this is bbc news. welcome if you're watching here in the uk or around the globe. i'm ben boulos. our top stories: explosion. israeli warplanes destroy a tower in gaza housing international media. israel says it targeted hamas officials inside the building. across the world, hundreds of thousands have been marching in solidarity with the palestinian people. the first case of covid—19 is confirmed ahead of next week's eurovision song contest. but it's back to the beach in parts of southern europe as restrictions begin to be lifted. too fa cup winners for the very first time!

—— commentator: fa cup winners for the very first time! and leicester celebrate winning one of football's most famous trophies in front of the biggest crowd since the pandemic began. hello. israel has carried out more air strikes in the gaza strip in the last few hours. it comes after the us presidentjoe biden spoke by phone to both the israeli prime minister and the president of the palestinian authority, expressing his grave concern over mounting casualties. shelling. these are the latest pictures from gaza. it's understood that three palestinians were killed and many others injured. the bombing hit a neighbourhood surrounding a hospital, damaging roads and preventing ambulances getting in or out. israel says the home of the hamas chief was amongst the targets. in response, palestinian militants fired more rockets at cities in southern israel.

our middle east editor jeremy bowen reports from jerusalem. they made desperate attempts to find survivors in the remains of the flattened three—storey house in shati camp in gaza, but ten civilians were killed. "oh, god," he's saying. "take your revenge." mohammed al—hadidi lost his wife and four small sons. only his five—month—old son omar survived, with a broken thigh. his mother, suheib, was buried with herfour dead boys, and with her sister—in—law and four of her children. suheib had been visiting them for the end of ramadan holiday. a journalist from the american news agency, the ap, pleaded with the israeli military for time to get equipment from their gaza office. but after a warning to evacuate, the building, also used by aljazeera tv, was destroyed. explosion.

israel said its other tenants included hamas. both news organisations condemn the attack. sirens wail. a hamas missile killed an israeli man in his 50s in ramat gan, near tel aviv. he didn't get to the shelter, like his neighbours. waited about a minute inside the safe room and then we went out and the living room, the bedroom... everything is shattered. hamas said the attacks on israel would continue. palestinians injerusalem commemorated what they call al—nakba — israel's independence in 1948. in that war, more than 700,000 of palestinians fled or were expelled, which for these people is the original sin in this conflict. you can't blame hamas for the attacking or, like, throwing some small rockets.

israel has... small rockets? they killed someone today. well, how many — how many are killed now in gaza? this is sheikh jarrah, still simmering with anger after israeli settler groups and their lawyers tried to evict palestinians from their homes, which helped ignite this crisis. there was an assumption among 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 or so have shown that that is not the case. the truth is that all the hatred, challenges and dangers that have blighted the lives of generations never went away. jeremy bowen, bbc news, jerusalem. nathanj brown is a professor of political science and international affairs at george washington university. i asked him where he thinks

this conflict is headed. well, it seems they are both hamas and israel are determined on carrying this forward — at least in the short term. we're probably talking several more days of fighting. it's not going to be a final military conflict but they both think they have something to show the other side. as a professor of political science, i am sure you are aware more than most that when we find ourselves in global situations like this, history can often be a guide as to how we get out of them. in terms of the way things are going now, is there any hope that previous ways of resolving violence between israelis and palestinians could work this time? it doesn't seem that — at least, over the short term. what we've seen over the last decade or so has been an entirely international diplomatic edifice led by the united states,

but with the participation of from the eu, the un and even from the russians. it was dedicated to producing a two—state solution, getting the israelis and palestinians to have their own state, and that diplomatic edifice is now in a complete rubble. and there really isn't any kind of process in place that's going to be able to resolve or even manage the situation right now. and why do those notions of a two—state solution and peace process, why do they no longer seem a goal that is being strived for? well, i think both societies have just moved in different directions. israelis are convinved that the two—state solution won't solve their problems and palestinians don't want it. israelis say they are not dedicated to it, and palestinians are divided

or don't want to pursue it, and those that do don't have any levers to do so. what do you make of the role the new us administration is playing under president biden? because as things stand, i think the post of us ambassador to israel remains vacant? yes, i mean, the biden administration is still fairly new but that said, they've taken a very, very clear approach — and one that has gotten them perhaps into trouble here. their approach is to say "ok, there is not going to be a two—state solution tomorrow, but what we can do is keep things calm and move things so at a later date, we can have a two—state solution and we'll focus out attention on other issues — asia, iran and so on". and so when you have this flare—up right now, the only thing the biden administration has to say essentially is "this fighting has to stop and we have got to get back at some point to two—state diplomacy," and that doesn't really address the current conflict or address where

