this is bbc news — welcome if you're watching here in the uk or around the globe. our top stories... ukraine accuses vladimir putin of making belarus a "nuclear hostage" after the russian leader said he would station nuclear weapons there. a state of emergency in mississippi — after a powerful tornado kills at least 26 people. as soon as we would go from one vehicle to the next vehicle or from building to building we could hear screams and we could hear cries for help. voters in berlin are to decide whether germany's capital should be carbon neutral by 2030. donald trump heads to texas to start his campaign to win back the us presidency in 202a.

ukrainian security officials have accused russia of depriving belarus of its sovereignty, after president putin annouced that he would station nuclear weapons in the country. the secretary of the national defence council, oleksiy danilov, said on twitter that the move is a step towards internal destabilisation. adding in a stark warning that the kremlin took belarus as a nuclear hostage. ukraine says the deployment violates nonproliferation commitments, which mr putin denies. we have already transferred to belarus our well—known, very effective complex iskander. it can be a delivery vehicle as well.

on april 3rd, we will start training the crews. onjuly 1st, we will finish the construction of the special repository to store the tactical nuclear weapon in belarus. i'm joined from kyiv by our correspondent, hugo bachega. what exactly is president putin planning to do? he what exactly is president putin planning to do?— planning to do? he announced yesterday _ planning to do? he announced yesterday that _ planning to do? he announced yesterday that russia - planning to do? he announced yesterday that russia would i planning to do? he announced| yesterday that russia would be stationing tactical nuclear weapons in belarus. these are weapons used for specific gains on the battlefield and there was a surprise here with this announcement. russia and belarus have been talking about the transfer of nuclear weapons for quite some time and i think this is something one of the presidenttop advisers here in kyiv said, he said president putin was too predictable and that all he can do is, his words, scare tactics. i think this is part of the strategy of the russians here and tell president to

keep everyone guessing. i think he is very unhappy with the transfer of weapons by nato countries to ukraine and i think this is the latest development in what some people are saying is an escalation by moscow. how much greater does it like the likelihood of any nuclear weapon usage in this conflict? it is interesting _ usage in this conflict? it is interesting because - usage in this conflict? it is interesting because a - usage in this conflict? it 3 interesting because a reaction we had from washington was that senior white house official played down the possibility of russia going ahead and using nuclear weapons here and i think they said it was now indication that russia was preparing to use nuclear weapons in this conflict. this has been the question here ever since russia launched this invasion last year and obviously belarus is a key russian ally in this conflict. belarus has been used as a launching pad for russian

forces here and now this latest development in which ukrainians are saying the kremlin has taken belarus as a nuclear hostage following this development. as a nuclear hostage following this development-_ as a nuclear hostage following this develoment. ~ ., ., , �* ., , ., development. what does belarus gain b this? development. what does belarus gain by this? that — development. what does belarus gain by this? that is _ development. what does belarus gain by this? that is an _ development. what does belarus gain by this? that is an interesting - by this? that is an interesting auestion by this? that is an interesting question is — by this? that is an interesting question is and _ by this? that is an interesting question is and i _ by this? that is an interesting question is and i think - by this? that is an interesting question is and i think any - question is and i think any announcement yesterday president putin said president lukashenko had for a long time raise the question of stationing nuclear weapons in his country. belarus is a key russian ally. it has been an ally in this invasion and i think this sense, another indication that president putin continues to support this country. putin continues to support this count . ., ~ ,, joining me now is professor elena korosteleva, who is a professor of politics at university of warwick here in the uk and an expert in bela rusian politics. thank you very much forjoining us.

