♪ ♪ narrator: funding for this presentation of this program is provided by... brook: these are people who are trying to change the world. startups have this energy that energizes me. i'm thriving by helping others everyday. people who know, know bdo. narrator: funding was also provided by,

the freeman foundation. and by judy and peter blum kovler foundation; pursuing solutions for america's neglected needs. announcer: and now, "bbc news". >> hello. i'm sarah campbell. you are watching "the context" on bbc news. >> beautiful day but a dangerous border. we are going to take care of it. >> we are near a month away from the general election than what we don't know if this will be a matchup between sitting president and former president trump, one thing is for sure -- with republican voters, they feel that nothing is changed the past four years. >> the polling consistently of americans puts immigration among the top two concerns, beaten usually only by the economy and to dramatically increase cost-of-living. -- the dramatically increased

cost-of-living. sarah: it is a battle at the border today. the two men most likely to be ready for the u.s. president are in two texan border hotspots, each hoping to persuade voters that they have the answer to cutting illegal immigration. the number of gazans killed since october 7 tops 30,000 according to the hamas- rund ministry of health. we have a special report in which 100 people were killed. what is the state of the nation in russia two years after the war in ukraine begin and weeks before elections? vladimir putin spoke for two hours. we will look at what he said and didn't say. and it is our weekly deep dive into the world of artificial intelligence, including how event organizers use ai to generate images of a fantastical willy wonka world, but the reality was anything but sweet.

thank you for joining us on "the context," and we begin in texas, where both president joe biden and former president donald trump are visiting the u.s.-mexico border. the men are locked in a high-stakes political dual on an issue that could ultimately decide this year's presidential election. joe biden is visiting a border city called brownsville. it's recently seen a drop in the number of people illegally crossing into the u.s. donald trump, meanwhile, is in eagleass, the texan border town where republican governor greg abbott has divided the biden white house by using the state national guard soldiers to detain undocumented migrants and erect border barricades. mr. trump spoke there a short time ago. mr. trump: beautiful day but a dangerous border. we are going to take care of it. thank you. sarah: another beautiful day, says donald trump.

immigration is a live topic in the u.s. heading into the election. a recent gallup survey saw 28% of americans named immigration as their top concern, beating out every other topic including the economy and inflation. some 61% of americans in a monmouth survey listed illegal immigrion is a very serious problem, with most respondents for the first time saying they support mr. trump's proposal of building a u.s.-mexico border wall. that border was last crossed last year by 2.5 million undocumented migrants. that is an influx that has overwhelmed processing facilities and push social services in major american cities to the brink. our correspondent tom bateman filed this report from eagle pass, where authorities have been grappling with the issue. tom: searching in the shadows along the route of the rio grande. we've joined a night patrol

searching a favored landing spot for people who have made a perilous journey to reach the u.s. this texas rancher says last month hundreds of people swam and waded onto his land here. we traced one a narrow path in a global wave of the displaced. there are clothes everywhere, signs of life. this is treacherous for people making their way to america. seven months pregnant, she crossed the rio grande yesterday at 3:00 a.m. her journey from honduras's most violent city, gripped by gang warfare, began two years ago. >> i was holding hands with another pregnant woman when we crossed the river. the water was very cold, and we were afraid of being swept by currents. i was so relieved once we made it to the land. tom: record numbers of people

senior last month have been crossing, driven by conflict and instability, drawn by the post-pandemic jobs in america. in an angrily divided country, a broken system for dealing with immigration claims has become a major election issue. the town's former police chief told us the system is failing everywhere. what is the situation? >> it's terrible. we need to get biden out. we need to get trump in there to be more forceful about the border patrol guys to do the job. tom: trump's star proposals are on full show. the republican governor of texas has sentenced a troops to the riverbank, he says to deter migrants, where there are few signs of its longer-term impact. we watched state forces stop to check federal patrol trucks, a challenge to mr. biden's authority at the border. this border path is now on the

campaign trail, and america's issue with immigration is said to be a decisive one in the race for the white house. tom bateman, bbc news, eagle pass in texas. sarah: let's go live to new york and political analyst brian stelter. hello to you, thank you for joining us. of all the issues had had with donald trump on the same day in the same state, illegal immigration is -- well, it's quite a challenge for the president. what is he thinking, what is the strategy? brian: i think it is the thorniest challenge president biden faces, and many members of his own party are aware of this. donors and bigwigs who say we have been telling biden privately he has to have an answer to these questions about migration. illegal immigration is the single biggest topic that fox news and other right-wing media, other pro-trump media, have focused on, basically every day of the biden administration, every day since he was inoculated.

