i'm arunoday mukharji. let's get you the headlines. heading home — the american soldier travis king, who fled to north korea injuly, is back in us custody. hundreds gather for the first funerals of the victims of a fire at an iraqi wedding, in which around 100 people were killed. -- 115. —— 115. clashes in the state after the bodies of two students in the month ofjuly. new research into anti— matter shows that einstein was right about it all along. live from our studio in singapore, this is bbc news — it's newsday. hello and welcome to the programme. the us soldier, travis king, who was being held in north korea, is due home

in the coming hours. he was handed over to us officials in china, although the circumstances of his return have not been fully revealed. private king entered north korea by running across the demilitarised zone from south korea injuly. he had been due to be flown to the us, to face military disciplinary proceedings, when he escaped his escort. north korea earlier said it would expel the soldier for illegally entering its territory. us national security adviser jake sullivan has thanked both china and sweden for their assistance in gaining private king's release. jean mackenzie reports. this is travis king moments before he ran into north korea during a tour of the demilitarised zone. the us soldier had been in trouble with the south korean authorities and was being sent home to be disciplined by the army. the north koreans have kept his whereabouts

a total secret. but behind the scenes, an extraordinary operation has been unfolding. sweden played chief negotiator, acting on behalf of the us. they went into north korea to get private king and took him across the border to china, where a us team was waiting to fly him home. there is a slither of geopolitical hope in all this that, despite current military tensions between north korea and the united states, both sides were able to arrange travis king's safe return, and with help from china. a us official said this showed the importance of keeping channels of communication open, while adding they'd made no concessions to the north to make this happen. private king is said to be in good health and good spirits, excited to be heading home. any disciplining will wait, the us says, until his medical and emotional needs have been

met and he's been reunited with his family. jean mackenzie, bbc news, in seoul. earlier, i spoke to our north america correspondent sean dilley about the case. little sketchy. us officials had said that they'd been told through diplomatic channels that he probably would be released at some point. the release — or technically, it's an expulsion by the north korean authorities — came rather abruptly. the country essentially says it treated him as a criminal who they've removed rather than potentially having used him as more of a bargaining chip. the white house says that that decision�*s probably motivated to a degree by the fact that, as a low—ranking soldier, they didn't feel that they could have got any more diplomatic capital out of it. but it's certainly a welcome development for his family and the us army who, no matter what they do down

the line, are just pleased to have their soldier back. sean, it's still a bit of a mystery about why he crossed over, of course, what happened after that. what do we know from us officials about the case till now? well, us officials have said that their focus is obviously on reintegrating private king into the united states. they'll look after his medical, his physical and his mental health needs because they will want to debrief him. they'll want to know how he was treated in north korean custody. he obviously will face the consequences of unlawfully crossing into north korea. he already was declared, of course, as being absent without leave, and he had already been on his way back to the united states to face disciplinary action after serving time in a south korean prison on an assault conviction. the us authorities are obviously going to be very concerned for his welfare, first and foremost.

and almost, you can kind of divide this into two sections, really, two considerations — that of making sure that the us citizen, their soldier is safe. and then, obviously, secondly, they will be particularly eager to say to other servicemen and women that, obviously, the consequences are something that you would face in due course — not their priority for the moment. certainly in terms of future relations with north korea, the us government say they don't believe that this is any breakthrough moment, the release itself. the north koreans have said previously that private king had claimed discrimination and racism. mrs gates, his mother, had also said that she had been concerned about similar expressions that he had made to her. but the full motivation is obviously very unclear. we ta ke we take you to iraq now. where the first funerals have been held for the victims of a fire in

northern iraq in which around 100 people died. the blaze started when fireworks were set off in the hall in al—hamdaniya. 14 people have been arrested, including the owner of a wedding venue. the iraqi government says the findings of the investigation will come out in a few days, but what they know so far is safety precautions were not fulfilled. a warning you may find some of laura trant�*s report distressing. the clean—up where, for many in the qaraqosh community, hope has died out. translation: we buried 16 i persons today from our family. 16 persons, adults and children. hundreds of mourners attended a funeral for some of the victims, their faces seen on images carried by their loved ones. translation: we have no more feelings, we no longer feel- anything because we all know each other here in hamdaniya. each one of us has a relative or a neighbour or a family member. we were all one family here in qaraqosh. this is the moment when tragedy sparked.

