Stars tells us about performing in a country where her music was once banned. It is 6 00am in singapore, 11 00pm in london, and 7 00am in seoul, where wargames are on the agenda a joint military exercise by south korea and the United States, conducted every year to prepare in case of an attack by north korea. Pyongyang has warned the wargames amount to pouring gasoline on a fire. Amidst heightened rhetoric on both sides, Yogita Limaye has been to the point where north and south meet. It is a place where a handful of European Military personnel still monitor the armistice signed between the two koreas 64 years ago. It isa it is a little bit like being in the eye of the hurricane and. So everything is very tense around, but here it is calm and nice and peaceful, so it is a little bit of a strange situation sometimes. Right next to the border between north and south korea, these are the men guarding the ceasefire between the two countries. The korean war, which started in june 1950, two countries. The korean war, which started injune 1950, ended two countries. The korean war, which started injune1950, ended 27july 1953 with an armistice agreement. And that is the same armistice agreement that is valid here today. There is no peace between the countries. They are technically at war. At the armistice keeps the two countries from fighting each other. South korea chose sweden and switzerland, while the north chose poland and czechoslovakia, as neutral nations to monitor the armistice. But, in the 1990s, pyongyang expelled the commission from its side. So now, only swedish and swiss offices remain in south korea. In light of the fact that, for more than 20 years, there has been no communication from the other side, you know, as people who are posted here, do you think there is any point in being here . posted here, do you think there is any point in being here . I think it is important to mention that we present every day in the conference room. So we everyday ready to receive and go sit back at the table to talk. Even though north and south korean soldiers stand face to face at the border, there is no communication between the two sides. In recent days, harsh threats have been coming from pyongyang. But these have come to be expected. What is new now is that the rhetoric from north korea has met with rhetoric from america, and then of course it does little bit higher. When you speak to the south korean people, of course, they are living next to each other, and the communications have been harsh lot of the time. So i wouldnt say that they are more scared than the normal. But you never know. This contingent also monitors these military drills conducted every year by the us and south Korean Forces to ensure they dont violate the ceasefire. What was meant to be a temporary camp, until a Peace Agreement was signed, has now been here for 64 years. And of course, we all hope that we could close down here and go home, because there is a peace treaty, and so our nice and goodtime here in korea would end. But then we could say mission accomplished, and go home. As long as north Korea Presses on with its nuclear programme, there can be no Peace Agreement here. And later in the programme we will speak to an expert from the Us Naval War College about the significance of the american and south korean wargames which start today. Lets take a look at some of the days other news the United Nations says 14,000 people have fled from the iraqi city of tal afar, where Government Forces have launched a major offensive against so called islamic state. About 2,000 militants remain in the city, which has been bombed by us and iraqi warplanes. A short time ago bruno geddo, the uns representative in iraq, told the bbc how civilians were coping in tal afar. People have been surviving on water, and dirty water and bread, for almost three months. There is no electricity, no healthcare. You know, hardly any food to go around. And then this constant terror of being killed by landmines if they tried to flee, because of the policy forbidding people to leave the territory of the caliphate remains in place. Anybody caught trying to flee will be immediately executed. So it is a question of terror if you stay and terror if you try to flee for your life. Also making news today thousands of people have marched through the streets of hong kong to show their support for three pro democracy activists who were jailed last week. The three, joshua wong, nathan law and alex chow, were initially given non custodial sentences for their involvement in mass demonstrations in 2014, but hong kongs government pushed for tougher sentences. South africas government has confirmed it has granted diplomatic immunity to zimbabwes first lady, grace mugabe. This allowed her to return home in the early hours of sunday. President Robert Mugabes wife is accused of assaulting a 20 year old model, gabriella engels, a week ago in a johannesburg hotel, the same hotel where her sons were staying. One of the greats of american entertainment, jerry lewis, whose goofy brand of physical comedy endeared him to millions in a career spanning six decades, had died at 91. One of the most popular comic actors of the 1950s and 60s, jerry lewis perfected the role of the quirky clown in slapstick comedies like the nutty professor. Butjerry lewis was also loved and admired for his writing, his acting, and his charity work. As we have heard, american and south Korean Forces are beginning their annual joint military exercises later on monday. They involve tens of thousands of troops, and north korea regards them as a highly provocative rehearsalfor invasion. So could they serve to increase tensions even further on the peninsula . I spoke to charles edel, an American Military strategy expert and senior fellow at the United States studies centre at the