live from london, this is bbc news. the head of the un agency for palestinian refugees says israel has told him it will no longer approve its food convoys to enter northern gaza. russia's president putin lights a candle for victims of the concert hall attack where 137 people were killed. ireland is set to have its youngest—ever prime minister, with 37—year—old simon harris declared as fine gael leader. hello. i'm nicky schiller. welcome to the programme. we start this hour in the middle east. the head of the united nations agency for palestinian refugees says israel has told him it will no longer approve its food convoys

to enter northern gaza. in a post on social media, unrwa's head, philippe lazzarini, described the move as "outrageous". he said israel's decision meant many more people would die of hunger, dehydration and lack of shelter. there's been no word from israel. it comes as the country's defence minister, yoav gallant, is set to travel to washington, with israeli leadership under increasing pressure from the us to halt its planned assault on rafah, in southern gaza. israeli forces continue to carry out ground and air attacks in northern and central gaza, including around al—shifa hospital. juliette touma is from unrwa. she says if aid from the organisation is blocked from entering northern gaza, famine will take hold. well, it's simply outrageous. and the clock is ticking, and with this recent decision, the clock will be ticking even faster towards famine. you know, there's more than a quarter of a million

people who depend on unwra's food assistance in the north, and we haven't been able to reach them for the past two months. i mean, we're talking about the vast majority of the population that has been forced to flee their homes or their places of refuge. at unwra alone, we are hosting over a million people who live in united nations unwra shelters. they lost everything, and they need everything, and they need the basics. and right now, the most important commodity that people need is food. i would also say that they need safety and they need protection, above all, and a ceasefire, which is very, very much overdue. our correspondent in jerusalem is mark lowen. i asked him about the role unrwa plays in getting aid into gaza. they're essential, really, because they are the biggest un mission in the palestinian territories. they employ about 30,000 staff, and so without unrwa getting

the food in on the ground, there are few alternatives. i mean, another body, the world food programme, which is another un agency, has managed to get a few trucks in to northern gaza in the last couple of weeks. but this appears to be a very direct attack on unwra itself. i mean, the head of unwra, philip lazzarini, was actually blocked by the israelis from entering gaza last week. and i went to a briefing with him, i met him, and he said what he described was a very direct attack by israel on the functions of that un agency. and he said that since january, he has not had any contact with the israeli government direct. now, why is that? well, because injanuary, the israeli government accused some members of staff of unwra of participating in the 7th of october hamas attacks on israel. that prompted some western governments to actually suspend funding of that un body, unrwa, and it really prompted the biggest crisis in relations between the two, between the two sides — between the israeli government and

unrwa — in decades. and i think that this decision today, if confirmed by the israelis — but it appears to be, because unwra has announced it — would be another step in the breakdown in relationship between the two sides. and i have to say, it comes at exactly the same time as the head of the un, the secretary—general of the un, antonio guterres, is in egypt, criticising the israeli government for its conduct of the war and for depriving gaza of aid. so it appears to be a pretty direct attack on the un itself. yeah, meanwhile, we've had more attacks overnight and that israeli operation around the al—shifa hospital is continuing. yes. i mean, the israeli defense forces are saying that they've killed 170 terrorists, in their words, at al—shifa, which was, which is gaza's largest hospital, and that they have detained close to 500 people who they describe as members of hamas and palestinian islamichhad, which is a system, a movement of hamas. now, it obviously bodes very badly

for the israeli military policy and military offensive in gaza that they are, that there is still such heavy fighting in northern gaza and al—shifa, because the israeli defense forces stormed al—shifa back in november, when they accused it of being a hamas command centre, which is something that's always been denied by hamas. and the fact that four months on, they are having to go back into shifa and that there is this intense battle around that hospital suggests that israel's war strategy in gaza is not necessarily going according to plan. there has also been intense fighting around two other hospitals in the south of gaza, around khan younis, and the palestinian red crescent says one of its staff members has been killed inside hospital around khan younis. israel maintains hamas uses health care facilities to launch attacks on israeli defense forces and that's why it is a legitimate target for the israeli forces, but that is something that

is always consistently denied by hamas. in is always consistently denied by hamas. ., ., ~' is always consistently denied by hamas. ., ., , ., hamas. in looking ahead, the israeli defence minister _ hamas. in looking ahead, the israeli defence minister yoav _ hamas. in looking ahead, the israeli defence minister yoav gallant - hamas. in looking ahead, the israeli defence minister yoav gallant is - defence minister yoav gallant is heading to washington and there is tension around that planned offensive in rafah in the south. yes, and israel's defence minister will be received by his american counterpart, separate to another israeli delegation that will also be in washington late in the week. to hear the americans telling them quite directly that they absolutely vehemently oppose an israeli military incursion into rafah in southern gaza because there are close to 1.5 million people but to be sheltering there, more than half the entire population of gaza. and there are real fears that an israeli invasion of rafah could spell terrible atrocities in such a densely populated area. the americans believe that there is an alternative route, choking off hamas by basically smashing tunnels and smuggling routes from egypt into gaza, but at the moment, the israeli government publicly is very determined to push on with rafah. i

have to say that there is an alternative viewpoint, which is that benjamin netanyahu by repeatedly saying that he is determined to invade rafah is trying to increase the pressure on hamas during ceasefire talks and quite frankly string out this war because he knows that when the war in gaza ends, so, too, could his political career. mark lowen injerusalem. to russia next. the country has been observing a national day of mourning today for the victims of friday's attack on a concert venue, just outside moscow. president putin lit a candle in a church at his residence outside moscow, in memory of the victims. the authorities now say at least 137 people died in the attack on concert—goers at the crocus city hall. russian state media say two suspects have now been charged with commiting an act of terrorism in a moscow court late on sunday. footage online shows one of the men in court looking dazed and beaten. here's our russia editor, steve rosenberg. in moscow, wherever you looked,

