hamas says its leader, ismail haniyeh, has been killed in an israeli raid on his residence in tehran. it might be convenient for users, but it's also pretty handy for scammers. councils and police forces are warning about a rise in or code scams in places like car parks. i'll be taking a look. great britain win the men's 4x200m relay relay! gold for team gb's freestyle relay team, as they make it look easy in the pool. good morning. yesterday we reached 32 celsius in london, making it the warmest day of the software. to date for most it will be dry, sunny, warm or hot, but there is the risk of thunderstorms in the south—east. good morning. it's wednesday, the 31st ofjuly.

our main story. it's wednesday, the 31st ofjuly. hundreds of people attended a vigil in southport last night, to pay tribute to the three girls who were killed in a knife attack at a children's dance workshop. just hours later, violent clashes broke out close to where the girls were stabbed to death. 39 police officers were injured, with 27 needing hospital treatment. merseyside police described the violence as sickening, and the prime minister warned that the rioters would "feel the full force of the law". our correspondent lauren moss is in southport. good morning. it's another quiet, solemn morning on the corner of hart street, where monday pass took place. as you can see behind me, the bunches of flowers that started appearing yesterday morning, have now turned into hundreds and hundreds, with flowers, teddy bears, scarves and balloons bobbing in the

early morning sunlight. and i don't think there are any words to express how the families of the three little girls who died here in monday's attack feel. thousands of people came together in southport last night at a vigil to stand with them and the whole community. our first report is from tom symons. three girls, remembered by the time, a little more than 2a hours after a devastating act of violence. alice dasilva aguiar, nine, remembered as a smiling and dancing princess by her parents. bebe king, just six. herfamily said no words could describe the devastation of their loss. elsie dot stancombe, seven, described by her teachers as a caring and charismatic young lady, who loved to please. church bells ring. thousands attended the vigil in southport, some adding to the sea of flowers,

the emotions often visible. it's hard, come september that their little faces going to be in them schools. my daughter goes to a drama club, so it's very close to home, sort of thing. obviously if she went to a holiday club, you think your child is going to be safe, then something like this happens. it's just absolutely awful. it's very close to home. my daughter is nine - and she loves taylor swift. and, um... it was noticeable how tightly many parents held their children. earlier in the day the first responders, the ambulance crews who faced unimaginable injuries, were quietly clapped, followed by the firefighters, who also went to help. when the prime minister arrived to pay his own tribute, he was met with this raw expression of helplessness.

the person i've held as a child and you can't do— come here, sweetheart, come here. he can't do (beep). he's meant to be the prime minister! yesterday we started discovering the names of those who tried to help the children. leanne lucas ran the dance class where the attack happened. joel verity confronted the knifeman before the police arrived, and carried a child to safety, his friends say. eight children and two adults are still being treated for life threatening injuries. the ripples of this tragedy are spreading, from three bereaved families to those who helped the children, to the town of southport, and to all of us. tom symonds, bbc news. it was just a short time after that a few streets away from here that violence broke out near to a local mosque. the disorder, which police

believe in english defence league supporters. bricks were thrown, cars were set alight, and the north west ambulance service side 39 police officers were injured. daniel sandford reports. last night, the tragedy of southport descended into violence. a few hundred people had gathered outside the local mosque for a protest. they'd been fired up by social media posts that suggested, incorrectly, an islamist link to monday's stabbings. the protest has turned into a small riot, with large rocks being thrown at police officers wearing riot helmets and carrying shields. at times there was extreme violence as heavy rocks rained down on officers. a police vehicle was set on fire. the home secretary had earlier warned about disinformation linked to the attack. this violence, initially targeted at a mosque, seems to have been one of the consequences. the 17—year—old suspect in monday's

attack has no known links to islam. during the fighting, one officer suffered a broken nose. merseyside police said it believed the trouble was caused by supporters of the english defence league. it said the violence was sickening for a community already devastated by the tragic loss of three young lives. the home secretary said the people she had met in southport yesterday morning had wanted to thank the police. that's why it's so appalling to now see those same police facing violent attacks from thugs on the streets, who have no respect for a grieving community. it's a total disgrace. the rioters staged their violence less than 500 metres from the dance studio, where three girls aged six, seven and nine, were stabbed to death. daniel sandford, bbc news, southport. shocking scenes last night, lauren. do you want to bring us up to date with what merseyside police have had to say?

with what merseyside police have had to sa ? , ., , ., , with what merseyside police have had tosa? , ., to say? yes. in the early hours of this morning _ to say? yes. in the early hours of this morning merseyside - to say? yes. in the early hours of this morning merseyside police i this morning merseyside police assistant chief constable alex scott released a statement. he said, this is no way to treat a community, least of all a community that is still reeling from what happened on monday. an order has been put in place today, into this evening, to try to curb any anti—social behaviour. the police say these powers will be used, will not be used for anyone just visiting the area and going about their business, but specifically to tackle the sorts of scenes we saw not far from here last night. police appealed to anybody with information or video footage of those involved in shocking behaviour to come forward so they can identify and arrest those responsible. lauren, thank you. we will come back to you later. as we've been hearing, hundreds of people attended the vigil in southport last night. our reporter dave guest is where people gathered. good morning. dave, today the council is opening a book of condolence to allow even

more people to pay their respects? that's right. good morning. in times of tragedy ordinary, decent people want to find a way to show their sadness, there is sorrow, their shock at what has happened, and their solidarity with those affected. they do it with flowers, cards, balloons, candles and of course soft toys, because the of the very heart of this tragedy were children. last night, as you say, hundreds of people gathered here in the square in the centre of southport to pray, to share stories, and to think about what has happened, events that have completely shocked this time. later this morning the atkinson centre behind me will be opened with a book of condolence. that is for the three little girls who died and those in hospital, losing three adults who

bravely tried to prevent that attack on those children at the dance school. it's a cliche. journalists often say it is a community in shock and disbelief. but that is not a cliche here in southport. people here cannot believe what happened on a sunny summer's day as children attended a summer school of dance. the after—effects of what happened on that summer's day will live with this town very long time to come. undoubtedly. dave without update, thank you. and we will be in southport throughout the morning. jon is an update on some of the stories. we begin in iran with some developing use. yes, a big story coming out of the middle east this morning. hamas has announced that its leader ismail haniyeh has been killed in iran. in a statement the palestinian group said he was killed in an israeli raid on his home in the capital tehran. we're joined now by our middle east correspondent yolande knell. yolande, what more can you tell us?

of course, since the deadly hamas led october seven attacks, israel has really targeted senior figures in hamas, but so far, really apart from one quite senior figure who was killed in beirut earlier in the year, it has failed to get to those at the top of its most wanted list. israel has not commented directly on this. the military told me it doesn't comment on reports in foreign media. but of course that is who hamas believe is responsible. last night is mel haniyeh, he was in the iranian capital, along with the leaders of other armed groups who see themselves as the axis of resistance. he was there for the inauguration of iran's new president. we don't have many details about the attack apparently killed him and a bodyguard at a

hamas residence. but this would have been extremely carefully planned. we have had some hamas officials speak about it. one called it a great escalation. another said it was a cowardly act that would not go unpunished. what's not really clear yet is what effect it will have on the course of the war in gaza. ismaiel haniyeh was somebody overseeing the hostage release deal talks. he is somebody the israelis saw as being pragmatic and moderate compared to the hardline leaders of hamas who have remained in gaza, seen very much as being the masterminds of the october attacks. thank you for now. we will speak to you later. former bbc news presenter huw edwards will appear before westminster magistrates' court today, charged with three counts of making indecent images of children. the offences are alleged to have taken place between 2020 and 2022, and relate

to 37 images that were shared on a whatsapp chat, according to the metropolitan police. the broadcaster was arrested last november and charged last month. the government is expected to boost investment in renewable energy to a record £1.5 billion — up by £500 million from last year. it's after industry leaders called for more support. most of the sum will go towards offshore wind projects. labour has promised to quadruple their number by 2030. the broadcast regulator 0fcom has found quarter of the population don't watch any traditional tv each week. we're still watching an average of four and half hours of content every day though, just increasingly on platforms like youtube, tiktok and instagram.

there was more medaljoy for team gb on the fourth day of the olympics, with golds in the trap shooting and in the swimming pool, where the men's four by 200 metres freestyle relay team defended their title. with more, here's our sports reporter patrick gearey. they are british swimming's fab four —james guy, tom dean, matt richards and duncan scott. the 4 x 200 metre freestyle relay team, who qualified fastest, started fastest, and dominated theirfinal. there have been some close finishes in the pool. this wasn't one of them. scott was clear. gold to great britain on the men's 4 x 200 metres freestyle relay. obviously winning the gold in tokyo, we were silver in rio. um, and to win a game with these lads is fantastic. um, i think we're probably at the pinnacle of, uh, gb's freestyle swimming. what we're seeing is, you know, amazing. and to do that again, um, and repeat history, is pretty cool. earlier in the frothing, frantic finale of the 800 metres freestyle,

a momentous swim from daniel wiffen, who competes for ireland, and became the first athlete from northern ireland to win an olympic gold in 36 years. if those titles were won by heroic exertion, in trap shooting, stillness is a virtue. in this nerveless world, nathan hales rarely fails. the world record holder hit an olympic record of 48 targets out of 50. nathan hales destroys that target, and throws his fist up into the air. and finally, those sharp eyes could water. but how had he kept his nerve on the range? it was very difficult the whole way through, especially when we knew who was in the medals and tried to stay grounded the whole way through. stuck to my routine, used breathing techniques that we do with our psychologists. andy murray will be all action to the end. he and partner dan evans saved two match points on the way to beating sander gille and joran vliegen to reach the doubles quarterfinals.

murray's dream of retiring with another olympic medal lives on. patrick gearey, bbc news. amazing. if you are up early this morning to catch the action, some good news. 0lympic organisers have given the green light to the men's and women's triathlon events, after testing showed the water quality in the river seine was good enough to race. 0ur sports news correspondent laura scott is there for us this morning. laura, this must be a relief for the athletes competing? exactly. as you can probably see, it is raining. but there is a huge sense of relief here, notjust for the organisers, but obviously for the organisers, but obviously for the athletes too. because in the early hours of this morning the river seine passed the test. the water quality was deemed safe enough for the athletes to swim in, and

that comes after a few days of real uncertainty about whether the triathlon would take place, whether it would be reduced to a duathlon. but in the next hour the women's event will get started. we have real medal potential for great britain in that race because beth potter, a former athletics athlete, she competed in the 10,000 metres in rio, she transitioned to the triathlon, and she has thrived. she won the test event in paris last year. she comes in as the world champion. she also has georgia taylor—brown, who also could get a spot on the podium. she won an individual silver and a mixed team relay gold in tokyo. look out for those two. in the men's event, alex yee, part of that reached correct or mixed team relay gold, also individual silver winner, mixed team relay gold, also individualsilverwinner, is favourite for gold. after the last few days these athletes have had,

this is a huge relief this morning that we are able to have these events this morning. it could be a memorable day for great britain at the triathlon. 0k, lara. try to stay dry. sorry about the weather. carol will give us our weather in a moment. now that we know for sure the triathlon is happening at 6:45am, that will come here on bbc one. we will move on to bbc two. come with us or stick with the sport. great news that it is going ahead. it would have been such a shame if it was dropped to a duathlon. great for you that you can still catch us on bbc two. and carol will be with us throughout the morning with a look ahead at the weather. 0h, she has joined the apprentice, you said earlier! if only. good morning. yesterday we actually had the warmest day of the year so far. london reached 32 celsius. today is going to be another warm day. it is going to be

largely dry and also pretty sunny as well. however, there is a thunderstorm risk in the south—east. we are starting off on quite a mild note in the south. humid though. we have got areas of cloud coming in from the north sea across parts of eastern scotland and eastern england. this is what we are watching, thunderstorms crossing the english channel getting into the south—east. we won't all catch one but if you do it could be torrential. there could be the risk of localised flooding. temperatures are not quite as high today. if anything, it will be further west we see the highest temperatures. the west midlands, for example, gloucestershire, towards the west country, we could reach 30 or 31. more cloud in northern ireland, a high of 20 and 22 in glasgow. this evening and overnight if anything the thunderstorms will develop again, becoming more widespread. again, some of them producing heavy downpours. i towards the west we

have got a weather front bringing the odd shower. not as cold a night as it was last night. temperatures in some parts of scotland fell to just below 5 degrees. further south it is going to remain fairly muggy. into tomorrow, we have got our first clutch of thunderstorms pushing into the north sea. there is then a loyal and we will see further thunderstorms develop. 0nce and we will see further thunderstorms develop. once again not of all of us will catch them. if you do, they could be torrential downpours with the risk of localised flooding. drier in scotland and northern ireland. these are the temperatures. up temperatures. up to 28. temperatures. ut028. ., ., ., ~ temperatures. ut028. ., ., ., , up to 28. carol, thank you. it is so one, up to 28. carol, thank you. it is so one. isn't — up to 28. carol, thank you. it is so one. isn't it? _ one, isn't it? it is going to turn fresher this weekend. it is going to turn fresher this weekend-— it is going to turn fresher this weekend. �* , �*, weekend. don't spoil it! let's look at the papers _ weekend. don't spoil it! let's look at the papers today. _ the front page of the mirror remembers the three young girls who were killed in the attack in southport on monday.

the headline refers to the dance class they were attending. it reads, keep dancing and smiling'. the telegraph also carries pictures of the girls on its front page, and headlines a protest that took place overnight. it says riot police were called to a mosque in southport, not far from where a vigil to remember the girls was held. the paper says 39 police officers were injured in the disturbance. meanwhile, october's budget is the focus of the financial times' front page. it comes after chancellor rachel reeves announced on monday that she will raise taxes, but didn't specify which ones, or by how much. the paper reports that labour had said there would be no tax rises on working people during its election campaign, but the conservatives had insisted labour would increase them. it will be interesting to see how that unfolds. returning to our top story, i saw you on the six o'clock

news last night. you have spent a lot of time in southport since this horrendous attack. what has that been like? you don't have to be a parent to be completely horrified by what we have seen. it is just so quiet there on those streets. you are only half a mile from the seafront, from the town centre. those streets would normally be full of kids playing out on their summer holidays and families visiting. there isjust silence summer holidays and families visiting. there is just silence and flowers and teddy bears and balloons being left in people waiting. contrast that with the trouble overnight after i left. shocking. my grandparents lived just outside in southport when we were little. we used to go there in the summer holidays. so many families did, still do. it is a lovely place. it is a strong community. you can see those pictures from the vigil. they are reeling, they are hurting so deeply. you wonder about the conversations being had within those homes among the children who were there and all

the children who were there and all the children who were there and all the children within that community, the children within that community, the reassurance of parents are trying to give them. we will stay with the story throughout the morning. for now, 23 minutes past six... councils and police forces are warning of a rise in scams involving bogus qr codes — particularly in car parks. ben's here and can tell us more. morning. yes, it's something that more and more authorities are seeing lately, so definitely one to be wary of. it is really want to be aware of. i will explain the details. it's a scam that's increasingly catching lots of people out — especially in car parks, where you might be rushing to get to somewhere on time. when you go to pay for your parking, chances are you'll find something like this on one of the signs — a qr code. if you scan it with your camera, it takes you to a website where you can pay. 0nly, take a closer look at this. you can see this qr code is stuck over the top of the original sign. it's fake. anybody who scans that to pay

would be sending their details directly to the scammers. that's what happened to alysha, who had hundreds of pounds stolen from her account. i think, in total, it was, like, over, like, £300 that had been tried to be spent on that day. and it was confirmed that it took at least, i think, under a minute to clone my card from the app that i paid on, and they added it to their google pay and then had unlimited access to use my card. sadly, alysha's not alone. £1.5 million has been stolen this way already this year. compare that to just half a million in the whole of 2020. so how do you spot a potential qr—code scam? firstly, check the qr code hasn't been stuck over another one. it'll probably be pretty obvious once you see it. think about what you're being asked for — does it feel genuine?

