secured about 22 of the vote, while the left leaning sinn fein has taken 24 of the vote. But it may be some weeks before its clear what kind of government will emerge some Party Leaders have set red lines around who they might work with. Heres chris page with more on that. Because sinn fein have run fewer candidates their main rivals, it means that basically their candidates will be elected first under the proportional representation Voting System that they have in this country, so we can expect the votes of the two centrist parties, fianna fail and expect the votes of the two centrist parties, fianna failand fine expect the votes of the two centrist parties, fianna fail and fine gael, to increase as the coding process continues and other smaller parties to get representation in the parliament. But it is clear that sinn fein have significantly taken ground. Leo varadkar himself, the prime minister, the leader of fine gael, hes acknowledged that this result shows that theres now a three party system in ireland. For decades, government here has been dominated by fine gael mr varadkars party and fianna fail, which is currently led by the former Irish Foreign minister Micheal Martin. Now sinn fein, at the very least, level pegging with those parties. They may top the poll in terms of the number of first preference votes. We may get those final numbers a little bit later on tonight. So all in all, as you say, a very significant, very historic even shift in politics in the irish republic. Fianna fail and fine gael are still in a state of denial. Theyre still not listening to what the people have said and i want us to have a government for the people. I want us to have, ideally, a government with no fianna fail or no fine gael in it. I have started the contact with other parties to explore, over the next days, whether or not that is a possibility. So mary lou mcdonald, the president of sinn fein, definitely a great day for her and her party. In the last hour or so, weve also heard from the man who currently occupies the prime ministers office, as i say, leo varadkar of fine gael. And he has once again, as he did numerous times during the Election Campaign, ruled out any prospect of going into coalition with sinn fein. It seems that we have now a three party system, three parties all getting roughly the same number of votes, roughly the same number of seats, and that is going to make forming a government quite difficult. Indeed, its not even clear yet whether any the two parties together will have enough to form a majority in the next call, so i think were going to have to count the votes and see what the lie of the land is tonight and tomorrow. In terms of coalition speculation, you know, i made my position and that of the Fine Gael Party very clear during the Election Campaign and, for us, coalition with sinn fein is not an option, but we are willing to talk to other parties about the possibility of forming a government, one that can lead the country forward for the next five years. So fine gael, leo varadkar says it will not go into coalition with sinn fein. The other main party, fianna fail, led by the former Irish Foreign minister Micheal Martin, also consistent in the campaign as saying it wont go into government with sinn fein either, and Micheal Martin has said in the last few hours, whenever the Election Results have started to come in, that he still sees significant policy incompatibilities with sinn fein, but he also said that he was a democrat and he would respect the will of the people, so perhaps a door being held ajar there for some kind of arrangement between fianna fail and sinn fein after all. But i think all the parties will wait and see how the final number of seats shakes down before they really get the coalition calculators out. One thing that is clear, even at this still relatively early stage, negotiations to form a government are going to be far from straightforward. Chris page there. Switzerland has voted decisively to make discrimination on the basis of Sexual Orientation illegal. More than 63 of voters backed a new law banning discrimination, just under 37 opposed it. Im joined now my olivier gurtner, who is a member of the Geneva City Council and co chair of the geneva lg bt film festival. Thank you for being with us. How significant is this book today . First of all thank you very much. It is very, very nice feeling for eve ryo ne is very, very nice feeling for everyone here in switzerland to see such a vast majority of the population who is in favour of declaring such a grayson scratch aggression as an offence and it is really, really nice and reassuring yea rs. Really, really nice and reassuring years. How much of an issue has discrimination against the ltte scrat lgbt discrimination against the ltte scrat lg bt community discrimination against the ltte scrat Lgbt Community been there . It originally it was impossible to prosecute