at six: fears of war as the violence between the israeli military and palestinian militants intensifies. another terror block and gazza is destroyed. israel has carried out hundreds of air strikes and prime minister netanyahu promises more attacks — translation: what should i say? this was a crime. they didn't hit a militant nor unofficial. we are civilians sleeping _ militant nor unofficial. we are civilians sleeping in _ militant nor unofficial. we are civilians sleeping in our- militant nor unofficial. we are i civilians sleeping in our homes.

a barrage of rockets have been fired by rockets into israel mostly on tel aviv. this is madness. people have lost their lives here. the this is madness. people have lost their lives here.— this is madness. people have lost their lives here. the united states because the _ their lives here. the united states because the scene _ their lives here. the united states because the scene is _ their lives here. the united states because the scene is harrowing . their lives here. the united states| because the scene is harrowing and says it is sending a top diplomat to calm the violence. also tonight... the prime minister announces that a full public inquiry into the uk's response to the coronavirus pandemic will start next spring. and tributes to nine—year—old jordan banks, killed by lightning after he was hit during training on a football pitch in blackpool. and plans for a national service is memorial to honour all those who worked during the pandemic. coming up in sport on the bbc news channel, football's finest sing the praises of pep guardiola and manchester city as they secure their third premier league title in four years.

good evening and welcome to the bbc news at six. the un is fearing a "full—scale war" as the deadly clashes between the israeli forces and palestinians have escalated significantly. the usa are sending a senior diplomat to the middle east to urge israelis and palestinians to de—escalate the violence. at least 53 palestinians and six israelis have been killed since monday. in the past few days, palestinian militants have fired a mass barrage of rockets into israel, mostly on tel aviv. and israel has carried out a heavy bombardment of gaza, launching hundreds of air strikes. tensions have been growing in jerusalem throughout the muslim holy month of ramadan, partly fuelled by a long—running threat to evict palestinians

from their homes in eastjerusalem. and it all came to a head on friday at al—aqsa mosque. the site where it stands is highly sensitive, sacred for both muslims and jews. israeli police used cs gas and stun grenades at the mosque and palestinians threw rocks at them. hundreds were injured. from jerusalem, here's our middle east correspondent, tom bateman. the world is asking if the region is on the brink of war. people who went through this feel it is already here. palestinians in gazza faced the fiercest israeli bombardment since the last all—out conflict. israel says it is going after militant leaders. some were killed in their homes. but civilians died in their homes. but civilians died in this strike, say palestinian

health officials. in gazza, territory under blockade, grief quickly turns to anger. —— gaza. translation: dozens have now died since the violence erupted on monday. rocket fire from gaza has continued deep into israel and the sirens are near nonstop in towns close by. gk, nonstop in towns close by. ok, that's an interception. we have had air strikes pound the gaza strip just a couple of miles away throughout the course of this morning and into the afternoon, more retaliation, more fire, from gaza.

underfire, this man and his son ran for safety. underfire, this man and his son ran forsafety. but underfire, this man and his son ran for safety. but their neighbour, and 89—year—old woman, didn't make it. she is seriously injured. her carer died in the strike. there are growing international calls for restraint, but for now it seems no one he was listening. it is the intensity of these attacks that has led both sides to say they will step up their strikes in retaliation, a descent into much further violence seems inevitable. more rockets were shot down in israel's skies, and the streets are burning too. a wave of palestinian rage that stemmed from jerusalem has

spilled out to the occupied territories and to within israel itself. there has been violent confrontation in the nextjewish arab town of lod, where a state of emergency has been declared. israel's leader has described it as anarchy and sent in police reinforcements. there is plenty of talk about when all this might de—escalate, but for now it seems there is only preparation for the next phase of fighting. well, despite the fact that a curfew is due to come into force here in the town of lod people have already been out on the streets and some here whaling israeli flags. behind me either israeli border police —— waving flags. their deployment in jerusalem and on the occupied west bank outside israel itself is an extremely rare event and all of this adds to the extremely volatile atmosphere. meanwhile, wider

fighting is continuing tonight. they have been further air strikes against the gaza strip and further rockets from gaza fired into israel in the last few minutes. palestinians and israelis know that they are in for another long night. tom bateman, thank you. let's speak rushdi abu alouf, who's in gaza city. can you describe the situation tonight? figs can you describe the situation toniaht? �* , ,, can you describe the situation toniaht? a , , tonight? as you can see behind me, in the last hour _ tonight? as you can see behind me, in the last hour or— tonight? as you can see behind me, in the last hour or so _ tonight? as you can see behind me, in the last hour or so a _ tonight? as you can see behind me, in the last hour or so a 15-storey - in the last hour or so a is—storey building was completely destroyed. this is the main commercial street in central gaza city. it is completely empty, the building was completely empty, the building was completely destroyed as a result of the latest israeli air strike. hamas in response have fired over 100 rockets. they say they have fired the rockets in retaliation to the destroying of the building but also for the killing of one of the top hamas military commanders who was killed by israel this afternoon.

