here in northern israel there is a lot of israeli military air activity above me and the raid in damascus was the biggest single escalation so far in the deepening war between israel, iran and its so—called axis of resistance. also tonight... the harry potter author, jk rowling, says scotland's new anti—hate crime law is a threat to free speech. the first minister disagrees. unless your behaviour is threatening or abusive and intends to stir up hatred, then you have nothing to worry about in terms of the new offences being created. good news on energy costs — a new price cap has come into force. bloody hell! did you see the tale? and, the dramatic moment a hump back whale had a close encounter with a cornish lifeboat crew.

good evening. a suspected israeli strike has destroyed an iranian consulate building in the syrian capital, damascus, killing at least seven people, including the top two commanders, in the powerful iranian revolutionary guards. the attack happened at around 5pm local time in the upmarket mezzeh district of damascas, with the multistorey building flattened, right next to the iranian embassy. iran's foreign minister says tehran�*s response will be decisive, while israel says it doesn't comment on foreign media reports. there have been hundreds of attacks on iranian—linked targets in syria by israel, in the past few years. jeremy bowen, has the very latest from northern israel. a few minutes after the attack, the building in iran's diplomatic compound in a one—off central area of damascus seems to be on fire. the

israeli strike destroyed the ukrainian consulate. it was a precision attack against a senior commander who will have worked hard to keep his movement secret. despite that israeli intelligence must have tracked the general to the meeting he was having in damascus. he was the senior iranian general in syria and lebanon. two countries one regards as critical parts in what it saysis regards as critical parts in what it says is its system of four defence, the so—called axis of resistance. in damascus the syrian foreign minister said the general and others who died were killed by israel. translation: we strongly condemn this criminal act carried out by the zionist enemy. these attacks can only be met by further steadfastness, further support for the palestinian people and further resistance whether in iraq or southern lebanon. find and further resistance whether in iraq or southern lebanon. and the iranian ambassador _ iraq or southern lebanon. and the iranian ambassador to _ iraq or southern lebanon. and the iranian ambassador to damascus l iranian ambassador to damascus hinted at retaliation.—

hinted at retaliation. definitely the zionist _ hinted at retaliation. definitely the zionist regime _ hinted at retaliation. definitely the zionist regime knows - hinted at retaliation. definitelyl the zionist regime knows better hinted at retaliation. definitely - the zionist regime knows better than anyone that such crimes and violating international law will have its response in an appropriate time. ., , have its response in an appropriate time. . , , , , time. the raid is the biggest single escalation yet _ time. the raid is the biggest single escalation yet in _ time. the raid is the biggest single escalation yet in the _ time. the raid is the biggest single escalation yet in the deepening - time. the raid is the biggest single | escalation yet in the deepening war that has been fought since the hamas attacks last october between israel and iran's network of allies here in the north of israel across the border in south lebanon and in the wider middle east. since the beginning of this year, exchanges of fire between israel and hezbollah and political movement in lebanon have become more intense. israeli jets have been reading deeper into lebanon and syria. in iran tonight protesters went out onto the streets of tehran, chanting, death to israel! the iranian regime believes

its security depends on deterring its security depends on deterring its enemies. the raid on damascus showed it is not doing that. the question now is what the iranians will do to show that they are not deterred by israel. a response might not be immediate or straightforward and is likely to be calibrated to reflect iran's reluctance to get involved in an all—out war. jeremy bowen, bbc news in northern israel. we'll have more from jeremy in a few minutes, but in gaza, ater two weeks of heavy bombardment, israel says it's completed its military operation at the territory's biggest hospital and all troops have now left the area. as you can see from these latest satellite images, most of al shifa's medical complex has been left in ruins. during the operation in northern gaza, the israeli defence force says it killed 200 terrorists, claiming hamas had regrouped inside the grounds. palestinian media is reporting that a mother and her son,

who were both doctors, were also killed. lucy williamson, has the latest from jerusalem. shifa's protection was its identity. hard to recognise it as a hospital now. the surgery unit, emergency department, wards and corridors, imploded, anonymised by war. patients like jana, trapped inside during the two weeks of fighting. translation: they didn't provide water for the last two days. - there were sounds of shooting and bombing. the explosions from the artillery lit up the room we were in and shook the whole building. |translation: they let in a veryj small amount of food that wasn't enough. we're 150 patients and 50 medical staff. no treatment, no medicine,

and constant bombing for 24 hours. israel called this a precise and limited operation against hamas fighters. it says 200 gunmen were killed and hundreds of people arrested, and that its right to defeat hamas trumps the protection hospitals have under international law. at home, israel's war with hamas is popular, israel's prime minister is not. for months, benjamin netanyahu has been caught between the demands of hostage families and his own hard right government. now, pre—war protests over his judicial reforms are resurfacing too. tents have once again appeared outside the israeli parliament with the same simple demand — go. protesters here won't be satisfied even if benjamin netanyahu brings home the hostages or dismantles hamas. there are new posters — "you're in charge, you're responsible," they say.

