welcome to bbc news, i'm maryam moshiri. our top stories: 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 d'generes says her long—running talk—show is to end. welcome to our viewers on pbs in america and around the globe. hello and welcome. the deadly conflict between israeli forces and palestinians has continued well into the night, with palestinian militants firing waves of rockets into israeli cities. anthony lincoln has called the palestinian president and contaminated rocket attacks —— condemned the rocket attacks. presidentjoe biden spoke to the israeli prime minister in a similar call. 67 palestinians and seven israelis have been killed since the latest flare up

in violence began on monday. 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 dead. rocket fire from gaza has continued deep into israel, and the sirens are near nonstop in towns close by. 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 jewish—arab town i saw how fear and chaos are spreading. violence between jewish violence betweenjewish people and arabs inside israel is spiralling. here, jewish extremists attacked an ambulance and then check a car to see if arabs

orjews are inside. along the coast, a popular arab restaurant comes under attack. in another mixed town, a jewish man is beaten by arab—israelis. a synagogue has also been torched. israel's leader calls it anarchy. a wave of anger that began injerusalem has spilt out to the occupied territories and into israel itself. the country is engulfed with multiple flashpoints. it may be too late to contain it now. tom bateman, bbc news. i'm joined now by mosab abu toha — a writer and poet from beit lah—hia in the north of gaza. thank you forjoining us. let me ask you firstly, what has your experience been over the past couple of days? the firing

ofthe past couple of days? the firing of the rockets _ past couple of days? the firing of the rockets continues - past couple of days? the firing of the rockets continues to - of the rockets continues to this moment. i can hear it in the background. the bombing in the background. the bombing in the rockets, just in the few, in the last minute, a residential building near my town has been bombarded. a few minutes ago a couple of people were killed while other people from their families, were killed while other people from theirfamilies, sorry, from their families, sorry, were from theirfamilies, sorry, were rescued and taken to hospital. so it is still growing more and more tense here. and what are the perceptions of gazans of the conflict? do they still support hummus? most people believe that this started because the hummus military spokesperson told the israelis that if they

do not stop the attacks, their expulsion of people in east jerusalem and they gave them a deadline at 6pm last monday and it seems that israel did not accept the thread that hummus gave them and at that moment an israeli military regime was targeted by a missile and then israel targeted a group of people, civilians mostly and nine of them were killed 30 minutes after that attack. six of the nine were children. and thenit of the nine were children. and then it went from there, firing rocket and more bombs on houses, on streets might you know, different parts of gaza. and we are still living in the aftermath of this exchange. [30 aftermath of this exchange. do ou aftermath of this exchange. do you think there is a roadmap to

peace now?— peace now? i believe there should be _ peace now? i believe there should be peace _ peace now? i believe there should be peace but - peace now? i believe there should be peace but this i peace now? i believe there - should be peace but this should be based on equality between us and the israelis. i think many people, i mean, if you ask people, i mean, if you ask people if they want the clashes to continue, you would get one of three answers. some people would say no, we do not want to go on with this. it is enough what we had in 2014. where more than 2000 people were killed and hundreds of thousands of buildings were destroyed. and those houses and buildings have not yet been reconstructed to this moment so why are we going into something like that? these people wanted to stop, the attacks. and then other people would say now israel killed, the number rose to 69, 20 of

them were children. so a minority might say ok, those people who were killed why? and then the third group of people would say we need to just live a normal life we do not need more of this or that. we just want to be safe in our houses, especially because of the children and i have three children and i have three children myself and i am fearfulfor them. children myself and i am fearful for them.- children myself and i am fearful for them. and the difference _ fearful for them. and the difference this _ fearful for them. and the difference this time - fearful for them. and the difference this time i - fearful for them. and the l difference this time i guess fearful for them. and the - difference this time i guess to other times has been the protest by israeli arabs in other cities outside of gaza. is their support for them? i am not sure if they'd directly relate or have to do with the things that take place in gaza. i think it has been tents between the arabs in the 1948 cities, the green light cities

and the other dues because israel is a jewish state and they have some laws for dues that arabs cannot enjoy. so it was intense, it was intense before these clashes between gaza, jerusalem and other forces but it seems that this time it was the fire that burned everything between the dues and the arabs.— dues and the arabs. thank you for taking _ dues and the arabs. thank you for taking the _ dues and the arabs. thank you for taking the time _ dues and the arabs. thank you for taking the time to - dues and the arabs. thank you for taking the time to speak. dues and the arabs. thank you for taking the time to speak to j for taking the time to speak to us on bbc news. at least 27 people have been killed in colombia, where thousands of demonstrators clashed with police over the past two weeks. the protests, initially against a proposed tax reform, soon morphed into broader anti—government rallies in a country battling ongoing violence and economic hardship made worse by the pandemic. 0ur correspondent daniel pardo travelled to the city of cali —

in the southwest of colombia — which has seen the worst of the violence. he sent this report. police grappling with protesters in colombia. the worst outbreak of protests and violence in its recent history. "they kill him, they kill him", people shout. it occurs at a policeman who has just gunned down two protesters. this is how it starts with a massive protest of students, indigenous people and workers. then the police come, and it takes over this area, they start shooting. they are investigating at least 1000 cases of police 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 theirfamilies 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, inequality, and the lack of opportunity in a country lacerated by decades of armed conflict and drug trafficking. in response, the government has sent the army to the streets. people are enraged at the actions of riot police who are using live ammunition to dozens of people have died.

