losing global support. the us and nate leaders reject comments from french president emmanuel macron that he's not ruling out western troops on the ground in ukraine. hello. i'm caitriona perry. you're very welcome. our us media partner cbs news projects that republican donald trump and democratjoe biden have won their respective party primaries in the state of michigan. on the republican side, former president donald trump has claimed his latest victory over rival nikki haley telling michigan republicans he's proud of the results. for democrats, president biden�*s victory was all but assured but the margin could be an important indicator of his strength in this critical battleground heading into november.

at least 14% of democratic voters however declared themselves to be uncommitted, not favouring any candidate. this is seen as strong pushback to biden from key demographics that he might need to win the state again — progressives, voters of color, and arab and muslim voters concerned by his stance on the the israel—gaza war. activists in the state had been organising to send president biden a message — "no ceasefire, no vote," and encouraged voters to select the "uncommitted" option instead of the president's name. the biden campaign released a statement, but didn't mention theissue statement, but didn't mention the issue of a ceasefire. the group which urged democrats to vote uncommitted, released a

statement, listen to michigan saying: "see you there," it says. the movement has wide—ranging endorsements — including congresswoman rashida tlaib, who posted this earlier. i was proud today to walk in and pull a democratic ballot and vote uncommitted. we must protect our democracy. we must make sure that our government is about us, about the people. when 74% of democrats in michigan support a ceasefire, yet president biden is not hearing us. this is the way we can use our democracy to say, "listen — listen to michigan." earlier, we heard from congresswoman debbie dingell, another michigan democrat, who backs president biden. i think that i have had very direct conversations with the president about what my own constituents and what my former neighbours and the community

i lived in for a long time feel. i think the president has heard them. he's made clear he's working for a temporary ceasefire. we've called for a ceasefire and we'll have to do a great deal to work for a two—state solution and get critical needed humanitarian aid to gaza. so i think he has tried to work with this community more, he — his staff has developed very important relationships with his community, and i think it's an issue that matters. we've got a lot of work to do between now and november to make sure he wins in the general election. we're going to roll up our sleeves. we know what to do. and we will get it done. meanwhile on the republican side, this is mr trump's fifth—consecutive victory over former south carolina governor nikki haley. following mr trump's projected win, nikki haley's campaign released a statement saying:

michigan has long been a battleground state in the general election. the state had voted for democrats in six consecutive presidential elections, part of the "blue wall" from 1992 to 2012 when voters there gave president obama a win. but in 2016 mr trump won the state byjust under 11,000 votes. in 2018, during the midterm elections that year, democrats swept the state's highest offices, including now—governor gretchen whitmer. biden officially flipped the state back to blue in 2020, a key victory for him.but mr trump leads president biden in multiple head to head matchups in polls in the swing state going into the election this year. joining me now is david welch, detroit bureau chief at bloomberg.

the top line results, no surprise there, david, but in terms of the votes that have so far been counted, they in line with what you would have expected the breakdown between donald trump and nikki haley and the uncommitted votes the democratic side? the and the uncommitted votes the democratic side?— democratic side? the fact that donald trump _ democratic side? the fact that donald trump has _ democratic side? the fact that donald trump has been - democratic side? the fact that l donald trump has been leading joe biden in the pulses he has pretty broad support in the state so i would expect him to beat haley because he is doing that everywhere else. he has a pretty good base of popularity here. the biden result, in some ways, not surprising, because the listen to mr duggan campaign was pretty good at what they were doing, and have been very vocal here about the war in gaza and the backing of israel by biden. —— listen to michigan. more than 40,000 people voted uncommitted. so

