this is bbc news. i'm maryam moshiri with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. for a second straight day — a tower block in gaza is destroyed. israel's prime minister says this isjust the beginning as hamas confirm some of its senior leaders have been killed. from the other side, palestinian militants fire rockets into israel — hitting an apartment building and seriously wounding a young child. colombia is rocked by weeks of deadly protests. we report from the city that's seen the worst of the violence. can new zealand make tourism more environmentally reponsible as it re—opens its travel bubble with australia? and after nearly twenty years on the air,

ellen degeneres says her long—running talk—show is to end. hello and welcome. the un has expressed fears of a "full—scale war" as the deadly conflictbetween israeli forces and palestinians continued for a third day. israel's prime minister, benjamin netanyahu, warned palestinian militants that this wasjust the beginning — threatening to strike with blows they haven't dreamed of. in the last few hours president biden said he had spoken to mr netanyahu and said he hoped the violence would end sooner rather than later. 67 palestinians and seven israelis have been killed since the latest flare up in violence began. our middle east correspondent tom bateman, begins our coverage, you may find some scenes in his report disturbing.

the world's asking if the region is on the brink of war. people who woke to this feel it's already here. palestinians in gaza faced the fiercest israeli bombardment since the last all—out conflict. israel says it's going after militant leaders. some were killed in their homes. but civilians died in this strike, say palestinian health officials. in gaza, a territory under blockade, grief quickly turns to anger.

dozens have now died since the violence erupted on monday. and they are still counting their rocket fire from gaza has continued deep into israel, and the sirens are near nonstop in towns close by. sirens wail. ok, that's an interception — let's get in. as we've heard 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, asha and his son ran for the safe room. but their neighbour, an 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 that no one here is 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 are shot down in israel's skies, and the streets are burning too. tonight in a mixed town i saw how fear and chaos are spreading. the fear is spiralling. here, jewish extremists attacked an ambulance and then check a car to see if arabs orjewish people are inside. along the

coast, a popular arab restaurant comes under attack. and another mixed town, a jewish man is beaten by arab—israeli is. a synagogue has also been torched. israel's leader calls it an r0. a wave of anger that began in jerusalem has spilt out to the occupied territories and into israel itself. the country is engulfed with multiple flashpoints to may be too late to contain it now. i'm joined now by doctor sara yael hirschhorn, a professor in israel studies at northwestern university in illinois. thank you forjoining us. firstly, can i ask you, president biden says he hopes the violence will end soon. argue that hopeful? unfortunately, i am not. i argue that hopeful? unfortunately, iam not. iam not sure that the act of his of

the us administration will be helpful in this regard the united states is no longer seen as an honest broker in the conflict and it may be perceived by the palestinians as interference in this latest spate of violence. but as we saw today in the reporting just heard from the correspondent, the violence has spread from the violence has spread from the occupied territories into territorial israel and it is essentially mob violence between dues and arabs in major cities. betweenjewish people and arabs. cities. between jewish people and arabe— cities. between jewish people and arabs. ., ., , , escalation within those towns where arab—israeli czar? i think this is a very worrying trend we have seen in several clashes over the last few years rocket fire and retaliation by the israeli defence forts does make forces and protest in jerusalem to but the violence

has moved into territorial israel which is essentially civilians and with arabs and jewish people beating each other in the streets as a dramatic escalation we have not seen before and hearkens back to the i948 seen before and hearkens back to the 1948 war between that make original war for make original warfor existence. make original war for existence.— existence. why is it so tense? what is different _ existence. why is it so tense? what is different this - existence. why is it so tense? what is different this time? i what is different this time? this time what is different is one year of covid—i9 where many of the concerns over the conflict have been swept under the rug due to the containment of the pandemic. coinciding of two religious festivals that became a powder keg to start a cycle of violence across the country and the interference of extremists on both sides who have reasons to escalate the situation now and to press the issue further.— situation now and to press the

