the prime minister says he wants to reset relations with europe as he meets the leaders of germany and france — but adds that doesn't mean reversing brexit. the biggest israeli military operation in the occupied west bank for 20 years — at least nine people died. the founder of telegram is barred from leaving france as part of an investigation into organised crime on the messaging app. louis rees—zammit on the return. and the welsh rugby union star, who quit to pursue american football, hasn't been selected for the kansas city chiefs. on bbc london... on newsnight at 10.30 tonight, we will bring you fresh insight on the stories of the day with big interviews and our regular panel of newsnighters. and, of course, look at what the papers are saying about tomorrow's news.

hello, welcome to the bbc news at ten. tens of thousands of people have gathered on the streets of paris tonight to watch the opening ceremony of the 2024 paralympics. 4,400 athletes from 184 delegations will compete over the next 11 days of competition — with these games featuring a record number of delegations and of female athletes. our sports correspondent andy swiss is watching in paris. a perfect parisian evening and a paralympic curtain raiser like no other. welcome to paris! at place de la concorde an opening ceremony exploring attitudes towards disability. french star christine and the queens with a modern take on an edith piaf classic.

and soon it was time for the athletes. parading down the champs—elysees, more than 180 countries united by a commonjoy. and here comes great britain. the british team, led by terry bywater and lucy shuker, were welcomed by the prime minister, sir keir starmer. paralympics gb have 215 athletes competing here and after finishing second in the medals table at the last games, they are certainly arriving with high hopes. as the sun finally set over paris, one of the biggest cheers was for the refugee team. just eight athletes but what an ovation. here comes the french. the loudest noise though was for the hosts. the arrival of france sparking jubilation and a very suitable singalong. # champs—elysees. after that though, a change of mood.

a stunning version of the marseilles and the raising of the french flag. before the head of the paralympics delivered an impassioned appeal for inclusivity. viva la france! leave bird la revolution! and with that the french president emmanuel macron declared the games open. 0rganisers declared the games open. 0rganisers declared this game is the most spectacular ever. they are certainly getting off to a spectacular start. andy swiss, bbc news, paris. 0ur disability correspondent nikki fox is in paris tonight. there are 11 days of sporting competition ahead, what can we expect? much like the olympics, the city's most iconic landmarks will form a

backdrop to these games but the real test will be how the hundreds of thousands of expected disabled fans will get around the city. we were here a month ago and charities were telling us they were concerned. money has been spent on making sure all the buses and trams are accessible, there are shuttle buses taking people to and from the venues and lots more accessible taxis. we also know because it was announced this week that the paris metro will get up to 20 billion euros to help make it fully accessible, which it isn't at the moment, there is only one line fully accessible. that will take up to two decades, so in the short term, what these games will mean for the paralympic movement, for the fans and for the athletes will only really know once the games have finished.— well, as we saw, the prime minister was among the world leaders at that paralympic opening ceremony.

he'd travelled to paris from berlin, where he'd had talks with chancellor, 0laf scholz, after which he said his wish to reset relations with the european union didn't mean reversing brexit. the two leaders are proposing a new bilateral treaty covering science, technology, trade and business — but the prime minister said he has no plans for a youth mobility scheme, which could give young people in the eu the right to live and work here in the uk and vice versa. 0ur chief political correspondent, henry zeffman, is travelling with keir starmer. clearing the way for something new. 0n the prime minister's first official visit to germany, the prime minister's first official visit to germany, germany, with early steps towards greater unity. the launch of talks on a treaty between the two countries, encompassing trade, defence, migration and plenty more. a new agreement, a testament to the depth and potential of our relationship with deeper links on science, technology,

development, people, business, culture. a boost to our trading relations. the german chancellor was notably promising too. and said better relations could point the way for the whole eu. translation: i am happy about the announcement l by keir starmer to seek a reset in the relations to the european union. we want to take this hand which has reached out to us. the uk has always been an indispensable partner when it comes to solving the big issues affecting all of europe. both the centre—left leaders who entered office after long periods of conservative dominance, keir starmer and olaf scholz are comfortable and each other�*s company. the mood music here unquestionably good, sir keir starmer talking again about a reset with the relations with europe in general and germany in particular. but how much is possible without altering the fundamentals

