Mrs von der Leyen said dealing with climate change and tackling illegal immigration humanely would be her priorities. Also: on the second day of his appearance before a corruption inquiry, the former South African President Jacob Zuma said he'd received a death threat; and events take place to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the Apollo Eleven mission to the Moon.

The four US congresswomen attacked by US President Donald Trump in a series of racially charged tweets have dismissed his remarks. Also: A new study has found that anorexia isn't only a mental illness, but can be caused by a physical predisposition, and the tiny monkey fossil that’s a game changer for evolutionary scientists.

Jacob Zuma, who stepped down last year amid claims of illegal financial gain, has begun testifying at a judicial inquiry. Also: Hong Kong’s chief of police condemns pro-democracy protesters as “thugs”. And the family of Neil Armstrong look back at the life of the first man to set foot on the moon.

President Trump claimed the women "originally came from countries whose governments are a complete and total catastrophe". Also: Champs-Elysees clashes after Bastille Day parade, and Djokovic beats Federer in Wimbledon tennis epic.

Storm Barry has made landfall in Louisiana, where officials have warned of potentially life-threatening floods. Also: UK says Iran tanker could be released 'with guarantees', and a powerful X-ray telescope is launched to map the cosmos.

The US Federal Trade Commission is said to have approved a penalty for Facebook over its handling of users personal data. President Trump's Labor Secretary resigns amid accusations he helped a billionaire sex offender secure a lenient sentence, and the trader in Togo who has an answer to the global fast fashion crisis

Turkey receives first parts of S-400 missile defence system despite opposition from US. Washington says Ankara cannot have both the S-400 and US F-35 fighter-jets.Also, BBC investigation shows that Sudan's brutal crackdown on protestors was ordered from 'top level' of military, and should the world learn lessons from water-crisis in one of India's largest cities ?

President Donald Trump will no longer pursue adding a question on citizenship to the 2020 US census questionnaire. Also: The UK has raised the threat to British shipping in Iranian waters to the highest level, and New Orleans braces for Tropical Storm Barry.

UK says one of its warships preventing Iranian vessels stopping a British oil-tanker.Also, a BBC investigation into sex-scandal at heart of Afghan government, and scientists warn that even small amounts of sugary drinks may cause cancer.

Politicians and civil servants have been reacting to the news that Sir Kim Darroch has stepped down. They’ve said the row over leaked memos is unprecedented. Also: the US women’s football team celebrates their World Cup win with a victory parade, and a school in the Netherlands faces a large fine because the children are too noisy.

Sir Kim Darroch had described the Trump administration as inept and dysfunctional. Mr Trump responded by saying he'd no longer deal with him. Also: seagulls in Australia are found to be carrying several antibiotic resistant superbugs, and Spanish language hits now dominate the most watched music video chart on YouTube.

Donald Trump has been “disrespectful” towards the prime minister and the UK, says Jeremy Hunt. Also: Tory leadership rivals clash in TV debate, a Saudi Arabian princess goes on trial in France, and the end of the road for the VW Beetle.

But Carrie Lam stops short of saying it has been fully withdrawn, and protesters have vowed to continue mass rallies. Also: Afghanistan talks agree 'roadmap to peace', and Egypt to sue Christie's auction house in London to retrieve Tutankhamun bust.

The US president says "we will no longer deal" with the UK's ambassador in Washington, Sir Kim Darroch. Also the US financier Jeffrey Epstein is charged with sex trafficking minors, and a Nigerian opera performed in Pidgin English.

The former Congolese rebel leader has been convicted of war crimes and crimes against humanity. Also: Amnesty International accuse the Philippine government of running a large-scale murdering enterprise connected to its so-called war on drugs, and the advanced robots moving into the Japanese workforce.

The New Democracy party led by Kyriakos Mitsotakis wins the election with an absolute majority. Also: Donald Trump hits back after UK ambassador's leaked emails, and Jodrell Bank gains Unesco World Heritage status.

The French president Emmanuel Macron talks to his Iranian counterpart Hassan Rouhani by telephone in a bid to rescue the nuclear deal. Also: California quake damage 'not as bad as feared', and baby Archie christened at Windsor.

The prisoners released included a high profile judge, Maria Lourdes Afiuni. Also: Trump vows to pursue citizenship census question, and the ancient city of Babylon becomes an Unesco World Heritage site.

