september's data is expected to show record crossings. in august, however, us border patrol apprehended just over 181,000 people along the southern border. that's up almost 50,000 injust one month, when you comparejuly�*s number of about 132,000. and mexico's president, andres manuel lopez 0brador, said that last week alone, 10,000 people arrived at the border every day. addressing a news conference in mexico city, the us secretary of homeland security, alejandro mayorkas, said the biden administration had little choice but to go ahead with the wall project, saying the funding was already in place. there is no new administration policy with respect to the portable. from day one, this administration has made clear that a border wall is not the answer. we spoke earlier to republican congressman ralph norman, who supports a wall but is heavily critical of the biden administration's immigration policy. in 2020, his platform was not building the wall anymore. according tojoe biden, it is not a serious policy solution and he did not think walls work, which is total insanity. now he has proposed 20 miles to be built on starr county in texas. he is using the funds that have already been appropriated in 2019 and dhs is a right to use those funds for that purpose. here is what is interesting, what has changed? i tell you what has changed, american people are sick and tired of seeing their cities overrun, their hospitals full, their schools are full, the police having to deal with illegals who they do not have any background, they have no information on them, they put themselves at physical risk and it is really an insult. the biden administration is totally doing this for power and if they were really serious, they would call oup the military and stop everybody from crossing. it would not be that hard to do. president trump built over 200 miles of wall so you have to stop them at the point of entry and, you know, it is an insult for him to say it did not work for now to say it did work. i do not put any stock in what he says and whether he would actually do it. i was actually out there, this steal was on ground, the contractors are being paid to do nothing. it is an insult but we see what happens. the mayor of new york city, eric adams, is also on a visit to mexico, where he is caling for immigration reform in the us. where he is calling for immigration reform in the us. mr adams said new york could not take in any more asylum seekers, claiming some 100,000 people had arrived in his city over the past few months. we wa nt we want to give a real picture of what is happening in new york city. we are at capacity and many people believe, when you enter new york city, you're going to automatically have a job, you are automatically going to be living in a hotel, and there isjust going to be living in a hotel, and there is just a climate thatis and there is just a climate that is not a reality. live now to mayorjoel villarreal. he is the mayor of rio grande city. right along the southern border. your city has witnessed this rising number of migrants crossing the border. what is the situation in your city right now?— the situation in your city right now? the situation in your city riaht now? ., ~ ., ., right now? thank you for having me on. right now? thank you for having me on- the _ right now? thank you for having me on. the reality _ right now? thank you for having me on. the reality is, _ right now? thank you for having me on. the reality is, we - right now? thank you for having me on. the reality is, we have l me on. the reality is, we have had this before, influxes for the last several decades under every presidential administration but right now we are seeing an influx once more. we have had several months ago, several influxes as well but right now we are seeing hundreds of thousands of people coming through and that the border patrol, cbp, are doing a phenomenaljob processing them. sometimes the migrant processing capabilities are compromised with which does compromised with which does compromised national security because we must exercise crushes against global enemies exploiting a broken immigration system... iii exploiting a broken immigration system... ii i exploiting a broken immigration s stem... _, , system... ifi could “ump me in, with h system... ifi could “ump me h, with the h system... ifi couldjump me in, with the suspension - system... ifi couldjump me in, with the suspension of. system... if i couldjump me| in, with the suspension of the border while, will that help? absolutely not, in fact the bottom vault will not have a significant impact on border security. the reality is that border security is... what is the right mixture? there are errors in that 2000 mile border where the world would be appropriate but here, yes, you're going to have people do still cross. it is more of a speedbump and it is costing millions of dollars, in fact, the 20 miles supposedly going to be erected here in starr county, you looking at half $1 billion to erect that 20 miles of wild... iii billion to erect that 20 miles of wild- - -_ of wild. .. if i could ask you, from your— of wild. .. if i could ask you, from your perspective, - of wild. .. if i could ask you, | from your perspective, from your city, what would the