israel said he is responsible for many attacks against israel, and hamas describe him as one of the senior leader mikes and historical founder of the military wing of hamas. —— senior leaders. founder of the military wing of hamas. -- senior leaders. thank you, rushdi abu — hamas. -- senior leaders. thank you, rushdi abu alouf. _ tensions had mounting injerusalem throughout the holy month of ramadan amid growing anger over the threat of eviction for palestinians in eastjerusalem living outside the old city's walls. 0ur correspondent caroline hawley looks at what has sparked the worst violence in the region for years. a city of ancient, sacred sites, a flashpoint. jerusalem is the centre of the israeli—palestinian conflict and it has always had the capacity to spark violence. and, so, with depressing familiarity, it has yet again. so what is behind this latest escalation? tension has been mounting for weeks. one big grievance for the palestinians was the threat that dozens of families would be evicted from their homes in an area just outside the old city in favour ofjewish settlers. there have also been clashes

between israeli police and palestinians angry about restrictions on them gathering at the entrance to the old city at sunset. and, then, on the last weekend of ramadan came clashes at al—aqsa mosque, where israeli security forces said palestinians had been throwing stones. on monday, israel accused worshippers of preparing to attack a planned march by israeli hardliners. and troops stormed into the holy compound. hamas, which rules the gaza strip, is now portraying itself as the protector ofjerusalem, the defender of muslim worshippers. it has called its barrage is of rocket fire 0peration sword 0fjerusalem. so why doesjerusalem matter so much? the importance ofjerusalem is perhaps the one thing the two sides can actually agree on. it has both religious and national significance. the israelis see it as their eternal, undivided capital, while for the palestinians they want it as the capital

of their future state. this dangerous escalation has now moved way beyond jerusalem. this is now the biggest explosion of violence since the war in gaza in 2014 — a deadly tit for tat with neither side showing any sign of backing down. and, as always, it's civilians on both sides paying the price. caroline hawley, bbc news. the prime minister has announced a full independent public inquiry into the government's handling of the coronavirus pandemic. borisjohnson said it would start next spring and would put the state's actions "under the microscope". the labour leader, sir keir starmer, welcomed the inquiry but said it should begin as soon as possible. 0ur deputy political editor, vicki young, reports. after more than a year of covid trauma, what are the lessons the country must learn? the uk now has one of the highest covid death rates in the world. why weren't we better prepared for a pandemic?

were the right decisions made at the right time... you must stay at home. ..to protect the most vulnerable? and why did some things go better than others? when you get the call, get the jab. will lessons be learned ? today we are a step closer to learning some answers. amid such tragedy, the state has an obligation to examine its actions as rigorously and candidly as possible, and to learn every lesson for the future, which is why i've always said that when the time is right, there should be a full and independent inquiry. the inquiry is due to start next spring, and evidence will be given under oath. fran had been married just three weeks when her husband steve died of covid last year. she told me she was pleasantly surprised when she heard today's announcement, but questioned the timing. what we would like to have is a rapid review, and that is something that can be done in a matter of weeks.

that wouldn't tie up people's time to the degree that a fulljudge—led inquiry would involve, and that would hopefully begin to get some quick answers to some of the very pressing questions that need to be resolved so that other families don't have the same experiences we've had. but the government says doing it now would distract those still dealing with the pandemic. when it comes to the scope of the inquiry, the labour leader had this request. this inquiry will only work if it has the support and confidence of the families. and i urge the prime minister and the government to consult the families at the earliest possible moment. the government should also consult those on the front line who have done so much, whether in the nhs, social care or other front lines. the families of those who have died want answers, and the prime minister has promised transparency. ministers and officials will be quizzed in public, thousands of documents will be published. but inquiries like this are never quick. it could be years, probably after the next election, before conclusions are reached. the hope is that looking back

