BBC News Briefing - 22 April 2024 : he real work starts today for the 12 jurors sworn in to take part in Donald Trump's first criminal trial, as both parties are expected to make their opening statements. We're also reporting on the romance-scam centres of Myanmar,

 

View this email online 22 April, 2024

Jules Darmanin Hello. The real work starts today for the 12 jurors sworn in to take part in Donald Trump's first criminal trial, as both parties are expected to make their opening statements. We're also reporting on the romance-scam centres of Myanmar, and the dark reality behind any unsolicited texts you might be getting. We also discuss self-driving buses and promiscuous fish.

TOP OF THE AGENDA Trump's historic criminal trial kicks off Stormy Daniels and Michael Cohen are potential star witnesses at Mr Trump's trial. Credit: BBC After a fairly swift jury selection process over the past week, the main act of Donald Trump's criminal trial is due to get under way. Mr Trump is accused of trying to cover up a $130,000 (£105,000) hush-money payment to adult film star Stormy Daniels, with whom he allegedly had an affair. He has pleaded not guilty and denies any affair. Prosecutors and defence lawyers will deliver their opening statements, giving freshly-sworn jurors a summary of the arguments and the testimonies they will hear during the next several weeks. Alongside Ms Daniels, a slate of high-profile witnesses could take the stand. They include Michael Cohen, the fixer who pleaded guilty to federal campaign finance crimes over the payment, a loyal money-man convicted of tax fraud and a tabloid newspaper publisher. My colleagues inside and outside court will keep you up to date on our live page. ‌ Weeks out of action: Mr Trump is legally required to be in court, drastically reducing campaigning time for his presidential bid. Find out more in our guide to the trial. ‌ Who are the jurors?: To protect their identity, reporters can't share too much information about the 12 jurors. We do know many of them are highly educated. Here's what we can say. ‌ Seen from abroad: My BBC Monitoring colleagues tell you what Chinese and Russian media make of the trial.

WORLD HEADLINES High-profile resignation: The Israeli military's intelligence chief has stepped down, saying he took responsibility for failures before Hamas's attack on Israel on 7 October. Indian election: Opposition leaders have accused PM Narendra Modi of making Islamophobic remarks after he claimed his opponents would distribute people's wealth to "infiltrators" if they won power. Rwanda policy: A bill that would enable the UK to send some asylum seekers on a one-way trip to Rwanda - a flagship immigration policy of the Conservative government - will be the subject of a parliamentary showdown. Follow it live here.  China flooding: Authorities have evacuated nearly 60,000 people from their homes in Guangdong, as days of heavy rain caused massive flooding in China's most populous province. Maldives: President Mohamed Muizzu's party, widely seen as pro-China, has won a landslide victory in a parliamentary election, cementing his grip on power.

FROM THE SCENE | Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Thailand 'My hell in cyber slavery camp' In romance scam centres across South East Asia, trafficked victims are forced to trick men into investing money in fake online trading platforms. Scammers themselves face sexual violence and torture from their captors.   Suneth Perera and Issariya Praithongyaem, BBC News Ravi travelled to Thailand dreaming of a better life for him and his new wife. Instead, the 24-year-old Sri Lankan found himself trapped in the Myanmar jungle. He was in a camp run by Chinese-speaking gangmasters, surrounded by tall walls and barbed wires, with armed guards protecting the entrance around the clock. According to Ravi, he and the others were forced to work up to 22 hours a day - getting only one day off each month - and told to target wealthy men, particularly in Western countries, by building romantic relationships using stolen phone numbers, social media and messaging platforms. Read in full

BEYOND THE HEADLINES The magic Seoul bus The A21 self-driving bus still needs a driver at the wheel. Credit: BBC Our business reporter Nick Marsh took a self-driving midnight bus in the South Korean capital, and barely flinched when he saw the man in the driver’s seat take his hands off the wheel. Autonomous vehicles are not ready to be unmanned, however, and some experts are sceptical they ever will be. Read the story

SOMETHING DIFFERENT Plenty of fish out the sea Millions of grunion fish fling themselves on Californian beaches to breed. Here's why

And finally... Thousands of runners trotted along the Thames in Sunday's London Marathon, breaking a couple of world records in the process. Peres Jepchirchir of Ethiopia finished in 2:16:16, the fastest women's only marathon time - that's when female athletes compete separately from their male counterparts. And Welsh teenager Lloyd Martin became the youngest runner with Down's syndrom to complete the distance. Here's more on his training regime.

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Thank you, as ever, for reading. Send us suggestions for topics or areas of the world to cover in this newsletter. Tell your friends and family about it! They can sign up here. You can take a look at all our newsletters here. By the way, you can add newsbriefing@email.bbc.com to your contacts list and, if you're on Gmail, pop the email into your “Primary” tab for uninterrupted service. Thanks for reading! – Jules     You've received this email because you've signed up to the BBC News Briefing newsletter.