trump will do pretty well in michigan. the real worry for the biden campaign as to be if the biden campaign as to be if the muslim and arab communities, which have traditionally voted three to one of the democrats since 2000, if they sit at home or writing third—party candidate candidate — elections are all about turnout these days, and that could make it very difficult forjoe biden to win michigan. and it is one of the seven states that decide the elections. seven states that decide the elections-— seven states that decide the elections. , ., , ., elections. given how small the mar: ins elections. given how small the margins have _ elections. given how small the margins have been _ elections. given how small the margins have been in - elections. given how small the margins have been in the - elections. given how small the margins have been in the lastl margins have been in the last two presidential elections in michigan, what you are saying is the situation in gaza, the support for israel, could potentially costjoe biden a second term in the white house? it is possible. he did win by 150,000 votes against donald trump. but he is trailing in the polls now. i think this will be a closer election in

michigan that we saw in 2020. and that means that every vote counts. there are about 75,000 registered muslim and arab voters, according to research from lansing. if it will be closer that it was last time, and i think it will be, they will matter quite a bit, and he will matter quite a bit, and he will need all the supporting 93p- will need all the supporting gap. it isn'tjust the muslim and arab communities. a lot of progressives and younger voters also side with those communities when it comes to theissue communities when it comes to the issue in gaza. that will be a problem as well. these are two core constituents. younger people and arab and muslim communities that the biden campaign will have to do some work to get them back on side. looking at the republican side, there is still 30— 35%, whoever it ends up, who are unhappy with donald trump, and are unhappy with the head of the republican ticket. could they be a swing constituency is

welcome november? they could. i saw something _ welcome november? they could. i saw something in _ welcome november? they could. i saw something in 2020 _ welcome november? they could. i saw something in 2020 that - welcome november? they could. i saw something in 2020 that was . saw something in 2020 that was very different from when donald trump first one. —— when it comes to november? —— negative. there are republicans that don't like trump. and the more he speaks to greater american justice warriors —— greater americo, notjust his followers, the more they could spring up. there is a large, a lot of voters who decides based on the election. they don't love either one of these candidates, i think, love either one of these candidates, ithink, and love either one of these candidates, i think, and they have reasons to go one way or the other. so i would say the state is still a tossup and a lot will happen between now and november they could push it one way or the other. it is november they could push it one way or the other.— way or the other. it is quite a way or the other. it is quite a wa to way or the other. it is quite a way to november _ way or the other. it is quite a way to november from - way or the other. it is quite a way to november from now. | way or the other. it is quite a. way to november from now. if way or the other. it is quite a - way to november from now. if we way to novemberfrom now. if we look at some of the issues,

though, that i kind of evergreen issues, if you like, around the economy, you know, a lot of manual labour, blue—collar workers in michigan. you also obviously still have the situation with water in and around lent. how will that play out for the various candidates? inflation is a big one- _ various candidates? inflation is a big one. -- _ various candidates? inflation is a big one. -- flint. - is a big one. —— flint. inflation has come down the prices are still high. working class voters, who make up a large portion of the state, still feel that. employment is up, they all have a job, the economy being fairly, relatively strong in the us. inflation has been a big piece of biden's polarity. if inflation comes down and we see some prices come back to earth over the next six or seven months, they could help biden. i don't see prices really doing that for a reason. the federal reserve is still working on

giving inflation at bay. so the biden campaign can't really rely on that. the blue—collar vote, the union vote, biden will work hard to get them. he already has the endorsement of the united auto workers union. he has visited the picket lines and made appearances with uaw leaders. the workers don't always follow the leadership�*s endorsement, but i think the uaw will help campaign forjoe biden. they really disliked donald trump. when it comes to those two communities, the muslim and arab voters, in michigan, they don't like donald trump, either. and they made it very clear, because of the muslim band that he initiated when he first took office in 2016. so neither of these has a lock on either of these has a lock on either of these photographs. —— ban. indie these photographs. -- ban. we will wait to _ these photographs. —— ban. we will wait to see what happens in that key battleground state. david welch, thank you for your time updates. detroit bureau

chief at bloomberg. thank you. —— your updates. to the israel—gaza war now where we're learning new details about a proposed temporary ceasefire, according to the biden administration. negotiators are hoping to reach a ceasefire agreement that can be implemented before ramadan, which begins on march 10. the draft framework would include a 40—day pause in all military operations. reports suggest 400 palestinian prisoners, who israel says are serving sentences for terror—related crimes, could be exchanged for forty female and elderly israeli hostages. under the proposed ceasefire, hospitals in gaza would be repaired, while 500 aid trucks would enter gaza each day. but israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu has vowed to go ahead with an assault on gaza's southernmost city, rafah, regardless of any agreement. this comes a day after mr biden said a pause in fighting in gaza could begin early next week. but hamas has yet to respond to the deal drawn up in paris over the weekend.

