this is bbc news. i'm lukwesa burak. the headlines at seven: as the conflict between israel and palestinians in gaza enters its seventh day, ten children are among the dead in an israeli air strike on gaza. the un pleads for peace. but there's no sign of a ceasefire as the attacks continue, with each side accusing each other. israel is persecuting our people, committing war crimes and crimes against humanity. hamas is criminally attacking us from civilian neighbourhoods, from schools, from homes, from office buildings. that's what they're doing. efforts to combat the india variant of the coronavirus ramp up in england, as the health secretary urges caution. i'm confident that we can

take the step tomorrow, | but we should all be careful i about how we take that step. parents pay tribute to their two—year—old son, george hinds, who was killed in a suspected gas explosion in lancashire. and if you fancy a job as a live—in officer at a mediaeval castle on a remote island, st michael's mount is hiring. good evening. the united nations secretary general has appealed for an immediate end to the fighting between israel and the palestinians. it comes as health officials in gaza report that 42 people were killed in the latest israeli bombardment,

among them ten children. israel says hamas has launched three thousand rockets in the last week, killing ten israelis. our middle east editorjeremy bowen reports from sderot, in southern israel. these were the heaviest israeli raids on gaza since this war started. it was also the deadliest day for palestinians. at the centre of the killing in the heart of gaza city, they were looking for survivors. he says, "raise your voice so we can hear you. "are you 0k?" there were not many survivors, body after body was taken away. translation: when i was carrying my small boy, he told me, - "dad, i don't want to die." what more do you want from him? there is no safety in this city. benjamin netanyahu, israel's prime minister, met military advisers at the ministry of defence in tel aviv.

leaks said a cabinet meeting did not discuss a ceasefire. the israeli army showed us its anti—missile system, iron dome, very close to gaza's boundary wire. they say it shoots down around 90% of the missiles fired out of there. previous wars between israel and hamas have ended with mediation, generally with egypt involved, leading to a ceasefire. contacts have been made, but it's a difficult process, because each side needs to get to the point where they can say to their people that the sacrifices, the damage, the killing, were worth it. if israel takes this to the next level, with a ground invasion of gaza, that process gets knocked on further into the future. the 2014 war lasted for nearly two months. iron dome is one reason why israel suffers fewer casualties than gaza. another is the intensity

of the israeli attacks. civilians, of course, aren't our target. they never are. but you do kill them. any loss of life on both sides of this conflict, any loss of civilian life is tragic. while we were there, they launched. a volley of missiles was heading out of gaza, north towards the israeli town of ashkelon. iron dome didn't stop all of them. this is where they hit. back in gaza, rescue teams were still looking for survivors and still finding bodies. eventually, there will be a ceasefire, but until the essentials of the conflict are tackled and settled, the killing will not stop. jeremy bowen, bbc news, in southern israel.

the un security council is meeting to discuss the violence. calling for peace. secretary—general antonio guterres opened the meeting calling for peace. we meet today amid the most serious escalation in gaza and israel in years. the current hostilities are utterly appalling. this latest round of violence only perpetuates the cycles of death, destruction and despair and pushes further to the horizon any hope of coexistence and peace. fighting must stop. it must stop immediately. rockets and mortars on one side and aerial bonbardments on the other must stop. i appeal to all parties to heed this call. the united nations is actively engaging all sides towards an immediate ceasefire. the hostilities have already caused unconscionable death, immense suffering and damage of vital infrastructure. israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu appeared on cbs'

face the nation earlier today, where he responded to international criticism of israel's attacks, including the deaths of palestinian civilians. hamas is criminally attacking us from civilian neighbourhoods, from schools, from homes, from office buildings. that's what they're doing and we're taking action, trying to target them with as great precision as we can. unfortunately, there are occasionally civilian casualties which we regret, but here's what happens. when the international community attacks israel, they're actually encouraging hamas to continue these attacks because hamas, we're both killing israeli civilians and unfortunately, they're happy with their own casualties because they're focusing their attacks on israel instead of hamas. that's unproductive because what it does,

