this time it was the smaller, more radical islamichhad group that was centre stage. they lost parents, home, brothers, sisters, struck by israeli hamas leaders were criticised here for staying on the sidelines. they say they are acting in the palestinian interest. the palestinian interest of this time is to avoid as much as possible any further escalations, a new war because the situation on the ground is so difficult, so worth, and the regional and international atmosphere is not so helpful at this time. things look different when you are not in government. here, they want more rockets, more assistance, as they call it. hamas, did notjoin in. there is a ceasefire, but it is fragile. missiles while they slept. life is getting back to normal in gaza, but in regard that life is never normal. people are caught between a crippling israeli blockade and the militant palestinian groups. i can't tell whether it is over or not because at any moment something might come up and we are not ready to face it. i'm 24 years old but i don't feel like i am living my life the way i am supposed to. ijust want to live. this latest round of fighting seems to be mostly opened this is a family member. but the seemingly endless war is not. "i can't describe enough my feelings and the consequences of what happened," he says.

the israelis were after a islamichhad militant. now they admit they may have made a costly mistake here. the violence started when israel killed one of the group two top commanders, accusing him of masterminding attacks against them. islamichhad avenged his death with barrages of rockets but the more powerful islamist movement which runs gather, even though it often takes the lead in fighting israel and some countries deem it an international terrorist group. for most of the week israel did not hold hamas responsible for the violence like it usually does. both of them seemed to be trying to avoid a wider conflict. this time it was the smaller, more radical islamichhad group that was centre stage. hamas leaders were criticised here for staying on the sidelines. they say they are acting in the palestinian interest. the palestinian interest of this time is to avoid as much as possible any further escalations, a new war because the situation on the ground is so difficult, so worth, and the regional and international atmosphere is not so helpful at this time. things look different when you are not in government. here, they want more rockets, more assistance, as they call it. hamas, did notjoin in. there is a ceasefire, but it is fragile. a strong northerly breeze is low

pressure lingers over the continent, most pressure lingers over the continent, m ost pla ces pressure lingers over the continent, most places will be dry and sunny. we fog lingers, it could turn chilly throughout the day, one or 2 degrees below in the central belt. it is dry and fine throughout the week, for much of the north and east of the uk, low pressure encroaching into the west will bring more cloud at times with spells of rain, temperatures on the rise, particularly across southern areas by the end of the week. hello, this is bbc news, the headlines: prince andrew categorically denies having sex with an american woman who says she was forced to sleep with him when she was just 17. i can absolutely, categorically tell you it never happened. the duke of york said he does not regret his friendship with the convicted sex offender jeffrey epstein. in the election, the conservatives promise all migrants will be treated equally after brexit,

regardless of where they come from. but the foreign secretary rules out setting a target for the number of people entering the uk. the labour leader, jeremy corbyn, refuses to confirm whether or not free movement of people from the eu will be included in the party's general election manifesto. the government and the armed forces are accused of covering up illegal killings by british troops in afghanistan and iraq. rebecca jones will be here to keep you company through the afternoon, but before that on bbc news it is time for the travel show.

hello, and welcome to this look back at some of our recent adventures here on the travel show. it's been a busy few months, so here's a taste of what's coming up. it's so hot! i'm melting. totally worth it. look at this atmosphere! 0h, here we go again. oh, wow! this is beautiful. there is all that and more to come, so let's kick off with carmen's recent trip to osaka injapan. she went to get a bird's—eye view of the ancient burial mounds constructed thousands of years ago, but now located in a very modern city. we start this week in osaka, a modern city, totally rebuilt after the devastation

of the second world war. but among these street crossings and skyscrapers, you can still find artefacts from its past. you might not be able to spot them from the ground. oh, i made it to the top. it's a little bit of a view, it's not bad. a lot of trees here. not really that much to see. but to get the best view of these historical wonders, you really have to take to the sky. oh, my gosh. we are taking off. so exciting. dotted across the city there are nearly 50 grassy hills, some of them built in a distinctive keyhole—shape. the japanese call them kofun, burial mounds built over 1,500 years ago.

