from the balkans. live from our studio in singapore, this is bbc news. it's newsday.. hello, and welcome to newsday. it's 8am in singapore, and 3am in the devastated ukrainian city of mariupol, where it's hoped the coming hours will see civilian evacuations resume after rescue efforts stalled on monday. hundreds of women and children are sheltering in the tunnels beneath a sprawling steelworks, some haven't seen daylight for weeks. the azovstal plant is surrounded by russian troops. on sunday, aid agencies oversaw the rescue of around 100 people who were evacuated to nearby zaporizhzhia, from where our correspondent laura bicker reports. a short break to feel grass under theirfeet, after weeks of only concrete. the survivors from mariupol are allowed a break in their long—awaited journey away from the front line. translation: for a month we were eating - over 40 l of us — six food tins. we boiled two buckets of soup out of them and that was it for the whole day. weeping translation: there | is no house anymore. of course there isn't. this is mariupol after two months of war. homes, play parks, cafes are now charred in blasted ruins. tens of thousands of people are thought to have died. many of the survivors came here, the azovstal steel plant. as the city fell, pounded into smouldering ashes, ukrainian fighters used the underground chambers to stay and fight. translation: there were five very powerful bomb shelters that, according to soviet standards at the time, could withstand a direct nuclear strike. all people, if they were injured during the bombing and shelling, could come to us. we thought it was possible we'd be shelled, but we did not expect such a genocide and such an inhumane war. for weeks, women and children lived in these maze—like tunnels — they used them as a refuge. appeals to get them out of the plant were ignored — until now. yesterday, for the first time in more than 60 days, they clambered out of their dark refuge and were led through the rubble out of what many have described as hell. this is where they will come. others have made it out of mariupol today after scrambling for parts to rebuild their wrecked car. daniel was living on a tug boat. translation: we were bringing food from the tug boat. - the russians had been assaulting the port for ten days and we had been sheltering. we couldn't even raise our heads. it was scary to be there. this car park is a crossroads. after days of terror and chaos, there is help, but the lives and city each one of these people once knew is now gone. mariupol officials told us that russia bombed the steel plant not long after they left. it is not clear what the hold—up is. meanwhile, talks to get out the remaining several hundred people in the steel plant, including we understand, 20 children, are continuing but those negotiations are proving difficult. laura bicker, bbc news, zaporizhzhia. let's bring you some more of the latest developments on ukraine. european union energy ministers have held an emergency summit on whether to ban supplies from russia. they've held back from banning the purchase of oil and gas, but emphasised there would be sanctions on member nations who paid for russian natural gas in roubles. paying roubles through the recognise of the russian authorities, and the second dedicated account is a violation of the sanctions and cannot be accepted. the member states and the company should not have any illusions that they can rely on the good faith of gazprom, and the russian regime in this matter. israel has summoned moscow's ambassador there for what it called clarifications, after russia's foreign minister claimed that adolf hitler had "jewish blood". sergey lavrov made the comments on italian television, after being asked how russia could claim to be denazifying ukraine, when president zelenskyy himself, isjewish. the european football governing body, uefa, has banned russia's national team and club sides from its competitions for next season. that extends the current ban, which affected this current season. uefa also said russia's bid to host the euro 2028 or the euro 2032 tournaments have also been declared in—eligible. much more about the war in ukraine on our website, it is constantly being updated. the main headline is quoting a senior official there saying that the russian war effort in the east of ukraine is minimal, at best, describing the offence of their as very, very tepid. we look at that and the latest as they happen on the bbc website. still to come later, the first of our special reports on how to's initiative is shaping the way some countries in europe are shaping the futures,. i want to tell you about how the authorities in beijing have closed restaurants to diners there, as part of new restrictions in the capital aimed at curbing a rise in covid—i9. there have been a reported 58 new cases outside the areas under strict lockdown. our china correspondent stephen mcdonell has more. this is the restaurant district in the heart of old beijing were usually because you can get the milk 2a hours a day. during the may day holiday it expected to be full of people gathering with friends and family to celebrate in that traditional, chinese way. however, as you can see, it is not full here today, that is because all this week the restaurants of beijing have been ordered to close in an attempt to slow the spread of the coronavirus. you can get takeaway