but they wanted him out before the war. now they're back, and they want him gone even more. karen has protested for years against the man known here as bibi. if bibi netanyahu brings the hostages home, will you support him to stay? i don't see the relations between the two. he needs to go just for the fact that 250 people were kidnapped. he needs to go. it doesn't matter if he's bringing them back. the national unity that followed the hamas attacks is breaking down. six months on, israeli soldiers are still fighting an old enemy in gaza. but benjamin netanyahu is facing his own at home. lucy williamson, bbc news, jerusalem. let's rejoinjeremy in northern israel. the war continues in gaza, as israel seemingly targets iranian revolutionary guards commanders in syria. what could all this mean

for the region do you think? well i think what has happened, it's clear israel has carried out this raid. it is a major escalation in this shadow war that has been going on in parallel with what has been happening in gaza. now, tonight, evenin happening in gaza. now, tonight, even in the time i had been standing here, there has been an awful lot of israeli military air activity. lots ofjets in the sky. i suspect they are on patrol, they are there to try and knock out any missiles directed towards israel, because i think the israelis are challenging iran by doing this and their allies, hezbollah in lebanon, because both of those groups, the iranians and their allies, of those groups, the iranians and theirallies, have of those groups, the iranians and their allies, have shown they don't really want to get involved in an all—out war and perhaps israel,

knowing it has the support of america, is prepared to risk that an to push hard. i think iran will want to push hard. i think iran will want to respond to this. maybe not immediately, we will have to see, it is all speculation, but i think the question is really what iran will do and the degree to which it will try to hit back to show israel it is no push over. to hit back to show israel it is no push over-— to hit back to show israel it is no ush over. �* .. ., .,, push over. and we can hear those 'ets push over. and we can hear those jets overhead. — push over. and we can hear those jets overhead, jeremy. _ push over. and we can hear those jets overhead, jeremy. many - push over. and we can hear those i jets overhead, jeremy. many thanks for that. jeremy bowen in northern israel. the harry potter author, jk rowling, has invited police to arrest her, if officers believe she's committed an offence under scotland s new hate crime law. from today, it's an offence to stir up hatred relating to someone's age, disability, religion, sexual orientation or transgender identity. ms rowling, who lives in edinburgh, says the legislation is a threat to free speech. but the first minister, humza yousaf, says it will guard people from what he calls a "rising tide of hatred."

here's james cook. this is a nation struggling to strike a balance between liberty and safety, between freedom of speech and protection from hatred. these protesters think the new hate crime law gets that balance wrong. but the first minister disagrees. i'm very proud of the hate crime act. we have seen, i'm afraid, notjust in the uk and of course scotland, but right across many parts of the world, this kind of rising tide of hatred against people because of their protected characteristics. so unless your behaviour is threatening or abusive, and intends to stir up hatred, then you have nothing to worry about in terms of the new offences being created. but what exactly is in the hate crime act? the law creates a crime of stirring up hatred relating to age, disability, religion, sexual orientation, transgender identity or being intersex. it also includes racial discrimination, although that was already illegal under an old law.

a publicity campaign is now encouraging people to report behaviour which crosses a line from offensive, shocking or disturbing, to threatening and abusive. but one group is not protected by the law — women. jk rowling, who lives in edinburgh, says that is wrong. on social media today, the author posted about several trans people, who are protected, concluding... there will be a rush to report people to the police, including high—profile individuals. i imagine that there will be many complaints, for example, made againstjk rowling. so i think that yes, there is a high chance that the police will be overwhelmed with a lot of complaints, some of which will be purely spurious. the scottish government says it's planning a separate law to tackle hatred and harassment of women.