wherever you turned, you could see this was a country in mourning, and in shock. across russia, flags flew at half mast for the victims of the concert hall massacre. and at the scene of friday's attack, crocus city hall, the queues grew longer and longer. the national day of mourning experienced most acutely here. there was an outpouring of sympathy, a mountain of tributes to the dead. as well as leaving flowers and candles, people have also been bringing soft toys and sweets, because amongst the dead, there were children. they've also been leaving messages. one is addressed to the attackers and it reads, "you are scum, we will never forgive you." among the crowd, there was a mixture of grief and anger. it was a big shock because i live nearby and i saw it from my windows. it's horrific, and a big tragedy.

"such a terrible loss," says natalya. "i'll never forgive or forget." "bring back the death penalty," yevgeny says, "for terrorists, for sure." this is how the attack had begun, with gunmen in the foyer and desperate attempts to take cover. the attackers moved on to the auditorium. by the end of this, more than 130 people were dead. four suspects have been arrested. russia claims they were captured trying to flee to ukraine and had contacts there. kyiv fiercely denies any link to the attack. the islamic state group says it was behind the shooting. and on this day of mourning, silent prayers from

a sombre—looking president putin. the kremlin says he lit a candle for the victims in church at his country estate. and russia is praying that there will be no more attacks. if there are, that will test people's faith in the president to keep them safe. steve rosenberg, bbc news, moscow. the french prime minister says it is raising its security alert to the highest level after the moscow concert hall attack. the prime minister says that given the claim of the responsibility for the attack by the islamic state and the threats weighing on our country, we have decided to raise the level to its highest level, emergency attack. raising it againjust highest level, emergency attack. raising it again just three months after it was lowered injanuary.

joining me in the studio is our security correspondent, frank gardner. frank, the french are saying islamic state, the americans were saying islamic state, if it is them, why would they attack russia? well, there are a number of reasons. one is syria. where they have been fighting the russian since 2015. the russian air force has bombed a lot of ices positions and civilians as well. and one isis communicate quite recently said we will never forgive or forget what our enemies have done to us —— isis. so it could be referring to syria. then you have got afghanistan, where is—k, which stands for khorasan, an old historical area, and isis—k is

fighting the taliban. i know that is considered odd because they would both be considered jihadist or an extreme version of islam, yet they are mortal enemies. and since the taliban took over in afghanistan in 2021, the only remaining insurgency there is a2. and in 2022, they attacked the russian embassy in cardle because macro considered that russia is an ally of the taliban. so a little complicated, but that is one reason. there are also connections with movements in central asia which is to be part of the former soviet empire. i think probably more pertinently, there is an ongoing crackdown inside russia by the fsb, that is the russian domestic security agency, against those suspected of being jihadist. now, that crackdown doesn't seem to have been comprehensive because it is staggering that these four attackers were able to get

themselves into that concert hall unopposed, with powerful automatic weapons, plus incendiary devices and walk around their picking off their targets at will, with absolutely no sense of urgency. you don't see them looking over their shoulders thinking, we have seconds to complete this before the police arrived. they don't seem to be concerned at all, which is really, really odd. but i think we have to take face value of the isis claim of so—called responsibility for this. it does followed the pattern of a jihadist, what is called a marauding firearms terrorist attack, very similar to the bataclan in 2015, not dissimilar to what the black widows did in 2002 at the dubravka theatre in moscow. ~ ., ., in moscow. meanwhile, we have the russians and — in moscow. meanwhile, we have the russians and president _ in moscow. meanwhile, we have the russians and president putin - russians and president putin pointing the finger at ukraine. yes. pointing the finger at ukraine. yes, i mean, pointing the finger at ukraine. yes, i mean. that _ pointing the finger at ukraine. yes, i mean, that doesn't _ pointing the finger at ukraine. 133 i mean, that doesn't surprise pointing the finger at ukraine. 1&1: i mean, that doesn't surprise me because russia is at war with ukraine. and this is embarrassing for the kremlin. president putin,

vladimir putin hasjust for the kremlin. president putin, vladimir putin has just won a landslide 87% election, admittedly, there were not any credible other candidates, but he was riding high on that and suddenly this happens on his watch and he is supposed to be mr security and it is embarrassing for him. so the easiest thing is to try to deflect this and say it is ukraine. it is perfectly possible they were trying to flee towards the ukrainian border, that doesn't implicate ukraine itself. and ukrainians have been very quick to say, this wasn't us. because this was a pure and simple terrorist attack on civilians. there was no hint of a military target. it is not even an economic target, a petrol refinery, it is not an air base, it is not a military weapon storage. it is not a military weapon storage. it is a theatre. and i think the ukrainian denial is most likely to be genuine. ukrainian denial is most likely to be genuine-— ukrainian denial is most likely to be genuine. frank gardner, i was security correspondent, - be genuine. frank gardner, i was security correspondent, thank . be genuine. frank gardner, i was| security correspondent, thank you for your analysis, we appreciate it.

