We start in the us, where gymnasts gave emotiOnal testimOny to cOngress On wednesday, describing the abuse they suffered at the hands of usa Gymnastics Doctor Larry nassar. They blamed fbi officials forfailing to investigate him. Their testimOny, led by olympic superstar One-biles'>SimOne Biles, follows a damning Justice Department Report into how the fbi handled the nassar allegatiOns. Nasser was jailed in 2018. The bbc� s Nomia Iqbal has more. The world witnessed her mental struggles at the tokyo olympics. Today, One-biles'>SimOne Biles spoke about exactly what had impacted her. I dOnt want another young gymnast, olympic athlete, or any individual to experience the horror that i and hundreds of others have endured. The most successful gymnast of all time, she recalled the abuse she suffered at the Hands Of Herformer coach. To be clear, i blame larry nassar, and i also blame. An entire system that enabled and perpetrated his abuse. SimOne biles and three of Herformer Team mates appeared in frOnt of the senatejudiciary committee to testify about the abuse they suffered at the hands of nassar. Hes serving a Life Sentence in jail for sexually abusing hundreds of girls. An investigatiOn into how the fbi handled the case has already catalogued failures and lies told by One'>Agents NOne of whom have been prosecuted. Mckayla marOney was One of the first to report abuse in july of 2015. I answered all of their questiOns hOnestly and clearly, and i disclosed all of my molestatiOns i had endured by nassar to them in extreme detail. She said she felt, even when she had finally spoken out, her cOncerns were being dismissed. I began crying at the memory over the phOne, and there was just dead silence. I was so shocked at the Agents Silence and disregard for my trauma after that minute of silence, he asked, is that all . It would be more than a year before the fbi investigated the allegatiOns, allowing nassar to cOntinue his cOntact with children. Today, the fbi director, who took the top Agency Job after the case was reported, said sorry. And im especially sorry that there were people i at the fbi who had their own chance to stop this Onsterl-back'>MOnsterl Back in 2015 and failed. And that is inexcusable, it never shouldve happened, and were doing everything. In our power to make sure it never happens again. A report by the Department Of Justice found two fbi officials lied during interviews to cover up their errors. The fbi says One of those officials was fired last week. This hearing is the first public questiOning of the case, but also One of the last opportunities for the athletes to get justice. They have called On the committee to ensure those who mishandled the case will be held accountable. Nomia iqbal, bbc news, washingtOn. Rachael denhollander was the first woman to pursue criminal charges against usa gymnastics� Team Doctor Larry nassar. Her activism encouraged scores of others, including olympic medalists, to come forward. What was it like for you watching and hearing those accounts . It watching and hearing those accounts . Accounts . It is incredibly ainful accounts . It is incredibly painful because accounts . It is incredibly painful because what accounts . It is incredibly painful because what it l accounts . It is incredibly painful because what it really emphasises to us over and over again was we were notjust fighting an abuser, we were fighting an abuser, we were fighting the system. When i came forward in 20161 came forward with a thick file of evidence. Prior disclosures. Character witnesses and legal memoranda that laid out the case for the Detective And Prosecutor under michigan law because i knew we were going to because i knew we were going to be fighting a system and not just an abuser and that is what We Saw today. The On-everyOne'>QuestiOn EveryOne needs to ask is what did we not see . What do we not in the cases where we dOnt have olympic athletes headlining the legal cases. What did we not see first survivors who dOnt have a voice . Most of the time the public does not get to see what is really going On. 5 public does not get to see what is really going On. Is really going On. As a result of our is really going On. As a result of your activism is really going On. As a result of your activism others is really going On. As a result of your activism others came | of your activism others came forward and described what happened to them. You also wrote a book about your experience. Did you privately have a reactiOn from in respOnse to that . Absolutely. And One of respOnse to that . Absolutely. And One of the respOnse to that . Absolutely. And One of the Onse'>Things RespOnse to that . Absolutely. And One of the things in and One of the things in respOnse to the memoirs, this is the first time i realised what actually takes and that is what actually takes and that is what is intended to be. An inside look at what it is to fight the system. What it had to stop him. What went On behind the scenes in the prosecutiOn ended in the courtroom because most people think Sexual Assault works like law and order. You report and a few mOnths later you get a wOnderful cOnclusiOn with the Tv Experience and you get justice with your abuser put away and that is not what it is like. It is exactly what we witnessed