this is bbc news. our top stories: a $30 billion rescue package is confirmed as 11 top us banks step in to shore up the embattled first republic. anger in france after the government pushes through pension reform without a vote. new zealand joins a growing number of countries putting limits on the video—sharing app tiktok. we have a special report on the front line of eastern ukraine and the fighters resisting the russian advance. and the families on a remote scottish island with a high risk of cancer after scientists discover a harmful gene.

welcome to our viewers on pbs in america and around the globe. a group of big american banks has injected $30 billion into a smaller regional bank, first republic, which had been seen as at risk of failure. it comes as fears grow of a crisis in the global financial sector. shares in european banks hit a two—month low after the eurozone�*s central bank hiked interest rates by 0.5%. our north america correspondent peter bowes has more. this clearly is a big boost. there were fears he could go underjust like silicon valley bank did last week, and this $30 billion from 11 major banks that includejp morgan chase, citigroup as well, crucially important to keep first republic alive because first

republic alive because first republic is a very prominent bank here in california in los angeles, over the last few days we have seen people queueing outside to take their money, their investments out of that bank and placed them with other larger banks, such as been their concern that it could go under. there has been a ripple effect if you like throughout the banking communities and a ripple effect that we have seen now go right across the world. so we have heard from janet yellen, the treasury secretary saying that if things about the us banking system, that it is secure, and we also now have the confidence reflected in the decision of these 11 banks to come so much money into one single medium sized bank. all lies now will be on the markets to see how they respond, and of course all eyes on individual investors, the individuals who have money in this bank to see how they respond. we can now speak to wall street insider danielle dimartino booth

who's ceo and chief strategist at quill intelligence and former advisor to the dallas federal reserve. danielle, thank you for taking the time to come in the programme. now, we have seen big us banks step into first —— helps at first reserve, but we didn't see the same support last week when silicon valley bank collapsed and signature bank collapsed and signature bank collapsed. what you think is different time around? i think right now it is paramount for us regulators and wired the treasury secretary janet yellen has prompted these banks to infuse first republic with $30 billion is that right now we are in a crisis of confidence. so we have to stop the runs, we have to stop the banks from lining up like dominoes. what happens with silicon valley was extraordinarily abrupt in nature, that was followed with another bank falling on sunday, and i think right now the most critical thing is to try and quash the uncertainty and let

the public know that the biggest banks and us regulators are there to stop the bleed of deposits, stop these great depression—era type of bank runs. depression-era type of bank runs. ,, ., , , depression-era type of bank runs. ,, , runs. the us treasury secretary has said depositors _ runs. the us treasury secretary has said depositors could - runs. the us treasury secretary has said depositors could have i has said depositors could have confidence in the system. do you think people should be worried? i you think people should be worried? ~ . worried? i think that the next ste - , worried? i think that the next ste, if worried? i think that the next step. if you — worried? i think that the next step, if you will, _ worried? i think that the next step, if you will, and - worried? i think that the next step, if you will, and we - worried? i think that the next step, if you will, and we are i step, if you will, and we are seeing this with bigger banks like credit suisse, and the reason that you could be worried is that the next step after illiquidity would be the potential for insolvency, and what types of loans around these banks books after years and years of their interest rate policy encouraging a hyper leveraging of the us economy. so i completely understand where treasury secretary janet yellen is coming from, but it will take more than tough talk really to try and taint down all the nervousness and anxiety right now. we all the nervousness and anxiety right "ow-— right now. we have seen interest _ right now. we have seen interest rises _ right now. we have seen interest rises hike, -