how much of a choice will belarus have had if president putin does go ahead with stationing nuclear weapons. it ahead with stationing nuclear wea ons. , ., ahead with stationing nuclear weaons. , ., , ahead with stationing nuclear weaons. , . , ahead with stationing nuclear weaons. , ., , ., ahead with stationing nuclear weaons. , ., weapons. it is a bit too soon to say but what is — weapons. it is a bit too soon to say but what is clear, _ weapons. it is a bit too soon to say but what is clear, it _ weapons. it is a bit too soon to say but what is clear, it shows - weapons. it is a bit too soon to say but what is clear, it shows that - but what is clear, it shows that lukashenko is fully supporting putin in this case and we should really see belarus as an occupied territory, so in that weight there is very little choice left for the people of belarus in lukashenko's decision making. haifa people of belarus in lukashenko's decision making.— people of belarus in lukashenko's decision making. how does this fit with all those _ decision making. how does this fit with all those commitments - decision making. how does this fit with all those commitments abouti with all those commitments about nonproliferation of nuclear weapons? you take us straight to the point. if anything in terms of russia, there is one treaty it has clearly broken which is a 1994 memorandum

where it has pledged together with the uk and us to guarantee security to belarus, and ukraine. in this particular case, clearly violated the number of agreements. it clearly has stated on the ministry of foreign affairs website that there is consistent policy in the sphere of nuclear disarmament, nonproliferation control, in this case belarus clearly violates, the agreement in 1993, becoming the first country to paltry denounce the possibility to possess nuclear weapons. it also shows that lukashenko is very eager to gain control or to gain these nuclear weapons in order to boost his understanding in this war and also

internationally, but i think the biggest loser in all of this are the people of belarus, which are clearly held hostage to the situation. we will talk about sovereignty and a second but the white house appears to be treading cautiously right now, what sort of strategy do you believe the united states and other ukrainian allies need to adopt? it is important to tread very cautiously here because it is too soon to say from the statement that putin made yesterday, it may well take some time before potentially the transfer of nuclear weapons could happen, it could be over this summer. it is clearly a diplomatic gang that putin plays in order to show the west, posturing, sending a signal to nato to say that he will have his plans, stationing nuclear

weapons in europe, he is also posturing to the collective west, including the recent icc arrest warrant for putin, but at the same time for putin it is a diplomatic gain simply because if the west were to react it really serves putin so we need to tread very carefully and still be aware, it is a gamble, it is not the first time they have violated international commitments. just briefly, this move by president putin, what do you believe it means for the future sovereignty of belarus, how likely can it remain an independent state to the extent it is at the moment? this

independent state to the extent it is at the moment?— is at the moment? this is very important _ is at the moment? this is very important for _ is at the moment? this is very important for the _ is at the moment? this is very important for the future - is at the moment? this is very important for the future of - is at the moment? this is very - important for the future of belarus. what putin has shown is that he does not proceed belarus as a sovereign and independent country. it clearly shows that belarus is at the moment an occupied territory used by russia's military in the pursuit of putin's goals, and it also questions how much in control lukashenko is over belarus because at the moment it seems like there is no control that the tall and if anyone who actually has the upper hand it is putin. ., ~' ,, actually has the upper hand it is putin. . ,, i. ., actually has the upper hand it is putin. . ~' i” ., i” president biden has declared a major emergency in the state

of mississippi, where a tornado left hundreds homeless. this is the moment on friday when the wind barrelled through a school in the area, captured by cctv cameras inside. and these are the latest drone pictures after the tornado struck — carving a path of destruction 170 miles long. at least 25 people were killed in mississippi and one person in alabama. dozens have been injured. 0ur north america correspondent sophie long reports. this is rolling fork, a small, close community in mississippi. there is little left. they've lost loved ones, their homes — everything. we get storms, like bad rain, or, you know, probably high winds or something, but we never experienced nothing like this where you can wipe out a whole town — you know, schools, children, parents, loved ones. it wiped out everything.

