with 2a soldiers killed. the uk and the us carry out fresh strikes on houthi targets in yemen. britain's foreign secretary says the latest attacks are justified. what the houthis are doing is unacceptable, it is illegal and it is threatening the security of navigation. and nominations for this year's oscars will be announced today, with blockbusters oppenheimer and barbie expected to top the list. hello. welcome to this hour. we begin in the middle east, where is well�*s military says 2a soldiers were killed in central gaza on monday, making it the deadliest day for israeli forces since the start of their ground operation. in a statement, prime minister benjamin netanyahu said... "yesterday we experienced one

of our most difficult days since the war erupted. "in the name of our heroes, for the sake of our lives, we will not stop fighting until absolute victory." his comments come despite increasing pressure, internationally and from within israel, for the fighting to stop to secure the release of the remaining 130 hostages held by hamas and to allow in more desperately needed humanitarian aid for civilians in gaza. the israeli military says it's killed dozens of terrorists in gaza in the past 2a hours. this video from the israel defense forces video showing strikes on hamas targets. this is the scene, looking across at gaza from southern israel. the hamas—run health ministry in gaza says at least 195 palestinians have been killed in the past 2a hours, taking the total killed since 7th october

to 25,490. 0ur middle east correspondent yolande knell has more from jerusalem. these were 21 reservists who were in a location quite close to the israeli border, near the israeli kibbutz of kissufim, which is one of those locations attacked on the 7th of october. the israeli military says they were on a mission to try to make things safe enough for israeli residents to go back to their homes in the south. they were in two two—storey buildings when it seems that missiles were fired at a tank nearby and because the two buildings themselves had explosives inside, it looks like the plan by the israeli military was to demolish them. then those two buildings themselves collapsed. the israeli military says it is still investigating exactly what happened. yolande knell there in jerusalem. yolande knell there injerusalem. let's take a look at another developing story that we're following today.

the us and uk have hit more houthi targets in yemen. it comes in response to attacks by the group on shipping in the red sea. uk foreign secretary lord cameron said the strikes sent the clearest possible message that words would be supported by actions. in the last half an hour we have had these pictures of sir keir starmer, leader of the labour party, heading into the cabinet office to be briefed by officials on the latest attacks by the uk. labour said he was not alerted before monday's action. in a moment we will speak to helen catt it westminster, but first let's take a look at what has happened overnight with this report from david willis. royal air forcejets, armed with precision guided bombs, joined us forces to rain missiles on houthi targets, prompting explosions which rocked the capital sanaa and other parts of yemen in the early hours of tuesday morning.

us officials said among the targets was a weapons storage site very deep underground. the uk ministry of defence said they hit multiple targets at two military sites in the vicinity of sanaa airfield. this was the second round of military action undertaken jointly on the part of the us and the uk. a previous effort 12 days ago, coupled with half a dozen attacks mounted by the us alone, has so far failed to stop the houthis. are the air strikes in yemen working? well, when you say working, are they stopping the houthis? no. are they going to continue? yes. before the latest strikes, houthi leaders had vowed to continue their attacks on shipping in the red sea as part of a show of support for palestinians caught up in the war with israel. however, the defence secretary, grant shapps, predicted this latest mission would erode the houthis�* ability to threaten global trade.

yet more than 30 attacks on commercial vessels navigating a key route for world trade have already prompted fears of inflation, as freight supplies are delayed or re—routed. added to which, iran's backing of the rebels raises the troubling possibility of a broader conflict in the middle east. david willis, bbc news, washington. we can cross live to westminster and join our political correspondent helen catt. there are some developments from westminster that have just come into us, developments from westminster that havejust come into us, and i will let you update us on those. yes, i would just go back to what the government has said about this, i will go back a few steps to see what the government have said about why these attacks have taken place. there was a joint statement that was issued after these attacks by the us and uk government which said that they were proportionate and necessary, and they were to protect the free flow of commerce. we have also heard on social media from the