issue further. two very respect did think tanks _ issue further. two very respect did think tanks have _ issue further. two very respectj did think tanks have released a joint report and their report basically says that the way out of this is equal rights and equal security for both palestinians and israelis. how likely is it that that will happen or do you think that is a way out?— happen or do you think that is a way out? the carnegie report and other— a way out? the carnegie report and other documents _ a way out? the carnegie report and other documents you - and other documents you mentioned from well—respected institutions are advocating for a switch from a two state solution to a binational state arrangement. and while i think these are better outcomes, what we're seeing today is the visualisation of the violence in real time that may be required to get there so i don't know if right now either side is prepared to undertake the diplomatic process that may be possible in future generations but i think what we see now suggest that the kind of violence that may be necessary if we were to create

an entirely different political paradigms and move away from a two state solution which has been the except that understanding of the resolution of the conflict, it may not be the right time for that and violence required to get there will be truly staggering. figs will be truly staggering. as aood to will be truly staggering. as good to have you on the programme and thank you for taking the time to talk to us. over the next hour we will get the view from gaza, speaking to a local writer who is there. at least 27 people have been killed in colombia, where thousands of people have clashed with police over the past two weeks. the protests, initially against a proposed tax reform, soon morphed into a broader demonstration of anti—government sentiment in a country battling ongoing violence and economic hardship made worse by the pandemic. our correspondent daniel pardo travelled to the city of cali — in the south—west of colombia — which has seen the worst of the violence. he sent this report.

police grappling with protesters in colombia. for two weeks now the country has seen the worst outbreak of and violence in its recent history. they kill him, they kill him people shout. it occurs at a policeman who has just gone down to protesters. this is how it starts with a massive protest of students, indigenous people and workers. within the police, and it takes over this area, they start shooting. they are investigating at least 1000 cases of lease brutality. this is also the most violent wave of protests in recent history in colombia. it all started because the government tried to introduce a tax reform which caused outrage among many colombians who say they are already struggling to feed their families already struggling to feed theirfamilies during already struggling to feed their families during the pandemic and find jobs. the

government quickly withdrew the tax proposal but it was too late. the protests had intensified. no longer against tax reforms but against police brutality and the lack of opportunity in a country lacerated by decades of armed conflict and drug trafficking to in response, the government sent the army to the streets. people are enraged at the actions of riot police who are using live ammunition to disperse protesters. dozens of people have died. amid all this violence, colombians are turning against each other. here, the people dressed in

white who live in this exclusive residential complex so they were being attacked by indigenous people. here you can see one of those same people in white shooting fire guns. against a backdrop of violence, the colombian president police have a right to defend themselves. people say they will continue to protest even if it puts their life in danger. because for them, their life in danger. because forthem, colombia their life in danger. because for them, colombia needs a fundamental change. let's get some of the day's other news. the colonial pipeline in the united states has restarted operations after being forced to shut down following a cyberattack last friday. petrol stations have been running out of fuel following the attack.

colonial pipeline, which accounts for 45% of the east coast�*s supply, says it will not pay the ransom demanded by the hackers, but has opted instead to rebuild its system with cybersecurity experts. the process will take several days. republicans in the us house of representatives have sacked liz cheney, a vocal critic of donald trump, from the party's third highest position. ms cheney had been chair of the house republican conference, but her vote to impeach the former president, and her continuing criticism over mr trump's false claims that the 2020 election was stolen, has made her unpopular in the party. she has vowed to do everything to ensure the former president never gets back into the white house. the electric car company tesla has announced it will no longer accept bitcoin in payment for vehicles. in a tweet, tesla ceo elon musk said they were concerned about the rapidly increasing use of fossil fuels for bitcoin mining and transactions. the price of bitcoin dropped around 5% in the first minutes

after musk�*s announcement. stay with us on bbc news — still to come: a potential new zealand looks at how we can make tourism more environmentally responsible as it reopens a travel bubble with australia. "the pope was shot, the pope will live" — that is the essence of the appalling news from rome this afternoon that, as an italian television commentator put it, terrorism has come to the vatican. the man they called the butcher of lyon, klaus barbie, went on trial today in the french town where he was the gestapo chief in the second world war. winnie mandela never looked like a woman just sentenced to six years injail. the judge told mrs mandela there was no indication she felt even the slightest remorse. the chinese government has called for an all—out effort. to help the victims - of a powerful earthquake — the worst to hit the i country for 30 years. the computer deep blue has

