thank election bbc i am sarah campbell. sources in the united states say plans have been approved for a series of strikes against targets inside iraq and syria — including iranian personnel and facilities. the bbc�*s partner, cbs, says the action will be launched over a number of days, in response to the drone attack on sunday which killed three americans injordan. the us has blamed an iranian—backed militia group for that attack. several iran—backed groups have increased attacks on us and israeli—linked entities since the beginning of the israel—hamas war on seven october. to the white house where the spokesman matthew miller has been asked about the situation and is given an update.— asked about the situation and is given an update. would make the iraai given an update. would make the iraqi government _ given an update. would make the iraqi government upset _ given an update. would make the iraqi government upset of-

given an update. would make the iraqi government upset of you? i given an update. would make the i iraqi government upset of you? it's difficult to answer that question without— difficult to answer that question without commenting on the location that's_ without commenting on the location that's it _ without commenting on the location that's it on — without commenting on the location that's it on the timing of future attacks— that's it on the timing of future attacks which i am, or future responses, which united states might take, which_ responses, which united states might take, which i will not do as we have not from _ take, which i will not do as we have not from the — take, which i will not do as we have not from the stadium, as a general matter. _ not from the stadium, as a general matter. we — not from the stadium, as a general matter, we have made clear to the iranian_ matter, we have made clear to the iranian government, as i said before, — iranian government, as i said before, we will not hesitate to defend — before, we will not hesitate to defend us forces, we have defended us forces— defend us forces, we have defended us forces inside iraq, and we will continue — us forces inside iraq, and we will continue to— us forces inside iraq, and we will continue to do that.— continue to do that. was in it meetin: continue to do that. was in it meeting on _ continue to do that. was in it meeting on security _ continue to do that. was in it meeting on security forces - continue to do that. was in it meeting on security forces and l continue to do that. was in it i meeting on security forces and the us allies left behind in afghanistan by demonstration, they are being killed systematically by the taliban, what is the us doing to protect former allies in afghanistan? i protect former allies in afghanistan?— protect former allies in afuhanistan? ., ., ., afghanistan? i was not following that hearing _ afghanistan? i was not following

that hearing so _ afghanistan? i was not following that hearing so i'm _ afghanistan? i was not following that hearing so i'm not - afghanistan? i was not following i that hearing so i'm not comfortable commenting on that, but we continue to call_ commenting on that, but we continue to call on— commenting on that, but we continue to call on the tell event to take steps _ to call on the tell event to take steps to— to call on the tell event to take steps to gain international legitimacy, to stop the crack down on legitimate expression by its own people. _ on legitimate expression by its own people, and that's what we have done and wiii— people, and that's what we have done and will continue to do. one more and will continue to do. one more and then— and will continue to do. one more and then have to go.— and will continue to do. one more and then have to go. matthew miller the 're and then have to go. matthew miller they're bringing _ and then have to go. matthew miller they're bringing that _ and then have to go. matthew miller they're bringing that press _ they're bringing that press conference so it close, he was asked about the strikes which have been proved by the united states inside targets in iraq and syria, and you heard them say they will not comment on the timing or location, but certainly those strikes have been approved. iran—backed houthi fighters in yemen are continuing to launch attacks on commercial shipping in the red sea. last night the united states launched further limited strikes on houthi positions there. bbc verify has been analysing the impact of these strikes — have they made any difference? nick eardley reports: there have been 11 sets of strikes

in yemen in the past six weeks, many of them limited, the most recent last night, focused on houthi military targets. the uk has been involved in two sets of strikes so far, but are they working? let's start back in november, in this area come off the coast of yemen. this is where houthis backed by iran have been launching attacks on ships. the first few mostly here and the red sea, many near this pinch point. here is an example when houthis seized a part israeli owned cargo ship and released this footage. after the initial attacks, the us and uk launched air strikes on the houthis on the 11th of january. there were more joint strikes 11 days later too. the us has also launched several attacks of its own and intercepted this vessel, which it says was transporting iranian weapons to the houthis. all the while, though, the attacks continue. they are starting to move south into the gulf of aden. one example is this tanker

with links to the uk, which was set on fire after being hit by a missile. the frequency of attacks has not fallen, though. in the three weeks before the first us—uk strikes, there were six. in the three weeks since the action, there have been nine. and here is the impact. there is a lot less traffic going through the red sea now. instead, this is our sailing around africa, which takes a lot longer. and it cost a lot more too. this is the increased cost for transporting freight. it has shot up. those growing costs will have an impact here. it will take longer for some good to get to the uk, and it could mean higher costs for customers. earlier, i spoke to benham ben talelbu. he's a senior fellow and an iran and middle east security analyst at foundation for the defence of democracies, a think—tank in washington dc. i started by asking him to explain why there are so many groups in

