i'm steve lai. the headlines. the moment hamas leader ismail haniyeh — is told that three of his sons were killed in a strike in gaza. israel says they were hamas operatives. japan and the us announce a new era of strategic cooperation, with the building ofajointairand missile defence system. a major review finds — children in england and wales — have been let down by �*weak�* evidence about gender treatment. and washington is considering dropping the prosecution of wikileaks founder julian assange. we begin with the war in gaza.

israel has confirmed that it has killed three adult sons of the hamas leader, ismail haniyeh, with an air strike in gaza. haniyeh said the vehicle they were driving in was hit in the al—shati camp, west of gaza city. but he said the deaths of so many members of his family won't affect the demands hamas is making in ceasefire negotiations. across gaza, palestinians have been marking eid in the midst of the devastation caused by six months of war. our middle east reporter sebastian usher has more from jerusalem. what we now know as an israeli strike has killed three of the hamas political leader, ismail haniyeh's sons. also, what we've heard from hamas and from mr haniyeh himself was that several of his grandchildren were killed in the strike as well. now, this is what israel has said that it will continue to do. it described the three men as hamas operatives, saying that they had carried out terrorist activity in the central gaza strip.

and even though israel has pulled out most of its troops from gaza, there is no sense that israel is ending its operation there and is continuing to target anyone that they regard as somebody who is a fighter, an activist for hamas. so on that level, this is what israel said it will do. on the response from hamas and from ismail haniyeh himself, he is essentially said that this doesn't change anything, that he has already lost members of his family, so many other palestinians in gaza have as well. he's not going to let this shift or change the policy that hamas is following. and he referred this specifically to the latest ceasefire negotiations. these are at a very delicate stage. we heard some optimism a day or two ago — we're not hearing that now. and hamas in particular has said that it doesn't think that the new proposal satisfies four conditions that it's long set out. and it doesn't seem in the mood for concessions. and i would say that after this

strike, it's probably even less ready for concessions than it was before. from the israeli side, the security cabinet was meeting last night. we've just been getting leaks in the israeli media, some of the things that the minister said, and i have to say that if these leaks are correct, there is no real consensus within the israeli cabinet. some ministers are saying essentially this deal that, are for three, perhaps a0 of the hostages and there are 130 around who are still believed to be in gaza, but not all of them are still alive, that this is pointless, that they want all the hostages release now or no deal. they're saying there probably won't be another deal. so this is the moment to accomplish that. as i say, the minutes that have been released on the israeli media show dissent amongst the israeli cabinet. so on both sides, unfortunately, it seems at the moment that hopes for a ceasefire deal, at least at least in the imminent, in the short term, are not very high.

for more i've been speaking to firas maksad, who is a senior director at the middle east institute. let's talk about the optics of this. , ., ., , ., this. they are horrible for israel as _ this. they are horrible for israel as far _ this. they are horrible for israel as far as _ this. they are horrible for israel as far as the - this. they are horrible for. israel as far as the broader arab and muslim world is concerned. he'd, today, is essentially christmas morning and we have got the children but the grandchildren of micro tubing assassinated by israel. ismail haniyeh is not particularly loved in many quarters of the arab and muslim world but what is israel doing by assassinating these grandchildren on each, the essential of christmas day is empowering and feeding the radical forces that want to stand behind hamas, support hamas and the iranian proxies in the region so the proxy for israel are also coming on the heels on the targeting of the convoy of humanitarian aid, world central kitchen convoy last week are just horrible. i don't understand, frankly decision—making taking place in jerusalem. perhaps someonejust

