dust of afghanistan. back in ukraine, this is what they are facing. ground littered with russian mines and explosives. ukraine is now the most heavily mined country in the world and it is what has bogged down their advance. russia has laid hundreds of thousands of mines across ukraine, scattered over an area the size of florida. in some places, the minefields are ten kilometres deep. and in just one square metre there could be as many as five mines. sappers are now being targeted by russian forces so they mostly have to conduct their work at night and there are simply not enough of them. what you describe being a sapper in ukraine at the moment as being the most dangerous job in the world? yes, absolutely. are a lot of them being killed by mines, by russian artillery because they are working on the front line? have you lost many friends? what message would you like to send to the west? keep going. we need your help. is that because you are worried that the west will not keep going? because we will not make it by our own. when we make stuff safe we should make sure the other teams... this training and support is appreciated. the uk has also supplied ukraine with 1500 mine detectors, the hope that it will make a difference. we are fellow soldiers at the end of the day and we share experiences throughout the course of our experiences and their experiences and we train together. and you think you have given them the skills to stay alive? we have added to them. the clock is ticking on the ukrainian offensive and are still in their way or the minefields, and the booby—traps laid on an industrial scale. the slow roll—out their homeland. this is a journey no one squeezed into their regular this is a journey no one squeezed into their vehicles ever imagined they would make. ethnic armenians fleeing nagorno—karabakh on whatever transport they can find. it is a week since azerbaijan seized back the enclave. it did promise to protect the armenian majority there but no one we found dared believe that. instead, they flooded here to armenia. we met this family of seven who had crammed their entire lives into a few cases. hungry and exhausted after more than a day crushed into one car. and still reeling from what they have had to give up. translation: it was tough there but it was our - land for generations. armenian land and now today we are here, we are homeless. armenia initially prepared to host 40,000 refugees. it could be facing many more. the cars keep coming through the mountains. there are still hundreds of people leaving nagorno—karabakh every single hour. people have left behind their homes and their land and almost everything they own and i have not met a single person who has told me they think they are ever going back. this is not a temporary evacuation, it is an exodus. we cannot get to nagorno—karabakh from armenia now azerbaijan is in control but a localjournalist recalled told me everyone he knows plans to leave as soon as the giant traffic jams die down. translation: there was a war but things are really hard. - before that too. so people did not really think long about whether to stay or go. they decided to leave. because we lost, it was a capitulation. so what can we do? in a nearby town there is now a desperate crush for information and for aid. from people who suddenly have nothing. there are donations though not much. and no clear picture on for all of these people will end up. and many are still shaken by two days of shelling last week. as azerbaijan retook nagorno—karabakh by force this woman and her grandchildren huddled in their cellar. she has now had to tell them they will not be going home because she is scared to live under the rule of azerbaijan. so they have joined the crowds now heading into uncertainty. as the face of nagorno—karabakh is transformed. driving across niger, the countryside appears peaceful. but despite the veneer of normality, this is one of the ten deadliest countries in the world for terrorism. pro—junta protestors have been camped outside a french military base for weeks. they said the french have failed to stop the terror attacks. every friday since the military transition in this country, friday prayers have been held here right outside the french military base, hundreds of people are in attendance and in the sermon today the imam was preaching patience saying in a divorce between a man and a woman it takes time and similarly he says niger is divorcing with france and that will take time. for the imam, perceived french hypocrisy is to blame. translation: why is emmanuel macron saying he does not - recognise our authorities when he has recognised juntas in other countries like gabon and chad. that is what has made us angry and we think france takes us for idiots. the junta has seized on talk of resentment at the french to argue that niger can go it alone. i asked the newly appointed governor whether the junta can keep his country safe from terrorists. he replies that niger forces have obese ensured he replies that niger forces have always ensured the safety of their people and can defend their country without foreign partners. but those opposed to the coup believe the departure of french troops could be dangerous. translation: in the fight against terrorists, france i is a key partner that provides most of the intelligence that helps us beat the terrorists trying to attack niger. but many local people are frustrated with the lack of progress when it comes to the war on terror. this woman is originally from one of the regions worst affected byjihadi violence. she tells me her mother's cousin, a village chief was assassinated by terrorists seven months ago, they killed him by slitting his throat. she does not believe the french have successfully reduced terrorism. there has been some