of the post—brexit settlement? a quick visit to siemens energy this afternoon. to display determination to improve trading ties. the prime minister adamant that on the single market and customs union, nothing will change. free movement, too, even though some in europe are pushing for a deal to make it easierfor young people to move between the uk and the eu. mr scholz lamented a massive decline since brexit in contact between germans and brits. and then to paris, not just the paralympics but president macron too. for our political leaders at least, contact between britain and europe is only intensifying. this is delicate terrain the prime minister is stepping onto. the issue of the uk's relationship with the eu and large eu member states dominated so much of the last few years in british politics. indeed, sir keir starmer himself made him same as a

politician pushing for another referendum on the eu. first as leader of the labour party are now as prime minister, he insists the big issues, the single market, customs union are settled and not changing but aside from those questions, how can the relationship be made easier? or what exactly is a reset? forall the be made easier? or what exactly is a reset? for all the warm words today, i am still not sure we completely know but this treaty between the uk and germany will be signed, we are told, within six months, so before long we ought at least to have a better idea. henry zeffman there. and victoria derbyshire will have more on the prime minister's visits to european leaders on newsnight on bbc two shortly. good questions from henry. can prime minister starmer really reset with the european union? will it work and what might it mean for you in practical terms? what might it mean for you in practicalterms? plus what might it mean for you in practical terms? plus we will have the latest on winter fuel payments. that is on bbc two, iplayer. see you

soon. at least nine people have died in the biggest israeli military operation in the occupied west bank for 20 years. last month, the international court ofjustice ruled that israel's continued occupation of the area, captured in 1967, breached international law. violence has been increasing in the west bank since the hamas attacks on october 7th — with the un saying more than 650 palestinians have been killed, and that there's been violence against israelis. this latest massive operation involved israeli forces simultaneously entering the cities ofjenin, tulkarm, nablus and tubas, in what the defence forces called a counter—terrorism strike. from jenin, lucy williamson sent this report. it was a message of force, delivered quietly at first. israeli soldiers seeking their targets, street by palestinian street. by morning, hundreds of troops

backed by armoured bulldozers arrived in the refugee camps of tulkarem, nablus, tubas, jenin. home to armed palestinian groups and unarmed civilians. at least ten palestinians have been killed. hamas says six of them were its fighters. masoud najjar said he was injured when he opened the door of his house to young men asking for water. translation: we felt like something came down on us from the sky - and there was an explosion. i was unaware of what was going on. when i put my hand on my chest, it was all shrapnel and blood. injenin, army vehicles surrounded the city's two main hospitals. ambulances stopped and checked by militaryjeeps. israel's foreign minister has urged his government to use gaza as a model for dealing wth armed groups, here saying that iran was backing them and that this was a war for everything that

israel must win. the idf and our security forces are operating in tulkarem, jenin and other places from which murderous attacks have been launched. we will fight to eliminate terrorism wherever it emerges. almost 600 palestinians have been killed in the west bank by israeli forces since the hamas attacks. but fighters here are still presenting israel with new tactics and new threats. israel's army has been targeting the same areas in the same cities, week after week for the past ten months, determined to dismantle the armed palestinian groups based here. now it's launched a wider, more coordinated operation across the west bank on a scale not seen for 20 years. in al—far�*a camp, near tubas, mobile phone footage showed red crescent staff lined up against the wall of their compound

in front of israeli troops. arriving injenin today, the west bank head of the red crescent. you've had ten months of these sorts of incursions. how worried are you by what's happening today? i'm very much worried because it seems there's a new stage. there's a new, er... they are escalating, scaling up their operation. when they talk about evacuating civilians and using the air force to bombing the camps, this reminds us of gaza. explosion. as night fell, explosions and gunfire from jenin�*s refugee camp. dust can be a signal to test the army's control. the war in gaza is changing this conflict. an old front creating new fears in the face of a regional war. lucy williamson, bbc news, jenin.