hundreds of friends, family and neighbours gathered together to celebrate this christian wedding. in the banqueting area, as the bride and groom danced, the fire spread fast and trapped many. witnesses and officials said it was sparked by fireworks fuelled by flammable panels covering the hall. those who are injured have been transferred to hospitals across the area, including the nearby city of mosul and in neighbouring kurdistan region. police have made arrests, including workers, the owner of the hall, and people who set off the fireworks. it's been reported that the iraqi interior minister said the blaze was caused by fireworks, which led to the roof burning heavily and collapsing on the citizens. there's been criticism of the materials used. the prime minister, mohammed shia' al sudani, said there would be building and safety inspections, with the relevant authorities held accountable

for any negligence. the findings of the inspection are expected in the coming days. laura trant, bbc news. to the us now, and in california republican presidential hopefuls are gearing up for yet another debate. seven candidates seeking the republican nomination will be onstage at the reagan presidential library in california. it is the second of the three televised debates. for more, caitriona perry is with us from california, in front of the ronald reagan presidential library. good to see you again. how crucial is this debate for the republican hopefuls? is this debate for the republican hoefuls? , . , this debate for the republican hoefuls? , ., , ., hopefuls? is really important for them- _ hopefuls? is really important for them. this _ hopefuls? is really important for them. this is _ hopefuls? is really important for them. this is their - hopefuls? is really importanti for them. this is their chance to set out their stall, to remind voters in america who they are, what they stand for, to remind them what it means to be a conservative, what it means to be a republican party

member, separate to what it meant to be a member of the republican party under donald trump during his presidency and in the years that have followed. 0f in the years that have followed. of course, donald trump is the frontrunner to become the nominee for the republican party. some a0 points clear of the rest of the field, no matter which poll you look at. but for the candidates here they want to give a reason to voters to pick them when the primary season, the caucuses start in just under four months�* start injust underfour months�* time. this is their chance to tell people who they are and what they stand for. this debate mulched by the fact that donald trump is absent from it. how has that played out and affected his campaign? well, obviously he wasn�*t in the first debate in milwaukee. the candidates at that point went and our, half of the debate, without mentioning the former president by name of a policy. very much interacting with those in the room and

almost ignoring the frontrunner who was not in the room. tonight, we could expect something similar. 0f tonight, we could expect something similar. of course, donald trump is hosting his own event. just around now he is arriving in detroit, michigan, where he will go to speak to some also workers there. somewhat controversially he is going to a non— union also played and speaking to workers there who are not members of there who are not members of the uaw union which is striking in the big three automakers in detroit. we saw in the big three automakers in detroit. we sanoe biden on the picket line yesterday with the picket line yesterday with the auto workers are donald trump instead of being at the debate with the other candidates.— debate with the other candidates. .,~ ., candidates. speaking of the other candidates, _ candidates. speaking of the other candidates, on - candidates. speaking of the other candidates, on ron i other candidates, on ron desantis, while he remains the second most popular candidate, it is on a downward trend. how important is this debate for him specifically? it�*s important is this debate for him specifically?— him specifically? it's very important _ him specifically? it's very important for _ him specifically? it's very important for ron - him specifically? it's very i important for ron desantis. him specifically? it's very - important for ron desantis. he is, as you say, coming second essentially, if you want to put

it like that, to donald trump. in some a0 points back. he is at 16- 70% in some a0 points back. he is at 16— 70% depending on who you look at. the third candidate is nikki haley was also quite a bit back from ron desantis. she made the most movement after the first debate so the focus will be on her again to see if she can come out of this debate making more progress and closing that bracket between herself and ron desantis. for him, he wants to extend that range, he wants to get further away from nikki haley, mike pence, the rest the field and closer to donald trump to make it more of a one—on—one head become the nominee of this party. become the nominee of this a a . ., become the nominee of this ea . ., ., become the nominee of this party. you mention nikki haley, but another _ party. you mention nikki haley, but another one _ party. you mention nikki haley, but another one who _ party. you mention nikki haley, but another one who emerged l but another one who emerged stronger is mr rahmon swanny. they both ascended in the polls. 0f they both ascended in the polls. of those two of the names to watch out for as we go ahead? , ., , ,., , ., ahead? they absolutely are. in terms of how _ ahead? they absolutely are. in terms of how they _ ahead? they absolutely are. in terms of how they will - ahead? they absolutely are. in terms of how they will be - terms of how they will be situated on this stage, in the