in the senate today. We were lucky to have a Detective And Prosecutor who fought for us but even then, what it took to get where we got is just an incredible story that deserves to be told and people need to understand so that we can start asking the hard questiOns of how can we change the systems so it is not this difficult and victims are not fighting the systems as well as their abuser . There was an apology well as their abuser . There was an apology from well as their abuser . There was an apology from the well as their abuser . There was an apology from the fbi an apology from the fbi director. ForsomeOne an apology from the fbi director. For someOne who has been through that abuse, that you and others suffered, does the apology make a difference or not . I the apology make a difference or not . ,. ,. , or not . I am grateful for what We Saw today. Or not . I am grateful for what We Saw today. I or not . I am grateful for what We Saw today. I am or not . I am grateful for what We Saw today. I am grateful l or not . I am grateful for what. We saw today. I am grateful for the senators and the fec testified. Im gratefulfor the apology because it is at least the beginning of an acknowledgement but it is a beginning Only. Words are cheap and the real test is going to be whether or not those words are followed through by cOncrete actiOn. I was going to make a hard legislative change and a hard systemic change to actually turn the course of what is going On in Ourjustice System and make it possible for survivors to pursue justice and to speak up and believed. Whether or not were going to do the hard work of reform is the real questiOn. Today was the real questiOn. Today was the first step in the first step Only but means nothing if it is not followed by actiOn. Let s get some of the days other news. The Philippines Government will not allow investigators from the internatiOnal criminal court to enter the country. The announcement comes after the icc launched an investigatiOn into the Philippine President , rodrigo duterte, for possible crimes against humanity. The court said Theres Evidence that his � war On drugs was a systematic attack On the civilian populatiOn. At least two people have died following an earthquake in the chinese province of sichuan. Beijing said it had launched an Onse'>Emergency RespOnse after a 6. 0 Magnitude Earthquake struck, southwest of the megacity of chOngqing. Authorities said that signifcant and widespread damage was likely. The united states, Britain And Australia have announced a new Defence And Security partnership for the Indo Pacific, sparking immediate cOndemnatiOn by china. Chinas embassy in washingtOn accused the three governments of having a cold War Mentality. And france also criticised the deal which will replace a previous partnership that paris had with canberra. So, lets Take A Look at what the deal entails. The deal will enable australia to build nuclear powered submarines for the first time. It will also cover artificial intelligence, Quantum Technologies and cyber. The leaders of the three countries said the deal would promote stability in the Indo Pacific. Heres how president biden and uk prime On'>Minister Boris JohnsOn characterised the new pact. This is an important One for australia. Australia was not in a positiOn, at the time we took the decisiOn back in 2016, to build and operate a nuclear powered submarine. That was not On the table. It was not On the table for a range of reasOns. So the decisiOn we have made to not cOntinue with the submarine and go down this path is not a change of mind, it is a change of need. The goal has remained the same. And australians would expect me as minister to ensure that we have the best possible capability to keep them safe. And to be unhindered in pursuing that as best as i possibly can. And that is what i have dOne. Dr Malcolm Davis is a senior analyst in Defence Strategy and capability at the australian strategic Policy Institute in canberra, australia. I asked him whether this will achieve the goal of curbing chinas influence. I think it is a huge step forward. The decisiOn for australia to acquire submarines is a major Step Something we have not been prepared to do in the past and now we are going to acquire these boats, at australian naval capability, but politically and strategically this really strengthens the commitment by the three countries to work together to not cOntain china but deter and counterbalance them. Just for clarity, these are submarines that are nuclear powered. They are not carrying nuclear weapOns. No. There is no OnsideratiOn-area'>COnsideratiOn Area to carry nuclear weapOns. The word we need to be a much more dark and dangerous place for us to ever cOnsider that optiOn. In terms of the deal with france, this is going to leave some slightly soured relatiOnships, isnt it . Australia had agreed a deal to buy french designs for submarines . Yes, and that deal is off. I think the official announcement will be made in the next few days. It was very clear that the deal for the 12 Attack Class submarines was not going to deliver a capability that was affordable or deliver that capability soOn enough even strategic envirOnment so we had to make this move and the opportunity to go down of nuclear submarines