jerusalem. perhaps someone just wants jerusalem. perhaps someonejust wants to throw fresh meat to the radicals in their governing coalition. iii the radicals in their governing coalition. , , the radicals in their governing coalition. , ., ., coalition. if we stay on that thought. — coalition. if we stay on that thought. we _ coalition. if we stay on that thought, we know- coalition. if we stay on that thought, we know that - coalition. if we stay on that | thought, we know that they coalition. if we stay on that - thought, we know that they have said that the strike on the aid workers was a mistake, this strike on the family members of ismail haniyeh, it cannot be a mistake, can a?— ismail haniyeh, it cannot be a mistake, can a? no, absolutely not. we mistake, can a? no, absolutely not- we have — mistake, can a? no, absolutely not. we have heard _ mistake, can a? no, absolutely not. we have heard leaks - mistake, can a? no, absolutely i not. we have heard leaks coming out of the israeli government, some have said that these three, sons were operatives in the military wing of hamas, possibly so. but also were on their way to conduct an operation, that doesn't make sense when you have your grandchildren, your kids with you, two daughters in the sun. so again, i think israel has been suffering a credibility gap with the international community as a result of the act on the convoy last week. this will only further inflame and enlarging the credibility gap that is really something. it makes no sense to me. help us understand _ it makes no sense to me. help us understand some _ it makes no sense to me. help us understand some of - it makes no sense to me. help us understand some of the - us understand some of the pressures that prime minister

netanyahu is under in what might be guiding his actions. i think you may have just put your finger on think you may have just put yourfinger on it. there's quite a bit of divisiveness within the israeli cabinet, certainly the more radical wing of the most right wing government in the history of israel does not want to see such a deal take place with hamas. again, this may be why this operation took place today. but also the prime minister is under tremendous pressure from the biden administration to conduct that deal, to go through with this deal. and also the bite in the administration, i should say, is putting quite a bit of pressure on hamas through the various arms, egypt, qatar, even some quiet diplomacy taking place in back rooms, with iran to directly accept this deal. i don't see it, i don't think it will happen, whether the strike today plays or does not play in the decision—making process of hamas, ismail haniyeh is the political leader of the group, military leader in gaza calling the shots, but ultimately i

don't see things lining up. i should point out also, that everybody here is awaiting the iranian response of the attack on its consulate in damascus and the regional dynamics are right now and not conducive of the deal. the us, japan and the philippines will soon hold trilateral meetings to discuss security in the south china sea. president biden is hosting japan's prime minister, fumio kishida, at the white house. there have been military guards of honour. there will also be a state dinner — an honour usually reserved for washington's closest allies. and at the weekend, the us, japan, the phillipines and australia held joint military exercises in the south china sea. speaking a little earlier, president biden said the co—operation between the countries had never been greater. on the economic front, our ties have never been more robust. japan is the top foreign investor in the united states. say that again. japan is the top foreign investor in the united states.

and we, the united states are the top foreign investor in japan. nearlyi million americans work injapanese companies here in the united states. let's speak to don mclain gill — geopolitical analyst and lecturer at the department of international studies at de la salle university. we've seen tensions rising in the south china sea recently, will that be top of the agenda when they meet? how h ow exa ctly how exactly will they look to address it?— address it? thank you for havin: address it? thank you for having me- _ address it? thank you for having me. this - address it? thank you for having me. this first - address it? thank you forj having me. this first ever trilateral summit is a reflection of all three states and their shared goals towards establishing and of course maintaining the rules —based order. to play a larger role with responsible stakeholders in the indo—pacific and also inclusive of the maritime domain. we have seen of course in the past few months, china stepping up its assertive and expansionist interests in south china sea, the greater south china sea, the greater south china sea, the greater south china sea and in the west

philippine sea in particular. this trilateral aims to keep the maritime domain free, open and full space. they will be looking at more regular maritime drills and it is a important to institutionalise such levels of defence cooperation to ensure continued despite the massive changes in political systems. also looking to invest in more robust information sharing and perhaps other forms of multidimensional levels of defence cooperation, cyberspace, cyber technology, cyberspace, cyber technology, cyber security cooperation. of course, at the same time, focusing on economic and trade investments. which is also equally important in addressing the china challenge in the region. what do you make of the speed at which the philippines has moved closer to the us since presdient marcos came to power? we have to understand that since the beginning of the

administration of president macros administration of president macroer, manila has opted to seek to strengthen its relations with china because china is our neighbour and it would be problematic to form close relations but unfortunately china has been showing a huge diversions and what it says and what it does and as a pragmatic middle power in the indo—pacific with their own agency, this of course has capitalise our position to proactively engage more steadily with united states. i like—minded partners, with more traditional partners as well. —— president marcos traditional partners as well. —— president marcoer. of course we can secure that this is a response to the converging interests of manila and washington to enhance both collective and individual resilience, to address the emerging challenges of the indo—pacific and at the same time, keep the rules —based order enhance and secure admits revisionists foreign influences in the region.— in the region. eocene japan, the us and _

