breaking news in the last hour — detectives searching for two men, believed murdered by a serving police officer, say they have found two bodies. the us supreme court hears arguments in two landmark cases about social media censure. we'll hear from a legal expert what the implications could be. as alabama supreme court rules that frozen embryos are the legal equivalent of children, many republicans distance themselves. hello. a very warm welcome to the programme. i'm sally bundock. we start with the war in gaza. us presidentjoe biden has said he hopes a ceasefire could start by the beginning of next week. negotiators are seeking a halt to the fighting and the release

of israeli hostages held in gaza. here's the president speaking late on monday. my my national security adviser tells me that we close, we're close, we're not done yet. my hope is by next monday we will have a ceasefire. let's take a look at the latest on those meetings. israel and hamas have been holding so—called "proximity "talks" in qatar. there are reports that 400 palestinian prisoners, serving sentences for terror—related crimes, could be exchanged for a0 female and elderly israeli hostages. the israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu has vowed to go ahead with an assault on gaza's southernmost city, rafah, regardless of any agreement. according to the hamas—run health ministry, nearly 30,000 people have been killed in gaza since the start of the israeli military campaign in the territory, following the hamas attack on israel

on october 7th. and in gaza city, an attack last december is thought to have killed 103 members of the same family. middle east correspondent lucy williamson has been speaking to one of the surviving family members, who lost his wife and three young daughters. it took ahmad al—ghuferi a decade to build the family he loved. it took a split second, one winter evening, to destroy it. ten—year—old tala, five—year—old lana, and najla, not yet two, killed, with ahmad's wife, in a powerful strike on a residential building in gaza city. along with his mother, four of his brothers, their families and dozens of aunts, uncles and cousins. 103 relatives in all, a family obliterated. translation: | feel

i am in a dream. - i still can't believe what happened to us. my daughters are little birds to me. ahmad survived because he was 50 miles away in the occupied west bank, stuck outside gaza since the start of the war, working in tel aviv, to fund the couple's dream of owning their own home. he was on the phone to his wife when the attack began. she knew she would die, and she asked me to forgive herfor anything bad she might have ever done to me. i told her there was no need to say that, and that was the last call between us. the house ahmad built with his tel aviv salary in gaza city is still standing, just. the homes around it, flattened, including his uncle's house, metres away, where the family fled for safety. translation:

it was a fire belt. there were strikes here on four houses next to ours. they were hitting one house every ten minutes. the family are still searching for bodies buried in the rubble. among those killed, they say, a 98—year—old grandmother, and a baby boy, born nine days before. only a handful of survivors. "we were sitting in the house, and we found ourselves under "the rubble," she told us. "i was thrown from one side to the other. "i don't know how they got me out." two months on, israeli forces are fighting hamas in gaza city, as they were a few blocks south of ahmad's house around the time the compound was hit. the army said it wasn't aware of any strikes there that day. ahmad no longer wants to return home. last monday would have been najla's second birthday. "who am i going back for?", he said. "there is no one left there to call me darling, "no one to call me dad."

lucy williamson, bbc news, jerusalem. as pa rt of as part of our special coverage, it is called life in gaza today, we have been sent this audio diary from a gaza resident detailing challenges faced by people on a daily basis. wherever it is in gaza, it is hurt, pain, starvation, everything bad. there is no life in gaza, particularly in the north of gaza. people there are starving, have been starving since last week. they don't have any food, they don't have any water. i can see children with some spelt flour over the ground and other

people trying to mix flour with sand so they can make as much bread as possible. i can see also in the north of gaza, people can't really afford or even have one can of food. send now nutrition, food and water shortages are at their extremist maximum level in the north of gaza. we have reported many numbers killed, and they have been dying because of the malnutrition and the food and water shortages, so it is incredibly dire out there in the north of gaza. there are at least 700,000 people there who are starving at the moment, who passed most of the day without even getting a sip of water. i want to bring you some developing news from australia. detectives searching for two men believed murdered by a serving police officer say they have found two bodies. police allege that jesse baird and partner