now for the sport. hello from the bbc sport centre. it was a predictably one—sided match between italy and england in the women's six nations championship. the red roses, who are the defending grand slam champions, did make things more difficult for themselves, because they were down to 1a players after ten minutes when sarah beckett was shown a red card for a dangerous tackle. they still ran in eight tries in parma, to win a8—nil. they top the table on points difference from france, who also won this weekend with a bonus point. the captain marlie packer brought up her 100th cap in the match. we are playing with smiles on our faces, enjoying what we are doing, so it couldn't be prouder of the girls. and to get over scoreline as well. for me, this is the first place i scored after having my son 0liver, so to do it again today the second time i played, aim to stop of the world right now. i couldn't have done it without my family and all the people who supported me along

the people who supported me along the journey. the people who supported me along thejourney. i am the people who supported me along thejourney. iam really the people who supported me along the journey. i am really thankful to them. it hasjust the journey. i am really thankful to them. it has just been an absolutely amazing day and the girls have made it super special for amazing day and the girls have made it super specialfor me. chelsea are back on top of the women's super league, after a 2—nil win over second—from—bottom west ham. aggie beever—jones�* goal in the second minute gave the visitors the lead, but it wasn't until two minutes from time that they made sure of the points. a lovely goal from erin cuthbert. they have moved back above manchester city on goal difference. both sides have five games left to play this season. some other wsl results — the merseyside derby was goalless between everton and liverpool at goodison park. tottenham beat bottom side bristol city. beth england scoring herfirst league goal of the season, after returning from injury. brighton came from behind against leicester to win 3—2. arsenal were behind aston villa, but two late goals, it looks like arsenal are going to win that. that will keep them in touch with chelsea and manchester city, thejoint and manchester city, the joint leaders and manchester city, thejoint leaders in the wsl. arsenal coming

from behind and heading for victory at aston villa, just a couple of minutes left to play in that game. drama in the motogp in portugal. jorge martin has his first victory of the season, but there was chaos behind him between his championship rivals. last year's world champion, francesco bagnaia, collided with marc marquez whilst battling for fifth, ending both of their races with just three laps to go. and on the final lap, ducati's enea bastianini was able to steal second place from aprilia's maverick vinales after this crash. that allowed 19—year—old pedro acosta to finish third for his first podium in his debut season. but it was a great day for martin, who now leads the standings. iam i am really happy and proud of the team we are doing with the new ducati. it is working better than sunday's and saturday's this for sure. and to win here at a track where i almost lost everything, i almost stopped racing and now i am here in first place, this is amazing

and i am so grateful to this crowd because i learn a lot from them. a remarkable collapse from england handed new zealand a dramatic three—run victory in the third t20, as the hosts kept the series alive in nelson. england were cruising in pursuit of 156, needing only 29 runs from 29 balls, with eight wickets left, but then lost six for 25. that left them needing eight from the last over, and they fell short. england lead the series 2—1, with two to play. they next play in wellington on wednesday. credit to them. i think we got put under a lot of pressure and, today, we maybe didn't come up well against it. but i think that's a big learning curve. this team is always about learning opportunities and it's all right to make mistakes, but we just have to learn from them. so i guess it's one to learn from, big time. keep up—to—date on the website or sport app. and that's all the sport for now. thank you very much.

ireland is set to have its youngest—ever prime minister. one of the country's main governing parties — fine gael — has declared simon harris, who's 37, its new leader, replacing leo varadkar. he'll be formally appointed as prime minister, or taoiseach, when ireland's parliament reconvenes next month. let's speak to fionnan sheahan, ireland editor for the irish independent. thank you very much forjoining us on bbc news. we say simon harris is 37, but he has been in politics almost since he was a teenager. yes. as a teenager. _ almost since he was a teenager. yes. as a teenager. he _ almost since he was a teenager. jazz as a teenager, he began as a campaignerfor autism as a teenager, he began as a campaigner for autism services because his kid brother was diagnosed with autism and he was finding that the services were not up finding that the services were not up to scratch. and that was basically his introduction. he actuallyjoined fine gael�*s main rivals fianna fail initially and then he switched over to fine gael. they are the two parties that were basically formed out of the civil war in ireland, that happened after

independence from the uk. so he is the first one to have gone on that journey. he became a tv —— td, a member of parliament, 13 years ago, during an election that happened at the time of islands economic crash and has enjoyed a fairly meteoric rise since, a junior minister, a member of cabinet for the past decade. and when this vacancy arose last week, it quickly became apparent that he was by far and away the front—runner and ultimately was unopposed, nominations closed for that role today. he was the only nominee, but it was quite apparent from last week as soon as leo varadkar the current taoiseach and leader of fine gael announced he was standing down. but there was only one person in the race to beat. so he will go on to become prime

minister, but some are asking, why no general election? how does the coalition work in ireland? yes. no general election? how does the coalition work in ireland?— coalition work in ireland? yes, a bit like in _ coalition work in ireland? yes, a bit like in the — coalition work in ireland? yes, a bit like in the uk. _ coalition work in ireland? yes, a bit like in the uk. a _ coalition work in ireland? yes, a bit like in the uk. a parliament i coalition work in ireland? yes, a | bit like in the uk. a parliament is elected with a five year mandate and within that time period, you form a government off the basis of having a majority within the parliament. in the current coalition government, it is a three party government, it retains a comfortable enough majority within the parliament, so there will be changes to the prime minister. so this is a bit similar to the manner in which in the uk, in westminster, you had a number of changes of prime minister, too many one would argue in recent years, and it hasn't precipitated a general election. so we are due to have a general election under our constitution by march at the latest of next year. and simon harris, as

