the political blocs which came second and third in pakistan's election say they'll work together to try to form a government. excitement builds as ivory coast prepares to take on nigeria in the final of the africa cup of nations with kick—off in an hour. lam i am with the fans cheering on nigeria and the ivory coast in this year's africa cup of nations final. hello, i'm azadeh moshiri. we begin with israel's planned offensive in rafah. prime minister benjamin netanyahu has insisted it will go ahead despite the fact that more than half of gaza's population has taken shelter there. in an interview with abc news, he said israel will give civilians safe passage to areas they've cleared north of rafah.

the army has continued to target the city with air strikes, which medical workers say killed more than a0 people in the last day alone. mr netanyahu claims israel's army has killed one hamas fighter for every civilian. he also says he believes "enough" of the 132 remaining israeli hostages held in gaza are alive to justify israel continuing its offensive. the armed wing of hamas says israeli strikes have killed two of those hostages in the last four days, and seriously injured eight others. a senior hamas official has threatened to halt hostage exchange negotiations if israel goes ahead with the assault on rafah. us presidentjoe biden has told benjamin netanyahu israel should not proceed with an offensive in rafah without a plan to ensure the safety of the huge number of palestinians sheltering there. the phone call between the two leaders was the first time they had spoken since mr biden told us reporters on thursday that israel's

response in gaza was "over the top". it was the harshest us criticism yet of its close ally. barbara plett—usher reports from jerusalem. the aftermath of an israeli air strike in rafah — on a home sheltering people who'd fled the war. they were told they would be safe here in the south. eight people were killed, including children. this is ines—amah. "i'm looking for my niece," she says. "she was two months old." so even here, there's dangerfrom the air, but it could get worse. israel's planning to send in troops to carry on its fight against hamas. victory is within reach. we're going to do it, we're going to get the remaining hamas terrorist battalions in rafah, which is the last bastion, but we're going to do it — and on this, i agree with the americans — we're going to do it while providing safe passage for the civilian

population, so they can leave. there are also israeli hostages at stake being held in tunnels by hamas. but the threat to invade rafah has set back already struggling negotiations to free them. any ground offensive would, in the words of hamas, blow up chances for a deal. for the people of gaza, there is nowhere left to run. they're crammed up against the egyptian border, living under plastic, with food and water in short supply. more than a million civilians have crowded into rafah in the last four months, obeying earlier israeli orders. the united nations is unconvinced that an evacuation plan for them could work. that was the assessment of the un's humanitarian coordinator after a visit to gaza this week. it's very difficult to respond right now, where people are static. and people have come there because they're looking for safety. it's the last resort for many people that have come. do you have a contingency plan if there is, if the combat

operations are extended? well, we had a contingency plan for them to arrive in rafah. that was the contingency plan we had. but now we're looking for another contingency plan, but we're struggling right now to address this contingency plan. and if there was to be an incursion into rafah, which is a massively over—populated city, it's got five times the population there was before the conflict. so everything is under pressure, we're under pressure, and the population themselves have nowhere to go. israel says people can move back north, where soldiers are winding up their offensive, but this is what they will find. this crisis keeps building and building. and barbara has been explaining more about the situation in rafah. he's trying to reassure his international critics, especially america, who have said they wouldn't support an incursion into rafah if there wasn't a proper plan for civilians. so he's saying, look, we will have an evacuation plan.

but also his political challenges in israel — he has the strong protests from the families of the hostages in israel, and they say the priority should be a truce and to get the hostages released, not to go charging into rafah. but you also have the extreme right—wing members of mr netanyahu's coalition who might quit if he stops or even pauses the war. and you also have his own political fortunes. many israelis blame him for this crisis, him and his policies, and he's going to have to face that when the conflict ends. some analysts are saying that encourages him to keep fighting. now, over in the us, former president donald trump has said he would encourage russia to quote "do whatever the hell they want" to nato countries that haven't invested enough in their militaries. that's been met by a fierce response from nato's secretary general. jens stoltenberg said any attack on nato would be met with a united and forceful response, and that "any suggestion that allies will not defend each other