they believe it is the most important wedge issue that can benefit republicans. biden is hearing from democrats who want him to take action and he is hearing that republican rhetoric against h. sarah: we have heard that republican rhetoric already. donald trump as he was landing talking about a beautiful day, that he is going to go and sort out the border problem. is it an easy win for donald trump? brian: it is a win on some cases and some regards. we have seen president trump be a demagogue on the issue of immigration for many years. remember, during the 2016 campaign he made this one of his signature topics. there are arguments he did not take as many actions in office as he promised, and that he has a disappointing record, at least to some on the hard right. at the same time, this is of the he is seizing upon, he is on fox again tonight doing interviews on this subject. i view the 24 election this way -- every day the subject's migration or illegal immigration, trump is at an advantage. every day the topic is something like abortion rights, biden has

the advantage. that is a big story also in texas. i interviewed a texas woman who couldn't get an abortion who is suing the state. there is that sort of tension between these competing issues, mocrats believing they are on the defensive on migration for sure. sarah: we are exciting to hear from both potential candidates for the election this evening, today. is there anything president biden can say to reclaim the narrative on this issue? brian: i think he has a strong argument, that he offered a deal, the democrats reached a bipartisan deal with some republicans, wanting to provide funding for border security, wanting to take steps to control migration, and yet house republicans did squash that bill, trump squashed that bill. biden is going to say all year long that he had a plan but trump ruined it, republicans ruined it, and that is a strong argument, that is an accurate, factual argument to make on the campaign trail. sarah: but the fact is that statistics are that illegal immigration has gone up massively since president biden has been in the white house, and

that is a huge problem. brian: yes, and that is partly in the wake of covid-19 after 2020 when there was relatively little migration happening. the numbers spiked when biden took office. democrats say biden is deporting many people in those numbers have also spiked. but this is the sort of store that even though facts are pesky, this is a story largely driven by feelings. when i talk to voters about this, it is much more about emotions and anecdotes than it is about statistics, and those anecdotes are about people, even in cities like new york, who feel uncomfortable with the rate of migration under biden. sarah: those pesky facts, brian. it is always really good to talk to you. let's go straight -- we are going to be dropping in and out of texas this evening. there we are in brownsville. president biden is, as you can see, just meeting there. we are expecting to hear some words from him later on this evening. but we do know that he was going to be given a briefing at the

border. lking to border patrol guards, finding out the situation there, finding out i guess what these people are dealing with on a day-to-day basis, as this number of illegal immigrants, undocumented migrants, has continued to rise, as we were just hearing from brian over the past four years or so. there is president biden. we saw, didn't we, the former president donald trump arriving at the airport a little earlier. he is himself making his way to eagle pass, and we will be talking or hearing from him a little later on as well. both president and former president in a texas. let's move on for the moment. the u.n. security council is going to be holding an emergency meeting after more than 100 people were reportedly killed as a convoy of food aid was being delivered to gaza. these pictures were shot during

the aftermath of the incident. palestinian government officials said israeli forces opened fire on the crowds. israel says tanks fired warning shots which were not directed at the crowd. here's israel's chief military spokesman. >> during this humanitarian operation, at 4:45 a.m., a mob ambush the a trucks, bringing the convoy to a halt-- the aid trucks, bringing the convoy to a halt. as you can see in this video, the tanks that were there to secure the convoy seized the gazans being trampled and cautiously drives to disperse the mob with the few warning shots. when the hundreds became thousands, and things got out of hand, the tank commander decided to retreat to avoid harm to the thousands of gazans that were