luke davies were shot over a week ago in a sydney home. in an update last hour, authorities said they had found remains on a remote property — roughly two hours south west of sydney. the suspect — police officer beau lamar—condon — was charged late last week after handing himself in, but had not been cooperating in the hunt for the bodies. a short time ago, new south wales police gave a press briefing with this update. whilst this news may bring some solace to the baird and davies families, this will be heartbreaking for them and our sympathies are with them. we sadly as a society have these types of incidents, domestic violence, occur in our world, and we have to deal with them, and we have to deal with them, and it has hurt us, because it was one of our own officers who was one of our own officers who was involved in this. the us supreme court has heard arguments in two landmark

social media cases that could have big implications for freedom of speech online. at issue are laws passed in florida and texas that ban online platforms like facebook, youtube and tiktok from removing or demoting user content. both states argue the legislation is necessary to prevent censorship of conservative users. but opponents say the laws infringe on the platforms�* own first amendment rights. here's our north america correspondentjohn sudworth. the two laws brought forward spy the two laws brought forward spy the states of florida and texas are designed according to the republican politicians who supported them to correct what they see as a kind of silicon valley liberal leaning bias on tech platforms. they point to the de—platforming of donald trump after the january six

storming of the us capitol, and the attempts to regulate political speech more widely. the laws would curtail or at least severely limit the ability of tech platforms to continue to police content in that way. at the heart of the arguments in the front of the supreme court this morning was a simple question, what are social media platforms anyway? are they like newspapers free to decide what does and doesn't go on their pages, or are they more akin to telecommunications companies with thejob more akin to telecommunications companies with the job simply of connecting speakers to listeners to the consumers of those posts. the lawyers for the social media company says if they are merely the latter, if they are merely the latter, if they are merely the latter, if they have no editorial rights what goes on those platforms than the internet would very quickly degenerate into a cesspool of hate speech, of misinformation and of

political extremism. 0n the other hand, lawyers for texas and florida argued that the claim by social media companies have a spree —— free—speech right of control themselves as a kind of cloak by which they can deny the free speech rights of the uses they disagree with. john sudworth outlining what is all about. for more on this, i'm joined now by eric goldman, a professor at the santa clara university school of law and co—director of the high tech law institute. welcome to bbc news. give me your take on these two landmark cases. , . , ., ., ., ~ cases. they really are landmark cases. they really are landmark cases- at _ cases. they really are landmark cases. at stake _ cases. they really are landmark cases. at stake is _ cases. they really are landmark cases. at stake is the _ cases. they really are landmark cases. at stake is the future - cases. at stake is the future of the internet. are we going to have an intranet where we can talk together or are we going to have an intranet where we won't, and we take for granted today that we have a discussion to be able to engage with each other, mediated by

social media, and i think regulators often have a different vision about that and we are going to see if they can succeed. it we are going to see if they can succeed. , . , succeed. it is an interesting debate as — succeed. it is an interesting debate as john _ succeed. it is an interesting debate as john was - succeed. it is an interesting | debate as john was outlining debate asjohn was outlining their what these companies actually are because something that mark zuckerberg has said many times in front of congress and being grilled about his company, facebook, instagram etc, his argument has always been we arejust etc, his argument has always been we are just a platform, we are just been we are just a platform, we arejust a means. we are not been we are just a platform, we are just a means. we are not a media company as such. so that kind of works against him in this case, does it?— this case, does it? certainly social media _ this case, does it? certainly social media companies - social media companies including facebook have at times said they are platforms, or that they are merely trying to enable users to talk to each other without intervention. but that never has been true, and it really distracts from the underlying legal question. the legal question is whether or not social media services obtain first amendment

protection that is available for other kinds of publishers, and the reality is that social media services engage in the same functions that traditional publishers engage in. they gather, organise and disseminate content, and by doing so, it seems pretty clear that they ought qualified for the same protections as other types of publishers. 50. the same protections as other types of publishers.— types of publishers. so, in florida and _ types of publishers. so, in florida and texas, - types of publishers. so, in florida and texas, just - types of publishers. so, in florida and texas, just so | florida and texas, just so we're clear on this, what is the current state of play? are meta, tiktok etc able to moderate or not?- meta, tiktok etc able to moderate or not? they are able to moderate — moderate or not? they are able to moderate but _ moderate or not? they are able to moderate but that _ moderate or not? they are able to moderate but that is - moderate or not? they are able to moderate but that is only - to moderate but that is only because in florida the law was enjoined, and in texas the law was upheld, but subject to a state, pending the supreme court decision. so the supreme court decision. so the supreme court will decide whether or not the texas law does back into effect on whether or not the injections lifted in florida. so today is like the status quo before the law passed, they are still able to do everything they were able to