and learning lessons will mean no more names are added to this wall. but today an international panel highlighted serious failures across the globe and said without urgent change the world will be at the mercy of another disease outbreak. vicki young, bbc news, westminster. 0ur medical editor fergus walsh is here. the prime minister also spoke about the variant first identified in india and said it was of increasing concern? , , ., ., ., concern? yes, this variant of concern. _ concern? yes, this variant of concern. new _ concern? yes, this variant of concern, now more - concern? yes, this variant of concern, now more than - concern? yes, this variant ofj concern, now more than 500 concern? yes, this variant of - concern, now more than 500 cases identified _ concern, now more than 500 cases identified in_ concern, now more than 500 cases identified in the uk, many in the bolton _ identified in the uk, many in the bolton area, and many linked to travel_ bolton area, and many linked to travel for— bolton area, and many linked to travel for india before it was put on the _ travel for india before it was put on the red — travel for india before it was put on the red list for hotel quarantine. we know it is at least as transmittable as the kent variant, _ as transmittable as the kent variant, the dominant variant here, but the _ variant, the dominant variant here, but the question is would it make the vaccine — but the question is would it make the vaccine is ineffective? the action— the vaccine is ineffective? the action delete my answer is probably not, action delete my answer is probably not. but _ action delete my answer is probably not. but we — action delete my answer is probably not, but we don't really have the

data _ not, but we don't really have the data either— not, but we don't really have the data either way yet. the government's chief medical adviser chris whitty said on monday it would be less_ chris whitty said on monday it would be less likely to escape vaccines and the — be less likely to escape vaccines and the south african variant —— looked — and the south african variant —— looked less_ and the south african variant —— looked less likely. and that one has never_ looked less likely. and that one has never really taken off here in the uk. never really taken off here in the uk it— never really taken off here in the uk it is— never really taken off here in the uk. it is vital to stay on top of these — uk. it is vital to stay on top of these concerning variants. there is surge _ these concerning variants. there is surge testing for covid in the bolton — surge testing for covid in the bolton area and many of the cases are in_ bolton area and many of the cases are in people under 25 and that has prompted _ are in people under 25 and that has prompted the mayor of manchester to ask for— prompted the mayor of manchester to ask for vaccination now to be opened up ask for vaccination now to be opened up immediately to all of those over 16. up immediately to all of those over to variants — up immediately to all of those over 16. variants of concern are the big unknown, — 16. variants of concern are the big unknown, the one thing that can derail— unknown, the one thing that can derail the — unknown, the one thing that can derail the return to normality. but we know— derail the return to normality. but we know that vaccines can be tweaked, _ we know that vaccines can be tweaked, and there is a plan in place _ tweaked, and there is a plan in place for— tweaked, and there is a plan in place for a _ tweaked, and there is a plan in place for a booster third dose this autumn, — place for a booster third dose this autumn, but we don't know yet whether— autumn, but we don't know yet whether that will be needed. fergus walsh, whether that will be needed. fergus walsh. thank _ whether that will be needed. fergus walsh, thank you. _ let's look at the latest data for coronavirus now.

more than 35.7 million people have now had their first dose of a vaccine. that's over 67% of the uk's adult population. the government's now inviting 38 and 39—year—olds to book their first jabs. almost 18.5 million people have now had both jabs, so 35% of all adults are now fully vaccinated. downing street said tonight that borisjohnson has apologised unreservedly on behalf of the government for the events that took place in ballymurphy in west belfast in 1971 when ten people were killed in 1971 when ten people were killed in the wake of an operation by the british army. yesterday the families of those who died one a 50 year fight when the coroner ruled they were entirely innocent. 0ur correspondent is at stormont now. those verdicts by the coroner yesterday, all of those findings provided a huge sense of vindication

for the families of the victims here. it was a big moment for northern ireland, their loved ones names were publicly cleared and the coroner found that in many cases the soldiers use disproportionate force. almost immediately after that moment yesterday there were calls for an official apology. sinn fein's michelle o'neill saying she was pressing the prime minister to say sorry. what we understand has happened today as there was a virtual meeting between the first and deputy first ministers of northern ireland and borisjohnson and we usually get a readout from downing street, a summary of what was said, and in that we were told the prime minister did apologise. the readout said he apologised unreservedly for the events that took place and the huge anguish the lengthy pursuit of truth has caused the families of those killed but there has been a rather underwhelming response to that in northern ireland. the initial reaction from families of the ballmurphy victims is they would