and delivery services from these restaurants, but you can't sit inside. it is an attempt by the government in beijing to avoid a full—blown citywide lockdown along the lines of what we have seen in shanghai. with its food shortages, considerable hardship and a fair amount of discontent. this city has, so far, managed to escape the worst of the coronavirus crisis, even with the new variant. because of the pandemic we can't go to lots of places. this holiday will abide by beijing's restrictions. translation: i beijing's restrictions. translation: ., ., ., translation: i have no holiday lans, translation: i have no holiday plans. just _ translation: i have no holiday plans. just to — translation: i have no holiday plans. just to go _ translation: i have no holiday plans, just to go for— translation: i have no holiday plans, just to go for a _ translation: i have no holiday plans, just to go for a walk - translation: i have no holiday plans, just to go for a walk in i plans, just to go for a walk in a place with a few people. in beijing this week there are to be more rounds of mass pcr testing, tens of millions of residents, then you have to use your phone apps to show that your phone apps to show that you have done these tests in order to gain access to public buildings, even corner shops, live music venues and other places for entertainment — they have been restricted. in terms of lockdowns at the moment, they are being applied only to housing communities or neighbourhoods, which already have clusters of cases. by getting an early but these measures, china is hoping it doesn't have to shut down another one of its megacities, with the pandemic really hammering the economy, hurting people's livelihoods and causing a fair amount of social instability. stephen mcdonnell reporting on that story for us from beijing. let's go somewhere, where we don't often get to on newsday, much to my regret, the british virgin islands. a british overseas territory in the caribbean, made up of around 50 islands and a population of around 35,000 people. sounds like paradise but, politically speaking, it's in turmoil. the country's premier you may have seen, was arrested on friday at miami airport, allegedly trying to smuggle drugs into america. andrew fahie was detained on drugs and money laundering charges, by us agents who were posing as cocaine traffickers from a mexican drug cartel. the country has long faced accusations of corruption and dishonesty within govenrment. and the day after fahie's arrest, a report commisioned by the islands' governor said the territory should be returned to direct rule from london, and its constitution suspended. from the british virgin islands, nomia iqbal reports. well, there were protests this morning where i'm standing, right outside the governor's house, of around about 200 people. and they were really angry. they showed up with signs saying, "cooperate, don't dominate", "no uk colonial rule", "uk, look after yourself, deal with their own "problems," that sort of thing. people are really angry about the idea, certainly the ones that were here this morning, of direct rule. when i put to them the results of this commission of inquiry, which basically said that there's a chronic failure of governance, just to quote the report, and basically everything that you need to make a government efficient is not happening here, they said we understand that, we understand there are problems here, but we don't think the uk taking direct rule is an answer. and they were outside the governor's house, as i say, as the uk delegation is inside meeting the governor, to make their feelings very clear. have a listen. so, why can we not be our authority on good governance and say we take your recommendations and we take your ci report and we see all the things that are wrong, and we are going to work here, the steps that we want to take to fix them ourselves before you come and tell us you're going to fix it for us. in britain, the number one reason for your brexit was migration and immigration and not being able to be controlled by germany and other eastern european countries. here we are now with the same predicament, facing the same challenges and now you are telling us that you know what's best for us. it's wrong. that gives you a strength of the feeling here on the islands ceraintly by those protesters this morning. what happens next? well, this today is day one of three days of meetings with the uk delegation and also the acting premier, natalio wheatley, who's made it clear that he doesn't want uk rule. he wants the top job full—time. he wants mr fahie to resign. as of yet, though, there is no official decision on the future of the islands. audiand audi andjoin audi and join the group, bowling speculation that the two brands were negotiating partnerships to enter the highest class of international motor racing, coming as fi drivers arrive in the us for the miami grand prix later this week. for more on this, let's speak to chris, former journalist of the fi and broadcaster, currently in miami. great to talk to you on the programme. did this news, a surprise? to be honest, no, not at all, they have been talks for a long time about audi and porsche coming into fi, and volkswagen looking to be involved in some way, and recent board meeting suggested it would happen but it wasn't fully signed. nothing too official, nobody to high ranking had