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and by judy and peter blum kovler foundation, pursuing solutions for america's neglected needs. announcer: and now, "bbc news" helena: i am helena humphrey in washington and this is bbc world news america. israel urges more than 30 countries to impose sanctions on iran's missile program as it continues to consider a wider response to iran's attack. u.s. house of representatives moves closer to boating on a foreign aid proposal that would split aid to israel from ukraine. and donald trump's hush money trial on day two of this historic criminal case.

welcome to world news america. the israeli government says it has launched a diplomatic offensive against iran even as it considers a military response to saturday's drone and missile attacks. israel's foreign minister has written to more than 30 countries calling for sanctions against iran's missile program. on tuesday the european union responded, the foreign policy chief saying the block is working on a new package of sanctions. the u.s. is also expected to impose new sanctions, and british prime minister rishi sunak told benjamin netanyahu that iran had miscalculated and was increasingly isolated on the world stage. mr. sunak stressed significant escalation was in no one's interest and urged for calm heads. mr. sunak also raised concerns about the humanitarian situation in gaza and a readout says he

told prime minister netanyahu that the u.k. wants to see a massive change in aid access to flood gaza with vital supplies, including israel opening new aid routes quickly. in a report, the united nations says 19,000 children have been orphaned in gaza over the past six months. lucy williamson sent this update on the conflict. you may find some of the images distressing. lucy: in gaza, the threat of all-out war in the middle east has little power to frighten. war there has already left many with little to lose. in rafah, now a vast refugee camp, these two families buried five people today, killed in israeli airstrikes overnight, gaza's health ministry said. >> i lost my feelings. i am going crazy.

they should put me with them. lucy: the beach road leading north to gaza was packed today with crowds and rumors. people hoping to return to their homes in the north but turned back again and again by the army. today the prime minister benjamin netanyahu told new army recruits that operations in gaza were just one part of a wider war. >> it's part of a system. iran stands behind hamas, behind hezbollah, behind others, but we are determined to win and defend ourselves in all arenas. lucy: new footage shows the moment the military focused change. the first interceptions of iranian missiles ordered from this control room. israel's ongoing conflicts with iranian backed groups have been

pushed into the shadows by a direct attack from toronto. how israel responds could take the world down a much more dangerous path. international allies, the u.k. among them, have been lining up urging benjamin netanyahu to show restraint. israel's former national security advisor says the iranian strike leaves israel with an opportunity to take on the groups it should have confronted before. >> we didn't wage the war against hezbollah two years ago. huge mistake. when you see them becoming stronger, you have to do something. should we wait? i think it would be a huge mistake to wait with hezbollah, hamas, and the iranians. we have to remediate this threat . it is not just israel, the west is next. lucy: israel is already treading a tight rope in conflict with hezbollah.

the army said, the gaza war has already inflamed israel's regional conflicts. it's next decision could push them into all-out war. lucy williamson, bbc news, jerusalem. helena: you heard israel's military action in lebanon. this is footage from the scene. israel has confirmed it assassinated a local hezbollah commander. a commander of the group's coastal sector. for more analysis on tensions between israel, iran, and proxies, our diplomatic correspondent james lyndale filed this report from jerusalem. james: israel's leaders are continuing to consider what response they may make to the weekend attack by iran, the drone and missile strike iran launched against this country. what's interesting is we have not seen much from prime

minister benjamin netanyahu. he has not appeared on television, has not been speaking in public, has not been talking to that many world leaders. he and his advisers are still knuckling down, trying to work out how to balance some kind of projection of force, some reestablishment to deterrence, while also not triggering a wider war. two things interest me today that suggest israel might be wanting to play this longer rather than shorter. the first was an opinion poll by a university in jerusalem that suggested the israeli people are divided over how hard israel should respond to this attack. some people saying there should be a substantial response, a hard military response, but a third of people saying there shouldn't be because of fears about a wider war.

the second point is those israeli senior figures who have been speaking today have been talking not about wreaking vengeance but about maintaining an international alliance against iran. in other words, making the argument that iran is not just the enemy of israel but the enemy of the region and the wider world. in other words, these signals are that israeli leaders are trying to use the sympathy and the support they have got as a result of iran's attack over the weekend and they want to operationalize that and use it to put diplomatic pressure on iran. that suggests israel wants to keep those allies on the board, as and when they do respond militarily to iran. israel is still considering its options and the signals at the

moment are that they might be paused before taking action. helena: we can go live now to elliott abrams, senior fellow for middle eastern studies at the council on foreign relations. he served as deputy assistant to the president and deputy national security advisor in the george w. bush administration. very good to have you with us. israel says it will respond. it is weighing its options. what do you anticipate we could see from israel in terms of a military response? >> i think there will be some kind of military response. i don't think it will be zero. they believe iran changed the rules of the game. iran has not attacked directly and all the 45 years of the islamic republic existence. i am inclined to think it won't

