an escalation of violence in the middle east — an israeli air strike kills 1a people, including eight children, while one man is killed by a hamas rocket strike on israel. the offices of international media groups were destroyed in an airstrike on gaza city — israel claimed the building was being used by hamas intelligence. there was an assumption amongst some in israel that the conflict was more or less over and simply had to be managed. now, the tension here and the events of the last week also have shown that that is not the case. tonight us president biden has spoken to leaders on both sides, expressing his grave concern. we'll have the latest from the region. also tonight: extra testing's being carried out in 15 places across the uk for the variant of the coronavirus first detected in india. fa cup winners! for the very first

time! leicester celebrate beating chelsea in front of the uk's biggest football crowd since the coronavirus pandemic began. good evening. there's been a further escalation in the conflict in the middle east today after an israeli airstrike destroyed a building in gaza city housing international media. it follows rocket attacks by hamas militants, which killed one man in tel aviv. an israeli strike on a refugee camp killed at least 14 people, ten of them from one extended family. us presidentjoe biden expressed "grave concern" about the violence to

israeli prime minister benjamin from the west bank here's yolande knell. within seconds, another tower block erased from gaza's skyline. journalists for international networks who worked inside rushed out after a warning from israel that it was about to strike. it says hamas intelligence used the building. earlier, a barrage of rockets hit tel aviv for the first time in two days, with deadly results. emergency services unable to save a man here. in gaza, there has been almost no time to mourn as the numbers killed mount up. mohammed lost almost everyone in his family. his wife and their children were staying with her brother when the missiles struck their home in an overcrowded refugee camp. little omar is all he has left, found in the rubble next to his mother.

with militants continuing to be targeted, images released by israel's military show an operation that is not letting up. officials say dealing a strong blow to deter hamas will take more time. and hamas isn't stopping its fire either. its rockets, as always, are indiscriminate, continuing to pour down on the israeli towns closest to gaza. tensions here remain high in israel's mixed cities wherejews and arabs live side by side. there were more disturbances overnight. today, this was jaffa, the streets deserted. and now the focus turns to the palestinian territories. this is a solemn day when palestinians remember the dispossession of hundreds of thousands of people when israel was created in 1948. they call it al—nakba, "the catastrophe." and this year, the violence elsewhere adds extra fuel to the protests.

our middle east editor jeremy bowen's injerusalem, where do things stand tonight? well, as ou've where do things stand tonight? well, as you've been _ where do things stand tonight? well, as you've been hearing, _ where do things stand tonight? -ii as you've been hearing, defiance coming from both sides while all this is going on. the israeli prime minister has been speaking, he said they could be difficult days ahead. the leader of hamas has also been talking and he said that they would keep up more attacks, and her must themselves have said that from around midnight local time which is now, they would continue their attacks on tel aviv and gaza, the small enclave which has been blockaded since 2006 has now... 2007, i should say, has now put the rest of israel, they are saying, under blockade. clearly they are using a lot of poetic licence as far as that is concerned. but certainly as that is concerned. but certainly a mass felt at the beginning of this

i believe that they had taken the initiative away from the israelis. and i think that only when the israelis feel that they are on top of this, that they have caused enough damage to her mass, and most importantly that a ceasefire is negotiated, and as you've heard, the americans are talking, the american envoyis americans are talking, the american envoy is here, he is talking to other palestinian groups as well, though not directly to her mass. so there is a diplomatic chapter happening. but i don't see quick breakthroughs right now because it is looking as if both sides haven't quite nailed down what victory, in inverted commas, looks like for them and what they need to do to get there so they can say, we have had enough, we will accept a ceasefire. jeremy, thank you. here, thousands of people gathered in central london to march in solidarity with the palestinian people. a large crowd moved through hyde park to the israeli embassy.

similar rallies have been held in other cities in the uk and elsewhere. testing for the indian variant of the coronavirus is being carried out in parts of scotland, london, the midlands, and also in the north west of england. cases of that have more than doubled in the past week, according to figures from public health england. the government says the army will be deployed to help with surge test efforts. our health correspondent, katherine da costa, reports. out on the streets of bolton in greater manchester, this rapid response team is going door—to—door, handing out test kits as authorities here and in other hotspots race to contain the more contagious indian variant. we're asking people to please take a test if you don't have any symptoms so we can identify people who may be positive and then support them through the isolation period. excuse me, keep walking. with extra doses made available, this vaccination site in the town's ramped up to 4000 shots a day.