prolong the conflict and escalate and increase the number of casualties that happen as a result. that was benjamin netanyahu. on the eve of a big step in lockdown easing for much of the uk, there's a warning for people to be cautious because of rising cases of the so—called indian variant of coronavirus. the main change in three nations of the uk from tomorrow is to the rules on indoor gathering and social contact. in england — pubs and restaurants will be allowed to serve people inside, and cinemas, museums, softplay centres and hotels can reopen. groups of six people or two households can meet indoors — and stay overnight. 30 people will be able to gather outdoors. change to the rules in wales

is very similar to england the change to the rules in wales is very similar to england except that outdoors groups of up to 50 will be allowed. in scotland, six people from three households will be able to socialise indoors at home. outdoors it can be eight from up to eight households rising to 12 on most of the islands. alcohol sales indoors will be restricted to 10.30 pm. the changes do not apply to glasgow and moray — which are staying in level three. northern ireland does not see the rules change tomorrow but the situation will be reviewed on thursday with the hope of restrictions being eased in a week's time. our first report is from our political correspondent chris mason. on the eve of life tiptoeing one step closer to normality in england, scotland and wales, this was bolton today. hundreds of people one step closer

to a jab in a hotspot for the so—called indian variant of the virus. no, not that concerned. should be ok with, hopefully, the vaccine to squash it. very concerned, but hopefully with the injections, we'll be fine. do you think the government should continue to open up from tomorrow? yeah, i think as long as everyone's cautious and follows the rules. - yeah, i think it's - important, definitely. of the 18 people in hospital in bolton with the indian variant, most had not had a vaccine. but... there are five people who have ended up in hospital having had one jab, and this is why it's so important to get the second jab. so, nobody who's had two...? well, we think there's one person, but that person was frail. scientists acknowledge there's still a lot they don't know about the variant. we are still quite uncertain about many, many things, | including the effectiveness of the vaccine. _

so, i think it's very. early days, i think it's a very difficult decision. there are two ways you can go — try and stamp on it locally or- try to improve vaccine . coverage across the uk. the clunk of cutlery polished in oxford the night before the day to come, with the health secretary circumspect rather than celebratory about this latest liberalisation of the rules. i'm confident that we can take the step tomorrow, but we should all be careful about how we take that step. so, you asked me about eating indoors with people. it's still safer to eat outdoors rather than in when the weather allows. you asked about hugging people. when people have had both jabs, then it is... that is pretty safe. ministers insist they restricted travel from india as soon as the evidence made that

essential, but labour says the government was to slow. the government was too slow. they should've put india on the red list at the same time as pakistan and as bangladesh. since then, we've had this three—week period in which thousands of people have returned from india, and that probably includes hundreds of the new variant covid cases. from tomorrow, the prospect of a drink without being drizzled on for many, nerves remain about the new variant. but a taste of near normality beckons. chris mason, bbc news. blackburn has been given the go—ahead to rapidly increase vaccinations, according to health officials. the public health director for blackburn with darwen council, says areas where covid is spreading will get additional supplies of the pfizerjab for all residents over the age of 18. last week, blackburn recorded the third highest infection rate in england, with an 89%jump

in cases compared to the previous week. dominic harrison has previously said it was �*illogical�* that the government refused surge vaccinations. for business that can re—open tomorrow, or begin to use their indoor spaces again, it will be a big moment after more than a year of disruption. but many are worried about how they will break even, because of the continuing rules on social distancing. here's our business correspondent, katy austin. getting the ball rolling again. this site's been shut for most of the past year. so if you could clean our new lane dividers, that would be fantastic. the team are in, making sure everything's safe and ready for customers. during the total period of lockdown, it's cost us over 100 million in revenue. the boss of this chain believes people will flock back, but he says challenges remain that firms need help with. with regards to the pent—up rent bills and rent demands, a business like ours,

