we believe this is an opportunity that we all must seize to bring this conflict to a permanent end. in south africa, the ruling anc party loses its majority — for the first time since apartheid ended 30 years ago. in the uk election campaign, jobs, skills and funding for local towns takes centre stage — as party leaders tour the country. boeing's first manned space mission is postponed — just minutes before it was due to blast off. hello and welcome to bbc news, i'm lukwesa burak. to the middle east, where hamas has indicated it is willing to discuss

a new plan to end the war in gaza, unveiled by us presidentjoe biden. the israeli prime minister, benjamin netanyahu, has again insisted that the war will end only once hamas is destroyed. the opposition leader, yair lapid, has urged the prime minister to accept the proposal. speaking earlier, mr lapid suggested that if right—wing members of benjamin netanyahu's coalition resigned in protest, his party would continue to support the government in its efforts to secure a hostage deal. it comes as mr netanyahu repeated that israel will continue to focus on the destruction of hamas and the freeing of all hostages. he was responding to a three—phase proposalfrom us presidentjoe biden, who says hamas is no longer capable of launching another october 7 style attack on israel.

meanwhile, egyptian state—linked tv is reporting a meeting between egyptian, us and israeli officials will take place sunday to discuss the re—opening of the rafah crossing. speaking to the bbc earlier, the uk's foreign secretary, lord cameron, gave us his thoughts on the deal. i think what the deal contains is a staged process for the release of hostages in the first phase and a pause in the fighting, and then it goes on to a second stage with a longer pause, with more israeli withdrawals and the release of further hostages, then going on to a third stage, hopefully without any return to fighting, when you get on to the rebuilding of gaza. now, of course, all these plans are incredibly difficult to put in place. but fundamentally why i think this is a moment we should seize to try

and bring this conflict to an end permanently is that, you know, it's one thing to call for a ceasefire, but of course, if you can't put in place the conditions that make a ceasefire sustainable, then it won't last. and this is an attempt to start to put those conditions in place, because we all know you've got to look at issues of israeli security and issues of palestinian statehood alongside each other in order to make a deal last and to solve this problem. let's speak to our north america correspondent, will vernon, who's in washington. how significant do think the latest proposal is? it all sounded very positive on friday, told mr netanyahu spoke. but as the us than onus? ., ., ., ., , , onus? you have got a pretties tricky situation here _ onus? you have got a pretties tricky situation here for— onus? you have got a pretties tricky situation here for president - onus? you have got a pretties tricky situation here for president biden. l situation here for president biden. we heard yesterday in a pretty

optimistic white house address, using quite grand language, saying it is time for this war to end and for the day after to begin, setting out that the stage peace proposal. mr biden is desperately hoping every make and hamas will sign up to that plan. mr biden address yesterday tried to draw a line under the conflict, essentially sing to the israelis, you have achieved your main objective year, hamas is no longer in any kind of position to stage the sort of attack we saw on october 7 last year. now we saw benjamin then had a shoe today taking some of the sheen off the biden announcement. he reiterated the israeli war would not end until the israeli war would not end until the complete destruction of hamas and all its capabilities. i think the white house now will be working on a strategy to try and put more

pressure on the israelis to accept a steel and hamas as well, of course. that's why we have seen this flurry of phone calls between us secretary of phone calls between us secretary of the antony blinken and all the major key players in the region, because most of the region desperately want this deal to work, most of the world wants it to work, and certainly us officials will be hoping that will be the case. does the us still— hoping that will be the case. does the us still have _ hoping that will be the case. does the us still have that _ hoping that will be the case. does the us still have that leveraged with benjamin netanyahu? we the us still have that leveraged with benjamin netanyahu? we saw that leveraued with benjamin netanyahu? we saw that leveraged come — with benjamin netanyahu? we saw that leveraged come to _ with benjamin netanyahu? we saw that leveraged come to play _ with benjamin netanyahu? we saw that leveraged come to play last _ with benjamin netanyahu? we saw that leveraged come to play last month - leveraged come to play last month when in an interview with cnn, president biden and nancy had paused one major shipment of heavy weapons to the israelis, and the others were under review. that followed on from a phone call between the two leaders, they haven't seen eye to eye on a lot of things since the conflict started, in which president biden gave the israelis an

