of lives with the army now leading rescue efforts. and taking to the skies to vaccinate all of australia we visit the remote areas where where an airborne logistical effort is getting jabs in arms. live from our studio in singapore — this is bbc news. it's newsday. it's 7am in singapore and 7pm in washington — where people from across political divide have come together to mourn and rememberformer us secretary of state colin powell who has died at the age of 8a. he was a pioneer in both the us military and the us government. america's first black secretary of state first black chairman of thejoint chiefs of staff and, first black national security adviser. but his career will also be forever marked by one of the most consequential foreign policy decisions of this century to invade iraq and depose saddam hussein. our north america editor john sopel reports. general colin powell, the very embodiment of the american dream. the first black secretary of state, the first black leader of the us military. yet he was born to jamaican immigrants in harlem and was lost as a teenager. today, flags were lowered to half staff and the tributes have been lavish. he broke so many barriers and those barriers were not easy to break by any stretch. but he did it with dignity, he did it with grace. until saddam hussain�*s invasion of kuwait in 1990, colin powell was relatively unknown. after it, he became a household name, as america's first black commander of the us military. he developed the powell doctrine — don't start a war unless you know how you are going to end it. in many ways, he was a reluctant warrior, having been injured during the vietnam war, but if force is to be used, then let it be overwhelming. our strategy to go after this army is very, very simple. first we're going to cut it off and then we're going to kill it. having reached the top of the military, he'd now blaze a new trial, becoming america's most senior diplomatjust before 9/11. it's a great honour for me to submit the name to the united states senate of colin l powell, as secretary of state. and at the un, he made a case for the invasion of iraq that he would later ruefully admit was based on incorrect information. there can be no doubt that saddam hussein has biological weapons and the capability to rapidly produce more, many more, and he has the ability to dispense these lethal poisons and diseases in ways that can cause massive death and destruction. but for all that, this moderate republican was being courted by both parties to run to become the country's first african—american president. powell decided against, instead throwing his weight behind democrat barack obama's bid for that place in history. this morning a great soldier, a great statesman, a great american, has endorsed our campaign for change. i am so proud that i have had this chance to serve my nation. this venerated soldier in later life used his ammunition sparingly, only intervening when he felt something needed saying, like earlier this year after the attempted insurrection at the capitol, when he called for donald trump to stand down immediately. i wish he would just do what nixon did and that's step down. somebody ought to go up there and tell him it's over. the plane is waiting for you, you're out. colin powell preached tolerance and moderation. he was a leader, warrior and statesman. and, according to many of the tributes today, a genuine american hero. the former us secretary of state. a key adviser to several presidents who died at the age of 8a. british prime minister, borisjohnson, has led tributes in parliament to the conservative mp sir david amess. he was stabbed to death on friday. a 25 year old suspect, remains in custody, where he's being questioned under the terrorism act. the uk government has said, it is considering whether additional measures are necessary, to protect politicians. our political editor laura kuenssberg reports. holding on... ..at a church that should be a place of sanctuary, instead — for their father and husband — a place of violence. this family shattered, left reading messages from others. "thank you for all you have done." a simple note among the blanket of flowers. a way to express sorrow and support at parliament too. then the ultimate mark of respect... ..to still the commons' usual clamour. on so many of their minds, perhaps, a phrase sir david himself wrote, "when mps are doing theirjobs, it could happen to any one of us." sir david was taken from us in a contemptible act of violence, striking at the core of what it is to be a member of this house and violating the sanctity both of the church in which he was killed and the constituency surgery that is so essential to our representative democracy. granting his dearest political wish. her majesty has agreed that southend will be accorded the city status it so clearly deserves. hear, hear! but mps on all sides have fears about their and their staffs safety. this place can be the scene of tantrums and torment — not today. i want to lean across, to reach across, and to acknowledge the pain that's felt on the opposite benches, and i do. hear, hear! of course our differences matter. after all, that is what democracy is about. but today we are reminded that what we have in common matters far more. in a packed commons, the only empty spot, sir david's old seat. his close friend furious at how mps are treated, urging a crackdown on online abuse. we are now systematically vilified day after day, and i simply say to you, ladies and gentlemen, that enough is enough. i'd like to drag mark zuckerberg of facebook and jack dorsey of twitter to the bar of the house. the survivor of a similar attack urged them to stand firm. we must not give up on the accessibility of members of parliament. if we do, the sponsors for those who attacked david and who attacked me will have succeeded. isn't it fitting that his last acts were acts of service to his constituents? there are tears on all sidesl of the house this afternoon. but an argument about civility in politics doesn't explain why, like five years ago, a family is in pain. it brought it back very physically. i was sort of shaking and unable to process it, really. that moment when you are told that they haven't made