if in doubt, stop. rather than using the qr code, download the named app, go to their website directly, or call the phone number if there is one. if you believe you've been scammed, then you should report this to action fraud and your bank as soon as possible. we should say it's notjust happening in car parks. we've seen stories where someone has tried to buy train tickets at the station and been scammed in a similarway. let us know about your experiences with this. get in touch in the usual ways — the details are on your screen now. don't forget to leave your name if you're contacting us via whatsapp. that qr code is a genuine one. this is one of those things where qr codes are such a part of everyday life. it's hard to function without using them. restaurants, payment machines... it's impossible to avoid

them. and also, like a lot of these scams, it is when you are in a bit of a rush and you are not necessarily checking the detail and you need to get it done quickly because you are in a car park. it isa in a car park. it is a cynical approach by the scammers. they now when people are stressed or roast they are more likely to fall victim. that is why they fall victim. we always say this with scams. don't be embarrassed if it happens to you because by sharing the experiences and reporting it you are helping to avoid others falling into the same trap. just to be clear, that bbc breakfast qr code doesn't lead to ben asking for your bank account details? absolutely not. ever cautious, ben. thank you. a former nhs nurse, who was previouslyjailed twice for posing as a man online to target women and stalk them, has been convicted for a third time for similar offences. adele rennie pleaded guilty to offences related to creating fake online profiles

to trick her victim. 0ur scotland correspondent katie hunter has speaking to a woman who was targeted by her ten years ago. i think people do hear this type of story and think, it's almost like a high school prank, like a high school girl prank. and it's not. it's something really serious. abbie draper has been looking over her shoulder for ten years. i'm constantly paranoid. i don't know who i can trust, and it's not a nice feeling. like, i want to be able to trust people, and ijust completely don't. she was in court to see former nurse adele rennie, convicted for a third time for offences connected to using fake male online profiles to target female victims. adele rennie admitted causing a woman fear and alarm by posing as a male pharmacist and using voice changing technology to send her messages. she also turned up at her home and workplace, and admitted sending the same woman a sexual image of a man.

rennie was working as a nurse at crosshouse hospital in kilmarnock when she started offending. she was treating abbie's grandad in 2014, and contacted her using a fake male doctor profile. are she was jailed for targeting and stalking other women in 2017, and then again, for similar offences in 2019. but last year, abbie saw this post from a social media site warning women about a fake profile claiming to be a pharmacist called calum crolla. she feared the former nurse was targeting women again. rennie contacted abbie protesting her innocence, but abbie went to the police. it's almost draining at this point, and especially when you think, that's it. people always say to me, oh, you'll have closure now, but i don't ever really get closure because she just keeps doing it and doing it, and it'sjust hard.

another woman who received messages from the same profile wasjenny, not her real name. she wasn't part of the criminal case, but says dating apps should do more to verify online profiles. we're not using her voice. no—one should have to go through that. she's a predator. it's not ok to do the same thing three times. itjust makes my skin crawl. it did really make me feel sick. it made me come off the dating apps, actually. abbie is speaking out to warn others. i just want everyone to be a bit more vigilant. just be safe. don't give out information. and again, if this story to you rings alarm bells, maybe it is worthwhile speaking to someone. the sheriff described rennie's pattern of behaviour as alarming. she'll stay in prison until sentencing later this year. katie hunter, bbc news, kilmarnock. it is coming up to half past six.

time for a love story with a bittersweet ending. when soulmates chris and lynn both became terminally ill, their family feared they would have to be moved apart to get the end—of—life care they needed. but a hospice in chesterfield answered their prayers and created a double room, allowing the couple to spend their final days as they'd spent their lives together, hand—in—hand. their daughter has been sharing their story with our reporter tom ingall. # rocking all over the world... almost 52 years, they were married. very happy marriage. um, you know, they loved each other a lot, and they spent a lot of time together. he was the milkman on his rounds. she the woman hanging out washing who caught his eye. from such moments, great loves are born. chris and lynnjohnson are fondly remembered by theirfamily. so dad was diagnosed on the 11th of october with bowel and liver cancer, and then mum was diagnosed on the 20th of december with a brain tumour.

i'd kind of worked myself up to, right, i need to look for a home that could take them together, so wherever they were going, as long as they were together, that, you know, i was ok with that. they had lived in bolsover most of their lives. fittingly, then, it was ashgate hospice — just down the road in chesterfield — who were able to help write a bittersweet end to their story. a shared room was arranged and two beds were moved together. to me, it meant the world. i honestly — i owe them so much to make that happen that they could be together to the very end. and i know my family, you know, the same thoughts, as well. we just owe them so much. hello, rod. hiya. heuo. — how are you today? all right, thank you. feeling ok? yes, quite comfy. the hospice provides end—of—life care and support, notjust within its walls, but in the community, too. they've got 21 beds,

but can only afford to use 15. the funding that we need is 16.2 million to run our hospice. five million of that is delivered from the nhs, and that comes from the nhs. and the other 11.2 million is through fundraising, through our shops, through our volunteers. and as costs rise, the fundraising targetjust to stand still, relentlessly pushes upwards, too. julie whittaker�*s experience has prompted a new campaign to change how these essential services are funded. until you need them, you don't know sort of what support they give to you. and i kind of want to raise awareness to make people aware of what they're about, what they can offer you. then that will free beds up in the hospital, because mum was in hospitalfor three weeks, and it wasn't a place where she needed to be. the government have said they want to shift the focus of health care out of hospitals into the community, and hospices

will play a vital role. for chris and lynn, ashgate's care meant their love could be shared right until the end. tom ingle, bbc news. let's return to our top story this morning. three young girls who were killed in a knife attack in southport have been named. seven—year—old elsie dot stancombe died at the dance class on monday morning. elsie was described by a teacher at her primary school as "loving and bright" and a "caring and charismatic young lady". six—year—old bebe king's family said, "no words can describe the devastation that has hit our family as we try to deal with the loss of our little girl bebe." and nine—year—old alice dasilva aguiar died in hospital on tuesday morning. and nine—year—old alice dasilva aguiar died in hospital on tuesday morning. her parents remembered her, saying, "keep smiling and dancing like you love to do, our princess." yesterday, hundreds of people gathered for a vigil to remember the three girls,

and the five children and two adults who remain in a critical condition. 0ur correspondent john maguire was there thankfully, very few communities will ever have been tested like this before. but people came to the centre of southport last night to stand together in a show of solidarity and support. southport is not used to global attention. to be known around the globe for a defining incident has shook us all to the core. what happened to the most innocent residents of this seaside town on monday is incomprehensible, so coming to this vigil — doing something to pay tribute and to help — is all people can do. obviously, we're with everybody else. you know, we're just feeling that it's cruel. itjust shouldn't happen — not this day and age. you know what i mean?

it's like the first...first week the kids are on holiday and they've just come and done this. so, you know, with our little street... ia collection in our little street — i um, got loads of teddies, flowers, balloons, and brought them up. and wanted to come and just pay our respects from our street. trying to cope with such a cruel and vicious attack is both an individual and a collective task. southport�*s newly elected mp — just days into his job as one of the leaders of this community — knows no amount of experience could prepare him for this. when i was elected earlier injuly, uh, obviously nobody could have expected this. but whether you're three weeks into the job or 30 years, there's no preparation for something like this. southport has been shook to its core. everybody is hurting. there's a range of emotions.

and it's fear, it's anger, it's... it's confusion that people are feeling. but what i'm really pleased about is seeing the vigil that we're at this evening, that we're at today, and southport is coming together as one and showing that we will heal, we will get through this together, and that we are there to show solidarity and support to those who've been immediately affected by this incident. near the scene of the attack, cards, flowers and soft toys are placed — some by friends and family, some by strangers — all moved to pay tribute in their own way. applause. there was applause for those first responders whose actions will have saved lives. an appreciation for the service they provide. in the days and weeks ahead, help and support will be vital here.

you go around and you share your experiences with people across the country and you tell them how wonderful your borough is. but this is... this has just proven exactly — you know, everybody has come together, we need to support each other. that's absolutely what everyone's doing here tonight. and there will be more support from us as a council and our partners, as well. i invite you now with me to hold a minute's silence. at the vigil, the large crowd bowed heads and fell silent. applause. but also there was spontaneous applause whenever a speaker urged people to look after each other — and especially the families of the young victims. hopefully, there's some solace to be gained from the presence of so many people.

it's the fact that it's our town. i only moved here 12 years ago and it's been... my partner said, "in a good way, nothing ever happens here." and...everyone's just in shock and we kind of can't believe it. and the fact that it's little girls — its three innocent lives lost — and everyone needs to come together. everyone's come here to show how much love that we have for the families and for everyone involved. um, the emergency services, everyone who have been affected by it. it's... it's a horrible thing to happen. families here are holding their children closer than ever before, while trying to explain the inexplicable of what happened in their home town and why. john maguire, bbc news, southport.

i know you spent the last couple of days there, you get some sense of that incredible community and the violence that has happened, yes, but thatis violence that has happened, yes, but that is what the community is about, that is what the community is about, that respect being paid and coming together in what is a wonderful seaside town.— together in what is a wonderful seaside town. inexplicable, that word, seaside town. inexplicable, that word. that _ seaside town. inexplicable, that word. that is — seaside town. inexplicable, that word, that is what _ seaside town. inexplicable, that word, that is what everyone - seaside town. inexplicable, that word, that is what everyone is l word, that is what everyone is saying, ijust don't understand this, how, why, what has happened? they are desperate for some kind of explanation. find they are desperate for some kind of exnianation-— explanation. and they are holding their kiddies — explanation. and they are holding their kiddies tight. _ explanation. and they are holding their kiddies tight. let's _ explanation. and they are holding their kiddies tight. let's check - explanation. and they are holding their kiddies tight. let's check in l their kiddies tight. let's check in with carol and a look at the weather. behind you, finally at the seaside, some sunshine. indeed. good morning. if you are just stepping out we have a real difference in the temperatures north to south. a big 24 a big 21i difference in temperatures north to south and this 21 in

swanage feels quite muggy. what we are looking at is another dry day, a sunny one and another 11 or most. however, we are looking at a thunderstorm risk in the south—east of england and we could see some torrential downpours in a short amount of time which could lead to some localised flooding but not all of us of course will see that. we are starting off with a lot of dry weather. at times we will have cloud rolling in from the north sea onshore breeze across north—east england and north—east scotland. a cloudy day across northern ireland and we have seen recently but we also have a few showers across the channel islands. they will make their way, drifting up towards the south—eastern corner of the country and this is where the thunderstorm risk is. temperatures today, 11i and this is where the thunderstorm risk is. temperatures today, 1a to about 28 or 29 degrees. there is the chance we could see 30 or 31 degrees somewhere like the west midlands, gloucestershire, in towards the west

country. glasgow 22 degrees, under the cloud in belfast, any breaks come through, we could get up to about 20. as we head on through the evening and overnight, we could see thunderstorms develop, some will become more widespread across england and wales but rather like today not all of us will catch one but if you do it could be torrential. again, the risk of localised flooding, the met office has a yellow weather warning. to the west, where the front come again, that will introduce thicker cloud across northern ireland and western scotland and the odd spot of rain and it will not be as cold and night imports of gotland as it was last night. furthersouth, imports of gotland as it was last night. further south, still in the muqqy night. further south, still in the muggy conditions. tomorrow we start off with those thunderstorms, they will push away into the north sea then there will be a long but as temperatures rise we will see further thunderstorms develop. not all of us will see them, the greatest risk across england and

wales. dryeracross greatest risk across england and wales. dryer across scotland and northern ireland. you can see this weather front not too far away. these are the temperatures tomorrow. it is after that we start to see a change in the weather behind a cold front coming in. it will start to introduce some pressure conditions as you can tell from the yellows here. that leads us into a different kind of day. on friday, still dry and sunny across eastern areas. still quite muggy, as well. here is a weather front slowly coming in from the west, bringing its rain with it. it will slowly be pushing eastward through the day. these are our temperatures once again. 21 in aberdeen and glasgow, 20 in belfast, a top temperature of 28 in london. that leads us into the weekend, so that weekend is looking a bit more unsettled as low pressure comes in from the west, high pressure clings

on to the south—east that it will feel fresher and it has done. thank you. it feels like i have picked the right weekend to get the tent out and test it in the garden. can you see that? thank you very much _ can you see that? thank you very much indeed. we can you see that? thank you very much indeed-— much indeed. we are going to be movin: much indeed. we are going to be moving to _ much indeed. we are going to be moving to bbc — much indeed. we are going to be moving to bbc two _ much indeed. we are going to be moving to bbc two shortly. - much indeed. we are going to be moving to bbc two shortly. do i much indeed. we are going to be - moving to bbc two shortly. do come with us. we will be there until 9am. to tempt you... still to come on breakfast... calls for the travel industry to do more to protect people from carbon—monoxide poisoning whilst on holiday. we'll be speaking to a family at 8:10 who are urging travellers to take their own detectors, following the heartbreak of losing their son last year. as dozens of people have been hospitalised from using illegal slimming jabs sold online, we'll be getting advice from a gp at 7:50 about how to avoid dangerous weightloss options. we will also have some dogs. because

this is bbc breakfast. but this is where we say goodbye to viewers on bbc one, as we move over to bbc two. bye for now.

hello, you are watching breakfast withjon kay and nina warhust. yesterday we received lots of messages from you the chancellor poz—mac plans to scrap the winter fuel payment for most pensioners in england and wales. lots of you very angry. interestingly, lots of pensioners getting in touch saying maybe it is a fairer system. rachel reeves has been defending the move, saying she needs to repair a "black hole" in public finances. 0ur cost of living correspondent colletta smith has been to speaking to some of those who will lose out. knowing your next step is crucial for everyone here,

but these dancers now have to change their plans. as of this week most of them will no longer get a winter fuel payment. i them will no longer get a winter fuel payment.— them will no longer get a winter fuel pa ment. , ., . , ., fuel payment. i understand cuts have to be made but— fuel payment. i understand cuts have to be made but it _ fuel payment. i understand cuts have to be made but it is _ fuel payment. i understand cuts have to be made but it is a _ fuel payment. i understand cuts have to be made but it is a shock. - fuel payment. i understand cuts have to be made but it is a shock. the - to be made but it is a shock. the old people _ to be made but it is a shock. the old people that _ to be made but it is a shock. the old people that couldn't afford to put the _ old people that couldn't afford to put the heating on last year with the allowance, how are they going to -et the allowance, how are they going to get on _ the allowance, how are they going to get on this_ the allowance, how are they going to get on this year? i think it is disgraceful. i think i will be sort of switching off in_ i think i will be sort of switching off in some _ i think i will be sort of switching off in some of— i think i will be sort of switching off in some of the _ i think i will be sort of switching off in some of the rooms- i think i will be sort of switching off in some of the rooms to - i think i will be sort of switching | off in some of the rooms to help budgei— off in some of the rooms to help budget for— off in some of the rooms to help budget for it. _ off in some of the rooms to help budget for it, really. _ did it help last winter, do you think? a big help, yes. it give you the confidence to go on. it is a big help, yes. it give you the confidence to go on.— confidence to go on. it is like a christmas _ confidence to go on. it is like a christmas present. _ confidence to go on. it is like a christmas present. it - confidence to go on. it is like a christmas present. it was - confidence to go on. it is like a christmas present. it was left | confidence to go on. it is like a | christmas present. it was left in the account to help pay the bill. the government have defended their decision, saying they have been forced to make cuts to cover gaps in the public finances they weren't expecting. but for vadney, those payments have been a lifeline to help her cover gas

and electricity through the winter. it does make a difference, yeah, because my gas bill was high. and of the extra they paid was really good. i wish they hadn't done it. and so quickly. when i asked for benefits i was told, no. because you have got 30p over the poverty line.— 30p over the poverty line. pension credit is one _ 30p over the poverty line. pension credit is one of _ 30p over the poverty line. pension credit is one of the _ 30p over the poverty line. pension credit is one of the most _ 30p over the poverty line. pension credit is one of the most under - credit is one of the most under claimed benefits. nearly a million people who could get help currently don't — either not realising or reluctant to rely on the state. the hoops is so much to go through that i've never asked for pension credit. age uk are already receiving calls from people who are worried. 1 million older people live just above the poverty line. and a winter

payment makes an enormous difference in their lives. many people have spent into their savings as a result of this very tough few years we have all had. no matter how warm the weather feels today, it's going to be a very of pensioners will need to learn some new financial footwork, navigating the hurdle of the expensive winter months with no extra help. if you are a pensioner it is worth checking if you qualify for any extra help. although energy bills have dropped over the summer, they will be going up over the summer, they will be going up again in the autumn. so millions of pensioners will need to learn some new financial footwork, navigating the hurdle of the expensive winter months with no extra help. so the concerns of pensioners there in the midlands. what about scotland? we can now speak to the leader of the scottish national party in westminister, stephen flynn.