ultimatum, saying you have to provide concrete steps to improving the humanitarian situation in gaza, otherwise us policy might change. we saw this shipment of heavy weapons, which can be used in population centres, such as rafah, those are now on pause, several of them. although america remains israel's greatest ally, the largest supplier of weapons, that has been increasing frustration with the way the israelis have been conducting this war. , , ., ., , war. just to reiterate, the reuters news agency _ war. just to reiterate, the reuters news agency has _ war. just to reiterate, the reuters news agency has confirmed - war. just to reiterate, the reuters news agency has confirmed that l war. just to reiterate, the reuters i news agency has confirmed that the us secretary of state, antony blinken, has been speaking via the phone. a lot of diplomatic efforts at the moment. he has been speaking with top officials from not only egypt, but also qatar and united

arab emirates, trying to push this peace plan forward. in south africa, with almost all the results from this week's election now in, the african national congress — the oldest liberation movement on the african continent — has lost its outright majority for the first time in 30 years, since the end of apartheid. many voters blame the anc for high levels of crime and corruption, and failures in the supply of basic necessities, such as water and electricity. and so begins a new era in south african politics, as president cyril ramaphosa — who himself helped negotiate the end of apartheid — begins the search for coalition partners. the bbc�*s africa correspondent, barbara plett usher reports. the verdict is almost in — still not official results, but they're clear. the anc has lost its unrivalled political power.

it's done even worse than expected, punished by voters, angry about economic mismanagement and corruption scandals. this is a shock to the system for the anc, the celebrated liberation movement humbled by this verdict on its governance. it's the most dramatic political shift in south africa since the end of apartheid, and no one knows exactly what will happen next. we ask for all electoral stakeholders to please remain calm, for leaders to lead this nation at this time, and for voices of reason to continue to prevail. the anc was born out of the struggle against apartheid, the violence of white minority rule that kept black people separate and unequal. archive: there's mr mandela. mr nelson mandela — a free man. the moment of triumph — nelson mandela released from prison, the first black president

in south africa's new democracy. the downfall marked by another president, jacob zuma. he presided over a period of rampant corruption. understandably, i'm very disappointed. this anc veteran says the party has not recovered since then. we have failed. we talk about renewal, the renewal of the anc, and it would take the form of making sure that elements who are really corrupt are removed from the organisation and we've really failed to act decisively to do that. the anc is still the biggest party, but it's lost its majority. south africa now faces weeks of turbulent coalition talks. barbara plett usher, bbc news, johannesburg. our correspondent, catherine byaru hanga, has more from johannesburg. we're already hearing from the opposition parties that

could form alliances with the anc. the eff, julius malema's eff, say they are willing to enter negotiations with the anc, but their focus is on some economic concessions. for example, they want to open a state bank. they want the expropriation of land without compensation. so, the mk party will negotiate with the anc as long as cyril ramaphosa is not the head of the party. so there are weeks of tricky negotiations ahead for the anc, which is facing these terrible results. well, to discuss this, we arejoined byjamie, an africa researcher based in south africa. jamie, we're talking about this as a shock for the anc. how much of a shock is it for south africans? well, i think for south africans, some of this was expected. what was not expected was the scale of basically the drop of the anc in this election.

the projections are looking at it's going to be close to 40, but not quite 40, which is a i7% drop from the last election. so the scale of drop is something that was so inconceivable in terms of conceptually for many people. but the idea, or the reality that the anc was in decline, the writing was on the wall. everybody who's been living with load sharing, with water sharing, and these are water cuts and power cuts — for the international audience — has been frustrated for a long time. the unemployment numbers actually crept up a little bit. high cost of living, similar to what we're seeing in the uk. and all of that created a negative sentiment bubble, which there was no real strategy to assuage. and in the midst of all of this, the anc has to form new political alliances with parties perhaps it's been at loggerheads with for many years. how do you think the anc is going to manoeuvre all of this? well, the anc is adept at making compromises and shifting on its core positioning