middle of the stage will have ron desantis as the person poling the best and then you will have a vivek ramaswamy next to him and nikki haley because of her improvement will because of her improvement will be on the other side of ron desantis. the three of them, expense, will try to keep the focus on each other and to use each other as foils and keep the intensity there because everybody wants to emerge from this debate with some sort of viral moment, some sort of cliff that will play out on the breakfast was tomorrow morning that will be set on social media platforms and that is what will have the greatest reached her potential voters, rather than those who might sit down and watch the old two our debate tonight. people who will sit will get that extra amplification so they will be looking for those exchanges and to essentially score points of each other. at the end of the day, this is a competition and somebody wants to win. we will leave it there. _ somebody wants to win. we will leave it there. i'm _ somebody wants to win. we will leave it there. i'm sure - somebody wants to win. we will leave it there. i'm sure we - leave it there. i�*m sure we will be getting touch with you for updates as the debate goes forward. thank you. just before we go, let does take you

through some live pictures that are now coming in of donald trump who was addressing a rally in clinton in michigan, as my colleague was pointing out, he will be addressing that rally in clinton in michigan, the same place where that big protest is going on by the auto workers union. let�*s turn to india, where there has been a violent protest in the northeastern state of manipur. after the discovery of the bodies of two students who disappeared in the month of july. the state has seen a spate of violence between different communities over the past few months. samira hussain with the latest. process, rubber bullets, tear—gas. this latest flareup the larger since ethnic violence began back in may. —— largest. these

protesters were marching in the capitol when they were met by security forces. several dozens have been injured. an internet ban imposed, a controversial anti— insurgency law in effect, giving security forces full control in the state. this round comes after voters are most of the bodies of two teenagers. they had been missing sincejuly. the bbc spoke with the girls was father just last month he was hopeful to the end. translation: i to the end. translation: , . ., , translation: i expect that she will come back. _ translation: i expect that she will come back. with _ translation: i expect that she will come back. with this - translation: i expect that she will come back. with this hope l will come back. with this hope they keep living even though there is so much sorrow. for there is so much sorrow. for the kind of person she is, i�*m hopeful they will let her go. the photos confirmed news that no parent wants to hear. this situation has been tense since

ethnic violence broke out between the majority hindu mighty and the christian communities. since may, nearly 200 have been killed. and the violence continues. both communities say it is impossible to live with each other after all of these atrocities. making it hard to see when this conflict will end. samira hussain, bbc news, delhi. harriet brown started as an apprentice and that he is an award winner. been named the best in the business after going up against michael voss companies and his skills challenge.— companies and his skills challenge. companies and his skills challenue. ., challenge. doing your “0b to the best you i challenge. doing your “0b to the best you can * challenge. doing yourjob to the best you can compete i the best you can compete against all the other people would presume are better than yourself, to go and compete and beat other people, it is nice to know you are good at what you�*re doing day today. the

inspection and it was inspecting a vehicle, checking the faults, the 0k, they not? and then marking down. stripping down engines, turrets and all sorts of valves and systems. and all sorts of valves and system-— and all sorts of valves and s stems. ., , ., ., , systems. he has gone from being an apprentice _ systems. he has gone from being an apprentice to _ systems. he has gone from being an apprentice to helping - systems. he has gone from being an apprentice to helping train - an apprentice to helping train new ones. they adopt their investment this year and taken a more than double the usual amount of practices. it is nice to make a _ amount of practices. it is nice to make a difference. - amount of practices. it is nice to make a difference. the - to make a difference. the position i am in now, i can make a difference. for more stories across _ make a difference. for more stories across the _ make a difference. for more stories across the uk, - make a difference. for more stories across the uk, head | make a difference. for more i stories across the uk, head to the bbc— stories across the uk, head to the bbc news website. taiwan is set to launch _ the bbc news website. taiwan is set to launch new— the bbc news website. taiwan is set to launch new summaries. i the bbc news website. taiwan is | set to launch new summaries. we want comes at a time of heightened tension in the street with the chinese navy

making frequent incursions into the waters they claim as their own. china has entered into a number of disputes with several countries in the region, including the philippines and japan. it making increasingly loud noises about. we�*ve uniting taiwan with the mainland. the island has been actively in the balance since 1950. can speak to a retired senior kernel in the people�*s liberation army and now a senior fellow at the centre for security and strategy. thank you very much for your time. first up, how will the military leadership in beijing be viewing the launch of the submarines? i viewing the launch of the submarines?— viewing the launch of the submarines? ~ ., ., submarines? i don't know how they might _ submarines? i don't know how they might view _ submarines? i don't know how they might view this. - submarines? i don't know how they might view this. i - submarines? i don't know how they might view this. i believe j they might view this. i believe it is important in that for the submarine that is home—made, it is a lot of medical experiments and even after coming to service, some of the problems

