welcome to bbc news — i'm maryam moshiri. our top stories: palestinian officials say at least seven people, including four children, have been killed in the latest israeli air—strike on gaza. britain's prime minister warns that the new indian variant of coronavirus could pose a serious disruption to tackling covid. and, as the countdown continues to the tokyo olympics, fresh concerns over whether the games will actually go ahead. and, china prepares to make space history, becoming only the second country to land a rover on mars.

the palestinian health ministry says an israeli air strike on a refugee camp in gaza has killed at least seven people. an official said the dead included a woman and four children, who were inside their home in the al—shati camp, west of gaza city. palestinian militants have responded by firing rockets towards the israeli city of beersheba, hitting the city of ashdod. the israeli defence force says it will retaliate. around 140 people have been killed in gaza since the conflict began on monday. palestinian rockets have killed eight people in israel. from jerusalem here's our middle east editor, jeremy bowen. the sectarian crisis that nobody expected is deepening. arab protesters are on the streets of northern israel. this was nazareth. israel's arab citizens have forced themselves back into the wider conflict that includes gaza and jerusalem.

it's ugly and angry in towns shared byjews and arabs. violence between citizens could be a bigger crisis for israel than gaza. this was a burnt—out jewish school. yelling. police broke down the door of this family in haifa. they deny accusations their sons were attacking jews but police say their offices behaved correctly. woman screams. the father, the imam of a mosque, and his two sons were arrested for attacking police officers. the woman who filmed this said they're scared not ofjews, but of racist police. a local rabbi visited, she said, to apologise. child cries. in gaza, they buried this 13—year—old. he was hit during an israeli

air strike while he waited for a new haircut to celebrate the end of ramadan. half of gaza's 2 million palestinians are children. this is the boy's brother. in the occupied territories and in israel, events this week have exposed once again the mutual hatred and fear that are the essence of this conflict. this was hebron during a day of protests on the occupied west bank. more palestinians were killed. rockets pop. injerusalem, palestinians pelted jewish settlers with stones and fireworks. gunfire. the settlers hit back with live bullets. gunfire. this was sheikh jarrah, where attempts to evict palestinians from their homes helped start the escalation to war. the conflict crosses borders.

injordan, the country next door, security forces kept protesters back from the frontier. palestinians make up more than half of thejordanian population — mostly refugees from past wars not permitted to return by israel. history never dies in this conflict. people do. jeremy bowen, bbc news, jerusalem. well, earlier i spoke to the bbc�*s internet producer in gaza, rushdi abualouf and asked him to update us on the latest israeli airstrike in gaza. it has been a very long night involving killing ten people according to palestinian officials. the israeli air strike struck a building in the middle of a refuge decamp in the middle of gaza city, the biggest city in the whole of the gaza strip. the attack,

seven people were killed including four children and a woman. according to the director of the palestinian ministry who described to the bbc what is happening as an ugly massacre, as he said. so what is the situation like in gaza? we got through to the author and journalist refaat alareer in gaza — he's been writing about the devastation in the city. the situation in gaza is devastation. we are talking about 400 palestinians slaughter in just four about 400 palestinians slaughter injust four or about 400 palestinians slaughter in just four or five days. almost total destruction to infrastructure, roads in large areas around the gaza strip. the roads to the hospitals were cut off,

electricity was lost for hours and hours, even water and internet connection is still lost. in the area, in many places. schools were damaged, huge buildings were destroyed, homes were destroyed up on the hills. while they slept. we talk about the destruction. we are speaking about 50% of those victims massacred by israel being children and women. clinics where covid—i9 services are provided to palestinians who up late by the pandemic. israel is doing this and israel is doing this because the uk supports israel and gives israel the green light because