progress in the fight against extremism, last year terror—related deaths in nigerfell by 79%. no—one critical of the junta will speak to us on the record and the military follow our every move so it is unclear what proportion of the population wants the french to stay but as france loses its last base in the sahel, its influence in the region has been dealt a blow. the government is working on a bill that would make surrogacy a universal crime. many gay couples say their chance of having a family is destroyed. you are having to seek political asylum? and considering all the possible ways to escape as quick as possible. so is the italian government eroding the rights of lgbt families? i grew up here in italy and this is a country where the influence of the catholic church has always been strong. gay marriages is illegal and same sex couples have fewer rights than in most of western europe. surrogacy, adoption or artificial insemination is against the law. surrogacy is when a woman carries a pregnancy for another couple and it has been illegal in italy per year so same—sex couples travel to countries where it is regulated such as the us, canada or the uk. then they bring their newborn babies back home. like mauro and mauricio, who have been together for 20 years and they have twins born to a surrogate in america. smiling and laughing a lot. for louisa, she is caring, she seems to need more protection. as a gay couple how difficult has it been to become parents in italy? very difficult, we considered adopting but italy it is impossible to adopt for a gay couple. so for them surrogacy was the only option to become fathers. but now, the italian parliament is working on a bill that would make surrogacy a universal crime. that means that couples who go abroad to undertake surrogacy in countries where it is legal could face a i million euros fine and up to two years injail. to be the son of a universal crime is a stigma on our children, like in the '70s it was a stigma to be born out of wedlock. the parliament is casual about the new law against surrogacy because it was full of lies and it is painful to us. what is a universal crime? it's a crime so serious it is prosecuted even if committed abroad but that is normally human trafficking, paedophilia or war crimes. it feels odd that surrogacy which is legal in many countries would fall under this category. many people feel that this is about ideology, it is a political attack and it is personal. so what have italian politicians been saying about this? the political debate has been extremely fractious. the politicians, when they talk about surrogacy, they call it uterus for rent which is terrible. there is no dignity for all the people involved. in calling a woman an uterus, 0k? and saying she is for rent. because they want to humiliate anybody, if you call it uterus for rent you cannot have a positive opinion about that, how can you say oh yes, it is good? no other country in the world has a similar ban but is making surrogacy a universal crime legal? in this case therel is a contradiction. italian criminal law— would like to punish as crimes things that are perfectly legal in the country - in which they are performed. would it really be possible to tell country such as the united states, canada, that they are allowing illegal activities within their borders? this bill is saying precisely that to countries that - are our allies, that they are l performing illegal procedures in their own legal systems l and it is a very serious issue in international- relations, i believe. it is not just about surrogacy. the italian government is using other ways to come down on lgbt parents, they described it to me as a small but systematic ambushes that are making it more difficult for them to create a family. and critics of the italian government are pointing to what is happening to 33 young children born to lesbian parents in northern italy. my name is valentina. my name is daniela. she is katarina, our daughter. we are teachers. our love story started very quickly. we fell in love. it was love at first sight. katarina was born using a danish sperm donor. she was registered in italy as having two mothers. but in december only a couple of months after the government took power, their world was turned upside down. all lesbian mothers in the area received letters from the public prosecutor, challenging their children's birth certificates. all queer people are under attack. 0ur families are not really families. in the opinion of the actual government. that decision has left several children suspended in legal limbo. because daniela is not the biological mother, she cannot have parenting rights to her child. we feel like the italian government is going through a battle against children but is absolutely violent and absurd. and very dangerous. for the future of these children. but the prime minister says children deserve the best and that is being raised by a mother and father. she says it is so many times that her words were remixed into a house music song that played in clubs and on the radio. i wanted to speak to someone in government about this so i am going to meet the mp who drafted the bill that would make surrogacy a universal crime. she believes even in countries like the us and canada where surrogacy is regulated, women do it for the money. we are on our way to meet two men who are expecting a baby three surrogacy and they are really scared of what could happen to them and their baby. and so they have asked us not to reveal their identity or where they live. they fear someone in government could watch this, figure out who they are and target them. how do you feel about the fact that you are about to become parents for the first time? it is super, super exciting. considering that it is not an easy