right now. we have seen - interest rises hike, especially interest rises hike, especially in europe, but what impact do you think this will have on the banking sector? for you think this will have on the banking sector?— you think this will have on the banking sector? for the banking sector it has _ banking sector? for the banking sector it has been _ banking sector? for the banking sector it has been a _ banking sector? for the banking sector it has been a very - sector it has been a very difficult road because they have had bond yields and bond prices moving in opposite directions. so a lot of the holdings that they had, trillions of dollars of holdings that they have ended up holdings that they have ended up being worth much less than what they had paid for them. that is what happened to the greatest extent silicon valley in addition to have a 97% or so of its deposits be uninsured by the fdic. so it was a confluence of factors. but the rapid rise, the faster since 1981 in interest rates is definitely being debilitating to the banking sector that is likely why european banks were under some pressure today. what under some pressure today. what is our under some pressure today. what is your assessment _ under some pressure today. what is your assessment will _ under some pressure today. what is your assessment will happen next? do you think another bank might potentially need a bailout to mark i think that right now there is no way of saying whether that will be the case. it saying whether that will be the case. , . . , saying whether that will be the case. ,. . ,~~ case. it is certainly apparent that large — case. it is certainly apparent that large institutional-

that large institutional investors have made targets out of several other banks after first republic, and that is the very nature of speculators. and that will be the next challenge as we are seeing in the aftermarket hours for first republic trading down 17% after having closed up 3% in regular trading today, so i dare say that the nervousness has not been expunged and that there are investors who have their eye on other banks that have similar vulnerabilities to first republic.— similar vulnerabilities to first re - ublic. . first republic. danielle, chief executive _ first republic. danielle, chief executive and _ first republic. danielle, chief executive and chief _ first republic. danielle, chief| executive and chief strategist, thank you very much for your time. ., ~' ,, thank you very much for your time. . ,, i. ., ., french riot police have used tear gas and water cannon to clear thousands of protesters from the streets of paris. the protests started after president macron forced through plans to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64. his government invoked a rarely used tool in the constitution to avoid a vote in the assembly. the bbc�*s azadeh moshiri reports. they sing la marseillaise.

this isn'tjust a rendition of the national anthem, this is a protest by france's own lawmakers. speaks french the prime minister was repeatedly heckled. speaks french translation: i wasn't angry, i was really shocked. - it reflects the fact that a certain number of opposition groups do not respect our institutions. some of them have said it clearly. they want chaos in the assembly and on the street. president macron would have known this move would have angered the people of france. pushing through laws without a vote has always been unpopular, and pension reform has been an inflammatory issue. this is how president macron approached the vote.

his prime minister invoked article 49:3 of the constitution so they could bypass a vote in the national assembly. that allowed the government to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64 mere minutes before lawmakers were due to vote. we could not gamble on the future of an essential reform to preserve our retirement system, dealing with possible changes of position of opposition members. protesters across the country do not agree. unions are calling this a declaration of war. translation: it's an important day, - because we feel that there is anger, determination, and that we had turn that into victory, and we're determined. the far right opposition leader marine le pen has said she will table a vote of no confidence. unions are calling for more protests next week. but, for now, mr macron is standing firm.

azadeh moshiri, bbc news. let's get some of the day's other news. the pentagon has released a video of what it claims is part of tuesday's incident between a us drone and a russianjet. the incident, which happened over the black sea, was the first direct us—russian incident since the war in ukraine began in february last year. in the footage, what is claimed to be a russianjet, releases fuel as it passes the drone. russia has denied us accusations that its jets acted recklessly. the un nuclear watchdog says it's verifying reports that ten barrels of missing uranium have been recovered in libya. the ore was found near the border with chad, an area not in government—controlled territory. uranium is a naturally occurring element that can have nuclear—related uses once it has been refined or enriched. new zealand's government has become the latest to ban tiktok on devices with access

to its parliamentary network, due to security concerns. it's been claimed that the chinese—owned video—sharing app passes information about its users to the chinese government — something the owners, bytedance, deny. earlier on thursday, the uk followed the united states, and the european commission, in banning the app from sensitive government devices. china says it's a politically motivated decision, not one based on facts. after months of strike action by health workers in england, there's hope that a new pay offer will put an end to the dispute. nhs nurses and ambulance workers are being presented with a deal negotiated by trade unions and government campaigners. campaigners say the offer is significantly short of a rise above inflation. but negotiators on both sides say it's the best deal they can produce. 0ur health editor hugh pym reports on the new nhs pay offer.