tonight triumphed over the world chess champion, gary kasparov. it is the first time a machine has defeated a reigning world champion in a classical chess match. america's first legal same—sex marriages have been taking place in massachusetts. god bless america! this is bbc news. the latest headlines: for a second straight day, a tower block in gaza is destroyed by israeli air strikes. hamas confirmed some of its senior leaders have been killed. palestinian militants fire rockets into israel, hitting an apartment building in the city of sderot and seriously wounding a young child. france is allowing anyone under the age of 50 to sign up for unused vaccine appointments. it's the latest

move to speed up the rollout, but it won't help shift the country's stockpile of astrazeneca vaccines, as the jab is not approved for anyone under 55. lucy williamson explains. less dangerous than a flight across the atlantic, according to france's health minister. it's one way to sell the astrazeneca vaccine. but months of mixed messages here means that 63—year—old isn't sure he wanted. he still asking about alternatives in the vaccine chair. fred still has almost half its stock of astrazeneca left and the government is busy touting its benefits. but only for those like ettienne who are over 55. translation: we have peeple over _ 55 they don't want the astrazeneca jab. but definitely prefer pfizer for that we are people

under 55 who just want to be vaccinated but we can't give them the astrazeneca. from today, the government has said those under 50 can take any unused vaccine slots. but only for the most popular pfizer and moderna jabs — already in high demand from older age groups. yuri has been trying all day, but there's nothing in the whole of the put paris region. i looked on the website and there is already nothing left. i tried a couple of them repeatedly. i was clicking on all the different websites at the same time. after couple of tries, i realised it didn't make any difference. this doctor is one of those who told us he's had to throw away his leftover astrazeneca vaccines, even as younger patients were asking for it. we asked the health ministry about this, they told us that astrazeneca could be used in younger adults if the alternative was throwing it away.

but pharmacists say that's not what they've been told. if consumers here are confused about astrazeneca, medics are now, too. next wednesday, france will reopen cafe terraces, theatres and museums. a key stage in itsjourney out of lockdown. but its vaccine rollout still lags behind much of europe and there are more than 17,000 new infections each day. it's now vaccinating millions of people each week. one of them yesterday by the health minister personally. a medical doctor by training. injecting a bit of confidence into the system. but delivering injections at a national level will be harder without increasing supply or relaxing the rules. lucy williamson, bbc news, paris. day—time tv in the us is facing a big change next year.

ellen degeneres has announced she is ending her us talk show next year after 19 years on air, saying the show is just "not a challenge anymore." the ellen show is a household name, but a few months ago faced accusations of being a toxic place to work. warner brothers, who produced the show, released this statement to us, saying: "the ellen show started as the little programme that could and became an absolute phenomenon. it was and is an indelible piece of the television landscape, and it will be sorely missed." brian steinberg is a senior tv writer at variety and joins me now. thank you for talking to us on bbc news. let me ask you, are you surprised by this? given the bad press and publicity ellen has had? church i —— i don't think so. ellen has had? church i -- i don't think so.— ellen has had? church i -- i don't think so. she has been talkin: don't think so. she has been talking about _ don't think so. she has been talking about ending - don't think so. she has been talking about ending this - don't think so. she has been l talking about ending this over quite a long time and has had quite a long time and has had quite a long ten year. ——

tenure. but the spotlight on her has not gone away yet. find her has not gone away yet. and what was the scrutineer all about? it what was the scrutineer all about? .. ., ., ,., about? it came out that some crew members _ about? it came out that some crew members of _ about? it came out that some crew members of his - about? it came out that some crew members of his staff - about? it came out that some j crew members of his staff felt they were not being treated right, and warner brothers was affected by that. ellen degeneres said she was not aware of it made a mirko boland tv to discuss it. that has not gone away. —— mea culpa en cb. what is the future of the talk show format amidst other kinds of reality tv?— of reality tv? these have been a mainstay _ of reality tv? these have been a mainstay on _ of reality tv? these have been a mainstay on us _ of reality tv? these have been a mainstay on us tv _ of reality tv? these have been a mainstay on us tv for - of reality tv? these have been a mainstay on us tv for many | a mainstay on us tv for many years, like oprah, they are not as well watched as they once were. there is a bit of a holding pattern given