taoiseach, will now see out that term in office.— term in office. ireland editor of the irish independent, - term in office. ireland editor of the irish independent, thank. term in office. ireland editor of i the irish independent, thank you term in office. ireland editor of - the irish independent, thank you for joining us on bbc news. fionnan sheahan. here in the uk, the chancellor has confirmed that the conservatives will commit to keeping the so—called triple—lock on pension increases in their election manifesto. under the current government system, state pensions rise every year in april, in line with whichever is highest out of inflation, average wage increases, or 2.5%. 0ur political correspondent iain watson has more. they say a week is a long time in politics. just five days ago, the chancellor suggested future increases in the state pension would be kept under review. now he says they'll be guaranteed. but will the triple—lock be in the tory manifesto this time round? well, i can confirm it will be, yes. so, why did he spell that out? well, pensioners�* groups had called for certainty and older people

are more likely to vote than younger people. so perhaps on election year was a good time to remind them of the government's record. when we came to office in 2010, pensioners were more likely to be in poverty than other income groups. now, because of the triple—lock that we introduced, they are less likely. labour also wants to put together policies which appeal to pensioners. they have attacked the conservatives long—term plans to abolish insurance. saying it could cost £a6 billion and benefit only those in work and not those who have retired. but would they also commit to the triple—lock? yes or no, will it be in the labour manifesto? we will set out those plans i for our manifesto in detail... however, we don't want them to be threatened i by the £46 billion black hole which unfortunately, jeremy hunt had threatened with the national- insurance changes. we didn't hear a manifesto

commitment from labour in keeping the triple—lock today, but party sources have been telling me it would be inconceivable of them to go into the next general election pledging to dismantle it. but some experts are warning politicians of all parties that if they keep this potentially costly policy, it could lead to some unintended and unwelcome consequences. one of the main risks, as i see it, is if we keep the triple—lock and it does make the state pension more expensive, we might respond to that by pushing up the state pension age by more than what we would otherwise do. so i think it would be rather unfortunate if we have a more generous pension, at the expense of having a higher state pension age. the triple—lock is costing the chancellor around £11 billion and future costs are uncertain. but in any battle between politics and economics, there's iain watson, bbc news. next, counting is under way in senegal after sunday's presidential election. the turnout seems to have been high, especially among young people. the vote follows weeks of political unrest after the outgoing present, macky sall, postponed the election,

triggering deadly opposition protests. mr sall has served two terms as president and is barred from standing again. finally this half hour, tourists in paris today might have found themselves in the unusual position of having to dodge hundreds of waiters and waitresses swarming the streets trying desperately not to spill trays of coffee and croissants. a century—old tradition has returned to the streets of paris — the waiters' race through the city. for the first time since 2011, 200 competitors wearing aprons and carrying trays loaded with a coffee, croissant and a glass of water made their way through the french capital. there's no running — it's a brisk walk only. points are awarded for speed and deducted for spills. runners were split in different categories, given age, group and gender. the mayor of paris revived the race, after it was put on hiatus in 2008 due to high costs.

and here is the winner of the main race — sprinting his way to the finishing line. stay with us here on bbc news. hello there. sunday didn't turn out too badly, with a bit of spring sunshine, just one or two showers. but through the next few days, the weather is looking quite changeable, decidedly unsettled, spells of rain, often windy, and it will be cold enough for snow over higher ground in scotland. now let's take a look at the rainfall we're expecting to accumulate over the next five days. wet for hills in the west, very wet for eastern scotland. but while i say rainfall, actually, some of this will fall as snow across scotland, because certainly over the next couple of days, we'll hold on to some rather cold air across this northern half of scotland. in the short term, well, through this evening and tonight, we see cloud and rain spreading from the west across northern ireland, western england, wales, pushing its way a little bit further northwards and eastwards.

ahead of that, a slice of clear sky, one or two mist patches, and temperatures dropping away. but out towards the west, as the night wears on, those temperatures will climb a little bit. so, nine celsius in plymouth, for example, as we start monday morning with the cloud, with the outbreaks of rain, all associated with this area of low pressure, and a frontal system swirling its way in from the west. now, i think there will be parts of east anglia and the south—east that stay dry, with some hazy sunshine throughout the day. northern scotland will hold on to some spells of sunshine, one or two wintry showers, but elsewhere, we see the cloud, we see the outbreaks of rain moving quite erratically northwards. temperatures on monday afternoon across south wales, southern england, 10—12 celsius, but northern scotland, just five, six or seven celsius — and it's as the wet weather runs into that cold air that we will start to see some quite significant snow. 0ver fairly modest hills, i think we could see snow, but above 300 metres elevation,

we could be looking at 20 centimetres of snow. and at low levels close to the east coast, parts of aberdeenshire, angus, fife, maybe up to 50 millimetres of rain. so that brings with it the risk of flooding and disruption. and the weather across scotland on tuesday only very slowly improving, the snow levels lifting, the rain and snow tending to peter outjust a little bit. windy in the far north, really cold as well, struggling to get above freezing for some. further south, northern ireland, england and wales, sunny spells, the odd shower, highs of 11. temperatures climbing a little bit, actually, through the week ahead, into the easter weekend, but there will still be some rain at times.

this is bbc news. the headlines... the head of the united nations agency for palestinian refugees says israel has told him it will no longer approve its food convoys to enter northern gaza. in a post on social media, philippe lazzarini described the move as outrageous. president putin lights a candle for victims of the concert hall attack — where 137 people were killed. large numbers of russians lay flowers at a makeshift memorial as the country marks a day of official mourning. meanehile russian state media say two suspects have been charged with commiting an act of terrorism. and jasmin paris — the first woman to complete one of the world's most gruelling races — speaks to the bbc.