it was an unprecedented set of strikes in the nhs. what do we want? fair pay! when do we want it? now! the royal college of nursing staging the most extensive action in its history. sirens ambulance unions followed with walk—outs affecting all but the most urgent calls. 0ther unions including the chartered society of physiotherapists also went on strike over pay. it's hot—off—the—press information. and today, a breakthrough after intense talks, the prime minister approving more money for nhs staff. well, today's pay agreement is fair for nhs workers. we want to make sure that we reward them and recognise the hard work they do, whether that's nurses, paramedics, midwives, but it's also fair for taxpayers, and this was important to us as well. it needs to be affordable. the biggest health unions are ready to recommend the government's offerfor england. now, members will vote on it. having that pay rise earlier

could have been useful in stopping people leaving jobs in the health service for better paid work elsewhere. but people today will at least be glad that they have an offer that is worthy of consideration. it is a reasonable offer. it certainly isn't all that we would have asked for, but it is enough that we can put to our members. before the strikes, nhs staff in england, wales and northern ireland had an average pay award of about 4% for this financial year. in wales, ministers raised that to 7%, though this has been rejected by some unions. in scotland, a pay offer averaging 7.5% has been accepted by most unions. in northern ireland, no new deal has been proposed. ministers have now added a one—off payment for nhs staff in england for this financial year, and there is a pay offer of 5% for the next year, beginning in april. a spokesperson said the treasury

and department of health would work out the required funding. it began with strikes called by the royal college of nursing followed by other health unions. now, it's got to the point of a pay offer to be put to members. ministers had said before there was no more money available for this financial year, but now, that has changed. the strikes have caused disruption — around 140,000 operations and appointments were cancelled. nhs leaders say they are now keen to get on with tackling the backlog. obviously, this signals the opportunity to do that and to avoid all other disruption that we've seen as a consequence of the industrial action and, crucially, a fair dealfor staff. chanting: claps | don't pay the bills! but thejunior doctors are not part of today's agreement. after three days of strike action this week, there is no sign of talks, let alone a deal. hugh pym, bbc news. stay with us on bbc news. still to come: why

the inhabitants of a remote scottish island have a high risk of cancer. today, we have closed the book on apartheid and that chapter. more than 3,000 subway passengers were affected. nausea, bleeding, headaches and a dimming of vision — all of this caused by an apparently organised attack. the trophy itself was - on the pedestal in the middle of the cabinet here. now, this was an international trophy, and we understand - now that the search for it has i become an international search. above all, this was a triumph for the christian democrats of the west, offering reunification as quickly as possible, and that's

what the voters wanted. this is bbc world news. the latest headlines: a $30 billion rescue package for the embattled first republic bank, as concerns grow of a possible crisis in the global financial sector. anger in france after the government pushes through pension reform without a vote. now to ukraine, and the ongoing battle for the city of bakhmut in the east of the country. two ukrainian army brigades defending the city's southern flank recently gave the bbc access to their positions, as fierce fighting continued in and around the city. they say russian casualties far outweigh theirs, but that the enemy is using new techniques to try to seize the city and the surrounding countryside. 0ur correspondent, quentin sommerville, sent us this special report.

in war�*s uncertain journey, fates are decided in the unlikeliest of places. ukraine has drawn a line in the mud, and that line is bakhmut. no matter the hardship, the enemy must not pass. this ground must be held. winter has given way to early spring. they hope it might slow russia's advance. translation: the thing is, it complicates thejob for both parties. the enemy has difficulty attacking, because nothing moves in the mud. nothing except tank tracks... ..and army boots. the mud's unreal. it pulls you this

way and that way. it's a trap for men, for vehicles. it makes moving around this battlefield almost impossible. and for the soldiers of the 3rd separate assault brigade, it means going the long way round. moving as fast as the territory allows. they're in range of russian guns. we're told to keep low. stop, stop! there's snipers around here. these trenches are new, but warfare along this front is antiquated. below ground, these are dugouts that their grandfathers would recognise. but by digging in, they've tied up russian forces here and held bakhmut longer

than many expected. but it isn'tjust the conditions that are basic. this is a 21st—century war, being fought with 19th—century r . weapon y it's a maxim machine—gun. 120 years of history of killing russians. a weapon from the first world war, used in the third world war. sporadic gunfire right, we are heading right to the very forward position. we can hear shelling right now and automatic gunfire. more shelling. they get attacked here on a daily basis. translation: there are the enemy positions, - so let's move very fast. 0k.