the two parties really are right now. nathan j brown. protests have been held around the world in support of palestinians. courtney bembridge reports. chanting. from hamburg to honolulu, italy to iraq, events like these were held around the world. this is madrid, one of several protests held across spain. speaks spanish. translation: we've been silent for many years. - it's time for us to go out and speakfor all those palestinians who are dying, and defend them. because if we don't do it, no—one else will. in london, a stream of protesters marched through hyde park towards the israeli embassy. organisers say 100,000 people attended the rally, urging the uk government to do more. the whole world should be doing something about it, including this country. america should be doing more than just sending an envoy. i think it's the cause that will go from one generation to another generation, until palestine is free.

in paris, police used tear gas and water cannon to try to disperse the crowds. chanting. authorities had banned the event, fearing a repeat of violence that erupted at a similar march in 2014, when protesters targeted synagogues and jewish—owned businesses. all chant: free palestine! german police also tried to disperse protesters after thousands gathered in berlin. chanting. there were widespread protests in arab countries, too, including lebanon, iraq and tunisia. translation: palestinians, we want to tell you your - message is our message, your cause is our cause. our first and only wish is to free palestine. all chant: the people, united, will never be defeated! - the us presidentjoe biden has defended israel, saying the government has a right to defend itself, but pro—palestinian rallies

were held across the country. these pictures from washington, dc, where hundreds gathered. events were held in several cities across australia and new zealand, too. these pictures are from sydney. more events are planned over the weekend and into next week. courtney bembridge, bbc news. the islamic state group has said it carried out friday's attack on a mosque in the afghan capital kabul in which at least 12 people were killed. the explosion, inside the mosque during friday prayers, also killed the imam. the attack happened during a three—day ceasefire between the taliban and the government over the eid holiday. the taliban had condemned the attack. the british medical association has voiced concern about a further easing of coronavirus restrictions in england on monday. some scientific advisers have warned that the indian variant is more contagious than previous strains and could trigger the biggest

wave of infections so far. here's our health correspondent katherine da costa. out on the streets of bolton in greater manchester, this rapid response team's going door to door, handing out test kits as authorities here and in other hot spots race to contain the more contagious indian variant. we're asking people to please do take a test if you do not have any symptoms so we can identify people who may be positive and then support them throughout the isolation period. excuse me, keep walking. with extra doses made available, this vaccination site in the town's ramped up to 4,000 shots a day. scientists think the vaccines will still protect against serious illness from this variant, but it's not clear how well they'll 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 that 12 weeks is better for 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 race 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 amongst health experts about allowing indoor mixing in england from monday, at a time when a more transmissible variant�*s 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's underway in glasgow after a spike in cases of the indian variant. together with moray, the city will have to stay in level three restrictions

for another week. —— in level three restrictions for at least another week. but england's health minister insists his government's right to move ahead with easing measures on monday. at the moment, on the basis of the advice, on the basis of the evidence, we are doing the right thing, cooly, calmly continuing with monday, but keeping everything under review. there are now fewer than 1,000 covid patients in hospitals in the uk — the lowest level since mid september. ministers and their advisors will be keeping a close eye on the data to ensure we don't see another surge in admissions. katharine da costa, bbc news. as we heard in catherine's report, indoor dining will resume in parts of the uk from monday and restrictions are also being eased across much of europe. in italy, the beaches are reopening and in parts of spain, some football fans will be allowed back for the final games of the season. the bbc�*s tim allman reports. slowly, ever so slowly, life becomes just that little bit more bit more familiar.

in poland, for the first time in months, people can go to a restaurant for something to eat — only outdoor dining right now, but a step in the right direction. translation: i've been missing it a lot. - i couldn't wait to have a coffee and eat breakfast in my favourite restaurant. translation: we've been missing it a lot. | we had to stay at home and could only go for a walk. this is definitely a big change. a stiff breeze was no deterrent for the people of rome as they returned to the capital's austere beach. limited numbers, as there are no foreign tourists, but italy has scrapped quarantine for visitors from the european union, the uk and israel, as long as they have been vaccinated. greece is another country desperate for holiday—makers to come and spend some money. the official tourist season has just begun, even if actual tourists are a little thin on the ground.