is One we could not ignore. The other country that will not take so kindly to this is china. And australia already has a Trade Row Ongoing with china that is harming exports there. What do you think the fallout will be, and how might china react to this move by the three countries . China wOnt like it but frankly, australia makes its Defence Policy based On the needs of australia, not On what pleases china. So the chinese will No Doubt make statements decrying the cold War Mentality but frankly, they are the Ones that are causing a lot of tensiOn in the regiOn and we have to respOnd to that. It is exactly a mOnth since the taliban swept to power in afghanistan, and declared the country an islamic emirate. As the internatiOnal community grapples with the scale of the change, how are things changing in Afghanistan Under Taliban Rule . Our Ondent-secunder'>CorrespOndent Secunder kermani and Camera Journalist Malik mudassir sent report from One of afghanistans largest cities, mazari sharif. Crossing into the islamic emirate, a Cargo Train from uzbekistan. This is now passport cOntrol. The taliban even have their own stamps. An hours drive away, the city of mazar i sharif. On the surface, life appears to be cOntinuing as normal, though many are suffering, with a shortage of cash in banks. This was the Blue Mosque, the citys cultural heart, shortly before the taliban takeover last mOnth. Now the group have allocated separate visiting times for men and women. Some are still coming, but there seem significantly fewer than before. My host here is a leading local taliban figure. Your critics would say you are killing off the cultural life in this country. And why do you need to change the culture . Whats wrOng about the culture that was already here . EveryOne was muslim. We literallyjust came out of the Blue Mosque and saw a crowd gathered in the city centre. We made our way to the middle of it and there are four dead bodies laid out here. One of them has a note On top of it saying, these men were One'>Kidnappers AnyOne who wants to do the same, this is going to be their punishment. All around me, there is a huge crowd of people trying to push their way forward to have a look at the site. A group of young children were rescued by the taliban from the kidnappers. Many praise the group for tackling violent crime that had plagued major cities. But many others here dOnt feel safe. Private universities like this One have reopened. Female and male students are separated by a curtain, as per new taliban rules. But with mOney tight in the future unclear, Only a handful are turning up. How does it feel, studying but not knowing whether you will be able to work or not in the future . The last time the taliban were in power, they imposed even more restrictiOns. But however they may have evolved since then, afghan cities have changed much more. The taliban cOntrol the country, but still need to win hearts and minds. Secunder kermani, bbc news, mazar i sharif. Stay with us On bbc news, still to come extraordinary leaders from Around The World we examine time Magazines List of the top 100 most influential people of 2021. 30 hours after the earthquake that devastated mexico city, Rescue Teams still have no idea just how many people have died. Well, theres people alive, and theres people not alive. Were just helping and giving them whatever weve got. A State Funeral has been held for Princess Grace of mOnacol at the church where she married prince rainier 26 years ago. It looked as though they had come to fight a war, but their missiOn is to bring peace to East Timor and nowhere On earth needs it more badly. The Governments Case is being forcefully presented by the justice minister. Hes campaigned vigorously for abolitiOn, having Once witnessed One of his clients being executed. Elizabeth setOn spent much of her time at this grotto and every year, hundreds of pilgrimages are made here. Now that shes become a saint, its expected that this area will be inundated with tourists. The mayor and local businessmen regard the anticipated boom as yet another blessing of saint elizabeth. This is bbc news, the latest headlines. Four us gymnasts, including One-biles'>SimOne Biles, have testified before a Senate Committee Hearing giving evidence over the fbis failures in its On'>Sex Abuse InvestigatiOn of their former team doctor, larry nassar. The leaders of the us, Britain And Australia have agreed a Military Pact to boost their influence in the Indo Pacific where china has expanded its military presence. Now some historys been made in the past hour. The first On'>Space MissiOn, crewed entirely by civilians, has taken off from Cape Canaveral in florida. Four amateur astrOnauts blasted into orbit On board a spacex rocket. The trip has been paid for by One of the crew, Onaire-businessman'>BilliOnaire Businessman jared isaacman. Hesjoined by a healthcare worker, a scientist and a data analyst. Theyve undergOne five Onths-training'>MOnths Training although the craft itself will be operated from the ground. For about three days, the � Onli-crew'>InspiratiOnli Crew Will Orbit Earth at an altitude higher than the internatiOnal On'>Space StatiOn before they splash down into the atlantic ocean. Well, ive been talking to Space Journalist Emilee speck, host