almost every day, some shells from mortar or artillery. we can see the craters all around here. there is a fresh crater, right there. we've got to go, we've got to go. there's hardly any tree cover here, the men are exposed. gunfire and the russians found them. 0k, move, move. you can go in the car, because there is a little bit of water here. keep down. gunfire the russians are only 500 metres away. that's automatic fire. all along this line there's grenade fire, automatic gunfire and tank fire. translation: it's really dangerous there, bullets are flying everywhere.

that kind of fire is every day here. seven months, more than seven months into this battle, it's created a wasteland. this is the longest battle of the war so far. to the north, and to the east, and here in the south, russia's been making gains. but it's costing them. the ukrainians say that for every one soldier that they lose, russia loses seven. but still they hold on here. and bakhmut is a town that no—one believes has strategic value. but to russia and ukraine, it matters in this war. translation: this is not| a strategic question for us. we are just ordinary soldiers. but this is our land. if we lose here, then do we retreat to chasiv yar, to sloviansk, then

all the way to kyiv? however long it takes, two, four, five years, we have to fight for every piece of ground. so, every tiny step of land needs to be defended, even as they toil under waves of attack from russian prisoners sent by wagner group. translation: we were in combat every two hours. l as far as i understand, they were wagner. we were fighting them, and without over estimating our achievements, i would say a single company was killing 50 of their men a day. we checked the figures, they are awful numbers. they are outgunned and outnumbered but, for now, unyielding. in bakhmut, like in the rest of this war, they have grown used to the odds being against them. quentin sommerville, bbc news, on the outskirts of bakhmut. the united states has welcomed the first meeting of japanese and south korean

leaders for 12 years. the summit in tokyo was designed to reset trade and diplomatic relations. 0ur correspondent, shaimaa khalil, says both countries face growing challenges from china and north korea. top of the agenda really was set by north korea. just hours before president yoon was supposed to land in tokyo, north korea fired a long—range intercontinental ballistic missile, and in that, it really demonstrated why it was important for the two leaders to talk to show a united front, because of that — now frequent missile launches from north korea. this is the fourth this week. but also not just that, the fact that they also have threats from china, the expansion, its military ambitions in the region. these are security issues that affect both countries and they both benefit, really, from working together on them.

shaimaa khalil speaking a little earlier. a community on a remote scottish island has been told they have a higher risk of cancer after scientists identified a gene which is known to increase the risk of breast and ovarian cancer. laura goodwin has the story. people have lived here on the island of westray for many thousands of years. in part, the community's deep connection to their roots have helped scientists solve a 25—year medical puzzle — an increase in family history of breast cancer first noticed by the screening services in 0rkney. now a team of geneticists have come to the island to communicate their findings face—to—face. over time, a pattern emerged, that we were starting to come across a gene difference in the gene that was, at that point, we were uncertain of the meaning of, but we kept finding it. and i was really suspicious that that gene alteration was important, and it was explaining the pattern of breast and ovarian cancer that we were seeing in those what appeared to be branches of one big family. around one in 1,000 women

across the uk have a brca1 variant. the study found one in 100 people with 0rkney grandparents have this particular variant. the study was able to trace the gene all the way back to the 18th century. this family tree shows known carriers of the gene but also those who were not tested but who researchers believe carried the gene because of their family links. it also shows who then went on to develop cancer. linda hagan can map her own westray family tree for many generations. i lost my sister four years ago — she was younger than me — to breast cancer. and an aunt, a well loved aunt, she died when she was 46. so it has affected our family and there are cousins as well who have had breast cancer. although this is news that we don't want to hear, it is important for us to know what is going on, and in the hopes that some maybe further treatment or at least a recognition of what could happen

