good morning. the vatican has announced the death of pope benedict xvi at the age of 95. his health had been worsening in recent weeks. benedict served as head of the roman catholic church for eight years until 2013, when he became the first pope in 600 years to announce his retirement. he was german by birth, and was known for his conservative theological outlook. vatican spokesman, matteo bruni, said in a statement. bells tolling this was the moment of the confirmation of his death in rome, you can hear the bells ringing in st peter s square in vatican city. the vatican says pope benedict s body will lie in state from monday in st peter s basilica. let s go straight to our europe correspondent, bethany bell. we can see some crowd behind you, how have people reacted to the news of the death of the former pope? we of the death of the former pope? - spoke to one couple from spain who were here in the square as tourists and they said that their tour guide told them the news and
german chancellor lived in the shadows of hitler s regime, referred as god s rottweiler. years caused him to go unnoticed. he was the first pope to go green, making the vatican the first country in the world with zero carbon footprint. putting solar panels on its rooftops and bringing in electric mobiles including a popemobile. he was the pope when sex scandals came to light and he spearheaded towards a zero tolerance policy. it was too little too late for some but cardinal ratzinger who ordered the response to the scandal including a special downstairs handle cases extending and in some cases eliminating the statute of limitations for victims and as pope apologizing. i am deeply sorry for the pain and suffering the victims have endured. and i assure them as their pastor i do share in their suffering. reporter: one of his first acts after being elected pope was to condemn a popular church figure for sex abuse. something that had not happened sooner because of masseyal s w
from buffalo, hardest hit by the blizzard of the century welcome to bbc news. italy has become the first european country to order covid tests for visitors from china, following growing alarm at the rapid rise in chinese infections. earlier, taiwan said it would introduce a similar scheme. japan and india have already ordered travellers from china to be monitored. the us could follow suit. there s concern travellers could bring new variants of the disease. our diplomatic correspondent paul adams reports. from the world s most populous nation, alarming scenes. china s hospitals are overwhelmed, covid infections soaring. the country s abrupt decision to dismantle much of its strict covid regime apparently yielding terrifying results. wards full of desperately ill people. outside this hospital in chengdu, a queue for emergency services. government officials say the situation is under control. that s not what these pictures suggest. at the dongjiao funeral home, one of the city
hello and welcome. italy has become the first european country to order covid tests for visitors from china, after concern at the rapid rise in chinese infections. earlier, taiwan said it would introduce a similar scheme. japan and india have already ordered travellers from china to be monitored. the us could follow. there s concern travellers could bring new variants of the disease now that beijing is lifting travel restrictions. our diplomatic correspondent, paul adams, reports. from the world s most populous nation, alarming scenes. china s hospitals are overwhelmed, covid infections soaring. the country s abrupt decision to dismantle much of its strict covid regime apparently yielding terrifying results. wards full of desperately ill people. outside this hospital in chengdu, a queue for emergency services. government officials say the situation is under control. that s not what these pictures suggest. at the dongjiao funeral home, one of the city s biggest, more evidence
blistering heatwaves. we ll get reaction. hello and welcome. italy has become the first european country to order covid tests for visitors from china, after concern at the rapid rise in chinese infections. earlier, taiwan said it would introduce a similar scheme. japan and india have already ordered travellers from china to be monitored. the us could follow. there s concern travellers could bring new variants of the disease now that beijing is lifting travel restrictions. our diplomatic correspondent, paul adams, reports. from the world s most populous nation, alarming scenes. china s hospitals are overwhelmed, covid infections soaring. the country s abrupt decision to dismantle much of its strict covid regime apparently yielding terrifying results. wards full of desperately ill people. outside this hospital in chengdu, a queue for emergency services. government officials say the situation is under control. that s not what these pictures suggest. at the dongjiao funeral hom