the bbc�*s paul adams is injerusalem, where he's been getting reaction from inside israel to news of a potential ceasefire. joe biden may be optimistic about the prospects of getting a ceasefire and hostage deal in place in the coming days, possibly by the beginning of next week, but that optimism isn't entirely reflected across the region. here in israel, certainly there is a great deal of speculation about a deal that might be emerging. lots of talk in the israeli media about the precise mechanics of the deal, how many hostages would be released and when, and how many palestinian prisoners would be released in return — discussions also about whether or not israel is willing to let palestinians move back to their homes in the northern part of the gaza strip. all of this has been talked about endlessly. but the government of qatar, a key facilitator and negotiator in this process, it says, at the moment, it has nothing to announce, there is no deal in place.

and hamas officials are saying that their demands are still fundamentally the same, that there should be a total cessation of hostilities, and enter the war in gaza, and the complete withdrawal of israeli troops. now, are they softening those demands in the background? we just don't know. benjamin netanyahu, prime minister of israel, has called those demands delusional. so we wait to see — and may have to wait for some days, yet — to see whether the gaps between the two sides which are still, i think, very considerable, to narrow. president biden also warned israel risks losing global support in the war if its gaza offensive drags on. mr netanyahu dismissed his comments. translation: from the beginning i of the war, i have been leading l a diplomatic campaign whose goal is to deflect the war prematurely and, at the same

time, gain support for israel. we have significant support in this area. today, a harris poll has published that 82% of the american public support israel. it means four or five citizens support israel and not hamas. this gives us a source of strength to continue the battle until total victory. civilians in gaza are desperate for safety, and, as part of special coverage across the bbc, today, fergal keane sent this report from jerusalem. 0n the 143rd night of the war, eight people were reported killed here. among them, a seven—year—old girl. in an area hosting five times its normal population, israel hunts for the hamas attackers who killed and kidnapped its citizens. and for civilians in rafah, grief follows... screaming ..pushed from place to place, always losing. screaming today, amid talk

of a ceasefire for gaza, we followed the lives of three people — a doctor in the north, a grandmother in central gaza, and a 12—year—old girl in rafah in the south. malak al—dhabi heard the bomb that killed the seven—year—old girl in rafah. but this morning, as every day, she was up early to start work. her mum and brother have a lung disease. they use a little of their flour to make crisps, which malak sells to buy them medicine. there is a loud desperation.

and the quiet kind. samira nurala is a 65—year—old grandmother, first filmed for us back in october. she was also taking care of her sick husband. with no medicine, her husband died, lying on the ground in the refugee camp. samira deals with her grief by caring for her frightened grandchildren. now, samira's days are spent hiding herfear. translation: we are constantly terrified, like in a movie. - every night, we sleep in fear, trying to assure our children, telling them not to be scared. i'm talking to you, and the drone is flying above us. israel blames hamas

for the suffering, saying civilians are being used as human shields, and it has vowed to destroy the organisation in gaza. in the process, thousands of civilians have been made casualties. in the al—shifa hospital, the suffering — the boy holding the saline drip above his father — and the healers. dr mohamed elsheikh says he's only left the hospital twice since the war began four months ago. translation: we're working 24/7. - we don't go to our homes. we're disconnected from our families. all the volunteers and medical staff stay in the same room. as far as food goes, only a few items are available. we provide whatever we can. in another ward under dr mohamed's care, three—year—old jude, who lost his leg in an explosion. nine—year—old adam's leg was amputated

