shocks away spitfires take to the sky about the english comp three side. a special display for military veterans. english countryside. hello, i'm maryam moshiri, welcome to verified live, 3 hours of breaking stories, and checking out the truth behind them. we begin here in london as the metropolitan police say they have received an allegation of a sexual assault dating back 20 years, it follows media reports about comedian and actor russell brand. officers say an incident is alleged to have taken place in soho, in central london, in 2003. they added that "officers are in contact with the woman and will be providing her with support". earlier, a woman who accused mr brand of sexual assault said his response to the allegations has been "insulting".

the woman, known as "alice", says she was 16 at the time. she is one of four women alleging he assaulted them in the uk and us between 2006 and 2013. russell brand denies the claims, saying his relationships have been "always consensual". the bbc and channel four — the broadcasters where he used to work — have both launched investigations. here's helena wilkinson. actor, comedian, entertainer russell brand, now accused of serious allegations by four women, including rape and sexual assault, allegations he denies. one of his accusers, alice, not her real name, alleges that russell brand assaulted her when he was in his early 30s and she was 16 and still at school. she spoke to radio 4's woman's hour and had this to say about his denials. first of all, i think it is insulting. it is laughable he would even imply that this is some kind of mainstream media conspiracy.

he is not outside the mainstream. he did a universal pictures movie last year, he just happens to have a youtube channel where he talks about conspiracy theories to an audience that laps it up. she also alleged his management attempted to explain their relationship. he told me that his management had told him, his agent, not to be seen out and about... his management had advised him not to be seen out and about with a 16—year—old? yes, they said it wasn't a good look for him and his career. there was some kind of discussion, maybe we can say she is your goddaughter? well, we cannot say she is your niece because people know you are an only child. there were those kind of discussions and it was... well, why don't you just stay inside? and we only met with inside the four walls of his, you know, his room.

there are also questions for the bbc over russell brand's alleged use of their car service. so you believe a bbc car picked you up from school to take you somewhere to meet him? it was back to his house. you know that because of the way these because we use? yes, because i had used one of their cars previously, he told me just to tell the driver where to take me. so a bbc chauffeur driven car picked you up at the age of 16 to take you to russell brand's house? yes. the allegations about russell brand first emerged on saturday in a joint investigation by channel 4's dispatches and the times newspapers. since then more women have come forward with new claims about him. the four women are alleging the sexual assaults took place between 2006 and 2013. in a video release before the allegations were made public,

but after he had been told about them, russell brand issued this denial. i was very, very promiscuous. during that time a promiscuity, the relationships i had absolutely always consensual. investigations into what happened are now under way between channel 4, the bbc and a production company. i think if there was an independent person inside an organisation like the bbc within the larger companies, that would be really good. if we had a network of those people perhaps they could compare notes and when there were repeated complaints of a similar nature about an individual, it would start to build upa picture. just to update you, and the last ten orso just to update you, and the last ten or so minutes the premotor is responsible for the tour that russell brand has undertaken and is due in a moment said the live shows

that he was due to due of the coming days have now been postponed. a statement from the promoters of brands by polarisation tour have said "we're proponents do you not postponing these shows, we don't like doing it but we know you will understand. just you underline it was due to be a show in windsor tomorrow evening, that has now been postponed. there was also due to be another one, which i believe was due to be implemented on the 22nd of september at plymouth pavilion, that also i believe has now been postponed according to his promoters. earlier i spoke to our special correspondent lucy manning about the recent announcement from london's metropolitan police. this is a very significant development from metropolitan police on the allegations against russell brand. they have now confirmed that there is now in allegation given to them of sexual assault, they don't name russell brand in the statement

but it is clear they talk about reporting in the sunday times in channel 4. that allegation of sexual assault will now be for the metropolitan police to investigate. the allegation is that it happened in 2003 in soho. that allegation seems to be before the allegations that were made to the sunday times and channel 4. those allegations started in 2006. so this could be a separate person, a separate allegation. it now means that the police are involved with these obligations. i think some of the people watching and reading the reports of said, why haven't some of these women gone to the police? of course there are lots of reasons why people don't go to the police. these are very hard allegations for the police to investigate and for potential victims to have to deal with. but what we do have now is the start of a police investigation