it and the weeks and months of despair and anguish that follow, i guess. if you were a young couple now, when she first said, "i think i want to go into parliament," would you try to persuade her not to do it? she had a vision for a society she wanted to see, and she would have taken personal risk to see it. so, i wouldn't have either tried or succeeded in trying to convince her to do anything differently, but i do think that there will be people that will be put off. this place is normally fuelled by difference, by argument, but tonight, they walked together across the road together... ..sang and listened together. the noble calling of politicians in a democracy is to make all manner of sacrifices — seen and unseen. a moment to remember a man who believed in that, their common cause. laura kuenssberg, bbc news. rescue teams in the indian state of kerala are scrambling to find survivors, after severe flooding killed at least 26 people. five of them were children. homes were swept away by the rising floodwaters, and there have been landslides, following days of heavy rain. here's our south asia correspondent, rajini vaidyanathan. the forces of nature have shown no mercy to these people in kerala. every year, they brace themselves for monsoon season, but nothing can prepare you for this. heavy rainfall and landslides have left a devastating and deadly mark across this state in south india. one of india's most beautiful now submerged and struggling. in the town here, terrified passengers on this bus were saved as the waters rose. in this clothes store, now a swamp, is one of many businesses destroyed by the fierce weather. "it was my livelihood," this shopkeeper says. "everything is gone." rescuers have been retrieving the bodies of the dozens who died, many of the victims were young. officials say they found three children who had been buried under the mud as they were holding each other. translation: the hill broke off near us, there's been _ a lot of damage and loss, the house has gone children have gone. for many in kerala, the scenes evoke painful memories of 2018 when the state experienced the worst floods in a century. 400 people died back then, and more than a million were displaced. a study by indian scientists said the number of cyclones out over the arabian sea has doubled in the last two decades due to rising sea temperatures. more storms are forecast in the coming days. here in kerala, known as god's own paradise, they are praying it doesn't get worse. rajini vaidyanathan, bbc news. to discuss more on this, let's cross live to pune and join chirag dhara, who's a climate physicist and professor at krea university in andhra pradesh. great to have you on the programme. i want to start by asking you is the flooding that we have just seen asking you is the flooding that we havejust seen in asking you is the flooding that we have just seen in the asking you is the flooding that we havejust seen in the report they are an expected event, or, you know, do we get this every year, or is this level of rain unforeseen?— year, or is this level of rain unforeseen? well, there have been a lot _ unforeseen? well, there have been a lot of _ unforeseen? well, there have been a lot of floods _ unforeseen? well, there have been a lot of floods in - unforeseen? well, there have been a lot of floods in keralal been a lot of floods in kerala particularly over the last four years. 2018 was particularly bad, once in a century event. we do expect more of to happen because we've got our climate change last year specific to india. it is a regional climate change report where we have assessed that we are going to continue to have more of these extreme events. so we need... these extreme events are definitely coming and the reason is simple, as the earth warms, the atmosphere contains more moisture. so by the very simple fact of that happening, we are going to see more of these., , we are going to see more of these. , , ., , these. just to “ump in there, we are these. just to jump in there, we are looking _ these. just to jump in there, we are looking at _ these. just to jump in there, we are looking at pictures i these. just to jump in there, we are looking at pictures of| we are looking at pictures of the devastation in kerala at the devastation in kerala at the moment, and the amount of damage that that heavy rain has caused for people in that state. now, some experts have claimed that increased urbanisation has resulted in this kind of flooding. do you agree with this?— agree with this? oh, yes, definitely. _ agree with this? oh, yes, definitely. extreme - agree with this? oh, yes, | definitely. extreme events agree with this? oh, yes, - definitely. extreme events are a fact of climate, of weather, but flooding is very much sociological phenomenon, so this does a couple of things, one is that a lot of the wetlands and lakes which act as a sponge and checks the flow of runoff, those have been built over, and so these natural defensive mechanisms that we have, the other is deforestation and language —— land change. so because we have cleared out so much of the forest, we have reduced the resilience of the soil to be washed away. i5 resilience of the soil to be washed away.— washed away. is india's government _ washed away. is india's government doing - washed away. is india's i government doing enough washed away. is india's - government doing enough to prepare for the types of extreme weather events that we have seen in kerala and what you have described as the feature for india?