do everything they were able to do previously. in do everything they were able to do previously-— do previously. in terms of how this works _ do previously. in terms of how this works in _ do previously. in terms of how this works in the _ do previously. in terms of how this works in the us, - do previously. in terms of how this works in the us, it - do previously. in terms of how this works in the us, it is - do previously. in terms of how this works in the us, it is a - this works in the us, it is a different elsewhere, for example in the eu, across the uk as well, we have quite recent laws in place. they call on the likes of meta and others to be even more involved in protecting certainly young people for example. it is a treat people for example. it is a great example _ people for example. it is a great example because . people for example. it is a great example because in | people for example. it is a i great example because in the people for example. it is a - great example because in the uk the online hamas bill requires social media services and others to take steps to remove what we call sometimes lawful but awful content. it is lawful, the law permits that content but it is awful, it is anti—social, and the laws in florida and texas would actually require intranet services to keep publishing lawful but awful content, and it is a sign how the florida and texas bills are out of step with in some ways the rest of the globe that once the services to their users.

florida and texas want to do less to protect their users. thank you for explaining that to us. around the world and across the uk, this is bbc news. let's look at some other stories making the news in the uk. a woman, who livestreamed herself killing a cat, then months later brutally attacked a man, leaving him to drown in a river, has been sentenced to life in prison. 26—year—old scarlet blake was out on the streets of oxford in 2021, looking for a victim, before meeting jorge martin carreno. former conservative deputy chairman lee anderson says he won't rule outjoining reform uk, after being criticised for his comments about muslims in london. appearing on gb news on monday, he insisted his remarks, describing the london mayor sadiq khan as being controlled by islamists, were not racist. he's been suspended from the conservative party.

everton football club have had their points deduction for a breach of premier league financial rules reduced. it's been cut from ten points to six, after an appeal by the club. the punishment had been the biggest in premier league history, and left everton fighting relegation. you're live with bbc news. france's president emmanuel macron signalled that sending western ground troops into ukraine is not off the table, after a meeting of european leaders in paris. macron declined to provide details about which nations were considering sending troops, saying he preferred to maintain some "strategic ambiguity". it's the first time there has been such an open discussion of western nations collectively looking at providing troops to support the ukrainian military, which has struggled on the battlefield in recent months. european leaders also agreed to increase funding for ukraine, as macron warned russia is looking to take more terrority and presents

a danger beyond ukraine. translation: there is no consensus _ translation: there is no consensus today _ translation: there is no consensus today to - translation: there is no consensus today to send i translation: there is no - consensus today to send ground troops in an official, endorsed and sanctioned manner, but in dynamic terms, nothing should be ruled out. will do whatever it takes to ensure that russia cannot this war. sweden has cleared its final obstacle to joining the nato defence alliance. hungary's parliament voted to ratify the bid on monday. the nordic nation applied tojoin the alliance, after russia's full—scale invasion of ukraine in 2022. in his speech, hungarian prime minister viktor 0rban sharply criticised unnamed nato allies for exerting pressure on his government to end the 2i—month delay. sweden's prime minister, ulf kristersson, says it's a historic moment. translation: sweden is now