notjust runners, but maybe any woman that wants to take on a challenge, and especially all the young girls, you know, how hard it is to keep young girls in sport. let's return to the israel—gaza war — and as the conflict approaches the milestone of six months — there are calls from the far right in israel forjewish settlers to return to gaza. the idea has support from ministers in israels hard—right government including the minister for public security itamar ben gvir. a prominent settler leader has told the bbc that she already has 500 families signed up who are ready to move immediately. israel pulled out of its settlements in gaza in 2005. settlements are held to be illegal under international law. israel disputes this. from the west bank, our senior international correspondent 0rla guerin reports.

the hills of the west bank. palestinian land, eaten away for decades by illegal israeli settlements. they are an obstacle to peace, the un says. but now, many on israel's far right want to bring settlements back to gaza. like this man, yehuda simon, who has raised ten children in this settler outpost on the west bank. he lived in gaza in the past, and claims a god—given right to return. do you want to go back? do think that others will go back? we must do it. it is part of the israel area. this is the land that god gave us, and you couldn't go to god and say, ok, you give me, i give other people. no. these are the 21 gaza settlements that were demolished in 2005. but daniella weiss is already mapping out a new gaza without the more than 2 million

palestinians who live there. the 78—year—old is the grandmother of israel's settler movement. gaza arabs will not stay in the gaza strip. who will stay? jews. africa is big. canada is big. the world will absorb the people of gaza. how will we do it? we encourage it. palestinians in gaza who wish to remain in gaza, are you saying they should be forced to go? palestinians in gaza, the good ones, will be enabled. i'm not saying forced, i'm saying enabled, because they want to go. if they don't want to go... no, no, they want. the arabs want to go. if they don't, what happens? the normal people don't want to live in hell.

what you're talking about sounds like a plan for ethnic cleansing. you can call it ethnic cleansing, you can call it refugees, whatever you want. if you want to call it cleansing, if you want to call it apartheid, you choose your definition. i choose the way to protect the state of israel. also embracing a return to gaza, itamar ben—gvir — israel's far—right security minister, a settler himself. he was among about a dozen ministers at this conference, entitled settlement brings security. "it's time to go back home," he says. "it's time to return to the land of israel." most israelis oppose going back to gaza, but since the hamas attacks on october the 7th, it is being talked about out loud. and some already have their eyes on prime real estate in the utter devastation of gaza, where the death toll among palestinians is 32,000 and counting.

i have friends in tel aviv, so they say, don't forget to keep for me a plot near the coast in gaza, because it is a beautiful coast, beautiful golden... beautiful place. it's beautiful no more, after almost six months of israeli bombardment. jewish settlers may never get to the beachfront, but much of gaza has already been erased. 0rla guerin, bbc news, in the west bank. to argentina now, where this weekend anti—abortion rally groups have been demonstrating in the capital buenos aires. the protestors were demanding that

newly elected president milei repeal argentina's 2020 abortion rights law. he had said earlier this month that those who supported abortion legislation were quote "murderers". local media has been reporting the rhetoric has led to a growing number of doctors refusing to carry out terminations. let's speak to dr alison norris professor at ohio state university, co—chair of wecount — a us abortion data reporting study. argentina only legalised abortion four years ago — thank you so much forjoining us, doctor. argentina only legalised abortion four years ago — do you think it's likely to be reversed if a referendum is called as promised by javier milei? the most important thing to know is that when abortion is legal, it's very safe. so this law that was passed in 2020 was a huge win for the people of argentina are

tweetdeck argentina. sometimes they need to terminate a pregnancy that they cannot continue. having a legal abortion in argentina is a win for the people of that country. is a win for the people of that count . ., . ., , country. how much does political rhetoric help _ country. how much does political rhetoric help -- _ country. how much does political rhetoric help -- direct _ country. how much does political rhetoric help -- direct health - country. how much does political| rhetoric help -- direct health care rhetoric help —— direct health care providing to women seeking abortion. her doctors thinking about what they will do since he has made this announcement.— will do since he has made this announcement. ., ., , ., ., announcement. you raise an important auestion announcement. you raise an important question because _ announcement. you raise an important question because the _ announcement. you raise an important question because the legal _ announcement. you raise an important question because the legal right - announcement. you raise an important question because the legal right to - question because the legal right to any kind of medical health care isn't the same as access, so in places where doctors are refusing to provide abortion care, axis can be really challenging for people, that tenant depends to be in rural areas or where it is more politically conservative. even now, access is

more limited for folks who live in those places that live in urban areas. the other interesting thing about political rhetoric that we have been considering is that in the us, the decision allowed the states, the us states to make their own decisions about whether abortion could be legal, and 1a states have banned abortion in the united states, and it has highlighted the importance of sustained activist work for leaders throughout latin america, even after legalisation there is an important work to be done to maintain access and legal permission to access abortion care. doctor, the line is getting a little bit dodgy, so we will leave it there, but thank you very much for joining us on bbc news. we appreciate your time. to afghanistan next and the supreme leader of the afghan taliban has defended the practice of stoning women and public lashing, describing them as part of divine law.