america is giving israel the green light and the people here are living in fear. children in particular are terrorised. they are ones that shake the whole area, the rough —— the missiles. even if the strike is two or three or five kilometres away. two or three or five kilometres awa . , . two or three or five kilometres awa. ,. two or three or five kilometres awa. h, , away. israel says it is targeting _ away. israel says it is targeting hamas - away. israel says it is targeting hamas and | away. israel says it is i targeting hamas and is retaliating. what you say to that? ., , ., �* �* that? that is not true. and i'm sor to that? that is not true. and i'm sorry to say. — that? that is not true. and i'm sorry to say, even _ that? that is not true. and i'm sorry to say, even the - that? that is not true. and i'm sorry to say, even the bbc - that? that is not true. and i'm sorry to say, even the bbc is l sorry to say, even the bbc is helping israeli narrative. framing the discourse used as a sectarian, away your report is being about hate and how usually the israelis retaliate. this is totally wrong stop

israel is targeting everybody, everybody is a target. it is not something we feel, it is not something we feel, it is not something we have in mind. we can see this in the pictures and in the videos. this is not and in the videos. this is not an israeli war on hummus members. this is a total war on each and every single child and woman and sick person here in the gaza strip. here in the uk, the prime minister borisjohnson has said that the new indian variant of coronavirus could pose a serious disruption to progress made in tackling the virus. cases have more than doubled in a week, mostly in england. here's our medical editor fergus walsh. long queues for immunisation in bolton, which now has the highest level of coronavirus in the uk.

it is one of several areas where the indian variant has now got a foothold, encouraging people to get the jab. personally, the reason for me getting the vaccine is because i live with elderly people and i don't — obviously want to have them have less worries. it is thought vaccines will continue to protect against serious illness but the threat from the indian variant has led to a shift in policy. the gap between first and second doses for the over—50s is being cut from 12 to eight weeks in a bid to boost their immunity. the prime minister warned the final lifting of restrictions in england onjune 21st was now in doubt. i have to level with you that this new variant could pose a serious disruption to our progress and could make it more difficult to move to step four injune. and i must stress that we will do whatever it takes to keep the public safe.

the indian variant, bi.6i7.2, was first identified here less than a month ago, linked to travel from india before it was put on the red list for hotel quarantine. cases have more than doubled in a week to over 1,300, but that will inevitably be out of date because it takes time to sequence samples. it now accounts for around 10% of coronavirus cases in the uk. but we're in a far better place than we were just a few months ago. back at the peak injanuary, there were 1.25 million people infected with coronavirus in the uk. that is one in 50 people. the latest survey from the office for national statistics

suggests that is down to around 47,000, or one in around 1,400 people. get used to this — you are likely to see more of it. queues for pcr surge testing here in formby, merseyside — one of 15 areas in england where the new indian variant has established itself and maybe displacing the kent variant, known as b117. this is more transmissible than the b117 and we expect over time this variant to overtake and come to dominate in the uk in the way that b117 took over and, indeed, othervariants have taken over prior to that. the scientific advisory group sage says the indian variant could be as much as 50% more transmissible. if it is, they warn that could lead to a substantial resurgence in hospitalisation. but for now, the number

of covid patients continues to fall — at its lowest level for eight months. the big question — what will happen in the next few weeks? fergus walsh, bbc news. japan has declared a state of emergency in three more regions hit hard by the pandemic — casting further doubt over whether the tokyo olympic games should go ahead. 70% of japan's population is now under coronavirus restrictions. courtney bembridge has the details. the countdown to the olympic games continues, with the opening ceremony less than 70 days away. but as infections continue to rise injapan, the government has declared a state of emergency in three more regions. translation: by implementing such measures, we will protect i people's health and lives and i think it is more possible to hold a safe and secure games, and i wish to push forward with preparations. all chant: no, no olympics!