people who were insulting people or being aggressive to lesbian, gay and bisexual people, but now it is illegal to do so. There was quite a Strong Campaign against this from certain quarters, was there not . Why . They were mainly saying that it would be a violation of the freedom of expression of speech, but what we say was that it was very important only in public, insults made in public would be prosecuted, which would be now. What you think likely change now . That is a very effective change that will start from now. Insulting people in public spaces, harassing homosexual, bisexual or lesbians, you can come tomorrow at any Police Station and say, i have been insulted and need a reaction from the police and they seek to protect us. Thank you very much for talking does. Stay with us on bbc world news. Still to come could the korean language drama parasite enter the history books as the first Foreign Language film to win best picture at the oscars . Well cross live to los angeles. There is mr mandela, mr nelson mandela, a free man, taking his first steps into a new south africa. Irans spiritual leader, ayatollah khomeini, has said he has passed a death sentence on salman rushdie, the british author of a book which many muslims see as blasphemous. The people of haiti have flocked to church to give thanks to the ousting of their former president , baby doc duvalier. Because of his considerable value as a stallion, shergar was kept in a special secure box in the stud farms central block. Shergar was driven away in a horsebox the thieves had brought with them. There stepped down from the plane a figure in mourning. Queen elizabeth ii, head of this realm and of all her other realms and territories, head of the commonwealth, defender of the faith. Welcome back. This is bbc world news today. The latest headlines millions of workers in virus hit china are due to return to work after the extended Lunar New Year break. Severe travel restrictions remain in place across the country. Thousands have attended a vigil for the 29 people now known to have died in a mass shooting in thailand. Storm ciara has battered northern europe, leaving thousands of homes without power in the uk, and causing widespread disruption there and elsewhere. Winds have been in excess of 140 kilometres per hour. Simonjones reports. Siren blares world war ii sirens called into action to warn of the danger of storm ciara. Battering the entire country with rain and gusts of wind of more than 90 miles an hour. This is West Yorkshire counting the cost. Parts of the Calder Valley became a no go area. Tens of thousands of homes have been left without electricity. The power of the storm was clear to see on the coast. From blackpool to aberystwyth waves battered the shoreline. Here on the coast, at times the gusts of wind are so strong that its almost difficult to stay on your feet. Add into that the lashing rain coming down, too. Its hardly surprising that the advice is, stay indoors if you can. On the roads, too, the situation wasnt any better. This lorry heading to dover didnt make it. And trees kept tumbling down. In london, passing motorists had a lucky escape. While in bedfordshire, a man was trapped for over an hour in his car under a tree. And the warning is were not out of the woods yet the storm will be with us for the rest of the day, with more bad weather expected tomorrow. The oscars will be handed out in a glittering ceremony in los angeles later tonight. The world war one drama 1917, and from south korea, the film parasite are the frontrunners for best picture. But much of the build up has been dominated by criticism over the lack of diversity among the nominees. Our arts editor, will gompertz, reports. Margot robbie and Charlize Theron are fox news employees who bring down their seedy ceo, a man who makes Sexual Harassment part of his job description. Both are nominated for an oscar at tonights Academy Awards, two years after the launch of the Metoo Movement, which saw a new Commission Set up to look into bullying and abuse in hollywood. Can you give me a sense of how you see the scale of the problem . The scale of the problem and the range of the problem i think is really enormous. I could pluck you out and move you to the front of the line, but i need to know that you are loyal. I need you to find a way to prove it. And we have this history in an industry where people look the other way. What practical measures need to be put into place . We are going to put in place a report and response system. So our response system includes investigations and what we know is that independent investigations are the most important thing you can offer. Dont you tell me what i cant do Harriet Tubman wasnt one to put up with injustice and wrongdoing. If im free, my family should be too. Ive made up my mind, im going back. The 19th century abolitionist is played by british actress cynthia erivo, whose