rather have had an apology more directly to them rather than in a private phone call with political leaders. they don't see it as a public apology. we get the same sense from sinn fein, too, that they don't see this as an official apology as such and such was the scale of the tragedy in ballmurphy and the conclusive findings of the coroner yesterday that the victims were wholly innocent you can expect there to be many more calls in northern ireland for borisjohnson to go much further. thank you. the time is coming up to 6:20pm. our top story this evening: israel's military continues to fire palestinians and rockets continue to come back. one of the most famous names on the high street, debenhams closes its doors for good after 250 years of trading. coming up on sportsday

on the bbc news channel, as andy murray returns to clay, the tournament director of the french open says he believes the former world number one deserves a wild card for the grand slam. coronavirus restrictions saw the economy shrink at the start of 2021 but the hit was smaller than first feared as growth rebounded in march. the office for national statistics says that gross domestic product — a measure of the size of the economy — fell by 1.5% betweenjanuary and march — during lockdown. but improved performance in march eased the blow, with gdp rising by 2.1% month—on—month, helped by schools reopening and retail spending. figures indicate the economy in march was nearly 6% lower than before the pandemic. 0ur economics editor, faisal islam, reports. in milton keynes, as around the country, the curtain is about to rise again on our big screens, preparing for their grand reopening, testing the projectors,

prepping the ticket machines, a symbol of normality and of economic recovery. we know there is pent up demand. people have really been on their couches for too long and they want to come out and experience films on the big screen with the big sound and comfy seats, with cinema food and beverage. today, it was confirmed that lockdown saw a marked fall in the economy in the first three months of the year but that a rebound had begun by march. while any fall in the economy is clearly disappointing, this does reflect what was happening during the second lockdown in the first couple of months of this year. more up—to—date data shows the economy starting to rebound. the bank of england's debit and credit card spending levels are at about 99% of where they were before the pandemic. if you look at the number of people on the high street, the footfall data is at about three quarters of normal levels

as the recovery starts to take hold. and then there is the housing market where, during the pandemic year, house prices have gone up by a five year high, record mortgage lending, leaving average house prices at over a quarter of £1 million, also a record. visiting a brewery in east london that, thanks to the furlough scheme, had kept all its staff and now employed more, the chancellor said the recovery was on track and he would stick to his tax rise plans. almost a year ago we set out our plan forjobs. what today's figures show is that plan is working and that is great to see. with regard to the decisions we've made, i think those were the right decisions. it important we have borrowing and debt levels that are sustainable. here optimism about reopening but also caution, given all that has happened over the past year with the pandemic and coping

with some post—brexit trading costs. we did lose about 10% of our customers who had close their doors for good. so that pain has already been met for some people. we appreciate how tough this has been for our customers. we didn't want to have to pass those on but it has been... we've have had to swallow a lot. we've seen some issues over the border as well with ordering stuff in. exports to the eu were well down over the first three months of new trading arrangements but ministers pointed to some recovery back towards more normal levels by march. the return of normality from trips to the cinema to trade with neighbours is right now the great hope for the economy. faisal islam, bbc news in milton keynes. the family of nine—year—old jordan banks who died after being struck by lightning during a football coaching session have described him as their "brightest star." jordan was injured during a thunderstorm while he was on a playing field

in blackpool last night. from there, nick garnett reports. hello, everyone! i am so happy and grateful for the donations. young and full of life. jordan banks raising money to help others. from first thing this morning, tributes to the little boy have been left at the pitch where the young footballer played the game he loved so much. the nine—year—old had come to the playing fields for a private training session when the storm moved in. he was only a few metres from the relative safety of the car park when he was struck down. despite paramedics and the air ambulance coming, he couldn't be saved. local people joined friends and family to pay their respects at the football ground. we was in the same class. very happy person, very kind and caring person. how important was football to him? very. he loved it. he played it every day at school. ref me. it has shocked everyone. it's a tragic shock.

we didn't realise it was cj's best friend. he has took it bad. this evening, the family of the little boy described how their world has stopped. "we've lost our brightest star. he was our everything". nick garnett, bbc news, blackpool. the former bosnian serb leader and convicted war criminal radovan karadzic is to serve the rest of his life sentence in a britishjail. the 75—year—old was convicted in 2016 of crimes including genocide which he carried out during the conflict in the former yugoslavia. the foreign office said he would be transferred to a uk prison from a un detention unit in the netherlands. 29 men have been charged in connection with child sexual exploitation in calderdale in west yorkshire. the allegations date from 2003-2010 and yorkshire. the allegations date from 2003—2010 and are against one female victim who was aged between 13—20 at the time. most of the offending is

