against australia. good evening. turkey is being urged to show restraint tonight, as it continues an offensive into northern syria that its feared will further destabilise a war—torn region. turkish troops crossed the border with syria as part of a military effort to target a kurdish militia in the province of afrin. the kurdish group has been backed by the united states in the fight against so—called islamic state. but turkey regards it as a terrorist organisation. from the border, mark lowen reports on a potential new front in the syrian war. as if syria needed more of this. artillery fire from turkey, launching a new ground and air offensive. it's called operation olive branch, though it's anything but a gesture of peace. from the air, turkish f—16s struck yesterday. their target — the syrian kurdish militia, or ypg. turkey sees them as terrorists, linked to the outlawed pkk, who have long fought an insurgency in turkey on behalf of the kurdish minority. and it wants them pushed back from the border town of afrin. turkey's president has his own troops fighting for their hero. and with elections next year, war rallies his support base. translation: this is a national struggle, and in this national struggle, we will crush anyone who stands against us. that's a message that resonates in border villages, where grape grower omer gazel and his friends watched the jets. translation: we felt proud and happy as they took off. everyone came out to bid them farewell. but the ypg has backing, too. both in syria, where kurds rallied today, and beyond. translation: we condemn the attack on afrin, and we tell our brothers there that they are in our hearts, and that we are with them. because of the bravery of the ypg heroes, we will win the battle in afrin. the us armed them in the fight against the islamic state group, infuriating turkey. france too voiced support for them today, calling on turkey to pull back. but the turks are ploughing on. this unverified footage posted on pro—government media aiming to prove turkey's military might. in the hills beside the border we found a further build—up, as the offensive shows no sign of ending. reinforcements are perched here, a show of strength, ready to back up the ground troops and fighterjets who are ready inside syria. every few minutes, you hear the thud of an artillery strike. turkey has clearly committed militarily to this operation, and has widespread popular support here. but if the turks suffer losses or civilian casualties grow, that could change. and the risk is clear. this border town was hit by a rocket, said to be from the ypg, killing one and injuring more. turkey is on dangerous ground, and a likely long, costly offensive is onlyjust beginning. tonight turkey is looking diplomatically isolated. the us, france, russia and iran have spoken out against the offensive, a reminder of how syria has dragged in summary reminder of how syria has dragged in summary different powers fighting their own proxy wars. france has called on the un security council to discuss the operation tomorrow. but it is the us most at odds with turkey. one has armed the ypg, the other fighting to destroy it. turkey and the us are vital nato members, but this new front in the syrian war has thrown this vital relationship towards breaking point. mark lowen, thank you. ukip‘s national executive committee has backed a vote of no confidence in the party leader, henry bolton, as he faces further questions over his personal life. after a brief relationship withjo marney — whose texts about meghan markle became public — he says his personal life shouldn't affect his political career. party members will now be asked to vote on his future. here's our political correspondent ben wright.. i'm not making any comment. shortly before ukip‘s top brass met to discuss their beleaguered leader's fate, henry bolton came out fighting. you could at that point say the national executive committee of my own party don't have confidence in me as leader, i'd better stand down. i could do but i shan‘t. you won't? no, i won't. the former soldier has only been in the job for months, and it is his fleeting relationship with 25—year—old jo marney that has got him noticed. last week he dropped his new girlfriend after it emerged she had sent racist text messages about prince harry's fiancee, meghan markle. but the two of them were then spotted out at a london bar. we're now talking about this leadership thing being a moral court, as to the state of my marriage and my personal relationships. what is important to the nation and to the voters, and the 17.4 million people who voted to leave the european union, is that this country gets its independence back from brussels and that we can move forward on that basis towards being a confident nation. henry bolton became the fourth ukip leader in a year, and promised to bring fresh focus to the fractious and floundering party. but even some of its leading figures think it could now be curtains for ukip. if we have got a situation where we are wiped out in the county council elections, and then in the general election, if we are wiped out again in the district elections too, then maybe people are going to have to get round the table and say, "is the electorate is trying to tell us something? is that, thank you very much and good night?" earlier this month, the uk national executive agreed to have an emergency meeting today about their leader's recent antics. today's emergency ukip meeting has been held in huge secrecy, and after a lot of digging, we found out it is being held here, in the office of the ukip general secretary, paul oakley, who's a barrister. now this meeting will determine, possibly, henry bolton's fate. he went in insisting he was not going to quit. but it's clear that many on the ukip nec want him to go. the meeting lasted three hours, and passed a unanimous vote of no—confidence in the ukip leader. henry was offered the opportunity to resign but he has made clear that he feels he is the right man to lead the party forward. and he will now go through the process of defending himself to the