in the region. eocene japan, the us and that's _ in the region. eocene japan, the us and that's a - in the region. eocene japan, the us and that's a new- in the region. eocene japan, the us and that's a new era | in the region. eocene japan, i the us and that's a new era of strategic cooperation in the building of a joint missile system commotion we expect any big announcements from this trilateral meeting?— big announcements from this trilateral meeting? given that it is still taking _ trilateral meeting? given that it is still taking shape, - trilateral meeting? given that it is still taking shape, all - it is still taking shape, all three countries must endeavour to keep it multidimensional and sustainable. the announcements i mentioned earlier of a possible regular last trilateral maritime drill institutionalising it is important and of course, we would likely see the strengthening of the trade investments supply chains for semiconductors. these things are very much important, given the growing importance of economic resiliency in the indo—pacific and the intersection between politics and economics. we would also be looking into possible issues on critical minerals. and we may also witness a more robust framework for cyber security. so what matters more, all three nations form a collective long—term road map to ensure the progression and continue woody of what would be discussed. i think this is the

most important part of the trilateral.— most important part of the trilateral. ., ~ . don mclain gill — from de la salle university. police and the uk have charged a 25—year—old man with the stabbing murder of a woman in bradford infrastructure. he allegedly attacked 27—year—old while she was pushing a programme with her baby inside in the city centre. habibur masum was detained earlier on tuesday morning after a nationwide manhunt. the child was not harmed in the attack. —— kulsama akter. staying in the uk. a major review has found that children and young people, are being let down by a lack of research and weak evidence on treatments, like puberty blockers and hormones. the report also highlights the "toxicity" of the trans debate, as a factor, in adversely affecting the quality of care. here's hugh pym. this strongly worded report gets to the heart of a highly

controversial debate on gender, medicine and society. the work of an nhs clinic caring for children, it says, was clouded by a political row. it's been four years of work — nearly 400 pages — with young people and their families among those consulted. the review report says evidence is severely lacking on the impact of puberty blockers and hormone treatments, and that young people have been caught in the middle of a stormy social discourse. it says that an increasingly toxic, ideologicaland polarised public debate has made the work of the review significantly harder. ideology on all sides has directed care, rather than care being directed by normal principles of paediatrics and mental health. i mean, certainly professionals are afraid to do the things that they would normally do in any other consultation. gender services provided by the controversial tavistock clinic in london ended last month. the use of drugs to stop the onset of puberty has now

been halted in england until further research is done. keira bell started taking puberty blockers aged 16 after being referred to the tavistock. she then took legal action, arguing she wasn't challenged enough at the clinic and regretted her decision. her lawyer responded to the review findings. whilst it is very reassuring for young people who are going through gender—questioning at the moment, and their parents, it is unfortunately, for many young people too late. they live with the ongoing consequences. today the prime minister welcomed the report's conclusions. of course we must treat children who are questioning their gender with compassion and sensitivity, but we have to recognise that we need to move with extreme caution in these areas. i think it does raise some serious concerns that are pretty scandalous, actually. i think we've got to ask ourselves why is it that we've

seen medical interventions that have been given on the basis of very weak evidence? the review recommendations include services to be at the same standards as elsewhere in the nhs, individualised care plans for children and a new service for 17 to 25—year—olds. one of those could be sonja from birmingham. she wanted to transition when she was 15 and waited four years to see an nhs specialist. she then opted to go private. hopefully with the review and its findings, the young trans people of today and the next generations can have a more human and a more respectful transition. nhs england says there will be an implementation plan. for sonja, it's the detail and delivery which will count. hugh pym, bbc news, birmingham. around the world and across the uk. this is bbc news.