process. we are finally getting there. if the bill is passed before their baby is born, they could face severe consequences. i am afraid that our child will not have his parents because their parents are injail. if the baby comes and we're going to go to jail, who takes care of the baby? in that case, we have to be ready to escape as quick as possible. they are looking for countries where it is easier for them to be gay parents, like malta and the netherlands. you would have to pack up and move? yes, in the worst scenario, yes. we have to. how do you feel about having to leave the country you were born in? i feel really bad because it took time to create a good environment, a good community. i would not like to leave my country because i had a good job and i am proud to be italian. i am feeling judged for something which is not a crime, actually, i have been trying to be part of this society, be honest in order to be a good citizen and now you are telling me i am a criminal. so do you feel like you are having to seek political asylum? yes, i do. ifeel like i am being exiled for having done something which is actually normal. so becoming a father. without exploiting anybody. exploitation is the accusation often used against these couples but they say they have a great relationship with their surrogate. a few weeks ago she sent them this letter with a gift. congratulations on your baby boy. we are so grateful you chose us to go on this journey with you. this is a very special bear, enjoy your gift! we cannot wait to see you. all our love. it was written like a hug and then we hugged it and there was a sound and there was a heartbeat. and this is a symbol of everything, of the journey. so we are not doing anything bad. so far there is no suggestion the government will back down. the proposal to make surrogacy a universal crime is likely to become law. chipping away at the already fragile status of italy's lgbt community. everyone we spoke to told us that they are not going to give up. they don't want their children to be treated as second—class citizens just because they have two mothers or fathers, no matter what the italian government does next. they will keep fighting for the right to have a family. we need to be vigilant and we need to fight for our rights. they think they had the right to give us the permission to live our lives? this is discrimination. this is homophobia. they could not stop us in the past. and they will not stop us in the future. hello. it's going to stay quite warm for the foreseeable future. the weather, though, a bit of a mixed bag. we had plenty of damp weather on saturday and we're also forecasting rain, at least for a time, on sunday but bright weather, i think, for the majority of us. now, here's the satellite picture. a conveyor belt of clouds stretching from the south—west, spreading across the uk. that's the weather front. to the south of it, we've got that warm and quite humid airstreaming in. that means a lot of mist and murk around some south—western and western coasts through the early hours. and you can see where the rain is around parts of wales, into north—western england and across parts of northern england, too. but a lot of dry weather as well, though quite overcast. temperatures at 7:00 in the morning, 17 in the south, about 15 there in newcastle, so a really mild start to the day. now, here's the forecast for the morning. you can see where it's raining from wales through northern england. a lot of sunshine for scotland and northern ireland. a beautiful morning and afternoon with highs possibly even up to 20 degrees around the scottish borders and also newcastle, 23 or 2a degrees across east anglia and the south—east, so temperatures are going to be more like august, really. now into monday, the weather front�*s still here. it's trailing way out into the atlantic. it keeps spreading over us. so, again, a chance of some rain, i think in the form of quite heavy showers and even a crack of thunder is possible. there'll be a few showers around western parts of scotland but i think a little bit fresher here with these atlantic winds. 15 in glasgow, still 22, 23, maybe 2a degrees celsius in london and the south—east. now, here's tuesday's weather map and you can see quite a few isobars there. that means a feral breeze blowing off the atlantic. it's going to be more or less a westerly. but high pressure is fairly close by. that high pressure will be building across the uk. so, here's tuesday, then. a few showers across many western and northern areas. i think it'll feel a little bit fresher around these western coasts — i6, 17 celsius. we may nudge to about 20 or so in london, but i think it's the teens for most of us on tuesday. and here's a snapshot of the week and you can see that the best of the weather across the south of the country but overall, actually, not too bad with a few showers here and there. live from washington, this is bbc news. the us congress has narrowly averted a government shutdown with just hours to spare, after the senate approved a temporary funding bill. 100,000 people have fled nagorno—karabakh, meaning the entire ethnic armenian population of the disputed region has left. in pakistan, an investigation has begun into twin deadly blasts. hello, i'm sumi somaskanda. let's start with breaking news here in washington. president biden is expected to sign a bill soon to avoid a government shutdown. money to fund it is due to run out in less than an hour. 88 days, nine nose. the will is passed. just hours ago, the senate voted to advance a stopgap spending measure passed by the house earlier. -- 88 —— 88 votes for yes, nine votes for no. it does not include more aid for ukraine — something opposed by some hard—right

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