undermines all of our security." now, nato countries are supposed to spend 2% of their gdp, their economic output, on defence, but not all of them do. at a campaign rally in south carolina, mr trump said he wouldn't defend nato members who don't meet their financial obligations to the alliance. nato was busted until i came along. i said, everybody�*s got to pay. they said, if we don't pay, are you still going to protect us? i said, absolutely not. they couldn't believe the answer. they asked me that question, one of the presidents of a big country stood up and said, "well, sir, if we don't pay and we are attacked by russia, will you protect us?" i said, "you didn't pay, you're delinquent?" he said, "yes, let's say that happened." "no, i would not protect you." in fact, i would encourage them to do whatever the hell they want. you've got to pay. you've got to pay your bills. our correspondent will vernon is in washington. i asked him about the reaction to this from the white house. the white house releasing

a statement earlier calling these comments appalling and unhinged, and accusing mr trump of encouraging invasions of our closest allies by murderous regimes. we have heard this kind of thing from mr trump before, he's a notorious sceptic of nato and other international alliances. whilst in office, he was criticised for heaping praise on vladimir putin, for calling nato obsolete and saying it was an unnecessary strain on america's resources. but we should remember, these comments were made at a campaign rally. this was mr trump trying to portray himself as a tough international statesman, standing up for american interests. a lot of his supporters, that's what they want to hear, that will appeal to them, that message. but his words will be very worrying for a lot of european allies, especially those

on nato's eastern flank. they are the ones most vulnerable to russian aggression. of course, the war continuing in ukraine. the nato secretary general today seeking to send a message of reassurance. nato said, any attack on nato will be met with a united and forceful response. but this comes, doesn't it, at a very sensitive time. the war in ukraine. in kyiv, they are desperately low on weaponry and ammunition. in washington at the us congress, some republican lawmakers back on a crucial bill at the moment in congress. that bill will grant $60 billion of military aid to ukraine. president biden has repeatedly called on congress to pass that much needed legislation. i want to ask you about some news we had earlier in the programme, that the white house has spoken

to president netanyahu about the war in gaza, and that president biden urged prime minister netanyahu not to start his offensive until there is an evacuation plan for the more than 1.4 million gazans in rafah today. how is the white house balancing its relationship to israel as a staunch ally, as an offensive like this is being planned? yes, just now we've had that readout of the call between president biden and benjamin netanyahu, reaffirming their shared goal to see hamas defeated. mention of the release of hostages and humanitarian assistance. but interestingly, it talks about how president biden reaffirmed his view that a military operation in rafah should not proceed without a credible and executable plan for ensuring the safety of more than one million people sheltering there. i think that's key, isn't it?

it's the first phone call between president biden and benjamin netanyahu since january 19th. just a few days ago, president biden at the white house gave his most striking criticism of israel to date, saying that he thought their military operation in the gaza strip was, quote, over the top. this call comes just a few days after us secretary of state antony blinken has returned from another diplomatic tour around the middle east. he met key regional leaders, discussing what the us had presented as a potential pause in fighting, a potential ceasefire plan for the war in gaza. that, as we know, was rejected by israel. so an interesting moment for the two leaders to have this phone call. so how many nato allies routinely hit their 2% obligation? aside from the us, with its huge $860 billion military budget, only 11 out of 30 members of nato

achieved the 2% spending commitment. they include the uk, greece, and poland, which commits a record 4% of its gdp to defence, as well as a number of other central and eastern european states. but many long—time nato members, including some of its founders, such as france, germany, spain and italy, do not currently meet the 2% threshold, causing concern on the other side of the atlantic. let's speak to melinda haring, senior fellow at the atlantic council. thank you so much for giving us your time. the backdrop to this is of course the war in ukraine. how are these comments from the former president of the united states, a front runnerfor president of the united states, a front runner for the republican ticket, likely to be viewed in moscow? 50 ticket, likely to be viewed in moscow?— ticket, likely to be viewed in moscow? , . ., ., ~ moscow? so in moscow, and i think even in beijing. _ moscow? so in moscow, and i think even in beijing, there _ moscow? so in moscow, and i think even in beijing, there is _

