speaking e11 m 5mm at the un to- court in speaking at the un to- court in res-onse to at the un top court in response to south africa's called for an end to israeli military action in rafah. this is the scene live in the hague, israel has complained the court is being exploited by south africa. police in france have shot dead a man who tried to set fire to a synagogue in central rouen. the authorities were called after smoke was seen rising from the building. the head of uk firm south west water has apologised for the outbreak of a diarrhoea—type illness in south devon due to a parasite found in the water. we begin in the middle east where us officials say trucks carrying aid have begun moving ashore via a temporary pier in gaza. washington is urging israel to do

more to provide sustained humanitarian access and says it's deeply concerned about reports of imminent famine. officials have called for the rafah crossing to be reopened as soon as possible. egypt stopped allowing in supplies after israel seized control of the gaza side. the two countries have blamed each other for its continued closure. speaking at a news conference, the white house press secretary, karine—jean pierre, said more needed to be done. the facts on the ground tell us, we don't have to be scientist to see the consequences of the removal of food. also, forfamine, particularly the removal of medical care and nutrition care, which is the precursor to... nutrition care, which is the precursorto... famine nutrition care, which is the precursor to... famine kills through disease, as well as hunger.

benjamin netanyahu benjamin neta nyahu was benjamin netanyahu was speaking to troops and he was shown flying over the gaza strip with military officers. he made comments after a very public spat with his defence minister yoav gallant over the future of gaza. he was speaking in a visit to soldiers at a military base. translation: the battle for rafah is critical. - it is notjust the rest of their battalions, it is also their oxygen pipes for escape and resupply. this battle, of which you are an integral part, is a battle that decides many things in this campaign. i repeat, we are in a critical battle now. your action helps to end it. also today, lawyers acting for israel

are responding at the un's top court to south africa's call for an end to israeli military action in rafah and across gaza. israel has complained that the international court ofjustice is being exploited by south africa. it says it didn't want the gaza war and is under attack and fighting to defend itself and citizens, and that biased and false claims that relied on hamas sources have been presented to the court. it insisted that israel acted in accordance with international law and its humanitarian obligations. south african lawyers told the court in the hague that israel had intended from the beginning to destroy palestinian life. they said palestinians needed protection from genocide. joining me now from jerusalem, dan johnson. bring us up to date with events in gaza and tell us about the

new pier. events in gaza and tell us about the new ier. , , ., , events in gaza and tell us about the new ier. , , , , new pier. yes, this has been built b the us new pier. yes, this has been built by the us military _ new pier. yes, this has been built by the us military and _ new pier. yes, this has been built by the us military and has - new pier. yes, this has been built by the us military and has been l by the us military and has been operationaljust for a by the us military and has been operational just for a few by the us military and has been operationaljust for a few hours this morning. it enables larger ships to dock with aid consignments that are being shipped from cyprus and they are ferried to the shore, so this is another route for aid to reach the hungry palestinian refugees of gaza. but the emphasis by the us, the un and others involved in this operation is that this is a temporary measure, it is additional, it does not replace the aid flows that should be continuing through gaza's land borders. it has been a serious issue of the last week particularly with the rafah crossing with egypt having been closed after israel's military moved in on the gaza side of the border crossing. that was somewhere that was key to the delivery of aid for the palestinians even before the

current conflict and the emphasis is even though it is a positive step that will enable some aid shipments to dock and directly delivered to gaza's shows, the land routes need to be re—established, secured and maintained, so that proper aid, enough food, fuel and shelter and medical supplies can be brought in for the hundreds of thousands of palestinian refugees, particularly those from rafah itself who have been on the move again in the last week with the intensify military operations around rafah. i week with the intensify military operations around rafah. i have been talkin: operations around rafah. i have been talking about — operations around rafah. i have been talking about it _ operations around rafah. i have been talking about it in _ operations around rafah. i have been talking about it in the _ talking about it in the international court ofjustice about international court of justice about which international court ofjustice about which land crossings are open and which land crossings are open and which aren't, bring us up to date with the situation as it stands at the moment. how is aid getting in if not via the new pier?— not via the new pier? yeah, there are other land _ not via the new pier? yeah, there are other land crossings - not via the new pier? yeah, there are other land crossings apart - not via the new pier? yeah, there l are other land crossings apart from rafah. that is the crossing with egypt which has been closed for close to ten days now. there are