leavina translation: sweden is now leaving 200 — translation: sweden is now leaving 200 years _ translation: sweden is now leaving 200 years of - translation: sweden is now| leaving 200 years of neutrality and nonalignment behind. this is a big step, we must take it seriously, but it is also a very natural step that we are taking. 0ur reporter caroline hawley has more on the history — and significance — of monday's vote. russia's full—scale invasion of ukraine was partly aimed at preventing the expansion of nato to its borders, but it has had the opposite effect, with finland first, now sweden, becoming nato members, giving the alliance almost full control over the baltic sea. for two centuries, sweden had been militarily neutral, but the war in ukraine turned public opinion around. the threat from _ public opinion around. the threat from russia - public opinion around. tue: threat from russia has public opinion around. tte: threat from russia has always been very real. we are very close to it. so we have always been very vulnerable. tt is close to it. so we have always been very vulnerable. it is the record for _ been very vulnerable. it is the record for us. _ been very vulnerable. it is the record for us. i _ been very vulnerable. it is the record for us. i think- been very vulnerable. it is the record for us. i think in - been very vulnerable. it is the record for us. i think in this i record for us. i think in this new— record for us. i think in this new era _ record for us. i think in this new are it_ record for us. i think in this new era it is better to be part of an— new era it is better to be part of an alliance than being independent and neutral. sweden

will brina independent and neutral. sweden will bring nato _ independent and neutral. sweden will bring nato its _ independent and neutral. sweden will bring nato its modern - independent and neutral. sweden will bring nato its modern air- will bring nato its modern air force and submarines specially adapted to the baltic sea. it gains a security umbrella backed by nuclear deterrence. the prime minister of sweden described it as a historic day for his country. from russia so far, silence. caroline hawley bbc news. republicans in alabama have told the bbc they plan to fix the fallout over a supreme court ruling, which decided frozen embryos should be classified as children. it didn't ban ivf treatments, which many couples use to have children, but it created legal confusion for clinics on how to handle and store fertilised eggs and embryos. many have paused treatment sparking anger. 0ur north america correspondent nomia iqbal has been following the story in alabama. so many families are distraught about this ruling. they want a solution as soon as possible, and all eyes will be on republican senator tim nelson, who has told us he plans to introduce a bill on tuesday to

his fellow lawmakers. t introduce a bill on tuesday to his fellow lawmakers.- his fellow lawmakers. i have had a lot _ his fellow lawmakers. i have had a lot of people - his fellow lawmakers. i have had a lot of people come - his fellow lawmakers. i have | had a lot of people come into my office _ had a lot of people come into my office in montgomery and have — my office in montgomery and have explained to me their situation is that this is the only— situation is that this is the only option they have for a family. _ only option they have for a family, and it is injeopardy, and — family, and it is injeopardy, and it— family, and it is injeopardy, and it became one of those things. _ and it became one of those things. it _ and it became one of those things, it became a priority, because _ things, it became a priority, because i_ things, it became a priority, because i knew that as a physician i needed to help out, figure — physician i needed to help out, figure out— physician i needed to help out, figure out a way to preserve the sanctity of life, while still _ the sanctity of life, while still giving reasonable solutions to some difficult questions. ijust know i have worked — questions. ijust know i have worked with legislators services and discussed with members positions, and the key part, _ members positions, and the key part. it — members positions, and the key part, it needs to state in utero, _ part, it needs to state in utero, that we define it is not a viable — utero, that we define it is not a viable option until it is in the — a viable option until it is in the uterus. that doesn't guarantee it but it would be a good — guarantee it but it would be a good place to start, as far as civil— good place to start, as far as civil liability, criminal liability, there is sorts of things _ liability, there is sorts of things. as long as the industry standard — things. as long as the industry standard is met and there is no negligence or malpractice. time is of the essence _ negligence or malpractice. time is of the essence with _ negligence or malpractice. time is of the essence with this, - negligence or malpractice. time is of the essence with this, so i is of the essence with this, so what is your timeframe on