university of sydney, to find out. I dont think these will make the situation worse. It just i dont think these will make the situation worse. Itjust happens to be in the context of heightened rhetoric over the last two weeks, but these are consistent and ongoing exercises. They have really been performed for the past 40 years consistently. So there is the, of course, chance that pyongyang will ta ke course, chance that pyongyang will take these as further provocation. But considering the climbdown in language on both sides that you saw over the last four or five days, i think that these are probably not going to be further provocation. Think that these are probably not going to be further provocationm the United States has basically rejected the idea of a dual freeze, 01 rejected the idea of a dual freeze, ora rejected the idea of a dual freeze, or a freeze for freeze, that is stopping these drills in exchange for pyongyang halting its military and Ballistic Missile tests. Do you think this is a good move . Yes, i do think this is a good move . Yes, i do think this is a good move. The freeze for freeze programme which you alluded to earlier on the show, which would be floated by beijing and moscow, would be a freeze of us. Unspecified us military exercises with our treaty ally, south korea, in exchange for the promise of a freeze of further test from north korea. It is a good move to not follow through with this, because, one, every promise of a freeze has been broken previously by north korea. There is no assurance that it would happen at this time. And we have a treaty obligation to defend our light south korea. These are defensive exercises. Our ally. So pulling these exercises down makes no sense at this stage. So what do you think will be next from both sides . Because we have seen a war from both sides . Because we have seen a war of words from president trump, and kimjong un, with guam seemingly in the middle. Well, i think it is a bit of fools errand to try and predict what is going to happen next in either pyongyang, or certainly in the white house of donald trump. That said, i think that if you see these trendlines over the last three days continuing you are likely to use the sum rhetoric, but probably not a heightening up or a ratcheting up of things likely to see some rhetoric. The tendency of the last couple of days has been climbing down over from where they were. You saw it coming of the waters, one by kimjong un, saw it coming of the waters, one by kim jong un, saying that they were not going to test fire anything in the direction of guam for now, see what the United States will do. And similarly, the wake of the mixed m essa 9 es similarly, the wake of the mixed messages and confusion from washington, you have seen very strong statements i think from secretary of defence jim strong statements i think from secretary of defencejim mattis and secretary of state rex tillotson, saying at this point we are looking to not pursue a regime change, but rather pursue a strategy of heightened pressure at this point tillerson. The flooding in nepal, bangladesh and india is becoming one of the worst regional humanitarian crises in many years. Vast areas have been inundated, hundreds killed, and more than a million left homeless. The bbc World Services environment correspondent, navin singh khadka, has been to witness the impact of the floods in nepal. We are in one of the worst hit areas, andi we are in one of the worst hit areas, and i met these locals here, and they told me that their villages are still completely inundated. And they are still living there. So i am going to go and see for myself. To get to the village, we need to cross areas like this, full of water. And we have been told that there are snakes all over. On the way, we met a woman eager to show us her home. What saying is the whole house has come down, and she has nowhere to live. And her property, livestock, rice, whatever she had, has all been swept away. And she has had to leave with her children, without food, for more than five days now. In the village, people are desperate to tell us of their ordeal. 0ne village, people are desperate to tell us of their ordeal. One woman says she feels her house may colla pse says she feels her house may collapse at any moment. Three houses i have seen gone down, and i think next is mine. But i need to go back there, because my husband is ill, and he needs to be. Needs to be treated. What she is saying is her husband was trying to rescue the buffalo, which was trapped in the floodwaters. And when they tried to pull the buffalo out, it fell over and he was injured and he broke his leg. He cant move, and he is trapped in there. This lady says she is worried for her childhood so she is worried for her childhood so she is talking about this little baby here. The baby, she says she has got nothing. Everything has been swept away. I cant even feed the baby. Clothes gone. And lie for her is really difficult. She is breast fed, but nothing. No food for the baby as of yet. The rain starts to get heavier, and our guide warns us we should head back. For the village, the rising water will bring new misery, and whatever they have been able to salvage is again at risk. Spanish police have said the group behind the barcelona attack had collected 120 gas canisters and was planning to use them in bomb attacks. The local authorities have also confirmed that british australian seven year old Julian Cadman was among those who died. The Police Investigation is continuing, with one line of inquiry focusing on an iman from a mosque in the pyrenees, near where some of the attackers lived. 