coronavirus, but these programmes are not what they once were. it's hard to keep their station line—up. it has become much harder to build a bigger audience now. these shows are not as robust as they once were. alan's show was one of the top of the pack. ayes ellen. ~ , ., �* ellen. we shouldn't feel too sorry for— ellen. we shouldn't feel too sorry for ellen? _ ellen. we shouldn't feel too sorry for ellen? she - ellen. we shouldn't feel too sorry for ellen? she has - ellen. we shouldn't feel too sorry for ellen? she has a l ellen. we shouldn't feel too - sorry for ellen? she has a game show, sorry for ellen? she has a game show. she _ sorry for ellen? she has a game show, she has— sorry for ellen? she has a game show, she has produced - sorry for ellen? she has a game show, she has produced several other things, show, she has produced several otherthings, i show, she has produced several other things, i suspect she has put some money away.- other things, i suspect she has put some money away. what would ou sa put some money away. what would you say are — put some money away. what would you say are the _ put some money away. what would you say are the highlights - put some money away. what would you say are the highlights of - you say are the highlights of the show? i know it is a long run, but what were the bits you will remember in the future after the show is gone? i think it is the general— after the show is gone? i think it is the general media - after the show is gone? i think it is the general media of - after the show is gone? i think it is the general media of the i it is the general media of the show. the idea of being kind to people, cash giveaways, fun talks, fine conversations. it's not a show where people air their dirty laundry, they have

fun. it's kind of a feelgood moment in the day rather than a tabloid atmosphere.— tabloid atmosphere. thank you, brian steinberg. _ new zealand was receiving almost 4 million visitors a year, but when the country shut borders to stop the virus in march last year — the number of overseas tourists dropped to almost zero overnight. now there's excitement about the recently opened travel bubble with australia, its biggest market. but some say it's the perfect moment to rethink how tourism can be made more environmentally responsible. shaimaa khalil reports. it's the kind of high octane adventure new zealand is famous for. a mix of dramatic scenery, adrenaline rush, and a whole lot of cold water. it's fairly busy here today because of school holidays, which is a welcome change, but still, nothing like it was before

covid—19 hit. the pandemic operators ran eight boat rides and i would let this past year, it was down to only one. don't stick your— it was down to only one. don't stick your arms _ it was down to only one. don't stick your arms outside - it was down to only one. don't stick your arms outside of - it was down to only one. don't stick your arms outside of the | stick your arms outside of the boat. in stick your arms outside of the boat. , ., , ., boat. in this tourist town, some operators _ boat. in this tourist town, some operators have - boat. in this tourist town, | some operators have gone boat. in this tourist town, - some operators have gone out of business since the country closed its borders. others got ljy closed its borders. others got by relying on locals. we closed its borders. others got by relying on locals.— by relying on locals. we went from a business _ by relying on locals. we went from a business that - from a business that was very accustomed to taking 1200 people a day, having a lot of people a day, having a lot of people on the ground to do that, to suddenly having to really enjoy the fact we might have 200 in a day.— really enjoy the fact we might have 200 in a day. before the pandemic. — have 200 in a day. before the pandemic, there _ have 200 in a day. before the pandemic, there were - have 200 in a day. before thej pandemic, there were worries new zealand was getting too popular, risking the pristine environment which so many came to see. now there are calls to use this lower as a chance to curb tourism's heavy carbon footprint. proposals to the government include limiting visitor numbers and a departure tax to help offset tourism's claimant in park —— climate

impact don't make it difficult for industry that has suffered already. it for industry that has suffered alread . , ., , for industry that has suffered alread . , ~ , ., already. it feels like they are hittin: already. it feels like they are hitting us _ already. it feels like they are hitting us when _ already. it feels like they are hitting us when we're - already. it feels like they are hitting us when we're down. | hitting us when we're down. when you compare it to other countries, they are categorically larger carbon produces, is tourism the appropriate thing to be looking out right now?— appropriate thing to be looking out right now? there is never a riaht out right now? there is never a right time _ out right now? there is never a right time to — out right now? there is never a right time to make _ out right now? there is never a right time to make change. - out right now? there is never a. right time to make change. yes, there _ right time to make change. yes, there is— right time to make change. yes, there is a — right time to make change. yes, there is a short—term crisis to be managed, but long—term, we need _ be managed, but long—term, we need an— be managed, but long—term, we need an industry which is more sustainable. asking others to contribute a small amount as they— contribute a small amount as they leave our shores is the most constructive thing we can do. people are starting to say i do. people are starting to say i have — do. people are starting to say i have choices, where can i go, to a _ i have choices, where can i go, to a place _ i have choices, where can i go, to a place which is responsible and takes _ to a place which is responsible and takes this seriously? polluting jet boat operators know they have to adapt. here, they are planning to use electric engines to cut carbon emissions and noise. worldwide, new zealand is seen as a