syria, in iraq, in yemen united under iran umbrella, which is linking them together. it is designed to be confusing. this is the armed version of what iran called the export of its revolution, a consistent element of iranian foreign and security policy. ever since, the islamic republic has been around since 1979. some of these groups they've created using local conditions and local actors like hezbollah in lebanon, for instance, like the badr corps or kataeb hezbollah in iraq. in other instances, they've co—opted existing armed groups like hamas in gaza or the houthis in yemen. the goal, whether created or co—opted, is the same to control a cycle of violence in one jurisdiction against israel, against pro—western arab countries and against america, more recently, to achieve political ends while denying any attribution from the islamic republic. so, if there's any confusion that's rightly baked in. so, we've had the strikes by the us, the uk and other allies

on the houthi militia, and now we've had the announcement from the white house. i mean, ever since sunday, this drone attack that killed three us personnel, service personnel, i think the world basically has been waiting to see how the us is going to react. we still don't know exactly where and when, but we do have some detail. some of those indications, you're right, that are coming out today that are being reported are that the us does indeed intend to strike back in iraq or syria. it's still quite hard to confirm that the big debate now, given that there was loss of life and notjust the loss of life of contractors but active us service persons, and this time in a newjurisdiction, notjust in iraq or syria, but injordan, in an outpost that was likely part of a constellation of outposts that provided cover for existing american bases, particularly in southeastern syria, raises the prospects for a more direct us—iran conflict. many were calling for kind of punishing the islamic republic of iran directly. you've heard this phrase before, "holding the head of the snake accountable or going for the eye of the octopus or cutting off

the head of the snake". it seems like the biden administration, particularly given that it's an election year, does not want to escalate, indeed is afraid of how iran has set up its own deterrence by punishment strategy in the region. the islamic republic is home to the largest ballistic missile arsenal in the middle east. there are questions currently over how many air and missile defences are in the region to defend america's bases, diplomatic facilities and other interests from this large arsenal. so that may be one reason why, in the short term, the us is going to look to take the conflict to iran backed militias and hopefully even to islamic revolutionary guard corps entities in iraq and syria. the united states has imposed sanctions on fourjewish settlers over violence against palestinian civilians in the occupied west bank. presidentjoe biden issued an executive order laying out the groundwork for actions over attacks and "acts settler attacks have increased since the war in gaza started in october. any assets the settlers hold in the united states will be blocked, with americans forbidden from financial transactions with them. israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu says israel takes action

against law—breakers and there was no need for the measures. around 900,000 children are thought to be internally displaced in gaza — that's according to the charity save the children. lama jamous, known as gaza's youngestjournalist, is among them. since the start of the war, she's been documenting herjourney and the stories around her as they've unfolded. our reporter yasmin khatun dewan has been speaking to her. this is lama jamous. at nine years old, she's acquired a huge following on social media, posting snippets of her life in gaza and her aspirations to become a journalist. we caught up with lama, whojoined us from gaza, close to the rafah crossing. lama, what made you want to do this? translation: i want to document the struggle we are going - through so the world can see it. all we wish is to go back to our school, to seek education. even our school became

for displaced people. lama's father has been helping the nine—year—old document herjourney, navigating the changes around her as the family were displaced from their home in northern gaza. she told us so much in her life has changed, though her dream is to continue the work she is doing now. translation: i wish when the war ends i can turn into a great - journalist and work so i can grow more and more. as lama continues to find comfort in sharing the stories of her community, her portfolio just keeps on growing. yasmin khatun dewan, bbc news. around the world and across the uk. this is bbc news. bbc news bringing you different stories from across the uk. - in the heart of gateshead, thousands of solar panels, green energy we're all familiar

with, but the innocuous hole in the ground might provide our next glimpse of the future. so this is one of our boreholes which goes 150 metres below ground into the old mine workings, brings the water up through the pipes into our heat pump centre over there. water pumped from underground has been warmed up by the earth's core. former colliery is now flooded, have an almost endless supply. and in the modest building across the road, mine water at 20 degrees is transferred to a huge six megawatt heat pump that is then boosted with electricity to heat water for domestic use. so far, 350 homes gateshead college, the baltic and even the glasshouse international centre are powered this way. but will it catch on? for more stories from across the uk, head to the bbc news website. - you're live with bbc news. ukraine has been given a substantial

aid package by the european union, to help in its war with russia. a $54 billion package has been approved, after being held up because of objections from hungary. now, the eu has unanimously passed the deal. us presidentjoe biden has phoned european commission president ursula von der leyen to congratulate her on steering the deal through. she said this funding sends a powerful message to russian leader vladimir putin. it is indeed a very special day. the european council reconfirmed europe's unwavering commitment to stand with ukraine. we all know that ukraine is fighting for us, so we will support them with necessary funding and provide them with much—needed predictability they deserve. and i think these 50 billion euros for four years also send a very strong message to putinjust ahead of the second anniversary of his brutal invasion.