other land borders with israel but they have been disrupted too in the last few weeks on occasions, the israeli lawyer saying there in the international court ofjustice this morning the most serious disruption has been because hamas was firing at one of the border posts. trying to pin responsibility for that disruption on hamas rather than israel. but aid flows have stopped, slowed, there has been disruption, on the one hand, because of protesters in israel who have blockaded some aid convoys coming to gaza and the convoys who make it to the land crossings are subject to delay while they are searched by israeli officials to check what is being carried into gaza to make sure aid is not reaching hamas fighters or that weapons are not being smuggled in by those routes. the number of trucks able to cross into gaza has been vastly reduced through the conflict, even on a good day still does not manage to match which

was previously reaching palestinian refugees and what is needed to keep them from famine. the message consistently has been israel needs to enable more aid to reach gaza and even though it has supported the construction of this floating dock which will help some more shipments to get to the refugees, more still needs to happen and that should be regarded only as a temporary measure and that the proper flow of aid through the land routes needs to be insured for the long term.— insured for the long term. because aaain it insured for the long term. because again it has — insured for the long term. because again it has been _ insured for the long term. because again it has been the _ insured for the long term. because again it has been the focus - insured for the long term. because again it has been the focus of - again it has been the focus of debate today in the international court ofjustice, the question of this offensive on rafah and we heard there from the prime minister basically saying from the military perspective, from israel's military perspective, from israel's military perspective, the assault on rafah is essential, critical, ithink perspective, the assault on rafah is essential, critical, i think that was the word prime minister netanyahu used. he was the word prime minister netanyahu used.— was the word prime minister netanyahu used. he has been bolstering _ netanyahu used. he has been bolstering that _ netanyahu used. he has been bolstering that message - netanyahu used. he has been bolstering that message with |

netanyahu used. he has been i bolstering that message with his netanyahu used. he has been - bolstering that message with his own troops and with the israeli people and south africa's case at the international court ofjustice is that israel's entire campaign in gaza but particularly the operation around rafah in the last ten days amounts to a genocidal act against the palestinian people. israel rejects it, says it is not talent the micro—targeting the palestinians, never done that, the focusing has been on eradicating hamas —— says it is not targeting the palestinians. rafah is the last holder of hamas battalions, they say. that is what i need to focus to wipe out the threat and secure gaza from the escape routes and tunnels and jimmy netanyahu was describing there, when he talks about air pipes supplying hamas, he means tunnels under the border between egypt and gaza are used in the past to supply weapons and ammunition and get supplies to hamas fighters, that is

the sort of thing israel says military activity is focused on, not targeting palestinian refugees. but still, they are disrupted enormously by the military activity. hundreds of thousands of refugees have been uprooted once more by the military activity in rafah, even though it has fallen short, limited compared to the all—out assault that had been warned of. to the all-out assault that had been warned of. ., ~ , ., to the all-out assault that had been warned of. ., ~ ,, g ., warned of. thank you, don johnson, injerusalem- _ warned of. thank you, don johnson, in jerusalem. let _ warned of. thank you, don johnson, in jerusalem. let us _ warned of. thank you, don johnson, in jerusalem. let us go _ warned of. thank you, don johnson, in jerusalem. let us go to _ warned of. thank you, don johnson, in jerusalem. let us go to the - injerusalem. let us go to the hague. as you will be aware, the special motion being put forward has been debated for the second day today, we have currently a top israeli official talking now. let us listen and then we will have a chat to our correspondence listening across the proceedings for the last hour and a half to give us a summary of what we have been hearing. the of what we have been hearing. tta: humanitarian coordinator of what we have been hearing. tt2 humanitarian coordinator appointed following security conflict resolution 2720 said on the 24th of

april in a briefing to the un security council that israel has taken a number of steps to improve aid delivery. when asked about her contacts with the israeli side, she said there is a very constructive cooperation with her mission. senior government officials of their waste states likewise said they saw real and demonstrable progress in the delivery of a —— of various states. south africa, to say as they do that israel is deliberately denying humanitarian aid, it could not be further from the truth. on the contrary, israeli actions undertaken in accordance with orders from israel highest levels of government show exactly the opposite. only