we've worked very closely with a lot of our landlords, but there are still some landlords that aren't engaged with the mounting rent bills that are around. it's thought only a third of cafes, restaurants and bars have opened for outdoor dining. this group of cafe—bars can't wait to open indoors in england and wales tomorrow, though under government guidelines, it still won't be business as usual. everything is much more military. we're greeting people at the door, we're taking them to their table, table service. we would love to get back to what we do. limits on numbers under social distancing means turning a profit or breaking even will be hard for many. what will make us a lot happier is, the 21st ofjune, we need to see those restrictions lifted because opening on the 17th of may will give us a certain amount of revenue, but we still have half the number of covers in our restaurants that we need to survive. i asked the business secretary what would be done to help businesses with rent debts built up during lockdowns.

the government is working very. closely together with the treasury i and my department to see if we can. come up with an arrangement whereby tenants and landlords can work - together to make sure that this rent issue doesn't cripple businesses. as the lights come back on this week, firms are desperately hoping this lockdown has been the last. katy austin, bbc news. the latest figures on coronavirus showjust over 1,900 new infections recorded in the past 2a hours, and four deaths. in terms of vaccinations, the number of people who had a firstjab has risen above 36 and a half million. or nearly 70% of the uk's adult population. just over 20 million people have now had both doses.

that's getting close to 40% of all adults. we can speak now to dr bharat pankhania, senior clinical lecturer at the university of exeter medical school. thank you forjoining us here on bbc news. a familiarface, thank you forjoining us here on bbc news. afamiliarface, of thank you forjoining us here on bbc news. a familiar face, of course. first off, let's talk about the indiana variant and vaccines. the government says they have confidence that they are effective. what are your thoughts on that? we that they are effective. what are your thoughts on that?— your thoughts on that? we have laboratory _ your thoughts on that? we have laboratory data _ your thoughts on that? we have laboratory data that _ your thoughts on that? we have laboratory data that indicates i your thoughts on that? we have i laboratory data that indicates that the vaccine is not bypassed by the indian variant. the absolute proof will be testing it out in the field, and other words, to see how well it performs out there in the community. that means if people are fully immunised and they get infected by the indian variant, we will know,

and if they're protected by the indian variant, we will also know. so, we've got some way to go to find out absolutely if the vaccines are not bypassed by the variants. idietitian not bypassed by the variants. when we look at the _ not bypassed by the variants. when we look at the case _ not bypassed by the variants. when we look at the case studies - not bypassed by the variants. when we look at the case studies of - we look at the case studies of blackburn, the third—highest infection rate, any 9% in cases they've had —— 89. what's behind that surge? is that the kent variant or the fact that the india variant is in the population? what's behind thatjump? i is in the population? what's behind that “um? ., ., is in the population? what's behind that'um? ., ., , that “ump? i would almost say it is a thatjump? i would almost say it is a combination _ thatjump? i would almost say it is a combination of— thatjump? i would almost say it is a combination of several— thatjump? i would almost say it is a combination of several factors. l a combination of several factors. one, the location and the people who live there. in other words, families, multi—generational households, people working in busy places, those sort of things. as well as, this is important, we feel that the variant emerging from india is potentially more infectious. we