viktor orban, russian president vladimir putin's closest ally in the eu, had said he wanted to force a rethink of the bloc�*s policy towards ukraine and questioned the idea of committing funds for kyiv for the next four yea rs. ukraine doesn't only need missiles and tanks and bullets. it needs cash to keep life behind the lines, running as smoothly as possible and so this package will help to pay pensions, salaries and other costs. it comes as us military aid for ukraine — the largest provider of military support for kyiv — is being held up by congress. volodymyr zelensky called this a strong signal of european unity and a sign that, with its allies, ukraine can withstand any challenge. i am gratefulfor your decision on the financial instrument for us, for our people, for ukraine. ukraine, facilitated with 50 billion

euros for a four year period, this is a clear signal that ukraine will withstand, and that europe will withstand. it is also important the decision was taken just unanimously by all, all of you, all 27 member states. and it is yet another clear sign of your strong unity and support of ukraine. earlier, i spoke to ukrainian mp and leader of the golos party, kira rudik. i asked her how crucial this deal was to ukraine. it is indeed extremely crucial. this help is not for the military expenses. it is for the expenses that the state has. so we can operate as a country. we can pay to our pensioners, to our doctors, to our teachers. and we just continue to live.

we can pay for the broken homes that russia destroyed, and find new homes for the people. there are so many reasons and levels why it is important that it happened, finally. first, it is a political promise that has finally been received and kept. second, it is that it is for four years. so we know that we will not be left alone in the nearest foreseeable future. then, it is just important that we will have this amount of money and we know how to plan ahead. and of course, it is important that the vote was unanimous. so, even putin's closest friends, they can figure out how to do the right thing. and we are extremely glad here. and we know right now that we can look our people in the eyes and say our friends, our allies, they stand with us and all the promises are being kept. it's interesting that you should

talk about the unity, having sort of friends, knowing that they're supporting you, because obviously hungary hasn't been up until today. so how important was it that actually in the end, they came together? and how does that leave the relationship going forward with hungary, which, of course, is a close neighbour? well, i think it is also important for european union to figure out how to operate in the situation when one country is always having something to say and ability to issue a veto. right when it comes to ukraine. and finding diplomatic and political ways of changing their mind is important for the union to operate moving forward. of course, for us it is a super painful subject and we are trying on a diplomatic level to build up

those bridges and to persuade hungary that we are covering for them as well, that putin would not stop in ukraine. and if history teaches us anything, he would not count who supported him beforehand, that everybody will be endangered and that every leader should be thinking about his own country and his people first. and this is what hungary should be doing, and this is what we are trying to deliver as a message, that we are not foes, we are allies. that was kira rudik speaking to me earlier. let's go to pakistan now, and with just a week left until the general election there, political parties are busy with their campaigns. but while rallies are taking place, there are questions aboutjust how free and fair the election will be. just this week, former prime minister imran khan was sentenced to ia years in prison. and the voting comes at a time of economic instability, as caroline davies reports. cheering the roar of a campaigning crowd. pakistan's elections are one week away. among the contenders, this man with a dynasty behind him. his grandfather, his mother,

former leaders of pakistan. bilawal bhutto is running to be prime minister for the first time. this site is the place where blood was spilt. this is a significant moment for bilawal bhutto. it is the first occasion he is addressing an election rally at the same location where his mother, benazir bhutto, was assassinated in 2007. so when my mother delivered her final speech in liaqat bagh, she provided a sense of hope at a time when pakistan was at crisis point. i believe once again today we are at a crisis point. bhutto says he can keep his expensive manifesto promises at a time when pakistan's economy is on the edge. there are questions about the election he is running in. imran khan is currently in prison, unable to contest. yes.

the pti are not on the ballot. yes. is this a free and fair election? these elections are just as free and fair as the 2018 and the 2013 elections. democracy is not a switch that you flick on and off. it is a process. it has to improve over time. do you think it would be better for pakistan if imran khan was on the ballot paper? why is mr khan not on the ballot paper? because those laws were never amended. as he used to say, the courts in pakistan are free. they take their own decisions. i am sure if he is innocent, he will prove himself in court. just a few days later, imran khan was given multiple sentences for over a decade in prison. in karachi this weekend, police used tear gas on a rally for khan's supporters. the authorities said they did not have permission to gather. many see imran khan's rise and fall as being in and out of favour with pakistan's powerful military.