party via the egm. that means the wider ukip membership will have to endorse or reject today's decision at a general meeting within the next 28 days. but for now, henry bolton soldiers on without any support at the top of his party. ben wright, bbc news. 14 foreign nationals working in the afghan capital kabul have been targeted and killed in a terrorist attack on a major hotel. it took afghan security forces 12 hours to take control of the intercontinental hotel, killing the gunmen who stormed it. four afghan citizens were also killed. the taliban says it carried out the attack. zia shahreyar reports from kabul. the final moments of a fight that had lasted all night. gunfire and explosions, as afghan special forces battle to regain control of the intercontinental hotel. one soldier throws a grenade. he moves away, then the explosion. the room is soon on fire. evidence of the struggle that had taken place. the afghan national flag waving from the roof, proof that the building has been reta ken. we are in the area. you can see the hotel intercontinental on the hill in kabul, and as you can see, it has been burned, part of the hotel has been burned. and black smoke blackens the southern part of the hotel. more than 150 people, including some foreigners, were inside yesterday evening when gunmen burst in and opened fire. eyewitnesses said they were afterforeigners. translation: the attackers were knocking on the door of each room, trying to reach their targets. they killed ordinary people and officials. they were also targeting foreigners. these images filmed by local tv showed people escaping by climbing down the sheets that they had tied to balconies. this telecoms engineer fell from the sixth floor as he tried to get away. translation: when the sixth floor caught fire this morning, my roommates told me to either burn or escape. i got a bed sheet and tied to the balcony. i tried to come down but i was heavy and my arms were not strong enough. i fell down and injured my shoulder and leg. this sustained and complex assault will prompt urgent questions as to how the gunmen got through. a 54—year—old man has been arrested, after the death of an eight—year—old girl from stab wounds. mylee billingham was rushed to hospitalfrom a house at brownhills in the west midlands, but couldn't be saved. police are waiting to speak to the man, who's also in hospital with a stab wound to the stomach. officers say they're not looking for anyone else. thousands of women are demonstrating in las vegas tonight, in the latest protest to mark the anniversary of president trump's inauguration. rallies have already taken place this weekend in other us cities and in europe. in las vegas, women are being urged to register to vote ahead of this year's mid term us elections. rajini vaidya nathan reports. all the way from paris to london, to las vegas, women have been making their voices heard. last year we we re their voices heard. last year we were angry. and that's why we turned out. this year we are organised and that's why we are turning out. empowered, and i'm ready to get people talking about these issues and get people excited. a year into donald trump's presidency and the focus is not just donald trump's presidency and the focus is notjust on the man himself but his policies. many believe his immigration plans adversely affect women. he is pushing to make birth control less accessible to women. this is just ridiculous control less accessible to women. this isjust ridiculous how control less accessible to women. this is just ridiculous how he control less accessible to women. this isjust ridiculous how he is supposed to be for the people, but he is against the people. in the wa ke he is against the people. in the wake of the b2 movement and a growing conversation around equal pay, many are here to fight on other issues. franey, who came here with her five—year—old daughter, this issues. franey, who came here with herfive—year—old daughter, this is personal. for 12 herfive—year—old daughter, this is personal. for12 years i was herfive—year—old daughter, this is personal. for 12 years i was the victim of domestic violence that my children observed, now i am free, finally, thank goodness, through no help of the systems that are supposed to help us. i hope the world will listen and we can create systematic change to help little girls like charlie and myself. one way organisers think that change can help is by getting more women to register to vote and even run for office. they are channelling their energy on this year's mid—term congressional elections. the state of nevada was picked for this rally because it is a swing state, a senate is —— a senate seat democrats believe they can win back. there may be thousands of women here, but don't forget, anyone the election with a majority of white women voters. many of those think he is doing a greatjob for women. and so, like so many issues here in the united states, even women's rights, is one where this country is deeply divided. a former premier league footballer is about to become president of the west african nation of liberia. george weah — who played for chelsea and manchester city — told the bbc he was ready to meet the expectations of his people. he will be sworn in tomorrow. his victory is the latest extraordinary chapter in liberia's emergence from the horrors of civil war. from the capital monrovia, here's our africa editor, fergal keane. a fanfare for the people's man who rose from the slums to become an international football star, and now president of his country. how are you doing? george weah is the face of a changing nation. for the first time in over 70 years, power is being transferred between democratically elected leaders. can you possibly be as successful a president as a footballer? well, you only look at me as a former footballer, but i am a human being. i strive to be excellent, and i can be successful. commentator: george weah, he has one to contend with, he plays a 1—2, george weah! today he was leading a team of friends against an army selection. and still scoring. it was in europe, playing for