so from september these winter fuel payments will become a devolved benefit, so they will be under the control of the scottish government. what are you going to do about it in government? are pensioners in scotland still going to be able to get it? scotland still going to be able to iet it? ,., ., scotland still going to be able to iet it? , ., scotland still going to be able to et it? ,., ., ., ., ., get it? good morning. you are absolutely _ get it? good morning. you are absolutely right. _ get it? good morning. you are absolutely right. the - get it? good morning. you are absolutely right. the benefit i get it? good morning. you arej absolutely right. the benefit is currently in the process of being transferred from westminster to holyrood in edinburgh. that is why this announcement came as such a big shock to us will stop only an hour and a half's notice was provided to the scottish government is that the uk government would be cutting the funding available. my colleagues in the scottish government are rapidly trying to assess the damage. we thought we would be able to deliver this benefit. at this moment i can't provide the certainty that people would love to have. that is of great frustration to me. this is of course a consequence of the decision of the labour party to cut this vital benefit for pensioners across

scotland. it, benefit for pensioners across scotland. . , benefit for pensioners across scotland. ., , , ., benefit for pensioners across scotland. .,, i. , scotland. if, as you say, it is vital, i scotland. if, as you say, it is vital. i am — scotland. if, as you say, it is vital, i am assuming - scotland. if, as you say, it is vital, i am assuming your. scotland. if, as you say, it is - vital, i am assuming your choice would be to maintain the winter fuel payment? would be to maintain the winter fuel pa ment? ~ ., _, , ., payment? well, of course, in an ideal world _ payment? well, of course, in an ideal world we _ payment? well, of course, in an ideal world we would _ payment? well, of course, in an ideal world we would absolutely | payment? well, of course, in an - ideal world we would absolutely love that are to be the case. but ultimately, the finances that sit behind the delivery of this benefit have just been cut, they have been hit with a sledgehammer by rachel reeves as part of this new labour government. that puts us in an almost impossible position of trying to implement a benefit through which the funding appears to no longer be available from the uk government. that is an invidious position to put any government in. but we need to take into context we were given just 90 minutes notice of this. what kind of respect agenda is that between the uk government and the scottish government? if i may broaden this out a little bit, rachel reeves is making this decision through a political choice. she knew there was going to be significant cuts to public sector services required as a result of her coming into

government. she chose to put herself in a fiscal straitjacket. she has chosen to reject the benefits of rejoining the likes of the single market, which has hit our economy more than covid. she has chosen not to make any choices that proactively reverse that, and as a result is cutting back on public services. this is austerity 2.0 under the labour party. it is not good enough. people deserve better. people were promised a change. this people deserve better. people were promised a change.— promised a change. this is not it. but ou promised a change. this is not it. iout you could _ promised a change. this is not it. but you could make _ promised a change. this is not it. but you could make a _ promised a change. this is not it. but you could make a political- but you could make a political choice as well. you could cut other things and prioritise this, it keep and guarantee the winter fuel payment for pensioners in scotland? i think the very premise of your question undermines the argument. because what you have just suggested is that the scottish government should cut an alternative budget to deliver this. that is not the position we expected to be in. we thought in good faith we would be able to deliver this benefit for households in scotland, and now we are being told that we should cut

scotland's nhs budget or education budget. it should not be our role to mitigate the worst excesses of a tory government, sorry, a labour government. that is not what we are here to do. we are here to deliver to the best of our ability for the people of scotland. if the uk government cut our budget, it puts us in an impossible position. the reality is we only face this austerity because of a political choice by rachel reeves to put herself in a fiscal straitjacket which is the exact same as the conservative party pre—election. that is a choice that she has made. it simply not good enough. the people of this country, the people of scotland, sorry, deserve better. the chancellor's argument is that she has inherited, labour have inherited, this overspend of £22 billion and she has to find the money somewhere. do you accept that premise at least? you money somewhere. do you accept that premise at least?— premise at least? you will forgive me because _ premise at least? you will forgive me because i _ premise at least? you will forgive me because i think i _ premise at least? you will forgive me because i think i was - premise at least? you will forgive me because i think i was on - premise at least? you will forgive me because i think i was on your| me because i think i was on your show many occasions prior to the election warning about the fact there were huge cuts to public

sector services that were coming down the line and being baked in at westminster. rachel reeves and the conservative party partook in a conspiracy of silence. —— labour party. she is ignoring the fact she has chosen to create fiscal rules which inhibit her ability to deal with this, that force her into taking austerity —based decisions. but perhaps most importantly than that, she doesn't even mention the word brexit. brexit has hit the uk economy to a figure which is far in excess of the quantum that is required to fill the supposed black hole that exists. i appreciate it is not talked about very often in westminster by the labour party or the conservative party, but if there is a quick and easy solution to making sure the public finances are in a better shape, making sure the public finances are in a bettershape, and making sure the public finances are in a better shape, and that would be to rejoin the european single market. but again, as they have made a choice in relation to theirfiscal rules, the labour party have made a fiscal choice not to engage in that potentially very positive approach

to the uk economy. this is a result of the choices that rachel reeves has chosen to make prior to the election and what she is putting into place now. we had a conspiracy of silence on public sector cuts that were coming down the line, which are now being enacted, and we have had a conspiracy of stupidity when it comes to brexit. we should be reversing it, we should be seeking to rejoin the european union. unfortunately, westminster is in grown—up or serious enough to deal with the real solutions to the problems faced by our public finances. ~ . finances. we will leave it there for an hour. stephen flynn, thank you very much indeed. coming up to five to seven. now for something completely different. dogs in backpacks. why not?! well, some dog owners in east sussex put special kits on their pets as part of efforts to help rewild a local nature reserve. victoria cook is at the reserve to tell us more about it. i think she has got some friends. good morning!

i think she has. 0h, do you think that was an excited dog knocking a cable out? the wagging has froze at the moment. we are having trouble with our link. we are having trouble with our link. we will go back to sussex a little bit later, because we want that. that we have to see. it is about natural seed dispersal. wolves used to do it when they were natural wolves in the uk. now they are using dogs instead. maybe you can put your bits and bobs in the backpack as well. let's look at the olympics. there is another chance for a gold medalfor team gb in the bmx. she is 25 and has been dominant in bmx racing since 2021, but after breaking her collar bone earlier this year she faced a race against time to prepare to defend her 0lympic title in

paris. jonathan parker has been to meet her. hi, i'm beth shriever, i'm 25, and i'm a professional bmx racer. all the way, all the way, all the way. it looks like she's done it! yes! — bethany shriever, at. the first time of asking. three years since that tokyo triumph, beth beth shriever�*s life would never be the same again. olympic champion at the age of 22, no wonder she got carried away. no—one prepares you for what comes after it. so there was all these red—carpet events, rubbing shoulders with celebrities that i've been watching for years or... do you know what i mean? it was just crazy. even, like, sponsorship opportunities, being recognised on the street, like...

yeah, no—one prepares you for that, and it's been... it's been a cool experience and a cooljourney. beth's been on the move ever since. two world titles, a european gold. but this former braintree bullet rider is hungry for more. there's still a few things i want to do, tick off my list. i'm still... i've never been a world cup overall champion, so that's on the list. um, and i think the most titles a woman's ever won in bmx is three, so i want to try and get up there, win three to four titles — that's... that's up there. life these days is a mix of manchester — where the gb squad is based — plus events all over the world. she broke her collarbone at the recent world championships, but she's back in full flow. that kind of was a blessing in disguise for me, because it took the focus away from the games, in a sense, and it was — it was, like, every week i was just focusing on getting better and better, stronger and stronger. so i've loved the last few weeks, i've loved the lead—in, and now, like, everything's coming together. finchingfield's finest will fly out of the gates tomorrow, when her olympics gets under way.

she provided one of the moments of tokyo — can she do it again in paris? jonathan park, bbc news. of course you can do it again. think positive. good luck to her. brilliant. it is a great games. i watched it last night. it was exhausting. andy murray still going. he has taken us to the end of our tether. i love that you get a variety of sports before the athletics. a team gold medals up for stake today, artistic gymnastics, slalom, rowing, shooting and swimming. andy triathlon, of course, which is now going ahead as we know. lots to look forward to today. i love having the telly on at home all day and just bobbing in and out of sports. it was the gymnastics yesterday. and becoming an instant armchair expert. i found myself saying the other day,

the thing about kayaking... i have no idea about kayaking! for a fortnight every four years we are always experts. do stay with us. headlines coming up.

live from london. this is bbc news. palestinian militant group, hamas have said its leader — ismail haniyeh — has been killed in the iranian capital, tehran. it comes hours after the israeli military said it had killed one of hezbollah's top commanders in a targeted airstrike on the lebanese capital, beirut. the palestinian militant group, hamas, says its political leader, ismail haniyeh, has been killed in iran. a statement from the group said he was killed in an israeli raid on a house in the iranian capital, tehran, that he was staying in. israel's military is not commenting.

it said the raid took place after he had attended the inauguration of the new iranian president. ismail haniyeh had been leading negotiations with israel and his death is likely to affect any chance of progress. a hamas official described the assassination as a grave escalation that will not go unpunished. one of ismail haniyeh's bodyguards is also said to have died. tell us who ismail haniyeh was and how significant this is.— how significant this is. years the overall leader _ how significant this is. years the overall leader for _ how significant this is. years the overall leader for hamas, - how significant this is. years the overall leader for hamas, seen i how significant this is. years the l overall leader for hamas, seen as how significant this is. years the i overall leader for hamas, seen as a more pragmatic leader, the one who is leader the hamas political side

of the movement, we have seen him visiting tehran maybe ten or 15 times since he became hamas leader and since october seven this... a video was released today by hamas showing he was in tehran yesterday at the ceremony and there is still no detail about how he was killed. he was targeted with three or four other hamas leaders including his deputy who was killed, along with his personal guard. we don't know any details about it. hamas was in a state of shock when i spoke to them this morning, they don't know exactly what happened. this is a significant moment not only because

of the war but for hamas because ismail haniyeh, when the overall leader and founder of hamas was killed in 2003, he was leading the more pragmatic line with hamas, convincing them to go for election and he became the first hamas prime minister in 2006 and 2007. we have to see how hamas will react, and change after ismail haniyeh's killing. we will see who will win, the more pragmatic leaders who are outside or the more extremist leaders inside gaza, but this is a significant moment for hamas. you said they were _ significant moment for hamas. you said they were in _ significant moment for hamas. you said they were in a state of shock, how did they react?—

how did they react? three or four different people _ how did they react? three or four different people gave _ how did they react? three or four different people gave different i different people gave different accounts of what has happened. 0ne accounts of what has happened. one said it was two o'clock in the morning he was killed with his bodyguard but we don't know exactly where he was killed. it is very unusual, the lack of information. when we used to see this level of killing within hamas, we used to know where and how and when and what happened exactly. all of these answers remain unanswered by the hamas people. in the last ten minutes or so, hamas people. in the last ten minutes orso, i hamas people. in the last ten minutes or so, i spoke to hamas leader's advisor in doha and he said they are still collecting information and he said there is an investigation by the iranian authorities under way and he said they would notify the nation when they would notify the nation when they have an answer. he said that

hamas is an idea, and ideology, and killing the leader will not change hamas and not make hamas give any more concessions when it comes to the people's rights. joining me now is our middle east correspondent yolande knell injerusalem — and hugo bachega , our correspondent in beirut. israel has not admitted to being behind this. israel has not admitted to being behind this-— israel has not admitted to being behind this. , ., ., , behind this. yes, there are military said they do _ behind this. yes, there are military said they do not _ behind this. yes, there are military said they do not comment - behind this. yes, there are military said they do not comment on - behind this. yes, there are military i said they do not comment on reports and foreign media. but ministers have been posting announcements that really make clear that israel celebrates this death, this assassination of this senior hamas figure in tehran. he would have been

on israel's wanted list since the october seven attacks, israel has 0ctober seven attacks, israel has been trying to target senior leaders in the group which led those attacks and has often been publicly criticised for not having been seen to get to those seen as having masterminded the attacks in gaza, particularly the leader of hamas in gaza and the leader of the military wing there. ismail haniyeh was somebody who was quite prominently at this inauguration ceremony along with the leaders of other regional armed groups backed by iran for this inauguration ceremony of the new president, so his presence was well known in iran but this has really caught people by surprise. four days

we have been very much focused on what is real's response would be to the attack in the occupied golan heights which killed children last weekend, israel bling hezbollah for that and saying it would pay a heavy price, and hezbollah denying responsibility. it was after the attack in beirut that we had this. it was apparently a guided muscle launched from outside iran that killed ismail haniyeh at his residence in tehran. we hear that really at the moment there are meetings taking place, the top security bodies, to decide on iran's strategy in reaction to this killing. strategy in reaction to this killini. �* , strategy in reaction to this killini. h ., strategy in reaction to this killini. �*, ., ., ., killing. let's go to our correspondent - killing. let's go to our correspondent in - killing. let's go to our i correspondent in beirut. killing. let's go to our - correspondent in beirut. this

killing. let's go to our _ correspondent in beirut. this comes a day after the assassination of a top hezbollah official in beirut. has there been any reaction from them in lebanon? trite has there been any reaction from them in lebanon?— has there been any reaction from them in lebanon? we had a statement from hezbollah — them in lebanon? we had a statement from hezbollah in _ them in lebanon? we had a statement from hezbollah in the _ them in lebanon? we had a statement from hezbollah in the last _ them in lebanon? we had a statement from hezbollah in the last hour - from hezbollah in the last hour saying that the senior commander was inside the building that was hit in this is really attack. you can see the top section of this building has been partially destroyed. we are in a hezbollah stronghold in beirut�*s southern suburb. you can see the damage caused by this is really attack. it isjust damage caused by this is really attack. it is just after 9am here so there is a heavy presence of hezbollah members and soldiers from the lebanese army. the streets are getting busier now in this area. hezbollah not confirming yet that

this senior commander was killed but yesterday the israeli military said that this was a precise operation that this was a precise operation that killed him and the israeli military described him as a right—hand man to the hezbollah leader, so a very high profile figure inside hezbollah. we have not seen any kind of reaction in terms of retaliation from hezbollah. i think it is almost inevitable there will be some kind of response from hezbollah and the fear is that this could lead to an escalation of hostilities between hezbollah and israel. we have seen hezbollah has been carrying out these attacks, targeting israeli positions, mainly military positions inside israel, almost every day. these attacks started back in october, the day