performance could see her win a golden statue this evening. To do so, she will have to beat renre zellwegersjudy garland. Your orders are to deliver a message calling off tomorrow mornings attack. Sam mendes First World War drama 1917 was the big winner at last weeks baftas. To repeat the feat in hollywood, the british director will have to see off competition from Todd Phillipsjoker starring joaquin phoenix, who is hotly tipped to win best actor, and bong joon hos parasite, a tale of south korean inequality which could become the first Foreign Language film to win best picture. We will find out if it does later tonight. Will gompertz, bbc news, los angeles. Joining me from la to talk all things oscars is entertainment journalist ashley spencer. Welcome to you. Thank you for being with us. Lets talk about parasite which we saw at the end of that report. What makes this such a standard film in the overall film category . Yes, as they mentioned, parasite, it would be an historic win free to take best picture, the best non english language film to be in that category. On every level, from the cinematography, the directing and acting, which was u nfortu nately overlooked, directing and acting, which was unfortunately overlooked, parasite is incredible original storytelling. Lots of people are hoping for an upset, and for parasite to come in and sweep all categories. Do you think it is possible . I think it is possible, there is a groundswell of support. 1917 is one of those films that the oscars we just love, a war movie, it is technically amazing. It will be tougher parasite, but we are hoping it will make tonight interesting. 1917, irishman, joker, all films that have lots of nominations in different categories but all very violent and that my iu ns but all very violent and that my runs through the oscar nominations, as it has done in previous years. What do you make of that . Absolutely. It is something people thought might shift in recent years following the Metoo Movement and oscars so white and the push to diversify the academy, but we are still seeing stories by men and about men, and focusing on traditionally masculine themes of violence and those sort of stories dominate and continue to be looked at as superior, and drive the conversation, which is unfortunate when you have so many films this year directed by women, directed by people of colour that are overlooked for a more narrow view of what makes an oscar movie. Yet again, controversy an oscar movie. Yet again, c0 ntrove rsy over a an oscar movie. Yet again, controversy over a lack of diversity overshadowing the event. Not the first time. What is making the oscar stark in this time warp where they failed to reflect society . The oscars as an institution is 92 years old. In 2015 we saw the big push with the movement to diversify the voting body to add more women, younger people, more people of colour but it started as a place of so colour but it started as a place of so much whiteness and maleness that it has not cut up to the general population and representation of the overall industry. As long as the people voting on these movies are older white men, you will see them favouring stories that line up with their world view, that they connect with more, and unfortunately, the rest of the talented film makers and actors will be pushed to the site. We will see what awaits the nominees. This is the seen life on the red carpet at the moment, just hours to go, but thank you, ashley spencer, for your thoughts ahead of the ceremony later. Katie has all the sport, including some football. Hello and thanks forjoining us. In the english premier league, Sheffield Uniteds remarkable season continues as they kept their hopes alive of qualifying for europe next season. Chris wilders side came from behind to beat bournemouth 2 1 at bramall lane. The win moves Sheffield United up to fifth and theyre now just two points off the top four. Weve just rolled on and rolled on to the next game. We go again. We have got a little bit of a break now. But well go again and it has to be that way. We want to achieve something this season. We dont want to just take the foot off the gas and i wont allow that and the players understand that. To italy and the milan derby in serie a, where inter milan have staged a second half comeback from 2 0 down to lead 3 2 at the san siro. One of ac milans goals coming from Zlatan Ibrahimovic against his former club. Elsewhere in serie a, struggling leche boosted their survival hopes with a shock 3 2 win at napoli. Udinese scored an injury time equaliser to earn a 1 1 draw at brescia. Genoa beat calgiari to record just their Fourth League win of the season, while sassuolo came from a goal down to beat bottom side spal. In spain, barcelona are currently taking on real betis. 