- feature for india? well, i would answer _ feature for india? well, i would answer that - feature for india? well, i would answer that in - feature for india? well, i would answer that in two feature for india? well, i- would answer that in two ways. one is, yes, they have, in the sense that, you know, after the 2018 floods, kerala, for example, put together a comprehensive disaster management plan, where every sector was supposed to take different actions in terms of preparing for the monsoon season and preparing for these extreme events, looking at infrastructure and making thing —— making sure that bridges and dams where resilient. other parts of the country have seen many monsoons especially and especially the eastern coast of india, their disaster management plan has become pretty get over the last 20 years, so first cyclones of similar magnitude, we now have much less damage in terms of life and health. however... i’m life and health. however... i'm afraid we _ life and health. however... i'm afraid we will _ life and health. however... i'm afraid we will have _ life and health. however... i'm afraid we will have to leave it there, that is all the time we have for this extremely important segment unused at this point in time. thank you forjoining us at such an early hour as well, i report on the kerala floods. you are watching newsday and the bbc. still to come on the programme... china denies that it's tested a nuclear capable hyper sonic missile but if true how important is the development? a historic moment that many of his victims have waited forfor decades. the former dictator in the dock older, slimmer. and as he sat down, obedient enough. dawn, and as the sun breaks through the piercing chill of night on a plane outside, it lights up a biblicalfamine now in the 20th century. the depressing conclusion, in argentina today it is actually cheaper to paper your walls with money. we've had controversies - in the past with great britain, but as good friends we have always found a good - and lasting solution. concorde bows out in style after almost three decades in service. an aircraft that has enthralled its many admirers for so long taxis home one last time. this is newsday on the bbc. i'm karishma vaswani in singapore. our main story this hour... the world remembers soldier and statesman colin powell, who has died at the age of 8a. more on that story now. mark kimmitt is a retired brigadier general he gave me his reflections on colin powell's legacy. what i really remember most of all is the decision in 1991 to show restraint and to follow the united nations mandate and not to march onto baghdad at the end of the first gulf war. we defeated the iraqi army command anyways, we destroyed the army, and the road to baghdad was open, but he and the other members of the national security council said let's show restraint, let's stick within the mandates of the united nations. the army is destroyed, let's call it a day. we have a victory. let's not overextend ourselves. and i think that was a combination of leadership, restraintand leadership, restraint and candidly leadership, restraintand candidly good sense that most people should recognise and they probably don't.- they probably don't. yes, absolutely. _ they probably don't. yes, absolutely. i— they probably don't. yes, absolutely. i think - they probably don't. yes, absolutely. i think also i they probably don't. yes, absolutely. i think also it| absolutely. i think also it would be fair to say, as you point out, that he was cautious about sending american men and women soldiers into harm's way, but then in 2003, he did indeed end up convincing the un security council of the case for war. security council of the case forwar. did security council of the case for war. did you sense any reluctance on his part at the time? ~ ., , �* time? well, i really didn't because _ time? well, i really didn't because he _ time? well, i really didn't because he had _ time? well, i really didn't because he had gone - time? well, i really didn't - because he had gone through the entire file at the central intelligence agency and candidly the files of most of the intelligence partners we have throughout the world. at that point, the intelligence seemed conclusive. he did what we call a murder board. he investigated it, he brought the experts in, he ran them down, and i think at the end of the day, he decided for himself that the case was made that he did have biological weapons. but as he said, the information turned out not to be true. that is one of the uncertainties of life, that intelligence can only give you at best an 80% probability. only give you at best an 80% probability-— only give you at best an 80% probability. indeed. can i ask how did it _ probability. indeed. can i ask how did it affect _ probability. indeed. can i ask how did it affect them, - probability. indeed. can i ask how did it affect them, you . how did it affect them, you know, having had such a fine reputation and then being widely admired as well for that reputation and then having, i suppose, you know, this plot on his name, having sold that were based on evidence that turned out to be faulty in the end. love, there were a lot of people in washington, dc that that would haunt, that that would worry, that they were worried about their legacy and how that would affect him, but his greatest hobby was to fix volvos, he was a very humble man. he felt that he had gotten well beyond his expectation from youth. i think he was a happy man. every time you would see him in a public event, he seemed to be positive. sure, we call that an asterisk on the season, that in his entire career, there was that one error in his mind, but i think he was mature enough and had to get enough self—conscious not to worry about that. get enough self-conscious not to worry about that.— to worry about that. retired brigadier — to worry about that. retired brigadier general _ to worry about that. retired brigadier general speaking l brigadier general speaking there to me a little earlier about collin powell's legacy. in other stories, china has denied a report that it has tested a nuclear capable hypersonic missile. china has denied a report that it's tested a nuclear capable hypersonic missile. china's foreign ministry spokesman acknowledged that a test had been carried out, but he said it had just been a routine spacecraft check. but there are concerns in washington that the new technology could undermine us defences. from beijing, here's stephen mcdonell. initially the financial times newspaper reported that it had several sources saying that china had tested a hypersonic live vehicle — in fact, a nuclear—capable hypersonic live vehicle — and that this had taken the us intelligence agencies completely by surprise. now a hypersonic missile would travel around the globe in low orbit, then dipped down into cruise mode, honing in on its target. the point is very tough to