there. no idf strike was conducted towards the 80 convoy. -- aid convoy. sarah: that was the idf spokesman. with more come here is fergal keane from jerusalem, and a warning that you may find his report distressing. fergal: the hunger created by war made this tragedy. that is fundamental fact of what happened today. the dead and wounded were starving people simply hoping to feed their families. "i am one of the wounded," this man says. "we were there all day to get food for our children. they are liars. they say we brough it but we paid for that aid without blood -- with our blood.." thousands have gathered in the predawn darkness. they heard trucks were coming

with aid. they were farmers, mechanics, our bbc cameramen, teachers, doctors. fergal: an israeli drone filmed people crowding the aid trucks. it is a striking depiction of human desperation. israel says most of the casualties were trampled or knocked over by trucks as drivers tried to flee the chaos. but the military also says its troops opened fire when a crowd posed a threat to soldiers. it isn't yet possible to clarify how many of the dead were shot, how many crushed. watch this man crawling along the ground way from the food convoy.

hospitals in northern gaza say they've treated many gunshot wounds. >> after they stop shooting, we went back. fergal: this survivor was shot and run over. >> by the time i got flour and some canned goods and took it down from the truck, they shot at us. they shot me in the truck driver left and ran over my leg. fergal: this incident comes on the date when gaza marks a reported 30,000 deaths since the war began over four months ago. there is the dying that happens and there is the hunger silently attacking life. go to the intensive care units in the hospitals of the north, and their babies with signs of severe malnutrition. >> this child is sfering from severe dehydration due to lack

of milk. his mom breast-feeds him, but she hasn't each and, and there is no artificial milk. he was rescued when he was one month old. he lost 24 members of his family. fergal: the child here died is our cameraman was filming, her already serious medical condition exacerbated by hunger. a baby girl born in war, died in war. nearby others struggle on. fergal keane, bbc news, jerusalem. sarah: clearly some very distressing details from gaza, an unclear situation, but we will be talking to our correspondent from jerusalem in a little while who has some more details as to what went on in the last when you four hours. around the world and across the u.k., this is bbc news. let's take a look at some of the other stores making the news. the father of a teenag boy who

murdered breanna ghey has been jailed for 15 mons after pleading guilty to sex offenses. age 36, he admitted two offenses of exposure and one count of taking an indecent photo of a child. his son was convicted alongside scarlet jenkinson of murdering 16-year-old brianna in a park in cheshire last year. administrators for the cosmetics and skincare chain of stores the body shop say 116 outlets will stay open in the u.k., but they are closing 75 shops over the next six weeks and will cut about 500 jobs as part of a restructuring program. the u.k. arm of the global beauty chain was put into administration this month. a bbc investation has found that millions of chickens sold and the u.k. supermarkets show clear signs of skin burns caused by being left to live in their own waste.

you are live with bbc news. now to russia and president vladimir putin has warned western governments not to send troops to ukraine, saying the consequences of doing so would be tragic. and his annual state of the nation address in moscow, he claimed his forces were advancing confidently inside ukraine two years after the invasion. our russian editor steve rosenberg has more. steve: it was president putin's 19th state of the nation address. and he used it to send this warning to western nations, don't send your troops to ukraine. pres. putin: they need to understand once and for all that we have weapons, too, that can strike targets in their territory. and everything they think up and scare the world with risks in

your good conflict and the end -- risks a nuclear conflict and the end of civilization. steve: regarding russia, he claimed to rede poverty, boost the birth rate, and raise incomes. well, there is an election coming up. the kremlin clearly wanted russians to see the speech. it was shown live on billboards, even in some cinemas, although this moscow movie house wasn't exactly overflowing. putin and popcorn not an obvious combo. this address was part campaign speech, part state of the nation, and state of the world, as vladimir putin sees it, with promises to his people that life will get better if he stays in the kremlin. as for the current wave of repression in russia and the intensifying crackdown on dissent, there was no mention of that. and the audience, russian mps and senators, had little to say

about the death in prison of the country's most famous opposition leader. are you not concerned about the state of the nation and its reputation after the death of alexei navalny? >> who is that? >> i am ready to command on the messagehat vladimir putin delivered, but not other issues. steve: the president, too come has ayed silent on mr. navalny's death. alexei navalny is expected to be buried tomorrow at this moscow cemetery. his allies have accused the russian authorities of blocking their plans for a public memorial service for him. as for the kremlin, the choreography here sent a clear message, that on russia's political stage, there is only room for one man. steve rosenberg, bbc news, moscow. sarah: for more analysis of putin's speech, we can speak to