amidst all this violence and division, colombians are turning against each other. here, the people dressed in white who live in this exclusive residential complex say 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 says the 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, colombia needs a fundamental change.

stay with us on bbc news — still to come: what goes up must come down. the cliff—diving champion who decided tojump off a balloon. "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 confirm 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, from paris. 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 etienne isn't sure he wanted. he's still asking about alternatives in the vaccine chair. france still has almost half its stock of astrazeneca left unused and the government is busy touting its benefits. but only for those like etienne, who are over 55. 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. nothing here, nothing there. yuri has been trying all day, but there's nothing in the whole

of the paris region. i looked on the website and there is already nothing left. this doctor is one of those who told us he's had to throw away his leftover astrazeneca vaccine, 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. 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. 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 resumption will take several days. 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 from queenstown. screaming 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. yeah! 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. pre—pandemic, operators ran eight boat rides an hour. this past year, it was down to only one. don't start sticking your arms out the side of the boat, in this tourist town, some operators have gone out of business since the country closed its borders. 0thers got by, relying on locals. we went from a business that was very accustomed to taking 1,200 people a day, having a lot of people on the ground to do that, to suddenly having to really enjoy the fact that we might have 200 in a day.

before the 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 lull as a chance to curb tourism's heavy carbon footprint. proposals presented to the government include limiting visitor numbers and a departure tax to help offset tourism's climate impact. it's a difficult prospect for an industry that has suffered so badly. it does feel a little bit like the dog's already down and we're having somebody step on our throats. but everybody needs to look at themselves environmentally, because this is the product that we purvey. when you do compare it to the other major industries in the country, which are categorically larger carbon producers, is tourism really the appropriate thing to be looking at right now? there's never a right time to make change. yes, there's a short—term crisis to be managed, but long—term, we need an industry which is more sustainable. asking travellers to contribute

a small amount as they leave our shores is the most constructive thing we can do. people are starting to say "i've got choices. where can i go, to a place which is responsible and takes this seriously?" polluting jet boat operators know they have to adapt. here, they're 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 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, queenstown. daytime 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. brian steinberg is a senior tv writer at variety — he says this was not totally unexpected. she has been talking about ending this over quite a long time and has had quite a long tenure. but i do think the recent scrutiny on her has exacerbated and hasn't gone away quite yet. and what was the scurtiny all about? it came out that some crew members of her staff felt they were not being treated right, and warner brothers dismissed some producers. ellen said she was not aware of

the mistreatment but said she felt bad about it. ellen degeneres made a mea culpta on tv to discuss it. that has not gone away. what is the future of the talkshow format amidst other kinds of reality tv? well, you know, these have been a mainstay on us tv for many years, like 0prah, but 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. ellen's show was one at the top of the pack. brian steinberg.

rhiannan iffland has made her careerfrom jumping off things. four times she has won the cliff diving world series — but last year's championship was cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic. so, rhiannan went looking for a new venue for her daring adventures. and this one was full of hot air — as the bbc�*s tim allman explains. is the mists role through new south wales' hunter valley, rhiannan iffland prepares herself for the day's events that make it a little bit of history making up for a year of obstacles and setbacks. it's disappointing to not have any events are not have anything to push for. that's why this project has been so special to me, because, it's really been something that i've been focusing on, an idea we came up with at the start of last year that seemed a little bit, you know, out of the ordinary. rhiannan is planning to become the first woman to dive from a moving hotair blue. the wind speed must be no more than five

kilometres per hour. as they reach the exact own living spot, the balloon descends to a height of 18 metres. then rhiannan does her thing. three, two, rhiannan does her thing. three, two. one! _ rhiannan does her thing. three, two. one! a _ rhiannan does her thing. three, two, one! a fairly _ rhiannan does her thing. three, two, one! a fairly graceful - two, one! a fairly graceful descent — two, one! a fairly graceful descent into _ two, one! a fairly graceful descent into the _ two, one! a fairly graceful descent into the dam - two, one! a fairly graceful i descent into the dam below. two, one! a fairly graceful - descent into the dam below. a world first exhilarating experience.— world first exhilarating exerience. ~ . . ,, . ., experience. what a special feelinu . experience. what a special feeling- it _ experience. what a special feeling. it all— experience. what a special feeling. it all happened - experience. what a special feeling. it all happened so | feeling. it all happened so fast, and i can't wait to settle down and relive the moment and think about what actuallyjust happened. i had a little bit of television this morning. 0h, little bit of television this morning. oh, it wasjust so exciting. morning. oh, it was 'ust so exciting-fl exciting. isn't planning on makin: exciting. isn't planning on making this _ exciting. isn't planning on making this a _ exciting. isn't planning on making this a permanentl exciting. isn't planning on - making this a permanent fixture more of a hot air experiment. been the normal world championships will resume next month. brilliant stuff. you can reach me on twitter —

i'm @bbcmaryam. thank you for watching bbc news. bye—bye. 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 14—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 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 north—east 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 14—15 celsius, but noticeably cooler, like i mentioned, across the north—east. 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 too, so unfortunately, it's looking pretty unsettled for much of the country, further showers at times. those temperatures below the seasonal average.

this is bbc news — the headlines: heavy israeli airstrikes and palestinian rocket fire have continued through the night. the israeli military said its targets in gaza included intelligence buildings, a bank and a hamas palestinian militants have launched waves of rockets towards israeli cities. israel's security cabinet has approved plans to escalate the bombardment. 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. france has more than two million unused doses of the astrazeneca vaccine.