jeremy bowen is with me — yet another escalation in the region. yes. west bank at boiling point. if you listen to what israel says, they say it is about iran, iran is behind an increase in palestinian violence, armed groups. it is no secret iran does support the palestinian armed groups, someone has to pay for their weaponry, there is no question. but why escalate now when israel has been hitting these same places for months and months and months and arresting thousands of people, killing hundreds? the route of it is the long conflict over control of the long conflict over control of the land. between israelis and palestinians. there is politics as well. netanyahu has said very emphatically there will never be a palestinian state, the palestinians want this land, the west bank is a

big part of theirs so by doing this, prime minister netanyahu is weakening the palestinian authority which does want a palestinian state in which the americans say should be a big part of the future, notjust in the west bank but in gaza which again that is something netanyahu is very much against. so weakening his enemies there in the palestinian state and also today as well, part of the growth of violence has been the activities of armed settlers. the americans sanctioned the saturn group and a notorious that the leader today saying extremist violence causes violence that is bad for israel's security. the israeli government �*s position is that all this land isjewish land, palestinians disagree, they wanted as part of their state but what is happening right now is that it is on fire. , , �* ., happening right now is that it is on fire. , , 1, ., ~ i.

the energy minister miatta fahnbulleh has pledged that the government will do everything in its power to support vulnerable customers. after a meeting with energy suppliers and ofgem, she said she was confident ministers had the "beginnings" of a package of support — as bills are set to rise again in october when the price cap goes up. here's our business correspondent emma simpson. our energy bills are going up, and so is the amount of money households owe to energy companies. this energy debt is now more than £3 billion — and that's before a difficult winter. we are getting high volumes of calls into call centres, citizens advice say that people are coming to them specifically naming energy as their primary concern, and so the red lights are flashing on the dashboard for us. so, the pressure on. the government hosted a big industry meeting today on ways to help customers who are struggling. they've agreed to thrash out some plans over the next month. i feel confident that we have the beginnings of a package.

there is a lot of work that we are doing, but there is absolutely commitment from the government, from everyone around the table, that we'll come to a measure that can support our most vulnerable customers this winter. ideas include a national awareness campaign to help households in difficulties, protections for customers already in arrears and more potential opportunities for further financial support from the industry. but the government's also under pressure for restricting winter fuel payments for millions of pensioners. and there was no sign of any u turn on that decision today. emma simpson, thank you. the uk's largest water company, thames water, is warning that it won't survive unless it's allowed to increase bills by nearly 60% over the next five years. it comes after suppliers responded angrily to the regulator's proposed cap on bills. our business editor simonjack is here.

what is going on? every five years the water companies _ what is going on? every five years the water companies haggle - what is going on? every five years the water companies haggle with i what is going on? every five years i the water companies haggle with the regulator about how much they are allowed to raise bills over a five year period. thames wanted a rate of 44%, the regulator said we will give you 23. they had a chance to appeal, the deadline was today, they say, we have looked at the problems and need 59%. the letter he says without that it would prevent the turnaround and recovery of the company, we are in big trouble unless we get that money, they have already admitted they could go into government funded administration. thames is not alone, the water companies say if you want us to fix things like sewage spills which have infuriated the public, we need more money. we do not have the cash to do the things you wanted to. they say four decades the regulator has prioritised keeping bills low overinvestment and now that it's

coming home to roost with problems caused by differing weather patterns. there is a massive impact. the final decision on how much they will be able to charge comes in december but i have never seen the industry and the regulator so far apart. something has to give. thank ou, apart. something has to give. thank you. simon — apart. something has to give. thank you. simonjack- — the founder and chief executive of the messaging app telegram, pavel durov, has been charged in france as part of an investigation into organised crime. he's been released on 5 million euro bail and is not allowed to leave french territory. let's get the latest from our technology editor, zoe kleinman, whojoins us from glasgow. some people watching will probably not even know who he is, explain what is happening?— not even know who he is, explain what is happening? paddle durov is sometimes described _ what is happening? paddle durov is sometimes described as _ what is happening? paddle durov is sometimes described as the - what is happening? paddle durov is sometimes described as the mark. sometimes described as the mark zuckerberg of russia. he was born in the country and left in 2014 and is a citizen of both france and dubai. he founded telegram and what sets it apart from something like whatsapp