Senior Teheran official issues threat after British troops' storming of Iranian vessel. British marines helped seize super-tanker on Thursday, after it was suspected of carrying oil to Syria, in breach of EU sanctions.Also, how China is using schools to separate Uighur Muslim children from their culture and faith, and could global tree-planting help stop global warming ?

Government documents show that large numbers of state boarding schools have been built to house children as young as two. Also: Tehran has reacted with fury after British Royal Marines seized control of an Iranian supertanker carrying oil to Syria, and don't wake the neighbours! The cockerel that's been taken to court in France.

UN has received reports that guards shot at migrants who tried to escape air-strikes. The attack on a detention-centre near Tripoli on Tuesday is believed to have killed at least 53 people.Also, an oil-tanker bound for Syria is detained in Gibraltar by British marines, and a renowned scientist warns that the human race could soon become redundant.

In the wake of two Boeing 737 Max crashes, the aerospace giant hopes it can repair its reputation, but families say the effort falls short. Also, the European Parliament elects David Sassoli as its new president, and Amsterdam considers a drastic change to its world-famous red light district.

UN speaks after air-strike kills more than 40 migrants at detention-centre near Tripoli. Libyan government blames attack on forces loyal to warlord General Khalifa Haftar, but they've denied this.Also, why Rahul Gandhi has stepped down as head of India's Congress Party, and is there a close link between obesity and some common cancers ?

The European Council has agreed to a gender-balanced group of candidates after days of deadlocked negotiations. Also: The Russian navy says 14 sailors are dead after a submersible vessel caught fire, and women who survived torture in Syrian prisons tell their stories in a new London play.

Beijing accuses demonstrators of trampling on the rule of law: Also: controversy over secret US border patrol Facebook group, stowaway body found in London garden and Coca-Cola enters energy drink market.

The Chief Executive of Hong Kong has condemned the occupation and ransacking of the territory’s parliament. Also: European foreign ministers call on Iran to reverse its decision to breach an international nuclear deal, and fresh concerns have been raised about the rate of deforestation in the Brazilian Amazon.

The International Atomic Energy Agency said its inspectors had verified the 300kg cap had been broken. In Hong Kong demonstrators have smashed their way into the Legislative building as the territory marks 22 years since it was handed back from Britain to China. A blanket of ice about 1.5 m thick settles on a Mexican city after a freak summer hail storm.

Donald Trump has become the first sitting US president to enter North Korea after meeting Kim Jong-un at the South Korean border. Also: Pro-democracy protesters challenge Sudan's military rulers for the first time since security forces shot dead dozens earlier this month, and the new rules that mean in future electric cars in Europe won’t be quite so quiet.

President says he'll allow US companies to continue to sell to the Chinese tech giant, also: migrant ship captain detained in Italy and North Macedonian pride

Families of some victims believe the deaths of eight people by jihadists in 2017 could have been stopped. Also: twenty years after talks started the South American economic block, Mercosur, has struck a trade deal with the European Union, and could John McEnroe - the former bad boy of tennis who ranted on court - help you get a good night's sleep?

The G-20 nations face a huge challenge in resolving a US-China trade war that has rattled businesses around the world, and has cast a shadow over the global economy. Also: the iPhone designer Jony Ive is leaving Apple, the remains of a bridge in the Italian city of Genoa -- which collapsed last year killing more than forty people -- has been blown up by demolition experts, and Glastonbury music festival gets underway in Britain - minus the rain and the mud!

The court said the Trump administration's justification for the question appeared "contrived". Also: delegates at UN climate talks have accused oil producing countries of trying to "erase the science" on global warming, and Russia begins releasing captive whales from a "whale jail" after an international outcry.

It's not yet clear who was behind the attacks in Tunis. Also: Germany's Angela Merkel is seen shaking again in Berlin, and the Dalai Lama has said Donald Trump lacks moral principle.

Italy's interior minister, Matteo Salvini, has said he won't allow migrants currently aboard a charity-run rescue ship to disembark, after it defied the authorities by entering Italian territorial waters. Mr Salvini called the Sea-Watch 3 an outlaw vessel. Also: a warning about an emerging "climate apartheid" and why Cognac is more likely to be drunk by rappers and hip hop fans in the United States.

The opposition leader Juan Guaidó says the use of military force is still an option to end the political crisis in Venezuela. Also: the South Korean President, Moon Jae-in, says that the US and North Korea are engaging in behind the scenes talks to set up a possible third summit, and Kim Kardashian West's 'Kimono' brands riles Japan.