but for now, senior police officers are worried about the impact of this act, with the complaints already coming in. james cook, bbc news, edinburgh. energy prices in england, wales and scotland have fallen to their lowest level for two years. the regulator's new price—cap has come into force, meaning a household using a typical amount of energy will pay around £1,690 a year. that's a saving of more than £200. rules are different in northern ireland, where prices are also falling. the cap sets the maximum amount suppliers can charge for each unit of gas and electricity, but not the total bill, so if you use more, you'll pay more. here's kevin peachey. spring has arrived in the gardens of this east kent community centre, promising warmer months ahead. i love the daffodils. but locals are still feeling the chilling impact winter bills had on their finances and lifestyle. it's been quite a harsh winter

and i haven't been able to afford to have the central heating on, so it's been rather challenging. and so i've been using hot water bottles. i invested in a battery—operated vest. inside the centre we find caz, who's found ways to stay warm too. wrap up in a blanket or one of those big snoods that you get now, and big fluffy slippers. and how paying the bills has been a juggling act. some months you rob peter to pay paul, and that'sjust the way it is. and as long as you let people know that you're struggling and that... i'm not the only person who's struggling. there's thousands and thousands. quite a few of my friends are struggling as well, you know? but hopefully, fingers crossed, things are going to start coming down now, which is going to make it a lot more manageable with everything. manageable, because today, the cost of each unit of gas and electricity

in the home has come down. energy prices are now at their lowest level for two years. but at the same time, some government support is being wound down, and other bills — water, council tax, phone and broadband — are on the way up. financial pressures aren't over, theyjust look a bit different. that will pay for itself on the energy saving. that's why this former mining community is part of a project sharing good habits to save energy and money. if you use more energy, you pay more. so sarah, who leads the discussion, says simple tips are best even at this time of year. three tips would be, one, your hot—water setting. if it's too hot to wash your hands with, your boiler�*s too high. two, your draughts, from your chimney to your windows and your doors, manage those draughts. and three, your showers. you need to stick to four minutes. find a four—minute song. less bohemian rhapsody in the shower. and, again, that's £70 a year just on water and energy that you could save. one water charity has even compiled

a four—minute—song playlist, keeping people here and around the country to time and their finances on song. kevin peachey, bbc news. a new study has found more than 250 people a week in england may have died unnecessarily last year, due to very long waits for a bed in a&e. the figures come from the royal college of emergency medicine. the government says it's making progress in reducing waiting times, including adding thousands of beds to increase capacity. here's dominic hughes. february saw the highest number of attendances to a&e on record. and despite some small improvements to waiting times, tens of thousands of people have faced long waits. it's well established that longer waits, particularly for those who need to be admitted, increase the chance of death. nhs data for england shows that in 2023, more than 1.5 million patients waited 12 hours or more in major emergency departments. of those, around 1 million were waiting to be admitted

to a hospital bed. using a respected statistical model, the royal college of emergency medicine has calculated that when looking solely at patients awaiting admission, an average of 268 excess deaths are likely to have occurred each week last year. with the number of people attending a&e increasing, the pressure is unrelenting, and experts say the number of excess deaths over and above what you might expect is not surprising. so, these findings won't surprise anybody who's working in an emergency department in our country at the moment. far too many people are spending too long in our departments, and we know that this is harmful. the scientific evidence shows that people who wait more than six hours before they get admitted, you can start to plot an increase in their mortality. and we know that from between six to 12 hours, there is an increase in mortality. the department of health and social care says it's making progress in reducing waiting times, including an extra 5,000 permanent staffed beds this winter.

but doctors warn that what used to be described as "winter pressures" are a thing of the past — that pressure now lasts all year round. dominic hughes, bbc news. labour have lost control of a council in lancashire after all of its councillors resigned from the party en masse. the leader of pendle borough council was among 20 councillors to leave, criticising senior officials in the party. hannah is here. one assumes it has been described their biggest mass resignation under keir starmer�*s leadership. the? their biggest mass resignation under keir starmer's leadership.— keir starmer's leadership. they will now set as independents. - keir starmer's leadership. they will now set as independents. several l keir starmer's leadership. they will| now set as independents. several of them had previously been critical of them had previously been critical of the party's stance on gaza. now though they are accusing the party of stifling free speech by controlling anything that any councillor has to say. the bbc has been told that several of those who

resigned had been spoken to by the party after concerns were raised about their conduct, including allegations of anti—semitism. if we step back it, it is not the first time that we have seen tensions between the labour leadership and representatives in some parts of lancashire, particularly those areas with higher muslim populations. the official labour response tonight is simply that their focus is on winning the general election to improve people's lives.- winning the general election to improve people's lives. thank you. hannah miller. _ the sports brand adidas has banned german football fans from buying their country's kit with the number 44 on the back. the decision came after media comments that it resembled the symbol used by nazi ss units in world war two. adidas denied that this was intentional and said they would block any fan personalising their shirt with those specific numbers. ipswich town have gone top of football's championship after scoring a 97th minute winner against promotion chasing southampton.

