they're just opening the hatch ready to release the aid down into gaza. there is no organised distribution system down there. there it goes. fresh political instability in northern ireland with the resignation of democratic unionist party leader, sirjeffrey donaldson. he says he will strenuously contest historical sexual offence charges. ukraine imposes emergency blackouts in seven regions of ukraine after a wave of russian missile strikes — the second large—scale attack in a week. hello, i'm sarah campbell. we have a busy half hour of news ahead and we will be live by the thames. it ahead and we will be live by the thames. , ., ., thames. it is the oxford and cambridge — thames. it is the oxford and cambridge boat _ thames. it is the oxford and cambridge boat race - thames. it is the oxford and i cambridge boat race starting

thames. it is the oxford and i cambridge boat race starting in thames. it is the oxford and - cambridge boat race starting in the next couple of hours. we start with the war between israel and hamas, as international pressure mounts for action to address the prospect of imminent famine among palestinians in gaza. we're following a number of developments. the us is said to have authorised the transfer of billions of dollars�* worth of bombs and fighterjets to israel in recent days. the package — reported by the washington post and reuters — comes despite growing calls for us military aid to be linked to changes in how israel conducts the war. it's just days after the un's top court, the international court ofjustice, ordered israel to allow the unimpeded flow of food aid into gaza. israel says un allegations that it's blocking aid are "wholly unfounded". israeli media have published reports of plans to establish an all—arab peacekeeping force in gaza to facilitate the delivery of aid. the defence minister yoav gallant is said to have made progress on the plan during his visit to washington. the israeli prime minister,

benjamin netanyahu, has agreed to send officials to egypt and qatar in the coming days for a new round of talks on a possible ceasefire in gaza. in the past 2a hours, both the uk and the us military have airdropped food supplies into gaza. our bbc middle east correspondent lucy williamson, was on the us plane. aid drops into gaza are expensive, inefficient and increasingly controversial. these ready—prepared meals from the us army are being flown more than 1,000 miles from the us airbase in qatar. there's plenty of food just a short drive from gaza's borders, but this american aid is being flown right across the middle east. 80 crates of food on board two c—i7 transport planes, dropped into a population the un says is on the brink of famine. it's not perfect. we know that there's upwards of 2 million people who need food on the ground who are hungry,

innocent civilians who didn't ask for this conflict, and we're dropping meals in the tens of thousands, but at least it's something. so does it feel like a drop in the bucket? maybe a little bit, but if you're a family on the ground who got some of this aid, it can be a life—saver. 12 people were reported to have drowned this week trying to retrieve packages from the sea, six others crushed in a stampede. what are you doing to try and mitigate those risks? literally everything we can. i know you spoke with the colonel earlier. we use a chute that falls at a slower rate to give the gazans more time to see the parachutes and make sure they're out of the way. we also have assets overhead that clear the drop zone, so we will not drop if there are any sorts of groupings of people there. after three hours in the air, the ramp opens on gaza's devastated coastline. they've just opened the hatch, ready to release the aid down into gaza. there's no organised distribution system down there. there it goes.

a drop of aid in an ocean of hunger. getting aid in this way is a last resort, but a growing number of countries are doing it. how much do these eye—catching flights relieve pressure on gaza's civilians, and how much the pressure on governments elsewhere? 0ur correspondent yolande knell is injerusalem. she told me more about the us' weapons transfer to israel. so according to these reports in the washington post and reuters as well, they're quoting unnamed us state and defense department officials, and they're saying that more than 1,800 2,000lb bombs, some 500 500lb bombs and 25 f—35 fighterjets have been authorised in this latest set of military aid assistance coming across to israel. now, a lot of this has already been

initially approved by congress, but the reason this is so interesting in terms of the timing — just after a visit by the israeli defence minister, yoav gallant to washington, is that really in recent days we have seen tensions deepening between israel and the us, and that really reached the lowest moment on monday after you had the us abstention at the un security council when it came to a resolution being passed on a ceasefire in the gaza war for the first time. israel was very angered about that and there have been these calls from senior democrats in the us and from other groups of society, like arab americans, suggesting that if military weapons supplies, transfers to israel, are not going to be cut, then they should be limited or they should be conditioned by the biden administration. that doesn't seem to have happened. yeah, i mean, it's really interesting, isn't it?