getting a solution? t what is your timeframe on getting a solution?- what is your timeframe on getting a solution? i think two weeks. getting a solution? i think two weeks- you — getting a solution? i think two weeks. you know, _ getting a solution? i think two weeks. you know, it— getting a solution? i think two weeks. you know, it may - getting a solution? i think two weeks. you know, it may be l weeks. you know, it may be three. — weeks. you know, it may be three. but— weeks. you know, it may be three, but i think we can do this— three, but i think we can do this in— three, but i think we can do this in two— three, but i think we can do this in two weeks if reasonable minds — this in two weeks if reasonable minds can— this in two weeks if reasonable minds can come together and in a crisis — minds can come together and in a crisis situation.— a crisis situation. was good to sa , can a crisis situation. was good to say, can reasonable _ a crisis situation. was good to say, can reasonable minds- a crisis situation. was good to i say, can reasonable minds come together? i think so. in this situation. tt together? i think so. in this situation-— situation. it is one of these thins situation. it is one of these things well— situation. it is one of these things well they _ situation. it is one of these things well they will - situation. it is one of these things well they will take . things well they will take serious. ., , things well they will take serious. . , ., serious. has the intervention by donald — serious. has the intervention by donald trump _ serious. has the intervention by donald trump put - serious. has the intervention l by donald trump put pressure serious. has the intervention - by donald trump put pressure on you? by donald trump put pressure on ou? ., ., ., _._ by donald trump put pressure on ou? ., ., ., , �* you? no, or anybody else, biden has come — you? no, or anybody else, biden has come out. — you? no, or anybody else, biden has come out, hayley _ you? no, or anybody else, biden has come out, hayley has - you? no, or anybody else, biden has come out, hayley has come. has come out, hayley has come out, _ has come out, hayley has come out, let's— has come out, hayley has come out, let'sjust get it right. if out, let'sjust get it right. if they— out, let'sjust get it right. if they thought we should go the opposite way i will still do what _ the opposite way i will still do what i think is right, which is what — do what i think is right, which is what this is. do do what i think is right, which is what this is.— is what this is. do you think this could — is what this is. do you think this could cost _ is what this is. do you think this could cost the - is what this is. do you think l this could cost the republican party votes? t’m this could cost the republican party votes?— party votes? i'm not worried about it- _ party votes? i'm not worried about it. every _ party votes? i'm not worried about it. every decision - party votes? i'm not worried about it. every decision we | about it. every decision we make — about it. every decision we make sure we lose votes, and it's ok — make sure we lose votes, and it's ok. that's all right. let's _ it's ok. that's all right. let'sjust get it right, let's not — let'sjust get it right, let's not worry— let'sjust get it right, let's not worry about the situation where —

not worry about the situation where we _ not worry about the situation where we don't take it into consideration that we just need to take — consideration that we just need to take care of patients, and that's— to take care of patients, and that's what we want to do. interesting there. denmark has closed its investigation into the sabotage of the nord stream pipelines, which supplied russian gas to germany. they were blown up in 2022, under the baltic sea, east of the danish island of bornholm. danish police said the sabotage was deliberate, but there was no basis for pursuing a criminal case. 0nly germany will continue to investigate. ukraine, russia, the united states and the uk have all denied responsibility. here's our security correspondent, frank gardner. from out of the baltic depths, a sudden surge in methane gas — the result of not one, but three major explosions in 2022. they ruptured the underwater pipelines from russia to germany.

baltic governments concluded it was deliberate sabotage. but now both denmark and sweden have dropped their investigations, while germany is keeping theirs open. the kremlin spokesman, dmitry peskov, has called this absurd. if it's sabotage, he said, then why close down the inquiry? russia accuses the us, or even britain. it's clear that the window of opportunity to solve these mysterious underwater explosions in the baltic is closing. governments may be giving up, but last year nordic broadcasters published their own in—depth investigation. backed up by satellite data, they concluded there was unusual activity close to the site of the explosions. activity by three russian ships. including this one, the sb—i23, a vessel designed to launch and support miniature submarines. for many western experts, suspicion falls on russia. if you look at the numbers of countries that could do this, and then the numbers of countries that have the capability to do it, and then the number of countries that tick both those boxes, but also, this is within their playbook, it does dwindle very fast to just russia.

western europe's undersea pipelines and cables are vulnerable. there are so many of them that navies and coastguards can't watch all of them all of the time. just who sabotaged the nord stream pipelines may never be proven, but nato countries are now at a heightened state of vigilance. frank gardner, bbc news. it was one of the most famous love triangles in pop history — the model, pattie boyd, and rock legends, eric clapton, and beatles star george harrison. she married the beatle in 1966, before divorcing him and marrying his friend. now, boyd is auctioning love letters from both the stars. 0ur arts correspondent david sillito reports. i started working when i was about 17, 18, as a fashion model.