oh, i think it's been really hard for the greeks. i really hope for their sake that things gets moving. but it's a big world and there are a lot of different nationalities come here — notjust the british, you know, lots and lots — so i'm going to stay optimistic. optimism, too, in spain, as the football season draws to a close. some supporters are being allowed back into stadiums — a maximum of 5,000 fans in only a handful of games — but it's a start. tim allman, bbc news. you are watching bbc news, a reminder of the headlines: israel carries out more airstrikes on gaza in the last few hours. president biden earlier called both israeli and palestinian leaders to express his concerns over mounting casualties. across the world, hundreds of thousands have been marching in solidarity with

the palestinian people. there have been long queues outside polling stations in chile where people are electing 150 delegates to redraft the country's military—era constitution. the current constitution was approved during the regime of general pinochet, and has been blamed for continuing social inequality. supporters of a new constitution see it as an opportunity to heal divisions. others are afraid that tensions will be raised if future governments are unable to guarantee the rights enshrined in a new constitution. james gatica matheson, international correspondent for a chilean television station, told us more. it is very key to work and be part of this and very historical constitutional convention, there are some of these who will be part of the traditional political parties. there are so many new faces in politics that we have seen, independent candidates and also some seats for indigenous groups and another element is the equality regarding gender that it's going to be included in this election and this

new convention for the new constitution. so what do you think are going to be the biggest changes we will see from the current constitution? well, first of all, this is a new platform, an official institution that we'll see, where people will be able to speak up about these issues, and be heard about pensions, the health system, education and as you said, inequality, which is in the core of chilean society as it is most latin american countries. how difficult will this process be, to get agreement among the delegates on the issues that you have mentioned there? well sure, there is going to be a lot of debate over the next year and they are going to be part of these discussions, and there's is going to be

pressure obviously for these political party, they are going to want to keep part of their piece in this agreement, but everything is going to be, by the end of the day, approved or not by the people in our next referendum, probably next year, so it's going to be a quite interesting year in chile as well. so with that process, what happens if the delegates agree on a constitution, it goes to a referendum and what if people don't accept it at that stage? what happens then? well, there's going to be some correction, obviously, until they get an agreement on what is going to be the final draft of this new constitution, but it definitely is an historic day for democracy in chile and new faces, i hope, for these new generations that we saw. this is a result obviously of the demands that we heard during the protests in 2018 so it is a celebration, obviously, of democracy. what do you think will be the toughest sticking points in getting this

constitution agreed? i guess it is going to be regarding the health system, the pensions, that is obviously something that people really care about and probably the effect that it's going to have, real effects in people's life but obviously there is a lot of interest in probably the most privileged and the poorest in the country. leicester city have won the english fa cup for the first time, beating chelsea 1—nil. the match at wembley stadium was played in front of 21,000 fans, the largest crowd since the pandemic hit more than a year ago. natalie pirks was amongst them. singing it's been a while since leicester city had an fa cup final to savour — 52 years, in fact. so happy to be back! the mere thought of winning it for the first time brought out all the emotions. i've dreamt of it as a kid. it's something i've always

wanted to do, come to wembley and watch leicester... we've been waiting for this for all our lives. it's starting to feel like old times, with fans back in attendance at the fa cup. leicester city supporters are so excited, of course, but chelsea fans are confident too — back in 2012, they sacked their manager and went on to win the fa cup and then the champions league. could history be about to repeat itself? we haven't heard a noise like this for a long time... for thomas tuchel, 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. and its over the bar... they needn't despair, though. the match was missing a spark, but youri tielemans would soon provide it. and hit it beautifully! 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 the goalkeeper was having none of it. he was at it again just moments later. brilliant save! absolutely awesome!