we've spoken over the last couple of weeks about the relations being strained. and just, as you say there, widespread calls for this, the two to be linked, that the military aid should be linked to the humanitarian aid to gaza. but that doesn't seem to be the case. indeed. and the white house has been saying that it supports israel's continued right to defend itself. we know that the israeli defence minister in the us had been talking to washington about its declared aim to keep israel with what's called a qualitative military edge in this region, and also talking about, notjust waging war in gaza, but the prospect of a possible escalation on israel's northern border, where there have been, in recent months, these near—daily cross—border exchanges of fire with the powerful lebanese armed group hezbollah.

meanwhile the united nations says the targeting of its peacekeepers is unacceptable, after three observers were wounded by an explosion in southern lebanon. the lebanese prime minister has condemned what he called the �*targeting' of un forces. israel has denied any responsibility. the israeli military say they're investigating the death of a 13—year—old palestinian boy who was shot dead during an overnight raid by israeli forces in the occupied west bank. hundreds of mourners have attended the funeral procession for mutasem kameel. israel has stepped up military raids in the palestinian territories since since hamas's october 7th attack that triggered the gaza war. according to un records, israeli forces and settlers have killed hundreds of palestinians in west bank clashes. earlier this month the israel's government advanced its plans to build for more than 3,400 new homes in occupied west bank settlements, which are considered illegal under international law. now to northern ireland,

where politics have been thrown into turmoil following the news that the leader of the democratic unionist party, sirjeffrey donaldson, has resigned after being charged with rape and other historical sexual offences. he was arrested on thursday, along with a 57—year—old woman, who's been charged with aiding and abetting additional offences. they'll both appear in court next month. sirjeffrey is northern ireland's longest—serving mp at westminster. he says he'll strenously contest the charges. jennifer 0'leary reports. sirjeffrey donaldson, a leader who, just weeks ago, returned his party to power—sharing at stormont. now his political career appears to be over. in a statement issued at lunchtime yesterday, his party announced his resignation, his political exit prompted by his arrest and charges of rape and other sexual offences as part of a police investigation spanning months, after two women came forward.

in a letter to his party, sirjeffrey donaldson said he will be strenuously contesting the charges. the newly—appointed interim dup party leader, mp gavin robinson, spoke of the shock within the party and beyond. it's a devastating revelation and has caused tremendous shock, notjust for myself personally or my colleagues within the dup, but for the community right across northern ireland, it came as a great shock. but we are a party and individuals that believe in justice. we have faith in our criminal justice system and so, in the coming days and months, i think it is important that none of us say anything or act in any way that would seek to prejudice what is now an ongoing criminal investigation. in northern ireland, sirjeffrey donaldson is decades—long known for his unyielding defence of the union.

he now stands apart from the unionist party he steered back into power—sharing. in a statement, the first minister, michelle 0'neill, said her priority is to continue to provide the leadership the public expect and deserve. sirjeffrey donaldson�*s resignation comes at a criticaljuncture. the fault lines from this political earthquake go well beyond one man and one party. it creates a fissure at the heart of unionism at a time when some see it under increasing threat from those who want a united ireland. on a bank holiday easter weekend, when politics was supposed to be on pause, sirjeffrey donaldson�*s party political days look firmly in the past. jennifer 0'leary, bbc news. here, the former immigration minister robertjenrick has proposed that details of nationality, immigration and visa status should be recorded whenever a criminal is convicted. there is growing pressure

on prime minister rishi sunak to cut net migration figures. mrjenrick, who resigned last year in protest at the prime minister's rwanda deportation plan, told bbc radio 4's today programme that the data would help to inform deportation and visa policies. well, i think the first thing is that the public should be aware of the trade—off with migration, and there is a prevailing orthodoxy that it is an unadulterated good. i don't think that is always the case. the fiscal, the economic, the social and cultural benefits are far less clear, and crime is one of those areas. and we would want to interrogate that and then make policy choices. 0ne policy choice, for example, would be around visas. and i think that it is important that we increase the checks that we make on visas by... 0n people's backgrounds? by risk, actually. we do that today.