these man—made structures hold the remains of some of ancient osa ka's most powerful figures. and this summer, these memorials will were recognised as the city's first unesco world heritage site. yoshizawa—san has been studying the tombs for decades and was involved in the successful unesco bid. the size and shape of

the burial mounds depends on the person's status. the sites were decorated with haniwa, clay figurines that were used in the funeral ceremony. carmen exploring japan's past. now, rembrandt has to be one of the most famous painters in the world, and this year marks the 350th anniversary of his death. a while back, ade added back to amsterdam, where rembrandt worked and lived for most of his life, to discover a project that is restoring one of his most famous paintings. in 1631, he made this city his home.

and it's here that he painted his most famous masterpieces. and you can see many of them on display at the rijksmuseum. but what i've come here to see is very special. and involves a painting that rembrandt is best known for, one of the most famous works of art in the world, the night watch. the painting is almost four centuries old, and over the years there have been various restoration attempts. but now the museum is undertaking the most sophisticated one ever. using hi—tech methods to carry out a forensic examination of how rembrandt actually painted the picture before restoration can begin. and it's all being carried out in one of their galleries in full view of the public and live—streamed online. the machine you see there

is an x—ray fluorescence scanner. and this way we get an idea of the elements present in this painting. but this is a painting which is for us to admire. why is it so important for you to know about the elements? we need to figure out... we want to know how rembrandt painted it, what his ideas were when he was painting it, how did he make this nice composition. was it all ok on the canvas, or did he change his mind and change more things, or did he change the composition? those things we would like to know. so you're getting a real idea of what it was like to be a painter in rembrandt‘s time? yeah, we're basically on rembrandt‘s shoulder and watching him while he's painting his paintings. so we're going to photograph the painting in daylight, but we're not going to do it like one snapshot, but we're going to do a lot of photos next to each other. i think, from the top of my head,

it's 11,000 photos. wow. so then we get a really high resolution. it's like you're looking through a microscope. 0ne pixel in that photo is like a blood cell, or basically it's smaller than a human hair. all of this scrutiny and all of this work for one artist — what do you think rembrandt would make of it if he was around today? i would personally think that he would think we are crazy. yeah, yeah. ade there in amsterdam. now it's time for a slice of living history. the fete des vignerons is a huge wine festival that's been taking place in switzerland since 1797. usually, it's once every 25 years, and this year lucy

went along to take part. as well as being home to unesco—protected lavaux vineyards, vevey is known for its living tradition — the fete des vignerons. a three—week long celebration of wine that transforms the town. while switzerland might not spring to mind when you think of wine, they actually produce 100 million litres of wine per year, only exporting 2% of it. it's said that, during the fete des vignerons, visitors unsuspectingly work their way through — are you ready? — over half a million bottles of wine. and the festival itself began as a one—day feast hosted by an ancient brotherhood as a way to reward the best winemaker in the region. and it clearly takes the locals a while to recover as the festival only takes place once every 20—25 years.

the fete des vignerons began in 1797 as a small parade through the streets of vevey. but because of unrest in the region over the next couple of decades, the next event wasn't organised for another 22 years. a cycle that has remained ever since. today the climax of the celebration is a daily show that takes place in a specially booked stadium and features over 5,000 volunteers. and this year, the show‘s been created by the man behind cirque du soleil. i'm loving the vibe back here, themed costumes, props everywhere. so with 5,000 people in your show, do you think you've got room for one more? do this with your hands, dance with your hands. does that mean i'm in? talk me through what i'm

going to be doing. you are going to be a dancer, a starling dancer. the idea is that your upper body is completely separated from your lower body and your arms feel like wings that you can fly with. you make that look really easy. so i've got my moves, now it's time to get my costume. these are huge. how do i look? am i working it? you're amazing. then the three—hour extravaganza began. the sun is blazing, it's so hot! i'm melting. totally worth it. look at this atmosphere! the choreography wasn't so important in the end, everyone was freestyling, but it looked really good.