after in allegation has been made. the police at in its statement that it has been in touch with channel 4 in the sunday times and it is wanting any others who might have information or might want allegations to be investigated to come forward no matter how long ago those allegations were.— those allegations were. russell brand has denied _ those allegations were. russell brand has denied all— those allegations were. russell brand has denied all of- those allegations were. russell brand has denied all of the - brand has denied all of the allegations has he not? that's riuht. allegations has he not? that's right- he's _ allegations has he not? that's right- he's put _ allegations has he not? that's right. he's put out _ allegations has he not? that's right. he's put out a _ allegations has he not? that's right. he's put out a blanket l right. he's put out a blanket denial. he said all relationships he had work and sensual. he hasn't dealt with the of the allegations that have been reported but he has denied them. the police obviously investigation is significant. there also investigations happening in broadcasters including the bbc and generalfour and the broadcasters including the bbc and general four and the production company bannerj that made programmes that he was involved in. —— banaj. is notjust the police strand but also the as well.

we're across the story. we have a correspondent in windsor who will talk us through implications for russell brand shows. we will also talk to caroline dinenage conservative mp who chairs the culture committee about what is happening. we will talk imminently here on bbc news. we will move on and talk about our other two eight top stories. five americans who'd been held in an iranian prison for years are now free. they have landed in doha, the first leg of their journey home. us officials hugged the former captives as they arrived in doha. it's part of a prisoner swap deal painstakingly mediated by qatar. in return, five iranians in usjails will be released and iran will gain access to $6 billon in oil revenues. president biden said america would continue to impose costs on iran

for what he called their provocative actions. critics of the deal have warned it will only encourage more hostage taking. 0ur chief international correspondent lyse doucet has been following the developments from doha. siamak namazi, 51 years old, the longest held iranian—american in detention in an iranian prison. also emad shargi, another businessperson detained since 2018. and also morad tahbaz, an environmentalist, also detained in 2018, all of them convicted of spying charges, which has led the united states to say these are not ordinary prisoners, these are hostages. as part of this swap, we understand that two of the iranians released from american jails arrived in doha today. the three others released as part of this deal are not expected to return to iran. those five prisoners, according to the iranian officials,

they were either convicted or charged with what were violations of us sanctions. three of them had actually been awaiting trial. two of them, the sentences were about to expire, but they have now been freed, given clemency, is the phrase being used by the united states as part of this prisoner swap. us officials are clear, this was a very difficult decision in negotiations, indirect talks, talks negotiated or nine rounds of discussions here in qatar, iranians and americans in separate hotels. qatari officials shuttling between them, trying to wrestle with all of the difficult details to come up with a mechanism so that president biden can say to american taxpayers, this is not your money, this is iranian money. they bought it through selling oil. these were not frozen funds. iran couldn't access the funds

in south korea for various difficulties, including currency conversion. today is just the beginning of a new chapter for these five americans, their loved ones, their relatives who are travelling with them. but we know, we know from other dual nationals who also were freed in these kind of deals, that there is a long, painful ordeal ahead. siamak namazi talked of a moment laced with sorrow and also guilt that they've left behind behind bars in iran, other dual nationals who simply don't know when, if ever, they will go home. 0ur chief international correspondent with the very latest from delhi airport. those former users are now on the way it's believed to the united states. —— joe harr. doha —— joe harr. doha around the world and across the uk.

this is bbc news. let's look at some other stories making news. a woman has appeared in court charged with murdering her parents. their bodies are yet to be found. virginia mccullough is accused of killing them some time between august 2018 and september 15 this year. the 35—year—old was arrested on wednesday. people in england aged 65 and over are being urged to get a top—up covid booster vaccine. an increasing number of people are attending hospital with the virus, but while hospital numbers are up, intensive care admissions are low. the rollout�*s been brought forward as a precaution against a highly—mutated new covid variant called ba2.86. the cost of renting a home in the uk rose by 12% in the year to august — that's according to estate agency hamptons. the group says it's the highest rise since it started its survey in 2014. the uptick in the past 12 months is greater than the increase experienced over the four years to 2019. you're live with bbc news.