after the hamas attacks. there has always been the fear this could escalate to become a major confrontation between hezbollah, israel, and perhaps even with the involvement of some other iranian—backed groups across the middle east. hezbollah is part of this access of resistance, this alliance of factions and groups in the region supported by iran. up till now the indication has been that israel and hezbollah were not interested in a major conflict which could have catastrophic consequences for both israel and lebanon. there are real fears this could escalate into something much bigger. ihit are real fears this could escalate into something much bigger. at this dancerous into something much bigger. at this dangerous moment _ into something much bigger. at this dangerous moment for _ into something much bigger. at this dangerous moment for the - into something much bigger. at this dangerous moment for the region, i dangerous moment for the region, what do you think the calculations iran will be making right now with

hezbollah and hamas being their proxies in the region.— proxies in the region. israel has not confirmed _ proxies in the region. israel has not confirmed it _ proxies in the region. israel has not confirmed it was _ proxies in the region. israel has not confirmed it was behind - proxies in the region. israel has| not confirmed it was behind this attack so this could be part of the israeli strategy here to not confirm it was behind this assassination, to give iran some kind of space, not be forced to carry out some kind of response this attack. but obviously it could be seen as a major provocation. this is something that happened in tehran, there is reigning —— the reigning capital. it was the inauguration of the new iriney and president. this could be seen by authorities there is another provocations and lead to a response

perhaps by some of the groups supported by iran in the region, the so—called axis of resistance. has so-called axis of resistance. has there been _ so-called axis of resistance. has there been much _ so—called axis of resistance. has there been much reaction from people where you are? it is worrying time for the people of lebanon as well. i think people are still digesting the news. it happened overnight. it is still early here, just after ten past nine in the morning here. this news came after the assassination that happened here, just before sunset here in beirut. people are still trying to understand the scale of these attacks. three civilians were killed including two children. again, what kind of response this would trigger from hezbollah. again, what kind of response this would triggerfrom hezbollah. we have seen in the past when senior hezbollah members were killed by israel, hezbollah launched hundreds

of rockets targeting military positions on israel but we believe this is the first time hezbollah was targeted in beirut, the capital. in january there was an assassination of a top hamas leader in beirut. but we think this is the first time hezbollah was targeted inside beirut, here a stronghold of the group. this could be seen as a major provocation and escalation by israel and could put hezbollah in a position where they feel they have to carry out a strong response following this attack. trite to carry out a strong response following this attack. we have heard a short time — following this attack. we have heard a short time ago _ following this attack. we have heard a short time ago from _ following this attack. we have heard a short time ago from the _ following this attack. we have heard a short time ago from the us - following this attack. we have heard l a short time ago from the us defence secretary lloyd austen who said, "i don't think war is inevitable, i think there are is always room for diplomacy." we think we might year something from us secretary of state antony blinken who is on a visit to

asia. we have seen antony blinken have many visits to the region in the past nine months since the hummus attacks —— hamas attacks in october. hummus attacks -- hamas attacks in october. . , hummus attacks -- hamas attacks in october. ., , , ., ., ., october. there has been a lot of diplomatic— october. there has been a lot of diplomatic activity _ october. there has been a lot of diplomatic activity to _ october. there has been a lot of diplomatic activity to limit - october. there has been a lot of diplomatic activity to limit the i diplomatic activity to limit the response. 0n diplomatic activity to limit the response. on saturday there was an attack in the occupied golan heights, 12 children were killed, the israeli military said it was carried out by hezbollah, a missile launched from lebanon. they promised a severe response. benjamin netanyahu said hezbollah would pay a very heavy price. since the attack happened and obviously hezbollah have rejected those allegations, we saw intense diplomatic activity to try to limit this israeli response to try to avoid another escalation of hostilities here and avoid

putting hezbollah in a position again where they could feel they had to carry out a response, a retaliation. the statement we had this morning from hezbollah, talking about what happened here, saying the senior commander was in the building, but didn't really confirm that he was killed. this statement didn't talk about the next steps by the group, didn't talk about a possible response, how the group is going to react to this attack. i think this is the key question today, how hezbollah will respond, and obviously diplomatic efforts continue to try to de—escalate tensions here. we have heard from a number of diplomats in recent days expressing concern about the possibility of a major conflict here but also talking and saying it is not inevitable that this violence between hezbollah and israel will

escalate to become a major conflict. we have seen both israel and hezbollah have given indications that they are not interested in another conflict. many people in lebanon in particular remember what happened in 2006 in the war between israel and hezbollah, a lot of destruction here in south lebanon and many people believe that hezbollah is dragging lebanon into another conflict with israel, a conflict that is not in the interests of the country. thank you. the reuters — interests of the country. thank you. the reuters news _ interests of the country. thank you. the reuters news agency _ interests of the country. thank you. the reuters news agency is - interests of the country. thank you. | the reuters news agency is reporting that a newsagency affiliated with iran's top security agency, says it was a gamble. cornelia meyer is a business consultant with decades—long experience of the region.

what impact do you think this will have in the region? we what impact do you think this will have in the region?— what impact do you think this will have in the region? we can assume negotiations _ have in the region? we can assume negotiations that _ have in the region? we can assume negotiations that between - have in the region? we can assume negotiations that between hamas i have in the region? we can assume i negotiations that between hamas and israel are for the time being dead. it is very significant to the effect that the attack happened in tehran and there are several people assassinated in tehran but never at this senior level. he was a guest of the state, attending the inauguration of the iranian president. there was a blow last night to central beirut. this is taking the battle, to a certain extent, to two of the capitals. this being said, there will now be feverish diplomatic activity, of the us but also of gcc countries, to

limit the response and one people that make cooler temperatures prevail. at this point i don't think israel has an interest in further escalation, with hezbollah in beirut. that is where i see the biggest danger. the situation is so tense that a junior person on either side in israel are amongst hezbollah making a mistake could make things erupt. but in the meantime i am convinced that there will be feverish diplomatic activity to try to cool things down, notjust from the us but also from the gcc countries, and they now have, for instance saudi arabia has a direct link into tehran because diplomatic relations were restored last year.

tells more about that because often the focus is on israel and the impact the us can have but tells more about iran and their decision—making process. saudi arabia recently restored ara bia recently restored communications. arabia recently restored communications. what influenced they have over iran, who did the leadership listen to when it comes to their next move? i leadership listen to when it comes to their next move?— to their next move? i don't think they have _ to their next move? i don't think they have real— to their next move? i don't think they have real influence - to their next move? i don't think they have real influence but - to their next move? i don't think| they have real influence but lines of communication are open and it is always good to talk. i think you will have other actors, you will have china helping —— trying to help cool things down as well. and the brics countries. china negotiated between saudi arabia and iran. and between saudi arabia and iran. and between the various factions between the palestinian, the pa, fatah and

hamas, to get some unity. the world at large has no interest in this growing wider. israel probably is also very engaged now and taking it to another front line would be difficult. ithink to another front line would be difficult. i think the phone lines will be ringing and shadow diplomacy is going on. in will be ringing and shadow diplomacy is iioin on. , ., ., , is going on. in terms of any next moves, is going on. in terms of any next moves. do _ is going on. in terms of any next moves. do you _ is going on. in terms of any next moves, do you think _ is going on. in terms of any next moves, do you think there - is going on. in terms of any next moves, do you think there will. is going on. in terms of any next i moves, do you think there will not be anything immediate from any country and this could play out over some time? it country and this could play out over some time?— country and this could play out over some time? , , ._ some time? it will but they may feel the need some time? it will but they may feel they need to — some time? it will but they may feel they need to do _ some time? it will but they may feel they need to do something - some time? it will but they may feel they need to do something but - some time? it will but they may feel they need to do something but it - they need to do something but it will be surgical as well. last time, iran said a few months ago, sent several missiles towards israel but

they warned everyone, the overflowing territories, so all of the missiles could basically be taken down. they may feel the need to do something but they may do it in a way that hinders and escalation because, as i said, right now you will see the us, gcc, china, the europeans, but they don't matter that much any more, but everybody will be feverishly trying to engage with all the parties to ensure it doesn't erupt any further. the big actors will try to do their best but all it takes is for a junior person to make a mistake and then we are in trouble. . ~ to make a mistake and then we are in trouble. ., ,, , ., ., to make a mistake and then we are in trouble. ., ,, i. ., i. trouble. thank you for your analysis- — trouble. thank you for your analysis. within _ trouble. thank you for your analysis. within the - trouble. thank you for your analysis. within the past i trouble. thank you for your i analysis. within the past few trouble. thank you for your - analysis. within the past few hours it has been confirmed that the hamas leader ismail haniyeh has been killed at a residence in tehran, the

iriney and capital. the group blames israel for the attack but israel has not made any comment and we are also hearing from saudi arabia news that the assassination was carried out by a guided missile targeting his private residence in tehran. reports say it hit the building around 2am local time. say it hit the building around 2am localtime. iriney say it hit the building around 2am local time. iriney news said he was at a residence in northern iran and likely killed by a projectile from the air. ismail haniyeh was the senior political leader of hamas and was involved in negotiations to try to reach some kind of hostage release and ceasefire deal. i'm joined now by camelia entek—habi—fard, editor of the independent persian. what is your reaction? i believe it

will be the _ what is your reaction? i believe it will be the biggest _ what is your reaction? i believe it will be the biggest challenge - what is your reaction? i believe it will be the biggest challenge for. will be the biggest challenge for the new iran president on the first day of office. the senior hamas official killed in terror and, carried out by missile. we have to wait and see how this assassination was carried out but i am not seeing a big regional explosion over this assassination in tehran. there might be challenges but... the killing of the senior

hamas commander in tehran was no more important than assassinations in iraq and we saw the reaction to that was not as expected. it is very embarrassing for the regime but at the same time they will be careful to not cross the red line and get in a direct war with the israelis are americans so this is my assessment. reuters is reporting that crossing iran's red lines has always been costly for the enemy. you don't believe this is crossing a red line. who will be making the decision? you spoke about the new president inaugurated yesterday, why ismail haniyeh was there, but ultimately it is the supreme leader, the

revolutionary guard, who will be making those calculations. yes. revolutionary guard, who will be making those calculations. yes, the -revious making those calculations. yes, the previous events _ making those calculations. yes, the previous events show _ making those calculations. yes, the previous events show they - making those calculations. yes, the previous events show they are - previous events show they are calculating. the important fact for the islamic republic is keeping the regime alive and in power and nothing more than that is important for them. the chief commander killed in iraq and the retaliation was so limited, and warned the americans in advance. it can have an impact on israeli and palestinian talks, it could make things difficult and maybe even push back the talks for quite some time, but seeing iran getting into a direct confrontation with the israelis, i am not seeing it on the table. theyjust inaugurated the new president and they want to give him a chance to explore the opportunities and there

is opportunity for dialogue and peace with the neighbours. yesterday, fatah, at the inauguration, repeatedly said he is looking for peace and more dialogue with regional countries. —— yesterday, masoud pezeshkian, at the inauguration. so it could be limited to militant groups affiliated to tehran to retaliate. is groups affiliated to tehran to retaliate. , , , ., ,., , retaliate. is interesting you say that what the _ retaliate. is interesting you say that what the regime _ retaliate. is interesting you say that what the regime wants - retaliate. is interesting you say that what the regime wants is i retaliate. is interesting you say i that what the regime wants is just to survive, but they have all these proxies in the region, hezbollah in lebanon, hamas which launched the october seven attacks, and also the 0ctober seven attacks, and also the who the's —— houthis in yemen. would

you say all of these events point to a regime thatjust wants to survive or one that wants to exert its influence wider?— or one that wants to exert its influence wider? , influence wider? yes, indeed. even these proxy — influence wider? yes, indeed. even these proxy groups _ influence wider? yes, indeed. even these proxy groups are _ influence wider? yes, indeed. even these proxy groups are all- influence wider? yes, indeed. even these proxy groups are all there i influence wider? yes, indeed. even these proxy groups are all there to | these proxy groups are all there to save the iriney —— serve the iriney in regime's interests. the direct attack to israelis has been to americans and powers and as you saw none of those missiles hit a particular place to cause damage or any threats to life, it was israel hitting back more directly or powerful. everything is calculated and their existence is more important than anything. even that direct attack came after an iran

counsellor in syria was killed. their choice was limited, otherwise in front of the public in iran they would be shamed, so even the attacked israel was not meant to open up direct confrontation and war. in this case, there would not be a direct attack because israel has not accepted responsibility and iran has not said either.— has not accepted responsibility and iran has not said either. hamas has said its leader _ iran has not said either. hamas has said its leader ismail _ iran has not said either. hamas has said its leader ismail haniyeh - iran has not said either. hamas has said its leader ismail haniyeh was i said its leader ismail haniyeh was killed at his residence in tehran.

they blame israel, who are yet to respond but previously bound to eliminate hamas leaders. let's speak to fawaz gerges, professor of international relations at the london school of economics. what do you think this could mean for the region?— for the region? what are the risks of wider conflict _ for the region? what are the risks of wider conflict in _ for the region? what are the risks of wider conflict in the _ for the region? what are the risks of wider conflict in the region, i i of wider conflict in the region, i would say the risks have increased tenfold in the past 21i hours. i think iran, can they afford to stand down?

the attack was in the heart of the security bill, ismail haniyeh was a guest of the supreme leader. as we are speaking, the supreme leader is meeting with his national security council and the revolutionary guard in order to determine the response. i have no doubt in my mind that hezbollah will retaliate on a much bigger scale than it has done before and the question is the cycle of escalation could easily spin out of control as the americans and french have been pushing very hard to de—escalate and defuse the crisis but here we are nine months after october seven and we are talking 0ctober seven and we are talking about the potential trigger for a wider conflict. i mentioned iran's direct rocket

attacks back in april. what do you believe the iranian leadership wants? the previous guest said they could not afford an all out war. absolutely. i do not think iran wants a direct confrontation with israel. but this particular attack coming on the heels of the assassination of a top military commander of hezbollah in the heart of beirut. at this particular stage, i doubt it very much and i hope i am wrong, i doubt it very much whether iran can afford to retaliate. by what means? i take it they will have to think twice before directly attacking israel at this moment. but the question is what will israel do if hezbollah attacks tel aviv, as it

most likely will because hezbollah has been warning if israel attacks beirut it will respond in time. this is the cycle of retaliation and miscalculation that would easily spin out of control and lead to a wider regional conflict.- wider regional conflict. israel would say — wider regional conflict. israel would say hezbollah - wider regional conflict. israel would say hezbollah have i wider regional conflict. israel i would say hezbollah have blood wider regional conflict. israel - would say hezbollah have blood on their hands, although they do not admit to firing rockets at the golan heights in which 12 young people were killed. the calculation of israel and the us is they were behind it. and since the 7th of october attacks by hamas rockets 0ctober attacks by hamas rockets have been fired by hezbollah into israel. calculations for israel, the threat of hezbollah and for hezbollah, what do they want? there have been attempts at a deal which both parties have not signed up to. hezbollah has repeatedly said what

they are doing is in solidarity with palestinians in gaza and they will not stop providing support for the palestinians unless the war in gaza ends. secondly, hezbollah has denied involvement in the attack on the golan heights. golan heights, the terrible tragedy in this occupied territory. you have to remind viewers that israel has killed almost 15,000 palestinian children not to mention almost 100,000 palestinians who have been killed and injured. there is so much blame to go around. the best scenario is to go around. the best scenario is to end the war in gaza. 0nce to go around. the best scenario is to end the war in gaza. once the guns for silent in gaza, i think you will end the cycle of escalation. it is the only way out. thank you.