defence secretary, grant shapps, who talked about it having been taken in self defence, and against the intolerable attacks being carried out in the red sea, and the government has been pains to point out that there is a rigorous analysis and planning to minimise the risk of civilian casualties. the foreign secretary, lord cameron, said these attacks have been done to send a clear message. what said these attacks have been done to send a clear message.— send a clear message. what the houthis are _ send a clear message. what the houthis are doing _ send a clear message. what the houthis are doing is _ send a clear message. what the i houthis are doing is unacceptable, it is illegal— houthis are doing is unacceptable, it is illegal and threatening the freedom — it is illegal and threatening the freedom of navigation. that is why we've _ freedom of navigation. that is why we've taken the action. alongside that action — we've taken the action. alongside that action as a whole set of measures we will be taking including sanctions _ measures we will be taking including sanctions and other pressure to put on the _ sanctions and other pressure to put on the houthis to put on the pressure _ on the houthis to put on the pressure in the red sea, and we will be building — pressure in the red sea, and we will be building the strongest coalition of support to back the steps we have been taking. we have no quarrel with the yemeni _ been taking. we have no quarrel with the yemeni people, indeed our foreign — the yemeni people, indeed our

foreign aid feeds over 100,000 yemeni — foreign aid feeds over 100,000 yemeni people every month, using that foreign aid which is precisely the sea _ that foreign aid which is precisely the sea lane that the houthis are trying _ the sea lane that the houthis are trying to— the sea lane that the houthis are trying to close. the sea lane that the houthis are trying to close-— the sea lane that the houthis are trying to close. and while you were listenin: trying to close. and while you were listening to — trying to close. and while you were listening to lord _ trying to close. and while you were listening to lord cameron, - trying to close. and while you were listening to lord cameron, we - trying to close. and while you were j listening to lord cameron, we have heard that we will be hearing from the prime minister, rishi sunak, who will be giving a statement in the commons at half past 12. that is something the opposition here, labour, had called for. they were not told about these attacks in advance, unlike the last time when keir starmer was briefed beforehand and so was the speaker of the house of commons. that didn't happen this time round. instead, sir keir starmer, and shadow foreign secretary david lammy, were brief this morning in a confidential briefing. we know that they wanted to know things like more about the detail of the aims of the strikes, about the measures being taken to protect civilians and about the risk of escalation, which is something that other mps have raised concerns about in a debate after the last set

of strikes, but we will hear a lot of strikes, but we will hear a lot of these arguments rehearse today because we will now hear from the prime minister at 12:30pm. helen catt, i'm sure we will be back with you once the prime minister has spoken. forthe with you once the prime minister has spoken. for the moment, thank you very much. just a reminder there that we have had confirmation that british prime minister rishi sunak is to address the house of commons at 12:30pm gmt to discuss those latest rounds of strikes on houthi targets in yemen. staying with that story. sir richard barrons is a former commander of the uk joint forces command. i asked him earlier if the latest waves of coordinated actions from the us and the uk had some effects on the houthis' capabilities. we yes, it is having some effect. i think as a rough estimate, about 30% of the houthi missile and drone capability has been destroyed, but of course it can be replaced, but this is an attritional act, it is not going to end the houthis'

determination to go keep going or their ability to do so and it won't be the last air strikes from the us and the uk. so just to break this down, sir richard, what is the us and uk targeting of the houthis to reach that goal of diminishing their capabilities? we need to be clear that 90% of the material that the uk depends for its daily life arrives by sea. so freedom to of navigation on the oceans of the world is vitally important to the uk, and the houthi missiles and drones are interrupting that and sending ships on a long expensive detour round africa, the targeting of the drones, the missiles, the radars, the logistics that support the strikes and the command and control that enables it all. these are all very military targets set so far. it is iran that supplying

the houthis with these, where are they getting this capability? so, again, everyone is clear that the missiles and the drones for the most part are coming from iran, by sea, and the houthis operate as proxy of tehran. they are not under total control and there is a lot of houthi independence in the act they are doing right now but it is enabled by iranian industry and politics. so this is the second wave. from your assessment, will there have to be several more waves to diminish the ability of the houthis to launch further drones, and this all comes as the houthis say they will retaliate? i think we are stuck in a cycle of least worst options. the uk has participated in two strikes, and this is now the tenth strike that the us have led on, and there is no sign really of the houthis deciding to apologise and give up, so, the real answer to this is, these strikes are likely to continue, the attacks on shipping though diminished