right mix of security and bolder policy be at the moment? when ou have policy be at the moment? when you have influxes _ policy be at the moment? when you have influxes like _ policy be at the moment? when you have influxes like we - policy be at the moment? when you have influxes like we are . you have influxes like we are having or experiencing right now, the reality is that we must at the point we need to have expedited removals and or remain in mexico policy because there is no way we can handle these influxes without jeopardising national security is that we must at this point that and i don't say this is a solution of a broken immigration system — but expedited removals would absolutely work or remain in mexico. i know it is not popular but we must get a hold of this because if we don't, we arejeopardising our of this because if we don't, we are jeopardising our national security by all means. i want to ask about _ security by all means. i want to ask about policy _ security by all means. i want to ask about policy because l to ask about policy because when the pandemic role title 42 which you are referring to, allowing border officials to turn migrants away at the bottom, when that expired, i was supposed to make for asylum just as difficult by making people apply along the way before they get to the us. tell us why you think that policy has not worked?— us why you think that policy has not worked? because we currently _ has not worked? because we currently have _ has not worked? because we currently have a _ has not worked? because we currently have a reality - has not worked? because we currently have a reality that i currently have a reality that it is catch and release. we are releasing people into the interior of the us and the fact is that immigration must benefit america for it to remain viable otherwise it would be untenable. and i know the catch and release is not beneficial to the interests of america. it is not something a saint lightly because i do believe in immigration but when it comes to managing these large numbers of influx, we need to get a hold of it otherwise it willjeopardise the national security. it is one thing that by the way either democrats or republicans have not been able to breach the political divide regarding border security because the arguments are not mutually exclusive, they can coexist but we need to find the centre of addressing both the immigration and border security which by the way are essential for america. has, the way are essential for america-— the way are essential for america. �* . , ., ., america. a final question, what is our america. a final question, what is your message _ america. a final question, what is your message to _ america. a final question, what is your message to congress? | is your message to congress? you said a few times this is a broken immigration system. it is a travesty. we have a broken immigration system and unfortunately the united states of america, the greatest country level, lacks a wheel for reform. it is at all levels, the white house, congress, and we have not been able to sit down and address it. right now, president biden is living on the portable and the fact is, it is unfortunate because the fact is, right now it is hypocrisy at its finest, why? right now there is no reason to inaudible president biden is doing the same thing. it is hypocrisy. it is still not going to work, this 20 miles of bottle while, can help but when it comes to an influx, individuals will self surrender. —— wall. border communities we do not have sanctuary cities... it is not feasible to have thousands of people at the expense of the local taxpayer. there is no way when you're looking at hundreds of thousands of people... 0k... to manage at the expense of local taxpayers.— local taxpayers. joel villarreal _ local taxpayers. joelj villarreal interesting local taxpayers. joel i villarreal interesting to local taxpayers. joel - villarreal interesting to get your perspective and thank you forjoining us. your perspective and thank you forjoining ve— forjoining us. appreciate it. thank yom _ former president trump dropped his $500 million lawsuit against his former personal attorney, michael cohen on thursday evening. in april, mr trump filed a lawsuit in federal court alleging cohen breached attorney—client privilege as well as a confidentiality agreement. a judge ordered trump to sit for a deposition by cohen's attorneys on monday in new york, after delaying his deposition twice. trump's campaign suggests he intends to refile the suit against his former laywer at a later date. to the war in ukraine now. there's been international condemnation of the deadliest missile strike to hit the country for more than a year. local officials say the russian attack on the village of hroza killed more than 50 people. many of the victims had been attending a funeral wake. the white house described the strike as horrifying and the british prime minister said it illustrated moscow's barbarity. our correspondent, james waterhouse, reports. "this body is badly burnt," says the rescuer. maybe you will recognise them? "no, it's not her," the woman replies. missile attacks are an almost daily occurrence here. but rarely are they this destructive. a well rehearsed routine