2 2 the latest score. Around 30 minutes to go. Betis twice going in front in that game. Barca are looking to keep up the pace with leaders real madrid. Zinedine zidanes side came from behind to beat osasuna 4 1. Real sociedad beat rivals athletic bilbao 2 1 in the basque derby, while celta vigo and espanyol also won. Meanwhile in germany, the top two went head to head in the bundesliga, with leaders Bayern Munich drawing 0 0 with second placed rb leipzig. The match between borussia munchelgladbach and fc koln was postponed due to bad weather. In the six nations, france continued their perfect start to the championship, with a bonus point win over italy in paris. France scored five tries in total in their 35 22 victory, which is enough to move them top of the table, ahead of ireland on points difference. Italy, well, theyve now lost 2a consecutive six nations games. Something nice. 16 year old naseem shah has become the youngest bowler to take a hat trick in test cricket to help put pakistan on the brink of victory in the first test against bangladesh in rawalpindi. Pakistan were finally dismissed for a45 in their first innings. Shah was the final wicket to fall, as he was run out while backing up. Ba bar azam top scored for the home side with 143. It was then pakistans turn in the field, and the teenager shah showed what he could do. He dismissed Najmul Hossain shanto then also trapping nightwatchman taijul islam. Before making history with, mamudullahs wicket as bangladesh limped to 126 for 6. Thats all the sport. Bye for now. Thank you. Now to what must be one of the highest four legged races in the world. It takes place at 4,000 metres above sea level with jockeys as young as four years old. It looks like a lot of fun. Probably a bit dangerous as well. You can reach me on twitter. Im samantha tv news. Thanks for watching. Good evening. It has been an awful start to a new week with the worst storm to push across the whole of the uk for over seven years. Storm ciara is starting to ease, but it left major disruption, damaging gusts of winds, flooding rains, and significant disruption to power and transport, right across the country. It is starting to move its way steadily south and east into the near continent, taking damaging gusts of wind and rain south east as well. Behind it, though, a somewhat noticeable difference to the feel of the weather as we see cool air pushing down from the north west. The winds will remain a feature as well and that will continue to drive in frequent showers, particularly across exposed west facing coasts, but many further inland. Some of them falling as snow. Icy stretches could be an issue in scotland with temperatures close to freezing by dawn on monday. So a treacherous commute here, and it does look as though we will keep plenty of isobars across the uk for the start of the new working week. A windy monday morning for all, plenty of showers rushing in from the west, and again, these will continue to be of snow above 100, 150 metres in scotland, Northern Ireland and northern england. A cool feel to the afternoon, 4 8 degrees and some of these showers across england and wales heavy with hail and thunder. So it is certainly worth bearing in mind, for the early part of this week, frequent snow showers could be an issue across the northern hills. We could see some significant accumulations and strong winds, blizzard conditions and drifting very much a feature. That will be the story again on tuesday. It is almost spot the difference. Plenty of showers, mostly of sleet and snow across the far north and a cold feel to things as well. Further south, fewer showers around but still those temperatures struggling, 6 or 7 degrees. As we move out of tuesday into wednesday, we see the isobars opening up a touch. A brief ridge of high pressure will allow for a quieter moment through the middle part of the week. Wednesday looks likely to be the best day. Fewer showers around, a little more in the way of sunshine, and more noticeably, lighter winds across the board. Temperatures still, on your thermometer, will range from 4 9 celsius, but with clearer skies, that could lead to an early frost first thing on thursday morning. Worth bearing in mind. It is not going to last, however. We do it all again, with more wet and windy weather pushing in from the west from thursday into friday. An unsettled week ahead. This is bbc world news. The headlines millions are preparing to return to work in virus hit china after the extended Lunar New Year break. But severe travel restrictions remain in place and many workplaces are still closed. Coronavirus has now killed more people than sars. Thousands of mourners have attended a vigil in thailand for 29 People Killed in a mass shooting. The gunman a rogue soldier was shot dead after a standoff lasting several hours. Irelands Political Landscape has been transformed by a surge in support for the left wing Republican Party sinn fein in the countrys general election. The two centre right parties have each secured about 22