Im philippa thomas. From here in the bbc news room, we send out correspondents to give you the best stories from across the globe. In this weeks programme is Americas Mission in afghanistan accomplished 7 Justin Rowlatt asks what the Trump Administration should do about the United States longest war. According to the american governments own estimates, the taliban still controls a third of the country, Opium Production is at record high and corruption is still rife here. The forgotten refugees of Western Sahara. Sally nabil gets rare access to camps deep in the Algerian Desert where Tens Of Thousands of people are living in limbo. Anger is growing among many of the youth living in these camps and they say unless they start banging the drums of war, the world will continue to ignore them. Sierra leones missing ebola millions. Three years after the obvious began, funds pledged to fight the deadly virus are unaccounted for. Who are the happiest children in the world . Anna holligan meets mums who have gone dutch to try to find out. Hes done it. And the future of formula one, as its legendary leader, Bernie Ecclestone, is replaced. Dan roan examines his legacy, and meets the man who is taking hisjob. Its been running as a one man dictatorfor a long, long time. I think the sport needs a fresh perspective. As donald trump settles into his new home in the white house, one of his most pressing issues in is in tray is afghanistan. In the past hes described americas involvement as a disaster but hes also told the afghan leader, the us will not waiver in its commitment to him. The International Combat mission there ended in 2014 but 13,000 nato troops remain and most of them are american. With the taliban and other militant groups gaining ground, Justin Rowlatt has been trying to find out if the us will cut its losses and bring americas longest war to an end. Another team of Afghan Soldiers is flying in to helmand province. The bbc got rare permission tojoin them. It has been hard going for the afghan army since the us and its nato allies pulled out most of their troops at the end of 2014. These days, the soldiers dont have far to travel to reach the front line. It is right on the outskirts of the provincial capital, lashkar gah. The taliban now control more than 80 of the province and, say the soldiers, supplies are low. Translation for a month we have been saying we are running out of ammunition but we dont get any new supplies. 0ur enemy is firing at us but we dont have enough bullets to take them on. His commander urges President Trump to continue to support the war effort here. Translation as a soldier of afghanistan, i ask his excellency, donald trump, to continue the fight here. If he can give us more support we can wipe the terrorists out. The west still has 13,000 troops in afghanistan, most of them are americans. This is their headquarters in kabul but the truth is 15 years of war. Has not achieved much. The west has spent more in real terms on reconstruction here in afghanistan than america spent on the reconstruction of europe after the second world war. Now despite that, according to the american governments own estimates, the taliban still controls a third of the country, Opium Production is at a record high and corruption is still rife here. Nato commanders say america does have clear Strategic Interests in afghanistan training and assisting the afghan army and targeting terrorist organisations. So, specifically, alanda, as well as the islamic state, that is what really keeps direct pressure on the organisations that threaten the west and threaten our homeland. And other powers are flexing their muscles in afghanistan. Last month russia hosted a meeting in moscow about the countrys future with senior officials from china and pakistan and it makes no secret of the fact it has been talking to the taliban. But there is an even more pressing reason to remain, this is the aftermath of a taliban bomb blast in the heart of kabul earlier this month. At the military hospital, policeman mr rashidi is recovering from horrific injuries. Translation this is my message to the taliban you have injured me but i want you to know that it is only going to make me stronger and more determined to defeat you. It is a brave stand but the american analysis is clear without long term assistance, the country will not survive in tact. Donald trump and his advisors are unlikely to want to be responsible for americas longest war ending in what many people would regard as a clear defeat. Justin rowlatt, bbc news, kabul. From afghanistan to rare access to the remote deserts of Western Sahara and one of the worlds longest and political humanitarian humanitarian crises. The region is claimed by both morocco and the native sahrawi people. Tensions between the two have caused Tens Of Thousands of people to flee and seek refugee in the Algerian Desert, where, they say, the world has forgotten them. Bbcs arabic, sally nabil, has been to the Refugee Camps where thousands of sahrawis have been living for decades. These Refugee Camps have been here for a0 years. Deep within the Algerian Desert, across the border with morocco, Tens Of Thousands of people are living in limbo. We visited the biggest of five camps, housing the sahrawis, or the natives of Western Sahara. Many of them came to algeria four decades ago, fleeing a Military Conflict with morocco. Western sahara was a Spanish Colony until 1975 when spain decided to leave morocco and axe the area, claiming sovereignty over it. A pro longed war followed as the sahrawis fought for independence. When a ceasefire was finally reached in 1991, the sahrawis were promised a referendum on self determination. It never happened. Morocco insists Western Sahara is part of its territory. A whole generation of refugees has grown up in exile. Without international donors, they couldnt