many people injapan aren't convinced. this week, there have been protests and a petition with more than 350,000 signatures calling for the games to be scrapped. recent polling shows 37% of respondents want the games cancelled, and another 28% want them postponed. the union representing hospital doctors agrees. it has warned the games could become a superspreader event for global coronavirus variants. translation: it's a tough story for athletes, but someone - has to say that the games need to be cancelled. we think medical workers are required to speak up. sponsors, too, are nervous. one major olympic partner, toyota, said this week "we are conflicted every day over what the best course of action is". test events are already under way. on friday,

it was skateboarding. the sport is due to make its olympic debut at tokyo. the world athletics president says we must move forward. it is important to reflect on one statistic, and it is a sobering one — 70% of olympians only make it to one games. so, you know, to lightly, you know, to lightly, as some are suggesting, move it a year down the line, pull stumps on this, is effectively saying for three quarters of olympians, "that's it. that's your chance." and i think we should make every effort, if we can do it safely and securely — which i believe we can — i think we really should go that extra mile. elsewhere in the world, they are getting ready. this is brazil's government vaccinating its athletes, coaches, referees and accredited media. overseas spectators have been banned, and a decision on whether the japanese public can attend is due injune. if it does go ahead, this is sure to be a very different olympics. courtney bembridge, bbc news.

the united nations is warning of a sharp rise in the number of people dying as they try to reach europe by sea. with warmer weather and falling covid rates, more migrants are attempting the journey. our europe correspondent nick beake and video journalist bruno boelpaep have this exclusive report on a dramatic rescue. stranded in the middle of the atlantic, a helpless migrant boat. the spanish military helicopters overhead have never spotted anything like this here. it's 300 miles from shore. they realise there are many bodies. translation: this was a mass grave in the middle _ of the water — or really in the middle of nowhere. i believe their hopes had vanished into the ocean. but incredibly, there are survivors. including a 17—year—old girl called aisha, here in the red jacket. it's now a race to save them. it's the end of april and they've been drifting

for three weeks. speaks french. translation: there were men who could no longer stand up i and who screamed from thirst. "please, i need to drink water. can someone please give me water?" we used a shoe to give them some sea water. aisha, a teenagerfrom ivory coast, thought europe would offer a brighter future. she saw 56 people die in front of her. translation: after two days, we had no more water - left, no food. on the fourth day, no more petrol. at the beginning when somebody died, we'd say a prayer. by the end, there was no prayer. we didn't have the strength to throw any more bodies in the water. with summer on the horizon,

thousands of mostly young men from north and west africa are trying to get to europe. some are fleeing war. others, the economic hand that life has dealt them. populist parties say tougher action is needed to stop this. it's a crisis that was masked momentarily by covid, but never solved. aisha has been welcomed with open arms in tenerife and now, a reunion — corporal serrano, who lifted her from the boat. he's brought his family to meet her. for so many others on her boat, there was no new beginning — it was the end. aisha was one of only three survivors. this was the greatest loss of life in any single known attempt to reach the canary islands. the 24 bodies that were recovered will now be related

to rest here. —— laid to rest here. for the others lost at sea, there is no such dignity in death. aisha never thought she'd be able to speak to her family again, but made a good recovery during her ten days in hospital. she hopes to stay in europe, study and work here, and send money back to her parents. corporal serrano and his team head off on their next training mission, knowing full well that even the might of the atlantic ocean is not enough to stop those prepared to risk death if there is the slightest chance of a better life. nick beake, bbc news, in the canary islands. this is bbc news. a reminder of our headlines: palestinian officials say at least seven people, including four children, have been killed in the latest israeli air strike on gaza. britain's prime minister warns that the new indian variant of coronavirus could pose a serious disruption

to tackling covid. china has successfully landed a rover on mars. the zhurong had been circling the planet since february, while its carrier craft mapped out a safe landing site to avoid boulders and craters. this is the second ever successive landing after the united states. dean cheng is a senior analyst at the heritage foundation think tank focussing on china's space programme, and joins me now. good to talk to you again, we spoke to you a couple of hours ago and i wanted to get you back because rover has excessively landed which is great news for china's space programme-— great news for china's space programme. absolutely. if you are a chinese _ programme. absolutely. if you are a chinese scientist - programme. absolutely. if you are a chinese scientist you - are a chinese scientist you have every reason to be absolutely delighted and proud. the nation has now successfully landed a probe on mars. it is not quite deployed the rover yet, that will come in the next few hours or day also probably, but it is a huge achievement