0ur correspondent wyre davies reports from the town of ripoll. The small, simple mosque in the town of ripoll, where many of those involved in the attacks on barcelona and cambrils came to pray. The name of the one attacker still at large, younis abu yaqub, written on the wall, with others who contributed to mosque funds. And police are asking if this man, abdelbaki es satty, the mosque imam, masterminded the attacks, and led so many young men from this town intojihad. And this was his tiny flat at the top of the building in the town. His bedroom has since been emptied of everything by police. Now, according to people at the mosque, he left two months ago to go on an extended journey to morocco. But we know from his flatmate here, who wont be filmed, and others in the town, that he left as recently as last tuesday, and very suddenly. All that is left here is his small koran and his empty bedroom. Today i spoke to hechami gasi, the devastated father of two of the attackers from ripoll. The last time i saw my youngest son, he told me, was at three on thursday, hours before the attack in barcelona and cambrils. He did not come back. Hechami roundly blames the imam for radicalising his sons and the others. Translation he took these young, impressionable minds. Messed around with their brains and now they are dead. My sons and the others, it is all the imams fault. It is believed the imam was killed in the explosion that destroyed a bomb factory in the town of alca nar last wednesday. It was there that Police Found Dozens of gas canisters, apparently primed to make three massive car bombs. But the premature explosion forced the gang to change their plans. Destructive events like this can often tear fragile communities apart, but here in ripoll, there is a determination that that must not be allowed to happen. Wyre davies, bbc news. You are watching newsday on the bbc. Still to come on the programme how to get the best view of mondays total eclipse of the sun. Washington, the worlds most political city, is today assessing the Political Health of the worlds most powerful man. Indeed, i did have a relationship with miss lewinsky that was not appropriate. In fact, it was wrong. In south africa, 97 people have been killed today, in one of the worst days of violence between rival black groups. Over the last ten days, 500 have died. Chanting czechoslovakia must be free russia is observing a national day of mourning for the 118 submariners who died on board the kursk. Were all with them now, within our hearts. The pope has celebrated mass before a congregation of more than 2. 5 Million People, in his hometown of krakow. Stay with us, stay with us, chanted this ocean of humanity. Well, well, joked the pope, so you want me to desert rome . This is newsday on the bbc. Welcome back, everyone. Im rico hizon in singapore. Im tom donkin in london. Our top stories thousands of troops are beginning a huge military exercise, as tensions remain high on the korean peninsula. Nearly 600 people have died across south asia, in the worst flooding for decades. Lets take a look at some front pages from around the world. The japan times is reporting that north korea is continuing to make money by skirting Un Security Council resolutions. Its exports of banned commodities, largely coal, has generated at least 270 million since february, according to a un report. In the strait times, the government of singapore has announced it will double its annual spending on pre schools to add 40,000 new places for children and to improve the quality of pre school education. And the New York Times is reporting on chinas new film star superhero thats shattering records at the box office. Leng weng, described as a red tinged rambo, fights a villainous american soldier called big daddy. The film wolf warrior 2 has gone on to become chinas most popular film ever, taking in 722 million in ticket sales in just three weeks. This has become really a Major Box Office hit in china. And now, what is trending on the internet . Yes, lets looks at what is trending right now. An indian woman has been granted permission to divorce her husband because he would not build a toilet in their home. The woman had been married forfive years, but had been forced to relieve herself in nearby fields. That story is indeed trending on the internet. A total Solar Eclipse is set to sweep across the United States later on monday. The rare event was last seen from the us in 1979. Anyone not lucky enough to live there need not fear though. People in parts of south america, africa, and europe will see at least a partial Solar Eclipse, where the moon covers part of the suns disk. Well, theres been lots of excitement in the us ahead of the event. I spoke to astronomer, fred watson, to find out more. Actually, all eclipses are equally exciting. The fact the sun, the moon, and the earth are lining up perfectly, it is incredible. Eclipses can happen actually anywhere, but they can only be in one place at any given time. People who want to see eclipses have to be prepared to travel. You cannot wait for one to come your way. It might ta ke for one to come your way. It might take 1000 years. What do you hope to get out of watching this eclipse personally and professionally . Well, professionally, it is a twofold thing. My interest is largely in scientific outreach, that is to say, publicising the wonders of the universe to as many people as we possibly can. The eclipse gives you a fantastic vehicle of doing this. For me, personally, being an astronomer and in many ways addicted to thinking about the mechanisms of the universe, the small scale, the earth, the moon, the sun, the big scale, the planets, biggest gales, galaxies and the universe at large, all of that excites me. What better way to celebrate that than to watch an eclipse and be inspired by what we see. It is an extraordinary phenomenon. One of afghanistans biggest pop stars, arya na sayeed, has held an afghan Independence Day concert in the capital kabul. Now, thats despite threats