these girls said they came back to look for their belongings. they didn't find much. this is what remains of people's homes here in rolling fork. you can see washing machines, signs of a life that took place here before. the tornado struck in the middle of the night — many people were sleeping. you can imagine just how terrifying this must have been. it meant many didn't hear the alerts. oh, man. dearjesus, please help them. ran through the bathroom and closed the door. jumped into it. francisco said the only warning he had was the sound of the wind, a sound which will haunt him forever. it was terrifying, like nothing i've ever heard. i don't want to experience that again in my life. i made it through there,

but it was scary. he survived by sheltering in his bathroom — the only bit of the house that's still partially standing. there is some long—term resentment here. mississippi is the poorest state in america, and some feel forgotten by leaders in the nation's capital. excuse my language, damn, you forgot about us? just because we're last in everything, you forgot about us? that's heart—wrenching. we don't have support from the superior people also. president biden described it as heartbreaking and said he and the first lady are praying for those who have loved ones. but people here are asking more than prayers and emergency relief. they want long—term support. sophie long, bbc news, rolling fork, mississippi. voters in berlin are heading to the polls in a referendum on whether to make the german capital climate neutral by 2030. the results of the binding referendum will be a test

of whether germans want their country's climate policy to be more ambitious. germany aims to be europe's biggest carbon—neutral economy by 2045. critics say the campaign's goal is unrealistic, because it would not be possible to reach zero net emissions within seven years. well, a little earlier i spoke to our berlin correspondent damien mcguiness and i asked him how much support the measure has. i think on the one hand there is a lot of support and on the other criticism. it is an issue which divides berlin. in the centre of berlin, the city centre, lots of constitunecies vote green, whereas on the outskirts the outer boroughs of berlin. concrete measures, for example.

if the referendum went through, if 600,000 of berlin's voters said yes, this would mean dramatic changes. it would go into berlin law and the senate would have to push through some drastic changes to infrastructure, buildings and transport, meaning certain things like a strict limit on cars in the city centre. it means the difference of opinion in the city centre, those who vote green and conservative, would be dramatic. you would have a lot of car users on the outskirts, either not voting or vote no. people in the city centres, green voters will vote yes, and both sides are defending their opinions. it is a very live issue in berlin, a divisive issue. it taps into identity and future, but also how

you see the city looking. when it comes to how your flat will be heated, how homes are built, and how the city's transport will look, how many cars are on the roads and public transport. it is those nitty—gritty issues that impact lives. notjust identity, but daily lies. that is why the issue has attracted so much debate in berlin. given the overall ambitions of the country, it must be a conversation being had in other parts of germany? yes, that is right, and other towns have pushed for the climate goals, but berlin is the biggest city, the capital, and the one struggling the most in some of these issues connected to climate change. berlin doesn't have enough flats, so it has to build new ones. it is reliant on cars and public transport, so how you get the balance

is a debate. it is one of the poorest sites, it isn't rich. it often struggles to balance the books, and when you are talking about climate neutrality, that would be expensive. it would cost billions, and the public leaders, political leaders in berlin say it is too expensive and will lead to cuts in other services. people are looking at berlin because it is a big city with lots of people, and have an impact on climate, but set an example of whether targets are achievable. the campaigners say if 2030 is an incredibly ambitious goal, at least it is pushing the agenda. even some people say

it is impossible to do, but they would still vote yes to put pressure on political leaders to put through those drastic changes, which a lot of people think are needed here, even though they are difficult and possibly expensive. donald trump has opened his campaign to win back the us presidency by railing against the dark forces he says are lined up against him. at a rally in the us state of texas, mr trump claimed the multiple legal investigations into his conduct and finances were straight out of a stalinist russia horror show. shelly phelps reports. dressed for the occasion, die—hard donald trump fans turned out in their thousands for this airfield rally in the texan city of waco. the legal threats hanging over the former president at the forefront of some of their minds. if trump got arrested for the charges they're talking about now, i would vote for him ten times over, because if he was a democrat,

it would never come up. donald trump is for america and he fights for americans. the far left doesn't like that, and so that's why they keep attacking him. it was his first public appearance since speculating a week ago that he would soon be arrested. new york prosecutors are investigating alleged hush money payments made on donald trump's behalf to former adult film star stormy daniels. addressing the crowd, he claimed it's been orchestrated by president biden. the district attorney of new york, under the auspices and direction of the department of injustice in washington, dc, was investigating me for something that is not a crime, not a misdemeanor, not an affair. donald trump went on to cast the 2024 presidential vote in apocalyptic terms, using language that some analysts warned could be dangerous.