come out and said, "it is definitely happening," it seemed that it was still being analysed and they were going to wait for the fi regulations for 2026. but, speaking today, however does did say they have made their decisions and really there is no argument against a touring f1, it is no argument against a touring fi, it is a great marketing ploy. fi, it is a great marketing ploy, good technology for them to be developing, so all the argument up that they should doing it. tell me what this means for formula i, the fact that these two brands are now entering the race. one thing that has to be made clear is that the two brands look like they will enter in partnership with existing teams. porsche have been heavily linked with red bull, supplying them with engines. audi have been linked with maybe poaching a stake in mclaren or even taking over mclaren, but other teams are also interested in a deal with audi as well, so it would be new team set up, it appears, they would sort of strengthen they would sort of strengthen the existing teams on the grid. it is a feather in the for f1, in the sense that we are looking get huge mobility, that somebody as big as audi can see the value in f1, but things also like synthetic fuels and other ways of a combustion engine, for example. it kind of gives fi a boost. just to say, singapore is hosting the fi later this year after a two—yet loll because of the pandemic. is this about injecting fresh ideas into the f1? a little bad, formula i has had to make they are getting ahead of technology, but also remaining relevant for the now and also entertaining for the fans who want to see the fastest cars racing. in 2026, the new regulations are looking like they will have a100% synthetic fuel or economic fuel, so these new manufacturers might come in and develop the technology themselves because they can transfer it to the road because, because it fixes the existing road car systems. that is where formula i wants to be. and also making some fairly big changes in 2026, resetting the rules again for new entrants to be more competitive, another reason why volkswagen wants to come in at this time. plus, you say, the sport is booming around the world. it is in singapore, around a number of other places, so they all want to be a part of the show. fantastic stuff, thank you. you're watching newsday on the bbc. still to come on the program... the new technology football clubs hope will help tackle repetitive concussions in sport. i, nelson rolihlahla mandela, do hereby swear to be faithful to the republic of south africa. after six years of construction and numerous delays, the channel tunnel has been formally opened by the queen and former president mitterand. the tunnel is still not ready for passenger and freight services to begin. for centuries, christianity and islam struggled for supremacy. now, the pope's visit symbolises their willingness to coexist. roger bannister becamel the first man in the world to run a mile in- underfour minutes. memories of victory, as the ve celebrations reach their climax. this night is dedicated to everyone who believes in our future of peace and freedom. this is newsday on the bbc. i'm karishma vaswani in singapore. our headlines: around 100 civilians have been evacuated from mariupol�*s besieged steelworks, but ukraine accuses russian forces of blocking humanitarian corridors in the area. 130,000 people remain trapped in the city. officials in eastern ukraine say they're on the verge of a humanitarian catastrophe, as russia continues its push to take over the donbas region. a special report for you now. as we've been reporting, the war in ukraine is forcing countries across europe to reconsider doing business with russia. it comes at a time when moscow's most powerful ally, china, continues to expand its economic interests in european countries. but there are allegations of worker exploitation, environmental damage, and so—called "debt traps", where beijing has stepped in to lend billions of dollars. china denies the accusations, and insists it's a reliable partner, and often offers investment where others are not willing. in the first of two special reports, our europe correspondent nick beake has been investigating key chinese projects in the balkans. it's an unmistakably chinese scene... ..from the workers to the offices. beijing is pouring money into this copper mine, hoping it's a golden gateway to further economic expansion. but this is not china — it's serbia, on the edge of the eu, where the red of the communist party is leaving its mark. translation: the chinese company treats us terribly. | we tracked down this vietnamese man, who said he'd paid $1,600 to come here for a construction job. they forced us to work more, but they did not provide enough supplies. there are 20 or 30 workers living together in each container. they treat us like slaves. after half a year, the father of three tried to leave but was stranded. only after taking out a $2,000 loan. this is the linglong tyre factory where he worked. employment contracts we've seen appear to be copied and pasted from the middle east. if you're caught stealing, your hand is chopped off. if you were to murder someone, you're beheaded. company did not respond to the various made against them. this is the most visible case of labour exploitation we had in the country so far. human rights groups say it's a warning, as