earlier i spoke to our political correspondent shelley phelps who took us through mrjenrick is proposing. what the former immigration minister has said he wants to happen is, he is basically calling on the government to publish more data on migrant crime rates. so, as part of his proposal, what he wants to happen is that there should be a report produced each year, which, of all the people that have been convicted in england and wales, caught over the last year, that they would set out the numbers of people convicted, but alongside that, also the nationality and visa status of people. robertjenrick argues that there isn't enough data to enable the best policy decisions on this. this is what he says he is calling for. his calls are being backed. he has about 25 mps signed up to his amendment. he is trying to get these measures through by getting an amendment through to the government's criminaljustice bill. but i think what is interesting in this, as well as the details of what he is calling for are,

the politics of it. as you were just saying, rishi sunak has pledged to cut net migration and the government has been under pressure from mps on the right of his party on this. robertjenrick resigned in december from the government, in protest over the government's rwanda policy. of course this is a big issue for the government. rishi sunak has said that stopping the boats is a priority and the government, and mps, they obviously think that immigration is going to be a big issue for people, and a big issue in the coming general election. the persian—language news broadcaster, iran international, says one of its presenters, pouria zeraati, has been attacked by unidentified men outside his home in london. the london—based broadcaster say he's in a stable condition in hospital. in a statement, the metropolitan police says it's investigating,

adding "while we are keeping an open mind, given the occupation of the victim and our publicised concerns about the threat to employees of that organisation, the investigation is being handled by the counter terrorism command". iran has denied any involvement in what it called "this story of this so—called journalist". seven regions of ukraine are experiencing emergency blackouts after a wave of russian missile strikes. russia launched nearly a hundred drones and missiles across the border on thursday night ? the second large—scale attack in a week — hitting power plants in central and western ukraine. president volodymyr zelensky says russia is deliberately targeting energy systems. the white house has called the attacks "a terrible reminder of vladimir putin's efforts to break the spirit of the ukrainian people". ukraine is facing shortages of ammunition and air defences. meanwhile, poland's prime minister donald tusk has warned that europe is now in what he called

a "pre—war" era. mr tusk said the continent had not faced such uncertainty since 1916. he said nobody on the continent would feel safe if russia defeated ukraine. president putin says he has no plans to attack a nato country. 0ur eastern europe correspondent sarah rainsford is in kharkiv. well, the authorities here in ukraine are calling this missile terror by russia. they're talking about a deliberate and cynical attack on ukraine's energy infrastructure, and that is having an impact in many regions. seven regions are now experiencing power blackouts, including here in kharkiv in the northeast, where we are now, where power is rationed. so essentially in the residential sector, you can be without electricity for up to 6 hours a day. it's supposed to be scheduled. sometimes it happens without notice. it is affecting life here. i think these are attacks that are aimed at morale, but it also, in fact, it is also affecting industries. so factories are

struggling with power. i was speaking to the mayor and he told me they hope to get the power up and running as normal within a couple of months. but he didn't sound entirely convinced by that. and also, of course, there is the danger of further russian attacks. we have air raids here, air sirens here multiple times every single day. and this city, kharkiv, is very close to russia or about a0 kilometres from the border. this area was right on the front line at the beginning of the full scale invasion. and there are nerves here again, because there are rumours and reports of another russian push to try to take kharkiv. and people here are worried about that. the authorities are saying it's important to bear that information in mind, but people shouldn't panic. but it is compounding the kind of the difficulty, really, of living in a place like kharkiv under constant threat of missile strike without power for many, many hours a day. and also that threat of russia just a few miles away from here. that was sarah rainsford.

now it's time for a look at today's sport. the international break over and the premier league is back with a bang. eight games on saturday, one of which is already under way, approaching half—time between newcastle and west ham. it is 1—1. mikhail antonio with a lovely equaliser for the campus. tottenham can move into the top four with a win at home to luton. villa play wolves later. the main focus will be on the relegation places though, burnley away at chelsea and sheffield united taking on fulham. follow all those scores on the bbc sport website throughout the day. nottingham forest's game with crystal palace is another of those crunch games in the battle to stay up. it's forest's first game since being docked four points for breaching premier league profitability and sustainability rules. they are appealing against that punishment. a win today could see them move out

of the bottom but the manager is confident they will stay up. 0ur message is clear. it is clear, forget about and focus on what we have to do what we have to do is stick together, everybody at the club stick together. the back—up of our friends is going club stick together. the back—up of ourfriends is going to be huge for us and starting on saturday at city ground. like forest, everton have had points deducted this season, 10 reduced to six on appeal and and are waiting for news on a second breach that could see them further punished. i think the last one jolted everyone in football. i think really, we're just waiting now. i don't think anyone has concrete proof of which way these things will go, and particularly after the first one. we have given every bit of information that we can give. so therefore we will hope that it comes to nothing. in germany, xabi alonso's bayer leverkusen can