officials in libya say at least three greek rescue workers died in a road accident, as they were travelling from benghazi to the flood zone in derna. seven others were critically injured. a week after floods ravaged the city, rescue teams are still pulling out bodies from ruined buildings and the sea. un agencies warned that derna faces the threat of disease outbreaks that could bring what they call "a second devastating crisis". they say there are 30,000 homeless people in the city and there's a desperate need for clean water, food and basic supplies. the city of jonah the city ofjonah is a devastated city. i the city of jonah is a devastated ci . ~' ., . the city of jonah is a devastated city. i know that because i was there earlier _ city. i know that because i was there earlier in _ city. i know that because i was there earlier in life _ city. i know that because i was there earlier in life is - city. i know that because i was there earlier in life isjust - city. i know that because i was i there earlier in life isjust coming there earlier in life is just coming

back to your malady. when i went in isjust in an empty area of mud, sand, concrete buildings. just piling up, hundreds of buildings that had just been completely flattened. it's a vast area, with talking several square kilometers. the immensity can't be described. amid all this rubble and debris, there are rescue workers of at least six countries. i think the number has gone up. a lot of libyan rescue workers still digging in a very simple way in the houses. if there is a family, somebody alive and knows their relatives are still missing and they were located in a certain building, a team goes and helps them to try and take and find the bodies. and bulldozers trying to move rubble. it is really tragic.

tell me more about what else you've seen. 0bviously, human cost is catastrophic, and we have been covering that widely on the bbc. i want to point viewers to something else you've discovered in the region. tell me more about the unesco heritage site, which i believe has been impacted by the floodwaters. what happened there? the rain that came down the night last sunday and monday was in all the region. it was five hours of heavy rain. in this area, 60 kilometres west of derna, there is a unesco heritage site, with beautiful, stunning greek and roman ruins overlooking the sea. nobody had been there, organisations, and i drove there yesterday. the site has been affected by the flooding.

a wall has come down, part of the greek theatre have crumbled. most importantly, local archaeologists say there is inexplicable gushing out of water from inside the ruins, places where water didn't come out from. it is contaminated because in the fountain of apollo, there is soapy water. it is literally white bubbles coming out. they fear what was the local spring has been contaminated with perhaps sewage water or water from the town. there is something happening there. they are saying if it continues, the natural flow of water has already been altered because of the flooding. it caused rocks to collapse, and the channels of water to be covered. if there is new rain, they fear it will enter the article site and possibly cause further

crumbling of the site. of course, it is nothing compared to the tragedy of derna, although one person did die in the flooding in the ruins itself but if there is a possibility to alert unesco and have engineers to survey what is happening, that would be great to avoid losing further cultural heritage. the international crisis group talking to me about the devastation in libya. china's top diplomat wang yi is visiting russia for security talks, as moscow continues seeking support for its war on ukraine. russian media said mr wang's trip would also lay the ground for president putin to make a landmark visit to beijing soon. mr putin has not travelled abroad since the international criminal court issued an arrest warrant for him over alleged warcrimes in ukraine.

anastasiya shapochkina is the founder and president of the eastern circles geoeconomics think tank. earlier, she told me what's in this meeting for both parties. to understand this, we have to remember that the meeting will take place against the backdrop of two very recent meetings, one was between the leader of north korea king john and with president putin and the other was with wang yi there was a responsible member. the timing, the choice of wang yi's meeting with russia's foreign first minister at this time kenshin adjust was based on this backdrop a few things. first is that china is not gone as far in its support for russia

as russia would expect. even using north korea as a proxy because the meeting they expected would result in north korea's weaponry commitment to russia's war effort in ukraine. they resulted in just the opposite. we saw kim jong hoon departing with the weapons from russia which was we suspect the last result that russia would have expected. and then the second backdrop meeting between wang yi and jakes elements and then the second backdrop meeting between wang yi and jake sullivan are to us that suggests to us that no matter how