John Sanders resigns amid uproar over conditions for migrant children at detention centres; a politician in India has taken the unusual step of returning bribes he took from villagers, and breakdancing moves closer to 2024 Paris Olympic debut.

Iran condemns latest US sanctions saying Washington has closed the door on dialogue; Chinese citizens charged over building collapse in Cambodia that killed twenty-eight people; Washing powder advert promoting female empowerment provokes furious reaction from Pakistani religious conservatives.

Human rights chief says IS captives in Iraq and Syria must be tried or freed. Also: the medical glove that could speed up diagnosis, Mars methane spike and the women returning to their Boko Haram kidnappers.

US Secretary of State in Saudi Arabia as Washington tightens sanctions on Iran; Second time unlucky for Turkey's governing party as they lose a rerun vote in Istanbul; and....the unexpected furry visitor to a family home in Montana that had to be tranquilised by police ...

Turkey's governing party has lost control of Istanbul after a re-run of the city's mayoral election. Also: Huge protests in Prague demanding the resignation of Czech PM Andrej Babis, and the head of the Ethiopian military has been shot dead by his own bodyguard after an apparent coup attempt in a northern region.

President Trump says the additional measures are intended to stop Iran obtaining a nuclear bomb. Also: the German chancellor Angela Merkel says far-right extremism must be tackled, and listening to the combined sounds of Mongolian throat singing and heavy metal.

The chair of the House Armed Services Committee, Adam Smith, has warned it was "not smart" of president Trump to make the details of a planned attack on Iran public. Also: Russia suspends flights to Georgia amid unrest, and Pink Floyd guitars sell for millions at charity auction.

Tehran says the unmanned US aircraft entered Iranian airspace early on Thursday morning, but the US maintains it was shot down in international airspace. Also: The speaker of the Georgian parliament resigns after violent protests about a visit by Russian MPs, and the musical seals that have learned to sing the Star Wars opening music

President Trump says it's hard to believe Iran intentionally shot down an American drone; Who will get the top EU jobs ? Berlin and Paris lock horns. and a leading Palestinian politician denounces the US for failing to be a neutral negotiator.

The US military insist the drone was over international waters but Iran says the aircraft had violated Iranian airspace. Also: China's Xi visits North Korea to boost ties with Kim, and the sounds of the eastern North Pacific right whale.

Moscow calls case against 3 Russians and 1 Ukranian groundless, also: the rapidly melting Himalayan glaciers and the rusty revolver that made a big impression on the art world.

Charges announced over destruction of Malaysian airliner in which 298 people died. The Dutch-led joint investigation team has named three Russians and a Ukrainian as suspects.Also, a UN report says Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman 'should face investigation' over killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, and why a Norwegian island community wants to stop time.

The five candidates to replace Theresa May disagreed on whether a Brexit deal could be negotiated before the 31 October deadline. Also: the artists backing the resistance in Sudan, and a starving polar bear strays hundreds of kilometres into a Siberian town.

China urges US and China not to escalate tensions as Gulf crisis continues. Washington is deploying another 1000 troops to region following what it calls 'hostile behaviour' by Iran.Also, Michel Platini questioned by French police over awarding of World Cup to Qatar, and a BBC correspondent uncovers realities of life inside detention-camps set up by China for Xinjiang's Muslims.

The former President of Egypt, Mohamed Morsi, dies after fainting in a Cairo courtroom, The Chinese president, Xi Jinping, will make a rare state visit to North Korea on Thursday, One woman's campaign to save the Hammerhead shark - a delicacy for some:

Pope says church to discuss idea of married priests in area with shortage of clergy. If approved by bishops, this would be a break with a Roman Catholic tradition dating back many centuries.Also, Iran announces it will breach the internationally-agreed limit on its stockpile of enriched uranium, and how a group of teenagers built their own plane - and are flying it across Africa.

Sudan's former-President Omar al-Bashir has appeared in public for the first time since he was overthrown in a coup in April. He has been charged with corruption and illegally possessing foreign currency. Also: protesters in Hong Kong return to the streets to demonstrate against a controversial extradition bill, and India beats Pakistan in the Cricket World Cup.

What is going to happen in 2017? President Marine Le Pen of France? The end of the Iran nuclear deal? Some of the BBC’s most senior correspondents forecast what might or might not happen during the next 12 months. Make your own predictions and join the discussion on the World Service Facebook page.