and if you look at what president trump said tonight, things like if we don't win in 2024, we won't have a country. it'll be over, world war three, take our country back. these are things that he knows are whistles to this crowd, and he's trying to rile them up, which is unfortunate because we saw in january 6th that that riling this base up caused violence and death. donald trump insists he still has a bright political future ahead of him, but he'll need to overcome some pretty big legal and electoral challenges in order to achieve it. shelly phelps, bbc news. two israeli cabinet ministers have called for the dismissal of defence minister yoav gallant after he said plans to overhaul the judicial system should be halted. the proposed laws have divided the country — and resulted in weeks of protests. many fear they'll undermine the country's democratic institutions, while mr gallant said the divisions in society were affecting the fighting

capabilities of the israeli defence force. benjamin netanyahu has refused to scrap the plan. emer mccarthy reports. tens of thousands of israelis took to the streets of tel aviv on saturday as protests against government plans to overhaul the justice system entered a 12th week. we all have to fight for our rights because of the plans of benjamin netanyahu that want to turn this nation into a dictatorship. what we are doing here tonight is protesting against the government, want to get all the power to itself and take all the rights from our citizens. and this is why we are here, fighting for our democracy. israel's prime minister, benjamin netanyahu, says the reforms will stop the courts overreaching their powers and that the public voted for them at the last election. proposed changes include enabling parliament to overrule decisions made by the supreme court.

critics say the plans risk undermining the judiciary�*s independence and could be used for political ends. now israel's defence minister has broken ranks and is calling for the plans to be paused. translation: but now i declare loudly and publicly for the sake l of israel's security, for the sake of our sons and daughters, the legislative process should be stopped in order to enable the nation of israel to celebrate passover and independence day together, and to mourn together on memorial day and holocaust remembrance day. these are our holy days for us. chanting. next week, lawmakers are due to vote on a central part of the government's proposals, which would change the way judges are appointed. meanwhile, protest organisers are vowing to intensify demonstrations. emer mccarthy, bbc news. at least 19 people are reported to have died after a migrant boat heading for italy sank off

the coast of tunisia. five other boats have gone down in the region in the last three days amid an unprecedented wave of departures. authorities in the italian island of lampedusa say they are overwhelmed with thousands of arrivals after dozens of vessels completed the crossing. here in the uk — the british government is preparing to announce the use of ferries to accommodate migrants who have crossed the channel on small boats. the announcement could come as soon as this week. let's hear from our political correspondent helen catt. at the moment a large number of people who cross the channel are being put up in hotels. the bbc understands the number is around more than 51,000, across 395 hotels. and the government has signalled that it wants to move away from that and it's been looking for alternatives. so we understand that what is going to be announced are two military sites in england will be used to to house migrants with the first moving in within weeks. they'll have a capacity, sources

say, of between 1500 to 2000. the expectation is that that will be largely for new arrivals in the first instance. they also expected to announce the use of, as you mentioned, ferries and what's being described as other temporary floating accommodation. there have been negotiations with ports, but we might not know exactly where those will be for the next few weeks. and the idea behind this policy, according to some of those who've drawn it up, is a big shift from hotels to a move to what they're describing as more rudimentary accommodation in the hopes, they say that it will act as an as a deterrent. in another story — a report in the observer suggests a number of senior conservative mps were filmed requesting up to £10,000 a day to work for a fake consultancy company. an undercover investigation by the political campaign group led by donkeys shows ex—chancellor kwasi kwarteng, former health secretary matt hancock — and three other mps — discussing fees for their consultancy services on top of theirjobs in parliament.