extend their lead at the top of the bundesliga to 13 points if they beat hoffenheim. and then in the later game it's der klassiker, as bayern munich host borussia dortmund. the women's final at the miami 0pen is to come on saturday, as elena rybakina takes on unseeded danielle collins later. in the men's singles, gregor dimitrov followed up knocking out carlos alcaraz by beating alexander zverev to reach the final. the result also moved dimitrov up to number 9 in the atp rankings, securing his return to the top 10 for the first time since november 2018. jannik sinner awaits dimitrov in sunday's final, after he overwhelmed third—seed daniil medvedev in straight sets. his only defeat this season was to carlos alcaraz in the indian wells semifinals earlier this month. it's the second round of the women's six nations this weekend, in a few hours time scotland host france. later, wales host grand

slam champions england. the red roses put 50 points on the them last year but the welsh are hoping to be more competitive this time round. last year we showed for 30 minutes we could hold them off, but we need to continue that momentum and make it an 80 minute performance. discipline is going to be key and i think we have really got to go and work hard this weekend and leave everything at the park and no regrets, really. to the nba now and miami heat had a huge win over the portland trail blazers — 142—82 is their biggest winning margin while victor wembanyama had a career—high a0 points and 20 rebounds as the san antonio spurs got the better of the new york knicks130—126 in overtime on friday night, despite jalen brunson scoring 61 — that's one short of the knicks�* single—game scoring record. wembanyama gave san antonio a four—point lead in overtime with this,

which made it the first 40—point, 20—rebound game by a rookie since shaquille 0 neal in 1993. keep on top of all of those schools. still 1—1 newcastle and west ham. i will have another update for you in the next hour. police have raided the home of peru's president, dina boluarte. video of officers smashing their way into the home was shared on social media. the raid is part of a corruption inquiry dubbed "rolexgate". the police were searching for more than a dozen rolex watches that the president has allegedly not declared. the investigation began after a news report drew attention to luxury watches she wore at public events, dating from when she took office in december 2022. peru's government called the raid an �*intolerable outrage'. to the netherlands, where a man has been arrested after a number

of people were held hostage for several hours at a nightclub. the man emerged from the venue in the town of ede, wearing a balaclava and can be seen here following police instructions to put his hands on his head. riot police and explosives experts had been deployed and the town centre evacuated. police say there's no indication of a terrorist motive. the oxford—cambridge boat race has been one of the world's best—known amateur sporting events since it first took place in 1829. crews from both universities are gearing up to compete on the river thames. but athletes this year have been warned not to enter the water after high levels of e—coli were found. let's speak to our reporter pierre—antoine denis who is live for us in west london. hello to you. looking lovely and sunny behind you. and it is traditional, isn't it, that they get

chucked in at the end, whoever wins. but perhaps not this year.— but perhaps not this year. perhaps not this year. _ but perhaps not this year. perhaps not this year, indeed. _ but perhaps not this year. perhaps not this year, indeed. this - but perhaps not this year. perhaps not this year, indeed. this is - but perhaps not this year. perhaps not this year, indeed. this is one | not this year, indeed. this is one of the stories, one of the traditions, that they make to have to skip this year because of the e. coli bacteria that is in the thames at the minute. this is because of a recent dump of sewage from thames water. to give you an idea, the level of e. coli has been recorded recently is ten times higher than the level where the environment agency would call the water bad. therefore they are advising people against going into the thames for a swim. we are talking ten times worse than that which is definitely a problem and health concern in the run—up to this event. people were wondering whether this race would actually be happening, should be postpone it. but different organisation committees met up and set up guidelines for the rowers, for the athletes, before and after

