live from london, this is bbc news. "a decisive moment for the gaza ceasefire talks". america's top diplomat is in israel for discussions as the israelis and hamas both blame each other for blocking a deal. the focus of my visit is intensely on getting the hostages back, getting the ceasefire done. it's time for everyone to get to yes, and to not to look for any excuses to say no. kamala harris is in chicago for the democratic national convention where she'll be formally confirmed as the party's presidential candidate to face donald trump in november's election. emergency measures are brought in to ease prison overcrowding in england as more rioters are sent to jail. president zelensky says ukraine wants to create a buffer zone in russia's kursk region after destroying a second bridge. and, as thousands gather in edinburgh, we will have the lastest from the city's

spectacular festival fringe. hello, i'm lauren taylor. america's top diplomat, who's on a visit to israel, has said it's "a decisive moment" and maybe the last opportunity to reach a ceasefire in gaza. us secretary of state, antony blinken, who's already met israeli president isaac herzog, is currently holding talks with prime minister benjamin netanyahu. israel and hamas have accused each other of lacking the will to compromise. mr blinken says it's time for all sides to agree a deal without excuses. this is a decisive moment, probably the best and may be the last opportunity to get the hostages home, to get the ceasefire and to put everyone on a better path to enduring peace and security. i'm here on president biden�*s instructions to try to get this

agreement to the line and over the line. it is time for it to get done. it's also time to make sure no one takes any steps that could derail this process. joining me now is our correspondent tom bateman who is travelling with the us secretary of state, and our middle east correspondent, yolande knell who's injerusalem. and the stakes are incredibly high for this visit, aren't they? the? for this visit, aren't they? they are indeed. _ for this visit, aren't they? they are indeed, and _ for this visit, aren't they? they are indeed, and we _ for this visit, aren't they? they are indeed, and we know - for this visit, aren't they? they are indeed, and we know mr. for this visit, aren't they? tie: are indeed, and we know mr blank for this visit, aren't they? ti3:1 are indeed, and we know mr blank and hasjust need to are indeed, and we know mr blank and has just need to talk to the israeli prime minister. this is a meeting thatis prime minister. this is a meeting that is taking place behind closed doors. we don't have official details but we know the us is really putting this bridging proposal on the table to try to bring israel and how massed together —— hamas together. if you look at the

comments, well the americans are sounding positive. from the latest statements from israel and from hamas as well, not that same positivity. certainly from the israeli prime minister's office, they are saying hamas is sticking to its positions of refusal. hamas has really accused the prime minister's office of adding new conditions to the negotiations which they say are meant to sabotage the talks. you can look at the different sticking points as they emerge coming out from both sides. really first of all moving from the first phase of the 3—phase plan, which is supposed to be lucy's fire ant hostage release deal with and presidency —— prisoners being released from jail as well. and moving into the second phase, which should be working towards a full ceasefire. that is a problematic area. you also have

where israeli forces would remain in the gaza strip which is strategically important locations, israel forces want to remain the gaza war, and hamas has been demanding a complete israeli withdrawal from gaza. demanding a complete israeli withdrawalfrom gaza. and we understand there are issues around the palestinian prisoners it would be released from israeli jails as part of all this as well. be released from israeli “ails as part of all this as well._ be released from israeli “ails as part of all this as well. thank you. over to tom _ part of all this as well. thank you. over to tom now _ part of all this as well. thank you. over to tom now and _ part of all this as well. thank you. over to tom now and you - part of all this as well. thank you. over to tom now and you have - part of all this as well. thank you. l over to tom now and you have been travelling with us state department parties and they have been ramping up parties and they have been ramping up the language but what other pressure can the us but on making sure the parties come to a resolution?— sure the parties come to a resolution? , , ., , resolution? the way they are trying to a- -l resolution? the way they are trying to apply pressure — resolution? the way they are trying to apply pressure is _ resolution? the way they are trying to apply pressure is by _ resolution? the way they are trying to apply pressure is by creating - resolution? the way they are trying to apply pressure is by creating a l to apply pressure is by creating a sense of urgency. you heard it with antony blinken saying this is maybe the last chance and there should be no more excuses. i think the problem is that sense of urgency and in effect a deadline being opposed —— imposed by the americans, to get it