track, much tougher than the conventional ballistic missile, for example, because it doesn't follow the same predictable arc. and, because it doesn't follow such a predictable arc, it's much harder to intercept. of course, if china has developed this technology, it would be a huge deal. the problem is the chinese government denies that it's carried out such a test. the foreign ministry spokesperson said today there had been a test, but that it was a spacecraft test, that china had been going through different versions of reusable equipment to make space travel more affordable, and that as part of this test, modules and pieces of equipment break off the main spacecraft and burn up upon reentering the earth's atmosphere before whatever�*s left splashes down into the ocean. stephen mcdonald there. in new south wales... in new south wales, more than 80% of adults are now fully vaccinated and victoria will hit that target soon ? a triggerfor allowing international borders to open. but elsewhere, especially remote and regional areas, it's a different story. and in a land so vast, getting needles in arms can be logistically tricky. now, one of the country's oldest institutions is helping get those numbers up. the bbc�*s simon atkinson reports from north queensland. 50, 40, 30, ten... you don't get many visitors at the ravenswood airstrip. but for years, the royal flying doctors service has brought medical care here. and now, there's an extra bit of cargo on board. ravenswood has two pubs, but the nearest doctor is 100 km away. so this is how locals are getting vaccinated against covid—19. i was wondering i would get the shot at all. it's just convenient and it saves all the travel. and instead ofjoining the queue, we're here getting almost exclusive access. it's a of having to - have it, so i thought, "well, now's the time." this town has never had a case of covid—19 — so for many here, there's been no real urgency to get vaccinated. but with australia planning to open up soon, there's a warning that even people in remote locations like this can't be complacent. we can't keep covid out forever, we will have to open up, and i think the vaccinated will be largely all right, and the unvaccinated will be in a bad way. it'll have implications for flying doctors, as well, for these remote areas, because there'll be cases of covid. that'll need people to be hospitalised, and we'll have to fly them in full ppe down to the appropriate facility — which i'm not looking forward to, to be honest. clinics like this have given more than 50,000 covid jabs across remote australia, including in several indigenous communities. vaccination rates amongst aboriginal and islanders are far lower than in the country as a whole. but the flying doctors say they are bucking that trend. people in those communities know the service, they trust the doctors and nurses. so if their doctor that they know and trust says to them, "i think it's in your best interest to have this vaccine," they'll go, "ok, if you think i should have it, i'll have it." some employers in rural australia, especially the mining sector, are now making vaccinations compulsory. workers must decide job orjab. at the ravenswood gold mine, it remains voluntary for now. hoping that the fly—in clinic will make the process so easy that it's hard to say "no". simon atkinson, bbc news, north queensland. that's all the time that we have for you and this hour of newsday. thank you so much for joining me. hope to see you again on bbc news. hello, good evening. quite a few parts of the country had temperatures of 18 degrees today and it's likely to get warmer tomorrow if and when the sunshine does come out. the warmer air is coming our way thanks to the winds from the south or southwest. as we've seen already, it has brought with it a lot of cloud, the cloud still around at the moment. this cloud here coming in from the atlantic is going to bring the next area of rain. the earlier rain and drizzle is moving away, and for a while, there could be a few breaks in the cloud. that will lead to the odd mist and fog patch, and then the thicker cloud arrives mainly across the western side of the uk to bring the rain to these areas. of course, after the warmth that we had during the day, the temperatures are going to fall very low overnight, 12 to 1a degrees. we start with a lot of cloud, outbreaks of rain around that could be heavy for a while over some of these western hills. as we head into the afternoon, the rain is in the north and west. it could cheer up again later across parts of northern ireland, but ahead of the rain in the afternoon, we should get some sunshine in east anglia and the southeast. and it's here temperatures could reach 20 or 21 degrees with a more typical of early summer. even when we have a cloud or outbreaks of rain, around 17 or 19 degrees. a very mild day. there is more rain in the forecast for wednesday, this time generally moving northwards across england and wales. some thundery downpours possible. either side of that, there's going to be some sunshine. still a mild day on wednesday, just not quite as mild as tuesday. we've got this rain arriving in the northwest of scotland. that's going to be significant because, to the north of that, there is colder air. that will push across the country through the rest of the week and the weather will feel very different. we still have a tangle of weather fronts on the scene during wednesday as we head into thursday. these are the main ones drifting down across the uk, bringing with it some showery outbreaks of rain. then those northerly winds come setting in and it's those northerly winds that will drop the temperatures as well. we've still got some outbreaks of rain to clear away from eastern parts of england on thursday. otherwise there will be some sunshine and a rash of showers, a rash of showers in the far north over the higher ground, maybe a wintry flavour as well. it's going to be a windy day. the winds generally from the north, possibly touching gale force, around some north sea coasts. that, of course, will make it feel colder, very different from what we're feeling at that moment. 8 degrees the best in northern scotland, 13 in southern england and wales. this is bbc news.