former president donald trump has said that arizona went "too far" on abortion — after the state's high court issued a ruling outlawing abortion unless the mothers life is in danger. the law revives a near—total ban on abortion that dates back 160 years — making a termination or helping a woman to obtain an abortion punishable by two to five years in prison. the ruling in arizona came a day after mr trump said abortion should be left for individual states to decide — not the federal government. let's speak to dr alison norris, professorat ohio state university and co—chair of wecount — a us abortion data reporting study. thank you forjoining me today. what does this ruling mean for women in arizona and who will be impacted the most?- women in arizona and who will be impacted the most? thank you for the question. _ be impacted the most? thank you for the question. arizona - for the question. arizona provides an important example

to us of how uncertainty in the policy landscape can, be it self, a barrier to care. we saw before the dobbs decision in arizona, more than 1000 abortions, almost 1200 were being provided each month in that state. then with the dobbs decision the uncertainty about this old law from each and 64 caused many providers in the state to stop being able to provide care —— 1864. the number of abortions provided. doctor george contended next month. we know access to abortion care is essential to the health and well—being of people who find themselves pregnant with a pregnancy they cannot continue and that when care is diminished or eliminated completely, it is the people who experience the most structural disadvantage, who are the least able to leave the state and get care elsewhere.— the state and get care elsewhere. ., , ., ., ., ., elsewhere. can you elaborate on the oint elsewhere. can you elaborate on the point on _ elsewhere. can you elaborate on the point on structural— the point on structural

disadvantage? the point on structural disadvantaue? . , disadvantage? certainly. so eo - le disadvantage? certainly. so pe0ple of— disadvantage? certainly. so peeple of all— disadvantage? certainly. so people of all walks - disadvantage? certainly. so people of all walks of - disadvantage? certainly. so people of all walks of life i disadvantage? certainly. so i people of all walks of life and “p people of all walks of life and up with a pregnancy, sometimes, theyjust up with a pregnancy, sometimes, they just feel they cannot continue. and they need to terminate. and most americans with a decision of autonomy for themselves in a very large majority of americans with the decisional autonomy for other people, despite that there are significant barriers to accessing abortion care. it can be in the case of a state like arizona if it were to turn out that it arizona if it were to turn out thatitis arizona if it were to turn out that it is not legal to have an abortion in that state, then there is no access to provision at all and anyone who wants an abortion will have to travel out of the state, but of course travel takes time. it takes money. it takes social resources and so for the people who are already experiencing life circumstances such that they are denied or don't have access to money and resources, cannot take a day off work,

don't have their own car, have people at home that they need to take care of, for those folks, they need to travel out of state for an abortion can become an insurmountable barrier to obtaining that care. former president trump has said that arizona has gone too far on this decision, but he was the one that wanted to leave it to the states. arizona republicans have denounced the decision as well. this is a tricky political position for them. , ., them. yes. something that we have been _ them. yes. something that we have been thinking _ them. yes. something that we have been thinking about - them. yes. something that we have been thinking about is . them. yes. something that we | have been thinking about is the way that chronic uncertainty in the abortion landscape, these surprising moments that come out of court cases, it has become somewhat the norm in the us over the last set of months since the dobbs decisions. there have been a lot of surprising moments and that political rhetoric that takes place, both coming from politicians and from the court,

itself contributes to the uncertainty. sometimes policy decisions can increase uncertainty, other kinds of decisions can decrease that uncertainty. this policy decisions can increase and decrease stigma so, although what most people want is a steady, reliable access to good quality health when they need it, the political uncertainty can really drive some of the things that increase barriers to those kinds of care. we may see more _ to those kinds of care. we may see more of— to those kinds of care. we may see more of it _ to those kinds of care. we may see more of it ahead _ to those kinds of care. we may see more of it ahead of- to those kinds of care. we may see more of it ahead of the - see more of it ahead of the elections as well. thank you so much forjoining us today. the worst flooding in almost a hundred years has hit russia and kazakstan, forcing the evacuation of more than a 100,000 people. the flooding — in the urals and western siberia — has been caused by unseasonably warm temperatures, which has melted snow. in the russian city

of orenburg, home to half a million people, water levels have reached dangerous levels. thousands of people have left the city. our russia editor steve rosenberg gave us this assessment of the flooding. sirens. in places, orenburg is a city submerged. roads turned into rivers by the worst flooding here in living memory. "evacuation under way," is the message for anyone still living here. "all the houses are flooded," says the local mayor. he's sailing down the streets, surveying the devastation. spring floods are common in russia, but not on this scale. it's thought the combination of heavy rain and rapidly melting snow in warm weather caused rivers to burst their banks. in orenburg, thousands have

left their homes or been helped to leave by emergency services and by volunteers. "everything was dry yesterday," she says. "the water came at night, so fast." pets. they've been rescuing pets to that have been stranded by the daily fusion of meltwater. and look what damage it's done inside the houses. the floating fridge — a reminder of the destructive power of water. and flooding has affected towns and villages across the ural mountains and western siberia. beyond russia, too. this is neighboring kazakhstan. here, 100,000 people have been evacuated from the flood zone. meanwhile, other russian regions are preparing for flooding as water levels continue to rise. steve rosenberg, bbc news, moscow.