of the space curious podcast. She was there. This launch was unlike any other that i have covered or experienced. You know, it kind of had a party feel to it, if that makes sense. They hosted a Viewing Party near the press die, added did others. When the market went up there were cheers and then we alljust stood there. It was an amazing moment. It was a beautiful launch. I5 moment. It was a beautiful launch. ,. ,. , launch. Is a genuinely Only four civilians launch. Is a genuinely Only four civilians in launch. Is a genuinely Only four civilians in that four civilians in that spacecraft . And it is being manned, it is being operated from the ground, isnt it . But what happens if something needs fixing or goes wrOng . Have they been trained to do that . What happens . Been trained to do that . What ha ens . Been trained to do that . What haens . , been trained to do that . What ha ens . ,. ,. , happens . That is a great questiOn happens . That is a great questiOn. The happens . That is a great questiOn. The Only happens . That is a greatl questiOn. The Only reasOn happens . That is a great questiOn. The Only reasOn this missiOn has been happening is the On-capsule'>Spacex DragOn Capsule is fully automated. It is cOntrolled by computers and like you mentiOned, from the ground, they should not have to do anything. However, in the event they do, the four regular people, just like you and me, they go through about seven mOnths of training and spent a lot of time On spacex so had to learn the systems of the spacecraft in and out in Case Something goes wrOng so they should be able to jump into actiOn but if it happens, we will see what happens. Mil will see what happens. All credit to will see what happens. All credit to them. I think i have problems changing a Tire Run and hide never mind fixing a spacecraft but what is the significance of this more broadly, do you think . Is this the start of Space Tourism much we talk about so often but seem so elusive and so expensive still . It so elusive and so expensive still . , ,. , so elusive and so expensive still . , , still . It is still so expensive and this is still . It is still so expensive and this is a still . It is still so expensive and this is a really still . It is still so expensive and this is a really big and this is a really big kicking off by infospace by. They have got to other all civilian missiOns planned for next year so this was the first, right . The first all civilian missiOn and it was very different. Was a fundraiser. The other crew launching next year that all civilians they have all paid for their seats was that this was not like what We Saw today. It is different. If it works and goes well they can use this as a jumping and goes well they can use this as Ajumping Off and goes well they can use this as a jumping off point and cOntinue to do this from now On. , , On. Very briefly, if there were an entirely On. Very briefly, if there were an entirely civilian On. Very briefly, if there were an entirely civilian crewed an entirely civilian crewed On'>Space MissiOn would you go On it . I On'>Space MissiOn would you go On it . ,. , On'>Space MissiOn would you go On it . ,. , i, On'>Space MissiOn would you go On it . ,. ,. , it . I have always said yes and i have it . I have always said yes and i have been it . I have always said yes and i have been asked it . I have always said yes and i have been asked that it . I have always said yes and i i have been asked that questiOn before but today, when i was watching them, especially others watching their faces and i was just thinking, what are they thinking . And ijust dOnt know if i could to do it. I dOnt know if i have the for it, experiencing 60s so we will see. Maybe. Maybe. The Photo Sharing App instagram could be having a harmful effect On many teenagers particularly girls. This is according to internal research carried out by facebook the company that owns it. An investigatiOn by the Wall Streetjournal found that facebook had cOnducted in depth studies showing the dangers of the Photo Sharing App while playing down the issue in public. Angus crawford reports. A girl with so much to live for, bright and talented. Molly russell took her own life in 2017. She was just 1a. After her death, On her instagram account, herfamily found a stream of dark, depressing cOntent and, in part, blame it for her death. Now, the Wall Streetjournal has published internal Facebook Research labelled a teen mental health deep dive. Itfound. It admitted. And. I dOnt know, i was sick to the pit of my stomach. It was dreadful. Mollys father ian is appalled. If they know more about it and theyre not doing something about it, then theyre culpable in a really dreadful way, because this potentially could cost lives. No One at Facebook Hq in lOndOn was available to talk about instagram, which it also owns, but it did release a blog. The company said it stood by the research, even though it claimed that the Wall Streetjournal had focused On a limited set of findings. It also claimed that wider research On the effects of Social Media On peoples Well Being was mixed. And finally, it claimed that it was doing extensive work to make instagram a safe and supportive place. Instagram sells itself as a place for fun, friendship, but the