reuters reporting comments from lebanon's hezbollah saying they send condolences for the killing of the hamas chief. they said the killing will make the resistance more determined in facing israel. so much of the conversation is about what could happen next or whether this could happen next or whether this could be the spark that does ignite a wider conflict but there has been many sparks over the past nine months so a great deal to focus on and discuss and look at in terms of possible reaction now in the region and how quickly that could come. so let's bring you more detail about ismail haniyeh. he was born in the al—shati refugee camp in gaza, he was a prominent member of the group's movement in the late 1980s. he was imprisoned by israel for three years in 1989 as it cracked down on the first palestinian uprising. haniyeh was appointed palestinian prime minister in 2006

by president mahmoud abbas after hamas won the most seats in national elections. however, he was dismissed a year later after the group ousted abbas' fatah party from the gaza strip in a week of deadly violence. haniyeh had long led hamas's political operations while living in exile in qatar — and was the public face of hamas's diplomacy in arab capitals. he was leading efforts to negotiate a ceasefire in gaza. haniyeh was considered to be less hard—line and militaristic than yahya sinwar, who is the head of hamas inside gaza. we arejoined by we are joined by a correspondent who was in gaza but is now in london. i want to come to you first, what do you think it will mean for the

leadership of hamas and the war in gaza? i leadership of hamas and the war in gaza? ~ ., ., ~ gaza? i think following the killing ofthe gaza? i think following the killing of the deputy _ gaza? i think following the killing of the deputy of— gaza? i think following the killing of the deputy of ismail— gaza? i think following the killing of the deputy of ismail haniyeh i gaza? i think following the killing| of the deputy of ismail haniyeh in beirut a couple of months ago, the talks were briefly stopped by hamas. i think they will do the same because this is bigger and assassination in the one in beirut. i think the talks will be on hold for quite a bit of time because hamas now will have to decide who will lead the movement. haniyeh was already before the war close to his second, at the time elected as hamas leader. they were questioning who will be the next leader of hamas. it was always the name of sinwa. we do

not know how hamas will react. but this is very significant moment for hamas. 0ne but this is very significant moment for hamas. one of their diplomatic leaders who was well—known, very popular among the arab and muslim communities everywhere. we have seen haniyeh making real change within hamas when he became the leader of hamas. back in 2003, he was leading hamas. back in 2003, he was leading hamas to more of a political player in the region. convincing hamas to go for election. hamas won the

national election. he was the prime ministerfor about a year national election. he was the prime minister for about a year and then dismissed. that was following the hamas and fatah fighting. so significant for hamas. the information about how he was killed is still not available. hamas say they are in contact with the iranian authorities. a senior hamas leader said hamas is an idea and killing the leader will not change the movement. he the leader will not change the movement-— the leader will not change the movement. ., , , . , ., movement. he was behind the decision makini. he movement. he was behind the decision making- he was — movement. he was behind the decision making. he was the _ movement. he was behind the decision making. he was the political— movement. he was behind the decision making. he was the political leader i making. he was the political leader but sinwar is the leader of the military wing and considered to be the brains behind the hamas attacks on october the 7th. how did that work in terms of who made decisions? we have had these many months of

talks by parties all over the middle east and the us is involved. to what extent would he have made a final decision or would it have been down to yahya sinwar? the decision or would it have been down to yahya sinwar?— decision or would it have been down to yahya sinwar? the question since 7th of october, _ to yahya sinwar? the question since 7th of october, is _ to yahya sinwar? the question since 7th of october, is there _ to yahya sinwar? the question since 7th of october, is there a _ to yahya sinwar? the question since 7th of october, is there a split - to yahya sinwar? the question since 7th of october, is there a split in i 7th of october, is there a split in hamas? i do not think hamas outside were informed about the attack. i was told by a senior leader, maybe... studio: apologies. ithink maybe... studio: apologies. i think we have lost the line. we can bring in our correspondent in beirut. there has been reaction from the hezbollah leadership there.— leadership there. yes. they have been mourning _ leadership there. yes. they have been mourning the _ leadership there. yes. they have been mourning the death - leadership there. yes. they have been mourning the death of- leadership there. yes. they have i been mourning the death of ismail haniyeh, a senior leader of hamas.

and hezbollah and hamas are two allied groups, part of the alliance of groups supported by iran. the so—called axis of resistance. before the assassination, in iran, the news here in lebanon was dominated by what happened last night here in beirut and the assassination of another high—profile figure of another high—profile figure of another group supported by iran. a senior commander. fuad shukr. a senior commander. fuad shukr. a senior commander. fuad shukr. a senior commander inside hezbollah described by the israeli military as a right—hand man to the hezbollah leader. the israeli military yesterday confirmed he was killed in this attack that happened just before sunset in beirut. this morning we had the first reaction from hezbollah who confirmed this commander was in this building, we

can see it behind me. but interestingly, an important to point out, they have not confirmed that fuad shukr was killed in this attack. this happened here in the hezbollah stronghold in the southern suburbs. this was the first time we believe hezbollah was targeted, hit here in their base in the lebanese capital. this could be seen as a major provocation by israel. and hezbollah could decide to retaliate. i think it almost inevitable there will be a response after this attack that happened here yesterday. we have been talking about the possibility of escalation of hostilities and hezbollah and israel have traded fire along the lebanon and israel border. most of the

violence limited to areas along the border. tens of thousands evacuated in both countries. there has always been a fear this could escalate into a major confrontation that could have catastrophic consequences not only for lebanon and israel but the region. we only for lebanon and israel but the reiion. ~ ., ., ,, ., only for lebanon and israel but the reiion.~ ., ., ,, ., ., ., i, , region. we have talked to analysts about the next _ region. we have talked to analysts about the next move _ region. we have talked to analysts about the next move by _ region. we have talked to analysts about the next move by iran. - region. we have talked to analysts i about the next move by iran. explain the relationship between hezbollah and iran and to what extent they will be led by the iranian leadership and what happens next. this has been a key question since the hamas attacks on the 7th of october and the attacks that have been carried out by hezbollah, the influence iran has over hezbollah. hezbollah is independent and has a large base of support in lebanon. it is not only a militia but a powerful political party with representation

in party. it is also a strong social movement in lebanon. it has its own strategy and goals. it is funded by iran and supported and armed by iran. it is always seen as a much more formidable force than hamas. an estimated hundred and 50 thousands of rockets and missiles that can strike deep inside israel. it also relies on fighters who have been to syria fighting the war in syria say these are really well experienced fighters. the reality is that hezbollah preparing for another confrontation with israel since 2006, the last war. there is a network of tunnels, positions in southern lebanon, because hezbollah

has prepared for another conflict with israel. there has always been a concern this could trigger a major confrontation and perhaps any conflict with hezbollah would be felt by the population in israel in a way the conflict in gaza had not had this deep impact inside the country. we do not know how hezbollah will react. the statement today confirmed the senior commander was in this building. three civilians were killed including two children. we have not had indication about what hezbollah plans to do next. ,., ., about what hezbollah plans to do next. ., , ., .,, next. new report from israel as well. next. new report from israel as well- you _ next. new report from israel as well. you are _ next. new report from israel as well. you are aware _ next. new report from israel as well. you are aware of - next. new report from israel as well. you are aware of the - next. new report from israel as i well. you are aware of the political situation and the military decisions made there. what do you think... israel has not admitted to the targeted assassination. what is behind the military decision—making

and calculations they will be making? and calculations they will be makini ? , and calculations they will be makini? , ., _ making? they obviously saw the opportunity _ making? they obviously saw the opportunity to — making? they obviously saw the opportunity to carry _ making? they obviously saw the opportunity to carry out - making? they obviously saw the opportunity to carry out the i opportunity to carry out the assassination. they knew he was —— it was going to be a major development and could spark a retaliation from iran, or iranians supported groups in the region. it is a massive blow to hamas. ismail haniyeh was a senior leader inside hamas again heavily involved in negotiations for a ceasefire and hostage release deal. the question is not only about the possibility of retaliation but also about the future of these negotiations taking place. talks for a ceasefire, a pause. also for a deal to allow the release of hostages who remain in captivity in gaza. what happened

today, again israel has not confirmed it was behind this is assassination but lots of questions following the attack that happened today. in terms of what is happening in lebanon, we have heard from israeli officials talking about the situation in the north, saying the situation in the north, saying the situation there was unsustainable and unacceptable and saying no country would accept being on the receiving end of rockets almost every day. the israeli authorities talking about the need for a solution to the crisis to allow the return of residents to northern communities. and prime minister benjamin netanyahu said he was in favour of a diplomatic solution but if diplomacy failed to reach a deal with hezbollah that the israeli military would do what it needed to restore safety along the border. again two major developments today.

and a dangerous moment for the region. and a dangerous moment for the reiion. ., .,, , ., region. there are those in israel erha -s region. there are those in israel perhaps a _ region. there are those in israel perhaps a minority, _ region. there are those in israel perhaps a minority, who - region. there are those in israel perhaps a minority, who believej perhaps a minority, who believe hezbollah need to be dealt with to restore security to northern israel and allow those thousands of people who had to be evacuated back into their homes. who had to be evacuated back into their homes-— who had to be evacuated back into their homes. exactly. those voices includes the _ their homes. exactly. those voices includes the voices _ their homes. exactly. those voices includes the voices of _ their homes. exactly. those voices includes the voices of the - their homes. exactly. those voices includes the voices of the far - their homes. exactly. those voices includes the voices of the far right| includes the voices of the far right ministers inside the prime minister's coalition. the national security minister and others. the finance minister. they have both publicly defended the military operation against hezbollah, saying the situation is unsustainable and the situation is unsustainable and the military needs to deal with hezbollah which is obviously a heavily armed force. again with an

arsenal that includes tens of thousands of rockets and missiles including missiles that can strike deep inside israeli territory. there is obviously the fear of any kind of military operation by israel could lead to a major response by hezbollah. that could affect the entire country.— hezbollah. that could affect the entire country. let's speak now to ha hellyer — nonresident scholar at the carnegie endowment for international peace. what are your thoughts about this development and what it could mean for the region?— for the region? thank you for having me. i for the region? thank you for having me- i have — for the region? thank you for having me. i have said _ for the region? thank you for having me. i have said it _ for the region? thank you for having me. i have said it multiple _ for the region? thank you for having me. i have said it multiple times i for the region? thank you for having me. i have said it multiple times in l me. i have said it multiple times in the past ten months the law of unintended consequences is upon us. no matter what people think, there is no such thing as a carefully calibrated escalation. any type of

strike, response, reprisalthat involves this sort of weaponry, you are not able to predict the factors that come into it, you cannot predict precisely what happens as a response, you cannot control the variables that go into such operations. i am concerned what we are seeing at the moment is a reckless cycle that will involve the region in a massive regional conflict. forthe region in a massive regional conflict. for the past ten months that has not happened, thankfully, but i think people should be well apprised it could happen at any point and all states and all leaders and all external forces should be moving to an active de—escalation and that begins with a ceasefire in gaza. it does not begin in terms of these sorts of escalator re—strikes or attacks.

these sorts of escalator re-strikes or attacks. ~ ., ., these sorts of escalator re-strikes or attacks-— these sorts of escalator re-strikes or attacks. ~ ., ., i. ~ or attacks. what do you think those calculations — or attacks. what do you think those calculations will _ or attacks. what do you think those calculations will be _ or attacks. what do you think those calculations will be that _ or attacks. what do you think those calculations will be that iran - or attacks. what do you think those calculations will be that iran are i calculations will be that iran are making now? it calculations will be that iran are making now?— calculations will be that iran are making now? it depends on how hani eh making now? it depends on how haniyeh was _ making now? it depends on how haniyeh was assassinated. - making now? it depends on how haniyeh was assassinated. we i making now? it depends on how i haniyeh was assassinated. we have conflicting information on that. if it was an air strike by the israelis, that will provoke a certain response. if it was for example an ied, that would provoke another response. i think iran does not want to go to war and i think iran is content to stay out of a full—blown regional conflict breaking out. again, law of unintended consequences. let's say the iranians respond in a way they think is calculated and measured and something goes wrong. you simply do not know. it is likely, and this was reported, that even the killings that took place in this syrian

occupied golan heights, of 12 children, was the result of something going wrong, it was not an intended target. we have to be very careful about falling into these assumptions that we can just about kalibrate. we can raise the temperature one or 2 degrees but it will not go to five or ten, you don't know that, because you are not in control of the variables. you said what _ in control of the variables. you said what needs _ in control of the variables. you said what needs to _ in control of the variables. you said what needs to happen is a ceasefire in gaza. hamas' political leader has just been killed, he was leading those negotiations. what now for hopes of a ceasefire? there leading those negotiations. what now for hopes of a ceasefire?— for hopes of a ceasefire? there is timini for hopes of a ceasefire? there is timing here- _ for hopes of a ceasefire? there is timing here. the _ for hopes of a ceasefire? there is timing here. the israelis - for hopes of a ceasefire? there is timing here. the israelis had i for hopes of a ceasefire? there is timing here. the israelis had the | timing here. the israelis had the capacity, it is clear, to target haniyeh in tehran and could have done it at any time when they were sure he was there. they chose this

moment to do that, at a time where negotiations are taking place and are quite far along. i do not think it was a responsible thing to do. beyond that, the dynamic of how hamas seems to operate at present means that haniyeh's assassination is not going to bring the politburo to its knees. it sends a message and a message by the israelis they do not want the ceasefire negotiations to be completed successfully. indeed, even within the israeli team, there have been links to websites which report these leaks. that they suspect that benjamin netanyahu is not interested in a ceasefire negotiations succeed. that he scuttles these negotiations multiple times over the past ten months. and a well—known israeli

newspaper has documented this. what is important is external actors, particularly the usa, which so far has failed to do this and not because of trying, but because they have not tried significantly enough, they have to push the israelis to they have to push the israelis to the negotiation table, use leveraged if necessary and i think it is necessary to come to a ceasefire. especially after the devastation and carnage we have seen in gaza. there are two parties _ carnage we have seen in gaza. there are two parties to — carnage we have seen in gaza. there are two parties to any _ carnage we have seen in gaza. there are two parties to any ceasefire - are two parties to any ceasefire deal. what now for hamas and the leadership now their political leadership now their political leader is no more? will it be the leader is no more? will it be the leader of the military wing, the man believed to be behind the october attacks, yahya sinwar? ilirui’hizit believed to be behind the october attacks, yahya sinwar?— believed to be behind the october attacks, yahya sinwar? what we have seen is there — attacks, yahya sinwar? what we have seen is there has _ attacks, yahya sinwar? what we have seen is there has been _ attacks, yahya sinwar? what we have seen is there has been a _ attacks, yahya sinwar? what we have seen is there has been a going - seen is there has been a going back—and—forth between the hamas leadership in gaza and that hamas leadership in gaza and that hamas

leadership outside gaza. the dynamic will definitely change again as a result of the assassination of haniyeh. i think haniyeh, i am sorry, yahya sinwar came under pressure to agree to a ceasefire. i am not sure where that leaves things now because we have to wait to see what sort of influence and power haniyeh's successor will have and how far he will push things. we had comments from _ how far he will push things. we had comments from the _ how far he will push things. we had comments from the reuters - how far he will push things. we had comments from the reuters news i comments from the reuters news agency from qatar, which hosted the political leader ismail haniyeh for many years. they said the killing of haniyeh is a dangerous escalation. they have been involved in negotiations over the past months. we have the mediator saying it is an escalation. if that happens we have to be concerned. certainly, actors in the region have pushed hamas hard

to the negotiation table. but the main actor here, because we are talking about a ceasefire but the overwhelming majority of force by far is the israeli forces attacking gaza and bombarding 40,000 people at the very least killed over that time. there has to be pressure to pull back, keeping in mind gaza is an occupied territory. and that is where the escalation begins. the escalation is necessary and will not happen by default. it has to be actively pursued and if it is not, by default we will see more escalation. by default we will see more escalation-— by default we will see more escalation. . ~' , ., , . �* escalation. thank you very much. a reminder of— escalation. thank you very much. a reminder of the _ escalation. thank you very much. a reminder of the breaking _ escalation. thank you very much. a reminder of the breaking news. i escalation. thank you very much. a | reminder of the breaking news. and the continuing coverage of the news

that the hamas leader ismail haniyeh has been killed in tehran. stay with us on bbc news for the latest developments. tuesday brought the warmest ever year so far with parts of london seen 32 celsius including heathrow, kew gardens and stjames' seen 32 celsius including heathrow, kew gardens and st james' park. seen 32 celsius including heathrow, kew gardens and stjames' park. and we have also officially seen a heatwave in some regions, especially kent, and east yorkshire with temperatures exceeding the heatwave threshold so three consecutive days and we might see another day of heatwave conditions in some areas. still warm and humid but a thunderstorm risk through wednesday in the south—east. to start the day we have heat in the south and it is

fresher further north. we have heat in the south and it is fresherfurther north. sunshine, dry weather, light winds, but humid towards the south and as we head through the afternoon, showers and thunderstorms cropping up, particularly in parts of kent and sussex. they will be hit and miss and if you catch one there could be local flooding. and if you catch one there could be localflooding. top and if you catch one there could be local flooding. top temperature possibly 29 in central and southern areas. low 20s, high teens further north. wednesday evening and overnight into thursday, some heavy showers and thunderstorms become more extensive especially in england and wales. there could be rain in the west of scotland. a sticky note in the south. a little bit warmer further north than it has been overnight. through thursday, we have heavy showers and thunderstorms that clear. through the day, cloud and showers bubble up so thunderstorms potentially breaking out, especially in england and wales in the

afternoon. temperatures 22—28. we have warm and with us as we head through friday but later on friday into saturday, a frontal system will allow fresher air to move into the west. a change in weather type as we head through friday into saturday. still warm and sunny in the south and east through friday but the wind picks up in the north and west with the arrival of showers. temperatures around 16—21 in northern ireland and scotland. about 28 in the far south—east. eventually it turns fresher and more unsettled as we head into the weekend. goodbye.