would only be discovered by sailors. and then improvements have to be made. that is the conventional wisdom for aircraft and ships. eight submarines will take some time to be built but how long will it take? it will not be able to produce all the submarines altogether. as to be one after another after discovery problems of the first one, second one and goes to the third one and fourth one. where are they going to put them? the taiwan strait is narrow and water is shallow stop i suppose they would have to place it somewhere along the east coast. given that the geography between taiwan and the chinese are so close, it�*s a very small handful of eight diesel electric submarines that would not matter for china. the

electric submarines that would not matterfor china. the navy is the largest in the world. taiwan on its part seems confident, the president security adviser was leading the programme and said," security adviser was leading the programme and said, "if security adviser was leading the programme and said, " if we can build up this combat capacity, i don�*t think we will lose a war." that is what he said. how do you react to a statement like that? absolutely bran in: . statement like that? absolutely bragging- how— statement like that? absolutely bragging. how can _ statement like that? absolutely bragging. how can you - statement like that? absolutely bragging. how can you win - statement like that? absolutely bragging. how can you win any l bragging. how can you win any water? even with your eight submarines in place. how many sufferings to we have? in this case, i don�*t think, this is kind of bragging. nobody would actually buy theirs. i think any person in the world with any person in the world with any conventional wisdom would consider that this is simply impossible. the military balance had changed by 2005 after this, balance had changed by 2005 afterthis, it balance had changed by 2005 after this, it is been developing leaps and bounds. we

are talking of turning up stop into world—class military that he is standing next to, mackinac with the us military. how would submarines matter for us? having said that, the only way out not theyjust built a new summaries or aircraft, the quality of the submarines, eventually they have to be a political solution planning the way out. that for me is peaceful relocation and something china has proposed. taiwan has been unable to buy conventional submarines for decades because of china�*s objections. does this hundreds of ring mean beijing has failed at some point? i of ring mean bei'ing has failed at some point?_ at some point? i don't think so. in at some point? i don't think so- in any — at some point? i don't think so. in any country _ at some point? i don't think so. in any country sold - at some point? i don't think i so. in any country sold taiwan a submarine, it would be very serious for china. i don�*t believe anybody in any country in the world would go to do

that. that is why they would have to buy things from all countries, spare parts or seven technologies. that brings the question is, what are the quality of the submarines? it mightjust be a hodgepodge of things we have seen from everywhere. things we have seen from everywhere-— things we have seen from everywhere. colonel, we will have to leave _ everywhere. colonel, we will have to leave it _ everywhere. colonel, we will have to leave it there - everywhere. colonel, we will have to leave it there but. have to leave it there but thank you for your time. and your inputs on the programme. i discovered they could shed new light on the universe, why it exists and why it is made up of matter. scientists have been investigating the opposite of matter, anti— matter, and wanted to see what happens when anti— matter is exposed to gravity. does it fall down or go up? alice as correspondent had exclusive access to the lab. at a lab near geneva, scientists are making a charity

substance that is the opposite of what our world is made from. anti— matter is the coolest most mysterious stuff you can imagine. it most mysterious stuff you can imauine. ., , most mysterious stuff you can imauine. ., ., ~ most mysterious stuff you can imaine. ., . ~' g: ii most mysterious stuff you can imauine. 9:1, ., , imagine. it has taken 30 years and £8 billion _ imagine. it has taken 30 years and £8 billion to _ imagine. it has taken 30 years and £8 billion to build - imagine. it has taken 30 years and £8 billion to build a - imagine. it has taken 30 years and £8 billion to build a lab i and £8 billion to build a lab that can make and store large amounts of it.— amounts of it. what we have here is the — amounts of it. what we have here is the nerve _ amounts of it. what we have here is the nerve centre. - amounts of it. what we have i here is the nerve centre. once defined it _ here is the nerve centre. once defined it with _ here is the nerve centre. once defined it with the _ here is the nerve centre. once defined it with the anti- - defined it with the anti— matter. i down. 0urworld is made of atoms, the simplest is hydrogen they consist of a positively charged proton in the middle and negatively charged electrons orbiting it. anti— hydrogen is the opposite. negative in the middle and a positive version of the electron around it. there is only one place in the known universe where anti— hydrogen atoms exist for more than a fraction of a second. and it is here.