and what an honour to take part in something that only happens once every 20 years. i ain't going to to be this limber in 20 years, i'll tell you that now! lucy and about 30,000 other people at the stadium in switzerland back in august. well, stay with us, because coming up... every year, groups of very lucky people get to go aboard and actually row just like ancient athenians did. we get a break every so often. "caution: a high degree of physical fitness is required past this point." he breathes heavily. they weren'tjoking! well, we're always up for a challenge here on the travel show, but mike raised the bar recently when he went to malaysia

and tackled a climb that was a real test of endurance. but the reward was spectacular views. i'm in gunung mulu national park in malaysia's biggest state, sarawak. it's home to some of the world's largest caves, formed from limestone and shaped by millions of years of ground and rainwater. this process also created a bizarre collection of stone spires above the ground. at almost 50 metres tall, the pinnacles are an imposing spectacle. but to get there, sightseers face a long, brutal trek through the rainforest. "caution, a high degree of physical fitness is required past this point." "eight hours round trip." intense!

yeah. lead the way! let's go! he breathes heavily. you weren'tjoking! how is it? steep! he chuckles. we've only just started, and i'm already pretty exhausted. he breathes heavily. it's another kilometre before i reach the most treacherous stage. this is the first ladder, mike. 0k. right, larry. helmets on, right? all right. and who's first? after you, mike. after me. 0k, one down, 17 more to go.

the beautiful limestone cliffs are sharp, but at least there's lots of places to grab onto. looks like it is raining down there. you think it's going to rain? yeah, it will be heavy rains. he breathes heavily. 500 metres to go. 100 metres to go. hope we get there before rain. what ladder‘s this? last ladder. the last ladder? this looks like the summit. is it it? yeah, the summit is here. we are here, guys. oh, wow! yeah!

and there's so many of them! 0h! this is beautiful! yep! just daggersjutting out of the forest canopy. thanks. yeah. yeah, it really is spectacular, right? yep. mike taking on the pinnacles there in malaysia. now, rwanda might be one of africa's smallest nations, but it's becoming increasingly well known for its wildlife, especially its gorillas. recently, lucy headed there, hoping to meet some of these magnificent creatures.

the walk is pretty tough — i'm not going to lie. the higher we get, the higher the altitude, my breath is getting a bit shorter. three hours and 4,000 metres above sea level, and i was beginning to fear i might not everfind a gorilla. oh, my god. i look scared, but they are so big! i grabbed francis like my life depended on it.

we have really, really lucked out here. so you have got a mother cradling her baby. we've got blackbacks. and we've got the mother of all gorillas, the silverback there. he'sjust watching us, watching him. i can't believe we are this close. my mind is just absolutely blown. they are so beautiful. and when you think we share 98% of our dna with these great apes, you understand why they too are curious about us. rwanda, in collaboration with international conservation partners, has achieved remarkable success in not only protecting, but growing the mountain gorilla population. in fact, there are now 1,000 mountain gorillas here in the wild — up from 200 just two decades ago, when they were on the brink of extension. this is primarily down to the decrease in poaching, when the gorillas were

hunted for meat. but in an effort to protect the gorillas, poachers were trained to become mountain guides and porters here, further supporting tourism. so talk to me about the poaching here. and so there is no problem, but there is no problem, because we keep avoiding it not happen by involving them in the communities and hiring the poachers to porterfor us. yeah. but you cannot say it is done, so we keep on. but, of course, more gorillas means they need more space. the government has now pledged to expand the forest by 23%, adding almost 4,000 hectares to its current 16,000. you just hear little grunts just in the distance. at the minute, i think it is quite hard to tell if it is aggressive or playful grunts. wow. how did you feel when the gorilla came out of nowhere and jumped at you?