scientists think the vaccines will still protect against serious illness from this variant, but it's not clear how well they will stop transmission. so the advice now is to shorten the gap between doses for the over 50s and the most vulnerable, to boost their short—term immunity. there is a bit of a trade—off here because we know 12 weeks is better in terms of long term protection but we think there is enough of a crisis with this particular virus in the country at the moment to make sure that we get those individuals that have only had their first dose fully protected as quickly as possible. runners at this 5k run at kempton park in surrey took part in a test event to see whether mass outdoor events could be brought back safely again. but there is concern among health experts about allowing indoor mixing in england from monday, at a time when a more transmissible variant is circulating and large numbers of people

are still unvaccinated. so people are being urged to be cautious, to continue mixing outdoors where possible, and to get a jab when offered one. in scotland, enhanced testing is under way in glasgow after a spike in cases of the indian variant. together with moray, the city will have to stay in level 3 restrictions for at least another week. but england's health minister insists his government is right to move ahead with easing measures from monday. at the moment, on the basis of the advice, on the basis of the evidence, we are doing the right thing — coolly, calmly, continuing with monday but keeping everything under review. there are now fewer than 1000 covid patients in hospitals in the uk — the lowest level since mid—september. ministers and their advisers will be keeping a close eye on the data to ensure we don't see another surge in admissions. katharine da costa, bbc news. the latest uk government data shows there were just over 2,000 new covid

infections in the past 2a hours — with seven deaths recorded. more than 36.3 million people have now had their first dose of a vaccine. that's 69% of the uk's adult population. nearly 19.7 million have had both jabs, so that's over 37% of all adults now fully vaccinated. the health secretary, matt hancock, will be live on the andrew marr show tomorrow morning at 9am, on bbc one. wreaths have been laid to mark the centenary of the royal british legion. in a message marking the occasion, prince charles said the charity ensured the sacrifices of veterans would never be forgotten. our correspondentjon donnison reports from the cenotaph in central london. in whitehall this morning, a lone bugler and the last post.

to remember those who have been lost but also to mark 100 years of the royal british legion. representatives of the army, the royal navy and royal air force were among those who laid wreaths at the cenotaph, after earlier prince charles had offered his thanks. i wanted, above all, to offer my sincere and heartfelt gratitude to all those who have helped build this wonderful organisation we know today, and all those who will be part of its future. the british legion was set up in 1921, in the aftermath of the first world war. its mission — to support military veterans and their families. so, 100 years after it was founded on this very spot, the royal british legion has marked its centenary. and for its more than 200,000 members, the organisation is as relevant today as it was a century ago. whilst it's a different era now,

the nature of the wounds have changed, but the specialist skills that we can offer are just as relevant. at this afternoon's fa cup final at wembley, between chelsea and leicester city, a special commemorative 50p was used for the coin toss before kick—off. and today's events celebrate an organisation that's been supporting those prepared to make the ultimate sacrifice now for 100 years. jon donnison, bbc news, in whitehall. let's take a look at some of today's other news. the high street bank santander has apologised to customers after a day of technical problems. online services were unavailable, some card payments were affected and customers could only access cash through other banks' machines. santander hasn't confirmed what caused the issues but said it hopes services will be restored by the end of the day.

coventry�*s year as the uk city of culture begins tonight, after a delay of several months because of the pandemic. street art installations have appeared in the city centre, and organisers are promising a programme of dance and theatre in the next 12 months. china has become the latest country to land a spacecraft on the surface of mars. the solar—powered rover has been circling the planet since february. it will collect rocks and scan the surface of the red planet over the next three months. china's president has called the mission an outstanding achievement. with all the sport now — and what a day for it — here's karthi gnanasegaram at the bbc sport centre. good evening. it has been an emotional day for leicester city, its fans and the club's owners, after they won the fa cup for the first time. they beat chelsea 1—0 at wembley in front of 21,000 fans — the largest crowd at a football match in the uk since the first lockdown last year. our sports correspondent

natalie pirks was watching. it's another momentous day in the history of this football club. it's been awhile since leicester city had an fa cup final to savour. 52 years in fact. the mere thought of winning it for the first time brought out all the emotions. i’zfe brought out all the emotions. i've dreamt of it _ brought out all the emotions. i've dreamt of it as _ brought out all the emotions. i�*e: dreamt of it as a kid, brought out all the emotions. i"2 dreamt of it as a kid, is brought out all the emotions. i�*”2 dreamt of it as a kid, is something i was wanted to do, come to wembley watch leicester.— watch leicester. we've been waiting for this all our _ watch leicester. we've been waiting for this all our lives. _ watch leicester. we've been waiting for this all our lives. it's _ for this all our lives. it's starting _ for this all our lives. it's starting to _ for this all our lives. it's starting to feel - for this all our lives. it's starting to feel like - for this all our lives. it�*s starting to feel like old times, with fans back in attendance, supporters are so excited, but chelsea fans as confident as well. backin chelsea fans as confident as well. back in 2012 they sacked their manager and went on to win the cup and then the champions league. could history be about to repeat itself? it was a chance to meet the chelsea fans for the first time including the ones who had forgotten umbrellas, but it was leicester who almost bagged the perfect start. they needn't despair though, the match was missing a spark but one