over the line as antony blinken said, that deadline is being imposed by washington rather than the sides at war here and that matters because for there to be enough incentive for both the israeli prime minister and the leaders of hamas to clinch this deal, they have to feel that sense of emergency too. my sense is we are not really at that point and that's why i think the american optimism is really out matching what you feel on the ground here. the approach of mr blinken who is by his nature a cautious us secretary of state, it's been quite a vision traditional want to show tough love. he is not one for the diplomatic arm wrench. the question now is about how tough and how much love. i think we are going to see that over the next few hours. he is due to hold a small press conference here in tel aviv this

afternoon. i doubt we will be hearing particularly critical messages against benjamin netanyahu himself, as opposed to many critics at home and abroad who believe he is stringing the americans along for his own political survival. benjamin netanyahu says he is simply pushing for a tough deal against hamas to make sure israel's safety. but the fact remains the americans don't have a strong track record in this conflict in terms of leveraging the israelis to change course at critical moments when they have wanted to. they dispute that really when you push them on this, they believe they did get the israelis to do more with opening up humanitarian assistance and also to pull back the scale of the offensive particularly in the south of the gaza strip. but i think many critics of the americans will say they simply haven't applied enough leverage. now you have what they are themselves describing as a critical moment where they have to push both sides

but in this part of the trip benjamin netanyahu over the line, to take a deal and stop trying to squeeze more concessions out of it. i don't have the sense yet they are really doing that.— really doing that. tom, briefly, where does _ really doing that. tom, briefly, where does mr— really doing that. tom, briefly, where does mr blinken - really doing that. tom, briefly, where does mr blinken go - really doing that. tom, briefly, | where does mr blinken go after really doing that. tom, briefly, - where does mr blinken go after this? on to egypt?— on to egypt? yes, we head to egypt tomorrow. crucially _ on to egypt? yes, we head to egypt tomorrow. crucially there _ on to egypt? yes, we head to egypt tomorrow. crucially there will - tomorrow. crucially there will be dot—mac where the egyptians are one of the most important mediators in all of this along with the qataris and they can pass messages more directly in gaza. the egyptians also crucial when it comes to the sticking point yolande was talking about about the south of the gaza strip because he insists he will remain president along the border

with egypt. israel says that is to stop smuggling and stop hamas rearming but hamas says it simply means continued occupation and therefore not an end to the war so this is a fundamental point. one of the key administration envoys in the region has been working on that with the egyptians over the last couple of weeks trying to create this bridging proposal which is meant to bring the two sides together on this. their statements last night were both very defiant, sticking to their positions, digging in. light might be in part tactical but no sign yet of a breakthrough on that, so i think what they will be doing in egypt will be crucial to that particular point.— in egypt will be crucial to that particular point. the uk government has activated emergency measures to ease prison overcrowding as more rioters are sentenced for their part in recent disorder. across the north of england, defendants waiting for a court appearance will be kept in police cells until prison space is available. the chairman of the prison officers' association has been explaining how

the system will work. operation safeguard is where we use police cells and the desire is only to have prisoners in police cells for a maximum of 2a hours. the police have a decision to make, so if they can't take all the prisoners from their cells this morning all this afternoon, they then need to decide whether to hold that prisoner for another 2a or 48 hours decide whether to hold that prisoner for another 24 or 48 hours hoping they will be up in front of the magistrate so they can go into prison custody or do we have to bail them? in reality the most serious offences will end up in court, we will guarantee them a prison cell and the lesser offences the police will decide whether to hold onto them or to bail them. let's speak to our chief political correspondent henry zeffman. the practicalities are quite tricky. absolutely. in practical terms, what will happen here is in most areas of

the north of england, when people are waiting for a court appearance in a police cell, there will be a discussion over whether there is availability in a prison for a potential prison sentence. and if there is they will be held in that police cell longer. that is something the government is very loathed to do. they have done it once in recent times back in may but then the conservative government briefly activated this to ease prison overcrowding. but if you think this is the sound of a justice system in crisis, well that is the word of the government themselves are using to describe the situation that has led to them activating this emergency measure this morning. m50 emergency measure this morning. also resumabl emergency measure this morning. also presumably starting to release people early, is that right? hat people early, is that right? not uuite people early, is that right? not quite yet- _ people early, is that right? not quite yet- one _ people early, is that right? tirrt quite yet. one of the earliest announcements this government made on taking office injuly was that some prisoners would begin to be