yesterday, no less than 365 trucks carrying humanitarian supplies entered into gaza through the various land crossings. more than 330 of the tracks entered through callum shalom crossing, the same crossing south africa said yesterday was shut down —— kerem shalom crossing. contrary to south africa's allegations, thousands of international aid have been entering and exiting gaza. the complexion prisons were reviewed following highly unfortunate incidents in order to guarantee the safety is always maintained ——

deconfliction. fuel continues to be delivered to gaza, including on wednesday when thousands of litres were transferred to the world food programme. times do not permit setting the record straight with regard to all of south africa's outrageous misrepresentations. but the claim that israel deliberately hampering medical services in gaza, or that rafah is the last viable location for medical care, it cannot be left unanswered. studio: the principal deputy legal adviser of the ministry of foreign affairs of israel, speaking live at the international court ofjustice at the hague. let us bring in our correspondent anna holligan parfor

us and listening across. today israel has been responding to what the south african side put forward yesterday, perhaps we should talk about their main accusations and how israel has responded today. yes. israel has responded today. yes, south africa _ israel has responded today. yes, south africa has _ israel has responded today. yes, south africa has accused - israel has responded today. t2: south africa has accused israel of violating the genocide convention essentially and asked the judges for an urgent injunction. these provisional measures. to prevent the situation from deteriorating further. it wants the judges to call an immediate ceasefire for idf troops to withdraw from rafah, for humanitarian aid to be guaranteed and for the unimpeded access for humanitarian aid workers, un investigators and journalists, so that if any violations of the genocide convention are being committed, evidence can be gathered. israel has been responding and i have just made israel has been responding and i havejust made some israel has been responding and i have just made some notes to give you a summary of what we have heard so far in the last hour and 50

minutes. israel legal team said it was an inversion of reality, a picture divorced from the facts, presented by south africa yesterday. and it accused south africa of exploiting the genocide convention. if israel says the judges decide to intervene, this is the un's highest court, and has the power to issue provisional measures, israel says if that were to happen it would be denying israel the right to defend itself and hamas would be continued to allowed to commit crimes. there is a danger, the israeli representative said, the court will find itself engaged in the micromanagement of armed conflicts. while south africa presents itself as the guardian of humanity, armed conflict is not a synonym for genocide. israel went on to talk about a number of incidents and set it is acting in accordance with international conventions, israel has the capacity and mechanisms, the lawyers said, to investigate

allegations of wrongdoing. in fact, in support of this, they pointed to some images you may rememberfrom earlier this week which appeared to show groups of israelis attacking an aid convoy destined for gaza. it said there was an investigation under way and that any wrongdoing would be prosecuted to ensure the transfer of aid into gaza. israel also said that efforts had been made consistently to alleviate humanitarian suffering and a state wishing to commit genocide would not provide aid. in fact, israel said, it is targeting hamas and has no desire, no intention to destroy the palestinians in gaza, as south africa has alleged. you might be able to hear in the background there is a small group of israelis with flags just outside the gates of the court, they are also watching the hearing happening inside the peace palace behind me on a big screen, so

we have about 45 minutes left of israel delivering its response to south africa's claims. then it will probably be next week or the following week when the judges rule on whether or not to issue a provisional measures order as requested by south africa. bum requested by south africa. anna holli . an requested by south africa. anna holligan at _ requested by south africa. anna holligan at the _ requested by south africa. anna holligan at the hey, _ requested by south africa. anna holligan at the hey, thank- requested by south africa. anna holligan at the hey, thank you. if you would like more coverage, you can go to the website —— at the hague. in the uk, you can watch the court proceedings live and uninterrupted on the news website and also on bbc iplayer. around the world and across the uk, this bbc news.

france's interior minister says police have shot dead a man who had attempted to set fire to a synagogue in the city of rouen.