after being infected with gangrene. another day of war. still only talk of a ceasefire. fergal keane, bbc news, jerusalem. around the world and across the uk. this is bbc news. let's look at some other stories making news. in the uk, prince william unexpectedly pulled out of a memorial service for his late godfather, king constantine of greece on tuesday. he had been due to give a reading at the service. kensington palace said his absence was due to a "personal matter". the palace would not elaborate further, but said that catherine, princess of wales, continues to progress well following abdominal surgery. sony has announced it will cut about 900 playstation jobs globally, and is shuting down its london studio. the office created several series including karaoke game singstar and the 2000s title this is football. the layoffs come a month after rival microsoft revealed plans to axe one

thousnd 900 jobs in its gaming division. and it's one of the bbc�*s most watched videos online. a pod of dolphins was spotted in the river thames near northfleet in kent. volunteers from the royal national life boat institution saw the two adults and a calf on sunday describing the sight as incredible. the river is home to more than 100 species of fish, marine and terrestrial mammals. you're live with bbc news. the united states and several european governments have distanced themselves from comments made by president macron of france, that the deployment of western troops to ukraine should not be ruled out. german chancellor olaf scholz, said there'd been no change to the agreed position that no european country or nato member state would send soldiers to ukraine. there have been simliar comments from other nations — including spain, hungary and the uk. in the us, white house officials also pushed back on the idea of any

troop deployments. it is a sovereign decision that every nato ally would have to — would have to make for themselves. you have the secretary general stoltenberg say he had no plans or intentions, certainly under nato auspices, putting troops on the ground and president bryden have been crystal—clear since the beginning of this conflict — there will be no us troops on the ground in a combat role there. our correspondent in berlin, jess parker, gave her assessment of the fallout. people have been trying to read his comments and work out what he was trying to do. some people think it was emmanuel macron doing what he does, which is savings that are a bit unexpected, unconventional. he is known for spinning out these big ideas that can raise some eyebrows. one diplomat i spoke to earlier said they thought it was actually

almost an attempt france to talk tough because they haven't been sending nearly as much military aid compared to countries like germany — germany is only by the us in terms of backing ukraine with military support. they thought it might be macron grandstanding. some maybe think it is him trying to wake up the west because of the urgency of the situation in ukraine, in terms of the support that ukraine needs. one of russia's best known human rights campaigners has beenjailed by a moscow court for discrediting the russian army. oleg orlov, who's 70, has been given a two and a half year sentence — he's previously written that president putin has led the country into fascism. our russia editor, steve rosenberg, sent this report from moscow. he knew very well he could be about to go to prison. but oleg orlov, one of russia's most prominent human rights campaigners, had no intention of staying silent. translation: my first trial, and now this retrial, - and all the other people on trial for similar so—called crimes, they show that russia has become a totalitarian state.

he'd been charged with repeatedly discrediting the russian army. that's one of several laws brought in to punish public criticism of the war in ukraine. a show of support from foreign ambassadors in the gallery, and from his lawyer, as they sat waiting for the verdict. "guilty," said the judge. he was sent to prison for two and a half years. seconds later, on went the handcuffs. then oleg orlov, the co—chair of a human rights group that once won the nobel peace prize, was taken away and locked in a cage. among supporters outside, the mood was sombre. they see this as another blow to civil society in russia.

it's the first time when such a well—known figure in human rights community is sentenced to prison, just for his opinion. what does this say about what is happening in russia today? it's going worse. when oleg orlov was convicted on these charges last year, he was fined — too lenient, said prosecutors. hence the retrial and the tougher punishment today. in court this week, mr orlov said russia was sinking ever deeper into darkness, with the death in prison of alexei navalny and judicial reprisals against government critics. freedom, he said, was being suffocated. across town, russians were remembering boris nemtsov. a fierce critic of vladimir putin, he was shot dead near the kremlin nine years ago today. the authorities deny any connection to his murder,