moscow? so in moscow, and i think even in beijing, there is quiet - even in beijing, there is quiet celebration that donald trump is making these irresponsible statements about nato. nato is the security alliance that has held europe together, the west together, for 75 years. i think that report was spot on, but it's notjust front—line eastern european countries starting to sweat, western europe is starting to sweat at what's coming from donald trump. another point to be made, when we see only 11 out of 31 allies are spending their 2% of economic output on defence. shouldn't all members meet their end of the bargain? absolutely they should, and we've seen more nato members start to get closer to that target. that should be a target, but again, it is not written, it's not a contract. each country pledges to try to get there and some can't. i wouldn't be super

literal with it.— literal with it. you say some countries — literal with it. you say some countries can't, _ literal with it. you say some countries can't, but - literal with it. you say some l countries can't, but generally literal with it. you say some - countries can't, but generally came in below the agreed 2%, one of the leading economies. whether it's the leader of the united states, current and former, that they are held to account? ~ , ., ., ., ~' and former, that they are held to account? ~ , ., ., ., ~ ., , account? when you look at the list of countries _ account? when you look at the list of countries that _ account? when you look at the list of countries that haven't _ account? when you look at the list of countries that haven't met - account? when you look at the list of countries that haven't met the l of countries that haven't met the target, there are certainly countries... inaudible. the only defence i can give you is germany are starting to wake up to the russian threat in europe. we see the russian threat in europe. we see the german chancellor using his bully pulpit and encouraging more european states to do more. he has also completely changed germany's policy. is it enough? no, but they are getting there and we need to continue to praise them and encourage them to do more. so essentially, if i understand correctly, you believe this sort of rhetoric from mr trump is too damaging, and essentially he should be giving these countries more

carrot than stick? i be giving these countries more carrot than stick?— be giving these countries more carrot than stick? i ob'ect to the rhetoric that t carrot than stick? i ob'ect to the rhetoric that if he _ carrot than stick? i object to the rhetoric that if he were - carrot than stick? i object to the i rhetoric that if he were president, he would not defend the art five —— article five guarantees, the principle of defending each other. if a nato country is attacked, all of the nato countries will come together and make a decision as to whether they would defend it, and they most likely word. he is undermining the credibility of nato by making these statements. there is concern that if donald trump was elected, he might refuse to pay... if he makes more of the statements and he is re—elected, nato is going to look like a paper tiger, that is my concern. there is no security alternative to nato, russia is the greatest threat to european and us interests. he doesn't have an alternative to that.— interests. he doesn't have an alternative to that. thank you so much for your— alternative to that. thank you so much for your time. _ let's look at pakistan now. against the odds, independent candidates backed by pakistan's

jailed former prime minister imran khan have won the most seats. but the second and third largest political blocs say they have started formal discussions about forming a government together. the two parties, led by nawaz sharif and bilawal bhutto zardari, formed an alliance to oust khan from power in 2022. they've issued a statement saying they plan to work together to bring political stability. if they do form a government, it's likely to anger mr khan's followers. his pti party was barred from taking part in the election, forcing its candidates to stand as independents. 0ur correspondent carrie davies reports from islamabad. two sides are claiming victory in pakistan, but there is still no new government. both need more seats to get a majority. this is part of imran khan's pti party's plan — protests like these in karachi. accusing the authorities of rigging the vote, they are challenging them in court and on the street.