and it makes china only the second nation to successfully land on the red planet. find second nation to successfully land on the red planet. and the sace land on the red planet. and the space programme _ land on the red planet. and the space programme in _ land on the red planet. and the space programme in china, - land on the red planet. and the space programme in china, it. space programme in china, it has advanced pretty quickly, hasn't it, in recent years? what is china's goal in space? china's goal broadly speaking is to use space to improve all of the aspects of what they term, hence of national power. from the chinese perspective, states benefit chinese diplomacy, chinese technology, it is great advertisement and reinforces the legitimacy of the communist party to its own people and space always has military implications and conversely, by going to mars, it demonstrates that china can contribute to what they term global pool of human knowledge. china is the second successful country to land a three on mars. why is it the russians, the europeans, the japanese have not tried to do it, or have not tried to do it, or have they?— have not tried to do it, or have they? have not tried to do it, or havethe ? ., ., , , ., have they? various people have tried. have they? various people have tried- the _ have they? various people have tried. the joke _ have they? various people have tried. the joke is _ have they? various people have tried. the joke is that _ tried. thejoke is that martinez defence is actually pretty good. but realistically

speaking... pretty good. but realistically speaking- - -_ speaking... don't scare me, dean! no. _ speaking... don't scare me, dean! no, but— speaking... don't scare me, dean! no, but in _ speaking... don't scare me, dean! no, but in all- dean! no, but in all seriousness, - dean! no, but in all seriousness, the i dean! no, but in all- seriousness, the reality is it is rocket science, it is a matter of getting everything to go right. human error has been a factor. one of the probes that failed, the beagle, people used the wrong units, some people apparently used feet and some people used metres and we are not core quite sure why the european sham pirelli probe failed, russian and soviet fails in many cases, this was in the early days of the space age, simply were not ready for it. the russians, to their distinction, are the only other country to have landed but there probe mastery in 1971 only lasted about minutes and talk about 70 lines of one acre. . , ., ., , , talk about 70 lines of one acre. ., ., , ., acre. then, as always, good to seak acre. then, as always, good to speak to _ acre. then, as always, good to speak to you — acre. then, as always, good to speak to you and _ acre. then, as always, good to speak to you and thank- acre. then, as always, good to speak to you and thank you - speak to you and thank you indeed. dean chen.- speak to you and thank you indeed. dean chen. thank you for having _ indeed. dean chen. thank you for having me. _ prince harry has spoken publicly again about his life as a member of the royal family, saying he wants to "break the cycle" of "pain

and suffering" he experienced while growing up to spare his own children. speaking on a podcast, prince harry compared his life as a royal to being in a zoo. buckingham palace and clarence house have declined to comment. our royal correspondent nicholas witchell has more. they did their best to walk in step for the duke of edinburgh's funeral, but this is a family which has been shaken and hurt by recent comments by harry and his wife. and now, there are more. harry's reflections from his california home on the theme of parenting and the pain and suffering handed down to him. there's no blame. yeah. i don't think we should be pointing the finger or blaming anybody but certainly, when it comes to parenting, if i've experienced some form of pain or suffering because of the pain or suffering that perhaps my father or my parents had suffered, i'm going to make sure that i break that cycle so i don't pass it on, basically. there's a lot of genetic pain and suffering that gets passed on anyway. we, as parents, we should be

doing the most we can to try and say, "you know what? that happened to me. i'm going to make sure that doesn't happen to you." we're going to have a family tea party. however bewildered they may find such unburdening, harry's family isn't showing it. prince charles was in south wales. sir, do you agree with prince harry, about the suffering and pain in the family? nice try, but to no avail. but it's the questions implicit in harry's latest musings which will trouble the family. they've accepted that he needed to get away from royal life for the sake of his mental health. what they didn't expect was for him to go public on such private matters. here he is on his father's upbringing. this is where he went to school. this is what happened. i know this bit about his life. i also know that's connected to his parents. yeah. so, that means that he's treating me the way that he was treated. exactly. which means how can i change that for my own kids? and, well, here i am. harry says he feels a little more free in his new life in california.