have a perfect combination, unfortunately, of people living in crowded homes, shops, businesses, all those things, as well as a more infectious variant on our hands. more infectious, does that also imply that it will produce a more extreme case of covid—19? i imply that it will produce a more extreme case of covid-19? i hope not, and extreme case of covid-19? i hope not. and this _ extreme case of covid-19? i hope not, and this is _ extreme case of covid-19? i hope not, and this is what _ extreme case of covid-19? i hope not, and this is what i'm - extreme case of covid-19? i hope not, and this is what i'm really i not, and this is what i'm really hoping and wishing for. whilst on the one hand, it may be more infectious, i hope it doesn't translate into more hospital admissions, meaning more disease. having said that, even if it is as normal a disease causing as the previous variant was, we can expect cases to arise. my concerns are in the younger age group, who are yet to be immunised. we the younger age group, who are yet to be immunised.— the younger age group, who are yet to be immunised. we picked up at the india variant — to be immunised. we picked up at the india variant is _ to be immunised. we picked up at the india variant is in _ to be immunised. we picked up at the india variant is in most _ to be immunised. we picked up at the india variant is in most parts - to be immunised. we picked up at the india variant is in most parts of - india variant is in most parts of the uk now. more prevalent in some counties. forthose the uk now. more prevalent in some counties. for those people who are

presenting with the india variant of covid—19, are you able to give us a profile of who they are? have they had a vaccine, how old are they? 50. had a vaccine, how old are they? so, most of the — had a vaccine, how old are they? (so, most of the people had a vaccine, how old are they? 657, most of the people that had a vaccine, how old are they? 6513, most of the people that i had a vaccine, how old are they? 6r3, most of the people that i am aware of are in different parts of the country. lancashire, east of england and places which have a link with india, pakistan, bangladesh. it is spread amongst the local population too. with regard to who is affected, now that we've got an older population who is immunised, we are seeing cases in the younger age groups. so, across the board and the younger age groups, small numbers exceptin younger age groups, small numbers except in lancashire, east of england, where we've got more cases and more cases of that variant rising dramatically. do and more cases of that variant rising dramatically.— and more cases of that variant rising dramatically. do you think the india variant _ rising dramatically. do you think the india variant is _ rising dramatically. do you think the india variant is now- rising dramatically. do you think the india variant is now most - the india variant is now most definitely the dominant strain within the uk? it’s definitely the dominant strain within the uk?— definitely the dominant strain within the uk? �* , within the uk? it's getting there. what i within the uk? it's getting there. what i want _ within the uk? it's getting there.

what i want to _ within the uk? it's getting there. what i want to emphasise - within the uk? it's getting there. what i want to emphasise is - within the uk? it's getting there. | what i want to emphasise is these variants will come and go. you had the kent version, brazilian, south african and now the indian variant. they'll come and go. what we want to do, i was really pleased to see in your report, that in lancashire, they're going to provide extra immunisations as fast as possible. that is the strategy to adapt. wherever the hotspots arise, send in a squad and do extra and valued —— immunisations as soon as possible. that will suppress the numbers. do ou that will suppress the numbers. do you think the government should've implemented the surge vaccinations earlier? . , implemented the surge vaccinations earlier? ., , ., earlier? that is opinion, absolutely. _ earlier? that is opinion, absolutely. i— earlier? that is opinion, absolutely. i think - earlier? that is opinion, absolutely. i think the l earlier? that is opinion, - absolutely. i think the surge immunisation is one good tool we've gotten our hands, and we should use it. especially as we don't know a few more things about this virus, and therefore better to keep it

down. one way, immunised extensively.— down. one way, immunised extensivel . ~ �* ., ., ., extensively. we're hearing now that there are some _ extensively. we're hearing now that there are some areas _ extensively. we're hearing now that there are some areas within - extensively. we're hearing now that there are some areas within the - there are some areas within the united kingdom where they are finding themselves with a surplus of vaccines and offering them to pretty much anybody of a much lower age. does that make sense to you? well. does that make sense to you? well, if there is spare _ does that make sense to you? well, if there is spare vaccine _ does that make sense to you? well, if there is spare vaccine supply, - if there is spare vaccine supply, then they should immunise whoever needs to be immunised. the more people that are immunised, the better we are in a better position, because eventually what happens is an immune population secretes fewer of these particles in the case numbers will go down and stay down, and we will have a protected population. so, if there are any spare vaccines, complete your vaccination course, and if you haven't been immunised yet, please get immunise. it's a good thing to do to protect you. we get immunise. it's a good thing to do to protect you.— get immunise. it's a good thing to do to protect you. we are seeing now that as the rates _