inside are thousands of antihydrogen atoms, kept in place by a magnetic field. the team turn off the magnet to see whether the antihydrogen atoms fall up or down. we found that antimatter falls towards the earth in the same way that equivalent matter would. is that not a bit of a disappointing result? well, obviously, if it went up, there�*s a nobel prize, right? it goes down, everyone says, "yeah, i told you so!" but the work is the same, you have to do the same due diligence either way. although the results show that there�*s no difference between the way matter and antimatter fall, researchers are going to continue to see if there�*s even the slightest variation, because that could still be really important. just after the big bang, matter — the stuff our universe is made from — and its exact opposite, anti—matter, existed in equal amounts. they should have combined and cancelled each other out, leaving nothing but light,

but here we are. we don�*t understand how our universe came to be matter dominated, and so this is what motivates our experiments. we measure the fundamental properties of anti—matter, and that might be a clue towards how our theories need to be revised. the scientists at the anti—matter lab know that the current theory has to change in order to answer one of the biggest questions — why the universe exists at all. pallab ghosh, bbc news, at the cern�*s anti—matter factory outside geneva. let�*s get some incredible pictures coming in from the cataby cathedral, famed for its incredible architecture. the walls of the building will be used as a canvas for a spectacular light show that aims to bring the renaissance to life by projecting the works of some of the great artists and creators of the time onto the cathedral. this period

history was a ton of major transformation across the globe, and culture, arts, and politics. speaking of politics, before we go let�*s look at life pictures that are coming in from the us. former president donald trump is currently addressing a rally in clinton michigan. he is addressing workers at a car parts manufacturing facility after by the structure of the picket line in the states. at the same time when a few hours from now, the republican presidential debate will be ongoing for the other republican presidential hopefuls as well. donald trump has decided to skip that once again. conspicuous by his absence. that is it that this edition of newsday, please stay on the bbc news.

hello there. well, it�*s rather stormy on wednesday out towards the north and the west, storm agnes clearing, of course, overnight. and then, thursday, it�*s looking a lot calmer. it�*ll still be rather blustery, particularly through the morning. still some coastal gales in northern scotland, but some sunshine around for most, clouding over from the west into the afternoon. so, there goes storm agnes, that deep area of low pressure, gradually filling the winds, lightning and the rain pulling away, too. it is a mild start to thursday morning. temperatures no lower for most of us than 13—15 celsius, so more or less what some spots would expect to see by day at this time of year. now, we�*re between weather systems, so it�*s a dry and a bright start. still rather blustery out there. brisk southwesterly winds, possibly some coastal gales for northern scotland. clouding over from the west as we head through the afternoon and parts of northern ireland and western scotland, maybe western wales will see some showers a bit later on through the day as well. temperatures a little lower than they were on wednesday, but still mild for the time of year — 16—20 celsius for most.

now, on thursday night, it does stay very mild indeed. we�*ll still see some outbreaks of rain, possibly a little feature just moving into the south and the east as we head into friday morning, too, potentially. a mild start to the day — lows between 12—16 celsius at this time. now, a little feature could possibly give us some outbreaks of rain towards the south and the east on friday morning, perhaps, but that is set to clear away. some showers towards the north—west of scotland again. but in the middle, there�*ll be a lot of dry, bright weather, plenty of sunshine around. the winds are a lot lighter, and again, temperatures are expected to peak at around 17—20 celsius. so, again, above the seasonal average, and that�*s generally where they�*re expected to stay as we head through the course of the weekend as well. now, there will be some wet weather around at times, i think particularly on saturday, from this area of low pressure just pushing in from the west there. so, turning rather wet, rather windy, towards western areas of scotland, northern ireland, possibly western wales as well as we

head through the afternoon. but further south and east, it does look as if it will stay largely dry. again, temperatures in the mid to the high teens for most, maybe 20 celsius in the south. those temperatures in the south and the east climbing further on sunday for the start of october. bye— bye. end. samira hussain, bbc news, delhi.

after a sitting president, now a presidential hopeful, donald trump is addressing auto workers in michigan a day after joe biden�*s visit. and close at home, one of china�*s major travel seasons is approaching, but chinese tourists still aren�*t keen to travel very far. hello and welcome to asia business report with me, arunoday mukharji. we begin in michigan, where the former president, donald trump, is speaking right now as we speak. he is there as an auto workers strike targeting some of the country�*s largest, your focus continues to gain momentum. let�*sjust continues to gain momentum. let�*s just listen continues to gain momentum. let�*sjust listen in. continues to gain momentum. let'sjust listen in.— let's 'ust listen in. remember 2016 let'sjust listen in. remember 2016 when _ let'sjust listen in. remember 2016 when we _ let'sjust listen in. remember 2016 when we won _ let'sjust listen in. remember 2016 when we won michigan? | 2016 when we won michigan? michigan hadn�*t been one in decades. everyone said oh, and

then we did much better in 2020. they had to