is these enormous groups of up to 200,000 people can share content and information on it. the accusations he faces are extremely serious, including running a platform allowing illicit transactions by an organised gang, failing, in fact refusing, to communicate with authorities and complicity in the organised criminal distribution of sexual images of children. he is underformal sexual images of children. he is under formal investigation which does not mean he is guilty or there will necessarily even be a trial but it is absolutely unprecedented for the founder and owner of a social network to be arrested like this because of the content shared on his platform and it hurts sparked a really fierce debate online about freedom of speech and accountability. —— and it has stuck. elon musk, the owner of x, formerly twitter, hasjumped to pavel elon musk, the owner of x, formerly twitter, has jumped to pavel durov�*s defence, saying he should be

completely freed and censorship is just moderation under another name, but the french president to emmanuel macron earlier this week said france was committed to freedom of expression. was committed to freedom of exnression-— was committed to freedom of exression. ., ., ., ~ , ., three people have died after a road collision in north wales. it happened this afternoon on anglesey. police, fire and air ambulance crews attended but all three people were pronounced dead at the scene. north wales police have urged anyone with information or dashcam footage to contact them. an 11—year—old boy has been arrested during police raids in connection with the recent riots in middlesbrough. in all, 14 people were detained today on suspicion of violent disorder, including a woman and her son. daniel sandford is here. arrests continue to come? yes, over the last few _ arrests continue to come? yes, over the last few days — arrests continue to come? yes, over the last few days the _ arrests continue to come? yes, over the last few days the number - arrests continue to come? yes, over the last few days the number of - the last few days the number of those being arrested and put before

courts had tailed off slightly but police forces are still investigating that pace and today cleveland police made a number of raids, arresting 14 people suspected of being involved in the middlesbrough riots, one of whom was just 11 years old. he is not even the first 11—year—old that forces had arrested because they also arrested an 11—year—old link to the hartlepool riots. neither of those 11—year—olds has been charged yet but we are looking at the cases as they go through the courts. looking at those convicted and given a jail sentence there is no more than 200, you can see them almost all. the longest prison sentence given a six years, the average two years. looking up a specific age group of the young people, of those found guilty or who have pleaded guilty but have not yet been sentence, 212—year—old boys, 213—year—old boys and a 13—year—old girl, and have all

the 500 people, more than 500 charge, one in ten were over 50, the oldest being 81. —— two 13—year—old boys. oldest being 81. -- two 13-year-old bo s. . ~ doctors are calling on the government to ban flavoured and disposable vapes, in an attempt to protect children from what they warn is a growing epidemic. ministers say they will introduce a new law about the sale and marketing of vapes — but that further restrictions would involve public consultation. here's our health correspondent catherine burns. how is this for a late summer sugar rush? cola, blue sour raspberry, or the classic strawberry? and bubble gum. we are not talking about sweets or fizzy drinks, they are all vape flavours and leading doctors are worried they are too appealing for children and young people. it's estimated almost 8% of 11 to 17—year—olds vape. it's illegal to sell vapes to anybody under 18 but the new government says it

will bring in a law stopping them deliberately advertised to children and young people. it says this will include regulating flavours but there is no detail yet on how this will look it up in the meantime, the bma wants all flavours except tobacco to be banned. vapes are a really good way to help people stop smoking and, if you are stopping, you need a tobacco flavoured vape. there is no need for any of the colourants or flavourings that we see at the moment. would you vape if they only sold tobacco flavour? not a chance. i don't like the taste of tobacco. even with the flavour being done i would _ even with the flavour being done i would still— even with the flavour being done i would still do it for the rush. are addicted to _ would still do it for the rush. fife: addicted to the would still do it for the rush. fi.e addicted to the nicotine? unfortunately. i don't think it's a matter of the flavour. it might even push kids towards smoking if that's what they decide to do, so perhaps just keep the flavours. the bma says there is no reason

for boots to be sold in colourful displays and it wants them in plain packaging behind shop counters. —— there is no reason for vapes to be sold. the vaping industry doesn't want that but agree something needs to be done. when people switch to vaping they want to disassociate themselves from the taste of tobacco, so why do we want anything to be reminding them that they were a smoker every time they vape? we have to make sure young people can't get these products, and that is where licensing would be a better strategy. the nhs says vaping is much less harmful than smoking but we don't know enough yet about long—term risks. millions of people in southern africa are being pushed into hunger because of the worst drought in decades. about a third of southern african countries are on red alert, having declared emergencies after crops failed. the head of the regional development community says up to 68 million