player would soon provide it. boy, did he! and right in front of the leicester faithful who were daring to dream. chelsea needed to commit more players to the cause but kasper schmeichel was having none of it. he was at it again moments later. brilliant save by schmeichel. absolutely awesome. but brilliant save by schmeichel. absolutely awesome. but there was late, late absolutely awesome. but there was late. late drama _ absolutely awesome. but there was late, late drama to _ absolutely awesome. but there was late, late drama to come. _ absolutely awesome. but there was late, late drama to come. chilwelll late, late drama to come. chilwell spoke to joy from chelsea late, late drama to come. chilwell spoke tojoy from chelsea fans, but var was about to intervene in spectacularfashion. the var was about to intervene in spectacular fashion. the ecstasy and the agony. and as the final whistle blew, emotions were raw. with a glance to the heavens from the chairman for his late father. it is emotional _ chairman for his late father. it is emotional for _ chairman for his late father. it is emotional for him _ chairman for his late father. it 3 emotional for him and his family emotionalfor him and his family because they built this club towards glory, really, after the premier league and now to win the fa cup for them is amazing. fin league and now to win the fa cup for them is amazing.— them is amazing. on a day when wembleyjumped _ them is amazing. on a day when wembleyjumped to _ them is amazing. on a day when wembleyjumped to the - them is amazing. on a day when wembleyjumped to the sound l them is amazing. on a day when | wembleyjumped to the sound of supporters once more, leicester

seized the moment and gave fans the ending they deserved. the fa cup, it's magic, you know. now it's time to pop out of the room if you don't want to know the rest of the day's football results, as match of the day and sportscene, in scotland, follow soon on bbc one. there were celebrations too for rangers as they lifted the scottish premiership trophy. rangers beat aberdeen 4—0 which means they have gone through the entire season unbeaten. outside the stadium, fans celebrated rangers' 55th top flight title, defying police warnings not to gather. celtic finished their scottish premiership campaign with a goalless draw at hibernian. it was also 0—0 between saintjohnstone and livingstone. leeds beat burnley 4—0 and remain on course for a top—half finish in their first season back in the premier league. west ham drew 1—1 with brighton. while southampton defeated fulham 3—1. tom daly and matty lee have won the synchronised 10 metre gold medal at the european diving championships in budapest.

the pairfinished top of the podium ahead of russia and germany to give great britain their first title of the event. and 48—year—old english golfer richard bland definitely knows the meaning of try, try and try again. after almost 500 attempts, he has won his first golf tournament on the european tour. bland won the british masters at the belfry, after taking the first hole of a sudden—death play—off to become the oldest first—time winner in european tour history. there's more on the bbc sport website, including today's rugby union results where a late penalty gave cardiff blues a narrow win over scarlets in the pro14 rainbow cup and details on andy murray's decision not to play at tennis's french open later this month. thank you so much. good night to you, and you can see more of all today's stories on the bbc news channel. good night.

hello, this is bbc news. i'm lu kwesa i'm lukwesa burak. misinformation about the coronavirus has dramatically impacted minority communities, making some groups more hesitant to accept the vaccine. a new film to educate transient populations, including travellers and showmen, has been created by a man who saw how the virus swept through his community with devastating consequences. our reporter zoie o'brien has been to meet the menjoining the fight back against fake news. gypsies, travellers, showmen —

three of the uk's most transient communities, divided by culture, united by their love of boxing. but when coronavirus struck, they each found themselves in the fight of their lives. les stevens was a giant in the gypsy world, and amateur boxing coach respected across the sport. in april last year, he became one of the first romany men to die from covid—19. i lost my dad, my hero, my best friend. it's been a year since i lost my dad, just over. and it's absolutely taken so much from me and i realise i'm not as strong as i was. all through covid taking my dad. although there are no official figures for the numbers killed by covid, it is believed the communities were disproportionately affected as the virus swept across sites. romany journalist jake bowers saw things worsen at the end of last year.

in the first wave, the romany community was quite good at keeping it at bay, by using traditional cleanliness practices, by literally circling the wagons and bleaching everything in sight, keeping strangers of sites, away from their homes. in the second wave, fatigue crept in, it got in. in some places and some sites, it went right the way throughout the community, affecting everybody in different sites and in different families. but misinformation spread as quickly as the virus, and with historic mistrust of the government, reluctance to the jab built up. jake from hastings took matters into his own hands, making give covid the jab, a short film calling on the love of boxing to help in the fight against fake news. having the vaccine won't always stop you catching or spreading covid, but it will stop you becoming very unwell and possibly even dying from it. we are a survivor nation, we've survived 500 years of being persecuted.

