this is the kashmir the indian government wants the world to see. beautiful, serene, filled with tourists. away from sight is the more grim picture. a painful long running conflict, more recently a clampdown on democratic rights. journalists who can bring out people's voices and the grim realities say they are being silenced by the government. this kashmiri reporter pictured here at one of his court hearings. he has been injailforfive years charged under terror laws. his father, mohammed, says his son was targeted for this article he wrote about an anti—india militant. translation: everyone knows he is innocent, i he is a professional reporter and was jailed for his writing about the militancy. they wanted to make an example out of him. he dared to cover topics the government does not approve of. at the time of his arrest, his daughter was six years old. she might have been reunited with her father when he was given bail last year. but on the day of his release, no charges were brought. he was kept injail. it is part of a troubling pattern. this journalist was jailed for a criminal conspiracy. this well known magazine editor, arrested on terrorism charges. whenever they are granted bail, new cases are filed to keep them in custody. most recently, this journalis,t who has worked with international outlets was jailed for alleged links to terror funding. this complex which now houses an office of the kashmir police until last year at this is where the kashmir press club used to be, the main body in the region which is to stand up for the rights ofjournalists. last year it was shut by the government and in its absence journalists say they have nowhere to turn to if they feel threatened and it isn'tjustjailing, we have heard of other forms of intimidation, dozens ofjournalists in the region are on no—fly lists prevented from leaving the country, dozens ofjournalists have not had their passports renewed. we have spoken to 20 journalists on the ground each of whom have told us they have been called by the police and questioned about stories they had done or social media posts put out. this reporter told us about one such experience. he does not want to be identified, fearing reprisal. i started getting calls from the police over a story i wrote. they kept asking why i had done it and i was questioned in person. they told me they know everything about me and my family which felt scary. i kept thinking would i be arrested or harmed physically? what impact has that had on yourjournalism? instead of thinking about whether i have enough facts in the report i worry about whether it will land me in trouble. we are self censoring, there is an attempt to silence the press in kashmir once and for all. mostjournalists told us they give reprisal by the state mostjournalists told us they fear reprisal by the state but in a conflict between indian forces and underground militant outfits some say there are other dangers. i spoke to a journalist who received threats from an insurgent group. working as a journalist in kashmir is like walking on a razor edge. there are threats from all sides and i am constantly afraid of a bullet coming at me and no one will ever find out who fired that. the impact onjournalism is evident when you look at the papers on any given day. the front pages are pretty much full of statements from either the national government or the regional administration, there are lots of sob stories but there is barely anyjournalism there are lots of soft stories but there is barely anyjournalism in here holding the government to account. we asked the police and the regional administration to respond to the allegations made byjournalists who spoke to us. they have not replied. in press statements, the administrative head of the region has insisted as absolute press in kashmir. as absolute press freedom in kashmir. what we found belies the claims. on ground in kashmir, press freedom has all but been eroded. fanning the flames of a bitter conflict, this year has seen a dramatic rise in violence and vandalism committed by radicaljewish settlers against settlements in the occupied west bank. this palestinian village recently mourned a 19—year—old shot dead. locals said they had rushed to protect farmland from armed settlers. in an unusually strong rebuke, the us called the killing of the young man jewish terrorism. his relative is afraid to show her face. no one knows who the next victim will be, no one will protect us. if, god forbid, there are any other confrontations or attacks, our government cannot legally do anything. israel has full control over 60% of the west bank and its soldiers protect hundreds of thousands of settlers. most of the world sees all of the settlements as illegal but israel is approving an increasing number and new unauthorised jewish outposts are also being set up like one in this olive grove owned by palestinians. this man tells me the bible is his deed to this hilltop and far right members of the israeli cabinet share his ideology. translation: we have an expectation from the government that _ were selected by right—wing votes to settle the land, expand the settlement is not hurt them. our vision is all the land of israel will be settled withjews. these rolling hills are part of the west bank, palestinians who live here have long hoped it would make a large chunk of a state of their own but with hard israeli minister is totally opposed to that ministers totally opposed to that now in power, building settlements is being approved at record speed with the goal to cement an israeli presence, to change the landscape. without grazing land for their sheep, palestinian herders were for the future. fear for the future. this month nearly 90 people fled from the slopes they had lived for generations, blaming settler harassment. translation: they used to stop outside our house at midnight - and honked their car horns or send kids to harass us. they would scare sheep or block the men or empty the water tank. settlers are emboldened by the new political reality in