do to protect you. we are seeing now that as the rates of _ do to protect you. we are seeing now that as the rates of some _ do to protect you. we are seeing now that as the rates of some cases - that as the rates of some cases related to the india variants are being described as exponential, that's the concerning turn. when we talk about communicable diseases. how concerned are you about that? and at what point do you think we are going to see a third lockdown? i hope we won't see a third lockdown, and one way to avoid a third lockdown is to do those control measures. what you do is send an extra supplies, extra manpower to do extensive testing, and whoever you find in a case, remove them from circulation, remove your contacts from circulation. immunise the contacts, immunise all the other people and keep a grip on that place and restrict movement in those places. if you do all of those things, as well as the united kingdom is heavily immunise, hopefully we will escape a third lockdown. ~ �* ., ., ., ., lockdown. we're hearing a lot about the ublic lockdown. we're hearing a lot about

the public being _ lockdown. we're hearing a lot about the public being wary _ lockdown. we're hearing a lot about the public being wary of— lockdown. we're hearing a lot about the public being wary of all- lockdown. we're hearing a lot about the public being wary of all this - the public being wary of all this and obviously looking forward to an easing of restrictions tomorrow. from your expertise, is the evolution of the coronavirus normal or are you surprised at the way it's evolved and mutated? it’s or are you surprised at the way it's evolved and mutated?— evolved and mutated? it's such a lovely question _ evolved and mutated? it's such a lovely question because - evolved and mutated? it's such a lovely question because we - evolved and mutated? it's such a | lovely question because we didn't expect the coronavirus per se to mutate so frequently, and the fact that it mutate so frequently, and the fact thatitis mutate so frequently, and the fact that it is mutating so frequently is telling us something, which is we've got a lot of it replicating around the world. so, when you have such a lot of reproductions, so many people, evidently you will get the emergence of variants and the variants that are arising is telling us that the infection and other parts of the country, other parts of the world is not in control and hits the world is not in control and hits the emergence of variants.-

the emergence of variants. doctor bharat, the emergence of variants. doctor bharat. thank _ the emergence of variants. doctor bharat, thank you _ the emergence of variants. doctor bharat, thank you so _ the emergence of variants. doctor bharat, thank you so much. - the emergence of variants. doctor bharat, thank you so much. it's i the emergence of variants. doctor i bharat, thank you so much. it's been fascinating. as ever, we will be finding out that the story and many others are being covered in tomorrow because my front pages. our guests joining me tonight are lizzy buchan, the political correspondent, daily mirror and matt dathan, the deputy political editorfor the sun. the parents of george hinds — the two—year old who died the two—year—old who died following a suspected gas explosion in lancashire — have paid tribute to theirson, calling him a beautiful little angel. at least two houses in heysham were destroyed in the blast in the early hours of this morning, and several others were badly damaged. paul murphy has the latest. from above, the incredible force of this explosion is apparent. two homes were destroyed, many more have been damaged.

debris is scattered across the neighbourhood. residents described the blast atjust after 2:30am this morning as something that felt like an earthquake. it sounded like a bomb going off this morning just after two o'clock and it literally shook the whole bed. we felt like we were going through the floor and then we jumped out of bed and wejust ran, just to see what was going on. it's just awful. this evening, the child who died has been named as two—year—old george hinds. his parents were both injured, but not seriously. another man and a woman are critically ill in hospital. around 30 residents were evacuated overnight to a nearby leisure centre. some of them must now wait while their damaged homes are safety checked. many residents are still in their houses or have gone to friends, so it's quite a small number of people who are actually at the evacuation centre at the moment, but it is there if people needed. as fire investigators