survive. But now aid is gradually being cut as more urgent Refugee Crises emerge. There is no perspective for the young people here. There is no solution which is seen. There is no interest in the International Community about Western Sahara crisis. And if you add on top of this redaction and drastic reduction of the humanitarian aid, frustration will grow up in the camps. Violence is an increasing concern. This this girl was born here, she lost both her brother and uncle in the war but still favour as military solution. In the war but still favours as military solution. Translation negotiations did not achieve anything. If we want our rights back, we need to pick up our arms. I do not want the young generations to experience the same tough life we had. Anger is growing among many of the youth living in these camps. They feel total abandoned. They say unless they start banging the drums of war, the world will continue to ignore them. But there are some older sahrawis that believe that this conflict can be resolved through diplomacy. Mohammed, an ex soldier spent 12 years in moroccan prisons. Nine of them in solitary confinement. He says peace should have a chance. Translation if you understand the meaning of war, you will never call for it. Sahrawis were dragged into war, they didnt choose it. War is bad. If there is a way for fair political solution, it must be pursued. The people here say they have been waiting for too long. Many refuse to give up their dreams of an independent state. But their patience seems to be running low. Sally nabil, bbc news, algeria. Nearly three years after ebola hit sierra leone, killing thousands, millions of dollars in funds, raised to fight the deadly virus have still not been accounted for. An internal audit of the First Six Months of the outbreak found a 3 million short fall in funds pledged by state and private donors. Health services are struggling, ambulances which have been paid for have not been supplied. Many Health Care Workers havent been paid. Reporters have been trying to find out what happened to sierra leones missing millions. The dark days of ebola have ended but there are still debts to be paid. Government hospitals in Eastern Sierra Leone was the front line in the fight but Health Care Systems were weak and quickly overwhelmed. Here i saw human misery unfold. A make shift morgue, so overstretched that there were piles of corpses lying everywhere. I saw a seven year old boy walking through this doorway like he was walking to the gallows, he never came back. A quarter of the countrys Health Workers who succumbed to the epidemic died at this hospital as they battled the virus. But still, they had to fight to be paid. These are scenes from a dramatic protest in 2014. High risk workers hadnt received allowances in months. Burial teams brought out highly infection corpses from the morgue and laid them at the hospitals entry points. This man was part of the demonstration and said they had no choice. He says he is still missing nearly 800. Translation i was signing for 2 million a month but i only received 1. 5 million. This went on for eight months, they owe me 4 million. I have heard nothing from them since. And many others on the front line were in the same situation. An internal audit of sierra leone funds suggested that up to 4 Million Dollars of risk pay for Health Care Workers had not been accounted for. Old broken ambulances collected dust and some new ones that had been paid for never arrived. The public was outraged by the reports findings. It detailed the misappropiation of funds meant to fight the disease. Millions of dollars. Were not actually explained how they were utilised. At this point in time, a good portion of those monies, we are yet to know what has been done about it. Because we are expecting a situation where monies are to be refunded, with Holding Taxes are to be paid and ambulances that had to be paid, that had to be supplied still, we are not aware that they have been supplied. Al hassan contracted ebola in December 2014 at the height of the outbreak. At this point, money had been released and resources should have reached those fighting the disease. But he says conditions were still unbearable. We were treated like, like, like any african dogs. At that time we were scared that colleagues were dying and we are not getting adequate supplies. Despite little action in two years, the government insists that they are taking the matter seriously. This is not a time to come and say who is right and wrong. It is a time to fix and fight corruption, because for us you can bring all the Infrastructural Development but once there is corruption, we are very much overaly concerned about that. Whoever is to blame for the misappropriation, the consequences are stark. Nearly 4000 Sierra Leonians died during the outbreak. It is impossible to say how many but clearly many of those lives could have been saved if only millions of those dollars had not been mismanaged or even stolen. Nothing can soothe the thousands of bereaved families left behind and it is unclear if those responsible will ever be held to account. Here, following the death of the labour politicians, jo cox last year, a number of female british members of parliament have told the bbc they fear for their safety. Some have received physical and verbal threats. Others say they felt threatened by sexist language in the House Of Commons and a few have even considered giving up theirjob. At a time when more women are being encouraged to go into politic, ellie price has been finding out whether females are being put off political life. It wasnt easy getting women the vote. It took even longer to get women into parliament. The first female to take her seat, nancy astor, was elected 98 years ago. Eventually more would follow. Archive it gives me the greatest pleasure to introduce to you, the