israel. and there is a sense of impunity that adds to palestinian resentment. with huge new investment in settlements, hostility is here only look set to deepen. china's recent floods hit hard, imports of the country in parts of the country not accustomed to them. and its meteorological administration says both extreme temperatures and precipitation have definitely increased in recent decades. it's one thing to talk about climate change in the abstract, quite another to consider real human impacts. this whole town is having to rebuild after the recent floods and all these businesses have been completely trashed by the floodwaters and the people here, they do not know how they will get back to the way their lives were. both this man's shops in a province were submerged by floodwaters. translation: it will take me 8-10j years to recover from these losses. the government has not said whether it will compensate us. every year flooding in china seems worse and official statistics appear to confirm that. in 2011 the country recorded six floods per month during the summer but this year, there are ten times as many. the impact has even struck the overall food supply in china, in august 40% of the famous rice crop was wiped out by flooding. translation: when i saw the water hit here, i cried. | the crops are gone, i lost everything. i it is hard. it is hard to calculate. in the south, where flooding is supposed to happen, there are fears of drought closing in. this man grew up next to a lake and drives a boat out to an island when there is enough water. translation: this year's water level is very low. i older people say this has only occurred once before in the early 1950s. since the song dynasty 1,000 years ago the temple has been surrounded by water during the rainy season. recent droughts have exposed it much earlier. a couple of months ago, all of this was underwater but as the waters have receded, the island behind me has become accessible by land, and this historic site has become something of an environmental barometer to measure whether water levels are where they should be at any given time of year. extreme weather is focusing attention on climate change in china. but can this huge country combine with the rest of the world quickly enough to do something about it? my dad lived there for five years, my parents, i lived there for four years and we all went down with cancer and we all seem to have had it, with the same sort of time period. we were told not to even pass in the water, do not even washing it. there is increasing. international concern. it is a massive public health risk. overlooking the west coast ofjersey coastline there is a cluster of farms and houses lying at the foot of the airport. nestled amongst the sand dunes the landscape is isolated and peaceful and yet it was the heart of chemical contamination. almost a0 years ago, firefighting foam made by american company 3m and tested at the airport training ground leaked into private borehole water supplies. it was 1985 when people living in the area began to report signs of a mysterious form spilling out from taps and drains. this farm is one of the closest properties to the airport. and farmer ted was amongst the first to notice something was not quite right. over here, from the cold water tap, the kitchen sink, virtually like a head of beer on the top and continue to overflow. i called public health first of all, i think. they took some samples of the water and took it back to 3m and they came back and said they confirmed it was foam and we were told not to even bath in the water. do not even do washing in it. on one sunday afternoon ted returned to find the hill connecting the fire training ground and his farm covered in white foam, destroying his cauliflower crop. it was as if there had been a snowstorm, our programme was affected, we were short of cauliflower for a period. probably in excess of £1000. we now know the form contained toxic man—made chemicals found in all sorts of things from saucepans and clothes to food packaging and are known as forever chemicals because they do not break down. they find their way into water sources across the world and most people have a small quantity of these in their blood. this was just the beginning of what has been a very long battle for islanders. these letters and reports and photos have been shared with me by local people and showjust how highly contentious this issue has been for decades. but what do these documents actually tell us? in 1985 when the foam was first discovered, the airport said they only used water at their training ground. in 1990, a sample confirmed the foam contained products including three 3m's lightwater foam used at the airport. in 1993 the airport took responsibility for the contamination. the airport provider, provided bottled water and recommended properties to switch to mains drinking water but refused to pay for better rates until later. thejersey evening post asked: why any householder whose water supply was polluted by a state department should have to pay a penny to be able to help your drinking water again? in the years that followed, a small research linked pfas to serious health concern some jersey residents began to question whether the illnesses were down to chemical poisoning. bladder cancer, kidney cancer, thyroid problems. graham and his family lived in a cottage just north of the training ground in the mid—1990s. my dad lived there for five years, my parents and i lived there for four years and we all went down with cancer and we all seem to have had it in the same sort of time period. at the age of 52, i was diagnosed with a blood cancer. they said i could have possibly had it for even 20 years. your family does not have a history of cancer? there was no real history of serious cancer. 