the race, to ensure that they are safe in these conditions. we are talking whether they are just the water, of course, and i spoke to emergency rescue team here who said that should be ok because they are quite used to it, usually a few stomach bugs after a race like this. we just hope that none of the rowers will end up very badly sick after this race. �* , will end up very badly sick after this race. �*, .,, ., �*, this race. let's hope not. let's talk about _ this race. let's hope not. let's talk about the _ this race. let's hope not. let's talk about the race _ this race. let's hope not. let's talk about the race itself. - this race. let's hope not. let's talk about the race itself. it. this race. let's hope not. let's talk about the race itself. it is| talk about the race itself. it is known around the world. it is such a tradition. the first one was in 1829 so it has almost been going for 200 years. so it has almost been going for 200 ears. �* .,, so it has almost been going for 200 ears. ~ , z: z: so it has almost been going for 200 ears. ~ 11:1, ., , so it has almost been going for 200 ears. ~ 11:1, .,, so it has almost been going for 200 ears. 11:1, ., years. almost 200 years. i spoke to a few americans _ years. almost 200 years. i spoke to a few americans on _ years. almost 200 years. i spoke to a few americans on the _ years. almost 200 years. i spoke to a few americans on the way - years. almost 200 years. i spoke to a few americans on the way here . a few americans on the way here who were telling me, we love this race. these are students but also former professional athletes, former world champions, competing for this prestigious title. it is one of the

oldest rivalries in sports, the biggest rivalry in rowing, splitting these two universities, cambridge and oxford. it is 4.25 miles. it starts in putney in south—west london. football fans will know this area is full stadium, craven cottage. then there will be a turn to the left and they will end up in this last stretch under chiswick bridge where we will know who will win in the four races that are in there. there are the main men, the main women's races, and the two reserve races. they will dock in this little area here and then after that end up on the podium. it is whether or not cambridge will make it another win or will 0xford turn the tide? thank you so much. the thames looking absolutely glorious. stay with us here on bbc news. hello. the weather is a lot quieter today, compared with the last few

days. there is certainly more sunshine around, fewer shells, a much drier day. feeling a little bit warmer to in a southerly breeze. but come monday, further rain clouds on the way and indeed the week ahead is looking quite unsettled. let's have a look at the satellite picture. you can see this gap of fine weather. it is not very big. bring plants to the east, to the west. the winds are coming in from the south so that slightly warmer direction. was breaking out in a few areas it is not a completely dry day. temperatures are around about 12 to 15 celsius, nothing spectacular. tonight there will be some rain brushing the south—west, eventually ending up in northern ireland. for most of us it is a clear and calm night. a touch of frost in some northern areas and mist and fog forming around central parts of england and wales and all the way down towards the south. another thing that is certainly worth mentioning is that british

summertime change, the clocks go forward at 1am. i will leave you to work that out. here is the forecast for tomorrow. work that out. here is the forecast fortomorrow. some work that out. here is the forecast for tomorrow. some sunshine across many western areas but notice this bank of cloud pushing in on an easterly breeze of the north sea. it is going to be quite a chilly day on the north sea coast, around east anglia, the east and west midlands, and generally this part of the country, often cloudy, little bits and pieces of rain. it is not going to feel quite as warm tomorrow across the east of the country. come monday a weather front sweeps in and that of course spells rain. where this rain will fall is still a little questionable. it might be further north, there might be less of it, or perhaps more, but the broad message is, a rather cloudy day and certainly a chance of catching some rain, at least across this part of the uk. perhaps drier towards the north—west. those temperatures are a little disappointing for some of us. tuesday and wednesday, into thursday, more weather systems,

tuesday and wednesday, into thursday, more weathersystems, more weather fronts are thursday, more weather systems, more weather fronts are sweeping thursday, more weathersystems, more weather fronts are sweeping in on a strengthening south—westerly breeze. take a look at this weather these weather icons are pretty much a chance of encountering some rain every day next week. that is it for me. goodbye.

this is bbc news. the headlines... the palestinian red crescent says five people have been killed and dozens injured by gunfire and a crush

during the delivery of aid in northern gaza. it said three of those killed had been shot. there's fresh political instability in northern ireland, following the resignation of the democratic unionist party leader, sirjeffrey donaldson. he says he will strenuously contest charges of rape and other historical sexual offences. counter—terrorism police in london are investigating the stabbing of pouria zeraati, a presenterfor a persian—language news channel. the broadcaster has been critical of the iranian authorities — and says mr zeraati was attacked by a group. and a treasure trove of never—before heard music from the late american singer marvin gaye has resurfaced in belgium. the discovery includes a huge collection of documents, notebooks, stage costumes and audio cassettes. now on bbc news, the travel show. coming up on this week's show...

it looks like a flotation device. it does!