are likely to continue and this will run on and until will is a solution to the current horror in gaza. and at what point does this go from being with what appears to be a tit—for—tat action to a wider, more serious escalation? it would require one or other parties, really the us or iran, to decide that they were going to escalate this particular set of actions, into something wider, and the very clear evidence is that neither party wants to do that and therefore we may have arrived at a level of violence that we are going to live with for some time but won't necessarily escalate. around the world and across the uk, this is bbc news. let's look at some other stories making news. government borrowing in december was lower than expected, helped by a steep drop in interest payments. the office for national statistics says that borrowing, which is the difference between spending and tax income, was £7.8 billion.

the amount was below forecasts with many analysts expecting it to be about 1k billion. two million people could have their gas and electricity cut off this winter because they cannot afford to top up their prepayment meter. that's according to new research by citizens advice. it comes as a separate report suggests millions are living far below the poverty line. the government said its spending billions on supporting households. a simple blood test could detect alzheimer's up to 15 years before symptoms emerge. swedish trials found the test to be as accurate as painful lumbar punctures, and better than a range of other tests currently being worked on. experts say it could revolutionise early diagnosis of the disease. you're live with bbc news. now to ukraine. it says at least five people have been killed in a wave of missile attacks overnight, with the capital kyiv and second

city kharkiv among cities targeted. once again people were seen seeking shelter in the kyiv metro. ukraine's military says of 41 missiles launched by russia, 21 were destroyed by air defences. this was kharkiv, where three people are reported killed and 42 injured in strikes on apartment buildings. there were other fatalities in kyiv and in the dnipro region. ukraine's interior minister has accused russia of deliberately inflicting daily terror on civilians. dissent in russia is normally silenced without delay. especially if it involves criticism of the war in ukraine. but the kremlin appears unsure how to deal with one group of dissenters — the wives of russian servicemen. 0ur russia editor steve rosenberg has been hearing the stories of some of the women. they were the extra boots on the ground the kremlin badly needed. the 300,000 reservists, mobilised more than a year ago for russia's war against ukraine.

antolina's partner was drafted at the age of 1m. she says that despite being diagnosed with stomach ulcers, he was deployed to an assault unit. now he's wounded. translation: there are some people who want to fight, who volunteer - for it and sign contracts. let them fight. but send us back our husbands who don't want to be there. they've done their duty to the motherland. send them home. antonina hasjoined other women campaigning to bring their husbands home. here, they're seeking support from an anti—war politician who wants to run for president. they choose their words carefully. most avoid criticising the war itself.

still, with dissent in russia pretty much silenced, this event is unusual, a rare public display of discontent. translation: when will they decide l that our husbands have discharged l their military duty? when they're brought back to us with no arms and legs? when they can't do anything because they're just a vegetable? or do we have to wait for them to be sent back in a zinc coffin? the russian authorities have not reacted positively to what amounts to a call for demobilisation. the head of the russian parliament's defence committee said recently, "can you imagine in world war ii wives of soldiers asking stalin to send their husbands home after a year on the front line? it would never happen." his conclusion was that such demands today are being put out there by russia's enemies. maria finds talk like that insulting. her husband and her cousin have been drafted. she understands the ukraine war is not like world war ii. today, russia hasn't been invaded. it's invaded ukraine. but not all russians can face reality.

translation: some people act like ostriches. _ they stick their heads in the sand and try not to think about what's happening. i can understand them. it's hard to accept that in your country the state doesn't need you to be happy. it just treats you as biological material. but if people want to survive, sooner or later, they need to recognise this and say that they don't agree. antonina had always trusted the authorities. and now? translation: i used to have enormous respect for vladimir putin. _ now i'm more neutral. but if he really does see us as traitors and outcasts for wanting our husbands back, i don't understand why he'd have this attitude towards citizens who once voted for him. in russia, the possibilities for public protest are limited. so once a week, the women meet by the tomb of the unknown soldier, just to lay flowers.