from traditionalists. She drew a crowd of nearly a thousand, mostly young people, under tight security. Ms sayeed is known for displaying her long hair and wearing the type of outfits, which are frankly taboo in afghanistan. Clerics opposed the show, but her female fans said they wanted to defy those who were against it. A p0p a pop concert in the heart of kabul. Arya na a pop concert in the heart of kabul. Aryana sayeed a pop concert in the heart of kabul. Arya na sayeed entertaining a pop concert in the heart of kabul. Aryana sayeed entertaining herfans with her songs. It was to mark afg ha n with her songs. It was to mark afghan Independence Day. Hundreds of young men and women waving flags and dancing to thejunes. They want young men and women waving flags and dancing to the junes. They want to send a message. Tunes. Translation despite the threats, i did not think such a big number of girls would attend. Fortunately, the number of women is bigger than man. I asked them why are they here . They said they wanted to defy those who we re said they wanted to defy those who were against the concert. It is rare in afghan sun for a female star to hold a concert. Aryana sayeed, described as the queen of fashion, is known for her figure described as the queen of fashion, is known for herfigure hugging outfits and long hair. Her music is a mixture of traditional and folksongs. See highlights womens issues in her songs. She. She has received a number of Death Threats for her outfits and public appearances. A day before the concert, aryana appearances. A day before the concert, arya na sayeed appearances. A day before the concert, Aryana Sayeed said she was determined to go ahead with the concert despite the threats. There are certain people in afghanistan and the community against music, against celebration, against even new years. They are against everything. I feel like the we need to stand together and against it. Her concert was scheduled to be held ina stadium her concert was scheduled to be held in a stadium in kabul, but it was held in a different location due to security concerns. Aryana sayeed said she wanted to highlight that afg ha n said she wanted to highlight that afghan women were still not free 90 yea rs afghan women were still not free 90 years after independence. She says she will fight for that freedom with her music. Bbc news. Just before we go, we will take a look at something quite remarkable. A World War Two warship has been found in the pacific ocean, 72 years after it was sunk by a japanese submarine. The uss indianapolis was discovered 18,000 feet beneath the surface, by an expedition crew. That crew was led by one of the founders of microsoft, paul allen. Thats all for now. Do stay with bbc world news. This has been newsday. Sunday yet again was a day of contrasting fortunes in the british isles. The further north and east, the more dry and fine was your day generally speaking the big the cloud filled in after a bright start in the south. Then there was urgent work to be done in the fields. And then the rain arrived. A wet start to monday as well. Mild underneath the blanket of cloud and rain. The cloud sitting low on the high ground of the south and south west. Further south and east, a bright start to the date, decent sunshine. A cool start under clear skies. At least you have sunshine. Make the most of it. It will not last. The general rule of thumb is to dry this rain ever further towards the north and east. It will make slow progress, no doubt about it. This is the middle of the afternoon. Things will have cheered up in the south for england and wales. When the sun comes out, 21 is possible, possibly even 24. I am not sure whether the rain in the west goes to the east or north. Keep your highs open. For the greater pa rt your highs open. For the greater part of monday and on into the first pa rt part of monday and on into the first part of monday and on into the first part of tuesday, we will see that rain really has not completed its journey to the far north of scotland. Tuesday is like monday. 0nce scotland. Tuesday is like monday. Once the rain has gone further north, it offers the opportunity across a good part of england and wales for the cloud to begin to break. If that happens, the temperatures will rocket. 24 quite widely. Someone could have 26, possibly even 27. The weather fronts have brought the prospect of wind and rain and cloud for some. But at the same time, they herald the arrival for warm the same time, they herald the arrivalfor warm moist airfrom the same time, they herald the arrival for warm moist air from the tropics. That cold front will bring something more fresh from the atlantic. The northern portion still has a lot of activity on it. Heavy downpours in Northern Britain on wednesday. The last half of the warm daysin wednesday. The last half of the warm days in the south is rigger towards thursday and into friday, spells of showers. As we go. 32 23. 2223. You are watching bbc world news. Our top story thousands of troops are poised to begin a huge military exercise on the korean peninsula. The drills, which take place every year, come at a time of increased tension over kim jong uns nuclear programme, and his threat to launch missiles towards the Pacific Island of guam. Nearly 600 people have died across south asia, in the worst flooding for decades. It is thought more than 16 Million People have been affected by seasonal flooding in bangladesh, nepaland india. And this video is trending on bbc. Com. It shows what happens if you keep your eyes glued to your phone, rather than the road ahead. Just look at this moped rider, who fails to notice the massive sinkhole which opened up straight ahead of him. Luckily, he wasnt hurt. Thats all from me now. Stay with bbc world news. Now on bbc news, it is time for hardtalk