chinese business expands further into europe. if you're actually having chinese companies coming to other countries and not having institutions who are strong enough to prevent human rights violations, or labour standards violations, or any other violations, you will have probably the race to the bottom with other companies. from serbia to neighbouring croatia. this former yugoslav country is in the european union and the eu is paying for its biggest infrastructure project, the peljesac bridge, but it is beijing built, down to the last boat. the tender from the chinese state owned company with 20% cheaper than its nearest competitor. european rivals called foul, but couldn't stop the deed. croatia and all other european countries face a delicate balancing act in dealing with beijing. concerns remain over alleged debt traps, cyber security, not to mention human rights, but there is a general reluctance to side exclusively with the united states and to reject all future chinese investment and big infrastructure projects. 50 investment and big infrastructure projects. infrastructure pro'ects. so in croatia, infrastructure pro'ects. so in creatia. we _ infrastructure pro'ects. so in croatia, we don't]— infrastructure projects. so in croatia, we don't have - infrastructure projects. so in croatia, we don't have fears| croatia, we don't have fears about — croatia, we don't have fears about chinese _ croatia, we don't have fears about chinese influence... i croatia, we don't have fears i about chinese influence... this about chinese influence. .. this academic— about chinese influence... this academic argues _ about chinese influence... this academic argues that - about chinese influence... academic argues that if european governments are smart and selective, they can benefit from partnerships with beijing. so if we exclude critical technologies, - so if we exclude critical technologies, if- so if we exclude critical technologies, if we - so if we exclude critical- technologies, if we cooperate on physical— technologies, if we cooperate on physical things _ technologies, if we cooperate on physical things like - on physical things like railways. _ on physical things like l railways, infrastructure umjects. _ railways, infrastructure umjects. i_ railways, infrastructure projects, i don't- railways, infrastructure projects, i don't think i railways, infrastructure - projects, i don't think there is much _ projects, i don't think there is much problem _ projects, i don't think there is much problem in - projects, i don't think there i is much problem in satisfying both— is much problem in satisfying both the _ is much problem in satisfying both the eu, _ is much problem in satisfying both the eu, nato, _ is much problem in satisfying both the eu, nato, the - is much problem in satisfying both the eu, nato, the us. is much problem in satisfying. both the eu, nato, the us and china — both the eu, nato, the us and china. ~ ., both the eu, nato, the us and china. ~ . , china. we asked five chinese ambassadors _ china. we asked five chinese ambassadors in _ china. we asked five chinese ambassadors in europe - china. we asked five chinese ambassadors in europe for. china. we asked five chinese| ambassadors in europe for an interview about beijing �*s vision for the continent, but none was available. but european countries are reassessing doing business with beijing, which has failed to condemn ally russia's attack on ukraine. it could mean europe watching more big chinese investment opportunities pass by. nick beake, bbc news, croatia. and we'll bring you nick's second report from greece and montenegro, here on newsday, at this time tomorrow. so do be sure to tune in for that and of course the programme as well. to a sporting story for you now, and research from the uk suggests that repetitive concussions in sport can have a damaging impact in later life, especially for women. the uk is about to unveil new rules, spelling out how long athletes must rest after being concussed. and a new scanning technology is being trialed, as our health editor, hugh pym reports. it's the game we love, but what are the risks? you've got to stay on the sides this time, let's go! thursday night training for actonians women's team. there are concerns about concussion and long—term injury from repetitive heading and collisions. people can see the serious risks that is coming over time. early research shows women can be more vulnerable than men. it only takes two people to go up for a header for a ball, you get each other's heads instead of the ball. you know, you're fully focused on winning that. it's time that now something serious happens about it, and there is more awareness, and it's good that it's finally arising, especiallyjust ahead of the euros this summer. just put your head back- slightly, please, towards me, a bit more. jess is trying out a new brain scanning device, one of several being developed around the world. click the mouse when you hear the high pitch. - the idea is that sports clubs could scan all players at the start of the season, using these images for comparison, if an injury occurs, looking at how the brain's been affected, and when it's safe to start playing again. you can stop now, relax, open your eyes, have a little rest. . is this applicable to all types of sporting clubs? absolutely. amateur, different age groups, notjust professional, it really