his family may wonder how many more reflections he and his wife will feel obliged to share. nicholas witchell, bbc news. now how's this for a hard luck story? a californian woman claims to have missed out on a $26 million lottery prize after the winning ticket was destroyed in her washing machine. she says she left it in the pocket of her trousers. the bbc�*s tim allman has the story. this is the place where, but for an overly aggressive spin cycle, a life might have been changed forever. it was at this convenience store in the suburbs of la that one not—so—lucky woman bought a ticket for the super lotto plus. her numbers came up, a big prize was tantalisingly within her grasp, but there was one tiny problem with her ticket. her clothes were washed and so, when she pulled it out it was all crumpled up, like, in little pieces, and she said

she frantically tried to put them all together but she couldn't. there is apparently cctv footage of the moment she bought the ticket, but the california lottery says any claimant needs "compelling, substantial proof" they were a winner. lotto fever isn't exactly a rare occurrence in the us — huge jackpots prompting long queues and furious excitement. any unclaimed prize money will be donated to the state's public school system. plenty of sympathy for the unlucky non—winning winner, but some sage advice too. i guess now, you know, the lesson is that taking pictures of your ticket or, you know, keeping a record of it somehow. and always check your washing. tim allman, bbc news. oh, no! you can reach me on twitter — i'm @bbcmaryam and we have plenty more news on our website. go and we have plenty more news on our website-— our website. go there for all ofthe our website. go there for all of the very _ our website. go there for all of the very latest. _ our website. go there for all of the very latest. goodbye l of the very latest. goodbye from us.

hello there. if you're waiting for a prolonged, dry, warm spell of weather, you'll have to keep on waiting because this weekend it is going to stay cool and there will be plenty more heavy, thundery downpours. now, on the atlantic satellite picture, you can see this big pipeline of cloud just ploughing its way from west to east. you can think of this line of cloud as something of a barrier. it's keeping the warm air away from our shores. that warm air will lift temperatures across parts of southern spain this weekend into the low to mid 30s. but for us, we are stuck in cool air and we are stuck under the influence of low pressure. this will bring showers or longer spells of rain through the weekend. a band of cloud with outbreaks of rain drifting north—eastwards across england and wales, clipping

into northern ireland as we head through saturday morning. behind that, well, we revert to that mix of sunshine and showers. some of the showers will be heavy with hail and thunder. not too many showers across scotland, certainly across the northern half of scotland as we go through the day. although for shetland, it will stay pretty grey and damp all day long. temperatures struggling for north—eastern areas — just 11 degrees. even in the best of the sunshine, 15 or 16 — that is it. and then through saturday evening, the showers will try to fade but actually, i think through the early hours of sunday morning, the showers will pep up again down towards the south—west. that is the first sign of what is going to be quite a turbulent day of weather on sunday as this area of low pressure moves right on top of the uk. that means the air will be very, very unstable. so while most places will start with some dry weather and some sunshine, keep an eye on the skies — you will see big thunder clouds developing.

some really intense downpours with frequent lightning, some hail, some very squally, gusty wind and some particularly strong winds down towards the channel islands. there will be some sunshine between the showers but temperatures below par, 11 to 15 degrees. and as we head in to the start of next week, low pressure will still be close by. that means we will see further showers or longer spells of rain through the week ahead. some of those showers always with the potential to be heavy, possibly thundery. some sunshine in between, but no sign of anything warm on the horizon.

this is bbc news, the headlines: the palestinian health ministry says an israeli air strike on a refugee camp in gaza has killed at least seven people. an official said the dead included a woman and four children who were inside their home in the al—shati camp. there was no immediate comment from israel. britain's prime minister borisjohnson has said that the new indian variant of coronavirus could pose a serious disruption to progress made in tackling covid. cases have more than doubled in a week. the government says there's no firm evidence that the variant causes a more severe disease. japan has declared a state of emergency in three more regions hit hard by the pandemic, casting further doubt over whether the olympic games in tokyo should go ahead. a petition has been submitted to the capital's governor, calling for the entire event to be cancelled.