alleged to have taken place in calderdale but some offences are said to have occurred in the bradford district. it's one of the most famous names on the high street. but all debenhams stores will close for good this weekend after 250 years of trading. the new owner boohoo said the business will now run online—only. a number of them closed today. our business correspondent emma simpson has been speaking to two workers who've been with the firm for more than 20 years. it is the end of an era. it was a great place to work. totally lost its way, - totally lost its way and this is the result of it. like many towns, debenhams was mansfield's department store, a big corner of a shopping centre, and these are its final few hours. the end of a chapter forjulie and glenys, too. 75 years of service between them. i have to think about it and think, god, it's been my whole life there, you know? like i say, i grew up there and i've grown old there stop

i think it became like a family unit, yes. they and their former colleagues like to remember the good times. janice was the store director's secretary. when the store was first opened in 1976, there was fitted kitchens, carpets. glenys has even reminded me we used to sell greenhouses! in the early '805 onwards, when the mines, the industries, debenhams was the harrods of this area because of course the money was so affluent. it was so thriving - in the 705 and '805. tougher times now with the retail shake—out sweeping through britain's high streets. it is like many other towns, it's exactly the same. and ijust hope the high street can be reinvented to get some sort of feeling back. those final few hours are going to be hard? it's hard.

and it is... because, a, it's the heart and soul of the town. b, it's the heart and soul of our colleagues. cheering and applause. we will go out with a smile on ourfaces. they did just that as the shutters closed for the final time. emma simpson, bbc news, mansfield. plans for a memorial to celebrate the dedication of emergency workers a service has been held at westminster abbey this afternoon to pay tribute to the efforts of nurses and the tireless work they've done throughout the pandemic. it comes amid plans fora throughout the pandemic. it comes amid plans for a national emergency services memorial in westminster, a series of statues dedicated to all emergency workers but organisers still need to raise millions of pounds and are asking the government to help. daniela relph reports. honouring the challenges they faced and the care they've given.

at westminster abbey it was a service for nurses after a year of extraordinary strain. the gratitude of every home throughout the world goes to nurses... and a permanent tribute to the work of medics. this is the first figure made for a planned monument in central london to emergency workers. every detail carefully sculpted. only the eyes visible on the masked face. the gloves being wearily peeled off at the end of a long shift. a feeling familiar to so many nurses. applause. and nanchirira is one of them. a nurse for 50 years and a covid survivor. last year her colleagues saved her life. thank you.

we took nancy to see the statue and cast a critical eye. it is amazing. amazing. do you think that this figure represents the feelings of medics over the past year with what they've had to cope with? does it capture that? it is etched in that face. it is etched in that face, and in those eyes. deep, piercing eyes, looking at the human being helpless on the ward and wondering whether we are going to pull through. a sense of what the final monument will look like. the plan is to call it a 999 cenotaph, but the project is way off the £3 million it needs. 0rganisers want the government to now fund this lasting memorial to the bravery and sacrifice of emergency workers. daniela relph, bbc

news, west sussex. time for a look at the weather, here's ben rich. thank you. good evening. sunshine and show�*s is the forecast for the foreseeable future, the kind of weather we have had over the last couple of days and this was the scene from a weather watcher in the west midlands, feeling warm in the sunshine but the showers continue to be heavy and thundery in places. you can see from this recent radar picture but not showers but more persistent rain by pushing across the south—west of england, a thoroughly soggy end to the day here. that rain pivots affecting wales, the south—west midlands and other southern counties heading through the night. most of the showers will fade elsewhere. with clear bulbs guys, it will turn chilly but the vast majority will avoid a frost. tomorrow, southern counties of england and parts of wales start of cloudy with outbreaks of rain, becoming more showery through the day stop you standing up

into northern england, northern ireland and southern scotland, another sunshine and showers day, the hail and thunder might be here as well. it'll start to feel quite chilly on thursday, and that chilly feel will try to assert itself across north—eastern areas into friday. this northerly wind by trying to develop, feeding more cloud in across scotland and the eastern side of england during friday. fourwestern eastern side of england during friday. four western parts of england, wales and northern ireland, we hold on to the sunshine but the showers get going once again. notice where you are exposed to the northerly breeze, it'll feel chilly, ten in aberdeen, 11 in newcastle. into the weekend, this band of rain works its way friday into saturday and low pressure re—establishes itself and what that means is a continuation of the sunshine and showers theme. some of the showers heavy with some hail and thunder

mixed in stock they be well