success story for how it handled covid—19. and despite its reliance on tourism, it remains reluctant to open its borders beyond the travel bubble with australia. with more visitors eventually returning, they will find a country taking a fresh look at how to protect the natural wonders that millions have come to enjoy. shaimaa khalil, bbc news, 0ueenstown. this musician was unable to play for decades when his hand was broken during a mugging. now that has changed. the help of the spatial —— with the help of the spatial —— with the help of these gloves, they have helped him spring back into place. now the 80—year—old maestro has returned to the bench and the music is playing once again. what a wonderful story to end the programme. you can reach me on twitter. hankey

for watching bbc news. bye—bye. —— thank you for watching bbc news. hello there. the weather is in a very unsettled mood, notjust for the next few days, even as we head on into the weekend and into next week. that's because we've got low pressure nearby. for the next few days, it looks like it will stay showery, some heavy downpour in places with some hail and thunder, but also some warm sunshine around too. now, low pressure sitting on top of the country on thursday. this weather front bringing some wet weather to start the day for wales, up to the midlands, into the south and south—west of england. but it will tend to clear away through the day. away from the north and east of scotland, which will be rather grey through the day today, northern ireland, southern scotland and the rest of northern and eastern england will see some sunshine.

but then the showers will get going again into the afternoon. and like the last few days, some will be heavy with a mix of hail and thunder in places. temperatures reaching 1a—15 celsius for most, but rather cool again across the far northeast of scotland. now, as we head through thursday night, it looks like the showers will tend to fade away from most areas, and that weather front will clear away completely. so, many places will be turning dry, but we will start to see some cloud rolling into northern and eastern areas, so that should stop temperatures from falling much below 6—7 celsius, so another frost—free night for most. as we head on into friday, we are in between weather systems, low pressure to the east, a new area of low pressure slowly encroaching in off the atlantic. and you will also notice the blue colours across the north of the uk. this colder air tries to get into the northeast of the country but doesn't get too far, but it will bring enough chill to the north and east of scotland, and in northeast england it will be quite noticeable there. but a rather grey, cloudy day for most, away from northern ireland, wales, the west midlands and the south—west where we will see some sunny spells. and that will set off a few showers again here, again, some of them will be on the heavy side.

temperatures in the sunny spells 1a—15 celsius, but noticeably cooler, like i mentioned, across the northeast. then as we move into the weekend, we see this weather front sweep across the country to bring a band of rain, and then our new area of low pressure starts to push across the uk for the rest of saturday and into sunday. so it's back to square one with sunshine and showers once again. now, some of the showers again over the weekend will be heavy, there will be the risk of hail and thunder, and there will be some sunshine in between these showers. and the sun, of course, this time of year is strong, so it will feel fairly warm. low—pressure, though, wants to hold on into next week pretty unsettled for much of the country, further showers at times. those temperatures below the seasonal average.

this is bbc news,

the headlines: palestinian militants have fired more rockets towards israeli cities as israel destroyed another high—rise tower in gaza city and killed top commanders in the military wing of hamas. one of the rockets fired from gaza hit an apartment building in the city of sderot — seriously wounding a young child. france has opened up coronavirus vaccine appointments to anyone over the age of 18 — as it tries to boost its vaccination rates. adults of any age can now get next—day appointments when slots and doses are available. of the astrazeneca vaccine. ellen degeneres has announced she is ending her us talk show next year after nineteen years on air — saying the show is just "not a challenge anymore." the ellen show is a household name — but a few months ago faced accusations of being a toxic place to work.