3.5 years ago i went in for stem cell transplant which was horrendous for anybody to go through and my young son had to witness all the pain and suffering that went on and it's something that has affected him to this day. the toxic effects of the chemicals were relatively unknown at the time of contamination. in 2005, thejersey government were about to sign a confidential settlement with the chemical manufacture to finance clearing up the area. something some ministers tried desperately to block. we believe the states ofjersey should not surrender forever their ability to sue the manufacturers of the foam and we do not know what the evolving science is going to demonstrate to us in five or ten or 15 years. |that can take many years, in that time, that a case against the four manufacturer would not improve. despite pushback the deal was signed and sm gave thejersey government £2.6 million which went towards cleaning up the area. the jersey evening post which i work for along with the daily express had a front page of the time: secret deal in the state assembly so we knew it existed. this man is a localjournalist and after reporting extensively he was leaked a couple of the deal revealing the jersey government had revealing thejersey government had given up their right to sue 3m and would support the chemical company of any locals took legal action. that was the thing that struck me, i was surprised the government would be willing to commit to work against their own residents should they feel as though they want to make a case. i have some sympathy for the government at the time. this was announced, they had to clean up the fire training ground and also you've got to remember at the time that the nefarious implications of pfas and the links with potential cancer and other elements was not fully known. ailments was not fully known. in hindsight, i think they made a mistake. i think the government still has the opportunity to make good any wrongs of the past. after years of lobbying thejersey government agreed to test the blood of people living near the airport for pfas, one of the only places in the world to do so. in 2022 the results showed many had higher levels than normal of two pfas compounds and other graham's results were not amongst the highest he has undergone a stem cell transplant and cancer treatment since exposure. this man lived just outside the catchment area and did not qualify for the government testing programme but he took an independent test result through a german lab which showed his levels were three times higher than the national standard. i grew up in the west of the island in the environs of it, i went to nursery school in the bay. i spent a large chunk of my time down there on the beach. playing with friends. it showed to me this is a significant issue and it's not just affecting those who live in the so—called boom in the so—called "plume area" around the airport. jersey �*s public health has set any scientific panel to investigate pfas related concerns and to advise the government. we are in this area which is a bit of a grey area. most of the international research is showing there is a link if you like, an association between pfas and poor health but it is still not quite proving that pfas was the cause. the environmental protection agency says pfas can cause serious health problems like cancer, the european environmental health agency links pfas with high certainty to health issues including certain cancers and thyroid problems, the us environmental protection security imposed restrictions on drinking water, fire is still saying there was not enough research? there was an awful lot of overlap, i agree. there is increasing concern and we need to sort good research from the poor quality research. we aim to be as transparent as we possibly can. whatever is killing those cows is in the drinking water. forever chemicals have even caught the attention of hollywood. i defend chemical companies. well, now you can defend me. dark water sport pfas contamination to the global stage. 190 cows. tell me nothing is wrong here. based on the true story of a lawyer who took on chemical giant dupont when it contaminated a small town in west virginia with toxic chemicals and that lawyer, described as a whistle—blower on water contamination says chemical giants have known about the dangers for decades. this is a massive - public health threat. we are talking about chemicals that are being found _ in the drinking water and in people all over the planet. _ and at levels that franklyj are raising real concerns. some of these companies that. actually created and invented this chemicals going back right around the time of world war ii, - we see when we started to dig - into internal documents from these companies, is that they were aware i these chemicals would not break down in the environment, that's why we hear them refer. to as forever chemicals, _ there is more than adequate evidence to support the concern - about the public health threat. this is evidence that has been used in cases? this has been laid out tojuries, it's been subject to incredible . scrutiny for decades now. when we approached 3m for comment they said they stopped they said they will stop manufacturing pfas and will work to discontinue its use in their products by the end of 2025 saying: but forever chemicals have already found their way into water sources around the world. authorities now face big decisions on how to handle contamination. residents in the town of richmond will get a share of $130 million in compensation for property is polluted for propertys polluted by toxic phone once used by the defence force. health issues arising from the contamination have not been resolved. the australian government recently paid out millions to affected residents living in pfas contaminated areas. jersey's residents have yet to receive any compensation. in 1995, affected islanders tried their best to launch legal action against the airport but were told by their lawyer that it would be pointless to pursue any legal claim without enough scientific data. when he first noticed it, it was a long time before we did. 30 years on some residents are tired of fighting. i'm not wealthy enough to tackle them. it is a simple as that. it is like