begin their work, george hinds' parents said they were devastated at the loss of their beautiful and precious son and had no words to describe how they were feeling. paul murphy, bbc news, heysham. police are investigating video footage appearing to show anti—semitic language being shouted from a convoy of cars in london. footage on social media showed cars covered with palestinian flags, with passengers shouting offensive language. boris johnson wrote on twitter: police in glasgow have made 28 arrests after an estimated 15,000 rangers fans gathered to celebrate the team's league victory,

in violation of covid rules and several days of clear warnings. later there was violence in the city centre, where 5 police officers were injured. our scotland correspondent jamie mcivor reports. it should have been a day all rangers fans would remember for the right reasons, a famous victory over aberdeen to end a season when they'd gone unbeaten. outside ibrox, fans gathered to celebrate. then they made their way to the city centre. and in the city centre, the party atmosphere went sour. it was the biggest gathering in scotland since the first lockdown despite pleas to stay away from players, politicians and police. it's bad enough, first of all, that they gathered despite that advice, but the scenes we saw last night work and put the unacceptable. drunkenness, loutish behaviour, thuggishness — it will not be tolerated on the streets of glasgow.

and this morning, the hangover. scotland's biggest civic space showed the scars. some rangers fans felt sheer disgust. i'm kind of fed up of hearing how the club should have done more. you're never going to stop idiots who come out, a bit of fresh air, bit of alcohol, probably normal behaviour, to be honest, for some of them. others understood why fans had wanted to celebrate together, although they were horrified by what happens later. you've had folk that have been through a pandemic for a year. you know, they're sort of released, | the first—order football experience. j the trouble happened close to the city's main shopping areas. at this upmarket clothes shop, they were clearing the mess outside. it's quite disappointing that yesterday we had to close the store earlyjust for health and safety. on twitter, the first minister didn't mince her words. she condemned the violence, the vandalism and what she called "the vile anti—catholic prejudice" on display.

the council leader shared that discuss and was also worried for the good name of the city. this is not glasgow. it doesn't represent glasgow, but the fact is, this has happened twice now in as many months. it is completely unacceptable and it cannot continue. it needs to stop. police are defending how they handled the situation. fans were warned many times not to gather. football rivalries in glasgow run deep, yet rangers have often brought pride to the city. yesterday, some of their fans brought disgrace. janie mcivor, bbc news, glasgow. jamie mcivor, bbc news, glasgow. has lockdown left you yearning for the wild outdoors? well, if it has, there may be a job out there that's just for you. st michael's mount, a remote island only accessible by boat or at low—tide, is advertising for a live—in employee to work at its medieval castle. andrea ormsby has been to find out more.

they say an englishman's home is his castle. well, st michael's mount is quite literally that for around 30 people. now there's room for one more, a live—in castle officer. we've had an overwhelming response, which has been fantastic. we need people who are happy with boats, happy with heights. i just think a real passion for people coming to cornwall or the tourism industry really. newsreel: here in the west, where the cornish coast flings sheltering i on against the atlantic in ireland where loneliness is only another| on against the atlantic is an island where loneliness is only another. name for enchantment. st michael's mount has been capturing the imagination for years. i'm the castle steward, and i've been living here for around two years now. what i love about the mount is having a sea view from every window and having the support of the community around you. everyone is really friendly here, and the challenge of living here — it's different from living on the mainland.

you can't get a takeaway pizza to your door, so be prepared for that. if you can cope with that, have good sea legs and fancy a pretty cool address, this might be what you need to hear. don't be scared to apply. i think a lot of people on the socials last night was saying, "it's my dream job but i couldn't do this or that." don't be put off by that. it will probably be one of the most life changing experiences for someone to come over. there's no official closing date, but interest has already been huge. andrea ormsby, bbc news. it's whether time. hello. whilst it's been a dry and sunny day for a few of you, for others, there's been some intense showers and thunderstorms and there are more to come again on monday, some of the worst of them in slightly different areas to where we saw through today. still some sunshine in between and whilst we've got the showers around at the moment, some of them will fade through the night, but there

will be some continuing, particularly across parts of england and central scotland.