new National Unionist women members. Back then, of course, they didnt have social media, unlike the 195 female mps today. Right, what you are looking at are tweets, the abusive tweets my team screen shotted. Ann mcloughlin, mp, wont read the abuse she receives online. Which is just as well, it is deeply personal, she doesnt really want to share it. It takes a lot of strength not to. Its very tempting if youre alone at night and nobody can see you, if you get up and cry, to have a look but why would i do that to myself . I have to say i very much see the Silver Lining in not getting re elected, the Silver Lining being that i may never have to put with that sort of abuse again in my life because it doesnt happen unless you have some kind of high profile, and then people think that they have some kind of Carte Blanche to call you whatever they call you. But its notjust hurtful insults on social media, theres an even darker side of Death Threats and violence. Jo cox was murdered outside of her constituency surgery last june. Two thirds of female mps we spoke to, said they felt less safe ever since. Well over half said they received physical threats from members of the public. Ms sadiq, begrudgingly, now makes sure she has security whenever she holds constituency surgeries. And you feel safer now . Well this building is a secure building. Theres Police Presence outside, the staff are very supportive, so i do feel safer here. So it was one of my Staff Members who opened the letter. Quite a young staff member. I felt sorry for the person who opened it and had this letter saying that they wanted to butcher me, butcher my family and quickly the office got in touch with me and said they need to report this to the police. I took swift action. The police were very quick to respond and itjust made me think, who has the time to sit and write a letter to an mp saying i want to kill you and yourfamily . It all paints rather a grim picture. And certainly the majority of mps we spoke to are concerned that hearing about this sort of abuse might put of good new people, good new women from wanting to become mps. In fact a third of those we heard from said theyve considered giving up theirjob here in parliament because of it, and yet, none have. And majority we heard from say, despite the difficulties, thejob is a privilege and well worth the flak. Ellie price, bbc news, westminster. Are dutch children the happiest in the world . Youngsters in the netherlands consistently rank at the top of surveys of well being. So whats the secret . Well, apparently parents go out of their way to please them and teachers expect less of them. Than some of their european counterparts. Anna holligan has been to meet two british mums who have gone dutch to see what happens when you place children at the centre of society. This doesnt take much, according to the dutch, theyve got the most contented babies, the happiest kids and as adults, the best work life balance. The lessons start with breakfast. They place a high value on family life and on communication between the members of the family. So part of eating together is about talking together. And the dutch scored the highest on children who ate breakfast before they went to school and that sets them up for the day so at the end of the day it doesnt matter that it is chocolate. Chocolate sprinkles clearly contradicts the Healthy Eating advice, and yet dutch kids have some of the lowest obesity rates, which may be linked to the fact that so many cycle to school but, as you can see bikes and cars have separate lanes so parents dont have the same worries about sending kids out on two wheels. And when they get to school, dutch pupils dont face academic pressure. Things like tests and homework until later. When there is not so much pressure, children start school by a positive way, by enjoying it, by feeling this is something nice to do, and i think that lasts your whole life. Thats backed up by unicef, statistics which suggests these children are more likely to go on to further education, than their british counterparts. Youll see lots of fathers at the school gates. The dutch government legislates for unpaid daddy days, which encourage families to share the childcare. And then theres the freedom. Its actually wonderful. And plus we always read in all of these book, right, that they should play outside. So im really happy that it is part of a culture where they are just expected to go out and play. Is that because here in the netherlands it is safer . We cantjust send our kids out to Parks In London or the heart of birmingham, can we . I think so, actually, in the sense that you kind of have to trust your own society, right . Its Back To Basics Parenting is what dutch parenting is all about. You dont have to try so hard. And the by product of Giving Kids Greater Independence . More time for yourself at least when theyre a little older. Head due west from here and youll reach essex. The uk may be geographically close but there are of course fundamental differences between our societies and not all the lessons from here can be exported to over there but they mayjust inspire you. Anna holligan, bbc news in the hague. Now, anxious times at formula one after the man who transformed the sport into A Billion Dollar Global Business stood down this week. Bernie ecclestone ruled f1 for nearly 40 years with an iron grip and an astuteness thats been arguable unmatched across business and sporting worlds. But hes been accused by his successor, chase cary, of running his sport like a dictator. The new man at the top of formula one has been talking to dan roan about the future of the sport. Theres Bernie Ecclestone, the tsar of formula one. Hes been a Driving Force like no other. Having ruled formula one with an iron grip for decades, Bernie Ecclestone transformed it into a global commercial