teams like chelsea and ac milan, that he became a legend. fifa footballer of the year. george weah inherits a nation still struggling with the legacy of war. nearly two thirds of the population live below the poverty line. in claratown, the slum where he grew up, they are hoping he will bring jobs, health care, housing. when you come here to the streets where george weah grew up, the scale of problems facing liberia is very clear. for any kind of meaningful change to take place, peace is essential, and this is a generation that has grown up without knowing war, in a country that was once a byword for anarchy. in 1a years of war, a quarter of a million people were killed. child soldiers likejoseph duo became symbols of pitiless violence. today, he's one of those looking to george weah in hope. like his nation, joseph is scarred by the past but determined not to repeat it. doing homework with his children, joseph's life challenges those who would write off a nation, even a continent, as failed. what do you hope george weah can do for you? we hope he will design programmes and bring investors, joseph tells me, so there will be jobs, and we can have a better liberia than before. expectations are high. can george weah possibly meet them, i asked? whether or not i am going to meet the expectations, because the one thing, when people love you, you have to strive for them. the liberians love me, for what i have done before in my life, and to make sure that they are ok, i am going to do it again. football teaches that you can't succeed alone, and the new president has the people on—side. but, more than anything now, george weah is going to need their patience. fergal keane, bbc news, monrovia. extreme weather is affecting several parts of the uk, with flooding and mudslides in south west england and snow and ice causing problems elsewhere. the met office issued yellow "be aware" warnings for many parts today. tonight there's concern about ice as temperatures fall in north east england. phil bodmer reports. after the snow came the rain, and with it, flooding. the south—west bearing the brunt. police say a number of roads are affected by flood water and mud slides, like here in mudeford, north devon. at the jack russell in at swing bridge near barnstaple, they were surveying the damage caused by the flooding. the kitchen‘sjust as bad. we've turned everything. emergency services helped others. this flood water rose in barnstaple and kuhn martin. in scotland, two climbers were airlifted to safety in the highlands. the pair were winched to safety from 3000 feet after a night on the mountain in glencoe. glasgow airport closed for a brief period this afternoon, so that the runway could be cleared, after some very heavy snow. well, tonight, much of britain remains in winter's icy grip. here in leeds, gritting teams have been working nonstop to keep the road network sorted, with temperatures hovering around zero degrees. northern england also experienced heavy snow. this was south yorkshire. in sheffield, drivers left their cars at home. with forecasters predicting milder conditions ahead, there may be some better news for commuters next week. phil bodmer, bbc news. with all the sport, here's lizzie greenwood hughes at the bbc sport centre. thanks very much. good evening. england's cricketers bounced—back from their ashes defeat by winning the one—day series against australia with two games to spare. man of the matchjos butler hit a brilliant century in sydney to set the hosts a target of 303. and despite losing fast bowler liam plunkett to injury, england went on to win by 16 runs. kyle edmund says, "you have to believe", after reaching his first grand slam quarterfinal. the british number two came from a set down to make it to the last eight of the australian open tennis, as our correspondent david ornstein reports. carrying the hopes of a nation is no easy task, but in the absence of andy murray britain has a new flag—bearers. kyle edmund's rise has been steady, his form spectacular. it did seem that was about to change when against andreas seppi he lost the opening set and went down a break of serve in the second. he was quick to respond. a switch of shoes coinciding with a change in fortune. there was no looking back. a decade seppi'sjunior, there was no looking back. a decade seppi's junior, edmund is there was no looking back. a decade seppi'sjunior, edmund is the higher ranked and soon the gulf in quality became apparent. both men were struggling —— hoping to reach a grand slam semifinal —— quarterfinal. edmund became the first british man other than murray to make the last eight in melbourne since 1995. hopefully we have more british the future. for me, personally, i'm very happy to get through and i will keep doing my best. i know people are waking up at home at silly hours. i'm grateful for that. he now faces grigor dimitrov. whatever the outcome, britain appears to have a new star to celebrate. david ornstein, bbc news. there was just one game in the premier league today. match of the day 2 and sportscene are on bbc one later, so if you don't want to know the results, you know what to do. southampton are still in the bottom three after drawing with tottenham. harry kane scored the spurs goal, and now only needs one more to reach his 100th in the premier league. and hearts beat their edinburgh rivals hibs to a place in the fifth round of the scottish cup. former malaga manager javi gracia has been named as watford's new head coach, hours after they sacked marco silva. watford are currently 10th in the premier league. saracens' hopes of a third consecutive european title were kept alive, thanks to premiership rivals wasps, who beat ulster in the champions cup today, gifting saracens the last quarterfinal place. theyjoin scarlets as the only british teams in the last eight. and while we have been on the air, mark allen as just won sanogo's masters for the first time. he held offa masters for the first time. he held off a comeback from kyren wilson to win10—7 ina off a comeback from kyren wilson to win10—7 in a tense final at alexandra palace. that