opponents of the invasion of ukraine have little sympathy. they say the draftees should have ignored the call up. their wives just want their husbands back now. red carnations, a reminder of the human cost of war. steve rosenberg, bbc news, moscow. voting has begun in the republican presidential primary in new hampshire, the vote that will decide whether donald trump or nikki haley will represent the party in this year's election. this is the scene live in manchester in new hampshire, it is still early in the morning so not thronging with people there yet, but throughout the day that will fill up as people cast their ballot in this primary. mr trump remains well ahead in the polls, the former un ambassador and former governor of south carolina nikki haley is his

last remaining challenger after florida governor ron desantis dropped out on sunday. nomia iqbal reports. new hampshire's official state motto is "live free or die". coined by a general during the revolutionary war, it is now used to convey the independence the state has. nearly 40% of voters here are politically unaffiliated. every presidential candidate has passed through this diner. and one man here is hoping to take advantage of independent voters to stop donald trump. for left—leaning independent voters, their top issue by far is how much they dislike donald trump, and how much democracy is the central issue for them this election cycle. is it easy getting people to vote for nikki haley when that is someone they would never ordinarily vote for?

it is tough, but we have found a pretty large reception. nikki haley is the only candidate that can dent donald trump and end this idea that he is the inevitable nominee. robert works the room hard. it's actually a detrimental vote. i'm not sure how many voters robert got on board. however, polls currently show trump widening the lead by more than 20 percentage points. we travel east across the state, and to this lobster restaurant, where nikki haley supporters are feeling confident. nikki haley! and as she arrives, news breaks that ron desantis is out. it is now one fella and one lady left. cheering. nikki haley came here to huge applause as the news came through this is now a two—person race. with voters taking to the polls shortly, she is doing everything she can to beat trump. donald trump is petrified of her, which is exactly why he is lying consistently about her record.

she's smart, she's— an accountant, she's beautiful. it never hurts to be beautiful. but across town, that confidence is matched by trump supporters. i think there is no question on trump winning new hampshire at all. at this point both haley and desantis are just distractions and kind of irrelevant. desantis has dropped out. i know, yeah. doubly irrelevant then. tomorrow is the day that each and every one of you is going to cast the most important vote of your entire life. this is a very, very important vote. donald trump isn't really a candidate, but a movement. and if he wins this state by a huge amount, the race for the republican nomination will more or less be over. nomia iqbal, bbc news, new hampshire. and we will have full coverage of the result of the new hampshire primary here on the bbc news channel, and we are running a

special page on the bbc news website with updates as well, and of course you can go to the bbc iplayer if you want to watch a live stream of our coverage as well. now let's bring you some breaking news here in the uk, and that is that a man who pleaded guilty to killing three people and the attempted murder of three others has had his plea accepted in court he killed 19—year—old students barnaby pleaded guilty to three counts of manslaughter and of diminished responsibility. there is a picture of him. hopefully we may have images of him. hopefully we may have images of the students and of mr coates, who were killed in that attack.

unfortunately we don't at the moment, but he was accused of stabbing them each multiple times in the early hours of this morning, and he is now facing a sentencing hearing which is expected to last two or three days, so he had had his plea of manslaughter accepted in court. nominations for the years most prestigious film awards ceremony, the oscars, will be revealed today at 13:30 gmt. this year's box—office has been dominated by barbie and oppenheimer. i asked film critic jason solomons what we can expect this afternoon. it would be great to have some surprises, we really want surprises, because as you say, the obvious ones are barbie and oppenheimer, and basically how many nominations those two giants of this year's cinema can chalk up. but where will we see surprises is probably the people who have been left out, rather than the ones we suddenly included. people in the directing category, where it gets very tense, you can only pick five.