this is the man thought most likely to win the election, nawaz sharif. if he does, it would be his fourth time as prime minister. the last election, he was the one injail when khan won. translation: as all of you know, nawaz sharif was innocent. - he was punished deliberately. the judges who gave this punishment have gone away, one by one. despite repeated requests, mr sharif did not give us time for an interview. known names, deep—seated rivalries, an election with an old pattern and seething frustrations. caroline davies, bbc news you election bbc news. our breaking news and that confirmation that

lewis hamilton will leave mercedes at the end of this season and enjoy informal on —— formula 1 ribose ferrari. let's go to normandy to speak with joe. how surprised where you by this news? the lewis hamilton to ferrari rumours have been fairly regular over the last two years so one tends to avoid them, this morning for some reason i didn't pay attention to them and then i thought, i had a phone call from someone saying it was true. and i thought i should look into it and about five minutes later i went" old, is true" it would happen. i was surprised and i think everybody was surprised, i understand it was only signed yesterday, so a quick deal. 50 understand it was only signed yesterday, so a quick deal. so why now, yesterday, so a quick deal. so why now. lewis — yesterday, so a quick deal. so why now, lewis hamilton _ yesterday, so a quick deal. so why now, lewis hamilton is _ yesterday, so a quick deal. so why now, lewis hamilton is already - now, lewis hamilton is already committed to mercedes for the next two years so why now and why this obsession with many ferrari —— many drivers for ferrari? he obsession with many ferrari -- many

drivers for ferrari?— drivers for ferrari? he was committed _ drivers for ferrari? he was committed to _ drivers for ferrari? he was committed to two - drivers for ferrari? he was committed to two years i drivers for ferrari? he was j committed to two years on drivers for ferrari? he was - committed to two years on paper drivers for ferrari? he was _ committed to two years on paper but there was a ghetto clause so he could gets old at the end of 2024, so he can go to ferrari is 2025. ferrari is the biggest name in a sport, the most popular team around the world, even if it doesn't win a lot. so, ithink, they needed him lot. so, i think, they needed him to try to get to a level where the could win, this would be the 16th year they have not one entitled, consecutively, it's a long time, it's a record—breaking year for ferrari, so i think they need someone to pull them along and to get them to win a title. obviously, for him, that is the ultimate dream of a driver to win with the robbery, but it's very hard. we have seen fernando alonso and sebastian bechtel go various champions and not be up to win —— so it's a big challenge but lewis hamilton will be 40 when he joins them so not much time left in his career and that is part of it and i'm sure they're paying them well as well. i’m

part of it and i'm sure they're paying them well as well. i'm sure the are, paying them well as well. i'm sure they are. lewis — paying them well as well. i'm sure they are, lewis hamilton - paying them well as well. i'm sure they are, lewis hamilton has - paying them well as well. i'm sure | they are, lewis hamilton has made some surprising but turned out to be a student traces in the past, does he know something we don't about ferrari's car? we he know something we don't about ferrari's car?— ferrari's car? we can't know about ferrari's car? we can't know about ferrari scar— ferrari's car? we can't know about ferrari scar in _ ferrari's car? we can't know about ferrari scar in 2025, _ ferrari's car? we can't know about ferrari scar in 2025, but _ ferrari's car? we can't know about ferrari scar in 2025, but we - ferrari's car? we can't know about ferrari scar in 2025, but we can i ferrari scar in 2025, but we can know about the fact that when the recent robinson left mclaren for mercedes, he was convinced by nikki lowder of mercedes who explained what would happen, and perhaps the boss of ferrari has explain what you think will happen. you should remember that there ferrari boss and comments on what works in 2005—2006 injune of and won championships a month so there a level of trust between them which is important. hagar between them which is important. how awkward will it be for lewis hamilton, bearing in mind he has to spend 2024 with mercedes? it's such a close relationship between the driver and their team, he has to