live from london. this is bbc news. palestinian militant group, hamas have said its leader, ismail haniyeh, has been killed in the iranian capital, tehran. it comes hours after the israeli military said it had killed one of hezbollah's top commanders in a targeted airstrike on the lebanese capital, beirut. hello, i'm samantha simmonds. we start this hour with the breaking news... the palestinian militant group, hamas, says its political leader, ismail haniyeh, has been killed in iran. a statement from the group said he was killed in an israeli raid on a house in the iranian capital, tehran, that he was staying in. israel's military is not commenting.

it said the raid took place after he had attended the inauguration of the new iranian president. ismail haniyeh had been leading negotiations with israel and his death is likely to affect any chance of progress. a hamas official described the assassination as a grave escalation that will not go unpunished. one of ismail haniyeh's bodyguards is also said to have died. so let's just take a closer look at who ismail haniyeh was. born in the al—shati refugee camp in gaza, haniyeh was a key member of hamas from its inception. he was imprisoned by israel a number of times, including for three years in 1989 as it cracked down on the first palestinian uprising. at one point, he was expelled to south lebanon for six months. in 2003, he survived an assassination attempt by israel, along with the hamas founder, sheikh ahmed yassin. three years later, haniyeh was appointed palestinian prime along with the hamas founder, sheikh ahmed yassin.

three years later, haniyeh was appointed palestinian prime minister by president mahmoud abbas after hamas won the most seats in national elections. however, he was dismissed a year later after the group ousted abbas' fatah party from the gaza strip in a week of deadly violence. haniyeh had led hamas's political operations since 2017 while living in exile in qatar. he was the public face of hamas's diplomacy in arab countries and was leading efforts to negotiate a ceasefire deal in gaza. haniyeh was considered to be less hard—line and militaristic than yahya sinwar, who is the head of hamas inside gaza. joining me now is middle east correspondent yolande knell injerusalem. and hugo bachega, our correspondent in beirut. what what more do we know? the re orts what what more do we know? the reports are — what what more do we know? tie reports are saying this was an attack, an air strike are about 2am local time on the residence where ismail haniyeh was staying in the iranian capital. he was killed along with his bodyguard. we don't have

many more details on that at the moment. he had been in iran along with the leaders of other iran backed armed groups from around the region, further swearing in of iran's new president. they were seen very prominently at that ceremony and also meeting the iranian supreme leader. there has already been a lot of reaction to what happened, one hamas official calling this a cowardly act and saying it will not go unanswered. others said this could lead to a dangerous escalation. this killing really did catch us by surprise. it has not been claimed by israel. when i asked the israeli military it said it did not comment on reports and foreign media. this camejust hours not comment on reports and foreign media. this came just hours after israel said it had killed a senior hezbollah figure in southern beirut, somebody it said was responsible for a deadly rocket strike in the

israeli occupied golan heights at the weekend. we had been braced for several days for israel's retaliation. hezbollah denied it was responsible for carrying out that strike and it has not confirmed the death of any of its leaders. already there had been fears that iran could be drawn in if there was a strong response to what is real did in beirut. now we have iran saying that its top security council is considering its reaction to an assassination of this top hamas leader on its own soil. so this is another very dangerous moment. ilirui’hizit another very dangerous moment. what do ou think another very dangerous moment. what do you think this _ another very dangerous moment. what do you think this means in the immediate for any hostage ceasefire deal? ihss immediate for any hostage ceasefire deal? �* , , ., immediate for any hostage ceasefire deal? a , ., deal? as you were saying, ismail hani eh deal? as you were saying, ismail haniyeh was _ deal? as you were saying, ismail haniyeh was seen _ deal? as you were saying, ismail haniyeh was seen as _ deal? as you were saying, ismail haniyeh was seen as being - deal? as you were saying, ismail haniyeh was seen as being the i deal? as you were saying, ismail. haniyeh was seen as being the more pragmatic, moderate face of hamas,

when compared to the hardliners like yahya sinwar, and the person who masterminded the october seven attacks, still in gaza. we are not sure what happened to him but yahya sinwar is believed to still be in an underground bunker. this is likely to put more power in the hands of yahya sinwar when it comes to any negotiations. ismail haniyeh had been overseeing those negotiations through mediators, he was someone who had been able to travel around the region still, and attend meetings. it is not clear at this point who his successor will be. this is likely to be a major setback for any sort of new deal on a ceasefire and hostage release and is not sure at this moment what this

means for the course of the war in gaza. ~ . means for the course of the war in gaza. . ., .,. ., .,, means for the course of the war in gaza. ~ ., ., , gaza. what reaction has there been by hezbollah _ gaza. what reaction has there been by hezbollah and _ gaza. what reaction has there been by hezbollah and other— gaza. what reaction has there been by hezbollah and other iranian i gaza. what reaction has there been| by hezbollah and other iranian proxy in lebanon? hours after one of their senior leaders was targeted by israel. ~ ., ., ., , , senior leaders was targeted by israel. ~ ., ., , ., israel. we had two releases from hezbollah, _ israel. we had two releases from hezbollah, pictures. _ israel. we had two releases from hezbollah, pictures. the - israel. we had two releases from hezbollah, pictures. the first i hezbollah, pictures. the first statement was reaction to the killing of the senior commander fuad shukr, confirming he was point me in this building. this is the hezbollah stronghold in beirut. there is a stronghold in beirut. there is a strong present of hezbollah members,

also of the lebanese military. the streets have been cordoned off and shops are closed but the streets are getting busier with lots of people coming to the scene, lots of journalists as well. we had a short statement by hezbollah saying that emergency services are searching through the rubble and they confirmed that the senior commander was here last night but they have not confirmed he was actually killed. yesterday the israeli military said fuad shukr was killed and they described it as a precise attack, they said he was the senior commander was a right—hand man to the hezbollah leader. he was also described as being the commander behind the attack that happened on saturday in the occupied goal in heights when 12 children were

killed. the israeli authorities had promised a response to the attack, benjamin netanyahu said hezbollah would pay a heavy price. four days in lebanon there was waiting for this is really response. it happened last night, here in this stronghold, hezbollah stronghold in southern beirut. the fact it happened here in the lebanese capital, perhaps the first time hezbollah was attacked here in beirut, could be seen as a major provocation by the group. we haven't seen any indication yet about any kind of plans for retaliation but i think it is inevitable that hezbollah will respond to this attack. we have seen in the past when senior commanders were killed by israel, hezbollah launched hundreds of rockets targeting military inside israel. i think a response is almost

inevitable and obviously this fears raises of an escalation in hostilities between hezbollah and israel. so far most of the violence has been contained to areas along the border between israel and lebanon. people have been forced to leave their homes because of violence but there has been fears that violence could escalate into something bigger even though indications have been that hezbollah and israel were trying to avoid a major confrontation. but again, this is a very dangerous moment. the iranian leadership is meeting soon to discuss a response.— iranian leadership is meeting soon to discuss a response. hezbollah is the main group _ to discuss a response. hezbollah is the main group of _ to discuss a response. hezbollah is the main group of this _ to discuss a response. hezbollah is the main group of this alliance i to discuss a response. hezbollah is the main group of this alliance of i the main group of this alliance of factions and forces across the middle east supported by iran, this

so—called access of resistance. there has been a question since 7th of october attacks by hamas and this response by hezbollah, the level of influence that iran has over hezbollah and other factions influence that iran has over hezbollah and otherfactions in influence that iran has over hezbollah and other factions in this alliance. i think hezbollah in lebanon is obviously a very powerful force, not only a militia but also a political party with representation in parliament, also a very strong social movement here in lebanon, so it does have a level of independence, it does have its own strategy and goals, but there is some level of coordination perhaps with the iranian authorities and obviously hezbollah just like hamas is considered a terrorist organisation by many western countries including the us and uk, and there has been the fear in

lebanon that hezbollah could be dragging this country into another conflict with israel. lots of people remember what happened in 2006, the devastation brought by the war between israel and hezbollah. there was a lot of destruction in southern beirut and southern lebanon. many people were concerned that history might be repeating itself. this is a very difficult moment for lebanon. for years the country has been going through a huge economic crisis, around 80% of the population estimated to be living in poverty, there is also a political crisis, there is also a political crisis, the country has not had a president for almost two years. a difficult situation for lebanon and many here will be concerned that hezbollah will be concerned that hezbollah will drag this country into another

conflict. yemen's houthi rebel group, which is backed by iran, has posted a response on x. they said targeting ismail haniyeh was "a heinous terrorist crime and a flagrant violation of laws and ideal values". the yemeni rebels have been launching drones and missiles at shipping in the red sea since november, saying they are acting in solidarity with palestinians during the gaza war. qatar has also responded, also calling it a heinous crime, warning of a dangerous escalation. we just want to show you some of the last known pictures taken of ismail haniyeh. haniyeh had arrived in tehran on tuesday to attend the inauguration of iranian president masoud pezeshkian, who won the elections earlier this month. these are some scenes from his visit — just hours before his death in the early hours of this morning. on tuesday, he held meetings with iran's supreme leader ayatollah ali khamenei, and with masoud pezeshkian. joining me now isjotam confino, who's the telegraph's israel correspondent.

what is the reaction to this developing story? what is the reaction to this develo-iin sto ? ,, , , , developing story? surprisingly quiet in israel, developing story? surprisingly quiet in israel. only _ developing story? surprisingly quiet in israel, only to _ developing story? surprisingly quiet in israel, only to mac— developing story? surprisingly quiet in israel, only to mac ministers i in israel, only to mac ministers have reacted to it, celebrating it, saying that ismail haniyeh deserved to be killed, but we have not heard anything official either from the israeli army, the defence minister or the prime minister. i expect one of the middle east to comment on this publicly. ismail haniyeh was a dead man walking the minute 0ctober dead man walking the minute october the 7th happened. they have been chasing him ever since so it is a huge military and political victory and one that the prime minister, defence minister and military would like to take credit for. but there is really only one actor in the region with an interest in launching an attack like this in the heart of iran and taking out ismail haniyeh, and there is of course is real. ilirui’hizit

and there is of course is real. what will it mean — and there is of course is real. what will it mean for— and there is of course is real. what will it mean for conflict? _ and there is of course is real. what will it mean for conflict? it - will it mean for conflict? it happened a couple of hours ago but what do you think the people of israel will feel about this and what impact it could have on any hostage release or ceasefire negotiations, given ismail haniyeh was leading those on behalf of hamas? looking at hostaie those on behalf of hamas? looking at hostage negotiations _ those on behalf of hamas? looking at hostage negotiations to _ those on behalf of hamas? looking at hostage negotiations to begin - those on behalf of hamas? looking at hostage negotiations to begin with, i hostage negotiations to begin with, many of the relatives are very worried about these attacks both against ismail haniyeh but also in beirut yesterday. in general every time israel launches those attacks it could derail the ceasefire negotiations and most of the families of the hostages and most israelis in general would like to see a ceasefire which would release the hostages. every time these attacks happen it is bittersweet for them, they support taking out these leaders but they would prefer a ceasefire deal. this could give hamas an excuse to walk out of negotiations and see israel is clearly not interested in a ceasefire when they are taking out political leaders. i am

ceasefire when they are taking out political leaders. iam not ceasefire when they are taking out political leaders. i am not sure of the negotiations are over yet but it does not look good. benjamin netanyahu has been accused of procrastinating in general with the ceasefire negotiations. the situation in general, i am more worried about what happened in beirut yesterday because after all hezbollah is the strongest enemy of israel right now when it comes to daily attacks. hamas is significantly damaged in gaza. all eyes have been on the northern border. i suspect that where we should worry and look is at the northern border of israel and lebanon and not so much what hamas is planning to do in retaliation for this assassination.— is planning to do in retaliation for this assassination. your expectation is that israel — this assassination. your expectation is that israel will _ this assassination. your expectation is that israel will claim _ is that israel will claim responsibility for this, and many within the leadership will be openly celebrating. we spoke to many analysts and experts in the region over the past few hours saying this is a dangerous moment for the conflict and it could be the spark which ignites a wider war. what is

your analysis if israel claims responsibility, why they have done this now, the timing? it is difficult to _ this now, the timing? it is difficult to take _ this now, the timing? it is difficult to take out - this now, the timing? it is difficult to take out ismail| this now, the timing? it 3 difficult to take out ismail haniyeh when he is in qatar because qatar is where he resides and one of the main brokers between hamas and israel, so it was always a no for israel to assassinate ismail haniyeh in qatar. but israel has no problem carrying out attacks in iran, they have done that for years. the minute he sets footin that for years. the minute he sets foot in iran, to run for that matter, he has a target, and i believe that is why israel went after him. they have tried to kill him for many months but they saw an opportunity now. i think it is opportune for them because the ceasefire negotiations aren't going anywhere, hezbollah keeps attacking israel, and hamas needs to be finished off once and for all including the political leadership. iran says there will be a harsh

response which could mean many things. i am response which could mean many things. iam not response which could mean many things. i am not sure it will be a direct attack on israel but it could mean they are activating all of their proxies across the region to attack israel more or it could be attacks on israelis abroad or even israeli embassies abroad. ilirui’hizit attacks on israelis abroad or even israeli embassies abroad. what do ou think israeli embassies abroad. what do you think the _ israeli embassies abroad. what do you think the calculation _ israeli embassies abroad. what do you think the calculation being i israeli embassies abroad. what do i you think the calculation being made here is by the military and prime minister? ~ , , minister? the prime minister is reall not minister? the prime minister is really not a _ minister? the prime minister is really not a hawk, _ minister? the prime minister is really not a hawk, which - minister? the prime minister is really not a hawk, which mightl minister? the prime minister is - really not a hawk, which might sound ridiculous to say that because his rhetoric is very hawkish, militant, but netanyahu is known in israel for being indecisive and not wanting to go to war, which is why we have seen ten months of daily attacks buy hezbollah without the leadership deciding to go to war with them. i believe he is trying to contain the situation by going after hezbollah but in a contained way. it might sound a bit ridiculous but it is