officers were confronted by a man wielding a knife and an iron bar when they arrived at the scene in the north—western city. when the suspect appeared to advance on them, one of the police officers shot him dead. the mayor of rouen said the entire city was bruised and shocked. what else do we know, hugh schofield? itide what else do we know, hugh schofield?— what else do we know, hugh schofield? ~ ., ., , ., schofield? we have a bit more detail, schofield? we have a bit more detail. we _ schofield? we have a bit more detail, we know _ schofield? we have a bit more detail, we know the _ schofield? we have a bit more detail, we know the police - schofield? we have a bit more | detail, we know the police were called after smoke was seen emerging from the top of the synagogue right in the middle of rouen at 6:45am this morning. they arrived quickly on the scene with firefighters and when they did there was a man up on the roof, high up outside upper story of the building on the outside who came down and confronted them.

they ordered him to surrender, he didn't, he lunged at them with a long knife, and at that point he was shot dead. the mayor of the city spoke to camera crews afterwards and said that the man appeared to have got into the synagogue through an upstairs window, he scaled the wall somehow, and thrown in a molotov cocktail, firebomb, into the building. photographs shown on french television show there is a certain amount of damage inside, scorch marks on the walls, there was a fire in there, it caught fire, but does not look like it was too extensive. there will be a certain amount of repairs that need to be done on site but hasn't devastated the building. nonetheless of course for the jewish committee the building. nonetheless of course for thejewish committee of rouen, a huge shock, this coming at a time of growing anxiety on the part of the jewish population of france as a whole about the growing number of

anti—semitic attacks and incidents —— thejewish community. hugh -- the jewish community. hugh schofield in _ -- the jewish community. hugh schofield in paris, _ -- the jewish community. hugh schofield in paris, thank- -- the jewish community. hugh schofield in paris, thank you. i here in the uk, south west water says a faulty valve in a field containing cattle has been identified as a possible source of a parasite that's contaminated water supplies in south devon. 22 cases of cryptosporidiosis have been confirmed. the queue for bottled water stretched all the way down this road, 130,000 were handed out by south west water by 5:00 yesterday. we have got two children that have been ill last week because we're in the actual affected area, sort of high brixham. just keep being informed would be good, just about where it's going, how long it's going to be. it's not very good, really, is it? do you know what i mean? but the fact they're giving water out is a start i suppose. people here are angry about what they say is a lack of clear communication.

for over a week, people in the fishing town of brixham have been falling ill with diarrhea and vomiting. on tuesday, south west water said the drinking water was safe. but by wednesday there was a u—turn when tests showed water found near this storage site was contaminated. south west water said they'd found traces of cryptosporidium, a microscopic parasite which can be carried in water. the company said an air valve possibly contaminated with animal faeces could be the problem. we've identified that there's a damaged valve on part of our network, which could be the cause. we're doing further work to make sure we're absolutely confident that's the cause and the only cause. we're working through operational procedures. in the meantime, we're also doing further sampling to make sure we're really confident in that cause. it's told 16,000 households and businesses not to use tap water for drinking and brushing teeth without boiling and cooling it first. jess blake was enjoying her holiday in brixham last week until she fell ill.

you expect that when you go abroad to have to boil water and drink bottled water, but you don't expect it when you go on holiday to devon in your own country. so, yeah, i think the water board need investigating. some schools have been forced to shut. eden park primary was one of them. some pupils were allowed in but only to take their sats exams and then leave. they've got no drinking water, so i totally understand that they've got to close. but it's not really an acceptable situation for south west water to leave the school in. south west water says it did deliver water to all schools and it's offered to pay £115 in compensation to customers. but its chief executive admitted the service had fallen significantly short of what customers should expect. it could be a week before tap water here is back to normal. aruna iyengar, bbc news. injapan the

in japan the parliament injapan the parliament has approved a bill to amend the civil code under the laws to allow divorced parents to share custody of children. when finalised, thejoint to share custody of children. when finalised, the joint custody system is set to be implemented by 2026. japan is the last g7 country to legally recognise joint custody. our tokyo correspondent explains how it works at the moment. under the current custody code, only one parent is granted custody if the divorced parents go to the family court. tt divorced parents go to the family court. , ., ., ., ., . court. if they agree on a divorce, the can court. if they agree on a divorce, they can decide _ court. if they agree on a divorce, they can decide among _ court. if they agree on a divorce, i they can decide among themselves. court. if they agree on a divorce, - they can decide among themselves. if they can decide among themselves. if they resort to a family court, it will be decided one parent gets custody. most of the time, it is the mother, because she is the primary caregiver. injapan's patriarchal society, it still falls upon women to do the bulk of childcare and when it comes to divorce the care then. than. the criticism of the several custody system in japan has than. the criticism of the several custody system injapan has had many