be instant. i would only add one thing to his reporting, which is a week from now is the passover holiday and the government may wish to wait until after that holiday and allow israelis to spend it more peacefully with their families. helena: we will see, but in the meantime we have the news of the killing of the hezbollah commander. i wonder whether you think that increases the tensions even further and how you assess the risk of a broader war. elliott: i don't think the exchanges between israel and hezbollah increase the chances of a broader war. they go on -- i was going to say every day, but certainly every week there is an exchange of blows, of rocket fire. it is still the case that about 75,000 israelis who lived in the north are not in their homes because of hezbollah. i don't think that is the

effect. the question is an israeli reaction against iran. that's the new element here. whatever the israelis do, there is a risk of escalation. will the iranians say, we need to respond to that? that's the risk they face and we all face. helena: that is the concern, and we know washington has said support for israel will remain ironclad, but they have also said they won't be on board if there is a military operation from israel. i wonder if you think there is the risk of the united states getting drawn into a war with iran, if we get into this tit-for-tat territory. elliott: there is that risk, no question. but conversely, what would perhaps make iran not go up the ladder of escalation is the knowledge that the united states is on it.

they don't want confrontation with united states and if the united states makes it clear that someplace on that ladder, we are going to be brought in, maybe that helps cool off the iranian responses. helena: i asked about the call for sanctions from israel to around 30 countries. how effective do you think that could be in terms of diplomatic de-escalation? elliott: it's a critical question. will the israelis feel they have to react strongly, militarily? punishing iran through greater economic sanctions. if there are no sanctions, if it looks as if this a great international coalition is toothless, it seems more likely the israelis will conclude we have to act. helena: i also want to get your thoughts on what you think this means for the war in gaza.

there is another idf operation underway once again. in washington there is the possibility of aid to israel being cast without conditions. what do you think all this means for how netanyahu prosecutes this war there? elliott: there was a pretty broad consensus in israel on prosecuting the war and going to rafa, and i think after the iranian attack, it is probably even a stronger consensus, that they need to defeat hamas and eliminate its military capacity and bring the war to a close. i think the iranian attack makes it more likely the israelis will go into rafa, not necessarily tomorrow morning, but at some point. helena: with all this going on, the situation in gaza, iran, israel, and we await this response, what do you think this

means for the hopes of a two state solution, something the biden administration continues to call for? elliott: it may lead to more talk about a two state solution but it pushes that solution farther off. it is a reminder no one knows how to govern gaza after the end of hamas, the end of this war. the palestinian authority is doing a poor job governing the west bank and the notion it could be responsible for a state, particularly at a time when iran would want to use that state as it has used gaza against israel, i think it's unrealistic to think that objective is any closer. i think it's further away. helena: elliott abrams, very good to get your thoughts. thank you. u.s. funding for israel could be brought to the floor of the u.s. house of representatives this week, along with aid to taiwan

and more controversially, aid to ukraine. republican speaker mike johnson has delayed getting aid to the floor for months amid republican opposition to funding for kyiv. his new proposed package would separate ukraine aid from other parts of the bill and that could give it a better chance of clearing the house than a $95 billion aid package that the senate passed two months ago. four key republicans have shown support, saying we don't have time to spare, we need to pass this this week. mr. johnson is running into conservative backlash as a second member of his party threatened to oust him over the package this morning, calling on him to resign. the speaker remained defiant. rep. johnson: i am not resigning and it is an asserted notion -- absurd notion that someone would bring a vacate motion when we are trying to do our jobs. it is not helpful to the cause, it does not help house

republicans advance our agenda, which is a secure border, sound governance, and it's not helpful to the unity we have in the body. helena: with a narrow majority in the house, mr. johnson may need democratic support to pass it. it is unclear if democrats will come to the rescue. we go live now to daniela diaz, a congressional reporter for politico. thank you for making the time. what we are likely to see, separate votes on foreign assistance. rake down how that would work. >> i don't want to get too bogged down with house procedure on capitol hill, but first there would need to be a procedural hurdle that would likely need democratic sort since mike johnson does not have all republicans behind that. mike johnson has a very razor thin majority so he can only lose two or three votes to get that over the finish line.

that's why we have been talking to democrats for weeks who have said they would support mike johnson if he were to put ukraine aid on the floor. that has been a major priority. we have seen mike johnson put israel aid two times on the house floor. the fact he is planning to include israel aid, ukraine, taiwan, all those republican sweeteners, including a tiktok ban and other provisions part of this massive package, it would need democratic support. helena: there is questions with regard to the freedom caucus, the republicans as well, speaker johnson whether he can get it through the house rules committee with republican votes. how does that look? daniella: the house rules committee has two freedom caucus members now. they in the past voted against measures mike johnson has put forward. it remains to be seen whether they would support this. the majority of the house

freedom caucus has already come out against this unless it contains some offset of aid for ukraine. a lot of them are against that in the first place. the bigger picture is mike johnson has had this problem for a long time. he has conservatives in his own party that have not been able to help him get bills across the finish line, but because he continues to work with democrats, that's the major question of what it means for his future as speaker if he does end up putting a bill on the floor and using democrats to move that legislation, whether that means marjorie taylor greene and other conservatives will trigger the motion to vacate that could remove speaker mike johnson from his speakership. helena: touching on the motion to vacate, is there a possibility it could get more support? daniella: definitely. a lot of conservatives have said they are interested.