contained instead of for example bombing their airport. when it comes to hamas it feels like he has more manoeuvring space and taking out the leaders would be inevitable anyway. i believe he is trying to contain it and i don't think he wants a war, i also don't think hezbollah wants a war. israel believes it is iran looking to exploit the situation, according to someone i spoke to, especially in the months up to the us election, because they see the us as being weak and concerned with internal politics, and they are trying to capitalise. that my understanding. brute trying to capitalise. that my understanding.— trying to capitalise. that my understandini. ~ ., ., ., understanding. we had to reaction from the us _ understanding. we had to reaction from the us defence _ understanding. we had to reaction from the us defence secretary i understanding. we had to reaction i from the us defence secretary saying he doesn't think a wider conflict is inevitable, there is always room an opportunity for diplomacy, and also the qatari leadership saying that the qatari leadership saying that the killing is a heinous crime and warning of dangerous escalation. to

what extent our diplomatic influence is going to play a crucial role in trying to de—escalate this situation? trying to de-escalate this situation?— trying to de-escalate this situation? , ., , ., situation? they have been doing so for a loni situation? they have been doing so for a long time. _ situation? they have been doing so for a long time. it _ situation? they have been doing so for a long time. it is _ situation? they have been doing so for a long time. it is the _ situation? they have been doing so for a long time. it is the us - situation? they have been doing so for a long time. it is the us that i for a long time. it is the us that is behind israel not to being more aggressive than it has been when it comes to for example attacking hamas inside gaza and in terms of humanitarian aid. the us has put a lot of pressure on israel first of all not to retaliate too harshly when iran attacked israel back in aprilfiring 360 drones when iran attacked israel back in april firing 360 drones and ballistic missiles, and that was due to united states pressure. i believe this relatively contained attack in beirut is also due to us pressure and in general the us is playing a huge role in de—escalating at least on the israeli side. when it comes to hezbollah, we see france trying to hezbollah, we see france trying to influence them but in general i think most of the international

community would like to see this de—escalate immediately because many of them could be dragged into a war they don't want to, especially the us. , , , ., they don't want to, especially the us. , , ,., .,. ., us. reuters 'ust reporting reaction from the us. reutersjust reporting reaction from the lebanon _ us. reutersjust reporting reaction from the lebanon information i from the lebanon information minister saying that diplomatic efforts to the prime ministers will focus on the calming of tensions. to what extent will leadership affect hezbollah�*s response? the? what extent will leadership affect hezbollah's response?— hezbollah's response? they are reall a hezbollah's response? they are really a state — hezbollah's response? they are really a state within _ hezbollah's response? they are really a state within a _ hezbollah's response? they are really a state within a state, - really a state within a state, running daily lives in many aspects, especially when it comes to making foreign affairs decisions. the government has had little impact on the hezbollah decision—making and they will be worried because lebanon is not ready to go to war with israel because it will be a disaster, it will look like a geyser, probably worse. the lebanese government does not want this and i

assume most civilians do not want but hezbollah is really dictated by iran. they are the ones they listen to, the money comes from iran, the military equipment, iran is dictating to a great extent what hezbollah does. the lebanese government can put some pressure on but at the end of the day the one who call the shots is the supreme leader of iran in tehran. lard who call the shots is the supreme leader of iran in tehran. lord peter ricketts, the _ leader of iran in tehran. lord peter ricketts, the uk — leader of iran in tehran. lord peter ricketts, the uk former _ leader of iran in tehran. lord peter ricketts, the uk former national. ricketts, the uk former national security adviser, said this assassination is a powerful demonstration of israel's ability to reach out across the region and it could allow israel to wind down the gaza operation. do you see that as a possibility if they claim this as their own? is this a reasonable point at which they could say they have achieved success and taken out a senior leader in hamas and therefore they have won? israel will

definitely say _ therefore they have won? israel will definitely say this _ therefore they have won? israel will definitely say this is _ therefore they have won? israel will definitely say this is a _ therefore they have won? israel will definitely say this is a partial- definitely say this is a partial victory, and it is definitely a victory, and it is definitely a victory, but the number one suspect, yahya sinwar, ruling gas and calling the shots, he is still alive, so until he is dead or captured israel will continue to attack hamas inside gaza. but i will believe they may try to wind up some of their operations so i think this is all linked and i think they will try at least to calm down a bit because they need to also refocus their efforts on the north. the israeli military is quite exhausted after ten months of attacks inside gaza and the northern border and southern border. if they go to war in lebanon they will need all the strength they need so maybe they can use this as a period to regain some strength and refocus their attention on the northern border.— refocus their attention on the northern border. , .,

northern border. interesting to get our northern border. interesting to get your analysis- _ northern border. interesting to get your analysis. some _ northern border. interesting to get your analysis. some more - your analysis. some more international reaction. china reacted, reuters reporting their foreign ministry saying they are highly concerned about the incident, this is a briefing they are just giving right now. lots of reaction coming in from around the world to what has happened in the past few hours. i'm joined now by nomi bar yacoov, associate fellow at the international security programme at chatham house and an expert in diplomacy in the middle east. welcome. what does this mean for the region? i welcome. what does this mean for the re . ion? ~ welcome. what does this mean for the reuion? ~ �* , welcome. what does this mean for the reuion? ~ 3 t, welcome. what does this mean for the reuion? ~ �*, ., , ., ., region? i think it's a pivotal moment— region? i think it's a pivotal moment in _ region? i think it's a pivotal moment in the _ region? i think it's a pivotal moment in the conflict. - region? i think it's a pivotal moment in the conflict. we j region? i think it's a pivotal- moment in the conflict. we have had a targeted assassination, confirmation of death, —— no confirmation of death, —— no confirmation of death, of their number two of hezbollah, confirmed

assassination of the hamas leader ismail haniyeh, who took office when hamas one democratic elections which the us pushed hard for in 2006. there was assassination of his three sons during eid. it is notjust that iran will retaliate, they have proxies, sub—states in yemen, iraq, syria, lebanon, gaza, the west bank and eastjerusalem. israel has shown its reach is very long and they can target iran but that also sends a very strong message to the iranians

themselves because if they could assassinate ismail haniyeh at the inauguration of mustard per 16 —— masud they will have to make a calculated response. they will have to make a calculated resonse. ., , ., ., ., i, , ., response. lots of analysts have said iran does not _ response. lots of analysts have said iran does not want _ response. lots of analysts have said iran does not want and _ response. lots of analysts have said iran does not want and cannot - response. lots of analysts have said| iran does not want and cannot afford a war. . t, , iran does not want and cannot afford a war. ., ., , ., iran does not want and cannot afford a war. ., .,, ., , ., a war. iran has long-term planning and i think— a war. iran has long-term planning and i think the _ a war. iran has long-term planning and i think the do _ a war. iran has long-term planning and i think the do not _ a war. iran has long-term planning and i think the do not want - a war. iran has long-term planning l and i think the do not want imminent warorto be and i think the do not want imminent war or to be attacked directly but they have been very clever in how they have been very clever in how they are operating for many years, operating through their proxies.

effo rts efforts to quell things require international coordination and ensuring the response will be one that will not lead into a escalated regional conflict. you that will not lead into a escalated regional conflict.— regional conflict. you say the leadership — regional conflict. you say the leadership in _ regional conflict. you say the leadership in iran _ regional conflict. you say the leadership in iran plans - regional conflict. you say the - leadership in iran plans long-term. leadership in iran plans long—term. what is the strategy in the region with all these proxies targeting israel? to with all these proxies targeting israel? ., u, with all these proxies targeting israel? ., _, ., with all these proxies targeting israel? ., ., ., ., . ~ with all these proxies targeting israel? ., ., ., , ., israel? to continue to attack israel throu~h israel? to continue to attack israel through their _ israel? to continue to attack israel through their proxies, _ israel? to continue to attack israel through their proxies, that - israel? to continue to attack israel through their proxies, that is - israel? to continue to attack israel through their proxies, that is the l through their proxies, that is the strategy and it has been very successful and that is why certain senior officials in israel feel that they need to attack inside iran. i think it is not the right strategy, personally, but you saw prime minister naftali bennett, former prime minister, took credit boasting he was the first prime minister to carry out operations inside iranian soil. he published an op—ed in the wall streetjournal a few months

ago, so he has made it public. i think netanyahu is not making it secret that he wants to show that israel has that capability, and they showed it after the iranian attack in april when they attacked in isfahan. that was a message that israel can reach anywhere in iran very precisely. it is complicated because things can spin out of control. by long term i mean i think iran is manufacturing drones, they have shown that those can actually reach is real, they managed to hit and cause damage to our israeli air force base in april and if they manufacture thousands of those, which i am sure they will, they are not expensive to manufacture, those are very hard to deal with. conventional anti air defences don't

really cater for the nature and scope of the attack. they are looking long term and long term it will be very difficult to deal with thousands of drones coming from all the countries where they have proxies and i think their proxies are only expanding, including their own. ., ., , ., are only expanding, including their own. . ., are only expanding, including their own. ., ., , ., ., own. iran has long called for the destruction _ own. iran has long called for the destruction of _ own. iran has long called for the destruction of the _ own. iran has long called for the destruction of the state - own. iran has long called for the destruction of the state of- own. iran has long called for the | destruction of the state of israel. we heard from benjamin netanyahu speaking in congress last week warning of the threat of iran not just israel but to the wider world. how much of a threat do you see iran as being? i how much of a threat do you see iran as bein: ? ~ , how much of a threat do you see iran as bein: ? ~' , ., how much of a threat do you see iran as bein: ? ~' , . ., as being? i think they have made it ve clear as being? i think they have made it very clear that _ as being? i think they have made it very clear that their _ as being? i think they have made it very clear that their aim _ as being? i think they have made it very clear that their aim is - as being? i think they have made it very clear that their aim is to - very clear that their aim is to ensure that israel no longer exists as a state so i think there is no doubt that would be their wish, the question is whether they will be able to carry it out or not and i

think the way to deal with it is to have a peaceful middle east, basically, and if the war in gaza ends, efforts are made to do that, then one has really solved 90% of then one has really solved 90% of the problem because then hezbollah said they would stop attacking israel if the war ends in gaza. the west bank is also problematic but i think there is an urgent need to end the war and pave a path to two states, a palestinian and an israeli states, a palestinian and an israeli state side by side with security guarantees for both so that countries like iran want to be able to attack israel or if they will there will be a regional alliance to prevent them from doing so, because it is very clear that for every day the war in gaza goes on, the regional stability is at risk. imilli

regional stability is at risk. with iranian proxies _ regional stability is at risk. with iranian proxies attacking israel for many years before the war in gaza started with the high hamas attacks. that is not what i was saying, i was saying the way to move forward is to ensure that there is a very clear path to peace, so first a ceasefire, a complex ceasefire because there are three stages in stage two is israel withdrawing from the gaza strip, which is not going to happen unless there —— someone else takes over security or allows israel to keep the security element of the management. it is very complex but the only way to deal with this long—term to ensure that peace negotiations resume. you are talking about a period where there was no

international effort to ensure that palestine will have a state. palestinians were ignored, even in the first camp david peace agreement with egypt. there was a decision to eventually have a palestinian state. if you had the abraham accords with a number of gulf state and there was no mention or no action on palestine. that is the key to resolving the issue, and the war and ensure there is a very clear path to two states with a very rigorous process, and very serious efforts made in line with that. reuters reports comments from the

new iranian president in response to the death of the hamas leaders saying iran will defend its territorial area dignity and honour and pride and make terrorist occupiers regret their cowardly act. he says assassinating the leader in the past few hours. that first detailed response coming from masoud pezeshkian. haniyeh was in iran to celebrate his inauguration. earlier, i spoke to fawaz gerges, professor of international relations at the london school of economics, and asked him what he thinks it could mean for the region. if you asked me what are the risks, i would say the risks of all—out war have increased tenfold in the past 2a hours. can iran afford to stand down?

the attack was in the heart. not only provocation but great humiliation. because the attack was in the heart. ismail haniyeh was a guest of the supreme leader. as we are speaking, the supreme leader is meeting with his national security council and the revolutionary guard in order to determine the response. this is in iran. i have no doubt in my mind that hezbollah will retaliate on a much bigger scale than it has done before and the question is the cycle of escalation could easily spin out of control because the americans and french have been pushing very hard to de—escalate and defuse the crisis but here we are nine

months after october 7th and we are talking about the potential trigger for a wider conflict. there have been many triggers. i mentioned iran's direct rocket attacks back in april. what do you believe the iranian leadership wants? the previous guest said they could not afford an all out war. absolutely. i do not think iran wants a direct confrontation with israel. even the americans say so. but this particular attack coming on the heels of the assassination of a top military commander of hezbollah in the heart of beirut. it is from beirut to tehran. at this particular stage, i doubt it very much and i hope i am wrong, i doubt it very much whether iran can afford not to retaliate. how, by what means?

i take it they will have to think twice before directly attacking israel at this moment. but the question is what will israel do if hezbollah attacks tel aviv, as it most likely will, because hezbollah has been warning that if israel attacks beirut it will respond in kind. this is the cycle of retaliation and miscalculation that would easily spin out of control and lead to a wider regional conflict. israel would say hezbollah have blood on their hands, although they do not admit to firing rockets at the golan heights in which at least 12 young people were killed. that is the calculation of israel and the us is they were behind it. and since the 7th of october attacks by hamas thousands of rockets have been fired by hezbollah into israel.

the threat of hezbollah and for hezbollah, what do they want? there have been attempts at a deal which both parties have not signed up to. hezbollah has repeatedly said what they are doing is in solidarity with palestinians in gaza and they will not stop providing support for the palestinians unless the war in gaza ends. secondly, i think for your audience, hezbollah has denied involvement in the attack on the golan heights. golan heights, the terrible tragedy in this occupied territory. you need to remind viewers that israel has killed almost 15,000 palestinian children. not to mention almost 100,000 palestinians who have been killed and injured. there is so much blame to go around.

the best scenario is to end the war in gaza. once the guns fall silent in gaza, i think you will end the cycle of escalation. we can go to beirut. we had comments from the information minister, reaction to this assassination and also the assassination of a hezbollah leader there yesterday. bring us the latest. it is just after 10.13 in lebanon. we heard from the information minister saying he expects hezbollah will retaliate and we heard from the last person saying hezbollah had said if there was an attack on beirut they would launch a retaliation against israel.