released after they have completed just 40% of their custodian sentence. at the moment some are released after 50% but 40% is obviously a fairly significant reduction. that is only going to start taking effect in early september, so once that policy starts to be enacted, i think the government is hoping they will be able to lift this short—term policy of keeping people in police cells because they will be more space in prisons, but over the longer term there just are not enough prison spaces for the number of people that tend to be given custodial sentences in the uk and that will lead i think to a broader discussion about this government's approach to penal policy and the balance between rehabilitation and punishment and where that should fall, about the kinds of crimes we should receive custodial sentences and the kind that shouldn't but that discussion is a long way off and this government is very much dealing with a rapid acute short—term issue for

now. a rapid acute short-term issue for now. ., ~' a rapid acute short-term issue for now. ., ~ , ., ukraine's president zelensky has for the first time spoken about the establishment of a buffer zone on russian territory — it's as ukraine's armed forces say they have destroyed another bridge in russia's kursk region. they say the crossing was used by russians to supply troops and its destruction will hamper the movement of weapons. president zelensky said the aim was to destroy as much russian war potential as possible. here's what president zelensky said in his nightly address. translation: today, we achieved good and much needed results _ in destroying russian equipment near toretsk. and all this is more thanjust a fence for ukraine. it is now our primary task in defensive operations overall, to destroy as much russian war potential as possible and conduct maximum counter—offensive actions. our ukraine correspondent, james waterhouse, is following

the situation from ukraine's northern sumy region and sent this update. president zelensky is suggesting that he's in this for the medium haul. he has previously said he doesn't want to permanently capture and occupy this russian territory, which has been captured. but clearly, he wants to hold on to it i think for as long as this war rages on. because when he says buffer zone, he means a defensive measure. he means pushing russian forces back from the ukrainian territory they routinely strike. but in time, this land will have a political value for any kind of future peace negotiation. perhaps it could be leveraged, swapped in exchange for some of the land russia has captured and isn't letting go of inside ukraine. we are seeing ukrainian forces continue to advance, moving from village to village in small armoured vehicles. they've just destroyed a second major bridge on the same river further north, frustrating russian supply lines. but there is a big but here. whilst ukraine is advancing here, russia is also pushing forward

in the eastern donetsk region, in ukraine, towards seven settlements and there really is a protruding spike, if you like, on the front line, where men and machinery are being concentrated in an area towards the town of pokrovsk. it is true russia has had to redeploy thousands of troops from ukraine as well as russia itself. but it's still not enough to slow advances in the east. nevertheless, ukraine is committed, i think, from where we are in the sumy region. there is no reverse gear. for now, they are going to try and push forward where they can, i think and try and keep hold of it. but that is a very different proposition than from the ...compared with the, uh, surprise attack we saw the best part of two weeks ago. the surprise incursion into the kursk region of russia, causing i20,000 local residents to flee, marked the first time in more than 80 years that a foreign army had seized and occupied russian territory. it shocked the russian public,

who'd been led to believe that their country's border was secure. our russia editor, steve rosenberg, has been speaking to people in the town of aleksin which is located just over 100 miles from moscow. this is aleksin, a 700—year—old town, about 100 miles from moscow. and i've come here to find out what people think about the dramatic situation which has been unfolding in kursk region with the ukrainian incursion. with ukrainian soldiers now in russia, lyubov tells me that she's worried. "i can't even watch the news on tv because i start crying," she says. "how is this possible someone let this happen?" "people here trust our soldiers to finish the job," andrei says, "and to win." at the market, regina is selling vegetables from her garden. "the most important thing," regina says, "is that war doesn't come here, that they don't get all the way here.

our soldiers, especially the commanders, must be more vigilant." keep in mind, this is a nation which is constantly being reminded by those in power here of the horrors of the second world war, the horrors of invasion. world war two is very much part of the national psyche here, and now, for the first time in more than 80 years, you have foreign fighters on russian soil seizing russian territory. that's quite a shock. vladimir is worried, but thinks that russia will achieve victory. what exactly is victory in this war, i ask him? "victory is when there'll be peace," he says. on the town square, a patriotic pop concert style. a patriotic pop concert. but the atmosphere is pretty subdued.