in the name of realpolitik. so they've made coalitions over the years which have befuddled people who only approach politics from an ideological or principle standpoint. so, they are able to make deals. but some deals are worse than others. and the other key figure in these elections has been the former president, jacob zuma. his party is projected to win around 15% of the vote. if he's not in the coalition government with the anc, what kind of a role do you think he'll play within south african politics? well, his role, basically — if i were to use a mafia reference — would be that of a godfather, somebody who gives the direction, somebody who gives instruction and who gives the preference. but we do know that dudu zuma is also on the parliamentary list, she is very high up, she will be going to parliament. so she will be one of the key... that's his daughter. yes, that's his daughter. she will be one of the people who will be also trying to make sure

that her father's vision on the floor is executed, as he may have preferred. but we've also seen that he does have an appetite to return to parliament. we heard the spokesperson for mk saying that one of their conditions, if ever they were to deal with the anc, is that there be a pardon for president zuma. if you recall, with the constitutional court case, they said, hey, the hard demarcator is if you get pardoned, you can go back to parliament. but just the fact that your sentence was reduced doesn't allow you to go back to parliament. and heeding thatjudgment, they're now negotiating for a full pardon. and finally with president cyril ramaphosa, we really haven't seen him since election day. what does this mean for his position within south african politics? well, it does mean he's gathering courage. these are difficult spaces to be in when you've taken the hardest beating as a leader of a party that has ever been given to that particular party.

so we'll see him inevitably tomorrow. but i also think that they're trying to figure out what the messaging is going to be, how he's going to spin it. he typically does not enjoy tough interviews, and that's also why he hasn't shown up here. but realistically, he's very vulnerable right now. there are many calls that are being made in various circles that he actually has to give up the ghost and allow other people to lead the party and try to rebuild the party. thank you very much, jamie, forjoining us here on bbc news. so, time is of the essence for the anc because according to south africa's constitution, the next parliament needs to sit within 14 days of the election results being announced. and on that first sitting, the parliament has to elect the president. so there is a real pressure on the anc to make sure that its chosen leader, president cyril ramaphosa, retains his position in the country.

these are going to be difficult days for the politicians, but also south africans, who are concerned about any kind of political instability. after a week of general election campaigning here in the uk, all parties are once again out and about this weekend, vying for public support. prime minister rishi sunak has pledged to give 30 towns across the uk, £20 million each — if the conservatives are re—elected. labour, meanwhile, has vowed to boost employment and increase support for people living with long—term illness. and from the liberal democrats — a promise to make ten premier league games available on free—to—air—tv per season. our political correspondent, ione wells, reports. applause and cheering cheers, change and cheesy grins. labour are hoping to show a positive front today, with... the launch of the bus — angela's bus. and doesn't it look fantastic?

laughter ..after their campaign was a little derailed this week by internal fallout over whether diane abbott could run as a labour candidate. sir keir starmer clarified yesterday she was free to stand. well, i dealt with that issue yesterday. today is about taking our argument to the country, and getting people back to work. there are millions of people who aren't in work, who are on benefits, who desperately want the dignity and respect of being back to work. we're putting our plan on the table to reform thejob centres so that they can actually be places that support people back into work. applause and cheering the conservatives are also trying to refocus this weekend, after another former tory mp said they were switching their allegiance to labour. and that's what we're going to stop, aren't we? audience cheers rishi sunak�*s pitch to stop others following was a promise to invest £20 million in 30 towns. the majority are seats currently held by the conservatives. he denied the choice was political. i'm not going to make any apology for supporting towns. it's where the majority

of people live. they were neglected for decades under previous labour governments, and we're in teesside today, it's a great example of a place that we've focused on as a government. people can see the change in the community as it's happened. i want to make sure we spread that type of opportunity and pride right across the country. the liberal democrat leader, sir ed davey, says he is taking today to care for his son, who has severe disabilities. his campaign, though, are out touring the south coast. their pledge today is to change the law to force the premier league to show ten games per season on free—to—air television, criticising the rising cost of season tickets and subscription channels. manchester city, champions again! there are still weeks to go of this campaign, but all parties hope these pledges will help them be victorious on the 4th ofjuly. ione wells, bbc news. the scottish national party leader, john swinney, has also been on the campaign trail in aberdeen, where the party is targetting a number of conservative seats,