we've got to survive this pandemic in the way that we should do. and not be a victim of it. one of the men in the film is george hepburn, a respected showman and renowned fairground artist. he's using his voice and his art to convince his community to get vaccinated so they can get back on the road. have it, have it, don't take no notice of what people say on the internet. have it to feel safe in yourself. if you're a showman and you're fairground people, if you want to get out and start doing your business again, you need to be covered. inspired by captain tom moore, george has painted a ten foot george has painted a 20 foot mural to honourfallen heroes, past showman and the nhs. i thought, i've got to do something. leave my mark in the world, you know. there are a lot of showman who have died of coronavirus, there are showmen who have died of mental health issues, there's all sorts. and to his community, the wall is a tribute to the courage and perseverance of their people in the pandemic. we're very resilient and the women, they can cook, they can make, -

so that's what they have done to help with their finances. i the men had to go out and find otherjobs. i i they were drivers or they worked | in tesco, or whatever they needed to do, they did to get _ through and support their families. according to those involved, the message is starting to seep through the community with more and more in their community is starting to take the jabs. i know people that were anti—vaxxers whose family has then been impacted by coronavirus, and you ask them afterwards how they feel about it now, they say how could i have been they say "how could i have been so stupid to believe that information?" and i don't want to hear that from another gypsy traveller. we're a funny, a funny race because it always takes one person to take do something, and everyone follows suit. i think it just took a feed to get it done. a few to get it done. word spread and then, you know, hopefully, and thank god what i'm hearing now, a lot more people are getting it done. with voices like these in the vaccine's corner, the odds on misinformation are not

looking good at all. zoei brian, bbc south yesterday. debenhams closed its remaining shops today, after more than 240 years on the high street. it went into administration in 2019, after several years of falling sales. our business correspondent, emma simpson, reports. the final few hours. not much left for the bargain hunters now. these stores reopened after lockdown to allow the remaining stock to be cleared. the last 28 shops closed today. the end of an era. debenham's roots can be traced back to 1778, with a draper�*s store in west london selling fabrics, hats and umbrellas. by the 1950s it was the uk's biggest department store — and it continued to expand, pulling shoppers in with its famous blue cross sales. but it failed to keep up with the competition. its problems were

years in the making. it first collapsed in 2019. the pandemic then finished it off as it failed to find a buyer. by christmas, the business was being wound down, with 12,000 job losses. it's one of the biggest retail failures since woolworths, emblematic of the retail shakeout as shopping habits change. the chain was an anchor store in many town centres, and its demise will leave large gaps for landlords and local authorities to fill. emma simpson, bbc news. time for a look at the weather with ben rich. hello there. if you're trying to make outdoor plans, you can't really rely upon the weather at the moment. it's the kind of weather where one minute, you'll have sunshine overhead, the next, a drenching downpour. some of the showers on sunday will be really very heavy indeed with hail and thunder, but always with some of those sunny spells in between. this is how the first half of the weekend panned

out, with showers along the spells of rain for many and sunday is set to bring those showers back with a vengeance. as this area of low pressure drift slowly eastwards across the uk. under the influence of that low, the air will be very unstable. big shower clouds will develop quickly and readily. in fact, we'll have showers from the world go across the southwest. patchy rain for some areas of northeast england and southern scotland, and through the day for just about all of us, it turns into a sunshine and showers day. some of the showers really heavy with hail and thunder and some quite �*s quality winds. it will be generally quite windy and the channel islands. there will always be some places avoiding the showers and staying dry, and in any sunshine, it won't feel too bad with highs of 15 or 16 degrees. these temperatures are below par for this time of year. many of the showers will fade a during sunday night into the early

hours of monday, but some will continue. there'll be some patches of cloud, some clear spells as well. temperatures couldn't get down to far, or 6 degrees. —— temperatures could. low pressure will still be in charge. not quite centred on top of us by the stage, but still close enough to bring further showers and thunderstorms. many places will be off to a dry start with some sunny spells, but there showers will become increasingly widespread to the morning and into the afternoon. some will be heavy with the potential for hail and thunder. it may well be that some western areas to start to dry out a little bit with fewer showers by the end of the afternoon. temperatures between 13 and 16 degrees. as we head deeper into the week, the weather remains very fickle, very changeable. there will be spells of sunshine, but more of these heavy, thundery downpours and temperatures will remain below where they should be at this time of year.

hello, this is bbc news. we'll be taking a look at tomorrow morning's papers in a moment. first, the headlines. people in areas where the indian variant of coronavirus is spreading, are urged to get a covid vaccination. both testing and vaccination are really important measures that we have, i suppose, in the tool box for controlling outbreaks. a gaza city tower block, used by international media, has been destroyed by the israeli military. they claim it was housing hamas military assets. hamas was using that building. its military intelligence had assets in that building that were part of the hamas war machine. meanwhile in london, thousands of pro—palestinian