in the recording matt hancock asked for up to £10,000 a day. the paper says no parliamentary rules were broken. a spokesman for matt hancock responded... the bbc�*s laura kuenssberg has just been speaking to the conservative cabinet minister michael gove about this. here's what he said. the market, as it were, decides many of these things. but the most important, the most important thing is not these negotiations. the most important thing is what every member of parliament does for their constituents. so you can have people who are both members of parliament but also do other work. so maria caulfield, my colleague, is a nurse alongside being a health minister.

whether or not you think they're worth £10,000 a day, as a former cabinet minister and somebody like kwasi kwarteng, who essentially had to resign because everything blew up on his watch. they worth £10,000 a day? they've not broken any rules, but it's conceptually they worth £10,000 a day, in your view? i'm not a commentator. i don't pass judgment on other members of parliament. there are rules that govern what members of parliament should do and what they should declare. but the jury here is the constituency. so it will be the case come a general election, if matt and kwasi choose to stand again, that their constituents will decide. i think they're both talented people with a lot to offer in the future, but ultimately they will have to answer for the decisions that they've taken. millions around the world have been switching off their lights to mark �*earth hour�*. and it's notjust houses — the acropolis in athens turned off their lights at 8pm local time to mark the event. the appeal was launched by world wildlife fund in 2007 — to raise awareness of climate change — and proposes that people around the world can significantly reduce carbon emissions by turning off

unnecessary lights and electronic devices for one hour. hello there. it's been a rather wet start of the day for england and wales, but gradually, that rain has been clearing away to the south—east, and even quite a few puddles around this morning. that's the scene in kent at the moment. but it will get drier as the day goes on. that rain finally clears away from kent and east sussex this afternoon. one or two bright spells developing, but some wintry showers affecting the far north—east of scotland, some snow over the higher ground here. colder air spreading in, so temperatures, 3 or 4 celsius in northern areas. it will feel colder than that in the exposed wind. further south, stilljust about in double figures. but of course, we're now in british summertime, clocks have gone forward. just a reminder that sunset today is roughly about 7:30 this evening.

now, as we go through into tonight, we#re going to see those showers clearing away. there'll be some clear skies. one or two mist and fog patches forming into the early hours of monday, but with those clear skies and the colder air moving southwards, we're going to see a frost quite widely across northern and north—eastern areas. temperatures down to —1, —2 degrees celsius. perhaps only 3 or 4 degrees further south and west. but during monday, high pressure is in charge of the weather and that keeps things relatively settled. so it's going to be a drier day. we'll keep these weather systems just at bay for the time being. one or two mist and fog patches, then, first thing in the morning. those will clear away fairly quickly, and then we're looking at lots of blue skies and sunshine throughout the day. one or two showers, perhaps, in the far south—west of england, south wales later on. and again, it will still feel quite chilly. temperatures about 8, 10 or 11 degrees celsius. but hopefully, some sunshine will at least compensate that. but through into tuesday, we're going to see this area of high pressure move away. a big area of low pressure then

in the atlantic will throw some systems into the uk. now, as that wet weather hits the colder air across scotland, there could be a bit of transient snow over higher ground. pretty wet conditions developing quite widely around the west. i think towards the eastern and south—eastern areas, stay largely dry until later in the day. a blustery wind developing, but temperatures will start to creep up to about 11 or 12 degrees, although still a little bit chilly across the far east. now, for the rest of the week, it remains pretty unsettled, although you notice those temperatures will continue to climb. so by thursday, we could see temperatures rising to about 16, 17, maybe even 18 degrees celsius. so just a temporary blip of cold weather, before it turns milder again. goodbye.

this is bbc news. the headlines: security officials in ukraine have accused russia of depriving belarus of its sovereignty. it comes after russia's president, vladimir putin, announced that his country would station nuclear weapons there. president biden has ordered that federal aid be sent to mississippi, as emergency services work to help hundreds of people who've been left homeless by a tornado. at least 25 people have died in mississippi, with one person killed in alabama. voters in berlin are to decide whether germany's capital should be carbon—neutral by 2030.

it comes after a year of campaigning, but critics say