but there was late, late drama to come. chilwell sparked an eruption ofjoy from chelsea fans, but var was about to intervene in spectacular faction. the verdict is no goal! the ecstasy and agony. and, as the final whistle blew, emotions were raw. with a glance to the heavens from the chairman for his late father. it's 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. cheering on a day when wembley jumped 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? natalie pirks, bbc news, wimbley. the first case of covid—19 has

been confirmed at the eurovision song contest which begins this week. meanwhile, eurovision organisers are hoping it can attract a whole new team of super fans by launching the american song contest. but will the competition transfer easily? earlier i spoke to one of the executive producers of the new competition, and asked him how much interest there is in the us. there is a fan base, the recent will ferrell movie which played to all the kitsch and emotion that you just referenced on netflix actually drew a whole new audience to eurovision in the united states and it's always been more of a coastal love affair for expatriates in america from overseas who have watched and stayed connected to their favourite television show, and so you see that group who has really leaned into it. and then there are others, many in the gay population and other populations in the united states who've enjoyed all the theatricality

and kitsch and i think that of a kind of leading edge of our culture and i think one we launch with our robust initiative with nbc in the united states you are going to see a whole mountain of new fans. have you had to make any changes to the format so that it works in the us? we are right now in our preproduction phase but we have worked incredibly closely with the ebu, the european broadcasting union and we've partnered with two of the scandinavian producers who actually not only produced the local swedish version but also the eurovision finale, because i always want to maintain the authenticity of the great ip and the great format which is the eurovision song contest, and i love how much the music starts to grow during the competition and also how much fun you have, because it's notjust solo artists or duos but it can be groups, as well. one of the things that eurovision is famous for is the different cultural influences that the countries bring to the party, to

the event, through their music, their costumes, the dancing and so on. how much of that can you get from different states? is there as much variation that they will each bring? anyone who has followed america over the last 20 years know that we are one of the most divided countries in the world but also one with a plurality of different cultures, and when you think about the energy of miami and the latin community and you think about the robust history of r&b in detroit or the grunge rockers of washington or the hawaiian lullaby singers, or the country—western acts from nashville and tennessee or the banjo players from kentucky, we actually have such a wide range of cultural distinction within the united states, that i can't wait to celebrate. it's not about what separates us, it's about what unites us, and our culture and our music really dominates.

ben silverman there are, executive producer of the american song contest. after seven decades on air, a 96—year—old radio host has hung up his headphones for the last time. ray cordeiro broadcast his final show in hong kong on saturday. in 2000, the guinness book of world records awarded him the title of the world's "most durable dj". during his career, he got to know some of the biggest names in the music world, including the beatles, cliff richard and tony bennett. a reminder of our top story. three palestinians were killed and many were injured in israeli air strikes in the last few hours. the bombing hit the neighbourhood surrounding a hospital, and damaged the roads so that ambulances could not get in or out. israel says it bombed the home of the chief of hamas, and hamas fired barrages of rockets at tel aviv as hostilities stretched into a seventh day, with no sign of abating.

you can reach me on twitter, i'm @benmboulos. 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 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 and longer spells of rain for many, and sunday is set to bring those showers back with a vengeance as this area of low pressure drifts 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 south—west of england and wales. band of cloud and patchy rain for some areas of north—east england and southern scotland, and through the day forjust about all of us, it turns into a sunshine and showers day, but some of the showers really heavy with hail and thunder and some quite squally winds. and it will be generally quite windy for southern coasts of england and the channel islands. now, there will always be some places that avoid the showers and stay dry, and in any sunshine, it won't feel too bad with highs of 15 or 16 degrees, although these temperatures are below par for this time of year. many of the showers will fade 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 could get down to around 4, 5 or 6 degrees. i think we should just about avoid a frost monday morning. for monday, low pressure will still be in charge. not quite centred on top of us by this 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 through the morning and into the afternoon. again, some will be heavy with the potential for hail and thunder. it may well be that some western areas start to dry out a little bit with fewer showers by the end of the afternoon. temperatures again between 13 and 16 degrees. and 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.

this is bbc news, the headlines: israel has carried out more airstrikes in the gaza strip in the last few hours. it comes after the us presidentjoe biden spoke by phone to both the israeli prime minister and the president of the palestinian authority, expressing his grave concern over the growing number of civilian casualties. across the world, hundreds of thousands have been marching in solidarity with the palestinian people. protesters clashed with police in berlin, athens and in paris. in london, marchers converged on the israeli embassy, and in madrid protesters accused israel of genocide. there were many protests in arab countries too. and leicester city have beaten chelsea 1—0 to win the fa cup for the first time in the club's history. it was the biggest attendance at a match in the uk since the start of the pandemic. the teams will play again on tuesday, in a crucial premier league game.

now on bbc news, click.