people do seem worried, very worried, by the situation in kursk region, by the ukrainian attack. people do want peace, there's no doubt about it. but here's the thing. they still seem to trust the man at the top, the man running the country, president putin, to secure that peace for them. the same leader who, two and a half years ago, launched the full scale invasion of ukraine. steve rosenberg, bbc news, aleksin, russia. around the world and across the uk, this is bbc news.

kamala harris has arrived in the us city of chicago for the democratic national convention, where she'll be formally confirmed as the party's presidential candidate. she flew into o'hare airport on air force two after a day of campaigning in the swing state of pennsylvania with her running mate, tim walz.

security around the venue is tight ahead of the four—day event. pro—palestine protesters have already been holding demonstrations. our correspondent, emma vardy reports from chicago. leaning out of a 94th floor, this city of skyscrapers is a dramatic sight. now thousands are descending on chicago for the convention. this is an amazingly important and unprecedented thing that's going on. it will affect how americans will vote in november. to us, this is a really important election. when you stand for freedom, whether it be to make decisions about your own body or love who you love, you fight for those things. there's been a surge of excitement for the democrats' new presidential candidate sincejoe biden withdrew over concerns about his age. kamala harris has had a meteoric rise from joe biden's running mate, to being the democratic nominee, to now leading in the polls against donald trump, and she's done it all in less than a month. now the stage is set for the party to rally behind her, with former presidents barack obama and bill clinton among the big names

who will speak over the next four days. expect plenty of razzmatazz as the democrats try to keep this new feel—good factor going. there's thousands of balloons up there waiting to rain down on this arena, for starters. but good vibes alone may not be enough, because there's an appetite from democrats now for kamala harris to use this podium to put more flesh on the bones of what she really stands for. outside, chicago's braced for big protests over the war in gaza, one of several key issues kamala harris has yet to set out her stance on in detail. and come and take a look behind the scenes, because this is also a massive broadcasting operation for the american networks, which the democrats would like to become must—watch tv. in the swing state of pennsylvania at the weekend, donald trump attacked his rival. i'm better looking than she is. in her speech yesterday, kamala went full communist. you heard that — she went full communist. she wants to destroy our country.

it's in the battleground states where the race really gets dirty. in wisconsin, a demolition derby gave people something to cheer for. it's voters here that kamala harris will have to win over. i like her, but i don't know if she's strong enough. i would consider myself republican. i don't know if trump is the exact answer for that party, but i sure like his, uh, his viewpoints. he did things, you know? do you think kamala harris has got him rattled? i think, uh, no. i think he has her rattled. in a race that's been upended in recent weeks, the two new opponents are onlyjust getting their horns locked. emma vardy, bbc news. a knife amnesty in the uk for people to hand in machetes and zombie—style blades is starting next week. it's part of a government scheme which means people will be able to hand weapons in to police stations across england and wales safely and legally for the next four weeks. our correspondent frances

read has this report. it's terrifying, but knife attacks like this one in south london, like this one in south london are precisely what the government says it is trying to end. from next week, a four—week amnesty, so people can legally hand in machetes and zombie—style knives, increasingly linked to violent crime. knives like these had already been banned, but a loophole meant they could be kept and sold if they didn't have images depicting violence on their handles. that will now change. mikey roynon from near bristol was just 16 when he died after being stabbed at a birthday party last summer. his mother says all of this is not enough. i wish the government would ask us and listen to us, because we're the ones living it. if we don't change the way that these kids think, they're still going to carry a knife. it could be a kitchen knife, it could be anything. what would have helped mikey?

what would have helped you? knowing more, because i didn't understand. you know, i didn't understand about how serious it was. stay where you are! police across the country are now dealing with knife crime on a daily basis. weapon found. everyone, hands where we can see them. the government is hoping the amnesty will encourage teens and others to get rid of all their knives, and says it will take further action to stop young people being drawn into crime. policing minister diana johnson said too many people have access to weapons that can lead to devastating life changing consequences. "there is no legitimate need for a weapon of this kind to be in our homes, or on our streets." figures from last year show that in around i8% of cases, the offenders were aged between just ten and i7.