just like they deny any involvement in the death of alexei navalny. in court, oleg orlov had quoted alexei navalny�*s slogan, "don't give up", and then sent his own message to russians — "don't lose heart." steve rosenberg, bbc news, moscow. let's turn to some important news around the world. republicans in alabama have introduced a bill designed to protect access to ivf treatment. that's after the state supreme court ruled that frozen embryos should be considered children, prompting at least three alabama providers to halt the fertility procedure. a senate committee must first review the bill before a vote on it — which is expected in the coming days. two men have been convicted of the murder ofjam masterjay, from the american hip—hop trio run dmc, more than 20 years ago. ronald washington and karl jordanjr were found guilty on all counts including murder while engaged in narcotics trafficking and firearm—related murder. jam masterjay, whose real name was jason mizell, was shot dead in his new york studio in october 2002. the men face at least 20 years in prison.

and the governor of texas has declared a state of disaster in the northern panhandle region where four wildfires are raging out of control. evacuation orders have been issued for three towns. the national weather service has issued a red flag warning for over eleven million texans affected by the fires. warm weather, dry conditions and gusty winds are fuelling the flames. that is if the moment. you can keep up—to—date on our website, bbc.com/news, and on our app. i'm caitriona perry. stay with us here on bbc news. hello. temperatures have been falling quite quickly over the past few hours. we've got some colder air in place and there's some mist and some fog patches around for some of us to start your wednesday morning. so some fog patches,

particularly through parts of southern and central england and east anglia, and then rain is going to be spreading its way gradually eastwards. that rain pushing in across northern ireland by the early hours of wednesday, during wednesday morning pushing into scotland, wales as well. fog for parts of central, eastern and southern england — that should clear away by the middle of the morning. and then these bursts of rain could be quite heavy as they push across wales, into central england as well. far southeast and east anglia, staying dry for a good part of the day but a return to a few more showers from the northwest. temperatures, though, between about 9—13, so certainly milder than they have been. now, through wednesday evening and overnight then, this next pulse of fairly heavy rain at times pushes its way eastwards. could be quite squally. thunderstorms possible on that line of rain as it crosses its way southeastwards across many parts of the uk. clearer skies following on by thursday morning to northern ireland, scotland and the far north of england where we could see some wintry showers over the higher ground of scotland. so wednesday's mild air will clear away towards the east, and into thursday, we've got these colder conditions, this cold air mass

following on behind. some heavy rain where those air masses meet that'll linger through parts of central and southeastern england, i think, through thursday morning, only gradually easing away. but towards northern england, scotland, northern ireland, some clearer spells, a rash of heavy, blustery showers, though, moving in from the northwest. and i think north of the central belt, they could be a little bit wintry above around about 200 metres or so. so we're back into single figures towards the northwest of the uk on thursday. and then into friday, we've got low pressure very much in charge, moving in across that colder air mass. so we could see a little bit of snow on friday, mainly over the high ground north wales, perhaps the pennines, into the southern uplands as well. down at low levels, i think it's going to be falling as rain and we'll see brisk winds rotating around this area of low pressure. so blustery, particularly around the peripheries of the uk, less windy for central parts, but a little bit colder certainly compared to wednesday. so we're looking at single figures for many of us. further ahead, as we end the weekend and into the weekend then, we're going to stick with those slightly lower temperatures and it's looking fairly unsettled, showery for many of us as we head into the start of meteorological spring. bye for now.

voice-over: this is bbc news. we will have the headlines and all the main stories for you at the top of the hour, straight after this programme.

welcome to hardtalk. i'm stephen sackur. how do we make sense of the world we live in? many of us rely on a diet of news and information. evidence, facts, truths — we think of these as the building blocks of reality. but in a world in which it is increasingly hard to distinguish the real from the fake, sometimes the most telling observations come from the writers of contemporary fiction — like my guest today, novelist and computer games creator naomi alderman. her latest story is an apocalyptic techno thriller. is the apocalypse that she imagines all too possible?