because of what he calls, "damage" done to the area's economy by "westminster politics". meanwhile, george galloway has launched his workers party of britain's general election campaign with an attack on labour. he told supporters, labour leader, sir keir starmer, was "indistinguishable" from rishi sunak and had "blood on his hands" over his position on gaza. mr galloway announced that his party was standing hundreds of candidates across the country and he'd be "extremely disappointed" if the number elected was not in double figures. now it's time for a look at today's sport. hello from the bbc sport centre. we start with the champions league final at wembley between the 14 time winners, real madrid and borussia dortmund who have

only lifted the trophy once in their history. the game was stopped briefly a few minutes after kick—off due to three pitch invadrrs. play has resumed, and after 17 minutes it is still 0—0. to the french open next — and the world number one and defending champion, novadk djokbovic will face the 30th seed, lorenzo musetti, in the night session later, looking for a place in the fourth round. already through to the last 16 is the olmpic champion, alexander zverev, who defeated the 26th seed, tallon griekspoor, but needed five sets to do it. griekspoor had a 4—1 lead in the deciding set, but seemed to struggle with the pressure of being on the verge of a first victory over a top ten player, allowing zverev back into the fifth set, and the german went on to win the match on a tie—break. tomas machac stunned world number one novak djokovic in the geneva open semifinals last month, but he wasn't able to pull off another upset against fifth seed daniil medvedev. the czech took the third set

of their third round match, but medvedev came back to win it after almost 3.5 hours. the world number two, aryna sabalenka, made sure of a place in the fourth round with a powerful performance against paolo badosa of spain. the two players are good friends and know each other�*s game styles well, but after a tight and entertaining first set, the two time australian open champion took advantage of a drop in badosa's form to win 7—5, 6—1 to reach the last 16. i don't know what actually gave me the advantage today. i was just tried to focus on myself, fight for every point. it was a really tough battle, i'm really happy to get through this one. on court we are opponents, but off court we are friends. the 2022 wimbledon champion, elena rybakina, also won her third round match without too much trouble. rybakina beat the 25th seed,

elise mertens 6—4, 6—2 and looks to be in good form in paris. the fourth seed reached the quarter finals of the french open in 2021, but hasn't got past the third round since then. to golf and the us women's open — the third round is well under way and the leading players are out on course on what is known as "moving day". the us open is notoriously difficult, with low scores a premium so there hasn't been a whole lot of movement very close at the top of the leaderboard the us women's open at the moment. to the dp world tour — where there is set to be an intriguing final day's play at the european tour at green eagles golf courses in hamburg. england's laurie canter

is in a share of the lead at i2—under. canter shot an even par 73 which included a handy birdie on the 18th. he's tied for top spot with guido migliozzi. the italian shot a flawless round of 67 including three in the last three holes. motogp championship leader jorge martin will be hoping he can bounce back in sunday's italian grand prix after crashing out of the sprint race. the spaniard was in third place when he went off the track with just four laps to go. reigning champion francesco bagnaia delighted his home crowd at mugello by claiming his first sprint race win of the season to cut martin's advantage to 27 points. fantastic atmosphere at wembley in that champions league final. it is still 0—0 between borussia dortmund and real madrid. and that's all the sport for now. the latest attempt by the american aerospace giant, boeing, to fly its first crew to the international space station has suffered another last minute setback.