in an audio message, they said the islamist movement would continue to carry them out in rejection of western democratic principles. earlier i spoke to the bbc world service's south asia regional editor, anbarasan ethirajan, who had more... yes, indeed, he is very reckless. he has not seen in public very often, and many people believe that he lives in the southern kandahar region. this speech was broadcast by national afghanistan radio, and we don't know when this was recorded, but the crux of this message was that we will continue to implement sharia law, the hard—line version of it, despite the objections from western countries, and we will give this punishment for those who commit adultery, they will be treated according to the law by stoning them or by giving lashing in public. since they seized power in august 2021, at least five people have been executed in football stadiums in open places. they also criticised western democracy saying this may be against western democratic policies,

but this is our law. this appears to be a very defiant message to the western governments and world powers which have been saying that afghanistan taliban regime should respect human rights, women's rights, if they want international recognition. now for the day of�*s news. more than 130 school children abducted earlier this month in nigeria have been freed. the army says they were rescued in the earlu hours of sunday. it's not clear if a ransom was paid. pictures of the released children show them looking emaciated and traumantised. at least 20 people are now known to have died in storms and heavy rains in brazil. rescuers are trying to reach isolated areas in the mountainous south east of the country ahead of more rain that is forecast. 0fficials described the situation as "chaotic". serbia has been marking the 25th anniversary of the start

of nato s bombing campaign against what was then yugoslavia. the airstrikes continued for more than two months ? ending when yugoslav troops withdrew from kosovo. serbia still describes nato 5 campaign as aggression. authorities claim two and a half thousand civilians died in the airstrikes ? though independent sources put the number considerably lower. crowds have gathered in the nepalese capital of kathmandu to mark the hindu festival of holi which is also known as the festival of colours. people smeared themselves in coloured dye or powder. the festival celebrates spring, love and new life. here in the uk, tributes have continued to be paid following the death of richard taylor — who campaigned against knife crime for more than two decades following the death of his son damilola aged just ten years old in south london. alison earle has been to peckham to see how his work affected many in the community. no parent will experience

what we experienced will just forget about it, because this child was a gift. the murder of ten—year—old damilola taylor as he walked home from a library shocked the nation back in 2000. but for his grieving father, richard, it became the start of a crusade to tackle violent crime. jennifer met him through her youth work in peckham. he was just this humble man that, you know, he had so much to say about young people. it didn't matter if a young person was doing wrong, he still had a good word to say about them and to them as well. and one day you will change. and he helped to set up a place for them to go. this centre opened back in 2002 in memory of damilola. it offers a range of different sports and it was all part of richard's mission to create a positive change for young people in this area.

together with his late wife gloria, who passed away in 2008, they set up a trust in their son's name and worked on several key projects. the work that they did also lead to the youth violence unit and they also launched a respect your life not a knife campaign back in the early 2000s which was a big campaign in partnership with rio ferdinand. richard's name will continue to remain in our community as a man but who lost a child but took on many other children, just to, you know, give them hope. an inspiration who turned tragedy into a determination to make a difference. alison earle, bbc london. the prince and princess of wales say they have been moved by the public�*s warmth and support, since catherine's announcement on friday, that she is receiving cancer treatment. a statement from kensington palace, also said the couple

were "grateful" that the public understood their request for privacy. charlotte gallagher reports. a busy sunday in windsor, the home of the prince and princess of wales and their three young children. a family now dealing with a cancer diagnosis and chemotherapy treatment. i want to take this opportunity to say thank you personally. but was this announcement planned, or did the princess feel forced to address speculation? we actually understand that the princess made the decision two weeks ago, that she was going to do this public statement. and the key thing for her, as a mother, her priority was protecting those three children. she didn't want them going to school being asked even more than they already were — they were already being affected at school, so it was always her plan that she would wait until the last day of term. but the royal family won't have been immune to the outlandish conspiracy theories circulating. it's the worst i've ever seen, and i've been in the media most of my —

all my career. so what we need to think about this is time. they're a family, they're just really a bit like you and i, and lots of families have dealt with this. and what families need when they're facing cancer is time. prince william and catherine have released a statement, thanking the public for their warmth and support. they've also underlined their desire for privacy. it's a polite warning, essentially asking to be left alone. the easter sunday church service in windsor is usually a moment when the royals get together in public. last year, the prince and princess of wales joined the rest of the family — but they won't be there this year. buckingham palace says it is hopeful the king, who's also being treated for cancer, could attend. the princess of wales says she's feeling stronger every day, but it's clear there will be no rushing back into public duties — herfocus is on making a full recovery. charlotte gallagher, bbc news, windsor. it's been revealed that nearly half of playgrounds in the uk are not suitable for disabled children. a survey by the charity, scope, found that more than a thousand play areas had little

or no accessibility. now they're launching a new tool to help parents find spaces that are suitable for their children. 0ur reporter, louisa pilbeam, has more. whoa! nine—year—old benjamin loves playing with his brothers in the playground. but because he has cerebral palsy, epilepsy, and is registered blind, it's not always this easy because not all playgrounds are like this one, where equipment can be used by disabled children. according to new figures, half of the uk's public play areas are unfit for children with disabilities. one day, we went to the local park, we lifted him into the standard toddler swing and he actually got stuck, where his legs had gone really stiff from his cerebral palsy. we really struggled to remove him from the swing safely. and that was the defining moment

for me, thinking as a family, i have three very active boys, as a family, are we actually going to be able to access and enjoy local play parks? we quickly realised that the answer was no. and despite benjamin's diagnosis, he absolutely loves to be swung high, he loves to go down a slide really fast. and he loves to be included. the latest research comes from disability charity scope, who interviewed families of disabled children about their experiences of 1,000 playgrounds across the uk. common problems include gates that aren't wide enough to get a wheelchair through. no step—free equipment, or the floor being made of a material not safe for those who have extra needs. it's 2024 and we're still having to make the case for accessibility. the fact is that disabled children want to play too, and why shouldn't they? and it's perfectly achievable, it's not that difficult to make our playgrounds more accessible, more inclusive. scope have launched a digital map to try and help families where you can look up playgrounds across the uk and find out how they've been rated by other families.