for emergency crews which doesn't get any easier. translation: my brother, | sister-in-law and my mother were killed. alexander's family were at a wake of a local soldier. most of the victims had been sitting around a large table inside a cafe. a shared moment of grief cut short. translation: constantly, i we were pulling out someone. it was a nightmare. ukraine accuses russia of launching a short range ballistic missile, killing more than 50 in a village of 300. translation: we were in a town nearby and heard an explosion. i we were then told something happened in hroza and we came because my mother was here. ring tones fill the silence. from the phones of the dead. translation: russian military knew where they were striking. | it was not a blind attack. people had gathered there for a memorial meal. who could launch a missile at them? only absolute evil. at a speech in sochi, vladimir putin didn't reference the attack but suggested ukraine would be dead within a week if its western help was to stop. ukraine is fighting to prevent that from happening. but it is hurting. james waterhouse, bbc news. concern is growing among european leaders in the wake of us political infighting, that halted aid to ukraine. funding for ukraine was left out of a spending bill passed last weekend to avert a government shutdown and now, the us house of representatives is embroiled in a race to replace its speaker kevin mccarthy, likely kicking the can further down the road as far as restoring aid to ukraine. on thursday, 50 european leaders, including president zelensky, gathered in spain to discuss support for the war—torn country. our diplomatic correspondent james landale filed this report from the summit. this summit is supposed to be about european security, it is a new summit, only the third that has ever happened. it was begun after russia's invasion of ukraine. but despite all of that, actually, it was the political infighting and wrangling in washington that cast a shadow over this gathering, because there was a real concern about the possibility of the united states reducing its support for ukraine. the eu foreign policy chief, josep borrell, said if that happened it would not be good news and europe did not have the capacity to make up the loss of that us support. so eu leaders were almost falling over themselves to come to the cameras to say, look, their support for ukraine will continue as long as it takes, you know, until the very end, those kinds of phrases. the head of the european commission, ursula von der leyen, said she was confident the us support would remain for the long—term. so there was a sense of european leaders trying to hug together to say we will stick together on this. as for president zelensky, the leader of ukraine, he was here too with his team, as ever trying to drum up western support. whenever he was asked about the us position he said, well, what's the use of me worrying? worrying doesn't help, wejust need to carry on working. but he did say, in answer to a question that i asked, that the situation with the us was dangerous and he said now was the time for europe to do more to support the united states. in other words, a rallying cry to europe to say it's your turn to step up. the problem is that european economies at the moment have not been geared up for a wartime production of ammunition. they are not focused entirely on ukraine, they're still concerned about other issues, such as the global cost—of—living crisis and the climate emergency. so president zelensky and his team have now left granada, they're heading back to ukraine. as ever, their call was for more air defences, and they got some from the spanish today — they offered some more. i think they will probably return to ukraine with a degree of anxiety. support from europe, yes, but still that concern about just where the united states is going on this. around the world and across the uk, this is bbc news. let's look at some other stories making news. a man who shot and injured ten people on a crowded new york subway car last year has been sentenced to life in prison. the 64—year—old pleaded guilty in january to terrorism and weapons charges. prosecutors had argued that he intended to inflict maximum damage. it was one of the most violent assaults ever seen on the city's mass transit system. a drone attack on a syrian military academy has killed at least 80 people and wounded more than 200 more. that's according to syrian state media. the strike happened during a graduation ceremony attended by cadets' families. women and children are among the dead. the syrian army blamed terrorist groups, backed by known international forces. there's been no immediate claim of responsibility. a man who broke into windsor castle with a loaded crossbow to kill queen elizabeth on christmas day in 2021 has been jailed for nine years after pleading guilty to treason. jaswant chail, will initially be kept in custody at broadmoor hospital. he is the first person in the uk to be convicted of treason since 1981. you're live with bbc news. venezuelan prosecutors have issued an arrest warrant for opposition leader, juan guaido. he is accused of money laundering and treason among other crimes. the country's attorney general has said he would ask for