jeremy sarmiento scored to make it 3—2 at the death, after southampton were reduced to ten men. ipswich go two points clear of leicester, who also won today, but have a game in hand. a humpback whale has had a lucky escape, after being cut free from fishing ropes, off the cornish coast. bloody hell, did you see the tale? the large adult whale, known locally as ivy, got entangled yesterday, but was successfully cut free by crews from penlee lifeboat. rescuers say ivy was "lucky" because she was able to surface and breathe, otherwise there could have been a "very different outcome." time for a look at the weather. here's louise. spring has sprung, one hopes. it has an at this time a year, there is quite a lot of strength in the

sunshine so you get some light winds and sunshine, you're going to get some warmth. that is what we saw today much of central and eastern england. 16 degrees in cambridge at this afternoon. some more warmth arriving a little later on this week. so bear that in mind. actually, for tomorrow, we are between weather systems which means a lot of quiet weather. mist and fog first in england and wales and some scattered showers but on the whole, not looking too bad. this weather front in scotland a bit of a nuisance, it will linger throughout much of the day. not producing much in the way of rain but the wind direction a real significant factor in the weather story across scotland. coming from the north—east, it will make it feel cooler, only 5—7 as a maximum, particularly under the rain. cloudy but a few scattered showers but northern ireland. england and wales, not a bad afternoon. we could see 15 degrees but by the end of the day, the winds will strengthen. coming from the south—west but we will see some rain. so it is milder air with

their south—westerly wind but it will bring some wet weather as it drifts steadily north east as we go into wednesday. so showery outbreaks of rain across england and wales on wednesday. behind it, somewhat brighter conditions but look at the difference with the feel of the weather. that front will grind to a halt across northern ireland and scotland. a strong north—easterly winds still making it feel quite cold. gusts in excess of 40—50 mph have an impact on the temperature. gusts in excess of 30 mph in the south—west but because the wind direction is coming from a milder source, 15—16 not out of the question, coolerfurther north source, 15—16 not out of the question, cooler further north and east. the showery unsettled theme is set to continue but the milder source will be a feature once again down to the south. enjoy. louise, thank you. that's it. now on bbc one, let's join our colleagues for the news where you are.

while in the news channel, let's get more on our top story. a senior commander in the revolutionary guard was among five people killed in a suspected route is really air strike on an and rainy and consulate building in the syrian capital. iran's for an minister has called the strike a breach of international conventions. he was killed and what it described as an israeli air strike, that targeted the country's consulate. it is seen as a significant escalation, the senior commander is one of the most high—profile iranian figures believed to be killed by israeli in the country's long campaign of targeted assassinations. there hasn't been information from israel yet, iran has vowed to give a decisive response. let's speak to our international editor, jeremy bowen, in northern israel. what can you tell us? i can tell you

that yes it is, i would say it's a serious escalation in this shadow war if you like, which has been running in parallel with the war in gaza, hasn't had the same impact on international users, what's been happening there. but actually it's been getting more and more serious and deepening i'd say quite markedly since the beginning of this year. and what we've been seeing is israel pushing harder against hezbollah in lebanon which is not too far from where i'm standing and also against iran and its other allies and proxies in what's known as the axis of resistance, its network which it regards as it's for rude defence against its enemies. by doing what they've done, and israel hasn't said they've done, and israel hasn't said they've done, and israel hasn't said they've done it but all the indications are that it is israel, but doing what they did in damascus, i think the israelis are giving a

really big sign that they are not deterred by iran and iran is under a great deal of pressure from them and i think they will continue pushing that, and now, of course, the question is whether iran and its allies particularly hezbollah in lebanon, orto allies particularly hezbollah in lebanon, or to respond with military action some direct military action perhaps on israel, because up to now they have been sending a lot of signals that while they are prepared to keep up the pressure and tens of thousands of people here in northern israel have been evacuated from their homes and three israeli divisions have been tied down here on the border. but both hezbollah in lebanon and iran have been signalling that they don't want to get involved in an all out war. their risk now is that they might,