obviously now the concern is about the retaliation and possibility this could lead to an escalation of hostilities between hezbollah and israel. again this morning, i am in the southern suburb of beirut that is a base for hezbollah. there is activity here. hezbollah said emergency services were still working through the rubble of the building that was hit by the israeli attack. they did not confirm that the senior commander fuad shukr was killed. the israelis said this was the target of this attack. they described it as a precise attack targeting the senior commander. they say he was killed. the israeli authorities say he was a right—hand man to the hezbollah leader. they said he was involved in the attack

on saturday in the occupied golan heights. the israelis say this was in response to what happened on saturday. this could be seen as a major provocation by hezbollah because it is happening in a hezbollah stronghold in the lebanese capital of beirut. we believe it is the first time hezbollah has been hit in the capital here. i think the expectation is that there will be a response from hezbollah. we have not seen indication in terms of plans and what the group is planning to do. i think a retaliation from hezbollah is almost inevitable. hezbollah is almost inevitable. hezbollah are a powerful military force with a huge arsenal, larger than hamas. force with a huge arsenal, larger than hamas-— force with a huge arsenal, larger than hamas. , ., , ., , than hamas. exactly. for years, the israelis have — than hamas. exactly. for years, the israelis have considered _ than hamas. exactly. for years, the israelis have considered hezbollah l than hamas. exactly. for years, thej israelis have considered hezbollah a more powerful force than israelis have considered hezbollah a more powerfulforce than hamas. it has an estimated 150,000 rockets and

missiles, including precision guided missiles, including precision guided missiles that could strike deep in israel so any major conflict in israel so any major conflict in israel would be felt by the population in israel because these rockets and missiles would overwhelm israel's sophisticated systems. attacks in weeks recently have been more sophisticated. attack drones. sophisticated weapons. again, there is a fear that any escalation could lead to a major conflict between israel and hezbollah. and this could have catastrophic consequences for israel and lebanon. there was widespread destruction in southern beirut and south of lebanon in 2006 when there was a war between israel and hezbollah. the fear in lebanon is with these attacks, hezbollah is

dragging lebanon into another conflict. in israel, including members of benjamin netanyahu's coalition are in favour of a military operation against hezbollah and say the situation is unsustainable and want to push hezbollah away from the border. they say the resolution of that put an end to the war in 2006, that hezbollah moved away from the border has not been fully implemented. they say the only way to push them back from the border is military force, to allow tens of thousands who have left their homes, for them to return to their houses. a dangerous moment here. we are waiting to see how hezbollah will respond. in here. we are waiting to see how hezbollah will respond.- here. we are waiting to see how hezbollah will respond. in the past few minutes. _ hezbollah will respond. in the past few minutes, reuters _ hezbollah will respond. in the past few minutes, reuters reported - few minutes, reuters reported reaction from the iranian president

masoud pezeshkian who was inaugurated yesterday, saying iran will defend its territorial integrity, dignity, honourand pride and make the terrorist occupiers regret their cowardly act. we expect to hear from the regret their cowardly act. we expect to hearfrom the iran ambassador to lebanon in a short while. certainly strong words coming out of iran. obviously, all these events are interconnected. iran's support hezbollah in lebanon. hezbollah is the main actor in the alliance, supported by iran, the axis of resistance. we talk about the expectation of a response from hezbollah after the attack here yesterday. and now this assassination that happened in iran. the iranian authorities now vowing to respond to this assassination. the israelis have not confirmed they

were behind it but i think the iranians are saying this response is going to happen. we do not know whether this will be some kind of coordinated response. we have not seen any indication from hezbollah about any plans for a retaliation. again, this is a very dangerous moment here because there are real concerns it could lead to a major escalation of hostilities not only between hezbollah and israel here along the border between lebanon and israel but also violence involving other players in the region, other iranian backed groups in syria, iraq and in yemen. a, iranian backed groups in syria, iraq and in yemen-— iranian backed groups in syria, iraq and in yemen. a dangerous moment. any escalation _ and in yemen. a dangerous moment. any escalation would _ and in yemen. a dangerous moment. any escalation would be _ and in yemen. a dangerous moment. any escalation would be deadly - and in yemen. a dangerous moment. any escalation would be deadly if - and in yemen. a dangerous moment. any escalation would be deadly if it i any escalation would be deadly if it was a war between israel and hezbollah, predictions are tens of thousands of people would die. yes.

a lot of people _ thousands of people would die. 13:3 a lot of people remember 2006. thousands of people would die. is; a lot of people remember 2006. the devastation brought by the conflict between israel and hezbollah. there was a lot of destruction in southern beirut and also south of lebanon and some destruction in northern israel. hezbollah is now better prepared. it has sophisticated weapons. it has been armed by iran so obviously concerns on both sides. here in lebanon it is difficult for the country because for years the country because for years the country has suffered from a deep economic crisis. it is estimated that around 80% of the population is now living in poverty. then there was the port explosion in 2020 in beirut that caused widespread destruction in parts of beirut.

there has been a political crisis and has not been a president in the country for almost two years. the country for almost two years. the country is in a state of permanent crisis and now there is the concern hezbollah, because of the attacks, could be dragging lebanon into another conflict. many say a conflict would not be a lebanon's interest. we conflict would not be a lebanon's interest. ~ ., conflict would not be a lebanon's interest. ~ . ., interest. we are getting reaction from the turkish _ interest. we are getting reaction from the turkish foreign - interest. we are getting reaction | from the turkish foreign minister who said they are deeply saddened by the killing of ismail haniyeh. he was partly based in turkey? exactly. he was a powerful— was partly based in turkey? exactly. he was a powerful figure _ was partly based in turkey? exactly. he was a powerful figure inside - he was a powerful figure inside hamas. he was the political leader of hamas in exile, based in doha. we talk about the possibility of a military escalation in the region but this killing raises questions about the negotiations for a

possible ceasefire and hostage release deal in gaza because ismail haniyeh was involved in the negotiations. we know these talks continued and there was hope that those talks would result in a deal for a ceasefire in gaza, that could allow the release of hostages that remain in captivity in gaza and the hopein remain in captivity in gaza and the hope in lebanon was any ceasefire in gaza could help to de—escalate a tensions along the israel and lebanon border. because they said any ceasefire in gaza would be observed in lebanon so the possibility of an escalation of hostilities are concerned here but also questions about the future of negotiations for a possible ceasefire in gaza. so let's just take a closer look at who ismail haniyeh was. born in the al—shati

refugee camp in gaza, haniyeh was a key member of hamas from its inception. he was imprisoned by israel a number of times, including for three years in 1989 as it cracked down on the first palestinian uprising. at one point, he was expelled to south lebanon for six months. in 2003, he survived an assassination attempt by israel, along with the hamas founder, sheikh ahmed yassin. three years later, haniyeh was appointed palestinian prime minister by president mahmoud abbas after hamas won the most seats in national elections. however, he was dismissed a year later after the group ousted abbas' fatah party from the gaza strip in a week of deadly violence. haniyeh had led hamas's political operations since 2017 while living in exile in qatar. he was the public face of hamas's diplomacy in arab countries and was leading efforts to negotiate a ceasefire deal in gaza. considered less militaristic than yahya sinwar, who is the head of hamas inside gaza.

joining me now is jotam confino who's the telegraph's israel correspondent i want to remind viewers about reaction from iran and we have this from the new iranian prime minister speaking at a cabinet meeting saying... iam speaking at a cabinet meeting saying... i am getting the exact wording, that he was vowing to make israel regret haniyeh killing. these are strong words as you might expect from iran. what has reaction been in israel with iran saying it will defend its territorial dignity, honour and pride and make the terrorist occupiers regret their cowardly act? still terrorist occupiers regret their cowardly act?— cowardly act? still no official reactions. — cowardly act? still no official reactions. l— cowardly act? still no official reactions, i believe. - cowardly act? still no official reactions, i believe. prime l cowardly act? still no official- reactions, i believe. prime minister benjamin netanyahu has instructed ministers to not to react to the assassination of haniyeh. he will meet officials in the afternoon i believe then we will get an official

reaction but until then, israeli officials apparently have been told not to provoke, to not say anything. two ministers did on twitter, celebrating the killing of haniyeh. i believe the statement from iran is like a copy and paste segment and the same for israel. every time they are engaged in a confrontation, you hear the same words. they will pay a heavy price say israel. and it is not a surprise they speak in such harsh rhetoric. i do not think iran will necessarily attack israel directly. because it was the leader of hamas and not an iranian official. it does not mean it was not a humiliation for iran. it was, the fact they could reach him in tehran, when he was a guest of the

supreme leader means they can reach anyone including the supreme leader. what about reaction from people? i do not know if you have left home this morning but how are ordinary israelis reacting? are they concerned about retaliation from iran or proxies? it is concerned about retaliation from iran or proxies?— iran or proxies? it is interesting with the israelis _ iran or proxies? it is interesting with the israelis because - iran or proxies? it is interesting with the israelis because they i iran or proxies? it is interesting i with the israelis because they are used to war and i would say when it comes to hamas, no tears will be shared over ismail haniyeh. you have people who celebrated and i spoke to someone who said it was the right thing to do, the right thing after october the 7th and years before that. others are more concerned not because they do not want haniyeh killed, but they are afraid first that the ceasefire negotiations and release of hostages might be endangered because of this but also afraid there might be a harsh retaliation. there are many families here who are worried about a war

with hezbollah and the same for civilians in lebanon. because israel and lebanon, if they engage in war, thousands of civilians will die, simply because it will be so aggressive, the missiles hezbollah have far more precise and heavy than hamas. and israel has one of the strongest military is in the world and said they promised to turn lebanon back to the stone age. it is something civilians dread but you have hardliners cheering for this and wanting to attack hezbollah and invade lebanon months ago. the question is how benjamin netanyahu will phrase this and how they will try to contain any retaliation from iran or hezbollah. iie try to contain any retaliation from iran or hezbollah.— iran or hezbollah. he led an organisation _ iran or hezbollah. he led an organisation designated - iran or hezbollah. he led an organisation designated a l iran or hezbollah. he led an - organisation designated a terrorist organisation designated a terrorist organisation by many countries that vowed to destroy israel and led the attack on israel on october the 7th

but ismail haniyeh is leading negotiations on behalf of hamas to come to some ceasefire deal. what you think his death means for hopes of release of any hostages? it depends on who replaces him but it is still the leader of hamas, yahya sinwar, who calls the shots, and he is in a bunker deep underground and to get messages to him, first of all it is difficult. they need him to sign off on any major decisions. haniyeh had a lot to say in this. i think if it were yahya sinwar, things might have looked different because at the end of the day, yahya sinwar is the hardliner if you can call him hardliner compared to haniyeh, they are both extremists. he has consistently said israel needs to leave gaza completely and he is seen as the main obstacle on

the israeli side for any ceasefire negotiations succeeding. it is a blow to ceasefire negotiations when you take out a leading negotiator in these talks. ~ ., . you take out a leading negotiator in these talks-— these talks. what is the latest on these talks. what is the latest on the situation _ these talks. what is the latest on the situation in _ these talks. what is the latest on the situation in gaza? _ these talks. what is the latest on the situation in gaza? to - these talks. what is the latest on the situation in gaza? to what. the situation in gaza? to what extent do you believe the idf is about to fulfil its military goal of wiping out hamas?— about to fulfil its military goal of wiping out hamas? israel says it has killed at least _ wiping out hamas? israel says it has killed at least 14,000 _ wiping out hamas? israel says it has killed at least 14,000 members - wiping out hamas? israel says it has killed at least 14,000 members of l killed at least ill,000 members of hamas. that was an official estimate given in may. that is out of some 30,000 fighters they have in gaza, which means they have roughly half of their members still alive. but hamas has been significantly weakened and damaged in gaza. anyone looking at gaza can see the widespread destruction. they can also see israel every day getting hands on weapons from hamas, taking over some of the areas they control,

blowing up their tunnels. they are damaged. and that is why according to israel they have been more flexible recently, and in many ways have agreed largely to that ceasefire negotiation currently on the table but there are details about who should control the border between egypt and gaza, who should control the newly created barrier from southern to northern gaza. israel will insist they will have to control that to make sure armed terrorists are not moving back and forth. there are details still being discussed but it is my understanding they agreed on the bigger picture. but benjamin netanyahu and apparently ya hya but benjamin netanyahu and apparently yahya sinwar have but benjamin netanyahu and apparently ya hya sinwar have stalled for time now for each of their own reasons. ., . , , ,., for time now for each of their own reasons. ., . , , ., i. reasons. how much support do you think prime — reasons. how much support do you think prime minister— reasons. how much support do you think prime minister benjamin - think prime minister benjamin netanyahu retains amongst the israeli public? iie netanyahu retains amongst the israeli public?— netanyahu retains amongst the israeli public? he is not popular but he has _ israeli public? he is not popular but he has gained _ israeli public? he is not popular

but he has gained popularity - israeli public? he is not popular but he has gained popularity in| but he has gained popularity in recent months, which is surprising. he is currently beating other opposition leaders in the head—to—head polling when israelis are asked to see who would be prime minister between him and for example benny gantz. he is still unpopular and his block would lose an election if held tomorrow but i believe this assassination of haniyeh is a political victory he can use to his advantage. political victory he can use to his advantage-— political victory he can use to his advantaae. , ., , ., advantage. interesting to get your thou~hts. advantage. interesting to get your thoughts. thank _ advantage. interesting to get your thoughts. thank you. _ advantage. interesting to get your thoughts. thank you. a _ advantage. interesting to get your thoughts. thank you. a reminder| advantage. interesting to get your. thoughts. thank you. a reminder of the breaking news. the palestinian militant group hamas said its political leader haniyeh was killed in iran. a statement said he was killed in an israeli raid in a house in the lebanon cap —— in the iranian capital tehran. in the lebanon cap —— in the iranian capitaltehran. it in the lebanon cap —— in the iranian capital tehran. it came after he attended the inauguration of the new iridium president. he had led negotiations with israel and his

death is likely to affect any chance of progress. you can keep up with developments on the bbc news life page. stay with us for more coverage of this developing story. tuesday brought the warmest day of the year so far. several parts of london saw temperatures up to 32 celsius, including heathrow and kew gardens. it has notjust been the warmest day but we have seen a heatwave in some regions especially kent, and west yorkshire. areas that saw temperatures exceed the heatwave threshold on sunday to tuesday. three days and we might see another day or so of heatwave conditions in some areas. warm and humid but a thunderstorm risk on wednesday through the south—east of england.

to start, we have humidity and heat in the south. sunshine and dry weather, a light wind, but it is humid in the south. through the afternoon, showers and thunderstorms start to crop up, particularly in parts of kent and sussex. you might not see one but if you catch one, there could be local flooding. top temperature possibly 29 in central and southern areas. heading into wednesday evening and into thursday, some of the heavy showers and thunderstorms become more extensive, especially in england and wales. rain perhaps in the west of scotland. a humid night in the south. mid to high teens here. through thursday we have the first heavy showers and thunderstorms clearing away and through the day, showers bubble up and thunderstorms potentially breaking out, especially in england and wales in the

afternoon. temperatures 22—28. we still have warm air as we head through friday but later on friday, into saturday, a system pushes eastwards that will allow fresh air to move in. a change in weather tight as we head through friday into saturday. still warm and sunny in the south and east through friday but the wind picks up in the north and west with the arrival of showers. temperatures around 16—21 in northern ireland and scotland, up to 28 in the far south—east. eventually things turn fresher and more unsettled as we head to the weekend. goodbye.

live from london, this is bbc news. hamas have said its leader ismail haniyeh has been killed in the iranian capital tehran, accusing israel of being responsible. it comes hours after the israeli military said it had killed one of hezbollah's top commanders in a targeted air strike on the lebanese capital, beirut. we'll have the latest from our correspondents in jerusalem and beirut. hello, i'm azadeh moshiri. we start with breaking news. the political leader

of hamas, ismail haniyeh, has been killed in iran. hamas accused israel of being responsible and said that his death would not go unanswered. hamas is proscribed as a terrorist organisation by the united states, the uk and others. israel typically doesn't comment on its operations abroad, and has made no statement as yet. reports in the iranian media say the strike occurred at about in the morning local time. it came just hours after he attended the inauguration of the new iranian president. ismail haniyeh had been leading ceasefire negotiations with israel, and his death is likely to affect any chance of progress. joining me now is our middle east correspondent yolande knell, injerusalem, and hugo bachega, our correspondent in beirut. i'm going to go first to yolande knell, who is injerusalem. israel has not claimed this attack, what do you make of that silence?