this is the road outside the election commission here in rawalpindi, and a few hundred protesters have gathered. this is not a mass level at the moment, but the idea is it keeps pressure up while the pti try to work out what to do next. in the crowd was aftab alam from oxford. this country has been in this situation for the last decade, and it's been going on like this. imran khan is the only hope now for this country to get out of this mess. why did you want to come down here today? it's just to aid our peaceful protest that we need to have a respect for the people's mandate. the people have shown their desire, they want imran khan. meanwhile, imran khan's political rival nawaz sharif is publicly looking for alliances. today, his brother met bilawal bhutto from the ppp to start formal discussions about forming a government. the two parties previously ruled together after ousting imran khan

in a vote of no confidence. will they join up again? as the political wrangling continues, frustration is growing among the many imran khan supporters. just over an hour and a half into the protest in rawalpindi, suddenly the mood turned and a decision was made. so we havejust been pushed back by a cloud of tear gas that was used on the crowd of protesters that were outside. they're now being completely dispersed. you can see the reaction of everybody behind me as well. pakistan has already faced months of political instability with no answer yet to who will lead the country. caroline davies, bbc news, rawalpindi. king charles has attended church in sandringham in his first public outing since buckingham palace announced his cancer diagnosis. charles, who's 75, said all those affected by cancer knew "such kind

thoughts" were "the greatest comfort and encouragement". around 100 well—wishers gathered on sunday as the king walked into church. 0ur correspondent louisa pilbeam sent this update from sandringham. well, we saw king charles walk into sandringham church with his wife, queen camilla. they walked in and king charles waved once or twice to a crowd that had gathered. there were around 100 people who had come up to the gates here on the sandringham estate and were hoping that he might come and speak to them, so that they could give their warm, kind words that they wanted to, to the king. but he went straight in, he spoke to the vicar and then he went into the church service. 0n the way out, the security here had actually opened the gates, and then there was some hope and quite a lot of excitement, actually, that they might be able to speak to the king and give them their warm well wishes. but on the way out, the king and queen camilla actually went past, gave a couple more waves and then went back to the private sandringham estate.

so people here, perhaps a little bit of disappointment, they told me, that they didn't get to speak directly to the king. but a sense of understanding that perhaps he wanted a private day. and also perhaps the king felt that he had given his warm message from the heart. he released a statement last night saying that he was, he felt gratitude to people for their warm wishes and said that it meant a lot to him that he has this support from the public. millions of people around the world will tune in to watch the super bowl later. this year, the kansas city chiefs are taking on the san francisco 49ers. las vegas is hosting the sporting event, and fans have been these are live pictures outside the stadium as people are gathering to see what is actually a rematch. las vegas is hosting that sporting event, and fans, as you can see,

have been pouring into the city. but what makes the super bowl so popular? sofia bettiza reports. the super bowl is the most watched sporting event in the world. it's broadcast in over 130 countries and in more than 30 languages. so what makes it so popular? it's about so much more than sport. so many people watch the game, commercials like these. and then there is the half—time show when a famous musician gets on stage to perform. just to give you an idea, when rihanna performed, more than 121 million people tuned in to watch. 0ver 121 million people tuned in to watch. over the years, some of the biggest stars in the world have

performed, including shakira, jennifer lopez, prince, madonna. something different this year is the taylor swift effect, she is in a relationship with travis kelce, a player for one of the teams competing at the super bowl. and of course taylor swift is one of the biggest pop stars on the planet. she has a huge fan base. that means she brings in a new, younger audience. especially women. and so because of that, this year, the super bowl could create all sorts of social media and viewing records. excitement is rising in ivory coast, where the final of the africa cup of nations is set to kick off in just over half an hour. the hosts will take on fellow former champions, nigeria. the super eagles are aiming for a fourth afcon crown, while the ivorians are looking to add to their triumphs in 1992 and 2015.

in saturday's third place play—off final, south africa beat the democratic republic of congo 6—5 on penalties. now in london, preparations are under way for the game. let's speak to our news reporter simi jolaoso. thank you so much forjoining us. it looks pretty lively, they are preparing for the night, it looks like. , ., , preparing for the night, it looks like. , . , ., ., , preparing for the night, it looks like. , ., , ., ., , ., like. they really are, the fans are su er like. they really are, the fans are super excited. _ like. they really are, the fans are super excited. there _ like. they really are, the fans are super excited. there is _ like. they really are, the fans are super excited. there is a - like. they really are, the fans are super excited. there is a huge i like. they really are, the fans are l super excited. there is a huge buzz in the air, just over 30 minutes until kick off, until nigeria take on ivory coast. this tournament has already been full of drama, so we expect nothing less than a thrilling game. nigeria has proven to be a tough team to beat, they remain unbeaten in this tournament, they already beat ivory coast in the group stages. we are set to see how they are going to perform tonight. they have already won three afcon