if we carry the gene. karen scott has already been tested for the gene due to herfamily history of breast cancer. she did not have it but hopes other women will be tested. 0rcadians are all over the world. this is a massive discovery. and hugely important for the health of every individual in 0rkney, and the generations to come. there are other communities within the uk that have a known prevalence of brca gene variants but identifying founder mutations like this is rare. women with the same variation have already been found across the uk and america, which means their roots, most likely, lead back to 0rkney. laura goodwin, bbc news. that's all for now.

you can reach me on twitter — i'm @lmmisztak. hello. thursday brought a fair amount of rain for some parts of the uk, but it also brought northern ireland its warmest day of the year so far, with temperatures peaking just above 16 celsius at helens bay, not too far away from belfast. it's all because of low pressure, the centre of which you can see swirling here on our earlier satellite image. that has been bringing rain in places, but it's also been drawing warm air, or at least mild air, up from the south, and it will continue to do so during friday. the far north of scotland sticking with something just a little bit chillier, because here we've got a northerly wind, a band of cloud and some patchy rain to start friday. elsewhere, this area of wet weather moving across southeast england and east anglia. some of that rain could turn heavy and thundery for a time before clearing. and then for most of us,

it is a story of sunny spells and showers. again, some of the showers could be heavy with some flashes of lightning, some rumbles of thunder mixing in. but in between the showers, there will be a decent amount of sunshine, maybe not quite as mild as it was on thursday across northern ireland. highest temperatures, perhaps a little further east, 16 celsius there in newcastle. but with these northerly winds, it will be a little bit chillier across the likes of caithness and sutherland, 0rkney and shetland, six celsius, for example, in lerwick. the northerly wind continues here into the evening. elsewhere, southerly winds pushing areas of cloud and rain northwards. i think it will turn quite misty and murky in places. a little bit chilly in the far north, again, one celsius there for lerwick, but elsewhere generally between 6—9 celsius to start saturday morning. now, for the start of the weekend, this area of low pressure will be transiting eastwards across the uk, near the centre of the low, very light winds. so that means where the showers do pop up through saturday, they are likely to be very slow moving. if you catch a shower, it could be with you for quite some time.

again, some could be heavy and thundery, some sunny spells in between, the chance for some slightly more persistent rain into northern ireland and especially northwest scotland. again, it is going to be mild, ten celsius degrees for aberdeen, 12 celsius for belfast, perhaps 14 celsius in norwich and in london. and then we get to sunday, not as many showers on sunday. there should be some spells of sunshine around, although cloud will roll in from the west, bringing some rain into northern ireland and perhaps western scotland later in the day. perhaps not feeling quite as mild at this stage, but still not bad for the time of year, 9—14 celsius.

this is bbc news. the headlines: a group of big american banks has injected $30 billion into a smaller regional bank, first republic, which had been seen as at risk of failure. it comes as fears grow of a crisis in the global financial sector. french riot police have used tear gas and water cannon to clear thousands of demonstrators. the protests started after president macron forced through plans to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64. his government invoked a rarely used tool in the constitution to avoid a vote in the assembly. new zealand has become the latest country to ban civil servants from using the video sharing app tiktok on official phones. earlier, the uk, the us and the european commission

announced similar bans over security concerns. the chinese owners bytedance deny passing users information to the chinese government. now on bbc news, panorama. 7am, north london... yeah, wait. police! open up. ..police are here to arrest a suspected fraudster. tell me about your involvement in this. it's the police, can you let us in the block, please? lock clicks. thank you. fraudsters steal billions every year. they impersonate banks and even the police. he was very caring. all the time, it was, "please, don't worry." they target the vulnerable — sometimes again and again.

they've been preying on her for nine years now.