the charity is calling on the government to do more. a government spokesperson said in a statement... those changes are needed to ensure that children like benjamin don't miss out in life. louisa pilbeam, bbc news. spring has sprung — just about — and you might be planning a walk in the countryside. if you're taking a dog, it's never been more important to keep them on a lead. last year, dog attacks on livestock increased by nearly a third, prompting farmers and police to bite back. ross pollard visited one

farm to see the impact. bleating. you see both life and death on a regular basis working on a farm. well, a lot of these ewes i would know from birth, a lot of them. i would know... all right, wouldn't know names, obviously, but i would know and just recognise them. and that's what the job's all about. dave's farmed here for most of his life. he says problems with dogs chasing and killing his sheep have got worse. this recent footage of dogs attacking his sheep led to serious injuries. the owner had the dogs taken away from them. i was livid. absolutely tamping. ewes there ripped to bits, legs hanging off, stomachs hanging out. it was cruel. it was terrible. you don't want to see it. and over the last ten years,

i've probably lost 50 sheep. monetary terms, £7,000. stress, £5 million. itjust done my head in. iwas... i was gutted. absolutely gutted. whisky charlie golf 0ne. just to make you aware, i've gone steak six at the farm... gloucestershire police arejoining a national campaign called 0peration recall, getting the public to keep dogs on a lead when walking through farmland to prevent them from chasing livestock. dog attacks, unfortunately, have gone up by 30% in 2023 as opposed to 2022. 0urfarmers, sometimes we go out to see them and they're just sort of like, well, what can we do? what can we do? you know, we don't know who they are. dogs just turn up. and like mr williams said today, the owners must know because their dogs are going back covered in blood. they must be aware and that can all be prevented simply by putting your dog on a lead and ensuring that it's appropriately trained. this lamb is only a few days old and it'll be out on the field tomorrow, and that's why the farmer here is especially keen to make sure that people keep their dogs on leads. i don't want to see them suffer. there's nothing worse than seeing animals suffer. it's not only the sheep that's being ripped to bits. you've got your vet bill.

you've got to get rid of that sheep, which is a colossal amount of money. so it costs you absolute fortune. although the campaign is for a week, the police want people to take away lessons for life. if in doubt, keep your dog on a lead in the countryside. ross pollard, bbc news. bleating. it's a nightmare scenario for anyone planning a wedding, with just weeks to go before their big day, a uk couple's plans have been thrown into chaos, been thrown into chaos , after they learned, through social media, that the dorset venue they'd booked has suddenly closed down. steve humphrey has this report. all that planning. gone to waste. the have all that planning. gone to waste. they have been _ all that planning. gone to waste. they have been preparing - all that planning. gone to waste. they have been preparing the - all that planning. gone to waste. - they have been preparing the flowers in the decorations. i even made the tiny models of themselves for the top of the wedding cake. but ann and liz were shocked to discover that the hotel that they had booked for their wedding injune has closed. i theirwedding injune has closed. i was upset, but at the time i was

more shocked that it happened. i burst into tears and in anger. devastated. i normally take things on the _ devastated. i normally take things on the chin and just move on, this is one _ on the chin and just move on, this is one that — on the chin and just move on, this is one that hasjust been a bit hard to take _ is one that hasjust been a bit hard to take |t— is one that has 'ust been a bit hard to take. ., , is one that has 'ust been a bit hard to take. . , ., is one that has 'ust been a bit hard to take. ., ., , ., ., to take. it was through social media they discovered _ to take. it was through social media they discovered that _ to take. it was through social media they discovered that that hotel - to take. it was through social media they discovered that that hotel had | they discovered that that hotel had shut. they chose it because of its waterside location. brute shut. they chose it because of its waterside location.— shut. they chose it because of its waterside location. we said this was for life this time _ waterside location. we said this was for life this time and _ waterside location. we said this was for life this time and we _ waterside location. we said this was for life this time and we wanted - waterside location. we said this was for life this time and we wanted to l for life this time and we wanted to go all out. for life this time and we wanted to to all out. ., ., , ., , go all out. the idea of being able to have a wedding _ go all out. the idea of being able to have a wedding by _ go all out. the idea of being able to have a wedding by the - go all out. the idea of being able to have a wedding by the seal- go all out. the idea of being able to have a wedding by the seal --| go all out. the idea of being able i to have a wedding by the seal -- by to have a wedding by the seal —— by the sea, _ to have a wedding by the seal —— by the sea, it— to have a wedding by the seal —— by the sea, it was something i never dreamed — the sea, it was something i never dreamed i— the sea, it was something i never dreamed i could do, and at the moment— dreamed i could do, and at the moment it _ dreamed i could do, and at the moment it looks like i won't be stop at the _ moment it looks like i won't be stop at the couple said they already paid £4000 _ at the couple said they already paid £4000 towards the cost of the wedding. 50 £4000 towards the cost of the weddina. ., £4000 towards the cost of the weddin _ ., �*, £4000 towards the cost of the weddina. . �*, , ., wedding. so far, there's been no direct contact _ wedding. so far, there's been no direct contact from _ wedding. so far, there's been no direct contact from the _ wedding. so far, there's been no direct contact from the hotel. - direct contact from the hotel. nothing, heard nothing from them at all, no e—mails, no letters, no nothing. all, no e-mails, no letters, no nothinu. ., all, no e-mails, no letters, no nothing-— all, no e-mails, no letters, no nothin.. . ., ., , , ., nothing. there are already plans for the redevelopment _ nothing. there are already plans for the redevelopment for _ nothing. there are already plans for the redevelopment for the - nothing. there are already plans for the redevelopment for the hotel - the redevelopment for the hotel sites which have been approved in principle. forflats, shops and a new hotel, but it is subject to

