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BBC News. Hello, this is Jerry Smit.

Germany has joined Russia in condemning the United States after President Trump approved sanctions over the controversial Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline from Russia to Germany. Chancellor Angela Merkel's spokeswoman Ulrike Demmer said the sanctions would hit German and European companies. Here's Mike Sanders. The dispute over Nord Stream 2 is laying bare tensions across the Atlantic and within Europe. Ulrike Demmer described extra territorial sanctions as an interference in Germany's internal affairs. The Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova took a more indignant line, saying the Americans will tell us to stop breathing next. Washington is not alone in opposing Nord Stream 2. Poland and Ukraine feel the loss of revenue they'll suffer when their transit networks are bypassed. President Trump says Germany risks being a hostage to Russia, but critics say his aim is to ward off competition for American liquefied natural gas.

Australia's Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack has conceded that more needs to be done to tackle global warming as bush fires continue to rage across a large part of the country. Some Australians have linked the severity of this year's fires to climate change. Phil Mercer is in Sydney. The center-right government has been reluctant to talk about the role of climate change in the crisis, but it can no longer ignore the growing fears of many Australians. The Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack has previously criticized those who linked the current emergency to global warming. His position is now shifting. We will have those discussions. Of course the important thing is we put the fires out. There's been a lot of hysteria around climate change. Climate change isn't the only factor that has caused these fires. When he was asked if Australia needed to do more to address global warming, Mr. McCormack said, yes, absolutely.

A court in Pakistan has sentenced a university lecturer to death for blasphemy. Junaid Hafeez was arrested six years ago and later convicted of insulting the Prophet Muhammad on social media. Secunder Kermani in Karachi explained why it had taken so long for Mr. Hafeez to be tried and sentenced. In blasphemy cases, judges are often reluctant to preside over them because they're afraid they'll come under pressure from fundamentalist groups. And this is one of a number of high-profile blasphemy cases that have been going on in Pakistan. Junaid Hafeez was accused first back in 2013 of insulting the Prophet Muhammad whilst working as a lecturer. But his family said that a group of Islamic students at his university made the allegations simply because they didn't like his liberal views.

Police in northern India say another person has died in continuing clashes between the security forces and opponents of a new citizenship law. Hundreds of protesters in Rampur battled with riot police who used tear gas and batons.

News from the BBC.