interpol�*s help in tracking guaido down. guaido is the former president of the national assembly, and proclaimed himself "interim president" of venezuela in 2019, after challenging the re—election of authoritarian president nicolas maduro. guaido is currently living in exile in the united states. somejournalists in iran have told the bbc they're being pressured by authorities to report false government accounts about iraan�*s morality police, who are accused of beating a 16—year—old girl into a coma for not wearing a hijab. the iranian authorities deny the accusations. parham ghobadi, from bbc persian, has more. the moment a 16—year—old iranian student collapsed and was removed from tehran�*s metro. rights activists say she was attacked for not wearing a headscarf. the cctv footage shows her without hijab in the underground station on sunday. this is armita garavand, and she is now in a coma at a military hospital under tight security. authorities say she fainted after her blood pressure dropped. iranian state media interviewed her parents, who activists say are under pressure. suspicions grew after this interview here. here, armita's mum disagrees with a woman, who is introduced as their relative. a teacher's union in iran published a statement, saying security forces have intimidated armita's classmates and teachers into silence, but it also said herfriends are being coerced into giving false confession. and they did, after a few hours. there are many question marks. authorities haven't published a cctv footage from inside the train. a journalist, who went to the hospital to cover the story, was immediately detained and released after a few hours. i've spoken to journalists inside iran. they've told me the independent media are being threatened by security forces. they've been warned if they publish anything other than the official line, they'll face dire consequences. last year, 22—year—old masa amini went into a coma and died after she was detained by morality police. it sparked mass protests across the country. iranian authorities seem to be doing everything to avoid a repeat. parham ghobadi, bbc news. scientists say last month was the world's hottest september on record — by a wide margin. the european union's climate service blames greenhouse gas emissions and the el nino weather event, which pushes warm water to the surface of the pacific ocean, trapping more heat in the atmosphere. last month was almost a whole degree warmer than the average september temperature between 1991 and 2020. the new data, from the copernicus climate change service, shows that this year is now on track to be the warmest on record. it comes in the wake of the hottestjuly and august ever recorded, that drove heatwaves and wildfires around the world. this is greece, where fires are still burning, and wildfires have flared up again in the past few days, on the spanish island of tenerife, where officials are urging around 3,000 people to leave their homes. globally, it was a summer of scenes like this in canada, which has endured a record—breaking fire season. the measure, which at this stage is described as precautionary comes after a fire, which originally began in mid—august, flared up again. rising temperatures are having a dramatic impact in the alps. new data shows that the tallest mountain in western europe, mont blanc, has shrunk by two metres, or 6.5feet, in the past two years. mont blanc�*s summit has been declining for decades as the permanent layer of snow and ice at its peak recedes, but the new figures mark a sharp acceleration. the mountain has shrunk to its lowest level since measurements started, two decades ago. next, to an abandoned city in the enclave of nagorno—karabakh, after the exodus of more than 100,000 armenians. since azerbaijan defeated separatist forces in the breakaway region last month, almost the entire population of ethnic armenians have fled. azerbaijain says that armenians who are willing to live under the azeri flag are allowed to stay, but it seems unlikely any will return. our diplomatic correspondent, paul adams, spent the last few days in the region on a press tour organised by azeri authorities. the stillness after the storm. in a region torn apart by decades of conflict, has peace finally come, and at what cost? two weeks after azerbaijan's lightning operation, we're taken to bunkers and trenches abandoned by armenian rebels. the visit is heavily controlled. we're only seeing what the azeri authorities want us to see. the armenians left in a hurry. there are signs of haste here, but not fighting. the logbook records activity until ten days before azerbaijan struck. so for three years, this was the front line with the armenian rebels holding this ridge line, overlooking their city of stepanakert, down there in the valley, and the azeri military in control in shusha, just up there on the hill, but in a matter of 2a hours, all of that changed. these frontlines simply vanished, and now everything is silent. we move on, down the road used by armenian civilians, as they fled in panic. glimpses here of a terrifying exodus, driven out by months of blockade and sudden fear. as their would—be state collapsed around them, the armenians didn't wait for their enemies to arrive. this, azerbaijan