people are in need of assistance, and has launched an appeal for $5.5 billion in aid. the bbc�*s shingai nyoka reports now from mudzi in northern zimbabwe, one of the areas worst affected. the worst drought in living memory is sweeping across the land. here in mudzi, it's wiped out over 90% of the crop and put pressure on water supplies. an entire community and their animals gathered to extract the last drops from this river. it normally never runs dry, we were told. gracious is now walking further, three hours every day, to fetch water, but she fears that sharing a water pit with animals could make herfamily sick. "i've never seen anything like this," she told me.

dry spells are increasing in frequency in this part of the world. poor families unable to withstand the climate shocks are becoming more and more vulnerable. this is a familiar picture in many rural areas across southern africa — water bodies that are bone dry. it means that the hundreds of families that used to sustain themselves through rivers like this are now dependent on food aid. tambudzai mahachi planted acres of maize, cowpeas and peanuts, and harvested nothing. she told me that she often supplies markets in the capital, but this year, she's among millions of zimbabweans relying on hand—outs. breakfast today is wheat from a neighbour. translation: we have gone from eating what we want - and when we want to limiting meals. the older girl understands and

accepts that we don't have enough. but at times i can see that my youngest is hungry. about a third of southern african countries are on red alert, having declared a state of disaster. at least three million tonnes of maize is required immediately to meet regional demand. this is the second highest deficit in 15 years, and this is a region where up to 70% of the population relies on agriculture. meanwhile, it's getting hotter and drier, and the hunger season is yet to peak. and the next rain still months away, there are concerns that families like this might not get the help they need. shingai nyoka, bbc news, mudzi. he was the welsh rugby union star who shocked the sport by quitting to pursue a career in american football. but with little more than a week to the start of the new nfl season, louis rees—zammit has not been selected for the kansas city chiefs.

so how much of a setback is this? here's nesta mcgregor. lewis rees—zammit — agility, powerspeed. commentator: and it's game over. lewis rees—zammit for the try. at club level with gloucester or on the international stage with wales, one of the stars of rugby union. so "surprising" was an understatement when, having never played the sport before, he decided to pursue a career in american football in the nfl. commentator: lewis - rees-zammit on the return. physically gifted, without a doubt, but he'd have to relearn to catch, tackle and even adapt his running style in a completely different game. how surprised are you that lewis rees—zammit hasn't made the main squad? to be completely honest, i am not surprised. i think that it was great for him during this preseason to be able to function in multiple different roles, but ultimately the plan going into it was never that he was going to necessarily make the 53 man roster. fast tracked through a special

programme for international players, lewis rees—zammitjoined two—time defending champions the kansas city chiefs. however, the odds were always against the 23—year—old. no british rugby professional had gone on to play a competitive nfl game. christian wade is among those who tried. there's a load of things that come into it that have nothing to do with him as a person or a player. and so, you know, the transition is hard for anybody. he wouldn't have necessarily made the team based off, you know, a bad performance or a good performance. lewis rees—zammit says he's determined to make his us adventure a successful one. now part of the practice squad, there's still a chance to achieve that dream. it's all about time, getting used to the game. this year of practice will give him a lot of opportunity to learn the game and to work on his skills, so next year he can compete for a roster spot. the sporting journey from south wales to midwest america may have hit a speed bump, but it's not yet the end of the road.

nesta mcgregor, bbc news. time for a look at the weather — here's chris fawkes. looking at some really big contrasts across the uk today. across northern and western areas lots of cloud with some bursts of rain and you can see the rather cloudy and damp weather on the combined satellite and radar picture with various weather fronts attacking the uk. more persistent rain in northern scotland, just 14 degrees in harris, contrast that with the heat in east anglia and across south—east england, 30 celsius in cambridge earlier and confirmation that the weather was nice for some than others. overnight a week old frantically is introducing fresher air. this programme continues on bbc one.