much china is speaking about being the partner of russia and rush being its partner in the new era, according to the minister of china's foreign affairs, they are not ready to abandon the true great power in true great rival, the united states. and cons to a solution of the ukraine war conflict and russia's invasion of ukraine. let's go back to our top story, metropolitan police say they have received an allegation of sexual assault dating back 20 years. following media reports of comedian and actor russell brand. officers say an incident as a ledger taking place in central london in 2003. they added that officers are in contact with the woman providing her with support. earlier a woman who accused mr brand of sexual assaults of his response to the allegations has been insulting. russell brand for his part denies all the claims against him, saying his relationships have always been consensual. let's cross live to

caroline dinenage put up thank you forjoining us on bbc news. let me ask you for your reaction to what's been happening here.— been happening here. these allegations, _ been happening here. these allegations, i— been happening here. these allegations, i know- been happening here. these allegations, i know they've l been happening here. these - allegations, i know they've been strenuously denied but they are incredibly disturbing and very serious. i know they are now subject to police investigation. so i can't really get too drawn into the details of it. but i think what has concerned me most of the weekend is how many people have come forward in the media and social media and talked about how they were shocked but not surprised by what's transpired and about open secrets within the media. it speaks to concerns that mike culture committee have had over the recent months over the culture within broadcasting. where some people have disproportionate power and influence and whether this power imbalance can be exploited to affect other peoples careers and lives. i5 be exploited to affect other peoples careers and lives.— careers and lives. is that a problem that still exists _ careers and lives. is that a problem that still exists and _ careers and lives. is that a problem that still exists and if _ careers and lives. is that a problem that still exists and if so _ careers and lives. is that a problem that still exists and if so what - that still exists and if so what needs to change within these areas,

within the creative industries, if you'd like? it within the creative industries, if you'd like?— you'd like? it is a problem that exists with _ you'd like? it is a problem that exists with up _ you'd like? it is a problem that exists with up i _ you'd like? it is a problem that exists with up i also _ you'd like? it is a problem that exists with up i also sit - you'd like? it is a problem that exists with up i also sit on - you'd like? it is a problem that exists with up i also sit on the | exists with up i also sit on the women and equality select committee and we've been doing an inquiry into misogyny and music. we've taken some horrific evidence from people who have been victims of some quite serious bullying and harassment and sexual assault. and time after time they say that they just don't report it, partly because it would be career ending, partly they said they would not be believed. as a minister, as a culture minister i started working on a piece of work which is led to the formation of a creative industries independent standards authority. so finally a place where people who are employed in the creative industries, music, tv, film, theatre can go, whistle—blowers can go to report incidents of this nature where they will be investigated. i think that's a sort of thing we need to be looking at moving forward. channel 4

ofthe looking at moving forward. channel 4 of the bbc have _ looking at moving forward. channel 4 of the bbc have started _ of the bbc have started investigating themselves. what is it that you want to hear from the both of them with regards to this or what they're doing and what the next steps are from them? i they're doing and what the next steps are from them?— they're doing and what the next steps are from them? i think what we will be looking — steps are from them? i think what we will be looking for— steps are from them? i think what we will be looking for from channel- steps are from them? i think what we will be looking for from channel 4 - will be looking for from channel 4 and to be fair, had a letterfrom the chief executive at channel 4 setting out what investigations they've made of these historic allegations and also what questions they've asked of their suppliers, as well as production companies working alongside of them but also their code of conduct now for them and the fact that dave written to their providers, suppliers to remind them of these codes, these practices. we will be looking for the same sort of reassurance from the bbc. also concerned that i'll be at, the broadcasters were talking about this in mainstream broadcasting but is able to continue broadcasting across youtube and tiktok where he has millions of followers. i'm keen to