taking on the government. you are not going to win. you want to get on with life? yeah. 0thers encouraged by emerging research think legal action could be the only red. could be the only route. the first thing you want is their health back but that will not happen so that less financial compensation. would that come from jersey? i believe it should because the states ofjersey are ultimately responsible and they also took money from 3m. if the state ofjersey does not start to do the right thing by these people then i think you will see collective action legally taken against the states ofjersey. he is one of ten residents who have spoken to a law firm about potential collective legal action. they are interested in bringing a claim because they believe health concerns they have experienced may not be related to pfas because of the blood test results they have health received. should any action be had, this potentially could be the first of its kind. we will be at the very early stages of any potential claim and at this stage we are not sure who any potential defendant would be although it's likely to be the states ofjersey entity and potentially the manufacturer of the chemicals. we approached thejersey government for an interview which they repeatedly declined and said in a statement, we take the issues of pfas very seriously, there is no international agreement about how to interpret the results so it's difficult to reach conclusions on the levels in the blood that has been tested. it's been more than four decades since toxic forever chemicals found their way into local borehole water. residents living down the slope from the airport have still not received a penny of compensation they feel they deserve. for them, it's still a forever problem and after years of lobbying, it is clear they are not giving up. this journey is not yet over. i do not feel it is over, i think there is a lot more to say and discover. i never thought it would travel as far as it has. the voices will become more angry and and it's not going away. - hello. we've got a september heat wave building over the next few days. lots of dry, sunny, very warm, if not hot weather with temperatures probably peaking wednesday, thursday into the low 30s in the very hottest parts of the country. now, looking at the weather picture today, we did start off with a bit of morning mist and fog that all cleared out of the way to reveal these blue and sunny skies. and it's been like that pretty much for the whole of the day. the exception has been the far north of scotland, where we have had some thicker cloud and that's been bringing few patches of rain to the hebrides, parts of highland, 0rkney and shetland as well. temperatures with that cloud and rain being a little bit suppressed across the far north of scotland. but otherwise it's been warm for the rest of scotland and northern ireland. england and wales, mid—to—high 20s for some. now overnight tonight, we'll keep the clear skies going. again, there could be a few mist and fog patches developing later in the night with temperatures slowly drifting down to between 12 and 16 degrees for most of us. and the weather over the next few days is dominated by this area of high pressure that's overalljust to the east of the uk. and it's this that's going to be bringing us a long spell of dry, sunny, very warm, if not hot weather. now for the details on monday. mist and fog, patches clearing plenty of sunshine for the vast majority. a brighter day for the hebrides and the highlands. 0rkney, too. but shetland could continue to see some thicker cloud and occasional spots of rain. temperatures rising, probably mid 20s and the very warmest parts of scotland and northern ireland. but highs are set to hit about 27 into parts of england and wales. we've got more of that very warm, sunny weather to come on tuesday as well. probably some thicker cloud just for a time working across the northern isles. so probably bright if not sunny here. but for most of us, the sunshine back out in full force. and again, another very warm day. those temperatures are set to rise a bit further as we head towards the middle part of the week. but again, could see a bit of mist and fog first thing in the morning. the hottest weather towards eastern england where we could see temperatures on wednesday afternoon hitting 30 degrees celsius, which isn't too far away from the highest temperature of the year, which currently stands at 32.2. and the dry, sunny, very warm weather last for most of us into the first part of next weekend. probably a change on sunday with rain returning. live from london, this is bbc news. ukraine's military says it has managed to break through key russian defences near the south—eastern city of zaporizhzhia. headteachers in england race to find ways to reopen their schools after being told to shut buildings made with unsafe concrete. a powerful typhoon has hit southern taiwan, the biggest storm to strike the island for four years, bringing heavy rain and winds of up to 190 kilometres an hour. hello, you're watching bbc news. i'm frankie mccamley. ukraine's military says it's managed to break through key russian defences near the south—eastern city of zaporizhzhia. general 0leksandr tarnavskyi told the observer newspaper that extensive minefields had blocked troops for several weeks, leaving them vulnerable to russian shellfire and drone attacks, but the general claimed that painstaking mine clearance work has now allowed his forces to advance and they expect to face far weaker russian defences ahead. sources in the ukrainian army have confirmed the breakthrough to the bbc. an adviser to president zelensky, aleksander rodnyansky, explained the significance for kyiv�*s forces. we've been waiting for this moment for quite some time, we've been hoping that we would pierce through the russian defence line, the first defence line, which was the hardest to pierce through, if you believe military experts when they talk about it. so hopefully now when we reach the second and third lines