titles, the last in 2013. on the other hand, the ivory coast have performed a sensational turnaround. in the beginning, they were seemingly a sinking ship. but they made a major comeback. some of the top players to look out for, on the ivory coast side, sebastien haller. for nigeria, you have william troost ekong who scored the winning goal against the ivory coast, and ademola lookman. i have a nigerian fan with me. what do you think of the super eagles' performance so far? they have been _ eagles' performance so far? they have been absolutely _ eagles' performance so far? they have been absolutely great. i can't wait for _ have been absolutely great. i can't wait for our — have been absolutely great. i can't wait for our team to win and bring the cup— wait for our team to win and bring the cup home. and wait for our team to win and bring the cut home-— wait for our team to win and bring the cup home-— wait for our team to win and bring the cu home. �* a, n, , ., the cup home. and i have mary, from the cup home. and i have mary, from the ivory coast- _ the cup home. and i have mary, from the ivory coast. lots _ the cup home. and i have mary, from the ivory coast. lots of— the cup home. and i have mary, from the ivory coast. lots of ivory - the cup home. and i have mary, from the ivory coast. lots of ivory coast i the ivory coast. lots of ivory coast fans at the moment. mary, what are

you expecting from the elephants tonight? you expecting from the elephants toniht? , �* , . tonight? listen, i'm expecting them tonight? listen, i'm expecting them to come back _ tonight? listen, i'm expecting them to come back harder, _ tonight? listen, i'm expecting them to come back harder, stronger, - tonight? listen, i'm expecting them to come back harder, stronger, we | to come back harder, stronger, we have _ to come back harder, stronger, we have literally — to come back harder, stronger, we have literally come _ to come back harder, stronger, we have literally come from _ to come back harder, stronger, we have literally come from 4—0 - to come back harder, stronger, we have literally come from 4—0 to i have literally come from 4—0 to being _ have literally come from 4—0 to being in— have literally come from 4—0 to being in the _ have literally come from 4—0 to being in the final. _ have literally come from 4—0 to being in the final. like, - have literally come from 4—0 to being in the final. like, don't i have literally come from 4—0 to . being in the final. like, don't play with us! _ being in the final. like, don't play with us! we — being in the final. like, don't play with us! we are _ being in the final. like, don't play with us! we are going _ being in the final. like, don't play with us! we are going to- being in the final. like, don't play with us! we are going to win - with us! we are going to win tonight _ with us! we are going to win tonight. we're _ with us! we are going to win tonight. we're going - with us! we are going to win tonight. we're going to - with us! we are going to win tonight. we're going to do . with us! we are going to wini tonight. we're going to do so with us! we are going to win - tonight. we're going to do so well, and l'rn _ tonight. we're going to do so well, and l'rn so— tonight. we're going to do so well, and l'rn so proud— tonight. we're going to do so well, and i'm so proud of— tonight. we're going to do so well, and i'm so proud of my— tonight. we're going to do so well, and i'm so proud of my country, i and i'm so proud of my country, likem _ absolutely loving the confidence here. what are you expecting to see from the super eagles tonight? the energy they have been bringing so far to _ energy they have been bringing so far to reach this final stage, and definitely— far to reach this final stage, and definitely we are winning the cup and nothing is stopping the eagles, definitely! crowd b00. mary would beg to say different! is there anyone in particular you are looking forward to seeing tonight? i