so far there is marjorie taylor greene and another one who said they would back the motion to vacate. marjorie taylor greene told us she does not want to move forward unless there is a plan for a backup to speaker johnson. so while -- so far no one has come forward saying they would want to replace johnson. considering it is probably the most difficult job in washington -- we saw what happened with mccarthy, who was booted -- it's unlikely this will happen soon, but it is continuing to hang over speaker johnson's head. helena: i wanted to ask about the possibility for amendments with these texts and if there could be any wildcards there. daniella: that always happens in this congress. a lot of what we have dubbed the culture war, politics amendments where a lot of republicans and democrats have messaging bills they try to get across so they can campaign on it. it is an election year. whether these amendments will get the majority and be added to

the legislation remains to be seen. we have not really even seen text on this massive package but we expect that all to be part of the process should there be a vote by friday. helena: thank you so much for taking us through all of that. six jurors have been selected on day two of donald trump's historic hush money trial. roughly half of the more than 100 potential jurors questioned so far have been excused after saying they could not be impartial. mr. trump is facing 34 felony counts of falsifying business records over an alleged hush money payment to adult film star stormy daniels ahead of the 2016 election. before walking into court, mr. trump attacked the judge and called the $130,000 check a legal expense. mr. trump: we have a trump hating judge, a judge who shouldn't be on this case, who

is totally conflicted. this is a trial that should have been thrown out a long time ago. check them out, it's called legal expenses. that's what you are supposed to call it. nobody has ever seen anything like it. helena: we go to our correspondent who is outside the manhattan court for us. great to see you once again. we were getting to the heart of jury selection. talk to us about how that played out. nada: a jampacked day as the judge tried to keep everything on schedule. there was one dramatic moment where donald trump was reprimanded by the judge for audibly muttering and gesturing in front of one of the jurors. he had to warn him he will not have any of the jurors intimidated. you had several prospective

jurors dismissed, but those who were questioned by both sides, the sides tried to get at how they felt about donald trump. some avoided answering, instead sharing their overall feelings of what they had heard about this case. some acknowledging they had heard negative things about how he treats women, others saying they found him fascinating and seeing how people react to him is fascinating. at one point donald trump's legal team went far back in some of the jurors' social media posts. that led to one man who posted about donald trump being locked up being dismissed as a prospective juror. we have six jurors who have been sworn in, a diverse bunch. an older man from puerto rico, another from ireland, a young black teacher, a recent college graduate, an oncologist nurse.

but that process continues. helena: of course we have many more weeks in this trial before it gets into its full flow. were donald trump to be convicted, how could that potentially affect his run for the white house? nada: that's absolutely the big question and one that will be analyzed and dissected for years. but in the moment, what we have is polling to suggest how that might impact the election. recent polls show independe nts, slightly less than half, would be turned off from voting for donald trump if he is a convicted felon. that is just recent polling. many will be watching to see if that shifts. with such a narrow gap between donald trump and president biden, with them to in polling ahead of the election, really

every vote does count. we have seen donald trump's campaign trying to turn his legal troubles into a benefit, fundraising off of it. how it affects people in the ballot box if he is convicted, that will be something many will be closely watching. helena: nada tawfik, as always great to talk to you. in washington the u.s. supreme court appeared divided over a case which could impact hundreds of prosecutions related to the january 6 attack on the u.s. capitol, including some charges levied against former president trump. the conservative majority questioned the idea that an obstruction law could be applied to charges stemming from the riot. that statute which makes it a crime to obstruct, influence, or impede official proceeding is at the heart of the federal government case against hundreds of writers. how the court defines the scope of that loft could potentially

eliminate some charges that mr. trump faces in his federal election subversion case. the supreme court set to hear arguments next week to determine whether the former president has immunity. we have some pictures now, that devastating fire that engulfed denmark's historic stock exchange building in copenhagen. members of the public rushed to rescue historic paintings. it took hours to get the fire under control. the cause for the moment is unknown but emergency services said scaffolding made their operation more difficult. finally, the sacred flame for the olympics was lit at a ceremony in greece ahead of its journey to paris. the event took place at the temple of hera, the birthplace of the games in olympia. it will be taken around the country before being used to light the olympic flame at the opening ceremony in paris on the 26th of july. you can always get more of today's news on our website,

bbc.com/news i am helena humphrey in washington. thank you for watching world news america. announcer: funding for presentation of this program is provided by... financial services firm, raymond james. bdo. accountants and advisors. cunard is a proud supporter of public television. announcer: funding was also provided by, the freeman foundation. and by judy and peter blum kovler foundation, pursuing solutions for america's neglected needs. ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪

♪ amna: good evening. i'm amna nawaz, in kyiv, ukraine. geoff: and i am geoff bennett. the u.s. supreme court considers whether in charge of obstructing an official proceeding can be used to prosecute capitol rioters. and former president donald trump. >>