then, one day, my agent phoned and said that i'd got a part in the beatles film. pattie boyd — she first met george harrison on the set of a hard day's night, and 60 years on, she's selling the letters and mementos of that relationship — and the love triangle with eric clapton. and here's this letter, with the tiniest writing imaginable... letters such as this, addressed to "dearest l". "l" stood for the name he chose for her, layla. # layla, you got me on my knees...# but it's not just letters. this painting, which will go on public display on march the 15th, is also part of the story. what are we looking at? so we are looking at layla. this is layla ? this is layla, the originall artwork used for the cover of derek and the dominos' layla and other assorted love songs. j and it's notjust the painting. it's the fact that we have the letters... we have the letters — i "dear layla," "dear l," that is eric clapton - declaring his love for layla. she shows it to george...

she shows this letter to george harrison? she shows this letter to george harrison because she doesn't . know who it's from. she says, "look at this weird fan letter." - wonderfultonight, layla, something — the songs inspired by this love triangle. these letters are more than just keepsakes. this is rock history. david sillito, bbc news. # and i'll say, "yes, you look wonderful tonight...# each stay with us here on bbc news. we have the top business stories here next and another report out in the us that is questioning safety at boeing. we'll have the latest on that and the other business news. see you in a moment. hello, there. it does look like the rest of this week will remain very changeable. things are set to turn a bit more unsettled now for the next few days. we've got this first frontal system, one of many,

pushing its way southwards and eastwards during the course of tuesday. so a wet and windy start across scotland, northern ireland, some snow on the hills briefly. england and wales starts cold and frosty, some mist and fog, some early brightness, but the cloud will build as this front pushes southwards and eastwards. as it weakens, there will be barely anything on it. but brightening up for scotland and northern ireland through the afternoon, with sunny spells, scattered, blustery showers, these wintry on the hills. winds will be quite a feature in the north and the west, lighter winds further south and east, so we've lost that cold, raw feel that we had on monday across southern and eastern areas. temperature—wise, i think around 6 to 9 celsius. now, as we head through tuesday night, that weather front clears away from southern areas. it turns drier with clearer skies, light winds, so another chilly night to come, across central and eastern areas. but the next frontal system will be working to the west later on. but a chilly start to wednesday, some areas of frost and fog likely. but for the middle part of the week, things will turn

a bit milder across the whole country, but wetter and windier with it. now, the milder air will be in this wedge between the warm and the cold front, but it will bring stronger winds and outbreaks of rain as it pushes across the country during the course of wednesday. so this is how wednesday starts — chilly, early brightness, a bit of mist and fog. the clouds build up, the rain and the wind splash their way northwards and eastward through the course of the day, with those temperatures beginning to lift somewhat, particularly across southern and western areas. so we're looking at around 10 to maybe 13 degrees for wednesday afternoon. it doesn't last, though, because cooler air will be moving in behind this area of low pressure. thursday, the last day of february, looks unsettled, very blustery across the northern half of the country. weather fronts across england and wales will bring outbreaks of rain. scotland and northern ireland seeing the brightest of the conditions, with lots of showers here, but they will be turning increasingly wintry as things turn cooler in the north and the west, the last of the double figures across the southeast. and then as we head into the first four days of march, things remain unsettled with low pressure

nearby. we'll see showers or longer spells of rain, there will be some sunshine around, but it will be chilly both by day and by night.

live from london, this is bbc news. balancing the budget — a leading economic think tank warns the chancellor the case for cutting taxes is weak.

�*gaps in boeing's safety plan' — a us government report raises serious concerns over the plane maker's safety management. inflation falls for the third month in a row injapan to the central bank's 2% target. and steady gains for women in leadership. we un—pick the gender balance at the top of the uk's biggest companies. hello, i'm sally bundock with the top business stories, starting here in the uk where there's a warning for the chancellor, jeremy hunt, over possible tax cuts that could be part of next week's spring budget. the institute for fiscal studies — a leading economic think tank — says mr hunt should resist announcing tax cuts if he can't show how he will pay for them —