phenomenom. Oh, my goodness, this is fantastic at times it seemed he would go on forever but with a multi billion pound american takeover, came a sudden change in direction. F1s new boss told me why it was the End Of The Road for the man hes replaced. I would expect this is difficult for bernie. This is a big change for him. I mean hes run the sport as a one man, he calls himself a dictator hes run it as a one man dictator for a long time. I think the sport needs a fresh perspective. From second hand cars sales man, to team owner and then commercial rights holder, ecclestones rise was remarkable. The 86 year olds Deal Making Skills brought him famous friends, powerful contact and billions in the bank. There was also controversy. Move out of the way some comments caused offence and he was forced to settle a bribery case in 2014 but this diminutive figure will be remembered as a titan in sport. You cant have a bernie, the conditions will never exist. The circumstances will never exist and hell go down in history for what hes achieve. My goodness, this is fantastic but recently f1 has struggled to match the thrills of the past and amidst a dramatically declining tv audience, one team boss told me the sport now needs a revamp. I think the most important thing is getting back to the basics of outright racing, engaging with the fans, engaging with the public and perhaps the complicating the cars a little and going back to Man And Machine being at the absolute limit. For a long type now, formula one has been able to depend on its unique mix of speed, glamour and technology to guarantee true global appeal. But theres a sense that from within the sport, from an ultra competitive and shifting sports market that now needs to be changed. We need to use all the platforms, the traditional platforms available, and the marketing available to tell the stories of the rivalries and the stars. Weve got to make our eventslarger than ever. Week long events, cities at the tracks. With music and entertainment with sport at the centre of it. But ive talked to about 21 super bowls and thats what we should have. This is a seismic moment for f1, ecclestones been offered an advisory role but a man so used to being the Puppet Master is no longer pulling the strings. The World Of Sport will surely never see his like again. Dan roan, bbc news. Thats all from reporters this week. From me, philippa thomas, goodbye for now. Hello. In a week when our weathers Turning Wetter and windier, lets celebrate a bit of sunshine and the best of that again on monday was in scotland. Contrast scenes like this with the view on the south coast of england and for tuesday were going to narrow these differences. Its this sort of weather thats going to win out as this Weather System works very slowly from west to east across the uk. Not a huge amount of sunshine on offer but plenty of cloud and most of us will see rain at some stage. Quite a wet start to the day in Northern Ireland although here something a bit drier and brighter for the afternoon. Down the eastern side of england where you start dry eventually well get to see some outbreaks of rain moving in here. A lot of the rain will be light but some heavy bursts in scotland, especially in the Southern Iplands and grampians. Maybe some highest routes could be a little bit slippy as we see some sleet and snow and rain falling onto frozen ground but conditions will gradually improve. A lot of the cloud is low cloud so theres hill fog around too. Eastern england starting dry, many of us here, but cloudy and feeling quite cool in that breeze. Where weve got milder air already into south west england, starting to move through more of wales as well, eventually into Northern Ireland. But it is a messy picture for tuesday as we take outbreaks of rain gradually further east. Again the heavy bursts into scotland and drier and brighter weather for Northern Ireland into the afternoon. Again all the while taking something a little bit milder into the uk from the south west. 11 in belfast. But it is going to feel qute cool in Eastern Scotland and Eastern England with the cloud, outbreaks of rain and the breeze. More rain to come in parts of england and wales especially on tuesday night and into wednesday morning. Clearer spells into scotland and Northern Ireland. So some spots getting cold enough for A Touch Of Frost and a few fog patches. England and wales, though, with all this cloud around, temperatures holding up. On wednesday the Weather System still dragging its heels, especially into england and eventually the rain pulling away from the east quite late in the day. A bit of a brighter interlude between the two Weather Systems before another one comes into Northern Ireland to parts of wales and the south west of england later on wednesday. And again, some of us getting into double figure temperatures. On thursday, it looks like a windy affair, some bright and sunny spells around but bands of showers, some may be heavy with the risk of hail and thunder spreading north east across the country. And the winds look like picking up further towards the end of the week and into the weekend. We will, of course, keep you updated. A very warm welcome to bbc news, broadcasting to our viewers in north america and around the globe. My names mike embley. Our top stories donald trump fires americas top legal adviser, acting attorney general sally yates, for questioning whether his Immigration Ban is legal. A white house statement accuses her of betrayal. Theres a growing outcry against the Travel Restrictions from the public, politicians and now former president obama. Police in quebec charge a french Canadian Student with shooting dead six muslim worshippers at a mosque. And a special investigation in the sale of baby chimpanzees. All the apples and its family have to be
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