and israel i think with of course a lot of support from america, is i think signalling that it's prepared to take that risk, to go to that brink. , . , ., , to take that risk, to go to that brink. , ., , .,, ,., to take that risk, to go to that brink. , . , .,, y., ., brink. germany, as you have hinted at, strikes brink. germany, as you have hinted at. strikes by _ brink. germany, as you have hinted at, strikes by israeli _ brink. germany, as you have hinted at, strikes by israeli forces - brink. germany, as you have hinted at, strikes by israeli forces on - at, strikes by israeli forces on targets in syria are nothing new. so why is this, particularly, and escalation? i5 why is this, particularly, and escalation?— why is this, particularly, and escalation? ., ., , , escalation? is an escalation because the 've escalation? is an escalation because they've killed _ escalation? is an escalation because they've killed three _ escalation? is an escalation because they've killed three really _ they've killed three really important men. the iogc, the iranian revolutionary guard corps is a very powerful force that among other things is in charge of maintaining this network of allies, proxies, people they held out, people they have a very close relationship with like hezbollah in lebanon. they've managed to kill two, maybe three of their top men, and so both for

around and for their allies, this is around and for their allies, this is a very serious blow. and israel was will celebrate it as a significant victory. iran must now decide what it is it wants to do. as i stand here talking to you, there is a lot of israeli military activity still in the skies above me. a lot ofjets flying around. and maybe some of those are going off on raids into lebanon, but i suspect a lot of them are patrolling and getting ready in case there are attacks coming in, that they might want to intercept. missiles coming in, orthat that they might want to intercept. missiles coming in, or that they would want to shoot at the source of that fire if something is lunch. for exam - le, that fire if something is lunch. for example, from lebanon. we know that there has been consternation in washington over the conflict and the direction of the conflict in gaza. how do you think this strike will be perceived at the white house? weill. perceived at the white house? well, i think the americans _ perceived at the white house? well, i think the americans are _ perceived at the white house? .11 i think the americans are concerned about the way that the war has spread around the region, and they

have tried to try and keep a lid on things while continuing, notjust to give diplomatic and political support to israel, albeit with some misgivings, about a number of palestinian civilians who have been killed. but at the same time, the measure of america's approval or disapproval of israel really i think people should focus on is the degree to which it continues to supply israel with very sophisticated, very deadly heavy weapons that they have used, and those supplies are continuing and they have been further reports of the americans are preparing to deliver a lot more aircraft in this direction, towards israel. so i think that counts is very, very strong support. and i think that if you look around the region right now, there are an awful lot of fires, some of which were smoldering, but there's a bigger risk now after this raid that more

of them might burst into flames. when will we hearfrom israel? imilieu when will we hear from israel? when do ou when will we hear from israel? when do you think — when will we hear from israel? when do you think that _ when will we hear from israel? when do you think that we _ when will we hear from israel? when do you think that we will— when will we hear from israel? when do you think that we will hear- do you think that we will hear something from israel? is it normal that there would be this sort of pause before we would hear some sort of of statement? the pause before we would hear some sort of of statement?— of of statement? the israelis often don't acknowledge _ of of statement? the israelis often don't acknowledge things - of of statement? the israelis often don't acknowledge things that - don't acknowledge things that they've done, they let it be known that they have done them and they have favoured avenues to the outside world favoured journalists who they have talked to and leaked things too and make it clear that what it is has been done, that appears to be going on at the moment. so i think the israelis will be feeling that they have scored a real blow against iran and they regard the iranians as they are most serious adversaries here in the region. so i think now the question is, first of all, iran is clearly going to have to respond or it's going to lose a great deal

of credibility with its own people and with its allies, but it wants to respond in such a way that above all, the stability and safety of the islamic regime in tehran is protected, because that, for them, is really what it's all about, the reason why they have these allies and these defenders and the networks, which is run's enemies say they are funding a great big terrorist network and iran itself say we have great power and we require a network of allies and the region. require a network of allies and the reuion. ., , ., , region. your we must leave it sadly. jeremy bowen _ region. your we must leave it sadly. jeremy bowen in _ region. your we must leave it sadly. jeremy bowen in northern _ region. your we must leave it sadly. jeremy bowen in northern italy, - region. your we must leave it sadly. jeremy bowen in northern italy, thisj jeremy bowen in northern italy, this is abc news. —— israel.

welcome to hardtalk. i'm stephen sackur. when the us supreme court overturned the roe v wade decision, establishing a woman's right to an abortion, it looked like america's so—called right to life campaigners were winning. now? well, it's not so certain. the conservative movement is split on just how far anti—abortion legislation should go. opinion polls suggest most americans don't believe abortion should be outlawed, and some republicans fear this could be a vote loser. my guest is lila rose, described as one of the fiercest anti—abortion activists in america. are her absolutist views turning america off?