scared! just being able to watch them eating, interacting and even communicating with us in their natural habitat is, hands down, one of the best experiences that i've ever had the pleasure of having while being on my travels. i highly recommend it. lucy there in rwanda on what must have been an incredible trip. and as for me, well, the powers that be at the travel show decided i had a different kind of experience in store — a boat trip up the coast of greece. sounds dreamy and relaxing. but as i discovered, not so much. i have come a short distance outside of the athens city centre to what has become known as the athens riviera. there are plenty of cool cafes, ritzy new hotels and, of course,

plenty of luxury yachts. moored close to the modern yachts, a different kind of ship is ready to go out to sea. the trireme 0lympias — the only life—size replica in the world of the athenian battleships which dominated the naval wars from the fifth century bc until early christian times. this amazing—looking galley belongs to the greek navy, and every year groups of very lucky people get to go aboard and actually row just like ancient athenians did. this year, i'm one of those lucky people, so i'd better get ready. i think it is going to be quite hard work. well, my fellow rowers are starting to arrive now, so i've picked a plum spot right in the middle of the action. 0h! 0ar. ready for ramming speed. coxswain speaks in greek.

reaching speeds of about nine knots, or 17km/h, this boat was considered pretty quick in its time. coxswain speaks in greek. and its manoeuvrability won athens some decisive victories at sea. the bronze ram served as the main weapon to puncture the hulls of enemy ships and to sink them. coxswain speaks in greek. we get a break every so often. 0h, here we go again!

looking around, it is almost impossible to imagine what this must have been like for the people who originally rowed these kinds of boats. i mean, to be in battle, three layers of different people all sweating and trying to ram another boat in the open sea, i mean, it is unimaginable, given how pleasant and lovely this is today. fortunately, this trireme is now being used for less ferocious purposes. for now, the 0lympias is going back to the port for some pampering. it will spend the winter there before being spruced up for a new set of visitors in 2020.

well, that's all we have time for on this week's programme, but don't forget to sign up to our social—media feeds. you can see what we're up to and share your travel stories with us and the rest of the world. for now from me, christa larwood, and the rest of the travel show team, it's goodbye. it has been a pretty chilly weekend up it has been a pretty chilly weekend up and down the country, some lucky ones have seen sunshine, the best across scotland, northern ireland, the far south—east of england.

unlucky once in clouds and outbreaks of rain. high pressure will dominate into the start of next week to bring us some into the start of next week to bring us some all very pleasant sunshine, but remaining cold. thick cloud across northern england, the north midlands, down into west or south—west wales, outbreaks of rain and drizzle here, also for north—east scotland, but elsewhere dry and sunny, brighter spells across the extreme south—east, generally lighter, temperatures round 7—10 degrees. through tonight, the cloud holds on across central and south—eastern areas, more of a breeze here than elsewhere as high pressure builds in, clear skies, temperatures taking a tumble. widespread frost in the far north of england into north wales by the end of the night, 3—6 in the south—east. high pressure will dominate, like i mentioned, for monday, lots of fine dry weather, this low pressure could float with the south—east coast, bringing one or two showers through the day, certainly early on, turning

dry to the afternoon, 18 northerly wind. elsewhere, a code for us to start, lots of sunshine, one or two mist and fog patches. as we had through monday night, widespread frost across the country under largely clear skies, with light winds a really cold, frosty start to tuesday. mist and fog will lift and clear into the afternoon. a fine day for many, widespread sunny spells. across the west, a change is low pressure edges closer, increasing cloud, outbreaks of rain in the west later in the day. 11 degrees in plymouth, but elsewhere it will stay chilly, single figures. no pressure continues to affect the western side of the uk, but higher pressure over the eastern half. even beyond the middle of the week, we will have diseased—west city. quite breezy

across the board, windy and the west, with more cloud, further east, a better chance of staying dry. —— this east—west setup. temperatures creeping up into the low teens by the weekend.

this is bbc news, i'm rebecca jones. the headlines at two: prince andrew categorically denies having sex with an american women who says she was forced to sleep with him when she was just 17. i can absolutely, categorically, tell you that it did not happen. the duke of york said he does not regret his friendship with the convicted sex offender, jeffrey epstein. in the election — the conservatives promise all migrants will be treated equally after brexit, regardless of where they come from — but the foreign secretary rules out setting a target for the number of people entering the uk. it is not just it is notjust the volume, it is the kind of innovation coming into the

country. people