understand what these social media and online platforms have by way of their own codes of conduct when it comes to the sort of thing. the creative industries _ comes to the sort of thing. the creative industries are very much under the spotlight our day, caroline dinenage? this is notjust a problem within those industries. not long ago we've heard about female surgeons whistle—blowing on sexual abuse and assault in some cases. what is the issue here or is there an issue here that societal rather than specifically for one area? , ., , ., rather than specifically for one area? ,., ., ,, ., area? there is a societal issue of misogyny. _ area? there is a societal issue of misogyny. which _ area? there is a societal issue of misogyny, which seems - area? there is a societal issue of misogyny, which seems to - area? there is a societal issue of. misogyny, which seems to infiltrate a whole range of different sectors with up with her from the medical profession, across business with the allegations around the cbi and high—profile cases with tesco and bp earlier in the year. some sectors deal with it better than others. i think we really do need to have much closer standards for how organisations should deal with reports of this type. {lilia

organisations should deal with reports of this type. 0k, caroline dinenage. _ reports of this type. 0k, caroline dinenage, really _ reports of this type. 0k, caroline dinenage, really good _ reports of this type. 0k, caroline dinenage, really good to - reports of this type. 0k, caroline dinenage, really good to talk - reports of this type. 0k, caroline dinenage, really good to talk to i dinenage, really good to talk to you. i appreciate you taking the time to answer our questions here on bbc news. as always you can get more on that and all the stories you've been watching here on bbc news on our website. we have a life page right now which is updated minute by minute on all the very latest lines on the russell brand story and of course we're following what's happening in libya. iam back in course we're following what's happening in libya. i am back in a few minutes' time. for uk audiences, thank you for watching bbc news. hi there. it's all change weather—wise this week. it's often going to be wet and windy. what about those storms last night that we saw? well, in swindon we had basically a month's worth of rainfall in one hour. there have been reports of flooding from thunderstorms over the last 2a hours. for example, in parts of devon, pretty badly affected here. now, this week, as i say, is going to be unsettled. it's down to a strong jet stream blasting across the atlantic at 150mph.

this strong jet stream spawns areas of low pressure that then get squirted away eastwards across the uk, hence the wet and windy weather conditions. today, weather—wise, we've seen a band of rain pushing its way eastwards across england and scotland. it's a day essentially of sunshine and showers. the showers quite frequent across west scotland and northern ireland. bigger gaps between the showers across wales and western england, so there will be some places that stay entirely dry this afternoon, but it will stay quite breezy. overnight, initially the showers fade away, but later in the night we're looking at a zone of heavier rain moving back in from the west. temperatures overnight quite mild in the south, some cooler and fresher air across the north. over the next couple of days, we'll see some very large rainfall totals building in, particularly across the hills of wales and north—west england. that could bring some localised flooding issues. tuesday is a wet and a windy kind of day. gusty winds for the vast majority of us and those winds could peak at around 60mph gusts into the north—west of wales, blowing this band of rain northwards across northern england,

across northern ireland and on into southern and central scotland. our temperatures generally into the high teens for many of us. now, five days ago hurricane lee was spinning around out in the atlantic. since then, it's turned into a normal area of low pressure that brought some wet and windy weather to east canada and the north—east of the united states over the weekend. well, the remnants of that old hurricane are tied in with this area of low pressure that will be moving its way across the uk for wednesday. so another bout of wet and windy weather on the way. the winds particularly squally and gusty on and just ahead of this weather front, which is a cold front moving across england and wales. we could also see some very strong winds for western scotland. gusts could reach 60mph or 70mph. there's still a bit of uncertainty about the exact strength, itjust depends how deep that area of low pressure is. over the next few days, though, it does stay wet and windy, probably saturday your best chance of staying dry.

this is bbc news, the headlines london's metropolitan police receive a report of sexual assault following a media investigation into russell brand. "the nightmare has ended." five americans — held for years in an iranian prison — tell of their relief at being released. they are now in qatar,

the country that brokered the deal. breaking news coming in and this is after the post office workers and a big group of post office workers wrongfully convicted of theft and false accounting because of the discredited horizon it system. the last few minutes, we learned they are now being offered £600,000 each and that is according to the government. more than 700 branch managers managers were given criminal convictions when faulty accounting software made it look like money was missing from their sites. 85 convictions have been overturned. the post office minister said the sum being offered and compensation for those whose convictions rely on that it system

and those who have