is realistic, is it? absolutely, it's - absolutely realistic. it doesn't matter whether - you're amateur, whether you're elite, whether you're at horse racing, whether you're - at boxing, whether you're at football, hockey, - rugby — it doesn't matter, j you can have one of these in your physiotherapist's kit room, and if somebody- is concussed, for whatever - reason, it's applicable to them at that time. so how did jess get on with her trial run with the scanning device? , ., trial run with the scanning device? i. , device? so your scan with these data is going — device? so your scan with these data is going to _ device? so your scan with these data is going to look— device? so your scan with these data is going to look like - data is going to look like that, _ data is going to look like that, like _ data is going to look like that, like the _ data is going to look like that, like the front - data is going to look like that, like the front one, | data is going to look like i that, like the front one, the baseline _ that, like the front one, the baseline. that's _ that, like the front one, the baseline. that's normal. - that, like the front one, the baseline. that's normal. nice! you've got _ baseline. that's normal. nice! you've got a — baseline. that's normal. nice! you've got a brain! _ baseline. that's normal. nice! you've got a brain! laughterj baseline. that's normal. nice! | you've got a brain! laughter. it's earl you've got a brain! laughter. it's early days _ you've got a brain! laughter. it's early days for _ you've got a brain! laughter. it's early days for the - it's early days for the technology. more studies are needed to assess if it might help. new uk wide concussion rules are due to be drawn up later this year, building on what is in place in scotland. the aim is letting people play their favourite sports, while keeping them safe. hugh pym, bbc news. just time to share some pictures with you of a record—breaking diamond. here it is, more than 228 carats in size, a white gemstone, originally from south africa, known as the rock. it's expected to fetch upwards of $30 million when it is auctioned in geneva later this month. as you can see, it's pear—shaped, and has not yet been put into a setting. but by the looks of things, weighing in at 45 grams, orjust over one and a half ounces, it might bejust a bit too big to be used as an engagement ring. maybe not for everyone, and whoever that is would be a very lucky woman indeed, if indeed diamond are what catches your fancy. diamond are what catches your fancy. that's all for now. stay with bbc world news. hello, there. cloud was the main weather feature for many places on bank holiday monday, and we take lots of that cloud with us into tuesday. the cloud showing up here on our earlier satellite picture. it is low cloud. it's turning things quite misty and murky in places, and there are some weak frontal systems just providing enough impetus to give a little bit of rain and drizzle, here and there. but a mostly cloudy start to tuesday, some spots of rain and drizzle around. and where things brighten up, perhaps most especially in southern england and wales, where we see some sunshine, we will also see some scattered heavy showers and the odd thunderstorm breaking out into the afternoon. many spots will stay quite cloudy. rather cool for some north sea coasts. ten degrees for aberdeen and newcastle, 16 for cardiff, 17 in london. and we see some showery rain into northern ireland through the afternoon. that will push across a good part of scotland through the evening, and then getting down into parts of england and wales through the early hours of wednesday. but the rain, quite fragmented, quite hit and miss. there'll still be some lengthy dry spells, a mild start to wednesday morning. those outbreaks of rain brought about by this very weak frontal system. it's running into relatively high pressure, so that means it's certainly not going to be a wash—out. the rain very hit and miss, very sporadic. some showery bursts of rain tending to clear eastwards. then we'll see some sunshine on wednesday, some brighter skies, generally, but quite a few showers, some of which will be heavy and thundery. it will be a warmer day, highs for many between 15—19 degrees. and that theme continues, as we head towards the end of the week. high pressure building to the south, frontal systems running to the north—west of the uk, and this broadly south—westerly flow of air bringing some rather warm conditions in our direction. so, thursday looks like this. much of england and wales will be dry with some sunny spells and just the odd shower. northern ireland and scotland seeing more cloud and some splashes of rain at times, but not all the time. but the temperatures, 15 degrees there for glasgow, 16 for belfast, but 21 in london, maybe somewhere towards the south east getting to 22 degrees. now, on friday, there'll some warmth once again towards the south east of the uk. but this band of rain looks like it will make some progress southwards, and behind that, something just a little bit cooler and fresher. so, temperatures of 12 degrees for stornoway, but 20 the high in london. explosion for weeks, volodomyr zelensky has been leading from the front as ukraine resists russia's invasion. explosion comforting the war�*s many victims, berating ukraine's enemies... ..and demanding more from her allies.