soviet and russian historian and author of several books on the kgb and the russian foreign intelligence, amy knight. thank you so much for joining us here on "the context." i was really struck by steve's piece when he said this was the 19th state of the nation address by vladimir putin, which is incredle. i wonder watching him over those two hours, who is he directing this state of the nation address at? who is his audience? >> i think this well, the audience, first of all, was the russian parliament, both houses of the parliament, and the ministers and high-level officials in putin's government. he also had other people coming in. yes, it was also a message to the russian people in general. i don't know whether many of them would want to sit down to a two-hour speech.

it was, i think, one of the longest speech that mr. putin has made. and it was basically, the way i heard it, kind of a big pep rally, not only for putin's reelection, of which he is of course assured, but also for the war in ukraine. so he was trying to really ignite people's support behind this, and he made it pretty clear that at least to me it seemed clear that this war is not going to end. sarah: he, as he often does when he is speaking, mentioned nuclear. the word was used several times, talking about the nuclear forces in the state of full readiness, talking about the sophisticated weapons that russia has at the moment. presumably that is directed at

at outside audience. amy: oh, yes, of course. again, because his speeches are so much propaganda, i think it is hard for westerners to sit there and listen and take all of it so terribly seriously. but of course, you know, the usual nuclear threat was there. i think putin is hoping very much that the u.s. does not -- is not able to give further military aid to ukraine. and so sometimes these nuclear threats are intended to make the west a little bit more cautious about how much military support they do give. sarah: we talked about things that he did talk about, alexei navalny, as steve rosenberg pointed out, not mentioned once in that very lengthy speech.

amy: well, putin has never mentioned alexei navalny's name. he doesn't say it, never has said his name out loud. i think it is very interesting that at the end of putin's speech, he said everybody was standing up to applaud, they applauded like 119 times during the two hours. a very loyal audience. but at the end of the speech he said "we in russia are one big, happy family, we are united." and i couldn't feel the irony of that, given that tomorrow there is going to be a funeral service for alexei navalny. the russian authorities have already made it clear that they are going to do everything they can to prevent people from

making it aig issue. i think it is just interesting. and also, more arrests have been happening. there is this simultaneous, really frightening increase in repression on the part of the security services and the police, and at the same time when you see putin's speech and all these people, you just would never know. it's like an alternative world. sarah: amy knight, thank you so much for bringing us up to date, just bringing us the headlines there from the speech earlier today, the 19th state of the nation address by vladimir putin. we said that donald trump was out and about. he is there at eagle pass in texas. we were talking about the fact that both he and president biden are out on the not campaign trail yet, but kind of sort of is. we will keep you up-to-date on

all of that f very quickly before the break, going to return to that incident in gaza which reportedly killed more than 100 people. our diplomatic correspondent paul adams can join us from jerusalem. some more details become clear this evening. paul: yes, i think we have by now a reasonably clear account of what happened. we know where it happened, close to gaza city. we know when it happened, around 4:40 this morning. it was a chaotic scene in which thousands of people were cped out waiting for an aid convoy to arrive. when it did, they surrounded it, they tried to get the aid of the trucks themselves. there were israeli troops present who at one point thought they were in danger and opened fire, and in the resulting chaotic scenes, it seems as though the trucks may have run over a considerable number of those protesters, those people

who were trying so desperately to get the aid. that seems to be how most people died. sarah: paul adams, thank you so much. paul bringing us up-to-date on the latest details from that incident in gaza. narrator: funding for this presentation of this program is provided by... man: bdo. accountants and advisors. narrator: funding was also provided by, the freeman foundation. and by judy and peter blum kovler foundation; pursuing solutions for america's neglected needs. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ announcer: "usa today" calls it, "arguably the best bargain in streaming." that's because the free pbs app lets you watch the best of pbs anytime, anywhere.

♪ ♪ narrator: funding for this presentation of this program is provided by... brook: these are people who are trying to change the world. startups have this energy that energizes me. i'm thriving by helping others everyday. people who know, know bdo.