is it from me. there is more on the bbc news channel, including how tommy fleetwood stormed to the abu dhabi title. back to you. thank you. that's all from me, stay with us on bbc one, it's time for the news where you are. hello. this is bbc news. people with hidden disabilities in england could soon be entitled to blue badge parking permits under government plans. the department for transport said the change would make it easier for those with conditions such as autism and dementia to get access to the services they need. helena lee reports. the blue badge scheme was first introduced in england in the 1970s. today, around 2.4 million people with disabilities have one. it allows them to park free of charge on roads, and normally without a time limit. the government is now proposing to extend the scheme. it wants people with hidden disabilities and conditions like autism and dementia to be able to qualify for a blue badge, so they too can enjoy the freedom to get out where and when they want. for many parents, they tell us that sometimes they don't want to go out. they don't want to take their autistic son or daughter out to the shops, out to schools and services and other places because they are worried about what might happen. but if they can park much closer to their destination then they can easily take someone away if there is an issue and if there are difficulties when they are out and about. the department for transport says only some councils recognise hidden disabilities under the current scheme, because they interpret the existing rules differently. the proposals would be the biggest change to the scheme since it was first introduced. the plans will now go through an eight—week public consultation. helena lee, bbc news. germany has moved a step closer to forming a new government, after members of the centre left social democrats gave their backing to new coalition talks with angela merkel‘s conservatives. at a party meeting in bonn, the spd‘s martin schulz urged delegates to press ahead, describing a new coalition as the best way to combat hard—right politics in europe. the general election four months ago left no party with an overall majority. jenny hill in berlin says talks to form a government could begin as soon as tomorrow. his view is that if they can pull this off, if they go into government, in his view it's the responsible thing to do to try and form a government, but that it's possible, in his view, to renew the party within that coalition, but their task is going to be huge. they are very low in the polls, they will have to distinguish themselves from mrs merkel‘s conservatives if they are to try and rebuild their electorate, many of whom, of course, disappeared off to vote afd, the far right party. there is a lot of work to be done, and he's going to have to do something to unite the party, that is if they still want him as leader, because of course he has presided over this real controversy. worth just pointing out, when it comes to coalition talks which will take place later this week, if and when the two sides can get some kind of deal drafted, the party base, all 440,000 members of the spd will have to approve it, via postal ballot before any actual coalition government can be formed. so, mrs merkel isn't out of the woods just yet, but i think today you have seen her overcome a significant hurdle. they have taken a step towards, i suppose, delivering the government, the stability she has promised germany all along. time for a look at the weather with ben rich. it has been a day of big changes in the atmosphere and change is not a lwa ys the atmosphere and change is not always easy. we have swapped out this very cold air for some much milderair this very cold air for some much milder air from this very cold air for some much milder airfrom the south this very cold air for some much milder air from the south west, a sharp contrast between the air masses which has brought problems with snow in some places, significant snow at that, and in other places with the mild air pushing in some heavy rain which has caused issues with flooding across the south—west and parts of wales. during tonight the milder air will sweep during tonight the milder air will sweep across during tonight the milder air will sweep across the country but not before we see the risk of icy stretches across north—east england. by stretches across north—east england. by the time we get to tomorrow morning we will wake up to temperatures between three and 9 degrees. some showers in scotland, but notice that most of the showers are falling as rain. temperatures of 4 degrees in inverness, six in glasgow, higher than all day today. for more than ireland are dry and cloudy start. that is the weather we have that across england and wales. the odd shower, particularly the hosts —— hills and coasts. one area of rain is affecting parts of the south coast but it won't last long and it should scoot after the south quickly through the morning and then on monday a decent day. fairly breezy and windy across the far north where there will be a few showers. showers for other western areas but elsewhere some spells of sunshine and temperatures between six and 11 degrees. very different to how it felt today for many. moving into tuesday, low pressure in charge of the scene in the north—west. south—westerly winds which will pump mild air across all areas by this stage, so tuesday on balance the mildest day of the week but with that we will see some outbreaks of rain, most are towards the north—west, northern ireland, scotland, northern england and parts of wales. the best of the brightness is in shelter to the east of high ground, and look at these temperatures. nine in aberdeen, but 12 or 13 temperatures. nine in aberdeen, but 12 or13 in temperatures. nine in aberdeen, but 12 or 13 in candourfrom —— cardiff and london. on wednesday a band of heavy rain comes in, maybe gales, but that will work south and east. still something chillier in the north—west but not as cold as it has been. a slightly cooler feel to the weather on thursday with frequent heavy showers.