want to see sebastien haller, and simon _ want to see sebastien haller, and simon adingrar _ want to see sebastien haller, and simon adingra, yeah. _ want to see sebastien haller, and simon adingra, yeah.— want to see sebastien haller, and simon adingra, yeah. really quickly, what are your — simon adingra, yeah. really quickly, what are your predictions _ simon adingra, yeah. really quickly, what are your predictions tonight? i what are your predictions tonight? my what are your predictions tonight? my prediction is 1—1 and we are going — my prediction is 1—1 and we are going to — my prediction is 1—1 and we are going to go _ my prediction is 1—1 and we are going to go to _ my prediction is 1—1 and we are going to go to penalties. - my prediction is 1—1 and we are going to go to penalties. for. my prediction is 1-1 and we are going to go to penalties. for me, definitely 4-0. _ going to go to penalties. for me, definitely 4-0. there _ going to go to penalties. for me, definitely 4-0. there you - going to go to penalties. for me, definitely 4-0. there you have i going to go to penalties. for me, | definitely 4-0. there you have it, going to go to penalties. for me, l definitely 4-0. there you have it, a lot of confidence _ definitely 4-0. there you have it, a lot of confidence here, _ definitely 4-0. there you have it, a lot of confidence here, we - definitely 4-0. there you have it, a lot of confidence here, we are - definitely 4-0. there you have it, a | lot of confidence here, we are going to have to wait and see in half an hour at kick off.— hour at kick off. stay with us on bbc news, _ hour at kick off. stay with us on bbc news, plenty _ hour at kick off. stay with us on bbc news, plenty more - hour at kick off. stay with us on bbc news, plenty more to - hour at kick off. stay with us on i bbc news, plenty more to come. hello there. very pleased to say it's been a quieter weekend of weather for most of us, but there's still a lot of waterlogged fields and pavements out there, as you can see by this weather watcher picture sent in from hull a little earlier on. now, as we go through the week ahead, we might start off quite

optimistic with some sunny spells around, but it will turn increasingly unsettled with the showers turning to longer spells of rain, breezy at times, but it will be mild, particularly through the middle part of the week. this has been the story today. we've had some nuisance rainjust clinging onto the far east coast of scotland and northeast england. some brighter spells and a few scattered showers out to the west. now, those showers will continue to feed in across west—facing coasts overnight. but with some clearer skies, temperatures are likely to fall away. it's going to be a chilly start to our monday morning. low single figures for many, perhaps in rural parts of scotland, below freezing, a touch of ice not out of the question where we've got those lingering showers. low pressure dominates the scene as we move into monday, the wind direction coming from a northwesterly, slightly fresher source and that's going to continue to drive in plenty of showers closest to that area of low. so northern ireland, scotland, perhaps northwest england as well. and some of the showers to the tops of the mountains once again could be wintry in nature. but there will be some sunshine

elsewhere and those temperatures are likely to peak between six and ten degrees. as we go through monday evening and into tuesday, we've got this little ridge of high pressure keeping things quiet. but all the time this weather front is approaching from the southwest, that is going to gradually spill in more cloud ahead of it. so after a bright start, clouding over. a few scattered showers in the far northwest, more persistent showery rain develops across the channel islands, south west england, wales and eventually into the midlands, north west england and northern ireland by the end of the afternoon. 7 to 11, our overall highs. so as we move out of tuesday into wednesday, it's here where the showers potentially could merge to longer spells of rain as it stays pretty unsettled. the wind direction there coming from a south—westerly, so a very mild direction and that is going to just push that milder air further north across the country. so it does mean that we could see temperatures perhaps into the mid—teens as we go through the middle part of the week. but it stays pretty unsettled for many of us.

take care.

this is bbc news, the headlines.

president biden tells israel's prime minister not to press ahead with an offensive in rafah without a plan to ensure the safety of the one and a half million palestinians sheltering there. the un has said there is nowhere safe for palestinians in rafah to move to. the head of nato slams donald trump for saying he would encourage russia to attack any nato ally that fails to meet its financial obligations to the alliance. jens stoltenberg said it would undermine the alliance's security and put soldiers at risk. and final results from pakistan's election confirm that independent candidates allied to jailed former prime minister, imran khan, won the most seats. but the political blocs which came second and third say they'll work together to try to form a government. now on bbc news, it's sportsday.

hello and welcome to sportsday — i'm jane dougall.