the amnesty is a start, but many say it won't be the sole solution to end this problem. frances read, bbc news. the bbc understands laws settting out what proportion of union members have to vote for strike action in the uk for it to be legal are to be scrapped. the government is expected to go ahead with its pledge to get rid of the trades union act as part of a wider shake—up of workers' rights. the daily telegraph reports a bill will be tabled by mid—october. the title of funniestjoke at the edinburgh fringe festival has been announced. here it is... "i was going to sail around the globe in the world's smallest ship but i bottled it." the nautical one—liner was ranked among the best by 40% of those surveyed. the writer of that joke was mark simmons. it's a nice bit of wordplay. some jokes it's all about taking people down one way and then doing a twist, then the twist is surprising and makes people laugh. but i think the bestjoke is when it creates an

image in your head so you can really visualise what's happening. ijust do one liners, that's my thing. i think i find it uncomfortable talking too long on stage without a laugh so i try to get to the laugh as quickly as possible. in an average show i've probably got about 200 jokes. find average show i've probably got about 200 'okes. �* , ., 200 jokes. and we will be live at edinbur: h 200 jokes. and we will be live at edinburgh in _ 200 jokes. and we will be live at edinburgh in the _ 200 jokes. and we will be live at edinburgh in the next _ 200 jokes. and we will be live at edinburgh in the next half - 200 jokes. and we will be live at edinburgh in the next half an - 200 jokes. and we will be live at l edinburgh in the next half an hour. banksy�*s ninth and final artwork in his animal—themed london series has been removed by london zoo. the zoo says the piece, which featured an image of a gorilla, has been removed for "safekeeping" and replaced with a reproduction of the work and a sign that said, "banksy woz ere". a quick reminder that you can always catch up our stories on the bbc website. including a deal on a possible ceasefire hostage release deal. stay with us here on bbc news.

here in the uk we are going tojoin nicky campbell's phone in, and before that it's the weather. as we go through this week, the weather will take an autumnal turn. we have been looking at heavy rain four times, particularly in the north—west. it's likely to be unseasonably windy with gales, but equally some sunshine. today low pressure is very much driving our weather. you can see the weather front crossing from one into tuesday which is bringing in rain and also windy conditions. the driest and brightest conditions will be in the south—east for longest. as the rain advances, the cloud will build ahead of it and it will be windy, particularly through the irish sea with gales. temperatures of 13 to

about 25, possibly 27 depending on the amount of sunshine in the south—east. through this evening and overnight, the rain advances eastwards. there could still be the odd heavy burst. some clear skies, still windy, worth looking out for the supermoon because it's lovely if you do get to see it. still humid across the south—east but not so for the rest of the uk. that takes us into tomorrow, with cloud and patchy like rain. that clears, then we are into blustery showers. windy in the northern half of the country where showers will be heaviest and there may be rumbles of thunder as well, temperatures 14 to 23 degrees. into wednesday, a ridge of high pressure across the south so we start off on across the south so we start off on a fine note with cloud building through the day and scattered showers in the west, but low pressure will be bringing in some heavy rain, particularly so across western scotland, but we will see

some of that get into northern ireland and the rest of scotland through the course of the day, and it will be windy. temperatures 13 to about 22 degrees. into thursday, low pressure still with us with this cold front producing the rain, tied up cold front producing the rain, tied up with the remnants of hurricane ernesto so we will see rain from this thorough time and behind it brightest guys following an blustery showers. temperatures on thursday 14 in stornoway, highs of 22 in the south—east.

welcome to viewers of bbc news. we are discussing the prison crisis. we want your calls. the criminal justice system, crime, something at the heart of so many, well, all of our lives. the prison estate is in aera our lives. the prison estate is in aer a terrible state. the breaks new is is operation new dawn has started. get in touch. the government said that the riots, or as the government puts it, the action to tackle violent thuggery on our streets has exacerbated long—standing capacity issues in our prisons. riots have pushed the system over the edge. we are talking of prison officer and what they have

to deal with. before we