the launch of its starliner spaceship, with two veteran astronauts on board, was halted in the final minutes of countdown from cape canaveral in florida. the previous attempt on may 6 was scrubbed due to an issue with oxygen pressure valves. earlier, i spoke to our science correspondent, pallab ghsoh. we came so close and all the flight controllers, one afteranother, said go, go, go, but the computer said no. tthat was less than four minutes before the launch. the ground launch system, which is a piece of software, it didn't load nasa and boeing don't know why that is and it could be that they spotted something the flight controllers didn't and it could be something with one

of the components on the system or it could just be software and if it is the latter that will be easily fixed and they could have another go but it if it is one of the system is a could take a lot longer. who else is part of this programme? the main party is boeing and they have taken on spacex to provide competition for the contract to supply crews and astronauts to the international space station. there is also the united launch alliance, who also have the rockets and spacecraft bit on top, and of course there is nasa. so between the three of them, they wanted to get this first test flight off the ground but unfortunately it has been delayed and delayed because various technical issues and this is just the latest part of this long story, but i think what boeing would say is that after all these delays in having come so close,

it is probably worth putting an extra day or so, particularly as there were astronauts on board, better safe than sorry. other parties have managed crewed missions. yes, notably elon musk�*s spacex, and that was in 2020 so they are still behind a bit. boeing will hope it can fix the problem and catch up as soon as they can. so, possibly a relaunch tomorrow, another attempt? tomorrow is the earliest, but we will have to wait to see to find out what the data says and why the computer said no. stay with us on bbc news. hello there. high pressure has brought most of us a fine and dry day. there's been plenty of sunshine around as well, particularly in scotland, where we've seen temperatures into the low 20s in the warmest spots.

i'm sure that would have felt very pleasant indeed. central and eastern england, meanwhile, had a bit more in the way of cloud, but most areas of at least managed some cloud breaks and some sunny spells. now, overnight tonight clear skies dominates the weather picture, with high pressure firmly in charge. these clear skies will allow temperatures to drop away really quickly. and so it's going to be quite a cold night. temperatures even in the towns and cities down to single figures for some and down as low as 5 degrees in the coldest parts of rural northern england and scotland. same area of high pressure is with us through sunday. this weather front is eventually going to bring thicker cloud in and eventually some rain to the very far north—west of scotland. and it may well be quite a nice sunrise for scotland and northern ireland with this cloud getting illuminated by the rising sun. the afternoon, though, sees a bit of rain edging into the highlands and the islands. away from that it's dry, and for eastern areas of england, notably, there's going to be much less cloud around, the winds are a lot lighter,

it's going to be a lot warmer. temperatures climbing up to about 22 degrees in the warmest spots, whereas temperatures come down a little bit for scotland and northern ireland. that's because we've got this cold front working its way southwards and that will continue to push south on monday as well, bringing with it cloudier weather, an odd spit of rain, not much. and once the front�*s through in scotland on monday, the sunshine comes back out, just a few showers across the far north. now, temperatures on monday will be coming downjust a little bit. but still where the june sunshine comes out through the afternoon, it will feel pleasantly warm with temperatures into the high teens or low 20s. it's through tuesday and wednesday we'll see some much cooler air arriving, particularly across the northern half of the uk. and this heralds the arrival of some pretty unsettled weather conditions, really. showers become widespread across scotland, northern england and northern ireland, some of them with hail and thunder mixed in, could be a few showers developing through the day, further southwards as well. and those temperatures continue to ease down a little bit. still 20 in london, but 14 in glasgow. well, the average of this time of year is closer to 18 degrees.

and that cool showery theme to the weather continues. then through much of the rest of the week for scotland and northern ireland, temperatures nearer average for england and wales, with some pleasantjune sun.

this is bbc news, the headlines... the united states, egypt and qatar urge israel and hamas to finalise a new deal to end the war in gaza. a senior hamas official has told the bbc the group

will accept the proposals if israel does. in south africa, the ruling anc has lost its majority for the first time since apartheid ended 30 years ago. the party has won around 40% of the vote and will now have to hold coalition talks. the uk election campaign is ramping up — labour launches a 5,000 mile �*battle bus tour�* promising to create wealth across the uk. prime minister rishi sunak visits north east england — pledging millions of pounds in funding for local towns if the conservatives hold on to power. after a week of general election campaigning here in the uk, all parties are once again out and about this weekend, vying for public support. our political correspondent, jessica parker has more from the campaign trail.