will they pick favourites like martin scorsese, will they pick people like bradley cooper or will we see some directors from other areas rewarded, particularly in the female film—making? it is almost a category of its own, now, but people get very very upset if there is not female film—makers included in this, particularly if they have made films that merit it. i am thinking of greta gerwig as director of barbie, who was snubbed by the baftas last week for a nomination. martin scorsese's killers of the flower moon, a big favourite to rack up a lot of nominations, martin scorsese overlooked by the bafta voters for a nomination. so who will take their place in that oscar list? i am hoping greta gerwig will get in there. we are looking directors like justine triet from france for the film anatomy of a fall, which has a big chance of racking up a lot of nominations, although oddly not in the foreign language film category

or internationalfilm, because france didn't nominate it itself, but it is going on its own without the backing of its home academy. i am thinking of a film like past lives, directed by celine song in her first film. lots of love for that in new york, the new york voters loved that film. it's a story of new york and korea, will it find its way to lots of nominations? also for its actress greta lee, snubbed by the baftas, will that feature? so i am thinking there will be some fine arty type films, zone of interest byjonathan glazer, how many will that feature? that was a uk—based film. it was shot in poland and germany and it's in a foreign language. look out for that actress sandra huller, from anatomy of a fall, she is also in zone of interest, she is an extraordinary new actor to oscar voters

and i think we might see her in the best actress category, alongside hot favourite for her fourth nomination, emma stone for poor things. and a reminder, the oscar nominations for 2024 will be announced in around three and a half hours' time in an early morning news conference in la. we'll have a special programme here on bbc news so dojoin us from 13:20 gmt onwards. stay with us here on bbc news. just to remind you of that breaking news of the triple killer having his plea of manslaughter accepted by the court. do stay with us. hello again. storm joceleyn is

bringing us heavy rain and strengthening winds as we go through the course of today, but it is tonight that it will peak with severe gales in the north. this storm following on hot on the heels of storm isha yesterday does mean that impacts is unlikely. we have all this rain moving from the west to the east, another 60 millimetres possible across the highlands and southern uplands, the lake district, yorkshire dales north wales, areas already sensitive to the rain. and as it clears the south of england and south wales, a lot of low cloud will be left behind, with showers in the west. but look at these temperatures, 11—14, very mild for this time of year. these black circles represent the strength of the wind gusts, continuing to pick up the wind gusts, continuing to pick up through the day. the met office has an amber weather warning in force from 6pm tonight until atm tomorrow where within this area were looking for potential of gusts up to 80 mph, so do bear that in mind.

overnight tonight, the rain comes down towards the south—east, the low pressure which is storm joceleyn moves across the north of scotland with the squeeze on the isobars which is the peak winds, and we are looking at severe gales and these are overnight lows, six to 11 degrees. tomorrow, the wins will only slowly moderate. it will take much of the day in northern areas for the winter to moderate, we not talking about easing, just moderating. and then you can see too we have all this cloud coming in across the south—west, with drizzle coming in here. temperatures down a little bit on today, but still 7—12 or 13 degrees. this is what is bringing in the cloud all the drizzle during the course of the latter part of wednesday, and on thursday it will drift steadily northwards. thursday will be a cloudy day, a lot of low cloud around with this rain, particularly so in the west. it will become breezy, if not windy. and

temperature —wise, we are looking at six in lerwick to about 13 as we push further south. then as we head towards the latter part of the week, on friday a fairly decent day but they will be gales in the north—west, but beyond changeable.

debt relief. uk government borrowing fell much more than expected last month — raising hopes the chancellor could have more room for tax cuts. plus— winter warning. two million people could have their energy cut off — because they can't afford to top up their prepayment meter — warns the uk's citizen's advice bureau(tx 00v) warns the uk's citizen's advice bureau. welcome to world business report. i'm lukwesa burak. we start here in the uk — with the government's finances — because the amount it had to borrow last month was far less than expected. that has raised hopes the chancellor, jeremy hunt, may have extra room to cut taxes when he announces his spring budget in march. a lot of it is down to lower

interest payments — some of which are linked to inflation.