says, was their choice. indeed, we do regret that the civilian population has decided, many of them, to leave, and of course in this case and we respect freedom of choice and freedom of movement. and also majority of the population on the ground, they also have an ethnic hatred against azerbaijanis. they say again, i cannot live under the flag of azerbaijan. is this the kind of end of this whole 30—year story, in your view? we do hope that, really, finally, we are coming to the final conclusion of this 200 years old conflict between armenia and azerbaijan. really azerbaijan wants peace. azerbaijan feels that history is on its side. there's a real sense of pride here, but acute sensitivity, too. this was as close as we were allowed to get to the abandoned armenian city at the centre of this whole story, stepanakert, which azerbaijan calls khankendi. accused of causing a humanitarian disaster, our hosts weren't ready to show us its deserted streets. paul adams, bbc news, nagorno—karabakh. and we do have more coverage of that story on our website. and finally, this year's nobel prize for literature has been awarded to the norwegian writer, jon fosse. fosse's plays are among the most widely staged of any contemporary playwright in the world. the swedish academy in stockholm praised his innovative prose, which delivers its message through rhythm, melody, and the strategic use of silence. his major works include the novels, boat house, and melancholy. mr fosse said he was "overwhelmed and somewhat "frightened" to win the prize. thank you for watching bbc news. remember, to get the latest headlines, you can follow us on twitter. that's all from us here in washington, we leave you with these live pictures of london as we hand off to our colleageus there. hello, there. it was a rather mixed picture across the uk on thursday, with a very slow—moving weather front, giving outbreaks of rain, particularly towards the north and the west, such as here in argyll and bute, but further south, a lot more sunshine around, albeit quite hazy at times. now, as we head through the next few days, there is more rain to come in the forecast. it's mostly for scotland, particularly western areas of scotland, but further south, largely dry, and it will also be turning warmer. now for the rest of the night, still outbreaks of rain across the central swathe of the country. to the north and the south of that front, lots of clear skies, and its very mild start to the day tomorrow across the board, but particularly across scotland, where temperatures dipped a little bit below freezing last night. a lot milder into friday morning, and on friday, you can see from the pressure chart, high pressure builds into the south, so it will be dry here and our weather front pushes ever so slowly northward. so it's a wet start to the day for northwest england, for northern ireland, but it should dry out here a bit later on, the rain pushing into the central belt. it is a sunny start to the day across aberdeenshire, windy for caithness and sutherland, also blustery for the northern isles. lots of sunshine towards the south of the front. it will be quite hazy, at times, again, but temperatures starting to rise on friday, up to 22 or 23 degrees celsius in the south of england, the high teens, potentially, for aberdeenshire. and then on friday night into saturday, that rain still driving into western scotland, very heavy over the western hills, and it will be across the whole of scotland, i think, as we head through into saturday morning. further south, a lot of sunshine throughout the day on sunday. temperatures in northern ireland could get as high as 19 or 20 degrees. we're looking at the low 20s for northern england, also for much of wales, maybe 25 or 26 celsius in the southeast of england and east anglia. and it's more or less the same on sunday. temperatures a little bit lower, and our weatherfront gradually pushes further northwards across scotland, too, where of course, it's going to be cooler. big contrast in temperatures here. again, we're looking at the low 20s for much of england and wales, a bit more cloud too, across northern ireland. these are the daytime averages for this point in october. so you can see we're above average, across the board, 12 degrees in the north, 16 degrees celsius in the south. so even scotland is mild for this point in october. the unseasonable heat continues across england and wales, as we head into the start of next week. voiceover: this is bbc news. we'll have the headlines and all the main news stories for you at the top of the hour, straight after this programme. welcome to hardtalk. i'm stephen sackur. in politics, making a pledge is the easy part. making it happen is a whole lot more challenging. take the climate change promise made by the uk and a host of other governments to deliver a net zero economy by 2050. wholesale decarbonisation within a generation. right now, prime minister rishi sunak is rowing back on the speed of that planned green transition. why? well, my guest is former conservative environment minister, lord deben. is political short termism in danger of costing the earth? lord deben, welcome to hardtalk. thank you. you are a lifelong conservative. you're also pretty much a lifelong campaigner