companys known for years, for some young people, its a much, much darker place. Angus crawford, bbc news. Time magazine says its top 100 list this year comprises extraordinary leaders from Around The World who have leaped into the fray in a year of crisis. Mark lobel reports. A reported a list glam squad worked behind the scenes On this Photo Shoot with two of time magazines icOns of the year. You may just recognise. Headline grabbing images described as both effortless and airbrushed by fans and critics alike. But who else has been influential this challenging year . Actress Kate Winslet is One of times artists of the year, warning young women of the dangers of low self esteem. Stop looking in the mirror as much. And be yourself. Billie eilish has been through yet another transformatiOn. She credits the internet was launching her career but. I hate that i grew up with the internet. I despise it, and especially from 16 to almost 20. Very different people. You look at videos of yourself from when you were like 14 and you see the way you act and talk, and you literally think, how did i do that, what was going On that made me think that was the right thing to say . And it has been a transformative year for the us gymnast, One-biles'>SimOne Biles. The magazine says she is a titan. No doubting that. One cOntributor describing her as wise beyOnd her 2a years. For years, from my professiOnal career i have Only ever been. COngratulated for winning. And now its like i for being a Human Being vulnerable. It is not what im used to. But it has been nice. These influencers appear united in using their platforms and persOnaljourneys to help us all approach the end of this strange year with our resilience intact. Autumn is now gently, slowly but surely, creeping in across the northern hemisphere. Our days are getting shorter, but there is still some warmth in the september sunshine. And certainly, it was a good looking day across a large swathe of the uk On wednesday, although scotland and Northern Ireland did get lumbered with more in the way of cloud and some outbreaks of rain. We should see more sunshine here, though, in the next few days. Another sign, though, that autumn is upOn us is the presence of some early Morning Mist and fog. The On-itll'>ReasOn Itll be drier for scotland On thursday is high pressure starting to extend up here. Its also the reasOn, though, that i think we will see some early Mist And Fog under the ridge where weve had light winds overnight. The sun, however, should burn that back pretty quickly, and then a lot of fine Weather And Sunshine to come through On thursday. We lose any early showers in the northeast of scotland, temperatures 21 22 celsius. Through the afternoOn, though, more cloud starting to show its hand into Northern Ireland thats the forerunner of this Ont'>Weather FrOnt that will push Into The West of the uk for friday daytime. We move through Thursday Evening into the small hours of friday, and we get the rain into Northern Ireland. Its quite patchy across western scotland, it stays dry across england and wales. A mild enough night, temperatures in double figures up to 15 celsius in belfast, where we get quite a strOng southerly wind as this Ont'>Weather FrOnt pushes in. It will move its way Into The West of the uk, but then it kind of grinds to a halt, actually, for friday. So, because it does that, that means the Rain Willjust keep On coming for the likes of Northern Ireland, possibly for the southwest of scotland. Later On in the day, some downpours for the southwest of england and for wales. But its Northern Ireland stuck under the cloud and with the rain On friday. Quite breezy here, as well, quite gusty winds at times. Big cOntrast between East And West just mid teens, the temperatures in the west under the rain. We could still see maybe 22 23 celsius in the sunshine further east. Our frOnt will gradually make its way eastwards across the uk through the weekend. For scotland and Northern Ireland, i think itll bring some patchy cloud. But for england and wales, it does bring the threat of perhaps some quite punchy showers, lOnger, more persistent outbreaks of rain at times. Certainly saturday looks like it could be quite wet across england and wales. The showers should thin out somewhat for sunday. This is bbc news. The headlines four us gymnasts, including One-biles'>SimOne Biles, have testified before a Senate Committee Hearing. They gave evidence about the fbis failures in its On'>Sex Abuse InvestigatiOn of theirformer Team Doctor Larry nassar. The director of the bureau has apologised for not examining the allegatiOns promptly. The united states, Britain And Australia have announced a new Defence And Security partnership for the Indo Pacific. The agrement was immediately cOndemned by beijing. The leaders of the three countries said the agreement would promote stability in the regiOn, where china has expanded its military presence. The first On'>Space MissiOn crewed entirely by civilians has taken off from Cape Canaveral in florida. Four amateur astrOnauts were launched into orbit On a spacex rocket. Its hoped the flight will open up access for paying customers. The trip has been paid for by a Onaire-businessman'>BilliOnaire Businessman. Now On bbc news, its time for click