facades, one is the fact that this causes children to be estranged to one parent and also the fact the onus falls on one parent to take care of the children and sometimes not get child support on time. it also there has been child parental abduction were apparent takes the child out of the family home and when thejudge decides child out of the family home and when the judge decides about custody they take into consideration the amount of time a child has spent with one particular parent. this is why this amendment has come in place, it has proven controversial, but one of the ruling liberal democratic party mps have told us it is also to do with the fact the divorce rates injapan have risen, affecting about 200,000 children. really interesting. just two end this half an hour programme, i want to show you these pictures, super

cute, four were tiger cubs have been born at longleat safari park in wiltshire. the week—old baby are currently being nurtured by their mum. the keepers at the park say their birth as important as the species is currently listed as endangered. the help its visitors will be able to see them in the summer once they have had their inoculations. there you go. told you they were cute pictures. stay with us on bbc news. hello. we have seen more sunshine develop and it will continue to do for many through the day. big difference for those across parts of northern england, midlands and wales, a lot

more sunshine around. heavy showers forming here and there. low pressure still in charge, but this is the old weather front from yesterday sitting across parts of southern scotland, northern england, north and west wales, producing cloud, misty over the hills and coasts, but away from that, a few showers brewing in england and wales, nowhere near as wet as yesterday. thunderstorms in the highlands. could get to 23 there this afternoon. a warm day in the sunshine. pleasant evening for most. a few showers and thunderstorms rumbling. the story turns to some extensive mist and fog coming in off the north sea, may be as far west as glasgow and birmingham saturday morning. not too chilly, temperatures lowest 6—7 . most in double figures starting the weekend. the chart for the week and shows a bit of optimism, high pressure trying to build in from the north and west, not fully with us yet, still low pressure dominating to the

south and east. here we continue to see showers roll in. mist and fog to start a rather grey saturday. anchoring on the coasts. showers will break, but with the high pressure, wales and the southwest in particular where some could be heavy and thundery. quieter particular where some could be heavy and thundery. ouieterfor particular where some could be heavy and thundery. quieter for parts of western scotland, and the highest of the temperatures here, 23 around glasgow and loch lomond. sunday, more in the way of sunshine for england and wales, high pressure toppling down, quite a misty end for the start and low cloud lingering on north sea coasts. showers in scotland. for many, a dry day on sunday warm again. temperatures up to 22-23 sunday warm again. temperatures up to 22—23 across wales and the south—west. the brief ridge of high pressure lasting into monday, but low pressure coming in from both sides next week. expect more in the

way of showers after a fine start. when the sunshine is out, temperatures still a bit above normal for the time of year.

this is bbc news, the headlines... chancellorjeremy hunt is promising further tax cuts if the

conservatives win the next general election. bbc news has learned that israeli soldiers are still sharing images of palestinians in detention in the occupied west bank. we have a report from bbc verify. itide in the occupied west bank. we have a report from bbc verify.— in the occupied west bank. we have a report from bbc verify. we have been anal sin report from bbc verify. we have been analysing social— report from bbc verify. we have been analysing social media _ report from bbc verify. we have been analysing social media posts - report from bbc verify. we have been analysing social media posts from - analysing social media posts from the west bank by soldiers in the israeli army. legal experts say this footage may constitute a war crime. their head of the uk firm south west water has apologised for the outbreak of diarrhoea —type illness in south devon due to a parasite found in the water. i'm sarah campbell, you are watching bbc news. chancellorjeremy hunt has been speaking about the uk economy this morning. inflation has moved closer to the bank of england's 2% target and recent economic indicators have shown the uk had returned to growth. the chancellor

said the economy is back on its feet and