final council approval. the bbc has approached the hotel owners for comment on what has happened to anne and les, but so far they haven't responded. meanwhile, the couple are now looking for someone else to get married. abet now looking for someone else to get married. �* ., ., :: :: :: married. at the moment, we are £4000 down heping _ married. at the moment, we are £4000 down heping we — married. at the moment, we are £4000 down heping we can _ married. at the moment, we are £4000 down hoping we can get _ married. at the moment, we are £4000 down hoping we can get a _ married. at the moment, we are £4000 down hoping we can get a refund. - married. at the moment, we are £4000 down hoping we can get a refund. if - down hoping we can get a refund. if we can't, our wedding will be postponed. 0r we can't, our wedding will be postponed. or even cancelled. steve humhre , postponed. or even cancelled. steve humphrey. bbc— postponed. or even cancelled. steve humphrey, bbc south _ postponed. or even cancelled. steve humphrey, bbc south today. now to the story of jasmin paris from midlothian, the first woman to complete one of the world's most gruelling races — the barkley marathons in tennessee. 100 miles, up and down hills, through rugged terrain. she finished with just 99 seconds to spare before the 60 hour cut—off. jasmin has finally recovered her breath — and her voice — and spoke to the bbc. it wasn't until the last kilometre that i really sort of doubted that it was going to be possible. and at that point, i was just so desperate to stop, to stop running and to walk.

and i knew that i couldn't because i wouldn't make it. i think it was just the thought that if i didn't make it this time, it was going to be by seconds and then i would have to come back and do the whole thing again. because i would never have let it rest. i was so oxygen deficient when i reached the end. and the last few hundred metres, i couldn't even really see anybody. cheering and applause i knew there were people kind of cheering me on and there was lots of noise and... but i was just aiming for the gate and everything else sort of went blurry at the edges of my vision, and ijust needed to make it to the gate. at which point, i sort of collapsed down in a gasping, kind of heap on the ground. cheering and applause so i did it for me and i am super happy that i achieved what i set out to do. go, go, go!

i'm really glad i kind of did it for women worldwide as well. notjust runners, but maybe any woman that wants to take on a challenge, and especially all the young girls, you know, how hard it is to keep young girls in sport. this year, there was a new section of the course, which involved a lot of kind of brambles, really thick ones that slashed your legs. so my legs were actually far worse, but i got quite a few scratches on my arms and hands. but this is nothing, compared with my legs. i guess the next thing i'm going to do is the scottish highlands peaks race. but, really, i think i will maybe just have a bit of a rest. i think she deserves a very long rest. congratulations again. you can read

more about what she managed to achieve on the bbc news website or app. stay with us here on bbc news. hello there. the sunshine offset the coolness of the air. not much sunshine around on monday. low pressure is moving in and not got much snow in the scottish mountains at the moment, but that is set to change over the next 2a hours. low pressure is developing to the west of the uk and this low pressure is going to be bringing outbreaks of rain widely over the next 2a hours. the rain already weathers in northern ireland will continue to spread northwards and eastwards over the next few hours, reaching across wales into western and central england, south west scotland to northern scotland, one place where you are likely to see some frost, but at least it should be a bright start to the day here.

otherwise, a lot of cloud and rain around on monday morning, probably little, if anything, reaching east anglia in south east england where it might actually brighten up for a time. temperatures about 10 to 12 degrees for most. that's near average for the time of year. but cold in scotland are just sixes and sevens. and then on the big picture, we've got a feed of cold air coming down from greenland around an area of high pressure that's running into northern scotland, bumping into our advancing weather fronts. now through monday night, it looks like we'll see a spell of snow. it's going to be quite high up in the mountains of scotland, ten, 10 to 20 centimetres on the way here above 300 metres elevation. the snow could come down a little bit lower than that, perhaps the 200 metres elevation. what all that means is monday night and into tuesday, there's a risk of disruption over some of the higher level roads in scotland, maybe for some of the railway lines into tuesday morning as well. if you live down at sea level, well you're more likely to see rain or maybe a bit of sleep mixed in. it will be quite windy across the far north of scotland as well.

elsewhere, a bit of rain trickling its way eastwards across east anglia. in southeast england, the weather turning a bit brighter across the south west of the uk. a cold day in scotland. temperatures really struggling here, particularly underneath that rain and hill snow on into wednesday got another area of low pressure forming that's going to be bringing loads of showers across northern ireland, wales, southern and western parts of england. the showers, notjust frequent. they'll be heavy with some hail and thunder mixed in as well and temperatures just running a bit below average. the showery conditions last through the rest of this week and into the easter break beyond as well, actually. that's your latest. bye for now.

live from london, this is bbc news. the head of the un agency for palestinian refugees says israel has told him it will no longer approve its food convoys to enter northern gaza. russia's president putin lights a candle for victims of the concert hall attack where 137 people were killed. ireland is set to have its youngest—ever prime minister, with 37—year—old simon harris declared as fine gael leader. and jasmin paris — the first woman to complete one of the world's most gruelling races — speaks to the bbc. hello. i'm nicky schiller.

we start this hour in the middle east.