us presidentjoe biden says the us is considering dropping the prosecution of wikileaks founderjulian assange, following a request from the australian government. the wikileaks founder has been held in belmarsh prison in london for five years. our washington correspondent gary o'donoghue had this update following joe biden�*s comment. well, this was pretty much an off the cuff comment that he made as he was sort of walking through the colonnade at the white house and a reporter shouted to him, you know, "will you consider australia's request?" because of course australia, julian assange is australian and the australian parliament has passed a motion asking him to be returned to australia, saying, "would you consider ending the prosecution? " he didn't seem to hear the question at first, but it was repeated and he said, "we're considering it." now that would be a huge change, given that the us has been pursuing the extradition ofjulian assange from the uk for years and the thing is still winding its way

through the courts. the home secretary signed the extradition back in 2022, but there's been court challenges to that and the high court is still waiting for some responses from the us to see whether or not mr assange could appeal the decision even further and possibly up to the court of human rights. but if america really is thinking about that, that would be a significant move. we'll have to see the extent to which that was a sort of spontaneous comment, if you like, and whether or not it's borne out by the acts of the justice department. but certainly it will get lawyers talking in london. more on that story on our website as well as all of the other stories we have covered. i will see you in the next hour. by.

hello. well, some of us are in for a fine day. thursday's expected to bring warm, sunny spells to many northern and eastern parts of the country. certainly won't be like it everywhere — in fact, farfrom it in the morning across many western and southern areas of the uk. right now, a lot of cloud shrouding the uk. a weather front is crossing us, bearing rain and dribs and drabs possible anywhere through the night and in some areas even quite heavy for a time. but this weather front is caught in a current of very mild air streaming in from the southern climes, quite a breezy end to the night is expected as well. but i think by the time we get to around 6:00 in the morning, you can see the skies are clearing across many eastern and some western areas of the uk as well. temperatures will be in double figures in most major towns and cities. so here's the morning, then, the forecast. you can see still a fair amount of cloud across some southern and western areas, dribs and drabs of rain, but already sunshine across, say, many northern

and north—eastern parts of the uk. the temperatures very pleasant indeed — widely, i think, into the high teens or 20 degrees across england, eastern scotland, around 18 and out towards the west, around 14 to 17 degrees celsius. but the west will always be more cloudy. now into friday, the south of the country is closer to an area of high pressure. so i think brighter skies here, but i say brighter, not necessarily all that sunny, because we still have that relatively mild and murky current south—westerly wind, in fact, bringing some outbreaks of rain to north—western areas. so the sunny, brighter skies will always be further towards the east and south and every bit as mild or warm, 20 degrees widely in some areas — mid or high teens. now, that warmth isn't going to stick around. in fact, saturday night into sunday, we're expecting this slightly cooler air mass or much cooler air mass drifting in out of the west and the north atlantic and brought also by this area of low pressure, which is expected to sweep

in some rain to many north—western areas of the uk. so yes, we've got three days of relatively mild if not warm weather given some sunny spells, but by the time we get to sunday and certainly into monday, it's all change — colder and outbreaks of rain from time to time.

from space — to land and sea. security and economic ties between the us and japan have been given their largest—ever upgrade. and we break down the challenges and opportunities created by migrants arriving in the world's number one economy. hello and welcome to asia business report. i'm steve lai. our top story today —— japan and the united states are forging an even closer relationship following a bilateral summit in washington. prime minister fumio kishida and presidentjoe biden unveiled a wide range of agreements that will enhance notjust security but economic ties as well. aside from plans to upgrade their military alliance, the two historical allies also reached deals aimed at boosting cooperation to develop artificial intelligence,