work so closely with them, will there be a sense of disappointment on it mercedes's cited that he would abandon them at the big and of the season. �* , ,., , , abandon them at the big and of the season. �* , , , ., season. there'll be some sense of that, having _ season. there'll be some sense of that, having said _ season. there'll be some sense of that, having said that _ season. there'll be some sense of that, having said that these i season. there'll be some sense of that, having said that these are i that, having said that these are professional and i'm sure amazon would be fighting for mercedes until the last race. 50 would be fighting for mercedes until the last race-— the last race. so you don't think i'll be the last race. so you don't think i'll be any _ the last race. so you don't think i'll be any sort _ the last race. so you don't think i'll be any sort of— the last race. so you don't think i'll be any sort of antagonism? l i'll be any sort of antagonism? because i think people who don't know this work well to understand the quality of the driver being important adequacy of the team behind, and he's now basically saying to them you are not my future. ., ., , , , , future. he said i am not -- yes yes said ou future. he said i am not -- yes yes said you are not _ future. he said i am not -- yes yes said you are not my _ future. he said i am not -- yes yes said you are not my future - future. he said i am not -- yes yes said you are not my future but i said you are not my future but they are the team for this year, we would have to see how they get on, i don't see why it would be a problem, we have seen it in the past, not this far in advance, usually it's in may orjune orjuly, that period, this

is earlier than normal, but often you can see during a season that the person who's leaving. so i don't see it is been a great problem. it’s it is been a great problem. it's been fascinating talking to you this evening, and obviously this is a really big story which is taken people, like you, by surprise and am sure formula 1 fans are going to be absolutely enthralled with the drama in the pit lane into 2024 season. thank you for talking to us, joe siewert a form ofjournalist. the japanese macaque escaped from a highland park near i be more of the weekend. he was spotted this morning eating bird food in a gardenjust weekend. he was spotted this morning eating bird food in a garden just a couple of miles from the park. i assume that's he met back at the

wildlife part, i have to be honest, he doesn't lick to impress to be back, does he, having tasted freedom? i'm sure the park are happy to have them back. do stay with us, ben will be here with the context straight at the top of the hour, stay with us on bbc news. hello. well, we're into february, just about — traditionally regarded as a very cold month, but of course, these days it can be far from it. in fact, over the next few days, it's going to be exceedingly mild across most of the uk, and on top of that, very windy, too. storm ingunn still wrapping up there across parts of scandinavia, nowhere near as strong as it was, but still producing some gales. to the south of that, we have new weather fronts, and south of that, this area of high pressure building this ridge, and it's allowing the warmer current of air from the southern climes to stream in our direction. so, all the cold air is pushed towards the east and the north of europe,

and this pattern's with us here, really, for the next few days. it's also going to bring that wind, a lot of atlantic cloud. at times, there'll be some rain, such is the case in western parts of scotland — quite damp here, a bit of drizzle around western coast. and these are morning temperatures — seven degrees in london, 10—11 for some of our northern towns and cities. so, a mild start to friday now, perhaps won't feel quite as mild as it could. it's because the wind will be pretty strong tomorrow, particularly gusty around some of these north western coast of scotland, also to the east of the pennines — 40—50 mph gusts. but on the thermometer with a bit of brightness, perhaps even 15 expected across aberdeenshire. now, the same pattern continues into friday and indeed the weekend, friday, saturday, sunday, with high pressure to the south and big loads traversing to the north of us. we've got a pressure gradient, so those strong winds blowing across the uk, and they frequently push in a lot of cloud and at times some rain. i think an incursion of slightly colder weather into northern scotland on saturday, so temperatures 6—7 degrees and maybe some wintry showers

to the very far north of the uk. and then, the rest of the weekend and into monday, it's the same — high to the south, low to the north, quite strong winds blowing across the uk and the thicker cloud being pushed in by that west south—westerly. i think it'll be damp in northern ireland on sunday, certainly around western coasts of scotland, the irish sea, too, but mild —10—14 celsius. and this pattern remains very stable across many parts of the uk, mild and cloudy. you can see 14 in london at times, a little bit cooler, but only at times in the north of the country. that's it from me. bye— bye.

hello, i'm ben thompson. you're watching the context on bbc news. the president will not tolerate attacks on american troops, and neither will i. the approval has been given for strikes over a series of days and, crucially, on iranian personnel and facilities but not inside iran itself. neither want the kind of _ direct american attacks against iran that would push an already febrile i environment onto a totally different race, a route fraught with risk.

the us approves plans for strikes on iranian targets in syria and iraq, warning it will respond where, when and how it chooses. also tonight, propping up ukraine's war—torn economy — eu leaders unanimously agree a 50 billion euro aid package for ukraine despite previous objections from hungary. president zelensky welcomes the new funding, saying it will strengthen the country's economic stability. changing lanes — the bbc now confirms lewis hamilton is to make a shock move from mercedes to ferrari, joining charles leclerc from 2025. and ai decoded. we'll have our regular look at the week's ai stories, including this new prosthetic arm made possible with artificial intelligence.